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Lorraine Curry's
Easy Homeschooling Eletter
Issue #75 July 2006

In this Issue

Upcoming Books

Secular Edition Easy Homeschooling Techniques (Sept 06) ISBN 0-9709965-4-3

Fields with God, Devotional (Nov 06) 0-9709965-5-1

Easy Homeschooling Curriculum, "Literature by Grade Level" (Feb 07) 0-9709965-3-5

Notebook Homeschooling

Lorraine Curry

Notebook Homeschooling

How did we homeschool? Other than reading aloud, our primary technique was writing done in spiral notebooks! I noticed a box of twenty notebooks in Eli's (19) room so pulled them out and started going through them. It has been encouraging to me, reminding me of the good seeds sown in my children's lives. Do not forget to remind your children to date each days writing or at least date each notebook!

What's in our notebooks?

Bible: Copied verses or sections, verses that I wrote for them to copy and memorize depending on child's age at the time. Commentary on a verse or passage. Sometimes a personal "diary" page about passage or other truth. Scripture with real-life explanations of how it could be applied.

Science: A diagram of a stomach, other notes and formulas or even a comment such as "no man can make an eyeball."

Journal Entries: "Hellow this is Monday the 20th of September. The time is 3:43am. I started at 3:00am. I already got math done. Now I'm doing and essay. I'm going to read now."

Literature: Summaries of reading (Pilgrim's Progress). Copywork from classic authors. Book reports, original stories (what a sense of humor and creativity!).

Copywork: Bible, literature, hymn lyrics, poetry.

Penmanship: I would copy a portion of what he had written. He first wrote over my writing and then copied the phrase four more times directly below.

Spelling: I wrote the misspelled word in syllables below his writing for him to learn.

Punctuation: I circled places where he'd left it out and put the proper mark in the circle. I wrote teaching notes such as "capitalize people's names."

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TV is a Drug - Are Your Kids Addicted?

By Adam Cox



For most of us, hearing about different types of addiction is a common occurrence. Even more difficult to bear is that most of us are close to someone affected by an addiction. When addictions are related to the abuse of a substance such as alcohol, our understanding that there is a problem may be rooted in clear and serious signs of a life out of control. But what about an addiction related to something more subtle? Could a behavior as seemingly normal as watching television become an addiction? You bet it can!

I believe television can be a "drug" because it is literally a mind-altering experience. Like any drug, it has the potential to be used responsibly or abused. Did you know that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no television for children under two years of age, and no more than two hours of television per day for older children? Here's why. It is not only because of the potential for inappropriate content. In fact, for young children especially, it is the incredible stimulation that TV provides that makes it so potentially damaging. All of the flashing bright colors, loud sounds, and frequent fragmentation of reality that television encompasses is far too much stimulation for most young minds to manage. At the same time, children are like a magnet for this type of gratification, and as most parents know, can become addicted to the neurological stimulation of television very quickly. Although some people have tried to justify overexposure to electronic media by claiming it makes children smarter, those theories are little more than rationalizations for indulging in what science indicates is bad for us.

What's the effect of repeated exposure to television stimulation? Just like what happens when a person is exposed to any drug, repeated exposure to television has the effect of dulling a person's senses. This is precisely what we as parents experience when we ask our kids to tear themselves away from the television and in return get a blank stare or grunt and shrug! With younger children, requiring them to make a transition away from a stimulation source to which they are "hooked" often results in an instant melt-down. Noticing your child's ability to transition between watching television and attending to the environment around him or her is a good way to determine if she or he is over-stimulated, or even possibly addicted. Kids who are addicted to television care increasingly less about the content of what they are watching, and more about getting another "hit" of electronic stimulation. The brain is an organ that is unique in that it develops in response to its environment - and if you're continually "blasting" a young, developing mind with rapid-fire images, you may be creating a mind that craves high level stimulation but lacks the ability to focus its attention - sound familiar?

Here's What You Can Do:

1) Make television a family activity. Discuss what you and your child are watching together. Turn down or mute the volume during commercials to ensure you are sustaining social contact. And relate events on television shows to real events in the life of your family.

2) Limit television watching to a specific period of time and to specific times of the day. Kids do better when they are required to do things before they watch TV, such as getting dressed, teeth brushed, breakfast eaten, etc., before the television set goes on. Don't let television become the constant background to family life. Turn the TV on to watch specific shows, and then turn it off when the show is over.

Discuss alternatives to television with your children. Kids do much better accepting that they can only watch a limited amount of TV when they know you are prepared to spend time playing a game, going to the park, or helping with homework instead. When we use TV to occupy our kids so we can get other things done, we are inadvertently becoming enablers of their addiction.

3) Not all television is created equal. Look for shows that are paced appropriately for children. There are great programs for kids that don't rely on seizure-inducing graphics to keep their attention. Don't be afraid to censor shows; if you start when children are young by simply saying, "this show isn't good for your brain, and I'm proud of what a smart girl (or boy) you are," you'll get them on the right track.

About the Author: Adam Cox, PhD http://www.dradamcox.com Board certified clinical psychologist and author, Boys of Few Words: Raising Our Sons to Communicate and Connect.

Source: www.isnare.com

Future Christian Homemakers

Laurie Latour began Future Christian Homemakers in Jacksonville, Florida in 1998 to teach girls the practical skills and Biblical values they need to become Godly homemakers.

Just a few decades ago, Home Economics courses were not only required in schools, but everyone considered homemaking skills an essential part of every girl's education. Usually, beginning in junior high, girls took one year of basic sewing plus a year of basic cooking before going on to advanced Home Ec. courses in high school. Today, few girls receive the training they need to one day manage a household well and take care of their families. Many women have grown up without this basic instruction.

The results have been devastating: Many families spend a fortune on fast food meals, busting the family budget and their health. Fewer and fewer families share dinnertime together, missing out on nutritious meals and critical bonding time. The very fiber of family life has been seriously weakened as "dashboard dinners" replace family mealtime, and homes that should be a peaceful refuge from the world are in disarray.

Many skills are essential to manage a home well: Caring for children, cooking, menu planning, grocery shopping, budgeting, sewing, laundry, cleaning, organizational skills, decorating - and the list goes on. Homes just don't operate well on "auto-pilot."

Will girls today be prepared to be homemakers, wives and mothers? This training needs to begin in the home from a young age. What better place to practice homemaking skills than for a daughter to become her mother's apprentice and serve her own family.

Blessed is the girl whose mother knows these skills, and passes them on to her daughters! But what if you had no homemaking training? Or perhaps you are confident in some areas but weak in others. Where do you turn for homemaking lessons?

Future Christian Homemakers is one way girls, and their mothers, can learn to cook, sew, and manage a home. The Future Christian Homemakers' Handbook is used by many families to begin teaching these essential skills. Some FCH groups meet as a mother-daughter club, a Titus 2 church ministry, and even as a missionary outreach. Homeschoolers use the FCH Handbook in co-op classes and at home. My FCH group began with girls in my own church and grew to include girls from other churches, as well as girls in our neighborhood. For more information, please visit us at:

www.FutureChristianHomemakers.com

We are offering 20% Off "Classic Prayers for Children" book until July 31st. This original 1912 version has been out of print for decades. With lovely artwork of families at prayer and many sweet prayers, it is sure to be an inspiration for children and adults alike. This is a lovely gift book that will become an heirloom in your family just as it has in mine!

When ordered *directly from Future Christian Homemakers,* the book is just $8 plus shipping until 7/31. This is not advertised on our website! Please e-mail us (info@FutureChristianHomemakers.com) with your order and address and we will weigh the order and compute the priority mail postage, then e-mail you back with the total. The bookmark ($1.50) and set of note cards ($5.00) remain at their regular price. All make a lovely, meaningful gift with eternal value! Go to: http://www.futurechristianhomemakers.com/classicprayers/index.shtml Be sure to click on the links from there to read the special story behind the book.

3 Ways to Inspire a Love of Reading in Your Child
By Nicole Dean



If your child is showing little interest in reading, there is hope. Sometimes moms and dads have to get sneaky, but you can still turn your child into a reader, even if he is reluctant about it.

1. The Early Bedtime trick.
One of my favorite ways to get my kids to read is something they hopefully will not figure out until they have kids of their own. Two words "Early Bedtime".

You might be wondering how an increase in sleep can help your child to spend more time reading. Well, here's the trick. Set their bedtime for 45 minutes to an hour before they need their lights out.

Here's how our bedtime routine goes. The kids brush teeth and use the bathroom. Then I read them their stories. This is all done before their official bedtime. Then, I simply give them an option. I say "It's time for bed, now. Would you like lights out or would you like to stay up and read for a bit?"

Unless they are really tired, they'll always choose to read awhile. I do not have to beg nor manipulate them into reading. In fact, they think it's their idea and they have grown to love their chance for a 'late' bedtime. Then, I back off. I don't try to instruct them in any way, nor help them choose books. This is their time. They can choose whichever book they like and look at it however they like until I come in to kiss them goodnight and turn their lights out. Of course, if they want me to stay and listen to them read, I'm more than happy to comply. Try it. It works.

2. Summer reading incentives.
You can sign up for a summer reading program at pretty much any library in the country. If your local library does not have a summer reading program, then create one at home, with rewards for reading books. You can use a Monopoly (or Life) board and allow your child to move one space for each book he reads. Or if you want to have more fun, let him roll the dice each time he reads a book and have prizes available for passing certain points.

Make sure the rewards are something very desirable. If your child values time with you more than toys, then set a date together doing his favorite thing. If he values a certain toy, let him earn it. Or let him earn a chance to get out of his regular chores. Take him to his favorite restaurant. Just have fun with it and he will, too.

3. Read the book before you can see the movie.
This is a standard in our home. We won't go see any movie until we've read the book. Whether my husband and I read the book to the kids or they read it alone, each member of the family can go see the movie after the book is read. So, if your child is looking forward to seeing the next Chronicles of Narnia movie, the next Harry Potter movie or the next Lemony Snicket movie, they'll have to read the book first.

That's it. Three easy ways to turn your child into a reader for life.

About the Author: Nicole Dean invites you to http://www.ShowKidstheFun.com -- a free website filled with activities to make memories with your children and http://www.ShowMomtheMoney.com -- a fun and informative resource for moms who want to make money from home.

Source: www.isnare.com

 

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Daily Chore Charts
By Rachel Paxton

Our family's cleaning and chore schedules have varied widely over the years. In two short years we have gone from having one teenager in the home to having two teenagers and two toddlers.
In the past I have tended to do much of the housework myself, with help off and on from my teenage daughter. Our cleaning schedule was very different then. We got away with vacuuming once or twice a week and didn't even do the dishes every day.

Our lifestyle changed dramatically when I was pregnant with our twins. It got to the point I could do no housework at all. At the time my daughter was 17 years old, attending community college, and working at a part time job. I was not requiring her to do much housework because of her busy schedule. While I was pregnant we both decided she would quit her job and work for me instead, doing housework, cooking dinner, and doing grocery shopping for me. This arrangement worked very well for us and I enjoyed the extra time we got to spend together. She was able to easily find a new part time job after her brothers were born and I started doing more housework again.

After the birth of our twins my teenage step-daughter moved in with us. It wasn't until the boys began to crawl and then walk that the housework became totally unmanageable and I had to admit I couldn't do it all on my own. That is when we started our daily "chore chart".

First I wrote down the chores with which I needed the most help:

Daily Chores

- Dishes, clean kitchen
- Pick up and vacuum living room and dining room
- Take out kitchen garbage

Twice-a-Week Chores

- Mop kitchen floor
- Clean litter box
- Do a load of laundry

Once-a-Week Chores

- Take out all garbages
- Put garbage can up on street
- Clean bedroom
- Clean kids' bathroom

This cleaning schedule has worked very well for us. I choose to cook dinner every evening because I enjoy it. Between cooking, feeding the boys, and getting them ready for bed, that is about all I have time for in an evening. Having the girls do the other chores is a huge help.

When I created the schedule, I did keep in mind the girls' outside activities. For instance, if I know one of the girls has an activity one night I won't have her do the dishes that night. I have set up a schedule where each night one daughter picks up and vacuums and the other daughter does the dishes. Those are
the two biggest chores. Then they usually have one other small chore. Most nights their chores take 20 minutes or less, but save me at least an hour of extra work. On Saturdays they clean their bedrooms, and take turns cleaning their bathroom.

We haven't had any problems getting the girls to do their chores. First of all, they can't go anywhere until their chores are done. If they still choose not to do their chores they will not get their allowance. Although one daughter also has a part time job we also decided to give her a small allowance for doing household chores because she spends so much of the rest of her time doing homework and working at her other job. We wanted to give her a small incentive and to let her know her help is appreciated.

We keep track of chores on a dry erase board that has a calendar pre-printed on it. Every month I write in the days for the new month and write in the girls' chores for every day. There is no confusion as to who has what chores.

You can adjust your chore charts to suit your needs. You may not need your living room vacuumed every day like we do. Chores can be varied according to how many children you have and their ages.

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who is the author of What's for Dinner?, an e-cookbook containing more than 250 quick easy dinner ideas. For more recipes, organizing tips, home decorating, crafts, holiday hints, and more, visit Creative Homemaking at http://www.creativehomemaking.com.


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