Advice for the new homeschooler – Page 2

Homeschooling on a Small Budget

September 19, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

There are so many options out there for curriculum and there are so many things you could buy for homeschooling. Homeschooling could get expensive but there are ways to save money with homeschooling that make it affordable on a smaller budget. My hubby has owned his own business for over 20 years and there have been some feast times but we have also had some pretty drastic famine times as well. During those “famine” times, I have had to find creative ways to homeschool for almost free. Here are some helpful ideas that I have found when I needed to work off a smaller budget.

Homeschool Your Child For Free by LauraMaery Gold and Joan Zielinski

This is an excellent resource that has over 1,400 practical ideas on how to save money in homeschooling. Even though I read this when I had already been homeschooling for awhile, it had many ideas that were new to me. Each section covers a different subject or area in homeschooling. I loved how they even had categories for Pre-school, Public Speaking and Journalism. They didn’t just address the main subjects of homeschooling but they also wrote about many electives that homeschoolers would want as a part of their curriculum. I usually think books are valuable even if they have one or two amazing ideas, but this book had many practical ideas that I have or would use.

2. Homeschooling Potpourri

This is a hidden gem that maybe some of you do not know about. Homeschooling Potpourri is a used curriculum bookstore for homeschooling. They take used curriculum from homeschoolers and give them money to spend in the store or you can just buy used curriculum at a big discount. They are located in Kirkland, Washington and have many options of curriculum that you are probably looking for. I usually try to check with Homeschooling Potpourri before I buy my curriculum at full price. Another service that they provide, is that you can request the curriculum you are looking for and be put on a waiting list. They will call you when someone comes in with that curriculum and its yours. For the more popular curriculum like Apologia Science, you will want to call early because the waiting list can be long. I was in there the other day and purchased “Mathtacular Word Problems” DVD which retails for $24.99, still in its package, not even opened for $12.50. Its a great way to save money.

3. Homeschooler Buyers Co-op

This is an amazing resource that I found a few years ago. Its a brilliant idea of a homeschool family setting up a website where homeschoolers can buy curriculum at the same time to get a big discount. This is how it works, you go on the website and look for curriculum that you want to buy. When you find a curriculum or product you want to buy, you sign up through the website to buy it. The homeschooler buyer co-op designates a certain time they will buy it and because a bunch of homeschoolers sign up to buy it, the company gives a big discount. For example, right now they are selling subscription to “God’s World News” for this year. There is a savings of 68% because of the amount of people that have signed up to buy it on Sept. 20th. The best part of the homeschooler buyers co-op is that it is free to join! This is a way to save money on those popular curriculums or products you want for your homeschooling.

4. The Library, Internet and A Printer

The Library might be a more obvious money saver but I wanted to list it because during those financial “slim” times in our lives, it has become a wonderful resource for our homeschooling. I actually love the resource of the library regardless of whether or not I can buy the books. Its a great tool in a homeschool mom’s toolbox of resources. The way that we used the library was with Sonlight Curriculum. Sonlight curriculum is a literature based curriculum, so I would order the teacher’s manual from Sonlight and then get the books from the library. I also used the library to create various unit studies for the kids. For example, my daughter recently wanted to study penguins and Antartica, so we went on the library website and ordered books for those subjects. I received notice that they were on the hold shelf for me the next day and my daughter was off to the land of penguins who lived in Antartica.

The internet and a printer are a Homeschool Mom’s best friend. When my printer is down, I tend to panic and I am bugging my husband to fix it. There are so many free resources on the internet that you can print out. You can practically google any subject and find free print outs or numerous ideas for science and art that you can easily put together. The “Homeschooling Your Child For Free” book has numerous websites that you can check out. A couple of my favorites are Khan Academy and Quizlet. Khan Academy teaches kids math and science. My kids have used it for extra help in their math. Its a great way for when you are stuck on a math concept and need someone else to teach your child. Khan Academy uses video to teach the kids different concepts. Quizlet is an amazing resource that isn’t fancy but very useful. It creates flashcards for your kids to practice just about any subject. My 14yr old has used it for learning the terms for his Apologia Science. You can create your own flashcards or most likely someone else already created them and you can just search and find the flashcards already done.

Another resource on the Internet are free teacher planners, but if you like color it might not be as economical to print all the colorful teacher planner pages as it would be to buy a planner. If you don’t mind black and white, then it would be much more economical to find the free planners online and print them.

Statistically speaking, they have done research on homeschoolers and how the students did in their overall homeschooling experience. Kids who were homeschooled with every option possible available to them versus homeschoolers that were on a small or strict budget performed at the same academic level. You don’t have to spend alot of money to give your children an amazing education. What ways have you found that have helped in saving money for homeschooling? I would love to hear your ideas.

Our First Day of School!

September 9, 2015September 9, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

We had our first day of school today! The plan for the first day every year is to make it a special time for the kids and do things that they normally couldn’t do if they weren’t homeschooled. The first thing I did was wrap a new book up in wrapping paper and set it outside their door the night before. When they woke up they were excited to see a gift outside their door. Here is what the gifts looked like…

I love variety and not doing the same thing all of the time, so I haven’t really done this before for the first day but it was fun putting the gifts together. A couple of hours later we went out with Grandma and Grandpa for brunch to continue to celebrate the first day. After brunch we went out shopping for school supplies. I like getting school supplies after school has started. You can sometimes get better sales and you miss the majority of the crowds. Some schools have already started around our area but some hadn’t so there were still some people doing last minute shopping. We headed home after shopping for school supplies and spent the day reading our new books and creating with our new art supplies.

The last thing we did to celebrate the 1st day of school was school pictures. I told the kids that it was time to give Mommy her First Day of School gift by taking pictures. The younger kids were excited and the two older boys groaned but were willing. I bought a blank chalkboard and then wrote on the chalkboard “First Day of School” and “Grade”. I also added the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I would switch the grade and what they wanted to be when they grew up for each kid. This was my 3 year old’s turn to hold the sign.

I really liked how the sign turned out. Now if you are thinking how I must have some awesome artistic abilities you can stop thinking that now because my amazing artistic sister is the one who made the sign for me. I have no idea how this sign would look if I was the one doing the writing. There actually might not have been a picture if I had illustrated it (haha). Its nice having an artistic person in the family. My sister is the best and not just because she is artistically talented. Each of my kids chose a different career that they wanted when they grew up. It was fun hearing what they thought.

Here is what my 5 kids want to be when they grow up-

9th Grader- Missionary

7th Grader- Fire Fighter

6th Grader- Missionary Doctor (She actually wants to do Doctors without Borders)

2nd Grader-Soccer Player

Pre-K- I want to be like Daddy (This was my hubby’s favorite for obvious reasons)

I think it will be interesting and fun to see what they think next year about what they want to be when they grow up. Well, that was our “First Day” of School. I would love to hear about other people’s ideas for the “First Day” of school and what kind of traditions they have kept with their family. So feel free to email me or leave a comment about your ideas. I am excited to see what this year brings. The Adventure Begins…

Which Teacher Planner Should I Use?

September 5, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

As we are about to start our new homeschool year, I start to think about what kind of teacher planner I want for the year. We homeschool year around but our new school year still starts in September. Some homeschoolers use teacher planners to organize their days and keep track of where they’re at with each of their children. Some homeschoolers do not see the need for a planner especially if their kids are younger. I am definitely in the first category. I love planners and seeing where I am at or how much I have gotten done. A planner helps me see the gaps on things that I might be not getting to and might need more attention. Here are 3 teacher planners that I think are excellent choices for homeschoolers.

1. My Well Planned Day

I have used this planner for many of my years of homeschooling. I love how it is made for homeschoolers. There are sections for keeping book lists and field trips that you plan for each month. I think my favorite feature is how the planner caters to teaching multiple children. One of the most important features I look for is whether I will be able to use it with multiple children because of the 5 children in our house. There is also a section for planning out your meals and inspirational articles to encourage you in your journey of homeschooling. The price point is also quite good at $26.95 for the planner. You can find it at headua.com or christianbook.com. They also have an online version planner that is an option on the website called mywellplannedday.com. The online version is offering a 30 day free trial if you want to check it out. I prefer the paper and pencil method but if you like the tech version for things, it may be worth checking out.

2. Teacher Planner by Erin Condren

What attracted me to the Erin Condren Planner were the lesson pages. I love the amount of room in the lesson pages that allows me to fit multiple children. Erin Condren teacher planners are unique because you can customize them in many different ways. For example, if your homeschool has a name, you can put that on the front cover. She also has many other different unique options that you can add to your planner. One of favorites was the snap in sticky notes. She created a plastic insert that has multiple sticky notes that can snap into you planner on the pages your doing your lesson plan. I take numerous notes about ideas that I have for each of my lessons so this was a nice feature for my planning pages. She also has these amazing inspirational quotes throughout the planner. Erin Condren Planners are not made for homeschoolers so there are pages that do not apply to homeschoolers. There are blogs and youtube videos that homeschoolers have made on showing how they adapted and repurposed those pages to work for homeschoolers. The price point for this planner is quite a bit more money. You would have to decide if the customizable planner was worth the money. Erin Condren planners are about $59. I have done the free planners that you print off online and by the time the year is up, I have spent almost that same amount in ink on the free planner from online. Its a well thought out planner worth checking out. You can find it at erincondren.com.

3. Notebook Paper, Pen and A Binder

Okay, you are probably going to laugh, but the last “planner” that I recommend is notebook paper, a pencil, and a couple of binders. I have a child in highschool this year and I have found, in all the planners that I have researched or tried, that there is not enough room for me to write out each of the details for his assignments. He is more of an independent learner at this point and I need to communicate in writing to him what each task is about. I have two binders for my highschooler. One of the binders is a small thin binder with notebook paper that I write out his daily assignments with check boxes. The other binder is a 3 inch binder that I have dividers in for each subject and important information I keep that are required by state law for his high school records. Every time he hands in an assignment, I put it in the binder under that subject. I love the idea of the binder keeping his assignments because I can look at the binder and see where there are gaps. For example, if my science section is full of assignments but my fine arts sections is empty, I can see right away that I need to put some focus on fine arts to add to his high school records. Lee Binz calls this method of keeping records being a “Binder Queen”. One of the best things about doing planning this way is the price. It does not cost much to buy a couple of binders, notebook paper and some pens. I use the teacher planner for my 3 younger kids and the notebook paper for my highschooler. Even in teacher planners I am eclectic.

A Couple of Helpful Hints for Using Teaching Planners-

When using a planner for multiple children, a creative way to help with that is using different colored pens for each child’s assignments so you can clearly see who is doing what.
You can use a highlighter after the child completes an assignment to show that what they have accomplished and what they still need to get done.

Hope you have an amazing start to your new school year!

5 Favorite Homeschool Books for Newbies or Book Addicts Like Me

September 2, 2015 esther7dancing1 Comment

I confess that I am a little bit dangerous when it comes to bookstores. I am probably not to be trusted around curriculum fairs either. I love books and I especially like books about teaching or homeschooling. Even though I have been homeschooling for almost 10 years, I will still read “how-to” homeschool books because I feel you can always learn something new that you may not have thought of for homeschooling. Here are a few of my favorites that I have already read or have been reading…

Educating the Whole Hearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson

This is an excellent book that teaches training your children in discipleship and academics. It has recommendations of curriculum to use but its not the main purpose of the book. The authors want to encourage you as the parent in training and discipling your child using the curriculum that best fits your family. Its an excellent foundational book to read for people who are new to homeschooling or for veteran homeschoolers who want a different perspective. I read it only a couple of years ago and I was encouraged and wanted to adapt many of their ideas. I wish I had found it sooner. A bonus part of the book are the different forms that you can copy at the back of the book that help with the organization of your homeschool.

2. Help for the Harried Homeschooler by Christine Field

The practical advice in this book makes a great resource for new homeschoolers and veterans that want new ideas. The author goes over everything from discipleship to life skills to academics. I appreciate her sense of humor and her style of writing. Some of my favorite sections have been when she addressed life skills with kids and structure vs. freedom style of homeschooling. She also had a section for homeschoolers that feel “burned out”.

3. The Three R’s and You Can Teach Your Child Successfully by Ruth Beechick

For new homeschoolers, this a must have book. It teaches how to incorporate reading, writing and math into your everyday life. It is very helpful in helping homeschoolers that are teaching the K-3rd grades. The creative ideas that she suggests are easily done in every day life. She also wrote a book for the 4th-8th grades as well. Ruth Beechick is probably one of my favorite author’s on homeschooling. Sonlight curriculum tends to follow some of her style.

4. The Well Trained Mind by Susan Bauer

For anyone who is interested in the classical educational model, this is the book for you. My love of research and books compelled me to read this book and I found it an enjoyable resource. Our homeschool does not follow the classical method of education but we do incorporate parts of it. This book is well done and easily understood. The author also has curriculum that we have used that goes along with her classical educational method. There are other excellent books on classical education but I felt like this one was the most understandable and detailed for me. Some of her recommendations for curriculum will be outdated unless there is a new updated version but the information is still valid and good.

5. Beyond Survival: A Guide to the Abundant Life of Homeschooling by Diana Waring

I appreciate this book and how the author points out the importance of what education really is and what it can look like in a home with multiple ages. I have gotten the privilege of hearing Diana Waring in her own home with my homeschool group at that time and the wisdom she can give homeschoolers who are still on the journey is invaluable. She has authored other books and has her own biblical history curriculum. We enjoy listening to her amazing history audio cd’s that I will put in a review soon on this blog.

Hope enjoy these books as much as I have! They have a permanent spot on my bookshelf!

Caught More Than Taught

September 2, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

I would probably be a teacher even if I didn’t homeschool. I love the research of finding out new ways to learn and finding out how to get a subject across to a child that doesn’t seem to get it in the usual way. Before I was a homeschool Mom, I was an elementary school teacher in the public school system. I always knew that I would homeschool my kids but I also knew I would teach until the time came for me to teach my own children.

All that to say, character training is particular love of mine to find materials that will help my kids in their journey of practicing the fruits of the Spirit. I use many different materials depending on what I see my kids walking through but I have also been learning from the Lord that even though its good to teach character training, I also need to live it. Things can sometimes be caught more than taught. This is encouraging to me because if my kids don’t seem to be getting what we are trying to teach them about the fruits of the Spirit, I know there’s hope that they will get it someday. Perhaps the best way some of my kids will get their character training will be through watching me. This is a hopeful and scary thought at the same time. I desire them to only see and follow the “good” traits and ignore the times when I am not even close to demonstrating the fruits of the Spirit. I think God has grace for those times when we mess up and I have gone to my kids and asked their forgiveness sometimes. I was reading a homeschool “how-to” book recently and I was inspired by a poem that the author included in one of the chapters. I thought I would share it with you.

I Caught Your Faith

I saw you stand bravely for years

But saw no trace of senseless tears

I saw you stand calmly through stress

But caught no glimpse of bitterness

I saw you stand prayerful in grief but saw no trace of unbelief

Though you spoke well of Jesus Christ

I caught your faith, watching your life

Anonymous

Be encouraged that even if you think you aren’t teaching the right thing or maybe your kids don’t seem to be getting the “character” training like you desire, they are watching your life and actions. You have great influence in your children’s lives and God has chosen you to raise these warriors. You are doing an amazing job!

Blessings

Lifeskills

August 24, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

One of my goals in homeschooling is to not only educate my children in academics but also in Lifeskills. “Lifeskills for Kids” by Christine M. Field is a great tool to use. This is a excellent resource for parents that goes over the basic skills of life that we need to know as adults. I find these kind of books helpful in making me think about the everyday stuff I do that my kids may not know how to do, like balance a checkbook or the process of learning how to do laundry. Some of the topics that were interesting to me were the chapters on teaching kids about decision making and teaching them about organization of their space. Its a worth checking out.

Another resource that I think is worthy of checking out is the book called, “What every Child Should know Along the Way” by Gail Martin. This is another book that teaches about Lifeskills for children. What I love about this book is the different lists that the author provides of the different life skills that a child should know at each age of their life starting at the age of 2. This book is written from a biblical perspective, so there are also many references to God’s word and what it says about life skills. I also enjoyed the helpful and creative ideas on how to train the little ones.

Teaching life skills to kids can be a lot of fun. For example, I want my kids to know the basics of cooking before they leave our home. The easiest way for me to do this with five kids is to have a cooking assistant for meal times. So each week a different child is assigned to help me with meals and I let them learn how to prepare meals with me. Depending on what we are doing, they can learn anything from how to make tuna fish sandwiches to baking bread from scratch. You can also involve kids in meals by having them plan and shop for a meal and then having them help cook it. Its fun to see what they come up with.

3 Homeschool Blogs You Should Be Following

August 22, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

Some of the most amazing ideas that I have received as a homeschooler is from other homeschoolers who are walking through the journey or have already graduated and are imparting wisdom to those of us still in the middle of the adventure. I love reading homeschool books and listening to different teachings on homeschooling. If I’m not sure how to do it, I research it and find out. I also learn and get a ton of ideas from different homeschool blogs that people are writing. Here are a few of my favorites…

Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers-

I love the author’s sense of humor in her posts. There is all kinds of ideas on homeschooling and its separated by the different age group of kids you are teaching. The author has an emphasis on Hands-on Learning. Its an excellent resource to find hands-on projects to fit your different lessons. She has even written a book called “Hands on Learning”. Worth checking out, especially if you have a child that loves or needs the hands on learning.

The Unlikely Homeschooler-

This blog is excellent resource for new and seasoned homeschoolers. The author has an eclectic selection of creative homeschool ideas for preschool, elementary and middle school. My favorite section that she has is “Homeschooling 101” where she has a section called “100 resources for Newbies”. She also explains how she organizes her schooling and plans out her year.

1+1+1+1-

Last but certainly not least is the “1+1+1+1” blog. If you have little ones and are starting to homeschool at the beginning with your preschooler or early elementary then this blog is for you. The author does an amazing job of giving ideas for early elementary that are very creative. I am definitely using some of her ideas on my 3 year old this school year. She also gives links to connect you to the sites where she gets her different projects.

I enjoy learning from other people’s journeys through homeschooling. I am sure there are even more wonderful homeschool blogs that I have not discovered as my favorites yet, but these are my top three for now. Who would be in your top three blogs for homeschooling?

Declaration of Intent

August 11, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

In Washington State you must file a Declaration of Intent within the first 2 weeks of each school year, starting the year your child turns 8. You can find this at the Washington Homeschool Organization (WHO) website or at the HSLDA website. Another easy place that I found it was on the local public school district’s website. Fill out the Declaration of Intent and then send it to your local public school district. The Declaration of Intent is a one page paper that states you are homeschooling your children for that school year. I always send it with a self addressed and stamped envelope with a request for a copy of the declaration of intent to be sent back to me. You can use your declaration of intent for discounts at many teacher friendly stores. Barnes and Noble, Apple, and any teacher supply store are a few examples that give discounts to homeschoolers. The sooner you send it in, the sooner you get your copy back. If you wait until the first couple of weeks in September, it may take awhile for them to process it. HSLDA website is a great resource for what specifically should be put on the Declaration of Intent. The different things that can be on the DOI are not always necessary to fulfill the law.

How do I teach my child to read?

July 25, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

I love reading and I prefer books to any movie any day. I am one of those people that think the book is usually better than the movie. As parents we get the amazing privilege of developing a love of reading in our children. The easiest way to get your kids to love reading is to read to them when they are young and keep reading to them even after they learn to read. My teens still enjoy our read aloud time and we go on many different adventures through books.

I have a few favorite curriculum choices on teaching kids how to read. The first reading curriculum that I like is “How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Lessons”. I like this curriculum because it is easy to use. It writes out a script for the parents for each lesson and it works. At the end of 100 lessons or even before you are done, your child is reading. This curriculum is contained in one book and all you have to do is buy the one book and nothing else. There are not any bells or whistles in this curriculum, so if you have a kinesthetic learner, this may not be the choice for you. Each child has a certain learning style that fits them the best. The most challenging thing for me is when it doesn’t match my own learning style and I have to step out of my comfort zone. I have one child who did amazing on “Teaching Your Child to Read…” and another child who was miserable with it because it didn’t have hands-on activities. He was a more kinesthetic and visual learner.

If you child is more hands-on and like games and other activities to motivate them to learn to read, then I would recommend the “Primary Arts of Language: Reading and Writing” by Jill Pike. You can find this curriculum on the website of Institute of Excellence for Writing. It has games and other activities to reinforce reading. I really like how it combines whole language with phonics to teach reading. I also like the “Phonics Museum” by Veritas Press. This is a fun curriculum because it uses “real” books to teach the kids how to read. For example, the first reader is a story about St. Patrick and his life as a missionary. The language is simple for them to read but connected to someone in history. On the back of each book is the moment of history that the book is about. These both are more expensive options then the first one, but definitely more hands-on. You can find “Primary Art of Language” at iew.com and you can find “Phonics Museum” at veritaspress.com.

Hopefully, this gives you a little bit of a starting point for teaching your child how to read. Delight in the journey.

Where do I start with homeschooling?

July 23, 2015July 23, 2015 esther7dancingLeave a comment

I live in Washington State, so this will be most helpful for those who live in Washington. Check out HSLDA.com for other state homeschool laws and requirements. The compulsory age for Washington State is age 8, so you do not have to declare that you are homeschooling until the school year your child turns eight. The benefit of waiting is that once you declare you are homeschooling, they have to take state tests once a year. I personally wait until they are 8 years old so I have the option of not testing.

In Washington State, you have to fill out a “Declaration of Intent” before September 15th or within 2 weeks of the first day of school. A parent also has to have a total of 30 semester college credits or the equivalent of 45 quarter credits to be eligible to homeschool. Another alternative in Washington State is to take a parenting homeschool class that is provided if the parents cannot meet the required college credits. Once you have signed up your child by filling out the the “Declaration of Intent”, they must be tested once a year. These records need to be retained by the parents and kept as a permanent part of the their child’s record. The test scores are not submitted to any public district. For more detailed information on Washington State Laws on homeschooling, go to hslda.com. They are the Homeschooling Legal Defense Association and they have every state’s homeschool laws in the entire country.

If you are starting at the beginning in the elementary years, the best thing to start homeschooling is to develop a love a learning. Reading, Writing and Math are important in the elementary years but you also want the kids to love learning. I have found when they are little, they have a natural desire to want to learn about things. So if my preschooler or 1st grader wants to learn about hippos, then we go to the library and get books on hippos. We still do the basics daily, but I do like to incorporate fun learning things that they want to know about.

If you are unsure about what you are doing in this new adventure of homeschooling, get a curriculum that has is all laid out for you like Sonlight. Another full curriculum that I like is “My Father’s World”. A good resource to check out if you are willing to do some research is CathyDuffyreviews.com. She reviews a ton of curriculum, so parents can get a jumpstart on what they might want to use. I will continue in the near future to put some of my favorite recommendations for various ages on this blog. You can also feel free to ask me questions through the comments on this blog if you are wondering about anything that I have written or want further details on something.

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