NOTE: I am relocating overseas and will resume regular updates in July/August.
Carry on!
Nov. 12, 2008
HSLDA Tells Homeschoolers What to Expect Under Obama
What Can We Expect under
an Obama Administration?
Dear HSLDA Members and Friends of Homeschooling:
Since the election of Barack Obama as U.S. president, HSLDA has received more than a few calls from both members and nonmembers. Some are quite concerned about the future of homeschooling under an Obama presidency.
First of all, let us always remember that “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).He also instructs us to be wise, plan, and be prepared in everything we do.
Despite HSLDA’s efforts prior to the election to get an official statement from the Obama campaign regarding their position on homeschooling, we received no response.
So where does that leave us?
We do know that the Democratic Party has an official position of supporting public education. The National Education Association (NEA), which is the national teachers union, is a major supporter of the Democratic Party. We know that the NEA’s position is that every child should be either taught by a certified teacher or supervised by one. Additionally, their position is that the curriculum used by all homeschoolers should be approved by the state, and children should only be able to continue to be homeschooled based upon systematic evaluation by the state.
It is important to remember that under the United States Constitution, the federal government has no authority over private and home education. This is not to say that they will not attempt to exercise authority in these areas. And whenever private educators accept grants and benefits, there are conditions to receiving those benefits, including being subject to regulation.
Just because the federal government has no constitutional authority over home education, however, doesn’t mean that federal bureaucrats or legislators might not attempt to impose some form of regulation over private and home education. We saw this back in 1994, when the reauthorization of the Secondary and Elementary Act (H.R. 6) contained an amendment which would have conditioned funding to the states for public education to require that all teachers be certified in every subject area they teach. The homeschool community rose up; over a million phone calls were made to the U.S. Congress, and the amendment was defeated. During that process, Representative Dick Armey from Texas introduced an amendment which stated that the federal government and Congress have no authority over private and home education. This protective language was passed by the House of Representatives.
With your help and the help of homeschoolers all across America, we will vigorously resist any effort on the part of the federal government to regulate home education. Obviously, this will take resources—which come from our membership—and we would encourage our current members to continue standing with us, and encourage others to join us.
An immediate concern to watch is the United NationsConvention on the Rights of the Child. Although we do not know what Barack Obama’s specific position on the treaty is, we know that future Vice President Joe Biden has publicly indicated that this UN Convention should be ratified by the United States.
It does appear that we will soon have the challenge of keeping the UN Convention from being ratified by the U.S. Senate, ratification requiring a two-thirds majority to pass.
Should the UN Convention be ratified, it would impose the United Nation’s view of children’s rights on America. Under the U.S. Constitution, treaties become the Supreme Law of the land, taking precedent over state laws and state supreme court decisions.
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is not in the best interest of parents or children, as it would undermine the parental authority that our laws currently recognize. For further information on the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child visit ParentalRights. org.
To summarize, homeschoolers should not live in fear, but we do need to be wise, and we will need to be vigilant to protect parental rights and homeschooling freedoms in the future. We stand prepared, with your help, to do that as we’ve done for 25 years.
Holiday edition features Wisdom Stretchers, coloring pages, Challenge pages, puzzles, and a certificate of completion!
Combine with WisdomKids: The ABC's of Being Thankful for an entire study where your child is finding the daily blessings in their lives. Your child will not only learn what grace and mercy mean, but they'll also be able to recognize how God pours these two blessings on them. Thought provoking Wisdom Stretchers will have you both sharing from the heart. What a delight to hear what's in your child's heart!
H/T to HSN's South Carolina blog...BTW...last year's 2nd Place winner came from SC!
American Legion National Oratorical Contest
2008-2009 is the 72nd year of the American Legion National High School
Oratorical
Competition. This competition is designed for all contestants to
discover a deeper
understanding of the US Constitution.
The competition is a prepared oration on these 4 topics from the US
Constitution:
Amendment 1
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;
or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Amendment 3
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without
the consent of the
Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
Amendment 4
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers,
and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no
Warrants shall issue, but
upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the
place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Art 3, Sec 3
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War
against them, or in
adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person
shall be convicted of
Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt
Act, or on
Confession in open Court. Clause 2: The Congress shall have Power to
declare the
Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work
Corruption of Blood, or
Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.
The 6-8 minute oration is delivered without written notes before the
Legion's selected
judges. The first level begins in December 2008 and then moves into
local and regional
competitions. The national finals are in Indianapolis in the early
spring of 2009. State
winners earn $1,000 scholarships. National winners receive $18,000.
Homeschoolers are invited to vote in their very own Presidential Election at CurrClick.com! Educate your kids about the election process and make a statement about the powerful voice that is the homeschool community!
POLLS OPEN on October 1st and will remain open until November 4th. Visit CurrClick.com on October 1st to cast your vote: Participation is completely free and will include information about each of the candidates, real time results, quotes from each of the candidates about their position on homeschooling, an "I Voted" coloring page and printable sticker and an optional exit poll. Results of the exit poll will be posted on November 4th. http://www.currclick.com
Results of the election will be sent out to news organizations across the country. Don’t miss this opportunity to make your voice heard. Plus, dozens of instantly downloadable election unit studies, lapbooks and workbooks from top publishers ON SALE for up to 35% OFF. Sale begins October 1st.
CurrClick.com is the #1 curriculum download site for homeschoolers, featuring thousands of resources for all ages from hundreds of top homeschool and education publishers. CurrClick.com gives a way a new, free title every week. Most titles priced at 30% below retail.
The Armed Services YMCA 2009 Art Contest & 2009 Essay Contest.
Art Contest 411: `My Military Family'
The Armed Services YMCA will award six U.S. Savings bonds of $500
for first-place entries, and $100 bonds for second place. Dependents
of active duty military or retired from the Army, Navy, Marines, Air
Force, Coast Guard or National Guard/Reserves, in kindergarten
through sixth grade, are eligible to enter.
Deadline for entering is Friday, February 20, 2009.
Essay Contest 411: `My Military Hero' One $500 first place and one $100 second place bond will be awarded
in each grade category 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8. Students in two high
school categories, 9/10 and 11/12, will be awarded $1,000 bonds for
first place, and $200 bonds for second place. In addition, there are
two $100 bonds for essays of honorable mention. Students are asked
to write about "My Military Hero". The essay can focus on any
person who is/has served in the US military. As an example, the
essay could be about a parent, sibling, son/daughter, grandfather,
etc. They could have been an Army cook during Korea, an Ensign in
WW2, a medic in Vietnam or a truck driver in the Gulf. As long as
the individual served in the US military the student can write about
them.
This is a contest; not a book report. Grab our attention! Grades
eight and below should submit entries with a minimum of 100 words
and maximum of 300 words. High school students' (9-12) entries
should be no less than 300 words and no more than 500 words.
Simple Down to earth planner that can be used to plan your 7th grade and up child's curriculum or log it after the fact if you are an unschooler. There are Curriculum Planner pages as well as daily logs that can help you record what you plan to use.
There are also course description forms that may well be filled best after the course is finished Just fill them in with the information from your daily logs. I have included enough log pages for a full year of homeschooling and a few extras if you need them.
This book will make a nice companion to your portfolio when you try to enrol into college courses. Al though it is intended for grade 7 and up it may well work for younger students.
"B is for Beatitudes" focuses on the Beatitudes as taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. Other skills covered include; responding to the mini-book, writing numbers, writing B, learning the sound b makes, creating patterns and recognizing and sorting shapes.
Our Early Learning Lap-book Series alternates between Old Testament stories and New Testament teachings. Each lap-book kit includes a Biblically accurate mini book with scripture reference, instructions and diagrams to aid you in the assembly of the lap-book and various activities built off the premise of the mini-book. The lap-books are designed to strengthen Bible knowledge, language skills, math skills, social studies skills, and science knowledge through hands on activities and practice. All lap-books include an art activity, sight words and a memory verse. In addition, there is a list of extension activities to strengthen the skills presented in the lap-book. Appealing to all learning styles.
It' stime to begin another homeschool year here in the Nonaka home and for many of you as well. Here is a great newsletter you might want to sign up for:
Benefits of using index card flashcards:
You only print the ones you need.
It is very inexpensive to replace lost or torn cards.
They are portable in an index card binder, "O" ring or file box.
They are great for smaller hands.
Toss them in your purse or bag and you can practice math facts on the go! You will also have the files saved for future use!
This enrichment guide is designed to give you a short, but interesting history & description of Labor Day. It is divided into six fun sections for you to explore:
Facts about Labor Day
Poems & sayings about Labor Day
Write a poem about Labor Day
Write about a laborer and Labor Day
Celebrating Labor Day - decorations, food, games arts & crafts
Step-by-step instructions for creating Labor Day artist trading cards.
This Enrichment4You e-guide is beautifully presented and ready to print in color. Patterns & templates provided. 22 pages.
Retail Price: $6.64 Our price: $3.95
Hurry, only one week left to take advantage of CurrClick's Back-to-Homeschool savings!
Kick-off your school year with great savings on hundreds of titles! For the entire month of August, get 10-70% OFF of hundreds of curriculum choices from your favorite publishers. With our huge title selection, you can be sure to find something to please any learning style in your home. Here's to great savings and a fun new school year!
3rd Place: Pflugerville Christian Homeschool Group (PCHSG,) author, Erik Welsh
Presenting the Winning Essay:
North Alabama Christian Homeschool Organization [NACHO] - North Alabama by Keilee Terry, Age 8 1/2
I am 8 and I belong to the homeschool group NACHO. I love my HomeSchool Group! One thing I like about NACHO is the field trips that we take. We go to creeks, waterfalls, collect geodes, and catch fish and crawdads. We go to museums where we saw a HUGE dinosaur skeleton and to a history museum. We dressed up in kimonos and soldier's costumes. We saw weapons that were used in wars. That was scary. We also make bean soup for the elderly in our community. I like helping people. We do awesome science experiments. We had a Solar Day and we cooked hot dogs in the sun, rubbed sun tan lotion on a paper man to see if it worked, and we discovered how long it took an ice cube to melt in the sun. We have play days and picnics. We have a Field Day that is so fun! We also go roller skating, ice skating, swimming and to an indoor play place every month.
Most of all we learn from each other and we help each other. I love to play and learn with the older and younger kids. We take care of each other. I help with the little kids and the big kids help me when I need it. I have made great friends. We love to learn things and laugh and play jokes on the boys!
When one of the moms has a problem, all the moms help her. I think it's tough sometimes to be a homeschool mom! All of our moms love each other. They sit around and laugh and talk all the time. We like to see our moms happy! NACHO is all about learning and loving. That's the important things in life. My group feels like a family.
Get ready for the big election with The American Government and the Election Process! This book has everything your student needs to understand the election process, voting and so much more! It makes the complicated process of elections seem easy as it is written with the child in mind.
And it is not complicated for you, the mom, either! A Journey Through Learning Unit Studies include all the information you need to teach your child. No more searching around for information like so many other unit studies require. It is all right there! Just pull it out and you are ready to go!
After each topic, your child will have a fun activity to complete. Includes vocabulary! Very colorful and fun! Your child will learn about:
America's Early Years
The Constitution
How to Cast A Vote
How We Elect the President
Political Parties and Symbols
Electoral College
Election Day
and much, much more!!
Retail Price: $11.00Our Price: $8.25
New at CurrClick.com
We are pleased to announce we now carry titles from Arctic Curriculum!
Our Preschool Lap-book Series alternates between Old Testament stories and New Testament teachings. Each lap-book kit includes a Biblically accurate mini book with scripture reference, instructions and diagrams to aid you in the assembly of the lap-book and various activities built off the premise of the mini-book. The lap-books are designed to strengthen Bible knowledge, language skills, math skills, social studies skills, and science knowledge through hands on activities and practice. All lap-books include an art activity, sight words and a memory verse. In addition, there is a list of extension activities to strengthen the skills presented in the lap-book. Appealing to all learning styles.
"A is for Adam" focuses on Adam's story and his fall. Other skills covered include; counting, basic graphing, sorting, sequencing, retelling, measurement, and letter recognition.
Free Sample of Bible Songs to Memorize Please note: This download is a free sample only. Please see Cross-Eyed Curriculum's product page for Bible Songs to Memorize, available for purchase. Product description of the collection a...
Come and explore the wonderful world of the butterfly with this study by Hip2Homeschool Unit Studies. Learn about the anatomy of a butterfly, its eating habits, and other fascinating facts about these beautiful little creatures. Unit includes a booklist,...
Free Sample of a Fascinating New Product! Early options now available for vacations!Please enjoy this sample of Cross-Eyed Curriculum’s Dinosaur Days June Calen-Do. You could spend the next month doing fun and challenging...
Naaseh Venilmad are the Hebrew words for “we will do and we will learn”- our motto. With detailed explanations ,this is the only comprehensive Yom Kippur lapfolder(including the ten days of atonement and the Book of Jonah) that can be found o...
Looking for a great way to "kick-off" the new school year? Try the "Daily Bird" -- a one-day, mini-Unit Study on just one type of bird. This Unit includes a lesson, reading comprehension worksheet, coloring page, notebooking sheet, ...
THIS IS A BUNDLE PRODUCT. WHEN BUYING THIS ITEM YOU WILL RECEIVE SEPARATE DOWNLOAD LINKS FOR EACH PRODUCT LISTED BELOW... Heroines of the Past - Patriot 1775-1783PRICE: $17.97SALE: $25.00 Unit study about little known women in history This e-book d...
Looking for a great way to "kick-off" the school year? Try The Daily Dog: a breed-focused mini-unit that has a lesson, reading comprehension worksheet, stationery pages, coloring page, and fun "dog" activity or game. This Unit is fo...
THIS IS A BUNDLE PRODUCT. WHEN BUYING THIS ITEM YOU WILL RECEIVE SEPARATE DOWNLOAD LINKS FOR EACH PRODUCT LISTED BELOW... My Bible ABCs: New TestamentPRICE: $9.95SALE: $5.95 Using stories and concepts from the New Testament, your child will learn the ABCs...
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars (from Heart of the Matter Team)
Review
Knowledge Box Quest has outdone themselves with this companion lapbook to Jeannie Fulbright's Exploring Creation With Astronomy living textbook. This particular lapbook covers chapters 1-6 and it comes in two formats: black and white for those who do not wish to use colored ink or who's children would prefer to color it in or you can use the color version. That is pretty clever option in my opinion. The answers to the questions are not given in the text so your child will have to read the book to find them. I find this to be a bonus. The more the child has to look for and read the information the greater their chances are of learning it. The step by step instructions are thorough and easy to understand. It also includes some great additional resources that can be used to compliment the materials. do believe my children have an even greater understanding of the material presented in Jeannie's book because of the use of this companion lapbook. Great buy!
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars (from Heart of the Matter Team)
Review
Knowledge Box Quest has outdone themselves with this companion lapbook to Jeannie Fulbright's Exploring Creation With Astronomy living textbook. This particular lapbook covers chapters 7-14 and it comes in two formats: black and white for those who do not wish to use colored ink or who's children would prefer to color it in or you can use the color version. That is pretty clever option in my opinion. The answers to the questions are not given in the text so your child will have to read the book to find them. I find this to be a bonus. The more the child has to look for and read the information the greater their chances are of learning it. The step by step instructions are thorough and easy to understand. It also includes some great additional resources that can be used to compliment the materials. do believe my children have an even greater understanding of the material presented in Jeannie's book because of the use of this companion lapbook. Great buy!
Review
This really is a fresh approach to punctuation. I really thought I was getting another workbook but with some better ideas to help the kids learn. Instead this is a full 100 plus page book about how to incorporate learning punctuation through reading literature and writing. The author gives you plans for a year long study to help your child learn to punctuate by using it as it was intended... by writing. Your child will learn punctuation rules as they are eased into writing lessons. Not as they are introduced by a worksheet. A great book and a great approach.
Review
This book was recommended to me by someone else and once I read the description I was hooked. Anything that will allow me to gain a greater understanding of my boys' learning styles and abilities is surely welcomed. But this guide did more than that. It truly spoke to my heart about how God truly did craft each one of my children uniquely for His glory and that my job as a parent is to train them to walk in the path God has already laid out for them. I learned so much about my children using this guide. I am quite pleased with the layout and simplicity of the testing and it was all very easy to understand. This is definitely a keeper!
Review
I really liked this product because it did a very thorough job of explaining the basics of reading, creating, and presenting maps of all kinds. I have gone over it several times and I can't see that anything has been left out. The projects are easy and require typical supplies to complete. It encompasses all ages and is very easy to execute. Some of the projects are: mental maps, geography notebook (LOVED this one!), gourd globes, paper mache globes, mural maps, scaled room maps, floor maps, grid maps, 3-D resource maps, and more. It also comes with landform terms mini-book and activity cards. GREAT RESOURCE!!!
Welcome to The Home Front!
Serving military homeschooling families as they serve throughout the world. Check for information, news and special announcements that effect our mission.
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2 Thessalonians 1:11 "With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of His calling, and that by His power He may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." (NIV)
Are you connected to the military? Do you or someone you
love need prayer? Whether it be for a military member,
personal, health, or homeschooling concerns,
We would consider it
an honor and privilege to lift up any prayer requests
you may have, whether they be spoken or unspoken.
Fill out the form below with the
information you wish to share. Note: - If you would allow us to pray for you,
rest assured your requests
would be kept strictly confidential and all fields are OPTIONAL!
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Free Sample: Bible Verse Songs to Memorize
Simple Scissor Practice
Butterflies: Insects Of Beauty
Free Sample: Dinosaur Days June Calen-Do
Yom Kippur, The ten days of Atonement and the Book of Jonah
The Daily Bird (Cardinals)
Heroines of the Past Collection [BUNDLE]
The Daily Dog (Lhasa Apso)
My Bible ABCs Combo Pack: NT and OT SALE! [BUNDLE]
Exploring Creation With Astronomy - Lapbook Lessons 1-6
Exploring Creation With Astronomy Lapbook - Lessons 7-14
A Fresh Approach to Teaching Punctuation
Learning Gifts Inventory
Amazing Hands-on Map Activities
