How do you homeschool active children? You know, those sweet children who need to move and tend to make you a nervous wreck as they bounce off the walls. Yeah, them. You may not know this, but research has shown time and time again that children with ADHD and other energetic types are actually focusing their hardest…
Your homeschooler is behind in academics and your greatest homeschooling fear is realized. Maybe it’s a struggle with algebra or your kiddo still isn’t reading on the expected grade level. Your niece has better handwriting, your mother-in-law is judging, and the pressure is on to somehow bring your child up to standard. The pressure that…
The air is (slightly) cooler, the shadows are getting longer, and this morning I found four yellow leaves on the front porch. That can only mean one thing…fall is upon us! Fall is one of my favorite times of the year – our homeschool is fresh and exciting, holidays are just around the corner, the…
It’s almost time to begin again! We are getting ready to kick off another year of homeschooling, and, as usual, I’m filled with excitement and anticipation! I’ve been resting and reading all summer, getting our curriculum selected and our schedule fine-tuned. I’ve got supplies, I’ve got ideas, and I’ve got the spark ready to go….
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…
My 6th grader just finished a mini French and Indian War unit study that was a great pit stop in our regular history studies. I just love the slow and steady pace we’re taking to go through the Story of the World curriculum this time around. I used to follow pretty strict 4-year cycles in…
Ah, fall. Beautiful weather, fun festivals, football…and the beginning of “sick season.” It’s the perfect time of year to teach middle and high school students about germs through some cool bacteria science experiments! I’ve harped to my son for years about the importance of hand-washing to prevent illness. Now that he has actually seen bacteria…
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…
As I sat down to plan what to write about this coming year here at Our Journey Westward, I took a peek to see what your favorite posts of 2016 were. As you’ll see below, it’s pretty clear you like living literature and creative teaching ideas. And, since I love those things, too, I’m happy…
Homeschooling works. It just doesn’t always look the same from one child to the next. Sometimes even the best intended plans fail and adjustments need to be made. Our latest major adjustments were made in the subject of science and I’ve shared our success story here in hopes that you will be encouraged not to give…
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! This post contains affiliate links. To make your life (and mine) easier, I decided to pull…
(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:…