The Reading Lesson Review and Giveaway!

Reading Made Easy!

These are words that moms and dads all over want to hear when they choose to be the educators of their children. Let's face it, teaching reading is a daunting task for many parents. It's a huge responsibility! But it is not one that we need to shrink away from because with companies like "The Reading Lesson", we are given everything we need to be successful, and I mean everything!

The Reading Lesson is an award winning phonics based reading program designed to bring success to your child. This is GREAT news! We can be successful homeschool teachers! 

The Reading Lesson is a company that offers so many affordable tools, not only for reading, but for math, vocabulary, writing and more. I was personally able to use:

• The Reading Lesson Book- Teach your child to read in 20 easy lessons. The Reading Lesson Book uses 20 lessons to teach your child to read. Each lesson consist of approximately 15+ reading activities. So, this is a perfect curriculum to last your entire school year. We are able to move at a pace that works well for my son and each time I close the book, I feel such a relief that he is really getting it!

• Reading Lesson CD is an animated program using Giggle Bunny to entertain your child while learning to read. Who said learning can't be fun!

                                                   

• The Story Book CD - 40 Short Stories for young children to try to read on their own. My kids love books, but put books on a computer and they really love them!

                                                      

• The Sounds of Letters DVD- First steps to reading. This 40 minute DVD will remind your child between lessons what sounds each letter makes in a fun, colorful, and animated way. This is guilt free TV time!

                                                 

• Big Words for Little Kids - This has been great for my two elementary age children (4th and 6th grade)- Teaches root words, suffixes, prefixes and language origination. This was just what I needed since my spelling curriculum lacks strong training in this area.

• The Verbal Math Lesson  This is a great alternative or supplement to traditional math texts. If you need math to be a fun game to survive your math lesson, check this out! Designed for elementary, middle, or high school kids.

                                                      

• The Writing Lesson CD - Printables for learning to write. No more need to buy books that run out of handwriting pages. Print your own and use for all of your kids! This CD provides multiple practice sheets for primary writing (K-1), script (2-4), and cursive.

I have a 5 year old that had already started to learn to read, but wasn't progressing like I knew he could. I was beginning to think a new curriculum would help us out. That is when I discovered The Reading Lesson. We have loved this material and my son loves using it. In no time at all, we are well on our way! Best of all, my son Luke, loves it!

Each book and CD they offer will make your job as the teacher so much easier.

Do you want to try it? 

We are offering a giveaway of all you see here for one of our readers and a 20% discount on all of their products for anyone else! Use the code uniquefamilyvision00 when checking out.The sale is just for our readers and the code expires the end of March.

If you already have reading covered, maybe your child could use some help with mental math or vocabulary. Maybe their handwriting is struggling and you could use The Reading Lesson in that area. They offer so much!

To participate in the giveaway, please leave a comment on why this sounds just right for you. If you like them on Facebook, come back and let me know in the comment section, and you will be entered a second time. Visit their site and come back and let me know that your browsed their site, and that will count as another entry. You can qualify for three entries each.

The giveaway will begin on Thursday morning, Feb. 28th and end on Thursday night, March 7th at midnight.

Don't miss out on winning big with your kids! Teaching them to read is one of your biggest challenges as a parent and one of our kid's greatest rewards! Choose The Reading Lesson to bring home your victory!

Welcome to all of my hip homeschool mom friends!

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A Homeschooling Mom's Prayer

If you are a homeschooling mom, you must know the feelings of inadequacy, impatience, a lack of gentleness many at times and sometimes, you might even venture to say that you experience suffering. Can you relate to that? I can.

My goal lately has been to change my devotional time. It used to be that I read my Bible and I prayed. Now I am motivated to combine these two practices into one thing...use the Word as my prayer time. Bring them into partnership with each other. My first challenge is to highlight all of God's promises, so that I can easily see them in my Bible while I am praying. Next to the highlighted area, I write words like "family", "Children", "Marriage", or "Healing". These key words let me know at a glance that this promise is for that area of my life.

So, as I am in this process of changing the way I do devotions, I picked up some booklets from a church I was at. It has prayers that have already been put together for different life issues and has the Word already written out. I got them to help me find and discover those verses in the Word, so I could highlight them. Basically, my project has made it easier to pray powerfully without only depending on what I had previously memorized. This challenge has made me hungry for the Word of God, hungry to memorize more, and hungry to dig deep into Scripture.

All that to say, that I found a prayer that is great for homeschooling moms! I encourage you to print it off and post it to your fridge or put it in your Bible. This is not meant to be a meaningless rote prayer that lacks power. Anytime you pray the Word of God, regardless of if you constructed the prayer or someone else, you have prayed truth and the power of God is there.

"I am thankful, Heavenly Father, for the expression of Your will for my daily life as You have shown me in Your word. I, therefore, claim all the will of God for today. I am thankful that You have blessed me with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. I am thankful that You have begotten me unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. I am thankful that You have have made a provision so that today I can live filled with the Spirit of God, with love, and joy and peace, with long suffering , gentleness and goodness, with meekness, faithfulness and self-control in my life. I recognize that this is Your will for me, and I therefore reject and resist all the endeavors of Satan and his wicked spirits to rob me of the will of God. I refuse this day to believe my feelings and I hold up the Shield of Faith against all the accusations and distortion and insinuations that Satan would put into my mind. I claim the fullness of the will of God for my life today." In Jesus' Name.

~Victor M. Mathews
(Verses taken from 1 Sam. 15:23, Eph. 1:3, Gal 5:22-23, 1 Peter 5:8-9, Eph. 6:16,  Rom. 12:1,2,
2 Cor. 10:4-5) 

Today, I found this prayer helpful and I wanted to share! We homeschooling moms can sometimes use the reminder of what God's perfect will is for us and how to stand against the devil's schemes to tear us down.

REVIEW and FREEBIE!!

Our America...The King Philip's War Adventure

by Susan Kilbride

Today and tomorrow we celebrate the publication of a new book in the "Our America" series! Everyone knows that the best celebrations include freebies!! So, after you read this review on Susan's new book in the series, hop on over to her site for a link to a FREE kindle download of her first book in the series. If you don't have a kindle, that is okay because Amazon offers free kindle apps to download to your computer so you too can have the kindle experience.

Back to the review...

I think any parent can appreciate authors that write books not only for profit, but for truly impacting the lives of children. When I pick up a book by Susan Kilbride, I have that feeling about her. I don't know her personally, but I have had the pleasure of reviewing three of her books. I believe that when she sits down to write, it is with that purpose that she is compelled to keep writing. It shows in the very first page of her new book called "Our America...The King Philip's War Adventure". In her introduction, she speaks to parents about how she carefully constructed her story to protect the innocence of our children regarding the graphic atrocities of the war, but works hard to stay true to American history. I value that in an author and in their books. 

Today, many books are written for the thrill of the story while showing a total disregard for our children's innocence. As a mom who doesn't have time to read each and every book that her four kids pick up, I am thankful that this is one book series I don't have to worry about.

The "Our America" series is a historically accurate book based in a fiction world where twins, Ginny and Finn, are lost in time through a time travel machine. They are in search of their parents who were lost in time and have yet to return. As the children seek them out, they find many adventures along the way. In her last book, they found themselves on the Mayflower. In the second book of her series, the children find themselves trying to survive in the New England area during the 1600's while being smack dab in the middle of King Philip's war.

My 11 year old daughter and my 9 year old son have really enjoyed this series. When the books end, it leaves them looking for more and isn't that what real education is supposed to accomplish? The best learning is when we don't want to stop and we keep searching for more. This book leaves children wanting more, and so... we wait. We wait for the next book in the series to bring early America back to life in the lives of my kids.

This fantastic book is on sale at Amazon.com. Please take a moment to read the reviews on her past two books, Our America...The Pilgrim Adventure and Science Unit Studies for Homeschoolers and Teachers.

One more bonus feature of this book is the author's activity ideas that are offered for free at http://funtasticunitstudies.com/ Be sure to check them out and turn your child's reading into a unit study. Don't forget the link to the FREE kindle version of her first book, Our America...The Pilgrim Adventure!

Geometry Credit for Saxon Homeschool

One of my favorite tidbits of knowledge that attracted me first to Saxon math was the fact that Geometry was intertwined through its textbooks so that if you used their curriculum, you could avoid taking an entire year of my least favorite math--the dreaded geometry. Please forgive me all you math lovers.To be honest, after that little tidbit of information, I was hooked on Saxon.

I never had to think another thought about it until I was planning my high school daughter's next school year and began wondering if that was just a rumor or really true.

Here is a portion copied from Saxon's FAQ page. For someone who would have failed geometry had it not been for a personal tutor (who helped me bring my grade up to an 89%!!!) this is great news! No dreaded year of math for me! After all, I can ONLY take geometry in little chunks.


What are my options for upper level math?
There are now two different tracks students can take with Saxon upper level books. The traditional approach is to take Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 (3rd Edition) before moving on to Advanced Math. The 3rd Edition upper level Saxon Homeschool programs have geometry integrated into them. Geometry is easily integrated into algebra because the topics are strongly interrelated, and this approach has proven to be very effective. Rather than spend an entire year on geometry, Saxon introduces geometry concepts into the math series at the appropriate times.
For those homeschoolers whose states have strict requirements for geometry curricula, or for those who would prefer to spend a full year on geometric concepts, we now offer the option of Algebra 1 (4th Edition), Geometry (1st Edition), and Algebra 2 (4th Edition). These books separate the algebra and geometry content while featuring the incremental approach that is the hallmark of the Saxon program.



How can a high school student receive a geometry credit on his/her transcript when they use Saxon Algebra 1 (3rd Edition), Algebra 2 (3rd Edition), and Advanced Math
Geometry concepts are introduced in Saxon's early textbooks, but the heart of the geometry course is embedded in Algebra 2 and Advanced Math. Students who complete Algebra 2 have taken the equivalent of one semester in geometry, but they will need to complete Advanced Math in order to complete one full year of Euclidean geometry. Because Advanced Math is a rigorous book, it is most often completed in three or four semesters. Students completing Advanced Math will have taken the equivalent of one year of geometry and one year of trigonometry and advanced algebra. For those who prefer to spend a full year studying geometric concepts, we now also offer the Saxon Geometry homeschool package.


What geometry credit should be given on my child's transcript for Algebra 2 and Advanced Math?
Students who complete Algebra 2 can be given credit for one semester of informal geometry (geometry without rigorous proofs). Students who complete Advanced Mathematics can be given credit for one full year of Euclidean geometry. The full-year credit includes credit for completing Algebra 2.




Do I have to cover the Advanced Mathematics book in one year?
No, if it takes more than one day to cover a lesson, don't be alarmed. Average students usually take three to four semesters to finish the book. Keep in mind that the Advanced Mathematics book is a geometry book as well as a trigonometry and pre-calculus book. The book covers more advanced algebraic topics as well.


Well, here it is folks! Not a rumor :) We have just completed the Algebra 1 class and all my fretting about the order of Geometry and Algebra 2 is now solved. Algebra 2 it is!

Happy Homeschooling!

Writing your Homeschool Mission Statement

 

 photo credit

How many of you agree that it is a great idea to have a homeschool mission statement, but summing up everything you desire for your kids in a few sentences is a bit daunting? I know exactly what you mean, but it's really not that difficult to do if you will allow yourself a little bit of time to devote to it. In a few easy steps, you can have your mission statement on paper. I want to help you discover yours.

First, stop and pray. This is important because you want God's reasoning behind your homeschooling. It's unique to you and your children and there is no use in striving in our own strength. Striving in God's grace is the best way to homeschool and succeed!

Basically, we are going to decide on what we purpose to do through homeschooling. After praying, you will need to write down your values of homeschooling. Take out a pen and paper and start writing down words or phrases that capture your feelings about homeschooling. Think back on things you have said when people ask you why you homeschool.

Write down 10 things or so. Then, we are going to group them together. Ask yourself if you can combine your ideas in fewer words.

Here were my values not written in any certain order:

Godly character
Sibling unity
Respect for parents
God-fearing
Biblical world view
Life learning
Strong study skills
Excel
Work hard to overcome difficulties in education
Diligent
Take education serious
Parents are the main influences

Now see if you can begin arranging them in sentences. Think of a beginning line like, "We commit to..." or "We acknowledge God's call on our life to..." then begin filling in the rest. Feel free to make the mission statement as long as you like, but keep in mind it will be easier to remember if you keep it to a few sentences.

Here is ours:

"As long as the Lord allows, we commit to homeschool our children, first as a tool to develop strong Biblical character, sibling unity, and parental respect; second, to develop a love for learning, a habit of excelling, and a strong work ethic."

Pretty much all of my values are described within this paragraph whether specific or implied. This is something I can memorize and use as a metric to be certain each year that I am meeting our goals as parents through homeschooling.

Have you created your mission statement? I would love to hear it! 

Drive Thru History America

Wallbuilders.com

It's Memorial Day weekend. What a time to reflect on the very great sacrifice of men and women who have selflessly given something of value to us - their time, their strength, their knowledge, their hope, and even their lives. I am blessed beyond measure to be a part of a country that has had only one revolution and has continued to live under the same constitution for almost 236 years. If that doesn't tell you that God has ordained this country (the USA) into existence, then you must keep reading and ultimately order this material.

Today, our church had a surprise guest, David Barton. I had never heard of him, but that is not indicative of his renown. With the "oohs" and "ahhhs" I heard all around me, I assumed he must be of some importance. Turns out, he is the founder of WallBuilders. Yep, even then, I was still not familiar. Vaguely maybe, but nothing solid.


I was blown away with David's knowledge. I could not even begin to report to you what he said. I wish I could because you could be blown away with me. He spoke of those amazing speeches our forefathers made and what sounded like they had employed a powerful speech writer was, in fact, mostly the Holy Scriptures. In a paragraph of 14 sentences, 11 would be Scripture.  This continued through speech after speech.  He introduced to us to the signers of our Constitution...the ones you never hear about, but were far more involved with our history than our government and schools would want you to know. The more I learned about these faceless men, the more I wanted to know more. I couldn't wait to get home and get on WallBuilders website, find their books, and make them my curriculum for American History.

I was so excited to see they have curriculum especially for homeschoolers. They also have countless books for families. Here is their reason for their existence in their words:

"WallBuilders is an organization dedicated to presenting America's forgotten history and heroes, with an emphasis on the moral, religious, and constitutional foundation on which America was built – a foundation which, in recent years, has been seriously attacked and undermined. In accord with what was so accurately stated by George Washington, we believe that "the propitious [favorable] smiles of heaven can never be expected on a nation which disregards the eternal rules of order and right which heaven itself has ordained."

I wanted to be sure to let you know about WallBuilders. When considering a curriculum for history, consider them. When  considering a book to read around the table to your family, consider them. Thank God for what they are doing. If you can, spread the word!

Curriculum: Drive Thru History America

The Ultimate Field Trip by Disney

Homeschool Family Owned and Operated

Making Dreams a Reality since 2005

Announcing The Details of The Ultimate Field Trip! Now enjoying our 8th year of Fun at Walt Disney World® Resort. In 2012 we're partnering with The Homeschool Lounge and Magical Mouse Schoolhouse to bring you the best Disney has to offer!   Breaking News!!  Steve Barrett (author of the Hidden Mickey Guide and also known as the Hidden Mickey Guy) will be our special guest at the Mega Meet! Getting To Know The Group This year The Homeschool Lounge has provided us with an online group where we can chat freely in relative anonymity from the non-homeschool world. You can also interact with us on Facebook, Twitter and of course, by  emailing us directly. We welcome your questions and comments and every opportunity to improve and grow to meet the needs of our attendees. Grabbing Educational Opportunities  We have great (free!) options for all of the families attending provided by Magical Mouse Schoolhouse, where Disney IS School.  Not only that, they will help us provide multiple fun and friendly educational options for you to explore at home before your trip.   Our Resort of Choice for 2012  Disney's Pop Century Resort!   No one is required to stay in the same resort to participate in UFT 2012 - but it does increase your chance of participating in spontaneous pool time, bus line and food court fun! Sample Pricing for your family can be found here.   Get exact pricing for FREE by requesting a no-obligation quote from one of our team.   We apply every discount available to your package at first opportunity - even AFTER you have booked! As soon as you're serious about considering The Ultimate Field Trip, your first step is to  Get a quote for YOUR family with multiple resort options onsite and links sent to your inbox to look at pictures of each resort.  We want you to have what is the best option for YOUR family!   About Our Events All of our events are 100% optional.  We do have a completely free, online sign up, which allows us to plan well and make sure there are an adequate number of giveaways for our attendees, but we recognize that for many families this is a trip packed full of amazing options and it may not be possible to do everything!    Dinner at Pepper Market September 3, 2012     Prior to our Mega Meet, many families will be enjoying dinner at Pepper Market.  We'll have multiple hosts set up to greet families as they enter Disney's Coronado Springs Resort and head over to enjoy a meal that's one of the best values on property, with excellent food prepared to suit every palate, allergy and preference.   UFT Mega-Meet September 3, 2012  Our opening event in 2012 will be held at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort and Convention Center in a private room.  Our annual Mega Meet is where every family is able to pick up their itinerary hot-off-the-press, commemorative giveaways and specialty items created just for their children. This years Special Guest is Steve Barrett - The Hidden Mickey Guy! Magic Kingdom® Park Scavenger Hunt    Meet up with other families for the Magic Kingdom® Park Scavenger Hunt!  We'll be gathering together in one location and heading out in teams. Families will be given the option of staying together as a unit or sending off their teens for the teen-team.    Magic Kingdom® Park Dole Whip Drop In  Super casual yummy fun can be had at the Dole Whip Drop In, created by popular demand!  We'll meet in Adventureland and share the treat as a group.     Illuminations:  Reflections of Earth at Epcot  We'll be saving space as a group and getting goodies. Illuminations is a breathtaking fireworks, laserlight effect, music and spectacular nighttime event!  The only thing that could make it better is enjoying it with your family and UFT friends! - As we grow and chat with our attendees, secure sponsors and keep an eye on Disney happenings, we will add events.  Final dates and times for all events besides September 3rd events (which will remain as planned) will be announced when Park Hours are released and you will be able to sign up for events at that time.     Update! Park hours were just released!  UFT Events will be updated on our website this week!  Your assigned agent will let you know as soon as we have our online sign up available for you and your family.   Carol Beth Scott - Founder of the Ultimate Field Trip & Owner of 3D Travel Company www.3DTravelCompany.com CarolBeth@3DTravelCompany.com 469-396-8952

Emailed by The Homeschool Lounge

High School Diploma Requirements

These are basic requirements for high school diplomas. It can vary from State to State, so you need to check with your Dept. of Education to be certain you have all you need to graduate your homeschooled child. Also, be sure to check with your college admissions. Please note that most of the time, the required credit hours are the minimum expected.  Also, please note that when choosing elective courses, colleges prefer an educational benefit over a life skill. Find out from your state what translates to 1 credit. In our State, 140 hours is equal to 1 credit and 70 hours is equal to 1/2 credit.

 General High School Diploma (not college-bound)

4 English Credits

• Composition, American Lit, British Lit, World Lit, Rhetoric, Creative Writing, Speech/Communication, Journalism (Courses should stress grammar, vocab and analyzing literature.)

3 Math Credits

• Algebra 1 and 2, Geometry, General Math, Consumer Math, Business Math, Accounting

2-3 History Credits

• World History, American History, American Government

2-3 Science Credits

• Physical Science, General Science, Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics

2-3 Foreign Language Credits

• French, Spanish, Latin, German, Russian, etc..2 years same language preferred

1-2 P.E. credits

• Physical Education - many options available

1-2 Fine Arts Credits

• Art, Music, Drama, Photography etc..

5 Electives

• Bible, Practical Arts, Life Skills, Computer Skills etc...

Total Credits Needed: 20-22

General Diploma (College Bound)

4 English Credits

• Composition, American Lit, British Lit, World Lit, Rhetoric, Creative Writing, Speech/Communication, Journalism, Debate (also consider AP courses)
  

4+ Math Credits

• Algebra 1 and 2, Geometry, Trig, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, AP Calculus
  

3-4 History Credits

• Essentials: World History, American History, American Government
• Consider: Economics, Geography, Constitutional Law, and AP courses
  

3-4 Science Credits

• Physical Science, General Science, Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, consider AP courses

2-4 Foreign Language Credits

• French, Spanish, Latin, German, Russian, etc..2 years same language preferred
  

1-2 P.E. credits

• Physical Education - many options available
  

1-2 Fine Arts Credits

• Art, Music, Drama, Photography etc..
  

5 Electives

• Bible, Church History, Practical Arts, Life Skills, Computer Skills etc...

Total Credits Needed: 24-28 credits

Advanced Diploma for Highly Selective Colleges/Universities

4+ English Credits

• Composition, American Lit, British Lit, World Lit, Rhetoric, Creative Writing, Speech/Communication, Journalism, Debate ( AP courses strongly recommended)
  

4+ Math Credits

• Algebra 1 and 2, Geometry, Trig, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, AP Calculus
• Consider: Statistics, Accounting etc...
  

4+ History Credits

• Essentials: World History, American History, American Government
• Consider: Economics, Geography, Sociology, Psychology, Political Science, Constitutional Law, and AP courses strongly recommended
  

4+ Science Credits

• Physical Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Anatomy, Microbiology, AP courses strongly recommended

3-4 Foreign Language Credits

• French, Spanish, Latin, German, Russian, etc..2 years same language preferred
  

1-2 P.E. credits

• Physical Education - many options available
  

1-2 Fine Arts Credits

• Art, Music, Drama, Photography etc..
  

5 Electives

• Bible, Church History, Practical Arts, Life Skills, Computer Skills (proficiency important)

Total Credits Needed: 26-30

If you have information about your state that varies from this, please leave it in the comment section to help everyone else out. For example, in Alabama, you must have 1/2 Health credit, 1/2 Computer credit, and 1/2 Arts credit and only 1 PE credit. It varies a bit from above. Thank you for adding your information.

*This list does not include the requirement for ACT/SAT testing. Please check with your college admin to see how valuable that is to them for college admission.

List sourced by HSLDA

8th Grade Curriculum

We are trying something REALLY new for us this year. I am enrolling my 8th grader into a college prep homeschool coop. This resulted as a need to compromise somewhat with her. I am NOT one of those parents who lets their children dictate major decisions for their lives, but in this instance, she was begging me for classroom interaction. It's not the social interaction she wants, as she has plenty of that, but rather it's the experience of a classroom that she is desiring. I can't blame her. The grass is always greener...but I won't bend on the public/private school option.  I can, however, bend on a homeschooling class option. This co op is very rigorous and full of very like minded families. A lot of prayer has gone into this and I am excited to give this a try. Two days a week, she will go to their building and learn. Three days a week, I will be her facilitator. Ultimately, I am still her teacher. I make final decisions on her grades etc...I like their choices for curriculum and I am listing them here for anyone else headed into the 8th grade.

History

Literary Analysis

Writers Inc.




Mere Christianity




The Cat of Bubastes



Julius Caesar (No Fear Shakespeare version)
Shakespeare/ Sparknotes



Eagle of the Ninth



Idylls of the King



The Pilgrim’s Progress



The Scarlet Pimpernel



Silas Marner-Couldn't find at Amazon.com
Eliot

Sense and Sensibility



Heart of Darkness



Eric Liddell (version TBA)



The Hiding Place



Animal Farm

Physical Science

Latin

Vocabulary from Classical Roots A (We did this last year)



Vocabulary from Classical Roots B (this too!!)

Logic

The Fallacy Detective (and this one...)



The Art of Argument (Revised Edition)



Algebra  (Super sad to be leaving Saxon...I will let you know how it goes.)

Algebra




We will be including our state history and do various studies within it. She won't be able to cover the whole book due to this schedule.

Grammar-- TBD Probably the 8th grade Rod and Staff

Bible -TBD

7th Grade Curriculum

Math- We use Saxon Math 8/7. If you have read my other curriculum posts, you will know that I love Saxon for this age. I like it beginning in fourth grade with Saxon 5/4. If you have a child in 7th grade and haven't found a math you love, try this! It's easier to teach than some maths out there like Abeka. I like that it is spelled out for you as far as what to say. The examples are clear and I have been able to keep up with it as her teacher. If you are unsure you can teach it at this level, you can always choose to purchase a DVD tutor for Saxon through Dive into Math. Also, you can have your child take a free online math test on their website in order to place your child in the right level.

Spelling- We are finishing up Spelling this year with Spelling Workout H. It has been a great program. We have used it all the way through and found the words challenging and ordered in such a way that they have enjoyed it. Out of all of my kids classes, Spelling Workout is the one subject they have never complained about doing. It's usually the first one they grab if working alone.

Grammar- Our preferred curriculum here is Rod and Staff "Building Securely". We have used them since third grade. It is very thorough and builds nicely on itself each year. It comes with a workbook for either extra work or as alternate work. We like to use it as alternate work, otherwise each chapter in the text book has plenty of exercises to choose from. There is also a test booklet. This time, the test booklet had a comprehensive final exam which was a first for her. It was nice to sharpen her study skills through it. A couple of things I love about Rod and Staff Grammar...they always cover etiquette and manners (good ole' fashioned manners) as well as using scripture many times for diagramming exercises. Also, the text book is a very durable, hard cover that lasts for your subsequent children. The workbook and test booklet have to be bought each time, but they are just a few dollars. Helpful hint* Get the teacher's manual. I made it through 6th grade without it, but I couldn't for 7th :)

History - We use the Well Trained Mind suggestion for History. My 7th grader has become an outlining master by using their method. We use the Kingfisher Encyclopedia. She has a four page spread she reads and outlines from the time period we are studying and then she writes a composition either off her outline or off two of the pages.It is also something that doesn't require much from me. I check her outline and her compositions, but otherwise, she self directs this subject. I really, really like this book. Even if you do not use it for outlining, it is an excellent resource and a great book to own for spending time in reading. 

Science- This year we have done God's Design. There are three books for each year.  God's Design for the Physical World: Machines and Motion (God's Design Series), God's Design for the Physical World: Inventions and Technology (God's Design Series),and the last one is God's Design for the Physical World: Heat and Energy (God's Design Series). It is not cheap, but it is very good. It comes with a CD to print off worksheets, but that is definitely not my favorite thing to do. I am not going to use this in the future. I will try Apologia next year. If I like it, then my boys will use that for fourth grade in the future. Don't get me wrong; the science was fun, thorough, and interesting. This was a "ME" problem. You will probably love it if you can be organized enough to have everything printed off in time.




Writing- There is a writing assignment almost every day through Science, History or Grammar. I am very happy with how she writes after following this method up until now. She loves to write. That may be her nature or it may have developed through this method, but either way, she is very well spoken in her writings. She is currently writing a book for fun. I don't tell her that she is doing school when she does that, but I count that too :) 

Reading- She reads science books that we have on hand like previous curriculum and library books. She also reads a Story of the World volume each year. She also has reading in her Kingfisher Encyclopedia  in order to outline and she picks fun books from the library as well. I aim to have them read at least an hour a day, but she does more than that usually.



Art- She teaches herself art from a self teaching book we bought at Michael's. They have them for drawing faces, animals, nature etc...It's amazing how well those have helped. She has far superseded me on drawing. At this point, she would have to teach me.

Logic- We love Fallacy Detective. It is a two part book written by homeschooled brothers. They are very intelligent and humorous. My daughter loves this subject and has learned a good bit. With out family emphasis on critical thinking, this is just what we needed. It is fun and educational. I learned so much myself!

(Of course, I could tack that last statement onto every subject every year. I am constantly learning.)



Latin- We like Rosetta Stone Homeschool Edition


Memory- Because she is fulfilling her "rite of passage" requirements, my daughter is memorizing the book of James. We are not asking her to memorize anything else this year. It is plenty to learn. She is spending 30 minutes a day learning it through writing and reading it over and over. What has pleased me the most is hearing her use those verses as needed during the day for different circumstances or conversations she is having with me or her siblings. I cannot describe how wonderful it is to hear her speaking the Word of God and applying it to every day situations. I highly recommend this. James is a not too long and jam packed with wisdom!

Thinking of Homeschooling Through High School?

Are you nervous about homeschooling your teen? Does homeschooling through the High School years give you a fright? Don't worry. The Schoolhouse Expo is here to help walk you through with an online convention of knowledgeable speakers including Susan Wise Bauer, Dr. Brian Ray, and many more. They cover topics like writing timed essays, home businesses, getting a jump start on college, and learning styles etc... It's all from the comfort of your home.There are forty sessions, right to your computer. Don't miss it!

From their website:

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Get access to all the session

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recordings with Expo To Go!

The Old Schoolhouse® is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and we want to invite you to share in our celebration at the upcoming spring Schoolhouse Expo. You’ll hear from wonderful speakers who are ready to encourage you on your journey as you guide your children from the preschool years to high school and beyond. The complete line-up of sessions can be found on the Speaker/Topics page and in our Schoolhouse Expo brochure.
Along with our wonderful sessions on practical and inspiring homeschooling topics, this spring the Schoolhouse Expo introduces two new fabulous tracks:

• The High School track offers practical and informative sessions by speakers whose expertise lies in the area of higher education. Encourage your high school student to join us too—we have some great things in store! If you currently are teaching a middle school student, this track should prepare you to successfully homeschool through the high school years.
• Our second unique session track is the Entrepreneur/Work at Home track. Are you interested in exploring family opportunities for home-based businesses or working at home? You’ll be informed and inspired as you hear from individuals who have practical tips and success stories to share with you!

With Expo To Go, you'll get access to MP3 recordings of each session held during the 2011 Schoolhouse Expo! For just $19.99, you can enjoy all 40+ sessions, including Devotions with Deb and A Minute With Molly, whenever it's most convenient for you!

Auditory Learners

As we explore our children's thinking process, it's important to know that your child may not fit snugly into one style. I know that might be disappointing. It seems so much easier if we can just categorize them and then deal with them in one easy step :). Oh, if life could be that easy! My husband fits into two categories equally after testing, so it may be that he has always been that way OR that as he matured, he was able to learn another process of learning and now he pulls equally from both.

I understand there is controversy on learning styles. Some believe there are multiple learning styles. Some believe that there is no such thing. For me, these three learning styles make sense to me. They seem to bear out in my experiences. Please don't end your research with my posts. There is a wealth of knowledge out there that can assist you in your journey of discovering and teaching to your child's learning style. Please go after all that you can.

Let's identify the AUDITORY learner. If your child is auditory, you may notice the following characteristics.

• Has a strong memory and able to memorize songs/poems/scripture/commercials etc. with ease.
• Will sit where they can hear, but not necessarily needing to see the front
• Loves to sing or hum
• Remembers songs/music with very little exposure
• A strong speller- will sound words out if they are unsure
• Enjoys listening to audio books over reading
• May not coordinate colors of clothing very well, but could explain to you why they chose them
• Expresses feelings verbally
• Can retain a "to do" list in his mind after hearing it once
• Needs to hear himself repeat something in order to remember it
• May talk to themselves when bored
• May have trouble reading maps/diagrams or mastering conceptual assignments like math
• Can be distracted easily
• Talks out problems
• Has the ability to learn multiple instruments/has an "ear" for music
• Enjoys listening to background music while doing school work or tasks
• Loves listening to the radio/CD's/Audio Books
• Telling or listening to stories is enjoyable
• Can repeat oral information back to you without issue
• Listens to lectures favorably
• Auditory learners enjoy participating in debate or discussions
• Usually excellent readers

In many cases, the Auditory Learner does NOT like to:

• Spend time on already mastered material
• Writing projects
• Long periods of silent reading
• Taking notes

So how do we teach auditory  learners?

Generally when teaching the auditory learner:

• Minimize distractions.
• Place concepts and information to music AND teach the child how to do that themselves.
• When teaching, include a lot of discussion.
• Present subject information and assignments in verbal form.
• Give tests orally.
• Allow student to record his/her reports orally as an occasional substitute to written reports.

TEACHING GRAMMAR, SPELLING, WRITING:

• Give tests orally for these subjects.
• Practice spelling/vocab by saying the words aloud and have your student repeat them.
• Dictate narration to child for them to write out or record dictation for them to write out later.
• Associate Grammar/Phonics rules to music.

TEACHING SCIENCE, GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY

• As you teach historical facts and scientific laws, be sure to incorporate lots of discussion and explanation.
• Remember to teach historical/patriotic songs to make it enjoyable.
• It is beneficial to read biographies and most other books aloud either to each other or to themselves.

 TEACHING READING 

• Encourage to read aloud.
• After reading biographies, for a comprehension exercise, have student video or audio record an interview with the main character or something along that line.
• Utilize audio books found at a library
• Have students do both oral and written reports.

TEACHING MATH

• Use a video or audio tutor
• Be sure to verbalize the steps and details of math problems
• Use musical jingles to master mathmatic facts
• Many auditory learners enjoy creating their own word problems in discussion form.

Like I mentioned above, your child may not fit into only one learning style nor exhibit all of the characteristics listed. Some may have moderate dispositions to all three.I think it's important to utilize their strongest process without letting their other processes go unchallenged. As our children grow into adults, they will work in environments and under authorities that are not concerned with their learning style. They need to be able to adapt to whatever learning environment they find themselves in.

Is your child an auditory learner? I would love to hear your ideas on how you meet this challenge at home.

Visit us again as we continue with "Visual Learners" by following my blog or signing up to receive email updates so you won't miss another post.

*Sources: LAMB Company
    and www.people.usd.edu.

The Visual Learner

I am so glad to finally be delving into this learning style series. I have been talking about it for months with my bloggie friends. Earlier we took a  deeper look into the auditory learning style. Today, we will cover the signs and symptoms of the Visual Learner.

If you are suspicious your child is a visual learner, they should exhibit many of these characteristics:

• Usually learns better when he/she can actually see the person who is talking
• Is observant of details
• Is exceptionally good at completing puzzles, riddles, and mazes and can assemble things with little or no help from picture or print instructions
• Is usually quiet and rarely volunteers an answer
• Loves to put up posters in his/her bedroom
• Being neat looking and color coordinated are typically important to the visual learner
• Has a tendency to be able to locate items that have been misplaced
• Has a VIVID imagination
• Tends to "hold in" his/her feelings, even when emotionally upset
• Has a good understanding of directions and easily remembers places/locations previously visited
• Is drawn to flashy, colorful, visually stimulating objects
• Can remember the visual sequence of objects in games, books, and posters
• Enjoyable activities include reading from various sources (newspapers,books, magazines), and especially enjoys watching television
• Coloring, drawing, and working with maps are enjoyable activities
• Learns easily by watching a video or CD that explains the process
• Enjoys using workbooks, particularly when pictures and vivid colors are included
• When presented with different figures or shapes, can draw these from memory

The visual learner, in most cases, does NOT like:

1. Untidiness, disorder, or clutter
2. Activities that are primarily listening
3. Changes from his/her routine
4. Communal activities or role-playing

General Suggestions for Teaching:

1. Use reasonable structure and consistent routine with your visual learner.
2. "Happy faces", bright stickers, stars, and grades are all excellent reinforcements for the visual learner.
3. Use colored chalk or markers when writing information on a blackboard or whiteboard.
4. Memorization is often enhanced when red ink is used to print material your child/student has written or is working on.
5. Drilling and reviewing information are often helpful to the visual learner.
6. Important information should always be highlighted using a colored highlighter.
7. Encourage your visual learner to take notes or draw pictures or objects from lectures or discussions.
8. Provide multiple ink pens that offer various colors for your child/student to write with and encourage him/her to change colors frequently.
9. Teach concepts by using maps/diagrams/charts.
10. Give your visual learner books that contain brightly colored, stimulating pictures and inserts.

Suggestions for Teaching Math:

1. Write out math facts on brightly colored flash cards.
2. For younger students, write down several problems such as: "Which is less, 11 pennies or 17 pennies; 9 dimes or 5 dimes; 4 quarters or 7 quarters?" Have your student write out and verbalize their answer.
3. Brightly colored numbered charts for teaching "skip-counting"( 2's, 4's, 6's...) will appeal to the visual leaner.
4. Use graph paper to teach how to organize a math lesson-that is, to show how to line up math problems and create graphs.
5. Highlight mathematical signs (+, -, x, /) to help locate them easily.
6. Word problems should be written out or drawn out for clarity.
7. Greater visibility of math problems will be achieved if those problems are highlighted in some way such as using real coins and/or paper money.

Suggestions for Teaching Grammar, Writing, and Spelling

1. Practice writing by keeping a daily journal, which may also include drawings and illustrations with the requirement that they be fully explained in writing.
2. For diversity, provide multi-colored pens, pencils, and paper for writing projects.
3. Diagramming sentences (that is, defining each word in a sentence as it relates to the eight basic parts of speech in the English language) should be taught as an integral part of grammar.
4. Spelling words may be written out on flash cards using bright colors.

Suggestions for Teaching Science, Geography, and History:

1. For science, visual learners often enjoy collecting items such as insects, rocks, various plant-life, and leaves.
2. Access to a variety of colorful science and history books, videos, and puzzles will be helpful to the visual learner.
3. Visual learners can be motivated by collecting pictures of historical events, animals, plants, states, and countries. They also enjoy taking their own photographs.
4. Provide various maps, charts, and graphs to visual learners to be reviewed, colored, and traced.

Suggestions for Teaching Reading: 

1. Key words and directions should always be underlined or highlighted in a bright color.
2. An excellent method for teaching comprehension is through "story mapping".  This is accomplished by having the student draw a circle which may include a main character or event and then writing characteristics of each out of the side and lastly, making diagrams and charts of characters and events.
3. Strong visual learners usually do not have a difficult time learning to read because of their ability to memorize words. Once they are taught phonics concepts, their reading skills often continue to improve.  Phonics rules and words that use these rules should be written in red on flash cards.
4. Visual learners are drawn to brightly colored books and especially those with pictures and drawings.
5. A recommended reading comprehension task that the visual leaner will most often enjoy doing is keeping a journal(s) in which they write, doodle or draw pictures about the books they have read.

So did you confirm that your child is a visual leaner? Let me know.Thanks for taking the time to discover your child's learning process with me. Join me next time as we explore the kinesthetic leaner.You can do that by subscribing to my website on the right hand side of the page so you won't miss another post.

Sourced with the permission of : The LAMB Company
* To order the full test for all three learning styles and/or have a curriculum customized for your child, visit their link above.

The Kinesthetic Learner

Definition: A kinesthetic learner is one that processes learning through movement and feeling. This one is my challenge. Why? I am not entirely sure. It may be a mixture of lack of creativity and laziness. Either way, I have to face the fact that I have a kinesthetic learner or two and have to make sure she/he doesn't get left behind. My daughter tested high in this category, so I find this research very beneficial. I hope you will too!

Let's identify them. If your child is primarily a kinesthetic/tactile learner, you should see him/her exhibit many of the following characteristics:
(By the way, I read somewhere that all kids are kinesthetic in the early years and around 1st grade or so, you begin to see their true learning process.)

• Loves to take things apart and put them back together. (This may mean her closet or all of the clothes in her drawer several times a month. :))
• Enjoys conducting experiments
• Relates to people more in body and action than verbally (Be sure to give lots of hugs and kisses!)
• Is fidgety or a wiggle worm
• Prefers to read books or hear stories that are action packed
• Tends to be untidy and have a messy appearance
• Touching, holding. and feeling something is very important to the kinesthetic/tactile learner, rather than just looking at something
• Is perpetually in motion and rarely sits still
• Playing games is a favorite activity
• Enjoys drawing and writing with chalk or on a dry-erase board
• Prefers standing or walking around while studying or memorizing facts
• Is skillful at using various tools
• Using a word processor, typewriter, calculator and computer is enjoyable
• Loves working with his/her hands and building constructions out of blocks and commercial toys made specifically for this purpose
• Enjoys and has skills in dancing, athletics, and acting

The kinesthetic/tactile learner does NOT usually like:

• Sitting for a long time
• Large writing projects
• Participating in activities that do not hold his/her attention
• Activities strictly in workbooks or on worksheets
• Long reading projects
• Activities that require a great deal of just listening

General Suggestions for Teaching the Kinesthetic/Tactile Learner:

1. Allow your learner to physically participate in tasks.
2. Encourage your child to use the computer as a method of learning and retaining new information.
3. Frequently change writing tools so that a different feel/grip is obtained.
4. Provide lots of paper on which your child may write and draw.
5. Allow your child to stand and move around while studying.
6. Encourage frequent breaks.
7. Use role-playing and acting to introduce concepts.
8. Instruct your student to take notes and highlight information while listening to instructions or when reviewing pertinent information.
9. Remind your kinesthetic/tactile learner of the need to complete projects in all subject areas and to understand and master concepts being taught.

Suggestions for Teaching Mathematics:

1.  Allow your learner to become familiar with the use of calculators as a way for them to work and experiment with numbers. However, avoid using them strictly for solving their math problems.
2. A tape measure should be made available for your student to use.
3. Consider utilizing one or more manipulative formats for teaching the concepts of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
4. Teaching about time and money can often be accomplished by demonstrations using a watch or clock and real money.
5. Use activities such as running, walking, jumping, and drawing and have your child practice different math functions using all of those activities.
6. Acting and role playing are good tools to use in teaching mathematics.
7. Use a chalkboard or dry whiteboard instead of paper for doing math problems.
8. BE INNOVATIVE: Allow the kinesthetic learner to learn math facts by tracing them in the air, in sand, shaving cream or other non-traditional places. Use common, every day items such as watches/clocks, coins, calendars, and recipes to teach math.
9. The use of computer programs or a math facts drills program can be a great help in teaching the math concept.

Suggestions for Teaching Grammar, Writing, and Spelling:

1. Look for multi-sensory opportunities such as learning spelling words while humming, clapping or knee slapping each letter, walking, running, or bouncing a ball.
2. Suggest that they keep daily journals of what they write and draw. They may also enjoy writing plays, songs, and stories and acting out the characters in the stories.
3. The use of flannel boards that provide sentence strips can be an outstanding tool for teaching the kinesthetic learner about sentence structure and grammar.
4. Spelling words can be traced in the air, in sand, dirt, or whipped cream.
5. Allow these learners to write stories and sentences on the chalkboard/dry-erase board.
6. Spelling words can be practiced by writing them in the air or on each others backs or in some other way that incorporates movement in the learning process.
7. Kinesthetic/tactile learners would enjoy videotaping or photographing plays or stories they have written.
8. Use of the computer keyboard is an excellent way to practice writing, spelling words, and composing stories.

Suggestions for Teaching Science, Geography, and History:

1. Acting and role playing should be incorporated often in teaching History.
2. Consider using map puzzles to teach geography concepts. They can also learn to make their topographical maps.
3. Kinesthetic/Tactile learners should attend many demonstrations, exhibits, and field trips that emphasize material they are studying in these areas.
4. They should be involved in building projects and models to demonstrate comprehension of history, science, or geography concepts.
5. When teaching science, hands on experiments are usually helpful to the kinesthetic/tactile learner.

Suggestions for Teaching Reading:

1. Have your learner pantomime or act out vocabulary words. Also, have them role-play characters in books.
2. Phonics sounds and reading words can be "spelled out" in the air, sand, dirt, or whipped cream. Use finger paints to trace words onto paper.
3. Role play, acting, or dancing are all forms of alternative learning opportunities available to the kinesthetic/tactile learner that allows them to portray parts of stories, plays, and poems as they read them.
4. Computer programs that involve lots of hand manipulations can be helpful to them as well.

Well, this concludes our "Learning Styles" blog series. Hopefully, everyone of you reading these are visual learners :) If you are auditory and  need it said out loud to you, pass the computer over to your child and have them read it to you so they can practice their reading while you are learning at your best.  Then have them either write down a narration of what they learned or dictate it back to you depending on what works best for their learning style. If they are kinesthetic, have them write key ideas on a dry-erase board. :) If YOU are a kinesthetic learner, then you need to type out my blog post 3 times and then give a short dance that describes the essence of the post ;) Also, please forgive the typos, I am Auditory and until I go back and read this out loud, I might have missed something. LOL! Thanks for tuning in!!

*Sourced with permission from The LAMB Company.
Visit their site to learn more, have your child tested and/or have a curriculum customized for your individual child.