Holiday Themed Resources

Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is on its way. It is one of my favorite holidays. I love watching my children’s face light up when I put out the decorations. I love our family tradition of picking out our Christmas tree together and decorating it each year with one new ornament. I also love being able to incorporate holiday themed resources into our homeschooling lessons. If you are like me, then you are already searching the web for fun themed ideas for the upcoming month. Below are a few resources I have found so far that you might like to use as well ;)

                                     Christmas Themed Pinterest Board

Free Holiday Themed Spelling List & Activities 

Winter Themed Activities 

                                         Until Next Time…

November is National Scholarship Month

National Scholarship Month is a Great time to start preparing for your highschooler's next step in education. As a homeschooling parent, I know it may seem far away, but before you know it, your once little boy or girl will be starting college either be dual enrolling or graduating highschool. 


You may think there are not many scholarships available or maybe you are not sure where to even start. Maybe you feel like you just do not have the time to weed through all the options, but you would be wrong! In fact, there are many websites devoted to listing and helping you find scholarships that will fit your needs, fast and easily. 
One of my favorites is from letshomeschoolhighschool.com. Their section on college information keeps their scholarship list updated; which makes it so much easier to find the newest scholarships available. Of course, scholarships are not the only thing one needs to do to prepare; you also need to find a college to attend. If you are looking for homeschool friendly colleges, Time4Learning has put together a great list to check out as well. 

Until Next Time...

Free Halloween Books for Kids!

Everyone :)

It's official, Halloween has arrived! Our family really enjoys getting to dress up and just have fun with all the other families in our town. However, until night time comes, kids can get a bit impatient waiting for the fun to start. Whether you are a homeschooling family or not, a great way to help keep them entertained and out of your hair untill time is finding something fun and hopefully educational, to keep them busy. Reading is always a great activity. Here are some free Halloween themed books on YouTube that your kids can enjoy today. ~> Below are a few of my favorites ;)

                                  A Halloween Scare at my House

Big Pumpkin

  Room on the Broom

Wanting more activities to do?  Carving a pumpkin is always a fun time tested tradition. (You could also make it more like painting games and have your kids paint the faces on a pumpkin. We have done this in past, especially when my kids were too little to carve a pumpkin on their own. It is always alot of fun and if you can use glow in the dark paints, then they will light up at night.) 

Until Next Time...

Halloween Themed Educational Fun!

 If your family celebrates Halloween, then you are probably getting pretty excited that Halloween is not too far away; I know I am! As a homeschooling mom, there is more to this time of year than just dressing the kids up and going door to door for free treats. In our house, we also like to take advantage by having some "Halloween" themed educational fun! Regardless, whether you are a homeschooler or you are just a mom looking for some fun stuff to do with the kids after school or on the weekends, here are some free online learning games, etc. that your kids can have fun learning with this October ;)

                                     The Typing of the Ghosts!

                           Parts of the Body ~ Health Games

        SpellingCity also has tons of Free Halloween themed spelling list and activies for kids too.

If you are still wanting more, you should check out this Awesome Halloween themed Pinterest board that is full of ideas ;)

Until Next Time...

Fall Themed Home-School Fun!

It is officially fall! I just love this time of year. The weather is getting cooler, the leaves are changing, and I get to add fun fall themed activities to my homeschool curriculum . There are just so many options out there: You can go on a nature walk and collect different fall leaves (which can be used later for a fall craft ). Learning how to make fall food items is always fun and delicious ;p

                         

                                                

Of course, there are fall crafts, books, educational sites, and worksheets you can incorporate too (check out Pinterest, they have tons of fall themed boards) Plus, manyy towns will have fun fall festivals that sometimes have educational aspects to them you can check out as well. 

Until Next Time…

                                                        Happy Fall!

Hi Everyone... I'm Back!!!

Hi, I know it has been quite some time since I have posted any new blog entries, and for that I am so sorry, but I am back and ready to share my homeschooling adventures with you all. To start this new school year off fresh, I decided to do a blog make over (I hope you all like it!)

                                                

     If you haven’t already, Please grab my new button for your blog ;)

                                          

For those who are wondering where I have been. Well, as you may have read in the past, we not only home-school, but from time to time we are roadschooling too. We have been on the road the past few months, which has been a lot of fun, but it has kept us SUPER busy as well. Homeschooling on the road is always so interesting and is always an unique learning experience. It is one thing to read about places and see pictures, but being there in person is something new altogether.

Before I go, I want to share this Great Labor Day Themed Pinterest board, with you. It is full of fun, educational resources, which would make a perfect addition to your homeschool day ;)

Until Next Time...

We wish you all a Happy Labor Day!

Our 2015 Homeschool Year

Yes! I am still here. I know it has been awhile since I have written, but when
your a homeschool mom, sometimes you just don't even have enough "ME"
time to blog like you want.

Anyways, on another note, it is hard to believe that 2015 is already over. It has been a good homeschooling year for us. My oldest has declared her future career goals. If I understand correctly, she wants to be doing something in animation. So, for Christmas we invested in some good drawing software and a graphics writing tablet for her. She has also turned a corner in her Math; which is great! I wasn't sure if the extra practice and math games would help, as some people just never get math, but for her I guess she just need some time.

My youngest is doing well too. He has always done well in math and is about two grade levels ahead at the moment. He has also gotten so much better in his reading fluency, which has been a stressful area for me as a parent, the past couple of years. Thankfully, he has turned a corner and is flourishing. I exspect 2016 homeschooling year to be just as great. So, what do I have planned for 2016? Well in addition to what we already do, I  plan to dive into more science exsperiments with my youngest. He is so curious right now. Also, since my daughter will be turning 15 this year, I hope to start her in college classes. I hope your 2015 was great and I hope your 2016 will be even better.






Until Next time...

Back to "Home"- Schooling!

It’s that time of year again, the time when kids are back to school, sitting at their desks, and you’re enjoying that warm cup of coffee in silence. At least that is what is happening, for those of us who are not homeschooling. If you are a homeschooler, than you are either starting your new school year or you are preparing to start your new school year. For us, it is a little bit of both. How you may wonder? As year-round homeschoolers, we never really stop learning, but once a year I do sit down and review what we have learned and plan for the next year. Change whatever isn’t working, stock up on schooling supplies, etc. This year most things will stay the same. We will continue on with Time4Learning as our core curriculum, my youngest will continue with Science4Us, and both will use some other learning websites (VSC, LGFK, T4W, etc.) 

My goal this year, however, is to dream bigger, to do more! Take more field trips, do more unit studies, and hands on science experiments. I also want to do more fun arts and crafts projects, as my oldest is getting older, and I am not sure how much longer I can get her to really be into them, lol.  My new addition this year will be calculators!!! Up until now I have not allowed my children to use them, but this year I will be teaching and allowing my oldest to use one, as she is progressing nicely in her Math.

Until Next Time…

Year-Round Homeschooling

June has arrived and before long so will summer. Of course, if you live in the south, it may feel as if it has already arrived ;)

For many of us who homeschool, this may be a time for family vacations. Time to take a break and recharge, but for others who homeschool year-round, it is just like any other time of the year. Personally, we fit into the “other” category. In the past, we tried to follow a typical school year calendar, but for our family we found that we prefer to take our vacation days throughout the year when we choose. Plus, I have found that continued learning without long breaks between, allows my children to retain what they are learning. If the idea of homeschooling year-round appeals to you and you are thinking about giving it a try this summer, below are a few resources you can check out.

·          Online Summer School Curriculum 

·             Unit Studies 

·           Free Learning Games for Kids

                       Until Next Time...

The Solar System

So, we just did a Space themed unit study in honor of Space Day. We started our lesson by reading through some fun facts from a few websites: apples4theteacher.com and nasa.gov 

 

I am not sure if it had been just too many years since I had been in school myself or if I just wasn’t taught certain facts about our solar system when I was in school, but I was surprised by some of the  information we went over. For example, “Sol” means sun. So, The Solar System could also be called The Sun System and the sun is actually a star. 

Another interesting fact is that Venus spins backwards and they have also discovered signs of ancient floods on Mars. Then there is Jupiter, this planet's swirling cloud stripes are punctuated by massive storms such as the Great Red Spot, which has raged for hundreds of years. Just fascinating! 

The kids and I also enjoyed looking at all the amazing photographs of the sun and all of the planets. (I definitely do not remember images this amazing when I was in school!) We also watch some cool videos on YouTube and they played a few space games online. 

Afterwards, I had each of my kids draw their own solar system and label each planet. Then when it got dark enough, we went outside and got some great real life experience with our telescope ;)

This has been one of my favorites so far. It is a Great topic to learn about in your homeschooling, on space day or any day of the year!

Until Next Time…

Free Fun Easter Ideas for your Home-School!

Easter is almost here. Yes! That is what I said, Easter!!!! I was quite surprised myself when I looked at my calendar recently and seen that Easter would be here a couple of weeks earlier than last year. I will admit I am a bit disappointed in the earlier date, as I was planning for a few more weeks of Easter Fun, in our homeschooling. Of course, my children are not complaining, as they cannot wait for the Easter Bunny to arrive! 

So, if you are like me and just realized on April 5^th, 2015 it will be Easter, and would love to add some last minute fun Easter themed activities into your school day ~> below are a few things that you could add over the next week to your homeschool days ;)

~ History of Easter

~The resurrection of Jesus

~(Free) The Action Bible Easter Story-Kindle edition

~(Free) Easter spelling list

~ (Free) Easter fun activties

~Easter craft ideas

~(Free/cheap) Easter eBooks

Until Next Time...

Homeschooling Mom + Broken Toe = Learning Opportunity

There is nothing like a real life event to teach kids. This past week I had the unfortunate luck to break my toe. Long story short my little piggy’s got pushed all the way backwards until you heard a nice loud crunch! It was an accident obviously, but a painful one. Surprisingly, this is my first broken bone. So, of course being a homeschooling mom I had to make this a learning opportunity. I took pictures, documenting the process so far. (I plan to show this to the kids all at once to show the transition of injury through healing). A quick internet search provided loads of info on the subject and my Anatomy books from college helped a lot as well. 

This past week we have read about what a broken toe is, learned about the different types of breaks/fractures, and played some health games as well. We also focused some time on foods and vitamins that help to keep bones strong, to prevent future breaks and osteoporosis. As bad as I hate that I am in pain, at least it was a great learning opportunity for my kiddos ;)

Until Next Time...

What are Home-school looks like for February

Wow! Hard to believe that the first month into 2015 is almost over. I have to admit that this past few weeks have been slow in our homeschool, mainly because we have been battling GERMS!!!!. 

Seemed like every well day we had, we had two sick ones :/ We did, however, utilize lots of educational videos and online learning games. I figured even when you feel too ill to sit down at a table etc., you can still watch educational TV/videos and play fun games online while in bed, laying on a couch, etc. 

Even though the kiddos have enjoyed their time off of the regular school day, thankfully we are over the worse and are ready to reboot our homeschool for the New Year. 

With February, aka “Valentine’s Day” around the corner we will be focusing now on V-Day themed crafts, poems ( we will be using one of my fav freebies "SpellingCity" using poems I find), and learning about the cardiovascular system (The Heart) over the next several weeks. I also am planning on teaching my oldest how to tell your blood type with a kit I ordered.

                                        Until Next Time <3 <3 <3

It’s Christmas Eve and all through my house not a creature is stirring… Well, except me, my husband, and may kid’s lol ;)

This past week has been a busy one for our family. Lots of Christmas cleaning (We always scrub our home down before Santa arrives. We don’t want Santa to think we are slobs, I tell my children to get them more willing to help).  We have also been getting in some last minute holiday shopping too. This year has been harder for me on the gift giving for my oldest. She turned 13 years old earlier this month and is pretty much out of the “toy” stage. So, it has gotten more difficult to figure out what to buy her. My son who is 7 was easy, which in turn made it even harder to buy for my daughter, as I didn’t want the number of gifts to be too lopsided. Most of my shopping has been done online. I LOVE shopping online! It is so much easier to find and buy certain items online then in a store. Plus, I love not having to brave those busy stores. Unfortunately, I waited till the last minute and some of the items I wanted to purchase could not be shipped in time. So, I had to go out yesterday anyways. It always amazes me how ill stocked the department stores are each year. So many shelves with barely anything left. People buying whatever they could find; just sad. Thankfully, I did find a few items the kids wanted, but some things were already bought out :/

Hopefully, Santa will bring what I couldn’t locate, even if he has to drop it off later when his elves get it made.  We also been signing, addressing, and stamping Christmas cards. I think I mailed them out in time…  We have also been busy wrapping gifts, which the kids always enjoy this part the most. Why they think they need 4 inches of tape, where a one inch will work, is beyond me?!  I did not have too much to wrap myself this year, as I for one bought gift certificates for most of my family and friends. Mainly to places like Wal-mart, but I also bought some of my homeschool friends gift certificates to Time4Learning.  I never considered it before, but my friend had mentioned to me last week that she was looking for a new fourth grade homeschool curriculum for her son. That she was dreading having to researching curriculums again. So, I thought why not give her a T4L Gift certificate ;)

Anyways, today is Christmas Eve and my kids are so excited for tonight to come. It is the one night of the year that I do not have to tell them to go to bed, lol. Of course, we have a few traditions that we do before we turn in for the night. 

We cook holiday cookies, watch Holiday movies 

(Frosty is my Favorite). 

We also build gingerbread houses, read a book that tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ, and of course we set out milk and goodies for Santa.

 What are your Christmas Eve traditions?

 Until Next Time...

Remembering Thanksgiving

 Hard to believe November will be over tomorrow. It has been a great month, especially this past week; it has been full of fun, food, and family. Like most, we spent our Thanksgiving with family; something that I am always thankful for. Besides the typical turkey, dressing, and tons of yummy desserts, I found myself sharing my homeschooling knowledge with one of my cousin’s. Apparently, she has been considering homeschooling her son, and wanted me to suggest a third grade homeschool curriculum for her.  To be honest, I was surprised by her interest in homeschooling. She had always seemed to favor the public school systems, but I guess something changed her mind. Regardless why, I am just happy that I could help her. I know how being new to homeschooling can be stressful and a bit scary and how having someone who can help walk you through, can make things so much easier.   So, if you are thinking about homeschooling and have a question, please ask another homeschooler you know, or just ask me ;)



Until Next Time…

Halloween Is In The Home-School Air!

In just a couple of weeks, it will be Halloween. My kids are super excited, as I am sure yours are too. As a rule I always make my kids wait until at least the 2nd week into October, before they let me know what they want to be. In the past, I have had those "I've changed my mind!" moments, only after I have bought &/or made their costumes. For me, it is usually make them or some part of them, as my kids ALWAYS seem to want to be something I either can not find, or it is too expensive to buy. Over the years my kids have been ware wolfs, aliens, zombie bride, mummy, vampire, etc., etc. The hardest to create I think was the mummy. Having to stitch strips of cloth to black leggings was not fun. Of course the smiles on their faces is always so worth it ;)

In homeschooling news, we have been having some spooky fun this past couple of weeks. Besides adding some Halloween themed worksheets to our elementary online curriculum, we have also been doing fun crafts too!  Below are two of the crafts that we have made this year.

The toilet paper roll craft is really simple and fun. All you need is a clean toilet paper roll, paper, scissors, glue/tape, pencil, pen, &/or crayons, and  of course googly eyes are optional. 

    Paper Pumpkins  

All you need to make this crafts is paper, but if you have card stock that will work better. A hole puncher, scissors, plain or decorative, either will work. Pipe cleaners, but yarn or string can work too. and a pencil and ruler. 

To create these pumpkins you will be using your ruler and pencil to make equal sections to cut.  Once your paper is cut, you will use your hole puncher to make a hole in each end of your strips. Then all you need to do is use your pipe cleaner, yarn, &/or string by threading it through one end and then again through the other. You can use another pipe cleaner, yarn &/or string to make a stem at the top.
And there is your Paper Pumpkin!

                                                                Until Next Time...