Homeschooling for High School - FAQ Answered

I was going through my posts this past week looking for an answer to an email question and remembered this series of posts that I did answering FAQ about high school. I thought it might help to gather them into one post for new readers to my blog. If you have additional questions you would like me to try to answer here on the blog, please feel free to comment or send me an email. I can't guarantee that I will be able to answer them all but I will schedule some of the more popular ones to answer this term. 

Homeschooling for High School Series:
How Do You Teach the Hard Stuff?
Finding Time for Nature Study, Art, Music, Poetry, and PE
Narration (Charlotte Mason Style) in High School
Deciding on Resources
Charlotte Mason Method and Grades - you also might like an example of our Term Exam and Resources
Goal Setting - My Process
Friday Discussions- What Do We Talk About?

Charlotte Mason Homeschool - Create the Atmosphere

Charlotte Mason Atmosphere-Always Room For Improvement


Halfway through the school year is always a great time to make some subtle changes to homeschooling plans. Now the time has come to polish up the plans for next term and making a list is always something that helps me focus my energy.

Where I Would Like to Improve

• 1. Timeline Project/Book of Centuries - Mr. B has been regularly adding to his timeline notebook each week from his history readings but very hit and miss with his other subjects. I am going to encourage him to be more consistent in drawing in events, people, and ideas from his anatomy study, literature, art, composer study, and government/economics. This will make it an even richer record of his learning.
• 2. Art History - Mr. B really enjoys learning about artists and art genres as part of his high school plans. This is something he normally spends extra time on each week. I see the need for some extra projects which are not on his plan. I need to be more accountable. Since my HFA Grade 12 plans do not include specific suggestions for art skills work, I will pull from my HFA Grade 8 plans which cover the same time period and are rich in lots of extras that Mr. B can pull ideas from more regularly.
• 3. Shakespeare and Opera - We did not fit in a single Shakespeare play last term at all. How did that happen? I have Merchant of Venice on the schedule for this term...prominent and on the priority list. B. Opera study is on my list of things to do (read major procrastination). Any suggestions? I know that I mentioned it before and I received some ideas so I will need to go back and look for titles as well.
• 4. Biographies - Mr. B likes the history "spine" we are using this year but I find it rather monotonous. Adding in some really good biographies last term helped make his study of the 20th century more interesting and living. His favorite was Einstein: His Life and Universe. There is a list on Ambleside Online (Year 11) that contains a lot of possibilities so I will be looking some of these up at our library.

Some additional links to things we are using this year for those interested in taking a look:

• 1.Nature Study using my More Nature Study ebook plans. Book 2 will be out on January 1, 2012 and will include advanced nature study ideas for high school age students. This was something I included in Book 1 (Autumn 2011) and it has been a great success.
• 2. Poetry using my plans with a little structured follow-up. I have complete plans and notebook pages on my Squidoo Pages.
• 3. Music appreciation using my Harmony Fine Arts grade 11 and 12 plans (free on my website).
• 4. Lots of writing using our IEW methods and notebooking pages.

10 Ideas For Art and Music Appreciation

Real Life Experiences:
1. There is nothing like a visit to an art museum, seeing artwork up close and in its original size within a frame. It is sometimes like visiting an old friend. We enhance our time at the museum by either preparing ahead of time or with follow-up study using artist's biographies and notebooking pages.
2. Attending a local symphony or seeing a performance at a theater or outdoor event is another way to include some art and music appreciation in a very busy homeschool life.
3. Learning to play a musical instrument is also a way to learn more about music history and theory.
4. Art classes and camps are another way to feed the desire of your children to learn more about artistic styles and periods.




Art Books and iPods:
5. Keeping a few quality art books on hand can help moms offer art with little effort. (You can read my Top Five Art Picks on Squidoo.)
6. Quality art masterpiece coloring books offer a fun way to include some art and picture study in your week. You can see how our family uses coloring pages by viewing my Dover Coloring Books page with examples and hints.
7. A library of music to listen to during your daily activities is a quick and simple way to include classical music and develop an ear for it with your young ones. (You can see my Build a Classical Music Library Squidoo page.)





Formal Art and Music Curriculum:
8. Our family has benefited from a more organized approach to art and music appreciation. Of course, this is why I wrote the Harmony Fine Arts curriculum and I highly recommend it for families that want a flexible weekly plan. Check out the sidebar of my blog for each grade available and then click to view samples, read explanations, and see which composers and artists are covered in each year. Many of the year plans include an option to use the Artistic Pursuits books as one of the three options for art.

9. You can also find more on my artist page where I list a number of artist with links and resources for you to use when the desire comes along. These are far less in-depth than my Harmony Fine Arts plans but if you are looking for a quick way to include a little bit more you may find them helpful.

 

10. Use Child-Size Masterpieces or art postcards to enhance your study of art. Using art cards provides a variety of possibilities that allow the child to explore great art and famous artists. These are a great value since you can use them as references for years to come. You can read more about how we use Child-Size Masterpieces in our home in this review on Curriculum Choice.

Tech-Free Family Night

We recently took a family trip (all six of us - two teens and four adults) for four glorious days up to the mountains. It became increasing clear to all of us that technology had become a part of everyone's life. We had six cell phones (Smart phones, Blackberry, and various cellular phones), one Kindle Fire, two iPods, two laptops, and a DVD player. As convenient as it was to have so much technology, it was also a little distracting. We decided to gather the electronics, turn them off,  and spend time together since we had all made the effort to travel to a beautiful place and enjoy each other's company.

What did we do instead?

• Prepared and devoured loads of great food, with every person taking responsibility for planning at least one meal.
• Long walks together in the beautiful surroundings.
• Board games and card games.
• Hobbies of various sorts. Amanda and I worked on a crocheting project. The boys were reading and discussing magazine articles. Mr. B entertained us with his juggling skills. We worked a puzzle together.

Did we spend all our time tech-free? No, but a great portion of our time was spent without the hum, buzz, ring, and screen-time of electronics. No regrets.

We are making tech-free time a new part of our weekly routine now that we are home and back to our regular schedules. I have to admit that even for my husband and I it is difficult to turn it all off. Our teens give us a really hard time about being tied to our electronics. My new Kindle Fire is awesome and it is easy to spend too much time staring at a screen when I still have two interesting fun teens around to enjoy. There is a time and a place for electronics, but there is no replacement for good old family fun for making lasting memories and building up family ties.

Can you go tech-free with your teens for part of the week?

I challenge you.

You are welcome to download and save the printable sign above for your family's use. I post our sign on the refrigerator on our agreed upon day and then everyone remembers to look forward to Tech-Free Family Night.

Sketch Tuesday: Letter D (Last assigment of the year!)

Last week's assignment was to sketch something that makes you smile. Lots of smiling here as I look at the slideshow! Thanks everyone for your participation in Sketch Tuesday.

Here is your slideshow: Something that makes you smile.

I appreciate all the sketchers that have been a part of Sketch Tuesday during the year 2011. I look forward with eagerness to another year of creative fun during 2012.

Please note: I will be taking a break for the next two weeks so this week's assignment will be due on Monday, January 2, 2012.

Next assignment due Monday, January 2, 2012: 
Sketch something that starts with the Letter D.

All sketchers are welcome and there is no need to sign up. Send in your sketches in jpg format and mail them to: sketchtuesday@yahoo.com by Monday, January 2, 2012 and I will include them in Tuesday's slideshow. Complete instructions are found by clicking the Sketch Tuesday tab at the top of my blog.





Don't forget to check out
Hearts and Trees new art, handicraft, and nature study kit.

Homeschool Planning - Procrastination

Planning Using Homeschool Tracker...

I read something in a book this week that I have been mulling over in my head ever since. (Yes, a real book with pages and not read from a screen....felt really good.) The concept is simple but has become quite powerful in my thinking and has effected the way I have been spending my time since reading it.

• Make a list of all the important things in your life. (family, faith, relationships, activities)
• Make a list of how you actually spend your time and compare it to your first list.
• Make adjustments so that the second list will reflect the first list.

We can say that our family and faith are top priority and then fill our days with activities that show otherwise. We can put homeschooling high up on the first list but then by our actions show something very different. This sort of rocked my thinking...I have been procrastinating doing some homeschooling tasks because I have been busy with my own stuff.

Here is a quote that sums up how I have been procrastinating.

"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow."
Mark Twain

I seriously did not have a single plan input into Homeschool Tracker for the second term. Not one. I decided that instead of waiting one more week until I might "feel" like doing the schedule that I was going to just DO IT. It has taken me two very long afternoons to get it into the computer but it is done. In the meantime I found some holes in our plans that need to be filled and that meant some time on the computer digging around the internet for resources. As always, I got distracted when I started....fun and interesting but really not getting the job done. Never did find just the right literature study for The Merchant of Venice so I guess we will just read and listen to the audio.

Big Tim is actually quite a great tool...his jaw is hinged so you can make him talk too.

I ordered a few fresh resources for Mr. B's anatomy study and thanks to Amazon Prime shipping we are now the proud owners of Big Tim. Big Tim has been the center of many discussions since he was unveiled. Big Tim is going to be a great tool for Mr. B and all those bone names he wants to memorize.

Big Tim says CHEESE.

Funniest thing this week? When I took the first photo of Big Tim my camera put a box around his head and told me with an icon that he was smiling (I have a smile mode on my camera.). It just made me laugh out loud and even now thinking about it, I am laughing again. Too funny. Thanks Big Tim for smiling for the camera.

Now I can take the next two weeks off and not have school planning hanging over my head. I am the kind of homeschool mama who likes to have a vision and a plan.

"Plan your work and work your plan."

I have listed below the resources we just added to our anatomy study. You may need to click over to the blog to see the images from Amazon.com.



You might like to pop over to Angie's blog (Petra School) and read her entry:  
Do the Next Thing.
"Make a list.  Add fun. Add a board game each day. Prioritize, then Do the Next Thing.  Are you forecasting into the list of 40 items and feel defeated before you start? Write them down. Set them aside. Can you do the first item on the list. Good. Now do the next thing."

And Tricia (HodgePodge Mom) posted on planning today as well.
When Do You Plan For School? How Long Does It Take?
"Not only do I consider academics but life skills, character training. I also take a morning to set goals for myself and my marriage."

Van Gogh, Emotions, and Love

The Flowering Orchard, 1888. Vincent Van Gogh.

Perhaps it is because I spend lots of time viewing art with my boys and as part of my research for Harmony Fine Arts, but I often find myself thinking about certain artists during my daily activities. Sometimes, when the sun is just right, I look out my window and think of Vincent Van Gogh. I think of the colors he used in his paintings, the feelings they bring up as I gaze on the scenes he viewed in his lifetime. 

Maybe it is because although he is famous now, knowing he only sold one painting during his lifetime, I feel a sense of sadness when I think about him as a person with so much color and joy and obvious love for God's creation and no one there to appreciate it. Humans are complicated beings on the inside...art gives us a way to show emotions and for those of us who lack the ability to paint well, we can recognize our own emotions through viewing art. Art touches us somewhere inside and changes us a little and our view of the world that can sometimes be cruel to us. 

So this would explain why a purple orchard scene finds a spot in my heart. It reminds me of something or perhaps it just makes me hopeful. Whatever it is, it makes me happy just to look at it. Now when I see an orchard in just the right light, I can think of Vincent's purple orchard and give thanks to our loving Father who created us with the ability not only to be touched by art, to be refreshed by it, but to know that art is just another way to show our love....and to be loved back.

Orchard in Blossom With View of Arles, 1889. Vincent Van Gogh

"These is nothing more truly artistic than to love people."

Vincent Van Gogh

Love you too...

Our Vincent Van Gogh Study

Sketch Tuesday: Something That Makes You Smile

Last week's assignment might have required a little research. My family insisted on taking a field trip to acquire the subject of their Sketch Tuesday drawings. Hope your family had some fun with this one too!

Here is your slideshow: Something in a bakery.



This week's assignment, due Monday, December 19, 2011:
Sketch something that makes you smile.


All sketchers are welcome and there is no need to sign up. Send in your sketches in jpg format and mail them to: sketchtuesday@yahoo.com by Monday, December 19, 2011 and I will include them in Tuesday's slideshow. Complete instructions are found by clicking the Sketch Tuesday tab at the top of my blog.





Don't forget to check out
Hearts and Trees new art, handicraft, and nature study kit.

Weekly Wrap-Up: Relationships

Summer Travel - Rainbows and Waterfalls in Idaho

"Children should have relationships with earth and water. They should run, jump, ride, swim, and establish the relationship that a maker has with material resources, and they should do this with as many kinds of material resources as possible. They should have treasured intimate relationships with people, through face to face talking, through reading stories or poems, seeing pictures or sculpture, through finding flinthead arrows and being around cars. They should be familiar with animals, birds, plants and trees. Foreign people and their languages shouldn't be something unknown to them. And, most important of all, they should discover that the most intimate and highest of all relationships--the relationship to God--fulfills their entire being."
Volume 3 page 209

As December is winding down, it is a time for reflection on the past twelve months. I turn the pages in my calendar and remember the family time, the learning time, and the traveling with sweet sweet memories. It is easy to set aside the negative things but not before meditating on how we could handle things to make them better the next time. Even trials, the kind we have no power over, make us stronger if we allow them to shape our hearts, drawing us closer to God. I am trying to learn lessons from both the good and the bad and to embrace the power that comes from giving thanks for it all. Difficult things are a part of life and one of the best things we can teach our children is how to handle those situations with grace.

The Making of a Video - Yosemite National Park

I think this year has been the closest I have come to meeting the goals that Charlotte Mason talked about in the quote above. I have made plans and those plans have gone differently than I expected. I made goals for my boys and they have come to me asking for different goals which means regrouping. I had my heart set on certain books and curricula but they didn't mesh with the learning styles of my boys. What made me feel successful? My boys have developed relationships with their learning, building on their strengths and personal goals. I feel successful because I was willing to let go of my expectations and now I can see how their way was much better.

The little voice of insecurity whispered in my ear many times in the last year....Will they learn what they need to? Am I allowing too much freedom? Do they need to learn to stick to something when it isn't right because that is the "real" world? Should they do what everyone else is doing? Can they learn things on their own and do I trust them?

Do I trust them? That is a big question.

If you have done the groundwork and showed them how to learn, they will learn everything they need to learn in a way that makes sense to them. This may be from a book, Wikipedia, the library, a friend or mentor, or from you. They will come to you when they need you. They ask questions that you do not know the answer to but you can help guide them to finding the answer.

Northern California Coast - Summer Wildflowers

If you have given them a love for learning you will not be able to stop them from learning. It will be like eating and breathing, like an irresistible magnetic force, like the force of gravity. They will have a thirst for the answer to the question.

If you feed them with interesting thoughts and ideas, there is no way they cannot be engaged. An idea comes up and they drop everything to chase that idea until they are satisfied. This can be inside or outside of school hours...it begins to blur and their is no straight line. This sort of learning is messy and hard to record in a logbook. This kind of learning does not happen inside the walls of a public school because it would be chaos. At home we can allow room for chasing ideas, actually encouraging it as a way of life. It is very human to question, think, try, struggle, rethink, and conclude. We were created to be that way.

Observing and sketching shells for literature? Works for me.

So what did we think about and struggle with this week?

• Man's Inhumanity to Man - Grapes of Wrath essay....almost finished.
• House of Seven Gables - reading and starting a follow-up essay.
• Human Anatomy - learning the skeletal system and wondering how he will ever remember all the names of all the bones. I told him learn one at a time and he laughed.
• Lord of the Flies - symbolism of the conch. Mr. B drew in a nature study with this one and it made my heart happy.
• Flu Epidemic of 1918 - both from historical and scientific perspectives. Fascinating!
• Cubism research and Stravinsky listening.
• Learning how to change the oil in the car.

Capture it quick! All four children cooking me dinner on a family trip to the mountains.

Go ahead...comment on how grown up they all are. I see it in the image and I still can't believe it. What did they fix? Pasta with meat sauce and freshly grated mizithra, huge green salad, garlic bread, and for the adults Mr. D brought a bottle of fabulous red wine. Sweet times, wishing we could have more of them but soon we will be sharing with others as they form their own relationships and families. What a thought that is! So full of possibilities.

2011 has been a year of changes and growth for all of us. 2012 promises to bring even more change....learning to be flexible and see the relationships build.

If you enjoyed this post, you may like to read this series of posts:
Homeschooling Without Feeling Overwhelmed

• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three
• No Comparisons
• Keeping it Real: Simplicity
• What Keeps Me Motivated?

Sweet Indulgences for the Harmony Art Mom

There are few things that I splurge on for myself. I am for the most part a very simple person to make happy. Picnics instead of dress-up fancy, DVDs on the sofa at home instead of at theaters, long walks that count as date night, spending time playing cards and board games with the boys on Saturday nights...but I love live music.

I love to go to the symphony, jazz at the park, country swing at the local fair, and I dream of seeing Andrea Bocelli in person. My friend sent me the link to the new PBS special Andrea Bocelli-One Night in Central Park which aired a few days ago. We don't have broadcast television so I wasn't able to watch. I looked it up on YouTube and here is the trailer...five minutes with glimpses into who all came to make music with Andrea.


Video for Email Subscribers: One Night in Central Park
I let out a little gasp when Chris Botti came on (1:40)...my absolute favorite.

Okay, so now I know where my Swagbucks are going...a few of my Bocelli favorites for the new Kindle Fire (partially purchased with Swagbucks giftcards). So even if I can't see him in person, I'm happy with Bocelli on my Kindle Fire....since I am the simple girl.
 

If you don't use Swagbucks, I highly recommend it as an easy way to earn giftcards for Amazon.com.




Love my Kindle Fire....posting an entry soon.

Yes, those are affiliate links in my post....just so you know. :)

Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival: Music and Composer Study

Charlotte Mason: Music and Composer Study

Music to my ears....that is what happens when I see my teen listening to his current composer each week all on his own. I know that many of you are just starting out with composer study or maybe you don't make it a regular part of your homeschooling week yet, but I want to encourage you in your efforts.

My best advice: Every child's taste is different so don't give up if at first they don't like your selected composer. Move on and try again with a different composer. (You can read our family's experience: But I Don't Like Mahler..What to Do Now?)

If you need some inspiration, this is the carnival for you. There are many families just like yours that live in the modern world but still enjoy classical music and composer study as a way to enrich their child's growing up experience. Research has proven that listening to classical music is beneficial to our children, perhaps even helping them learn other subjects more efficiently and easily. If you would like to see my top ten list for beginning classical music composer study, click over to my Build A Classical Music Library For Children page on Squidoo. You may also like to read this entry,  Appreciating Great Music: For Children and Moms Too, which includes a free music listening log sheet to download.


Sarah from All That's Goood has put together a wonderfully inspiring post: Composer Study Mozart. This is going to give you some great ideas for your own study. The video above is from their family...love the masks!

Nadene from Practical Pages has written Our Study of Schubert. I loved this entry and the connections it makes between one of my favorite composers and a favorite movie. You can also find her Famous Musician Pages a big help in composer study follow-up.

Nancy from Sage Parnassus shares Longing and Waiting with carnival readers. A visit to her entry will give you some ideas and thoughts about the coming musical season.

Angie from Petra School is a new contributor to the CM Blog Carnival. She shares their Pablo Picasso and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov entry with carnival readers. Here is their follow-up entry Tale of Tsar Saltan. I love glimpsing into their composer study!

Phyllis from All Things Beautiful contributes their family's study of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Love the video she includes for readers. Interesting!

Adventures in Mama-Land has submitted her entry What Do These Men Have In Common?  Click over to read the answer.

Jimmie from The Notebooking Fairy has generously made a set of Composer Notebooking Pages for you to use along with your composer study. She also includes some links to her wonderful composer pages. Thanks Jimmie.

Amy from Fisher Academy International is going to make it a Handel for Christmas year in their home, listening to Handel's Messiah each day as they move through the season. 


Other Charlotte Mason Topics For This Edition


Annie Kate from Tea Time with Annie Kate has written and submitted a review of a "living" DVD: Katherine's Farm. She writes, "It’s about a real girl who’s helping on the farm.  This is one of the best children’s films I’ve ever seen, and many adults will enjoy it as well." I think that sums it up well. You can view some sample clips HERE.

 Pamela from Blah, Blah, Blog reminds us in her entry to check local resources for ways to supplement our home libraries: Hands On Chaos. Great reminder.

Kelly from The Homeschool Co-Op has submitted an entry showing a glimpse into a nature exchange: A Box of Goodies: Loving and Learning From Our Nature Exchange. Take a look at how a simple idea enriched so many areas of learning. Here is the account of their receiving their exchange with all its nature-goodness: Nature Connections: Inside and Out. Love the puzzle idea!

Michelle from The Holistic Homeschooler has written 5 Tips for Successful Nature Study, a topic near and dear to this mama's heart. Michelle has also submitted her entry Narration, Dictation and Copywork, Oh My! for carnival readers. She suggests some steps to implementing this important aspect of a Charlotte Mason style education.

Amanda from Home Grown and Beeyoutiful shares their entry: Autumn Walks in the Woods. I encourage you to pop over and indulge in a beautiful autumn blaze of glory.

Clara from A Slice of Homeschool Pie shows us My Son's Art Studies Photo Album. Very practical post showing how she implemented this idea.

Tricia from Hodgepodge shares their family's simple and fun pastel tutorial Christmas Tree in Snow. Special tip: Use blue chalk pastel to make snow!

Tiger's Mum from The Tiger Chronicle put together a post sharing their Nature Study in November.  She writes, "After attempting different ideas since September, I am now inclined to have a monthly theme as a basis of our nature study. " Great idea!

Lisa from Olive Plants Around My Table has submitted their entry, Interview With My Children.  What do your children think of a Charlotte Mason education?

Lanaya from Gore Family News would like to share her entry, Homeschooling is Discipleship for carnival readers. This is a thoughtful entry that will ring true with many of us.

Dana from Epi Kardia has gathered a post about Charlotte Mason and the Bible.  She asks us to consider some important aspects of a Charlotte Mason education....are we applying the methodology without the philosophy?



So if you have made it this far down the carnival, you are in for a treat! Debra from NotebookingPages.Com has generously offered to share a set of her Famous Composer Pages with THREE of our carnival readers.  You can enter for the giveaway below on the Rafflecopter form. See below for ways to enter. The giveaway will end on 12/12/11 and I will email the winners instructions for receiving your set of notebook pages.

You will need to click over to the blog to see the entry form!

The next Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival will be held on December 20, 2011 at Dewey's Treehouse! The theme is Book of Centuries/Timelines (a form of vitality)
* CM vol.6 p169-180 & vol.4 p.36-38
* Parent's Review articles: The Book of Centuries & The Teaching of Chronology
You can submit your entries HERE.

Sketch Tuesday: Yummy in the Bakery

Last week's assignment was to sketch something in a science lab. This was a great topic and it generated some very well done sketches. Love the creativity and how many of you depicted a lab scene with your items. Excellent!


Here is your slideshow: Something in a science lab. 





This week's assignment due Monday, December 12, 2011:
Sketch something found in a bakery.

All sketchers are welcome and there is no need to sign up. Send in your sketches in jpg format and mail them to: sketchtuesday@yahoo.com by Monday, December 12, 2011 and I will include them in Tuesday's slideshow. Complete instructions are found by clicking the Sketch Tuesday tab at the top of my blog.

My latest blog post over on AboutOne is titled, "From Chores to Life Skills-Parenting Teens."
I try to give some sound ideas and reasons for training teens for adult life through everyday chores. I invite you to click over and read my entry.

Arts and Crafts for Winter Break - And A Big Thank You

Fun Art Projects from my Archives

This is the time of year when our children stay indoors more and there seems to be more time to gather for art projects. I have collected a few of my most popular crafty posts here for your convenience and to spark some creative ideas for those long winter afternoons when there is "nothing to do".


Sculpey Projects...a Harmony Art Mom favorite


Murals from Art Projects for Kids - we have done several of these as a family and they are loads of fun and reasonably priced. This is also a great last minute art project since you can purchase, print, and be enjoying some art therapy in a matter of minutes.


Tiffany Glass Project - really fun glue and paint projects

Frank Lloyd Wright Bubble Window Project - an all-time favorite project of Mr. A. Another window decoration project that looks classy and inviting. I think we may do another one of these soon.


Of course this post would not be complete without a link to my daughter's latest Hearts and Trees Handicraft Kit that she just released last week.
Hearts and Trees Fall/Winter 2011 Kit
Click over to read what is included and how you could use many of the components as single art projects. The crafts, art appreciation, and nature study items are not season related so you could pick up a kit to have on hand to use at any time.


Thank You to My Top Referral Blogs
I also want to take the time to thank the top referral blogs for the month of November....these ladies regularly link to Harmony Art Mom. Pop over and read their latest entries if you don't already subscribe to their blogs.
Weird, Unsocialized Homeshoolers - Thanks Kris...love the Weekly-Wrap Up posts.

Practical Pages - Thanks to Nadene. (Who I know is really busy there on her South African farm!)