Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from Griggs! I am beginning with a New Year's resolution to revive our elementary blog and make it something that is beneficial to our homeschool families. My goal is to update this blog weekly and encourage interaction. I am open to your comments and suggestions regarding this blog and look forward to using it as a tool to get to know you better.

Many of us like to begin a new year by taking a look back at what we have done over the past year, and looking forward to plan for an even better year to come. I would like to use this opportunity to give you a peek inside Griggs over the past year, and also let you know what we are looking forward to in the year to come.

As many of you know, Griggs has had some staff turnover this year and I am new to my position. We sadly said good bye to Mrs. Valenzuela as Elementary Supervisor, but are so happy that she is continuing on as a teacher for our 7th and 8th graders, and is a course author as well. Working behind a computer is a huge change for me after classroom teaching and I appreciate all of the personal videos, pictures and notes from the students. Thank you for making me feel welcome! My learning curve has been steep, but I am making progress every day.

Griggs has completed an accreditation for the North American Division of Seventh Day Adventists this fall. Accreditations are a lot of work, but all went very well. Our strategic planning this fall has been focused on reviewing and updating the elementary curriculum. I am excited about the progress and plans already in place. One of the first exciting updates for the elementary curriculum is implementation of the "By Design" science series for elementary. This science curriculum was specifically designed by the North American Division, and is a creation based science program with a Christian world view. Third grade has already launched and first, second, and fourth grades will not be far behind.

We are also looking for new and innovative ways to increase our personal interaction with our students and families. We have launched a story time for the elementary students. Participants have enjoyed our "practice runs" and we look forward to worship stories from Junior Guide on Fridays at 11:30 am EST. I hope to see you there! Watch for upcoming information about Griggs open house nights coming soon. We are also exploring some alternative assessments which would allow you to videotape projects such as "ABC books" rather than mailing them in.

Homeschooling is a serious commitment, but as you look back over the past year, I am confident that you will find that all of your efforts were well invested in the lives of your children. If you have any positive experiences you would like to share to encourage other families, please feel free to comment below.

I wish you many blessings as you begin this New Year!

Cindy Cancel

ps. Up next... We have many families embarking on their homeschooling journeys at the beginning of January. Where to begin?

YouTube Channels to Supplement Your Students' Learning

Here are some great YouTube channels to check out and subscribe to.  

Disclaimer: These channels are not created by GIA, so we cannot be responsible for all content. As we always recommend, please preview videos before sharing them with your children.

Socratica Studios 

Socratica Studios offers videos on various topics like Math, Science, and Language Arts. They even have a series of videos based on each state in the USA where they share basic facts about each state and its history.

Smarter Every Day 

This channel is filled with loads of geeky information that you and your homeschooler are sure to love!

Numberphile 

Love numbers? Numberphile is a channel that will make you fall in love with numbers!

Whiz Kids 

Love science experiments? Whiz Kids is a channel all about science! What makes is so great is that it’s a kid doing all the experiments!

Sick Science 

This is another science a channel. You’ll find a library of super cool science videos! Your kids are sure to enjoy this one (and you too) !

TedEducation 

This is an amazing channel of really neat videos put together by awesome creators. You can find an array of topics in their video library!

Hoopla KidzLab 

More science! These channels are so fun and this one makes science super fun and super easy!

Yo Kids 

It houses a great library of how to draw videos, perfect for kids!

Kahn Academy 

There’s a tutorial for everyone here! Math, science, languages, etc. These are individual videos, but on their website you can take courses as well. Our youngest enjoys the courses on computer science.

Brain Bubble TV 

Be smarter in 60 seconds. All kinds of questions and historical topics covered here. Probably other subjects too.

Mental Floss  

A weekly trivia channel for knowledge buffs!

Social and Emotional Skill Development

My Favorite New App

A question that I am asked a lot by parents is: "What is the best way to turn in my student's paper submissions?"

I often tell them that mail is good, but if they had a scanner, email is good as well.  Now, I am excited to say that I found an application that can be loaded onto a smart phone to use your phone's camera and instantly create pdf files of your student's work that can be directly emailed from the app to me.

Not that I am in the business of marketing for any apps, but I do like to make sure that we have tools that work for our students' education. This app is called Scannable and it is created by Evernote.

Check it out, and see if this is just the thing that you were needing to make sending in your children's work much easier, leaving you more time to do the more important and enjoyable things in your life.

I have attached a link below:

https://evernote.com/products/scannable/ 

Here is a video tutorial:

It's Time to Take Science Outdoors

Now that Spring is here, the time has come when you can take Science outdoors.  This may be just what you and your students need to 'get a breath of fresh air' to help finish up these last few months of school.

In this post, I will be sharing some of the cool ideas I found online.  I encourage you to steal from here (that's what the best teachers do), conduct your own search, or let you kids come up with their own creative ideas.  If you come up with something great, please share it here with the rest of us as a comment.

Growing Green Onions                                                                      Foods to Regrow from Scraps

                                                          10 Gardening Projects for Kids


Have fun and get outdoors. Even if things don't go exactly as the directions say, you are guaranteed to learn something, experience God's creation and have some wonderful bonding time.

Regaining the Joy of Homeschooling

What do you do when homeschooling is not fun? I think we all go through blah seasons and even the occasional homeschool burnout, but what do you do when you’ve truly lost the joy in homeschooling and can’t seem to find it?

Remember why you started

One of the most important things to do when homeschooling is not fun is to remember why you started.We often start homeschooling with high ideals and an idyllic vision. Then, that idyllic view collides with reality and the day-to-day routine can cause those ideals give way to just getting by.

Sit down and write out the reasons why you began homeschooling. Have those changed? If so, make a list of why it’s important to you to continue. Even if your reasons haven’t changed, it’s a good idea to write out a homeschool mission statement to help you maintain your focus during the hard days of homeschooling.

Are you overscheduled?

It’s hard to be joyful when you feel like you’re barely keeping your head above water. As hard as it can be, it’s imperative that homeschooling families learn to say no and guard their time. As much as the stereotypes insist that our kids are cloistered away at home, never being properly socialized with the masses, homeschoolers tend to be on the go. A lot.

If the only reason you have your kids in all the activities is because you feel pressured to give them countless social outlets, stop. Give them and yourself a break by committing only to the activities that they truly enjoy and don’t feel guilty limiting activities because your family time and budget can’t keep up.

Do what you can in the season you’re in.

Make sure you’re being parent first, teacher second

One of the hardest parts of homeschooling is making sure you're spending time with your kids as their parent instead of their teacher. This gets easier as they become older and start working more independently.Make sure you’re carving out ways to spend time with your kids and looking for creative ways to spend time with your teens. If your kids’ attitudes are part of the reason you’ve lost joy in your homeschool, it could be that they’re crying out from attention from their mom and dad, not their teacher.

Read great books

There is so much you can learn just from reading great books. History, science, geography, art…there are great stories for all of it and I think we retain more when we’re interested in what we’re learning. If you’re not reading some fabulous books in the course of your homeschool day, you are missing out on one of the best parts of homeschooling.

Create a change of scenery

Sometimes a change of scenery can have a drastic effect on your mood and attitude. If the weather is warming up nicely where you live, take school outside. Consider giving your schoolroom a makeover with a fresh coat of paint, a fun new piece of furniture, some colorful artwork or some creative rearranging.

If you always do school in the dining room, move to the living room – or to the room with the most natural light. Sunshine can be an instant mood lifter.

Identify the missing link

Identify what’s missing from you homeschool that’s caused you to lose your joy. Is it a massive deviation from your initial vision? Maybe you need to reevaluate your approach to homeschooling. Consider tweaking your current approach with aspects of other styles that sound intriguing. 

Maybe there are some creative outlets that you’d love to pursue, but have been putting on the back burner. Jump into those fun electives. They can be as vital to your homeschool as the core curriculum.

Ask a friend

If you’ve got a good homeschooling friend, sometimes it helps to ask them for input. Sometimes someone who is a bit removed from the situation can view it with more clarity and objectivity. Talk things over with your friend and see if the two of you can pinpoint what is robbing you of your joy and brainstorm ways to get it back.

Pray about it

I always seem to put this last, but it should be first. When the joy is gone from your homeschool and you can’t figure out where it went, pray and ask God to direct your path and give you wisdom.

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” – James 1:5

Homeschooling has its ups and downs, its ebbs and flows, but if you find yourself facing days or weeks with no joy or enthusiasm for what you do, it’s time to evaluate and figure out where you’ve gotten off-track.

Excerpts from: http://www.weirdunsocializedhomeschoolers.com/homeschooling-is-not-fun/ 

Portfolios

WHY YOU NEED A HOMESCHOOL PORTFOLIO

Whether your state requires one or you decide to keep one for your own records, a portfolio is the perfect answer to the quandary of homeschool record keeping. Inside you can collect samples of your child’s work, make lists of grades, and keep an eye on weekly progress. It’s also a beautiful keepsake for your child to document their educational journey.

WHAT EXACTLY IS A HOMESCHOOL PORTFOLIO?

The purpose of a homeschool portfolio is to provide a picture of your educational journey. The most important fact to remember: a portfolio is a snapshot, not the whole story. We are not aiming at saving every single one of Johnny’s handwriting sheets here. We just want to give a sampling. Honestly, there is no need to keep every single handwriting page anyway! Your notebooks and boxes will be overflowing with the mundane details.

When deciding if something should go in the portfolio, weigh it against these questions:

Does this show fairly significant progress?

Does this provide essential proof of learning (like a test, quiz, or essay)?

Does this particular item have special meaning to my child?

WHAT AGES/GRADES SHOULD I USE A HOMESCHOOL PORTFOLIO FOR?

Often we get tangled up with this question. The answer might surprise you. I think EVERY AGE and grade is perfect for a portfolio. As soon as you start intentionally homeschooling your child, keep a record of it. Grade/age doesn’t really matter.

The older your child gets the more you will see the need to have this helpful tool. For middle school and high school students, the portfolio is a wonderful organizational record of your child’s coursework. Even if your state requires a formal report card or testing, the portfolio will be the perfect backbone for the process.

WHEN SHOULD I START OUR HOMESCHOOL PORTFOLIO?

Let me tell you my secret. If you want to be successful at making this portfolio thing happen this year… you must put it together BEFORE the school year begins. Make the checklists, divide sections, and set up the portfolio before you start school each year.

It is a fluid process, so it doesn't matter if the sections or lists change throughout the year. But I have found that if I don’t have something in place before the school books open, I will be sitting in the school room with a pile of unorganized chaos at Christmas. No one wants that.

WHAT SHOULD I INCLUDE IN A HOMESCHOOL PORTFOLIO?

The list of possible items to include in your portfolio is infinite. Depending on your homeschooling style and curriculum, your portfolio will likely look very different than your homeschooling friends’. In fact, your own children may even have very different portfolios. That’s just fine. Remember the goal. We are simply looking to keep a snapshot of learning here. Anything you want to include is fine!

Here are some ideas to get you started.

Section 1: Daily

Weekly Checklist (or Morning Checklist for the younger guys)

Reading Record (until it’s full)

Section 2: Records

Attendance Record

Homeschool Calendar

Educational Snapshot (list of subjects and curriculum/books used)

All About Me Profile or Worksheet

Goal Worksheet

Section 3: Subjects

Assessment Graphs

Reading Records

Field Trip Evaluations

Life Skills for Kids

This is not an exhaustive or definitive list, but it just may give you some great ideas. 

Fieldtrips by State

Good morning!

I found a great resource this morning that lists great field trips for each state.  This page also allows you to write about a field trip that you recently took so that others can see.

Field Trips by State

Enjoy browsing!
Alyssa

Some Interesting Numbers

Images created by: collegeathome.com

The Homeschool Parent

Every now and then, I discover a website that is so good that I just have to share it.  This week, I came upon www.thehomeschoolmom.com  While I am not thrilled that this webpage's title only gives credit to the hardworking homeschool moms, while forgetting the many dads who work equally as hard, it still has so many good resources that it deserves a share.

This is a great website with tips for getting started, instruction, scheduling, cool projects, and so many other things. Especially helpful are the templates for years, months, weeks, and daily planning. These can be accessed by clicking on the tab called 'Homeschool Planner'.

I hope you have a great time exploring this webpage and let me know of any resources your discover that are too good not to share.