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Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today I have a homeschool planner stickers back to school craft. Whether you do this craft for your homeschool planner or do it as part of your homeschool year, it’s fun.

You can have your children prepare their homeschool planner stickers back to school craft as a first day activity.

There are two ways to create your own homeschool planner stickers for your planners, notebooks, and wherever else you want to put them.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

First, you or your child can draw them using some fun pens and markers to get a nice watercolor look.

Second, I’m showing you a simple tutorial for creating stickers using free clipart if you prefer not to draw them.

Also, I have a ready made sheet for you which has some basic stickers you can use to dress up your planners or notebooks.

The stickers are perfect for adding color and reminders for things like library trips and co-op meetings.

Choosing the Best Sticker Paper

Before we get started though a quick overview about paper type is needed.

There are several types of sticker paper to choose from and you want to be sure to pick the one that fits best with your intended use.

Look at these different sticker paper types.

Matte Sticker Paper. This is inexpensive and works perfectly for planners and things that won’t get wet or be exposed to much use.

This type of paper is also a better choice if you are going to hand draw your own stickers.

This is what I used for both the hand drawn and printable stickers I’m sharing today..

Second is the Clear Vinyl Sticker Paper.

It’s just a bit more expensive, but these are nice if you want to print stickers and not have the white border around them.

Last is the Waterproof Vinyl Sticker Paper.

It is the cadillac of sticker papers.

This is the type of paper you use if you want waterproof stickers to put on things like water bottles.

I love these and we had so much fun creating them.

Doing a quick google search for watercolor school clip art gave us some great ideas for our stickers.

How to Make Hand Drawn Planner Stickers

One of the best tools to making your own hand drawn stickers are fine line pens.

They give a nice crisp outline for drawing.

They are fantastic to use in your planner or other writing even if you don’t consider yourself an artist. Using these will take your art to a new level.

Next, double ended alcohol markers give your stickers that hand drawn artist look.

Also, the markers give a very saturated water color look when using the brush tip.

Now, look below to look at some of these sticker supplies.

Supplies For Hand Drawn Stickers

You will need:

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Use a fine line pen to draw a basic shape, a globe, beaker, apple, whatever you need.

Here you can see how much better of an outline I get with the fine line versus a regular marker with a small tip.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Fill them in with the brush tip of the alcohol marker.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Add labels to identify activities to them if you like, such as co-op, library, science labs, etc.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

You can either cut them out around the outline or line them up in rows and use a paper slicer to cut them out in squares.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

If you want to just use clip art for your stickers, follow these directions below.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

How to Make Clip Art Planner Stickers

Here is the easy list of supplies.

  • Sticker Paper
  • Computer and Printer
  • Scissors or Paper Cutter

Open your word processing program and choose insert from the menu.

From the drop down choose Insert then Image.

And either upload from the computer (if you already have clip art downloaded you would like to use), or search the web.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

In the search bar type in keywords you would like to find, either broad like school, homeschool, office, etc. or specific like paint, computer, and so on.

This will bring up clip art right in your side bar like this.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Double click the image you like to insert it on the page.

Resize it and move to the upper left corner.

Copy and paste the image to make as many as you like. Repeat with all images you want to use.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

If you want to add words to your stickers go ahead and type directly under each picture before you drop to the next line to insert another row.

Fill your page with stickers, you don’t want to waste space or your sticker paper.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Print on to your chosen sticker paper. Then cut out by hand or slice with the paper cutter if you made your stickers in neat little rows with spacing between.

Free and Fun Homeschool Planner Stickers Back To School Craft

Now you can make all the planner pages you get here truly YOURS by adding special stickers.

Homeschool Planner Stickers Back to School Craft

Other Back to School Crafts

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

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Today I’ve rounded up 35 best homeschool curriculum by learning style. Besides, Homeschool Learning Styles is a continuing learning process as educators.

Especially when we try to sort out what are learning styles, we’re not sure what is really helpful.

Besides, when I chose curriculum I never thought about the homeschool approach or my child’s learning style.

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

However, I’ve learned homeschool curriculum is organized by homeschool approach.

So, the key to making a better choice for curriculum and not wasting time or money is to understand your child’s learning style.

This doesn’t mean that you’re coddling your children when you try to meet their learning style.

Quite the opposite, we appreciate differences and realize that not all kids learn in the same way.

Isn’t this why most of us are homeschoolers? We’re trying to meet the unique needs of our children.

Styles of Homeschooling

Too, understanding the inextricable link between homeschool learning style with homeschool approach equals success.

Sure, we’re not guaranteed of being successful in homeschooling, but we can increase the odds of success when we dive into understanding learning styles.

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

In addition, it’s important to know that your learning style by default usually becomes your teaching style.

Then, we inflict our teaching style on our child thinking it’s the best one because we learn through it.

Next thing you know we have no success with our child.

Worst yet some public-school educators and home educators believe the problem with learning is entirely the child’s problem.

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

As you can see, the more you understand and dig deeper into how each of your children learn, the more success you’ll have choosing curriculum wisely.

Homeschool Approaches

Instead of having all this floating around in your mind and trying to make it connected, look below at how I explain each one.

What is a homeschool approach?
A homeschool approach is the way you’re presenting information to your child. It is the way you’re teaching your children.
It can be formal, informal, through life skills, using curriculum, using a few pieces of curriculum, using no curriculum at all or a mix.
And whether you intentionally chose it or chose it by default, you’re still following a method.

And the homeschool world and educational word creates curriculum based on teaching approaches.

Too, there are many teaching approaches, but these five are the most popular in the homeschool world. Too, I tend to focus on these when helping homeschoolers.

Learning Styles Characteristics Matched to Homeschool Approach

Here are the top five homeschool styles and some of the characteristics of learning styles.

1. Unit Study Approach

Unit Study ApproachCharacteristics of Learning Style by Teacher or Student.
•Prefers a mastery approach
•Doesn’t always need detailed lesson plans
• Wants a research-based study on one topic
•Prefers to spend time on subjects which are of interest
•Will add in hands-on activities as needed and as many as needed or prefers to learn the whole topic through hands-on
•Will choose quality books or living books instead of using boring textbooks

2. Classical Approach

Classical ApproachCharacteristics of Learning Style by Teacher or Student.
• Wants a heavy emphasis on classics like ancient languages
• Thrives with a heavy language arts emphasis
• Pursues a chronological approach to learning history
• Wants to spend time learning Latin
• Focuses on learning from Great Minds of the past
• Should learn from ancient books and quality classical literature
• Education should focus on the history of Western Civilization

3. Textbook/Workbook Approach

Textbook/Workbook ApproachCharacteristics of Learning Style by Teacher or Student.
•This is the same approach used in public schools and the only approach most homeschoolers know.
• Instead of choosing an approach, some homeschoolers follow this one by default.
• Children who do well with drill and kill, love this approach.
• Parents and kids who don’t mind testing, deadlines, and don’t think textbooks are boring choose this.
• Families who want to mimic public school at home choose this.

4. Charlotte Mason Approach

Charlotte Mason ApproachCharacteristics of Learning Style by Teacher or Student.
• A gentle approach to language arts.
• There is emphasis on the arts, music, and nature.
• Learning should include forming lifelong habits
• More time should be spent outdoors.
• Literature based learning is one foundation.
• Poetry is important.

5. Unschooling Approach

Unschooling ApproachCharacteristics of Learning Style by Teacher or Student.
• Child led learning. This means if the child is moved to learn something he will.
• Unschoolers vary whether they will use curriculum or not. Some use very little, others use none.
• The fill their learning day with games, books, hands-on ideas, movies or any resource, place, person, or activity which fills their desire to learn whatever subject.
• The idea is that children will learn everything they need to know when they learn naturally and are not pushed.
•This approach recognizes that all kids are different and will learn at their pace meaning there are a variety of resources available.

Which approach do most of your choices in curriculum fall into?

Once you understand that, then you can see if it’s the right choices for your child.

Eventually you can teach your children through a variety of learning styles, but you set them up for success when a curriculum matches the homeschool approach.

Identifying Your Homeschooled Child’s Learning Personality

Finally, after years of putting the pieces together, I have created a free online self-paced course on how to identify your homeschool child’s learning personality.

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

This course will give you solid beginning points and look what you will learn.

YOU WILL LEARN:

  • How to understand the way your child prefers to learn so that you can teach him in a way that he enjoys learning;
  • How to pinpoint your child’s learning personality;
  • A starting point in understanding (barring any special learning challenges or disabilities) and accepting your child’s preferred way of taking in information;
  • Understanding when the learning personality emerges; and
  • Teaching tips for each learning personality to stop the head-butting.

Tapping into the way a child prefers to learn is essential to success.

35+ Best Homeschool Curriculum By Learning Style (free printable)

Finally, the printable for homeschool curriculum matched to homeschool approach will help you to see what homeschool approach you’re following.

HOW TO GET THE FREE PRINTABLE MATCHED TO CURRICULUM

More important, from the list above, you can have a starting point to see how your children and family learn best.

It’s almost impossible to list every curriculum, but I did list some of the major providers and resources homeschoolers are currently using.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get my emails in your inbox and you get this freebie.

1) CLICK HERE ON THIS LINK TO SIGN UP ON MY EMAIL LIST & TO GET THIS FREEBIE.
2) Grab the freebie instantly.
3) Last, look for all my emails in your inbox. Glad to have you following me!

Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages

How Homeschool Learning Styles Helps You to Accept Each Child’s Differences

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

When I first heard about homeschool learning styles was when my first child was 5 years old. I wanted all the Homeschool Learning Styles tips I could get.

And 20+ years later there is still mixed science about how much difference learning styles really makes.

Today, I’m sharing how understanding homeschool learning styles of not only my children, but myself was a positive experience.

How Homeschool Learning Styles Helps You to Accept Each Child's Differences

Besides, the brain is such a fascinating machine and there is much to know about we learn.

Nobody can really be labeled with one hundred percent accuracy. We’re always learning and changing.

So, I will share how learning styles helped me to accept differences in my children.

And now that my children are young adults, I’m glad I trusted what I know about my children and educated myself about learning styles.

Further, I will help you to sort out terms because it’s not necessary to speak educationalese to have a starting place.

MORE HOMESCHOOL LEARNING STYLES TIPS

Homeschool Style

First, this is the biggest point that helped me to understand learning styles.

And that is to move away from what a lot of educational institutions as well as universities identify as learning styles.

Without making this overly technical, a lot of professionals will write and speak about modalities.

It simply means how children or adults prefer to take in information.

Then, scientist and researchers have classified learners into kinesthetic (hands-on learner), auditory or visual.

How Homeschool Learning Styles Helps You to Accept Each Child's Differences

Also, some of that long standing research has changed to include one more group which is reading/writing. It is called the VARK model.

It stands for Visual, Auditory, Reading/ Writing, and Kinesthetic modalities for learning by (Fleming and Mills, 1992). 

However, the three major ones focused on for years are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. As you can see right away this may or may not be helpful.

Because I was not a public-school educator prior to homeschooling, it was not helpful.

Beginning Point for Types of Homeschool Styles

Hence expanding on how these learning modalities help us teach at home is more important than understanding all the scientific in/outs.

So, instead of focusing on just the components of modalities, focus on your child’s learning personality. What is his learning personality?
This expanded view opened a whole another view of how to teach.
Switch from just learning style to learning personality. Again, this encompasses all the things that make your child unique.

In other words, look below on how I expanded the profile of each of my children to go beyond modality.

  • What is his interest?
  • Is he an introvert or extrovert?
  • Does he naturally flock toward others or prefer long periods alone?
  • Are interests nature based (not because you expose them to him), technologically oriented, or just prefers to read a book about all of it?
  • Does he prefer to just build instead of talk about it?
  • Is he competitive almost defiant?
  • How about inventing? Is that all that matters? His inventions?

These are a few of the questions I started asking myself about each of my children. I added these to their preferred way of taking in information or learning style.

In addition, I examined how I learned and taught my children. With my first child, I had no problem teaching him.

However, my second son came along and all that changed.

I wasn’t sure I was cut out to teach him because none of my tips with my first child seemed to work with him.

Then started my research to learn how to expand learning styles to learning personalities.

One of the best books to this day although it’s older is Discover Your Child’s Learning Style: Children Learn in Unique Ways – Here’s the Key to Every Child’s Learning Success.

Identifying Your Homeschooled Child’s Learning Personality

Finally, after years of putting the pieces together, I have created an online self-paced course on how to identify your homeschool child’s learning personality.

This course will give you solid beginning points and look what you will learn.

YOU WILL LEARN:

  • How to understand the way your child prefers to learn so that you can teach him in a way that he enjoys learning;
  • How to pinpoint your child’s learning personality;
  • A starting point in understanding (barring any special learning challenges or disabilities) and accepting your child’s preferred way of taking in information;
  • Understanding when the learning personality emerges; and
  • Teaching tips for each learning personality to stop the head-butting.
How Homeschool Learning Styles Helps You to Accept Each Child's Differences

And look at these other resources about learning styles

Day 1 Learn The Lingo and New Homeschooler Free Bootcamp (& free glossary)

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today is day 1: Learn the Lingo of the homeschool world in the free 31 Day Free Boot Camp for New Homeschoolers.

Congratulations on your new beginnings as a new homeschooler. It’s an exciting journey for sure. I wrote this series well over 9 years ago.

Not only am I updating this free first time homeschoolers series, but I’m sharing some of the best ever homeschool resources.

For day one, I’ll be sharing why it’s important to start with how to find the information you need.

Day 1 Learn The Lingo and New Homeschooler Free Bootcamp (& free glossary)

Many new homeschoolers begin their journey thinking the public school world and our homeschool world are similar.

They are not. You’ll need to know how to navigate the homeschool world.

And that begins with knowing new terms to you but that we speak everyday in the homeschooling world.

First, I want to share a story with you which will help you to appreciate that you have to have some skin in the game.

New to Homeschool

Have you ever heard the butterfly story? The short version is that a little boy runs to tenderly cut open a cocoon to help the struggling butterfly emerge.

Even though he had good intentions to assist the butterfly, the butterfly’s fragile wings never expanded.

The butterfly just walked around with a swollen body, shriveled wings and never did learn to fly.

Struggling was part of the empowerment and essential to the development of the butterfly.

As a seasoned veteran, I want to make your beginning less difficult with this 31 day free new homeschooler boot camp.

However, just like the beautiful butterfly which emerges from a struggle, your struggling with various homeschool issues will empower you.

Most people don’t want to hear that, but if you think about your parenting journey it’s similar to that. We do as much as we can to prepare for our first child.

However, nothing compares to the personal experience of raising a family.

As you emerge and face each issue, I want the topics in this series to be a soft place for you to land when you become overwhelmed.

The best way for me to do that is start from the beginning on what I feel you need to know.

Based on my many years of personally helping new homeschoolers and conducting workshops through my new bee program.

Who is Tina Robertson

But before you can appreciate how I can help you here are are a few things about me. Sure, this free new homeschooler boot camp is all about you.

However, you need to know that I’m not new to the homeschool world.

Too, I have 3 homeschooled grads. So I’m well past having my oldest kid being 10 years old.

But the best part is that what I have for you works.

Also, look at a few other things about me.

And I have a detailed self-paced online homeschool Kickstarter course. It is a detailed comprehensive course for first time homeschoolers.

That is enough about me.

This new homeschoolers free boot camp is about you. I’ve not only been helping new homeschoolers in person, but here at my site for years.

Let’s dive in because I know that your questions in the beginning focus mainly on one topic and that is choosing curriculum.

Having curriculum is viewed as the hallmark of homeschooling.

And I have much to tell you on how to select it.

However, I would be doing you a great disservice if I jumped right to that topic without building in you an appreciation of the homeschooling world.

You can’t come to appreciate all the facets of the homeschooling world if you cannot communicate with us and talk the talk.

Key to extracting answers to your questions during your journey is to use and know homeschool lingo.

New Homeschoolers's Glossary of Terms

So, I have a gift for you. It is a printable glossary of homeschool terms.

This will get you well on your way to minimizing the struggle and maximizing your time.

Day 1 Learn The Lingo and New Homeschooler Free Bootcamp (& free glossary)

Be sure to grab the download of homeschool terms you will be hearing now and from on. They will help you get on the road to homeschooling and stay on it.

Day 1 Learn The Lingo and New Homeschooler Free Bootcamp (& free glossary)

5 Days of a Homeschooling Co-Op
Day 1: Learn the Lingo – Then Go! {31 Day Blog Boot Camp For New Homeschoolers}
Day 1: Learn the Lingo – Then Go! {31 Day Blog Boot Camp For New Homeschoolers}

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How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I’m sharing how to make a fun paper mache American Robin bird craft. Whether you’re doing a summer or spring unit study, you’ll love this craft to go with my North American Robin Unit Study.

And because you can study about birds anytime of the years, this paper mache bird craft can be done anytime. Too, hand crafts stimulate the creativity and imagination of your children.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

For younger children, having something to hold like this fun American Robin craft helps them to focus on what you’re teaching

Besides, this is a fun art project that your children will love and want to keep.

Further, once you learn this technique you can do this for any spring or summer birds you find in your yard.

Also, this fun bird craft would make a great gift idea.

So if you’re like us, one of our favorite spring and summer pastimes is sitting in the backyard watching the birds stop by our feeder.

Too, we are always sure to keep it stocked with seed and keep the bird bath clean and full to encourage their visits.

In addition, we have such a variety of beautiful birds that come to eat.

For example, we see cardinals, black capped chickadees, blue jays, Mockingbirds, Mourning Doves, American Robin’s, and many more.

Moreover, American Robins can be seen throughout the US year round and in a wide range of habitats besides your backyard.

Facts About the American Robin

They are spotted in city parks, forests, mountains, tundra, and fields.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

If you look close you will notice that the males coloring is more intense while the females are a bit duller.

Robins like to build their nests among the dense leaves of trees but might also build their nest in a basket or light fixture on your front porch as well.

They love a wide variety of fruit as well as worms, insects, and sometimes even small snakes.

Next, these are two of my favorite nature reference books.

,And they have great bite sized tidbits of information, beautiful illustrations.

Too, while the Big Book of Birds especially is geared toward younger children middle schoolers really enjoy using it too!

The second one is Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of the Natural World.

North American Robin Unit Study

Next, you’ll love these other tips and resources for a spring or summer unit study.

Use the links for this unit study or any bird unit study.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Finally, look at this list of easy supplies.

Robin Crafts

  • Cardboard
  • Straight edge knife
  • newspaper
  • scissors
  • Glue
  • water
  • Sturdy craft wire
  • Masking tape
  • Craft paint- rust orange, gray, brown, black,and white
  • Paintbrushes

Use a pencil to draw a general bird shape onto a piece of scrap cardboard. You want to use a thick corrugated box rather than something like a cereal box for strength. 

Make it as big or as little as you like.

This first step helps form the base shape and support the paper mache. Cut it out using scissors or a straight edge.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Move on next to bend craft wire to form the legs and feet.

Fold the wire over several times on each section to be sure it’s sturdy enough.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Too, I tried taping these to the form but they did not stay on well. But I found that hot glueing them was quicker and sturdier.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Combine 2 parts glue to one part water and mix well.

We used watered down glue which works as well as old fashioned paper mache but dries a bit faster and is less likely to mold like the wet flour might.

Tear newspaper into 1” or less strips, and make them just a little longer than the widest part of your bird form.

Ball up smaller pieces of newspaper and attach it to the sides of your form with masking tape to create a little more body and define the basic shape.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Dip your paper strips into the glue mixture, dragging it across the edge of your bowl to remove some of the excess.

Begin covering your structure with strips, alternating directions, and thickness to complete the shape of your bird.

Be sure to smooth each layer to avoid getting too much bumpy texture on your finished product.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Allow to dry completely. This will likely take a couple days to be sure it is dry through all the layers.

Once dry, you are ready to begin painting and adding personality to your little bird.

Mix a bit of gray and black paint to get the color of the back. You may find the perfect chest color in your paints already, but we mixed a bit of terra cotta and brick red to get ours.

We found the easiest order to paint our American Robin in was by first painting the gray brown back of the bird, then the black capped head and finally the rust brown underbelly and beak,. letting each section dry about 15 minutes between each.

When the paint is completely dry add some details with white like the eyes and some feather details.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

You can use this tutorial to make any type of bird you like!

Just change up the shape slightly and choose whatever paint colors you need to customize your creation. 

Spend some time before or after this craft looking up pictures of American Robin babies in the nest, listening to their calls, sketching the pictures in your notepad, and reading through some fun books to turn this craft into a mini unit study!