5 Common Mistakes Parents Make When Teaching Reading

I was watching an Instagram story the other day. It was a 30-second peek into a preschool reading lesson. The screen showed a little four or five-ish girl sifting through alphabet cards that were haphazardly laid out in front of her.

She picked up the letter G card and with all the pluck and moxie of a firstborn, shouted out, "Gu!" Next came H. "Hu!" she declared.

She was confident. She was determined. This was her moment. She was reading and she wanted those of us behind the screen to know it.

Workbooks Have a Place and Purpose in Homeschooling Too

Written by Jessica.

What is a workbook?

It's a simple question with a somewhat complicated answer, especially for those of us who teach from home. According to its definition, a workbook is a student’s book of problems to be solved directly on the page.

In the homeschool world, I’ve noticed that workbooks often have quite a bad reputation. We like to throw around terms like “living literature,” “activity-based learning,” and “hands-on manipulatives.” You don’t find many moms boasting about using workbooks! The truth is, when used in moderation and not exclusively, the workbook has a place and has a purpose.

Finding Your Charlotte Mason Rhythm

Written by Talvi McCuskey.

Thinking about beginning any foreign feat can be a daunting task. When I first realized that I would soon have to begin formal schooling for my oldest child, I was quite scared. After all, I had never done this whole home education thing before.

The weight of my child’s education resting solely on my shoulders felt like a heavy burden. I had an idea of what method I wanted to pursue to teach her. But as with most things in life, there was a gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it.

What is a Living Book Anyway?

Charlotte Mason called them living or full of life. Some have referred to them as whole or complete, lacking in nothing. Still, others describe them with words like imaginative, original, or full of human touch.

No matter what moniker you give them, one thing is clear, a living book is anything but average. Living books are the best. Those aren't my words, mind you. (Although, I don't disagree.) They are Miss Mason's. She writes,

"For the children? They must grow up upon the best . . . There is never a time when they are unequal to worthy thoughts, well put; inspiring tales, well told." (Charlotte Mason, Parents and Children, p. 263)

Teaching All Ages with Living Picture Books

Written by Jessica.

When my children were each preschool-aged, I taught using thematic units that were about a week or two long. Often these were on seasonal topics (Apples, Leaves, Animals in Winter, Turkeys, Snow, Spring Weather, Seeds and Plants, Pond Life), with other fun topics thrown in about topics of current interest (Trains, Firemen, Pets, etc.). Creating thematic units simply meant that I’d choose piles of beautiful picture books on a topic and then add in hands-on art, so-simple “science,” and print-and-go thematic math and letter activities that I found for free online. It was perfect for each of my preschoolers and worked for including younger tots, too.

A Former Homeschooler Turned Roadschooling Mom: Meet Chelsea Gonzales

Written by Chelsea Gonzales of Wonder Wherever We Wander.

When I was about 10 years old, my parents asked me the craziest question: 

“What if we did school at home?” 

It seemed so ridiculous—a thought no kid would ever actually get to entertain. Yet there it was, being offered as if it were perfectly normal.

I had never heard of homeschooling before, and there weren't many homeschooling families to be found in our area even if a person knew where to look. I was intrigued, but I did take an extra cautious look at the idea before jumping on board. 

Why I Don't Give My Kids Tests

It's difficult for most homeschooling skeptics to think outside the traditional classroom box. Unconventional methods frighten them. That's understandable, I suppose. A person can't truly comprehend that which he has never experienced. So, many regular folks assume that homeschool is suppose to look like school...only at home. Sadly, many homeschoolers think that too.

But, you can't just replace desks with dining room tables and expect the end result to be dramatically different.

No. Homeschooling is not school at home. It is an entirely different animal altogether and should therefore look vastly different. In its daily liturgy. In its focus. In its very DNA.

Reading Comprehension the Charlotte Mason Way

The dreaded book report. 

It's a black-and-white inquisition designed to prove whether or not a child read a book and actually understood what he read. 

I remember loathing the weekly book reports assigned to me in Mrs. Hurst's second-grade class. Each week, I'd pick up a new-to-me book and be transported to meet far out people in far off places. I'd get lost in the language of literature only to be dragged back to reality when Mrs. H handed out those hateful book report forms. She meant well. It was her simple way of being able to assess the comprehension and completion of 35 students. To her credit, she added cute little clip art and awarded scratch-n-sniff stickers whenever appropriate (Scratch-n-sniff stickers were like childhood gold on the 1980s playground. There was a whole underground market for them by the swing set every afternoon. Don't tell my mom.) But in the end, her little mimeographed report forms were nothing but joy killers making an entire class of reading hopefuls disdain the very idea of reading. For every book we read, we had to complete a lengthy fill-in-the-blank style report. 

Reading became work, so I didn't want to do it anymore.  

5 Sneaky Tricks for When You Can't Teach All-the-Things In Your Homeschool

In my first few years of homeschooling, I tried to cram all-the-things into every single moment of our days. I was so afraid that I'd miss something, that I'd forget to teach a crucial element, that I'd leave gaping holes in my kids' learning. I felt the full weight of their education and wore it like a burden around my neck.

But, I'm soooooo over that guilt. It's not mine to carry. The truth is, I can't possibly teach them everything there is to know about everything. Learning is a life-long process. I'm thirty-sevenish and I still don't know all-the-things. But, I keep learning. I keep growing. I keep searching for right answers. And if I can inspire a love of learning in my kids, they will keep searching too -- at ten, at twenty, at one hundred twenty.

How We Homeschool Without Grade Levels

"And what grade are you in, honey?" the little old lady asked my daughter in an impromptu conversation by the produce section. She found my then eight-year-old girl sorting through apples looking for just the right one and thought it odd that a child her age would be at the grocery store in the middle of a Thursday.

It was, I suppose.

Curiosity got the better of her and she began peppering my daughter with questions, a little confused by this homeschooling thing. She rapid-fired one question after another in game show, lightning-round fashion until she got to the one about grade levels.

The BIG FAT List of Living Literature Curriculums

While I love combing the library for treasures and compiling my list of books every year, I realize not everyone has the time or the desire to do so. But, learning through books doesn’t have to be overwhelming or time-consuming. You don’t have to invent the wheel to still use living books. There are several great, ready-made programs designed to point you to just the right titles at just the right ages and stages of your kids. While certainly not exhaustive, here is a list of some of the top living book-based curriculums for home education. Whether you prefer a simple list of book suggestions or a more structured traditional curriculum complete with study guides and discussion questions, there’s something for everyone. 

How Front-Post, Back-Post Homeschooling Changes Things

Last October, I made a rather rash decision. I don't know what I was thinking, really. As a recovering do-all-the-things addict, I thought I had outgrown my incessant need to crowbar one more thing into an already packed schedule. I'm clearly still strung out on the drug of hustle.

In my defense, however, I thought that since I was giving myself a whole two months to complete the task, it would be more than doable.

Have I mentioned I'm just a tad bit delusional? I'm working on that.
Baby steps.

Homeschool Mom, Your Teen Needs a Different Teacher and Here's Why

In Joshua chapter 4, the children of Israel were commanded to build a memorial of 12 stones at the Jordan River as a reminder of the BIG thing that God had done for them in parting the waters yet again. Every time the people saw those stones, they recalled that day and their big, BIG God.

A Simplified Morning Time {with a video}

(This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details.)

Morning Time is definitely a current buzzword in homeschooling circles. With the popularity of the Your Morning Basket podcast, it seems that everyone has caught the fever. And why not? A purposeful time together each morning pouring over Truth, beauty, and all that is good should be an anchor in the homeschool day.

The Lazy Mom's Guide to Delight-Directed Education

Some might call it strewing.

Others, sneaky learning.
Still others prefer "childhood enchantment."

Whatever the moniker, the outcome is still the same. All of these methods lead to one thing, a delight-directed education. It's the no-fuss, fast-track way to encourage REAL learning...the kind in which a child personally invests and one which inspires (not requires) him to want to learn more.

But what exactly is "strewing?" you ask.

I'm NOT an Unschooler...and here's why

I was browsing Pinterest the other day and somehow stumbled upon a pin from my own blog. I chuckled to see that it had been pinned to a board entitled "unschooling." Someone had been curating ideas for unschooling and had included one of my posts in the bunch.

So, I giggled just a wee bit.

Not because unschooling is funny.
Or that the idea of an unschooler using one of my posts is somehow funny.

10 Simple Things to Do to Revive a Boring Homeschool Day {in 10 minutes or less}

Education doesn't have to be fun.

It should be engaging. Yes.
But fun? I'm not so sure.

A "fun" home education is one in which a mother has to wildly wave her "jazz hands" to create a small circus act. A "fun" education puts the pressure all on her to produce just the right environment. A "fun" education breeds a lazy learner who never explores, creates, or dives-deep because he never has to...information is handed to him on a glittering neon platter.

Hymn Index {The WHY, HOW, and WHAT for Morning Circle Time}

There is a reason that "Amazing Grace" has been sung at nearly every funeral for the past century and that amidst the turmoil and tragedy of the sinking Titanic, the musicians reportedly played "Nearer My God to Thee."

(This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details.)

The Why

These old hymns of the faith evoke memory and a posture of praise. Truthfully, there is nothing innately holy about any of them just as there is nothing innately UNholy about modern praise and worship music. They both have a place around the table of liturgy.

But, there is something powerful and uniting about a hymn. One simple chord can trigger an unconscious surfacing of memories. It is more than just nostalgia or recollection. It is a bolstering of faith.

Poetry & Pie Party {igniting a passion for verse}

The thought of poetry use to make my boys cringe. Verse seemed too fluffy...too girly...too fancy for their liking.

But besides being a wonderful way to improve verbal and cognitive skills, memorizing and reciting poetry is a natural way to learn proper syntax and grammar patterns. It expands vocabulary and improves writing skills. And, what's more, it is a central presence in every culture all over the world and throughout history.

All very good reasons why THIS momma was determined to steer the opinions of her boys and ignite a passion for poetry in each of her kids! 

As it turns out, cultivating that love is as easy as pie!

Why I Don't Teach History Chronologically

I know what you're thinking. 

You don't teach history chronologically? Surely you're not playing with a full deck, Lady. History is NOTHING if not chronological!

Well, yes. And no. 

I think history is chronological. But, I don't feel compelled to teach it EXACTLY in order. At least not to very young kids. If I was going to teach it to students in upper elementary and above, then sure. I would make it chronological. I would begin at the beginning...I'd start with the Ancients.