Category: Fun stuff

Our New Homeschool Library

When we moved into our home almost fifteen years ago, the downstairs area was finished space and all of the upstairs was unfinished and used as a storage area. We kept it that way for years, until we started to homeschool. The year we started to homeschool my husband finished one portion of the space to serve as a school room. Over the years, we later finished a space for an extra bedroom and a closet but we still had a room in the middle that was being used as storage.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

Over the course of this summer, we took everything out of that room and my husband and son finished it into a library/music room!! I have always dreamed of having a home library but never thought it would actually happen. We have a rather large collection of books because we frequent yard sales and used book stores. This gives us a place to neatly store our book collection, a place for their instruments and music practice, a place I can go to sit and read quietly, and a place where they can have friends and hang out chatting or playing board games.

My husband and son did all the work from putting up wood slats for the ceiling, sheet rock on the walls, and carpet tiles on the floor. We were blessed to get a large selection of bookshelves back in the beginning of March from a bookstore that was going out of business. Those finished off three of the walls and gave us a place to store many of our books.

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One of my favorite parts was a special touch that my husband put into the room. We are hug fans of C.S. Lewis and the Chronicles of Narnia. So my husband turned one of the doors into the ‘wardrobe’ that leads to Narnia.  This makes me smile every time I see it and reminds me both of my husband’s love and that this world is not my home.

We have one step left, we are going to get quotes from some of our favorite books printed onto vinyl and put up on the walls.  We plan to use quotes from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, The Hobbit, and The Green Ember series.  I know that we are going to include: “It will not be so in the mended wood.” and “My place beside you, my blood for yours. Till the Green Ember rises or the end of the world!” from theGreen Ember.  We also know that we will use “Safe?” said Mr Beaver …”Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”  and “Oh Children” from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.  We are still choosing a couple more from those books and a couple from the Hobbit.

I think our new library might just be my new favorite room! Do you have a favorite room in your house or dreams of a library or special room that you might be able to complete one day?

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Final 2 Days to get the Ultimate Homeschool Bundle for less than $30! Includes a variety of curriculum from pre-k through high school. What courses are you excited about? I’m going to do the Jane Austen course with my daughter!

So many folks looking for homeschool options at a reasonable price during this unusual time. SchoolhouseTeachers.com is having an amazing sale. For less than $200 you get 2 years access to over 400 courses that you can use with as many students as you have in your home! We use this for several courses and I am always happy to answer questions. Just click on this link and use code: SHARK20

If you are looking for a fun way to encourage reading this summer, check out the FREE summer reading materials from Your Morning Basket with Pam Barnhill. The passport and reading bucket list are a great way to encourage reading!

Homeschool Complete is offering a special 10% off discount to my readers! Just use code: SWAG

Get a FREE Literature Kit from LitWits using Code 11READ4FUN. We are currently enjoying the Heidi kit but have also previously loved the My Side of the Mountain kit.

IEW is offering some great free resources right now.

Homestead Homeschool: Meet Wilhelmina and Other Updates

 

If you have been following along with our homestead posts, you know that we dabble at homesteading in the midst of a busy life. We enjoy being outside, learning to grow and raise our own food, teaching our children responsibility, and the taste of a garden fresh tomato!! Since my last post about gardening a couple months ago, we have added some new friends to our homestead, had a few successes and some challenges.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

New Animals

A few weeks ago we added three turkey poults to our homestead. These, along with the nine that we are getting next week as a part of a 4-H turkey show, will be raised by my oldest three children and then processed in late October or November.

Next, we added guinea keets last week. My children had been asking for guineas for awhile now and we decided it was finally time to give it a try. Guineas are different from our chickens and ducks because they are much more independent. They also need very little feed and will forage for most of their diet. They should be a benefit to our homestead by helping control the snake and tick population. During the spring they will also produce eggs, which my son hopes to incubate and be able to increase our flock as well as sell some keets.

Finally, just this week we were able to find a good companion goat for my daughter’s show goat. This goat’s original name was Amara but my daughter has named her Wilhelmina Amara. Her show goat’s name is Houdini (because he is an escape artist) and the real Houdini’s wife was named Wilhelmina. We are excited for this addition to the homestead and enjoying watching the two goats play together.

Homestead Homeschool.

Successes and Challenges

One of the biggest challenges we are facing right now are the deer who think our garden makes for a wonderful buffet. We have a fence and first they were just eating what was up against the fence but most recently they are jumping the fence to dine on our garden. I love watching the deer grazing on the grass in the back yard, but we are working on solutions to keep them out of the garden. I have some netting ordered to see if that will help keep them out of the fence. If you have any solutions that have worked for you, I would love to hear about them.

On a happier note, the garden is starting to really yield its harvest and we are enjoying the ‘fruits of our labor’. We are currently harvesting blueberries, yellow squash, and cherry tomatoes. With-in the next week we should also be getting patty pan squash and slicing tomatoes. The potato crop is growing nicely and we have some baby eggplant and peppers that will be ready soon as well.

My children participated in a virtual chicken show this month and did really well. My son did well enough in the first round to move on to the finals and placed fourth in his age group. They very much miss their in-person events but were grateful for the chance to show virtually.

How are things going where you are? I would love to know what you are harvesting from your gardens and any tips about the deer!

 

Affiliate Disclosure and Resource Library

When you sign up for our free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Homeschool Complete is offering a special 10% off discount to my readers! Just use code: SWAG

Evan-Moor is offering their Daily Fundamentals book FREE right now to help out during this time.

Get a FREE Literature Kit from LitWits using Code 11READ4FUN. We are currently enjoying the Heidi kit but have also previously loved the My Side of the Mountain kit.

IEW is offering some great free resources right now.

FREE Baby Yoda Art Lesson from Nana!

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Homestead Homeschool: Gardening

 

gardening pinterest

 

 

We enjoy gardening and growing some of our own food, but sometimes life gets really busy and we just can’t keep up with it all. However, this time at home has come at the perfect time to really kick up our gardening plans. The weather is great, we have time to weed and water, and the kids are really excited to be growing vegetables. I want to share some of the benefits of gardening in our homeschool as well as some tips for getting started.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

Benefits

Getting outside in the garden is a great way to get moving, get in some physical activity, and just enjoy time outside. There is plenty of research showing the benefits of getting outside for both children and adults and this is a great way to enjoy that time together.

Some children can be picky about what they want to eat and may not enjoy trying new foods. Gardening is a great way to help them overcome that challenge. Often children are more willing to try a new vegetable or fruit that they helped grow. It is also a great opportunity to talk about nutrition and vitamins as you plant a variety of different foods.

Finally, the rewards are in the tasty food that you can put on your plate and hopefully the lower grocery bills. A tomato fresh off the vine is far better than any tomato you can ever find in the store and an ear of corn picked and cooked that day, or even better eaten raw, still warm from the July sunshine is a summer delicacy.

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Gardening Tips

My first bit of advice is to start small. It can be tempting to go out and plant every vegetable you have ever wanted to eat, but if you start with just a few things it is easier to maintain. Once you get the hang of it, you can increase your garden size.

There are lots of wonderful books and blogs about gardening, but one resource you do not want to forget is your local cooperative extension. Each state has one and in most states, there are county offices that can help you. We love our North Carolina Cooperative Extension for gardening schedules, soil testing, and more.

If you want this to be an enjoyable family experience, I highly recommend getting some input from your children. Let them help pick out which vegetables or flowers they want to plant. If possible, get them their own small garden tools and gloves so that they can really take ownership in the process.

Spend a few minutes each day weeding, watering, and checking on your garden. You can do a lot in a few minutes a day, but if you get behind on the weeding it can take hours to catch up and become overwhelming. In the summer I also recommend, when possible, working in the early morning or evening to avoid the heat of the day.

If you are concerned about physical limitations or are working on strengthening your core, my friend Beth over at Fit2b has created this free resources to help with safe gardening techniques. This can help you get the most out of your gardening while keeping your abdominal muscles safe and supported.

What If I Don’t Have Space?

It does not take a lot of outdoor space to have a garden. You can plant tomatoes or cabbage in a flower bed. We have onions lining our walkway. However, you may not have any outdoor space. You can still enjoy gardening. If you have a porch or balcony, you can do container gardening. If you need to be indoors, you can plant herbs, mushrooms, or even tomatoes in your home. Microgreens are also a great way to quickly grow something indoors.  You may not get the outdoor benefits of gardening but it can still be a fun and educational experience.

Whether you love gardening already or are just getting started, I hope these tips have been helpful. I would love for you to share your favorite resources in the comments. Also, if you have any questions feel free to ask those in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer.

Affiliate Disclosure and Resource Library

When you sign up for our free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Homeschool Complete is offering a special 10% off discount to my readers! Just use code: SWAG

Evan-Moor is offering their Daily Fundamentals book FREE right now to help out during this time.

Get a FREE Literature Kit from LitWits using Code 11READ4FUN. We are currently enjoying the Heidi kit but have also previously loved the My Side of the Mountain kit.

IEW is offering some great free resources right now.

FREE Baby Yoda Art Lesson from Nana!

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Fabulous Farm Themed Party Ideas

Whether you need to plan a birthday party for a child or you want to have a fun celebration at the end of a farm unit study, I have collected some really fun and super simple ideas. We celebrated my son’s birthday a couple weeks ago and rather accidentally and last minute decided on a farm theme for his party.  On Wednesday before his Saturday party my plan had been a generic party, but my mom was picking up some plates for us and found some adorable farm themed ones. My son, who was turning two, loves our animals and playing with his toy tractors so it was a perfect fit.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

Farm Themed Party Pinterest

I decided that it would be a fun and easy to put together theme because we already had most of what we needed. We used his toy tractors and farm equipment and some of his farm books to provide the decorations and then added some fun themed food.

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First, we set up a variety of toy farm equipment on the mantel and on the table where we were serving food. I used a green table cloth to be the grass under the equipment. We even happened to have a barn decoration that had been up in my older son’s room years ago.  We put that behind the table, but even without that you can make a really cute party with things that many folks already have at home.

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Next, I took to pinterest to see what kind of fairly easy finger foods I could find that had a farm theme and I was not disappointed. While there are plenty of more complicated options, we stuck with ideas that were easy to implement given our limited time frame.  We had ‘chicken feed’ trail mix, ‘tractor tire’ Oreos, ‘garden plot’ veggie tray, ‘u-pick fruit stand’ cut fruit, ‘hay bale’ rice krispy treats, ‘mud bath’ chocolate pudding and animal crackers, and ‘chicken eggs’ deviled eggs.  We did water and homemade lemonade to drink in mason jars (keeping it thematic and saving me from having to buy paper cups).

We could have printed out some farm themed color sheets or had a few farm themed games if we needed the time filler. However, we decided to go with a small ‘petting’ zoo made up of the chicks, goat, and chickens that we already had. It was a great opportunity for the other children to learn about and get up close and personal with some real animals.

While this certainly was not the fanciest birthday party I have ever seen, my son enjoyed it, the children all loved the decorations, and it was so simple and inexpensive to put together. I have included links below to the books we used to decorate as well as to the websites where I found the food ideas.  Do you have any fun farm themed party ideas?

 

Favorite Farm Themed Books

On the Farm Shine a Light Book

Farm Animals.

Baby’s Very First Tractor Book

Otis series (My five year olds favorite)

Farm Touch and Trace (a big hit with my toddler)

Chicken, Chicken, Duck

 

Farm Themed Unit Study

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

 

Little Women is only .99 on kindle right now! (Amazon prices subject to change always check before purchasing.)

FREE Baby Yoda Art Lesson from Nana!

All About Learning has released the best deal of the day: A FREE Snowman Pack with reading and spelling activities for a variety of ages.

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Around the World in a Day: Disney World Geography Lessons

I shared a couple weeks ago about how we incorporated literature into our trip to Disney World. Today  I want to share a little about how we used Disney World as a cultural/geography lesson (without the children feeling like they were in school).

During our time at Disney we were able to spend two days in Epcot, which ended up being my oldest son’s favorite park. A little of the first day and most of the second day we spent traveling ‘around the world’, visiting the 11 countries of Epcot’s World Showcase.

Epcot Pinterest

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

First, we traveled to England. We had been looking forward to coming back here since our first family trip seven years ago. The fish and chips were as good as I remembered and it was a great opportunity to find a few of our favorite characters, Pooh Bear and Mary Poppins. This is also the area where you can occasionally find Alice from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. While we were there, we also stopped at the Kidcot station. Each country that is represented in the World Showcase has a Kidcot station where children could speak with someone who is from that country, collect a postcard and sticker from the country, ask questions, and complete coloring pages or other small activities.

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We also took the opportunity to visit Canada on that first day.  We enjoyed visiting the Kidcot station and looking around at the Canadian themed buildings. Unfortunately, the movie attraction that is normally available was closed for repairs while we were there.

The next day that we spent in Epcot we went all the way around the World Showcase! We started on the other side visiting Mexico where we watched an amazing band, then Norway where we enjoyed the Frozen ride and a tasty treat of ‘school bread’ a Norwegian favorite. We picked a variety of countries to enjoy lunch including China for some great Chinese food and my personal choice of a bratwurst with kraut from Germany.

In each country we were able to see building and attractions that represented that country, visit stores with merchandise from the country, try foods, visit the Kidcot station, and enjoy various entertainment acts.  There were also a variety of character meet and greets of the characters from those countries. In particular we enjoyed meeting Belle and Aurora in France, Snow White in Germany, and Mulan in China.

There is also a great section based on the United States that has some wonderful music entertainment as well as The American Adventure, an Audio-Animatronics show where Mark Twain and Benjamin Franklin debate the merits of the American experiment. This is also the location of a small but very interesting display of Native American artifacts.

Throughout our time at Epcot, we had lots of fun, enjoyed more than enough food, and met lots of really interesting people. It was a wonderful way for the children to learn more about various countries and geography without every feeling like they were ‘doing school’. You could easily follow this up at home with map work or research into the countries that you had ‘visited’ in Epcot.

Have you ever visited Epcot? What was your favorite part?

 

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

 

Little Women is only .99 on kindle right now! (Amazon prices subject to change always check before purchasing.)

FREE Baby Yoda Art Lesson from Nana!

All About Learning has released the best deal of the day: A FREE Snowman Pack with reading and spelling activities for a variety of ages.

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

 

Gift Ideas For Your Budding…Naturalist

What do you get for that child that loves to be outdoors? The one that watches the birds, listens for the squirrels, and hunts for flowers and leaves as you walk. All of my children love to be outside but my five-year-old is particularly interested in studying the various things he finds when we go on ‘adventures’ into the back yard, hiking in the park, or just walking down our road to the river. I love encouraging him to be observant of the world around him and help him learn about the plants and animals.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

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The ideas here can help a student learn more about the natural world and encourage exploratory play. You could easily create a wonderful gift basic with a few of these ideas to encourage hours of outdoor adventures. I believe that when we encourage these young naturalists to learn more, we are also encouraging them to appreciate and respect all of God’s creations. As a bonus, they think they are playing and exploring and you get to mark science off the list for the day.

 

 

Gift Ideas For Your Budding… Naturalist

 

Preschool

 Elementary Ages

Middle School/High School

I have really enjoyed writing these posts this week and gotten most of my Christmas shopping taken care of! If there are other interests or ideas that you have, please feel free to share them and I will be happy to add another post to the list. You can also check out Educational Christmas Ideas (that don’t feel like school supplies), Clutter Free Christmas Ideas, and Twelve Christmas Adventures for clutter free Christmas ideas. If you have other interests or hobbies that you would like to see included, please share in the comments.

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

 

The Old Schoolhouse is running a great special on their magazine! $19 for a year’s subscription and some fun digital curriculum as a bonus.

2019-thankful-year-with-tos-mag-sale-facebook-meme

 

Sally Clarkson just launched her newest book, a devotional for moms! You can purchase it at Amazon now .

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

Gift Ideas For Your Budding…Builder

 

Do you have a child that loves to build things? Whether it is a preschooler who stacks blocks or an older child that puts together imaginative creations and complicated kits, there are tons of great ideas for gifts.  Be it blocks, tools, models, electronics or other materials building is a great hobby. It can help with fine motor skills for the younger set and logic, critical thinking, and more for older children.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

blocks

When it comes to building there are so many options. There are kits that give step by step instructions, books to help learn skills, giant buckets of Legos to encourage creativity and ingenuity and so much more.  On our personal lists are Legos, tools, and a whittling set. I hope this gives you some ideas to encourage your builder this year.

Gift Ideas For Your Budding… Builder

 

Preschool/ Early Elementary Ages

Older Elementary/Middle School/High School

Be sure to check back for each of the posts this week relating to a different interest. If there are other interests or ideas that you have, please feel free to share them. You can also check out Educational Christmas Ideas (that don’t feel like school supplies), Clutter Free Christmas Ideas, and Twelve Christmas Adventures for clutter free Christmas ideas. If you have other interests or hobbies that you would like to see included, please share in the comments.

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Not Consumed has a special early sale on their new Bible studies! Sale ends today!

Evan-Moor is having a 40% off sale on their e-books. use code: VDAY40

The Old Schoolhouse is running a great special on their magazine! $19 for a year’s subscription and some fun digital curriculum as a bonus.

2019-thankful-year-with-tos-mag-sale-facebook-meme

 

Sally Clarkson just launched her newest book, a devotional for moms! You can purchase it at Amazon now .

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

Gift Ideas For Your Budding…Reader

“If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.” JK Rowling

Over the years I have dabbled at a variety of hobbies but the one I love most is reading! I believe that all children can learn to love reading if they have the right help, encouragement, and books! This starts when they are young and we pull them into our laps to share a fun picture book or have them sit on the floor with milk and cookies while we read aloud. As they get older, we teach them to read the books for themselves. Then we begin helping them find books that they can enjoy on their own.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

I have included a list of a few of our favorites for each age range as well as a list of non-book ideas for your budding reader. This list is by no means exhaustive but hopefully you can find something your reader would enjoy. In some ways this list was quite easy and in some ways, it is the hardest list I’ve written. There are so many wonderful books that it made it hard to share just a few good ones for each age level. If you want even more recommendations make sure to check out Blogging Through The Alphabet with Books!!, our book reviews, 5 Days of For the Love of Reading and 2019 Book List.

 

Gift Ideas For Your Budding… Reader

 

Baby/Preschool

  • “That’s Not My” Series (These books are great for the various textures and repetitive words. My children love them from infants up through early elementary grades.)
  • Shine-a-Light Books (These books are excellent for preschoolers. You use a flashlight to see hidden items on the pages and learn more.)
  • Only You Can Be You (this new book about celebrating our differences is Sally Clarkson’s first children’s book. )
  • Otis Books (This lovable tractor is a family favorite.)

Early Elementary Ages

Older Elementary

Middle School

 High School/ Adult

Non Book Gift Ideas

Be sure to check back for each of the posts this week relating to a different interest. If there are other interests or ideas that you have, please feel free to share them. You can also check out Educational Christmas Ideas (that don’t feel like school supplies), Clutter Free Christmas Ideas, and Twelve Christmas Adventures for clutter free Christmas ideas. If you have other interests or hobbies that you would like to see included, please share in the comments.

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Not Consumed has a special early sale on their new Bible studies! Sale ends today!

Evan-Moor is having a 40% off sale on their e-books. use code: VDAY40

The Old Schoolhouse is running a great special on their magazine! $19 for a year’s subscription and some fun digital curriculum as a bonus.

2019-thankful-year-with-tos-mag-sale-facebook-meme

 

Sally Clarkson just launched her newest book, a devotional for moms! You can purchase it at Amazon now .

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

Gift Ideas For Your Budding…Musician

This is our second list in the gift ideas series and the one that I most needed this year. I never thought that I would be purchasing lots of musical gifts but three of my four children have ideas from this list on their wish lists. My daughter began playing violin just over a year ago, and has really enjoyed it. She wants to add keyboard lessons in January. My two oldest sons have more recently began violin lessons and the oldest wants a new violin for Christmas. My youngest is not quite two but really enjoys the Musik at Home lessons, so I added that along with a toy violin to his list. He is always trying to get the older children’s violins and play them so I am hoping he will enjoy playing with this own violin.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

Practice Practice Practice

This list is mostly broken up by instrument, although I did include a category for preschool age children with a variety of musical ideas. Since music is such a broad range an each instrument has different accessories I thought it would be easier to find what you were looking for based on the various instruments.

 

Gift Ideas For Your Budding… Musician

 

Preschool/ Early Elementary Ages

Violin

Guitar

Keyboard

Any Instrument

Be sure to check back for each of the posts this week relating to a different interest. If there are other interests or ideas that you have, please feel free to share them. You can also check out Educational Christmas Ideas (that don’t feel like school supplies), Clutter Free Christmas Ideas, and Twelve Christmas Adventures for clutter free Christmas ideas. If you have other interests or hobbies that you would like to see included, please share in the comments.

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Not Consumed has a special early sale on their new Bible studies! Sale ends today!

Evan-Moor is having a 40% off sale on their e-books. use code: VDAY40

The Old Schoolhouse is running a great special on their magazine! $19 for a year’s subscription and some fun digital curriculum as a bonus.

2019-thankful-year-with-tos-mag-sale-facebook-meme

Crystal Paine is launching her newest e-book, Slashing Your Grocery Bill for a special launch price of just $7!! She always has great tips on saving money over at her blog, Money Saving Mom.

Sally Clarkson just launched her newest book, a devotional for moms! You can purchase it at Amazon now .

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!

Gift Ideas For Your Budding…Artist

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Welcome to the first of our lists of Christmas ideas based around a child’s interest of hobby.  I am excited to share some of our favorite art resources for all ages today. Art can be anything from crayon drawings or fun crafts to formal art lessons. There are so many great art supplies that make for fun Christmas gifts, will be helpful to your budding artist, and since they are being used won’t feel like clutter. A win-win for everyone!

I have divided this list up into several age categories, because I find that typically younger children enjoy the opportunity to just be creative and explore various materials, color patterns, and textures. Older children that have a stronger interest in art may be looking for more formal art instruction and higher grade materials. Gifts can be a great time to splurge on the higher quality materials that we might not normally buy, but that can really make a difference for some art techniques. For example, I did not realize until recently how much difference in quality there was between various brands of color pencils. We still use the trusty Crayola pencils for regular coloring but have invested in nice color pencils for my Bible journaling and some of the children’s other art work.

*Some of the links in my posts may be affiliate links see below for more information. *

Gift Ideas For Your Budding… Artist

 

Preschool/ Early Elementary Ages

Older Elementary/Middle School

High School/ Adult

All Ages

Be sure to check back for each of the posts this week relating to a different interest. If there are other interests or ideas that you have, please feel free to share them. You can also check out Educational Christmas Ideas (that don’t feel like school supplies), Clutter Free Christmas Ideas, and Twelve Christmas Adventures for clutter free Christmas ideas. If you have other interests or hobbies that you would like to see included, please share in the comments.

Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure

When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.

Resource Library 

This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.

Deals and Freebies

Not Consumed has a special early sale on their new Bible studies! Sale ends today!

Evan-Moor is having a 40% off sale on their e-books. use code: VDAY40

The Old Schoolhouse is running a great special on their magazine! $19 for a year’s subscription and some fun digital curriculum as a bonus.

2019-thankful-year-with-tos-mag-sale-facebook-meme

Crystal Paine is launching her newest e-book, Slashing Your Grocery Bill for a special launch price of just $7!! She always has great tips on saving money over at her blog, Money Saving Mom.

Sally Clarkson just launched her newest book, a devotional for moms! You can purchase it at Amazon now .

Free Makeover Your Morning 5 Day Challenge! This is a great way to help re-focus and get your day off on the right foot.

Harry The Happy Mouse (Free on Kindle)

Illustrated Would You Rather Book (Free on Kindle)

Enrichment Studies has a great free fine arts memory match game this month!

Free Help Your Child’s Memory Book from All About Learning Press!