My young children may be left alone playing for only a few moments and yet create blanket hide-aways, intricate “school rooms”, restaurants complete with lovely menus, and trains ready to roll across the prairie. Give them a pair of scissors, a ream of paper and a gross of tape (which they always manage to find!) and the possibilities become endless. Last week I walked in to colorful 3-D barns, animals, cars and sunglasses. I am not certain any number of pamphlets, magazines or craft books could actually compete with a child’s imagination.

So, if you are not the creative type, follow your child’s lead. Don’t be afraid to let your children make a few messes (within reason. . .). Let them play utilizing a gift God has blessed them with -their imaginations. You can provide them with the basic tools and the safe environment for playtime. Then step back and just watch as their wonderful world comes alive.

For other great ideas, visit the Friday meme at Heart of the Matter.

The Land of Counterpane

When I was sick and lay a-bed,
I had two pillows at my head,
And all my toys beside me lay,
To keep me happy all the day.

And sometimes for an hour or so
I watched my leaden soldiers go,
With different uniforms and drills,
Among the bed-clothes, through the hills;

And sometimes sent my ships in fleets
All up and down among the sheets;
Or brought my trees and houses out,
And planted cities all about.

I was the giant great and still
That sits upon the pillow-hill,
And sees before him, dale and plain,
The pleasant land of counterpane.

- Robert Louis Stevenson

Well, I must admit, I am one who helps fuel the economy and I struggled to come up with even ONE freebie site that I visit regularly. And then it hit me . . . I am actually a devotee of FOUR complimentary educational sites.

• Wikipedia – A free encyclopedia with thousands, no, millions of articles in a plethora of languages.
• Dictionary.com – This is a fabulous free dictionary, thesaurus and vocabulary learning resource.
• Bible Gateway – An online Bible with easy-to-use passage and keyword search engines utilizing over 100 versions of the Bible.
• Words by William Whitaker – A Latin-to-English dictionary that my children have used for years.

I hope you find these sites helpful and enjoyable as well as FREE.

“Gold, for the instant, lost its lustre in his eyes, for there were countless treasures of the heart which it could never purchase. ” – Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby

Three points come immediately come to mind.

First and probably the most profound misconception that I held was that homeschooling is homogeneous. The belief systems, the educational philosophies, the goals, and the child-rearing theories of homeschooling parents could not be more interesting and diverse.

Secondly, homeschooling is not a panacea for godly, brilliant, lovely children that morph into supremely excellent adults.

Thirdly, all homeschooled children are not worthy of becoming spelling bee champs.

Hope this is enlightening!