Saturday, January 19, 2013

Creating a M.O.M. bug-out-bag for emergency homeschooling

M.O.M. you ask? Yeah, I call it my 'Moms On the Move' bag. It's a portable homeschooling kit for when you travel, need a ready supply of fresh homeschool materials to keep a youngster occupied, or want something to fall back on in a serious situation that disrupts your day-to-day homeschool life.

When our children were younger we did lots of traveling in the car. We drove back and forth between Vermont and Florida many times to visit grandparents and other close relatives. We also spent lots of time driving to lessons, the library, flea markets and other activities closer to home. Two of the best things we ever purchased for our children were soft material, briefcase style carryalls with a zippered side that would act as a drop-front desk in their laps.

These M.O.M. bags hung over the backs of the front seat headrest in the car and were filled with reading and writing materials, workbooks, pens, pencils, and small electronic handheld gadgets. We never heard the words 'I'm bored!' from the backseat, no matter how many miles we traveled.

If you are paying attention to the economy and recent news, then you're well aware that our country is in a world of hurt. Even other countries are feeling the stress of collapse as well. The only thing keeping America afloat is our ability to print our way out of the money crunch, but even that is quickly reaching the point where our dollar will be worthless.

Meanwhile, natural disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, hurricanes and tornadoes, have displaced thousands of families in the United States. When, not if, we reach that tipping point of no return and TEOTWAWKI arrives, be ready to continue your child's education with your well equipped M.O.M. bag. It needn't be fancy. Even a pillow case will do. Personally, a fancy-schmancy backpack with a gazillion  compartments and comfy shoulder straps is more to my liking, but if money (or lack of) is a restraint then an inexpensive one will do.

Depending on the age of your child, fill your M.O.M. bag with lots of writing tablets, pens, pencils and sharpener, markers, crayons, workbooks of all subjects, flashlight or hands-free headlamp, a hand-crank or solar radio (don't forget the earphones), and reading books. Some good topics for reading would be survival stories like Swiss Family Robinson or My Side of The Mountain. How-to books on gardening, hunting or fishing should also be considered. For older children the Foxfire series is a great read. Add some non-perishable protein snacks to your M.O.M. bag and a water bottle with its own filtering system just in case you find yourselves stranded.

If you do find yourself and your family on the go after an upheaval of any kind or magnitude, your M.O.M. bag will not only serve as an emergency backup for your child's education, but it will provide comfort and security for your child at a time when it is needed most.

"Prepare for the worst, but hope for the best" is not just a slogan. When you think about these words you'll begin to understand what it means to be truly responsible for you and your homeschooling family. You'll realize the only one who will look after you and your family in a crisis is you, not the government. Your M.O.M. bag is a reminder to your child that the only one who truly has their back is mom! This is not a slight to the dads who homeschool because dad's job is to make sure mom has what she needs to do her job. He can even create his own D.A.D. (Dad's Academic Dufflebag) bag to supplement mom's. Like any great team you must pull together. To do otherwise could very well jeopardize your survival and that of your family.


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Friday, January 11, 2013

Top 50 Homeschool Website & Blog Picks for 2013


Over the years, homeschooling websites and blogs have come and gone. Lives get busy, or family dynamics change, or sometimes the creators just get tired of keeping up with the information age. Others have dutifully and energetically continued to keep us abreast of their homeschooling adventures, giving us a wonderful snapshot of their journey and even encouraging others to find their life's rhythm. Some websites and blogs are informative while some are purely entertaining. Some have overcome struggles but have kept steadfast in their commitment to homeschool against all odds. Some are simply down right fun to read and look at.

The following homeschooling/unschooling websites and blogs have been chosen for well deserved kudos and our gratitude for advancing the idea that there is a better, simpler and gentler way to educate children. Guerrilla Homeschooling is proud to share with you the top picks for 2013. 

 Top 50 Homeschool/Unschool Website & Blog Picks For The New Year 2013:

  1. Parent At The Helm http://www.parentatthehelm.com/
  2. John Holt Growing Without Schooling http://www.holtgws.com/
  3. Pat Farenga.com http://www.patfarenga.com/
  4. Homeschooler Hub http://www.homeschoolerhub.com/
  5. Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers http://www.weirdunsocializedhomeschoolers.com/
  6. Home Education Magazine http://homeedmag.com/
  7. Almost Unschoolers http://almostunschoolers.blogspot.com/
  8. Classroom Free http://classroomfree.blogspot.com/
  9. The Ramblings of a Crazy Woman http://jennwa.blogspot.com/
  10. Confessions of a Homeschooler http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/
  11. Throwing Marshmallows http://www.throwingmarshmallows.com/
  12. Living The Unschooling Life http://livingtheunschoolinglife.com/
  13. Rickshaw Unschooling http://rickshawunschooling.blogspot.com/
  14. The Relaxed Homeschooler http://therelaxedhomeschooler.blogspot.com/
  15. School In Your Home .Com http://www.schoolinyourhome.com/index.html
  16. Do Life Right http://www.doliferight.com/
  17. Mr. Dad’s Class http://misterdads.blogspot.com/
  18. NHERI National Home Education Research Institute http://www.nheri.org/
  19. The Link http://homeschoolnewslink.com/
  20. theMangoTimes http://www.themangotimes.com/
  21. Atypical Homeschool http://atypicalhomeschool.net/
  22. Homeschool Buzz http://homeschoolbuzz.com/
  23. A Family Runs Through It http://pkmeco.com/familyblog/
  24. Graceful Abandon http://gracefulabandon.blogspot.com/
  25. Learning Through Living http://learningthroughliving-stephanie.blogspot.com/
  26. Hip Homeschool Moms http://www.hiphomeschoolmoms.com/
  27. A to Z Home’s Cool http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/
  28. Homeschool.com http://www.homeschool.com/
  29. HomeschoolBlogger.com  http://homeschoolblogger.com/
  30. Homeschooling on a Shoestring http://homeschoolingonashoestring.com/
  31. The Homeschool Classroom http://www.hsclassroom.net/
  32. Homeschool World http://www.home-school.com/
  33. Lady Bug Farm http://lady-bug-farm.blogspot.com/
  34. Eclectic Parent http://eclecticparent.com/blog/
  35. Unschooling Blog Carnival http://unschoolingblogcarnival.blogspot.com/
  36. I’m Unschooled. Yes, I Can Write http://yes-i-can-write.blogspot.com/
  37. Radical Unschoolers Network http://familyrun.ning.com/profiles/blog/list
  38. Home School Dad http://dave-homeschooldad.blogspot.com/
  39. The Lundy 5 http://www.lundy5.com/
  40. An Untraditional Home http://untraditionalhome.com/
  41. Sprittibee http://sprittibee.com/
  42. Why Homeschool http://whyhomeschool.blogspot.com/
  43. Simple Homeschool http://simplehomeschool.net/
  44. The Homeschool Village http://www.thehomeschoolvillage.com/
  45. Large Family Mothering http://www.ladyofvirtue.blogspot.com/
  46. Dayna Martin http://daynamartin.com/
  47. Our Mothership Adventures http://ourmothershipadventures.blogspot.com/
  48. Dewey’s Treehouse http://deweystreehouse.blogspot.com/
  49. Radio Free School http://radiofreeschool.blogspot.com/
  50. No Fighting, No Biting http://nofightingnobiting.blogspot.com/

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Thursday, January 10, 2013

Can homeschooling save America?

News of the world gets more and more frustrating every day. There are mass shootings by psychopaths ingesting legal drugs; food riots by starving people in foreign countries; drone strikes on innocents ordered by peace prize recipients; collapsed economies brought on by greedy bankers; and a neutered congress lacking the fortitude to protect our constitution here in our very own country. It seems everything is topsy turvy and getting worse, not just by the day, but by the hour.

Governments are out of control world wide. Our own American government is spending money like a drunken lottery winner, raising taxes on everyone including the poor, and chipping away at our God-given and constitutional rights. Union controlled public schools are a nightmare and downright dangerous, yet parents are forced to send their children into them under the threat of fine or jail.

Can homeschooling save America? I think it can. 

Homeschooling is all about freedom. Homeschoolers are free to learn whatever they want, whenever they want and wherever they want. With that said, homeschoolers could change the course of American history if they did just one thing and did it with overwhelming intensity and passion. That one thing? They can change the fate of this country by studying the United States Constitution in depth and with the fervor of a true patriot.

The side benefit to studying the U.S. Constitution, its creation and its purpose, will be a good dose of world history, a much needed scholarly pursuit these days. The learner will uncover information as to how the world has reached this point of utter chaos.

This very day homeschoolers need to drop everything they're doing and create an environment totally submerged in lessons concerning freedom. An environment in which to learn about the creation of a document that explains our unalienable rights given to each of us, not by those who govern over us, but by God, Himself. The hour is now to stand up for those rights, throw off any and all fears, and prepare to pass along the truth and true meaning of freedom to the children of this country.

Times are indeed grave. America can no longer wait for our present day leaders to undo the damage already done to our individual God-given freedoms and rights.  Too many unborn citizens have already been slaughtered and denied their right to life. Too many world citizens have been murdered or disappeared and their voices silenced by tyrannical government leaders. Too many souls have been lost to a new world order, in the making, that preys on those with the faith to believe in a God that made them free.

Each day of homeschooling comes with it a greater understanding of what true freedom is and less fear of governmental restraint. The tyrants know this and continue to challenge our resolve to do what is right for our children, our families and our country. We will not be deterred and we will not let them win. Our mission is far too important and that mission is to preserve what began in the year 1776.

Without our freedom we are not free to homeschool. Homeschooling is the new revolution. Homeschoolers are the new patriots. Like it or not, we have a duty to preserve and protect our republic, at all costs, as those who have lived before us have done. 

America is the last shining light of freedom in this world. To let her guiding flame be snuffed by unscrupulous world tyrants, hell-bent on her destruction, would be the end of freedom for all. It would cease the ability to let the word God roll from the tongues of citizens everywhere and that, my friends, is why it is time to take a stand for yourself, your children and your country. Stand up for your rights and I mean ALL rights!



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