~ May 2013 ~

Happy May!

May is usually a busy month for our family, and this year it's a special month for my son Jonathan. He just turned 18 years old on May 3 and will be graduating from our home school. The senior high graduate recognition ceremony, hosted by Arizona Families for Home Education, will take place on May 31 at the Phoenix Convention Center. Jon's older brother participated in the AFHE graduation ceremony five years ago and it was a memorable experience.

Jon also had his very first interview in front of a panel of firefighters, for a volunteer position in the Fire Corps. He's been looking forward to this opportunity for almost a whole year now (he had to wait until he turned 18), so I hope he will get in. Jon already obtained his CPR/AED and First Aid cards, took an Emergency Trauma class, and completed 8 weeks of Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. He's getting ready to enroll in the Fire Science program at a local community college.

Wishing you all the best in whatever stage you're at in your homeschool journey!

Featured Article

Springtime is a season of new beginnings, and of looking ahead to the future. Spring is the season of daydreams. It is when many graduates are making plans and deciding what they want to do in life.

Way back in fourth grade I made a list of what I wanted to be when I grew up. I noted at the top of the page, "There is more than one thing here because I can't make up my mind."

My teacher wisely wrote at the bottom of the page, "Perhaps you could do more than one of these things." Now that I think about it, I've been fortunate to have had the opportunity to do every one of these things!

As a homeschool parent, I get to wear all kinds of hats. I am of course a wife and mother. I am the teacher of my children. I am a scientist when conducting experiments in the kitchen or taking the kids on a nature walk.

I feel like a storekeeper whenever I'm stocking up food in the pantry for my growing boys. Keeping track of our family's finances makes me think like a banker.

I have volunteered as a homeschool librarian, served as the secretary of our homeschool group, and as editor of my homeschool newsletter I get to be both writer and reporter.

In this age of increasing specialization, it is good to be a home educator. I am not bound to a monotonous career. I have a chance to be a kind of "Renaissance woman," studying all of the arts and sciences.

Hopefully my enthusiasm and interest in a wide variety of subjects will inspire in my children a well-rounded love of learning so they will grow up to be versatile adults, able to explore many different paths and accomplish everything they always wanted to do.

Book of the Month

Treat yourself to this treasury of classic and contemporary rhetorical gems that will inspire and encourage you! Learning for Life contains almost 3,000 quotes by more than 1,000 people on teaching, learning, and the pursuit of knowledge - as well as a whole chapter of quotations about “Mothers & Motherhood.” Quotes are categorized by subject, covering both traditional and nontraditional forms of education. It’s like a conversation across the ages, full of rhetorical gems and sage advice! (Includes Bible verses, index, appendix & biographical notes.) Makes a unique Mother's Day gift!

Famous Homeschoolers

In honor of Mother’s Day, read this article about Christian homeschool mom Chelsea Noble, the wife of Kirk Cameron: www.famoushomeschoolers.net/bio_chelsea-noble.html "I love being a mother," she said. "There’s just nothing like it!"

Reading Between the Lines

Homeschooling at the Speed of Life

If you are a wife, mother, and home educator struggling to balance home, school, and family, Homeschooling at the Speed of Life is the perfect book for you! Click here to read my complete review.

Learning Links

Mother's Day - It's YOUR day; you deserve it!

Etiquette and Ethics - Next week is National Etiquette Week. This web page has a link for a FREE downloadable ebook!

A Salute to Soldiers - May is Military Appreciation Month.

Physical Education - May is Physical Fitness and Sports Month.

Bikes and Bicycling - May is also National Bike Month!

Memorial Day - A special day to honor our fallen veterans.

Freebie of the Month

A Mother's Day gift just for you! I've been selling printable copies of my "Ode to a Homeschool Mom" poem for a nominal cost of $1.00 each on my website, but I'm offering it to my newsletter readers free of charge this month.

Quote of the Month

“The mother’s heart is the child's schoolroom.” ~Henry Ward Beecher

A Note From Teri...

I have a confession to make. I always have the best of intentions, but no matter how hard I try, it's been difficult for me to keep up with my e-mails. It weighs heavily on my heart to think that I've left anyone hanging. I know it must feel like I don’t care or that I'm purposely ignoring you, but I promise that is not the case. It's just that with everything going on in my life, I simply run out of time. I often end up filing e-mails in my "Need to Reply" folder and I get to them when I can (no rhyme or reason to which e-mails go there; it mostly depends on when they come in and how busy I am at the moment). I'm sorry if you haven’t heard back from me, but if it's something timely or important, please feel free to send me a reminder. You might also try leaving a comment on my Facebook page, although I don't always keep up to date on that either. Thanks for understanding. :)

Happy Homeschooling!

P.S. Did you like this month's newsletter?