Teacher Appreciation Week

Have you discovered the Learning A-Z website, yet?  If not, this week would be an excellent time to check them out.  Each day this week, May 5th-9th, and Monday, May 12th, Learning A-Z is offering an Open House in honor of Teacher Appreciation Week.  Learning A-Z has six different websites, and each day this week (and next Monday) you can visit these sites and get a sneak peek at the materials for FREE.  Here is a schedule of the events:

• Monday, May 5th- Reading A-Z.com - (Thousands of printable books, lessons, worksheets, and activities.)
• Tuesday, May 6th-raz-kids.com - (Hundreds of online leveled readers and quizzes.)
• Wednesday, May 7th-Writing A-Z.com-(Complete downloadable, leveled writing program.)
• Thursday, May 8th - Vocabulary A-Z.com-(Customized vocabulary lessons.)
• Friday, May 9th-Reading-Tutors.com-(Tutor resources for specific reading skills.)
• Monday, May 12th-Science A-Z.com-(Downloadable elementary science curriculum.)

Sorry for the late notice today, but you have until midnight tonight to check out Reading A-Z.com!  I've been there today and boy, oh boy, am I impressed.  They have a LOT of GREAT stuff!!! 

So go on... go see for yourself! 

9:47 PM - May. 5, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Homeschool Hi-Lights

Homeschool Hi-Lights Meme

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Last week we began a unit on geology.   I had really expected the children to complain about it being "boring", but to my surprise, they were actually excited about it.  The hi-light of the week was our rock-hunting excursion.  We didn't go far, and it certainly didn't take very long, but a good time was had by all.  We brought home a bucket full of rocks to be cleaned and examined.  A hidden lesson in the whole thing was my 4 year old lining up the rocks on the table and counting them several times.  What good practice!

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(Ellen at Fun Learning had the great idea to start a weekly meme for homeschoolers to share the hi-lights of their weeks.  Everyone is invited, so come join in the fun!  For more information, CLICK HERE.)

10:07 PM - Apr. 20, 2008 - comments {5} - post comment

Purdy Burdy

Look at this gorgeous bird the kids and I found in the back yard today. 

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It's called a "Killdeer".

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We didn't even notice it at first.  We were out collecting rocks to study for our geology unit, when my 11 year old son stopped right in his tracks.  He had gotten a little too close for this mama bird's comfort, and she proceeded to let him know about it.  I could hear her, but it took me awhile to actually see her because she was so well camoflauged with her surroundings.  Upon closer inspection, I saw that she was sitting on 4 brown, speckled eggs - right there in the rocks. 

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I snapped this photo so I could come home and look it up online.  It was really pretty fascinating to read about this very clever bird.

10:14 PM - Apr. 17, 2008 - comments {4} - post comment

Home Education Week - Day 6, "In Their Own Words"

1:50 PM - Apr. 4, 2008 - comments {4} - post comment

Home Education Week - Day 4 - "Recipe For Success"

Today for Home Education Week, we're supposed to share a recipe, either figuratively, as in a recipe for success, or an actual recipe for something to cook.  Since I am still trying to figure out this recipe for success in homeschooling, I think I'd better stick to what I do know.  Food. 

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In our family, each child has different favorites when it comes to food.  None of my children are really what I would call picky eaters, which is a blessing, I know!  BigBub's favorite meal of all time is a casserole that I make called "Poppyseed Chicken".  I think it's pretty common, but I'll share the recipe anyways in case someone hasn't heard of it and wants to try it.  And forgive me for not knowing exact measurements because I just make this one from memory, not by looking at a recipe card. 

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Poppyseed Chicken

Ingredients:

2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

2 - cans cream of chicken soup

1 bar of cream cheese

1 "tube" of Ritz crackers

1/2 c. melted butter

1 tbsp. poppyseeds (optional; more or less according to taste)

Directions:

place cooked, shredded chicken in bottom of 9x13(ish) size casserole dish.

combine soup and cream cheese in sauce pan on medium heat until combined,

pour over chicken.

crush Ritz crackers and pour over top of soup mixture

pour melted butter over crackers, sprinkle with poppyseeds.

Bake at 350* for about 30 minutes. 

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And although that one is considered BigBub's favorite at our house, I've never known anyone that didn't like it!  We usually serve it up with mashed potatoes, corn, and hot biscuits. 

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Sis doesn't really have a tried-and-true-absolute-favorite meal.  She likes a lot of different things and will generally eat whatever is placed on the table each night.  But she does tend to get particularly excited when I make something that has broccoli in it.  Yes, it is strange.  She is a strange child. 

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One thing I make frequently for a quick, healthy meal is stir-fry.  I always keep a bag of Bird's Eye Oriental Stir-Fry frozen vegetables w/sauce in the freezer.  I usually add some diced up chicken breasts and white rice to make a full meal.  Sis really loves this dish, and always asks for extra broccoli.  Click here to visit the Bird's Eye company website and get a copy of the recipe.  They give two options, to either microwave or saute the veggies.  As I said, we always prepare it as a stir-fry, so we make ours in a skillet.  I wish I had a wok. 

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As for LilBub, he's a kid who doesn't like to take a lot of time to sit down and eat a proper meal.  He likes to eat on the go, or have an "eat-walk" as he calls it.  That means he wants to get a bite, then walk in the other room to do something else, then come back for another bite, etc...  Not that I always allow this, but sometimes I do when we're not having a formal, family meal together.  And LilBub's favorite food?  Green beans.  Yes, he's another strange child.  But hey, if the kid wants green beans, who am I to argue?  He loves 'em! 

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And I try to keep snacks handy because, let's face it, schoolwork makes kids (and moms!) hungry!  Some of our favorites are:

• Mozzarella cheese sticks (string cheese)
• grapes
• apples
• clementine oranges (I like these because the kids can peel them!)
• popcorn
• crackers w/cheese or peanut butter
• raisins
• sherbet pops
• and the not-so-healthy (but yummy!) - Chee-tos.

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So that's some of our favorites.  I'm anxious to read what other homeschool mamas are saying over at Dana's (@ Principled Discovery).  I'm hoping to get some new ideas to try out on my family!

1:58 PM - Apr. 2, 2008 - comments {4} - post comment

Home Education Week - Day 3 - "April Fools"

Dana (@ Principled Discovery) said,

"We have likely all felt the fool in one way or another. Share your greatest challenge. Or one of those terrible, horrible no good, very bad days where the only thing there is to do seems to involve moving to Australia."

It's not unusual for me to feel foolish.  I make mistakes, frequently.  Some are worse than others, of course.  However, there is one mistake that continues to sneak up and smack me in the face all too often.  It's a little something called "lack of preparation", if you wanna be fancy.  Or, you might just call it, "Mama ain't ready yet!" 

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It's my greatest challenge: pulling everything together and making it happen!  I have great ideas and lofty goals.  I have great ambitions and wonderful intentions.  What I lack is the get-up-and-go to put it in gear.  I don't think it is that I'm lazy.  (At least I hope not!)  I really think that I get distracted and busy doing other things, and I just forget, or I don't "get around" to doing what I need to do.

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The result?  Monday morning rolls around, and I'm still scrambling to pull things together for school.  Which means, the kids are running around like chickens with their heads cut off, which makes it even harder for me to get things pulled together...  And so I usually end up getting frustrated.  And crabby.  And I raise my voice.  And before long we are all irritable and snapping at each other.  And nothing worth doing gets done.

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So why haven't I learned? 

10:20 PM - Apr. 1, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Home Education Week - Day 2 - "Profiling Home Educators"

Dana says, "Describe yourself, your family or one of your children. What is it like to be home educated in your family? What is 'normal' for you?" 

So, would you like to come and meet the fam? 

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Here are the two troublemakers who started the whole thing:

This photo was taken as we were leaving our wedding reception... almost 14 years ago!  We were young (I was 19, dh was 21) and had our whole lives ahead of us.  If anyone would have told me at that point that in 12 years I'd be a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom to three children - I would have LAUGHED OUT LOUD!  And yet... here we are. 

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Two years later, in 1996, this little guy came along:

And what a journey we found ourselves on then!  Many sleepless nights later, he's grown into quite a wonderful young man.  I don't call him by name online, so here he is known as "BigBub", because he is the big brother in our bunch.  BigBub has a variety of interests, ranging anywhere from building with Legos and playing video games to sounding out classical pieces on the piano and reading cook books.  At the age of 11, he is already quite independent and trustworthy.  When it comes to schoolwork, I usually just have to tell him what to do and he tackles it.  He's really good at math and language, but I think his passions lie more in science and history.  He has a lot of dreams that he hopes to accomplish "someday".  He thinks he'd like to be a marine biologist, a chef, an architect, the owner of a large luxury hotel chain, a gastroenterologist, and/or the owner of a large "Sea World" like theme park.  Who knows which one he'll pick, or if he'll end up doing something completely different!  Whatever he does, I know he'll be great.  I love that he can dream big!

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Two years after BigBub joined us, along came this little bundle of sweetness:-

She has all kinds of nicknames, but here I just call her "Sis", or sometimes "Sistah".  Sis is definitely a girly-girl, into all things pink and frilly, especially if it has butterflies on it.  However, she's also very good at basketball and other athletic-oriented things like swimming, gymnastics, and ballet.  She doesn't like to admit it, but she is very smart.  Sometimes we have to remind her to be bold like a bulldog when it comes to getting her schoolwork done, instead of helpless like a little kitty cat.  She likes it when we put it like that, and will usually turn and "growl" at us to show us that she's a bulldog.  Sis loves to read, and is currently enthralled with the American Girl series.  She got her first American Girl doll a few months ago and she still carries her everywhere she goes.  As for what to be when she grows up, she doesn't have anything definite in mind yet.  The only thing that she mentions regularly is that she wants to be a mommy.  I think that's a wonderful goal to have! 

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Then, last but not least, is LilBub.

LilBub might be the "baby" of the family, but he certainly plays a big role.  He keeps us on our toes, and also keeps us laughing with his unique way of phrasing things sometimes.  He'll be starting Kindergarten this fall, and he's already reading quite a few words on his own.  He loves to do dot-to-dot's and mazes, and he loves to draw, but he's not so crazy about coloring.  I am consistently amazed at LilBub's ability to pick up on things that his older brother and sister are learning in their lessons.  For example, he can recite part of the speech given by Patrick Henry to the House of Burgesses, just from overhearing his brother and sister memorizing it.  I think it's pretty cute!  He also is completely enthralled with video games and anything ending in the word "-ball".  I guess you could say that he is all boy!  I am looking forward to starting Kindergarten with him because he will be the first one that I've homeschooled from the very beginning.  I know that he's going to go far and do well!  I'm so thrilled to be the one to get to see it all firsthand.

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So... that's us!  And here's us now...

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Thanks for visiting!

10:09 PM - Mar. 31, 2008 - comments {3} - post comment

Home Education Week - Day 1 - "Looking Back"

It's the beginning of a very special week here in the blog-world!  Dana at Principled Discovery is hosting a special weeklong event to commemorate the first annual Home Education Week in her home state of Nebraska (<-Click to read the official proclamation from the Governor.)  The state of Florida is celebrating homeschooling this week, too.  I wonder how long it will be before the other 48 will follow suit? 

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This is going to be a fun week!  I'm looking forward to reading lots of ideas and thoughts and stories of other families' homeschooling adventures.  And, I'm excited to get to share some things from my family's experiences.  I hope you'll join in the fun!  For more information, go visit Principled Discovery. 

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Today's theme is "Looking Back". 

"Share your personal history…before you were a home educator.

What was life like? Think about things you miss

and things you and your family have gained."

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Before homeschooling my kids, they attended a small, Christian school; the same one in which I had spent my K-12 years.  My firstborn had trouble from day one in Kindergarten.  He has never been "slow" when it comes to learning.  On the contrary, he has always been extremely bright and a fast learner.  But, at that point, he had a lot of energy.  That, combined with him being a "hands-on" learner, made things difficult for him in a traditional classroom setting.  It made it hard for his teacher, too! 

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Every day I would go in to pick him up at the door of the classroom, and his teacher would meet me there to tell me all the things that he had done wrong that day.  It usually involved things like fidgeting too much, not keeping his hands to himself, not staying in line on the way to and from the cafeteria or the bathroom, etc.  Maybe it was pregnancy hormones, because at the time I was expecting #3, but I had a hard time listening to that day after day! 

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Every Monday was folder day.  My son would be given his folder to take home, full of the previous week's papers, plus any notes or announcements that parents needed to know about.  I always found it humorous that on my son's papers would usually be written some comment about needing to be neater, especially the ones that involved coloring.  My son was not a colorer.  He had no interest in taking crayons and filling in a picture that someone else had drawn.  He could take a blank piece of paper and draw something magnificent.  But coloring a picture?  He hated it.  So his coloring pages always came back saying, "Needs to work on coloring!"  LOL. 

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And then there were the field trips and all the various class activities.  Parents were encouraged and even somewhat expected to take a very active role in these things.  But with a preschooler and an infant in tow, I couldn't always make it to everything.  This gave me a huge guilt complex as a mom.  Especially when my child would tell me later, "...but all the other moms were there."  *sigh*  I hated missing out on those things!  It broke my heart, knowing that my child was going on a field trip and he would be one of the few who didn't have a parent there to accompany him.  And I worried, too, that he would be left out or overlooked.  He wasn't... but I still worried!

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I could continue with tales about each year until we finally made the decision to homeschool, but they are all about the same.  My son was in 3rd grade, my daughter in 1st, when we decided that we had all enough.  At the end of that school year, we made it known that we would be homeschooling after that.  My children were elated.  I was scared, relieved, and excited all in one!  My dh, well, he was just glad to be free from the tuition costs! 

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So let's see, is there anything that I miss about my pre-homeschooling life?  Hmmm.... getting up early every day?  Dragging the baby out of bed before he was ready so we could get the older kids to school?  Waking the baby from his afternoon nap to go pick up the older kids from school?  Spending a fortune on new school supplies and a million odds and ends throughout the year whether they need them or not?  Purchasing a new "back-to-school" wardrobe in the fall just because?  Forcing my children to read books that they weren't the least bit interested in within a ridiculous time frame so they could do well on the "AR" tests?  Dealing with the parenting-politics that are ever present, especially in a private school?  Etc., etc., etc....  Need I go on?  Do I miss that stuff?  NO!

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What have we gained?  Well, we have gained a closeness within our family that wasn't there before.  We have time now, to just relax and be a family and not let the rest of the world determine when and for how long we can see each other.  My children may fight like cats and dogs sometimes, but they are also each other's best friends. (BTW, they tried to play with each other on the playground when they were in school.  They got in trouble, because 1st graders and 3rd graders weren't allowed to play together.  They could only play with kids from their class.)  And, they have been free to spend time with their cousins (who are also homeschooled) and their grandparents, which is absolutely priceless.  They have also made friends within our co-op who have been such a blessing. 

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As a mom, I have gained so much confidence!  I love homeschooling my children and I'm proud to be a homeschooling mom.  I feel that I'm truly doing what God has called me to do now.  And really, that is all that I need to know.  Just like the name of this blog says, I am homeschooling my children -

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for heaven's sake. 

3:30 PM - Mar. 30, 2008 - comments {4} - post comment

Preschool vs. PS2

I had a very interesting discussion with my almost 5 year old earlier this week.  He is my youngest of three children, and the first one of my children that I will be homeschooling beginning in Kindergarten, which is a little scary for me!  This is our second year to be homeschooling, so he's gotten used to the idea of his bubby and sissy doing their schoolwork every day.  However, when it comes to his schooling, we have been pretty laid back to this point.  We read a lot of books and go over charts that I have hanging on the wall with letters, numbers, shapes, colors, and the days of the week.  And, up until recently, we just did "preschool" sporadically throughout the day, weaving it in around our other activities. 

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Well, since LilBub has discovered that he likes to play video games, things have changed a little bit.  He wakes up in the mornings ready to play video games.  Every spare moment that we are home, he wants to play video games.  At night when it's time to go to bed, he's sad because he has to leave the video games behind.  And please understand the difference in the child's wanting to play video games, and the amount of time that his parents actually allow him to play them.  There's a big difference!  If we let him play them as much as he would like, we'd never see the child. 

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The problem lately, though, is that he'll ask to play his game, and I'll have to tell him, "Not until after school."  He does not like that answer.  He has decided, in fact, that he does not like school.  Because it keeps him away from his video games.  The child is FOUR. 

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The conversation continues, but I'll have to share it with you next time.  I have to go and unplug the PS2 right now and put the little gamer to bed!  *sigh*

8:13 PM - Mar. 21, 2008 - comments {4} - post comment

To routine? Or not to routine? That is the question.

Works-For-Me-Wednesday this week is a Backwards Edition, in which participants can ask for tips on any given subject instead of sharing tips of their own.  There are so many things that I need help with in my life, it's hard to pick JUST ONE thing to ask about!  But, since this is my homeschooling blog, I thought I'd shoot in that general direction. 

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One thing that I really love about homeschooling is the freedom and flexibility that we have with our daily routines.  If we have a late night and need to sleep in - no big deal.  If we're snowed in and can't leave the house for a few days - that doesn't interfere with school, although it does tend to make mom a little crazy!  If everyone gets sick, including mom, and we do no school at all for a whole week - it's okay.  We have to do make up work, but not like they would have to do at a "real school".  I love having that freedom. 

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However, I am the type of person who, if you give me an inch, I might unintentionally take a mile, so to speak.  It may be that I get on a kick of staying up too late at night, and thus the bad habit of sleeping in too late follows.  Every once in awhile, fine.  But not every day.  Or, maybe we're studying something really cool with KONOS, and we get so caught up in it that we neglect our language and math for a week.  Whoops! 

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Of course, the most obvious solution is to have a daily routine.  Believe me, we've TRIED.  For a long time I kept a chore chart on the refrigerator with categories for morning, afternoon, and evening activities.  This included both chores AND schoolwork.  We had a fancy little point system where each activity counted for "x" amount of points, and the kids were "paid" for the points they accumulated.  It was great.  For awhile.  Then we fizzled out, and the chore chart.... is now landfill. 

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Then, I tried giving each child a printed off checklist each day for the things I expected them to get done.  They could do it in whatever order they chose, but it had to be finished before bed and the sheet turned in for a "grade".  Again, a grand idea... but it fizzled after a few months, too.  I'd hand them their daily checklist, and they'd reply with an, "Awwwwww....Mooooommmm...." and the whiny eyes... it gets to ya after awhile, I don't care who you are. 

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Jessica Hulcy, the co-author of the curriculum we use and the leader of the online Konos Co-Op, recommends a simple routine of doing the 3 R's in the morning, and Konos activities in the afternoon.  But it's just not working for us the way it should.  We have appointments in the morning at least twice a week, and we're gone all day every Monday...

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Boy, I am really starting to sound like a whine-bag, too!  Now I know where my kids get it!  Ha! 

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So tell me, am I just being lazy?  HOW do I find a routine that works for us?  Or should we ditch the routine and just wing it?  What WORKS FOR YOU?

12:48 PM - Mar. 5, 2008 - comments {6} - post comment

New Kid in School

 

3:35 PM - Feb. 13, 2008 - comments {5} - post comment

The More They Get Together...

The happier they'll be...

It's been a co~ooold, rainy day today.  Other than a quick trip to the grocery store, we've been at home, bundled up.  After the lessons were done and the mess cleaned up, the kids decided to put together a tent out of blankets and sheets.  After a full day of fussing at each other, it was nice to find them doing something fun together and getting along. 

5:07 PM - Feb. 12, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Survivor - Home Edition

Whaddya think -

Workin' hard?

Or hardly workin'?

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I obviously have nothing to blog about, as far as school goes.  We are in "survival mode" at the moment, just trying to hang in there while my eldest is going through some health issues.  It's been hard to accomplish much with that going on.  We're hoping to have some answers really soon.

Until then, we'll be doing our Switched on Schoolhouse, reading books, and trying to make the most of it. 

2:33 PM - Feb. 6, 2008 - comments {3} - post comment

Back in the Saddle...

We are desperately trying to get back in the saddle with our school work.  I have to say, it has been a bit of a struggle.  For starters, we had an exceptionally busy holiday break.  During the month of December we pretty much laid off most of the real "official" school stuff.  The kids did some S.O.S., but mostly what we did for "school" was making gifts and cards.  (Shhhh!  Don't tell the kids that we were doing school while they were having all that fun!)

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Then, my beautiful baby sister got married on New Year's Eve.  It was a very touching ceremony... but what made it even more exciting was that we "threw" it all together in only 2 weeks.  Sis and her fiance' had planned to get married in March, but with them living in two states, hundreds of miles apart, planning a wedding was proving quite difficult.  So they both came "home" for Christmas and all the little elves in the family helped put together their New Year's Eve wedding.  It was a lot of work, but it was one of those experiences that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world.  After all, those kinds of things are just what sisters are for!  :) 

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Since then we've had a few illnesses in the family, and it's hard to do school when half of the students are out sick.  ("half", in our case, equals "one".  ha.)  Today I spent the better part of the afternoon in the doctor's office with my 11 year old who has a tummy bug. 

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So tomorrow, we will try again.  Soon, I will have something more interesting to post, I promise!  (I promise, DDT!  You know who you are!) 

9:15 PM - Jan. 14, 2008 - comments {3} - post comment

Back to the Basics

I've come to the realization this week that my kids aren't as proficient in their math skills as they should be.  So, I've put a temporary hold on all other subjects besides math and language arts.  This week we've basically done math, math, and more math.... and when they're so sick of it that they can't stand it anymore, we switch to something language related. 

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We've had to do this before, but only when I didn't have the time or sanity to plan anything else.  This time, though, it's really for their own good.  I know that there are more important things in life than math, believe me.  I always stank (is that a word?) at math when I was in school.  But, I believe that having a good foundation in math is important.  Especially since my 5th grader has reached a point with his Switched on Schoolhouse math program where it's either back up and learn it, or quit the program, because he can't keep going until he GETS IT. 

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I have to admit that it's kind've a nice break for me, too.  I'm sure we'll get back to regular school next week, though.  But it is nice to be able to recognize the need for slowing down and reviewing, instead of constantly plowing ahead.  Another bonus for homeschooling, huh? 

3:18 PM - Oct. 19, 2007 - comments {8} - post comment

"What She Loves" - Our entry for Sprittibee's Fall Five Kodak Printer Giveaway Contest!

My friend Sprittibee is hosting a fabulous contest where she'll be giving away a Kodak EasyShare 5300 Printer.  Who wouldn't want to win that?  I know I would!  And it would go wonderfully with my Kodak Easyshare V1003.   After years spent in the camera ice age, I finally got this digital camera (for my birthday - thank you dh!) that I absolutely LOVE.  It has all the necessary features, plus a lot of features that are just plain FUN.  It's totally user-friendly and a cinch to use - straight out of the box.  PLUS, it has a video recorder that does just as good a job as my camcorder!  We purchased an additional memory card, and can now take up to an hour's worth of video.  And, I love that it runs on a rechargeable battery - just plug it in, let it charge, and you're good to go!  I love it!  Now I just need a way to print all my photos......

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Sprittibee gave 5 project choices for entering the contest.  After consulting with my kiddos, we chose to do project #2:

Do a photo project entitled "What I Love". Kids can take pictures of their favorite things. Learn a little about photography as you go (take unusual angle shots, macros, etc.). Make a collage or photo book of your results.

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However, we were pretty late getting into the game, so only one of my children really was able to help put it together.    Some of the photos she took herself.  Others, she borrowed from my collection.  We've compiled them all into a photo mosaic slideshow.  We've entitled our entry,

"What She Loves".

10:16 PM - Oct. 15, 2007 - comments {2} - post comment

Lest We Forget...

We've been studying "Explorers" for the past 5 weeks.  We've covered everything from Leif Eriksson and the Vikings to Marquette and Jolliet.  What an exciting study this has been!  I think that I've learned just as much as the kids have!  I'm sure that is pretty common with homeschooling moms, though.  I guess one of the most important lessons I have learned is that I don't have to know everything about a subject in order to teach it.  As "Miss Jessica" (Jessica Hulcy of Konos Curriculum) has told those of us in the online co-op, you just have to DO IT.  Just jump in and get started, and the rest will fall into place.  I've been just learning as we go along. 

Speaking of learning, have you ever had to come up with some clever ways to remember something?  We've been learning so many new names that it's been a little difficult to keep them all straight.  So, we came up with ways to help ourselves remember them.  For example:

• Q.  What is the name of the explorer who was the first to sail from Portugal, around the continent of Africa, to India, and back? 
• A.  Da Gama (we remember it by saying, "It wasn't 'da Grampa.... It was... Da Gama!")
• Q.  What is the name of the explorer who explored what is now Florida, searching for the fountain of youth?
• A.  Ponce de Leon  (We remember it by saying, "First he pounced on it, then he 'lay-on' it.")
• Q.  What is the name of the explorer who explored the southwestern parts of North America? 
• A.  Coronado.  (We remember it by saying, "He went just south of Colorado... so it must have been Coronado!")

Yes, those are pret-ty cheesy, I know!  But, do ya think my kids will forget them?

9:11 PM - Oct. 6, 2007 - comments {5} - post comment

Vikings in my backyard!

As part of our unit on Explorers, we've been studying Vikings and doing some fun stuff to reinforce what we've learned.  One thing we've done is make Viking shields.  We took a big cardboard box (from the dumpster behind SEARS...LOL.) and cut out three big circles.   I helped the kids tape off sections and then spray paint whatever colors they wanted for their shield.  Then we finished them off with black electrical tape.  Dh tacked a thin strip of plywood to the back of each shield for some extra support, and fixed a carboard handle to the wood.  The kids have had a lot of fun playing "viking". 

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Oh, and one of the neighborhood kids came by as we were working on this project one evening last week.  He said, "Aw, man - I wish I was homeschooled."  Not the first time we've heard that.  Just one more thing to love about using Konos, it really is a lot of fun. 

9:44 AM - Sep. 14, 2007 - comments {4} - post comment

Learning - the KONOS way!

I gotta tell ya, we really, truly love using KONOS as our curriculum.  Who knew that learning could be SO MUCH FUN?!  I've posted several times in the past about things we've done w/Konos.  Below you'll find quick access to some of my previous entries, if you're interested in learning more about Konos.  Or, you can visit the Konos website at www.Konos.com.  You can also find out more at www.HomeschoolMentor.com, which is the site of the online Konos co-op. 

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At the Homeschool Mentor website, you can receive a whole week of free lesson plans and watch a series of videos about how to use Konos.  The instructor is Mrs. Jessica Hulcy, co-author of the Konos curriculum, and she is FABULOUS.  She literally takes you by the hand and guides you through the how-to's of homeschooling the Konos way.  This is our second semester using the virtual co-op, which is wonderful since we do not have a local Konos group.  It's only $30 a month, but the instruction from Mrs. Jessica as well as the encouragement and comraderie among the members of the e-loop is, well, priceless. 

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I would highly recommend paying a visit to the Homeschool Mentor Website and checking it out for yourself.  Even if you've already got your curriculum for this semester, you've really got to take a look at what Konos has to offer.  Trust me, this is learning in a whole different way than anything I had ever imagined.  And with Mrs. Jessica putting together the lesson plans and showing us on video how to use them every week, it really takes almost all of the work out of it for us moms.  All I have to do is watch the videos and take a few notes, gather the books and supplies we'll need for the week, and the rest is just a matter of doing what is on the schedule for each day.  It is totally, completely, without a doubt - wonderful. 

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Am I getting gushy here???  Can you tell I am passionate about this curriculum?  I am!  And the more important part is - SO ARE MY KIDS!    They love learning the Konos way! 

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Quick access to my previous "Konos" posts:

Homeschooling with Konos...

Frontiersmen Unit - Making a miniature pioneer town.

Orderliness Unit - Our Family Tree

Trust Unit - Learning about ships and floating.

Plant Classification Unit - our finale to the school year: Botanical Buffet

Plant Classification Unit - Making Nature Tiles

9:06 AM - Sep. 14, 2007 - comments {0} - post comment

Kidtionary

As I've mentioned before, my 4 year old seems to have a vocabulary all his own.  I wanted to journal these things so that I don't forget them, so we can look back and laugh remember fondly someday these bygone days of the early years.

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Here is the list I have compiled so far.  I'll continue to add to it.

He says:           What he means:

"Fab-lee-us" -   "fabulous"  (this is a new one, since my kids have been watching "High School Musical II", and there's a song that they sing in the movie about wanting things to be "fabulous"... so of course, the child has to sing along!)

"Ri-di-clee-us" -   "ridiculous"

"Av-ra-gated"  -    "aggrevated"

"cal-clee-ator" -    "calculator"

"stister" -              "sister"

"elphe-lunt" -        "elephant"

"hair-uh-cane" -    "hurricane"

"fledge" -              "pledge" (of allegiance)

"am-blee-ance" -  "ambulance"

"zrebra" -              "zebra"

And here are a few from my older kids when they were little:

"yeern-yane"     -  "airplane"

"call-a-docker" -   "helicopter"

"hi-dee"            -   "telephone" (because you say "howdy" when you answer the phone, right?)

That's all I can think of right now!

11:31 AM - Sep. 12, 2007 - comments {3} - post comment