Joy to Spare

Having burnt out a little with "school at home" as our method of learning, the past couple weeks we've been doing "life" instead. The boys and I all learn so much more and are so much happier when we follow our own interests. I thought I'd start recording some of the things we do each day during this relaxed learning phase, with artificially separated academic subject areas highlighted so I realize how much"school" we're actually doing and learning even when we're not "doing school." So here's today: - All four of us read the bible at breakfast - the boys read Psalms and Proverbs, Daddy and I read Matthew. History, Character, Geography, Reading. - Spoke a little Spanish to each other throughout the day. Spanish - Little Bro wrote a(n other) letter to Santa--getting an early start-- and learned to spell "anything" "stocking," and a couple other words he asked me how to spell.  Spelling, Writing, Hand...

3 years later... We just finished All About Spelling, level 2. For review, I made up sentences that use all the words they learned in this level, plus a few other words I've taught them, like "-ould," "their," "what, when, where," etc. and some "-ly" words.  I grouped them by our remaining school weeks, 3 sentences a day.   I prefer sentence dictation rather than simply writing lists of words. It improves spelling retention, plus they review capitalization and punctuation at the same time. Efficient! Leaves time for their own pursuits.  Here they are in case anyone else can benefit from them. Most are not great sentences. Some are really weird, untrue, borderline inappropriate... It's harder than I expected to craft good, short sentences from a word list! week 1 Buzz spills all six drinks on Mike. The garden queen uses a hose to water a rose bush. Keep careful count of those many broken cords. The girl’s quill pen races...

Well, two years later, we are still doing toy stores in the front yard. This kid loves to make money. He drags Little Bro out on the Fourth of July to sit behind a wagon full of toys with masking tape price tags. They sit for hours. Our wonderful neighbors come by and make a donation or a purchase.  Big Bro wants to pull the wagon around the neighborhood, but I draw the line. Even though he's only eight, a permit must need to be involved at some point. I see big business in his future!  Sometimes Little Bro sells his pictures or paper boats. I secretly dream that the boys will be entrepreneurs together, Little Bro as the creative head and Big Bro as the businessman.  But then I also dream that Big Bro's passion for justice, creative problem solving ability, and persistence will serve him as an attorney working for social justice. And Little Bro's love for people and art could serve him so well as a life events photographer. Calm down, Mommy. Stop planning, and pra...

Two days ago Little Bro asked to do some reading, and I was surprised that he can now blend sounds together, i.e. read! A month or so ago, he couldn't. We were all so excited! Now it's my job to just keep calm and let him read when he's interested so it remains enjoyable and exciting for him. Yesterday I had Big Bro (Kindergarten) do a project of his choosing (no suggestions from me). He chose to open a toy store on the front lawn. Here were the observable things he learned about: -Character/values: You don't sell your brother's toys without asking first or sharing the profits. -Spelling: He made a sign: "Toy Stor". I had him add an "e" (Who's gonna make that "o" say its name?). -Art: He needed more "contrast" on his sign, so he went over the pencil with colorful marker. -Pricing/value: $9 is too much to charge for a used whistle; $1 is (a little) more appropriate. -Vocabulary: "Grand Openi...

Raising Godly Tomatoes (L. Elizabeth Krueger) - VERY PRACTICAL This lady runs a tight ship. I have tried applying it all, word for word, and it doesn't work with our family dynamic. But the biblical principles behind the way she does things are solid, and many of her ideas and techniques are very helpful. The name comes from her principle of "tomato staking" - don't let your little tomatoes grow wild across the ground where they break and rot and get nibbled by pests. Stake them up where they can grow well, prune them, water and fertilize them regularly. Love your children - same principles as "How to Really Love Your Child" Have age-appropriate, but high expectations for your children. Keep your children within sight and/or earshot all of the time so you can nip wrong behavior/attitudes in the bud and they don't become habits. (I have tried this. It is exhausting, but effective.) Keep your children/family separate from the world so that they adopt your ...

Little Bro is learning to to put on undies all by himself. (Mommy: Baby, they're backwards, you gotta turn them around.) Little Bro turns himself around 180 degrees and tries again. :) Big Bro, to Little Bro while doing acrobatics on the bed: "Whoa, how'd you get those neat-looking skills?" A year ago, Big Bro: "Christmas is my favorite year of the month."

Hints on Child Training (Clay Trumbull, written in 1891) I highly recommend this one! Here's what I can remember and thought was helpful: Do not yell, threaten, nag, whine, or even scold. Ever. Use a gentle voice, always. Control yourself. (Wow. Easier said than done, but great advice. The other day, I found myself begging Little Bro not to wet his pants anymore. I'll bet you can guess how effective that was!) Do not allow your child to win with "teasing," meaning whining or begging. Even if it's something you want to do for them or were planning to, never give them something after they've whined for it. Whining will stop when it stops working. Giving children everything they want is a really bad idea. Also, if you ARE going to let them have something, let them want it for a while BEFORE giving it to them or helping them save up for it (i.e. a bicycle, guitar, car) so they actually appreciate it. Practical ideas for making special days (like Christmas and the ...