Volumes of academic success

It’s true, we are a bit obsessed with books in our house. I like the smell of them and the way they feel. I get a kick out of ‘rescuing’ a classic from the op-shop and giving it a place on the shelf, even if I know I may not get around to reading it for a couple of years. As homeschoolers we also implement some of Charlotte Mason’s theory, and therefore use a lot of “living books”. 

I’ve got no idea how many books we’ve got…do people really count them up? Anyhow, I found this interesting - a new study has found that children from households with 500 books were 33 per cent likelier to finish year 9 compared with those with none; they were 36 per cent likelier to graduate from high school; and 19 per cent likelier to complete university.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/volumes-of-academic-success/story-e6frgcjx-1225871261108

Chores for kids: the benefits

I tend to be a bit wary when people start quoting psychologists, but there is a tremendous amount of wisdom in this article about children and chores.

http://www.nationalpost.com/life/story.html?id=3013642

Submission and Servant Leadership

PJ and Ashleigh Smyth explain why loving headship by the husband and joyful submission by the wife are the top two keys that the Bible gives for marriage.

http://theresurgence.com/submission_and_servant_leadership

Large families are the new green

This article, which was written for a Catholic audience, investigates those economies of scale which can make large households more environmentally friendly than their smaller counterparts.

 http://www.faithandfamilylive.com/magazine/big_families_are_the_new_green/