Family Traditions to Celebrate, Teach, & Identify

A Production of the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

November 7, 2022 by Laura Leave a Comment

Family Traditions to Celebrate, Teach, & Identify

In “Family Traditions to Celebrate, Teach, & Identify,” Episode, #173, Meredith Curtis believes family traditions are a perfect way to celebrate holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and special days. They also help us to pass on values and give our children a sense of security as a family member. Many celebrations also lend themselves to teaching children family and national history. Where do you start to build family traditions your family will enjoy and keep everything simple and easy? Meredith hears you and she has some simple steps to take to plan your own family traditions.

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Show Notes

Start with his and hers. Then move to ours.

The Basics of Traditions

Festive with purpose!

Celebration Fun
Teaching & Passing on Virtues
Identification in the Family

Let Me Give Your Some Examples

New Years Day

Scriptures

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (II Corinthians 5:17)

Forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14 NASB)

New Life, New Opportunities, Moving Forward

Celebrate: Game night & Festive midnight “toast with hugs”

Teach/Pass Values: Family Communion (new life in Christ) & Prayer for the New Year (new beginning)

Family Identity: “This is how we celebrate New Years”

St. Valentines’ Day

Scripture

“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you” (John 15:12 NASB)

Love for God, Romantic Love

Celebrate: “Pink & Red & White Dinner,” decorate, make Valentines for each other

Teach/Pass Values: Parents share love story or looking at wedding album, Read (or watch) something about St. Valentine

Family Identity: “This is how we celebrate St. Valentine’s Day”

Mother’s Day / Father’s Day

Scripture

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth(Ephesians 6:1-3 NASB)

Blessing of Parents, Honoring Parents

Celebrate: Special meal, Encouragement Game, Family Outing, or Presents (combo or all)

Teach/Pass Values: Call grandparents, Send cards earlier, Help children make cards & gifts for parent

Family Identity: “This is how we celebrate Mother’s Day & Father’s Day”

How to Get Started

Brainstorm your dreams for your family

Talk to your husband – his favorite holiday traditions

Talk to your kids – what are there favorite holiday traditions

Can tweak traditions (e.g. opening presents one at a time)

Think in terms of Celebrate & Teach/Pass Values. All traditions help establish a family identity.

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Resources

Be proactive this holiday season! 😊

Thank You to our Network Sponsor – CTC Math!

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Filed Under: Finish Well Tagged With: birthday, celebration, Christian, Christianity, christmas, Education, family, Finish Well, homeschool, homeschooling, Laura Nolette, Meredith Curtis, Parent, thanksgiving, tradition

Could Online Learning Benefit Your Home School?

A Production of the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

June 6, 2022 by Laura Leave a Comment

Could Online learning Benefit Your Home School?

In “Could Online Learning Benefit Your Home School?,” Episode, #161, Meredith Curtis talks about online course. She explains how they work, as well as the pro’s and con’s of online learning for parent, teacher, and student. She shows parents how to stay involved with their children’s learning adventure if it includes online learning. Meredith also shares her experience with online learning as a result of COVID.

Powerline Productions, Inc.

Bringing Homeschool Joy to Families Everywhere!

Show Notes

Our wonderful homeschool co-op was forced to go online in 2020. My adventure with online learning and where I am today.

Online Courses

Whole year or semester.

Live courses v. Go at Your Own Pace.

Like a co-op with class time and work at home.

Pro’s of Online Courses

Teachers often Teach what they love (great if there are subjects you hate teaching)

Great for working homeschool moms

A unique perspective

Gives Mom a break

Build friendships all over the world

Con’s of Online Courses

Can get disconnected from children and what they are learning

Can forget to make sure they are doing their homework

Can hamper spontaneity

Possible clash of worldviews/morals/ values

Easy to get behind in courses for some students

Everybody learning something different (20^th Century)

How Parents Can Stay Involved

Listen in to classes occasionally

Meet weekly to discuss what they are learning and what homework is due the next week

Connect with teacher regularly

Encourage children/teens to work hard and do their best

Teaching at True North

Laura Nolette and I (Meredith Curtis) both teach at True North Homeschool Academy. They have been offering live online classes for over a decade and have collectively been involved in alternative education in the form of private schools, classical academies, yeshivas, co-ops, class days, classical charters, online academies, and more.

True North Homeschool Academy teachers are a group of passionate, qualified, creative educators providing carefully curated Core Courses and Clubs, delivered by utilizing cutting-edge technology, gamification, and solid academic pedagogy. We understand the unique challenges and opportunities of homeschooling.

Here are the classes Laura and I are teaching next year:

Grades K-3 Science Exploration

Grades 4-6 Science Exploration

Elementary Middle Ages Exploration

Jr. High Writing Like a Reporter/Exploring Journalism

Jr. High US Geography

Jr. High 20^th Century World History

High School 20^th Century World History

High School Photo Shop

High School Computer Illustration

Intro to Computer Science II (1 semester)

Intro to Computer Science (full year)

High School Health

High School English Who Dun It

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Filed Under: Finish Well Tagged With: birthday, Birthday Celebration, celebration, Christian, Christianity, Education, experience, family, Finish Well, homeschool, homeschooling, Laura Nolette, lessons, Meredith Curtis, Parent, wisdom

A Lifetime of Homeschooling

A Production of the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

May 16, 2022 by Laura Leave a Comment

A Lifetime Of Homeschooling

In “A Lifetime of Homeschooling,” Episode, #160, as Meredith Curtis celebrates her 60^th birthday, she realizes what a huge role homeschooling has played in her life. She takes a look back at six decades of Preparation, Homeschooling Adventuring, and Coaching and counts it all joy! It’s been a lifetime of learning! How about you? What stage are you in? How can you get the most out of it and prepare for the next one.

Powerline Productions, Inc.

Bringing Homeschool Joy to Families Everywhere!

Show Notes

Turning 60 and looking back at a lifetime of homeschooling.

Preparation

2 decades of schooling, lifestyle learning, and reading.

Books lovely books.

Traveling to learn.

Discussion.

Acquiring a love of home, family, and learning.

Homeschool Adventure

The book that came by mistake

Gregg Harris Conference

Learning with my Kids

7 Rs: Relationships, Reading, Arithmetic, Writing, Rhetoric, Research, and Right Living.

Passing the baton of faith, home, family, lifestyle of learning, and sacrifice.

Coaching

Cheering Others On.

Coming Alongside

Teaching in Homeschool Co-ops and Online

What Stage Are You In?

Preparation? Homeschooling? Coaching?

The overlap

Getting the most and giving the most in each stage.

60 Birthday Sale

I am celebrating my 60^th birthday this week and I want to bless you with HUGE SAVINGS!

Every digital product at PowerlineProd.com is 60% off when you purchase the product on our site.

Use coupon code HappyBD60!

Sale lasts Sunday May 15, 2022 until Sunday May 22, 2022.

HURRY! Grab the code and start saving!

Shop at PowerlineProd.com.

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How to Create Your Perfect Homeschool

A Production of the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

October 1, 2020 by Gina Glenn 1 Comment

Now, really. Did you just click a title that said, “Create Your Perfect Homeschool” ??

Well, I’m sorry to say, there is no.such.thing.

What do I have for you today? I have a gift! In honor of Ultimate Homeschool Radio Network’s 7th birthday, today I’m sharing the gift of wisdom.

What is Homeschool Wisdom?

Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines wisdom as, “The right use or exercise of knowledge; the choice of laudable ends, and of the best means to accomplish them. This is wisdom in act, effect, or practice. ”

I don’t know about you, but when I began homeschooling I craved sitting down over a cup of coffee with a veteran or vintage homeschool mom. I had so many questions!

So, it was so much fun to sit down with Felice Gerwitz (of Vintage Homeschool Moms) and ask her questions that I know will be a blessing to you.

1. How did you get started in homeschooling?

I had a child that learned differently and it was not an easy decision, as I had planned to return to teaching at some point when my kids were older. It turned into the biggest blessing ever and as I had more children, it became a lifestyle. More of a “who we are,” rather than, “what we do.”

2. What biggest piece of advice would you have regarding your marriage and homeschooling?

I know everyone says take time for date night, but truthfully I was one of those moms that missed my kids when I went out to dinner! Of course, after saying that the first time (and hurting my husband’s feelings) I learned to keep that tidbit to myself. Praying together and talking. I missed adult conversation as a homeschool mom. However, for me, it was being open, kind, and honest in conversations. No character assassination, and no criticism, aka “You are stupid.” Telling him what I was thinking rather than expecting him to guess. Our husbands can’t read our minds and we get upset when they don’t know what we think! Also, trying to be thankful for each other and seeing the best rather than the worse.

3. How would you recommend fostering connection in this Covid time for new homeschoolers?

I have to say, for me, it isn’t so much about outside connections as it is with growth within our own families. This is a time to listen to your kids when they are talking, to appreciate them, and to grow together as a family. Find new hobbies, learn something new together, plant a garden, buy baby chicks. (I’m dying to do this myself.) I do believe this time will pass and there will be field trips and park days. If you have a few friends, invite them to a park day. Learn who is homeschooling in your area and if there is any planned activity happening.

Join our Homeschool Podcast Family and ask us anything! There are some great homeschooling families in that group. Maybe some live near you!

4. Tell me about a time you thought of giving up and how you kept going with homeschooling.

I had two older kids and then had first one, then another and finally a fifth child. By the time my fifth came, I told my daughter, then eighteen she couldn’t leave the house until she taught the baby to read. Of course, I was joking, but the idea of teaching another child to read was not a fun prospect. (I had some struggling readers.) Well, God in his infinite wisdom and mercy took pity on me and Mikey taught himself to read (with a little help on my part) when he was four-years-old. I think sometimes we look at the big picture rather than tackle the every day and thank-God for each day. If you do that it can appear overwhelming.

5. If you had do-overs, what are three things you’d do differently in your homeschool?

Start unit studies earlier in my homeschool journey, especially with my little kids. We learned so much in various grade levels and we had so much fun learning it was not a chore. Once we switched to more textbooks, that is when the burn out began. Reading “real” books, for example, good historical novels, or biographies, the kids will grasp the concepts and actually remember.

6. We moms know that the responsibility of the actual work of homeschooling usually falls on our shoulders. How do you handle the school/life balance?

I actually came up with what I call a 4-Square Planner and I took a sheet of paper and labeled it. Prayer, School, Home, Kids –or whatever 4 categories I wanted. I have used this for party planning, buying gifts, and homeschooling. It can be a daily page or a week at a glance. Either way, it works great. That way I know what I need to get done! Also, multi-task well as a family. For example, the laundry day ended up being reading in the afternoon day. Clothes were folded while I read, or the kids took turns reading while we all folded clothes and then put them away.

7. Talk to me about the middle school years. What words of wisdom or advice would you share?

I was a middle school teacher, so this is actually one of my favorite stages! Kids are great. They just are. And, if you can appreciate them it will make life so much better. Whenever you get stressed that your middle schooler is getting sassy, or lazy, or fill-in-the-blank, think back to when they wouldn’t wear pink, or insisted on wearing a skirt and pants, etc. There are always an age/stage that your kids go through that can stump us, and that is also a time for prayer. I remember being upset with my then high schooler and not knowing what the punishment would be, so I let the child know I was going to pray about the punishment. My son scoffed at me. When the Lord gave me a sense of what the punishment should be, his car keys hung in a common area (dumb right?), it really worked! So pray if things are going hard and see what the Lord gives you a sense to do!

8. What do you think the role of a a co-op might be in homeschooling?

I loved co-ops when my kids were younger and some people love them when the kids are older. It is a good time to get together with other kids if there is a subject you don’t want to teach. Or, if you can teach something well you can offer to teach.

9. There are so many blogs and podcasts to read and listen to nowadays. How can I be discerning regarding which ones will be a benefit and grace to my homeschool?

Truthfully, I love podcasts, especially from those on my network. I know most of the podcasters personally. These people walk-the-walk. I feel that so many blogs are copies of other blogs and the information is so watered down. Also, I avoid blogs that are full of ads. They are too hard to navigate even with good information.

10. What is your favorite homeschool resource and tell me about your own resources.

My all-time favorite history curriculum is a set my brother in law created for my own kids. We were able to record them and my kids know much about the Constitution and history. It is taught from a factual perspective. It can be used by all denominations as it is not heavily Christian but definitely has that as an undertone. In addition, I co-authored a Creation Science unit studies and four were featured in Cathy Duffy Top 100 and 101 Curriculum Picks, along with the Teaching Science and Having Fun books. Those books are on my Media Angels Membership (you can save 50% off with the code FOREVER50) and it has all of my curriculum and resources including the History courses. I also love our novels. They are creation based and while the story is fiction, the science is the truth!

Felice Gerwitz

Author and speaker, Felice Gerwitz, is an outside of the box thinker. Her books reflect a love of learning and education with an eye toward retention.

She is a graduate of Florida Southern College, a former teacher with a degree in Elementary Education, Learning Disabilities and Early Childhood Education. She began Media Angels Publishing in 1994.

Eight of Felice’s titles have been selected by noted book reviewer, Cathy Duffy in both her 100-Top and 101 Top Homeschool Curriculum Picks. Her science fair book was selected as book of the month by God’s World Publishing.

There are no coincidences in life, so Felice believes it is by Divine Intervention that she publishes curriculum with a Biblical Creation focus and many other educational products.

Felice owns and podcasts at the Ultimate Christian Podcast Network and the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network. Her podcast topics include homeschooling, parenting, spiritual life and a podcast for aspiring authors and podcasters.

Get in on the par-tay fun! Join us for our GIVEAWAY and celebration! 7 years is a big deal. 🙂

It’s our birthday today and we like to celebrate all month long! We will be offering some fun freebies and resources for you this month that you don’t want to miss.
Let’s kick off our 7th year celebration with an awesome giveaway!
You can enter HERE:
https://buff.ly/2vLXa7A

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: birthday, Birthday Celebration, homeschool, homeschooling