In Due Season Homeschool; Your Guide to Living Well Throughout Your Homeschool Journey

In Due Season Homeschool; Your Guide to Living Well Throughout Your Homeschool Journey

By Amber J. SmithKids & FamilyEducation for Kids
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In Due Season Homeschool; Your Guide to Living Well Throughout Your Homeschool Journey episodes

  • Counting the Cost to Homeschool

    Parents are leaving the public school in mass. With the local districts

    establishing the rules for access to extracurricular activities, some parents find their access barred. There are questions about the right to access field trips, prom, and graduation ceremonies. Before these parents demand their rights, I would love to propose a conversation.

    Firstly, we need to establish a clear picture of the cost of homeschooling and the powerful deterrents districts will use to stem the loss of students from the rolls.

    Secondly, we are poised for the most significant opportunity homeschooling has experienced in a decade. The influx of energy, creativity, and numbers to build a vibrant, thriving community could be what homeschoolers need to meet these needs in a way that compliments our values and family-oriented goals.


    Join me for the beginning of an ongoing conversation...

    24 min
  • EP11 Homeschool Graduation Facts You Need to Know

    Amber Smith shares the facts you need to talk over with your student before you enter the high school years. Let's clear up some misconceptions and despel some fears aroung graduation. I'll share some opportunities you might not be aware of and the advantages to choosing to homeschool your child through high school.

    23 min
  • EP10 - Managing paper in your homeschool

    Managing Paper in Your HomeschoolSummary

    • How do you tame the paper monster? 0:05

      • Amber has been homeschooling for a million years and has 10 kids. She has had 7 million pieces of paper over the last 20 years.

      • Amber shares some ideas for record keeping.

      • Doing math online and digital math. 1:40

        • The kids have been able to write on a writable tablet that connects to the computer and use a digital pencil.

        • One way to reduce paper is to do math online.

        • Science and how it prepares students for higher education. 3:44

          • Science is another subject that has a lot of paper, but it was the one subject that prepared her children for college level work.

          • A bound student journal is a huge blessing.

          • Buying a workbook. 6:02

            • I didn't have the money to buy five workbooks, it was not in my budget, so if you are not able to do that, do not feel guilty.

            • Most things that are created for homeschoolers grant permission to copy those for multiple students.

            • Create a turn in location. 8:16

              • Create a turn-in location, a safe place for people to take their completed work.

              • The more concrete the consequences of unfinished work, the more peacefully the conflict in the house is going to be resolved.

              • Record keeping and keeping transcripts. 10:34

                • High school students should start keeping their transcript now, even if they are junior high students. Hslda is a good source for high school transcripts.

                • If you have a digital online source, keep a file on each child for the school year for your state.

                • The importance of forecasting ahead of time. 12:33

                  • Always include the title, the year of publication and the addition to the book in the addition. Record keeping is important.

                  • Write a transcript for every student.

                  • How to compile your student's transcripts? 14:06

                    • Keep a digital file on your computer, but keep a hard copy file in their records. Keep personal information, birth certificate, important papers, etc.

                    • Keep a copy of their transcript.

                    • How to reduce paper typhoon. 15:34

                      • Keeping the paper typhoon at bay and reducing the amount of papers to deal with on a day-to-day basis.

                      • A binder for each child and a plastic sleeve for each activity.

                        • 18 min
                      • EP09 Developing Organization Skills in Your Homeschool

                        Organization SkillsSummary

                        • Keeping students organized. 0:05

                          • This episode is about keeping students organized and helping them help themselves. Amber J. Smith from 200fingersandtoes.com shares the tried and true methods used in the twenty years of homeschooling her own huge family of ten.

                          • Amber shares ORGANIZING tips and tools to help you create your best homeschooling experience yet.

                          • How do we help our kids be organized? 1:59

                            • How to help keep kids organized. Minimize the amount of things they have to navigate and take care of each day.

                            • How parents can help their children develop a sense of organization.

                            • Making the playroom fun. 3:45

                              • Make it fun, even in the messy playroom, by finding all the trash in the room and having buckets for toys to categorize and organize.

                              • Create some hinge points in the day.

                              • How to develop organization in your home? 5:28

                                • Having a way to develop organization. My oldest is 23, and the bookshelf has gone through many homeschooling reiterations.

                                • One of the ways that we helped keep the kids organized with their personal items was by buying a toolbox for each child and their own toolbox.

                                • How to organize your school supplies? 7:53

                                  • She bought one for each child in the house and all of their workbooks and reading books fit in that bucket. She also bought them all the supplies they needed at the beginning of the year.

                                  • Then she created a supply station for herself.

                                  • Backup supplies for homeschooling. 9:57

                                    • All of the back-up supplies were in some of the teaching textbooks. All of the other items were in the teacher binder.

                                    • She created The 30 Day Homeschool Reset course to help with building accountability.

                                    • Accountability for the parent first. 11:47

                                      • The importance of creating a habit of creating order and being organized.

                                      • How to be intentional and show up to school prepared and ready on task with what they need for the day and anticipate their needs with resources and tools.

                                      • How to build a habit of being responsible. 14:10

                                        • Look at your homeschooling space and see if you are helping or hurting in your organization. Look for creative ways to solve the problems that you are looking at in building an organization.

                                        • Check out a blog post that shares some of the tools used for organization in homeschool.

                                          • 17 min
                                        • EP008 - What We are Using in Our Homeschool This Year

                                          What we Are Using in Our Homeschool This Year

                                          Episode 008

                                          Track List:

                                          1. Introduction
                                          2. The Unsung Hero of the Sonlight Catalog
                                          3. Record Keeping and Creating Accountability
                                          4. Transition to High School Level Work
                                          5. Honing Computer Research Skills
                                          6. Moving Into Non-Fiction with Higher Level Content
                                          7. Raising Fact Finders & Critical Thinkers
                                          8. A Non-North American Centric Program

                                            9. Listen to the full blog post HERE

                                            Want the FREE schedule pages? Get them here and read more about creating a schedule that first your homeschool in this blog post.

                                            Want more information about how I use Sonlight Curriculum in my homeschool? I wrote a year-long series of articles for the Sonlight Blog. You can access 22 helpful articles and more great homeschool tips HERE

                                            There are many places that provide literature based homeschool curriculums. I created a tool to help you, the Curriculum Guide & Homeschool Reference List is a part of my Home School Quick Startup Guide and that is available as well as our course for homeschool parents at In Due Season. The Homeschool Quick Startup guide contains everything you need to answer your immediate questions and get you a strong start in your first home school year.

                                            Maybe you're making a transition from public school to homeschool, and you're not quite sure where to begin. This guide has all the answers, plus live  links to any of the locations that I talk about. When we cover a specific curriculum, the link is provided for it in the home school guide so you can click and find everything you need with one simplified resource at your very hands. You can download it today for $15 and find all of your homeschool start up questions answered.

                                            18 min
                                          9. EP007 - Why Now is the Best Time to Study China in Your Homeschool

                                            Why Now is the Best Time to Study China in Your Homeschool

                                            In Due Season

                                            Episode 007

                                                   Track List:

                                            1. Intro to Episode 007
                                            2. Digging Deeper Into the Eastern Hemisphere
                                            3. Using Hands On Learning Kits
                                            4. Why We Need to Learn About China Now
                                            5. Learning Empathy Through Story
                                            6. The Importance of Adding Biographies to Your Homeschool
                                            7. Keeping the True Geography of the World in Perspective
                                            8. Celebrating 30 Years of Sonlight

                                              9. Early in 2020, China was at the top of every news story. As shut downs from the Covid-19 outbreak began, we looked to China for vital first information. Our children were seeing the empty streets of towns and cities they had never heard of before. The problem is that the context was couched in the fear of a dangerous and unknown sickness.

                                              As adults, it is easy to rapidly move from one news story to the next without changing gears. This influx of news snippets and bold headlines are constantly reshaping our world view under the surface. We combat this slide with the facts that we have stored in our minds. By using EHE this school year to study China, we take the helm and intentionally we begin to shape our children’s view of the parts of the world they cannot see...

                                              Read the FULL Blog post HERE

                                              Do you want to learn more about Sonlight’s Hands On History Kits? Here is the link to Hands-On History Kit for World Cultures and Chinese art, calligraphy.

                                              Hungry for more? Stay tuned for more reasons why I am excited to be using EHE for the third time to study China and more with my homeschool students in EP008 next week.

                                              In the meantime help Sonlight Curriculum celebrate 30 year of helping homeschooling families discover the bigger world around them. Enter to win prizes all month long HERE. The contest runs now through 9/30/20 with a new giveaway item each Wednesday and the GRAND PRIZE of an All-Subject Package of your choice from Sonlight. Enter the contest weekly for eligibility.

                                              Find out HOW TO GIVE YOUR STUDENT THE EDGE WITH CURRENT EVENTS RESOURCES with links and examples of what we use in our homeschool HERE

                                              14 min
                                            9. EP006 Is a Great Education Really within Reach of Every Student?

                                              In Due Season Episode 6

                                              Can you homeschool if you can not afford the latest and greatest tools and tech? When I homeschooled my oldest three students, we were living on a shoestring budget. If I couldn't make it we found a way not to need it. These three kids all earned academic scholarships with their transcript and test scores. A few key educational goals helped us stay on track. I share them in this episode. A great education should not be available to only those who can afford it. It should be the gift every parent can afford to give their kids. Let's talk about how you can do that.

                                              Topics Covered

                                              Homeschooling without Tech Tools, on very limited Resources

                                              Replicating this system as a homeschool Idea
                                              What did my homeschool start look like?
                                              Homeschooling without cash
                                              Be Disciplined to Spend Less, Commit to Commit for the long haul

                                              20 min
                                            10. EP005 - What is So Scary About Homeschool, High School?

                                              What is So Scary About Homeschool, High School?

                                              Episode 005

                                              Topics

                                              • High School is Nothing to Fear
                                              • Sharpen Your Skill Sets
                                              • Don’t Lead From Fear
                                              • Inspire a Finish Line Mindset
                                              • Create Community Support
                                              • Relationship Above ALL

                                                • Calls to action:

                                                ● Sign up for the free mini-course and create your “WHY” page for your Homeschool Road Map

                                                ● Are you looking for a guide to help you begin your homeschool year? In Due Season is a

                                                Course to help you destroy the effect of comparison and learn the value of your "Why" as a    map to guide you. Join us at a special Podcast launch price, as we explore five other vital and powerful truths that will ensure that this will be the best year yet.

                                                My heart’s desire is that you never lose sight of the end of the road in your homeschool journey. We want to help ensure a strong finish by helping you live well in the middle.

                                                ● I’d love to connect with you. Please follow me on your favorite social media channel, you can find me at 200fingersandtoes FB page, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest Be sure to say you found me from the podcast.

                                                ● Share this podcast with a friend who is considering homeschooling or a homeschooler who would love to share their wisdom with me too! Let’s create a community of support, start by subscribing so you don’t miss the next episode

                                                For a full blog post transcription

                                                23 min
                                              • EP004 - My Top 39 Tech Apps to Help You Homeschool Better & Smarter

                                                April 3, 2020

                                                Episode 004; My Top 39 Tech Apps to Help You Homeschool Better & Smarter

                                                Key Topics & Time Stamps:

                                                • Great Places to Find Books (00:00)
                                                • Great Courses & Full Curriculum Providers Apps (03:52)
                                                • Single Classes & Teaching Helps (05:22)
                                                • Math, Science, Foreign Language & News Apps (07:28)
                                                • Music, Learning Fun & Mom's Tech Tools (09:09)

                                                  • I want to disclose that I am an affiliate for a few of these programs, which means that if you choose to make a purchase I earn a small commission. As a blogger, I only partner with programs I personally use and know are great providers.

                                                  Books: Audio, Physical and Textbooks

                                                  Bridges, Overdrive, Libby - create an account using your library card number

                                                  ITunesU is free and books and courses range in cost

                                                  The Great Courses - The monthly subscription is $19.99, don't miss this Special offer FREE trial & $10 a month!

                                                  Full Online Homeschool Programs

                                                  The Old Schoolhouse Magazine and SchoolhouseTeachers.com $5 trial or a full quarter of classes for under $25. 

                                                  DiscoveryK-12 is great if you have a teen who is working independently and you need them to stay on task. 

                                                  Single Classes

                                                  Khan Academy, SkillShare, Craftsy

                                                  TedTalks, YouTube, RightNow Media

                                                  Teaching Helps

                                                  TeachersPayTeachers, Quizlet, PhotoMath, Crambox

                                                  Foreign Lang

                                                  Chineasy, Babbel, Rosetta Stone

                                                  News

                                                  Newsela, World Magazine

                                                  Bible 

                                                  SheReadsTruth, RightNow Media

                                                  and more...

                                                  More about an Audible subscription for your homeschool or yourself

                                                  Sign up for the FREE mini-course created for listeners and build your  "WHY" page for Your Homeschool Road Map

                                                  Are you looking for a guide to help you begin your homeschool year? In Due Season is a course to help you destroy the effect of comparison and learn the value of your "Why" as a map to guide you. Join us at a special Podcast launch price, as we explore five other vital and powerful truths that will ensure that this will be the best year yet.

                                                  ● I’d love to connect with you. Please follow me on your favorite social media channel, you can find me at   200fingersandtoes FB page, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest Be sure to say you found me from the podcast

                                                  ● Share this podcast with a friend who is considering homeschooling or a homeschooler who would love to share their wisdom with me too! Let’s create a community of support, start by subscribing so you don’t miss the next episode

                                                  Go to the blog for the full transcript

                                                  28 min
                                                • EP003 - Get the Best Resources for Faster Homeschool Start-Up

                                                  Episode 003; The Best Resources for a Faster Homeschool Startup

                                                  Key Topics & Time Stamps:

                                                  • Who You Can Trust to Help (00:00)
                                                  • Create Schedules & Flexibility (03:52)
                                                  • Kinds of Teaching Programs for You (05:22)
                                                  • Smarter Than You Think (07:28)
                                                  • 3 Reasons We Choose Homeschool (09:09)
                                                  • Train Your Kids for Independence (13:55)

                                                    • List of resources mentioned in episode, suggested reading & social media handles:

                                                    • Home School Legal Defense HSLDA and National Home Education Research Institute NHERI are both good resources to locate your state’s information and begin creating a plan for how to communicate with the appropriate agencies
                                                    • Homeschool Iowa is one that should be bookmarked for every Iowa based homeschooler and is a good resource for anyone trying to navigate their first year of homeschooling. They have printable forms and sample documents
                                                    • For over two years, we were reviewing curriculum with The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, so I could serve homeschooling families better. We want you to find your best school year and that means we cover all the tools to find ones that you will love.
                                                    • One easy article that will help you find more reviews in one place is 23 Great Teaching Tools for Language Arts in Your Homeschool.
                                                    • Because I am a working mom of ten and a writer. I have always kept mornings as my personal quiet time and productive hours. You can create a life that fits ALL of your goals. Homeschooling truly is a whole family deal.
                                                    • Sign up for the FREE mini-course created for listeners and build your  "WHY" page for Your Homeschool Road Map

                                                      • ● I’d love to connect with you. Please follow me on your favorite social media channel, you can find me at   200fingersandtoes FB page, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest Be sure to say you found me from the podcast

                                                      ● Share this podcast with a friend who is considering homeschooling or a homeschooler who would love to share their wisdom with me too! Let’s create a community of support, start by subscribing so you don’t miss the next episode

                                                      Go to the Blog for the Full Transcript and more

                                                      22 min

                                                    About In Due Season Homeschool; Your Guide to Living Well Throughout Your Homeschool Journey

                                                    From the publisher's feed

                                                    In Due Season is where we share the latest technology, teaching tips, and practical tools to support your family‘s goal of homeschool to create a life on your own terms.