I have a serious chef in my house. He's only nine years old, but the boy can cook! When I see a natural motivation like this in one of my children, I make sure there are plenty of opportunities to foster its growth. So...he cooks. Because our goal is to have healthy kids in the kitchen, he cooks healthfully (most of the time.) I allow him to experiment with ingredients as often as I insist that he follows a recipe. I allow him to do as much of the chopping and stove work as he's ready to handle. He's just so darn cute standing on his stool while doing the truly serious work of a real chef. He's been my kitchen helper since he was old enough to sit in a Boppy chair. All that ... Read More
How To Teach High School Economics
Economics. It's about earning and spending money. It's how businesses grow. It's using resources to satisfy needs and wants. It's taxes and interest rates and credit cards and savings accounts. It's in everything from local production to global trade. The study of economics is as important for the "average person" as it is for the economist. Why? Because so much of it reaches into the very pocketbook of every single home around the globe. Besides the practical side that most of us face on a daily basis, there are philosophies of economics that shape our country, other countries, and our world. As citizens (and therefore voters), we get to have a say in the future of our country's ... Read More
Christmas Glyphs: Fun Graphing for December
A glyph as it relates to math is a pictorial representation of data. That sounds like a pictograph, doesn't it? Rather than put pictures in the form of a graph, though, a glyph actually becomes the picture as it's created based on provided criteria. Ooh. That sounds hard! I promise, glyphs aren't hard at all. In fact, they're easy enough for a kindergartener to complete - yet fun enough for students much older. Following glyph legends, children build step-by-step pictures to represent things about themselves. That's it. Once the glyph is complete, others can use the legend to understand what the glyph says about the creator. I especially love the math/art ... Read More
Ultimate Guide to Living Math Activities
(This post contains affiliate links and links to my curriculum website.) I've been touting the benefits of living math for quite some time now. Why? Because living math makes sense to kids. It builds concrete understanding of abstract concepts. It touches real-life, giving math meaning and purpose. And, it's fun! To make your life (and mine) easier, I decided to pull together a giant list of fabulous living math activities from all over the internet. Grab one anytime you need a little inspiration! I've attempted to compile the activities into appropriate grade levels. You will find, however, that several of the lessons can be used with older or younger children. (That's ... Read More
100 Educational Games for Homeschooling
During my workshops about creative homeschooling and living math, I often talk about incorporating games into the school schedule. If your family has an established game night, you probably already know how educational many board and card games really are. Math, language, history, science, logic and so much more can be practiced without your kiddos ever catching on that real learning is taking place! Games for Homeschooling We take games seriously in our homeschool and use them at least a few times a week! To get fidgety minds focused, we might play a brain training game like Blink. To review US geography, we might play 10 Days in the USA. Or, to quiz recollection of animal groups, we ... Read More
Math Manipulatives: Why Use Them?
(This post contains affiliate links and links to my business website.) I love living math! Thus, the title of my how-to book, Loving Living Math. Living math is special for so many reasons! One of those reasons is the use of math manipulatives. What are math manipulatives? Math manipulatives are things your children touch, move - ahem, manipulate - in order to understand various math concepts. Manipulatives can be store-bought, homemade or even simple objects you have around the house. Why are math manipulatives part of a good living math curriculum? The purpose of math manipulatives is two-fold. First, they help children to form a concrete understanding of abstract concepts. ... Read More
Out of this World Homeschool Logic
You've read A LOT about homeschool logic and critical thinking here on Our Journey Westward. Are you tired of the topic? Good! I'm not tired of writing about it either. It's been such a fun and important addition to our homeschool! When I come across new (to me) resources that are really good, I try to take some time to share them with you. Partly because finding logic resources isn't as easy as finding "more typical" homeschooling curriculum, and partly because not all logic activities are worth the money. I've found a new homeschool logic series that I love! This post contains affiliate links. Logic that is out of this world by Bonnie Risby In many instances, the materials ... Read More
Living Math: Using Attribute Blocks
(This post contains affiliate links and links to my products.) What are attribute blocks? Attribute blocks are a set of unique and versatile manipulatives (hands-on objects) used for teaching math, science, logic and critical thinking skills. The set includes 60 pieces: five shapes: circles, triangles, squares, rectangles, hexagons three colors: red, yellow, blue two sizes: small and large two thicknesses: thin and thick While many manipulatives can be handmade or cut from paper, attribute blocks are best when purchased because a key factor in their use relies on the varying thickness of the pieces. You'll see why in just a moment. Attribute blocks can help in teaching ... Read More
Living Math: The Ultimate Resource
You have heard me talk about living math over and over. I thought it was high time to organize all my living math resources for you in one convenient "table of contents" of sorts. Start Here If you're new to the concept of living math or need some help refining your definition/vision, this post should be your first stop. What is living math? Go Here Next If you're ready to add living math to your homeschooling plans, Loving Living Math will give you all the how-to you information you need. Parents, it doesn't matter how old your student is, anytime is a good time to add living math! Enjoy These Posts Peruse my living math category of posts. In other words, you'll ... Read More
Candy Math: Double Mints
It's time for candy math again! Through Pinterest, I happened upon a site called First Grade Wow that has the cutest suggestions for holiday-themed ideas just perfect for my little 1st grader. Many of these candy math ideas were inspired by her Double Mint Math post - and some even use her brilliant free printables that you can find at the bottom of her post. Doubling with Mints We've been learning a lot about even and odd numbers lately. It helps so much to use manipulatives to build numbers to determine whether they are even or odd. "Does every piece have a partner? Then the number is even!" We've spent many fun moments throwing a ball back and forth to quiz each other on skip ... Read More