“The opportunity to educate our own children at home is a tremendous blessing and an exciting challenge. However, despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of families have blazed the trail before us, our journey can still be fraught with difficulties and discouragement.”

Author Virginia Knowles is the wife of Thad, and veteran home school educator of eight children ages’ teen down to baby. She doesn’t pretend to be a super mom, or to even have extra ordinary children. She doesn’t claim to be an expert on education or psychology. Her qualification is simply that she is a Real Life Home School Mom, just like you and I. That, in itself, can be a very comforting thought to those of us out there who tend to compare ourselves to others and think that we must be doing something wrong.

In her 141-page book, she offers Scriptural encouragement and practical advice for your emotional and spiritual life, family relationships, support groups, educational philosophy, and success in academics, home management, and much more.

In the chapter titled, “The Hallmarks of a Gentle Spirit”, she talks of “a woman of dignity, in her own home, does not give in to the selfish demands of her children. She has the firmness to say, “NO!” and to stick with her decision, no matter how bad the whining gets. She makes sure that they do their school work and chores, even when they would rather play. She does not allow her children to treat her with disrespect. She knows that a parent’s job is to train them to obey quickly, quietly, cheerfully, and completely, so “faithful instruction is on her tongue” (Proverbs 31:25).”

If you aren’t a perfect home school mom, then this book is for you! Why not sit back this holiday season and be fed and ministered to? What better way to prepare for the New Year?!

Article by Kelly Benedict, longtime homeschooler of 17+ years, wife, Mama of 9 and grandmother of 6 (so far).

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Math within itself can be a challenge, but it does not have to be. Individuals who choose to homeschool their children can make math less of a challenge and more fun. Depending on their child’s learning style, parents can choose learning activities that cater to their child’s learning needs and preferred way of learning.

There are three strategies that parents can use to make teaching math more enjoyable, which are the following:

1. Hands-On Learning: Parents can use math manipulatives to help their child understand math better. For example, most children understand math better when they are exposed to working the concepts hands-on. Fractions, Decimals, and Percents are great concepts that could be used with hands-on learning. If parents choose to use hands-on learning, it is best that they use this approach first before introducing their child to the algorithm approach. In other words, children need to develop a conceptual understanding before moving into the math in which adults already know.

2. Real-World Projects: Projects are excellent ways to capture children’s interest in learning any material because they are real-world and children can relate to the task at hand. Parents may be able to find real-world projects on the Internet or may choose to hire a teacher to write several real-world projects designed exclusively for their child. Real-World projects allow children to use their environment to interpret how math is used. All math concepts can be transformed into a real-world project, but it is very important to make sure that the project is designed in such a way that children are able to use critical thinking skills to make those connections between the real-world and math. In addition, parents want to make sure that their child can transfer the knowledge to the actual algorithm, which is found in most homeschooling math workbooks.

3. Audio and Video: Parents can use audio such as podcasts and video lessons, such as on YouTube or United Streaming to enhance their math lessons. Children will have a better chance of making the connections if they are able to visually see what they are learning and hear it. This strategy is great to use after a math lesson has been taught to sum everything up or help bring closure to the lesson.

Parents should make sure that they use all three strategies with each math lesson to reap the greatest rewards-watching their children make that math connection and retain the information to be applied later to a much more complex math concept. These are strategies that can definitely make math more enjoyable.

About the Author

Alicia Holland-Johnson, EdD, is a proud mother of two beautiful daughters and an educator with over ten years of teaching experience at all levels, including university teaching. She also works as a professional tutor at Realistic Measures & Consulting ( http://www.rmctutoring.org ) and a consultant in the education industry. Her passion is helping individuals believe in themselves and go far. To receive a free special report, please join the blog at http://www.parentseducatechildren.blogspot.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr_Alicia_Holland_Johnson
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John Adams, the first President to inhabit the current White House (date: November 1, 1800), on his second evening in it’s damp, unfinished rooms wrote his wife, “Before I end my letter, I pray Heaven to bestow the best of Blessings on this House and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof.”

So, the story goes….

During the early years of John Adams’ reign over the nation, negotiated with France to uphold trades between the two nations. France had suspended commercial relations. Adams parlayed three commissioners to France, but the French Foreign Minister Talleyrand and the French Directory refused to negotiate without a substantial bribe. The requested bribe was against the ethics of Congress. Further negotiations ended and threats from the French loomed.

The Colonists gathered at a church for a meeting. The French threatened to burn the cities and overcome the new nation, bringing many ships from France with men intent on taking over power in the colonies. In the meeting, the American’s realized their small fleet of ships wasn’t large enough to protect them, and there was little they could do to protect themselves from the French, who had been a nation much longer and had ships and men to spare. They turned their thoughts Heavenward and prayed for protection from the Father above.

Their prayer lasted a long time, probably hours, according to accounts of the meeting in the small one room church, where these men managed the community, sent their children to school, and praised and worshiped the Lord on Sunday. The fervency of these prayers, sent up by way of the Intercessor, Jesus Christ, must have begged God for the protection of these people who had set about the development of a nation where they could be free to worship as they wished, where serving God would be not only allowable, but encouraged by those leaders who, themselves, sought the leadership and protection of an all knowing God.

Before the men stopped praying, the winds began to blow, buffeting the building with debris and the church bell began to clang. A great storm had come up from the seas.

Within about a week, there came word from the ships that had set sail from France that they’d returned to France, those that hadn’t found their demise in the storm that set upon them during the very hour of the prayers from that small church in a community where Colonists gathered to pray for the Lord’s protection over them.

With this as a standard among the men who founded this nation, “In God We Trust” has been proclaimed over the nation, on our money, and as a basic and essential standard of living. Congressmen must swear an oath, to affirm before God that they will tell the truth. One judge threw out testimony as having no confidence in the witness, because the witness declared he did not believe in the existence of god or the immorality of the soul. This particular judge remarked that he’d not been previously aware that any man did not believe in the existence of God, a believe that constituted the sanction of law, and that to his knowledge, no man had been permitted to testify without such belief. (The New York Spectator, August 1831.)

]]> http://mom4biz.com/homeschool/2009/02/john-adams/feed/ 0 http://mom4biz.com/homeschool/2008/12/home-school-resources-in-real-world-time/ http://mom4biz.com/homeschool/2008/12/home-school-resources-in-real-world-time/#comments Sat, 27 Dec 2008 20:06:06 +0000 admin http://mom4biz.com/homeschool/?p=3 As a single mom, putting together a list of home school resources, developing a plan of home school presentation, and making the process of home schooling kids, working for a living and survival come together is often more difficult than it may appear to those outside the circle. But… I want you to know home schooling can be done – successfully.

Of course, maintaining a sense of humor is paramount to accomplishing this task of educating your children, but once you’re working the plan and getting the job done, you’ll find it much easier to compete in the real world and more fun too. So, where the heck is that real world folks keep talking about?

Somewhere between cotton sheets and sanity I can tell you from experience, is the real world of home school and single parenting. If you’re getting enough rest, you’re probably not doing it right. If your sanity isn’t questioned at least five times a week, you’re definitely not doing it right. So, get a grip on your life and understand that this is really it – the real world lives right there in your home beside the piles of laundry and stacks of dirty dishes.

If you still wonder… Just look in the veggie drawer and you’ll find it growing on last week’s produce too.

Reality is a subliminal thought intended to create insecurity in the best of moms. No matter how good you are at doing it all, someone in the real world (yes, sweetie, the one that lives just outside your front door, will remind you that you were late getting the boys to scouts again, their uniforms aren’t pressed just right, and one of them surely needs a haircut.

STOP! Don’t listen to THEIR reality, you have your own priority list and pressing a boy scout uniform that will be worn for ten minutes isn’t part of it. They’ll get over it and thirty years from now, nobody will remember whether that shirt was pressed or not. But, I can assure you, those boys of yours WILL remember that you were there for the meeting when they won the big award!

As overwhelming as it is to develop a list of solid, mom encouraging home school resources that will motivate your home schoolers to success, I want you to take a moment and do this – right now!

1. A calendar with this years’ birthday list prominently displayed on the correct dates. Yes, dear you WILL forget the date you delivered that precious bundle if life gets in the way – Enter those dates on the calendar and post it in an obvious spot you’ll see every day (by the computer?).
2. An address book for names, addresses, birthdays and important phone numbers. Enter every address here, you WILL need them later, so keep this handy.
3. An Events Calendar you can use to schedule your day with enough space to write memos and thoughts on each page. This calendar will be literally your right arm at various times in your life. Your children will appreciate it when you remember the righ time and date of events you plan to take them to, and you’ll enjoy the events much more if you can actually get there, so schedule them in before you overload your schedule with “other suff”.
4. Scented bath salts, candles, bath oil and smell good stuff that makes you feel pampered. At least once a week, if you have to get up at 3 AM to do it, take a bubble bath with all the yummy delectible decadence you can muster. This is YOU TIME that will revive you for the rest of the week. Don’t skimp on this resource.
5. Emergency Family Rescue Basket. If you skip all the rest and don’t do any other thing to prepare yourself for home schooling, you’ll still want to create this one and keep it handy. One those days when you literally cannot deal with one more crisis, this is the basket you bring out of the closet.

          It will contain:

•  One jar filled to the brim with individually written thoughts on pieces of paper that remind you of all the good things you’re accomplishing. Each time you accomplish something new, write it down, add it to the jar and put the jar back in the basket.
• A blanket or table cloth, napkins and enough special dinnerware to feed each member of your family (we purchased an inexpensive set of plastic party dishes with flatware and cups in a bright color).
• A selection of non-parishable foods that can remain packed indefinitely that your family absolutely LOVES to devour on special occasions. These should be prepared foods that take little to serve, such as slicing or opening the can. Add in a bottle of your favorite party beverage or juice that will stay good even for a long period of time.
• A photo album and journal for recording memories. This will be increased and added to each time you use the basket. (I’ve found a disposable camera is perfect for this project.) Just take photos, write down thoughts, events, and purpose of your use of the Rescue Basket, and any memorable events that came from this time spent together.

Use the basket to have an impromptu picnic when the walls start caving in, for an excursion to watch the stars at midnight, or for an afternoon outing to the zoo, a favorite park or your backyard. When life starts to cave in and you can’t think of anything else to do, grab the basket and take the family someplace you ALL love.

Above all, remember, the reason you’re home schooling is because you LOVE your kids!

Just do it!