CHRISTEPHI

I always love reading about what programs other homeschool families use. Sometimes what one person likes you recognize is exactly what you don't like, or what is a disaster for one kid is exactly what another kid needs. I never get tired of that beautiful diversity! This year my little fella will be a big Third Grader. I can hardly believe he's 8 years old. I distinctly remember my third grade year and the public school in Florida that I went to for part of the year.  It's wild to think that my "baby" could have such clear memories of this time frame when he is all grown up. Miss M is having a sort of second year of 6th grade. Although she did 6th grade level work across the board last year, I am in no rush to have her start junior high (and high school right around the corner from that). She's only 11!  So this year she will be advancing in her studies, but we're still calling it 6th grade. Some of her work will be at a 6th grade level and some will b...

I love seeing these old sci fi books on my shelf. They were my dad's when he was a boy. I love that so many of the wild ideas the old sci fi writers came up with are now a reality with modern technology. I used to read these on Christmas vacation at my grandparents' farm. Maybe one year my kids will read them on Christmas break!

My little bookworm ran off to the stacks while I picked up the books I had on hold at the library.  We're never there very long, but she always comes home with a whole stack of books to read.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, it is socially acceptable to turn our attention to Christmas. (That's how it works, right?)  Don't tell, but I've been in "Christmas mode" since quite a while before Thanksgiving.  This year I'm heading up a casual chorus of Christmas carolers.  Because of that, I've had Christmas carols on the brain since early October!  There couldn't be any better timing for a book about the stories behind our most beloved Christmas carols. About the Book From Oxford professor and renowned British composer, a joyous account of the history behind our favorite carols. Everyone loves a carol in the end, even Ebenezer Scrooge. They have the power to summon up a special kind of mid-winter mood, like the aroma of gingerbread or the twinkle of lights on a tree. It's a kind of magic. But how did they get that magic? Andrew Gant choirmaster, church musician, university professor, and writer tells the story of twenty of our fa...

Reading a true story set against the backdrop of WWII that leaves you with an overwhelming feeling of upliftedness, hope, and peace is not commonplace.  However, that is exactly how I felt after reading ‘Til We Meet Again . As a busy homeschool mom, it’s not often that I get a chance to sit down and read for pleasure.  Oh, I’m always reading! But most of what I read is related to homeschooling — either educating myself on how to teach or reading aloud to my kids.  So when I carved out a chunk of time to read this book, it was a special thing.  I read it from cover to cover in four hours flat. About the Book Ray and Betty Whipps both served in Europe during WWII: Ray as an infantryman under General Patton in the trenches of Normandy, Paris, and Belgium, and Betty as a field nurse in Cherbourg, France. The two met when Betty tended to Ray after he was injured in a mortar blast. Both strong Christians, the two bonded over their shared faith, and as Betty...

It has been a very long time since I read a book for pleasure.  I read with the kids, I read for the kids (i.e. parenting & homeschooling books), but rarely a book for pleasure.  In fact, the last time I did was (oh, this is embarrassing) about a year ago when I read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. So when I got the chance to read a Christian fantasy novel for review, I decided it was an opportunity I didn't want to pass up. I didn't realize it when I first started, but Beneath the Forsaken City is actually Book Two in the Song of Seare series.  Having not read the first book, Oath of the Brotherhood , didn't slow me down a bit.  I was able to jump straight into the story and follow along without any trouble.  Although clearly I might have had a better understanding of the characters had I spent time with them in the first book. About the Book A Storm on the Horizon. A Brotherhood Scattered.   Conor and Aine have barely escaped...

One of the most exciting times in a child's life is when they are beginning to unlock the mysteries of the written word. We are just starting to get there with my son. He'll be five soon and has been working his way through our kindergarten curriculum. He's beginning to find -- and read! -- words everywhere! From street signs to grocery store advertisements to picture books to song lyrics. He is beginning both to recognize familiar words and to sound out new-to-him words! I know it won't be long before he develops into a fluent and avid reader, just like his big sister, and just like me! Because Little Guy will soon be reading on his own, I wanted to get him a Bible, God's Holy Word, of his own. Although it is somewhat more difficult than a children's translation, Hubby suggested we get the NKJV for Little Guy since that is what he uses. Like father like son, right? I was very pleased when I received a free copy of the NKJV Adventures Bible from Zondervan . ...

My daughter is nothing like me.  Her personality is her very own!  Even her taste in books differs greatly from mine.  When I was her age, I didn’t care a fig for non-fiction books.  I specifically remember looking at the Children’s Non-fiction Section at the public library and thinking how boring it was.  (I did, however, borrow every Alexander Key book the library had over and over and over again). Miss M, on the other hand, shows no discriminatory tendencies toward non-fiction.  In fact, she adores the  Who Was...  series of books and has asked for specific titles on more than one occasion.  Rosa Parks, Helen Keller, Martin Luther King, Jr., even J.K. Rowling!  So when I had a chance to review  Jesus  from the Get to Know series by Nancy I. Sanders, I just knew it would be a hit! About the Book "Jesus  - part of the Get to Know series - is a unique biography about Jesus, the Son of God. Focusing on th...

We love books.  (You probably know that by now.)  And my kids love to be read to while they eat lunch or play with clay or sit in the hammock chair on a gorgeous spring day.  One of the latest books we read together is Panama Girl by Ida (pronounced EE-duh) Freer. Panama Girl Written by Ida Freer ISBN: 978-1480076792 Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 156 pages This is a story about a 12-year-old girl named Surni from the Embera people in the Darien jungle of Panama.  As you read, you get a clear picture of life in the village and how the Embera have lived for generations by finding everything they need for food, clothing, shelter, and transportation in the jungle.  But change is coming to the jungle.  Visitors from Panama City are arriving with increasing frequency and Surni and her people must learn to adapt to new ideas, new technology, and new beliefs.  Surni herself faces many challenges and proves that she is a girl...

We are nearly halfway through our Adventures in U.S. History!  This week we took a couple days off from learning about states to learn about Daniel Boone.  I wanted to make little coon skin caps for the kids (I remember doing that when I was a homeschool student way-back-when), but I didn't have either the time or materials on hand. We added another name of Jesus to our bulletin board: Immanuel, which means God With Us.  We had lots of fun learning the lyrics to O Come, O Come, Emmanuel and a long discussion about why Emmanuel is sometimes spelled with an I and sometimes with an E. The one thing I've added to our curriculum that's different than the recommendations from My Father's World is the CLE 2nd grade Bible program .  It is a walk through of the Old Testament (I intend to follow up with the New Testament in 3rd grade).  Since Adventures itself is already an adequate workload, we only do CLE Bible on Mondays and Thursdays.  We are enjoying it...

What is Ooka Island? Ooka Island is an adventurous computer game that teaches early literacy to kids from Pre-K to 2nd grade.  It's fun and engaging without making any sacrifices on the academic side of things. "Upon arrival on Ooka Island, children customize their own online avatar and embark on a compelling 3D hero-mission to save the Ooka Elves! As young learners follow the Ooka Island Adventure, they travel on their own unique path created by Ooka Island's READirect learning algorithm.  This ensures that they are on the fastest track to reading success!" A Bit of Backstory Ooka Island is based on the work of Dr. Kay MacPhee who developed a successful program for struggling and reluctant readers in the 1990s.  Her program, then known as SpellRead, was the subject of many intensive studies because of its effectiveness, but it was quite expensive.  It became an exclusive product for either the poorest of the poor (by way of government sub...