Wet Felting an Autumn Garland

I am over here dreaming about Autumn though it is the hottest part of summer here in North Florida … Hello There! Welcome to The Beauty of Play. This post is for my subscription members. I currently have two subscriptions: One for all things homeschooling and another for all things math.You can learn more about…

Choosing a Microscope for Your Homeschool

Magnification, Resolution, Lenses – We’re Going to Chat about it All. Hello there, Friend,  Let’s talk Microscopes!  This is a question that I get quite regularly, especially when there is any story or picture that has us doing microscope work. The question usually is, “Do you like your microscope? Would you recommend it?”  The short answer…

Language Arts Overview

An Overview of our Language Arts through the years of our Homeschooling Journey There is so much… Hello There! Welcome to The Beauty of Play. This post is for my subscription members. I currently have two subscriptions: One for all things homeschooling and another for all things math.You can learn more about them  at https://thebeautyofplay.com/membership/…

Keeping a Portfolio

A Sampling of our Homeschooling Portfolios through the Years: from Early Elementary through High Sc… Hello There! Welcome to The Beauty of Play. This post is for my subscription members. I currently have two subscriptions: One for all things homeschooling and another for all things math.You can learn more about them  at https://thebeautyofplay.com/membership/ .  If…

Tools for Learning

What Different Tools of Learning Look Like within our Homeschooling When I first started homesc… Hello There! Welcome to The Beauty of Play. This post is for my subscription members. I currently have two subscriptions: One for all things homeschooling and another for all things math.You can learn more about them  at https://thebeautyofplay.com/membership/ .  If…

Winter Ice Lanterns

A Tutorial on the Ice Lanterns that We Made during Christmas Break. Winter break from homeschooling this year brought record lows with the historic arctic blast storm. We had three straight days of hard freezes. That’s unheard of in North Florida. It very rarely snows here (maybe once in the 20 years we’ve lived here)…

Unschooling for the Summer

Repost: This post was from last year. As my children become older, they have their own projects and their own interests. I try to facilitate their interests as much as possible. My high schooler has a job now, and is pursuing his interest in drones and videography. He rarely participates in our read aloud. My…

How Homeschooling is Different than the Brick and Mortar School

My father-in-law, a retired high school science teacher, sat across from me in our living room at their last visit discussing all things education. If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ll know I love to talk homeschool. It was a fun and lively conversation, mostly about teaching science, when the topic of discussion turned…

Schooling at Home thru the Covid-19 Pandemic

Homeschooling is not school at home. It has a totally different look and feel to it. I think at a time like this we probably have enough stress, that to try to replicate school at home right now would be far too much. But I do have some ideas that can promote, encourage, and continue…

Slowing down for the Winter Season

When September rolls around each year, I have a sense of anticipation. The long hot summer days of Florida have started to wear on all of us. We’ve retreated into the recesses of our air-conditioned home to escape the bugs and humidity.  So when September hints at the possibility of cooler weather, which is actually…

Activity Advent Calendar

I want to share our favorite seasonal family tradition with you – our advent calendar. It’s far from the typical advent calendar where you open a window and have a piece of chocolate.  These little envelopes are filled with family connection, love, sharing, and adventure. My family loves them, even our teenager.  They can’t wait…

Seasonal Traditions

This time of year holds so many family traditions for us that make my heart grow warm at the start of the fall. I came to realize recently that these traditions serve as guide posts and memories for my children. I hope they seed a deep core of being cherished that guides through rough patches…