Brain Game for Kids - Downtime

Waiting in line or stuck in traffic, this is a super activity when you have bored kids. And this fun brain-builder takes only seconds to prepare and costs nothing at all!

Think of a common item that each child is familiar with. Ask one child to explain what the item is usually used for. Then allow other children a chance to name an unusual use for the same object (such as using an egg beater to tousle your hair or create bubbles in the bathtub). Older children should be able to come up with a greater number of uses. Encourage creative responses! Take turns to see how many uses each can think of. Let the kids discuss and brainstorm.

Variation 1:

Let the kids pantomime using a familiar object in an unusual way . Everyone else can try to guess what item is being used. It's a game of brain charades.

Variation 2:

Select one item and have each child write down ten ways to use it. Then have each child read his or her responses while everyone crosses off the answers that are not unique. The person with the most unique, but still plausible, responses wins.

Some possible items to choose are:

• spoon
• bathtub
• ribbon
• thumbtack
• egg carton
• hair brush
• car
• wallet
• shoe box
• needle
• shovel
• lipstick
• pencil
• yardstick
• spatula
• cup
• purse
• blanket
• piece of paper
• roll of tape
• book
• key chain
• chair
• pear
• nail file
• vegetable steamer
• paper clip
• shovel
• stapler
• piece of chalk

Have fun broadening your mind and increasing your critical thinking skills together!

Author Info:

Alison is a homeschooling mom of six children, ages 4-20. Married for over 22 years, she and he husband have used their greatest brain power educating their children. Alison is a public speaker, blogger, singer, author, and chocolate lover. She's is the co-founder of the BookWise Winners. Please visit the BookWise Bookstore for great selection and prices-and grab your free Classic Book Package just for ordering.

Alison's new book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Homeschooling is slated for publication in the spring of 2008.

Accredited Home Schooling

Nowadays the only way that home schooled children will make it in the world and get into schools where they have a chance to be doctors or lawyers they must go to accredited home schools. Accredited schools must be found to be accepted by the board of education and are transferable to other education departments. Nowadays with the rise of home school children graduating that has become a problem. To alleviate that problem, online schools started offering accredited home schooling options, these programs offer correspondence or online curriculums, with live instructors and dedicated student representatives, as well as the ability for parents to choose every aspect of their education.

Every thing has a very positive and bright side and a really negative and down side. As far as the home schooling is concerned, it is important to note those home schooling programs are of various types. Some of the home schooling programs are good and effective while others are not. Some of the home schooling programs are accredited while others are not. If you want your kid to learn from the home schooling program, it is a must that you select the right kind of program for him. This is something really important for him or her. Your kid is dependent on you for this selection. Selecting the right kind of accredited home schooling program will be a brilliant idea. A home schooling program which is accredited is better than the others which are not. Thus make sure that you choose the right one for your all your kids.

There are many of these programs available online; students can go to school online from Kindergarten all the way up to college degrees. These accredited home school programs, are structured for a student to get the maximum education. Parents get to be in charge of the education their child gets while maintaining their busy lifestyles and other household problems.

Having your child attend one of these programs will give your child an edge and an opportunity to go to the school that they dream of and make it like any other student. They will also learn structure as well as independence. They will get more money and more opportunities.

Another benefit of accredited home schools is that the school offers the child a chance to qualify for scholarships offered by the state for schools covered by the department of education, giving your child the chance to explore the unfamiliar, invent new approaches to understanding and connect their home school lives to the world at large. Accredited home school children enjoy a vibrant education and achieve futures unimagined.

Sign your child up for his or her future with an accredited home school.

Author Info:

Robert Grazian is an accomplished niche website developer and author.

To learn more about accredited home schooling visit Home Schooling for Your Children for current articles and discussions.

25 Ways to Infuse Love Into Homeschooling

One of the most common reasons parents choose to homeschool is to ensure that they are the ones teaching their children the most important things in life, not a text book or an institution. Spending time with and modeling for your child are both great benefits of homeschooling. The following is a list of 25 ways to infuse love into homeschooling. It is a compilation of ideas, activities, and ways you can nurture your child as their mom as well as their teacher.

1. Work on a jigsaw puzzle together. It is a great way to extend the love language of quality time. Choose a subject for the puzzle that goes along with something you are teaching.

2. Build a fort with pillows and blankets and climb inside together for reading time.

3. Select a painting, drawing, story, or poem your child has created. Frame it and put it on display.

4. Make a simple date with your child. I take my son for his favorite, rolled tacos. It is a great time to talk and connect.

5. Designate one day this week as a theme day, like dress up day or pajama day or game day. Adapt your lesson plans to incorporate the theme.

6. Practice praising your child for something they do today. This is a great homeschool habit for every day.

7. Take a walk together. It can be a nature walk followed up by a journal writing, or simply a walk at the beginning of the day to go over what's on the agenda. Taking time together outside of seat work is very important.

8. Write a family newsletter to email to family and friends.

9. Choose to become a good listener.

10. Be affectionate throughout your homeschool day. You're their teacher, but you're their mom first.

11. Teach your child a family recipe.

12. Write love notes with your child and slip them into other family members' drawers, folded laundry, or briefcase.

13. Spend the day whispering so that you have to get close to one another and listen very carefully.

14. Pray with your child for your pastor and his family, the church you attend, the body of Christ, and missionaries around the world.

15. Play a silly playground game like leap frog or hopscotch. Jump rope together for P.E. or take a trip to the park just to swing on the swings.

16. Bake something together to bless a neighbor. You can make a homemade card to accompany the treats. Take this opportunity to share the love of Christ in your note.

17. Plan a surprise field trip.

18. Call your child by their first name as often as you can for an entire day. This shows your child that you acknowledge them, that you are listening, that you are tuned into their world. It is definitely a way to lovingly affirm your child.

19. Make your child a bubble bath at the end of a hard day of homeschooling.

20. Select your child as "Student of the Week" and create special privileges to go along with the title.

21. Start an herb garden together. Use this activity to explain the various herbs and how to use them in various meals.

22. Take up a volunteer project together. Be sure to include your child in the charity selection process.

23. Serve heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast.

24. Reward your child with a coupon redeemable for one day off of chores.

25. And don't forget to tell them how much you love them!

Author Info:

For more information on homeschooling or to read additional articles by Codie Brenner, go to http://www.ispmom.com

Codie Brenner has a bachelor's degree in Journalism with a minor in Creative Writing from Pepperdine University. She is a freelance writer, Christian school Librarian, and homeschool mom.