Sunday 29 September 2013

HSMJ -It's a Whimsical Wordless challenge

In my life this week…

I took the plunge and joined Savannah over at Hammock Tracks and took part in the Whimsical Wordless Wednesday Photo Challenge – Week 2. Every since I did Erin's photo challenge last year I've been looking for a new one to participate in.  It's a fun way to stretch the way you see the world.

In our home school this week…
Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
I am inspired by…
Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
  • This week I spent a day delivering a whole range of things that I had borrowed and needed returning. 
  • No official sports as it's school holidays here.
  • My mom, sisters and a couple of friends. Avoiding Melbourne it's too busy during holidays.
My favourite thing this week was…
  • My Dad starting a BLOG!  It's been so much fun helping him set it up.  He has done some amazing trips around Australia.  He is planing a two to three month trip around the western part of Australia next year and is chronicling his planning, preparation and trip. Dingo Den's Travels Please pop on over and say hi :)
  •  
What’s working/not working for us…
  • School holidays.  I am in the process of de-cluttering and spring cleaning.
Questions/thoughts I have…
  • What topics would you like to see covered here on this blog ?
Things I’m working on…
In Bloggy world I’m reading…
I’m cooking…
  • What ever is in the freezer ...
On Pinterest I found...
I’m grateful for…
  • Those who faithfully pray for me ...
A photo, video, link, or quote to share…

Blessings

Chareen


Photo collages made with: Photoscape a FREE photo editor

Thursday 26 September 2013

Bee Foot Print


Welcome to the Virtual Fridge a weekly art meme where we can hang our children's art on a virtual fridge. This meme was started by Jennifer over at A Glimpse of our Life who kindly invited three other bloggers to co-host this weekly meme.

Your hosts are



This Week

This year for my birthday Sir N with help from my Mom surprised me with this beautiful gift.  My Mom found the idea on Pinterest. This is the result of their artistic pursuit together.  Sir N said he really enjoyed making this and giggled when he explained how hard it had been to wash the yellow paint off his foot!



Your Turn

I invite you to take some photo's of your children's artistic pursuits put them in a post and link up with me I would love to come over and see the wonderful art your children have enjoyed doing.
Virtual Fridge Link Up

Blessings
Chareen


Wednesday 25 September 2013

Whimsical Wordless Wednesday Photo Challenge – Week 2

Today I'm taking part in Savannah's Whimsical Wordless Wednesday Photo Challenge. This is a new weekly challenge with the opportunity to win a prize. The challenge is hosted over at Hammock Tracks.

This weeks challenge is
  1. pink
  2. orange
  3. brown
  4. stripes
  5. yellow
Interpretation is up to you.  Be creative! Grab your camera (DSLR, point and shoot or phone) and get snapping.  The linky is open for 5 days. This weeks prize is Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats: A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners (A 30-Minute Meal Cookbook)

I have developed a love affair with macro photography of late and it's spring around here so the flowers are just begging to be photographed.

pink
This inch plant is spectacular when in full bloom.

orange 

I loved the delicate nature of the center of this beautiful orange flower.

brown 

I loved the way this cheetah looked so deep in thought.

stripes 

We saw this boat at the Tall Ships festival a few weeks back.


yellow

Looking at these flowers makes me realise why Australia's colours are green and gold!
Looking foward to seeing your challenge photo interpretations
Blessings
Chareen

PS Once you've linked up over at Hammock Tracks leave me a note so I can come on over and see your beautiful photographs and experience the world through your lens.

Linking with
Hammock Tracks
Pebble Pond {Beauty Captured}

Tuesday 24 September 2013

Math is a problem - What now ?

Earlier this year I shared with you about my approach and philosophy about teaching Math. Today I want to tackle this subject from the angle of what do I do if my student hates math or they are really struggling to grasp a mathematical concept. In preparation for today's post I did a quick Google search Help! My Child Hates Math! and was surprised that it came back with over 21,700,000 results!

One of my earliest memories of teaching a math concept to a struggling student was trying to teach one of my children fractions. It was the third or fourth day and I had pulled every idea out of the bag to help this child understand their work. They were getting frustrated and so was I! After all I thought what is so hard about fractions!!!! In desperation I rang a friend and went over for a cuppa coffee to regain my sanity and shared what had been happening in math class. She calmly called over my children did a quick lesson on fractions to which said child looked over at me and asked "Why didn't you just say that?" Oh boy ...

The greatest lesson I took home with me that day is that if they don't get it the way I teach it ask a friend.  There is no one right way to teach math or any other subject for that matter. We all see the world in our own unique way.

 History and Research on the Teaching of Math This article takes a fascinating look at mathematical learning and teaching over the years and how this impacts our ability to learn math easily. It has helped me be far more relaxed in my approach in doing math with Sir N. Our brain development plays an enormous role in our ability to learn math than we realize. I highly recommend this insightful article if you have a child struggling to cope with math.

Some solutions
  • Step away from the text books for a while and play games
  • Slow down. Sometimes the text book we are using moves along at a pace that may be just a little too fast for some students. Get to know your students learning curve and move at that pace.
  • Use online games to learn math facts. Math facts do not need to be understood to be learned.  This is route learning but plays a very important role in the highschool years.
  • Play card games 
  • Use dominoes to learn math facts. Drill work.
  • Ask a friend to teach a lesson.
  • Ask the child to teach you (I have found this helpful as it helps to clarify their point of misunderstanding)
  • Do practical math application learning. (banking, area, shopping, etc)
  • Ask questions
  • Keep the manipulatives for as long as possible. It's been shown that pushing a student to abandon the use of manipulatives hampers a students progress in later years when doing more complex equations.  Manipulatives are very important in math competency.  Allow the student to drop the use when they are ready. 

On the Net
    TED talks on math
    I have enjoyed TED talks on the subject of math. They have helped me think through my preconceived ideas on teaching and learning math.

    Conrad Wolfram: Teaching kids real math with computers

    "Stop teaching calculating, start teaching math"

    I would love to know your thoughts and how you approach math

    Blessings

    Chareen

    This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of homeschool Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.


    This week
     ---ooOoo---

    Sunday 22 September 2013

    Who You Are


    May you be as blessed as I was with this video
    Blessings
    Chareen

    Saturday 21 September 2013

    Seed Sowers a gospel planting adventure {Review}


    This past month Sir N and I have had the privilege of meeting some of today's modern heroes in the biographical book Seed Sowers: Gospel Planting Adventures published by Grace and Truth books. This book was compiled and written by a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew Gwen Toliver.

    When Gwen and her family relocated to Wycliffe's Linguistics Center in Dallas, Texas they began meeting dozens of 'retired' missionaries who were still actively serving in many supportive rolls. The thing that struck her was that most of them had never recorded their own incredible stories.

    Gwen thought "What a shame! Most of them possess this amazing wealth of spiritual knowledge and mission field experience that will be lost if it's not recorded for future generations. Only a few had written or told their stories."  Little did she know that over the next two years she would begin a remarkable journey of discovery (or mining gold as Gwen calls it) as she spent time interviewing these 'retired' missionaries. Out of this experience a book was birthed.

     Seed Sowers
    • Format: Paper back / Hardback / Kindle
    • Number of Pages: 180
    • Publisher: WestBow Press
    • Publication Date: 2012
    • ISBN: 978-1-4497-7130-0
    • Author: Gwen Toliver
    This is a beautiful book written for children and is a pleasure to read out loud.  Sir N has begged me to keep reading each day as we have spent time together reading Seed Sowers.  This book is written at around a sixth grade independent reading level, however children as young as six will enjoy the adventures of the missionaries and bible translators in the book.

    Seed Sowers introduces us to the stories of 21 inspiring missionary heroes and the adventures they experienced serving our God in different parts of the world.  At the conclusion of each chapter Gwen has included a short note detailing when the particular translation of the bible was completed and what the missionary is doing now. The book concludes with a comprehensive bibliography sharing when the interviews took place and any extra resources used in compiling the stories.

    The only complaint Sir N has had is that he wished that there were pictures in the book. This is one thing that Gwen wishes she could add to this wonderful book the photographs of the missionaries. Sadly the publisher has said that due to poor quality they can not be added. She has been collecting beautiful photographs and sharing them on the Seed Sowers Website.

    Upon reflection I think it would be a wonderful addition if a world map with an indication of where the stories took place were added to the stories along with present day photographs. It would be amazing to see who these wonderful people are and it would help younger children to appreciate that these are real life hero's who are sharing their stories with us.

    Purchase the book
    • Paper back $12.50
    • Hard Cover   $27.95
    • Kindle  $3.99
    Connect
    • Gwen shares her families full time missionary adventures living and serving with Wycliffe Associates in Texas over at Tolivers to Texas
    • Seed Sowers blog. Here Gwen shares more insights from the book, introduces some of the heros from the book and photographs.
    • Pinterest
    • Facebook

    This book gets a 5 star rating and would be an asset on any bookshelf.  It's a wonderful twaddle free read aloud sharing living stories of modern hero's for your children to look up to. 
    All that is good reflects God's Glory. It has been said that the full joyousness of childhood can only be experienced by those who are allowed by their elders to mix heaven freely with earth, and to see angels and heroes where commonplace sinners actually stand. - Karen Andreola
    I agree with this statement and reading about heavens modern hero's in Seed Sowers is just one way to inspire and encourage our children to do great things for the Kingdom.

    Blessings
    Chareen


    Photobucket

    Friday 20 September 2013

    HSMJ - An invitation to you ...

    In my life this week…
    I'm really struggling to find my rythm with the new day for this linky each week.  There has been a lot going on in my world. I'm looking forward to rediscovering my rhythm ...

    In our home school this week…
    • We've enjoyed some great time reading our books from Sonlight. We finished Charlotte's Web .
    • This week we had some struggles with Math.  It was good because I realized that Sir N needs some more practice with his math facts.
    • Science has been fun too. We are enjoying learning about the different animals found on different continents around the world in The Usborne World Of Animals .  We are exploring North America this week.
    • See How It's Made has been interesting too.  I learned what a 'penny lick' was and together we learned about ice cream production etc.
    • Sir N enjoyed creating an entry for the Lego Challenge this week.
    Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
    • Have you seen the 50 Must Read Homeschooling Mom's blogs over at Homeschooling for Free ?
    • Virtual Fridge Link Up
    • I would like to invite you all to join in with a weekly art meme in sharing the artistic pursuits of your families.   This one is not necessarily a how to post each week but rather a show and tell photo post of an art project your children have done. 
    • For my northern hemisphere friends who are going into Autumn.  Have you seen this neat bowl you can make from autumn leaves ?  It's a beautiful easy craft project.  Pop on over to Hello Lucky for an easy step by step tutorial.
    • For those of you who have children who enjoy Minecraft and would like to add in a touch of school to the game.  Minecraft Homeschool are busy enrolling at the moment.  7 Wonders of the Ancient World
    • What Shakespeare Plays Originally Sounded Like a fantastic look at Shakespeare and English pronunciation.
    • Are you after some fun in your homeschool ? The HomeScholar has a great post from 2009 called Homeschool Mom Universal Translator (HMUT)
    • For those of you with LEGO mad children The Canadian Homeschooler has restarted their Lego challenge series. This months theme is Where you live.
    I am inspired by…

    Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
    • This week I was super blessed with two tickets to Tribute to the Empress presented by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. 
    • This week marked the end of school term three and the last week of tennis and Kelly Sports.  It's been great watching the children learn new skills.
    My favorite thing this week was…
    • I'm so excited for my sister and brother in law who immigrated over to Australia in February this year.  They move into their first rental home tomorrow. 
    • Seeing these 10 Simple Holiday Candle Projects
    What’s working/not working for us…
    Questions/thoughts I have…
    • We would like to learn French.  What program do you recommend for young primary school age students ?
    Things I’m working on…
    On My Bedside Table ...
    • The Trim Healthy Mama PDF version
    In Bloggy world I’m reading…
    I’m cooking…
    • Nothing this week.  My sister has blessed me with meals every night :)
    On Pinterest I found...
    I’m grateful for…
    • The internet and The Schoolhouse Review Crew and the opportunities they have presented me over the last year.
    A photo, video, link, or quote to share…



    Blessings

    Chareen


    Photo collages made with: Photoscape a FREE photo editor

    A Diorama

    Welcome to the Virtual Refrigerator Blog Hop.  This past week I dug out our Art Projects 2 book from Abeka.  Sir N loves making hands on things so this week we made our first diorama project.


    I love using this book.  They supplied the cut out's for the turtle.  I supplied the plate.  This was supposed to be made with a paper plate but we had this green plastic bowl left over from another project that worked well.  I helped Sir N draw the scale shapes and he taped the legs and head onto the bowl.  He then dug out this box and decided to make a diorama scene for his turtle.  We used sellotape to hang the fish.

    Blessings
    Chareen

    I invite you to take some photo's of your children's artistic pursuits put them in a post and link up with me I would love to come over and see the wonderful art your children have enjoyed doing.
    Virtual Fridge Link Up


    Thursday 19 September 2013

    Where we live {LEGO Quest II}

    The Canadian Homeschooler has relaunched the LEGO QUEST challenge series.  The current challenge has been Where you Live.

    Sir N really enjoyed this challenge and we are looking forward to participating in future challenges.

    Blessings
    Chareen
    Lego Quest II | thecanadianhomeschooler.com

    Tuesday 17 September 2013

    Teaching History Revisited

    Teaching history is not solely about the subject of history or a set of isolated events found important by some textbook author. For me personally  learning history chronologically is at the very heart of all our learning. To aid our historical studies we made our own Book of Time. Dates help us to anchor our learning as we mark them off on a time line.

    To aid this assimilation of history and to make it more real for my children I have added in family to our book of time including important dates (marriage, immigration and the births of nieces and nephews).

    When I started home educating I only had the experience of history via a textbook. I am grateful to Sonlight who introduced me to studying history in the context of excellent literature. I agree with this statement by Jimmie Lanely
     "But living history books — even historical fiction — capture the imagination while informing the mind. The reader soaks in the the facts of history in a natural and enjoyable way that forms a much stronger base of understanding than rote memorization."
    his·to·ry noun \ˈhis-t(É™-)rÄ“\
    1. tale, story 
    2. a : a chronological record of significant events (as affecting a nation or institution) often including an explanation of their causes
      b : a treatise presenting systematically related natural phenomena
      c : an account of a patient's medical background
      d : an established record  
    3. a branch of knowledge that records and explains past events
    4. a : events that form the subject matter of a history
      b : events of the past
      c : one that is finished or done for
      d : previous treatment, handling, or experience (as of a metal) 
    For Us
    Sir N is eight this year and we are concentrating on exploring the world around us.  We are working our way through Sonlight's Core curriculums until he is 12 when we will be adding in Mystery of History for the high school years. I am also adding in missionary biographies.  We are currently reading Seed Sowers and a YWAM biography Jim Elliot: One Great Purpose.

    Charlotte Mason said, “The fatal mistake is in the notion that [the child] must learn ‘outlines’ of the whole history… just as he must cover the geography of all the world. Let him, on the contrary, linger pleasantly over the history of a single man, a short period, until he thinks the thoughts of that man, is at home in the ways of that period. Though he is reading and thinking of the lifetime of a single man, he is really getting intimately acquainted with the history of a whole nation for a whole age.” Home Education, Vol. 1 Part XVIII.–History, p.280 

    Although I have a liking of Charlotte Mason philosophy I am in no way a purist in my approach. I am more an eclectic home schooler in my history studies approach. I have been influenced in my approach by Charlotte Mason, Sonlight and The Well Trained Mind.

    For Further Reading
    Over the years I have come to realize that history is more than what has been dictated upon us by textbooks at school. It is a rich tapestry of life.  Every single thing that happens every single day is a historical fact. Science, Math, Geography it's all a form of history as every single aspect of every single subject has taken place at some point in time and by adding these points to a time line we grow in our understanding of the world we live in.

    "In history, a great volume is unrolled for our instruction,
    drawing the materials of future wisdom 
    from the past errors and infirmities of mankind.
    "
    Edmund Burke
    Blessings
    Chareen
    This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of homeschool Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.

    This week
     ---ooOoo---

    Tuesday 10 September 2013

    Journals in Homeschool

    This is rather an interesting topic.  My first question was "What's the difference between a journal and a notebook ?" Over the years I've heard both terms used interchangeably and wondered if they were the same thing or not.

    notebook [ˈnəʊtˌbʊk] n
    1. a book for recording notes or memoranda 
    2. (Economics, Accounting & Finance / Banking & Finance) a book for registering promissory notes
    3. a book of or for notes, esp. a book or binder of blank, often ruled pages for recording notes
    4. a small, lightweight laptop computer.

    jour·nal (jûrnl) n.
    1. Personal. A personal record of occurrences, experiences, and reflections kept on a regular basis;
      a diary.
      b. An official record of daily proceedings, as of a legislative body.
      c. Nautical A ship's log. 
    2. Accounting
      a. A day book.
      b. A book of original entry in a double-entry system, listing all transactions and indicating the accounts to which they belong. 
    3. A newspaper. 
    4. A periodical presenting articles on a particular subject: a medical journal. 
    5. Engineering / Mechanical Engineering
      The part of a machine shaft or axle supported by a bearing. 
    6. Government, Politics & Diplomacy
      an official record of the proceedings of a legislative body 
    7. a periodical or magazine, esp. one published for a group, learned society, or profession.
    After having a good look at the definitions I discovered that it depends of the use of the book as to the correct term used.  You would keep a personal journal in a lined notebook or you could use a lined notebook to keep an official journal. It really does become a play on words.

    Homeschool Notebooking
    Within the home education community however notebooking refers to a school folder in which a student records what they have learned.  There are some amazingly creative home educators who create some rather impressive notebook pages for a variety of educational topics.  You don't need a fancy page however you can simply used lined paper and write out your thoughts.

    Notebook Page Resources
    Homeschool Journal
    Journaling with in the homeschool community often refers to a more intimate and decorated book.  Although some homeschoolers will journal along a notebooking style. More often than not however they would use journaling in Nature Study.

    For the last couple of years I have been journaling here about my week in the Homeschool Mother's Journal. This is a great link up to meet like minded homeschoolers and a relaxed way to keep a diary journal of what you've been up to. I have always intended on starting a Nature journal/notebook and recently Sir N and I started one as spring is upon us.

    Journal inspiration

    If you are after an inspirational book on Journaling I highly recommend books from the author Gwen Diehn.  In particular try to get her book The Decorated Journal {Creating Beautifully Expressive Journal Pages}. This book is full of inspiration.  She shares a multitude of ways to do a journal and how to personalise a journal as well as the educational benefits of different types of journals.



    Do you use journaling or notebooking and what are your favourite resources ?

    Blessings
    Chareen
    This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of homeschool Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.



    This week
     ---ooOoo---

    Sunday 8 September 2013

    {MADE} Creativity & Freedom - Anna Tapp

    The art of drawing is not my strength and I fear not being able to get it perfect ... However it's so apt for me that MADE began on the first Monday of Spring here. My current expression of art is photography. This is how my week began through the lens last Monday.
     

    It's actually the end of week one and I've only just managed to watch the first course video.  Anna shared this week with us about the Freedom we have as the Children of God in our Creativity.

    There is no predicting the places to which you will travel, once you let go of doubt and start walking forward in freedom. - Anna Tapp

    Highlights
    • Art is not just about perfection it's about expression.  I've never really thought about that.  I have been too afraid to create because I want perfection on the page.  
    • Each of us is meant to display a facet of God’s being. Yes I tend to forget that. In order to accomplish that I need to turn back to Him and allow Him to set me free from the chains that bind me.
    • Personal freedom needs to start with the creative being accepting who they are, and what they have to share
    • We were meant to be conduits for a creative God What me creative ? Oh yes I forgot I'm made in the image of a Creator
    • You are a beautiful, unique vessel of God’s glory.
    • My destination may never be what I picture when I first start walking, but that doesn’t mean I'm traveling the wrong way. These words were like life giving water to my thirsty soul today. One day I will blog about it ...
    • To believe (not just long for, but really believe) that my interests are important and valid 
    • Creative freedom can be a prideful endeavor, or it can be an open exercise of following the Spirit. Thank you Anna for putting this out there.  I struggle in this area so much ...
    Connect with Anna
    Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” Revelation 21:1-4


    The first week has been so good for me.  I am amazed at the perfect timing of the course content it's perfect for where I am at spiritually.  I am blown away by the word in due season spoken to my heart.  I encourage you to join MADE.  There are over 170 people sharing the journey and it's not too late for you to embark on 16 weeks of exploring God - centered creativity. For those of you not wanting to do the course but connect with Christian creatives have a look at Epiphany Art Forums

    Blessings
    Chareen