Just a few ideas to share to help with workboxes.
Ami at Homeschoolshare has come up with these great cards.
If you are interested in making file folders, I would recommend these titles.
Take it to Your Seat Math Centers
Take it to Your Seat Science Centers
There are more titles in this series - literature, geography, writing, etc. The ones above are ones that I have purchased.
Hope this helps.
Blessings,
Leslie
I wanted to comment on using this with a high school student. Initially I thought I'd not do it with my oldest. I didn't think it was necessary. I still don't think he needs the visual cues of the boxes, but we'll see about that after we've done it for awhile.
What I am finding is that the structure of the boxes and specific directions for each one is very helpful for my high schooler. He has gotten so much work done today and I am thrilled! We built in a better review time for his work and I can only see this getting better.
This system is helping me to take my role as a homeschooler more seriously. Not that I didn't before, but my efforts are much more productive and it is showing. It's probably showing in how the house looks too. LOL It's hard to get it done in school and also in keeping up with the house. We'll tackle that a little later though.
Blessings,
Leslie
I shared this idea (Sue Patrick's workbox system) with my friends on the Five in a Row board. The thread has caused quite a stir and lots of great discussion. If you are interested in reading about some of the ideas shared there, please take a visit.
I think what I am liking most about this system is that it holds me accountable. I may have good plans, but this helps me to prepare and to accomplish not just the basics but some of the fun things too. I know that I can get easily distracted (and so can my children) if I'm not ready to go with whatever subject or project is at hand. This saves all of us a lot of time which is one reason we are able to get more done.
Also, several of my friends have also blogged about their systems. I think it's always fun to see what others are doing. Check out these blogs to read a little more.
Here's what we have planned for tomorrow. I thought I'd share a little more in-depth, though won't do this often as I couldn't keep up!
For Daniel (age 4) he will be doing the following (double asterisks are with mom):
**FIAR title My Blue Boat (with lessons on the Bible and decorating a cover page for his notebook)
*Mazes with a write on/wipe off pen - he loves doing this (got mine at Target)
**Color and shapes Bingo game
*Get Ready for the Code - 1 page
*Work for Contenders of the Faith - he is working on a memory verse and the ABC badge. He will be putting ABC refrig magnets in order (can also put them in the frig to hear the sounds).
**Little book on the color blue to go with B4FIAR title and color I spy game from homeschoolshare
*Dough ABC letters (Handwriting without tears)- good sensory work for him. I've asked him to make 5 of them
*Color pockets - Pre-made file folder game that he will sort pictures by color and put them in the appropriate pocket
**Animal "what am I" game from homeschool share
*Read ABC ocean animal book
*File folder activity (from Sue on alike v not alike - recognizing lowercase letters)
*Sequencing by shapes activity (preschool activity bag)
For Isaiah (age 7)
*Math
*Reading (we are one lesson away from finishing Reading Made Easy - should finish this week!!!)
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer. I've put a toy in the box that he can use to play with her to help teach in/out and shapes
*Five in a Row - We are doing Mirette on the High Wire. We'll be covering 2 social studies lessons and adding things to notebooks.
*Read aloud to me from a short reader from Starfall
*Handwriting with Tears - 1 page
*Pattern blocks - I've put a pattern page out and he will build that and then be finished
*Game with Joshua - either Blink or Knights in the Corner
*Skip counting drill (this was Sue's idea and my boys love the write on/wipe off page. It was easy to make and I'm hoping to make more types of this for review)
*Explode the Code
*Knots (badge work for Contenders of the Faith) - Intro lesson to learn about ropes and how to do one type of knot (will eventually cover more)
*Joshua reading a book to Isaiah
For Joshua (age 9)
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer
*Math
*Spelling
**Five in a Row
*Logic (bought these fun cards with logic problems on them and I give a couple every few days or so)
*Drill
*Reading with a patch (to help improve his vision). I've chosen books on topics we studied last week (ponds and Rev. War as review).
*Game with Isaiah
*Read aloud to Isaiah
*Wordly Wise
*Knots
*Skip counting
For Rebecca (7th grade)
*Pre-Algebra
*Time with Eliana (15 min) and then 15 minutes of computer
*Spelling Power
*Logic cards
*Copywork
*Beyond
*Cooking (She is working through a home ec book and will be making a mid-morning snack)
*Drill
*Herbs (She is working on a badge in this area for our Keepers of the Faith group)
*Game with Christopher (Rummikub)
*Correct math test
*Doll (She is starting a doll from an adorable pattern that my friend Becky shared with me. You can find it here.)
For Christopher (10th grade)
*Notgrass Govt
*Understanding the Times (Worldview)
*Spelling
*Time with Eliana
*Free Rice - This is a website that donates rice for each correct answer you get. We use it for drills/quizzes in a variety of subject areas - math, chemistry, foreign language, ...
*Geometry
*Movies as Literature
*Chemistry
*Game with Rebecca
*Working on teaching Knots to the younger children
*Computer Science course
*Reading (Bruchko)
I don't have a separate pic of his, but you can see it in the last picture below (on the left).
Christopher worked on his knots badge a few years back and made this poster to demonstate the knots. I think it will be a fun starting place for the other boys, not to mention a great visual.
We are currently schooling in our dining room and I have the workboxes along with walls of the room. I tried to take a few photos so you could see what it looked like. It was kind of hard to see, but hopefully this helps some. The shelves are really not that big. Less than 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide and a foot deep. This is a view from the doorway.
This is from standing on one of the chairs so you could see the workboxes better.
This is the other side of the room/table.
Hope this is helpful to someone. :-)
Blessings,
Leslie
We had a wonderful field trip this week to Crowder Park. It was a beautiful day! After starting the week with snow, I wasn't sure what the day would be like, but it was gorgeous.
The Rangers lead programs for the older kids (12 and up) on a pond study. They found various things in the pond and examined them under a microscope. My oldest two shared that they found a crawfish and a red worm.
The middle ages of children (6-11) had a study on the water cycle. They were split into teams and played a game to illustrate how the cycle works. I didn't get any pictures of the game, but here are some of the boys afterwards.
Most of the younger siblings were hanging out with parents at these classes. A couple of us though took the little ones on their own study. The Rangers supplied activity boxes that we could use.
Eliana was delighted to have her own card to carry. She did a great job walking on the path too! (That can't be my baby walking like a big girl!)
We played "Pondgo" which is a Bingo game. This card would be an easy thing to do for your own children. It's a laminated sheet with various pictures on it.
The children used a crayon to mark off the things that we found.
After the programs, we had a picnic lunch. It is always such fun to just hang out with these precious friends! I wish we could do it more often, but I treasure the times that we have. There was a large playground there that the children enjoyed. We ended up hanging out at the park for quite a long time and some of the kids went searching for geocaches (and found 5!)
The pond was a little murky - though still pretty.
It was a beautiful day.
Blessings,
Leslie
We are studying a variety of things around here. I thought I'd post a little bit of our fun from February.
Daniel - We have been reading Jesse Bear. One of his favorite activities was painting with stamps made from potatoes. They were cut into various shapes similar to the pattern on the floor of the kitchen in this book.
Isaiah and Joshua have been learning about cowboys in Cowboy Charlie. One of our dear friends is from Montana and has some of his artwork which the boys were thrilled to see. One keeps asking if we can go to Montana and see more of his work. LOL The other has decided that when he grows up that he wants to be a cowboy or a rancher or a farmer.
Part of our studies with Five in a Row is making a meal to go with our studies. We had a yummy meal of meat/potato casserole and peach pandowdy for dessert. The hit though with the boys was rootbeer! lol
We also studied Bee Tree. We were invited to a friend's birthday party at which a beekeeper spoke. It was a fun to have a hands-on lesson.
We also made biscuits with honey just like in the book. We didn't have tea though - I made green smoothies instead. (which they liked even though they looked funny).
Rebecca is studying Neil Armstrong. One day she was working on making a map. She made a treasure map for her brothers by counting steps to go along with the directions on a compass. The boys had to go around our yard, through the woods and back again before finding the buried treasure - candy! It was a lot of fun and Rebecca did a super job making the map and teaching the boys how to use it!
Another day she and a friend made "helicopters" as they were learning about flight.
Rebecca made Yorkshire Pudding one day which we ate with honey. It was delicious and we cleaned out a 9x13 pan in no time! I love too that she decorated the table and made it all look so inviting and lovely.
That's all for now.
Hope you have a great week-end!
Blessings,
Leslie
I'm excited about something that I wanted to share here. I've shared this with my local homeschool group and also with friends I on a recent retreat. There are many of us excited about this and I wanted to share it here in case others would be encouraged by this. We are loving this system!
A friend of mine, Sue Patrick, another homeschool mom, has devised a plan for organizing your school day that is brilliant. I've been interested in doing this for quite some time, but just not gotten around to doing it. Well, I invited Sue Patrick to share her Workbox System in a workshop for our homeschool group. I started it the next day.
Here are some of the basics, though I encourage you to buy Sue's book to really understand the details of how it works! Each child has their own set of 12 workboxes. They are set up so that the child can work independently through some of them and others are "work with mom" boxes. The boxes are numbered and the child moves through them sequentially.
As the child works through a box, the box is then removed from the shelf so that they can see their work diminishing. They can see exactly what is expected of them each day and how much they have left to do before their school day is over. They can also see fun things in boxes which helps to motivate them to finish the more difficult boxes.
One of the biggest benefits that I have seen is that we are accomplishing more and in less time. I'm doing so much of the "fun" stuff that seems to get put off and my children are loving it! We've added back more art, music and games. I am working to get our day organized and we are all reaping the results! I can't say enough to praise this system.
You can visit Sue's website HERE to read more about it.
I'd be happy to answer any questions too as a happy user of this system. :-)
Blessings,
Leslie
If you haven't yet heard this song, please listen.
This song brings tears to my eyes. So many children are seen as disposable when they don't measure up to the world's standards of what is alright. I understand that some just have never heard or known what a blessing that children are - ALL children. We all make mistakes and this is one that leaves a hurt forever.
I hope that I never give the impression that Eliana is a burden. Sometimes things are difficult - but that is true for all of my children. She is such a JOY! Could that middle name have been any more perfect for her? I don't think so! God knew.
I know that I've shared this before, the meaning of her name. It was something I stumbled on shortly before she was born. I had a name that I loved and had been saving for years, but it just didn't seem right somehow. She was Eliana. Her name means "my God answers with Joy".
Oh what joy this little girl brings to everyone in her life. Truly, I can't imagine being more blessed than to have all of the precious children that we do! Thank you God!
My heart is burdened for children with Down syndrome - especially the many that don't have a family. If you are interested in doing more to help some, any or even just one of these children, please visit Reece's Rainbow. You can donate money, pray for a child or even bring one home.
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress." (James 1:27)
Blessings,
Leslie
Just wanted to share a funny moment with you.
The other day, Isaiah and I were talking. It may help you to know that we have been studying bees this week. This is a bit of our conversation.
Isaiah: Do you know what my favorite word is?
Me: (not knowing people had favorite words) No, I don't.
Isaiah: Well, it isn't Isaiah because thats a name. It's thorax.
Me: (stifling a giggle at this point) Really? It's thorax?
Isaiah: Yes, my favorite word is thorax.
A few days later, Isaiah is working on a math page dealing with money. Rebecca overhears him talking to himself. For a little background you should know that this is my child that LOVES money. He talks about money every day. He frequently offers to pay to get things that he wants. Recently he offered to pay Christopher in order to get something he wanted. This request was followed up quickly by another offer - a second payment - if he wouldn't tell Mom! lol
Isaiah, as he is studying about money: I think my favorite word is money. Thorax is my second favorite word.
This boy just cracks me up! The funny thing is that he often has no idea how very funny he can be because he delivers his lines with total seriousness.
I'm thankful for the gift of laughter and little people that give me plenty of reason to laugh.
Blessings,
Leslie
I had a sweet week-end. One that started on Thur after a field trip. It had been a fun morning with my children and our Five in a Row group - a trip to the fire station and then a picnic and playing in the park.
When we got home, I finished packing and headed off to a yearly "retreat". Once a year, meeting up with friends from the FIAR website staff.
Some of these friends I've known for over 10 years - when our oldest children were just starting on the homeschooling journey. Some of these friends are newer friends with whom God has knitted our hearts. I'm thankful to be part of a sweet group of gals (and one great guy!).
The week-end was a time of laughter and tears, sharing and learning, praying and challenging - and fun. Rest was maybe not the right word as there was not much sleep going on. But, it was refreshing and encouraging. I'm thankful that my sweet husband sees the value in this for me.
Here's a photo of our group.
Thank you all for a great week-end! In the midst of the travel and business, I heard some sweet (albeit brief) words from God. My heart has been torn and grieved at much of what I've heard and read lately. I feel the need to *DO* something. I'm praying, but it just doesn't seem like enough at times. Does this make sense? While talking with God, He reminded me of this truth.
Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary. Isaiah 40:31
So, in the midst of my worry, God is telling me to wait on Him. He will give me strength to carry out His plans when I wait on His perfect timing. Isn't that an amazing truth?!
Why do I doubt? God is in the details - even the small ones. On my flight out, I sat beside an interesting man that had recently become a beekeeper. We talked about what he did and the benefits of keeping bees. (He even encouraged me to do this.) What was the God moment in this? We have been studying bees this week in school. I was able to ask him a question that one of the children asked me (and I couldn't answer). It was an interesting, enjoyable and helpful conversation. God is sweet like that?
I have more to share,- but need to get some sleep. More tomorrow, I hope.
Blessings,
Leslie
Just a quick entry with a few pictures of some of teh fun we had while visiting my sister's family. It was beautiful and we enjoyed the outdoors.
Towards the end of the trip - Eliana learned something new. She wanted to be outside and had been brought in. Well, she figured out how to get out all on her own. We thought this was just too funny!
Have a great week-end!
Leslie
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