Sick Again

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Have you ever gotten ill three times in two months? It seems like this upper respiratory virus keeps targeting our son, then it moves to our daughter and me. Thankfully, my husband never gets it.

Humphrey

Our daughter likes to create different characters. Meet Humphry.

Our son spent the week in bed, getting behind in all his school work. He barely had enough energy to check Slack and emails every day for communication purposes with his co-op teachers and Science Olympiad coaches and team partners. Continue reading »


Institute for Excellence in Writing

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After three months of studying writing with Andrew Pudewa of the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW), my children and I have decided this curriculum rocks. We decided this after three weeks, but I wanted to wait a few more months to blog about it. We got Level 1B, which is for grades 6-8. Since my daughter is in sixth grade and my son in eighth, it is perfect for us.

Puzzle

My daughter building puzzles – a metaphor for learning writing

You should know that Andrew Pudewa used to teach Suzuki violin. If you know anything about the Suzuki method, you know that it teaches step by step, in a very systematic way. Pudewa took the Suzuki method and applied it to IEW. This incremental approach to writing helps children and teens understand how to write. There will be no expectations beyond their ability. Continue reading »



Just Write Curriculum Review

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“Just Write,” a writing curriculum by Rachel Tolman Terry, provides 150 writing prompts for middle school. Such a book will make your life easier if you would like a no-prep writing curriculum.

Homeschoolers studying

My children using “Just Write” on a regular school day.

This curriculum is consumable. The pages are lined, so that it really functions as a workbook. Every two-page spread has a black-and-white picture on the left and the lined page on the right. At the end of the book, you can read briefly about the photographers.

Think about it: a school year has 180 days. We usually spend 30 days on field trips, illness, or concerts. Realistically, we can count on 150 days of active book instruction. With “Just Write,” you can plan on your child’s writing something every day. Meanwhile, you did not have to do a thing to prepare. Continue reading »