Christmas Education Freebies

I enjoy doing things that are deeply meaningful with my kids at Christmas. Yes, we do the “drive around and look at Christmas lights” thing traditionally every year after our Christmas Eve service, but I especially love things that teach in depth about what “God with us” is all about. We have used Chrismons in the past, and our own version of a Jesse tree. We also use an advent calendar that I bought inexpensively at Oriental Trading (I made little slips with scripture readings to tuck in the pockets for daily readings). This year we will be helping as a family to serve Christmas dinner to the needy at our church. It is great to have a giving project to do together at a time when so much focus is placed upon getting.

If you are trying to get beyond the gimmies, Santa, and the “happy holidays” dilution of the meaning of Christmas, you will be blessed by the items that can be found at this link. You will find a printable Advent calendar, Nativity felt board pieces, a Christmas Scripture quiz, several free lapbooks, and a unit studies all about Christmas.

Thanksgiving Freebies

Is it about football? Parades? Food? Family? Freedom? What?

It seems any holiday that has remotely spiritual connections has gotten muddled and commercialized. We should not be surprised. Dr. Bob Jones Sr. said that, “When gratitude dies on the altar of a man’s heart, that man is well-nigh hopeless.” I believe it. The Bible puts it this way:

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Rom 1:21

Boy that sounds like our generation. We are “peculiar people” because we recognize all we have comes from God. We are not self-made (except when it comes to our sin!):

All good gifts around us
Are sent from heaven above,
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all His love.–Matthias Claudius, 1782

Here are some freebies to help you have a correct focus with your family and in your homeschool this Thanksgiving. A free Thanksgiving lapbook, Thanksgiving unit study, and historical background for the holiday, including all the Presidential proclamations.

Charlotte Mason Freebies

If you are a Charlotte Mason homeschooler, or have heard the name but are unfamiliar with this approach, Old Schoolhouse Magazine has plenty to offer:

Who is Charlotte Mason? What is copywork? What are nature studies? What is art study? What is literature-based math? What is twaddle? What are living books? You will find out all about this gentle teaching approach at this week’s freebie links!

I use the Ambleside Online curriculum mentioned here. They’ve done a great job of organizing and providing links for many of the books free online. I have also found the “Charlotte Mason Companion” to be helpful. Just click on the image to follow a link to Amazon.com.

Hope these are a blessing to you.

Homeschool Freebies: Oregon Trail Unit Study, Lap Book and more

South Pass City, WY-500 — South Pass City, WY

We are smack in the middle of Oregon Trail country (the two-tracks can be seen easily from the highway on regular drives of ours past Red Canyon to South Pass), so this was of particular interest to me. Included in these freebies is a link for a free version of the Oregon trail game as well. Click here and enjoy…and y’all come and see us sometime!

Free Lapbooking Resources

Here is a link for some great lapbooking resources for your homeschool. This is a neat learning tool that I am only beginning to investigate, that may put my daughter’s love for creating and her lack of eagerness for reporting all together in a fun little package.

Have fun investigating links for over 300 free lapbooks at this site, including themes like: cooking, money, the “Little House” book series, ABC’s, fire safety, chemistry, lots of blank templates and more. Click here.

Free E Book from Old Schoolhouse–"Planning Your Course, and Letting the Lord Determine Your Steps"

Enjoy this wonderful free resource for the new school year. Lots of great tips for planning, organizing, and determining the direction for your school year. Seasoned homeschoolers share encouragement for unit studies, lots of great links for free planners, charts, and forms, and their own personal insight for what works, and what doesn’t. Just click the green graphic in the left sidebar and enjoy!

"The Wheels on the Bus"…and a few homeschool freebies!

This morning my son was apparently thinking of the upcoming school year. The public school bus comes right by our house very early each morning (we are several miles out of town, so some children need to be ready to leave at 7 a.m. or perhaps even earlier). I tease my kids periodically, saying (as they are still having breakfast in their jammies), “Well, here’s the bus! Ready to go?” 😉

Well, today my son made a sweet observation. He said, “Mom, those kids who have to get up so early…they don’t get to see their parents for 7 whole hours every day! That’s too bad. I feel sorry for them.” Yes, that’s just one of the great perks of homeschooling. I love my kids, and homeschooling provides the closeness which allows me to know them well enough to like them a whole lot as well. 🙂

I can’t say I’m quite ready to jump into school yet, but having this kind of outlook (and from a nine year old, at that!) sure helps.

Speaking of helps, here are a couple treasures I just learned about for the new school year:

You can find lots of “file folder” games, divided by grades, and for many subjects by clicking here.
Click here for an ABC Lap-n-Note lapbook for preschoolers (with scores of links for each letter of the alphabet) from Homeschool Share.
At this link, explore Christian preschool printables, from crafts and coloring pages to felt board stories, puzzles and Bible memory cards.
Click here for some lifesaving posts for homeschooling with preschoolers (I know this is a huge challenge for us…to keep our Kate engaged while the others are trying to get their studies done).
If you want to save money (who doesn’t?) go to the Homeschool Buyers Co-op by clicking the pink sidebar widget (just scroll down). AND, if you join when you use this link (for free…and YOU get free Smart Points just for joining–spend ’em just like $$$), I get Smart Points toward our schooling materials too. I found the absolute best price on Switched on Schoolhouse here. Lots of freebies there too! You’ll love it…guaranteed.

Homeschool Motivator

If you, as a homeschooling parent, have ever waivered in your dedication to the cause, this post should help you sense your need for commitment more than ever. I’ll be honest, it steamed my veggies when I first read it, but then I thought, “You know, I have a concrete and confident answer for each of these ignorant attacks…I’m more on board now than ever!”

I didn’t bother with a post on this blog. Many other folks effectively sliced and diced the falsehoods and misconceptions quite nicely. But I wanted to turn it around and use it for good. Go there, read it, and allow it to bolster your homeschooling philosophy/mission statement for the coming school year.

Happy summer!