Convention: Classes

I'm so excited!! My convention cataloge came in the mail!

I wasn't able to go to the Homeschool Convention {FPEA} last year because my beautiful sister was getting married and while I am so happy that she picked a weekend that I could go I was sad because I was missing something else that I really wanted to go too.

But that is now in the past and here we are... the dates are blocked off, steve took the time off from the clinic to watch the boys... the tickets are bought and the room reserved.

Now I am new to this but I am getting ready. I want to share some tips with you to make your day{s} at Convention great and productive.

Before I start I need to let you know that I will usually fall for anything. Really I am the best to play practical jokes on because I totally fall for it! So when people say that "this is the BEST curriculum" I usually beleive them. But I am learning that I need to stay focused on what I know is best for MY kids and go with that. I get so excited, and then I get really overwhelmed and then I just shut down. Convention is just 3 day... I don't have time to shut down, I need to be with it and ready!

Ok, so here are some helps for you....

Title of this class.... "Let Go Or I'll Break Your Leg: Resolving Conflicts and Restoring Relationships"

Can you guess what we need to work on....

#1 When your catalog comes and you open it do a quick skim of all there is... and there is a lot! Read just the title of the class and if you like it circle it if not leave it... At this point it doesn't matter how many you circle in a session, if it is something you feel you would like/need circle it.

#2 The next day... with a fresh head... go and look to see all that you have circled and read the descriptions. You can read all the descriptions of all the classes but you will probably find that you really have circled the right ones.

#3 Now go and see how many you have in each session that you are wanting to go to. You may find that there is only one in some blocks and others you'll find that you have 4 circled in the same block of time. THAT'S OK!!

#4 Here is the waiting starts... for me I am still a month and a half out from convention so I still have some time. I have all the classes that I want to take circled and ready... but now I will be praying about it. I want to take the classes that will uplift me, that will teach me, and that will give me the knowledge to inspire the boys. I know that doing this last step I will be ready for the classes that are to be taught.

Extras.....
#5 If there is a website look it up, make sure you know who they are and what they are selling....

#6 You can learn a lot by going to the vendor booth as well, so if you miss a class that is taught by a vendor stop by the vendor booth and talk to people there.

#7 If you are going with people see what classes they are going to and share notes... you can't be in two places at once, BUT you can go somewhere and your friend can go to a different place...

This is a great time to feel renewed with homeschooling, to be lifted up and ready to dive back in, remember to make the most of it!

Next up.... VENDORS... and how not to spend thousands of dollars!

Pinterest Finds

Do you Pinterest???

Oh I do and I love it!!

You can always find great ideas there.

I want to share some that I have found.....

This is on my board labeled Writing 

Here are some fun ideas that I found


First Grade Fresh had a great idea about a poster for the "Y" and way it sometimes sounds like 'i' and sometimes like 'e'. Take a look because she has another poster on the same post that would be a good help too.

Here is one from Zeek's Zoo. Its a fun way to show what different writings are. I am going to do this and put it in a binder so I can have the boys do a writing and they can go and see an example of what it is.

 Here is another fun printable  for making words plural. This one is from Inspired in Second

For most of these I am going to put into a writing binder that the boys can look at if they need too. I would love to put things on the walls here but I only have a  limited amount of wall space so into a binder it goes.

These are just a few things from the wonderful world of Pinterest that I love.

Accelerated Achievement

Have you heard of Accelerated Achievement or A2 {A Squared}

When we started thinking about homeschooling A2 is what I found. I bought the demo CD {$4.00} and really liked it. So I bought the A2 curriculum. It was $99.00.

For the $99.00 you don't get just one year you get K-12!! {There is no math and no science, but they are able to direct you to what you need and where to go for these subjects}

A2 follows a very classical education. With the idea that everything can be learned through books and through hands on learning. 

What I liked about it was all the books that are on the CD. Do you want to know how many books... 800!!! Yes, 800 books, and they are the classics!

It starts off with the McGruffy reading. And in 7 volumes it takes you from easy words to passages from Shakespeare. There are also one syllable books for early readers {which I really like}.

There are two versions to the curriculum. The first is the standard version with great quotes by famous people and bible verses to be used as copy work. The second is an LDS version includes what the standard version has along with scriptures from the Book of Mormon, quotes from the prophets and even a missionary prep book

When you buy the A2 curriculum you are part of their family. Paul and Susan Stone are willing and wanting to help you make this curriculum work for you. There is an area on their website where you can send messages but they also give you their HOME phone number!!! How many other curriculum's do that?? How many other creators of curriculum or of any homeschooling products will offer their home phone number?

With all that said, I no longer use this solely. I have found that we are not classical homeschoolers. I have gone a different way, BUT.... I still use the books. {how can I not??? 800 books remember!}

I am glad that I found this program, and it was a great... easy... way to start into homeschooling.

{All opinions are my own. I actually bought the CD and used it. I have not received any compensations for my thoughts or opinions to write this}

Are they Socialized???

I home school. And when I tell people the first thing they look to see my boys to see if my boys look like they are socialized. If they truly new them... they would know that they are probably overly social. I know lots of people have questions about those that home school so I'll try to answer some of the most common ones that I get.

Why did I chose to home school? When we were in Arizona, James was in a Pre-K program. He came home one day and during dinner he told me that he "hated school"  I thought how sad that in pre-k he was having these feelings. So I pulled him out. I talked to a mom that was in my ward and any one else I could about homeschooling. I figured that I couldn't screw up kindergarten so away I went. I did a ton of research and talked to who ever I could. I joined a few Yahoo groups and asked a lot of questions. The thing that really helped make a decision was talking to a friend of my husband. Nathanial was his battle buddy in the army and was deployed with him and he was homeschooled... and he was normal!!

Do I have a teaching degree? Nope. But I didn't need one when I taught the boys how to talk and use the potty. I am learning a lot right a long with the boys. When they ask a question that I can't answer right away we look it up. We find out what we can about the things they want to know.

Do I really think I know everything to teach? Oh, heavens no. Even with James in second grade I am learning right along with him. I have many friends who are teaching higher grades than I am. I ask a lot of questions and I bounce a lot of ideas off of them. One thing that I have noticed about the homeschooling community is that people are always willing to share and help. Honestly I don't remember anything that I learned from high school Chemistry {do you??} so when we come to that point I will either relearn it with the boys or I'll find someone or a curriculum that can teach it to them.

What about being social? Have you met my children? We are out and about all the time. On Wednesdays we go to the park for a playgroup. {it's nice for me too! I get to have some adult conversation} Then on Friday we go to a Co-op. Different mom's teach different subjects. There is even a PE class that they take. James is taking violin, Tommy does piano and I seem to be the hang out for all the neighbor kids every day. They are very social.

Is it all about religion? I wouldn't say "all about" but yes, we do a lot of scripture study. The boys are currently memorizing all 13 Articles of Faith {yup... even Tim} We will move on to the Scripture Mastery List scriptures once the AoF are memorized. We are learning the primary songs and we read from the Friend We start the day with a devotional and anytime I can talk about the gospel I do. When we are learning about Ashurbanipal who was King of Nineveh, we also talk about Jonah who was commanded of the Lord to go and preach to the people at the same time. The gospel is a big part of our life, not just on Sunday, but every day.


Do you have a curriculum? I have started using the Critical Thinking Company and I love it! It gives me enough to know that we are progressing, but leaves things open enough to do what we like. We use the program Math U See for math and we are doing The Story of the World for history. I probe the boys for things that they are interested in and we go from there. Previous to this I did just pull together a simple curriculum that worked for us, but Benji is so busy now I wasn't having time to get everything done that I needed to do.

What time are you done? We start our day at 9:00 and we usually end about 12:00-12:30. There are only 3 of them so a lesson on nouns and verbs takes only 10 minutes instead of 30 minutes. I'm not one to kick a dead horse so if the boys get it we move on. When we are done the day is theirs. If I have had a doddler the afternoon is the time to finish any left over work.

What do I do with Tim and Benjamin? Tim is with us for our devotional and for our group learning {history, science, social studies} After that he is free to play or color. Most times he want's to "do school" with us so I have a workbook to give to him. He is learning how to read so we focus on that and on his handwriting. We all work together so even when the boys are doing their work Tim is in the room with us. Benji is just there with us. We work around him as best we can. The boys are a great sport to give up their desk if he is squawking to much. He is getting better at sitting a playing with things for short times but most of time he is just into everything!

Are my kids sheltered? Oh, probably. I'm sure as much as your 8, 7, and 5 year olds are. Just because they don't go to school doesn't mean they are complete oblivious to the world. StarWars is their favorite movie and the play Pokemon every day. I do monitor what they watch on TV... how much time they play on the computer and video games... and who their friends are. But to me that is just good parenting and I'm not going to apologize for that.

Are my kids shy since they don't go to school? Have you met my children. I have one that has no personal boundaries, and another that will talk your ear off. My kids are far from shy.  Some kids who go to school are shy some aren't, going or not going to school doesn't make kids shy.

Are we happy all day every day? No! We have our days of tears and days where I have one doing school work until 5:00 and others yelling at each other. I do have to say that most days are really good, and we get through our day pretty quickly, but we do have our days.

Do I homeschool my kids because they are brilliant? Well like any mom I think they are brilliant, but if I were to have them tested I'm sure they would be like any kid that has strengths and weaknesses. They have their talents and I try to nurture those and help them grow.

Do I push my kids academically? Yes I do. Tommy is reading on a 4th grade level... do you really think I'm going to school him at a kindergarten level?  But there are things that they struggle with. If they are not ready for something... usually in math, we wait. I have had to pull math completely out for a week or two and then come back to it. James just gets stuck so rather than more drills we just backed off for a week and then picked it up again. After that he usually gets it and it click so we moved on.

I love homeschooling the boys. I know it's not for everybody, but it's definitely for us. If anyone has any other questions please feel free to ask me.

Book Review

I just got done reading this book to the boys, and they {and I} loved it. It was really interesting to read about the life of Paul Revere. The Many Rides of Paul Revere by James Cross Giblin


"Paul Revere is commonly remembered in the Longfellow legend of his Midnight Ride before the 1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord. In this bright, informative biography, Giblin follows Revere's life from his humble beginnings as a French immigrant's son to his work as a silversmith and a horse messenger amid the mounting pressures of revolution. In precise, accessible prose, Giblin chronicles Revere's daring acts -- both the famous and the overlooked. Along the way, he portrays a brave, compassionate, multitalented American patriot."
During lunch time I'll get the boys their lunch and then settle down as well to read a little. We grabbed this book from the library and it was a great choice. Paul Revere did so many great things beyond just the "Midnight Ride" that we read about by Henry Longfellow. Paul was trusted to ride many times to warn the colonists about the British invading our shores. He was an expert silver smith, and a trusted friend. He was friends with some powerful men.

I love learning about the early men and women who graced this great land of ours. I also love going deeper than just the common stories that we hear, these are men and women who lived and then died on this great land of ours.

Let it Rain

We had a rainy day. So rather than dive into the school work that day we watched a movie and did some art. Today was something different.

I gave each of the boys some cardstock and washable markers

We each drew a picture

We put our pictures out in the rain and let it do the work.

They turned out pretty cool. It gave it a nice watercolor effect.

 I really like the way Benji's turned out.

Next time you are pulling out the art box think of a new way to use the stuff.

Valentine Flowers

I'm sure many of us got flowers for Valentine's. What sweet spouses we all have!

As my flowers were starting to pass rather than to throw them away we cut them open.

We looked at all the different parts of a flower and pointed them all out.

We looked to see how the flowers are different and how they are the same.

I look forward to the next time Steve gets me flowers!! I'm thinking tulips and roses..... those would be fun to pull apart and cut open.... be lovely sitting on my counter.