Looking back on January 2021

 Flowering Eucalyptus in January

In the second week of January, Michelle at MyHomeschool ran some free online workshops which I  helped present. The regular Charlotte Mason workshops will be starting up next week so come along and say hi.

The Friday before last we had a sudden unexpected thunderstorm. It only lasted about five minutes, but in that time it split three power poles and brought down a couple of large branches which fell onto the power lines. We're on a cul-de-sac so our road was blocked as well as the access we have up a flight of stairs to the road above us. A friend of mine was visiting and thankfully her car wasn't hit but she was stuck at our place as her car was on our side of the fallen tree. Her husband came to pick her up and we had to walk her through the bush to the road below us to get to him. She managed to pick up a local leech on her way and I found one inside my shoe when I got back home - a very large engorged thing that must have surely have left me anaemic.

They weren't able to get their car until the power poles were replaced and the trees removed. We were only without power for about 30 hours - kudos to the SES for cleaning up the trees and Ausgrid, our electrical supplier, for digging holes for the new power poles, stringing up new power lines and restoring the electricity in that time. I was thinking how incredibly blessed we are to live in a country where services like this are dependable and efficient. The joys of civilisation!

And best of all that happened in January was the birth of our third grandchild, a little boy, three days ago. Our two year old grandson stayed with for three nights while his Mum & Dad were in the hospital. He couldn't visit due to COVID restrictions but he saw his Dad every day and face-timed with his Mum. He was very chirpy during the day but when he went to bed he cried and wanted Mummy cuddles. My husband and I are a little wrecked after some broken sleep. 😫 Here is the little fella...so precious & new.

Aunty and Uncle on duty - a rainy day so it's time for indoor cricket.

Hails has been drawing regularly during January. Here is some of her work - she posts fairly regularly on Instagram.

St Basil's Cathedral, Moscow

I've been enjoying using the Bible in One year App which is free for your phone or may be accessed using email. I like listening to the audio although it may be read as well. It's about 24 minutes of listening each day - Bible and some commentary by Nicky & Pippa Gumbel (the Alpha course pioneers) - great if you're out walking or in the car. There are a few different editions; I'm using the Classic version and it's been the easiest way for me to read through the Bible and not get bogged down due to the way they divide up the readings. It's good to have the option of listening to an audio presentation that is very well done and the commentary is just enough and helps to link the different readings. Highly recommended!!

What I'm Reading

In the Steps of the Master by H.V. Morton

The Return of the Prodigal by Henri J.M. Nouwen

Beholding and Becoming by Ruth Chou Simons

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

School Education by Charlotte Mason

'Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at something that doesn't really matter.'

D.L. Moody

The Good, the Sad and the Beautiful of 2020

It's been raining here all week, the very opposite of this time last year. Last January we had 'unprecedented' bushfires in Australia which destroyed 3,094 homes, 2,439 of those were here in NSW. 33 people died, 9 of whom were firefighters. 6.7% of the state of NSW was burnt, the total area possibly the largest ever in a single recorded fire season for eastern Australia. 48% of the land on Kangaroo Island off the South Australian coast was burnt also. A large number of major fires burnt for months and air quality was terrible during this time. Estimates based on NSW and Victoria alone put the loss of mammals, birds and reptiles at over one billion, and that doesn't take into account those that died from injuries, lack of food or predators later on. This figure also doesn't include the loss of perhaps hundreds of billions of insects. *More details here.

While all this was going on, my five sisters and I had the 'unprecedented' loss of our mother at the end of January. Unprecedented, not because we weren't expecting her to die at some stage. She was eighty-one and had survived a couple of heart attacks in her fifties as well as the loss of her only son (one boy in the middle of six girls) from a brain haemorrhage. He was 46 and we didn't expect her to live through that devastation, but she did. Our Dad died a year before our brother so we weren't strangers to this sort of thing. In some respects I was closer to my brother and my Dad than I was to Mum and perhaps that was why her loss was so difficult. I grieved for all that had not been. 

I left home just before I turned seventeen and lived on the opposite side of the country to the rest of my family for years before most of them moved over this way. Before Mum died I visited her in hospital just after she had surgery to relieve her pain and she said to me, 'We haven't had much time together, have we, Carol?' During January she began to show signs of vascular dementia to the extent that one day she didn't recognise me. Unprecedented - I never expected to feel the extreme sense of loss that I did. And we certainly didn't expect her to die from an aggressive tumour when most of her life it was her heart that troubled her.

I started this post with the sad, now here's some good and beautiful. My daughter sent me this splendid bouquet on Christmas Eve for my birthday which is on Christmas Day - hence my name.

My husband had been working from home one day a week for about a year before the COVID situation and then in March work at home became fulltime. He has loved not commuting to work but he was doing his work at the kitchen table - conference calls etc. Very inconvenient for everyone else, but when one of our sons decided to move in with his brother who had left home about 18 months previously, we acquired a spare room. This was turned into a study and peace reigned once more.

In the early part of our COVID restrictions my husband and I got into the habit of going for bush walks regularly. We decided to support a local café to help keep them in business during lockdown so we'd go walking and get a coffee at the same time. Our regular activities such as swimming, orchestra, youth music practice and some other things, stopped for a few months so Hails and I decided to make a quilt for her brother. He turned 21 at the end of November and we hoped to have it finished by then. That didn't happen, partly because I needed some material for the backing and I wanted to be able to see the fabric for myself before I bought it, but it was finished by Christmas so he got it then.

Hails also had more time to spend on her art and I added her to my Instagram account so she could post what she was doing. This is her little spot.

She usually swims at least three times a week so in place of that we did a bit of walking and used some free Kathy Smith videos for some HIIT training. On her website you can sign-up for a series of posts which include links to videos, which is the easiest way to access them, unless you want to trawl through YouTube. One that's very helpful is her 15 minute total body stretch. The exercises are targeted to women over forty but anyone could do them. 

We've continued to have our two beautiful grandchildren at our home on Tuesdays and we have another grandchild we are looking forward to meeting in three weeks time.

Reading

My reading time increased significantly this year but my writing didn't keep pace. An area I focused on was nutrition and health, subjects I've had a long-term interest in. A friend of mine pointed me to Dr Michael Greger's website (thanks Betty!) and I found out he did podcasts so I listen to them fairly regularly. I also have enjoyed the podcasts from the Physician's Committee that discuss the benefits of  a plant based whole food diet and the latest news on medical issues. I'm interested from a health point of view because I don't have a great family history when it comes to heart disease and I am so frustrated by the conflicting advice on diet - eggs are bad, no, now they are good, etc. Low Fat, Keto, Low Carb. There is much misinformation, especially on the Internet, where anybody with a high profile and good physique can promote their own version of healthy nutrition.

The China Study by .T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D and Thomas M. Campbell, Ph.D - I have to say I didn't really engage with this book although parts of it were interesting. I didn't like the defensive tone of the writing and there were a lot of statistics that weren't really helpful to the average layperson. As with some of the other books I've read on the Whole Food, Plant Based way of eating, it looks at the health issues that occur when people move away from their traditional diets and start eating a Western diet.

How Not to Diet by Dr Michael Greger - I like this author's writing. It is engaging, humorous and full of puns. I wanted to read another of his books, How not to Die, but I found this book at the library and read it first. I plan on reading How Not to Die this year. How Not to Diet looks at the latest medical and nutritional research regarding health, disease, weight loss and premature death. He explains how nutrition and lifestyle changes can prevent certain diseases or reverse them and how some foods may be more efficacious than medication. This isn't some lifestyle guru dispensing his own ideas. 176 pages of reference notes, an introduction that outlines the inspiration behind his decision to study medicine and the long and winding road that brought him to where he is now. Excellent book.

Paul: A Biography by N.T. Wright - I listened to this via an audiobook over about 6 months after my eldest son recommended it. I've listened to the author on the Ask NT Wright Anything (podbean.com) podcast and respect his intellectual prowess coupled with his humility. This biography of the Apostle Paul was inspiring and presents him in a way that brings him and his times to life for the modern reader. There is a very good review of the book here.

I'm starting the year with a book a friend gave me for Christmas, Beholding and Becoming, the Art of Everyday Worship by Ruth Chou Simons. It is an exquisitely lovely book illustrated by the author.

In the Steps of the Master by H.V. Morton is a book I thought I'd schedule for Hails this year either as a devotional and/or for geography. I have enjoyed it so much and am about halfway through its 375 pages. It is set in Palestine, written in 1934, and is so wonderfully evocative of Biblical times. It's a great book for an older teen and a good companion while reading through the Gospels.

'It was the habit in ancient times to treat any stranger as if he might be a wandering Christ, and this beautiful courtesy still exists in out-of-the-way parts of the earth. We have lost it, and with it something fine and beautiful has gone from our lives.'

 

Reading, Thinking, Domesticity #3

When I started this Reading, Thinking, Domesticity series in January, I mentioned that one of the definitions of the word 'domesticate' means to tame. We're taming and reclaiming the lives of those in our home but more importantly, our own life.
Dr Harold C. Mason said that:

"Man was made to dwell in a garden but through sin he has been forced to dwell in a field which he has wrested from his enemies by sweat and tears, and which he preserves only at the price of constant watchfulness and endless toil. Let him but relax his efforts for a few years and the wilderness will claim his field again."

A.W. Tozer echoed this observation in his own words:

"The bias of nature is toward the wilderness, never toward the fruitful field," and he defined temptation as "the effort of the wilderness to encroach upon our newly-cleared field."
This 'law of the wilderness' operates universally and any part of our lives that are neglected will become overrun and any previous gains lost.

I was thinking of  the words above in the context of 3 John vs 2:
 
“Friends, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 

To prosper means to make good way and is linked to walking, so going back to the wilderness analogy, prospering requires a steady, consistent effort toward something. To stop walking is to wither.
Have you heard of the spinning plates analogy? It's difficult to keep all our plates spinning and they sometimes/often end up falling as we fail to keep them spinning on their sticks. Sometimes we just have too many plates. This verse in 3 John highlights the internal life, the soul/spirit, as the most important plate to keep spinning but obviously we have a responsibility to look after our physical health also.
This is possibly the last item on the agenda in many a busy home educator’s life but the older you get, the more you realise how important it actually is, and the harder it is to establish good habits!

 

These are some ways I'm addressing these areas; keeping the plates spinning and looking after Spirit, Soul & Body:

‘For the Love of God’ by D.A. Carson is a daily companion that has a systematic 365 day reading plan that takes you through the New Testament and Psalms twice, and the Old Testament once. It’s based on the M’Cheyne Bible reading schedule & includes a daily commentary that focuses on one of the chapters you’ve read that day.

I’ve been enjoying this free Bible app (Bible.is). I don’t use it for every reading but it helps me fit in a lot more Bible as I can listen while I walk or when I’m in the car. It’s been helpful when I’m tired and I lose track of what I’d just read!! or when my mind wanders.
I've always found C.S. Lewis to be very accessible and read many of his books when I was a new  Christian. I somehow missed The Screwtape Letters although my older children have read it. It is fun while being instructive.

'The Rosemary Tree’ by Elizabeth Goudge is such a wonderful story - quality nutrition for the soul. Just lovely! I've nearly finished it and have so many passages underlined ready to be put into my commonplace book.
‘Strength Training for Woman’ by Joan Pagano is an excellent, well-illustrated book and contains exercises that may be done at home or the gym. I discovered that my bone density was low which surprised me as I eat a lot of dairy products so I've been making an effort in the past year to be more consistent with weight bearing exercises. I joined the gym with my husband about two years ago but I was only averaging one session a week. I've upped that to two to three sessions a week and incorporated some of the exercises in this book. My gym-going 21 year old plumber son who is built like a tank told me I now have biceps - not very noticeable, but they're there.

When Screwtape was instructing his nephew in how to destroy a young man’s faith he said:

‘...you must always remember that they are animals and whatever their bodies do affects their souls.’

Living Books for Studying Ancient Egypt

A friend asked me if I could suggest some books for the study of Ancient Egypt in high school (grades 7 and up in Australia). There are lots of factual type books available and some good historical fiction titles for younger children but not nearly as many books for older children that could be called literary narratives. Here are the books we've used, found worthwhile and enjoyed. If this is the first time around studying Ancient Egypt, some of the books for younger children could be used, and I've indicated the ages I think they're best suited to.

 For a general background to Ancient Egypt:

The Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Egypt by Cynthia A. Shearer

Greenleaf Press has been around for as long as I can remember and we've cycled through their Greenleaf Guide to Old Testament History every couple of years. Their guide to Ancient Egypt is helpful tool for putting the study of this time period into a biblical context and is suitable for multiple ages. The author suggests using this guide after reading the story of Joseph at the end of the Old Testament book of Genesis. I've only ever used it as a general guide but it may be used as an in-depth family study of Ancient Egypt (Grades 2-7). One of the most helpful aspects of the guide was the description of how each of the plagues were associated with specific Egyptian deities. There are a few books suggested to go along with the guide. Those that we've used I've highlighted with an * - the others are listed on the Greenleaf Press website.

Ancient Egypt (Cultural Atlas for Young People) by Geraldine Harris *

This is one of a series of books written by various authors that cover a range of different time periods besides Ancient Egypt e.g. Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. The books include detailed maps, coloured photos and general information related to the historical eras. They are often available at libraries and are an excellent addition for students around age 12 and up.

The Story of Mankind by Van Loon - there are three chapters related to Ancient Egypt.

The Works of Josephus (A.D. 37-c.100)

One of the few histories written in ancient times, this is an original source document of the history of the Jewish nation from earliest times. Josephus was considered to be a very reliable historian. Not everyone's cup of tea, but for a high school age student who enjoys history it's an interesting read. Free Online.

Gods, Graves and Scholars: The Story of Archaeology by C.W. Ceram


This book was originally published in 1949, revised by the author in 1967, reprinted multiple times, and is considered to be a classic. The author describes his book as a nonfiction or documentary novel and attributes the 'detective thriller style' to Paul de Kruif's (the author of The Microbe Hunters) influence. It's 441 pages in length and divided into five sections, 32 chapters in total. Nine of the chapters are devoted to Ancient Egypt. The book covers archaeological discoveries from Pompei, Troy, Mycenae & Crete through to the Aztecs and Mayas, and includes black and white photos and sketches.
Absorbing reading about archaeological adventures and discoveries from the 1800 to 1900's. Best for around age 15 years otherwise I suggest a quick preview (Ch IX - a couple of references to the artist Vivant Denon) We have the HB edition on the left and the newer edition is on the right (PB).

Mummies Made in Egypt by Aliki *

This is a detailed but simple picture book that shows the step by step process of mummification and although it's recommended for ages 8 to 12, it's a great book for anyone who is interested in the how and why of this Ancient Egyptian practice.


 














The Boy Pharaoh: Tutankhamen by Noel Streatfeild

Written in 1972, the author starts with a vivid picture of life in Ancient Egypt and describes the young Pharaoh's training and what would have been his daily occupations; the robberies of the tombs and the story of Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon. Hardback with a great double-paged map and abundantly illustrated. Noel Steatfeild wrote the book because she wanted to bring Tutankhamen alive for children up to twelve years of age. She does this admirably, but I wouldn't hesitate to use it with an older child as it is a unique and fascinating literary book. It's out of print, of course, but available at Abebooks. ISBN: 9780718109868


Secrets of Tutankhamen by Leonard Cottrell

A shorter book and also well done but a bit harder to find. ISBN: 978-0237446727

Apologia General Science has a brief mention of Imhotep, the Ancient Egyptian physician who lived approximately 2667 BC - 2648 BC, reproduced here on a pdf.


The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt by Elizabeth Payne *

A Landmark book first published in 1964, it is suitable as a family read aloud or for students up to grades 6 to 8 and contains the biographies of six Pharaohs.

The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone by James Cross Giblin

The story of the discovery of the Rosetta Stone and how the mystery of hieroglyphics became unravelled. 96 pages, well-illustrated and researched. The author's bibliography includes Ceram's book above and The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. A good introduction for up to about age 12.

Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw * - an exciting story with a strong element of romance thrown in. I prefer to leave it until around age 14 and up and consider it more of a young adult book because of the romantic element, but it's a great read.

 The Cat of Bubastes by G.A. Henty

The Rebu nation is conquered by the Egyptians and their king is killed in the battle. The young prince Amuba is taken captive along with his trusted servant, Jethro, and they become servants in the household of the high priest of Osiris. When a sacred cat is accidentally killed, Amuba and Jethro are forced to flee along with the high priest's son.
This book is an exciting tale of Ancient Egypt and has enough detail to satisfy a reader up to about age 14.

The following two books are reprints of older books published by Bethlehem Books. This publisher is very dependable with their age recommendations regarding mature themes. Both books are suggested for age 10 and up - an indication of content suitability, not readability, as they are well written and not dumbed down. And they each include a map! I get really annoyed if I'm reading a historical book which rattles off names but doesn't include at least a basic map of the area.


Shadow Hawk by Andre Norton (1912-2005) Andre Norton (born Alice Mary Norton) was an American writer mostly known for her science fiction and fantasy novels. Shadow Hawk is set around 1590 B.C. and tells the story of the beginning of Egypt's fight against their hated oppressors, the Hyksos, who had come from Asia Minor with their horse-drawn chariots and defeated the Egyptians some generations beforehand.

God King by Joanne Williamson (1926-2002)

God King is based on the author's thorough research of a King called Taharka ('King of Ethiopia and Egypt') in the biblical account of King Hezekiah and the Assyrians. She discovered that Taharka was a Kushite (Sudanese) King of Egypt around 701 B.C. whose actions halted the advance of the Assyrians through the civilised world at that time. The young prince was a very minor royal son who unexpectedly succeeded to the throne.  

A poem that we memorised related to this time period:

The Destruction of Sennacherib by George Gordon Byron.

Bethlehem Books have other titles that fit in with the Old Testament biblical accounts - eg in the times of Sisera in the book of Judges, and Nehemiah which I've used as free reads or read alouds at different times.

Tragedy of Korosko by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - I wrote about this book here. Although it isn't set in ancient times,the action occurs in Egypt in the days of British rule and shows that in some ways life hadn't changed much over the centuries. It's a great story - a few times I felt it was on the verge of going off in a direction unsuitable for a younger reader but it didn't. A mature 14 year old would probably enjoy it. Benj (16 years old) read it after I did and thought it was a good book.

The Knowledge of God - Imparting Faith to our Children - updated

Some Thoughts and Ideas

'By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months...for they were not afraid of the King's edict.'

Hebrews 11

Whenever I read the story of Moses and his parents' faith I'm inspired by their actions and by the influence they had on their son over a brief time span that enabled him to later live surrounded by idolatry without compromising his faith, but I also wonder why no other mother or father (that we know of) trusted the Lord and took action to deliver their sons from death.

The Israelites were slaves in Egypt and had a slave mentality. Sometimes we can pick up a slave mentality as a consequence of living in a faithless environment but it is impossible to please God without faith and we have to fight against unbelief and the prevailing culture of child raising when it comes to bringing up our own children.

'We have made the Word of Truth conform to our experience and accepted this low plane as the very pasture of the blessed.'

'Faith is not in itself a meritorious act; the merit is in the one toward whom it is directed. Faith is a redirecting of our sight, a getting out of the focus of our own vision and getting God into focus.' (A.W. Tozer)

'It is as the mother gets wisdom liberally from above, that she will be enabled for this divine task.' (Charlotte Mason)

I always asked God for wisdom and then doubted that I had any. If you ask for wisdom, you need to believe He will give it and that He will help you to discern what is best and make wise choices regarding your children's influences, activities and direction. (James 1:5, Philippians 1:10)

'...the keys even of this innermost chamber are placed in the hands of parents, and it is a great deal in their power to enthrone the King...' 
 (Charlotte Mason)

There are many keys that can help unlock a child's heart and mind. The Divine Spirit can communicate with them through the avenues of their minds, their wills and their emotion, and for each family it will look different.

Some of the keys for us have been:

• Scripture - Implanting a love of God's Word - our children see that the Word of God is the foundation and the common 'rule of life' in the home that applies to everyone in it.

• Principles - we teach our children principles of behaviour as they mature rather than give them rules. My upbringing started with rules at an early age (and little children need rules) but as I got older the rules didn't get replaced with principles; my parents just let go completely and I was left to form my own principles with the result that I was never really sure how I should act in certain situations.

'I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.' 
3 John 1:4

• Humility - being willing to admit that we were wrong about something or asking forgiveness when we've lost it or over-reacted. If our children see the process of sanctification in our lives it encourages them and gives them a sense of security that we are being led by the Spirit of God and not our own whims.

• Teaching our children to serve - this is so important because serving is close to the heart of God - Jesus took the very nature of a servant (Philippians 2:7). In a large family everyone needs to pull their weight or chaos results and we notice very quickly if someone has neglected their responsibilities.

• Grace - we encourage excellence and doing everything to the best of their ability but allow grace to cover their mistakes.

• Faithfulness - little things matter and we've made an effort to teach them that faithfulness in the small things, things hidden from the general view, is important because it really is a heart issue.

Teach me, my God and King,
In all things thee to see,
And what I do in anything
To do it as for thee.

(George Herbert)

• Honouring God - It's pretty basic: If we honour Him, He will honour us. We've told the children our stories of His faithfulness in our lives, His provision and blessings. Praying about decisions we need to make or for God's guidance shows them that we honour Him and want Him to direct our paths. Good books can inspire our children to honour the Lord as they read about others who honoured Him in their lives: missionaries, godly leaders and heroes of the faith.

• Teaching them to be worshippers - If children know from an early age that He has formed us for himself and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Him, and we model this ourselves, they will understand that nothing else will satisfy them or fill the space that only the living God can fill.

'The very essence of Christianity is personal loyalty, passionate loyalty to our adorable Chief.' 

(Charlotte Mason)

• Prayer - we pray for our children and with our children. We pray for others with them and then believe that God will answer our prayers.We pray over them when they are sick. We pray when they need to make choices.We've prayed regularly for each of them, from an early age, that God would set apart a godly spouse for each of them and bring them together at the right time. We've prayed for each of them that they would come to know Jesus at an early age and walk with Him all the days of their lives.We try to prayerfully choose what they should be involved in so we're not reacting to outside pressure that says if you don't do this, that, or the next thing your children will be deprived. 

'Child raising is not a competitive sport and it's not project management.
 It's about bringing some balance back into the home because it seems that this virus of hurry has infected our approach to childhood.' 
 (Carl Honore)

• A ministry - our children are our ministry and mission field, our primary responsibility. Our children.....

 '...are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody...a result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God...'   
2 Corinthians 3:2-3   

I first published this post three years ago and we've had a lot of changes in our family since then. Two children married, and the eldest five have graduated after being taught at home for their school years.
I still agree with what I've written above but I need to add that there is no such thing as a list where you tick a box and that guarantees you'll see all your children home and hosed.
The idea that if we can control what comes into our children's lives (which I sort of believed for awhile) we can avoid any trouble and that they will all turn out virtuous is a subtle deception. Yes, children need to be shielded from certain things but how do you shield them from what is within?

I now approach parenting as I did when I said those very scary marriage vows 28 years ago: 

'I do all this calling on the Grace of God!'

Notebooks for Nature Study, Science, Bible, Poetry & Hymn Study

Nature notebook

I've been sorting through my older children's homeschooling work and came across nature notebooks belonging to two of them, so I thought I'd share some of what we've done with various notebooks over the past 15 years. Two of the boys aren't represented here - I still haven't finished my sorting out yet.
The pages below are from my eldest daughter, JJ's nature notebook when she was between 10 and 12 years of age. She's 25 years old now.

 

These pages are from Zana's Nature notebook when she was 10 years old. She turned 21 years of age earlier this year.

A page from her Bible notebook:

Below is a page from Hoggy's science notebook when he was about 15 after reading about Galileo. He turned 19 years of age a couple of months ago.  On the right is a psalm from his Scripture Notebook. They started keeping these for recording the verses they'd memorised. He was about 7 years old when he did this page.

Poetry & hymn notebooks (above) - they wrote out their poems as we were memorising them and also some of the hymns we learnt. These were done when Hoggy was about 13 years old.
From his Bible notebook when he was 9 years old:

This is an oral narration from Bengy which I typed up for him and he illustrated when he was 7. The three younger boys each did a Bible notebook where they did narrations on each major event in the Old Testament. They all started off with oral narrations and then progressed to writing them themselves. They enjoyed going back over their 'book' of Bible History and I enjoyed looking through them again.

Science notebook pages which were done after reading I Am Joe's Body along with Fearfully and Wonderfully Made by Paul Brand:

 

And finally, some nature pages from Moozle the youngest. The first one was done last year after she'd pressed some flowers. They were a little mangled in the process but I think they turned out fairly well. The second was one she did this month.