The Curriculum Choice

Handbook of Nature Study

Oct 152009

“In nature-study the work begins with any plant or creature which chances to interest the pupil….Nature-study is for the comprehension of the individual life of the bird, insect, or plant that is nearest at hand.” Handbook of Nature Study, page 5

The Handbook of Nature Study has become my best friend. It hasn’t always been that way. In fact, I purchased it, could not figure out how to use it, and promptly sold it to a fellow homeschooler. I thought about this book from time to time as other homeschoolers would write about it on their blog or I would see it mentioned in nature study groups to which I belonged.

A few years later I took another crack at it using a copy from the library…..just look at that thick book! This time I was determined to use this huge resource in our nature study plans. I started at the beginning of the book and read through the foreword and then the preface. I tackled Part I of the book and suddenly it all clicked into place in my head. I had been trying to use this book as a field guide and that was not the purpose intended at all.

Anna Botsford Comstock did not set out to write a really long book about nature study but rather it was written as a collection of leaflets published as part of the Home Nature-Study Course for teachers. These lessons were compiled into one volume in the Handbook of Nature Study and published originally in 1911. The lessons were written not for young students but for the teachers.

The lessons are written to give the teacher an overview of a topic and then to give some suggestions for observation to use with the students. There are lists of questions to pick from in the study of each topic. These lessons, although written in the beginning of the 20th century, are still pertinent today and our family has used them to discover a wonderful world right outside our own back door.

This book can give you years of nature study ideas and even though it is written with a focus on eastern United States subjects, it can easily be adapted and used in all parts of the United States, North America, and beyond. I have seen it work worldwide in a variety of habitats by families that take the basic idea and apply it in their own way.

One Way to Use the Handbook
The Handbook of Nature Study can be used in a variety of ways. When we first started out we used the suggested nature study rotation from Ambleside Online which focuses on three aspects of nature per year. This worked very well for us and I know it has helped many families organize their nature study. If you choose to use this sort of schedule, make sure to read the introductory twenty-four pages in the Handbook of Nature Study before you get started with specific topics from the book. I always recommend underlining or highlighting thoughts that you want to incorporate into your family’s nature study.

For instance, you can choose to study mammals in autumn, birds in winter, and garden flowers in spring. Each week you pick a focus subject within the overall topic and read a little about it. Then using observation ideas given in the lesson, you can complete your nature study lesson using subjects you observe in person. The beauty of this system is that you can personalize your nature study to fit the interests of your family. You can spend as much or as little time on a topic as you find interest.

The Outdoor Hour Challenges-Another Way to use the Handbook of Nature Study
As many of you know, I use the Handbook of Nature Study every week and share our plans and results using the Outdoor Hour Challenges. The challenges were born when a blog reader suggested I lead a weekly nature study plan using the Handbook of Nature Study. That was nearly two years ago and we are still going strong, never running out of ways to include the information in the book with our weekly challenges. If you want to know how to get started with the Outdoor Hour Challenges, you can follow this LINK.

How do the challenges use the Handbook of Nature Study?

I suggest a few pages to read in the book before you take 10-15 minutes of outdoor time with your children.
Each challenge gives you a focus but I always remind moms to be flexible and follow the child’s lead if something more interesting comes your way. You may be out looking for oak trees but a woodpecker decides to let itself be seen. By all means, observe the woodpecker!
When you come indoors, take a few minutes to talk about what you saw during your nature study time outdoors.
Use the Handbook of Nature Study, either the table of contents or the index, and look up more information to follow up a child’s interest.
Make time for a nature journal entry if you desire. I encourage a sketch, a label, and a date. It is a simple as that…really.
The Handbook of Nature Study can be used before your study as a way to prepare for your outdoor time and then again afterward as a follow-up for any particular interest.

I highly recommend this book and I believe it should be on every homeschoolers science shelf as a resource and inspiration. The purchase of this book will give you years of topics to incorporate into your science and nature study plans. For younger children, the Handbook of Nature Study can provide the foundation of a solid knowledge of the natural world. There is an online version available as a free download HERE.

“A teacher does not need to know much about nature to use this handbook. The information is there for the novice and the expert alike. All that is needed is an inquiring mind, senses to observe, and a willingness to think about nature on a personal level.” Handbook of Nature Study, foreword to the 1986 reissue.

Additional blog entries you might like to read:
Beginner’s Tips

Picking a Nature Study Focus

Written by Barb-Harmony Art mom. She also blogs at http://harmonyartmom.blogspot.com and her business is found at http://www.harmonyfinearts.com. I would love for you to join us for the Outdoor Hour Challenges: http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com.

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Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH)

High School 5 Responses »

Oct 142009

Sprite reading the OOH

The Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) is a publication of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Are you wondering how in the world a boring statistical book made it onto a homeschool review site? Keep reading.

The OOH is not boring, and it’s very helpful for middle school and high school homeschool students and their parents. My daughter is only ten but I’ve already bought a copy (from Amazon for $10) for our home library. Actually, you can access the OOH without spending a dime. For younger children, visit this version.

The primary use of the OOH is to guide students as they consider future career paths. It’s called an outlook because the BLS projects which jobs will be in greater or lesser demand in the next ten years. But besides looking at employment growth, the OOH is an incomparable reference on careers.

What other volume could answer all of these questions:

How much education do I need to be a court reporter?
Where do most psychologists work?
Does a loan officer need a license or certificate?
What job opportunities are available to chemists?
Can you learn to be a computer software engineer solely through on the job training?
Where can I write for more information about being an aircraft mechanic?
What exactly does a mathematician do?
Will the next ten years see an increase in the need for building inspectors?
How many hours a week does a power plant operator typically work?
What’s the average salary of a graphic designer?

The OOH can answer these types of questions because it’s amazingly comprehensive. And thankfully, the 890 page book has a detailed index to make research easier.

So the burning question is really how can the OOH be used in homeschool?

1. A Reference About Jobs

Teens and tweens will enjoy browsing the OOH to learn about potential job fields. I promise you that your child will find jobs he didn’t even know existed! Jobs are organized by type, and each job features a list of related occupations. This is really helpful for the child who is interested in a general field but knows little about the specific jobs within that field. There’s more to education than being a school teacher and more to medicine that being a doctor or nurse. The OOH will show all the facets of a field.

Some of your child’s more romantic notions of a particular job may be dashed as she reads about the long years of education or long working hours. But that realism is needed when preparing for a future career.

2. Research Projects

Because of the depth of information available, the OOH can serve as the basis of a challenging research project. A student will have to read carefully to identify key facts and then summarize them in her own words. (Or if your child is like mine, she simply enjoys browsing the OOH and making notes just for fun!)

Look at this lesson for a printable notetaking page (DOC) especially for the OOH.

3. A Guide for Mom

If your child is leaning towards a specific field, you can use the OOH to learn which academic subjects are emphasized in training for that career. Then you can design your high school curriculum accordingly.

4. Academic Tie-ins

To expose your child to various careers, consult the OOH as it is relevant.
Here are some examples:

You are studying a famous Greek mathematician. Look up what a modern mathematician does.
You are studying chemistry. Research a chemist’s job.
You just learned about the respiratory system. Find out the differences between a respiratory therapist and a respiratory nurse.
You are working on American geography. Read what a cartographer does.

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Life of Fred – Fractions

Mathematics 8 Responses »

Oct 112009

Life of Fred: The story of fractions has never been told like this.

At a glance:

Grade level: elementary

Use as: supplement or stand alone

Instruction time: dependent on student understanding

Prep time: low

Cost: $19.00 per book

I have so many wonderful things to say about Life of Fred that I hardly know where to begin. So, let’s start at the beginning: the table of contents. The book is divided into 32 chapters with a Bridge or review that appears after every five chapters. The chapters are laid out in a logical fashion each building on the one before while reviewing past skills for reinforcement.

mathchild This is a very interesting math book as it is not simply a textbook but a story as well. My daughter is very creative and a visual learner; therefore she can be very abstract in her thinking at times. For her, seeing equations sitting in front of her in black and white made her head spin with boredom and frustration. However, Life of Fred, not only hits on traditional methods by providing problems to solve but tickles the mind of an abstract thinker by using a story to format or picture the how and why behind the equation. The chapters are laid out in easy chunks with drawings and a storyline to break things up. A student of math needs to understand the real life applications in order to gain a full understanding. Life of Fred provides this for the student.

So who is Fred? Fred is a 5 ½ year old boy who takes your child on a journey through fractions. The child studies fractions through Fred’s life experiences. Fred is a boy genius who teaches math on a college level. His stories are adorable and present real life scenarios which are solved my math. Each chapter engages the student with real life applications and short but challenging math equations to solve.

Although I listed this a stand alone, I will warn you that what I really mean is that you use this book to supplement or you supplement the book. Meaning? If you have a student that needs extra practice in fractions this is a terrific way to rehash without the student feeling like she is rehashing. If you use this book as your primary source, take note the practices are very short and you may have to assign more work or use manipulatives to ensure a proper understanding. If you have a student who learns quickly and does not require much extra work then this may be a perfect fit.

I would be remiss to fail to mention that the author, Stanley F. Schmidt, is a delightful man. I ordered the book directly from his site, which is the best method. The shipping is already included in the $19.00. Dr. Schmidt encourages you to email him with any questions. I emailed him to let him know that my daughter, who hated fractions, started to read this on her own and didn’t put it down until chapter 5, in one sitting. I just had to thank the man who created a book that inspired my daughter in fractions! He emailed me back right away with a very kind note thanking me for my comments. So, if you are looking for an engaging math book, try Life of Fred. The fractions book is the first in a seven book series going all the way to Calculus. To see sample pages from this book, click here.

Written by Richele, classical and Charlotte Mason inspired, homeschooling mom, to four reflections of God’s love. She blogs at www.underthegoldenappletree.blogspot.com.

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Art in the Style of Eric Carle

Art, Hands On, Literature, Living books, Unit study resources 2 Responses »

Oct 092009

There are many ways to incorporate art into a unit study, but one of our favorites has been to learn about and imitate the art of a particular illustrator. Last year during our study of the ocean we read A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle. We enjoyed the illustrations so much that we decided to try making our own art in the collage style that Mr. Carle used for his delightful story about a hermit crab who decorates his shell home as he grows throughout the year.

236_A_House_for_Hermit_Crab

We began by visiting Mr. Carle’s interesting website to learn more about his techniques and then came up with our own variation of his style.

This is how we went about it…

Day 1: The children painted an ocean background of blues and greens. While the paint was still wet, they used the tip end of the paintbrush to draw waves into their oceans.

Day 2: Like Mr. Carle, we used different tools and materials to create unique textures on blank sheets of white paper. (I pre-cut sheets of 20 lb. paper in half so that we had several sheets that were approx. 5 x 8 inches.) Each child painted and/or stamped five or six papers using a variety of colors and techniques. The tools they used to make the textured papers included small squares of carpet remnant, sponges, feathers, craft pom-pom’s, and q-tips.

Some of the textured papers they made…

Day 3: Since the point of this project was not to demonstrate drawing skills, but to understand Mr. Carle’s collage technique, I pre-cut templates of different sea creatures mentioned in our story. The children traced around these onto their textured papers, cut them out, arranged them, and pasted them onto their ocean backgrounds. I had to help my younger daughter with the tracing and cutting.

The finished product…

These projects took three days to complete, but I can honestly tell you that my children enjoyed the process and learned a great deal about painting with different textures and making collage art.

This idea would work well for any type of unit, but especially for the study of a particular illustrator.

Eric Carle is one of our family’s favorite children’s author-illustrators. Many of his stories are related to nature, and his magical illustrations never fail to capture my children’s interest. Because Mr. Carle’s work is such a hit around here, we have incorporated several of his books into our unit studies. Some of our favorites include:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar (This year is the fortieth anniversary of this book. You can find a video of Mr. Carle talking about and reading this story here.)

Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?

Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear?

Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother Too?

Little Cloud

The Tiny Seed

The Very Lonely Firefly

The Very Quiet Cricket

You can read more about this talented author-illustrator and find a complete list of his books at the official Eric Carle website.

Written by Shannon, who enjoys cuddling up with her children and sharing a beautifully illustrated book with them. She can be found blogging about her family’s homeschooling adventures at Song of My Heart.

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Latin for Children vs. Latina Christiana

Classical, Foreign Language 11 Responses »

Oct 082009

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bg/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

We began studying Latin four years ago when my oldest child was in the second grade. I read everything I could find on the different Latin curricula that were available and finally decided on Latin for Children for him. He completed the 3 books in 4 school years and this year he has started
Latin Alive, which is a Latin program for middle school students, also published by Classical Academic Press.

Since I was pleased with Latin for Children for my son, I had my daughter start with the program at the beginning of last school year. Later on in the year I received Latina Christiana I from Memoria Press to review. My daughter seemed the obvious choice to try out the program since she wasn’t too far along in Latin for Children. She also didn’t seem to be retaining the information very well, so I figured a little review would be beneficial. As she used Latina Christiana, I noticed that there were some things about the program that made it a better choice for her. So this year she is continuing to use Latina Christiana instead of Latin for Children.

I was reminded of a few things in this process. First, my children are all different and what may work best for one of them may not be the best choice for all of them. Second, I need to look at products with each of the children who will be using the product in mind, not just my oldest child, and not just what I like. Finally, I can’t spend a lot of money on a product and always justify it by saying I’ll use it with all 4 of my children. That may not work.

I think that BOTH Latin for Children and Latina Christiana are excellent Latin programs with many similarities. Both are designed to be used with students as young as about the third grade. They both teach Latin from a parts-to-whole method. Both include Latin grammar and vocabulary as well as derivative studies. Latin for Children does include more vocabulary and grammar, but that is reasonable since it has one more text than Latina Christiana. An optional video is available for either product as well as audio cd’s. However, there are some key differences which I have outlined below.

	Latin for Children	Latina Christiana
# texts in series	3 (A,B,C)	2 (I, II)
Pronunciation	Classical (but has an Ecclesiastical option)	Ecclesiastical
Student Text	Instruction is in the Student text	No instruction in the Student text
Teacher’s Guide	Answer Key	All Latin instruction is in Teacher’s Guide as well as teaching tips, quizzes, tests, and answers to all the exercises.
Video	Lessons include children and some humor. Some variety in filming locations. Lessons are fairly short.	Lessons include instructor only. They are thorough and include drill and practice within the lesson. Lessons are longer and are in front of a white board only.
Roman culture included?	Very little	Scheduled to use with Famous Men of Rome, however Famous Men of Rome is not included.
Variety	Pages are printed with Roman themed graphics. Variation in types of exercises from chapter to chapter.	Plain pages. Predictable format for exercises and quizzes.
Prayers included?	No	Yes

My daughter, who has always been somewhat of a no-nonsense kind of girl, really appreciates Latina Christiana. She needs more drill and practice, and the expectations are very clear. The instruction in the text in Latin for Children was confusing to her and didn’t help her to understand the material at all.

My son, on the other hand, would not have lasted a week in Latina Christiana. He needed the somewhat goofy humor in the Latin for Children videos as well as the variety in the text. He is much more able to read and understand a concept, so having the instruction in the text was great for him. And memorizing Latin prayers? There is no way that he would enjoy that.

If you are looking for an elementary Latin curriculum I recommend either Latin for Children or Latina Christiana I. They are both quality programs backed by companies that are continually revising and writing new curricula. Samples are available at both websites to help you compare further and decide which one is more suited to your child.

Written by Kristen, Classical mom of 4. Kristen’s homeschool blog is A Day in the Life.

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Inspiration from Pilgrim’s Progress

Bible, Biblical Principle Approach, Encouragement, Literature, New to Homeschooling 3 Responses »

Oct 062009

If lessons are meant to be creative, mine fail. This year, lessons are pretty much straight from the book. Commendable plans smolder in my thoughts. Our idea books are perused often, but not by me. My son has taken to finding his own creativity. I applaud his efforts.

Pilgrim's Progress
Pilgrim’s Progress

When I asked him to record the characters in Pilgrim’s Progress, he hunted for Alternatives to Worksheets. Not taking into account my paper-cutting, creative-sketching, engineer-type son, I had traded it on Paperbackswap. Similar books grace our shelves, so I did not think it would be missed.

It was, but only momentarily. Once my son explained his idea, I found another tab book as an example. He finished his lesson with flourish.

Enter guilt. Where is my creativity? I should be adding interesting projects to make school exciting. If I battle laziness, and quit being distracted, maybe my son will not draw incessantly at the bottom of every assignment.

Then again, maybe that isn’t so bad. His mark of individuality is on each page, and every doodle tells a story. I need some of his inspiration. Thus the thoughts clash in my heart. I can choose guilt and despair, or forgiveness and hope.

In Pilgrim’s Progress Hopeful and Christian are captured by Giant Despair. Thrown into the dungeon and tormented the prisoners refuse to die, so the giant plans to kill them. Fearful captives intercede through the night. Then Christian delivers a passionate speech,

What a fool, am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty! I have a key in my bosom, called Promise, that will, I am persuaded, open any lock in Doubting Castle.

The key does indeed unlock the doors, and the companions escape, free to continue their path to beloved Celestial City.

Like these two pilgrims, I cannot remain burdened by fear any longer. Wallowing in guilt cripples. There are keys for me to use. They are principles to challenge my negativity.

Promise 1

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion. Philippians 1:6

I am unfinished. The grace of God is my hope as I forge ahead on this pilgrim journey.

Promise 2

A battered reed he will not break off, and a smoldering wick he will not put out, until he leads justice to victory. Mathew 12:20

I am not ashes yet. The breath of the Holy Spirit blows on my heart to ignite my soul.

With these promises firmly in my grasp, I hear the chains clatter as they hit the floor. The gate swings open, and the paralyzed giant is no longer a threat. I am free!

Written by Renae Deckard, Biblical Principled mother of 3. Find Renae’s reflections about homeschool and family life at Life Nurturing Education.

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Dover Art Cards

Art 7 Responses »

Oct 052009

Before Barb posted her wonderful review about Dover art cards back in July, I had the same topic on my list of products I wanted to write about. I considered changing my planned review, but decided if the cards are good enough for two of us to review, then everyone needs to know that! And they are!

Unfortunately, I’m fairly new to the cards, so I don’t have all the creative ideas laid out (yet) like Barb suggests, but they have already come in quite handy for artist study!

In our home, we choose to study one artist per month through the school year. Once per week during that month, we observe the artist’s work, read books about his or her life, and try our hand at creating our own pieces in the style of the artist. Each week, we choose one painting (or other work) to focus on for in-depth study.

Before I found the Dover art cards, we would look at the chosen works on the internet or in a book that I checked out from the library. This worked well for us (and still does when I don’t have the particular art card I want), but having the art cards has really improved the learning and the presentation.

My children can get their hands on the sturdy, postcard-sized reproductions to observe up-close. They’re able to prop the postcard up in front of them as they attempt to recreate the painting. They’re able to sort the cards in order from first productions to last, either within one artist’s collection, or among many artists. They have also been known to sort the cards based on characteristics like “impressionist”, “bright”, “dreary”, “moving” – whatever suits their fancy.

As the mom and teacher, I’ve been able to set up little artist centers to display art work, library books and art supplies that I want my children to gravitate toward. These centers allow me to secretly direct the learning by offering enchanting little spots for my children to dive into the artist themselves.

Dover offers a bunch of art card books, most having around 24 cards and priced between $5.95 and $6.95 per book. The cards come four per page and are perforated to tear apart easily. Printed on a thick cardstock, the front of each card shows the painting with a glossy coating. The back of each card gives basic information about the art including the artist, title, year of production and art medium used to create the work.

I ought to mention that you will occasionally come across a nude or two in the books. I simply tear the pictures from the books and file them away in a baggie until I need them, allowing me to discard any that aren’t suitable.

I’d love to hear how you use your art cards!

-Written by Cindy, eclectically Charlotte Mason mom of 3. You can find her blogging at Our Journey Westward and Shining Dawn Books.

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Welcome video!

New to Homeschooling 5 Responses »

Oct 042009

We’ve just added a welcome video to our “About” page. It’s a brief, 2 minute video explaining what we are all about and a few tips for brand new homeschoolers! Angela is a homeschool mother of 5, and has been homeschooling from the beginning.

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The Complete Writer: Writing with Ease

Classical, Writing 2 Responses »

Oct 032009

Writing with Ease teacher textbook

This year we are using Susan Wise Bauer’s wonderful new program, The Complete Writer: Writing with Ease. This curriculum teaches the elementary-aged writer (or struggling older child) how to express themselves on paper.

I find this program simple to implement and enjoyable to teach. My children look forward to their daily copywork lesson, and they are thriving on the step by step approach. Easily accomplished in just 10 minutes a day, Writing with Ease lives up to its name!

This curriculum follows the classical model of teaching a child the mechanics and grammar of writing in the early years, as they copy the words and structure of skilled authors. Their own creative thoughts are dictated to an adult “scribe”, separating the writing process into two distinct parts (mechanics and expression). After children have developed the ability to easily spell and write with proper form, they begin the more difficult process of putting their own thoughts down on paper.

So far, there are three books available in The Complete Writer series, with a fourth to be released soon. Books One and Two focus on narration, copywork and dictation, while Books Three and Four are concerned with putting all the steps together.

Writing with Ease workbook level 1

We are using Workbook One. Each week, Bauer includes two selections from a classic children’s book, working lessons in grammar and sentence structure around the chosen passage. Two copywork options are given for each selection, allowing for varying skill levels. Narration is slowly introduced, as children begin by answering questions about the selected passage and progress into verbally narrating what they remember. Bauer carefully and incrementally builds confidence from lesson to lesson.

The program is designed for grades one through four (or for older students needing remediation). Each workbook covers one year of material. Plans to continue the series with workbooks for 5th through 12th grades are in the works.

Parents wanting Bauer to paint “the big picture” for them may want to invest in the hardback teacher manual. This book can be used as a stand-alone if parents feel comfortable choosing brief paragraphs for copywork, dictation and narration from their child’s own daily reading.

As a seasoned homeschooler who is trying to economize, I purchased only the workbooks. They were worth every penny! There is absolutely no preparation required when using the workbooks, so I was able to hit the ground running from day one. Workbooks include primary-lined pages in the back with each lesson’s copywork sentences already printed on them. To save even more money, however, I have my children write their sentences in a notebook so they can share one workbook as a non-consumable resource.

You can “see inside” Workbook One here.

I love the way this series makes it simple for me to seamlessly weave together a brief grammar lesson with writing mechanics and writing instruction. The lessons are so brief that my children often complete more than one each day. Writing with Ease also dovetails very nicely with Bauer’s grammar series First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind.

My children have really enjoyed the use of literature in this curriculum. Some lessons introduce us to exciting new books, while others remind us of old favorites. In any case, the well-chosen paragraphs whet their appetite for more, and they regularly ask to read the books mentioned in their writing lessons. As an added bonus, even my preschooler can take part in the narration component. He listens to the stories and answers questions along with his older brothers.

My reluctant writer recently commented that copywork is now one of his favorite subjects. I feel the same way!

Written by Molly, who can be found writing and podcasting for homeschool moms at her blogs Countercultural School and Countercultural Mom.

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Spears Christian Art Curriculum- Grades K-8

Art, Bible, Biblical Principle Approach, Hands On, Uncategorized No Responses »

Oct 022009

Since we are a hands on family, I was so happy to find Spears Art. This is a wonderful program that even the craft/art challenged teacher/student can enjoy. Complete curriculum for all grades K-8 come on a CD. You print out only what you want to use. What I love about this program is it’s set up with a lesson plan that is God centered and helps implement seasons such as Christmas, and Thanksgiving right into the lessons. So there is no need to set this aside for the holidays. You can use it right through.

One or more activities for each grade level based on that main theme, addressing art elements, art principles, art history, design elements, and the scripture is the center of each lesson.

The complete K-8 Art program is only $39.95 on CD and can be used year after year as each skill builds off another. There is no need to purchase it every year. The scripture is the same for each grade level but the art techniques that follow the scripture get more challenging with age. It is a wonderful program to use with multi age children at the same time. I have a 5th and 2nd grader and was able to sit them both down to discuss the Bible scripture for the day and split them up easily to do there own grade level projects.

Sample Project for Younger Grades

It was very simple for me to put together and didn’t take much time at all. The materials needed are listed out and most are very inexpensive ones you probably already have in your home. For each activity the teacher prep is done for you.

There is also a sheet for you to use to evaluate your students performance if you give grades for your schooling. It is very easy for your to pick and choose only a few activities if your time is limited or start and stop anywhere you’d like. Since I didn’t get the curriculum at the start of the school year, I was not worried at all that we might “miss” anything.

There are many types of art medium used. Pencils, colored, charcoal, and the different types of drawing pencils.Plus, oil pastels. and paints.Some are crafty projects like the ones below here that my boys have made using this curriculum, but implement shading techniques and keeping within the lines.

: Pumpkin w/Scripture

For those who can’t afford an art class would love this affordable way to teach art at home. Do you have a child that loves to color or cut? Do you want to add art to your curriculum but don’t want to spend a lot of money? This might be for you!

This isn’t just an art curriculum, but also a Bible lesson with art to help implement the bible story presented. Broken down into monthly themes, then into weekly lessons of 2 lessons per week. An easy way to put art into your homeschool for just two days a week.

Check them out @ Spears Art

Written by Lynn Pitts, mom of 3, from Big Sky Country Montana. You can read more about her life at Learning by Living.

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