Getting a Handle on Time

Originally posted,  Feb. 20th 2013

     Mindy looks at the clock and realizes she has just enough time to clean up the kitchen before she needs to run out the door. She walks into the kitchen and starts to run the water in the sink. As the sink is filling she notices that the counters have school books on them. She gathers them up and heads to the dining room bookshelf to put them away.

     While she is in the dining room she sees that her youngest has dropped his shoes and coat on the floor. She knows if they stay there she will never find them again, so she puts the books on the table to put away in a minute and picks up the coat and shoes and heads for the closet. Then she remembers she left the water running in the sink, so she drops the coat and shoes and heads for the kitchen, catching the water just as it starts to run over the counter. She bails out the sink and puts the dishes in to soak. She turns to start to clear the counters again and finds more things that need to go in other rooms. She grabs them and heads back out of the kitchen.     On her way she gets interrupted again by one of her children and she follows them upstairs to help them with something, totally forgetting about the dishes in the sink. She then realizes she needs to leave and heads out the door only five minutes late. When she arrives back home, the dishes are still in the sink. "I thought I washed the dishes," she says to herself.     Has this ever happened to you? It has to me! It can be very frustrating to run all day doing and cleaning and have nothing to show for it at bedtime. I tried all kinds of time management books and programs but nothing worked for me. Then I discovered that Visual/Spatial, or right brain people can really struggle with time management. Once I understood the reasons I had problems I was able to find solutions. I discovered that V/S people think differently about time and space and their minds function differently than typical left brain or A/S (Auditory/Sequential) people do and that is why most time management systems don’t work. Today I want to focus on time and V/S time management.

     V/S ‘s need two different modes of time for different situations. They need chunks of time and small pieces of time. The chunks of time allows them to really focus on big tasks and have the time to think it through and put their whole energy into it. Most time management systems recommend taking small blocks of time and working over a long period of time to complete the task. This doesn’t work for most V/S’s for several reasons, but the main reason is using small blocks of time doesn’t allow for deep thinking or allowing creativity to flow. V/S’s are very creative and to be creative means they spend time thinking through a project from start to finish. V/S’s see things in pictures, not words. That means a project has to be thought about enough to see the end from the beginning. Then they can start on the project. Also, they need to totally focus, without distractions. When a project is worked in small chunks, they no sooner start then it’s time to finish. This makes it difficult to create!

     The second mode is the small piece of time. This small amount of time allows them to accomplish repetitive tasks without losing focus. V/S’s tend to be perfectionists. Usually frustrated perfectionists. They don’t want to do something unless they can do it perfectly. In other words, they clean the living room, but rather than just cleaning, they notice that the dvds are unorganized, so they stop half way through cleaning to organize all the dvds alphabetically. Nice to do, but only after the living room is clean!

     Thus, to a V/S, doing it perfectly requires three times the amount of time they have so they get half way through a project and then run out of time and never finish. This is how their closets fill with unfinished projects and their entire house is never clean at the same time.

    The solution? Breaking jobs down into doable pieces in small blocks of time. Doing something that only takes 15 minutes or so helps keep V/S’s focused enough to finish a project, especially if it is one they would rather not do. We can do anything for 15 minutes, right?

     This is why Flylady.net is so successful. She has broken down the chores of keeping a house into small pieces that can be done in small blocks of time. And she advocates for the use of timers! Perfect of V/S’s!

     Since V/S’s have a tough time telling the passage of time, they don’t notice that it is time to leave in order to be on time for the doctor’s appointment, or piano lessons, or that it is time to start dinner. Timers and clocks really help. I love timers. I have timers on my phone, on my watch, and small little timers and I use all of them! I also have clocks in just about every room in my house.

    I have timers on my phone that are set for piano lessons, doctor’s appointments, meetings, etc. I use the timers on my watch to help me divide my day into parts and we do specific things in each part. So my watch goes off to tell me it’s time for devotional (or my kids would never start school!), time for the youngest ones nap, (or he would never get one), and it goes off to tell me it’s time to start dinner (or we would never eat before 9pm!).

     I use my little timers to help me use small amounts of time either for chores that I would spend hours on that don’t need hours or those small amounts of time before I need to leave the house or have some other commitment I need to do. It helps me to keep focused because I know when it goes off I can move on to something else! Timers are great tools!

     I hope this has helped you to see how time management can work for you. It has been a life saver for me. 

Tips and Tricks from an old Dog

A Message from the archives. Originally posted Tuesday August 2, 2011.

by Doreen Blanding

     There are a few things I’ve learned over the past two decades of homeschooling six very different children.  I would love to pass some of this knowledge along to other homeschooling moms and dads.

You’re not very smart

     I’m no longer insulted when my junior high student says, “Mom, I have a math question, I’ll go get the answer book,” or worse yet, “I can’t finish my math because I have a question that you can’t answer. I’ll just wait for dad.” But the worst is when they say that and end it with, “I’ll just wait for Jason.” Jason is my math genius.  He didn’t get that from me, but from his dad.  He is still living at home and going to a local college where he is setting the curve in his math classes.  I wish I could take credit for that, but I can’t. That boy sure did teach me a few things and one of them is not to be insulted because I don’t understand something. I still remember when he took his geometry test book (in which he was behind a couple of days) and took the test in five minutes and didn’t miss a problem. I knew then that he was way beyond me.

Drummers drum

     Jason also taught me that kids march to the beat of their own drum and sometimes that’s literal.  When he was a little kid he couldn’t spell the simplest of words and it was driving me crazy.  He would have a word memorized one minute and then ten minutes later not know how to spell it.  One day while drilling him, I saw his foot tapping the ground in perfect rhythm.  I told him to stop it, it was driving me crazy.  How could he concentrate on spelling if he was tapping his foot? He stopped only to start tapping his finger on the table. I told him to stop and so he switched to the other hand.  I almost left the room screaming, but instead I took a breath and said a silent prayer, “Dear Lord, help me not to beat this child.” My answer was, “This child needs to move in order to learn.”  That was the beginning for him. He took off like leaps and bounds because I let him move his body while he was studying.  He would jump on the rebounder (a little trampoline), or skip rope, or tap his foot or his fingers.  A few years later we bought him a drum set and he loved it. He still drives me crazy when he taps his finger or pencil while studying, but I just bite my tongue and remember that he is processing something very important. I learned that sometimes a quick prayer gives us the right answer. Sometimes we have to let our children learn in unorthodox ways.

Give ‘em a minute

     I just love it when my kids say, “Mom, how come you marked number 15 wrong? It can’t be wrong; I went over it and over it.”  I remind them that I correct a lot of different papers throughout the day and I don’t recall what “number 15” is.  They usually catch me while I’m making dinner or busy with something else and yet they want me to stop and help them.  Instead of dropping everything, I have them verbally walk me through the problem.  Nine times out of ten, they stop mid sentence and say, “Oh, I see what I did wrong.” That tenth time, I will walk over and say, “Show me.” It is while showing me that they usually discover where they went wrong. Sometimes all it takes is for them to take a minute and try to explain their problem to someone else.

The teacher always learns the most.

     Another trick I have found is to answer their questions with this: “Teach me.”  The teacher always learns the most. This works very well with kids of all ages.  I’m a busy mom and sometimes I’m very pressed for time so I will have my kids read a chapter of a science book and then teach us what they learned.  I also use this trick when the math problem they are asking me to solve is something I would need to brush up on. I have them teach me how to multiply fractions or how to solve a geometry proof.  The other response I have is “Prove it.”

Show and Tell

     There is nothing wrong with show and tell.  When my children were very little we did a show and tell almost nightly for dad. First I did it to prove to him that I was teaching his children, but later I had them do it to see what they learned and what they missed from the day’s lessons.  My college son told me one day that he wished I would have given him more tests and grades.  I told him that I tested him almost daily. “Remember how I had you tell dad each night what you learned? That was a pop quiz.” I did give the kid tests and grades. He just didn’t ever see them.  My children are a bit old for show and tell, but I love listening to them discuss some pretty heavy topics around the dinner table.
  
Family Home Evening

     I had been homeschooling for only a few years when a fellow homeschooling mom confessed to me that they didn’t do Family Home Evening on Monday night.  She said, “I feel like I’ve done family night all day long and I’m just so worn out that I can’t do one more lesson.”  I thought a lot about that statement.  She was right; I spent a lot of time doing Family Home Evening type stuff all day long and doing it one more time when everyone is cranky was a chore.  But then I thought of the blessings the Prophets had promised us when we hold Family Home Evening.  I couldn’t leave blessings on the table so I did “one more lesson” every week. I soon noticed that the kids looked forward to it as much as I did.  I also noticed that this was the one lesson where dad was with us and if we planned ahead he would even teach the lessons.

     It has been about fifteen years since that conversation and I look at what weekly Family Home Evening has done for my family. We are a stronger family because we did that “one more lesson.” My kids know the gospel and if they have questions, the know where to find answers. They know how to teach a lesson because we take turns.  I honestly don’t know where that other mom is or how her kids are turning out. I’m no saint, but darn if I’m not seeing the blessing of holding “one more lesson”.

     Finally, I have time for one more tip: be willing to let the Spirit guide you. Every one of the tips I’ve shared here, I learned because I was taught because I was flexible in the teaching moment and willing to let the Spirit take me somewhere different. If you remain open to promptings then I’m sure you will discover many tips of your own.

- Doreen

Shifting Paradigms

A paradigm is like any window, it allows you to see whatever its frames will permit. Thus, just like a window, a paradigm is a limited and partial view of what's "outside." The bigger the frame, the more one can see. The more windows in a room, the more one can see of that "outside." Thus, paradigms, by analogy, are mental windows to reality.  They "frame" our understanding of reality and limit that reality to what they show us. Different paradigms will "show" us a different reality.     - unknown

    Unless you are one of the few mothers who has always known that they would homeschool their children, you are likely here testing the waters in an uncharted territory.  You may be caught up in the merciless throws of a shifting paradigm.  Not long ago I found myself neck deep in those same choppy waters and at times I thought I may never come ashore. 

     It took courage for me to put up new windows within my carefully constructed house in my little corner of the universe.  It took humility to imagine that there was more to see when I thought I had been looking out of a picture window.  It took patience to question to learn, to probe, to pray.  It took faith to listen to the whispering of the spirit telling me “yes you can” when doubts would flood my mind like a tidal wave of insecurity.   

     If you are new to the idea of homeschooling, welcome! 

Stay a while.

Embrace the discomfort. 

It won’t last forever!

Semester of Science: The Human Body Part 3

     You made it to round three!  I'm so happy!  This one will be awesome.  You'll see.  Today's post is going to complete our Human Body series.  I will continue by giving you even more hands on science experiments to do with your kids.  So,  put on your goggles and lab coat and let's get started. 

     This picture got a lot of likes on my facebook page and it was really the easiest experiment to do.  You need two things: red or pink play dough and a bowl.  First you get a small bowl.  The larger the bowl the more brains you will have to make.  Maybe you want to be ambitious and use a bowl that will fit your child's head, go you!  Next, Cover the bowl with the play dough since some of it will show through. Then, roll the remainder play dough into snakes. It doesn't matter how long your snakes are. You will need a variety of sizes but they all should be about the same thickness. Start by bending the snakes into S shapes. Take a look at the pictures to get a general idea. There is no wrong way here. The hardest part is getting the snakes to stick well enough on the bowl. If you wanted to, you could try gluing them. It took days for mine to harden and then pieces would fall apart. I wasn't really expecting it to last too long so it was not a big deal to me.  If you want to keep yours, maybe try modge podge glue over the whole thing when you finish. If you have a suggestion that worked for you and want to share with others, leave it in the comment section below.

     Here is the link I used for the idea though I simplified it. The brain was originally listed as a Halloween decoration! Double uses here people! 

     Here is a link for DIY play dough but since cream of tartar costs just as much as buying ready made play dough, it may not save you money if you are only making one. I think one can of play dough per brain should be enough if the brain is not too big.  Also, there are tons of different recipe ideas if you want to make things like Chocolate or cotton candy play dough.

Here is another activity we did for the brain.

     I drew an outline of the brain myself and then sectioned it off.  It may be easier to print it out. Use card stock if you want to use play dough.  Otherwise you can just color it in. Here are some  additional ideas that go along with learning about the brain. 

Lets see, what else did I promise from last week... Oh yeah, lungs! 

Here is the link I followed from Pinterest.

     This lung experiment took more planning than I wanted but still it was easy enough. I took a video of it to show people on my phone when they ask about home schooling. Yeah, I'm bragging to them but now you can do the same thing!  Aside from the .75 fake sprite I bought, (my kids were in Heaven or maybe just a sugar high) it was made with things I had around the house. Yes, I do keep balloons around my house. I actually have a kid that I babysit who looks forward to getting balloons at Sis. P's house.  I'm like the cool aunt!  Make sure you use non bendable straws. I didn't cut two holes in the lid of the bottle as the directions from the site said- too hard.  Instead I put tape around the straws nice and snug.  I used rubber bands to secure the balloons to the end of the straw. The directions also said to use a big balloon for the bottom of the bottle. You know, the kind with the rubber band attached that you bang back and fourth trying to annoy your brother with?  I didn't have one on hand, though you can get them 3 for a dollar at the 99 cent store, so I used a plastic grocery store bag.  Anyone else have a bag filled with other bags living under their kitchen sink?  I put a rubber band around the bag to hold it tight as well. Then just blow into the straws and you have lungs!  Perfect unexpected side effect: one balloon often would get bigger than the other. Did you know the left lung is smaller to make room for your heart? We always made sure the smaller one was on the left by turning the bottle upside down if we had to. Coincidentally I drew the left lung smaller on my human body chart by accident. Bonus! 

     The digestive system surely has more experiments to choose from.  I wasn't too thrilled with the outcome of this one, though I do think it teaches the topic very well and lots of websites have this experiment listed when teaching this concept. Here is a link that shows something like what I did.

     I got a gallon sized Ziploc bag and filled it half way with water.  I think vinegar and a little green food coloring might have been better to show that our tummy is full of stinky (but totally helpful) acid and in my imagination that acid is green (resist the erg to google it).  I used an empty paper towel roll as the esophagus and as you can see in the picture above J put it slightly in the bag without getting it wet. Then we fed it bread. Something more colorful like cheese may have been more visually stimulating.

     After that J used her hands to act as the muscles in our stomachs to break the food down ready to enter the intestines.  We learned about the intestines on a different day though it could go along with learning about the stomach since it all makes up the digestive system. This day, however, was focused on the stomach and what goes on there.

     Since I'm not super enthusiastic about this one I'm giving you a bonus link that looks very nifty to try.  Give THIS life size looking digestive maze of awesomeness a go.

You can always make a Tee Shirt.  It seems a bit strange, but it's sure to be a great conversation piece at any home school function.   It would also be great reinforcement if you challenged the kids to tell about the digestive path anytime someone asked about the shirt.  I can't even look at this shirt without laughing.  I'd love to see a picture of one of my readers wearing their original digestive system shirt!  You would totally rock in my book.

     I'm going to end my Human Body Series with the nervous system. This was SO simple and really neat, even for me.  By now I hope you have partaken of the awesome sensation of going back and fourth between a hot tub and a swimming pool. It really stuns the nerves system. That is this experiment on a giant level. We want to make it portable and able to fit on your table top.  You start with 3 bowls. In bowl 1: Ice water. Bowl 2: room temperature water. Bowl 3: hot water of the non flesh burning variety.  Have the student place one hand in the ice water and the other in the hot water.  Keep submerged for 1 minute (3 if they have been bad that day ;-).  Then place both hands in the lukewarm water. The hand that was in the ice is now very warm while the hand that was in the hot is now chilled. Easy!  By the way, if you are following along on your Human Body Chart from Part 1, we colored in skin for this experiment.

Ok, so I couldn't find the link where I got this idea but It's simple enough to follow the steps above I hope.  And I'm also giving you THIS link for an optional idea to choose from.

     The human body is amazing!  I didn't cover every topic we learned in our semester at home, or that is listed on the human body chart I made, but I have faith that you can come up with some one your own. Also, there is no rule that says each topic must have an exciting hands on experiment.  If you comment with your email address I have an overwhelming list of resources I can send to you on the human body. I really think that this semester could be done inexpensively. To conclude this topic for now, I'll leave you with some books I kept on hand.  If you have suggestions- post them in the comments below.

Thanks for reading!

Why Homeschool?

     Every parent can home school.  There is no special requirement of the patience of Job or intellect of Einstein or tenacity of Wilbur and Orville Wright to qualify one as a home schooling parent.   Regardless if the child is enrolled in public, private or home school, every parent who has a child aged 5-18 does indeed home school in some way.  From helping with after school projects and homework, to finding tutors or mentors, to leading 100% of the child's studies at home, all of this parent-led, parent- assisted learning and instruction is home education in some way.

     If this concept is understood, then the focus of choosing the learning environment for the child becomes more about the child and less about the parent. 

So the question is more about – If every parent can home school, why should they? 

     Home schooling parents can tailor the educational instruction for each child to best meet that child's need including the need of identity and value.  A child's self-esteem need not be valued on how quickly they recite the times tables or how well they memorized the state capitals.  A child's self-esteem can be enhanced by those abilities, but not defined by them.  The only qualification is for the parents to dedicate themselves to finding mentors, groups, individuals, and experiences that meet the needs of their child's education as well as dedicating time themselves in the pursuit of knowledge.  If you need to hear it, I'll say - “You don't have to teach your child Algebra!”  There!  Feel better?  But, the parents need to find the resources, tools, and mentors that will.

     Home schooling parents can provide life skills and real life experiences.  When has any adult ever been in a work environment where everyone else was their same age and lived in the same area of town?  The public school model is not realistic in that way, nor does it provide the best avenue for social skills.  Social skills are created and enhanced by meeting, working and conversing with people of varied ages, skills and backgrounds.  Home educated children are constantly exposed to a variety of people with whom they are taught to respect and to converse.  The majority of social interaction for home school students is with adults (librarian, store clerk, repairmen, museum docent, art teacher, field trip tour guide...).  When adults have conversations with children, they patiently guide the child to proper manners, etiquette, expectations, and also reward children who speak clearly, intelligently and with interest of learning.  Compare this instruction on socialization with the socialization that occurs in a class of twenty-seven 3rd graders.

     Home schooling parents can allow the child to progress as fast and far as they desire or as slow as needed.   There is a difference between education and knowledge; education is obtained through a formal study process from institutions and set curriculum, and knowledge is obtained through experience and knows no bounds regarding age, required curriculum or institutions.  Knowledge is not taught, but acquired through self efforts.  In this regard, home educated children begin their life of learning in the realm of knowledge, not merely education.

     Home schooling parents offer their children the gift of time.  Time to learn to do chores and contribute to the family as well as time to learn an art or sport.  Time to be involved with the family and create working relationships with siblings learning to compromise, cooperate and care (amid the usual chaos :o).   Time to completely satiate their thirst for knowledge because they can dive as deep into subjects for as long as they desire.  The home educated child is placed in a position of quicker maturity by learning to manage their time and resources at an earlier age.  By managing time, these students are able to complete their daily studies and household chores, and also have time to enjoy recreational interests and community service.  Family vacations can occur anytime during the year and can last for the amount of time determined by the family, not by the school schedule.

     Home schooling parents create an environment of desiring wisdom not only for their children but for themselves.   Leading by example, these parents enjoy enhancing their own knowledge by reading aloud classics to the family, by discussing religion and beliefs, with exercise and play, with working side-by-side in the home and in the community, and with the sharing of their hobbies and interests.  Inspiring a desire for wisdom is not as challenging as one may think.  Consider this quote:  “True doctrine, understood, changes attitudes and behavior.  The study of the doctrines of the gospel will improve behavior quicker than a study of behavior will improve behavior.”  (President Boyd K. Packer, April 2004, Do Not Fear).  When the home schooling family places a “study of the doctrines of the gospel” as the main part of their curriculum, the natural outcomes can include desires for wisdom, increased obedience, philanthropy, and self-mastery to name a few.  A philosophy of life-time learning negates the popular thought, “I'm in school, so I'm learning” verses “I'm not in school, please don't make me think!”

     Homeschooling is not for the faint of heart.  It may require the home school parent to grow and develop parts of their character as well as enable their child's growth.  However, whatever path led the parents to consider homeschooling, they will be blessed for spending time with their children.  Focusing on the child's needs, considering that to some degree each parent already home schools and remembering the thrill of seeing a child learn are the foundational ways to make the journey to home education a successful and enjoyable one.

Written by: Tami Maloney

Learning Styles

Is This Just One More Thing to Worry About?

     “Chris, will you please stop tapping the table with your pencil and focus?”  “Chris, will you please be still and listen to the story I’m reading?”  “Chris, how is it that you can tell me what we just learned but can’t write it down?”  “Chris, you just spelled those words correctly yesterday.  How did you forget those already?”

      Sound familiar or do some other comments of your own come to mind?  Being a home school mom is intimidating for some of us and when things don’t go as perfectly as we first imagined in our minds, it’s easy to say, “It just didn’t work out” and quit.  There are a myriad of difficulties we may find ourselves in but I would like to address just one – learning styles.  If we can figure out our children’s learning style, we can discover fun and creative ways to help our children learn more efficiently. 

There are 3 main types of learning styles: Visual, Auditory and Tactile-Kinesthetic.  

     Most of us use all of the learning styles at least a little, not just one exclusively.  The type of activity we are doing can determine which style we use.  For example, we may prefer to visually see the correct spelling of a word instead of “sounding it out” and yet also prefer to get a lot of hands on experience during a science lesson instead of reading about it.  There are several free online tests to help determine learning style preference and once that is discovered, the following may be helpful for you and your children.

Visual Learners

     Visual learners make up about 65% of the population and recall information best by seeing.  Viewing books, notes, diagrams, maps, graphs, flashcards, and using highlighters and charts makes it easier for them to process and remember information.  They can even remember where information was located on a page and can recall it better if they copy the information again.  Since they get distracted easily with visual movement, they need a quiet place to study.  They also tend to be good spellers (because they can remember what it looked like).  If they need directions to a place, they need them written down or have a map.  If they are listening to a long lecture or to someone reading a book, they tend to wander off in their minds unless they can read along with some notes or with the book. 

Auditory Learners

     Auditory learners make up about 30% of the population and best learn information through the sense of hearing. They tend to be the talkative ones in class (yes, they even like to hear themselves) and enjoy discussions and debates.  They prefer to hear oral instructions instead of reading them and also prefer to do oral tests instead of written tests.  Listening to an audio book or reading aloud can really be fun for them.  They also need a quiet place to study since noise will easily distract them.  Instead of a map, they just need to hear the directions and they’ll remember them.  They don’t mind a lecture as long as it’s not too long or they’ll start talking to their neighbor because they’d rather discuss it.

Tactile-Kinesthetic Learners

     Tactile-Kinesthetic Learners make up about 5% of the population and absorb information best by doing.  It’s interesting to know that all young children are kinesthetic learners.  Visual and auditory preferences emerge later.  Chris is a kinesthetic learner.  He performed well on spelling tests orally while doing cartwheels rather than writing on paper.  Kinesthetic learners tend to be weak in spelling but they can use spell check!  Chris rolled around turning somersaults as I read a book aloud, but surprisingly could recall details and characters in the story.  Movement helps these kids learn.  They prefer to get their hands on something to manipulate and figure out so they can understand it better.  Since they need to move, it’s not too surprising that these kids tend to be thought of as hyperactive.  Can you imagine this child sitting through a long lecture?  Instead of a quiet learning environment, they may enjoy soft music in the background as well as tapping their pencil on the table constantly!  They may even prefer lying on the floor to learn instead of sitting in a chair.    

•       For visual learners:  Fill their world with things to see!  Have them draw or write down notes, watch documentaries, do brain puzzles like Sodoku, put things in sequential order, compare, contrast and classify things.
•      For auditory learners:  Fill their world with wonderful educational noise!  Play music, find books on tape with great narrators, have great discussions with them, put facts to lyrics to memorize, or have them record their notes so they can hear them.
•      For kinesthetic learners:  Fill their world with everything!  Give them math manipulatives, let them dance to classical music to “feel” it as well as hear it, have them do science experiments first and then explain what happened, have them act out a story in history, give them an old appliance to take apart and put back together.

     Experiment and ask your children their preferences and enjoy the journey of personalizing their education.  Thankfully, I learned about the learning styles while Chris was still young and realized that his tapping, constant movement and talking was his way of learning and that it actually helped him.  It drove me crazy because I’m a visual learner and all the visual distractions seemed to contradict with how I would learn.  But it worked for him.  If you’re finding yourself being frustrated as a home school mom, consider researching further about learning styles and maybe this one more thing to worry about will eliminate a lot of exasperation.

Kellee Clark – Homeschooling Mother of five.  Hear more from Kellee in THIS video.  

Semester of Science (Human Body) Part 2....

     Welcome back to another installment of "Hands on Semester of Science - The Human Body." In part one, I showed you a simple human body chart that kids can color in as they learn about different organs.  Today we are going to start getting into the experiments {insert mad scientist laugh}.  It might be cool for the kids (and you) to invest in some cheap science tools such as a lab coat, gloves and goggles if you plan to do several experiments.  Hey, that stuff is considered hands on in my book.

     Let's get started with Dem Bones.

 If I need an idea I always start by looking on Pinterest. When I saw the following experiment I had my doubts. It turned out so cool and I ended up keeping the hand until my son took a bite out of one of the fingers and it attracted ants. Who knew ants liked flour? Who knew L wondered what a fake hand would taste like? 

     Here is what you do:

• Step One: Get a glove from the dentist in your ward. That's a joke people. Not every single ward has a dentist, just most ;-). You can get a glove from fast food places or beauty salons too. If you must buy them, you can get them at Walmart and I'm sure there are lots of fun and educational things you can do with them. I may even do a post some day called 'Ways to teach with Latex gloves'. And yes, try to get the latex type since it has more of a flesh feel to it than the plastic see through ones.
• Step Two: Get five large flat Popsicle sticks. You can get these from the doctors office for free if you ask nicely. I'm sure there are other places you can get them for free but again, these are always good to have on hand for future use and are not very expensive. Ideas may one day appear in a post labeled 'Ways to teach with Popsicle sticks'. Getting back on track... place the sticks inside of the gloves where your fingers would go. Last step: Fill your glove with flour. It doesn't take much but you do want it packed well. Then tie the glove at the bottom. Your done. My 6 year old was able to do this almost completely on her own. I held the glove open for her to dump in the flour (do this part over the kitchen sink for easy clean up). When it's complete it really does feel similar to a human hand! Seriously! Here is the Pinterest link that I followed for my Bones class experiment. 

Side note: I love most Steve Jenkins books.  The book with the big skull and the red background is a great one of his!  Try your library first but I personally think his books are worth investing in.  While libraries are a fabulous resource (most home schoolers visit on a weekly basis), may I suggest investing in a few well rounded, kid friendly books on this topic.  I say kid friendly but I really mean books that you can understand, too.  If it's over your head, it's guaranteed to be over your child's.  I went to a used book store and browsed their human body section to find mine.  I also borrowed from the library first to make sure the book was worth buying. 

Another favorite experiment of ours was making our own blood.

This idea also came from Pinterest:

 I save my glass jars for no good reason but every once in a while I'm glad I did. This was one of those rare times. 

Step 1:  You will need a glass or plastic  jar filled  1/2 to 3/4 full with water plus yellow food coloring.  This represents the plasma.  Next get a couple of hands full of mini marshmallows- one for project, one for eating.  These will be your white blood cells.  I used purple pom poms as my platelets.  Last I mixed Cheerios with some red food color in a small Ziploc bag for my red blood cells. 

Add all your ingredients one at a time while talking about why each one is important-- well, you know the drill. Teach! 

In the end your blood turns red from the red blood cells.  Since blood really does look red when you bleed and not like yellow plasma this made more sense to J. 

     Last one I'll show you today

is on the backbone.

     You may notice in my picture that J's back bone is lacking a few gummy life savers.  I bet some of you guessed it: L struck again!  Maybe I should feed that kid more. I did find both a somewhat edible versions of this experiment which I went with HERE or HERE is another option to use for the backbone with a pool noodle: 

  Here is how you make this back bone: 

Gather your whopping three materials. By now you are realizing that I usually go pretty cheap with my hands on learning and you love me a little more. You will need a piece of rope (spinal cord), some cheerios or maybe wagon wheels (bones)  and a large pack of gummy life savers (disk). The non food version is probably more visually accurate but I made this in the fall so there were no pool noodles to be found at the Dollar Tree. You see above in the photo J is putting the lifesavers and the Cheerios on alternately. Make sure you have counted enough bones (33 for kids and 24 for adults). Kids will remember how many backbones we have if they are counting them as they are added.

     I previously told you that my daughter likes to color and does really well at listening while she does it. I invested in the Dover Human Body coloring book (pictured at the top of this post) which is very educational and filled with a lot of information and details. Details take a long time to color which equals a long time for me to teach about the subject which means my child will have a better chance of learning something. That's just a theory and only true when the child is in the right mood ie: the wind is blowing to the east, it's high tides and.... just kidding.  I don't think we were able to get the full use out of this coloring book but maybe you would. Here is the link so you can look into it.  If you're not positive that you would use it, do a Google search for whatever organ you are learning about and print a color page instead. 

     That's it for this week, folks. Stay tuned for Part 3 when our "Semester of Science - The Human Body" concludes with experiments about the brain, lungs, intestine and nervous system.

     What would you like some "hands on" ideas about? Drop me a line in the comment section below or email me bethany@lds-nha.org.

You CAN Teach Your Child

 First, a story . . .

    From day one of second grade I knew, my daughter was going to really struggle.  It seemed that before she could even unpack her school supplies the evaluations and conferences began.  Her scores were alarmingly low on assignments and tests and yet she didn't seem to even care.  She seemed almost oblivious to what the rest of us knew, "Something was wrong with her."  

     The weeks marched on.  Test after test came back "normal" for eye sight, dyslexia, learning disabilities, ADD, etc.  I cringe to think what she must have felt while her own Mother and a team of doctors, administrators and professionals tried to put a label on her shortcomings.  Dead end after dead end resulted in frustration and desperation.  I was sending my daughter to school every day for eight hours while she sat detached and not learning or absorbing what was being taught.  Despite the best efforts of her school, a  great school with an amazing staff, she was not thriving.  It was then that the thought came to my mind, "If she doesn't pass second grade, I will have to homeschool her."

     I was terrified.  I always found it a rather bold assertion that a mother thought she was qualified to teach her child when she had received no professional training.  How could she possibly be equally as equipped as the professionals that had gotten a degree and had the experience of teaching in a classroom day in and day out?  I was more than intimidated at the idea of teaching my own child.  Homework had been such a nightmarish exchange filled with threats, emotional outbursts (by both parent and child), a battle of wills, and superhuman patience that I could not imagine doing it all day!   I ignored the prompting for months.  I looked for another way out with desperation but it just kept coming back, "You are going to have to homeschool her." 

   I had a conversation with a friend that has stuck with me.  I said, "How can I add anything more to my plate?"  Her response was this.  "You are not adding to your plate, you are going to get a whole new plate."   The idea of this "new plate" was alluring.  I was so tired of the one I had.  I felt like a failure every day as I struggled to help fill in the gaps after school.  

     Second grade came to an end and you know, they even passed her.  But, in my heart I knew that she wasn't ready for the third grade.  So, I made the decision to homeschool and I have learned a thing or two about "true vs. truth."

     "True VS. Truth"

True:     Teachers have a lot of experience.  They work with children every day.  They have been trained on how to present information and make lesson plans and create a scope and sequence.  There are some amazing teachers out there who my child could benefit from.   I do not have the same kind of training or experience. 

Truth:     Teaching my child is more instinctual than I could ever imagine.  I know my child better than anyone knows my child and I know what he/she is capable of and I won't settle for less.  A teacher may accept that my child is incapable of doing a certain level of work but I, as her mother, know better.  

True:  I am completely overwhelmed with my life already.  I have so much to do and no time to do it.  Homework is a major struggle and we are not successful when I try to help her.  

Truth:  Believe it or not, homeschooling is a way to simplify my life.  I am free to create my own schedule around what works best for me and my child.  We can work in the morning when both of us have energy and patience rather than at the end of the night when we are both exhausted.  Homeschooling takes the pressure off of measuring up to what the school wants my child to learn and helps me to work on ONLY the things that are essential.  This gives us MORE time and allows us to cater her work to her level her interests and her abilities.   I feel less stressed now that I am in control and have a complete understanding of my child's academic strengths and limitations.  

True:  I do not know what to teach.  I am afraid that I will ruin my child and she will never graduate from high school or go to college.  

Truth:  I can learn.  There are amazing resources available.  I had to start over in first grade work with my third grader and by fourth grade she was back on grade level.  I have the ability to work with my child on her level.  This enables us to go at her own pace.  We can gain much more ground when we aren't trying to keep up with the other kids in her class.  At school she was sitting through an entire day and getting only thirty minutes of special attention to work on her challenges.  Now she has special attention every day, all day and she is able to make progress at a much faster pace. 

True:  I can't imagine being with my children all day every day!  I need a break!

Truth:  Homechooling looks and feels different.  I learned how to be with my kids and my kids learned how to be with each other.  We learned how to go grocery shopping and to the doctor's office without killing each other.  I learned how to have more patience.  I actually enjoy being with my kids more than I ever thought I would.  

True:  My child loves the social aspect of school.  I couldn't possibly take that away from her. 

Truth:  My daughter has more friends now than she ever did at school.  She goes to theater, art, and science classes.  I take her to park days and field trips.  She is even involved in a tween club that gets together to do arts and crafts.  She has had more fun homeschooling and has interacted with more friends than she ever did at school.  

True:  I never thought I would homeschool my kids.  I don't think I am the kind of mom that can handle that kind of lifestyle. 

Truth:  I LOVE homeschooling.  I AM the kind of mom that can homeschool her kids!  Homeschooling has been one of the most natural transitions in my life.  It is hard.  I have had to push myself to the outer limits of my abilities.  But, I have been blessed tenfold!  

So what is the truth?  

If I CAN teach my child, You CAN teach your child!  

I hope you too can discover this truth, dear reader.  

Learn more about Nicole.

The Children's Songbook - A Homeschool Handbook

I have the best calling in the whole church. I get to have all the enjoyment of being with the cute primary kids without the responsibility of keeping little bodies reverent during the painful third hour of church. I am the primary pianist. 

My favorite part of this calling is listening to the kids sing from the Children's Songbook. In my life I have felt the love of God and received messages from his Holy Spirit more clearly through those simple songs than in any other way.

So, it shouldn't have surprised me as I sat behind the piano last Sunday when a homeschool problem I needed divine help with was answered through a simple children’s song. I've been thinking since then about the messages that the Children’s Songbook has for homeschoolers, and I have found so many! Let me share some of my favorites.

Teach Me to Walk in the Light (#177)

This song has plenty that applies to teaching our children, but the second verse popped out to me this time. “Come little child and together we’ll learn.” A common reason parents are afraid to homeschool is they don’t think they know enough or don’t feel qualified to teach. But homeschooling (and Earth life) is not about becoming an expert before you begin. It is about learning and growing as a family. I think my oldest was smarter than me before he was five, but that doesn't mean I can’t be his teacher. It doesn't matter if you never learned to diagram a sentence or completely failed algebra. When you homeschool you learn and grow together (and find yourself motivated like never before to conquer algebra).

You Don't Have to Push a Handcart (#218)

The song says, “You don’t have to push a handcart to be a pioneer...You DO have to have great courage, and faith to conquer fear. And work with might for a cause that’s right, to be a pioneer.” Although, in recent years homeschooling seems to be more widely accepted and less “weird”, many of us are exploring a completely new lifestyle with homeschooling. It can be difficult and there may be family or social opposition. I receive the most opposition from my own self doubts. But pioneering through the tough spots is homeschool at its best. I can’t count the times that things have gotten hard and I have wanted to give up on this crazy idea of teaching my own kids. But it never fails, after the rocky parts come the beautiful vistas of success and I am glad I didn't give up. I’m hoping that my children will be able to learn from my mistakes and can be better teachers to their children because of the path I've paved for them as a homeschool pioneer.

Search Ponder and Pray (#109)

The first thing every homeschooler does after deciding to homeschool is fret about what curriculum to use. There are thousands of options, which is what I love (and hate) about homeschooling. Sorting through the endless possibilities can be daunting. A homeschool mentor of mine asked me (after I had read every book I could find on choosing curriculum) if I had prayed for help yet. Embarrassed I said, “I hadn't thought of that!” I think I was worried about coming to the Lord with small decisions. But I’ve since learned that the Lord can guide us to help his children. He does care about the little details that are important to us, because teaching His children is important to Him. It’s good to read and study and search curriculum and philosophy so the Lord can guide us to the materials that will help our kids. “The Spirit will guide.”

Every Star is Different (#142)

This sweet primary song reminds us that everyone is unique. It says “Everyone is needed for just what he can do. You’re the only person who ever can be you.” There is no one way to homeschool. There are as many different ways as there are families who do it. Homeschool is constant trial and error. Learning what works for you and your children will take time. I often stress because I am not as consistent and structured as some successful mom’s I know. But one friend said to me she wished she could be spontaneous like me. We all have our strengths. Homeschooling brings out our weaknesses, to be sure, but it also helps us grow. Co-ops are a great way to team up with other homeschoolers and benefit from one another’s strengths and interests.

I'm Trying to be Like Jesus (#78)

Jesus loved the little children. He made time for them. He blessed them. And he taught them. We can try to be like Jesus by following in His ways. We can learn from Jesus, the master teacher, as we embark on our journey of becoming educators to our families. We can study the lessons he taught and learn to teach with love and simplicity as he did. We can learn from his example how to teach to multiple levels at once through the use of stories and questioning. Best of all we can learn to be “gentle and loving in deed and in thought” and prepare as a family for the “day of gladness when Jesus comes again.”

I’m SO Glad When Daddy Comes Home! (#210)

Thankfully I have a spouse who is able to provide so that I can be home to teach my kids. But there are days when I have had just a little TOO much togetherness and “I’m so glad when daddy comes home” so I can hide in the closet and rock in the fetal position while the little darlings suck the life out of a fresh adult. Phew! If you don’t have a spouse to share the load, be extra careful about arranging time for yourself to regroup. Trading babysitting with a friend, asking a visiting teacher for help, or finding a hobby you can use to “escape” are great ways to renew yourself so you do not burn out.

I’m all Made of Hinges (#277)

“But we have to have hinges or else we will, crack!” Homeschoolers have to learn to be flexible. Don’t stress if things don’t work out as planned. I think as a general rule things don’t work out as planned in our homeschool. Certain times and phases of life will require different kinds of schooling. People get sick, appointments come up, life happens. It’s okay to coast when you need to and roll with life’s punches when family trials throw off your groove.

Saturday is a Special Day (#196)

I can have a clean house or be a nice mom. But not both. It has taken me several years of reconditioning to learn to “close one eye” to messes. By lowering my expectations for the daily state of the house, my homeschool efforts are much more successful. We pick up a bit throughout the week, but we save the big chores for Saturday mornings and put our house back together. Then we can have a peaceful Sunday and are ready to tear it up again Monday. (Visit us on a Friday at your own risk!)

If You Chance to Meet a Frown (#267)

Even though homeschool is the most fun, and you will have the time of your life, some days just stink. And homeschooling can get intense. There is wisdom in the words “If you chance to meet a frown, do not let it stay. Quickly turn it upside down and smile that frown away.” The only attitude we can change is our own, but smiles are contagious and bring light and happiness; and where there is light, darkness cannot exist. Even if we don’t feel like smiling we can turn a bad day right by finding the humor in it and counting our blessings. We will “make the world a better place by smiling all the while.”

I am a Child of God (#2)

Despite my best efforts I always fall short of what I think my family needs or deserves. I find comfort in the very first song in the Children’s Songbook. It says, “I am a child of God, and he has sent me here. Has given me an earthly home...” God is my father and he gave me the chance to come to earth and have a family. He will lead me and guide me. He will walk beside and me and help me find the way to teach the special Spirits He has entrusted to my care.

Along with the sweet children’s voices, I will be listening carefully to the Still Small Voice as I sit behind the piano in Primary this Sunday. I am sure there are many more messages that await in that little blue book for me.

Learn More about Jana.