10 Practical Things Every Homeschooler Should Know

This an old post but as we are a couple months of school and I have talked to several Moms who are struggling, I thought I would post this again...



I have been talking to and seeing on message boards homeschool Moms discouraged about their first weeks of school. The kids are whiny and complaining, no one likes their curriculum and all the Mom is doing is putting out fires, not teaching. This is especially true of new homeschoolers. Where are the idyllic days spent reading with their child or making amazing lapbooks or crafting an amazing project based on what they are reading in history? They have heard about other homeschoolers getting all of this done and more. Why does it seem like it is a constant battle just to get math and Language Arts done? Why don't the kids seem to be enjoying the great projects that Mom has loving prepared? What has happened to the beautiful lessons plans that Mom has slaved over? Homeschooling is hard.
Don't worry and take heart. The first weeks of school are always the worst - sometimes even the first two months are bad. It takes everyone awhile to get used to this new regime. For a regime change has occurred especially if the child has previously been in a traditional school setting. Life has changed and there are new rules in place.
Don't change curriculum in the first two months for it may be less about curriculum and more about character training. It is more likely to be more about testing Mom than in a bad test score. It may be about seeing if Mom is really serious about this schedule than about whether the new schedule works. It may be about expectations, both Moms and the kids. So don't jump ship until the seas stop rocking and then you can take a serious look at what's working and what's not.
Here are some practical things that I have found to be helpful:
1. There is absolutely no whining or complaining in school. period. Teach your child Phil. 2:14-16. God doesn't like it ( and neither does Mom) so don't do it.
2. Have consequences pre-planned for whining and a lack of diligence. If you whine in our house or are not diligent in your work - you get more work but if you are, you get a marble in your jar which at a certain level will reward you with a special treat of some kind. This method works great with older kids, try a treasure box with pre-K - 2nd, filled with cheap little toys. Make sure and find something to reward your child with daily.
3. Have realistic expectations. A child will not sit quietly and let you read to them for hours. I learned this hard way. Let them play quietly with legos or color or draw while you read, it will go better.
4. Start school slowly. Add in the basics the first week, then slowly add in everything else. You will all be happier - trust me.
5. Plan fun things if the kids have been diligent. If the kids work diligently then take them out for an ice cream or better yet wait until Dad is home and give him the good report and then Dad can take them out while you have a bath.
6. Don't compare your homeschool with someone else's. Your friend, who homeschools, does not always have her act together either. Her house is not always clean and her husband does not always come home to a well-prepared dinner and her children do not sing like the VonTrapp's.
7. School time is sacred. Don't take phone calls, don't plan Bible studies, don't answer the door. It's your number one job for that time period. Limit outside activities during school hours. I don't do anything in school time, not co-op, not piano not anything. That's what the afternoon is for.
8. Have an ending time. School ends at this time - no matter what. Pick up where you left off the next day. Do your most important subjects first. I have a four day schedule so that I can use Fridays for pick up subjects.
9. Schedule time for cleaning and laundry and dinner prep. Most of my housework happens on Friday. Look at flylady.net for help in scheduling housework. Check out allrecipes.com for great slow cooker recipes. Dinner is done and you don't have to worry about it.
10. Make time for yourself and your husband. Schedule dates and keep them. Go out with your girlfriends or even just call them (after school of course). Have a mandated quiet time each afternoon, everybody goes to their room for atleast and hour - including you.
Homeschooling is hard but so is every good thing. Parenting is hard, marriage is hard, being a Christ-follower is hard but they are worth all the pain, sweat and tears I put into them. Homeschooling is the same way. More than worth it. There is nothing that I would rather do then to train and teach my children so that they will be ready for whatever amazing plan God has for them.
Have some other ideas that help you? Please let me know, my homeschool isn't perfect either and I could use all the help I can get.

I Love Homeschooling

I love home schooling.  I really do.  Yes, there are days that are hard and sometimes I just don't feel like home schooling but at the depths of who I am, I love it.  Here are the top reasons I love homeschooling my kids.

1.  I love to be able to talk to my kids about God.  I love to be able to stop in the middle of a history reading and say, "Do you see how God prepared the way for the Good news to spread?  The Romans made roads across the known world which allowed the apostles to spread the news farther and faster."

2.  I love the "a-ha" moment.  I want to be the one to see my kids when the light bulb comes on and they get a concept or conquer something they have been struggling over.  It is the best part of my day.

3.  I love to be able to tailor my kids learning to each of them.  I can allow them to follow their passions while still maintaining a rigorous base of academics.  I can allow Caileigh to draw her summaries or let Collin build a Lego model or even watch as Connor makes a program to show his Chemistry results.

4.  I love to take learning outside of the books.  We can build a ballista while studying Roman armies, make Johnny cakes when studying early American history or take a field trip to the Scottish games where they also have a Roman encampment.  ( Can you tell we are studying Rome?)  When we bring the books to life, learning happens more fully.  It becomes a great memory not just a memorized fact.

5.  I love to have the opportunity to teach character training and academics all at the same time.  Being able to teach perseverance, diligence, self-control, obedience and contentment all while teaching math is a beautiful thing.

6.  I love to learn.  Selfishly, I love to teach my kids because I love to learn.  I get excited about all the new things we are going to learn.  I know I was never taught half of this information and I love to be able to learn it along side my kids.  It's fun!

7.  I love that my kids get to be who God made them with out too much outside pressure.  No one is telling them that they shouldn't love to learn or that it's too Geeky to read Programming manuals for fun or that their clothes or hair or whatever makes them popular or not popular.  They thrive on being originals.  They take pride in being able to play the piano or recite Latin nouns or discuss whether the Aenid by Virgil is just a copy cat version of The Odyssey by Homer.

8.  I love the sheer amount of time we get to spend together.  Yes, I have to teach how to be kind or what to do when we are frustrated with each other but I consider it a privilege to do so.  I get to teach them conflict resolutions while they are young.  I didn't learn many of these techniques until Scott and I were engaged, what a leg up they will have in their relationships.

9.  I love the ability to help them reach their potential.  I know I am the meanest Mom ever, but I love to    encourage them to try harder and learn more.  To do the hard thing not the easy thing.  To reach higher and achieve more.  I love to see when they surprise themselves by achieving something they didn't think possible.

10.  I love that I get to spend my days with the most amazing people on the face of the earth.  They are incredible and it is a blessing to spend my days with them. 

Here are few pictures showing why I love homeschooling so very much.

Homemade pastries on the first day of school.

Dressing up as a Magistra for the first day of school.  Acting and teaching at the same time!

My beautiful children - enough said.

Finding like minded friends that make learning together so much better!

Family outings which disguise the fact that actually they are learning opportunities.

Letting my kids be who they are, even if it scares me a little.

Having Dad being an integral part of the learning process.

Character lessons - see you are not so big and mighty even if you are 14.

Categories: parenting

Happy 40th Birthday, Scott

I loved you when we were in our 20's and we were getting married, having babies, and lived in 2 apartments and owned 3 different houses and life was crazy.

I loved you when we were ( okay, I stll am for another precious 5 months) in our 30's and we were raising toddlers who all of a sudden are teens and pre- teens and life revolved around our little family.

I will love you now that we are in our 40's and will prayerfully experience kids graduating and going to college and possibly getting married.  Then it will come back to the way we started, the two of us. 

I loved you then, I love you now and I will love you forever!


Categories: parenting

The Blessing of an Involved Dad

At the beginning of August, I left for 2.5 weeks to speak at a convention in California and then to work at the My Father's World office as a homeschool consultant (fancy speak for answering phone calls and fielding questions).  That means that Scott had the kids at home for 1.5 weeks and then took them all on a road trip to Space Camp for a week.  Yes, by himself.  He is a brave man.

Now, the first thing a Mom has to realize and release is that Dad will not do things in the same way a Mom will.  No way, no how.  However, a smart Mom should recognize that this is  blessing.  When Mom steps out of the way and lets Dad (or makes Dad, while still feeling like she might be feeding him to the lions) some very beautiful things happen.

1.  Dad and kids start forming relationships that they might never have had if Mom was always there.  My kids formed deeper relationships with their Dad because I haven't been there.

2.  Dads teach kids things that a Mom would never think of.  For example:

Spam and Mac and Cheese are awesome.  (Mom might not agree with all of these things)

Cleaning the floor with a wash cloth is fine as long as the floor gets clean and then the cloth gets tossed in the washer.

If you can't find enough clean underwear for said road trip, go to Wal-Mart and buy new ones.

Building a Van De Graff generator is a great way to spend an evening.

We are all in this together and if Mom comes home to a dirty house, we are all going to pay.

Demerit systems as a discipline technique.  Who knew?

3.  I don't think that my kids will ever forget that the one thing their Dad wanted for his 40th Birthday was to go to Space Camp with all of them.  He could have gone by himself by no, he wanted them to experience it with him.  That, is by far the best thing he could have done for them.  That his best present was to spend time with them and then made it happen on a 2 day each way road trip.

Prayerfully, all of our husbands are involved Dads.  I found that praising, encouraging and asking my husband to be involved was far better than demanding he be involved in our kids life.  We Moms need to be careful not to criticize our husbands when they do things their way.  Have the kids survived?  Did they eat? Did they have a good time?  Did they learn something new?  Then great!  You can clean the mess up, give them vegetables and no sugar for the next week and put them to bed early to make up for the sleep they lost.  All of these things seem big but in the grand scheme of things, like your kids and their Dad having a vibrant relationship, they are tiny indeed.











Categories: parenting

Oregon Coast Vacation - part 2

The twins "exploring" at Crater Lake.

The family!

My very beautiful,  pregnant sister and her lovely husband.

Our beloved Grams with the kids at a Rose Garden in Portland.

At Tillamook for cheese and ice cream.

My cousin, her husband and her three children met us at Seaside, OR for a week at the beach.

We so love Dave and Steph.  They are our kind of people.

Scott is so happy exploring the Tidal Pools at Haystack Rock.

Playing at the beach!

Caileigh digging a hole to "catch" Uncle Dave.

Uncle Dave "falling" in the hole.

The cousins!

The biggest sand castle/land/amusement park/ waterway system ever.

The big boys helped.

Grams walking the beach with the kids.

Grams and some of her girls.

Last year after our vacation to Washington and Oregon my cousin, her husband and Scott and I promised to get back together, so after much finagling we found a week and a beach house.  We invited whatever family could make it and we proceeded to meet in Seaside, OR for a week at the beach. 

We had a great time.  We don't often find families that raise kids like we do, think like we do and enjoy each other and are family.  When we do find these people, it is so important to make the time to get together.  It's good for you, for your kids and the entire family.  I loved laughing when my cousin or her husband said something that made my kids turn and say, "YOU say the exact same thing, Mom!"  Like mindedness is a beautiful thing.

My cousin is the very soul of servanthood which kept us fed and organized and her wonderful kids follow in her footsteps.  Her husband, Dave, is a wonderful, funny, Godly leader of his home and kept us laughing the entire week.  My Grams is always the backbone of the family and it is so lovely to see her spending time with our kids.  My sister is delightful and we so enjoyed getting to know her husband  more.  Not to mention that he is very competitive which makes games so fun ( especially when you beat him).  He got even, though. It's a good thing he only stayed for two of the days, he might have showed me up and that might have been a problem!

I love that Scott and Dave get along so well and complement each other well, for good and for not so good.  Even though her kids are older than mine, they all played and went for walks and generally just enjoyed themselves.   I soaked in the laughter, camaraderie and love that were the hallmarks of the week.  I even enjoyed making meals and cleaning because Steph and I did it all together.  

I can't wait for next year, whatever we do will be great.  I hope you can find a family or two that are like minded and find time to be together.  It is a blessing to "live" life together and your kids will be blessed by other examples of Godly families.

Categories: parenting

California Coast - part 1 of our vacation

Yes, I am a Curriculum Junkie

Hi, my name is Dawn and I am addicted to curriculum. I have a problem.


 I might relate to the following blog. Read it and then you, too, can determine if the shakes you get when you hear of a new curriculum is normal. 


 Be honest!


http://www.classicalwriting.com/blog/2012/07/06/curriculum-envy/
Categories: parenting

The twins turn 11!

We had an early birthday party for the twins as we were heading to the California and Oregon coast during their actual birthday but still wanted to have a celebration with their friends.  We decided to have  people over for breakfast and then took everyone to go see Brave.  (Note Scott in his kilt as we were going to see a movie about Scotland).


A breakfast movie/party is great fun.  I made Oatmeal Bake the night before and then just put it in the oven when I got up.  I cut up fruit the night before and then just made coffee and tea for the adults, had several options of juice for the kids and made yogurt smoothies quickly while the oatmeal was baking.  My friend, E, made Monkey Bread ( which is so good, it is better than a cage) and voila the party was done!  Movies are also MUCH cheaper before noon so we could take the whole group and it was still less expensive than one of our regular parties.


Papa made the party even more fun by getting large first aid patches and writing "eye pad" on it.  Everyone giggled and laughed and then the twins were excited to actually open the packages from Mom and Dad with a nano for Caileigh and a shuffle for Collin as he really wanted a Lego pirate ship!














Categories: parenting

Re post - Getting to the Heart

I wrote this blog 6 years ago but I really like the idea of planting seeds in different soils as a picture of our heart condition. I think this might even grab my pre-teens and teens attention. My mother in law might be a genius.





 Summer passed like a blur..... School is back in session, Scott and I spent two weeks in Scotland (which was amazing) and life is back on the fast track.


I've really been convicted lately to make sure I'm getting to my children's heart. "Behavior is only the window to your child's heart" as Ted Tripp, author of Shepherding a Child's Heart, says. I want my children to be well behaved but I want them to want to do what is right more. To teach a child to want to do right is much more difficult than training them to behave. A pet can behave if we train them but a child can touch others for Christ. Training a child to have a heart for Christ will bless them forever.


While we were in Scotland, my wonderful Mother-in-Law, Sherron went through some of the Parables with my kids. They read the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:1-9) and then planted seeds in various soils. As you might suppose, the seeds in the good soil grew the best. This was a powerful picture of the condition of our hearts, that all my children have been touched by. We talk daily about having a heart without weeds or sin.

Early this year we all memorized Matthew 22:27-39 which talks about putting God first then others before yourself. This verse alone has helped to keep our hearts in the right place. It's a powerful tool to use during arguments and fight between kids - it doesn't matter who had the toy first or who is right - what's the priority in your heart? The older my children get, the more important this becomes.

A great resource for you to read is Ted Tripp's book, "Shepherding a Child's Heart". This training has also helped me be a better wife and friend - check it out!










Categories: parenting

Thought this was genius...

When my kids were little, I would have them do 15min clean ups before Dad got home and if they left anything out I would clean them up and put them in a trash bag. I did the same thing for rooms as they were to clean them up every morning. I would let them "work off" their payment to me to get their toys back, although once the kids were fine with me taking their toys I donated many of them.

 I thought the ideas on the following blog was pretty smart. I like the idea of putting notes in the place of the toy as a clever reminder. I would make sure the kids know when they are supposed to clean their toys up though, whether it be a 15 min clean up, before bed or whenever you say to.


zitzmanfam.blogspot.com
Categories: parenting

Mom and the Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Homeschooling Day

Check out my newest article!




http://issuu.com/the_homeschool_handbook/docs/thh_marchapril_2012_web-1/9


Categories: parenting

Convention Follow-Up

I am going to try and be humble here but I am struggling with pride.  The kids were amazing at convention.  There are times that it seems like all of our training and hard work are making no impact as parents and then it just seems to come to together. 

It started out a little shaky as one of the kids left a light on in the car and ran out the battery the first night out but we were at Grammy and Papa's so Papa jumped the car and it was fine.  However, my misgivings about bringing the kids were growing at an alarming rate.  I had a four hour drive to think about everything that could go horribly wrong all ending with my being asked to never show my face at a homeschool convention again.  ( Hey, it could happen.)

We got there and had a lovely evening swimming and hanging out.  I laid down my gound rules and expectations while I laid out our clothes and we went to sleep.  I went to sleep praying, HARD!

The next morning we met the team to put the booth up which can be a long and arduous process filled with many potential stressful moments.  I put my kids under the authority of my wonderful boss and his lovely wife for orders and we got to work.  I was so happy to see my kids taking direction, following through and working quickly and efficiently.  It was beautiful to behold.

As time came for the convention hall to open we changed into our dress clothes and I gave them some more direction and then my boss gave them some direction.  (It is always a good idea to give your kids your list of expectations before you expect them.)  They were great!  They were helpful, polite and willing.  Connor worked on school while helping bring packages, Collin handed out catalogs and refilled the catalog racks and Caileigh sweetly greeted customers.  Caileigh so wanted to help customers and several times had to call for back up as they asked questions she could not handle but she handled it politely and with much poise.

The twins spent the next day in a VBS like Childrens Program which they loved and Connor was our runner in the booth and diligently worked on schoolwork (a perfect advertisement for high school).

The last day the kids again hung out in the booth but then we had to tear down. Again, the kids were fantastic and took direction.  Only once, did I have to step in and make sure Caileigh had properly listened and followed direction but she took the discipline and moved on.

I loved seeing my kids interact with strangers and answer questions and follow others directions.  I loved seeing my kids step into their own and handle everything thrown their way.  It pays to do the hard work in their early years and stay consistent.

We then went and spent several days in the Santa Fe/Taos area seeing the sights and hanging out.







Categories: parenting

Great article on homeschooling

Just thought I would share.... www.encouragingbeautifulmotherhood.com/2012/04/26/the-bad-news-about-homeschooling/

Going on Road Trip

I am taking the kids with me to a convention in New Mexico and then we are going to hang out for a few days in Sante Fe. Scott is not coming with us - he 's busy working, somebody has to. Anyway, as I was driving, it suddenly hit me that I am taking the kids on a working road trip without back up! Oh good heavens, what was I thinking? It is the first time we've gone this far without Daddy. I think this might be a real test of how the kids are doing with each other,with independence and with making the wise choice. There are going to be several days that they are going to have to handle themselves under scrutiny from others and hopefully they will rise to the occasion. I think they will do fine but in the back of my mind the is a little voice that is telling me that I might be crazy. I'll let you know how it goes in a few days....

Day of Worship

In our family ministry service this week we had a Day of Worsgip where we learned to worship God for who He is and what He has done for us. The opening video was written and directed by very talented staff at our church. I am showing for two reasons. One, because Caileigh and Collin are in it and two, the message of the video is one of the reasons that I am so passionate about being involved in Children's Ministry and homeschooling - the message that we are to continually bring our kids to the feet of Jesus. Check it out:

www.youtube.com/rushhourcolorado

Remodelling

We have been remodelling our house. New carpet, new granite countertops, new tile bathroom floors, new appliances, new paint and bedroom re-arrangements. We decided to do this in the middle of the school year because, clearly, we are crazy. We also decided to remodel in the middle of winter, in Colorado, where it snows. This February has also been the snowiest February for over a hundred years according to the record books. Did I mention that we are crazy? My beloved husband and I clearly like to do things the hard way but we get them done.

In the midst of the remodel craziness!

Everything looks beautiful though and I love, love, love my new double ovens and GIANT frig! What I have loved the most about this whole project in the middle of the school year, in the snowiest February on record, is the life skills our kids have learned. We are so busy that we generally don't stop to teach our kids some basic life skills that are oh-so handy. Scott has taught the kids how to take out and then replace plumbing in the sinks, patch holes in walls, put up coat racks, how to find a stud in the wall to put up said coat racks, change light fixtures ( which he told me were the hardest light fixtures ever, clearly blaming me) and basic use of tools. With me, the kids have learned how to prep a room for painting, how to use a roller, edging a room and write funny sayings under the new paint in Connor's new room. We have also torn apart every room in the house and gone through everything and decided what we still need and what we can donate to help others. We have organized and cleaned, budgeted and shopped, and I think we will have a new beautiful organized and updated house at the end. What I  love the most is the fact that my 13 year old, computer loving, physical labor disdaining, son, was so pleased by his new found skills that he said, "Mom, I really am glad we did this so that I could learn how to properly take care of my own house someday.".

He is still inordinately proud of the new kitchen faucet and garbage disposal that he helped his Dad put in. That is worth it's weight in gold and even all the crazy stress that we have put ourselves under.

Blessing Bags

We finally had our party after having to postpone a week due to some remodeling projects that took longer than expected We had 15 kids and made 30+ bags to hand out to those needy in our area. I loved watching my friend pray with the kids over the bags that they made and for the people who would get them. We also made yummy cake balls and enjoyed each other. I hid the cake balls in the frig so the kids can't find them. I don't think that's wrong, I let them have a couple today.

Valentines Blessing Party! An Opportunity to Serve!

Every year for Valentines Day I throw a party for our homeschool friends.  I think I have done it for 9 or so years, ever since Connor was old enough to want to give those cute Valentines Cards.  I also wanted to make sure our kids had the opportunity to make lace doily cards, somehow, that seemed important.  Each year I have tried to have a small outreach to a neighbor or to someone lonely so that we could share Jesus' love during the season we celebrate love.


This year, I want to have a Valentines Blessing Party for the homeless.  I am planning on inviting our friends to come and make Blessing Bags to give out to the homeless in our area.  The bags could contain water bottles, soap, wet wipes, granola bars, Bibles, toothbrushes and toothpaste, even something as simple as a sack lunch.  Something to give out that says, "Jesus loves you and so do we."  Each family (with Dad, please, to be safe), could then hand them out to homeless in our area.  We will eat fun foods, hang out with our friends, decorate cookies and fill bags to give out.  Doesn't that sound great?


Yes, yes it does, which is where you come in.  I would love to encourage all of you to fill up some Blessing Bags for Valentines Day, too!  You could do it as a family or a small group or even have a party.  I think this is an easy way to fulfill what Jesus says in Matthew 22:37 - 40, " Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”


If you decide to do a Valentines Blessing Event please let me know, I would love to hear about it!

Here's a link to the blog where I first saw the idea:

http://kwavs.blogspot.com/2011/05/blessing-bags-how-to.html

Categories: parenting

A Time For Everything, Work and Play

Have I mentioned that I love Disney? I do. What I love more is the sheer amount of fun family time that Disney affords us. We giggled together, screamed till we were hoarse, ate till we were sick, rode every ride we wanted at least twice and thoroughly enjoyed our time together. I love that our kids got along famously (only once or twice did I need to say something) and that when I asked them my favorite end of the day question, "What did you like the best and what did you like the least?". I got many answers of, "I loved everything except waiting in lines.". Which actually were very short.

We played hard. One of the things that we like to say to our kids is that we Hudson's work hard and we play hard - together. We want it to be part of our family identity. No matter whether we are working by doing school or cleaning the house or by serving others we want to do it together. When we play we want to do it together. We also find much value in keeping those two things balanced. I think a job well done should be awarded with some play time whether it is with an ice cream cone or a trip to Disney. We all worked hard this year to be able to go to Disney. Scott and I by doing extra work and the kids by maintaining the house, doing laundry, making meals and by keeping up with their school work diligently. We worked hard and boy did we play hard. Whatever your family does for fun or for work - make sure they are in balance, both are important to a family's well being.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says,
 "There is a time for everything,
   and a season for every activity under the heavens."

A time for work and a time for play - together.

Categories: parenting