Table of Contents
     Tips & Information
          How To Continue Receiving
               The Teaching Home's Free E-Mail Newsletter
          Home-School Conventions
          National Contests
          Vocabulary
     Letters from Our Readers
          Newsletters and Back Issues
          The Decision to Home School
          Four Questions
          Summer Opportunity for Families
          Individual Home-School Styles
          Commitment to God Brings Trials and Peace
          Reading Together: A Priceless Experience
     Recommended Resources
          I Want To Be a Work-at-Home Mom
          Structured Writing Company
          Power-Glide Flash Cards
          Disciplining Children with Confidence
     Sunnyside Up: Humorous Anecdote

Greetings,

     We love to hear from you -- and share your letters with the
20,000 families all over the world that read this e-mail newsletter!
     You are invited to contribute the following:
 *  Letters
 *  Teaching Tips
 *  Recommended Websites
 *  Family Photo and Story
 *  Humorous Anecdote
     As a thank you, we will send you a Teaching Home magazine
back issue of your choice in exchange for any submission that we
publish.  (See the 51 back issues still available at
http://TheTeachingHomen.goemerchant7.com)
     May the Lord bless you and your family for His glory.

Cordially,
Pat, Sue, Heather, Holly, and Brian Welch
The Teaching Home is a 24-year-old, home-school family business.
____________________________________________________

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Tips & Information

How To Continue Receiving
The Teaching Home's Free E-Mail Newsletter
     Depending on what e-mail service you use, you might need to:
 *  Whitelist us by putting our "From" address in your address
     book, safe list, or some other "trusted senders" list.
     The "From" address is:  Publisher@TeachingHome.com
 *  Have your e-mail provider or ISP whitelist our sending IP address.
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 *  If your whitelist (or the whitelist of your e-mail provider or ISP)
     is  based on the name of the domain we broadcast from, give them
     our domain name: teachinghome.com

Home-School Conventions
     For information about your state convention, go to The
Teaching Home's website (link below) and link directly to the
state organization's website.  Upcoming state conventions:
August:  NV, OR, TX
September: England / Various Dates: TN, TX, NZ
http://www.TeachingHome.com/States/index.cfm

National Contests
     Summer is a good time to consider whether a contest would
help you meet any of your goals and objectives for your child.
It is also a good time to:
 *  Obtain necessary information about the contest.
 *  Schedule the contest into your lesson plans.
 *  Get a head start by preparing early for the contest..
     Read about the benefits of participating in a competition,
the ins and outs of a competition, and integrating contests into
your curriculum in Newsletter #51.  You will also find a list of
44 contests with links to complete information.
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_51.cfm

Vocabulary
     A simple vocabulary exercise to work on this summer is to
learn common prefixes and suffixes.  Then go on a word search
and find examples of each.
     ab-  (away from)
     be-  (on all sides, overly)
     de-  (reversal, undoing, downward)
     dis-  dif- (not, reversal)
     ex-  (out of, former)
     pre-  (before)
     re-  (again, restore)
     un-  (do the opposite of)
     ad-  (to, toward)
     com-,  con-,  co-  (with, together)
     en-,  em-  (in, into, to cover or contain)
     in-  (into or not)
     pro-  (in favor of, before)
     sub-  (under, beneath)
     For more tips on studying vocabulary, see Newsletter #21
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_21.cfm
____________________________________________________

     Structured Writing Company
          Has academic writing got you down?  Are you looking for
     a solution?  The color-coded, step-by-step writing formulas
     of Structured Writing may be your answer.  Check us out at
     http://www.StructuredWriting.com.
____________________________________________________

Letters from Our Readers

Newsletters and Back Issues
     I absolutely love your newsletter that I receive and have
even forwarded it on to others in my support group.
     I have also enjoyed the back issues of The Teaching Home
magazine that I have ordered.  Thank you so much for quality
material and your faithfulness to the Lord and to the homeschool
community.  You are a real blessing! -- Laurie Beauchamp

Note from the Editors
     You are welcome to forward this free newsletter in its entirety
(see reprint information at the end of this e-mail).  Invite your friends
to sign up at http://www.TeachingHome.com/SignUp
     Find information, inspiration, and support from 51 never-out-
of-date Teaching Home magazine back issues offered for sale online.
http://TheTeachingHomen.goemerchant7.com

The Decision to Home School
     We just started home schooling our only child last year.
She had been in public school since kindergarten, but had always
been a very sickly child due to the many germs in the school
system.
     After getting a very difficult teacher in 4th grade (that would
not get her work together for homework when she was sick), we
finally made the decision that we had been praying about for three
or more years -- to home school her.
     Our daughter is flourishing.  I wish we had never enrolled
her in public school!
     I look forward to your newsletter, as we are new to home
schooling. -- Michael & Shari Nelson

Note from the Editors
     The following letter is in response to our Newsletter #81
which discusses your decision to home school and setting
spiritual, academic, social, and life skills goals for your children's
education and training.  See our Newsletter Archives at
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_81.cfm.

Four Questions
     I want to share with you an exercise my husband and I
recently completed which was most beneficial for our family.
     We asked ourselves four questions and separately answered
them.  Then we formulated our vision for our children's
education and discipleship from the answers we compiled.
     The questions were:
     1.  Thinking back on your own educational experience, what
things did you do/learn in school that were beneficial and have
served you well in your adult life?
     2.  What things did you do/learn in school that were a
waste of time, or harmful?
     3.  What things do you wish you had been taught or allowed
to do in school -- things which you had to learn the hard way, or
things which might have somehow improved your life as an adult?
     4.  When your children are grown and ready to start out on
their own, what would it take for you to be able to say, "Yes! We
did it right.  We accomplished what we set out to do";  how can
you get them to that point starting from where you are now?
     -- Vernon & Mary Beth Akers

Note from the Editors
     The following letter is in response to our Newsletter # 79 on
summer options.  See it in our Newsletter Archives at
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_79.cfm

Summer Opportunity for Families
     We received your newsletter regarding summertime options.
My family and I are missionaries in the mountains of Peru and
homeschool our own children (we have nine, although two are not
yet "school age") as well as three of the five Peruvian children
we are adopting.
     One option that some home-school families are considering
doing is taking a short-term mission trip together as a family to
some foreign country -- a major growth experience not only for
the children, but for the parents. That summer vacation turns
into an educational and eye-opening experience for all. It is a
time that no one involved will ever forget, and usually they
will never be the same again. The family learns (if they don't
already know how) to work together, and missionaries (like us!)
can usually use a helping (servant-minded) hand.  Just a thought.
     -- Alan Lenz
____________________________________________________

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You can use the flash cards just as they are or play games
with others learning the same language or different
languages.  Travel abroad with Power-Glide -- your ticket
to foreign language fluency! Noun cards also available.
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____________________________________________________

Letters from Our Readers

Individual Home-School Styles
      Thank you so much for the encouragement you always provide.
We moved two years ago from a community and church filled with
home schoolers to one with almost none and our first experiences
with persecution.
      I am so grateful that God allowed us to learn so much from
the godly home-school veterans in our former community that
helped us find our schooling style.
      We have friends who have set up a classroom with desks and
a dry-erase board. They follow a strict time schedule and run
their days and years much the same as a campus Christian school.
      Another family focuses mostly on discipleship and character
training. Their family is involved in many ministries together
and they read many great books on all subjects and do many
projects together (including building their own home over the
last couple of years). They do very little "bookwork."
      Some families use one curriculum exclusively and
completely; others pick and choose. Unit studies and many field
trips are preferred by some, while others use wonderful Christian
curriculum. Most mix some of each.
      One family stays up late doing ministry together and sleeps
in each morning. Many get up early and do chores, then finish up
the day earlier.
      As we look toward our eighth year of home schooling our
five children, I try to encourage others not to follow in our
family's path, but to look for God's plan for their families and
to understand that it may take some trial and error to find it;
and it may change over the years.
      I want to encourage others that in Christ, you can home
school. He will give you all you need, physically, spiritually,
and financially. Just look to Him to guide you in the way you
should go. -- JulieBeth L., California

Commitment to God Brings Trials and Peace
      “‘For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake,
but My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, and My
covenant of peace will not be shaken,’ says the Lord who has
compassion on you” (Isaiah 54:10).
      Halfway through our daughter's 2nd-grade year, we
discovered that she had learning difficulties.
      We understood that God's principles of child training were
effective in every situation. But the stamina required to apply
those principles with our daughter seemed out of reach.
      You see, at the same time we were dealing with this, my
health was failing significantly. I was extraordinarily tired all
the time, and any time I had to deal with major problems, which
was frequently, I would experience extreme pain throughout my
body. Recently we discovered that I have Lupus.
      I longed for assurance that home schooling is not always
the easiest road we could travel. We do hit major bumps in this
home-school road. People need to know that. Otherwise, how do you
continue when it seems so hard? How do you get through? How do
you hold on?
      None of these "how" questions can be answered until we have
a firm answer to why we are home schooling.
      That's one thing about trials; it is in the midst of them
that you really have to grab onto the answers to those “why”
questions and hold on for dear life!
      When my husband and I have had to answer the "Why home
school?" question, the answer has been quite simple: God put the
conviction to home school so deeply in our hearts that to do
anything else would be inconceivable. It is a commitment to God
and to His will.
      We see home schooling much the same as we see our marriage
commitment. It is not based on how good we are at it or how happy
it makes us. It is simply a commitment to obey the convictions
God has placed in our hearts. If our conviction had come from
some outside source, it could not keep us going in the hard times.
      God got us through the last year and a half. He showed us
solutions to many of the problems that we were going through. He
gave us hope and direction when we couldn't see any light.
      We found that we can trust Him to see us through. He uses
the very things that caused the greatest pain to bring us the
greatest joy and bring Him the greatest glory.
      Through these trials, more than at any other time, He once
again has proven that His unfailing love for us will not be removed
nor His peace shaken. -- Patricia D., California

Note from the Editors
     Many home-school families have found it beneficial to write
out their decision to home school (this could be in your mission
statement) along with a list, or summary, of the reasons why they
have made that decision.  See Newsletters #80 and 81 at
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_80.cfm
http://www.TeachingHome.com/Newsletters/vol_2-no_81.cfm

Reading Together: A Priceless Experience
      Five years ago, because of the curriculum I ordered,
reading aloud as a family became part of our school day. I have
to admit, I dreaded it at first. I wanted to hurry up and get it
out of the way, so we could concentrate on "the important stuff."
     Well, as it turns out, reading to our children has been the
most enjoyable part of our home-school experience. We have
laughed, cried, and become angry at injustice. We have traveled
back in time and met interesting people.
     Our knowledge, vocabulary, and listening skills have been
enriched. Our faith in God has deepened.  Memories of chuckles,
tears, and cuddling on the sofa or in front of a crackling fire
are priceless. I can't recommend enough the experience of reading
aloud together. -- Pam J., Nevada
____________________________________________________

Disciplining Children with Confidence: A Guide to Biblical Discipline
Discipline your children with confidence with the wisdom from God's Word.
Free parenting advice and articles!  http://www.DiscipliningChildren.com
____________________________________________________

     Please Thank and Support
     Our Sponsoring Advertisers!
          These free newsletters are made possible financially by
     the fine suppliers who advertise in them and the accompanying
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Sunnyside Up: It Was a Very Slow Bear
     Our son and I were going through some spelling words.
I would say them and he would spell them.
     When we came to the word bear, Kyle spelled b-e-a-r.
     I then gave Kyle the word slowly.
     Kyle slowly spelled b--e--a--r.
     I said, "No, slowly." Kyle repeated b---e---a---r.
     I said, "No, spell the word slowly"!
     "I'm spelling it as slow as I can, Mom!"
     Submitted by Karen Cornelius
____________________________________________________

God Loves You.
     Because we were separated from God by sin, Jesus Christ
died in our place, then rose to life again.  If we trust Jesus Christ
as our Savior and Lord, He will give us eternal life.
     "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of
works, that no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8, 9).
     http://www.TeachingHome.com/about/Salvation.cfm
____________________________________________________

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