We have done a space unit with my kids a few times so far during our homeschooling years (I took some of the photos in this post 10 years ago!) and I’m sure we’ll do it again. It’s so much fun! Below you’ll find a big list of great resources and ideas for YOU to try with your space-loving kids, as well as a free printable for ages 2-9. 

Update: I’ve added a ✝️ symbol to Christian resources to make it obvious which ones aren’t. Those that DON’T have the symbol *may* contain old-earth or evolution references, but I honestly don’t remember the details of each resource we’ve picked up over the years. As always, preview content before you hand it to your kids and use materials at your discretion. Many times I just edit on the fly during read-alouds. 

Space Unit: A Short Bible Lesson 

God created the heavens, including Earth, the sun moon and stars, everything in our solar system, our galaxy, and even in our entire universe! Isn’t that amazing? It is all created by Him and sustained by Him. As we study space we are studying the creation of God. That’s what science is: the study of creation. God made all of it to bring glory to Him and be a testimony to us of His nature. Let’s learn about it together and give praise and thanks to our creative, holy, and all-powerful Father God. 

Read each verse below and discuss how it explains that God created and sustains the universe, and how it brings Him glory. Have older kids search for more Scriptures that point these truths. Williams Bible Link or Open Bible are good tools to try. (Note: All the Scriptures below are also in the Free Space Printable Pack download at the bottom of this post, included in ESV and KJV as memory verse cards and copywork.)

God Created it All 

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.” Psalm 33:6 

“He set the earth on its foundations, so that it should never be moved.” Psalm 104:5

God Preserves and Sustains His Creation

“Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for light by day and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar— the Lord of hosts is his name:” Jeremiah 31:35

““You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.” Nehemiah 9:6 

All Creation Exists for God’s Glory

“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” Colossians 1:16

“When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” Psalm 8:3-4

“And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!'” Revelation 5:13 

Start Your Space Unit With the Sun, Moon, and Stars! 

Our kids can see the sun, moon, and stars from their windows, so I thought it was the perfect place to start! Choose a few of these great activities to do with your children.

Oreo Phases of the Moon – We’ve done this a couple of times and it’s a ton of fun. Plus, you get to eat the broken ones 😉 #score This activity example is from How to Homeschool Your Child, and you can find other fun moon videos and activities there, too.

FREE Moon Phases activities from Journey Homeschool Academy! Click here to download Moon Phases for Elementary Kids.

How did the Moon Get Craters? – This fun art activity and simple science lesson is a fun one from Gift of Curiosity.

11 Amazing Astronomy Activities for Kids – More fun activities to explore from Journey Homeschool Academy. 

Spend More Time on the Sun – This roundup from Homeschool Giveaways of free printables and unit studies on the sun can be explored for a full week at least. Your kids will love it!

100 Science Activities About the Sun – This is a great list from iGameMom of fun science experiments all about the sun.  

Star Books – We learned how to draw a simple 5-point star together and practiced for our star books, where we showed each type of star by color and how hot it is.  We discussed how different star colors indicate how hot they are and made a little book to help them remember.  

Marshmallow Constellations – Make your own constellations using marshmallows and toothpicks!

Star Walking – If you have $5, check out the iPad app Star Walk. My kids really enjoy that and get a great look at the moon, stars, constellations, satellites, the space station, the sun, planets, and more. Very cool!

Galaxy Playdough – A fun activity from Mamma Pappa Bubba for kids where they can make star- or galaxy-themed play dough. It would be great pretend play with some space and astronaut figurines as well. 

White Crayon Resist Constellations – A simple craft activity making constellations using white crayons and watered down black paint, from 3 Dinosaurs. 

Kid’s Constellations – Take photos of the kids in some pose on the floor. Then have your children use the photo as a guide to help them draw their own constellation! It’s a fun idea I found over at Science Notebooking.

Explore the Solar System in Your Space Unit 

✝️ A Few Bonus Scriptures – These are such sweet verses that focus on light (like the light God created the sun moon and stars to give). I just couldn’t resist. 🙂 Talk about how God’s Word is a light to our path, illuminating the way of Salvation and living for Christ. Discuss how Jesus is the light of the World! And also about how we are to shine for Jesus in this life.  

• Philippians 2:15.that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
• Psalm 119:105.Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Learning Songs – We learned the solar system song mostly using the words suggested by Counting Coconuts. It’s up to date (poor Pluto), simple, and pretty much the same one I learned when I was a kid. 

(To the tune of “Ten Little Indians”)

Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune

These are the 8 planets in our solar system

That travel around the sun

I also found this other solar system song and video on YouTube that I think is extremely creepy but the kids just LOVE it! Why do kids love the creepy things and get creeped out by the normal things? I don’t get it. Lol!

 Solar System Hats – The kids loved making and wearing these fun solar system hats, an idea I found on Pinterest from Stickers and Stars. I cut a pieces of construction paper lengthwise in half and taped them together to form the bands. Then I printed blank planets from a google search for “planets printables” let the kids color them and tape them onto their bands. I taped a straw to the inside and attached a hand-drawn sun to the top. Then I used my bad handwriting to label everything, including an arrow pointing to the Earth with the text “lives here!”. 

Solar System Mobile – We splurged a little and bought a (Amazon affiliate link) solar system kit for the kids to hang on their ceiling. Once again dressed in swimsuits, they painted each piece and waited for them to dry before glow-in-the-dark detailing was added.

Then Daddy and I tied the strings and small pieces and helped the kids assemble the mobile. They were SO excited to hang it up on their ceiling! 

Space / Solar System Books – Pretty much anything about the solar system, astronauts, Hubble, constellations, stars, planets, etc. is a fun read aloud opportunity. Here are a few to check out (Amazon affiliate links). Of course, sometimes books and videos about space will include comments about the age of the universe or the big bang theory that you may want to skip or discuss with your child. So preview materials you use and/or be ready to discuss them if they don’t align with your worldview.   

• ✝️ The Answers Book for Kids Volume 5 – We like all the books in this series but this one is specifically about space. “Answers are important. Be ready for the questions children ask the most. If kids aren’t given answers to their questions about the Bible and the history it reveals, they will not embrace and cannot defend the truth of God’s Word in our fallen world.”
• ✝️ The Astronomy Book (Wonders of Creation Series) – Again, we love ALL the books in this series. This one is more for older kids as far as reading level but it’s still a good one to pull read-aloud selections from for younger kids and enjoy the photos. 
• ✝️ Space: God’s Majestic Handiwork – “Did the universe begin with a Big Bang or God’s creative design? How did we get to the moon? Where are we going next? In Space: God’s Majestic Handiwork, you’ll find answers to these questions and more!”
• The Magic School Bus: Lost in the Solar System by Cole and Degan
• There’s No Place Like Space (Cat in the Hat) by Tish Rabe
• My First Book of Planets: All About the Solar System for Kids by Bruce Betts, PhD 
• The Planets: The Definitive Visual Guide to Our Solar System by Robert Dinwiddle 

Videos for Space / Solar System – More fun videos to learn about space and the solar system. 

• Exploring Our Solar System by FreeSchool
• All About the Sun for Kids by FreeSchool
• I Want to Be An Astronaut by Radical Kids
• ✝️ The Heavens Declare video series – this is definitely for an older audience, but I can’t help but recommend it for upper-middle school, high school, and adults. It’s a great way to extend your astronomy learning for multi-level teaching!

Space Unit Finale: Astronauts and Rockets!

This is always my kids’ favorite part. They LOVE learning about astronauts and rockets!     

Astronaut Puppets – Print these astronaut puppets from Mama Cheaps and glue photos of your kids’ faces onto them. Mine loved it!

Space Tennis – I found this idea from Glitter on a Dime. I taped paper plates to unsharpened pencils and happened to have some nearly-deflated balloons on hand. Instant space tennis!  

Jet Packs – The kids and I made jet packs using stuff we had around the house. They LOVE those things, even though they keep falling apart because I just used tape. 🙂

Astronaut Pudding – The kids really liked this simple activity from Feels Like Home. We prepared our dessert, had lunch, and then pretended we were in a rocket and counted down to launch and went into orbit. I brought the bags out and snipped off the corner for the kids to suck up the pudding. The post also has several other interesting facts about astronaut food.

Lego Robots – The boys especially thought that the idea of  robots in space was hilarious. I had to explain to them a few times what those robots look like and do, and what robots actually are. Then we looked at the pictures in the library books. We pulled out our duplos and they got busy creating their own robots.   

Looking for a Full Astronomy Curriculum?  

✝️ Journey Homeschool Academy – I’ve been eyeing Journey Homeschool Academy’s Astronomy curriculum for elementary levels. We used their biology course and LOVED it for all my kids, pre-k through middle school. It’s easy with little prep, includes engaging and memorable videos, and more! Definitely a big win for our homeschool last year. View the astronomy course here. You can also check out all their courses for elementary through high school.

✝️ Rabbit Trails Curriculum: Space – If you like literature-based homeschool resources, you’ll LOVE this full-year space curriculum from Rabbit Trails! This science curriculum has 14 lessons on space so that you will become expert astronomer. (The reference books shown may be secular, but the curriculum provides great biblical discussion points if/when things pop up that are contrary to Scripture. I think it’s a great approach to using such resources, if you choose to do so.)

✝️ Apologia Astronomy Curriculum – We used this once as a group science study. It worked well as a read aloud and then we did some of the experiments suggested. You can also get a notebooking journal if you’d like. 

FREE Space Unit Printable Pack!

✝️ To make this even more fun and easy for you, we’ve provided a free space printable pack! Your kids will not only be learning about the planets, moon, and sun, they will also be working on their math and literacy skills. The activities included in this 90+ page space themed pack are:

• Mazes
• Tracing the lines
• Following the letters
• 3 Part Cards 
• I Spy Counting Activity
• Tracing the words
• Number puzzles
• Size Sequencing Cards
• What Comes Next?
• Finish the Pattern
• Creative Writing Pages
• Count and Clip Cards
• Spot and Dot the Letters
• Alphabet Matching Cards
• Dab a Dot Fine Motor Activity
• The Solar System Posters
• Label the planets on the solar system posters
• Unscramble the names of the planets
• Fill in the missing letters
• Phases of the Moon Poster
• Phases of the Moon fill in the blanks
• Monthly Moon Tracker
• Match the picture to the word
• Bible Verse Memory Cards in both KJV and ESV
• Bible Verse Copywork pages in both KJV and ESV

This pack also includes research pages for each of the 8 planets, plus the dwarf planet Pluto as well as for the sun and the moon. On these research pages, children will answer questions that include:

• The surface of the planet, sun or moon
• The mass
• The radius
• The temperatures
• What the planet, sun or moon are made of
• The orbit period of the planets
• How many moons each planet has
• Interesting Facts about the planet
• What is a solar eclipse?
• What is a lunar eclipse? 

Download the Space Unit Printable below!

Enter your email address and the download link will be delivered right to your inbox! You’ll be subscribed to the Proverbial Homemaker newsletter if you aren’t already (don’t worry – you can unsubscribe anytime and we never share your email address.) 

I hope you enjoy studying space and the wonders of God’s creation with your kids!

~ Tauna

The post Space Unit Activities & Ideas for Young Children (Plus a Free Space Printable!) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

Artificial Intelligence is almost impossible to ignore right now in the digital world. It’s in the news, job conversations, creative areas like art and cinema, and has been growing into pretty much every area. I’ve been so blessed to be homeschooled, because it has given me the opportunity to dive into areas that interest me as part of school! 

AI was one of those topics that caught my attention. I didn’t just want to know what AI could do; I wanted to understand how it functioned. I wasn’t trying to become a tech wizard overnight, but I was hoping to grow in my general understanding of this quickly developing field. 

Fortunately, we heard about a course by FundaFunda Academy that was designed to help teenagers learn about Artificial Intelligence and how to use it responsibly. Now that I’ve graduated the Artificial Intelligence for Teens course, I hope to be able to point others interested in AI in that direction.

What’s Included in the Class:

Artificial Intelligence for Teens is taught by Ms. Meryl van der Merwe, owner of FundaFunda Academy. She has taught homeschool students about various aspects of computer science for several years now. In the Artificial Intelligence class she teaches:

• What AI actually is
• How AI works
• Benefits to AI
• Downsides and dangers in the world of AI
• How to use AI as a tool

All of these topics are taught through engaging activities, insightful articles, and practical application of critical thinking skills. Throughout the course, the student is encouraged to develop their own opinions on AI (whether good or bad) and its impact on the world. After completing it, I felt confident in what I knew about AI and genuinely felt like I could understand each side of the AI debate.

Big Upsides for this Course:

From my experience, Artificial Intelligence for Teens has several benefits for homeschooled students:

• A good introduction to the world of AI
• A heightened awareness of some of the issues and most current developments of AI.
• A solid understanding of how to use AI tools like Canva AI, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and several others.
• An opportunity for students to incorporate their own research about AI into good discussions with other students and the instructor.
• A well-informed understanding and perspective on AI, including its impacts and the ethical and moral concerns.
• A more solid understanding of how AI has impacted today’s jobs and creative communities.

All of these and more are taught throughout the course with the goal of helping students form a solid understanding of and opinion about AI.

Favorite Feature: Research and Projects

I particularly enjoyed the weekly assignment of performing my own research on one of the current fields of AI, then bringing back my findings to share with the other students and discussing our thoughts together. 

Throughout the course of the class, the students were given various tasks and assignments to complete about and/or with AI. Some of them were to help the student better understand how AI works, while other assignments were designed to teach how certain AI tools should be used. Here are a few that I particularly enjoyed:

• Red Teaming
  • The students learned how developers test AI’s restriction software. We used an AI tool built to help understand how developers go about instigating Red Teaming.
• Identifying AI
  • Another assignment given, is an “AI or not” test, where the student is shown several images and are asked to pick whether or not it was generated by AI. This assignment led into another, where the student learned more about different ways to identify artificially generated images, as well as considering the value of and concerns about AI generated images going forward.
• Note Taking AI
  • One of the goals of this course is to help the student develop a better understanding of current AI tools. The note-taking tool that stood out most to me was Notebook LM. Which is a language model that will take a subject, articles, and notes to generate compiled notes for the user. The tool also generates an audio (podcast style) of two “people” discussing what the notes are about.
• Final Project
  • At the end of the course, the student completes a final project. I used Artificial Intelligence to create a web page, graphics, music lyrics, a melody to fit with the lyrics, and a guide to put it all together. I used AI to create a music album and put it on the website that it had made. (It is an unlisted website so you must have the following URL to access it.) MISSION – First and Last

Things to Be Aware Of:

The AI for Teens course is not taught from an overtly Christian perspective and some of the resources may not always align with every family’s beliefs. For example, it includes watching a YouTube video series called “Crash Course AI” that makes a handful of references to an evolutionary worldview. While high schoolers should be able to handle this well if they have a Christian homeschool foundation, parents may choose to preview some of the videos or discuss them together. Parents should consider bringing in additional discussions about biblical principles when it comes to AI, too.  

Another example is the inclusion of a clip from the movie “Her”, where a man who has just gone through a breakup is sitting at his computer and discovers AI on his computer (basically ChatGPT’s voice feature) and starts to talk to it and build a friendship with it. The clip is included as a warning of how some people in today’s world are starting to use AI as an alternative to real friends and relationships. It is a great discussion for parents and teens to have. 

It’s also good to note that the course strongly discourages using AI to cheat, provoke copyright issues, or replace real-life experiences and relationships. I think these are assertions we can all get behind!

Bottom Line:

I would recommend this course for teenagers with a solid ability to use critical thinking and be willing to create and explore their view on AI. Parents and teens will find this to be a valuable course for the high school years. They will gain experience with researching AI and various AI tools, while also having a firm understanding of what AI is, its history, and concerns to be aware of.

Check out Artificial Intelligence for Teens and the rest of the courses at FundaFunda Academy.

You Might Also Like…

Great Reasons to Homeschool High School (And Resources for Getting Started)

The post From Curious to Confident: Exploring the Growing World of AI for Teens appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

The Medal Count Tally page can be completed with just your child’ favorite countries or print off multiple pages and children can record the medals won by all of the countries involved in the Winter Games.

Also included in this 73 page printable pack are:

• Vocabulary Cards – these are great for memory/matching games as well as spelling and vocabulary.
• Colouring Pages– Decorate or colour as you wish and hang up to decorate your rooms.
• I Spy– These pages are great for counting practice.
• Word Tracing– These pages help children learn to form letters and spell words correctly.
• Colour Matching Cards– A great way for kids to learn their colours.
• What Comes Next?
• Finish the Pattern
• Spot and Dot – Spot the letters and then dot them.
• Shadow Matching Cards– These shadow matching cards are so much fun and can be used in games such as memory/matching as well.
• Story Writing Pages – These can be used to retell events of the Winter Games or describe the different sports of the Winter Games.
• Size Sequencing Cards– Match the cards from smallest to biggest or the other way round.
• Count and Clip Cards– These are great for kids learning to count and recognize numbers.
• Alphabet Matching Cards – These are great for learning the lowercase and uppercase letters of the alphabet.
• Number Puzzles – These are great for learning skip counting.
• 4 Piece Puzzles– These are always fun for kids to do. Store in zip lock bags and take them with you to appointments to keep the kids occupied.

What is your favorite Winter Games sport?

Download the FREE Winter Games Printable Pack!

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Brick Challenges – For Your Lego-Loving Kids!

The post Winter Games Printable Pack appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

But even in a family where the kids are active, having a solid homeschool physical education program has it’s definite benefits:

• Staying active when the weather gets cold and rainy (which happens a lot here in Oregon!)
• Keeping the teens who *aren’t* that keen on sports or outdoor activities active and healthy
• Teaching skills and concepts like nutrition, proper form, and a biblical worldview of health and wellness

This is a sponsored post for F.O.R.M. Curriculum by Glory to Glory Fitness. All opinions are my own.

All of these reasons and more are why F.O.R.M. Curriculum stood out to me. Our family has been enjoying using this Christian homeschool PE curriculum. It has become an excellent addition to our homeschool life (especially in winter).

What Is F.O.R.M. Curriculum?

F.O.R.M. is a homeschool physical education program that blends movement, training principles, journaling, nutrition, and spiritual reflection. Its goal is whole-person stewardship, caring well for the bodies God has given us while building lifelong habits rooted in a Christ-centered worldview.

F.O.R.M. Curriculum is designed to work well for:

• Families with multiple ages
• Teens needing homeschool PE for high school credit
• Athletes already involved in sports
• Homeschoolers who struggle with consistency, especially in winter

The program is biblically grounded and covers key areas of health and wellness, including fitness, nutrition, rest, and long-term habit formation.

One thing I especially appreciate as a homeschool mom is that F.O.R.M. offers a homeschool family license that includes:

• Lifetime access for the entire family
• Both Elementary and Middle/High School programs
• A wide range of optional resources you can use if you like, depending on your season

For large families like ours, this makes the program both practical and cost-effective.

Why Physical Education Matters for Christian Homeschool Families

As Christian homeschoolers, we spend a lot of time discipling our children’s hearts and minds. But discipleship also includes teaching them to steward their bodies well.

Scripture reminds us:

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit…?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

F.O.R.M. approaches physical education from this biblical perspective. In a culture that often swings between neglect of physical health and obsession with it, F.O.R.M. offers a balanced approach. The focus isn’t on performance or appearance, but on stewardship, discipline, and gratitude for how God designed our bodies to function.

(And honestly, this has been a good reminder for me, too.)

A “Gift to Yourself”

When I told my husband about the F.O.R.M. Curriculum and how we were planning to use it, he said it reminded him of something from his college experience at George Fox University. One of his professors required students to choose a meaningful physical activity each week and referred to it as “a gift to yourself.”

That perspective really stuck with me.

We’ve adopted the same mindset in our homeschool. Physical activity isn’t punishment or pressure—it’s a way to steward our health so we can serve God and others well. I love that F.O.R.M. helps us model and teach that mindset to our kids.

How F.O.R.M. Works in Practice

The F.O.R.M. Curriculum is organized into 32 core modules, with additional optional modules and supplements for middle and high school students.

Each module follows the same general structure:

• Academic instruction (video-based, with optional reading)
• A Christian devotional (middle and high school)
• Physical activity: warm-up, movement training, and cool-down
• A “Fuel Challenge” that applies nutrition concepts in practical ways

Each module takes about one hour total, but families can schedule them at whatever pace works best.

Pacing Options

• Completing one module per week (about an hour once a week) will finish the program in a year. This also fulfills a PE credit for your high schooler.
• Complete in a semester or over the summer with faster pacing (this could work for a high schooler trying to cram in a credit, but I’m not sure it’s best otherwise).
• Go at a more casual pace with one module every 2-4 weeks. You could split content up across multiple weeks like this, which could be a good option for elementary kids.

What’s the Difference Between Elementary and Middle/High School Editions?

As I said before, the homeschool license for the F.O.R.M. Curriculum gives you both the Elementary and Middle/High School editions for one lifetime purchase. But what’s the difference between the two?

The topics are the same in both editions, but there are some differences to note. The Middle/High School edition has the following:

• Longer video lessons
• Optional Teaching Slides
• Guided Notes Options – Online fill-in notes or printable guided notes
• Christian Devotional Guide – Scripture passage, reflection, and questions
• Auto-graded assessments – multiple choice, longer assessments for high school

These additions really enhance the content to make it great for a full high school credit.

Optional Bonus Content

In addition to the core program of the F.O.R.M. Curriculum, there are some features that are optional but excellent additions to your Christian homeschool physical education course. You can add them to beef things up or drop them when life gets full.

• Parent Lesson Guides – Lesson summaries, key takeaways, discussion questions, and action steps for deeper engagement and character training.
• Sensitive Topics Modules (Middle/High School Only) – Four optional modules taught from a biblical worldview and include videos, guided notes, teaching slides, and lesson guides.
  • Sexual engagement and reproduction
  • Social health, conflict, and grief
  • Substance abuse and addiction
  • Emotional health
    (As always, review content before using it with your kids and consider it a great conversation-starter and supplemental resource for your discipleship. Downloading and reviewing the teacher lesson guide inside the module is an easy way to review the content.)
• PE Games & Sports Units (Optional Add-On) – I have a few kids in our family who really love sports. We were happy to see these units! Can be used with a group or individually. (Basketball, soccer, volleyball, racquet sports, hockey, baseball, and more.)
• Nutrition Challenges – Practical, hands-on ways to apply nutrition concepts. Often great as family challenges!

How We Used F.O.R.M. in Our Homeschool

F.O.R.M. has a LOT to offer, but don’t let that overwhelm you! Start with the basics and explore as you go, adding what seems like a good fit for your family and whatever season you’re in.

We dipped into the F.O.R.M. Curriculum by starting with my two high school girls. One of them needs the movement because she’s a just-let-me-read-all-day type 😉 , and the other one wanted some extra training to step up her fitness for basketball season.

We choose to do F.O.R.M. one day a week. It’s been the ideal pacing for us and I’ll continue that for my elementary kids, too. The girls do the lessons and then we go over the devotional together.

Here’s what I love about it:

• They are expanding their knowledge of health and fitness, all with a biblical perspective.
• It’s starting great family conversations! They bring up what they’re learning in casual conversation.
• My older kids are earning a high school credit while learning life skills.
• It’s EASY on me, not requiring any prep or extra time, other than a weekly spot on our schedule.
• https://www.formeducation.org/homeschoolOur whole family is inspired and more motivated to add movement and healthy habits to our weeks. Everyone has been going for more walks, doing stretches, and talking about healthy food choices as we plan our meals. It’s a win!

Consider Making it a Family Activity

One thing I am considering is doing the lessons along with my kids and all of us doing the videos together, with just the older kids doing the additional content. Then we can have the discussions about the devotions together at the table. But we’ll see! My younger boys like the idea of having their own track, too, so they may just stick with that.

Bottom Line

The F.O.R.M. Curriculum is a fantastic resource for Christian families and homeschoolers. Here are the top 4 reasons why:

1. One-time purchase for access to all content for all grades.
2. Biblical perspective of health and fitness
3. Easy and flexible to use for a variety of schedules
4. Earns high school PE credit!

Overall, we’re very pleased with the program and plan to continue with it.

Learn more about the F.O.R.M. Curriculum and try it for free!

The post F.O.R.M. Curriculum Review: A Faith-Centered Homeschool PE Program for All Ages appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

Is math time each day bringing tears, boring worksheets, or daily battles along with it? You’re not alone! For many homeschoolers, especially those teaching children who struggle with math, a simple set of dice can become one of the most effective tools you can use.

Dice games are a fun, low-pressure way to build in math practice and can be used across many ages and skill levels. They also create space for joy, connection, and confidence… who doesn’t want more of that in their homeschool? For kids who’ve developed a sour taste for all things math, it can be especially valuable. 

“Why Do I Have to Learn Math?”

If you’ve been homeschooling for more than a couple of years, you’d had this question. 😀 Yes, making math fun and engaging helps! But answering this question helps a lot as well.

In addition to all the real-world and academic uses for math, there are biblical reasons, too. Scripture consistently presents God as a God of order, number, and design.

“But all things should be done decently and in order.” (1 Corinthians 14:40)

From the measured dimensions of the Tabernacle to the careful accounting found throughout Scripture, mathematics reflects God’s character. Learning math unlocks amazing principles that give us a glimpse of the Creator.

(For an excellent resource to dig into this more yourself or for your older children, check out what Jason Lisle, PhD has to say in this video or the book Fractals.) 

As much as possible, help your kids to not only learn math but to enjoy it, because it points us to God! Math dice games is a fantastic tool to do this.

Why Dice Games Are Effective for Homeschool Math

Dice games work well for kids because they gently address many of the common pain points we experience when teaching or learning it:

• Short practice bursts instead of long worksheets

• Natural repetition without boredom

• Immediate feedback
• Multi-sensory learning (seeing, touching, verbalizing)
• Low emotional stakes (mostly… we do have our competitive ones haha)

Because dice outcomes are random, children are freed from the pressure of “getting the right answer” every time. Instead, they focus on process and reasoning.

Why Dice Games Are Especially Helpful for Struggling Learners

Struggling learners often need more repetition, smaller steps, and reduced cognitive load. Dice games provide all of these things and help increase the confidence of your child so that they know they CAN do math!

The games allow your children to practice the same concept over and without even really realizing it. Mistakes feel less personal because the dice (instead of the kiddo themselves) “caused” the problem. 

Dice games also work well for:

• Children with math anxiety

• Dyslexic or dyscalculic learners

• Reluctant math students

• Engaging multiple ages together in math learning

How to Incorporate Dice Games Regularly

Dice games are most effective when they are routine, not occasional. As a busy mom, this is the hardest part. :/ Try these options out: 

• Add math games to a group or individual student’s loop schedule

• Use a dice game as a warm-up before regular math lessons

• Replace one worksheet per week with a game

• Keep a “math games basket” for independent practice

• Use games orally during morning time

• Play collaboratively with siblings

Consistency matters more than duration. Ten minutes three times a week can help gradually strengthen math skills over time, and that’s what you’re aiming for!

Math Dice Game Ideas (With Variations)

1. Roll & Add / Roll & Multiply

How it works:
Roll two dice. Add or multiply the numbers.

Variations:

• Roll three dice for advanced students

• Require mental math only

• Use one die as the multiplier (times tables practice)

Skills practiced:
Addition, multiplication, number sense

2. Target Number

How it works:
Choose a target number (e.g., 20). Roll two or three dice and use any operation to reach the target.

Variations:

• Require use of all dice

• Limit allowed operations

• Compete cooperatively to reach the target in the fewest rolls

Skills practiced:
Problem solving, operations, flexibility in thinking

3. Dice Difference

How it works:
Roll two dice. Subtract the smaller number from the larger.

Variations:

• Add a third die and subtract sequentially

• Require explanation of the strategy used

Skills practiced:
Subtraction, comparison, reasoning

4. Place Value Builder

How it works:
Roll dice to create numbers (e.g., hundreds, tens, ones). Compare numbers or write them in expanded form.

Variations:

• Use decimal place values

• Compete to build the largest or smallest number

Skills practiced:
Place value, number construction

5. Fraction Roll

How it works:
Roll two dice to form a fraction (one numerator, one denominator). Compare fractions or convert to decimals.

Variations:

• Require simplification

• Order fractions from least to greatest

Skills practiced:
Fractions, simplification, comparison

6. Story Problem Dice

How it works:
Roll dice to generate numbers and create a word problem that matches the operation being studied.

Variations:

• Oral only

• Student explains how to solve their own problem

Skills practiced:
Word problems, language integration, reasoning

Looking for more math games that are open-and-go? Check these out: 

1. Yahtzee – The classic we grew up with! This is a fun game for 2 or more players (8 and up) and is a fantastic addition to your stash. 

2. Shut the Box Dice Game – Kids like this box layout and interactive style to use with the dice. It gets great reviews, too!

3. ThinkFun Math Dice Jr. – This one’s good for travel, too. Great for kids 6 and up

4. Scholastic Math Match Travel Dice Game – A fun one for ages 5 and up with oversized dice the kids like to roll.

5. ThinkFun My First Math Dice – For the earliest learners (3+) this one’s great for number recognition and counting.

6. Aizweb Math Dice – This one uses flash cards along with dice for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. 

7. Matrix Dice Game by Pop & Play – A more advanced dice game that also uses fun pop-it boards for your tactile learners (like the pop fidget things)

8. PlaySmart Deluxe Math Dice Set – 11 games for ages 6 and up, and includes a travel bag. This one seems to be a top pick, too!

Do you have any fun math dice games in your family? 

Add games to your loop schedule!…

I know how it is to feel overwhelmed with what you already have on your plate. So, adding math games to your day might sound good, but how do you make it happen! 

I highly recommend trying loop scheduling. You can read all about it here! 

Then download a loop scheduling template and give it a try. This will help you incorporate math games once a week or so, without any worry if a week goes south and you don’t get to it. Yay!

The post Math Dice Games for Fun — or for Struggling Learners appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

Do you ever wonder if praying to God makes a difference? It does! Scripture tells us to pray to the God who hears our prayers.

Do you ever wonder if praying makes a difference? I mean, is God really listening to your prayers? Do your kids ask you the same questions?

If you are a fan of Tauna’s site, as I am, you probably love her focus on prayer. I know I do!

Still, it is normal to sometimes harbor doubt and fear that God either isn’t listening, or he just doesn’t care. Our kids have these concerns, too, even if they don’t always voice them. We can take them to God’s Word to learn the truth about our God who hears the prayers of the people in Scripture. Our mighty God also promises us that he hears our prayers, too.

I love the fact that the people in Scripture are real people. They have real, sometimes seemingly insurmountable problems. Sometimes the way the heroes of our faith pray is eloquent and sometimes it is desperate. No matter how they approach God, we get to see how he answers them. That is so valuable for us, and for our kids.

God really answers prayers. Sometimes his answers are quiet and simple, and sometimes they are amazing—like when he answers prayers for deliverance.

One of my favorite miraculous answers to prayer is when King Sennacherib of Assyria has besieged Jerusalem, in 1 Kings chapters 18 and 19. The city is surrounded by a mighty army with no way out while the king of Assyria mocks God. So, King Hezekiah of Judah asks God to save his people for his own glory. That way, everyone will know that he is God. God hears Hezekiah, and answers him by sending the angel of the Lord to strike down 185,000 Assyrian soldiers in the middle of night. Problem solved.

We can’t always see the answer to our problem. But, we can trust that God hears us when we pray.  We serve a God who can do whatever he wants.

Remind your kids that we serve a God who hears our prayers.

Praying to the God Who Hears Our Prayers

There are so many Bible verses that tell us that God hears our prayers. One of my favorite verses is 1 John 5:14-15. In the ESV, it says:

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

We know God’s will through his revealed word in Scripture. When we know and understand how we should pray, we can be confident that he hears us. As we pray biblically, we can trust God to answer our prayers.

How amazing is that? It’s a message we want to remind ourselves of constantly. We want to teach it to our children as well!

We can learn much about the way God answers prayers by studying his answers to praying people in the Bible.

The post Praying to the God Who Hears Our Prayers appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

If I’m honest, part of why this theme has been on my mind is personal. I’ve had seasons that felt steady and familiar… and then seasons that didn’t. Some changes are obvious (a move, a new stage of parenting, a major loss). Others are quieter, but they still rearrange your inner world. You look around and realize something has shifted, and you can’t go back to “before.” (Raising kids… hellooooo.)

When these seasons change, what doesn’t work is a pep talk. But what does work is Scripture. It’s remembering who God is, what He has done, and what He has promised. We need more of God and His Word, friends. For me, praying through and writing the Scriptures is what has helped me most.

*** Don’t miss the FREE 63-page Scripture printable pack in this post! ***

Seasons: Purposeful and Beautiful in God’s Design

A few years ago, my mom unexpectedly passed away (within a few months of finding out she had pancreatic cancer). She died just before the fall leaves started turning. I am thankful to know she is with her Savior in heaven, and the Lord showed my family and I many mercies during that difficult time. Still, the timing of it inexplicably tied my grief to the onset of autumn, and my once-favorite season became heavy and dreadful to me.

This year I decided to spend some time digging into what God’s Word actually says about seasons. What I learned redeemed the seasons in my mind and gave me a new perspective on how to see all the changing seasons of life with hope and joy once again.

Here are a few things I learned or was reminded of from Scripture:

• God created seasons from the start (before the fall) and they were a display of His good design, creativity, variety, beauty, and order. (Genesis 1:14)
• God governs the seasons and time is under His sovereignty (not random). (Daniel 2:21; Acts 1:7)
• The regular return of seasons is a mercy and a promise of God’s ongoing provision in a fallen world. (Genesis 8:22)
• The seasons move us through beginnings, growth, transition, and renewal. And this is true for weather, families, relationships, work, church, and even the nations. (Ecclesiastes 3:1–8)
• Spiritual growth has seasons too: sowing, abiding, pruning, fruit-bearing, and waiting on the Lord. (John 15:1–11; Isaiah 40:31)
• Seasons can expose what we trust, and God uses them to shape character—faith, patience, endurance, contentment. (James 1:2–4; Romans 5:3–5)
• Hard seasons are not wasted. God refines faith through trials and produces lasting fruit. (1 Peter 1:6–7; 2 Corinthians 4:16–18)
• Seasons will be restored one day. In the new creation, the curse and harshness will be gone; God’s people will experience perfected life and provision. (Revelation 21:4; Revelation 22:2; Revelation 7:16–17)

Isn’t that so beautiful and encouraging? I needed the truth of God’s Word to guide me through one of the hardest seasons I’ve had. I need it still today for the regular seasons and changes. And so do we all!

Seasons of Grace is built to help families see God’s faithfulness across a whole year, through the seasons of life.

Each month includes:

• A main Scripture passage to write and pray through, as well as to display in your home
• Scripture cards for that passage to help you memorize and meditate on the verses
• A 30-day Scripture prayer calendar for the month’s theme that is perfect for writing and praying through God’s Word each day (Such a simple and powerful habit!)
• A color version and a black-and-white version (for coloring and print flexibility)

The monthly themes follow this schedule:

• January — New Beginnings (Isaiah 43:18–19)
• February — Rooted in Love (Ephesians 3:17–19)
• March — Fresh Growth (John 15:1–11)
• April — Hope in Trials (1 Peter 1:6–7)
• May — Fruitfulness (Galatians 5:22–23)
• June — Rest & Renewal (Matthew 11:28–30)
• July — Strength for the Journey (Isaiah 40:29–31)
• August — Wisdom for the Way (Proverbs 3:5–8)
• September — Steadfastness (Hebrews 10:23–25)
• October — Courage (Joshua 1:9)
• November — Gratitude (Colossians 3:16–17)
• December — Peace (Isaiah 9:6–7)

This is a Scripture plan for real people (and is good for kids, teens, and parents) walking through real seasons. I plan to use it this coming year and I hope you’ll join me!

How to Use the Seasons of Grace Scripture Printable Pack (without adding pressure)

If you’re already overwhelmed, that’s ok. This should not become one more thing to “keep up with.” Use it in a way that serves you and your household best.

A few simple options:

• Morning anchor: read the day’s verse at breakfast and, optionally, write it out. (This is what I plan to do. If I fall behind I don’t worry about catching up… just move on according to the calendar day.)
• Family worship add-on: use the monthly passage or daily Scripture verse to add to your family worship discussions.
• Scripture memory: Focus just on the main passage, memorizing it with your kids using the full page prints and Scripture cards, and incorporating them into your family prayers.

You don’t have to do it perfectly to benefit from it. The point is to keep returning to God’s Word.

A Final Encouragement

If you’re in a season that’s hard or that just feels disorienting right now, you’re not alone. Remember that God appoints times and seasons. He sustains His world. He teaches us about His design and order through rhythms we can see. And in Christ, He gives real hope in any season, because we can trust in His character and promises.

My prayer is that this pack helps you and your family recognize what God is doing in your season and respond with trust and worship.

NOTE: This will deliver a ZIP file to your inbox that includes both the ESV and KJV versions of this resource. Please check your spam folder! If you run into issues, contact me at tauna(at)proverbialhomemaker(dot)com. 

Have a wonderful year in God’s Word, friends! I hope this resource is a blessing to you and your family.

~ Tauna

You Might Also Like… 

• More 1-Year Scripture Printable Packs from Proverbial Homemaker 
• Sound Words: Lessons in Theology for Kids 
• More Bible Reading Resources for Kids
• New Year Traditions and Activities for Families

The post Seasons of Grace: A FREE 1-Year Scripture Printable Pack appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

However, being kids, they still gravitate toward mindless screen time. So, I’m always on the lookout for resources that encourage them to create, think, and problem-solve, rather than simply consume content.

(This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.)

They were SO excited when I pulled HUE Animation Studio out of my bag of tricks for them on one soggy Pacific NW morning. They had played with stop motion a bit before, but this was next level and they were ready to go.

If you’re a homeschool family or co-op, or you’re looking to foster creativity and STEM learning with your kids, you’ve got to check this out!

What Is the HUE Animation Studio?

The HUE Animation Studio is a complete stop motion animation kit. Rather than piecing together separate tools, software, and instructions, everything needed to get started is included in one box. (Saves this busy mama the time and energy!)

HUE Animation Studio is designed specifically for kids with education and creativity in mind. It is a physical, hands-on kit that encourages planning, patience, creativity, and experimentation, which are all skills we value deeply in homeschooling.

You’ll find HUE Animation Studio available directly from HUE and on Amazon, making it easy to purchase depending on your preference.

What’s Included in the HUE Animation Studio Kit

Everything your kids need to get started with stop motion animation is in this one kit. Here’s what’s included:

• HUE HD USB camera with integrated microphone
• Stop motion animation software (Windows & macOS)
• 64-page full-color animation guidebook
• Mini stage with background built into the box
• Downloadable backgrounds, cutouts, and more
• Durable, shockproof storage case with organizing pocket
• 3-year manufacturer’s warranty and customer support

What Kinds of Projects Can Kids Do?

“But my kids can do basic stop motion now with what we have.” I hear you, but HUE Animation Studio is so much more than just basic stop motion animation.

Kids can do a variety of projects such as

• Stop motion movies using toys, figures, or household objects
• LEGO brickfilms, animating builds, vehicles, and characters
• Claymation with simple clay figures and scenes
• 2D cut-out animations using paper characters or printable backgrounds
• Time-lapse videos, such as plants growing, art projects, or experiments
• Narrated stories, adding voiceovers, music, and sound effects

HUE Animation Studio also has some fantastic features that my boys really loved. It helped them to have more control and creativity over their projects. Here are a few:

• Manual focus ring & flexible camera neck for crisp close-ups and precise framing
• Built-in microphone with noise reduction for clearer voiceovers and sound
• Onion skinning to help kids create smooth, professional-looking motion
• Green screen (chroma key) for imaginative backgrounds and special effects
• Time-lapse mode for projects like plant growth or experiments
• Built-in sound effects and music plus the ability to record custom audio
• Text and visual effects tools for titles and storytelling
• High-quality HD USB camera that also works as a webcam or document camera
• Printable backgrounds to support project-based learning

Educational Value for Homeschoolers

This is not just a fun activity, although it makes a great gift! The HUE Animation Studio has great educational value, too. They’ll learn:

• Creative storytelling and narrative structure
• Planning, sequencing, and problem-solving
• Technology literacy
• Fine motor skills
• Collaboration and communication

It works well for boys and girls of a wide age range, and both your techy kids and your artsy kids will love making projects with it. For homeschooling, it’s a perfect “Fun Friday” activity or something you can put in a rotation for STEM learning all year.

Ease of Use & Age Range

• Software compatibility (MacOS & Windows)
• Easy registration and setup
• Ages 7+ can us it independently, younger kids can participate with parent or sibling help
• Quick start — kids can begin creating right away and then dig into the special features and supplemental resources

Note: If you use a Mac like I do you may need an adapter. You can find details on system requirements here.

How We Used the HUE Animation Studio in Our Homeschool

The boys and I took a couple of hours one day to get HUE Animation Studio set up and create their first projects. We played with the features that were immediately obvious and then they spent much of the day making creations.

• Playdoh animations – My youngest enjoyed using playdoh most, and created some funny videos with props he designed himself.
• Lego “movies” – The other two boys spent most of their time doing little Lego animations as well as full stories. One kiddo re-created the scene of Paul and Silas being freed from jail by a great earthquake.
• Flying kids – They realized that they could do stop motion animation of themselves jumping through the hallway and make it look like they were flying. Lol! Whole days spent on that.

Then I’d start showing them specific features and add-ons that they could incorporate, such as importing audio, using the sound effects, trying out time lapse, etc. We also pulled ideas and projects from the accompanying book to try out. This was great because it kept them interested and learning new things.

Pros and Things to Consider

Every resources has pros and cons to consider, so let’s have a run-down of those if you’re on the fence:

Pros

• Complete kit with lots of great extras and special features
• Easy for kids to use (especially independent for ages 7+)
• Great for gift-giving or in your homeschool
• High-quality camera and software
• Encourages creativity and problem-solving
• Works on both MacOS and Windows
• Warranty and support provided

Things to Consider

• Requires a computer/laptop (however, it’s compatible with the Stop Motion Studio app for phones and tablets — Android and iOS)
• Works best with some table or workspace setup
• Younger children need guidance

Who I Recommend This For

• Homeschool families looking for creative STEM tools
• Kids who enjoy building, storytelling, or art
• Co-ops, makerspaces, and clubs
• Parents wanting screen time that leads to creation, not consumption

Final Thoughts

Overall, I think HUE Animation Studio is a solid choice for families for a gift idea or a homeschool STEM activity. It emphasizes imagination, collaboration, problem-solving, and more. I love that it has so much to explore (not just a 1-hit wonder for activities) and helps kids get creative!

Learn more about HUE Animation Studio and enjoy the fun!

The post HUE Animation Studio Review: A Hands-On Stop Motion Kit for STEM Learning appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

*** HEY! There’s a BIG Christmas Giveaway at the end of this post! Don’t miss it. 🙂 ***

What Is a LEGO Christmas Countdown?

Simply put, a LEGO Christmas Countdown is doing a Lego build each day (when possible) in the days leading up to Christmas. Every year at Christmas time my kids can’t wait to drag out their buckets of Legos and get started building as a family. We’re building shepherds, angels, donkeys, wise men, and more. We’re sharing pieces and wondering what it might have looked like, talking about the story and the details. We’re enjoying our Lego Christmas countdown tradition!

This tradition started a few years ago as I began to incorporate more and more Lego learning into our homeschooling. I realized that my hands-on learners were really benefiting academically by building based on whatever we were learning. Not only would they hear and retain the information better, but they would be developing several other skills as they did it!

Why not use this approach to learn the Bible? 

How to Set Up Your LEGO Christmas Countdown (Step-by-Step)

So we started using several Lego challenges to help my children learn the Word of God and hide it in their hearts. When Christmas rolled around, it just made sense to build through the Christmas story! 

Here’s how you do it: 

• Decide How Many Days – You could do one for the whole month of December or starting from the first day of advent, but we usually pick 7 or 12 days up through Christmas.
  
• Choose the Challenge Builds – Sketch out points from the story of Christmas until you have enough for all the days of your Lego Christmas countdown. 
  
• Include a Scripture Reading Plan – For each point in the story you’ve chosen to build, write down the verses or passage in scripture to read as a family. 
  
• Provide Alternate Activities – We have a large family with a range of ages, so there will always be one or two kids who don’t want to build. Provide supplies and prompts for drawing, other materials such as playdoh, and coloring sheets so that they can follow along in a way more suited to them or at least keep busy as the rest of you build. 
  
• Share Their Creations – Find ways to capture and share their creations! Display them on a mantle, take photos and create a photo book, or share on Instagram (tag @tauna_phomemaker so I can see them too!) or Facebook. My husband likes to set up a camera and record each build project! Then he uses video a editing program to speed it up and watch a time lapse of all the builds when they’re finished. So fun!

Why This Christ-Centered Activity Works for All Ages

One of the things I love about this LEGO Christmas Countdown is how naturally it invites kids of every age into the story of Christ’s birth. It’s simple, it’s hands-on, and it helps settle everyone’s hearts on Jesus during a busy season.

Here’s why it works so well for mixed ages:

• Little ones jump right in. Younger kids are eager to build anything you put in front of them, and the daily Scripture helps them connect the story of Jesus’ birth with something they can touch and see.
• Older kids enjoy the challenge. Give them a prompt and they’ll gladly design, experiment, and build something creative that reflects the day’s passage.
• It keeps hands busy and hearts attentive. The building time helps everyone focus while the Scripture reading draws their thoughts back to the Lord.
• It adapts easily to your routine. Whether you’re reading a short verse with a wiggly preschooler or digging deeper with older kids, it fits smoothly into whatever rhythm your family already has.
• It grows with your family. As your children get older, their understanding—and their creations—grow right along with them. It becomes a tradition that gently keeps your family centered on the true meaning of Christmas.

Ideas to Extend the Activity for Your LEGO Christmas Countdown

Want to dig a little deeper for your LEGO Christmas countdown? Here are some ideas!

• Build the Nativity Over Time: Assign each day a different part of the nativity (Mary, Joseph, angels, shepherds, animals, stable, star, manger, etc.). By Christmas, you’ll have a full LEGO nativity scene to display.
• Create a Mini Devotional Moment: After the kids finish building, ask one guiding question such as, “What does today’s passage show us about who Jesus is?” or “How can we worship God this week?”
• Add a Service Challenge: Tie a small act of kindness to each day’s story—baking cookies for a neighbor, writing an encouragement note, donating toys, etc.
• Do Spontaneous Bonus Challenges: Give them a challenge like “recreate the scene from Luke 2,” “build something only using 25 bricks,” or “design a stable using a new technique.”
• Make It a Shared Tradition: Let siblings take turns choosing the passage or presenting their creation. This gives everyone a sense of ownership and joy.

Fun Christmas Lego Resources

You can set up your own Lego Christmas countdown yourself or use some great tools to make it a quick and memorable activity for your family. Here are some ideas! 

Christmas Brick Challenge – The Christmas Brick Challenge has 12 days of the Christmas story with build challenges, scripture readings, poem to read along with them, coloring pages, and more!

Jesse Tree Brick Challenge – For a full month of activities (or you can double up or pick and choose for a shorter plan) try the Jesse Tree Brick Challenge, which starts from Genesis to tell a wider view of the Christmas story and how all of the Bible is about Christ. 

Lego Advent Calendar – Our kids did a Lego advent calendar this last year and had so much fun! It is secular, but we did it in addition to our other advent actuates and enjoyed it. 

Lego Christmas Project Instructions – We prefer doing Lego challenges without detailed build instructions because we believe it fosters creativity and helps it to be a multi-age activity (and prevents that big problem when you don’t have a particular piece). But we often browse Pinterest or fun Lego sites for inspiration as we build! Try Brain Power Boy or Little Bins for Little Hands for some ideas. 

How could you incorporate Lego challenges into your Christmas activities and learning this year? 

2025 Christmas Blessings Giveaway

The Christmas season is here! It’s a time for joy, generosity, and celebrating the blessings in our lives. And what better way to spread a little cheer than with a special giveaway just for you?

I’ve partnered with a wonderful group of bloggers to bring you the Christmas Blessings Giveaway. We know the holiday season can be full of both joy and stress, and our hope is to ease that burden just a bit for a few families. We are giving away FOUR $250 gift cards, and the best part is that each winner will get to choose where the gift card is from. Whether it helps with presents, groceries, or something special for you, we pray it brings encouragement and peace this Christmas. 

The giveaway runs November 19 through November 28, so be sure to get your entries in before it ends!

To enter, simply use the entry form below. We know it’s a long one, but each blogger personally contributed to make this giveaway happen, and your support means so much. Plus, the more entries you complete, the better your chances of winning one of the $250 prizes!

Wishing you a season full of peace, joy, and blessings!

Giveaway ends November 28th at 11:59pm ET.  Winners will be drawn and emailed the following day. The winners will have 48 hours to respond to email to claim the prize.  By entering this giveaway you will be added to the email lists of the participating bloggers. You must live in the United States or Canada to be eligible to win.

NOTE: We are trying a new giveaway system! Some folks are having trouble entering because it’s flagging their email as spam. If that’s you, please do the following:

• Turn off your VPN, if you are using one.
• Try a different browser.
• Try later when you get home, if you are trying on a work network. 
• Try a different email address, if you have one.
• If none of these seem to work, send your email address to tauna@proverbialhomemaker.com and we’ll manually go in and mark you as not spam and then you should be able to enter.

The post Our Lego Christmas Countdown Tradition (+ Giveaway!) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

I requested the membership in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own (and we’ve used this for a couple of years now)!

If you’re juggling littles and teens, meal prep, the laundry monster, and the deep desire to weave beauty and creativity into your homeschool without overloading yourself, the You ARE an ARTIST Membership may just be one of those blessed resources that truly fits.

Here’s what I love about it:

• Open-and-go lessons with lo- or no-prep on your part
• Covers artist study, history, science, Bible, and more!
• Supplies are just paper and chalk pastels (no huge supply list)
• Kids of all ages love these lessons!

What is the You ARE an ARTIST Membership?

You ARE an ARTIST is a membership-based art program at chalkpastel.com that’s designed specifically for homeschool families. You can subscribe on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis and then log in and choose from a wide selection of guided video lessons taught by “Nana” (the instructor).

You’ll need only paper and chalk pastels—no elaborate studio, no massive supply list, no complicated projects. The lessons cover a wide range of topics: Bible, history, science, geography, nature, seasonal themes, literature, and more.

Perfect for Large and Busy Homeschool Families

I’ve already given you the highlights of why I LOVE this membership, but let me elaborate on those and give you some bonus reasons why it’s among the best out there.

– Low Prep for Busy Moms

Homeschool moms have a lot on their plate (helloooooo). I love that all we need to do to make art happen each week is pick a lesson, grab the paper and chalk pastels, and go! In a busy home where you’re already managing multiple ages (and lunch, and laundry), this is a huge win.

– Family-Style for All Ages

My kids range from third to twelfth grade, and I often have younger kids in tow. (Being a Godmother is awesome.) They can all join in and participate at their own level, enjoying a beautiful activity together.

Incorporate with Other Subjects

I was first attracted to the You ARE an ARTIST Membership because of the Bible-based lessons, which are wonderful and supplement our Bible studies well. Then I was blown away by all the amazing topics that were covered!

You’ll find maps, famous landmarks, holidays, literature, and more. The membership helps me to dig deeper into topics with my children rather than just tacking art on as an “extra.” There’s plenty for them to explore in the membership, too.

No Overwhelm Necessary

There are a LOT of lessons and topics in the membership. I was overwhelmed at first, but then I discovered the Art lesson Calendar in the dashboard of the Membership. The Calendar curates a set of art lessons each month that perfect for that time of year, with extra lessons added for interest. Using the Calendar and then pulling lessons relating to whatever we’re studying elsewhere has been a perfect solution for us.

Nana is My Favorite

The instructor, “Nana,” is friendly, warm and a favorite in our household now. Plus, if I post our finished creations on social media and tag them, my kids get a personal note of encouragement and praise from Nana. Such a sweet addition to the experience!

Some Things to Consider

• Chalk pastel can be messy. They have a great intro to using chalk pastels lesson that is helpful. You might also want to get a wipe-down table cloth or some cheap plastic ones. Also, I don’t recommend letting them paint their faces with the chalk pastels. (You would never do that, you say? Because… common sense? Well I did. Lol! They painted warrior lines of their faces and I just watched the chaos ensue. I admit, it was fun, but too messy for me, so we discussed that chalk pastels are for paper, not faces.)
  
• If you want a different medium or more advanced lessons, you might have to add something to this membership. The You ARE an ARTIST Membership is almost exclusively chalk pastels, although there’s a set of acrylic backyard bird lessons in there. But my kids have been pretty happy with the chalk pastel lessons so I don’t see that as an issue. For advanced teens or those wanting to go further, I’d check out their Fine Arts membership.
  
• Value for the cost. You’ll want to compare prices for the different options (monthly vs. annual) and determine if it will work for your family. For ours, with all the kids and the incredible enjoyment and ease-of-use, I’d say it’s high value. If you’re on the fence, check out their free “getting started” lesson and try it with the kids!

Ways to Squeeze Art Lessons In. 🙂

If you want more art and beauty in your homeschool but you don’t have a lot of bandwidth for anything complicated, this membership is perfect. Here are some ideas for making more time for art:

• Morning time: After your group reading or Bible time, pick a 10-15 minute chalk pastel lesson that ties into your the Bible lesson, a holiday theme, or something you’ve recently covered in another school subject. It’s a wonderful way to slow down and do something meaningful together before the rest of the day starts!
• Sibling together time: Pair older kids together or pair a younger sibling with an older one for special art project time. It’s a memorable way to build bonds in your family and they will enjoy picking out lessons!
• Independent art time: Some of my huge art-lovers enjoy pulling out the chalk pastels and paper on-the-fly for a spontaneous art time on their own. Since it’s so low prep and easy for them to find something interesting to do in the membership, I consider that a win.
• When mom is busy: There are days where I feel stretched by my schedule or didn’t get a good night’s sleep. The membership is a good go-to for quick lessons I can feel good about without too much involvement on my part.

The Bottom Line on the You ARE an ARTIST Membership from ChalkPastels.com

In all, I’d say that the You ARE an ARTiST Membership is a very strong choice for homeschool families who want meaningful art without the overwhelm. It’s especially great for families with a wide age range to teach, and it doesn’t add more to my busy mama workload.

Learn more about the You ARE an ARTiST Membership and get started with easy homeschool art lessons today!

~ Tauna

The post Homeschool Art Made Easy: A Review of the You ARE an ARTiST Membership appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

If we want to prepare our children to be bold for Christ, we must start with the basics and build intentionally. Here are four things we need to focus on:

1) Ground them in Scripture. 

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

Make God’s Word the daily foundation for your family. The Bible is the source of truth for every subject, every choice, and every issue of life. Our kids NEED to understand this and practice practical biblical thinking regularly so that they won’t be easily swayed by false ideas.

So, prioritize reading God’s Word together. Help them memorize Scripture and build personal study habits, too! When they are anchored in God’s Word they’ll remain secure in Him. 

2) Teach them to reason from biblical principles. 

“These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children…” (Deuteronomy 6:6–7 )


Instead of simply handing them answers, equip them with the habit of asking, “What does God’s Word say about this?”and then teach them how to search it out. When we are reasoning from biblical principles, we are using the truth of God’s Word to interpret life and events. Discuss issues, decisions, and current events through the lens of Scripture so that they learn to anchor every conclusion in eternal truth.

3) Help them see the bigger picture. 

“He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” (Daniel 2:21)

History is His story. America’s blessings came by God’s providence, and the events of today are unfolding under His sovereign hand. Our kids need to know this so they won’t lose heart when the world feels unstable. Remind them often: God rules over nations and over history. He is their rock and their foundation.

4) Model courage and conviction.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind…” (Romans 12:2)

Our kids learn from our actions just as much as our instruction. Let them see you stand firm in truth, apply Scripture to everyday choices, and trust God even when it goes against the culture. When they watch you living with courage and conviction, they’ll understand what it looks like to walk faithfully as a disciple of Christ.

And take action together! Look for ways you can help share the gospel, support important ministries, learn skills helpful for evangelism and apologetics, and more. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling convicted more than ever before to get out and DO for God’s glory. If you have small children in tow, that could be sending letters of encouragement or faithful prayer for missionaries and pastors. Do what you can in your season of life! As they get older, find ways to get even more involved and serve Christ together.

Keep the main thing the main thing.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5–6)

When our kids are rooted in Christ and His Word, they grow in wisdom and discernment. They’ll be equipped to stand firm in truth and to speak hope into a culture that desperately needs Christ. This doesn’t happen by accident. It takes intentional discipleship at home!

So don’t grow weary, parents! Keep reading God’s Word together, keep talking about the issues of the day in light of Scripture, and keep pointing your kids back to Christ. It is the most important work you can do right now.

Resources to Help

If you are looking for some resources to help you in this effort, I’ve created a list of some that I appreciate. I hope they are a blessing to you as well!

Biblical Literacy

• Help Your Kids to Learn and Love the Bible – If you are just getting started teaching your kids the Bible or are looking for encouragement and ideas in that effort, this is a must-read book! . 
• Bible Road Trip – For homeschool and family discipleship, this curriculum takes you through the bible in 3 years.
• Sound Words for Kids: Lessons in Theology – Looking for answers to common questions of the Christian faith? This curriculum helps you do just that.

Reasoning from Biblical Principles

• PEERS Worldview Test – A helpful tool to assess and strengthen a biblical worldview.
• Pillars: A Study in Foundations of Civilizations – “While PEERS will reveal areas that may need ‘rethinking,’ PILLARS is a course providing scripture-based instruction on the PEERS categories.” My teens and I did this study and we learned a lot!
• The Mighty Works of God – This is a Principle Approach resource teaching American history. 
• AMO Program – Provides units for literature and Bible that use scripted, principle-based lessons. Designed for classrooms but easily adapted to homeschool. We’ve used the Genesis set and some literature studies and they’re really good! 
• The Biblical Classical Homeschool Experience – I spent last year going through this membership course. While it was challenging, it was an incredibly fruitful journey and taught me a lot about how to teach my children using biblical principles!

Understanding History, Current Events, and Our Role

• American Civics by Michael Farris – (Use code PROVERBIAL20 to get 20% off!) A rich course designed to foster a deep understanding of American democracy, civic responsibility, and the power of active participation.
• Generations Curriculum – Excellent history and worldview training. All of their resources are great, but these are the ones that particularly come to mind:
  • American Faith: 27 Sketches from Winthrop to Wilkerson – This is a great family read-aloud or a curriculum for middle or lower high school.
  • America in God’s Providence – Excellent high school curriculum! You can do it in one year or two.
  • Children’s Providential History series – This goes through grades 1-6. We use it all together as a read-aloud and my younger kids do notebooking with it.
• World Watch – A fantastic 10-minute daily Christian news program for kids and families. It’s a great way to start those conversations!
• Compass Classroom History curriculum – For your high schoolers, this curriculum is well done and uses primary sources.
• Teach your kids about Socialism and Communism – Such an important topic to read and highly relevant to what we’re seeing in modern America these days. Nicki gives info for a lesson you can do with your own kids or co-op.
• Worldview Academy – This could go in a few different categories here. Worldview Academy is a 1-week summer program with various locations in the US where the kids to intensive worldview and leadership training under Bill Jack and his team. 3 of my kids have gone (some multiple years) and it’s been a huge part of their faith journey, especially concerning apologetics and worldview in modern issues. (If there’s not one near you, check out Summit Ministries, which holds similar events.)

Stories of Courage and Conviction

• History for Patriots from Character Concepts – We especially love Portraits of Integrity and the What a Character series! (Scroll to the bottom to find that.)
• Missionary Biographies – A BIG list of resources for teaching missionary stories, including free notebooking pages to use with them.

More Great Resources to Consider

• Turning Point USA Free Digital Downloads – Engaging, patriotic, and truth-filled educational resources. (Be sure to enter your email in the “Contact” field!)
• Hillsdale College free online courses – You’ll find many wonderful free courses through Hillsdale on these topics. Great for enrichment or high school credit!
• Patriot Academy with Rick Green – Courses, events, and more.
• WallBuilders Resources with David Barton – providential view of American history.

I will keep adding to this list as I find more. I pray they encourage you as you raise up the next generation of bold, faithful, Christ-centered leaders! Let’s not lose heart, but continue steadfastly in the work of discipling our children for His glory.

Standing with you,
~ Tauna

The post Raising Bold Children for Christ in Today’s World appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

*** Hey! There’s a fantastic giveaway at the end of this post with a chance for 3 people to receive $100. PLUS a download full of freebies and discounts just for you. ***

Should You Plan Homeschool Lessons for the Whole Year? 

One thing that simplifies my homeschool planning is that I do NOT plan out homeschool lessons for the whole year. I don’t even plan them for a full quarter or for a full month. Instead, I choose curriculum that lends itself to being open-and-go, or at least makes glancing ahead for the week sufficient planning ahead.

I also take advantage of good weekly rhythms and routines and loop scheduling so we keep making progress without needing detailed lesson plans. If you are the type of person that prefers everything planned out for the year, check out my friend Danika’s post about how she does that. But for my yearly planning, I just follow the easy steps below! 

Easy Steps for Planning the Homeschool Year 

Here are 6 easy (or at least simple) steps for planning the homeschool year. I’ll explain each in more detail below. You can totally do this! 

1. Decide your start and stop dates
2. Mark holidays and vacations
3. Plan other breaks
4. Calculate curriculum milestones if needed
5. Sketch the first quarter
6. Schedule quarterly planning checkups 

To do all my plans for the year I use a year-at-a-glance calendar. You can find several online to download for free. It also helps to have some quarterly planning pages and some other worksheets that help fill that out, such as student goals and curriculum lists. The Rhythms & Routines Homeschool Planning System is what I use, and it includes all these and more. 

Decide Your Start and Stop Dates

Whether you homeschool year round or like to follow the traditional school year schedule, it helps to decide now what your start and stop dates are. I like to do this for three reasons: 

1. End of year celebrations. Even though we’re year-round homeschoolers, we like to do fun things to close off and start a new homeschool year.
2. Knowing when to”level up” to a new grade.  We do this based on age, not on what curriculum they’re using since that can vary depending on the kid and the subject. Knowing what grade level your kid is in is helpful for conversation purposes, testing (if your state requires it), and high school planning. 
3. Planning curriculum milestones. If I want to generally finish a level of curriculum in the year, it helps to know when I’m starting and stopping so I can plan checkpoints. I explain below how I do this planning. 

Mark Holidays and Vacations

Now go back through your year-at-a-glance and cross out any weeks that you will take off for holidays or vacations you’ve already planned.

We usually do a week or two at Christmas and Easter and one during the week of July 4th. We also like to take a week off in September just because we can. 😉   Be sure to give yourself plenty of padding days before and during holidays and vacations, too!

Plan Out Other Breaks

Take a look at the rest of the year now that those vacations and holidays are blocked off. You’re likely to see longer stretches of weeks with no breaks. Now’s the time to discuss with your spouse what other weeks you can take for breaks or vacations to split up those longer blocks. You can always pencil them in and change them later! 

Calculate Curriculum Milestones if Needed

If you’re concerned about completing a particular curriculum or level in a subject by the end of the year, you’ll want to quickly plan out milestones for completion.

For example, if you want to finish 4th grade math:

1. Note how many lessons there are for the year.
2. Figure out about how many lessons per week your child will do.
3. Using your year at a glance calendar, count out how many lessons into the curriculum your child should be for each milestone of the  year.
4. Write down what lesson number they should be near at those milestones during the year.
5. When you get to that point in the year, you can check to see how you’re doing and accelerate or slow down your progress as needed.   

As year-round homeschoolers, I figure out where they should be at the end of each quarter. You might also choose just before winter break, spring break, and summer break as your milestones.  

Sketch the First Quarter

If you do a rhythms and routines planning approach like I do, then you don’t necessarily do any lesson plans. But having a sketch of the first quarter or section of the year does help. Again, you can just jot that down in your planner or use the Rhythms and Routines Homeschool Planning System.  

When I sketch the quarter, I like to have a quick glance of what we plan to accomplish in those months. Here’s what I like to write down: 

• Field trips we’ll try to take.
• Curriculum milestones we plan to meet.
• Any big vacations, events, or holidays. 
• A note on the projects, studies, or units we want to do. 
• Student goals, routines, or character issues we plan to work on. 
• etc.

Schedule Quarterly Planning Check-Ups

Once I’ve got a decent plan for the year, I go to my online calendar and set up reminders that go off right before each quarter ends. Those reminders make sure I set a little time aside to evaluate how things are going and sketch out the next quarter of the year.

It also reminds me to make sure that I’ve recorded the things we actually accomplished during those months! It’s wonderful to see all the things we learned and the memories we made! 

Planning the Homeschool Year Doesn’t Have to Be Hard

That’s it! My homeschool planning for the year is fairly simple, especially once I’ve determined our goals and curriculum choices for the year. Give it a try and see if it works for you!

~ Tauna 

3-Winner Back to Homeschool Giveaway! 

Exciting news! From August 1st through August 8th, the Back to Homeschool Giveaway is happening, and you could be one of the lucky winners! Thanks to the collaboration of 19 homeschool bloggers, we’re thrilled to give three lucky families $600 in gift cards as part of this year’s giveaway!

We understand the challenges of homeschooling, which is why we’re offering these gift cards to help make a difference in your homeschooling journey. During this Back To Homeschool season, we are happy to help you purchase curriculum, supplies, and other resources that your homeschool needs. Enter below and you’ll be in the running to win! Don’t miss out on your chance to add a little extra something to your homeschool budget.

The 2025 Back To Homeschool Giveaway is hosted by Hope In The Chaos and will run from Friday, August 1, 2025, through Friday, August 8, 2025, at 11:59 pm EST. Entrants must be 18 years old or older and be a member of a current homeschooling family. Participating bloggers and members of their households are not eligible to win. By entering this giveaway, you agree to be added to the email lists of the participating blogs represented here. The winners will be drawn randomly via Rafflecopter and notified by email no later than August 11, 2025. They will have 48 hours to claim their prize. Unclaimed prizes will be forfeited. Hope In The Chaos reserves the right to draw new winners if a winner is found ineligible or if the winner forfeits their prize. Prizes are non-transferable. Void where prohibited.

Back to Homeschool Giveaway Bonus Offer!

Snag your FREE Virtual Gift Bag – a $475+ value filled with exclusive offers from our partners & sponsors. Claim yours between August 1–8, 2025.

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The post Easy Tips for Planning the Homeschool Year (+ Back to Homeschool Giveaway!) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

Life can be hard and unpredictable. We’ve all been there.

{HEY! There’s a BIG 3-winner homeschool giveaway at the end of this post. Don’t miss it! Scroll down and enter to win a $250 gift card to the store of your choice! 🙌}

10 Tips for Homeschooling Consistently

Homeschool moms want to be faithful in teaching and training their kids. We want to succeed with homeschooling. When we aren’t consistent with regular homeschool days, it can feel like we’re failing.

Just know that this is extremely common, especially in the early homeschool years, and it doesn’t mean that you aren’t cut out for homeschooling. It just means that, like with everything, there’s room to grow and improve. With homeschooling, you have time to do that! 

In that spirit, here are 10 tips that will help you start homeschooling consistently.

1) Being inconsistent isn’t always bad.

Yes, there are good things about homeschooling consistently that make it a worthwhile endeavor:

• It helps children to build on what they’re learning when there aren’t long stretches between lessons.
• Being consistent and diligent is, in itself, a good life skill to teach your kids.
• It will bring a valuable sense of order to your home routines.
• In the long term, it is important in order to educate your children well and prepare them for high school and beyond.
• Of course, it’s also essential if you have state laws dictating hours or days you must homeschool. 

But… being inconsistent isn’t always a terrible thing. Here are a few reasons why:

• Homeschooling consistently doesn’t necessarily mean sitting at the table with worksheets for hours. There are many methods and ways to make home education a part of life, too!
• Remember that homeschooling = flexibility. Part of the beauty of homeschooling means working around big family changes and busy seasons.  
• It takes time to find your groove. Most homeschoolers need a few years to find their groove in terms of methods, daily routines, preferences, etc. And even then it will change from time to time. The early years are actually a great time for that.  

2) Start the day with the most important things.

Decide what your priorities are in your homeschool and take care of those FIRST thing. Many times that’s the subjects you deem most essential. In our home, Bible, reading, and math always happen. Those are our priorities, and so even on “light” homeschool days, we tackle those first.

Your priorities might look different and that’s okay. Here’s the point: start with the most essential subjects so that no matter what life throws your way mid-day, the most important part of your school gets done.

Of course, from year to year your priorities might change. When you’re deciding on goals for your homeschool, you might decide to focus on writing progress for one child and getting another child reading fluently. Mark those the things that you work on right after Bible time in the morning so they’re more likely to get done! 

The Rhythms & Routines Homeschool Planning System includes a printable planner and a course that walks you step by step through how to use routines for homeschool planning and set up a system that works with YOUR family and personality, with fillable pages and various templates to choose from.

3) Have a plan with milestones to aim for.

Work on setting milestone goals for the homeschool year. When you’re doing homeschool planning, decide what books/curriculum you are hoping to finish by the end of the year and then work backwards on the calendar to figure out about where you should be at each quarter. For example, “complete math 6 lesson 32 by Nov. 30.” Then set reminders on your phone or in your planner to check on your progress before the end of each quarter.

This is helpful for two reasons:

1. Having milestones will do more to motivate YOU to be more consistent.
2. When you see you’re not on track, you can make adjustments in your daily priorities so you can better meet your milestones, or adjust your milestones.

The purpose here isn’t to be rigid or be a slave to your plan. (So, no need to get crazy and triple your daily math lessons to meet some deadline.) Instead, the idea is to have a general plan, be flexible, and work steadily toward your homeschool goals. 

4) Set and communicate clear expectations. 

Make sure your children know what you expect them to accomplish each day and the quality of work required. Homeschooling consistently also means being consistent in our expectations. Here’s how we do it:

• We set up rhythms and routines to our day and the kids know when lessons happen, when we do chores, etc.
• For older kids who can work independently, I make sure the kids know what is on their daily and looping list of tasks each day, and they are responsible for working through them diligently.
• If someone has been trying to avoid their work, they get extra supervision (doing all their work at the table, checking in after each subject, etc.) 
• Our goal is to finish all work by a certain time of day. For those who have finished there is a reward (free time, a short video, etc.)  

5) Teach diligence – Do the next thing!

When Dory the forgetful fish is swimming in the ocean of overwhelm, she has a mantra. Just keep swimming. It’s another way of saying “do the next thing!” These short phrases are incredibly powerful for homeschooling moms as well. In every moment, you can choose to keep going. Move on to the next thing, and the next thing, and then the next thing.

Teach your kids this same approach. Work breaks into your daily routines, obviously, but teaching your kids to do the next thing will keep you all moving forward and help them with the habit of diligence. This isn’t only true for lessons, but for personal habits as well. 

Our younger kids use a simple loop schedule and our older ones use the Student Work and Habit Tracker. It helps them build a habit of doing the next thing for their school work as well as habits like cleaning their room, hygiene, practicing piano, personal devotions, and so on. 

6) Build good habits and routines by anchoring.

Having good routines is essential for homeschooling consistently. It can be a challenge to accomplish, however. I’ve found that it’s much more successful and sustainable if moms work on building a routine from the ground up instead of trying to fit their family into someone else’s schedule or routine.

How do you build up your own routine? Through anchoring! The idea is that you choose one activity you’d like to do (such as a read aloud time) and choose a “rock” in your day that you can anchor it to. Rocks are things that your family already does most days anyway, and so anchoring a new activity to it means your’e more likely to make it a habit. 

For example:

• Anchor chore time right after breakfast and right before bed. 
• Anchor read aloud time (Bible, literature, history, etc.) to mealtimes. 
• Anchor group work time (such as rotating through Charlotte Mason activities) to after chores. 
• Anchor music or art time to a Fun Friday tradition. 

Be creative and do what works for your family! As you build habits, they become “rocks” that you can anchor new activities to. Read more here about homeschooling with rhythms and routines. 

7) Reward consistency.

There are natural rewards in life when we are consistent with our work and diligent to complete it in a timely manner. It makes sense to encourage our kids (and ourselves) to be consistent by rewarding those efforts!

The first way to reward improvement in homeschooling consistently is to build in natural blessings. As I mentioned before, we do a fun activity or short video in the afternoon at the same time every day for those who have finished their work. The kids are motivated to get things done so they can enjoy the special activity and their free time afterward! 

Another reward I have done is to surprise them with something special when I notice we have had a really good week or month in homeschooling consistently.

• Surprise fun family outings or field trips
• Unexpected playdates
• A special treat or “party” meal
• An end-0f-the-week movie and popcorn time
• Getting to stay up an extra hour
• Letting the kids build a fort and sleep in it for a night (bring your patience, moms, lol!)
• Anything else special or unexpected you can think of to delight your kids!

When you do this, make sure you tell your kids you’ve noticed what a great job they’ve been doing and that you wanted to bless them with a special treat.  

You might be more of a chart person and a box checker and that’s okay too! If you prefer that approach, make consistency charts for your kids (or use the Student Work and Habit Tracker) and follow up with rewards when the boxes are all checked.

8) Guard your homeschool time.

We are so tempted to say yes to every request, aren’t we? As homeschool moms, we have to be extra diligent to set boundaries. Just because we are home all day doesn’t mean we are available for every daytime volunteer need or every field trip opportunity.

If you want to homeschool consistently, you need to be home often enough to do the job. Of course, I know that many families need to be out and about often for things like medical appointments, and in that case, car-schooling (bringing along lessons and making use of audiobooks) is invaluable.

But otherwise, guard your homeschool time and make sure you’re home long enough to get the important work done and have time to enjoy each other in the process. If your week is imbalanced in the direction of outside activities, learn to say no.

The Student Work & Habit Tracker is a simple tool that helps students from about 3rd-12th grade to manage their time and stay focused. They will craft meaningful goals, manage their weekly and daily work efficiently, and build in important habits. Most importantly, the Tracker will help them keep God’s Word at the center of their daily life, doing all in the name of the Lord.

9) Teach children to work independently. 

One fantastic way to make sure you are homeschooling consistently, even  through a crisis, is to build up independent learning skills, particularly in kids grades 3 and above. 

• Teach them to do as much of the work as they can on their own and then ask when they need help. 
• Teach older kids to self-correct their work and come to you with any sticking points for further instruction. 
• Give them opportunities to explore their own interests for delight-directed learning:
  • Let them pick which read aloud book you’ll do next
  • Let them choose between suggested independent reading
  • Provide resources or build elective courses into their rotation based on their interests
  • Give them ample time in the afternoon to pursue fun activities on their own
• Gradually give them the responsibility to tackle their work and manage their time (although inspecting their work daily or weekly is important) 

Again, building in good routines and providing tools like the Student Work & Habit Tracker and loop scheduling have helped this process quite a bit in our home.

10) Build in accountability for homeschooling consistently

Expect your kids to do their work. However, remember that expectations don’t do anything for you unless you have accountability. You can’t say you expect your kids to do a writing assignment unless you are willing to follow up and read the writing assignment and provide feedback.

Here are some ways to help your kids stay accountable: 

• Have your kids bring their finished work to you after each subject to go over it together. 
• Have a daily “check point” before school is considered done where you go over the day’s work together and talk through any issues and questions. 
• Put a laminated loop schedule or checklist on the wall and teach them to check things off as they go. Be sure they show you the checklist before the homeschool day is considered complete and they can enjoy their free time. 
• Have a “weekly meeting” (perhaps where Dad joins you) to discuss/review the previous week’s work and set expectations for the coming week, praying for diligence and understanding. 
• Share accountability tasks for challenging subjects or those that fall through the cracks. Online courses, having Dad review work, and other solutions can help. 

Sometimes, WE are the ones who could use some accountability and improvement in our habits in order to make homeschool happen or to ensure that certain subjects don’t fall by the wayside.

• Use a loop schedule for yourself to make sure those subjects that never seem to get done actually get done! You can work them in one or more times a week or a couple of times a month. But you’ll keep making progress!
• Parter with another family or two and share the load. We used to have another family come over once a week. I would teach art and the other mom would teach piano!
• Sign up for a class together! We’ve done homeschool choir once a week and it was a huge blessing. Now we’re doing a theatre subscription box with weekly sessions by the organizer to help teach acting skills and practice our play. Without that, I’d have a harder time working it into the schedule!
• Consider a support group or co-op for encouragement and accountability. 
• Find an accountability partner. Ask a like-minded homeschool mom to join you for three months in praying for each other and checking in via text message once a day to report on how you did with homeschooling consistently. 

Homeschooling is hard work. When you homeschool consistently, you give your children a strong foundation for the future, both in the strength of education and strength of character.

Hang in there, mama. You’re doing important work!

~ Tauna

{3 WINNERS!} 2025 Back to Homeschool Giveaway

It’s hard to believe, but another homeschool year is just around the corner. Whether you’re deep into planning or still enjoying summer, chances are you’ve got curriculum and supplies on your mind.

We know that preparing for a new homeschool year can be both exciting and overwhelming, especially when you’re trying to stick to a budget. Homeschooling on one income or teaching multiple kids can make the costs add up quickly. That’s why I’ve teamed up with a group of amazing homeschool bloggers to bring you our 12th Annual Back to Homeschool Giveaway. And we think you’re going to love it.

This year, we’re giving away three $250 gift cards, and the best part is that you get to choose which homeschool curriculum company the gift card is for. Whether you use The Good & the Beautiful, Gather Round, Notgrass, My Father’s World, or maybe you like shopping at Rainbow Resource, this giveaway is designed to help ease the cost of your school year.

The giveaway runs from July 9 through July 18, so be sure to get your entries in.

To enter, simply use the Rafflecopter form below. I know there are quite a few entries, but each blogger has generously contributed to make this giveaway possible. And remember, the more entries you complete, the better your chances of winning.

We hope this giveaway is a blessing to you and your homeschool this year!

Giveaway ends July 18th at 11:59pm ET.  Winners will be drawn and emailed the following day. The winners will have 48 hours to respond to email to claim the prize.  By entering this giveaway you will be added to the email lists of the participating bloggers. Please be sure to read the Terms & Conditions upon entering the giveaway.

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The One Thing That Saved Our Homeschool

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Teach about the twelve disciples of Jesus with activities for kids your whole family will love. Give kids a new view of the life of Jesus.

I like to think about learning as a child examining an object.

We want our kids to pick up the object and turn it over and around in their hands, so they are feeling, smelling, and experiencing it.

As Christians, there is no subject we want our kids to learn, know, and understand better than the life of Jesus Christ. After all, our faith rests on him as our Lord and Savior, the One who taught us how to live, who died to take the punishment for the sin of believers, and who rose from the dead. One day, Jesus will return for all who believe in him, confess him with their mouth, and repent of their sins. Believers will live forever with Jesus on the new earth. We want our kids to know this amazing truth backward and forward.

One neat way to help our children better understand the life of Jesus is to help them learn about his closest friends, the twelve disciples. After all, the disciples lived with Jesus, learning from him, for around three years during his ministry. Eleven of these men witnessed the Risen Jesus after his death and Resurrection. They saw Jesus ascend to heaven. Then, they spent the rest of their lives sharing the good news of Jesus Christ–the gospel.

Each one of the men Jesus called to follow him were changed by the time they spent learning from their Savior. Check out this fun study of the men who followed Jesus!

The Twelve Disciples of Jesus Activities for Kids

• Who Were the Disciples? by Danika Cooley | Who Were the Disciples? (Christian Focus Publications, 2025) is a fun way for kids to learn about the twelve men Jesus called to be his special disciples. Your kids will learn about each many’s personality, his interactions with Jesus, and about how of the eleven faithful disciples shared the gospel as apostles after the death and Resurrection of Jesus.
• Jesus’ 12 Disciples Craft | Your children will create toilet paper roll busts to represent each of the twelve disciples. They’ll be sure to recall the lessons they’ve learned about the disciples in Who Were the Disciples?.
• Fishing for Men Matthew 4:19 Craft | Your kids will create an underwater fishing scene to remind them of Matthew 4:19.
• Fishers of Men Copywork Craft | This fun quilling crafts will give kids a fun way to copy and remember Mark 1:17
• Who Were the Disciples? Lapbook | The lapbook completes your unit study of the disciples, allowing your kids to record what they’ve learned about:
  • The impact of the disciples on the New Testament world, on the Church, and on your child’s world.
  • The New Testament world. Your child will learn about what it was like to live during the time of Jesus.
  • The people involved in Jesus’ biblical, historical story.
  • Vocabulary from the story of the disciples.
  • The timeline of each story.
  • The geography of each Resurrection story.
  • Theology: Luke 5:10b.

This hands-on study of the men who followed Jesus is one your children will remember for a lifetime!

Danika Cooley’s Who What Why Christian history series is perfect for your 7-12 year olds. Your children will better understand the history of the Christian faith, the people who loved Jesus, and what the Bible says about really important issues! Danika is an award-winning children’s author and Bible curriculum developer. Her popular Bible Road Trip™ is used by tens of thousands of families.

Learn more about the Who What Why series and grab your free history lapbooks here.

The post The Twelve Disciples of Jesus: Activities for Kids appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

Why, you might ask? I think it’s because I’m freshly and acutely aware how fast these years are going and I want to make them count! So this year I spent even more time prayerfully evaluating our upcoming year before landing on a plan.

This year (2025-26) we have kids in 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 10th, and 12th grades.

Our Homeschool Approach / Philosophy

After 15+ years in this homeschool journey, there are three key things that I think are essential to a truly successful Christian education.

1. Education is discipleship. Homeschooling is about intentionally instructing the hearts and minds of our children for Christ. Every subject and every moment is an opportunity to point them to Jesus, cultivate wisdom, and help them grow in godly character.
2. Strong family relationships. God placed us in our families on purpose. The relationships we build at home are foundational to learning and spiritual growth. Homeschooling gives us the precious gift of time. We can invest deeply in our children, disciple them through daily life, and enjoy the short season we have together before they’re grown.
3. Customized education. Every child is uniquely designed by God with different interests, strengths, and struggles. Homeschooling allows us to meet them where they are and cultivate a love for learning that lasts. A truly Christian education equips them to follow Christ in whatever path He leads.

Those are our priorities and what our plans and curriculum picks are built around.

A few other helpful things to note about how we homeschool:

• We’re very eclectic and pull from several resources.
• We homeschool year-round, taking breaks when desired/needed.
• We use loop scheduling and rotations so we can enjoy several subjects and resources without overloading our schedule or letting too many things fall through the cracks.
• We use a basic routine rather than strict scheduling.

Here’s our basic routine:

• Breakfast time: Group work rotation 
• Morning chores 
• Youngers group work rotation (olders do their independent work)
• 1:1 work with youngers until done
• Lunch: Group work rotation
• Afternoon chores
• Teen group work rotation
• Dinner: Family read aloud (or family devotions if Dad home)
• Evening chores

With all this in in mind, here is a run-down of our 2025 – 2026 homeschool curriculum picks! As always, feel free to ask me questions.

Our 2025-2026 Homeschool Curriculum Picks

Group Work

World Watch (All) – This is a fantastic 10-minute daily Christian news program for kids and families. It’s a motivating way to get the kids up in the morning, too, because they don’t want to miss it!

Sound Words for Kids: Lessons in Theology – We’ll be going through this series again as our main Bible curriculum. It’s great for elementary ages but will be a good refresher for the older kids, too. It includes notebooking and activities, for elementary ages. It also prompts a lot of discussion and interesting rabbit trails! (My oldest will also be doing another theology curriculum for high school.)

Other Morning Time Reading – After Bible we do World Watch and then either in the morning or afternoon a short read aloud. We’ll be bouncing between Creation Illustrated and some creation-themed daily devotions/science readings by Search for the Truth Ministries with Bruce Malone.

Art Lessons

Biblical Art Lessons – The kids, especially the older ones, enjoyed the Foundations of Art: Bundle 1 of the online art courses through Biblical Classical Community. We plan to continue with bundle 2, doing it once a week. These water color lessons are taught using the Principle Approach and I love the content.

Themed Chalk Pastel Project – We will also be bringing in You Are an Artist chalk pastel lessons topically — Bible stories, holidays, history, maps, literature, and more. I love that the projects can be done quickly and using a basic set of chalk pastels and construction paper.

Art Appreciation – I wanted to add an art appreciation course but I wanted something that presented art and art history with a biblical worldview and providential view of history. Cornerstone Curriculum was recommended to me, so we’ll be trying their Adventures in Art – Intermediate course for a group lesson once a week.

Literature & Read Alouds

Literature study: We like using the Center For Lit Teaching the Classics approach to discuss literature, along with worldview and biblical principles. It is very effective and can be applied to any of the group reads we do together, as well as individual books the older kids read. This year we’ll be using the methods to have more group discussions about the literary elements and themes of our readings, as well as more intensely with our teens.

Note: Center for Lit has several great resources, including Teaching the Classics, Ready Readers teacher guides, online courses, and their Pelican Society, which we I recently signed up for and am enjoying. You can get 15% off your first Center For Lit order when you spend $100 using coupon REFBGFES6UPPY.)

Group Reads: We typically have several literature read-alouds and audiobooks going on (at dinner time, in the car, etc.). We choose books from various sources:

• Generations literature
• Missionary biographies
• Historical fiction to go along with our current history studies
• Various quality book lists (If you look at the Subcategories section on the left sidebar you’ll see all the booklists linked)

Grade-Level Homeschool Curriculum Picks

3rd Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

My youngest has some dyslexia and sensory processing issues. We have been focusing mostly on his reading, which is finally taking off well. This year my goals with him are to get him into a good groove with math and writing as well, as we’ve bounced around a bit too much in those areas. It’s ok, though. Homeschooling affords us the time and personal attention to build up these areas at his pace.

Bible – In addition to our group Bible studies, the three younger boys will be doing the Kingdom Brick Builders Club, which is an online resource that goes through monthly topics with devotions, Bible lessons, brick building, and more. We’re excited to get started and build that community!

History – Children’s Providential History Collection from Generations. We’re going through this again, slowing down to do more notebooking and adding historical fiction read alouds (some of which are provided by Generations to correspond to each level) and fun extension activities.

Reading – We realized last year that this kiddo is dyslexic like one of his brothers and needs to run through a reading program that has more support. We’re working through All About Reading (excellent Orton Gillingham program).

Handwriting – For this kiddo, the physical act of writing is a challenge. My goal is to continue having him practice writing each day, whether that’s with copywork or notebooking during other subjects or with a lesson out of A Reason for Handwriting. It’s great for letter formation, handwriting practice, and Scripture copywork.

Science – I’ll help him go through God Made Everything from Generations this year. This is our first time really splitting out science. for each kid instead of doing it as a group. Will be different!

Math U See – We bounced around with math quite a bit with this kiddo, trying to find the right fit. In the end we both landed on Math U See. He has some yet to work through in Beta but then we’ll move on to Gamma.

Spanish – The older kids are doing their own foreign language tracks, but the younger three boys and I will continuing with FlipFlop Spanish. It’s a whole family curriculum. This is 3 days a week for about 15 minutes and is fun and hands-on!

5th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

My 5th grader is a bit ahead of the game. Finding activities and resources that challenge him but are fun has been a challenge. He has become an avid reader and is heavily interested in piano, so those are the areas we’ll encourage him in the most. In the meantime, steady progress in the other subjects!

Bible – In addition to our group Bible studies, the three younger boys will be doing the Kingdom Brick Builders Club, which is an online resource that goes through monthly topics with devotions, Bible lessons, brick building, and more. We’re excited to get started and build that community!

History – Children’s Providential History Collection from Generations. We’re going through this again, slowing down to do more notebooking and adding historical fiction read alouds (some of which are provided by Generations to correspond to each level) and fun extension activities.

Spelling: All About Spelling – This is on his loop schedule and we’ve been slowly working through the levels. They are really helping him improve her spelling skills! (Tip: We like using the app instead of the tiles so we don’t lose them.)

Math – He’ll be continuing with Christian Light Education Math, level 5. This is a fantastic traditional spiral-based curriculum that has served us well for many of our children at least up to high school, and through it for my oldest.

Composition and Grammar – He’ll be working through Essentials in Writing level 5. It includes grammar and composition. (Although EIW is a Christian company, the content is not overtly Christian. We in biblical/worldview topics for writing prompts and talk about biblical principles in relation to writing and communication.)

Science – He’ll do God Made Me from Generations this year. Should be a good one!

Spanish – The older kids are doing their own foreign language tracks, but the younger three boys and I will continuing with FlipFlop Spanish. It’s a whole family curriculum. This is 3 days a week for about 15 minutes and is fun and hands-on!

Bible – He’s still working through his copy of Bible Investigators – Creation – This is a fantastic new resource that uses puzzles and investigation to teach personal study habits using the inductive Bible study method.

Piano – This kid LOVES piano, just like his oldest brother. He completed the entire program for the Mr. Hoffman piano lessons, so as promised, we moved him over to lessons this summer with our local piano teacher. (Good thing for us our oldest decided to end his piano lessons this summer, too, because we wouldn’t be able to pay for two! 😬)

7th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

He’s my full-on hands-on 100-percent-of-the-time child. Balancing academics with experiences and hobbies that he enjoys (gardening, building, and his little business making and selling wooden candle wreaths) is where I spend most of my time, now that his intensive dyslexia program is over.

Bible – In addition to our group Bible studies, the three younger boys will be doing the Kingdom Brick Builders Club, which is an online resource that goes through monthly topics with devotions, Bible lessons, brick building, and more. We’re excited to get started and build that community!

History – Children’s Providential History Collection from Generations. We’re going through this again, slowing down to do more notebooking and adding historical fiction read alouds (some of which are provided by Generations to correspond to each level) and fun extension activities.

Spelling: All About Spelling – This kiddo finished Lexercise and eye therapy this past year and got a great foundation that helped him take off with reading in spite of his dyslexia. It gave him a good start with spelling, too, so we’ll continue working on that sill with AAS.

Math – This kiddo needs hands-on math with his dyslexia and dyscalculia challenges. I’m so happy with the progress he has made with Math-U-See! He’ll continue with Epsilon this year.

Composition and Grammar – He’ll be working through Essentials in Writing level 6. It includes grammar and composition. (Although EIW is a Christian company, the content is not overtly Christian. We in biblical/worldview topics for writing prompts and talk about biblical principles in relation to writing and communication.)

Science – He’ll do God Made Animals from Generations this year. His favorite topic!

Spanish – The older kids are doing their own foreign language tracks, but the younger three boys and I will continuing with FlipFlop Spanish. It’s a whole family curriculum. This is 3 days a week for about 15 minutes and is fun and hands-on!

Bible Study – Because You Are Strong is a simple study just right for his age. We’ll be going through it together during out “devotion time with mom” slot on his loop schedule.

9th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

I cannot believe my sweet middle girl is in high school! ❤️ Moving her to doing “classes” with her sister and/or her brother was a good move last year. It helps her stay engaged and accountable, and is more fun for all of them. She has been doing great in all areas, and we’ll take some time strengthening her spelling and vocabulary. (PSA, not all kids naturally pick up spelling and vocabulary well with a lot of reading. Some do, but others might need direct instruction. That’s ok. It’s just how they’re wired.)

Bible – The high schoolers and I will do an inductive Bible study of 1 and 2 Corinthians this year, which also happens to be the books they’re studying/memorizing for Bible Quizzing. We’ll use this Precepts resource and I’ll lead the through it with the goal of giving them good study skills and practice applying biblical principles to any Bible study. I’ll also pull in material for some basic study lessons from Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible. (I already have an older edition I’ll be using.)

Home Economics – With my oldest graduating in 2026, it seemed like a good idea to ramp up some home economics skills and include my other two high schoolers in on it, too. I still need to map out what exactly we’ll cover, but the goals are that they’ll leave with a set of tried-and-true recipes they practiced well, basic home maintenance skills, basic mending skills, menu planning and grocery budgeting, etc. I’ll use the home economics courses from Plain and Not So Plain as my launching pad.

Composition and Grammar – She’ll be working through Essentials in Writing level 9 with the grading add-on. (They don’t really grade – just provide feedback for some of the writing assignments.) I don’t know if we’ll do the whole thing, because I think she’d like to take a detour into more creative writing exploration. She and I will figure out what that might look like. I’m eying The Young Writer’s Workshop.

Bird Unit – This is my bird girl! We’ve done a bird unit every year for a while now. lol! This year she and her sister will finish up her Audubon course from Biblical Classical Community (which is fabulous) and then doing a couple of mini courses I picked up on Black Friday from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Spelling: All About Spelling – We’ll keep working through AAS to strengthen those spelling skills, as well as lifting spelling words from her writing to practice.

Vocabulary: Wordela – This is a new resource to me, so we’ll see how it goes. It’s an online homeschool vocabulary program that lets me assign pre-made or custom-made lists. I thought it might be more fun/effective than a book she might lose. I can have multiple students, so some of the other kids might try it, too.

Math – Denison Algebra 1 – Pre-algebra worked really well for her last year, so she’d like to continue with Denison. Honestly, Denison has been a super find for us. I have a couple of math whiz kids, but the others hit struggles right around pre-algebra. Denison is great. (I would probably choose something else for a child pursing a math-heavy science degree, but otherwise it’s fantastic and enough for college prep.)

Science – She and her sister will be doing chemistry this year using the following. They did something similar for biology and it was *perfect.”

• Chemistry 101 from The 101 Series (DVD with accompanying activity guide for labs) We already have all the 101 series DVDs and they’re amazing Christian resources.
• Guest Hollow – Chemistry in the Kitchen – We already have this, so we’ll in some activities and books.
• (maybe) Self-paced virtual labs from College Prep Science. They did these for biology and it was very effective. If we feel like they need more labs to make it a complete credit, we’ll do these over the summer.

History – She and her sister are working through the Antiquity history course from Compass Classroom. They’ll likely continue with Christendom, which is church history and the middle ages. I like the biblical worldview of this course, the interesting videos (they take notes), the incorporation of source documents, and the simple portfolio activity to engage with it. I’ll also add in some historical fiction reads and she’ll add to her timeline as she goes through it.

Note: There are art history lessons that sometimes have nudity in the artwork. Different families handle this in different ways. For my two girls we tell them to just skip the artwork content and are using a different resource for art history/appreciation.

German – She chose German for her foreign language. We prefer The Ulat but their German course isn’t done. So we plan to use Rosetta Stone Homeschool Unlimited Languages Subscription (German level 1 and 2), Easy German videos on YouTube, and a workbook for writing and grammar like Easy German Step-by-Step. We will also do a weekly culture/project/writing activity.

10th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

Oh, my spunky, art-loving girl who loves reading and gets bored easily with everything else. 🙂 It’s been fun but also challenging to find materials that fit her well! But each year gets better and she’s really engaging with her learning now.

Bible – The high schoolers and I will do an inductive Bible study of 1 and 2 Corinthians this year, which also happens to be the books they’re studying/memorizing for Bible Quizzing. We’ll use this Precepts resource and I’ll lead the through it with the goal of giving them good study skills and practice applying biblical principles to any Bible study. I’ll also pull in material for some basic study lessons from Grasping God’s Word: A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and Applying the Bible. (I already have an older edition I’ll be using.)

Apologetics – We had Apologetics in Action from Master Books scheduled for her last year and forgot about it. She’d like to do it, so we’ll try again this year. 🙂 I doubt we’ll do the workbook but rather will use it for discussion and some written narrations. We also plan to add Case for Christ and possibly some C.S. Lewis to the mix.

Home Economics – With my oldest graduating in 2026, it seemed like a good idea to ramp up some home economics skills and include my other two high schoolers in on it, too. I still need to map out what exactly we’ll cover, but the goals are that they’ll leave with a set of tried-and-true recipes they practiced well, basic home maintenance skills, basic mending skills, menu planning and grocery budgeting, etc. I’ll use the home economics courses from Plain and Not So Plain as my launching pad.

English – She’ll be doing select portions of 9th grade Essentials in Writing level with her sister for some extra practice (I just grabbed an extra workbook to make it easier) and then the rest of her writing efforts will be related to other course work for literature and history.

It’s also time to teach her how to do speed essays, which is a way to combine written narrations, her essay organization and writing skills, and research/analysis skills into a short weekly. I hope to do that during the last quarter of the year. It’s an excellent habit for high school writing!

Bird Unit – She and her sister will finish up their Audubon course from Biblical Classical Community. It’s a lovely course but we started a little late last year and it’s substantial! So we’ll keep doing it at their pace and finish when we finish.

Psychology from a Christian Perspective – Her older brother took Introduction to Psychology from a Christian Perspective by 7 Sisters Homeschool last year and we enjoyed the conversations so much she asked to do it too.

Math – Denison Geometry – Taking some time in Geometry this coming year! I think she’ll like he break from Algebra. 😆

Science  – She and her sister will be doing chemistry this year using the following. They did something similar for biology and it was *perfect.”

• Chemistry 101 from The 101 Series (DVD with accompanying activity guide for labs) We already have all the 101 series DVDs and they’re amazing Christian resources.
• Guest Hollow – Chemistry in the Kitchen – We already have this, so we’ll in some activities and books.
• (maybe) Self-paced virtual labs from College Prep Science. They did these for biology and it was very effective. If we feel like they need more labs to make it a complete credit, we’ll do these over the summer.

History – We switched her to the Generations world history course and she really likes it. She’ll finish the second half this year. She and her sister will also work through the Compass Classroom course, Christendom, which is church history and the middle ages. She’ll add to her timeline as she goes through both. I don’t think the Generations course needs to be supplemented. She just enjoys doing the Compass Classroom videos and discussions with her sister.

French – She’ll continue with The Ulat French, Easy French videos on YouTube, and a workbook for writing and grammar like Easy French Step-by-Step. We will also do a weekly culture/project/writing activity.

Creative Arts – This is my artistic one! She spends a lot of time crafting and painting already. Here’s what she’ll do this year:

• Internship at a homeschool theater co for costume design, set design, and makeup (she’ll take some short online courses about a few of these topics, too)
• Learning to sew from a fellow homeschool mom, with an eye toward costume creation
• Cake and cupcake design
• Digital illustration and animation
• Comic book writing and illustration
• Various handicrafts

12th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Picks

A senior! Soooo crazy, you guys. This summer he is working as staff at a local Christian camp, along with some friends from church. It’s been strange to not have him home each day!

He is unsure of his plans after high school and doesn’t want to spend the time and money on a 4-year college unless it’s to intentionally work toward a specific goal that requires it. I think that’s smart. He has discussed 2-year programs, going right into the workforce, camp internship, and even missions trips. Praying for the Lord to lead the way!

In the meantime, his transcript is pretty college-ready as-is in case he changes his mind, and he doesn’t need many more credits. But his goal is to spend his last year of high school wrapping that up and digging into some life skills that will set him up for success. Again… smart. So, here we go!

Bible Quizzing – This is his third and last year, so he wants to step it up! He plans to study an hour a day at least and go for “Memory Masters,” so it’s a priority this year.

Bible study of 1 and 2 Corinthians with his sisters, using this Precepts resource and with a focus on biblical principles. We’ll also do a quick survey of different Bible study methods.

30 Days to Understanding the Bible – this will be a quick overview, reviewing the organization, themes, and threads of Scripture. We’ll probably go through it along with the Bible study.

Holiness of God teaching series by R.C. Sproul – this is an excellent series I really appreciated, so I’m hoping we can squeeze it in, even if just to listen/watch and discuss.

Foundations of Faith – My oldest has learned the basics of doctrine and theology, specifically through Sound Words for Kids, but I like that this goes more in-depth for older kids and covers more topics. He also likes workbook formats, so it’s right up his alley.

RLV Discipleship Curriculum – I have heard good things about this and I think he’d enjoy it! Good for biblical context studies and practical discipleship. He’ll do it in the second semester.

Some Extras:

• Daily journal – Relating to daily Scripture reading, devotions, prayers, assigned books, or anything else. But must be kept daily and be at least a paragraph.
• Prepare a sermon and a week of family devotions (his dad will help him with this)
• Service Projects – 2 each semester, practicing looking for ways to serve in our church and community

American Civics with Michael Farris – This self-paced video course by Michael Farris, founder of Patrick Henry College and Chairman of HSLDA, looks amazing. I can’t wait to go through it with him! PLUS they gave me a 20% off coupon code to pass on to you! 🙌 Use code PROVERBIAL20 at checkout to get 20% off and lifetime access.

Consumer Math for Real Life – He’s finished Algebra 2, so the math will be easy, but he likes that he’ll learn budgeting, investing, taxes, employee benefits, business planning, and more.

Life Skills and Personal Development

• Auto upkeep – pulling some things from this book and then practical work with his dad on the teen car
• Entrepreneurship course by Dave Ramsey
• Books to read/narrate:
  • Talk Like TED book and public speaking practice 
  • 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens (This might be too simple for him but I picked it up at a used book sale, so he can skim it and see)
  • Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung – Godly guidance for decision-making

English 12 – We’ll go through a set of literature selections and have discussions on biblical principles and analysis with Center For Lit. (With the Pelican Society membership, we have access to a live and recorded book club, so we’ll pick some that are from that list).

For writing, we’ll keep practicing essays and written narrations for literature and other subjects, strengthening his writing. He’ll also go through some of the projects in the Real World Writing Guide: High School Guide to Professional Writing from 7 Sisters. I’m adding it it how to do an Op-Ed, an informational interview write-up, a business proposal, satire, and professional correspondence.

Home Economics – With my oldest graduating in 2026, it seemed like a good idea to ramp up some home economics skills and include my other two high schoolers in on it, too. I still need to map out what exactly we’ll cover, but the goals are that they’ll leave with a set of tried-and-true recipes they practiced well, basic home maintenance skills, basic mending skills, menu planning and grocery budgeting, etc. I’ll use the home economics courses from Plain and Not So Plain as my launching pad.

Whew! That’s a bundle! Inevitably, we end up not doing something in our plans, and that’s ok. Each year I get better at focusing on our priorities and picking things that are likely to actually happen 😆 so I’m pretty happy with these picks!

Have a wonderful homeschool year, friends!

~ Tauna 💕

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The post 2025-2026 Homeschool Curriculum Picks (for 6 kids grades 3-12) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

For ease of use, I have categorised the 100+ Screen-Free Activities for Kids  into 3 parts: activities you can do at home, activities you can do out and about and activities that you can do weather-permitting.

At Home:

1. Read a Book
2. Make Super Soft Playdough or Scented Playdough
3. Make slime
4. Build a cubby house or fort
5. Blow bubbles
6. Play handball
7. Draw a picture with chalk on the driveway or side walk
8. Do some bird watching
9. Hunt for bugs and insects
10. Jump rope
11. Write a poem
12. Paint a Picture
13. Read the Bible
14. Create with Lego
15. Bake some cookies or a cake
16. Throw a frisbee or boomerang
17. Make some crayon shapes with broken crayons
18. Learn to cross stitch
19. Create a cardboard city, robot, castle, etc.
20. Create with kinetic sand
21. Play a board game
22. Play a card game
23. Build a marble run
24. Complete a Lego Bible Challenge
25. Make a Bird Feeder
26. Make Lavender Wands
27. Make some Sherbet
28. Make some Bath Fizzies
29. Make plantable seed paper
30. Hide some treasure and make a treasure map to find it
31. Make some musical instruments and start a band
32. Write a play, practice it, and then put on a show
33. Make some Story Stones and then write a story with them
34. Make some puppets
35. Play hopscotch
36. Race toy cars
37. Sew some clothes for your dolls
38. Make some paper doily flowers or snowflakes
39. Write a letter or postcard
40. Help clean the house or your bedroom (I mean… it’s an activity 😏)
41. Water the plants
42. Ride your bike / scooter
43. Play catch
44. Make mud pies
45. Play freeze tag
46. Play hide and seek
47. Pick a topic and make a sensory bin (like sharks… Pinterest is great for ideas.)
48. Make people out of toilet rolls and put on a play
49. Make paper planes and race them
50. Build a tower out of plastic cups
51. Make light sabers from pool noodles
52. Write a song and sing it
53. Turn on some music and dance
54. Create origami
55. Plant some sunflowers seeds and watch them grow
56. Play minute-to-win-it games
57. Make a simple compass
58. Get and use a rock-polishing kit
59. Stick a Skewer Through a Balloon (fun experiment!)
60. Make shadow puppets
61. Play dressing up
62. Make some salt dough ornaments
63. Decorate some flowerpots
64. Create a self-portrait
65. Create a fairy garden
66. Start a journal
67. Make some jewellery
68. Shoot hoops
69. Wash the car
70. Make a boredom buster jar
71. Create your own crosswords or word searches
72. Have a clean out and create a sculpture with your junk
73. Make wooden spoon puppets
74. Write your own joke book or comic strip
75. Make a paperweight
76. Collect some twigs and make a sculpture using clay
77. Write secret messages and try to decode them
78. Write your own comic strip / book
79. Have a bubble bath with some aquatic toys
80. Write to a pen pal
81. Start a lemonade stand
82. Do a puzzle together
83. Look through family photos and share your memories
84. Build an obstacle course and see who can run it the fastest
85. Make a string telephone to talk to each other
86. Make a bubble wrap painting
87. Paint with toy cars by rolling the wheels through paint and rolling them onto paper
88. Do some straw weaving
89. Make a collage with pictures you have cut out from magazines

Out and About:

90. Go on a picnic
91. Go on a hike
92. Visit the library
93. Go for a walk
94. Visit a playground
95. Go on a scavenger hunt
96. Skip rocks
97. Start a rock collection
98. Make a kite and then go fly it
99. Go for a bike ride / scooter
100. Go fishing
101. Go to a museum
102. Go geocaching
103. Head to the pool or a swimming hole
104. Go to the zoo

Weather Permitting:

105. Go to the beach
106. Build a sandcastle
107. Build a snowman
108. Make a snow angel
109. Run through the sprinkler
110. Look at the clouds and make them into shapes
111. Have a backyard campout
112. Have a water balloon fight
113. Have a bonfire
114. Jump in the puddles

To make it easier for you, we have a printable list for easy reference. ❤️

This guest post was originally written by Stacey, a fellow homeschool mom. Her blog, Simple Living. Creative Learning, is a fabulous resource for everyone, comprising of fun activities, crafts, lots of free printables and yummy recipes as well ways they have enjoyed learning as a family.

The post 100+ Screen-Free Activities For Kids (With Free Printable!) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

But when I do get out there to pull a few weeds, check on the tomatoes, or scoop up loamy soil, I’m reminded why I love it. There’s something about that quiet work of hands in dirt, even in small doses, that draws my heart back to God. And as I tend to those scraggly plants, I hear Him whisper, I’m tending to your family, too.

Parenting is so much like gardening. We sow seeds of truth, love, and discipline, hoping they’ll take root. It’s messy, slow, and sometimes we wonder if anything’s growing. But we can take heart, dear moms, in the knowledge that God is always at work in the hidden places—in our children’s hearts, and in ours.

I’ll just say it: I’m not very good at gardening. But the Lord is the Master Gardener, and while only God can transform the hearts of our children, He calls us to be a part of the precious and holy work of tending, giving us everything we need to do it well.

Here are a few of the parenting lessons in the garden that He has been teaching me over the years:

1. Good Fruit Starts with Good Soil

Before I plant a single seed, I spend time preparing the soil. I pull out rocks, loosen hardened patches, and mix in compost to enrich the ground. I’ve learned the hard way that if the soil isn’t ready, even the best seeds won’t thrive.

Our children’s hearts are much the same. As parents, we can cultivate the soil of their hearts through prayer, biblical instruction, and an abundance of grace. It takes time and and consistency, but the Lord uses our efforts to draw our children to Him.

“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it.” — Matthew 13:23

Are we creating an environment in our homes where the Word of God can take root and grow? Are we being faithful to what He has called us to do and trusting Him with the results?

2. Growth Happens Beneath the Surface

Some days, I wonder if anything I’m teaching is sticking. Can you relate? I pour out Scripture, correction, and encouragement… and then face whining, messes, or conflict. It’s tempting to think nothing is working.

But like seeds buried in the dirt, growth often begins where we can’t see it. Roots are forming. Life is stirring.

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen…” — 2 Corinthians 4:18

Though we cannot know all that the Lord is doing, we can trust that He is sovereign and good. Our part is to plant and water with faithfulness, praying for God’s grace to work in our children’s hearts–in His way, and in His perfect timing.

3. Healthy Roots Go Deep

Strong roots make for strong plants. In drought or storms, it’s not the leaves or flowers that matter most, but the roots. Shallow-rooted plants are easily scorched or uprooted. Deep roots anchor and nourish.

The same is true for our kids’ faith. They will deal with many daily challenges as well as big life-changing events. When those storms come, we want deep roots that keep them steady in Christ.

“They are like trees planted along the riverbank… Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.” — Jeremiah 17:8 (NLT)

How do we do this? Roots grow deep when they are well-watered. Saturate them in God’s Word, dear moms, and teach it to them diligently. Then help them practice turning to God and His Word when the storms of life do come. Their roots will grow strong and deep, and they will know how to stay anchored to the Lord.

4. Weeds Will Always Try to Sneak In

You don’t have to plant weeds—they come on their own, and fast. Left alone, they choke out the good things we’ve worked so hard to grow and cause our plants to produce less fruit. Parenting is full of weed-pulling: habits, attitudes, and influences that don’t belong and distract them from the Lord.

And let’s be honest—sometimes those weeds are in our own hearts, too. Bitterness, impatience, control… The garden reminds us to examine ourselves as we shepherd our children.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” — Proverbs 4:23

Weed-pulling isn’t a one-time job. It’s daily, grace-filled work and we need the Holy Spirit to do it! Ask God to reveal the weeds that may have cropped up in your child, in yourself, or in your family life. Pray and seek God’s wisdom in how to address them. He will give you guidance an strength to do it!

5. You Can’t Rush the Harvest

It’s true, I’m an impatient woman. This fact makes gardening a particular challenge for me, especially beyond the planting phase. But alas, the garden runs on God’s timing, not mine.

Parenting is the same. 

The fruit we long to see—faith, maturity, wisdom—won’t come overnight. Sometimes it takes years to see the results of your prayers and perseverance.

“Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9

Keep planting. Keep praying. He is faithful. Remember these truths when setbacks happen and weariness threatens to settle in. Lean on the Lord and persevere in His strength. “Let patience have its perfect work.” (James 1:4)

6. Pruning Is Painful, but Purposeful

The first few years that I grew grapevines, I was shocked at the severe pruning that was required. But I did what the experts said and trusted the process. That trust paid off. Cutting away what was distracting or unneeded made room for stronger and more fruitful vine.

As parents, we’re sometimes called to lovingly “prune” as well. Setting limits. Disciplining with love. Saying “no” when it would be easier to say “yes.” It’s not fun, but it’s necessary. And it looks to God’s pruning care for HIs children.

“Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” — John 15:2

Yes, God prunes us, too—through motherhood, trials, and humility. All so we can bear more fruit. This process of sanctification can sometimes be painful, but it is also so sweet, knowing that our Father in heaven does it for our own good.

7. The Goal Is Fruitfulness, Not Perfection

When we garden, we’re not aiming for flawless plants. We’re aiming for fruit that is a blessing to our family and a testament of the careful tending that took place.

Likewise, our goal in parenting isn’t perfect children—it’s children who know and follow Jesus. We’re not raising trophies. We’re raising disciples.

“This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” — John 15:8

And this fruit takes time. Some years are abundant, others may seem sparse. But in every season, God is faithful to grow what we entrust to Him.

Parenting Lessons: Let the Garden Remind You

The garden is one of God’s most gentle teachers. The Master Gardener invites us to slow down, pay attention, and remember that the work of growing is holy work—even when it feels hard and hidden.

The same is true in motherhood. Keep preparing the soil, dear mamas. Keep planting seeds and pulling weeds, trusting the Lord to bring the growth.

He’s not finished yet.

~ Tauna 💕

Plant Seeds of Faith in Your Children with Sound Words for Kids: Lessons in Theology

Teach your kids the basics of the Christian faith with Sound Words for Kids: Lessons in Theology! Your children will learn what the Bible says about important topics such as God, creation, and salvation. Includes scripture memory, notebooking, activities, coloring pages, discussion questions, and more!

The post Seeds, Weeds, and Waiting on the Lord: Parenting Lessons from the Garden appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.

I have partnered with Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science to give one homeschool family a chance to win an AMAZING giveaway — a full-year science course for their middle or high school student!

One blessed winner will be able to choose between a self-paced online course or a live online class with interactive instruction and the value (depending on your choice) is up to $880!

If you are that winner, YOU select what will work best for your child…

• A full school year self-paced science class of your choice including one year access to the online interactive labs of your choice – Value $270, or
• A live full school year online science class of your choice with online lab. Your options would be middle school combo science, high school biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy and physiology – Value $880

Now do you see why I say this is an amazing giveaway!!! Wow!!!

🎉 PLUS, everyone who enters gets a FREE gift! Upon entry, we’ll email you a copy of of Biology Sketchnotes from Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science at no cost to you! It comes with 24 fun lessons to enrich your science studies this year.

Enter the Homeschool Science Giveaway!

Giveaway winner may choose one of the following prize options from Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science:

• Option 1: A full school year self-paced science class of their choice ($180) and one year access to one of the online interactive labs of their choice ($90). Package value: $270
  
• Option 2: A live full school year online science class of their choice with online lab. (Choosing from: high school biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy and physiology, or middle school combo science.) Package value is $880.

After entering the giveaway below, your FREE Biology Sketchnotes will be delivered to you via email.

Important NOTES: ➡️ You MUST click the button on the confirmation email that will be sent to you in order to be entered into the giveaway. Entering signs you up for the Proverbial Homemaker and Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science email newsletters if you aren’t already subscribed. (Unsubscribe any time.) Winner will be notified via the email address used to enter this giveaway and has 7 days to respond before a new winner is selected.

The post Science Class Giveaway from Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science! (Up to $880 value) appeared first on Proverbial Homemaker.