Learn your Greek root words by playing this game

Try your hand at pronouns, helping verbs and prepositions  here

If you are interested in making your own interactive games, check out this cool site for teachers and homeschoolers here

This is the timeline that I created with my daughter to be used for the American Girl book club

You can use these dates as a starting off point for your own timeline

1760 - King George III crowned King of England

1763 - French and Indian War ends.

1764 - Kaya

1765 - Stamp Act passed

1767 - Townshend Acts passed-tax on tea and other imported goods

1770 - Boston Massacre occurs

1773 - Boston Tea Party occurs

1774 - First Continental Congress meets

1775 - Revolutionary War begins

1775 - Washington is named chief of the American Forces

1776 - Declaration of Independence approved

1781 - Washingron's army wins the battle of Yorktown

1783 - Revolutionary war officially ends-The Treaty of Paris

1788 - The constitution is ratified

I was able to find the pictures of the events online by just putting key words in the search box. Then we cut them out and glued them to our poster size timeline. Here is our final result

We have started our American girl club. After months of talking about it we have finally planned out the weeks ahead.  We started with Kaya and did 4 weeks. Our idea was to do it in chronological order and incorporate history into the meetings.  We were able to talk about American Indians while studying Kaya. The girls are making a timeline which will end up with all the American girls when it is complete.

I wasn't able to get organized enough to make the schedule for Kaya but I do have all of what we are doing for Felicity.  We were able to get our hands on a Colonial America history kit from our history museum, which had tons of artifacts and learning activities. It has been a great resource for what we wanted to do in the club. 

Week 1   Read Meet Felicity

History Discussion

1. Overview of American Revolution
2. Timeline period between 1774-1776
3. Restrictive clothing for girls (types of clothing included: hoops of whalebone, metal stays to cinch the waist and keep posture straight, pinner aprons, and mob caps)
4. We were able to see and feel the different fabrics like silk, linen, wool, and buckskin courtesy of the history museum
5. We also learned how to use cotton cards, how the colonists picked the cotton by hand and removed the seeds by hand and smoothed the cotton with the cotton card and that the children were usually the ones to do this as part of their chores. Here is a picture of the girls trying out the cotton cards

Geography

1. Found Williamsburg, Va on the map

Craft

1. We made simple mob caps using  this pattern and the girls learned they were worn to keep their hair clean because it was a huge ordeal to take a bath and to wash their hair
2. They also decorated straw hats with silk flowers

Here is the final result - Don't they look cute

Week 2  Read Felicity Learns a Lesson

History Discussion

1. Boston Tea Party
2. Education for girls which included academic and personal lessons like, penmenship, stichery, and housewifery
3. In our history kit we saw a hornbook, which isn't a book but a thin piece of wood with the alphabet, alphabet letter combinations, and the Lord's Prayer on a lessonsheet and covered with a thin sheet of clear horn

Timeline

1. Here are some ideas of different dates to add to a timeline around that period here 

Activity

1. The girls learned how to write using a quill pen and that the ink was made from walnuts or berries

Craft

1. They learned basic sewing skills by making a pinner apron out of a tea towel, by folding down one end and hemming it and threading a ribbon through the hem so it can be tied around their waist.

Week 3  Read Felicity's Surprise

History Disscusion

1. Patriots, Loyalists, and Moderates and the difference between
2. The rituals and customs of celebrating Christmas of that time - called Cristmastide.

Geography

1. Look at a map of Williamsburg, Va - locate the Governor's Palace, the Merrimans' house and store, Miss Manderlys', the apothecarys', and the milleners'.
2. Discuss what those stores sell

Famous People

1. Phyllis Wheatley - First published African American poet,

Activity

1. Learn to dance the minuet with music that was included in our history in a kit from the museum, you can see the dance steps here
2. They will also learn how to "make a curtsy" and you can find that here

  Craft

1. Cross stitch a pattern on the pinner aprons
2. Make a sillouette  by using a flashlight and shining it on a piece of white paper when the room is dark and tracing around the profile of the face. Then you cut the pattern out and mount it on back construction paper for the backgroud.

We have been homeschooling since my daughter was in the 1st grade, she is now beginning 4th.  When we started teaching math it was learning the basics like counting forward and backward to 100, skip counting, place value, and basic addition and subtraction.  Of course, it was math I was comfortable teaching without a lot of help. Second grade was alot of the same and increasing in difficulty.  Then we got bored with the curriculum we were using and switched to something else in the middle of the year. My mistake was repeating alot of what she already knew instead of skipping ahead in the book. This began our struggle with math. 

When we took her for her yearly test, we knew we messed up. She was behind a year in math. I know that having her home is making sure that she understands everything before we move on, but we are not moving forward. We have come to a stand still and she does not have the confidence to go onto the next steps.  We have struggled with this for a long time and researched everywhere for the perfect curriculum to help her move forward.

When we went to our homechool conference, we came across Right Start Math. We had never heard of it before and because of this we were apprehensive to try it.  I didn't want to spend a fortune on another math curriculum that we weren't even sure was going to work.  Then miraculously, I came across the Trasition book for free.  It was an answer to prayer. 

We started as soon as I could get the abacus and any of the other manipulatives I couldn't make from what I had. My daughter was so happy to do this math, she begged me to do more than one lesson a day. It was like night and day.  We have only tried the transition book and I know that when we get through this review of thngs she already knows, she will be struggling with new information. 

Because she is a visual, hands on learner this type of math suits her.  The only thing she had to adjust to was the way she counts.  She learned the English way of counting like ten, eleven, twelve, and thirteen.  This curriculum teaches the Asian way like, ten-1, ten-2, ten-3 for the teens and 2-ten, 2-ten-1 and so on for the twenties.  This helps in learning place value.  The other great thing about this curriculum was the manipulatives.  The one thing you definately have to have is the special abacus. This is not just any abacus, this is specially made.   It has 100 beads like normal but colored with two colors, blue and yellow, and divided by fives and tens. Each row has ten beads and each five is either blue or yellow.

You can get more research information and the catalog at www.ALabacus.com  I had a lot of the manipulatives already at home so the only thing I needed to buy was the card game kit which included the AL Abacus Junior.  The card games are important in reinforcing the memorization of facts.

Of course because I like order and things in thier place I had to find a way to organize all of the manipulatives, and there was a lot of them. One idea I got from someone on the Right Start message board was to use an over the door shoe organizer, the kind with the clear pockets. There were 26 pockets and I was able to find a pocket for everything. Here is a picture of the end result.

I hope that this curriculum creates confidence in my daughter so she can succeed in any other math program later on. 

In sticking to my organization obsession, I have been planning for the new year a different way. In the past I always forgot about the cool books and activities I bought for what we were studying, and I felt guilty for not using them because, of course, my daughter completely missed out on some very important information.    So this year I want to be prepared. 

I am going through each week and pulling the books, games, crafts, worksheets and anything else pertaining to the subject we are learning.  There was a reason for organizing my shelves the way I did, it will make it a lot easier to locate what I need. So if we are studying Ancient Egypt, I know that I can find the books, games, crafts, and articles on the history shelf.  I am able to find hieroglyphs with no problem and I am not looking in three different areas for what I need, nor am I forgetting that I have it in the first place.

There is a math and language arts shelf with the smaller manipulatives and flash cards in plastic bins that can easily slide in and out of the shelves.   

In organizing like I did, I was also able to get rid of items I was not using or wouldn't need until later years. This gave me a lot more space and I am not overwhelmed with all of the extras that we may not get to. 

• Victor Journey to the Bible
• Streams of Civilization Vol. 1
• Ancient World  by Usborne
• Celebrating Biblical Feasts
• Ancient Egypt
• The Aesop for Children
• The Trojan Horse
• The Children's Homer
• Genesis for Kids
• Dinosaurs of Eden
• Pyramids
• Archimedes and the door of Science
• English form the Roots Up
• God and the History of Art
• Introduction to Vivaldi, Bach, and Handel
• The Tanglewood Secret by Patricia St. John
• Star of Light by Patricia St. John
• Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. John

     This is just the list that My Fathers World requires.

It's that time of year again. Getting ready for the new school year takes alot of planning and organizing, not to mention cleaning. That has been what I have been doing for the last three weeks and I don't know if I'm making it worse or if there is an end in sight. I have been trying a new approach to the way I organize. I was inspired by my friend who moved into a new house and needed to go through everything to find a home for it all.  She had a friend help her to get it all together and when I saw it I was a little jealous. I wanted her friend to come to my house and help me dig out of the unending clutter.

While I was there I was taking notes so I could get started on it as soon as I got home. First thing I noticed was how every like item was put together, like scissors in the same box (she had 23 pair) and the glue together, also the same subject matter, like math and history. That is not how I usually organize, I go through one shelf or box at time and I never know if I have doubles of anything. I liked this other way of going through everything because I am able to get rid of all the same items, and I finally realized I don't need 10 or more pairs of scissors.

When I started on my room it was hard to separate things but when I started doing it I came across a lot of books that I had doubles of.  Our classroom is our spare bedroom so space is very limited. My friend was converting her two car garage into the classroom ( I wanted to move right in). Anyway, I am thankful we have the spare room to keep all of the school supplies in so I can't complain.

Now, as I am completing the sorting and donation piles I can breathe a little. I like the way all of the books, flashcards, games, and periodicals pertaining to history are all on one bookshelf. It was harder with the science because that seems to be the one thing we have the most of.  I have a two door cabinet for all the math books and manipulatives, for that I have to downsize because I can't fit everything in. That is the rule, if I can't fit it on the shelf or cabinet then it has to go. I made this decision because I can get overwhelmed with way too much stuff. And I would love to bless someone who really needs it.  

For our craft items I have this 15 drawer cart for the crayons, markers, sewing kits, stickers and paints.  I have a bookshelf by my desk for the teacher resources, computer paper and office supplies.

When I was going through my daughters papers and pictures from last year I didn't want to just throw them away. In the past I put them in a banker box and put it up in the attic, well now as the years go by I need to downsize even more. Since we are going into our fourth year of homeschooling I realize I can not keep all those banker boxes, so I found that if I put them into priority mail boxes ( the flat kind) I won't take up much room in the attic. I am not keeping everything of course, before I throw out the macaroni art I take a picture of it and put that in the box with the most memorable work.  

I know that this is going to be an ongoing process and something I have to work very hard at. I'm sure that in time I will need to tweak this new system. Not everything works for everyone, but I like this plan and I am excited to get school started without having this hang over my head.

Organized Homeschool-what an oxy moron.

I have tried to organize our homeschool room ever since we started homeschooling and I'm not done--yet.  It is my dream to be organized.  I want to know where everything is at when we need it. I want to have everything we need for a science experiment, instead of foregoing it because I need to run to the store. 

We live in a small house and space is very limited.  I have turned a spare bedroom into the classroom/office/library/art room.  My other dream would be to have a room for each function.  But as it is now I need to be thankful for what we have, which is a lot.  I have to reorganize almost every few months just to remember what we have and put away new things we have accumulated.  In reorganizing I am able to pull out the things we do not need anymore and put in the free box at our local homeschool store.  That free box is a blessing, not only for other homeschool families but for our family as well. 

I am constantly on the lookout for organizational supplies, cabinets, and software.  I am an avid book collector, primarily children's books.  So I have an abundance of books, and I need a way to organize them so when I was out buying, I did not buy duplicates.  I found this system called Book Librarian Plus, which is really a mini version of a library.  It takes some time but the end is worth it.  What you do is input the books into your system and catalog them the way that works for you.  I use the Dewey Decimal system.  Then you file them on your bookshelf and when you are looking for a book about rain forests, for example, you do a search on your computer and it will tell you how many you have and where they are filed so you can find them quickly.  This has saved us so much time and I can have my daughter find them for me, so it gives her practice on how to use the library. You can access more information at www.turbosystems.com .  I highly recommend it.

This is a picture of one of the shelves with our library books catalogued by the Dewey Decimal system.

For keeping art supplies and extra paper organized, I have a cabinet in the garage.  It turns out it is not very  convenient, but because we don't use it on a daily basis it works out.  The closet in the classroom (bedroom) has things that we would use more often. I found these colorful bins at Target in their dollar section.  They do not have lids, so it is hard to stack them but you can label the fronts and I have them separated into subject matter. For example, Ancient Egypt has stencils and  stamps of heiroglyphics, and a game. And also ther is one for my daughters rock collection, it has her collection and a game and the supplies needed to label and store her newly found rocks.  These bins are on a shelf that my daughter can reach.  There is also a bookshelf in there that has books filed by subject matter.

I know that our classroom is not that different from other homeschool families.  I hope that some of this information has helped you get an idea of how you can organize your school supplies. I have more ideas and I hope to post some pictures of the room and different things I found in the near future.

• Hero Tales
• Window on the world
• Maps and Globes
• Geography from A to Z
• A trip around the world
• Another trip around the world
• World Geography
• Wild Places
• Living World Encyclopedia
• Global Art
• Gladys Aylward
• Cameron Townsend
• Amy Carmichael
• Nate Saint
• George Muller
• David Livingstone
• The Great Animal Seach
• Fun with Easy Origami
• Then Sings my Soul

      Other books used:

• Apologia Young Explorers - Zoology 1
• Learning Language Arts Through Literature
• Bob Jones Math
• Writing Trails
• Lapbooks