Welcome to this weeks Carnival of Homeschooling!

I want to take a moment to tell you about a fabulous giveaway I have going on. I have one copy of the Times Tales DVD to give away to one lucky commenter. My boys did extremely well using this DVD. It works like no other product we’ve tried.

I have four boys from toddler to teen and even the toddler was saying the numbers when prompted. My teens did not know most of their upper multiplication facts by memory. They spent lots of time skip counting for homework. I have used flash cards, games, software, you name it, and I haven’t had the results Times Tales gave us. I was very surprised to see how well the concept works!

The program provides memory keys  through animation so it is easier for kids to learn their 6-9 multiplication facts. A story is told to reinforce the recognition. In less than one hour they were shouting out the correct answers to the times tables. I drilled them again the next day and they remembered all but 4 or 5 of them. We watched the DVD again and what do you know, when they were drilled days later they got all of them right!

To enter the giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment. The giveaway will end on Friday at midnight.  I will randomly choose a winner and notify them via email.

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Misty presents If you’ve ever wanted to learn a little sign language . . . posted at Homeschool Bytes, saying, “Add some foreign language to your homeschool day with this great ASL lesson site.”

Alasandra presents A Christian Nation? Be Careful What You Preach posted at History Is Elementary.

Barbara Williams presents 10 Different Monsters that Scare Children posted at Find A Babysitter, saying, “There’s something uniquely human about our need to scare ourselves silly. As far as anyone knows, no other species goes out of its way to invent reasons to wet itself from fear. Children have the best imaginations, of course………………………….”

nak presents Shakespeare and the Starlings posted at Sage Parnassus. Come see a fascinating sight of a “murmuration” of starlings.

education

Credit: Miss Nirvana @ Nirvana Homeschooling

Jamie Gaddy presents Effective Spelling Strategies posted at momSCHOOL, saying, “Spelling can be a tricky subject to get your kids excited about… trying something that is non-traditional can make it easier for all of us.”

Miss Nirvana presents Weaving A Pot Holder With a Loop Loom posted at Nirvana Homeschooling. This is a terrific handy craft for elementary students.

Melanie Grant presents Nutcracker on Ice and Homeschooling posted at Mel’s Mouthful on Mothering. How you can turn The Nutcracker on Ice into an educational experience and branch it off into a unit study.

Melanie Grant presents How to get your child to read posted at Mel’s Mouthful on Mothering. Creative yet simple ways to motivate and encourage your child to read.

Melanie Grant presents How to Journal: Get Ready posted at Mel’s Mouthful on Mothering. A fabulous, general tutorial on creating a journal and teaching your children to how to fill one.

Melanie Grant presents Homeschooling Room of Dreams posted at Mel’s Mouthful on Mothering. Inspiring home school rooms to get your creativity flowing!

majellamom presents Teaching Textbooks and Xtra Math posted at Waiting for Charlie…. In need of a free online math drill program? See what Majellamom has to say about Xtra Math.

Lisa Nehring presents Educational Influencers posted at Golden Grasses. Come see a wonderful list of people and companies who have helped shape the home school families and community through ideas of educational methods and concepts.

Amy @ Hope Is the Word presents Read Aloud Thursday?music edition posted at Hope Is the Word. A wonderful list of read-alouds you don’t want to miss.

Judy Aron presents No Child’s Data Left Behind posted at Consent Of The Governed, saying, “If you have ever given information to the local or state government school system then you ought to know about what will happen to that information.”

Kelly @ The Homeschool Co-op presents Featured Friday ? Christina Pilkington on A Life of Passion, Adventure & Connections posted at The Homeschool Co-op. Come read an interview of how mom to 5-year old twins, Christina, shares her home school life with Kelly’s readers. She lends practical tips and ideas you don’t want to miss.

 

Carol J. Alexander presents More on Marble Tracks | | Everything Home with CarolEverything Home with Carol posted at Everything Home with Carol. Some fun ideas on simple ways your young children are learning physics (without even knowing it).

Linda Dobson presents I Feel Sorry for Kids In School. Every. Single. One. posted at PARENT AT THE HELM. Some sobering facts about the public schools and government.

Laura Grace Weldon presents Better Test Scores Don?t Lead To Success posted at Laura Grace Weldon, saying, “The fuss over testing makes no sense. Boosting test scores doesn’t boost individual success. It also doesn’t improve national competitiveness. Crazy?”

Chris Shaw presents Part 2: Teaching Economics in the Home School posted at HomeSchool vs PublicSchool, saying, “Once you have a basis for understanding how economics work in your home it is time to look at how they work in your community. What we buy, how we spend our money, and what we save impacts the lives and businesses around us. We can improve our local economy by working with in it and promoting the well being of our neighbors.”

Mama Squirrel presents Traveling the Underground Railroad posted at Dewey’s Treehouse, saying, “Resources for a fifth-grader’s short study of the Underground Railroad”

Katherine presents Baking Success posted at No Fighting, No Biting! , saying “Baking my own no-knead bread was so simple and easy, I wanted to share the recipe.”

 

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
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I know it can sometimes be overwhelming to think about lesson plans, curriculum, lunches, chores, and all of the other things that go with teaching your children at home but rest assured, Karen offers humble, inspirational advice to those who are looking for change.

Here are just some of the topics she writes about:

• Getting rid of physical clutter and organization tips
• Getting rid of mental clutter
• Curriculum choices
• Schedules
• Meal planning
• Letting God lead your homeschool
• Avoiding the comparison trap, and letting your homeschool be YOUR homeschool
• Not letting homeschool become an idol-Keeping GOD first

The book is very reasonably priced at just $2.99. If you would like a copy you can visit Karen’s site to purchase it: Simply Homeschool.

Free Curriculum and Lesson Plans

By the way did you know that Compassion International offers free lesson plans and curriculum for those interested in teaching their children about stewardship, evangelism, prayer, giving, tithing, and helping others in need? I’ve checked out several of them and am quite pleased with the way they have been presented. The lessons include projects, scripture and web references, family discussion prompts, geography lessons and so many more. Go check it out! It’s free!

Online Mom Book Club

I also wanted to tell you about my friend Amanda’s H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids Book Club that will begin in January. She has partnered with Apologia and they are giving away two copies of the book in a few weeks and participants will have the option to receive a PDF Journal to go with the book.  There will also be a weekly link-up for bloggers.  Rachael Carman, the author, will be blogging and linking up from the Apologia blog.  Other moms have been hand picked to guest post and share their stories relating to each chapter.  Later in the book club, Amanda be giving away a ticket to Apologia Live and some CDs! Go check it out!

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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Whether you choose to homeschool or send your kids to private school, charter school, gifted school or public school we all have one common thread: we have to get our kids successfully through the multiplication memorization period.

I know that kids would usually much rather do anything than memorize their facts. Over the years I’ve tried many things but I’ll share with you what has worked best.

Suggestions for helping your children memorize multiplication facts:

• Drill them in the car. Make a game of it. We assign points to each child for each fact that they get right. The winner gets to ride shotgun on the next trip.
• Use flash cards.
• Watch multiplication vides. Search YouTube for “school house rock multiplication”. There are many videos for multiplication. You can also find songs that help to commit the facts to memory.

All printables are in .doc files and can be edited using Microsoft Word or the free open source software called Open Office.

Download Printables:

• Multiplication Drill Quizzes (0-12)

Many more printables to come! Subscribe by RSS reader so you don’t miss any!

To read the other posts in this series visit: 31 Days of Free Printables

Are you a 31 Dayer? If so leave me a comment and let me know. If you want to be a 31 Dayer link up with Nester, Darcy, Jen, Jessica, Melissa, Sandy, Emily and Emily.

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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Whatever it is my new friend, Heather Bixler has helped. She is the creator and owner of TheHomeschoolPlanner.com. What I really like about her set of various homeschool related printables is that they are individual files and not one large pdf. I can choose which ones to print and when without the hassle of selecting certain pages. I’m also impressed with the amount of information she covers. This is a great set if you are looking for a homeschooling addition to your household binder.

These planners are simple and straightforward. Some of the goodies you will find are:

• The Cover Page – PDF Printable
• Art Project Planner – PDF Printable
• Attendance Record Keeper – PDF Printable
• Book Report Worksheet – PDF Printable
• Field Trip Planner – PDF Printable
• Project Planner – PDF Printable
• Science Experiment Planner – PDF Printable
• Scripture Verse Planner – PDF Printable
• Student Project Notes Worksheet – PDF Printable
• Thematic Unit Planner – PDF Printable
• Lesson Planner – PDF Printable

In addition to that you will have unlimited access to current and future homeschool printables on their exclusive member download page. That’s a deal!

All of that only cost $4.99. Get your homeschool planner today!

If you would like you can also follow The Homeschool Planner on  Twitter and Facebook!

This is a paid review. That means I was given a copy of the product at no cost so that I could formulate my own opinions in the form of a review. I was also compensated for time and mentions. That does not change my thoughts about the product.

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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Nebby presents Inspiring Interests in Children posted at Letters from Nebby.

For Carletta from Successful Homeschooling, one thing she didn’t want to do when she decided to get in shape was go on a diet.  Here’s how she has changed her eating habits so she can lose weight without depriving herself: Eating to Lose – Get Your Groove Back, Part 3.

Barbara from  Barbara Frank Online, says “Some may call us control freaks, but is that a bad thing?”  Read her post to find out: Control Freak Homeschooling Parents?

Janice Campbell presents How to Fit Art and Music into Your Homeschool posted at Taking Time for Things that Matter.

Cristina Payne presents Offer Good While Supplies Last, Selection Varies by Learner posted at Home Spun Juggling, saying, “Relax! Learning is not a limited time offer.”

AnnieKate presents Summer Plans Part 3: Contracts and Checklists posted at Tea Time with Annie Kate.

Maureen Sklaroff presents a Weather Unit posted at Homeschool Mo.

Why Homeschool writes a post about the some striking revelation from a college professor: I’m guessing most homeschoolers can tie their own shoes.

EDUCATION

divya presents Getting ready for the first day of Preschool – Part 1 posted at Inside the child, saying, “A great way to prepare children during the summer !”

Photo used under Creative Commons from Kids Planet

Michelle presents A-MAZE-ING Sunflowers! posted at Holistic Homeschooler.

Ann presents I is for Investigation – ABCs of Homeschooling posted at Harvest Moon by Hand, saying, “I’m participating in an ABCs of Homeschooling weekly blog hop. This past week we looked at “I is for…” and I thought that the word “Investigation” best describes our homeschool.”

Jennifer Bardsley presents Muzzy, a review | Teaching My Baby To Read posted at Teaching My Baby To Read, saying, “Our experience with the popular (but expensive) BBC language program for children, Muzzy.”

Victoria presents You’ll Ruin it for the Rest of Us posted at Teaching Mommy, saying, “Why it’s so important to follow state homeschool regulations.”

Susan Ryan presents Dirty Deeds posted at Corn and Oil, saying, “An Indiana newspaper exposes how homeschoolers’ good name is being mis-used to collect federal education funding. Thank you for doing the carnival and I hope you consider my submission!”

FLeonard presents A Fork in the Road: Do Rites of Passage Matter? posted at A Fork in the Road, saying, “I love homeschooling and then every so often I wonder whether there’s something my daughter is missing out on.”

majellamom presents Native American Unit Study posted at Waiting for Charlie.

Photo used under Creative Commons from Chris P.

Lisa Nehring presents Drama Camp posted at Golden Grasses, saying, “Drama Camp!”

Angela Gray presents Finishing Strong – Team Gray! posted at team Gray!.

Linda Dobson presents A Few Words about Curriculum | PARENT AT THE HELM posted at PARENT AT THE HELM, saying, “Thank you!”

divya presents Weekend, vacation and Science ! posted at Inside the child, saying, “A fun way to help a child know the difference between a Living thing and a Non- Living thing. A good way to introduce biological terms. And some books on Living and Non-Living things.”

Dena Wood presents Take it apart ~ put it back! posted at pjsallday.com, saying, “Thanks!”

Lisa Nehring presents Nature Study Up Close and Personal posted at Golden Grasses, saying, “Nature Study Up Close & Personal”

FAMILY

Read Aloud … Dad presents Phenomenal Picture Books: Scaredy Squirrel posted at Read Aloud Dad, saying, “Run … don’t walk … to wash your hands with antibacterial soap, because this is one picture book you would be crazy to miss! Scaredy Squirrel is simply incomparable.”

Denise presents Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning via Mario Vittone « Let’s Play Math! posted at Let’s Play Math!, saying, “Families need to know: “Drowning is not the violent, splashing, call for help that most people expect. Drowning is almost always a deceptively quiet event. The waving, splashing, and yelling that dramatic conditioning (television) prepares us to look for, is rarely seen in real life.”"

Finally, Amy from AmyBayliss.com talks about her growing frustration with her teenagers not understanding the true value of a dollar so she decided to do something about it: Kids Just Don’t Understand About Money.

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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In Jan 2008, two internet friends that had never even met IRL launched an online ministry to serve an ever growing group that was close to their hearts– the homeschooling community. Amy Stults and Amy Bayliss (aka The Amies) have prayed and worked diligently to make Heart of the Matter {online} what it is today, a thriving site that offers support, encouragement and resources to over 10,000 homeschoolers a day.

HOTM is their baby. And like any baby, you are so proud when they start crawling… then walking… then running!

Babies grow and change. Just as there are seasons in a baby’s life, there are seasons in ministry. These seasons are…

You can read the rest here: When it’s time to change

And yes, I have another BIG announcement coming soon!

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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Nadene presents Maths Mini Office for Middle & Senior Students, saying, “Senior and middle school maths information for your minioffice.”

Katherine presents Ego Enhancement, saying, “How bad is the average kid when strangers see a group of well behaved children, they automatically ask, “Do you homeschool?”"

Nak presents Lives Like Loaded Guns, saying, ” ‘Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul.’ -Emily Dickinson”.

Kris presents Top Ten Ways to Handle a Bad Homeschool Day, saying, “I’m getting ready to make a shocking statement. Are you ready? Are you sitting down?  Okay, here goes:  Every homeschooling day is not a bed of roses.”

Michelle Padrelanan presents Question and Answer Time, saying, “I answered a letter of another mom, who I call Missionary Mom, on another blog post and realized that there is an unasked question there that begs to be asked. This post is the answer with a list of a few things that others say my homeschooled children will miss because they don’t go to regular school.”

NerdMom presents Responsibility and Education for a Dollar, saying, “I needed an easy way to set out lesson plans for them and let them know what they are expected to do and I found it.”

Elena LaVictoire presents Tips for Ohio Homeschoolers, saying, “Ohio Homeschoolers are trying to get their notifications in before the start of the public school year. I wrote about this a little bit here and also here and I’m adding a bit more information.”

Henry presents Looking for advice on scholarships and grants, saying, “We are looking for help on how to find scholarships and grants for our oldest daughter.”

Lynn presents Lapbooks for Autumn, saying, “Check out these fun and educational lapbooks for autumn”.

Education

Robin Phillips presents Nature Study: Trees, Creativity, and Kids, saying, “I have always loved trees.  I also love creativity and of course, I love my kids.  Combining all three loves is what makes home education so much fun.”

Jessica Snajder presents What is Learning?, “I have come to realize that Grace does not consider anything to be learning unless it has a letter grade attached to it. Apparently five years in the public school system has done this to her.”

e-Mom presents Art & Architecture: The Tabernacle of Moses (VIDEO), saying, “Spiritual Object Lessons in the Wilderness–relevant to the Israelites, and modern worshippers like you and me. Three 3-D computer-generated videos allow us to take a privileged walk through the Tabernacle of Moses.”

Carol J. Alexander presents Personalized Journals, saying, “I am so pleased to introduce you to my daughter, M. After creating a beautiful journal for a gift for her girlfriend, she asked me if she could write the directions down as a guest post for this blog.”

Christine presents Reading in My Family of Origin and Our Homeschooling Decision, saying, “Christine of The Thinking Mother writes about readers and non-readers, issues with school and reading and about how that influenced her decision to homeschool.”

Laura presents Lesson Pathways: Free Online Curriculum, saying, “If you’re looking for a free online curriculum for your K-5 child, look no further than Lesson Pathways. The people who set up this site did an excellent job to not only provide quality information, but the site looks great!”

Kim presents Our Summer of Learning Part Two, saying, “In Part One of this series, I talked about all that we experienced and learned on our vacation to the ocean. This post will focus on the camps and activities the children had the opportunity to participate in over the summer.”

Andrea Hermitt presents This is our homeschool shelf, saying, “This is in response to Dewey’s treehouse who discusses: Another year of boxes, bins, notebooks: trying not to duplicate where she shared her homeschool organization boxes, bins and binders.”

Linda Dobson presents Resources, Resources & a New Children’s Book By Rebecca Rupp!, saying, “from Grandma Linda (Dobson) – Maybe if enough people leave comments here, we can talk Becky into offering up a copy of Octavia Boone’s Big Questions About Life, the Universe, and Everything for a giveaway for Parent at the Helm readers! Congratulations, Becky, and good luck with the book!”

Denise presents Challenge Yourself to Blog, saying, “The September 2010 Student Blogging Challenge encourages students to blog by exposing them to a world-wide audience, not just their teacher and classmates.”

Denise presents How to Start an Argument: The Monty Hall Problem, saying, “Imagine you are on a TV game show, and the host lets you choose between three closed doors…”

Pamela Jorrick presents Bricks and Brains, saying, “Last year, when we first learned about an artist named Nathan Sawaya who created life sized masterpieces entirely out of Lego bricks, we were immediately interested.”

Family

Two Kid Schoolhouse presents First Day, Play Day, saying, “The new books are ready; the daily routine/schedule typed up:  it must be time to “start school.”  I dislike that term intensely“.

Mrs. White presents Making Chores Fair for Children, saying, “‘ve mentioned in a previous post (A Cheerful and Willing Housekeeper) about not expecting too much from our children in regards to housework. As Mothers, it seems like we have plenty of chores and we are often asking for help. Sometimes, we even ask for help all day long for those of us who homeschool!”

Barbara Frank presents Public School Foolishness, saying, “Brief summary of the post: The ridiculous way schools treat bright kids makes a person glad they homeschool their own children.”

Laura Grace Weldon presents If Jane Goodall Were An Alien, saying, “Imagine someone with Jane Goodall’s observational powers coming from outer space to observe us for a few days. Let’s narrow this alien’s study down to something relatively simple. American childhood.”

DeputyHeadmistress presents The Common Room: Teaching Your Children How to Do Their Chores, saying, “When you first want to teach a child a chore, you spend time doing the chore with him. Model it, talk about what you are doing, include him, explain what you do and why. Do this a few times (at least).”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of homeschooling using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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It is a fancy name for what parents of public, parochial, private, and magnet schools should be doing anyway. But, you know we like to give everything a name so…

Co-schooling is another form of home education that works in partnership with the school the child attends. The premise for this method is that the parents are the absolute authority over the child’s education and they work closely with the child’s teachers to give the student the best education possible. Without open communication and a desire to teach and train your child this method will not work. The point is to not leave the bulk of the responsibility up to the school but instead take some of that responsibility upon yourself.

• Become acquainted. Get to know your child’s teacher and help her or him get to know your child. This is a team effort and all great teams require strategic planning.
• Communicate. Set up meetings or phone calls all throughout the year so that you can each get a glimpse of the child’s progress and needs.
• Plan and Prepare. Ask for lesson plans and homework schedules so that you can supplement the education they are receiving in the classroom with appropriate materials at home: books, games, trips, TV shows, etc. The homework schedule allows you to monitor the child’s work and see how they are doing in regards to mastering concepts. It also helps you to keep them accountable.
• Learning Environment. Give each child a space for doing homework in peace. Make sure there is lots of light, pens, paper, and any other necessary supplies within reach.
• Set Goals. Talk with your child and help them to set goals for each school year and then break them down by semester. Review them every so often to make sure the child always has that goal in view. It is easier for them to walk towards success if they have a plan for doing so.
• Volunteer. It makes you a part of your child’s world away from home. You can get to know those who engage and encourage your child each day and become a part of the process instead of just being a spectator.
• Know your rights. Educate yourself on the laws and rules that govern your child’s school. Find out whom you are to speak to if there is a problem. Find out what the school’s responsibilities are and then make sure you understand your own responsibilities.

Above all, know that you are the parent and that the child’s teacher and other administrators are there to help you educate your child. Don’t take a backseat to the system. Unfortunately, the majority of parents of school age children have just handed over their children to the schools and because of this those children are educated under a broad spectrum. Without an advocate, your child’s teacher has to guess as to his or her abilities and they have to discipline and train without your input or support. This is not what was intended and this is not being a good parent.

Even if the only thing that you can do is email or call then do it. No one knows or loves your child more than you and no one else should be more involved in their education than you.

What about you? Do any of you have tips or advice on how to effectively co-school our children. Any teachers want to weigh in?

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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Maxon and Andrew went back to public school in March of last school year. This was not my first choice but since their dad (my former spouse) and my husband (Ryan) both felt strongly that they should be in school I had to comply. Reason number one is that since their dad and I have begun parenting together and paying each other mutual respect for the purpose of raising our children, we have a legally binding agreement about education. He gave me the go ahead to start homeschooling a few years ago but he always said when they were older he wanted them to attend school for the purposes of athletics, clubs, and all that other stuff. Do I agree? No, but I figured he would change his mind later but alas he didn’t so when he said he wanted them to go back then we sent them back.

Reason number two is that my husband feels the same way. He had a great education without homeschooling and he is a strong Christian man. His take on it is that of a father and provider who wants the best for his boys. He feels as though I can’t give my best to all three of them especially with Carsten needing so much one on one instruction. Both dads agree that Carsten should stay home and that I can give him the best education at present.

So, both of our younger boys went to public shool in March of last year and completed the year ahead of their class and eager to go back this year. Again, I will comply.

Did I do it without kicking and screaming? No, but I finally realized I couldn’t win and prayed for God to show me the best of this situation and after having them there for three months and getting to the core of Carsten’s learning problems, I realize that I do need to focus most of my attention on Carsten, who will be homeschooling. And I have to admit that it will be much easier for me to teach him if there are no other distractions.

I’ll be honest here. This was very hard for me. I fought with my husband over it. Not only did I want to keep them all home but I had been so ingrained by some others that homeschooling is the “only” biblical way of educating our children that I had to fight off guilt and self-condemnation that was brought on by that peer-pressure. The problem is that in all my biblical studies on the subject, this “only way” has proven to be very unfounded. Yes, we are our children’s primary educator and it is ultimately our responsibility to ensure that they are being educated properly but keeping them home to do that is not the only option. I have found a way to co-educate with my children’s teachers to give them the best education possible. My husband, their father and I are in agreement and at peace. I’m leaving some things that I have no authority over in God’s hands and I am staying on top of the rest.

As long as we, as parents, are doing our absolute best to help them learn and grow then God sees our hearts and honors that. I know this is true. I’m living proof. He called me out of what I was in to where I am now and He did that without the help of any human. My going to public school had nothing to do with anything as it pertains to God.

2 Corinthians 3 talks about the glory of the new covenant in which we receive direction and wisdom from the spirit. Those scriptures brought me great comfort while I was struggling to submit to my husband and my boys’ father. No one should feel condemned for the choices they make concerning education unless they made that decision for selfish reasons.

My boys are growing and thriving. They have all accepted Christ as their Lord and savior and been baptized. The method of education we choose does not limit the spirit of the living God.

I hope some of you find comfort in that. I’ve received many emails from ladies who felt condemned because they can’t keep their children home for one reason or another. You’ve read all of the information out there about why you should keep them home and the like but you have to remember that this is a personal choice. One that should be made by you, God, and your spouse. Only the three of you can truly determine what is best for your children and only you will answer for your decision before God. If that decision is to homeschool then that is absolutely awesome! It is a great choice. But, if you have to go with another method of education then that is great too. Make the best of it. Do you part. Be sure to co-school along with the school your child attends. You have the ultimate authority over their education.

Will I continue to educate them this way? I don’t know. It depends on how the Holy Spirit continues to lead me and whether or not God changes the minds of the men in our life. I can say that during this season of my life this is what we are doing and I am going to make the best of it.

I hope this brings comfort to anyone who was struggling with the decision on how to educate. Pray, seek God, and listen for His will.

For those of you who do choose the school system, be it public, private, or parochial, I will be writing a post about how you can co-school for the best possible outcome for your child(ren) but tell me, do you homeschool? Do you send your kids to private school? What about private or parochial school? What led your family to that decision?

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We basically had to start teaching him from scratch about two years ago when he was diagnosed with 20/800 vision. Prior to that we weren’t aware that he was going blind in one eye and this happened during a time when he would have been learning all of his basic math and phonics skills. But he didn’t learn it. While the one eye was losing sight the other eye was trying to over compensate and adjust and he started losing muscle control over it. By the time we got a diagnosis and finished his therapy he was at the end of his fourth grade year. We spent the next two years catching him up. He caught on quickly with the reading and excelled in no time but the math was a different story. No matter how many times I showed him something he wasn’t grasping it and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out why he just didn’t “get it.” I was nearly ready to throw in the towel.

Then, last week I had the privilege of speaking at Curr-Click’s open house night and it was there that I learned of Mr. Patrick and his tutoring service: Math Tools. While listening to him speak it became quite obvious to me what Carsten’s problem was – it was the way I was teaching him.

I’m a mental math kind of person. I look at problems and can quickly come up with the answer but I do this strange bout of adding and subtracting to get it. I’m almost always right too. I remember always having points deducted in school for not “showing my work.” I did it all in my head. For example, 60×25 would be figured out something like this: 6×25 is 150 so add a 0 the add 25 more to account for the one so the answer is 1525. Or 36+55 quickly becomes 30+50 is 80 plus 11 equals 91. Don’t get me started on division. I can string it out in seconds flat and come up with the answer. Confusing? Just think of how my poor child felt.

I quickly sent Mr. Math Tools an email inquiring about his services and it obviously screamed panic because he quickly emailed me back and assured me that I had not messed up my child and that he’d be happy to help him. This made me happy because us moms don’t like to mess up our children.

We did on online diagnostic test yesterday and once the results are analyzed we’ll figure out what to do from there. Carsten was trying to do all of it in his head. I knew it wasn’t good when he tried to find the answer to 47×43 by adding 43, 47 times! So, we’ll be tutoring this year and focusing on mastering these concepts by going back through his Teaching Textbooks curriculum from last year and a new approach to math called Life of Fred. I am encouraged though. He is a quick learner. He has done amazingly well considering all he has gone through.

As for the rest of his curriculum, and he is acing all other subjects, we will be using the following:

Our history core will be Sonlight Core 5 Eastern Hemisphere – We began this the second half of last year but because I feel it is such an important core – and a long one – we decided to stretch it out. This core focuses on Geography and cultures.

Please take a moment and visit my sponsors to see how they can benefit you!

• True Simplicity in Life: Truly inspiring ways to simplify and be content in your home.
Simply Clean: Guide to Homemade Cleaners!
• One Bite at a Time (52 Projects for Making Life Simpler)
• Feasts in 15: One of the best "quick cooking" cookbooks around.
• Tell Your Time: A revolutionary way to get more done!
• List Plan It: Get life in order.
• The Fresh 20: This is the service I use...FABULOUS!
• ProBlogger's Guide to Your First Week of Blogging

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