Author Archives: Adriana Zoder

Nov 2 2020

Fall Break

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For the first time ever, we are taking a fall break this week, for several reasons. Our son has a birthday this week. The rule is, we do not do school on the kids’ birthdays. This Tuesday is Election Day, in case you have been living under a rock. And we do not do school on Election Day, either.

Hiking with Friends

Two weeks ago, we hiked at Ijams Nature Centre with friends.

Then, my husband has a birthday this week, too, and it is a milestone birthday. That’s three days out of the week. The fourth day is our hiking day (our co-op, in a sense). So why should we do school for one day this week? I gave them a break. Continue reading »

Oct 26 2020

High School Planning – Facebook Live

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The latest Facebook Live event dealt with planning for high school. My children are in 5th and 7th grade resepctively, but I am looking ahead and making plans for high school.

Boy Playing Piano

Our son playing piano in church – he is tall for his age, so he already looks like a high school student.

In all honesty, I planned for their college experience when they were preschoolers. Stephen Covey says, “Begin with the end in mind.” Why did I want to homeschool? To prepare them for college better than a public school would. This “end” determined my beginning. I had full confidence that homeschooling my children would prepare them for college more than sending them to a public school. Continue reading »

Oct 19 2020

Our Weekly Bread: 11 of 36

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This week, we used the sourdough starter to make sourdough bread. When you have a bread machine, you skip all the kneading. It only took ten minutes to measure ingredients into the machine and push start. Three hours later, we had this amazing bread loaf which everybody loved. I tried a little piece to see if I will react to the gluten. Since I did not, the next day I had a bigger piece. So far, so good.

Sourdough bread

The kids and I made this sourdough bread.

Next time I make it, I will use bread flour, just to see the difference. This first time, I used all-purpose flour. The recipe allows for either, or. Continue reading »

Oct 18 2020

Wild and Free – Facebook Live

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This week I spoke about the Wild and Free Community. It is a co-op of sorts, but without books. We just go hiking. We keep the group small, no more than 15-20 families, depending on the number of children in each family. That is already too large to manage. Imagine a group of 30-50 people walking around through a city park or a trail in a state park.

Andrews Bald

My children on the Andrews Bald hike last week

Realistically speaking, not everybody can make it every week. Therefore, we have never had all 15 families show up. The biggest I have seen it in my 14 months of Wild and Free was maybe 7 or 8 mamas with their children. Continue reading »

Oct 11 2020

Our Weekly Bread: 10 of 36

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The kids and I have started on a sourdough bread recipe. This week, we made the sourdough starter. This will have to ferment for at least two days before we can make sourdough bread in the bread machine.

Sourdough Starter

Making sourdough starter

People either love or hate sourdough bread. I happen to love it. However, I have had to stay away from gluten for the past four years, due to gluten intolerance. As I have progressed more in my allergy treatment, it seems that I can timidly have a serving of gluten once a week or so, without pain and bloating. Continue reading »

Oct 11 2020

Our Weekly Bread: 9 of 36

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We had zeppoli at Olive Garden a few weeks ago. I told the kids we can replicate it at home. They said, “Probably not, but we can try it.” Thanks for your confidence, kids! I looked for a recipe online.

Zeppole

Zeppole – Italian doughnuts

It turns out, the real name is “zeppole,” not “zeppoli.” Now I realize that Italian doughnuts do not exactly a loaf of bread represent. Hey, it’s dough raised with yeast. That counts for something. Continue reading »

Oct 11 2020

Service – Facebook Live

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Your homeschool must provide your students with service opportunities. Yes, strong academics are vital. Manual labor also helps students learn specific skills and, more importantly, work skills. But service keeps students balanced. Life is more than the accumulation of skills that can be exchanged for a profit in the future. Giving back rounds up the character and keeps students humble.

Bear-proof your campsite

By following regulations, we serve our fellow men and wild life.

In this Facebook Live event, I talked about why we need service opportunities for our students. It goes back to the Moore Formula: service time + manual labor time = academics time. The time you spend learning subjects equals the sum of the time spent in manual labor and the time spent in service. Continue reading »

Sep 29 2020

Our Weekly Bread: 8 of 36

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The kids cannot get enough of focaccia bread. Finally, they were ready to sprinkle cheese, rosemary, and Italian seasoning on their focaccia dough before baking it. This is their third time making it. Third time’s a charm indeed.

Focaccia

Focaccia with sharp cheddar cheese, rosemary, and Italian seasoning

I also suggested that, when the bread is ready, they dip it in marinara sauce, warm or cold. They loved it. See? Taste buds can be trained and educated. When we hear so many parents complain their children will not eat vegetables or whole wheat bread or fruit, it’s a matter of patient education. Continue reading »

Sep 21 2020

Math Options – Facebook Live

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After our camping trip, I found I had no time for the weekly Facebook Live event. Sorry I missed my weekly rendez-vous live with you all last week. So this week I spent over 20 minutes talking live. The topic? Math options.

Math Mammoth

Our favorite math curriculum, Math Mammoth.

Love it or hate it, math is essential. I happen to love it. My kids like math. Like reading, the more you do it, the more you love it. Continue reading »