My Monthly Challenges for 2012

Instead of making hard to keep resolutions this year, I have decided that each month in 2012, I am going to learn or do something I have been wanting to do, but have been putting off for whatever reason. It doesn't have to be something huge, but I would like it to be something that requires me to learn a new skill, or maybe something I have previously started, but not completed. Since each thing will be something I want to do, and will find enjoyable (if challenging), I am hoping that it won't be so tough to keep going on this project all year.

So far I have lots of ideas, but I am not sure which ones will work out each month, so I am going to keep this goal-of-the-month idea fairly loose. That way it will stay fun and not be high-pressure. I want the kids to be able to participate as much as possible, and to see me developing new skills and trying new things. That way they will get the idea that we are lifelong learners, and that if we put our minds to something, we can accomplish a lot and do things we never imagined we could...even if they are something we never thought we could master.

I want the kids to see me finding different ways of developing the new skills: from consulting friends, to looking in books, from watching videos on youtube, to taking a class. I also want them to understand that working at something can be FUN, not just drudgery. We are only given a certain number of hours here on earth...why waste them doing frivolous things when we can be doing things that have value to us and to others?

Here are some of my ideas:

• Learn to crochet dishcloths
• Learn to crochet towel toppers (the ones that button onto your oven handle)
• Learn to knit a scarf and/or hat
• Finish the yoyo quilt top that I plan to use as a tablecloth for our dining room table
• Make my own bath soap
• Make my own natural cleaning supplies and beauty products
• Make baking mixes and soup mixes from scratch (and store them for easy use)
• Organize our household library
• Get good at making bread using the Bosch mixer and Nutrimill grain mill
• Edge a hankie with the vintage supplies I got at the antique mall
• Learn to do fun girlie hairstyles on my daughters 
• Make a skirt out of blue jeans
• Make a skirt from scratch
• Trim and hem my lace curtain panels
• Learn to can veggies (I do freezer jams already)
• Learn to play another classical tune on the piano (I have a limited repertoire)
• Sew a set of cloth napkins for our family
• Go geocaching with the kids
• Sew a replica of the stitched picture I bought my SIL for Christmas (I wanted to keep it sooo badly!)
• Get my camera fixed and actually read the manual to learn how to use all of the settings!
• Clean and fix up our enclosed front porch so we can use it this spring/summer
• Get certified to foster/adopt

I will add more ideas as I think of them. If you have any suggestions of things you like to do that you think I might like to try, feel free to comment!

Blessings,

What? We're Supposed to Make Plans?

Hop on board the TOS Blog Cruise

and see what other homeschoolers are up to...

You'd think that since I have a teaching degree (and used it to teach 8th grade English before coming home to teach my own kids) that I'd be a very organized and planned-ahead sort of person. After all, I paid money to be trained to write up lesson plans and did it professionally for three years.

NOT!

Well, okay, I admit that I am not un-organized. With the right amount of space, enough time, and the appropriate tools, I am even more organized than I usually am today. However, ample space, time, and tools currently do not apply to our situation. We are living in a house that "needs work," not to mention, needs more room, and I deal with migraines (which affect my ability to think and function) regularly. Both of these things have caused me to be a "seat of the pants" sort of teacher in recent years, meaning that I use whatever resources I have from day to day to get something useful done.

But wait...please don't think that that means that our learning is disjointed and all over the map. In fact, I really am an organized person at heart. And I do have a reputation for being able to find anything, make do with what I have, gather excellent resources, and pull something together quickly (because my knowledge base is fairly wide). So, given our decision to work on Ancient History and Cultures this year, and our ownership of a wide range of resources (collected over time), you will find us doing something to work towards our basic goals (Bible, reading, writing, arithmetic, history, nature study, art, music) on any given day. Just don't ask me Tuesday what we are going to be doing next Wednesday, because honestly, I just don't know.

I know. All of you folks out there who have Sonlight or A Beka Curriculum guides to rely upon are probably hyperventilating right about now. Believe me, I have considered what the blessing of knowing what is going to be done on any given day (and not needing to plan anything myself) might be. But any time I try it, it's a big flop. 

Either: 

1. I get a bad run of headaches and all plans go out the window to be converted into a temporary cinematic extravaganza (meaning Netflix saves the day) or an online work day 
2. I find some fun, new (often free) resources that the kids and I are dying to try out (lapbooks, internet sites, living books, field trip opportunities) 
3. I get bored. Yes, really. I am admitting it. Doing the same thing (or same type of thing) every day bores me. It is not my ideal learning style. 

I am what I consider to be a "delight-directed" sort of learner. Now, I know that this does not mean that all my kids are that sort of learner, and I know I have to worry about what they need to help them be successful lifelong learners, but truthfully, right now, the younger four are too young to have a real set learning style (at least, if they have desires to do anything in a way that varies from my way, I have not yet seen evidence of it), Tex (age 14), is an independent learner and does most of his work on his computer (which works for him because he is a techie and a lefty, so the computer is an ideal tool), and Bubba, well, he's graduated and doing very well adjusting to owning his own business and taking college classes a few at a time.

In any case, running with our interests is working for us right now, so I do not see any reason to adjust from this method. However, since it's always better if you do have the finish line in mind when you are running, I have planned out a vague timeline in my mind, and when choosing what to do each day, I keep that timeline in mind. For example, I know we want to be through Egypt by Christmas break, and we take much of December off to celebrate the season and accomplish all that it entails in a joyful way, so while we are enjoying delving into the cultures of the Egyptians, and other ancient people groups, there will be an end to it and a start to something new...Greece until Spring break, then Rome until June. This isn't a precise plan, and honestly, the exactitude of it does not concern me since doing history as a four year cycle is my intention, so anything we miss this first time around will be covered again in four years, and likely in more depth (since the Amigos are so young now...ages 2-almost 8). There is some security in knowing that even if you miss something, you will have another opportunity to revisit the information. For me, at least, it opens up the way to explore interests and have fun.

All that having been said, I DO use several resources to help me keep what we do study organized. First, there are two daily planners which I have used in the past to help me keep track of what we accomplish. Please understand that I do not use these as planners (as in "plan ahead"), but as record-keeping tools, and a way to look back at our week and evaluate what I might improve or need to address the following week...however, you can feel free to use them as a plan-ahead planner, if that is what works best for you. They are both very good, spiral bound, simple, yet effective, planners.

The first is the Record of a Learning Lifestyle by Notgrass Company. I liked this one last year because it has spaces to fill in for spiritual learning, chores, creative expression, relationships to others, and physical activities, in addition to the usual academic pursuits. The spaces for writing in your activities are generous, and while it encourages some structure, it doesn't box you in. I think this planner is especially great for younger students, and it works well with the Charlotte Mason style of learning.

However, in recognition of this year's move towards a Unit Study method, we have chosen to use the the Unit Study Daily Plan Book by Carey Taylor which I bought from Rainbow Resource Center at our state convention last June. This has been a definite winner for me, as it includes spaces for a daily subject by subject breakdown of educational activities (which I sometimes use as a student by student breakdown instead, since the label lines are blank), places to write down books read and videos watched, a section for special activities and projects, a spelling and vocabulary section, a space to note which timeline characters you will be covering, and a space where you can check off which subjects you covered on which days, for people like me who are more random, but prefer to make sure all the bases are covered each week. If you ever use unit studies in your homeschooling, I highly recommend this planner.

All that said, I still do have dreams of being more organized ahead of time. I'd like to have all our amazing ideas mapped out (to a certain extent) so that in times when I am less functional, I can just pull out a book that tells me what I am supposed to be doing and don't have to think up anything, or choose to just put the kids in a holding pattern, doing work online or watching a topic-related movie. Not that I think there is anything inherently bad with either of those options, or I wouldn't be using them, but I think there is something to be said for striving to always make improvements and adjustments. To help me with those goals, I asked my husband to buy me the Planning Your Charlotte Mason Education dvd and book set for my birthday in June, and was hoping to have time this summer to really dig into it. Nope. Not yet. But it is in my drawer, waiting for a chance to be heard and learned from. Perhaps during the Christmas season, there will be time to sit and watch and sew a bit...sigh.

One last thing that I will say is a planning lifesaver around our house are our marker boards. Earlier this school year, I decided to give up on that idea of having a meticulously pre-scheduled plan (again), and went searching for a viable alternative. I liked the idea of workboxes, as you can develop them a week at a time, depending on how far you get the previous week. All the stuff you need is within easy reach, the kids can start to get work done on their own, and the idea of offering a variety of learning tasks each day sounds exciting for the kids. However, space is at a premium in our house, and we have our own living proof of the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics (everything moves from order to disorder) in our house (Boo), so that idea isn't viable for this year. 

Fortunately, while researching workboxes, I discovered how another blogger used marker boards to organize her kids' assignments using workbox labels (and markers), enabling her to achieve much the same effect as workboxes without the space required for them (since all the needed items for the day fit into one box instead of many). I tell about how I am using markerboards this year in my post on Organizing Our School...1,2,3, Help!. Using the boards is the way I have of translating the "lesson plans" I see in my head to "paper" so the kids can implement the plan without me holding their hand every step of the way. Eventually, we want them all to be self-directed learners, like their older brothers.

There is still that dream of someday having great lesson plans that anyone can follow if I have a bad day...but for now, I am setting dreams of that aside, and learning not to feel like I have to produce solid plans two months in advance to keep up with the Joneses. There is something secure to be said about having solid, pre-written, well-thought out lesson plans, but there is something to be said for flexibility, delight, exploration, and thinking outside the planner box, too.

If you aren't a meticulous planner, and have been knocking yourself out trying to become one, I challenge you to take a step back and look at the big picture. Are your kids excited about learning? Are they interested in what you are teaching? Do they explore ideas on their own? Do they love to read and draw/make stuff and try new things? Are they developing all the basic skills (reading, math, writing) to the best of their capability level? Are they happy? Are you happy?

If you answered "yes" to these questions, then maybe what you are doing, scheduled or not, is just what you are supposed to be doing at this time, and detailed lesson planning isn't needed right now. Give yourself a break (like I did) and keep your focus on your kids, their character, and their appreciation of learning because you are doing great!

If you answered "no" to any of these questions, schedule or not, you need to take a second look at what you are doing and evaluate whether it is the most effective method of teaching for you and your students. Perhaps you need to work on making a more concrete schedule because you, or they, need one. Or perhaps you need to break out of your rigid schedule for a time because your kids (0r you) need to exercise your self-expression and explore some personal interests for a while to bring back the joys of home education.

Whatever your style of lesson planning is, as long as it works for you, your hubby, and your kids, I hope you have planned (or intentionally not-planned) your way into having the best year ever!

Blessings,

School With the Three Amigos---Goals for 2011-2012

The Three Amigos 

(Ladybug, Cowboy, and Firefly, ages almost 8, 6, and 4)

My overall goal this year for these three is to work on developing good character (especially obedience, initiative, diligence, kindness, consideration, responsibility, respect, and self-control), improving habits, training for new chores (such as Ladybug taking over the care of the chickens and Cowboy taking over the dogs...Firefly will begin helping me care for the bunny), and getting the three of them into a solid "homeschooling groove." 


A lot of that depends on me, and how well I do, so I am working on developing MY character, habits, and organizing my completion of chores better. Funny how that works. ;-)

Our secondary goals are academic, and here they are:

• Bible: daily readings from Long Story Short...this study is laid out so that there are five readings per week, which gives me two "bye" days. So far, I have not managed to do all five in one week. It is my goal to become consistent in this area. I try to read while they are eating supper (I am usually not hungry because I taste-test while cooking). We will also complete various Old Testament activities as they arise with our history studies. I want them to have a solid familiarity with Old Testament history, people, and a general idea of the timeline (and how events relate to each other) by the end of the year. Both Cowboy and Ladybug have asked Jesus into their hearts. We are praying for Firefly and Boo (they are four and two, so it is early days yet).
• Reading: Ladybug and Cowboy use Reading Eggs on days when I have a headache (which is, unfortunately, not rare) and do not have the ability to orchestrate all of their activities. We also have a subscription to Click n'Read Phonics (it was very inexpensive at Homeschool Buyer's Co-op) for Firefly. Over the summer they really got motivated to read (we did our own Summer Reading Program), so just moving them from having to read "carefully" to being able to read "comfortably" will be our goal for this year.

• On good days, the kids do various reading and phonics activities with me, such as reading books from our "Reading Suitcase" (an old box suitcase full of easy readers like "I See Sam" and the "Bob" books), reading leveled readers or other picture books silently or to each other and adding the titles to their reading lists, listening to me or Tex read them books out loud (you can see some of our Read Aloud list here...I just started adding titles, so all of the picture books we've read together are not on there yet...it is a work in progress), and doing pages in various workbooks when they have an area they need to work on.
• Writing: The two older Amigos have Reading Response Journals  they are required to use for every five books they read. They must choose one of the five books to write about. We use various forms I find online to give them a suitable format to fill in. I usually have Firefly draw a picture of a story she heard during the week while the other two work on their journals (she might copy the title, if it is not too long). Since I am working on getting organized this year as a main goal, keeping their work for each class in easily accessible notebooks is important to me. They keep each of their notebooks in a lapdesk, which you can see HERE. 
• The Three Amigos take turns using the Writing Suitcase once a week to write someone a letter, or write a story or poem to add to their writing notebook because learning to write good sentences, as well as learning to reach out to others (to make them happy and to be polite, as in the case of thank you notes), are important goals. I think letter-writing is a fading art, and I want my kids to learn it. E-mail (or texting!) just isn't as personal. Letters can be any relative or friend. Sometimes I give them a topic for their stories, other times I let them come up with their own. They write these stories in a Primary Composition notebook...the kind with primary lines and space for a drawing.
• Handwriting: The kids have handwriting books for when they need to practice a certain letter. Most of their writing, though, is done in a "practical" way, as in they write stories, write letters, and write reports. I feel that when you are writing for "real" reasons, that is enough writing in a day. They generally use their handwriting books when there is a problem area, or on days when I am ill and most of their other work is done online.
• Spelling: Ladybug and Cowboy use Big IQ Kids. As it was a review item last year, we have the premium membership until spring, so they get to use customized lists I make. I basically liked many of the lists they had...I just added more words to them when I felt they were too short. They both keep a spelling notebook (in a composition book...this is our choice for most of our written work), and they take turn playing the games they earn by completing exercises. We aren't really nose-grinders when it comes to spelling, as I feel lots of reading of quality literature leads to good spelling (eventually), but Big IQ Kids is fun, and the work on letter families is valuable (plus it is an area in which Ladybug excels, so it is good for her to have that boost...Cowboy needs the practice).

• Math: Ladybug uses Mathletics to do her math online. We also do various worksheets on targeted areas as needed. Cowboy uses IXL to do 20 daily free problems. We also have Math Facts Now!, a review item from last year, to use for math facts, and Quarter Mile Math, which is also online for timed tests. I'd like them to be pretty quick with their times facts drills by the end of the year. Both are on grade level and I expect them to continue on that path.

• History: Our history spine is Mystery of History, though I must admit that I am a colossal failure at regularly reading and progressing through any one resource. I am one of those "go off on a tangent and explore" sorts of people (does that make me a "delight-directed learner?"), and basically we worked on the story of Creation and the initial few stories in Genesis (our Bible study does do a good job of covering these and intermingling how the Old Testament prophecies lead to Jesus), then we got interested in the Egyptians and we are still there, having done quite a bit, but none of it out of the book (it all started with the Flat Stanley Worldwide Adventure kits our library offered this summer...he took a trip to Egypt and we went along). 

• I suppose we will get to the exercises in the book eventually, to connect all the dates (and help us fill in our timeline), but we aren't there yet. Right now we are having fun reading lots of living books about Egypt, watching videos that tie in to that topic, and coming up with projects with Egypt as a theme, such as hieroglyphic writing and building the pyramids out of Legos.

• Our overall history goal for the year is to complete studies on Egypt, Greece, Rome, and perhaps the early Americas (the Mayans and Aztecs are rather gruesome, though) by finishing a lapbook for each and filling in our History Through the Ages timeline book for those time periods (we have the clip art cd to use). How we get to that point is likely to be a collection of living books, activities from various resource books, videos (usually from Netflix), and numerous Internet resource sites. I am trying to keep track of the resources we use for each time period as we go HERE (but I just started, so the list is small) to keep myself motivated and organized. This is a work in progress.
• Science: Our science studies center around Nature Studies. I mostly just want the kids to maintain their interest in all things scientific, so they can develop their gifts in their later years. Ladybug likes to collect, document, and classify, Cowboy is an explorer, and Firefly enjoys tagging along for the ride. For times when it is rainy, or I am not well, I have A Nature Walk With Aunt Bessie from Queen Homeschool Supplies to use. It has stories and activities to go with the stories about bugs, nature, etc. The Amigos complete each lesson in their own Nature Notebook (a Primary Composition notebook...the kind with primary lines and space for a drawing). For weeks when I'd like to get some science in and am feeling under the weather, we can also check out Simple Schooling and do some science on the computer.
• When it is fine to go outside, the kids are veteran Bug Hunters, Rock Collectors, and avid birdwatchers. I usually just send them out with their collection equipment (magnifying glass, bag, jar, Nature Notebooks, pencils) and they find something interesting and either draw it at the picnic table or bring it inside to do there. We've had a lot of "visitors" this year already, and even have a cocoon we believe will be overwintering with us. By the way, one video resource I have discovered that I love is the dvd Your Backyard narrated by three kids and an animated owl. It's about birdwatching and the best part is that it is a God-honoring video! We got this for the kids last Christmas and it is one of their most requested titles. It's a good one to put on when traveling in the car. I don't get tired of hearing it and I feel they are learning something...I'm learning something, anyway! The Amigos often say, "Oh, that's a ?? (I am drawing a blank, but they know)  because he is saying 'drink your tea tea tea!'" or something similar. It's great. 
• Art: We are using Meet the Masters this year which we purchased through the Homeschool Buyer's Co-op. Ladybug, especially, loves it. We also have our Artistic Pursuits book from last year, which we dive into now and then. Our goal is to do something formal with art once a week, though the kids do draw or "do a craft" every day (when they do their Nature Study drawings, that counts as art, too). 
• We also have art lapbooks from Practical Pages and Confessions of a Homeschooler (both FREE!!!) that I hope to complete with the kids this year, which will help us focus on certain artists and techniques. My goal is to choose one painting a month and leave it on display on our piano easel and let the kids see it when they play in that room or practice the piano. We will talk about the artist from time to time and I will find resources online to tell them more about him or her when there is interest.

• Music: We signed up for Classical Composers Monthly as a way to formalize and organize our study of music and musicians this year. It was very inexpensive and seems well worth the small investment, as it saves me the time of finding those resources and putting a unit together. I am hoping we can participate in the Study of the Classical Composers Link-up on Thursdays, once we really get going this month. I also have a music lapbook from Hands of a Child (it was on sale) and we want to finish this by the end of the year. Honestly, it is more likely to happen in bursts than being evenly distributed over time, but it WILL get done. Ladybug is taking piano from me (she is not going to get far with that, since I don't know much...but for now it is enough). We have new neighbors with musically talented daughters, so I am considering asking if we can arrange lessons over there once a week as her "big" Christmas gift (we like to give each child one gift that develops their talents each year). Cowboy and Firefly are not ready for lessons, so they will just continue to enjoy listening to classical music and their favorite music cd, Stand Up! ("swing"-style hymns...it's really a lot of fun...you can see my review HERE). I'd eventually like to add in a monthly hymn study, but I am not there yet.
• One of my goals this year is to add some variety to our weeks, so this year we are trying to do school Monday through Thursday, then have Fridays on which to do things a bit differently. The plan is to use our Museum membership sometimes to take a field trip (my parents gave it to Cowboy as his birthday gift...awesome!!), sometimes we play learning games all day, other times we take a walk or just play outside with the horses. We have been participating in the Friday Fun School link up at Ben & Me. You can see a few of my Fun Friday posts HERE. When it works for us, we like to chime in at the monthly Lego Quest Challenge. Playing with Legos always makes for a fun Friday!

Since I do have migraines with distressing frequency, over the last year I developed a blog that is for the kids' use on those days to guide them to their online learning opportunities. I use it to showcase sites I have decided are appropriate and useful on those days I can't do much more than turn on the computer and point them to it (and keep track of Boo, who is two...you know what that means). On those days they usually do Reading Eggs, Mathletics or IXL, Big IQ Kids, Brain POP!, Big Bible Town, and they use Tumble Books and other sites to listen to books and do activities online (you can see their learning blog and their links HERE). It's not an ideal set up...of course, I'd like to always be on top of things, doing enriching activities with them, but I just can't right now, so this works in the meantime. 

Check out other free links we use to supplement our curriculum on our homeschool-for-free site.

So that's our plan. You can see how much work I have to do to get where I need to be...but these are just goals, and if all of them do not get met, then there must have been something more important that came up (like a tea party!).

Looking back at all we have listed, it actually sounds pretty impressive...Maybe one of these days, I will stop feeling as if I am not doing enough! I think we all need to realize (myself included) that God is in charge of our homeschooling, and He will make the right opportunities and resources available when they are needed. What I have listed above is a lofty set of goals and a listing of resources we have been blessed with to use and explore. I would like to wake up each day with a precise plan and execute it perfectly, getting most, if not all, of our ambitious projects done with enough time to still stop for tea and freshly baked scones at lunch, a ride on the horses before dinner, and some time to snuggle in front of the fire with a good read aloud before bed.

But the truth is, that first of all, we don't have a fireplace, so reading by the fire is definitely out. (Boo hoo). Then there is the fact that many days I wake up in terrible pain (migraines), barely able to think. I generally manage to get the kids fed and dressed, maybe I do the same for myself, and I send Tex out to feed the animals. Then, if I can think well enough to realize I really DO need a plan, I write out the kids' work on their marker boards, and send them off to various areas of the house to do what is listed. At the end of the day, we are all happy to see their various accomplishments checked off, we add the best of their completed work to their notebooks (or send some off to their grandmas), and then we get busy with our chores.


There's always something I wish we had done more of, like art or music, but I try to focus on what I did do instead and believe that there is always tomorrow for the rest. The kids are not going to be unemployed transients just because we didn't do math one day. They are not going to fail to achieve a perfect score on their SATs because I didn't do enough grammar with them. BUT they might become hard to employ if I don't teach them diligence, initiative, and responsibility by helping them stick with something and doing their best even when it seems tough, by helping other when they see it is needed without having to be asked, and by completing our chores together day after day. Perhaps one of them might develop a catering business someday because I made it a point to take time off from regular school work to let them help me make pear butter, scones,  and bread from time to time. At the very least, they will know I love them. They will love each other and other people...and God most of all.

I guess what I am saying, is that in laying out our goals for 2011-2012, I don't want you to think that by me saying that "this is what we plan to do" means it all gets done perfectly in a way that looks like someone's dream homeschooling experience. No, it's more likely that we will do things in fits and spurts. Some days we really get into the academics, and others we will sort of wander and focus on chores or projects or playing. But in the end, it all adds up just the same anyway. The kids will still be presented the material. They will have had fun with it. Best of all, I hope they will have good memories about the time we spent together...I sure do.

Check out other homeschoolers' goals 

for the year by clicking the button.

So thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed seeing what we are up to. You can check back regularly to see what we do on our Fun Fridays and I am going to try to start participating at the Weekly Wrap Up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers to keep myself accountable, too. I also use Menu Plan Monday from time to time to help my week go more smoothly by planning our our meals. If only they had a Wash My Dishes Wednesday where I could showcase pictures of the many dishes we do each week, or a What a Lot of Laundry Thursday where I could show off all the piles of laundry I fold...then I might feel like I am really accomplishing something...If you know of anything like that on the web, let me know!

You can see what my almost 14 year-old, Tex, is up to on Our Curriculum Choices page and on his learning blog.

I look forward to seeing what everyone else plans to do this year.

Blessings,

Heather

Curriculum Review---Help Lord, I’m Getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler!

Reality Television is big business these days. Every time you turn on the TV, one channel or another is running a reality program. From Survivor on CBS (does anybody believe that is reality anymore than professional wrestling?) to Ace of Cakes on Food Network, there is a reality show to fit all kinds. I am a 19 Kids and Counting kind of person. I find it interesting to see what another homeschooling family does to manage their studies and the demands of a large household. Their family atmosphere is something I aspire to, and though most days I feel that they surely do a better job with 19 than I do with 6, since they seem so NICE, I never feel bad about that. Best of all, I have seen several things in the show (and in their book The Duggars: 20 and Counting, which is great!) that I have implemented and found very useful, such as the "buddy system" and the idea of the family closet. I suppose some people might wonder why I would need to learn these things from a TVshow, but if you consider that I come from a two child family, you can see why "how to live in a large family" is not one of the skills my mom passed on to me. Unfortunately, our church has only one other large family who homeschools, so I don't have an abundance of real-life examples to turn to for advice. Hence, my interest in using the mothers of books and video to inspire me.

Which leads me to today's review of Help, Lord, I'm getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler! published by The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. It is a compilation of stories written by homeschoolers about how they navigated the sometimes choppy waters of homeschooling through the high school years. You might think that since your children are years away from high school that this book doesn't apply to you. Instead, consider the fact that sooner or later, God-willing, you WILL get there. You just can't avoid it.

Seriously, it is never too early to start thinking about how you will make it through those challenging times. In fact, earlier is probably better, since making decisions in the middle of a crisis is much more difficult than when they are made ahead of time. The high school years wind up seeming like a looming mountaintop to so many of us because the content is tougher, the demands are higher, and because the END, the GOAL, the NEXT STEP for which you have been preparing all these years is finally in sight. Are you ready?? That is the question all of the parents in this e-book asked themselves, in one form or another, somewhere along their journey. They asked themselves whether they had done enough, whether they were doing the right things, whether they were going the right direction...Does that sound familiar? It did to me.

Since I have homeschooled one son (so far) all the way to graduation, I felt like I saw a lot in this book that resonated with me. I remember asking the same questions the featured families did, and I remember finding many of the same answers along the way. I found myself wishing that this book had been available to me before I entered the high school years with my son because at that time I felt so alone. All of my friends had mostly younger children. The ones who had older children wound up putting their high schoolers back into public or private schools within a year. We thought about it. God had other plans.

Our first major bump in the road was a big one. We struggled painfully through algebra with no sign of a finish line in sight. In retrospect, it was probably too early for him to be taking it, even though he is smart and his father and I had taken algebra at the same age. To make things worse, my son was sure it was because I couldn't teach it well enough for him to understand. On the other hand, I was sure that if he'd just LISTEN and then retain the info for longer than thirty seconds we might get somewhere, and much to my regret, my impatience occassionally showed. So eventually, we tried another curriculum.

Another six months went by using this one and he hated it, too. I was sure he was just trying to get out of finishing it. The truth was, his brain simply wasn't ready for some of it yet. What is it about ex-public schooled parents that makes us think we have to do everything by the book? If only someone had told me to get out of that way of thinking back then...Instead, the only advice I got from friends was "Try Sylvan." That was definitely not in the budget, so we got a tutor. That didn't work either. We tried something else for another several months, doing only the topics he hadn't covered already this time. Finally, he managed to finish the algebra requirement, hating math more every step of the way. Resenting it.

After that, he took a hiatus from school to do a five week long mission trip, then spent another six months doing an apprenticehip in his current field, farriery. Both of those were definitely God things. Then, we moved. Finally, we got back to "doing school," and after evaluating the options with my husband, we took our son off of the college-bound track and gave Consumer Math a try, instead of calculus. Thank goodness for that!! Our son wound up LOVING it and powered through it quickly because it made sense to him and seemed useful. Amazing. And since he owns his own business now, he does use that math all the time. He did NOT need to learn about sines and cosines and theorems. He did need to learn about accounting, how to stay out of debt, and taxes.

If only someone had told me to seek after God's will for each individual child's leanings earlier, and to take only the classes that fit into that child's life plan, we might have beeen spared the difficulties and hard feelings of those two years. Kelly Rotenberry has a similar story in "Help, Lord!". She says, "We just couldn‘t seem to find that one thing that mattered enough to [our daughter]—that one thing that she was passionate about. Well, guess what we learned! A lot of that comes with maturity.That is something I really wish we had known then. It would have made life easier. I wouldn‘t have felt such pressure to push her toward graduation goals." That advice, heard years ago, might have spared us the pushing about math (and other things) while our son tried to discover what he was passionate about. Once he discovered farriery and set his own goals, everything else came naturally.

That is why I so enjoy books such as Help, Lord, I'm Getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler!. This world is not perfect and we do not always have a friend nearby who can give us the information we need. We do not always have a local support system we can turn to for Godly advice. But we can always find a book to read. I am not saying that a book replaces prayer or going to God on our knees, but I do feel God can use many ways to show us things that will help us, such as the Duggar's concept of the family closet (everyone's clothes are kept in the same area instead of different dressers in different rooms), which incidentally, helped me reduce my "getting-four-under-six-dressed-in-the-morning" time by a LOT. Wow. If you only knew how much easier my life has been since that one change.

I think this book will be inspirational to almost anyone who plans to homeschool through high school. On that note, may I please say, with conviction, from experience, that unless GOD tells you LOUDLY and FIRMLY that you should put your child back in public education, or even private education (and I concede that there may be instances where this is true), do NOT give into the temptation to throw your hands up and say, "I just can't do it. I can't teach algebra (calculus, physics, Spanish)." If your child needs that particular subject, GOD will provide a way for them to get it. Give it all up to Him and hang in there.

That doesn't mean that some sound anecdotal advice about how to accomplish the things a high schooler needs can't be useful. Indeed, sound advice is infinitely useful. Proverbs 19:20 (NIV) tells us, "Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise." I believe this collection of real-life stories from thirteen homeschooling moms, one is even a homeschooling graduate turned mom, constitutes wise advice and good instruction. I am listening. Will you?

Help, Lord, I'm Getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler! is 116 pages long and contains 13 stories with teaching styles varying from Delight-Directed approaches to more Classical approaches. One writer's son did an extensive apprenticeship like mine. Another's son qualified for early dual-enrollment, graduated from high school with a two-year degree and is now serving as a medic in Iraq. Another had a student with learning disbilities and praises God that their son was able to graduate from an adult home study program, and eventually make an incredibly good income in the field of fiber optics. Had he stayed in public school, he would have quit at age 17 due to problems he was having there. Wow! No two families used the exact same approach to their children's education, and honestly, none of them really used the same thing for every student. That in and of itself should tell you something important. Every homeschooling journey is different; what works for your friend's child may not work for yours.

That thought leads me to the one overarching theme in this e-book that I cannot emphasize enough: Look to the Lord for your answers. Pray over your children as individuals. Listen to your children. Stay active in their lives. Figure out what your student's strengths are and build them up. Plan an individualized course of study for EACH child and help them make their post-high school plans around their particular educational needs and leanings. Don't study something just because someone else told you to, unless it is exactly what your child needs. Be flexible. And definitely feel blessed that you are able, through God's help, to give this gift to your son or daughter because it opens up so many doors. The possibilities are endless.

Homeschooling allowed my oldest son to do two apprenticeships with farrirers, and to have a job training horses and helping run a boarding stable. His other love is landscaping and when he was younger (13-15) he worked as a costumed Junior Interpreter for the Colonial Williamsburg Master Gardener, and put in over two hundred hours working with the Master Gardeners in Florida. When we moved to our current home in Gloucester, VA, he started a landscaping business, earning $15/ hour at age 16. Upon graduation from high school, he completed farrier's school, already has about eighty horses he cares for, and will be able to support himself quite comfortably (completely debt free) within a year, maybe even six months.

Following a traditional path of public high school would have had him stressing about SATs last year, making a school choice based on his scores and our finances (or financing), and potentially squirming at college this year in crowded freshman classes of 100-500 students, mostly racking up debt. He's a one-on-one, outdoorsy kind of guy, and while he may eventually get his degree in history (his plan, not mine), right now he is happy working with his hands, getiting dirty, meeting interesting new people, and working on building a reputation of reliablilty and skill. I am so proud of him. Can you tell?

What I'll bet you can't tell from all that is that our homeschool high school years had many tense and uncertain moments. We went through a lot of trial and error to get here. What I wouldn't have given to have been relieved of some of the mistakes we made by having had some good advice (other than how to write a transcript for college) on a personal level about homeschooling high school...

I could live in the "If only's" and probably get stuck there, but I'd rather move forward and grasp hold of the reality that is today and look toward where we are going. If I can prepare a bit for the next step in the journey, then that would be great. What works best for me is to see the methodology in action (I guess I am a hands-on learner, just like my son), and this e-book lives up to that style.

In fact, I have already picked out one thing from the book I am doing to use when my next child turns fourteen. PeggySue Wells says that in her family, volunteering is part of the curriculum from age 14, until they get a job or graduate. I like that. We place a heavy emphasis on helping others, and our oldest son always helped out a lot, as an Awana volunteer and on multiple mission trips, but it wasn't a FORMAL part of what we chose for our curriculum. I think making it a formal, required part of your child's education is a good idea. Formality encourages consistency and committment, which are both good things.

Anyway, if you are at all like me, and you enjoy the occassional fix of reality programming, why not join me and begin preparing for the path you will follow for your potential (or current) high schooler? Download a copy of the e-book, grab a cup of tea, and prepare to be inspired. This e-book is "reality programming" you can actually use!

I have one more idea. If you have a chance, why don't you invite a few friends and start a discussion group, in person or online? This book would be excellent for that purpose, as each chapter covers a different family and is a self-contained learning experience. I find that one chapter is not too difficult to find time to read, even with a busy schedule. Read alone or with friends, this one will challenge you, and hopefully, spur you on to approach your homeschooling high school years with eagerness and enthusiasm instead of uncertainty and dread. If you do wind up reading this e-book, or have already, please feel free to leave some of your thoughts about it on the blog. Maybe we can get a discussion of sorts going here. I still have five more to graduate (so far!) before I am off the hook...

Here is a link to The Old Schoolhouse Store page for Help Lord, I’m Getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler! It retails for $12.45, which seems reasonable since it is 116 pages long, has thirteen chapters, and five pages of the authors' recommended resources. The review at this link gives you more details about the content of the e-book.

You can also preview the product here. This preview includes the Table of Contents, Amanda Bennett's Introduction, and one family's story.

By the way, I wanted to mention that if you wind up enjoying this e-book as much as I did, two of my favorite homeschooling books are Homeschool Open House and Homeschooling: A Patchwork of Days by Nancy Lande. These books are very similar in format to Help Lord, I’m Getting Ready to Start Homeschooling My High Schooler! In them, the author/editor collects the stories of homeschoolers from all over the country and shows by anectodal tales (many written by the homeschooling families themselves) how a typical day in their houesholds goes. I've learned so much from those books through the years. How nice it is to see an e-book in a similar style that focuses on the important subject of homeschooling during the high school years.

I am hoping that the editors get a good response from this e-book and start working on one that focues on "homeschooling many young ones in the toddler/prek/k years." Now that's one I could definitely use!

I did receive this product for free from TOS Magazine for review purposes. However, that did not influence my opinion on this product. What you read here is my honest opinion about how the product was useful and relevant to me.

Beginnings

It has been over a year since we bought our little blue house and fifteen acres way out here in the country, but less than a year since we moved in. The old farmhouse required a lot of renovating…and still does. We had to completely redo many of the walls and ceilings downstairs, reconstruct the rotting bathroom on the first floor, and add a bathroom upstairs for the children to share. We knocked out a window in the very small kitchen and added a sliding door and a deck to give us more room...at least during the temperate months. A friend and my oldest son helped tear out rotting kitchen cabinets, resize and remount the usable ones, and paint them. Every room needed a fresh coat or two of paint. Most of the fixtures needed replacing.

But the bones are good and the property is BEAUTIFUL. There is a peace people feel when they turn onto our long, winding, tree-shaded road and drive leisurely out into the countryside past country estates, horse farms, and old homes. Green grass, shady trees, bright flowers, singing birds, dancing butterflies, orderly crops, waving neighbors...all the nice things you find way out here in the boonies. I felt it the moment we turned down that road for the first time and started praying right away that THIS would be the home we'd been praying for. A peace settled on me that lasted even through the tour of the too small, too run down, too-much-work-needed place.

I'd like to tell you that the peace stayed no matter what. We bought the house knowing that life would be tough for a while, while we got things ready to move in, and even past that, but more came at us than what we foresaw, from unexpected places, and it threw me for a loop. I'd like to say I got through it gracefully, but even though I think I did all right, I do think there were things I could have improved. The one thing I wish I could change is the way those hardships have affected my percption of this beautiful place. I sometimes now feel it is a trial rather than a treasure. As a mistake instead of a blessing. How sad. I am ever so grateful for it, but aware of what transpired that did not go so well and that sometimes colors everything.

I suppose we moved in too quickly. We had been staying in my parents’ home for some time…all seven of us, plus our three dogs, two cats, three horses, one pony, and two potbellied pigs! They were very gracious to allow us to stay for so long while we searched for the house God wanted for us, but we all felt it was time to get the "new life" we planned out in the country started, and we were anxious to see what that new life would bring. Now I look back and see where we are and wonder if it might not have been better to stay put and get more done before moving in. Hindsight is 20/20, I guess. At the time, the pressures were real, and the choice to move seemed clear. I feel more strongly now that waiting to start will give you a better start, and I think that understanding will benefit my kids, if I can teach them that lesson. It's just that I was eager to get started on what we all felt God had for us, that the idea of any more delays than necessary seemed ridiculous (mind you, this was after spending a year with Navy hubby gone, having a baby six-weeks early the day after our move, thankfully selling a house in a sluggish market the day of the birth, and even more craziness too tedious to list).

The funny thing is that in spite of my eagerness to begin "living the dream," I often feel we still haven’t quite started yet. It seems there is so much to do and so little time in every day…or at least there is limited energy (Well, on my part, anyway. Maybe not on the part of the kids!). It frustrates me when I work all day, yet feel I have not accomplished enough because there is still so much to do. I heard a sermon the other day that said if you reach the end of the day feeling like you did not get done what you had to do, then maybe you are not doing what GOD wants you to do because God always gives you enough time to execute HIS plans. Hmmmm. That makes me think this morning.

I woke early and lay in bed thinking about: "When will I get the garden put in and the flower beds built? Where will we put the new baby (who is due in June)? How will I get all these things organized to make room for everything a new baby requires (especially with me being on limited activity for the next month to avoid an early delivery)? When will we get a chicken tractor and coop built to house the 37 chicks living in a brooder on our front porch? When will I get the kids together to go on that field trip I promised (so I can feel like we are homeschooling properly)? When will I get our homeschooling, chores, kitchen, closets, drawers, bookshelves, garage, barn, etc. organized enough that I don’t feel like I am failing in some way all the time?"

I realize I need to get past this impulse to achieve what I in my flesh see as "good enough" and just focus on what God has for me to do at this time…namely loving God, loving my kids and my husband and my family, homeschooling, and making a healthy and happy home. These other things I find to focus on may indeed be a part of that picture, but on God’s timing, not mine. That control is the most difficult thing to relenquish.

I will have to trust that the Lord will give us time to accomplish the important things…at least, the parts that HE thinks are important…and that is what has to matter. The rest, well, I need to give it to Him and He will provide, or we will discover that it wasn’t something we really needed after all.

Blessings,

Heather