Getting Our Kids into God's Word

The main reason that we teach our kids to read is to be able to read God's Word.  Then they can read for themselves what God tells us, not just have to take our word for it.  Since both Buddy and Sweetie did such a great job of learning to read this past year, we gave them each their own Bible at the end of our school year last month.  We also gave them a blank journal along with it.

Even though we are officially on summer vacation, I don't want them to forget everything we worked so hard to learn, so I have been incorporating ways to get in some practice in some new and fun ways.  We also want to work on helping them get familiar with their Bibles this summer, so we have been using them while we practice writing verses.  A couple times I have used some of the Bible studies at Good Morning Girls (I highly recommend the Ministry of Motherhood and Proverbs 31 studies!) and have learned to use the S.O.A.P method when studying verses.  This stands for writing the Scripture, Observations, Application to our lives, and Prayer.  I thought we could incorporate that a little bit into what the kids do.  We have been using the book Little Visits With God and I love how easy it is to use with the kids.  I had this book from when I was young and I still remember reading through it. 

Each story begins with a verse that is explained through the story.  The stories are fairly short and really keep the kids' interest.  And then at the end there are questions that we can ask the kids (keeps them paying attention even more if they know they have to answer a question!) and a short prayer.

Instead of having the kids do the whole S.O.A.P method, I write the verse on our white board each morning and they copy it into their journal. (Writing the Scripture)

Then for the Observation, Application, and Prayer part, we read and talk about the story in Little Visits With God.  When they get older, then we can start have them doing that part on their own in their journals also. 

  I happen to have two copies of Little Visits With God, so if you would like our extra (gently-used) copy, just leave me a comment letting me know.  I would love to bless someone with our extra!  I will randomly pick a winner next Wednesday, June 27.

What do you do to get your kids into God's Word?  I would love to hear your ideas!



Blessings,

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Raising Real Men {Review}

I have been blessed with two beautiful boys.  They are very typical boys who love trucks, dirt, and working on the farm with dad.  So far, most aspects of raising boys haven't been too difficult for me to understand, but as Buddy is starting to get older, I am definitely finding differences between boys and girls that I'm not always quite sure how to handle.  I want to raise them the way God instructs us too.  The book Raising Real Men by Hal and Melanie Young has been a great way for me to begin to understand my boys a little better.  As I read this book, I kept thinking each chapter was my favorite so far, but then I would read another and found it even better!  There is so much good stuff I can say about this book, but I will try to just give a few highlights and let you read the rest for yourself. 





Hal and Melanie have 6 boys of their own, so they have much experience in this area and are very qualified to write this book.  They have a very easy to read style and share personal experiences from their own lives along with many scripture references to back up what they say.  A short list of the many topics they touch on includes role models, weapons/violence, leadership, discipline, finances, homeschooling, manners, housework, courtship, and even choosing a college (or not) with your son.  This book is loaded with suggestions on how to handle so many different situations you and your sons will encounter as they grow.  The Youngs are so encouraging in the way they write also.  I did not end this book feeling discouraged and wondering how I would be able to get my sons through tomorrow, much less the rest of their lives! No, I was so encouraged through out the whole book and know that with God anything is possible, even raising our boys for His glory.

I highly recommend Raising Real Men for any parent of boys, whether you have 1 or 10, younger or older, homeschooled or not, you will find many applicable resources.  This is a book that will be staying on my bookshelf where I can easily reference it for many years to come!

If you wish to purchase your own copy of Raising Real Men, please visit Timberdoodle. You can also find more Parenting Help, Boy Friendly Outdoor Learning, or to request a free catalog.



As a member of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team I received a free copy of Raising Real Men in exchange for a frank and unbiased review. 

WonderMaps {Review}

My kids love maps.  They like looking at them and finding where we live or where a place is that we are learning about in school.  They love feeling the bumps on our globe where the mountains are.  They like finding rivers and lakes.  Maps make learning fun for them.  Many times I will try to find a certain map to go along with what we are studying, but have often found it challenging to find exactly what I need.  Thanks to WonderMaps, that is no longer an issue!  I can very quickly find a map customized to what we need. 

WonderMaps, from Bright Ideas Press, is a collection of 360 maps that can be customized to your project with a few easy steps.  It is a program that is installed on your PC and has 60+ maps of the world, 60+ maps of the US and 125 historical maps.  They can be customized to include any or all of the following: historical or modern-day maps, outline, reference, political, or topographical maps, black-and-white or color maps, and features including names, borders, rivers, cities, physical features, and graticules.  It also has complete map sets from The Mystery of History and All American History curriculums, so if you use either of those, this could be a big help to you!

I love how easy WonderMaps is too use.  The maps that we have already used, I have very quickly found within several clicks of the homepage.  And once I find what I want I love that I can easily make it color or black and white so my kids can color it, add names or leave them off to test my kids' knowledge, or even add or leave off borders to show how the map compares historically verses modern.  Here is a picture of a historical map of Revolutionary War battle sites with all possible options on:

 And here is the same map with the cities and modern state lines turned off and it only took two simple clicks:

There are even more features that I haven't explored yet, but I can tell that this will be so useful in the years to come for our homeschooling.  You can even register your product on Bright Ideas Press and you will receive updates when they are available!  Even if I purchase a new Atlas, it will probably be out of date very soon, so this is a great resource to have current information. 

Recently we studied Christopher Columbus and one of the maps was his voyages across the Atlantic.  It was so easy to find, print off, and have ready for the kids to look at while I read to them.

So far I haven't found anything that I don't like about WonderMaps, so I highly recommend it for all your map needs!

For more information or to purchase WonderMaps please visit Timberdoodle or Bright Ideas Press.  While you are there, be sure to check out some of their Hands On Geography or Geography Puzzles, or to request a free catalog.

As a member of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team I received a free copy of WonderMaps in exchange for a frank and unbiased review. 

Memorizing Scripture

As part of Buddy's curriculum this year he is learning a new verse from Proverbs each week.  One week to learn and remember a new verse is kind of fast for him and Sweetie, so I wanted to find a way to help them remember the verses even after we were done studying them.  At first we reviewed all the verses that we had previously learned each day, but that started taking quite a while once we had gotten a few months of school in.  Then I came across this site about memorizing scripture and thought that would be a great way for us also.  I changed it a little to fit our family better, but if you want to do it they way they describe, there is a link to printable divider cards at the bottom of the page.  We use a recipe file box with 26 divider cards labeled Daily, Odd, Even, Sunday thru Saturday, and numbered 1 & 16, 2 & 17, 3 & 18, etc until 15 & 30 and the last one is 31.  Then when we are learning a new verse, I write it on an index card and it goes behind the Daily tab to be repeated daily.  We usually have 2 or 3 verses there.  Once the kids have them down, they get moved behind either the Odd or Even tab so that we can review it every other day, depending on if the date is an odd or even number.  Once the kids know them better, they get moved behind one of the days of the week tabs so that they are reviewed once a week.  By this time the kids know them pretty well and then they get moved behind one of the tabs with 2 numbers on so that they get reviewed twice a month.  For example the one behind the 1 & 16 card gets reviewed on the 1st and 16th of the month.  We haven't learned enough yet to have any behind the 31 card, but it will be one that they know really well since that one will only get reviewed 7 times a year!

For other memorization ideas, visit Do Not Depart

Resurrection Cookies

This week we tried a recipe called Resurrection Cookies. It is a cute way to help the kids better understand the Easter story. They also had a lot of fun. Try it with your kids!

You'll need: Bible, 1 c pecans, 1 tsp. vinegar, 3 egg whites, pinch of salt, 1 c granulated sugar, 1 qt. or gal. size zipper bag, wooden spoon, tape

Before you start, preheat the oven to 300 and line a cookie sheet with wax paper (I used tin foil because I was completely out of waxed paper).

First, have the kids crush, smash, and beat the pecans and while they do it share with them that this is what the Roman soldiers did to Jesus' body. Read John 19:1-3.

Before you add the vinegar to the mixing bowl let the children smell the vinegar. Explain to them that this is what Jesus was offered to drink. Read Read John 19:28-30.

They didn't think it smelled too good and didn't think it would make a good drink.

To the vinegar, add egg whites. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life. Read John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each kid's hand and let them taste it. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sins. Read Luke 23:27.

They were not liking the taste of it.

Next, the story turns sweet. Add 1 cup of sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12-15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 & John 3:1-3.

And of course you can't mix anything without licking the beater when you are done (at least at our house you can't)!

Fold in the broken nuts. Drop mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

Place the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

GO TO BED. Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20.

J was so sad about leaving them, but every time I tried to get a picture of him, he smiled for me.

The next morning...open the oven and remove the cookies. Notice - the cookies are hollow! On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read Matthew 28:1-9.