This will be a short post today. I came across this in my email, and thought this would be a great place to share this FREE guide. Learn about the American presidential election system.
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Sonlight is offering a Civics study for FREE! Download their Downloadable via Election Day Unit Study
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On this day in 1492, Columbus set sail on an exploration. In the past 40-some-odd-years, I have watched technology explode. So I am in awe of the explorers and adventurers that would set sail in a ship in unknown waters, and onward to unknown lands with only a vague inclination of what he hoped to find, without the aid of Google Maps.
As a homeschool mom, and a lover of books, it’s an adventure to the library and some downloads, to share Columbus and his voyages with the kids. As mine are older, I just might have to do my own lapbook. It won’t be the first time!
Enjoy the attached post from my sister page. There are so many resources, so have fun with it!!
via Columbus Set Sail on this day in 1492 from HER Distribution
For older “kids” try these on Kindle. They are reduced price today on Kindle! Enjoy! #ad
Talk about going down the rabbit hole! Today I had Jury Duty. That great institution where we drive into the metropolis, to sit in a room with a couple hundred strangers and await our fate. We hold our breaths as they call out a range of numbers, feeling both relieved it’s not ours, and commiserate those that get called. As my #1 son is about to take American Government as dual credit, and I was researching reading material to add to his experience, I figured this was the best opportunity to really dive into Civics, American Government and our Judicial system.
First, every citizen has the right and responsibility to serve as a juror in our courts. It’s not the most convenient, to be taken away from our work and family to serve, but as voters, it is definitely our responsibility to provide our fellow citizens a trial by a jury of their peers.
So as a homeschool mom, what does it mean for my family? In the state of Texas, the law requires we teach Civics in our homeschool. In general, when asked, I usually recommend teaching our American History to start. In most curricula, a study of our history will include a cursory mention of our founding documents and our government. In the younger ages, this is crucial to understanding certain vocabulary so that it is not so foreign as they progress through their education.
To assist us, there are a couple of resources for the younger ages, and available curricula. (For Full Disclosure, by clicking on links, I may receive compensation either through affiliate marketing, or purchases through my business site, HERDistribution.com. These have been marked with #ad to be identifiable.)
For high school, the civics and American government curricula should be in-depth. With dual credit, it’s also an opportunity to provide a conservative discussion on the history and actions of our government and judicial system.
These two books,Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? and Whatever Happened to Justice? provide the overall model of how human civilization works, especially the world of money.
Once the model is understood, read Are You a Liberal? Conservative? or Confused? This book explains political philosophies relative to Uncle Eric’s Model – and makes a strong case for consistency to that model, no exception. ~Bluestockingpress.com
This is the question I receive most often. As I am in the finalize stage of planning, I am poring over book choices for my senior #1 Son. As he will be taking American Government as dual credit at the local community college, I wanted to take the opportunity to provide some more conservative reading choices. Another aspect I need to consider for this next semester, is that he has multiple classes, and will need a dedicated schedule to keep him on track. Sonlight is still the best option for scheduling, but the current lists are not my favorite.
If you’re unsure where to start, message me. I will be happy to help. So while I decide for my student, I will include pictures and links for your perusal! Enjoy! (These are Amazon Ads, so just know if you click through and make purchases, they help to support my book habit! And I thank you for that!)
The following list has 8 titles, if you cannot see them all, please message me! As I work in a homeschool bookstore, we also have many of these titles. Please message me if you would like to check inventory! I am here to help!
And thanks for visiting!
Many times I get asked what is required for High School. If your child/student is in 8th or 9th grade, you want to have a general idea of what they want to do. Will they go to college? Into what interest/degree area are they leaning? Do they have a college they want to go to? Are they interested in Dual Credit college courses?
All of these answers are important so that you can plan their High School education. In general, the state education agency has a list of required classes needed for graduation. The state may also have a list of requirements for homeschool families. Once you have a list of these courses, you can start to investigate your student’s college and major interests, and their corresponding degree plans. For example, my son is interested in a Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics at University of Texas at Dallas. In order to plan his dual credit courses at the community college, I printed the required courses for the degree plan. Believe it or not, English credit was not required. So I can plan to have him complete his last credit (of 4 total) of English either at home or through the college.
One credit that is required for High School is a semester credit of Speech. For UT-D, they require a Rhetoric credit, which appears to be a step above a Speech credit. As my son is not a confident public speaker, I have been researching options for completing this credit at home or through co-op. If you have a student that might excel in this area, you may be interested in Speech and Debate clubs.
To help with this topic, there is a great article through Great Homeschool Conventions on the 8 Benefits of Speech and Debate/Why Speech and Debate by Suzanne in 2015.
If you have suggestions for Speech and Debate opportunities, please feel free make recommendations in the Comments section. Thanks so much!
Good night! Waiting on PSAT scores is interminable! It’s electronic people!! Why does it take so long?!
Ok, so maybe I need to calm down. Maybe.
It’s only been about 4 weeks since my #1 son survived the taking of the PSAT. There’s no pressure, you know. Just means College. Or NO college. Right?! No pressure!
It is so sad to me that we work so hard in homeschooling to make it about the education, and not about standardized tests. And yet we have been brought low by the PSAT-NMSQT. We focused on practicing for the test. We feel confident in our test taking abilities. And yet, one bad day could be disastrous.
And so I wait…
And the patience-waiting correlation is in a downward spiral.
So here’s to waiting patiently. And praying for that most awesome of scores. And a bright future for #1 son full of opportunities.
I can do this! I am Super Homeschool MOM! LOL
AND while I wait, I’ve been trying to create new projects and new opportunities, because, well…. That’s how I roll. Have to keep busy, or the above insanity ensues. If you’re in the waiting, what do you do? LMK!
(If you’re in denial about your kids growing up, or maybe you have grand-kids in your near future, be sure to click on the Melissa and Doug affiliate link… There are some super duper cuteness on their page.)
I recently published the following post on my business site. PSAT testing should not be missed, whether you use it to practice for the SAT or hoping to be awarded National Merit Scholar. You can click through, and read about how to prepare for and find information for taking the PSAT.
HURRY! You need to register NOW if you want to catch this OCTOBER’s test date (this is critical for High School Juniors).
October is PSAT Test-taking time. Although considered the precursor to the SAT, the PSAT is extremely important, and not to be missed. As it is offered only ONCE A YEAR, this test can easily be missed. 2017 dates are October 11 (Primary) and October 14 (Saturday).
via HER Distribution | Archives | September 2017
You might know by now, this is not my favorite question… but it is the most popular question when I am in the bookstore, as every child and family are different. What works for one child, will not always work for another.
In my limited opinion, the above is true, except for test taking. Every child should do better if they PRACTICE, and practice some more.
The SAT can be taken multiple times, and there are many resources for practicing. So I just wanted to share with you what we accomplished within our homeschool (though the method is recommended for any child: public, private or home school).
What does all this PRACTICE mean? My oldest Logic Smart son was able to improve his SAT score by 50-100 points, every time he completed it (officially and unofficially).
Because the SAT and PSAT have time limitations, and they are so important, many students have Test Anxiety. Although not all of the Anxiety can be cured with practice, being familiar with the test, and what is expected, can help many students alleviate test anxiety to a workable level. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.
Attending workshops whenever they are available, taking PRACTICE tests at home, and taking the SAT at least once a year (starting in the 9th Grade), can go a long way to having improved scores. If you haven’t started early, then I highly recommend taking classes through Princeton Review or Kaplan. If these are not available, a variety of test prep books are available, and Jean Burke provides her workshops on-line at College Prep Genius.
For my youngest Body Smart daughter, test taking is NOT her thing. So the plan, as described in the above article, is to start with the PSAT 8/9 in the spring of Eighth Grade , and PRACTICE the SAT as much as possible. As she is undecided regarding college, I promise to do my best not to torture her. But until she makes a decision, I wish her to be prepared for anything.
I recently published the following post on my commerce blog about preparing for College, and starting the process early. Please click through to read.
High School planning should begin about the 7th or 8th grade. As requirements for graduation are varied for each state, and college admissions are as varied as the colleges themselves, research and planning should begin early.
When your student is in the 7th or 8th grade, you will want to make decisions regarding whether your student will be going to Dual Credit classes, what classes you want to complete before graduation, and look at the pre-requisites and requirements for accomplishing your High School goals.
Source: Homeschooling for High School: Preparing |herdistribution.com
For the texashach4 family, I knew I wanted my oldest Logic Smart child to complete his Physics studies with a particular co-op teacher. In order to do that, we made some decisions for his 8th and 9th grade year, so that he would be ready for dual credit his Junior year, and completed his Physics with Ms. Patti. It was a bit grueling, but we completed our goals.
Secondly, although I had a copy of Kathleen Duncan’s Homeschool for High School (Seminar Notebook), and Jean Burk’s High School Prep Genius, I really liked the format and Biblical application of Glenda Durano’s Christian’s Guide to College Admissions. It’s an excellent tool.
Thanks for visiting! Please let me know what you think!
Math, math, and more math. Every time I turn around, there’s a new article on math. How to choose the curriculum, how to teach the math, and why it’s important. Let’s face it, everyone needs to be able to do some form of math. And yes, even simple counting is math.
Obviously if math were easy, there would be very little differentiation in math curricula. However, we are all fearfully and wonderfully made, and wholly unique. Some of us can see math, some of us can hear math, and some just DO math. So curriculum producers try to reach all of our unique learning styles with their method. Go to any homeschool bookfair in the spring or early summer, and you can see ALL the variety of math curricula available. It boggles the mind.
First, you need to know the students learning style. Dr. Kathy Koch of Celebrate Kids, Inc. identifies the “smarts”, aka multiple-intelligences, in which we all function.
All children – and adults, for that matter – need to know they are smart. It’s a power word and a powerful concept. And, it’s realistic because everyone is smart! – Dr. Kathy Koch, CelebrateKids.com
I heard Dr. Koch speak at the Texas Homeschool Coalition bookfair this past May. I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you get a chance, go see hear and see her workshop. My daughter struggles to identify herself as smart, especially as she compares herself (Body Smart) to her older brother (Logic Smart). This year we hope to learn to be confident in our smarts!
I highly recommend reading through 8 Great Smarts by Kathy Koch, PhD before choosing new curriculum, it’s an eye-opener! CelebrateKids.com
As a bookstore manager of a homeschool resource store, I get the questions, “What do you recommend?” and “What did you use with your kids?” Because we are so uniquely created, and our family lifestyles are different, and even our family dynamics are different, these are actually tough questions. What is the warning, “Results are not typical” or “Results may not be typical.” I don’t mind telling you what I used with my kids, but just because it seems to have worked with my kids doesn’t mean it’s for everyone.
For my oldest Logic Smart child, math and science has always come easy. A Beka Arithmetic was “easy” enough (on me) that I could give him a page-a-day. With very little help from Mom, he worked the problems as given on the page. He’s my independent learner, and he just DOES math.
Results are not typical…
My youngest Body Smart child did not see the same results. She does not hear, or see, math in the same way as her older brother. And she is definitely doesn’t DO math.
In closing, I do recognize that there are many curricula to choose from: Right Start Math, Life of Fred, Teaching Textbooks, Horizons Math, Saxon Math, MasterBooks, etc. The list is long. There are so many to choose from.
Feel free to send me your questions about any Math program you have come across, and I will do my best to answer your questions. Personally, I’m Picture Smart, so I might have to do some research and LOOK at the curriculum in question!
Came across the Kim Sutton series recently through our homeschool bookstore. I find them interesting! And who doesn’t love double dice or math manipulatives:
Thanks so much for visiting!
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