Teaching Driver’s Education

Visit the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety website for the most current information. Are you teaching your student how to drive? Helping someone get their driver’s license can be intimidating because of all the official steps and rules involved in the process. But you have helped your student learn all sorts of things, and you … Continue reading Teaching Driver’s Education

The Homeschool Meltdown

“What just happened?  School was going really well and suddenly my child is in a puddle on the floor.” If you have been homeschooling for a bit, you’ve probably experienced this drastic turnaround. Your child is frustrated; you are frustrated.  What can you do now? Find the Source of the Frustration Before reacting to an … Continue reading The Homeschool Meltdown

Philosophies and Methods

Jump to the Methods In the modern world, the realm of education and teaching methods spark controversy in many circles.  Teaching methods can cause rifts in parenting groups, bring control from government institutions, and even kill you!  Don’t believe us?  Take a look at Socrates, who was executed for “corrupting the youth” (teaching his students to … Continue reading Philosophies and Methods

Busy Boxes

I have about three or four busy boxes that keep active toddlers and preschoolers occupied. I fit several different activities into each box, sorting them by age as I see fit. The trick is to keep them special. Put them away where they can’t be seen, and pull one out when you need a child to be … Continue reading Busy Boxes

My Kid is Behind

Many of us, at one point or another, have thought that our child is behind. Maybe they have not completed the curriculum by the end of the year. Possibly they missed an idea somewhere along the road and now there seems to be a gap in learning. Or they are just plain behind.  All of … Continue reading My Kid is Behind

How to Plan a Nature Study Trip

Nature study has been one of the most enjoyable things we’ve done as a family. It has offered multiple benefits including fostering quality family time, honing observation skills, studying nature in the real world, allowing social time for myself and the kids, giving us opportunities to make connections with science. We believe that getting out … Continue reading How to Plan a Nature Study Trip

Authors are our Teachers

A word fitly spokenIs like apples of gold in pictures of silver. – Prov. 25:11 Great authors are wordsmiths.  Through vivid imagery and careful syntax, their words ferry our minds to mythical lands with unexpected characters or turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.  This is artistry in ink; a picture painted in intelligible letters placed, … Continue reading Authors are our Teachers

Managing a Home in a State of Flux

How do you get it all done?  Dishes, laundry, meals (both prepping and planning), vacuuming the incessant dog hair, keeping surfaces clean and dust-free, making the beds, chauffeuring kids to activities, AND homeschooling?  The truth is, it CAN’T all be done.  Unfortunately, things that get done are quickly undone by other persons residing with you.  … Continue reading Managing a Home in a State of Flux

Is Your Curriculum working for your family?

Mid-year breaks are a great time to evaluate whether that shiny product you bought in August is still working in your homeschool.  Remember when you bought it?  You were sure that this was the thing that was going to help your kid get it.  But now it’s not proving the test of time (or the … Continue reading Is Your Curriculum working for your family?

How to Plan a Field Trip

Field trips can be a rich source for actual education; I mean REAL learning. My family visited a military history museum in Broken Arrow recently, and the guys who work there are all military veterans who want to tell you about the wars they were in and their personal experiences. It was enlightening! There’s no … Continue reading How to Plan a Field Trip