Cindy Downes

May. 5, 2008 - Review: The Declaration of Independence by Syl Sobel

This book came at the perfect time since I am currently studying to CLEP out in American History! The Declaration of Independence by Syl Sobel is not a very colorful book, but it does provide the basic facts of America's fight for Independence. The illustrations are black, white, and blue drawings. The text is easy to read; however, there is a lot of text on each page. Although I do recommend it as a good resource for studying the Declaration of Independence, my one disappointment is that it does not mention Federalists and Anti-federalists nor anything about states rights. I would recommend this book for 4th to 5th grade and up to 8th grade as an introduction to the topic. Published in 2008 by Barron's. 48 pages.

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May. 2, 2008 - Opportunity for Home School Student!

I am passing this letter on that I received in hopes someone out there has homeschoolers who are interested in this:

Dear Cindy,

My parents homeschooled me because they thought it would present me with more opportunities than traditional schooling. Today I am working with Oklahoma Christian University to help other students around the country to find opportunities for development.

This August, 48 students will be gathering here in Oklahoma City to participate in a week long leadership debate that will be televised nationally on Fox News! Applications are open for the next two weeks (until May 16, 2008) and I want to make sure that students from the homeschool community are well represented. We are interested in having the best students and I know that if we don’t have some homeschooled students we won’t attain that goal.

Students selected for the program will be:

1.       Great communicators
2.       Critical thinkers
3.       Aspiring leaders

If Oklahoma Homeschool has a student like this who wants an opportunity to meet other students from around the nation, who wants to hone their communication skills, who wants to be a better leader, and who wants to learn from some of the best minds in debate, public policy, and leadership in the nation, then please recommend them for the program. We have been working hard to find scholarships for every position so the students selected for the program will only have to pay $75 each, which includes all costs for the program including airfares to Oklahoma City.

If you would like more information I can email you an application packet. Alternatively, you can visit our website and download the information there. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions--my information is below. I look forward to seeing your students at iDebate!

Sincerely,
Marshall B. Sayre

--------------------------------------
Director’s Assistant, iDebate
Oklahoma Christian University

Phone: (405) 425-1065
Email:     marshall.sayre@oc.edu
Web:      www.oc.edu/academy

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Apr. 24, 2008 - End of Semester 3!

I have one week left of school and then I'm taking off for the summer- sort of! (I'm going to try to CLEP out of some classes this summer.)

I'm just about finished up a class in Comparable Criminal Justice Systems and another in Public Relations. In May, I'm going to get back to writing some home school units and other ideas I have. I've missed you all!

See you in May!

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Apr. 3, 2008 - Ready for Life

I just finished watching my taped version of OETA's Ready for Life segment on home schooling. They interviewed Paula Neal (and her children), Brian Ray, and myself on our views of home schooling. Paula and Brian did a excellent job! Paula's family is representative of many who home school, so I was glad to see her family featured in the program. So many times, they look for a family that does not truly represent what homeschooling is all about.

The staff at OETA with whom I interacted were all very pleasant and seemed to sincerely want to hear both sides. Overall, I think they did a good job of presenting our side, while allowing the other side to present theirs.

As can be expected in 30 minutes, the program doesn't answer everyone's questions. Those who disagree with home schooling will probably continue to disagree. However, I believe the program will cause those who are looking for alternatives to look more closely at home schooling as an option.

For more: read what SunnyOne has to say.

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Mar. 29, 2008 - OETA to Air Homeschool Documentary

I was interviewed in January for a program that will air on OETA -PBS in April. Here is the information. I hope I did a good job - I haven't seen it yet! Here are the details:

It is called "Stateline", subtitled, "Ready for Life."

It will air on OETA/PBS (Oklahoma Channel 11) 4 times in April.

April 1st at 9:00pm

April 15th at 9:00pm

April 27th at 11:30am

April 29th at 10pm

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Mar. 23, 2008 - Bird Identification

Bird Identification. Spring is coming so it's a great time to go bird watching. Check out this online bird identification resource.

Just this month, I've discovered a hawk and a Blue Heron in my backyard. To see some pictures, check out my photos on my Oklahoma Travel Blog.

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Mar. 23, 2008 - Review of Biology 101 by Wes Olson

Your visual and auditory learners are going to LOVE this. As a matter of fact, Biology 101: Biology According to the Days of Creation, developed by Wes Olson, is going to be enjoyed by the whole family!

The topics covered in this 4 disc set include Defining Life and Life Classification, Plants, Aquatic Creatures, Avian Creatures, Land Animals, Mankind and Genetics. It also includes a printable 114-page guidebook and a 12-page "Course Accreditation Program."

First, what I liked: I loved the beautiful videos; the animated graphs, charts and illustrations; the background music was pleasant and added to the learning experience. The host (also Wes Olson) was an excellent speaker and kept my attention with clearly defined definitions, anecdotes, and interesting facts. During the plant segment, he takes the viewer to a variety of places to study plants: the bakery to learn about grains, a restaurant to learn how algae is used to make ice cream and salad dressing, and the forest to watch a forester drill a tree ring sample to find out the age of a tree. He also offers memory tips like learning that stamen ends with "men" so it's the male part of the plant, and he shows how plants are used in scripture to illustrate spiritual truths. The animations are excellent and easy to learn from so everyone in the family will benefit from watching the videos.

To read what I didn't like and other information, please see the March issue of my newsletter.

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Mar. 23, 2008 - Facebook Group for Homeschooled Kids

If your kids are looking for a Facebook group of homeschoolers, here's one to check out "I am Homeschooled." It has some funny videos on it, too. You must log in to view/join this group.

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Mar. 19, 2008 - Resurrection Eggs

I'm sure this has been posted before, but since it's so close to Easter, I wanted to make sure everyone has seen this idea. It's such a great way to celebrate Easter:

Resurrection Eggs.

HAVE A WONDERFUL EASTER!

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Mar. 8, 2008 - Please sign homeschool petition!

Please Sign this Petition to Support Homeschool Freedom in California.

A California Court of Appeal recently decided that homeschooling is illegal in California unless a parent is a certified teacher.

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Mar. 4, 2008 - Homeschool Newsletter

I just posted my new March homeschool newsletter up on my Web site. It includes two free unit studies: one on Presidents/Elections (which I completely updated this year) and one on Archaeology and the Bible. I hope you enjoy!

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Mar. 4, 2008 - Homeschoolers on the School Board!

Here's how one, veteran home school mom is trying to help children - she has decided to run for school board in her local school district! I hope she wins! Read the article.

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Feb. 23, 2008 - Homeschool KID FRIENDLY conference

Now this really makes me wish I were homeschooling again - a kid-friendly conference. And the speakers are great, too. What a wonderful family vacation that would make. Enjoy!

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Feb. 22, 2008 - President Elections Unit - Updated

I have just updated the Presidents/Elections unit with new information and eliminated the book that was previously required which is no longer in print. Check it out on my Web site. I hope it is helpful.

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