It Is Well With My Soul

It's an unopened box and I'm shaking as I untie the strings of 2016. It's not trepidation, but excitement that quakes me. I have the certitude that my future is already covered by God, long before I was born, and I need only to know His will and walk in His ways to find success. Nothing happens to me that has not already passed through His hands. Years ago when I lay curled in fetal position in depression and heartache, I begged the Lord to heal my spirit and fast-forward me to the day I'd once again feel His joy. I knew it would come. I knew my God had me in the palm of His hand. I knew He was the lifter of my head. That's what kept me going and that's what allows me to stand on the brink of a new year and say, It is well with my soul. Where do you want to take me, Lord?

Skating at the arena my sister Hilary rented for all of us! (Even though I have no photos of her :(  Also missing from the pics are Mom and Bruce.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've exchanged "Happy New Year" about a hundred times--which is a good thing. But the sound of it becomes tiring and loses meaning after about the 37th time. What is it exactly that we are wishing? I think we desire that everyone we love or meet, who is cordial and returns the phrase, does experience happiness in the year that lies before them. But, the happiest of years are those in which one can say, It is well with my soul. They know to Whom they belong and where they are ultimately going (even if they don't know what tomorrow holds). So, Happy New Year, friends... I wish and pray that you know the peace and joy of Jesus in your heart and that 2016 is a year you look back on and see evidence of how He led you and how that made all the difference!

Bring It On

Oh, Summer, how long we've waited for you!

 

Gratitude:

1612. laughter at weddings--my sister and her husband crack each other up

1613. and these two... seriously?

1614. picnics in the woods

1615. hammocking with friends

1616. sharing our favourite spots with some favourite people

1617, for the best two sisters in the world

1618. swinging from willow branches

 

1619. same aged cousins always want to have the same kind of fun

1620. finding a gazillion tadpoles in Mama and Papa's pond

1621. actually getting to take them home to our own :)

1622. how Molly helped the boys scoop them all out 

1623. reuniting with my dear, childhood friend and learning we both have Mollys :)

1624. how precious her little Molly is and how she loves my Emily so much

1625. how hot, sweat-dripping days are better with cousins

1626. the way Caleb retrieved his sister's pen from under the bridge

1627. witnessing the union of two great people under a perfect, blue sky, backdropped against the escarpment

 

Happy first day of Summer!

Bring it on!

 

Day Twenty-One: Educating With Different Genders

He stopped reading mid-sentence and scratched his arm... which reminded him he had biceps... and then he became distracted flexing those beauties. I oohed and aahhed for a moment then traced my finger back over the text to prompt him to commence reading. He continued and I smiled to myself in wonderment over the difference between this young lad and my girls.

 

Gender differences in your homeschool will cause you to stop and scratch your head unless you're aware that not every curriculum or book or activity will smoothly succeed without at least considering gender. I'm so thankful God created boys and girls the way He did. Their contrasting qualities are interesting and awesome to teach. Having three daughters before a son had surely set me on a one-track teaching style. It took some creativity and advice to be able to alter my thinking in educating all four of my children.

 

Some children do not fit the typical gender tendencies and that's delightful too. Keep in mind, your daughters may struggle to pay attention and your boys may exhibit language skills earlier. (Just a note: although I am not presently dealing with learning disabilities,, I've taught learning-challenged kids in school and watched friends and family battle with decisions surrounding these. This is where that homeschool support group is invaluable. You're guaranteed to find another family dealing with the same circumstances to a large or small degree.) I love veteran home educators who have a wealth of wisdom when it comes to various issues I encounter.

One such source was our local homeschool convention's keynote speaker, Andrew Pudewa, who addressed the wonderful design of our children in his seminar, "Teaching Boys And Other Children Who Would Rather Make Forts All Day". He highlighted the way boys, especially, find it difficult to learn in a classroom designed for doing seat work for long periods of time--quietly--without too much wiggling. He shared humorously about how homeschooling allows boys (and others :) to utilize their own learning style. He paced back and forth in front of the audience, becoming louder at times, and using hand movements like punching the air to speak. He was demonstrating how to keep a boy's attention. It was hysterical. I've remembered some of Pudewa's concepts like, some boys need competition to remain motivated. Others need a calm environment that is not busy with items all over the walls or too much noise in the atmosphere. They need to have the option to stand, lean or move while learning. I've been able to take his, and others' advice, and implement them in my home. We also employ brain breaks, and I try to listen to my children on how they feel they'd learn better.

 

Since kids are often the best judges of how they learn, their input is important...except when they feel they need candy between math and spelling (yes, that's been an "educational" request :) Oliver always asks for some physical activity before schoolwork. He enters the schoolroom by flipping his body over our reading chair and he sometimes bounces when he's telling me a story. Molly knows that she needs a quiet place to stay on task as the calling out of questions from her siblings throws her off. Emily's excitement for learning first thing in the morning is often squelched if she answers a question incorrectly. Her perfectionist quality makes it difficult for her to feel that it's okay to make mistakes and that she can still be successful the rest of the day. She needs verbal affirmation. Meghan desires a strict schedule and cannot be distracted by her loud, physical brother, who is calling for her to wrestle while she's working on English :) Gender is often a predictor of learning style, but not entirely. My daughters absolutely need quiet or even solitude and my son needs activity between each subject to get his brain functioning well. Once I figured out how my little students each focused best, I had to suppress my ideal of recreating the classrooms I had when I was teaching in traditional school. But, wow, did it ever wake me up to the fact that I hadn't fully been capable of applying this to my dear students who needed it just as much as my own children. There's a model for school, and it can be altered slightly, but it's difficult to apply these principles completely for each child.

 

 

The propensity for curriculum content is another difference between genders. My girls, for instance, all loved the stories in the Pathway Readers that I supplemented with their Sonlight readers. I was excited to share these sweet stories with my son, who was an emergent reader, but he became tired of "too many girl parts in there". When I'm planning a unit study, I know I must have active facets in the lessons for my son, while the girls love the crafty applications. Both my girls and boy enjoy movement and art, however, if I designed a study using only one aspect of learning, I'd have a dissatisfied student in the mix while the others would be okay with it. Subject matter is important as well. Our Little House Study was wonderful... as long as Pa's gun, hunting and log cabin building were emphasized for my boy. The girls were happy learning how to make bees wax candles and needlepoint.

Just as learning style and curriculum are considerations for different genders, performance expectations are also critical. If your first born is a girl and she reads at age three and your next child is a boy and he still doesn't even care about reading when he's seven, you have to decide if you're going to allow him the opportunity to learn at his own pace or place the same standard on him that you held for your daughter. It may be the other way around in your family and that is the fantastic diversity God has created in children! In Oliver's case, his fine-motor skills developed at an earlier age than his sisters, while decoding words took longer. I must accept whatever level each of my children is at without comparison to the sibling above them.

 

Fortunately, home education grants opportunity for the prosperity of your children when it applies to gender. As a parent, you are in the position to know your children well and search out the best curriculum, environment and activities to suit their genders. Enjoy the richness that accompanies your boys and girls! 

 

 

 

Day Eighteen: Foster Imagination

We set up our chairs in the yard, draped blankets across them and placed our "babies" carefully underneath. My two sisters shared adventures with me as long as I was being nice. As the oldest, I tended to be bossy and as soon as I began ordering everyone around, the two of them would abandon the fort and easily find something else to do together. However, this day, we played for hours, even pulling in the four hens we kept in our play house, Trixie, Miss Prissy, Betty and Grace. We'd swing down from the grand willow tree by Tarzan rope, screaming all the way. The sun warmed our skin, the hours drifted slowly and the grasshoppers sprang about at our feet. We were happy out there in the wide world of play.

In the yard with my sisters--hen house behind.

Dressing up in Great-Mama's day-dresses (yep, that's her wig on me!)

Most dressing up occurred at Great-Mama's house. She had all the interesting stuff to use :)

Her lacy drapes made a beautiful wedding gown.

 

When gifted with an abundance of time, my children play like it's their real life. Imaginations soar like the little birds who perch and watch them from the treetops. Mud becomes cake, seedpods are money and tree branches are brooms with which to sweep imaginary backyard homes. Time is essential because you must first erase the initial boredom factor. My children know that announcing boredom means a chore will be promptly assigned to them. Sometimes, it takes awhile for all of them to agree on what the play is for the day but when they do, and it begins to take good shape, anything is possible. This kind of play lasts for days and they're itching to get back outside and continue "real life" outside. Nothing is more disappointing than being called back in the house before they're satisfied that all is well in their extraordinarily created world.

 

 

 

Joining friends in their imaginary zones opens their world to even greater heights of invention. Cohesiveness must first be established to ensure effective communication and productivity. Usually a leader naturally falls into command, or is elected, and the workers of the land help build the fort or town. Mossy Hill is one such place. Annie and I meandered through the woods behind her home to check on our kids and found them designing and building the town of Mossy Hill. This wild and lovely place was complete with pebble-lined pathways which divided homes and roads, flower petals for décor, log chairs, a time-out area (lol), and designated trees for break time. The children spoke in a new dialect with code words us moms didn't understand. What happened on Mossy Hill took time, energy, ingenuity, cooperation and it resulted in satisfaction and joy. 

Using seedpods as currency--can't get ice without it!

 

The first requirement to fostering imagination and the body movement that usually accompanies it, is to confiscate all electronics. Kids who are too cool for imaginative play may not have been reminded lately how fun it actually is. Their memories have been erased by the powers of the electronic devices. We, as mommas, must bring them back! I sent my children outside yesterday with large bowls and spatulas and told them to figure out what to do with them. Because this is a regular thing around here, creativity (plus the recently watched movie, Frozen) was quick to evolve into a land of ice peddling and snow soup. Even big sister, who wanted some fresh air humoured her siblings and joined in the play.

 

A couple of years ago, I came across the picture book, Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran, and I welled up with tears as it whisked me back to the same kind of play I experienced with my sisters. I ordered it immediately through Book Depository, which always has free shipping worldwide. This is the sweet experience children naturally fall into when given time and a little encouragement. Homeschooling has allowed my kiddos to enjoy this type of intelligence-building play. 

 

the owner, operator

 

Meg's store

 

ice store

 

snow soup

store equipment 

 

maneuvering the ice blocks is hard work

 

heave-ho!

 

Emily sitting on it isn't helping things.

  

 Push!


Very happy kids filled with purpose!