Homeschool Hotties & Faves

Homeschool Organization Motivation – 11 Gadgets To Get You Going

August 15, 2016 | 159 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Homeschool Organization Motivation

Today, I am sharing a few pretty things that I love and have used. It’s the little pretty things that motivate me for the new homeschool year and hopefully they’ll get you giddy for the new year too.

I love anything Jonathan Adler and I have a smokin’ hot accessory pouch for you.

Then I have the lightweight light I use at night for reading when the Mr. is ready for bed, but I’m still reading my latest book.

I got this when we were on the road to South America and just love the fact that it’s light and not bulky. Besides, a lot of my homeschool reading how-to I do at night.

This next item is a screen shelf which I also found when we traveled because it added a bit of extra storage when I was limited on space. Then I just flip over color and the Bando highlighters in neon color I think you’ll luv.

Then, I’m a sticky note junkie because they can, well – stick anywhere and I’m loving these sticky notes with the days of the weeks and then these Pride and Prejudice page flags are a recent find and so adorable.

Then this adorable mini easel with Carpe Diem is a bit of motivation for the day to get going and seize the day. Then I just love my little micro office tool box because it is SO cute. Okay, okay, it has so much packed into a small container like scissors, tape and the most adorable mini stapler, which is great to have by your 7 Step Homeschool Planner.

Then I couldn’t resist a few more pretties like the plain (okay plain but pretty) mini notes and then this gold charger cable is to die for with style.

Then the last last item to move your to organize are these ampersand bookends that I just flipped over.

Stuff like this gets my going for the new homeschool year. Why shouldn’t we homeschool with a bit of style?

Over the Top Homeschool Organization Tools!

Don’t forget the other things I have to help you get this homeschool year off to a great start.

If you’re new to homeschool, you’ll love my book.

It is UNIQUE in that it’s not another book written by a homeschool mom, but a program based on my years ACTUALLY helping new homeschoolers.

Also, besides all the free and paid pages to upgrade your free 7 Step Homeschool Planner, don’t forget I have the Ultimate Glam it Up Planner and and the fabulous Unit Study Planner. (click on the links to see more pictures).

Glam It Up Package 300 Tina Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Hugs and love ya,

This blog hop is organized by iHomeschool Network, a collaboration of outstanding homeschool bloggers who connect with each other and with family-friendly companies in mutual beneficial projects.

3 Reasons Why You Should Be Reading Homeschool Magazines

March 9, 2016 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

The homeschool community is tight-knit. Geographical boundaries or cultural differences are transcended when a family mentions they are homeschoolers. For many years, homeschool magazines have played a huge role in helping homeschooling families stick together.

Is Homeschooling Your Hobby?

Today, in sharing 3 reasons why you should be reading homeschool magazines, I want to share about not only why I love homeschool magazines, but why I specifically love Homeschooling Today.

Homeschooling journeys are time specific, but not so with homeschool magazines.

If you have homeschooled for a while and graduated a kid or two like I have, you know how precious short the time is to homeschool and to share personal experiences of your journey through blogs.

Homeschooling magazines don’t necessarily have a short life (that is unless we support them) span. This is a good thing because if you are new, you are encouraged from experiences of the past and are informed about trends of the future.

For example, one year at a booth Kelley and I had, we got to visit with Debbie Strayer, who was one of the original founders of Homeschooling Today and my heart was moved by her passion and love for homeschooling.

We shared some chit chat, but more than that she was willing to share so openly about what kept her going through her homeschool journey for many years.

Sadly, she is gone now, but her daughter keeps the homeschool passion alive through the pages of that magazine. So the homeschooling community moves forward strong as ever as our ideals are passed down to the next generation.

Do not miss precious nuggets of wisdom shared in that magazine from many seasoned homeschoolers from times past. A homeschool magazine, like Homeschooling Today, gives you roots.

Ready to Use Lessons. Love it!

Another perk of Homeschooling Today that I love is that they have ready made lessons.

In the above picture is one ready made lesson you’ll love that just came out in their current magazine.

The lesson is built around beautiful literature and the book in this lesson is about Abe Lincoln. Not only is a book mentioned, but hands-on activities and ideas are given so that you can use them instantly with your kids.

I love the teaching support I have received from them throughout the years. You’ll pine over this section.

Not time specific, but subject specific.

I know you would get hot under the collar if somebody told you that homeschooling is a hobby. It happened to me back when the kids were little and I was shocked and speechless.

Yes, I know hard to imagine me without a word to say, but I realized that a lot of people just don’t understand that homeschooling is a lifestyle.

And because homeschooling is a lifestyle choice, we need help on specific subjects and concerns that might come up in our journey.

Whether we are teaching multiple ages, special needs children or need help on organization, Homeschooling Today gets very specific on teaching tips.

Not all homeschool bloggers can host more experienced homeschoolers or even professionals on their blog, so we need homeschooling magazines, which continue to share very subject specific content.

Get a glimpse of Homeschooling Today by reading some of the up to date articles on their blog.

So not only purchase magazines for your children, but grab some help for yourself too.

I am unabashedly proud to say that homeschool magazines, like Homeschooling Today, not only make me feel like I am part of the global homeschooling community, but revive my homeschooling spirit when I feel it slumping.

Those are just three very short reasons why I love homeschool magazines.

Have you seen Homeschooling Today? You’ll love getting yours in the mail too. (uhmm yes I still love print magazines)

Hugs and love ya,

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Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.

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6 Homeschool Hotties

June 1, 2013 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I want to share some homeschool hotties with you today because I can’t really call them my faves because I have been only eye balling some of them.

I call them hotties because right away I liked them. Some of these hotties are free, others are not, but they are random things. I want to try them out during the summer or pull the trigger on buying some of them.

1. Holt, Rinehart & Wilson has a neat free geography page that we have been clicking and playing with off/on. After you go to the site, pick a book. Then when you get it, choose a chapter. I like it because it has several interactive things per chapter. The boys can click through it and do on their own. We love geography and I like it better when they have something they can use without me. I think this is a great fit for summer learning or to add to our curriculum.

Click here to go there.

2. Collecting graphic novels is part of an ongoing process when you have boys. When I started teaching Mr. Senior 2013 to read, I thought graphic novels would hamper his ability to create pictures in his mind. I had read a book on classical learning and thought it would be “bad” for him. I know now, it is just the opposite. When a child, especially a boy is struggling to read, graphic novels beats anything I tried hands down. Mr. Senior 2013 didn’t struggle, he just enjoyed them. However, when I got to Mr. Awesome I thought he struggled. I know now, he wasn’t ready and it would take a bit more bait to hook him. By this time, I already had graphic novels and they were a life saver. I do worry about the messages in comic books. So I found out later about Golden Age DC and Silver Age. These are old comics and the message in these comics is more about doing what is right instead of the politically correct tone books can take nowadays. These books are hardbound and were born in 1938.

Look here at what I mean by Golden Age DC.

I think we are finally getting them this summer after we have tons I went through when I was teaching them all to read. Older comic books keeps reading interest level high for all my boys and not to mention they are just plain fun to read which is what reading should be about.

When a child is struggling to read sometimes it’s because he doesn’t create a movie picture in his mind like other readers naturally do. A comic book helps him to do that. The other nifty thing about comic books is that most all boys want to read them independently instead of having them read to them. This helps them on the road to independent reading.

Though I was careful and still am in looking over their reading material, I wish I would have known about older comic books earlier. Now you know.

Look here at the Silver Age.

3. This next hottie is so cool. It’s like going on a field trip without ever leaving your house. I could think of so many ways to use this. It is a secret door and something fun provided by Safe Style UK. I couldn’t stand the excitement when I found it and we have been clicking and going through the door a lot. Each time you go through the door you are transported to a different place. At the top left side it gives you the address or location of where you were transported. Oh, the things we have talked about. This could be geography or you could use this to start your creative journal writing for the day. We have been traveling all over the place.

Click on the door below to go through and have fun!

The Secret Door is presented by Safestyle UK

Be sure you monitor your kids since this is new and you never know if something fun could go borderline questionable.

4. Selecting the courses for Mr. Awesome for high school will be slightly different than the ones I chose for Mr. Senior 2013 because he learns differently. Mr. Awesome has a live and let live spirit that I like to foster. Mr. Senior 2013 was easier to teach because he liked to sit down at the little neat organized desk. Mr. Awesome can learn anywhere, but also loves to choose more out of the box methods. We need both types of learners and leaders in our homeschool community so I never want to crush any learning style.

This next item I think will fit the bill to learn creatively. It is Marie’s Words – Visual Vocabulary for All Ages. I have been drooling over it for a while. You know how much I loved the visual vocabulary that I reviewed for Tiny. This is something that can be used for my big guy and I think really for the whole family.

Here is what it says from Timberdoodle’s site:

550 Vocabulary Words Gleaned From the SAT
Just as a logo is a visual representation of a company, Marie’s Words utilizes colorful illustrations to create a “face” for each of the 550 vocabulary words gleaned from the SAT® test and literature. While some of the illustrations are not immediately apparent, once understood, each drawing will aid in mastering the definitions of these words and is a natural augmentation to your child’s study of word roots.

I think it would be fun to add this to his written vocabulary work and to have it as a great way for all of us to enrich our word usage.

5. This next app which is FREE, we are going to download to our dad’s iPad. My hubby uses the iPad a lot for work, but we get to use it in between which is a lot.

Pocket Penguins

By California Academy of Sciences

From the website:

Description

Warning: Cute alert! Pocket Penguins, streaming in real-time from the California Academy of Sciences, provides an intimate view into our live African penguin exhibit. Watch the birds swim, dive, flirt, nest and relax from any one of three live webcams. Listen in as Academy biologists answer questions from visitors during meal time, daily at 10:30am and 3:00pm PST.

It says it works for iPhone too. So cute, pocket penguins!

Click here to get it.

6. This last thing I been looking at is a free font for those with dyslexia. Though I don’t have any kids that have it, I have helped numerous moms with kids that are dyslexic and moms who are too. So I have been keeping this to share with you or for you to share with ones that you think may find it helpful. I think it’s time to recognize that dyslexic adults and children alike can learn well and we need accommodate their need to have fonts that help them read better. My experience is that they are just as smart if not more so in some areas. They just learn creatively.

Here is what it says:

OpenDyslexic is a new open sourced font created to increase readability for readers with dyslexia. The typeface includes regular, bold, italic, and bold-italic styles. It is being updated continually and improved based on input from dyslexic users. There are no restrictions on using OpenDyslexic outside of attribution.

Click here to go there.

Grab and share some Homeschool Hotties today.

Hugs and love ya,