One day last summer I took the kids to a nearby park. I was enjoying a rare moment of reading alone when I heard a woman gasp. I glanced up at her, and she looked over at me with a scared look on her face. “Oh my goodness! Is that your son?” she asked. I…
Tag: asking questions
Chasing Rabbit Trails…and Finding Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland was one of my favorite books when I was about 8 or 9. I’d sit by myself in the attic, reading it out loud, and acting out the story. I’d line up stuffed animals to be the Mad Hatter and the Door Mouse. I’d push two chairs close together and jump down…
Transforming & Synthesizing: The Final Two Thinking Tools
Today is the last day in my five part series about the 13 Thinking Tools of the World’s Most Creative People. I’ve been summarizing parts of the book Sparks of Genius as well as sharing some tips and resources that you can use to explore these tools more on your own. Here’s the link to…
Forming Patterns, Body Thinking & Empathizing: Thinking Tools 6-8
This is part three in a five part series about 13 Thinking Tools of the World’s Most Creative People. I’m summarizing parts of the book Sparks of Genius as well as sharing some tips and resources that you can use to explore these tools more on your own. Here’s the link to part 1 –…
10 Tips for Getting the Most Out of a Conference
This past weekend my family had the wonderful experience of attending the In Home Conference in St. Charles, Illinois. The past few years I’ve gone by myself, but after seeing the amazing workshops offered to the kids, I knew that I wanted everyone to go with me this year. I had a chance to personally…
Abstracting,Analogizing & Recognizing Patterns: The Next Three Thinking Tools
Last Wednesday I shared with you the first two thinking tools: Observing and Imaging, from the book Sparks of Genius: The 13 Thinking Tools of the World’s Most Creative People. I’ve found these tools fascinating and think that introducing them to my kids will be an invaluable resource for them to develop the important…
Sparks of Genius: The First Two Thinking Tools
About five or six years ago I read a wonderful book called Sparks of Genius: The 13 Thinking Tools of the World’s Most Creative People. In the book, highly creative people described the way they thought and went about the process of expressing their creativity. I had been doing a self-study on creativity and had…
The Comfort Zone: Helping Kids Get Out of It
I’ve been planning a big road trip that we’re going to take this summer. We’re a nature-loving family, and our travels in the past usually include either mountains, deserts, beaches or islands. This summer will be different. Our trip will have a lot of nature-watching, but it also will have some big city touring, too….
Nuturing Relationships: The Essential Ingredient in Home Education
Someone asked on Twitter the other day what was the most essential tool I use in educating my kids at home. Several things came to mind: the library, the internet, free community events, games, cool iPhone apps, science kits and DVDs. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that all those…
How to Take Advantage of Your Local & Surrounding Libraries
*Today I have a guest post from Susan @ learning ALL the time!! Almost all homeschooling families are aware of the amazing resource that is your local public library. As a librarian and a homeschool mom of two daughters, the library plays an important role in our lives. First of all, what are the…