Memory Verse for the Week

This week my son has been memorizing 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:

 "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

My daughters verse is from the same passage: 

 "Be joyful always..."

This verse has also led to a vocabulary lesson:...
 

 Joyful: full of joy

 Continually: all the time without interruption or ending

 Circumstances: the way things happen,
 the situations we face in life

 God's will:  what God wants to happen 

After repeating my definitions in several different ways and answering his question and discussing each word over again...and again, I was still met with that look of, "I don't get it, Mom."  So, I'm not convinced he understands what he has memorized. 

This was discouraging to me at first, but as I considered it and prayed about it, I was reminded of a verse in Isaiah,

 "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is My word that goes out from My mouth: it will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."  Isaiah 55:10-11

So, I trust that as he dedicates these words to memory, God will accomplish His purpose for those words in my son's life.  The Holy Spirit is able to teach Him.  I also know that as he does grow in his ability to comprehend the meanings of these words, he may recall the verses he has learned and finally understand what it is he has been reciting all along. 

AND, not that those reasons aren't enough to learn these Scriptures, but it's a good brain exercise for him anyway...and if he's going to memorize something, what better words to fill his mind with than God's Word?!

So, don't be discouraged when your child doesn't seem to understand it all.  Keep teaching them.  If we are faithful to plant the seed, God will be faithful to grow it into something useful in due time.

Preschool Play Shapes

As I was struggling to teach my 2 year old shapes and colors last year, I came up with the idea to cut out colored paper shapes so we could play games with them together.  She loves playing with them and our shape games were exactly what she needed to motivate her to learn...
 
Our two most common games we play are sorting games.  Her job is to sort the objects by color or to sort the objects by shape.  To play by colors, I choose one shape and set all of the papers in that shape, [one of each color] out in a semicircle around her.  The remaining shapes are placed in a pile in front of her.  [When we first started playing I held the pile and handed her one shape at a time.]  To play by shapes, I choose one color, and set that color group [one of each shape] in a semicircle or line in front of her.

 

With both games, I began by telling her what each object was, for example, "This shape is RED." or "This is an OVAL shape."  Next she would repeat the object description back to me, "RED" or "OVAL".  Sometimes, I would give a full description of each object, but ask her to repeat back just the color or just the shape. For example, "This is a RED OVAL. What color is this oval?" The answer would be "RED." As she began learning, I stopped announcing the shape or color before each turn and simply ask her what it is.

 

The last part of the game sequence is for her to take the shape and place it in the correct pile, with other shapes/colors that match.  After she grew familiar with the game, I began setting the shapes out for her and then allowing her to sort them on her own.  Once she is finished, I check to make sure she had sorted them correctly and she and I discuss what each pile contains.  For example, "R., what is in the first pile, here? [I will point to the group.]"  She will answer, "RED" or "OVALS".

Another game we play with these shapes is a copying game.  I arrange the shapes into different designs. 

[a house by a tree, with the sun and clouds in the sky and a pond nearby]

[an ice cream cone...with strawberry and blueberry flavored ice cream of course]

[a smiley face]

The first part of this game is to identify the image.  I'm careful to allow her room to be creative as she expresses how she perceives the picture.  For example, if she decided that the blue circle in the first picture was a flower, we would let it be a flower.  I might explain to her that I thought it was a pond, but I'm glad she saw a flower.  Since the designs are pretty "Picasso", there is really no sense in insisting the design be interpreted in one specific way.

Sometimes I create a picture with the shapes, but not always.  A simple rectangle on top of a circle on top of a square provides a similar exercise. 

The goal here is for her to identify the shapes, choose similar shapes and arrange them together to create the design she was given to study. 

Still another game we play with these paper shapes is "Finish the Pattern".  I create a pattern of either shapes...

...or colors.

 And then request that she complete the pattern.  This is also a game I play with my older son, with more complex patterns.

If you have a toddler and enjoy paper crafts, you may want to add this fun and simple project to your "to do" list.  I have really found these simple, colorful shapes to be a valuable tool as I teach my daughter.  They don't take up much space, they are fun for her to play with, they are versatile...and I often use them as an "independent project" like the one I mentioned in my last post. 

Here is a list of what you'll need to make your own:

scissors, paper trimmer [optional, but helpful!], clear packing tape [again, optional...I use this to "laminate" the paper], a cutting system, with circle and oval templates or circle/oval stencils to trace from, a pencil, and various colors of cardstock or construction paper.  

I chose to use black, purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, pink, white and brown.  You could choose whatever colors you would like. 

Basically, you determine which shapes you would like to make, and what size. 

I used ovals, triangles, squares, rectangles and circles.

If you choose to use the tape to laminate, then you will need to be sure your shapes measure within the width of the tape [or you can just double the width of the tape when you cover the shapes later].  Then, cut out your shapes, at least one each of every color.  It would be fun to have more if you want to take the time to make them. 

You can then play with them as they are, however, they will easily break unless you take another step to protect them.  You could use a laminator, or if you're cheap like me, you can follow these steps. 

First, lay out a strip of tape on a hard flat surface [like a table or countertop] with the sticky part up.  Next, lay your shapes on top of the tape, making certain you leave just a small space between each shape.  [Hint: laying out the same shapes together usually helps to minimize wasted space on the tape.]  Finally, lay a second strip of tape over the top of the shapes, sandwiching them in-between the tape.  Once you've created your shape-tape strip, you can cut the shapes out and throw away the excess tape. 

Now all that's left to do is play!...Um, I mean, learn.  ;)

We Love To Color

Ok...this week we were not as "on task" with our school as I would like to be...but my daughter did do lots of coloring. :)

Here are a few of my favorites:

 ...

My daughter will sit and color for literally hours some days.  I have a fun art project stirring in my mind for her.  I'm pretty excited to try and see how it turns out. I'll let you know.  :) 

My son did some drawing, too...and writing.  My Mom bought me these books called "Draw Write Now".  We LOVE them!!!  The books teach the student how to draw a picture and then give a paragraph for the student to write out. 

I'll just come clean now and say that Draw Write Now is the school project I send my son to do when I am distracted with something else, and unable to sit and do it with him.  He is able to get the books out and do it all on his own.  I finish the dishes with the few moments I have left of baby's nap - and he works on his hand eye coordination, his handwriting, reading and reading comprehension.  [I have him read me his paragraph once he is finished and then we discuss what it was about.]  It's great!  I think every mom needs to have something constructive she can direct her children to accomplish independently at moments like that, whether she's homeschooling or not. 

He has finished book one, and still loves to do it over again.  Lately, he's been working in book 2.  Here are a few pictures from this week:

You can also purchase a pad of lined paper [like my son uses] from the same company.  Really, any lined pad would work fine, though.

You can download a sample lesson to print out for your kids here.

We love to color!

Hii has a Wii. Sii? [But not for Frii.]

I did it.
I caved.



…Sort of.

I think the first time my son played a Wii was sometime early last year. And he’s wanted one ever since. I know he’s been saving up all the money he has earned or been given since late last summer. We already have a PS3…and not to mention computer games…and oodles of toys and books and movies and insane amounts of various other items to hold his attention, occupy his time and keep him adequately stimulated with entertaining activities. But he was fixated on getting a Wii, to play Mario Kart...

My husband liked the idea of getting a Wii, but I was not entirely sold on the idea. I’m not a video game fan in general. I think they are addictive, mostly useless and tend to separate us as a family...even games you can all play together…either you each play separate turns or you have to compete against each other, and either way, it seems that these games draw us in and we become tunnel-visioned in our own involvement. Although, I will say that the Wii games tend to be more inclusive than other game systems and also incorporate activity, rather than just staring at a screen. They are also expensive.

We decided we don’t need a Wii and weren’t willing to spend the money to purchase one right now. That’s that, right?

Uh – no.

Our son decided to save up his money to buy it himself. This announcement presented us with a dilemma. Do we encourage him in his determination and assert his willingness to take initiative and accomplish a goal? A game is one thing to save for, but the whole system and controllers and whatever else these thingys require…that’s a big chunk of change. AND, even if he does save up that much, should we allow him to spend that amount of cash on a game?

We ended up kind of ignoring it at first. We listened to him talk about it…constantly. Then he started asking questions, like how much the game he wanted would cost. We explained that the game costs X amount of money, but he would need much more than that to purchase the system and all the controllers etc. if he wanted to be able to play the game.

At some point my husband struck a bargain with the kid. If he saved enough money to purchase a game, we would help him out with buying the rest [aka buy it for him]. I have a theory, which cannot be entirely proven nor disproven, that Dad cut the deal because HE really, really wants to play with a Wii too. I’m just throwing that out there…I could be totally off…I’m not,…but I could be. ;)

As my son’s 5th birthday was approaching, my husband received a call from his brother. Apparently him and his wife had decided that they wanted to sell their Wii system and all their games and accessories, and were offering it to us if we were interested. I heard him end the conversation with, “I have to talk with Heather first. Let me call you back.” I knew those words meant we were going to be buying a Wii within the next 20 minutes or so.

Eventually after much “talking” I reluctantly consented with, “it’s your decision”. And naturally, he called back ecstatic, and they worked out the details. Well, short story slightly drawn out, my brother-in-law called back not long after they had hung up the phone to say that his bride decided she wasn’t sure they should sell it after all because they still play it so much.

I was relieved...until I realized that my darling man had already set his mind to the task of procuring a Wii. Once he has determined to get something done…it’s pretty much going to get done. He doesn’t often leave a project unfinished. So he did some research and shopping and found a bargain on everything…including games. All-the-while, our son, who initiated this whole ordeal, had no idea.

Of course, since we purchased all these items used, they needed to be tested. Conveniently, we had the perfect testing candidate available, who tested just about every night - the moment the kids were asleep. [See, I was right about my theory…just sayin’.]

Now, the original plan he had devised was to surprise our son and give it to him on his birthday. Which I said would be fine. But the more I thought about it, the more reasons I came up with for why that might not be the best decision.

Reason #1: This is a really extravagant gift for our family. It would not be possible or prudent for us to match or exceed this gift in years to come at each of our children’s birthdays. Not that we would HAVE to, but would next year’s Lego set and box of underwear be a big let-down for the little guy? And would his sisters feel less important when they open up a package full of coloring books and crayons for their birthdays? Idk, likely they won’t remember, so probably not…but there will always be those photo albums to look back at…

Reason #2: It’s really more of a family gift. The Wii wouldn’t be for HIM. It’s for all of us. That was the whole premise of my husband’s argument for replacing our current game system, PS2, for a Wii system…it’s for the family. It’s interactive. We need something fun to do together. I was concerned that he would feel some special entitlement to it, and be reluctant to share, or disappointed when he realized that HIS gift didn’t really belong to HIM.

Reason #3: The point and purpose behind ever even discussing purchasing the Wii was to provide the opportunity for him to learn something about determination and saving money, about working toward a goal and earning the things we need/want, rather than simply having everything handed to us. I feared that our Birthday plan would sabotage these lessons.

So, my husband and I talked again and decided to postpone the giving of this gift until after his birthday, and once our son had earned the entire amount needed to purchase his game.

About a week or so after his birthday, Dad sat down with him and they figured out how much money he had saved up. Then Dad set up a little “store” where our son [and daughter too – she pitched in her money and they bought a second game together] could “shop”. He made his purchases and Dad brought out the system as he had promised. They have been happily racing one another ever since. ;)

Well, as I suspected, the wii bwoght wif it [I don’t know why saying wii causes me to spontaneously speak wif a speech impediment…but it does], both fun and frustration. And one big frustration has been that we’ve been allowing the kids to play in the morning before breakfast. Which I really have no issue with all on its own, however, after playing, my son will complain that he’s too tired from all that racing to do his schoolwork.

Hmmmm… What would be a good way to fix that problem???

So, needless to say, not much has been accomplished this week in our academic studies, however I do think a few lessons have been learned. [And plenty of fun has been had too along the way.]

One of those lessons: Think before you speak.
Another: Get your work done before you have fun.

That’s all.
Love, Mii ;)

Deception & Imperfection

So, last night as I was taking pictures of my son's creation book project, I noticed that we had overlooked the creation of man. Ummmmm...Ooops. That's embarrassing.

At first, I was going to wait and post pictures after he fixed it, since I'm kind of a perfectionist - sort of - ish...sometimes with some things. [I can also be overly analytical.] Anyways, I decided to post the pictures despite the blaring error. I make mistakes as I teach; my kids make mistakes as they learn. It's ok. We go back and fix what was wrong, and then move on from there.

All this got me thinking...

It's tempting to just show off the "perfect" projects or always reflect on the areas of our children’s academic strengths when we are sharing with someone about our homeschooling. But that's not an honest representation. I think that often as Mothers we tend to compare ourselves and our children and their accomplishments and abilities and attitudes to our own demise. I think maybe some comparison can be constructive, but because we compare, it's easy to become trapped in a life that is never good enough...because we can't always compete with everyone else around us.

Moms often, whether consciously or subconsciously, beat themselves up over silly details. And different circles and personalities put emphasis on varying qualities, such as appearance, nutrition, green living, athletics, academics, social skills...you know what I'm talking about. So if we become entangled in this deceptive web of "keeping up with", you can quickly see how exhausting and overwhelming it can become, especially if you engage with different sub-cultures. And it will inevitably distract us from enjoying our children and tempt us to neglect those things that are more necessary or of greater importance.

I hope that as I share our home education experiences, I don't cause you [whoever may read this] to feel that sense that your kids should be doing what mine are. I also don't want to be afraid to share what mine are doing because of what "your" kids are doing. Do you know what I mean? It sounds silly in words, but it's an easy entanglement to find ourselves in.

I notice that my son learns quickly, and has a great memory. He retains the information without too much effort. My daughter doesn't learn that way. And at first I was frustrated with her and disappointed with myself. "Why can't I get her to figure out her colors?!" My son knew his colors when he was so much younger! Instead of being excited when she did recognize a color, I was concerned and irritated that she didn't know them ALL.  At some point knowing your colors is a significant milestone...but I was placing my son's abilities as an expectation on her.  And that wasn't necessary or fair to her.

Be careful, Moms and Dads, not to become so caught up in meeting checkpoints that someone else has handed out to you, or even those you set for yourself, that you neglect to pay attention to where your child is at now, and fail to recognize and acknowledge their individuality. Don't miss out on what they are able to accomplish today, because you’ve become so focused on what you want them to achieve tomorrow. Set a goal for them, and push them a little, but love and encourage them as they are right now too. And be gracious with other Moms and Dads. Be thoughtful in your conversations...and honest about yourself. Each parent and child has strengths and weaknesses, don't allow someone's over-voiced achievements cause you to think otherwise. Imperfection is normal. And the notion that any of us "have it all together" is deceptive.

Oh and by the way, here is our correction of yesterday’s mistake:

[a man and a cow]

Memory Verses & A Project

This week, my son is memorizing:

 "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."  Romans 10:9

My daughter's verse for the week is Genesis 1:1.

 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

I seem to have her learning verses a week behind her brother.  This was unintentional initially.  I just didn't think she would memorize the passages, so I didn't ask her to.  But then I changed my mind and decided to have her start memorizing too.  So, last week her verse was the same as her brother's the week before.  And this week her verse has a similar message to the verse he learned last week [Acts 17:24]...
 
Although, I didn't plan it this way, I actually kind of like it for two reasons.  The first is that she hears her brother repeating his verse, and begins to learn from hearing him - then the words are reiterated as she studies her own verse.  The second reason is that it kind of works similarly for my son.  He learns his verse for a week and then the message is refreshed in his mind as he listens to his sister recite her Scripture.  I think I kind of like this system. 

My 5-year-old and I have been studying creation the last couple of days, so my daughter's verse seems perfect for our family this week. My son had been reading the creation story and has made a "book" documenting what God did on each of the first 7 days.  On one side of each page he wrote what God made or did and the number representing that day. 

Then on the opposite side, he drew pictures to show God's creation on each day.

[light]

[clouds and water]

[a flower]

[a star, the sun and the moon]

[a turkey and a shark]

[a cow]

[God resting]

He decided what to draw to depict each days' events, and I truly enjoyed hearing about and viewing each picture once he was finished. 

What I didn't realize is that he never included the creation of man on his cards.  Ooops.  [I noticed it once I was taking pictures.]  We will fix it tomorrow and maybe post the correction then...in the meantime, aren't his drawings just precious?!  ;)

Interviews With My Kids

Several months ago I read a note that a friend of mine posted on Facebook. It was an interview with her child. I thought it was a great idea, but it took me awhile to finally do it myself.
I gathered a pretty extensive list of questions, so we conducted the “interview” in several sessions. I found some answers to be sweet – others brutally honest, and a few were funny...

After reviewing their answers, I have noticed a few patterns that are interesting with each of my children, and give me a glimpse into how they think and reason. My 5 year old answered most of his questions with either several answers or an explanation along with the answer. My 2 year old answered quickly, and simply. Mostly short, single word responses, or a blunt, “I don’t know.” And when I pressed her to guess, she would become slightly frustrated and just repeat, “I do not know.” My son [the 5 year old] would almost always take a guess without my encouragement. He would start with “I don’t really know,…but maybe” and then give his summary of thoughts. I find these differences interesting.

My son enjoyed the interviews. He was thrilled that I wanted to know about him and was excited to share his answers with me. My daughter was mostly indifferent. She wasn’t thrilled to do it, but she didn’t hate it. It was just what we were doing and as long as I could keep her attention, she was willing to comply. Once it became boring, she quickly checked out.

This was a fun and insightful project for me, and I think they liked it too. I know especially for my son, seeing that I was taking an interest in him, in what he likes and feels and knows, made him feel special and he enjoyed that.

Here is the list of questions I asked the kids.  As you can see, it’s a fairly long list for preschool-age children. You could, of course choose a few you like or come up with your own if you decide to interview your own kids. If you think of others please share them!

I plan to ask theses questions at least once a year and compare their answers. Here are a few of my favorite questions and answers from each of my kids:

From my 2 year old daughter’s interview:

 When is your birthday?
When we have a princess party
 What makes you feel sad?
When I go on the alligator, I was sad when I goed on the alligator [a statue at the zoo over a year ago]
 What do you like to eat?
Peanut butter and jelly
 What food do you not like?
A fuzzy [A fuzzy??? I promise I do not feed my children “fuzzy” food!]
 What is your favorite thing to do?
Play
 What does your Mommy do?
Um, do tricks. [“What kind of tricks?”] Um…backflips. [I do NOT do backflips…or any other “tricks”]
 What does your Mommy say?
“No.” [Sadly, I do say “no” quite frequently.]
 What is the most special thing about Mommy?
She is my favorite. [LOVE!]
 What does your Daddy do? 
Go to work.
 What do you like to do with Daddy?
Play outside, squirt gun [My husband told me that the last time he remembers playing with squirt guns was last summer!]
 What is the most special thing about Daddy?
Oh, Daddy’s have beards.
 How old is Grandma?
She’s two. [I asked several times and Grandma was always two.]
 How old is Grandpa?
I don’t know. [Also asked several times and she never knew.]
 What does Grandma do?
Oh she does some tricks, tricks on the trampoline. [I, for one, am bitterly disappointed that I have missed out on seeing said tricks.]
 What does Grandpa do?
Play video [I’m not sure if I have ever seen my Dad play video games, and only occasionally my husband’s Dad. Is she voicing her opinions on what she thinks we should be doing?]
 How do you make cookies?
I don’t know... Oh you make it with a fridgerator then you make it when it's hot
 What is gravity?
I don’t know what gravity is.
 Where did your sisters/brothers come from?
Um, the doctor place
 Where does electricity come from?
Tricity??? I…I don’t know tricity.
 What is your favorite place?
This home
 What is your favorite Bible story?
Um, Jesus love me
 What is your favorite cereal?
Breakfast
 What is your favorite vegetable?
Peanut butter and jelly
 What is your favorite color?
Red. [I] Mean, no…the very color that’s Lightning that’s have red on him [Lightning McQueen from the movie “Cars”. When you have a big brother, you play with cars and all the dolls are referred to as “guys”.]


From my 5 year old son’s interview:

 When were you born?
I don’t remember, but I know I had a burn. [He did have a burn. One of the hospital staff burned him just before we would have been discharged…a sad story for another day.]
 What is your birthday?
My birthday is fun.
 When is your birthday?  
[Gave the month and day] [Finally…we have successfully communicated!]
 What do you want to be when you grow up?
I don’t know. I think um, maybe I’ll want to sleep and do everything that has to be done and help my kids.
 Where would you like to go on vacation?
On a big hill
 Where do you want to live when you grow up?
At a bigger house
 Who is your Mommy?
My Mommy is you…right there, holding L. [my 6 week old] in your arms.
 What does your Mommy do?
She takes care of the baby and holds the baby and maybe snuggles with me.
 What does your Mommy say?
“R., I really want to snuggle you.” [He explained that this is actually what he wants me to say, not what I say. Apparently, he needs more affection from me.]
 Who is your Daddy?
My Daddy is the one at work, at [named where Daddy works].
 What does your Daddy say?
“Hello, R. I missed you.”
 What do you like to do with Daddy?
Play outside, play video and maybe take turns with playing computer and doing the Toy Story Legos – eating breakfast
 What is the most special thing about Daddy?
That, um, he has fun with me and I love him, that he plays video with me and maybe that he plays outside with me. I don’t remember if he does, but if he does that I know its fun. [So, do you think that maybe, perhaps, it has been too long since Daddy played outside with him?]
 How old is Grandma?
I think she is 40. [He guessed about a decade younger.]
 How old is Grandpa?
Maybe 60 [About a decade older…]
 How old is Mom?
Hmmm…20 [I’m 27. But I'll go with 20. ;) ]
 How old is Dad
30 [He’s 31. Pretty close!]
 What does Grandma do?
Brings things to our house sometimes [“What kind of things?”] Toys for us
 Where do babies come from?
Mommies’ tummies
 Where does electricity come from?
Ground. Maybe it’s from the ground.
 How much does a house cost?
I think it costs one dollar. ["One dollar?"] Maybe three dollars
 How much does a video game cost?
I think it’s 20 or maybe 30. I don’t know how much, but maybe that.
 What is your favorite game?
Video game and games that you can play outside or inside and board games and computer games...and well, all kinds of game, well, not ALL kinds of games and movie games...all kinds of stuff of games [He may not fully comprehend the definition of the word “favorite”.]
 What is your favorite animal?
A cool dragon
 What is your favorite vegetable?
A yummy bean, I think they’re called green beans
 What is your favorite thing to drink?
Juice and milk
 What is your favorite color?
I don’t really even know, but maybe if I get a thing that’s all the colors then I could see what color is my favorite.

I also thought [after I had already asked the questions] that it would be interesting to write down what I thought their answers would be first.  Maybe next time. 

Ok...now go find out about your kids.  I need to go and snuggle with mine.  ;)

Bible Memorization

My husband and I are Christians.  We believe that the Bible is God's word to us, so I think it's important to teach it to our kids.  I have been teaching my children verses from the Bible for them to commit to memory.  Not super consistently...but a few here and there. 

This week my son's verse to memorize has been:

 "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth...He Himself gives all men life and breath and everything else."  Acts 17:24&25

My daughter's verse to memorize was:

 "Do everything without complaining or arguing."   [Philippians 2:14, but I don't have her memorize the address yet.]...

They usually say them in the morning with me and at least once or twice during the week in the evening for Dad.
This was my 2 year old's first time committing a verse to memory...and I have her repeat it often...since complaining and arguing has been a BIG issue in our house lately.  Her brother memorized the verse last week and I think hearing him repeat it so often made it that much easier for her to remember when it came her turn.  Now if only I could get her to actually begin to apply it.  Ha!  [If only I could truly apply it in my own life...then I wouldn't be complaining about her complaining, right?  ;)]

Another tool I love for Bible memorization is Seeds Family Worship.  I enjoy the music and so do my kids...and LOVE that they are being taught the Truth at the same time.  They offer free Bible memorization cards on their website. You can listen to their music here and here. Well worth the $13 or so for the CD!  We have 2 full CD's and 2 short CD's and I still love them almost 5 years later!  Here's another thing I love about them: 

"We've taken inspiration from God's perfect plan for seeds dispersal and designed packaging intended to facilitate the spreading of Seeds. Each package of Seeds of Praise album includes two identical full-length CDs. So simply tear the CD cover in half and share a complete packaged album with a friend nearby or far away. You get to take part in spreading Seeds--helping take God's Word to as many homes as possible." [taken from their store site]

[Ps...I get no commission for the plug. I just seriously like this product.]

My son also copies his children's Bible down in a notebook as part of his handwriting and reading. [Here is a picture of a page from his journal.] He reads the pages he is going to copy and then writes it out. I think this helps him remember the stories he is learning, since it's a process of repetition. [He reads it out loud, writes it, checks it, and reads it to me again.] This was another one of those things that he initiated.  Writing out Scripture is something I do personally and he saw me and wanted to do it too.  I thought it would be too difficult for him [he was 4 when he started this], but he insisted that he wanted to try - and I think it's one of the best things we've done in our homeschooling, if not THE best.