Teaching and learning do not have to be dry and boring. In fact, for homeschoolers, it can be quite the opposite. We are free to expand our studies beyond the text and be creative.

Today, Ginny and Mary Ellen take us on a journey to a world of ways to expand your studies with lapbooking, notebooking, novels, videos, you know, the fun stuff. There's a treasure chest of resources for you and the kids. You're going to find something here that you will love.

Expand Your Studies with the Fun Stuff

Lapbooks are a fun way to collect and creatively display what you are learning.

· Start with two legal-size file folders and add your creative juices.

· Perfect for, you name it, math, science, history, literature, religion, etc. 

· Each child can add to the project.

· Mary Ellen offers a mountain of suggestions and experiences.

· Dinah Zike's Big Book of Books and Big Book of Projects are a big help. 

Notebooking is an effective way to absorb facts and retain memory.

· Keeping a history or science notebook is easy to start and fun to add on to.

· Creating timelines and making nature notebooks with words, pictures, and specimens are very kid friendly.

· Recording the commonplace is a means of making lasting memories.

· Tactile associations will create neural paths that can develop into highways.

· In early grades, I would have the kids do what we call morning work:

"Today is Tuesday, November 15, 2022. It is a cloudy day. (Check the outdoor thermometer) The temperature at 11:30 was 34 degrees F. Today, we are going to the zoo." It seems pretty elementary, but kids learn days of the week, months, how to write dates, check thermometers, etc. Tomorrow, this child can write about the animals he saw at the zoo and perhaps draw a picture of one.

Make History Come Alive

· If you are studying a particular historical time, find novels set in that time. 

· These are great Christmas gifts.

· Audiobooks for the car; an alternative to isolating, personal music feeds. 

· Love2learn.net has many booklists, as does goodbooksforcatholickids.com. 

Raise the Bar, we set expectations very low for children now. 

Throughout history, kids performed real work at an early age. 

· For his 9th birthday, Almanzo Wilder received an ox yoke and learned to train ox calves. 

· His wife, Laura Ingalls, taught school at 15 to help pay for her blind sister's education. 

· We're thrilled now if our kids make their beds. We need to set higher expectations.

· Having thoughtful kids who really help cut back on stress and burnout, too.

Videos – Good or Bad

Videos often get a bad rap. Carefully screened and considered, they can reinforce and engage. 

· Nowhere else can your children see the inside of a beehive.

· Or watch a tsunami strike the coast of Japan. 

· Online content can bring learning alive.

Resources

YouTube

Discovery Channel

Curiosity Stream

NASA TV (from the NASA website)

National Geographic

Khan Academy

Creativebug

Skillshare

Dinah Zike's website for lapbooks

Notebooking Resources

Thanks to our sponsors, especially Seton Home Study School, check out their great resources:

Seton Home Study School

Seton Testing Services