homeschooling

Reading Magic by Mem Fox

Published on March 5, 2013 | Leave a response

Mem Fox is a successful children’s book author and literacy expert. But her expertise in Reading Magic (Harcourt 2001) comes across as personal and passionate, mostly because she writes foremost from her position as a mother. Her main point in writing this book is to read aloud to our children, making it a fun time and a game, as parents let their children learn from the words that surround them in their daily lives.

I loved reading this book. Nothing Ms Fox said was surprising or new to me. Back in 2009, I started a project to read my then 26-month-old son 1000 books before he started kindergarten. Just over 18 months later, we’d read 1000 different books together (that I’d recorded, at least) and he was reading on his own. Everything Ms Fox suggests is thus backed up by our application of it! It was not a struggle. It was fun. (more…)

Living Books for History: Early Colonists

Published on November 19, 2012 | Leave a response

I was able to time our American History learning to correlate to the Thanksgiving Holiday! We recently finished learning about the pilgrims, which works out very well for us since we’re taking the next week slow, as a holiday from lots of school work.

Before we got the pilgrims, though, we read a few books about Roanoke and Jamestown. (more…)

Apps for Android: Mantano Reader

Published on November 12, 2012 | 3 Responses

Yes, this is primarily a books blog, but I’m finding that I am using other media, be it ebooks, audio, video, or even digital and pocket-held games, more frequently. It may happen that I go a day without opening a physical book for myself, but I won’t pass a day without reading something, it just might be via my nook or an audiobook, etc.

As I begin my homeschool journey, I’ve been searching for apps to help me. But I am one of those people without Apple products, and many of the posts on apps for kids relate to iPad. Today I want to talk about the Reader app I’ve enjoyed the most. I use this for myself, not just for homeschooling! It’s my most essential app on my tablet! (more…)

No More “I’m Done!” by Jennifer Jacobson

Published on October 23, 2012 | 2 Responses

I mentioned last year that my son is a very creative child. He is regularly having imaginary adventures with his imaginary friends, and he constantly comes up with stories for me, stories he tells as if he’s surely experienced them. Given his intense interest in creative writing, I was seeking further instruction on how to nurture his creativity in his early years.

No More “I’m Done!” by Jennifer Jacobson (Stenhouse Publishers, 2010) is an inspiring how-to manual for early primary grade teachers. Subtitled “Fostering Independent Writing in the Primary Grades,” Jacobson’s book describes a system of nurturing creative writing that lets children take control of the process. After she describes her system, she provides a year’s worth of mini-lessons for encouraging development of ideas in various segments of writing (including voice, organization, word choice, fluency, details) all using well known and beloved children’s picture books as examples. Although I am not a teacher in a classroom setting, her ideas have given me the confidence to institute some similar casual instruction during our “school time.” It is informative and inspiring, helping one think outside the traditional box of writing prompts.

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