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Cantaloupes (or was that Antelopes?) and Early Childhood Education
Yesterday, I was cutting up a cantaloupe and Audrey says to me, “Does that come from an animal?” Thinking all along that she was just having fun, I responded, “No, it comes from the ground.” “What is it?” “It’s a melon.” As we continued to talk, it finally came out that she assumed I was cutting up a cantaloupe which she concluded was part of an antelope. Because I had never thought to explain where cantaloupe’s come from. Oh dear, there are gaps in our homeschooling! The greatest fear of a homeschooling mom. I was so very close to having one. Whew! Barely saved. My Audrey knows more about how goats, chickens, and puppies are born than…
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Do You Have a Quiet, Easy-Going Child? Making Them Feel Special
Congratulations to the sweetest of daughters, my Serenity. I feel a little bit amazed today. Our sweet daughter Serenity has graduated from the 8th grade and will now be embarking on her high school education. This weekend at our homeschool convention, Serenity went through the commencement program that they plan for 7th-9th graders. And you know what? She loved it!! She enjoyed it so much that she wishes she could do it again. Now that’s a big surprise coming from her because she’s quiet and doesn’t like attention focused on herself. After seeing Serenity’s reaction to her graduation, I was reminded me of a story Florence Littauer tells about her mother. Florence’s mother was…
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Do Your Children Know You Like Them?
I was talking to a friend recently who shared with me that her 7 year old son complains that she never plays with him. She said, “I spend a lot of time with him. I sit in the bathroom while he bathes, I sit with him while he does homework, I read to him, he reads to me.” That sounds commedable doesn’t it? I would be happy if I did I those things. We all have limited time with the myriad obligations of homeschooling and homemaking responsibilities and the thought of carving out more time seems impossible. But you know what a person with wisdom said to her when she mentioned it to them? “Those are all…
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Where Do I Go For Wisdom?
Six children with different bents, quirks, ideas and personalities. Each one unique from the other. How is it possible when they share the same mom and dad? They say no two people, of the 6.76 billion, world population have the same palm print or fingerprint. This is incredible. There are over 10,000 bird species, an estimated 100,000 different trees… and more then 1,000,000 different insect species. Our God showing He is a God of variety. I cannot fathom the greatness of Him. With six children, alike in some ways, but different in so many other areas how can I know how to lead and train them? Raising children is no…
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Teaching Children to Work
This week my husband and I watched a video by Michael Pearl called Teaching Responsibility. I am really impressed with his wisdom. I like his practical down-to-earth manner on dealing with children. I know a lot of parents don’t agree with him but I’m not one of them – I really think he has a lot of insight into child rearing. In the video he says children should work with you before they know what work really is. If you wait until they’re old enough to really help you, you are sitting yourself up for grumbling and complaining. Children want to feel needed and enjoy working alongside you. For example,…
