Minimalism's Influence on Our Homeschool

   The minimalist's goal is to have only what you need or what you find truly beautiful and useful. As we keep simplifying the areas of our life over these last few years it was bound to creep into our homeschool choices. Spring 2017 I graduated my daughter, my middle son is starting 10th grade and my little is going to be 4. After a year of paring down to what we need for the last two, one looking at high school and the other the whole 13 years, we ended up with what we consider to be the perfect amount to school books/curriculum to use through the years. Most of the good books we have used throughout my daughter's school years are still on our shelves. We have access to a library and kindle books but some books or topics are much better when you hold them in your hands. I find books heavy in photos, maps, timelines, or often times books for little people are better in print. I also don't keep a bunch of books on my shelf that I can get at my library. The basic lists for us that reflect both my teaching style and their learning styles follows. Remember this is for MY children's entire schooling years not including books on kindle or at the library, your choices may be very different.

Bible
personal bible
100 verses to memorize
Bible Atlas and Companion
Food at the Time of the Bible by Vamosh
Daily Life at the Time of Jesus by Vamosh
The Kregel Pictorial Guide to Everyday Life in Bible Times by Dowley
The Kregel Pictorial Guide to Church History by Hannah
The Feasts of Adonai by Moody
The New Foxe's Book of Martyrs by John Foxe
The Illustrated Guide to Bible Customs by Knight
The Victor Journey through the Bible by Beers

History
The Good and the Beautiful History years 1-4(only 1 and 2 are available)and the corresponding read aloud books and games
Homeschool in the Woods timeline and figures

Language Arts
The Good and the Beautiful levels Pre-K through High school, any required reading books and quality literature that can't be borrowed from library or on a kindle.
(this curriculum covers spelling, reading, writing, grammar, art, and geography)

Math
Math-U-See books, dvds, and manipulatives

Science 
Pre-K and Kindergarten we use Take-Along Guides for different groups of animals and the One Small Square books on different habitats
Apologia books, basic tools/experiment supplies(microscope, binoculars, bug jar, etc.), and a binder for each student for 1st through high school(tweaked to their learning style)
Field guides of trees, birds, plants, butterflies, bugs, weather, stars, etc.
Handbook of Nature Study by Comstock

Extracurricular 
As they have interest..... my one son is a boy scout and plays chess, does woodcarving, plays piano, and enjoys video games.
My daughter rides horse, spins wool, and crochets.
My youngest is raising three bantam chicks and helps his sister feed the animals.
As a family we go kayaking, hiking, and camping.

Our basic supplies:
tracing paper(used for geography)
mixed media paper(drawing, pastels, and watercolor)
copy paper
card stock
lined paper
pencils
pencil sharpener
colored pencils
watercolors
brushes
chalk pastels
fine tip sharpies(great for maps and art projects)
tape/double stick tape
paper cutter and punch
scissors
glue/rubber cement
binder clips
ruler

So my list is not extreme minimalist but it does lay out a complete yet simple education for my students through the years. Simplifying our homeschool has made it more joyful, more productive, and more focused. I have been about quality books through the years. Books I even enjoy reading and using as an adult. No twaddle here!

Pumpkin Pie, Bird Count and Creative Pursuits, oh my!

I haven't been posting much because I feel like time is standing still these days. Waiting for someone to love our home enough to buy it. In the mean time I was craving homemade pumpkin pie. So even though we are trying to keep the kitchen spotless for visitors at any moment I had to whip one up last night. 

Maple Pumpkin Pie

One pie crust, set oven to 350. 

Mix up 2 eggs, 1/3 c. cream, 1/2 c. maple syrup, 15oz pumpkin canned or  fresh, 1 T. pumpkin pie spice and pour in shell. Bake 60 minutes. 

LET COOL before you put your whipped cream on top...... mine melted because I just couldn't wait, YUM! I am glad my grandma taught me to make pies... I know it is a comfort thing but I am ready to burst at the creative seams I tell ya. This keeping my house perfect is killing me. I am a creative person and I am just antsy to get working on a project. This weekend I think I may need to break out the sewing machine for a little creative pursuits. I have three quilts that I am dying to work on. So I do believe after we return from enjoying God's creation at the Great Backyard Bird count at Nolde Forest I will begin sewing up something pretty. That should carry me through till next week. 

Check out the link for counting birds this weekend and go make something to share with your loved ones. Share with us too... send me a picture of something you made or a photo of God's beautiful creation or a post that I can share with others.  

Our Nature Display

This past week I heard myself saying to the children "when we move we can do that"; well after a few days of that I stopped  myself and said WHY wait. Sure we have to clean-up and declutter so we can put our home on the market this week but that doesn't mean we stop living. I kept admiring the nature tables on some other homeschool mommy sites and also thought that "when we move we'll do that"... no we can do it right now. So I packed up the bone China that my Dad had brought back with him from travels East while in the Navy and made the middle shelf of my library case a nature display. Most of the items we don't want handled anyway so this is a great place to display them and enjoy them. Funny thing is the children know which items are fragile and are so careful with them because they found some of them and know you don't see some of those items often... it is some of the adults in our life that don't know the value of these found treasures that want to touch to much. In these cold snowless days of winter we needed a little inspiration from God's creation. 

Nature study happens on and off for us depending on the weather. We have explored our backyard for years and to go somewhere else we pretty much have to drive and make it a field trip of sorts. If it is a 12 degree day then we just as soon stay in to enjoy our nature display until a warmer day or snowy day comes along. Now that is one thing that will change "when we move" because we will have animals to take care of and experience a bit more outside even when it is so cold. One of my favorite places to learn about studying nature and journaling it is The Handbook of Nature Study site. They have wonderful journal/notebook sheets to guide you through your studies and the seasons. Also to help my children actually get excited to explore nature and to understand more of what they are seeing we love the Nature Reader Series by Christian Liberty Press. We have been reading about wasps and spiders and can't wait till we can see them again to decide what kind they are. I feel these books also help the children to be engaged long enough to really watch and learn about the animals/insects in God's creation when they know what to look for.  I do know if we move to the home we are trying to purchase then we will have more to explore for years to come without having to drive to get there. So go dig out your found treasures and make an area to enjoy them or if you brave the cold you can out in your own backyard to see what creatures and plants are still awake on these cold winter days.