Athanasius Christian Biographies for Young Readers- #Reformation Day Blog Series

Enemies lurked and made false accusations out of their spite for the bishop. At times, the government made decisions against his favor for political gain. He was driven out, often alone... but not lonely... so he continued to press forward.

Athanasius 
 

Church history is worth our time to learn, in my opinion. Do you find it to be so, too?

Last year, our family studied about the Reformer, Lady Jane Grey (the Nine Day Queen).

This year, we are learning about Athanasius. Our main resource for our study? It's this informative, concisely researched and written book by Simonetta Carr. The content is elegantly complimented with impressive illustrations by artist Matt Abraxas.

A wide window is opened for us to learn about the life he chose to lead and the persecution he endured from his childhood into his adulthood.

We are encouraged by Yahweh's protection over his life during perilous times. Reading about his life reminds us to be praying for our modern day persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ. 

Reformation Heritage Books in conjunction with Simonetta Carr are graciously giving away a copy of Athanasius. Enter below for your chance to win this historical book for your family library!

Note: Please do be sure to leave a comment below the Raffle Copter in this post if you choose to use that option to increase your odds of winning. Thank you.

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaways & Reformation Day!

Are you ready to learn more about church history this year? We have learned so.much. since we started studying church history and it has caused us to have greater understanding about how many events have unfolded over the years.

This year, some wonderful people are participating in giveaways! Be sure to follow us closely this month for your chance to win some quality materials to add to your homeschool libraries!

Along with some giveaways will be some freebies to download and some projects to do for Reformation Day!

Stay tuned....

Blessings!

 

Grace #wordstudywednesday

Grace.

Have I fully understood what this means? As I research about this, my mind is being renewed! The Hebrew and Greek texts clear up suppositions which are commonly made and taught. Are you ready to challenge what you may think and understand? I find I may not always be ready, but I want to have a teachable spirit to the truth's of Yahweh's word so I try to set myself aside and learn at Yeshua's feet.

 

 

Let's get started! Let's go deep so that the roots of our faith in Jesus grow deeper and cannot be uprooted!

"For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." John 1:17

There were assumptions in my mind about this verse. As I grow in my faith in Yeshua, I am learning to study the Scriptures in the original language to be certain I am understanding correct Biblical doctrine so I may walk in obedience to Yahweh out of complete reverence for Him and love for what He has done for me. If you are interested, and I hope you are, in reading how I have reasoned from Scripture using the Hebrew and Greek texts please download my research here and test it against Scripture in the original texts for yourself.

^{Relating from Scripture in context, original texts, and Webster's 1828 Dictionary:}

^{Grace for me, according to Scripture, means that I have received Yeshua's good will, loving-kindness, mercy of Yahweh, divine favor bestowed upon me for believing in Yeshuah Messiah as my Savior from the Law of Sin. Because of this gift, it is my heart's desire to respect the duties of man which are the instructions given to mankind (Yahweh's Laws) given to us Providentially from Yahweh our Father through Moses.}

^{Yeshua was the Word (Instructions/Laws by Yahweh) made flesh to show by example how to live purely according to Yahweh's Laws/Instructions without the addition of the rules/traditions of men.}

 

^Grace... 

^{Who am I but a human fallen short of the Glory of Yahweh...?}

^{... I am His child and I am grateful.} 

^Blessings!

  

 

(Enjoy more Word Study Wednesday
goodness by visitng A Cherished Keeper!)

Fall Pumpkin Writing Prompts

Can you believe fall is right around the corner?! I love the season of fall and I thought I'd help ya'll kick off the school year with a little freebie. :)

I was inspired by this blog post at lovingmylifeasmotherandwife several years ago and I created my own version on a white foam board. But... wall space can easily be taken up with nifty things like this! 

You can also print pumpkin prompts from lovingmylifeasmotherandwife! You'll find a much larger variety of prompts at her blog. :)

So... this year I decided to create a version just right for filing in my children's notebooks! 

I might stretch it to where they can use one a week with a bonus pumpkin prompt. Or perhaps I'll have them use the prompts during the first week of lessons. Hmmm....

This is how they are assembled...

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Voila!

Get your FREE Pumpkin Notebook Writing Prompts now!

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Blessings!

 

Pillar #wordstudywednesday

Pillars. Do you know that they have more significance than just a pretty addition to architecture?

My son created this piece when he was 7 years old.
I absolutely love his artistic vision!!!
(Chalk pastel and oil pastel.)

We studied about Pillars for an art lesson quite a while back in our homescool co-op. The Word Study for our lesson on pillars taught me some things I hadn't previously given much thought.

Webster's 1828 Dictionary:

PIL'LAR, n. [L. pila, a pile, a pillar, a mortar and pestle. The L. pila denotes a heap, or things thrown, put or driven together.]
Literally, a pile or heap; hence,

2. A supporter; that which sustains or upholds; that on which some superstructure rests. Gal.2.

3. A monument raised to commemorate any person or remarkable transaction.

And Jacob set a pillar on her grave. Gen.35. 2 Sam.18.

4. Something resembling a pillar; as a pillar of salt. Gen.19.

So a pillar of a cloud, a pillar of fire. Ex.13.

5. Foundation; support. Job.9.

Relate:
From my research {so far} there seems to be a distinct difference in the markers that the Hebrews used from what other peoples used. The Hebrews used pillars. Is it any wonder? The very idea of a pillar comes from Yahweh... it is a part of a foundation and it offers support. Yahweh Himself offered a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire to protect His people. There must be a purpose in pillars being chosen markers... 

I like to think of a journal and Christian/personal timelines as pillars. Heaps of marks on {piles of} papers marking Yahweh's Providential Hand in History... in my personal life...

Pillars...

they will forever remind me of Yahweh....

... my foundation and support.

Did you know that a pillar was found at the Red Sea Crossing of the Exodus?! At some point, the Hebrews raised a monument to commemorate this remarkable transaction. Check it out at about 15:00 minutes into the film:

Blessings!

  

(Be sure to follow this link to more Word Study Wednesday goodness hosted by acherishedkeeper.com)

Student Planner by Artsy Girl!

Hi, there! I'm Artsy Girl. I'm so excited about this school year; and I'm sure your kids are, too. :) 

Recently, I created a theme for and personalized a Plan It Out Right Homeschool Planner (Student Edition) to help fit your student's school year plan! Please read more about it from my mother and myself below!

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Student Planner Personalized by Artsy Girl

 
Hi Everyone! It's Heather jumping in here really quick to share with you about the features found within most of our planner designs:

It consists of:

• A section for your student's educational plan (word study to develop an education focus for the school year; internal/external autobiography; character and interests; quarterly goal sheets; weekly responsibilities divided by quarters; quarterly learning plan and extended learning plan; sheets for resources by quarter

• Plan It Out Right Monthly: A section for your monthly plans ( a 12 month calendar); a space to fill in projected tasks; a space for projected events; a space to jot down things your student needs to prepare for the month (book report, presentations, etc.)

• Plan It Out Right Weekly: This is a weekly action plan spread to personalize your student's lesson plans (you can even personalize it by filling in the month, week, and quarter.) There is a space to jot down prayer requests, exercise goals and an "other" space.
  
  The rest of the spread offers space to jot down project goals to work on during the week; an area to track what they need to do to reach those goals (they can do this with heat mapping their energy levels!); a weekly overview for planned events/activities; a space for emergent tasks, a space for keep track of weekly memory work; and areas to check off their weekly goals, weekly responsibilties and for filing their schoolwork neatly.

• Plan It Out Right Record Keeping: This section offers 12 field trip trackers; an Attendance Calendar; Reading Logs; Monthly Progress Reports (as recommended by the Noah Plan Curriculum... and a little extra added to it); Loaning and Lending Record Sheets; Important Dates; and a Correspondance Tracker

Hi! It's Artsy Girl again!

There's a bit more which I chose to have added to my planner: 

• Doodle Notes: I wanted this section added to my planner because......... I imagine a lot, and I sketch my ideas; too. This is very handy. :) 

• Mind Mapping space (for problem solving)

• A fun Field Trip Journal consisting of a scrap booking and journal space. This is perfect for students to write out their experience. It's also a handy for reminder should they forget.  

This bird nest Planner is a GREAT tool to plan your student's year right!

Buy it bound with a laminated front and back here @ our store!

OR

Want a free printable ebook planner instead? Sign up to receive updated posts via e-mail in the right hand column of the blog and let us know in a comment below! Then you can print and bind it yourself or use it in a 3-ring binder! 

I hope this will bless you and your family. :)

Blessings,

 

The Bible and Youth in Scripture

How is your *school year* going so far? 

We are easing into the notebook work here at our household.

My little Dreamer is now beginning the First Grade Noah Plan Curriculum. I'm teaching Song Bird from the Noah Plan Curriculum Fourth Grade Overviews. Explorer is diving into Third Grade Noah Plan Curriculum lessons. I'm weaving the Noah Plan Curriculum Overviews for Seventh Grade and Eighth Grade together for Scientist and Artsy Girl. Whew! 

Sound overwhelming? Rest assured that it isn't. 

This year, I'm going to try a different approach with blogging about our year. My goal is to show you the bigger picture how this flows in our family with so many varied *grades*.

For example, with Bible lessons, Dreamer, Explorer and Song Bird are all studying about the Immediacy of Christ. The First Grade Curriculum, The Third Grade Curriculum and the Walking With Jesus Curriculum all touch on this right now. So, it's simple to teach all three of them together... yet have them do notebook pages at their individual levels of learning.

Dreamer's Week 1, Quarter 1 Bible Lesson

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In Dreamer's first grade lesson, the main theme is that the Bible is Yahweh's inspired written word. We went through the lesson content (the everlasting presence & power of Yahweh; the immediacy of Yeshua (Jesus); the origin of the Bible; the purpose of the Bible; the divisions of the Bible).

2 Timothy 3:16 says that "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,"

That word, all, grabs me! We reasoned from Scripture that all would be both the Old Testament and the New Testament. We have been learning how the Old Testament is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

Woah! Let us reason from Scripture... The Old Testament is profitable for doctrine? The Old Testament is profitable for reproofing us and correcting us? The Old Testament is profitable for instruction in righteousness. How exciting to be learning what this may mean!!!

Explorer and Song Bird's Week 1, Quarter 1 Bible Lesson

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I chose to have Explorer and Song Bird work on a notebook page from the Walking With Jesus curriculum on how to study the word vs. having Explorer do the first lesson in the third grade curriculum (just because that is how I was feeling lead for the first week). It can be flexible like that!

Artsy Girl and Scientist's Week 1, Quarter 1 Bible Lesson

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Admittedly, this is the first year which I am forming lessons off of the Noah Plan Curriculum Overviews! Now that I'm doing it, I wonder why I was so intimidated by them in the first place! Ha! I just chose which Bible verses I wanted them to study and on which day. I developed the notebook pages to coincide with that. I feel led to have them study certain words from those Bible verses from Webster's 1828 Dictionary as well as a Lexicon.

The combination of Webster's 1828 Dictionary and a Lexicon is actually a nice team for helping us to understand Scripture more clearly. We also remember to take into account the context of the passages (who are the characters, what is the setting, what is the plot, what is the theme?).

I was really impressed that Scientist caught on from his study that the Youth in Scripture actually learned from the Torah (the Old Testament)... the instructions for life found in there.

Since Artsy Girl is studying at the seventh grade level and Scientist is studying at the eighth grade level, they are doing more independent studies. The notebook pages include instructions on them to help guide them along.

Okay, this about sums up our first week in Bible this year. 

Looking forward to tomorrow's post!

Blessings!

An Educational Reminder...

 This is something I am continually being taught...

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*Happy New School Year!*


Blessings!