Making Homeschooling Hands-On, Engaging, Meaningful & Memorable! Be inspired by all the possibilities!! Check out our unit studies, packets and printables!
Now to my family for a moment. Sometimes it’s good to know the ending and outcome of sad events.If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you might remember that my sister/bro-in-law and their family were victims of the May 2010 flooding in Nashville. My brother-in-law had just returned from a 9 month deployment to Iraq when the flood hit. They spent 12 hours moving as much as they could from the first floor of their home to the second. As you can see from my photo last summer, the first floor starts about 12 feet off the ground! The flood surpassed the 500 year flood mark, rising up to bed level on the second floor (the top windows of the house). They lost most everything–except things like pots and pans, dishes and the like. My sister’s family was fortunate, everyone was safe though they lost a lot of chickens and one of their pet cats. They had flood insurance unlike many in their vicinity.Well a couple of days ago (December 1st) their house (which was condemned) was demolished. There’s a photo at the bottom with half the home destroyed. But in all my sister, brother-in-law and their kids have come out happy. They have a new home — a farm they bought last summer with a three-acre lake. It’s pretty (beautiful, in fact!) and they plan to buy horses and cattle this next spring.
So here are a few pictures. 1) Their destroyed living room (May 2010). 2) The house as it was last summer in June 2011 (condemned). 3) The house half way through the demolition process –Dec. 1, 2011.
And now their new farm:
A picture of their farm from this summer (house is up beyond the trees). And below a picture of their lake from last week.
Below is a picture of the lake and their house (taken last week).
My sister and brother-in-law were inspiring through this whole event. Their resilience was amazing. They were so grateful for anything that survived the flood, for the help they got from their community (and the Red Cross) and the new beginnings it opened for them.
wow what a emotional roller coaster that type of event would have been. Their new farm is gorgeous though, here's to many years of happiness there for them 🙂
wow what a emotional roller coaster that type of event would have been. Their new farm is gorgeous though, here's to many years of happiness there for them 🙂
[…] winter: I’ve written about my sister’s family adventures from time to time — Their Flood Story Here, and two Homeschool Interviews with my sis here: Homeschooling through Spousal Deployments, […]
[…] winter: I’ve written about my sister’s family adventures from time to time — Their Flood Story Here, and two Homeschool Interviews with my sis here: Homeschooling through Spousal Deployments, […]
[…] My sister, bro-in-law and their 3 homeschooling kids know this first hand because they lost their house in a flood in Nashville, TN a few years ago. You can read about that here: My Sister’s Flood Story. […]
[…] My sister, bro-in-law and their 3 homeschooling kids know this first hand because they lost their house in a flood in Nashville, TN a few years ago. You can read about that here: My Sister’s Flood Story. […]
Hands-On Activities, Packets, Encouragement, and More!
Search Within Our Blog – Or scroll down to view the units we’ve covered!!
Hi! I’m Liesl!
Do you believe education can be exciting, inspiring, and full of joy? We do too!
I love the quote by William Butler Yeats, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." It's about getting the kids involved, engaged, and fired up about learning (while juggling the rest of life too!)
A bit about me: I have my Master's from Brown University. I have more than 20 years of teaching experience. I was a high school teacher for many years both in the U.S. and internationally and also taught for the University of Maryland before leaving to homeschool my 3 wonderful kids.
To read more about us CLICK HERE.
Homeschool Den STORE
Click on the image to find out more about the units and packets we have available.
Homeschool Teaching Strategies
Testimonials Page
how do I start homeschooling
This post has links to dozens of posts and resources both for new and veteran homeschoolers for everything from finding homeschool curriculum to general homeschool advice and encouragement.
History Units
Click on the image above to see the History Units we covered in our homeschool.
Science Units and Packets
What science topics could I teach my 5-7 year old - Homeschool Science Curriculum
Science Units
Click on the image above to see the Science Units we covered in our homeschool from elementary through middle school (and beyond!).
Below is just a small sample of the packets and resources we have available on our blog.
Earth Science Bundle
Click the image to check out our packets on Earth Science, Rocks and Minerals, the Atmosphere, Weather, Energy and More!
Units are also sold separately.
Earth Science Packet
This is one of our most popular units. It covers the Layers of the Earth, Plate Tectonics, Earthquakes, Volcanoes and More! It is included in the Earth Science Bundle (see the picture/link above).
Biology BUNDLE
Click the image to see our Biology Units on Animal and Plant Cells; the Biology Unit on Biomes, Food Chains, Symbiosis; Scientific Classification & Taxonomy (Domain/Kingdom/Phylum/Class, etc.); Botany - Plant Kingdom and Oceans and Oceanography.
Big Animal Bundle
Click on the image to see our Animal Bundle - including the Animal Unit, Life Cycles, the Rainforest, Winter (Polar Animals) & Hibernation, Chameleons, Wolves, Cicadas and more!
Human Body Systems Bundle
The Human Body Systems, Skeletal, Digestive, Circulatory, Muscular, Nervous, Endocrine Systems and More (with lots of hands-on activity ideas)! We usually study a different body system each year.
Digestive System Packet and Activities (100+ pages)
Chemistry Bundle
Click on the image to see our units on the States of matter, Properties of Matter, Electricity & Circuits, and the Chemistry Unit (Get to know the Periodic Table in a fun way!)
Free Science Checklist – Elementary and Middle School
This is a free checklist I put together of the various science units I hope to cover in the elementary and middle school years.
Civics & Government Unit
American Revolution Packet
World Facts Packet
Do your kids know the 4 largest countries? Which countries have the most people? The longest river? This packet covers basic world and U.S. facts and also covers geographic features and land forms.
Geographic Features & Landforms (also in the World Facts Packet)
Ancient Egypt Packet
Ancient Greek Gods and Goddesses
Middle Ages – Feudalism Packet
Slavery and the Civil War Packet
World War I Unit
Click on the image to check out our 100-page unit on World War I.
World War II Unit
Long A Sound Activities
ow-ou-oy-oi-aw-au Word Sort Activities
The spelling program we use:
We have used AAS for 6 years! AAS is an affiliate link.
Dozens of posts about how to create a homeschool writing workshop.
Montessori Addition Sheets with Regrouping (Free)
Dragon Math Packet
Click on the image to check out all of our fun K-2 Math Packets.
Multiplication Packets
This is one of the best values we have... more than 20 PDFs with games, activities and worksheets to learn/practice the multiplication facts ($7.00).
Homeschool Resources
Click on the image to discover some of the pages, posts and homeschool resources within our blog that might be the most useful for you including a long list of our freebies!
Rocks and Minerals Unit
Click on the image to check out our 100+page Rocks and Minerals Unit.
Simple Machines Unit
This is a fun, hands-on unit for early elementary students!
Human Body Systems Worksheet Packet
How the body is organized from cells to tissues... organs to body systems
Five Senses Unit
Skeleton Worksheets and Lapbook Packet
Spanish Store
Click on the image to check out some of the Spanish worksheet bundles we have available!
Ancient China Packet (Free)
German Store
Click on the image above to check out our German worksheets.
Free-Homeschool Planner (100+ Pages)
Homeschool Den STORE
Click on the image to find out more about our units and packets.
wow what a emotional roller coaster that type of event would have been. Their new farm is gorgeous though, here's to many years of happiness there for them 🙂
wow what a emotional roller coaster that type of event would have been. Their new farm is gorgeous though, here's to many years of happiness there for them 🙂