19 Oct 2016

The tone of the teacher – Quintilian on the art of teaching

by | posted in: classical education, homeschooler, podcast | 3

What synchronicity! As I was recording the Seven Laws of Teaching Your Own Series for season two of the audio blog, the Quintilian section in The Great Tradition: Classical Readings on What It Means to Be an Educated Human Being was admonitions to teachers. CH070: Duties & Delights: Quintilian on Teachers & Students Guess what? People have known what’s important in teachers and the student-teacher relationship for a very long time. We should listen. The teacher’s talk & temper must … Read More

3 Oct 2016

The Best Character Building Program

by | posted in: homeschooler, mindset | 16

“Mommy! He hit me!” “But he was being annoying!” How easy is it to start barking out the orders: “You, don’t tattle.” “You, don’t lie.” “You, don’t hit.” “You, mind your own business.” …and then collapse in a heap on the floor, exhausted and ready to throw up hands in dismay. We can sense that our imparted wisdom is falling on deaf ears and hard hearts. Time to work in everyone’s character! Maybe if we buy a character curriculum, the … Read More

29 Sep 2016

Say thank you.

by | posted in: homemaker | 0

organize your attitude #28 We all know gratitude is important. But sometimes it can be a bit vague. So say thank you. Is gratitude a feeling we’re supposed to float around in all day? A sentiment just bubbling up from our heart to our head and staying there, providing serene thoughts and a calm demeanor? Do we just list out what we’re grateful for in a journal, directing our thanksgiving to ourselves? Is that really thanksgiving or just a warm … Read More

26 Sep 2016

Why Homeschooling Is Hard

by | posted in: homeschooler, mother | 12

One of the mottos in our Morning Time binder this term is a Shakespeare quote: “Expectation is the root of all heartache.” As we’ve repeated this saying day in and day out for the last 5 weeks, I’ve been contemplating how true it is. It’s biblical, echoing James: But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown … Read More

11 Aug 2016

Sing a song.

by | posted in: homemaker | 2

Organize your attitude #24 It’s impossible to be grumpy and sing at the same time. Singing does something to us. It lifts us up out of our internal moping mode and puts us in tune. Through the movement of our voices, we move from discord to harmony. When we know this strategy, our true hearts are exposed. Often, when I realize that I could sing and pull myself up out of the funk I’m in, I realize that I don’t … Read More

13 Jul 2016

3 tips for handling interruptions

by | posted in: homeschooler, mother | 2

Ah, interruptions, the bane of the homeschool mother’s day and destroyer of her sanity. We troll through the internet, seeking the secret that will keep our children occupied whenever we want to get things done, that will magically make our children notice when we’re engaged with someone or something else and can’t listen at that moment. We think there must be something someone else is doing that we’re missing. We look for schedules and plans that will prevent interruptions from … Read More

16 Jun 2016

Serve others.

by | posted in: homemaker | 3

Organize your attitude #19 by Allison Burr of TruthGoodnessBeauty.net My husband and I recently purchased a home that provides us the opportunity to pretend we are Innkeepers, something we have dreamed about becoming since we were married in a bed and breakfast 16 years ago. We have since stayed in B&Bs around the country, mentally filing away information for future use. Our new home, as God would ordain it, is letting us implement a bit of that vision we have … Read More

19 May 2016

Roll with the punches.

by | posted in: homemaker, mindset | 1

Organize your attitude #16 The tagline I repeat over and over again in Work the Plan is Work the plan. Roll with the punches. Do the right next thing. What does it mean to roll with the punches? Here is what my dictionary tells me: (of a boxer) move one’s body away from an opponent’s blows so as to lessen the impact. adapt oneself to adverse circumstances. The first meaning provides us a striking image, a metaphor we can conjure … Read More

16 May 2016

Entropy: 3 ways to deal with it

by | posted in: homemaker, productivity | 0

We’ve all experienced it. The frustration when right after folding the towels, an infant crawls over and spreads them around the room. The exhaustion of cleaning the corners in one area, only to find the area we cleaned yesterday has been – heaven forbid – used and dirtied already. The surprise that the grocery run we just did (or was it last week?) has been entirely consumed yet people are still hungry. Entropy gets us every time. When God cursed … Read More

28 Apr 2016

Own your thoughts.

by | posted in: homemaker, podcast | 1

Organize your attitude #13 I recently went to a seminar with the Femina Girls in nearby Moscow, ID. There I heard two of my favorite speakers and writers: Nancy Wilson and her daughter Rachel Jankovic. In her talk, Nancy reminded us that we are to set our minds on what is good and true and excellent. It is active; it is purposeful. We might have a thought or a feeling, but we don’t have to let it in to stay. … Read More

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