Tomorrow is the Love to Learn Conference in Hickory, NC. If you happen to be in the area, stop by and see what all the great speakers are speaking about. LOL I am speaking about the various methods of homeschooling and large family homeschooling. Imagine that! This is a very laid back conference, so if you didn’t pre-register, don’t worry about it! You can register at the door.
Need more information, check out their website at www.lovetolearnconference.com.
Hope to see you there!
I thought I would share with you some great websites that can help you save money in your homeschool journey. These websites enable me to add some different things to my homeschool throughout the year without breaking the budget. A few of these site have paid features. I will give you my opinion with each.I hope this helps you on your homeschool journey!
The first website that I have really found useful for planning is Homeschool Tracker. You can find it at www.homeschooltracker.com/. This is a software planning package that has a free version and paid version. I have used the free version, but I would like to upgrade to the paid version when we have the funds. The main difference for me is that the paid version allows you to share assignments between students. I would suggest dowloading the free version and using it for a while. Then you can decide if the paid version is something that would be a bigger benefit. For me, I look for time-savers.
Next, is the website that was formerly Homeschool eStore. It is now called CurrClick. Their website can be found at http://www.currclick.com/. They offer a weekly freebie. You need to sign up for their newsletter, and each week, they will send you the information about the weekly freebie. I have personally used this service a lot.
Next, I love, love, love the Homeschool Freebie of the Day. This website is run by a publisher friend of mine, and it is just fantastic. The link to the website is found at FREEBIE of the Day. (The link was too long for my newsletter.)
Next, is Dover Publications. They have a weekly newsletter and freebie. Just sign up for the newsletter, and you will get the information. Their website is http://store.doverpublications.com/.
Next is another website by one of my publisher friends. The website is located at http://www.toytowntreasures.com/.
The next website is a hybrid. You can choose between a free or paid option. I personally have the paid option this year, because I have found a lot of worksheets for our unit studies on it. It’s found at http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html.
Next is one that I have used to plan our Apologia Science programs. It’s found at http://www.donnayoung.org/.For those of you who like Charlotte Mason, you will like http://amblesideonline.org/.
And, finally, for those of you who like to read old books. You will love http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page. You will go back to this website over and over again.
Since I posted earlier this week about our choices in curriculum, I thought you might like to know how it played out for us. Our typical school week is Monday through Thursday. We use Friday as our appointment or errand day, and it gives us some flexibility if we have something come up earlier in the week.
We had a very successful school week, in my opinion. We completed everything I had planned as far as book work. And we also figured out what class at the community college would work in our daughter’s schedule. Getting things set up for dual enrollment for her turned out to be a little time-consuming. But I think we got all of our paperwork taken care of.
I am looking toward next week-end and The Love to Learn Conference.
Happy Back to School!!!
Many of you have commented on how I am able to run a household and run a business and homeschool all at one time. My big secret for handling it, besides the Holy Spirit, is my family. I have it made. I have TWO personal chefs! And I have a lot of help with the household chores. Today is one of my rare days off from my business. I spent it with my children and husband, once he returned home from work. And this evening I cooked a big meal. My two personal chefs, my husband and daughter, kept a check on me in the kitchen. 
I managed to make whole wheat bread sticks from scratch. And I also fixed up a little bit of rotini pasta and spaghetti sauce. And I washed and peeled and sliced quite a few veggies from our summer garden, and I topped it off with a batch of dark chocolate brownies.
The verdict from my family is that, “Mom’s still got it.” I’m glad! I really enjoyed myself this evening.
Now, I have some computer things to work on, and I need to work on my outlines for two talks that I am giving next Saturday at the Love to Learn Conference. I also need to get my necessary items together for a trip to Charlotte tomorrow to see the Carolina Panthers play the Colts. We were blessed by someone who gave us two tickets for the game.
Have a blessed day!
Are you in the process of getting ready to start back to school for the year? I have a lot of variables to consider when I am picking out our curriculum. I have 5 children who are school age this year, the youngest of whom is kindergarten age and the oldest is a senior in high school. I also have 5 boys, so I need something that will keep wiggly boys engaged in their work. I also do not have all day long to do school with my children, since I spend my afternoons at my bookstore.
I thought you might like a peek into what I have picked out for our school year. I do not have a particular Bible program that we use. We feel it is best for our family to just read the Bible together and discuss it, so you will notice that I do not have any Bible curriculum items listed.
I’ll start with the kindergartener and work my way up. He is actually on the young side, since he will not be 5 until the end of this month. He is using Math-U-See Primer, because he wanted a math book to work in. He is also using Explode the Code Online and Teach Your Child to Read in 100 EZ Lessons for phonics. And he is finishing up Handwriting Without Tears Get Set for School. I am also reading to him daily from Five in a Row selections or other classic books.
Our 2nd grader is using Saxon Math 2; Explode the Code Online and ETC Book 2; HWT Printing Power; phonetically-based readers; and KONOS for history and science with older siblings.
Our 4th grader is using Saxon Math 5/4; HWT Cursive Success; Abeka reading books; Easy Grammar Grade 4; Sequential Spelling; KONOS (covers science and math).
Our 8th grader is finishing up a Math-U-See textbook, and then he is moving up to Pre-Algebra from VideoText Algebra. He is also using an 8th grade Upton math book to hone his mathematical skills. He is also using Sequential Spelling; Easy Grammar; He is also using Apologia General Science. At some point, we will work on his writing skills. I am just not sure that he is ready for WriteShop.
Our 12th grader is doing things a bit differently this year. We are currently in the process of setting up dual enrollment with a community college. So her class schedule at home is going to be lighter this year. She is going to be working on History of the World by KONOS, which covers history, language arts, art, and Bible. She is also using Apologia’s Chemistry book. If we are able to get her in the classes she wants at the community college, that will be all that she takes at home. She is in good shape on her credits for high school. I worked on her transcript this week, and it looks very well-rounded.
If I were just starting our on our homeschool journey, a few books would be on my list to buy. I would want a copy of The Homeschooler’s Book of Lists; Homeschool Methods; and a subscription to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. These would be in my “teacher’s arsenol.”
I carry many of these books on my website. If you have any questions or comments, I welcome them at orders@dhss.com.
In June, we purchased half of a cow from a friend who raises cattle. With rising food prices, we thought this was a most excellent idea to “lock in” the price we pay for beef for several months. I have to report to you that the beef is extremely tasty. It was grain-fed for 10 days before butchering, and then it was hung for several days to drain and age. That made for some delicious meat. It is also very low in fat content. We continually impressed with the quality of this meat.
Having this on hand has allowed us to trim our grocery and sundries cost to around $100 per week for a family of 8. Of course, with Money Saving Mom and The Grocery Game helping me out with sales and coupons, it is quite fun to snag really great deals each week. And I love not having to compare beef prices at the grocery store! I have been buying chicken when it is on sale, since we do need a break from beef occasionally.
Have a blessed day!
Let’s talk a bit about foreign language. I have a special interest in foreign language. I have a parent and step-parent who live outside of the US. So it behooves me to teach my children some words in their language.
I have tried many foreign language programs, and one that my boys enjoyed with me was the Power-Glide program. It has been revised, and I really like the new version that is now available. With the new version, they also redid the pricing structure, and I think it is a better value now than it was a few years ago.
I am offering the one-year programs for $109.95. This is $20.00 off the retail price, and the two-year programs are $199.95. This is $30.00 off the retail price. You can see the full offerings of Power-Glide products on my website.
You may have noticed that I have been adding some posts about frugal living. With a family of 8 to feed, the grocery store has not been one of my favorite places to spend money, but my friend Crystal Paine of Biblical Womanhood and Money Saving Mom has taught me quite a bit about saving money on groceries and sundries that we need to run our household. The reason I am mentioning this to you tonight is that Crystal is having a special sale tomorrow on her ebooks, including her Supermarket 101 ebook.
The sale for one day, July 30 only, will be $5.97! This is over $100 worth of ebooks! I am sure you will more than save that amount of money by reading her ideas and employing just a few of her ideas.
You can read more about it through my affiliate link. (I will receive a portion of each sale made through this link.)Remember this is for July 30 only. The ebook package price will got up in price daily until this week-end.
We have a winner in the microscope contest. I compiled all the entries from my blog, and I add to that list all the emails that I received from people who sent emails to their friends. I made up a list of names and cut it apart. Then I drew a name from my son’s cowboy hat. And the winner is………..
Miss Anita!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have contacted her via email. CONGRATS, Miss Anita!
Thank you to everyone who participated!!!
Have a blessed day!
Just a quick reminder that you have two more days to get the special prices on several items and free shipping on your order over $25.00.
And don’t forget to enter my microscope giveaway on this blog.
Go to my website at www.dhss.com for more information!!!!