By Lynn, on November 15th, 2007%
life is so much easier.
I think the key for my own homeschooling success is consistency but not intensity. When I consistently spend time one-on-one with my student each day, we happen upon topic after topic after topic that we can learn from. I suppose that that is the essence of unit study, which we have always done most of all here in our homeschool.
Even though I am aiming for a somewhat ”classical” finish with Joseph by moving through history one more time in a sequential fashion and doing much more writing and literature, I still LOVE how one thing leads to another and we learn something new every time we sit down together.
This morning we were watching Story of a Patriot, the Colonial Williamsburg tape I found at the thrift store yesterday. One of the characters in the story was William Byrd III. I knew my son had probably never heard of the original William Byrd. I told him about a college honors class I had taken called Early American Writers. We studied William Byrd in that class. Before the story commenced, we stopped the tape and I pulled The Norton Anthology of American Literature from one of our bookshelves. We looked up William Byrd and read a bit.
No, my son is not now an expert on William Byrd, but he understands a bit more about the kind of writing that we studied in that class. He has a sense that many of these early American writers were Englishmen, well educated, who kept journals and diaries that show us how liberty and land affected them once in the New World.
Another laid-back educational thing we do is take a brisk 15-minute walk each day. It’s dreary and wet here today, but we walked anyway. Our walks are very Charlotte Mason-ish. ~:-D
Our talk today centered around all the trees that we could name. We saw a squirrel climbing frantically away from us, up and up a tree, to a nest that we wondered about. Was it a squirrel’s nest or a bird’s nest we were looking at. Judging by the size, we figured it was a squirrel’s nest.
Note to educators: Whenever I see a Norton Anthology of any kind that I don’t already have, in the thrift store, I buy it! They are wonderful resources to pull from as you work your way through a timeline.
Lynn
By Lynn, on November 2nd, 2007%
Here’s an idea for a get-together that is both fun and educational. It’s Book Character Day. My daughter is taking part in one today. Each child dresses up like their favorite book character. With book in hand, each child comes dressed up and ready to view and review an assortment of books and costumes!
Games and snacks could be included to make it extra special.
My daughter is the little fox from Little Fox Goes to the End of the World .
Little Fox Goes to the End of the World is actually a great book choice for a unit study for the elementary grades. Many paths could be taken in the direction of winds, sea, sailing, and animals!
Enjoy!
By Lynn, on October 15th, 2007%
My youngest, my daughter, is sick today. So I thought it would be fun to revisit Madeline. We curled up on the love seat (or as she mistakenly calls it, the “love couch”) with some books. It was fun to read Madeline and the Bad Hat. Then we looked at France in our atlas.
It was interesting to note just how many countries border France.
I hope my baby is better soon. She has some chicken soup, but I am about to go get her some things to drink that might help settle her stomach a bit.
I was looking out my office window this morning and noting the clarity of the water in the goldfish pond. I am very happy about this. My new pump is working wonders!
You can see the piping to the pump and the empty clay pot that the fish hide in. You can see the rocks that line the pond. It’s great! This is the view from my window — a little slice of the garden.
I walked out to feed the fish and my little darling wanted to go with me. I think she enjoyed getting out in the sun for a few minutes, even though she is scared of all the bees that are visiting the flowers around the pond right now.
On the way in, I tried to show her just how uninterested the bees are in her. You can even pet the bees when they are sitting mesmerized on these flowers and they won’t even move!
She would have none of it! That’s okay. ~:-D
Have a great Monday,
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About Lynn
I am the mother of four delightful children: a 23-year-old son, a 20-year-old son, a 17-year-old son, and a bright and bubbly 13-year-old daughter. I share an apartment home with my 17-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter. My little home on the internet is called Rose Cottage because of my love for gardening, roses, and all things romantic and Victorian. Welcome.
I'm a North Carolina girl and I love sharing North Carolina links and information. I do medical transcription from home. My hobbies include making sweet little dolls from clay who are named and have their own stories to tell. I also make old-fashioned brooches. These are for sale in my Etsy shop.
For 13 years continuously, I homeschooled some or all of our four children, but the time came that our homeschool had to be closed. It was the end of a beautiful chapter in my life. I will always be a strong supporter of homeschooling and I will continue to review books and maintain my homeschool website, The Healthy Homeschool. The Players
Lil Ol' Me
Son Daniel, 23
Son, Big Joe, 20
Son, John, 17
Daughter, Michaela, 13
Annie Fatso Beagle
My Symphony
To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never. In a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony.
William Henry Channing
1810-1884
What You Do Sow a thought, reap an action.
Sow an action, reap a habit.
Sow a habit, reap a character.
Sow a character, reap a destiny.
Contact Me 
I would  for you to leave a comment, but you can also e-mail me at lynn AT thehealthyhomeschool.com
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