Welcome to Enlightium Academy’s blog series, Healthy Meal Plans for Homeschoolers! It’s important for families to be healthy at home and in their communities. Food and nutrition are important components of lifelong health. My goal in this series is to share the tools you need to plan and provide healthy meals for your homeschoolers.

What is the best diet? People understand that there is a connection between what you eat and your health. Parents especially are eager to provide the best they can for their growing children. Whatever your family eats should meet your family’s health and nutrition needs, respect your resources (e.g. time, money, energy, and skills), and, of course, taste good! 

Meal planning is a popular method families use to make sure what they eat is appropriate for their lifestyle. Ideally, meal planning also makes mealtimes less stressful so you can enjoy spending more family time together. In the next sections, we will discuss the basics of meal plans, how you can stick to a meal plan, and what to do when you are tired of eating the same foods over and over. Finally, I will share a simple meal plan to help you get started.

Trying to stay physically active while being homeschooled can be difficult. When attending a brick-and-mortar school, you have breaks between classes so you can get to your next class. It also never fails to be on the opposite side of campus or up an insane flight of stairs. When you’re at home, you can be comfy in your pjs all day, sitting comfortably at your desk, couch, or out in the sunshine. So how do you stay physically active at home?

What can get your kids practicing math, learning about chemical reactions, and following directions? How about working on a team, solving problems, and being creative? I humbly submit that planning and preparing food for the family is a great way for kids to practice all these skills and more. And while, yes, I am biased, I do believe that in a digital age, there is a lot of value in the hands-on, all-senses-engaged practice of cooking. There are many evenings when I get home from work after hours and hours of staring at a screen, and really start to reconnect with myself and my family over chopping vegetables, stirring soups, and sharing conversation. I think kids can have a role in planning meals and nourishing families, regardless of their age or abilities.

Welcome back to the next installment of Enlightium Academy’s Healthy Meals for Homeschoolers series. I am excited to share with you some of my ideas about family budget meals. As a recent college graduate (now repaying loans), I am familiar with the ‘B’ word - budget. When you think of family budget meals, what do you think of? Money? Spreadsheets? Penny-pinching?

As an avid reader and lover of books, I can testify to the fact that there are many benefits to reading. Not only does reading expand the brain’s capacity to think creatively and use language, but it also opens up a world of adventures and imagination.

With the holidays approaching, there will be many opportunities for us to gather with friends and family to enjoy each other’s company and socialize. Sometimes these get-togethers are with people we know well and other times we find ourselves having to strike up conversations with complete strangers. Being prepared with a list of fun questions to ask can help you spark a conversation with someone you may not know very well. When I was a kid, one way my family sparked conversation was to ask silly or fun questions during conversations at meals or get-togethers. Here are some fun questions to ask people of all ages:

It’s Fall, which usually means that church youth groups are back in action for the year.  I remember my youth group in high school, met every Wednesday night at the church and then a small group of girls my age met on Mondays.  It was such a great time to vent to people my own age and really grow in the Lord.  Although the key focus of group meetings was to study the Bible, we often took time for youth group activities.  Most of the time, the activities were not geared towards Christ; they were very secular activities.  This, of course, is fine every once in awhile.  I felt that the activity could have been used as a “lead in” to the Bible study or as a closing activity to leave a lasting impression from the lesson.  Below, I talk about five different youth group activities that have proven to be successful.  I wish these were around when I was a teen!

Having fun away from home is awesome, but you can only plan so many vacations. Fortunately that doesn’t mean your family can’t get outside and have fun together right in your own backyard. We have some ideas to help you make family time in your backyard more engaging for you and your kids.

Take your child’s education outside this summer, and enjoy some science fun in God’s creation! Summer presents so many opportunities for types of science fun that cannot be enjoyed during other times of the year, and we have some ideas for how you can make the most of these opportunities.

Check out these projects packed with science fun for your kids! They are sure to keep them learning this summer! Some of these experiments can be a little messy, but they clean up readily on a surface that can be hosed off.

Going away to an adventure summer camp is a rite of passage, and a great opportunity for your son or daughter to grow in his or her independence and confidence. A good adventure can also help build self-esteem and dependence on God. If your child is not yet signed up for an adventure summer camp, it is not too late! Research camps in your area and check with local churches or Young Life to see what options are available.

Some of the great things about going away to adventure summer camp can be undermined if your child goes away to camp unprepared. Here are some tips to make sure your child shows up with everything he or she needs for a transformative and positive experience at an adventure summer camp:

Learning is not just something that happens in school—it happens throughout one’s whole life! The most successful people are constantly adding their knowledge. Childhood is a great time to develop healthy curiosity and learning habits that will last a lifetime. You can help your child step into this process by turning your home into a fun zone for summer learning and participating in the discovery process.

Now that summer is in full swing, you may have many a backyard BBQ to attend or host. There are plenty of fattening foods associated with a backyard BBQ, but you can bring a lot more to the table this summer than chips and potato salad. We have some ideas for side dishes, desserts, and even drinks to help you out of that rut.

With the sun out, you have a fantastic opportunity to get some much-needed vitamin D, as well as encourage some healthy habits for your children and learn a little about God in the process. While it can be hard to get momentum, an active life can be much more fun than resorting to the comforts of electronics and air-conditioning. Here are some things you can do to live a more active life.

Summer is nearly here, which for many Enlightium families means a lot of fun, special occasions, vacation time, and relaxing at the beach. The summer provides many great opportunities to capture family memories with a fun photo. You can even make an entire day out of getting some great shots of your family. Whether you hire a professional photographer or recruit a friend or take the photos yourself, here are eight fun photo ideas to memorialize your family’s summer.

Music is an essential element of culture that engages people for a variety of reasons. It often becomes a central point of connection, collaboration, and even identity.

Wanting to learn a bit more ourselves about why music is important, we at Enlightium Academy chatted with current student and Kidz Bop star Bredia Santoro, to discuss her perspective on why music is important and how it has enriched her life.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

In the first verses of the first book of the Bible, we see how God lovingly created the earth and everything that lives on it, from plants to animals to people. After He was finished, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).

It can be easy to take the incredible gift of God’s creation for granted. It is even easier to forget to be thankful and mindful. While Earth Day is a secular holiday, it is a perfect opportunity to take the time to appreciate God’s gift, to teach our children about creation, and to consider how we can be mindful of and live in a way that helps to conserve the beauty and wonder of creation.

Teachers and researchers agree that reading is a highly beneficial habit for kids of all ages. Yet with today’s tidal wave of new technology infringing on traditional pastimes, the bookworm is becoming an endangered species. New products market their learning advantages, and the internet offers students more information than ever before. In this environment, encouraging reluctant children and teens to read can seem like a chore, and it can be tempting to ask “How important is it really for kids to read books?”

The answer is simple: It is very important for kids to read. According to Child Development journal, reading is an active factor in intelligence and cognitive development. In addition, a recent article in Neurology journal suggests that continued cognitive activity in older generations means slower cognitive decline. In other words, reading is important for children, and continues to be important throughout a lifespan. It is crucial for parents to encourage their children to build a habit of reading at any age.

“See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land” (Song of Solomon 2:11-12).

Last week I overheard a woman talking about the month of March with her friend. She said that March is full of hope, because it starts in winter, but it ends in spring. I believe that it is more than that. March is full of hope, because with the beginning of spring we get to witness the growth and renewal of God’s creation. For many of us it seems that winter has lasted for a long time. Finally there is an occasional warm breeze and spring is on its way, bringing with it the hope for new life and rebirth. Spring reminds us of the miracle of creation, and the resurrection that is possible through Christ.

What are some of your goals for the year 2016? Working out more? Eating better? These are excellent goals, but what about your spiritual diet? A survey from the American Bible Society showed that 60% of Americans want to read the Bible more. Just among teens, 62% say that they want to spend more time reading the Bible.

Where is a good place to start? I suggest making a plan to read the Bible in a year; this may sound daunting at first, but if you are able to set aside time each day, it is not difficult. Below, I will give overviews of five different plans to read the Bible in a year.

As an avid reader and lover of books I can testify to the fact that there are many benefits to reading. Not only does reading expand the brain’s capacity to think creatively and use language, but it also opens up a world of adventures and imagination.

After I finish a good book, I invariably want to discuss it, and when I find someone who also loved it, I discover new details about the book through our conversation. I have spent so much time discussing books with my friends that we might as well start a formal book club. For this reason I have put a lot of thought into book clubs and choosing book club themes.