In “The Power of the Question,” a blog we published about the relationship between questions and critical thinking, questions are celebrated. They can be impactful learning tools that exercise your child’s problem-solving muscles. As students stack Q&A reps, they’ll soon become good critical thinkers. There’s no better way to illustrate the usefulness of this critical-thinking practice than with an open-ended question directed at your child that you may have been tempted to answer yourself. Here’s an example: At the beginning of a new year, the internet offers lots of content with suggest ..read more

By Sena Nelson Let’s debunk some myths about homeschooling with Abeka Academy! Myth: If you’re using Abeka Academy video lessons, you’re not involved with your child’s education. Abeka’s video lessons and Master Teachers assist with teaching, but they don’t do the homeschooling for you. We have a tight age stack with our kids, so we utilize the classroom pre-recorded lessons to keep multiple kids on track at once. That way, I can hop between the kids and work with each child one-on-one. This ensures each child continues making progress during the school day, even when I’m working with one of ..read more

Are you finding it challenging to keep your teen motivated in homeschooling? Here are some practical tips to make the learning experience engaging and inspiring: 1. Keep it Relevant Connect the material to their interests and real-world applications. Many times, teens wonder, “Why do I even have to learn this?” Help them see the practical value of what they’re learning for college or their future workplace. 2. Set Goals Establish clear, achievable goals and milestones and allow your teen to set those goals. Break down larger tasks into smaller steps. 3. Change Environment Combat monotony by al ..read more

As the holidays approach, anticipation bubbles up. This time of year is usually one of the best times of year for your children. Their anticipation often builds into something similar to hyperactive glee. While for us parents, what begins as anticipation and a well-made plan can quickly turn into chaos and a feeling of being completely overwhelmed. But wait. Now throw in the responsibilities of homeschool. It’s a lot! This year use holiday preparations and activities as learning experiences for your children. Turn them into hands-on homeschool projects to support math, history, science, art a ..read more

What does a GAHM (godly, authentic homeschool mom) look like? GAHMs don’t feel prepared. Cathy started homeschooling with only a high school diploma. She admits she didn’t feel confident. Now 30 years and 11 children later, Cathy gives credit to God: “In my weakness, God is strong.” Having only a high school diploma became an advantage. It forced her to get out of the way. Cathy remembers, “I realized my dependence upon the Lord; I was totally incapable of doing it myself.” One by one, all of Cathy’s children began their own spiritual walk and learned to read. GAHMs are not perfect. Dawn reme ..read more

You’ve just decided to homeschool. Congratulations! Now that you’ve made your decision, it’s understandable and not uncommon to have many questions and uncertainties about what’s next. So let’s start by breaking everything down into bite-size pieces. Soon, you’ll feel confident and ready to start the school year. Let’s begin at the beginning! 1. Why did you choose to homeschool? From wanting your children to learn from a biblical worldview to having higher academic standards, more flexibility for your family or seeking more involvement in what your kids are learning, there are so many reasons ..read more

Homeschooling is a journey! Once your child hits school age it’s a journey of 12, maybe 13 years. That may sound like a long time, but in reality, it absolutely flies! I was a homeschool mom for 18 years. I loved every minute I had with our girls. Then one day, I looked at our oldest in her cap and gown and cried. I admit it; I went to my room and cried like a baby. With tear-filled eyes, I am here to tell you it goes by far too fast. She graduated with her homeschool co-op, went to college, and earned her Master’s in Nursing. When the Lord blessed my husband and me with children, we knew we w ..read more

Written By Renee Bryant Noah didn’t learn the character trait of obedience when he began building the ark. His Character was developed long before. Strength of character takes years ot cultivate. Want to instill biblical character in your children? Let them see godly examples, learn to use character-building words, and practice doing the right things! Learn from Biblical Examples. There’s a connection between the example of Enoch walking with God in Genesis 5 and Noah walking with God in Genesis 6. Enoch was Noah’s great grandpa. Noah didn’t have Scripture. He only had communication with God a ..read more

Written by Kim Smith. Kim is a former teacher and Abeka consultant. She has two children. Past regrets either sink us or reshape us. When we determine to make a fresh start (no matter how many times) we must first get to the root of the problem. Where We’ve Been 1. Consider the frustrations. The house is a mess; the children are falling behind; the discipline isn’t working, or maybe all the above! Were these problems caused by inconsistency, lack of time, or by not knowing what to do? Write down your frustrations so you can see what is causing them. 2. Is the cause inaction or something else ..read more

It’s standardized testing season! Yearly testing is a necessary part of the education system, and as the proctor of the test, you want to be confident that you have everything pulled together when it’s test time. Here are 5 things you can do to get prepared. 1. Choose Your Standardized Test You can order all your standardized tests through Abeka. You have two options for online standardized testing, either the Iowa Tests or Stanford 10 tests. Both tests are recognized nationally and equally effective. Compare these tests and learn more here. If you have any issues with accessing your standardi ..read more