tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34926276416985282462024-03-28T03:57:52.460-05:00The Planted TreesDelights in the Law*Meditates on God's Word*Yields Fruit*Does Not Wither*Prospers*RighteousChellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.comBlogger434125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-17685573121783090852019-03-08T07:00:00.000-06:002019-03-08T07:00:06.482-06:00Mr. D Math for a Struggling Math Student<h3>
Help for Your Child is Here</h3>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Monotype Corsiva;">Disclaimer: I received a copy of Mr. D Self-Paced Pre-Algebra in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed below are my own and may contain affiliate links. For more information, see my </span><span style="font-family: Monotype Corsiva;"><a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html">legal disclaimer page</a></span><span style="font-family: Monotype Corsiva;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">If you have been a reader of my blog for any time at all, then you know the struggles I’ve had in math with my oldest child. Grace has bounced around through various programs, eventually settling down with Math-U-See. Once her freshman year rolled around, I realized that her bouncing around and need to go slowly to really understand concepts had put her at a disadvantage as far as being “on track” with high school math. I needed something that she could use that would be effective, quick, and with lots of support. Enter <a href="https://mrdmath.edu20.org/visitor_class_catalog?affiliate=5999035" target="_blank">Mr. D Math</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTo3Kf8vrGu7Dhk5567ix9WMVyYSFtvQDjEHyDICSdirtD2kRzFAiGY15uzpX0EWQF1gp3PTf-aIafIYUY9Zr5KLZZq9yPReJLcOro4ZhwvaB3QVMUgpcIkGrX02MALjLiQYMsphXdLs/s1600/Mr.DMathReview.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1208" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTo3Kf8vrGu7Dhk5567ix9WMVyYSFtvQDjEHyDICSdirtD2kRzFAiGY15uzpX0EWQF1gp3PTf-aIafIYUY9Zr5KLZZq9yPReJLcOro4ZhwvaB3QVMUgpcIkGrX02MALjLiQYMsphXdLs/s640/Mr.DMathReview.png" width="482" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">I won’t lie. I was very apprehensive about how Mr. D’s Pre-Algebra program would work for Grace. We were in a unique set of circumstances (needing to quickly get through a math class) with a child who has struggled to find the right math fit. I’m really pleased, however, with the result and some of the program’s features that I thought would not work for her were actually huge areas of assistance. Since Grace actually used the program and I was more of an observer, I wanted Grace to have a voice in this review.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><b>Grace’s
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;"><u>How did you like your first online class?</u> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">I prefer the online setup and I can fill in the worksheet while he’s teaching the lesson which means I can move through the material more quickly. It’s very easy to use interface and program. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;"><u>How is Mr. D as a teacher?</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">The way he explains things is easy to understand and as a visual learner, the way it looked on the screen helped my understanding as well. I appreciated that he defined all of the mathematical terms because it made it easier for me to understand what to do. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisF8zkOt6gDCXN_d8Ls8uQtjNE9PISaAe0T9nE34SL4FEFdAtHPhiwYTREFp9HX9cBKvXXDg-9VBPvfXm0DSiBVdJa4Z8r-sZY5lchgRCmiquuQVMeYcvhWh0Y9Lm481kdj1wWQgK92Y4/s1600/Mr.DReview2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1287" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisF8zkOt6gDCXN_d8Ls8uQtjNE9PISaAe0T9nE34SL4FEFdAtHPhiwYTREFp9HX9cBKvXXDg-9VBPvfXm0DSiBVdJa4Z8r-sZY5lchgRCmiquuQVMeYcvhWh0Y9Lm481kdj1wWQgK92Y4/s400/Mr.DReview2.jpg" width="321" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;"><u>Was self-grading a positive or a negative?</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">I like the self-grading, but it would be easy to cheat. I was able to see exactly where I went wrong and could rewatch the video to find my mistake. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;"><u>Did you use the online help?</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">While I didn’t take advantage of the online help, I know that in the future as I progress into more difficult material it will be a huge benefit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;"><u>Final thoughts on your experience with Mr. D?</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">I want to continue with Mr. D Math. Previous math programs I’ve used haven’t explained things clearly or where I could understand them, but Mr. D actually explains things so I can understand as someone who doesn’t like math.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfsGYgONl8PU0TSIjxfAQiC-K4bVyK-_bkWfgPoI9_X9nfb60_hi0ipaI9qFeHcxtBx7rHQZULiCS0Q7yI870gIr56lGPFDn8CUxBsJdUEQjd8OIrbw9VQWuFIiloggMr5cRqQA4cjUA/s1600/Mr.DReview3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsfsGYgONl8PU0TSIjxfAQiC-K4bVyK-_bkWfgPoI9_X9nfb60_hi0ipaI9qFeHcxtBx7rHQZULiCS0Q7yI870gIr56lGPFDn8CUxBsJdUEQjd8OIrbw9VQWuFIiloggMr5cRqQA4cjUA/s400/Mr.DReview3.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: large;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18pt;">My Thoughts</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic; font-size: large;">I don’t know if it’s the program or the teacher, but Mr. D’s Pre-Algebra program is achieving the goals I had for it and then some! Due to the online, self-paced setup (there is a live class option as well), Grace is able to quickly work through the concepts she understands and slow down on the ones she doesn’t. She is learning and retaining. I love that Mr. D gives kids multiple attempts on homework and quizzes. For my daughter, this focus on learning over grades is so important. Knowing she can go back multiple times until she truly understands allows her to relax and absorb information without the worry or pressure of making a good grade. I’ve truly been amazed at how much the self-grading has helped her. Out of everything I researched about the program, the self-grading was where I faltered a bit. Would she be honest about her work? Wouldn’t she be better served by having me check her work? Boy, was I wrong! The self-grading aspect has been where she’s probably learned the most. It allows her to see her mistake and correct it. She’s already approached me multiple times in the past weeks to tell me something she learned in Mr. D’s class. Honestly, I’ve been worried about Grace and how her high school math classes will shape up, but Mr. D has taken those worries off of the table. When I asked her if she had any negatives about Mr. D’s Pre-Algebra class, Grace replied, “Well, it IS math.” I have a feeling that Mr. D can change that attitude too!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Do you have a struggling math student?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Let me know what’s worked for you in the comments and be sure to
consider <a href="https://mrdmath.edu20.org/class_catalog?affiliate=5999035" target="_blank">Mr. D Math</a> for all of your math needs from Pre-Algebra to Pre-Calculus
plus ACT and SAT test prep classes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-64362971253270200342018-11-07T08:00:00.000-06:002018-11-07T08:00:03.611-06:00Assigning High School Credits in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool<p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Many times when you choose a Charlotte Mason approach to your homeschool, you are swimming along pretty well until you wake up one day and realize that your child will be in ninth grade next year. Uh oh. Now what do I do? Must I give up our days of living books, narrations, and multiple history streams for a prescribed course of science and history classes along with official literature and writing courses to make sure that my child earns the appropriate amount of credits to graduate and/or be accepted into a university? The short answer is no.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-z5HQvlMwX_Q/W-I0a69U7KI/AAAAAAAAG3k/vTxxidsPlLcNPuJDqrUelDwC4zCS6qibACHMYCw/s1600-h/CM%2BHigh%2BSchool%2BCredits%255B3%255D"><img width="562" height="484" title="CM High School Credits" style="display: inline; background-image: none;" alt="CM High School Credits" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-g7LSJN4jQuM/W-I0bt0H9zI/AAAAAAAAG3o/mOGJ9tUG5O07ag7R9-orW1DAacVXsn0hwCHMYCw/CM%2BHigh%2BSchool%2BCredits_thumb%255B1%255D?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">This past summer, with ninth grade looming on the horizon, I was at a crossroads when it came to Grace’s education. I had discovered a </font><a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2018/05/a-gentle-feast-curriculum-review_29.html"><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Charlotte Mason curriculum I loved</font></a><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">, and the kids were doing well with it, but I was afraid that I was going to be forced to give it up because of high school. I knew how Charlotte Mason worked subjects in the high school grades, as a similar continuation of the lower grades, but dear Charlotte never had to deal with United States graduation requirements and college admissions. Would Charlotte’s way of rotating through history and the sciences fulfill those? I decided to put pencil to paper and compare Charlotte’s class lists with modern American high school education and college preparedness. </font><em><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Disclaimer: Be sure and check your state’s homeschool laws. Some states require homeschoolers to meet certain requirements for graduation. Also, if your child wants to pursue a higher education, check the entrance requirements for that university since they all require different courses.</font> </em><p><strong><font face="Gabriola" size="5">The Sciences</font></strong><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Usually in an American high school (and you’ll find this is true for all of the subjects I mention in this post), we separate out disciplines into their own category. So for science, you would study physical science, biology, chemistry, and physics all in separate years. However, in a CM education, and throughout most of Europe today, the sciences are integrated as one subject where you study all of the sciences each year, while going more in-depth each time. Looking ahead to Grace’s high school science, I wanted to see if this approach of covering biology one term, chemistry one term, and physics one term would be the equivalent of spending a year on each.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">The numbers below are based on doing science four days a week (three days of reading and one day of lab) along with a natural history or science biography reading for thirty minutes one day a week as well.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One term (12 weeks) of biology each year for 3 years: 48 hours per term= 144 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One term (12 weeks) of chemistry each year for 3 years: 48 hours per term= 144 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One term (12 weeks) of physics each year for 3 years: 48 hours per term = 144 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One year (36 weeks) of natural history/science biography for 3 years: 18 hours per year = 54 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">As you can see, even with spreading these classes out over three years, it’s easy to hit enough hours to earn a high school credit. Plus, it leaves the senior year for dual enrollment or student choice. Since my oldest is not a STEM kid, and if she does go to college it will be in the arts or humanities, I’m subbing out physics for environmental science in our three year rotation after she finishes physical science this year.</font><p><strong><font face="Gabriola" size="5">The Social Sciences</font></strong><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Another area where Charlotte Mason integrated subjects was in the social sciences by having various history streams (American, world, and ancient) running concurrently, while incorporating geography, economics, and government. </font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">The numbers below are based upon doing history four days a week (30 minutes each day), geography two days a week (30 minutes each day), and government or economics one day a week. These calculations are a little more complicated due to the various history streams that you would be studying each year, but hopefully you can follow it all.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One year (36 weeks) of American history twice a week for four years = 144 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One year (36 weeks) of British/World history once a week for four years = 72 hours total </font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One year (36 weeks) of ancient history once a week for four years = 72 hours total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">In the breakdown above, you can see an American history credit is easily achieved over four years, but what about a world history credit? If you combine your British, world, and ancient history studies together, you again reach 144 total hours of work, a full credit.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Now let’s look at geography (a combination of living geography books and mapwork), government, and economics.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One year (36 weeks) of geography twice a week for four years = 144 total hours</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Two years (72 weeks) of government twice a week for two years = 72 total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Two years (72 weeks) of economics twice a week for two years = 72 total</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">The way I planned my daughter’s high school path was to focus on government in the years when we study the founding of our country and modern times, and then focus on economics in the alternating years, which would be colonial times and the 1800’s. No matter how you choose to divide it up, over the course of four years, a full credit is achieved in geography and a half credit in both government and economics.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Hopefully by breaking down these subjects over the years, you can see how the requirements for college entrance are achieved despite the odd (to Americans anyway!) rotation that Charlotte Mason used. I know it helped me see that the education I was planning for high school would in no way hinder whatever path my children choose. So go forth in confidence, Charlotte Mason homeschooler! High school is no hurdle at all.</font><p><i><font face="French Script MT" size="7">Chelli </font></i>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com72tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-89117147818564226872018-05-29T08:00:00.000-05:002018-05-29T08:00:01.876-05:00A Gentle Feast Curriculum Review<p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Disclaimer: I received a copy of A Gentle Feast White Year Curriculum in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed below are my own and may contain affiliate links. For more information, see my <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html" target="_blank">legal disclaimer page</a>.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">As a Charlotte Mason homeschooler and a type A one as well, I’ve always prided myself on being able to create booklists, courses of study, and a Morning Time (called Power Hour around here) coordinated with our school year. It was enjoyable for me to do this, but it was time intensive, involving weeks of planning, tons of reading and research, and then scheduling it all. </font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">I’ve continued this process over the years because I had problems with pretty much all of the Charlotte Mason curriculums on the market. For some the history rotation did not match what Charlotte Mason actually did, for others they added in other educational philosophies that made the curriculum Charlotte Mason inspired or a Charlotte Mason blend, for some it required all of my children to do their own thing for each subject studied, and for some the book choices were all older, and usually expensive, making the curriculum difficult to use and editing on the fly a necessity due to racist and misogynistic undertones.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Within the last few years, though, the homeschool market has been flooded with quite a few new Charlotte Mason curriculums. <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2017/05/little-known-charlotte-mason-resources.html" target="_blank">After writing about some of my favorites</a>, I was contacted by the author of <a href="https://agentlefeast.com/?ref=plantedtrees" target="_blank">A Gentle Feast</a> with the offer of writing a review of the full curriculum. I readily agreed (because who doesn’t love free curriculum!), but fully expected to only use it for a few months to honor my commitment of writing a review and then drop it. However, it didn’t turn out that way.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yd6WQpPe-Xs/WwzlQ3udoCI/AAAAAAAAF4o/Bi5pyzjRf-Ax1bzGK7sihKDpMrRDgp6SgCHMYCw/s1600-h/A-Gentle-Feast-Review66"><img width="560" height="694" title="A Gentle Feast Review" style="display: inline; background-image: none;" alt="A Gentle Feast Review" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VEmh_NsYCiU/WwzlRqRHt3I/AAAAAAAAF4s/20GMSP48b0YbwEkiEFcpzz6ugaotSxoiQCHMYCw/A-Gentle-Feast-Review_thumb64?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">A Gentle Feast</font> <font face="Century Gothic" size="3">is the creation of fellow Charlotte Mason homeschool mom, Julie Ross, and she’s done a fabulous job of integrating various resources, books, and parental helps to create a unique offering for the Charlotte Mason homeschooling community. This past year we’ve been using what Julie has labelled the White Year, which has us studying the years from 1650-1800 in both American history and British history along with Greek history. She also divides her curriculum into four forms, a Charlotte Mason term that means levels. Form 1 generally covers grades 1-3, Form 2 covers grades 4-6, Form 3 covers grades 7-9, and Form 4 covers grades 10-12. Since Sophia and Grace were in Form 2 and Form 3 this past year, they both did all three history streams included in the White Year, but Levi, whose only in Form 1, only studied the American history portion. While this all sounds complicated, Julie has done the heavy lifting for you. </font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Dma8-QDCZYc/WwzlS9qHKyI/AAAAAAAAF4w/bC1yecF-c_QQN_1PCfFy3FsDQAzdOnMygCHMYCw/s1600-h/Parent-Helps3"><img width="380" height="484" title="Parent Helps" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Parent Helps" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xuo19SWsFL0/WwzlTk4RU_I/AAAAAAAAF40/XqLdLjuJ9vkAMFToXjlAROOoS-1Z0_13gCHMYCw/Parent-Helps_thumb1?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">First, A Gentle Feast includes tons of parental helps for both families new to a Charlotte Mason education and to those who have been using Charlotte Mason principles in their homeschools for years. A ninety page ebook of foundational methods and principles is included in a full year curriculum purchase which includes general guidelines for scheduling the curriculum, including options and suggestions for combining forms, tips on narration, a general scope and sequence, and lots more. You also have access to a five day email introduction video course, where Julie walks you through using A Gentle Feast and basic Charlotte Mason ideas, and a private Facebook community and a private online community at the Gentle Feast website where Julie will personally answer your questions and provides extra support material for your year. It truly is a great way to make you feel confident in your purchase and getting the most out of the curriculum.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JYJswOMm2FQ/WwzlUzXQpII/AAAAAAAAF44/W02rnDs4zgsJXuDYapGP0MF19U3QhYd2gCHMYCw/s1600-h/Lesson-Plans-and-Book-Lists9"><img width="473" height="353" title="Lesson Plans and Book Lists" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Lesson Plans and Book Lists" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mh6LrtUcQ_I/WwzlVtEqs-I/AAAAAAAAF48/m9eqUw71mT8jJNnhlLRiH1uWE8OJK4RzACHMYCw/Lesson-Plans-and-Book-Lists_thumb7?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">In addition to the general information provided in the parental resources, you receive information specific to each form, and not only the forms you are teaching, but all four forms. By having access to what all four forms are reading and studying, you can truly customize your child’s education to their ability, if needed, by choosing books in a form above or below your child’s actual placement. It also lets you only need to purchase the four years, Green, White, Red, and Blue, and you’ll have a complete curriculum to use throughout your homeschool journey. You also can easily combine forms together by choosing books from the various forms that work for all of your children. </font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Each form also has their own specific narration tips, which lets you know what to expect at each level, their own book lists, both for the curriculum itself and for free reads on their own time, and a schedule for the entire year for each form. It really is as easy as copy and paste to create your own customized school year using A Gentle Feast as your foundation.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sl0zVhdisTs/WwzlW4Yah2I/AAAAAAAAF5A/qn7Lb7AbT286UssE-6X_733-fSCMSS_fgCHMYCw/s1600-h/Morning-Time-Plans3"><img width="395" height="484" title="Morning Time Plans" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Morning Time Plans" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6dViT1H8jkY/WwzlXQdEBlI/AAAAAAAAF5E/Q1TkwQokUEoWTz0EC-amyzlRZ1ZV8vVSwCHMYCw/Morning-Time-Plans_thumb1?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">One of my favorite parts of A Gentle Feast are the Morning Time plans (pictured on the right above). Everything is truly included! Bible readings are planned out for you each day along with read alouds, picture study (with the pictures you are studying already included!), composer study (with links to the musical compositions), poetry study, hymns, recitations, and more.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Of course, because I can’t leave anything alone, even a great curriculum like A Gentle Feast, I had to add in some things to our version of Morning Time (aka Power Hour, which is pictured on the left above), such as Liberty’s Kids episodes, a living book study of government, and vocabulary just to name a few. I also added some things from the curriculum into our family learning time that weren’t actually intended for family learning like our British history readings and Form 2’s geography reading.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-InrajpoJOKc/WwzlY6IkExI/AAAAAAAAF5I/mV_IOvuPE142Gr2fQyJ05IaIeZ3br1aGACHMYCw/s1600-h/Morning-Time-Binder4"><img width="473" height="363" title="Morning Time Binder" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Morning Time Binder" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ulzXEg8INhQ/WwzlZ8IgAZI/AAAAAAAAF5M/kC7--I7ddEwbIUxEYYAZAu8eQuE-hm0VgCHMYCw/Morning-Time-Binder_thumb2?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Because Julie has included everything you need for a successful Morning Time experience, I created a special binder for all of those printouts and resources, so that it’s all contained in one place, which makes our Power Hour totally open and go all year long.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9bEDfRCxaQE/WwzlbUrRlJI/AAAAAAAAF5Q/dnzRIvB-Md4reJcRLcr3OUNTpIM_qPvCgCHMYCw/s1600-h/Student-Workbooks4"><img width="473" height="386" title="Student Workbooks" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Student Workbooks" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yv2bgSggmK0/WwzlcELtMFI/AAAAAAAAF5U/QmQYDxeuhlo4F4KTWLXGgZwh4u2RfZdCwCHMYCw/Student-Workbooks_thumb2?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">While the Morning Time plans are great, the student notebooks that are included with A Gentle Feast are in first place for my favorite part of this curriculum. Every form has one of these notebooks where all copywork and dictation passages, recitations, hymns, poetry, and free writes are kept in one nice neat place. For Form 4, there is even a student planner, customized for the curriculum, included as well. In the new A Gentle Feast 2.0 version (yes, Julie is already making improvements!) of these notebooks, some of the forms in some of the years even have built in grammar or phonics lessons using the copywork, which makes this already user friendly resource even better. It’s so nice to have everything in one location, and I imagine it would be very useful for those of you who homeschool in states where you need a portfolio.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">So now let’s talk about some common questions that are usually asked about Charlotte Mason curriculums and see how A Gentle Feast stacks up.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-03JCyWqbLfQ/WwzleOWm3_I/AAAAAAAAF5Y/s_KVQTR2RfUhMweh6WHrRpxTqIf-wCtGACHMYCw/s1600-h/Form-I-Books3"><img width="473" height="307" title="Form I Books" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Form I Books" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9uYTRQP5esk/Wwzle_o1XdI/AAAAAAAAF5c/W84_reIUckkxs71v-dZPNxTcS8Yzqlq-wCHMYCw/Form-I-Books_thumb1?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3"><u>Can I combine kids, so we are all doing the same thing?</u></font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Yes, to a point. If you have children in Forms 1 and 2, 2 and 3, or 1 through 3, I think Julie has made it very easy to combine. Since each form has its own spine book for history and science, you could easily choose a spine from one of the forms and use the supplemental reading at each child’s own level. I left Form 4 out of this combining equation because the plans for Form 4 are really expected to be completed independently for the most part. However, the Morning Time plans and afternoon learning are both designed to be done with the entire family through all the forms, so everyone will meet together at least twice a day for sure.</font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-57eQsECieTY/WwzlgjAb8FI/AAAAAAAAF5g/d54mWOdWjZYw4ig8gxuC1rimR8i8W5cIgCHMYCw/s1600-h/Form-II-Books4"><img width="395" height="422" title="Form II Books" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Form II Books" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wVKJUvX8dtc/WwzlhZG-48I/AAAAAAAAF5k/_g8qPjqNYUkqh1ZnZHJZKDvs_VObbeWfACHMYCw/Form-II-Books_thumb2?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3"><u>Are the book choices all older books where minorities and women are treated harshly?</u></font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">I think Julie has done a really great job of balancing older, more established Charlotte Mason books common in CM circles with more current books as well. In the newly updated A Gentle Feast 2.0, she made it a point to go back and include books specifically about minorities and women that show their contributions to American and world history. </font></p><p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-a6-IZxVTIQM/Wwzliz4YLgI/AAAAAAAAF5o/8NIRDD_GJMIzXIWbzdiuW8fdsnVtkuZBQCHMYCw/s1600-h/Form-III-Books4"><img width="473" height="427" title="Form III Books" style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; float: none; display: block; background-image: none;" alt="Form III Books" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsYjeY5YoOVELkWWLEo4apXTObxweJiXgOHCW2jJxAx2gD9ZNaHbDXz1htBdVBRh9mQYiCUFP3S_p8ppITO7gTMq4isqYlKPgSYqSE943h0H7QMs-pt551AhMSkaJDOE2rdk2IJo4cRLI/?imgmax=800" border="0"></a></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3"><u>What if I don’t have a specific book the curriculum uses, but I have one similar in our home library or there’s one in the public library? Will everything be ruined if I swap out books?</u></font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">The short answer is no, it won’t. All of my children had book substitutions at various times over the school year and it was not a problem at all. In the case of my oldest in Form 3, we substituted out an entire subject and changed it to fit what she needed for eighth grade. I found the entire curriculum very easy to substitute books or subjects or add in books or subjects without derailing the entire system. Julie even lets you know in the plans if books can be found in the public domain or if they are used for such a short time that you shouldn’t bother buying them, but get them from the library. The only time that substituting a book could prove irritating is when there is a copy work passage in the student workbook that comes from a book you aren’t reading. I used a passage from the book we were using instead, so it wasn’t a problem, but it did take a little work on my part.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">I am so absolutely in love with this curriculum that we are definitely continuing to use it. However, there are a few cons I need to mention as well (but knowing Julie she’s already hard at work on some of these).</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">
1) Not super STEM heavy. In true Charlotte Mason fashion, the science plans for upper grades is pretty weak compared to what most college bound kids homeschoolers do for middle grade and high school science. The science is solid, but not super rigorous since in true Charlotte Mason fashion it relies on living books. I think it would be difficult to write a CM curriculum with super rigorous science unless you had a science background yourself which most CM homeschool moms usually do not (oftentimes it’s more literature and history). If you have a kid who eat, breathes, and lives science or wants to pursue a science degree, you might need to be prepared to give them more or substitute that subject out.</font><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">2) Lack of formal literature studies. I know, I know, Charlotte Mason didn’t believe in dissecting books and studying them. I don’t either, really, but if you have a child who is planning on continuing their education after graduation, they will need to be familiar with basic literary terms, what they mean, and how to interpret them. While A Gentle Feast does include classic literary works at the high school level, there is no formal study of these books other than just to read them. You will probably want to add in some literature study guides for a couple of these books to make sure your child is familiar with the dissection of literature that occurs in college. On a positive note, Julie does include formal writing lessons (and rubrics to grade them!) in the high school plans which is a breath of fresh air in a Charlotte Mason curriculum.</font>
</p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">3) Added in creative writing prompts. Okay, so technically this might be a positive for you and is totally subjective. In the student packets, creative writing prompts are included that are pulled from various subjects being studied. It's a very Brave Writer-ish approach (Free Write Fridays) meshed with CM. We skip over it and use actual writing curriculum in that slot. Mainly because I hated creative writing prompts in school, and my kids don't seem to like them either. However, I do like that she has the kids do more than just narrate or write narrations with what they are learning.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3"><strong>Now for the exciting stuff….</strong></font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Julie has so graciously offered the readers of The Planted Trees a coupon code for 10% off any purchase at <a href="https://agentlefeast.com/?ref=plantedtrees" target="_blank">A Gentle Feast</a> that’s good through 6/8/2018. Just enter the code, plantedtrees, at checkout.</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Also, make sure to watch my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/1716864851871731/permalink/2009758709249009/" target="_blank">Facebook Live interview with Julie</a> about our year using A Gentle Feast, leave a comment under the video, and be entered to win a free copy of my homeschool devotional book, <a href="http://www.kaiopublications.org/revitalize-breathing-life-and-encouragement-into-your-homeschooling/" target="_blank"><em>Revitalize: Breathing Life and Encouragement into Your Homeschool.</em></a></font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">And one final offer, leave a comment on this post or on this review post that I shared on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ThePlantedTrees/" target="_blank">The Planted Tree’s Facebook page</a> telling me what you like the most about <a href="https://agentlefeast.com/?ref=plantedtrees" target="_blank">A Gentle Feast</a> and you’ll be entered to win a $30 gift certificate from Julie toward A Gentle Feast purchase!</font></p><p><font face="Century Gothic" size="3">Here’s to a gentle 2018-2019 school year!!!</font></p><p><i><font face="French Script MT" size="7">Chelli</font></i><p><font size="7"></font></p><p><font size="7"></font></p><p><font size="7"></font></p><p><font size="7"></font></p><p><font size="7"></font></p>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-78125146792070340982017-09-04T06:00:00.001-05:002017-09-04T06:00:09.768-05:00Charlotte Mason Inspired Curriculum Plans and Choices for 2017-2018<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To be honest I’m not really sure why I’m writing
this list of our curricula for the coming year. I guess because I know how much
Charlotte Mason and classical homeschoolers love to look at other people’s book
lists! Hurricane Harvey didn’t really do too much to our town, but then a
couple of days after he’d left, all of the water he dumped over southeast Texas
came roaring down the rivers here in town leaving about 2/3 of the homes and
businesses in our small town with flood damage. For a few days there was no way
in or out of our town due to all the roads being underwater. Luckily our home
was spared, but now the flood waters have gone away for the most part, and our
town is busy helping friends and neighbors rebuild their homes and lives. At
this point our curriculum plan, at least for the foreseeable future, should be:
Disaster Response 101 and Loving Your Neighbor Advanced Level. But since I’m
hoping that eventually we’ll get to the plans I’ve put together for our
2017-2018 school year, I’ll share them more as a wish list for the (hopefully)
near future then what we are currently studying.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Grace is entering eighth grade this year (cue
fainting and panic attacks) and since high school is thundering over the
horizon (cue more fainting and panic attacks), I wanted to let her last year of
pre-high school work be one of freedom and control over her schooling choices
before we start having to count credits next year. You’ll notice that a couple
of her subjects look a bit different than the traditional course work. I’m
reviewing a new Charlotte Mason curriculum this school year (thanks to the generosity
of the author), so most of her content subjects come from that curriculum.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Math:</b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Math-U-See (still working for this math hating kid of mine, so we're still using it!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Spelling:</b> Apples and Pears (finally finishing this spelling series this year with a one thousand percent improved speller on my hands from when we started)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Writing:</b> Writing with Macbeth at co-op (I'm once again teaching a writing class at our local co-op. It's a high school level writing class centered around Shakespeare's play, Macbeth. The students will be learning how to write literary essays, compare/contrast essays, and a big research paper the second semester just to name a few of the assignments. Grace is a good enough writer I believe she can handle this class as an eighth grader.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Literature:</b> So I'm not going to lie, this is the one subject I'm most excited about this year. Why? Because Grace wanted to spend the entire year studying fairy tales, so we are. We'll be looking at three modern fairy tale retellings, three modern fairy tale novels, the original Grimm and Perrault tales, examining fairy tales at a deep spiritual, Biblical level, and hopefully having lots of big, juicy conversations about it all. The only catch? Nothing like what I wanted existed, so I had to write it myself from the ground up. Of course she'll also be reading some American historical fiction, nature lore books, and geography novels as well, but our big focus is all things fairy. I'm hoping to drop in every so often here on the blog and let you know how this one is going.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Science:</b> Instead of focusing on one science subject this year, Grace will be doing a different focus each term along with a year long study of trees using <a href="https://www.memoriapress.com/curriculum/science/book-trees/" target="_blank">Memoria Press' Book of Trees</a>. The first term she'll be studying weather using the <a href="http://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/downloads/middle-school-weather-study-guide/" target="_blank">living science curriculum from Sabbath Mood Homeschool</a> and <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2vDQefL" target="_blank">Look at the Sky and Tell the Weather </a></i>by Eric Sloane as a spine. The second term will have a geology focus using <a href="https://www.masterbooks.com//catalog/product/view/id/808" target="_blank">The Geology Book</a> as a spine. The third term will be all about chemistry using another <a href="http://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/downloads/chemistry-study-guide-form-3-4-grades-7-9/" target="_blank">living science curriculum from Sabbath Mood Homeschool</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>History:</b> Normally, I have two concurrent streams of history going at one time: American and World, but this year Grace wanted to study mythology (one of her favorite things) in lieu of world history. I thought, "Why not?" and so away I went. Luckily I found a <a href="http://mythologyteacher.com/" target="_blank">good general outline for our study online</a> (and it was free which is even better!), but basically, she will be studying Greek and Roman mythology the first semester and Norse, Arthurian, and Arabian mythology the second semester. All year long she'll also be reading various books containing mythology from around the world. For American history, she'll be roughly studying the period from 1700-1800 which means French and Indian War, Revolutionary War, and the Constitution. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Foreign Language: Right at the end of last school year Grace decided she wanted to go back and start her French book over again. She felt like she wasn't dedicating enough time to her French studies and wanted a redo with a more focused mindset. She'll be continuing on with <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2x3OCfx" target="_blank">Getting Started with French</a></i> this year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Personal Bible Study:</b> I decided last year that Grace would no longer be using the Bible Study Guide for All Ages with her siblings, instead she would start her own personal Bible study time. In fact, I waited too long to do this with her. She'll be working through <a href="http://amzn.to/2x4gf8r" target="_blank">the New Testament workbooks</a> from <i>The Most Important Thing You'll Ever Study</i> by Starr Meade.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sophia is a fifth grader this year, and she's always super excited about school. It's probably no coincidence that when we loaded her basket for the first term, she had more books to read and study than anyone. Sophia is my one child who is using the Charlotte Mason curriculum I'm reviewing totally as it's written. I know she's going to have a great year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Math: </b>Math in Focus and Beast Academy (this combination seems to be perfect for my math loving girl!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Grammar:</b> I really wasn't going to have Sophia do grammar this year since we spent a year studying it last year, but I'm teaching a Grammar Fun class at our local co-op, so she'll be in there by default. I think most of it will be review, but it's always better to learn grammar if you're doing it through art and games.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Writing:</b> She's using parts 2 and 3 of <a href="http://www.treasuredconversations.com/" target="_blank">Treasured Conversations</a> this year. After that she'll move back to Writing and Rhetoric.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Literature:</b> Both of my girls are spending an hour of their day this year doing nothing but reading some great books. Here's Sophia's list for literature this year: <i>Tales from the Odyssey</i>, <i>D'Aulaire's Greek Myths</i>, <i>Our Little Athenian Cousin from Long Ago</i>, <i>Our Little Spartan Cousin from Long Ago</i>, <i>Christian Liberty Nature Reader 5</i>, <i>Our Earth</i>, <i>Seabird</i>, <i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</i>, <i>Where the Mountain Meets the Moon</i>, <i>A Long Walk to Water</i>, <i>Caddie Woodlawn</i>, <i>An Ordinary Princess</i>, <i>Sarah, Plain and Tall</i>, <i>Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone</i>, <i>Matilda</i>, and <i>The Children of Green Knowe</i>. We won't do anything super formal with these books, but we will talk about them (a la narrations). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Science:</b> Sophia's big science focus this year is physics and she's really excited about it. This girl really loves her math and science! Her spine will be <a href="http://amzn.to/2wAgswW" target="_blank"><i>The New Way Things Work</i> by David MacCaulay</a> with <a href="http://amzn.to/2vYdr7q" target="_blank">K'Nex kits</a> and <a href="http://amzn.to/2iVIVtN" target="_blank">an experiment book</a> thrown in as well. All year long she'll also be studying insects one day a week using <a href="https://www.memoriapress.com/curriculum/science/book-insects/" target="_blank">Memoria Press' The Book of Insects set</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>History:</b> In case, you could't figure it out from her literature list, Sophia will be studying Ancient Greece this year. Her spine book will be <a href="http://www.nothingnewpress.com/books/guerbers-histories/greeks/" target="_blank"><i>The Story of the Greeks</i> by H.A. Grueber</a>. She will also be studying the same time period in history as her older sister, The American Revolution era (1700-1800). Again, she'll be using another Grueber book as her spine, <i><a href="https://www.memoriapress.com/curriculum/american-and-modern-studies/story-of-the-thirteen-colonies-the-great-republic-text-second-edition/" target="_blank">The Story of the Thirteen Colonies</a></i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Foreign Language:</b> I don't know what it is about Sophia, but she loves languages and it's really amazing how well she picks them up. She's about halfway through <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2vXQ2mU" target="_blank">Getting Started with Spanish</a></i>, so we'll finish that up this year and we're also adding in Latin for her using <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2xIAQvP" target="_blank">Getting Started with Latin</a></i>. Can you tell I like the Getting Started With series?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Personal Bible Study:</b> I wasn't actually going to purchase anything special for this area for Sophia this year, but she saw me using one of my favorite Bible study tools, a Journible, and decided she wanted one too. I asked her which book of the Bible she'd like to study. I assumed she'd want something like one of the gospels or Genesis, but she wanted to dive headfirst into Romans. Well, alrighty then. Nothing like tackling one of the weightiest books in the entire Bible! Thanks to her constant nagging I bought her a <a href="http://amzn.to/2iUPFIk" target="_blank">Romans Journible</a> which should be here as soon as mail service starts up again after Harvey.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Out of all my children, I'm most excited to teach first grade for the last time with Levi. Why? I think it's because his first grade year is shaping up to be so different from what I did with his older sisters. I'm really adhering to the less is more philosophy with him. A few well chosen books this year, only five subjects a day, and this boy is ready to go.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Math:</b> Math in Focus (all of my kids start with this math program because it's just so good)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Phonics:</b> Logic of English Foundations (he's finally sounding out words!!!!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Handwriting:</b> He's finishing Getty-Dubay Italics Book A and then copywork for the rest of the year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Science:</b> To be honest, this is the one subject I'm most worried about for the coming year. He loves to be read to, but he loves to do as well. I'm hoping our daily time outside will provide the ability for him to do as we read through these great living science books this year: <a href="http://amzn.to/2wAhCs3" target="_blank"><i>The Wonders of the Jungle</i> by Prince Sarath Ghosh</a>, <a href="http://amzn.to/2vDZ25j" target="_blank"><i>Wild Life in Woods and Fields</i> by Arabella Buckley</a>, <a href="http://amzn.to/2vF1IQd" target="_blank"><i>By Pond and River</i> by Arabella Buckley</a>, and <a href="http://amzn.to/2wAikFM" target="_blank"><i>Seed Babies</i> by Margaret Morely</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>History:</b> As a first grader, history is mainly just an exposure of famous people and stories from American history. We'll start out the year reading through some American tall tales using Mary Pope Osborne's book, <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2vYjAAU" target="_blank">American Tall Tales</a></i>. The rest of the year we'll read selected stories from <a href="http://amzn.to/2iW7nvf" target="_blank"><i>American Tales Reader</i> by Michael G. Gaunt</a> which tells about famous people from American history all while in a fictional story about a family. I'm pretty certain he's going to love this one!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Geography:</b> Geography is probably my favorite subject, and I love the way this new curriculum teaches something abstract like maps in a very hands on way all while using <a href="http://amzn.to/2vEadLi" target="_blank">C.C. Long's <i>Home Geography for Primary Grades</i></a> as a spine along with some great books like <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2vEpjjP" target="_blank">Jenny Goes to Sea</a></i> and <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2vExQmK" target="_blank">Children of Many Lands</a></i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>Literature:</b> Basically this time in Levi's day is devoted to some great children's classics. He's already been poring over these books looking at the pictures and getting excited to hear me read them. This year we'll read: The Beatrix Potter Collection, <i>Just so Stories</i>, <i>The Blue Fairy Book</i>, and <i>Aesop's Fables</i>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So that's it! Once we get our town back on its feet we'll be diving head first into a great year of Charlotte Mason inspired learning. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What grade or
subject are you most excited about this year?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Chelli</span></i></div>
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Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-44421513552301651432017-05-23T08:00:00.000-05:002017-05-23T08:00:00.150-05:00What to Expect When Homeschooling Middle School<p><font size="3"><span style="font-family: century gothic">Nothing strikes more fear into the hearts of homeschool parents than realizing that those easy elementary years are behind them and high school looms ahead. Suddenly they find themselves teaching sixth, seventh, and eighth grades and realizing that a different child has appeared in their house. How do you teach this person? How do you prepare them for high school? How do you deal with all the challenges that middle school brings for you and your child? Let’s start by looking at what to expect from your child during these years.</span><br></font></p> <p><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AnW8TArH2Rg/WSPJZAVSrsI/AAAAAAAAFdc/bsaIM5UI9ksaxGpHX4VXUGqUaaqGLoYMwCHM/s1600-h/What%2Bto%2BExpect%2BWhen%2BHomeschooling%2BMiddle%2BSchool%255B98%255D"><img title="What to Expect When Homeschooling Middle School" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; float: none; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-left: auto; display: block; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; margin-right: auto" border="0" alt="What to Expect When Homeschooling Middle School" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-juv6673LsBk/WSPJZrcQRYI/AAAAAAAAFdg/CQ2y3Kv7oRoWfuh0QX-QZfVyBOsenlfpQCHM/What%2Bto%2BExpect%2BWhen%2BHomeschooling%2BMiddle%2BSchool_thumb%255B96%255D?imgmax=800" width="565" height="664"></a><br><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">1. Hormones</font></strong></span><br><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">So this might be obvious, but do not underestimate the power of these body chemicals to affect your homeschool day. Of course</font> <font size="3">every teen is different, so for some this will have more of an impact than others. I know that in our home it’s been Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Days, hours, minutes of relative calm followed by a sudden 180 degree turn of tears, frustration, anger, or sullenness. Needless to say, it makes homeschooling interesting.</font></span></font></p> <p><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">2. Social Needs</font></strong></span><br><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">The summer before Grace started sixth grade she came to me asking for more social interaction with her peers, specifically in a learning environment. I scrambled around and found a co-op that fit our family and our budget. From talking to other homeschool parents, her request coinciding with entering middle school is not unusual. Playdates at the park with friends, one extracurricular activity, and being</font> <font size="3">home with siblings and parents was no longer enough. As a caveat, my daughter is naturally an extrovert, but this need is commonly felt among most kids this age. An introvert might express this differently, but this natural gravitation toward peers is totally normal.</font></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">3. Physical Growth</font></strong></span><br><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">Considering that my thirteen year old daughter is only an inch shorter than my height of 5’10”, I can attest that these years are a time of great physical growth. A teen’s body changes more than any other time in life other than infancy. All that growing means teens and tweens need more food and sleep than usual. Those homeschool days of up and at ’em with the dawn will probably come to a screeching halt as your middle school student needs more rest. Snack time will</font> <font size="3">definitely become an important part of the day as well. The increased sleeping and revolving door of your kitchen inevitably causes changes in how your homeschool functions.</font></span></p> <p><font size="5"><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">4. Need to Feel</font> <font size="5">Connected</font></strong></span><br></font><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">Children who enter middle school not only need social interaction, but they need to feel connected to the world around them. They want to be needed. They want to find their niche. What do I enjoy? What am I good at? What role do I play in my family? Where do I fit in my circle of friends? How do I contribute to my faith and place of worship in a meaningful way? Navigating these questions is a rite of passage for middle schoolers whether they realize it or</font> <font size="3">not. It allows them to define themselves and create a network for future independence.</font></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">5. Mental Growth</font></strong></span><br><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">Not only do our children grow physically, but their mental processes take a leap as well. They begin to think deeply about events and decisions. As neo-classical homeschoolers label it, they have entered the dialectic stage, where children move from fact acquisition to exploring the deeper nuances of historical events, scientific discoveries, literary characters and plots, and the moral implications of all of the above. They start to question everything! I even find my thirteen year</font> <font size="3">old critiquing my parenting decisions, “When I’m a mom, I won’t do XYZ.” By the way, I’m writing these down and can’t wait to bring them up again. Bwahaha.</font></span></font></p> <p><span style="font-size: large; font-family: gabriola"><strong><font size="5">6. Straddling Between Childhood and Adulthood</font> </strong></span><br><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">When I tell people that I used to teach eighth grade, they usually look at me in sympathy. Once I explain that I loved teaching that age, then they look at me in shock. I explain that I love middle school kids because they have enough adult in them to be independent, but enough child in them that they like to play games and be goofy. Having one foot in childhood and one foot in adulthood is a good way to describe this age. It’s this transitioning</font> <font size="3">between two worlds that gives middle school children the reputation of having smart mouths and being sassy to parents and adults. The are trying to navigate this new maturity in mind and body, but they still have childish tendencies at times.</font></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: century gothic"><font size="3">So what do these six things mean for your homeschool? That’s the question I will address in the next post about how to specifically deal with these issues in your homeschool. A quick answer, though,</font> <font size="3">is that your involvement as the parent and teacher is paramount at this age. They need you more than ever and you will need patience, understanding, and a lot of chocolate. </font></span><br><span style="font-size: x-large; font-family: gabriola"><strong></strong></span></p> <p align="center"><span style="font-size: x-large; font-family: gabriola"><strong>What has been your experience when homeschooling a middle schooler?</strong></span></p> <div class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 72pt; font-family: "French Script MT"; line-height: 115%">Chelli</span></i></div>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-1057413968009395392017-05-02T08:00:00.001-05:002017-05-02T08:00:38.694-05:00Little Known Charlotte Mason Resources You Need to Know<p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">Charlotte Mason’s educational philosophy is all about those books, so it’s no surprise that one of the most frequently asked questions I receive is, “Where do you find the books you want your kids to read, especially living books for various subjects?” Now if you have been around Charlotte Mason homeschooling circles for any amount of time, then you’ve heard of the major players in the Charlotte Mason game, </font><a href="http://amblesideonline.org/"><font size="3">Ambleside Online</font></a><font size="3"> and </font><a href="https://simplycharlottemason.com/"><font size="3">Simply Charlotte Mason</font></a><font size="3"> being the two big ones. I want to share my personal favorite Charlotte Mason Resources that I use for various reasons, but there’s one thing I can promise you. These are not major players on the Charlotte Mason stage yet, but they are ones I turn to when planning out all those delicious books we’ll read and how to fit them all into a week and a year.</font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"></font></span> <p> <a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Prm1LSCCQn4/WQf7RNPcN6I/AAAAAAAAFcg/rjsPMpV5ppYAmdlVmpxrDNyf6JrY2lAjwCHM/s1600-h/Little%2BKnown%2BCharlotte%2BMason%2BResources%255B7%255D"><img title="Little Known Charlotte Mason Resources" style="border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; background-image: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px; border-top-width: 0px" border="0" alt="Little Known Charlotte Mason Resources" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zAfJC2jp5jU/WQf7SbYShcI/AAAAAAAAFck/jfroEitVuQE5wP4ebMJjK0sVZ-tBel93QCHM/Little%2BKnown%2BCharlotte%2BMason%2BResources_thumb%255B5%255D?imgmax=800" width="480" height="423"></a><br><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">In no particular order…</font></span></font></p> <p><font size="3"><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">1) <strong><a href="http://wildwoodcurriculum.org/">Wildwood Curriculum</a></strong>:</font> <font size="3">This curriculum is very new and being compiled by homeschool moms who are studying Charlotte Mason’s turn of the century schools for inspiration in book choice and scheduling, but also trying to keep the book choices secular, as modern as possible, and inoffensive to minorities, indigenous people, and women as possible. Usually older books that are commonly used in Charlotte Mason programs definitely need to be edited on the fly when reading to remove disparaging descriptions and word choice about these groups. Right now (as of this blog post in May 2017) only forms 1B and 1A (ages 6-9) are completed with book choices and curriculum suggestions for each subject.</font></span></font></font></p> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m Loving about Wildwood Curriculum</em>: Their attempt to bring Charlotte into the 21st Century.</font></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m Using from Wildwood Curriculum:</em> Their list of Tales, History, Geography readers for Levi. This upcoming school year he’ll be in first grade so their book lists are perfect for him. Plus all the readings are already broken down so all I have to do is plug it into my weekly schedule!</font></span></p> <p><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">2) </font><a href="https://www.amindinthelight.com/"><strong><font size="3">A Mind in the Light</font></strong></a><font size="3">: I first “met” the author of this Charlotte Mason curriculum on the Well-Trained Mind forums. She began putting the curriculum together while giving her own daughters a CM education. Her curriculum is based upon using more modern book choices as well, but with classics thrown in here and there. She’s publishing guides and curriculum schedules to give the world another completely open and go choice for busy CM moms.</font></span></font></p> <p><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span></font><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m Loving about A Mind in the Light</em>: Her book guides are a HUGE help to the CM homeschool community. As much as I try to pre-read everything for my children, it can be difficult to come up with narration questions, review people and places, and even project ideas based upon the books they are reading. Lisa has done all of that for you!</font></span></p><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m Using from A Mind in the Light:</em> This school year I’m using </font><a href="https://www.amindinthelight.com/history"><font size="3">her guide</font></a><font size="3"> to <em>The Book of the Ancient Greeks</em> with Grace for 7th grade. It’s a fantastic help and includes various questions and assignments, including term exam questions, based upon form/grade level of who is using the book. I’m also using her science book lists for both Sophia (4th grade) and Grace. While these aren’t scheduled out, I take her lists and come up with our own schedule. We’ve all enjoyed her book choices. They are the best!</font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">3) <strong><a href="http://agentlefeast.com/">A Gentle Feast</a></strong>: Julie has created a Charlotte Mason curriculum that you can use to teach all the members of the family at the same time, similar to Simply Charlotte Mason, but with a four-year history rotation. There are notes for the parent contained in the parent guide and then each form/grade has their own guide as well, plus a totally planned out Morning Time that corresponds with your school year. </font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m loving about A Gentle Feast:</em> The focus on family but without dragging out ancient history and a coordinated Morning Time. </font><a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/01/planning-morning-meeting.html"><font size="3">You know I love me a Morning Time that goes with your year’s studies!</font></a></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m Using from A Gentle Feast:</em> Probably the biggest inspiration I found was actually in the </font><a href="http://agentlefeast.com/more/"><font size="3">free scheduling menu</font></a><font size="3"> found on the main page. I didn’t follow her titles exactly, but seeing how she grouped similar items into blocks of learning really revamped our school year. I created my own learning blocks that we rotate through in our day. It made our time go much more smoothly without feeling tied down. I fully intend to make use of her </font><a href="http://agentlefeast.com/product-category/morning-time/"><font size="3">Morning Time plans</font></a><font size="3"> for next year even if I use nothing else. It would be so helpful to have someone else do all the work!</font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">4) <strong><a href="http://wildflowersandmarbles.com/">Wildflowers and Marbles</a></strong>: I hesitated to even include Jennifer’s blog on this list because it is a source of inspiration to many Charlotte Mason homeschool moms. She has been homeschooling for many years including high school so I love to pick her “brain.” I added it to my list because most people I hear talk about her blog talk about her amazing Morning Basket plans and blog posts, however, I find the most benefit elsewhere on her blog. </font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m loving about Wildflowers and Marbles:</em> Book lists galore, </font><a href="http://wildflowersandmarbles.com/the-paper-stuff/elementary-booklists/"><font size="3">elementary</font></a><font size="3">, </font><a href="http://wildflowersandmarbles.com/the-paper-stuff/middle-school-booklists/"><font size="3">middle school</font></a><font size="3">, and </font><a href="http://wildflowersandmarbles.com/the-paper-stuff/high-school-booklists/"><font size="3">high school</font></a><font size="3">! Divided by grade level and some divided by topic, Jennifer always knows what the best books are. In fact, Sophia’s geography reader, <em>Little Stories of a Big Country</em>, was a selection based solely on the fact that Jennifer had it listed in her third grade book list. </font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m using from Wildflowers and Marbles: </em>Click on any of the term bullet points under the grade level book lists and you’ll find the inspiration for my kids’ weekly assignment sheets. Mine are not as fancy as Jennifer’s with a lot less information, but I did keep the color and the basic concept of printing a reoccurring assignment sheet that they fill in with what was completed. We started using this system last year and it’s perfect. Seriously, perfect.</font></span></p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""></span> <p><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">5) <strong><a href="http://www.adelectableeducation.com/">A Delectable Education Podcasts</a> and <a href="http://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/">Sabbath Mood Homeschool blog</a></strong>: So this Charlotte Mason resource is quickly growing a sizeable fan base and for good reason: these podcasts are life-giving to a CM homeschooler. Three homeschool moms, one a veteran, discuss how to implement Charlotte Mason in your home using Charlotte Mason’s own words, her 6 volume original set, as reference. I included Sabbath Mood Homeschool in this entry because one of the Delectable Education ladies, Nicole, writes the blog as well. Her blog focuses on planning out your homeschool day, week, and year using Charlotte Mason’s own school</font> <font size="3">as a model and tons of CM science books.</font></span></font></p> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m loving about A Delectable Education and Sabbath Mood Homeschool: </em>The commitment to only teaching subjects and organizing their weeks in the same fashion as Charlotte Mason. If you are wanting pure, unadulterated CM, these two websites are your new best friends.</font></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3"><em>What I’m using from A Delectable Education and Sabbath Mood Homeschool:</em> The </font><a href="http://www.adelectableeducation.com/2015/12/episode-12-chronology-of-history.html"><font size="3">chronology of history podcast</font></a><font size="3"> totally changed the way I approached history this year in our homeschool. I was worried it would make things difficult by having various history streams going at once, but they really liked it and we got to make use of our big wall timeline to keep things straight. I made use of Nicole’s </font><a href="http://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/preparing-a-cm-schedule/"><font size="3">Charlotte Mason Scheduling series</font></a><font size="3"> at Sabbath Mood Homeschool to determine exactly what subjects should be covered for each grade level and for what length of time. Of course I dropped some subjects and changed some things around to fit our family, but it gave me a great place to start as I prepared for this school year. Nicole also has some wonderful </font><a href="http://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/living-science-curriculum/"><font size="3">science guides</font></a><font size="3"> that use living books to teach science for grades 4-12. I haven’t used one yet, but it’s on my list to use for high school with Grace.</font></span></p> <p><font size="3"><span style="font-size: small; font-family: "century gothic""><font size="3">Obviously there are other Charlotte Mason websites and curriculums out there, but these are the ones I’ve personally used and love. I also never hear them talked about much in most Charlotte Mason circles, so I felt the need to bring their awesomeness to the</font> <font size="3">attention of you guys. Be sure and check them out, and find some great CM nuggets for yourself.</font></span><br></font></font><span style="font-size: x-large; font-family: "gabriola""><font size="6"></font></span></p> <p align="center"><span style="font-size: x-large; font-family: "gabriola""><font size="6">What Charlotte Mason resources have been most helpful to you?</font></span></p> <div align="left"><i><span style="font-size: 72pt; font-family: "french script mt"; line-height: 110px">Chelli</span></i></div>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-53038017906691778132017-01-09T09:57:00.000-06:002017-01-09T09:57:18.044-06:00Teaching Grammar and Writing Through Discussion<h3>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">A Review of Treasured Conversations</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Once again I’m taking part in the <a href="http://www.homeschoolingheartsandminds.com/2016/12/homeschool-encouragement-for-new-year.html" target="_blank">Virtual Curriculum Fair</a> by bringing you all of my favorite homeschool curriculum
resources and ideas. This week I’m excited to share one of my recent favorites
as we dive into language arts week. Every once in a while you stumble upon a
homeschool curriculum that not only teaches your child, but teaches you how to
be a better teacher. <a href="http://www.treasuredconversations.com/" target="_blank">Treasured Conversations</a> is such a curriculum.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQ1uOvIK_filxbvKU34UZLGcJqEC0hwCMdUtW5zwDLry_s6WAoWziE1o5hghim7cHJQZ0tNNeQ6RgK-B6ep79HeA5Nk01Tz4Rbz3g5RM-HdX0USwH34N5O7NwdVYc0XVYzQdF-dCITxA/s1600/Treasured+Conversations+Review.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIQ1uOvIK_filxbvKU34UZLGcJqEC0hwCMdUtW5zwDLry_s6WAoWziE1o5hghim7cHJQZ0tNNeQ6RgK-B6ep79HeA5Nk01Tz4Rbz3g5RM-HdX0USwH34N5O7NwdVYc0XVYzQdF-dCITxA/s400/Treasured+Conversations+Review.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The
Basics</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">First things first, let me give you the basic
facts about this curriculum before I move into my analysis of it. Treasured
Conversations was written by a homeschool mom who has been homeschooling for
over two decades. She couldn’t find a grammar/writing program that taught those
subjects the way she wished <i>{we’ve all
been there, right?}</i>, so like any good homeschool mom she did things her own
way, and it proved to be successful. Treasured Conversations is the result of
the way she taught her own children through talking about words, sentences,
paragraphs, and reports. It is designed to be used with children in the third
through fifth grade. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Treasured Conversations is divided into three
sections. In the first section the focus is grammar and sentences. The second
section teaches paragraph construction and outlining. The third section builds
on the previous two sections by having children learn to read for information
and use that information to write a multiple paragraph report. Currently, the
curriculum is only available as a pdf download.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Q9BEMAuQahqY6C8k6htgozTcJA3PlX5fKbFgQE8LuSWzJ_zHfhHwWWhbmTnfEjo8kgMTOJi_Fw_3f8rEapTlLheAn_g9v1LWYpAEWNPg9aRZCp-QIScsX8nETB-uOGAExS22TM-nPT8/s1600/Grammar+Example.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Q9BEMAuQahqY6C8k6htgozTcJA3PlX5fKbFgQE8LuSWzJ_zHfhHwWWhbmTnfEjo8kgMTOJi_Fw_3f8rEapTlLheAn_g9v1LWYpAEWNPg9aRZCp-QIScsX8nETB-uOGAExS22TM-nPT8/s320/Grammar+Example.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample page from the grammar section of the student book.</td></tr>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why
I Love It</span></u></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It appeals to my Charlotte Mason homeschool
self. With the curriculum geared toward 3<sup>rd</sup> through 5<sup>th</sup>
graders who have little or no previous grammar or writing exposure, it falls
right in line with delaying formal grammar study until those ages like Ms.
Mason espoused. Each lesson is short and simple using grammar in the context of
a story instead of constructed sentences that usually follow a pattern, which
causes children to really learn the grammar. Also, the curriculum includes copy
work in the first section while studying grammar and sentence structure and you
know how much us CM homeschoolers love our copy work!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlShZ7JPMKiC5wus_-suor2TiNfXi-Ez-ntARyRETp4kbo7Ta1bEeD6oIDJIhdIOTFAonNjGuo73W4SjsIdX7jeGwieM6fFzmeH5KGftzSw3fJSKa6Au8VoCXK_O2aTBftcO9Ztj3LBXQ/s1600/Paragraph+writing+example.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlShZ7JPMKiC5wus_-suor2TiNfXi-Ez-ntARyRETp4kbo7Ta1bEeD6oIDJIhdIOTFAonNjGuo73W4SjsIdX7jeGwieM6fFzmeH5KGftzSw3fJSKa6Au8VoCXK_O2aTBftcO9Ztj3LBXQ/s320/Paragraph+writing+example.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample page from the paragraph writing section of the student book.<br />
Notice how grammar is continuing to be reviewed!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It appeals to my writer self. I’ve loved writing
for as long as I can remember and it’s always been a natural strength for me so
grammar came pretty easily to me as well, but I struggled with teaching my
children grammar because I honestly don’t find it very useful. Treasured
Conversations helped me realize how to talk about grammar in the context of
being a good writer, choosing strong verbs, specific nouns, and descriptive
adjectives and adverbs. It’s difficult to have those conversations with a
budding writer if they have no clue what a noun, verb, adjective, adverb, etc.
even is. Plus it helps children understand why they are learning these things
as well. The curriculum is constantly referring to knowing grammar so you can
put them in your “writer’s toolbox,” which is what learning grammar is all
about becoming a better writer. I also love the focus on outlining, note
taking, and paragraph construction in the later sections. These are skills that
are vital to good writing and that are sometimes difficult to teach.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31HDRQZa0VpWbusXoQnJ4TGi_vilB-iNCm1GhpokYdLXF8hn28sWaxi4GFaDfIw9IIIHv7LfU2GB3ex4ilXFj-YlHG7Zl2VZY5BjKhKygpH9aG9JVn2rAWnrGpzNxlbSDMhJev1zbOIM/s1600/Report+Writing+Example.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31HDRQZa0VpWbusXoQnJ4TGi_vilB-iNCm1GhpokYdLXF8hn28sWaxi4GFaDfIw9IIIHv7LfU2GB3ex4ilXFj-YlHG7Zl2VZY5BjKhKygpH9aG9JVn2rAWnrGpzNxlbSDMhJev1zbOIM/s320/Report+Writing+Example.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample page from the report writing section in the student book.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It appeals to my teacher self. One of my
holdovers from my former life as a public school teacher is that I constantly
want to learn how to be a better teacher. Probably my favorite part of
Treasured Conversations is how it has helped me able to talk about grammar with
my kids. I’m technically using the curriculum with Sophia, but I’ve found
myself using the techniques learned there with Grace to talk about her writing
and to help teach her more grammar as well by using her own sentences and
paragraphs to break down and analyze. We all have a better context for grammar
study which has made me more enthusiastic about teaching it just by having a great conversation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Honestly, I don’t think you can go wrong with
giving this program a try for your upper elementary kids.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<h3>
Please visit my fellow homeschool bloggers who are writing about Playing with Words this week:</h3>
<a href="http://www.homeschoolingheartsandminds.com/2017/01/delight-directed-high-school-english.html" target="_blank">Delight Directed High School English</a> by Susan @ Homeschooling Hearts & Minds<br />
<a href="http://goldengrasses.blogspot.com/2017/01/act-your-part-well-vcf-word-play.html" target="_blank">Act Your Part Well- 2017 VCF</a> by Lisa @ Golden Grasses<br />
<a href="http://familyfaithandfridays.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-search-for-language-vcfweek-2.html" target="_blank">The Search For Language</a> by Michele@Family, Faith and Fridays<br />
<a href="http://hopkinshomeschool.com/our-top-picks-for-language-arts/" target="_blank">Our Top Picks for Language Arts</a> by Amanda H @ Hopkins Homeschool<br />
<a href="http://daybydayinourworld.com/2017/01/multiple-approaches-language-arts-2017/" target="_blank">Multiple Approaches to Language Arts in 2017</a> by Laura @ Day by Day in Our World<br />
<a href="http://homeschoolingforhisglory.blogspot.com/2017/01/how-we-cover-language-arts-in-our.html" target="_blank">How We Cover the Language Arts in Our Homeschool</a> by Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory<br />
<a href="http://fourlittlepenguins.blogspot.com/2017/01/use-your-words.html" target="_blank">Use Your Words</a> by Laura @ Four Little Penguins<br />
<a href="http://www.glimpseofourlife.com/2017/01/the-process-of-perfecting-macarons.html" target="_blank">The Art of Perfecting Macarons</a> by Jennifer @ A Glimpse of Our Life<br />
<a href="https://worthabowedhead.wordpress.com/2017/01/08/loving-languages-every-day/" target="_blank">Loving Languages Every Day</a> by Jen K @ A Peace of Mind<br />
<a href="http://gypsyroadschool.blogspot.com/2017/01/playing-with-words-speech-therapy.html" target="_blank">Speech Therapy & Elementary Latin</a> by Yvie @ Gypsy Road<br />
<a href="http://grtlyblesd.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-readin-and-writin-part-of-homeschool.html" target="_blank">The Readin' and Writin' Part of Homeschool</a> by Shecki @ Greatly Blessed<br />
<a href="http://thepeachesathome.blogspot.com/2017/01/children-who-love-books.html" target="_blank">Children Who Love Books</a> by Lizzy @ Peaches At Home<br />
<a href="http://www.unexpectedhomeschool.net/2017/01/customizing-high-school-language.html" target="_blank">Customizing High School Language Credits</a> by Christy @ Unexpected Homeschool<br />
<a href="http://weshallobtaindeliveringgrace.blogspot.com/2017/01/a-poetry-feast.html" target="_blank">A Poetry Feast</a> by Sarah @ Delivering Grace<br />
<a href="http://www.moms-heart.com/2017/01/teaching-language-arts-without-curriculum.html" target="_blank">Teaching Language Arts without Curriculum</a> by Brittney @ Mom's Heart<br />
<a href="http://kimandrobbie.blogspot.com/2017/01/i-know-your-pain-and-it-is-worth-it.html" target="_blank">I know your pain and it is worth it!</a> by Kim @ Good Sweet Love<br />
<a href="http://www.anetintime.ca/2017/01/language-arts-our-style.html" target="_blank">Language Arts: Our Style</a> by Annette @ A Net in Time
<br />
<a href="http://www.themcclanahan7.com/2017/01/words-words-words.html" target="_blank">Words! Words! Words!</a> by Lisa M @McClanahan 7<br />
<a href="https://3gigglygirlsathome.wordpress.com/2017/01/08/10-wonderful-word-games-1" target="_blank">10 Wonderful Word Games (+1)</a> by Lori @ At Home: where life happens<br />
<a href="http://kympossibleblog.blogspot.com/2017/01/finding-the-right-words.html" target="_blank">Finding the Right Words</a> by Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break<br />
<a href="http://sunrisetosunsethomeschool.com/2017/01/08/reading-comprehension/" target="_blank">What About Reading Comprehension?</a> by Kristen @ Sunrise to Sunset<br />
<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What
language arts curriculum do you love?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-19320911714475905822016-10-31T10:00:00.000-05:002016-10-31T23:42:02.157-05:00Why Charlotte Mason Was Right: Teaching Your Children to Be Students<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year Everyday Scholé is taking an in-depth look at the
eight essential principles of classical education. This month we are focusing
on educational virtues. You can check out the previous posts in this series as
well: <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">Charlotte Mason and Classical Combined</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/04/slow-and-steady-in-your-homeschool.html" target="_blank">Slow and Steady in Your Homeschool</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/05/multum-non-multa-charlotte-mason.html" target="_blank">Multum non Multa Exhibited in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool</a>,
<a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/06/practical-ways-to-use-repetition-cm.html" target="_blank">Practical Ways to Use Repetition to Memorize</a>, and <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/09/why-rabbit-trail-is-right-trail-wonder.html" target="_blank">Why the Rabbit Trail is the Right Trail</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Probably the most revolutionary aspect of
Charlotte Mason’s teaching philosophy was her understanding of children and how
they learned. At a time when Great Britain and most of the world believed
teaching children should be methodical and stale, she recognized the natural
wonder and curiosity in children and their love of a well told story. Her
famous quote that ‘children are born persons’ showed her understanding of the
uniqueness and natural abilities each child possess from birth. Ms. Mason was
definitely on to something and to create true students in our homeschool, we
need to heed her words about habit training. The following practices that are
usually found in a Charlotte Mason homeschool lead to many of the educational
virtues (or habits) talked about in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfPQLeumF4w" target="_blank">Dr. Perrin’s video</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you’ve ever tried to teach a classroom of
students who aren’t used to classroom procedures and behavior, it is a
challenging task. Once upon a time this was the purpose of kindergarten, to
train children how to behave in a formal learning environment and get along
with others in the same environment. Charlotte Mason also believed in this
training aspect for young children, and it was a major focus with elementary
students in her schools. While I don’t think homeschool parents need to force
their children to sit at a desk for hours or practice raising their hand to
speak, there are some Charlotte Mason practices that will create true students
of educational virtue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Practice:
Short Lessons<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Habit:
Focus and Quality</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One of the hallmarks of a CM educational style
is having short lessons with time slowly being added over the years and maxing
out at 45 minutes to an hour for core subjects in high school. While there are
a couple of benefits to scheduling your day this way, especially with lower
elementary children, the habits of focus and understanding are what Charlotte
Mason really wanted to teach children. Focus completely on your work for a
short amount of time and the quality of output from your children will be
greater. Instead of rushing through a page of handwriting just to complete it,
have your children focus on writing quality letters for ten minutes. It might
mean that they only finish one or two lines, but they are learning an important
skill of taking pride in a job well done. As they move up through the grades
and time increases for each class, they will naturally become faster at their
work while retaining quality because you taught them to focus at a young age.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Practice:
Living Books, Narrations, Art and Composer Study, Religious Education, and
Memory Work<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Habit:
Recognizing Truth, Beauty, and Goodness<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One of my funniest memories from a trip I took
in college to visit the Netherlands was when I decided to make myself a peanut
butter and jelly sandwich one afternoon for a snack. The family I was staying
with watched with equal parts fascination and horror as I assembled my sandwich
and took a bite. They couldn’t believe I would eat something so disgusting as
jelly and peanut butter together while I couldn’t believe they’d eat salted
herring. What was the difference? Our palates had been trained to like the
foods of our country of origin from a young age. Certain flavor combinations
tasted good to me that seemed disgusting to them and vice versa. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Likewise, we must train our children to
recognize truth, beauty, and goodness in literature, the arts, and our faith
while committing some of them to memory and making connections between them
all. It’s a challenge in this day and age for sure to mold their palate into
something that yearns for truth, beauty, and goodness instead of salacious
celebrity gossip, instant social media access, and funny cat video clips.
Charlotte Mason knew that teaching children using quality, well-written
narrative books, taking time to focus on beautiful artwork and musical
compositions, and learning how to narrate and examine ideas and information so
that it’s useful in their life will train our children’s eyes for life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Practice:
Free Time in the Afternoons<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Habit:
Leisure and Contemplation<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One thing that almost all the grade levels in a
Charlotte Mason school had in common was free time in the afternoons. Some of
the higher grades did have one or two subjects to complete after lunch, but for
most students the afternoons were for their delight. Unfortunately most
homeschools aren’t much better about providing this down time than public
schools are. However I am slowly realizing how necessary this time is for
children and parents alike to restore our spirit with some time to pursue our
hobbies and ponder deep questions. Many times (myself included!) when we find ourselves
with moments to spare or time to fill, we grab for a remote, a tablet, a
laptop, or our phones to lose ourselves in the world of screens. It is becoming
clearer and clearer that immersing ourselves in this technological world is
causing detriment to our ability to think deeply and to create. The bad habit
of constantly reaching for a screen needs to be replaced in our children with
the enjoyment found in leisure and contemplation of free time every day to just
be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b>Nature Study<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Habit:
Observation and Attention to Detail</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The minute you hear the phrase ‘nature study’
you know there is a CM homeschooler around! We do love our nature study, but I’ll
be honest. I haven’t been the best at doing nature study around here. I always
felt like there had to be this big focus or list of supplies we needed to do it
correctly. Until I started to consider what my children are to learn from
nature study. Of course, you want your children to learn about the science to
be found in nature, the animals, plants, weather, habitats, geology, astronomy,
etc., but there is even more that I believe Charlotte Mason wanted children to
develop: the habit of observation and attention to detail. Now when we go
outside, I like to have the children find something interesting and then spend some
time talking with me about it, really examine it, possibly sketch it if they
wish. The amazing side benefit of this time outside observing our world is that
my children are now more honed at finding details and observations in other
areas of our school. Artwork that we look at is searched for hidden surprises,
math problems are read more carefully, and the microscope is pulled out more to
find the details to small to be detected with the human eye.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So what do these habits have to do with creating
a true student? A child who has learned to focus when needed, produce quality
work, find truth, beauty, and goodness in their studies, take time for leisure
and contemplation, and pay attention to the details is someone who will have nothing
to hinder them as they pursue whatever life holds for them. Charlotte Mason
knew this and designed her schools with practices that created true students
for life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Don’t forget to visit my fellow Everyday Scholé
bloggers and get their take on the educational virtues. Just click the pictures
below.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/educational-virtues/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtklM0GKarr-MWEazlSKtFQUeL85Xuq4sHfxcsaRQmKFiVGPFG_n7BEGiaYHPfKfMxhT30Drc-8dRlupY-Qq2TqmCtEYHC6ncFmBt0plz0nc1dyMWURCfzZ7dAmJhIwOMozyXucC2QHEc/s320/pin+education+virtues.jpg" width="213" /></a> <a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/?p=13784&preview=true" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjukniA5NIDPIuxePYPxeWB4YhA_YMleyiVhMIZAwMqldyZjk4oHb26rSmVnEB8LDX6QbDqmB7z7NorrwQA3_koEDNIJC3iv6IDNv7aGUFxWnuSDDH6_khHUK-MpngPyiroriDgdpPs1TU/s320/EDUCATIONAL+VIRTUES.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 30.6667px;">What habits or virtues do you believe makes a true student?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 30.6667px;">Let me know in the comments below.</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-4726649270522112352016-09-26T08:00:00.000-05:002016-09-26T08:00:00.261-05:00Why the Rabbit Trail is the Right Trail: Wonder and Curiosity in Your Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "freestyle script"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year Everyday Scholé is taking an in-depth practical
look at the eight essential principles of classical education. This month we
are focusing on wonder and curiosity. You can check out the previous posts in
this series as well: <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">Charlotte Mason and Classical Combined</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/04/slow-and-steady-in-your-homeschool.html" target="_blank">Slow and Steady inYour Homeschool</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/05/multum-non-multa-charlotte-mason.html" target="_blank">Multum non Multa Exhibited in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool</a>,
and <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/06/practical-ways-to-use-repetition-cm.html" target="_blank">Practical Ways to Use Repetition to Memorize</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Very often I hear other homeschool moms make a
comment similar to this, “Well, we got off on a rabbit trail today and didn’t
finish our actual work. Now we’re behind and I feel like we wasted a day.” Even
if I don’t make a comment like this, I definitely think it! Anytime we stop to
pursue something that sparks our interest or imagination, my default train of
thought is failure. I’ve failed at accomplishment that day. I’ve dropped the
ball on learning. I’ve let the children get away with something I shouldn’t
have. After listening to Dr. Perrin’s talk about wonder and curiosity earlier
this month, I realized that sometimes what we call the rabbit trail is actually
the trail on which we’re meant to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Children are naturally born with an inquisitive
spirit and a sense of awe about the world. Unfortunately most of that is
drained or forced out of them in the typical school setting where time,
curriculum, and testing limitations rule the classroom. Too many times
homeschoolers follow this same trajectory of killing wonder and curiosity in
our children, not purposefully, but because we feel the pressure to keep up and
achieve. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However, as Dr. Perrin points out, the current
school system is not creating students in the true meaning of the word. The
original word is <i>studium</i> and means zeal,
diligent, striving, and eager. Those words are not ones I would use to describe
most children in school today. They do not seem zealous or eager to learn in
the least! Unfortunately many times our homeschools become more like the
traditional school system and wonder and curiosity are squeezed out of the way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When a rabbit trail comes along suddenly in our
school day, it usually is because something has captured a child’s wonder or
their curiosity has been aroused about a particular bit of information. The
learning that follows as you wind among the trees of ideas, over the brook of
discovery, and step carefully along the path that other true students have trod
leads to a day where you have focused solely on reveling in true education. Don’t
do the disservice of dismissing these days as a waste or a loss. These are the
days that you have taught your children the value of a true education: that
following a path of wonder and curiosity is what true scholars, inventors,
authors, artists, and world shapers have done since the beginning of time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So how do we become better about incorporating
wonder and curiosity into our school days?</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Plan
for it.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> One of the best things I implemented this
school year is having free afternoons (on the days when we’re home in the
afternoons that is!). Once our official school time is over, around lunch or a
little after, the kids have a couple of hours to do nothing but pursue their
own interests and studies. Sometimes they continue with work we started before
lunch, or they get lost in library books we checked out that week or they
simply play. I have been guilty every year of over-scheduling our days, weeks,
and academics, and I wanted to purposefully create a time in our day for
exploration, wonder, and curiosity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Strew
books, games, and movies.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Every week when we go to the
library, I grab some books (usually non-fiction) and movies (usually documentaries)
that look interesting or are about something we’ve recently experienced or
seen. I keep all of these resources in an easily accessible cabinet in the
living room for the kids to enjoy during our afternoon time or any other time
they wish. For example, we recently went on a tour through a cave. The kids
were fascinated so even though we aren’t technically studying caves right now,
I checked out lots of books about caves, animals that live in caves, a
documentary about caves, and a travel video about Carlsbad Caverns.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nature
study.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> So many times, nature study is dismissed even
by people who love it as an extra or something to get to if we find the time.
However, nature study is the original God-given source for wonder and curiosity
in not only children, but adults throughout time as well. Teaching your
children to be observers of nature and ask questions about nature is the
easiest and most hands-on way to feed their natural inquisitiveness. For the
past six months or so, I’ve made nature study an important part of our week and
a subject that each of my girls studies on their own a couple of times a week.
I’ve been amazed at how much science we’re actually learning through nothing
more than awakening wonder and curiosity about the natural world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course, the best way to inspire your children
is to be someone who is curious and finds wonder in things as well. Once they
realize that learning is not a onetime endeavor, but a lifelong pursuit, they
will be more apt to hold onto what they already possess: a desire to know more
about everything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Be sure and check out what Tonia and Sara have
to say about wonder and curiosity in education as well by clicking on the pictures below:</span></div>
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<a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/wonder-curiosity/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgiay-xzILyVsUEVF1rReZa2wBM-d3c46eoJwgRu8Ru7FxjBWrPN5P2yk-DbSjSeo7u3sMijGwxz2bvx2OEqkdcO5s9yNeWqwJ5MOSkzuWUOzanthpNOND1EPwA5rHXJTzgdutA4ZbRA/s320/how+to+cultivate+wonder+and+curiosity+in+your+homeschool.jpg" width="213" /></a> <a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/wonder-and-curiosity/%20%E2%80%8E" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ3FMGJs-JQNECGhOPVnz9uPmnmhOkIKUvz4H2by30giAyF4pPGntX2qYOpTxloYdJFe5Z_QidmfuoD6f0aBcpKzZHDUa6cn9ekC6lQR12p7o_oZCmCTND4XBFgdzjmagFBCW7AC-4I-8/s320/WONDER+AND+CURIOSITY.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "freestyle script"; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How do
you inspire wonder and curiosity in your homeschool?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "freestyle script"; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Let me
know in the comments.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-38951782383339777522016-07-25T16:38:00.000-05:002016-07-25T16:38:39.819-05:00Embodied Education: Appealing to the Senses and the Soul in Your Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year
Everyday Scholé is taking an in-depth, practical look at the eight essential
principles of classical education. This month we are looking at embodied education.
You can check out the previous posts in this series as well: <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">Charlotte Mason and Classical Combined</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/04/slow-and-steady-in-your-homeschool.html" target="_blank">Slow and Steady in Your Homeschool</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/05/multum-non-multa-charlotte-mason.html" target="_blank">Multum non Multa Exhibited in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool</a>, and <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/06/practical-ways-to-use-repetition-cm.html" target="_blank">Practical Ways to Use Repetitionto Memorize</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve got some great news for those of you
following this series. If you are not even remotely a classical educator, then
this principle of classical education is the one for you. It’s actually
addressed quite a bit in other educational philosophies as well. Charlotte
Mason, Waldorf, and Montessori all address the learning space and what it
should be like. I’m referring to embodied education or making sure all of your
senses are engaged in the learning environment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Embodied education is probably already something
you are achieving in your home just by virtue of being a homeschooler, as you
will see in the examples below. However, I wanted to give some examples of
exactly what embodied education looks like in our home and I really want you to
share how your homeschool exhibits embodied education as well in the comments.
Hopefully this will become an interactive post where we are all sharing ideas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The principle behind embodied education is a
simple one. Children learn better when they are comfortable, surrounded by
beauty, and have rituals or routines that focus on virtue and character
formation. And I can guarantee that you are already providing an embodied
education to your children, so that’s encouraging! But what are some more ways
we can practice embodied education?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Make
your school area as comfortable and home-like as possible.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
Nothing wrong with desks and tables, but make sure you include comfy cushions
and couches, pillows, and rugs. One way I’ve helped my children with their
desire to sprawl and school, as I call it, is to create little nooks in the
living room for each of them with pillows and blankets so they can retreat
there to work on their independent work. I also give them a clipboard to use
because none of them like to write without a hard surface. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Make
your school area beautiful. </span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In our official school
area (at the end of our dining room), I keep prints of famous artwork on the
wall intermingled with their own art creations. I purposefully chose a soft
yellow to put on the walls in that room knowing it would be our school area as
well. I buy fresh flowers (usually the discounted ones from the grocery store)
and place in a vase on the dining room table for the week or if the children
pick flowers, we put those in there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Make
your school time a sensory experience.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> I actually started
doing this at the end of last year. During school time I burn scented wax in a
wax warmer to provide a pleasant smell during the day. I also play classical
music at a low volume all day long while we’re doing school for some background
noise. When everyone gets quiet reading or doing work, it’s really nice to hear
it fill the room. Adding in field trips about the places, events, and concepts the
children are studying in history and science is a great way to bring those
things to life through the senses. It’s one thing to read about Egypt; it’s
quite another to go to the natural history museum in Houston and see actual
Egyptian artifacts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Create
rituals that serve a purpose.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> I’m not talking
about schedules or routines, but practices that you insert in your day to reach
your children at the soul level as you form their virtue. While all of that
sounds kind of out there, let me give you some examples. The easiest one is
starting our day with Power Hour (aka Morning Meeting). During Power Hour I try
to focus on good discussion and learning things that are good, true, and
beautiful. Within Power Hour, we have our own routine of always opening by
singing a hymn and then having prayer. That is how we always start out school
day, even if we can’t get to Power Hour that day, and the kids will call me on
it if we don’t. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Over the summer as part of my teacher in-service
(books I assign myself to read to be a better mother and teacher), I read <i><a href="http://amzn.to/2a0mcU1" target="_blank">Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World</a></i>.
It made me realize how I need to be better about cultivating an attitude of
gratitude in our family as a whole. So starting this school year, of which we’ve
completed a week at this point, I began a new ritual where at the end of our
school day, we light a candle in the middle of the table, stand around it while
holding hands, and say the following together, “Jesus, you are the light of the
world. Help us to be lights as well through having a grateful attitude, a
humble spirit, and a love for all.” At that point, we go around the circle and we
each share three things they are grateful for that day. I close out our school
day by reading Philippians 1:3-11 as a blessing for my children and we sing <i>The Doxology</i> together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I had honestly
never considered how important a pleasing environment and rituals are in a
child’s education, but as I learned more about embodied education, I was not
surprised to see that I’d already incorporated a lot of embodied education into
our day because it makes it more enjoyable for all of us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m looking forward
to reading what my fellow Everyday Scholé bloggers have to say about the
subject so click on the links below to read more about embodied education.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/embodied-learning" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIIrvFb8_0dlvXmaC6aOas0Z6O6VxIqNSrKqV7wQU9ilUi6l38Xz1bqC8y3sRKMfEnAi_Wav7d63EN1fKzm0u9JxYvzUNNQ1Cj5AoaXDX8EgBOR2x3tfmZ-LBRjOZ-_rqF6CEthgasjwY/s320/embodied+learning.jpg" width="213" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/embodied-learning/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdp6Nb361hBd-ObFwBaRSaS4mjtyeRkxV_eFTEfYHsX-ClNn2i-YBWImA1bMU51SSb_jAE3aZpT0wkNZHiG-LWBVY5fF9_SKTBfLRZc4OEOYXEKDQ7DXD-NTlLUADdwWI_bjTdG0AzkI8/s320/pin+embodied+learning.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I also want to see
what ways you incorporate embodied education in your homeschool so please leave
a comment below.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Tell me how your homeschool environment is pleasing
to the senses and any rituals you have in your homeschool day.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-14136516660810850702016-06-27T10:42:00.002-05:002016-06-27T10:51:30.195-05:00Practical Ways to Use Repetition to Memorize in a CM Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 14.0pt;">This year Everyday
Scholé is taking an in-depth, practical look at the eight essential principles
of classical education. This month we are focusing on repetitio mater memoriae
or repetition is the mother of memory. You can also check out previous posts in
this series: <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">Charlotte Mason and Classical Combined</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/04/slow-and-steady-in-your-homeschool.html" target="_blank">Slow and Steady in Your Homeschool</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/05/multum-non-multa-charlotte-mason.html" target="_blank">Multum Non Multa Exhibited in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Memorization has become a bad word in most
education circles today and even among most adults. Why memorize anything when
you have your very own portable computer in your pocket or purse that can find
out anything you need to know with a quick question? Probably the reason for
the backlash is that memorization is usually not fun and it’s difficult (more
so for some of us than for others!), but if our goal as homeschoolers is for
our children to really remember what they are being taught, then we must employ
some strategies that will lead to memorization. This month, we’re focusing on
one of those strategies, repetition. Next month, we’ll look at songs, chants,
and jingles.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic", sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">While I don’t consider this list to be the be
all and end all of ideas of using repetition in your homeschool to reinforce
learning, I did want to give some practical ways that I use repetition with my
kids to keep information from being forgotten almost as quickly as it was
learned. Charlotte Mason had children memorizing loads of information in her
schools even for children that were her youngest students. While most of the
ideas I’m sharing today are easy to use with any homeschool method, some are
very much a CM way to store things of most importance in your long term memory.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why Does
Repetition Work and Why Will It Fail?</span></b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Before we get started with practical let’s dip
our toes quickly in some theory. We need to know why we are using repetition to
lead to memorization in the first place. The more things are repeated the
easier it is to remember. At some point I can repeat a set of numbers to you,
like the first 10 digits of pi, enough times that you can eventually recite
them along with me. At its most basic form, that is why repetition leads to
memorization. Most people understand this, but the problem lies in two arenas:
rote memorization and too much to memorize. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rote memorization is what most of us think about
where an elementary aged child can stand up in front of the class and recite
the presidents or the times tables from memory. It’s impressive for sure, but
drilling your children until they can accomplish this feat is probably not
going to be enjoyable for either one of you. However, there are ways to repeat
what you’ve learned without drill, so don’t let the idea of repetition or
memorization scare you off just yet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The other sure fire way to make sure repetition
will fail to lead to memorization is if you have too much curriculum that is
spread too broadly. I discussed this in <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/05/multum-non-multa-charlotte-mason.html" target="_blank">my last post about multum non multa</a>.
When we are teaching our children a vast amount of information, instead of fewer
subjects more deeply, it becomes very difficult, very quickly to keep up with
the amount of information you want your children to memorize. Whenever I’m
planning our studies for the year, especially history and science, I choose the
facts, ideas, and concepts I want my children to remember from our studies.
Those are the things I will repeat and focus on with our notebooking and
activities. The amount I expect from each child varies depending upon age, but
having a plan helps keep me on track and it helps me feel that we haven’t
wasted a year of study when I can ask them what they learned in science that
year and they can tell me. Don’t spread your too studies too thin or too much
ground will be covered to make repetition and memorization nearly impossible.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Practical, Fun Ways
to Use Repetition </span></b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
<b>Create associations between different
disciplines.</b> Like we talked about last time, all knowledge is one big
interconnected web so use that to your advantage when you want your children to
memorize. Instead of repeating facts about Paul Revere, show them the <a href="http://www.mfa.org/collections/object/paul-revere-32401" target="_blank">portrait of Revere painted by John Singleton Copley</a>. Explain that having his portrait
painted meant Revere was an important man in Boston and holding a silver teapot
with tools lying in front of him reminds us of his profession as a silversmith. Also it’s a good way to have children remember Revere’s participation in
the Boston Tea Party. You just succeeding in repeating information that you wish
your children to know about Revere without drilling it, but associating his
life through art.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2.
Use visual and artistic methods. </span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We studied Latin
together this year for the first time and one of the things I had my girls do
was create Latin vocabulary notebooks. Instead of merely copying the words and
their definition, I had each girl illustrate the word’s definition in their
notebook. For <i>poēta</i>, Sophia drew a
picture of William Blake sitting at a desk with a feather quill thinking, “Tyger,
Tyger, burning bright,” which was a poem we were memorizing at the time. She
brought in her own associations across disciplines in that assignment! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When we were memorizing a passage from <i>A Midsummer Night’s Dream</i> some of the
lines referenced different flowers growing on a river bank. I found pictures of
the different flowers online and printed them out so when the girls were trying
to memorize the passage, they could touch the picture of the flower they were
talking about.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">3.
Play games</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">. There are lots of educational games on the market
and we own quite a few. They are wonderful to use as a fun way to review. One
of our favorites is <i><a href="http://amzn.to/292iyMi" target="_blank">Timeline </a></i>which all my kids like to play. It really helps
with learning the order of events in world history and it’s a quick game. There
are lots of online games the kids enjoy to help review information: <a href="https://prodigygame.com/" target="_blank">Prodigy for math concepts</a>, <a href="https://www.reflexmath.com/" target="_blank">Reflex Math</a> for math fact review, and <a href="http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/" target="_blank">Sheppard Software</a> to
review almost everything, but especially geography. However, we also make a lot
of games. Grace made a version of Clue that was all about mythology. The rooms
were various places mentioned in Greek mythology, the characters were different
Greek gods and heroes, and the weapons were taken from Greek myths as well like
a lightning bolt and Medusa’s head. We also made a board game to review Spanish
vocabulary a couple of years ago out of a cereal box. Depending on the space
you landed on, you would translate a word or sentence from English to Spanish
or from Spanish into English. It was super fun and the kids never realized it
was repetition leading to memory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">4.
Look for built in review in your curriculum.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Once I
started thinking about it, I realized that almost all of the curriculum we use
has review built into it. The spelling curriculum I use for my oldest, Apples
and Pears, is constantly going back and reviewing words and spelling patterns.
I use a studied dictation approach for Sophia like Charlotte Mason espoused
using the vintage spelling book, Modern Speller. The book is set up to
constantly review words that have previously been studied as well. Even our
mastery based math books have review built into them as well because previous
skills are touched on again and again in subsequent chapters. The phonics
program I used with Sophia, Logic of English, is awesome at built in review
using games and speed drills to remember phonograms so that learning them is
pretty much painless. Let curriculum work for you in this area!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5.
Point out practical applications.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Grace is finishing
up Math U See Epsilon this summer and as we’ve worked through the book, which
is all about fractions, I’ve explained to her how useful it is to know how to
manipulate fractions when it comes to cooking (something she loves to do), so
for part of her “school” time, I would bring her a recipe and ask her to double
it, halve it, third it, etc. By having her do this, I’m not only answering her
question of “why do I have to learn this?” but I’m using repetition to make
sure she remembers the steps to multiply, divide, add, and subtract fractions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">6.
Let them be the teacher.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> One of the best ways to learn
something is to have to teach it. Every evening, I try to let the kids tell
their father one thing they learned about during school that day or demonstrate
something they’ve mastered. Sometimes I give them a heads up ahead of time so
they can really give a thorough presentation. For example, Grace recently
learned about photosynthesis so I told her that I’d like for her to use her
diagram she drew of the process and explain it at dinner that night. Come to
find out, she didn’t understand it as well as she thought since she had to
reference some books to make sure she said things correctly. She had to use repetition
of what we’d already learned to memorize the process of photosynthesis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">7.
Implement a Charlotte Mason style assessment week.</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
In most CM schools at the end of the quarter or semester, there would be one
week set aside for assessments of what the children had learned. I’m not
talking about standardized tests or tests at all, but a time to present the
body of knowledge they had learned. I’ve never actually scheduled these
assessment weeks into our school year, although I might give it a whirl this
year, but I think using some out of the box assessments that week would be a
really fun way to see how much we’ve all learned. One spontaneous assessment
that happened this year is I asked Grace to tell me all she knew about
Hammurabi who we’d been studying for history. She decided this was the perfect
time to throw a costume together, give me a list of questions to be the
reporter, and have an interview with the ancient Babylonian king himself. I
still think back on that and what a fun way to do a “test” for history.
Assessing how much your children have learned doesn’t necessarily mean filling
in bubbles or a pop quiz, it could be a great way to add in some repetition of
what they’ve been learning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxtM1Or4iMTRtsqTTSswwJmegZkHwsOxZJFXsLWh1nXyqDx2yEm13vrez3WmDVJIPtu-6PIrg1-c_iye3x-vJ3ea71UHexCGlN3rhK2erHvpGOpI7rJdyvmqCWM0FYWch3NshEbo775UE/s1600/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxtM1Or4iMTRtsqTTSswwJmegZkHwsOxZJFXsLWh1nXyqDx2yEm13vrez3WmDVJIPtu-6PIrg1-c_iye3x-vJ3ea71UHexCGlN3rhK2erHvpGOpI7rJdyvmqCWM0FYWch3NshEbo775UE/s320/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Interested to see what the other Everyday Scholé
ladies think about using repetition in your homeschool? Click on the pictures
below to find out. I promise you that it will be good stuff!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/repetitio-mater-memoriae/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWfSwYgSptkf3f936tD3fsbcVqA6Zq7C4PUOZa7_sRR3QVT5u8ow8Px7dRHfvGWSso0EAYBsIegUtuVoKgTQNFomCcQqymmS24zoiIGWzmE1-Xt9Nbm8FnHPkJd6uih4y_48LH2VXZgeI/s320/Repetitio+Mater+Memoriae20.jpg" width="224" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/repetito-mater-memoriae/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguhXPuIlSUr3XmyhyphenhyphenKaS7qlRl_S5uSJWx1WdS3BUox7RuxZFVozvuFcjuyggQEg24bntzMdPcOP4sx4zMlFZyuJDialPOeGRa1qZqjLjII6BThyphenhyphen34jxeXlHbFhTfm8m9e9yLCMRQmX5IE/s320/pin+Repetito+Mater+Memoriae+and+recitation.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 24.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What
practical, fun ways do you use repetition in your homeschool?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-73099051330097559162016-05-30T10:10:00.001-05:002016-05-30T10:10:31.996-05:00Multum Non Multa Exhibited in a Charlotte Mason Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This year
Everyday Scholé is taking an in-depth, practical look at the eight principles
of classical education. This month we are looking specifically at multum non
multa or much not many. You can also check out the previous posts in this
series: <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">Charlotte Mason and Classical Combined</a> and <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/04/slow-and-steady-in-your-homeschool.html" target="_blank">Slow and Steady in Your Homeschool</a>. </span></b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Century Gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Less is more. Quality over </span><span style="line-height: 18.4px;">quantity</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. Depth not breadth.
Jack of all trades, but a master of none. All of these quips are English equivalents
to the second principle of Classical education: multum non multa or much not
many. This concept is readily seen in our everyday lives. All of us have
discovered that threshold of how much we can handle before we are doing too
many things that we can’t do any of them well. The irony of the situation is
that in the realm of education, the opposite seems to be true. Everyone crams
more and more subjects into the school day because there is just so much
children need to learn. </span></span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">However,
logically and scientifically, we know that this is a faulty approach. </span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As Dr. Perrin says in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWR4hRA1GrY" target="_blank">his video</a>, “What exactly
do you remember about your public school education? Do you feel you mastered
any subject or just skimmed a variety of topics?” </span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So what
did educators of days gone by, specifically Charlotte Mason, know that we have
forgotten today?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPlHypcWY62MKmNz6X5durDdR1rPVQ2PR_Xs3ulNW6Ldt-bSA0UUXphUE411qfaLpAxWwsNBEFhSScsqzx8hgHNS8NDJMSVGu1UW8XwXeuRGN8GOBEjDsy6dMXbLM4thky80kVUDZF32k/s1600/Multum+non+Multa+Charlotte+Mason.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPlHypcWY62MKmNz6X5durDdR1rPVQ2PR_Xs3ulNW6Ldt-bSA0UUXphUE411qfaLpAxWwsNBEFhSScsqzx8hgHNS8NDJMSVGu1UW8XwXeuRGN8GOBEjDsy6dMXbLM4thky80kVUDZF32k/s640/Multum+non+Multa+Charlotte+Mason.jpg" width="529" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When you look at the schedules of classes from
Charlotte Mason’s schools, the amount of subjects covered seems to be the total
opposite of <i>multum non multa.</i> It’s
true that when you write out the subjects covered in a traditional Charlotte
Mason education you discover a lot of boxes to check off, grammar, writing,
foreign language, nature study, history, music, math, copy work, Plutarch, etc.
How am I supposed to create an educational experience for my children which is
deep and rich into a handful of subjects at a time when there are so many items
that must be covered in a Charlotte Mason education? Here are four core
Charlotte Mason tenets that actually promote <i>multum non multa</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Spreading the
Feast </span></b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of all the educational ideas CM espoused this one
seems to fly directly in the face of <i>multum
non multa</i>. It’s hard to focus on a few subjects at a time (depth) if you’re
trying to spread the feast of knowledge for your students (breadth).
Unfortunately I believe this phrase is woefully misunderstood. Imagine for a
moment you are an ant on the trunk of an aspen tree. You climb down, down, down
the trunk until you are underground. Once you reach the tree’s root system you
discover that multiple root systems are intertwined below. You follow along some
of the roots before deciding to head above ground again. When you emerge, you
find yourself on an aspen tree a few yards from the first tree. At that moment,
you realize that all of the aspen trees in this grove have an interconnected
root system. On the surface they look like individual trees, but below ground
they are actually all entwined. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Spreading the feast is just like a grove of
aspen trees. On the surface it looks like separate items or subjects of a feast
of knowledge, but as you study and learn, the more related and connected the subjects
become. Charlotte Mason actually incorporated time for this to occur in the
school day. She knew that the goal of education was not to have a wide
knowledge about a variety of subjects, but to take your knowledge and make
connections across subjects and ideas that can only be found when a student can
really spend time in their studies.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Cross Discipline
Usefulness </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Charlotte Mason was a firm believer in using one
educational practice to cover as many educational components as possible. This
belief is most seen in language arts. In a CM school, students would use their
copy work or dictation for the day to cover grammar, writing, and spelling. And
where did teachers get the sentences or paragraphs for the students? Right out
of the awesome living books the children were reading about various subjects. Today
in most CM homeschools we treat these disciplines as separate subjects, but
they were not. They were completely intertwined. The problem is that usually
we, as parents, do not feel competent enough in our own grammar and writing
knowledge to use copy work or dictation as a jumping off point to teach. I’m
actually attempting this approach with Sophia right now and so far so good. It
takes a little more preparation on my part, but it’s really given richness to
our language arts study that was missing before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Nature study was another area that did double
duty in Charlotte Mason schools. Usually we tack nature study on our week as
something fun to do if we can make it work, but if we get too busy it’s one of
the first things tossed aside. Spending time outdoors in nature was an enormous
part of CM teaching philosophy. Throughout all grades, students spent the bulk,
if not all, of their afternoons outdoors. Of course, they weren’t formally
doing nature study that entire time, but they were to be constantly observing.
Why? Because this was science. Observation, learning about the world around
you, and knowledge of wildlife and plants are how science was learned
throughout elementary grades. Every one of the science disciplines (biology,
physics, chemistry, etc.) are found in nature. In many homeschools today,
though, studying science via the natural world is pushed aside so that science
can be studied in separate disciplines each year. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Narration</span></b><b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The hallmark of a CM education is narration.
Unfortunately it is usually misunderstood and misused. Narration once you pass
the early elementary grades is more than just a retelling of what they read or
what you read. Narration in the older grades is the time when the connections
of learning, the diving deep, are made. As children narrate they are to use
past knowledge and learning and incorporate it into their current studies. The
observations made are children showing they are diving deep, they are truly
understanding, they are climbing around the root system and crawling up another
tree. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As a CM homeschooler it helps me to know this is
the goal of narration. I can help my oldest child draw out those connections by
listening to her narration and asking questions (socratic method in classical education
vernacular) to help her think about what she’s read in a deeper way, leading
her to some of those connections by discussion and a mutual sharing of ideas
and experiences. She almost always comes back to me after these talks and adds
more to the conversation because she’s been ruminating on her own.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Living Books<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The quote from which <i>multum non multa</i> originates is specifically in reference to books.
It’s better to read great books than many books. I’m sure Charlotte Mason would
have given a hearty, “Amen!” in response. She knew that children love to listen and read
well-crafted narratives on a variety of subjects. She also knew that these
books needed to be savored and experienced slowly. While CM was a lover of
great books, she also didn’t over schedule them. One of the first things I
noticed when I began really exploring CM’s original school schedules is how
long the students would read a book. Some were read over the course of two or
more years. Most were read slowly over a semester. The amount of living books
that were read, though, were relatively miniscule compared to the lists of
books read by CM homeschoolers today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I struggle so much with this so I made it a
point this year to 1) schedule required reading and 2) not over-schedule
required reading. Such a struggle when you love books as much as I do and want
your children to read them all! However, I can honestly say that the slower
pace has benefited us all. The kids are really able to learn from the books and
by the time we finish, they feel like old friends because we’ve spent so much
time with them. The most unexpected benefit was that I found my children
chasing rabbit trails on their own time because of something they read in a
living book. This exploration and self-directed learning is what <i>multum non multa</i> is all about.</span><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For further reading on <i>multum non multa</i> and how it works, check out the posts by my fellow
Everday Scholé bloggers, Tonia and Sarah.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/multum-non-multa/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE5xF79tHPSHNQ15zARHm5u1SfQXDGQ1LnPWbAMbhg-7r9S6AZFj-a9a6DDBQutGFR2GpsordwbgM1vFpMFIGaezjMBWOdAxUT7FWkfKSGxK31ZnOxUajtT_dI8TcZA0awRa6VEUx7KrA/s320/multum+non+multa+.jpg" width="224" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/everyday-schole-multum-non-multa/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3DptFmiJVxZCvCk3leSpONqYk9Si9-o8hqAbH5C3bDPK0V26dpuQSRdE1PZbDIQI2kbjSi-j6i8Gr_emcurb2eOa9eH4yDu5Qyiiqcd9Fx8mySDtELqyZOmw2j3s6lcGiBfITB7RMGs/s320/multum+non+multa+homeschool+tips.jpg" width="192" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How do you
practice multum non multa in your homeschool?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-42056125458179795802016-04-25T08:53:00.002-05:002016-04-25T10:18:00.305-05:00Slow and Steady in Your Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b>This year Everyday Scholé is taking an in-depth, practical look at
the eight principles of classical education. This month we are looking
specifically at <i>festina lente</i> or make
haste slowly. You can find my introductory post about combining classical principles
and Charlotte Mason <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2016/03/charlotte-mason-and-classical-combined.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One of the biggest worries and concerns I see
voiced in the homeschool community is some aspect of “is my child behind.”
Usually the parent begins their question by citing something a child of similar
age or grade level is doing in the public schools or in another homeschool
family. If you have had this worry, then this principle of classical education
is for you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Festina
lente</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> is a Latin phrase that is translated “make
haste slowly.” The classic example of this principle is Aesop’s tale of The Tortoise
and the Hare in which the natural winner of the race should be the hare but due
to his over confidence and start and stop approach comes in last because the
tortoise keeps plodding along, however slowly, but at a steady pace. A child
who is mastering the material, however slowly, will have an advantage over a child
who is pushed to run ahead based on the faulty idea that they are “behind.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Two
Ways to Turn Your Child into the Hare<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">1) <i><u>Running
ahead when the foundation has not been properly laid.</u></i> When we are so
worried about keeping on pace to meet some arbitrary standard {that’s an entire
other soapbox I could wax poetically about!}, it is very easy to push our
children on in their work when they don’t have the basics they need to move
ahead. For example, Grace has a difficult time memorizing items in general. I
never made a huge issue out of this even when it came to math facts. I listened
to other homeschoolers that encouraged me she would eventually learn them
without too much work on either of us. Nope, didn’t happen. It came back to
slow her down when it was time for long division because you really need to
have those multiplication facts down to work a division problem. Long division
is difficult enough for most children without having to throw in the added
impediment of trying to remember your multiplication facts. Needless to say, we
had to put math on hold for a bit and concentrate on fact practice. If I hadn’t
let her run ahead and made sure she had a solid foundation, we would not have
needed to stop and back track. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">2) <i><u>Jumping
over skills. </u></i>This idea is similar to the first, but in this case you’ve
given the foundation material and now you try to jump ahead in skill since you
know the foundation is there. Recently Sophia finished her cursive workbook so,
of course, I was certain she was ready to begin writing in cursive. The very
next time she had a sentence of copywork to do, I told her to use her newly
learned skill and do it in cursive. She made it through one word before she
tossed her pencil on the table with tears in her eyes and informed me that she
couldn’t do it. At which point, I was mentally kicking myself because it became
obvious to me that I was turning her into a hare! Even though she knew the
individual letter formation (foundational), she had not practiced enough at
joining the letters to be successful at what I was asking her to do. I was
jumping straight to mastery, which is the goal of <i>festina</i> <i>lente</i>, without
taking the steps needed to insure an easy transition.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Applying
<i>Festina Lente to Two Common Homeschool
Philosophies</i></span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I started this series last month, I wanted
to show how these seven classical education philosophies dovetail nicely with
Charlotte Mason and other common homeschool approaches with which I’m familiar.
We’ve all seen the fallout of the inability to apply <i>festina lente</i> in public schools due to the model on which public
schools work. Teachers, despite how much they wish to, cannot put instruction
on pause until Johnny and Susie have mastered the basics. They are teaching a
class and must move on as needed to get the kids ready for the test {another
soapbox which I could rant for days about!}. I bring up public schools because <i>festina lente</i> is definitely a classical
education philosophy that is just a good education practice in general, so let’s
see how you can use it in a non-classical homeschool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Festina
Lente</span></u></i><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> and Charlotte Mason</span></u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One of the things I find most inspiring about
Charlotte Mason’s schools is the students were grouped into levels, not grades,
that were ability based instead of birthday based, like the public school system
with which we are familiar. Usually within one level (or forms as CM referred
to them), you would have multiple ages, and you entered that level based upon
what you had mastered previously. In other words, you didn’t just jump into a
level you were not adequately prepared for. I so wish that the American system
would take this approach, and I wish more homeschoolers would view their child’s
education this way as well. I’m not saying you should never talk about what
grade your child would be in if they were in the public school, sometimes our
children need to know those things for outside activities. Instead be aware
that educationally if the cover of the math textbook says 5 on it, but your
child is struggling with most of the lessons or some of the basic concepts
presented in the book, you should NOT press on just because their birth date would
place them in the grade 5 math book. Take a page from Charlotte Mason and put
in place the principle of <i>festina lente</i>,
work toward mastery not toward a grade level.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Festina
Lente</span></u></i><u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> and a Traditional Homeschool</span></u><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While I’m not a traditional homeschooler, I was
a teacher in my former life so I know the system of using textbooks and workbooks
as your main method of instruction for all subjects. The number one area in
which I know textbooks and workbooks give a false sense of security is that if
my child finishes the textbook/workbook for the year, then they have mastered
the material contained within. Um….no. It means they have finished a
textbook/workbook over the course of your homeschool year. To attain mastery of
the subject, you might have more work to do. Think back to your school days.
Usually you came relatively close to finishing a textbook over a year. How much
of your high school Spanish do you feel that you mastered? Do you still know a
few phrases here and there or could you say that you mastered the language? Did
completing two or three years of work on a foreign language bring you to
mastery? For everyone I’ve ever met that answer is no. Don’t fall into the trap
of believing completion of curriculum equals proficiency. There is nothing wrong
on stopping or backing up if you child needs more help, but there is a problem
if you push ahead because it’s time for the next textbook. Also, there is nothing wrong with skipping entire chapters or half the exercises in the book if your child has already shown they have mastered the material. Focus on your child
really learning the material, mastering it, instead of finishing it and calling
that mastery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">My
Disclaimer</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Children and their abilities are different from
one child to next. The amount of time it takes one child to master something
will be very different with how long it takes another child to master the same
skill. There is nothing wrong with your child, or you, if it does take longer
than what it takes other children of the same age. Turning them into a hare
because you are worried about the grade level on a book or curriculum is not the
correct approach. Make haste slowly. Teach them at their pace making sure they
master each step, and they will, in the long run, be better off and feel more
successful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">On the other hand if you have a child who is
gifted that doesn’t mean they will immediately master everything they come
across. Be sure to watch for pockets of learning where they have not mastered
the material or skills they have jumped over. Sometimes gifted children need
the <i>festina</i> <i>lente</i> principle applied the most because they do seem to be a
rabbit and speed through things, but the ability to learn quickly does not
always equal mastery.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Check out what Tonia and Sara had to say about <i>festina lente</i> and how they implement
this classical principle in their homeschool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/?p=13776" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh16mAMZRvtKFdDrWrQ-6EAYJynF38JF2n7_DH4CRKJMAngHLfKSfOHcBmAwhiL6tlUGmjHsKUpO2T0MlCUz6Qs-6Me43E50V2JQ1xmTuN-iws2R-hj7US-3dECh50bO3fLLPmUlGmtHKk/s320/festina+lente.png" width="224" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/everyday-schole-festina-lente/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis9pPpmcw7JcuYbXDIx0rEwZ3XRvzJ0A15dgfPs3f4erhsDOQi9Uwq4gMq1TMzbdVxjDDqk4JKH8LI2PGVfSXI6lKrzTbCesQmrP1TruGxvlZ1KVcqirBRhDRTPFB52Hx-_t0DCJ5JCvQ/s320/festina+lente+tonia.jpg" width="178" /></a></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 22pt; line-height: 33.7333px;">Do you struggle with <i>festina lente</i> in your homeschool as opposed to running ahead?</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli</span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-56727576547174241872016-03-28T08:00:00.000-05:002016-03-28T08:00:12.945-05:00Charlotte Mason and Classical: A Delicious Mix of Homeschool Philosophies <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Everyday Scholé is back!!! We’ve taken quite a
few months off as all of us were wrapping up blogging projects or writing
projects, but this month we are beginning a yearlong series that is sure to
inspire you and your homeschool. We are taking an in-depth, practical look at
the <a href="http://insideclassicaled.com/?p=609" target="_blank">eight essential principles of classical pedagogy</a> (make haste slowly, much
not many, repetition is the mother of memory, embodied learning, songs, chants,
and jingles, wonder and curiosity, educational virtues, and scholé,
contemplation, and leisure). Each month we will focus on a different principle
and how to practically implement that principle in your homeschool. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Can you tell I’m excited?!? I think what I’m
most excited about is that I’m not a true classical homeschooler. I’m a
Charlotte Mason homeschooler. It’s true that Ms. Mason had much in common with
classical homeschoolers {some even consider her a classical homeschooler in her
own right}, but on the surface a few of the eight essential principles seem to
fly in the face of what Charlotte Mason homeschoolers promote as a “true”
Charlotte Mason education. So for the
each of these eight principles I’m going to be focusing on how to use classical
pedagogy as outlined by Dr. Perrin in the link above, but in a Charlotte Mason
way.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Before we start this journey through classical
and Charlotte Mason, I wanted to mention something that Dr. Perrin states at
the beginning of his video. He says, “Principles should support our practices.”
Basically the thrust of that statement is that the things you do in your
homeschool should have a principle that supports them. For example, if you are
a Charlotte Mason homeschooler why do you engage in nature study? Because you
are supposed to do so if you ascribe to Ms. Mason’s philosophy? Because the
curriculum you bought says to do it? Do you really even know why Charlotte
Mason was such a huge proponent of nature study for all students throughout
their school years? These are important questions to ask about any
homeschooling philosophy whether it’s classical, unschooling, traditional, etc.
If you don’t know what various educational practices are trying to accomplish
in your homeschool, it is pointless to do them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">While I’m focusing on these eight principles in
a Charlotte Mason homeschool, I hope that you will look at them through
whatever philosophy influences your homeschool because I truly believe these
eight essential principles of classical pedagogy are fundamentally just really
great educational practices in general that can be applied to whatever method
you use. I can see how all methods of education can be tweaked and manipulated
in such a way to benefit from the use of all eight principles. The hardest
part, as Dr. Perrin states toward the end, is that changing our mindset about
education to one that encompasses these ideals is work for us. It is not
natural for those of us who are graduates of the public school system here in
the United States. The most difficult challenge you will have is not the
vision, but the implementation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">You might have noticed that scholé is the last
principle listed. I firmly believe this is because as you focus on the other
seven, teaching from rest will become a natural byproduct of your endeavors. It
doesn’t mean that it comes naturally, as I mentioned above, but it will be
apparent that schooling your child with these principals in the forefront of
your mind will reap a calmer, restful, leisurely approach to education in your
home. I’ve seen this lived out in our homeschool and I’m excited to share some practical
ways I’ve achieved this in the coming year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Be sure and check out my fellow Everyday Schol</span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18.4px;">é bloggers and their thoughts about the principles of classical education.</span></div>
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<a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/need-homeschool-philosophy/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghWEcCGlqcb9i3jZbBsyL70Ydced5hds1kpKaD2BsOYpyXyM_b8dSwrqGBRiN-4qWNveeHZvLNJqZ57p2fIOHX0JAZicWxKestolrmBs35O4sv8EUiwC6LfHkpD6w9zg0-L0JCxezY0qs/s320/pin+why+you+need+a+homeschool+philosophy.jpg" width="213" /></a> <a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/?p=12712" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvB6g-7cJiysX_QEScQ5GIi106OvBmXJpne85aU84SGfh4dbQN-9Nm9G1WAn6g6SOK-PDarir8zylBUTCuoxW890xv8kNHDpnQnf1wSBlh7mHACyPSpFCfhjoEyuYibCI4DJyFwzgWjo/s320/principles+are+important.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What educational philosophies
influence your homeschool the most? </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 26.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Let me know in the comments.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-65445758452322187192015-12-02T13:03:00.000-06:002015-12-02T14:15:45.148-06:00Christmas Light Scavenger Hunt Printable for Readers and Non-Readers<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Please feel free to direct people to this blog post to
download their own scavenger hunt, but do not share the files. </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Thanks for respecting my work!</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you asked my children what is your favorite
holiday tradition, they would all say it is our annual Christmas Light
Scavenger Hunt. We pile in our minivan and drive 30 minutes to a neighborhood
that goes all out for Christmas with decorating. Preacher Man drives slowly
through the streets while the kids and I try to be the first to mark off the
things on our list. I’ve been able for the past few years to find Christmas scavenger
hunt printables on the internet, but some of them have really odd items like a
dolphin (who decorates with a dolphin at Christmas?) and none of them were
really great for Levi who still can’t read well enough to read his own list, so
I spent most of my time yelling to the backseat what he should be looking for.
Necessity is the mother of invention and this year I made our own Christmas
Scavenger Hunt printables and one that is specifically for non-readers in your
family so they can be part of the fun without needing assistance.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhblEr1u93XIO4-0yCk35oMQ7U4eW2s9pK91Eglkrob9DIVQnc1p2udaZyiVsFiRQLG7v_2ImQUYpCcAHshI3b09IuOgS8PHWjcX2wyHg8-gLpk99ETL_WFIh8P1kYnubxAsHRYg9U1g1g/s1600/Christmas+Light+Scavenger+Hunt+Printables.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhblEr1u93XIO4-0yCk35oMQ7U4eW2s9pK91Eglkrob9DIVQnc1p2udaZyiVsFiRQLG7v_2ImQUYpCcAHshI3b09IuOgS8PHWjcX2wyHg8-gLpk99ETL_WFIh8P1kYnubxAsHRYg9U1g1g/s400/Christmas+Light+Scavenger+Hunt+Printables.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In case you are curious about how we play, when
you find something on the list at a house, you have to yell and point out the
house you are using and what item on your list you are using it for. That house
is then off limits to other players for that item, but could be used by other
players for a different item as long as they claim it. The first one to get
everything on their list wins and gets to choose where we grab our supper
before heading home. It’s so much fun and would be a great thing to do with youth groups, friends, and, of course, your family.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Just print out your choice of printable below
(or both!), schedule a night to go out, and have a blast celebrating our family’s
favorite time of year! <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><iframe height="480px" src="https://docs.google.com/viewer?srcid=0B7MVG-caawarVXF4aFFab1pZUm8&pid=explorer&efh=false&a=v&chrome=false&embedded=true" width="580px"></iframe>
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7MVG-caawarVXF4aFFab1pZUm8/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Download and Print Christmas Light Scavenger Hunt for Non-Readers</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<iframe height="480px" src="https://docs.google.com/viewer?srcid=0B7MVG-caawarOG00Rm9FMzBxR0E&pid=explorer&efh=false&a=v&chrome=false&embedded=true" width="580px"></iframe>
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<b><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7MVG-caawarOG00Rm9FMzBxR0E/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Download and Print Christmas Light Scavenger Huntfor Readers</a></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli</span></i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-40938060228734812042015-11-04T14:15:00.001-06:002015-11-04T14:15:27.422-06:00A Scholé Power Hour: Resources<div class="MsoNormal">
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">This
post contains affiliate links which helps support this blog. See full legal
disclosure <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></b></h3>
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<span style="font-family: 'century gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Now that we’re a good three months into our
school year, I wanted to do a short series on our Morning Meeting time for this
year. It usually takes me a couple of months to iron the kinks out of
everything we’re using, get the scheduling down just right, and replace
resources that didn’t work for ones that will. Hopefully that’s encouraging to
some of you that despite seven years of homeschooling I still need a few months
to get things clicking on all cylinders!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The first major change for the year was that
Morning Meeting had a name change. Grace would always tease me that Morning
Meeting would usually occur in the afternoon and sometimes even at night: “It’s
not really Morning Meeting, Mom, if we don’t do it in the morning.” Point
taken. So I began to think about new names for that time of our school day when
I came across the term <a href="http://foreverforalwaysnomatterwhat.com/2015/05/homeschool-power-hour.html" target="_blank">Power Hour</a> from Jen’s blog, Forever, For Always…No
Matter What. I loved the name and it addressed something else that had been
bothering me about our Morning Meeting time: length.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So the next change I made was being determined
to pare down our Morning Meeting time to fit within an hour time constraint.
While our normal time of an hour and a half to two hours wasn’t necessarily
bad, it just took a large part of our day, and I felt like I needed a nap after
all that reading to the kids and keeping Levi from running </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">amok</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">. After some
trial and error, I’ve been able to trim everything down to fit within an hour or an hour and fifteen minutes. I even set a timer for the first few weeks to make sure that I was keeping true to my vision for our new and improved Power Hour part of the day!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So now for the fun part: book list! Listed below are the resources that I'm using with my kids this year during our Power Hour time. These resources are for the ENTIRE year so don't look at the list and panic. In the next post about our Power Hour time, I'll show how all of these are scheduled over the week and over the year. Believe it or not this is the list that's been culled to keep restful learning happening around here.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Bible Study</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://www.biblestudyguide.com/" target="_blank">Bible Study Guide for All Ages</a></i>: We have used and loved this Bible program since we started homeschooling. You can see my review <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2012/09/final-analysis-friday-bible-study-guide.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1kt7uKh" target="_blank">Sweet Speak</a></i> by Elizabeth Jimenez: While this book is geared toward teenage girls, the content is fabulous for anyone to learn how to let their words be words that build instead of destroy. I chose this for us to read through and discuss together because we ALL need this study around here!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Poetry</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1Qd96nL" target="_blank">Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson</a></i> and<i> <a href="http://amzn.to/1kt8LAP" target="_blank">Poetry for Young People: Edward Lear</a>: </i>The Poetry for Young People series is one of my most favorite finds since we started homeschooling. These books make studying and reading poetry painless since they have notes about the poems, bio about the poet, and definitions of words included in the text.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/20uBDtC" target="_blank">Sing Song</a></i> by Christina Rossetti: This collection of poems should be a staple in your home if you have younger children. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1Qdc2AV" target="_blank">Rhymes and Verses: Collected Poems for Young People</a></i> by Walter de la Mare</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;">All of the above poetry books are meant to be read for enjoyment over the course of the year, but to actually study poetry I'm using the following book from Memoria Press. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://www.memoriapress.com/curriculum/literature-and-poetry/poetry" target="_blank">Poetry for the Grammar Stage</a></i>: We'll only be covering the third grade poems this year, one each term.</span></span><br />
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<b style="font-family: 'century gothic', sans-serif; line-height: 18.4px;">Geography</b><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="https://simplycharlottemason.com/store/visits-to-geography-series/" target="_blank">Visits to the Middle East</a> </i>by Sonya Shafer: I've been so impressed with how easy these books make learning geography. This year we are focusing on the Middle East, but I plan to continue the series with my kids because it's so effective.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MA6lab" target="_blank">The Complete Book of Marvels</a></i> by Richard Halliburton: I grabbed this book about two years ago and immediately fell in love with this amazing living geography book. Copies are sometimes difficult to find and can be pricey, but it's well worth it if you can find a copy within your budget.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/20uErqr" target="_blank">The Glorious Adventure</a></i> by Richard Halliburton: In this book, Halliburton, an adventurer from the early 20th century, follows the path of Odysseus' journey from Troy back to his home in Greece. I thought this would be the perfect way to finish up our study of geography for the year.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>History</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MIoMQv" target="_blank">Builders of the Old World</a></i> by Gertrude Hartman: I mentioned this series of books when I talked about <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/01/13-living-book-history-series-for.html" target="_blank">my favorite living history books</a> and I still love The History on the March series just as much. We're finishing the last 1/3 of this book before moving on to the next one.....</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MIpfSK" target="_blank">Makers of the Americas</a></i> by Marion Lansing: This is the American history overview book from the History on the March series. This series is out of print, but you can usually find copies of the books for pretty cheap on the internet. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Science</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MAbvD4" target="_blank">The Burgess Seashore Book for Children</a></i> by Thornton Burgess: Since our main science focus this year is on the ocean, adding this book to Power Hour was a no-brainer. It's a classic!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1kth7IE" target="_blank">Lives of the Scientists</a></i> by Kathleen Krull: I discovered this book at our library and fell in love. It's fun, informative, and has great pictures.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Literature</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MAcDGP" target="_blank">Fifty Famous Stories Retold</a></i> by James Baldwin: A classic book that covers famous myths and tales.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1kthYcm" target="_blank">The World's Best Fairy Tales</a></i> (Reader's Digest Anthology): I know, I know. A Reader's Digest book? Honestly, though, this collection is fabulous and you can find the book for cheap! It is actually a two volume collection, but I only have the second volume which is awesome by itself. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1ktiKpY" target="_blank">Where the Mountain Meets the Moon</a></i> by Grace Lin: An amazing book that weaves Chinese folktales into a great adventure story.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Art and Music Appreciation</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;">Artists we are covering: 20th Century Artists (Jackson Pollock, Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol, Wassily Kandinsky, and Jasper Johns), Van Gogh, Georgia O'Keefe, and Claude Monet. I use Mike Venezia books to give background on the artist and choose five paintings for us to study from each artist, except the 20th Century Artist study where we only study two painting from each artist.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://ichoosejoy.org/store/?ap_id=theplantedtrees" target="_blank">21 Lessons in 20th Century American Music</a></i> by Gena at I Choose Joy: This is probably one of the things I'm most excited about this year! While I want my kids to know about the greats of classical music, American music did some amazing world changing things during the 20th century and this curriculum makes it easy to teach and learn about the different genres, composers, and artists that lived during this time. A fun, modern way to do music appreciation!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b>Miscellaneous</b></span><b style="line-height: 18.4px;"> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><b><br /></b></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/20uD637" target="_blank">Getting Started with Latin</a></i> by William E. Linney: We are having so much fun using this book. It's easy to teach even for someone with no previous Latin exposure (me!) and presents Latin in small bite size pieces. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/20uFOFz" target="_blank">Philosophy for Kids: 40 Fun Questions That Help You Wonder About Everything!</a></i> by David White: We're only doing one question each week, but this book has brought some great discussion about right, wrong, truth, ethics, etc. to our Power Hour time. Highly recommend!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><i><a href="http://amzn.to/1MA81QU" target="_blank">How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare</a></i> by Ken Ludwig: I think this book has become a staple of homeschool families. It's wonderful for introducing children to the Bard and helping them memorize passages from his most famous plays.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;">It looks like a lot to get through, huh? I promise that it's not with a little bit of scheduling, so stay tuned for part two where I show how I take all of this and turn it into a workable plan that doesn't feel rushed or strained.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: century gothic, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><br /></span></span>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">What’s your favorite Morning
Meeting/Power Hour resource? </span></b><b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">Let me know in the comments below because
I’m always looking for new resources!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Chelli</span></i></div>
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Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-71444032205362855462015-10-29T08:04:00.001-05:002015-10-29T08:04:10.809-05:00The Truth About Dealing with Attitude in Your Homeschool<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Sometimes when I’m writing blog posts as part of
a group, topics come up that I feel wholly inadequate to write about. This is
one of those posts! Our Everyday Scholé group is writing about how to maintain
a restful homeschool when you are dealing with negative attitudes from your
children. While I could write a post that sounds good about how to do this, it
would be a work of fiction. In all honesty, I haven’t yet figured out a good
way to keep my children’s whining, complaining, grumpiness, and hormonal mood
swings from affecting my attitude and our homeschool. So instead of telling you how to fix the
problem, I’m going to lay it all out there and talk about how it really works
around here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When it comes to losing my mind, a few whiny,
negative comments from my kids can cause teaching from rest to fly out the
window. Usually this is for a couple of reasons: 1) We just did this exact
scenario yesterday about the exact same issue and I’m over it. Or 2) I’m trying
to give the kids plenty of free time, make things fun, spend hours researching
curriculum, and a thousand other things to keep our homeschool fun and
interesting, but I only get negative feedback. I wish I could tell you that I
handle my composure and my attitude well during these moments, but I don’t. I
do great at teaching from rest as much as it depends on me, but when I start
adding my actual students into the mix things get difficult. Apparently they
didn’t get the memo that we’re doing this homeschool gig via leisurely learning
and restful teaching now so the bad attitudes are no longer welcome.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">However, despite my short-comings in this area
there are some things that are helpful to remember when trying to stay in
teaching from rest mode when bad attitudes show up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I
can’t force them to change their attitude.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> This seems
to be my default method for dealing with my kids’ when they’ve gone off the
rails. If I find the right thing to take away or the right punishment, then
they will magically turn into compliant angels. It doesn’t work that way. In
fact it usually has the opposite effect. The more I try to force the more their
attitude worsens.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I
need to be a thermostat not a thermometer.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
Thermometers reflect heat. In other words they don’t change the temperature,
they just show the same. Thermostats, on the other hand, actually control
temperature by not letting things get too warm. While I might not be able to
force my children to have good attitudes, I can control the situation by not
letting my attitude reflect theirs. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We
all need to take a break.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> When you homeschool you are
around family all day long. While this is good, in some ways it can be bad as
well. Sometimes poor attitude is the result of needing some space from each
other or getting out of the house. If our day is really going south and
everyone seems to be in a bad mood, I might try to do a fifteen minute walk around
the neighborhood with the kids or let everyone have an hour of alone time to
regroup.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Be
a detective.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Bad attitudes almost always have a
root cause and it helps me to remember to search for what it is. Are they not
getting enough sleep? Are they hungry? Are they ill? Are they frustrated with
the work I’m asking them to do because it’s too easy or too difficult? If you
can cure the cause, the bad attitudes should soon go away as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I’m able to remember these four things, I
am much more able to keep our homeschool time in the sweet spot of restful
teaching and learning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">For more helpful tips on how to keep restful
learning in your homeschool while dealing with attitude problems check out what
my fellow Everyday Scholé bloggers have to say:</span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/encourage-good-attitudes/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYCzLtDm_1T7L0PATuHSwElyLKn0Swtd-JftD20Qgzte-jUHi6H5CZSJrz858AN7b6fpztFzDd7XnW-LMYLrPJQnliQ7b4gPOmELhGr52bUeEwNXnDc4q-xomfsqXMWUJP0J-kXo23q8M/s320/encourage+good+attutudes.jpg" width="224" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/homeschooling-bad-attitudes/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyLCcBb-rAyS1mBgnERMGpi-s2i5GzrdVCwEHO0odL7OCQwk1sVStDfBJA0XpXMecAJ8y8ksCvCUfECBYizMPc6l5CGSaPl0CDUpw8dbXW2cZ5-FRDaAmf1YsWKClto4-WAolOm2qeW8M/s320/homeschooling+and+bad+attitudes.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What’s
your go to solution when attitude problems arise?</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-26205289580985470122015-09-24T07:00:00.000-05:002015-09-24T07:00:03.862-05:00Home-Scholé Transformation<h3>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">5 Benefits Teaching from Rest Brought to Our Homeschool</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Whenever you start a new venture in life it’s
always helpful to do a cost-benefit analysis. What will be my cost compared to
the benefit I gain? When I started going down the scholé path and learning
about the concept of teaching from rest, I definitely had to decide if the cost
of my time and energy to learn and implement a new teaching philosophy with my
children and in our homeschool was worth it. I can definitively say, after about
18 months of schooling this way, it absolutely is! </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Peace
of Mind </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">I’ve written before
about how a<a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/02/homeschool-crisis-goals.html" target="_blank"> homeschool crisis</a> a couple of years ago started me looking
for a better way to run our homeschool. I came from a place of doubt and worry
to one of having peace of mind about what my children are learning and the
direction that I want to take with their future education. Teaching from rest
helped me to realize that some of my wishes for their education were unattainable
(teaching them everything they’d ever need to know) and unrealistic (make them
love and enjoy every subject). Now I can have peace of mind about our
homeschool because I know I want them to have feasted on truth, beauty, and
goodness when our time of home education ends. I don’t feel the burden to cover
every base, but to make sure the bases I do cover are done well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;"> <o:p></o:p></span><b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Joy
in the Process</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">Before scholé the
learning environment in our home was a pretty tense one, lots of reminders to
hurry, exasperation on my part, and frustration from the children. Now that we
have started to reap the benefits of teaching from rest, the learning process
has taken on an entirely different tone. Most days we can all sit back and
enjoy the ride of learning. We can wallow in the process of discovery and
discussion. My children and I are relearning how to learn together in a way
that feels natural and organic while still having structure. It doesn’t mean
that I still don’t fall into bad patterns at times or that we all sit around
and hold hands while reviewing Latin vocabulary, but the tenure of our days has
changed for the better.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Confidence
in My Ability</span></b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">The most often heard
comment I hear when people find out that I used to be a public school teacher
is, “Homeschooling must be so easy for you!” Yeah, right. Give me a room of eighth
grade students, hand me a history textbook, and I’m your girl. Place my own
child in front of me who’s struggling with math or learning to read, and I’m
just as terrified as any other homeschool parent. Teaching from rest has helped
me to become more confident in my ability to teach my own child. Not because I
have a super human teaching power now, but because it helped me focus on the
spiritual Power that I have to fill in the gaps where my own confidence falls
short. Too many times I forgot that this is not a solitary endeavor, it is a
joint work between myself and God. I bring all I have to the altar where He
takes it and turns my meager ability into something great within my children.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Customization
in Education</span></b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">Once I let go of my
doubts and fears, found my confidence, and began enjoying the process of
learning again, scholé really opened my eyes to the possibility of stepping
outside the box and teaching my children as individuals, or in Charlotte Mason’s
words, teaching my children as “the born persons” that they are. The process of
customizing our children’s education is where homeschooling really shines above
and beyond what public and private schools can offer. Many times we let doubts
and lack of confidence tie us to standards and keeping up with the Homeschool
Jones’ instead of teaching the children we have. An education of rest and
leisure doesn’t mean less rigorous, but it definitely means more connected to
the child.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Vijaya","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Understanding
My Role</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">I once felt all of
the pressures on my shoulders to make sure my children were successes. I mean,
if they never learn about George Washington or how to balance a chemical
equation there is no one to blame for an educational oversight except you. This
pressure manifested itself in how I taught. It was very much a system of “listen
to me because I am your teacher” instead of learning alongside my children and
listening to what they had to say as well. As teaching from rest became more
entrenched in my thoughts I slowly found myself taking time to follow rabbit
trails with the kids, to listen to what they thought Emily Dickinson was trying
to convey in her poem, or just to enjoy a good book together. I dropped the
authoritative draconian model and adopted a more mentor and fellow learner
model which definitely made our days more restful and leisurely.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">I feel like I need
to add a caveat at the end of this post to keep things real. It is a very rare
day <i>{like maybe once}</i> that I find all
of these things in our homeschool at one time. Let’s face it, life happens,
kids have attitudes, mom has hormones and most days I fall so far short that I
would be disqualified from a long jump competition. The freeing aspect of
restful teaching is that it no longer burdens me as much as it did. I keep
working at it. I keep reaching for that goal. My encouragement comes in seeing the
fruit of my pursuit in our homeschool. So please don’t think that I have it all
together and our homeschool runs like a well oiled scholé machine. These are
the benefits I have found from a poor implementation of the ideal. I can’t even
imagine what a homeschool looks like that does it really well!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaanmiB9vrtutN0DwxgyboVwPzCpdL6mfTdtlm7E89wZSqDbR_o-Qsi_1s8tSb6PrDADvTxJZkx1J-CwF-ZxAgyHuA1gA0ECo34_lx9DsQ7xEJvRi-fSqaoGeh13a6nMLX8EQZIZHwHo8/s1600/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaanmiB9vrtutN0DwxgyboVwPzCpdL6mfTdtlm7E89wZSqDbR_o-Qsi_1s8tSb6PrDADvTxJZkx1J-CwF-ZxAgyHuA1gA0ECo34_lx9DsQ7xEJvRi-fSqaoGeh13a6nMLX8EQZIZHwHo8/s320/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">Curious what my
fellow Everyday Scholé bloggers have discovered to be the biggest benefits to
them from restful teaching? Just click the links below to find out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/gifts-of-schole/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio_eoigSllhnXlE_0JdCyYulOOEzTBPIKOMAISpsuaQyqPPLJT4wGZMIT-GUuXJmYX9Gu5QBZ3xS-KeOpxmbERNyRj6kUCLIm5K-S5GK8AVUM06lZA9sAoH5DlYA6i1aTEz1Ts3Tso_-Q/s320/gifts+of+schole.jpg" width="224" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/what-restful-learning-has-done-for-my-homeschool/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2FZfW3k-KdybS2sBYVUw9Gs-YlRruWlLD91yG5oNnMJKYwI_LBLNhBrx7BTSeqXqtNhX9LXRq95JDhK2iOS5oNVIF3FWAWmHkQb_93AauSmEdK3DV4qn_tN3bHNpvdLj9mqxq-8KA_PU/s320/restful+learning+homeschool.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">What changes in your homeschool philosophy have
brought about the biggest rewards?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya;">Let me know in the comments.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Vijaya; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Chelli</span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-91221491899877135952015-08-27T07:00:00.000-05:002015-08-27T07:00:02.668-05:00Scholé is Your Homeschool's Fairy Godmother<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvhI4b1ZvLAVhzV3oqUdaS3qhQTj9DoIBF1yf4n9oW6T95FZubfyIZPuGSS5sq6Q4XSbfPBioqxgrw2X0dInV4aE6Bk__0rNNDr1uN6ZeiVKcENO-YpVui1LJbJTCH13Kcy-sD5YrcOeY/s1600/Schole+is+Your+Homeschool%2527s+Fairy+Godmother.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvhI4b1ZvLAVhzV3oqUdaS3qhQTj9DoIBF1yf4n9oW6T95FZubfyIZPuGSS5sq6Q4XSbfPBioqxgrw2X0dInV4aE6Bk__0rNNDr1uN6ZeiVKcENO-YpVui1LJbJTCH13Kcy-sD5YrcOeY/s400/Schole+is+Your+Homeschool%2527s+Fairy+Godmother.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Once upon a time, there was a homeschool mom,
frazzled, worn out, snappy to her children, and generally feeling defeated. Her
two stepsisters, Worry and Fear, were constantly making snide comments to her
about her effectiveness at educating her children.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Aren’t you worried that they will fall behind
their peers?” questioned Worry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Aren’t you afraid that they can’t get into
college?” asked Fear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Aren’t you worried you are forgetting to teach
them something important?” interrogated Worry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Aren’t you afraid they are too sheltered?”
queried Fear.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The stepsisters were so awful that they even got
the townspeople to harass the homeschool mom when she was out and about with
her kids. At the market she’d hear, “What about socialization?” At the park
someone would ask her, “Are you qualified to do this?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Every night the homeschool mom would collapse in
front of the fireplace out of exhaustion and cry herself to sleep. The next
morning she’d wake up determined not to prove Fear, Worry, and the townspeople
correct. She purchased curriculum for at least 12 different subjects to make
sure she didn’t leave anything out. When she found out what the local schools
were doing, she decided to add a couple more subjects she hadn’t thought about.
She came up with beautifully regimented schedules to make sure she could cram
everything into their day. When the children took too long she would shout, “Hurry
up! We still have 5 subjects to complete!” When the children interrupted to
relate a story or ask a question, she responded in a brisk manner, “We’ll deal
with that later. Right now focus on math.” By the end of the day, the
homeschool mom and the children felt stressed, uninspired, and no longer wanted
to even be in the same room with each other.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After months of this routine, the homeschool mom
walked out into the backyard one evening. She realized that she couldn’t do it
anymore. She would have to put the kids in school. She felt she was an abysmal
failure and knew she was turning into a tyrannical mother that she didn’t even
recognize. As she looked up at the moon and contemplated enrolling the kids on
the morrow, she heard the sound of tinkling bells behind her. Turning around,
an astonishing sight greeted her!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A tall, statuesque woman dressed in Grecian
robes with a laurel wreath crown stood in front of her. She smiled serenely at
the homeschool mom, “I have come to assist you in your desire to educate your
children. My name is Scholé and I am your homeschool’s fairy godmother.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“My homeschool has a fairy godmother?” the
homeschool mom asked incredulously.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Absolutely. In fact my name, Scholé, is where your
English word <i>school</i> originated. My
name’s meaning has long since departed from any form of school that I’ve seen,”
smirked the fairy godmother, “but I’m here to help you turn your homeschool into
a place of rest and leisure which is what my name means. So tell me, homeschool
mom, what would your dream homeschool day look like?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The homeschool mom proceeded to outline days
spent in deep conversation and contemplation, quiet afternoons spent curled up
on the couch reading from great books, diving into learning with eagerness, and
ending the days feeling pleased and confident.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When she finished her five minute speech, Scholé
burst into laughter. “You know this isn’t a fairy tale right? I can’t make
every day like that. You are merely human as are your children. You will still
have rough days, even bad ones, but I can help you transform your homeschool
into something that comes closer to that vision,” promised the fairy godmother.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Here’s what I can give you. I can help you
prioritize the things that are important in this world: truth, beauty, and
goodness. I can help you determine what curriculum and books will cultivate
those traits in both you and your children. I can help you focus on the end
goal, which is not college or perfect scores on a test, but helping your
children be the best adults they can be. I can help you silence the voices of
those stepsisters of yours by giving you the confidence that even though your
school might not look like anyone else’s, you are walking this path knowing
that it is not a sprint, but a marathon. I can transform your homeschool days
by giving you peace that you are educating your children at their pace and to
their strengths despite what the grade level on the book says.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Yes,” cried the homeschool mom in despair, “I
want that! What do I need to do?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“You need to throw out what you believe school
to be,” answered Scholé, “and learn what teaching from a place of rest is. Not
rest meaning that you are doing nothing, but rest in that you are doing
everything that needs to be done for the goal of nurturing souls.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“I will, Fairy Godmother! I will!” asserted the
homeschool mom. “And since you mentioned transformation earlier,” she asked
sheepishly, “is there any way you could transform me to look like you?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">“Oh, honey,
remember this isn’t a fairy tale!” Scholé responded saucily over her shoulder
as she glided away to the next homeschool in desperate need of leisure and
rest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkzhQsqnSns8Vb8m1dI5eQhyeySZ6vZBiDUggMA1aeVaVKn3pWYTyouuxwvHerWOO2SJ8CAnMjSYqcMSSdtqE-m7ureiimKDOJM_S8CDt1ujph5NRSWKI5mfvqyjbt0oJtTSH7spObyJI/s1600/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkzhQsqnSns8Vb8m1dI5eQhyeySZ6vZBiDUggMA1aeVaVKn3pWYTyouuxwvHerWOO2SJ8CAnMjSYqcMSSdtqE-m7ureiimKDOJM_S8CDt1ujph5NRSWKI5mfvqyjbt0oJtTSH7spObyJI/s320/Everyday+Schole+Final+Image.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I hope you enjoyed my autobiographical
description of how I learned about scholé. If you’d like to read some other
great definitions of what this teaching from rest and leisurely homeschooling
is all about check out my fellow Everyday Scholé blog buddies:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/what-is-schole/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3YTUyAwJikDUIbQMFfcMg-udcxVIbPJppJi1_xSb4hEFjAgzBDRk1qqx-LGb-S8A67mZ1kwujM2o7lU0Q09WQx2B5wgzp51vND6s6FRxG8eTJTGVa0M0lpIcXHfwp2v-mM2bF8AdK9Y/s320/what+is+schole.jpg" width="248" /></a> <a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/schole-means-being-intentional/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuKXFhL8JMnW058LyHwbUlPy1MiiKsRNwTQ3dvpABJ3vET9JuXvS_SMEDKU-lXJiikWx1mOBGdRZfvyDMmZd8M693OdbxakgZdE6fcY7SyQKynOuSMsQ3HIy-XXQzwjAjE4SSIYHQzVCA/s320/schol%25C3%25A9+means+intentional.jpg" width="248" /></a> </div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do
your homeschool days resemble the before or after transformation above?</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Let
me know in the comments below.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-51992787962412741182015-08-13T13:50:00.000-05:002015-08-13T13:50:04.140-05:00Homeschool Coupons for Back to School<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Every year on the day our local public schools
start back, we have our very own Not Back to School Party which usually involves
eating out for breakfast, a trip to the big city to visit a museum or the zoo,
and I try to come up with a fun way to kick off our school year. Last year I
created a <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2014/08/back-to-home-school-fun.html" target="_blank">Homeschool Supplies Scavenger Hunt</a> which the kids LOVED! In fact, the
minute they noticed the school supplies being rolled out in the stores, they
started asking if we were doing the scavenger hunt again. We had technically
already started back to school for the year at that point, so new school
supplies had already been purchased and were in use, but I wanted to do another
scavenger hunt with them. But what would be the prize at the end? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Since Grace is participating in her first
homeschool classes two days a week this year, I will be doing quite a bit of
schooling at local libraries with the kids, which obviously means they need
some cute backpacks. I’d never bought backpacks for them before, but that
seemed like the perfect prize to be waiting at the end of our library scavenger
hunt (yes, we’re doing it in the library this year so they can practice some
library skills while hunting). Knowing how my kids think, though, the first thing
they will do when they find the backpacks is open them expecting something to
be inside. I didn’t want to spend more money, so instead I came up with
Homeschool Coupons, and they are going to be perfect!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiscOY_EyQn2zJptFXbT-NDGsO-i-g7RgN2k6asUEJZtmvPE2E0pqDjJY6s9bcvW9WfJNfat0Ak4OmejcSGjbkDYNXzvJlrhJ2FKCjOjtJvr3rRUFa__16t7FQWKa9bO3kPREvsTpL6nUE/s1600/Homeschool+Coupon+Book.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiscOY_EyQn2zJptFXbT-NDGsO-i-g7RgN2k6asUEJZtmvPE2E0pqDjJY6s9bcvW9WfJNfat0Ak4OmejcSGjbkDYNXzvJlrhJ2FKCjOjtJvr3rRUFa__16t7FQWKa9bO3kPREvsTpL6nUE/s400/Homeschool+Coupon+Book.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There are 19 coupons in all with two of them
being “free” days where your child can choose what to do. The coupons include
things like having ice cream for lunch, going bowling instead of having science
class, skipping your least favorite subject for the day, etc. I know that the
kids are going to have so much fun with these! However to make sure things didn’t
get too out of hand, I have a disclaimer on the front of the coupon pack that
says only one coupon may be turned in each week, including siblings’ coupons.
So my kids are going to have to work together to decide exactly who is getting
to use their coupon that week.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj1era1NCUcK2MRMBWt22e_KWvHikM_5jJ28QmZn1VXIOH0RVG6Xotgxs18IvW_AfjPgSN7F6XRZlvVxx5eTsdeC2pQqINtixugd4EwG6OOQrrS8KygDgUKgO67oXcU2jlLcz2RPG6f6A/s1600/coupon+book+prep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj1era1NCUcK2MRMBWt22e_KWvHikM_5jJ28QmZn1VXIOH0RVG6Xotgxs18IvW_AfjPgSN7F6XRZlvVxx5eTsdeC2pQqINtixugd4EwG6OOQrrS8KygDgUKgO67oXcU2jlLcz2RPG6f6A/s320/coupon+book+prep.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve thought of a few ways to use these coupons.
I hole-punched ours and put them on a binder ring. I gave each girl their own
set of coupons while Levi is getting the four “Your Choice” coupons out of his
sisters’ coupon books. You could also take the 19 coupons and divide them among
your children so they all have different ones personalized for them. Another
way to use these would be for good behavior/attitude rewards. Put all the coupons
in a basket and allow your child to draw one out each week if they’ve had good
attitude and behavior during school time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I can’t wait for my kids to get their Homeschool
Coupon books in a couple of weeks! And because I love my blog readers, you can
download yours right now though; just click on the link below.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7MVG-caawarM29ZYVJwbHMyazQ/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Homeschool Coupons</a></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What
fun things do you do to get your children excited about starting a new homeschool
year?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-69388029663557723022015-07-17T16:10:00.000-05:002016-03-07T10:18:31.511-06:00Living Book Chemistry Plans for Elementary<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: x-small; line-height: 115%;">This post contains affiliate links. I appreciate your support of my blog. See full legal disclosure <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: x-small; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I asked my kids what they wanted to study
for science this year, they both said that they wanted to “blow things up,”
which I took to understand that they wanted to learn about chemistry. Being a
Charlotte Mason inspired homeschool, I knew I wanted to use living books as
much as possible to study chemistry. In case you were curious, this is very
difficult to do with a third grader and sixth grader, but I came up with what I
feel is a great selection of books to introduce chemistry to younger learners. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We are not exploring every facet of chemistry,
but instead I wanted to focus on beginning exposure since this was the first
time either of my girls had ventured into the chemical realm at all. My goal is
to have the girls understand the states of matter, atoms, molecules, compounds,
solutions, elements, periodic table, and how chemistry influences our lives. We
start our three week study on Monday, but I wanted to share my plans in
advance. I’ll come back and rate how things worked later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Read
Aloud Books for Both</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006AX7KO/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0006AX7KO&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=D3Y632L6IZ3LC3P7">The How and Why Wonder Book of Chemistry</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0006AX7KO" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Our spine for most of the study.
This book is older, but easy to understand with nice pictures and not too much
text. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1454905093/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1454905093&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=U67DW5YG73LHJZZH">Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1454905093" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Believe it
or not, there is actually a fictional book about chemistry! I’m looking forward
to reading this one to the girls as much as anything else we are studying just
to see how chemistry works as a plot line.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064451631/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0064451631&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=Y2LPKHBBJVF4RRDO">What Is the World Made Of? All About Solids, Liquids, and Gases</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0064451631" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: The Let’s Read and Find Out
science books are some of my favorites and this one is perfect for introducing
the states of matter to elementary age kids.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0590221973/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0590221973&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=R5O3STRSJCC37BR7">A Drop Of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0590221973" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: If nothing else the stunning
photographs in this book make it a must have! Learning about one of the most
important molecules on our planet makes it educational.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0807588385/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0807588385&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=XTHOKGIDHYGKFVJF">What's Smaller Than a Pygmy Shrew? </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0807588385" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: A super cute and informative
picture book to help kids understand exactly how tiny atoms and their parts
are. This one even helped me visualize the size of atoms.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0147511666/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0147511666&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=EFQQNOEJQYIFSMYG">The Story of Salt</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0147511666" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: I love this picture book because
it combines chemistry (NaCl) with history to teach children in a fun way how
chemistry can actually shape world history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/157091673X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=157091673X&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=WQ3GK3XG3BWO3AXC">The Day-Glo Brothers</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=157091673X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: This fun book is about two
brothers who used chemistry to invent day-glo colors that are used to day for
safety vests, signs, etc. It’s best to read this book under a black light for
maximum awesomness!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Independent
Reads</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0890512957/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0890512957&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=VRB54E7RVY2352AZ">Exploring the World of Chemistry: From Ancient Metals to High-Speed Computers</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0890512957" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Grace will be reading one
chapter every day from this book, which traces the history of chemistry from ancient
times to present day. She loves the
Tiner books because of their conversational tone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812097912/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0812097912&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=HO2BBSXWQ3L6KER7">Marie Curie's Search for Radium </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0812097912" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Sophia is reading this one to
me very slowly over the course of our study. It’s slightly above her reading
level which is why we are taking our time with it. Marie Curie was such an
amazing woman that I can’t wait for Sophia to read this one!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Experiment
Books</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/188559383X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=188559383X&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=YTNAFARWULH5WOZZ">Fizz, Bubble & Flash!: Element Explorations & Atom Adventures for Hands-On Science Fun!</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=188559383X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: This book has experiments
organized by element. We’re using it to do three experiments.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0979226821/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0979226821&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=4NEKMGTAIQ3NI7OG">Amazing Kitchen Chemistry Projects You Can Build Yourself</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0979226821" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">:
A fun way to explore chemistry and get in the kitchen. We’re using this book to
do four experiments.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Documentaries</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007IUEE8O/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007IUEE8O&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=X4S22P57SXGF4PYR">Nova: Hunting The Elements</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B007IUEE8O" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.infocobuild.com/books-and-films/science/ChemistryHistory/episode-1.html" target="_blank"><i>BBC Discovering the Elements</i></a>: A three part series that is difficult to find but gets rave
reviews!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">For
Fun</span></b><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1466484292/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1466484292&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=25SFCW757B7CGNDB">The Periodic Table of Elements Coloring Book</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1466484292" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Perfect to help kids
who love art and coloring to learn.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1579128955/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1579128955&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=2YJE3SK2K3AC367Z">Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1579128955" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Gorgeous pictures and good information about how
every element is used in our world today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0753460858/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0753460858&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=HTZPE7F6TP6RMJFI">The Periodic Table: Elements with Style!</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0753460858" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: Fun book that creates cartoon
characters for each of the elements.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.ellenjmchenry.com/homeschool-freedownloads/chemistry-games/quicksix.php" target="_blank">Quick Six Elements Game</a></span></i><span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: A great way to help kids become
familiar with the elements and the periodic table.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "century gothic" , "sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Hopefully this list will help some of you who
might be struggling to add some living books into your chemistry studies! You can download my plans for how I make all of this work together over the course of three weeks <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/1utqrqbyzlo0zdn/Living%20Book%20Chemistry%20Study.docx?dl=0" target="_blank">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'century gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18.4px;">Be sure and check out the other bloggers participating in week 2 of the Virtual Curriculum Fair about math and the "mathy" sciences of physics and chemistry.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioAbBz5qI7g3K3fI9lvWRkvWGmMwumNZDEHUvZ0v_bj2udScbUAv4yrnF7KbqX2fJ9G2VKmrjXrn0jeG12TLKbong_oA2DEMXKXvYP0Sw_jLMx2cHFGwQlMOd7u9nzYhfJgKvYmUgj-Wc/s1600/VCF2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioAbBz5qI7g3K3fI9lvWRkvWGmMwumNZDEHUvZ0v_bj2udScbUAv4yrnF7KbqX2fJ9G2VKmrjXrn0jeG12TLKbong_oA2DEMXKXvYP0Sw_jLMx2cHFGwQlMOd7u9nzYhfJgKvYmUgj-Wc/s200/VCF2016.jpg" width="175" /></a></div>
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Chareen @ <b>Every Bed of Roses</b> - <a href="http://everybedofroses.blogspot.com/2016/03/week-2-thoughts-on-math-and-science.html" target="_blank">Thoughts on Math and Science</a><br />
Kristen @ <b>Sunrise to Sunset</b> - <a href="http://sunrisetosunsethomeschool.com/2016/03/07/from-counting-to-calculus-homeschool-math/" target="_blank">From Counting to Calculus</a><br />
Laura @ <b>Day by Day in Our World</b> - <a href="http://daybydayinourworld.com/2016/03/how-we-approach-math-in-this-homeschool-year/" target="_blank">How We Approach Math in This Homeschool Year</a><br />
Annette @ <b>A Net In Time</b> - <a href="http://anetintimeschooling.weebly.com/a-net-in-time-blog/struggling-with-math-loving-science" target="_blank">Struggling with Math, Loving Science</a><br />
Annette @ <b>A Net In Time</b> - <a href="http://anetintimeschooling.weebly.com/a-net-in-time-blog/lego-pulleys-and-levers" target="_blank">Lego Pulleys and Levers</a><br />
Yvie @ <b>Gypsy Road</b> Hands - <a href="http://gypsyroadschool.blogspot.com/2016/03/count-me-in-gary-lewis-playboys.html" target="_blank">On Math with Special Needs Learners</a><br />
Chelli @ <b>The Planted Trees</b> - <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/07/living-book-chemistry-plans-for.html" target="_blank">Chemistry Using Living Books</a><br />
Lisa @ <b>GoldenGrasses</b> - <a href="http://goldengrasses.blogspot.com/2016/03/an-appalling-lack-of-curiosity-virtual.html" target="_blank">An Appalling Lack of Curiosity</a><br />
Edie @ <b>Carter Chaos</b> - <a href="http://carterchaos-ecarter.blogspot.com/2016/03/our-favorite-ways-to-study-numbers.html" target="_blank">Our Favorite Ways to Study Numbers</a><br />
Tracey @ <b>A Learning Journey</b> - <a href="http://totplay.blogspot.com/2016/03/r-is-for-robot-area-and-perimeter-art.html" target="_blank">Robot Area and Perimeter Art Project</a><br />
Jennifer @ <b>A Glimpse of Our Life</b> - <a href="http://www.glimpseofourlife.com/2016/03/math-and-standardized-tests.html" target="_blank">Math and Standardized Tests</a><br />
Jen @ <b>Chestnut Grove Academy</b> - <a href="http://chestnutgroveacademy.blogspot.com/2016/03/virtual-curriculum-fair-2016.html" target="_blank">Discovering Patterns: Mathematics, Logic, and Science</a><br />
Sarah @ <b>DeliveringGrace</b> - <a href="http://weshallobtaindeliveringgrace.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/learning-multiplication-tables.html" target="_blank">Learning Multiplication Tables</a><br />
Kylie @ <b>Our Worldwide Classroom</b> - <a href="http://www.ourworldwideclassroom.blogspot.com.au/2016/03/multisensory-multiplication.html" target="_blank">Multisensory Multiplication</a><br />
Kym @ <b>Homeschool Coffee Break</b> - <a href="http://kympossibleblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/science-and-stuff.html" target="_blank">Science and Stuff</a><br />
Kemi Quinn @ <b>Homemaking Organized</b> - <a href="http://www.homemakingorganized.com/?p=17209" target="_blank">Math in Our Homeschool for a Later Elementary Organized Reader</a><br />
Joelle @ <b>Homeschooling for His Glory</b> - <a href="http://homeschoolingforhisglory.blogspot.com/2016/03/math-and-logic-our-steady-path.html" target="_blank">Math and Logic - Our Steady Path</a><br />
Laura @ <b>Four Little Penguins</b> - <a href="http://fourlittlepenguins.blogspot.com/2016/03/math-and-science-love.html" target="_blank">Math and Science Love</a><br />
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "gabriola"; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 27.6px;"> What subject have you found difficult to teach through living books?</span></b><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "french script mt"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Chelli</span></i>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com166tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-18735086612972840602015-07-13T02:38:00.002-05:002015-07-13T02:38:54.593-05:00Online Homeschool Planning: Pinterest and Homeschool Planet<h3>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Technology to Help Plan and Prep Your Homeschool</span></h3>
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<em style="background-color: #f3f3f3; color: #333333; font-family: Cuprum; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">This post contains affiliate links. I appreciate your support of my blog. See full legal disclosure </span><a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html" style="color: #91961e; text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">here</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">. I received a subscription to Homeschool Planet for free, and I'm being compensated for my time to write this review. All of my opinions are my own as I am not required to write a positive review.</span></span></em></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">Homeschooling in the 21st century is an exciting time. With the advent of technology, home education is becoming more accessible to the masses and easier than ever for those of us already homeschooling. I’m starting a new series about how to use technology to help you, the homeschool parent, prepare and plan your homeschool.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">I love using technology especially when it comes to planning. I use Pinterest to do my big picture planning and recently started using <a href="http://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/homeschool-planet-free-trial/" target="_blank">Homeschool Planet</a> as my detailed, daily planner.</span></span></div>
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<b style="color: #333333; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2000007629395px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 27.6000003814697px;">Using Pinterest for Homeschool Planning</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">While Pinterest is best known as a place to find home improvement projects and recipes, it is a perfect place to use as homeschool planning as well. I didn’t start out using Pinterest this way, but as I began to pin more and more homeschool related things, I soon realized that it was the solution to help me remember those random book recommendations that other homeschoolers suggested, curriculum that looked really cool to use one day, or blog posts that inspired and helped me. Here are three tips to help maximize Pinterest’s potential when planning your homeschool year:</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>1. Be specific with your boards. </i>I break my homeschool boards down into narrow categories. For example, science is broken down into specific topics such as chemistry, botany, astronomy, etc. History is divided into specific time periods and subject matter. This allows me to quickly find things that fit exactly with our homeschool studies for the year without having to scroll through 100 different pins on one general science board. When I began planning and need a specific book, activity, or video, the first place I check are my Pinterest boards for ideas {<a href="https://www.pinterest.com/TreeDwellerMom/" target="_blank">sneak a peek at how my Pinterest boards are organized</a>}.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>2. Think about the future. </i>I quickly realized that Pinterest was great for planning far into the future. Even though my oldest is just entering the middle grades, I still pin things that look interesting for high school, and when my oldest was in lower elementary, I was pinning things for upper elementary and middle school. I have discovered this was invaluable because once Grace hit the middle grades, I already had curriculum, books, activities, etc. already waiting. If I’d tried to remember all of that, I would have failed miserably.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>3. Maximize the description box. </i>I recently started making the description box on each of my homeschool pins much more user friendly for planning. I now try to include grade levels, ages, or reading levels for any curriculum or books that I pin. For example, I recently pinned a creative writing book I am thinking about possibly using for Grace in the near future. When I pinned it, I added in the description that it was intended for grades 3 and up. Now I can tell with one glance exactly which grades the book can be used, without clicking on the pin. By doing this one simple act, it has really made my planning time much shorter.</span></span></div>
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<b style="color: #333333; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2000007629395px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 27.6000003814697px;">Using Homeschool Planet for Planning</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">While I prefer doing my initial planning on paper, once I get a final plan I prefer to use an online planner because it’s so easy and simple. I’ve tried a handful of different online planners, but there are definitely some huge benefits for our family that are found in Homeschool Planet.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>1. It allows me to input shared classes. </i>So this just might be my favorite feature of Homeschool Planet! Instead of having to enter the same class separately for each of my kids, I can enter it once and tell the program that both girls will be doing the class. Then in the assignments I can differentiate anything I need the girls to do separately. This is super helpful since we combine for science, history, and geography. I only have to type things once and with a click of a button it shows up on both girls’ assignment sheets.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>2. I can use it on my tablet. </i>While not all the features are available for the mobile version, the most important part is available: our schedule. I can open Homeschool Planet on my tablet and instantly know exactly what is assigned for each child in our homeschool. This makes life so convenient for me since I don’t need a print out to keep up with everything. School can go with us anywhere we go and with Grace being involved in some outsourced classes this year, I know that having Homeschool Planet at my fingertips will be super helpful.</span></span></div>
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-style: italic; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">3. I can schedule their chores. </i><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Century Gothic'; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">Not only does Homeschool Planet keep our school work organized, but it also lets me add each child’s chores to their daily list as well. This makes our chore system super easy to implement since I have no need for any extra cute charts or printables. One sheet of paper contains it all, from school work to their responsibilities around the home.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>4. I can customize exactly what I want it to do. </i>Utilizing all the features of Homeschool Planet allows me to create shopping lists, family appointment calendars, book lists, to do lists, etc. all in one place. While I don’t use every feature they have, I do use a lot of them. It makes things so handy to have everything all in one digital place, so when I need to run errands, I’ve got all of the information I need at my fingertips. No more having 10 pieces of paper to keep track of or a big binder to carry around of a paper planner.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><i>5. It saves me TONS of time. </i>So I'm kind of known among my friends and fellow homeschoolers for my <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/06/detailed-plan-brings-restful-learning.html" target="_blank">intense planning method</a> of pre-planning our entire year. Thank goodness for Homeschool Planet because it saves me hours when I'm ready to input everything for our year. It does all the work for me at one click of a button. It can repeat assignments. It can divide long term assignments. It can manipulate your plans almost any way you wish. As an example, when I input an entire year's worth of work for both of my girls this year, it only took me one hour. Love it!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Century Gothic;"><span style="line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">By using Pinterest and Homeschool Planet, you can easily use technology to plan for a year of homeschooling. If you don’t have a Pinterest account already, <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/" target="_blank">go sign up</a>! If you want to try Homeschool Planet, <a href="http://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/" target="_blank">Homeschool Buyers Co-op</a> offers a 30 day FREE trial so you can see how awesome digital planning can be! And while you are there, </span></span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Century Gothic'; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;">sign up with the co-op for great group buys exclusively for homeschoolers!</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18pt; line-height: 27.6000003814697px;">How do you use technology to plan your homeschool?</span></b><b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.3999996185303px;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<i style="color: #333333; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><span style="font-family: 'French Script MT'; font-size: 72pt; line-height: 110.400001525879px;">Chelli</span></i></div>
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Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-30402746890749953122015-06-25T01:04:00.000-05:002015-06-25T14:03:31.347-05:00How a Super Detailed Plan Brings Restful Learning<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The past two months Everyday Scholé has been
discussing restful homeschool planning. We’re finishing out the series by
showing three different planning styles and how all lead to scholé in your
homeschool.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Anyone who has read my blog knows that I love to
plan our homeschool in minute detail. I’ve had more than one person tell me
they could never plan that way because it would be too stressful for them to
follow such a plan. Which is why I’m so excited about this post! Even if we all
do it differently a restful homeschool year can be found in a multitude of
approaches. I like to plan in detail. Even to the point of writing down page
numbers for daily math work for an entire year in advance!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Here’s how my super detailed planning helps keep
my year one of rest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It
makes everything open and go.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I don’t use a lot of pre-planned curriculum
especially for history, science, and geography so taking the time to create
detailed lesson plans is a life saver when the school days get busy. I don’t
have to worry about flipping through books or gathering supplies. It’s all
pre-planned, printed, sorted, gathered, and ready to go for the day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It
helps me instantly see where we are in the year.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When I have everything planned out by subject,
it just takes a quick glance at my planner to know exactly how much ground we’ve
covered and how much we have left to go in our academics. This lets me know if
we need to slow down or speed up in one or more subjects to stay at the correct
pace. That being said, though, I don’t necessarily rush us to finish in a
certain time frame {more about this later}.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It
ensures the academic goals I’ve made for the year are met.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Every year I try to make specific goals for my
children that I want to focus on for that year. The academic goals I make for
them are much easier to work into our schedule if I pre-plan the entire year. I
can make sure that those are goals are being systematically and thoroughly addressed through my planning. When I try to be looser with my planning, these goals are
one of the first things that are negatively affected. I forget about them
during the day to day repetition of school. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It
allows others to fill in if needed.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve only had to make use of this option a
handful of times over the course of our homeschool, but I can promise you that
having everything pre-planned makes it 1,000 times easier for someone else to
step in and run the day for you. I’ve had my mother and Preacher Man take over
homeshcool duties in past years when I’ve left town for various things. And
most recently Grace ran our school day while I was in Fort Worth at the Great
Homeschool Convention. Pre-planning everything makes it simple to hand over the
reins if necessary. I’ve also discovered it helps your older children be more
independent with their work if you are sick.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The interesting thing about all of this
pre-planning is that it looks very rigid and regimented on paper, but my
implementation of all this planning is very restful and leisurely. I do not
stress if we don’t make it exactly through everything I had planned for the
year. Our days are very go with the flow. Our year has plenty of breaks and
days off. But all of this is possible because I have these wonderfully detailed
plans. If I didn’t, I would be a stressed out, worried mess. Which brings me to
my final point,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It
is super easy to tweak and adjust as needed for circumstances.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I find that the sweet spot of restful planning
for me is having <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2013/08/how-i-plan-our-homeschool-subjects-part.html" target="_blank">super detailed lesson plans on paper</a>, a <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2012/06/how-i-plan-our-homeschool-year-part-one.html" target="_blank">regimented year long calendar</a>, <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/04/homeschool-daily-schedule-anchors.html" target="_blank">daily anchors for each major learning block</a>, and <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2015/02/morning-meeting-short-schedule.html" target="_blank">back up plans when time is short</a>. Without all of this preparation when circumstances did change, I
would be much more frazzled. Having plans and having schedules allows me to be
more flexible in how our time is spent. I have my plans and schedules as
parameters, but there is a lot of empty space on the road which makes our
homeschool a true journey of rest for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18.3999996185303px;">Not sure if my super detailed approach is right for you, check out my two other Everyday Scholé blogging friends who take different approaches to planning as well.</span></div>
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<a href="http://classicallyhomeschooling.com/yearly-planning/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3CttOQrlPKjGpf3Jo5_s4b20bkZgGWgyTbeZGlJ3nJGDTOjXyg9wSa5J1olxWQPoGir4XZoDXpl8wc3Z4cpX1G3cYBGIFgRBwIpcC-2WKNAVSzk51527YS8Td0rwolKZgYpdl02eWIzk/s320/yearly+planning.jpg" width="248" /></a> <a href="http://thesunnypatch.ca/planning-resftul-homeschool-year-part-3-everyday-schole/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq_GMqpVH6_T6iL_TW3N6bcGP0qbiwu0Zgj0hD933qWtPccvlQGtglrQwjgLN1rIoSSCp51F6qNZ_kdEmFsnHNADQrjNncwtH9NeO4AI4Zt2LlduoOSFS8DJqqZj7aF-qZVFXlR_L6phU/s320/peaceful+planning.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What
is your homeschool planning style that makes your year restful?</span></b><b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Chelli</span></i>Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-65975789609160361272015-06-11T00:00:00.000-05:002015-06-11T00:00:06.402-05:00Fifth Grade Read Aloud List<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: xx-small; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><em style="background-color: #f3f3f3; color: #333333; font-family: Cuprum; line-height: 25.2000007629395px;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">This post contains affiliate links. I appreciate your support of my blog. See full legal disclosure </span><a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/p/legal-jargon.html" style="color: #91961e; text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">here</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">.</span></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">As my kids move into fifth grade the read alouds,
and even their independent reading, becomes deeper. In other words, books begin
to deal with the difficult things in life such as death, divorce, injustice,
even murder. While these books might seem dark and depressing, they have
inspired amazing conversations between all of us about right and wrong, dealing
with emotions, and making difficult choices. Of course they are still
light-hearted books on this list, as well as classic literature that I feel are
must reads. This list of read aloud books was inspired by Jim Trelease’s <i>Read Aloud Handbook</i> and also some
personal favorites that I added to it. I have also gone back and updated my
other read aloud lists with printables so that you can print out my lists to
have handy in your teacher planners or to carry with you to the library. Happy
reading!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416927352/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1416927352&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=WTJ4CXX2UZ74EBKY">Goin' Someplace Special</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1416927352" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Patricia McKissack (picture book)</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763638803/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0763638803&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=FMD22RJHRYM6CXCR">Delivering Justice: W.W. Law and the Fight for Civil Rights</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0763638803" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Jim Haskins (picture book)<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0531094642/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0531094642&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=JB4CVGIBEPVBDDOX">More Than Anything Else</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0531094642" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">by Marie Bradby (picture book)<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0152842861/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0152842861&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=MI3WV2P6J5YPPSLU">Teammates</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0152842861" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> </span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">by Peter Golenbock (picture book)</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0525387242/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0525387242&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=36NKVYCYC6WVDYAW">Run</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0525387242" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">
by William Sleator (out of print) </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ON7DIU/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000ON7DIU&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=JLIFKKN6PLI7WZS7">Stars in My Crown</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000ON7DIU" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Joe David Brown (out of print) </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0547722400/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0547722400&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=7FUGEGAKNTYWWJHG">On My Honor</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0547722400" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Marion Dane Bauer </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064407055/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0064407055&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=AHIQ5LWRRQZJ5XRK">Ella Enchanted</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0064407055" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif;">by Gail Carson Levine </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763627941/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0763627941&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=KHMSUCQ2EDS46W2G">Adam Canfield of the Slash</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0763627941" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Michael Winerip </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0916242684/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0916242684&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=RB6FLC5CFYA4IVNX">Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0916242684" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Willie Morris </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679767223/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0679767223&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=JGS6A3SHCYVJPT72">My Dog Skip</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0679767223" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Willie Morris </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486400778/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0486400778&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=6XOE36IALLFYT3NY">The Adventures of Tom Sawyer </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0486400778" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Mark Twain </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0803725906/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0803725906&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=SJURH5OQSIBGJMS4">The Great Brain</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0803725906" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by John D. Fitzgerald (series)</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/006058176X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=006058176X&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=IVYWRZWEHOCQT5BG">Listening for Lions</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=006058176X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Gloria Whelan </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316809063/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0316809063&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=E7YYKN77IHLX37E5">Maniac Magee</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0316809063" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Jerry Spinelli </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0425182800/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0425182800&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=EU3WUCZ6CWIRREPI">No Promises in the Wind </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0425182800" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Irene Hunt </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0439783607/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0439783607&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=FYOGQB6R5BZP2HQS">My Brother Sam Is Dead</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0439783607" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064401855/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0064401855&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=SMJXMEJJ5CCDE76I">The Fighting Ground </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0064401855" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Avi </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486217841/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0486217841&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=UUQYUFNW4KEFCNRN">Otto of the Silver Hand </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0486217841" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Howard Pyle </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0440418224/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0440418224&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=GJ3NC72VJOKHDSON">Matilda Bone</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0440418224" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Karen Cushman </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064401987/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0064401987&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=Y6HMKEJQO5FVZI5H">The Pinballs </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0064401987" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Betsy Byars </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142401129/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142401129&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=ASX3DIVWYGKSUSU5">Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142401129" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Mildred Taylor (series)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0140389636/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0140389636&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=KOUV3ZEHV5NFTED5">The Gold Cadillac</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0140389636" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Mildred Taylor </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0590430270/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0590430270&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=RR2THWIS646XLREC">Christmas In The Big House, Christmas In The Quarters</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0590430270" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Patricia and
Fredrick McKissack</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0803728042/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0803728042&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=VRUZ47BPSO6Y5EXG">Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the Emmett Till Case</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0803728042" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">
by Chris Crowe </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0141301201/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0141301201&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=OG5R6L67C4L5AGPV">Rosa Parks: My Story</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0141301201" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Rosa Parks </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/037584516X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=037584516X&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=JTWXBRH7L6JX6GWP">The Ruby in the Smoke: A Sally Lockhart Mystery</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=037584516X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Philip Pullman (series)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670810541/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0670810541&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=PGLX4ZGV3VM5ZSWP">The December Rose</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0670810541" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Leon Garfield </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689707665/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689707665&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=U5OEZCI4ZC4HHYR6">The Case of the Baker Street Irregular </a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689707665" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Robert Newman</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0395618754/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0395618754&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=63E375HHPMVJCR3M">Sara Bishop</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0395618754" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Scott O’Dell </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689710666/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689710666&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=55SCWFBBKAL6YPWB">Slake's Limbo: 121 Days</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689710666" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Felice Holman </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142406112/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142406112&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=OB6HTD2G6MQCIDKW">Stormbreaker (Alex Rider Series)</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142406112" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">
by Anthony Horowitz (series)<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0439680093/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0439680093&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=DFJ6CUVM7IT7WEW6">Raven's Gate (The Gatekeepers Series)</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0439680093" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Anthony Horowitz (series)<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0688152937/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0688152937&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=JA2JLDQSYII2HCEU">Thank You, Jackie Robinson</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0688152937" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Barbara Cohen</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689857624/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689857624&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=7ZV7JT5TNY34Q4T6">When the Tripods Came</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689857624" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by John Christopher (series)</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416939393/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1416939393&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=QF4AVFKWM2DMTSOT">Woodsong</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1416939393" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">
by Gary Paulsen </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061980935/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061980935&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=THOQ7G6HXN7SL3EB">Scary Stories, More Scary Stories, and Scary Stories 3</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061980935" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> by Alvin Schwartz </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0425182789/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0425182789&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=3YUFXLAC5QUS2HQZ" style="font-style: italic;">Across Five Aprils</a><i> </i>by Irene Hunt<i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0425182789" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0064400204/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0064400204&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=XF32WR5WCCCXE47M" style="font-style: italic;">Sounder</a> by William H. Armstrong<i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0064400204" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689715714/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689715714&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=IKAY2S6MLCNQM72G" style="font-style: italic;">The Trumpeter of Krakow</a> by Eric P. Kelly <i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689715714" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0786275391/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0786275391&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=MTUI75RFUICIC5U3" style="font-style: italic;">The Little Prince</a> by Antoine de Saint-Exupery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0440416795/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0440416795&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=ZRNPPKBZOL7HMFEZ" style="font-style: italic;">Harriet the Spy</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0440416795" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i> by Louise Fitzhugh<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763631205/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0763631205&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=VFPVXSY2BOK3J6JQ" style="font-style: italic;">A Christmas Carol</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0763631205" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i> by Charles Dickens (This is a gorgeous illustrated version!)<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142300276/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142300276&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=5ZORDFWTAM2LFSMN" style="font-style: italic;">The Little White Horse</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142300276" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i> by Elizabeth Goudge<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689822847/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689822847&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=2VBQEWLVJL5YG6RT" style="font-style: italic;">Hitty Her First Hundred Years</a><i> </i>by Rachel Field<i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0689822847" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060560150/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0060560150&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=SN5LB2NMV6R2JA5E" style="font-style: italic;">Ruby Holler</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0060560150" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
by Sharon Creech</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375869026/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0375869026&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=TYRO5O4R2KMTS2W4" style="font-style: italic;">Wonder</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0375869026" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
by R. J. Palacio</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307931471/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307931471&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=DEFQCNDRU25F2A5A" style="font-style: italic;">Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0307931471" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
by Chris Grabenstein</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142419672/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142419672&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=QNVRG3WW2C3CU5DM" style="font-style: italic;">A Tale Dark and Grimm</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0142419672" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
by Adam Gidwitz</span><b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416971718/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1416971718&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=37AIFAFCKKTCH7VD" style="font-style: italic;">Out of My Mind</a><i><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1416971718" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></i>
by Sharon Draper</span><br />
<i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/078684907X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=078684907X&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=BFN2UMSCD5O2T4DF">Peter and the Starcatchers</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=078684907X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"> by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson</span><br />
<i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1938073711/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1938073711&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=3ED6GAEB547COASP">The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man's Canyon</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1938073711" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</span></i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">by S. S. Taylor (series)</span><br />
<i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0763676713/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0763676713&linkCode=as2&tag=theplatre-20&linkId=R6RII27XSZPBB34V">Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=theplatre-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0763676713" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
</i>by Kate DiCamillo</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/sv4igkarsbgwooc/Fifth%20Grade%20Read%20Aloud%20List.docx?dl=0" target="_blank">Fifth Grade Read Aloud List Download</a></span></b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">What
books are loved by the fifth graders in your house?</span></b><br />
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<i><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-themetint: 191;">Chelli</span></i></div>
</div>
</div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3492627641698528246.post-27231897082739688502015-06-08T00:00:00.000-05:002015-06-08T00:07:41.270-05:00Being a Mary Homeschool Mom, Not a Martha (Luke 10:38-42)<div>
<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">The story of Mary and Martha from Luke 10:38-42
is one that is familiar to most women. It is generally used to show the
difference in the focus of the two: Mary focused on Christ and Martha focused
on earthly concerns. While this story has nothing to do with homeschooling, it
is one of my favorite Bible passages that inspires, teaches, and encourages me
as a homeschool mom.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">All too often I find myself on the Martha side
of the equation. In fact my overwhelming Martha tendencies led me down <a href="http://www.theplantedtrees.com/2014/06/from-type-to-schole-exorcising-school.html" target="_blank">the path to learn how to be more of a Mary</a>. So what would Mary and Martha be like if they
were homeschool mothers?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Mary</span></b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Focuses on the hearts and character of herself
and her children</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Uses academics to point to God</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Shows the patience and love of God through her
attitude and how she deals with academic struggles</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Prays over her homeschool every day</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Prioritizes good habits in spiritual, physical,
and emotional matters</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Makes her homeschool one of restful learning</span></li>
</ul>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Martha</span></b></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Focuses on academic standards and how well her
children are doing academically</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Uses academics to point to future career plans</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Shows the wrath and judgment of God through her
attitude and how she deals with academic struggles</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Too busy to consistently pray or spend time in
Bible study</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Prioritizes keeping up with other homeschoolers,
public school, or private schools</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Makes her homeschool one of deadlines, worry,
and stress.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">After reading these lists, I still find myself
with a majority of affirmatives on the Martha side. But the wonderful part of
Mary and Martha’s story is that Jesus doesn’t condemn Martha for her request
for assistance. Jesus merely tells her that what Mary is doing is better, more
important, than Martha’s concerns.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Century Gothic","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">I believe the same is true
of Homeschool Mary and Homeschool Martha. Martha’s focus and concerns are not
necessarily bad, but they aren’t as beneficial and eternity-focused as Mary’s. That
thought helps this Martha breathe a sigh of relief. I can still be a Martha; I
just need to choose the good. Sit at Jesus’ feet more. Alter my focus more. I
need to focus on being a Mary more every day because there is something better out there for my homeschool and my children if I choose to be Mary.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic', sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: left;">Check out what other verses inspire the bloggers
at iHomeschool Network:</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.ihomeschoolnetwork.com/project/bible-verses-homeschool-moms/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPDSr7gMcOnE_2JRcs6iejsDGAYdUGGyXS38HFWIubCwGxjHLNZVtS34pt3Hmbk2aqz3-vLZHghA8D0E9P1OzeAOke0NO7V0Ej3A2JicH817WSO-mhI_CHPoAnhhMoFq4w_xK9JkVNX7M/s320/BibleVerses.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Gabriola; font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What Bible verse
has been the most inspirational in your homeschool journey?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "French Script MT"; font-size: 72.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: #444444;">Chelli</span></span></i></div>
Chellihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14264109854852787464noreply@blogger.com0