Jimmie of Jimmie’s Collage and Notebooking Fairy has just released her first e-book and I had the pleasure of reviewing it for her!! What a gem it is!
Clear. Concise. Full of practical ideas. Easy to implement. Very motivating! Those are phrases that perfectly describe Notebooking Success by my blogging friend, Jimmie.
I’m not new to notebooking. My children have used this method of narration and writing for years in our homeschool . But, after reading Jimmie’s e-book, I felt a renewed passion for this excellent method of teaching and learning – and this old dog even learned a few new tricks!
Jimmie’s writing style is so smooth and succinct that you’ll find yourself easily reading all the way through the book in less than 30 minutes. More importantly, at the end of the 30 minutes, you’ll have all the tools you need to get started (or refreshed) with notebooking right away.
Why incorporate notebooking into your homeschool? Jimmie answers that. How is notebooking with a 1st grader different than a 6th grader or 10th grader? Jimmie answers that. Doesn’t notebooking get boring for children? Jimmie answers that. She covers everything you need to know about notebooking from start to finish, including plenty of grade-specific ideas to get you and your children rolling.
As explained in the book, notebooking works well with just about any type of homeschooler – even those who use a strictly textbook curriculum. I have often mentioned notebooking to friends who are looking for a “better” way to help their children retain information or for children who need extra motivation for writing. Now, I’ll be sure to point those people toward Notebooking Success!
Pam Forster has packed this reference full-to-the-brim, covering more than 50 undesirable character traits. Undesirable character traits? Yes, which is why it’s such a great resource! When you find your child caught up in a lie or battling with anger, you can easily use the table of contents to find the problem area and be led to a world of helps!
Within each section, you find:
Bible verses and Bible stories that speak about the sin (bad character trait)
References to Bible verses and stories that illustrate the results of the sin
Simple ideas for creative discipline
Bible verses that speak of the blessings from “doing the opposite”
References to Bible stories that illustrate the blessings that result from “doing the opposite”
A few Bible verses appropriate for memorization on the topic
Let’s go through one chapter as an example. In the chapter called “Complaining/Ingratitude” you will find several Bible references showing people who have grumbled against God, who are lovers of themselves, and who forget God’s blessings. These verses are followed by references to what happens to people in the Bible who live in this sin – like the children of Israel dying in the wilderness and not having the privilege of entering the Promised Land. Upon reading about the children of Israel, the author suggests that you might remind your child of his complaining/ingratitude by giving him more work if he continues to grumble about tasks set before him.
After what I like to call the chastising for poor character qualities, there are always answers from the Word that bring hope! In this chapter, the focus turns to verses and stories that show the blessings people receive when they are thankful – the opposite of a complainer or ungrateful person. In this instance, you are directed such stories as Ruth and Naomi or Rahab. And the chapter always ends with pertinent, often uplifting verses to hide in your heart.
And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. Col. 3:17
Think of it. For just about any character issue your child is struggling with (or you for that matter), this guide will get you started on Biblical advice against the issue and what to replace the behavior with!
How do I use it?
As a Bible Study Guide
There have been times, we have simply gone through the book with our Bibles in hand and studied together on a topic for a day, a week or longer. It doesn’t get any easier. We look up verses and have discussions. Everything is there for you. These discussion times have been really good.
With Literature Character Lessons
As mentioned on day 2 of this series, we will often read picture books or chapter books and turn them into a character lesson. When discussing the flaws of a certain character, it’s nice to have For Instruction in Righteousness nearby. We’ll often talk about what God has to say about the flaw and this book is invaluable for finding His thoughts.
Using it in Discipline
Again, as I mentioned on day 5 of this series, I try (my darnedest) to discipline in a way that gets to the heart of the issues. That often involves bringing God’s Word into our discipline discussions. If my children don’t understand why we do or don’t act a certain way, then discipline is fairly worthless. So, in trying to help them learn our values, which are God’s values, I am constantly pulling out For Instruction in Righteousness to lead me to those heart-grabbing verses that deal specifically with the issue at hand. It’s a topical Bible reference that speaks directly to discipline issues!
So There You Have It
Just in case you’re wondering, no, I don’t have any relationship with Doorposts or the author, Pam Forster. (LOL) I just REALLY use this book and can’t say enough about what a help it’s been in our home!
Do you own For Instruction in Righteousness? How do you use it?
Be sure to visit these brilliant women during the 10 days adventure between November 7th-18th!
One nature study question I hear quite often is, “Which field guide series is your favorite?” Depending on the subject, I almost always answer National Audubon Society Field Guides.
Now, Melissa may differ with me and decide to put up a post about her favorites. But, for this post, I want to focus on why I like the Audubon guides best overall.
They’re inexpensive! At Amazon, most of them are right around $14.00. That’s very affordable when purchasing one at a time over the span of several years. (At least that’s the way I’ve done it!)
They’re durable! This would be very important to me even if I didn’t have three children who want to handle the books after they’ve romped in the creek or dug a critter out of the dirt! The cover is vinyl, so dirties can be wiped off and it’s less likely to be bent traveling in a nature bag. The pages are also tightly bound. In fact, I’ve never had one of the Audubon guides lose a page or break at the binding.
They’re small enough to fit in a nature bag, but big enough to have very clear pictures.
They’re thorough. It’s hard to be thorough in the world of nature because God is so awesome and creative! But, even though the books can’t cover everything, I’ve found them to be quite helpful for identifying most things.
They’re organized. I’m a Martha Stewart at heart. (My kids aren’t, but that’s another post for another day.) I like when books are organized in a reasonable manner. It doesn’t take us any time to figure out where to look in the book for a certain colored nature object or a certain size. Pictures are categorized in the front half of the book with a very clear system that makes it so easy that children can locate things without much help. In the back of the book you find detailed descriptions about each nature object such as – size, color, texture, range, season and much more.
So there you have it. The “why” behind my general recommendation. When I come across a field guide that stands out from Audubon, I’ll be sure to share it! Which are your favorites?
During the month of December,my family will be using the Animal Signs NaturExplorers unit. Finding signs of animals and tracks are rather easy this time of year with much of the land and trees “uncovered” by the Lord. The most difficult part of studying animal signs for me is recognizing animal tracks. So many look similar to one another!
Finding a good field guide for studying animals tracks can be more difficult than you might imagine. I want to highlight the Peterson Field Guide to Animal Tracks as the best one I’ve found on the subject thus far.
There’s a quick picture guide in the beginning of the book to help you make an initial guess at the track you’re viewing. Several animal tracks are shown together which helps you make a quick comparison of several possible tracks to the one you’re trying to identify.
After you believe you’ve found the right track, a page number is referenced to find more detailed pictures, sketches and information about the animal that made the track. Approximate track lengths and widths are given, as well as the distance between feet and the animal’s typical stride.
Depending on the animal, you may find sketches of other signs such as scat (poop), nests/burrows, marks they make as they gnaw on food, or foods they typically eat.
A written section continues to explain the animal’s habitat, behaviors, foods and even the sounds they make, as well as comparisons to animals that might make similar tracks.
Sections of the book include:
opossums
shrews
moles
armadillos
pikas, hares and rabbits
rodents
dogs, foxes and wolves
bears
hair seals and eared seals
raccoons, ringtails and coatis
weasels, otters and badgers
skunks
cats
hoofed animals
birds
amphibians and reptiles
insects and other invertebrates
Even though it’s compact enough to fit in your nature bag, you can see that A LOT of animals are covered in 391 pages! There’s even a handy centimeter/inch ruler built into the back cover to help you make track determinations in the field.
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic by Steven Schnur is another lovely find for our Book Buzz – especially if you’re hoping to inspire your NaturExplorer to write more poetry in his or her nature journal!
For every letter of the alphabet, there is an acrostic poem written on the topic of spring. Not all of the poems are nature related, but many are. If your children are like mine, acrostic poems often turn into “one worders” for each main letter of the acrostic. These are wonderful examples of how to expand the acrostic to be much more!
Nestled under the
Eaves, a
Song-filled ark of
Twigs and grass.
Ah, the simple beauty that can be shared through a poem! This book is appropriate to read with any child, but those who are 2nd grade and above are most suited for transferring the poetry style to their nature notebooks.
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by Pam Forster (published by 
But, for this post, I want to focus on why I like the Audubon guides best overall.
by Steven Schnur is another lovely find for our Book Buzz – especially if you’re hoping to inspire your NaturExplorer to write more poetry in his or her nature journal!
