Reflections From An Eclectic Homeschooling Mama of 8

I am an avid reader and through my own "formal" school years have exceled in english and reading. I truly believe that a solid foundation to any academic education is reading. When I began homeschooling my eldest, we went over shapes,colors, and those sorts of things, but as soon as she showed an interest in reading at age 4 we went for it. We started her on the Hooked on Phonics program and she completed it in and was reading at at a 1st/2nd grade level by age 5. Everything was so much easier for her and she seemed to excel because she was reading on her own,able to read directions, and just wanting to read everything. Now she is at another level of reading where we are dissecting stories and other genres of text to look for meaning and understanding. We are using a list of reading strategies that are working well. We as adults probably use some of these strategies as we read. For example, you may look at the title and pictures before you begin reading a story or you may thi

This is a book that my 7 year old has been reading for history. This book is a historical fiction set during the time of the "Reconstruction Period" This book is meant for children ages 8 and up, but it depends on your child's level of understanding and reading level. It is about a 12-year-old orphaned slave who leaves South Carolina in search of a Freedmen's Bureau during the Reconstruction Period to claim the "40 acres and a mule"that was promised to them. I have compiled some subjects found in the book that can be expanded upon for further study. Reconstruction Era Freedman's Bureau Emancipation Proclamation Political Parties (Democarat/Republican etc.) Abraham Lincoln Carpet Baggers Scalewags Abolitionist Bureau of Refugees Freedman Abandoned Lands Union Leagues Ku Klux Klan Black Codes Civil Rights Act Southern Laws during slavery There are also many vocabulary words that can be found and used for spelling and vocabulary activities. I al