The 117th Carnival of Homeschooling

Welcome to the 117th Carnival of Homeschooling – the “S” word edition. As a homeschooler, you know the S word… Socialization. You’re also probably either sick of hearing that word, or it is laughable to you.

In the minds of non-homeschoolers, the question of “socialization” is a big one. Where else but in school can children learn to play nice with others? To follow rules? To earn their “hard knocks?” To deal with bullies? To handle peer pressure? But homeschoolers know that these issues are not unique to the school environment. They happen everywhere, all the time. Unless of course you keep your children locked in a closet.

So let’s talk about some other S words while we wander the web of this week’s spectacular homeschooling posts.

Sunday. Easter Sunday, that is.

In his post, …And the Agony of Defeat…, Tim of Sometimes I’m Actually Coherent tells us how he came across yet another lesson in Economics for Children, this time in (of all places) an Easter Egg Hunt. Hayes Happenings posts their Resurrection Cookie Recipe, a tweaked recipe that creates yummy, fluffy, large and hollow cookies. And Chrysalis offers the Ultimate Easter Quiz: “100 Easy Questions” relating to Jesus, the disciples and the story of Easter.

Sovereignty

Suzanne of Adventures in Daily Living shares her thoughts on an article published in Homeschooling Today titled Sowing Liberty by Dr. Ron Paul, while Ranae of Life Nurturing Education wonders What if… Homeschooling was Illegal?

Dana of Principled Discovery shares a wonderfully thorough post in which she disputes a researcher’s five main objections to homeschooling in Note to homeschoolers: Don’t be psychotic!.

Barbara Frank discusses why the recent California appellate court ruling doesn’t just affect homeschooling parents; it affects ALL parents. In Who Is a Teacher?, Freehold2 looks at the definition of the word ‘teacher,’ and why homeschooling parents most certainly ought to be considered educators.

Science (and math and music and history and more!)

Homeschoolbuzz.com Reviews presents Nim’s Island: Homeschool Review, and GrrlScientist of Living the Scientific Life reviews the book Finding Your Wings by Burton Guttman, “a useful book that helps teach your kids how to be birders.”

Elisheva of Ragamuffin Studies presents Road Construction: A Real Life Learning Experience. It is messy, noisy and most of us consider it a royal pain in the tush. But for the Los Pecos Homeschool, it has become just another learning opportunity. Summer of Mom Is Teaching presents Learning More About Tornadoes, a collection of resources to create a lesson plan on tornadoes for kids of all ages.

Denise of Let’s Play Math! presents Alex & Leon’s homeschool puzzle, a logic puzzle involving a homeschool family. Can the kids stump their mom? Rebecca of Today in Faerie School describes her family’s recent work on geometry and their idea to relate it to naturally observed phenomena.

In Happy Birthday Bach! Photogirl of Kids and Nature talks about how her family is learning about Bach’s life and music.” And The Daily Planet says, “I have always loved music, but lately I have discovered a new appreciation for it and a new love of instrumental.”

The Not Quite Crunchy Parent takes on how female-centric art programs discourage boys in Today Class We Will Draw an “Action Life” – Encouraging Drawing in Boys.

ChristineMM of The Thinking Mother talks about changing her history lessons to prepare for two surprise family trips in Future Trips Inspire New Learning Plans for World History. SmallWorld offers a great list of Lapbooking Resources, and Melissa of Pink Paper Peppermints pays tribute to Dr. Suess in Fun That Is Funny. Two Kid Schoolhouse posts about a favorite book and author, North With the Spring – Edwin Way Teale, and the importance of exposing our children to good writing.

Chrysalis gives us ten reasons to study the life of Susannah Wesley. Phyllis of Proclaiming God’s Faithfulness also mentions Wesley in her discussion of finding Quiet Times in Busy Homes.

The Upside Down World discusses “why teaching your child that Christianity requires embracing creation science or intelligent design puts their long term spiritual well-being at risk” in Teaching Creation Science or ID? A Formula For Putting Your Child’s Christian Faith At Risk.

Socialization. Of course.

Ronda of Ronda’s Ramblings offers advice on How to Start a Co-op.

Hero Gone Wild tells the story of Dillon Cossey, who was homeschooled because of bullying issues after planning a school terror plot. Corn and Oil says, “Now the boy that turned him in to authorities, gave in to “peer pressure” and robbed the Cossey family home twice. The school socialization wheel never stops.”

Styles of Homeschooling

In Shabby Chic Homeschooling, Shaun of Red Sea School says, “Reading the blogs of homeschoolers I admire sometimes makes me question my own style, which seems much more structured and traditional by comparison. I’ve come to consider that my style may be more Martha Stewart than Mary Englebreit, and I’m OK with that.”

Stephanie of The Life Without School Blog finds that “most of our formal interest-led learning ricochets off things I would never have tagged as ‘educational’ ” in Interest Led Learning, “All Boy” Style.

The Reluctant Homeschooler says, “It seems that my son does his schoolwork all day and all evening. He complains bitterly that I give him too much. Yet I see that he squanders his time, and I can’t lighten his load or he won’t cover this year’s material. Time Yourself is the story of our little conflict over workload.

In her video post, Andrea of Notes From A Homeschooling Mom says homeschoolers need to stop polarizing based on method of homeschooling. Check out Clarification of Our Method of Homeschooling Take Two.

Jennifer of Diary of 1 shows us a photo-peek at homeschool recess in Field of Dreams. Tammy of Just Enough, and Nothing More talks about getting her son a desk and wonders, “How homeschool cliché is that?” But this desk is different.

Phil of A Family Runs Through It says, “There are plenty of reasons to start homeschooling. Recently, a friend told me a few reasons why she is giving up on homeschooling.”

Skills, Stats & Stuff (aka, everything I couldn’t fit into another “S” category!)

Have you heard of Brian Ray and the National Home Education Research Institute? They do research on homeschooling, and Henry of Why Homeschool finds their research interesting and useful.

Mark of eLearning shows us a compelling video demonstrating how children today learn much differently than we ever did.

Gazzali of PROenrichment discusses how enthusiasm is a key to success in Enthusiasm Vs Compulsion.

Alvaro of SharpBrains gives us a Brain Teaser: Boost your Visuospatial Skills. And, while not directly related to homeschooling, SharpBrains also has a great article on the importance of stress management for brain health.

Dana of Epi Kardia Home Education looks back at her years of homeschooling in Reflections with the Oldest Now in College. Songs From My Journey tells us how to Look For The Strengths in our children.

And that concludes this week’s Homeschooling Carnival. Next week’s Carnival will be held at Why Homeschool. Please visit this page for submission guidelines.

Have a great week everyone!

Tagged as: education, Homeschooling, school