We’ve enjoyed having our eldest son among us while he’s home from college. This week gave me a glimpse of a life once lived in our home – one where four boys worked together on assignments and projects…. Before this chapter of his life, I knew I would miss this. I just didn’t realize how […]
Christmas Wrap 2023
Another year down, ’23 in the book. What happened this year? Now let’s take a look! The start of the year is the best to begin. When the boys and their dad finished up at Bag End. (Bag End is the nickname for a tiny home we built for our sons who are going to […]
Light of the World Candleholder Craft
With a theme this summer of light vs. darkness, our community’s choir camp focused on building crafts related to light. Before tackling this craft, we discussed Matthew 5:16… Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. …and explored ways we can […]
Curriculum Picks, Schedules, & Lessons Learned
When our eldest son graduated two years ago, I had no idea how much it would shift my priorities and our family dynamic. While it’s been a joy to watch him pursue his post-homeschool educational endeavors (and work in his first research internship with Oak Ridge National Laboratory), the honest truth is that… when he […]
Homeschool High School Lesson Plans: Truth Trek One
Intimidated by homeschooling high school? You don’t have to be! We’ve done the planning for you with High School Lesson Plans: Truth Trek series. A few years ago, we started to pursue a long-term vision of developing a complete course of study for Grades K-12, one in which families can experience many of the benefits […]
How to Teach Public Speaking
Public Speaking. It strikes a fear and dread into the hearts of almost all of us. A quote often attributed to Mark Twain makes the point more bluntly: “There are only two types of speakers in the world. 1. The nervous and 2. Liars.” And yet… this is one of the most important skills we […]
Mission: World Wonders Curriculum Plan
We’ve memorized history sentences. We’ve memorized science facts. We’ve memorized geography locations. These have all been valuable pieces of information for us to learn as we practice the skill of memorization. Yet… something was still missing for us in the elementary years. Our family needed more. For the past decade, I’ve developed reading plans and […]
Mission: World Wonders in Action!
Have you ever wondered how things really turn out in other family’s homeschools? Does it really look like the utopian pictures on the front of the A Beka catalog? Perhaps it does in others’ homes, but… not us. The more I learn to accept that it won’t ever look like that in our home, the […]
Story-Driven Economics Curriculum: Economics for Everybody
“I just love this curriculum.” – David, Age 17 When embarking on a study of high school economics, this was not a statement I expected to hear from my teenage son. I did not expect our 17-year-old to become an economics enthusiast. In fact, I have not seen him this excited about a course of study […]