This has caused all sorts of dilemmas as I suddenly couldn't print all the wonderful things I have been printing. With limited funds at the moment, I am stuck making do.
Our homeschool has been revolutionized this year with the discovery of notebooking. We've used notebooking before, but for some reason, this year it "clicked" in my heart. Suddenly, ideas began flowing as I planned. The workbooks that my children despised became for me what they should have been... tools to use occasionally instead of a curriculum. The few workbooks I have stuck with are usually cut apart and certain parts glued into the notebooking pages. The rest I toss. (We still use a couple workbooks as is, such as Explode the Code and CLE Bible.)
I was printing out pre-made notebooking pages and putting them into three-ringed binders after the girls completed them. However, with my printer on the fritz, that option isn't convenient. After a few minutes of panic and stress, I realized I had a few composition notebooks. I ran to the store, and was blessed to discover they were still on sale for back-to-school. I grabbed a handful more. The fresh blank pages were a bit intimidating at first, but soon I was able to come up with ideas. (The internet is a wonderful resource; Pinterest, an encyclopedia of creative ideas.)
My older girls have gone from consumers to producers! They are writing and narrating and learning and RETAINING! Both are very unique in their style. Laura is my writer. She puts in images if I request, but she processes information by writing. I'm encouraging creativity and attempts at visual images, whether she prints something off the internet or creates it herself. I believe that touching as many senses as possible aids tremendously in learning. Laura is an amazing writer, however, filling notebooks with stories and poems. I like encouraging her. She paints quite well, so I'm considering using her painting skills in her education.
Jasmine would rather draw. I have to encourage her to write more. She is improving with practice. Her drawing is awesome! She is very visual and has a photographic memory for images. I'm using that in her learning. In LD classes in public school, I secretly think she is a genius that learns very differently than she has been taught.
My youngest is constantly drawing and coloring. I mean NON-STOP! I'm out of display room. With notebooking, I can add many of her masterpieces. In fact, she loves to draw pictures based on the poetry and stories we are reading.
I've added nature study for all of my children, and the results have been impressive. Each girl is learning so much! Notebooking what they are learning is fun!
I even added a math notebook for Megan. We are using a couple different resources, including Life of Fred. Megan, who hates math, begs for Life of Fred. She keeps disappearing into her bedroom with the Life of Fred books to "study". I added a notebook to combine our resources together, give her one place to answer the Life of Fred questions, and to practice concepts. So far, it's working beautifully! (I am planning a Life of Fred review soon.)
Our learning this year is so different from before, and we love it! Notebooking has been a key factor in changing our little one-room schoolhouse. I get so excited about tapping into each of my children's hidden talents.
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