homeschool

Community Workers

February 20, 2012 2 Comments

Community workers are part of our studies in Social Studies. Community workers are important people in our society. They work and serve the community in their own special vocations.

I asked my kids who are their favorite community workers and to act them out. My daughter’s favorite community worker is the teacher. She said that when she grows up, she would like to be a teacher! She doesn’t need to wear western boots or be super fashionable, she just needs to teach children and to teach them well.

My son’s favorite community worker is the handyman. Probably due to the influence of Handy Manny, Disney’s cartoons. He pretended to fix our window using screw driver and other handy man tools.

Who are your favorite community workers?

Filed Under: homeschool Tagged With: Community

Following God Bible Curriculum Review

January 30, 2012

The beginning of this school year, my son who is in Kindergarden used Following God Bible Curriculum and Character Building for his Bible subject. We chose it as it was recommended by The Master’s Academy. It is locally published by ICI Ministries Inc.

The Following God series invites students to follow God and trust Him as their Lord, Savior and Friend. Each of the lessons shows a story from the Bible and blends it with values education. Each lesson comes with a memory verse, explanation what the Bible says, fun facts, fun activities and prayer guide. The activities include pages which the student can choose to color, words to trace, few mazes, connect the dots. Upon completion of each unit, there is a certificate which you can use to award your student.

There are 3 units in the entire book and 10 lessons in each unit. This book focuses on God’s creation, God’s love and God’s help.

My son enjoyed the coloring activity at the beginning of the course but eventually got tired of it.The lesson seems simple enough for kindergarden kids but I think it lacks depth and isn’t engaging the students enough to actually remember the lessons each time. For homeschool, I think you need to supplement this curriculum with other materials to make it more interesting. This would make a good Sunday school curriculum though.

Filed Under: homeschool, reviews Tagged With: Bible curriculum, Following God

Back From the Break!

January 11, 2012

After the Christmas season, it is always difficult to go back to day to day routine. Well, for us that is. We are a homeschooling family and routine is important for us so that we can remain productive in our studies daily. After many days of break, it is quite hard to get back to our daily study routine of breakfast-get dressed- prayer and devotions – first subject – lunch – second subject and on and on and on… It takes a long time before we all get focused on our task for the day.

I realized that as the teacher, my kids look up to me to see if I am ready to teach them too! You see, most of the time, I get swamped with chores at the house, work that needs to be finished and our homeschooling. Here are some steps which helped me to go back to our homeschooling routine after a long holiday break.

List down your goals. This is why I truly appreciate one of the top gifts I have received over the past Christmas season, the 24/7 Mom Planner from Mommy Mundo. I can list down all that I have to do for the day or the week and get them off my mind so that I can focus clearly on the task at hand.

Start with fun activities. We started with arts and crafts and experiments. We stayed away from too much writing and thinking on our first week. This will help the kids transition into their usual study habits.

Use the stories from the holiday season as a spring board of discussion for current studies.

Do you have other tips you’d like to share? How did your kids get back to their daily routine after a long holiday break?

Filed Under: homeschool, Uncategorized

The ADVENTure of Christmas

December 21, 2011

I have always wondered about the meaning and the reason behind many of our Christmas traditions. This year, I wanted to study it along with my kids. Early this year, I won a book entitled The ADVENTure of Christmas by Lisa Whelchel from Erica of Confession of a Homeschooler . This book was perfect for our study!

The book has 24 lessons. Each day, we discuss one tradition like why we hang lights on the house, wrap gifts, or decorate the Christmas tree. Each discussion becomes opportunities to share how these traditions relate to Jesus’ birth. My 7 year old daughter loved it and understood the meaning of each tradition.

This is a great way to start off Christmas in every household. It reminds us of the essence and true meaning of Christmas!

Filed Under: book review, books, homeschool help Tagged With: The Adventure of Christmas

Update on Our Homeschooling

November 22, 2011

The second quarter portfolio review is done! The academic consultant assigned to us was very happy with Kyla’s performance. She was able to explain her portfolio vividly and shared what she learned by answering impromptu questions from the teacher. She also noted that my daughter is now more confident in answering questions and sharing what she knows. I myself am satisfied with her grades but moreso, I am glad that she is enjoying school and actually flourishing! Character wise, I can see that she is learning and truly living out what she is learning.

As for my son, I am so excited that he can now read 3 letter words and write better. He only knows his math and basic addition and subtraction. He listens during our quiet time and character lessons, but sometimes, there are days when I actually ask myself if he is learning anything from our homeschooling. He needs regular reminder about character issues.

But whenever I feel like giving up on homeschooling , I remember what other homeschooling moms would say. They say that it will take years before you will finally see the fruit of your labor. Just be consistent and don’t give up. Keep praying and know that God is at work in the heart of our kids.

Filed Under: homeschool, my family and kids