Kristina | Heart of the Matter

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Impressed by Impressions of Impressionism

This is one fun project that I did with a group of boys, last year, to present at an art show in our town. The first thing I had the students do was a lesson from one of my personal favorites: Drawing Textbook, by Bruce McIntyre. It doesn’t look like much on the surface yet it packs a mighty punch of information that you...

Fall Into This Idea for Art (Part 2)

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Last time I wrote, I encouraged you, as a family, to try some different watercolour methods (like the salt, plastic wrap or sponge techniques) and make predictions about what the results might be. I hope you took some time to toy with textures! Now I will talk about painting fruits and vegetables. I suggested that you set up...

Fall Into This Idea for Art (Part 1)

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Fall is one of the most perfect seasons as far as I am concerned; I only wish it lasted longer. I love to breathe in the scent of warm soil, slowly decaying leaves, and the myriad of spices begging to be added to purees of pumpkin, squash or apple. How can one spend any amount of time outside and not be inspired to at least...

Saying Goodbye to Summer

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If you are like me, saying goodbye to summer isn’t as difficult this particular year since the summer weather we are used to simply never arrived. Sad in some ways, but makes you switch gears quickly enough if you aren’t a year-round schooler. We usually *do* some form of school during our summer “break” but this...

August Art

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This week has been super crazy in our house, with appointments and a funeral when we were, technically, supposed to be on vacation. Many are the plans of a man’s heart, but the Lord’s will prevails. How true. The week’s fast-paced intensity finally came to a screeching halt in the form of a hiatus from the phone and...

Educator.com Review

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I eagerly signed up to review Educator.com, since I have one son in grade 9 this year, and another trailing only slightly behind, in grade 8. Perfect! I have to admit that I didn’t know anything at all about this site before testing the waters. Would they be rocky? Would the level be over our heads? Most importantly,...

Summer Art Projects

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I sat down at the computer today and wondered: what would come up in a Google search if I simply typed in “homeschool trends in July”. Wow! I got so distracted I almost forgot that I was supposed to still be homeschooling myself! That is definitely one thing I have loved about the whole homeschooling community in general;...

Evaluating Your Year… Hear the Music of Your Family

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A few years ago, the boys and I went to see the Windsor Symphony Orchestra perform. The pieces to be played included: Smetana, Bach, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, and two Windsor natives. Looking over the curriculum guide sent to me, I was struck by the similarities between the stringed instruments and my family. Sound...

May We Just Keep Going, Please Mom?

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And after April, when May follows, And the white throat builds, and all the swallows! Hark, where my blossom’d pear tree in the hedge Leans to the field and scatters on the clover Blossoms and dewdrops – by Robert Browning Maybe, like me, you are thinking of spending more time out instead of in yet you aren’t quite...

April Showers Springboard Creative Powers!

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For many of us, “April showers bring May flowers” is our happy mantra, keeping us motivated and putting a spring (groan) into our steps. Here, the sun shines far too intermittently for my personal liking, and the winds still carry that bitter chill that sends us back inside more often than we would like. So, to help...