Notebooking 101: Copywork FAQs

Of all the types of notebooking techniques out there, copywork is, by far, the easiest one to explain how to do.

The problem is, it’s the why that seems to take the most time to describe.

Because of that, I decided to stray a bit from my most recent Notebooking 101 format, which consisted simply of clarifying how to get started. Instead, today I’ll be tackling some Copywork FAQs, such as:

• What is copywork?
• When should we start doing copywork?
• Why should we do copywork?
• How do you even do copywork?

Shall we begin? 

Advertisements

Why We Don’t Make Up Missed Work in Our Homeschool

It’s that time of year again – that period when we homeschooling families tend to finish up what we’ve been working on and either take a break or begin preparing for a new year.

A common theme I’ve noticed perpetuating social media threads is that of “missed work.” I’ve seen many people posting about prolonging the year or homeschooling through the summer specifically to make up for missed work.

That, my friends, is never something you should fret about.

Let me tell you why. 

Homeschooling History with Beautiful Feet Books

Have you ever found a homeschool curriculum that literally made you giddy with excitement? 

(I received this product for free and was compensated for writing an honest review. This post contains affiliate links.)

One that not only did what it promised to do, but also seemed to simultaneously fit your teaching style, your children’s learning style, and your homeschool philosophy? No?

Believe me, I hear you. As a homeschool mom of many, finding a curriculum that meshes well with our hectic lifestyle can be tough. Our ideal learning resource has to be interesting, cross-curricular, living books-based, and gentle, all rolled into one. 

Our 2018/2019 Relaxed Homeschool Curriculum for High School

Well, here it is – my final post dedicated to presenting next year’s homeschool curriculum.

As with our chosen curriculum for the littles and middles, my teenagers’ (who will be in grades 9 and 11) learning remains as relaxed as possible, which I know really goes against the grain when it comes to most homeschooled high schoolers.

The thing is, last year I graduated my first homeschooler, and that experience really helped me to realize that I’m far more interested in preparing my kids to become adults than I am in stuffing them with trivial facts and dates. So if you’re looking for a vast array of textbook selections, you won’t find that here. 😉 

The Surprising Truth About Homeschooling High School

This post wasn’t in my plans for today.

You see, earlier this afternoon, I was actually mentally preparing to record a video presenting next year’s relaxed homeschool high school curriculum. It suddenly dawned on me that, at first glance, most people will likely think my teenagers won’t be “doing enough.” After all, isn’t high school the time to start cracking down on academics and getting “serious” about learning?

A few years ago, I would have said yes. But that was before I actually had a homeschool graduate.

Like most homeschool parents, the thought of educating my kids through high school was pretty intimidating. I had the resolve to do it, but I wasn’t sure how. By default, I decided to follow the traditional school model of education. (Looking back, I honestly don’t know what I was thinking.) 

Our 2018/2019 Relaxed Homeschool Curriculum for 5th, 6th, and 7th Grade

Another week has rolled by, and I’m keeping my promise to share next year’s relaxed homeschool curriculum for 5th, 6th, and 7th grade, aka “the middles.”

Last week when I shared our curriculum choices for my littles, I explained the fact that our homeschool philosophy is pretty much, “The less textbooks, the better.” Nowhere does this hold true as much as it does with my middles because next year, in fact, they will be using no textbooks at all. None. Not even a workbook. 

Our 2018/2019 Relaxed Homeschool Curriculum for Kindergarten, 2nd, and 3rd Grade

I can’t believe it’s that time of year again! Yep, it’s time to share our relaxed homeschool curriculum choices for next year.

Yay!! This is going to be so much fun. 🙂

Since I have so many kids, instead of sharing all of our choices at once, I’m going to break it up into three separate posts: the littles, the middles, and the teens.

Today I’m going to start with my littles, who will be entering Kindergarten, 2nd, and 3rd grade in the upcoming homeschool year. 

How to Use Notebooking with Read-Alouds in Your Homeschool

Have you ever been absolutely sure that you found the missing piece to your homeschool, but you just couldn’t figure out a way to get started?

Believe me, I have been there and done that. For me, that “thing I was looking for” was notebooking.

Although I first started notebooking with my kids last year, I actually had my eye on it for quite some time before that. It looked engaging, practical, and effective – three things that are a must in our large family homeschool. But try as I might, I just couldn’t figure out how to get started. I had a good idea of what it was all about, and I understood the reasoning behind it, but I felt completely lost as to where to begin. 

101 Reasons to Relax Your Homeschool

I know, I know. You’re probably getting tired of me going on and on about relaxed homeschooling. I just can’t help it.

The fact is, this approach has had such an impact on our family that I just want to shout it from the rooftops. 

What Does a Typical KONOS Homeschool Day Look Like?

As a busy homeschool mom of 11, out of necessity, I have become a bit of an “expert” in finding ways to keep our learning time manageable, simple, and efficient.

Unit studies are one of them.

Although I have come across so many fantastic unit study curriculums on this journey of ours, the one that has become a mainstay of our homeschool routine has been KONOS.