Week 2

Monday Conference Talk:


Enrichment activities inspired by talk:

• Vocabulary sheet, get it here - look up definitions and use each word in a sentence
• Read the following paragraph to the children and have them create a map from the descriptions:-  "For many years our family has enjoyed the annual tradition of camping high in the Uintah Mountains of northeastern Utah. We travel 20 miles (32 km) over a rocky dirt road to arrive at a beautiful green valley with towering canyon walls and through which runs a river filled with cold, clear water. 
  
  
  
  
• Learn about foundations on houses. How and why they are important. We had a FHE lesson on this and told the story of the Salt Lake City Temple foundation and how HUGE it was and how it had to be completely redone. Interesting story, (google it, I don't have a link)
• Research Toronto Canada
• Art Project (could also memorize this scripture): Use watercolors or pastels to create a piece of art inspired by this scripture : " “Remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”7
• Sprout beans or watch a you tube video showing the process of beans sprouting. We discussed how the roots have to sprout first before the plant can push out of the ground, much like a foundation on a house. The roots hold the plant up and keep it firm in the ground. We likened each of the roots to righteous traditions like personal prayer, scripture study, attending church, etc. 
• Research the Uintah Mountains
• Watch Fiddler on the Roof and talk about traditions

Tuesday Magazine:

       

      New Era Oct 2018:

• My Quarterback Question- read article. 
• Make a pros and cons list of something and discuss how this process can be used to help make decisions.   

     Friend Oct. 2018:

• Liam's Friends- read and discuss different religions with your children. Could look up on a map where these different religions originated or are prominent. 
• FunStuff- find it on pg 26
• Sing- God Loves All His Children pg 27

Week 1

Monday Conference Talk : Lift Up Your Heads and Rejoice

Enrichment activities inspired by talk:

• List of vocabulary words and writing prompt - get it here
• Geography Study- Alaska and/or Guatemala, prepare a Guatemalan dish ( see below for Alaska documentary)
• Make a mood board expressing this statement: 
  “Look like, sound like, act like, and dress like a true disciple of Jesus Christ”
• Make a 14 story structure with toothpicks or craft sticks. See how high you can build a tower of cards. Explore building techniques and materials.  
• Have a Spanish Duo-Lingo day

Tuesday Magazine- 

          

  New Era Oct 2018:

• Safety Pin Friends- read article and discuss ideas 
• Really Seeing the Gospel- learn about Braille. Create braille messages using card stock and drops of finger nail polish.

  Friend:

• Different but the Same
• Being United/Spelling Unity activity page

Inspiration!

During Oct 2018 General Conference, I had an a-ha moment! As President Nelson and Elder Cook talked about a home centered church and having homes of gospel learning, I considered how this can apply to my approach to homeschooling. I came up with a schedule and a list of materials from the gospel library to create a curriculum that puts the focus on gospel study. Our kids need to have lives centered on Jesus Christ. That's why we homeschool, so we can do just that. I value knowledge and learning. Doctrine and Covenants 88: 118-124 gives a formula for a beautiful way to homeschool, "Search out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning by study and also by faith."
Here are steps to create your own personalized study, or you can follow my lesson plans that I will post weekly.
  1. Make a list of the materials from the gospel library that you want to use in your course of study.
  2. Next, assign each day of the week to a different topic.
  3. Do your gospel studies first in the day. " Seek ye first the kingdom of God" (Mathew 6:33)
  4. Listen to and follow the promptings of the Spirit.
  5. Enjoy learning together!

Here is my list of materials ( Our kids are ages 13, 11, 4, 4, & toddler. My plans are mostly geared towards the older two, but I do have plans for the twins too. )

• Scriptures
• For the Strength of Youth
• New Era/ Friend Magazines
• General Conference talks
• Saints- church history
• Family Search - family history
• Personal Finance guide from the Self- Reliance course
• Preach My Gospel
• Come Follow Me For Families (starting in 2019)
• Hymns/ Children's Song book

Here is my schedule:

 Every morning we begin with a Hymn or song from the Children's Songbook. We read the scripture that goes with the song, listen to the song, and discuss the doctrine being taught. Then we have a prayer.

Also, we each do our personal scripture study at this point and record it in our sketch journals. In January 2019, this is probably where I will insert the Come Follow Me for Families study. 

 Monday: Choose a General Conference talk from the previous General Conference. Read it with the kids. In much the same way as the Come Follow Me curriculum works, listen to the Spirit to inspire ways you can explore learning through that talk. For example, underline new and interesting words to look up and learn, any geographical references can be researched, languages, art projects, character development and human studies, etc. There are so many possibilities. You will use each day of the rest of the week to work on the projects and studies you pull from the talk.

Tuesday: We choose a New Era/ Friend article or activity to read/do together. Follow any rabbit trails that come up. For example, we read a story about a blind boy from China. My kids had questions about braille, so we researched braille in other languages and made braille messages for each other.

Wednesday: We are using the Personal Finance course books. Do one lesson per week. Since it is designed to be used in a group and for adults, I just make adjustments as needed to apply it to my kids. I ordered the workbooks at the LDS Store.

Thursday: Family History Day. We use Family Search to do indexing or work on family history. We can find people, add memories, learn about ancestors, etc. There are family history quests in the Friend Magazine this year and have been similar things in past years, we do those. We also play family history games, etc. You get the idea. So many amazing blessings are promised to those who participate in family history!!

Friday: Alternate weeks- Saints church history (lots of resources here including the book, podcast, and live events) / For the Strength of Youth

After our Gospel Study time, We do our regular school lessons. In case you're wondering what we use, here it is:

Language Arts/ Art/Geography- Good and Beautiful

Science Units & History- Good and Beautiful

Math and Higher level Sciences- Khan Academy

Elementary Math- Good and Beautiful

Music- Private music lessons and Composers podcast

Nature Studies- Good and Beautiful notebooks

Tea and Poetry- Thanks to my awesome friend Leslie for the idea, we've been having fun tea party Tuesdays where we listen to classical music, read poetry, do art projects, and study artists and composers. We have herbal tea and also learn about manners, all the kids love it.

Now, come back often, I'll be sharing our weekly activities with you!