I added a new, down-loadable "freebie" to help students with their writing projects.  The "Planning Form" can be accessed under the "Free Stuff" button.

Does your homeschool become a battlefield each time you assign a writing project?  Helping your child understand that writing is a process can diffuse some of the tension and produce better results.

Grading essays is often as hard on mom or the teacher as it is on the student. Is there a way to diminish the pain and increase the reward for both?

So, you've bitten the bullet and decided not to end your homeschooling journey after junior high. You are entering the high school years and some of the things you embraced about homeschooling are being challenged, such as not giving grades. High school is a different animal, but not necessarily a scary monster. You should write course descriptions and keep accurate records. And, yes, you should give letter grades. A transcript doesn't carry much meaning to prospective universities if it doesn't have grades.

In previous blogs, we discussed potential difficulties with giving grades for elementary level work. We provided grading options. Today we will look at two more drawbacks to evaluating students' work by awarding letter grades.

In the previous blog, we began looking at how to grade, or evaluate, the work of elementary level students. The idea was put forth that giving letter grades is counter-productive to mastery learning and an obstacle to instilling a love of learning.

Over and again at conventions, through emails and phone calls homeschooling moms ask about grading their children’s work. This blog is the first in a series focusing on giving letter grades. Today we will begin a discussion on grading elementary level work.

It's been a long time coming, but our new website is finally operational. As with many new things, we may have glitches to work on; you can help by letting us know if something isn't working for you, or if there are confusing elements.

This blog will be used to discuss issues related to homeschooling in general and language arts in particular. If there are burning topics you're eager to see addressed, let me know and we can add them to the top of the list. Currently, I plan to address: How to Evaluate Your Child's Writing; The Reluctant Writer; What About Grammar; and The Value of Motion in Learning.