Keeping Homeschool Simple when Life is Busy and Time is precious…
Oh, hi there! It’s been well over a month since I’ve been able to post anything on this little blog but I promise, I have VERY good reasons! Our family is actually walking through the journey of fostering to adopt a beautiful baby boy. There is so much more I would love to share about how amazing God is and how He weaves all things together but that will have to wait until the adoption is final… *smile* Then, watch out… because I won’t be able to stop talking about how Jesus works and posting about a million photos of this little one’s precious face! What I can say…
The Value of Play (what Charlotte Mason had to say…)
“There is a danger in these days of much educational effort that children’s play should be crowded out [or what is the same thing] should be prescribed for and arranged until there is no more freedom of choice about play than about work. We do not say a word against the educational value of games (such as football, basketball, etc.) … but organized games are not play in the sense we have in view. Boys and girls must have time to invent episodes, carry on adventures, live heroic lives, lay sieges and carry forts, even if the fortress be an old armchair; and in these affairs the elders must neither…
Review of Simply Charlotte Mason’s Family Study Handbooks
I’m super happy to review Modern Times, Epistles, and Revelation from Simply Charlotte Mason for you. *smile* I love SimplyCharlotteMason.com and have blogged extensively about how we implement Charlotte Mason inspired plans with the help of much of the SCM resources If you ever use Simply Charlotte Mason’s free curriculum guide you will be directed to choose a history time period to study together as a family. These guides, arranged by time period, by Sonya Shafer, act as the backbone of the Simply Charlotte Mason ‘curriculum’. They are central to carrying out the SCM program in your family.There are six guides for six different time periods flowing…
Join us for a Lesson! {WriteShop Junior}
Over the past couple months, my daughter and I have really enjoyed using WriteShop . Have you seen my two other posts? Check them out here: Full Review of Write Shop Junior (Book D) Using Games and Manipulative to Make Writing Fun WriteShop a nutshell: This is an incredibly detailed, comprehensive writing program. As I mentioned in my previous post, it most reminds me of my experience with All About Reading. I say this because everything is here. The program is completely laid out in the high quality Teacher’s Guide and comes with everything you could possibly need to successfully teach/experience the curriculum. (Don’t you love that...?) In the…
A Detailed Review of WriteShop {Junior, Book D}
A few weeks ago, I posted about how using games and activities enhances learning in our home school. My 9-year-old daughter, Audrey and I have been having fun with WriteShop Junior . This is an incredibly detailed, comprehensive writing program. As I mentioned in my previous post, it most reminds me of my experience with All About Reading. I say this because everything is here. The program is completely laid out in the high quality Teacher’s Guide and comes with everything you could possibly need to successfully teach/experience the curriculum. (Don’t you love that...?) So, let’s take a look at this program… First Impressions Upon opening up a box…
Using Games and Manipulatives to make Writing Fun…
Something I absolutely love about working on writing within our homeschool is the quality time in gives me with my children. There’s just something special about digging into your child’s mind and pulling out the amazing ideas that are already there. I’ve got two boys, age 11 and 8, and one girl, age 9. My daughter (Audrey) is working through WriteShop Junior Book D with me right now and she’s really enjoying the journey. There are quite a few elements that really work for her with regard to WriteShop , and I’d like to chat about them in a couple upcoming posts. (I’ve had lots of requests for reviews…
Autumn Nature Studies from NaturExplorers
It is no secret I love the NaturExplorer Nature Study Units from Our Journey Westward. I thought I would share some of the great nature studies available for the Autumn season. This is such a beautiful time of year for so many of us – Harvest, leaves changing colour, cool nights, sunny, wind-blown days. Pumpkins, corn stalks, wheat bundles, Mums on the door step… oh, how I LOVE Autumn! It is also a fantastic season for all kinds of nature studies! If you are looking for easy, hands-on, ready-to-go Nature Studies, the NaturExplorers units are a great option. What is included in the NaturExplorer Units? There is…
The Truth about Teaching our Children to Read {and 5 Simple Steps for Nurturing a Love of Books…}
A couple of days ago, I shared a special moment on The Unplugged Family Facebook page. My nine-year-old daughter had just finished reading through The Boxcar Children for the first time and was starting into the second book in the series. It was mid-morning and our home was peacefully quiet with children all engaged in their own activities. Audrey unfolded her legs and rose from the couch with a satisfied sigh. “Oh, Mama… I just couldn’t LIVE without reading,” her voice was whimsical and sing-song. I smiled and she continued, “Reading is just delicious.” Oh, my heart. Those four words will stay emblazoned in my soul forever. Reading Is…
The difference between a Schedule and a Rhythm (and how Rhythm brought Rest to our Homeschool)
Schedule A. a plan for carrying out a process or procedure, giving lists of intended events and times. B. to arrange or plan events to take place at a particular time. Rhythm A. a strong, regular pattern of movement or sound. B. a repeated pattern of events marked by natural flow and regular reoccurrence of certain activities. When I first started my Homeschooling journey, I tried desperately to create (and re-create) very specific Homeschool Schedules I wanted us to follow. These comprised of many boxes and many little increments of time, all filled in with exactly what we would do every second…
Our Choices for Individual Studies / Morning Rotation
So, last week I posted about our Morning Time and Family Loop plans for this year, Term 1. If you haven’t read that post and are genuinely interested in how our year ( or a creatively put-together, Charlotte Mason-inspired year ) looks like, I’d definitely start there. A huge part of our learning is covered in our Morning Time and Family Loop . Once we finish up Morning Time, the kids move into their Morning Rotations (Individual Work). This is where they are covering their Language Arts, Math, Notebooking, and Reading. This year Simon is our 6th grader (oh, my goodness!), Audrey is in 4th grade, and Alex…
