mandymom.com Blog

As I posted before, I am no longer using this site because, well, homeschooling just part of our life, so I had a hard time dividing things between my main blog and this blog.

That’s why http://mandymom.com/ is my main blog, and still has a lot of homeschooling chatter on it.  But, I kept getting requests to open up a blog focused on homeschooling- giving tips, activity ideas, etc.

So I did.

It’s linked from my mandymom site as well, if you forget it.

Okay, so this blog hasn’t really been alive for some time, but we are still discipling our children at home.  Because we aren’t structured homeschoolers, its often hard to divide “schooling” from what we “do” day to day because learning is ALWAYS happening.  Therefore, homeschoolings posts will be on my regular blog @ http://mandymom.com

If you are linking to this blog, please change your links to mandymom.com

Thank you!

Julie over at Keepers at Home has a wonderful post on homeschooling, for those who keep making excuses and feel like they just can’t, for one reason or another.

I’ve heard many excuses why people can’t homeschool. 

-I’m not smart enough.  (I addressed that issue in one of my previous entries. What did we endure 12 years of school for, anyway?)
-I don’t think I could handle being around my children 24/7.  I need ME time!  (So, you would rather someone else raise your children 8+ hours a day for 5 days a week? Me time?  You need THAT much Me time?  Isn’t that a little selfish?)
-I can’t possibly teach them all they need to know in order to reach their dreams.  (Correct. You can’t.  But there are so many things out there to assist you in teaching, so you don’t have to worry about that!)

Of course, I do believe there are a few (very few) legit reasons why some people can’t homeschool, but most of the reasons I hear are ridiculous.  I would much rather someone say, “I don’t want to homeschool,” than hear them make ridiculous, ill-informed excuses!

Ah, so controversial….

It’s clear that people do not understand homeschooling at all.  There are various methods to choose from, various ways of doing it.  I’m sure some people who choose to homeschool their children are doing their child a disservice, but that’s not usually the case.

I believe the misunderstandings come from the name “home” schooling.  People believe we stay at home, plop a book in front of our child, and try to teach them from our own knowledge.  While this could work, it will only take you so far.

So how do you teach those tougher subjects?  You get your child involved!  Imax had an awesome film on the human body that is useful in teaching biology.  It’s now available on DVD, I believe.  You could also take your child on a tour of a pharmaceutical company or a hospital (Researching how and why a hospital makes a commitment to sterilization is very interesting- it was one of the subjects I chose to research when I was eleven.  I was even able to go into the NICU and see the little babies!).  You can talk to various doctors (many doctors will take the time to discuss what they do, why they do it, etc), research various conditions and diseases, and watch videos.  You may want to have someone who has had cancer or another disease come speak to your children- then you can research exactly what cancer is, what is looks like, etc.

Why do people try to limit how we learn and who can teach?  Maybe it’s because that’s what happened in our schools?  Institutional schools are always “changing the rules”. 

I have a question.  Why did we go to 12 years of school (plus kindergarten)?  Teachers always told us it was so we could have careers.  So we could make something of ourselves.  I cannot tell you how many times I heard, “You need to learn this because you’re going to use it later in life.”

So, it’s later in life! I’m using everything I learned to teach my children, PLUS other resources (people, places, things) available to me as well.  How can it be that I’m NOT equipped to teach my children when I have already been taught all of the things I’m suppose to teach them?

I have found that the people who are so very against homeschool really don’t know anything about it.  Maybe they have one or two examples of homeschooling gone bad and assume that’s how it all goes, but that’s not truth.  In fact, top schools like Harvard and Yale love homeschoolers!

On the other hand, most homeschoolers have a very good idea of what instituational schools are like, which is why they’ve chosen to homeschool.  So, before you go trashing it, maybe you should give it a whole-hearted try!

Donna from Home4School asked me to post some of my speeches online in Mp3 form.  I’m working on it, and hopefully will have at least one or two up by the end of the month.  (Can you believe it is August already?)

The first few are centered on the topic of Home Management Binders, narrowed down into subjects such as routines, menus, etc.  HMBs are a lifesaver… whether you are homeschooling or not.

Anyway, I will have those up at some point, I hope.  We are in the middle of moving, so if I am delayed, that is why!

God bless!

I am super-duper excited about the Homeschool Conference (brought to you by Heart of the Matter, the homeschooling ezine I write for).  It begins tomorrow and promises to be quite an event.  Even though we’re not your typical homeschooler, this conference still has much to offer us…. and you, for that matter.

It’s not going to be a boring seminar with someone droning on and on.  It’s an online conference that comes with a huge goodie bag full of awesome freebies.  There are loads of awesome speakers.. so, if you haven’t “bought your ticket”, do it now before the price goes up.

You can read more about it here:
http://www.hotmconference.com/

Today is the last day to get your ticket for the low price of $29.95.  The conference starts tomorrow, and the price goes up to $39.95.  The freebies will make up for the price of your ticket!  The “goodie bag” is worth over $170!

Also, there will be awesome door prizes and give aways! Don’t miss out!

Take a “peek” at the door prizes here:
http://heartofthematteronline.com/2008/07/door-prizes.html

Here are the featured speakers:
http://www.hotmconference.com/2008/03/2008-speakers.html

It’s five days full of fun, so join in.  Don’t worry, you don’t have to be present the whole time.  Everything will be recorded, so you can listen in at your own convenience!

My children absolutely LOVE projects.  In fact, many a morning, I am awakened with the words, “Mom! Can we do a project today?”  And, once a project is finished, they are eager for another.

Yesterday, we hit up Wal-mart and loaded up on crayons (only 22 cents), markers, paper, folders, and more.  They carried a box of watercolors around until they had to give them up in order to pay for them, and, once home, they begged to paint.  Please, please, pretty please Mom!

The other day, I purchased the book 365 TV-Free Activities by Steve & Ruth Bennett.  It has some great “projects” inside, most of which provide some sort of educational outcome.

I will shamelessly admit that most of our “projects” lately have bordered on child labor, ha!  As we prepare for our move to Houston, the children have assisted me in painting (which, at times, has been disasterous, but hey, it’s all in the name of learning), sorting, and packing.  I love that my children enjoy helping me.  They’d much rather tag along beside me and help me than play with their own toys.

On the subject of toys, we’ve been able to narrow down their stash significantly and donate it.  I think most toys are a waste of money.  We (as a society) have taught our children to be greedy- hoarding more and more and more toys, even though they don’t play with them.  

When it comes down to it, children will be happier with fewer toys than if they had all the toys in the world.  (And, you’ll be much happier because you will have less to step on, trip over, and beg your children to clean up.)

We started donating the toys by the bundle when I realized most of my children’s toys were crowding the livingroom, playroom, and bedroom floors not because they were being played with, but because they had to toss them out of the bin in order to find the “good stuff”. 

A couple days later, I piled the toys in the livingroom and told the kids, “Okay, we’re going to sift through this stuff and only keep the toys you really like.”  We divided the toys into three bags- dump, donate, and keep.  An hour or so later, we had filtered the toys, and had decided to keep only half of the toys.

About a month later, we went through the process again, and significantly narrowed down the keep pile.  It was a difficult process for me because I realized “good money” was spent on most of these toys. My friends and parents had spent hard earned money on these toys, and I felt guilty about giving them away.  Then it hit me that I should feel more guilty about hoarding toys that weren’t being played with when other children could enjoy them.

Soon after we did all of this, my son had a birthday.  I wanted to invite all his little friends, but I thought, “Man, they are going to want to bring him toys- toys that will probably end up at the bottom of the bin or broken.”  I didn’t want to come across as unthankful or rude, but I decided it would be best to tell our guests that they didn’t need to bring gifts, but if they wanted to, we’d prefer they give books, clothes, or even a movie (our kids love Veggie Tales), instead of a toy.

Most listened.  Of course, my parents gave him toys (it’s required of grandparents, I suppose), but most people did listen to our request.  One of our friends said, “Well, it’s his birthday. Won’t he be upset if he doesn’t get toys? Kids don’t want books! They don’t want clothes! They want toys!”

Well, my children get excited about new clothes and books just as much as, or even more than, toys.  Plus, there’s no better time than when they are young to teach them how wonderful books are!

If the toys are piling up in your household and you ache to ditch them, try this. Have your children help you sort through them just as mine did.  Tell them you are going to donate toys to children who don’t have many.  Explain to them that some children are not as fortunate as you are.  Throw away toys that are broken. 

Later, when your children are gone or in bed, go through the keep pile and set half of it aside.  Put it in another bin and stow it in a closet where the kids can’t see it.  A month later, if they have not asked about the toys and have not desired to play with them- donate all of it.

I know a woman who was able to get rid of six large garbage bags full of toys.  Her children chose to keep five toys each (like a box of matchbox cars, a doll, a box of costumes, etc).

Some people think we are crazy when they find out we don’t buy our children toys.  We don’t even buy them birthday gifts.  First of all, children get so many birthday gifts, I feel that it’s “wasteful” for us to get them something on that day.  I’d much rather save that money and purchase them something later when they’ll really enjoy it and the gift won’t have to compete with a dozen other gifts for attention.

Secondly, since we’re on a tight, limited budget, I find it’s wiser to spend money on an “event”- like a fun, educational trip the whole family can enjoy.

Seriously- gather all the toys around your house and pile them in the middle of the floor….. look at how much your family has accumulated.  Teach your children to give and be good stewards, not hoarders.  And, while you’re at it- look at your own junk that has piled up.  You probably have a lot of stuff you don’t use. 

Every time we move, I find so much junk that is just being stored, not used.  Get rid of it.  You’ll probably feel better for doing so.

How do you keep the toys from piling up in your home?  Do you have a game plan?

In case you missed this, this particular article was my submission for Heart of The Matter’s June Edition.  I wrote it specifically for my own blog (in response to someone who said I was “sheltering” my children too much), and decided it would make a good post for HOTM’s homeschooling e-zine.

I also posted it on my main blog.  Here’s a small excerpt.

“My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life, and peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” Proverbs 3:1-3

I believe in protecting my children from outside influences in their youth. However, it’s not enough to just protect them, but I also need to be teaching them the Word. As I keep them close to me throughout their childhood, I will have many opportunities to do this, which is why it is so important that God is first in my life. How can I ever expect them to put God first, if I do not live and walk that way myself?

Read the rest of it here:
Why We’ve Chosen to Shelter Our Children

 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted……. [Ecclesiastes 3]

For millions of children, school is out, and they are ready for the brain vacation.  For us, school doesn’t stop.  We don’t (ever) officially start or end “school” until the day they graduate. 

I feel that summer is a prime time for education, mainly because so many places, which are usually closed or limited to weekend hours throughout the year, finally open their doors all week for those hot and humid months in hopes of catching the summer crowd.

Spring and summer are a great seasons to teach our children about growth as our gardens flourish.  There’s much to maintain in the summer around our homes, and what better time to teach our children about God’s green earth then to help them be stewards of it as they help mow the grass (even if it’s just sitting on your lap on the lawn mower), pluck weeds from the gardens, pick fruits and vegetables, sow fresh seeds, and water plants.  Then, as summer comes to a close and fall begins to peek around the corner, we can teach them about the cycle of plant life as we watch leaves turn golden, flowers wither, and the growth of grass slow.  We can show them how different plants thrive during different seasons (as the bible says, there’s a time for everything) as we plant the fall crop.  I cannot tell you how excited I am to start my edible garden this year.  I’ve told my husband it’s “for the kids, educational purpose, you know”, but really, it’s for me.. because I desire to learn how to care for these things beyond the book knowledge I have.  I’ve never had much of a green thumb, but there’s something within me that wants to “get back to the basics”.

This is how we teach our children Ecclesiastes, chapter three, which is so much more effective than just reading it and expecting them to comprehend it.

I want to teach my children how properly plant fruits and vegtables.  I want to teach them how to grind corn into meal. I remember, as a kid, finding a few delicious strawberries on the bush in our backyard.  It was thrilling, and I couldn’t wait to tell my mom (which, sometimes they were eaten before she ever saw them).  I remember we tried to grow cantelope one year.  We may have gotten one or two, but they didn’t do all that great, as I recall.  One year, I went blueberry picking, and, boy, that was a blast.  My belly and my basket came back full, and then my grandmother made a pie.

We live in a day when you go to the store to buy a can of blueberry pie filling and dump it in a premade pie shell before shoving it in the oven.  That doesn’t build memories.  But… making it from scratch not only made lasting memories, I learned a lot of well, and those things still excite me to this day.

I was trying to tell my kids about the berry picking adventure I just wrote about.  I told them how delicious the pie smelled as I stood by the oven, waiting, watching, anticipating a slice.  My son tapped me on the shoulder and asked, “Can we go pick chocolate chips for cookies later?”

If anyone has a chocolate chip bush in their backyard, please… share.

I know, it’s been a wee while since I last posted here.  Shame on me.

I’m currently working on a home schooling article.  I was going to use it for my Heart of the Matter e-zine post, but I really feel it’s something I should post here, and if I post it there, then I can’t post the entire thing here.  Maybe I could, but I’d have to wait.

Hmm, maybe I’ll do that.  It really outlines my beliefs and not just the reasons we’ve chosen to homeschool, but the reason we’ve chosen to homeschool the way we do.

We went to the library today, always a joy… after I shell out money for all my fines.  We’re known for taking a book or two hostage, not on purpose of course.  I’m going to have to protect the books better and loan them out one at a time, then make sure that one is returned to the safety of the bag before the kids receive another.

We picked up IMAX’s Deep Sea DVD.  We saw it in 3-D at Imax, but the kids found the in-your-faceness of it a bit overwhelming and scary.  Nolyn couldn’t wait to get it home and watch it, which is what he is currently doing.  I find all of it quite fascinating.  These underwater creatures speak of God’s great creativity. 

In drawings, people make Heaven out to be a white place, I suppose for it’s purity, but I believe Heaven will be a colorful place. When I look at God’s creation here on earth, I am amazed.  Our Lord is truly awesome, and I am thankful for the things he made for us to enjoy.  Life would be pretty boring without all these incredible sights.

1. At church.  Sunday School programs are a great time for them to learn about Christ and interact with other children their age.  They’ve made so many friends in their classes!

2. Home school groups. When I was home schooled, I met some amazing people in my home school group.  Likewise, my children have found friends in fellow home schoolers.

3. Parks. It’s inevitable.  Every time we go to a park, my children find other children (of all ages) to play with.  They have so much fun, they don’t want to go home!

4. Playdates, of course.

Okay, forget the numbers and specifics.  Point is, my children have plenty of opportunity to socialize.  They are friendly little beings.  They don’t care if they don’t have someone “their own age” to hang out with.  They love people, they love to play, and they don’t care if you’re 9 or 90.

That’s what I love about them.  They’re genuinely interested in everyone. My daughter wants to know everybody’s name, if they have children, what their mothers look like.

Really, I loathe the word “socialization”.  Of course, that’s the biggest question of those who are clueless about home schooling.  How do you socialize your children?  Will they be socialized?  This is a ridiculous question. 

Kids in public schools really only learn how to socialize with those their own age.  I see so many children who don’t know how to get along with or properly communicate with those older or younger than themselves.  In fact, I’ve seen these children grow up to be adults who disrespect those younger than them.  It’s disappointing.

As parents, we need to teach our children how to get along with and be respectful of those of any age. 

I’m on a tangent here, so… yeah, I’ll stop now.

My daughter’s birthday falls on this Mexican holiday, so we celebrate “it”, in a sense.  Her birthday parties usually have a special Spanish flair to them, as we combine the celebration of her years with the remembrance of the victory of the Mexican Army over the French at the Battle of Puebla in 1862.  Some people believe Cinco de Mayo is the celebration of Mexico’s independence, which actually took place in September 1810.  Cinco de Mayo marks a David and Goliath type battle in which an ill-equipped Mexican army, made up of Mestizo and Zapotec Indians, defeated the sophisticated, well-trained French army.

Mexican history is very interesting to me, maybe because it’s woven into my own history as a Texan.  This time of year, I love to introduce new aspects of Mexican culture to my children as I teach them about this special holiday.

Growing up, I had quite a few Mexican friends.  On the bus ride home, a friend of mine would share tasty Mexican treats with me, like fruity suckers covered with chili powder.  Her grandmother would stuff me full of homemade tortillas, which I later learned to make with the help of a boyfriend’s mother.

In highschool, I learned to make piñatas (without a balloon), and this year, I plan on passing this down to my children.

First, you have to make a papier-mache paste.  There are loads of recipes available on the internet, most of which use just water and flour.  Google “papier-mache paste” and find one that suits you.  Some pastes require boiling, some don’t.

You’ll need lots of newspaper. Loads of it.  I like to wad up the newspaper to make forms (like a head, or a body, or even a star).  You can use masking tape to hold the form together.  If you plan on using this as a piñata, then you’ll need a hallow part to add candy.  You can do this in the back or at the bottom.  Once you’ve created the form you like, you’ll need to cover it with newspaper strips (1-2 inches wide, 4-8 inches long).  When you’ve finished covering it, you need to let it dry.

Once dried, you can either paint it or cover it with tissue paper (or both).  Decorate and design to your heart’s content! This is a great art project to make statues as well!

I’ll post pictures of our creation once we complete it!

Dana @ Principled Discovery (and also, a fellow writer at the homeschooling e-zine, HeartoftheMatterOnline.com) is hosting a blogger celebration of homeschooling in honor or Home Education Week!

Sunday’s topic:
Share your personal history…before you were a home educator. What was life like? Think about things you miss and things you and your family have gained.

Every since I became a mom, I’ve been a home educator.  It’s impossible to be a parent and not teach your children something.  Even poor parents teach their children a lesson, even if it’s not a particularly good one.

Hopefully, I’ve been filling my children’s hearts and lives with encouragement and inspiration as well as Godly wisdom and direction.  So, life before I became a home educator? Well, that was life when I had a job outside the home.  You know, I prefer to be a full-time mom over working outside the home.  I enjoyed my job, but I enjoy my children way more.

I suppose, if I had my children in public schools, I could have a lot of time to myself, lots of time to run errands, lots of time to (groan) clean, but I’d also miss out on so much of their growth… and I just can’t imagine doing that.

I suppose, if I had my children in public (private, charter, whatever) schools, I could find myself a nice little hobby and devote a lot of time to it, but I’d much rather explore my creativity with my children so they can learn as well.

I suppose, if I had my children in public schools, I’d be pretty bored. I mean, I can only entertain myself, clean the house, and run errands for so long.  I could paint my fingernails 10 different colors, bake lots of cookies (eat half of the batter), and count all the change in the couch….. but I’d much rather spend time with my children, discipling them, learning from them… enjoying them.

Here’s the link to see this week’s topics!
http://principleddiscovery.com/2008/03/25/home-education-week-is-here/

Here are some of the cool crafts we saw at the Children’s Museum in Baton Rouge. I was inspired!