Originally written and posted in August 2011 So I redid our memory work routine at the end of the 2010-2011 school year, for several reasons: It came to my attention that simply listening to the memory work, as we had been doing, was not sinking it in. They recognized familiar passages, and could fill in…
Way back when when my oldest was in preschool, I was reading Cindy Rollins’ blog, where she continually told us that Morning Time was the best thing she did in her homeschool. I took her advice to heart and stepped out in faith that she was on to something. As she shared about Morning Time, it…
Does the word schedule make you break out in hives? Do you picture yourself harried and deflated at the end of a day on a homeschool daily schedule? Maybe for you, like me, that’s a vivid memory, not a theoretical picture. Schedules get a negative reaction in the homeschool world, and I totally get why….
Hospitality requires and brings growth; it takes time & practice. Love, empathy, and even conversational skills come with cultivation. And that’s another way of saying it takes work. But, like all forms of obedience, it is worth it. Let love be genuine…seek to show hospitality. That might mean letting the dust bunnies be, if that…
When you’re just beginning to homeschool preschool, kindergarten, and first grade, it can be an overwhelming challenge to decide what, out of all the sparkling and pretty and slick curriculum packages out there, to settle on and use. I’ve taken 5 children through this stage and I can testify: Children develop at different rates, at…
There are so many choices to make when we start to homeschool. And the question: What homeschool curriculum best fits our style and needs? is at the top. After over a decade of homeschooling, here is what we’ve found works for us. Take, mix with brains, and experiment with curiosity to find out what works best for…
There’s no denying it. Homeschooling comes with so much stuff. The papers, pencils, supplies, and books threaten to take over every square inch – and yet can never be found when they’re needed. So we look to organization to solve our woes, but the methods of the magazines will not help our homeschooling households. We…
We have used a year-round homeschool schedule for over twelve years – for all of our homeschooling years to date. I believe it makes both planning and living a homeschool lifestyle easier and better. Here’s the scoop on the why and the how of homeschooling year-round. Yes, we are those sorts of homeschoolers who school year-round. It seems like…
Being organized seems like an elusive goal. When do you know if you’ve reached this state of bliss? For some of us, being organized feels like a moving target. We’re almost there, we think, then something changes and we’ve slid back down onto the mire. Honestly, I have not arrived at some final destination known…
We have observed a year-round school calendar from the very beginning, 9 1/2 years ago. We begin our school year in July, do school in 6-week terms with a break between terms, taking off all of December and June. Read more: The Secret of Year-Round Homeschooling For us, the regular breaks – none of which…