Pen pals! What a fun idea! It’s always more interesting (and motivating!) to write to someone specific, rather than to have our “pretend letters” (a.k.a. school writing assignments) filed into a drawer. Why Write Letters? Letter writing encourages conversation skills while allowing children to practice grammar, spelling, and composition in […]
Homeschooling
57 posts
An increasing number of homeschoolers are considering the question of whether to provide in-home care for aging parents or grandparents. Many of you face—or may someday face—the challenge of helping to manage a parent’s daily life of nurses and therapists, chemotherapy and blood transfusions, oxygen providers and medical equipment, prescriptions […]
Field trips can inspire your child to study a topic, give him further insights into his current studies, or provide closure to a completed unit. Is there somewhere you’d like to take your children to reinforce a topic this year? Or just want to visit because it would enrich their […]
We talked earlier about how to finish this past year strong, what to do with all those papers (including the prolific artwork!), and even gave you a tool to assess how the year went—plus some ideas for enjoying the summer. (If you are new, you may want to file that […]
If you homeschooled your child through the primary grades, you may find that you initially experienced moments of self-doubt, but you managed through the first year (or two, or three) and gained confidence to educate your child at home…until now! It is not uncommon for parents to second-guess themselves all […]
Let’s be real … homeschooling is not a cure for all that ails our families. Life is still messy. In fact, sometimes all that one-on-one time can really magnify shortcomings in our relationships with our children as well as with our spouses. Some of the most heartbreaking consulting calls I […]
“Aaand … we’re off! … like a dirty shirt!” This is how every road trip begins for our family. Well, sometimes if my husband hesitates too long after the first part, the kids (or now the grandkids) try to “fake him out” with maybe “like a dirty undershirt!” or “like […]
It seems like just last week you were writing up those lesson plans for the fall, planning a few field trips, organizing the bookshelves, and suddenly . . . the year has gone by! Where did the time go? Whether you’re raring to go for another few months, or you are dragging […]
We all have probably heard the principle that it is better to give than to receive, but how do we teach our children to treat others kindly, give generously, and serve willingly? What are our kids mirroring? Children are often like little mirrors, reflecting our attitudes and actions. They are […]
In other posts, we’ve discussed testing and assessment options. Depending on the legal requirements for homeschoolers in your state, you may choose to instead have your child evaluated, or have a portfolio evaluation. Evaluations Who might benefit from an evaluation? Young children, students who don’t read well or quickly yet, children with learning […]