April is the perfect month to get your garden going, not mention it is National Garden Month. Whether you’re already on the go with starters or not you still have time to get your garden going. Gardening offers many things, whether it’s discipline, relaxation, exercise, food, or perhaps a nice tan, and it’s something the entire family can enjoy and use in their homeschool.

planning

A scheme devised; a project; the form of something to be done existing in the mind, with the several parts adjusted in idea, expressed in words or committed to writing; as the plan of a constitution of government; the plan of a treaty; the plan of an expedition.

Homeschooling is like gardening, and depending on your care you will yield good or bad fruit. Planning is a good place to start. You’ll have to plan when you’ll start your seedlings, where you’re going to put your garden, what types of plants to grow and so on.

Jacque at Walking Therein and Rachel at A City On A Hill have been planning our garden for months, and has Planting Spring Seeds checked off the list.

Robin at Heart at Home has laid out the plans for her square foot-gardening, introduced by Mel Bartholomew, and and shares the Benefits of a Square Foot Garden.

Kathy Dow at My Quivers Full is planning on how to Keep Those Skills Fresh Over the Summer…For FREE! saying, “Looking for something to keep those skills fresh over the summer?  Needing it to be low cost?  Me too!”

What is the foremost dread of most college-bound high school students? Taking the SAT. Nate Desmond at Debt-free Scholar shares his book review on planning for your SATs with 411 SAT Prep Series.

Brenda at The Tie That Binds Us shares her “key to my sanity” My Planner, “from a simple calender to computer spreadsheets, I’ve morphed my planner into a binder that I decided to create to fit my own tailored needs.”

Lynn shares a list of helpful links for those using Unit Studies or planning to at Eclectic Education.

Planning can be a bit tedious so encouragement is always welcome, and a great resource is the Home School Digest. See how you can Get A FREE Issue of Home School Digest! at Gleaning The Harvest.

Plan on attending the The “Wise” Homeschooling Conference Next Month shared by Henry Cate posted at Why Homeschool. You might even get to see the Cate’s there too!

tilling

The operation, practice or art of preparing land for seed, and keeping the ground free from weeds which might impede the growth of crops. Tillage includes manuring, plowing, harrowing and rolling land, or whatever is done to bring it to a proper state to receive the seed, and the operations of plowing, harrowing and hoeing the ground, to destroy weeds and loosen the soil after it is planted; culture; a principal branch of agriculture. Tillage of the earth is the principal as it was the first occupation of man, and no employment is more honorable.

Once you have your homeschool all planned out you should begin next by tilling your soil, getting it rich with nutrients and ready to receive your starters.

Creating an environment where your children are sure to be given the proper nutrients they need for a Biblical-worldview is important to a fruitful garden.  Kathy presents Apologia Science Exploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day posted at Homeschoolbuzz.com Reviews.

Amy Smith at Kids Love Learning is thankful for the tilling she received when she was younger so that now she’s ready to teach her own children, and shares some sweet memories and ideas in Creative Hands on Learning.

Shannon at Song of My Heart shares one of her favourite field trips in An 1896 School Day where the children are ready to learn.

Katherine says ”dragging 6 children to downtown Washington DC to see the cherry blossoms is not the relaxing field trip I envisioned” in Lots of Cherry Blossoms and People posted at No Fighting, No Biting.

Dave Roller, the Home School Dad, says a freshener course is in order, but the ground has already been tilled for his children in knowing State Capitols and Restate Capitols, saying “Studying these topics opens doors to more interesting lessons.”

I’m not sure why Amanda at The Daily Planet loves to read, while I have never really, but Charles Dickens, who’s acclaimed England’s Best Writer, is becoming not only her favourite author but one of mine .

Sometimes tilling can be rough, depending on your soil, and Lydia at Little Blue School is feeling as if it’s perhaps too rough in Not Very Suzuki At All: Confession of a Burned Out Violin Mom.

planting

To put in the ground and cover, as seed for growth; as, to plant maiz.
To set in the ground for growth, as a young tree or a vegetable with roots.

The soil is all tilled and it’s ready for seeds and starters. Time to get down and dirty. Grab your shovel and carefully start sowing.

Or as Christine says crawl From your belly to your brain at Welcome to my Brain. “Who says older kids can’t benefit from crawling??”

Susan Gaissert at The Expanding Life has planted some wonderful Backyard Memories with her little girl and their school activities. Christine at Our Curious Home has also done the same in Outwitting Meerkats where she shares about their trip to the park, the zoo, and the meerkats. “They were absorbed in watching one lady hold a screw driver for the meerkats to bite. Huh? ”

It’s important to make sure your seedlings are ready for anything when the time comes, even milking a goat. Rose at Learning at Home shares her experience with Goat milking.

Denise at Let’s Play Math! is covering up the seed of frustration with math alone, and sowing the seed of the Buddy Math system with Kitten, “taking turns working the problems in her workbook”.

Other important places be sure to plant seeds in is reading and poetry. Sarah Scrafford presents 100 Free Online Books Everyone Should Read posted at Best Colleges Online. While Sarah at SmallWorld shares National Poetry Month: Reading Poetry with Children.

Giving your children a love for learning starts when they’re young. GrrlScientist at Living the Scientific Life shares about one of her favourite insects saying, “Let’s Give Three Bronx Cheers for Bumblebees!”

Lizzie at A Dusty Frame says using Charlotte Mason Art Study~Van Gogh is showing lively sprouts and is  looking forward to watching James build on this excellent foundation”.

Melissa shares about when Homeschoolers Grows Up and continue to serve others because of the seeds their parents planted at Melissa’s Idea Garden.

watering

The act of overflowing or sprinkling with water; the act of supplying with water for drink or other purposes; the act of wetting and calendering for giving luster to, as cloth.

The place where water is supplied.

After taking care in planting your seeds and starters it is vital not to forget to water them. Without water they will wilt and die away.

Sometimes a little bit of water can perk you up as Carletta at Successful Homeschooling tells in Help Wanted: Finding Homeschool Support. “You don’t get any extra points for taking this journey alone.”

“A company all Christian parents need to know about,” says The Crazy Mom at Ramblings from the Crazy House in Review: Beautifully Made by Generations of Virtue. Continually watering the confidence in the fact that we are wonderfully and beautifully made!

Author, homeschool grad, and writing coach Rachel Starr Thomson explains the power of writing in three drafts at Inklings in The Power of Three. “students do three drafts of every paper. Sound excessive? It’s not. Each draft has a distinct purpose.”

You Know it’s Spring When the Zinnias Zoom and… says Julie Moses at Kids Art Projects and Lessons at Ms. Julie’s Place where she shares drawing projects for children, of all ages.

The Family at Once Upon a Family shares all the good things that describes the ABC Blessings of Homeschooling.

When your plants have yielded produce Stephanie at Make It From Scratch will show you some ways to use as Natural Dye for Eggs. Very creative.

Let the hose run awhile you observe some of the patterns and shapes around you. Kim at Wild About Nature has an excellent book review and interview about them… naturally in Bees, Snails and Peacock Tails: Patterns and Shapes.

When you’re done planning, tilling, planting, and watering, and if you’re a twitterer like me, check out these Top 100 Tools for the Twittering Teacher by Erika Collin at Best Colleges Online. A great list!

Thanks for stopping in this week for the Carnival of Homeschooling. I enjoyed sharing your links and gleaning from them. I hope many others do as well! Make sure to get your submission it for next week, hosted at Guide to Homeschooling Resources. For now, join Lady Rachel for more on the The Delightful Art Of Gardening at Growing In Grace Magazine.

Shalom,

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