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For many years I doubted myself on whether or not I was equipping my children, as a homeschooler, with what they needed to succeed in life.

I would say to myself at the end of the day, Did we really just do that for Homeschool today?

I listened to all the people, around me, tell me my children wouldn’t have any socialization, they would feel left out of special events, they wouldn’t have any friends, and most important, I wouldn’t be able to give them what they needed education wise, if I continued schooling them at home.

Boy, I really wish a veteran homeschool parent would have told me back then that there will always be haters, non-believers of homeschooling and lots of misinformation concerning homeschooling in every conversation you will have with those people.

But most of all, I wish someone would have told me, I will ALWAYS doubt myself as a homeschool parent (hey I’m a mom, it’s what we do) and that if God has chosen me to homeschool my children, then God will continue to equip me to finish the journey with my children.

I also fretted so many times about staying on schedule.  Making sure every lesson was completed on time.

I finally learned to throw all schedules out the window and allow the world to be the classroom.

You might be asking, “You mean you don’t do lessons?”.  Actually yes we do, but we also have lots of life lessons as well.  I have learned that there are many kids with book smart, but no life skills.

My children are not exactly like yours.

They do not have the same personalities,  same interests or same abilities.  And I know I don’t live my day to day the same as you might.  So why would our schooling look the same way?

My children may never win a Math Reward, or a Spelling Championship, but I guarantee my son can go kill a rabbit, skin, clean it and cook it without blinking.  I can also guarantee he knows how to hatch chickens and turkeys from eggs, shoot a gun, plant a garden and make a business deal like its nobody’s business lol.

And my daughter, well she can travel to third world countries to show the love of Jesus, not to mention work for the money it takes to go.  She can clean, cook, do laundry, and can fruits and veggies.  She can plan and organize any event and teach any age in our Children’s Ministry at church.

This morning we had just returned from our local rec center, where we played basketball and walked for our PE time, and sat down to start our work for the day when my dad arrived at our house.

For some odd reason my dad picked the most dreariest day to decide to come over and help us build our pen our chickens, turkeys, rabbits  and soon to be goats.  Hey he’s helping, I can’t complain to much!

Well that was the end of “lessons” for the day.  We put our tablets and binders away and went to work with my dad.

Did we really just do that for Homeschool today?

Yep, we did!  My children learned how to build a pen for our animals.

For some that might not be important, but we live in a rural area where livestock is a deal big.  And it’s important that my children learn basic tasks and skills.  I do not want my children to grow up and be dependent on others for everything they need done.

They need to learn to cook, clean, do laundry, grow their own food, make their own products and supply their own needs.

Just overall I want to equip them to be a self-sufficient homesteaders.

Book smart is important, but knowing how to take care of your self is even more important to me.

Don’t put limits on your child’s learning.

Allow them to grow into an independent person by using their strengths!

Even if it’s learning how to build a pen!

It’s not how you learn, it’s the journey that gets  you there!

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One reason I love homeschooling so much, is for the flexibility that we have.

I love to be able to take trips and go to fun educational sites and activities during times when it is less busy and crowded. My husby has been with the company he works for, for 21 years. And because of that amount of time, he has several weeks of vacation he can take each year, which makes it perfect for us to schedule around busy times like Spring Break and Summer Break.

I don’t know about where you live, but here in Arkansas, summers are hot, hot and humid! I’m not talking about a little heat! I’m talking about your house can’t stay cool even with the AC running full blast, and if you walk outside, you automatically look like you just hosed yourself off because you are so wet with sweat! So summers are not a very good time for vacations and trips for us.

I had decided because of all those reasons, it would be better for us to year round homeschool. That way we can have breaks during times when places are less crowded, and when it’s not so hot outside and miserable.  We school 6 weeks on, 3 weeks off.  We continue this year round except we take 6 weeks off during the summer for church camp, 4th of July and a little free time with friends.

I know I have talked about our great online program before, but Time4Learning is truly a wonderful curriculum for our schedule.   (If you missed my last post about Time4Learning, you can catch up here.)  Time4Learning, offers a “dormant account” option which allows families to take a break from the program and return where they left off, with all records kept intact.  The dormant period will begin and end on the dates you specify.  I can set my children’s accounts as dormant and when we return over our 3 weeks off, the account picks up directly where we left off and we don’t loss those weeks of curriculum that we have paid for.  It is a perfect solution for our year round schooling.

Time4Learning is a very organized and self sufficient program that meets all of our needs.  If your family is ready for a curriculum change,  I suggest looking into all that Time4Learning offers.

What is your homeschooling year look like?

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As a homeschool parent, it is very important to me to be sensitive to the way my children learn.

Through the years, I have come to realize that children do not all learn the same way, with the same tactics.

We have switched curriculums at least three times over the past eight years on our homeschool journey. We started with a regular homeschooling textbook program, but as my children entered in the middle school years, we realized they were bored just reading from a textbook.

We decided to search for online curriculums to use. We found one that we enjoyed and the kiddos responded to really well, except it didn’t keep a grading system.

When it was time to start keeping transcripts for high school, that particular curriculum became more difficult to use for record purposes. That was when I came across Time4Learning.

Time4Learning is an award-winning online education program for preschool through twelfth grade that uses multimedia activities to teach standards-based curriculum. It is a popular homeschool curriculum, afterschool tutorial, summer skill sharpener and test preparation tool.

Time4Learning offers grade-by-grade curriculum for preschool to eighth grade, and high school. Grade levels can be set independent from one another for each subject. In addition, students will be able to access to at least 2 (and in most cases 3) grade levels of curriculum for each subject, so they can move ahead or review at their own pace. (excludes high school courses)  I love that they supply a video to help learn the programs “How it Work”.

I love the way that it keeps records of my children’s grades and has a parent forum for when I have questions about a certain subject. And with the newly added highschool addition, I don’t have to worry about changing curriculums again down the road.  And the best part is the “Low Monthly Price” with a two week money back guarantee.

I am so glad I found a program that fits the learning needs for both my children.  Having visual and audio as learning choices is a huge assistance. I would recommend Time4Learning for anybody who is looking for a full program with alternative learning experiences.

The post Time4Learning Review appeared first on GraceandGravy with a side of life!.

Today, began the new CO-OP year. For those who haven’t a clue what I am talking about, its our homeschool group that my kiddos attend.

We meet once a week where my kids can “socialize”, you know the world thinks us homeschoolers never socialize, with other homeschoolers as well as participate in classes and sports.

In the past we have had classes in Spanish, French, Sign Language, Quilting, Photography, Scrapbooking, Art, Chemistry, Year Book, PE and so on.

This year my children’s schedules are a bit on the easy side but that’s okay since we have amped up our work at home.

Lindy is taking gymnastics, and this point, (remember I am writing this ahead of time) I haven’t the foggiest (that’s Arkansas talk if you don’t understand that word) idea what other class she is deciding to take.

Keegan believes he should only have to take classes that emphasizes on sports since he takes “other” classes at home. Lol. So his choices are PE and Flag Football.

Even though we have a homeschool group in our own county, we chose to drive 30 minutes away to a larger group that has more choices and activities for the kids. This helps to break up our school week and they meet new and old friends.

Me, on the other hand, is thinking of numerous trips to activities which I will have to shed my yoga pants/capris for something more suitable perhaps.

And before you ask, Yes, I love my yoga pants…..for yoga?

Not so much but they are great for drinking wine in!

But really we enjoy getting out and talking with other homeschoolers and families. But sometimes I’m still thinking of my yoga pants and my couch waiting for me at home.

And when I arrive at home, there they are…..and the wine……sigh.

Hope everyone has a great Homeschooling Year with Yoga Pants and Wine!

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I’ve been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. My opinion will be entirely my own, so be sure to come back and read about my experience. Time4Learning can be used as a homeschool curriculum, for afterschool enrichment and for summer skill sharpening. Find out how to write your own curriculum review for Time4Learning.

http://www.time4learning.com/

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Can you believe it, it’s that time of year again.

The time that children dread and parents celebrate.

Yes, thats right!  A New School Year is here.

From some, that time has already begun.  For others, like myself, as a homeschool parent, I am still planning and preparing to begin soon.

I enjoy putting lessons together, finding the perfect curriculum that fits my children’s  learning style.  One thing I have learned over the years of homeschooling, is that every child is different.  Just because one style fits one child, doesn’t mean it will fit the next child.  Math always seem to be a subject where I have to try several methods of learning before I find a good fit.

I came across Splash Math, and I instantly fell in love.

Splash Math is Interactive Math Lessons for Elementary School Students Grades K-5 at every Skill Level. The Interactive games and rewards, motivate children to learn, practice and improve their math scores. Splash Math is available at home on the computer, on the iPad, on Chromebooks, and in a Classroom Edition for Teachers.

I love how visual the lessons are, how the audio helps explain the instructions clearly.

But I also love how, as a parent, I receive a weekly report via email on the progress of my child.  It explains what lessons have been completed on each level and the score for each.

And Splash Math even offers A Summer Program ,an 8-week review program to halt the Summer Slide (students lose 2-3 months of math competency during the summer break if they don’t practice regularly).

Splash Math is perfect as a Full Curriculum or as  Supplemental Lessons.  Even though my children are past Grade 5, I was so interested for my tutoring students.  It fits perfectly for their needs.

I highly recommend this program for everyone.  But children who need more visual learning will excel with Splash Math.

I am so excited that Splash Math has teamed up with GraceandGravy for a giveaway.  One lucky reader will win a free Splash Math Program!  How Awesome is that!

Click on the Rafflecopter Giveaway Link to Enter!  And Good Luck!

*Winner will be notified on 8-16

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Review is solely based on my own thoughts and opinions.  I was not paid to offer my review.

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Since we knew nothing, we greatly accepted and started with that.  What I realized was that it was a  great curriculum,  Rod and Staff is  wonderfully bible-based, easy to use and follow, but what I liked best was how well it transitioned from year to year and how well each grade followed on the same schedule just different levels.

I would supplement with workbooks, printables, fun educational games and activities and field trips.  This worked like a charm for our family until I went into full-time ministry.  Up until that point, I was free to teach lessons to each child, sit and listen to them read, and go over each and every activity with them.  After ministry came along, that was no longer the case.  I barely had time to get lessons wrote down, and keeping up with grades was a whole different ballgame.

I had to think and act quickly on another option before my children become confused and far behind.  I even had a thought (or maybe it was the voice of others) that at this point in our lives public school would be a better choice for them.  

Oh how wrong that was!  I cannot believe that I almost let others, spiritual leaders or not, decide what was best for my children and my family.  Only my husby and I knew what was best and others thinking they knew the solution better than us was absolutely ludicrous.

So after looking into curriculum’s that would better fit our needs, I stumbled upon Easy Peasy All In One Homeschool.  I read the name and thought, how good can that be with a name like Easy Peasy.  Then I started researching.  Oh my gosh, I was in love.  It was laid out day by day, by grades or by subjects and the best part was that it was bible-based written by missionaries/homeschool parents and they offer it for FREE!

It is mostly online which was a blessing since my kiddos were doing alot of school on the go with me.  If you are looking into a well organized and well balanced curriculum, I strongly suggest checking them out.

http://allinonehomeschool.com/

Photo by EP

Now my kiddos are entering 10th and 8th grade, I am at home again with them, I do have more time, but I am in desperate need of a curriculum or something that will automatically record and keep their grades for transcripts.

Any suggestions or ideas will be greatly appreciated.  But if you need a free and wonderful curriculum look into EP.  It starts with Pre-K  all the way up to 12th!

Hope everyone has a Wonderful Wednesday full of WIsdom!

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