Lovin' It!

Hi friends,

Well,  we're not too far into our Ambleside journey, but even at this early stage, I can tell my children are loving it!  There is alot of reading, but since my children are voracious readers anyway, I've not heard one complaint.  :)

So our days are very busy right now, but I hope to post about our first weeks of school very soon.

Until then, I'll leave you with a quote from Barb, a Charlotte Mason blogger, at Harmony Art Mom....

"When you take the boring textbooks and worksheets and fear of multiple choice exams out of the environment, filling the home with interesting books with living ideas and having face to face discussions, there is an eagerness to learn. There are no boundaries. They don't have to wait until next year to learn about geometry because we are too busy trudging through the algebra book. We have room in our day to answer questions to satisfaction, even to encourage more questions. Things become so intertwined that we don't see where our school day begins or ends. It is just parents and kids, books and ideas, learning and living."

A Link to Some Wonderful Science Videos

Hi friends,

Today I found this website (Answers in Genesis) with wonderful Science videos for children, and all from a Creation world view.

The link is www.answersingenesis.org/kids/videos .

Enjoy! We certainly are.   :)

Have a blessed week-end, everyone!

Home School vs. Doing School

Enough said.

Our Dual-purpose School Room

Hi friends,

Today is the big day: we begin our new curriculum .  And I wanted to share some photos of our school room (formerly our oldest daughter's bedroom) with you. It's one of my favorite rooms in our house.   :)

My hubby is a carpenter - the (indulge me, please, while I brag on my man) best carpenter  because he learned from the best: my beloved father-in-law.

So when I casually mentioned to him that I would like some bookshelves for school books in the play room, I could see the wheels starting to turn. And he started spitting out suggestions faster than I could process them!  What we ended up with is a wonderful room full of bookshelves, maps, and well, it's what I consider a room full of learning.....

Lots and lots of books... but these aren't just school books. And we already need more shelf space. Ok, I confess: I'm a book hoarder!   ;)

                                                 Scriptures and maps...

                       Photos of favorite historical figures ("Stonewall" Jackson and Robert E. Lee).

                    Rope lights around the closet doors add extra light to the room.

  The children picked out the material for me to make these curtains and pillows. This is a favorite reading spot for them.

I never tire of the view from this window and I love the wide window sill. It's where I keep my lesson schedule book.

                       Mimi likes to sit at her tea party table and  do her "lessons". 

             We started a new tradition a few years ago: our younger children's handprints on the wall.

                   And our grandchildren, too. Little Evelette's handprints have yet to be added.   :)

                     What's a school room without Old Glory?

                            One of my favorite things about the room: hubby made these desks.

He installed a light above each one and they are hinged to the wall, so you can "put them away" when our lessons are finished. (I looove this man!!!)

    Once the desks are folded up, it's time to get out the Lincoln Logs!



Now, let me clarify something. Just because we have a school room doesn't mean that we're confined to that room when we do our lessons. It is a wonderful place to have school, but we're not in that room all day every day.

                              My children have been known to do their lessons here...

                                                      ...or here...

                                                          ...or here...

                                                         ...or here...

                                                            ...or here..

                                                ...or even the front yard.


We believe that home education is not about a room. As Charlotte Mason said, "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life."

Hope you enjoyed the "tour" of our dual-purpose school room.  :)

Happy homeschooling!










sharing with The Modest Mom

Homeschool 2012-2013

 

                                         (the Charlotte Mason motto)



Well, it's about that time again; another school year is just around the corner - as in Monday...for us, anyway.

Some of you may remember some of my posts from last year about how we switched to the Charlotte Mason method (s) of home education. It was a wonderful year. But that's not to say we didn't have any bad days. Because we did. But the bad days were few and far between. My children seem to now have a real desire to learn. And they don't want to memorize information, they want to acquire knowledge. And there's a big difference between the two.

So the year rolled along quite well. The children learned and loved learning. And I loved watching them learn.

 Then, in February, imagine how thrilled I was to discover a Charlotte Mason-based curriculum! It's called Ambleside Online. Not only is it CM based, but it's also free! That's right - free!! As in.....if you have Internet service, most of the books can be read online. (I have had to buy a total of 10 books for my children, but most of them could probably be found at the local library.) They even have weekly schedules for each level so you can print them out.

It seemed too good to be true. As I looked around on the site, the booklists for each seemed overwhelming, and that's an understatement. But I have some CM blogging friends who helped me sort it all out. And I am pleased to announce that, after taking some time over the summer to prepare, we are ready to officially become an "AO family" beginning on Monday.

I am still a bit intimidated about starting a brand new curriculum (you know the saying about teaching an old dog new tricks - lol), but this is something we have prayed about and feel that this is the Lord's will for us. Plus, there is a new forum for AO curriculum users, and it's already been a tremendous help to me.

So Monday is the big day. We eagerly look forward continuing our homeschool journey.....just in a new way and with a new curriculum, and hopefully, we have a lifetime of learning ahead of us.  :)

How about you, readers? Are you changing your curriculum this year? Or are you using  the same one as last year? I'd love to hear what your plans are for the new year.  :)

Hope you're having a wonderful week!

"Come, you children, listen to me; and I will teach you the fear of the Lord."
 ~ Psalm 34:11

A Most Precious Gift

 "Oh Lord, You have formed my inward parts,

You have covered me in my mother's womb.

I will praise you for I am fearfully 

and wonderfully made." 

~ Psalm 139: 13-14

We are thanking God 

for the safe delivery 

and precious gift

of our fourth grandchild

and second granddaughter,

Evelette Rae Elyssa

Tuesday, August 7th, 2012

8:06 am

7 lbs.  10 oz.

20 inches

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

and the fruit of the womb is a reward.

Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them."

~ Psalm 127:3, 5

Holding Daddy's hand.

Adorable little feet.

Can you tell that I'm in heaven?  :)

Dear friends, 

 Thanks so much for all the prayers and well wishes for my daughter, the baby, and our trip. The delivery went well, and Mommy and baby are doing great.
Evelette means "promise of life", and her

 middle name "Elyssa" is in keeping with the tradition of my daughters and granddaughters having a form of my name as a middle name.  :)


Hope you all have a blessed week,

A Short Blogging Break, and Prayers, Please

Dear readers,

My little corner of the web will be quiet for awhile, as we pack up and head north to be present for the birth of our 2nd granddaughter.

Prayers are coveted for a safe and healthy delivery....and for a healthy recovery, as well.

I won't be online again til the 13th or 14th. After all, who has time for the internet when there's a beautiful baby girl to hold??  ;)

Until we meet again,

"Yes, may you see your children's children." - Psalm 128:6