We homeschool for many reasons, but one of them is more important than all of the others combined. It's our desire to pass on a bold Christian faith that finds our children seeking God with all their hearts and sharing Him with others from here to eternity. While I know it's God who does the work in my children (Phil. 1:6), I also know He called us to teach my them about Him and His ways (Prov. 22:6.) My husband and I don't pretend for one minute to have all the answers to training little or big soldiers for God's army. We have tried, though, to be pretty consistent with a plan of action and that's what I'd like to share with you today. This post contains affiliate links. The ... Read More
What’s in the Bible DVD? {Vol. 5}
Have you been looking for a unique and engaging way to teach the Bible chronologically? Boy, have I found some goodies - What's in the Bible? DVD's! What's What's in the Bible? Created by Phil Vischer (of Veggie Tales fame), the What's in the Bible? series uses puppets, animations and actors to clearly teach Bible truths through stories, skits and songs. Volume 1 in the series begins with the topics of what the Bible is and who wrote it. Each subsequent DVD continues chronologically teaching the history, people and lessons of the Bible. The format of the DVD's is goofy enough to make your children laugh all the way through, but serious enough to result in some super ... Read More
Co-op Class Ideas for Older Students
Many homeschool moms who teach co-op classes develop their own curriculum. Me, too, for the most part. However, I've found it a little more difficult to design a thorough, engaging curriculum for middle and high school students that doesn't leave me studying and preparing for hours. As a curriculum reviewer, a lot of great curriculum has come my way that doesn't quite work within a homeschool environment, but has a very useful place in a classroom full of students. Much of it quite appropriate for older students. To keep a record for myself and hopefully help others, I've created a list of some of those really good co-op resources. Of course, a lot of curriculum written directly ... Read More
Armor of God Object Lesson
On Fridays, I attempt to plan a simple object lesson to go along with Bible study. Since we have been studying knights of the Middle Ages lately, I thought a lesson on the Armor of God made a nice tie-in. The lesson is quick, but powerful. Armor of God Object Lesson Materials: two oranges a glass bowl large enough for two oranges to be completely submerged water Bible Read Ephesians 6:10-17 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world ... Read More
Fruit of the Spirit Trees Help Teach Children Christian Values
Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be taking part in the Heart of the Matter's 10 Days of... Blog Hop. My posts will focus on creative ways to teach values (or character training) to your children. My prayer is that you and I will both be inspired (or re-inspired) to train our precious children in the way they should go with methods that reach deep to encourage and motivate their souls. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 Our Go-To List of Virtues The Fruit of the Spirit is our "go-to" list of virtues as Christians. We should strive to exuded ... Read More
Teaching Values through Discipline that Reaches the Heart – Day 5
Welcome back to my Heart of the Matter 10 Days of... Series on Teaching Values in your homeschool! One busy week is coming to a close, but one more week of practical advice still remains! Today I'm writing about instilling values in your children through heart-felt discipline. (This post contains affiliate links.) I'll be the first to admit that heartfelt discipline is not my strongest parenting skill. It's way easier to demand a child stop doing something "because I said so" than it is to take time to reach the heart of why our family doesn't act a certain way. It's also easier to send everyone to timeout (for my sanity) than it is to stop everything for a family meeting to discuss ... Read More
Teaching Values Using For Instruction in Righteousness – Day 6
Welcome to Week 2, Day 6 of my Heart of the Matter 10 Days of... Series on Teaching Values in your homeschool! Today I'd like to share my very favorite resource for supporting me in the teaching of Biblical values - For Instruction in Righteousness : A Topical Reference Guide for Biblical Child-Training by Pam Forster (published by Doorposts.) (This post contains affiliate links.) Why do I like this book so much? I use it all the time! In the previous five days of this series I've already mentioned it twice - as a resource to help me turn living literature into character training lessons and as my go-to help when trying to discipline in a way that reaches the heart. Today, I'd like ... Read More
Teaching Values – Lesson Ideas – Day 7
Welcome to day 7 of my Heart of the Matter 10 Days of... series on Teaching Values to your children. Let's get down and dirty with some lesson plans today! I’m a very practical gal. And, since this is a homeschooling blog, I thought I’d share some super-practical character building lesson ideas that you can easily incorporate into your homeschool. They are in no particular order. Some can be completed by older children, some by younger children, and many by both. Some can even be cooperative – meaning your children can work together. Enjoy the ideas as-is or tweak them to suit your needs! As you read through the lessons, you’ll see many of them are very creative, involving more ... Read More
Nature Study at the Creation Museum
When you think of the Creation Museum, the first thoughts that pop into your head are probably things like Bible truths, dinosaurs, Noah and the flood, the need for Jesus and so on. We took a tad different approach to the normal routine of simply touring the museum this time around. Even though it rained the entire day, we spent time enjoying the beautiful and wonderfully varied nature trails. Even though we probably would've had a lot more time to observe and look closely at plants and such on a pretty day, the rainy walk was a great way to see things we might not normally see. God's creation is beautiful in any weather! Water was dripping from everything, including us! They have ... Read More
Boys and Dinosaurs
On Sunday nights at church, I teach a Kidz Group class for children in 1-5th grades. Right now, I have only little boys in the class. What better way to catch their attention than to talk about dinosaurs! Dinosaurs and church?? Of course! Dinosaurs are a great topic for teaching the authority of the Bible as compared to evolutionary teaching. And for children, dinosaurs are one of the biggest "hooks" public schools use to disprove Biblical authority. Just how do you educate yourself on the truth of the Bible vs. what the evolutionary world believes? It's really as simple as children's books! There are so many wonderful children's books available now that teach Creation vs. ... Read More