I love using living books in our homeschool. If you've been around here any time at all, you know that living literature is a key tool I use across all ages and all subjects. Using literature to teach high school history works especially well. There are so many nuances of an event or era that can be understood through books. Living books also have a unique way of drawing students in and placing them smack-dab in the middle of a time period to meet important people, experience meaningful events, and feel real emotions. Just talking about all the benefits of literature makes me want to go grab some historical fiction right now! I received Modern U.S. and World History for free ... Read More
Charlotte Mason Inspired Curriculum Picks for a 6th Grade Boy
Oh, my mercy. I'm only homeschooling one this year. While I'm ecstatic in so many ways, it's also entirely bittersweet for me. Who knew deleting my graduated son's name from the letter-of-intent-to-homeschool template on my computer would be such an emotional moment? That letter with only one name on it has been turned into my local school board and 6th grade curriculum for Eli is sitting proudly on the shelves ready to be used. So...bittersweet or not, bring on middle school! I ❤️ Charlotte Mason Middle School In our Charlotte Mason inspired homeschool, the middle school years are my most favorite of all. Since most of the fundamentals of learning have been built on ... Read More
How To Easily Plan Monthly Homeschool Field Trips
For years, we've taken at least one homeschool field trip each month of the school year. They have created some of our best memories and always almost supply us with wonderful learning opportunities. It may sound overwhelming to plan monthly field trips, but it's really not that hard at all when you're organized - and I'll help you get organized! Why Do We Take So Many Homeschool Field Trips? Over the past eighteen years of homeschooling, I bet our family has taken over 100 field trips. That's a lot of experiential learning! Field trips are the perfect example of hands-on, real-life learning. I love that so many of them are taught by professionals who know much more than me about ... Read More
A Crazy-Busy Mom’s Answer for Chores and Allowance
Chores and allowance used to be under control in our house. We had our daily, weekly, and monthly plans in place with cute charts that helped everything run smoothly. We kept a relatively clean and tidy house - inside and out - without much effort or complaint. Then life blew up. As the kids got older, we started going this way and that with new activities and lessons. All of the opportunities were good and truly worthwhile, but they quickly threw a monkey wrench into our regularly scheduled routine. Our house was beginning to suffer a bit because I just couldn't find a new groove for chores. We were in the season of life where there was a mad dash to clean when, and only when, company ... Read More
Boyschooling Homeschool Curriculum for 5th and 12th Grades (2017-18)
I have another senior. How is that possible? It's really, indescribably true when you hear that time flies and your kids will be grown in the blink of an eye. So, this year I'm boyschooling a 12th grader and 5th grader. These boys keep me so busy with music lessons, sports, and more that I rarely know whether I'm coming or going. But it's all good and I treasure (almost) every single moment I have with them. I just know we're going to have a great homeschooling year - even with all the bumps that will inevitably come. Boyschooling Homeschool Curriculum Since my boys are so far apart in age, we aren't doing too much as a family in homeschooling anymore. Caleb is off doing his ... Read More
Homeschool Writing Curriculum: A Review of Writers in Residence by Apologia
How do you feel when I ask, "What's your plan for teaching writing this year?" Does it fill you with so much excitement that you chatter on and on - or do you just look at me with frustrated eyes and groan? The subject of writing seems to give more homeschooling families fits than any other subject (besides math.) I think the problem may stem from four things: Lots of kids don't like to write - whether it's physically cumbersome or the ideas just don't flow easily. Many parent's don't feel comfortable enough with writing themselves to find the confidence to teach it well. Writing is so subjective and personal that it can be hard to grade. Because people are often sharing ... Read More
How to Get the Most from Digital Curriculum
Have you noticed that more and more homeschooling curriculum is being offered digitally? I Love Two Things About Digital Curriculum Because the publishers have a lower overhead, I can often purchase digital products very inexpensively. (Don’t think the cheaper prices mean cheaper products! Overall, I’ve found reputable companies to offer really good curriculum via digital files.) I can store and organize digital curriculum easily without the need to keep adding more bookshelves to our schoolroom. Well, I do keep adding bookshelves…for living literature, but that’s a different post. It can be hard to USE digital curriculum, though. Getting into the file and scrolling to the correct lesson ... Read More
How To Start Your Homeschool Morning Beautifully
For years, our homeschool mornings have begun on a note of family time. Those mornings gathered around the table at the start of each day have been such a blessing. And...as some of my children are moving out of our homeschool as of late, the memories I have of all of us gathered joyfully together at the start of our day are precious. Morning time has set the tone for our school days, given the children some common ground in lessons, and allowed us the daily opportunity to worship together. It's also been a wonderful way for me to "kill several birds with one stone" as morning time lends itself to teaching several subjects in a relatively short amount of time. How To Start Your ... Read More
Used Homeschool Curriculum For Sale
Update: All curriculum has been sold. I will offer a new list of items for sale in April or May of 2018. Check out this new list of used homeschool curriculum for sale. There are more than 60 items priced to sell that won't last long! You may email me directly if you're interested in any of the following homeschool curriculum for sale. cindykwest@hotmail.com ALL SHIPPING VIA MEDIA MAIL. I WILL ADD A SHIPPING FEE OF $5 PER 5lbs OF PRODUCTS. CONTINENTAL U.S. ONLY. I accept Paypal only. (Side note: Just because I'm selling something doesn't necessarily mean I endorse it. Please be sure to research whether or not the products are right for your family.) IF YOU SEE SOMETHING PICTURED ... Read More
How to Teach Out-of-the-Box Homeschool High School Chemistry
We veered off the "typical homeschool path" this year to teach out-of-the-box homeschool high school chemistry instead. This isn't the first time we've chosen a different path for our son, who is a smart kid but doesn't thrive in the textbook world of science. Do you remember how we chose an out-of-the-box biology course last year? Because that course worked out so well, it was just natural to continue with a similar plan for chemistry this year. And, it worked again! This post contains affiliate links. Background Info Our oldest went the typical homeschool route of Apologia Chemistry during high school. It's an excellent course that provides a thorough and well-practiced ... Read More