A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Civics!

11 April 2018

When should you teach civics?  For public school teens, it may be a semester course in their senior year. They’re almost voting age, so that makes sense.

But what about homeschoolers?

It often happens when there is interest in learning more.  Perhaps it’s a legislative bill that a teen is interested in.  Or an election.  It might become an excellent learning opportunity for the entire family. It’s always easier to learn when there is a reason. You can teach your child how to be a knowledgeable citizen by using real life instead of a textbook and you can learn right along with him!

Everything You Ever Needed to Know About California Government is a free download from California Homeschool Network.  It’s a good place to start.

Learn More about California Government at These Sites:

Start with the California State Capitol Museum. You’ll learn about legislation, how to locate your representatives, and learn about legislation. There’s also an educational section for kids! In the Golden State, this is a gold mine of information! Then look at these links for more information:

Citizens’ Guide

Senate

Assembly

Current California Legislative Information

Registering to Vote

If you’re registered to vote, let your children know.  If you’re not, consider registering online with your children watching.  AND, if you have a teen who is 16 or older, they can now pre-register to vote thanks to the new “pre-register at sixteen. vote at eighteen” early registration!

 

Learn About the US Government

After you’ve explored California government, it’s a good time to move on to US Government. Here are some free resources:

Khan Academy “Foundations of American Democracy” Videos

Center for Civic Education Lesson Plans

Civics Games

With so many resources and an important reason to learn, suddenly a subject that is dreaded by some becomes very important and fascinating! 

Look for more links on CLA’s Civics Pinterest Board.

 
karen2
Karen Taylor’s always homeschooled son attended a local community college after graduating from homeschooling. He transferred to UC Berkeley as a junior, and received a PhD in neuroscience from UCSF.  She shares homeschooling comments and links on Facebook, Pinterest, and this blog.
 
 
 

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By Karen Taylor | Posted in Homeschooling, Teens |

What Year-Round Homeschooling Looks Like!

20 June 2017

Updated 9/28/2022

Are you considering homeschooling year-round, but worried that it would be too exhausting to never have a break? Years ago someone asked how it was different from following the public school schedule with time off from “school”.  My response was:

I don’t teach year-round, I respond year-round, and that’s a big difference! So yes, it’s 24/7, since you never know what time of day or year a learning moment might happen. I think you’ll find a lot of homeschoolers do that. We respond and facilitate, and help our kids learn. It’s so natural, it’s not drudgery at all.

Most parents probably respond to learning moments during the summer without realizing that this is what year-round homeschooling might look like. It can work even if you have curriculum and a more formal plan. It might just mean that there are more relaxed days for other activities and no worry to stick to the school schedule, or feel that because of an unexpected blip in plans, that you are suddenly behind.  With year-round schooling, there are plenty of learning days in the year, and you’re never behind!

 
karen2
Karen Taylor’s always homeschooled son attended a local community college after graduating from homeschooling. He transferred to UC Berkeley as a junior, and received a PhD in neuroscience from UCSF.  She shares homeschooling comments and links on Facebook, Pinterest, and this blog.
 
 
 

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By Karen Taylor | Posted in Uncategorized |

Finding a California Park Day!

20 February 2017

Updated 9/19/2022. 

Have you found a local homeschool park day in your community?  If you are a new homeschooler, please consider putting it at the top of your list of things to do.

Park day groups come in all forms, and most are free.  Some have formal activities and rules, and others are based on an informal agreement that anyone who wants to will show up at a particular park at an agreed upon time so that parents can talk and kids can play.

Some offer field trips and holiday party days or potlucks if there are members willing to organize them.  Some may even organize group campouts, although camping with one of the State groups, CHN or HSC, is probably more common.

Not all groups advertise. The statement of faith groups often get new members through their church or by private invitation. But, there are hundreds of other groups that happily welcome new homeschoolers and parents with preschoolers who are interested in learning more about homeschooling. They’ll often state that they are inclusive so that you’ll know that everyone is welcome.

Start Your Search for a Homeschool Group Here:

  1. Peach Blossom School’s List of CA Support Groups
  2. California Homeschool Network (CHN)

Groups come and go, change contact people (our kids grow up!), and even change how they communicate. Years ago, Yahoo was the most popular, and some groups also had websites. With the popularity of Facebook, some have moved there. That means you might find a broken link, an old email, or what appears to be an inactive group.  Search online to see if you can find the group’s name and newest information.

Tips for Success!

Go next week if you can.  The first time is the hardest, but do it anyway!  If you are sitting next to someone who isn’t talking to you, introduce yourself.  It might be her first day too!

Bring typical going-to-the-park things:

  • A folding chair or blanket
  • Water
  • Snacks or lunch
  • Sunscreen
  • Jacket or sweatshirt, hat
  • A toy to share – a game or a ball, perhaps, if you think it will help your child meet others.
  • If you knit or crochet, feel free to bring a project to work on while you talk to your new friends.

If you have teens, you might have to go several times. Teens tend to go when they know other teens will, so you may need to talk to some of the moms and try to arrange for all of the teens to show up on the same day!

If you have a great first day, that’s wonderful! If it wasn’t so great, please try a few more times. I’ve seen enough shy or introverted homeschoolers at park days over the years to know that the old timers might be just as nervous as the new visitor.  Keep trying, and you’ll soon be friends!

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karen2
Karen Taylor’s always homeschooled son attended a local community college after graduating from homeschooling. He transferred to UC Berkeley as a junior, and received a PhD in neuroscience from UCSF.  She shares homeschooling comments and links on Facebook, Pinterest, and this blog.
 
 
 

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By Karen Taylor | Posted in New homeschoolers |

Homeschooling Through a Crisis

16 February 2017

The unexpected in your life can be messy, terrifying, tragic, distracting, time-consuming, or joyous. It doesn’t matter the reason, it throws you off your plan. If your child is in school, life is expected to go on without even an acknowledgement of the stress your family is enduring (and remember, even good news can be stressful!). The no excuses, zero tolerance, don’t mess with the school’s plan has led many a family to homeschooling.

If you are currently homeschooling, your kids will find other ways to learn if you can’t be there to guide a lesson because of your illness or need to be elsewhere. They’ll read, create, and imagine. They will be watching and learning how to prioritize the important things in life. They may even surprise you by what they are capable of doing when they see that you need help! And if your child is the one who needs care, what a comfort to know that their immediate needs are more important than a schoolish assignment.

Is a crisis a good time to enroll a child in school? That’s a common question from parents who are overwhelmed or feel guilty that they can’t do enough for their child. In most instances, it can be best for all to keep the family home together rather than add the additional stress of school. Your child won’t get behind and might even advance in unexpected ways when left to learn on their own!

Please remember not to feel guilty for what you can’t control. You’ll get through it as a family, whether it’s a one-week unexpected blip or many months.

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karen2
Karen Taylor’s always homeschooled son attended a local community college after graduating from homeschooling. He transferred to UC Berkeley as a junior, and received a PhD in neuroscience from UCSF.  She shares homeschooling comments and links on Facebook, Pinterest, and this blog.
 
 
 

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By Karen Taylor | Posted in Encouragement, New homeschoolers, Unschooling, Worries and Obstacles |

Homeschool Field Trips

11 September 2016

field trip 2

In addition to reading a chapter book to your child, finding a park day, and baking a double batch of cookies or pizza (for some math fun), a great way to start your homeschooling year is by participating in a field trip with other homeschoolers! You’ll have both socialization and education worries checked off in a flash, and your children will also be off to a happy new school year!

Looking for field trip ideas?

Visit my Field Trip board at Pinterest. The Pinterest pages are updated regularly!

Tips for field trip harmony and success:

  1. Be kind to your organizer! Someone has to organize the trip and make the arrangements. Follow their requests for payment, signing up deadlines, and anything else that’s needed. There’s a high burnout rate for field trip organizers, and if it happens to yours, you’ll miss them! No complaints about the date (just don’t go if it doesn’t work out), no complaints about anything else. And, if you say you’ll be there, let illness be your only excuse. Offering to organize a trip might also be appreciated!
  1. Be kind to your hosts. Thank them at the beginning and the end of the tour, and follow their rules – these are rules designed to keep their property safe as well as your children safe.
  1. Respectful behavior is important on a field trip to avoid damaging a facility or spoiling the visit for the others. It’s important for groups to comply, or they (and other groups!) may not be welcome in the future. If that is too difficult for your child, or if your parenting style is that you don’t believe in telling children what to do, a group field trip is probably not for you. On a field trip, it will typically be expected that parents will sometimes have to ask their children to stop a noisy or disruptive behavior – or discover that someone else will do it for them. If this is a dealbreaker for you, skip the group field trips and meet up at park day. You might also find that it works better for your family to go to special places alone.

And finally, if for whatever reason you don’t love field trips, remember it’s just one idea that some families enjoy. Nothing is required when you homeschool, so do what works for your family!

You might also like: Finding a California Park Day!Save

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karen2
Karen Taylor’s always homeschooled son attended a local community college after graduating from homeschooling. He transferred to UC Berkeley as a junior, and received a PhD in neuroscience from UCSF.  She shares homeschooling comments and links on Facebook, Pinterest, and this blog.
 
 
 

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By Karen Taylor | Posted in Homeschooling, New homeschoolers |