Where would I be without the glorious Post-It?
What words could adequately pay honor to such a humble, yet worthy hero?
A fresh pad represents an infinite stack of possibilties.
Clever scribbles, informative notations, don't-forgets, gee-there's-that-page and other endless multitasking.
Quick in a pinch.
My cup overfloweth.

Where would you, the SuperHomeschoolMom, be without the Post-It?
Lost.
Just lost.

 

Cool resource to have on hand!

http://www.educationalpress.org/

Create free educational worksheets such as flashcards, game boards, and quizzes to print directly from your browser. Simply:

• 1. Choose a word list below,
• 2.. pick an output style from the left menu,
• 3... tailor your worksheet below, then
• 4.... click Create Print Window!

New! PDF worksheets! Edit words and answers directly on main page! Online Flash game to learn your lists! List wizard!

Homemade Pedialite
A Doctor who is a missionary in El Salvador created this recipe.

1 quart water
8 tsp. sugar (or use honey instead)
1/2 tsp. salt
Fresh juice of 1/2 orange or 1 banana blended. Apple may be better if the child is "raw".

Mix all together.

I use diaper wraps and pocket diaper wraps. Diapers for these are called "inserts".

I went to a local fabric outlet type place and bought some unbleached hemp fleece. You need to wash it before you sew because it will shrink a great deal.

I simply used a diaper insert as a pattern. I made a cardboard pattern from that insert and I also made a pattern of the doubler that I use sometimes.

These cardboard patterns were traced around all over the fabric. I carefully cut them out and zigzagged the edges together (no turning of fabric) and I also put a stripe or two through the middle of the diaper to sort of "quilt" it and keep the layers in place. I believe I made them 3 and 4 layers thick.

The hemp fleece I bought was a huge tube (sort of two-ply if layed down) so I am not sure how you would compare costs. It also was bought at an outlet type store. Seems like I paid $6 a yard, but it was almost 3 years ago when I did that.  Also, it depends on how many layers of hemp you are using for the inserts to consider costs. I doubled mine so that would mean 4 layers.

 

They work great! They dry well and are really soft.

I also bought some polarfleece in beige and cut long rectangles to use as liners on the inserts occasionally. These liners were cut in such a way to fit nicely on my inserts. This cost me about $1.50 - $2. A great idea- wish I remember where I heard about it.

You just lay it over the diaper and it stays in place. The potty goes through and keeps baby dry. The "solids" stay on top and makes dumping in toilet very easy and now washing the diaper is easy too. VERY handy when you have blueberry season like right now and diapers are getting stained! LOL! Also really nice for rashes.

 

 

I have also made my own wraps using FOE, PUL and Aplix. They turned out real cute.

 

For wraps/covers--
 I have no real ideas on prices for overall on each wrap. I DO KNOW that I shopped around a lot for best buys and DiaperCuts seemed to be the best for PUL and FOE. Especially when considering shipping into it. Buy lots more extra than you think you'll need, especially of the FOE and Aplix. (FOE is fold-over-elastic and used folded over edges of fabric like bias tape. Aplix is akin to velcro but much softer and better to use and work with.)

If you were trying to figure overall costs to make a wrap, a realistic number would be $3-$5. PUL can get spendy if your heart is set on patterns or colors and that will affect the costs.

For making wraps/covers--
 I bought FOE, Aplix and PUL online from DiaperCuts.
FOE can be tricky to get right when working with it and getting good gathers on gussetts or around the tummy or behind. You need to not stretch when clearing the tab area and such. It does take practice. I recommend you practice with cheaper PUL (like white) when making your first couple wraps.

 

     

Another thing I did that I was really happy with- see if I can explain this... (photos above) I took the soft Aplix and ran about 4 inches across tummy area and zigzagged edges. I did a straight line through middle of it for security. Then for the tabs- I sewed a square of rough-side aplix on inside of tab, really well. This will end up meeting on the tummy. The cool trick is that I cut a soft-side Aplix square to match it and sewed it to the soft square but only on one side of the square. This way the rough part can be separated from the soft square to attach to the tummy during baby use and then re-attached to the soft square tab for washing purposes. Make sense?

 

 

Any all-in-one diaper pattern or fitted diaper pattern should work for making a diaper wrap. I like wraps as you can re-use the wrap several times without needing to wash it. Using this method I only use 2-3 wraps a day. You just remove the insert and put a fresh one in there at each change!

Diaper cover pattern (free):
http://www.ottobredesign.com/en/print/pdf/vaippa_en.pdf (I used this one)
http://www.geocities.com/rew4birth/Diapers.html

http://mayna.livejournal.com/198548.html

http://www.geocities.com/gabrielbaby1/fuzzibunz.html (like FuzziBuns)

Diaper making supplies:
http://www.diapercuts.com/store/Default.asp

http://verybaby.com/
http://www.cheeptrims.com/store/subcategory.asp?SubCategoryID=18 (FOE with print designs)
http://www.wazoodle.com/cgi-bin/catstore.cgi (FOE colors)

 

 

Tons of free worsheets (over 5000) and other schooly printables.

Subjects Language arts, math, science, social studies, handwriting, ABC Activities and all the other school basics.	Holidays, Months, & Seasons Booklets, coloring pages, writing prompts, and much more for every holiday, month, and season!
Reading Comps Reading comprehensions for fictional and informational reading practice. Useful for teaching test-taking skills.	Theme Units Tons of theme-based material: back to school, circus, fairy tales, farm, peace, sports, and more.
Research/Reports Research Forms, Report Helpers, Book Report Forms, Maps, Flags, Writing...	NEW Think Green, Teach Green Natural Resources, Recycling, Signs, Posters, Clip Art & more
Teaching Extras Assignment Sheets, Awards, Bookmarks, Calendars, Center Signs, Certificates, Labels, Classroom and Theme Signs	Learning Centers Subjects, themes, and hands-on activities.
Portfolios Portfolio needs for students and teachers. Covers, dividers, forms, self-assessments... A must see!	PreK/Early Childhood Math, Easy Reading, Word Walls, Flashcards,and more.
Flashcards Find flashcards for letters, colors, numbers, and more, or use our patterns to make your own cards.	Middle School/Junior High Math, reading, literature units, history, geography, science, and more.
Fun Activities Coloring pages, crafts, crossword puzzles, games, mazes, word searches,and many other fun activities.	Languages/ESL Foreign language documents. Spanish, French and German. ESL documents.

NOTE: I do not necessarily agree with this article in it's entirety. There is some harsh language and the author does not seem to account for the different types of personalities the Lord has created. Men should be raised to be men, not children in men's bodies, but not every man will be a Samson. I also realize that training is a touchy issue for many. It is simply an article to consider points of, so take the good and spit out the seeds.

...

In our family, we are still trying to work out what our sons will be told/trained regarding courtship, although we have started to a degree- we do not know what the final picture will look like.

Training Suitors

Douglas Wilson

The Bible teaches a son leaves his parents in order to take a wife, and daughters are given in marriage. Wise parents do not wait until the time arrives for their children to marry to begin thinking about this. The differences in their children, according to sex, should be evident to parents from birth, and consequently their preparation of their children should differ accordingly. Genesis teaches, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Gen. 3:24). When Paul applies this passage, his treatment of it shows that it is a paradigm for all marriages (Eph. 5:17-33). When a son leaves to court a woman, he is fulfilling God's creation design for the formation of marriages. He is not abandoning his parents; he is leaving them, with honor, according to God's Word. His parents do not resent it if they have been submissive to the Word and have been preparing him to do so.

If sons leave, and daughters are given, then each must be trained and equipped accordingly. Daughters should be prepared for courtship and marriage through long-established trust in their parents' selflessness, wisdom, and good will. Sons should of course trust their parents too, but the preparation they undergo is considerably different from that experienced by their sisters.

A son must be trained to leave. Obviously, when he has left, he must stand alone, and when he has taken a wife, he must be equipped to stand as a source of strength for his wife. Preparation for this does not begin when a young man first notices a young woman. His training for courtship begins when he is little.
Strength is necessary because he is not approaching a young girl willing to be impressed by him. He is approaching her sceptical father.

So he must be strong for the process of courtship, but a godly masculine strength cannot be instilled at the last moment. When he is knocked down when he is little, a kindly father must show him how to get up again without tears. Moreover, godly parents will allow him to get into situations where he will probably get knocked down. If a boy is mollycoddled, his search for a wife will tend to be a search for a maternal substitute someone to assume the important duties of pampering him and running his life. One of the more frequent causes of such mollycoddling occurs when a mother is bringing up her son without adequate direction from the son's father. Good intentions do not prevent this problem from happening. If he falls out of the tree, he might break his leg. But if he, banned from trees, must spend all his time reading edifying literature, he will be a pantywaist. And it would have been better for his future marital happiness if he had broken his leg in two places.

A suitor must also be self-controlled. This quality does not arrive by Federal Express at the last minute. Parents inculcate character over years. When they look at a two-year-old running around their living room, they must be able to see twenty-years down the road and discipline in line with that vision. When a healthy young man considers a woman he believes to be attractive, he must restrain himself. But the way parents teach a grown son to control his sexual and romantic impulses is by shaping before he has any. His adult impulses are disciplined through a godly handling of his infantile impulses.

A son who is to court a woman must have a deep respect for familial authority not just his own family, but all familiesand he must proceed with this understanding of household government clearly in mind. The position held by the father of the woman who interests him must not chafe him. He should rejoice in the fact that he currently has no authority over the woman he wants.

Such a respect originates with a respect for the teaching of Scripture. Household governments are to be respected because God requires it, not because all household governments are managed well. Not all fathers of eligible Christian women are godly and respectable men. This means a son must be taught what it means to salute the uniform, and he is to do it with a whole heart.

If a son has a high view of family authority when he is thinking about his authority in his upcoming marriage, but a low view of it when he considers any other household authority that gets in his way, then he is simply a tyrant looking for subjects. Authority is understood by sons who delight to exercise godly authority and who delight equally in submitting to godly authority.
And this, like so much else, begins in the cradle.

http://www.credenda .org/issues/ 7-5childer. php

 

Okay, I know we "do" lots of little things all the time for our husbands.

I know we all tell them how much we appreciate them, how important they are to you & your children and that we tell him that we pray for him (and really do).

Can you think of something you can do just for him that is "different" today?

-- How about washing the inside windows of his vehicle?
-- Do you ever iron his shirts or pants (if he doesn't wear these kind of thing to work, how about for church?)
-- Write him a note and put it somewhere he will be surprised to find it.
-- Is there a movie or music CD you would NEVER watch or listen to, but he has been dying to?
-- Fix something to eat that you know he likes and you really don't. In my house that would be "bachelor food" like macaroni with chili. Or make "from scratch" something he liked a lot as a child but never gets now. In my house that would be Chex Party Mix or haystacks.
-- Get up early and make him a real breakfast!

When he notices this special treatment, tell him you wanted to show him that he is the coolest guy you ever met, irreplaceable, and you couldn't live without him! Telling him he is "hot" doesn't hurt either!

I don't think it is greatly important to have a school name, although it has helped us in different small ways.

BUT--  having a mission statement has been foundational. We are committed to homeschool all of our children, without government help, to the end. A mission statement reminds us of our goal.

We chose a mission statement AND a bible verse. From there we decided on a name. We also took into consideration our strong beliefs and any family or area characteristics. We live in Oregon, so it is very green, rainy, flowery, mountainous and has a lot of creeks and rivers. We are also "spirit-filled".

Here is what we have posted on our door:

Our mission in homeschooling is...

to raise our children to desire a deep relationship with the Lord, to be spiritually wise, knowledgeable and well skilled in areas that will contribute to their personal life mission, and develop vision, godly character and compassion for the lost- in the comfort and protection of their own home.

 

"...like a tree that is planted near water.

It sends out it's roots beside a river.

It is not afraid when heat comes. It's leaves are always green

It does not worry when there is no rain.

It always bears fruit."

Jer 17:8

Our homeschool name is Riverside Bible Academy and we feel that this name reflects the mission and scripture we are using.

These gals are seriously not to be taken serious!

Just reading about them should make us want to be more silly and have fun.

WHO THEY ARE:  The ZANY Red Hot Mamas are nothing but unique, capturing the hearts of all ages  The group is composed of women with a Genuine Zest for Life, who are over 30, a MaMa, GrandMaMa, Great GrandMaMa, OR just plain Great!  The Queen Mama is currently 80 years young, with most members ranging in age from 30 to 60 ( But don't try guessing which ones are over 60 unless you can run real fast!!)  The inspirational double amputee Drum Major is everyone's hero.  Hi-Spirited, Vibrant, Full of Fun, and definitely: ONE-OF-A-KIND!!              (Click for pictures)

WHAT THEY ARE:  The Red Hot Mama Parade Unit is a dance/drill team featuring strollers, milk jugs, mops, shopping carts, or any other idea we get.  The combination of drill team precision and outrageous costumes cause a Rip Roarin' Riot wherever we go. The theatrical group produces musical/comedy shows, and is well known for spoofs such as "The Blues Mothers", "Rappin Mama", "Riverprance" and "Rebah Man I'm Tired", as well as infamous ballets to Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky.  Singing, Dancing and "hold onto your aching stomach" laughter abound.

THEIR EXPERIENCE:  Their "showcase" performance is the 2006 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and it was their honor to be invited by the president to the 54th and 55th Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C. They appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, MTV and ABC's Nightline.  The London, England New Year's Day Performance is their "crowning" glory. They have performed in a variety of parades and festivals nationwide over the past 10 years including the Philadelphia Independence Day Parade, Hershey Centennial Anniversary, Fiesta and Holiday Bowls, Seattle Seafair, Boise Riverfest, The Portland Rose Festival and Spokane's Lilac Festival.  Many stage performances have been donated to fundraisers such as Red Cross Relief Fund, Habitat for Humanity, American Cancer Society, Cancer Community Charities, Children's Village, Service Organizations and Retirement Communities. 

This is the newest quarterly freebie from Hands Of A Child.

It is a lapbooking package!

Ready to assemble, hands on unit with reproducibles.

http://www.handsofachild.com/shop/Zebras-Ebook-P898.aspx

Enjoy!

Trying to plan out your homeschool year can be a daunting task!

I like to do it. It forces me to really think things out.

I am far from an expert in this area! But...

Here is what I can share from my experiences.

Some people like to have at least a general layout for the year of what will be studied when and for how long.

I try to work that out on a word document over 2-3 months here and there. I make a table on Word and then I can copy & paste and move stuff around or add to it and the table will grow or shrink accordingly. I find that handy. This would be a great area to add a section on ebooks you have collected. Like if you were going to study Egypt for 6 weeks- type "Supplements" in that area and then add "Ebook: Egyptian Culture Lapbook" and then you could add "Website: www.Pyramidsforkids.com" and if you bought some cool books "Book: Pharoahs" "Field Trip: online field trip at www.walkingwithancientkings.com".

Now if you had a planner- just write the stuff out on lots of those tiny post-its and you can move them around in your planner as you work that all out. Then when you turn to the first week of December you will open to find 3 post-its on Christmas related projects or ebooks you have. Or if you turn to October you may be very happy to see that week three begins your Egypt unit and there are the post-its to show where all your stuff is. Now you know what you need and where to find it.

My best planning is on paper (preliminary) and then some kind of planner/calendar thing
and gets a lot more detailed. I mark it with a highlighter as it cements. My
oldest gets pink highlighter, my son gets a blue highlighter and I
get yellow. My littlest will get orange as she gets incorporated when I
begin "Before FIAR" with her sometime probably after next January.

This all coincides with my MOTH schedule, too. It sure is nice to have that set up already!

Got a toddler or pre-schooler?

These two sites are great! I especially love the one with the ziplock activities!

Little Blots

Ziplock activities and other great ideas!

 

I have been homeschooling for several years now “officially”. Every one has a different definition of just when you can claim beginning homeschooling. This is especially true if you have a learning lifestyle- which we always have had.

I have read and skimmed through some homeschool method books before we started this last year of school. Not sure what motivated me to do this! The Lord has already refined quite a bit of what we do ("we" mostly means "I"). I have tried many different ways of doing things and little by little have come to where I stand now. You could say learning to homeschool is a process or an adventure- if you are willing to take it. If you are willing to grow as the Lord is leading.

Have you read any homeschool method books before and thought “wait a minute… we do that!” or “that’s what I’ve been saying!”

The books that kind of took me by surprise were:

• You can Teach Your Child Successfully  by Ruth Beechick

• Heart Of Wisdom Teaching Approach  by Robin Sampson

• Charlotte Mason Companion  by Karen Andreola

It seems that Charlotte Mason and Ruth Beechick sat in on our home school day and wrote books about it. LOL!
And Robin Sampson hits really strong on Bible first-and-all-day-in-every-subject .
Sampson also is a big promoter of the 4mat method which in a nutshell is: get them excited about the subject, study it, and show what you learned. You show what you learned best by lapbooking (scrapfolder) or notebooking or some other project- maybe a diorama or something.
Well, I am a strong believer in lots of Bible, but I did not teach it all school day. So, in that area, I was really challenged. I have committed to do this now.
If you have not read her book… I cannot recommend it highly enough. No other homeschool book has been more valuable. Worth every penny.

Isn't it funny to see that you didn't make up something- that it was already around- you just did not know?

This plan is built around two students: 8th grade & 3rd grade

I teach based on the Heart Of Wisdom Teaching Approach. So, I am not classical, principal, or whatever. Basically, I put Bible first and foster a love for learning. This can be tricky, but we have benn VERY successful using the HOWTA method. Wish I had done it right from the beginning. It is a lot of Charlotte Mason.

Some subjects/items I have listed here will be taught together: Heart Of Wisdom history/Bible, International House Of Prayer curriculum, English From The Roots Up wordcards.

I am still considering on how to handle teaching out of Writer's Inc with an 8th grader and a 3rd grader at the same time. I may just teach my 8th grader from it and teach my 3rd grader out of it in the future.

I am also excited to implement Managers Of Their Homes. I just read the book and I am fixing to write out my first schedule using the method. All my past attempts at scheduling were great looking and well researched/thought out but never worked. I believe the MOTH method will work. I am hoping that I will be able to allow for doing art and experiments or whatever. This is all while potty training my toddler girl and having a newborn (September 08). We will see.

MATHEMATICS

Teaching Textbooks

          Algebra

Making Math Meaningful

          Level 3

LANGUAGE ARTS

English From The Roots Up

Volume 1 Wordcards

IEW SWICC B

Write-Source Writers Inc

LLATL Orange TM & Student

Progeny Press Literature Guides

Wordly Wise

          Level C

          Level 8 (2^nd edition)

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

International House Of Prayer

Workbook & CD

Pearables Christian Gentleman’s Series

Lessons In Responsibility For Boys

HEART OF WISDOM- YEAR TWO

Mystery Of History 2

          Materials & books related

          Early Church, Vikings, Middle Ages, Renaissance, Reformation

SCIENCE

Apologia

          Physical Science

Apologia

          Elementary level: Swimming Creatures

OTHER

I Can Do All Things Art Program

My Father's World (ECC) Exploring Countries & Cultures

For New Homeschoolers Can we really do this? What about testing, socialization, finding resources? What's unschooling? Basic questions answered!	HEM's Q&A Column Reader Home Education Magazine's popular Questions and Answer Column. Edited by Laura Weldon.
Teaching and Learning Wondering what to teach and how to teach it? Should you teach or just "facilitate learning?" Readin', writin', 'rithmetic and more!	Older Homeschoolers Is it harder to homeschool older kids, or does it get easier as they take more responsibility for their own learning? And what about work or college?
Foundations Of Freedom Who's changing homeschooling laws, and why? What about testing, OBE, research, school-to-work, curfews, truancy, and misguided lawsuits?	Special Situations Military and foreign homeschooling. Special needs. ADD, ADHD, LD and other forms of alphabet soup. Resources and information.
Networking and Communications Articles about support groups, national organizations, online networks, conferences and more.	Support Groups and Organizations Where can I find a support group thats right for us? How about a National or International Organization?
Index of Information Files An index of free files available via email: Starting out, homeschooling dads, unschooling, high school years, college admissions and more.

 

Christian families suffer today because they fail to capture the hearts of their children. Too often they fail to communicate vision, convictions, and wisdom to their children. In the battle between pagan culture and the Christian family culture, paganism often wins. The sad response is that too many Christian parents simply give up. Others set their goals so low that their best strategy is simply to see their children “survive” a little bit longer, or to lose the battle for the generations as slowly as possible.

To achieve victory, first you must seek it.

In the battle for the family, this means making God-honoring and strategic choices which cultivate an environment of honor, faithfulness to Christ, and generational- minded strategic choices. (Doug Phillips)

For more:  Victory For Your Family