Hello there! Nadene here. I’m so glad that you have popped over to meet me.
I am a South African farmer’s wife, mom to 5 now adult children, and a granny to several gorgeous grandchildren.
I am a former senior primary school teacher with 10 years of teaching experience, teaching English, History, Geography and Art, and specializing in remedial and gifted education.
As a veteran homeschool teacher, I loved homeschooling my three daughters from toddler to graduation. In our more than 23 years of homeschooling, we mostly used literature-based curriculums following Charlotte Mason’s principles.
We have used and re-used several Sonlight curriculums, and our wonderful, literature-based South African History curriculums “Footprints On Our Land” and “Footprints Into 21st Century“. I also tailor-made eclectic curriculums and created my own literature-based unit studies.
For high school and matric, we used a variety of curriculums including Impak/Delta Education for NSC matric, as well as Cambridge Education and GED.
We live on a remote mountain farm in the Klein Karoo, South Africa and farm with free-range livestock and fruit orchards, and we grow and sell lucerne trees, an excellent food-producing grazing tree, in our family business, Lucerne Tree Farm.
I enjoy homesteading; making cheeses, baking sourdough breads and making preserves. I love being creative and I enjoy sketching, painting, sewing, knitting, gardening and doing creative projects at home.
I am a born-again Jew who desires to live my life in gratitude, service and to bring glory to my saviour, Jesus Christ.
So, why do I write this blog?
I started Practical Pages in 2009, sharing our homeschool experiences and free pages. I love to inspire, encourage and equip homeschool parents with practical tips, projects, plans, free pages, art ideas and quality educational packages. I have been so blessed and so ~
The Lord says, “Freely you have received, freely give.”
My free downloads are for your personal use only. Please support me and order professional-quality eBooks and downloads on my Packages Page. I humbly ask that you respect my copyright. No content may be shared, reproduced, stored, forwarded, sold or distributed without my consent.
I would love to hear from you. Please share what you have loved or enjoyed on my blog in the comments section, or write to me in the contact form below with any concerns or difficulties you may have and I will do my best to answer and assist however I can.
Thanks for visiting me here. Please click to subscribe to Practical Pages. You can follow me on Facebook and see some of my personal art & creative projects and daily life on Instagram.
Blessings and grace, Nadene
Practical Pages 
Wow Incredible to hear your story. On a more personal note I would love to hear about your conversion! Every sinner that is saved is special to the Lord and His people but I am fascinated when I hear of Christ bringing one of ‘his own’ to Him ( that is a Jew). Thank you for your downloads they are a huge help to me!!
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@Rachel Marr, Thank you for you popping in to ‘meet’ me here. I am delighted that you have found my downloads a help and encouragement. (I will gladly
share some of my testimony in a private email.) Blessings!
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Thank you so much for sharing your heart and talents. God is good and you are a blessing!
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Just beginning our homeschool journey and have a desperate need (for myself) to keep things simple but organized. And enjoyable. I love the thought behind your website. Practical! And pointing to Christ. Thank you, my beautiful sister! Love from the U.S.!
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@Natalie Thank you so much for your comment and welcome to the amazing journey of life and learning with your family.
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Thank you for sharing your knowledge & experience of homeschooling. I am so pleased to come across your blog. Homeschooling does not appear so daunting anymore.
I am now looking forward to starting this journey with my 3 girls.
Stay blessed with your beautiful family.
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@antwane163, I am so glad that you found encouragement and inspiration here! Take is really slow and ease into your new journey. You will discover the greatest joy, simplicity and richness of family life, life and learning as you start your homeschooling! Wishing you all the best in your planning.
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Thank you Nadene, we will be returning to South Africa in August from the UK. I will purchase your packages just before we leave. I’ve also just bought one of your book you recommend as well, the Charlotte Mason one. I’m preparing myself. My heart breaks because I wish I’d known all this, years ago. My 11 year old daughter a child at heart is lost in the school system here and even though I knew she was a lost number, I did not know how to help her. Now I understand how she learns, I will do better. The girls are excited to be starting this journey with as well.
God bless.
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@antwane163, it is never, ever too late to start again in faith. Part of this homeschool journey is discovery and growth of our own hearts as moms, and a strong sense of the Lord’s mercy and grace. Follow His leading, pace and focus and you will find your own way for your family. Wishing you every blessing and much stregth and grace for all the changes ahead!
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Gday, greetings from Down Under, from the beautiful Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia! Thank you so much for your wonderful blog, you are so inspiring! Thanks for all the wonderful freebies, you are such a blessing to me right now… I’m not well, have a long-standing-need-to-be-healed thing happening, believing for Jesus to heal me, and its impacted my homeschooling my teens, I must say. Today, I feel the Lord speak into my heart that its going to be ok, and I believe finding you today was a God-incidence! Blessings to you and yours x
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@Deb Callander, thank you for writing to me! We all need encouragement from time to time, especially while navigating those turbulent teen years, and I am so glad that you found some strength and confirmation here. Standing with you in faith for your healing and restoration. Blessings, Nadene
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I love your blog and also South Africa, so was so excited to find it. I would love to receive it in the email so I don’t lose track and get them all. Thanks so much!!
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Hi Nadene,
Thank you so much for such a jam-packed blog so full of helpful stuff.
I am started grade 1 with my 6 year old son, on Monday, and I am feeling so nervous because although I homeschooled my other 3 older boys, I never started home schooling so early normally only from grade 4. We decided this time I will start from the beginning.
Thank you for serving us with your free information.
Nicoline
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@Nicoline, I am delighted that you can find some encouragement and inspiration for your new homeschooling journey! Blessings!
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so nice to find a SA homeschooling blog. So much to look at – coming back this weekend when I have a bit more time to have a proper look around
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Hi I am a South African mom to 4 beautiful kids born in Scotland. My husband is South African as we’ll and our hearts desire is to retun to our home country. We homeschool and love it. Thanks for sharing this! I am desperate for cursive handwriting pages in the format I was taught. So grateful I found this page, God bless! Liezel Boshoff
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Welcome @Liezel, and thank you for writing and introducing yourself and your family! I am always delighted to “meet”
fellow South Africans! Many blessings as you homeschool and trust the Lord to bring forth the desires of your hearts!
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great projects!!!! thank u so much for sharing!!!!!
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How amazing to find your fab blog on pinterest , I live in the uk and homeschool , but gran and grandpa live in Barrydale 🙂 , great blog , love your ethos !! great job xx
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@fortyjarsfull, welcome to Practical Pages! It is a small world and Barrydale is a beautiful part of the Western Cape! Thanks for your kind and encouraging words, blessings.
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Nadene, I’ve nominated you for the Best Moment Award for bloggers. I so appreciate the beautiful pages you share. Thank you for helping so many of us. You can find the details and get the award image by linking back to me http://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/07/24/2238/.
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Hi Nadene,
We’ve been doing this hs thing almost forever now-well into a lifestyle of i 🙂 I found your site through homeschoolfreebies.com. Thanks for sharing all your hard work. We’ve been a sonlight family for 18 years now and have come to use and appreciate the cm approach as well. Blessings on your day and ministry!
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@Connie, wow – Sonlight for 18 years! That is amazing! We have absolutely loved our years on Sonlight too!
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Thank you for all of your freebies. I too believe that knowledge, as well as the Word of God, should be free, which is why I began my blog. Blessings to you!!
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Thank you for sharing all of your hard work. I share my organizational charts with all the homeschool moms I know but I didn’t know how to share them with more people. Sharing them via your blog is a great idea. Thanks!
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Hi Nadene,
I, too, stumbled across your blog and *love* it. 🙂 Like Faith, I, too, was hoping to ask you something. Would you mind emailing me when you get a chance? Thanks! Wendi
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@Wendi and Faith, you are most welcome to my blog! I have written to you, but just so that you know, the contact form on my About Me page is a private email.
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Hi Nadene,
I came across your website by websurfing awhile ago. I love your site, it has been very helpful in many ways. I have a question for you that I would prefer to be private. Would you please e mail me when you get a chance? Thank you, Faith
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Hello Nadine!
Thank you for such a lovely and encouraging comment on my blog! I don’t homeschool anymore, but if I did, I am sure I would love the insights you offer!
It is so lovely to *meet* you and I pray God’s abundant blessings on you and your family…
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Hi Nadene
Thanks for popping by my blog and allowing me to come and find your work also. I will enjoy learning and discovering from all you have posted here.
Thanks for sharing.
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Nadene-
Just recently came across your blog, and specifically the artist pages–many many thanks! Lots of wonderfully inspiring stuff here. I am SO grateful and can’t wait to discover the many more treasures on your site!
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I also discovered your blog because of the homeschoolfreebies.com post on Impressionists. Thank you for your many pages of inspiration. I have an 8 year old daughter and I don’t want to miss any inspiration to make her home education journey a great and wonderful adventure. Thanks for sharing.
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God has blessed you with some wonderfully creative ideas. Thank you for sharing them with the rest of us. Thank you also for the window into your wonderful side of the world. We send our blessings and prayers to your family.
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Your friend D in Limpopo said I should come by – so here I am, still looking, but saying Hi right now.
Marelize in Naboom
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Hello and welcome Marelize! Enjoy!
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Hi Nadene
I went to school with your sister Mel, and she directed me to your blog. This is great – thanx!! I am using Sonlight core 3+4 and just love it!
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Wow Nads- this is fantastic! I’ll have to borrow some of your ideas for the 6 week summer holidays!
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Thank you so much for your informative, very well done posts. I recently discovered your blog because of the homeschoolfreebies.com post. What a blessing! I look forward to using the art and music lessons with my own kids who are 6 and 8. You are so gifted and your girls are lucky to have you! Thanks so much for sharing!
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Nadene, I grew up in Zims and in Harare. I miss visiting SA for holidays and showing my little boys how wonderful Africa is. I live in Indiana, USA now. Africa never leaves your blood! thanks for your blog. I got here in a round about way – glad I found you.
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YAY! I just got here from Freebie of the Day and WOW…I’m a new Charlotte Mason-ish homeschooler, in five minutes of browsing your blog, you’ve saved me hours! So many things I’ve been wanting to put together…already done. Blessings to you, Resa
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WOW!! I’m so thrilled to know about you!! I’m from Namibia – been living in California for the past ten years – but hoping to return – and knowing that someone out there is home schooling is so exciting!!! Thank you for this blog – and for sharing your heart!!
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There are some really excellent resources on here – thank you so much for making them available!
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Hallo Nadene,
I immediately put you on my blogroll as I not only think your blog is absolutely fantastic, but it was also special to me to see you come from the Cape… The Cape was our favourite holiday destination since I was a child and well, we emigrated to New Zealand almost two years ago, so that makes your blog more special to me 🙂 .
God bless you for sharing and for this labour of love! See you again soon!
Marthie
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I came across your site from Homeschoolfreebie and really enjoyed taking a look at all your wonderful ideas… Thanks for the great lapbook on impressionists – I am really looking forward to studying it with the kids.
God Bless You.
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I am grateful for people like you who share their talents with others. Thank you! I am excited about using some of these things with my children.
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Thanks for providing some of your lapbook resources. I am going to use the Little House in the Big Woods 3-d book this month, & I appreciate the artist pages you have shared, too. Thanks!
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Thank you so much for sharing! I’m especially grateful for the art appreciation material and am excited to get started with it this week!
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hey there,
I am so proud of you!!!!!! well done Nades.
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Wow! It sounds like a wonderful life! Another friend of mine from THL, Saskia, is from South Africa. I also had a dear friend on the Oregon coast from South Africa who had the most delicious accent! I always wanted my words to come out as beautifully as hers! 🙂
I’m embarrassed at how little I know about your part of the world! Hopefully I’ll learn a bit by reading your blog!
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I am glad I found your site. I find it very encouraging and enriching. Thanks for sharing all of this wealth of resources.
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It’s so nice to meet you and visit your blog for the first time! We are CM HSers who use lapbooking and notebooking too.
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