Category Archives: Homeschool Tips

What’s in the box? First Grade

Written on November 14, 2011 by in 170 School Days. 2011, Homeschool Tips
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I am a HUGE fan of the workbox system. We found it the first year we home schooled and have never looked back. We tweaked it a bit this year. Instead of putting all of my first grader’s core curriculum in her boxes, I use her boxes for independent work. Her day goes like this.

8:15-10:30 Work with me.

10:30-11:00 Snack/ break/ outside time

11:00-12:30 Workboxes ~independently

12:30-1:00 Lunch/break/outside time

1:00-2:30 Work with me.

We follow along through our day governed more by following the project order, rather then sticking exactly to the clock. However, it usually ends up pretty close to the same.

During workbox time for Emma, I try to stick to only things that she can do independently or with just a question or two. I love seeing her create an independence with her schoolwork and really grab a hold of following instructions and processes. Two things that sometimes I fear may be lost while homeschooling.

In each box you will see a colored popsicle stick. We have a class store. Sometimes I go crazy with passing out sticks. Not very often, but tomorrow there will be a very happy little girl. They never know when sticks pop up out of no where. At the end of the month they get to spend their sticks from our class store.

Box #1

Pattern blocks from Lakershore Learning.

Box #2

Box #3

I found this from a fabulous teacher’s blog somewhere. I can’t remember where! If this is yours let me know so I can give you a shout out :) But seriously….how cute is it?

Box #4

Box #5

Box #6

All About Me Poster found at the Dollar Store.

Box #7

Box #8

A page from Telling Time with Judy Clocks.

Box #9

Box #10

Time to practice her memory verses for the week.

Again her workboxes vary GREATLY from day to day. Sometimes they are more relaxed fun projects. Sometimes they directly supplement what we have learned that morning. I care more about her being successful in completing these boxes on her own, following all of the directions of how to do each box, etc. rather then necessarily how “difficult” each box can be. It has been working great this year! This little girl tends to be the one that wants me at her beck and call ALL day, so this has been a major improvement for us so far.

Happy Monday!

I Had Better…

Written on November 1, 2011 by in 170 School Days. 2011, Homeschool Tips
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As I have learned more about this ginormous undertaking we call homeschool, I have become increasingly burdened. Not burdened in a I need to have this burden removed because I can’t breathe kind of way, but rather an oh my gosh I think I understand the enormity of what it is I am actually doing kind of a way.

In essence when you send your kids to school, you thoughtfully choose a school, or sometimes prayerfully endure the one in your own neighborhood. In both of those situations you are trusting your child’s education to others. Most of the time there is a wonderful outcome. Schools are full of wonderful caring people who have devoted their lives to educating children. After almost three years of homeschool, I have a new found appreciation for them. Not that I didn’t before, I just honestly really didn’t think too much about it. Teachers don’t become teachers for the paycheck, right? I think it is safe to say that a high majority have a passion for educating children. Yay teachers!!!

Then I think about homeschooling. It is easy to get caught up in the cute factor. The stuff, the curriculum, the planning, the blogging, the pictures, and all the rest. It is easy to get caught up in the I AM GOING TO DECIDE WHAT TO TEACH MY CHILD. There are many methods, many viewpoints, many reasons for homeschooling, and many many many choices. Then on top of that there is a household to run, errands to do, sinks to clean, meals to cook, children to clothe, doctors to visit, teeth to be cleaned, and soooo much more. Then there is that inner voice that some days is screaming I NEED A BREAK. What to do about that????

Prayer, prespective, self discipline, and a huge amount of self sacrifice must be ever present in my day. For I am responsible for my child’s education. Their EDUCATION. It is going to shape them as an adult and hinder their lives or move it forward. It is not something that can be shoved in or caught up. It must be the focus of our school days. It is not something to be taken lightly. It is an incredible responsibility that I pray I understand and never give less then my all. I am thankful that I have God to direct my path, a husband who supports me, and friends who understand and encourage me. May the thing that we embarked on as an adventure to help them never become something that ended up hindering them.

The decision to homeschool is the beginning of the journey, not the end. It is where the hard work BEGINS.

I had better take it seriously, prayerfully, and whole heartedly. My children deserve it and are worth my best.

It’s a wonderful life.

Week Three.

Written on September 22, 2011 by in 170 School Days. 2011, Curriculum, Homeschool Tips
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School is going incredibly well this year, so far. My 12 year old son informed me that he still hates school “no offense”, but it is SO much better this year. That’s a complement from an incredibly tough critic. I’ll take it.

I love most of our curriculum this year. The only thing I do not like is our Monarch history curriculum from Alpha Omega. It is non returnable and so we are stuck with it….for the year only. Then I will switch. We have had horrible customer service and it is a very unfriendly program to both set up and manage. That is our only nightmare, so far. Not too shabby.

Everything else has been great. The teacher’s handbooks all make sense to my brain this year. BIG PLUS. They all have a lot of extra ideas included to make things more engaging. It works.

A lot of what we are doing is pretty hands on stuff which has been great too.

{We take small breaks during math to build giant towers. No, that is not in the lesson plan.}

One of my favorite changes we made this year is switching to Explode the Code. It’s funny. Read these sentences. Look at the pictures. I like to be entertained while reviewing phonics.

Not to mention this inevitably sparks super important conversations such as how Jim can manage to actually sit on a pan. Does he have a tiny rear or an overly large pan? We can only speculate….

This year, I began making lunches the night before. It has been something that I have thought about for a couple years, but never done. Primarily because at night I’m too tired. However, kids love eating out of lunch boxes. It’s fun. Now my crew is no longer deprived of the fun of opening a lunch box and finding their surprise lunch inside. More importantly, it is an incredible time saver. When lunchtime arrives, the kids all go grab their boxes out of the fridge and usually head outside. I can clean up from the morning, feed the baby, and get ready for any afternoon activities without having to stop and feed the masses.

Anything that can get done ahead of time makes for a smoother day. Along those lines, I discovered this year that someone became crazy brilliant and created lab kits of popular curriculums. Homeschooling becomes very challenging, financially speaking, when you dive into the world of science and art. You may need a bottle cap, a drop of green food coloring, a 6 inch string, and a pink balloon. Seems easy until you realize you can’t buy those things in those quantities. Enter the brilliant person. I purchased lab kits for all three of my kids to use for Apologia science.

The supplies come in baggies for each lesson…LABELED! Pinch me I’m dreaming.

I have tried to set up any system that will make life easier. For example, we are using a lot of library books this year. A basket has been put in the classroom for all library books.

I put a folder inside that I use simply to clip my checkout receipt to. This way I can keep track of which books need to go back to the library! I hate library fines.

The addition of Emma entering a full day of first grade curriculum and my little one being mobile has brought about a lot more work this year for me, but it’s working…

…and it’s all worth it in the end.

2011-2012 Curriculum Plan

Written on April 26, 2011 by in 170 School Days. 2010, Curriculum, Homeschool Tips
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I purchased almost all of my curriculum through Rainbow Resource. After a lot of research, I found their prices to be the best….by far. I feel like this is pretty early to have done. HOWEVER, I really want my summer OFF with no thoughts of school. I have a lot of planning to do and I need time to get it DONE! SO, the tax refund arrived and the shopping began! I am sure there will be tweaks, as usual. I went completely eclectic this year.  I researched a lot of different curriculums, asked a lot of questions, and read a lot of reviews. I spent time praying about it and this is the result.

 

First Grade

Phonics  - Explode the Code

Reading – A beka readers. We were able to borrow tons of these for lots of daily reading.

Spelling – A Reason for Spelling

Penmanship – A Reason for Handwriting

Vocabulary -Wordly Wise

Creative Writing- Just Write

Math -Horizons

Science-Apologia Astronomy

Geography/History- Expedition Earth

Bible & Art – Both are integrated through some of the above curriculums

Sixth Grade

Reading -Unit Studies, one book per quarter and daily reading of their choice.

Vocab/Spelling – Wordly Wise

Grammar -Not Boring Middle School Grammar

Creative Writing- Stack the Deck

Math – Teaching Textbooks

Science-Apologia Astronomy

Geography/History- Monarch, Expedition Earth

Art -Global Art

Bible- Positive Action WISE UP

Seventh Grade

Reading -Unit Studies, one book per quarter and daily reading of their choice.

Vocab/Spelling – Wordly Wise

Grammar -Not Boring Middle School Grammar

Creative Writing- Stack the Deck

Math – Teaching Textbooks

Science-Apologia General Science

Geography/History- Monarch, Expedition Earth

Art -Global Art

Bible- Positive Action WISE UP

 

Other cool things I found:

Track weather and continued calendar practice for my 1st grader with THIS.

My drawing loving 10 year old loves this find.

Clock learning. {apparently I am finding this is well known and common, but since I am new at all of this, this is new to me}

If you want prepackaged science experiment kits that correlate to popular science curriculum, enter your science curriculum in the search box here or here and you will find a box of all the goodies you need without having to gather them all up. This may seem ridiculous to spend money on some of these common household items. However, believe me with 4 kids and a dog running around…this money is well spent. Something as simple as 5 minutes to grab a few things may turn into 15 minutes and ultimately may keep us from doing the experiment after all. Ask me how I know that?

 

We are on the countdown to summer over here! 23 days of school left, curriculum boxes arriving for next year, the classroom getting a makeover to become more functional, we got real LOCKERS from my sis’s old craigslist find, and we will be done by June 2nd so we can spend the summer PLAYING…

Horse camp, robot camp, VBS, musical theatre, soccer, the lake, family get away, slip n slide, and a secret hope that I get to see the ocean this summer…

For now I am living each day with my antihistime Visine in hand, trying to get through spring and these ridiculous central valley allergies. Hurry up summer!

 




The Early Bird.

Written on March 9, 2011 by in 170 School Days. 2010, Homeschool Tips
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I am currently cleaning out the classroom cupboards. In week 23 of school, it’s overdue! Getting re~organized is energizing!

I am also planning for next year. It’s early I know, but we use part of our tax refund to purchase our homeschool curriculum, so curriculum shopping happens in the spring. This way I can also try to take the summer completely off. I try to be {mostly} ready for the following year by the end of the current year. I am currently in shopping mode. I love to plan and organize. It’s fabulous.

Some of my favorite school related finds {some new and some tried and true}

1. CHICKEN WIRE WALL ~ are you kidding me? I am extremely disappointed that I did not think of this a long time ago! I have multiple frames with chicken wire adorning my house. FORGET THE FRAMES…let’s cover the whole dang wall! Check it out here.  Ashley~ you may just be my new hero. My school classroom thanks you. I am still trying to recover from the fact I can’t do a chalkboard wall due to my overly textured walls. This may truly help ease the pain. I can smather the wall with yummy art projects, project helps, and anything else I want to at the pinch of a clothes pin.

2. DROPS IN THE BUCKET ~ still checkin’ this out. Looks great.

3. SUPER TEACHER ~ This website is crazy amazing for FREE and I’m in love. I use the workbox method so I am always always looking for fun extras or just different from the curriculum extras to add to the kids boxes.

4. CONFESSIONS OF A HOMESCHOOLER ~ This glorious woman must have a closet full of capes that she wears daily. I love her ideas. If you want inspiration in one place…do not walk, run here. I had heard of the workboxes before, but when I read her post on it, it became tangible to do. She has a new geography curriculum out that I am going to jump on board with next year.

5. IKR DESIGNS ~ This is a shameless plug for my sissy’s Etsy store. I received this candle for Christmas and I tell ya, I read it multiple times a day. It’s a must for my school room. Thankfully it’s battery operated and on a timer, so I won’t be practicing any STOP DROP and ROLL drills in the near future.

5. DOWNLOAD N GO~ These are just plain fun and educational too. We are just starting our second one. I picked chocolate! They are purchased, printed, and ready to go. I will be posting on this when we are through! These are such fun supplements to our curriculum. The kids LOVE. We did a pizza one last year.

6. PROJECTS TO TRY~ I want to do this and this.

7. MAKE YOUR OWN ~ I love that you can go here to the free resources section and make up your own word finds, writing practice sheets, awards, and more. I made a word search for my six year old with the names of all her friends. She was quite amazed at my teacher skills.

8. TEACHING TEXTBOOKS ~ I am so glad I found them last year. They have saved my children from having to purchase a math for dummies book when they are grown.

9. EXPLODE THE CODE ~ I am swayed by great covers of books. I admit it. These are really cute books. In addition to being educationally sound and all of that other stuff. blah, blah, blah. I had my kinder do the demos last night for the online option of this curriculum and I couldn’t get her off the computer! I plan to use this for our phonics next year.

10. MY MASTER PLAN ~ I purchased Sonlight last year. It is a great curriculum, just not for us. It went back to them in a pretty little mail truck after about 12 weeks of using it. I am bummed because I was super excited about it. Don’t be afraid to try new things. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. No big deal! I could not wrap my head around all of it. Thankfully they have a learning to love guarantee and I was refunded 100%. What I did learn from them is absolutely invaluable and it is very simple. A method for organizing.

I have a giant binder with dividers labeled 1-36. This is for 36 weeks of school. Last year I was trying to bite off the whole year with no real way to break it down. This simple mind shift has been a great way to function this year. Every single thing that I am doing for the week of school has been ripped out, printed out, or hole punched and placed in the binder accordingly. At the beginning of the week I take out the whole section for the week and put it on my handy dandy {and ridiculously cute} clipboard. It just works.

I swore I would never homeschool with an eclectic mix of curriculum. It seemed so overwhelming at the time. With input from teacher friends, checking of state standards, and many conversations with other homeschool mom’s, I am happy to report that I am wading my way through the endless oceans of curriculum options and finding ones that truly work and inspire not only my littles, but me as well.

Happy School planning to all and to all a good night.

 

 

What’s Working…Schedule.

Written on October 5, 2010 by in 170 School Days. 2010, Homeschool Tips
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One of the things that freaked me out a LOT last year was how much less time it seemed to get our work done at home versus how many hours they were at school. It didn’t seem that I was doing enough. Once I figured in all the extras at a school campus including, recess, line up times, lunch, waiting for the whole class to be done, etc. I calmed down. I have restled with scheduling a lot, perhaps more than anything else. It’s tough to find a balance.

How do other mom’s handle it?

Do the kids need a rigid schedule?

Do they not?

Do I?

You can imagine all the questions and options.

I think I fall somewhere in the middle. For right now, in my ninth month of pregnancy…this is what we are doing and for this season it works great.

First problem to battle for me is I am NOT A MORNING PERSON. I can try and try to be one but I am not. So, I have fallen into this routine and it works good for all of us involved.

The standing rule in our house forever has been no one is allowed out of bed until 7 a.m….If they wake up before this, they can read, play, or do something quiet on their beds. It’s my personal favorite rule of our household. It’s always been this way and it is followed by all.

SO, remember our chore chart? It took a break over the summer, but it has returned…new and improved. Now the kids are required to have their chores done (usually 2 a piece), breakfast eaten, and be up and dressed by 8:30. I then have quiet time to get up and get dressed with some peace and quiet for myself. It works great. We then begin school shortly after that. I usually put a list of the independent assignments, along with a couple worksheets for my 6 year old, on the school table before I go to bed. This allows me to get some wash started, return emails, or take an extra long time to get ready in the morning. Then when I am awake, we complete the assignments together that need to be done in that way. Sometimes at about 9:30 we hit the park for a break for them and more time for my brain to begin functioning and then return home ready to dig into school. We usually have our school day completed by 2:00.

What used to happen was the kids would wake up around 7 and hit the t.v….then I would come down stairs at about 8:30 or 9:00 ready to go, only to find 3 slugs laying on my couch with bed heads and jammies. It was frustrating for everyone. This year with giving them the chores and morning routine, it keeps them occupied and helps us all begin our day a whole lot calmer. Everyone knows what is expected of them. That is the key.

I try to balance my interaction with them, with independent time. I feel both are super important. I do try and shake up the schedule to keep some variety and interest, but keep it structured enough that they have some expectations to follow. It’s a big fat balancing act for sure. One that almost certainly will never be perfected.

Again I think it’s key to try different things and figure out what works for you. There doesn’t seem to be a right or wrong way to do this and I think it is safe to expect that things will constantly be changing. I have accepted now that it is part of the drill and it has really released a lot of stress from my day.

One thing that has been top priority for me this year is to abort the words HURRY UP from my life. I hate them. If we plan well and stay on top of things, that will allow us plenty of time to get things done and get places we need to be. Then hopefully, those words should be spoken few and far between.

What’s Working…Curriculum.

Written on October 4, 2010 by in 170 School Days. 2010, Curriculum, Homeschool Tips
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Knowledge is power they say. I agree. I have heard so many people say that they learn more about themselves while homeschooling then potentially what the kids learn. I agree with that too. I have definitely figured out after just 18 months (yes, I’m a quick learner) that there is no one way to homeschool. However, I should have known because there is usually not one right way for a lot of things in life. In the beginning, I used to see an idea, read a blog, or a book, and immediately try to implement that glorious plan into my household only to find it was a disaster for me. All was not a total loss, however, because failure is definitely part of learning and growing. It should not be feared. Do not freeze up because you do not know which way to go. Curriculum can be returned (or sold on Ebay), systems can be changed, furniture can be re arranged, chore charts can be thrown out, and craft projects can be repurposed. You never know what kind of fabulous can be created until you try.

Over the next few days I am going to be posting on what is working and what isn’t. Not just in school land but in our house in general. I have been thinking about how things are going lately. A lot has changed since last school year when God allowed us the blessing of picking our lives up, shaking them all around, and flipping them upside down. I have had plenty of failures and successes. They are both equally important.

Curriculum…

I had an original curriculum plan. Some aspects worked some did not. Sonlight has by far the best guarantee and return options that I have seen and Ebay has helped me out too. I have taken advantage of them both. I have made changes and things are working great for us right now.

Emma~

Most subjects are A beka.  I decided last minute, last spring, to go ahead and try Handwriting Without Tears through Sonlight. The program personally caused me tears. Too much for my taste. I returned the $80 program through Sonlight and went back to the $15 writing through A beka. There are no tears around here from either of us now. Yay, because that is that important.

Bible~ I do not personally find the Bible through A Beka to be something that fits for us. We chose to go with POSITIVE ACTION. The worksheets at this level go with Bible stories that I easily look up in her children’s Bible and read to her. We do one a week. I did not order the teacher’s guide for this. I didn’t find it necessary.

I love everything we are doing for Kindergarten right now. The bright colorful worksheets from A Beka make us both happy. I love the content. It works for us. I did not order most of the lesson plan books. I tried one, but sold it on Ebay because I waited too long to return it. At the Kindergarten level it is fairly basic to plan this stuff out and I saved a bunch of money this way. My organizing system this year ROCKS for me…more about that another day.

Taylor and Cameron~

Spelling~ A Beka….traditional type lists and tests. One lesson a week. Inexpensive. LOVE!

Read and Thinks~ A Beka….The kids actually enjoy these. Timed stories with comprehension tests. One a week. Again Inexpensive. LOVE!

Bible~ I returned Sonlight and went with POSITIVE ACTION. Sonlight looked fine, but it was a devotional type book similar to what the kids have and do on their own before bed anyway. We love Positive Action.

Language Arts/History ~ Sonlight. I LOVE these products. I LOVE Sonlight’s customer service. I particularly the writing curriculum. There are very creative ideas that beautifully reinforce otherwise potentially boring writing concepts. I did supplement the grammar exercises with a work book that I found at Lakeshore for just $9.95. As for history, the kids have read a ton of books already this year and are completely enjoying this style of learning. The girls also completely enjoyed that the box the Sonlight products were shipped to us in because it was a craft project. A castle waiting for some crafty touches! I’m totally impressed with the little things.

Science~ I completed 6 weeks of Sonlight Science and it all went back to them last week, for a full refund of $250. While I thought it was o.k. I was not impressed. The biggest issue I had with it, is while although it was “God Based” it was by no means written in a way that ever mentioned God one time in the six weeks we used it. A Beka science is completely God integrated throughout the material and for science, in particular, that is a priority for me. Shiny new A Beka science curriculum is on its way to me as we speak. In the interim, I am doing a 7 week A Beka Health course that I never finished last year that actually is part of their science package. So, it all worked out great.

Math~ Teaching Textbooks. I absolutely could not love this more and even better my kids love it. They literally ask me to do math now. It is a complete online curriculum that even tracks the grades for you. It’s brilliant. It’s a bit pricey, but honestly worth every single penny.

Electives~ Cooking, art, park/library…we aim for one of these each, one time a week.

Extracurricular~ Currently Awana and Football. We LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Field Trips~ see our plan here.

More to come…

Field Trips.

Written on September 19, 2010 by in 170 School Days. 2010, Curriculum, Homeschool Tips
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There are so so many options for field trips that it kind of hurts my head. How often should we go? Do they HAVE to match what your studying? If so, I have three different curriculums, so which one should it match? You know, all those new home school mom questions. So, this year I decided to bag all the questions and just go on field trips. My goal was one a month. I spent quite a while researching websites and finding interesting places to go that hopefully wouldn’t break the bank. Once I compiled my overall list, I chose the ones that fit this year the best and committed. Last year, I had all the best of intentions and life just got too busy and they never seemed to happen. This year I have given the kids a list of where we are going and when and I have them all in my planner as well. This way we can all look forward to them.

I have noticed that most places have some kind of home school discount or free day…even Disneyland. Imagine that. I emailed some homeschool friends on some of them to get group discount rates and take advantage of tours and things. Not to mention, it’s just all more fun with friends along!

My overall budget for the whole year is $382. That is the cost for myself and the kids and on occasion my husband is joining us. Considering that includes an overnight trip and 10 additional field trips for 4-5 people…I am pretty pleased!

Sep. OLD SCHOOLHOUSE  ($2)

Oct. MAGIC CIRCLE THEATRE/ CHARLOTTE’S WEB LIVE ON STAGE  ($20)

HIGH HILL RANCH~ APPLE HILL  ($20)

Nov. SKY HIGH JUMP ($15)

Jan. EXPLORIT SCIENCE MUSEUM (Free)

Feb  FREE MUSEUM DAY (TBD~Sacramento has a city wide free museum day, so we will choose when it gets closer)

March  CA RAILROAD MUSEUM (Free)

April     CA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE IN SAN FRANCISCO ($75)

May      6TH GRADE OVERNIGHT TRIP ON THE U.S.S. HORNET FOR MY OLDEST SON AND HUSBAND ($200)

GIRLS SLUMBER PARTY FOR THE REST OF US! ($20)

May       CROCKER ART MUSEUM (free)

June      BOWLING/LUNCH FOR LAST DAY OF SCHOOL ($30)

I am sure it will vary slightly as the year goes along, but it is so nice to have a plan that is reasonable. If I had my way, everyday would be a “field trip” somewhere!

Day 135. Real Simple Chore Chart.

Written on May 11, 2010 by in 170 School Days. 2009., Homeschool Tips, My home
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I have always held some grand aspirations of beautiful chore charts hanging in my home. I am able to keep up with them for a week or two at best, but life is usually too chaotic and I get sidetracked and we stop the chart. Things have changed after months of homeschooling. First and foremost is WE ARE HOME. I have wondered at times over the past couple years why we pay for this house? It seems as though we are never in it, except to sleep. I didn’t realize at the time, the one good thing about that was, it hardly got dirty.

It’s a little different story around here now. Two adults, three children with one more on the way, and a two year old yorkie live here in this house A N D ….someone or something is home around the clock. One of the first pieces of practical advice I received when crossing into homeschool land was that your house better be cleaned and organized because it was going to be used like never before. Boy is that true. After all, it is called homeschool for a reason.

I heard a concept recently called the  Partial Chore mentality that kind of clicked it all into place for me. It states that you rarely get an uninterrupted opportunity to clean the entire house at one time. Why not do a little bit at a time? Your whole house may never be clean at the same time, but it’s never going to be all the way dirty at the same time either. So, this brilliant statement got me thinking. In the past, part of my hesitation of having the kids help is that they are kids and can’t get the cleaning done up to the standards that I want it. It was then that I realized, I rarely get to the cleaning at the “high standards” that I want it. So, why not have the kids pitch in and help? While the house isn’t going to be clean up to my standards, it isn’t going to be dirty all the way to the bottom of my standards either.

This new found thinking combined with my new found lifestyle where we live IN and enjoy our home has brought about the need for a change. The kids have always helped with chores, but only when I have asked. Life changed last week. Mine for the better, their’s for the worse, they say.

It all came down to a calendar on an end cap at Target. It is part of the REAL SIMPLE collection. It is priced at 10.99 and is now our chore chart. I hung a bulletin board in the hall by the kids rooms and put this glorious creation right on it in plain view. After about 45 minutes, I had laid out chores for the entire month for the kids. Each child has their own color. Cameron~blue. Taylor~green. Emma~ brown. These chores are in addition to the regular make your bed, pick up your stuff, kind of chores. These chores can be done at any point during the day, on their time, but I will not be reminding them daily. They will not receive any cash for completing them and failure to do complete them correctly, has some serious consequences.

What if you “forget”, or “couldn’t find the time” to do them? No problem, you are forgiven. However, you will do them the next day, in addition, to that day’s chores AND go to bed 30 minutes early. If you do the chores poorly…you will redo them and go to bed 15 minutes early as well. This is the first month we are at this and this is undoubtedly going to have a little bit of  a learning curve. I am sure it will be adjusted some. However, I LOVE that this is a once a month commitment on my part to maintain the chart part and it provides me with the flexibility to change from day to day what I have them do, if needed.

I have high hopes for this….REALLY HIGH. This morning I walked out of my room to find my 12 year old emptying the trash…ALL ON HIS OWN. Ironically, as I finish up typing this my 9 year old skipped in with Windex and a roll of paper towels to wipe down my bath for me. PINCH ME…I MUST BE DREAMING.

How do you handle the chore situation in your home?

Now there are just 35 school days left until summer.

Day 110. A Project A Piece.

Written on March 26, 2010 by in 170 School Days. 2009., Grown Up Crafts, Homeschool Tips
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The kids favorite part of school is doing experiments and projects. It doesn’t matter what the subject. They enjoy the hands on learning a lot.  We are currently working on the following:

First, I have started Bible Memory Verses with my 5 year old. She can’t read yet, but Abeka has these great Memory Verse cards for preschoolers. The pictures become the prompts for her verses. Her first one is

“I am fearfully and wonderfully made” Psalm 139:14

She walks around saying this all day. I hope this penetrates into her heart and mind…forever. Wouldn’t it be great if we could all live the day to day, with this as the truth of the foundation of our souls? How would we be different?

Next is my 11 year old son. Grandma gave us a Chia professor. Creepy? Uh huh. Perfect for a 11 year old boy. It lives in the classroom, thank goodness. The reviews say that he will grow a mullet first. Oh, how I hope so. An Einsteen Chia with a mullet. Brilliant.

Finally my 9 year old daughter is growing stalactites. This truly amazed me. Maybe I am too easily entertained, but you should try this. It’s crazy. This picture is after three days.

Here’s how you can do this…take two glass jars. Fill with warm water and baking soda. Keep adding baking soda until there is enough that it will no longer dissolve in the water when stirring. Next, take a piece of yarn and tie a paper clip on each end. Place the ends of the yarn in the two jars with a plate or something to catch the extra crystals underneath. You don’t dip the yarn in the water mixture…it does this on it’s own. The water creeps up through the yarn. Creeping crystals? What’s not to love. If you wanna get a little out of control, then try adding some food coloring to the water too. We will do that next.

This may be common knowledge to most, maybe I just didn’t pay attention in science. Whatever the case, I find this pretty fascinating. It happened so very quickly.

Now there are just 60 school days left until summer.

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