Are you and your kids tired of the same old writing drills?

Do your homeschool bookshelves house more than three types of writing curriculum?

Writing, even if you feel you are quite good at it yourself, can be one of those subjects you find hard to teach in your homeschool.

Why?

Because, we tend to automatically recall and implement techniques from when we were in school.

Think back to all the creative writing assignments, ugh!

I enjoyed using my imagination, but often felt too much pressure when it came time to writing it all down.  Now that I have matured, I recognize that I didn’t dislike writing; I just felt stifled.  Stifled by correct grammar, spelling, and use of literary concepts that felt cold and mechanical.

All the excitement and fun of my story was held hostage to criteria and outlines; and that dreaded red pen.

Yes, we need to learn the mechanics of writing, but I also believe we need to enjoy the process.  Writing is something we all use every single day and it shouldn’t be something we dread doing.

So, how can we make some of those writing curricula work for us?

How can we make writing more exciting for our kids?

We need to get creative and not be weighed down by the curriculum.  We need to explore and read great literature to them.

Consider addressing writing lessons in a personal, fun and/or real way.  Find a way to have your child connect to what they want to write.

Make it Fun!

Any chance I get, I use books and novels to drive home my point about certain literary devices. No pens, no paper; just me, my kids and books!

As and example, the other day we were discussing how we need to think of our readers.  How can we engage them and make them want to read what we write?  How do we hook them?

Instead of pulling out our curriculum, which does discuss and teach this through examples and practice, I decided to change things up. I zipped around our house and pulled a book off every shelf, and added the library books we just brought home.

I read the opening paragraph or two from every book.  We discussed it, I encouraged them to share with me what they really thought, in their own words! They need to know they can express their opinion, so I asked them questions like:

• What do you know so far?

• Does it capture you?

• Can you guess what the book will be about?

• Do you want to read more?

• What intrigues you, what do you want answered?

• Did it take you to another place?

• Could you understand the vocabulary?
  

• How long do you think it will take before you are captivated enough to keep reading?

• Do you like it?

• Did your imagination kick in?

• Which of your senses were engaged?

• etc.

(In case you are wondering, Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White won by a landslide!)

Make It Personal!

What stories and books really connect with your kids?  It can be a new novel or something you’ve read before and want to re-visit.  As you read use sticky tabs to mark passages of text to discuss or dissect later.  Ask lots of questions and get a discussion going.

• What do you think about this character?

• Who do you think the hero of the story is?

• Would you have done the same thing?

• Is this person being a good friend?

• Do you see yourself in any of these characters?

• How would you have handled this situation?

• When is it right to … or is it wrong?
  

• Can you picture yourself in this setting?

• What do you think they feel right now?

• Can you think of a situation in real life that could relate?

• Imagine if the author didn’t use these exciting descriptive sentences, would you still like the book?

Make it Real!

Use real writing examples from novels they love and passages that take your breath away or send you off to some far off land.  Talk about why it captures your child’s imagination the way it does.  Use it as copywork and take the time to point out some literary devices the author is using; or highlight the different clauses within that particular paragraph.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all had a copywork journal full of  passages from great novels or poems? Not a novel or poem that I love or you love, but one your child loves and identifies with!

This could be a great keepsake as well; all the while teaching them something about good writing practice. By the time they graduate they could have a little portfolio of the novels they read and loved over the years; with passages that meant something to them at that time in their life.

By diving deeper into the novels we read together, it provides us with an opportunity to learn much more about ourselves.  It also helps us to understand what good writing is and what it can become for us. It helps us to discover our writing voices.

Take the opportunity to have fun with words, explore and stretch your imagination!  Help your kids fall in love with writing not because it is part of a curriculum, but because beyond it being an essential skill, it is a beautiful way to communicate. 

Don’t be afraid to use a curriculum, but do be wary of becoming a slave to your writing curriculum.

Take a detour, step outside the box from time to time; push the curriculum aside, and just fall in love with great writers!

If you want more ideas on how to have discussions or ways to engage your learners with process questions check out “How I Teach Critical Thinking in Our Homeschool”

Want to know what great books we have been Reading? Here is some of our Reading List.

This post is part of a “How to Teach Without a Curriculum”  link up at iHomeschool Network

Click on the picture below to find other “How to Teach Without a Curriculum” posts:

The sacrifices of men and women who have served our country in time of war, conflict and peace should never be forgotten or taken for granted.  Those who have served our nation, both in the past and present, deserve to be honoured for their dedication and allegiance to our country and our welfare as a nation .  It is our duty to not only take time to pay our respects, but to teach our youth about the history of our nation and our military.

Taking part in Remembrance Day services, in one way or another, has been something I have done my entire life and it is something my children participate in as well.  When they were quite young, we wore our poppies, made crafts, observed the 2 minutes of silence every November 11th and we shared simple stories to help them understand, on their level, what this day was all about.  As they grew and could grasp more, we did more. We now share stories of our family and friends who have fought in wars and who have taken part in peace keeping missions.

Most recently my boys took an online course about WWII which covered the strategies and politics of the war as it unfolded. They came away from that course with a deeper appreciation of those who stood up for our country and fought to preserve our freedoms.

By taking opportunities to be involved in Remembrance Day ceremonies, history courses, family discussions and online activities, I am proud to say my children have a deep respect and appreciation for our veterans.

Here are some resources I have found to help you learn more about Remembrance Day…

Remembrance Day Resources

Links and Resources:

Education/Lesson Plans/Support Materials:

• Veterans Affairs –

  • Remembrance Day (main page)

  • List of Events – grouped according to Province

  •  Veterans’ Week Learning Resources

  • Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae – includes his poem “In Flanders Fields”

• The Royal Canadian Legion

  • Youth Contests – Plan ahead and research your local deadlines for entry

• Canadian War Museum

• Donna Ward from Northwoods Press – Remembrance Day Resources/Links

  • WWII Secret Agents in France – Remembrance Day Lesson 1:1

• Activity Village 

• CBC News – Canada – Type “Remembrance Day” into search box for articles and look for a link to a Live Stream on November 11th to watch the ceremonies.

Arts and Crafts:

• Painted Coffee Filter Poppy Craft for Remembrance Day from Happy Hooligans

• Colouring Pages and other resources from Activity Village

• Poppy Crafts from Hodge Podge Craft

• Worksheets, Colouring Pages and Crafts  from DLTK Kids

Books and References:

• A Poppy Is to Remember

• In Flanders Fields: The Story of the Poem by John McCrae

• Remembering John McCrae: Soldier – Doctor – Poet

• Canada’s Wars: An Illustrated History

• The World Wars

• Animals at War

• The Second World War (high school level reading)

On social media, you can look up #RememberThem to find more links or to express your gratitude to our Veterans.

~Lest We Forget~

Homeschool Summer Reading

Summer time, time to:

• unwind

• relax

• be adventurous

• play

• dream

• discover

What better way to check off everything on the above list than to open up a great book!

We are often sitting outside reading our books, getting lost in adventures of the future, days gone past, antics of the animal world or silly stories just for fun.

No matter what book we choose to read, the 1 thing we love to do is gather around for our family read-a-loud time, and in the summer, we take it outdoors!

Family Outdoor Read-A-Loud Essentials

1. A great book (check out what is on our reading list).

2. A blanket to sit on.

3. Sunscreen, Hats, Bug Spray.

4. Pitcher of fresh water with lemon slices, or a homemade batch of Lemonade.

5. Snacks, my kids enjoy fruits slices and some homemade goodies.

6. Bubbles, or sand toys if you have a sandbox.  This allows kids to also keep busy as I read, if they really feel the need to move around

7. An easy supper on the menu. Something in the slowcooker or something you can have pre-made like cold salads etc. Then you can loose yourselves in the adventures of your book for the whole afternoon!

8. A great discussion! There is nothing we like better to than to sit and talk about the story we are reading.

9. Room to act out what was read.  Let the kids run around the yard to “play” out their interpretation of the story.

10. A clear agenda for Mom or Dad.  Don’t let your usual “to do list” nag at you…enjoy your reading time with your kids!

G.K. Chesterton Quote

Our Reading List at the moment:

(Could you help me out? At the bottom of this post I have a question for you!)

What is on your Reading List? 

Notice I don’t have a book for myself!

What would you recommend for my summer reading? (Moms need a good book too!)