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10 Hands On Geography Activities You Have to Try

April 18, 2016 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

I’ll be honest: I’m not much of a hands-on learner. My kids love kinesthetic learning, especially since several of them have ADHD. Despite my ADD though, I’m still a traditional book learner.

So when I first heard of hands-on learning, I thought “Why would I do that when I could just read about it?” Not one of my better moments of clarity…

Seeing how my kids respond to hands-on learning, though, has made me make a change. So this year, we’ve been doing a LOT more hands-on activities, including some for geography. Check out these 10 Hands On Geography Activities you just have to try!

Hands On Geography Activities

Image c/o: altanaka / depositphotos

10 Hands On Geography Activities You Have to Try

  1. Make a craft based on a local culture in the area you’re exploring. See how we did this by making Kente-cloth inspired placemats during our study of the Asante Empire!
  2. Learn about the animals that live in the region. Gift of Curiosity has a great game that lets kids place animals in their correct continents!
  3. Participate in a postcard exchange. See how Planet Smarty organized one to get postcards from people all over the world!
  4. Have kids make a craft about their world. Learn how to make a My Place in the World craft with your kids at Kid World Citizen!
  5. Use a globe to teach kids to identify countries. No Time for Flashcards shares a simple game you can use to help kids find countries on a globe easily!
  6. Create a miniature habitat. When we studied beaches, we made a beach shoebox diorama that the kids really enjoyed!
  7. Make a salt dough map. Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool Plus shows you how to make a map of South America out of salt dough, plus there are printable map flags to add!
  8. Bake a cookie dough map. If you want to get even yummier, make a map out of cookie dough! Raising Lifelong Learners shares how to make a cookie dough map of India!
  9. Help little ones make a sandbox community. Preschoolers will love this sandbox activity from Books and Giggles that lets them make their own town!
  10. Mail a Flat Stanley or a Flat Susie. Based on the Flat Stanley books, this craft lets kids make a paper person and mail it around the world! Get the details from Busy at Home.

10 Hands On Geography Activities

Get more ideas for teaching geography below!

10 Amazing Geography Books for Home School

5 Ways to Make Geography Fun

And be sure to follow my Geography for Homeschoolers board on Pinterest for more geography fun!

This post is part of The Massive Homeschool Geography Guide from iHomeschool Network! Be sure to click over and read more great geography posts from my fellow bloggers!

The Massive Homeschool Geography Guide

It’s also linked up at the Ultimate List of Hands-On Homeschool Ideas! Check out other hands-on homeschooling ideas to try with your kids below!

Hands-on-Homeschool-Ideas


Filed Under: Geography Tagged With: activities for kids, geography, geography activities, geography activities for kids, homeschool geography

Sidewalk Chalk Outdoor Math Game

April 14, 2016 by Selena Robinson 10 Comments

Now that spring is finally here and the pollen is (somewhat) subsiding, my kids have been itching to get outdoors! So it was a great time to link up with the Early Elementary Blogging Team to share some fun ideas for outdoor learning.

Math has been an issue in our family, especially since several of our children are living with ADHD. But with this easy sidewalk chalk outdoor math game, my active kids got some arithmetic practice done while moving!

If you love this hands-on math activity, be sure to see our list of math activities for kids with ADHD! There are plenty of hands-on math learning ideas there as well!

Get the kids outside and reinforce basic arithmetic with this sidewalk chalk outdoor math game! Awesome for active learners!

Sidewalk Chalk Outdoor Math Game

It took me about 15 minutes to set this up. But there’s a lot of bending involved, so prepare to use your back…lol.

What You’ll Need:

  • Sidewalk chalk
  • Giant foam dice

Outdoor Math Game Setup

What I did was draw a long squiggly line on our driveway and then another about two feet parallel from it. That way, I could make a game board.

Then I added horizontal lines every foot and a half or so.

Outdoor Math Game Board Layout

Finally, I filled each space with a simple math fact. I alternated addition and subtraction with multiplication and division.

Outdoor Math Game Dice Roll

The kids rolled the dice to find out how many spaces to travel.

Playing an Outdoor Math Game with Sidewalk Chalk

Then they walked to the correct space. (Just like a regular board game.)

Solving Math Problems in an Outdoor Math Game

When they got to their space, they worked on solving the math problem in the square. For my boys, multiplication and division are still pretty new concepts, so I talked them through it using how they relate to addition and subtraction. They seemed to pick up on it pretty quick that way.

Math Practice with an Outdoor Math Board Game

Learning to skip count is super helpful when it’s time to introduce division and multiplication. I saw proof of that in this activity.

Playing an Outdoor Math Game to Learn Arithmetic

And we kept on solving math problems until we reached the end!

Simple Outdoor Math Game

Get a look at more ways to make math fun for your kids!

Math Activities for ADHD Students

Fun Math Books for Middle School

Ways to Make Math Fun for Active Learners

And for more math ideas, follow my Math Mania board on Pinterest!

This post is part of the Early Elementary Blogging Team linkup! Check out some of the other fun outdoor learning ideas shared this week!

Ways to Learn Outdoors

Map Skills for Kids: Backyard Treasure Hunt from Life Over C’s

Nests Nature Hunt for Kids from Still Playing School

How to Make an Outdoor Mud Kitchen from Parenting Chaos

Outside Arrays for Multiplication Practice from Line Upon Line Learning

Gardening For Math Time from Preschool Powol Packets

Second Grade Math with Rocks from Sugar Aunts

Tree Unit Study and Science Experiment from Schooling a Monkey

Filed Under: Homeschool Math, Math Tagged With: active learners, fun math ideas, fun math learning ideas, hands-on math, hands-on math for kids, hands-on math ideas, homeschool math, math, math game, math games, outdoor fun, outdoor math game, sidewalk chalk outdoor math game

Simple Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for Tots

April 12, 2016 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

Piglet and I read the classic children’s story Harry the Dirty Dog together and she absolutely loved it.

So, we decided to share a simple art activity together that would help her connect with the events in the story.

And that’s how this super easy Harry the Dirty Dog activity came about.

Fun Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for Toddlers

This prewriting activity is simple enough to try with toddlers, tots, and preschoolers and you can prep it in just a few minutes.

Read on to get your copy of this fun toddler prewriting activity free!

And, for more fun with early education, don’t miss our list of 20 fun printable resources for preschool!

Share this fun and easy Harry the Dirty Dog prewriting activity with toddlers and preschoolers after reading the storybook together!

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for Toddlers

This activity is extremely easy. Honestly. Plus, it’s guaranteed to get your little ones into the story!

What You’ll Need: (This post contains affiliate links. For details, see our Disclosure Policy.)

  • The book Harry the Dirty Dog
  • Crayola Dry Erase Crayons
  • A copy of our Clean the Dirty Dog Printable
  • A laminator

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity Supplies

Once you print the Clean the Dirty Dog printable, run it through the laminator.

Then get out your dry erase crayons.

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity Dry Erase Supplies

You’ll only need the black one. 

I like the Crayola Dry Erase crayons, because they come with the cleaning mitt, which you’ll also need.

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity Coloring

In the story, Harry hates taking baths, so he hides his scrubbing brush and runs away from home.

While he’s away, he gets super dirty – running through a construction site, sliding down a coal chute, and so on.

Harry the Dirty Dog PreK Activity

So our first step was to get our white dog dirtied up!

Coloring Harry the Dirty Dog Activity

I just turned Piglet loose with the crayon.

Harry the Dirty Dog Extension Activity

Boy, he really got dirty, didn’t he?

Tot Harry the Dirty Dog Activity

Making our white dog dirty was probably Piglet’s favorite part of the entire activity. 

Clean the Dirty Dog Activity

When Harry returns home, he’s so dirty that his family doesn’t recognize him.

Frightened, he digs up the scrubbing brush, runs into the house, and jumps into the bathtub.

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for Tots and PreK

Once he’s all clean and scrubbed, the kids know that the black dog with white spots is actually Harry, their white dog with black spots.

Naturally, we had to clean Harry up too! And that’s where the dry erase mitt came in handy.

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for Toddlers

Aw…look how clean he is!

To do this art activity with your littles, get a copy of our free Clean the Dirty Dog printable below!

>>> Clean the Dirty Dog Printable Activity <<<

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity for PreK and Tots

Want more book-related learning fun? Check out these posts!

Reading Charlotte's Web with your kids? Bring the story to life with this fun Charlotte's Web craft little ones can make!

Introduce kids to the helpers in your town with these kids' books about community helpers! Great for read-aloud time with early learners!

Hands-On Learning about Taste Buds

This post is part of the Read It, Make It Book + Craft Week linkup from Emma Owl! Get 50 ideas for arts and crafts based on children’s books!

50 Childrens Art and Craft Ideas Themed Around Books

Filed Under: Homeschooling Printables, PreK Homeschooling, Reading Tagged With: children's books, kids books, prek, prek homeschool, reading, reading for kids, tot school

iLS Home Program for ADHD and SPD

April 11, 2016 by Selena Robinson 2 Comments

As most of you probably know, we have children who are living with ADHD and Sensory Processing Disorder. In fact, both my husband and I also have ADHD/ADD.

We’ve written extensively about life with ADHD here on the blog, so when I learned about Integrated Listening Systems – a natural therapy for improving attention and sensory processing skills, I was super excited to give the iLS Home Program a try!

Here’s what the program includes and how it can benefit children with various learning difficulties and special needs!

Disclosure: I received access to this program in exchange for this post and I was compensated for my time. All opinions are my own. For details, see my Disclosure Policy.

iLS Home Program for ADHD and SPD - Look! We're Learning!

What is iLS Home Program Therapy?

The iLS Total Home Focus Program is a sound and movement therapy system for individuals who are living with special needs, including ADHD/ADD, Down’s syndrome, Sensory Processing Disorder, Dyslexia, Autism, Apraxia, Dysgraphia, and Auditory Processing Disorder.

Since we have children who have both ADHD and Sensory Processing Disorder, we jumped at the chance to try the program. Here’s a quick overview of how it works:

iLS Home Program System

This is a look at what is included in the iLS Home Program. As you can see, it’s pretty extensive.

iLS Home Program iPod Touch

You receive an iPod Touch with a waist pack. Kids need to use the program two to five times per week for sessions of 20 to 50 minutes.

iLS Home Program Headphones

The special iLS headphones are part of the program’s unique benefits. These headphones feature special sensors behind the ear that make contact with the bones in the head. The goal is to provide listening therapy through the body’s various systems via bone conduction. Pretty neat!

iLS Home Program Balance Board

The balance board is part of the exercise regimen, designed to improve balance and coordination.

iLS Home Program Accessories

The weighted beanbags and balls are accessories for use with the program home exercises.

iLS Home Program Playbook

Along with the program supplies, iLS provides a Playbook that demonstrates various exercises and skills you can try with your children. The Playbook also gives you a chance to note your children’s progress as you use the program.

What are the Benefits of the iLS Home Program ?

Clients who have used the iLS Home Program have reported substantial benefits for those who have attention and sensory issues. For example, some who have tried the iLS program for ADHD have noticed an increase in ability to concentrate, organize, and complete tasks. The program has also helped to decrease anxiety and promote calm, which leads to improved sleeping habits (something that has been a real issue in our family).

iLS can also help with vestibular and proprioceptive issues, which are common for children with SPD. Since the program includes exercises that are designed to improve hand/eye coordination, balance, and auditory processing, I am really looking forward to seeing how much it helps our family.

I’m excited to announce that I’ll be using the iLS Home Program with my children over the next several weeks! I’m looking forward to sharing our progress and results, especially for those of you who have children living with ADHD, autism, SPD, or other special needs.

Visit the iLs Total Home Focus Program website to learn more about how this program works for home use! And if you have any specific questions about how the program is working for us, feel free to ask and I’ll do my best to answer!

For more about life with ADHD, follow my ADHD Tips board on Pinterest!

Filed Under: ADHD Learning, SPD Homeschooling Tagged With: adhd, adhd natural treatment, adhd therapy, adhd treatment, ils, kids with adhd, kids with spd, spd, spd natural treatment, spd therapy, spd treatment

Couch to Marathon: April Running Playlist

April 8, 2016 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

Okay. I have a 10K to do next Sunday. Since I’ve finished two 5Ks this year, I should be good to go, right?

Wrong!

I just got back from vacation and, during that week, I ate everything there was to eat under the sun. Oh, and guess how many runs I got in during those six days? One.

So I’m desperately in need of some pep in my running step. And I’m going to start with the tracks on my ultimate April running playlist!

The Ultimate April Running Playlist

The Ultimate April Running Playlist

Fireside – Brett Bixby

Wish I Didn’t Miss You – Angie Stone

Imaginádote – Reykon

News 4 U – Fitz & The Tantrums

Summer Rain – Carl Thomas

I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do) – Hall & Oates

Don’t Be a Fool – Loose Ends

Que Se Sienta el Deseo – Wisin feat. Ricky Martin

Kiss of Life – Sade

Virtual Insanity – Jamiroquai

No Letting Go – Wayne Wonder

Aqueous Transmission – Incubus

Ultimate April Running Playlist
Maybe these will actually get me moving and out the door this morning. 🙂

What are your favorite running songs right now? Share them in the comments! And don’t miss my journey to my first full marathon in the series Couch to Marathon!

Couch to Marathon Series

Filed Under: Fitness Tagged With: couch to marathon, fitness, running, running playlists

50 Beautiful Spring Books for Kids to Read

April 7, 2016 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

Spring is a wonderful time of year for sharing stories! Read some of these spring books for kids with your little ones!
50 Spring Books for Kids
These beautiful spring books for kids are wonderful read aloud selections for springtime! There are spring board books, spring picture books, and spring chapter books to choose from!

I absolutely adore spring…mostly because I detest winter. (Cold weather turns me into an actual bum.)

But once the days start to get longer and the weather starts to get warmer, I come alive! And it’s a wonderful time to explore changing seasons with our students.

This year, I want to put a greater focus on spring reading, so I put together a list of 50 spring books for kids!

50 Fun Spring Books for Kids

These spring books for kids are great for talking about the change of seasons. They’re also a nice introduction to weather, spring animals, and plants!

Want to share more spring learning with your students? Don’t miss our All About Flowers printable unit study!

Share this list of 50 spring books for kids with early readers!

50 Engaging Spring Books for Kids

This list of books about spring includes both board books and picture books. So there are appropriate selections for preschoolers and early elementary students.

Some of the non-fiction books may even be good for upper elementary students, depending on their reading level.

How to Use Books about Spring with Early Learners

When you’re ready to share one of these spring books for kids with your students, try opening by asking the class what they already know about the topic.

For example, if you’re reading the book “How Do We Know It’s Spring”, start by asking questions like:

  • How can you tell springtime is here?
  • What does the weather look like?
  • What do the trees look like?
  • Are there any animals you see around us?
50 Engaging Spring Books for Kids to Read

As your students answer, help them remember what’s been said and then compare what they already know with what they learn from the book later.

If you are working on a spring-themed unit, share a book together and then complete a craft. Here are a few spring crafts that may work well with these:

  • Coffee Filter Flower Craft
  • Toilet Roll Baby Chick Craft
  • Paper Cone Bee Craft
  • Coffee Filter Rainbow Craft

50 Beautiful Spring Books for Kids to Read

This list of beautiful spring books for kids features picture books young readers will love! Both fiction and non-fiction selections are included.

Note: This list includes affiliate links. For details, see our Disclosure Policy.

1

Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

Photo Credit: Amazon
2

Flip, Flap, Fly!: A Book for Babies Everywhere

Photo Credit: Amazon
3

A Rainbow of My Own by Don Freeman

Photo Credit: Amazon
4

Cherry Blossoms Say Spring (National Geographic Kids)

Photo Credit: Amazon
5

Storm Is Coming! by Heather Tekavec

Photo Credit: Amazon
6

The Very Busy Spider (Step into Reading)

Photo Credit: Amazon
7

Curious George Plants a Seed (CGTV Reader)

Photo Credit: Amazon
8

Kitten's Spring (Kitten: Seasons)

Photo Credit: Amazon
9

Scholastic Reader Level 3: Poppleton in Spring

Photo Credit: Amazon
10

Spring Is Here, Corduroy!

Photo Credit: Amazon
11

It's Spring by Linda Glaser

Photo Credit: Amazon
12

Kite Day: A Bear and Mole Story

Photo Credit: Amazon
13

And Then It's Spring by Julie Fogliano

Photo Credit: Amazon
14

In Like a Lion Out Like a Lamb by Marion Dane Bauer

Photo Credit: Amazon
15

Everything Spring (Picture the Seasons)

Photo Credit: Amazon
16

Spring Stinks: A Little Bruce Book (Mother Bruce Series)

Photo Credit: Amazon
17

Plants in Spring (All about Spring)

Photo Credit: Amazon
18

National Geographic Readers: Seed to Plant

Photo Credit: Amazon
19

The Tiny Seed/Ready-to-Read Level 2 (The World of Eric Carle)

Photo Credit: Amazon
20

Mouse's First Spring (Classic Board Books)

Photo Credit: Amazon
21

Let It Rain by Maryann Cocca-Leffler

Photo Credit: Amazon
22

It's Spring! by Samantha Berger

Photo Credit: Amazon
23

Weather in Spring (All about Spring)

Photo Credit: Amazon
24

When Spring Comes by Kevin Henkes

Photo Credit: Amazon
25

Little Blue Truck's Springtime by Alice Schertle

Photo Credit: Amazon
26

Spring: A Pop-up Book (Seasons Pop-up)

Photo Credit: Amazon
27

How Do You Know It's Spring? (Rookie Read-About Science: Seasons)

Photo Credit: Amazon
28

Bear Wants More (The Bear Books) by Karma Wilson

Photo Credit: Amazon
29

Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring by Kenard Oak

Photo Credit: Amazon
30

Worm Weather (Penguin Core Concepts) by Jean Taft

Photo Credit: Amazon
31

Fletcher and the Springtime Blossoms by Julia Rawlinson

Photo Credit: Amazon
32

Lola Plants a Garden (Lola Reads) by Anna McQuinn

Photo Credit: Amazon
33

Spencer Knows Spring: A Charming Children's Book about Spring by Tiffany Obeng

Photo Credit: Amazon
34

A Little Book About Spring (Leo Lionni's Friends)

Photo Credit: Amazon
35

Spring in the Forest (Lift-a-flap Surprise)

Photo Credit: Amazon
36

Pete the Cat and the Cool Caterpillar (I Can Read Level 1)

Photo Credit: Amazon
37

What Can You See in Spring? (Seasons) by Sian Smith

Photo Credit: Amazon
38

Spring According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney

Photo Credit: Amazon
39

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Photo Credit: Amazon
40

Happy Springtime! by Kate McMullan

Photo Credit: Amazon
41

Llama Llama Very Busy Springtime by Anna Dewdney

Photo Credit: Amazon
42

Spring is Here! by Heidi Pross Gray

Photo Credit: Amazon
43

All About Weather: A First Weather Book for Kids

Photo Credit: Amazon
44

A Windy Day in Spring (Springtime Weather Wonders)

Photo Credit: Amazon
45

Snow Rabbit, Spring Rabbit: A Book of Changing Seasons

Photo Credit: Amazon
46

The Thing About Spring by Daniel Kirk

Photo Credit: Amazon
47

Spring Walk (Seasonal Walks) by Virginia Snow

Photo Credit: Amazon
48

Finding Spring by Carin Berger

Photo Credit: Amazon
49

Curious George: The Perfect Carrot (CGTV Reader)

Photo Credit: Amazon
50

Spring is Here: A Bear and Mole Story by Will Hillenbrand

Photo Credit: Amazon

Did you love this list of spring books for kids?

If you’re looking for more ways to talk about the season with your students, check out some of these spring learning ideas!

All About Flowers Early Elementary Unit
Get ready to welcome warmer weather with these fun spring crafts for kids to make!
These spring science ideas are wonderful for teaching science to the kids this year!

Filed Under: Book Lists, Reading Tagged With: book lists, books, books for kids, reading, reading for kids, reading list, spring, spring activities for kids, spring books, spring for kids

10 Amazing Geography Books for Home School

April 5, 2016 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

Geography was NOT one of my favorite subjects in school. It was boring and dry and I just wanted to run out of class and never return.

So I’m determined to make it one of the best subjects in our homeschool. And that means choosing great geography books for my kids to explore.

Check out some of these amazing geography books for home school! I love these books and we use several of them regularly with our children!

10 Amazing Geography Books for Home School

10 Amazing Geography Books for Home School

Of this list, my personal favorite is Hungry Planet. It is a truly eye-opening look at the way world regions, economy, and culture play a role in the food we eat. Plus, it’s an introduction to human geography, not just points on a map. Physical geography is important, but it’s how it affects us as humans that really impacts our society.

  1. Children Just Like Me: A Unique Celebration of Children Around the World
  2. National Geographic World Atlas: Student Edition
  3. Geography from A to Z: A Picture Glossary
  4. The 50 States: Explore the U.S.A. with 50 Fact-Filled Maps!
  5. The Amazing Pop-Up Geography Book
  6. Hungry Planet: What the World Eats
  7. Maps and Geography (Ken Jennings’ Junior Guides)
  8. Me on the Map
  9. Geography: A Visual Encyclopedia
  10. A Child’s Introduction to the World: Geography, Cultures, and People – From the Grand Canyon to the Great Wall of China

Amazing Geography Books for Home School

Do you have a favorite book for teaching geography in your home school? Share your picks in the comments!

Get even more ideas to make geography fun for kids!

5 Ways to Make Geography Fun

For more geography fun, stop by and follow my Geography for Homeschoolers board on Pinterest!

This post is part of The Massive Homeschool Geography Guide from iHomeschool Network! Click over to read more geography posts from my fellow bloggers!

The Massive Homeschool Geography Guide


Filed Under: Book Lists, Geography Tagged With: book lists, books for home school, books for kids, children's books, geography, geography books, geography for kids

10 Math Activities for ADHD Students

April 4, 2016 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

If you have a child with ADHD, you might find that sitting down to teach math is…a bit of a challenge.

Well, in my family, the word “challenge” isn’t quite strong enough to describe how difficult math lessons can be. Let’s try “cage match to the death”. I think that’s more accurate. 🙂

My wiggly kids resist anything that requires sustained mental effort, due to issues with executive function, so learning math concepts is their least favorite thing to do. As a result, I’ve had to take math off the page and into their hands to make some ideas really stick.

So – if your child with ADHD struggles with math, you might want to try these 10 math activities for ADHD students. They’ve worked wonderfully in our house!

Math Activities for ADHD Students

Image c/o: Nadezhda1906 / depositphotos

10 Math Activities for ADHD Students

  1. Use LEGO blocks to construct 3D Bar Graphs.
  2. Make Math Factor Snowflakes and hang them in your window.
  3. Show kids how to cut and paste simple repeating math patterns.
  4. Have children work out tens and ones with Unifix cubes.
  5. Practice math facts while doing a simple exercise or having a Brain Break.
  6. Teach math concepts in a foreign language, such as how to count in Spanish or Sign Language.
  7. Use math lapbooks to help kids visualize math concepts and memorize basic facts.
  8. Combine math with reading by using math storybooks such as Life of Fred.
  9. Drill kids on basic math lessons, including fractions, polygons, and telling time using flashcards.
  10. Create math art, such as coloring grids on graphing paper.

10 Math Activities for ADHD Students

Be sure to check out my ebook “Homeschooling with ADHD” for more help to teach your ADHD child at home!

DHD eBook @ Look! We're Learning!

Want even more fun math ideas? Try these book suggestions!

Fun Math Books for Middle School

And be sure to follow my Math Mania board on Pinterest!


Filed Under: ADHD Homeschooling, Homeschool Math Tagged With: adhd, adhd homeschooling, adhd math, homeschool math, homeschooling with adhd, math, math activities, math for adhd kids

Couch to Marathon: Why the Couch25K Plan Doesn’t Work

March 28, 2016 by Selena Robinson 2 Comments

If you’ve even considered taking up running, you’ve probably heard of Couch25K. It is a SUPER popular training program for new runners.

I actually like Couch25K. It is a really easy and doable way to get up off the couch and start running.

But I’ve found that it just doesn’t work for actually running a 5K – at least not for beginners. And, since I’ve done the program twice, I’m well aware of its shortcomings.

Here’s why the Couch25K plan doesn’t work – and how you can make it work for you!

Why the Couch25K Plan Doesn't Work

Why the Couch25K Plan Doesn’t Work

Here’s why Couch25K doesn’t work for newbies: It progresses too quickly.

The first four weeks are excellent. You start with very short running bursts, followed by longer walking intervals. Over the initial runs, you get to a point where you run and walk the same amount of time. So far, so good.

During the last five weeks, though, the program gets real serious. And Fridays are reserved for straight runs. So on the last five Fridays, you run non-stop for 20 minutes, 22 minutes, 25 minutes, 28 minutes, and 30 minutes respectively.

The plan assumes that you will run a pace of 10 minutes per mile, so the final training run of 30 minutes should be enough for you to run an entire 5K. Ha!

If you’re literally going from a couch potato lifestyle to running, there’s no way you’ll reach a 10 minute pace by the end of the program. And you’re most likely not going to run three miles straight, even at a slower pace. Tigger and I have done two 5Ks this year and my fastest pace so far has been 12:12 per mile.

So if you go into Couch25K thinking that you will actually be prepared to run an entire 5K in 30 minutes by the end, expect to be disappointed.

A Newbie-Friendly Couch25K Plan

The good news is that it’s simple to customize Couch25K for your fitness level. For me, running 30 minutes straight wasn’t nearly as important as getting used to the distance of 3.1 miles.

It’s great if I can run for 30 minutes, but if my pace is slower than 10 minutes per mile I still won’t be able to finish the race. Which is kind of the point, right?

So after the first four weeks of Couch25K, I started using Fridays to progress to 3.1 miles. Instead of running for 20 minutes straight on that fifth Friday, I focused on completing two miles.

Each week thereafter, I added a quarter mile. By the end of the nine weeks, I had covered 3.1 miles (most of it running) and was ready to go for my first 5K. Which was a success!

Why Couch25K Doesn't Work

Follow along with my Couch to Marathon journey all year long! Right now, I’m training for a 10K!

Couch to Marathon Series

And get even more ideas for fitness on my Bye Bye Baby Weight board on Pinterest!

Have you tried Couch25K? Did it work for you? Let me know in the comments!


Filed Under: Fitness Tagged With: couch to marathon, couch25k, fitness, running, running for beginners

How to Create a Spring Cleaning Plan of Attack

March 21, 2016 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

Ah…spring cleaning. To quote a song from an episode of Rocko’s Modern Life, “It’s a sick, disgusting job, but it’s gotta get done!” Pretty much.

I hate cleaning, which is one reason why I outsource most of our housework to my kids. But I generally get excited about the idea of spring cleaning. The actual chore, though, is not one of my favorite pastimes.

This year, however, I’ve actually managed to get some stuff done! And I did it by creating a spring cleaning plan of attack. (Yes, I’m basically saying that spring cleaning is war. It’s either the germs or me.)

Here are the three tips I used to tackle spring cleaning this year!

How to Create a Spring Cleaning Plan of Attack

Image c/o: odua / depositphotos

How to Create a Spring Cleaning Plan of Attack

Clear the clutter.

One of our biggest problems was that we simply had too much stuff. When I see clutter, I can’t even visually get past it to see what else needs to be done. That stuff had to go. The book “Simple: 30 Ways to Declutter Your Life” gave me a nice motivational kick-in-the-pants to get started.

So I gathered up a ton of our board games and sold them at a consignment sale. Then I had all the kids go through their closets and try on all their clothes. What didn’t fit went into grocery store bags and into the clothes collection boxes in our area.

I also had a lot of stuff that needed to be filed or shredded. I had the kids sit on the floor and separate the things to be filed according to category. Then I could just put each category away at once. The shredding I took care of myself.

Once all of that was done, I could finally start thinking about the actual work of cleaning.

Divide and conquer.

Now it’s time to divide your house into individual areas that you can reasonably complete. Our house isn’t large, but the thought of cleaning the WHOLE thing from top to bottom is a bit too much for me.

So I think “Kitchen”, “Living Room”, “Bedroom”, etc. And, depending on how much has to be done, I might divide it even further: “Sewing Table”, “Bookshelf”, “Ridiculously Junky Kitchen Drawer”. (You know you have one.)

Tackle one zone at a time.

Alright. You’ve got your decluttered home. You’ve got your territory marked. Time to get to work! Do one area at a time and focus on one task at a time.

So, if you’re working in the living room, you might do all the surfaces, then the windows, then the floors. Or if you’re cleaning your bathroom,  you might start with mirrors, then walls, surfaces, bath, and finally toilet. (Unless you’re the kind of person who wants to get the toilet out of the way first. Which is genius.)

Create a Spring Cleaning Plan of Attack

And that’s how I managed to actually spring clean my home this year! For more homemaking tips, follow my Taking Care of Home board on Pinterest!

What’s your spring cleaning plan of attack? Share your tips in the comments!


Filed Under: Taking Care of Home Tagged With: cleaning, home management, homemaking, spring, spring cleaning

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Hi! I'm Selena, a veteran teacher and homeschool mom to four. I'm so glad you're here!
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