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How Homeschooling Ruined Us For Public School

When my husband and I lived abroad, we made the decision to homeschool our daughter. Local schools were out of the question because of their competitive and atheistic underpinnings. The price of international schools was exorbitant compared to the quality of education. Since I had an education background, homeschooling was an...

Happy Birthday Jesus Printable Advent Calendar

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The first day of December finds most of us, especially our children, counting down the days to Christmas. For the next twenty-five days, use this free printable advent calendar to keep little hands busy with a craft and little hearts focused on Christ. I designed it to be rather generic so that you can add your own creative...

Maximizing Your Homeschool ROI

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Have you ever considered your homeschool ROI? ROI means return on investment and is a term used in the fields of business and marketing. Although homeschooling is hardly a business venture, the idea of ROI can help us evaluate what we are doing and why. The Return Your return is your motive for homeschooling. Why did you...

Not Too Old for Picture Books

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It goes without saying that picture books are wonderful for reading to elementary students. But once a child achieves reading independence and moves to chapter books, he is usually encouraged to stop reading picture books since they are “too juvenile.” Only if an older child has younger siblings can he sneak an occasional...

Are You Missing Out on the Power of Tangents?

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The delight directed homeschoolers and the unschoolers out there already know the power of a tangent. But the rest of us probably need a lesson or two. Tangents get a bad rap. We call them rabbit trails distractions off-shoots digressions as if they are a negative thing. But tangents are powerful ways to motivate children...

Should You Start a Homeschooling Blog?

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I find my love of blogging incredibly ironic. In my college computer class, I hit the table with frustration saying to the computer, “Why can’t you just do what I want you to do?” Computers have come a long way since using DOS commands in the late 1980s. When I started blogging in 2007, I was in Asia with very little...

Hands-on Projects A to Z

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Need a fresh activity for a homeschool lesson or a summer activity? There’s no excuse for being bored. These hands-on projects get kids involved in the learning through actively creating and doing. From A to Z, there is something for every subject and situation. A art projects B bound book C cootie catchers D diorama E...

Still Doing School in June?

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It happens every May and June. Other homeschool moms are talking about wrapping up the year and taking “summer break.” But you’re still doing school. You know you could call it quits, but you really want to finish that last unit of study, or you know that it would be a disservice to your child to skip the...

Getting Input From Your Children

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When evaluating your homeschool, don’t overlook a valuable source of information — your children. It may seem obvious, but some moms neglect to ask their children for feedback. The end of the school year is an appropriate time to dialogue with your children, but they will probably be glad to offer feedback at any...

Nurturing a Passion for Medical Careers

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Does your family have a budding nurse, a therapist in waiting, or a wanna be surgeon? We all know that children have a different answer almost every month to the “what do you want to be when you grow up” question. But if that passion for medicine seems to be long lasting, you may want to encourage it. Besides providing a...