I didn't post last week...but my poor little kiddos didn't get a day off for Labor Day so we were going strong. We were also dealing with a bad bug bite (little man is allergic), so posting just didn't happen. Our plan for this school year is to go about 6 weeks and then take a week off to recharge, go on field trips, and gear up for another 6 weeks. I think this will really help with burnout...which I had a struggle with last year. I still haven't looked at where the free weeks will fall, but the plan is to hit our time off at the normal holidays.
So I'm just going to briefly put a few links up here that I've found. Hope they help you this week!
History: split of the Roman Empire
*Love this cute idea from CCing It One Day At A Time...a thumb print display of the history sentence. I think mine will like this!
*We also have two Usborn books that'll be helpful....Romans and History of the Ancient Empires. I'm sure we'll get some background from there.
*This is a cute site called Sir Dig-A-Lot that gives a brief synopsis of the Pax Romana
Geography: Egyptian Empire
* Love these geography cards...also from CCing It One Day At A Time
*These ancient Egypt coloring sheets are perfect!
*Free Great Pyramid model printable that can be found in this Discovering Ancient Egypt set
Science: invertebrates
We LOVE Brain Pop Jr. Go here and click on the "Classifying Animals" movie. We watched it earlier in the school year, but it does a great job explaining invertebrates. : )
Hope you have a great week!
Showing posts with label homeschooling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homeschooling. Show all posts
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Moving right along to Classical Conversations Cycle 1, week 3
I'm not gonna lie....I'm beat! So I'm going to post what I can and move on to a *hopefully* earlier bedtime. : ) Hope this will help some of you out!
Let me start with this little gem on the page Homeschooling with a Classical Twist. She's got some great Cycle 1 resources that you can print. I LOVE the review pages! A great way to start out the week! She's also got resources for the other cycles and Essentials. I love these families who are so willing to devote their time, energy, and resources to provide some free printables to share. What a blessing!
Science: parts of an animal cell
* This blog post has a fun idea about how to make an animal cell. She also has several other good Cycle 1 resources.
*Another edible cell activity that shows a plant and animal cell.
*This post at Homeschool with Winnie basically give you a complete set of resources for all of the subjects. Thank you!
History: Greek/Roman gods
*We're going to color the sheet I printed from the link I posted above from Homeschooling with a Classical Twist. I have a couple of Usborne books that we can look at (Encyclopedia of Ancient History; Romans; Greeks) and get some info from there. Plus the link at Homeschool with Winnie gives a great explanation of each Greek god.
Latin: 1st Declension Noun Endings
*listen to the memory work and refer to the pages I printed from the Classical Twist link.
Geography: Hebrew Empire
Look at the places on the map and refer to our Encyclopedia that includes maps and info. We could refer to stories in the Bible as well as some pictures and items that my hubby brought back from his trip to Israel.
Math: skip counting 5 and 6
*Use nickels to count by 5's
*Homeschool with Winnie link above has some videos that show skip counting for each number.
English: Prepositions
*Winnie has a video for this on her post as well : )
Hope you guys have a great week!
Let me start with this little gem on the page Homeschooling with a Classical Twist. She's got some great Cycle 1 resources that you can print. I LOVE the review pages! A great way to start out the week! She's also got resources for the other cycles and Essentials. I love these families who are so willing to devote their time, energy, and resources to provide some free printables to share. What a blessing!
Science: parts of an animal cell
* This blog post has a fun idea about how to make an animal cell. She also has several other good Cycle 1 resources.
*Another edible cell activity that shows a plant and animal cell.
*This post at Homeschool with Winnie basically give you a complete set of resources for all of the subjects. Thank you!
History: Greek/Roman gods
*We're going to color the sheet I printed from the link I posted above from Homeschooling with a Classical Twist. I have a couple of Usborne books that we can look at (Encyclopedia of Ancient History; Romans; Greeks) and get some info from there. Plus the link at Homeschool with Winnie gives a great explanation of each Greek god.
Latin: 1st Declension Noun Endings
*listen to the memory work and refer to the pages I printed from the Classical Twist link.
Geography: Hebrew Empire
Look at the places on the map and refer to our Encyclopedia that includes maps and info. We could refer to stories in the Bible as well as some pictures and items that my hubby brought back from his trip to Israel.
Math: skip counting 5 and 6
*Use nickels to count by 5's
*Homeschool with Winnie link above has some videos that show skip counting for each number.
English: Prepositions
*Winnie has a video for this on her post as well : )
Hope you guys have a great week!
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Classical Conversations Cycle 1, Week 2
Sunday afternoons are turning into my homeschool planning days, so I'd love to share with you a few things we're doing for Cycle 1, Week 2 in our Classical Conversations curriculum.
Latin: I saved the cards we used for Cycle 1 when we did it a couple of years ago and they still look great! I was just going over to the blog Suzanne Shares to find them...and boom...she has a brand new blog post with all the Latin card printables in one spot! Click here to get these great free printables!
Geography: I'm loving our newest Usborne book, along with another Usborne book we bought about 6 years ago, to look at some of the places in our memory work. In the picture atlas, the kids love the flaps and different illustrations on each page. There are some specifics that I'm not able to find as well, so for more detailed areas on the map I refer to the Encyclopedia of World Geography. It's filled with lots of maps and information from basically every part of the world! Lots of very interesting info!
Science: We're going to use the animal cards I printed last week along with watching another Baby Einstein video about animal habitats. Yes, my kids are a little old for Baby Einstein, but they liked the real life animal pictures we saw on another video last week and the one we'll watch this week categorizes them as well.
History: In years past I haven't tested the kids on CC material, but I thought this year we would try a weekly evaluation on each history sentence. I really want this info to stick! This week we will wrap up learning the 10 commandments. The Go Fish Guys singing group also has a fun song about the 10 commandments that we've also been listening to.
Timeline: I didn't do so well last year with the Timeline stuff, but I'm trying to at least hit on a few of the Timeline aspects one day/week. We're also listening to the Timeline song more often. I think the Timeline song is fantastic and definitely one that I hope sticks in my kids' memory! I'm using some other Usborne books that bought just to hit a few highlights, but the main one is the Encyclopedia of the Ancient World. It has A LOT of information, so I pick and choose little segments to share with the kids. I find it fascinating. They're kind of in and out at this age, but if they remember a little bit I'm happy : ). Keeping it real.
Hope you all have a great week!!
Latin: I saved the cards we used for Cycle 1 when we did it a couple of years ago and they still look great! I was just going over to the blog Suzanne Shares to find them...and boom...she has a brand new blog post with all the Latin card printables in one spot! Click here to get these great free printables!
Geography: I'm loving our newest Usborne book, along with another Usborne book we bought about 6 years ago, to look at some of the places in our memory work. In the picture atlas, the kids love the flaps and different illustrations on each page. There are some specifics that I'm not able to find as well, so for more detailed areas on the map I refer to the Encyclopedia of World Geography. It's filled with lots of maps and information from basically every part of the world! Lots of very interesting info!Science: We're going to use the animal cards I printed last week along with watching another Baby Einstein video about animal habitats. Yes, my kids are a little old for Baby Einstein, but they liked the real life animal pictures we saw on another video last week and the one we'll watch this week categorizes them as well.
History: In years past I haven't tested the kids on CC material, but I thought this year we would try a weekly evaluation on each history sentence. I really want this info to stick! This week we will wrap up learning the 10 commandments. The Go Fish Guys singing group also has a fun song about the 10 commandments that we've also been listening to.
Timeline: I didn't do so well last year with the Timeline stuff, but I'm trying to at least hit on a few of the Timeline aspects one day/week. We're also listening to the Timeline song more often. I think the Timeline song is fantastic and definitely one that I hope sticks in my kids' memory! I'm using some other Usborne books that bought just to hit a few highlights, but the main one is the Encyclopedia of the Ancient World. It has A LOT of information, so I pick and choose little segments to share with the kids. I find it fascinating. They're kind of in and out at this age, but if they remember a little bit I'm happy : ). Keeping it real.
Hope you all have a great week!!
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Gearing up for homeschooling year #6! Cycle 1, week 1!
I don't think it really feels like we've been doing this 6 years already. I started doing some activities with my daughter when she was three. I had a little girl her age over, too, and we would have "school" during the week while the little girl's mom would keep my one year old. Now my girl is going into 3rd grade and that one year old is now starting first grade! Eeek! The time is really flying. Even though I haven't been the most creative, motivated, organized homeschool Momma (trust me...you see a lot of the highlight reel on here), I've really tried to make these years as fun and memorable for my kids that I can. I don't want to take any moments we have together for granted. Who knows what next year, next month, or next week will hold. I'm always open to what we feel like God is leading us to do with this homeschool journey. If He directs us to school in the future, I want to trust that He knows best. But until then, homeschooling is the journey we feel God has led us on and I want to make the most of it. The part I love the most is just getting to do fun things with my kids and see them grow in their love for each other. Fun is always a big part of my educational philosophy. They are kids. I want them to be kids and be free from the pressures of life as long as I can...because good grief, we have enough of that as adults! : ) With that said...here is what we are planning to do this year!
Bible: I actually bought a Bible curriculum this year. As I'm planning out our week I'm really loving it! We're doing Apologia's What We Believe series that begins with "Who Is God?". I also bought the junior notebooking journal to go along with it. I think it's right on target for my kids and I hope we really enjoy using it this year.
Classical Conversations: We've done Cycles 1, 2, and 3 already! Yay! So now we're going to start back over and do them all over again. And honestly, the first year I did CC I really didn't know what I was doing. We also came into the year late so we had a lot of catching up to do...plus I had a newborn and cancer that year. Yikes. So I'm looking forward to seeing all that we're going to learn this year! I bought some Usborne books to supplement what we're learning. Here are some suggestions:
*I also traveled back over to Half-a-Hundred Acre Wood's blog for some ideas. Great resource. I'm honestly amazed at the organization and amount of info.
*Here's a helpful post with Cycle 1 Resources by Sola Gratia Mom
*And one of my favorite bloggers, Melody Stroud at And Here We Go!....her Cycle 1 Week 1 post.
Classical Conversations will be our Science and Social Studies for the year as I plan to do expansion activities with the weekly CC memory work.
Math: We've been doing Math U See since my daughter was in first grade...so we're sticking with what works! : ) My son will now start doing it this year.
Grammar: We've also been doing Shurley Grammar for a few years and I really like it. We didn't finish Level 2 last year, so we're going to continue that this year with my third grader and start Level 1 with my first grader.
Spelling: I've really liked this free spelling curriculum the past couple of years. I was kind of thinking about switching to something a little harder for my third grader, but honestly this has worked so well for her, why change? The first grade list has printable activities for every day of the week, which I really like. The third grade list just has one printable per week, but it works. I really like free stuff ; ).
Reading: I'm really going to try to do better about doing read alouds with the kids. A friend sent me a couple of unit studies that you can do with some children's chapter books, so that was motivating. We're going to start with Caddie Woodlawn, but I have some others I would really like to read with the kids. Here were a few of my favorites when I've taught in the past:
Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
A Cricket in Times Square
The Westing Game
Little House in the Big Woods
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Cheaper by the Dozen
...and lots more. Big plans here : ). I also have Abeka readers and some old reading comprehension activities that I plan to do with my third grader to build her fluency.
I have some phonics videos and phonics charts that I plan to do with my first grader to reinforce what he learned last year.
Handwriting: I really want my kids to have neat handwriting! I've been using Handwriting Without Tears since both kids were in Kindergarten and we have all loved it. They have been really self-motivated to do well with it and I've been pleased at the progress. The curriculum is also very affordable and will last the whole year.
I hope you all have a great school year! I'm off to do more prep for tomorrow. Leave it to me to save a lot until the last minute ; ).
Bible: I actually bought a Bible curriculum this year. As I'm planning out our week I'm really loving it! We're doing Apologia's What We Believe series that begins with "Who Is God?". I also bought the junior notebooking journal to go along with it. I think it's right on target for my kids and I hope we really enjoy using it this year.
Classical Conversations: We've done Cycles 1, 2, and 3 already! Yay! So now we're going to start back over and do them all over again. And honestly, the first year I did CC I really didn't know what I was doing. We also came into the year late so we had a lot of catching up to do...plus I had a newborn and cancer that year. Yikes. So I'm looking forward to seeing all that we're going to learn this year! I bought some Usborne books to supplement what we're learning. Here are some suggestions:
*I also traveled back over to Half-a-Hundred Acre Wood's blog for some ideas. Great resource. I'm honestly amazed at the organization and amount of info.
*Here's a helpful post with Cycle 1 Resources by Sola Gratia Mom
*And one of my favorite bloggers, Melody Stroud at And Here We Go!....her Cycle 1 Week 1 post.
Classical Conversations will be our Science and Social Studies for the year as I plan to do expansion activities with the weekly CC memory work.
Math: We've been doing Math U See since my daughter was in first grade...so we're sticking with what works! : ) My son will now start doing it this year.
Grammar: We've also been doing Shurley Grammar for a few years and I really like it. We didn't finish Level 2 last year, so we're going to continue that this year with my third grader and start Level 1 with my first grader.
Spelling: I've really liked this free spelling curriculum the past couple of years. I was kind of thinking about switching to something a little harder for my third grader, but honestly this has worked so well for her, why change? The first grade list has printable activities for every day of the week, which I really like. The third grade list just has one printable per week, but it works. I really like free stuff ; ).
Reading: I'm really going to try to do better about doing read alouds with the kids. A friend sent me a couple of unit studies that you can do with some children's chapter books, so that was motivating. We're going to start with Caddie Woodlawn, but I have some others I would really like to read with the kids. Here were a few of my favorites when I've taught in the past:
Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
A Cricket in Times Square
The Westing Game
Little House in the Big Woods
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Cheaper by the Dozen
...and lots more. Big plans here : ). I also have Abeka readers and some old reading comprehension activities that I plan to do with my third grader to build her fluency.
I have some phonics videos and phonics charts that I plan to do with my first grader to reinforce what he learned last year.
Handwriting: I really want my kids to have neat handwriting! I've been using Handwriting Without Tears since both kids were in Kindergarten and we have all loved it. They have been really self-motivated to do well with it and I've been pleased at the progress. The curriculum is also very affordable and will last the whole year.
I hope you all have a great school year! I'm off to do more prep for tomorrow. Leave it to me to save a lot until the last minute ; ).
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Back to our school routine: Classical Conversations Week 16
What a crazy couple of weeks we've had! The kids and I were out of town for over two weeks waiting for our hardwood floors to be uncovered and refinished and now we're finally (hopefully) getting back to normal life. We're a little behind, but not too much. Since we had several days off during this time, we're going to work through the President's Day holiday and do a little catching up.
One thing we did do while we were out of town was take advantage of the multiple story times they had around town and we also took a tour of the Cannonball House in Macon, GA. The tour was just the right amount of time for small children and my oldest really go in to all of the history and asked some great questions.
Now to jump right in to week 16!
History: immigrants coming to America
*Here is a link to a scholastic site in which you can meet young immigrants and see a video of their story. Looks great!
*Another site that has some info on immigration
*Schoolhouse Rock video
*A set of free worksheets from education.com
*Teachers Pay Teachers also has several free worksheets/activities
*I would like to do an activity in which the kids pretend they are immigrants and go through the process of coming to America and being processed. I hope we can do it! : )
Geography: Bays
*This will also be a review...
Science: elements
I am planning to start our elements flashcards I printed. I posted them here.
Hope you all have a great week!
One thing we did do while we were out of town was take advantage of the multiple story times they had around town and we also took a tour of the Cannonball House in Macon, GA. The tour was just the right amount of time for small children and my oldest really go in to all of the history and asked some great questions.
We had a great time!
Now to jump right in to week 16!
History: immigrants coming to America
*Here is a link to a scholastic site in which you can meet young immigrants and see a video of their story. Looks great!
*Another site that has some info on immigration
*Schoolhouse Rock video
*A set of free worksheets from education.com
*Teachers Pay Teachers also has several free worksheets/activities
*I would like to do an activity in which the kids pretend they are immigrants and go through the process of coming to America and being processed. I hope we can do it! : )
Geography: Bays
*This will also be a review...
Science: elements
I am planning to start our elements flashcards I printed. I posted them here.
Hope you all have a great week!
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Classical Conversations Weeks 14 AND 15!
So...just like that I decided the kids and I would take a day off Monday and have an all day play date...which was MUCH needed. And to be honest, I had it somewhere in my mind that Monday was MLK day this week instead of next week. Oh, well...we may do some school on Saturday or do school Monday or something. It'll get made up somewhere : ). The kids and I are also going to take school on the road next week, so I wanted to go ahead and prepare next week's material also! I'll start with this week and then do next week. I may not put quite as many resources as I usually do...since I'm planning more and the little guy will only nap so long ;-).
Week 14:
*Here's a video that covers this week's info, but some of it is not current. But the history, science, geography, Latin, and English is.
History: Tycoons
*After a little searching, I'm finding that this is not an easy topic to get general, kid friendly information about. If you want to know more about these tycoons, you'll probably just have to look up each one individually. Honestly, we probably won't do that. So we'll just learn the song and go from there. I do have Story of the World books 3 and 4, so we made read from that. If you need a GREAT resource that tells Netflix movies, Story of the World pages, and more that correlate with each week of Cycle 3. Click here to see it.
Science:
Again, probably just stick to the memory work and video above.
Math:
Suzanne Shares has some cute, free printables that you can use for the next couple of weeks!
Fine Arts: Rockwell
Biography from Wikipedia
Week 15
History: Theodore Roosevelt
Geography:
Songs for weeks 11-24:
Fine Arts: Georgia O'Keefe
Alrighty, friends...I know it's a little sparse, but I've been battling my computer all day! : ) God bless!
Week 14:
*Here's a video that covers this week's info, but some of it is not current. But the history, science, geography, Latin, and English is.
History: Tycoons
*After a little searching, I'm finding that this is not an easy topic to get general, kid friendly information about. If you want to know more about these tycoons, you'll probably just have to look up each one individually. Honestly, we probably won't do that. So we'll just learn the song and go from there. I do have Story of the World books 3 and 4, so we made read from that. If you need a GREAT resource that tells Netflix movies, Story of the World pages, and more that correlate with each week of Cycle 3. Click here to see it.
Science:
Again, probably just stick to the memory work and video above.
Math:
Suzanne Shares has some cute, free printables that you can use for the next couple of weeks!
Fine Arts: Rockwell
Biography from Wikipedia
Week 15
History: Theodore Roosevelt
Geography:
Songs for weeks 11-24:
Fine Arts: Georgia O'Keefe
Alrighty, friends...I know it's a little sparse, but I've been battling my computer all day! : ) God bless!
Saturday, January 3, 2015
Planning and back to school! Classical Conversations week 13: 14th Amendment, atomic number and free printables
Wow...is it really 2015?! I've been trying to step out of my comfort zone and do some planning. I love the end result of planning...putting things on the calendar, order in my life, looking at the big picture...but the process is so hard for me! I'm not a natural planner. My tendency is to be spontaneous and just do most of life as it comes, glancing at our lives a week at a time. While this works fine for some people, I'm seeing that for our family, this has caused some limitations and missed opportunities that I don't want to pass up for 2015. My personal theme word for this year is "thrive." I want my family to come out of our "survival mode" and really thrive this year. In order for that to happen...I've got to make changes in pretty much every area of my life. Change is not easy, friends. It will definitely take some support and some big God interventions. But I'm not scared or discouraged...He is a God of miracles and it CAN happen : ). I'd appreciate your prayers!
To start off, I wanted to share this post on Ann Voskamp's blog. Good truth and some great, free printables to start your year off. I've got the "Sanity Manifesto" taped to my wall right above my computer right now : ). I printed it a year ago and just let it sit somewhere, ignored. Now I've got it front and center! Her blog has a wealth of free tools and framables that you don't want to pass up. I especially love her scripture memory cards for the book of John.
Now on to week 13!
History: 14th Amendment
*Here is a great explanation of the 14th amendment and shows a picture of it at the national archives. I will probably read over it and just briefly summarize/simplify what it meant for my kiddos since they are young.
*Because this is the only week that we'll be doing the Constitution, I thought I'd add in a few activities to go along with that:
*I found a simple, and free, We The People class Constitution booklet that the kids can illustrate that goes along with the Preamble.
*This page has a nice graphic that breaks down the Constitution in an understandable way
*www.education.com has free worksheets and I printed one off about the Constitution. Here's a link to one about the Bill of Rights.
*I have more activities pinned on my Classical Conversations Cycle 3 board on Pinterest.
Geography: Western Mountains
Fine Arts: Grandma Moses
*Nice video of Grandma Moses' art and a little biographical info, too.
*Folk Art Lesson inspired by Grandma Moses' art. Looks like a great lesson!
Math: Liquid Equivalents
*FREE liquid equivalents printable that you can use as flashcards
Science: atomic numbers
*We'll probably just look at our periodic table and discuss the definition.
*Here's a video, too
*I found this great blog page with some awesome FREE printables of the periodic table and some elements flash cards that I'm definitely going to print for my kiddos!
Hope all of you have a great week back into the school groove! Blessings to all of you from the Daniel family and Happy New Year!
To start off, I wanted to share this post on Ann Voskamp's blog. Good truth and some great, free printables to start your year off. I've got the "Sanity Manifesto" taped to my wall right above my computer right now : ). I printed it a year ago and just let it sit somewhere, ignored. Now I've got it front and center! Her blog has a wealth of free tools and framables that you don't want to pass up. I especially love her scripture memory cards for the book of John.
Now on to week 13!
History: 14th Amendment
*Here is a great explanation of the 14th amendment and shows a picture of it at the national archives. I will probably read over it and just briefly summarize/simplify what it meant for my kiddos since they are young.
*Because this is the only week that we'll be doing the Constitution, I thought I'd add in a few activities to go along with that:
*I found a simple, and free, We The People class Constitution booklet that the kids can illustrate that goes along with the Preamble.
*This page has a nice graphic that breaks down the Constitution in an understandable way
*www.education.com has free worksheets and I printed one off about the Constitution. Here's a link to one about the Bill of Rights.
*I have more activities pinned on my Classical Conversations Cycle 3 board on Pinterest.
Geography: Western Mountains
Fine Arts: Grandma Moses
*Nice video of Grandma Moses' art and a little biographical info, too.
*Folk Art Lesson inspired by Grandma Moses' art. Looks like a great lesson!
Math: Liquid Equivalents
*FREE liquid equivalents printable that you can use as flashcards
Science: atomic numbers
*We'll probably just look at our periodic table and discuss the definition.
*Here's a video, too
*I found this great blog page with some awesome FREE printables of the periodic table and some elements flash cards that I'm definitely going to print for my kiddos!
Hope all of you have a great week back into the school groove! Blessings to all of you from the Daniel family and Happy New Year!
Sunday, November 9, 2014
At the halfway mark! Classical Conversations Cycle 3, week 12: General Robert E. Lee, blood, Appalachian Mtns and more
This will be our last week of CC until after the new year! Hard to believe that the holidays are upon us, but I must confess this is my favorite time of year. We'll still be doing school work after this week and probably going back and doing a few review activities/fun things that we didn't get to with CC since school started. I'm glad that we've been doing so well this year and still chugging along with not too much burnout : ).
History: Robert E. Lee
This week is basically highlighting Lee's surrender during the Civil War, so we'll still be able to go back and do a few Civil War activities that I mentioned last week. I also thought it would be fun to have a night that I cooked a meal with recipes that date back to or were popular during Civil War times. Here are few things I've found:
I thought this was pretty neat! Mary Todd Lincoln's Vanilla Almond Cake recipe...I think we need to try this one!
*Several Civil War recipes and history behind cooking during this time
*Confederate Johnnie Cakes
*Lots of Civil War info, including Civil War generals, food, battles, and other info.
*Info about Lee and free coloring sheets (right click on the image you want, save the image to your computer, then go to the image and print)
*Blog post on Lee's surrender with some nice pictures
*Robert E. Lee biography:
*I have several more Civil War recipe pins on Pinterest under "Classical Conversations Cycle 3"
Science: purposes of the blood
*short video singing the purposes
*Magic School Bus Goes Cellular ...I haven't watched it all the way through, so I'm not sure how applicable it will be but my kids love MSB, so either way they'll enjoy it : )
Latin: John 1:1
*This video is for weeks 12-24...so you'll be using it for a while! : )
Geography: Appalachian Mountains
*The music is not my favorite, but it does help highlight the geography stuff. It starts with last week's features.
Hope all of you have a great week! I probably won't do my regular CC posts until we start with Week 13 after the holidays, but I will post any fun activities we decide to do during the holidays : ).
History: Robert E. Lee
This week is basically highlighting Lee's surrender during the Civil War, so we'll still be able to go back and do a few Civil War activities that I mentioned last week. I also thought it would be fun to have a night that I cooked a meal with recipes that date back to or were popular during Civil War times. Here are few things I've found:
I thought this was pretty neat! Mary Todd Lincoln's Vanilla Almond Cake recipe...I think we need to try this one!
*Several Civil War recipes and history behind cooking during this time
*Confederate Johnnie Cakes
*Lots of Civil War info, including Civil War generals, food, battles, and other info.
*Info about Lee and free coloring sheets (right click on the image you want, save the image to your computer, then go to the image and print)
*Blog post on Lee's surrender with some nice pictures
*Robert E. Lee biography:
*I have several more Civil War recipe pins on Pinterest under "Classical Conversations Cycle 3"
Science: purposes of the blood
*short video singing the purposes
*Magic School Bus Goes Cellular ...I haven't watched it all the way through, so I'm not sure how applicable it will be but my kids love MSB, so either way they'll enjoy it : )
Latin: John 1:1
*This video is for weeks 12-24...so you'll be using it for a while! : )
Geography: Appalachian Mountains
*The music is not my favorite, but it does help highlight the geography stuff. It starts with last week's features.
Hope all of you have a great week! I probably won't do my regular CC posts until we start with Week 13 after the holidays, but I will post any fun activities we decide to do during the holidays : ).
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Back on track...Cycle 3, week 11: The Civil War and the endocrine system...Oh...and there's a bit about my Austen obsession : )
I'm going to start with what's on my mind right now...um...a little Austen obsession : ). I have loved Pride and Prejudice...in all versions...for quite some time. And last week I just happened to run across a Masterpiece Mystery! series entitled "Death Comes to Pemberly". This series is based on a novel written by crime writer P.D. James, and I was immediately sucked in to this fantastically done sequel to Pride and Prejudice. I'm kind of giddy after watching it :D. Yes...I know...cray cray. But seriously, if you're an Austen fan...you will probably enjoy it!
Eeek! Yes, it was really good. : )
Ok...now on to our week of school!
History: Civil War
I know before I even get started that there is a TON of stuff on the Civil War. So I'm just going to hit some of the highlights.
*Four free worksheets from crayola.com
*Instructions on how to make Civil War hard tack...looks like a fun activity!
*I looked up second grade civil war worksheets on education.com and got a few good ones pop up : ). You can search for other grades or topics.
*Good resource for top ten interesting facts and a printable for the Civil War (I LOVE this one...great info, condensed, and there is a flip style organizer you can print)
*Civil War blog created by a kid who is interested in the Civil War
*Love the "Horrible Histories" videos : )
*Liberty's Kids video "Conflict in the South"...definitely watching that one! My kiddos LOVE Liberty's Kids!
I'm going to move on...but like I said, there are lots of ideas. I also printed timeline cards from Teachers Pay Teachers when I bought some for the Revolutionary War...so we'll probably do those, too.
Science: the endocrine system
*I have some personal experience with this, as I had thyroid cancer in 2012...and no longer have a thyroid. We'll probably talk about that this week.
Here's a nice graphic to explain some of the different parts of the endocrine system.
This is probably about all we'll do for the endocrine system....just go over the graphic above.
Geography: Appalachian Mountains
Here's one map I found to show where the different mountain ranges are located.
Have a great week!
Eeek! Yes, it was really good. : )
Ok...now on to our week of school!
History: Civil War
I know before I even get started that there is a TON of stuff on the Civil War. So I'm just going to hit some of the highlights.
*Four free worksheets from crayola.com
*Instructions on how to make Civil War hard tack...looks like a fun activity!
*I looked up second grade civil war worksheets on education.com and got a few good ones pop up : ). You can search for other grades or topics.
*Good resource for top ten interesting facts and a printable for the Civil War (I LOVE this one...great info, condensed, and there is a flip style organizer you can print)
*Civil War blog created by a kid who is interested in the Civil War
*Love the "Horrible Histories" videos : )
*Liberty's Kids video "Conflict in the South"...definitely watching that one! My kiddos LOVE Liberty's Kids!
I'm going to move on...but like I said, there are lots of ideas. I also printed timeline cards from Teachers Pay Teachers when I bought some for the Revolutionary War...so we'll probably do those, too.
Science: the endocrine system
*I have some personal experience with this, as I had thyroid cancer in 2012...and no longer have a thyroid. We'll probably talk about that this week.
Here's a nice graphic to explain some of the different parts of the endocrine system.
This is probably about all we'll do for the endocrine system....just go over the graphic above.
Geography: Appalachian Mountains
Here's one map I found to show where the different mountain ranges are located.
Have a great week!
Sunday, October 26, 2014
A Little Backtracking...Cycle 3, Week 9: Compromise of 1850 and the lymph system...and a free printable!
Last week I was pretty tired...this week I've got it together a little better. BUT...I accidentally skipped week 9 so we went ahead and did week 10 last week and we're going to go back and cover week 9 this week. Make sense? : )
And if you think about it, please pray for healing for my left knee. I know I've got fluid and arthritis in it but it was doing much better after my second shot several weeks ago. I've been playing with the kids, taking a few walks, but after a busy weekend with a lot of walking, I feel a lot of pressure in there. : ( I'm praying it'll get better soon!
Week 9
History: Compromise of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act, Dred Scott decision
*I love these little videos. This would be a great idea for an end of the year homeschool project, too (pick your favorite week of cycle 3 history/science and do a video of it like this)
*Dred Scott video (I would say more appropriate for older kids)
*Fugitive slave act video...I thought it was informative and interesting
I thought this was helpful, too. I pinned some more videos and things on my Classical Conversations Cycle 3 board.
Science: lymph system
*A blog post with some kid-friendly ideas; different post on the same blog with links to printables and ideas about the human body
*A helpful diagram from this page
And if you think about it, please pray for healing for my left knee. I know I've got fluid and arthritis in it but it was doing much better after my second shot several weeks ago. I've been playing with the kids, taking a few walks, but after a busy weekend with a lot of walking, I feel a lot of pressure in there. : ( I'm praying it'll get better soon!
Week 9
History: Compromise of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act, Dred Scott decision
*I love these little videos. This would be a great idea for an end of the year homeschool project, too (pick your favorite week of cycle 3 history/science and do a video of it like this)
*Dred Scott video (I would say more appropriate for older kids)
*Fugitive slave act video...I thought it was informative and interesting
I thought this was helpful, too. I pinned some more videos and things on my Classical Conversations Cycle 3 board.
Science: lymph system
*A blog post with some kid-friendly ideas; different post on the same blog with links to printables and ideas about the human body
*A helpful diagram from this page
* video about the lymph system (about 8 min and animated)
I posted this free printable report card on my facebook page last week, but I wanted to pass it on here, too, in case you're like me and about to do report cards. I LOVE these free, cute printables that you can customize for your specific needs. I used them last year and really liked them.
Hope you have a great week!
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Week 10, Cycle 3...President Polk and the respiratory system--printables, video, info, and a field trip idea
Ok, friends. Today has been rough. Some days being a mom feels like the hardest job in the world. I'm also making this big goal to get up and exercise in the morning...and try to start eating better...and make healthy smoothies for my kids...and get more sleep....so I definitely need your prayers. In light of all that...I'm going to do my best to post some good resources for history and science for this week.
History: President Polk/Manifest Destiny
I'll have to say...I know pretty much nothing about either of these! Should be an informative week!
Here is James K. Polk. First president to be photographed while in office. He is buried in Nashville, TN.
*Free James Polk coloring page
What is Manifest Destiny?
Man·i·fest Des·ti·ny
Science: the respiratory system
*free worksheet showing a respiratory system diagram with some fill in the blanks
*Love this paper bag lungs demonstration to show how the lungs work. I'm pretty sure I've seen paper bags at the dollar store. This would be easy and fun!
*"Meet the Lungs" video from Khan Academy (kind of long)
*
* Great webpage with several videos, book resources, and experiments that go along with the respiratory system
Geography: states and capitals
*free states and capitals matching game (printable)
*I'm still printing our flashcards from crayola.com
Field trip idea
*Even though it'll be another week before we start studying the Civil War, there's a great opportunity this weekend to go to Living History Weekend at Andersonville, GA, which is the site of a former Civil War prison. It will be pretty neat to see history come to life! And it's free! Even if you're not close to this park, there may be similar events at your local National Park.
History: President Polk/Manifest Destiny
I'll have to say...I know pretty much nothing about either of these! Should be an informative week!
Here is James K. Polk. First president to be photographed while in office. He is buried in Nashville, TN.
*Free James Polk coloring page
What is Manifest Destiny?
Man·i·fest Des·ti·ny
noun
- the 19th-century doctrine or belief that the expansion of the US throughout the American continents was both justified and inevitable.
*Background info on the Mexican-American War and how it related to "manifest destiny"
*Background info on the Gadsden Purchase
Science: the respiratory system
*free worksheet showing a respiratory system diagram with some fill in the blanks
*Love this paper bag lungs demonstration to show how the lungs work. I'm pretty sure I've seen paper bags at the dollar store. This would be easy and fun!
*"Meet the Lungs" video from Khan Academy (kind of long)
*
* Great webpage with several videos, book resources, and experiments that go along with the respiratory system
Geography: states and capitals
*free states and capitals matching game (printable)
*I'm still printing our flashcards from crayola.com
Field trip idea
*Even though it'll be another week before we start studying the Civil War, there's a great opportunity this weekend to go to Living History Weekend at Andersonville, GA, which is the site of a former Civil War prison. It will be pretty neat to see history come to life! And it's free! Even if you're not close to this park, there may be similar events at your local National Park.
Sunday, October 12, 2014
Moving Right Along...Cycle 3, Week 8: Missouri Compromise and the circulatory system
I don't know why, but this year has just been crazy! We've had SO much going on...almost every week since we started school. But we're pressing on and moving right along to week 8 this week. Hope all of you are doing well!
History: Missouri Compromise
* Free worksheet...it gives some good info/summary
*I thought this was a cute video
*I love this Social Studies notebook! This could be used for several other weeks, too...including some we've already done!
I was able to print this page for free from the above link. LOVE the ideas that are on here. I'm going to use this image to color in the states with my kiddos.
Science: Circulatory System
*free worksheet on the parts of the heart from kidshealth.org
*The Circulatory Song on YouTube
*
*Blog post with links to lots of Montessori-inspired activities about the heart and circulatory system
*A great webpage with lots of book ideas, videos, experiments, etc.--all about the circulatory system
*One more blog post with fun food activities, projects, and experiments along with some free notebooking pages. This looks like a lot of fun!
**There are TONS of resources for the circulatory system. Pinterest has LOTS of ideas!**
And that's a wrap! Hope you guys have a great week!
History: Missouri Compromise
* Free worksheet...it gives some good info/summary
*I thought this was a cute video
*I love this Social Studies notebook! This could be used for several other weeks, too...including some we've already done!
I was able to print this page for free from the above link. LOVE the ideas that are on here. I'm going to use this image to color in the states with my kiddos.
Science: Circulatory System
*free worksheet on the parts of the heart from kidshealth.org
*The Circulatory Song on YouTube
*
*Blog post with links to lots of Montessori-inspired activities about the heart and circulatory system
*A great webpage with lots of book ideas, videos, experiments, etc.--all about the circulatory system
*One more blog post with fun food activities, projects, and experiments along with some free notebooking pages. This looks like a lot of fun!
**There are TONS of resources for the circulatory system. Pinterest has LOTS of ideas!**
And that's a wrap! Hope you guys have a great week!
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Back to School! Cycle 3, Week 7: War of 1812 and the excretory system
We've had a glorious week off for fall break. Honestly, I think this break was more for me than the kids. After a very busy summer and 6 weeks of school, I was feeling a little burnt out. The next couple of months will be pretty busy and, of course, we want to spend some time enjoying the beautiful weather. So this break was perfect timing. Starting tomorrow it's back to the routine!
History: War of 1812
I'm so glad that we were able to go to Fort McHenry when we were in Baltimore this summer! We were able to walk around the site, see an interesting video about the battle that took place there, and even see part of a Flag Day presentation. We will probably revisit some of our pictures from that this week. There are also some good resources that we might try.
*One thing that looks fun is an interactive powder monkey activity on the National Parks Service site.
*Liberty's Kids also has a video that we will watch
*Teachers Pay Teachers have some really nice War of 1812 printables, but the ones I found are not free.
*War of 1812 for kids with lots of links to activities and sites
*USA coloring sheets page...but I had trouble getting all the ads off
*Online resource with some coloring sheets and some really interesting activities like making baked apples, homemade butter, candle making and making your own ink!
*Another online resource with links to several sites and activities
*Lots of great printables/info here. It has free resources on the flag, key historical figures, patriotic songs, etc.
*A site with American History Crafts and Projects...this could be used later, too!
*Lesson on the Star Spangled Banner and art project
*I just splurged and bought a timeline for the War of 1812 and the Civil War on Teachers Pay Teachers. Honestly....I think it'll help us to have some visual resources that summarize both wars. We will use the Civil War one in a few weeks. Hopefully it'll be $5 well spent!
Science: Excretory system
*We will look at the body systems printable I posted about here
*Nice printable coloring sheet with info
*There are several YouTube videos you could watch...but make sure to preview them first ; ). "Make Me Genius" and "Crash Course" are two channels that have informative videos.
Geography: states and capitals
*continuing to print state/capital cards on crayola.com
*I bought a very cute cookie cutter in the shape of the US on Amazon for only $3...with free shipping.
That's all I have for this week! Have a good one!
History: War of 1812
I'm so glad that we were able to go to Fort McHenry when we were in Baltimore this summer! We were able to walk around the site, see an interesting video about the battle that took place there, and even see part of a Flag Day presentation. We will probably revisit some of our pictures from that this week. There are also some good resources that we might try.
*One thing that looks fun is an interactive powder monkey activity on the National Parks Service site.
*Liberty's Kids also has a video that we will watch
*Teachers Pay Teachers have some really nice War of 1812 printables, but the ones I found are not free.
*War of 1812 for kids with lots of links to activities and sites
*USA coloring sheets page...but I had trouble getting all the ads off
*Online resource with some coloring sheets and some really interesting activities like making baked apples, homemade butter, candle making and making your own ink!
*Another online resource with links to several sites and activities
*Lots of great printables/info here. It has free resources on the flag, key historical figures, patriotic songs, etc.
*A site with American History Crafts and Projects...this could be used later, too!
*Lesson on the Star Spangled Banner and art project
*I just splurged and bought a timeline for the War of 1812 and the Civil War on Teachers Pay Teachers. Honestly....I think it'll help us to have some visual resources that summarize both wars. We will use the Civil War one in a few weeks. Hopefully it'll be $5 well spent!
Science: Excretory system
*We will look at the body systems printable I posted about here
*Nice printable coloring sheet with info
*There are several YouTube videos you could watch...but make sure to preview them first ; ). "Make Me Genius" and "Crash Course" are two channels that have informative videos.
Geography: states and capitals
*continuing to print state/capital cards on crayola.com
*I bought a very cute cookie cutter in the shape of the US on Amazon for only $3...with free shipping.
That's all I have for this week! Have a good one!
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Taking a Fall Break!
We've completed 6 weeks of school so far and I think Momma needs a break. : ) We've been pushing hard the past 6 weeks and since fall has just begun, and the weather is cooler, and just because I have a TON of things I need to catch up on (hello piled up laundry) we're going to take a few days off. BUT...I do think it's a great time to still do some fun things together that could still be considered "school" even if we aren't tackling week 7 in Classical Conversations. We'll do that next week.
One thing I've been inspired to do is learn how to play chess...and teach our children. We had a college student visit us during the summer and he is very good at chess. He convinced me that chess is "brain sport" and really helps develop the mind. Last night I started trying to find some good resources to first of all learn, and then to try and find something somewhat interactive. I came across a site called "Chess Kid" that was helpful. You can sign up for free, and you can sign up as a parent/coach and then add the kids that you want to learn. You can go to a "learn" section and it teaches you step by step about the pieces, how the board is set up, and then moves on to strategy. I learned a lot in a very short time. I wanted to try and play a simple game and that's where I started to lose interest because it wanted to set me up with online people I didn't know and then the games that you could set up against the computer didn't really look like a full game...just specific strategies. But, once you set your kids up you can play against each other (at least that's what I think it said). It definitely got me up to speed on the basics. I also found a 3-in-1 chess, tic tac toe, and checkers set at Walmart for less than $10. It was just right for our purposes.
Another thing I want to do next week is pick out a pumpkin. We don't always get to do this every year and I found out there's a pumpkin patch with a corn maze and other fun things to do. We have really enjoyed pumpkin carving in the past so I think we need to do that while we've got some down time! : )
Next weekend we're also visiting my alma mater, Berry College, for it's annual Mountain Day. This year will be my 15 year reunion (and yes, I do feel old right now) and it's also the 100th anniversary of the college. I can't even cover how much I loved my 4 years at Berry. I spent my summers working there, too, so it really felt like home during that time. I was able to explore several neat spots and made SO many memories! Here are a few pics of the campus <3 .="" p="">
The Old Mill on the Mountain Campus
I can't wait to go back...after all these years! I have visited since I graduated but I haven't been on Mountain Day since my senior year. The story of Martha Berry and how she founded the school is fascinating. I hope we'll be able to fit in a little of the history while we're there.
This is also the first week of the fair! We LOVE going to the fair each year as a family. There are fun rides but also a circus, animal exhibits, and last year we did the petting zoo. A definite October activity that we look forward to...and it can be educational! : )
There are plenty of fall crafts, too. The blog Art for Kids is having a Fall Art Contest! They are giving away a great set of art supplies as a prize and entries are due on October 6th! I think we're definitely going to try to do this! Click on my link to get the guidelines.
Happy fall, everyone! I'll be back in the groove next week with week 7 and as many activities as I can find ; ).
One thing I've been inspired to do is learn how to play chess...and teach our children. We had a college student visit us during the summer and he is very good at chess. He convinced me that chess is "brain sport" and really helps develop the mind. Last night I started trying to find some good resources to first of all learn, and then to try and find something somewhat interactive. I came across a site called "Chess Kid" that was helpful. You can sign up for free, and you can sign up as a parent/coach and then add the kids that you want to learn. You can go to a "learn" section and it teaches you step by step about the pieces, how the board is set up, and then moves on to strategy. I learned a lot in a very short time. I wanted to try and play a simple game and that's where I started to lose interest because it wanted to set me up with online people I didn't know and then the games that you could set up against the computer didn't really look like a full game...just specific strategies. But, once you set your kids up you can play against each other (at least that's what I think it said). It definitely got me up to speed on the basics. I also found a 3-in-1 chess, tic tac toe, and checkers set at Walmart for less than $10. It was just right for our purposes.
Another thing I want to do next week is pick out a pumpkin. We don't always get to do this every year and I found out there's a pumpkin patch with a corn maze and other fun things to do. We have really enjoyed pumpkin carving in the past so I think we need to do that while we've got some down time! : )
Next weekend we're also visiting my alma mater, Berry College, for it's annual Mountain Day. This year will be my 15 year reunion (and yes, I do feel old right now) and it's also the 100th anniversary of the college. I can't even cover how much I loved my 4 years at Berry. I spent my summers working there, too, so it really felt like home during that time. I was able to explore several neat spots and made SO many memories! Here are a few pics of the campus <3 .="" p="">
The Grand March on Mountain Day The Ford buildings on campus...I lived here!
I can't wait to go back...after all these years! I have visited since I graduated but I haven't been on Mountain Day since my senior year. The story of Martha Berry and how she founded the school is fascinating. I hope we'll be able to fit in a little of the history while we're there.
This is also the first week of the fair! We LOVE going to the fair each year as a family. There are fun rides but also a circus, animal exhibits, and last year we did the petting zoo. A definite October activity that we look forward to...and it can be educational! : )
There are plenty of fall crafts, too. The blog Art for Kids is having a Fall Art Contest! They are giving away a great set of art supplies as a prize and entries are due on October 6th! I think we're definitely going to try to do this! Click on my link to get the guidelines.
Happy fall, everyone! I'll be back in the groove next week with week 7 and as many activities as I can find ; ).
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Cycle 3, Week 6: Louisiana Purchase, the Digestive System, and some great freebies!
It's been a great, but busy, weekend! We celebrated my hubby's 50th birthday with a surprise party on Saturday! It was a couple of months in the making...and I'm SO glad it went so well! We have been blessed with some amazing family and friends...so thankful. With that said...I am pretty wiped. But I need to get ready for school..tired or not.
I read that adding additional worksheets and things to the memory work is not necessary. But honestly...my kids love it. And I do, too. I think it helps us remember the memory work better so that's why we do it. Plus we don't have any other science or social studies curriculum, so this is what we do. With that said...I enjoy making these resources available to anyone that might like to use them. I hope they help you on your CC journey!
History: Louisiana Purchase/Lewis and Clark
Schoolhouse Rock video
Time Warp Trio....this is part one but I saw a link to the next part
*Free Louisiana Purchase worksheet
*Free Louisiana Purchase accordian foldable (You could use it in a lap book)
*Fun ideas from this Homeschool Book Club page...I like the cake idea :-)
*I pinned some other things on my Cycle 3 Pinterest board...check it out!
Science: the digestive system
*LOVE this FREE human body organ sytems foldable. It would cover several things we've covered and then some.
*Magic School Bus Gets Eaten video! My kiddos love MSB!
*Nice blog post with a set of free worksheets! that go into some great detail about digestion. I just printed one copy for our family to do together.
*Short, factual video that shows the process:
Experiments:
*Digestive system demonstration
*Kinesthetic model of digestion
*Digestion in a bag
And...I think my FAVORITE activity is making an organs t-shirt! This blog even has free printables for stencils. And I bought t-shirts at the dollar store! Can't wait to try this!!
Latin: Nouns
Still searching for help with this, but I did find John 1 in Latin on this video...
English: Irregular Verb Tenses
*The blog Suzanne Shares has a FREE printable set of all of the irregular verb tenses that we're studying. Looks great, as always!
*Still printing our state cards on crayola.com. The kids are getting into the hang of coloring one a day and at the end of the week I laminate them. I think we'll really enjoy being able to review with them!
And that will be all, my friends! Hope you have a great week!
I read that adding additional worksheets and things to the memory work is not necessary. But honestly...my kids love it. And I do, too. I think it helps us remember the memory work better so that's why we do it. Plus we don't have any other science or social studies curriculum, so this is what we do. With that said...I enjoy making these resources available to anyone that might like to use them. I hope they help you on your CC journey!
History: Louisiana Purchase/Lewis and Clark
Schoolhouse Rock video
Time Warp Trio....this is part one but I saw a link to the next part
*Free Louisiana Purchase worksheet
*Free Louisiana Purchase accordian foldable (You could use it in a lap book)
*Fun ideas from this Homeschool Book Club page...I like the cake idea :-)
*I pinned some other things on my Cycle 3 Pinterest board...check it out!
Science: the digestive system
*LOVE this FREE human body organ sytems foldable. It would cover several things we've covered and then some.
*Magic School Bus Gets Eaten video! My kiddos love MSB!
*Nice blog post with a set of free worksheets! that go into some great detail about digestion. I just printed one copy for our family to do together.
*Short, factual video that shows the process:
Experiments:
*Digestive system demonstration
*Kinesthetic model of digestion
*Digestion in a bag
And...I think my FAVORITE activity is making an organs t-shirt! This blog even has free printables for stencils. And I bought t-shirts at the dollar store! Can't wait to try this!!
Latin: Nouns
Still searching for help with this, but I did find John 1 in Latin on this video...
English: Irregular Verb Tenses
*The blog Suzanne Shares has a FREE printable set of all of the irregular verb tenses that we're studying. Looks great, as always!
*Still printing our state cards on crayola.com. The kids are getting into the hang of coloring one a day and at the end of the week I laminate them. I think we'll really enjoy being able to review with them!
And that will be all, my friends! Hope you have a great week!
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Cycle 3, week 5...Washington and the senses
Tired. It's been another busy week, complete with a crazy reaction to an insect bite, school, and basically me being overwhelmed. But there were good moments, too. So...Monday is always a good day to start over. There will be a lot going on this week but hopefully with a good night's sleep I'll be ready to go. Let's get rollin'...
History: George Washington
*Great video about Washington on the Scholastic site
*Another Washington biography video
*Liberty's Kids movies:"Washington Takes Command"
*Funny, short Sesame Street video explaining a painting with George Washington
*You can search "George Washington" on YouTube and there will be several video options
*blog post that shows some Washington anchor charts
*Very cute, FREE, George Washington booklet --it can be printed in b/w or color
*FREE George Washington lapbook
Science: the five senses
I know there will be lots of cute things for this!
*10 free senses worksheets--labeled to be used for Kindergarten
*I might try the apple poem that goes with the senses found here
I like this idea to do with popcorn (found at http://spotlightonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/03/anchor-charts-and-classroom-charts.html)
Geography--still printing our state flashcards for the week from crayola.com
Latin--verbs
*Not much to help with this one! : ) I did see a few links to some videos on Pinterest.
I know this isn't a ton of stuff...but friends, I'm exhausted! Hope you all have a great week!
History: George Washington
*Great video about Washington on the Scholastic site
*Another Washington biography video
*Liberty's Kids movies:"Washington Takes Command"
*Funny, short Sesame Street video explaining a painting with George Washington
*You can search "George Washington" on YouTube and there will be several video options
*blog post that shows some Washington anchor charts
*Very cute, FREE, George Washington booklet --it can be printed in b/w or color
*FREE George Washington lapbook
Science: the five senses
I know there will be lots of cute things for this!
*10 free senses worksheets--labeled to be used for Kindergarten
*I might try the apple poem that goes with the senses found here
I like this idea to do with popcorn (found at http://spotlightonkindergarten.blogspot.com/2012/03/anchor-charts-and-classroom-charts.html)
Geography--still printing our state flashcards for the week from crayola.com
Latin--verbs
*Not much to help with this one! : ) I did see a few links to some videos on Pinterest.
I know this isn't a ton of stuff...but friends, I'm exhausted! Hope you all have a great week!
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
GIVEAWAY and Review!! Dolphin Tale 2 Homeschool Curriculum and Promo Pack
The movie Dolphin Tale 2 will come to theaters this weekend. And guess what?! Friday, September 12 is also Homeschool Day 2014! I am very privileged to be able to review a homeschool curriculum designed to use right along with Dolphin Tale 2.
I haven't seen this movie yet, of course, but I remember Dolphin Tale being a heart warming, family friendly movie that everyone could enjoy. The sequel brings back several of the actors from the original film as well as a few new ones, including a cameo by Bethany Hamilton ("Soul Surfer"). I can't wait to see this with my kiddos and I'm especially excited to tell you about a free homeschool curriculum that you can use right along with the movie!
I had never heard of the site Homeschool Movie Club until tonight. It's free to sign up and it gives you access to homeschooling materials that go right along with family friendly movies. For the movie Dolphin Tale 2, there is a curriculum intro along with 5 lessons, all of which include a video from someone who works at the aquarium and a pdf file that you can print off that goes right along with the lesson. There is also an answer key and....drumroll....Classical Conversations homeschool curriculum included a FREE packet that is over 60 pages long and includes connections to literature, math, science, history, geography, language, and Bible. There is even a section for parents that has a place to put together a family presentation. Just click on the link above and go to "free curriculum". You have to sign up and log in before you can view it.
So...what do I think about this curriculum?! LOVE it! The videos that go with each of the lessons are short and informative. A good portion is a man talking, but there are video clips and graphics dispersed throughout. I thought the videos were easy to understand and the information was presented well. I believe that children as young as elementary age up through high school could learn something from the videos. The printable pages that went along with the lessons were geared towards younger students, I would say up through 5th grade. The printables were colorful, informative, and there was a variety of activities ranging from drawing to science. I also liked the way that the lessons encouraged students who might have an interest in marine biology or would like to work in an aquarium. The Classical Conversations material was just...amazing! I am a little biased since we use this curriculum, but the graphics and lessons were eye catching and filled with information. I liked the inclusion of the Bible in the study of dolphins. There were also pages where your child could draw something, printable information cards, and a wide variety of information at your fingertips. This would be a great week long...or more...unit study on dolphins.
It's rare to find good quality entertainment these days, and even though I haven't seen it yet, I believe that Dolphin Tale 2 will be great. Here is a trailer:
Love it!! Here are some more ways to check out Dolphin Tale 2:
Group Resource Website: http://www.homeschoolmovieclub.com/homeschool_day
Official Movie Website: http://www.dolphintale2.com
Twitter: @dolphintale
You don't have to be a homeschooling family to enjoy this resource. And you definitely don't have to homeschool to enter my GIVEAWAY!!! I'll be giving away a free Dolphin Tale 2 t-shirt and a pair of sunglasses to one commenter. So just leave a comment on this blog post or on my facebook pages where I'll be posting, and you'll be entered to win. I'll draw a winner on Wednesday, September 17th...one week from today!
So DON'T FORGET!! Go see Dolphin Tale 2 starting this Friday, September 12th!
"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.
Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Moving along in Cycle 3...Week 4...and a little Turkish bonus
Well, I'm starting this post around 10 pm...so I'll do my best to get as many resources on here as I can before I completely fall out! : )
I thought I would also include a few words/phrases that we learned in Turkish last week when we had a visitor at our house. Our school week was skimpy but we had a big lesson in culture that we didn't expect! I don't have the Turkish accents on my keyboard so I'll try my best to put the pronunciations on here the right way.
*Hello--merhaba (mare-ha-bah)
*Goodbye--gorusuruz (gore-ew-sha-rooz)
*Thank you--tesekkurler (te-shek-ew-lair)
*How are you?--nasilsin (na-seal-sin) if you want to make it plural or say it with respect/please, you can add "iz" to the end of the word
*What is your name?--senin a din ne? (se-nin a din nay?--almost just the way it's written)
*My name is _________.---Benim a dim ________. (I think the pronunciation is about the way it sounds)
*Nice to meet you.---tanistigima memnun oldum (tan-ish-ti-/h/ima mem-none----the /h/ is kind of like a breathy h sound---old um)
Again...I'm not 100% sure on those pronunciations, but that's about as good as I remember from one afternoon session : ).
Ok...on to Week 4!
History: The Declaration of Independence
*I'm sure there are TONS of resources on this...I'll try to post some of the best ones I can find...
*This blog post has some links to a good variety of activities
*Gotta love School House Rock
Liberty's Kids episode: The First Fourth of July
*A shared writing post about the Declaration
*Here is a page where you can magnify the Declaration...to the left are the three GA signers: Button Gwinnet, Lymon Hall and George Harrison
*coloring page that includes the names of all the signers of the Declaration and the states they were from
If you see any other great ideas...I'd love to know what they are : )
Science: three parts of the nervous system
*We have a poster I'm going to put up with the three parts
English: Verb: Principle Parts
Home video on a nice way to remember the parts using the song Three Blind Mice
*For Geography I'm continuing to print the state flash cards from www.crayola.com
I'm going to wrap it up there for now....I'm wiped out! Hope you all have a great week!
I thought I would also include a few words/phrases that we learned in Turkish last week when we had a visitor at our house. Our school week was skimpy but we had a big lesson in culture that we didn't expect! I don't have the Turkish accents on my keyboard so I'll try my best to put the pronunciations on here the right way.
*Hello--merhaba (mare-ha-bah)
*Goodbye--gorusuruz (gore-ew-sha-rooz)
*Thank you--tesekkurler (te-shek-ew-lair)
*How are you?--nasilsin (na-seal-sin) if you want to make it plural or say it with respect/please, you can add "iz" to the end of the word
*What is your name?--senin a din ne? (se-nin a din nay?--almost just the way it's written)
*My name is _________.---Benim a dim ________. (I think the pronunciation is about the way it sounds)
*Nice to meet you.---tanistigima memnun oldum (tan-ish-ti-/h/ima mem-none----the /h/ is kind of like a breathy h sound---old um)
Again...I'm not 100% sure on those pronunciations, but that's about as good as I remember from one afternoon session : ).
Ok...on to Week 4!
History: The Declaration of Independence
*I'm sure there are TONS of resources on this...I'll try to post some of the best ones I can find...
*This blog post has some links to a good variety of activities
*Gotta love School House Rock
Liberty's Kids episode: The First Fourth of July
*A shared writing post about the Declaration
*Here is a page where you can magnify the Declaration...to the left are the three GA signers: Button Gwinnet, Lymon Hall and George Harrison
*coloring page that includes the names of all the signers of the Declaration and the states they were from
If you see any other great ideas...I'd love to know what they are : )
Science: three parts of the nervous system
*We have a poster I'm going to put up with the three parts
English: Verb: Principle Parts
Home video on a nice way to remember the parts using the song Three Blind Mice
*For Geography I'm continuing to print the state flash cards from www.crayola.com
I'm going to wrap it up there for now....I'm wiped out! Hope you all have a great week!
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Cycle 3, week 3: The Boston Tea Party, three kinds of muscles, and more : )
Last week was a little rocky for us as we were dealing with sickness right in the middle of the week. But we persevered and finished up week 2. Pretty much every week we're not getting to do everything I've planned...but I think that's just how life is, right?! : ) Now on to week 3....and we're excited about the Boston Tea Party!
History: the Boston Tea Party
*One of the reasons we're excited is because our Liberty's Kids dvds start out with the Boston Tea Party....so we can't wait to watch that episode this week! Even if you don't have the dvd set, you can find free episodes of Liberty's Kids on YouTube and there's a link on their website. I also found a free download on Teachers Pay Teachers for a Liberty Kids viewing guide. It's free to join TPT and I've found several free downloads and many that are at a minimal price.
*Liberty's Kids also has a website that has games and fun things to do with different episodes. I know my kiddos will love this!
*I also found a Boston Tea Party coloring sheet. Most of you may know how to do this, but I figured out that I had to copy the image onto my computer and then look up the image and print.
*Here is a blog post that has LOTS of Boston Tea Party links and ideas
*YouTube also had a lot of "Crash Course" videos about history....I would say these are mostly for older kids and parents may have to screen them first.
*I have several other ideas pinned on my Pinterest board. I have 3 Classical Conversations boards that I try to pin to regularly.
Science: 3 kinds of muscles
*I found a neat worksheet here on education.com. It's a free printable : ).
*This Kids Health site has some great info on the three muscles! I'll definitely be using this!
English: past participle
*The video I posted on last week's post does a great job of explaining and comparing past and present participles
Geography: states and capitals
*still printing my state cards on crayola.com and we love the "Take a Little Trip" video
Math: counting
We usually stick to the songs on our audio cd, but here's a Schoolhouse Rock video on counting by 5's
*We didn't get around to doing our Art for Kids drawing last week...but I'm hoping this week we'll get to draw a ninja like I'd planned : ).
Have a great week!!
History: the Boston Tea Party
*One of the reasons we're excited is because our Liberty's Kids dvds start out with the Boston Tea Party....so we can't wait to watch that episode this week! Even if you don't have the dvd set, you can find free episodes of Liberty's Kids on YouTube and there's a link on their website. I also found a free download on Teachers Pay Teachers for a Liberty Kids viewing guide. It's free to join TPT and I've found several free downloads and many that are at a minimal price.
*Liberty's Kids also has a website that has games and fun things to do with different episodes. I know my kiddos will love this!
*I also found a Boston Tea Party coloring sheet. Most of you may know how to do this, but I figured out that I had to copy the image onto my computer and then look up the image and print.
*Here is a blog post that has LOTS of Boston Tea Party links and ideas
*YouTube also had a lot of "Crash Course" videos about history....I would say these are mostly for older kids and parents may have to screen them first.
*I have several other ideas pinned on my Pinterest board. I have 3 Classical Conversations boards that I try to pin to regularly.
Science: 3 kinds of muscles
*I found a neat worksheet here on education.com. It's a free printable : ).
*This Kids Health site has some great info on the three muscles! I'll definitely be using this!
English: past participle
*The video I posted on last week's post does a great job of explaining and comparing past and present participles
Geography: states and capitals
*still printing my state cards on crayola.com and we love the "Take a Little Trip" video
Math: counting
We usually stick to the songs on our audio cd, but here's a Schoolhouse Rock video on counting by 5's
*We didn't get around to doing our Art for Kids drawing last week...but I'm hoping this week we'll get to draw a ninja like I'd planned : ).
Have a great week!!
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Week 2 of Cycle 3...the Pilgrims, the axial skeleton, present participles and more!
Last week we had a great start back into our school routine, even though we had a lot going on in our personal lives. Doctor's appointments, a funeral, and other things...but that's the beauty of homeschooling. You can be adaptable and your schedule can flip all around and you can still get things done. Flexibility is definitely a key part of it.
Even if we don't get everything accomplished that I plan, I do feel like my kids are learning a lot! So I'm just going to jump right in and post as much as I can find for this week. I know it helps me to have all of this on one location, and I hope it helps you, too!
History: Pilgrims
Great little School House Rock video:
*Tour of the Mayflower II...a replica of the original Mayflower
*Nice video depicting the signing of the Mayflower Compact
*Go to www.plimoth.org to check out some interesting things, like how to talk like a Pilgrim or print a coloring sheet
*Virtual field trip of Plimoth Plantation (about a 30 min video)
*There are so many videos and info about this topic! I think these will give you a good start and if you're interested in more you can search Google, Pinterest, or YouTube.
Science: axial skeleton
*Very detailed description of the axial skeleton with diagram
*Cool site with flashcards of parts of the skeleton. I printed the large cards...can't wait to use them!
*Great ideas on this blog post at Spell Out Loud
Geography: states and capitals
*We'll continue to do our states/capitals flash cards and song that I posted here
English: present participle
Great explanation of present and past participles
Latin: conjunctions
I can't find any printables or videos for this week! : ( If anyone finds anything I would love to know about it.
Fine Arts:
We're supposed to be doing some drawing these first six weeks. I know there are some good tutorials on YouTube on how to do various drawing techniques, but the kids and I LOVE the site Art for Kids. I've mentioned it on a previous blog post, but I really can't say enough about how fun and kid friendly it is. Not only do they feature drawing, but also painting and sculpting. Highly recommend it! Here is an example (for all of you Ninja Turtle fans):
On a personal note....
We also include Bible time in our school routine and this year we've started out with using The Big Picture Interactive Storybook Bible. I really like the way it's set up and how it covers the Bible thoroughly. Here is a sample page:
It's interactive in that you can download a free app that will scan a picture or a scan code thing (not sure what those things are called) and it will make the page become almost 3-D or show a special video. We're enjoying it so far!
Hope all of you have a great week!
Even if we don't get everything accomplished that I plan, I do feel like my kids are learning a lot! So I'm just going to jump right in and post as much as I can find for this week. I know it helps me to have all of this on one location, and I hope it helps you, too!
History: Pilgrims
Great little School House Rock video:
*Tour of the Mayflower II...a replica of the original Mayflower
*Nice video depicting the signing of the Mayflower Compact
*Go to www.plimoth.org to check out some interesting things, like how to talk like a Pilgrim or print a coloring sheet
*Virtual field trip of Plimoth Plantation (about a 30 min video)
*There are so many videos and info about this topic! I think these will give you a good start and if you're interested in more you can search Google, Pinterest, or YouTube.
Science: axial skeleton
*Very detailed description of the axial skeleton with diagram
*Cool site with flashcards of parts of the skeleton. I printed the large cards...can't wait to use them!
*Great ideas on this blog post at Spell Out Loud
Geography: states and capitals
*We'll continue to do our states/capitals flash cards and song that I posted here
English: present participle
Great explanation of present and past participles
Latin: conjunctions
I can't find any printables or videos for this week! : ( If anyone finds anything I would love to know about it.
Fine Arts:
We're supposed to be doing some drawing these first six weeks. I know there are some good tutorials on YouTube on how to do various drawing techniques, but the kids and I LOVE the site Art for Kids. I've mentioned it on a previous blog post, but I really can't say enough about how fun and kid friendly it is. Not only do they feature drawing, but also painting and sculpting. Highly recommend it! Here is an example (for all of you Ninja Turtle fans):
On a personal note....
We also include Bible time in our school routine and this year we've started out with using The Big Picture Interactive Storybook Bible. I really like the way it's set up and how it covers the Bible thoroughly. Here is a sample page:
It's interactive in that you can download a free app that will scan a picture or a scan code thing (not sure what those things are called) and it will make the page become almost 3-D or show a special video. We're enjoying it so far!
Hope all of you have a great week!
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