BJU Press Blog

Megan

Finding Downtime in a Busy Homeschool Day

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downtime for homeschool moms
I am a homeschooling mother of four young children, but sometimes I feel more like a juggler in the circus. My days are spent trying to juggle myriads of responsibilities—laundry, cleaning, cooking, teaching, grading, planning, shopping, driving, and so on. Who has time for rest and downtime? It’s my job to make sure no responsibilities get dropped.

But not even an expert juggler can juggle forever. The stress of constant activity will surely lead to disaster. And it’s the same for us. Homeschool life can leave us feeling physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually burned out. Sometimes we need to set aside our normal flurry of activities and just rest.  We homeschool moms need some downtime. How do we get it? Here are some ideas.

Make Downtime a Part of Your Routine

Homeschool moms are not the only ones who will benefit from a break from the demands of a homeschool day. Our kids need some time away from the books as well. In my homeschool, we always take a midmorning break (around 9:30) to have a snack and get some energy out. If the weather is nice—and sometimes even when it isn’t—we go outside and take a short walk or play a few minutes on a nearby playground. The exercise and fresh air helps my kids’ concentration levels and helps me manage the stress of the day.

Teach Your Kids to Rest

Only one of my children still naps during the day, but all of them have some quiet or rest time. During that hours or so they are supposed to work independently on quiet activities (coloring, writing, sewing, reading, etc.). This gives me some space to pick up a book of my own or work on a creative project, and it gives my kids the opportunity to pursue some of their own interests.

Intentionally Put Aside Your Work

After my kids go to bed, I often move into high gear; after all, these after-bedtime hours are usually the most productive hours of the day. I do get a lot done in the evening. But there comes a point when I must say “enough” and put the work aside. I need some time to decompress. And I need sufficient sleep.

In the middle of this very busy season of life, it’s often hard to take a break and claim some downtime. You may feel guilty doing it. But consider what Ruth Chou Simons writes in her book Gracelaced:

If you feel worn out, friend, it’s a pretty good indication that our infinite God made you finite for a purpose. He is reminding you that resting isn’t just a good idea; it’s His example and standard for us. Our all-powerful God does not grow weary, and yet He chose to rest on the seventh day of creation. (p. 52)

So, homeschool mom, stop and take a deep breath. You were not created to do everything. You were created to rest in the only One Who can. So enjoy the freedom to rest.

How to Develop Critical Thinking Skills in Young Children

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Developing critical thinking skills in young learners
Critical thinking skills are essential for success in today’s society. But they’re not something you can cram into your child’s head right before they graduate. The ability to thinking critically has to be developed. And developing it takes a lot of time.

What exactly is critical thinking? Critical thinking, sometimes called higher order thinking skills, or HOTS, includes the ability to make applications, analyze, evaluate, create, and synthesize information. Critical thinkers don’t just know information; they know how to use it. They can solve problems and think for themselves.

So if the development of critical thinking skills is such a crucial part of any homeschool, how can you as a homeschool mom start developing these skills in your young children?

Encourage Imaginative Play

First of all, you can give your young children plenty of unstructured play time. Play is an important part of childhood—it is truly the “work” of children. When kids play, they have opportunities to “try out” different roles and activities. I see this a lot in my home—my youngest daughter is just starting to enjoy pretend play. Last night she pretended to be a restaurant worker, and I was the customer. Her little two-year-old mind had to work through what she needed to fill my order. I ordered tea and salad, but  for me to enjoy my “meal,” she needed to bring me a cup, a plate, a pile of pretend lettuce, and a fork.

When my older daughters play, their fantasies are a lot more complex. Sometimes they’re early American settlers trying to survive in the wilderness. Sometimes they’re managing orphanages or teaching in schools. But they’re always solving problems, applying the things that they know to different scenarios and exercising their brains. They aren’t wasting time.

Ask Questions to Encourage Critical Thinking Skills

• Ask a lot of questions.

Another important way you can develop critical thinking skills in your young children is by asking them lots of questions—and not just yes-no questions. Ask them open-ended questions that require  thoughtful answers. The BJU Press reading curriculum is full of this type of questioning. You can read about how these questions help build interest and develop critical thinking skills in my  article “Make Reading Lessons Interesting with Questions.”

You can use this type of question in everyday conversation too. For example, my oldest daughter is a voracious reader. One evening during dinner, my husband asked her about one of the books she had just finished reading. She immediately began to summarize the plot. But my husband was more interested in the moral tone of the book, so he began asking her questions such as “Why is that character considered good? Did that character do the right thing? How do you know?” Questions like these help her to analyze and evaluate the things that she reads.

• Get them to make predictions.

Second, ask your kids questions to help them make predictions. When my kindergartner learned about dentists and dental health, we decided to do an experiment that was suggested in the BJU Press Focus on Fives teacher edition (vol. 1). I hard-boiled three eggs and soaked them in a dark-colored cola to show what sugary drinks do to your teeth. Before I placed the eggs in the cola, I asked my daughter “What do you think is going to happen to these eggs? Do you think the cola is going to be good for them?” Questions like these will help her develop cause-and-effect reasoning abilities that are necessary for making applications.

• Ask them to compare and contrast.

Finally, ask your kids to compare and contrast things. This past week, I taught my kindergartner about the letter e. She was having difficulty writing the uppercase E and kept writing the numeral 3. So I started asking her questions: “How does an E look like a 3? What’s different about it?” This comparing and contrasting exercise helped her distinguish between the two because it helped her analyze the parts of each one.

Allow Your Kids to Fail (and Help Them Learn from It)

Our kids will never learn to think for themselves if we do all their thinking for them. So give them permission to try new things, and be prepared to let them fail. When I was about eleven, my mother was so sick one night that she let my brother and me make dinner without her supervision. We ruined thirteen potatoes that night learning how not to cook a potato. But we did eventually figure out a way to cook them to everyone’s satisfaction. Sometimes the best way to learn how to do something is to experience what doesn’t work.

Additional Resources

If you’re interested in learning more about the importance of critical thinking and how BJU Press homeschool materials develop critical thinking skills, check out the following articles.

Learning Styles and Multisensory Learning

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learning styles and multisensory learningWhat kind of learner is your child?

I remember being asked that question as a first-time homeschool mom when I was attending a homeschool convention. It was a moment of panic as I realized that I didn’t have an answer. But surely after a few weeks of homeschooling, I will know, I thought. But I didn’t. Fast forward several years, and I still don’t have a neat answer. I know my children better than anyone else, but I’ve found that learning styles aren’t as big of a deal as some people think.

Defining Learning Styles

What exactly are learning styles? According to educational experts, the four basic learning styles are: auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and read/write. (They’re sometimes referred to by the acronym VARK).

Visual Learners: Visual learners need to see pictures. If your child is a visual learner, use plenty of pictures, graphic organizers, maps, and so on to help him or her grasp new information.

Auditory Learners: If your child is an auditory learner, he or she will learn best by listening to someone (through a lecture, audiobook, video with sound, etc.). In order to remember information, these learners often repeat it out loud, set it to music, or perhaps even make up a short poem about it.

Read/Write Learners: Some people learn best by reading information or copying it down. If your child is a read/write learner, provide lots of books and encourage taking notes.

Kinesthetic Learners: Kinesthetic learners are tactile learners. They need to touch, and they need to move. Hands-on activities and experiments are great for learners of this type.

The Limitations of Learning Styles

I’ve found that  even though it’s helpful to know your child’s preferred learning style, it isn’t essential. What you should be aware of, however, is that most children don’t fit neatly into a single category. For example, one of my daughters seems to use three of the four learning styles at different times. She does great with hands-on activities and moves almost constantly, but she also learns well when she can see pictures, when someone asks her questions out loud, or when information is set to music.

To further complicate things, often a child’s learning style will change over time. Most young children need a lot of hands-on learning, but as they mature and their brains develop, they may do better with another learning style.

The Strengths of Multisensory Learning

So what does all this mean for the homeschool mom? Homeschooling is all about being able to give your child the individual instruction that he or she needs to excel. So pay attention. When your child struggles to grasp a concept, try a different approach. But instead of trying to tailor all your teaching to a specific learning style (and exhausting yourself in the process), consider using a multisensory approach instead.

A multisensory approach, as the name implies, incorporates multiple senses into the learning process. Experts believe that children taught with a multisensory approach retain information better because they have more opportunities to connect with what they are absorbing.

Examples of Multisensory Learning

This multisensory approach to learning is one of the strengths of the BJU Press curriculum. It isn’t designed for only one type of learner—it’s a curriculum for all types of learners. I’ve taught three (very different!) children with the BJU Press curriculum, and it has fit each of them

For example, this year my kindergartner is using the K5 Math digital learning program from BJU Press. The first lesson was about identifying a circle. The teacher showed examples of circles (visual), described what a circle looked like (auditory), and invited students to finger-trace circles (touch). This multisensory lesson was exactly what my daughter needed.

BJU Press also recognizes that multisensory teaching is particularly helpful when teaching reading to young children. At this age children still think on a very concrete level, so getting their senses involved will help them better understand what they are reading.

For example, last year, when I was teaching Reading 2 to one of my daughters, I noticed that she was struggling with a particular selection titled “Philip and His Pets” because she had no experience with some of the types of pets mentioned in the story. So we went to the pet store and observed all those animals. It was an extremely helpful experience that increased both her understanding of  the story and her appreciation of it.

If you’re interested in more examples of multisensory learning in math, science, and history, be sure to check out some of our previous blog posts.

6 Reasons I Love Online Video Lessons

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online video lessons
I never expected to love online video lessons. When my husband and I first started homeschooling, we used the DVD video lessons from BJU Press. We loved the video content and the high-quality textbooks that came with the program. But I found that I didn’t love managing all those DVDs. Often my daughter would forget to put the DVD back in the case when she was finished with it. Or she would return it to the wrong case. Sometimes she also put the wrong DVD into the player and ended up watching the wrong lesson. These frustrations were magnified when we started homeschooling our second child. I was so ready for an easier solution.

The online video lessons were that easier solution. It provided our family with the same video lesson content that we appreciated so much. It came with the same amazing textbooks—as well as with a lot of “extras” that have made my life as a homeschool mom so much easier. Here’s what I’ve come to love about the online program.

1. The Online Gradebook

Grading (and grade recording) has always been my least favorite part of homeschooling, so I was pleasantly surprised at how much easier it is with online lessons. All the answer keys are available digitally, so I no longer have to store (and hunt for) bulky teacher editions or parent guides. The online program also takes care of all the math involved, and it’s easy to filter the gradebook by grading period, assignment type, or date. It’s also easy to skip assignments that I don’t want my children to do. They can even see their current grades (but not make changes), which is very motivational. Starting this year, my fifth grader will also be able to take many of her assessments online (less grading for me!).

2. The Guide for Online Video Lessons

I’m not sure why, but when we were using DVDs, my children always had difficulty selecting the correct lesson. The online program has eliminated that problem by providing an online road map for every lesson. My children know exactly what they are supposed to do next. This feature has saved us a lot of frustration, and it has helped my children become more independent in regard to their schoolwork.

3. The Video Player

Have you ever wished you could speed up or slow down a lesson? The online video player lets you do just that—with very little effort, you can adjust the speed of the video so that it is just right for your child.

4. The eTextbooks

Not long ago, one of my children lost her science textbook. We searched for it everywhere but couldn’t find it for weeks (it had fallen behind one of our bookshelves). But school went on as usual. One reason it could was that that science textbook was available digitally on the online platform. I was so thankful! Not all textbooks are available in eTextbook format (only the ones that your child would not normally write in, like a science textbook). But you still get all the printed textbooks if you purchase online video lessons using the “with books” option.

5. The Online Parent Community

Homeschooling can often feel like a lonely venture, but not so with the online program. If I have a question about any of my children’s courses or about the online platform itself, there’s always someone ready to help me. I’ve been inspired to see what some other homeschool moms are doing with their children. It’s great to know that I’m not in this alone!

6. The Digital Resources for Online Video Lessons

I’ve already mentioned that the answer keys are available digitally to help with grading, but there are also tons of other digital resources right at my fingertips, such as student handouts, instructional aids, and extended activities. These resources help me better teach my child and save me a lot of time and frustration when something goes missing. I can even access the complete teacher editions through the online platform!

If you’re like me, you probably feel that the “online” aspect of the video lessons is the scariest part. A lot of horrible stuff is out there online, and even the “good” stuff can be very distracting for many students. Reading “How to Keep Your Kids Safe on the Web” was very useful for me because it helped me realize what safeguards I can put in place to make sure learning happens in a safe, controlled way.

If you and your family need an “easier” homeschool solution, check out BJU Press’s online video lessons. You’ll be glad you did!

Loving My Neighbor with a Strawberry Cobbler

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loving my neighbor with a strawberry cobbler
I love to cook, and I especially love to bake. But a while back, I found myself in a quandary. I had three guests in my house. One was on a grain-free diet. Another was vegan. And I had no idea what to make for dessert. I had some fresh fruit in the house—including a large container of fresh strawberries—but all my usual strawberry dessert recipes had been ruled out. How could I possibly make a dessert that had no eggs, no dairy products, and no grains of any kind? Did such a thing even exist?

Showing Love with Food

People all over the world use food to nurture relationships with each other. Many of my own relationships have been built and maintained over a shared meal, a shared plate of cookies, or even a shared table at the local coffee shop. Food is an important tool that we as Christian homeschool moms can use to show love to our neighbors.

But, as I realized that afternoon in my kitchen, sometimes cooking for other people can get complicated. I’ve been blessed with a husband and children who can eat just about anything I care to cook. But many families in my church and some members of my extended family deal with food allergies and other dietary restrictions on a daily basis. How could I love my neighbor when they come to my home? By caring enough to adjust my cooking to fit their needs.

That afternoon, I managed to substitute my way through a strawberry cobbler recipe in order to meet the needs of my guests. To be honest, it wasn’t awesome, and I probably wouldn’t duplicate it even if I could remember the recipe. But it wasn’t a disaster. And it said “I care” in a very tangible way that went a long way toward making my guests feel welcome. In that sense, it was a very big win.

Cooking for Others with Dietary Restrictions

Here are a few tips that I’ve learned about caring for people with dietary restrictions.

  • Before you take someone a food item or have people over to your home for a meal, ask if there is anything that they can’t eat or don’t prefer to eat or if they are on a specialized diet (such as paleo). That way, you can avoid any potentially awkward moments.
  • Read the ingredients lists on food labels. Some items have ingredients that you would never expect. (Bottled salad dressings and other sauces can be particularly tricky.)
  • Pay attention to how recipes work. If you know what each ingredient contributes, you’ll find it easier to figure out substitutions.
  • Encourage your kids to eat whatever you fix, especially if you have guests in your home. I fix vegan meals on a fairly regular basis now, and my four young daughters eat whatever is placed in front of them. It’s their way of loving our guests and making them feel welcome.

And here are a couple of my favorite variations on the classic strawberry pie that are tailored to meet some specific dietary needs.