From the eyes of a child, they often see what is directly in front of them, and learn through experience. It is up to us as parents to enlighten our child’s perspective and to educate them about life in both future and present tense. It is important to highlight other cultures within this globe. One year, when my children were in the elementary school years, we met up with friends in our neighborhood and studied different countries. We made this into an educational co-op led by moms. We would meet once a week and read about what other children experienced in their lives. Details such as clothes they wore and games that they played. We also read together and made a dish from the country we were studying. This was a dinner so that the dads could be included too. It was a neat experience on many levels; it helped them to respect these new things through food, games, friendships, and laughter.
I found this Around the World Lesson Plan (posted below) and just love how it breaks down the way in which you could implement any culture. We would often start with studying our own heritage and then move on to our friends’ or neighbors’ heritage.
Often, we fear what we don’t know. When I first did my Special Needs training, I feared not knowing how to interact with a child who had specific needs. But once I was educated and trained, the fear disappeared. Just like another child can dress differently or eat different foods, that can seem strange to our own child until they learn or experience for themselves. Children are so inspiring as they are often very slow to judge someone who is different from them. They may stare at them, but it usually has to do with having a sense of curiosity more than anything else.
Education doesn’t have to be complex, and it doesn’t necessarily have to take up a lot of time. My goal every year is that our sons continue to love learning. And the rationale behind having a lesson plan with a stem activity, fine motor, creative gross motor etc.…. is so that they have a fully enriched learning experience. You could study a country every day or even every week. You could even just study one a month. That is the beauty of home education: it’s whatever works for you, your child, and your family.
Just like the song says, “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow, black, and white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” We are called to love one another. And if we can’t travel the world, then we just need to bring the world to our house.
Marriage has taken a beating, and it has more than a bleeding nose.
We have all known of marriages that seemed doomed from the beginning, and sure enough didn’t survive the test of time. But something has changed. Many strong and healthy mar-riages that have been an example to others have collapsed. Christian matrimony has not been immune to attack. What is going on and why now more than ever?
Committed couples are suffering the same difficulties that are afflicting our world. As Christians, we may think ourselves separated from present culture, but we are ill affected, aware of it or not. We are living in a world where pleasure, entertainment, and the avoidance of suffering are top bill. Man is at the center of this worldly culture. We live in the “disposable society”. Cultural forces and destructive spirits have the marital camp surrounded. But isn’t the devout Christian immune? Doesn’t faith insulate us and protect us?
G.K. Chesterton, the great Christian writer of the early 20th century, said, “anything worth doing is worth doing poorly.” This statement is the antidote for so much of what ails our culture, and specifically our home schooling. Reluctant to start until we are well prepared, and reluctant to stop until we are absolutely finished, we can find ourselves controlled by inertia.
Inertia: the property of matter by which it retains its state of rest or its velocity.... Inertia is that force that causes us to stay put, to avoid getting up in the morning, or filing our income tax, or cleaning the bathroom. Inertia also is the force that keeps us going once we have begun.
Let’s look at the inertia that keeps us going once we have begun.
The desire of my heart is to encourage families with grace and love. I do pray and hope that the attached article will bring encouragement to you and other home schooling families.
Building strong families together in Christ,
Karen Dargatz
(780) 962-3727
It was with the support of their local school principal that Ken and Marlane Noster brought home their eldest child, half way through grade 3. The superintendent threatened to charge them with truancy. The late 80’s were rife with inconsistencies in treatment of home schoolers.
In response to the first Alberta Home Education Regulation of 1989, Ken was invited to help a school board develop its program for administrating home schooling. He and Marlane began to pray for an answer to two burning questions: how can a board designed to administrate schools administrate home schooling? and what am I being called to do?
Here’s to new beginnings and a new school year! Don’t you just love the fall! It’s my favorite season. Oh how I fall in love with all of the glorious fall shades, every year.
A kindergartner can also be passionate and enthusiastic towards many things. At this age it really is all about the senses. What can you see? What can you feel? What can you taste? What can you smell? What can you hear? The key to meeting your child to where they are at is to physically get down to their level and emotionally engage in what they are doing.
We are going into our 10th year of homeschooling. Due to my educational background, I often found myself documenting my children’s progress. But the longer I live the longer I realize that there is a difference between thriving and surviving. Don’t get me wrong, there were times that my sons and I thrived, however sometimes I was so focused on checking off the boxes that I forgot to live in the moment. I know it’s not always realistic to have the feeling that you are thriving or succeeding but one can try, right? Homeschooling really is a way of life. Yes, we do have a routine throughout the week but education in our family doesn’t stop when we put the books away. I encourage you to be open to teaching your children when they are searching more or when an opportunity presents itself. It doesn’t have to be formal to get the job done. It can be in the form of a discussion at home or with other adults. I enjoyed encouraging our children to teach other children their own age or younger something that they know or just learned about. One of the best things about homeschooling is that your children often encounter others that are younger or way older than them. It makes them more well-rounded as individuals.
All About Me Questions:
One way to document memories is to ask these questions at the beginning and at the end of the year. Then you can see your child’s personality as to whether their answers have changed or stayed the same.
Here are a few questions to ask & document:
What is your favorite color? What is your favorite number? What is your favorite animal? What is your favorite food?
What do you want to be when you grow up? Encourage them to draw a self-portrait
Have them write their name
(Even if it’s not legible, that's okay. At the end of the year, you will be able to see the progress as they practice writing their name throughout the year).
Leaf Art:
There are so many ideas to use leaves for crafts. You can make animal leaves or people leaves. It’s fun to analyze the different colors and types of leaves that grow. It’s neat to teach Science too! Leaves have veins just like we do. Simply put, the vein in the leaf transfers water throughout it and then sugars are transported out of it to the rest of the plant. At this age I just loved facilitating the desire to learn and increase my boy’s knowledge.
handsonaswegrow.com/kids-leaf-crafts
Bake Cookies:
I just love how baking encompasses Math, Science, Self-Help Skills and Reading. Your child gets to learn about measurements including liquid and solids. They get to watch how mixing in the baking soda or baking powder helps it to expand. They learn how to find things in the kitchen and be helpful. And learning about kitchen safety too! They also love to feel like they did something important.
allrecipes.com/recipe/9870/easy-sugar-cookies
superhealthykids.com/pumpkin-cookies
Painting Fun:
I know painting can be intimidating to some so I would like to offer a few suggestions.
Pick select days to paint so if you are like me and don’t like messes you can find great comfort in knowing that this is a “sometimes” activity.
- Always have all of the supplies you will need before you start. Extra paper is highly recommended as some children really get into the process. When I did my Early Childhood training, we learned that “it is the process, not the final product.”
- To prevent messes, never leave your child unsupervised. Sometimes it’s the future Van Goghs or Michelangelos that want to express their talents on the walls.
- Make sure you know have a designated spot to allow the art to dry (often clotheslines, clothes drying racks, a table that you don’t need).
- My kids loved expressing themselves through art for a good hour and then they got their fix and didn’t desire it until next time.
As I conclude, I would encourage you to have fun homeschooling. Remember to take time to smell the flowers (between all of the dishes and laundry, that is). Life goes by so very quickly. And these little ones don’t stay little forever. I now have a 14 year old teenager that’s taller than me and I am still in disbelief! May the Lord bless your year and may it be full of lifelong memories!
Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
Benjamin Franklin
Ken Noster Classical High School Education (click here to download - 37mb)
John Miller Be Patient and Build on Your Strengths (click here to download - 13mb)
Paul van den Bosch Conduct: Real-life Skills (click here to download - 14mb)
Randy Kopp Redefining High School Completion (click here to download - 26mb)
Joe Pollock Science and Math (click here to download - 22mb)
Mike & Michele Barter Panic Button Syndrome (click here to download - 28mb)
Bill Gurney Post Secondary Education Without an Alberta Diploma (click here to download - 27mb)
Louis Sehn Trades-Tips, Tricks, and Tools (click here to download - 19mb)
Mark Meakes Choosing to Work (click here to download - 12mb)
Are you beating your head against a wall? Is your thirteen year old impossible to teach? Is the curriculum that has worked so well in the past suddenly "boring?"
I recently spoke with a mother of many who, after completing an enjoyable unit study of reading and discussion on Holland, decided her fourteen year old son should follow-up this project with something concrete. She asked him to write an essay on the history of the development of the tulip industry - a topic they had all found to be interesting. As days of reluctance dragged into weeks of resistance, a normally affable mother-son relationship became outright antagonistic....
A serious golfer, when his game starts going out of control, immediately reflects on the basics of the game and then focuses on himself and disciplines his mind, body and will in order to correct any bad habits that may be causing the downfall of his game. He may even ask help from a friend and make himself accountable to this person help him carry out a set plan for improving.
We live in hectic times, and Christians are not immune. When we realize our life is starting to get out of control, we should do no less than a serious golfer. We also should immediately go back to the basics of Christian living. Then we must take charge of our thinking, and exercise our will to change or break any bad habits, form good habits and limit our wants.
When a nun complained to Mother Teresa about not having enough time to care for all her patients, Mother Teresa responded by saying that means you must spend more time praying....
Fairy tales are often what colors our childhood and facilitates our dreams. They are filled with sadness and happiness. Love and loss. Good vs. evil. When researching the top fairy tales, Cinderella, Beauty & The Beast and Hansel & Gretel came up in the top 10. It is interesting to realize that most fairy tales introduce a family that already has suffered a loss of either a mother or a father. The topic is briefly addressed but the “why’s” are not explained in detail.
When I think about the many fairy tales that I have read or watched, the first thing that comes to mind is a dream to find a prince, marry him and live happily ever after. I love the idea that a fairy tale takes your imagination to the next level. Where the mice design dresses, where commoners live in castles and where candy houses exist. You have to admit that these stories would be pretty bland if it weren’t for these elements of opportunities.