Homeschool Archives - Busy Moms Helper

Teaching Kids about Internet Safety

February 7, 2019 by Danielle 2 Comments

Thank you to Google and Mom It Forward Influencer Network for sponsoring this post. All opinions are mine alone. #SaferInternetDay #BeInternetAwesome

It’s crazy the differences between when we were growing up, and now our kids – especially with technology and constant, instant access to the online world. While in San Antonio on Monday celebrating Safer Internet Day, I learned several ideas and tips from our Be Internet Awesome adventure that will help parents and families learn more about Internet Safety. After all, despite all the good the internet gives us, there’s plenty of bad to keep an eye out for!

It was really creative the way they set up their Be Internet Awesome event, making it interactive and playful (while still educating – woot woot!) so that the kids were really pulled into the topics. To make it simple and cover the most important aspects of internet safety, there’s the ‘5 Zones of Internet Safety & Digital Citizenship’.

Here’s a breakdown of each of them:

Alert: Don’t Fall for the Fake

We all know those pesky phishing scam emails that seem to be constantly hitting our inboxes – but do your kids? Especially with email addresses being useful – or even necessary – at younger ages in school now, we need to make sure our kids are aware and being ‘alert’ to these possible scams.

The kids got several cards that had an ’email’ written on them, they then put the card in either the REAL slot or the FAKE slot. The machine then told them if they were correct, and if so then why it seemed more real or what made it suspected as fake. At the end, they got to shoot the ‘fake’ email!

Smart: Share with Care

While this covered a couple different topics, overall it was about what type of documents/information are ‘smart’ to send online. Kids were given different types of things (photo of baby cousin, school paperwork, etc.) and then had to decide if it’s something to share wherever online, just with close family and friends, or to not share online at all.

Teaching kids that once something is online, it may be there forever, can help them think twice before once they share (hopefully!)

Kind: It’s Cool to be Kind

I absolutely LOVE that they included this zone of internet safety, because there’s seems to be so much hate and mean words online. It’s bad enough kids get bullied at school so much, there’s a further reach online waiting to attach them, too. This station let the kids send ‘hearts’ to help fellow kids who were being ‘attacked’ by mean things (little pink spiky balls), as well as ‘block’ and even tell a grown up – such as a teacher or parent – if things didn’t get better quick enough.

Strong: Secure Your Secrets

How strong are the passwords for YOUR accounts? The statistics we learned about passwords was pretty shocking, and made me grateful that I’ve always been a little paranoid so set really unique and wacky passwords. This showed kids WHY it’s important to have a secure password (that you shouldn’t share with others, other than parents). No matter if you’re middle aged or a tween, you should have a STRONG and UNIQUE password, not just name or nickname (which about 24% of 16-24 year olds use – yikes!). They should be at least 8 characters long, and use a mixture of letters and numbers.

Brave: When in Doubt, Talk it Out

This one’s super important to discuss with our children, because it talks about being brave enough to come to an adult – either with a question, concern or for help. Not only adults, but for other kids who are aware of something negative to be brave to go to a grown up, even ‘anonymously’ that can then help whoever is having the problem.

The most important thing about internet safety is TALKING with your kids about all of these topics, and helping them feel comfortable in case they do ever need to come to you with a concern. I’m so grateful Google held this event – join us in celebrating Safer Internet Day with this awesome NEW Family Guide full of tips and learning so we can all work Together for a Better Internet! Kids will be able to put their new skills to the test with Interland, and your family can enjoy a much safer, better online experience.

Another great suggestion is to help your child’s school get involved by sharing Be Internet Awesome with their teachers, principals and leaders. The more people who learn this helpful information and help guide our children safely online, the better it will be for all of our families.

What’s your biggest internet safety tip?

Family Home Command Center

January 7, 2019 by Danielle Leave a Comment

With a family of 7, it can be really challenging to keep all of our schedules organized (and not forget all the random events or tasks). Luckily, we spent the weekend putting up this awesome Family Home Command Center that’s been a lifesaver! Not only is it functional, but looks amazing on this big wall on the side of our stairs.

As we’ve been *finally* adding photos and decor to our walls in this house (like our fun entryway with our new family photos), I knew I wanted a central area to help keep our family a bit more organized. A big dry erase calendar was a total MUST for me, because as the kids get older there seems to be more and more activities every month – I need help to stay on top of it all!

And for those of you that are super observant, yes I completely messed up the dates on the calendar at first! My large desk calendar – where I put all my daily to-dos for work, life, and EVERYTHING – starts with Sunday as the first day of the week. I look at this calendar multiple times a day, so that’s what my brain is programmed for – so I went into autopilot when writing in dates. It’s since been fixed, thank goodness, but it’s going to take some getting use to! At the top is another of our fabulous family photo gallery wraps – it’s a bit more goofy, and I love it for our command center.

It took me a bit to decide on a layout – but once I knew exactly WHAT I wanted to put on the wall, it was just a matter of playing with it. I traced everything onto scrap paper and used that taped to the wall until I found what I liked best, then it was easy to put the nail holes exactly where they needed to be, as well!

We’ve been trying something new with our family chores – a sheet with the chores divided up. I laminated it, so each week I just put each child’s marker color by the chunk of chores that they’re in charge of completing that week. Same for who has meal duties (set table, etc.) each meal – just add their marker color. Super easy to switch up, and a nice convenient spot for them to check!

Above that is a cute printable list of the morning tasks all my kids need to complete to kick off their homeschool work for the day – I plan to switch it up each month to play with other backgrounds.

I’ve had my large photo collage LOVE board for several years now, and have always enjoyed it in a central location to look at often, so it was perfect! I plan to start making a new one annually with our family photos from that year, then use numbers to do a vertical 2018 (or whatever the year) in place of the letters. Each year we’ll add to our collection, and the most current will go in this spot on our home command center!

Aren’t my babies so cute? Even the kids really enjoy walking past this and seeing a bunch of photos of the family. This family command center is along our main pathway from the front door to the back of the house where the kitchen/living room are. Across from the wall is the large, open office and homeschool room, so it’s a perfect location for them to check their daily tasks and glance at the family calendar, as needed.

Seriously, I can’t get enough of how great this central area looks – and am loving how convenient it is for our family scheduling, tasks, and chores. Hopefully it continues to keep us a bit more organized for a long while to come!

Do you have a command center? Tell me about it in the comments!

Holiday Gift Guide: Gifts for Learners & Homeschoolers

November 15, 2018 by Danielle Leave a Comment

My kids have always loved learning, and I try to encourage that with the types of games, activities and toys we have in our home. Now that we’re homeschooling, it’s even more important! If you have kids who love to learn then you’ll love the incredible ideas in our newest Holiday Gift Guide: Gifts for Learners & Homeschoolers.

Whether their interest is in science experiments, studying astronomy, life and nature exploration, learning to code or robotics, we’ve got a bit of something for everyone on this list. Pick your favorite gift for a kid who loves to learn, or for your homeschool kiddos!

Professor Maxwell’s 4D Chef

Kids can get immersed into this fun 4D Kitchen while creating 18 interactive recipes. They come alive in augmented and virtual reality, and Professor Maxwell (the 4D Chef) helps teach them the science behind food – they’ll love exploring the wonders of food science while trying new recipes. There’s a ‘lesson behind every bite’ – so give it a try!

14-in-1 Build Your Own Educational Solar Robot

Scientific Explorer Tasty Science Kit

GeoSmart Flip Bot 2019 Toy Of The Year Finalist

Kids will have great fun when they build, then flip, this remote-controlled vehicle! The 30-piece geomagnetic set has turbo motors which allow it to zoom and spin all over – as well as FLIP over! Learning is super fun with this robot featuring bright colors, strong magnetic pieces and a (patented) double-safety system. Use the included building guide, or let your kids use their own creativity to build different versions with the included pieces! This entertaining bot – weighing less than 2 pounds when fully built – flips whenever direction is changed form forward to back or vice-versa making for hours of learning fun!

Mastermind®

Kids can test out their code-cracking with Mastermind, a challenging game of logic and deduction. Try to crack the code in 10 moves or less, or create one that cant’ be cracked! It’s a great stategy game and one of the world’s most popular games ever. It’s easy to learn, fast to play and has thousands of possibilities, making it different every time you play. For 2 players, ages 8 and up.

littleBits HALL OF FAME Collection

Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret

Whether our kid loves adventure, learning, reading or just trying new things, they’ll love this new book by Trudi Trueit brought to you by National Geographic! This first title in what will be a 7-book middle grade series was inspired by actual, real-life missions of the National Geographic Society. Inspire your kids to adopt a mindset of an explorer to set them up for a lifetime of adventure!

LEGO Chain Reactions Craft Kit

Wordsearch

Who doesn’t love a great wordsearch game? With this exciting version, turn a solitary activity into a fun group game as players go on a word search. The specially-designed circular board rotates to reveal the word they’ll race to find on that turn. You can even create your own custom Wordsearch cards with the online Puzzle Generator! Visit http://www.wordsearch.eu and enter up to 20 of your own unique words to generate a customized puzzle board; then download and print. For 2-4 players, ages 7 and up.

Large Sunprint® Kit

LED Activity Panel

Base Inventor Kit

Learn & Climb Kids Science Set

Building Brilliance® Magnetic Shapes

Solar Building Helicopter

Gizmos & Gadgets Kit

Scientific Explorer Magic Science for Wizards Only Kit

STEM Robot Mouse Coding Activity

HEXBUG VEX Robotics Offroad Truck

Electronic Music Inventor Kit

Solar Powered Robot

Crayoligraphy Calligraphy Kit

Mini Explorer Light-up Crystal Growing Kit

Rule Your Room Kit

5 lb Air-Dry Clay Resealable Bucket

LEGO Boost Creative Toolbox Fun Robot Building Set

Women in Science

DIY Star Globe

Space Rover Inventor Kit

The Educational, Augmented Reality Based Globe

Science! Stationery Set

Telescope for Kids and Astronomy Beginners

The Albert Math Clock

Liquid Timers

Leapfrog: Gift Of Learning for Kids Ages 4-7

Marvel Avengers Hero Inventor Kit

ERUPT! Volcano and Fossil Science Kit

Star Wars Bloxels Video Game Builder

Creative Projects with Raspberry Pi

Hexbug VEX Robotics Bundle: SNAP SHOT, CROSSBOW, CATAPULT

Earth and Space Adult Coloring Book

Microscope for Kids Science Kit

Kids GPS Smart Phone Watch

GeoSafari® Talking Microscope™

Droid Inventor Kit by littleBits

Mini Explorer Light-up Terrarium Kit Kids

Butterfly Garden

Create-A-Maze™

Children’s Organic 4 Plant Kit

First Martians: Adventures on the Red Planet

Kids Binoculars set

5-in-1 Build and Play Toy Set

Two-Tiered Mini Greenhouse

Educational Insights Kanoodle

HEXBUG VEX Robotics Screw Lift Ball Machine

Circuit Kit With Lighted Bricks Magnets

National Geographic Dinosaur Dig Kit

What do your kids love learning about most?

Balancing Digital Entertainment for Kids

November 1, 2018 by Danielle Leave a Comment

This post is sponsored by the Mom It Forward Influencer Network on behalf of Explore, Discover & Grow. All opinions are mine alone.

Hubby and I were discussing the differences of when we were kids, and now our children’s youth. At school a lot of things were paper and pencil, not tablets. We had way more recess than schools now seem to, as electronic time is slowly taking over. Last year at school, there were so many days my kids would say ‘we didn’t do recess outside today, they had us stay inside and watch a movie’. And if you’re wondering the same thing I did, no it was not an educational movie, just a fun one that’s only purpose is to entertain. What about movement, or learning? This is why parents need to be mindful of Balancing Digital Entertainment for Kids – because although technology, movies, games and such are great and fine, there needs to be a balance with the kids actually being active and learning, too.

Growing up, the norm was for parents to send their kids outside to play – often times until the street lamps would turn on in the evening. Now, kids spend more and more time in front of a screen. Y’all know I love movies and games, especially with my family, but I also know how important it is to not overdo it. Television stations now aim for an 80/20 ratio, with 80% being just entertainment and 20% being education entertainment. If you ask Greg Page – known globally for his role as the original Yellow Wiggle from the children’s entertainment group, The Wiggles – he thinks it should be closer to 50/50. It’s all about balance! In an effort to bring more quality, educational fun to kids’ screen time, he’s leading a revival of children’s educational television with Explore, Discover & Grow.

Greg knows from his many years in early childhood studies and as a teacher that kids learn better by DOING. Too many shows just entertain while the child just sits there. But shows such as Dora the Explorer and Blue’s Clues have shown us how much more excited kids are when they can feel like a part of the show, and be active along with the characters. By involving the kids in the story or activities, they’re also more likely to LEARN and actually retain the information – plus have fun along the way! The more senses they use, the better what they learn is stored in the brain, plus the better they understand it. That’s why he’s been working hard to bring Explore, Discover & Grow to kids – this series of 104, ten-minute videos will be released directly to subscribers 2X per week, making it the perfect length for young kids’ attention spans.

Parents can help bring some balance to digital entertainment for kids with this great series, which will use music, movement, language and play – making it a great ‘edutainment‘ experience for young kiddos. Kids as young as 2 will enjoy the colors, sounds and active motions included, and preschool children will have fun, engaging and educational content that’s designed to teach the whole child. Since it’s created by a teacher with actual experience in applying educational theory in entertainment for over 27 years, you know it’ll be high quality and be perfectly catered to the learning abilities of these younger children.

And guess what? YOU can be a part of this amazing revival by backing their Indiegogo campaign – and you’ll get access to all of the content created! The campaign is now live, and they’re counting on parents like us to help them bring good, educational entertainment back to today’s kids. The closer to their funding goal they’re able to get, the higher quality they’ll be able to produce, so we’re trying hard to help raise awareness – not just here, but all over the world for English-speaking families! Greg’s determination is remarkable, and after having a really great chat with him (at 2am his time, since he’s in Australia – thank you Greg!) to learn more, I really believe this will be the next great screen time show for preschool kids! He’s working hard to make this a reality, and has already created about 60-70 songs for the series.

They have a full plan for the coming year to produce and release these great videos, and his hope is that if they can make the first year successful and as high-quality as planned (with your help by supporting their Indiegogo campaign), the second year can help open up possibilities for others out there with great ideas on quality, educational entertainment for today’s little ones. With more and more non-educational screen time being thrown at our youth all the time, this could really be the start of showing the world that us parents want better for our kids – that we WANT balance in digital entertainment for our children!

See more fun for Explore, Discover & Grow on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter!

Starting Homeschool

October 12, 2018 by Danielle Leave a Comment

As many of you know, we decided that we’d homeschool our kids starting this year. All five of them! Yes, we’re crazy – but this decision came after several years of looking into things, considering all the pros and cons, and making our own lives and jobs work so that we could do this. We’re two months in, and so far things are going fine. There’s still many bumps to figure out and adjustments to be made, but we’re learning and growing together, and will probably tweak things all along the way. If you’re unsure about Starting Homeschool, here’s some reasons WHY we made this choice!

First of all, I’ll be honest and say that one of my kids we’re only homeschooling because we moved far enough away from his school that we couldn’t make the drive there/back work. It was an AMAZING school (one of my girls was there 4th-6th grade, and that’s as high as they go so she finished it as well), dual language, very arts, creativity and STEAM focused. We loved it, and if we lived close enough he would still be able to go there – but sadly, it’s a minimum of 25 minute drive each way, which just couldn’t be worked out. So if you’re at an INCREDIBLE school that you love, homeschooling may not be for you.

For the kids not at that school, we’re starting homeschooling mainly for the following reasons:

More flexible schedule – for the family, learning, vacations, activities/extracurricular, etc.
Learn at their own pace – some need more help in certain subjects, but a classroom can’t just stop for one child (now WE can)
Catch up or go ahead – some of my kids need to catch up in some topics, while some are flying ahead and really meeting their potential
We control what/how they learn – no more worries of whether we agree with certain views, or how topics are addressed by others besides us
More hands-on learning opportunities – such as field trips of our choice (and more time to do them), etc.

There’s other reasons, of course, but these were the largest. Last year, one of my kids’ teachers said that she had finished that year’s math already so she had handed her the math book for the next year to work on ahead. School just couldn’t keep up with HER actual learning pace, same with another one of my kids. They needed more challenge, and the ability to move forward instead of sitting waiting for a classroom to catch up. And the reverse, some kids need MORE help or to go slower in certain subjects – but again, you have to go by the classroom speed. Homeschooling gives us the freedom to give extra help, or allow faster progress, as each child needs it.

Now, while there’s plenty of beneficial things to homeschooling (otherwise we wouldn’t have chosen this option), there’s also some cons. It’s extremely difficult fitting my own work into the schedule when I’m assisting kids all day, or just having them home instead of getting to focus on my to-do list. I’ve had to cut back some, and it’s a constant tug-of-war with priorities. The kids and I do frustrate each other sometimes because we’re together ALL DAY, EVERY DAY. So while it’s great having that relationship building and time together, it’s not always roses.

There’s also costs – supplies, programs/educational material, etc. You have to put up with questions A LOT from people who think homeschooling isn’t the right choice. We have to be active to make sure they get OUT of the house and socialize with others enough – between church, friends and their extracurricular activities, though, so far there’s been zero worries on that front. It can also be frustrating when the kids see each other doing better or worse than them, and have to teach them it’s okay to be different so they don’t make it an awful competition.

Two months in, and still when people ask how it’s going my answer is usually “nobody’s died yet!” That sums it up in a nutshell – while we’re still thrilled with our decision and things are going great overall, there’s still the frustrating or overwhelming times, the moments we just want to have SPACE from each other, and the general tweaking and figuring things out we will probably be doing the entire time. So if you’re thinking of starting homeschool for your kiddos, definitely consider it strongly and make the best choice for YOUR family – but know that while there’s many benefits (I believe they outweigh the cons), there’s still going to be headaches. Nothing’s perfect, right?