Somehow over the years I have become the pie cook for our family holiday gatherings.
 
I would like to think it is because I make the best pies. More likely it is because my mom thinks there are always other deserts around if I happen to ruin the pies. If I ruined the cornbread dressing? Well that's another story, isn't it?
 
My secret to perfect pie crust? I buy it from the little doughboy in the freezer section -- two frozen 9" deep dish at a time.
 
What I have come to learn from years of making pies is that scratch is not always better.

Listen or read more at https://pambarnhill.com/when-making-it-from-scratch-isnt-good-enough

Repetitio mater memoriae.

This Latin motto, which apparently is used within the Latin classroom primarily and not embraced as a defining motto like the others so far, means Repetition is the mother of memory. This is supposed to spur you on to chant those declensions, but I think the truth contained therein should spur us on in much more than language acquisition.

Listen or read more at https://www.simplyconvivial.com/2014/education-is-for-life-repetitio-mater-memoriae-or-repetition/

Out of control. Disorganized. Fly by the seat of my pants. Does the start of the school year always feel this way?

I don’t think it does. I am pretty sure that our past school years have followed the plan a bit more closely. But I can’t be sure.

What I am sure of is that the kick-off for this 2016 school year was far from a touchdown. It feels more like life intercepted the ball and ran the other way with it and I am watching the ball leave my side of the field without a plan to get it back.

Read or listen to the rest at http://www.notbefore7.com/2016/10/19/love-year-youre-with/

As the holidays descend upon us, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all the tasks that fill your to-do lists each day.

You might question whether it’s all worth it in the end, but rest assured that the extra work surrounding this time of year really does pay off, since these traditions have an extremely positive impact on a preschooler’s life.

Listen or read more at https://pambarnhill.com/blessings-holiday-traditions-preschoolers/

Recently we had a great time by having friends over for our very first picture book Christmas cookie exchange. We had a few good friends over on a balmy December afternoon to share some of our favorite picture books and picture-book inspired cookies.

This party was so easy to plan and hold. All we did was invite a few friends over and ask them to bring their favorite Christmas picture book, plus a treat inspired by that book. That was it.

We didn’t need any other food, drink, and with it being Christmas the decorations took care of themselves.

Read or listen to the rest here: https://pambarnhill.com/christmas-picture-book-cookie-exchange/

If you’ve been around the Homeschooling With Dyslexia web site or Facebook page for long, you know how I love to learn about learning. Since I learn completely differently than 7 of the 8 kids that I homeschool, you could say it is a bit of a necessity. Good thing I have learned to enjoy it!

Listen or read more at https://homeschoolingwithdyslexia.com/motivate-kids-growth-mindset/

With each new school year that rolls around, I always seem find a renewed energy and vision for homeschooling. Rather than wait until Thanksgiving or when the blahs of winter kick in (when it seems to make sense to write a post about why I’m thankful for homeschooling), I thought I’d harness this joyful beginning-of-the-school-year energy to list all those reasons now.

Listen or read more at https://ourjourneywestward.com/10-reasons-im-thankful-for-homeschooling/

Homeschooling preschool doesn't have to be complicated. It took me at least one child to figure that out, but once I did we enjoyed our preschool days so much more. Have a listen!

I will freely admit that our children have missed out on some things because we homeschool high school. There is no doubt that there are experiences that the public school provides that we just cannot replicate in our home. Some people even quit homeschooling at this level, because they don’t want their children to miss out on anything.

Listen or read more at https://www.annieandeverything.com/homeschool-high-school-missed-opportunities/

Let’s say you are convinced that reading aloud to your children is the best thing you can do for them. You line up your reading selections, you plan your morning time, you are prepared to overcome the obstacles of wiggly bodies and wandering minds. You say that this is exactly the boost your homeschool needs.

The first day comes, and you eagerly dive in. But then you find yourself stumbling over the words. You run into words you can’t even pronounce, let alone understand. After a short time, your voice becomes strained and tired. Hmm… this isn’t as much fun as you thought it would be. Maybe it just won’t work for you.

Read the rest or listen at https://pambarnhill.com/how-moms-benefit-from-read-alouds/

When my family started doing Morning Time my kids were little and it wasn’t quite the homeschool buzz word it is now. There was very little Morning Time pressure in those days — we just liked learning together.

Now, it seems that everywhere you turn people are talking about all the riches they are doing in Morning Time. Which is great — except when it starts to stress people out.

Listen or read more at https://pambarnhill.com/successful-morning-time/

I’m about to tell you my dirty secret. I’ve kept swallowing this one back down for the past year. Sometimes (more often than not?) I don’t enjoy homeschooling.

There. It’s out.

Listen or read more at http://smarttereachday.com/find-homeschooling-joy/

As a teacher, I’ve noticed one factor that consistently holds students back in the classroom: fear of failure. When my students are afraid to fail, they typically respond to challenges in one of two ways.

Listen or read more at https://biglifejournal.com/blogs/blog/help-your-child-overcome-fear-of-failure

It almost seems incongruous. Morning Time, the bastion of great literature, beautiful music, truth, goodness, beauty… and high-tech gadgets?

But, oh mama, it is true. There are ways moving into the 21st century can enhance the Morning Time habit you are building in your family. Here are three ways some easy Amazon purchases can make your Morning Time better.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/technology-morning-time/

As homeschoolers, we all know the value of teaching our kids how to become independent learners. We work hard to pass the mantle of teacher from ourselves to our students. And we thrill as we see them picking up this mantle and running with it.

They are checking items off their lists, reading books, doing research, and filling their minds with lots of amazing information about science, history, geography, and more. Or are they?

What if your independent learners aren’t learning at all? What if they’re breezing through their work in order to get to free time? What if they’re skimming through the books? What if they’re killing time and not really learning what they say they are?

Listen or read the rest at https://www.homeschool-your-boys.com/independent-learners-accountable/

Does the word schedule make you break out in hives? Do you picture yourself harried and deflated at the end of a day on a schedule? Maybe for you, like me, that’s a vivid memory, not a theoretical picture.

There’s a lot of visceral reaction against schedules in the homeschool world, and I totally get why. I mean, can I schedule diaper blowouts and my doorbell ringing and the toddler pulling an open bag of powdered sugar onto herself? Where does that go in the schedule?

Listen or read more at https://www.simplyconvivial.com/2017/sc034

When she was six, my daughter told me she didn’t want to learn to read because then I might stop reading to her. Nothing could be further from the truth, but then six-year-olds aren’t known for their logic, are they?

Lucky for her it wasn’t too long after that I stumbled upon Andrew Pudewa’s talk, Nurturing Competent Communicators.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/read-aloud-mistake/

Homeschooling parents love literature lists. love. love. love.

Quality literature is an important part of our homeschools. Historical fiction. Classics. Biographies. Non-fiction. The list goes on. and on. and on. Till we finally narrow down the titles we will attack for the school year.

Listen or read more at http://www.notbefore7.com/2016/08/23/innovative-homeschooling-lets-talk-literature/

Homeschooling a middle school kid? We are and, I'll be honest, it's been a bit of a roller coaster. This letter I'm writing is really to myself - reminding me that these years are just as precious and probably even more important than our early homeschooling years.

Listen or read more at https://happyhomeschoolnest.com/blog/mom-with-the-middle-schooler

Dear Self,

I am here today with some tough love.

Because I do love you, and I know this homeschooling your kids thing is important to you. And yet, you struggle with homeschooling consistently.

Often.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/homeschool-consistency/

There’s this false dichotomy that pops up in the homeschool world. “You shouldn’t have a schedule, you should have a routine.” It sounds all well and good, a wonderful idea for folks who have an established routine or are not easily distracted.

Not so for many of us. Not so for me.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/why-i-need-a-scheduled-routine/

* Contains Christian content “My child will never have a job where he needs to know algebra. We’re just teaching consumer math and being done with it.” “I know God isn’t preparing my child for college, so I don’t plan to worry too much about high school requirements.” “As long as my kids know the Lord, the rest of it doesn’t really matter.” “Neither my high school children or I are interested in history. I think we’re just going to do a quick lapbook (*written for elementary students) and count it as a credit.” “My kids give me so much grief about science that I’ve decided to stop teaching it for now. It’s just too hard to fight them.” “I know I need to get more serious about school, but ball practice two mornings a week, ball games at least one or two nights a week and co-op classes on Monday afternoons are really messing up my schedule. We’re trying to fit school in, but we’re so behind.” “God will fill in the gaps.” Above are actual comments I have heard within the last four months. They concern me. Read the rest here: https://ourjourneywestward.com/homeschooling-seriously/

I know there are some moms out there whose character voices during read-aloud time rival the work of Oscar-winning actors.

I am not one of those moms.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/better-read-aloud/

It seems like everyone you meet is obsessed with STEM or STEAM-focused activities nowadays. Should you worry about this with your preschooler?

There is certainly no need to jump right into formal schooling with a little one, but it never hurts to start incorporating mathematical learning into your everyday fun.

Listen or read more at https://edsnapshots.com/everyday-preschool-math/

If you are like I was when we had our first struggling reader some 17 years ago, and know nothing about the phenomenon called dyslexia, you may be wondering, as I did, how to know if someone you know is dyslexic or not.

It is no great mystery. There are quite a few signs of dyslexia that are easy to observe.

Listen or read more at https://homeschoolingwithdyslexia.com/dyslexia-signs-dyslexia/