Fish Habitats, Vegetable Starter Gardens

Check out this cool underground fish habitat. It is an aquarium, and pretty awesome. Today I transplanted some of the vegetables that are already too big for the starter garden. I think they are the cucumbers, I should have marked them. I know they aren't the tomatoes. I put them in a big tray with dirt, so they have room to grow. I always keep them in the special potting soil, they started in. I need to get fertilizer when I head to Walmart again. Speaking of Walmart, they do not have the Topsy Turvy this year, but some other growing device. I bought one, but I am not optimistic it will work as well as the Topsy Turvy. I am going to check out Ebay, Home Depot, and see if they have any. At any rate the one I got from Walmart, had tomato seeds already in it, and they won't be ready to start just yet. It is still not quite warm enough. Middle of April I will start them. Tomorrow I will share the wood Science project with you all, and a cool website I found from another blogger. You will like it, I promise.

More Animal Habitats, and Some Cute Pictures

The word for today, is organization. I need to get back on schedule, and get reorganized. Vacation has thrown me way off track. I need to catch up on my drops, visiting, and comment of my friends blogs, and of course all the house work, and chores that got neglected for the last ten days. We have had great weather, and lots of fun with family, and friends. Now it is time to get serious. Here is another great video about animal habitats. I am trying to find one for each animal Caitlin put in her animal book. I have been going through all my home school catalogs looking for next years supplies. I have most of them purchased, but am still undecided on Caitlin's readers, plus Art, character building, and handwriting for both of them. There are so many great products now, I just can not make up my mind. Here are a few more cute pictures from our vacation time. Have a great Tuesday, everyone!

Easter Food Craft Resurrection Rolls

Sometimes the Easter Bunny takes over Easter, and we forget why we are supposed to really celebrate Easter, much like Christmas. This is a simple, and creative way to teach about the resurrection, and make a nice little craft snack. Even if you teach from a secular stand point, and not religious, it is a good idea to teach your child about the history, and customs behind our holidays, even the religious reasons.

How To Decorate Easter Eggs

Today, I need to get back into my routine of doing things. It was a great week of visiting, and relaxing, now I must work. Tomorrow we are having a play date in the park, to decorate Easter eggs, with our homeschool friends. If you are new to Easter egg decorating, the video below can help you out. I generally don't care for the older version with the vinegar, and all that, but my kids picked them this year, and then you can color on them with a magic crayon, or put on stickers. I guess it is not as messy as glitter paint, like they wanted last year. We are on Spring Break one more week, and then we are not off again until Memorial Day. I hope everyone has an awesome Sunday, and thank you to those of you who still visit, and comment, even though I was absent mostly this week.

Funny Dog Video

Watch this crazy dog video, you will love it!!!

Fun At The Ocean

We had a ball at Shired Island yesterday. It is a very small state park, on the Gulf of Mexico. We have been here a few times, as it is my moms favorite place to go. It was very windy, so we were sort of cold. I am glad I had the extra shirt in the car, even though it did not match at all. The kids got in the water, and romped around, despite it being cold. I didn't find any new shells. They mostly have scallop shells, at this particular part of the Gulf, and I already have tons. I did find a cool block of shells, that formed a unique sculpture. It is on my front porch now. I will take a picture of it to share. We found some kind of critter that made these cool designs by burrowing under the sand. I wanted a horseshoe crab, or blue crab, but didn't find one, no seaglass either. If you look at the pictures you will see an armadillo. It was dead, and partially decayed. I really wanted the shell, but no one, including myself was willing to pick it up, and carry it LOL. I did get my log for our Science experiment. No, not the one the kids are walking on, my husband wouldn't carry it for me. My mother managed to not get in one single picture, not sure how she did that. I am the blonde, and my sister, and her husband have the baseball caps on. They went off to Tampa today to see friends, and we will hook up with them again tomorrow, after I grocery shop. It has gone by fast, and I can't believe it is almost time for them to go back to NC again.

I Need A Vacation From My Vacation

LOL I am having so much fun visiting, and having fun, I am getting nothing else done. I did just catch up on my Entrecard drops this morning. Sorry to all of you, I am not neglecting you on purpose. Today we are off to the ocean, hopefully we will come home with some awesome pictures, shells, no sunburns, or jelly fish bites. I do need a good sized piece of tree. It is for a Science project, that I will share with you all later. Those of you who know me, know that the Florida critters give me the creeps. So pray that I find a nice old tree log just lying there in plain site, and I don't have to venture off into the woods too far. With my luck a big old snake will be sunning itself on the one I want. Today I only have time to give some shameless plugs to my other two important income makers. My Barefoot Books store, and my Etsy jewelry store. Of course I do not expect anyone to buy, so don't get nervous, but if you are looking for great books, music, and other great items you can check them both out. I am having an Easter sale in my Etsy store, so be sure to check that out too. I offer layaway in my Etsy store, and that is a great service. To view my Etsy store, click right here. The banner below will take you to my Barefoot Books store. If anyone would like to join my team, and sell Barefoot Books too, just click the banner that says become a commissioner.

Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My!

Here are three videos that will help you when talking about habitats. There are lions, tigers, and bears. Of course Polar Bears, and Kola Bears, have different habitats, but in kindergarten we just concentrate on the basics.

Habitats For Rabbits, Mary Had A Little Lamb

Today I am featuring the nursery rhyme, Mary Had A Little Lamb, and the habitat for rabbits. These will be used for Caitlin starting next week. I finished DJ's third semester report card, last night, he did awesome! As you know I do not grade Caitlin's work, but will start next year, in first grade. The only grade DJ actually went down in, or didn't stay the same, was Social Studies. Mostly because we watched a lot of videos from History Channel that were not graded.

Reading: S
Math: 90
Language Arts: 89
Spelling/Vocab: 93
Cursive Writing: S
Writing: Very Good
Art: Very Good
Science: 86
Social Studies: 82
Health: 93
Reading Comprehension: Very Good

London Bridge Is Falling Down, Animal Habitat Frogs

One of the things I have really put off with Caitlin, as part of her kindgarten curriculum, is nursery rhymes. I really don't care for nursery rhymes, so I have been putting it off. All this week, since we are on vacation, I am compiling nursery rhyme videos for when we start again. The first one is London Bridge is Falling Down. Also, Caitlin has finished her animal book, so now she will start to learn about their habitats. The first one on the list is frogs. Of course frogs live in many habitats, and ecosystems, so watch the video below to learn some more about frogs, and their habitats. Have fun, and have a great Sunday.

Love Hate Relationship With Walmart

Well now that I am on vacation from home schooling, and have been up since 5, I get to think about some other things. Anne over at Small Town Mommy, reminded me that Walmart has been irritating me for some time. I love Walmart, I really do. I can get everything I need all in one store. They have great prices. Hitchcocks is very expensive, and I buy mostly just meat there, my husband hates Walmart meat. Save A Lot meat is good too, but I can only get about 25% of what I need there. I hate going to two or more different stores, so Walmart is awesome for me. You will all remember the Zhu Zhu pet fiasco, at Christmas. Though the manage did do a commendable job in trying to get me one. When we lived in NY, a Walmart cashier slapped my son's hand. I won't go into detail, but lets just say that one got real ugly. I was compensated with a 50 dollar gift card, an apology, and the cashier was fired. Lucky for her, I didn't feel like going to jail that day. Now once in while I like to have a glass of wine. Last time I checked the legal drinking age was 21. I know I look amazingly young, it is the pony tail, but the cashier set my wine aside at cashout. Now I don't normally notice these things, because I am busy watching two kids, but my husband was with me, and he was keeping them occupied. So I said to myself, hmm that is odd. So of course she saves it all the way to the end, with 10 people in line behind me. She was new, and the trainer said to her, does she look forty? Excuse me, 40? The new cashier kindly said no. Why do I have to look 40? Why can't I just feel it. God knows I feel it. So then she had to say, well don't you have your ID? No, it was in the car. I was not about to get it, and make all those people wait. I was not after all irritated with them. If I was I might have slowly walked to my car, to get my ID. Good thing none of them made a dumb comment to me about home schooling, they might have stood there all day. So I didn't get my wine, so now I can whine. At least I don't look 40, thank goodness for that.

Fun Friday The Letter V: Vacation, Virtual Vegetables, Virtual Fish

Hey, it is Fun Friday again, at our Blogging For Fun group. This week we are working on the letter V. V is for vacation. Next week is vacation time here at Melissa's Homeschool. My sister, and brother in law are coming from NC, and the weather looks beautiful. I do have a lot to get done in this week, but it will still be relaxing, and less hectic than normal.

V is also for Virtual Vegetable farms, and Virtual fish. What am I talking about? Well Fishville, and Farmville of course. If you are like me, and live under a rock, you may have never heard of these. They are virtual games on Facebook. I swore when I got talked into signing up for Facebook that there would be no games at all. Yeah right! Friends kept sending gifts for these games, so I eventually gave in. Now the kids and I are hooked. Ha ha get it? Now we don't sit here all day playing games. I don't have the patience for that. My kids do it with me, through my account. I am not one of them nice, cool parents who let their ten year olds have their own Facebook account. If you are on Facebook, and you would love to be my neighbor in Fishville, or Farmville, click my Facebook picture in the left hand side of this blog. You will have to ask permission to be my friend, I know like I said I am not cool at all. I will then add you as a friend, and we can invite each other to be neighbors. Having neighbors is great. They don't let their pets go on your yard, they are quiet, and even help you out. It is the ultimate neighbor. So go on now, and get your cool on, and invite me to be your friend. Go on snap to it! The videos below help explain how to play the games. I of course being the coolest, and most amazing virtual neighbor will be more than happy to help you, should you need it.

Underwear For Young Girls

Did that title get your attention? I am not trying to be crude, but I did read an interesting article the other day. It was in a Woman's magazine, and was posted under parenting. The topic was would you let your 10-13, or say preteen wear thongs? OK I might live under a rock, but they are just underwear right? Well no, not according to this article. The expert gave the reason for not letting this age group wear thongs as, because the girls really want them so they can feel sexy, despite claiming they were to hide panty lines. She went on to say do you really want your 10-12 year old to be thinking about being sexy, wearing sexy underwear, and what is the purpose of sexy underwear if no one sees them? Hmm, yes I see her point entirely, but do I really want my 13, 14, 15, 16, or even 17 year old feeling sexy, wearing sexy underwear, and what is the purpose of sexy underwear anyways? I found it very interesting that the expert targeted preteens in this group, but not older teens, still not considered adults. Does this imply to you, as it implied to me, that children over the age of 13 should be wanting to feel sexy, and wearing said sexy undergarments? I find it somewhat disturbing that a child expert would not include all teenage girls in this sexy undergarment discussion. What do you think?

Happy St Patrick's Day

May the luck of the Irish, be good to you today. I did write my letter yesterday to the post office. I did it on the website, so I am not sure who it actually goes to. I really don't understand how if a town feels they need their own post office, the staff are not properly trained which they admit, but yet the powers that be complain how much money the post office is losing.

Lesson Plans For 03/18/10:

DJ:
Health: Healthy hygiene, systems of the body
Math: Fractions, decimals, and money review. This is review in the book, we still will continue to do them.
Sign Language: Occupations
Language Arts: Reading for information, homophones, root words
Cursive Writing
Vocabulary

Caitlin:
Reading: HOP Pig Fun
Phonics: See, read, write worksheet
Animal Book: Forest animals
Math: Ordinal numbers
Site Words
Flash Cards
Skip Counting
Printing Practice
Finding Opposites: Worksheet

Comments and Graphics - St Patrick's Day Layouts - Photobucket

History Of St Patricks Day

Tomorrow we have only a half day of school. We will be watching the 1 hour video about St Patricks Day, that I recorded on Monday, from the History Channel. If you did not get to record it, they may show it again, or you can use this 10 minute video in your lessons. The History Channel website, also has short videos, with curriculum ideas, and resources to meet the curriculum. We also have a reading assignment, with post questions on St Patricks Day. We then will be going to our playdate at the park, and if it rains, it will be held at one of the members homes. We will catch up on math, language arts, and all other lessons on Thursday.

I get to be a big grouch yet again, and write a letter to the Postmaster General, of the US. There has to be someone who overlooks them all. If anyone knows, I would gladly like to know too. If not, I will have to search for it. What am I going to complain about? My local post office is useless, that is what I am going to complain about. I use the online website to print shipping labels, and pay for shipping, etc. I wanted to ship something to the Philippines, and the website warned me I may not be able to. I called my local post office to ask them about shipping international rules, and the rude woman who answered the phone did not even let me finish my statement before she said they were not trained in the website one click something or other. I again tried to explain that was not what I wanted to know, and again she cut me off. So I hung up on her, and called the post office in the next town over. That nice woman let me state my question, and gave me the proper answer, and guidance. Now I am going to complain about my post office. They always prove to be incompetent, and they have cut their hours so I can never get there when they are open anyways. And they are closed at the dumbest times. The post office wonders why they lose billions a year, and have to cut services how about because you don't properly train all post offices to do what they need to do. No, this is not the first time this has happened, that they are not properly trained, it has happened a lot in the three years we have been in this town. I am fed up, and someone will hear about it, as soon as I figure out who that somebody is LOL. Stay tuned, I am a determined woman.

Forests Around The World Education Videos

Tomorrow for Science class, we are studying forests. Below are two videos. The first one is short, and talks about the different large forests. The second is longer, but the pictures, and music are beautiful, it is from the Amazon. We did St Patricks Day crafts today, and if you need some free ones for your homeschool, or daycare, then you can get the at DLTK Crafts, too.

Lesson Plans For 03/16/10:

DJ:
Science: Forests of the world, weather word search
Math: Add and subtract money, reducing fractions
Sign Language: Occupations
Language Arts: Making predictions, homophones, root words
Cursive Writing
Vocabulary

Caitlin:
Travel name tags
Science: Lion habitat, forests of the world
Reading: HOP Pig Fun
Phonics: See, say, and read it, worksheet
Animal Book: Forest animals
Math: Ordinal numbers
Site Words
Flash Cards
Skip Counting
Printing Practice

Did You Miss It?

Daylight Savings Time, that is. I didn't, but I always wish I did. I hate losing that one hour of my life, and sleep. Below is a video explaining why they decided Daylight Savings Time was a good idea. Tomorrow March 15, 2010 at 6 AM, the History Channel has a special on they history of St Patrick. If you want it for your lessons, or just your own personal knowledge, be sure to set your Tivo, so you don't miss it. Tomorrow for art class DJ will be learning to draw rock cliffs. This may take several weeks of doing, so I will see how it goes.

Lesson Plans For 03/15/10:

DJ:
Reading: Read chapters 1-3 of Black Beauty with summary
Writing: Write about the dwarf angel fish
Vocabulary
Math: Multiplication, subtracting decimals
Language Arts: Verbs
Sign Language: Occupations 1-17
Art: Learn to draw rock cliffs
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Arts and Crafts: Draw a story, St Patricks Day crafts
Reading: HOP Pig Fun
Sign Language: Occupations
Phonics: See, say, read, and write worksheet
Animal Book: Forest Animals
Math: Ordinal numbers, beginning to estimate
Site Words
Flash Cards
Skip Counting
Printing Practice

Fun Friday The Letter U: Umbrella Cupcakes

Well it is the second day of a complete soaking rain of a day, and it is Fun Friday. We are doing an A-Z meme, and we are up to the letter U. U is for umbrellas, how perfect for a rainy day. If you click the image, it will enlarge, and you will get an easy, and fun rainy day Umbrella cupcake recipe. They are cute, and simple to make. Your kids can even help with these, they are so easy. My kids love cupcakes.



So what about umbrellas anyways. Who made them, and why? I think the why is obvious LOL. They were used to keep people dry, and to protect them from the sun. An umbrella protects you from rain, and a parasol protects you from the sun. Umbrellas can be dated way back to Ancient times, even before Christ was born. There is no specific date for when the umbrella was actually invented. Lots of people today use huge umbrellas for shade at the beach, or on their back patio for entertaining. They come in a wide variety of sizes, colors, and of course prices. I personally love the vintage, and antique parasols that society ladies used to carry with them, as part of their regular everyday attire.

Want to join us for Fun Friday? Then simply sign up using the Blogging For Fun sign up box, on the left hand margin of this blog.

How Crayons Are Made

As promised yesterday, here is a video on how crayons are made. Caitlin was very curious about this. I don't have a whole lot to say today. I know it is hard to believe, but it is true. If you need some new books for your children, I am offering a free ring to the first person who buys 25 dollars of merchandise from my Barefoot Books store. You can go to my Barefoot Blog, to see the details. See you all tomorrow.

Tomorrow is test day. DJ will be doing the letter U, on his writing blog, and reading the last short story of his Knights book, with summary.

Happy 2nd and 4th Anniversary

It is Melissa's Homeschool blogs 2nd anniversary. It is also my 4th wedding anniversary. My husband actually picked this date, because it was his mother's birthday, and he figured he could never forget the date. His mom passed away before I ever got the chance to meet her. My new floor is my anniversary gift, and Craig got some dumb TV thing. He has been asking for it, for over a year, and I have put it off. He finally is getting it. I was not planning to not have lessons today, but the TV thing comes today, and my husband took the day off. It is close to impossible to do lessons when Craig is home. It just doesn't work. So we will make up everything from today, with tomorrows lessons. Caitlin asked me yesterday how crayons were made. Be sure to check back tomorrow to see how.


Lesson Plans For 03/11/10:

DJ:
Math: Subtracting decimals, division, and multiplication
Vocabulary
Language Arts: Recalling details, root words, homophones
Sign Language: Numbers 1-20 last week
Reading: Yogodayu from Knights book, with summary
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Phonics: Beginning sounds
Reading: HOP The Big Log
Printing Practice
Math: Two equal parts
Site Words
Flash Cards
Animal Book: Australian Animals

Comments and Graphics - Layouts - Photobucket

Hooked On Phonics, The O Song

This is a picture of the new floor. It looks so nice, and makes all the brown wood paneling not look so old, and wood like LOL. I do not like the wood paneling, but my husband does. Oh well, I guess I can't have it all my way. Not much exciting going on here today. It is raining, which there was no rain in the forecast, and dreary. I did start my exercise regime today. It has been a long time coming, and I just have to set aside a time, and day, to do it. So Tuesday, and Thursdays will be the days. It is a start at least.

Below you will find another Hooked on Phonics video. It is the O song. It is geared towards kindergarten, but if your child is struggling, then it will be useful to them as well.


Lesson Plans For 03/10/10:

DJ:
Clouds: Crossword puzzle
Math: Prime numbers less than 100, adding decimals
Social Studies: The presidents conclusion
Language Arts: Homophones, root words, sequencing events
Vocabulary
Sign Language: Numbers 1-20 final week
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Reading: HOP The Big Log
Printing Practice
Phonics: Zoo animals
Math: Two equal parts
Site Words
Flash Cards
Animal Book: Australian animals

Roman Numerals, The Earths Layers

I had a great surprise Saturday afternoon, when I got up. My husband had re tiled the whole kitchen, and it looks so lovely. Now we just have the living room, and the one bathroom left. It should be done within the next few weeks, I hope. I am hoping before my sister, and husband come to visit, in a couple of weeks, but we will see.

If you need a lesson on Roman Numerals, the video below is very good, or you can get a free one at Lesson Snips. I don't think Roman Numerals are studied the way they used to be, as I found it very difficult to find a lesson on them. We are also doing the Earths layers tomorrow, for Science class. The video below, is short, and to the point. Watch it as many times as you want, or need, to learn them.

Lesson Plans For 03/09/10:

DJ:
Science: The Earths layers
Math: Roman numerals, decimals
Cursive Writing
Language Arts: Root words, compare and contrast, main character
Sign Language: Numbers 1-20 final week
Vocabulary

Caitlin:
Science: The Earths layers, light
Reading: HOP The Big Log
Printing Practice
Recycling: Worksheet
Math: Two equal parts
Site Words
Flash Cards
Animal Book: Australian animals
Phonics: Alphabet book



Today, I have spent all morning printing for the next four weeks of school. We are quickly coming up to the end of our curriculums, and will spend the rest of the school year reviewing, or expanding on art, and music. I am also currently working on getting DJ's report card done, for the third quarter. I think he will be much happier this time around. He tried extra hard, to get his Science grade back up to where he expects it to be.

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Olympic Physics: Impulse and Momentum-$5! Mar. 10. 2 Sessions to choose from: Wed 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. CDT or Wed 12 - 1 p.m. CDT Ages 8 and up The Physics of the Olympics! The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat, and the wonder of physics! Believe it or not, the Olympics are a lot more than just amazing athletic achievements. There is a huge amount of great science going on as well. Join Science Jim for one or more of these Physics of the Olympics classes as we dive into the amazing world that lies underneath all amazing athletics. Classes are recommended for ages eight and up. Each class comes with a complete .pdf lesson plan that includes plenty of hands-on activities to try at home. “Crack,” and the puck flies into the goal! “Swoosh”, and the skier slips inside the flags! “Swish, click,” and the skater performs a beautiful leap! All of these are examples of impulse and momentum. The crack, the swoosh, and the swish are all examples of impulse. Flying pucks, slipping skiers and leaping skaters are all forms of momentum. Join Science Jim as he explains how impulse causes momentum and how well timed “cracks”, “swooshes” and “swishes” can lead to Olympic glory. What others have to say about Science Jim's Webclasses: "We just finished with your class. WOW is all we have to say. We truly enjoyed it." Michelle N. Thank YOU for the web classes. You are providing an education for my son that I never could. Looking forward to more. Athena B. I was thrilled to watch my son with the concepts of gravity and friction. He spent an hour experimenting with all his various hot wheels and ramp combinations then explained it all to his brother later that day. It was awesome! Cindy C. Click here for more information... Our Price $5.00

Learn About Surface Area and Volume With This Fun Workshop

Mar. 16-18 @ 11:30am-12:30am CDT Just $15 This workshop covers the concepts of surface area and volume for various 2D and 3D shapes and figures. Concept typically part of: Pre-Algebra or earlier classes. All sessions are LIVE! Students will see and hear the teacher in real-time. They will also be able to ask questions, make comments, and interact with other students. Finally, all sessions are recorded for later review, or if you happen to be absent. John Bovey has successfully taught math and other subjects for grades 4-12. He is a certified teacher in Washington state and has worked for schools in Ohio, California, and Washington. He is most experienced with teaching middle school and high school level math. He has been widely regarded as an excellent math teacher by former students and parents. John also has tutored numerous students in math. Several references attest to his strong teaching abilities and the overall success he has had as a teacher. He is currently the Owner/Operator of LIVE Online Math. Click here for more information... Our Price $15.00

Radical Expressions, Simplified! Mar. 23 @ Noon-1:00pm CDT Just $5 for this session Covers the rules involved with simplifying radical expressions. Concept typically part of: Algebra 1 All sessions are LIVE! Students will see and hear the teacher in real-time. They will also be able to ask questions, make comments, and interact with other students. Finally, all sessions are recorded for later review, or if you happen to be absent. John Bovey has successfully taught math and other subjects for grades 4-12. He is a certified teacher in Washington state and has worked for schools in Ohio, California, and Washington. He is most experienced with teaching middle school and high school level math. He has been widely regarded as an excellent math teacher by former students and parents. John also has tutored numerous students in math. Several references attest to his strong teaching abilities and the overall success he has had as a teacher. He is currently the Owner/Operator of LIVE Online Math. Click here for more information... Our Price $5.00

Ecosystems
Mar. 10th, 17th, 24th, & 31st
4pm CDT
45 minutes
Grades: 5-10

This live class is designed to support the Understanding Science Series unit books. Each of the live classes in this series will meet weekly for 45 minutes for four weeks. The lessons will enhance the materials found in the unit book. The live class will feature labs and projects, allow for discussion and question/answer sessions as well as an opportunity for indvidualized grading, support, and feedback. Additional support will occur via a blog that can be found at ning.com (students will receive an invite to join this blog upon purchase).

Includes: 4 live teaching sessions that will take the comprehension beyond the questions offered in the unit study booklet.1 month of continuous blogging with discussion questions being entered by the teacher weekly that will challenge the students and provide additional support. An opportunity for grading of the projects included in the unit packet.

The class is recommended for students that are reading and writing from the 5th to 10th Grade levels. The feedback will be individualized based on the students grade level.

This class will begin on March 10th and will end on March 31st. The class will meet for four 45 minute sessions on Wednesdays from 4- 4:45 central time (5-5:45pm Eastern Time Zone).Students will also need the Understanding Ecosystems book (which can also be purchased on Currclick.com)

Our Price $12.50
Click here for more information...

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Mar. 10th, 17th, 24th, and 31st 3pm CDT
45 minutes
Grades: 5-10

This live class is designed to support the Understanding Science Series unit books. Each of the live classes in this series will meet weekly for 45 minutes for four weeks. The lessons will enhance the materials found in the unit book. The live class will feature labs and projects, allow for discussion and question/answer sessions as well as an opportunity for indvidualized grading, support, and feedback. Additional support will occur via a blog that can be found at ning.com (students will receive an invite to join this blog upon purchase).

The next title offered in the series will be Understanding Plants. This class will begin on March 10th and end on March 31st. This course will include the following: 4 live teaching sessions that will take the comprehension beyond the questions offered in the unit study booklet..1 month of continuous blogging with discussion questions being entered by the teacher weekly that will challenge the students and provide additional support. An opportunity for grading of the projects included in the unit packet.

The class is recommended for students that are reading and writing from the 5th to 10th Grade levels. The feedback will be individualized based on the students grade level.
Schedule. Students will also need the Understanding Plants and Plant Growth book available at this link http://www.currclick.com/product_info.php?products_id=2545&it=1

Click here for more information...
Our Price $12.50

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Kinetic vs. Potential Energy - $5!

Mar. 17. 2 Sessions to choose from: Wed 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. CDT or Wed 12 - 1 p.m. CDT Ages 8 and up

The Physics of the Olympics! The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat, and the wonder of physics! Believe it or not, the Olympics are a lot more than just amazing athletic achievements. There is a huge amount of great science going on as well. Join Science Jim for one or more of these Physics of the Olympics classes as we dive into the amazing world that lies underneath all amazing athletics. Classes are recommended for ages eight and up. Each class comes with a complete .pdf lesson plan that includes plenty of hands-on activities to try at home.

Have you ever wondered where downhill racers get their energy from? No, I don’t mean energy drinks or candy bars! I mean, what powers them to reach speeds of 80 to 90 miles per hour coming down the mountain? There aren’t any engines or jet packs on their backs. Where does the energy come from to give them all that speed? Well, the secret lies in a little something called potential and kinetic energy and Science Jim will tell you all about it.

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I just wanted to let you know how much Samantha is enjoying the class! After every class I get to hear for the next couple days all she's learned. My husband and I both have science backgrounds and Samantha has never experienced much interest. So I'm enjoying watching her excitement being piqued! You can definitely count her in for the next class. Renee A.

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Collaboration To Enhance Learning

This is a guest post from Bekah. Be sure to home on over to her blog, and pay her a visit. This post is great, because as she said a lot of public school children work together on assignments, especially in the later grades. Learning to collaborate, and network with other homeschoolers, is extremely beneficial.


Students in a classroom often work together to complete projects and other collaborative learning experiences. Working with other students can do a lot to enhance learning, including developing communication and interpersonal skills, using a variety of talents and strengths to complete a project, and group management skills. In a classroom, it's easy to group students to work together. But what about homeschooling?

There are a variety of web tools that can actually make it possible for homeschooled students to work together (once you have built a network of other homeschooled students, of course). If you are part of a homeschooling group, or make connections with homeschoolers in other areas, check out some of these tools to help work on school group projects together, replicating this valuable experience common in many "traditional" schools.

http://www.stixy.com/ Stixy is a free online bulleting board. It incorporates the ability to share pictures, .pdf files, documents, and more, and also allows you to create notes and to-do lists.
http://grou.ps/">Grou.ps - this site actually allows you to create your own social network. If you have a homeschool grouop that meets infrequently, this can be a nice way to create a private social networking experience.
http://www.skype.com/- Skype is an instant messaging tool that also allows voice calls (free to other Skype users). With the addition of the web cam functionality, it can actually be used to make live presentations to another homeschooling family.
http://voicethread.com/#home- Voice Thread allows you to upload a file, and then have people call in or use their computers to record voice comments. It can be a great way to share and comment on virtual scrapbooks or projects.
http://prezi.com/- Prezi is a neat presentation tool. It's like power point in that you can create visual presentations, but it has so many more features. The learning curve for creating Prezis is a little high, but it is fairly intuitive as well, and just takes some basic familiarity with the system to create really neat-looking, original presentations. The presentations are then housed online, so they can be viewed from anywhere.
http://www.timetoast.com/ - TimeToast allows you to create timelines. It makes them look a lot sharper than the posterboard versions, since it automatically takes care of spacing and incorporating images. There is an RSS feature. The only downside is that it only works with CE/AD years (so no ancient Greece history).
http://www.glogster.com/ - Glogster is a drag-and-drop way to create really neat-looking websites. It could be used for projects, or for personal scrapbook-type sites. It could also be used to create a general learning portfolio.

Bekah blogs at moment.blogspot.com”>Motherhood Moment where she writes about family activities, eco-friendly living, money- and time-saving tricks, and more. She is a work-at-home mother of two girls, age 0 and 2, who teaches German and math at an online high school.

Bekah
motherhood-moment.blogspot.com

Fun Friday The Letter T: Topsy Turvy Tomatoes

Today is Fun Friday, at my Blogging For Fun group. We are working on an A-Z meme, and are up to the letter T. I am going to talk about tomatoes. I love tomatoes, and this is the time of year, when I start thinking about growing some. Those of you who have been with me for a while, know that my thumb is not very green at all. Last year I did better. I got one cucumber, maybe six tomatoes, and whole host of peppers. I bought one of these Topsy Turvey's last year. I was not optimistic at all. I did not put tomatoes in it, because I had already planted my tomatoes. Instead, I put a pepper plant in it. As I said, I had tons of peppers. I do have to say though, I might have given them too much sun, and could have gotten way more, if I respected their need for less sunlight. This year I am buying two more of these clever devices. I will put tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers in the three of them. These keep your plants off the ground, and not as easy for bugs to get, and eat them. I don't know who came up with this concept, but I love it. Here is hoping my thumb is ten times greener this year, than last year. I might even try putting hydrangeas in another, to see if it works.

I think we all know tomatoes are good for us. But in case you don't here are some reasons to eat your tomatoes.

1- Tomatoes contain Lycopene, a powerful antioxidant, that is well known for fighting off cancer.
2- There are tests being done that show tomatoes may help fight heart disease, and high cholesterol as well.
3- They are low in calories, and fat, making them a great addition to any diet.

Tomatoes are actually a fruit, not a vegetable, because they have seeds. They are versatile in the ways you can prepare, and cook them. I love a nice tomato sandwich, with just a little mayo, and salt and pepper. Or try cutting them up in a bowl, add some onions, cook and crush in some bacon, add mayo, and you have a cool refreshing summer salad. It is like a BLT without the bread, it is delicious. My mother calls this salad Grandma Snows salad. I make it all the time, in the summer.

Hooked On Phonics 1st Grade Learn To Read

Caitlin is not in first grade yet, but she has done so well so far on her reading, that I am going to begin some first grade phonics with her. If it start to overwhelm her, I will just go back to the kindergarten work. She loves these phonics videos, so we can start here. Also if you have a child learning to read check out Starfall. It is a wonderful program, that both of my kids have used at one time or another. I am going to try to advance her in math a bit too, but again I am not sure how it will go. We are coming to the end of the third grading period, and will soon be finishing up most of our curriculum. That will leave us time to review what we have learned. This mostly will apply to DJ in preparation, for his evaluation. Tomorrow is test day, so there are no lesson plans to post.

The Game Classroom

I only have time for a quick post today. We are off to the park for our play date. It is not very warm, but it has been a while since we all got together, so I will suck it up. I found this new website, with all educational games on it. It is called Game Classroom, and as far as I can tell it is free. I have not actually had a chance for the kids to try it yet, but will soon. I love games that are educational, so I am sure we will use this a lot. I actually found it quite by accident, on Facebook.


Lesson Plans For 03/04/10:

DJ:
Health: The Respiratory System, see the cool video in my archives, for supplemental fun.
Math: Understanding decimals, division.
Sign Language: Numbers 1-20
Language Arts: Root words, compare and contrast, cause and effect
Vocabulary
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Health: The respiratory system
Math: Number words
Phonics: Beginning sounds of fruits
Printing Practice
Animal Book: Jungle animals- elephants
Emotions
Flash Cards
Site Words
Reading: HOP Pom Pom

Cell Phones In School

Well I wanted to post a cute video from Youtube, but their website is down for some reason, so you will have to listen to me talk about something else. Cell phones in school is the topic for today. First of all let me say, if my kids were in public school, and old enough, yes I would not mind if they had a cell phone. I see the importance, and purpose of them having one. However, there do not seem to be any rules associated with cell phones in school. Kids text each other, play games, and even cheat all while in school. Is this really what they should be doing during school time? Last week here in our small town, well the next small town over, some boys got in a pretty nasty fight, on school property. Several children were watching, and according the the paper, at least one adult watched said fight. The fight was so bad the victim had bruise marks from being choked. Like that is not bad enough, and why did the adult not intervene, several children taped the event using their cell phone, and then uploaded it to Youtube. It quickly spread between the two towns, with almost 800 people viewing it, before it was removed. I can see several things wrong with this picture. One how is it not a violation of that boys rights, to have himself being beaten up, and then plastered on a public forum for anyone to see? The boys were suspended, but really is that enough? I know kids fight, and even violence happens, but I feel this was a violation of his privacy, he was a minor after all. I really think cell phones either need to be kept in lockers, and not turned on, on school property unless it was an emergency. What do you think? That is our thought provoking topic of the day. Hopefully Youtube will be up soon, so you don't have to hear me think too often LOL.

Lesson Plans For 03/03/10:

DJ:
Social Studies: The Presidents part two
Math: Problem solving, multiplication
Sign Language : Numbers 1-20
Language Arts: Root words review, compare and contrast
Vocabulary worksheet times two
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Reading: HOP Pom Pom
Site Words
Flash Cards
Follow the maze worksheet
Animal Book: Jungle animals- Tigers
Math: Number words
Phonics: Beginning sounds of fruits
Printing Practice

Buying An Old House, Rocky Cycles

We knew when we bought this 20 year old home, that we would need to be doing updating, and repairs. We had been discussing what kind of flooring to put in, once we pulled out this nasty, old rug. We finally decided on tile, due to having dogs, and tons of sand. Yesterday we pulled out the dining room rug. OMG it was so dirty, and dusty. We were warned that even though we vacuum every day, there would be tons under the rug. They were not lying, WOW!! Anyway, I should have bought face masks, because today I am so filled up, I can barely breathe through my nose. We still have to do the kitchen, and living room, so I will be sure to get masks before then. I will show before, and after pics, as soon as they are loaded to the computer. No I have to save my pennies, to purchase the rest of the tiles. We are moving into adding, and subtracting of fractions. So, DJ's math load will be a bit lighter, until I am sure he understands the concepts.

Lesson Plans For 03/02/10:

DJ:
Sign Language: Numbers 1-20
Math: Subtracting fractions with like denominators
Science: Rock formations, and the rock cycle
Language Arts: Root words, compare and contrast
Vocabulary: WS times two
Cursive Writing

Caitlin:
Science: Rock formations
Reading: HOP Pom Pom
Site Words
Flash Cards
Rhyming Words
Math: Number words
Phonics: Beginning sounds of fruits
Printing Practice
Animal Book: Jungle Animals- lions

Tomorrow for Science class we are studying rocks, and the rock cycle. Below you will see two videos. One is on the Grand Canyon, and some of the most beautiful rock landscape you have ever seen. Then the other explains the rock cycle, and how it works.