Homeschool Top Ten T’s

1.  Technology. It’s everywhere today. A glance around me reveals my laptop, cell phone, and iPod Touch. There is an iPad on the couch, a movie playing through the XBox streaming Netflix on the television, and the Kinect is resting in front of the TV.  All within 8 feet of where I sit. It’s everywhere.

2.  T-shirts. They come in a rainbow of colors, and are versatile. What else can my kids come upstairs wearing, and even though I know that he slept in that shirt, it looks fine and doesn’t smell, so proclaim him “dressed!” ;)

3.  Timez Attack. A really cool video game that teaches my kids their times tables (and division facts!?) Yes, please! This is my time and sanity saver right now.

4.  Taxi Mom. You wouldn’t be a homeschool mom if you didn’t spend a good portion of– if not each day, at least each week– transporting kids from one activity to the next. Since when did “homeschool” mean “stay home all the time”?!

5.  Tutorials. How-to’s. You name it, your kids are eventually going to ask you HOW to do it. How do the puppies come out?  How do I draw an alien? How do I do this math problem? Tutorials are the way to go! Some really good ones are found on YouTube!

6.  Teaching moms. I didn’t want to be a teacher when I grew up. I still don’t want to be a teacher! I only wanted to be a mom, and that is what I am. My kids’ education is a by-product of our life. Yes, I teach them, but I’m their Momma first. I become a teacher when I became a homeschool Mom. No fancy certificate required.

7.  Tortillas. Those versatile, flat, soft, white sheets of “oh-no-we’re-out-of-bread” goodness! We use tortillas for lunches as well as snacks. Sprinkle grated cheese, microwave, and roll up for a quick quesadilla lunch, fill with fixings you for a ham & cheese sandwich, or  heat in a pan and spread with butter and cinnamon sugar for an “elephant ear” without frying. :)

8.  Typing. No matter how you look at it, there is no getting around the fact that the world is rapidly heading toward the digitized word and away from pen and paper. My boys can both type passably well. Eventually we will purchase a full typing program and stop using the free online ones, so that they can learn the proper technique.

9.  Training wheels. I’m talking about literal ones, as well as figurative. Everyone starts out on training wheels, whether you’re a 5 year old learning to ride a bike, or a brand new homeschool mom with her first box of curriculum. We start out slow, master the first steps, and move on. While we’re learning to homeschool, our kids are learning too.

10.  Thankfulness. I’m reminded all the time how blessed that I am to be home with my kids! As much as I dislike my job,  I am so thankful to God that it is flexible and I can work when it fits my family. Weekends only! I try to build thankfulness into my boys as often as I can.

How are you building thankfulness into your kids?

Read past ABC’s of Homeschooling posts.

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This post is also linked up at Little Blessings for Top Ten Tuesday

About Dawn

Dawn is still happily homeschooling after 15 years. She teaches her two sons, 12 & 10, enjoying every minute of "the second time around". She lives in Eastern Washington with her husband, the youngest 2 of their 6 kids, and an assortment of barking, squeaking, and clucking critters. She blogs here and at Prodigal Planet, as well as The Homeschool Post. You can also find her on Twitter @DawnMPerkins, , and Pinterest.

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18 Responses to Homeschool Top Ten T’s

  1. Ann March 5, 2012 at 9:48 pm #

    I had to laugh because a lot of the "T"s that you mention are ones that are the same here. The t-shirts are the most popular homeschool "outfit" since they are the softest and most comfortable item of clothing to wear (very important when dealing with sensory integration issues). The tortillas and the "we're out of bread" challenge. Yep…have had to do that one too. Enjoyed reading your post this morning!
    Ann recently posted..V is for Veggie Bites – ABCs of HomeschoolingMy Profile

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 1:26 am #

      Yes, they really ARE the bread substitute! I'm seeing from the comments that we're definitely not the only ones who do this! :)

  2. Brandy aka Lil' March 6, 2012 at 12:31 am #

    We do the Tortilla thing to. My kids love nutella sandwiches (chocolate sandwiches in our house). We kept running out of bread so one day I put the nutella on it and now I have one kid who wants a chocolate sandwich and one who wants a chocolate roll up. We always have tortilla's in our house too.
    Brandy aka Lil' recently posted..Wordless Wednesday 2-29-2012My Profile

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 1:25 am #

      Brandy, Nutella is a controlled substance in this house! They sneak it in the cart at Costco, they eat it with spoons when I'm not looking, and of course sandwiches, toast, pancakes… all get Nutella on them if we have it. And I've been known to dip into it too. SO bad but SO good! :) On a tortilla…gives me an idea… hmm… :D

  3. Susan Evans March 6, 2012 at 12:50 am #

    That reminds me, I should have my kids do typing again. LOL
    Susan Evans recently posted..Do Warehouse Clubs Save You Money?My Profile

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 1:23 am #

      LOL Susan! We are hit & miss with the actual Typing as a subject too!

  4. Angie @ Many Little March 6, 2012 at 11:53 am #

    We're pretty heavy on the tech stuff too. We have enough computers in our house that everyone can be on one at the same time. LOL
    Angie @ Many Little recently posted..Let Me Tell You a Little Bit About MyselfMy Profile

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 1:55 pm #

      LOL! I hear you Angie! We're not there quite yet but we are close! The laptops and a PC, an iPad and an iTouch. It still works out that everyone ends up on the wifi at once! :)

  5. Suzanne March 6, 2012 at 12:33 pm #

    We almost have the same items on the list, except for the ones about T-shirt. I make it a point that the kids are properly dresses during homeschooling time. That means they should wear fresh clothes and not the ones they slept on.

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 1:57 pm #

      The last time I checked, Suzanne, t-shirts are pretty standard across the board as far as clothing goes. In fact, I'm wearing one now. Oh wait, I'm not properly attired. (You do realize that the remark about clothes they slept in was a joke, right?)

  6. Sherri March 6, 2012 at 2:24 pm #

    Love this post!

    My daughter goes through a lot of tortillas in this house. Her favorite way is a banana peanut butter wrap or banana nutella wrap. Easy and fairly healthy. :)
    Sherri recently posted..Top 10My Profile

    • Dawn March 6, 2012 at 2:38 pm #

      Oh that sounds really good Sherri! :) I'll have to tell my son. He loves PB and Banana sandwiches but has never used a tortilla for one.

  7. Heidi March 8, 2012 at 9:14 am #

    Does he put peanut butter and cheese on his tortillas, too? :)

    My mom bought matching t-shirts for my girls that say "Books; no electricity required". We call them our home school uniforms, LOL!
    Heidi recently posted..The Ten Worst Things About HomeschoolingMy Profile

    • Dawn March 8, 2012 at 2:25 pm #

      LOL! Actually, YES he has been known to make a PB&C roll-up with a tortilla. :)

  8. amber@classichousewi March 10, 2012 at 2:07 am #

    Yeah, we have a lot of these here, too. We do the chocolate spread on tortillas as well. Or peanut butter. Or cheese. Or cheese and salsa. NOM.
    amber@classichousewi recently posted..ABC’s of Homeschooling ~ TestingMy Profile

  9. Tehila December 2, 2012 at 6:16 pm #

    These are great! I would add "Toys – everywhere," "Toilet training,"Together as a family," and "Terrific children by God's grace!" :-)
    Tehila recently posted..Giveaway: $50 AMAZON Gift Card!My Profile

    • Dawn December 3, 2012 at 3:55 am #

      Thanks Tehila! Those are really great T's! Especially Toys EVERYWHERE and Toilet Training! I think we get overwhelmed with those when we're in that season! :D

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