Free E-Book!

Something for your homeschool!

I am a bit new to the Charlotte Mason style of home education, but what I've seen so far I really like.  I found a really good web site, Homeschooling Down Under, and it seems to be full of all sorts of really good ideas.  I especially think it is great to have someone from New Zealand who has a vision to create a special homeschooling space just for her own people.

You can download their free e-book, which is a geography textbook written by Mason revised in 1925.  Elementary Geography, Book 1 was written to introduce young children to the study of Geography in a step by step, reasonable and interesting manner.  Even though my youngest is 8, this book has been a great read-aloud!

Keep the homeschool fires going, folks!

Created for a Purpose

God never made us to fit in, He made us to STAND OUT!

Keep rolling on for Jesus!

What's an Educated Woman to Do?

What's an educated woman to do?

I've been reading a very interesting book by Charlotte Mason, an educator from the 1800s.  Charlotte was actually the original home education proponent, turning the hearts of the parents to the children, and encouraging parents, especially mothers, to use their talents to educate their children at home.  Her writings are refreshing, insightful, and encouraging.  I've been tremendously challenged and blessed by what I've read so far.


Here's an interesting quote I read earlier:

We are waking up to our duties and in proportion as mothers become more highly educated and efficient, they will doubtless feel the more strongly that the education of their children during the first six years of life is an undertaking hardly to be entrusted to any hands but their own.  And they will take it up as their profession - that is, with the diligence, regularity, and punctuality which men bestow on their professional labours.

Looking back now on all that's transpired in the past one hundred and ten years or so, we see that Mason was perhaps a little idealistic, ready to believe in all that is good in people.  Really, we can't fault her, but it's sad to see that just the opposite has happened - mothers have become more highly educated and efficient and instead of benefiting their families with their talents, they have taken them and given their best energies for the purse, or the pocketbook, or the self-esteem.


What's an educated woman to do?  Give of her best to her Master, and give her very best years, talents, and labors to her family.  What better reward can there be for her labors than that her children would rise up and call her blessed?  

Invest in her children!

Free E-Book!!

"Mom, you've got to get this book!  You will LOVE it!" my oldest daughter exclaimed over the phone.  Her dear husband recently got her a Kindle, and she and I have been swapping great titles, sharing stories of good - and bad - reads.

I wasn't real fond of her previous recommendation, but I think it's just me (I'm a bit odd when it comes to reading material), so I was a little unsure of this one.  Once I downloaded How To Live On Twenty-Four Hours a Day, and began to read it, however, I found it to be a really interesting, as well as helpful book.

The setting is in the mid 1800s, so some of the examples are quite far-fetched (and of course it was written for the working man, not for the homeschooling mom), but the principles are timeless.   So far, I have had a lot of food for thought from this little gem.  In fact, since implementing some of the changes in my life, I've accomplished more with less effort.  This I thought to be impossible, since my days are extremely packed, but if it could help me, it can probably help you.

Go ahead and download your own copy, and let us know how you like it!

Tickling Your Thinker: Screen Time & Kids?

This week I read that a new study shows that screen-watching children have narrower blood vessels in their eyes than their outside-playing counterparts. (New York Times, April 2011)

The study goes on to say, "In adults, constricted blood vessels in the eyes have been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease." If only for physical health, folks, we need to limit our children's computer and TV time.

Spiritually, however, I have found that limited is the key word when it comes to screens and raising our children to love the Lord. In my upcoming book, Lionproof, I highlight the results of an unprecedented study of second-generation Christians who are living for God even after leaving home, and I discovered how vastly important it is to limit electronic entertainment. An extremely high number of the respondents to my survey told me that their parents limited their TV and video viewing. I personally think that sheltering children from the worldly influences is a very important part of child training.

If childhood TV viewing can be either directly or indirectly linked to an increased risk in cardiovascular disease physically, then it stands to reason that a regular ingestion of videos and TV can be detrimental to spiritual health. A "hardening of the arteries," so to speak.

Just a little something to think about.

Tickle Your Thinker

Did you know that happy people are more likely to get married, and married people are more likely to be happy? (Raisinghappiness.com, April, 2011)

And…

Did you know that those who shop daily are more likely to live longer than those who shop only once a week? (msnbc.msn.com, April 2011)

These are some of the recent statistics that have been tickling my thinker this week. Of course, the latter statistic is greeted with great enthusiasm by the thrift store shoppers of my family, and the former statistic I find interesting because I've found it to be true in my own experience.

The lifelong commitment of marriage was intended by God for our benefit, and even for our happiness. God uses such things "for our good always." I know that I have been happier married than I was before I got married.

As for daily shopping, there's nothing in the Bible about it, but it is an amusing statistic. I personally think we could all benefit equally from going out for a daily walk rather than spending money so often. ;)

Image source