Thanksgiving/Christmas Holiday Freebie!

TOS Digital Holiday Supplement
This is one resource you won't want to miss! The Old Schoolhouse Magazine has an outstanding E-Magazine full of holiday delights—activities, inspiration, gift ideas, traditions, recipes—some wonderful ideas to start your planning in the right direction. Enjoy!

A Brand New Homeschooling Year!

I'm finding out that when you have a side job that consists of a lot of writing, you don't have much time to write the things you really want to write about—I miss that part of my life!

I haven't written here in so long I feel the urge to just put down a little something so here goes:

Anyway, we've started a brand new school year here, with the last two boys in homeschool high school. I love the beginning of the year and the goal planning stage. The boys have written their goals and I've been working on mine and things are going well. I REALLY want to encourage as much independence as possible with our studies and assist the boys in meeting their goals. I'm open to "What do you want to study for history or science?" as well as "What are your personal goals?

One of Jeremiah's goals is learning how to speak, read and write French. He got interested in this over the summer when he met some French speaking Canadians. I'm thrilled!

I'm utilizing some DVDs this year and we're enjoying one called "How to Be a Super Star Student". Sounds kind of corny, I know, but there's some good stuff in it—and stuff to make you think seriously about study habits and your future. Math DVDs and Language/Composition are on the agenda as well. Standard Deviants has some fun stuff—and you know—we're learning too! Have you guessed I have an auditory learner? I should have been using more DVDs and audios all along!

I look forward to the coming year in a big way. I'm filled with expectations as I always am, but each year that I get closer to the idea of the empty nest, I just want to cherish the days as long as they are there. Sometimes I reminisce about the olden homeschooling years but they are gone. It's a different homeschooling scene here now. But you know, it's just as good!

I hope you have some worthy goals lined up for yourself and family and enjoy the year to the fullest!

Letting Go

I came across this one day after I had a wonderful conversation with a close friend about some of these very things. I just had to share it here:

Letting Go

author unknown

To Let Go does not mean to stop caring,
it means I can't do it for someone else.

To Let Go is not to cut myself off,
it is the realization I can't control another.

To Let Go is not to enable,
but to allow learning from natural consequences.

To Let Go is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.

To Let Go is not to try to change or blame another,
it is to make the most of myself.

To Let Go is not to care for,
but to care about.

To Let Go is not to fix,
but to be supportive.

To Let Go is not to judge,
but to allow another to be a human being.

To Let Go is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their destinies.

To Let Go is not to be protective,
it is to permit another to face reality.

To Let Go is not to deny,
but to accept.

To Let Go is not to nag, scold, or argue,
but instead to search out my own shortcomings and correct them.

To Let Go is not to adjust everything to my desires,
but to take each day as it comes, and cherish myself in it.

To Let Go is not to criticize and regulate anybody,
but to try to become what I dream I can be.

To Let Go is not to regret the past,
but to grow and live for the future.

To Let Go is to fear less,
and love more.

Getting Hooked on E-Books, Highschool & More

One of the perks with my job at the Old Schoolhouse Magazine is getting to read a lot of the new E-Books that they are producing- most all homeschool related of course.

I am so a lover of hard copy books, but hey, I'm getting used to sitting at the computer and doing some reading there and then a little work too. I've read some fantastic and motivating E-Books in the past two months: Living on One Income-How 12 Families Make it Work; HomeWork (homeschooling and home business); What About Socialization?; Molly's Money-Saving Digest; Turning Points in Homeschooling (I absolutely LOVED this one!); and Creative Nature Study to name a few. All are recommended, by the way, and available now or in the future through the Schoolhouse Store. Perhaps I'm getting hooked on E-Books! I didn't think that was possible.

I enjoyed reading about remarkable families from all walks and backgrounds making homeschooling a success and loving it, with God's guidance through many ups and downs. I'm just really amazed and uplifted and motivated and blessed to be homeschooling and interacting with my family the way we do. I'm also re-evaluating where we're headed in our journey.

I'm going to be project managing a new E-Book (what an opportunity!) on College Prep for Homeschoolers too, so my mind is focusing also, on my own highschooler (though two have since graduated) and my soon to be highschooler, and the path we are taking. Exciting times for sure, when everything you've done and said and tried to do will be put to the test as you watch your children venture out into the scary and awesome world of independence and great responsibility. I think we've done a good job, and I sometimes think of the what ifs, but I can't go back and change anything, and I don't really think I want to. Life's a dance, you learn as you go (hey, I think that's a song!) and anyway we've sure learned a lot and had a bunch of fun on our journey and it's not over yet! So many good things have transpired, but our relationships with each other and with God are still the main priorities.

I was talking with my son, Gideon, 20, today, and you know he just really inspired me and made my heart leap and jump. I am so proud of him, to see the transformation that God has done in him, in the last few years. I can say at one time I was worried about him and his attitude, but miracles happen. If you take a good look at yourself and don't like what you see, make a change. Do something! Make those little steps and more steps and more until they lead to progress and marked change. Anyway, Gideon is like the motivational speaker, pep talk rally coach kind of guy now and inspires everyone around him. I know he'll do great in life. The right attitude goes a longgggggg way!

Well my original thought was that hey, we did great in homeschool highschool because he knows how to learn whatever he wants or needs to, he has a love of learning, he has the skills necessary to learn and do well, and a heart for God and what is good and right. How much more do you really need?

With God's continual hand of guidance on our lives we can't go wrong. It's just amazing when you can simply TRUST God to continue what you have started and KNOW that even though it's not all smooth sailing, there's a good outcome. He's teaching us all manner of worthwhile stuff on this journey.

I love homeschooling! Oh, and I love books, and E-Books too!

Encouragement for the Beginning Reader: Splish the Frog

Meet us in Bliss Hollow where your child can escape for a visit with Splish the frog, his endearing family and homeschooling animal friends. Mama Frog shares her son's frustrations with wisdom and reassurance as she patiently guides Splish along a pathway of understanding and character building with a delightful, heartwarming story, where he finally learns that Mama was right-everyone learns and grows at his own pace—it takes time.

Any beginning reader or struggling-to-read child will relate to Splish, with all of his discouragements, frustrations, trial-and-errors and not trusting Mama that some day he will read.

One of a mother’s treasured gifts to her child—

helping him learn to read.

Learning to read is one of the most important parts of your young child’s home education. He has cuddled up on your lap and heard you read such lively stories to him over and over again. Together, you experience the world of imagination, information and exploration of God’s creation, through living books.

The late reading child wants so badly to decipher those magic, elusive letters on the page, and feels frustrated and discouraged because so many his age and younger can read and he can’t (often within the family). Many parents are tripping through this stressful situation looking for that hopeful day when everything will click. Be assured, it usually will—when they are ready. It is important to remember that they are all on a unique schedule when it comes to reading: God’s schedule.

Where was this book when my two middle boys were learning to read and on a very late schedule? It could have helped make an easier transition for them, that when they were ready it would happen. Of course they heard that from me, but this charming soft cover book encourages so sweetly. I think there are a lot of discouraged, late-reading kids out there that would love to hear this story.

And Then Mama Said . . .it Takes TIme to Learn to Read by Gena Suarez, is a brand new book available from The Old Schoolhouse Store. It comes with a free companion activity book too.

Blessed by an Education!

My life has been a whirlwind of activity the past month and it looks like its not going to slow down much, if at all!

It's so interesting and faith building to look back and see the hand of God in the circumstances surrounding your life. I have felt Him nudging me to write more and more and knew that He was going to use me somewhere down the line in that capacity. One thing has led to another and another and I found myself accepted into a special Marketing Class being offered by TOS (The Old Schoolhouse Magazine) of which I had recently begun a subscription. I was one of 30, chosen out of 125 for this amazing, educational, one month class.

Why was I interested in marketing, of all things? Well, we are a home business family that produces a bimonthly magazine where advertising is involved, and we are looking for new ways to promote ourselves. We also have web sites, my sons are interested in small business ventures, and hey, it's just become an interest so I thought, I can learn something worthwhile here. I was right.

I have been telling myself more and more, that when opportunity comes knocking, if you can, take advantage of it. I didn't want to miss out on this opportunity involving my favorite homeschool magazine with these 30+ friendly, awesome ladies from TOS and elsewhere. AND at the end of the class they offered several staff positions to ladies that had done especially well and successfully completed the class.

Guess what? I was one of those offered a position. Wow, I was almost in shock, but I knew God had called me into this and I shouldn't be surprised at what He can do through me. My new part time position is E-book Production Assistant, and I will work with the production of E-books that TOS produces, writing ads (sell sheets) and managing the E-books and I'm even contributing a chapter in their soon to be released new book To Market, To Market. (The publisher really liked my last written assignment and asked if I'd expand it for the book.) Getting compensated for writing is a dream come true. I pray that I can be a great team member and be used in a significant way in this new endeavor, and continue to be an encouragement to homeschoolers through TOS.

Our Homeschool Gazette Story (Newspapers and Reporters Unit Study)

One of the best unit studies we ever did resulted in a wonderful way of sharing what we were learning and writing with other homeschoolers around the world. This is taken from our web site Homeschool Gazette. We no longer accept submissions there, nor do we have a newsletter, but you'll find some creative ideas and encouraging information. ~Kathy

Since age seven, Josiah took off with reading. He loved 3-2-1 Contact, Ranger Rick, and Highlights magazines. His favorite was Reader's Digest, in which I had to rip out any unwanted articles that I preferred to hide from him. I so enjoyed seeing him curled up with a book, and hear him chuckle at something funny he had read.

Writing was a different story. He had a vivid imagination and could sometimes narrate his ideas, but he seemed to balk at attempts to write on his own, outside of simple thank you notes and short letters to grandma. I felt he needed a reason to write.

An inexpensive work book caught my attention in a homeschool catalog - Newspaper Reporters (an introduction to newspaper writing), published by Teacher Created Materials. At age nine, Josiah, and Gideon, seven, began a unit study on "Newspapers and Reporters". My idea was to study various aspects of good writing related to newspaper and magazine type articles, try writing their own similar articles using our word processor, culminating the study with a newsletter filled with their writings to share with family and friends. The boys thought it sounded like fun. It worked out to be one of the best ideas I've ever had!

Grandma sent a Sunday paper from Ocala, Florida. We lived in Washington state at the time and I wanted a different perspective on the news to study from. We used the workbook but only as a guide to meet our own desires and needs, feeling free to skip parts that we had no interest in (like writing sports stories) or that were redundant, unnecessary, or unappealing to the boys. It had some great ideas though that we had fun using.

Before long, the boys compiled articles, poems, ads, puzzles, cartoons, and a contest. Josiah wrote a humorous piece after reading the Dave Barry columns. He wrote a feature article on traveling through New York state, requiring research. Gideon dictated an intriguing work of prose about springtime. We studied layout, headlines, art, advertising, weather, proofreading, interviews, and editorials. Some of Josiah's work was half narrated, which helped ease his way into writing on his own.

At the time we were ready to embark on our own newsletter compilation, a real live computer had just arrived in our living room! The timing was perfect. Our study turned to computers and learning how to set up our newsletter using Publisher software. We turned out our first Homeschool Gazette soon afterward. The computer became an instant love, and Josiah absorbed knowledge incredibly, as if by osmosis. The newsletter turned out so nice, we all had the idea to continue it, making it a publication that our friends (most all homeschoolers) could participate in. [We published it faithfully for close to five years. Josiah designed and maintains this web site, and other homeschoolers from around the world are welcome to participate.] But best of all, Josiah is a writer, and an editor. When he gets an idea, he can whip out an article on the computer and he enjoys it.

During this particular time of study, we concentrated on writing and language arts. Only a smattering of math was accomplished apart from facts review. We read a lot together, and discussed what we liked about the articles we read and what we didn't like. I also participated by writing some of my own articles to share with the boys. It was a very enjoyable time for all of us. As a side note, I have heard home school moms say to me, "But you are so creative. I could never do what you do!" Perhaps they are afraid to try. We are ALL creative, and just need to act on our ideas. Relax, and let your God inspired creative ideas go wild...

P.S. Our boys are presently 22, 19, 16, & 13.

The Eruption

I want to share this poem because it has touched me so.

By Jen Abbas, an18-year-old child of divorce:

The Eruption

Divorce is like a trembling earthquake,
The world shakes, rumbling with rage,
And all the anger, guilt, and frustrations
That have been festering for so long
below the surface
Suddenly spew upward in an inferno of hate
or apathy.
At times the earth calms and you think the
turmoil is over,
Settled, stable, but then the cycle begins again,
Repeating, repeating, repeating.
You are weary, you want to rest,
And that is when you realize the shaking has
stopped,
But there is an eerie feeling lurking in the air.
You are hesitant to believe anything anymore,
You are so tired after struggling for so long,
And so you rest on the one solid patch of land,
Only to watch it split in two,
Two separate, distinct parts that will never
come together again.
Each new patch supports part of you,
And as you watch, they pull away.

Curiosita

"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." ~ Leonardo Da Vinci

From the category of famous people, the young man I am tutoring chose to compile a notebook on Leonardo Da Vinci . Good choice! We've studied him before, but can you ever stop studying Leonardo? I had never heard of Leonardo's horse ordeal until recent weeks. How did I miss that before? The Creative Thinker of All Time boasts of amazing accomplishments. He was an artist, architect, sculptor, inventor, engineer, and scientist. He was also an entertainer, musician, production designer and manager, writer, naturalist, scholar and philosopher. Has his understanding of the world opened doors of knowledge for us? From his exemplary life, we can see that Leonardo surely went out and happened to things!

Curiosita - An insatiably curious approach to life and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning, is the first of the seven Da Vincian Principles expounded upon in the book How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci by Michael J. Gelb. As a mother, I can visualize the natural curiosity and desires of my little boys to explore, taste and experience the fascinating world around them, and as a homeschooling mom, I'd never want to see this innate lust for learning end.

I have been researching Leonardo in my own curiosity quest. I've always liked to draw and I admire beautiful paintings and the artistic talents of others. I am a fan of museums and have seen many famous paintings in my lifetime. I'd like to think like Leonardo, and learn seven steps to genius every day as the title suggests (I'd like to try writing backwards, though I'll leave out dissecting bodies, thank you).

Mr. Gelb believes that our learning power can improve with age (I'd like to believe that). Couldn't I use this knowledge to pattern our own education? I wonder how far we are from Leonardo's methods? The Curiosita Self-Assessment checklist the book provides claims that your answers tell how well you are already using it and where to improve. Here's the list:

• I keep a journal or notebook to record my insights and questions.
• I take adequate time for contemplation and reflection.
• I am always learning something new.
• When I am faced with and important decision, I actively seek out different perspectives.
• I am a voracious reader.
• I learn from little children.
• I am skilled at identifying and solving problems.
• My friends would describe me as open-minded and curious.
• When I hear or read a new word or phrase, I look it up and make a note of it.
• I know a lot about other cultures and am always learning more.
• I know or am involved in learning a language other than my native one.
• I solicit feedback from my friends, relations, and colleagues.
• I love learning.

I can check yes by a number of these, but also would need much discipline in others. In light of the above and what I know about Leonardo, I see a correlation with Charlotte Mason's educational philosophy. Ms. Mason wrote "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life," and the CM school motto is "I Am, I Can, I Ought, I Will." She also said: "We trust much to good books - Once more, we know that there is a storehouse of thought wherein we may find all the great ideas that have moved the world." She encouraged keeping journals from an early age and the study of languages. Children were to be free in their play, letting them use their imaginations and providing time for their many self motivated projects, but parents were always present guiding lights. History (chronologically) and nature study were emphasized. Both Charlotte and Leonardo were advocates of virtue, including truth and beauty. Relating more specifically to children and curiosita Charlotte shares this:

"The idea that vivifies teaching. . . is that 'Education is a Science of Relations; by which phrase we mean that children come into the world with a natural [appetite] for, and affinity with, all the material of knowledge; for interest in the heroic past and in the age of myths; for a desire to know about everything that moves and lives; about strange places and strange peoples; for a wish to handle material and to make; a desire to run and ride and row and do whatever the law of gravitation permits. Therefore. . . we endeavor that he shall have relations of pleasure and intimacy established with as many possible of the interests proper to him; not learning a slight or incomplete smattering about this or that subject, but plunging into vital knowledge, with a great field before him which in all his life he will not be able to explore. In this conception we get that 'touch of emotion' which vivifies knowledge, for it is probably that we feel only as we are brought into our proper vital relations." ~ Charlotte Mason

Wow! Doesn't that sum it up? Curiosita is just the first of the Da Vincian Principles and is demonstrated by a continuous quest for learning . In that chapter the author lists a number of exercises one can do to improve your skills and apply this concept. He asks the question "What would you learn if you could learn anything at all?" Most of the people he asks answer with things that express an ideal or dream hobby, something they always wanted to do but never did, and I'm thinking to myself, I have a lot of those. Some I have touched on in the past but just failed to continue to make time for them. Mr. Gelb finds that people who pursue those hobbies passionately live richer, more fulfilling lives. And Charlotte Mason would agree. There are many hobby-like activities I'd love to pursue further, and I'd like for the boys to find new ways to enjoy life too. As a people, we have all kinds of excuses for not doing those things (I'm guilty), but as Leonardo would answer, "You can have no dominion greater or less than that over yourself." It's never too late!

Some other insights I found in these interesting exercises included the free writing technique that we have been employing at home (I've mentioned this in an earlier post). He calls it stream of consciousness writing but it's the same thing, where you write continuously, always keeping your pen moving, paying no attention to grammar or spelling etc. I liked this metaphor of the poet's motto: "Write drunk, revise sober." I'll have to remember it.

Leonardo kept a notebook with him wherever he went. I bought a nice leather journal for that purpose in the last few years, and though I did that for several months, I didn't continue to lug it around, but wrote in it at home. He used his notebooks (seven thousand pages still exist but authorities estimate it was twice as many) without organization, mixing all kinds of thoughts, letters, doodles and drawings, new vocabulary, plans, scientific treatises, questions and even copy work!

The Great Problem Solver was a man who asked many questions. He felt this was much more important than giving right answers. Quite the opposite of today's educational institutions. Finding and asking the right questions will lead you to the solutions. I think I need to re-emphasize this approach to our learning at home.

Leonardo taught himself Latin at age 42. Babies learn languages easily, but at any age this is a fun hobby and you can actually learn faster than a baby. We've dabbled in German in past years when one son had an interest and recently Jeremiah developed an interest in French. I picked up a freebie - a set of learning cassettes that we still have to delve into. I love language; the etymology of our own English leaves much to discover. Leonardo defined over nine thousand words in his journals.

Charlotte Mason had much to say about developing good habits. Leonardo was keen on observational and emotional intelligence, studying people and their habits, much as he also studied nature and animals. He majored in getting along with others! A required book for graduating in our homeschool is the favorite classic How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

I'm only in the beginning chapters of How to Think Like Leonardo but let me share briefly, the remaining seven principles:

Dimostrazione - A commitment to test knowledge through experience, persistence, and a willingness to learn from mistakes. Sensazione - The continual refinement of the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience. Sfumato - A willingness to embrace ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty. Arte/Scienza - The devepment of the balance between science and art, logic and imagination. "Whole-brain" thinking. Corporalita - The cultivation of grace, ambidexterity, fitness, and poise. Connessione - A recognition of and appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things and phenomena. Systems thinking.

I'm looking forward to learning more from Master Da Vinci in these next chapters and modeling the Da Vinci lifestyle and information I am learning to my boys, applying more to our home schooling. To start, I have a nature watercolor painting and colored pencil drawing I could complete and possibly submit to the Boone County Fair this week. I'm also going to get out those French tapes. Having had Charlotte Mason as a mentor gently leads the way. Au revoir, or as Leonardo would say buona notte.

Featured Drawings: Leonardo's Christ Figure 1490 and Study of a Womb 1489 from his journals

A Job Well Done

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." -Ecclesiastes

The packed auditorium was buzzing with excitement as we sat among a few scattered parents and dozens of children of all sizes and ages. It was Jeremiah's turn to audition for his first full length play, Seussical the Musical. He had been given a page of script in which he had just a few minutes to review and then gave a "cold" reading. Pretty good.

We waited some more. Time to sing. Wait a minute, can Jeremiah sing? His chosen song was the humorous parody Cats in the Kettle sung to the tune of Cats in the Cradle as written by Weird Al (If you've never heard it, look it up on the web). The audience was tickled with his antics and his voice, and I think that's what won him the part of The Grinch. He also played a double role as the eagle.

Though on stage for most of the production, his speaking (and solo singing) parts were relatively small. He went to almost all of the practice days of which there were too many, often having to wait long periods for his turn to come up. He really gave his all to each of four performances.

Well the play has been long over for months now, but several lasting friendships resulted, and so many good things have transpired as part of that experience. (A dream of mine was for the boys to be able to participate in the realm of drama or perhaps speech in some way.)

A few weeks ago Jeremiah got notice in the mail that he was nominated for an award and to please come to the awards ceremony which was last Saturday night. We went not expecting anything but a good time, but we were pleasantly surprised. The very first award given was for "Outstanding Performance By a Supporting Actor in Children's Literature" (of which all nominations were from Seussical) and Jeremiah won! He went up on stage and received his award and said his thank-you.

This unexpected delight was recognition of a job well done that somebody(s) had noticed. It amazed us to think of the large cast of characters in the play and that he was chosen. A speaker for the Arts Council summed it up this way: "Their role may or may not have been a big one, but their performance was such that when you walked out the theater door, their character made a definite impact on you."

Congratulations again to Jeremiah for a job well done!