Three (or so) Books for the Homeschool Journey
Homeschooling can be challenging, but a good book can encourage and help to renew your mind. Here are three of my favorite books about family and learning.
Category: Inspiration and encouragement
How to Teach Your Child: Charlotte Mason’s Education Manifesto
Charlotte Mason’s Educational Manifesto declared that not only did children have a right to knowledge, but they also had an appetite for such knowledge, and that appetite, if not squelched, would motivate them to learn.
The Education of the Founding Fathers
Consider the education of America’s founding fathers: What kind of study produced a group of men capable of conceiving a constitutional republic, bringing it to life, and guiding it through its formative years?
Homeschooling by the Numbers: An Infographic
Have you been looking for a quick way to communicate the fact that homeschooling works? This well-designed infographic provides the statistical evidence you need to scare your neighbors support your decision to homeschool.
What Matters in Entrepreneurship is Whether You Can Get a “Message to Garcia”
Owning a business, even a microbusiness, is not a task for the faint-hearted or the spoon-fed. In order to succeed, an entrepreneur must be willing to focus, learn something new every day, and take the initiative to act when something needs...
The Ant or the Grasshopper? A Reason to Give Thanks
The fourth Thursday of November is Thanksgiving Day in the United States. While I believe in the power of giving thanks daily, if not hourly, this day offers an additional opportunity to reflect on things I’m grateful for. After family,...
Avoiding The Road to Serfdom
One reason to create multiple streams of income is to slow personal movement down the “road to serfdom.” When you diversify your streams of income, creating streams that aren’t dependent on traditional employment, you are taking a quiet step toward...
Gatto’s 7 Lessons of Compulsory Schooling
Here are seven horrifying lessons John Taylor Gatto wrote about teaching during his 26 years as a schoolteacher. Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling is adapted from a speech given at a ceremony in which Gatto was named the New York State Teacher of the Year for 1991.
Blog Carnival: Summer Isn’t Over Yet
The Blog Carnival offers inspiration and encouragement as summer winds down and school begins. Enjoy!
Quotes About Liberty and Entrepreneurship
In the month of July, I always stop to give thanks for the amount of liberty we enjoy as citizens of the USA. Liberty isn’t license — it’s the freedom to make moral choices and do what we believe to...
Summer Poem: A Boy and His Dad by Edgar Guest
It’s time for our annual summer poem. This year, I chose a warm, evocative poem by Edgar A. Guest as well as a brief poem by William Carlos Williams.
What Does Education Look Like? Part III: Immune to Elephants
The contrast between a true, living education and the stale, dead imitation that often replaces it continues to niggle at my thoughts. Here’s another scene that illustrates the contrast, plus a thought for the day.
Of Daffodils and Diesels, Revisited
Do you have a child who doesn’t seem to be college material? Don’t let fear keep you from encouraging him to explore the trades and other college alternatives. The “Daffodils and Diesels” essay will show you why.
Carnival of Homeschooling: Making Time for Things That Matter- 2011 Planning
Are you ready for 2011? For the last Carnival of Homeschooling for 2010, we have a loose collection of posts under the general topic of Making Time for Things that Matter. I find that the beginning of a new year...
Giving and Receiving Grace-fully
Create traditions that work within your family, greet gifts with love and gratitude, and whatever you give, give in a spirit of love and grace, releasing the recipient from any assumed obligation for a specific type of response or reciprocation. True gifts come without strings!
Our First Grandbaby is Here!
Here’s our new grandbaby, Imogen Violet!
On Charley and Being Different
We live in a society that worships “average” and fears anything different, but we can teach our children to appreciate the infinite variety in creation, and to be compassionate to those who have difficulties. Here’s one small place to start....
Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi as a Labor Day Meditation
Today is Labor Day in this part of the world, and I wanted to share this song from a prayer by St. Francis of Assisi as a meditation on the attitudes that can make labor beautiful. Whether you work in...
The Blessing of Creative Handwork
Helping your children learn to use their hands creatively can help develop imagination, creativity, and fine motor skills and will provide them with the means of giving unique and beautiful gifts to others, even on a very small budget.
Read for Fun; Learning Happens Along the Way
As parents, we can’t begin to teach our children everything they need to know, but we can teach them to read, and make sure they have plenty of good books. Truths carried to the heart through the power of story wil linger far longer than anything that comes through a lecture or a worksheet. As you begin the new school year, make time for reading, and I promise, learning will happen.
Can Learning Go On While Caregiving? Crisis Schooling for Homeschoolers
If you can align your expectations with reality, make adjustments that keep you sane, and focus on priorities and essentials, you’ll be able to homeschool while you’re a caregiver.
Advice for Friends of Caregivers
Caregivers face daily challenges, but friends who are understanding and kind can make the path easier.
Carnival of Homeschooling: The Beach Reading Edition
The Beach Reading Edition of Carnival of Homeschooling is up, and there are great posts on why to homeschool through high school, how to motivate your children, how to teach boys, and much, much more. Enjoy!
Caregiving for Homeschool Families: Some Questions to Consider
Homeschool families are notoriously family-centered, but I’ve recently been hearing questions and concerns about caregiving while homeschooling, so I thought I’d share a few thoughts here. Most of the people who have asked questions have been thinking about their parents...
Hey Mom, Listen to this Great Performance: How to Homeschool a Boy, Part 3
Remember to let your sons be who they are so that they will become the people they were meant to be. This takes time, space, and the freedom to explore varied interests. As a bonus, it’s fun!
Hey Mom, Want to See My Jungle Gym? How to Homeschool a Boy, Part 2
Your sons will teach themselves amazing things if you give the time and space to learn what they can do. It takes a boy with a boy’s interests to find the thread of an idea and follow it through to the creation of a project he really enjoys. The key ingredient is free time and the liberty to explore, try new things, and yes– get hurt occasionally. It takes trusting that if you provide time, tools, and skills, they will use them. It also takes understanding that education is about a whole lot more than doing school.
Momma, Want to See a Snake? How to Homeschool a Boy, Part 1
It was a beautiful spring day, and we spent most of it with doors open, happily going in and out with various tasks and projects. It was mid-afternoon when my youngest son came in. “Momma, do you want to see...
Give Your Child the Benefit of the Doubt
Do you remember what it’s like to be a child? Do you remember struggling with something and being told, “Come on, it’s easy! You’re just not trying.” Or worse, “You could do better if you weren’t so lazy/careless.” Do you...
Houseplants, Homeschools and the Mid-Year Blahs
How long does it take to reach that “whose bright idea was this anyway” point in your homeschool year? It’s normal to feel overwhelmed on some days, but here are a few things you can do to get through it all
Veteran’s Day 2009- Thoughts on Liberty
On this Veteran’s Day, I’m thankful for those who have borne the burden of preserving the freedoms we enjoy. We have an amazing heritage! Here are a few of my favorite quotes on the subject. Benjamin Franklin “They that can...
