School on the Run

Much to the world at large’s  surprise, most homeschoolers do not spend all day every day at home at a desk or in front of the computer.  A homeschooler’s day can be as varied as Valentine’s Day chocolates.
A few days of the week may bring outside classes as well as visits to the library and occasional doctor or dentist appointments.  The travel time and time spent waiting for sister to finish her class or appointment  doesn’t have to be wasted.   I’ve found a few resources just for these times that have become an integral part of our homeschool.  
Hands down all time favorite are Jim Weiss CDs.  His varied voices and fabulous humor keep everyone’s attention on any drive.    I am always able to find something that goes along with something we are studying.   Some of our favorites so far have been:
American Tall Tales
Masters of the Renaissance

Galileo and the Stargazers
Another great resource to listen to in the car in The Story of the World CDs by Susan Wise Bauer (read by the above mentioned Jim Weiss!)
Story of the World is a four volume set comprised of a wonderful narration of world history from ancient times to modern day told in a way that captures everyone’s attention.  Each school year we listen to the series from beginning to end in order to have an overview of world history.    Using our travel time in the car makes that easy to do.  
I’ve found that wait times need to be easy and pretty independent for my kids.   So out come the workbooks.   Currently, my girls are working through Key to Algebra and Key to Percent workbooks. 
These workbooks are self instructive making it easy to do a lesson quietly in a waiting room. 
Another favorite set of workbooks are Building Thinking Skills.
Full of reasoning activities across the curriculum, these workbooks help develop thinking skills.  
Another winner for my artsy girls, is simply a sketchbook.  Blank pages present lots of possibilities.   One can draw in it of course or try writing some poetry or practice spelling words.
What do you use on the run  to make your time more productive?

I wrote this in response to Savannah’s writing prompt and blog hop at Hammock Tracks.  Be sure to stop by and join in the fun!