8:15 a.m.
My son, a junior in high school, just left the house for his part-time job. He started work on Monday, doing odd jobs, yard work, and maintenance for a small farmer who is starting a microbrewery in our town. This is his second year with his employer. So the challenge is to fit his remaining schoolwork, paper route, and our yard work into the second half of his day. Two things encouraged me this morning.
Part of Collin’s morning routine is to check his emails and read the news headlines. Walking into the kitchen, I saw him on the computer and asked what he was reading.
“I’m reading about epi, Mom.”
“Epi?” is she a contestant on American Idol? Perhaps a missionary who started an orphanage?
“Epi-, Mom: epigram, epigraph, episode, epitaph.”
“Ah. Yes, I know epi-. Around, right?”
“On or over.”
What Collin was reading was Daily Writing Tips. I started receiving the daily email to help my writing. When I realized how word-oriented it was, I instructed Collin to sign up for it. While he wouldn’t like admitting that he enjoys the email, he reads it faithfully.
Daily Writing Tips gives a clean daily dose of grammar, punctuation, spelling, words misused, and writing basics. I recommend it for you and yours.
Last night Collin was dinkin’ on the computer and I asked him, optimistically, what he was working on. He was downloading all the books he hadn’t read in the Omnibus Secondary section that were on Librivox. Collin’s employer asked him if he had an ipod or mp3-player yesterday and gave permission, nay, encouraged him to listen to it while he worked. Little does he suspect that Collin is listening to The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Pride and Prejudice, and Gulliver’s Travels this summer.
You know The Best Part, the whipped créme on top of the hot fudge sundae? It was his idea.
A Living Pencil 
Meanwhile, my son, also a junior in high school, spent last evening video-taping himself playing a computer game so he could upload it to YouTube — I do believe each child has gifts, but right now, I have my doubts!
Your Collin sounds like a wonderful young man. I only hope my boys are as industrious when they are teens!Carrie
I have just subscribed to Daily Writing Tips (yum yum). Kudos to Collin who could. It sounds as if Collin may have a callin’. Blessings and love in SC
Hmmm..daily writing tips sounds good. My kids love to read and listen to books too. As a matter of fact, I often comment that It is pretty bad when you have to tell your kids to STOP reading. (Because my middle dd would rather read than say … clean her room… or just about anything really.)
Carol, I’ll wager my Connor (a junior this year, also) and your Collin would get along quite nicely .
Thanks for the Daily Writing Tips (were you thinking of me when you posted it —- English being my second language, I know I have much to learn…. I have this strange habit of arguing with my youngsters in English – needless to say my grammar is then never perfect, and instead of focusing on the issue we all end up laughing for my errors.
Signed up!Often I’ve reminded my girls of an imaginery dividing line between those who can write (communicate) and those who cannot. But the same type of line exists between those who can read and those who cant (or wont).Either way, writing well is a key ingredient to success.But y’all already know that 🙂
I was struggling with not having finished our curriculum (we are doing Veritas, 3rd grade) and working out a way to get it done during the summer. While we are still going to do that, it’s encouraging to know that another homeschooler is juggling a bit. I haven’t learned how to plan, yet stay flexible. The Lord is still working on me. Thanks for sharing!