Sunday, October 9, 2011

Busy Life...

We are busy....husband working 40 plus hours a week and going to college 3 evenings a week. I work about one day a week in the surgery center, plus trying to do stuff with my Usborne books. Then there's the having a two-year old, being seven months pg, and getting frustrated trying to get a bigger house. But I know it won't always be this way.....

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Usborne Books

I am now a new independent consultant for Usborne children's books. They offer a lot of books, somewhere around 1300. The books are attractive, fun, and also educational. I caught my two year old emptying the box of books this morning to find "the mouse book". He really liked "There's a Mouse About the House." It has a small mouse that fits thru slots in each page and allows the child to interact with the story.
 If your child enjoys books they will love what Usborne has to offer. There are also educational books that some homeschoolers like to use in their teaching programs. As a new consultant, I am eligible to offer double free books to a party hostess during my first three months. There are some stipulations, so contact me at ccburkholder@gmail.com for details if interested.
Currently my first eshow is up and running at http://www.myubam.com/HOS201490, for those who would like to order any books. Enjoy!


* Usborne Publishing Ltd. (UK) has no connection with these pages and does not sponsor or support their content.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Educating Your Child

Public school, private Christian school, homeschool or...?
What is your preferred method to educate your child?
What factors played into that decision?

The Value of Education

As Elmo sings on a children's dvd, "Learning is everywhere...", * but as the dvd indicates, you have to recognize and take advantage of the opportunities. Education doesn't have to come from a classrom.  But to keep learning and expanding one's knowledge is important.

Different factors affect how much value a person places on learning. One huge factor is the environment that they grew up in. Was hard work and effort in school encouraged? Were life experiences used as lessons?  What importance was given to higher education?

In my family, completing high school was mostly expected. However, higher education such as college was optional. My parents did not see it as a necessity, unless one had a specific purpose for going. They disapproved of those who went to college "just to go" or those that appeared to be "lifelong college students.

From that philosophy, my siblings and I have all emerged with diverse educations. One has an associate's degree in nursing, another a master's liscense plumbing, another got a certificate in childcare, and the fourth obtained some schooling as an auctioneer. These educations were obtained in different ways, such as, community college, self-study, some work experience, or other method. We four siblings have different interests and abilities, but we have all furthered our education in some form.

But what is the value of this education? To me it is obvious. Education increases your knowledge and develops the understanding of a subject. It can open doors to opportunities in life that might otherwise be inaccessible.

A person might say some of the paths that we have chosen could be reached by hard work alone. Yes, experience is said to be a teacher. But seeking education might make reaching your goals and dreams  faster and less painful than the so-called "School of Hard Knocks."

People who think that they can't learn or that education isn't important are limiting themselves. Their world and opportunities are much smaller. Life is full of problems that without knowledge might be difficult to solve. Willingness to learn, and putting out the effort to do so, can make one's daily life easier in the long run. And if nothing else, there is the benefit of having possibly delayed your future dementia by exercising your brain cells.

* Name of dvd is Learning is Everywhere.