Desires of the Heart

This year in homeschool we have learned that learning can take place anywhere, real learning that stays with you beyond anything written on paper. The kitchen is a great place for practicing math, especially fractions. The measuring, mixing, stirring, pouring, dying, and tying not only built math skills but perseverance.

If you have ever tried fudge you will understand the amount of dedication, hard work and patience required. You will know that you also build arm muscles while building brain muscles during this task.

This type of homemade gift allows creativity to flourish during the learning. Along with measuring, and adjusting to achieve desired consistency, we are able to add in dyes for color, and essential oils for scents. The possibilities are endless with layering of colors and blending of scents. This year we added in some sprinkles :).

December was my favorite homeschool month thus far. We studied the birth of Jesus through scripture and learned more about Christmas hymns. We used a devotional from Not Consumed to assist in this study. We listened to a variety of versions of each hymn and further developed our music appreciation. This also covered our History goals because we took time to look at maps and study culture from the time of Jesus’ life on Earth. Many great discussions were had about the roles of men and women, career options, and daily life. We watched a great movie Journey to Bethlehem as a culminating activity. We listened to a podcast by the Merry Beggars performing the Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. This lovely resource came with free discussion questions and other goodies. We read lots of Christmas picture books as well and had great conversations about their themes and the parallels to the Bible that they contained. Yes ladies and gentlemen, middle grade kids can learn from picture books. I created several resources for these books for us to use with kids at church as well. You can find them on my Teachers Pay Teachers store: Delight in the Lord.

Math consisted of percentages and fractions. After learning and practicing the skills with Math Antics we took to the stores. What better way to practice percentages than Christmas shopping, in the clearance section of course. And don’t forget the tax to be added before checkout. We also found a great resource Who Kidnapped the Reindeer on Teachers Pay Teachers, that reviewed middle grades math with a fun twist. All the cooking in the kitchen required the use of fractions and sharpened our science skills such as: understanding temperature required for melting or cooling, time and temperature required for baking, mixing liquids and solids, and especially cleanliness of tools and workspace. We can’t forget the wrapping skills learned this year. I am very glad they are old enough to help with that task now. And best of all this month of leaning culminated in a celebration, Christmas!

Now friends it is time to review our undecorating, cleaning, packing, and organizing skills.