Pitchin' It

I just did something that I have never done in my life (at least that I can recall). I got 3/4th of the way through a book and decided to pitch it--back in the library return pile. It was so dull, I didn't have any desire to continue. It kinda' surprised me because it was from an author I usually like. It was "Mark's Story" by Tim LaHaye. Now don't get me wrong...the Bible part was great. It was the fictionalized portion that was sadly lacking. I suppose that could be because we don't really know that much about Mark. Anyhoo. I gave up. It made me tired. I guess with my book post and the reminder that I have a billion good books to read, I figured why waste my time on an icky. BTW, "John's Story" was great! So go figure.

Well, I anxiously retrieved another book from my pile. This one, "Laddie", by Gene Stratton-Porter. I LOVE her books! "Girl of the Limberlost" is an all-time favorite, as is "Freckles". We'll see how this one works. So far, so good. Can hardly put it down.

Phone Call Day

This is phone call day. It can't be put off any longer. I dread phone call day because it usually means appointments, and appointments are inconvenient. I try to have as few phone call days a year as possible. One is too many!

I put them off longer than I should until they take on a life of their own. On my list is...

• Find a repairman to service the washing machine and dishwasher BEFORE they blow up.
• Find a dentist and get my teeth cleaned BEFORE they rot and fall out of my head.
• Call the GYN...ick. Never like calling that one.
• Get Rx refill.
• Call Retinal Specialist to re-schedule appointment I missed.
• Re-schedule dentist appointments for kids (that we also missed).
• Call alarm company.
  

I'm sure there are more. I'd much rather scrape the crud off the inside of trash cans than make these calls. I must have issues.

Books: Using Your Resources

If you've known me for very long, then you know I'm not only a Bibliophile, but a picky one at that. Once I discovered real living books, due in large part to homeschooling, Truthquest, Jan Bloom and Gladys Hunt, the rest, as they say, was history.

Bibliophile: noun
a person who loves or collects books, esp. as examples of fine or unusual printing, binding, or the like.

I've collected a blue-million books--all of the highest caliber--most having been published prior to 1965 (when the Bible was banned from public schools, and the re-writing of history began). As my personal library has grown, so have we...encountering the most incredible of literary adventures, characters, and historical truth and fancy.

Like many decisions that homeschoolers face, the idea of using the resources we have, in this case books, usually arrives on the scene. For many, it will arrive too late. To avoid that happening, there are a few things to consider regarding the best use of these treasures. With some thought and planning, you can change your focus, save money, and get a maximum impact for your efforts. If you have shelves of books and no strategy to read them, they are as dust in the wind. And dusty, too!

We are all too aware that there are only so many hours in the day--so many days in the year, so many years in childhood.
A reading plan for the long haul, is a great idea.

You might say, at this point, that your family are big readers so you don't consider having a reading plan a necessity, yet as the children grow and more and more demands are being made upon your time, reading aloud, library visits, choosing good books, may all slip by the wayside.

Now, this is in no way about guilt, or regret, but about opportunity! As we've overcome previous planning bungles, I more clearly understand the value of a more thoughtful course of action. I suppose one of the first things that can bring us to this point, is the passing of picture books. Suddenly our little readers, move to paragraphs, chapter books, larger books, etc. Not to return to former "glories", as you will. You find yourself going through your picture books; purging, packing away, remembering, or having no memory of a certain book at all! It's the same for all levels of reading.

How you organize your books will be the one thing that has the greatest impact on your reading. Most families have shelves in every room. Many times this is out of necessity, for many it's habit or even tradition. Every child should have books in their room, for example. That is a long held tradition. If that is important to you, then you need to consider that in your planning.

First, you must have a list of every book you own and it's author. If you are spread-sheet crazy, you could include genre, year of publication, and reading level. Having a list will help you lesson-plan, choose wisely, buy more strategically, etc. Library Thing is another choice. They limit the number of books you can put on a list. You can either buy a subscription, or make multiple lists.

Books that are specifically for school subjects need to be separated by those subjects and arranged in order of their use. If you study science based on a chronological creation sequence, astronomy books will probably be first. We study history chronologically, so our history books are in that order. Books don't get missed, or forgotten. They are only passed up if age-appropriateness is a factor and since we will cover all of history twice before graduation, we'll be revisiting the same shelves.

It is important to include biographies in these sections, as well. If you have a biography of a scientist, put it where and when you will study it. If you're more likely cover it in history, than science, put it with the history books. This is also where a list can help because you can't have a book in two places at once!

Another good example of books to place in chronological order would be missionary stories and biographies. Then you are more apt to read them at the place in history where they had their impact.

One of the biggest hurdles for me was collections; book sets. I began collecting Landmark books and had them in a beautiful row on the shelf. They weren't with the history books, so guess what quickly became apparent? They were being forgotten. Getting them moved to our history shelves was necessary (and still ongoing at my house!).

Include historical fiction in your history shelves. This category can have a rather large spectrum: picture books on up. While most people would separate their historical fiction, since we "teach" with ours, it's more helpful to have it at our fingertips.

So what about the rest of your fiction? My shelves bear the same range in book types and reading abilities as most. I always kept them in alphabetical order by title, but that only showed benefit when listing them or trying to find an elusive volume for history (before I changed my system of order!). One of the whole points of this post is this: Keep your fiction books in order of reading age!

If you really want certain books to be read before "it's too late", then they have to be in the "next" section: that section that your child looks to next for their book choices.

Here's where the long term plan comes into play. With your books in this order, as a child grows in their ability and taste, they move from section to section, without missing that gem of a book that was at one time too difficult for them, but is now just right!

This thought does take a bit of maintaining. You don't want books put away in the wrong section. You may never find them! But if you have a system easily available to your family, you'll be pleased with the results. We use a basket that the kids put their books in so that I can put them where I want them. This habit has helped to show them order and reason.

Now that you have your books in a usable order, how do you actually go about reading them? The obvious answer--the strategy-- would be to set aside time and times for reading! I know that is not always the easiest thing though. Here is where I learned to make some of those excellent choices that come with being a homeschooler! Have your children (and yourself) acquire the habit of always having a book with you in the car. Exactly how many hours a week are we in the car?!!

Do you read? Do you read for yourself? Most do to some degree, but this is also a great habit. One which your children see and emulate. Monkey see, monkey do. Let them see you reading the Bible daily, they'll want to read their Bibles. Let them see you reading other great books, and they, too, will want to read really great books.

And reading aloud! If you haven't begun reading aloud, it's never too late to start. You will never regret it! Here is a great resource for inspiration, as well as the books I listed at the start. We began a more regular read-aloud time with Lamplighter books! Wow! They have created a passion within us, for reading together! Then, consider having your read-alouds with you where ever you go. Carry them around the house with you; in the car, etc. You never know when you will have ten minutes on the way to friends to read aloud (that is, if the husband is driving!) or a few minutes of play break gathered together in the yard!

And since we are talking about habit, develop the habit of giving. Give your individual children time to read each day. What a fabulous gift! Thirty minutes out of their day will not kill anyone or deprive them of play. They will come to love that time of quiet adventure. It is also a more adequate rest than say...none!

If you are choosing the very best of books for your children (a whole other post!) then it will not take much to have them chomping at the bit to read more!

Let's fact it! We take books with us. We carry the really good ones in our hearts and minds; remembering what great stories were told and the joy of meeting each hero and heroine. I distinctly remember the first time I read the "Chronicles of Narnia" at age 10. It was the start of my great love for books. My husband, on the other hand, has rarely read a book (besides his Bible) in his life! That seems so tragic to me. Missed opportunities? I don't really know, but now, even he enjoys our read alouds!

Get those books in order and read! What are you waiting for?

Math: Decision '08

So I get to the convention. Beeline it to RightStart to place my annual order. But I had a question. The question about what comes AFTER. That dreaded question that I will need an answer to in the next couple of years. No! It's not that far off. I'm long term planning, remember...so I've gotta "know".

Well, they point me to the next booth: "Video Text Interactive". Never heard of it. So I hear the shpeal. Not overwhelmed. Dollar signs flashing before my eyes, and all. I put the question behind me and move on.

Two aisles over I see this huge yellow banner and "Teaching Textbooks". Now them I've heard of briefly. I talk to the family manning the booth and am very impressed. Not only that, images of my son and his struggles with daily math are tearing me up and I start to have vain imaginings of a life without the words..."I hate math!"

I'm so encouraged that I call the husband and son at home for them to check out the website and play with the sample lessons. I go back to RightStart and cancel my order for the son.

Fast forward two days and I'm home checking the website. Husband doesn't like it. Son loves the computer part. I start looking at levels and realize their scope and sequence is WAY different from what we've been doing. Son is actually so far ahead of this program, instead of Math 4, he'd be closer to Math 7. Hmmm.

I start poking around on the site and realize there is NOTHING about who they are or what their methodology is. There is no INFORMATION. This begins to bug me. A LOT. Now, over at RightStart there is TONS of info. They not only go into their philosophy of teaching, but with research to back it up. This is what sold me on it in the first place! That and the glowing recommendations. Now, in all fairness to Teaching Textbooks, they have little videos on their site, but NONE of them worked so I have no idea what they say!

So, the hard part. Letting the son know that we were not going to use the totally "fun" video game math program. I was expecting tears and meltdown. What I got was..."Okay." Ahhhh! Music to my ears! I told him we'd stick with what we were doing and maybe find a math game for fun. He was content.

RightStart has been a great program for three years. The only reason we have any problems with it, I'm beginning to see, is the pressure I have put on him. Mostly to perform at a certain speed. Any speed other than slow motion. I have easily frustrated, and that has frustrated him. I repent!!! I've learned my lesson! I see the trees now...through the forest of practice problems!

So RightStart called me a couple of hours ago to verify my order. I had them re-add next year's level to the order and I still get the free shipping.

What can I say. When you have a good thing, stick with it! Don't question it!

Homeschool Blog Carnival

I'm participating in my very first Blog Carnival hosted by Principled Discovery. Check it out! There are sooo many moms sharing the best insights!

Not What We Deserve

I'm slow. It took me two whole days to notice that something wasn't right with my 4yo daughter's hair. She has curly hair, so I chocked it up to general messiness, and didn't give it much thought. She's been brushing it herself, so it was only when I took the brush in my own hands that it became real clear that it had indeed. Been. Cut.

Once I was able to speak, after the initial paralyzing shock, she told me in detail how her friend had taken her into the closet and cut all sides of her hair. She had then put it in the trash, where I found it gingerly placed between various layers of kleenex.

Of course, her father and I were stunned and we continued to question her about this event. I decided to go to our friends house and see if their 7yo daughter had anything to say about all this. I took the offending locks of beautiful curls with me and presented them to her. She was baffled and clueless. It was at this point, several hours into the discovery of the cutting, that daughter relented and confessed that she was the one that had cut it. By herself. Fortunately, for me, I did not enter my friends house in anger.

Speechless. Horrified. Grief-stricken. Sick. Humbled. That about sums it up.

There sat my beauty, with "SINNER" stamped across her forehead! Literally. Well, figuratively, but obviously across her forehead! I apologized to her friend, called the husband, and drove home to deal with this "lying, deceiving", little girl. I put her in her room, while I continued in my non-stop praying for an answer. I walked in her room and found her sitting on her bed with her picture Bible in front of her--opened to a cross on a hill. This was a first.

This day--Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread--commemorates the day that Jesus died on the cross for our sins. It was on this day that He took each and every one upon Himself, becoming sin, covering us with His blood, though we are wretched and shameful. It was a day like this one.

Luk 22:7 ESV Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.

I looked at my precious girl, I told her once more what the day represents and I realized, this was my chance--prepared by the Father--to let my baby know she is forgiven. What Sa*tan meant for evil, God meant for good. I could punish her. I could ground her. I could do so many things, but this day isn't about us. It's about Him. We sat down together and read about how very much God loves us and what it means to be a child of the King. How nothing we do can separate us from His love; that He never leaves us.

I asked her what she thought she should do next and she offered up her sorrow and asked forgiveness. She said she wanted to tell her friend that she was sorry. And she said these things without my promptings. I was a bit impressed, but mostly relieved. She does see the truth and recognize it. I think the Lord is glad for this victory in her life and I'm glad that it was THIS day, now unlike any other day.

So then, we cut her hair. Again. This time, in sadness, we lopped off the remaining curls and uneven edges. We also talked about hair cuts, who gives them, and when! It was then that she admitted that it was because I had recently cut off my long hair, that she had cut hers. *Sigh*

We spent the evening with the same friends. Sharing a time of communion and worship. Talking and praying about our own "Egypts" and our personal "wanderings" in the desert and how we have our liberty in Christ Jesus. Remembering His death. Continuing to feel the presence of the Lord.

Luk 22:8-20 ESV (8) So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it." (9) They said to him, "Where will you have us prepare it?" (10) He said to them, "Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters (11) and tell the master of the house, 'The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?' (12) And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there." (13) And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. (14) And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. (15) And he said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. (16) For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." (17) And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves. (18) For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." (19) And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." (20) And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

Until Next Year

The convention has come and gone. I'm taking my deep breaths as I settle in with my books, catalogs and planning materials to think about things to come--waiting a year till the next convention.

I had a fabulous two days, to be sure. Good time with friends, acquaintances, and vendors. I was sufficiently inspired, somewhat depleted in energy, and juiced up by the thrill of it all. It amazes even me, how I can find enough to look at and do during two full days, in one large room, yet at the end of day two, I could have kept going. I did not make it to even one seminar. At this stage in my life, they just are not my cup of tea. I'd rather visit.

I was disappointed to not see a couple of favorite booths, and amazed at how many math companies have popped up! Things seemed pared down a bit. I hope that is not a sign of things to come. I can't really say that I saw any new trend or trendy items, but I did notice the passing of a few. I did not see one Charlotte Mason item. I didn't see as many used places as in previous years. There were hardly any science exhibits. I can think of 3 off the top of my head that were a no-show. Interesting.

I was able to get the items that I needed, see a few things I was curious about, be challenged on my math choices (Rightstart is still the best), and even pick up a couple of inspiring items for myself. I could hardly resist getting a couple of Gene Stratton-Porter books I've rarely seen and I bought a weekly journal for each of my children from Notgrass. Gotta plot those milestones more carefully than I have been!

Son got his annual "gun" purchase--this time a WWII rifle. Daughter got her "princess" book. They are both elated. Except that son has already "lost" his gun for the day...

We got up nice and early today and have just about finished our lessons. It's only 1pm. Getting up early is the "bomb"! (Whatever!) Getting up early does, indeed, give you more time in the day. We've finished lunch and will be taking a nice, long walk before we hit the yard and garden, garden center, and grocery. Hope your day is as fresh and sunny as ours!

Habit vs Work

"Susannah Wesley was the mother of 19 children, including John and Charles Wesley. Through much adversity, she dedicated her life to instilling a sense of Christian Destiny into each of her children. Her children went on to change the world."

Here are 16 rules she laid down in her home.

1. Eating between meals not allowed.
2. As children they are to be in bed by 8 p.m.
3. They are required to take medicine without complaining.
4. Subdue self- will in a child, and those working together with God to save the child's soul.
5. To teach a child to pray as soon as he can speak.
6. Require all to be still during Family Worship.
7. Give them nothing that they cry for, and only that when asked for politely.
8. To prevent lying, punish no fault which is first confessed and repented of.
9. Never allow a sinful act to go unpunished.
10. Never punish a child twice for a single offense.
11. Comment and reward good behavior.
12. Any attempt to please, even if poorly performed, should be commended.
13. Preserve property rights, even in smallest matters.
14. Strictly observe all promises.
15. Require no daughter to work before she can read well.
16. Teach children to fear the rod.

These all seem pretty reasonable to me, but one, I admit, threw me a bit. Number 15! "Require no daughter to work before she can read well." I found this very interesting. I have to wonder a couple of things: Exactly when did she teach her daughters to read, and exactly what did she consider "work". My own four year old daughter is busily learning her phonics and writing skills and doing quite well at it. She loves her Five in a Row, when we do it, and she loves books. Period. I'm sure she's on her way to reading, but I'm not sure I can name the date for liftoff.

However, she also does what I consider "work". She makes her bed. She picks up her own messes. She helps dust and put away dishes (silver & plastics). She puts away her laundry. Would Susannah Wesley consider these things work? Or habit? Do we forget that good habit is often about stewardship and "work" may be more of things we'd hire out if we were filthy stinkin' rich? Like milking cows...if we had cows. Or sewing clothes, instead of buying them?

Sometimes I feel guilty for making my kids do their "helps"--what we call chores--when they have an opportunity to play. Especially if it's a beautiful day, or with a dear friend. Yet I realize I'm not helping them to develop the habit of order, responsibility, etc., if I allow them to shirk these "duties" to self in order to run in the sun.

Today, for example, I let them go out to play. I knew I wouldn't call them back till almost dinner time and figured I'd have a fight on my hands to get them back into "take care of your business" mode. Fortunately, they were both so appreciative of the time out that they acquiesced quite easily and finished their helps. I breathed a huge sigh of relief and figured that once again we should talk about how if no huge mess is made and left, there is no huge mess to fix. I believe they are starting to understand.

So now I'm working on rule #2--"As children they are to be in bed by 8pm." I'm pretty sure Wesley's children must've "grown up" around the age of 7! (At least according to my 8 year old whom I can't seem to convince he's tired until 9pm). Then again, there's that dratted daylight savings thing that has us all messed up! What time is it really anyway??

So...a very thought provoking list. What's your take on it?

Flying By the Seat of My Pants

It's amazing to me how God uses certain things to spur us on to better things.

It finally hit me. Everyone talking about finishing up their year and planning for next year. My decision to go year round seemed a little more than daunting, and certain regrets have crept in. I realized that I don't care for the idea of not having an end...and not having a fresh beginning.

Suddenly, I'm motivated. But we've taken our time this year. We haven't rushed. We've done very well...and we haven't. I feel behind and haven't been able to even imagine an end in sight.

I like a big picture. I know that about myself, but for some reason, I haven't given myself one and have found myself floundering. I don't like floundering.

I just read a great series from SCM talking about long term planning. Then another great bolt of lightning hit me. I...me...the planner...has no plan! No big picture. I visited Donna and printed out some blank planners and started filling in columns for son's remaining school years and subjects. I wrote in what would happen when, and what materials or curriculums I thought I'd use. I now have a big picture. I have to say, it's very freeing and it's so nice looking at when we're going to do state history, composition, and biology. It's nice having a plan, regardless of whether that plan will change.

After I finished the Big picture, I started a weekly (broken down into days) plan for finishing what we've started with the objective of finding an end to our year; a completion. A jumping off place. A bench mark. Is that enough figures of speech!! :)

I thought we'd be able to finish our "year" before nice weather; REALLY nice weather. We're not. It looks like we're going to go through June. This is going to be the year Mommy messed up with the schedule, but it won't happen again. I've learned my lesson. So we'll be schooling AND gardening at the same time this year. It's going to be a lot of work. But for some reason, I don't think it'll be a bad thing. I'm looking forward to it because I'm looking forward to following a plan.

So far, this week has been one victory after another. We've revisited our "Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day" which we left half done back in Sept or Oct (even though we absolutely loved it!). We've picked up our "Burgess Bird Book" which we were reading aloud (and also totally loved), along with our bird study. It had also been abandoned. We've bumped up the pace on our "Truthquest History" and "A Child's Geography". We've become more focused on our notebooking than we have been for quite awhile. And, last but not least, we're doing it all per a plan that actually has an end goal that is not too far from sight.

I think again about focusing on the things that God accomplishes, rather than what I accomplish, and I remember that He is still doing a great work within me. He's building me up, providing me with the means to do the job put before me, and He's preparing me for what comes next. God's Providence again and again.

As we've started our days earlier, worked a little harder, and a little longer, we've had a coming together in regards to study habits, scheduling, and even our meal time. Momentum will be our enemy or our friend. I'm sure we'll have both good days and bad, but for now there is only one other thing I have to think about...

There's just 3 days left till the convention!

Passover

Passover begins this Saturday and we'll be worshiping and rejoicing in Jesus death and resurrection--all that He did for us as the ultimate sacrifice--at that time (we don't celebrate Easter as you may have guessed from this ,and this). I thought I would follow Lisa's example and share some of my favorite resources. As usual, you must search these things out for yourself!

I really have enjoyed some of the studies done by Christine Miller of Nothing New Press. Here she tells about her upcoming planning for Passover.

I also have found a tremendous amount of information from Robin Sampson (Heart of Wisdom) and her Biblical Holidays book, which has been a great inspiration to us.

For our family, we are not so much concerned with keeping of "festivals" in a Jewish tradition, as we are with "remembering" what God has put before us "when" we are called to by scripture. So while we don't celebrate a Christian Seder as many do, we have our Crucifixion and Resurrection Day remembrances at the time of actual Passover.

Primarily, it is from searching out scripture that we came to this conclusion for our family! We look forward to "remembering" all these things!

Matthew 26-28

Menu Plan Monday: April 14-20

I took a break from posting Menu Plan Monday, but I'm still planning! I just can't always get it posted. So here is this week's effort.

Monday
B: Oatmeal w/yogurt and oranges
L: Sliced chicken, cheese sandwiches w/salad, applesauce
D: Leftover Pork roast, carrots and plums

Tuesday
B: Walnut Waffles, w/turkey bacon and fruit
L: Raman Noodles w/egg and peas, sliced apples
D: Lemon Poppy Turkey Burgers, Salad & toasted, fresh homemade bread

Wednesday
B: Scrambled eggs w/ham & cheese, and cantelope
L: Mac & Cheese w/Broccoli & fruit
D: Taco Bake w/salad

Thursday
B: Homemade Granola w/yogurt & bananas
L: Sunflower Seed Butter & Jelly, mixed veggies & apples
D: Spaghetti, Green Beans & Corn, Garlic Bread

Friday (Homeschool Convention Day! Husband with our kids +3 more kids! He's so good!)
B: Pancakes w/Sausage & Oranges
L: Grilled Cheese w/salad & fruit
D: Pizza

Saturday (Convention; Day 2)
B: Oatmeal w/Yogurt & Bananas
L: Leftovers w/salad
D: Out

Sunday
B: Homemade Mueslix Cereal & Grapefruit
L: Eggs & Sausage & fruit
D: Texas Chili & fruit

For more Menu Plan Monday, visit Laura and "I'm an Organizing Junkie"

Preparing Judah Bible Lessons Using E-Sword

Finally! Here is the much requested post on how I use E-Sword to prepare my Judah Bible Curriculum (JBC) Lessons. (You can read about our Bible lessons here.)

If you've already downloaded E-Sword, check for updates (they just had one at the end of Feb.) and you'll be set to go. If not, you can do that here. Of course, you'll want to familiarize yourself with it a bit, but you'll find it very user-friendly. I'll share some of my own tips and tricks along the way.

The Setup:
After downloading the original package, I selected the versions of the Bible that I wanted to use. ESV (English Standard Version) is our main version. I also had to have Webster's 1828 Dictionary, Strong's linking to the KJV (which comes with the main download) and the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK). These were "musts" in my book! Without them, I couldn't find what I needed for teaching. All are available for free from E-Sword. And much more!

I have my Bible and Dictionary (on the left) of about equal size. [Oh yes! You can adjust the size by clicking on the outlines and dragging, just like in Windows!] The right is reserved for Topic Notes, Commentary, & Study Notes. This is my biggest, because this is where all the work comes together.

I set my lessons up in what is called the Topic Notes. Here you can title your study and keep it. Other options include linking it directly to the passage of scripture, but this doesn't work for more than one verse. I usually title my lessons like this: JBC 3:3:6. This tells me it's JBC (Judah Bible Curr.) Year 3, Theme 3, Lesson #6.

After I put an actual title on the blank topic notes page, with the actual names of the theme, lesson and the scripture passage, I begin with Day 1. I have found that by breaking the lesson into days (I number them), prevents me from trying to cover more than one IDEA each day. This is a Biblical Principle Approach (BPA) thought that has kept me from overwhelming my children.

I do not usually follow "weeks" as JBC is scheduled. Though I TRY to stick to a week, for continuity's sake, if a lesson takes us 10 days, or three, so be it. This will usually be apparent as soon as you review the scripture passage to be studied. There are certain things that I include in every lesson. I have broken those down by days, or daily.

Narration:
We narrate at the beginning and end of each portion of scripture read. At this point in time, we are only using oral narration, but will be adding written beginning next year (4th grade). I could go on and on about this, but I'll send you over here, for the sake of brevity.

Timeline:
Looking at where on the timeline, or Chain of Christianity (COC), we are with this passage. My COC looks like the following and is a combination of the original COC, and my own thoughts on the importance of certain historical times and places. We look at this briefly for each lesson (or week). We especially note how God's Word may tell the story of a "prophet", but also include the last link--the "Restoration: As for Me and My House" link, as we ask what lessons God wants us to learn. My links on the chain have changed as we've grown. They now include:

Creation
The Patriarchs
Moses and the Law
The Flood
Prophets, Priests and Kings
Jesus and the Cross
Paul, and the Early Christian Church
The Bible Restored
Columbus, and the Explorers
The Pilgrims
One Nation Under God
Westward Expansion and Erosion
Restoration: As For Me and My House

Putting the Week's Lessons Together:
First, I look up the passage that I'm lesson planning. Once I have it selected and before I copy the passage over, I mark it up! I'm a big "marker". I write all over my Bible (& books) when I read. Underlining, circling, highlighting. You can do some of this right in E-Sword and it will remain there! Then when you copy the passage(s) over to your lessons, the markings will be there. Then, of course, you can add more marking as you consider the relevance of your lesson and the ages of your children. As I copy the passage of scripture over to the topic notes [*Hint*: You have several options for copy and paste, including drag and drop. I like the "2 papers with red star" button, above your "Bible" that allows you to choose the format you want your verses to appear in.], I also use my actual paper Bible! I have so many of my own notes and marking there that are a great reminder of previous thoughts and prayers. Since I've learned that this process can be long, it's nice to know the passages ahead of time and study them throughout the days and weeks; keeping notes with my more portable paper Bible, before I sit down to prepare the lesson. My husband has taken to only using his laptop now. He even takes it to church with him. Weirdo! :) Now, once the scripture is copied over, I mark some more and even add in my own "spoken" commentary. I do this in red so I don't...ummm...get confused! Ha!

Leading Question:
After I've reviewed the whole passage, I will come up with a Leading Question. The leading question is the ONE thing for the whole lesson that principally stands out. In other words, if I could only have them learn one thing, what would it be. Another way to look at it, is something that "leads" the child through the lesson to a particular conclusion or thought. It is usually not looking for a specific answer, but a process of reasoning that builds their knowledge, heart and character in the Lord. Examples would include: "Why is the past important to understanding the future?" "What is our responsibility toward God?" "How does God reveal Himself in times of peace?" This was one of the more difficult things I had to learn, because I was used to "yes" "no" questions. It takes practice, for sure!

Discussion & Notebooking Questions:
After I have the scripture in place and marked, I will add any other thoughts & questions I wish to share or discuss. Then I'll finish that days plan with a question geared toward that particular section of scripture. I do this for each day, leading up to answering the leading question. I take all the questions for the week and put them on a Word doc with writing lines. Son answers each days question as it comes and then adds the sheet to his notebook. Here is an example of that.

Bible as Literature:
Now, on Day 1 of the lesson, we always cover "Bible as Literature". This is something that I also learned from BPA and since we read a lot but don't yet do "Literature" as a separate topic, I add in this bit.

Basically, we just look at five elements. We identify the type of literature: letter, biography, historical narrative, poetry, etc; and who penned it for God. We'll talk about the setting for our passage, and the plot and theme. Discussing the theme is a good way to perpetuate the leading question. They are usually linked. Lastly, we'll talk about the characterization, or who God is dealing with in this particular passage. This really takes no time at all and gets us thinking about the Bible as a whole story and message from God.

Scripture Memorization:
On Day 2 of the lesson, I introduce the memory selection. Son will write it out on a 3x5 card and insert it in his memory box. You can read more about our memory box system here.

Biblical Principles & the Providences of God
Our Judah Bible lessons would not be complete without looking at the Biblical Principles of the lesson, and the many Providences of God throughout the passage. These are key elements to Biblical Principle Approach. You can read about the seven foundational principles here.

We do this on Thursday, where ever that may fall in our lesson. Because God is so awesome and His word so perfect, we could easily cover every principle we could think of with each lesson! I've done this...it's time consuming, to say the least! I recommend selecting one or two principles as the focus. As you begin to learn the seven foundational principles, you will begin to see other principles shine forth: another benefit of this Bible study methodology. When you find yourself with a profound Biblical truth, you have a "principle". We have a particular one that we are focusing on at least for this year. It's even on my blog. It is something that the husband shared with us and God has used to greatly guide us in all our daily activities.

"A loving relationship always equals obedience,
but obedience does NOT always equal a loving relationship."

We've had a few "wow" moments with that one, and that's the idea of learning and focusing on Biblical Principles!

When we look at God's Providences, we are also looking at the nature of God; who He is and how He works. We do that by focusing on the five P's:

God's Promises
God's Purposes
God's Preparation
God's Protection
God's Provision

As you learn these, you will see evidence of them throughout every subject in HIStory and, of course, the Bible. It truly reinforces how Mighty is our God!

Using Definitions in the Lesson:
Let's face it, there are some pretty "big" words in scripture! I find myself checking definitions just to make sure "I" know what they mean! This is important to BPA lessons (which, if you haven't figured that out yet, Judah Bible is). It builds a foundation of understanding and reasoning through research. This is a great way for kids to begin to see that it's easy to find out about something you don't know. You could go a bit crazy with this, but I try to limit it to 1-3 words per week. I'll use the Webster's on E-sword and copy over the entire definition [drag & drop!]. Then I'll go through and delete any that don't pertain to the particular use of the word. Next year, I'll have son (who will be 9) begin to look up the words himself in the BIG Webster's! This will be a great notebooking exercise.

Using Hymns or Choruses:
Often times the Lord will bring to mind a hymn or chorus from the passage we are studying. I'll just include the lyrics somewhere in my topic notes so that I remember it. [It's great that you can highlight and copy from almost any program, or the web, and paste it into E-Sword.] I love this opportunity to more fully embrace what the Lord is teaching us; to bring it "home", so to speak, and make it our own. We sing daily and can't get enough.

Using Greek or Hebrew:
This is somewhat new to us. I'm beginning to get a better grasp on understanding that our English translations don't always have the same fullness of meaning as the original languages. With the Strongs #'s linking to the original languages, you just roll over the # and see a box pop up with the info! It's very helpful! They don't have duel languages, side-by-side, yet. At least that I know of!

Character Lesson:
We've been incorporating character lessons in our week for about two years. This year, however, I'm using our Bible lesson as the catalyst. We either examine a particular character trait from the main figure in the scripture we are looking at, or a character trait that we are being directly instructed about. [We use the "Bible" (see top menu), "Search" feature.] It is also adding a great personal emphasis to our learning! There are a lot of sources for various character lessons, but the main one we began with was characterjournal.com. After using these lessons for awhile, it's easy to see the main components and come up with your own lessons. They will always include:

A definition
How the trait is demonstrated
Scripture
Examples
"I Will" or application statements

We do these lessons on Fridays.

Other E-Sword Elements:
I've already mentioned the Bible versions, the Dictionary, and even the Greek and Hebrew (which are also available through E-Sword). Another thing I occasionally will look at is Matthew Henry's commentary, though I'm not a big fan of commentaries for they are fallible. It can help your thought process.

I enjoy the TSK because you can see what other verses in the Bible deal with the same info. I like to have other passages, especially from OT & NT, whenever possible--it is one book! These things are very easy to use in E-Sword. Any time you highlight a verse in the Bible window, then click on the supplement, it'll open up to that passage, or reference point. Everything is copyable into your topic notes. Can't beat that!

Another thing I use a lot is the Search feature. If you click on "Bible" at the very top, then "Search" you can fill in and find just about anything you want. This is particularly useful with the Character Lesson, for you can do a key word search, or if you can't remember where a verse is!

There are so many helpful tools available, I've only begun to check them all out and I've been using this program for almost three years.

Another thing I'll mention is fonts. I changed my Bible font, and Dictionary font to be different from the default Topic Notes font. That way, when I copy scripture over, and type my own notes between, you can more clearly see where one ends and another begins. You can do this under "Options".

Using a Template:
Since I use the same elements each week, including the formatting, I created a template that I "fill in" each week. This keeps a bit of continuity for me and helps me remember things such as when I want to look at the Timeline, or when to narrate. You can do this by creating the format (which is just a lesson without the content), saving it under the name "Template", then opening it, and copying the contents to a new topic.

Printing:
I print out the entire lesson and keep it in my notebook, but you don't have to. In the topic notes, if you don't wish to print your whole lesson, you may highlight a certain section, then when you press the "magnifying glass on paper" button, you can print just what is highlighted. This really helps if you are only printing one day's worth at a time.

If you are using Windows Vista, you may have printing problems. The best solution, in that case, is to copy your document over to Word and print from there.

Special Note on Saving Your Work:
Be sure to periodically hit the "disc" button to save. Though it operates on auto-save, I have lost whole lessons before when my computer has died. It's not quite what Blogger auto-save is. It never hurts to be cautious.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is a sample of a finished lesson. I hope that this has been, and will be, helpful to you. I had planned to do this with screen shots, but getting into that was more than I bargained for. If there is anything that I've left out, or if you have more specific questions, feel free to ask me in the comments. I'll answer them there so that I can keep track. JBC is great, E-Sword is great, and God's Word can't be beat! Put 'em all together, with the leading of the Holy Spirit, and you can have some great Bible lessons! God bless your time in the Word!

We Interrupt Spring...

...for raging Spring Fever--no! Really! Such fun. Baby girl came down with a high fever--105! degrees--on Sunday and it's been a slow recovery ever since. Tuesday, it was bucket time. Oh yes! Nothing would stay down. My poor baby. I thought we finally had a break in her temp on Wed., then it bounded back up to 103 degrees in the afternoon. She's now getting her appetite back, but is very peaked. I have high hopes for today. She woke up without a temp., but her midnight doses may not have worn completely off yet. We're all going a bit stir crazy being cooped up all week, especially me with so much to do in the yard. And now rain and storms are moving in. And now you know why I've been posting so much!

Bloomin' Update: 4/9/08

Now we're talking! Fresh Forsythia blossoms! With lots more to come!

And the Pussy Willows transform!

Spectacular! It's one of the most amazing plants. It's two years old (to me). I bought it at Lowes for about $15 in a gallon pot. It was about 2'-3' tall. Now look at it! It's over 6' tall & 6' round. If I remember correctly, the tag said it would be 20'! That will be a gorgeous sight.

Study Habits

We're suffering from a terrible condition: poor study habits. And it's starting to cause big problems and lots of anguish. I know that this is about bad habits that I have allowed and good habits that I haven't taught.

It's time to refocus on the habits we need to instill. The goals are pretty clear. I want son to be able to complete his work within a certain amount of time. I want him to be able to do this without complaining and without an attitude of "hating" school. Nothing like lofty goals!

One of the biggest causes of our strife has been distractions. Today, for instance, his sister is very sick in bed and was watching a movie. He wanted to watch to. I said no, but he positioned himself where he could "hear" and "peek". My fault. Then when I finally did move him and instructed him not to get up till it was done, I didn't follow through with a consequence when he did get up...several times. I'm not that great with consequences, especially when I DO see effort.

I watched him do practice problems for math and this is what I observed: He would put his pencil down a lot. Look around the room. Look out the window. Tip his chair back and forth. Start conversations. Join conversations. Need to go to the bathroom. Need a drink. Ask questions. Etc. At no time did he bend over his work in concentration, pencil in hand, determined to complete the work quickly and correctly.

Now, he is a boy...and wiggly, but this is actually not typical of him--except for "on his own" work time. Of course, one solution would be not to HAVE "on his own" work time, but I believe that would be counter-productive. He understands about self-governing, but something is not connecting for him. It could just be his concept of time; it's value. It could just be stressing him out when he's given more than one thing at a time to do.

I promised him today, after many tears, that this was not something that was "wrong with him"; and that it's more about me not helping him in the right way, to be able to do what he needs to do. I told him we would come up with a plan together. So that's what I'm praying for. A plan.

First off, removing distractions is a priority. And I'm going to establish places and work conditions that are unbending. Consequences will include losing privileges that come from having spare time. Times will be established to do certain things, and they will be strict. If work is not completed in that time, the consequences will again kick in. And the thing that will make this a good habit is consistency. Everyday. Without fail.

For my part, I'm going to be much more particular about what is assigned and it's value. I'll be sure and certain that he is given everything he needs to complete the work without feeling stressed by it. I hope. I want him to have the freedom to ask for help when frustrated, or even better yet, before he's frustrated! I want him to have a sense of accomplishment, and I want him to gain an understanding of his own progress as he makes it.

I know that as we begin to make good habits our own, the bad ones will slip away. No more working on a math page for 3 hours. No more of me asking, in my own frustration (and sin) "Aren't you done with that yet?!" Total replacement theory!

This should give us a good start in the right direction.

Search Out These Things

Sunday, in our church bulletins, was a pamphlet for a Crisis Pregnancy Center event. On it was part of Deut 30:19-20.(NIV)

"...choose life, so that you and your children may live...For the LORD is your life..."

As I looked at that verse, written NOT in it's entirety and NOT in a true context, I began to think about how common this is--using scripture this way, and how often we alter God's word for our own purposes. Maybe most don't consider this "altering" His word, but it doesn't exactly seem "honest" when abortion, or even the pro-life movement is NOT what this verse is speaking of. I'm sure they might think, "Oh, well this doesn't hurt! It's for a good cause." Hmmm.

Here stands Moses, speaking to the wandering Israelites and giving them the low down. Either you choose life and blessings by honoring and obeying God, or you are choosing death! With obedience, you get the Promised Land. Without it, your life will be cut short. Pretty simple. But don't take my word for it. Search it out for yourself. Here are the actual verses:

" I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the LORD your God, obeying His voice and holding fast to Him, for He is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them."

Maybe the folks who put the pamphlet together can justify the use of this verse because, obviously, if we are honoring and obeying God, we won't be killing unborn babies, but it still made me think. It made me open my Bible and read and see if what was being said was correct.

I am realizing more and more just how primary, yet little thought of, one of the lessons the early believers taught us, is: Search out these things daily.
Acts 17:11 says,

"Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so."

This verse is part of a passage that tells us that there were some Jews who knew the words of God and searched them daily, so when they heard about Jesus, they believed. They'd read the prophesies, they knew God through His word, so they recognized the Messiah. But they were only a few, because only a few were "more noble". But don't take my word for it. Search it out for yourself.

How often we "hear" God's word. Preachers, Bible studies, CPC pamphlets--even Bible Commentaries!! How often we do a Bible Study that uses a verse here, a verse there, and we take the speaker or author's "word for it" instead of searching these things out for ourselves. We are lazy and we "trust". We HOPE that no one would steer us wrong when speaking of the things of God, we don't even give it a thought, and we don't take the time to check. We rely on all feeding to come from another person. As a result, I believe we remain stagnant in our learning and growth in Christ. A lot of times, we wouldn't know the "truth" if it his us in the face.

If we are to truly know His word, we have to be searching out all things in it. We need to open it and read it. We need to hide His word in our hearts. We need to do it daily. We need to read it all, not just a verse here, and a verse there. Front to back, it is one story, with Christ on every single page!

It wasn't until about a year ago that I had a revelation. I was reading the Bible more than I was watching TV! We'd gotten rid of cable, and were only renting movies. For the first time in my life, I was beginning to really learn and be in, the word of God. More than TV.

My prayer is that I always will. That I'll always remain in Him and His word--searching out all things in the light of His word. My prayer is that you will too.

Don't take mere men's word for anything!

Search it out for yourself.

"The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law." Deut. 29:29

Convention Countdown

Okay! So I'm a little bonkers when it comes to conventions. Having grown up in a convention environment (my parents owned a business that precipitated this), I crave them like a bear craves honey! Actually, it's honey that I'm looking for!

With only 10 days to go, I'll be excited to embark upon my 7th IAHE convention. I never tire of them. I never consider not going. I look forward to each one with enraptured abandon! How's that for poetic license!

This year a dear friend and I are getting a hotel room for the night and having serious Mommy get away time. Kinda weird considering we live within 30 minutes of the convention. We are really looking forward to be able to go back and forth if the need arises. We love our time together kinda propping each other up--sharing ideas, etc. (Hey Suz! We have "etc's"!) We're also looking forward to some gooood food. Not convention food, but choosing from some of the best restaurants there are! Yummy!

I really love the convention for a number of reasons. I love the encouragement along our journey. I love eavesdropping joining conversations on peoples reviews of books and products. I love holding those books in my hands and attempting to determine their true value. I love running into so many homeschool friends and acquaintances that I don't regularly get to see. I even love searching for hidden treasure. That's my retail background coming out.

I'm not much of a meeting attender. I prefer the mp3's, but you never know. This could be THE year! Regardless, I've come to realize that I spend more physical time in the pursuit of all things homeschooling, than anything else. I'm not just referring to the time spent planning lessons, printing out notebooking pages, or even teaching. But also my own Bible Study time to prepare me to be the woman the Lord would have me be--the mother, the teacher that He would have me be, or even feeding my children healthfully so they can learn better. The Lord has set apart this time and place for this purpose. Homeschooling in the Lord truly is our way of life.

So ten more days and I'll be there. You going?

Master Bedroom Round Up

Laura, over at Organized Junkie is "Rounding Up" the Master Bedroom this month. I love these round ups because it has helped me focus on a certain area and with an end in sight. It also has helped me by choosing, for me, which area to work on!

We have a large bedroom; more of a master suite. I've done little things over the three years we've lived here, but there is still much to do. There are three things, essentially, that I'll be working on. One--moving my computer and and homeschool work OUT of the room to an as-yet-undetermined location. Two--hang the blinds that have been leaning in the corner for six months. Three--do SOMETHING about a head board for our bed. I think I may finally have a plan for that.

My goals for the room are to make it a nest; a retreat--comfortable, inviting, and romantic for this 'ole married couple! It is the only place in the house where I read, so my personal books to read are here. Husband's magazines should be here for the same reason. My current computer nook will now be solely for Quiet time and reading.

Because we spend our evenings here, I wouldn't mind having a little handiwork present like my crochet basket, or needlework. Lap work type of things. Husband also works on his computer in here in the evenings, but that's his decision whether or not to change it. I enjoy that he works in here with me. Sometimes we'll watch a movie together, but we don't have TV so that isn't an issue.

I want the room to be beautiful, smell good (candles!), totally lack clutter (including clothes piles). I do NOT want it to be a playroom, office, or laundry mat. I want to WANT to be here, and not HAVE to be because work is eminent. I would like music, but we just invested in an IPod system that is set up in our main living area. We'd have to move it all the time.

I definitely need a place for everything (and everything in it's place!). Color is something to consider. Our walls are all cream color. I've thought about accent color, but haven't decided. This is our favorite room to fill with pictures of our kids, so I'll probably update those a bit.

We invested in a Sleep Number bed a few years back, but it has no head or foot board. This bugs the tar out of me. We've looked for years, but have never found exactly what we want. In the most recent issue of Martha Stewart Living, she had a picture of a headboard made from a quilt, hung on a curtain rod as the head board. I like it! It has flexible appeal and possibilities. And it's cheaper.

Habits. Oh boy! As I've worked on habits with the children, I've noticed a few of my own that could use some help. Making the bed. This is not something I was ever encouraged to do and though I do it MOST of the time, I don't do it ALL the time and I don't always do it RIGHT. By right, I mean beautifully; decorative pillows in place, all comfy and fluffed, with the sheets out of sight.

Another habit is piles. I greatly dislike piles and *I* am the biggest pile maker of the bunch. The floor by my side of the bed is a joke! Piles of books, papers. Wanna shock? My bedside table currently has water bottles (2), a glass, a cup (that is daughters and she is currently using as she lays in my bed with a fever) 3 pencils, 2 pens, lip balm, ear plugs, baby's medicine, song sheet from church, a timer (I have NO idea!) a back massager, a jar candle, a wash cloth (huh?), my memory verse file box, a basket with books, magazines, mail and ear phones, tags from my plants (which I took out of my pocket last night), a coaster (that neither glass is on), hair pins and ponytail holder, more ear plugs and body butter--oh, and a bottle BioFreeze plus a medicine measure. And dust. We can't forget the dust! And hello! Let's not forget the clock, lamp and controller to the bed. Whew! There are also FOUR drawers in the stand--full of junk. So a little change in behavior may be in order!

It's just too humiliating to post before pictures, so I will commit to "after" pictures by the end of the month.

One Square Foot at a Time

Finally, finally, FINALLY! I get to play in my yard, clean out my beds and plant my vegetable garden! Though we are nearly a month away from the last frost, the days are beginning to show some promise AND warmth. My kids played outside all afternoon on Saturday with their Daddy, flying kites and drawing on the driveway. And me! Well, I spent the afternoon at Lowes and 47 other places looking for compost.

Lowes made me happy though. They had some veggie starts and that was what I was ready to see! I finished getting the lumber and materials for my square foot gardens and after 3 trips through the check out line and to the car, I was done with them! This square foot gardening thing really does show incredible promise, but I'm a by-the-book (this book) kinda gal so when they say get five kinds of compost, that's what I'm going to do. Fortunately, I only have to do this once. I plan to start composting myself, too. So off to Home Depot, Menards, Meijer, Wal-Mart, etc. For some strange reason, all the garden centers around here aren't open yet. What's with THAT! I only found three types so far and two may be the same because one is not labeled. So I have cow, mushroom, and mystery compost. Doesn't that just thrill you to pieces?!!

I know I saw "worm casing" compost somewhere before--I think it was Sam's Club, so I'll head there in the next couple of days. I don't know what it is about this area, but they are all so IN to cow manure. It's just everywhere. I never thought I'd be interested in such things, but you know...a girl's gotta do, what a girl's gotta do. And this girl needs to plant vegetables for her family--if I don't self-destruct.

Ah! The joys of gardening! I've always loved flower gardening. Learning bit by bit, year after year. It's all great until about mid-July when it gets so stinkin' hot you'd rather be inside, and definitely NOT out weeding. My little Daffodils are up so far--nothing else. The pussy willow did fully puff out and the puffs are starting to "flower", or turn bright yellow. Can you tell I know nothing about these things?! . It's kind of a neat plant. I'm still waiting for my Forsythia though. The buds look good.

We have a weird bird visitor too. It keeps crashing into our windows trying to get in. When it's not crashing, it just hangs out on the screens. I think it likes us. Nothing we do seems to affect it. I haven't figured out what it is yet, so we get to do a little digging today. One day, I hope all these things will be our common knowledge. Until then, we'll just use the Field Guides!

20,000 and Counting!

Thank you all!

I just noticed my site counter hit 20,000 sometime today!
It's very humbling to know you've been "clicked" on that many times, regardless of whether or not you were breezing by or becoming friends. The longer I do this, the more I appreciate the opportunity to share, commiserate, and grow...all good stuff!

A Milestone Wrapped in a Dress

This morning as I was dressing for church, believing my four year old daughter to be snoozing in the sack, she was picking out her Sunday clothes. Now, she's been putting her clothes together daily for some time, but never her Sunday clothes! It just was understood that Mama did the choosing when it came to dressing up.

So in she waltzes with tights and a white shirt on, needing a bit of buttoning. She then announces she's going to get her dress on. I anxiously followed her to see what she had found. She'd chosen a nice jumper requiring both the tights and the white shirt! She was beaming with joy as she asked me to tie her dress ties. A big girl-Mama moment! My baby is blooming and I can't do a thing about it! So happy!

Changing Up Our Week

I'm beginning something a bit different in our week. We are lightening our load by adding more! Sounds impractical and contradictory, except for what we are adding.

I've had a burden since the beginning to include more arts, music, and subjects that delight, inspire and set apart our learning from the learning the public school kids get. My motivation is truly heart driven because of passions that have been handed down through my family, as well as the inspiration that comes from the little individuals that God has put in my care.

It took me a long time to come up with a plan for this, and it's still not a complete plan, but is taking shape. The way that our week usually flows makes setting apart Fridays wonderful timing. We have few Friday interruptions. We are pretty full of math and spelling. Sometimes, I've finished certain lessons and it has ended as a short day. So it should be perfect.

What We're Adding
We are going to include art appreciation, observation, and practice. Continuing with our art calendar, I hope to take one picture (each?) from the week (chosen by the children), examine it more closely, really discuss it and include creatively imagining what the artist may have been thinking or doing when painting that particular picture. Another idea is to look at the picture and make up a story about it. I think my kids would love this!

It will be our day for getting out our art supplies and books, art curriculums and project guides and creating. I know this will require more order than heaping them in a pile and saying "dig in", but I haven't gotten that far yet.

We will focus on a particular artist and composer for a certain period. It may involve nothing more than looking and listening, but may have some study to it also. I like Ambleside Online's layout. It's a very comprehensive scope and sequence!

We'll also have both children's piano lessons that day. I've been very bad at having more consistent time with them and keeping their practice moving forward.

Doing the Green Hour Challenge is on the list. I still haven't started this because the weather has just paralyzed me. I hate the cold! I still think it is something we will greatly benefit from at this time.

We're going to learn the Hebrew alphabet, to start. We'll just be looking for recognition, pronunciation, and possibly writing. "Teaching the Trivium" by the Bluedorns talks about this more. I have this book which makes it very easy!

As we finish off four days of Judah Bible lessons, we'll end the week with a character study from the passage. We've been doing this all along, but aiming for Friday for it, will be new.

This will also be the day where we practice penmanship apart from our regular notebooking activies. Though we write daily, I hope that I can come up with something particularly different and productive to inspire both children to neater writing.

We've missed our Mr. Pipes series, too, so plan to begin reading another book from the series. They are very enjoyable and inspiring!

Lastly, the good 'ole Home Economics. It's time these children began to learn some basic cooking, sewing, tending, skills. They really want to, but I keep putting it off.

We jumped in yesterday for our first go 'round. I was most impressed with how much more relaxed we all were. It was nice. I wish that could happen for math and spelling! The kids had fun creating a project from our Artistic Pursuits book. Love that series! Son was a bit resistant to listening to classical music since he's discovered the Beatles. Drat that IPod. Delete! He's always liked classical music, so a little "bending" in the right direction should remind him of that! We all enjoyed having music in the school room. It makes me wonder if it would be possible all the time, even during MATH!

The Hebrew book was the biggest surprise. They loved it and really wanted to write the letters. Even my four year did a good job! More legible than my 8 yo. Hmmmm. It was fun talking with them about Moses putting down what God told him, in Hebrew. That totally got it!

I think we're on to something good. I know it's a lot, but I usually set pretty lofty goals! It doesn't disappoint me too much if I can't do it all because we usually make steps in the right direction. But I think this will be a day that we won't be too anxious to be done with. I like that idea! Also, since we year-round school, it's just as good a time as any to tweak and turn and continue improving what we've been doing. Something I learned from business about examining what is going well, what is not going well, what could be improved and what can revolutionize, has had me doing some thinking.

I'll post more of this as we go along. I have a feeling we'll have a lot to share!

Review: The Sowers Series Biographies

Have you ever been totally enamored of someone? According to Webster's 1828 Dictionary, that can mean captivated. But what captivates us to another person? I'm not talking husbands here, I'm talking history! And the history I'm talking about is the history that you learn from living books. Specifically, living biographies. Since beginning our jaunt into American history, we have found ourselves quite enamored with certain people.

First, there was George Washington who totally captured our hearts. This was largely due to reading this book--and visiting his plantation didn't hurt either! We became fairly enthralled with this great man and how God used him. Our whole family truly came to love him because of learning. We even bought ourselves a beautiful painting of him for our fireplace mantle.


Then there was John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed. Can I just say, I've never, NEVER heard anything about this man like what I read in this book! We are totally inspired too! We've already marked down a festival in the fall that is very near us and we are planning to grow some apple trees from seed when we are able to get moving with our gardening.

It may be coincidence that George and John (absolutely no Beatle references, please!) captured us through the same book series, Sowers Series Biographies, but more likely, it was God just blessing us with good information and great storytelling, particularly in the John Chapman book! This series is based on writing from primary sources; diaries, letters, etc. That gives a much more accurate picture, in my book. There are at least 27 titles in the series, that we know about. I hope to collect and read them all! Now we have read a couple of the others in the series that weren't as good, but I must still highly recommend this series! The Samuel B. Morse book didn't draw us in, for instance. I'm sure this will not be the last you hear from me regarding this series!

But what incredible men of God we are meeting! And what great characters that form our nation's history! We're always anxious to read more.

I Took The HomeMade Laundry Soap Plunge!

Yes, I did! I took the plunge and made my own dry laundry soap concoction. It took less than ten minutes, will save a ton of money and hopefully, a ton of skin problems! This is so easy, I'm a bit incensed at myself for not trying this sooner!

My good friend EEEEMommy took this plunge a while ago and reported good things. That was enough for me! I have actually planned this for awhile--with all the ingredients ready--but had a LARGE jug of Tide to use up first. In the mean time, we were dealing with way too much soap residue that we couldn't seem to rinse out of our clothes. Itchy, dry--ridiculously dry!--skin issues. Fading clothes. Junk like that! I believe that this will make some difference.

So here's what I did: 1 bar of Fels-Naptha (completed grated in the food processor) available at most all grocery stores (laundry aisle). This came out to a little over 1 cup. 1/2 c Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (also readily available in the laundry aisle). Lastly, 1/2 c of 20-Mule Team Borax (pretty much available everywhere). YOU USE ONE TABLESPOON PER LOAD! Now this would be for a regular size/regular dirt load. Use a bit more for larger or more dirty clothes. I haven't dealt with the pre-treating issue. I'm not sure I'm ready to give up my Spray N'Wash yet. We'll see.

So, I checked out things during the wash cycle and there were little to NO suds. This is the lack of sulfates, from what I understand. The Sodium Laurel Sulfates that "greenies" talk about being so bad, are the things that foam your toothpaste, or suds your soap & shampoo. And apparently, your laundry soap! You do not need suds for "clean".

Also, from what I understand, since these natural ingredients are so much better all round, including helping clothes last longer by actually helping the fibers instead of destroying them, a little longer wash time may be called for--or even a soak. I've gotten into the habit of 6 min washes to hurry. I realize that won't do the trick. Not a big deal at all!

So far, so good. My husband is very sensitive to soapy smells, so I think he'll appreciate the lack there of. I was encouraged when I took a big whiff of the finished product. You could add a scent using essential oils, if you wished.

So eliminating bleach is next. I've checked things out and it appears either 1/2 c vinegar or 1/2 c borax will do the trick--or both, for whitening AND brightening. That will be interesting, but I'm anxious to try it. My poor men of the house are struggling with the skin issues.

I also want to get rid of the dryer sheets. I've heard so many mixed things about this, I'm just going to have to do more research. One thing I read said that vinegar in the wash eliminates the need for softener? I'm not sure. Not very chemistry minded here! I know that I've developed a seemingly abnormal craving to hang clothes on a line! Since our neighborhood association doesn't appreciate seeing such despicable items, I would be rebellion. I've considered the pros and cons, and am still deliberating!

Regardless, I'm excited to make this first step if for no other reason than money! What a boatload this will save. It's something like 95% savings. I can dig that! I'm so glad not to have to heft those huge "tanks" of soap anymore too!

Year End Business

Trying to make a decision about keeping track of your school year's worth of learning? Check out this very impressive post on "Portfolios".

Wordless Wednesday

Since I've already been so wordy today!

Museum of Natural Mistakes in History

Having just returned from the Smithsonian, this news article about a 27 year old mistake found by an 11 year old boy, at the Natural History Museum, caught my attention this morning.

I have to say that I wasn't very excited about visiting this particular museum, but daughter wanted to see the dinosaur bones. I had to forcefully remind myself that God created all these marvelous things, even though I consider most of the "information" provided with it fiction, propaganda, false. (Strong statements, I know, but if you bare with me, I'd like to tell you my "testimony", if you will.) Over the last two years I've come to strongly believe in a young earth, that dinosaurs were on the Ark and that God did indeed create it all in six literal days.

So we go to the museum...It was a bit hard for me to bite my tongue once inside. Husband gave me gentle nudges to stop muttering under my breath! But honestly, the millions of years thing was EVERYWHERE and it made me sick. Not just the millions of years, but that it is all so easily accepted as THEE truth. Answers in Genesis has a great article on radiometric dating that you will find interesting.



It wasn't that long ago that I had quite a difficult time even visiting our local Children's Museum because of son's affinity for dinosaurs and my fear and lack of understanding. A lot of prayer and searching showed me a few things I'd never considered.




Here is some of my story from a post in 2005:

I Was Afraid Of The Dinosaur Exhibit

I was afraid of the dinosaur exhibit at the local children's museum. That is a hard thing for a grown woman to admit, but it is true. "Was it the enormous beasts?" or the "scary noises?". NO! It was the questions.

Now, when I was in elementary school, I was taught dinosaurs were make believe, as were dragons! There were no dinosaur fossil exhibits. They were just beginning, from what I now understand, to discover the multitude of dinosaur fossils they now have. Then there was my Christian upbringing which very carefully ignored all reference to such things, but at the same time taught the awesome Biblical creation story. As a young girl, I had no trouble believing in the creation story. I also had no trouble believing that it happened in six actual days. After all, I was a young school girl and "six days" meant "six days" didn't it? So, the millions of years thing was a lie; no problem there.

Back to the present. Mama takes boy to the children's museum and starts getting the questions...yikes, I have to actually have a verbal answer for them and I have no idea! I see that they are actually finding real fossils of huge bones, calling them dinosaurs, but how does this fit with my faith? Then this computer-savvy-generation, five year-old boy discovers the "touch-me" screens. Now it's one thing when you can rush a child through saying vaguely "we're not so sure about that", and having him eagerly touch a computer screen and have a grown-up appear and tell him the "truth" and "show" him support through animation. Now what!

Thus, I was scared. Enter Indiana Association for Homeschool Educators (www.inhomeeducators.org) annual curriculum fair featuring a speaker from an organization called The Institute for Creation Research. (www.icr.org) I dutifully purchased a CD of a talk called Genesis and the Flood and one about the Ice Age (which I was convinced was more Evolutionist propaganda--what a wonderful education I had!! Sigh.). I listened with what can only be described as surprise and delight. Here, finally, were the explanations to all my questions! Finally I understood that the Ice Age was not about cave men, but about the great flood of Noah and all the environmental and earth changes occurring to cause such a flood, plus the after effects. Finally, I saw proof that the large animals called dinosaurs were actually described in the Bible (Job 40) AND were on Noah's Ark! Suddenly it all began to come together. I purchased a book called "The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible" by Paul S. Taylor (see ICR online store) for my son (and myself) and he (we) read the truth, and understood it. We purchased a video from Answers in Genesis called "Dinosaurs, Genesis and the Gospel" and now we know how to respond to the millions of years comments--"were you there?" I'm so pleased that something I've struggled with, my children will have the answers to! Yeah!

Now, you must understand. God was working one of His great works in me. I had been in prayer about this and other related issues and began to feel an awakening in regards to His Word and His Truth. Genesis became my favorite book of the Bible and I could see Jesus on every page!

In the coming months I discovered other great resources providing evidence of Genesis. My favorite is Answers in Genesis (www.answersingenesis.org). Much like ICR, Answers in Genesis gives scientific and Biblical answers to today's scientific non-Biblical arguments. They also are in the process of building their answer (I would say God's answer!) to "history" museums. The Creation Museum (www.creationmuseum.org) is in Northern Kentucky near Cincinnati. Though not yet open (it is now!), it will be incredible. You can follow their research and construction, and even donate, on their website. This will be an incredible opportunity for ministry for every believer who has ever taken the neighbor kid to the museum with them! I'm sure the opportunities to share Christ in relation to this museum will not end there.

Now I look at dinosaur fossils and am excited to see God's incredible design in these very real animals. The evidence has been there all along. The information available--I just never found it. Maybe you haven't found it yet. Let me help point you. You will be sooo glad!

So...

Again, God created all things, including the Hope Diamond, the dinosaur, the ape. I have to remember that when going to museums!

By keeping my eyes on Him and focusing my children's eyes to HIStory, we can more easily bypass the (false!) things of the world. It was only then that we were able to truly enjoy what we saw!

Organizing Computer Related Homeschool Materials

My oldest is now eight. I've known we were to homeschool since before he was born. That was when I began collecting homeschool materials. Then about five years ago, I got my own computer. THAT was when I began collecting links. About three and a half years ago, I went to my first book sale! Oh boy! The shelves are brimming with living books! About two and a half years ago, I discovered the Homeschoolblogger community. That was when I began collecting homeschool friends with ideas, wisdom, experience, and often freebies. I've collected a LOT!

My brain is a little coo-coo right now because I'm planning something really different in regards to our school time (more on that later) and it has occurred to me that I may need to better access all that material that I've saved up. There is a little bit of panic about whether or not I'll miss the golden gem because it's tucked away somewhere. So I'm processing my sources, and making lots of decisions about what to do with it all.

My links are fairly well sorted by folder in my favorites, but I haven't been through them all lately to check if they are even active. They really need a good purging. Spring cleaning?!! Oh! And have you heard about this new link resource?

I know there is much debate about whether or not to print out everything you find--pdf's, freebies, etc. I think I'm coming to terms with the fact that if I don't print it out, I won't use it. Out of sight, out of mind. I'm a binder girl, so most things that I have printed are sorted by subject in my binders. This really works for me. One of my favorite new finds is a free program called clipmarks. It allows me to be more selective about what I print from web pages. Saves on ink and confusion when wanting one small part of a full page.

As I attempt to steward all that the Lord has provided for us to learn with, I realize there is way more than I can ever use, but I should use what I can. This all comes down to organization for me. History things can not be in 47 different locations! As I've continued the process of putting together my new library room, I've separated sets of books, etc., to put resources together chronologically. The Dover coloring books are no longer all together in a box, but set on the shelf with the other books, by topic. The notebook binders, also, are set in place by topic.

My biggest frustration at the moment is audio. My son loves history and science audio programs. Actually, he loves ALL kinds of audio dramas. I've collected a blue-million of those and putting our hands on "the one", is often difficult. Today we were looking for one on Jim Beckworth. Can't find it. We have uploaded them all to our ipod, but they are not always named in a manner that is subject worthy. That issue needs major solving!

I'm seeing a plan take shape for all this and believe it will continue to make our schooling time easier and my planning time less cumbersome and time consuming. Wouldn't that be sweet?!!

I'd love to know what you all do to keep on top of all your materials. I'm sure I'm missing some fabulous idea that could revolutionize my organizing! Bring it on! Please! For those of you that aren't "collectors" by nature...bless your hearts! Pray for those of us who do--that it won't become an idol to us or simply drive us screaming into the night!

Inky Binky Bonkey

Inky Binky Bonkey

Daddy had a donkey
Donkey died.
Daddy cried.
Inky Binky Bonkey

My son on the far right with the first half of the kids to join in the play.

This is the latest in Eeeny Meeney Miney Mo and is what my children learned while playing with all the other children while we waited in line at the National Archives. Ah! To think, so much to learn in such a place and this is what they took away!

I learned a bit myself, watching my children. The line went half way around the archives building and at the corner, was a large grassy area. When we arrived for our two hour wait, very far back in the line, no one was on the grass. After checking for a "stay off the grass" sign, my children began playing together on the grass. They chased each other, rolled on the ground and laughed!

Daughter did check in with us a bit to make sure we weren't leaving!

It wasn't long before just about every child in the line had joined in!

My son, again on the right; daughter in the way back.

I watched eagerly, and a bit nervously (particularly for how my little one would do with the bigger kids and that they wouldn't fall on the light boxes sticking up out of the ground--such a mother!). My son, a natural born take-charge leader, (and whom we've had to encourage to "ask" and not "tell" when playing with others; diplomacy!) had soon organized a game of freeze tag. He was the oldest, and tallest for quite a while. Amazingly, as soon as a couple of bigger boys joined in, he relinquished his position and began following their lead, still with his own impression over the little ones he'd been playing with. It is from them that the "Inky Binky Bonkey" was learned!

My son in the foreground.

Soon, many of the children began climbing the concrete pedestal of the very large flag pole; running in circles. Memories of the 4th of July surfaced. My son and another boy, engaged in this same activity, circling in opposite directions collided. Son's teeth jammed into the boys head leaving a gushy bloody mess and loose front teeth! So, I quietly told my children not to get on the pedestal...then I watched. After a bit, I watched my daughter climb up. She took a couple of steps...stopped to think it over, and climbed down. I was proud watching her work that through. I asked her about it later and she just looked at me funny! Oh well.

There's my little one in the center; full stride. She had no trouble making friends either!

I guess if they had socialization issues, they would have cowered in the line. They would have been afraid to speak to any other person, let alone another child, and they would possibly have been too uppity to get dirty or sweaty. I do wonder if any children would have played if it weren't for mine! They ended up playing for a good hour and were very sad when the line continued indoors. Play for them all, from what we could tell, did seem to pretty much break off at that point.

It wasn't long after that, that a conversation with the two ladies in front of us revealed how impressed they were with our children. Especially their patient waiting while indoors. Their children would have been basket cases, they said. One was a high school teacher. Being there on a Friday, she said she had come from Maine for a little break and that her school and her own children would be attending school that SATurday because of snow days! Hmmm. I'm usually happy to share with people that we homeschool, but this time I didn't. It would not have been productive.

Anyhoo...if I can now get my children to stop singing the "Inky Binky Bonkey" rhyme, even for awhile, I'll be happy! It does get old!!

What's Important To A Husband

Of all the things we saw and did in D.C., what do you think most astonished, amazed and even captivated the husband?? I'll give you a hint. He's from Indiana, so has an innate love of basketball. Still no clue? Okay! So the picture is a dead giveaway!

How about meeting a lady named Margaret NAISMITH. As in James Naismith, who invented the game of basketball! Well, she is married to the great grandson of thee James Naismith. She was standing outside the temporary American History Museum exhibit and asking people what they most enjoyed seeing. She was shocked to pieces that someone would see her name tag and go so ballistic!

She was a very nice lady and took the time to tell the husband (and his humble family!) about how her great grandfather (by marriage) was a missionary serving at a YMCA with a bunch of cooped up folks who had nothing to do during the winter. The rest, as they say, is history!

The husband is still talking about that meeting. You'd think he'd met the man himself, though the whole basketball thing happened back in 1891. And who says men aren't observant? I guarantee you, I rarely read a name tag unless I'm in a restaurant. I'm so pleased that he is so pleased (and so easily, too!) Well, bummer, I so wish I'd gotten their picture together.

Art So Big and Grand

Of all the places that I've visited in Washington, D.C., my favorite by far is the National Gallery of Art. In truth, I probably would not have even given an art museum a second thought if it weren't for what I've learned while homeschooling. I probably wouldn't have given THIS museum a second thought if it weren't for THIS calendar that we use for THIS.

I've mentioned several times how much we've enjoyed our art calendar with a new masterpiece to review each day, but walking into the NGA and seeing my children run to a painting they know and pronounce it their favorite from the calendar, brought tears to my eyes--literally. I believe that my children were, in fact, the youngest of the visitors to this particular museum on the day we were there. I don't recall seeing ANY other kids. What a shame! I could be wrong, but usually children stand out in a place like that.

My Impressions of Real Art
Let me just say how truly amazed I was at the size of the paintings! I know I've been to museums before, but it never struck me how BIG most of the paintings are! Let's face it...what we are used to seeing is limited to the size we can print out on our computer, see in a book, or even on a 5x5 calendar! They were awe-inspiring in their grandeur.

I won't bother you with my less than educated thoughts on color or brush strokes, eras or anything else. I just share with you what I know. Man! They were Big!

This particular collection seemed surreal. SO many well-known paintings by the most famous of artists--all in one place. Granted, it was one really HUGE place, but one place none the less. We turned from one masterpiece to the next...with our mouths hanging open.

The Highlights
As you can imagine, there were so many fabulous things to comment on but three come to mind off the bat.

In my bedroom growing up, was a Degas ballerina print. My mother painted the frame the night before I was born. I took that same picture and after 38 years, repainted the frame for my daughter the week before she was born. It's still hanging in her room, in all its faded glory.

When I first set my eyes on another of the Degas ballet paintings hanging there on that gallery wall...I cried. What my mother would have given to see something like that in her lifetime! I felt her with me at that moment and remembered all the ballet lessons she hauled me off to, and the ballets she hauled me to--the ballet's on PBS that she would watch whenever possible. Putting my daughter through the same education! It was all there before me in one painting hanging on the wall before me. That was my favorite!

Another favorite was seeing the four paintings of Thomas Cole. I was first introduced to him by David Quine at our homeschool convention many years ago. I've never forgotten that lecture that he gave on art and music for the homeschool. It definitely gave me my start into adding art to our learning.

BUT...The DaVinci was DaVine! (I had to do it!) Confessession time. I MISSED the DaVinci the first time through. Didn't know it was there. Didn't look for it. Didn't see it. Then, while waiting in line somewhere, someone asked if we'd seen it and my gears were spinning trying to recall if I'd seen it or not, but pretty sure that I hadn't. Surely I hadn't, or I'd remember it? I walked away from that conversation and turned to my husband. I begged him to take me back. There was NO way I was coming home from being in THAT gallery and saying that I DIDN'T see the DaVinci--the ONLY DaVinci on the North American continent! So he did. Because that's what every loving husband does! And we saw it (and it's guard, for it was the only piece in the museum with it's own guard!) and we LOVED it (both sides of it!) and weoooo'd and awed over it...then we left. HeeHee. Now I can tell you in all honesty that I did INDEED see it and it was worth the extra trip!

The Art Stores
Well, I wouldn't be me if I didn't comment on the book stores at the art gallery. Think of the largest food court you've ever seen and imagine it filled with books! One store after another! The only thing they didn't have was poster prints of the masterpieces. I saw a couple of advertising posters, but not of anything historic in value.

It was really overwhelming to see all those art books and imagine how anyone would ever choose. I know I couldn't, and didn't. The children's book area, however, was a different matter. Not surprising, I bought a story book with all of the Degas paintings in it for my daughter. I also found a book I'd heard about, but been unable to find to see it called, "I Am An Artist". It is really neat!

There was one other thing that captured my attention. It was a nylon pack for taking along with you to sketch. It had a small sketch pad and individual loop/pockets for colored and drawing pencils, a strap, etc. They wanted a ridiculous amount of money for it! I love the idea, but we already have the contents, so now I have to figure out if I want to, or can, make something similar for carrying it all. The 'ole creative juices are flowing!

If I Had it To Do All Over Again
If I had it to do all over again, I would have planned to spend a lot more time there. I would have had our sketch books with us, with no other place to have to be. Just there. Soaking it all in! I would have taken my good friend Suzette with me, because she loves art probably more than me. There would have been no talking, just breathing. And thinking. Enjoying.

But that is for another time! This time, I had a fabulous first experience with my family. We ALL enjoyed it and learned from it. I was so proud of my babies. They behaved wonderfully and they enjoyed the whole experience. We're officially hooked on art!