Encouraging Moms Who Homeschool

This afternoon I heard this quote from Edward R. Murrow (of journalism fame): "A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves." While my favorite quotes are, of course, from God's Word, I found myself thinking about this statement and pondering it's truth. If we all just follow-follow-follow will we end up in an oppressed state? And being a 13-year homeschool veteran, I of course began to consider Murrow's words in relation to homeschooling. Do I choose my curriculum based on what everyone else says they like best? Or am I continuing to seek out each child's natural bent and teach to it? Are my days numbered by the local school district or are they ordered by the Lord? Am I operating on "auto pilot" or am I walking in God's grace day by day? Am I raising sheep that know the voice of their Shepherd Jesus? Or am I raising sheep who are unable to think for themselves? That concludes the Quoting Quotable Quotes portion of this weblog post...read

This product review cannot possibly be lengthy enough to cover all that is provided in the Bright Idea Press product Illuminations (Year One ~ high school) . It is an all-inclusive curriculum based on the Mystery of History and All American History series. Mystery of History serves as the spine for Illuminations (Year One ~ high school) and includes bible, language arts (grammar, writing, vocabulary), literature, science, humanities (poetry, theater, music, art), geography, history, and life skills. Yes, I meant it when I said it is an all-inclusive curriculum! Add some math and you should be ready to go :) Some curriculum items you will probably need to go with Illuminations (Year One ~ high school) include Winston Grammar (which I absolutely love!), Mystery of History Volume 1, English from the Roots Up, WriteShop 1, the Ultimate Geography & Timeline Guide, Ruth Beechick's "Genesis: Finding Our Roots", A Young Scholar's Guide to the Humanities, Joshua Harris&#

Last spring, I took a drive across town to talk with my doctor(a wonderful DO named Claudia Wendell) about my health. I had begun to feel "icky" on an almost daily basis; chronic headaches, afternoon tiredness, shakiness and cold sweats ~ I could go on and on. I did not feel that these were related to my hypothyroidism, and having an older sister with Type 1 diabetes, I was confident my blood glucose levels were spiking and dropping. After a couple of four hour blood tests it was confirmed that I was on my way to Type 2 diabetes. But all was not lost ~ I knew the Lord was giving me a blessed opportunity and I decided to stick to Him like glue day by day as I worked to "reverse" my pre-diabetic state. And guess what? In late July Dr. Wendell informed me that I am not a pre-diabetic and if I continue to make wise choices regarding my health and specifically what I eat, I will never become a diabetic. No surprise at all, God delivered when I fully gave my health and my

Okay, TOS Magazine is having a special sale on subscriptions. All the info you need to check into the offer can be found below. Happy homeschool shopping everyone! Day 54 done :) Jan L. Burt www.homeschoolingmothersbiblestudy.com On Monday, November 15, the price for a one-year U.S. or Canadian print subscription to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine is $10. On Tuesday, November 16, the price goes to $12. On Wednesday, November 17, the price is $14. Each day they will add $2 until Saturday and Sunday, when the price is $20. At midnight PST on Sunday, November 21, the price goes back to its regular level. Plus, every 12th customer to purchase a subscription gets a tote bag. Every 14th customer to purchase a subscription gets a copy of the E-Book: The 2010-2011 Schoolhouse Planner. Every 16th customer to purchase a subscription gets a $25 gift card to the Totally TOS category in the Schoolhouse Store. This excludes Molly Green and Download N Go. As an added bonus, the highest ticket of the day

When Proverbs instructs parents to train up their children in the way they should go, we of course know it is speaking primarily in spiritual terms. Without the "One Thing" in life, none of the "Other Things" in life really matter. That "One Thing" being knowing Jesus and making Him known. In regards to training my daughter's to be keepers at home, I use this verse to spur me on as I flesh out that training. Sometimes it's much easier to just do the work myself; other times I'm simply so busy with academics and life in general that I fail to plan out how I will implement the training of my daughters. And as all homeschool moms know first hand, what we fail to plan almost always fails to happen. So I'm currently working on being a more active planner!! Today, for instance, isn't just about Saturday chores. It's about the bigger picture ~ one day each of my 4 daughter's will be running a household of their own, Lord willing (see J

Below is the link to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine's digital Holiday 2010 edition. Full of fun Christmas "stuff" - download it for free here: TOS Holiday 2010 Digital Edition Enjoy this freebie to kick off the holiday season! Day 52 done :) Jan L. Burt www.homeschoolingmothersbiblestudy.com

The Write Foudation has a dedicated focus on improving the writing of young people. This Christian company works toward that goal with a series of products that are thorough and exhaustive. Luke 6:48 is beautifully displayed at www.thewritefoundation.org and I will tell you that I do have a bias toward Christian homeschool companies! The Write Foundation offers three levels of writing curriculum. Level 1 is "Sentence to Paragraph Writing" geared at ages 11 to 13. Level 2 is "Paragraph Writing" for ages 12 to 15. And Level 3, the product I am reviewing, is "Essay Writing" for ages 14 to 17. You can see all of these products and their prices at the website ~ www.thewritefoundation.org . The website gives a thorough understanding of which level to use with your child or children. The ages for each level are suggestions, and information regarding proper placement can be found at the website by clicking the "Suggested Ages" tab. I have been using Le

So, my last look into Michal's heart was looking at her life in the rear view mirror, so to speak. Seeing what she had chosen to make of her life as it actually was, not as she wanted it to be, I recognized bits of myself in her sad story. You can find that post here . I've jumped back to Michal's earlier days, found in 1 Samuel chapter 14 and chapter 18. In 1 Samuel 14:49 I read this description of King Saul's children ~ the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malki-Shua; his two daughters were Merab, the firstborn, and the younger, Michal. Just that brief description gives me a lot of background information about Michal. She had older brothers, one of whom was Jonathan. And she had an older sister, Merab. Just spend a couple of moments thinking about that in light of what we know about birth order and the way it impacts our relationships with our own siblings and they way we see it play out in our children's relationships. She was probably seen as "chronic