Who's responsible

  

I have children ages 13 to toddler and one on the way.

In our home, we call chores RESPONSIBILITIES.

We all have a part of this family and we have responsibilities that keep the family home working.

Our "chores", as people call them, DO NOT ROTATE. They are that person's responsibility.

As they get older and can take on more responsibility, they get harder jobs and maybe more of them depending on the tasks. We do not have the arguments associated with switching all the time- nor the complication of charts and figuring this and that out.

We do not pay our children for doing what they are responsible for. Sometimes they have opportunities to earn money by doing a special job, especially if they ask.
Another thing to note. Attitude is key.

We find that this works well for us. Everyone knows what is expected and it flows. Nobody needs to ask who forgot to unload the dishes, change out towels or whatever. We all know.
 

 

Honor Defined in Practical Terms

 

 

Children need to know what Godly character looks like in practical terms. We love the character quality of honor, not just because God commands it, but also because it has so much rich meaning for parents and children. It can give direction in many of the frustrating moments we experience in family life. In fact, every form of selfishness has an honor-based solution.

 

Honor means…

 

Treating people as special,
Doing more than what's expected,
And having a good attitude.

 

 

Use our honor definition or make up your own. The point is that honor changes people. It changes the way that parents relate to their children, the way children relate to each other, and the way children relate to their parents. We all need it.

 

 

You can use the concept of honor in correction or when things are going well. You can use it when you teach your children about money, time, and other resources, and you can teach it when conflict comes around. One of the best ways to teach it is on special occasions when someone wins a contest or earns a certificate. You may show honor by giving that person a fancy place at the table or by decorating his or her bedroom door.

 

 

Honor is fun. It's like oil in a machine. It gets work done with less friction and less heat. Every family needs honor. It's great when things are going well and essential when family relationships are strained. You can work on honor whether your kids are preschoolers or teens. It will change the way your family relates.

 

 

For more practical ideas on developing honor in your family listen to the CD series with your kids or buy the book, "Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes, In You and Your Kids," and read it with them. Learn more at www.biblicalparenting.org.

 

A different Gospel

If never before, NOW is the time to cry out for repentance to sweep this nation.

 

The new teacher

Sad, but unfortunately a reality...

After being interviewed by the school administration, the teaching prospect said, "Let me see if I've got this right:

You want me to go into that room with all those kids, correct their disruptive behavior, observe them for signs of abuse, monitor their dress habits, censor their T-shirt messages, and instill in them a love for learning.

You want me to check their backpacks for weapons, wage war on drugs and sexually transmitted diseases, and raise their sense of self esteem and personal pride.

You want me to teach them patriotism and good citizenship, sportsmanship and fair play, how to register to vote, balance a checkbook, and apply for a job.

You want me to check their heads for lice, recognize signs of anti-social behavior, and make sure that they all pass the state exams.

You also want me to provide them with an equal education regardless of their handicaps, and communicate  regularly with their parents in English and Spanish by letter, email, telephone, newsletter, and report card.

You want me to do all this with a piece of chalk, a blackboard, a bulletin board, a few books, a big smile, and a starting salary that qualifies me for food stamps.

You want me to do all this and then you tell me that I can't pray?"

With Lee In Virginia, G A Henty - download

 

 

The famous story teller Jim Hodges is giving away his audio book by G A Henty "With Lee In Virginia". This is his all time best seller.


     With Lee In Virginia

     ...A Tale of the American Civil War

Setting:    AD 1860’s – American Civil War – Slavery and state’s rights.

Story:    Few wars have been fought by each side with greater intensity of conviction in the rightness of its cause or with more abundant personal heroism than the War Between the States. The story begins with a great responsibility falling on Vincent Wingfield, the teenage son of a widowed Virginia plantation owner. Vincent must decide what course of action he should take when a problem arises on the plantation. Unlike many stories of this American war, Mr. Henty brings to it a European viewpoint that differs drastically from the current views on the nature and reasons for this struggle. Henty’s "With Lee in Virginia" will introduce the reader to many of the famous battles of the 1860's along with learning much about the character of Robert E. Lee and his lieutenants.


GA HENTY - With Lee In Virginia

 

Getting It All Done

 

Free eBook Download

Getting It All Done   by Marilyn Boyer

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the demands of parenting? Life is certainly a challenge for parents, and especially those who accept the added responsibility of home education. But there are ways to make life easier and more productive, and this workshop discusses some of those.

Marilyn Boyer, mother of 14 children and a veteran home educator of 22 years' experience, shares her techniques for accomplishing a mammoth amount of housework while giving her children a superior education at the same time.

 

Download Free eBook

IMPORTANT: You MUST select "Ebook" when you click your selection. Only the Ebook "Getting It All Done" is free. Then enter code TTH in checkout. It is free, just complete checkout without inputting your credit card.

 

Spine Book teaching – making your own curriculum the easy way

Maybe you have heard of teaching using a book as a spine? 

I am surprised at how easy this is and love it. 

Teaching this way can open up your homeschool to develop a real love of learning and save you plenty of money at the same time. 
Unfortunately, there is not really any information on "how" to use a book as a spine. I've taught how to do this in person to groups and conferences but maybe I need to do a video to share with the world.
 
I did find this link here below. Hopefully it will shed some light. It is a little like mind mapping (an abstract way of doing an outline) and inspires creativity… even if you are not the creative type.

My own post on the subject:
Teaching Using A Book As A Spine ... awesome homeschooling on the cheap!

Another writer on the subject:
Teaching Using A Spine




DO YOU LIKE POSTS LIKE THIS?

Check out my blog on these and 100's of other FREE homeschool curriculum ideas, methods, ebooks and textbooks.

Inspiring To Learn 
http://inspiringtolearn.blogspot.com

Are you stressed?

 

Ever heard of a homeschool lobotomy? It’s the non-surgical condition most moms experience around September 1 and the commencement of homeschool. Chores and responsibilities pile up. Relationships begin to unravel. Suddenly you can’t complete a sentence without forgetting what you were going to say. You walk into a room and can’t remember why. You forget appointments. You feel snappish. You can’t fall asleep at night as your mind circles around and around the day just past. The morning comes all too soon, and you can’t pull yourself out of bed, overwhelmed with all you face. Homeschool lobotomy.....or stress?

Want the answers? Go HERE.

 

Training our children

 

So often the church forgets the next generation.

They plunk them down in a Sunday school class and hope for the best from some thin watered down "curriculum" the church board bought because it looked fun and just may save the visitor's children. This is not what we are supposed to be doing. We are starving them all.

The children are being entertained. Not trained.

 

How we miss the mark!

If the next generation- today's children and youth- are tomorrow's leaders... WE ARE FAILING THEM.

 

Have they learned to serve?

Have they learned how to read and study the Word?

Do they know the Lord they claim to follow?  

Do they keep His commandments?

Have their gifts been indentified and cultivated?

 

Sadly, "No" is the answer to all of these questions.

 

What can we do about that? Well, it starts with us and does not- and I repeat NOT- lay in the lap of our church. We, as our children's parents, are responsible for the training up of our children.

• 
  
     Get out you Bible. Get out theirs and make sure they know where it is at all times. Teach those children to reverence the scriptures and to dilligently read it every day. No exceptions.
  
  

• 
  
     Use the model Jesus taught when you instruct your children how to pray. Write it out and analyze the different parts and what they are. For example: say Who you are praying to, praise Him, thank Him, ask forgiveness, pray for others, ask direction, ask for protection, always finish praying in the name of Jesus.
  
  

• 
  
     There are few materials out there to help train our children in their spirtual gifts that God gave them. It is as if the church does not really believe children have them! What a travesty!
  
  

Scripture tells us to teach them dilligently. When we get up, as we go through our day, as we walk along the road. You get it, you know what Bible says. But are you doing it? I mean really doing it. Do you stop at almost every opportunity and show your child God's handiwork? His every day miracles? His answers to prayer? Do you set them back on track and point them in the right direction again according to what the Bible says? Do you show them God's plan for their life? Do you encourage them in it?

 

It grieves me to tears at the starvation of spirit in the body of Christ today. Let us not neglect the future of the bride! Will she be ready?

I have included some links to some books and information on identifying your children's spiritual gifts here.

 

     

• 
  
  Spiritual Gifts for Kids... Helping Your Child Understand God's Plan
  
  


• 
  
  Spiritual Gifts and Children - Ministry Tools
  
  


• 
  
  Spiritual Gifts Inventories for Children, Youth and Adults
  
  

 

 

Contending

 

Many years ago, my husband and I were really contending for financial breakthrough. Things were so bad that I often considered not eating for the week so everyone else could eat. I never had to though- God provided as He always says He will. ("I have never seen the righteous forsaken nor begging of bread")
But you know-- I fasted all the time during that time period. It was about a year and a half. I was not fasting to make sure my family could eat- I fasted because I saw increase every time I did. Increase in financial steps, a new job for my husband, unusual favor with God & man, a better car for my husband (his was reallllly bad) and new spiritual revelations and spiritual progress. We also had all kinds of amazing sowing we were doing. Crazy sowing.
I would just have the Lord put fasting on my heart and I would just start right then. I would not know how long I would be fasting for, but I would just jump in. Sometimes just a 24 hour fast but often I went 3 days and sometimes longer.
It is strange to say it-- but I loved fasting.
Have you ever read Mahesh Chavda's book on the Power of Praying & Fasting? It is really good and will get you excited to fast. You will want to start right away... even before you finish the book. The key, he says, is to pray AND fast. Just like Jesus said "this kind goes out only by prayer and fasting". I keep that "key" in front of me all the time while I am fasting because I often would forget to keep praying while I was fasting!!

I love food. Don't get me wrong. And it is extremely tough cooking for your family while you are fasting. But I get so much JOY and know I am getting victory when I fast! It is like your prayers are magnified.

Anyway... maybe that will encourage someone.


More information on fasting: Types of fasts and how to fast   All about fasting

Human-Animal babies?

 

LONDON (AFP) - Britain's fertility regulator said Thursday it would allow scientists to create human-animal hybrid embryos for research.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) approved applications from two universities to create "cytoplasmic" embryos, which merge human cells with eggs from animals such as cattle or rabbits.

However, John Smeaton, national director of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), said the decision was a "disastrous setback for human dignity", creating sub-human "slaves" used as raw materials.

"Of those embryos with a smaller proportion of human material, greater uncertainty arises... as to whether such an embryo is a human being with due rights," he said.

The use and destruction of embryos in research is a highly sensitive subject in the United States, for political and religious reasons.

US President George W. Bush has twice vetoed a bill seeking to allow federal funds for stem cell research as it would involve human embryo destruction.

For entire article:  Are you a cow or a rabbit?     

Oat cuisine

 

Why use steel cut oats? They get that creamy taste without the mushy & glue-like nastiness typical of regular oatmeals and also keeps the health benefits of the oats that you want! I can get them locally in the bulk food section for only 99 cents a pound, I bet you can too! Cheap!

Steel Cut Oatmeal
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Episode: Oat Cuisine

1 tablespoon butter
1 cup steel cut oats (a.k.a. pinhead oats)
3 cups boiling water
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon low-fat buttermilk
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
In a large saucepot, melt the butter and add the oats. Stir for 2 minutes to toast. Add the boiling water and reduce heat to a simmer. Keep at a low simmer for 25 minutes, without stirring.
Combine the milk and half of the buttermilk with the oatmeal. Stir gently to combine and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Spoon into a serving bowl and top with remaining buttermilk, brown sugar, and cinnamon.


Overnight Oatmeal (CROCKPOT!)
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Episode: Oat Cuisine

1 cup steel cut oats (a.k.a. pinhead oats)
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup dried figs
4 cups water
1/2 cup half-and-half
In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients and set to low heat. Cover and let cook for 8 to 9 hours.
Stir and remove to serving bowls. This method works best if started before you go to bed. This way your oatmeal will be finished by morning.

Recipes from Good Eats on FoodNetwork. One of my favorite shows! Get all the recipes featured on this episode HERE to print off since I have copying disable on my blog.

Got the winter CRAZIES?

 

Put your printer to work for you!

Your kids will be able to create: entire towns, castles, incredible animals of all kinds, dioramas, groovy toys, old sailing ships, rockin' science stuff and much more.

This is a site you cannot afford to miss.

3D Paper Crafts - all free! 

 

Dilligence and boys

I think EVERY boy has trouble focusing.

Hands down it is our biggest struggle here in our home. My son is 8 and still has a huge issue with it. All day long, especially during school, I am constantly reminding him to focus. Brushing his teeth is an adventure (where is that boy?) The older he gets, the better, but still a big thing.

Believe me, I have thought a lot about this. I have prayed a lot about it. Cried over it. I have read books and scoured the Internet.
It boils down to this: that is the way they are built. They grow into being focused. Part of it is an immaturity and the other is lack of self control. They kind of are a circular thing when paired together. Frustrating really for everyone involved, even more so, for the boy.

When he grows up as a man, he will have trouble focusing on more than one task at a time. Men become very goal oriented-- hunters of the next task at hand. See destination, pass all cars and skip gas stations. Need groceries, speed through store not checking prices and find absolutely shortest line even if the checker is a "bad" one. Need to mow lawn, in record time. Dinner needs to be made, order pizza or open a can of chili.

 They become so focused that talking on the phone renders them unable to do other things like women do (women are serious multi-taskers). My husband walks back and forth while on the phone or stands and fiddles with something.

As a child, a man is growing into his target driven nature that God has given him. It is a gift that needs training.
It is still immature in a boy. This is hard for him. He can only do one thing at a time and moms like to dole out a string of things in one shot. Ever ask a boy to clean his room? That is asking him to sort, put away, classify, fold, take stuff to laundry, stack, straighten, and you get the picture. It becomes an overwhelming task- a task that is really 500 tasks.

Lists. Lists are good only if they can read. Otherwise you are drawing pictures. One way around this is to make a list for YOU. Have him do the first thing and then report to you. Then give him the next thing and so on. Reporting to you makes him accountable and also allows him to focus on the ONE thing at a time. As he grows a bit he can take maybe two things at a time, but take it slow.

I am sooooo guilty of tacking on other things to do. Even when I KNOW he cannot handle it. I think "Oh he is 8, he can take on getting in the shower without instructions!" or "Surely he can see he has socks here AND Kinex there to put away."
Really no. But I try to fool myself all the time.

In short, they are just wired different. WAYYYYY different. If you have mostly girls, your girls will be messy in creative foofoo ways. Boys are definitely NOT messy that way.

Some day my son will be a man. He will have endured this life living under my roof for quite some time. Hopefully I have pointed him in the right direction and prodded him just enough but not demanded too much than he can do.
The point is to train him up in the way that HE should go. And men "go" in whole 'nother way altogether!
 

 

Click here to find a good list of books on this subject!

 

What is a graphic organizer?

    
Graphic Organizers

What is a Graphic Organizer? 

A graphic organizer (aka a map OR word web) is usually a one-page form with blank areas for the student to fill in with related ideas and information. Some organizers are very specific; others can be used with many topics. For the most part, the information on a graphic organizer could just as easily be filled in on a form or written as a list. The organizer gives the child another way to see the information. Some of the organizers allow for the information to be written or drawn, opening the activity up to younger grades.

 

Click here for Free Graphic Organizers

The way it used to be

In 21st century America, we do not know how to "wait".

We all know that we want faster food, faster internet, faster shipping, premade this and premade that, etc.

You have heard people drone on and on about it. "Sonny, you don't know how it used to be! Nowadays ya' got all these fandangled things like computers! Never touched one, meself! Kids these days!"

I like things faster, too, but think a bit about this...

Women used to beat carpets outside, heat water over a fire to bathe, hand wash ALL the laundry, hand wash diapers, hang clothes out to dry, home birth (cool!), sew clothes and linens, knit, bake everything, walk or take a wagon and rarely had any pain medication. Imagine your monthly cycle with no modern conveniences. Could you do all that in a corset and seven layers of clothing?

Men plowed fields with a horse or ox, hand harvested, build everything with hand tools, chopped wood for warmth and cooking, and did all business and math on paper with ink. In their spare time they fought off bad men, bad indians, wild animals and they hunted for food.

 

Makes me wonder what we do with all our extra time we now have. Everyone says how busy they are. (?)

 

Free homeschool online?

Virtual Charter Schools

Issue Description
Charter schools are a new phenomenon rapidly gaining popularity across the country. HSLDA views charter schools as another vehicle for government funded public education. Backing up HSLDA's view are many news articles, education reports, and both state and federal proposed legislation. It is HSLDA's view that the government's involvement in charter schools will eventually lead to restriction on parents who homeschool through a charter school.

Issue Background

Most charter schools are created or "chartered" by public school boards, which establish the mission, educational program, and methods of assessment. Most charter schools are classroom-based, some charter schools are home-based. When parents enroll their child in a full-time, classroom-based charter school, it is obvious that they are signing away much of their parental right to direct their child's education. Home-based charter schools gloss over this surrender by giving parents a wide variety of "free" benefits, all for use at home: computer and Internet access, books, school supplies, support from certified teachers, a diploma, etc. HSLDA does not represent students enrolled in charter schools.

The Problem with Home-based Charter Schools: HSLDA's Position in the Charter School Debate
	Information on why HSLDA opposes home-based charter schools.
Charter Schools: The Price is too High
	An in-depth analysis of home-based charter schools and their impact on the homeschooling community.

 For more info: Other resources

 

 

Socialization: Homeschoolers ARE in the Real World

Socialization: Homeschoolers Are in the Real World

By Chris Klicka, Senior Counsel for the
Home School Legal Defense Association

Academically homeschoolers have generally excelled, but some critics have continued to challenge them on an apparent "lack of socialization" or "isolation from the world." Often there is a charge that homeschoolers are not learning how to live in the "real world." However, a closer look at public school training shows that it is actually public school children who are not living in the real world.

For instance, public school children are confined to a classroom for at least 180 days each year with little opportunity to be exposed to the workplace or to go on field trips. The children are trapped with a group of children their own age with little chance to relate to children of other ages or adults. They learn in a vacuum where there are no absolute standards. They are given little to no responsibility, and everything is provided for them. The opportunity to pursue their interests and to apply their unique talents is stifled. Actions by public students rarely have consequences, as discipline is lax and passing from grade to grade is automatic. The students are not really prepared to operate in the home (family) or the workplace, which comprise a major part of the "real world" after graduation.

Homeschoolers, on the other hand, do not have the above problems. They are completely prepared for the "real world" of the workplace and the home. They relate regularly with adults and follow their examples rather than the examples of foolish peers. They learn based on "hands on" experiences and early apprenticeship training.

For the rest of this article... Socialization: Homeschoolers Are In The Real World

Betrothal?

 

New Christian Take on the Old Dating Ritual

By LAURIE GOODSTEIN

Casey Moss and Kara Price never dated each other, or anyone else. They never shared a meal alone, never talked about their dreams or plans. They never kissed and never held hands.

Yet two years ago, when Kara was 14 and Casey was 20 and heading off to medical school, they pledged their lives to each other in an improvised ceremony at their church that they called a betrothal. They exchanged matching signet rings, promised to be faithful and considered their vows as binding as a marriage.

Only then did they set about getting to know each other and thinking of themselves as a couple. Last month, with their parents' permission, they decided they could start holding hands.

While their story may seem a throwback to the Victorian age, Casey and Kara are actually on the front edge of a small but growing movement among conservative Christian youths who are rejecting the dominant culture's approach to dating and romance.

They are not simply saying no to premarital sex. They are essentially saying no to premarital romance. Convinced that dating causes emotional pain, broken promises and sexual straying, they are trying to rewrite the rules for relationships.

Although a formal betrothal like Casey and Kara's is rare -- even in conservative Christian circles some would consider their union extreme because of her youth -- many people are promoting a similar hand-before-heart approach they call courtship. The commitment to marriage comes first, before a couple is allowed to begin drawing emotionally close. In some cases, they are little more than acquaintances. Even then they are chaperoned and kept accountable by parents, pastors or responsible peers.

For more of this article go to: New Christian Take on Dating?

 

What do I think about all this?

We have not totally figured out exactly how we are going to handle courtship, yet.
We know that there will always be chaperoning and no kissing. No dating at all. We feel that purity means purity of body and emotional purity (purity of the heart). If the heart was given away to someone already, then this seems the same as giving away the purity of the body.
Anyway, our children know the standards we expect. So far, no arguments.

Public training

 

Not that I am an expert, but here are a few things that have helped me.

-Mean what you say. (If you promise a spanking, deliver it asap. If you say they will be denied a priviledge, don't back down even a bit)

-As they say "Walk softly and carry a big stick". Keeping a wooden spatula or spoon in the van is a nice reminder for everyone. Everyone will know it is there for the just-in-case situation. Another at home in the same place all the time.

-Sometimes I still have to implement "one hand on the cart" with my son who is 8yrs old.

-No one may crawl on the floor, climb, advertise a product to me, beg, cry, whine, crawl through a clothesrack or peek under dressing room doors.

-Parking lots really scare me and I, personally, have threatened serious discipline for disobedience or straying there.

-Implement a 5 square rule. I learned this in retailing. In retail, if you the employee come within 10 linoleum squares of a customer, you are to greet them, etc. With your child, shorten that to 5. If they leave that 5 square perimeter... sudden discipline should follow.

-Keep a tally and deliver asap. 3 infractions for Jim, 2 infractions for Sally and they get a dose of trouble for each issue. If you swat- break the swats into the appropriate groups.(If you normally give 5 swats and they broke rule 3 times give notice that the next set is now beginning after each 5 swats for a grand total of 15) If they get time out- same concept of delivery.

-Quote a few key scriptures. They will get to know them well!!! Ask "Are you loving your neighbor?" "Is this showing honor to your mother?" "Are you delighting in another's wrong doing?" "Is that something a foolish man does or a wise man?"

-NEVER EVER reward bad behavior or bribe. Good behavior is expected. It is not a treat your child blesses you with.

 

Heart Of The Matter - free homeschool magazine

 

 

Recently, an online friend of mine announced that she would be writing for a brand new online Christian homeschooling women's magazine. How cool is that?

Heart Of The Matter is a great place of encouragement and lots of resources. The writers are a group of average moms with the same concerns and obstacles as you. They have come together to encourage you in your walk through your children’s educational experience. The purpose of The Heart of the Matter is to provide a place for homeschooling parents and teachers to find all of the resources they desire in one convenient location.
Stop by there and check it out!

Heart Of The Matter - free online homeschool Christian women's magazine

When the Foundations are Destroyed

What's a talk show host to do for a presidential candidate? When he has a choice of endorsing pro-socialist candidate A, pro-socialist candidate B or pro-homosexual, anti-socialist candidate C? Ron Paul refuses to call homosexuality a sin on a recent interview with John Lofton, and we keep thinking about why God shut down Sodom. Was it over their immigration policy... or their tax policy... or was it their homosexual porneia policy? Kevin Swanson gives a simple answer to the above question. What can the righteous do?

Download MP3  |  Listen Now