INTERNET RESOURCES & TIPS

The availability of technology can be a useful tool in homeschooling. It can also be a destructive vice if misused. For this reason, we recommend using some safety tips for internet usage in the home:

• Place the computer in a central location where it is in view of others
• Establish time restrictions that the computer cannot be used (In parental controls)
• Use filters in parental controls to choose the desired maturity level that can be accessed
• Install a program like Covenant Eyes or Ever Accountable to receive accountability reports
• Regularly discuss dangers and establish safety goals
• Limit usage to educational purpose, rather than entertainment and social
• Encourage communication about internet usage, temptations, experiences, questions, etc.
• Listen as a family to The Dark Side of the Internet  sermon by Rand Hummel (http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?speakeronly=true&currsection=sermonsspeaker&keyword=Dr._Rand_Hummel)

Once you’ve established some safety and accountability goals, find resources and links you can use to help improve your students’ skills. Do not use these resources as a replacement for curriculum, but they can be very helpful for quizzing, improving skills, promoting learning and comprehension of a specific subject. This can be a great help to the mom that has many students raising their hands for help at the same time. Instead of sitting and waiting, if you have a list of sites already on their checklist, they can make use of their waiting time. This is not just filling their time with unnecessary and repetitive “busy work,” because their individualized checklist includes subjects they actually need extra drill work on. It gives a fun change in between their regular workbook, DVD, or computer routine that can be just the right “pick me up” to re-arouse their interest. (Caution: Avoid  letting the focus be on games that have more pizzazz and appeal than actual educational benefit.)

  Most of these sites were introduced to us by friends and other homeschool families, but there are many more resources that can be found. So if you have some suggestions of conservative educational sites that encouraging learning, feel free to share them.

1. Sheppard Software http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/

We learned about this site from Joy Duggar. It quizzes on many subjects, but the little girls (Addee, Ellie, and Callie) learned to locate the states and name the capitals from this site.

2. Kahn Academy https://www.khanacademy.org/

This is a great site for help with science and math (especially upper levels subjects like chemistry and physics). Short tutorials are shown with plenty of explanation and practice!

3. Homeschool Math http://www.homeschoolmath.net/

This is one of many sites that provides practice math drills for every grade, sorted by concepts. So if your student needs extra drill work on addition, multiplication, fractions, or any other concepts, this will help solidify their mastery. 

4. Language Arts Skills http://www.ixl.com/ela/

This is one of many sites that gives drill work for language skills at each grade level.

5. The Pioneer Woman

http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeschooling/2012/12/free-online-educational-resources/

The Pioneer Woman lists an abundance of links and descriptions for sites to help with homeschooling

The best advice is word of mouth recommendations by those who have tested the resources and have found them helpful enough that they want to share them with others!

Homeschooling

  For us, homeschooling is one of the most rewarding choices we have made. Gil and I both went to public school and continued to college, and we learned to value our education and the opportunities we had. It is because we think education is so important, that we came to realize homeschooling was a wonderful option.
With  homeschooling, a parent has the freedom to personally evaluate their curriculum choices and make decisions that are best suited for their child’s  learning style. Parents can also choose the methods of teaching that meets the child’s needs, whether by DVDs, computer, workbooks, hands on lessons, one on one tutoring, or a combination. You have the ability to cater to your specific circumstances. For us, those benefits are enormous, because with 19 children, we have come to realize that they are each very unique. Curricula that appealed to one’s learning style put another one to sleep, but if we changed the curriculum or method of teaching, they became miraculously attentive. As a parent, I can watch, study, and diagnose my child’s strengths, weaknesses, fears, tendencies, attitudes, etc. I can observe what motivates them and what helps them succeed. I can weed out curriculum choices that don’t seem to work with a particular child. I can switch gears, switch goals, switch game plans and adjust as needed, because homeschooling provides the flexibility to cater to each child.
  We not only liked the ability to choose our own curriculum because of the child’s needs, but also because of the content of that curriculum. Our faith is the most important foundation of our family, so we wanted curricula  that supported our faith and that focused on character, as well as high education standards. We wanted books that included the whole history, that didn’t weed out the prayers and other important facts that used to be in our grandparent’s books. We wanted to make sure the books selected were done carefully, by us, not by a committee that might not know our child, our faith, or the content of the books being selected. Homeschooling gave us the ability to become involved, and we felt that was a worthy investment in our children's lives.
Homeschooling also helped us prepare our children to face the world. There are many misconceptions about homeschooling. One huge misconception is that homeschooler’s won’t be prepared for life. If you take a tender young plant and put it in the harsh winter environment, it will likely die or will become very weak. However, if you put it in a greenhouse until it becomes strong, then you can transplant it outside, and when the winter storms come, it will be strong enough to survive. I saw many of my young friends in school get caught up by the pressures of drugs, immorality, and other harmful choices that led them down a path of sorrow. Yes, many survived, but some were shaken in their faith and values. Does that mean all homeschoolers have a happy ending? …Not always, the same dangers can await homeschoolers too. I think there are many factors involved: negative peer pressure, their home life, their relationship with the Lord, the music and media and other influences they expose themselves to, the goals they set, the friends they hang around, etc. So why did we think homeschooling was a better choice for us? We felt that if we tried to establish a healthy, happy home life, and if we tried to protect from many of the negative influences that often creep in, and if we filled that home life with faith in Christ and a commitment to live in a way that would please Him, then we could create a safe haven, like a greenhouse, that could produce strong plants. As our children began to mature, we encouraged them to pursue opportunities to serve their community, because we felt homeschooling had helped us provide them sturdy roots.

   Check back next month for the next homeschooling post…I hope to   to share some of the things that have or haven’t worked for us, along with some ideas we have seen other homeschool moms utilize. I hope to hear ideas from many of you as well. May God give each of us strength to continue investing in our children’s lives, for His glory!

NEW NEWS FOR THE NEW YEAR

 We are so thankful for all the hard work Johnson Marketing and Media has put into updating and redesigning our website. We look forward to being able to keep you updated on our family’s news through this website. One change to the site includes a new homeschool blog, in addition to the family blog.

   We are also grateful to UP TV for wanting to put more family shows on that are uplifting and wholesome. We are also grateful to Figure 8 Films, along with Matt Hightower and his wonderful crew, for the many hours they’ve spent with our family- through the noise, the chaos, and all the fun memories! We hope the show will be an encouragement to other families who are just striving to make ends meet and to have a happy home! Tune into UP TV on New Year’s Day at 9 pm eastern time for the premiere of Bringing Up Bates and to Good Morning America New Year’s morning for a glimpse of  home life Bates style! God Bless and Happy New Year!