Sonlight Homeschooling Blog

Mar. 2, 2012

Change Isn't Easy

By Luke

YouTube recently changed their channel design. Facebook will be changing the layout for companies later this month. And we've got some pretty big updates going live on April 2.

Adjusting to changes made by others can be difficult and exciting. I've experienced both while tweaking our social media spaces to make them work with the updates. Some things really don't make sense to me and ruffle my feathers (and I've sent feedback on several occasions). Other aspects of the updates are long-awaited features that offer huge benefits. And for many of the changes, the outcome remains to be seen.

But there's another side of the change equation, and that's the side I'm on with Sonlight's updates. I'm one of the people working on making these things happen. Especially for things like the website, I am heavily involved in the decision making process, as well as getting stuff implemented. There is a ton of work that goes into the updates each year, and that means that the changes aren't easy.

As we look to the web updates come April 2, I'm curious: What was the most frustrating part of browsing Sonlight's website for you last year? We have some stuff I'm super excited to bring you, but I also want to make sure we're thinking about the little things that weren't as helpful as you'd like them to be. So... if you could change one thing about your experience on sonlight.com... what would it be? The more specific you can be, the better. I'd also love any ideas you have for how we could resolve the issue.

For example, a few months ago we got some feedback about an extra click we had programmed into the website. I had a very good reason for including it, but after seeing how it affected you, I realized that reducing that one click was well worth removing the feature I liked. So we updated it.

Any tweaks you'd like to suggest?

And if you can't think of one right now, that's fine. Just keep in mind that we absolutely read and consider all the feedback we get from you while you browse the website. Just look for the "What Bugs You?" bug in the sidebar.

I'm looking forward to continuing to share with you all the stuff we're bringing you in 2012. Thanks for being part of these updates!

~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

Tagged curriculum, sonlight.com, updates | 10 Comments

Mar. 1, 2012

Gray hair is a crown of glory . . .

By Judy

I suppose there are some who would argue with that statement from Proverbs, but scripture has more to say about those who are "advanced" in years. Stand up in the presence of the elderly, and show respect for the aged. (Lev. 19:32)

So why is it that so many avoid spending time with older folks? Why is their counsel often ignored or even mocked ... their stories ridiculed? I began asking myself that question as our children came along. We spent some time fellowshipping with a "multi-generational" church when our children were younger and found a community rich with life experience and a very natural interaction between young and old. Instead of focusing on why this lifestyle is uncommon, we simply began to integrate it into our own home, and have never regretted it.

Some of the ways we wove this generational mindset into our home and lives were simple to accomplish, others required some effort and even sacrifice. We began by having our children remain with us during the services at church. From the time they were infants they learned to sit quietly and eventually to listen and understand what was being taught. It wasn't always easy ... especially with a 2 year old bundle of energy! But they looked forward to sitting with the "big people" and benefited from the interaction with adults. When our oldest was 12 we moved into my family home and added an "in-law" apartment to the house. My children's grandparents have lived with us since that time and have been an important part of their growing up years. One of our daughters spent her high school years volunteering at a local medical center, which included working in the nursing home wing many weekends. She played cards with some of the older gentlemen, and did manicures and make-up for the older ladies.

I've watched our children grow to love this precious older saints. They listen patiently to their stories of "when I was your age...", respect the counsel they have to offer, and pray for them when they're sick or having a difficult day. Lest you think my kids are "saints" in all of this ... there have been days of grumbling and impatience with a grandparent who just doesn't "get it", or an older relative who makes you repeat everything because she can't hear. But as they grow older themselves, they appreciate more and more the value of time spent with this older generation.

You may not have older relatives nearby, but there are many ways to help your children learn to appreciate the "gray haired". Look for stories that emphasize the value of interaction between young and old. Sonlight has a number of titles that reinforce this concept ... In Grandma's Attic and More Stories From Grandma's Attic, Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, Understood Betsy, and The Great and Terrible Quest, to name just a few. Check with a local nursing home to see if you might spend a couple hours on a Saturday afternoon visiting with some of their residents. Perhaps an elderly neighbor would appreciate having someone shovel her walk or mow her lawn. With just a little creativity, you will find many opportunities to introduce your children to a generation that has so much to offer, and their lives (and yours) will be richer for it.

Keep in mind, one of these days the mail will deliver your AARP card and you will become an official member of the gray haired crowd! How encouraging to know that at least your own children will appreciate you in your advanced years, and will perhaps follow your example by training their own children the value of what you have to offer.

Still on the journey ...
~Judy
Sonlight Customer Champion

Tagged elderly, grandparents, multi-generational | 1 Comment

Feb. 29, 2012

Reminder: Confidence, a Homeschool Benefit

By Luke

I was reading Billy Coffey's Internet Validation post and I started tearing up. A new fad, it seems, is that girls are posting videos of themselves asking if they are pretty. The comments, in typical YouTube fashion, are brutal, mean, insipid, less-than-helpful, or kinda creepy if encouraging. [NB: Please heed the content warning on xkcd's site if you decide to browse more comics.]

Maybe it's the fact that I have sisters. Or maybe it's all the kids who hang out with me and Brittany. Or the girls in our Sunday School class. Whatever it is, how young ladies feel about themselves is important to me, so this struck a raw nerve.

And I was reminded of one of the biggest benefits of homeschooling: Confidence.

There will be plenty of time in life to "learn your place," and realize that "you're not all that," and to get an unhealthy dose of "reality" in the years to come. For now, while your children are figuring out who they are, I say the more confidence, the better! Squeeze your kids today and remind them that they work hard, are beautiful, important, and can do great things for God and men!

And if you haven't read Kate Fridkis' post I used to be the prettiest girl in the world, you should. And if you have read it, it's well worth reading again.

~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

P.S. Have you seen what's new in 2012? I'm pretty excited about the latest updates to Sonlight. Check 'em out!

P.P.S. Happy Leap Day!

Tagged benefits, character, confidence, Encouragement, Homeschooling | 4 Comments

Feb. 28, 2012

Ideas for Using Your Book of Time

By Karla

One of my favorite supplemental resources from Sonlight is the Book of Time. I love how it offers a hands-on, visual way for my children to see the "big picture" of history-- what events happened around the same time as other events and which historical figures were alive at the same time as other historical figures.

Years ago, when we were first starting out with Sonlight, I chose to make a wall time line following the directions in my Instructor's Guide. I wanted my children to "see" history initially with the years equal distances apart. I knew I wouldn't want it on the wall permanently, so I laminated my time line, and then just used a small piece of rolled tape on the back of each figure so I could easily remove them later. At the end of the year, my children and I took the figures down and permanently mounted them in our Book of Time for future reference. We did that for a couple of years before we started using just the Book of Time.

I decided I wanted an easy way for us to remember what figures we had studied each year, so before mounting them in the Book of Time, I stuck them to a piece of Astrobright paper to match the label paper Sonlight assigns to each Core package. For Core B, the color is red, Core C is orange, and so on. Then we carefully cut out around each figure so that just a small margin of the color was showing. We used a glue stick to mount them in the Book of Time.

I found it hard to remember (or be bothered with taking the time) to mount the timeline figures as we went through our Core. Instead, we would usually sit down a couple times a year to stick in a big batch at once. It was a good review for the kids. A friend of mine cut out all the figures at the beginning of the year and then paper-clipped them to the books they went with. When they started reading that book they would add the figure to their Book of Time.

Just for fun (as well as for learning) we included some family events in our Book of Time with tiny photographs-- the year Mom and Dad got married, the year each of the kids were born, the year we moved to Idaho. If you're into genealogy or family history, you could also add in events from previous generations. Tying "history book" events in with our family events makes history seem more "real" somehow.

After we completed all the Cores from A to H, our Book of Time was pretty full. I've been displaying it at homeschool conventions for several years, and by now it's getting somewhat battered. So I decided to make a new one. My younger daughter hadn't had much of a hand in putting together the first one, so I recruited her to assist me with the new one. It's been a great way to review history for her, and now each of my children has a book to save as a keepsake to help remind them of many of the interesting people and events we learned about through our years with Sonlight.

How have you used your timeline figures?

Tagged Book of Time, hands on, history, resources, supplemental, timeline | 9 Comments

Feb. 24, 2012

Discerning Truth

By Luke

A couple weeks ago, you had the opportunity to take a Civic Literacy Exam. Ready for a Science Quiz?

What caught my eye with this test is that it indirectly claimed to answer the question "do you have the facts to back up your opinion [on global warming, evolution, embryonic stem cells, and the politicized nature of scientific research]?"

Apparently, I do ...78% of the time (after taking the test once, I now know everything I need to). So what kind of knowledge do you need to have an appropriate opinion on these topics? You need to be able to recognize things like:

Earth's most common atmospheric gas
Elements based off their atomic number
Various abbreviations or their term
Several Greek words or other definitions
A couple compounds or their reactions
The most basic commonly accepted answers for the age of things
Some units of measure
A couple equations
The topics certain scientists worked on
Various "Trivial Pursuit" tidbits about astronomy or other areas of study
One or two physics equations
A few other words and ideas

The thing that leapt off the screen and smacked me across the face is this: None of this information has much of anything to do with anyone's opinion about climate change, evolution education, stem-cell research, or science funding. Being able to properly match/guess the answers to any of the questions in no way helps you be able to discern the truth in these areas. As if amassing a certain number of accepted facts and ideas suddenly made us worthy of seeing clearly!

I get the idea in the background: Don't talk about stuff you don't know anything about. But the magnitude of disconnect between the questions on the test and the issues at hand completely distracts from that legitimate point.

So how do we discern truth about these (and many other) issues? I'll offer my suggestion, but I look forward to your insights as well:

Learn more. Often contested ideas are complex issues.

Look at both sides of the argument. Try to get to the foundational issues/questions. I've found that many of these boil down to a couple core elements and either have little to do with each other, or are the outcome of wildly divergent presuppositions.
Follow the money/power. Funding and fear drive a great many things, often unintentionally. What is gained or lost if one side "wins" or "loses"?
Check the "fruit." Jesus was pretty clear that good comes out of good people, so I assume that ideas work the same way. But to check the fruit, you'll probably have to learn more by going back to points 1 and 2...

How do you teach your children to discern truth?

~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

Tagged Bible, learning, science, Testing | 3 Comments

Feb. 23, 2012

How to Cultivate Contentment

By Sarita

When I read Paul's shocking words "I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances" (Philippians 4:11), I sometimes wonder … how? What is the secret?

Life makes it easy to be discontent. We don't have to work hard to complain. Just look at what encourages us to grumble—from pervasive advertising that tells us what we lack, to housework that never ends, to our physical appearance (which always seems less than perfect). Even homeschooling can make us feel like we are never doing enough, are never good enough, or have a less-than-ideal family life.

But grumbling is such a lousy way to live! What can we do to combat this and learn, like Paul, how to be content? I appreciate what Charles Spurgeon wrote in a short devotional many years ago. (I read a daily devotional from him, and my daughter Jonelle receives these devotionals twice a day via email; you can sign up for that free service here.)

Spurgeon suggests that we must purposely cultivate contentment. I would add that practicing gratitude is one very practical way to do that. May Spurgeon's words encourage you as they did me:

"I have learned, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content." Philippians 4:11

These words show us that contentment is not a natural propensity of man. "Ill weeds grow apace." Covetousness, discontent, and murmuring are as natural to man as thorns are to the soil. We need not sow thistles and brambles; they come up naturally enough, because they are indigenous to earth: and so, we need not teach men to complain; they complain fast enough without any education. But the precious things of the earth must be cultivated. If we would have wheat, we must plough and sow; if we want flowers, there must be the garden, and all the gardener's care.

Now, contentment is one of the flowers of heaven, and if we would have it, it must be cultivated; it will not grow in us by nature; it is the new nature alone that can produce it, and even then we must be specially careful and watchful that we maintain and cultivate the grace which God has sown in us. Paul says, "I have learned ... to be content;" as much as to say, he did not know how at one time. It cost him some pains to attain to the mystery of that great truth. No doubt he sometimes thought he had learned, and then broke down. And when at last he had attained unto it, and could say, "I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content," he was an old, grey-headed man, upon the borders of the grave-a poor prisoner shut up in Nero's dungeon at Rome.

We might well be willing to endure Paul's infirmities, and share the cold dungeon with him, if we too might by any means attain unto his good degree. Do not indulge the notion that you can be contented with learning, or learn without discipline. It is not a power that may be exercised naturally, but a science to be acquired gradually. We know this from experience. Brother, hush that murmur, natural though it be, and continue a diligent pupil in the College of Content.

I pray that I become more content each passing year. Will you join me on that journey?

Sincerely,
Sarita

Tagged character, Christianity, Encouragement, Meditation | Leave a comment

Feb. 21, 2012

Puzzling Design

By Jonelle

My sister and her family came to town for the holidays. We were able to celebrate our annual Family Fun Week—where we gather together from across the country as a whole group. For the past several years the adults have used the evenings to build puzzles while we talk. This year, my sister-in-law Brittany, my sister Amy and I broke into a new skill set: necklaces.

We worked on our jewelry over several nights. And at least for me, it was very telling. I am definitely a people-pleaser, so the pressure of knowing others would look at what I was creating caused me to quake.

My designs changed significantly as the days went on. I became more aware of what I actually wanted in a necklace and what I would really wear. The final evening, Amy asked me to create matching designs for the three of us girls using beads she especially liked. Since Brittany is in a different color palette than Amy and me, I knew I’d need to add something different to hers. I decided that to truly create something we would all love I would need to use the same elements in three unique ways. I was nervous but pressed on anyway.

Necklaces I designed for the three of us: Amy, Brittany, and Me

Funny that something as simple as designing necklaces for family would cause me to stress out. I sometimes struggle with the fact that I desire to make things more beautiful. It is part of who God made me to want to be surrounded by beauty. C’mon God! Why not a wonderful ability to speak? Why not clear insight or a really good mind for languages or numbers so I could really be effective for your kingdom?

This past week, I mentioned to my husband Dave that it grieves my heart to know there are children who never hear that they are important. Who never heard that God loved them so much He sent His Son to die for their sins. Who may never know they can do what He has called them to do.

And I was struck: I don’t really believe that for me. When I look at myself I see all the shortcomings ... the fear of speaking, the lack of a mind for languages. I tend to view my abilities as somehow less than important. I scoff at the fact that a delight in beauty could have something to do with God. That an ability to see patterns and colors would have anything to do with serving Him.

Our church is doing a series on breakthrough. Realizing how little value I place on myself and who God has made me has brought that to front of mind. I want to break through my own self-talk and fears and be who God has designed me to be. Regardless of what others think or what I feel would be more “effective.” If I want to tell others they have value, I have to also recognize my own value. Even with something as simple as designing a necklace.

Until next time!
-Jonelle

Tagged art, fear, Happenin' at my House | 1 Comment

Change Isn't Easy

Gray hair is a crown of glory . . .

Reminder: Confidence, a Homeschool Benefit

Ideas for Using Your Book of Time

Discerning Truth

How to Cultivate Contentment

Puzzling Design

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