Ostara: Buns

Did you know that sweet cakes, such as hot cross buns, were well known to have been used in Heathen rites? Some sources claim that hot cross buns were a Christian invention but digging a bit deeper one can easily recognise their Heathen origin.

Ostara: Living Ostara Baskets

What better way to honor fair and gentle Ostara, than to leave a natural nest for her Hare! In times past, our Folk left out a nest for Ostara’s Hare to leave colorful eggs and goodies as a reward for good behavior. Children would wake up Ostara morning to find Ostara’s Bunny eggs in their nests!

Ostara: Natural Egg Dyes

There are two methods for producing beautifully colored Ostara eggs at home with natural plant dyes.

Ostara: Flower Wreaths for Ostara

When it comes to making flower wreaths the only real limit is your imagination. They can be big,small, sparse, or bountiful. You can make ones as door or wall decorations, to put around the base of a large candle or bowl, you can even make hair or head wreaths, also called hair garlands.

Ostara: A Child’s Invocation

Odin and Ostara, lead me in the ways of the Gods....

Tips for Mastering Foreign Language

Mastering a foreign language is a tough task for even an adult, imagine a child who barely has a grasp of the English language (or any native tongue for our European brothers and sisters). Actually, teaching a child a foreign language is much more successful then an adult!

“Life” as a Teacher

When the Pioneers moved to the Frontier, they had no support system, no infrastructure. They were alone in every sense of the word. Despite having nothing they persevered. The education of the young was no different.

Daily Activities

Everyday we do things that are a type of schooling. When we encounter a problem, we figure it out. That is schooling! There are many activities that fulfill numerous common subjects such as Math, Science, etc… Here are a few.

Thoughts on Socialization

A valid concern for any parent, not just home schooled parents is socialization. The biggest complaint by anti-home schoolers is that home schooled children lack in social skills. In the following I would like to touch on some points to help home schooling parents both new and veteran. Socialization is definitely a concern, but really not the only concern when it comes to raising the next generation.

Traditional Homeschooling vs. Unschooling

A funny thing happened when doing research on unschooling, I found that I had many, many misconceptions of what it really was. I homeschool four children in a “traditional” atmosphere, and I always thought of unschooling as a bit “hippyish”. I feel that I made a mistake in my rash generalization of traditional homeschooling as opposed to unschooling.

Unschooling

Unschooling, also known as organic or child-led learning, is a form of home-schooling that does not utilize a formal, pre-packaged curriculum or rigid lesson plans. Instead, unschooling families choose to draw their educational resources from a multitude of sources, mainly hands-on activities as opposed to texts, and "use the whole world as their child's classroom".

The One Room Schoolhouse

So how does one school several children at different grade levels? Or rather, how does one keep his or her sanity when having to teach several grade levels? Speaking from experience, this writer has a difficult time with it! The following is some tips and tricks when teaching several grade levels at once.