Have you ever wondered which are the best language arts games to use in your homeschool? There are so many options out there, but not every game is both educational and fun. I've pulled together a list of more than 20 games (and a few manipulatives) that I have used to get my kids excited about things like reading, spelling, and sentence structure. For the most part, everything on the list can be used with multiple ages as long as the student can already read. This post contains affiliate links. We usually play at least one language arts game per week during school hours. But, a few are family favorites that we often enjoy during family game night. I'll note the family favorites in ... Read More
Dirty Science: Unique Activities To Learn About Soil
Are your children overjoyed to learn about soil? Probably not. But, oh, I bet they will be when you introduce these unique activities! Eli and I have had so much fun playing in the dirt AND doing some pretty cool chemistry experiments. I received free products and compensation from Home Science Tools in exchange for writing this post. As always, my opinions are strictly my own. Affiliate links are included in this post. It's Fun To Learn About Soil If you've ever dug around in the dirt, you've probably seen little critters or bits and pieces of roots and rocks. While those things are certainly wonderful to find, observe, and study, there are so many other cool things you can't see! ... Read More
Light and Sound Unit Study
The main topic of this year's science rotation in our homeschool is physics, so I'm preparing a few unit studies that lend themselves well to experimentation and exploration. This light and sound unit study will be first in the line up and is just perfect for 3rd-7th grade students. It's packed full of meaningful, practical activities that won't waste anybody's time. Great informational books and biographies set the stage, while project-based and research-based activities allow for deeper learning on certain topics of interest. Get a downloadable copy of this unit study below! This post contains affiliate links. Light and Sound Books As with all our unit studies, books pile up in stacks ... 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
How To Identify Rocks and Minerals During Nature Study
Why would you want to identify rocks and minerals during nature study? Heck, why would you even care to observe rocks when there are so many other things to see in nature. Rocks are boring. They're dull and colorless. Once you've seen one, you've pretty much seen them all. Be honest. You've thought some of those thoughts before, haven't you? When we first began nature study in our homeschool, I held off learning about rocks for quite some time because - well, I didn't know what in the world were we going to do with them. But I soon realized that we just hadn't quite learned how to look at them with eyes of wonder and excitement yet. I received free products and compensation ... Read More
Why Nature Study Is Powerful For Children With Special Needs
Have you ever considered the idea that special needs children may thrive through regular time spent in nature? Nature study has so many benefits beyond the obvious academics. It's hands-on, active, and loud - as much as it's detail-oriented, calm, and peaceful. It allows for fresh air, sunshine, and exercise to break into the school week. And, it can bring joy to even the worst homeschool day. These benefits are for every single person who explores. But, as Shawna Wingert shares below, they may be especially helpful for children with special needs. Please welcome Shawna. As you read her story about special needs nature study, I hope you have a couple of light bulb moments like I ... Read More
You’ll Never Look at a Nature Notebooking Pages the Same Way Again
Printable nature notebooking pages are time savers for sure. We can set off on a nature walk knowing there's at least something to do other than wandering aimlessly. We can slap those babies into a three-ring binder and have proof that the afternoon spent in the sunshine actually did count for school. But...are your nature notebooking pages really moving the dial in learning? Real learning that's more than simply drawing a picture and moving on with your day? Don't get me wrong, detailed observations and drawings in nature ARE real learning when taken seriously. I'm a huge advocate for nature journaling, in fact! If many of us are honest, though, we don't really take nature journaling ... Read More
How To Make Real-World Gifted Homeschooling a Reality
Book smarts are important, but they aren't the only things that matter for gifted learners. It's incredibly important to make common sense connections through real-world gifted homeschooling, too. One of the challenges I hear often from parents of gifted kiddos is that sometimes brilliant-minded children don't always make those common sense connections. It can be infuriating for the parent and embarrassing for the child. Susan Landry has first-hand experience with this issue. It's even one of the reasons she decided to homeschool her gifted child. Rather than just live with the "duh moments", she approached homeschooling uniquely to help her son connect the dots between book learning ... Read More
How To Teach an Interest-Based Nature Study with NaturExplorers
Friends, it's time for another peek into the real life study of nature! In this post, you'll see how easily Amber Oliver and her children were able to explore and discover wildflowers through an interest-based nature study. I'm a big believer in letting our children have a say in their schooling once in a while. It's highly motivating for kiddos to make decisions and helps them take real ownership in the learning. Besides allowing her children to take part in the planning of which wildflower activities their family would complete, Amber was also great at incorporating lessons that support their passions and learning styles. Again, this promotes excitement in the learning ... Read More