And then there were none

Once there was a mom with two daughters. She homeschooled them and loved on them, and even made dinner pretty regularly. Her husband went to work, and came home to see what the girls had learned. She worked outside the home too, but a lot of the world didn't understand how that was possible. She wasn't too sure herself, but knew that she carried on by God's grace alone.

Then one of those little girls grew up and went to college, then the other one did too.

And now there were no little girls to homeschool. And the world changed.

Well, really, the world didn't change that much, but the mom did.

So many possibilities, so many struggles over, and new ones to come. It was time for a change in her life - but which change? 

Perhaps you've deduced by now that the mom in our story is me - good for you! I dedicated 16 years of my life to homeschooling our daughters. My husband thinks I should be running out to get a full time job. He doesn't realize that I've had two full time jobs for 16 years, well, truly, three jobs.

I feel a little like General Waverly in White Christmas. You know the part where Bing Crosby sings "What do you do with a General, when he stops being a General?" 

What do you do with a homeschooling mom who is done and wants to change direction? I feel vastly under-qualified for many jobs I would love to have, and vastly over-qualified for many of the ones I see open to me.

I really enjoy my current job. As in I like it - a lot! But is that all I should be doing? Is my husband right? Am I being silly or selfish, or am I right where God wants me to be?

I also want to write. But this book writing thing is a long-term commitment. And while I've gotten the first chapter out of my head and started on the second, I think I need a re-write because I'm not satisfied with the tone of my writing. Funny isn't it? I'm often able to re-write what others say, and make it clearer and more enjoyable to read, but I'm currently struggling with how to re-write my own words.

It has been over a year since our youngest graduated. What comes next? Do I go back to school? Do I look for a writing job that pays now, but might put my book writing on hold? Do I look for a different day job that I might not love as much as my current one because it offers different benefits? I don't know. There are so many variables in this life. 

There is one thing I do know - God is right here with me. He can and will lead me where I need to go. I want to be attuned to His presence and His direction. I don't want to step ahead or fall behind. 

There is something else - I know I want to make a difference in this world. So each day I ask Him to lead me to one person that I can point to Him. One person I can show God's love to. Some days He brings a lot more than just one.

So now there are none left in our little homeschool. A few books to pass on, a few books to sell, and a lot of time to think. Funny how you struggle to find time to think when you're busy educating a child. Today I've thought a lot and not come up with any answers. Tonight I'll go back before the presence of my Heavenly Father, my Abba, Daddy in prayer and ask for direction. One step. That's all I need light for today, just the next step.

If you're in the middle of a time of change - spend it in prayer. God won't leave you to drift aimlessly - He will direct your path - one step at a time.

SchoolhouseTeachers.com Last Chance Sale!

*affiliate links are used in this post*

Ok peeps, it's like this - if you still don't know what to do for your children for school this year, it's time to make a choice. You can get some help, or keep floundering. It's after Labor Day, so it's time to stop thinking about their education and time to do something.

May I make a recommendation? 

Try out SchoolhouseTeachers.com for three months. It's only $29.95 when you use the code: LASTCHANCE through October 11th. Why SchoolhouseTeachers? Because there are over 400 course to choose from and you don't have to spend a lot of money to get a lot of good from it. 

I know, you could do it all yourself. Just get your library card and spend 40 hours a week planning and organizing and you're there. But you know what? If you use SchoolhouseTeachers as your home base, then those trips to the library can go back to being fun for everyone. You could even pick up a book to read for yourself. ;) You could learn about the history of American holidays or inspire your teens with the photography challenge course on SchoolhouseTeachers. I'm all about having fun while learning!

Why else might you decide to use SchoolhouseTeachers? Because if you're an eclectic type like I was, you'd like at least one or two easy to put on the high school transcript courses. I know your type. 

Do you know what the other end of the spectrum is? The ones who are so tied to using all of the curriculum that they purchased that they need a fun break. So reward those diligent kids with a chance to pick their own elective for next month. Maybe they want to take a brain break and go play sports - look into the fitness and health courses. Are they itching to get out the art supply box? Why not let them try the lessons from Art Achieve?

Still wondering if it is worth it to try out SchoolhouseTeachers.com for three months? Go watch one of Dave Stott's Drive Thru History videos and you'll learn something interesting while laughing at the same time. These were some of Arlene's favorite courses as a high schooler.

Wherever you are in that journey - SchoolhouseTeachers.com is bound to have something fun and educational for you to enjoy - go check it out!

The End of Homeschooling ~ Part 4

Were you beginning to wonder if I would ever get back to the next post in this series? Me too! So after a too-long break - here is the next installment in my thoughts about the end of homeschooling.

What about mom?

Whenever there is a change in the education of your children, there is a change in mom's routine and how she manages her days. Be it the very first time your child colors a picture for school, or the very last day when you hand them their homeschool diploma, there will be changes ahead. (FYI- this is true of public schooling moms too!)

Often I have seen friends who started the transition to mom's new normal before their last one graduated. This works well for many moms who are down to the last one or two high schoolers who are pretty self-sufficient. Maybe mom takes on a part-time job outside the home, or she expands her at-home repertoire of book editing, teaching piano lessons, or what have you.

But, for many moms, they need to wait until the last child has graduated and is safely started on the next leg of their journey before they feel released to move to something new. It might be because you had a child with a learning challenge, or because you've been so busy doing things, planning lessons, and chauffeuring that you just need a few weeks to decompress.

For the last 11 years of our homeschooling adventure I was a 4-H leader. It was freeing, but weird, to go through this past year of not being a 4-H leader. I saw the club flourish under the leadership that stepped up (my previous assistant leader) and I got to be a blessing by volunteering during judging week at our county fair. Seeing the results of their kids' efforts without the stress of being a part of it. :)

This was just one small part of the ongoing changes that have happened in my life (our lives) since we finished homeschooling last December. My work outside the home shifted as well, and I am really happy at my current workplace. And no - I do not miss frozen resets at the grocery store - at all! LOL.

Moms, you are going to run the gamut of emotions when you come to the end of homeschooling. Some of my friends continue to teach co-op classes after their last ones graduate. Others head back to their pre-kid career fields and teach or go back into the business world. The end of homeschooling can feel both like a death and a freedom won on the same day. 

It is okay to not know what comes next! Take your time in finding your new normal. I've done quite a lot of purging of the house, but it still seems like I have just begun. There are still books to give away of sell, and a lot more organizing to be done. I'm learning what it's like to be home by myself once in a while (hooray for days off!) and it's actually pretty nice. :)

Our girls are both taking college classes, so some nights it's everyone on their laptops working one various assignments. Other nights it's let's watch a movie - just because we can.

To the dads and kids out there - mom should not be rushed to decide what comes next. Whether it's been a year, a decade, or more since you began homeschooling, when it ends there are adjustments to be made. Rushing through the changes might leave her temperamental and unsure. Let her go at her own pace. Go make your own dinner once in a while - she's probably SO OVER menu planning by now. Better yet, go make dinner for everyone tonight - event it's just grilled cheese sandwiches.

Hang in there mamas - your life is not over when you reach the end of homeschooling - it is the beginning of a new season. Enjoy the changing season, and be willing to try something new. Who knows - it might just be your new favorite thing!

Remember this- the same God who led you while homeschooling is still leading you today. You are loved!

SchoolhouseTeachers.com Back-to-homeschool sale

*affiliate links are used in this post*

Do your children like sharks? Mine do. They also like goldfish, arapaima, and manta rays. Fish, seahorses, jelly fish and other sea creatures also fill their list whenever we visit an aquarium. It is a u-pick of favorite sea-worthy and river-dwelling animals.

SchoolhouseTeachers.com is a U-pick of favorites too. With one annual price covering the entire family, and over 400 courses to choose from, it can be a homeschooling family's best friend.

If one child wants to study knights and castles while the other one wants to learn about Ancient Egypt for history, SchoolhouseTeachers has you covered.

Does your daughter want to get right into creating art with lessons from Art Achieve, but your son wants to learn more of the history of art and study the Italian Renaissance? Both of those options can be found on SchoolhouseTeachers!

As the mom and dad are you looking for some encouragement or help with record keeping? Then check out the Just for Parents section. You can find Bible studies for parents, schedule building help, record keeping forms, encouragement and help for planning dinners, cleaning your home, or organizing your small farm. There is also a private members-only forum where parents can chat, ask questions, ask for help, and be reminded that they are not alone in their home education journey.

We used SchoolhouseTeachers for a lot of electives when our girls were homeschooling high school. We also used it for a few core classes. During the month of August, you can pay for one year and get the second year free. That's $169 for two years of fantastic resources for your family. Use the code SHARK when you visit SchoolhouseTeachers.com and save!

Spring Homeschool Day at Conner Prairie ~ April 30th

Spring! It it finally here, and most of our friends are looking for any good reason to get out of the house and go exploring. Here is a great reason: Conner Prairie is hosting its first homeschool day of the year on Tuesday, April 30th from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.!

The idea of a homeschool day at Conner Prairie was launched a few years ago. It is an opportunity for homeschool families to visit Conner Prairie at the school field trip rate, without needing 15 kids to get the reduced rate. It was an instant hit, and over time, a second day was added. Well thanks to popular demand, there will be three homeschool days at Conner Prairie this year: April 30th, August 27th, and September 11th. To see the details on the reduced rate for these days, visit this page on Conner Prairie's website.

If you've never been to Conner Prairie, now is the time to go. If you've been before and loved it - go again! Many of you know that we raised our girls with a huge emphasis towards hands-on learning. I nicknamed it E3 learning: Eclectic Experiential Education. Conner Prairie was always a place where they could touch and do. First as members, and then as they got older, they were even more involved as they each served several years in the Conner Prairie Youth Volunteer Program. Their experiences were second to none. The best part is, whether you visit Conner Prairie one time, ten times or 100 times, you will have fun learning: about Indiana's past, about natural resources, and about yourself! Arlene's favorite was always a tie between the Civil War Journey and the Loom House. When you come on Homeschool Day, keep an eye out, she is sure to be around somewhere!

I highly encourage homeschooling families to get a membership to Conner Prairie because it is such a wonderful resource, and the membership is a way to benefit both the museum and your family. For those who live far away, or who have never visited Conner Prairie and are not sure if it would be a good fit for them, a chance to take a road trip for homeschool day is ideal. 

Sometimes people ask of homeschool day is too crowded. The short answer is No. Conner Prairie does not schedule other school tours on these days, so it is just you, a thousand or so of your closest, or soon to be, homeschooling friends, and a reasonable number of daily visitors. I've never found the grounds to feel really crowded unless there are more than 5000 visitors... and so far, they've not reached that number on a homeschool day. Imagine if the state homeschool convention took place outdoors, and had more games and less books,... you will see homeschooling families from all around the state having fun and learning about Indiana's past.

If you already have a membership to Conner Prairie, I challenge you to invite at least two friends (and their children) to join you on homeschool day. Be an ambassador and show them how much fun hands-on learning can be. Offer to be the one to bring lunch to eat outside the Welcome Center on the picnic benches, or treat them to ice cream at the Cafe on the Commons. You already know you love visiting Conner Prairie, so tell your friends about it!

Still wondering if you should come? The answer is YES! In 2016 Conner Prairie added Treetop Outpost, one of our favorite places to hang out on the grounds. Imagine if your dad had actually built you the treehouse of your dreams... that comes close. You can read more about it by visiting this post I wrote a while ago about Treetop. It is a little bit like Tedd Tripp meets Richard Louv when you get out there. So much to do and see, and lots of time to interact with your children.

Lest I forget to mention it... there are already a LOT of new baby animals in the Animal Encounters barn this season! This is one of the working farm parts of Conner Prairie, where they strive to preserve and expand their heritage breeds of livestock. You might see the new Arapawa kids (goats) or the Tunis lambs! They are so cute! I've already shared a couple pictures on our Instagram feed, and I know there will be more soon. :)

So stop wondering if you want to come to the Spring Homeschool Day and get busy planning for it! Text your friends, facebook message your groupies, and get ready to pack up your car, van or SUV for an unforgettable day of fun and learning at one of the most unique historic places you will ever visit!

It is only two weeks away! 

See you on April 30th! We will be there, will you?

April Showers sale at SchoolhouseTeachers and Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Plannner

*affiliate links used in this post* 

Happy Spring! Has it finally arrived where you live? I hope so. Yesterday evening Kurt and I took a drive through the country to go locate a group of birds we had heard about and I so enjoyed seeing all the green grass and blooming daffodils.

I just wanted to pop in here and make sure you knew about the April Showers sale over at SchoolhouseTeachers.com. I know several of you are already members, but do not tune out, because I have great news for you to read below!

Homeschooling, it takes a toll on you some days. Spring can be tough because the kids want to be outdoors, and you want to be outdoors, and no one really wants to finish their math assignment or do their writing. That makes this a perfect time to switch up your daily routine and choose something different to write about. If you take a scroll through the course offerings at SchoolhouseTeachers you are sure to find something interesting for even the most reluctant writers. You can find simple themes for kids to write about, help with those book reports for middle grades, and writing assignments covering a wide range of topics for your high school students: folklore, adventures, classic literature.

With the April Showers sale going on this month, new members can join SchoolhouseTeachers.com for just $111 for twelve months AND you can get a copy of the new Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Planner when it ships in May! Use the discount code: ONES. I always appreciated that SchoolhouseTeachers is just one membership for the entire family, with no extra book fees.

To see pictures of the inside of past issues of the Hey Mama! Planners, click over and see my past reviews here and here. You will also get some ideas of how you can adapt the pages to best fit your own teaching/ learning styles. :)

What if you really want to just finish up this year and start on next year, then it is time to do some planning. If you are already a member of SchoolhouseTeachers.com, you can have a copy of the new Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Planner shipped to you in May just by paying for shipping by April 30th ($8 in USA, higher internationally). To see this option, log into your account and click over to your dashboard, then click the Special Offers for Members tab!

I really recommend the Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Planner to everyone looking for an adaptable, easy to use print planner. I used the Hey Mama! planner every year it was printed, and on the other years I printed off pages form the digital version and had them spiral bound to use in our homeschool. I've seen just a couple glimpses of the color scheme for this next year and it almost makes me wish we were still homeschooling, it is SO beautiful!

If you have decided to not use SchoolhouseTeachers.com, but still want to get your hands on one of the new Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Planners, you can purchase a copy from The Old Schoolhouse store for $29 with free shipping if you live in the US, slightly more (plus shipping) if you live in Canada. It is also available to be shipped internationally.

That's it for today. Go outside and enjoy some sunshine!

Get a Fresh Start with SchoolhouseTeachers.com

*this post contains affiliate links*

January turns a fresh page on the calendar. Are you ready to turn to a new page in your homeschooling journey? Is it time to start planning for high school? If your are going to have a student ready for high school in the fall, the answer is yes! If you have little children and need a new start, the answer is also yes!

Two things seem to trip up parents getting ready for high school: planning and transcripts. These are seen as the beginning and the end of high school, but in reality they are topics you'll circle back around to from before your children start high school until after they finish. You don't have to plan ahead for high school, but it really does help! A good way to get started on basic planning is to check your state's graduation requirements. Save them to your computer, but also print them out so you can talk them over with your spouse, and your student. The next step you will want to consider is looking at college entrance requirements. Start by picking a state university and see what they require. I know that the end of their eighth grade year is too early to know if they will want to go to college, but you want your student to be prepared if they do want to later, and it will not hurt them to be college ready but decide on trade school or an apprenticeship instead. Better to be prepared then behind.

Life has a way of changing your plans, so I suggest you start planning with a pencil. If you know your student will need four years of science, plan on one for each year, but you don't have to know just yet which one will be for each year. If you are looking for some planning pages to help you work out which courses your student should take, and where to plug in electives, you should check out the High School Schoolhouse Planner at SchoolhouseTeachers.com. It is a 400 page resource that allows you to print any and all of the pages you want to plan your student's courses, as well as having lots of options for them to record their work. It has many great helps pages, like a chronological Bible reading plan and goal setting pages.

One of the things I have heard parents ask frequently is where can they find good curriculum for high school? Purchasing books can get expensive. One of the great benefits of a SchoolhouseTeachers.com membership is that there are no book fees and no per-student fees. One yearly membership covers the entire family from Pre-K through high school. January is the best time of year to check out SchoolhouseTeachers.com because during the Fresh Start sale you can get an Ultimate Membership for only $90 for an entire year if you use the code: NEWYEAR19. Why is this an amazing sale? The normal price is $179 for a year, which is still a value, but $90 is even better! Also, when you purchase a new membership you can lock in that price for as long as you keep your membership. Imagine that, only $90 a year for over 400 courses. It is not uncommon to spend that much just on print books for one high school science course, but with SchoolhouseTeachers.com you get access to six different high school level science courses.

High school electives are also a concern for some parents. How can we teach what we do not know? With a little help from our friends, or an online curriculum like SchoolhouseTeachers.com! There are a variety of electives to choose from, like accounting, ACT/SAT prep, or photography. Is your child wanting to learn more about the world of graphic design or website management? There are courses on creating images, graphic design, copywriting, keyboarding, internet entrepreneurship and more.

Want an introduction to art for your students? From your preschooler to your high schooler there are options on SchoolhouseTeachers.com. Your student can learn about drawing, art history, art appreciation and even digital art and product design. 

I'm not sure why only homeschoolers use SchoolhouseTeachers.com, even though it was designed for homeschool families, since there are so many great resources that any family could use. There are a lot of science unit studies to choose from, as well as all of those science resources from World Book that would be great starting places to plan a science fair project or classroom report.

After all these great resources I still have not told you about my personal favorite: applecore recordkeeping. The gold level of applecore is a benefit for yearly memberships with SchoolhouseTeachers.com. It is a really easy to use software for recording grades and creating transcripts. I like how customizable it is. While there are plenty of course names available on applecore, it also has the option to name your own courses, which I used a couple weeks ago while finishing up Arlene's high school transcript. She had courses like Fiber Arts and Fashion and Textile Design. Homeschooling allows a lot of customization, so make sure you are giving them credit for their work!

Want more details about SchoolhouseTeachers.com? Check out the Start Here page and read some of the FAQ's. You'll be glad you chose a fresh start to your new year!

Homeschool check-up and the Fresh Start sale at SchoolhouseTeachers.com

*this post contains affiliate links*

It is a new year, and that means time to evaluate what you're doing in your homeschool.

Are you happy with how things went last fall? Did you have enough choices that your kids weren't bored? Were you bored? Are you looking for something new or different, or are you looking for encouragement for the long haul?

Life has a way of throwing curveballs. Homeschooling is no exception. There were years when I thought we had everything we needed, and then a particular resource just didn't mesh with one of our girls' learning styles. There were years when we had enough, but decided we wanted to try something new. Sometimes you have plenty of money to buy something new, and other years you cringe when your child says they can't find a new eraser. Been there - done that.

We were always the piece things together type of family. Our youngest graduated high school last month, and we only had one year when we went with a set-by-someone-else curriculum. That was a painful year. The girls learned a lot, but it didn't really fit with their learning style, or my teaching style, to have everything so regimented that there was no extra time for exploration. We always loved exploration - especially time spent outdoors.

So where are you on that homeschooling journey? Ready to try something new? Firmly entrenched in your routine? Wondering if you're doing it right? Know that we are cheering for you, and praying for you!

It is a freeing feeling when you realize that your homeschool journey does not need to look like anyone else's!

If you've been considering something new, I encourage you to take a look at the Fresh Start sale that is happening over at SchoolhouseTeachers.com this month. For new memberships, you can get access to all of their 425 courses plus extra resources for only $90 a year! That's half off the regular subscription cost! 

We have been members since SchoolhouseTeachers.com started in 2012. Even though Arlene has graduated, I'm still keeping our membership for a while. There are a lot of planning and record keeping resources included with a yearly membership, and I'm not finished with them yet. Plus, it's fun to look at the newer courses and be able to tell you about them. One of the best things about home educating your children is the ability to go back and learn things you missed the first time. A lot of the high school level courses are great for adults... and learning something new helps stave off dementia - I'm all about that!

So take a while to reflect on how last semester went for your family. It's only January 1st, it is not time to jump back into homeschooling just yet - enjoy a few days of peace and reflection first. And if you decide you need a change, or some different resources, hop over and check out SchoolhouseTeachers.com for some great inspiration at a really reasonable cost!



P.S. Just a reminder that if you join SchoolhouseTeachers.com during the Fresh Start sale, you'll get to renew each year at the super low price of $90/year!

P.P.S. If you join during January, you'll receive a print copy of the Winter Issue that just released last month!

The Winter of the Soul

Life travels on with its ebbs and flows, and then, it smacks you upside the head with a major change, ... or three.

You've probably noticed the blog has been pretty quiet this month. It's not that there weren't things to write about, I just did not feel like I should write them...at least not yet. 

This fall our family has gone through three major changes. One is usually enough to make me step back and reflect a while before writing, but three? I just needed to wait until God told me it was time to write again. 

In November I wrote out my editorial calendar for December. It had 25 blog posts scheduled. There have been exactly six posts this month before this one, and two of them were written by Arlene. Obviously, things changed from my plan. It was a combination of the three big changes, time spent reading the book of Hebrews, and a strong conviction that instead of writing, I needed to rest. Rest in God, rest from extra social interactions, just rest.

By now I know you might be wondering about those three changes, so here they are, in no particular order:

1- Kurt's mother passed away

2- I started a new job

3- our youngest graduated high school

The ending of two things and the beginning of a new one, all at the same time. Winter is not a bad season, but it can be a tough one to navigate - a tough time to find beauty and joy.  I chose to title this post The Winter of the Soul because I know there are many of you out there going through changes as well. May it encourage you that there is beauty to be found, and peace to be experienced. You are not the only person with going through a winter in your soul, feeling adrift, or bereft. Change can be good and still be hard to navigate. Change can bring loss, yet still give you a reason to find joy. Change can be expected, and still leave you wondering.

Winter can be like that too, expected, but cold. Death and loss as the plants prepare for a resurrection in the Spring. And regardless of what anyone tells you, winter can be expected, and still leave you surprised when it arrives!

Our souls are kept by God. Winter does not surprise Him. Our changes and struggles to adjust are known by Him - He knows us, and loves us, and wants us to rest in Him. When we rest in God, in our surety of forgiveness and salvation in Christ, then Winter does not bring sadness, it is just another season of Joy. You cannot come to maturity in Christ without going through testing and trials. Your faith is refined by the seasons of life that you walk through with Him. 

As I look back at how God has matured me this year, even just this past month, I understand more about rest, and why it is so vital. To rest you must surrender. You must stop striving and trust that God is working out all of the details. You lay down the good things, and wait for Him to fill your hands and heart with the best things. You listen for His voice. It might be a quiet whisper in the trees when you take a walk in the woods, or it might be a startling "no" when you try to pursue an idea. I have never heard God's thundering voice like the Israelites did on the mountainside with Moses, but I have heard it just the same. 

God called me to rest, in preparation for the things He has prepared for me to do. A week or so ago I sat down and brainstormed a few ideas for writing for 2019. Apparently God has prepared quite a few things for me to do. :)

I have officially retired from homeschooling. It was a freeing and wonderful feeling. Just some scores left to punch into the transcript program, and a few books left to sell. Arlene is really happy to be done as well. We celebrated lunch on her last day at Chik-fil-A. 

While we will no longer be homeschoolers, there is still much to share with you about homeschooling, and I hope it will be an encouragement to those of you still on that journey. 

For those of you who are not homeschooling, there will be plenty about parenting, family time, nature walks, and road trips!

The girls and I have spent the past two weeks together enjoying the freedom of no deadlines. Emily had already registered for her classes for next semester, so after finals were over, we just picked some fun destinations. The girls have decided that I need to include a new feature in our road trip columns - museum food. Which ones are worth the money, and where you should pack a picnic lunch instead. ;)

Tomorrow will still be winter, but my soul is at peace, resting in the loving arms of my Heavenly Father.

Stop back by soon - there is much to share!

The End of Homeschooling ~ Part 3

When you come to the end of your home education journey, you will have to come to terms with all of the books you have collected over the years. Picture books, field guides, chapter books, textbooks, art books, novels... the shelves go on and on and on.

Evaluating your book collection

How do you decide what to keep and what to let go? Maybe you've already purged your shelves of all but the most treasured of childhood books and now you are down to the high school level reading material. Here are some questions to ask yourself as you begin to sort those shelves:

1- will my children (or grandchildren) ever want to read this book again?

2- will I or my spouse ever want to read this book again?

3- is this a fairly recent edition in good enough condition that I should consider selling it?

4- is this book a solid resource that would bless some family I know because it fits with their teaching and learning styles (should I gift it to them)?

5- was this a book I wish we had NOT used? If so, is it a poor quality or content weak resource... or did it just not click with my kids?

6- in five years will I wish I still had this book to re-read or loan to family friends?

7-is this book worn out or used up and just needs to go in the recycling bin or kindling pile?

(If you have not already begun this process with the children's picture books and middle school resources, then choose just one area to start with. Move to another area in a month or two.)

Finding new homes for your books

After you've evaluated your books, or at least a few shelves' worth of them, talk with your spouse or adult children and make sure no one is upset by your rating of each book. You might have listed them by final destination spots in a notebook, or simply put color coded post-it note flags in them. Another option is to fill each shelf with books destined for the same end.

Once you've got your piles and the OK from the family for those you want to part with, get online and decide where and how you want to offer those titles from category #3 for sale. Does your local homeschool group host an annual used book sale? Is there a local facebook group to sell them from, or are you going to list them on one of the nationwide used-curriculum sites? Sometimes all you need to do is let your friends with middle school aged kids know what you want to part with. Books from popular homeschool publishers like Apologia, Math-U-See, IEW, and Memoria Press tend to find their new homes quickly!

Next, look over that pile of #4 books. Gently offer these books and resources to families you would like to bless. They might be thrilled with the offer, or they might decline. Don't be pushy, give them time to think over your offer before they need to decide. On a similar note, do NOT make them your dump site! If they only want one or two of your 40+ chapter books, then just gift them those two. You can find somewhere else to dispose of the others.

If you have a pile of #5 or #7 books because they are falling apart or because they were just horribly written, then look for one of those large book and paper recycling bins in the parking lot at the library or supermarket and give then a toss. If that book truly was awful - it can better serve someone after it is recycled into couple of egg cartons. :)

Final thoughts about your book collection

Overall, you probably will not get rid of as many books on this first culling as you initially think. Be willing to lower your price if necessary on books you want to sell, or look for places that collect free used curriculum to bless others with. After six months or a year you may want to go through the process again.

Our house will probably always look like a small library. That's OK with all of us since we have books we love. Our goal is not to get rid of all of the books - just to move the ones we are done using to new homes so that we can better organize and find the ones we love!


Come back later this month for part 4 in the End of Homeschooling series - What about mom?

In the meantime, you can read parts one and two in this series again anytime!

The Old Schoolhouse Flash Sale - only thru Friday night!

*this post contains affiliate links*

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are spending your time having a great time with family and friends. I just popped on here because I would be remiss if I didn't let you know about this awesome two-day only sale on PRINT copies of The Old Schoolhouse magazine!

I have read The Old Schoolhouse magazine for years and years, and I'm super excited that it is going back to print for all four issues each year. I'm planning to buy a gift subscription for our library, for all those families who might be looking to homeschool. Who might you give a gift subscription to at this awesome price? Be sure to pick up a subscription for yourself too! Think about it, and make sure you get them ordered before midnight on Friday!

One year (4 issues) only $10!

Get the PRINT trade magazine for homeschool families delivered to your door every quarter during our 48-hour Thanksgiving Flash Sale and SAVE BIG! Each issue, over 120 pages, is packed with ideas, inspiration, and practical tips for your homeschool and your home. Plus, there is bonus holiday content, an Annual Freebie Directory, and resource guides.

Grab a one-year subscription for just $10—that is about the cost of a single issue! Why not treat yourself, along with a friend or two, and get a head start on your Christmas list? You have to ACT FAST though. This sale is good Thursday and Friday only (Nov. 22 & 23). 

DO NOT MISS YOUR CHANCE TO SAVE! 

Dollar Days at SchoolhouseTeachers!

Just in case you have missed the notice, the month of September is Dollar Days at SchoolhouseTeachers.com. 

Just what does that mean for you? It means you can try out any (or many) of the more than 400 courses available for just $1 for the first month. 

If you like the courses, or the planners, or the transcript tools, or any of the other feature (like World Book encyclopedias) you can continue your membership for the discounted price of $14.95 monthly. If you decide not to continue your membership, it has only cost you $1. I really think you'll decide to continue your membership once you get started, but no hard feelings if you don't. :)

All those resources for a dollar? That my friends is a seriously good deal!

If you're wondering what they offer, go check out SchoolhouseTeachers.com and choose what you want to do first. There are courses for every age from pre-school through adult.

I thought you might really want to check out one of the newest courses: Achieving Art Success with ArtAchieve. You may remember that Arlene and I reviewed some of these ArtAchieve lessons in 2017. If you are looking for art for your kids, be sure to look at these as there are lessons for multiple age/ skill ranges.

Also, if your child, or you, needs to work on their keyboarding skills, check out Keyboarding with The Typing Coach David Kimball. These are no-nonsense lessons that really do teach you how to type well. Find out more details by reading my review.

That's it for now. I just wanted to make sure you knew about a couple great resources available on SchoolhouseTeachers.com that you might want to check out during Dollar Days!

Have a great week!