What teacher or parent doesn't love it when the opportunity to multitask presents itself. The next time you're heading to get groceries with the kiddos, seize the teachable moment! While compiling ideas for my new book, Let's Go: Field Trips for Teachers, Homeschoolers and Active Families, a friend and mentor was kind enough to … Continue reading Quick grocery store field trip ideas
This week I head into my eighth year as an English teacher at a local homeschooling co-op. Each group of students and their families has been entirely unique--one year I had three sets of twins! However, the same issues tend to crop up as we grow and learn together. If you attend a co-op, here … Continue reading Five things your homeschool co-op teacher wants you to know
Imagine what it would be like to live with a vision condition for more than 70 years, wondering why you can't accomplish some tasks that seem so easy to those around you. Knowing you see colors differently than everyone else, but not knowing why. This is what happened to my friend Lee, who was diagnosed … Continue reading Finding a diagnosis at last
The earlier a diagnosis of colorblindness comes, the easier life in general is going to be for your little one. One of my friends wasn't diagnosed until he was a teenager. I hate to think of the educational and daily obstacles he had to face with that undetected disability! If you suspect your child is … Continue reading Five signs your child is red-green colorblind
Ben is a 38-year-old financial planner who lives in suburban San Francisco with his wife and two young daughters. His life is pretty fantastic, but thanks to colorblindness, it has definitely not been the path he had pictured when he was a teen. When designing his high school class ring, Ben included an "aviation" insignia … Continue reading “Silly Papa, your eyes don’t work”
My maternal grandmother is a twin and I thought much more about the chances of giving birth to twins than to colorblind boys. Grandpa Baugh, her husband, was colorblind. That darn defective X chromosome was passed to my mother, but my brother escaped the deficiency so I didn't think much about being a carrier … Continue reading Genetics for dummies
Today I celebrate international Left-Handers' Day as a proud member of that community. My dad is left-handed so I didn't notice I was a minority until I broke my wrist in third grade gym class. From the minute the doctor came in to apply the full-arm cast until after he sawed the cast off I … Continue reading You learn to live with it
After a busy Wednesday evening of cooking, cleaning and waving my husband and two elementary-aged kids out the door to church, my one-week-old son and I were enjoying some peaceful time together as I plopped him in the bathroom sink. Suddenly he let out an uncharacteristic wail -- the kind of sound that makes a … Continue reading Mommy grief
I was privileged just now to experience one of the marvels of spring. The potpourri of colorful flowering trees often takes my breath away, yet tonight the setting sun added a rare layer of enchantment. Just as I topped a hill driving home down a familiar street, the orange rays alighted on one of those … Continue reading There’s no pill for that
Traci Matt 