Before Mount Rushmore, there was Stone Mountain. Located near Atlanta, Georgia, Stone Mountain is the largest exposed granite face in the world and depicts a carving of three Confederate heroes of the Civil War: President Jefferson Davis, General Robert E. Lee, and General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson. The carved surface measures three acres, larger than a […]
Making Clouds from Latin
One of the greatest things about classical education is the emphasis on integration and making connections between all the subjects to one another. I try to keep my eyes open for those connections. I don’t know much Latin yet. And I’ve never been able to keep all the different cloud names straight. That is, until […]
Continental Blob Maps
As a person who never studied world geography (or maybe slept through it?), I find it fascinating with the idea that my children are able to draw maps of the world freehand by the end of 7th grade! Although it seems impossible, taking baby steps to get there certainly has made it possible for us. […]
Passport to Memory Work… or Geography
Last year I used passports for review time in co-op class. And because I am now revisiting this idea… while in a halfway planning mode for next year and while we are preparing for our an End-of-Year Geography Fair (an event our homeschool group adds to our end-of-year celebration), I thought I’d share it once […]
From the heart… with new meaning
These thoughts… written about a year ago and reposted just recently and now again… with new meaning as we experience an incredible void in our lives… One week ago, my husband’s oldest brother fell asleep out on a drillship in the Gulf of Mexico, never to wake again in this life. It is a loss that […]
Up-Up-Up through the Atmosphere
The hook: Felix Baumgartner’s record-breaking freefall skydive. Although he’s only up in the stratosphere, it looks like he’s out in space beyond our atmosphere. This video is just so amazing. Oh, how I have marveled at the balloon rising above the earth (so that’s what it looks like in the stratosphere?), and of that daring […]
Memory Work – The Sticker Incentive
When it comes to memory work, I’ve been known to resort to all sorts of bribery rewards. Last week, it was M&Ms, this week it was stickers. When we parent-proof all three of them at the end of the year, we use coins. It’s pretty motivating when they get to put a coin on top […]
Our Next 50 States Trip
We are currently planning one of our 50-States-Before-They-Graduate trips. This trip will include 8 states: Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. Our three main goals for each state is to Experience the countryside and soak in the beauty of God’s creation Delve into some history by visiting at least one […]
Free e-books on education
All three of the following books are referenced in the movie IndoctriNation and are free to read on-line. This week, my husband and I started reading John Taylor Gatto’s book An Underground History of American Education. Having worked within the walls of the public schools as a high school and middle school math teacher, I […]