How Do You Manage... Teaching A Multi-Age Group?

Ever feel like your life is a three ring circus? Me too. This is the time of year to change all of that for next time around. September will be here before you know it. Don't delay. Don't put it off any longer. Get organized.

When I started homeschooling I had three children. A fourth grader, a first grader and a toddler. The next year I was shocked (literally deer-in-the-headlights) to find myself with five children. My step-daughter had moved in and I had a new baby. This added a high schooler (how did I do that!?) and an infant to the mix.

What saved me is the Managers of Their Homes book by Steve and Terri Maxwell. They taught me how to schedule with a large family.

Today I have six here with me, one in 10th grade, one in 6th, a first grader, two preschoolers and a toddler.

Here is how I manage it:

1. Before spending time planning for the year, have your children each write down what they want to learn. Having a big family doesn't mean that individuality goes by the wayside. Last year my eldest daughter wanted to learn to sew, quilt and make a menu for meals. My eldest son wanted to learn about electrical wiring and how to ride a horse. I fit all of these in at some time during the year.

2. Spend time planning. This is the KEY! Go to your local curriculum fair. Take a weekend by yourself or with your husband to decide what each child needs. Consider standardized test scores (if you have them) and their strengths and weaknesses. Consider each learning style.

3. Schedule. Read the book, Managers of Their Homes by the Maxwells. I know scheduling seems like a big job, but it pays for it's self over and over. Decide who should be doing what at every half hour of your homeschool time. Make sure there is time for everything. Consult your older children and your husband, make sure it works.

Some tricks that I've learned:

A. You don't have to be with every child all of the time. Put yourself where you are most needed, like with the child who is learning to read instead of the fifth grader who only needs minimal math help. Be sure to be with each child during their toughest subject. And, although your older ones may be independent, be sure to have a check in time with them every day to see how they are doing and if they need help.

B. Older children can have time with younger ones. This understanding was nothing short of a miracle for me! Your five-year-old can have a half hour play time with your two-year-old every day and your fifth grader can teach your two-year-old her colors during a "preschool" time. That is one solid hour that your toddler is busy! One solid hour that you can teach Algebra or reading or do the laundry!

4. Implement. It won't work if you don't use it. It is hard at first. The schedule seems chaotic. In reality it will save you hours and hours stress.

Garden Update

My garden is doing well! I just love to look at everyone else's garden so here's a peek at mine.


I have five square foot garden boxes. Here's the tomato box. Macho Man and I put that together. I think it's 8 feet long!


Every day I've been able to pick more peas. It looks like we'll have a great strawberry harvest from the thirty plants I got this year. You can see the green beans here too. The Danver half long carrots are getting bushy.

I have a full box of lettuce and another half one with corn. It's all up and looking great. The pumpkin, squash and melons finally came up and are doing well.

Here is my little raspberry patch, the blueberries are at the top, forming an "L" shape.

The lavender is in bloom and my tiny little rhubarb and still hanging in there (you can see one at the very left corner of this picture).

My grape vine. Although these are super hardy, I am afraid I've killed it in the big move we had earlier this spring. I know they are one of the last things to come back but this is June!

My two little peach trees have peaches! That's more than I can say for the apple, the apricot and the plum. They are still doing well, and being their first year (my peaches are in their third year), it may just be better for them all around.

The bees are buzzing busily all over the place. The chicken tractor is being built (I am so excited!) for my five little chickens. Ah... summer is here.

How Do You Manage... Breakfast?

At our house, breakfast is always made by me. It just happens to work that way. I get up with the baby (who ever that is at the time) who is always the earliest riser. So, mom is on permanent breakfast duty.

I am careful to give a little fruit, a little protein and a little carb with every breakfast. I don't plan them out like I try to do for other meals, I just try to have lots of breakfast items on hand.

Some of our common breakfast items:

Fruit Smoothies: Left over fruit, sometimes some protein powder, sometimes a little yogurt, a couple of carrots or spinach can even go in because when you use bananas they over power the taste of everything else, a bit of flax seed. The great thing about smoothies is that you just use what you have. I will often by red or blue band over-ripe bananas at the grocery store and freeze them in batches of two or three because they add such a wonderful flavor and texture to a smoothie.

Yogurt - My easy tutorial on how to make your own here.

Granola - Inventing a new recipe for granola is like beating a dead horse. There are millions! This is great stuff, though, and if you haven't ever made your own, now is the time. It uses cheap ingredients but is very tasty. Especially on yogurt.

Eggs - I am very thankful to be able to buy fresh eggs from a friend who has lots of chickens. She only charges us $1.50 a dozen, it is a blessing. I do hope to have our own chickens and our own eggs soon. Anyway, eggs are the perfect breakfast food, don't you agree? Egg sandwiches (McMuffin-like), fried eggs, boiled eggs, eggs with (veggie) sausage, eggs with cheese, omelets.

Oatmeal - Here are a few of my ideas on this grain. Did you know it has the highest protein content of any of them?

French toast / pancakes / waffles - I have an electric griddle that my mom bought me several years ago. What a blessing that is! I also received a professional Belgian waffle maker for mother's day. Yum! I don't make any of the things in this category very often but when I do, I make LOTS. Flash freezing them on a cookie sheet and then storing them in a gallon zip lock in the freezer is a time saver another day. Just pull them out and reheat on a cookie sheet in a 350 oven, or, for smaller amounts, in the toaster.

Fresh Fruit - There is an abundance at this time of year! Strawberries, cherries, grapes, bananas, you name it, we eat it for breakfast.

Bagels - When I find these on the discount bakery rack (Fred Meyer usually) for 99 cent or at the Oroweat bakery for the same price, I buy them and put them in the freezer. Cream cheese can sometimes be found on sale but, most often, I buy the big block at Costco.

Cold Cereal - There is a time and place for fast food! Once a week mom sleeps in (on Shabbat, which is Saturday) and I keep a good supply of cold cereals (sales with coupons) and rice milk (Costco) for that once a week treat.

Black Bottomed Banana Bars

Our neighbor brought over a whole bunch 'o bananas today. Someone had given her tons and, knowing we have a bunch 'o kids (she is a mom to six grown children herself) she thought of us!

Here's what my kidlets will be eating when they wake up from their naps:

Black Bottomed Banana Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup baking cocoa

Preheat oven to 350*F . Grease a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan; set aside.
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla; beat until thoroughly combined. Blend in the bananas.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture and stir to just mix. Divide batter in half. Add cocoa to half the batter; spread into prepared baking pan. Spoon remaining batter on top and swirl with a spatula or knife. Bake for 25 minutes or until the bars test done. Cool.
Makes about 2 1/2 dozen bars.

Mom, I'm bored...

Do you have friends with children who are or will soon be released from the school system? Are your friends as frantic as mine are? "What will we do with little hooligans?" they ask you.

Like most homeschooling moms, I just don't understand the complete look of terror that these parents have. We are constantly looking for ways to keep our children productive (um... not entertained - there is a difference) during the year.

So, here are some simple ideas that I have for you.

Make something together:

Try something fun.

Go to a you-pick farm and make jam afterward. Strawberries and cherries should be in soon. Blueberries are next up. Even better, learn to grow your own. Get some books on growing, then canning. Your child will have a skill that they use for life.

Put your child in charge of the menu for a week. Go grocery shopping for the ingredients together. Cook together. If you have an child that is on the verge of being a teenager, they may be ready to jump in to couponing and learn how to save money before the shopping. Challenge them to get 50% or more off on groceries and then make a weekly menu out of what they bought. Now that is a skill!

Bake together. Do it now before the weather is too warm. Fill up your freezer with snacks and breads that you can pull out each week during the summer.

Learn Something New Together:

We recently bought a beehive and my son and I are planning to care for the bees and eventually harvest honey.

Chickens are another big project around here. I was so excited when I found out that our family (or any family) can enroll as a 4-H group. The process was really easy. That way, we have access to very inexpensive curriculum about, not only farm animals, but all sorts of interesting projects (ie: sewing, small machines, so much more!) I was able to get information on chickens and eggs. I hope that my children will soon be showing chickens at our local fair. All without having to go to meetings or paying fees.

What about sewing or quilting? If your children are young, start off with some hand stitching. Seven or eight year olds can use the sewing machine with help. If they are ten or older, they will become proficient in no time. You say you have no idea how to even start? Get a book from the library or take a class.

Read:

Do a little research and find some books that are a little above your child's reading level themselves. Pick a chapter book that is of interest to them. Do you remember one that you especially loved from your childhood? A lot of the classics are still just as good today. Read a chapter or three to your child everyday. Maybe in the afternoon when it's too hot to be outside. They will look forward to what happens next.

Exercise:

Set a goal. Start off walking a mile at a time. Work up to three or five. Or run. Sign up for a race or marathon together.

Above all, spend time:

Don't think that you can buy your child a couple of super soakers and new beach towel for the summer an all will be well. The real key to relationship is that you spend your time WITH your child. Be with them. Do things with them. You'll never regret it.

50% off of Gymboree

Gymboree shopper? I used to be. The prices are just too steep for me these days... but if you are still loving those adorable matchy-matchy outfits, check this sale out it is 30% off of the current price, sale items included. Try this code for an additional 20% off too! 6WV3G4NVAW89223 Oh! And don't forget the free shipping for orders over $100, not hard to do if you are ordering for more than one child. I can even order a few things at these prices!!!

Twenty Fun Concoctions For Children

TWENTY FUN CONCOCTIONS FOR CHILDREN
By Lois Breneman, © 2009, Heart to Heart Newsletter, jhbreneman@juno.com

Your children would love it if you would turn one, two or three mornings a week into a time for creative juices to flow around your kitchen table! Making your own recipe concoctions will add to the excitement and fun! Once you get the concoction made and give them instructions, in some cases, depending on their ages, you might be able to get dinner planned and thrown together while they are being creative.

Silly Putty
(This is similar to the flesh colored Silly Putty, but why not have fun making this with your children or grandchildren!)
1 1/2 Tbsp. liquid starch
Food coloring
3 Tbsp. white glue
1 plastic Easter egg or resealable bag
Newspaper comics

In a glass bowl combine the glue with a only few drops of your choice of food coloring for a lightly tinted putty. In a second glass bowl, pour liquid starch. Slowly pour the colored glue mixture into the starch. Allow to stand for 6 minutes, or until the liquid starch has been absorbed by the glue. Remove the Nutty Putty from the bowl and knead. The more you knead the putty, the better the consistency becomes. Don't give up. You may have to add more glue and knead some more. If it is sticky add more liquid starch. If it is stringy add more glue. You can add food coloring and store in an airtight container. Children need to wear paint shirts since the putty may stick to clothes and hair. If it does, white vinegar will dissolve and remove it. Store the Nutty Putty in the plastic egg or bag. Children will have hours of fun bouncing their Silly Putty ball, or pressing it over the newspaper comics. It also picks up the print of graphics printed with an ink jet printer, but remember that this concoction is not edible!

Soap Crayons
These are fun for writing on the side of the tub during bath time.
1 1/2 cup pure soap powder (Ivory soap bars cut up and pulverized in a food processor)
Food coloring
1/2 cup water
Small containers or ice cube trays

Mix water and soap powder together. Add enough food coloring to get the color you want. If you'd like more than one color, divide the mixture into two or three small containers before adding the food coloring. Pour the colored soap into small container, such as am empty plastic film canister, an ice cube tray, or you can mold it into crayon shapes. Let harden before
using.

Best Play Dough Ever
Ingredients: 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup salt, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar, 1 cup water, 1 tablespoon oil, food coloring.
For birthday party favors, you can double the recipe. Combine all the ingredients in a blender to assure you that all the lumps will disappear. Cook in a Teflon pan over medium heat, stirring constantly until a ball forms. Remove from heat and knead until smooth. You can use unsweetened Kool-Aid instead of food coloring. The Kool-Aid will color it and make it smell great. Try orange, purple, red, yellow and others. This dough is very pliable and long lasting, with more elasticity than others. Wrap in plastic wrap when not using and it will last a long time. After months of use, if it does dry up a little, add a few drops of water into it and knead.

Bottled Goopy Squeezy Glitter
Ingredients: 1 part flour, 1 part salt, 1 part water, food coloring.
Mix equal parts of flour, salt, and water. Pour into plastic squeeze bottles, such as those used for mustard and ketchup. Add food coloring for variety. Squeeze onto heavy construction paper or cardboard. The salt gives the designs a glistening quality when dry. You may want to remind children to make a design, rather than huge globs of squeezy glitter, since they take so long to dry.

Goop
Ingredients: 2 cups salt, 2/3 cup water, 1 cup cornstarch 1/2 cup cold water.
Mix 2 cups salt and 2/3 cup water. Heat for 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and quickly add mixture of 1 cup cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water. Stir quickly. Return to heat briefly if too "goopy".

Macaroni Coloring
Ingredients: Macaroni, food coloring, small Ziplock bags. An easy, fun non-messy method of coloring macaroni. In a small baggie add 2 handfuls of macaroni and food coloring. Seal the baggie and have a child shake the baggie until the macaroni is colored. Lay out on paper towels to dry. String into necklaces and bracelets. Glue onto boxes or heavy paper in the form of letters, flowers or animals.

Peanut Butter Playdough (Edible)
Ingredients: 18 oz. jar peanut butter, 6 Tablespoons honey, non-fat powdered milk (added until right consistency), cocoa for chocolate flavor. Shape into animals, flowers, whatever you want. Decorate with raisins, dried cranberries, slivers of dried apricots, and then eat your creations! Note: Children under one year should never be given honey, because of the risk of botulism.

Fingerpaint
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 cups cold water
1/4 cup dishwashing liquid
food coloring or tempera paint

Mix sugar and cornstarch in a small pan. Slowly stir in water. Cook and stir over low heat until smooth and transparent. Remove from heat and cool. Stir in the dishwashing liquid. Divide into a few containers and color each with the food coloring or paint.


Kool-Aid Finger Paint
2 cups flour
2 packs unsweetened Kool-Aid
1/2 cup salt
3 cups boiling water
3T. oil

Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients and have fun painting!

Rainbow Stew (non-messy fingerpaint)
Ingredients: 1/3 cup sugar, 1 cup cornstarch, 4 cups water, Ziplock bags, food coloring. Mix together the sugar, cornstarch, and water. Heat, stirring often until thick. Let cool then divide and put in Ziplock bags. Seal the baggie and have fun mixing!

Bubbles
3 cups water
1 cup dish liquid
1/3 cup corn syrup

Mix together. Keep in a jar and use within a couple of weeks.

Bubbles Inside Bubbles
This is a thick, goopy solution that forms bubbles strong enough to withstand a small puff of air. You can blow bubbles inside bubbles with this mixture, and you don't need a straw. Just make a bubble and blow!

2 1/2-3 parts water
1 part dishwashing liquid
Glycerine (found at most pharmacies)

Combine water, dishwashing liquid, and 1-2 tablespoons of glycerine in a bowl or plastic container.

Puff Paint
Mix together equal parts of flour, sugar and water. Add liquid tempera paint for color. Put these in squeeze bottles and allow the paint to flow freely without pushing or dragging on it. The pictures will dry with a puffy effect.

Daddy-Smelling Puff Paint
1 part shaving cream
1 part white glue
Food coloring
Mix first two ingredients and place into several custard cups. Place a drop or two of food coloring into each cup and mix.

Sparkle Gel

Stir together and paint over any finished art project for a beautiful sparkly finish.
1 large jar of hair gel
1 small container of very fine glitter

Eggshell Sidewalk Chalk
This recipe is for sidewalks only. Do not use this chalk on any other surface.

Supplies Needed:
1 tsp. very hot tap water
food coloring (optional)
eggshells
flour

1. Wash and dry the eggshells overnight. Put into a bowl and grind into a powder, or do the job in a food processor, tossing out any remaining large pieces.
2. Place enough flour and hot water in another bowl to make a paste. Add 1 tablespoon eggshell powder and mix until a paste forms. Add food coloring if desired.
3. Shape and press mixture firmly into the shape of a chalk stick, and roll up tightly in a strip of paper towel.
4. Allow to dry approximately 3 days until hard. Remove paper towel and you have a piece of sidewalk chalk!

Magic Marker Tie-Dying

This is tie-dying with much less mess than the original method of using dyes, but still lots of fun!

Supplies needed:
Permanent broad tip markers
White cotton T-shirts or socks
Rubber bands or cotton string
Rubbing Alcohol
Spray bottle

Wrap the shirt or socks tightly with the string, or tie them together with rubber bands. Press the magic marker tip to the fabric,
leaving some areas of white. Be sure to get some inside the folds of the fabric. Fill the spray bottle with alcohol and spray
onto the fabric. The alcohol will help blend the colors. Allow fabric to dry completely, then remove the rubber bands or string. Iron to set the colors, using a moist press cloth and allow to dry again. Before wearing, wash fabric using cold water, the gentle cycle and dry in the dryer.

Salt Ceramics
Ingredients: 1 cup salt, 1/2 cup cornstarch, 3/4 cup water, food coloring.
Mix well and heat until mixture thickens. Roll into ball and chill. When cold, roll out mixture about 1/4" or a tiny bit thinner. Cut into cookie cutter shapes. Place on wax paper-lined cookie sheets. Decorate with glitter, beads, sequins, poster paints, nail polish, old jewelry, felt, another color of ceramic dough or any scraps. Be sure to make tiny holes with a large needle for hanging or insert a paper clip while wet. These make wonderful Christmas ornaments that last for years if packed away carefully in a cool, dry place. I have some ornaments that I made that will hang on our tree for the 37th year. My favorites are gingerbread men, hobby horses, Christmas trees, angels, sleighs, bells. A candy cane can be made by twisting two "snakes" together with the colors already mixed into the dough. The colors in mine didn't fade either. I used pastels colors. An ornament is nice to give to friends. Everyone loves an unexpected gift! A box of these hand-made ornaments would make a nice wedding gift, since most newlyweds don't have ornaments when they marry.

Sun Clay
Ingredients: 2 cups salt, 1 cup cornstarch, and water. Mix the salt and 2/3 cup water in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring until the salt is dissolved. Remove from heat. In a separate bowl, slowly add 1/2 cup water to the cornstarch. Stir until smooth, then add to the salt mixture. Return to low heat and cook until smooth, stirring frequently. Store in a sealed plastic bag. Place the clay on a tray or paper plate and have children work outdoors or in a sunny area indoors. Give children a lump of clay to model. Children may decorate their sun sculptures with small stones, leaves etc.. Place the finished items in the sun to dry. Challenge children to predict how long it will take for the sculptures to dry. When this clay hardens in the sun, it won't crumble.

Beautiful Colored Crystal Garden
This beautiful colored crystal garden will produce delicate crystals and will take up to two weeks to complete. Adult supervision is advised.

Supplies needed:
1 pie pan (glass, not metal)
Small pieces of brick, porous stone or charcoal
Distilled water
Ammonia
Non-iodized salt
Glass jar or bowl
Bluing (in laundry department)
Food coloring

Break porous stone, brick or charcoal into about 1 inch pieces. Place into the glass pie plate in an even layer. In a separate jar or glass bowl, carefully mix 1/4 cup water, 1 Tbsp. ammonia, 1/4 cup bluing, and 1/4 cup non-iodized table salt. Make sure the salt dissolves completely, before pouring the mixture into the pie plate over the porous stone, making sure that the pieces of stone, brick or charcoal are not completely covered with the liquid. Sprinkle drops of food coloring randomly over the top of the stone or charcoal and wait for the crystals to grow. Growth starts in as little as two days and can last up to two weeks.