Mar

29

Lego Engineering

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Here’s one of my favorite things about being a parent:
I get an excuse to play with a lot of awesome toys!
I didn’t play with Legos very often as a kid. I had a few sets, but I wasn’t really into following instruction manuals. That’s a sharp contrast compared to my two daughters (not [...]

Mar

28

Brain Age Follow Up: Does Brain Age Get Boring?

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment

A couple months ago I blogged about the educational value of “Brain Age” a clever little video game that features a wide range of “brain boosting” activities.
For the first two months, the kids (and my wife) were hooked on “Brain Age.” They were actually competiting with each other to see who could [...]

Mar

22

“A History of US” - A Fresh Approach to American History

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment

My girls and I have discovered a wonderful series of history textbooks. Actually, I guess I shouldn’t even call them textbooks, because that name connotes such a dour, dusty old image. These books, written by Joy Hakim, help readers visual history.
Here’s a sample from the first chapter (the author draws the [...]

Mar

21

Homeschool Hair

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Enough blogging about academics — let’s talk about style for a moment.
Personally, I don’t have fashion sense — I don’t even care if my socks match (but my wife does so I obey her). Since I live in a house with nothing but women (one wife, two daughters, a female cat, dog, [...]

Mar

19

Teach Away From the Test

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 19, 2009 | 3 Comments

As most homeschool families know, the public school system all too often strips itself of vital educational programs. “No Child Left Behind” might focus on improving reading and math scores. But in the process, arts and sciences and other subjects are tossed to the wayside.
Homeschooling provides flexibility and independence. If your child is [...]

Mar

10

“Take Turns” Writing Activity

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 10, 2009 | 1 Comment

We had a wonderful breakthrough this week. Or maybe I should say that I had a breakthrough. The kids don’t quite realize how happy I am; I’m keeping my sense of joy a secret so I don’t make too big a deal out of this.
Okay, so what am I talking about? Well, [...]

Mar

6

Tide Pool Journals

Posted by Homeschool_Dad

March 6, 2009 | 1 Comment

We don’t exactly live near the beach. It’s about an hour drive — not too bad. So, with the distance, going to the beach is usually an all-day thing. That being the case, as a homeschool family, we like to mix in a little bit of education with our fun (or a [...]