Reflections From An Eclectic Homeschooling Mama of 8

We have been incorporating interactive notebooking in our homeschool for a few years now and we absolutely love it. The children have retained so much information through this method and it's a lot of fun. With 5 children cutting out foldables often, I needed to find a way to keep their cut outs contained without getting mixed up , lost or destroyed so I purchased some folders and protective sleeves. I wish I would have thought of this a lot sooner but better now than never. Each child has a folder with at least 4 sleeves. Each sleeve will hold the foldables that are being used for that subject/ unit. They can pull them out and add them to their notebooks as we move through the lessons. Now I don't have to worry about paper falling out of notebooks and reprinting lost sheets. 

                I had to take a break from facebook and all social media for a while. As a black homeschooling mother, I understand the struggle of finding one's place and building a strong foundation while homeschooling. We are taking a step, that in our own communities, is an extreme one. Homeschooling is an endeavor that most associate with middle to upper class white parents so when I meet others like me who are new to or entertaining the thought of homeschooling, I want to do all that I can to help. I've been assisting parents on and offline for years but the most taxing and challenging has been through social media via Facebook, YouTube etc.                       There hasn't been a day that has gone by where I haven't received an inbox from a parent regarding homeschooling or parenting. It is humbling and indeed an honor that there are others who seek your wisdom but it has been taxing...

Over the years we have accumulated a lot of materials and they can take up a lot of space. I've gone through several changes in an effort to minimize the space our resources take up and this by far is one of the best ways to do that. I saw an idea on Pinterest (which is one of my favorite go to laces for ideas) where a mom added duct tape to lapbooks for easy storage. I took that idea a step further and added duct tape to gallon ziploc bags. I found a 2 pk of decorative duct tape at Big Lots for $3 and a box of 15 bags f or $1.50 . I used a 3 ring zip binder for the storage. I was able to fit all of the preschool  manipulatives that I use for my preschooler and it fits neatly in a crate next to my desk. I was able to eliminate 4 plastic containers thus freeing up more space. I plan on making themed based binders and place all materials in bags that will fit.