Teaching From Rest by Sarah Mackenzie

 Welcome to week 21 of Blogging Through the Alphabet 2021. I can't believe there are only six weeks left in this round.  Today my co-host Desiree is sharing T is for Tensegrity over at Our Homeschool Notebook.

As a veteran homeschooling mom I was feeling very burnt out a couple of years ago. A homeschool friend blessed me with a copy of the first edition of Teaching from Rest A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace by Sarah Mackenzie. I came away feeling refreshed and renewed.  I added it to my Audible play list in which Sarah reads the book to her audience. Each time I spend listening to a portion I feel a sense of ease in my homeschooling journey.  Sarah has encouraged me in a deep abiding way. Her conversational tone is a balm to all home educating Mom's the world over. I have learnt so much from Sarah about living and teaching from a state of rest and what it truly means to do so. This book is empowering.

Teaching From Rest

A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace

Second Edition

• Author: Sarah Mackenzie
• Pages: 112
• Language: English
• ISBN 1600512879
• Available in paperback and Kindle

Contents:

Introduction: I Shouldn't Have Written This Book 

Before You Read This Book 

Part One: Whose "Well Done" Are You Working For?

• The Cake Under The Couch 
• Why Your Daily Grind Is Holy Ground
• Bring Your Basket

Part Two: Curriculum Is Not Something You Buy

• How to Simplify the Curriculum
• How to Simplify the Schedule
• The Right Thing at the Right Time 

Part Three: Be Who You Are!

• The Truth about You
• The Truth about Them
• Walking on Water

Afterword

Resources

Teaching from Rest Companion Journal and Audio Collection

Recommended Resources

Bibliography

About the Author

What book has greatly impacted you on your homeschooling journey?

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
16. P is for Podcasts  
17. Quintessentially Homeschool
    
18. Read-A-Loud in Your Homeschool
19. Science in Your Homeschool
20. Teaching From Rest by Sarah Mackenzie 

Featured from last week the letter P...

• S is for Sea and S is for States (board games) over at Our Homeschool Notebook 
  
• Quilter ~ (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter S Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway 
• Discovering the "S" rabbits of the world of the World over At Home Pets.
• Shelving Baby Rabbits and S is for Skating over at A Net in Time.

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is T is for Tensegrity 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter T for this weeks ABC Blogging

Science in Your Homeschool

 Science in your homeschool can be filled with loads of fun adventures in your kitchen and beyond.  When I was a member of the Homeschool Review Crew we  reviewed some amazing science curriculums however the one thing I found is that you don't need an official curriculum to enjoy learning about the science of the world around you.  Science is a subject that is huge in scope from every day science in your kitchen to working in a laboratory. Do not forget to tap into field trips such as going to the museum, look for community expo's or watching programs like Kill it, Cut it, Use it.

Define: Science

• The word science comes from the Latin "scientia," meaning knowledge especially knowledge based on reproducible data.
• Science is the systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation. 

From this definition we can see that science is not solely about science labs and microscopes, formulas and chemicals it's all about the world around us. The sciences need not fill you with fear the high school years can be a wonderful time of learning alongside your students and discovering amazing things together.

Experiment 8 - Colorful Flowers

More on Science on this blog:

• Visual Periodic Table
• Science Curriculum Options
• FREE Science Resources
• Science in High School take a look at THIS POST

Curriculum we have reviewed:

• Australian Nature Study 
• Exploring the Building Blocks of Science.
• Web Design - Compu Scholar
• The 101 Series - These DVD's are fabulous!  LOVE them.
• Science Unit Studies For Homeschoolers
• Visual Learning Systems 
• Science4US

Kitchen Experiments

• Crystal Snow Flake tutorial - grow your own crystals in your kitchen. 
• Raise Silkworms at home.
• Organic Mini Mushrooms in your home.
• Eat Your Science Homework  
• Science at Home 
• Compost in a Bottle Science Experiment.
• Bake something.
• Make an erupting volcano.
• Grow an Alfalfa Sprout Head
• Make homemade Flubber

Books 

• Eat Your Science Homework
• Science Unit Studies For Homeschoolers
• Solar Systems A Visual Exploration
• The Elements A Visual Exploration
• The Burgess Bird Book for Children
• Pasteur's Fight Against Microbes
• How We Make Stuff
• Space
• The Solar System
• First Encyclopedia of the Human Body
• See How It's Made
• What Makes You Ill?
• Science Activities, Vol. 1
• The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks
• Why Do People Eat?
• The Usborne World Of Animals
• Night Animals
• Magic Schoolbus books are a wonderful addition to your science book library. Join Miss Frizzle for many fun filled scientific journeys.
• We have also enjoyed The Berenstain Bears' Big Book of Science and Nature Topics covered are: Almanac (seasons, weather, and astronomy), Nature Guide (plants, animals, and earth science) and Science Fair (machines, matter, and energy).

On the WWW

• Science in the Kitchen on Pinterest
• Cooking with Kids on Pinterest
• Make a Gingerbread House for the holidays. {Part 1, Part 2, Part 3}
• 7 tips for cooking with kids over at Crayon Freckles
• 16 Kitchen Safety Tips for Children over at Just Mommies
• Kitchen Science Experiments over at About.com
• Kitchen Science over at The Naked Scientists
• Home Science Tools The Gateway to Discovery 
• Teaching Kids Science in the Kitchen: Tips to get talking about Science

On YouTube

• Smarter Every Day Channel. The very first clip we saw was Mystery of Prince Rupert's Drop at 130,000 fps. Destin covers really interesting topics covered and explained in layman's terms and if he uses scientific jargon he is careful to explain it.
• For fun we visit the Slo Mo Guys. On this channel, Gavin Free and Dan Gruchy take a $150,000 high speed camera to show you the world hundreds of times slower than you can see with your own eyes. . One of our favourite videos is Giant 6ft Water Balloon
• The Super Slow Show by the Slo Mo Guys brings on science educators to explain what is happening in the experiments 

Our Microscope

You do not NEED a microscope to enjoy science at home but if you are able to save up and purchase one it opens up a whole new world for you and your children to enjoy. A few years back I spent a long time researching microscope options and settled on the Sonlight's Variable Voltage Microscope. You can read all about it's technical specifications and watch a YouTube walk through.

If you are living in Australia you can not order in science specimens they will not be allowed past customs. If you are wanting to purchase dissection specimens you can order them from Southern Biological in Melbourne. They also stock a full range of items for science use at home and they also ship to New Zealand.

In the USA I highly recommend Sonlight's science resourcesand the resource kits from Rainbow Resources.

What are you using that I could I add to this list ?

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
16. P is for Podcasts  
17. Quintessentially Homeschool
    
18. Read-A-Loud in Your Homeschool
19. Science in Your Homeschool

Featured from last week the letter P...

• R is for Race Car and R is for Rummikub over at Our Homeschool Notebook 
  
• Quilter ~ (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter R Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway 
• Discovering the R Rabbits of the World over At Home Pets.

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is S is for Sea creatures 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter S for this weeks ABC Blogging

Read-A-Loud in your Homeschool

 Reading out loud is one of the biggest gifts I received as a homeschooler.  I have the most precious memories of cuddling on the couch with my young children working our way together through our latest story. I was thrilled to find a move called Read Aloud Revival by Sarah M.  She also host an amazing Read-Aloud podcast to encourage you.

"Every child ought to know the pleasure of words so well chosen that they awaken sensibility, great emotions, and understanding of truth "- Gladys Hunt

Over the years here on the blog I have shared numerous of our favourite read out loud books under

•  the Tuesday's Treasures tag I always feel nostalgic when I browse through these selections.
• 5 Days of Australian Literature
• 5 Days of Picture Books
• 3 Books on Aspergers Syndrome
• Our Top six Favourite Chapter Read A Loud
• Our 10 Favourite Caldecott Medal Books
  
• 13 Books to Read at Christmas

What's my all time Favourite Read A Loud ?

Oh my I have a few that have really impacted me.  I think top of the list would be Carry On Mr Bowditch. I so enjoyed this read aloud from Sonlight that I took out our encyclopedia to research him and all it had was a few lines with a reference to this book as the definitive work on the man.

Help where do I start finding great books to read out loud to my family?

• Sonlight Catalogue 
• Honey for a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt
• A comprehensive list of Books We have Enjoyed
• Book List Resources I have used.
• Read-Aloud Revival Booklists

A side note on Learning to read: 

While reading out loud to our children is important as it imparts so many linguistic skills to our children.  One of the most often asked questions is how to teach children to read or why is my child still not able to read?! There are multiple factors that influence your children's ability to learn to read. I wrote a mini five part series on this a few years ago.

The series is not about the different methods used to teach reading but rather about some of the factors that influence a students ability to learn to read.  

• Factors influencing Learning to Read - part 1
• Factors influencing Learning to Read - part 2 
• Factors influencing Learning to Read - part 3
• Factors influencing Learning to Read - part 4
• Factors influencing Learning to Read - part 5

What are some of YOUR favourite Read-A-Louds ? 

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
16. P is for Podcasts  
17. Quintessentially Homeschool
    
18. Read-A-Loud in Your Homeschool

Featured from last week the letter Q...

• Q is for quit and Q is for Qwirkle over at Our Homeschool Notebook 
  
• Quilter ~ (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter Q Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway 

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is R is for Race Cars 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter R for this weeks ABC Blogging

Quintessentially Homeschool

Welcome to week 18 of  Blogging Through the Alphabet 2021.  This week Desiree is sharing Q is for quit. I'm so sorry my post is up late today! I saw the following on a friends wall on Facebook and thought I could not have said it any better.  Today's word for the letter Q is Quinessentially!  The first time I heard this word was in a writting class taught by Andrew Pudewa and I've loved it ever since. 

Define Quintessential: representing the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class 

The truth is that: 

Homeschool is calm. It’s quiet. Homeschool is loud. It’s messy.
Homeschool is a kid showered and dressed for the day.
Homeschool is a kid still in pajamas at lunch.
Homeschool is coordinating folders and notebooks.
Homeschool is broken pencils and worn binders.
Homeschool is a thoughtful production.
Homeschool is a train wreck.
Homeschool is a clean workspace.
Homeschool is a cluttered table.
Homeschool is co-op groups and field trips.
Homeschool is seclusion and not leaving the house for days.
Homeschool is music and laughter.
Homeschool is a failed test and anger.
Homeschool is met with approval.
Homeschool is misunderstood.
Homeschool is grading papers.
Homeschool is hiding in the bathroom.
Homeschool is wrapped up by noon.
Homeschool is still going strong after dinner.
Homeschool is Mary Poppins.
Homeschool is Cruella de Vil.
Homeschool is a carefully planned meal and gathering around the table.
Homeschool is a Hot Pocket at their desk.
Homeschool is costly materials.
Homeschool is alphabet magnets and free printables.
Homeschool is more time with your kids.
Homeschool is more time with your kids.

---oOo--- 

 

What are some of YOUR favourite parts of Homeschooling ?

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
16. P is for Podcasts  
17. Quintessentially Homeschool
    

Featured from last week the letter P...

• P is for Park and P is for Pictionary over at Our Homeschool Notebook
  
• Palestrina and Prokofiev ~  (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter P Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway
• Discovering the "P" rabbits of the world over at At Home Pets 
• Studies in Philippians and Educating Pet Rabbit Buyers over at A Net in Time.
  

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is Q is for quit. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter Q for this weeks ABC Blogging

 

 

P is for Podcasts

 Welcome to week 17 of  Blogging Through the Alphabet 2021.  This week Desiree is sharing P is for Park and I wanted to talk about a couple of Podcasts I've enjoyed listening to over the years.  These podcasts have stretched me and changed my perspective and broadened my horizons in more ways than I could have imagined.  I found them both when looking for more information on a Charlotte Mason Education.

 This was my first ever homeschool podcast I listened to.  I really loved each episode.  A Delectable Education is presented by 

1. Emily Kiser - Operates the Living Books Library (founded in 2006), it is her great delight to help families implement the Charlotte Mason model of education. 
   
2. Liz Cottrill - (Emiliy's Mom) has been homeschooling her six children using Charlotte Mason and living books.
   
3. Nicole Williams - has been homeschooling her own children and others (some of them who have special needs) she blogs over at Sabbath Mood Homeschool.
   

 There are 200+ episodes of homeschool encouragement and know how with these three ladies who between them have over a centurary of homeschool wisdom and experience to impart.

I would really like to encourage you to start at episode one and work your way through the episodes. You can find a list of their episodes here, where they are grouped together by:

• Charlotte Mason 101: exploring the WHY behind the Method.
• An Abundant Feast: the WHAT and HOW of the Charlotte Mason Method
• Immersion Lessons: Listen in on sample Charlotte Mason Lessons
• Charlotte Mson in Our Homes: What the METHOD looks like in application
• Liberal Education FOR ALL: The Charlotte Mason Method beyond the American Homeschool
• The Grand conversation: We answer questions from our listeners

 Listen on: the website, podcasts on Apple, 

 Your Morning Basket Podcast is almost up to it's 100th episode and hosted by Pam Barnhill. To find out more about a Morning Basket and what it is go here. Pam has a passion to equip, encourage and breah life into your homeschool.   Listen on Apple Podcasts here.

What are some of YOUR best Homeschooling Podcasts?

Chareen

---oOo---

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
16. P is for Podcasts 
    

Featured from last week the letter O...

• O is for Out over at Our Homeschool Notebook
  
• Offenbach (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter O Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is P is for Park. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter P for this weeks ABC Blogging

 

 

Olympics 2021

Welcome to week 16 of  Blogging Through the Alphabet 2021. This week our letter of the alphabet is the letter O and I thought I'd share a couple of resources to get you looking at the Olympics as it commences tomorrow!  It's certainly going to be a different one this year and a year late to boot.  My co-host Desiree at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is O is for Olympics.

This year the summer Olympic Games are being hosted in Tokyo from the 23 July 2021 to the 8 August 2021.  The Paralympic Games are being hoted from the 24 August to the 5th of September.  I'm quite excited about these games as Australia has a homeschool student - Oceana Mackenzie who is competing in the new sport climbing division. We also have extended family - Kate French from the United Kingdom modern pentathlon team competing as well. Wow and as I was writing this it was announced that in 4021 days Brisbane Queensland will be hosting the 2032 Olympic Games.

The Olympic Creed

"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well." Olympic Creed 

The Olympic Charter

"The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." –Olympic Charter

Future Olympics

• Winter Olympics - Beijing 2022 (History of the Winter Olympic Games.{History and Interesting Facts} Did you know that the oldest Olympic medalist was 72 when he won two gold medals ?)
• Summer Olympics - Paris 2024
• Winter Olympics - Milano Cortina 2026
  
• Summer Olympics - LA 2028
• Winter Olympics - Japan 2030
• Summer Olympics - Brisbane Australia 2032
  

 Resources

• FREE Homeschool Unit Study - The Summer Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 from Sonlight. Nine days of lesson plans and activities about Japan.
• Olympic Games Tokyo on Teachers Pay Teachers
• Lesson Planet - Tokyo, Japan
  
• Over 200 resources on my Olympics Pinterest Board
• Learn More from the Summer Olympics with Unit Study Resources over at As We Walk Along The Road.
• Olympic and Country Flag Coloring Pages over at Nest of Posies Blog. 
• Olympic Mascot History Did you know that Olympic Mascots were approved for the first time in 1972 ? Did you know that mascots are traditionally revealed three years before the official Olympic event ?  Be sure to read about other trivia and pictures from mascot history.
• List of Children's Books about the Olympics over at I Can Teach My Child.
• If you're looking for some resources on Winter Olympics I shared a list over here: Winter Olympics 

What are some of YOUR best Olympic study/investigation resources?

Chareen

---oOo---

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool
15. Olympics 2021
    

Featured from last week the letter N...

• N is for Ninjago over at Our Homeschool Notebook
  
•  No Longer Wanted from A Net in Time
• N is for Names from A Mom's Quest to Teach
• Discovering the N Bunnies of the World from At Home Pets
• N is for saying NO from A Net in Time
• Nelson  (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter N Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is O is for Olympics. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter O for this weeks ABC Blogging

Netflix in your Homeschool

 Welcome back to Blogging Through the Alphabet 2021.  This week we are looking at the letter N.  My co-host Desiree over at Our Homeschool Notebook is talking about N is for Ninjago.

Netflix is not the first thing you think about when considering resources for homeschooling.  However I can assure you that we have enjoyed many great docudrama's, true story movies and educational series on their service here in Australia. 

Educational Content on Netflix

Here are a few ideas to get you started. When doing a search use words like: documentary, history, science, math etc

 Please note that I have not watched all of these.  If they are on here it is not a personal endorsement of the show.  Please do your own research BEFORE you watch a show to see if it is suitable for the ages and maturity of your children. 

These are some of the titles I found that looked interesting from an educational point. IF a show has two ** asterisk before the title it indicates I have watched it and enjoyed it.

• **Abstract - The Art of Design 
• **The Social Delemma - a look at the dangers behind social networking and its impact on society.
  
• Spycraft - The tools and technology throughout history for spying.
• Paul Apostle of Christ - docudrama
• **Meat Eater - Steve  
• In the Heart of the Sea - The true tale that inspired the book Moby Dick follows a New England whaling crew as it wages a desperate battle to survive when a giant whale capsizes their ship. 
• Troy - Greek Mythology
  

Nature

• Our Planet - Take a look at different biomes such as: frozen worlds, jungles, coastal seas, from desserts to grasslands, fresh water etc.
  
• Explained - This series investigates topics like cryptocurrencey, diamonds, animal intelligence, pirates, coding, why diets fail etc
• Marked the Documentary - A look at the cultural practice of marking in Nigeria's culture. 
• David Attenborough - a Life on our Planet
• Night on Earth - a nature series lifting the veil on the lives of animals at hight.
• **My Octopus Teacher - Follow the life of an Octopus.  
  

History

• Roman Empire - A mix of documentary and lavish historical epic chronicals the reigns of Commodus, Julius Caesar and Caligula.
  
• Genius of the Modern World  - Explore the intellectual landscape that helped shape the lives and work of Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche and Sigmund Freud.
  
• World War II in Colour - Footage of the most dramatic moments from World War II restored in colour and high definition for the docuseries.
• Race for the White House - a miniseries featuring archival footage and interviews of presidential campaignes.
• America's Book of Secrets - A look behind the stories of familiar institutions like the Pentagon, West Point etc.
• Age of Tanks - A look at military history.
• Being Napoleon - A reenactment of the epic clash at the Battle of Waterloo.
• The Russian Revolution - Starting in 1881 follow the personal battle between the royal Romanovs and the Lenin Family. 
• Hitler's Circle of Evil - a look at Hitler's inner circle of Nazi leaders and how the seize control of Germany.
• Apollo 11 - Behind the scenes of the 1969 moon landing.  Original footage.
• Flags of our Fathers
• Empire of the Tsars
• Gallipoli - Follow four Australian men facing the reality of war in 1915 Turkey.
• Gods and Generals - A retelling of the Civil War through the commanding generals on both sides from 1861 to 1863 
• **12 Strong - a dozen US soldiers mount on horseback in Aftghanistan to help a local warlord take on a mutual enemy. 
• Apollo 13 - The true story of Jim Lovell and his crew 
  

People

• #AnneFrank - Parallel Stories Anne Frank's story is retold alongside those of five Holocaust survivors in the documentary with Helen Mirren. 
• The Secret - 
• **The Surgeon's Cut - an incredible journey through the lives of four brillian pioneers in their fields and how they got there. 
• **Being Elmo - The journey of Kevin Clash to becomming Elmo!
• **The Theory of Everything - A docudrama on the life of Stephen Hawking.
• Gandhi - 
• The Pursuit of Happyness
• **The King's Speech - A docudrama on the life of King Feorge VI as he struggles to communicate and seeks help from a speech therapist.
• **Just Mercy - The story of a lawyer who fought for wrongly convicted people to get them released pro bono.
• **Mao's Last Dancer - the story of Li Cunxin
• **Self Made - Inspired by the life of Madam CJ Walker
• The English Game - the history of soccer in Brittain
• The Royal House of Windsor -
• **When They See Us - Five teens in Harlam accused of an attack 
• **The Who Was Show? - Famous Names in History 
• Unbroken - the story of Louis Zamperini during World War II struggle for survival in a Japanese prison camp. 
• The Most Hated Woman in America - The controversial life of atheist Madaly Murray O'Hair
  

Science

• Bill Nye: Science Guy 
  
• Emily's Wonder Lab - science activities
  
• Edge of the Universe - latest on the astromomy front
  
• Brainchild  - from germs to social media explained
• Human - The World Within - the incredible working of the human body

What are some of YOUR favourite educational shows on Netflix?

Chareen

---oOo---

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
14. Netflix in Your Homeschool

Featured from last week the letter M...

•  Making Facebook Easier from A Net in Time
• Music from the American Civil war from A Mom's Quest to Teach
• Discovering the M rabbits from At Home Pets
• Rabbit Manure, The Scoop on Poop from A Net in Time
• Making an Adult from A Net in Time
• Math Games from Our Homeschool Notebook
• Monticello from A Mom's Quest to Teach
• Modest Mussorgsky (composers ABC) from At Home: Where Life Happens
• Letter M Homeschool Tips from Homeschooling Highway

This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is N is for Ninjago. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter M for this weeks ABC Blogging

...

Math Resources for Home Education

Welcome to week 14 of  Blogging through the Alphabet 2021!I have had such a great week.  On Sunday Paul, Nathaniel and I had our  🇦🇺 Australian Citizenship conferred on us. Paul wrote a heartfelt poem about it that I shared on the blog on Monday. Today has been full as I've attended a Universtity Open Day as I'm trying to decide which degree to pursue.  

This week I am excited to share a little about Math Resources available for home educators and my co-host Desiree is sharing M is for Mindstorms.

I am always surprised by how the subject of math fills each of us with dread or fear and I often wondered why.  I don't struggle with math however I do have those anxious feelings whenever I think about math.  Over the years I've been curious about Math and teaching math and have done a little research.  

For me one of the defining moments of understanding teaching math came after I read the article History and Research on the Teaching of Math I highly recommend you read this article before you make a decision on your math curriculum.

Some interesting points I've discovered on the subject of teaching/learning math...

• . . . early childhood may simply be an inefficient period in which to try to teach skills that can be relatively quickly learned in adolescence.  (Prime Time for Education: Early Childhood or Adolescence ? by W.D.Rohwer, Jr)
• Mathematics in every form is a subject ill-fitted to the child mind. It deals not with real things, but with abstractions. When referred to concrete objects, it concerns not the objects themselves, but their relations to each other. It involves comparison, analysis, abstraction . . . (Cyclopedia of Education p.208 William H Burnham)
• . . . successful school achievement in areas requiring use of concepts - such as numbers, classes, and spatial and causal relationships - correlated highly with mental age. Developing these concepts was especially associated with success in arithmetic, problem solving, and spelling. (Feyberg)

Over the years I've shared multiple thoughts on teaching/learning math, you can read more in depth about it here...

• Math ... All About Math
• Math is a problem - What now ?
• Math Curriculum
• File Folder Fun: Noah's Ark Multiplication
• Math and Logic Resource {Virtual Curriculum Fair} 
• Math in High School   

Scope and Sequence
When looking at changing math programs remember to take  scope and sequence into account.

• Scope refers to the content.  In other words these are the topics covered (A to Z)
• Sequence is the order in which the scope is taught (IE the order in which things are covered within the program)

It is important to know this about your math product or you might end up redoing math your child is already familiar with or you might end up skipping a whole lot of important content that your child needs in order to succeed at math.

Programs I've reviewed

• Math Rider - Math Fact PC Game
• A+ TutorSoft On line math program
• A Plus Interactive Math Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan {Review}  
• TouchMath - This is a great hands on program. 
• Math Squeebles - Math App
• UberSmart Math Facts {Review} 
• Times Alive {Review} - I really enjoyed using this :D 
• Sunya - The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Multiplying & Dividing {Sunya Publishing Review}
• LOGICO Learning Game Review - This is a fabulous hands on resource
  

I asked a few homeschool groups online to find out what my friends are using to teach Math and these are the ones they listed: 

Math Programs

• Teaching Textbooks (This is my favourite math program by far)
• Life of Fred
• Mathletics
• Math Mammoth
• Targeting Maths 
• Maths On Line
• Right Start Math
• Cambridge
  
• Abeka Full Math program from Pre K - 12
• Saxon Math
• Singapore Math
• Horizons Math
• CalcuLadder 1 and 2- Drill worksheets from Learning Vitamins
• Horizons Math
• Miquon Math
• Math*U*See
• MegaGeex 
• Khan Academy 
• Math Seeds
• Math-U-See and the online version can be found here Math U See E Learning
  

 Pinterest

•  Math
• Mostly FREE Math Worksheets
• Math YouTube 

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.

• Dr. Padmanabhan Seshaiyer - Mathematics, A Multidisciplinary Universal Language
• Dan Meyer - Math class needs a makeover Dan is a high school math teacher. Great insight about the differences between computation and math reasoning. Cause and effect of loss of reasoning.  Really interesting talk. He shows how text books hamstring students learning.
• John Bennett - Why Math Instruction is unnecessary John is a home school Dad who is also a highschool teacher. This is one of my favorite talks. 
• Arthur Benjamin - Lightning calculation and other "Mathemagic" Interesting show demonstrating how quickly math calculations can be computed. This one is more for fun :)

What are you using to teach math in your homeschool?

Blessings 

Chareen

Find the other ABC posts in this series here:

1. A is for Art Lessons at Home
2. B is for Books Where do You Purchase Yours? 
3. Charlotte Mason a Round Up of Posts 
4. Delight Directed Education
5. Encouragement for Weary Homeschooling Mothers
6. For the Children's Sake  
7. G is for Geography
8. Homeschool Bloggers  
9. Instagramers to follow who are homeschooling
10. Joy in Your Homeschool Journey
11. Know Yourself - Stop the Comparison Game  
12. Life Skills in Your Homeschool
13. Math Resource for Home Education
    

Featured from Week 10 all things 'K'

• L is for Laser Maze and LEGO ABCs: L is for Legoland over at Our Homeschool Notebook
• L is for Lee over at A Mom's Quest to Teach.
• ... of the World over at At Home Pets
• ... over at A Net in Time
  
• Homeschooling Tips from A to Z: the Letter L over at Homeschooling Highway 
•   ... by Lori at At Home: Where Life Happens.
  

 This Week over at Our Homeschool Notebook the topic is M is for Mindstorms. 

 

Please link up your posts starting with the letter M for this weeks ABC Blogging