What I Read and Our Homeschool Read Alouds ll July 2025

 

The House of My Mother by Shari Franke

The Franke family rose to fame when mom, Ruby Franke, picked up a camera and created her family vlogging channel.  Over the years, she chronicled the events and happenings of the Franke family of 8.  But behind the scenes, the kids were reeling, the couple falling apart, and the family disintegrating.  In The House of My Mother, daughter Shari Franke pulls back the curtain to reveal a broken childhood littered with narcissism, abuse, and brainwashing.  This was an incredibly tough book to read when considering all that these kids went through.  I couldn't believe all the twists and turns this family's journey took.  And to see that any of these kids have come out half-functional is a complete miracle.  Fascinating read!

Trial and Triumph by Richard Hannula

This one has been on my list for a long time.  It's a collection of 40+ short biographies, highlighting heroes of the faith.  Trial and Triumph is divided into sections by time period, so it's easy to sort and add to your history curriculum.  I loved that the biographies were short.  This could easily be read during a morning basket time slot.  One word of caution: some of the selections can be scary depending on what time period you're reading in.  Particularly theos people who lived when Christians were heavily persecuted.  But overall, well worth adding to your home library.

Rasmus and the Vagabond by Astrid Lingren

This book was a really interesting find.  Astrid Lingren is the author of Pippi Longstockings, so one day we decided to see if she'd written anything else.  Rasmus popped up at our local library, and I thought I'd check it out.  Rasmus is an orphan who decides to run away one day.  His first night away from the orphanage, he meets up with a vagabond who takes him under his wing.  Together, they get mixed up with a sheriff, bank robbers, hidden loot, and more.  The two must unravel the mystery to save their name.  And in the process, find an unlikely family.  This was a well-written story about honor, perceptions, and home.  While I didn't enjoy it as much as Pippli Longstockings, I did enjoy the story and loved discovering new books from a favorite author.  This would be an excellent book for introducing topics such as adoption and family.

The Four Hour School Day by Durenda Wilson

Packed with practical examples from her own real life homeschool, Durenda Wilson casts a vision for an education that leaves both mom and students thriving.  I love how down to earth this book is and really wish I would have read it earlier in my homeschool journey.  This one definitely goes on my recommendations list.

Better Together by Pam Barnhill

This is an annual reread for me.  Morning Basket is the heart of our homeschool.  It's time when we connect and grow in truth, beauty, and goodness.  I love rereading this title to be inspired and gather new ideas for our next year.  I always read this one with a notebook and pen nearby.  I have definitely gotten my money's worth out of this book.

Tame Your Thoughts by Max Lucado

See my full review here.

Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher

This was one of those books that I didn't discover until my kids were a little older, but I wanted to go back and read it for my own benefit.  Betsy is mistakenly sent to live with a distant relatives when her aunt falls ill.  Although she's heard troubling things about this family, she soon discovers that their love for her makes a warm and happy home.  Written similarly to the Little House books, this would make a fun read for 4-5th graders.  And a light summer read for mom!

Our Homeschool Read Alouds:

The Time Garden, Magic or Not?, The Well-Wishers, and Seven-Day Magic by Edward Eager

We're continuing our way through the Tales of Magic series.  And we still love it!   This month we read books #4-6, and they were fantastic.  Book five introduces us to a new cast of characters so it took a minute to adjust, but the writing is still amazing, the tales imaginative, and the journey so much fun!

What are you reading?

Tame Your Thoughts {Review}

 

The Bible warns us that our thoughts have consequences.  Numerous times, we're challenged to "take every thought captive."  But what do we do when we're hounded by chaos and regret?  Swirling thoughts that leave us confused and depleted?  

In Tame Your Thoughts, author Max Lucado identifies three thought-management tools and applies them to some of today's most common problems: worry, anxiety, and other mental traps that threaten to keep us from the full life of Christ.  In this battle of the mind, Lucado uses the Bible to help his readers combat toxic thoughts by:

*taking every thought captive

*renewing our minds

*testing our thoughts against Scripture

*and interrupting destructive thought patterns!

Tame Your Thoughts is Biblically rich, and Lucado does a thorough job of making it practical to today's world. He reminds his reader how important it is to take our thoughts captive and not create stories in our heads.  Furthermore, he doesn't just show what we're trying to avoid, but rather creates a vision for the glorious life that awaits all of us as we mature in our thought life.  This book includes questions for further reflection and would make a great resource for a small group study.  While a lot of the focus is on worry, the tools outlined apply to a variety of scenarios.  This is a great book for anyone wanting to mature in their thinking,

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.  All opinions are my own.

The What's and Why's of the Morning Basket

 *This post was originally shared on 6/25/19.  Enjoy!

 For the past year or so, I've shared our family's morning basket here and on our Youtube channel.  Each month, I lay out the resources, books, activities that we are using to start our homeschool morning together and enhance our family's learning.  And over the months, I've been asked a handful of the same questions.  So I thought I'd take a few minutes to address some of those questions about the What's, Why's, and How To's of the morning basket?

*What is a morning basket?

A morning basket is a collection of resources to start your homeschool day with beauty and excitement.  In our family, it's a way of fanning the flame of curiosity for the lessons to come, and a way of reinforcing what we've studied previously.  It's often stored in a basket and thus labeled a morning basket.

*Does it have to be a basket?  Does it have to be in the morning?

No, to both.  We currently keep our morning basket items on a shelf in the living room.  But these items can be stored in a number of places: crates, shelves, baskets, desk area, etc.  We like to use our morning basket as a way of launching us into our school day.  But it can be used at any time of the day.  Some families use their at lunch and others at bedtime.  But really any time that works for your family, works for your morning basket. 

*What do you put in your morning basket?

Morning baskets vary from family to family, but often include several books, games, and some music.  Currently ours include: a book based on our history and science units, some poetry, a devotional, CC cards, Scripture memory box, and a read aloud chapter book.  Other ideas could be items related to music and art appreciation, math or language flashcards, logic books and games, other games, etc.

*How long does morning time last?

Our morning time runs about 30 min, but some families will linger together up to 1 hour.  You can make your time as long or as short as yourand your children would like. 

*Do you cover all your topics each day?

Again, it's what works for your family.  We rotate our history and science books based on our block scheduling, and sprinkle in music and art 1-2 days a week.  Daily, we read from our devotional, chapter book, and poetry, as well as our memory work.

*How often do you change the items in your morning basket?

We rotate some of our subjects on a monthly basis, while others last a few months at a time.  Some families rotate on a seasonal basis or even by term.  My favorite morning basket to prepare is always our December basket with a focus on Christmas and some of the handicrafts and artwork that are an added bonus to the season.

*Still have questions?

Feel free to search my Youtube channel for recommendations and resources.  Or leave a comment below and I'd be happy to help.

Do you use a morning basket in your homeschool?

Weekend Links ll July 25, 2025

Back to Homeschool Word Search

Learning Through Literature: Science & Nature

Teaching Zoology in Elementary Grades

Strategies for Scheduling High School

Why Picture Study is for Everyone

Summer Break or Summer Planning?

*this post was originally published on 7/9/14.  Enjoy! 

I don't know where this summer's gone... Wait, I take that back.  I don't know where it's gone: VBS, baseball, ballet, swim lessons, ... on and on.  And here I find myself over a month into the summer and this homeschool Mama wants to make the most of what's left.  So while, I'm trying to soak up some rest and relaxation, I know that school is just around the corner.

Thus, summer planning it is.  I'm looking over the past year and reworking what's best for our family.  Just to get me started, these are a few things I'm working on:

• Start with the Basics--For us, my non-negotiables are Math and Reading.  Any time we have a field trip, we try to hit at least these two subjects.  After that, my kids love Science so I work that in next.  And then we  add in History and Writing. 
• Get into a routine and don't overwhelm in the first month-- I learned last year that we just went too crazy, too fast.  I have to remember that we're going from the lazy days of summer into 5 subject school.  Even I feel overwhelmed.  So this year, we're easing in, bit by bit, and finding our groove before we get in too deep.
• Look for discounts and used deals--I'm spending a good chunk of my time this summer searching for used curriculum.  There are lots of curriculum exchange groups on Facebook and you can find lots of used books on ebay as well.
• List some read alouds--We've had a read aloud list going this year with the kids.  So I'm planning ahead in case there's any unit studies I want to coordinate our reading with.
• Determine priorities for your kids--Usually my kids so some kind of sport throughout the year so I can count it as their PE.  But your family might have other priorities to work into your schedule: music lessons, art classes, co-op classes, language learning... now is the time to prioritize and see how they will fit into your fall schedule.
• What do your kids want to learn this year?--Ask your kids if there's anything specific THEY want to learn this year.  For us, we're doing California history, and my oldest has always wanted to visit the state capitol.  I'm thinking my youngest wants to learn more about animals so we're working that into our Science curriculum.
• Don't compare--I have to constantly remind myself of this one.  I see moms writing their own curriculum.  Or other moms planning fantastic field trips.  Or even other moms who's kids are skipping grades, and learning third languages, and taking engineering classes at 5 year olds.   I wouldn't compare my kids if they were in public school.  So why am I putting so much pressure on myself and them in our homeschool?  Part of homeschooling is having the chance to celebrate our time together and I'm not going to ruin in by comparing any of us to someone else.

So is anyone else back in planning mode yet?  How are you planning for the fall? 

Our 2025-26 Homeschool Read Aloud List

Putting together this year's read aloud list has been quite a challenge.  We finished up our second round of Story of the World last year, and that's what I based a lot of our list around.  It was always fun to add historical fiction to our reading.  Now going into high school, we'll transition to BJU's Human Geography.  So I've been working on building our list around the continents that we'll study and the people that live there... their history, their culture, their lifestyle.   I have no idea where this year is going to take us.  Every title on this list is new to us (except for the holiday reads), so I'll keep you updated on our impressions.  Have you read any of these?

Coming up Cuban by Sonia Manzano

The Puffin Keeper by Michael Morpurgo

The Crow-Girl by Bodtl Bredsdorff

Listening for Lions by Gloria Whelan

Extra Credit by Andrew Clements

Turtles of the Midnight Moon by Maria Jose Fitzgerald

Shooting Kabul by N.H. Senzai

Ice Drift by Theodore Taylor

See-Saw Girl by Linda Sue Park

Quest for the Tree Kangaroo by Sy Montgomery

A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson

What would you add to the list?

Weekend Links ll July 18, 2025

 

Teach Writing with a Curriculum

Low Carb Chicken Fajita Nachos

Sesame Pasta Chicken Salad

Six Ways to Teach Kids to Think Like an Engineer

Earning Credits with a Project Based High School

Teaching Scripture Memorization to Children

*This post was originally published on 3/12/21.  Enjoy!

(Click on post for video)

 Today I'm sharing how we memorize Scripture with our children. We use this process in about 5 min a day and it's been a huge blessing in our family.

Do you have a process of memorization with your children? Join The Creative2xmom Family on their journey of being a family of 5! 💑19yrs led to 👱15 yrs, 👧13 yrs, and 👱 9 yrs. Contact us for business inquiries, reviews and collaborations: BethAnn_97@hotmail.com Teaching Poetry Memorization to Children: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHDxf6w6ahQ C O N N E C T subscribe at http://www.youtube.com/creative2xmom read at http://www.creative2xmom.blogspot.com like me on http://www.facebook.com/creative2xmom follow me on https://www.instagram.com/creative2xmom/ https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/52903?ref=nav_mybooks FTC Disclosure: This video is not sponsored. *This video is not intended for audiences under 13 years.

What I Read and Our Homeschool Read Alouds ll June 2025

 

Culture of Honor by Danny Silk

This was a reread for me.  I had previously read this book at least 10 years ago.  Silk sets out to realign the church with a kingdom mindset, reminding us that God's structure doesn't always look like ours.  It was really a mixed review for me.  Silk has some great takeaways.  He shares examples of restoration with the church that left the participants built up rather than shamed.  He reminds us that revival culture doesn't eliminate the consequences or temptations of sin.  There were really some great points here.  I think my biggest hesitation is Silk's belief that the gifts are hierarchical.  He lays out an argument that some gifts are more important than others.  I just don't see that in Scripture.  I found myself loving and hating this book.  I'm just not sure what to make of it.  Still mulling it over.

Speak Your Mind by Emerson Eggerichs

See my full review here.

Pocketful of Pinecones by Karen Andreola

This fictionalized story by Karen Andreola follows Carol and her children as they embark on their homeschool journey.  It's a sweet story set in the early 1900's and really gets the mother's heart for her kids.  I love how sweet and gentle this story is.  Carol is honest about her struggles, but everything is covered by her love for her husband and family.  A lot of the book centers on their pursuit of nature study.  Andreola includes the scientific names of natural items and includes thoughtful questions at the end of each section.  I return to this one often when I need to be reminded of how simple and relational homeschool can be.

Our Homeschool Read Alouds:

Half-Magic, The Knight's Castle, and Magic by the Lake

by Edward Eager

We are hooked on this series.  The first book follows four siblings as they discover a magic charm that works in unusual ways... it only grants half wishes.  Hilarity follows as the kids wish their way into some unusual adventures.  And end up reaping the consequences.  Book Two introduces a new set of four characters, while Book Three finds the two groups meeting.  Each book is funny, hilarious, and has a meaningful moral.  And my favorite part is that the siblings actually get along and are good role models for behavior.  That sort of dynamic is hard to find these days.

What are you reading?