Green Hour Assignment #1

Our first intended Nature Walk, Danny is on the left, Devin is in the middle and Camille is on the right. Devin is a neighbor that the children have recently made friends with. We were glad he chose to join us! We walked around our 3 acre yard today.

I need a new camera. This ant pile has black ash intertwined in it, it looked black in person. The kids thought it was neat how the ants would use ash from the burn pile to build their home.

A squirrel's nest.

This is a hole left by an old tree stump, you can't see the deep dimensions. I was afraid to go near it because of snakes or whatever else I didn't want to observe today.

This is one of the many tree stumps in our yard. A few years ago, a storm made 5 tall pine trees fall. This one is rotted out but I showed the kids the rings on top and explained a little about how a tree ages. We then took a piece off and saw termites or ants crawling inside, they ran for cover quickly.

Moss

Banana shaped dried leaves on what looked to be a vine. Hmmm.

The creek at the end of our property, it is a run-off ditch and I don't allow the kids to play here.

Algae in the ditch.

Tomorrow Camille will pick two things she saw today to learn more about. She did find a leaf curled up and asked me why it does that. The picture didn't turn out. I need a better camera. I'll update this post with what we learned. Hopefully our copy of The Handbook of Nature Study will get here to help us out.

TWO focuses for this week as dictated by Camille:

1. "I want to learn all about pinecones. I want to know about why they close/open and what type of moisture is inside."

Answers found in Eyewitness Books: Tree by David Burnie, pg. 44-45

2. "How does a pecan tree work? Why does the pecan tree in our yard have wooden flowers on it?"

Once a pecan tree is mature, it will go through different stages throughout the year. The growth stages are:

• The Dormant Stage: Pecan trees are dormant during the winter months. This is kind of like a rest period for the tree. During dormancy, the tree doesn't appear to be growing, but many important things are happening. In order for pecan trees to produce pecans during the next year they need at least 200 chill hours during this period. (A chill hour is an hour where the temperature is between 32F and 45F.)
• Bud-break/Pollination: During late April and early May, pecan trees pollinate. Pecan trees are monoecious, which means they have separate male structures (catkins,) and female flowers (pistillates). The catkins are long, golden tassels and produce pollen. The female flowers receive the pollen and nut growth begins.
  
• Nutlet Stage: The young pecans continue to grow in June and July and are called nutlets.

• Nut-Fill Stage: Pecans mature during the nut-fill stage in September and early October. Some varieties of pecan trees produce many small clusters of pecans, and others produce fewer large clusters.
• Shuck-Split Stage: After a 200-day growing period, the pecan shuck opens, allowing the nut to drop.

The wooden flowers Camille saw on the pecan tree were the empty pecan shucks. How cool is that?

Join us in the Green Hour Challenge hosted by Barb of Harmony Fine Arts!

CM Inspired Blogs to Explore

"Friends have all things in common." - Plato

I actually arrived at these blogs through SiteMeter, because someone looked for CM Curriculum and these links were included. SiteMeter is very neat at times. Anyways, here are some blogs I found interesting:

Freedom Academy

Water into Wine

Living, Learning and ...Loving

House at My Corner

And a great post by One Lesson at A Time

I thought these posts were good reads and I'm interested in reading more, when I find the time!

About the trees...

I changed the blog a little, I really wanted to reflect that we are growing and what better way than with a tree to symbolize that growth?

- Growing roots with faith studies and family mentoring, teaching & reaching with our shepherding the heart philosophy
- Goal to raise strong, whole persons can withstand a bit of weather and changing of seasons
- the branches to symbolize our task of providing a liberal arts education, reaching out to learn in all areas
- our never-ending love of nature, beauty and God's glorious creation

This tree is actually in our backyard, I took the picture this morning as the sun was shining through the branches. It gives me such a peaceful, filled with love and joy feeling.

The Mail Came!

I received our Queen Homeschool products today:

- Language Lessons for the Very Young
- Habit Revisited
- Twelve Bright Trumpets by Leighton
- The Nature Study Idea Book

My Review of LL for the Very Young- it is based on the same premise as Primary Language Lessons which includes picture study with artwork, narration, copywork, punctuation and beginning composition exercises. I feel this is an excellent product for first grade but I do have a few things I wish were different.

It is a consumable product, which means the author intends for the child to write directly on the pages. I hope this is the reason for the large text, which as a former graphic designer, I cannot stand. The dark heavy lines either. I will not be using it as a consumable product, I will have my children write all of their work on separate piece of paper. I also wish there was a table of contents and index so I could quickly see where all the different types of lessons are for reference if I need to.

I will have to take some time with this to get to know it well enough to know if I will use each exercise due to the fact there is not a table of contents, index or a list concepts at either the beginning or end of the book. Primary Language Lessons by Lingua Mater does contain a table of contents, including poem titles, there is also a section in the front entitled "suggestions to teachers" from the original 1911 edition which I have very helpful. Language Lessons may have a little more direction for each lesson, which is helpful but I prefer the format of Primary Language Lessons much more. I would give Language Lessons for the Very Young an
B / for content
A- /for ease of use for student/teacher
B- /for format.

I want to explain a little further because I've been thinking about this ever since I've received it. I want to make it clear that I LOVE the concept in which these products resonate in. I am actually considering reformatting this product for our own family's use, that is how much it bothers me. If it makes my eyes go buggy, what about my children's?

Here's the reasons why I am not 100% thrilled with Language Lessons for the Very Young by Sandi Queen:

1. The size and typestyle of the font used in the book, it is at least 18 pt which is too large, the average person prefers to read 11 pt. text with normal line spacing so for children, the type size would preferably be set to 14 pt. at the largest and with a clear font. The font used is clear but is more vertical than usual text, it also contains serifs which are distracting. This is a font that is non-serif. Using a non-serif font also reduces letter formation mistakes, just to be fair to Queen Homeschool, I can't stand products that use a childish font like Comic Sans either, like Writing Tales does. I love Writing Tales and its content but like I said, I was a graphic designer and therefore this stuff bugs me.

2. The heavy lines on the pages for where a child aged 5-9 would write answers. This is why we will not write in the book and will use a separate piece of handwriting paper. If you're going to create a consumable product for an age group that is still working on mastering handwriting, it needs to be formatted so. In first grade, Camille would have gotten upset because she wouldn't be able to fit all her letters/words on the lines provided or I wouldn't have accepted sloppy handwriting which in this case, the lack of handwriting guidelines does not promote Charlotte Mason's method of developing a habit of excellence.

3. I object to some of the content. For example, Lesson Eighteen is about using capital letters. The sample that a child is to circle every capital letter they see is:

My favorite food is pizza. I like cheese on mine, and also mushrooms. Some of my brothers like peppers on theirs. My sister is the only one who prefers hers plain.

Then in Lesson Twenty-One:

Yesterday, we went to the zoo. We saw lots of different animals. My sister, Haley, liked the monkeys best. They made funny faces at us as they swung from tree to tree.

Don't get me wrong, I see the connection to children with these sentences but from a Charlotte Mason product, I was expecting something from literature, a fable excerpt or even something involving nature. The trite sentences are not what I would consider "exposing children to the very best". I also dislike the mention of other Queen Homeschool products within the text of the lessons, I don't mind the excerpts of other product they sell but don't say "published by Queen Homeschool Supplies" in the instructions of a lesson.

I also don't understand why the titles of the poems are underlined. Poem are short pieces of work, which require quotation marks. Here's a link that supports my concern.

I am only speaking about Language Lessons for the Very Young by Sandi Queen, I have not seen any other of the Language Lessons series and do not intend to use them. I only wanted a first grade level product that was of the same caliber as Primary Language Lessons which is intended for 2nd-3rd grade. I am in prayerful consideration on whether to reformat Language Lessons for the Very Young for our own family use. My only other option is to use white-out on the poem titles and supply alternative samples for the punctuation exercises.

We will use LL for the Very Young for first grade, follow it with Primary Language Lessons (Lingua Mater) and possibly Intermediate Language Lessons (Lingua Mater).

I need more time with the other books to offer an opinion. With Habit Revisited, I plan to read what Charlotte Mason said about Habits before I offer an opinion. I am disappointed with the size of the text and line spacing, it makes my eyes go buggy. Sigh. I'm also disappointed with the formatting of The Nature Study Idea Book, as well as the content upon first look. Once The Handbook of Nature Study comes in, I'll reassess it for value.

Twelve Bright Trumpets by Leighton, this seems to be an excellent living book for Medieval times.

By the way, I love the offerings at Queen Homeschool but it is a family business which means the shipping may take a little longer than larger companies. It also means that returning items are not ideal because they have a 15% restocking fee plus the customer pays for the item to be shipped back to them, which they may refuse to accept as a return. I do wish I would have waited to read the Original Series first before purchasing Habit Revisited and waited for The Handbook of Nature Study before purchasing The Nature Study Idea Book- that is why patience is a virtue!

Weekly Report: TOG2, Week 12

We are in transition, I'm reading all about Charlotte Mason so my mind is completely occupied and our lessons are a little lighter until I figure everything out. I have general items that need more prayer and consideration before I'm ready to put them on paper and make them a part of our lives.

Here are the kids reading Usborne's First Encyclopedia of Our World after I read to both of them, we have finished our earth science lessons and will be moving onto astronomy next week. Right on schedule!

History books we've read this week: Camille read the Christopher Columbus book on the right all by herself and narrated it well, with enthusiasm! History is very light right now because I'm doing minimal planning and preparation as I digest Charlotte Mason ideas and philosophies.

Math is going so much better now, I am teaching in between these activities and eliminating where I feel it is beneficial. I told Camille that if she did all of the purple addition problems and got them right, she wouldn't have to do the green ones. She was so thrilled to hear that!! Horizons says not to eliminate any exercises but I think this is best for Camille at this time.

This is our newest French program and I say newest because I've tried a lot of them. This one only takes 15 minutes daily and it reviews the lesson 9 times before you're to move on to the next one. We also have the workbook, which I'm using at the end of the lesson to determine whether moving on is the right action to take or if more review is needed.
It is called Écoutez, Parlez! (Listen, Speak), you look at the book while an audio cd plays with instructions in French and English. No fuss, get 'er done! Lol. (It's at RainbowResource.com)

This is our poetry notebook that I've reformatted for Camille. I want all of her poems that she memorizes in one place, when it gets to be too big, we'll get a bigger notebook. Each poem is copied and illustrated by her. We have poems to put in from first grade and I plan on tabbing it- First Grade, Second Grade, Third Grade. That way she can see her growth through the years and we can use it as an easy review of previous memorized poems.

What it looks like before she does any work.

These two pictures show two poems she has copied and illustrated (with my help).

The picture below is of a page within Comprehension Quickies. I have Camille do 1 page a week to practice formulating her own sentences which I feel is practice she needs. Explode the Code is going well, especially after using the Teacher's Manual this week. She is getting the phonics reinforcement that she needs and she's reading and spelling better. We have dropped Spelling Workout completely. Primary Language Lessons is going well, Camille did her first dictation exercise this week, she realized she needed to study the selection more before attempting to write it from dictation.

Jack and one of the kids' Valentine's Day balloons.
This picture took awhile to take because he was chasing me through the house!
The kids taking a break in-between lessons by watercoloring.
This would be what Charlotte Mason calls "Masterly Inactivity"

I am very relaxed in demeanor about our lessons and gaining confidence about doing things the way I've felt I should instead of following what someone else says we should be doing. It's a mixture of learning how to teach, and gaining confidence in my own knowledge and instincts. I think this is a MAJOR milestone in our journey. It's not that I will have it all figured out but I will feel much more confident listening to my heart and assessing what we need to do when hiccups occur instead of feeling like a complete and utter failure. I'll be able to talk about this more later.

Danny is doing well with read alouds, playing with Camille like above and playing at Starfall.com, which he absolutely loves. I'm not big on computer learning so this is a struggle for me but he's enjoying it right now and developing hand/eye coordination as well as enthusiastically repeating whatever Starfall says. A happy sigh.

"Mom, I know why kids don't get headaches."

Scene: We're in the car, on our monthly grocery trip excursion (6-8 hour day) and Danny screams an ear-piercing squeal because Camille has done something that he disagrees with.

"Mom, I know why kids don't get headaches," Camille said seriously.
"Why is that honey?" I ask.
"Because kids cause headaches, that's why they don't get them," she said matter-of-factly.

"Oh yeah, why do you think that?" I ask.
"God let me have a headache and now I know how you feel when you say your head is hurting. God wanted to let me know that it hurts when you say you have a headache," she said, again very matter-of-fact.
"That was very nice of God to reveal that to you, wasn't it?" I'm trying so hard not to laugh!

"Yes, maybe God will give Danny a headache so he can realize it too," she said.
"Yes, honey." I said and switched the subject.

I am very careful to not put down the kids even indirectly, like saying "Danny is giving me a headache." I say, "What Danny is doing is giving me a headache." So when she wanted to report to me, I was very hesitant to allow her to think that I meant Danny IS a headache. I'm so glad she understood the difference.

Wordless Wednesday

Currently on my mind

• My Duties as a Homeschooling Mom

1. Schedule vs. Routine:
a. What are the bad habits I have that are preventing my children from being more productive?
b. Is it crucial to follow a timed schedule for my little ones? Why do I feel choked at times?
c. How to relax enough but not become too relaxed with our time?


2. With a 3 year old, 7 year old and 5 month old puppy- how do I:
- keep up with the house
- provide ample time for each individually
- stop myself from feeling run-down at the end of the day
- prioritize my own learning without overwhelming myself
- stop myself from becoming complacent

• Prioritizing Our Time Better

- I'm asking myself what is important right now? (Answer: Math, Phonics, Reading, Bible and Writing)
- Am I keeping the focus on what is important or adding more than is needed or able to be done?
- If we study history, science and other subjects- at what point is does it start hindering us?
- How can I make our time more efficient and enjoyable during the day?

• Charlotte Mason

- Currently reading More Charlotte Mason Education by Levison (love it); Language Wars by Beechick
- How much of CM's philosophy do I want to adopt and how to implement.
- Where is my comfort zone regarding CM and Classical philosophy? (still discovering this)

• The Hows & Whys of Learning

- Why are we using the products that we are?
- Why are we studying the subjects we are at this time? Are there subjects that would be worth waiting for?
- Educational philosophy for younger years: is there a balance to be obtained between academic and developmental?
- How to become confident about the approach I decide to take: able to discuss it intelligently and with my research done.
- Writing path: Writing Aids with TOG or Progymnasmata, or a mixture of both? ...and why.

• Getting & STAYING Organized

- In every area, I'm great at developing systems and following them for a week or two and then they fall by the wayside.
- How to stop feeling overwhelmed at all I have to do!
- How much to purge/what to keep

• Nature Journaling/Study

- Educating myself on how to approach
- Getting the kids involved
- Making it enjoyable for everyone but educationally effective
- WTM science cycles vs. Ambleside/Mater Amabilis

Wanted: CM/Classical Mentor

Position:
Mentor/Friend

Requirements:
-Passionate but gentle homeschooler needed to aid in philosophical and academic implementation with years' experience to draw knowledge from.
- Must have working knowledge of Charlotte Mason and classical education
- Possess patience, subtlety and a warm heart
- Must be able to tell me when I'm full of it
- Be willing to have weekly conference calls
- Someone who has taught themselves before/during the upper academic levels.

Compensation:
- Praise and compliments
- Occasional gifts
- Witness of fruits
- Everlasting appreciation

I'm thrilled to say the position has been filled. Now excuse me while I do the happy-dance and make my children think I'm weird.

Finds & Thoughts for K-4 Science

I had chosen Living Learning Chemistry for 3rd grade but when it arrived, I was a little disappointed. I had hoped it contained a 'living' books list to read from but found out it didn't. The plans are simple and easy to use but that really isn't what I was looking for. I created my own book list to accompany the curriculum to create more of what I was looking for and I am content to use it knowing that it will provide what I was looking to provide academics-wise.

I started wondering if there was something out there that I had missed somehow that was closer to what I had in mind, plus Danny's science for K and 1st are on my mind while I wait for books to get here through the library about Charlotte Mason and nature study (field guides). I had to order some art supplies because we're running low and Camille's interest has increased so while I was shopping the sales (end 2/29) at Jerry's Artarama and CheapJoes.com, I discovered a great nature study tool.

The Sketch Folio allows you to carry your sketch book (all-media one included), pencils and drawing tools and possibly a field guide could fit in the right pocket inside. I saw this and thought, how practical and unique to have our own nature journals! With little ones it seems they want me to carry everything on a nature walk, this way we can each carry our own load if we're on a long walk or just take these if it's going to be a short walk. I bought 2 on clearance but I guess I bought the last ones or they've been selling well. I figure I'll use one until Danny is old enough to have his own. Grin. Honestly, a part of me wants to be as artistic as Lee and Barb are, I want to be able draw like that and a nature journal (paired with Drawing With Children) seems like a natural place to start.

I'm reconsidering the science path for K-4 for Danny. I'm reading Ambleside's outline for these years and while their suggestions satisfy a few wants like using the Thorton Burgess books about animals and birds, they don't really cover the topics that Camille and I have. My dream curriculum for 1-4 (life, earth, astronomy, chemistry and physical) science has children's literature to read, easy but engaging projects for the teacher, extension activities that use language arts skills, possibly even contain poetry and multi-media suggestions. I can provide the field trips and other details such as nature walks.

I think I've found it for physical science for 4th grade. Terrific Science has an Integrated Science line and I think Teaching Physical Science Through Children's Literature is what I've been looking for!

Integrate science and language arts while emphasizing the process skills common to both areas.

• Inspired by favorite stories
• 20 complete lessons
• Connects science and language arts
• Reproducible pages
• National Science Education Standards
• Easy-to-understand explanations
• 244 pages
• Grades K–4

I'm very thrilled with this find because it uses picture books which will entice Danny to read with us, plus there are writing activities and strong science. The picture books themselves also serve as multicultural learning and it's neat how reading The Rainbow Fish can be for science since "Students observe examples of the three states of matter and identify matter in each of these states." I am so excited to find this!

Terrific Science also has a TOY based science product! Are you kidding me? This is great but I already have my Chemistry curriculum and I'm not changing although this looks very (aaahem) cool!

Teaching Chemistry with TOYS
1-883822-29-7 • Price: $23.95

Exciting projects use ordinary toys and play materials to demonstrate chemistry principles.

• 42 activities grouped separately for grades K–3, 4–6, and 7–9
• 296 pages
• Grades K–9

Terrific Science has wonderful inside views of all their products so you can explore them to see if they may be right for you. I'm not affiliated with them, it's just something I found that I'm excited about. No, I haven't ordered anything and I'm not going to until January 2008. A lot of things change in a year.

I went off on this science tangent because Danny is manageable right now and if I'm going to redo life science lessons, I'd like to do them before September, plus who couldn't get excited about science seeing these products? C'mon! I care about science a great deal especially in the early years. I'm re-evaluating a lot of decisions I made for Camille and I'm trying to find a path that I think will accomplish all of my goals (teach and reach) for Danny's younger years. Of course, I'll write more about this as the decisions are made.

I forgot to mention the books that I want to read no matter what we use as a curriculum: All are available online for free at various websites, just google their titles.

1. - The Fairy-Land of Science by Buckley
2. - Burgess Animal Book for Children and Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess
3. - The Story of Inventions by Frank Bachman
4. - The Storybook of Science by Jean Henri Fabre (maybe)
5. - James Herriots's Animal Stories for Children

If I can find a storybook for learning about the human body, I think I'll be set for K-4. Hmm.

Weekly Report, TOG2, Week 11

Do you know how hard it is to relax? It is so hard! This week in TOG we studied art and the Renaissance and I yo-yo'd between feeling like, "Yes, this is how I should be approaching history for the first cycle" to "My goodness, I didn't read this book or that book and aaaahhhhh!" Lol. It's not just about what books we did or didn't read, I'm a little unsettled right now. I'm caught between trying to figure out what is actually best for Camille and my expectations and personal goals for her and whether or not I'm completely off the mark or close to the target. I'm patiently waiting for some Charlotte Mason books to come in through interlibrary loan, that may take a while.

We did receive Simply Spelling Grades 3-12 by Laurie Hicks today, and I'm impressed. I read through the lessons and levels and I was blown away because right in front of me is something that appears to be so simple, yet it's thorough and advances in the higher levels with goals I am comfortable with. Hard academics can be gentle? Whoa! Lol.

Let me share our week by subject.

BIBLE
This week we dove back into our Explorer's Bible Study, Beginnings II, New Testament and Camille is now able to read the story and answer the questions on her own! This is a huge improvement from the beginning of the year. Her reading is progressing but so is her comprehension and retention. She doesn't blink at having to answer the questions.

MATH
Oh dear, math. She is doing well with the concepts but it takes her an hour to do a two-sided page (pictured). She told me that she tries to find the easiest way to do the work and will even do 2-3 problems in the first activity and then switch to the second activity to do 3 problems and switch again. She also said that she daydreams or gets distracted. We're going to sit together a little longer, she has also said she wants me to verbalize the problem, sort of hold her hand. I'm torn about this actually. I've told her that 3rd grade (next year) will be a year of transitioning more towards being able to do the work on her own after a teaching session. She has a test Monday, I'll see how well she has retained the concepts and see if there needs to be more teaching or practice.

HISTORY
We went a little light this week on history, I really wanted to focus on reading and writing. We read about the Renaissance and Leonardo Da Vinci, including Leonardo's Horse by Jean Fritz (amazing story) and Camille did some art. We studied Da Vinci's paintings and without reading about his technique or seeing the actual painting, Camille tried to color The Lady With a Jewel, guessing how Da Vinci's version looked based on his other paintings. This was fun for both of us, she really enjoyed working on it.

The other coloring page is a painting by Raphael and Camille added clouds to the background. "It needed something," she said. Lol! We didn't do any mapwork other than locating where Italy is, but she knows that already. It was a light week in history.

SCIENCE
Magic School Bus and a little nature study was it for us this week. It's my fault, I'm in a funk. My balance is a little off. There is absolutely no reason for us not doing science this week, even if my head isn't where it should be. Camille and Danny both examined an oak tree in our yard and I discovered we need a book to help us identify trees! We have the DK Eyewitness Tree book but it doesn't cover every tree, especially in our area. We have art supplies coming and we're going to start nature journaling again, this time with a better idea of HOW to. Barb will be proud, lol.

LANGUAGE ARTS
Primary Language Lessons is a HIT, Camille loves it and wants to do it everyday. She has asked if she can do "grammar" (what we call it) first, ever since Monday when we started it. I feel so encouraged by this, and I personally love Primary Language Lessons too. I feel so efficient and confident that this is what we both needed. Which is why I'm in a funk- what other areas could be like this?

Our History & Philosophy

2006-2007

Should We Homeschool?
Camille was in a public school kindergarten one county away from us because our county's schools were not ideal. We were paying $500.o0 a year just for her to be able to attend plus providing transportation with equaled 120 miles of driving a day. When it became apparent to us that social difficulties were hindering Camille's educational growth and standardized testing was the main focus of the school- we started weighing other options. If public school at $500.00/year plus transportation costs were not ideal, neither was the exorbitant costs of private school at $2000.00 a year plus transportation. What did that leave us? Homeschooling.

We decided that it was worth trying homeschool to see if it was a fit for us. We had seen episodes on WifeSwap that involved homeschoolers and even though they might not have been portrayed in the most appealing way, I saw family togetherness and parents displaying an invested interest in their child's education, welfare and hearts. Those elements made it appealing to me outside of the quirks that were publicly displayed for ridicule and criticism.

Curriculum Confusion
I started researching curriculum and at first I was bombarded with local parents telling me the praises of the ABeka program, which the private schools in this area use. If nothing else, we had a program to follow if I couldn't find something that better suited us. The internet was our saving grace as well as the library, after talking to a semi-local homeschool group we discovered Sonlight which was a breath of fresh air compared to ABeka in our eyes. "That was it! I thought, we're going to be Sonlighters!" Around this time I also decided to join the homeschooling community online and discovered The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise. I put the book on hold through interlibrary loan and poured over the Sonlight catalog trying to decipher which of their products to use. The day to order Sonlight came and as I reached to call Sonlight, the phone rang, the copy of The Well-Trained Mind was at our library ready to pick-up. I spent the next two days reading The Well-Trained Mind knowing that our direction for homeschool had drastically changed. There within the pages, I saw the beginnings of our hopes and dreams for our children's education.

A Few Bumps in the Road
So began our journey with The Well Trained Mind for first grade at home. What a year! We grew so much as a family, I became obsessed with how to teach and creating my own materials and lessons (not recommended), I joined the masses in having a homeschool blog and had philosophies and convictions thrown at me from every direction. It was a year of confusion in a lot of areas, I feel God was using the experience to test my faith, my preserverance and devotion. I discovered for the first time what young Earth meant, differing philosophies of education (Principled, Thomas Jefferson, Charlotte Mason, John Holt, unschooling, traditional, etc.) and I defended our choice in The Well-Trained Mind wholeheartedly, albeit foolishly. The young earth/old earth, evolution vs. creation issue really weighed on me until God broke me free of it with a reminder that it is man's argument, not His. This scripture among many brought my heart peace about this issue:

1 Corinthians 4 : 1-6
1 So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. 2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. 6 Now, brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, Do not go beyond what is written. Then you will not take pride in one man over against another.

I do not know the truth of creation whether it involves the theory of evolution or if a day mentioned in the Bible is actually 24 hours, I believe God created and everything else will be revealed when I finally go home to Jesus. Until then, I will teach my children that God created and present all theories of how and when to them when the time is right. In our second year of serving in the ministry and first year of homeschooling, I was bombarded with many of ideas and convictions which took me on rabbit trails, ones I feel God intended and ones He didn't. I wish I would have used the internet more as a tool than a crutch that first year but we make our mistakes and hopefully grow and move forward.

Seeking Instant Perfectionism
God gave me many different avenues in which to grow, all at once I realized all the different disciplines I wanted to model, teach and lead my children to. Talk about overwhelming! I wanted to become the perfect teacher, mother, wife and woman, all RIGHT NOW! I felt an urgency to get all of it right in my mind, heart and soul and I put undue pressure upon myself to accomplish all of this.

I read so many books about "how to __________", I dove into reading The Great Books because, my goodness! I only have seven years before Camille will be ready to start doing the same and it takes time to read, analyze and absorb. I even started a Great Books online discussion group where as a group we read, How to Read A Book by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren taking extensive notes and then moved on to The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer with the same intensity. As a group we worked on Gilgamesh, The Egyptian Book of the Dead, and finally The Iliad before the group dissolved. It was a great year for me in the self-education department, not so much in the other areas of my life. A person can only do so much.

Veteran after veteran warned me to slow down, to focus on the present and to be consistent above all else. This was sage advice and through burnout, I started to pace myself. I have stopped reading every title out there about "how to _____", with the exception of the ones that will benefit us the most where we are in our journey. I've cast away all the Christian self-help books to seek wisdom in the Lord instead through reading the Bible and prayer.

I spent hours (and days) designing our own curriculum so that we could use Story of the World volume 2, The Middle Ages but include church history, use books that were on our shelves instead being so dependent on our unreliable library system and organize all the elements I felt were important so that during our year, history could be pick up and go. I over-analyzed, over-extended and used materials that were not on the appropriate age level for Camille and thought I had created the perfect solution for our history studies. I'm laughing at myself now only because everything I was trying so hard to provide Camille was already neatly packaged in Tapestry of Grace but I was too blind to see it before.

Unfair Judgment
I was blinded by the prejudice that rankled my heart from reading the educational philosophies of various Christian curriculum providers that I felt went too far in trying to train and mold young Christians with heavy indoctrination, going so far as to plant seeds of hate towards those that did not subscribe to their beliefs. I wanted to stay so far away from that and protect my children from being exposed to such ideology that most Christian curriculums were just bitter tastes in my mouth instead of truly looking at each without prejudice. When I saw the word, "reformed", I cringed and Tapestry contains "reformed theology" so it was quickly dismissed as were other products. Since that time I have learned more about reformed theology, our own United Methodist beliefs and I've learned how to truly assess homeschool materials for content and discern better (and more fairly) what would work for us.

We have since decided that Tapestry can do the work for me and I can be satisfied with the weekly planning and implementation of the program instead of the constant, draining exercise of trying to create something that includes everything. Tapestry has saved me in so many ways! First, Tapestry has saved my children from an inexperienced mother who might have golden intentions but still tends to push too far, Tapestry has saved me from fears, insecurity and years of self-doubt about whether what we are using is of the best quality and worthy of our efforts and finally Tapestry has provided the meat to the education we dream of for our children, the same one that The Well-Trained Mind provided the bones for. Now, it's time to work on matters of the heart and the approach of how to teach. We have the educational tools that provide the information (curriculum), we have an outline for our studies (The Well-Trained Mind and Tapestry of Grace, among others) but something is still missing.

Living, Loving, and Learning
I am currently waiting for books about Charlotte Mason to come from the library, books that I have skimmed before and dismissed. I have the gist of what a Charlotte Mason education looks like and we use many elements already:

- As short of lessons as we can comfortably handle
- use of living books, no twaddle (well, just a little)
- importance of developing good habits young
- copywork, narration and dictation
- free afternoons
- we've dabbled into nature study

I'm no longer looking for a method to follow but a philosophy of education that will inspire us and keep our hearts in tune to each other and God. We are not in a classroom, we are at home with our emotions, desires and sins always present. I'm looking to reach my children, not only teach them. This is why I am adopting and adapting our homeschool to reflect a more natural learning environment in which I can do both, teach and reach. We have many goals for our children, the academic portion is not light at all but I believe we can pursue the academics with gentleness. This philosophy has changed a few of our curriculum decisions, using products that would better serve the heart and academics, not just the academics. When I say heart, it is the means by which I teach from, the philosophy of the curriculum itself, but it can also include the presentation and delivery of each product. In some cases it also means delaying a few academic pursuits for when our children are more ready for them. The curriculum is not the end all though, my whole approach heart-wise is changing to fit these goals for our children's education.


Heart
The ultimate goal for our children is that they have open hearts at the end of this homeschooling journey. We desire for our children to develop a close and everlasting relationship with God but realize that there may be a period in which they run from Him. We hope to instill enough self-discipline, discernment and fortitude to help them return to God if they should decide to forsake Him for a season.

Jesus' teachings are prevalent to us, above all else we want our children to have a healthy worldview in which they view each person as one of God's children. Love each other, Jesus commanded us. He didn't say, "love each other only if others believe the same as you." I am purposely trying to raise my children to view the world as a place without boundaries. For this reason, we have decided that before the children are 18, we will take them on at least one mission trip. We have actually made this a requirement for graduation regardless of if they attend a mortar and brick school in high school or are dual-enrolled in college. We speak gently of other cultures and religions, teaching the children that although Jesus is the only way, other religions believe just as strongly in their beliefs as we do about Jesus and if we are to make a difference we should learn about what is important to them and why, so that others will be open to learning about Jesus through our example.

We make sure our children have time to be children, to dance in the sunlight and makes pies out of mud. Their childhood is very precious and it is given the nurturing that it needs to be one of purpose, imagination and wonderment. Time is also taken to ensure that we stay connected to our children, that we are shepherding their hearts the way God would have us do.


Mind
The end goal of our homeschooling journey is for our children to have tough minds, ones that can wade through the trappings and filth of this world easily without hindering their faith. We feel in order to accomplish this, the children have to be trained in the studies of logic, rhetoric, philosophy and theology/apologetics. We desire for them to be able to think for themselves with a strong foundation for support, to find value and purpose in their reading endeavors, and to be able to speak and write clearly and persuasively. It is not an easy road we have chosen, but we feel it is worth our best efforts.

This is the beginning of our homeschooling journey, our philosophy may change as we grow and learn more but I pray it will just grow with deeper roots with time and experience. Of course this is a living desire so this discourse may change and grow in many directions. Besides, I feel like I've forgotten to mention so many things that I cannot remember now! Expect this to be edited many times.

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2008

A Charlotte Mason homeschool
It has been 7 months since I first wrote this post and we've changed our once Well-Trained Mind driven homeschool into more of a Charlotte Mason homeschool although I still contend that we're really just illuminating our own hearts within our learning experience and that tends to portray a Charlotte Mason philosophy more than any others.

Through changing our homeschool, I've been able to discover many things about myself and the kids. First, I am and always have been a nature lover although I never realized it before. Tapping into this part of myself has opened many beautiful opportunities with the kids and allows me to truly be a role model for them and inspire them to live curiously. Trekking through State Park trails is a common occurrence as well as being more observant and aware of our natural environment wherever we go, it is such a blessing!

I am reading Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series, studying Habits, and applying new tactics slowly to our household. My discipline style with Danny has changed upon reading The No Cry Discipline Solution by Elizabeth Pantley and although there are days when I feel I haven't learned a thing, the other days are so sweet with love- I just feel so blessed.

Gone are my ambitions to be the best homeschooling mother I can be, I just want to do my best with my kids.

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2009

Let's see, in the fall of 2008 it became very apparent that a divorce was on the horizon, mine. It was a time of hard decisions because I wasn't just deciding to end a marriage, but to change our lifestyle drastically. I started working part-time at night to save a little money of my own to help the transition and throughout the separation/divorce process, I started working more and homeschooling less.

The kids and I moved from Georgia to South Carolina to live with my parents while I work full-time to better situate us to live on our own after I pay off my personal debt. The kids will be starting private school next month (August '09) and with time I've gotten used to the idea and we're all excited. Luckily, the private school is a classical one so Camille will continue to learn Latin and read whole books and Danny will get a wonderful start to his education. Danny is repeating preschool this coming year because he is not ready for kindergarten but I fully expect him to blossom under the tutelage of the teachers there.

Unbelievably, the kids' classes are only 10 students per class and they will be done at 1:00 pm but since I will not be done at work until 5:30 most days, they will be in the after-school program and do their homework while being able to play a bit more. Saving graces.

2009 has been a year of change for us, especially for me. Our lifestyle has done a 180 degree turn-around but I am so blessed to have had three years of homeschooling Camille. I'm in college now, working towards my Bachelor's degree in Business Adminstration through online courses, working full-time, and learning everyday how important balance is. We have struggles, we have challenges but together we're rising to the occasion to meet and deal with them as they come. I have such hope for us!

What is Horizons Preschool?

Philosophy and Objectives of the Program

Horizons Preschool is a complete preschool program that was made to be adaptable to many situations: a classroom, homeschool and daycare situtation. Five days a week of lessons are provided with the understanding that any number of days per week may be used successfully. New concepts are introduced on days 1, 3 and 5 of the week. Days 3 and 4 have activities that expand and further practice the concepts.

FINE MOTOR SKILLS
If you have a child that is still developing fine motor skills, that's fine- write in sand or shaving cream until it's built up. There are helps within the program such as tracing letters and activities to enjoy that will build fine motor skills that they need to start writing. If your child is already able to write, the curriculum is more open and go.

HOW to Think, not WHAT to Think
There is a very helpful section in the beginning of the Horizons program that addresses understanding a young child and how they think versus how an adult thinks. Horizons Preschool's goal is to teach the child HOW to think instead of WHAT to think. The importance of allowing a child free time after a teaching session is stressed because how the child plays will show what has been absorbed and internalized. The usual age for starting Horizons Preschool is 4 years old, Horizons warns not to push it, let the child's actions and desires guide the decision to start, not age or grandparents. Lol.

HOW TO CREATE A POSITIVE LEARNING EXPERIENCE
There is more about how to go about teaching your child, what elements are most important and how you can move forward to accomplish a positive learning experience for your child. Elements addressed are discipline, routine, limitations of time, unstructured time to play and how the teacher can encourage the child. All very helpful!

DESIGNED TO BE ACTIVITY AND ACADEMIC CENTERED
This preschool program has been designed to meet the needs of two different types of preschool programs- an activity centered preschool and the academic centered program. This means there is far more material presented in the teacher's guide than what can be covered. It is a pick and choose program that supports half day programs, three day programs and all-day programs.

The components:

1. Student Workbooks: Consumable workbooks which contain 180 lessons in 4 color in a perfect bound book with perforated pages for easy tear out. Most pages are front and back but pages with crafts that require cutting are only 1-sided.

2. Teacher's Guide: Detailed (whew! the details) daily lesson planner that provides enough activities for a full day.

3. Resource Packet: Full color teaching aids and black line masters for reproduction.
Components within-

1. Memory Verse cards provided separately in NIV and KJV
2. Alphabet Puzzle
3. Flashcards (I love these!): Numbers 1-12, Letters (Aa-Zz), Colors, Shapes, Time (analog & digital clocks by the hour), Seasons, and Months. There are smaller flashcards which are full color and two sided and huge flashcards 8.5x11 that are also full color and two sided.
4. Music CD contains Bible songs to reinforce key ideas, recorded using children's voices and serves as a sing-along instructional aid.

The Daily Lesson Structure only in Teacher's Guide:

• Bible Reference, this is chapter and verse
• Bible Concept to Present: overall objective of the lessons from a nondenominational viewpoint (yay!)
• Bible Lesson: provides information you need but is suggested that you present this instead of reading it
• Social Studies: materials that affect the child's life, items that have an impact on the child's lifestyle and people around him, many suggestions are activity oriented
• Science: based on God's creation, activity oriented with specific subjects discussed
• Language Arts: words exercises, poems, verbalizations, games, etc. Reading should only be taught when the child is ready.
• Phonics: Letter recognition and alphabet order. Associating, differentiating and blend the letters sounds comprises the remainder of the program which Horizons suggests using LIFEPAC Kindergarten Language Arts or Horizons Kindergarten Phonics & Reading. Yeah, we won't.
• Reading: Primary goal is to increase the verbal skills, narration is promoted.
• Writing: developmental progressions with the goal of having the child write their first name by the end of the program
• Memory Verses: memorization tips
• Math: Teach fundamentals of number sense through multi-sensory activities.
• Shapes: identifying basic geometric shapes- a new shape is introduced about every 2 weeks
• Colors: also introduced every two weeks
• Story Time: this has been left very open (thankfully for us!) but there is a list of books to choose from. Specific books are not tied into the individual lessons. Rereading a book numerous times is encouraged, and many more helps are provided.
• Music: Suggested for each lessons, the CD is tied to each lesson as well as popular toddler and preschool songs. There is a new song every 7 lessons
• Arts & Crafts: plenty of suggestions throughout
• Physical Education: to develop motor coordination needed, develop large muscle motor skills, grace and rhythm
• Outdoor Activities: nature
• Creative Cooking: a way to involve more senses (Danny loves to cook!)
• Health & Safety: habits of hygiene and everyday safety skills
• Field Trips: suggestions given
• Homework pages: Can be done with Dad in the evenings but more for traditional school
• Catch Up: Listed every six to eight weeks for when you don't have time to do a lesson, this is when you "catch-up"

I'm sorry but this is a fabulous program! I love it even more than I did before now that I have dove into it. It can be used secularly if the user wishes, it just takes ignoring the Bible elements in the Teacher's Guide and skipping or modifying some of the activities in the workbooks. We do not use heavily indoctrinated products, we feel if religion or faith is to be taught, as the parents we are the best vehicle- not a script or curriculum.

This program can be as involved or as simple as you'd like! Here's some pictures.

8.5 x 11 Month flashcards, the one on the right is the back of February's

Yes, that is a yeast cell. Cool, huh?

Pages from Lesson 19

Page from Lesson 100

Page from Lesson 104

Seasons flashcards 8.5 x 11, front Fall, back of the winter card on right

Color this picture of heaven, Lesson 3

Smaller and larger flashcards to use

Front and back of the Number flashcards

Time by the hour


Pages in the resource packet for reproduction

Colorful illustrations as teaching aids- yes that's the brain and the five senses are noted
and safety signs.

You know why else I love this program? If we don't cover something in PreK, we can continue it into K and use some of the elements later on in science, etc. There is SO much to this program, I cannot find one thing I have an issue with. I hope this helps others.

Our Very Own Renaissance

Well, we've dropped spelling for the rest of this year. That might not seem like much but our 2nd grade year ends in August. This has been a major year of change and growth! We adopted Tapestry of Grace as our history program in January to help us get over the two month break we took after MIL's fight with cancer ended and my faithful companion- our 15 year old dog Magnum, passed away as well. Add a severely twisted ankle and bringing Jack, our golden retriever puppy home and throw in a few major holidays- voila, a two month break.

Tapestry has been wonderful for us, there has been some figuring out to do along the way but we're really enjoying ourselves and each other more now. We're a lot more relaxed in the area of history then we were with SOTW alone. That might seem impossible since Tapestry is not by any means a "light" program but thankfully, I realized the importance of focusing on the lower grammar portion and only venturing into the upper grammar portion for very select books.

Our family is coming together even more, Camille and I are enjoying our read aloud time and she's narrating without much effort. Well, as long as you don't care if what she says is said in complete sentences, lol. The girl can make a run-on sentence long enough to wrap around our house and yard (3 acres) and not take a breath because she's so excited to share her ideas.

I really can't wait until the Weekly Report on Friday (or Saturday), her work with Primary Language Lessons is beautiful and inspiring. I got this silly grin on my face today as I watched her working on her Explode the Code work and she spelled meatballs all by herself without glancing through the pages before to check it. She saw my grin and asked me, "Why are you smiling like that?" Me, "Oh, sweetie, I'm just so proud of you! You spelled meatballs all by yourself and you're really doing your best. That is all Mommy has wanted." She puffed up, put on a silly grin of her own and continued her work.

We're all in a happy, silly grin type of place right now. We read about the Renaissance today and it hit home, "we're" in a time of renewal, a time of looking back to past times to find inspiration and moving forward in a new way. I feel like a bright, shiny new penny. I know that sounds ridiculous but I'm bursting with joy and praise and I could swear I'm glowing.

I'm documenting all this because there will come a time, probably soon, where I will get frustrated or feel overwhelmed more with life than anything and I can come back and reread about our Renaissance.

I do want to say something about reading homeschooling books- I've been rereading a few:

• Educating the WholeHearted Child by Sally & Clay Clarkson
• A Charlotte Mason Education by Catherine Levison
• The Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola
• Home Learning Year by Year by Rebecca Rupp
• 3 R's by Ruth Beechick
• You Can Teach A Child Successfully Grades 4-8 by Ruth Beechick

TAKE NOTES! Flesh out the main ideas of each person, pay close attention when they say, *I did, we did, we decided*. I've read these books before and many others and yet I feel like I'm reading them for the first time. I don't know if it is because my jaded view has been lifted or what.

I've appreciated the comments left by those who read our blog but the well wishes for me to relax...I'm not sure if I'll EVER qualify as a 'relaxed' homeschooler. My idea of relaxing would still be rigid to others' points of views. I've been plagued ever since we started to figure out HOW we were going to homeschool, I've adopted The Well Trained Mind because it was the closest method I could find that was printed out for us with resources to boot. I had ideas of my own but with inexperience (not like I have that much now either!) the ideas aimed too high or required more work than necessary. I'm tempted to delete all that is at this blog and start over.

Really, I am. I don't want others to see my old posts and think, "My goodness, look at all she's doing, why am I not doing that. I must be failing my children because I'm not doing hardly any of that for my own." Believe me, people have SAID this to me. I look at some of my old posts and realize how confused and desperate I was to find our path. Trying anything to bring it all together.

It's Wednesday and we're having a fabulous week. Thankfully, it's week 1 of this quarter (9 weeks long) so we're off to a great start!

Making the Change: Spelling

Spelling is the first subject up for review regarding how, when and why. We're in the middle of making a transition to a more natural learning environment instead of forced academics, my main objective is to combine teaching and reaching a child.

In The Well-Trained Mind it is suggested to start Spelling Workout A soon after phonics instruction is done. I've never questioned this, I just did what WTM says thinking that was what was best. Wrong. It's not best, a child needs time to focus on reading skills and even more time to reinforce phonics before diving into another skill to master such as spelling. I thought using Spelling Workout would solidify phonics because it is a phonetic based spelling program.

Camille is not behind at all, she's reading on a 3rd to 4th grade level right now and her fluency is building each day. To be frank, I do not know if Explode the Code is helping or if it has just been time and practice. I suspect it is a bit of both. We've also dropped spelling since we started using Explode the Code and believe it or not, I started worrying about if she'd be able to finish SWO C before 3rd grade. Want to enter my head for a moment here? "If she doesn't finish SWO C in 2nd, then SWO D in 3rd, SWO E in 4th, SWO F in 5th, SWO G in 6th...like WTM says then she'll be behind when..."

Yeah.

Guess what? No more. I have read about how to use dictation to teach spelling which is how Charlotte Mason suggested. I have looked at numerous Charlotte Mason friendly spelling programs. I have read Ruth Beechick and a few other homeschooling books I have here at home and my instinct was right.

You do not need spelling instruction until your child starts composition and certainly not in the formative years of reading. What type of spelling program works best? From my research, spelling that is integrated in with writing works best, the least effective is teaching from spelling lists. If you do teach from spelling lists, it's best to have your child write sentences with the words and then spelling becomes a chore to the child.

Okay, now what? I decided that I didn't want to sacrifice academics by finding a more natural way to learn spelling. So I started looking for something that had the elements of Spelling Workout but was in a different format.

I want something to teach the spelling rules, including suffixes and prefixes as well as root words but in a format that Charlotte Mason would be proud of and I would be excited to use. I looked at a number of programs and finally picked Simply Spelling by Laurie Hicks of Shoelace Books. I was very reserved about using and purchasing an academic item from somewhere I haven't heard of. But it seems a few other homeschoolers I know use and love Simply Spelling as well. That is all the endorsement I need.

We have dropped Spelling Workout completely, Danny will not see a Spelling Workout book unless that format is the best that serves him, although I have a good feeling that won't be the case.

Simply Spelling is a 3rd grade -12th grade product although you can purchase the 3rd and 4th book independently in case you want to "try" it out. It truly is a program that will take minutes a day instead of the 30 minutes for Spelling Workout.

I have read why it is beneficial for children to learn spelling, how it is best taught and when it is best to start teaching. From there I have prayed, thought and sought counsel with other more experienced homeschoolers and decided to find something that would fit both of my objectives, to teach and reach my children. Simply Spelling is our choice.

Why I'm Looking into CM more

I posted this at the WTM Curriculum board after I asked about recommended Charlotte Mason resources. It is the cusp of what is going on with me and our homeschooling journey right now and since I already poured my heart out once, I figured I'd just paste it here. I think this is actually going to be a turning point in our overall journey, we'll see where God leads us.

I found my A Charlotte Mason Education by Levison copy. I have More Charlotte Mason, The Charlotte Mason Study Guide and a few volumes of the Original coming from the library, YAY! I want to get Real Learning too, I have to check if it's at the library.

I just want more of a natural learning environment, I want to stop pushing my children to learn things they might not be ready for just because (just an example!) WTM says to do xyz in year #.

What has been bothering me about our path (using WTM):
I don't understand why we're learning spelling at this stage when it seems having a better grasp on phonics would be more beneficial. I don't understand why there is ANY focus whatsoever on anything but gaining reading fluency and getting better at handwriting through copywork.

I spent most of first grade (our first year of hsling) pushing my dd through subjects, feeling confident because I was following what someone else said was important to do. I don't have the confidence anymore that I was doing "right" by my dd. I don't think we should have started Spelling Workout at all, we should have focused on reading more and memorized phonics rules instead of FLL grammar terms. If we had done that, we could have spent this year (2nd) learning the basics of grammar (nouns, verbs, pronouns) with a much stronger foundation in reading skills. THAT would have been the natural progression but I didn't have the confidence/knowledge last year to realize that.

Now I'm just figuring out how to fix it without hurting dd by pushing too many things on her AND provide her with what she needs at this stage to be successful in the next couple of years when writing comes into play more. It's been a hard road letting go of "public school" mentality and I still struggle with it, now it seems I have to let go of "WTM" mentality just enough to provide what I think is best for my dd.

What appeals to me about CM is the focus on keeping a child a child but still demanding excellence in the tasks at hand. I'm not confident that the progression is enough- at Ambleside under Language Arts, it has a child doing copywork until 4th grade without dictation or written narration. It is the same at Simply Charlotte. I'm not comfortable with that yet. Even the products we're changing to Primary Language Lessons and Language Lessons for the Very Young have dictation and written reproductions (I consider these written narrations).

I need a middle ground somehow and I'm still figuring that out. Tapestry of Grace has been such a God-send because it really opened my eyes to the proper level of books I should be exposing dd7 to at this point and it keeps me in check each week so that I don't use older material just because *I* like it. I'm really weighing what we're using and how, what books are beneficial to read aloud for a variety of reasons (what is good for dd's heart? what is good for dd's soul? what is good for dd's mind?).

I feel like a mess but I'm feeling better about giving my children what THEY need rather than what others say they need and when. Now, I still have this little monkey on my back saying, "what about standardized testing?", "will dh think I'm not being effective if dd doesn't pass her 3rd grade test?", and things like that.

Comparisons about other homeschools aren't bothering me as much but it still gets to me at times. Especially when a child who is the same age as dd7 is reading Harry Potter books and writing paragraphs already or has their own creative journal in which they write a full page. God is helping me with that aspect. Lol.

I am going to read CM's Original Series and spend some time in prayer really thinking about this and what would be best for our kids. Hopefully the smaller questions like (when and how with spelling) will work themselves out.

We're not looking for an overhaul in our curriculum per se, perhaps a refocus on how we approach and possibly when we start doing certain subjects. Language Arts will be the most effected by this but that has already started to happen. It'll be interesting to reread this in a few years.

LA Ramblings

I have Primary Language Lessons by Lingua Mater now and I am very pleased. Thankfully, I've also been able to get Tapestry of Grace's Writing Aids, but I've also decided to get Language Lessons for the Very Young by Sandi Queen. Seems like a lot, huh? I have my reasons.

The Charlotte Mason method for the early years is resonating with me now, moreso than other products. I think it's the gentleness and snuggle quotient that is drawing me. The sharing of something beautiful without rigidness. First Language Lessons 1/2 by Jessie Wise didn't have the snuggle quotient for us, it just felt like something we 'needed' to do and I felt the pressure to get it right. Previewing Writing With Ease by Susan Wise Bauer at Peacehillpress.com gives me the same pressure to get it done and right the first time. This isn't healthy for me or for my children, I don't need to feel the pressure and in turn put pressure on them.

Children and their abilities are fluid, even if they have mastered the material there will be days that they act like they don't know the first thing about the task at hand. I feel like I have equipped myself enough to be able to identify areas of improvement and use more open-ended products. This journey seems to have started when I choose to use Writing Tales 1 instead of Classical Writing or Classical Composition because I felt Writing Tales would be more suited to a younger child's abilities and imagination. Writing Tales is more child-friendly with its activities and games than other products I've seen.

For means of support, I have also acquired:
- The Core Knowledge Sequence K-8 by Hirsch
- Home Learning Year by Year by Rebecca Rupp
- Ruth Beechick's practical books- The 3 R's and You can homeschool your child successfully 5-8

Tapestry of Grace's Writing Aids is a K-12 writing program which will help us move within their 12 levels (not grade levels) at the kids' pace. I think combining this with CM type products will provide the structure, scope and gentleness I've been looking for. I don't want to rush my children through concepts to finish a book. I want to make sure we're using our time efficiently and productively without pushing them beyond what they are capable of. What program is going to do that for us? Truly? None, we have to assess where we are and what we still need.

The only other type of book I'd like to acquire is a practical Charlotte Mason type book that helps with K-12 if there is one. I've also been looking at Catholic homeschooling materials because they also resonate with my goals. We're not Catholic but websites like Mater Amabilis seem to be aligned with what I have in mind, not to mention I have a lot of the books mentioned.

My current plan is to use Primary Language Lessons alongside Language Lessons for the Very Young, switching them out as I feel the need or doing similar lessons in each- the alignment doesn't really matter to me. What does matter is that LLVY should have been what I used in first grade instead of First Language Lessons so I'm remediating in a way. My thought is to keep using our workbook from Mailbox to reinforce if need be but not as an everyday activity. It's hard to share about this because it is very fluid. I do not want our lessons to extend further than 15-20 minutes, and I don't want them to be a pressure-filled 20 minutes.

The good thing is that Danny will be using these materials in a short amount of time and he is already drawn to the Primary Language Lessons's picture studies. How encouraging is that?

I really feel like I only have 1 chance with my children in these younger years and I don't want it to be filled with anxiety when it's not needed. I've had enough anxiety in the last year about all this for all of us! Lol. Oh my, I'm relaxing...what is the world coming to???

This week off in review

Our 3rd grade curriculum arrived, hence the post below about 3rd grade Chemistry but would you believe I've been too busy to really get a good look at everything???

Actually, I have. I've been trying to coordinate the book selling that I've been doing for 2 weeks, purging items in our house, preparing for a lecture I'm giving tomorrow and dealing with daily life with a 5 month old pup, a 3 year old boy and 7 year old girl. Dh has been dealing with his own stresses with his college work and the church.

I am ready for the lecture, scared out of my mind but ready. When I get home, I'll have to finish my first article for Heart of the Matter's classical column, Trivium Tid-Bits, which conveniently will be the same topic that I'm doing the lecture on- how to use classical education elements in any homeschool for free.

Wouldn't you know it? I spilled coffee on my keyboard which now does a lot of bbbbbbbbbbbb's. Lol. Thank goodness I have a laptop to use but it's not the same, all my passwords and shortcuts are on MY computer. Sigh. Funny thing, I was just looking for my ink pen about 10 minutes ago and I couldn't find it. There's always a panic when I misplace my writing tools b/c Danny is quick at finding opportunities to make a mess. Lo and behold, it's in my hair. Thank goodness.

I have a lot of stuff to do this weekend, I haven't even planned out next week's lessons! I'm reserving that for Sunday afternoon and night. I have completely failed this week to accomplish what I should have outside of the extracurricular activities (selling books, preparing lecture, writing article). I have done laundry and fed my family every night though.

The sad thing is I need to prioritize so the 3rd grade curriculum that came in two days ago will have to wait just a little longer before I can truly devote some TLC to it. I can say that I'm very satisified with what I've chosen for 3rd grade. I'll post about it later after it has received some TLC from me. :)

Our 3rd Grade Chemistry

We will be using Living Learning Books Chemistry but I've decided to add a few living books and other items.

How Science Works by Reader's Digest

Chemistry: Learn about Chemical Elements and Compounds CD(The Science Series)" Twin Sisters Production

What's Smaller Than a Pygmy Shrew?" Robert E. Wells

What's the Matter in Mr. Whiskers' Room?" Michael Elsohn Ross

Great Black Heroes: Five Brilliant Scientists (level 4) (Hello Reader)" Lynda Jones

The Periodic Table (True Books)" Salvatore Tocci

What Is the World Made Of? All About Solids, Liquids, and Gases (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 2)" Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld

Switch On, Switch Off (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)" Melvin Berger

The Periodic Table of Elements Magnets" SMART by Simple Memory Art

The Best Book of Fossils, Rocks, and Minerals (The Best Book of)" Chris Perrault

Science Verse (Golden Duck Awards. Picture Book (Awards))" Jon Scieszka

How to Think Like a Scientist: Answering Questions by the Scientific Method" Stephen P. Kramer

Electric Storm, Magic School Bus Chapter Book


Besides a Periodic Table poster and Atom chart, that will be it for our 3rd grade chemistry.