Friday, September 27, 2013
Friday, September 20, 2013
The Middle Ages Themed Resources and Freebies
The Middle Ages is such a fun time period to study. I wish I would have taken pictures and blogged when my now teenager was a little boy and we were studying the Middle Ages! When we study World History next year I may have to have him dress up as a knight and build a cardboard castle for old times sake!
Enjoy this HUGE list of FREE Printables, Resources, Lapbooks, Unit Studies and More!
Friday, September 13, 2013
Pardon Us, We're Off on a Rabbit Trail
It’s so easy to miss out on one of the coolest parts of homeschooling: spontaneous learning. Or what I call “rabbit trails.”
Kids are made to be naturally curious, and spontaneous learning is simply following that curiosity, seeing where it takes us. I like to think of it as all the unplanned (yet exciting) adventures that Alice has following the White Rabbit throughout Wonderland. Spontaneous learning brings freshness and joy to education. It really is the fastest ticket to creating life-long learners, which is one of my top goals as a homeschooler teacher.
So why are we moms continually tempted to squelch this type of learning? Come on… I can’t be the only one out here.
Ah yes, because we’re the responsible ones. The ones who must keep the family engine humming along at breakneck speed so that everyone can get to swim class by 4:00 and dinner at 6:30. We know that if we do allow the kids to pull out that big box of electronic gear to tinker with, not only is there going to be a big mess to clean up, but some other “ultra-important” school worksheet isn’t going to get done.
Ahem.
Read the rest...
http://www.thevintagecreative.com/2013/08/29/pardon-us-were-off-on-a-rabbit-trail/
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Friday, September 6, 2013
Mind the Gaps
It's like someone hands you a train schedule when you are five years old, and it details the plan for every day of the next thirteen to seventeen years of your life. The stops are laid out, the timetable is set. There is only one set of tracks for your school train.
They are the same for everyone. They tell you this is the only way to get between stops, where you are tested to make sure the train is on schedule. Sometimes you might see a shortcut to the next stop, or a nice sidewalk or winding wooded path running along the tracks. You say "Look, that path goes to the same place we are going anyway. Can I use it instead for a bit?" They say that's not the right way. You have to get there the same way as everyone else, at the same time. You have to ride the train with only other kids who are the same age as you, whether you like them or not. Sometimes, if your train is small enough, you end up spending years and years with this same group of kids. Even if you don’t get along with any of them.
Read the rest...
http://www.demandeuphoria.com/mindthegaps
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