Friday, May 1, 1:00 p.m. RCHEC Monthly Meeting at Abundant Life Church on  Humbert Rd in Alton.  Andrea will lead a discussion about incorporating games into our school day.  If you have a favorite game, bring it along.  The kids can play in the gym (or stay with Mom).

Since next month (June) will be our last regular meeting for this school year, we'll have a few things going on that are a little different: 1)  Abundant Life has been very hospitable in allowing us to use their facilities every month.  I'd like to take a collection next month that we can donate to one of their ministries.  If you have a couple of dollars that you'd like to donate, there will be a collection can at the June meeting.  I'll also have a Thank You card to sign.  2)  The June meeting will be a chance to buy, sell, trade or give away your used homeschooling items.  Mark the things that you'd like to sell with a price.  There will also be a FREE table - worksheets that never got used, half-done activity books, homemade teaching games that you've outgrown, etc. - anything you'd like to give away might be useful to another homeschooling family.  3)  Our final collection for Oasis will be diapers.  Bring any size or brand you'd like to donate.

 

Friday May 15 1:00 - 3:00  Playtime at Culp Lane Park in Bethalto. No planned activities, just informal playtime for Parents & Kids!   I've had requests for both morning & afternoon time, so we'll try one of each.

 

Friday, May 22   2:00 p.m.  BOWLING at Bowl Haven in Alton. $1.85 per person/per game includes shoe rental. Please sign in & pay before you bowl.

 

Friday, May 29  will be the date of our End of the Year Celebration & Exhibit Night.  Exhibits can include anything: essay, poem, short story, research, art, science, history, geography, etc., or just a display of what they've done this year. Each child will have an opportunity to talk about their exhibits.   We'll have more details of the time & place next week.

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YEARBOOK  The school year is coming to a close, so it must be time to do the yearbook!  If you have any pictures for the yearbook (individual and/or events) please bring them to the meeting this Friday or you can contact me if another way is necessary.
If you are interested in scrapbooking some pages for the yearbook please let me know this week, or at the meeting so we can set up a time to do this. Any question? Just e-mail me! Looking forward to having fun!
Elizabeth Harper

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PASTA HOUSE READING  We are at the end of the school year and this is the last month for the Pasta House Reading Program. If your student would like to receive a coupon for a free dinner, let me know by Monday, May 4. (100 pages = 1 coupon; 3 max)
peacherswife@yahoo.com

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THE NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER celebration is Thursday, May 7th, at noon, at the Lincoln Douglas Square. I know a lot of homeschoolers usually attend this event.

 

CAHOKIA MOUNDS KIDS DAY  May 17, 2009 at the Cahokia Mounds Historic Site
Time: 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Website: www.cahokiamounds.com  Programs & hands-on activities for children of all ages including arrow head making, Indian games, corn grinding, pottery making, spear throwing, identifying animal tracks and furs, storytelling and more! Food and drink available.

 

CINDERELLA AUDITIONS  Acting up is holding all age open call auditions for Cinderella on May 18th at
6:30 pm. Please bring a prepared monologue or for the younger actors, please be prepared to tell us a story.  Show dates are July 31, Aug 1, 7 & 8. For more information, please call 618-344-0026 or email
cmize@historicminersinstitute.org.

ST. LOUIS GREEK FEST  May 22, 2009 – May 25, 2009 at Assumption Greek Orthodox Church
Time: 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Cost: Free  Website: www.stlgreekfest.com   Authentic Greek food and pastries, live Greek music, authentic Greek folk dancing, Agora Marketplace, church tours, kids corner and more.

 

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 Dear Editor:
The most important component of any civilization is its religion.  Religion is the underlying principle which allows civilization to exist.  In order to be a civilized people, the vast majority of people must acknowledge, love and worship God.

We have been taught otherwise, however.  We have been taught to believe that our civilization is based upon freedom, democracy, capitalism, our constitution, science and technology and so forth.

Democracy, however, cannot work as the primary organizing principle of civilization.
Capitalism does not work as the primary organizing principle of civilization.
Freedom does not work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Constitutions cannot work as the primary organizing principles of civilization.
Science cannot work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Humanism does not work as the organizing principle of civilization.
The separation of church and state cannot work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Socialism does not work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Communism does not work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Environmentalism cannot serve as the primary organizing principle of civilization.
Darwinism cannot work as the organizing principle of civilization.
Globalization cannot work as the organizing principle of civilization.
The internet cannot serve as the organizing principle of civilization.
Education that is not centered on God is not an organizing principle of civilization.

None of these things individually, nor any combination of these things can serve as the organizing principle of civilization.  There is only one principle upon which civilization can be organized and maintained and that is religion.

Western civilization is not democracy, capitalism, science and freedom.  Western civilization is Christianity.

We are a civilized people only to the extent that we embrace God.

Jonathan Wysong
1 Maybeck Place
Elsah, IL 62028
(618) 374-5359

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From Trivia Today:

The first Crayola crayons were produced by cousins Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith in 1903. The pair made the crayons from paraffin wax and colored pigments, in a pack of just eight simple colors: red, blue, yellow, green, violet, orange, black and brown.

Since then, the company has produced over a 100 billion crayons. In 2007, the subsidiary of Hallmark Cards became "Crayola LLC". Crayola has its headquarters in Forks Township, Pennsylvania.
    
The name "Crayola" was created by Alice Stead Binney, a former school teacher. She put together the French word "craie", which means "chalk", and "ola," from "oleaginous", which means "oily", and came up with "Crayola".

Crayola makes 120 colors of crayons today. There are 19 shades of blue, 20 types of green, 23 shades of red, 8 different yellows, 16 types of purples, 14 shades of oranges, 11 browns, 2 grays, 1 silver, 1 white, 2 black shades, 1 gold and 2 types of copper. 
                            
Back in 2000, Crayola developed an online poll to find out what crayon color was America's favorite, and the result was blue. 

According to a Yale University study of American adults, the smell of Crayola crayons is ranked number 18 when it comes to the 20 most recognizable smells.