Front Page News, Target Free Museum Days, Burn-Out
By Heather Idoni
Added Thursday, April 30, 2009
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The Homeschooler's Notebook
Encouragement and Advice for Homeschool Families
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Vol. 10 No 34 April 30, 2009
ISSN: 1536-2035
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Copyright (c) 2009 - Heather Idoni, FamilyClassroom.net
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Welcome to the Homeschooler's Notebook!
If you like this newsletter, please recommend it to a friend!
And please visit our sponsors! They make it possible.
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IN THIS ISSUE:
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Notes from Heather
-- Reader's Son Enters Contest
Helpful Tip
-- Target Free Museum Days
Winning Website
-- Today's Front Page News
Reader Question
-- Homeschool Burn-Out
Additional Notes
-- Newsletter Archives
-- Sponsorship Information
-- Reprint Information
-- Subscriber Information
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Notes from Heather
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Support a Homeschooled Student to Win a National Competition!
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[One of our readers, Faith, wrote to me this week about her son's
adventures entering a poster competition. I think you will enjoy
the story -- and I hope you will take the time to vote for him!]
"I homeschool my four boys in the state of PA, which has a lot
of homeschooling rules to follow. Among them, we are required
to teach the various aspects of safety each year. Looking for
a creative way to fulfill this obligation, I stumbled across the
Sunwise organization, founded by MLB pitcher Curt Shilling's wife,
Shondra. Having survived skin cancer in her 30's, Shondra made
it her passion to educate people about the dangers of the sun.
To this end, the organization offers a poster competition to
students between kindergarten and eighth grade.
Delighted, I coaxed my oldest son, an eighth grader, into drawing
an entry for submission. Armed with a stack of drawing books from
the library, Toffer spent weeks putting together his poster, and
was on track to complete it on time. However, two days before the
mail-in deadline, tragedy struck. He burst into the room where I
was putting his younger brother to bed, clutching his drawing and
holding his squirming three-year-old brother under one arm.
'Look what he did! He's ruined it!' he cried. Indeed, Toffer's
entry was now enhanced with scribbles in both colored pencil and
permanent marker. 'I quit', he declared. 'I can never redo it
in time.' Once the other boys were safely in bed, I sat down with
Toffer.
'Don't give up', I encouraged him. 'Just trace your original, and
redraw the rest. I'll stay up and keep you company.' Grudgingly,
he got to work; at his age, staying up late still has some appeal.
'You'll look back on this and laugh someday', I offered. 'Just
maybe not today.'
Long after my night-owl husband had retired for the night, we
stayed up working. It was almost fun... almost. The next day, I
excused Toffer from his regular school work so he could complete
his entry. By the following evening, it was done. By the next
morning, it was mailed.
Then, rather unexpectedly, we received an email stating that
Toffer's entry had won first place in the state! On-line voting
to win the national competition began immediately, and will conclude
May 10, 2009.
As a homeschooler, we saw immediately how difficult it would be to
solicit votes outside a public school network. Toffer has determined
that any chance he has of winning is truly in God's hands. Through
it all he has learned a lesson or two about perserverence, and now
has to see what his faith is all about –- win or lose.
If you are willing to support Toffer, please vote for entry #27 at
the following link (click to see posters in the middle of the page):
http://shadefoundation.org/index.php/programs/2009-poster-contest/
Thanks, and happy homeschooling!"
-- Faith C. in Pennsylvania
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Do you have comments to share? Please do!
Send your emails to: mailto:heather@familyclassroom.net
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Helpful Tip
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Free Museum Days
"Here is a list of Target sponsored Free Museum Days for many
states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Washington D.C., Florida,
Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington
-- throughout 2009."
http://sites.target.com/site/en/corporate/page.jsp?contentId=PRD03-002065
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Do you have an idea, experience, or tip to share? Please write!
Send to: mailto:HN-ideas@familyclassroom.net
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Winning Website
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The Newseum - Today's Front Pages
http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/flash/
Put a twist on your geography and/or current events studies with
this great site that gives you front page news from all over the
world! See how what makes 'headline news' differs from Detroit to
Los Angeles... or Jamaica to New Zealand!
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Last Issue's Reader Question
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"I've been homeschooling for many, many years. I love my children
and what I do, but I am tired. I know God has given me this wonderful
opportunity but I've never felt up to the task. Can you give me some
suggestions for putting new wind in my sails and the children's?
Every time I see a book now -- or know I have to tackle another
'learning issue' -- I get a knot in my stomach." -- J.S.
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Our Readers' Responses
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"Dear J.S. -- I know how you feel. I also feel that God told me to
take my children out of school. I couldn't get comfortable with any
other type of schooling. And what made things worse was reading
about all these mums that do all these wonderful things with their
kids. I prayed and searched -- and then I believe that God showed
me that I needed to see that my kids need a stable and unstressed
approach. I found UNSCHOOLING -- now this is just right for me.
Try these sites -- I felt so good after reading this and I knew it
was the answer for me!
http://www.unschooling.com/library/faq/index.shtml
http://home-educate.com/unschooling/deschooling.htm
http://www.unschooling.org/
http://www.naturalchild.com/guest/earl_stevens.html
Type unschooling or deschooling into Google and then RELAX. I hope
this helps you!" -- Michaela
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"From personal experience, I have to say I was quite overwhelmed with
twins in their Junior year of high school, a 3rd grader, a toddler
and a nursing baby. I felt guilty about not getting in my Bible study,
we weren't finishing anything -- and now we are starting to talk about
college when we aren't even caught up from having the baby a year
before.
What did we do? Well, we started out with the third grader reading
his Bible to me. We both get in the Word and God -- and that provides
the strength I need to get into the day. That is the ONE and ONLY
thing that will get you on track. Then, since the older ones are on
different schedules (one is in 1/2 day public school and the other is
in part-time correspondence), we went to unit studies. After a couple
of those we finally felt like we might be able to get back to the
task at hand. Now, whenever we feel tired and overwhelmed, we turn
back to the Word and go get a unit study.
God bless you and yours." -- Marlena G.
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Answer our NEW Question
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"Hi -- I have two boys that I have homeschooled since birth. My
oldest is in the eighth grade and will be starting high school
next year. I have been feeling very inadequate lately. My son
has always been above average since pre-school, but ever since
he has begun to go through puberty, he has been making loads of
careless mistakes in his subjects, especially Pre-Algebra. He will
take a test in math and end up failing it; not because he doesn't
know how to do the problem, but because of something careless like
multiplying 3+2 instead of adding. The really odd thing is that
when I put the same problem on the dry erase board and have him
work it again in front of me, he always gets the correct answer.
I am so frustrated with him because I feel like if he can get the
problem correct when working it in front of me, then why can't he
get it correct when it really matters, like on his tests? No matter
how many things we have tried, nothing seems to be helping him pay
more attention. For the past two years, his standardized tests
have shown this 'weakness' of his. I am concerned that 'people'
will think I am not teaching him anything! I have told him that
as far as anyone else knows, he just doesn't know how to do the
problem at all; not that he made a tiny, careless mistake that
caused him to get the entire problem wrong. I am at my wit's end.
Please -- someone out there tell me this is just hormones, and that
the fog will lift off of his brain by the time he goes into the
ninth grade. I can't keep homeschooling him like this. I am
feeling the pressure of people in our life wondering why I don't
just put him in public school so he can learn something before I
ruin him for life. The only reason people in our community know
that he is struggling with math is that things come up occasionally
in conversation with him that make him end up looking very foolish.
He has a hard time with careless mistakes even in thinking real
world word problems out loud. It isn't that he doesn't know how
to work them out because I know he does! Help!!! Any suggestions
would be most welcome; we have tried everything." -- Very Discouraged
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Would you like to encourage our discouraged friend?
Please send your answer to: mailto:HN-answers@familyclassroom.net
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Ask YOUR Question
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Do you have a question you would like our readers to answer?
Send it to mailto:HN-questions@familyclassroom.net and we'll see
if we can help you out in a future issue!
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Need Immediate Help?
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Visit our Homeschool Encouragement Center! This is a live 24/7
'chat' area where you can talk live to our homeschool counselors
by typing in a box. When you get there, just introduce yourself
and let them know that Heather sent you!
This ultra-safe chat is supervised by experienced moms who are
there to serve and share their wisdom... or just offer a listening
ear and encouragement.
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