Homeschool Coffee Break: 5 Days of Lessons for Homeschool Moms

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Friday, April 27, 2018

Homeschool Highlights - Blog Hop Edition Week 34

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Welcome to Homeschool Highlights!

This weekly link-up is your opportunity to share some highlights of what is happening in your homeschool and in your world each week. If you write a wrap-up post at the end of each week, like I've been doing, we'd love to see what you're busy with from week to week. If you'd like to pick a favorite post from your week that spotlights a resource or activity in your homeschool that you'd like to tell others about, we're interested in those too. I'm keeping the guidelines as simple as I can, and they will appear at the bottom of each post, along with the link tool. I look forward to getting to know you, and I hope this will be a source of encouragement and good ideas for all of us.

Grab a cup of coffee and let's get started!

Homeschool news . . . We're so close to the end of the school year, so it is crunch time! I finally got an updated assignment list printed for Kennady, with everything in Math and History that she needs to do to finish those courses. It will be a huge challenge to finish everything by the end of May, but I think we can get pretty close. We've usually had our school year go into the first couple weeks of June, and often choose to work on some things through the summer, so considering that, we're in pretty good shape.

We have two more weeks of co-op class, and honestly I'm not entirely sure what we'll do in the Writing class for the final week. We finished our textbook last week, and the students handed in their final essay yesterday! So this week, we spent our class time doing a review of grammar and punctuation, and I assigned a re-write of one of their second semester essays for homework. I've got a plan for what to do in class next week, at least. Once co-op is finished, there won't be French and Writing homework for Kennady, so she'll have a bit more time to spend on Algebra.

Other news . . . On Saturday morning, Kennady went with me to the state curriculum fair. We had to go to Frederick anyway to pick up her new glasses, so I thought we might as well drop by the fair and see if we could get the two textbooks needed for next year's school. Well, we did find the one set of textbooks, but overall the fair was rather a disappointment. Very small and not many vendors. Everything has changed from when I started homeschooling. More homeschoolers are researching and buying curriculum and resources online, and it's not nearly as profitable for vendors to travel to the fairs. I understand that the times are changing, but it's still rather sad. I do like to hold books in my hand and interact face-to-face with vendors and publishers, so I miss that part of the curriculum fair experience.

By the way, this was likely the last time I would attend any kind of homeschool curriculum fair. Wow. Sobering.

This week has been the usual whirlwind of work and church and co-op, with the added pressure of needing to get my house ready for company. We have family arriving next week for a visit, and I'm still not finished with spring cleaning. I'm hoping to finish off a couple projects on the weekend, with help from the kids, so the place won't be complete chaos when the family arrives!

What I'm Highlighting . . . This week Homeschool Review Crew members have been participating in the 5 Days of . . . Blog Hop. My series was 5 Days of Lessons for Homeschool Moms, and to wrap it up today, I'm highlighting some of the lessons that Crew members told me they'd learned while homeschooling. Please take the time to visit each of these homeschool mom blogs!

Kirsten at DoodleMom sums it up briefly - she's learned how to be organized. Check out her series: 5 Days of Homeschool Essentials for Mom

Teresa at Living Life: Hour by Hour says "I have learned that I need to chill out sometimes. I stress, worry, and compare to what the public schools are doing and I need to just stop!" We can all relate to that, right?! She adds that she's also learned that it's not necessary "to have the kids complete every math problem, every question in the book, every test and every page." She's also learned that there are plenty of ways to learn besides reading a textbook.

Speaking of alternate ways to learn, Kimberley at Vintage Blue Suitcase says she's "learned that it's okay to go off on a rabbit trail when something catches your child's interest. Part of learning is learning about how to learn and how to find the information you need to learn about the world."

Dawn at The Schoolin' Swag Blog claims she could probably write a novel (couldn't we all?!) but says one of the biggest lessons is that it's okay to do "what works for us and not worry about the public schools, the neighbor down the road, or the 'big names' in homeschooling." She also talked about learning history alongside her children, and learning "to balance a focus on relationships and service with the academic skills needed for their adult lives".

Lori at My Journeys Through Life mentioned avoiding comparisons too. She says, "I've learned not to worry so much about what other people think when they find out how relaxed we are as homeschoolers. I'm not afraid to say that we don't 'do' grade levels or tests."

Annette at A Net In Time shared a wise reminder with us. She has learned "to be patient and remember that just because learning doesn't happen when I hope it will, it will still happen." Her series this week is about the things she loves in her homeschool, things that help her stay organized, like Checklists.

Andrea at Townsley Times discussed several lessons she's learned while homeschooling. Some good lessons like "not to push them on things they simply aren't ready for", and "that the people who told me to 'let them be kids' were right after all, . . . since they truly do learn through play". She's got great advice to share in her 5 Days of Homeschool Planning series this week!

I always appreciate the wisdom and encouragement that Carol at Home Sweet Life shares on her blog. Read her Five Days of Homeschooling Victories series to see what I mean! She's learned that "almost any lesson can be learned on a field trip", and that children learn in ways that are unique to them and to their interests. She also shared this lesson that puts it all into perspective:

"I've learned that the only way to enjoy the journey is to pray more and worry less, and that God is much better at lesson planning than I will ever be . . ."

I recommend . . .

Visiting the Homeschool Review Crew Blog to find all the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop posts. (The Crew anchor post will be live on Friday, April 27th)

Or continue hopping through the posts using the links below:

On my blogs last week . . .

Here on Homeschool Coffee Break:

Lessons About Time and Trust
Lessons About Finding the Balances
Virtual Refrigerator - Remembering Bob Ross
Lessons About How to Learn
Lessons About Trusting the Experts

And on my book blog, Just A Second:

Recent Reads - In Places Hidden
Teaser Tuesday/First Chapter First Paragraph - In Places Hidden
Scripture and a Snapshot - Shout for Joy

Just A Second is where I share book reviews and other book-related things, and update on what's on my bookshelf. This week I finished and reviewed In Places Hidden (Golden Gate Secrets) by Tracie Peterson, and I've been reading:

As Death Draws Near (A Lady Darby Mystery) by Anna Lee Huber
A Treacherous Curse (A Veronica Speedwell Mystery) by Deanna Reybourn

A parting shot . . . It looks like spring has arrived, but I'd like if it would start warming up a little, and feel more like spring has arrived!

Grab the button and link up with Homeschool Highlights!

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Homeschool Highlights guidelines:

Your blog should be family-friendly content, and your post should include something about homeschooling.
Please link directly to your post, not your blog's homepage.
Please include a link in your post to Homeschool Coffee Break - you may use the graphic above if you wish.
Visit a couple of the other bloggers and comment or share.

An InLinkz Link-up

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©2006-2018 Homeschool Coffee Break. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://kympossibleblog.blogspot.com/

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Thursday, April 26, 2018

Lessons About Time and Trust

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Homeschool Coffee Break helps fuel this blog and our homeschool - thank you!

Welcome to the 2018 Edition of the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop! This is a favorite event for longtime Homeschool Review Crew members, and it's always exciting to have new Crew members join in the fun as well. We've all been looking forward to sharing ideas, encouragement and advice related to homeschooling, and we hope you enjoy visiting all the participating bloggers. For this round of the Blog Hop, I chose to talk about some of the many lessons that I have learned as I've played the role of homeschool teacher over the years.

Time and Trust

The time spent is worth it. Homeschooling is hard work. And it's time consuming. There are so many days that feel like I've been crazy busy all day long but haven't really done anything. Please tell me it's not just me?! Often it seems like grading, lesson planning, reading, or doing hands-on activities all take wa-a-a-a-ay longer than they should, and it's frustrating. But the time spent doing school with your kids is also time spent doing life with your kids, and that is never time wasted. Homeschooling is one of the most rewarding and worthwhile things I could ever have done with my time.

Pray more, worry less. Easier said than done, I know. This is where trust comes in again. I've learned that I need to trust God to guide me in making decisions about school and about life, and then I need to continue to trust him to fill in the gaps too. Homeschooling provides the perfect setting for moms to learn about patience, perseverance, grace, discipline, and faithfulness.

You've got at least twelve years . . . and it goes by much faster than you think.

Truth is? You've got plenty of time to teach math and biology and economics. You've got plenty of time to create art and read good books and take music lessons. But do your best to use your time wisely! I've learned to view academics as a vehicle for building relationships, because those same twelve years start to seem far too short as graduation day creeps ever closer.

Hang on because it's a wild ride - possibly the best ride of your life!

This post is part of the June 2019 Homeschool Collection on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.

Homeschool Collection {Monthly Round UP}

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew Blog to find all the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop posts. (The Crew anchor post will be live on Thursday, April 26th)

Or continue hopping through the posts using the links below:

Don't miss a coffee break! Subscribe to Homeschool Coffee Break by Email!

©2006-2018 Homeschool Coffee Break. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://kympossibleblog.blogspot.com/

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Lessons About Finding the Balances

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Homeschool Coffee Break helps fuel this blog and our homeschool - thank you!

Finding the Balances

Homeschooling is hard work and we should have high standards and expectations. But at the same time, it should be a joyful experience for all of us and we should be realistic and relaxed. How do we strike the right balances?

Plan to be spontaneous. That sounds ridiculous, I know! It's become somewhat of a joke around here that at this stage of our lives and homeschool journey, we'd like to be spontaneous but we need to plan that ahead of time. But really, we've got to have some kind of a plan! I've learned that it's wise to plan the school calendar ahead of time, to map out the coursework that needs to be covered (this is especially true for the high school years!), and to have a standard expectation of the schoolwork that should get done each day or each week. Many parts of the plan can be in pencil! But with a plan in place, there is at least a framework for being spontaneous. If we've more or less stuck to our general plan of doing a certain number of chapters a week, then we don't have to panic that we'll get behind when we have family visit for a week and school goes on the back burner. If we have a four-year plan going into high school, then we're unlikely to arrive at the beginning of the senior year needing way more credits than can be squeezed into one school year.

I do find that there's a fine balance between preparation and seeing what happens naturally. ~Timothee Chalamet

Jump through hoops, creatively if necessary. This is an important balancing act for each homeschooler to find. Know what your state and your oversight group requires of homeschoolers, and decide how to fulfill the requirements in a way that works for you and your student. Our state does not require standardized testing, but some do. If we lived where that was a requirement, I would have made it happen. Some of my friends have chosen to do standardized tests even though it's not required by law - that's the balance that worked for them. Sometimes the law prescribes that certain subjects must be taught, such as state history. If it's required, make sure you do it, but whether you use a standard textbook or make up your own unit study that includes a lot of field trips is up to you. There are specific required credits to graduate, so we are jumping through each of those hoops, but we sometimes find creative ways to accomplish that. Not everything needs to be learned by reading the textbook, and I'm okay with that!

Enjoy the journey! I believe that people and relationships are always more important than achievements and stuff. I've learned that I need to remind myself of that sometimes. Like when the assignment lists still have way too many unchecked boxes, and I'm way behind on grading (and did I mention that the house is a disaster and there's nothing planned for dinner?) . . . but my teenager is stressed and exhausted and just needs to chill. Maybe that's a good opportunity to put the to-do list on hold and take time for a chat over ice cream followed by a restorative nap. That's better for the relationship, and ultimately it's probably better to tackle that to-do list after a break. Also, I much prefer to have fun while learning, so we balance serious with silly, textbooks with stories and song, and structure with spur of the moment.

Aim high and give grace. I believe we need high academic standards for our homeschool students. Now I don't know about your students, but my students don't excel at every subject. So while I do expect them to work hard and give their best effort, I know that they will not get 100% on every test, and that's okay. I teach a high school writing class in our co-op, and some of the students have an easier time expressing themselves eloquently and without grammatical errors than others. Accordingly, those students that write at an intermediate or advanced level are asked to do essays with a higher word count; and the standard for an A+ paper from one of those students is slightly different from the standard for an A+ paper from one of the students who hasn't had much experience with writing and is still struggling a bit with correct grammar.

The same balance of high standards and grace applies to our interactions as well. We want our kids to be exemplary in character, but they are kids and they will make mistakes. And they will even be downright rebellious at times. That doesn't mean we've failed. It just means they are human, and we continue love them and forgive them. Our friends and family may not be supportive of our decision to homeschool. That doesn't mean we get to argue with them or be disrespectful. Find a balance between answering the legitimate questions and ignoring the criticism. Even our homeschooling friends may do things very differently from the way we do. Things we wish we could do, and things we think are just plain weird. *gasp* There's a balance for us there too - learn from and be inspired by other ways of doing things, without feeling like we have to copy exactly; and be understanding and not judgmental of another family's choices.

A lot of music is mathematics. It's balance. ~Mel Brooks

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew Blog to find all the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop posts.

Or continue hopping through the posts using the links below:

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Lessons About How to Learn

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Homeschool Coffee Break helps fuel this blog and our homeschool - thank you!

How to Learn

As homeschoolers, we often say that one of the most important things we teach our kids is how to learn. Not just temporarily stuff some facts into their heads so they can pass an exam. We want our kids to develop strategies for finding answers that may not be in the textbook, and to be able to acquire and apply knowledge and skills in the real world. We want them to be lifelong learners, so that's something we need to model. A concern that's often raised by homeschool moms is how they will teach algebra - or chemistry, or whatever subject is their nemesis - to their child when they never really understood it themselves, or don't remember anything about it. Here's some good news, moms: I've found that I can learn and relearn just about anything I need to, and homeschooling gives me the opportunity to keep discovering more about the world. And I hope that demonstrating an enthusiasm for learning and a willingness to keep learning even though I'm "old" will be just a little bit contagious.

He who dares to teach must never cease to learn. ~Richard Henry Dann

Some variation of this quote is heard often, because there's quite a bit of truth to it. One way to prove that you've learned something well is to teach it to someone else. This works for us in the subjects we like or have a natural affinity for. I liked and enjoyed subjects like History, English, and Music, so these are the subjects I most enjoy teaching and generally feel confident about. But I didn't care much for Math or Science when I was in school. In fact, I remembered feeling mostly out of my depth in Algebra and Chemistry in high school, and just hoping I understood enough to pass the final. I took Physics in high school and enjoyed studying mechanics and optics, but when we got into atomic physics, I was more confused than anything, and again, just hoped for the best on that final. (I passed all three finals easily, by the way, but that didn't mean I understood much of it. I was just able to use the formulas.) So how could I possibly teach those subjects?

I learn as I go, and learn with my kids. When they were younger, I read the textbooks and the resources and did the work with them as I taught them. And it's amazing how much comes back! And the things that I simply don't remember, I just learned over again. Or maybe learned them for the first time. Especially during the high school years, there have been times when they caught on before I did, so I let them explain to me. Times when we figured it out together. And times when I thought it better to just let them study it on their own or learn from somebody else.

In learning you will teach, and in teaching you will learn. ~Phil Collins

Teach and learn creatively. I learned to think up interesting ways to help my kids remember their math facts. I learned that memorizing poetry helps a student broaden their vocabulary and use language more elegantly. I learned that there's more than one textbook to get the job done, and more ways to cover a subject than strictly reading that textbook. I learned how to customize education. One huge advantage of homeschooling is the ability to choose our own focus and tailor studies for each student's individual needs, interests, and goals. I try to help them figure out what they need to learn in order to accomplish their goals, and then work with them to decide how to acquire the knowledge they need. We've all learned - and are still learning - to apply creative outside-the-box thinking and problem-solving skills to education and career preparation.

I've changed my attitude about learning. There will always be something new to learn. I'll never be able to learn absolutely everything I want to know about every subject I'm interested in. Remember I said earlier that I didn't like math when I was a kid? Well, I still don't get warm fuzzies from working equations or checking algebra homework, but I've learned to appreciate the broader skills that are learned by solving for x. I've learned that the absolutes of math are indicators that we live in a universe where there are reliable and predictable laws - in other words, math is an evidence that there is a God. I wasn't a big fan of learning sciences, but when I started seeing chemistry and biology as a glimpse into the creativity of God, it changed my perspective. I will still bolt from the room rather than look at a dissection, but I will also be amazed at the incredible detail and intricacy of the body systems created by God. In some small way, by learning what we can about the world he created, we are ". . . thinking God's thoughts after him." (Johannes Kepler)

To teach is to learn twice over. ~Joseph Joubert

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew Blog to find all the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop posts.

Or continue hopping through the posts using the links below:

This post is also part of a #breakthrulinkup at Breakthrough Homeschooling - Join us!

Don't miss a coffee break! Subscribe to Homeschool Coffee Break by Email! ©2006-2018 Homeschool Coffee Break. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://kympossibleblog.blogspot.com/

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Monday, April 23, 2018

Lessons About Trusting the Experts

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Homeschool Coffee Break helps fuel this blog and our homeschool - thank you!

Trusting the Experts

Whenever we take on a task that is important or difficult - or both! - it's wise to get expert advice. Taking the responsibility for educating our children at home is one of the most important jobs we could possibly do; and it's a job that definitely comes with challenges, so getting some input from experts makes sense. But which experts do we turn to? It's pretty tempting to look at what the education professionals are saying about what children should learn and when, and maybe it's even tempting to try to match subjects and skills we're teaching to the corresponding grade levels of the school system. Don't get me wrong - there is a lot of value to understanding some general benchmarks of what kids are able to learn at certain ages, but we needn't be ruled by those broad guidelines. After all, each child has his or her own unique set of interests, talents, strengths, and struggles; and one of the greatest advantages of homeschooling is the ability to suit education to each child's needs.

Moms are experts when it comes to their own kids. There's no one that knows my kids better than I do, and no one that is more committed or invested in their success than I am. That means Mom knows best. Maybe not in everything, but in a lot of things. Moms tend to know their kids' strengths and weaknesses, what their kids can handle, and how they'll learn best. I learned to trust my instincts on what curriculum would be a good fit, and what would work best. Our homeschool did not need to do the same material in the same grades that the public school was doing. Our homeschool did not need to look like our friend's homeschool. We did not need to use the same curriculum that the other homeschoolers in our group used, no matter how great. When I learned to trust my own knowledge of my kids, and the decisions about teaching and parenting that I'd prayed over, I could stop second-guessing and comparing. And have peace.

Lessons About Trusting the Experts (5 Days of Lessons for Homeschool Moms) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

God's Word gives the most reliable expert advice! I have learned that I can trust God to provide all the wisdom I need to do this homeschool thing. And the whole parenting thing, from start to finish! I've learned that's true, but I'm still learning to actually do it. To really, honestly, whole-heartedly trust God. It's easy to talk about trusting, but it isn't always easy to live it out, because I want to know and I want to help. And if I'm brutally honest, I kind of want to be in control. The lessons about trusting God that I've learned as a homeschool mom can be applied in every aspect of parenting, and in every other part of my life.

Valuable lessons indeed.

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew Blog to find all the 5 Days of Homeschool Blog Hop posts. (The Crew anchor post will be live at noon EST on Monday, April 23rd)

Or continue hopping through the posts using the links below:

This post is also part of a #breakthrulinkup at Breakthrough Homeschooling - Join us!

Tuesday, April 10, 2018

5 Days of Lessons for Homeschool Moms - 2018 Spring Blog Hop

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Homeschool Coffee Break helps fuel this blog and our homeschool - thank you!

Every spring the Homeschool Review Crew has a blog hop featuring homeschool related themes from many of our Crew bloggers. This year's 5 Days of . . . Blog Hop will be April 23rd through April 27th. Get to know the Crew bloggers a little better as they share about unit studies, reading, field trips, home ec, science, parenting, and so much more!

As for me, I'll be sharing some of the lessons that I have learned as a homeschool mom. I've been homeschooling for twenty years now, and although I've learned a lot about homeschooling, about my kids, and about myself over those years, I feel like there are still things I'm figuring out! When I started asking some of my homeschooling friends about what they've learned, a common theme was that we all realize that no matter how long we've been doing this, there are still things we can and should be learning as we go. During the Blog Hop week, I'll highlight some of those lessons, and I invite you to join in! We can learn from each other!

As we go along during the Blog Hop week, I'll add links to my individual posts here, so feel free to bookmark this page.

Lessons About Trusting the Experts

Lessons About How to Learn

Lessons About Finding the Balances

Lessons About Time and Trust

Homeschool Highlights - Blog Hop Edition Week 34

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew blog for more about the 2018 5 Days of . . . Blog Hop, and to see what other Crew members will be sharing. This will be live on Thursday, April 12th.