Teacher Mama Tina

Those "Awww" Moments, The Search for A Progressive School and A Late Start to Our Lenten Journey

2012-02-28T01:53:00.000+08:00

I've been a very bad Teacher Mama this past week.. To be perfectly honest, I feel like I've been one these past few months! We've been doing more of unschooling, or as others prefer to call it, relaxed homeschooling, life-learning, interest-led learning or child-led learning. and so on. (Although many, many days, I've been guilty of letting the kids watch TV/DVDs and play educational computer games waaayy too much! Please forgive me, Lord!)

Despite our erratic daily routine and "instant-without-Mama-having-prepared-well-in-advance-so-let's-just-wing-it-today" lessons, my changing-though-thank-God-there's-a-level-of-regularity work schedule, I'm still thankful to God for the "Awww" moments He blesses me with, like when I was hugging Tim this morning after he woke up, and asked him, "Will you still let me hug you when you're all grown up?"

Tim: "Yes!"

Me: "Even if you're already married?"

Tim: "Yes!"

Me: "How about if you become a priest?"

Tim: "I'm not going to be a priest!"

Me: "Why not?"

Tim: "I don't want to. But I'll still serve God."

Me: (silently: "Awwwww...")

Tim: "I'm going to be a ninja!"

Me: "How will you serve God when you're a ninja?"

Tim: "You know. I just will."

Hahaha! How do I answer that one?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In other news, yes, you read the title of this post right.. because of my "fear" that I'm not teaching Tim "enough" and that he is "missing out," I am/we are currently scouting progressive preschools for next school year. Though I still have this nagging feeling that we're still being called to homeschool, the "segurista" (Umm.. what's the English word for that? Someone who always wants to be sure of things?! haha!) in me just wants to know her options.

I went to one school earlier today here in Cainta. Brainworks is classified as a non-traditional progressive school by its owners and teachers and what I like most about it are:
a) their classes are multi-age, e.g. the Grade 1 and 2 students are together
b) they limit the no. of enrollees per year, despite requests for expansion
c) the school is located in a house, hence it has a really homey atmosphere
d) there are no uniforms!
e) they don't have an "honors" system i.e. 1st, 2nd, 3rd place (which I grew up with and which, sad to say, pressured me to cheat a few times in primary school in Brunei - don't tell my parents! LOL!)
f) they don't ask the students to bring "heavy schoolbags," which is the norm in most schools. Kids are just required to bring their own food (the school doesn't have a canteen) and a change of clothes.
g) they stress the fact that they don't encourage nor require students to be tutored after school, because, according to them, kids should already learn everything they need to know at school. Evenings and afternoons after school should be time with the family. :)
h) they have a NO TV ON WEEKDAYS policy! (I.so.LOVE.this!)

OK, so that's a LOT of things I like about Brainworks. Ironically, when I went there to get the application packet and talked to the teacher-in-charge of admissions about our homeschooling, she said, "You know, actually, homeschooling is very OK." (Lord, are you trying to tell me something here?! LOL!)

Anyway, hubby and I have not decided on this yet. I'm bringing Tim to another progressive preschool tomorrow (errr.. later I mean.. hehe!) for an assessment. I saw the name of the school (The Learning Tree) on Teacher Tina Zamora's blog. (Incidentally, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Teacher Tina homeschooled her kids through high school, after they had finished grade school at the progressive school where she is the directress. Cool, huh?!)

Let's see how the assessment goes. Pls. do pray for us. I know a lot of my fellow Catholic homeschoolers who know me personally or read my blogs may be shocked, surprised or even a bit disappointed to know that I'm thinking of putting Tim in a brick-and-mortar school, but, well, until the day comes when I'm a fulltime-stay-at-home-mama, I'd just like to know what our options are. So, yeah, thanks in advance for your prayers! :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aside from being a Monster Mama on many, many, many days and too ~~lax~~ ~~erratic~~ relaxed when it comes to "school," I've also been late in our Lenten activities-traditions preparations. *sighs* But, better late than never, right? So, I bought some purple crepe paper and wrapping paper and board paper from National Bookstore after doing our weekly groceries and shopping for our family's miracle baby (my niece, Pia, who will be born THIS MARCH! Woohoo!) and this is the result:

Our bedside altar

What Lent looks like in our apartment's "living room/area." I added purple crepe paper to the cloth we usually use to cover our TV and added a cross on top. I'm going to get the kids to stick popsicle sticks in the form of crosses on the purple part, and also to spell out the words "Lent is about Love."

Our simple Lenten altar (which includes the branch we used for our Jesse Tree, which we will now use for our Jesus Tree) (This was inspired by a Catholic homeschool mom's blog post - http://threesidedwheel.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/keeping-a-holy-lent-lenten-mantel/)

Our Lenten book "basket" and Tim's Lenten Offering Box from last year

Our Lenten books - we don't have access to as many Lenten books here as our brothers and sisters in other countries, esp. in the US, so I tried to gather all the books we had that had the themes of Easter, seeking and granting forgiveness, love, doing good deeds (like being kind, showing respect, etc), being grateful, sharing blessings with others, God's mercy and love, Bible stories like Noah and Jonah, etc. I was only able to gather around 20+ books. :) Still, praise GOD for these!

Kids' Corner with Family altar no. 1
(Sorry, we forgot to bring our old palms to Church for Ash Wednesday! :( )

The kids' Lenten calendars and "Lamb" Lenten Countdown activity (yes, we're almost a week late! Waah!) - Lenten calendar from www.catholicicing.com. Sorry, can't remember the website where I got the Lamb activity. :(

Watchuthink? :)

Hopefully, by God's grace our hearts will be as "prepared" for Lent/Easter as our home looks now. That's what's most important after all! :)

+ AMDG +
Teachermama Tina

Freebie Friday: Stations of the Cross Coloring Booklet from Catholicmom.com (and a request for prayers!)

2012-02-24T12:55:00.000+08:00

It's already the third day of Lent and I'm so far behind on the preparations for our Lenten activities for the kids! :( Huhuhu!

Thankfully though, there are oodles of free Lenten resources online that I can just print off on my parents' printer (we're still saving up for our own - pls. do pray with us that we can purchase one by May or June!).

One of these is Catholicmom.com's Station of the Cross coloring booklet. You can find the link here.

Or you can click on the image above to get the link.

I hope this year, Tim (and Rysse, who is frustratingly-yet-amusingly in a "I don't want to pray, don't like Jesus because He died" phase, LOL!) will learn to appreciate the wonderful things Jesus has done for all of us through "simple" things and activities like these.

I find some consolation in a recent conversation I had with Tim, when he said that he loved his cousin, Ate Gabby, more than his sister (I didn't know what to say, it seemed logical to me since he and Gabby play together more often and are closer in age). Right after he'd said that, he said, "But I love God the most, He's the most important, right, Mama?"

*Sighs* Keep praying for us, please? Though statements like the one above make me go, "Another reason I love homeschooling, Lord!," lately, I've been having a hard time with our "schooling," and, to be honest, have even inquired at a few progressive preschools for the next school year (which, in the Philippines, starts in June). So I/we really need your prayers! :)

Thanks, everyone and have a happy, holy Lent!

+ AMDG +
Tina

Seven Lessons Kids Can Learn From Playing Store

2012-02-18T04:31:00.000+08:00

My fellow Catholic homeschooling mom-writer-blogger-friend Teresa wrote this great article on how kids can learn just by playing "store." While reading it, I was reminded about the times my own kids and I would play "bookshop." I am reminded once again how kids can learn so much just by playing! ;-) Time to get out our bookshop signs! ;-)

Photo credit here. (Of course, you don't need this pretend playshop set to play store or bookshop. Just make your own signs, get your own props, "make" your own play money, and voila! FUN FUN FUN!)

Click the link below to read Mommy Teresa's article:
7 Lessons Kids Can Learn From Playing Store

You can also check out her posts about being a mom on her blog here. ;-)

Unschooling and Catholicism - Yes, it's possible!

2012-02-17T06:45:00.000+08:00

I don't define myself strictly as an unschooler since we've been ~~attempting to use~~ a curriculum lately, but during the earlier days of homeschooling, I didn't realize that we were actually unschooling in a way. Now, for those of you who may be thinking: "Huh? What in the world is UNSCHOOLING?," you may find the links on this page useful.

Image source here. (Disclaimer: The blogger whose site I got this from says she's a "free thinker," so I don't know if she believes in God. Just being clear that I'm not "advocating" free thinker-ism [if there's such a term, LOL]. Of course, God loves ALL people and it's up to Him to make the final judgment.)

Actually, come to think of it, what we've been doing these days could be classified as unschooling too, especially since I still haven't been able to "land" my dream "job" of becoming a fulltime stay-at-home mom. It's been a real struggle for me to plan our lessons and implement them, and most days I end up letting the kids play to their hearts' content, and make up for the seeming "lack of lessons" by reading more books as usual during bedtime. ;-)

In this light though, I am really grateful that I've stumbled upon the Unschooling Catholics blog and have even joined their yahoogroup. (Though right now, I'm more of a silent member, hehe!)

Homeschooling our children is still one of my top priorities now, and I find it really exciting that God is showing me different ways of how my fellow Catholic moms and our fellow Catholic families make it work. ;-) At least I know that there are lots of options out there for us who feel and believe that we are called to homeschool our kids - thank You, Lord! ;-)

So if you're interested to see how unschooling and Catholicism work out for the family's best, try going over to the Unschooling Catholics blog! ;-) They have a list of Catholic unschoolers' blogs on the right sidebar of the blog page, which you may want to explore too. ;-)

Here's to Catholic homeschooling, whatever "form" or "style"! ;-) + AMDG +

How To Start Homeschooling: A Response to Mommy L's Letter

2012-02-09T01:57:00.001+08:00

Image source: www.batavialibrary.org

Because of this blog and, I guess, my homeschooling articles on Smart Parenting's (SP) website, I have been blessed and privileged to have received inquiries from parents (some I know personally; most, though, I don't) about homeschooling, particularly in the Philippine setting.

Now, I am no homeschooling expert (I've told my editor at SP to change the "title" they've given me but they still haven't! hehe!), especially since we just "formally" started homeschooling Tim last September. However, I do have a passion for researching on homeschooling, which has recently translated into writing about it and interviewing more "experienced" homeschoolers. Still, I know I have a lot more to learn!

Anyway, most recently, this is one of the messages I received (I'm only sharing part of it and have "hidden" the sender's identity for privacy reasons):

Hi Tina!! I need some guidance and advice... I'm thinking of homeschooling.. Can you help me get started? I dunno how to start eh. I hope you can give me some guidance. Thanks! ~ Mommy L.

Below is part of my reply to her (pls. forgive the formatting, I just copied and pasted this from Facebook). I'm sharing it here in case there are other parents who may stumble upon this humble little blog of mine and are considering homeschooling too. I hope it helps somehow!

Hi, Mommy L! First off, let me honor you for your discerning about homeschooling.. I believe that when God places the desire to homeschool in someone's heart, He will honor and bless that decision!

Anyway, for starters, maybe you’d like to read these articles:
http://www.smartparenting.com.ph/preschooler/education/homeschooling-in-the-philippines-faqs-and-tips-for-parents

http://www.smartparenting.com.ph/kids/preschooler/why-homeschooling-is-best-for-your-preschooler

http://www.smartparenting.com.ph/kids/preschooler/the-benefits-of-homeschooling-your-child

http://rockersph.wordpress.com/2011/09/02/hello-world/(with a powerpoint show about Catholic homeschooling that I did for our homeschool group)

FYI, we’re using Catholic Heritage Curricula (http://www.chcweb.com/catalog/index.html) as our core Kinder curriculum now, but supplement a lot with other stuff.

Admittedly though we’re quite eclectic and somewhat “irregular” in our schedule since I am still out of the house at least 2x/week because of work at SVP.

We’re also praying about Kolbe (www.kolbe.org), and Seton (http://www.setonhome.org/) as they are both solidly Catholic and very Marian for grade school. Both have Kinder curricula though in case you’re interested.

Through the ROCKERs homeschool group, I have met lots of more experienced homeschoolers, who are more than willing to share their experiences and tips. It has been a HUGE blessing and I often get my encouragement to keep homeschooling from them!

Hope this helps you, dear! Will pray for you, your family and God's call for you! Godbless!

If you want to be part of the ROCKERs Philippines Facebook group, just click here and ask to be added to the group. Alternatively, you may send me an e-mail at teachermamatina@gmail.com. ;-) I'd be happy to answer your questions or add you to the group, or both! ;-) God bless!

Is Homeschooling for Your Child? ~ On Nanay Notebook

2012-02-01T18:23:00.000+08:00

A good friend and fellow Catholic homeschooling-work-at-home mom, Teacher Mommy Blessie, has come up with a wonderful series of posts about homeschooling on her main blog, Nanay Notebook.

She has done something I've been meaning to but never got around to doing! ;-) Yey! Praise God! ;-) I've been receiving inquiries about homeschooling (how to know if it's for them, where to start, what to do, how to make it work, etc.) from both people I know and don't know personally, so now I can refer them directly to this post about Mommy Blessie's posts. He, he! Kill two birds with one stone, right? ;-)

So as not to "re-invent the wheel" then, I invite you to learn more about homeschooling, and whether it is for your child/ren and your family by hopping over to the Nanay Notebook posts below:

Is Homeschooling for Your Child, Part I: Bullying
Is Homeschooling for Your Child, Part II: ADHD
Is Homeschooling for Your Child, Part III: Other Reasons

And, last, but certainly not the least, this wonderful post, (bravo, Mommy Blessie!) about Homeschooling and the Working Mom. :-)

I hope this helps you moms (and dads) out there, especially here in the Philippines, in your discernment about homeschooling. Ultimately, I believe that if we truly seek God's will and plan for our lives and our families, He will lead us to the right path, people and resources to help us! ;-)

Prayers for you! ;-) Do say a prayer for us, too, yes?! ;-) And Mommy Blessie's family too - especially since they're expecting Baby no. 4 sometime in September! ;-) I AM SO SURE GOD WILL BLESS THEM MORE AND MORE! ;-)

More Helpful Websites for Homeschoolers!

2012-02-01T05:28:00.000+08:00

In a previous post, I mentioned the Top 100 Educational Websites for 2012. This time around, I thought I'd share some sites as recommended by some of my fellow homeschool moms on our ROCKERs Facebook group page. Hope these prove helpful, in one way or another, to those involved in educating kids, particularly the homeschooling families:

http://www.clickschooling.com/
This site provides a daily recommendation for web-based learning, themed around a particular subject, like for Mondays- Math, Tuesdays - Science, Wednesdays - Language Arts, Thursdays- Social Sciences, Fridays- Virtual Field Trips, Saturdays- Music, Arts, and Foreign Languages, and it also has another division, involving "carschooling."

http://www.currclick.com/
It's an online shop of homeschooling resources, but they provide a ton of freebies, so check out their free stuff - just click on the button "Free Stuff."

http://www.lessonpathways.com/
It provides free K-5 curriculum and teaching resources for multiple learning styles and teaching methods. You can also use their planning tool for each child). Hope you find them helpful, too! :)

http://www.starfall.com/ (Read my review of the website here).
-phonics

Other useful sites:
www.superchargedscience.com
www.catholicicing.com
www.thelearningbasket.com
www.walkingbytheway.comwww.homeschoolconnectiosnonline.com
www.flinklearning.com

For preparing Kindergartner worksheets:http://www.kidslearningstation.com/http://www.schoolsparks.com/kindergarten-worksheets

There are actually tons and tons more sites! ;-) Thank GOD for the Internet, huh?! (As long as it's used in a good way, it CAN lead to more good than harm!) Will post more links soon! Be blessed!

Ideas for Celebrating the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul (Jan 25)

2012-01-25T05:14:00.000+08:00

January 25 is the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle. Since we've "adopted" St. Paul as our family's patron saint for 2012, I thought I'd share with you some ideas (some of which, are not originally mine to claim) for celebrating today's feast. (I tried Googling for ideas, but there seems to be only a few posts about it.)

We won't be able to use these ideas today though, since Timothy joined his Papa Anthony on a "mission trip" to Baguio to prepare for the Couples for Christ Magnificat Weekend Retreat (their FIRST ever trip together as father-and-son. I'm a bit nervous about it, but totally ECSTATIC too!) I hope we could still do them though, even on a different day. I'm really grateful to God for reminding me about "what is essential" through St. Paul's conversion.

Here are some ideas:

1. From Catholic Cuisine: "Although the story from the Acts of the Apostles doesn't mention St. Paul falling to the ground off his horse, it seems that is how the scene is always artistically rendered. After all, falling to the ground from a standing position hurts, but it isn't as dramatic as a fall from a horse!"

Image source here.

a. Make horseshoe cookies and include other "horse-themed" dishes in the family's meals.
b. For snack time, prepare something horses eat, like celery or carrot sticks with dip.
(Find more ideas from Catholic Cuisine by clicking here.)

2. Read Bible stories about St. Paul. Tim's current Bible is "My Favorite Bible Storybook for Early Readers." We got it from Booksale, and although it's not a Catholic children's Bible, it's really good - Tim loves "reading" it with us! I like that the stories are a bit more detailed than those in our other Bible storybooks.

Alternatively, we plan to read (for the nth time!) the comic book about St. Paul that we bought a while back at the St. Paul's bookstore at Ali Mall in Cubao. Maybe we'll do some role-playing while we're at it! ;-)

3. Do St. Paul-themed activities. Catholicmom.com has some good ideas from their 2008 archives on celebrating "The Year of St. Paul." You may find these resources helpful:

Resources for Children and Families:

Year of St. Paul Lesson Plan from CatholicMom.comOSV St. Paul "Giant of the Church" - interactive stories, quiz and more
OSV St. Paul Crossword Puzzle
OSV Take Out Kids Page for Year of St. Paul - filled with several great ideas and activities for families
OSV St. Paul Coloring Book for Kids
OSV "Year of St. Paul" poster
St. Peter and St. Paul Coloring Page

4. Watch videos about the Conversion of St. Paul. You can find these on YouTube. Here are two such videos:

Here's a music video about "Saul of Tarsus." (Note: Our internet connection is kinda spotty now, so I wasn't able to view the video - I hope you can do so without any problems though!)

Happy Feast Day everyone! To God be all the glory! ;-)

Teaching Our Kids To Be Grateful

2012-01-19T06:15:00.000+08:00

We live in a time now where gratitude is something that is sometimes forgotten and often taken for granted. As parents, we would do well to teach our children to be grateful.

After all, it is usually when we take on an attitude of gratitude that we receive more blessings. Why? Because gratitude is "like a magnet," according to Bo Sanchez (who just happens to be one of my "big bosses" now - something I'm very grateful to God for!). The more we are thankful, the more we are blessed!

It is quite challenging to teach our little ones to be grateful though. Admittedly, it's a struggle for me too! ;-) Hopefully, these articles may be of help to us all, who are striving to teach our kids intentionally:

How To Instill Gratitude In Your Children
Give Thanks: A Unit Study About Gratefulness
10 Ways To Get Your Kids To Stop Whining (*Whiny kids usually tend to be ungrateful, too ;-)

Happy homeschooling, everyone! ;-) May God bless us all and may Mama Mary guide us, especially us moms! ;-)

Another confession (AND the Top 100 Educational Websites for 2012)

2012-01-18T05:03:00.000+08:00

When I was a new mom, I told myself that I'd never let my kids watch TV or play computer games at a young age. Like fellow homeschool/work-at-home mom Blessie, I wanted my kids to "play outdoors, read books, and build things from scratch." (Yes, we homeschool moms are of the idealistic sort, aren't we?! LOL! ;-)

But, as most people probably know by now (through reviews I've written, like the ones here, here, here and here) I DO let my kids watch TV/DVDs (*gasp*) and I DO let them use the computer! In fact, I don't think our homeschool life would be as frugal and fun without it (the computer, at least!) *NOTE: The key word for our family now is frugal! He, he! :-)

Don't get me wrong though - our kids, like Mommy Blessie's, still get to play outdoors, read books (well, have books read to them at this point in time - two favorites are "The Tale of Peter Rabbit" and "The Runaway Bunny"), and build things from scratch (or recyclable items). We also like listening to audio stories, especially from The Story Home.

However, I believe in the need for balance. And, since I still haven't achieved my ULTIMATE dream of being a fulltime stay at home teachermama (I work from home most days of the week), most days I need time to work and so I need to keep the kids occupied - and A LOT of times, this involves the TV and computer! (Please forgive me!)

Photo source here.

So it pleased me a lot when fellow homeschool mom Racquel recently posted about the top 100 Educational Websites for 2012, which came out on the Homeschool.com website. I browsed through the list (you can do so too by clicking here), and found some of our own favorite websites listed there, among which were:

http://pbskids.org - Tim LOVES playing "The Cat in the Hat" games here! Seussville is another favorite site! Yes, we're Cat in the Hat fans! ;-)

www.starfall.com - I LOVED how Tim learned a lot of his phonics just by exploring the website - so much that I even wrote a review about it here! ;-)

www.dltk-kids.com - When we were still in Timor, I printed a lot of worksheets and fun activity pages and got a lot of craft ideas from this site.

http://www.coolmath.com - Tim likes playing the games for preschoolers.

www.MathUSee.com - We're praying that we'll be able to get the Math-U-See (MUS) Primer or Alpha set for Tim sometime this year - pray with us, too, please! (By the way, MUS has local representatives here in the Philippines i.e. Noel and Tasha Mison, who may be contacted through mathuseephil@yahoo.com, or mobile numbers 0922-8118378, 0918-4324661.)

www.kidshealth.org - I let Tim explore this website sometimes. Though I need to be available for any questions or difficulties he might have, especially with reading instructions. ;-) *He can only read CVC words and some sight words now.

http://totallytots.blogspot.com - These have cool, fun ideas for toddlers! ;-) I got inspired to do some sensory activities for Rysse and some fun transferring activities from here!

If you want to check out the other recommended sites, click here.

Also, Mommy Blessie (it's SO obvious that we're friends, huh?! haha!) wrote a good post about "Making the Computer Child-friendly," which you may find helpful. She provides links to other good sites for kids, as recommended by fellow Catholic homeschool mom Abby Sasscer (who, incidentally, wrote a book for Catholic Heritage Curricula, the curriculum we are ~~trying to follow~~ using! he he! ;-)

Freebie Friday: {Facebook Freebie} 100-Indoor Activities for Kids E-book

2012-01-13T11:39:00.000+08:00

It's been a long while since I posted about any freebies, though I have come across quite a few freebies over the past few months, which I hope I can still find time to post about later on! (Sorry about that - been having erratic daily schedules for months now, LOL!)

Anyway, I've recently discovered the blog Holy Spirit-Led Homeschooling, which has lots of freebies and printables in itself. The latest one is a free e-book entitled "100-Indoor Activities for Kids!"

Image from holyspiritledhomeschooling.net

To avail of the e-book, like the blog's Facebook page first here. On the left-hand side you should be able to see a tab that says “Free eBook!!!” Click on that tab to download your free eBook. (It's easy to do, just follow the instructions, I already got my copy!)

Hope this helps you all! ;-) God bless!

Our Epiphany House Blessing Kit :-)

2012-01-10T02:59:00.000+08:00

I know that it's not the Feast of the Epiphany anymore and that we actually JUST celebrated the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which means the Christmas season (16 days all in all for this liturgical year) is really, really over! (I am having mixed feelings about this! hehe!) But I still wanted to write this post anyway! ;-)

Last Saturday (Jan 7), while I was on my way to the St. Pio of Petrelcina chapel to attend Mass with hubby (it was our sixth wedding anniversary, marking almost 11 years of being together!), I received a text message from my friend and fellow Catholic mom Buding (she's the one who gifted us with our Jesse Tree last year!). She told me that another Catholic mom and pro-lifer, Amelia, wanted to share the blessing of having an "Epiphany House Blessing Kit" with us! :-)

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't too familiar with what that actually was - but God's timing is truly perfect! After getting home from Mass and our anniversary date, I saw Catholic Icing's resident mommy blogger Lacy's post about it on her blog! :-) Needless to say, I WAS SUPER EXCITED to get our kit! ;-)

It arrived earlier today (errr.. yesterday actually) just before I left the apartment for work. I.SO.LOVE.IT! ;-)

My favorite part of the kit is the sprig of greenery - a nice touch! ;-)

This piece of paper explains the reason behind the custom or tradition of blessing our homes at the New Year.

"Even as the chalk fades, we remember what we have written in our hearts."

Amelia even sent this sweet note to accompany the kit! ;-)

"In the love and service of Christ, Amelia" Oh, thank You Lord, for using Amelia and her family! :-)

Holy Water and Holy Chalk :-)

We wanted to do our house blessing (or rented apartment blessing, to be more exact, haha!) with the kids when we got home from our household prayer meeting ("household" is the term used in our Catholic charismatic community, Couples for Christ, to refer to our couples' support group) but they were already asleep when we got home. So.. we'll have to wait till tomorrow.. umm.. I mean later, Tuesday of the First Week of Ordinary Time, to do so! ;-) A blessing is still a blessing, right? ;-)

I'm hoping the kids will be as excited as I am! ;-) Haha!

Thank God for wonderful fellow Catholic parents and families, who allow the Lord to use them to bless others! ;-) Special prayers for the Alba and Dee families! ;-) May God bless you abundantly so that you may continue to be instruments of God's love, faith, joy, hope and peace this 2012! ;-)

On Smart Parenting: 6 Things To Try With Your Kids This New Year

2012-01-04T05:45:00.000+08:00

The New Year is now upon us, and many of us have already gone back to the daily routine of going to work, doing household chores, and taking care of our children (not that the latter stops during the holidays – parenting, after all, is a 24/7 task!). Most of us too, have probably made our New Year’s resolutions (and hopefully, have not broken any of them yet); and taken steps to improving ourselves. It is a new year after all!

Since we’re on the subject of “new,” we might as well try out new things too –stuff we’ve NEVER experienced nor done before. This year, we suggest six things you may want to do with your kids to make this year one of your most memorable yet!

1. Create your own storybook(s).
If your children are anything like mine, they probably love pretending to be the hero or heroine in the stories you read to them. This year, why not make your kids’ fantasies in a way come true – by making your own storybooks with your kids and other family members as the main characters?

As a family, come up with different “plots” for your stories. You could base them on your family’s personal experiences, or draw inspiration from other books.

You may also want to choose which “genre” you’d like your book to focus on – inspirational, biographical, comedy, horror, general fiction, etc. Don’t pressure yourselves, though – remember that you’re doing this just for the fun of it!

If you have older kids who can already write and draw, involve them in the “creation” of the book by having them write parts of the story or illustrate the story. Smaller children can contribute by having their own “pages” in the book – let them scribble or draw to their heart’s content on blank pages that can be “page breakers” in your book.

If you’re really ambitious, or find yourselves enjoying this activity, you may even want to write sequels to your book in the future. You never know - your literary creations may even get published, like the Giuliano family’s book “All the Way to God”, which stemmed from a simple family bedtime routine.

2. Make your own documentary film or music video.
If you’re not the writing type, you may want to have a go at making your own family film instead. This could take just a few minutes of your time; alternatively, you may want to make it a year-round project.

Here are some ideas for your film or video project:
•   Make a documentary about your family and include interviews of different family members. You may want to make your own family tree before doing this. This would be a great way to teach your kids about their grandparents, ancestors, and other relatives.
•   Make a family video with compiled recordings of each family member completing these sentences (or something similar): “In five years’ time, I will ______________,” “I can change the world by ______________,” “I am grateful for ________________,” “I will stop _____________.”
•   Make a music video by getting each family member to sing certain parts of a favorite family song or hymn. You may opt to sing your parts in a certain way – dramatically, wackily, rocker-style, opera-style, etc. Have fun belting out the lyrics and dancing to the rhythm of the music! If you’re not shy about doing so, upload the video online for posterity - who knows, you and your family could become the next YouTube sensation!

3. Build your own family time capsule.
According to the U.S. Library of Congress, a time capsule is “a collection of objects put together to preserve the memory of a place, experience, or group of people at one point in time. People often make time capsules for special public occasions, and for others to open many years in the future.” People can make one to celebrate a family event, to remind them of a special experience, or to remember friends, family, or school – or something else important to them.

Building a family time capsule will enable you and your kids to go back in time and see your “past selves.” This will especially be a good thing to do if your kids are still very young. For detailed tips on how to make your own family time capsules, click here and here.

(This is the first part of an article I wrote for Smart Parenting Philippines' website. To continue reading the rest of the article, please click here.)

Holidays and Holy Days in Our Homeschool

2011-12-24T09:56:00.000+08:00

It's been a while since I updated this blog. I got sick last month, and since then, our homeschool schedule has been absolutely irregular (well, our daily schedule in general, to be honest!) I've also officially resigned from my old "job" (I like to see it as a calling more than a job), and now have a new one, which still allows me to work from home most days (more on my new job in another post) - starting next year.

Although we've been on "holiday" mode for quite some time now (I'm ashamed to say, since way before Advent even started!), I do hope that the kids have learned a few things from our (somewhat) daily routine of:
- Morning prayers
- Reading the Bible or Bible stories together (these days, the kids have mostly been doing this with their Papa, since he's been on leave from work) - including the stories from our Advent Calendar book set

After reading each mini-book from "The Story of Christmas" the kids hang it on our "Advent" tree.

- Free play

- The occasional worksheet or activity pages for Tim (mostly from the book below)

This is usually used for preschool, but can also be used for Kindergarten. We plan to get the Kindergarten copy for Tim soon though. :-)

- Watching educational TV shows or DVDs (oh, yes, we let our kids watch TV! And I'm trying not to feel guilty about it! In fairness, they, especially Tim, seem to have learned quite a few things from what they watch). For CHRISTmas-themed videos that focus on sharing and the true meaning of Christmas, we used these:

Watching these videos with the kids made me cry! Honestly! ;-) They both have such wonderful messages!

- More free play
- Read-aloud time (for Advent, we are using our Advent Books)

I selected books from their Christ-centered/Christian book collection and wrapped them by day. We started reading books from each "package" on December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

- Watering their mung (or monggo) bean plants

- The occasional introduction of a saint (we did St. Nicholas for December)
- On non-rainy days, time to play outside. If not, indoor "exercise" time (again, mostly with their Papa) using our Xavix set (which we bought last year during a clearance sale)
- More recently, sensory play using our Nativity sensory bin (inspired by this post from Catholic Icing!)

- Evening prayers (for Advent, we've been using the Jesse Tree, and it has been such a blessing!)

Also, we've been blessed to have:
- More visits with extended family members and friends (like their Lolo Bishop)
- (On Saturday afternoons starting November 27) Kindermusik classes with Teacher Suzette and Friends (more on this latest greatest blessing later!)

Right now, what I want to focus on though is CHRISTmas (tomorrow!), and the birthday party we're planning for Jesus. After that, we plan to add "The 12 Days/Decades of Christmas" to our daily schedule i.e. we'll be praying a decade of the Holy Rosary on each day of Christmas, starting Christmas Day all the way to the Feast of the Epiphany. Why only a decade? Well, even if Tim and Rysse are kind of used to praying the whole Rosary with us (especially during our missionary days in Timor), I've noticed they are still very restless (especially Rysse now) when we have "long" prayers (15-20 minutes). This, to me, is understandable, as I know a lot of adults (myself included) who sometimes can't sit still in prayer for that long either! :-)

During the 12 Days of Christmas, I also hope to do the following "projects" with the kids (and their Papa of course):
1. Project "Love":
- Sort through our clothes and toys and other things for stuff that can be donated to the victims of Typhoon Sendong
- Make "I Love You and Thank God for You" cards for family and friends
- Make a "Love Letter" for Jesus to be offered up with their love offering (money saved in an offering box) at Mass on New Year's Day (The Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God)

2. Project Faith:
- Explore the real meaning behind the 12 Days of Christmas song, and explain it in a way the kids can understand
- Read more Bible stories and memorize John 3:16
- Learn at least two Christmas and/or Marian hymns (like "Away In A Manger" - though Tim LOVES "Angels We Have Heard On High" especially the "Gloria" part)
- Have at least ONE session of Making Music, Praying Twice before the Feast of the Epiphany
- Have a lesson each about Mary as the Mother of God (here and here) about the Three Wise Men (ideas from here, here, here)
- Attend our ROCKERs January meet

3. Project Hope:
- ~~Revisit~~ Create our family's vision and mission statement (including our homeschool statement of philosophy, or something like that)
- Make a drawing / collage of our vision and mission statement - art project for the whole family
- Bring hope to other people in need (visit an orphanage, home for the aged, or physically challenged)

Please do pray for us that we'll be able to do all these! Especially since I'll be working the days after CHRISTmas! ;-)

Here's to a blessed, bountiful, beautiful CHRISTmas for us all, and a peaceful, prosperous New Year! :-)

Thank GOD for our (locally-made) Jesse Tree! ;-)

2011-11-25T06:57:00.000+08:00

In the Philippines, the Jesse Tree is not such a commonly-known Advent Tradition. (If we weren't homeschooling, I'd probably still not know about it now! hehe! Yet another reason why I'm grateful to be homeschooling, esp. after all my realizations after our TV interview)! ;-)

Since we wanted to include the Jesse Tree in our family's Christmas preparations this year, I thought I'd ask my friend and fellow Catholic pro-life and breastfeeding / babywearing advocate Buding about a locally-made version of the Tree that she and her friends were promoting last year. However, I never got around to asking her, and only posted a question about the Tree on Bistro 3846's Facebook page, which is where I first saw it last year.

I got a reply to call the Everest Academy, the first (and only, I think) Catholic International School in the Philippines, but didn't get to do so. Also, I thought the Tree might be out of our budget, which is, as you already may know, very, very tight (with hubby and I being lay missionaries and all :-).

BUT LO AND BEHOLD! ;-) God knows my heart's desires, even the seemingly "insignificant" or "petty" ones!

Out of the blue, Buding says she might be able to get me a Jesse Tree kit by the Mano Amiga mothers FOR FREE! ;-)

We just got it a few hours earlier (thank You Lord for Buding's generosity - she even had it sent to our apartment!) - AND I AM SOOOOO EXCITED TO USE IT!!! Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!! ;-) *squeals in delight*

Check out our fabulous JESSE TREE, proudly made in the Philippines! ;-)

This is what it looks like on the Bistro 3846 page.

The Jesse Tree kit by Mano Amiga mothers

The kit is COMPLETE and a perfect gift for any family / individual - it has the "tree" (a tree branch nicely painted in gold, and "planted" in "silver" sand!); a box of 27 hand-crafted felt ornaments; and, a Jesse Tree Devotional Booklet, containing detailed instructions and a daily Bible reading / activity guide. ;-)

The ornaments are arranged by week (weeks 1 to 4) and labelled at the back per day ;-)

All 27 Jesse Tree ornaments! ;-) Yey, no need for me to make our own! ;-) Day 28 and 29 have no ornaments thought; families are encouraged to hang a family photo, etc.

More photos here. :-) It's not too late to get your own Tree! ;-) Blessed Advent to all!

*Jesse Tree Advent devotional sets are now available for sale in Everest Academy Manila. All 27 handmade ornaments were crafted by moms of Mano Amiga as a livelihood program who are the beneficiary of this yearly project. Please call Everest Academy Manila for more information +632-8824981 :-) It is truly a Gift of Love!* - from the Bistro 3846 page. I received the Tree as a gift from Buding, who is part of the Mano Amiga team.
:-) She did ask me to blog about it, but I told her that I'd blog about it anyway even if she didn't give me a kit. ;-)

Remembering St. Cecilia in our own little way

2011-11-23T02:41:00.001+08:00

Yesterday, November 22, was the Feast Day of St. Cecilia. It was a Tuesday, so I had to report to the office. (Although my dream to be a fulltime, stay-at-home mom is not financially feasible for us at this time, I am still blessed to have a work-at-home arrangement that requires me to go to the office at least 2x a week - thanks to my dear elders at Couples for Christ, who are so supportive).

St. Cecilia, patron saint of musicians

So anyway, I left some activities for Tim and Rysse to do with their Ate* (yes, we have a helper now!). She has been a HUGE help and blessing, so yes, I'm not the "do-everything-by-myself-supermom" you may think I am! Still, I am AMAZED at the many homeschool moms out there who keep their homes, teach their kids and blog/work on the side WITHOUT any help whatsoever - hats off to you!

Back to the reason for this post. Hehe! I wanted Tim (and Rysse) to celebrate even in a simple way, St. Cecilia's special day. So what did we do before our regular storytime / booktime?

Play "Guess What Musical Instrument"!

How to play:
1. Choose an instrument you'd like to "be guessed." e.g. violin
2. Give clues about the instrument. e.g. It's a stringed instrument; it's made of wood; etc. (Then "act out" playing a violin; make "violin sounds;" etc).
3. Wait for your child to guess.

Easy right? ;-) Of course, it helped a lot that we went through the entire "I Wonder Why" book about music and musical instruments the other night. (We borrowed it from my brother).

We had so much fun! And didn't have to spend a single cent! ;-)

Prior to that of course, I told Tim it was St. Cecilia's feast day today. I was very pleased that he still remembers that she is the patron saint of musicians, which is why we played "St. Cecilia's Musical Chairs" at the ROCKERs All Saints' Day party earlier this month.

More photos here. Sorry for the blurred shots though! ;-) LOL!

So yes, homeschooling even if you're working is totally possible! Although, ideally of course, one parent should be home fulltime (Lord, please make a way for us in this aspect, hehe!).

Meanwhile though, we'll try to keep "injecting" our Catholic faith, values and teachings into everyday life as much as possible. In my opinion, this is what all Catholic parents should do anyway - homeschooling or otherwise!

Be blessed everyone!

- Tina

*Ate is Filipino for "older sister."

Ideas for Celebrating Advent: Preparing for His Coming!

2011-11-22T07:40:00.003+08:00

Advent is upon us! But what exactly is this blessed season all about? Let's take a look at just ONE of the definitions of Advent, from Catholic.org:

The word Advent derives from the Latin word meaning coming. The Lord is coming. We may reflect that every year at this time we celebrate his coming , so that in a sense we can lose the feeling of expectancy and joyful anticipation, because at the end of the season, everything seems to return to pretty much the same routine. If that is the case, then our preparation may have been lacking and we have therefore been robbed of much of the true meaning of this season.

During Advent we recall the history of God's people and reflect on how the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament were fulfilled. This gives us a background for the present. Today we can reflect on the past track record of God and so begin to understand what it means to us now for the sake of what is to come, in our own future and that of our world.

© Liguori Publications Excerpt from Advent - A Quality Storecupboard The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer

And what better way to prepare for His coming than starting (or for some families, continuing) our own Advent family traditions?

Here in the Rodriguez home, we're excited to do the following:

First up is the Advent Calendar from the Story of Christmas book set I bought at Fully Booked in Gateway Mall (I don't usually buy new, expensive books but I made an exception for this one!)

You can also buy this on Amazon.

It has 24 mini-books you can read to/with your kids starting December 1. Each book has a gold cord attached, so you can hang it on your Christmas tree after reading it! We'll be hanging it on our ~~Jesse~~ "Advent/Christmas" tree though, so no need to buy a Christmas tree!

The book opens up to reveal the 24 mini-books.

Thanks to fellow homeschool mom Mariel, we have our "tree" already. The kids helped "plant" it yesterday.

We placed the "tree" (branches from Mommy Mariel) in an empty Stik-O container, and put crushed egg shells and marbles at the bottom.

Took advantage of this time to get Tim and Rysse to practice "spooning" - great way to encourage fine motor skill development ;-)

Especially for little Rysse! ;-)

It's fun to crush egg shells! ;-)

We'll also do the Family Advent Wreath craft we did last year (we started in 2010). I posted other ways to prepare for CHRISTmas last year here too, just in case you want to take a look.

Tim with our Family Advent Wreath last year ;-)

We're also going to use the Jesse Tree (I'm hoping and praying that the complimentary one I'm getting will reach us in time for the 1st Sunday of Advent! If not, we'll probably use this free one from A Holy Experience.com).

We will also do our best to do this Advent Unit Study, which fellow homeschool mom Stef shared on our ROCKERs group page. I also bought some very good "non-Santa-ish" Christmas books from Book Sale (will post about these separately!) for our read-alouds, which we will try "rowing" to supplement the curriculum we already have. (We're not using Five In A Row, but I like the concept!)

Anyway, above all, we're going to focus on preparing our HEARTS for Jesus to make His home in. That's what matters most right? After all, even Santa knows that CHRIST is the reason for the season!

It's CHRISTmas, not Santa-mas ;-)

FOR MORE IDEAS ON CELEBRATING ADVENT/PREPARING FOR CHRISTMAS, HERE ARE SOME WONDERFUL SITES:

Catholic Icing.com

Catholic.org

EWTN.com

Catholic Education.org

Catholic.net

St. Charles Church

Catholicism.about.com

Shrine of St. Jude

A Timely Reminder About READING from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine (and a Freebie!)

2011-11-16T05:51:00.000+08:00

I receive regular e-mails from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine (TOSH), and this most recent one helped me remember why we are homeschooling. I'm having one of those weeks when I am questioning our homeschool journey, and feel like I'm not doing "enough," and am half-tempted to enroll Tim in one of the local Catholic progressive preschools!

Thank God too for fellow ROCKERs mom Maricel of Medela Moms, who was very assuring and encouraging too during our online conversation yesterday!

This is JUST what I needed, Lord! Thank YOU! ;-)

P.S. Don't forget to scroll down for a freebie especially for TOSH subscribers! If you aren't one yet, it's super easy to subscribe! Click here for more details.

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At what age do children learn to read? It depends . . . your 5-year-old may read sooner than your 7-year-old and some kids don't read until they're 11 or 12. Kids are different and not everyone learns at the same speed. For example, we've probably used a different phonics program for every kid. What works for one doesn't always work for another. Some kids are ready to read in kindergarten; some kids aren't ready to read until later. Homeschool isn't a factory where we turn out cookie-cutter students (grin).

But that's part of why we homeschool, isn't it--to teach our children when they're ready and not force them to some artificial schedule. You are blessed--they are home with you. You have time to really know them, enjoy their unique ways, study their learning styles, and help them to learn when it's time.

The reading will come, just take it one day at a time. And if your child is not ready to read, let it go and play games with him instead. Cook in the kitchen, play on the floor, and read to him. Play "Memory" and "Chutes & Ladders," that sort of thing. Play and read aloud!

Let's slow down, read His word, pray, and PLAY (or talk or cook together or read stories or go for a walk with them) with these kids when we're tempted to get stressed or worried. God is faithful, and He'll help those kids learn to read when the time is right. Someday those letters will make sense, it just takes time.

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And now, for the FREEBIES, thanks to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine! ;-) Click here to fill out the form so you can download a FREE copy of "Mrs. Wishy-Washy and the Big Wash" by Joy Cowley!

We have several books (mostly readers) by Joy Cowley, and the kids love using them for our read-alouds! (Thank You Lord for the generous people who donated the books to our library, hehe!) ;-)

Advanced Happy New Year from My Masterpiece Movement! (Free creative play group sessions! for 2012)

2011-11-15T05:51:00.000+08:00

If you're a regular reader of my blogs, you've probably read about My Masterpiece Movement (MMM) before (I attended their Creativity Workshop for Mompreneurs last year, organized by Mommy Mundo, and have posted about some of their events, as well as their FREE enriching Wonder Wednesdays sessions for adults as a way to enrich one's self).

More recently, God used MMM founder and head-teacher Anna and her team to bless our new homeschool group with a free, fun-filled, fabulous workshop, which the kids (and parents) thoroughly enjoyed! (Now, whenever we get ready for ROCKERs meetings, Tim always asks me "Will the teachers who told the nice stories be there?" - referring to the MMM team of course!)

Recently, Anna posted this on my Facebook wall:

I have been praying that God will make a way for the kids to have a regular session where creativity is encouraged! Actually, ever since attending MMM's Creativity Workshop last year, I have been wanting to enroll the kids, but, to be brutally honest, we just can't afford it right now! (Believe me though, we are blessed to be missionaries!)

So when I saw this, of course I immediately asked Anna to reserve 2 slots for Tim and Rysse! Thank YOU Lord for answering my prayers! ;-)

Slots are limited only, so reserve yours now*! ;-) Contact Teacher Anna at 0915-4327439. You can also send an e-mail to mymasterpiece@me.com * Or better yet, like MMM on Facebook or follow MMM on Twitter for regular updates.

Sorry for the pixelation. ;-) This was from MMM's FB page. ;-)

*Super Saturday sessions will be held at 10am every Second Saturday of the month starting January 2012.

Helping Your Child To Love Reading

2011-11-06T03:42:00.000+08:00

*Note: This article is a re-post from Babycenter.com.ph. Remember, a love for LEARNING begins with a love for reading ;-) Take advantage of the long weekend (here in the Philippines) - spend some time reading books to your kids! ;-)

Image from weheartbooks.com

Helping your child to love reading

There are lots of fun ways to help your little one learn to love books and stories. And, surprisingly, not all of them involve sitting down with an actual book.

Use books to bond

It's not all about reading the words. At this age, it's more about enjoying the interaction with Mom or Dad. When your child sits in your lap as you read aloud, she doesn't just enjoy books, she also enjoys the security of your undivided attention.

Set up a ritual

A regular reading time establishes a calming routine young children love -- that's why the bedtime story is a time-honored tradition. But don't forget that many other daily events also provide good reading opportunities. Once in a while try establishing a new ritual with a breakfast story, a bathtime story, a just-home-from-nursery story or even an "on the potty" story. Some toddlers (and older children) who are heavy sleepers are much better able to face the day when their parents "read them awake" rather than hustle them out of bed.

Choose appropriate books

Toddlers love board books, bath books and pop-up books -- any type they can hold easily and manipulate themselves. They love stories accompanied by bright, clear realistic pictures. And, of course, they love rhymes. That's not to say your 2-year-old won't appreciate the stories her big brother chooses -- who knows, Harry Potter may end up being her favorite book! Just make sure she has access to simpler books as well.

Repeat, repeat, repeat

Stifle your yawns if you've read The Very Hungry Caterpillar every night for the past month and your child still asks to hear it again. Repetition is a hallmark of the toddler years. The reason children love to read the same stories over and over and over again is that they're so thirsty to learn. You'll soon find that your toddler has memorized her favorite passages and is eager to supply key phrases herself -- both signs of increasing readiness to read.

Ham it up

Lose your inhibitions when you read to your child. Growl like the Papa Bear inGoldilocks, squeak like Piglet in Winnie-the-Pooh. Kids love drama as much as adults do -- in fact, your youngster may love to pretend to be the scary wolf in The Three Little Pigs. Encourage her, even if it slows the story's progress. She'll get more out of the story if she's participating actively.

Follow her interests

Choose books about her favorite activities -- visiting the zoo, swimming, playing catch. Back up her favorite videos and TV programs with books about the characters. You may be mystified by the appeal of Barney, but if your child loves the cheery creature, she'll love the books about its exploits as well. Follow her lead, but do experiment with a wide variety of books. Your little girl who loves dressing up and dolls may, to your surprise, also be the one who asks to hear stories about dinosaurs and monsters again and again, too.

Go to the library

Even babies like library story hours, and they're wonderful adventures for toddlers. Your child may well discover a new favorite when it's presented by the beguiling librarian with her soothing voice and perhaps some pictures or puppets to illustrate the action. And, of course, libraries allow parents -- and toddlers -- to take home countless stories without spending a penny.

Turn on the tape

Many wonderful books exist on cassette, CD, or audio file. You can feed your child's eagerness to hear Puss in Boots for the umpteenth time, even though you need to go start dinner, by turning on a cassette, instead (with or without the accompanying picture book). You could also tape books and stories yourself, or ask a beloved friend or relative to do so. Hearing granny's voice reading a favorite story is a special treat.

Don't make books a reward

Don't tell your child she can listen to a story if she finishes her dinner. When reading is associated with systems of reward and punishment, it isn't a positive experience. Instead, pick times to read that feel natural, such as when you want your toddler to quiet down before her nap.

Dealing with a wriggler

Some wriggly youngsters just won't sit still through all of Spot's Birthday Party. Don't worry about it. Just leaf through something short for a few minutes (or even seconds) and then let them go. The next day you can try a slightly longer session. Some children will always be more interested in running around than in reading. If your toddler is the physically active type, she may respond best to the non book-related activities described below.

Make storytelling a part of life

While you're at the dinner table or in the car, tell stories -- standards like Goldilocks and the Three Bears are fine, or anecdotes from your own childhood or stories that feature your child as a central character. Make books of your child's drawings or favorite photos, and tell stories about them -- or ask her to be the narrator.

Point out words everywhere

Wherever you go, you can show your child that words are an important part of everyday life. Even the youngest toddlers quickly learn, for example, that traffic signs say STOP. Alphabet refrigerator magnets are staples in many homes. Other families label objects around the house, such as the shelves that house BLOCKS, DOLLS, and other toys. If your child is in playgroup or nursery, slip a daily note into her lunchbox. Even if she can't yet read CAT, seeing the word printed on a piece of paper, along with a drawing or sticker of a cute kitten, will be a high point in her day and help excite her interest in reading. If this seems too ambitious, try drawing a heart or smiley face with a simple "I love you", which will help get your toddler excited about the meaning behind words.

Talk

Children from families who talk at the dinner table have larger vocabularies, according to researchers at Harvard University in the US. Talk with your toddler, and don't be afraid to use complex words and phrases. Encourage her questions and explanations. Toddlers are curious and wonder endlessly about the world, so don't be shy about trying to explore her interests with her.

Demonstrate your own love of books

Your child wants to imitate you. If she sees books all around the house and knows that you like to settle down with one whenever you have a moment to yourself, she'll learn that books are essential to daily life. Showing her your own love of reading is more powerful than making your child sit through a rigid story time.

New post on ROCKERs Philippines!

2011-11-05T10:44:00.000+08:00

Just a quick post (actually a link, haha!) about our Catholic homeschool group's All Saints' Day celebration yesterday. Read a bit about it here.

I'll post more about it later on though. In the meantime, you can check out our photos here.

Free Christian/Catholic Comic Books (and other books) Online

2011-11-03T07:07:00.000+08:00

Image from printactivities.com

This post was inspired by a comment thread on our ROCKERs Philippines Facebook group page. Mommy Blessie asked about comic books in Filipino or English. I did some "Googling" and came up with these (though I haven't looked through ALL of the sites yet):

Info and links on Comics on Catholic Saints and other Catholic Heroes - including links to FREE old Catholic comics on the Internet

Christian Books links on Christart.com - includes comics, illustrated storybooks, instructional books and short stories

Link to a downloadable book of Filipino folk tales

International Children's Digital Library

Children's Storybooks Online

Free Online Children's Stories at Storytimeforme.com

Children's Books Online.org

Leading to Reading

Storyline Online.net

I will update this post once I get to go through each site or maybe even do some reviews ;-)

Happy reading! ;-)

Videos of Catholic saints for kids ;-)

2011-11-01T07:13:00.001+08:00

Just sharing these.. Found them while looking for stuff to help prepare the kids for celebrating All Saints' Day. Tim is excited to don his "St. George the Dragon-slayer" costume at our homeschool group's All Saints' Day celebration! (Rysse will be an angel; though she can be St. Cecilia too if she decides not wear her angel wings!)

This one was done with Lego! ;-)

A Day in the Life of St. Francis

Saint for Kids video featuring different saints:

Communion of Saints on EWTN (incomplete though):

The Story of St. Perpetua (martyrdom scene):

Our Lady of the Roses appears to San Juan Diego

St. Therese of Lisieux:

More Catholic Cartoons found in this link! Thank You Lord for the Internet! ;-)

UPDATED! Announcement: ROCKERs November 4 Meet-up / All Saints' Day Celebration

2011-10-31T08:05:00.001+08:00

The monthly meeting of ROCKERs for November will be in celebration of ALL SAINTS' DAY.  
We highly encourage the kids (and even parents too, if you like!)  to come

as your favorite Catholic saint or "icon." 
(For ideas, you can go here).

This is our contribution towards keeping the HALLOW in Halloween. ;-)

The venue for Nov 4 is CONFIRMED to be at our usual meeting place, i.e.

the MEDELA HOUSE (not Gymboree).
(The complete address of the MH is No. 29, 1st Street, New Manila, QC.

It's beside 8 Gilmore Place.)

PLEASE COME PROMPTLY AT 3.30 PM. :-)

Below is the program of activities: 
3.30-3.45 pm Arrival/Registration 
3.45-4.00 pm Prayer / Introduction to the program / Brief All Saints’ Day explanation 
4.00-4.30 pm Games 
4.30-4.45 pm Storytelling session with All Saints' Day theme 
4.45-5.15 pm Snacks 
5.15-5.30 pm Time for a short ROCKER parents’ meeting  / Kids Free Play 
5.30-5.40 pm Closing Prayer

IMPORTANT! Things to bring:
- Yourself and your kids dressed up in Saint / Catholic-themed costumes

- Food to share (pls. see form below)

- Your own cups, plates and utensils (so we don't need to use disposable stuff) 

Please confirm your attendance for the All Saints' Day Celebration by filling in the form below:

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More WONDERFUL All Saints' ideas from Catholic Icing!

2011-10-28T01:49:00.000+08:00

I have really got to hand it to Catholic Icing's Lacy - when God created her, He must have breathed an extra dose of Catholic creativity into her soul!

Meet Catholic Icing's Lacy, with her 3 kids Lydia, Julian and Violet! God bless you abundantly for your amazing contribution to Catholic families everywhere! ;-)
*Photo from http://catholicicing.blogspot.com

Check out her latest posts on making All Saints' Day fun and exciting for everyone, especially the kids!

Ideas for crafting an All Saints' Day bucket (a wonderful alternative to the Halloween pumpkin buckets)

Easy food party ideas for All Saints' Day - something I hope we'll be able to use for our Nov 4 ROCKERs All Saints' Day party

Saintly soda for All Saints' Day - Lacy is totally AMAZING! She thinks of everything! ;-)

Printable All Saints' Day games - I want to do this for Nov 4 too! ;-)

Cutest All Saints' Day cookies - Makes me want to go out and buy an oven so I can try baking these! hehe! ;-)

I really hope and pray that more and more Catholic families would make being Catholic FUN and EXCITING for their kids, especially here in the Philippines! ;-) Thankfully though, God placed Catholic moms like Lacy in the world, who are willing to share their ideas for free on the Net! ;-) God bless her and all other moms like her! ;-)

How to keep the HALLOW in Halloween AND Ideas for All Saints' Day

2011-10-23T05:07:00.001+08:00

This post is inspired by one of my favorite Catholic mom bloggers of all time (Lacy of Catholic Icing and Catholic ABC's preschool curriculum - just got our copy a few days ago, the same day we had our first official field trip to an exhibit on Blessed John Paul II!).

That's me holding our copy of Catholic ABC's! Yahoo! Praise GOD after 1 month plus of waiting! ;-)

Halloween is just around the corner, and I hope to be celebrating it with our kids in a more meaningful way, compared to last year.

Last year we celebrated Halloween for the first time in the Philippines and the kids went trick or treat-ing at Valle Verde 1, where hubby's aunt lives. ;-)

Tim was dressed as a knight (I kept telling him he was St. George, but he didn't quite appreciate it. This year though, he is excited to be dressed up as the dragon-slaying saint, so we'll just be recycling his costume and adding a few more touches. Like a sword and shield maybe.
Rysse was dressed as an angel upon the request of her aunt, hubby's sister (she bought everything!). :-) Don't know if she'll be the same this year BUT if I have my way, I want to dress her up as one of those saints who were royalty. She is after all very fond of princesses now. If not, I would love to have her dressed up as her patron saint, St. Therese of Lisieux!

Borrowing from one of Lacy's posts about Halloween, let's check out what the word HALLOW really means:

Definition of Hallow: Hallow is a word usually used as a verb, meaning "to make holy or sacred, to sanctify or consecrate, to venerate".[1] The adjective form hallowed, as used in The Lord's Prayer, means holy, consecrated, sacred, or revered.[2] In modern English usage, the noun hallow appears mostly in compounds in Halloween and Hallowmas. Halloween (or Hallowe'en) is a shortened form of All Hallow Even, meaning "All Hallow's Eve" or "All Saints' Eve".[3] Hallowmas, the day after Halloween, is shortened from Hallow's mass, and is also known as "All Hallow's Day" or "All Saints' Day".[4]

If we really want to teach our kids about the richness and beauty of our faith, then we MUST do our best to incorporate our faith in ALL the aspects of our lives, even things that seem "ordinary" or "routine" or "secularized" like Halloween celebrations. I have learned a lot about this because of our journey in homeschooling, and know we still have a lot of room for improvement.

Since there already a lot of great online resources about how to keep the HALLOW in Halloween, I won't attempt to come up with my own original ideas, and will just share the links below. Hope these help your family to have a more meaningful, Christ-filled HALLOWeen! :-)

From American Catholic.org:
http://www.americancatholic.org/features/default.aspx?id=23 - Lots of links to celebrating Halloween in a Catholic way

From Catholic Kingdom.com:
Why and How to Celebrate Halloween the Catholic Way - Wonderful reading material! ;-)

From Catholicism.About.Com:
Readers Respond: How Do You Celebrate Halloween? - Read comments from other Catholics like you. :-)

From Forums.Catholic.Com:
http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=604014 - Another comment thread from Catholic readers about how they celebrate Halloween

From Catholic.com:
Taking back our Holy Halloween

From Catholic.net:
Should Catholics Participate in Halloween Festivities? - This made me realize a lot of things, especially on how I was so "anti-Halloween" at first. ;-) Creative evangelization is the way to go!

From Canterbury Tales:
Top 10 Ways To Have A Catholic Halloween - Great ideas from Taylor Marshall, former Anglican minister turned Catholic lay preacher and writer.

And last, but not the least, my post would not be complete without these SAINT-INSPIRED ideas from, who else, Lacy of Catholic Icing:
1. Keep Hallow in Halloween - Esp. for those who plan to do pumpkin carvings with a Catholic "twist" :-)
2. All Saints' Day Costume Ideas - Wonderful ideas/alternative ideas for Halloween costumes! ;-)
3. All Saints' Day Costume Ideas for Boys
4. All Saints' Day Costume Ideas for Girls
5. All Saints' Day Cookie Ideas - Ideas on how to make yummy treats that help remind our kids about the holiness and awesomeness of our beloved Saints! ;-)
6. All Saints' Day Party Games - Our homeschool group, ROCKERs, will be having a post-All Saints' Day party on Nov 4 and I am excited to try these!
7. Saint Craft - I want to do this with our kids and if time permits with the ROCKERs on Nov 4 too!
8. All Saints' Day Link-up - Lacy's link-up post last year has more ideas! ;-)

Preparing for our "official" first field trip - “Beatus: Embracing the Holiness of John Paul II" Exhibit

2011-10-16T17:22:00.018+08:00

I was so psyched when my friend and officemate Ate Alma (who also happens to be a food blogger) told me about this ongoing exhibit at the Gateway Mall in Cubao, featuring Blessed John Paul II. Entitled “Beatus: Embracing the Holiness of John Paul II" it features photos and certain relics of the late Pope, probably one of the most well-loved Popes of all time!

The exhibit opened on October 9 and will run until October 21 at the Gateway Mall Activity Area. Organized by the Diocese of Cubao and the Smart Araneta Center, it is part of the preparation for the celebration of the FIRST Feast Day of Blessed John Paul on October 22.

Here is a little information about the exhibit based on the Gateway Mall website:

Pope Relic Exhibit

Oct. 9 - 21
Gateway Mall Activity Area

As a fitting prelude to the forthcoming liturgical and musical celebration of Blessed John Paul II, the Araneta Center is launching a Relic and Photo Exhibit of the Newly Blessed. Over 30 relics of BPJP2 will be on display, including his skullcap, rosaries, pontificate seal, World Youth Day commemorative medal and papal chair during his visit to the Araneta Center.

Since I've been considering including His Holiness as a patron saint of our homeschool ever since he was beatified on Divine Mercy Sunday, I think it would be fitting that our first-ever "official" field trip under the Kingdom-Seekers Academy would be to an exhibit about him.

To prepare, I think I'll let the kids watch these cartoon videos featuring Blessed John Paul II from Gloria.TV:

(If clicking on the videos above doesn't work for you, try going to this alternative page, that features the cartoon biography of Blessed John Paul II.)

Also, I'll show them the photos of the exhibit on Araneta Center's Facebook page here, as a preview of sorts.

I am SOOO excited, especially after reading this news article about the exhibit!

Hope the kids will be as excited too! ;-) Pray for us as we pray for you! God bless y'all!

Ideas for Celebrating the Feast of St. Teresa (Therese) of Avila

2011-10-15T06:05:00.002+08:00

Today (Oct 15) is St. Teresa of Avila's Feast Day. She was a Carmelite nun, like St. Therese of Lisieux. However, based on her biographies like this one from Catholic.org, unlike St. Therese, she did not have a fervent desire to serve God at an early age:

"..she led a fairly ordinary life, though she was convinced that she was a horrible sinner. As a teenager, she cared only about boys and clothes and flirting and rebelling -- like other teenagers throughout the ages."

(I see she and I had A LOT in common when we were younger, haha!) Nevertheless, despite all her faults and struggles, God blessed her immensely, and truly shaped her to be holy and a saint (something we all hope to be one day, right?)

To celebrate her Feast Day today, here is a round-up of ideas from other fabulous, creative Catholic moms, mostly homeschoolers:

1. Make a St. Teresa of Avila Prayer Bookmark from Paper Dali

2. Color this St. Teresa of Avila Coloring Page from Waltzing Matilda

3. Bake Pan de Sta Teresa (St. Teresa's bread) using this recipe from Catholic Cuisine

4. For kids Grade 4 and up - Learn more about "Who is St. Teresa of Avila?" from this activity from Loyola Press

5. Watch these videos about St. Teresa of Avila:
a. A short video with a few facts about her (we will use this, since Tim's attention span is not that good when it comes to documentary-type videos!)

b. This music video is based on the song "St. Theresa's Prayer" by John Michael Talbot. (The images contrast the life-giving way of Christ with the destructive ways of this world)

c. A more detailed 2-minute video about St. Teresa of Avila:

5. You could also read a generic book about Saints, like the ones below, and then talk about St. Teresa in detail: (please click on each image for more details about each book)

However you choose to celebrate St. Teresa's day, let's try to instill in your children what she promoted: a life totally surrendered to the Lord, in the service of others.

"Christ has no body now, but yours.
No hands, no feet on earth, but yours.
Yours are the eyes through which
Christ looks compassion into the world.
Yours are the feet
with which Christ walks to do good.
Yours are the hands
with which Christ blesses the world."
- St. Teresa of Avila

Confessions of A Guilty Teacher Mama

2011-10-13T05:30:00.000+08:00

Warning: This is a true confession. If you don't want your opinion of me to be untarnished, DON'T read this. But the truth sets us free, and I really need to be free right now. So I'm confessing publicly all my sins, though I'll be doing so privately to a priest soon too - through the amazing Sacrament of Reconciliation! Lord, have mercy on me!
---------------------------------------------------

I just read this article about "Why Nagging Doesn't Work" (which I will re-post below) and realized that I have been doing A LOT more nagging than I should be.

People who read my blogs (this one and my main mommy blog) and posts on Facebook, and who see the "outer me" and my "outer life" probably think that I am a good example of how young moms should be - working at home (3x a week), homeschooling, breastfeeding, serving fulltime in a Catholic community, advocating several things, etc, etc.

Well, here is the plain, ugly truth: I fail my kids every day. I do a lot of nagging. I lose my temper A LOT - there is probably not one day that goes by that I don't find myself raising my voice to remind Tim about something. I have used physical means (yes, I am weak and "mean" like that!) to try to get Tim to listen to me especially on days when he just.won't.listen. (Of course, this method has failed miserably! Huhuhuhu)

I don't usually plan ahead for our lessons (unless deciding what we'll do for the day about 30 minutes before the kids wake up counts! haha!) I don't follow our lesson plans a lot - I usually play it by ear.

I am also guilty of being pushy, pressuring Tim to do stuff because it's part of our "lessons for the day." I sometimes fail to see that he can learn a lot more by playing with his blocks and thinking up stories as he goes than by completing worksheets.

I sometimes feel pressured by the people around me, and by my own failures - so much that I am often tempted to put Tim in a brick-and-mortar school.

I am a big procrastinator. In my eyes, I am also a big hypocrite - I don't walk my talk a lot of times, especially when it comes to being loving, patient, kind, gentle, forgiving.

As I write/confess this, my heart feels like it's breaking in two.

My kids deserve a better, more patient, more loving, kinder, more forgiving, more organized, more relaxed Teacher Mama.

My husband deserves a more loving, patient wife who ALWAYS includes him in her priorities (it shouldn't be JUST about the kids ALL the time!).

I think I'll go spend some more time in reflection and prayer now. Please pray for me too. This guilty Teacher Mama really needs it.

-- End of confession --

P.S. Here's the article on "Why Nagging Doesn't Work" in case you want to read it. This was taken from the Simply Charlotte Mason website:

“I nag them and I nag them, but it does no good.” Most of us can testify to the truth of that statement. But I never understood why nagging doesn’t work until I started to study Charlotte’s habit-training principles. Now it makes sense.

Let’s say that you’re trying to teach your child to hang up her coat when she takes it off. In order to make that action a habit, she needs to repeatedly and consciously think through the hang-up-my-coat-when-I-take-it-off neuron route. (Remember the neuron routes we talked about a couple of weeks ago?)

Now, let’s say you come into the room and trip over her coat. The easiest thing to do is to call her into the room and say, “I’ve told you before, hang up your coat when you take it off!” She obediently picks it up and hangs it in the closet, but . . . and here’s the key . . . her brain didn’t initiate the idea, so you just reinforced the wrong neuron route.

You just reinforced the do-what-mom-says-to-do neuron route. That’s a completely different route from the one you want her to mentally travel. And that explains why once we start nagging, we find that we’re always having to nag in order to make something happen. We are reinforcing the do-what-mom-says-to-do route, which means the child will constantly wait until mom says what to do!

‘I’m sure I am always telling her’––to keep her drawers neat, or to hold up her head and speak nicely, or to be quick and careful about an errand, says the poor mother, with tears in her eyes; and indeed this, of ‘always telling’ him or her is a weary process for the mother; dull, because hopeless (Vol. 2, p. 173).

So, let’s say you just came into the room and tripped over your daughter’s coat . . . again. You call your child into the room, and you say something like this: “I promised I would help you remember.” That’s all. If she still doesn’t understand, you can pointedly look at the coat on the floor. Little hints might be needed at first. But you wait until the mental lightbulb goes off in her head and that will start those neurons traveling the hang-up-my-coat-when-I-take-it-off route. Do you see the difference? She thought of it. She made the mental effort.

Yes, it might be faster to nag. Yes, it sometimes seems easier to nag. But think of the long-term effects. You will have to continue to nag whenever you want something done.

But, perhaps, even his mother does not know how unutterably dreary is this always telling,’ which produces nothing, to the child. . . . As for any impression on his character, any habit really formed, all this labour is without result (Vol. 2, p. 173).

Nagging doesn’t work. Stop nagging and start forming habits.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-12T04:14:00.001+08:00

ROCKERs Philippines October 7 "Workshop" with My Masterpiece Movement

2011-10-09T06:30:00.000+08:00

Thank You Lord for the wonderful teacher-artists from My Masterpiece Movement, especially Mommy Anna, who offered to hold an interactive multi-arts storytelling workshop/performance for our small group of Catholic homeschoolers (ROCKERs!) We all had so much fun - praise God too for the generous Medela Moms Beng and Maricel, who hosted the activity (again!) at the Medela House.

The kids and I (and Ate Lyn!) went early so we could prepare the place. We rode the FX and LRT to Gilmore station and walked to the Medela House. It was pretty tiring because I was carrying a backpack with my not-so-light laptop in it, plus wearing Rysse in front with my Next 9 pouch (I SO love the convenience of babywearing! hehe!).

Anyway, we had fun setting up. I am/we are trying to teach the kids consistently about the concept of service / serving others by helping out, doing chores, etc.

They also had so much fun playing while waiting for the others to arrive, I was a bit nervous that they'd prefer staying in the designated "kids' play room" rather than joining the workshop. Hehe. Thank God I was wrong to feel so!

Maricel kindly prepared a few toys and books for the kids to play with during idle time.

Sharing is caring!

The kids and I waiting for other people to arrive ;-)

The afternoon was AWESOME! I'm too sleepy now to write more about it, but will try to do so another day or maybe later. In the meantime, here are some photos:

Medela Moms have this "altar" of sorts inside the Medela House. LOVE it!

Getting ready

All the "upside down" pics were taken by Tim. hehe.

Hello parents and kids!

Some of the excited kids

Teacher Anna explains what MMM is all about :-)

Teachers Nica and Erika lending their support ;-)

Agreements: I love myself, I love my teachers, I love my friends, I love my space ;-)

Time to start: We're going to ring the bell now! ;-)

ROCKERs and the My Masterpiece Movement team

Take 2!

Thanking Anna and presenting our simple token of gratitude ;-)

:-)

THANKS AGAIN, TEACHER ANNA AND THE TEAM FROM MY MASTERPIECE MOVEMENT! More blessings upon us all! (More photos in my Facebook page, once I've posted them all! hehe!)

Ideas for Celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (Oct 7)

2011-10-07T06:06:00.002+08:00

This year's Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary also falls on the First Friday of October - a double reason to celebrate! I am SO excited for our monthly ROCKERs meeting later at the Medela House! We will be treated to an interactive multi-arts and storytelling/ sing and dance along session c/o our friends at My Masterpiece Movement. Yipeee! Praise GOD ;-)

The kids and I will be going to New Manila by taking the FX to the LRT station, then we'll go by LRT (Light Rail Transit, or train in other countries, hehe) to Gilmore St. and walk to Medela House (the Medela Moms Beng and Maricel are Catholic homeschoolers! Awesome!). I'm sure we'll have lots of learning experiences along the way! ;-)

Since it's the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, we will also go to Mass at St. Pio Shrine (at least I am hoping we can!) and try to do one or two of the following activities (which you may want to do too, and don't forget to scroll down for some helpful videos):

- For TeacherMama: read and apply this article on "Exploring Mary and Motherhood"

- Do coloring of the Rosary / Mama Mary pages. The mom behind Family Feast and Feria has taken the time to scan coloring pages of the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries here, and provides the link to the Luminous Mysteries too, which you can go to directly here. There is also a coloring page from Domestic Church here. You can also take a look at the one recommended by Catholic Mom here, Waltzing Matilda here. (Lightbulb moment! We can do this while praying the Rosary too! hehe).

- Do a Rosary worksheet, like the one from Catholic.thatresourcesite.com here.

- Make a Rosary craft (ideas from Domestic Church here and LOTS of Rosary-related crafts from Catholic Icing here. I want to look for pipe cleaners and beads so we can do the Easy Rosary Craft!)

- Pray the Rosary in a more creative manner. Here are some links to useful articles about teaching kids to pray the Rosary:

The importance of the praying the Rosary and teaching it to kids:

http://ausmedjugorje.webs.com/childrosary.html
http://parentsduty.com/Pray-the-Rosary.php

http://www.thereligionteacher.com/6-reasons-for-teaching-children-the-rosary/

Practical tips on how to teach kids to pray the Rosary:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5106689_pray-rosary-child.html
http://rizpah.hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Pray-the-Rosary-with-your-Kids
For larger groups of kids - http://www.thereligionteacher.com/the-living-rosary/
Tips from religion teachers - http://www.proteacher.net/discussions/showthread.php?t=9409
Interactive online site for praying the Rosary with kids - http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/child/rosary/, http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/child/rosary/how.html

Other Rosary activities: (Lots of helpful links here!) - http://www.thereligionteacher.com/rosary-activities/

FREE Download: Pocket Rosary Booklet - http://www.how-to-pray-the-rosary-everyday.com/rosary-booklets.html

Videos on Praying the Rosary: (there are LOTS more on YouTube, just Google "praying the rosary")

If I had the patience, materials, ingredients and the time, I'd make edible rosaries like the ones suggested in the links below:

Source: http://catholicicing.blogspot.com/2010/05/make-and-edible-rosary-fun-for-catholic.html

http://catholiccuisine.blogspot.com/2008/10/cupcake-rosary.html
http://totustuusfamily.blogspot.com/2008/05/edible-rosaries.html
http://asliceofsmithlife.blogspot.com/2010/09/happy-birthday-mary-our-edible-rosaries.html
http://makemeasaint.blogspot.com/2009/10/edible-rosaries.html
http://cherishedheartsathome.blogspot.com/2009/10/our-lady-of-rosary-2009.html

How about you dear reader? How will you be honoring Mama Mary today? Feel free to leave a comment below ;-)

Play Pilipinas: International Conference to Tackle Issues on Children’s Play and Development this October 21 to 23

2011-10-06T05:38:00.001+08:00

(I have posted about Play Pilipinas before here. I think it would be a great event to attend if we had the extra cash for it! hehe ;-) Anyway, I am sharing this article about it from Smart Parenting's website for those who are interested. You can also go directly to the Play Pilipinas website here.)

----------------------------------------------

Academic experts and child advocates will present the latest developments on the study of play as it relates to child welfare during a three-day international conference, Play Pilipinas, set from October 21 to 23 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.

During the conference, Play Universal, the organizer of Play Pilipinas, will reveal the findings of the two-phase “Habits and Attitudes Study,” which seeks to provide development insights on the way play is viewed from the standpoint of both children and parents. It is the first landmark research to be conducted in the country that takes a deeper look at the play attitudes and behaviours of Filipinos. Conference attendees will receive copies of the research and have a chance to take part in plenary discussions facilitated by local experts.

The speaker line-up features thought leaders in the field of child development such as Dr. Anita Bundy of the University of Sydney, best known for developing theory and research in play with children who have disabilities and in sensory integration; and Professor Geraldine Naughton of the Australian Catholic University, a paediatric exercise scientist who has led projects aimed at improvements in physical activity pathways for a range of young populations from overweight and obese children to intensively training adolescents.

Kay Gibbons, an expert in child nutrition from the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne and Monash University, will lecture on Nutrition and Active Play. Recently, she has worked in India on a mother and child nutrition project, funded by the Australia-India Council and the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Dr. Honey Carandang of the MLAC Institute, a pioneer in group play therapy and family therapy in the Philippines., and Dr. Ma. Teresa Gustillo-Villasor, a leading practitioner in the area of clinical child and adolescent psychology and psychotherapy in the Philippines, will also be in the panel of speakers.

Dr. Esther Joos Esteban, a sought after facilitator of parenting and teaching seminars both in the Philippines and the United States, has written extensively on children and education as well as parental and verbal abuse. Her presentation at the conference will focus on media and children’s play.

One of the thought leaders in the area of play in the Asia-Pacific region, Japan’s Hitoshi Shimamura, will speak about creating inspiring play spaces. He is the founder of Tokyo Play, a regional organization for play campaign and policy recommendation and has given a variety of lectures workshops and trainings for playworkers, parents, and educators in China, Sweden, Germany, UK, Canada and Brazil, aside from his native Japan.

International furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue will give a presentation on harnessing creativity. An industrial designer known for his signature designs in natural fibres and materials, his work is noted for the use of rattan, buri, bamboo, and abaca.

Play Pilipinas offers three full days to learn new developments from experts, gain insights from best practice in the field and network with concerned groups and individuals from academe, business and civil society. For registration details and to know more about how to participate in the conference, log on to playpilipinas.org.

Photography by David Hanson Ong

Organization and consistency at the Kingdom-seekers Academy

2011-10-04T07:57:00.000+08:00

If you've been following our homeschool daily lessons blog (Kingdom Seekers Academy), you'll see that I/we have been pretty inconsistent in recording our daily activities (my bad! huhuhu!) So in an attempt to be consistent starting this October, I've tried taking photos to record our activities.

Taking inspiration from fellow ROCKER Mariel of The Learning Basket, I have also started using a "book basket," where I place all the books we'll be needing for our lessons and activities.

Our book basket ;-)

I have also tried to come up with a schedule of sorts for us:

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays:
Bible, Religion, Reading and Language, Art or Music Appreciation, Handwriting

Tuesdays and Thursdays:
Bible, Math, Filipino, Science, Sibika at Kultura (haven't started this yet though.. Tim is struggling with Filipino as it is!)

Because of Typhoon Pedring, we had to move the kids' bookshelves into the living room of our teeny-tiny apartment. I guess it was a blessing in disguise as we ended up with a homeschool "corner" of sorts!

I am hoping these small steps will go a long way towards helping our homeschooling. I am still thinking of following the schedule suggested in the Mater Amabilis website though. As you may already know, we're using Catholic Heritage Curricula (though we have yet to photocopy the other worksheets), but have incorporated other books and resources as well.

Pray for us ok? Especially this disorganized, distracted Teacher Mama! hehe!

Ideas for Celebrating the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi (Updated with NEW CARTOON VIDEOS!)

2011-10-04T06:23:00.012+08:00

When I was younger, especially when I was still a single missionary for Youth for Christ, one of my "idol" saints was St. Francis of Assisi. Perhaps because I could relate to his "troubled" and sinful life as a youth, and later on, as a missionary who gave his all to God, not caring about the material things in life. (Much like one of my other "idols," Filipino lay preacher Bo Sanchez!)

However, I have realized since then that what matters most to God is my poverty in spirit and detachment from the material world, and that there is nothing wrong with wanting to be rich, if it is for the right reasons, and to glorify God by helping others. This is especially true if one has a family - there's nothing wrong with wanting to provide for one's kids right?

Anyway, St. Francis celebrates his Feast Day today so here is a round-up of ideas on how to celebrate:

1. Watch videos about his life - Watchknowlearn.org has a good list of videos here. Below is one of the videos, hopefully Tim won't be TOO bored with it as it's meant for 8 year olds and up. hehe! ;-)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk70JUT-QAU]

2. Do fun interactive activities from Lutherans Online, including reading/watching the online storybook below:

Or watching this music video:

Video created by: Daryl Hackbart

Words: Jaroslav Vajda, 1983 Music: ROEDER Carl F. Schalk, 1983

Performed by: The River's Voice

This song asks us to observe the wonders of God's Creation around us. Seeing all that exists-—the lovely and the harsh-—we have no choice but to respond to the Creator of all. How do we, as God's children, show our wonder, love, faith, and sorrow? Rather than answering those questions, this song simply lays out the images and asks us to think about our responses to God.

3. More ideas from Catholic Icing

Find this St. Francis Spoon Doll on By Sun and Candlelight.

Ever heard of a Tonsure? It's the name of the haircut that

Franciscans have where part of their head is shaved.

St. Francis has a Tonsure. Now check out this Tonsure Cake!!!

Isn't it funny?! I LOVE it! Compliments of Under Her Starry Mantle.

Find this St. Francis Coloring Page on Relevant Radio.

How adorable are these St. Francis bird houses?

Cottage Blessings gets credit for this adorable craft!

Make these Bird Seed Cookies for St. Francis' friends!

find the directions on Let's Explore.

Or an Animal Stained Glass Craft with In a Nutshell.

A St. Francis Craft from Sweetness and Light

4. 10+ activities and ideas from Catholic Mothers Online (I wish we had the St. Francis books mentioned here in the Philippines! ;-) Will try to scour local bookstores for similar titles!) ;-) Please click here for the detailed post.

Happy Feast Day St. Francis! Pray for us!

Ideas for Celebrating the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux (delayed I know! haha) and the Feast of the Guardian Angels

2011-10-02T09:15:00.001+08:00

I was supposed to post these ideas for St. Therese's feast day yesterday but didn't get to as my mom and I went to visit my cousin who just gave birth, and give some breastfeeding support to her. After that, we went grocery shopping with the kids. It was a very rainy Saturday in Manila yesterday, and I hope everyone's coping with the typhoon well. Let's keep praying for those badly affected though, and still in flooded areas!

Anyway, here are some ideas for St. Therese's Feast Day, as re-posted from other wonderful Catholic moms' blogs and Catholic websites! (It's never too late to celebrate and teach our kids about St. Therese, who is one of my personal favorites, as we sought her intercession when I was pregnant with our 2 kids on mission! That's why we named our first daughter, Alyssa Therese :-) hehe.)

P.S. Please also keep reading to the end for ideas on celebrating the Feast of the Guardian Angels (Oct 2)! :-)

1. Celebrating St. Therese (of Lisieux)'s Feast Day (Oct 1):

Ideas from Shower of Roses:

Since the printable activities for St. Thérèse that I had linked to in the past are no longer available, I spent a little time last night creating some of our own. I uploaded them to share, if any of you are looking for any additional activities to celebrate this dear saint's feast day(s) with your children!

St. Thérèse of Lisieux Word Search
A St. Thérèse Crossword
The Story of St. Thérèse (Fill in the Blanks)
Quote from St. Thérèse on her deathbed (Pick the correct letter)

You can find all sorts of other ideas for celebrating this feast in the archives!

Ideas from Women for Faith and Family

Make Saint Theresa Sacrifice Beads -- "A Sacrifice Bracelet is a string of ten beads, which can be pulled and remain in place. As a child, St. Therese of Lisieux carried a small string of beads in her pocket to help her count the gifts she offered to God each day. When Therese would practice a virtue, such as letting someone else have their way, or refrain from a vice, such as gossip, she would secretly reach into her pocket and "pull a bead" to Jesus."How to make Sacrifice Beads - http://thelittleways.com/how-to-make-sacrifice-beads/

Ideas from Holy Family Classical Academy

Today is the feast day for St. Therese of Lisieux, or St. Therese of the Little Flower, or St. Therese of the Little Way. Whichever name you decide to call her, she is still one of our favorite saints! If you decide to spend a little time with her and your children, here are a list of places where you can find some great activities to do together!

Sacrifice Beads
St. Therese Coloring Pages
A Collection of Activities related to St. Therese (wonderful site!)

Ideas from Catholic Culture

Things to Do:

Find photographs of St. Thérèse and her family.
Her sister Céline and cousin Marier Guérin had become interested in the art of photography, and when Céline entered the Carmelites with her sisters, she was given permission to bring her equipment and use it in the convent. A wonderful out-of-print book with all the photographs of this saint is called The Photo Album of St. Thérèse of Lisieux.

Read St. Thérèse's autobiography Story of a Soul and other writings of or about St. Thérèse. Find biographies suitable for your children.

Read more about her confidence in God, an excellent book is I Believe in Love.

St. Thérèse belonged to the Discalced order of Carmelites, which means unshod or barefoot. Find out more about the order of Carmelites.

From the Catholic Culture Library:

John Paul II from 1997 Divini Amoris Scientia (Apostolic Letter Proclaiming St. Therese of Lisieux a Doctor of the Church)
John Paul II from 1997 Homily at Mass proclaiming Therese to be Doctor of the Church
Apostolic Exhortation of Paul VI from 1975 On Christian Joy (Gaudete in Domino). He speaks of St. Therese:
In more recent times, St. Therese of Lisieux shows us the courageous way of abandonment into the hands of God to whom she entrusts her littleness. And yet it is not that she has no experience of the feeling of God's absence, a feeling which our century is harshly experiencing: "Sometimes it seems that the little bird (to which she compared herself) cannot believe that anything else exists except the clouds that envelop it.... This is the moment of perfect joy for the poor, weak little thing.... What happiness for it to remain there nevertheless, and to gaze at the invisible light that hides from its faith."
Short Autobiography of St. Therese
Thérèse of Liseiux — No Plaster Saint
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Learn about the Society of the Little Flower.

There is the historic National Shrine of the Little Flower in Royal Oak, Michigan, aBasilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower in San Antonio, Texas.

Bake a cake or brownies and frost. Decorate with roses, either real, artificial, marzipan, icing, candy or other. Let your imagination go! See top bar for marzipan suggestions.

Learn about St. Therese's sacrifice beads, buy or learn to make them.

Do some rose crafts or recipes today. St. Therese's dying words were: "I will let fall a shower of roses after my death." This site has some wonderful old-fashioned rose recipes.

Ideas from Motherly Loving

October 1st is the Feast of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, "the Little Flower." There are so many wonderful ideas for celebrating her feast day. Here are a few, some of which we are planning to do:

Prayer I have this wonderful cd, Praying the Rosary with St. Therese, that I use to pray the rosary when I am in the car, that I will bring inside for us to pray the rosary with. It takes a little longer than usual because between each prayer is a beautiful, inspirational quote by St. Therese. We will be finishing our Rose Novena to St. Therese the day before, so we will say this prayer today.

Prayer to St. Therese O little St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, who during your short life on earth became a mirror of angelic purity, of love strong as death, and of wholehearted abandonment to God, now that you rejoice in the reward of your virtues, cast a glance of pity on me as I leave all things in your hands. Make my troubles your own - speak a word for me to our Lady Immaculate, whose flower of special love you were - to that Queen of heaven "who smiled on you at the dawn of life." Beg her as the Queen of the heart of Jesus to obtain for me by her powerful intercession, the grace I yearn for so ardently at this moment, and that she join with it a blessing that may strengthen me during life. Defend me at the hour of death, and lead me straight on to a happy eternity. Amen.

Books

Saint Therese of Lisieux: And the "Little Way" of Love St. Therese and the Roses I will start reading St. Therese's autobiography, The Story of a Soul, which has been on my book list to read for so long.

Food French toast of strawberry crepes (if I am feeling ambitious) for breakfast Make easy chocolate éclairs, which were St. Therese’s favorite For other food ideas for the Feast of St. Therese, visit Catholic Cuisine

Activities & Crafts Color either of Charlotte's St. Therese Coloring pages, child and habit Make Sacrifice Beads, a devotion of St. Therese. Point out France on a world map, as St. Therese is a patroness of France. Maybe in future years we'll try this adorable craft of making chocolate roses for St. Therese Watch the children's DVD My Catholic Family - St. Therese of Lisieux Watch the DVD Miracle of St. Therese

"In times of aridity when I am incapable of praying, of practicing virtue, I seek little opportunities, mere trifles, to give pleasure to Jesus; for instance a smile, a pleasant word when inclined to be silent and to show weariness. If I find no opportunities, I at least tell Him again and again that I love Him; that is not difficult and it keeps alive the fire in my heart. Even though this fire of love might seem extinct I would still throw little straws upon the embers and I am certain it would rekindle."

- St. Therese of Lisieux

2. Celebrating the Feast Day of our Guardian Angels (Oct 2):

What WE plan to do:

Read the Grandpa's Angel book together (we originally bought this for Michaelmas, and Tim loved it! Though at first he was complaining that he wanted a different book! hehe)

Go to Mass and show the kids statues of angels :-)
Do an angel craft (from one of the posts below)
Watch this children's music video about Guardian Angels
Pray and sing this with the kids

Ideas from Shower of Roses

Prayer:

Before dinner, we will pray the following table blessing:

Table Blessing for the Feast of the Guardian Angels
Source: Table Blessings: Mealtime Prayers Throughout the Year

Reading: They come, God's messengers of love, they come from realms of peace above, from homes of never-fading light, from blessful mansions ever bright. Lord, to us the zeal of angels give, with love to serve you while we live; To us an angel-guard supply, when on the bed of death we lie. (Robert Campbell)

Responsory Verse: God gave his angels charge over us,

Response: to protect us in all our ways.

The Lord's Prayer

Blessing: Almighty God, our creator, we unite with the choir of angels to sing your praises daily. And today, we give you thanks for giving the angels to us, as messengers of your mysteries and as protectors of our bodies and souls. Grant us to share this meal in peace, joy, and thanksgiving, being always mindful of the unfailing protection of our guardian angels. We ask you this, through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

We will also pray the Angel of God, The Angelus, and I will pray my personal favorite, A Mother's Prayer to the Guardian Angels of her children:

I humbly salute you, O you faithful, heavenly Friends of my children! I give you heartfelt thanks for all the love and goodness you show them. At some future day I shall, with thanks more worthy than I can now give, repay your care for them, and before the whole heavenly court acknowledge their indebtedness to your guidance and protection. Continue to watch over them. Provide for all their needs of body and soul. Pray, likewise, for me, for my husband, and my whole family, that we may all one day rejoice in your blessed company. Amen.

Food/Snacks:
I still haven't decided on a recipe for dinner yet, though it will most likely be a dish made with Angel Hair pasta.

But for dessert, in contrast to the "Devil's Food" cupcakes that we made for the feast of St. Michael, I plan on making an "Angel Food" cake for this feast day. I will serve it with of fluffy ~~whipping cream~~ clouds!

In fact, I may buy a ready made angel food cake, and make a trifle. It's super easy and very yummy. Just tear the cake up into bite sized pieces, and layer them alternately with fresh strawberries or raspberries and whipped cream. I would use my favorite trifle bowl, but any bowl will do.

And for an afternoon treat, the children will each receive an Angel Lollipop Favor that was sent home from the Autumn Festival we attended last week. A very talented mom made these for all the children out of card stock! I love them!

Reading:

Crafts:

Make Rainbow Angels! We are still on "a" (for Angels!) week (I am switching to a letter every 2 weeks -- with everything else, one per week is just too much!) and since we will be learning about both Colors and Angels this week in Little Saints!
Angel of God Craft provided in Little Saints
Color Charlotte's adorable coloring page to add to our notebooks along with our copywork.

Copywork:

Angel of God,
My Guardian Dear,
to whom His love commits me here,
ever this day be at my side,
to light and to guard,
to rule and guide. Amen.

O my dear Angel Guardian,
preserve me from the misfortune of offending God.

Ideas from Domestic Church

Exploring Angels

by Mary Ellen Vice

used with permission

Introduction

As we approach September 29th, the feast of the Archangels and October 2rd, the feast of the Guardian Angels, I consider the significance of angels in our daily lives and in the life of the Church. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that their existence is an 'truth of faith.' Item number 328 states, ' the witness of Scripture is as clear as the unanimity of Tradition.'

As a child, I prayed the 'Angels of God, my guardian dear' prayer. It must have brought my mother great comfort knowing that one of the Lord's angels wateched over me as I slept and during the day, while I went to school and played with my friends.

But when I grew towards adulthood, I stopped praying to my guardian angel. I all but forgot about him. My, how things change when you have children of your own! Through a group of wonderful women called 'Mothers in Christ' I found a copy of 'The Small Angel' by Michael O'Brien. Beside simply being the tale of a tiny angel who becomes a guardian angel and O'Brien's charming and consise pen and ink drawings, this delightful book contains the words to the angel of God prayer. It was like finding an old friend. I bought a copy and read the story to my children that night.

Recognizing and honouring our guardian angels is now a tradition in our household. Each one of the children knows that God has provided him (I have four boys) with a handpicked angel who protects him from harm. At bedtime, we say the litany of 'God bless Daddy, God bless Mommy...' then we say the 'Angel of God.' I bless the boys on their foreheads each night and say 'God bless you and keep you.'(Sigh of relief) It is a great comfort to me to know that God and his angels are taking good care of our treasures.

Books to Read

Baby Angels
by Jane Cowan-Fletcher (Illustrator)

This book is perfect for babies, toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarten children. Its simple language is in friendly interesting rhyme, its exquisite drawings capture the children's interest.

Reading level: Baby-Preschool
Hardcover - 16 pages Board edition (November 1997) $4.19 at Amazon.com
Availability: This title usually ships within 24 hours.
Candlewick Pr; ISBN: 0763604143

The Small Angel by Michael O'Brien

This book is a wonderful 'family read' for a family with small children. It takes about 25 minutes to read aloud, just right for evening story time, or it could be read over two nights.

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Paperback - 52 pages 1 Ed edition (June 1996) $7.95 + $1.35 at Amazon.com
Availability: This title usually ships within 24 hours.
White Horse Press; ISBN: 0969639120

Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul : 101 Stories of Courage, Hope and Laughter Jack Canfield (Editor), Irene Dunlap, Muhammad Ali

The story "My Guardian Angel" by Travis Ebel aged 14 years, is wonderful and heartwarming.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback - 398 pages (July 1998) $10.36 at Amazon.com
Availability: This title usually ships within 2-3 days.
Health Communications Audio; ISBN: 1558746099

Crossword Puzzle

by Catherine Fournier

For solution, go to Solution Page.

Ideas from Catholic Culture

Feast of the Guardian Angels

Suggestions for spiritual practices in the family on the feast of the Guardian Angels.

Directions

Every day of the year gives you a special opportunity to instill a great religious appreciation in your children, to broaden their knowledg of Our Lord, the Blessed Mother and the saints, and to strengthen their dedication to the laws of God and the Church. Each day is set aside by the Church to honor a particular event in the life of Our Lord or the Blessed Virgin, or to honor a particular saint. Consulting your religious calendar and one of the many books recounting the lives of the saints you can discuss these events with your children, stressing the qualities in the saints' lives which we might cultivate.

This day has a personal appeal for your child. You can remind him that he has an angelic protector to whom he can turn for aid in time of danger. Make sure your child knows the "Angel of God" prayer, and remember as a family to pray this often.

Activity Source: Catholic Family Handbook, The by Rev. George A. Kelly, Random House, Inc., New York, 1959

Homeschooling A Reluctant Learner

2011-10-02T06:43:00.002+08:00

What a beautiful inspiring post from one of my favorite homeschool sites: Simple Homeschool! :-) This Sunday morning, I am led to reflect more on why we are homeschooling and what I am doing "wrong" which may be more harmful than helpful to Tim (and Rysse)! :-)

Thank You Lord for articles like these, which help bring me back to the right path! I am sharing it below for you all. :-) You may also find these activities helpful: http://webmama-blog.blogspot.com/2010/05/activities-for-relunctant-learners.html. God bless us and Mama Mary, please continue to pray for us!

Teaching a Reluctant Learner

by TONI on SEPTEMBER 30, 2011

in INSPIRATION

Ihave a child who hates school.

This is hard for me to admit because it feels like I failed. I failed my son, my family, and the homeschool community.

The bottom line… ten years ago I tried to force a square peg into a round hole, and it didn’t work. Instead of focusing on what he could do I worried about all the things he couldn’t.

Now I’ve spent the past eight years trying to undo the first two.

Four years ago another son started school, and like his older brother he wasn’t eager to learn. Thankfully I’ve learned a thing or two over the years and took a different approach with this child.

It’s working.

We still have occasional tears, outbursts, and frustration but that can happen with any child. What I don’t have is a child who hates school. I have a child who struggles but is eager to try again every day.

Here are a few things I’ve learned over the years about teaching a reluctant learner.

Slow Down

My biggest mistake with my older son was that I started too early. Who decided that all kids should start school when they’re five?

I forced my son into homeschool kindergarten before he was ready. He wasn’t physically, emotionally, or mentally ready to officially start school that year. Instead of giving him another year or two I forced this active five year-old into a daily school routine which was the worst thing I could do.

Just because a book, friend, neighbor, or mother-in-law tells you your child should be able to do X, Y, and Z at a certain age doesn’t mean they can.

You know your child better than anyone.

They will learn how to read, write sentences, add and subtract, and tell time. But they don’t have to do it all before they turn six.

Change it Up

Just because you love workbooks doesn’t mean your child loves them too. Your child might not have the ability to sit and listen to read alouds for hours every day. Maybe they don’t have the motor skills to hold a pencil correctly just yet.

The benefit of homeschooling is that you can tailor your child’s education to fit their needs.

If a curriculum isn’t working for your child it is okay to take a break from it. Try something new or use the same curriculum differently.

Set Small Achievable Goals

Don’t overwhelm your reluctant learner with a laundry list of “to-dos.” Set manageable short term goals and celebrate with your child when they reach them.

Some reluctant learners need a simple incentive to help them meet their goals. For years we had a treasure box in our homeschool. At the end of the week every child who met their weekly assignment goals was able to pick a prize from the box.

The treasure box was a key factor in getting one of my children to learn how to work independently.

Involve Them in the Process

Children like to have control over something, so let them have a say in what they are learning. Let them pick out a few library books, help plan their schedule, or choose a field trip.

Giving them ownership of their education can change attitudes and outcomes.

Get Help

It is possible that your reluctant learner might have a learning disability. Your child can overcome this disability with the right tools, but it is important to know what you are dealing with in order to help them.

Our oldest son was evaluated by a developmental team at the Naval Hospital because I suspected he wasn’t just a “struggling reader.” The team provided me with a comprehensive report and stacks of information on how to help my son overcome his seemingly overwhelming diagnosis.

Depending on location and your access to medical care getting help might be more difficult but there are resources available for homeschoolers.

Don’t Give Up

Many children who are reluctant learners bring a bit of a bad attitude to the school table.

Don’t get discouraged. While it might seem easier to give up and let this child play on the computer all day than fight with them to finish their schoolwork this will hurt you and them long term.

Rather than give up, change it up (see point #2 above).

Don’t Confuse Reluctancy with Disobedience

Reluctancy does not justify disobedience. Even if your child struggles it is important to set guidelines and boundaries for them.

You know your child best and are able to determine whether you are dealing with attitude or learning issues. Honestly, it is usually a little bit of both or one leads to another so it is important your child has clear expectations so they can succeed.

It’s Not About You

I believe that as homeschoolers we tend measure our success by our children’s. A child who reads at age three, writes their first novel at eight, and takes community college classes at thirteen must have an amazing mother who homeschooled them, right?

Wrong.

That child might have an amazing mother, but they are probably pretty motivated too.Your child’s struggles do not mean you’re a failure as a homeschool mom.

It is hard to work to teach a reluctant learner, there will be tears (yours and theirs) and you will wonder if it is worth it.

It is.

My little reluctant learner now has a cheerful attitude when it comes to school. He is first at the table every day and even does extra school work without being asked. He still struggles but he realizes it’s just part of the process and he wants to learn just as badly as I want him to learn.

He will overcome his struggles and succeed. He already has.

What can you change in your homeschool to motivate your reluctant learner?

Written by Toni Anderson

Toni is a military wife and stay at home(schooling) mom to seven amazing kids. In her free time she enjoys writing about cooking, saving money, homeschooling, DIY projects and more on The Happy Housewife.