Sneak Preview of A Blog Series With An iPad Mini Giveaway

My blog is participating in its first ever giveaway! See details below and enter to win an iPad mini.

This coming week, my blog is participating in a blog hop through The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. This series has 89 veteran homeschool moms writing about what they consider their homeschooling essentials. As I was preparing my posts for this series, I started making a list of what I felt were absolute essentials for my own homeschool – the stuff that I could not live without.  As I wrote and thought, it became very clear that the ‘things’ I could not function without were not ‘things’ at all.

Yes, there is the necessity of functioning DVD players, since most of the girls’ lessons are on DVD’s. When one of those little electronic devices goes down, it definitely is a full blown crisis in our home. Or perhaps I could write about my newfound love: my new Kindle, or even the cool apps that have helped the girls review lessons on my iPod. Maybe an essential item would be the library card that I use on a weekly basis to flesh out the lessons with really cool stories and books, or maybe it would be our membership with the Family Vision Library, where we have access to nearly 10,000 Christian homeschooling items that definitely are not available through the local public library….

As you can see, the eraser on my pencil got just as much use as the pointy end by the time I was done with my list. I kept erasing and re-writing, because as I was jotting down these ‘essentials’ I realized that school can be done without electronics, and that Abe Lincoln was able to receive an education at home without a library card. So what really IS essential?

I have finally settled on a list of ATTITUDES that I think are essential to a happy and successful homeschool. Actually, they are essential to any happy and strong parent/child relationship. I am so thrilled to have a Bible that talks so much about good parenting skills.

This coming week I will be focusing on a different attitude everyday – one that I cannot live without in my homeschool. To me, they are my homeschool essentials! Take away all my books and supplies, and leave me in a room with just my children, and this is what it all boils down too. The ‘things’ are just that – tools to help reach the goal. The heart issues are the preparation for real life.

The goals I have laid out for my children are to:

1. Know God
2. Love God
3. Enjoy God

These goals will mainly be accomplished through the daily attitude that I have as I spend time teaching the children. If my homeschool is to be a success, then improving my daily attitudes must be at the very top of my “essentials" to-do list.

Please stop back every day next week to read my mini-series “5 Essential Attitudes for Homeschooling” and make sure you enter my giveaway for a chance to win a brand new iPad Mini!

Residents of the U.S. only.  Void where prohibited by law. Must be at least 18 years of age. See other Terms and Conditions in the Rafflecopter widget.

The giveaway will run from Jan 18 at midnight ET thru Jan 28 at midnight ET.

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