Summer Fun and Homeschool Reading

Summer is here and you are going to make sure your kids not only have a super fun summer, but also work a little “fun school” into the mix. You just planned a killer rocks and minerals summer fun unit study and it has a good bit of reading in it. STOP! Your child is still having a few problems learning to read.

Don’t let that get you or them down. Summer can still be fun while you help your child grasp learning to read, but in a gentler, or maybe I should say, laid back summer fashion kinda way. Cut down on the amount of reading, or put some of it on tape for them to listen to.

Learning to read can be frustrating for many kids. Sometimes it just doesn’t click because the child is simply not ready to read yet, even if they are 12 years old. My daughter struggled with reading until about age 12. She does have dyslexia and CAPD, but also, she just hadn’t found anything worth reading. Once she stumbled upon books that drew her in, she was off and running. Does she still struggle now and again, of course she does, but she IS reading, and more than that, she is enjoying reading.

Listening to what your kids talk about gives you clues as to the type of books that just might be the spark they need to get going. Maybe your kid loves fantasy, or horses, or historical fiction, or mysteries. Maybe your child is wondering if there are any stories about homeschool children, or if there are any books written by homeschoolers. Well, yes there are!  Books by homeschoolers are becoming more popular. Many are written by homeschool highschoolers and homeschool graduates.  Others are written by homeschool parents.

My daughter loves Eargon by Christopher Paolini. I remember a few years back telling her that he was a homeschooled kid. Well, that was all she needed! She decided if at 15 he could write a bestselling novel, she could too. She began writing her book. While she didn’t finish, it was a huge catalyst in her learning more about writing and improving her writing skills. She has since moved on to fan fiction.

You never know, you just might have a budding author in your homeschool!

Homeschool Resources

I realize school is coming to a close for most homeschoolers, but now is the time to begin thinking about homeschool resources for next year. You have worked with your current curriculum and resources for the last eight months or so and have an idea of what did or didn’t work for you and your kids. You also have a better understanding of what you might like to try next year.

I like to “try before I buy” whenever I can, and I LOVE freebie resources. Some free resources are not too great, but now and then you come across some that are very educationally sound. I will list some of my favorites later.

One important aspect of considering new curricula or resources is gathering as much feedback about what you can. Talking to other home schooling families about what they use is one way to achieve this. Just because one or two families don’t like a particular product, resource, or curriculum doesn’t mean it is not a fit for everyone. Their needs are not your needs. Things that didn’t work for them very well be just what you are looking for.

Another method of obtaining feedback is by visiting educational forums and blogs. Homeschool reviews are quite popular these days and you will find as many pros as cons about almost everything you read. The trick is to analyze the pros and cons against the needs of you and your children. Does the resource of program meet your teaching style? Does it meet the learning styles of your children? Is there a contract involved? Is it affordable? Is a science curriculum offered? Is a math curriculum offered? Does the program offer resources for language arts, math, social studies…? Does it lend itself to multiple learning styles? Is it flexible enough for all of my kids to use it? Is the record keeping done for you? These are just a few of the questions you should ask yourself as you look at the multitude of possibilities.

Here are some of my favorite free resources: (various grade levels and subjects covered at each site)

Learning Games for Kids
Vocabulary Is Fun
Khan Academy
Vocabulary Spelling City
BBC
Homeschool Literature
Time4Writing (is a paid site, but has lots of free resources available)
Mr. Donn
Let's Homeschool Highschool 

Technorati Tags: online games,online learning,science curriculum,vocabulary,essay writing,homeschool literature,science,history,language

Word Search

I am all about building a great vocabulary, but sometimes it can get rather dull for my daughter. Truthfully, it gets down right boring just coming up with interesting sentences to demonstrate mastery of each new word on the list. I was searching for ways to spice things up when I remembered how much fun word search puzzles are. Right?

Yes, I believe a good old fashioned word search will do the trick. I know I love solving word searches. I am considering having her also make a crossword puzzle for the words, after all this is high school homeschooling. The challenge will be good for her; make her put her thinking cap on.

The crossword exercise will take more time because you really have to plan out where to put words so they have at least one letter to share. Plus, you have to come up with clues that don’t give away the answer. I guess we could both come up with a crossword puzzle and switch them; I solve hers and she solves mine.

She is a visual-spatial learner though, so she should be able to handle it.

How about your homeschool, what interesting activities do you have your child work on to cement vocabulary words? Please share!

Homeschool Writing Courses

Lately there seems to be a push toward homeschool writing courses. Maybe I just notice it more since my daughter is in high school now and writing is very much a critical skill for high school kids who want to enter college. Actually, writing is a critical skill for everyone, not just those wishing to go to college. Good writing skills are helpful to those in the workforce and even those who do not work. At some point even those who do not have an outside job have the need to draw upon their writing skills whether it’s a letter to the editor, a letter to a business, letters to a family member or friend, keeping  a journal, or even learning to write a blog.  Writing is crucial!

   "For a change [students] are owning rather than renting the language of the classroom. . . .For a change they are applying theory and thinking creatively." -Larry Levy, Delta College Instructor Emiriti

Learning to write is important, but writing to learn is just as important and facilitates learning to write. Does that make sense? Writing enhances a person's learning of content. For example if a student is working on a science experiment, the simple act of writing about the steps involved and the conclusion helps them reflect upon and summarize their understanding. It helps them synthesize material and learn critical thinking skills all the while they are also improving their writing skills.

According to Diane Boehm, Instructional Support Programs, Saginaw Valley State University, the following are benefits of writing to learn: (easily adaptable to homeschooling)

1. WTL promotes active learning.
2. Students use their own language to understand course concepts; they "own" rather than "rent" the language and ideas.
3. WTL stimulates participation and discussion (/every/ student has a response to the question).
4. Teachers discover what students are thinking and learning, what's clear and what isn't.
5. WTL creates opportunity for teacher/student and student/student dialogue.
6. Students can "rehearse" ideas and strategies before tackling formal writing assignments; they can "practice" before the "big game."
7. WTL creates a way for students to reflect upon what they are learning, to think meta-cognitively and personally about their learning processes in the course.
8. WTL assists students in discovering what they know and what they don't know.
9. WTL gives everyone a stake in the class.
10. WTL can be adapted for whole group or small group activities.
11. WTL creates opportunities to write for audiences other than the teacher.
12. WTL allows for formative (assisting in the process) rather than only summative (evaluating a product) assessments.

Maybe helping your student see how writing to learn will benefit them, learning to write will not be as big a chore for them.

How To Homeschool: Many Opportunities

How to homeschool is a question many prospective homeschooling families want and need answered. Often times even homeschoolers of just a few years would like helpful information about how to homeschool because they are not confident they are actually “homeschooling properly”.

The first thing I would suggest to new homeschooling families or families thinking about homeschooling is a wonderful free e-book written by veteran homeschooling families just for new homeschooling families. It is comprehensive without being overwhelming. The book includes where to begin, homeschooling basics, homeschooling laws, homeschooling basics, using the Internet, connecting with other homeschoolers, creating a schedule, using a calendar, keeping a portfolio, and even includes a glossary of homeschooling terms so you can learn to “talk the talk”.

Another great resource is a You Tube video called 5 Things I Wish I Had Known When I Started Homeschooling.

Lots of families are interested in either Christian homeschooling or secular homeschooling. There are wonderful forums and support groups for both. Sometimes it is possible to pick and choose from both to work into an eclectic curriculum.

Today, many families are hitting the highway and seeing the world. They realize the many opportunities road schooling offers their children as far as education is concerned. Possibilities are endless for these adventurous families. How exciting it is to actually visit places you have studied.

There is no one perfect way to homeschool and one size doesn’t fit all. It takes time to find a good fit for your family. Don’t give up, it is worth it for you and your precious children!

Homeschool Lapbooking

According to Squidoo, lapbooking is defined as:

…making mini-books covering details that you’ve studied. After making a variety of mini-books about a larger topic, all the books are put together in a large folder. The finished product is called a lapbook because it’s large and covers your lap.

Homeschool lapbook writing is very popular, and can be done by anyone, even adults. This educational method engages the learner in several hands-on mini-book projects covering details they have studied. After making a variety of mini-books about a larger topic, all the books are put together in a large folder. Any subject or event can be turned into a lapbook--math, history, art, science, poetry, a field trip, a vacation, the new puppy… Hands-on learning is important because academic learning is too abstract for many students. According to John Goodland, students need to see, touch and smell what they hear, read and write about.

While creating the lapbook, ideas and thoughts are turned into something visible and structured. It brings together your left brain (words, logic) and right-brain skills (images, color, rhythm, space) which dramatically increases your mind power.The right-brained visual learner is right at home with this learning method as are many other students.

Our brains think in unique and logarithmic ways. Chunking refers to the strategy of breaking down information into bite-sized pieces so the brain can more easily digest new information. A mini book is a chunk of information about a particular theme or subject.

Lapbooking is also an excellent way of storing and recalling information and presenting things to others. The completed lapbook can serve as a review tool as your children refer to it over and over again. Many homeschooling families use lapbooks as a record of what their student studied during the year. If you have to keep a homeschool portfolio to document learning each year, lapbooks can be a very impressive addition.

Lapbooking incorporates a wide range of modalities, thus the student is going to be more engaged and enthusiastic. According to Educational Testing Service in 2001, students who participate in hands-on learning activities outperform their peers by 72% of a grade level in math and 40% of a grade level in science. This study indicates that the most effective class.

Read what Dee says about lapbooking and see her example of a lapbook. If  your child is artistic, have him draw the graphics. But if drawing gives your child fits, then find some nice clipart for him to paste into the mini-books. Search the Internet for images related to your topic

What kind of mini-book should you use? In the beginning, start small. Make some basic books with easy folds, and add your information into them. As you gain experience, you can venture out into some of the more complicated mini-books.

What kind of lapbooks have your children completed?

High School Homeschool Writing

Writing is very important these days, especially for kids planning on attending college. It is also important for kids once they hit the workforce. Sadly, many kids struggle with writing when they don’t have to. Many parents struggle with teaching writing. There is a solution.

Homeschool Mom:  “Johnny, today’s assignment is an easy one. I want you to write a story about the meaning of Christmas. Make sure you have a good beginning, middle, and end. Make sure you have quality paragraphs… You know how to go about good paragraph writing. I covered it two years ago, remember? We spent a whole two days on it. Be sure to check your spelling and punctuation. Begin with a great attention getting topic sentence. Make sure you close by restating your main idea. Hmmm, go ahead and make it between 1000 and 1500 words. That shouldn’t take too long. Oh, and you might as well write an outline draft first. Well, what are you waiting for? I have other things on the agenda today too”

Johnny:  “An attention grabber what?? Topic sentence where?? 800-1000 words! I might as well concede now. At least I know a great paragraph consists of three sentences. I think I better make a Christmas wish for Santa to write this essay for me. I’m doomed.”
Can you feel Johnny’s frustration? He has no idea what Mom is asking him to do. She assumes he soaked up all her teaching. Johnny is sure he will have to muster every the, and, is , of…to help reach the 1000 to 1500 word death count since he now feels totally overwhelmed by Mom.
Can you relate to the silly story above? Some high school homeschool kids need structured writing lessons, and sometimes Mom is just not the one to do the instructing. The Mom above is stressing Johnny out, and is clearly not in tune with him. Many times kids listen better to someone else. An online writing tutor is a great solution for situations like this.

A tutor has the ability to be more objective with students. They have no preconceived notions, and have years of specialized training in all areas of writing. Students tend to work harder for the tutor than they do for Mom.
If you find yourself in this type of situation, give an online writing tutor a shot. You just might be surprised how much your child will thank you!

Thanks, I spoke to one tutor who helped my students a bit and then convinced me to switch to a different homeschool math curriculum.