Weekend Links ll April 17, 2026

Five Reasons You Need Poetry In Your Homeschool

Rainy Day Poetry Pack

Learning About Haiku Poetry

Introducing Poetry to High Schoolers

Free Homeschool Poetry Unit

Three Ways to Explore Poetry As A Homeschooling Family

Celebrating National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month and what a fun opportunity to play with language.  Poetry is one of those subjects that can seem to get lost if we don't make an intentional effort to incorporate it into our homeschool.  But the language is so rich and it's really very easy to place into our homeschool plans.  Good poetry is like good books.  It plays into the family culture, building vocabulary and creating a shared experience.  It expands our world and forces us to look at life differently.  Poetry takes big universal truths and distills them down into simple lines with layers of meaning and importance.  And there are so many resources to draw from.

Additionally, poetry is great for teaching metaphorical thinking in the older grades.  Subtlety of language, layers of inference, critical thinking are all part of having poetry in your homeschool.  Playing with poetry in a fun and engaging way can create life-long poetry lovers and thinkers in your home.   Avoid the urge to dissect everything you read. Read silly poems, thoughtful poems, poems about nature and poems about life.  And just enjoy!

Pick only a few to look at deeply.  Talk about how the poet uses letter sounds, line breaks, rhyme, etc to convey his meaning.  And don't be afraid to disagree with a poet's style.  That level of deep thinking is valuable too.

Start with reading.  Share some of your favorite poems with your kids.  I personally love Robert Frost's poetry.  The library is a great resource for finding new poems to read.  Hearing the language spoken adds beautiful depth and nuance.  There are also a variety of resources online of finding new poetry.  Try Ambleside Online, Youtube or 21 Must Read Poems for Kids.  Looking for something different?  What about The BreakBeat Poets or Echo Echo. And listen to beautiful orators recite their favorite poems.  One I particularly love is Sr. Michael Caine sharing Rudyard Kipling's IF.

Watch a mini biography about a favorite poet.  Try: Edgar Allen Poe,  Walt Whitman,    William Blake, Phyllis Wheatley,   Robert Frost, or  Christina Rossetti. Talk about what may have influenced their writing and the themes they presented.

Memoize rich poetry together. Practice one of the poems you've been reading or pick from 12 Poems to Memorize. Check out silly kids' poetry books from the library and find one that you can great hand motions for.  Laugh, be silly, memorize tongue twisters or The Jabberwocky from Lewis Carroll.

Do SOME Analysis work.  Don't overdo it, but when you get comfortable, some analysis can be fun.  Look for things like this Easter Poetry Analysis Pack, or Learning through Literature's Poem of the Month.

And don't forget to Create!  Let your students become poets too.  Have a special poetry tea time to share what they're writing themselves and celebrate their hard work.

Write a blackout poem 

Create a poem with this poem generator

Or maybe this one

Spring Acrostic Poetry

Write an "I Am" poem

Create a partner poem like the Echo Echo book

Discover National Haiku Day

AND HAVE FUN!

Don't forget that poetry is all about playing with language.  Pushing the boundaries of creativity and conveying meaning as concisely as possible.  Read deep poetry, read nature poetry, read silly poetry... read with voices... read slow... read poets you disagree with ... and especially read poets you love!

How Do You Celebrate National Poetry Month?

Teaching Poetry Memorization to Children

 

Do you struggle with how to start memorizing poetry in your homeschool?  This video will give you some simple ideas for getting started.

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Weekend Links ll April 10, 2026

 

Earth Day Word Scrambles

Recycle Mania! A Fun Printable Recycling Game for Kids

Activities for Studying the Civil War

Garden Seed Starting Tips

Family Spring Bucket List

Twelve Women of the Bible Study Guide {Review}

 

Discover lessons from Women of the Bible including:

1. Eve: finding Lasting Contentment in the Truth

2. Rebekah: Breaking Free from Feminine Stereotypes

3. Leah: Overcoming Rejection and Insecurity

4. Hannah: Surrendering in Waiting

5. Abigail: Dealing with Confrontation in Relationships

6. Gomer: Learning to Accept Unconditional Love

7. Mary, Mother of Jesus: Moving from Comfort to Courage

8. Mary Magdalene: Transforming from Outcast to Follower

9. Mary of Bethany: Putting Our Faith in Action

10. Martha: Finding Our Identity in Jesus

11. The Woman at the Well: Turning Our Messes into Messages

12. The Syrophoenician Woman: Approaching God with Persistency and Boldness

Each profile follows one woman, an example of faith in an imperfect world.  Though each lives a life very different from the modern world, her story parallels today's woman in both troubles and joys.  These 12 studies include a video lesson, a devotional on the woman's life, and both study and reflection questions for a women's group.

I did appreciate that this study covers a variety of women from the Bible, both in their strengths and weaknesses.  Each session included an overview of her story and didn't shy away from showing her humanity.  The questions were reflective and the lessons seemed a good length for a beginning to intermediate study.  On the con side, I did find that some of the studies seemed contradictory.  For example, the second study was about breaking stereotypes, but then goes on to stereotype that women focus on their physical appearance.  These contradictions appear to be few in number, but were distracting when they popped up.

I do think this study would be a beneficial for those groups wishing to go deeper without being inundated by homework.  If you have an established group that's looking for a little more, this would be a good place to start.  There are a variety of contributors which will appeal to a wide audience, and the teaching is Biblically sound.  Over all, a good study for a women's group.

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

25 Spring Break Ideas

  

*photo from hiking in spring 2013

1. Purchase a roll of art paper and get creative with your kids.  Watercolors, finger paints, markers, outline each other's bodies and add the details, be creative!

2. Make Smores!  Get the fire pit going in the backyard or pop them in the microwave.  And don't forget to add those colored Peeps for a fun twist.

3. Memorize a piece of Scripture together.  Pick on that pertains to where you're family is at and challenge each other to memorize by the end of the week.

4. Make an Easter Garland.  Pick bunnies, eggs, or peeps and make a seasonal garland together.

5. Have a sleepover!  Pitch a tent in the living room, pop popcorn, and turn out the lights.

6. Make ice cream.  Pull out that homemade ice cream recipe or try a new one.  What a great way to spend time in the kitchen with your kids.

7. Do a community service project.  Select a project to donate your time to and work alongside your kids.  Show them the value of working hard and serving others.

8. One on one dates.  Take your kids out and spend some one on one time together.  Let them pick the activity (within reason) and just listen.  Who knows what you'll learn?

9. Read a book together.  Pick a book to read as a family and read a bit each day.  Great cuddle time.

10. Learn something new together.  Go to a museum, open up the internet, take a class together.  What are your kids interested in?  Learn about it together.

11. Tackle a project together.  Do you have a fun creative project you'd like to work on together?  Use the extra time to tackle that project.

12. Get ready for guests.  Create a new spring wreath, bake a special dessert, freshen up the guest room. Work together and remember the joy of spring.

13. Make a new batch of Play-doh.  Try some Pumpkin Pie Play-doh or Kool-aid.  And play with the spring colors.

14. Create cards.  Break out the scrapbook paper and markers and make a stack of cards to send to loved ones.

15. Plan a neighborhood bike ride.  Get the neighborhood kids together, add some streamers to the bikes, and have a bike ride.  What a great idea for community pride!

16. Plan a playdate at the park.  Pack up a picnic, gather some moms, and let the kids play as long as they want.

17. Cook a meal together.  Allow the kids to help you plan and cook the meal.

18. Go local.  Make a list of local places you've always wanted to visit and plan to see 3-4 of those throughout the day.

19. Plan a family game night.  Put together some fun prizes like no chores for one day, pick your favorite dessert, or day out with mom.

20. Have a pizza party.  Lay out all the toppings and let them build their own pizzas.  Top the night off with a family movie.

21. Create a Spring Break scrapbook.  Spend the day taking photos of each other and put them in a special book to remember your time together.

22. Start a journal together.  Create a journal where you can write letters back and forth to each other.  Save it for times of encouragement and love.

23. Make a batch of Peanut Butter Easter Eggs.

24. Create a family movie.  Let the kids come up with a script, create the costumes, and act it out before the camera.  Have a movie premiere with fresh popped popcorn.

25. Plan a nothing day.  Let the kids jump on the trampoline, play with the dog or watch cartoons.  Stay in your jammies and catch up on some relaxing.

Weekend Links ll April 3, 2026

 

Rainbow Science Unit Study

The Giving Tree Nature Book Club

Free Spring Bucket List

Teaching Teens to be Financially Literate

27 Interview Tips for Teens

April Holidays and Homeschool Ideas

 Look for a few ways to add some fun to your homeschool?  Here are just a few of the holidays and fun days you can celebrate this month:

April 1st--April Fool's Day
*Fill out a fun April Fool's Mad Lib
*Create an April Fool's Bag Book
*Saturday School??? April Fools!

April 2nd--Peanut Butter and Jelly Day
*Have a classic PB and J sandwich for lunch
*Make a PB and J overnight oatmeal
*Write an information paragraph about making PB and J sandwiches
*Make PB and J cookies

April 5th--Easter
*Read about Easter in other countries
*Make Easter Egg rockets
*Try some Jelly Bean science

April 7th--No Homework Day
*Spend the afternoon at the park
*Give the kids a homework pass on one subject
*Spend a full hands-on learning day

April 22nd--Earth Day
*Plant a tree
*Volunteer to clean up a park
*Learn about different types of pollution
*Create Earth Day kits for friends

April 27th--Tell a Story Day
*Write a fun narrative
*Write a story from a different character's perspective
*Turn a favorite fairy tale into a poem

What days are you celebrating this month?

What I Read and Our Homeschool Read Aloud ll March 2026

What I Read:

 

Carry On, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse

One of my favorite books in college was P.G. Wodehouse's Money for Nothing.  I remember loving his whitty storytelling.  So whnn someone suggested his Jeeves series, I thought it might be time to return to some lighthearted silliness.  Carry On, Jeeves contains 10 short stories about a butler named Jeeves, his employer, Bertie, and the hilarious situations they find themselves in.  All of these scraps are absolutely ridiculous as well as the solutions that Jeeves invents.  They are utterly impossible and yet completely hilarious.  Antics abound as these two navigate the sticky world of upper class relationships.  I'm not usually one for short stories, but these were a nice break from heavier subjects

Rainbow Valley by L.M. Montgomery

The 7th book in the Anne of Green Gables chronicles, Rainbow Valley continues the story of Anne's children as they grow up.  Also introduced in this book are the Meredith children,   The Merediths play a heavy part in this book as well as their father, the new Presbyterian minister John Meredith.  Rainbow Valley takes the series right up to the cusp of World War I, which takes a prominent role in the final book.  I did enjoy this book, although it's strange to think of books six through eight as part of the same series when they focus so heavily on the children.  But it is fun to read about new characters and their interactions.  Rainbow Valley reintroduces some of that spark of Anne's youth.

A Forest Walk by Felix Salten

Christian Heroes: Richard Wurmbrand

by Janet & Geoff Benge

Still working our way through these Christian Heroes books.  We used to talk about Wurmband when we were in the Vineyard.  I knew that he had quite a testimony, but his story is amazing.  To have gone through the torture and uncertainty, it turns my stomach.  And to know that he still loved the Lord and loved others in the end, is a phenomenal testimony.  This is definitely one to read.

Raising Gender Confident Kids

by Kathy Koch & Jeff Myers

This book is packed with grounded, Biblically-sound ideas for raising kids confident in who God made them.  Written with truth and compassion, parents are equipped to stand in confidence in their identity.  This book is very short, but fill of information.  While it reads quickly, this is a book that needs to be read and reread... over and over.  There is so much information here.  This is a book that needs to be in the hands of every parent or childcare worker.

Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung

Couldn't even finish it.  Almost threw it across the room at multiple times.  Decided it wasn't worth my test or frustration... or even my time to write this review.  :-)  Definitely a pass for me.

Our Homeschool Read Aloud:

Shooting Kabul by N.H. Sense

The story of a family torn apart by war, Shooting Kabul follows a middle school boy as he and his family flee Afghanistan.  In the midst of the chaos, he looses his little sister's hand.  The truck lurches, stalls, and accelerates as the Taliban arrives, and the sister is left behind.  When the family arrives in America, they work with the governments to find her, but Sept 11th occurs and the whole world is turned upside down.

Powerful, insightful, beautiful.... this gave us a way of understanding and empathizing with a culture very different from our own.

SeeSaw Girl by Linda Sue Park

Growing up in 17th century Korea, Jade Blossom lives her whole life in the Inner Court of her family's home.  When her cousin marries and leaves the home, Jade determines to escape and visit her.  But when she's caught in the act, she quickly learns that her choices have consequences.  Resigned to a life of solitude, Jade longs for a glimpse of the surrounding mountains.  Will she find a way to please both her family and satisfy her need for freedom?  This was a quick read for us, but gave my son a peek into this time period and part of the world.  It led to a lot of conversation about roles and expectations.  Well-worth a couple of days reading.

What are you reading?

Christ Centered Easter Books

  *This post was originally published on 3/6/17.  Enjoy!

Easter is one of my favorite holidays.  Spring is just around the corner, the days are lightening up, and we're all getting just a bit giddy.  It's the promise of new life and sunshine just around the corner, grass is turning just a bit greener and the trees are showing off new green shoots.

Easter is all about new life, ... redemption, ... second chances, ... hope!

So I love to fill our home library with children's books that reflect that feeling of new beginnings and fresh starts.  Additionally, I look for books that announce the HOPE of the season.

These are just a few of our favorites:

The Easter Story by Patricia A. Pingry

The Berenstain Bears and the Easter Story by Jan & Mike Berenstain

God Gave Us Easter by Lisa Tawn Bergen

The First Easter by Carol Heyer

Easter in the Garden by Pamela Kennedy

The Parable of the Lily by Liz Curtis Higgs

What do you read during the Easter season?

Weekend Links ll March 27, 2026

Easter Story Stones

Stained Glass Easter Cookies

Free Easter Family Devotional Game

"He is Risen" Printable Pack

Jesus on the Cross Unit Study

Ways to Keep Your Easter Christ-Centered

It can often seem like keeping Easter Christ-Centered is a challenge.  Remembering the message behind the day isn't as easy as it is at Christmas.  But the truth of this date is surely a reason for all Christians to celebrate!  While I always enjoy hunting Easter eggs with the kids and munching on a spring peep. I try to focus and draw our attention back to the wonderful event that we celebrate.

Over the years, we've tried a few different things.  Some ideas we repeat year after year, others have come and gone with different seasons.  But they've all been fun ways of remembering the joy of the holiday.  I hope they inspire you into new ways of celebrating Easter!

*Keep Your Weekend Anchored by Sunday Church

--help them anticipate Easter service(talk about your why)

--talk about the resurrection

--incorporate a count down focusing on the resurrection (read the scriptures that start on Palm Sunday and end on Easter)

*Tell the Easter story

--ressurrection eggs (countdown or all at once)

--Bake resurrection rolls

--learn the origins of Hot Cross Buns

--eat pretzels

*Make Christ-focused Easter baskets

--give gifts that draw them into relationship with the Lord

     --Bibles, devotionals, and prayer journals

--give gifts that focus on the meaning of Easter

*Decorate with resurrection decor

--create a stained glass window

--hang an Easter banner

--decorate with Easter lilies

*Teach Your Children about Communion

--ask for forgiveness from those you've wronged

--offer forgiveness to those who've wronged you

*Serve as a Family

--Consider ways you can bless others with your time or talents

--Wash your children's feet in imitation of Christ

--Collect items for charity

*Looking for More Ideas:

--Bake a loaf of Paska bread

--Bake Resurrection Cookies

--Study Passion of the Christ artwork

--Attend a sunrise service

--Prepare a special celebratory meal

--Make Bird's Nest cookies

--Study the origin of Easter eggs

--Plant an Easter garden

--Memorize ABC scripture cards

--Re-enact Palm Sunday with construction paper palms

--Write Easter messages in the driveway with chalk

--Color white carnations and discuss how Jesus took on our sins

--Paint a fingerprint cross 

--Complete a lent word search

--Dip Chocolate covered pretzel crosses

What are some of your favorite Christ-Centered Easter traditions?

Spring Reading List ll 2026

 Nonfiction:

Help!  My Kid Hates Writing by Julie Bogart

Christian Heroes: Richard Wurmbrand

by Janet and Geoff Being

Christian Heroes: Wilfred Grenfel

by Janet and Geoff Benge

The Brave Learner by Julie Bogart

Fiction:

A Forest World by Felix Salten

Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

The Secret, Book, and Scone Society by Ellery Adams

Read Alouds:

Turtles of the Midnight Moon by Maria Jose Fitzgerald

Ice Drift by Theodore Taylor

SeeSaw Girl by Linda Sue Park

The House of Sixty Fathers by Meindert DeJong

Which One Would You Read First?

Weekend Links ll March 20, 2026

 

Baseball Mini Activity Pack

Nature Study Journal Pages

Women in Science Unit Study

Felt Craft Flower Life Cycle

Zoo Themed Escape Room