5 Fave: Reads from the Internet This Week

This is a quick list of my five a favorite posts or articles that I came across this week.  There is so much out there, but it is always nice when you discover something really worth reading.  Enjoy!

Linking up with Ashley.  Did you read anything worth sharing this week?  Please comment below.

1

We try very hard to limit the use of devices and games in our home. In fact we have no video games (only the exercise type games for the Wii that we play as a family every once in a great while).  I have a Kindle with games and apps for the kids and each one gets 30 minutes a day of "Freetime" they use it about once every other month.  Until we recently moved, the television was kept in a cabinet and was only opened for an hour of educational programming a day, some days we forgot, some weeks we forgot.  Now that the television is in plain sight, I find my boys in particular are constantly asking to watch a show.  However, when we first moved, there was no Internet here for a month, which meant no Netflix, which meant no shows.  For the first three weeks we did not have a television hooked up at all, there were no videos to watch, either.  Although my son protested, after the first couple days, they stopped asking about the television being hooked up.  They just played.  Not that they never played and created before, they did, but without the temptation of instant entertainment, they let their imaginations soar.  We almost didn't hook the TV up at all after that.

This article, which I saw posted multiple places on Facebook, is a startling look at what most young people experience when faced with the absence of their comfort items--music, phones, and the Internet.  While I question the fact that they could not have any personal contact of any kind, even face to face.  I think that it is a wake up call of why culture is going the way it is.  It is nearly impossible to listen to the whispers of God on your heart when you are continually surrounded by distraction and noise.  The need to be entertained crushes the prospect of creativity and ingenuity, it also makes us a very self-centered society.  I really encourage you to read the full article and share it around to family and friends.  

2

As a mom who has had a struggling reader, I truly appreciate Kelly's article about trusting that your child will learn to read. I only wish she wrote it about seven years ago.  Reading is fundamental as the old tag line goes, but it isn't innate.  It also isn't a race.  We, as a society, put such a premium on being the first and checking off our list.  Education is a journey not a to do list.  Just because your child starts reading at four and a half completely independently, like one of mine did, doesn't mean that you have all the answers and he is bound for a PHD from Harvard.  Likewise, a child who takes until ten with intense phonics instruction to really get it, as one of mine did, does not mean you are failing and your child will never amount to anything in life.   Reading is a process and a skill, it is also a key to adventure for the rest of your life.  Raising children that love to read is much more important and raising ones that read early or easily. 

3

We are at the point of the year where homeschooling gets hard.  Hang in there Mama!  If you need some encouragement or streamlining (Don't we all?), check out this post from Homeschool Creations and give you little school a face lift!

4

If you are like me, you are probably looking ahead to next year and beginning to plan.  The ever resourceful Auntie Leila has a wonderful post on how to organize a homeschool notebook in order to design your own curriculum and keep track of what you are accomplishing all year.  I highly recommend checking it out.  I must say that I follow a similar routine but am not very good at keeping consistent records, this post inspired me to do better.  Thanks, Auntie Leila!

5

I really like Simcha Fisher.  She has a way of writing that feels like you are her best friend and she invited you over for tea.  She is always funny, and always real; but more importantly she is always devoutly Catholic.  I discovered her article about confession on Debbie's Facebook page.  It is a lovely read and one that is so appropriate as we head into Lent in a few short weeks.  Never be afraid to seek God's Mercy.  He died for you, just the way you are.

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