As You arrive in our life for the first time
For the first time
We see greatness lie in Your eyes
And this is what we will sing
‘Cause this is only the beginning.
Use today as your beginning. Study the life of Emmanuel, “God with us,” by reading through the New Testament this coming year, together as a family.
Children with ADHD often thrive when they have less sugar in their diet and more opportunities to engage in physical activities like climbing trees, running, and playing with building blocks. They also benefit from more B vitamins, fish oil, and fresh citrus fruits!
Giving them opportunities for physical activity, reducing screen time, and encouraging creative outlets like dancing or jumping can work wonders. In many cases, these small lifestyle adjustments lead to significant improvements!
Parenting a high-energy child can feel overwhelming at times. I know because I once faced this struggle. There was no way I could have sent my daughter, Anna, to school — her boundless energy and constant need for movement actually led to our family “kicked out” of two different churches. But instead of trying to mold her into someone else, I decided to let Anna be who she was!
I trusted that her energy and unique way of moving through the world, as well as God’s plan for her, would eventually lead her down a meaningful path.
Now that Anna is older, I’m amazed to see her funneling that incredible energy into purposeful, productive pursuits. I am so grateful I didn’t try to force her to fit into a conventional box. She was very difficult to manage between the ages of 2 and 10. But now that she’s grown, I can see the incredible woman she’s become — and it wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t allowed Anna to be Anna.
In fact, if it weren’t for Anna, I wouldn’t have created Dyslexia Games or Thinking Tree—two programs that help children who learn differently. All of my books and homeschooling methods were born out of the experiences and challenges I faced raising and homeschooling a highly energetic and dyslexic child!
I often share Anna’s story because she’s the inspiration behind many of the educational tools you can use with your own children. She’s created many of the Fun-Schooling Journals you love!
Fun-schooling journals are designed to engage children’s passions while honoring their unique talents and interests. These journals allow for flexibility, and help children learn in a way that doesn’t require them to sit still for hours on end. Your child can take their journal to various parts of the house, or even outside for nature walks and study!
In the end, it’s all about creating an environment where learning is as dynamic and individualized as they are!
This is from a post dated May 9, 2018.
I’m on the train with 7 of my older children, going to a conference in Kiev. Joe, age 8, is sitting beside me reading “his really special Bible”. I took a look. It looked like the precious Bible of a 75 year old missionary. Joe told me that his sister, Anna, gave him her old Bible.
I flipped through the pages of the New Testament. Notes, prayers, poems, quotes, doodles, highlights, stickers, and underlines decorated every page.
Flash back to 9 years ago when Anna was almost 9 years old. She told me she would never be able to read and write. Her dyslexia was so serious, that every reading lesson ended in despair. She said she was going to be a mommy and artist and wouldn’t need to read to do that.
I decided to let her major in the arts and home economics, starting that day. But I prayed…
“God, You gave us the Bible, I know it must be your will for Anna to be able to read it. Show me how to use her strengths, and use art to teach her how to read.” I knew God would answer in time.
A few weeks later I had an idea. I started drawing logic puzzles and art games for Anna. She loved completing the designs & figuring out the patterns. I began to add letters and words into the designs. I even snuck in games with the d,b,p & q.
I created dozens of these Dyslexia Games, starting out simple and becoming more complicated. The activities were fun for her. As Anna worked through them the reading confusion disappeared.
After a few days she could read three and four letter words. This had never happened before. She had always been stumped by any word with confusing letters. In three months she was reading chapter books.
As I flip through her old Bible I can see that my prayer was answered. That she would be able to read the Bible. Not only is she immersing herself in the precious words of God, she is pouring out beautiful prayers, songs and poems, inspired by her love for His Story.
I pray for the thousands of children who are now using the Dyslexia Games that I made for Anna, that they would also discover the treasures of God’s Word.
Think about this… what is the END goal for having kids strong in Math and Language Arts? These skills are not an end in themselves, but tools to be successful in other things. With Fun-Schooling you often start with the end goal, you don’t just teach Language Arts and Math, you USE it doing meaningful projects.
What do you want your children to be able to do with Language Arts NOW?
What do you want them to be able to do with Math NOW?
What are they capable of TODAY?
We are not talking about filling out endless worksheets. Those worksheets do not relate to real life (and kids KNOW it). They only prepare kids for successful test taking, so they can move onto the next level of education.
Kids learn when they USE their skills in a meaningful way.
We only remember what we love, what we need and what we use in a meaningful way. All real learning is driven by curiosity and need.
What do you want your children to be able to DO with their language skills when they are finished with ALL formal education? Imagine all the things that can be done when someone is awesome with written and spoken language!
Consider my 18 year old daughter, Anna, she published a dozen bestsellers and wrote His Story: The Musical, which premiers next month! She has never used tests or traditional workbooks, and has been declared by some of the world’s great musicians (Dove Award Winners) to be on track to be among them. She is a Fun-Schooler all the way.
I have another daughter, who as a teen booked 2 or 3 photo-shoots almost every day back in 2019, where she usually earned $300+ on each one. She was more of an unschooler, she had to turn down jobs.
My oldest son was able to move into his own home, build his business, work part time in missions,and get married and support his household by age 19, and he manages his own taxes and business investments.He didn’t ONLY learn to do the fun stuff.
Fun-Schoolers don’t wait to start life and work after their education is over. They live life to the fullest and are PRODUCTIVE in the NOW.
What do you want them to DO with their calculating skills once they are finished with all formal education? We often think that our productive life starts after education, but most kids really want to start doing REAL stuff NOW. It’s why we focus on determining a major.
Start with the END GOAL, and begin with the ending.
As a teen, Anna authored about twenty Thinking Tree Books! They will all be on sale this week for $10!
At age 8 Anna couldn’t even read the word “dad”! Now she’s a well known author. Anna was the first child to use Dyslexia Games! She is a daughter of the creator of the games! They were made originally for Anna.
Listen to Anna share her story on Monday, February 6th on the Podcast “Sisters & Friends” (the Monday feature of “Whoa, That’s Good” Podcast! by Sadie Robertson Huff:
Get Anna’s Curriculum and Devotional Books by clicking the images below!
Click here to get tickets for the premier of His Story: The Musical, opening in Dallas/Forth Worth in May 2023!
A special media announcement just went live! Anna’s musical, His Story, will be opening at Grandscape in Dallas Fort Worth area, and tickets are now available–click here! Opening night is May 18th! This will be a 360-degree theatrical production performed in a beautiful 1,300-seat Italian show tent on the grounds. They are expecting 10,000+ unique visitors each week, so get your tickets now! Special rates available for groups of 12+. Learn more by emailing groups@hisstorythemusical.com or by calling the toll free number (855) HISSTORY / (855) 447-7867.
Read more about the musical here. Here is a link to the live event from Grandscape. Hear Anna share some thoughts about her inspiration and beautifully sing portions from the score, Bruce Lazarus and Willie and Korie Robertson (Producers) share some background and thoughts, see the stunning performance location, hear Richard Boyer, (Mayor of The Colony) and Kronda Thimesch (Texas State Rep), Jeff Calhoun (Director) and Jeff Lind (President of Grandscape) share some supportive words. Let’s celebrate with Anna!
From the His Story: The Musical website:
Anna started writing His Story, The Musical at the age of 16 while on a mission to Africa. A dyslexic, unable to read or write before 9 years old, homeschooled, Anna focused instead on the arts before writing her first songs at 15. As a social-media-savvy Gen Z, she sees a chance to reach her generation with the timeless story of light and hope. Anna is an author and illustrator of over a dozen educational books, some bestsellers, for children, especially kids with Dyslexia and teens with their passions and career goals. Anna currently lives in Dallas and travels often doing research for writing projects, which include several new musicals.
Our company “The Thinking Tree, LLC” produced the original concept album of His Story the Musical, and is now co-producer of the theatrical performance.
Shop Anna’s Books:
I’m at a cafe today
Flipping through the pages
Of a journal I filled
When Anna was seven
I read the prayers
Who had hope
That someday
This little girl would read and write
But most of all,
I poured out my heart
That I could be devoted
to preparing Anna
To serve and follow God
In the calling He had for her
Not my plan
But His.
March 2, 2008 (Anna age seven)
Oh Lord I come to you and pray that Anna’s heart would be so fervent for you. Open her eyes to see you, give her ears to hear. Let her be hungry for your word and thirsty for more of your presence.
Help me to be full of wisdom to show her your path. Help me to teach her what YOU want her to know.
Help her to read very well soon.
I will trust you to show me how to help her. Give her a strong desire to learn. Let her mind be strong to grasp the things that will help her to be fluent in her reading. Let her develop a great love for reading even now.
Help me to devote myself to prepare her to serve and follow you in the calling that you have for her.
In Jesus name, Amen.
————-
As I read my prayer from 15 years ago I remember feeling God impressing upon me to NOT raise her to reflect the teaching of the current culture or the standardized path that so many were pressuring me to take. I saw an anointing upon her, and I felt so strongly not to try to conform to the ways of the world in raising her, to block out the well-meaning voices of concerned relatives and friends because this child was chosen to do things in this world that a person with a standardized education could never have the time or creativity to do. “Let her be an artist,” God spoke to my heart. “Let her major in the Arts now”, my heart demanded.
If there were two things I knew about my call to raise Anna, they were: Empower her in creativity and plant the most beautiful seeds of Art and God’s word into the garden of her heart. It was obvious that she was an artist and a storyteller and she assured me that she didn’t need to learn to read to become an artist. I assured her that God would not have put the Bible in written form if He wasn’t going to give her the power to read it.
The Arts, Travel, History of Fashion, and the Bible became her entire curriculum throughout her homeschooling years from age 6 to 15. At 15 she wanted to add singing and songwriting to the plan and I hired Christine Dente to be her coach. At age 17 she completed the writing of an audio musical about the life of Jesus. It was her senior project, bringing forth all of her learning from her childhood. That year I didn’t require any other schoolwork — “Just write your musical” — and she did!
Learn what has become of her talents, her hunger for God’s word, her thirst for His presence and her devotion to serve Jesus and follow His calling to reveal His heart to this world… see how He answered the prayers of a discouraged mother who sought God’s will and not the world’s for one little girl. Anna’s faith is beautiful, free, passionate, and alive. She is a bright light in the darkness and brings me so much joy.
It’s so much fun to share the Christmas season with my family! Having a house full of children is such a blessing too. How beautiful to celebrate the endless gifts of God, life, redemption, grace, healing, salvation, freedom, hope, peace, and liberty in Jesus Christ – my Lord. God is so good. Psalm 37. Use this journal to add a special heart focus during this season, or use it for “holiday school” this year!
“This is a perfect way to countdown to Christmas with kiddos! I loved that it started with a blank December calendar to fill in as you count down the days until Christmas. Each day has an assortment of the following: fun little poem, a coloring page to add your own touch, recipe to make together or a fill-in puzzle. There are places to illustrate poems, write prayers, and just overall document your hopes, dreams, and prayers during this holiday season! I love this time of year. I think this is a perfect way to spend time with my kiddos getting them in the Christmas spirit and making sweet memories together! I want to use this to share the joy of the season with them. I love that this is a fun way to spend time together, creating special memories as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus!” ~Creatively Crunchy Mom (Amazon review)
“We loved this journal for December homeschooling! My seven year old doesn’t color much, so instead I wrote math word problems relating to the illustration on the page, or directions for drawings to add to the pages. Together with the poems, writing and recipes it made for a delightful, fun December workload. We are a secular family and although it’s listed as a Christian resource, references are minimal and it’s mostly focused on family and traditions. We will definitely get another one next year!” ~Live2Learn (Amazon review)
“This is not a typical journal!!! This is ADORABLE in every way possible!! I really didn’t know what to expect but this is just great. The art work is so cute but still leaves plenty of room for the kiddos creativity to add scenes or backgrounds. I love how it does not concentrate on the commercialization of Christmas but instead the family life. The recipes are not too complicated which I find quite a bit in holiday type books. Another thing I really like is the author keeping it a CHRISTmas book and not a holiday book. It has writing activities but they are based on a child’s favorite thing such as a song, a memory, or a story so nothing kids will be too upset about doing!”~Dacia C. (Amazon review)
You can also grab our “Simply the Bible”: The Story of Jesus (New Testament text) with the Christmas cover to give as gifts this Christmas. This is an easily readable translation, given in the Dyslexie font we use for our Fun-Schooling journals.
Also, check out Anna Brown’s musical, His Story! Now is the perfect time to get this as an MP3 here! For more details, go to the site here. And keep an eye out for some very exciting news that is currently under wraps but will be released publicly soon! Featured below is Anna singing “Arrive” about the birth of the Messiah.
Most people didn’t believe me when I told them my teenage daughter wrote, composed, and professionally produced a full-length musical. Now I tell them that as a young adult, she’s seen her music workshopped and produced in New York City by a Broadway Production Team.
This child was profoundly dyslexic as a little girl- we thought she might never be able to read.
Overcoming Dyslexia and Pursuing Her Passions
How does a child with severe Dyslexia go on to write a musical? I need to rewind a bit and tell you about the life of Anna Miriam Brown. She is my second of 15 children. Even before I had children I knew would homeschool. Anna’s older brother started reading with ease at age three. I figured she would follow suit and teaching her to read would be quick and easy. Learning to read was anything but easy for her.
We tried reading program after reading program. Nothing stuck. One day in frustration Anna said she was never going to learn to read and she didn’t need to anyway. She wanted to be an artist and a mommy so she wouldn’t need to read much. We came to realize she had Dyslexia and would not learn in the same way as my oldest. I started to come up with a way to help her learn to read. I created art games for her that incorporated letters and basic reading. You can read more of the story in the article about Dyslexia Games.
These games worked and my eight-year-old was able to read. My husband and I like to say that Anna was born dancing. She’s always loved music and watching musicals. Her primary focus in school has been music and she began composing songs at a young age. This passion for music has grown as Anna has become a young woman. (click here to read the story of His Story!)
What The Thinking Tree Offers
As we’ve grown our tree has branched into several different offerings. Today we have six “branches” on our Thinking Tree.
Fun-Schooling Journals consist of our core journals, the first journals we created. We also have dozens of smaller “single subject” journals on standard school subjects like Language Arts, History, Math, Science, Art, and Geography. Single-subject journals on “elective” topics have also been created such as Dance, Foreign Language, Animals, Sports, and even Minecraft! There are about 300 Fun-Schooling Journals.
Dyslexia Games is our art-based Dyslexia therapy program. It was created a few years before the first Fun-Schooling journal. There are three series for different age groups. Throughout the years we have found it helpful for students with ADHD/ADD, Asperger’s, and other learning challenges too. Interestingly, we’ve also found children without learning challenges or disabilities benefit too. It helps children with creative thinking, problem-solving, handwriting, spelling, art skills, math, and more.
Click here to continue reading.
