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Reading Hide and Seek

Feb27

I just began tutoring for a fantastic family who has a beginning reader.  I love what I saw the mom doing with her son in reinforcing concepts. She writes words they are studying on a small whiteboard that is a “master list”. (You could use any large piece of paper as a master list if you don’t have a small whiteboard.) She places flashcards of these individual words throughout the downstairs and her son must find the card, match it with the word on the whiteboard, and say it aloud. She also is doing this with addition problems. He must find the addition problems on flashcards throughout the house, add them together, and match the sum on the whiteboard. This is such a great way to get children involved in the memorizing of facts, as well as give them an opportunity to burn off some energy. I think this can be applied in almost any area of academics. Here are some more ideas:

Science– terms on flashcard, definitions on the whiteboard

Money– pictures of coins on the cards, values on the board

Time– faces of clocks on the cards, analog time on the board

Numbers– match items on the cards to numerals on the whiteboard

Colors– a color swatch on the flashcards, color word on the board

Health– pictures of food on cards, food groups or servings on the board

Geography– capitals on flashcards, states or countries on the board

Do you have any ideas to add? I’d love to hear about them.

Boys and Co-Ed Clubs

Feb6

I featured Keepers of the Home last week as one of the girls clubs. This week I want to bring to your attention the boys program called Contenders for the Faith. “This program has a handbook for young men, ages 7 through 14, to equip them to become godly men and competent providers for their future families. The handbook is unquestionably an excellent skill-builder. The boys will learn how to handle finances, do home maintenance, and develop skills in leadership. Plus, extensive Bible reading, memory work, and Bible study are included to aid them in developing good habits in their own walk with God.” (quoted from website)  A nice feature is that it can be used by individual families or as a group. Your son can earn badges and wears a uniform that is similar in the same respect as Boy Scouts.

4-H is a club for boys and girls through young adults. “It prepares young people to step up to the challenges in their community and the world. Using research-based programming around positive youth development, 4-H youth get the hands-on real world experience they need to become leaders.”  (quoted from website)

I have had several friends whose students participated in this program and they did fantastic service projects and had interesting topics to research. The particular  club these students formed used to fix and charge a reasonable price for tacos-in-a-bag  once a month for our co-op.  The proceeds from the sale were used to fix monthly meals for the Ronald McDonald House.

If you know of any other great clubs that  are appropriate for young men and women that I have not listed feel free to leave a comment. 🙂

Girls Clubs

Jan30

Isn’t it great to have girls and be able to do girlie things? There are some clubs that I’d like to feature because I feel it is important to affirm the feminine nature that can so easily be swept aside by society. I love that there are clubs for a girl to learn how to be a young woman while  providing service opportunities and having fun activities to do.

The first club is called Keepers at Home and can be done as a club with other girls or as a curriculum with just your family. There are two separate handbooks, one called Little Keepers at Home for ages 4-6 and Keepers at Home for ages 7-14. You can organize it as you like and there is a handbook that will guide you and give you projects to complete in order to earn badges. The areas of emphasis are: life skills, home making, scripture memorization, and service. Here is the website if you are interested: Keepers of the Faith

I also found a website that helps you begin a Keepers of the Home Group. Erica has useful tips with organizing and planning your own group. click here

The other club is American Heritage Girls. This group is for a group of young ladies 5-18, and not just for individual wanting to do their own program at home. The areas of emphasis are: life skills, leadership,teamwork, character development, social development, and spiritual development. If you are interested in starting a troop or joining one, click here.

Next week: Boys Clubs and Clubs for both boys and girls

Free/ Inexpensive Family Activities

Nov7

I just posted a response on our local homeschool board about free/ inexpensive family activities. I know some of  this is specific to the greater Cincinnati area, but for my friends who are out of town I have plenty of suggestions you can use as well. I put local ideas in parentheses and local links at the end of the outdoor activities category so you can skip those.

For my subscriber friends who live in areas that don’t have cold temperatures or snow, I apologize for some of the cold weather ideas given here. I am wondering if I could work out an arrangement.  Could I come and home school your children for a week in exchange for time to go out and enjoy the temperate climate you have while I am there? 🙂

Indoor Activities: 

Create a “treasure hunt” Hide a set of clues in various places throughout the house and have the last one lead to a prize. This doesn’t have to be anything big, maybe a treat or a family film to watch for the evening.

Hide and Go Seek Establish areas that are off limits before you begin (laundry room, Dad’s study). My kids loved doing this and played this with friends who came over.

Decorate your windows There are special crayons and paint that can be used for windows that can easily be washed off.

Make paper snow flakes and hang them around the house. Design tissue paper sun catchers for getting those rays in the house.

Read Alouds How about finding a book that you can read to the family? We used to spend evenings with all of us sitting around enjoying Dad read to us. I did a lot of the reading too as well as the boys as they got older and could read fluently.

Create Blanket Forts My boys loved this and would play for hours in the forts. We even had dinner in them from time to time.

Picnic in the living room Get out old blankets and lay them down in the living room. Have everyone fill up their plates and join you on the blanket for dinner.

Game Night This suggestion doesn’t come to my mind readily because I am not a game person myself. However, I have played many games because my children enjoyed them. One game I dreaded though was Chutes and Ladders, the never-ending game!

Talent Night Have you been paying for music lessons? How about having a concert one evening? Invite family and friends over and give your musician a chance to shine. You can also have poetry readings, pieces the children have written read aloud, put on a short play or have a sing-along. How about displaying some favorite art work? Have guests bring an appetizer and they can show off their culinary skills (or not).

Make pine cone bird feeders and watch the birds that come for a treat. Count how many visitors you get and see if you can identify them. Our family has enjoyed seeing regulars and an occasional migrating visitor. We have enjoyed having a pair of binoculars and an identification book close by so we can truly know what we are looking at instead of not knowing or guessing.

Outdoor Activities:

Riding bikes in your neighborhood or a local park or bike trail. (Loveland Bike Trail, Joyce Park)

Go for a walk at a local park, either on a bike and hike trail or a nature trail.

Christmas Light Night After seeing houses have a follow up discussion while munching on a Christmas cookie and a cup of milk or hot chocolate. What was the one display you liked the most? Least liked? Why?

Sledding There are some great hills in the area to enjoy with the kids. (Harbin Park,Voice of America Park). We just go out our back door and sled down a steep incline that leads to our neighborhood park. I know! How nice is that??

Ice skating Pick up a pair of used skates and try your hand at it. I was so blessed to have lived by a small pond in our neighborhood when I was a middle school student and we had a blast! Follow up with a thermos of hot chocolate to get you warmed up afterwards.

Snowman and fort building, snowball fights, snow angels The almanac is predicting a snowy season for us this year so why not get out and enjoy it if it actually occurs!

Local Things to Do:

Check out Parky’s Farm. This farm has some animals that you can see and a you can walk through a well-kept barn where animals are housed. Can’t afford a horse? They have them there and have horse back riding lessons if you have a child who is interested in participating.

The Niederman Farm in Middletown has a free Christmas light display that you can walk through along with free hot chocolate, cookies, and Christmas carolers at the end. They are a Christian family so the display tells the story of Christ’s birth. It’s a nice way for you to enjoy the season with the family.

Park Programs- I am always reminding people of this great resource. Here are the websites for events at various local parks:

Hamilton County‘s park programs

Cincinnati Parks

Butler County Parks

Warren County Parks

Have fun! If you have other ideas for family activities write a comment for all to enjoy.

Educational Cooperatives: Do I Join?

Jul21

As a home school mom I found that I needed a community of people with whom I could share this amazing adventure called home schooling. I found that being a part of a  co-op was a lifeline for me and my children; it not only helped with academics, but the support I received from the women there was a blessing. Our family has developed lifelong friendships as a result of our  involvement.

My reasons for joining were:

  • having my children take classes from those who had an interest,excitement, and expertise in offered classes
  • preferring not to teach certain classes
  • that some classes are better in a group setting
  • opportunities for my children to be exposed to different teachers and teaching styles
  • having my children be accountable to teachers for assignments and deadlines (especially during jr/sr high years)
  • interaction with other home school children (Dare I say- socializing?!)
  • friendships for my children and me

I must say that while every class was not exactly what we wanted, many exceeded my expectations. I truly believe that the classes were more than they would have experienced had they stayed at home (art in particular!). This also provided me with an outlet for me to teach more than just my two children- once a teacher, always a teacher! 🙂

Should you join a co-op? I canna’ say, (Scottish for cannot) but here are some things to consider:

  • What are my reasons for wanting to join a co-op?
  • Does it fit our schedule?
  • How much preparation will it involve? (teaching class, getting ready, making lunches,etc.)
  • What are the costs? (classes, gas, lunches, extra fees for supplies, etc.)
  • How many weeks does the co-op meet?
  • Will I be able to honor the time commitment that I will make to this co-op?

I can tell you from our experience that my children and I enjoyed being a part of a large home school community. I enjoyed meeting weekly and hanging out with home school moms in our Chew N’ Chat room.

If you are unsure of whether you should join, call the contact person and speak with them; they can help you with questions you may have about joining. Also, stop by for a visit. This will give you an idea of how things are run and whether it will be a good fit for you and your family.

A word of caution- don’t over commit. The idea of a co-op is in its name; you will be required to help in some manner. Many co-ops have a half-day option. Guard your time and plan out your schedule if you decide to join. Your own school takes precedence over any other activities.