Recipe for Success Meme

Recipe for Success
Wednesday, April 2
It is also National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day! So share a recipe…figuratively, as in two parts love, one part creativity, or literally, as in a super quick, nutritious meal your kids scarf up. Think about what you do in the day, what helps keep it organized and you sane (or how you got past that need for organization and saneness!), and curriculum materials you find effective.

Figurative Recipe

6 Cups “Love”
5 Cups “Thirst for Knowledge”
4 Cups “Patience”
3 Cups “Sense of Humor”
2 Cups “Time/Energy”
1 Cup “Adventure”
½ Cup “Crazy/Cooky/Wacky”

Not really quick – - but, it IS GOOD!!

Banana Bread

2 C. Mashed Bananas
1 t. lemon juice
2 C. Flour
2 t. baking powder
½ C. Butter (or Shortening)
½ C. Brown Sugar
½ C. White Sugar
2 Eggs
½ C. Chocolate Chips and/or Nuts (Optional)

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees.
Grease a loaf pan and sprinkle lightly with sugar.
CREAM eggs, butter (or shortening) and sugars until very fluffy.
Then, FOLD (Make sure you fold) in remaining ingredients. Mix Well.
Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until done.

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In the last month, I have discovered the JOY of books on tape/CD. We absolutely LOVE them. We are listening to at LEAST one picture book a day – - and have listened to two chapter books (Shiloh and The Beloved Dearly). Right now, we are half way through Holes.

I also like Netflix – - we have used it A LOT for educational videos – - AND for home entertainment. We average 12 movies per month at a rate of less than 20 dollars. (This does not include the movies that we have watched instantly.) It is VERY cost effective.

I use a lot of interesting motivational tools – - they may not work for everyone – - but, they do work for Boo. I really want her to read for enjoyment – - it has gotten SO much better since she left public school – - but, I also need to keep a close eye on her comprehension. What I decided to do, in order to fulfill both requirements was to join www.bookadventure.com – - where she can read a book and test her comprehension. She earns points that she can turn in for prizes. (At this time, she has earned the 6 month subscription to Highlights; the educational CD and has almost 1800 points). There are a LOT of books NOT on book adventure – - so in order for her to “see” her accomplishments, she has a shelfari (www.shelfari.com) account. Once she completes a book, I list it on her Shelf – - and then she gets to rate the book (between 1 and 5 stars). (Her current shelfari count is 68. She started homeschooling on January 1.) For geography and language arts, we use www.postcrossing.com – - and we send and receive postcards from other countries. When we send or receive a postcard, she finds the location on the globe – - and we to to Google Maps to check out the location on different maps. We discuss what will be written on the postcards and then she copies what I have written out for her.

For organization and record keeping, I use Homeschool Tracker. I don’t know how I would be able to manage if I did not have that. (I use the free program – - not sure how different the paid program is – - will have to check it out if we continue homeschooling.) I can see what we have done at a glance – - print all sorts of reports – - keep track of all the books she has read – - the list goes on and on.

If you would like to read about other “Recipes for Success,” go to Principled Discovery.

P.S. I just wanted to let all of my readers know that I appreciate all the comments – - and I have really enjoyed reading YOUR blogs!! Thanks!

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