http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net One family's personal expedition through the life-long journey of learning Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:11:42 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en In an effort to tempt Athena out of semi-permanent residence in Ancient Egypt and on to further Ancient History exploration, I began reading Mary Pope Osborne's retelling of The Odyssey at bedtime a few weeks ago to the entire Triad of Chaos.  I must confess I did shamelessly use my maternal influence.  I ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/12/01/little-sponges-how-to-accidentally-homeschool-your-two-year-old/ Yes.  I made that last word up.  Do you like it?  Here.  I'll even provide a definition for my newly created lexiconic invention.  Biophyschemophobia: A pervasive fear of teaching, studying, reading about or exploring in any manner any material remotely related to the complex fields of biology, chemistry and physics or any combination thereof.  A ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/10/25/halting-the-spread-of-biophyschemophobia/ Not homeschooling in general, but the form in which you've been doing it.  You children wake up on an ordinary Tuesday morning and suddenly what was working before now produces fights and tears, power struggles and anything but passionate learning.  This is one of the beautiful elements of homeschooling.  Your ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/10/15/sometime-you-just-have-to-chuck-it-all-straight-out-the-window/ If you live in the Greater Houston area, are a (homeschooling) family and have yet to take advantage of Free First Sunday then I say for shame, for shame! On the first Sunday of every month, a certain retail mega-chain with a bull's eye for a logo foots the ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/10/05/get-thee-to-free-first-sunday/ I often hear or overhear recently inducted homeschooling parents bemoaning the fact that they are falling behind, are behind schedule, or some other variation on the same concept.  Now I suspect that while the unschoolers find this idea utterly riddiculous, there are many more homeschoolers who find themselves feeling this way ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/09/28/the-s-word/ When you are six, a table covered with a blanket is not a table, but a deep, dark cave.  And a touch light is a carved bowl of burning animal fat.  When you are six, you can become a caveman or cavewoman as easily as you breathe, crushing and mixing ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/09/26/when-you-are-six/ You're a regular guy, driving home for lunch to your regular house in the 'burbs in your regular company car.  You turn down your cul-de-sac in your regular new construction neighborhood and suddenly something looks decidedly irregular.  A large gaggle of school aged kids and a handful of mothers (one ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/09/04/picture-it-if-you-will/ Being what I like to call a "total body learner," Athena loves to really emerse herself in studying a subject.  This often means she desires to engage all of her senses in the process.  She is truly what Sarah Ban Breathnach would call a "sensuist."  So when we start discussing and ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/09/02/feasting-and-speaking-like-the-ancients/ Recently, the question of whether or not to carve out dedicated space for a classroom in the home of a homeschooling family has crossed my field of observation in multiple places at once.  This is most likely a result of the inevitable "Back to School" type topics that are floating through ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/08/20/a-classroom-discussion/ I recently shared a peek at how I constructed our world history timeline on a classical homeschooling listserv and it occured to me that it would be a great thing to share here, as well.  As I mentioned before, there is a burning passion for history growing on our hearth ... http://diosadotada.homeschooljournal.net/2008/08/11/timeline-tute-to-share/