Free Time for Homeschoolers

When people ask me how much time I spend homeschooling, it's hard to answer. Do you include family work? Do you want me to count music practice? What about time spent reading?

And what about free time? At first, I'm sure you'd say no, but free time is actually something I'm pretty passionate about. Kids need time to just play, create, explore, and be kids.

Today, for example, I was doing some dishes after lunch. Usually, I recruit help from all my little eaters, but I looked around and decided not to disrupt them.

Bubs was at the piano, picking out the Star Wars theme song by ear.

Welly was writing a retelling of Cinderella.

Why-Why was actually vacuuming for me.

OK...so I did ask Why to vacuum, but Bubs and Welly were using their free time for great creative pursuits that they chose to do.

There's so much power in choice, isn't there? When we choose to play an instrument, write a story, or whatever else we may choose to do, don't you think we get so much more out of it than if we were just fulfilling an assignment?

The Cat of Bubastes by G. A. Henty

We read The Cat of Bubastes by G. A. Henty as part of Family School.

I've heard many homeschoolers recommend G. A. Henty's books, because they are well-researched historical novels. This was our first experience reading one.

The Cat of Bubastes takes place in Ancient Egypt in about 1200 BC.

Amuba is the prince of the Rebu, when Egypt comes and conquers his people. His father dies in battle, and his mother poisons herself in her despair. Amuba is taken to Egypt as a slave, where he serves a kind master, Ameres, the High Priest of Osiris.

In Egypt, he becomes friends with Chebron, the boy he is assigned to serve. When Chebron accidentally kills the sacred cat of Bubastes, the boys are forced to flee.

This story is full of adventure, morals, a tiny bit of romance, and intrigue.

This book made an entertaining read-aloud, but I think kids would have a hard time getting through it on their own. Bubs (9) and Welly (7) really enjoyed it, but one chapter per day was enough. Wy (4) sometimes felt like a chapter was more than he could handle.

We learned a lot from this book...a lot about Ancient Egyptian culture. It's also a fabulous coming-of-age type story.

Our Current Reading

I'm usually a One-Book-at-a-Time kinda girl, but at the moment I'm all over the place.

As much of a reader as I've been over the last decade, I feel like my eyes are just beginning to open, and I feel this thirst for more knowledge...and it feels good.

Right now, I'm making my way through...

Non-LDS Books


The Cat of Bubastes by G. A. Henty-There's so much to learn from his historical fiction. Wow! Makes a great read-aloud. Long at times, I admit, but it's quite the adventure. We're all enjoying it.


Les Miserables by Victor Hugo-So great when I read it, but I find myself drawn to other books first.


LDS Books


10 Critical Keys for Highly Effective Mormon Families by William Dyer and Philip Kunz-Interesting look at what successful families do.


The Infinite Atonement by Tad R. Callister-Beautiful. Great insights.


The Temple Experience by Wendy Ulrich-Haven't read much yet, but I'm hoping that it will help me get more out of my temple experiences.



That's it at the moment. What are you reading?

LDS Homeschool Conference Notes

On Saturday, I went to the Latter-day Learning Conference at American Heritage School, and my cup is full. What a great day! I feel on fire with excitement.

The morning began with an inspiring keynote address by Nick Gentile. Here are some of my notes.

• Doctrine and Covenants 29:34- All things are spiritual; God never gave us a law that was only temporal.
• In the Doctrine and Covenants manual, it says that man makes the distinction between temporal and spiritual, not God.
• Elder Wirthlin, at the October 2007 General Conference said that God sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming.
• Referenced the talk, An Education for Real Life, by President Henry B. Eyring.
• Described the 4R-ing system to learning: Research, Reason, Relate, Record.
• Make SMART goals: specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, time-bound.

For the first breakout sessions, I listened to Jane Mack and Nannette Wiggins, who spoke about how The Family School curriculum came to be. It has been a long and time-consuming process that is blessing the lives of many! They talked about "laying the Gospel as the foundation of every subject". It was an interesting class, but I didn't take many notes, I'm afraid.

During the second session, I heard from Lauri Updike, a teacher at American Heritage School. 

• Peculiar people are His treasure.
• Neil Flinders, author of Teach the Children: An Agency Approach to Education , said that true religion includes ALL the Lord has given us.
• We should treat our kids as children of God. Assume the best of them. Have high expectations.
• Use primary sources and prophetic quotes to find truth.
• Study the meaning behind words. 1. Dictionary 2. Words of living Prophets 3. Scriptures 4. Reason out a personal definition relating it to your own life.
• 4Rs help us self-govern.
• We want Christ "written in the fleshy tables of our hearts".

After the second session, I went out to a delicious lunch with a couple friends. My friend, Liz, highly recommends the book, 10 critical keys for highly effective Mormon families.

After lunch, Ruel Haymond gave an incredible class, entitled Like it or Not, Likening is the Key.

• The natural man in each of us wants to liken unto everyone except ourselves.
• It's easy to read and think, "Those dumb Nephites. If they could only see!" We need to apply to our own lives instead.
• We can overcome the natural man through hope in Christ.
• Recommends the book, TO END ALL WARS
  by Ernest Gordon and the documentary, Miracle on the River Kwai.

Next, I heard Diann Jeppson speak about Family Devotionals.

• Her family likes to "play missionary". Diann pretends to be an investigator and asks kids questions about the Church. They are supposed to incorporate an Article of Faith in their answer.
• Possible Building Blocks of devotional include: prayer, song, memorizing scriptures, Our Heritage, Teaching the Topics of Themes (her personal favorite**), True to the Faith (older kids), scriptures, spelling, creative writing, inspiring quotes, locate a couple places on a map, recite family mission statement or a family cheer, Pledge of Allegiance, Monday Morning at the Movies (watch a conference talk), read a family history story, manners, etc.
• Strategies: 1. Food is a great gatherer. 2. Give people something to do with their hands. (coloring, knitting, crochet, carving, fixing something...) 3. Be consistent, even when it has to be short. 4. Tell stories in your own words.

Lastly, I chose to listen to an experienced panel of homeschoolers.

1. To motivate your children:

• Praise them.
• Be sure your requirements are worthwhile.
• Take a long-term view.
• Set the stage with older kids.
• Work and play WITH them.
• Give stars or beans in a jar for every time they happily say, "Sure, Mom. I'd be glad to." Let them earn ice cream or field trips.

2. Favorite things about homeschooling:

• Time spent together.
• Great discussions because they learn to be good conversationalists.
• Kids become your friends.

3. Take time for yourself. Even the Savior left the press of the multitude to go apart.

Those are my notes. I'm kind of a conference junkie. I love days like this, when I can go fill my cup to overflowing and come home refreshed and ready to stretch and grow.

Emily blogs at Homespun Light, where she talks about books, homeschool, books, religion, crafts, and books.

(I wrote this post for Latter-day Homeschooling. If you are an LDS homeschooler, you'll definitely want to check it out!)

I Have A Dream for My Four Children

For Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we watched the I Have a Dream speech on YouTube and wrote our own speeches.

I would like to share my dreams for my children...

I Have A Dream

I have a dream that my four children will grow up to love God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I have a dream that because of this love, they will love others and treat them as their brothers and sisters in Christ.

I have a dream that my four children will yearn for truth and righteousness, that they may be filled with knowledge and hunger for more. I hope that their knowledge will bring them success as they journey through life, that they may have the things they need for themselves and their families.

I have a dream that they will understand that truth is eternal, and that the Holy Spirit can and will guide their learning and deepen their understanding, that it may be a great blessing to them in this life, as well as in the life to come.

I have a dream that my four children will have fulfilling personal relationships, especially with their family members, and of course, with the Lord, for all of these relationships can last forever.

I have a dream that they will find happiness here on Earth and eternal joy in Heaven.

Book Review: Liberty Lee's Tail of Independence by Peter W. Barnes and Cheryl Shaw Barnes

As you know, I've been a blog-slacker lately. Who knew that having four kids and a big house would be so time-consuming? Anyway, publishers have been asking me to review various titles, and I've been passing most of them by. Sad, but true.

However, when I was asked to participate in the blog tour for Liberty Lee's Tail of Independence, I didn't want to say no. I'm always looking for fun ways to teach my kids about important subjects. The founding of the United States of America is a very important subject to me.

Liberty Lee's Tail of Independence is a picture book narrated by a mouse named Liberty Lee. He takes us on a journey through the history of our beloved country.


The story is both informative and interesting. It is written in rhyme. Rhyming can be tricky, especially when trying to pack it full of facts, but the author/illustrator team, Peter and Cheryl Barnes, do a surprisingly good job combining the two.


On the first page, we meet Liberty Lee. Then he jumps into his "tail":


"To begin, let's go back more than 400 years
To meet the first settlers--the first pioneers.
Across the Atlantic from England they came
To seek opportunity, fortune, and fame!"

He then goes to the 13 colonies, the Boston Tea Party, the Revolution, and the Declaration of Independence. It's a great overview for children who are learning about our history.

After the story, there are 7 pages called "The Tail End" that describe the events mentioned in the book in more detail.

Although I enjoyed the character Liberty Lee, I think the book might be a more effective learning tool without mixing fantasy and history. When the mouse mentioned his fictitious ancestors, it threw me off for a minute. Here's an example:

"There were carpenters, shopkeepers, sailors at sea,
And farmers--like my uncle, Hamilton Lee.

At planting tobacco, you'd find no one better--
He worked any farm that would pay him in cheddar!"

In contrast, I love the section about the Continental Congress writing the Declaration. Here's part of it:

"They debated, and then on the 4th of July,
In 1776, they said, "Aye!"--
They voted together, with great dedication,
For liberty, freedom, and starting a nation.

Fifty-six patriots signed right below
The powerful words they decided would show
That these United States would forever be
One nation, under God, independent and free!"


PS. Happy Birthday to our Country (this month) and to me (today).  :)

Thoughts on the Meaning of Education

It's difficult for me to encapsulate my definition of education because education is everywhere in everything. It is life. It's growth. It's improvement. Education is so much more than school (or home school), which is merely one structure from which we aim to become educated.

Education, to me, is placing ourselves, and those we are responsible for, on the path of eternal progression, and moving forward. All light and knowledge are part of this. There is no division between temporal and spiritual. All truth is God's truth. In this way, there is no end to education. There is no graduation from eternal progression.

Part of our eternal path, is to gain success in our earthly life. I feel that my role as a mother is to help my kids obtain success here that will prepare them for this life, and in turn, for the eternities.

This includes, but is not limited to:

1. Building Christlike attributes and character.
2. Loving and understanding the Gospel.
3. Being exposed to a broad base of knowledge, with deep understanding of topics of interest, talent, and passion.
4. Realizing personal life mission.
5. Possessing skills that will enable them to support themselves and their families when/if necessary.
6. Embracing God-given gender roles.

When people ask me what we do for home school, it's difficult for me to explain. We don't structure it like public school. It's a life style of learning. I like to call it Life Education.

Happy Learning!

Plastic Easter Egg Caterpillar

Do you still have plastic Easter Eggs hanging around?

Look at this cute craft my Bubs came up with.

It's as easy as it looks. Just string up your egg-halves, keeping them all the same direction until the last one. (You may have to make some of the holes bigger with a pen.) We used a nylon cord that doesn't stretch. It allows some movement but it doesn't allow for separation of the segments.

Make a little knot on each end and trim the excess.

Don't forget the happy face.  :)

Smiling, Happy Faces

Let's be honest. One of the reasons I love to homeschool, is so that I can see these smiling, happy faces any time I want!

I am quite biased, but I LOVE these four faces. And I LOVE being their mama.

And yes, being a stay-at-home mom is work...the most rewarding kind.

Unwanted Halloween Candy

I'm the first to admit that Halloween isn't my favorite holiday. BUT...our jello worms did turn out amazing. The idea came from Divine Dinner Party, which I found via Pinterest. 

Daddy took the kids Trick-or-Treating, while I handed out candy to a fairly small trickle of little neighbors. I opened a huge, Costco-sized bag of chocolate bars just in time for the very last Trick-or-Treater. So, the next day, let's just say, I was less-than-thrilled by the sugar overload around here.

So today, for our morning Mini-Lesson, we did some Candy Experiments. (I'm pleased to announce that we got rid of quite a lot of candy before the kids realized what I was really up to.)

For this first one, you simply put M&Ms or Skittles (the more, the merrier) letter-side up in a bowl of water. Can you see the floating Ms in there? It takes a few minutes for them to separate, but it's very cool.

 Then we mixed candy colors.

Yellow candies+Blue candies=

Red + Blue=

And finally, Yellow+Red=

Tastiness, apparently.

Then, we tested tons of candies to see if they sink or float. That was Y's favorite. He must have put 8 packs of M&Ms in there. (Yes!)

Bubs and Welly had a competition. They each chose 6 candies. Whoever had more floaters was the winner. And the winner is...

Bubs did float a few wrappers, though.

It turned out to be a very fun Mini Lesson, made a small dent in our candy (Oh My!), and wrapped up our fun Halloween festivities.

Fishing in Bolivia

Yep. You read that right. Robby went fishing in Bolivia. Here are a few of his (amazing) pictures.

The pictures of natives intrigued the kids and I, so we are working on a report (in magazine form) about them. They are the Tsimane people. The Tsimane still live a hunterer-gatherer life and are relatively secluded from all others. Their language (also called Tsimane) is exclusive to them. They live off fish and monkeys, for the most part, and they live in straw huts. Fascinating. Robby said they seem like happy people.

You know what? Robby would be appalled that I included so few pictures of his fish. He had an amazing time. Many thanks to his friend, Buzz, for taking him on this adventure! I'll add one more fish, so I don't get busted.  :) This was caught on one of the THREE HUNDRED flies he tied before he left...