Back To the Cold!

We have had about three weeks of Summer like weather. It was heavenly. Now today it is raining and about 30 degrees colder. It was the first day we had to miss our Run/Walk Club. But don't worry we are making it up on Monday. I had so much to do this week, and believe it or not I got most of it done and I still have tomorrow.

We had to go through all of DJ's photo since September, and pick one to enter in County Events next Saturday. Then you have to order it, mount it, and make sure it fits all the crazy rules. Yesterday, we had to make an emergency run to my Mom's to get Caitlin's leopard print skirt, that my Mom sewed for her. All the entry forms, and items have to be turned in tomorrow. Plus DJ has to tweak his demonstration and then practice it. All before next Saturday. Thank goodness he has all the data, now just needs to organize it. This year he is doing Southern Fire Ants. A huge nuisance here, but they do actually do some good too. The only thing I have not been able to keep up with is blogging and email. I haven't checked my email since last Saturday. I hope there was not anything important in there, lol! Speaking of email, I wanted to share the website School Express. I have been receiving their newsletter, each week, for almost a year now. I had it before, but then forgot about it, so I signed up again. Each week they send you a free themed unit. I have enough that I can use them for Caitlin for next year of school, mostly Science stuff, so that is awesome. I don't start planning for the next school year, until we get a little closer to the end of this one. Speaking of Science, for Christmas, each of the kids got a mini Science kit in their stocking. Since Caitlin has never seen snow, she got one to make snow. Now it was cold, and white, but trust me was not the texture of snow. And it does not melt. Now she has been playing with this cup of snow for about a week. Today she came out and showed me that she had made a snowman. LOL isn't he cute? Tomorrow we have horseback riding lessons. Have an awesome weekend!

The Moon and Stars Themed Unit

Tomorrow for Science, we will be doing a themed unit, on the Moon. You can get this free themed unit, at School Express They have tons of free themed units for you to download, or print. Plus tons of other helpful education links. Below is a short video, of the moon, and stars set to music. It is quite lovely, check it out. Plus you can join the Nasa Kids Club for all kinds of fun activities, for your kids to do.



Lesson Plans for 3/31/09:

Half day all this week, yay

Science: the moon
Writing: Write a story abut going to the moon
Spelling: Lesson 26- write each spelling word two times each
Vocabulary: Lesson 26- look up the definition of each word
Math: Multiplication, division, word problems

History of Communication

Today for Social Studies, we are studying the history of communication. I found that I could not really find a lesson plan I liked on this topic, for a 3rd grader. Until I found a free themed unit, at School Express. They used to have a rule, that you had to sign up for their newsletter, to download their themed units, which is free by the way, but that seems to not be the case anymore. You can go to their website, and download any of their free themed units. I love this communication history one, and am glad I looked there. Here is a short video on the History of Communication, as well.



Lesson Plans for 3/26/09:

Health: Pool safety
Wrting: Write a story about pool safety
Math: Problem solving, multiplication, division
Language Arts: Compound words, plural nouns
Spelling: Lesson 25- put your spelling words in alphabetical order
Vocabulary: Lesson 25- write each vocabulary word, and the meaning 2x each
Spanish: review

Freebie Of The Day, New Store Promotion, Thanksgiving Themed Unit

I have three things to discuss this morning. Tomorrow there is no school, in celebration of Veterans Day. I will be looking for a lesson on Veterans Day, and hopefully adding it to Wednesdays lessons.

Todays Homeschool Freebie of the day, is an ebook about the Pilgrims. I have downloaded this to my computer, if you are interested in it, I can send it to you. If you want to sign up for the free newsletter go to www.HomeschoolFreebieOfTheDay.com and they will send you the freebies for free, every week. Here is a summary of the ebook Pilgrim Stories I -
From Old Homes to New (PDF ebook)

This week we are featuring this absolutely delightful
three part serialization of the story of the Pilgrims - perfect
for "read aloud" and sharing with the kids over the next
couple of weeks!
In Part One, we meet the Pilgrims and learn why they
were forced to leave their homes in search of a place they could
freely worship... a journey which had many false starts,
and eventually became a hazardous journey across
the ocean in hopes of reaching the "New World".
I probably will not use this for this year, but will be saving it for next years curriculum.

This weeks free themed unit, from www.schoolexpress.com>

is for a themed unit on Thanksgiving, we will be using this the week of Thanksgiving, when there is only two days of school. If you are interested in this themed unit, I can send it to you. If you go to school express website, you can sign up for their free newsletter, and they will send you a new free themed unit, every week.

I am having a sales promotion, for my Etsy store, at both blogs. For this blog, if you purchase 25 dollars of merchandise, before shipping, you will get a free Fisher Price learning computer, for children 9 months to 3 years. There is a picture of it above. The first person to contact me through this blog, verifying their purchase will win the free learning system. Go to my Etsy store, http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6007466 and check out my inventory. This is a great way to cross two or more people, off of your Christmas list.

Barnes and Nobles, Halloween Ebook,

There is no school tomorrow, so I have no lesson plan to post. I hope everyone is having a marvelous Sunday.

This weeks, School Express newsletter features a Halloween Fun Ebook. Every week, they send a new Themed unit for free right to your email address. Next week, will be a Unit Study on Air Pollution. They offer a Themed Unit Study subscription, as well, that can be your whole Curriculum for the year. To sign up for their free newsletter, go to http://www.schoolexpress.com and sign up.

Barnes and Nobles, has renewed their educator discount cards. As a Homeschooler you are eligible, to receive one of these discount cards, free of charge. You do have to prove that you homeschool, and there are several ways you can do that. The card entitles you to discounts, on books purchased at their stores. I do not personally have one of these, and just learned about it, but I will definately be looking into getting one. We all know, how expensive books can be, and every little bit can help.

Unit Study On Feelings, Homeschool Resources

This week, on http://www.schoolexpress.com/ they are offering a free unit study on Feelings. I have checked it out, and it is a good one. I save these, and add them to my curriculum, usually at the end of the year, or where there is an empty slot. They are free, and they will send it to your email every week, so sign up if you need some new curriculum ideas.

I am a day behind, so there will be two days worth of lesson plans listed, as I posted about the contest yesterday. Dont forget to enter, the prizes are great. Last months contest was a dog cake, and it is being made, and pictures should be up soon. I am a little behind, as my youngest is sick. She is very rarely sick, so this is kind of traumatizing to her.

Here are this weeks Homeschool Resource Freebies, for this week, you must sign up for their newsletter at http://www.homeschoolfreebieoftheday.com/ to receive these great freebies. Most are PDF files, and they have some great ones this week, check them out:

Monday, Sept 29: Autumn Studies Classic collection of Nature, Literature & Art Lessons for Primary Grades. Lots of simple Q&A studies, poems, examples and more.

Tuesday, Sept 30: How To Make Your Children Obey Great little ebook on how to teach your children to be obedient from Kathy Brodock

Wednesday, Oct 1: Lessons from "The Thinking Toolkit" Two lessons from this excellent book: Learn the differences between a discussion, a disagreement, an argument & a fight. Also, learn when to shut up!

Thursday, Oct 2: Way cool Science Experiments videos! Fun collection of "hands on" science experiments for kids, courtesy of GreatHomeschoolVideos.com

Friday, Oct 3: First Things First How to start your day with simple Family Devotions - great guide by Penny Raine

I particularly like Monday and Fridays resources.

Due to my husbands new work schedule, yes they have changed his hours yet again, our school day will now be from 9AM, until 2:30 PM. Here are our Lesson Plans, for 9/29/08, and 9/30/08

Monday
Writing: Write directions, for how to ride a bike
Math: Multiplication, addition and subtraction
Language Arts: Phonics review, prefix, suffixes, verbs
Spelling Lesson 5: Write each spelling word 2 times each
Vocabulary Lesson 5: Look up the definition, for each vocabulary word
Art- Draw Spongebob Squarepants shown above, and paint a Ocean related painting
Reading: Read chapter 5 of The Knight At Dawn

Tuesday
Writing: Draw and write what your home is like
Math: Multiplication, addition, subtraction, greater than and less than
Language Arts: Phonics Review, synonyms, antonyms
Spelling Lesson 5: Write each spelling word, and circle the vowels
Vocabulary Lesson 5: Use each vocabulary word in a sentence
PE: 30 minutes
Reading: Read chapter 6 of The Knight At Dawn
Science: Sea Creatures- Dolphins

Lesson 5 spelling words: alive, grind, pint, drive, diet, size, rise, died, tried, dial, five, pies, inside, cried, and island

Lesson 5 vocabulary words: alive, grind, pint, drive, diet, size, rise, dial, inside, island

Free Unit Study On The Aztecs, Lesson Plan for 9/16/08

Now that the Tropics, are finally quiet, I can stop focusing on the weather, and start thinking about Fall decorating. Funny thing is, I cant seem to find any of my Fall decorations. I can not imagine where they are. I am hoping the gas refineries, and oil platforms, will only be offline for a short amount of time. I am interested to see what the Dow does today, and what gas closes at. It could be a rocky few weeks, or even months. Lets hope not though.

This weeks free Unit Study, from School Express, is on the Aztecs. I use all of the ones they send me, I squeeze them into the curriculum wherever I can. To get your free weekly Unit Study go to http://www.schoolexpress.com sign up for the free newsletter, and every week they will send you a different topic. Some people homeschool using just unit studies, and they do offer different packages to accomodate that.

Lesson Plan for 9/16/08

Spelling Lesson 3: Write each spelling word, and circle the vowels
Vocabulary Lesson 3: Write a sentence, using each vocabulary word
Reading: Read chapter 9 of Dinosaurs Before Dark
Science: Plants and animals of the sea- Seahorses
Writing: Draw and write, what you ate for breakfast
PE: 30 minutes
Math: Multiplication, place value 4 digit numbers, addition, and subtractions
Language Arts: Phonics review, commas, pronouns
Spanish: Parts of the body

If time permits, play learning games on Leapster L-max, arts and crafts, and or music.

Lesson Plan for 9/9/08, Fun Ebook About Amphibians, Homeschool Resource Of The Day

Today I am going to start with a free activity printable ebook about Amphibians. This is the free resource, for this week, offered by School Express. If you are not a member of School Express, just go to their website sign up for their free newsletter, and recieve every week, a free themed unit, or fun ebook, to download and print. This is not a paid post, those are clearly marked, this is just resource sharing.

This weeks free homeschool resource of the day items available are as follows:

Monday, Sept 8: The Adventures of Pinocchio
Delightful audio dramatization starring Mel Blanc
(the voice of Bugs Bunny) + coloring pages to keep
little hands busy! Cool!

Tuesday, Sept 9: The Story Book of Science
A classic "living book" of stories
about science in nature, provided by
Yesterday's Classics.

Wednesday, Sept 10: 60 Easy Recipes for Body & Bath
Make your own lotions, bath salts, etc.
for family use or as gifts!

Thursday, Sept 11: The Pearl Box, 100 Beautiful Stories
for Young People - classic inspirational &
moral tales for little ones

Friday, Sept 12: Be A Stargazer
Great classic book introducing Astronomy & the
science of light
You can download these free ebooks, and incorporate them into your lesson plans. I will be downloading the Science ebook, available on Tuesday. Go to to sign up for their free newsletter, and every Sunday, you will get a week worth of free homeschool resources.

Lesson Plan for 9/9/08 is as follows:

Science- Plants and animals of the sea- starfish
Read chapter 5 of Dinosaurs Before Dark
Writing- What did you like best about Summer Vacation
PE- 30 minutes
Math- Multiplication, addition, subtraction, numbers and order
Language Arts- singular possessive nouns, phonics review, sentences
Spanish- Parts of the body

If time permits Music, and The story book of science

Lessons For 9/3/08, Freebies Alert, The Tropics

Right behind Gustov, comes Hanna, Ike and possibly Josephine. Hanna, will definately be effecting Florida, and possibly so will Ike. So as per usual, these days, we are watching the tropics.

This weeks School Express freebie is a themed unit on Amphibians. To get it go to http://www.schoolexpress.com sign up for their free newsletter, and every Sunday, or Monday they will send you a free unit study.

Today is our first day of school, and here is the lesson plans for 9/3/08

Spelling Lesson 1
Vocabulary Lesson 1
Math multiplication, addition and subtraction
Language Arts phonics review, nouns, capitalization
Read 2nd chapter of Dinosaurs Before Dark
Writing Tell about one place where you have alot of fun
Social Studies Targeting Communities, and Arkansas work sheet
Music I can play piano, if time permits

These are work sheets on communities, that we are using. You should be able to print them and use them if you like.

Free Transportation Themed Unit Study

This Mondays School Express free unit study is on Transportation. It is the same one from last week, except this week they added a Transportation activity book. Both of these are avaiable for free. The email they sent me says I can share the information. It is a rather large file, so if you are interested in it, just drop me a comment, or email, and I will send it to you via email. If you would like to sign up for the School Express newsletter go to http://www.schoolexpress.com click sign up for free newsletter, then all you have to do is verify via email, and you will get next weeks free themed unit. Tomorrow I will be putting up our school calendar for the 2008/2009 school year. If you need a calendar for your school year, this one will be great for you to print and use. Have a great week.

Watching TS Fay, Free Transportation Unit, Homeschool Freebie of The Day

Todays post, is chock full of stuff. First we are continuing to track TS Fay. It has grown to 60 miles and hour winds, and is just entering warm waters off of Cuba. They Keys are being evacuated, and the track has once again shifted just a hair to the East. Yesterday, they said south Florida, would most likely avoid a direct hit, now that has changed yet again. Watches are all the way up to Tampa, and it is predicted to become at least a category 1 hurricane, which is a minimal hurricane. Tornadoes would be the biggest threat for us, if it makes landfall south of Tampa.

This weeks School Express newsletter contains a free themed unit on Transportation. Since the history of transportation, is a part of our third grade curriculum, this is one I was glad to see. If you would like to receive the school express free newsletter, go to http://www.schoolexpress.com and sign up. It is completely free, and every Sunday, they will send a new themed unit.

This week at homeschool freebie of the day, the following free subjects will be available.
Monday- If I could do it again, this is a free advice article from people who have homeschooled for many years.

Tuesday- Childhood Stories of George Washington &
Abraham Lincoln", great read-alouds by Anne Tatum

Wednesday- Bible Scavenger Hunt"
Challenge your kids in this Bible-based scavenger hunt
and exploration from Values-Driven Family

Thursday- Quilted Hearts Doll Quilt Project"
A wonderful learning project for young hands eager to learn
to sew and quilt, from Seasons at Home magazine

Friday- Fun Audio Adventures Sampler

To take advantage of these great freebies, go to www.homeschoolfreebieOfTheDay.com
and sign up for their free newsletter. Every Monday, you will get new freebies, for every day of the week.

Free Theme Unit Study On The Olympics great homeschooling site

Tomorrow 8/10 school express's newsletter, will contain a free theme unit for the Olympics, and a free Olympic e book. They send a new themed unit every Sunday, in their free newsletter. I have already received several, and as I stated they are free. I cant share the unit with you, so you have to go to their site and sign up for the free newsletter. Once you supply your email address, they will send you a confirmation email, which you will need to click on. If you miss this weeks themed unit, they will have a new one next Sunday. So go to School Express, and sign up for their free newsletter, and by the way they have free educational games, and other free resources right on their website. You can sign up for their Deluxe Unit Membership, and receive even more benefits.