Blog

Good Reads for the Homeschool Mom

Professional development is essential for the homeschool mom.

10 Best Books for Homeschool Moms is always a popular post here on the blog. 

I'd like to add a few more today.... these books have proven useful to me recently and I know you will love them, too!

Good Reads for the Homeschool Mom

Teaching From Rest: A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace

I enjoyed the first edition of Sarah Mackenzie's book, and can't wait to get the latest edition

Everything about this book exudes PEACE and TRANQUILITY; it is designed to encourage and equip homeschool moms in very practical ways. 

I'm also a huge fan of the Read Aloud Revival, also from Amongst Lovely Things. 

Become a Member!

The Conversation

 

This book, by Leigh Bortins, will spark your interest if you are a Classical homeschooler, or interested in the Classical method -- and homeschooling a high schooler!

Our family is deeply steeped in Classical education, and as a Classical Conversations mom I read anything by Leigh Bortins and enjoy it immensely. 


When You Rise Up

When You Rise Up, a Covenental Approach to Homeschooling, is a book I read in just one sitting. 

 

R.C. Sproul, Jr., reminds Christian parents of WHY we really homeschool, and what our goal as Christian homeschoolers should be. I found the book went closely along with the Classical education model, but at the same time reinforced to me that the MODEL of homeschooling isn't as important as the GOAL of our homeschool - to raise children who want to nurture and instruct their children in the ways of God. 

This book is not a nuts and bolts homeschooling book. It is an inspirational, back to WHY WE HOMESCHOOL kind of book. 

I enjoyed it very much. 


The History of the Ancient, Medieval & Renaissance Worlds

Authored by Susan Wise Bauer, these gems are  history primers for adults. 

We have loved The Story of the World for years, and now I am loving these books, too.


The Big Book of Homeschool Ideas

This book is packed full of practical, easy to implement homeschool ideas. 

It contains 103 topics for you to enjoy - and I'm happy to have authored the chapter about using LEGO bricks in your homeschool! 

It's a good one to have on your shelf - for a rainy day or just as a great all-around homeschool resource. 

 

Do YOU have a favorite homeschooling book you would like to recommend? Leave the title in the comments below! 

One Simple Way to Improve Vocabulary

In just the first week of school my ninth grader has learned a most valuable skill:

How to READ A BOOK.

Anna is my bibliophile; books are her treasures. She reads and rereads books. They occupy a very special place in her life, and for that I am grateful. 

I would have contended that she already knew how to read a book, and I would have been wrong. 

One of the assignments for the first day of Challenge I is to read Mortimer Adler's How to Mark a Book.

(If you're not familiar with this essay, it is worth printing and reading. It WILL change the way YOU read a book. It will change the way you teach your older children to read books.)

Something about Adler's simply essay struck a chord with Anna, and she developed her own strategy while reading books. As she began to implement this strategy I told her it would be a GREAT way to improve her vocabulary for the SAT (and for life in general). 

One Simple Way to Improve Vocabulary

Make a Book Your Own

In Adler's essay he states, 

The sign of intelligence in reading is the ability to read different things differently according to their worth. In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through you — how many you can make your own

Something about this struck me (and I later found, through conversations with my daughter, that it struck her, too). 

One Simple Way to Improve Vocabulary

Anna made the comment to me that she reads so much but sometimes simply skips over words she doesn't know, or lets the CONTEXT of the word give her a clue as to its meaning. 

In one of those wonderful homeschooling moments, Anna decided to begin highlighting the words  she didn't know, look them up in a dictionary and then make a note of the meaning in the margin.

(In the past, she has done something similar to this, on notecards, and it was very beneficial.)

SO SIMPLE.

She has been reading with her dictionary and favorite highlighters (she's always had an addictions to school supplies), marking any words unfamiliar to her, then noting their meaning in the margin of the book.

*And yes, I believe DICTIONARY SKILLS are important. Some would argue with the advent of online dictionaries and smartphones we don't need to teach dictionary skills, but I disagree.

One Simple Way to Improve Vocabulary

Start a Word Journal

Parents of teens will sympathize with this.

Sometimes I make a "suggestion" and hope my child will take it to heart - knowing full well that will happen maybe 25% of time.

CAN YOU RELATE?

During a casual conversation in the car (the very best place to make connections with teens, by the way), I asked Anna what she thought about the Adler essay and if she thought there was value to marking a book.

When she told me about highlighting unfamiliar words I suggested she start making a "Word Journal".

"Why don't take one of your journals and see if you can fill it up with new words this year?  Imagine how much that will help you on the SAT, in conversation, and in writing papers."

Improve Vocabulary with a Word Journal

Lo and behold, the Word Journal has been created.


9th Grade Literature List

I KNOW this word journal will be an invaluable tool for her as she dives into the extensive literature list for Challenge I (9th grade):

9th Grade Literature List
Billy Budd (Tor Classics)
By Herman Melville
Born Again
By Charles W. Colson
The Old Man and The Sea
By Ernest Hemingway
Johnny Tremain
By Esther Hoskins Forbes
The Sign of the Beaver
By Elizabeth George Speare
Starship Troopers
By Robert A. Heinlein
Through Gates of Splendor
By Elisabeth Elliot
To Kill a Mockingbird
By Harper Lee
Up from Slavery (Dover Thrift Editions)
By Booker T. Washington
The Call of the Wild
By Jack London
Walden
By Henry David Thoreau
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
By Elizabeth George Speare
An Old-Fashioned Girl
By Louisa May Alcott

Looking at the above list gives me great pause.

It's going to be a challenging and memorable first year of "high school". 

I'm excited about Anna's Word Journal - excited for the beautiful words she will learn as a result of keeping the journal. 


This post is part of our Homeschool Tips & Tricks. Check out a few other "keepers" we've come up with over the years. 

 

How do you improve your big kids' vocabularies?  I'd love to know what other strategies you have for broadening vocabulary in your homeschool.