As parents it is our natural instinct to want to see our children happy. Successful. Contented. We don’t want to see them sad, upset, or failing.  Yet, that is part of God’s purpose for them. We must let them make mistakes.

Remember when our children were little and every once in awhile we would sort of let them win at games? We were trying to avoid the temper tantrums that would ensue if they lost.  Oh, it’s just easier not to deal with the tears and the sadness. What’s the big deal if we let them win?

Then when they started homeschooling sometimes they would struggle with spelling. Or math. Or letters.  Sometimes it was just easier to give them the answer than to see them feeling like they failed.  Positive reinforcement right?

No.

What may have seemed easier in the moment, will not be easier in the long run.  We are setting our children up for much bigger failiures in the future by not letting them fail.

It is hard to see your child struggle at a subject.  It is hard to stand by watching them deal with difficulty. We want to jump in and rescue them. It is our instinct to do that.  Yet, our children need to learn to fail. They need to learn how to work through failure. They also need to see God’s power and grace in our failures.

Letting them struggle teaches them to rely on God. They learn to surrender their struggles to prayer and time with the Lord. These things help them to see His power and grace through situations.

Recently I looked my daughter in the eye through her tears over a situation. I wanted to rescue her. I wanted to fix it. I simply said, “Trust God to work through it.” They need to run to Him first. This a huge life lesson that can be taught at home under your guidance.  What greater lesson is there than the lesson to fully rely on God?

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”

Romans 5:3-4

Whether it is in school or sometimes in the little things in life, let them make mistakes. Don’t try to do the work for them. They will persevere in the end, and will be much stronger because of it.

Karen DeBeus is married to the love of her life, Steve, and a homeschooling mom of 4 children ages 10-2. She was called to homeschool when her oldest was kindergarten age after thinking, “I could never do THAT!” Now she is passionate about encouraging others on their homeschool journey.  She is also working on simplifying all areas of her life,including homeschool,  and putting God first in all she does.  Read more about her journey to simplify at www.simplylivingforhim.com.

As a former high school math teacher, I am a big proponent of using living math. With that said, I believe that a “living” math book is a book that presents mathematical concepts in real life context, which is relevant to the reader. A living math book is not a text book; rather it is a book…plain and simple…a book…with a storyline, which happens to have math skills integrated within the story. Such books can be used to teach and/or reinforce many mathematical skills and concepts. By this definition, most (though not all) of the books found on this list can be considered “living” math books used to address the mathematical concept of multiplication.

Amanda Bean’s Amazing Dream by Cindy Neuschwander

Anno’s Mysterious Multiplying Jar by Masichiro & Mitsumasa Anno

Bats on Parade by Kathi Appelt

Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies by Louise Mathews

Each Orange Has 8 Slices by Paul Giganti, Jr.

Multiplication Menace: The Revenge of Rumpelstiltskin by Pam Calvert

Stacks of Trouble by Liza Woodruff

The 12 Circus Rings by Seymour Chwast

The 329th Friend by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

The Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Multiplication Book by Jerry Pallotta

Too Many Cooks! by Andrea Buckless

Too Many Kangaroo Things to Do! by Stuart J. Murphy

Jennifer is a happily married, Christian, homeschooling mama of five little ones (ages 7,5,5,3,3). Yes, two sets of twins! She has a BA degree in Mathematics and holds a masters degree in Education. A former high school math teacher, she now uses all her education to teach her own kids!  In her “spare” time she enjoys scrap-booking, though blogging seems to be taking its place. She currently has five blogs. Mama Jenn is her main blog. Education Cubes features customizable learning blocks. The Homeschool Resource List is a collection of free online resources. The “Brown Like Me” Book Review showcases books featuring “brown” characters. The Living Math Book List is a collection of living math books.

Have you ever been so excited when new curriculum arrives at your door?  You have spent hours patiently looking over catalogs marking the things that look exciting and interesting.  You have posed countless questions to your homeschool companions about what curriculum they use; what they found that worked for them.  You have visited numerous curriculum fairs to the point that the vendors know you by first name.  Then you finally make the choice and wait for the package to come.  And when it does, you eagerly open it like a child opening their presents on Christmas morn.  The first day of school approaches and you begin to delve into the contents only to hear your child say, “I hate this!”

What happened?  Didn’t you do your homework?  Why wouldn’t your child love this when others you know do? Don’t feel bad or blame the curriculum. Along with knowing the brain and how it works, one must also know the learner and how he learns. Learning styles are the way your student processes and expresses information most easily. Knowing how you learn best is key to helping you learn throughout life.  Several models have been designed to help explain Learning Styles. One model is from Rita and Ken Dunn (1987) that classifies learning styles as auditory, visual, tactile, kinesthetic and tactile/kinesthetic.  Describing these types of learning styles and how can you incorporate them into your lessons is the focus of this article.

Do you have a student who loves to listen to stories?   Or one who can hear something and remember it?  They are probably auditory learners.  Auditory learners absorb the spoken word more easily than by reading it.  They enjoy variation of pitch and voice inflections.  Auditory learners love to discuss and debate the information they have just processed. If you have a student who seems to fall in this category, use that to their advantage. Have them listen to audio books; instead of writing assignments,  from time to time, have them narrate an assignment. Engage them in debates and open-ended discussion about what they have just learned. By playing to their learning style, you are giving them a chance to be active learners in their schooling.

Perhaps, your student is constantly doodling on paper. Or your student may be able to look at an illustration or diagram and glean meaning. These are visual learners. Visual learners gather their information from what they see and read. These types of readers do best when the text they are looking at has illustrations, maps, diagrams, and charts. Color is the key to these learners. Have visual learners create graphic organizers to use as tools in their learning. Again, by determining which style your learner is using, you can tailor  the way they process.

He just won’t stop moving! That’s right, kinesthetic learners don’t seem to stop moving. That’s because they are learning.  Kinesthetic learners learn though movement and doing. They need to be physically involved to make the learning meaningful and relevant. So, if you have a kinesthetic learner, think of ways to involve learning like a Twister version of the parts of grammar or create multiplication hopscotch. Use movement to your advantage.

The last style of learning is the Tactile/Kinesthetic Learner. These learners need to be physically involved as well as having their hands physically involved. Role play and simulations help these learners gain the opportunity to learn more freely.  Paint a picture relevant to the lesson while you listen to an audio book. Use sand or finger paint to write spelling words or to practice math drills. By using the sense of touch, these learners are incorporating other senses into their learning. They are active.

Now wait, I hear you say, what happens when they come across learning that requires them to learn in a different way? That’s the neat thing about learning styles. While one has a predominant style, everyone has a little of each in them. So don’t fret if you make your visual learner do an auditory activity. They will survive; just realize they might not be able to write a term paper on the information. Determining your student’s learning style will allow you to figure out what curriculum, activities, and assessments will work best for your student and reflect best their understanding of the concepts.

Michelle has two children, ages 15 and 13 (one boy and one girl).  She has been homeschooling since her son was 4 years old, and prior to that, she taught as kindergarten at a private Christian school for seven years.  Michelle graduated from the University of the State of New York at Binghamton with a Bachelor of Arts in history.  Her focus was on American history and Political Science.  She attended Mercer University in Atlanta to complete her elementary teaching certificate.  She is currently certified by the state of Georgia with a T4 certificate.  Michelle teaches elementary history at Artios Academy Arts and History as well as history and Chemistry at Artios Preparatory.  She directs the Artios Preparatory of John’s Creek, Georgia.   Michelle stresses how important it is to get involved in your world—both past and present.  By using multiple learning styles, Michelle believes all children can explore their world.  Michelle and her husband, Scott, have been married for 21 years.

Part notebook, part scrapbook, portfolios offer an ongoing and natural way to assess and record the abilities of our students.  They not only remind us how much each of our children have accomplished over a school year, but they also provide a vehicle for our students to reflect upon their own learning and recognize their growth.  They can also be a useful tool in helping to increase the understanding of family members and nay-sayers who question what we do with our homeschooled kids every day <wink, wink>.

What is a portfolio, and how do you organize one?

A portfolio is a representative collection of a student’s work over time. I have tried many different methods for organization over the years, and as in most aspects of homeschooling, there is no one right way to keep portfolio work.  One of the simplest formats in a homeschool setting is a 3-ring binder. You can organize the binder by quarters, semesters, or subjects. Older students may enjoy coming up with their own method of organization, such as by character traits represented within their work. Our family uses a 3-ring binder for each child, and because we take an integrated approach to most of our studies, we like to organize by quarters or units.

How do you select the work to be included in your portfolio?

Our family takes a two-pronged approach to selecting our work. First of all, we try to sort and organize all of our work on a monthly basis. I have my children help with this task…after all, being able to organize by subject and date are fantastic skills to learn! As they’re sorting, I have them look for work of which they are especially proud. Then, I go through their work and choose things that I think are representative of either skill mastery or great improvement, and I discuss those with them as I make selections.  At our house, most writing projects are included by default.

What do you do with the rest of the work?

Depending on the homeschooling laws for your state, you may have several options. Since your work is already organized, you can simply file it away and then store it at the end of the year. I have heard of some people who toss the remainder of their work at the end of the year; however, I must admit to all of the internet that I have kept every single piece of paper schoolwork that my children have ever touched, organized neatly in boxes by year and child. I like to think that’s perfectly normal, too; however, with 3 children, I’ll also admit that those boxes now take up the better part of one of our storage areas.

What do you do when your portfolios are finished?

Why, you put them on a shelf and pull them out when you’re feeling nostalgic, of course! Okay, perhaps there are more uses than just that one. Reviewing the work that a student has done over the course of a year can provide a great way for them to practice self-reflection and take ownership of their work. It can also encourage a child who is struggling with a particular concept or skill to look back at other areas where they may have struggled and yet mastered in previous years. My kids will pull them out and flip through them and say things like, “Mommy, remember when I was just a baby and I didn’t know how to spell elephant?” or, “Hey, I remember when we visited Ruby Falls! That was so much fun!” Yes, I realize this means that at the end of their schooling, you may have a whole shelf of portfolios for each of your children, but what an amazing testament to a homeschooling journey to be able to glance over and see a comprehensive representation of your years of educating at home.

Some ideas to make portfolios creative and functional:

*Keep a reading list in the front of your portfolio. This will be particularly handy when preparing reading lists for college applications.

*Take pictures of artwork or projects that are too large to keep. Add a plastic picture insert into your portfolio to store these.

*Keep programs and brochures from plays, museums, and field trips that you’ve taken throughout the year. Page protectors make an easy way to display these items.

*Have your children set written goals for themselves at the beginning of each year and then self-evaluate at the end of each quarter or semester. When we have used this tool, I have encouraged my kids to set two goals each for personal, academic, and family areas of their lives.

*Write a letter to your children at the end of each school year, sharing with them the areas in which you’ve seen them grow throughout the year, and times during which you’ve seen evidence of God’s protection and guidance in their lives. Some states require a written assessment at the end of each school year, and those work nicely here, too.

These are just some basics to help you get started on using portfolio assessments in your home. I’d love to hear some of your ideas, too!

  Alicia has been a homeschooling mom since 2001. She is married to Charles, a software engineer, and they have three mostly-fantastic children, ages 15, 8, and 6. She holds a degree in Early Childhood Education, as well as a current Georgia teaching certificate, and also studied American Sign Language and Literature during her college years. Alicia acts as Director of the Academy of Arts and History for Artios Academies Gwinnett, where she also teaches Elementary Drama and Elementary Language Arts, and directs the Elementary Drama Club.

In addition to her work at Artios, Alicia also provides tutoring to other homeschoolers. She enjoys curriculum design and integration and frequently consults with other homeschooling parents to assist them in implementing a program that is most beneficial to the learning styles and goals for their individual children. When not busy with the education of children, Alicia serves growing families as a Certified Labor Doula and Certified Childbirth Educator. Every once in awhile, she sleeps.

For various reasons, whether religious or educational, more and more families each year are deciding that homeschooling is an educational option they want or need to try.

So where to begin?

First, find out your state’s regulations regarding homeschooling.  Some states require absolutely nothing from homeschooling families, others, like ours here in New York, have more detailed regulations about what is required at each age and grade level.  A source I always refer to for regulation information is www.hslda.com.

After you’ve discovered what, if any, your homeschool obligations to the local school district are, finding support is next.  Many of us start homeschooling plagued with doubts of our friends and family, having been told how our children will never get into college or will end up socially inept and unable to look anyone in the eye. Having a support system to bounce ideas off of and ask questions of is invaluable.  There are almost 10,000 groups on yahoo devoted to different aspects of home education. Some are for specific locals, others are devoted to unschooling, classical education, or religious homeschooling.  I am certain there is a group that would be a good fit for you.

Check out http://www.home-school.com/groups/ to find locally operating homeschool athletic groups or leagues.  Not only will groups like these provide face to face support but they plan group activities such as drama, sports, field trips, and co-op lessons.
Now that your support system is in place, it is time to decide what materials you will use in your homeschooling.  The possibilities here are nearly endless and can be overwhelming even for an experienced homeschooler.  Other home education families will be so valuable to you because you’re able to ask what they thought of different math programs, or their experiences with unschooling, or deciding whether or not to teach Latin.  Sign up for homeschool catalogs that sell a variety of materials and are not devoted to one particular publisher.   I like www.cbd.com, www.rainbowresources.com, www.timberdoodle.com, and www.lovetolearn.net .  Remember homeschooling does not have to be costly and it can be fun.  Anytime you can teach a concept without a workbook, I’d encourage you to go that route.  Ask around to find out where used curricula sales are held.  I buy my kid’s costly math books at a used sale each year for a mere fraction of the retail price.  They do their work on scrap paper and I’m able to pass the book down to younger siblings.  When considering curricula, I highly recommend this series by Victoria Botkin.  It is extremely practical and down to earth.  Each year we let our children choose what they’d like to learn about in history and science and I use their ideas as a jumping off point.  This year they chose to learn about ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome and we had a wonderful time, with everyone participating and absorbing because it is what they had chosen.

Your homeschool supplies are in and beautifully line the shelves.  Colored pencils are sharpened and displayed in the open beside the drawing paper.  What next?  First, I encourage you to discard the school model of learning.  Your children don’t need desks, a separate classroom in the home, or to raise their hands and address you as teacher. The more relaxed and intrigued they are, the better they will retain what they are learning. Some families I know dip their toes into homeschooling each year, beginning with one subject and slowly adding in the others. Others have found that their children retain information better with a loose year-round homeschooling schedule.  There is no right or wrong method of diving in.  Your family will be unique and you’ll soon find out what kind of schedule works or does not work for your family.

For veteran homeschoolers, what suggestions would you add to mine?  For new homeschoolers, are there any other questions you’d like answered?

Hannah is a relaxed homeschooling mama of six. Her and her family are big on the outdoors, big on family days, and big on making memories in everyday small ways. She loves handcrafts, iced lattes, re-arranging furniture and counts falling into bed exhausted a sign of a really great day. She and her husband make a home in upstate New York with their energetic children and a menagerie of animals. Hannah blogs at Cultivating Home and you can connect with her on the facebook page, Cultivating Home.

In our house this is it – our last month of the school year.  My kindergartener and fourth grader are rounding the bend into summer.  But we’re not quite done.  There’s still time to introduce them to some experiential, time-tested projects that I loved when I was a kid.  And if the teacher is excited, the students will be enthralled.  Last month I outlined 8 “old-school” projects.  This month I’m finishing my list of 15 with 7 more.  See if you remember doing these and make time for one or two in your final school days.

1. The Mobile.  Every child has probably made one, but maybe it’s time for another.  For your hanging structure you can cross two wooden sticks, two wooden spoons, or two knitting needles.  Similarly a needlework hoop, paper plate, coat hanger, or a spiral would work.  You can hang anything from them from types of aircrafts for your little ones to types of butterflies for your high-school lepidopterologists.

2. The Book Jacket.  This was some of the most fun I ever had while simultaneously doing a book report.  On the front cover your child will get to create an eye-catching graphic design and title.  On the back cover they’ll summarize the exciting parts of the book without giving away the ending.  And then there’s the inside flaps with their favorite scene and information about the author.  Artsy kids will want to do it all by hand, but this site lets them do one online.

3. The Potato Battery/Egg Drop/Volcano/Slime Project.  I have a teacher friend who spends the last two weeks of the year just doing science experiments with his class.  He says it keeps their attention in those final and very squirrelly days.  Right about now I’m thinking he’s really onto something.  Choose one (or several) of the science projects you’ve always “meant” to do and go for it.  These projects are all demonstrated on the internet ad nauseum.  But have you done them?

4. The Homemade Game.  Your kids have learned a ton this year.  Prove it to yourself and them by having them develop trivia questions from the year (write the answers upside down in small print at the bottom of the question card).  Cut out the back of a pizza box and have them design it into a game board with craft supplies.  Make a spinner or find some dice.  I chose to do this in eighth grade for a culminating book project and I stumped my whole study group with, “How do you spell medieval?”

5. The Paper Mache Globe.  Is your study of the ocean really complete without this?  Blow up a big punch ball balloon, mix some flour and water (or dilute some Elmer’s glue until it’s runny), cut strips of newsprint and you’re off.  Yes, it is messy – that’s why you may never have done this before — but the weather is nice so take it outside.  If you don’t want to draw the continents of the earth you can make a different planet, a piñata, or the Death Star.  Cut the dried sphere in half and make it into a bowl painted with Native American markings.  Or branch out from the spherical shape entirely and try paper mache mummies or animals.

6. The Make-Your-Own Book.  Writing my own story and illustrating it into my own bound book was always a favorite project for me.  You can make and staple together your own booklet, or buy blank bound books with 24-28 pages in them online for around $2 apiece at this site   (note that they also carry blank board games, comic books, and book jackets!)  Let the kids finish the year with a final project they’ll love long past the unit study.

7.  The Collage.  The collage finishes my list because I hold this art form in very high esteem.  This is old-school at its finest.  Patiently thumbing through old magazines, cutting and pasting might seem childish to your older kids, but inspire them with a quick google search and discover the amazing pieces of art that use this technique.  Collage is versatile for all ages and subjects, can be both utilitarian and beautiful and it epitomizes the sentiment, “Don’t miss the forest for the trees.”  Like our lives, collage allows us to take ordinary things and give them life.

These final days don’t have to be full of checklists (“Did we finish all the math?  Can we conjugate all the verbs?  Did we write enough reports?”).  We can infuse some of our past experiences in with our current days and watch our kids blossom through the same methods we once did.  New ideas are fun, but scouring the internet for something new may be more distracting than simply sitting back and thinking through the projects that once inspired you.

Now, finish up with some fun and go enjoy summer.  I’ve got some old-school ideas for that too.  And, I bet, so do you.

Debra Anderson has three sons ages 11 and younger. Her passions are education, mentoring, her husband, writing, church ministry and missional living — not in that order. She has her seminary Masters degree in Christian Education, is married to her pastor-husband of 16 years, and resides in their newish home in Denver, CO. In spite of moves between four different states, she has always home educated her boys — even on the hard days. She maintains a blog at www.emergent-homeschool.blogspot.com.

For those of us who take breaks from school in the summer months, those weeks can be wonderful times of relaxation from the regular hectic schedule.  Because of the extra time, the lazy days of summer can also be perfect for learning or practicing new skills known as handicrafts.

What are handicrafts?  Things you create which prove to be useful.  A very small list of possible handicrafts includes:

• Sewing
• Quilting
• Knitting
• Crocheting
• Embroidery
• Woodworking
• Wood Burning
• Whittling
• Model Making
• Jewelry making
• Pottery
• Photography
• Videography
• Gardening
• Flower Arranging

Rather than waste away summer days allowing your children to sit in front of the TV for hours, encourage handicrafts!  Rather than listen to one more, “I’m bored, there’s nothing to do,” encourage handicrafts!

In our house, I ask the children to consider one or two handicrafts each that they would find interesting to learn or practice over the summer months.  I make sure they have the appropriate supplies, including how-to books from the library if necessary.  I also tend to throw in supplies and how-to books for one or two additional handicrafts of my choosing.

Oftentimes, I join into the handicraft learning in the beginning to encourage my children’s excitement and to make sure they understand where to start.  Because of my involvement, I’ve even found myself finding a new passion once in a while, too!  After the initial time alongside me, I encourage the kids to go for it on their own (or with each other) while I spend time doing mom stuff.  (Oh, how I wish that translated to sitting on the hammock reading books.  But, more often, “my” time finds me catching up on long overdue household chores and planning for the upcoming school year.)

I love that my children are actively engaged in meaningful activities through the summer – activities that make them happy and relaxed. When they come away from the summer with practical skills to boot, I can’t ask for more!

Cindy West is an eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of three who loves learning alongside her children. You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward  and find her nature study curriculum at Shining Dawn Books.

During this Mother’s Day Weekend, grab a cup of coffee or tea and take some time to catch up on these amazing articles from this week at Heart of the Matter!

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

Housekeeping Tips for Disordered Moms

Are We There Yet?

Embracing Spring

Blessing Your Children

Striving to Rest

The Homeschool Experiment by Charity Hawkins – Review and Giveaway

Teachable Moments in Spanish

Homeschooling While Facing Chronic Illness

A few years ago I read a short devotion about a mother who daily prayed a prayer over her children—by placing her hand on her child’s head and saying a prayer for whatever their need might be that day. Then a few months later I met a woman who actually did the same thing, and she mentioned that even when her children were in high school they would still stop at the door to receive their blessing before heading out into the world.

This inspired me to do the same for our children. Now, I won’t say I do it every day—but at least a few times a week—after breakfast I ask if anyone wants their special blessing, and I am usually met with a whirlwind of little feet racing to get to me first. They bow so I can place my hand on their little heads as I pray over each one of them.

This idea probably sounds a bit strange—but I’ll give you five reasons why I love doing it in hopes that you might give it a try too!

1)      HELPS ME FOLLOW A BIBLICAL EXAMPLE The bible is full of examples of parents who gave these same types of blessings to their children. Most of the times I recall—the children grew up, and their lives fulfilled those blessings.  Jesus didn’t have children of his own, but quite frequently he laid hands on people, prayed out loud for them, and healed them in this way too! Sure my words rarely elicit healing in the sense that a boo-boo vanishes before my eyes—but I do believe strongly that words can bring about healing in our children’s hearts, and help them see our love for them.

2)      HELPS BALANCE OUT THE NEGATIVES As a mother—my day is filled with opportunities for correction, discipline, and training. Often times I get tired of hearing my own voice saying—“No!—Don’t!—Stop!—How many times do I have to say…Please do this—Please  don’t do this!—You need to say you’re sorry—Sit in time out—Go back to time out!—Let’s talk about this.”  By nightfall I am often exhausted, and wonder if my kids —based on my words from the day— know how much I love them, desire good things for them, and really believe they are precious gifts from God.

3)      SHOWS THEM LOVE IS AN ACTION RATHER THAN JUST A WORD—For seven years before having children I worked as a nurse taking care of cancer patients. I remember the multitude of prayer needs. Every patient I saw—and every family—were desperate for hope and encouragement. In the beginning I always said, “I’ll be praying for you,” and most people responded receptively.  “Oh yes, please do, and thank you for praying,” they would say. I tried to remember and sometimes did, but often I would forget. So, I decided when I could— I would grab their hand and ask, “Can I pray with you?”  Most times, people quickly agreed and bowed their head with me—as I thanked God for their life, prayed for their healing—and asked God to give them peace using their situation to bring them closer to him. Almost always—these types of heartfelt prayers elicited tears for both patients and families alike. I learned quickly that there was power in the laying of hands on someone and praying with them rather than for them.

4)      HELPS THEM SEE YOU PUT YOUR TRUST IN GOD—While we all have a list of  things we may want to see our children grow up to be and do—if we are wise we will recognize our ability to influence and accomplish these things in and for our children is very limited. When we pray and ask God to shape not only our children but the influences and circumstances of their lives—we are acknowledging to our children that we love them enough to entrust them into the hands of someone who loves them more. Someone who cares intimately about the details of their lives, and is able to do amazing things through them.

5)      UNLEASH GOD’S POWER IN THEIR LIVES-The bible reminds us our words have power —and God’s Word even more so. It makes sense then—when we pray God’s word with a pure heart and right motive—our prayers become a great tool to release God’s power into our children’s lives.  While it is difficult to keep a reign on our tongue—and often we probably find ourselves saying things we wish we hadn’t—we should be glad God has given us a voice and words to use for Him—words that have potential to bring peace, hope, encouragement and blessing.

How about you? Do you pray blessings over your children? If so, how do they respond? If not, I encourage you to take a few days this week to do just that, and see if it doesn’t bring its own blessings into your relationships and home.

________________

Lorrie Young and her husband Ben have three children ages two to six. When not chasing, teaching, training and loving her busy bunch–she enjoys, reading, gardening, golfing, thrift-shopping, and fixing up their old home. She is a semi-retired nurse that aspires to one day be a free-lance writer spending many days resting in her hammock. You can follow Lorrie at  www.lifeandlessonslearned.blogspot.com where she shares her thoughts on homeschooling, faith, life, and the lessons she has learned along the way.

Spring is in the air! Can you smell it? Flowers are blooming, birds are singing and the sun is warming our days.

W can take advantage of this teachable moment to introduce or review some color words  in Spanish. I made a domino to review colors with my niece and a set of Spanish colors posters for you!

My goals for this lesson:

• To introduce and practice colors in Spanish
• To relate colors in their oral and written form

Tell children they will learn the Spanish form of these words:

Red / rojo

Blue / azul

Yellow / amarillo

Orange / naranja

Green / verde

Purple/ violeta

Light blue/ celeste

Pink/ rosa

To prepare the posters you need to print them onto cardboard and laminate for durability. Then..

*Go for a color hunt around home or class.

*Let kids cut and paste pictures from old magazines and make a collage. Ask them about the colors they can see in their pictures.

*Play “I spy” using the posters.

*Invite children to sort manipulatives according to color.

*Make a mural using their favorite color.

* Ask and answer “How many red/ rojas things can you see?”

* Using commands..”point to a yellow/amarillo flower” “pick up a green/verde crayon”

Teachable moments are waiting for you! Happy teaching!

You can download the posters here.

Analia Capurro is the designer and owner of Ingles360.net® and the author of all the educational resources sold in her website. After 20 years of teaching children she found that the only way children love learning is if teachers love learning and teaching, too. Promoting a learning environment where laugh, fun and friendship and companionship are as important as any language structure, are the things she had in mind while designed her bilingual resources.