I never thought of myself as a particularly artsy and craftsy type of mom. Many moms are, and I admire them greatly. Despite my lack of art skills, my son loves to draw, is good at it, and has learned much from a how-to drawing book and an online art program.

Okay, when I first thought about it, online art sounded a bit strange to me; I thought, “Now that’s one subject you can’t learn online.” But then I thought about it a bit; I remember Microsoft Office WordArt and you actually could use it to draw online. My son tried it and liked it, along with learning some art basics. Now there are interactive programs that actually teach online art techniques, art history, and art theory.

When most kids think about art and drawing, it’s just a cool, fun thing for them to do. They usually aren’t concerned about art history and art theory; those interests are usually piqued later.

I wouldn’t say it’s time to throw the art books away, but I think learning art online, for some kids, might be an intro into the world of art and computers and actually lead to a career. For others, simply a fun break in the homeschooling day.

During the summer, the last thing your kids probably want to hear about is intensive work. They want to have fun, you want to have fun, the whole family wants to have fun! It would be easy to not do any kind of school work, but you know that when kids take a total break from learning, they tend to forget what they learned over the previous academic year.

Some families, like mine, homeschool year round, but do less intense work during the summer months. Online summer school education is a great way to do some academic work without putting on a lot of pressure. It will also give your child time on the computer which most kids love. With a summer computer program, you can review basic skills or learn new ones.

Going to the beach, going to the park, going to summer camp, and enjoying the family should be a priority during the hot summer months. But while families are doing all this, the kids can engage in some “cool” learning on the computer.

There is help and support available for those who are on a homeschooling journey. Most of us homeschoolers find it helpful to join a homeschool support group. There is so much help available there, including likeminded parents who are homeschooling their children (for the same or different reasons), children for our kids to play with, organized field trips and outings, and lots of advice and wisdom from veteran homeschoolers.

When I began homeschooling, I couldn’t find a support group in Chicago, Illinois that met my needs. Most of the ones that would have been a good fit were far away in the suburbs and here sat I in the city with no transportation to get to the ‘burbs.

I wanted to join a Christian homeschool support group, because I felt as thought it would be a good fit and that it would meet my needs. However, I couldn’t find one no matter how hard or long I searched, so I joined a secular support group. The people were nice and helpful, and there were many veteran homeschoolers in the group; yet, it still wasn’t a good fit, because most of the children who attended the group regularly were older, and my son was only 7 years old then.

Since I couldn’t find a physical group that met my needs; I started one of the many online homeschool groups. It now has more than 80 members and is more of a resource list than a support group. Finding a good online homeschool groups is as simple as doing a search on the web; here’s a link to a site where you’ll find a group for your state:  http://time4learning.net/groups/

I later joined several other online groups that have proved to be a great support resource. Eventually, I joined a physical secular support group too. Online homeschool groups in Illinois really helped me to understand Illinois homeschooling laws and to network with other Illinois homeschoolers.

Even if you are a member of a support group that has meetings, you’ll probably find belonging to one or more online homeschool groups very helpful; you may have a question or concern, and if your online group is an active one–when you post, you’ll get an answer quickly. More than likely, it will be just what you need, exactly when you need it.

I thought I’d blog a few of my random thoughts this morning!

As we’re winding down the school year, I’m having a hard time concentrating.  I keep planning next year in my head!

I have to decide who will use T4L.  You know, it would be great if you could do T4L ala carte….   My older son does great on his own, actually he does better on his own,  in everything but Math.  I have yet to hit the right combination for him for Math.   Since our budget is so very limited, it would be great if I could have two kids in the full program and just have Math for one….

Going dormant…..anyone?  We decided to go dormant for June and July and start back with T4L in August.  It looks like our 2 year old may be headed for open heart surgery this summer… (A personal note and prayer request here!)

I’m planning on some nature study, art classes (putting it together myself) and some light phonics and math drills using flashcards and fun workbooks.  It’ll be fun for a while, then we’ll be back on T4L!

We’ve been doing yard work and gardening.  I hope to plant a couple of tomato plants, some green beans, jalapeno peppers, etc. this week.  My boys love to see things growing.

Oh, and I know it’s late but…. HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!  I hope you all were treated like queens!

Homeschooling as a Christian can be a difficult choice. Finding quality curriculum that matches up with your belief system can be near impossible. I read an article by a Christian homeschooler that really says it well. I’ve pasted my favorite part below:

“You will be extremely happy to know that you have nothing in common with me. You glide along through life like a leaf down a crystal stream. You tend to steer in the direction everyone else is steering, and the road ahead of you is well lit and mapped out. Your children have been welcomed with open arms by everyone they’ve met, and your home is a bastion of peace, harmony, and good will. Best of all, your homeschooling experience has been the most rewarding and inspiring era of your life, and you’ve never doubted your calling for even a moment. See? I told you that you have nothing in common with me.”

She may be writing a bit tongue in cheek but I certainly relate to her leaf hitting every wet rock on the way down the stream. I probably wouldn’t appreciate the ride without a few bumps though.

Does your leaf keep sticking to the wet rocks too?