Do Mornings Well! Part 1
Do Mornings Well! “Win the Morning, Win the Day!” I see this quoted often in books, on blogs, Instagram feeds, and Facebook pages that are dedicated to productivity, entrepreneurship, personal growth, and habit development. I’m not an entrepreneur, but I’m a bit of a productivity/habit/organization nerd, and over the last several months, I’ve been wondering how some of the excellent advice that is given in the business space might apply to homeschooling. One of the key concepts that I come across on a regular basis is the idea of setting yourself up to win your mornings. In the business world that often means being up at 5 am, getting in a good workout, answering emails, reviewing the day’s schedule of meetings, and planning out a list of tasks. Winning the morning is a concept that can be applied to anyone’s life and I’ve got three topics that I’d like to share with you over the next several months that will help you win your homeschool mornings. Morning Time Building Habits Bullet Journaling Morning Time: Mornings with my children have always been a treasured time. So much so that it was a challenging adjustment as my children grew and started to be out of the home most mornings with work and post-secondary classes. The memories of first morning smiles from my babies, first hugs of the day from my toddlers, and big kids who always seemed to be in the mood to snuggle first thing in the morning are some of my favourite mothering moments. Our homeschool mornings have always been gentle and slow-moving, but productive. The nighttime nursing years rarely saw me out of bed before the little ones, but now, with my nursing years behind me, I’m able to get out of bed before my children and accomplish a few things before waking them up to get started with their day. I encourage you not to miss the opportunity we have to make special morning memories. It’s worth seeking out how to do them well. And winning the morning sets you up for a great day. I first heard about morning time at a homeschool conference (also called morning baskets, lunchtime learning, together time, morning meeting, family learning time, and circle time). The concept is simply gathering your children together to learn something together and it is a great way to start the day. We have tried implementing this concept at other times of the day, and you should do what works for you, but I think there are real benefits to sticking to mornings. Morning Time starts your day with order and routine, ensures that enrichment studies get done, and my favorite…if the rest of our day falls apart, we have still engaged in meaningful learning. Getting Started with Morning Time You don’t need heaps of time. Start by setting aside 20-30 minutes and build up from there. I like to use several resources each morning, but you can start with one, and add on as you go. If you are already doing a regular morning devotion, add one more component to your Morning Time to get you started. Storage for Morning Time Resources When I first heard about Morning Time, it was referred to as a Morning Basket and I opted to use an actual basket. We outgrew that basket quickly so I currently use a 3-tiered rolling cart, but you could use a bookshelf or box. Portable storage is ideal if you think you might want to do morning time curled up on your bed one day and at the kitchen table the next. Scheduling your Homeschool Morning Time Once you have built up a stack of resources you will want to consider scheduling. My preference is a flexible loop schedule. I set things up so that I can move a resource that I’ve used one day to the back of the stack to wait for another day. The only one I use daily is the bible resource. You could opt for a set schedule too, where you have particular resources that are used on certain days. I prefer to keep things flexible. I make morning time a priority but there are times where I have to set it aside or we have to cut our time short so looping through the resources seems to work best for us. Ages & Stages and Morning Time Resources I’m currently spending my mornings with my four youngest (ages 7-15). I have found that when we have used a resource that is geared towards younger children, the older ones have found the review helpful; when the resource is geared towards older ones, the younger ones still seem to be able to glean bits of information that build over time. I would encourage you not to fret over the age for which a particular resource is intended. The bible resource we are currently reading is designed more for my 10-year-old but I know that it is a helpful review for my 12 & 15-year-old and my 7-year-old is making connections to the resource we used last year that was geared towards his age. Key Components of Your Morning Time Devotions. Reading a chapter-a-day from the bible works well or you can opt for a Bible storybook. At times we’ve added bible memory work. And when we attended a large church, we had a special prayer project where we rotated through praying for our missionaries (a practical geography lesson too). I would highly recommend any of these resources; we’ve used many of them. The Ology and Wonderfull are next on our list after we are finished with The Children’s Illustrated Bible. Other Bible Storybook Resources Include: The Big Picture Story Bible The Children’s Illustrated Bible The Child’s Story Bible The Story Bible The Golden Children’s Bible Jesus Storybook Bible Story Bible for Older Children The 100 Most Important Events in Christian History When you’re ready, add a creative component: drawing, picture studies, poetry, a simple seasonal craft, and music
A Path for Learning Latin
First, I gave up learning Latin! Once upon a time, long ago, I wanted to learn Latin. I was not necessarily convinced by all the discussions and articles that went on at length about the benefits of Latin. I was a teenager, and Latin was “dead” they said. So I wanted to know more. After trying out a few courses, including Wheelocks Latin, I gave up. I did not understand why the endings of the words kept changing. I did not get how they did that thing with action verbs and being verbs. And let us not even start talking about prepositions. Back then Latin tutors weren’t even thinking about tutoring yet. Self-included. Latin from a Grammar vs. Vocabulary Emphasis Fast forward a few years, and a couple of babies. Of course, you must decide on which curriculum to use before your child turns 2, so I was on it. I was reviewing and reading up on anything and everything that might prepare me and my children for their education. This time around, there was more discussion around the learning of Latin. I had given up hope for myself, but I was convinced that Latin was necessary for a well-rounded education for the sake of my children. But this time I decided to go a different route. Rather than learning Latin from a vocabulary emphasis, I decided to learn it from a grammar emphasis. What is the difference? Well, with a vocabulary emphasis the goal is to have the student reading and speaking Latin as soon as possible. The more you read, the more you understand which endings go along with each other, and the more words you memorize the broader your vocabulary so you can start to understand what you are reading. With a grammar emphasis, the rules of Latin are taught, alongside vocabulary to be sure. But there are a few key reasons why one might want to learn Latin from a grammatical perspective if one is already fluent in English. Latin grammar and English grammar are very similar so as one learns Latin grammar it can double up as English grammar. What we take for granted as “the way it is” in English will be explained as a logical and reasonable structure for communication. Latin has 4 conjunctions and 5 declensions. That is all. (Ok sure, there are a few more things you need to know, but once you get the pattern and basic structure of conjugating and declining, everything else will fit around your basic knowledge of Latin.) Once those are learned, it is just a matter of using those endings and pairing them with the vocabulary to create grammatically correct sentences. There is not as much “guess” work. You have the pieces, you know how they fit together, now you just need practice. The Latin language has gender forms. By learning which gender a declension signifies, it is easy to tell the gender of vocabulary without memorizing that little bit of important information and all the vocabulary. Does it end with -a, -ae? It is feminine; -us, -i? Masculine. By learning how to put the grammar rules together, I have also learned how to parse English, and English grammar has become one of my favorite subjects. Words matter. We need to know how to construct a sentence with accuracy and precision. Many English words come from Latin. As Latin vocabulary knowledge expands, so will your understanding of the English language. There are great minds who have written extensively on the benefits of Latin. I would encourage you to read a few of their thoughts. And if in doubt, just jump into teaching Latin in faith. The riches are there, and some of them cannot be explained; you have to experience them. Here is the plan that I have pursued. A Plan for Teaching Latin Latin Resources for Ages 4-6 Song School Latin Book 1 After I’ve said all that, I’ll be honest and admit that yes, this is a vocabulary program and it’s an excellent way to start with a young child. It introduces them to the language and gives them a few words to use around the house. This is especially fun if you have older kids learning Latin. Anything that makes the younger ones feel a part of the family is a winner. The DVD is the best part of this course. If you have a child who loves workbooks, add that in. But if your child isn’t into that, then just do the DVD. Latin Resources for Ages 7-8 Latina Christiana This is a simple program that teaches a list of vocabulary words, a Latin saying, and a grammar form each week for 25 weeks, with 5 review lessons. If this is your first time teaching Latin, then I recommend the DVD or Online Streaming videos. The flashcards are a helpful, simple way to review the weekly memory work. Age 7 can do this work, but do not add on the extras. Age 8 can do this for a second year and add in the extras, or start here. Add ons: Ludere Latin Latin Review Worksheets (year 2) Ecce Caecilia Et Verus (Latin Reader). Note: if you are someone who really needs to learn from a vocabulary perspective, then you would love Song School Latin, Book 2 followed by Latin for Children, Primer A instead of the above. Latin Resources for Ages 9-12 First Form Latin, Second Form Latin, Third Form Latin This program can also be an entry point for a student. If you are just starting your Latin lessons at these ages, start with First Form Latin. This is a slow, methodical walk through Latin grammar forms while presenting vocabulary to memorize. The Student Workbooks presents repetitive work for mastery. The DVDs or Online Streaming are necessary if you have not learned Latin before. Add ons: Ecce Caecilia Et Verus (Latin Readers) Lingua Angelica Acts of the Apostles: A Latin Reader Lingua Latina Series Note: if
Curriculum Spotlight – Science Through History
How do we know how things work? What are atoms and molecules? How do human organs function? Why are the sparkling lights in the sky? In today’s curriculum spotlight, let’s talk about science through history. Understanding Science Through History These are questions that humans have been asking from the beginning of time, and we want answers. This science program tells us about those men and women who asked the questions and then proceeded to find answers to them. With a solidly Biblical beginning in, Science in the Beginning, we move on to Science in the Ancient World. The stories of Archimedes, Galen, and Hippocrates describe some of their first questions and how they were answered. Archimedes is the first person who recorded his observations of mathematics in space as well as things like water displacement, engineering in movement, and calculating volume. Galen observed the human body and how each part connected with the others. Hippocrates decided that fluids in the body influenced the emotions that we experience. You may wonder, how is this relevant to our world today? What is scientific about these things? Can science be learned through history? Science is something that is not settled, it’s actually constantly being discovered, tested, and changed. So how can we tell our children about this world of discovery? By reading the stories of the men and women who observed and wrote about their findings, we can show how our knowledge of the world in its minutest and grandest forms was discovered, but not always with a definite conclusion. Aristotle, one of the greatest scientists and philosophers in history, believed that the Earth was the center of the universe. While we can learn so much from his work, we now know that he was wrong on this very important subject. How can this program help our students to study and learn about science? As an elementary program, this is the story of how people came to believe what they did. Young children love to hear stories, and imagine them, and play them out. Rather than giving children dry facts of anatomy, astronomy, chemistry, and the other sciences, this program tells them the story of the discovery. However, it’s not just a story. Each lesson also has an experiment. Again, as a course for elementary students, it’s a beautiful introduction to start the first books of the series with younger ages. The experiments are very basic and engaging, and even mind-blowing to 6- and 7-year-olds. After those first basic discoveries, we move on, with the ages, and engage with the renaissance world as they build on the ideas first discovered. Galen told us so much about the human body, but he was not correct in everything. Leonardo da Vinci begins to show us more and we experiment with more complex materials. Copernicus and Galileo challenged Aristotle’s ideas about the universe and bravely published their works, showing us that even the most intelligent Aristotle could be wrong on some things. This is the story of science, and yes, we can learn science through history. It’s a method: purpose, hypothesis, materials, procedure, results, and conclusion. In telling our children about the brave men and women who were able to publish their conclusions to a world that might not accept them, we are raising up a generation of young people who can lead us into the next generation of scientific discovery. Quick facts: This tells the story of science from the beginning of time including the people who presented their ideas. This is not just a story. Experiments accompany every story as the students are compelled to prove the theory. As an elementary program, it begins very basically and as they are more able to understand and build on discoveries, this program guides them. These books do not have to be done in order. Each text stands alone in content. Every lesson concludes with questions for the student. The questions are for three levels: youngest, older, oldest. This is an excellent program for a one-room schoolhouse approach. You can teach many ages with one text. The reading in each lesson is very manageable. Printable Notebook Pages are included and can be accessed through links in the product descriptions on our website. See sample. 5 Volumes – 180 lessons in each volume Science in the Beginning Science in the Ancient World Science in the Scientific Revolution Science in the Age of Reason Science in the Industrial Age Or buy the entire set for an excellent price: Science Through History. Optional but Recommended Helps and Hints Resource Helps and Hints for Science in the Beginning Helps and Hints for Science in the Ancient World Helps and Hints for Science in the Scientific Revolution Helps and Hints for Science in the Age of Reason Helps and Hints for Science in the Industrial Age *You can purchase the text and helps and hints as a set or separately. by Hester VanBraeden Hester is a second-generation home-educating parent who is keenly aware that her own education is not complete, and comfortable that it probably never will be. She has many years of experience with children, books, and curriculum. She loves to travel to worlds and times beyond the present with her children through many books. Hester and her husband have four children and live in the lower mainland of BC.
