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Spacing – Day 2

May 16, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear Brain Trust,

I have kids far apart, how do I teach them all?

Love,
Confused in Cleveland

 

Snow:

Dear Confused in Cleveland,

Take Bull’s advice! Schedule, jobs, pass the buck… Sounds like a plan!
Spacing Day 2

My girls are 5 grades apart but we do more together than you would think. Anything that is on audio, we listen to together, mostly because we do that in the car, and they are trapped like mice! I have them read to each other, too. I have a schedule where I get one started with something and send them on their way. Then, I get the next one started on a subject. I juggle having them work on the things they can do independently while the other is doing the subject they need me to teach. I alternate back and forth. If I had more than 2 kids, I imagine it would work similarly. The older they get, the more I see them being independent for longer amounts of time. This all helps with my one goal in life: an uninterrupted shower!.

Grace & Peace,
Snow

Read what Bull had to say about spacing yesterday here

Hyacinth shares tomorrow, May 17th! Be sure to check back!

Filed Under: Fears, Home Management, Relationships, Snow, Time Management, Uncategorized
Spacing – Day 1

Spacing – Day 1

May 15, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear Brain Trust,

I have kids far apart, how do I teach them all?

Love,
Confused in Cleveland

 

Bull:
Dear Confused,

Three things instantly come to mind: develop an efficient schedule, treat it like the Holy Grail, and give those kids jobs. As for your schedule, put the most important subjects at the top of the list. What are the most important subjects? Heck, I don’t know – that’s your call! If you want me to start bossing you around, which is something I usually reserve for my closest pals, I’m going to have to charge something. So, let’s get back to the free stuff. When you’ve developed a schedule that works for you, stick to it. You don’t have time to waste, so don’t waste any! Stay off the phone, the computer, the TV, and allow your wisely-devised schedule to work for you. Then, give your kids a job. Your olders can certainly lend a hand with grunt work. Have them check the youngers’ math facts, administer spelling tests, listen to read-alouds. The thought of passing the buck on read-alouds make me g-g-g-g-giddy! ;)

Bull

Read Snow’s thoughts tomorrow, May 16th…

Hyacinth shares her perspective on Thursday, May 17th…

Filed Under: Bull, Fears, Home Management, Relationships, Time Management, Uncategorized

What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 4

May 10, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear BT,

My kids are so different; do I need to find different ways to teach them?

Love,
Learning Styles in Lincoln

 

Doodle:

Dear Learning from Lincoln,

I have five kids and am continually amazed at their differences. They each have their specific quirks, twitches and cowlicks. Yep, they are unique and weird, and I love (or at least appreciate) most all of it. So, even though I don’t doubt that there are a Heinz 57 of learning styles, I frankly don’t have time to cater to them. So, I try to expend my energy on passion. As I look back to some of the learning experiences that most shaped me, I realize those teachers didn’t know my “learning style,” yet their passion and joy over the subject matter is what ignited and changed me. Of course, every lesson will not be a passionate one, but hopefully our “joy to learn” as we teach our children is transferred to them. My goal is to pass on a true sense of wonder and discovery about this world we live in, which, I believe, can reach every learning style.

Love Dood

Click here to read Bull’s thoughts from Monday!

Find Snow’s post from Tuesday here

Read Hyacinth’s words of encouragment from yesterday here

Filed Under: Curriculum, Doodle, Fears, Uncategorized, Vision

What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 3

May 9, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear BT,

My kids are so different; do I need to find different ways to teach them?

Love,
Learning Styles in Lincoln

 

Hyacinth:
Dear Learning Styles in Lincoln,

One of the beautiful things about homeschooling is that we can zero in on what seems to work well with each child; it’s remarkably efficient in that way! However, I’m a little wary about always making things easy for my kids. That’s not the way “real life” works, and I want them to be able to function when they emerge from our homeschooling cocoon.

I think we underestimate the brain’s ability to adapt, and if we always make things easy to learn, then we shortchange the brain’s capacity to tackle difficult challenges. Honestly, I don’t worry about catering to a child’s learning style unless they just can’t grasp something. In that instance, I then start trying out some alternative methods/tricks that might involve the other learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic).

Peace be with you,
Hyacinth

Click here to read Bull’s thoughts from Monday!

Find Snow’s post from yesterday here

Doodle ties a nice bow on it for us tomorrow, May 10th…

Filed Under: Curriculum, Fears, Hyacinth, Pitfalls, Relationships, Uncategorized
What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 2

What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 2

May 8, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear BT,

My kids are so different; do I need to find different ways to teach them?

Love,
Learning Styles in Lincoln

 

Snow:

Dear Learning Styles in Lincoln,

I always wonder what the one room school houses did about different learning styles. When thinking about home educating, you have to think of it more like a one room school house vs. our modern, age-based educational system. My girls learn very differently, but they learn together. My 1st grader benefits from hearing her sister say her times tables. My 6th grader benefits from hearing her sister review simple spelling rules. I don’t bend over backwards to teach differently. I think your best bet is to teach them how to learn, and to love learning. Their learning style needs will naturally be met when those things are in place.

Grace and peace,
Snow

Click here to read what Bull had to say yesterday!

Hyacinth weighs in tomorrow, May 9th…

Doodle wraps it up on Thursday, May 10th…

Filed Under: Curriculum, Fears, Snow, Uncategorized
What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 1

What’s the fuss about learning styles? – Day 1

May 7, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

Dear BT,

My kids are so different; do I need to find different ways to teach them?

Love,
Learning Styles in Lincoln

 

Bull:

Dear Learning Styles in Lincoln,

Sure, if you have the time and desire, why not? But I wouldn’t say you need to unless your child is incapable of learning otherwise. I use a variety of methods when teaching my children — not playing to their preferences so much as trying to strengthen what is taught by involving different parts of the brain. I see a lot of value in fulfilling our children’s needs, but not so much in catering to their desires.

Bull

Reda Snow’s thoughts tomorrow, May 8th…

Hyacinth shares her perspective on Wednesday, May 9th…

Doodle wraps it up on Thursday, May 10th…

Filed Under: Bull, Curriculum, Fears, Pitfalls, Uncategorized

I’m too crabby to homeschool! – Day 4

May 3, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

I don’t think I have enough patience to homeschool….my kids drive me crazy, is this a problem?

Love,
Impatient Patty

 

Doodle:
Dear Patty,

Wow! The Brain Trust is knocking it out of the park. Bottom line: we live in a microwave, drive-thru, texting society (unless, of course, you live in a place like Southern Sudan…but, even there, cell towers are popping everywhere), and we don’t like to wait.

We want things, and we want them now. In the day of internet, information is ours within seconds. Downloaded music blares through your speakers instantly. Before your microwave popcorn is finished popping, you are underneath your snugglie watching your instantly-streamed movie.

How about children? We want them to obey instantly. We want them to be educated today. We want them to assimilate all of our instruction the first time through. We expect their character to be formed and tested yesterday. MBA and NFL scholarships tomorrow. We forget that things of substance take time. I find that I am the most impatient when my expectations are unrealistic or have somehow been disappointed. The work of training, educating, and loving our children is not completed in five minutes; it takes a lifetime. As you are building patience, you are building a legacy that will last and endure (long past your microwave popcorn).

Love,
Doodle

Click here to read Hyacinth’s encouraging words from Monday!

Find Bull’s post from Tuesday here

Read what Snow said yesterday here

Filed Under: Doodle, Fears, Marriage, Pitfalls, Uncategorized, Vision

I’m too crabby to homeschool! – Day 3

May 2, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

I don’t think I have enough patience to homeschool….my kids drive me crazy, is this a problem?

Love,
Impatient Patty

 

Snow:

Dear Patty,

Raising children is the most sanctifying experience any of us will ever have. When I brought my oldest daughter home to educate, my biggest fear was that one of us wouldn’t survive the experiment. I was surprised to find that the more time we spent together, the more character development happened, for both of us! I was empowered by the ability to be more consistent in my correction. The impact of consistency was undeniable in our home. Now, after 5 years of home educating, it’s hard to remember that overwhelming sense of dread I had over the whole thing. My daughter has grown and matured, and so have I! Now, I still get annoyed from time to time, but I have learned to gather myself and be thankful for this grand experiment we call homeschooling.

Grace and Peace,
Snow

Click here to read Hyacinth’s encouraging words from Monday!

Find Bull’s post from yesterday here

Doodle wraps it up tomorrow, May 3rd…

Filed Under: Fears, Pitfalls, Relationships, Snow, Uncategorized

I’m too crabby to homeschool! – Day 2

May 1, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

I don’t think I have enough patience to homeschool….my kids drive me crazy, is this a problem?

Love,
Impatient Patty

 

Bull:

Dear Crabby Patty,

I’m going to let you in on a little secret, Patty: Every one’s kids drive them up the wall from time to time. It’s just as God planned it. Our children are reflections of us… the good, the bad, and the ugly. The fact that they drive you crazy is even more of a reason to home-school them! Roll up your sleeves, Patty, and get busy shaping the character of your little angels so that they don’t spend the rest of their lives driving the rest of us crazy. You can do it!

Bull

Click here to read Hyacinth’s encouraging words from yesterday!

Snow weighs in tomorrow, May 2nd…

Doodle wraps it up on Thursday, May 3rd…

Filed Under: Bull, Fears, Pitfalls, Relationships, Uncategorized, Vision

I’m too crabby to homeschool! – Day 1

April 30, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Brain Trust,

I don’t think I have enough patience to homeschool….my kids drive me crazy, is this a problem?

Love,
Impatient Patty

 

Hyacinth:

Dear Patty,

I often hear people say this very thing, and I think it’s because people put patience in the same category as eye color or foot size. Here’s the good news – it’s not part of your genetic code! That saying, “patience is a virtue” is true, and since it’s a virtue, it can be developed over time when we commit ourselves to it. Lord knows (does He ever) that I’m imperfectly patient, but I’m better than I used to be. A couple of thoughts have helped me:

1. In the whole scheme of life, how do I want my kids to remember me as their mom and teacher? Red-faced and screaming, snorting like a Pamploma bull? Umm, not so much. So, when I feel myself becoming furious that my fourteenth stab at explaining the greatest common factor is an exercise in futility, I will often just quit. Yep, I quit sometimes. But I do come back later. When I’ve had a chance to think, pray, and eat chocolate, I’ll often have a new trick in my bag o’tricks. Bottom line: keep a long-term perspective and consider that they’ll remember not just what you’ve taught them, but how you taught them.

2. Later, you’ll probably laugh about this catastrophe that is trying your patience, so why not laugh about it right now? Seriously – just move yourself forward in time – it sometimes works!

Peace be with you!
Hyacinth

Keep reading each day to hear from the other Braintrust members!

Bull shares her thoughts tomorrow, May 1st…

Hear from Snow on Wednesday, May 2nd…

Doodle will wrap it up on Thursday, May 3rd…

Filed Under: Fears, Hyacinth, Relationships, Uncategorized, Vision
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