D is for Dad, substitute Teacher and Principal #atozchallenge

Ok, so I am blessed that my husband is self employed and works here on the property. While we have made some sacrifices over the years having him here as far as homeschool goes it truly is a blessing, especially since I dislocated my shoulder and have needed the extra help to keep us on track.  He also serves as Principal, a title he isn’t sure he wants, but as head of the household he is also head of the homeschool . It is nice to have someone to bounce ideas off when it comes to curriculum as well as behavior issues.  I don’t like using the “wait until your Father gets home” type of language but believe me I have used similar when I’m having a day or the boys are being difficult.

When it comes to extra curricular activities it is nice to have a second opinion before we jumping in and it also means that we have extra help during our homeschool cop-op and similar activities. 

I am very thankful for Dad / Husband/ Principal/ and Substitute Teacher.

C is for #homeschool Co-Ops #blogboost #atozchallenge

I know not every homeschooler belongs to a co-op and I know there are as many of opinions about co-ops as there are opinions about homeschool. I want to share our experiences in a co-op.
We joined a co-op our first year homeschooling. Was that the wisest move? Looking back I’m not sure, although I am glad we did as I really didn’t know what I was doing and gleaned a lot of ideas from the moms in the co-op.
the co-op we belong to meets 3 terms (8 weeks each) starting in October (8 weeks before Thanksgiving). The boys are in graded classes which has its ups and downs.  Both Mom and Dad are actively involved in teaching classes again that has its ups and downs. mom also coordinated the library and Dad is in charge of  sound and stage equipment related to mics, speakers, sound board, etc…
I am grateful the boys have enjoyed their classes for the most part. I am also very grateful for the growth in Cameron over the past year and a half. He struggled with performance anxiety and through patience and love from his recorders teacher and Daddy he has overcome that issue and has grown in his desire to share his music and willingness to try new things which has led to his involvement with the next Lego robotics team.  As for Nathan he is learning to memorize scripture and improve his memory skills through a series of Bible themed classes including the Fruit of the Spirit.
Next year the boys have asked me to teach their classes again and I struggle with that request as I am not the most comfortable teaching the younger grades, I really prefer to teach High Schoolers, but I am working through a couple of ideas for both 2nd grade and 4th grade for next year.

Are you involved in a co-op? What are your thoughts on co-ops? Feel free to share in the comments.

Goal Planning Monday: April 2nd

I was so glad to find a Goal Meme to add to our blog... 

So here are our goals for this week.

1. Catch up on God's Great Covenant lessons we are currently reviewing this amazing program for the TOS Crew and have run into a common problem , it is harder than Mom thought it would be, but it is such a good program Mom is willing to tweak it so the boys get through it.

2. Get the milk crates from behind the couch out and sorted  (they contain a variety of school books that got stashed during the Christmas rush and haven't been touched since.)

3. Complete our lessons on subtraction so we can get back to multiplication.  The boys are doing really well with our Montessori Stamp Game for dynamic subtraction, but we need to move back into our multiplication and get some more practice on the Montessori Checkerboard.

4. Catch up on emptying Mommy's old office so we can work toward the room switch. The project got stalled after Mom dislocated her shoulder, but with the boys' help I think we can really get back on track... 

Can't wait to get the week going. We have a full week ahead of us, but these are a few things that need our attention.

B is for Bible Lessons

As a Christian Homeschool family we work Bible Lessons into as many of our units as is possible.  We start our week with a Scripture verse as copywork for the boys. As a family we study our Weekly Bible Lesson during lunch as the table, and when ever we are doing a unit study we find scripture verses that apply to the study.  My husband and I have found it important to include the Bible in as much of our day as possible. We strive to give the boys a good foundation and in order to do that the Bible gives us the firm foundation to base our trust and our knowledge on.
The hymn “How Firm a Foundation” really says it all for me. 
I believe that I have that firm foundation is what inspires me to keep going on our homeschool journey. Each new day I know that I am leading my children down a narrow path but I know that along that path their will be inspired words to keep them going.
There are so many lessons to be learned from the Bible. My only hope is that I can inspire my boys with a few of those wonderful stories.

Tools to knowing and learning History #blogboost

History isn’t a huge thing  for us, but we do have some things we love to help with History.
1. Hands of a Child Lapbooks and Notepacks.  We have used several History Lapbooks as well as our current project the Summary of Modern U.S. History Notepack.
2. Creek Edge Press cards. We are using the Geography and Culture program program currently and will be ordering the Ancient History cards for next year. I love the command cards that fit into Montessori style environment.
3. CurrClick teachable moments monthly calendar. We usually get an email near the end of the month for the next month. It is always full of unique facts that we can use to add some fun to our history lessons.
4. TruthQuest History, a wonderful tool to help with lesson planning , selecting books and movies, and lessons surrounding history and what we need to know.
5. The Bible, we are planning next year’s history program based on The Bible and Ancient History. I want the boys to have a strong foundation and understanding of History from a biblical perspective.
6. The flexibility of homeschooling allows us to also use resources like this day in history and significant anniversary events.
What are your favorite resources for history in your homeschool? Check out what some of my crewmates said HERE

A is for Amazing Animals by Design #hsreviews

Take a journey with 2 very excited children to the zoo. This could be the beginnings of a blog about our trip to the zoo,  but it is actually a wonderful children’s book by Debra Haagen. Amazing Animals by Design is a brightly colored Christian journey to the zoo to meet a variety of animals all creatures of God’s great kingdom.
With each new animal they encounter the children learn how God’s perfect design for each animal helps them survive in their habitats.

The illustrations in this books are not only colorful but simple and add to the story rather than distract from the message. I love how the story comes full circl back to God’s perfect design of the children.Overall the boys have enjoyed reading this e-book on my laptop, although they still aren't sure about picture books on the computer. I love the realistic but simple illustrations within the story.

The book itself is being released to bookstores April 3rd but can also be purchased directly from the publisher Tate Publishing  for $8.99 print or $7.99 e-book
We received an ebook copy of this lovely book as members of the TOS Crew in exchange for our honest opinion. You can see what the rest of the crew thought of this story HERE

Scripture Sunday : April 1st

I started this on my personal blog and decided to share here on our homeschool blog as well. My goal is to share a Scripture each Sunday with our readers.

I will be using the Golden Text for the Weekly Bible Lesson  the verse I post will be the verse that the boys used for copywork the previous Monday.
This week’s Golden  Text 
….the Lord will lighten my darkness.
II Samuel 22:29b
Such a simple verse, but the hope for my boys as they learn this verse is to see that even in our darkness the glory of the Lord will light our path.