Wintery Mix: The Carnival of Homeschooling

Wintery mix in Times SquareAs your posts were coming in over the past weekend, the weather seemed busy trying to decide what it wanted to be when it grew up. Friday was clear and chilly, but I woke the next morning to the beep-beep of snowplows. From my 40th floor hotel room, I could see snow blowing sideways, nearly obscuring the bright screens wrapping Times Square just a few blocks south. By the time I boarded a train for home on Monday, we had seen sun, snow, rain, fog, and wind, and the trip home held more of the same.

Looking through your posts, I see a similar variety (though more pleasant, of course), so like the forecasters who opted to predict “wintery mix” instead of trying to be specific from hour to hour, I offer you the Wintery Mix Carnival of Homeschooling. I hope you’ll enjoy it! Thanks to all who contributed.

Creating a Lifestyle of Learning

Pamela Jorrick shares the story of a well-traveled $50 birthday gift in Seeds of Sharing with Kiva posted at Blah, Blah, Blog. She also has the best bio blurb I’ve seen in years. Really, who wouldn’t want to read a blog by an “Artist, Writer, Funschooling Facilitator, Empowered Living Advocate, Wanna-be Organic Gardening Foodie, Travel Loving Life Explorer, Part Time Goat Herding Chicken Lady, Wife to One Handsome and Handy Fellow and Full Time Mamacita Extraordinaire to a Couple of Cage Free Kids”? (I’m a Kiva lender too– it’s a good program.)

Christine Guest shares a rueful account of a visit to the eye doctor with young kids in I’ve got to stop scheduling afternoon appointments posted at Our Curious Home. If you’re a homeschool mom, you’ve probably been there. It’s a pity that professionals for humans don’t make house calls like our vet does!

Mrs. White shares about creating “an atmosphere of happiness, and entertainment with our families” in Family Comfort in the Evening Hours posted at The Legacy of Home.

Foundations

Nancy Kelly answers a question about teaching students how to focus with wise words from Charlotte Mason in Dear Stephanie - A Word About Attention posted at one of my favorite homeschool blogs, Sage Parnassus.

Henry Cate reflects on responsibility, freedom, and character in Aspects of a Homeschooling life at Why Homeschool.

Phyllis Sather offers some older mom wisdom in Are You Continually Searching For “Me Time? at Proclaiming God’s Faithfulness. She says, “No matter how often I read this article I’m still struck with how often the root cause of my unrest is the desire for ‘Me Time.’”

Reading

Read Aloud Dad shares how he learned that “reading aloud was not about reading aloud” and how you can get started in Read Aloud: Ignite Your Life posted at Read Aloud Dad.

Karyn Tripp offers creative ideas in a photo post on Sight Word & Spelling Fun at Teach Beside Me. I’m guessing there may be a kinesthetic learner (or teacher) in Karyn’s household!

Sara Dawkins presents 10 Books to Get Kids Reading Again posted at NannyPro.com, reminding parents that if “Kids are constantly bombarded with visual images from television, movies, video games and the internet. All this vivid imagery can make reading books seem dull and boring.”

From me: To offer you something in addition the Carnival today, I’ll share an older post, Reading for Fun is the Foundation of Literary Appreciation. So often, parents feel that their children should be reading only classics, but that’s not necessarily the case. It takes a lot of reading practice to build the skills needed to truly appreciate great literature, and light, fun reading helps build the desire to read. Twinkies for the brain aren’t all bad!

Get Those Kiddos Moving

Wonderful winter time . . .Cristina Payne shares thoughts on being the literal and figurative support person in The Top and Bottom posted at the ever-active Home Spun Juggling blog.

Misty requests suggestions from other homeschoolers to keep the kids active during the winter in What do you do with crazy energy during the winter? posted at Homeschool Bytes. Any ideas?

History and Science

Annie Kate Aarnoutse shares delightful nature finds in Our Museum at Tea Time with Annie Kate. Where would you keep treasures like these?

Susan Kilbride shares a homeschool-mom created lesson, Free Atoms & Molecules Unit Study for Ages 8-13, from her book Science Unit Studies for Homeschoolers and Teachers at Funtastic Unit Studies!. You’ll find another free unit study about plants for ages 4-7 on her website, plus links to other freebies.

Math and Other Number Stuff

Jennifer Bardsley presents Math Without Worksheets at Teaching My Baby To Read,. She suggests “Looking for a free way to expand your child’s math skills? Every once in a while, try having your child write about their mathematical thinking. It’s harder than it looks.” I never thought I’d say this, but I found this math article fascinating, along with the linked discussion of how and why to teach math using the Constructivist method. It sounds logical and effective.

Chris Shaw offers a practical idea for  Teaching Economics in the Home School at http://homeschoolvspublicschool.com. If you’re as old as I am, you may need your reading glasses for this one, but it’s definitely worth a look.

Early Homeschooling

Kelly @ The Homeschool Co-op presents an interview with unschooler Lindsay Wilson on Featured Fridays- Preschool Unschooling With An Attached Mama posted at The Homeschool Co-op. Lindsay shares, among other things, her homeschool philosophy: “We believe that learning is always happening, even if we can’t always see it, and that learning happens best when the child is engaged and interested and can apply the learning to real life.”

Jamie Gaddy presents I’m not Scared… are YOU? posted at Homeschool Online, saying, “Homeschooling can be a bit scary to someone just beginning… but there’s so much out there to help!”

Kathi Weiss discusses how a pacifist can teach about war in Learning About War posted at Homeschool Online.

Fun and Games

Kathleen shares “a brief and humorous (I think) look at the uniqueness of life as a home school family” in You Know You Are A Homeschooler When . . . at  Art’s Chili Pepper. This post joins a long and respectable line of posts on this topic, most of which can be found by Google-searching “you know you’re a homeschooler when.”

Kathy Simmons presents 10 Reasons Why Kids Love to Play Candyland posted at Nanny Services, saying, “Candyland is probably the simplest board game that exists. It is made for very young children, and as long as it has been around, young children have been enjoying the fun it provides”

Dave Roller offers a “HSD HSBA Extravaganza” as he recaps the 2011 Home School Blog Awards by revealing each blog he voted for in each category and also highlighting the 20 winners along with sample posts in 2011 HSBA Awards at Home-School Dad.

Looking Back

Annette shares a learning day in her family homeschool in A slow day, yet study accomplished posted at A Net in Time, commenting that it was “a good day to homeschool after all.”

Karen Loethen takes a look back, reflecting on what she might have done differently and what she’s done right this year at In Retrospect posted on Homeschool Atheist Momma.

Tina Hollenbeck kept a detailed record of activities for a whole day in order to share what a “typical” day in her home might look like. You can read it at A Day in the Life… posted at Being Made New.

That’s all for this edition of the Carnival of Homeschooling. I hope you’ll enjoy each of the blogs and authors who presented, and leave comments and sign up for the RSS feeds or e-mail updates of your favorites. It’s always a delight to swap stories with others on the journey, so enjoy the encouragement.

*NOTE: For those near Virginia, I’ll be doing a Beat-the-Clock Essay Workshop at Classical Cottage School in Winchester on Saturday, January 28. You can find complete details at ClassicalCottageSchool.org/ (look at the PDF listed in the right column).

Homeschooling Homesteaders: Teaching Self-Reliance Skills


Many of my happiest childhood hours were spent in my grandfather's organic garden.

Many of my happiest childhood hours were spent in my grandfather's organic garden, where roses mingled with lemons, limes, oranges, tomatoes, bell peppers, squash, corn, peaches and kumquats-- all in an urban sliver of land left over from freeway construction.

I’m planning to be at the Self-Reliance Expo in Dallas on Februrary 10-11, 2012, to speak on homeschooling and perhaps micro-business topics, so I’ve been thinking about self-reliance as it fits into the homeschool world.

One of the busiest booths in a homeschool conference is usually the booth with wheat grinders and other aids to feeding your family with fresh, wholesome, homemade goodies. Stop beside that booth for a few moments, and you’ll hear moms, dads, and teens, talking about gardening organically, baking, canning and dehydrating, and more.

Learning to become more self-reliant by developing these old-fashioned skills is one way many home-school families manage to live well on a single income. As a family becomes more self-reliant, it provides students with a living laboratory for learning that will provide them a head start on life. Although it takes work to reach a comfortable state of self-reliance, there is creativity, comfort, and peace in working with the rhythms of nature.

What are the skills of self reliance?

According to the National Self-Reliance Organization (NSRO), self reliance has three basic parts:

1. Emergency preparedness in case of job loss, natural disaster, or family emergency. This includes having a garden, generator, water filtration system, and the ability to preserve the food you grow.

2. Sustainable living, including the practice of frugality and debt-free living, and possibly including alternative energy sources.

3. Entrepreneurship, including building micro-businesses and multiple streams of income.

These self-reliance skills used to be conventional wisdom. Just think of your great-grandmother’s pantry, with shining rows of beautifully canned produce and delicious home-baked goodies. Remember visiting great-grandfather’s handy tool shed where he could fix or build almost anything? If your great-grandparents were anything like mine, they combined practical frugality with the skills it took to run a home and family without any of the conveniences we take for granted (running water, indoor plumbing, close grocery stores, refrigeration, to name just a few). Their summer gardens provided meals for the dark, cold months of winter, and they occupied those months with indoor pastimes that helped to make their homes cozier and more secure.

Self-reliance didn’t mean that people weren’t trusting God– it simply meant that individual families took the responsibility of looking ahead, anticipating potential dangers, and setting aside resources to care for their families in the event of an emergency.

The importance of learning to provide for your family during difficult times was particularly apparent during the Great Depression. That was a hard time for almost everyone, but according to many old-timers who lived through it, self-reliant farm families had one significant advantage over city dwellers– the ability to produce much of their own food.

According to an Iowa Pathways article, “Almost all farm families raised large gardens with vegetables, and canned fruit from their orchards. They had milk and cream from their dairy cattle. Chickens supplied meat and eggs. They bought flour and sugar in 50-pound sacks and baked their own bread. In some families the farm wife made clothing out of the cloth from flour and feed sacks. They learned how to get by with very little money.”

It’s not necessary to live on a farm to be more self-reliant.

You can accomplish much with an urban homestead. Consider the skills your grandparents had and start learning them, and you’ll be on your way. As a homeschooler, you even have some built-in advantages for becoming self reliant:

  1. You’re already accustomed to looking to the past for wisdom and inspiration.
  2. You’ve already found that keeping up with the Jones’s is pointless.
  3. You’re accustomed to taking the road less traveled.
  4. Homeschooling allows teaching and learning the skills of self-reliance to be a natural part of living.
  5. You can even grant credit for the homesteading skills your students learn!

There’s no question that many homeschool families are already living at least a partially self-reliant homestead life. Some of us enjoy just a few aspects of the self-reliant lifestyle such as organic gardening, cooking, and entrepreneurship, while others embrace the whole enchilada.

If you weren’t fortunate enough to learn basic homesteading skills when you were growing up, there are an increasing number of resources to help. The award-winning Self-Reliance Expo is one of the major places you can go to learn what you need to know. You’ll learn about:

Cooking competition at the Self-Reliance Expo.

Cooking competition at the Self-Reliance Expo.

If you enjoy any aspect of homesteading, just imagine being at a conference entirely devoted to the skills you need! I hope you’ll join me at the upcoming Expo in Dallas, Texas on February 10-11, 2011. It will be my first visit to a Self-Reliance Expo, and I’m looking forward to it (and I’d love to see you there). To learn more about it, you can visit the event website and watch a video trailer from a recent Expo. Enjoy!

Carnival of Homeschooling

Carnival of Homeschooling

NOTE: This post is scheduled to appear in the Sixth Anniversary issue of the Carnival of Homeschooling. If you’d like to submit an article for the Carnival, please visit “Why Homeschool“ for instructions. Thanks to the Cate family for creating and managing this excellent blog carnival for so long. It’s a wonderful resource!

Blog Carnival: Summer Isn’t Over Yet

Welcome to the August 9, 2011 edition of Carnival of Homeschooling. Although a few of you are ready to
Carnival of Homeschoolingjump back into school or have already done so, others seem to be stretching those happy summer moments for as long as possible.

I suggest that you pour a frosty glass of lemonade, find a cool spot, and enjoy the delightful posts that have been submitted.

Summer fun isn’t over yet

Not quite ready for “regular school?” Tiana Krenz shares a delightful idea in Plan a Vacation, Learn Geography (Awesome FREE project!) posted at God Made Home Grown - Tiana Krenz.

Nikki Olivier invites you to journey along on an interesting family outing in I can officially call them kids! posted at Our Journey in Him, commenting, “spending time together as a family out in nature….there’s so much to learn!”

AnnieKate shares beautiful photos along with many great reasons why a garden can be a wonderful addition to homeschooling at The Gardening Homeschooler posted at Tea Time with Annie Kate.

Can you tell the difference between a plant and a weed? How about in your children’s lives? Joan Girkins presents ~Thoughts from My Garden~ (Part 4) posted at I Love Truth!.

Is it learning or is it just plain fun? Lisa Nehring offers a bit of both Summer School Shop Class posted at Golden Grasses.

Tasty treats from the garden.

Tasty treats from the garden.

In her evocative post, “Degrees of Separation” or “Your Child’s Future Sanity” posted at Sage Parnassus, Nancy reminds us to make time to touch, taste, and smell the reality around us.

Robin Phillips offers nine creative ways to connect real experiences with real learning in How To Homeschool At the Zoo: A Mini Unit Study - Crack the Egg posted at Crack the Egg Blog.

Preparing to take the plunge

Adam Faughn shared Homeschool week #3: Some of Our Preparation Steps posted at The Faughn Family of Four, saying, “We started our first week of home schooling this week, and this post shares some of the memorable steps we took to prepare for this change in our life.”

It’s awfully hard to homeschool in chaos, and it’s really not necessary when you have a built-in team of helpers. Carol J. Alexander talks about how to make it work in Getting Your Kids to Do Chores posted at Everything Home with Carol.

In This Year’s Homeschool Curriculum at her blog, MrsMamaHen.com, Conni Smith shared a rundown of the core subject curriculum her family will be using this year.

The longer you homeschool, the more likely it is that you’ll forget what you’ve taught to which child. If you do, it’s easily remedied. Elena LaVictoire presents helpful tips on Making sure they get it all covered academically and otherwise! posted at My Domestic Church.

The veterans offer tips

Is it ever too early to start reading to your child? Read Aloud … Dad presents When To Start Reading Aloud To a Child? posted at Read Aloud Dad.

It's never too early to start reading to your child.

It's never too early to start reading to your child.

Denise shares a great visual tool in Do You Mix Up These Words? posted at Blogging 2 Learn.

Billy Hart presents Danbury Baptist Association to Thomas Jefferson, Separation of Church and State posted at HistoricWords | American History | Founding Fathers | Politics | Faith | Quotes, saying, “The Danbury Baptist Association wrote this letter to Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson‚Äôs reply is where the phrase Separation of Church and State comes from. The Danbury Baptist Association said, ‚ÄúThe legitimate power of civil government extends no further than to punish the man who works ill to his neighbor.‚Äù”

Denise presents The (Mathematical) Trouble with Pizza posted at Let’s Play Math!, saying, “My daughter thinks her way through a challenging middle-school math problem.”

Laura O muses about learning a foreign language as a high school homeschooler.Tackle a foreign language? Which one? posted at Day By Day in Our World.

What’s it like to be the graduate of a Charlotte Mason education? Kaley Struble shares what she’s learned in Starting in the Right Direction on the ChildLightUSA blog.

Kaye Swain shared Bible Memory Verses Fun-Teaching The Ten Commandments to Our Children & Grandchildren-1 | SandwichINK for the Sandwich Generation posted at SandwichINK.com, saying, “The 10 Commandment Bible memory verses for children and grand kids was a fun summer project for my grandkids and me, but it’s also great for a homeschooling project any time in the year.”

HomeGrownKids presents Through the Bible overview (Week 1-4) posted at Kerugma, saying, “Kerugma Family Bible reading guide for use with young children. This guide is a no-fuss, easy to implement, overview of the Bible for the whole family. Preschool to highschool, homeschool, family bible reading.”

Technology might make it easier . . .

Does technology have something valuable to contribute?

Does technology have something valuable to contribute?

Merit K presents Back to School with Tech? posted at Mission Possible!, saying, “Modern technology has some drawbacks and dangers, but there are ways to make technology work for us as parents and educators too!”

Angela Gray presents On Digital Media in Education - Team Gray! posted at team Gray!, saying, “While public education has come to mean crowd control and classroom management, digital media could mark the return of true learning–if the teachers would just get out of the way.”

Henry shares some thoughts about the nature of education and the benefit of homeschooling in Can education be automated? Should it? on Why Homeschool.

Heartfelt reminders

Trisha Poff reminds us of the importance of taking the time to give good words to those we love in Letters Never Written posted at A Multitude of Mercies.

Remember to take time for things that matter . . .

Remember to take time for things that matter . . .

Are you at a difficult place in life? Learn more about Homeschooling Through Sicknesses, Pregnancies and Other Distressing Times at Beyond The Silver and The Gold - A Filipino Family’s Homeschool Journey.

If you’re in the early years of homeschooling, and juggling many children of different ages, don’t worry–it won’t always be this hard. Nebby offers encouragement in Homeschooling: Some Parts Get Easier posted at Letters from Nebby.

My contribution for this carnival will be the Of Daffodils and Diesels Revisited post from the archive. It was hard to choose– there are articles on everything from literature to caregiving to learning styles to homeschooling boys– but Daffodils and Diesels is especially worth reading at the beginning of a school year. It’s important to teach the student we have, rather than teaching a particular curriculum. Enjoy!

That’s all for now. I hope you enjoyed the carnival!

Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of homeschooling using the official carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on the blog carnival index page.

Share |

Technorati tags: , .

Imogen Violet Meets GarageBand

Mmmmm . . . tasty!

Imogen Violet appreciates technology in new and amazing ways.

Imogen Violet appreciates technology in new and amazing ways.

I hope you don’t mind the occasional sharing of granddaughter photos (I can hardly resist, but I won’t do it often). After sampling the various sounds she could get by patting the GarageBand keyboard on my iPad, Immy decided to test it as a teething aid. I don’t think there’s an app for that!

Giving and Receiving Grace-fully


Give with love, receive with gratitude.

Give with love, receive with gratitude.

Are you thinking about gifts and giving this morning? Perhaps even about receiving a gift or two? Whichever one it is, I’m sure you have lots of company. The thing I’ve found about gifting is that the older I get, the more relaxed I am about it, and as a result, the whole process becomes simpler. If gift-giving occasions make you feel stressed or depressed, perhaps our gifting story will help.

Donald and I recently celebrated our 29th anniversary with a nice weekend away together, and an interesting gift for each of us. The key was that we got to pick out our own gifts, so we got to enjoy browsing antique and thrift shops together and finding that magical momento of the occasion. At least that’s what my gift, a vintage Kenneth J. Lane 3-strand pearl necklace (think Jackie Kennedy or Barbara Bush), was for me.

Donald’s gift, on the other hand was a splendidly powerful Stihl chain saw. His favorite downtime hobby is cutting firewood, and he spends many weekends a year cutting and splitting. This is his third Stihl, and I know he’ll get hours of delight from it.

Now I’ll admit, I didn’t start life with a burning desire to choose my own gifts, or have other people choose theirs. I enjoy the process of choosing a special gift for someone I know well, and I absolutely love the fun and excitement of opening presents. However, like many of us, I learned a few things after I got married.

Among Donald’s many talents there’s a gap. He was born without what I call a “floofy” gene. In other words, he’s practical. He doesn’t see the point in spending time alone shopping and buying something, using our joint checking account, without knowing it’s something I’d need or want. Not only did we not have extra money to spend on non-essentials, he didn’t feel it was good time management to take time away from home and family to shop. He’s not even the type of guy who would come home with a vacuum cleaner or fancy cooking item. He believes that if I need anything like that, I can find and buy it much more efficiently than he can.

So. . . I spent the first couple of special occasions after we were married hoping that a miraculous transplant of the floofy gene had occurred since the last occasion, and being sadly disappointed when it hadn’t. Eventually, I realized that I’d either have to adjust, or spend the rest of our marriage regarding special occasions as time for mourning.

Since I loathe whining, adapting was the only viable choice. I had to accept that gifts, like grace, are by definition unearned and unmerited. No one owes us any kind of gift at any time. If something is not freely and joyously given in love, it’s a token of duty rather than a gift, and that’s not something any of us needs. On the other hand, if something is given in love, even if it’s small, used, ill-fitting, or otherwise unsuitable, it needs to be received in love, with a graceful expression of gratitude for the loving thought that inspired it.

In addition, I think we must always assume that there’s a loving thought behind a gift, and respond accordingly, because love thinks no evil (I Corinthians 13). Making negative assumptions as to a giver’s motive is one good way to way to lose your joy and spoil relationships. If someone gives you a garment that’s too large, it’s probably not because they think you’re fat–they’re just not great at guessing sizes. If they give you a new ostrich feather duster, it’s probably not because they think you’re slothful– it’s because an ostrich feather duster can make dusting fun. Making false assumptions isn’t wise or scriptural, and it’s a fast track to unhappiness.

The funny thing is, after 29 years, I’ve come around to Donald’s way of thinking, and thoroughly enjoy being able to give him the thing he wants most. When we shop together for my gift, it reminds us of the early days of our marriage when we enjoyed browsing antique and thrift stores, art and craft shows and flea markets. Once we had children and my grandparents living with us, those times almost vanished, so it’s fun to revisit them. Some years, we don’t have anything we specifically want or need, or don’t have money in the budget for anything extra. We can usually squeeze in a little time together, though, and that’s fun.

For our children, we followed traditional gift-giving customs until they reached the teen years. At that point, they could request a special item or cash to buy something on their own. For many years, our oldest son chose music and history courses from The Teaching Company, while the others usually opted for a shopping trip in which they could choose gifts up to a specified dollar amount. In some ways, we transferred the anticipation from receiving an object to the experience of doing something fun and special together. It’s worked well, and sometimes we still do it even though they’re grown.

I tell you all that to remind you that there are many ways to give and receive, but above all, whatever you do needs to be done in love, grace, and gratitude. If you have married into a family with different gifting traditions from your own, remember that it’s possible to adapt and create new traditions that you’ll grow to enjoy as much as the ones you grew up with.

There’s never any room in true giving for unloving attitudes and behavior, so if something is causing difficulty, remember that you are the only person whose heart you can change. You can’t squash another person (especially your husband) into your mold, even if you are always right and have “better” traditions;-).

Children will have a hard time learning contentment and gratitude if they don’t see it practiced in love. It’s important that they learn to express thanks for whatever they receive, even if it’s not something they’d ever want. They can still be grateful for the love that inspired the gift, and bless the giver with gratitude. A gift they don’t love may be just what someone else wants or needs.

Special occasions and holidays can be times of joy if you approach them in gratitude for whatever comes. Choosing to harbor disappointment or resentment, or trying desperately to manipulate someone else into behaving as you wish they would is a recipe for unhappiness and clouded memories. It’s freeing to know that you have the option to adjust your thoughts and be grateful, no matter what.

Interestingly, this summer Donald found himself at an art and craft fair alone, and he surprised me with a lovely gift. Because I wasn’t expecting it, it was doubly special, and I’ll always wear it with the happy knowledge that he took the time to think of me and find something beautiful.

Create traditions that work within your family, greet gifts with love and gratitude, and whatever you give, give in a spirit of love and grace, releasing the recipient from any assumed obligation for a specific type of response or reciprocation. True gifts come without strings!

Foundlings by Matthew Christian Harding- Book 1 of The Peleg Chronicles

Foundlings by Matthew Christian Harding- Book 1 of The Peleg Chronicles

Looking for a special gift for a reader? Be sure to check out The Peleg Chronicles by Matthew Christian Harding. They are delightful adventures, replete with dragons and giants, but with no magic, evolution, or humanism.

Foundlings and Paladins, the first two books in the Chronicles, are currently available, and I’m watching closely for the next one in the series, as Mr. Harding is a master of the cliff-hanger ending.

You can read more and purchase the books at www.matthewchristianharding.com. I plan to post a full review soon, but I just wanted to let you know about these.

How Do You Socialize a Homeschooled Child?

It’s amazing that this question still comes up, but I guess it does. I hope you enjoy this brief, funny video! (Scroll down a bit.)

Plan to Live Life on Purpose


Warm and at peace...

Warm and at peace...

As we approach the end of 2010, my thoughts turn toward the coming year. I like to spend some quiet time looking back at the year we’ve just lived– its joys and sorrows, its milestones and hurdles– and meditate on what I’ve learned, and where I need to go. As I think through these things, I begin planning for next year. Planning and setting goals helps me live life on purpose, making time for things that matter, rather than letting life just happen.

Wikipedia defines a goal as “a projected state of affairs that a person or a system plans or intends to achieve.” Goals are not a to-do list, but rather a snapshot of your vision for a desired outcome. Therefore, it’s important to have a very clear picture of what you want to achieve before you set any goals. For many years I have used mission statements to guide my yearly goal-setting, and those statements provide a vision of what I want individual goals to accomplish.

Mission Statements

Mission statements can be long or short, but I’ve found that for most people a short, memorable mission statement works best. I prefer to have short, separate mission statements for each of my life roles– mother, wife, daughter, writer, teacher, friend. Here’s my “Mom Mission” statement: “I will create a loving, serene, creative environment that encourages personal and spiritual growth in a warm, nurturing family.” Notice that the mission addresses the “being” part of our family. Goals will address the “doing” end of things.

Goals

Once you have a mission statement that captures your vision for a particular area of life, outline up to three goals in that area. It’s important to create just a few realistic goals or you’ll feel overwhelmed and never get started. For instance, goals for my Mom Mission have varied over the years, but usually included daily quiet time, nurturing dinner table conversations, and a focus on home-centered activities. Goals are not tasks– those come next!

The Plan

In order to meet goals, you’ll need to create a plan for making it happen. Ask yourself what needs to happen in order to meet your goals. Is there something you need to make, buy, move, repurpose, or change? Do you need to revise your daily schedule (or create one) in order to make time for something new? What do you need to communicate to your children, and how will you do so? List what you need to do in order to achieve the goal, and estimate how long it might take to accomplish it.

For example, if you want to begin having a daily quiet time for each person in the family, decide where each person’s quiet time spot will be (everyone needs to have a separate space, even if it’s just tucked behind a sofa or under the dining room table). Make a list of the kinds of activities that are permitted during quiet time– I always allowed naps, reading, writing, drawing, clay, or quiet building blocks, and share the list with everyone.

If you’ve never done quiet time with your family, briefly explain what you’re doing and why. Share the idea with joy and enthusiasm so they’ll understand that it’s something wonderful for everyone. If you meet with resistance, simply move forward, being pleasant but firm. Remember, you’re the mom!

Living life on purpose takes planning, but making time for things that matter means being flexible. Once you’ve established your vision and goals, remember that the long-term mission is more important than the stort-term task list. If you take your eyes off the goal of a loving, serene, creative environment, you might find yourself snapping at children who interrupt while you’re virtuously rearranging the house to accomodate quiet time. It’s often harder to live the fruit of the spirit than it is to complete a to-do list, but your mission statement can keep you focused.

Making Time for Things that Matter: Where’s the Impact?

I had the opportunity to speak on Making Time for Things that Matter at the Ultimate Homeschool Expo last week, and I’ve also been reading a book called Eternal Impact: Investing in the Lives of Others by Phil Downer. Although Eternal Impact isn’t focused on family relationships, one of the key ideas–significance–in it applies beautifully to the idea of making time for things that matter.

Because “school” is such a big part of homeschooling, it’s easy to get bogged down in details– what curriculum to use, how many math problems to do each day, how to motivate little Ebenezer to prefer phonics to Legos. The big picture, the key to lasting significance, sometimes slips into the background.

Phil Downer defines significance as “making a difference in the lives of people over time.” The biggest idea I try to convey when I talk to homeschooling moms is that children remember atmosphere more than activities. It’s more important to create a home in which there is love, respect, and a united purpose to build strong relationships, than it is to be super-busy, part of every co-op, sports, or ministry opportunity, or to keep house to Ritz-Carlton standards.

There are many good things you can do, but what are the best things? What will have a lasting impact on your family? In the definition of “significance,” note the phrase “over time.” As your family grows together, your home will take on its own individual atmosphere.

You’ll understand what I mean about atmosphere when you think back to your own childhood, and visiting your friends’ homes. When you walked in the door, what did you notice? Did the house seem welcoming and warm? Was your friend’s mom easy-going and kind, or did she bark at her children (and maybe even you)? Was the home extreme in some way– cold and sterile or packed to the ceiling with clutter? Which homes did you most enjoy visiting?

I believe that home atmosphere is one of the key ways that homeschooling moms can create significance in the lives of their children. The atmosphere I’m talking about isn’t related to the size or cost of your home, nor is it affected by the curriculum you choose, or the church you attend.

It’s an atmosphere that you purpose to create that allows your children to walk in the door and relax, knowing that they’re unconditionally loved and accepted, and they’re in a place where they can freely ask questions, share joys and griefs, and learn to be the individuals they were created to be. As Charlotte Mason said, “Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life.” Homeschool moms have a unique opportunity to impact their children’s lives for both time and eternity. With the big picture in mind, it becomes possible.

I’ll be sharing more on this idea soon.

Our First Grandbaby is Here!

Since we’re all about “making time for things that matter,” I have to take a moment to let you know about  adorable Imogen Violet Campbell who has just joined our family. There’s a lightning storm outside so I’ll have to be mercifully brief;-). In fact, a picture can be worth a thousand words!

Imogen Violet, about 6 hours old.

Imogen Violet, about 6 hours old.

Sweet family!

Sweet family!

Imogen Violet- 5 days old

Imogen Violet- 5 days old

On Charley and Being Different

We live in a society that worships “average” and fears anything different, but we can teach our children to appreciate the infinite variety in creation, and to be compassionate to those who have difficulties. Here’s one small place to start.

codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" width="640" height="525"> value="transparent" /> value="http://video.gprime.net/media/flv/flv.swf?gN=charley&gX=640&gY=480&gL=0"> wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" width="640" height="525">

Next Page →