Now THIS is homeschooling...

I say that when...

...the kids are quietly (or loudly) working on their artwork.

...the boys get to dive into their interests, explore and grow the talents that God has given them.

...one child is engrossed in a book and the other is working hard on his multiplication.

...the Espressos build a fort in their room and stock it with "things" that they'll "need".

...we are all reading and digging in to the meaning of a Bible verse.

...the guys decide that they want to cook something and do a GREAT job!

...the boys are exploring around a museum on a school day.

...our family is taking a nature walk ~ giggling all the way ~ and we discover something cool!

...Espresso (13) is sitting on the nursery floor with his cousin (6) building a structure out of blocks.

...Double Espresso (10) is having a conversation with some adult about a basketball team.

...the boys have taken over doing their own laundry from start to finish and love it! (I don't get that one!)

...the kids are excited when we get out our study of Ancient Greece ~ and their mama is too!

...our family gets to eat lunch together at the table everyday.

...the kids have a question about anything under the sun (like where do hiccups come from) and we are able to dig in and find out the answer right when they ask the question.

Now, THAT'S homeschooling!

What is homeschooling to you?

Exploracise ~ GyMathtics!

GyMathtics is a DVD that combines exercise and math! GyMathtics helps to get the wiggles out! (Great for kids 2nd - 5th grade!)

What will the kids do?

*Shape Stretches Warm Up ~ while talking/learning about shapes, parallel lines, etc.
*Counting Calisthenics ~ while counting
*Pattern Power ~ strengthening muscles while repeating patterns
*Well-Being Wind Downs ~ relaxing stretches while thinking about healthy choices

The box says that kids will want to do the DVD "again and again". That was true with my 5th grader!

Once I got this DVD out in the middle of a school day, Espresso wanted to do the whole thing over and over. He absolutely loves to take a break from his "studies" and get some energy out. Not only that, he was excited to see some math concepts talked about that he is currently learning such as: acute and obtuse angles, intersecting lines, and polygons.

See GyMathtics in action:


You can order GyMathtics for $24.99

This 30 minute exercise routine can be used in several ways. One way that we like to do it is in between subjects or when taking a break from projects. Espresso will turn on the DVD for a few minutes, gets some wiggles out and go back to work. Later, he turns it on again and does the stretches at the end.

We are so glad that TOS Crew had us review this DVD!

Disclaimer: I do not get paid to review products. I gladly review products for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine.

Foreign Language

Foreign languages can be difficult for a parent to teach a child if the parent doesn't yet know the language! Because of this "minor" hurdle, I will also be learning the foreign language.

We will begin to study Hebrew. My reasons vary but, if the language was important enough for God to have the original people on this earth speak it, then... it's important! Also, the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and that is important too!

Hear the Hebrew alphabet (aleph bet) pronounced

Also on that page are free downloads of flashcards, alphabet practice pages and "Let's Sing It" for kids!

Hebrew For Christians also has a FREE homeschool unit! Hebrew Curriculum Unit 1

Hebrew Worksheets for Kids

Find your name in Hebrew

Hebrew Made Easy (Jewish not Christian)

This is all I have found so far. If you have resources, please share!

AVKO (huh...?)

AVKO Educational Research Foundation: A non-profit organization devoted to helping teachers, parents, and researchers since 1974.

"AVKO's mission is to provide free and low cost resources to home and school
educators in order to achieve literacy for all even despite learning
challenges or dyslexia. Articles, videos, catalogs, blogs, language arts,
curriculum, and curriculum consultations are just a few of our resources."

Don McCabe is the Research Director of AVKO Educational Research Foundation
and he is a delightfully, funny man! You will find his sense of humor
in many of his books. He has made his autobiography available on the AVKO
website.

I was asked to review the one year membership for AVKO. The basic membership is $25 a year. With that, you will receive:

*A 25% discount on all AVKO printed materials
*Tons of free eBooks
*Access to the members only section which includes: Instructional Ideas, Humorous eBooks, Supplemental Curriculum, Workshop Recordings, and much more
*AVKO Newsletter

Some of the workshop recordings that I appreciate are:
*Spelling -- Accentuate the Positive; Eliminate the Negative
*You Don't Need a Master's Degree to Teach Your Kids -- Just a Degree of Caring

One thing that I think could be improved is the look of the website. This foundation has so much to offer; the website should reflect the wonderful programs and books.

I purchased the Sequential Spelling curriculum and love it. This review isn't about the spelling program but I would like to encourage you to check it out!

I do appreciate all that AVKO has to offer!

Disclaimer: I do not get paid to review products. I receive the product for free, through The Old Schoolhouse Crew. Thank you Old Schoolhouse!

Homeschooled children learn by...

...making mistakes! That's right!

Calling all control freak helpful, busy efficient, "it'll get done better if I do it myself" relaxed, homeschool moms!

Sometimes kids NEED to make mistakes. If I were to stand over my kids every time they are learning something new, they might miss out on some great life lessons!

I know it's hard. You want to do it yourself because:

"If you want somethin done right - you gotta do it yourself!"

"They'll just make a bigger mess that I'll have to clean up anyway."

"I'm a 'Mother Hen' and..." (Well, we all know about "Mother Hen's".)

Tonight, Espresso (now 13) wanted to make brownies after dinner. I so easily could have stood over him and made sure he did everything perfect. I could have said, "No, I don't want another mess out tonight." Instead, I sat down on a chair and let him go at it.

Did he make a mistake? Yes. He accidentally poured some of the dry mix into the greased pan. I instructed him to wash out the pan and start over. The rest he did by himself and in a few minutes, we will have a yummy desert to eat!

I just want to encourage all of the wonderful, loving, rightfully protective, homeschool moms to relax. Sometimes kids need to try things on their own and maybe even make a mistake or two!

Holiday Ideas eBook - FREE

Would you like a free holiday ideas eBook? The Old Schoolhouse is giving it away! It's a whole 180 pages!

Here you go! Free eBook

The American Heritage Education Foundation

So patriotic...

So factual...

So Biblical...

So historical...

So FREE!!

That's right folks! AHEF curriculum is FREE for the taking!

From their website:

Our Mission
AHEF is a non-profit, non-partisan educational
foundation dedicated to the understanding and teaching of America's factual and
philosophical heritage to promote constructive citizenship and Freedom, Unity,
Progress, and Responsibility among our students and citizens.

AHEF
accomplishes this patriotic mission by writing, producing, and distributing FREE
K-12 lesson plans to teachers, students, and families in all 50 states and
through additional initiatives, programs, and partnerships.

There are 3 levels in this curriculum, elementary, middle school and high school. This curriculum is so well written that I think when we use it for our studies (we are in ancient Greece right now) we will probably use the elementary level. (There are plenty of big words!)

In the beginning of the lessons, there is a list that breaks it down: purpose, objective, theme, core knowledge, time, materials and preparation. There are activities, writings, games and worksheets to do in some of the lessons. I think the lessons are kind of like unit studies.

This is definitely something you can use with children of several ages.

Place your order and get a free CD (includes all grade levels) or pay $19.50 per level for a printed version. You can see some lessons through links on this page.

Disclaimer: I was given a free copy to review for TOS.

Do Hard Things ~ The Rebelution!

The official definition of the 'rebelution' is "a teenage rebellion against low
expectations." When you look around today, our culture does not expect much of
us young people. We are not only expected to do very little that is wise or
good, but we're expected to do the opposite. Our media-saturated youth culture
is constantly reinforcing lower and lower standards and expectations.

The word 'rebelution' is a combination of the words "rebellion" and
"revolution." So it carries a sense of an uprising against social norms. But in
this case, it's not a rebellion against God-established authority, but against
the low expectations of our society. It's a refusal to be defined by our
ungodly, rebellious, and apathetic culture. Actually, we like to think of it as
rebelling against rebellion.

Read more from their website here: The Rebelution

I want to help our sons (and whoever else I can influence) to rebel against low expectations!
We plan on helping to promote the conference, volunteer and attend the conference. (Great experience for a teen!)

Coming to a city near YOU!

Homeschooling Boys

Painting sold at: Fine Art America

Homeschooling boys can be a challenge for a mom!

To that statement I say, "AMEN!"

Here are some helpers:

Homeschooling Boys

Raising Real Men

Homeschool Your Boys

Homeschool Curriculum for Life

Making a Man Out of a Boy