We are definately an eclectic homeschooling household. We've done everything from Unschooling to Charlotte Mason. My boys are still pretty young - 7 and 4, but we've been homeschooling since the oldest was about 21/2. Right now we do a combination of Child-led, Unit-Studies, Notebooking and Lapbooking. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Mon, 11 May 2009 08:49:00 -0500 Mon, 11 May 2009 08:49:00 -0500 I'm not sure how many of you watch Dr. Phil....I never have, as he tends to irk me in the extreme. I hate that he presents himself as a psychologist, when his PHD is in physiology. I always hated how he railroaded guests to make them seem like stupid red=necks and he the most intelligent person on the stage. But I've never been so disgusted by him until a recent episode of his show came to my attention. Recently Dr. Phil had a show called "The Great School Debate" which would make one think there would be opposing views laid out and that these people would explain their stands. Instead, Dr. Phil had on a 'radical unschooler' and set out to make them look ignorant and weird. It was horrendous to watch. You can see the show on You Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9IfxXl5SAc  and you can read an audience member's accounts at http://localhs.com/scuttle/2006/10/great-school-debate.asp  This pisses me off because those who know nothing about homeschooling will think this is what it's all about! Sure some of us are attatchment parents - but that's a completely seperate issue form homeschooling. If he had truely wanted a debate then he should have offered various homeschooling opinions - from CHarlotte Mason, to Traditional Home Schooling. There was no need for the calamity he presented. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/687780/ Mon, 11 May 2009 08:49:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/687780/ I've had a lot of questions about mini-offices. These are essentially reference books made by mom for the kids to take out. I fold mine so they can unfold into a sort of cubicle. You can make them for many subjects. You essentially search out the best printables then glue them into the folders (usually a minimum of 4) then laminate the whole thing to protect them from grubby fingers. Here's some ideas, I'll see if I can find some links to add in. World Geography: Bodies of water Continents State maps (different kinds - road, topagraphy, water, etc.) United States maps Flags (state and US) Language Arts: Parts of Speech Alphabet (I used an exacto knife to make a pocket and put in the alphabet in sign language, cursive, chinese, etc.) Days of the week Months Punctuation Chart Paragraph Writing Research writing rules Types of writing Math: Addition / Subtraction / Multiplication Charts Number Line Clock (time) Counting to 100 Basic coin chart Number chart & Roman Numerals Basic Charting Problem Solving Ruler Skip counting chart Area/Perimeter Simple Shapes Fractions Liquid Measurement Equivalents US Geography/History: President Chart State Abreviations Timeline State Nicknames/Fast Facts Famous Americans Native Americans (Sayings, History, Tribes, etc) Morse Code Major American Wars Science - Notebook (as it's bigger and can hold different sections) Astronomy: Planets Earth Solar System Meteors Satallites Earth Studies: Layers of the Earth Volcanoes/Earth quakes Rock Cycle Water Cycle Rainbows Reduce/Reuse/Recycle Great Pictures and ideas for lapbooks: http://www.flickr.com/photos/94168846@N00/collections/72157601906639826/ http://www.squidoo.com/lapbook-planning Best Lapbooking Blogs http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/685464/ Mon, 4 May 2009 08:04:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/685464/ http://lapbooking.wordpress.com/2009/03/28/butterflies/ (LOTS OF RESOURCES) http://butterflieslapbook.tumblr.com/ (LOTS OF RESOURCES) http://lapbooking.bravehost.com/Butterflies.html (MORE RESOURCES) http://www.homeschoolshare.com/butterfly_lapbook.php http://www.lapbooklessons.com/ButterflyLapbook.html http://www.homeschoolhelperonline.com/lapbooks/butterflies.htm (pictures) http://littleblots.ning.com/profiles/blogs/1230297:BlogPost:27267 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/685463/ Mon, 4 May 2009 08:03:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/685463/ Seriously! I just don't get it.... Each year I plant things with my kids as part of our homeschooling. This year we started seeds inside with the intent to transfer the plants outside when the weather got warmer....on the same day, my DH planted a few of his super hot pepper (which i won't even touch the seeds)....well, his plants are now sprouting whereas the ones I did with the kids have done NOTHING!!! I just don't get it. I totally kill off all the beautiful plants - and I seriously read lots of books and such on it trying to get better, it just doesn't seem to work out that way....SIGH! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/684727/ Fri, 1 May 2009 09:56:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/684727/ Whew, the Biggest Loser competition is finally over. Every year from Feb through May I'm busy busy guiding 4 clients through the turmoil of weight-loss. It's physically and emotionally draining for the personal trainer as much as it is for the client. But WE WON!!! (see at my gym, each trainer gets 4 clients who we severely abuse for 10 weeks, then compete to see who can lose the most pounds, inches, lower their Body Mass Index, etc.) Whew, the thing I hate most about the competition, is the pressure on my time and energy - it means homeschooling is squeezed down to the bare bones of a couple of hours (which is fine with my boys ages) usually consisting of a lapbook a week, or an ongoing lapbook - like our anatomy lapbooks. But I can't really post to my blogs or my HS Groups, my body is on shutdown - and my brain becomes incapable of thinking about ANYTHING. But, today is a special day in my faith - it's May Day, a day to welcome Spring and the first blooms and blossoms. It's a day of joy, being free in appreciating the beauty around us. I also combine the day with Earth Day lessons - like we've spent the last week picking up litter in our neighborhood - walking a different street each day picking up the little papers and such on the side of the road. I'm also trying to organize my family reunion this year (the weekend after the 4th of July). I've been busy designing a website for our family - with our family trees and such. And I'm now busy trying to plan our 5 hour drive with the kids (I make busy boxes for each of them, of course!). http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/684726/ Fri, 1 May 2009 09:43:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/684726/ Sorry, when I had made the office lapbook, I had been using a different blog, guess I didn't copy over that post...oops..lol.. Here's some of the links I used: Basic State Flags History of the American Flag Various State & US Maps Blank Outline State Maps World Maps (the whole world) Mapquest World Clipart/Maps (including bodies of water & Continents) Country Maps Outline Maps Continents Maps ABC Teach Maps Learn the Continents through Poems & Songs http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/675937/ Sat, 4 Apr 2009 18:23:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/675937/ The kids are learning all about China this month (among other things..lol)...so here's some of the links we're using....the lapbooks look awesome so I'll download a vid of it soon!! DJ's 2-4th grade Lapbook: Reference Mat'l World Fact Book China: People & Places Ancient China & Lesson Plans Virtual Tours of China Religions in China Lesson Plan Homeschool Share FIVE UMBRELLAS Submitted by Jan Five umbrellas stood by the door, The red one went outside, then there were four. Four umbrellas, pretty as could be, The blue one went outside, then there were three. Three umbrellas with nothing to do, The green one went outside, then there were two. Two umbrellas not having much fun, The yellow one went outside, then there was one. Just one umbrella alone in the hall, The purple one went outside, and that was all. X-Man's k-1st Grade Lapbook: Reference Mat'l: How People Live in China (Homes) Kids go to school Let's Get Ready To Go To China!! (we made our own min-book on these prep facts) Climate & Geography Transportation in China Sun Mini-Book Wind (since China invented the kite) Wind MiniBook   Go Wind! By Lilian Moore Go wind, blow Push wind... swoosh. Shake things , take things , make things fly ! Ring things , swing things , fling things high! Go wind, blow Push things... whee! No, wind, no. Not me, not me! SPRING WIND BLOWS Teach your little performers this chant to help them start thinking about wind. The spring wind blows this way and that Oops! Watch out! There goes my hat! (Wave hands above head.) The spring wind blows round and round. It blows my hat across the ground. (Move arms in a rolling motion.) The spring wind blows. Spin, spin, spin! Oops, it blows my hat again! (Move hand in a circular upward motion.) The spring wind blows left and right. Then it blows my hat out of sight! (Move hands to the left, then right.) (Wave bye-bye.) I also found these wonderful printable workbooks on Saving The Giant Panda from the Smithsonian. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/674426/ Tue, 31 Mar 2009 08:52:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/674426/ Well with spring here it seemed the perfect time to discuss germination. We planted some vegetables in the house (well in little pots..lol) because it's still too cool at night. But the boys did so well - They loved getting their hands dirty in the lesson and when dad came home they told him all about plants - The 4 components of soil, essentential elements for germination, conditions for plant growth - these were the focus' this week. DJ seems to have regressed a bit in math, or he's just not paying it any attention. We had covered addition over a year ago and had been moving onto multiplication, but he not acts as if he has no clue on addition, so he's done worksheet after worksheet on addition this week...still struggling with paying it any attention. DJ has also done worksheets on Action Verbs. He took to them really easily - reading has always been his easiest subject! X-man has worked on his letter writing, as well as vowel sounds. We did several worksheets on 'long vowels' and he did really well. He is not very confident on the penmenship, wanting mom's help, but he can read and understands the general concept so I'm not stressing about it.... Well that was our week in a nutshell! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/673275/ Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:23:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/673275/ Well, it's been an interesting few weeks since I've written last. Here's the update on the Kickbutt's crazy life....(I signed up for this...right?...LOL) About a week ago I subjected myself to a new fitness certification. This one required about 30 hours of Muay Thai kickboxing in a 3 day span. It was utterly exhausting (but waaaay cool). The sad thing is, with all my medical conditions, I'm not as capable of recovering from that kind of stimuli as I used to be. I ended up with my right leg (the one with sufficient veins) swelled up and discolored. My bad leg (the one with no working veins) also discolored.....so began a week of being in and out of the hospital as well as the pain and fear of having another blood clot. It totally stunk. It's been a few years since I last had a real clot. But I soooooo remember the pain of it. Even worse, the doctors worried that I had maybe clotted off my by-pass....which would have been horrendous. My vascular surgeon refuses to ever perform surgery on me again, it took 3 months of hospitalization and 3 surgeries (the by-pass, then 2 hemotoma evacuations, plus I had a reaction to my blood transfusions causing my lungs to fill with fluid)....so if I clotted it off now, that would mean having to find another surgeon to trust - and that doesn't come easy!!! The poor boys were troupers, whereas my poor hubby was scared outta his mind - he's not hip to the whole medical side of things...lol...So the boys read a bunch of books and did their time4learning, because mom couldn't even sit at the computer to print out new worksheets. But, alas, vacation is over. Kickbutt is back, well, kicking butt and now it's catch-up time!!! This week we're moving onto the following: X-Man (who turned 5 almost 2 weeks ago) The study of me, my family & my neighborhood. (we're making, well, it's more of a mini-office than a lapbook. Covering more health/wellness, social studies, and family history...it's a big on-going project of many lapbooks put together) Writing his numbers & letters (he can do it, he just doesn't like to!) We've also been practicing calling for help - in the event that mommy or daddy become injured - calling 911, Grandma, Dad, Papa, etc. He's actually very good at it. Begining Addition Further getting back to our Dr. Seuss Lapbooks. DJ (who is still 7, anxiously awaiting turning 8....in July!) We're moving onto our home state of CT and are going to be doing a lapbook on this state. Our ongoing Health & Physiology Lapbook Working up to multiplication tables (we're just about done with skip counting) Parts of Speech. He's actually doing really well with this. I'm just about finished putting together a Lapbook for the parts of speech, rules of writing a paragraph/sentence, as well as punctuation. For Both: We're planting an indoor garden (to later be transported outside) and discussing what can cause plants to die or sicken, and what that would mean for us. We'll also be drawing some diagrams of roots and DJ will study plant cells. We're also working on collecting pennies for eradicating hunger in our state. The boys are loving this project!!! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/672044/ Tue, 24 Mar 2009 10:01:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/672044/ My son has been collecting Magic Tree House books for a while now, so now that he's capable of reading them on his own, he has to do a lapbook on each on as a means of doing a book report. I'll post what I've made this week for next weeks Polar Bears Past Bedtime  so you can see it. (remember the user name is kickbutttidbits with the password kickbuttmama) - This is the Lapbook for the Book report....the following is the lapbook for the Artic and Polar Bears and such...so there are 2 whole separate lapbooks in this post..lol...but I only designed the one above. Here are some of the worksheets and such we're using in his Polar Bears After Dark book: http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/magicth/guides/natural.html http://www.cdli.ca/CITE/pb_p_math.PDF http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/pdf.htm?polarbear_scramble.pdf http://www.homeschoolshare.com/polar_animals_lapbook.php http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/magicth/activities.html http://www.printactivities.com/Mazes/Math-Mazes/PolarBear-CountingBy3s.shtml  All about polar bears by SeaWorld: http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/info-books/polar-bear/pdf/ib-polar-bear.pdf Polar Bear Facts: http://albright-news.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/CA_PolarBearLB_Facts.pdf  Polar Bear Families : http://albright-news.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/CA_PolarBearLB_Family.pdf   Xander's Polar Habitat Lapbook: Polar Bear coloring page (cover sheet): http://www.dltk-kids.com/t_template.asp?t=http://www.dltk- /teach.com/books/brownbear/clips/bpolarbear.gif  Polar Animals cover sheet: http://www.homeschoolshare.com/docs54367/polar%20animals/cover.pdf http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mcircle_polar_bear.htm Polar Bear Cupcakes: http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50050 http://www.homeschoolshare.com/polar_animals_lapbook.php Alphabet tracing http://www.kinderprintables.com/february/bearhearttracingdnbw.pdf Number tracing http://www.kinderprintables.com/february/bearhearttracingnumbersdnbw.pdf Days of the Week (w/ bears) http://www.kinderprintables.com/february/bearheartdaysbw.pdf Months (w/ bears) http://www.kinderprintables.com/february/bearheartcamonthsbw.pdf Both of them got to play : Bears of the Sea downloadable (FREE) board Game. And we read about Polar Conservation. We also learned more about creating a Polar Habitat here. A great printable Artic booklet is here. BLUBBER EXPERIMENT!! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/663539/ Sat, 28 Feb 2009 13:14:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Kickbutthomeschool/663539/