Category Archives: Curriculum

Free Books I Found While Planning for Next School Year!

This is not my typical kind of post, but if you could have seen me the other night hooping and hollering every time I snagged a freebie from next year’s book list, you would get why I just had to share with all of you!

In my post on affording the large family homeschool, I talked about using free stuff to homeschool.  One of the free things I mentioned was public domain works.  Now that I have an iPad these are a little more enticing to me.  I never wanted to use these before because I didn’t want to lug my 17″ laptop all over the house with me.  But having a much smaller and more portable device and the ability to use the Kindle app (works for PC too!) to store the books on Kindle until I am ready for them gave me the idea that I ought to search through my list of books for next year and see what I could find that was public domain.

By the way, we have decided to use Tapestry of Grace Year 2 for next school year, so the book list I was searching was from there and primarily for my junior high and high school aged children.  And yes, I promise to write a post about our choice to go back to Tapestry of Grace after all these years. :)

Please remember these books must be previewed by you, the parent.  Also be aware that you do not see HOW I use these materials in our homeschool.  I may be skipping sections, giving an overview of the work, or reading the entire book aloud.

So, here’s what I found!


I went with this version of Arabian Nights because one review called it the “sanitized children’s version”.

For those of you unfamiliar with the real “unsanitized” version of Canterbury Tales, this is not a book you read straight through. ;)

Beowulf is not an easy read and I didn’t read it until I was in college, so I plan to skim sections with my children. There is a children’s version available, but not for free.

Not a light read I am sure!

This book, set in the middle ages, is one that I am very excited to be putting in the hands of my oldest son!

Frankly, I’m looking forward to reading this! I’ve heard it is a good read.

If you buy this in the complete version it is $.99, but if you get the two volumes separate, it is free. Go figure.

My oldest son will be earning a Government credit next year. This is part of that credit.

We own a hardcover version of this book as well (picked up from a used book sale!), but I wanted the opportunity for two children to read the book at the same time without needing to share the book.

In order to get Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, I had to get this selection rather than just the sermon itself which costs $.99.

The reviews on this particular book won me over as this being the sort of thing I was looking for.

Again, we own this in hard copy, but I wanted to give both my older children the chance to read this at the same time and not have to share a book.

As for the other books on my list, I am saving up Amazon gift cards from being an affiliate and as Swagbucks prizes. I’m starting to list what I need on PaperBackSwap as well with the hopes I can find some there for cheap too. I also plan to utilize my library as much as possible!

The Wonderment Curriculum

wonderment

Children see the world through a fresh lens. It’s almost as if they have a better understanding of creation than we adults who are racing and organizing and pushing. They have the time to see the vibrant colors of a butterfly, the fluffiness of a cloud, the funny gait of a “watopillar” (otherwise known as a caterpillar…otherwise known as a roly-poly). They wonder at the world around them almost as naturally as they breathe.

Having children has taught me something beautiful.  It has taught me a sense of wonderment.

As homeschool moms we need to harness this wonderment.  We need to take the natural curiosity and joy of learning our little ones possess and choose curriculum and ways of infusing information that correspond with this.

boys sitting

You will find I am not a big advocate of preschool “curriculum” because I don’t think preschoolers NEED curriculum.  They need mama and daddy.  They need books read to them and smiles and hugs.  But, it seems moms and dads who are new to homeschooling are eager to add their preschooler to a rigorous school day (I know I was!).

So, I beseech you to consider The Wonderment Curriculum.

baby looking at flowers

No, this isn’t any particular curriculum, it’s a general frame of mind, if you will.  It’s the homeschooling frame of mind that says

Young children need only the opportunity to explore and learn from what they discover with mom and dad at their sides to guide their learning.

It is Delight-Directed for little ones!

So, if you must “do school” with your preschoolers, here are my top picks for building a Wonderment Curriculum for days full of delightful learning!

Free Ideas:

  • Your local library – choose a topic and grab up as many children’s books as you can!  Take books you already own and supplement with library books, cookbooks, and online videos and information!
  • Out of doors – There is so much to explore outside no matter where you live.  Take regular nature walks and keep a journal of what you find!
  • Less electronics – Less entertainment-driven media (which almost always creates an environment where the child is told what to think) will easily and cheaply foster creativity.

Toys that encourage creativity:

  • Playsilks – Oh, the possibilities!
  • Dress Up Clothes – This doesn’t have to be fancy and definitely doesn’t need to be store-bought!
  • Critter Catcher or other safe way of catching and observing bugs.
  • Kitchen sets – this can be anything from stuff you pick up at a thrift store to the nice play kitchens you see in stores.  There is just something about kids and the opportunity to concoct with dirt and water!

Actual Curriculum:

  • Five in a Row Series – literature-based in an easy style.
  • Unit Studies – A quick Google search of “Free Unit Studies” will net you huge results!

Books for mom and dad that facilitate Wonderment:



And don’t forget to infuse your little ones with the Bible!  Everything you do and say and teach should be out of the overflow of a heart that loves the Lord!  He is the Creator of these little ones and their sense of curiosity.  Lead them to Him!

{photos by thegodlyphotographer.blogspot.com}

No Curriculum is Good Enough

“We don’t go to homeschool conventions to buy our curriculum.  We go to buy our next curriculum.”
~Voddie Baucham

We have been homeschooling from the beginning.  You’ve heard how I only knew of one homeschool catalog that first year and how I managed to teach my son to read with only the resources from that catalog.

From there, I began purchasing new curriculum nearly every semester…trying to find the perfect one.  I became a little less frantic after I passed the three year homeschool learning curve (that post is a Must Read, in my opinion!), but still I find myself tweaking even today.

And somehow knowing Voddie Baucham‘s family is tweaking too makes me feel better.

That’s why I wanted to address this subject with all of you.  I’m sure some of you wonder why nothing ever seems good enough.  You wonder when you will find something you can stick with.  You wonder what must be wrong with you that you can’t seem to make one curriculum work for everyone.

I’m here to reassure you and tell you that you can’t find that curriculum for three reasons:

1.  Your children change – They were little, now they are big.  There were 2 of them, now there are 6.  They used to be interested in dinosaurs, now they are interested in engineering.  And the list goes on and on and on.  This is the beauty of homeschooling.  You don’t have to remain static and continue to teach from the box.  You get to grow with their needs and interests.  (Read The Christian Home School by Gregg Harris for more information on delight-directed learning)

2. You change – Of course, a homeschool mom can have physical changes in her life that cause her to need to change things up in her homeschool day, but let’s talk about the spiritual changes a homeschool mom goes through.

I am not the same spiritually as I was 10 years ago when we began this homeschooling journey.  Homeschooling causes you to dig deep and teaches you more than you ever realized you would learn.  The biggest lessons you learn are the spiritual ones.  You learn more about your Bible and your God and you learn how utterly dependent you are on Christ.  You go from milk to meat, ever-growing and ever-changing.

Because of that, your ideas about curriculum change too.  Often, you find yourself playing it safe and sticking close to the public school guidelines in the beginning, but as you mature spiritually, you find yourself less concerned with academics and more concerned with your children’s spiritual growth.  You find you want to bring out different things in your homeschool day…things that lead your children to Christ.  And sometimes this means a change in curriculum.

What a wonderful reason to change!

3.  You family changes – Circumstances change for families all the time.  Rarely do family dynamics remain the same all throughout your homeschooling years.  You have to accept these changes and do what needs to be done to work with these changes.  Perhaps you started homeschooling with one small child and now you have 10.  Perhaps your husband doesn’t have a job right now or you are sending a child to college.  Perhaps you are entering the foreign mission field or returning home after years away.  Perhaps you have a child who needs some serious shepherding or a family member who must come live with you.  All of these things will effect your homeschooling.  You have to be ready to adjust as needed.

Ultimately all of this is God.

God guiding and directing the paths of you, your children, and your family.  God growing you up.  God piercing hearts.  God revealing Himself to you each and every day.

You must be willing to say, “Where He leads, I will follow.”

No curriculum will ever be better than God.  We aren’t searching for “good enough” because good enough won’t do.  We are seeking a God Who satisfies our every need and yes, sometimes He will lead us to new curriculum…our next curriculum

{photo credit Shutterhacks}

Fruit of the Spirit Devotional and Printables For Young Children

Front cover

I am so very excited to be teaming up with Lauren from Mama’s Learning Corner today to bring you a FREE Fruit of the Spirit devotional and printables for your little ones!

Little children love memorizing Scripture and the Fruit of the Spirit is a great place to start!

Lauren has created some wonderful printables to go along with each lesson as well as a Fruit Chart where you can track each time your child displays a Fruit of the Spirit!

I also recommend you purchase this CD as a supplement to the devotional:

I have owned this CD for many years and we love it!  The songs are beautiful, simple and catchy without adding to or taking away from Scripture.  A perfect fit with this devotional!  {Click here for more information on the CD.}

I hope you enjoy teaching your children the Fruit of the Spirit!

Click here to download your devotional!

 

Click here to download your printables!

 

Feel free to share this post with others!  We’d love to share this with as many families as we can!

Homeschooling the Bigs – 2011-2012 School Year

Just as I have only one “middle“, I also have only one “big.”  He’s 13 and a wonderful young man.

Here’s a rundown of his studies for the year:

Bible Study: A House for My Name: A Survey of the Old Testament

Since we are working our way from Creation to the Romans for our history for this year, this correlates nicely.  After he finishes this book, he will move to Thinking Like a Christian and Bible Doctrine for Older Children.

Math: Teaching Textbooks: Algebra 1

My brain does not think in numbers, therefore discovering Teaching Textbooks last year was a tremendous blessing!  Each lesson has both a video lesson and a textbook lesson.  My son typically only reads the textbook portion unless he’s really struggling with a concept.  Any problems that he misses can be looked up on the CD and worked through step by step.  Totally self-taught and self-corrected!

Science: Apologia General Science

The Christian worldview and academic standard of these textbooks is unsurpassed by any other science curriculum!

Foreign Language:  Latin for Children

Go here to read how my son ended up learning Latin and why we chose this curriculum.

Writing:  As I mentioned in my middles curriculum post, grammar has been one of those homeschool subjects that has caused me much angst.  This year we are doing Institute for Excellence in Writing’s program Teaching Writing:  Structure & Style and Student Writing Intensive Level B.  So far, I am quite impressed.  I’ll be reviewing this more in-depth after we’ve had more time with the program.

Spelling:  A few years ago we realized Blake was not a strong speller, so I went on a quest to find the best spelling program out there.  Phonetic Zoo from Institute for Excellence in Writing is that program.  You can read my post where I rave about this product too!

History & Literature: Using my homegrown, mom-written program and lovin’ it!

Blake’s extracurricular activities include piano, Boy Scouts, and a million other pursuits, including his new blog: The Camping Guy (this kid knows his stuff, so I’m excited to see where he goes with this!)

Well, that’s our homeschool year in a nutshell! I’ll put links to all of these curriculum posts on my Homeschooling Mother page, so they are readily available.

Here’s to a wonderful school year!

Homeschooling the Middles – 2011-2012 School Year

While I have lots of “littles,” I only have one middle.  She’s 10 and in some circles she would be called a “tween.”  However, being a person who really doesn’t like overused labels that tend to take on negative connotations, I will stick to the “middle” tag and leave it a that. ;)

Here’s a list of what my rather unique “middler” will be doing this coming year:

Bible Study: After Breakfast & Bible time, my two older children split off for their own study time.  Megan is currently working through Victor Journey Through the Bible.

This is a fabulous book that really opens up the Scripture to the time and the place each book and chapter were written in.  Powerful learning and understanding!

After she finishes Victor, she will move to Rick Boyer’s Proverbs People

Math: She is her mother’s child and math is an absolute conundrum to her.  So, rather than move her to Saxon, as we did with her older brother at a certain point, she is sticking with Horizons where the pictures are colorful and she has room to doodle (yes, I do let her doodle in her book.)

Science: This was a no brainer…Apologia all the way!  She loves these books.  {click here to read more about how we homeschool science.}

Foreign Language: You might remember how Megan just decided to teach herself Spanish one day.  Well, we decided to go ahead and give her a formal curriculum and yes, Rosetta Stone is THE premier foreign language program and yes, Megan is doing fabulously with it.

History: We are currently working our way through my homemade Creation – Flood Unit {you know, the one I keep promising all my subscribers will get for free…not too much longer!}  So far, her favorite book has been A Child’s Geography: Explore the Holy Land.

Writing: This is something new this year.  We ditched a formal grammar program in favor of a more natural approach.  I’ve had a love/hate relationship with grammar for years (I have a degree in English, you would think I would LOVE grammar, but instead I find most grammar books to be tedious and overdone.)  So, this year we decided to go with Institute for Excellence in Writing.  I hope to have a more formal review for you as we continue to use the program, but so far, I am impressed with how engaging and practical it is without being monotonous and obnoxious.  We are using the Teaching Writing:  Structure & Style and Student Writing Intensive Level B.  {I am using this for both my 10 year old and my 13 year old}

Extras: Megan continues to be very interested in photography and has started a blog: The Godly Photographer, to hone both her writing and her photography skills.   She takes horseback riding lessons through our local parks and recreation department and piano from a homeschool graduate in a neighboring town.

That rounds out the middle homeschooling years here at…