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Nature Journal

Why Nature Journals Are Important

If you’ve been around here much, you know the importance I place on nature study. The real-life science lessons that offer…
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Winter homeschooling can be tough in normal years.

Winter homeschooling can be tough in normal years. It’s cold, the days are dark, and everyone’s cooped up together 24/7. That’s a recipe for the winter blahs to march right into your house and wreak havoc on attitudes and motivation.⠀
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This year’s winter is unlike any other and those blahs may have actually settled in long before now. If you or your children are feeling down, anxious, or bored with school, are “at” each other constantly, bouncing off the walls, or tears and fighting are the norm…the blahs are there.⠀
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Let’s get you, your children, and your homeschool back on track. I’ll be teaching a Homeschool Masterclass on Thursday afternoon to help you kick the blahs to the curb. If you can attend live, come! If you can’t attend live, catch the replay!⠀
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We’ll tackle all sorts of problems the blahs bring with them with very practical ideas that are easy to implement! ⠀
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Click the link in my bio to join me. There is no shame in admitting that the blahs have arrived and you need a little boost from a friend. ❤️ ⠀
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#homeschool #homeschooling #homeschoolmom #homeschoolfamily #wildandfreemom #charlottemasonmama #winterhomeschool #homeschoolhelp #homeschoollookslikethis #thisishomeschool #homeschoolmasterclass #homeschool365 #ihsnet #homeschoolmama #helpmehomeschool #winterblahs

Oh, what peace this quote brings to my soul. It’

Oh, what peace this quote brings to my soul. It’s true, you know. I’ve told my children for years that it only takes a nature walk to see God through His handiwork and to know that His promises are true.⠀
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When the world seems to be falling apart around you, the sun never stops shining. The seasons never stop moving. Without a single, solitary effort of human hands, the woodlands still buzz with life.⠀
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A student of nature can see the consistency in cycles and notice the incredible and creative intricacy of even the smallest specimen and be in awe that we truly serve a God who isn’t unaware of even one tiny detail in our world right now. ⠀
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Life kind of seems overwhelming, though, I know. Remember when I said my motto lately has been to just put one foot in front of the other to do the next right thing? Nature walks (even when it’s cold) never fail me as a right thing. ⠀
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Breathe, friend. Take a nature walk today and let God speak to your soul.⠀
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#homeschool #homeschooling #homeschoolmom #homeschoolfamily #wildandfreemom #charlottemasonirl #winterhomeschool #homeschoollookslikethis #thisishomeschool #winternaturestudy #nosweatnaturestudy #homeschool365 #ihsnet #naturestudy #naturexplorers #nature #hewins

It might seem trite to post a winter picture book

It might seem trite to post a winter picture book list right now, but I’m a big believer in keeping things as normal as possible in my home when things aren’t so normal otherwise.⠀
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It’s the principle of putting one foot in front of the other as you simply do the next right thing. Good books almost always can be a “next right thing” choice.⠀
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Even though I’m not homeschooling younger children anymore, I’ll probably never stop sharing wonderful picture book ideas with you. 🤓 I’ve spent way too many hours reading and collecting to ever stop loving them!⠀
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Eli and I may not be using these books right now, but they are still some of my favorites for winter reading. Whatever may be going on around you, the winter months are always a good time of year to get in lots of extra reading. Snuggling and hot chocolate are optional, but encouraged.⠀
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Click the link in my bio to find a blog post about these books + some of our favorite winter chapter books, too!⠀
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#homeschool #readmorebooks #livingbooks #livingliterature #picturebooks #winterpicturebooks #homeschoolmom #wildandfreefamily #charlottemasonirl #winterhomeschool #homeschoollookslikethis #thisishomeschool #winternaturestudy #nosweatnaturestudy #homeschool365 #ihsnet

We celebrated a 14th birthday over Christmas break

We celebrated a 14th birthday over Christmas break! 🎉🎁🎂🏀🥰

I love being auntie to a sweet baby again! 😍

I love being auntie to a sweet baby again! 😍

Merry Christmas from the Wests! 🎄

Merry Christmas from the Wests! 🎄

Christmas picture books are some of my very favori

Christmas picture books are some of my very favorite books of all time. I’ve spent years collecting new ones here and there (and will probably continue collecting for years to come because there are at least a few favorites I still don’t own).🤗🤫⠀
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When the kiddos were younger, I would sometimes wrap each of the books and place them in a basket near the Christmas tree. 🎁 Each morning during December, one of my children would choose a book to unwrap and that was the one we would read for the day. Oh, such precious memories!⠀
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This year, even though my youngest is in 8th grade, the books are not hidden away! I’ve found a creative way to read them with Eli. We’re using them as mentor texts for his own stories during language arts. #sneakysmart (He’s writing some pretty great stories, too!)⠀
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Click the link in my bio if you’d like to see my entire list of picture book favorites for the Christmas season!🎄If you’d like to know more about using picture books to teach writing to older kids, search “writing with picture books masterclass”on my website.⠀
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#homeschoolbooks #christmasbooks #christmasbooklist #christmaspicturebooks #christmasschool #creativehomeschooling #livingbooks #livingliterature #readmorebooks #Decemberhomeschool #homeschoolfamily #homeschoollookslikethis #homeschoolmiddleschool #ilovebooks #charlottemasonirl #yourmorningbasket #ourjourneywestward #homeschoolrocks

Did you know the main purpose of my blog for the l

Did you know the main purpose of my blog for the last 14 years has been to encourage you that you CAN homeschool creatively to meet the needs of your children and bump up the joy factor all around?⠀
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Creative homeschooling doesn’t have to be hard. You don’t have to ditch all the boring stuff so that every single moment of every single day is a giant production that completely wears you out. No way!⠀
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Instead, creative homeschooling is really just about making little changes here or little additions there to provide a better opportunity to learn. If your kiddo is struggling with the idea of multiplication in the textbook, you pull out the manipulatives and reteach it a different way. If writer’s block strikes during a persuasive essay assignment, you read a few persuasive picture books to ignite fresh ideas. If spelling brings tears, you move the lesson to a white board and allow your children to write giant words to move all the large motor muscles for renewed energy and fun.⠀
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It can also mean replacing the monotony of learning with something else once in a while. This is where you can insert a unit study with living books, documentaries, field trips, hands-on activities, and more in place of a chapter or two in a history textbook, for example. Or, to take off for an entire day of nature study to renew and rejuvenate everyone’s mental state. ⠀
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December is the BEST time of year to insert a little creative homeschooling into your life because there are so many easy ideas ready for you to use without much effort! That means it’s easy...even if you’re new to the idea. Click the link in my bio to see what I mean. ⠀
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You don’t have to substitute creative ideas for everything in December! (But, you can if you want.) Now that Eli is in 8th grade, we don’t turn every subject into a Christmas theme like in years past. Instead, this year we’re simply adding ornament painting to our Names of Jesus Bible study, favorite Christmas picture books as mentor texts for writing assignments, Christmas poetry to our morning basket, and including baking and service projects as add-on afternoon activities some days. ⠀
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Have fun and let me know how I can help!

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