It was years ago, before I ever looked into homeschooling. Back before "Classical Education" was ever a part of my vocabulary. Before Dorothy Sayers and Charlotte Mason and even discussions about Christian worldview, or worldview in general. It was in the wide open air - at an outdoor theater in my early 20's that I first realized something was missing. A man I was dating (and later would marry) took me to see "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at an outdoor theater in Spring Green, Wisconsin. It was … [Read more...]
Great Artists: A Solagratia Mom Resource Review & GIVEAWAY
One of the many things I love about Classical Conversations is the Fine Arts portion of the program. I love learning more about Great Artists and Composers. Recently, I finished reading "How Should We Then Live" by Francis Schaefer. It is on the Challenge level reading list and I am slowly trying to make my way through thier books ahead of my oldest who is 9 (that gives me some time, but there are a lot of books!). This book was phenomenal. Really. … [Read more...]
Now Available! Orchestra Book for Cycle 2!
The Orchestra Lapbook and Teaching Guide is now available! Designed for six 30-minute lessons, this resource is designed to walk the teacher or parent right through the class time with a ready-made teaching script! Complete lesson plans introduce the topics and creatively incorporate a lapbook component to record what the student has learned. It is a cohesive, simple, and seamless way to discover and enjoy your orchestra study! In … [Read more...]
Scripture Memory: Ideas for Ephesians
Hey you guys! You can do this! Ok, so this picture might be a stretch, but how adorable is he? It reminds me of Smokey the Bear when I was little saying "only you can prevent forest fires!" Does anyone else remember that?? Anyone? Anyone? Back to topic...... This year, we will be memorizing Ephesians 6 within our Classical Conversations Community. At home, there are a number of ways to learn and review this … [Read more...]
When You Need a Schedule – Day 1
Since it is planning time for everyone, I thought I would re-post this series from the archives..... Creating a Family schedule that Works for You! I know - you're as ecstatic as I am. You could barely sleep last night thinking about scheduling....am I right? huh?....oh yeah, baby!! No?...... You're not that excited? Oh. Okay. In that case, it is a good thing we are going to take this one step … [Read more...]
Curriculum Choices 2013-2014
In light of the fact that I love hearing what other people are doing in their homeschools, I wanted to post our homeschool plans for this year (2013-2014). Memory Work - First and foremost, we will be focusing on our Memory Work. You can read all about what we memorize and what resources we use in THIS POST. Of course we will also be using the My Memory Work Lapbooks as a hands-on project based way to review our CC memory work. Reading - Our … [Read more...]
Our Memory Work
We love Memory Work around here - it just seems to be so fruitful in the long run! Since my kiddos memorize well to music, we are able to get a lot of info into our little noggins in one year! So there are a number of things we will be memorizing this year, and since I love hearing about what you all are doing, I figured I would post what we are doing. Today I will focus on Memory Work, and later this week I will fill you in on the rest of our studies. Memory Work … [Read more...]
New Testament Greek – Memory Work
I love everything we learn in our Classical Conversations curriculum. It has opened my eyes to just how much we can memorize as a family through music and motion! While I see the value in learning Latin, I personally feel more challenged and earnest to learn New Testament Greek. Koine Greek is the language of the New Testament, and hearing the words of Jesus in the language he spoke is so incredibly motivating to me! What greater gift than to enable your children (and yourself) to … [Read more...]
Thoughts on Classical Conversations
I am so excited about Cycle 2 with Classical Conversations! When I first considered CC a few years ago and visited a classroom, it was so foreign to grasp the idea of the "memory pegs" - this type of "filing system" created by the memory work. I distinctly remember telling the Director that it all seemed somewhat "random" this simple memorizing of random facts, with no deep content. She described the memory pegs like a coat hook where … [Read more...]
Summer School
Since we had a difficult time getting the ball rolling again last fall once we had summer break, I decided to do summer school this year. It basically allows us consistency in our morning routine and around one hour of school work (if the kiddos stay focused). I made a deal with myself that whatever I scheduled them HAD to be able to be completed within one hour. So, here's what we are doing: Robby Roo - 6 yrs, Entering 1st grade this … [Read more...]
