Parenting

Celebrate Literacy Week 2017

By on January 23rd, 2017

Albert Einstein Library Quote

Photo Credit: Chronicle Books

Each year the state of Florida and FLVS dedicates one full week to celebrate all things literacy.

Appropriately titled “Celebrate Literacy Week,” the entire state joins together to share their love for literacy through activities that include reading, writing, listening, speaking, and thinking!

Celebrate Literacy Week is presented by Just Read Florida and the Florida Department of Education to remind everyone that “Literacy Changes the World.”

Now in its seventh year, Celebrate Literacy Week allows school districts and families to engage in fun activities that bring the community together for the love of reading.

The Just Read Florida website provides a comprehensive list of activities that all families can enjoy during this event. They even include a printable bookmark to help us all keep our place as we read, read, read! Did you know that the more a child is exposed to print and books the more successful a reader they will be as they grow? Continue reading


Homeschooling: The Big Question

By on December 26th, 2016

homeschoolChoosing to homeschool was not something I initially chose.

Sometimes, I think it chose me. At the age of 2, my son was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Although the illness is very serious, I truly thought that schooling at the local public school near our home was going to be just fine. After all, I successfully attended public school growing up, so I really didn’t think it would be that different.

Sadly, I was shocked to discover just how much things had changed since I was a child. Within the first two weeks of Kindergarten starting at the local brick-and-mortar school, I found myself having to withdraw my child from public school and enroll him into Florida Virtual School. The bottom line was that the brick-and-mortar school could not truly handle my son’s diabetes, and homeschooling appeared to be the solution.

The idea of homeschooling my son seemed to be rather intimidating, scary, and far-fetched. Continue reading


Celebrate Financial Literacy Month

By on April 22nd, 2016

Financial Literacy MonthToo often, parents wait until their kids are teens to begin teaching financial skills.

However, kids as early as preschool can begin to learn proper financial literacy.

As parents, we tend to focus on ensuring our kids get a proper education in Language Arts, Math, Science, and Social Studies. We sometimes forget that financial literacy is just as important to learn.

It’s never too early to start teaching your children about financial literacy.  Continue reading


Increase your Student’s Success in School

By on November 28th, 2014

udemy course


Take a free course designed to help your student!

Just in time for Florida Parental Involvement in Education Month, Florida Virtual School is proud to announce a free course created just for parents! Secrets to Student Success Revealed is free on Udemy.com.

We have taken research proven strategies from experienced educators and crafted a free course for parents and educators to learn these strategies in a quick and easy format. If you’d love to know how to motivate your child, talk to your child, advocate for your child, and even learn how your child’s brain works as well as steps you can take to improve his/her sleep, nutrition, and exercise, then Secrets to Student Success Revealed is for you. Continue reading


Communication – The Disappearing Art Form

By on September 2nd, 2014

phoneText, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat…these are but a few of the new and most common ways for today’s generation to communicate. Gone are the days of face-to-face time. Gone are the days of just sitting on the porch and shooting the breeze for hours. Gone are the days of chatting on the phone until late at night and mom coming in and saying “Hey, it’s time to hang up and go to bed.”

Today’s teens spend their hours not speaking with each other, but texting, posting videos, and of course, taking selfies.  In May 2014, the term “selfie” joined the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary.  (“Selfie: An image of oneself taken by oneself using a digital camera especially for posting on social networks.”)  It is now a permanent part of the American vocabulary. Today, kids don’t see the need for words, when a selfie can express what life is all about. Continue reading


Are You My Mother?

By on May 10th, 2014

mothers day coverOn a sunny Friday morning in May 2008, my daughter and I walked into her preschool classroom. The first thing the children had to do was answer a “Question of the day.” It was Mother’s Day week and the question on the large sheet of white butcher paper was, “Do you look like your mother?”

When a child is born it naturally “imprints” or bonds with the mother. However, what happens when the child is adopted or if the parent is absent?

Relationships that develop between a parent and child are written about extensively in scientific journals, monthly magazines, and even in blogs! I like to keep things simple, however, so I direct families to beautifully-written children’s picture books that convey, through a well-crafted story, the importance of parent/child bonds regardless of how that family came to be. Continue reading