Things I Wish'd I'd Known When I Started Homeschooling

The Libertarian Homeschooler, who has quite a following on facebook, is doing a series of great lists of things she wishes she had known when she started homeschooling. For my own reference, and your benefit, I am copying and pasting them here. I have not researched everything she includes, and may not agree with all of it, but want to have the list for future use.

1. You don't really "need" a curriculum.
2. More pajamas.
3. White boards.
4. The Great Courses
5. LearnLiberty
6. Tom Woods's Liberty Classroom
7. Ludwig von Mises Institute
8. Foundation for Economic Education
9. Maren Schmidt, Understanding Montessori newsletters
10. Sugata Mitra
11. Whatever Happened to Penny Candy
12. Project-based learning
13. No, really. You don't need a curriculum.
14. Grammar Island
15. Okay. If you feel more comfortable having curriculum in your house, buy it but know that you'll end up using it as a reference.
16. Children never really start or stop learning. 
17. Very few people ever do the entire year's work. 
18. They will learn better, faster, happier without a lesson.
19. Lap books? Not required.
20. Children aren't projects, they're people.

1. They'll spend more time 1-on-1 in one day at home than in an entire week of school. Chill out already. They're good.
2. One child will learn to read at 5, the other child will learn to read at 8. Neither one is "behind".
3. Books that tell what children "should" know at different ages are good for starting fires and little else.
4. If you don't teach him to add and subtract, he'll do it himself.
5. Some children don't learn to read with phonics. No matter how invested you are in phonics.
6. Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes
7. Children of the Code (google it)
8. Don't let your first three negative homeschool co-op experiences dissuade you. There's one out there that will work.
9. The Philosophy of Liberty (youtube)
10. You don't have to teach art. You can farm that stuff out.
11. Get. Out. Of. The. House.
12. Ask the child how he would like to organize his learning.
13. To my children, adult yelling = big kid having tantrum
14. To my children, adult using physical/emotional pain = bullying
15. You aren't nearly as important to the learning process as you think. Really. They'll do most of it in spite of you in the end.
16. They need your company far more than your instruction.
17. Modeling is required.
18. You'll get it wrong. Does that really surprise you? Get over it. Get on with it.
19. Find some outside-the-family mentoring relationships for the child.
20. That book/curriculum/latest and greatest doohickey at the store/expo/convention looks really nice. It's going to gather dust.

Fun History for Kids

Taking a break from books can be a very refreshing thing.  Playing at a topic is every bit as effective at teaching as reading!  The Libertarian Homeschooler recently shared this link on Facebook.

Primary History

I can't wait to let my Lambies browse around, play the games and see where their interests take them. There's so much great information here I just HAD to share! Of course I will be nearby with book suggestions to further explore their newfound engrossments.

B is for Hilda Boswell

Hilda Boswell had an enormous impact on my childhood daydreams.  My mother bought me a book in a thrift store when I was but 4 or 5.  It was called "Hilda Boswell's Treasury of Children's Stories". It quickly became my very favorite book. I still have my beloved, worn out copy. They were published only in the UK, and everyone who has one loves it, so copies are scarce. I watch Amazon regularly for a better copy, but they run around $40 minimum and I, so far, I haven't clicked BUY.   Her illustrations in this book are incredible.

I have several other fairy tale and nursery rhyme books of hers as well, that I bought as an adult. They are also beautiful, but don't touch the quality of the drawings in "Children's Stories".

This illustration is from "Through the Fire" by Mary de Morgan.  I just read this to my Littles as I prepared this blogpost. They loved it as much as I do.   The link is to the text of the original story, which was abridged somewhat in Hilda Boswell's version.

This awesome illustration is from the first story in the book, "The Story of Fairyfoot" from "Granny's Wonderful Chair" by Frances Browne. This was my first-favorite story of all time.  The detailing in the fairies faces, the carving of the chair, even the breeze ruffling the curtain....ah, dreamland for a young Mommaofmany!  

This is from my second-favorite story, The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde.  Even when I was young I recognized the eternal meaning of this story.  What a picture of love!

The Pied Piper got its turn being graced by her watercolors, along with other favorite characters. Don't you want to join the children in their frolic in Fairytale Land?

She also did many nursery stories with which I was not familiar. Have you met The Naughty Elf? I never had before getting this book.

You can read a chapter of C. S. Lewis' beloved "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe", illustrated by Ms. Boswell here.  She called it "Lucy's Adventure in Narnia". I don't have a printed copy of this, so I am thrilled to have found this online scan!

You can never go wrong by adding Hilda Boswell's works to your library.  I hope I've introduced you to a new favorite! Make sure to go over to Acknowledging Him for Veee's favorite "B" author or illustrator!

A is for Ardizzone

My friend Veee is also profiling her favorite authors or illustrators, so after reading here, pop over to find out her pick at Acknowledging Him! 

My choice for the "A" post is Edward Ardizzone. I've posted a little about his works before.  I am always struck by the beauty of his watercolors.  The fuzzy edges and wiggly lines make me feel that even *I* could draw like him, if I tried. It just looks so homey and natural.  Of course, he was a master illustrator, winning the Kate Greenaway Medal for Tim All Alone and numerous other awards.  No one could REALLY draw like he did!

He was able to capture the spirit of childhood in his drawings.  The emotions that emanates from his work are warm, comfortable and inviting.  I love the old fashioned styles and stories that he illustrated and feel like I *dream* in Ardizzone at times.   

Wouldn't it be great to have your child content at pulling a wagon full of babies around and be satisfied? Our children have so much technology around them at all times and are not content any longer. I miss the days of Tim.

Let's give out children a view of childhood that they haven't had and is HARD to get in our time.  Simplicity. Contentment. Adventurousness. Wide open for dreaming and doing.  Go to your library or Amazon and start enjoying Mr. Ardizzone's world today! 

A New Series Announcement

My friend Veee over at Acknowledging Him and I are beginning a new series of posts together. We're each going to blog about a favorite author or illustrator.  We're going to start with an "A" name and continue through the alphabet, until we've each introduced you to 26 of our favorites.  We're not telling each other who we chose to profile each time, so I'll be as eager as you are to read her posts!  We'll have our first posts up later this week, so watch for it!  (Edited to add: Her blog platform folded, so this series did not go far, sadly. She posts at Instagram now.) 

Teaching the Teen Numbers

Some kids breeze through learning the teen numbers. They simply click. Others have a harder time with these numbers. They don't follow the verbal pattern of counting and that makes them HARD!  On top of that, number 17 sounds an awful lot like 70.  It's all very confusing.  Here are so helps for teaching those pesky teen numbers.

Numbers in the Teens Song

Mathwire

Marshmallow Counting Frames

New Zealand Teachers Tips

An Online Game

Montessori Math

Montessori Teen Board

A Pinterest Board FULL of Ideas

Grace for 2013

Praise the Lord for daily grace and new beginnings.  Are you discouraged in your schooling? Don't be!  His grace is new every morning....and every minute if you need it that often!  Take a deep breath, pray and begin again.

We are sharing our Christmas vacation with a vicious virus. BOO!  The 2013 part of our 2012-2013 school year will be here before we know it.  I have many plans for fun studies and readings with the little Lambies.  I have some pictures of December studies to blog and share, too. All in good time, friends!