I think I can....

This part of the school year is torturous...it truly is.

It is the time of year that I really have to reach DEEP within myself in order to finish.

I have to search FAR within to summon the WILLPOWER to keep going.

I mean really...who is watching??

Would anyone REALLY care if I just said "Forget it!! It is summer!!"?

Is there ANYONE keeping track?

The answer is Nope,Nada,Never.

There is no one watching, no one would care, and no one is keeping track of our homeschool attendance.

So why do I do it???

Why do I torture myself with whining kids who just want to play??
Why do I make them finish their lessons and keep up on their reading?
Why do I keep them inside while it is blisteringbeautiful outside???

I do it because noone cares about their little brains as much as I do.

I do it because I am the ONLY one responsible for the information that these children take in.

I do it because I pressure myself MORE THAN ANY principle ever would pressure me.

I do it because I think they should learn that you have to FINISH things.

And

I do it because I am CALLED TO.

I know that the Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to homeschool these 4 youth. He has GIVEN me the patience...EVERY TIME I HAVE ASKED.

Almost Summer.........

You know it is almost summer when....

the kids swim before school

everyone stays up till 10 with NO PROBLEM

all the kids are OVER co-op

you start to use the phrase "summer school" in a threatening tone

school house rock becomes part of LA

the bathing suits are still wet when they swim AFTER school

I can hardly teach one more day

and

You KNOW it is almost summer when someone says, "You homeschool. Cant you just say "It is summer!"?????

And you actually start to consider it.

Happy Homeschooling!!!!

Happy Bday Dr. Seuss!!!!!

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” - Dr. Seuss

I love Dr. Seuss...I mean really WHO DOSEN'T?

He has a way of taking you right back to being 7 all over again.

All you have to do is cozy up on the couch and say, "One fish, Two fish...." and watch the kids come running.

Try it...you'll see.

Well...March 2nd is Dr. Seuss's birthday.

So in the Vallone Academy...WE ALWAYS CELEBRATE!!!

We started the day off by watching the "cat in the hat" cartoon marathon on PBS...while we used tracing paper and traced ages from our favorite Dr. Seuss books.







Then we read Dr. Seuss books and watched a couple of videos..

So fun and so cute.

One of the reasons I love Dr. Seuss is because he has a way of effortlessly telling a story that is interesting to both YOUNG and OLD.

And..for the most part there is ALWAYS a lesson.

Like... " The Sneetches" :(If you want to watch this video- Scroll down an turn off the music player on your RIGHT)



Watching this video together we discussed:
* WHY the way you LOOK does not determine WHO you are.
* THAT all people are the same...no matter the way they LOOK.
AND
*how a story can be told in MANY different ways.

Such a blessing to sit with the kids and have these moments....
The timeless ones where time STOPS, and you SIT STILL for a MOMENT.

And what kind of Dr. Seuss Day would it be without visiting a CAT and some kittens???

I mean really???

What KIND of Mother would I be????

LOL









Then to top the whole day off...
Guess what we had for dinner????



Yep!!!!
Green Eggs....minus the ham.



Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!!!!

Secret CEREAL School......LOL

Reuce.
Reuse.
Recycle.

It is something we take seriously..
We TRY to find different uses for ALL things.

Soooo......
When I saw THIS over at Almost Unschoolers ...
I was STOKED!!!

And since we have TONS of cereal boxes that we are sending to Haiti...I thought we could spare a few.
LOL

So...here was my spin on it...

More like a "make up your own silly sentences" game.

Fun, Recycled, and SECRET SCHOOL combined!!!
Perfect!!!

Creative "play".....

Homeschooling can LOOK like many different things.

Some start at the crack of dawn....
Others in the afternoon.

Some stick to a schedule....
Others have NO SCHEDULE.

Some don't stray too far from the public school cirriculum...
Others make a POINT to STAY FAR from it.

The kiy is to really TUNE IN to your kids and figure out what works.

They are all different...
all special, with their own quirks and learning styles.

So...
you have to pay CLOSE ATTENTION.

I have learned that for ME....LIFE SCHOOL works.

I try to look for the learning opportunities in EVERYTHING.

I try and always HELP them to be creative and USE their minds....
no matter the situation.

One thing that I have learned about my kids is that they LOVE puzzles,games,etc.

Puzzles are one thing that will keep them OCCUPIED.

So...
I thought I would pass it along.

These puzzles are AWESOME!!!! (Sorry for the BAD pics!)

Camel feet and GOD!

This year I started using a new cirriculum called My Fathers World.

It is an amazing program that lets you homeschool MULTI-AGE children...easily.

Which means you teach Science, history, bible study, and geography ALL together.

A little like "Little House on the Prarie"....for each of those subjects-taking it to different levels for different ages.

The core subjects are done individually.

An AMAZING program ...especially for a family with "stair-step kids".

The first year you spend on Geography instead of history.

Which I think is a GREAT idea...I can't tell you how much I have learned this year!!! (I think we all know VERY LITTLE geography...be honest.)

The last few weeks we have been on the continent of ASIA...in the country of Saudi Arabia.( See you had NO IDEA what continent Saudi Arabia was on. LOL)



Which means we study ALL THINGS desert, camel,drought,sand,and heat.

Today, after coloring our map sheets and talking about the traditional dress of the Saudi Arabians.....we talked about camels.

We talked about the body of a camel and why GOD made him this magnificent way.

Perfect skin for the DESERT SUN.

3 rows of eyelashes...perfectly placed to keep out the sand.

Perfect pads on their "knees" ......already callused - from birth.

Humps on their backs ...perfectly situated to carry water and LOADS.

and

Wide, padded feet ...perfectly made to balance and NOT SINK in the desert sand.

So...to prove this point and add a visual...we did an experiment.





We got out 2 bowls and filled both with salt- to mimic the sand of the desert.



Then, talked about a camels feet and why they DON'T sink..



We talked about how because God made their feet WIDE they take up more surface area ..then if they were NOT SO WIDE.



Then we observed what would happen when you placed a smaller "foot" in the "sand".



As opposed to a WIDE, THICK "foot".



It was a fun, easy experiment which gave us the opportunity to discuss not only surface area, but also GOD'S INFINITE WISDOM.



Awesome....

Homeschool...homestead stylee

School CAN come in all kinds of ways.

School CAN be on Saturday.

School CAN be unknowingly FUN.

THAT is what happened on Saturday when we announced that it would be a "animal chore day".

Which consist of cleaning ALL the animals cages/habitats.

ALL...which include: dogs,cats,guinea pigs,chickens, fish, and turtles.



You can IMAGINE their "excitement"!!!!! LOL

They tend to NOT WANT to help...but they are FORCED.

A rite of passage I believe.

I'll be DARNED if I will have LAZY kids.

So....
THEY WORK.

ANd soon enough we were surprised with a "secret school" lesson....
Daddy found some lizard eggs in the chicken coop.

AWESOME!!!



We RELOCATED them into their own habitat so that they could continue on their JOURNEY without being CHICKEN SNACKS.













LIFE SCHOOL ...at it's finest!!!!





So is life on the Rasta Homestead...
Blessed.

A “maze”ing!!!!

This morning we got up and went to the Sykes and Cooper Farms.

They have an a”maze”ing corn maze.

It was a wonderful field trip for the co-op to take together…..

Corn maze

pumpkin patch

hay ride

corn popper

and FRIENDS.

Awesome.

And a BONUS was the fact that THIS event was NOT halloween  based.

Sweet.