BJU Press Blog

homeschool

A Homeschool Graduate Embarks on Teaching Her Own Children

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Hello, I’m Karin, and I’m excited to begin blogging with BJU Press to share my homeschool experiences and discoveries. My blog posts will offer a glimpse into our homeschool life, share practical teaching ideas and Deuteronomy 6 teaching moments, pass on tips from veteran homeschool moms, and discuss ways of balancing homeschooling with homemaking. We will draw strength from Scripture as we learn to trust and obey the Good Shepherd, who will “gently lead those who are with young” (Isaiah 40:11 NKJV).

In the picture above, the excited student sitting at her desk is me, twenty-plus years ago. My mother has faithfully homeschooled her four children and is currently finishing up with my youngest sibling in high school. BJU Press was the backbone of our curricula, and that’s what my oldest sister is now using to home educate her children.

I still remember the anticipation of opening a new box from BJU Press—interesting textbooks and colorful workbooks of my very own that would become quite familiar throughout the school year. One of my favorite times was when my siblings and I would gather on the couch to listen to my mom read us a classic book. We’d always beg for “just one more chapter.” When I was in junior high, we started using BJU Press Distance Learning, which at that time was broadcast via satellite. I laughed and learned through science classes with funny Mr. Harmon and grew in my love for writing and grammar with Dr. Seibert.

I so relished my homeschool experience that after high school I continued learning from home through CLEP tests and distance learning college courses. At Liberty University, I completed studies for my BA in interdisciplinary studies with concentrations in English and journalism. I have enjoyed writing and editing for three different Christian ministries, doing mostly contract work from home.

God blessed me with a Psalm 1 husband that I met at my church. He grew up going to church, but in college, when God convicted him of his sin and caused him to be born again (John 3), he trusted Christ as his Savior and Lord. He had a good experience as a child going to public school in a small town, but we both agreed that we wanted to home educate our children. God has blessed us with two children so far, and we feel the weighty responsibility of the mandate to raise them in the “training and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4 NKJV).

Having been homeschooled myself, I’m not bound by idealist notions of a Pinterest-perfect homeschool room with an always prepared teacher and ever eager to learn students. I know it’s difficult since as a child I was a challenge to teach at times. I remember on several occasions walking into my mom’s room and finding her on her knees in prayer. Only by God’s grace can our children learn to fear God, which is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). Only by His saving work in their hearts—through repentance and faith in Christ—will they have a home in heaven and a heart for learning and serving in God’s world. So we fall on the mercy of God and ask Him for strength to teach our children, trusting Him to reach their hearts.

Let Your work appear to Your servants,
And Your glory to their children.
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands for us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands. (Psalm 90:16–17 NKJV)

P Is for Party!

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Preschool and K4 students work their way through the alphabet letter by letter. They need to learn to recognize letters by their shapes, and they need to know what sounds the letter makes. These are important pre-reading skills that will help them when they get to K5 and beyond.

Learning the alphabet doesn’t have to be boring. Since young children learn best by experiencing the world around them, parents and teachers can make learning fun by involving all of the senses.

October is both National Pizza Month (according to pizza.com) and National Popcorn Poppin’ Month (according to popcorn.org). Put these two ideas together for a fantastic p-themed party that will help teach little ones about the letter p.

Dress

Encourage the kids to dress up as something that begins with the letter p. Examples include a pirate, parrot, princess, painter, pumpkin, policeman, popsicle, or postal worker. Or you could let them wear their pajamas to school!

Food

Every party has to have food. For this p-themed party, pizza and popcorn are on the menu. Below are some great easy recipes for treats you can prepare ahead of time.

 

caramel popcorn in a treat bag and bowl

Caramel Popcorn

Ingredients

4 quarts popped popcorn (unsalted, butter-free)

1 cup brown sugar

½ cup light Karo® syrup

1 stick margarine

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions
        1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line a shallow roasting pan with foil and coat it with cooking spray. Add popped popcorn.
        2. Combine the margarine, salt, brown sugar, and Karo® syrup in a medium saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat until the mixture comes to a rolling boil.
        3. Boil for five minutes without stirring. Remove from heat, and quickly add the baking soda and vanilla; stir until the mixture turns an even caramel color.
        4. Pour mixture over popped popcorn and toss to coat evenly.
        5. Bake for one hour, tossing every fifteen minutes. Allow to cool; store in an airtight container.

Veggie Pizza

Ingredients

2 packages refrigerated crescent rolls

1 cup sour cream

1 8-oz. package cream cheese

1 package dry ranch dressing mix

1 small onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1½ cups broccoli, chopped

1 carrot, grated

Directions
            1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
            2. Pat crescent roll dough onto a greased jellyroll pan. Pierce with a fork.
            3. Bake for ten minutes. Cool completely.
            4. In a medium bowl, combine sour cream, cream cheese, and ranch dressing mix. Spread onto crust.
            5. Add chopped vegetables. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for an hour or more in the fridge. Cut into small triangles and serve.

Games/Activities

Don’t forget about your kinesthetic learners. Below are some p-themed activities to get the kids moving.

Parade

The day before the party, ask the children to bring an object to school that starts with the letter p. Sample objects might include a stuffed puppy, a small pumpkin, a pencil, or a puppet. On party day, let each child carry his object as you all line up and walk around the school building. Be sure to smile and wave at the people you pass!

Musical Pillows

The day before the party, ask the children to bring a pillow to school. Play the classic game of musical chairs, but use pillows instead!

Peanut Toss

Materials

Bag of circus peanuts
Two buckets or other open containers
Masking tape

Directions
                1. Divide the children into two teams.
                2. Use the masking tape to mark two starting lines on the floor. Place the buckets two to three feet away from the tape marks.
                3. Challenge the children to try to toss the circus peanuts into the bucket. The team that gets more circus peanuts in the bucket wins.

As you can imagine, the possibilities for a p-themed party are endless! If you have a  p-themed party idea, please tell us about it in the comments.

Bug Masks

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Little kids have big imaginations. Empty boxes can become caves, minivans, even rocket ships. Dressing up adds to the adventure. A plain bathrobe can transform them into superheroes. Add a pair of fur-lined boots, and suddenly they’re trekking through a frozen wilderness in search of polar bears.

This month, kids can create their own bug masks with some help from our free templates. Download the template to make a bee mask, a cricket mask, or a ladybug mask. Or make all three! Just follow the instructions below to get kids started on their own bug adventure.

Supplies to gather

Steps to follow

  1. Print out the mask template.
  2. Cut out the gray areas of the printout.
  3. Use a hole punch where indicated.
  4. Color and decorate the mask.
  5. Allow it to dry completely, if needed.
  6. Tie a piece of yarn to each hole to make a headband.
  7. Tie the mask around the child’s forehead, and let the fun begin!

What other fun crafts do you and your children enjoy doing? Let me know how your bug mask turned out by commenting below.

10 Tips for Your Homeschool Year

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How is your homeschool day going? Sometimes, you have a plan, are able to start the year following the plan, and everything goes according to that plan. (A miracle, right?) But other years the plan just doesn’t work for whatever reason—sickness, a new baby, family emergencies, new co-op classes, a new curriculum, and so on. In case you’re having one of those years when the original plan just isn’t working, here are a few suggestions for planning the entire school year and tips for when you need to readjust your plan.

 

Tip #1—Set goals for your school year.

While you’re scheduling your school year, encourage your children to set their own goals for their education. What are some things they’ve been particularly curious about or have wanted to know? Look for ways to incorporate those things into the overall academic goals, and your child will feel like an active participant in his or her education.

Tip #2—Get organized; stay organized.

All the books, papers, pens/pencils, and such can start to get out of control. Find a system that works for you and your kids to keep all their school materials organized. It may be a basket or drawer system that keeps all the work for one subject in one place. Or you may have a shelf designated for each child, and only his school stuff goes on that shelf. And those fun but easy-to-lose manipulatives? Try keeping them in manila folders or envelopes organized by month for easy access.

Tip #3—Make balance a priority.

Focus on developing a homeschool routine that is structured enough to accomplish your goals without losing sight of your students’ (and your!) need for occasional changes of scene and pace.

Tip #4—Maintain “administrator” unity in your homeschool decisions.

Dad and Mom need to be in each decision together so that the kids don’t get the idea that they can pit one parent against the other. The “teacher” supports the “principal,” vice versa, and the family as a whole contributes to the overall needs of the family.

Tip #5—Don’t measure the effectiveness of your schedule by other homeschoolers’ schedules.

Focus on tangible measurements of success—such as your children’s ability to apply textbook knowledge to real-life situations—and spend whatever time is necessary to encourage their growth. Do the best you can with the time you have.

Tip #6—Set and stick to regular homework deadlines.

Don’t let the convenience of a more fluid schedule distract you from an integral part of your child’s preparation for college and the workforce.

Tip #7—Organize a “school basket” for younger children to use during school hours.

Each younger child should have his or her own basket but only have access to it during the older children’s work hours. Fill the basket with fun activities, educational toys, interesting picture books, and puzzles that the child can do on his or her own.

Tip #8—Don’t let your curriculum completely determine how and what you teach.

Curriculum is a tool—a wonderful tool—but only you can decide how best to use it for your children. Capitalize on your students’ learning strengths while alternating with other learning styles to help them grow. For example, consider reading tests and homework assignments aloud to aural learners while having them follow along on the printed pages.

Tip #9—Keep detailed academic records.

You’ll need a selection broad enough to show your child’s curve of improvement throughout the school year. Remember, you can always throw out unneeded papers later, but you can’t get them back once they’re gone.

Tip #10—Enjoy homeschooling!

Life is short and you only have so much time with your children. The more prepared you are for the school year, the more time you will have to enjoy it and your children.

What other tips would you add to this list?

Playful Learning

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I have three daughters at home. One is a newborn, but my other two (3 and 5) are into everything. Nothing is safe. My three-year-old in particular seems to have a knack for making messes. Every open container of water must be explored (she loves pouring water into other containers); every food item within reach must be touched (this is why we had salty pancakes this past weekend)—you get the picture.

At a homeschool conference I attended earlier this year, I went to a workshop about homeschooling preschoolers. One big take-away from that session was the fact that young children learn best through experiencing the world around them. When babies put things into their mouths, they are learning. When toddlers mold dough into shapes, mix paint colors, and touch things like peanut butter, they are learning.

 

I’m really glad that BJU Press understands this. In fact, the introduction of the Pathways for Preschool Teacher’s Edition talks about this very thing: “Children learn best when they are involved in activity—their play is their work. A setting that allows them to observe, explore, interact, play, and discover is vital to their development” (p. xii). BJU Press recommends using centers to create this setting and gives many ideas for centers throughout the curriculum.

As a homeschooler, you can arrange your home to encourage this type of learning. Designate spaces in your home where your child can role-play, create art projects, build with blocks, read books, and so on. Invest in toys that inspire creative play. Set aside time to do crafts, cook, and play with your child. Below are some resources for inspiration.

What are some fun learning activities that you have done with your small children?