My Newest Article

Oklahoma Living Magazine just published my article on Chisholm Trail Heritage Center. You can read the article on their website (pg. 14-15).

Published Dec. 2013

More Adventures in Tutoring

TUTORING! 

I've been so busy tutoring that I haven't kept up with my blogs and websites. This past month, I've learned more about Biology than I ever did in school. I'm using Apologia's high school biology with a class of 9-12th graders. There are 12 students in the class - all fabulous kids, by the way! We've examined fungus, grown micro-organisms in pond water, and learned a bit of chemistry. This week, we're going to do the edible cell project just for fun!

I have 19 students in Beginning Composition and 12 students in Intermediate Composition. Again, all fabulous students! There are some excellent writers in the class, and it will be fun watching them get even better. I expect a few of them will be authors one day!

The other two classes I have are younger students. The first semester, I taught a Kids Can Write class for 3rd-6th graders. We've had fun scrapbooking and writing. We've learned about alliteration, metaphors, similes, and personification. This week, we will be writing letters and then scrapbooking Christmas cards and envelopes to send them in. The second half of the year will be Oklahoma History.

The other class is a CSI class for 3-6th. Besides having a Broken Arrow CSI come to the class and tell them that I was telling them all the wrong stuff, it's been fun! We've learned about fingerprinting, blood spatters, blood typing, forensic anthropology, bite marks, and handwriting analysis. This week, we're going to study evidence in soil. The second half of this class will be in electronics.

I never thought that after I graduated my own two kids from homeschool, I would be teaching others. But, I am so enjoying it. The kids keep me young and ON MY TOES!

Going Back to School

My article, Going Back to School With My Kids, was featured in the Old Schoolhouse Magazine this month. You can read it for free online.

This is the last article I have written for this magazine. I have one more article coming out in December for another magazine; then I am taking a writing break. With some much of my time devoted to teaching at Cornerstone, I just can't find the time to write. Once I get my curriculum "perfected," I'll start writing for publication again.

Latest Article - Three Ways to Mentor an Entrepreneur

If you have kids who are interested in starting a business, you won't want to miss the September-October issue of Old Schoolhouse Magazine. It's filled with helpful  information AND I have an article in there! I hope you will check it out.

Another Article Published

My article, Power and Wisdom, was published in the August issue of Oklahoma Living Magazine.

For this article, I traveled down to Chandler, OK, where they held the Girl Power/Wise Guys Conference, a one-day workshop for 5th graders in Lincoln County. It was a lot of fun watching the kids learn about all types of occupations as well as getting tips on safety.

You can read the whole story on page 20 of the August 2013 issue.

Update on School

I just found out I have 53 signups for classes this year! This is going to be a very busy year! I start teaching next week, so I'm working hard to get ahead a bit so it won't be so bad. Keeping ahead will be a must! I ended my summer tutoring two weeks ago to give myself some time to prepare for fall.

One of the things I'm doing this year for my elementary students is having them do some scrap-lap booking. They will create notebooks using some elementary scrapbooking techniques. I hope they enjoy it. I had a hard time find clip art to use for my CSI class but I finally found a scrapbooking company that sold a police set. It worked perfectly!

I also have 29 composition students, so there will be a lot of reading and grading papers this year! I'm not complaining. I love these teens and enjoy helping them learn to write.

Field Day - My Other Life!

Want to know about my other life as an ham radio operator? Come by and visit me at Field Day.

This weekend, June 22 and 23, bring your kids to Field Day where they can talk to ham radio operators and even talk on the radio themselves! This is a chance for both you and your kids to learn a bit about electricity and communication, talk to some storm spotters, and find out about a fun hobby, ham radio. It's crazy fun!  

Field Day is held all over the country. You can log on to the ARRL site (http://www.arrl.org/field-day) and find one near you. 

For those of you in the Tulsa area, my club (Broken Arrow Amateur Radio Club) will be setting up mobile units and antennas at Asbury Methodist Church (in the field by the garden center) on Mingo and 71st Street. There will be tents, motor homes, and trucks with equipment set up and ham operators talking. Just walk around, come on in and take  a tour. Very informal. We will start operating from 1pm Saturday through 1pm on Sunday (24 hours of continuous operations). Come by and say hi and talk on the radio! You might even get to talk to someone in China or Australia! 

I'll be there for sure from 4pm to 7pm on Saturday. Not sure about other times. But you can go anytime. All these folks are very friendly and love to show off their "toys!"  

Article Published - God's Big Blue Supermarket

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine just published my article, God's Big Blue Supermarket (June 2013). This was a fun article to write as I directed it more to students. My goal was to help them see the value of our ocean and its inhabitants.

You can read the article in its entirety on The Old Schoolhouse Magazine website, along with other excellent articles written especially for home educators.

I hope yo enjoy it!

TV Interview

Today, I was interviewed on Channel 17 here in Broken Arrow, OK. They are doing a series on education, so they asked me to answer questions about homeschooling. I followed the Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools. I'm not sure how they will show these segments, but my segment will be shown on June 21 at noon.

I am definitely NOT Ophrah Winfrey, but I did make it through. Interviews are NOT my favorite thing to do. In fact, I usually turn them down. Some people speak; others write. I prefer to write! However, I agreed to do this one as I wanted to share the benefits of homeschooling as well as get the word out about my website and my tutoring at Cornerstone.

I was interviewed by OETA (local PBS station) several years ago; however, I was not the main subject. They interviewed me for over an hour, but only used one or two minutes of what I said!

The only other time I was interviewed, I thought was the most fun. That time it was by Good Morning America and it was a story about going back to college at an older age. They followed me around campus all day and ended up a five minutes segment. I still have photos of that one on my Empty Nest Mom Goes to College Blog. I notice that Wordpress is now putting ads on my ENMGTC blog, so I should probably take it down. I just hate to lose those memories. :(

So that's my three claims to fame. I don't think I will quit my day job for TV!

My Dog, Oreo

I don't write much about my pets on this blog. I mostly do that on Facebook, but I thought it was time to share a little bit about Oreo with my readers on here as well.

I have always had cats, outdoor farm dogs, or dogs that were someone else's pets, so I never really thought much about dogs until I got Oreo. In truth, I was looking for a cat. My husband and I had recently lost our cats and had decided we would not have any more pets so that we would be free to travel. Well, that didn't work out. My dear daughter, Shelly, brought over a beautiful black and white kitten and it began all over again. Bill fell in love with the kitten and named him Bullet, thus ending our freedom from pet sitting problems. But Bill was happy, so I got over it.

Now, the problem was that the kitten was lonely; so, I went out and got the kitten a friend, Felix. Now, we have two cats. All was well until I realized that the 2nd kitten didn't like me, or anyone else it seemed. It was Bullet's cat. So, I decided to get a third kitten that would be MY cat. I went to every rescue place and pet shop in town looking for just the right cat. Then, I walked into the Humane Society and saw a crate of Shitzhu-Jack Russell puppies. Yes, I walked out with a puppy instead of a cat and fell in love!

Oreo has become my 3rd child. I've never had a relationship with a pet like this one. She practically worships me and follows me everywhere. I take her with me everywhere I can. We go to Bass Pro Shop, Southern Agriculture, Pets Mart, walks in the park, day trips around Oklahoma. Bill and I have found restaurants that allow her on the patio, like Leon's on Brookside or Uncle Bucks here in Broken Arrow. We found that La Quinta will allow her to stay at no charge and even has a special courtyard in OKC with walking paths and "cleaning stations."

I have even taken her on assignments with the idea that she would stay in the car with Bill while I did the interview, but it always worked out that the person I'm interviewing allowed Oreo to tag along. She's been on a Pontoon Boat at Lake Tenkiller, a guest at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center in Duncan, OK, and even got to stay in a lake cabin with me! My son, who babysits her when we can't take her with us, took her to a painting festival where she got to paint with her paws! This dog has more adventures than some kids!

So the bottom line is that I'm now a dog person. I still love cats, but this dog has stolen my heart.  Now I know why old people love their pets so!

Update on Tutoring

I have 34 students signed up for classes this fall so far. We have another registration in August, so I will probably get a few more.

Now, it's time for me to get to work. I am teaching a few fun classes for elementary students this year: a class about electronics and another one on Crime Scene Investigations. In addition to those, I will be tutoring elementary writing and Oklahoma history, as well as my usual middle and high school composition and Biology.

My daughter, Shelly, will be tutoring with me this year at Cornerstone. That will be fun! She is just about finished her Master's Degree in English and has been an Adjunct professor at Tulsa Community College for the last year as well. She will continue that, tutor a few classes with me at Cornerstone, and also tutor for another local co-op. This is such a joy for me to get to work with my own daughter at the same school!

So this summer, I will be working on lesson plans and tutoring students in math and English. I also have several magazine articles to finish up before school starts. It will be a busy Summer!

Open House Today

Today was Open House for parents interested in sending their kids to Cornerstone Tutorial Center next school year. I don't know how many came as we were all in different rooms, but I was pretty busy all morning meeting new parents and students. 

I'm pretty excited about this coming year as I'm adding some new classes for grades 3-6: Crime Scene Investigation, Electronics, Kids Can Write and Oklahoma History. These will be fun classes that will also sneak in a little math, science, government, composition, history, etc. 

The other wonderful thing that happened today is that my daughter, Shelly Downes, joined us at CTC. She is currently working on her Master's thesis and finishing up her Master's Degree in English from Northeastern State University, and she is also an adjunct professor at Tulsa Community College teaching Freshman Composition. In her spare time (ha!), she is going to teach a college prep composition class at CTC, as well as a creative writing class. It was really fun, today, introducing her to my students from last year. Shelly was homeschooled from K-12th grade, and I'm very proud of her. I know the kids will love her. 

End of a School Year and Planning for Next!

Only one week left of this school year. Wow! It really went fast. It's hard to believe that this time last year, I was looking for a job and wondering what I was going to be doing for the "rest of my life." I am so glad I found Cornerstone Tutorial Center. I have really enjoyed tutoring there. The staff are super nice. My students are awesome, and I probably learned as much as the kids did! It was really fun!

In Biology, I learned that girls like to dissect as much as, or even more than, the boys! That was a surprise. In composition and marketing class, I learned that teens are super creative. I was so impressed with their stories and marketing projects. I also learned that you have to give them a limit on story writing. Some of my students wrote novels instead of a short story!

I will make some changes next year . . . No cell phones in class! I thought I could keep them under control, but not with all the kids. Next year, they will go in a basket when they enter the classroom. Lesson learned!

This summer, I'm going to take a couple of classes related to teaching elementary students in order to prepare for next year. I'm going to tutor some younger kids in some fun classes, as well as continuing with my teens.

In addition to preparing for the next school year, taking classes, and writing articles, I'll be tutoring a few students during the summer. I better get to work!

Preparing for Electronics Class

Although I'm a ham operator with an Extra license, I really don't know a lot about electronics. It's always been an interest, but I've never seriously pursued it. Now that I'm going to teach a class of elementary students about electronics, I decided it was time I took a course myself. So I purchased the Make: Electronics book and the electronic parts to go along with it. My plan is to work through this in the next month to get a better understanding. AND it will be fun!

In addition, I am getting a set of Snap Circuits to practice with. I'm thinking of purchasing a few of these to get the students started in electronics. They seem to be easier to use for young children than a breadboard. After they get more experience, we will switch to a breadboard. At least that is my plan now. If anyone has any suggestions, let me know. My students will be 3rd-5th grade. We will have 15 lessons, 80 minutes each.

Just finished The Welcome Committee of Butternut Creek - LOVED IT!

The Welcome Committee of Butternut Creek by Jane Perrine is a wonderful book! I picked it up to read and just couldn't stop. Finished it in 24 hours. The story is about a young pastor who comes to a small town. The church where he is pastoring is run by the "Widows," a group of older women who like to make sure everything is run "properly," and that includes getting all the single folks married off!

If you're looking for an enjoyable book for summer reading, I highly recommend it. I just purchased the second book in the series, The Matchmakers of Butternut Creek.

Adding two new classes!

I'm really excited about two new classes I'm going to teach next year for elementary kids: 

Crime Scene Investigators / Electronics for Kids
This will be a two-semester class for kids in 3rd-6th grade. 

Semester I will introduce kids to the world of forensic science and law enforcement. Using fun, hands-on activities students will learn how police investigate crimes, collect evidence, and catch those crooks! Students will "solve" crimes by comparing fingerprints to catch a thief, unscrambling a coded message to stop a spy, analyzing handwriting to check for forgery, investigating soil samples to help a farmer, and identifying leaves to find a truck involved in a car accident. And that’s just the beginning. Each week, there will be a new crime to solve! 

Semester II will introduce kids to the world of electricity. Using hands-on projects, students will learn how electricity works, how it's made, how it travels, and how it's used in communications. Students will build circuits, a Morse code transmitter, a steady-hand game, and other fun projects that explore electronics. (NO one will get shocked!)

I'm already getting my ham radio friends pumped about holding a NET in class! This is going to be a fun, but extremely busy year !

Update on Tutoring

This has been a great year so far at Cornerstone Tutorial Center. I have so much enjoyed my students that range from 13-17 years of age. At the beginning of the year, I wasn't sure how I would like teaching teenagers as I haven't taught teens ever, except my own. I always taught the little guys and gals. Well, I have to say it's been most enjoyable, and I have definitely NOT been bored! These teens keep me on my toes trying to come up with ways to keep them interested. It's hard to compete with technology.

In Biology, I put together PowerPoint presentations on every chapter. As we work through the chapter, I have them fill in a worksheet, watch videos, view photos and diagrams, conduct labs, and answer questions about the lesson; trying to use all their senses. I even throw in something totally irrelevant and sometimes outrageous just to "shock" them back to life now and then! Once I started doing using all the senses, their grades started improving.

In Composition class, I thought I would be lucky to have the kids write a 5 paragraph paper. Instead, most of them went far beyond. Some of them are even writing mini-novels and I am encouraging them to enter writing contests. I'm so happy to see these guys and gals enjoying writing even if it means staying up late to grade their papers!

I wasn't going to teach Marketing again because I didn't think we were having much fun. But things got better after we decided to do a class project on marketing our school. The kids interviewed staff, conducted surveys, and started creating videos, business cards, and flyers to advertise the school's services. They really got into the project. So, I guess I'll try it again next year with a few more tweaks and using a local nonprofit for our subject organization.

All in all, it's been a great year. We only have a few weeks left, but I can honestly say, I'm going to miss it over the summer. However,  it won't be long before I have a brand new set of kids! Next year, I'm teaching Biology, three Composition classes, Marketing and Oklahoma History. I'll have students in grades 3-6, 7-8, and 9-12. I'll be pretty busy over the summer preparing!

Planning for Next Year's Classes

I've had a blast this past year tutoring the homeschooled students enrolled at Cornerstone Tutorial Center. Who knew I would LOVE teaching Biology! I've also enjoyed the composition and marketing classes. So, next year, I'm going to add additional writing classes for other ages, as well as an Oklahoma History class for elementary age students. This should be fun! Here's the rundown of my classes so far: 

Biology (Tues & Thur. 8:30-9:55 am); Gr. 9-12. Exploring Creation with Biology is a Christian-based, rigorous, college preparatory course in Biology that will cover most of the textbook at a rate of one module every two weeks. Topics covered include cellular function, DNA, classification, genetics, evolutionary theory, ecology, and organisms from Kingdom Monera, Protista, Fungi, Animalia, and Plantae. Because the course is difficult and not all children learn the same, the material is presented in a variety of learning styles including PowerPoint presentations, videos, lectures, hands-on activities, labs and worksheets. This will ensure the success of every student who does the required homework.  

Kids Can Write / Oklahoma History (Thur. 12:05-1:25pm) Gr. 3-6: Semester 1 is a "First Writing Class" for students who have learned to write in both manuscript and cursive. The goal of the class is to take the fear out of writing. Students will create their own autobiography using photos and short texts, make pop-up books in a variety of subjects, and participate in a variety of hands-on activities that encourage writing. In Semester 2, students will use the writing skills they learned to create an Oklahoma History Notebook. Students will be introduced to the history, geography, economics, people, places, plants, animals, and important events of Oklahoma using all learning styles. During class, they will hear stories about Oklahoma, watch videos, listen to songs, cook recipes, create a timeline of events, complete worksheets, and participate in hands-on activities that will make learning FUN! At the end of the semester, the students will take home a notebook of worksheets and photos of projects completed that illustrates what they learned about Oklahoma History.  

Beginning Composition (Thur. 9:55-11:15am); Gr. 7-9: Beginning Composition is an introductory writing class for students who are just learning to write reports and essays OR who would like extra practice. Students will learn sentence and paragraph structure, outlining, and how to write the five-paragraph essay. Projects will include personal narratives, descriptive essays, expository essays, persuasive essays, and report writing for academic subjects. To encourage the students that writing can be fun, class activities may include an occasional "Wacky Research Report." During class, students will participate in hands-on activities to increase their vocabulary and grammar skills, brainstorm ideas, and practice specific writing techniques. Although the emphasis of this class is writing, the students will also work through 180 Daily Teaching Lessons, Gr. 8 (both in class and at home) as a review of grammar. This course will prepare students for Intermediate Composition.  

Intermediate Composition (Tues. 9:55-11:15am); Gr. 9-12: Intermediate Composition is a continuation of Beginning Composition and prepares students for Advanced Composition. Projects will include reports and essays in the form of personal narratives, descriptive essays, expository essays, persuasive essays, and report writing for academic subjects. These projects will be longer and more advanced than those in Beginning Composition. During class, students will participate in hands-on activities to increase their vocabulary and grammar skills, brainstorm ideas, and practice specific writing techniques. Although the emphasis of this class is writing, the students will also work through 180 Daily Teaching Lessons, Gr. 12 (both in class and at home) as a review of grammar.  

Marketing (Thurs. 1:30-2:50pm); Gr. 9-12: This course will introduce students to the world of entrepreneurship and marketing through two projects. In Part I, students will explore their own entrepreneurial potential. They will take a job interest and skills assessment, explore careers and entrepreneurial opportunities, brainstorm ideas for businesses, and learn how to manage time. Students will then work individually or in teams to create a product or service. Each team will write a business plan, a marketing plan and a financial plan for their business; create both print and online tools necessary to market their product or service; and present its business idea to a "Shark Tank" panel. In Part 2, our class will "adopt" a local nonprofit business and the students will work in teams to create a marketing plan for this organization. Teams will interview staff, conduct surveys to identify the market and create a variety of promotional materials including business cards, flyers, calendars, brochures, videos, and online media. At the end of the year, each team will present its marketing plan to the representatives of the nonprofit. Participation is through discussion, lectures, in-class activities, homework assignments, conducting surveys and interviews, Internet research and group projects. 

New Article Published - Feb. 2012

My article, "Teaching Writing as a Profession," has just been published by the Old Schoolhouse Magazine. I wrote this article to help parents discover ways to mentor and inspire a budding author in the family.

You can read the entire magazine using this link. I hope you enjoy it!