The day after Labor Day is kind of like a second New Year’s Day for me. I try to get my life reorganized for this big day. The schedule is reset. Chore lists are up on the wall, goal and curriculum lists in a binder. The Mason jar is filled with new colored pencils. It … more
One of the principles that we attempt to run our homeschool on is that of mastery. Mastery learning is a simple concept that is not common in our fast-paced society. Put simply, it is staying with a concept until mastery is achieved. You don’t move on if your understanding is below an A level. Obviously, this … more
In the plans for the coming year: Dusty/10th Grade Jacobs Geometry – After many months of researching geometry, we have settled on the second edition of this popular-among-homeschoolers textbook. I like to use older math books in general, but was finding difficult or impossible to locate teacher’s manuals for the older geometries. This 80’s-era text was recommended to me by … more
Planning the School Year What Subjects? Student Planners
This post is for those who want to start homeschooling for the first time! Where do you begin? What do you need to know? A simple Google search will lead you into an overwhelming flood of information. When I am venturing into a new world I like to have one place that I trust for information until … more
I owned a copy of Nourishing Traditions before it became a popular lifestyle and have often fantasized of being a Real-Foodie. How I would love to have all that organic, home-grown, home-brewed, home-cooked food served at every meal. But alas, I despise the kitchen, and that does not bode well for a Nourishing Traditions menu. (It is a great … more
Everyone needs a good granola recipe. I spent years making fancy granolas with every embellishment conceivable. They were pretty and healthy, but expensive to make and appealed to a very small sampling of people who happened to like that particular blend of seeds, coconut, and dried fruit (i.e., not my kids). I was introduced to this granola … more
It’s spring. And it seems appropriate to post on a favorite subject of mine–decluttering. I won’t spend any time extolling its virtues or power to change lives. I feel we all have been coming to a realization of that over the past decade. I will say that it is something that one should do every so often … more
. . . that will make it easier. Don’t have too many clothes. Too many clothes causes stress. More to wash, more to sort, more to match, more for kids to stash under the beds, more for them to throw into the hamper because it’s easier than putting away, more to swap out for the … more
So how do those Charlotte Mason methods work out for a simpler schoolday? Here is a peek into the days of my K-er and 3rd-grader. Kindergarten: Pearl listens in on Duncan’s read-aloud time (this is at her wish, I do not require it) and then has her own. Her read-alouds contain a Bible story, … more