Greece Unit: Magazine Clipping Mosaics

While continuing our study of Ancient Greece, we learned that one of the most popular Grecian art forms was mosaic scenes. Craftsmen would use tesserae, small four-sided glass tiles, to create intricate wall mountings or floor coverings.

One snowy afternoon found us gathered at the art table creating our own mosaic masterpieces out of old magazine clippings.

Greece Unit: How to Make a Grecian Urn

After ending a fabulous Egypt Unit, we have moved to the next era of ancient history...GREECE! Since Grecian life and culture was heavily influenced by the people of Crete, we began there.

Art in History: Historically Accurate Art Projects for both Right and Left-Brained Learners

I have a left-brained kiddo.  In fact, I have two.  Two kids who see the world in black-and-white, logical terms.  Two kids who approach everything with reason and objectivity.  

In stark contrast, I have two right-brained kids.  Two kids who see the world in color and movement. Two kids who filter all of life through emotion and passion.  

(The verdict is still out on the baby.)

In a home where simple logistics requires much of our learning to be combined, it is often tricky to provide educational activities that incorporate BOTH right and left-brained styles of learning.  

End-of-the-Year Program for Homeschool 2014

After nine months of watching our children blossom through diligence and hard work, we, co-op moms, always enjoy celebrating their successes by hosting an end-of-the-year spring program for family and friends.  For the past six years, it has been a fantastic way to share what they have learned and to put an official "the end" on a wonderful year of co-operative learning.  (This post contains affiliate links.)

While the basic format for our program has remained the same over the years, each one has been slightly different.  This year, the mothers decided not to have an overall theme to each presentation. Each family could decide WHAT and HOW they wanted to share.

Mid-Year Curriculum Evaluation {with small changes}

It's no secret that I'm not an advocate for bailing on curriculum midway through the year.  In truth, sometimes, it's not the curriculum that is the problem.  (This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details.)

But, I also know that a thorough evaluation midway through the year, is a necessary and beneficial venture.  I never want to be tied down to a sinking ship.  So each year, come January, or sometimes before, I take a quick assessment of what IS or IS NOT working in our school day.  I make changes accordingly. 

Sometimes those changes come in the form of scheduling tweaks and sometimes in curriculum refinements.  

Homeschool Curriculum Choices 2013-2014

With curriculum shopping list firmly in hand, I scoured the shelves of my state homeschool convention determined to find great books at great prices!  I'm fairly certain that I lugged home my body weight in GOOD READS...but that's between me and my chiropractor.  

I'm so excited to be able to share my picks for the upcoming 2013-2014 school year with you.  If you've been a regular reader around these parts, you'll notice that several of my choices have remained the same from last year.  But, you'll ALSO notice, that I'm mixin' it up a bit with a few new additions and replacements.  I have highlighted all of those changes in pretty pink...but don't tell my boys.  They haaaaaate pink! 

Pros & Cons of Using Tapestry of Grace

Can I be honest with you? I mean r-e-a-l-l-y honest...the kind of honest that might offend some and anger others?

I wanted to like Tapestry of Grace. I wanted it to be the curriculum that would carry us through the rest of our homeschooling years....an anchor to keep us firmly-rooted in schedule and habit and cadence.

I wanted it to be the "tapestry", shall we say, for which all academic threads of our schooling were woven in and through.

But, after only six weeks into this looks-really-great-in-theory dream, I realized that Tapestry of Grace was definitely not for us.

5 Tips for Finding FREE {or almost free} Books for Homeschool

The posting of my monthly What We're Reading lists coupled with the fact that we use TruthQuest History, a living literature-style history program which requires us to read dozens and dozens of fantastic, albeit somewhat hard to find, books has compelled many to ask...

How can you afford all of those books?

The truth is, while we do own some books, our one-income-debt-free lifestyle and our itty-bitty house make it impossible to hoard more than a couple of bookshelves' worth. While I would love to pack our home with all manner of literary perfection (I'd live in a house MADE of books, if I could!), I have to be rather snobbish in my selections.

Why You Should Make Time for Timelines

"So, what was happening with God's people at that very same time?"

she asks nearly every day.  

This year, we're learning Ancient Grecian history.  And while my daughter is enjoying this particular study, she is not satisfied with bits and pieces of information.  She wants to know the relationship between one culture and the other.  She wants to see how one part fits together with the whole.  She wants to connect the dots from what she is learning about Ancient Greece to what she has learned from God's Word.  To put it simply, she wants me to pull out our ever-growing timeline and show her the completed puzzle of history.  

Ancient Egypt Unit Study: Map of Egypt

    

It's been a few weeks since we wrapped up our look at Ancient Egypt. We ended with a few great books and a simple geography project.

Although I had originally planned to make a salt dough map, I decided that a 2-dimensional version would make it easier for my children to label all of the parts clearly. Turns out, recreating a map is a FANTASTIC way to review the landscape of a particular region. Because this project had to be completed in stages in order to let each section of paint dry, my kids got to focus on the geographical details for over a week. I think it is permanently etched in their brains!

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

Curriculum 2012-2013

For the past two or three years, our curriculum choices have remained unvaried.  But this year, I will be mixin' it up quite a bit.  My choice for change is NOT at all due to the fact that I no longer like my previous selections.  For the most part, these alterations have stemmed from the natural ebb and flow of life.  As I add more students to our school day and as my older kids begin to show a natural aptitude for or a struggle with a certain area, I make adjustments.

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

So, after spending much of the summer in prayer and deliberation about our upcoming school year, the Hubs and I have finally determined our plan of action.  (I am highlighting all our changes in red.)

DRUMROLL, PLEASE...

The older children will be working on independent study skills by 

using task cards to keep track of their  daily to-do's.  (More on this to come...)

Group Lessons:

• Bible:  God's Names, Well-Versed Kids memory verse packets (We will begin doing Bible time at the end of dinner, instead of first thing in the morning so that the Hubs can do more of the teaching.)
• Science:  Question & Answer Books series, living-literature style books to go along with the unit studies from the science series, lapbooks, notebooking pages
• History:  TruthQuest History Guide: Ancient Egypt & Ancient Greece, lapbooks, notebook pages
• Geography:  Galloping the Globe w/CD, Eat Your Way Around the World 
• Phy. Ed:  Leslie Sansone Walk at Home, Denise Austin's Fit Kids and possibly a membership to the YMCA for family swimming, basketball, etc. (fingers crossed)
• Art:  The Usborne Complete Book of Art Ideas (We are in year two of a three year plan.)

Sweetie Pea-4th Grade:

• Devotions: Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions For Kids (I'll be using the adult version for my own personal study and look forward to great conversations with my girl as we read through the books together...only separate.), What the Bible Is All About Handbook for Kids: Bible Handbook for Kids
• Language: BJU English 4, All About Spelling, Abeka Read & Think Skill Sheets 4, a homespun spelling word bank notebook, a homespun writing portfolio notebook to be used with the BJU writing projects
• Math:  Abeka Arithmetic 4
• Handwriting: A Reason for Handwriting: Level C
• Creative Writing:  homespun writing prompt cards
• Logic Skills:  Building Thinking Skills, Level 2
• Foreign Language:  Rosetta Stone Chinese (Mandarin) Level 1
• Typing:  Typing Instructor For Kids
• Life Skills:  Uncle Gene's Breadbook for Kids, continue to make Sunday night dinners, finish sewing the matching aprons for her and her American girl doll
• Music:  weekly piano lessons
• Penpal:  for the fifth year in a row, she will continue to practice her writing skills by writing to her homeschool buddy in another state
• Handwork for Read Aloud time:  make friendship bracelets, cross-stitch on canvas projects, choose from activities in the handwork basket

Super Boy-1st Grade:

• Devotions:  The Hear Me Read Bible
• Language:  A Beka Letters and Sounds 1, Language 1, Spelling & Poetry 1, a homespun spelling word bank notebook
• Math:  Arithmetic 1
• Handwriting:  A Reason for Handwriting: Manuscript A
• Creative Writing:  My Starfall Writing Journal 
• Logic Skills:  Can You Find Me? K-1
• Life Skills:  Lessons in Responsibility for Boys Level 1 to do with the Hubs once a week
• Penpal:  for the second year in a row, he will continue to dictate...and later in the year write... letters to a homeschooling buddy in another state
• Handwork for Read Aloud time:  Orb Factory Sticky Mosaic Pirates , choose from activities in the handwork basket

Blonde Warrior-Kindergarten:

• Devotions:  choose from a picture Bible to look through from our "good morning" basket
• Language:  Phonics K
• Math:  ABeka Numbers Skills K 
• Handwriting: A Reason For Handwriting K
• Creative Writing:  homespun writing prompt cards
• Logic Skills:  Can You Find Me? Pre-K
• Handwork:  Orb Factory My First Picture Maker, choose from activities in the handwork basket

Greased Lightening-Preschool:

• Devotions:  choose from a picture Bible to look through from our "good morning" basket
• ABC:  Sesame Street Letter Sounds with Cookie Monster, homespun ABC book
• Language Development:  Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever
• Numbers/Shapes/Colors:  homespun activities along with some core books/games
• Handwork:  choose from activities in the handwork basket

Although this looks like a very full day, not all of these items will be tackled everyday.  In the coming days, I will be sharing a bit about our daily school schedule and how we orchestrate all of this learning each week.  For now, be sure to take a peek at how I hope to implement so much CHANGE into our upcoming year

Need more curriculum ideas, head on over to iHomeschool Network and check out what other homeschool families will be learning this coming school year.

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. 

50+ Living Books for an Ancient Rome Unit

Photo Credit

When we started our Ancient Roman unit using Tapestry of Grace, Year 1 Unit 4, I had high hopes of a wonderful year filled with historical adventures centered upon great living books. And although Tapestry of Grace quickly became lackluster, the Roman unit did not. A few weeks into our studies, I tossed PLAN A out the window and carved a new path. I decided to create my own living-literature based unit by piecing together books we currently owned, titles I came across at the library, and older-and-harder-to-find gems that I found inventoried on other Ancient Rome reading lists.

I divided the unit into six main time periods and then listed the books, to the best of my ability, in chronological order within each period.

Homeschool Curriculum Choices 2024-2025

I'm down to the final three kids at home. It's my seventeenth year of homeschooling, and with two kids in high school and one in middle school, I feel nearly obsolete. They may all be fairly self-sufficient, but they still need me—just in less acute ways. And isn't that the goal? Homeschool mothers should always aim to work their way out of a job. 

Here's a peek at how I'll still be involved in their day-to-day learning.

Homeschool Co-op Class Plans 2014-2015

Lots of changes happenin' in our co-op this year.  

Lots of changes.

But, as with all changes, these alterations bring an element of excitement and anticipation.

Changes 

Changes in membership

Due to some scheduling conflicts, the Architect's family has opted to step out of co-op...at least for the year.  It was with much sadness that we said goodbye but with hope that we'd still have opportunities to play and learn with them in church and on special field trips.