Living Homeschool

My dear friend Trece Davis is the author of this most excellent book on homeschooling! Living Homeschool is the title of her book. She also had developed a FaceBook page for those who are interested. She has MUCH WISDOM as a fellow homeschooler who has raised 8 children! She still teaches classes and is just an amazing friend! Go check out her page! If you click on the highlighted word Facebook, it will connect you to her page. :)

Guess What We Are Doing Tomorrow!!!

 Getting all the books out....

Here are a few of them!
We also have Co-Op classes that will have more....
So here is to a New School Year!  May 2013-2014 be successful for ALL! :)

Home Education Has It's Benefits!

 Doing math in a hammock on a beautiful day!

And if you break your pencil lead, you just come to the window and ask for another pencil. :)

President's Day

 Class Presentations on President's Day were really fun.  The girls had to write a short few paragraphs on their favorite president and why he was their favorite. :)
For fun, the littles did their reports with quill pens and Ink. :)
They both worked very hard making that first LARGE old fashioned letter.

 Her Favorite President was Abraham Lincoln.

 I think Anna looks very distinguished in her new reading glasses!

 Sarah's favorite president was George Washington.

 Alli's favorite president was Abraham Lincoln.

Erika's favorite president was Abraham Lincoln also!

I would have to say mine is George Washington too.... or John Adams....I haven't been able to decide.

This weekend I will be speaking at the Together for Them Conference.   I'm looking forward to meeting some of you!
Now, if I can keep my voice, as it seems to be sounding a bit SCRATCHY...... that will be nice! LOL
Anna put together a slide show for me to put on my display table while Erika was away skiing in Colorado.  Thank you Anna for all that hard work!  Of course, she worked in a Justin Bieber song. LOL
So, here goes!  YIKES!

The Daily Randomness

 Sarah decided to try wrag curlers.  She has the BEST HAIR EVER! :)

Sarah is also struggling with pain again.  Her leg is not fitting right since she had her surgery.... so it is time for a new leg!  This time, she will be most likely be getting TWO separate legs..... 1. A sports leg and 2 a lady leg.... :)
She is growing up!

I 

I am giving the girlies a science test on the EAR.  Anna Took hers early because she was ready. :) (They all have until Wednesday)
I am so proud of Miss Anna!

Today we picked up Miss Alli's birthday cake for Saturday!  She wanted a Russian Halva cake.  It is a sunflower seed cake.  I ordered it from the Euro Deli and picked it up today.  We should be having Halva for a good while! :)

THE STRUGGLE a BCLC MOMENT

I am so thankful that my life has not been easy.  Looking back, it is just amazing how many things the Lord orchestrated in my earlier years to prepare me for my children.

One thing that I struggled greatly with, was my education.  I was not a straight A student. We moved so much that it was difficult to keep up and just "fit into" an already existing, functioning classroom and  know what was going on.

Sometimes the different district would have already covered material that I had not learned yet, so there were gaps in my education.

I CANNOT IMAGINE the difficulty of children coming to America from other countries and adding on top of culture, food and language, EDUCATION; and  ALL in another language!   Oh the pressure and stress!

I am so proud of my girls! They work so very  HARD!  I am THANKFUL that I can design their education according to their needs.  The GAPS are filled for each individual!

Today, Miss Alli was struggling.  Sometimes she gets very frustrated because it is hard for her to read still.  She is reading for pleasure, but academic English is hard for her.  The words are different from what she is used to.  Today, her window of tolerance shut down by about 10:30 a.m.  I had her come and sit by me, which she did, but she was not very happy.

I got up to begin the process of cooking lunch, and diverted her to getting an onion and some mushrooms out of the refrigerator for me.  At that moment, she didn't quite feel she could even do that!  She was in shame. :(
I told her, "I'll help you!" So she complied.

While I was chopping up onions and mushrooms, I talked to her....
"It must be so frustrating that things don't come easy for you! " (she is not where her sisters are in History) "I remember when I was a little girl just feeling so lost sometimes when I was trying to read and find the answer to a question!"  
"Is that how you are feeling?" 
She shook her head yes, and her whole demeanor changed.  She wrapped her arms around my waist and said, "I'm sorry mama!"
"That's ok, sweetheart!"  "I understand!" 
"Just think, when I was young, I struggled in school, and I already knew English!"
"You have only been learning English for 3 years! And there was a lot of chaos in the beginning that may have caused it to be so hard to learn!"

"When we are stressed, it is very hard to learn."
"So let's not waste any more time!"

And she is back to her books, happily looking up her words. :)
Her window is now back to being wide open!

This happened in a matter of less than 15 minutes!
Brought to you by a BCLC moment! :)

Money Matters

The girls and I have been going through the "Money Matters" workbook this last semester.  We do it 2 days a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  When we started it, they really weren't too interested, but over the semester, it has become one of their favorites.

The use and purpose for money, responsibility with money, how to save, how to earn money etc. have all been covered. 
Today we read all about charitable giving and why we should give, including HOW to pick who to give to  and how to research how much goes to the purpose of the charity. 

Each of the girls has been able to learn how to save both in long term savings and short term "goal saving." 
Tonight, that short term saving payed off as 2 of them were able to purchase something they have been saving for.
And icing on the cake for me was when Miss Alli came up and gave me a big hug.  "Thank you mama for teaching me how to save!  Now I don't spend all my money on gum and candy!"
"When I see it, I just cross my arms and pass it by!" 
That was so good to hear! :)

A Sense of Happiness and Joy

There is this excited sense of Joy around here lately, and I am thoroughly enjoying it!  We have been listening to Christmas music, having fun decorating and watching Christmas movies.

The girls are winding down the school semester  and getting ready for Christmas and New Year's Break. 
We are all looking forward to holiday baking, shopping, playing, helping daddy in the shoppe, worshiping our Savior, celebrating His birth,  and many other things involving friends and family. :)

Of course Alli and Sarah have been working extra hard to find play time, and they have incorporated it into chores.
Cleaning the chicken coop was a time for dress up and bringing in eggs was a time for bartering. :)
Alli dressed up in a costume and found a scarf.  I told her she looked Authentically Russian!
And then she had some canned Herring to prove it. :)

Special Needs Kids and Reading for Enjoyment : The Importance of Crawling!

This is partially about me. I am a little trepidatious to write it....

When I was a child, I am embarrassed to say, I LOATHED reading.  I had such trouble comprehending. I was a "good reader", meaning ORALLY, I could read perfectly. I just couldn't process what I had read. Consequently, trying to do chapter questions in a history book, or in a chapter book was torture, all through school. 

It would take me hours to do homework, and many times, I would just flat out get a bad grade after studying so very hard. 
I would spend hours weeping over math. My parents could not help as they did not have strong educations and were not encouraged to finish school.
My mother went to the 10th grade and my father went to the 6th grade.
In spite of their lacking in education, which was not uncommon for that time period, they did accomplished, paying bills, raising a family and working hard even though there were many hardships.
We moved a lot, so we never had a "history" for teachers to follow and help. 
I went to numerous schools, many times in the middle of the year.  I went to 3 different 6th grades and numerous other schools in other grades. 
I was a good oral learner and I was good at writing papers.  Book work however, or math were my down fall.
I used to go to the library because everybody said reading "Little Women" or "Little House on the Prarie" were books I'd enjoy!  I would check them out and couldn't get past the first page.
In 6th grade I was still reading  Dr. Seuss's  "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish" or "Green Eggs and Ham". 
I would check books out all the time, because that is what you are supposed to do. But I never read them.  I would just turn them back in.

My mom used to tell the story of how I never crawled as a baby.  She said  I rolled or scooted, but never crawled.
I am also left handed.
VERY LEFT HANDED! :)
There were these home movies of me as a baby taking my spoon in my left hand, my mother putting it into my right hand, and me putting it back into my left hand, getting frustrated when she tried to repeat the process.

By all accounts today, I would have been considered having learning differences and I am sure would have been placed in a special class in today's system. 

What happened to me later, after not finishing college because I just wasn't smart enough.... or so I thought, was nothing short of an accidental miracle. :)

I was 18 and newly married, my husband was a HUGE reader. I could never understand why book stores existed, but he loved them.  We would go to the mall and he would go into those awful places and READ and EXPLORE! I just didn't get it.  I would wander around looking at all the titles and be soooo ready to leave! 

When our first son was born, I was 20.  I began  to read things about children, and I was interested enough that I could understand what I was reading. 
I was also looking at cook books a lot....Like I said,  I could READ, I just had a hard time with comprehension.

When our son started crawling, I would crawl around with him.  We would have the funnest time having crawl races and playing peekaboo all over the house!  I think I crawled at least an hour or two a day!
Then came the next son, and the next and the next.....
I loved playing with my boys.  I was 24 when our 4th son was born.  I had been crawling for 4 years on a regular basis!
Somewhere during that time, I started reading the news paper, and then, magazines, and then everything I could get my hands on; especially my bible.

An entire world of books and reading began to open up!   I didn't quite understand what had happened, but I was so happy to be able to be like everybody else who enjoyed a good book!

Then, I came across an article in the news paper. It was all about the effects crawling had on reading.
A study had been done. Adults who had not crawled as babies were encouraged to crawl 15 or 20 minutes a day and they showed improvement in reading skills. 

Suddenly, I realized what had happened.  I cured myself unintentionally! LOL   All those years of crawling helped my brain develop the pathways that allowed my left and right brain to communicate better and I could READ! I could COMPREHEND!  I also found out, I was not dumb. 
I used to overhear things like, "She is not as smart as her sister", or "You are like me!"

So, I made up for lost time, and being a good oral learner and now a good reader helped me gain knowledge that I didn't have before.
 By 1991  I was working in the school system in the special ed department. My heart went out to those kids who were sitting there struggling just like I used to do.
I mentioned to somebody the crawling thing and was brushed off as having no right to an opinion; after all, I didn't have a PHD.  I could VERY CLEARLY see that what was being used for these students was not ever going to work unless they got to the root of the problem.
Of course I understand that not every reason for reading problems is the same.... but exercising the brain cannot hurt!
We had dyslexia, (which I think fits me, but I am not officially diagnosed) and brain damage due to a stroke at 16 days old.
The schools were saying that our second son could not learn.  He had AMBITION.... and I felt so for him. 
I also watched as teachers berated the children who struggled, didn't treat them with respect and made fun of them in the lunch room.  I listened as parents would walk out of an IEP and then the teachers would mock them.  IT WAS AWFUL!
(THIS IS NOT a broad brushed swipe against teachers... it was a real experience that I had in the particular school district we were in. I am sure there are wonderful teachers out there.)

It became very apparent that we were going to have to pull out of the schools if some of our boys were going to learn.
It was a scary decision, but I understood how I learned and it wasn't through pressure and constant remedial reading classes!
Thus began our life style change.  Everybody was home and some were very wounded from the school experience, just like I had been.

I began to tell the guys, you are smart! You can learn! Of COURSE YOU CAN LEARN! If I can, you can!
We went back to the very basics with two of them, and started all over again; because if your foundation is shaky, it WILL fail!  May as well get the foundation FIXED before you try to build upon it!

ANY LEARNING A CHILD DOES IS  MOVING FORWARD and should be celebrated no matter how small!
The results were:  Our boys learned! They not only learned to read, but went on to get advanced degrees in College!  Even our son who was written off as "retarded" and "handicapped", worked diligently to study and learn. Once he got the learning bug, he studied from the time he got up until he went to bed at night.....with JOY.  He was so thankful he could learn! 
He now works in the public school system.  He was teaching special ed but now runs the testing center at his school.

Fast forward once again to the girls!   (this is long because I have had a long life!) LOL

Each of them has had their own learning difficulties, due to early neglect, alcohol/drug exposure, brain trauma, and INTERNATIONAL adoption.... Having to learn a new language is HARD. In one case, she had to learn TWO new languages in a short time and had forgotten her first language. :(
I cannot imagine the frustration!   Well, I can. :)

Each of the girls has learned to enjoy reading to a degree.  Anna and Sarah LOVE TO READ. They devour books continually.  They are well known at the local library! :)
Erika reads well, but prefers to knit.  Erika was unable to crawl because of her disabilities.  I have been looking into brain exercises that would accomplish the same effects as crawling.  We need to implement them into our schedule!

Miss Alli could not read hardly at all when she first came home.  She was also very aware of being "behind".  Trying to convince her to go back to the beginning was a task, but we did it. :)
And it has payed off! 
She too, like I did as a child,  would go to the library, check out books and not read them.  Not any more!
She is now reading for pleasure! YEA!  Just this a.m she was telling me all about the story she was reading and how much she was liking it.  Her questions were so cute.... I could see her imagination opening up and a whole new world is open to her now.  The wonders of traveling into a book and experiencing a whole different reality.... dragons and woods and princesses. :)

I am so thankful that the Lord gave me the experiences I had as a child and young adult.   He knew I would need this knowledge in order to make a difference in my children's lives.  :)

Oh The Cleverness of Anna

Anna has been working on typing.  I told the girls that after this year, I will be requiring papers to be typed.  I was very impressed that she figured out how to do her Language Arts lesson on the computer!   

 Way to go my Clever girl! :)

HOW MANY GIRLS....

How many girls can you fit into the Minich House??? 

A LOT!  I never got a full view of all those girls! :)
Bright Lights met at our house today. It is a group of girls, all home educated. We meet 2 x's a month and the girls have a wonderful time. :)

I think, my best guess was 25. :) Then, there were the boys that were running around outside!
I am thankful for each of these girls and moms who are committed to "Bright Lights". :)

Today, they participated in making "Operation Christmas".  Boxes are being sent across the world for those who are in need. Each little girl wrote a sweet letter wishing the recipient a Merry Christmas.

We had a great day!

Friday Soccer Days

Every Friday, barring RAIN, we meet at the park with several other families and have a soccer game.
It is a great time to get together and let your hair fly in the wind.  Everybody gets to play, including Erika.  So thankful for good friends and loads of kids around here. :)

An Erika Funny

Today during science we were reading aloud about Neurons.
Erika read aloud : "Do you think a single moron can carry information in both directions?" No.....
We all started laughing.... "It is  NEURON not MORON". LOL

My Erika.

 Erika is working on an essay.  This is her first draft, but it is so sweet, I couldn't wait for the final one. :)
This shows Erika's heart. She is such a sweet young lady. I am so very proud of her.  Erika is the kind of big sister that anybody would want. I think she has some really great examples on being an older sibling.


Young people sometimes fail to appreciate the blessing of having and older brother or sister.  I have four older brothers and I treasure them with all my heart.
I look up to them and learn from them. They are my example. The have grown up and have kids of their own.
I love it when they come to visit. I get to spend time with them and hear the things that have happened to them.  I treasure them so very much.
I ponder the time I have with them because in the blink of an eye, the Lord could take it all away.

I love to see my brother Chuck watch football, and see him get so excited when they hit a home run. Just to see him filled with joy makes me light up.

I love playing cards with my brother Timothy. Playing Spoons is the game my brother and I played last time and when he would win he would always scream with joy. It makes me laugh.

I love it when Joseph comes over. He is always so kind. I love to watch him tell mom not to pick up anything and he will do it. Or when he plays cards with me and when he tried to take us to the library and didn't know how to get there. It makes me smile.

I adore it when Marcus comes over. He is always so tender. He can play a game with me while holding his baby girl. I love his respect and love to his wife and children. He amazes me with the many talents he has.
I learn so much from my older brothers.  
Erika, you are my sweet heart....

Alli's Day in the Kitchen

 She made her famous mashed potatoes last night, with loads of toppings.   And fruit salad for desert.
For lunch she made salads and gluten free pizza.

Today Alli finished her science project. For breakfast she made bacon, eggs and toast.  (mama couldn't have most of but what I had was great!   And now, mama has to start cooking again! It was a rather nice vacation! :)

Cooking with Sarah

Sarah completed her science project by cooking breakfast for the family. :)
She is such a sweet heart.

Oh my goodness she is growing up!   Sarah made pancakes, eggs and bacon for breakfast.
(Mama couldn't have any. :(  but I KNOW It was wonderful.  :)

A September Funny

Miss Alli was abit overwhelmed with her science project.   We are studying NUTRITION.  Part of our assignment was to copy the food pyramid from 4 different countries.  She likes art, so this was no problem. 
The problem came when I asked the girls to write a menu for ONE DAY..."breakfast, lunch and dinner"  and to have it go by the pyramid guidelines that they picked!

Oh My! Miss Alli was very upset.  I think mostly, she didn't fully understand what she was supposed to do.
So in trying to help her, she said, "You just don't know how hard this is!"
My reply was, "Of course I do!" 
Her reply.... "I really don't think so! I'd like to see YOU make a menu and cook dinner for a family!"

ROFL......
I didn't need to say anything else.... she looked at my astonishment and said, "Sorry Mama".  :)

Geography

Can you guess what THESE are going to be???

 

We made them from this:

and balloons. :)
Here are two more pretty faces:

 

 They enjoyed making our GLOBES too. :)

We will work some more on them soon and I'll take pictures of our progress. :)

TWO WEEKS of SCHOOL COMPLETED.....

AND....... I am going to tweak a few things and make some changes.

One of the benefits of home education is that you can tweak your studies and tailor them to the specific needs of your children.  I have been fighting change because I really DO NOT like to waste money..... 
Translated:  I purchased a curriculum that I thought would be great and it ISN'T! :/ 
It might be great for some and it is working for one of my children, but not for the other three!
Soooo, we are returning to old faithful "Rod and Staff".    I don't know what I was thinking, making a change..... I have been using it since 1994!  It has ALWAYS been "right".  I just thought a change would be good!  WRONG! 
I'm glad it is the beginning of the school year and that we are making this change now.  There is no sense trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.  So, I faced the music and it is done.  If anybody is interested in Saxon Hakes Grammar and Writing book 7 and book 5, with Writing assignments and correction books, let me know. I have it for sale.
Until I made my decision, I felt like pulling my hair out. I was struggling with change.... and the drama of something that does not work!  So I feel like a HUGE weight has been lifted from my shoulders.

EVERYTHING ELSE is going GREAT!   We are REALLY enjoying History and Geography.  In our history, we are learning about specific people, one being Michelangelo.  One of the assignments was to tape paper under a table, and lay on the floor and paint the painting up under the table......My guess is to see just how hard it is to paint a ceiling!  LOL  
Over the last couple of days I have walked through the kitchen to find our girls in a most interesting painting posture! :)
Sarah was smart and used pillows! LOL

We are all enjoying learning about finances too!  Our studies today about savings being savings accounts and not "spending accounts" led to some questions about how to save for short term vs. long term and how long it will take to save for some things.  This opened a dialogue about how to "buy money" when you are too young to be employed.   There were some really great ideas floating around.
I think I have a few pedicures and foot rubs in my future. :)
OVERALL, I think we have had a really great 2 weeks.   There is MUCH to learn and we are ready to learn it!


I have a question:
Do you give your children an allowance?  We do, but it is not based upon chores. It is a gift. We do chores because that is what families do....  I am wondering, if you DO give allowance, how much do you give and how often?  Right now, we give 5 dollars a week. Please feel free to comment. :)

Alli's Volcanic Eruption!

Alli created a Volcano land with background and active volcanoes. :) She colored the vinegar with red food coloring so the lava would look real. :)  Her volcanoes were made out of clay.  She put baking soda down the shaft of each volcano and then poured in the dyed vinegar. 

Alli is a hands on sorta girl.  She really enjoys arts and crafts and any kind of science experiment.  We are not studying volcanoes right now, but instead nutrition.   So, since we really don't have much to "create" with nutrition, other than lunch..... Volcanoes were the project of the day. :)

I don't think Puppy appreciated being kept in her crate.... She wanted some volcano time! :)

On a side note..... Bella went boating and enjoyed the water!

Bella and her Four Little Women. :)