Category: Must Read

0

12 Hands-On Science Activities You Can Do Today!

Here are 12 Hands-On Science Activities that you can do with minimal preparation! It can be daunting to know just where to start with science, but in our household it has been one of the kids’ favorite subjects. Why? Because of hands-on activities! With so many parents now wondering what to do and how to get their kids intrigued and excited, turning to hands-on activities can be just the secret...

0

Creating a Homeschool Curriculum: Kindergarten – Grade 1

How to Create Your Own Homeschool Curriculum: K, Gr. 1 This FREE 50-page Homeschool Resource has been created to help answer some basic questions: What subjects should I teach my Kindergartner/1st Grader?  Where do I start? How do I know what to teach my kids? Every child is different, but I wanted to offer a starting point. Hopefully you’ll find some ideas and printables that will work with your kids!...

0

How to Make a Shake Table for Earthquake Studies

The next part of our Earth Science unit was earthquakes. Today’s post I’ll explain how we made our shake table, but before I do that I want to talk a minute about of some of the activities we did leading up to that. We used a lot of the activities from Engineering Adventures.  The kids’ first activity was building towers. Their first project was to build a tower of  index cards...

0

Skip Counting by 6s Song and Clapping Game (Video)

This is a fun way to learn to skip count by 6s! I’ve shared a number of the skip counting mazes, but this clapping game did a lot more for helping ED to remember the 6s. Earlier this fall, I mentioned that ED has been learning to skip count by 4s, 6s and 7s.  We made our song into a clapping game too and the girls really had fun with...

2

-er Sound Spelling Printable

This new printable reviews some of the /er/ sound words. I made this to help DD with the different er sounds such as er, ear, ir, or, ur and our. As many of you know, we have used (and loved) All About Spelling (affiliate link) for years!   We stepped away from our beloved spelling program, All About Spelling, for a few months. This fall my older two have been using...

2

Earth Science: Plate Movement Hands-On Activities

We just love hands-on activities! We’ve been studying Earth Science this fall. This post shares some pictures of some of the Earth Science activities we added into our unit. Back several weeks ago, we explained how we started this unit… with an overview of our solar system, then a closer look at Earth’s geologic timeline talking about the age of the Earth (4.6 billion years) and the appearance of various...

6

What About the Social Aspects of Homeschooling?

For so many of us who grew up attending public schools and being educated among same-age peers, there are real questions about the socialization of homeschooled kids. We remember sitting in classrooms packed with other children and truly wonder how homeschoolers will fill in that “void” of being with other children so many hours of the day.  As a homeschooling family, though, I was quick to realize that socialization is...

3

Alphabet Activities for 2-4 year olds (Free Alphabet Mats)

I thought it might be useful to pull a lot of our letter-activities together into one post, although we didn’t ever focus exclusively on letters. We generally had a theme or unit (astronomy, birds, volcanoes, bears, pirates, princesses and whatever else the kids were interested in at the time…)  and we added in these types of activities to supplement whatever else was going on.  So, just keep in mind that...

Making Learning Active, Engaging, Relevant & Memorable! 4

Making Learning Active, Engaging, Relevant & Memorable!

After spending time talking about all the homeschool curriculum choices, I really wanted to talk about what excites me most about teaching and homeschooling… the possibilities!! It really doesn’t matter what curriculum you use… anything can be used as your spine… but (for me) education is going beyond the books. It’s all about the passion, the excitement, the hard work and intensity that comes with learning. When you have those...

13

Math Worksheets, Game Boards, Lapbook and more (All Free!)

This is the second part in my talk about math curriculums. In the previous post, not only did I list some of the better known homeschool math curriculums, but I shared 15+ ideas for making math engaging and fun! (Math Curriculums and Active Engaging Math Activities) Today I wanted to share some of the materials I’ve made for the kids. I’ve found that the kids really enjoy when I make...

14

How Do You Know What to Teach the Kids? Finding a Homeschool Curriculum

I’ve been asked fairly regularly, “How do you know what to teach the kids?”  That is definitely a daunting task, especially if you are pulling your child out of public/private school mid-year.  Homeschool does not have to look like traditional school and there’s no rule saying that learning has to come from books or a certain set of books.  There are a lot of homeschool curriculum options out there… and...

Free Fall 2014 Calendar Printable 0

Free Fall 2014 Calendar Printable

Behind the scenes, I have been starting to plan out our fall semester.  One thing I wanted right away was a calendar packet. I made one last spring and found it really useful.  I printed out two copies. One is for our school schedule. I will pencil in our units and trips to see what the semester will look like.  The calendar includes various holidays since we’ll be reviewing some...

How to make a bead bowl 2

Summer Activities: Make a Bead Bowl (20 mins)

It has been very hot here. Here’s a fun indoor activity that only takes 20-30 minutes — Bead Bowls.   My girls loved this activity!  I first saw this on Erica’s blog, Confessions of a Homeschooler, back last January.  (She has lots of awesome ideas-be sure to check out her blog!).  I kept this in the back of my mind because I knew it would be a great activity when it was...

0

Greek Myths for Kids – Download Free Stories at StoryNory

This summer, hubby and the kids are going on a long road trip and will spend a lot of time in the car.  (I’ll stay back at home because I’m recovering from ear surgery.)  For years and years we have loved and listened to the free audiobooks provided by Natasha over at StoryNory.  We love her Katie stories and fairy tales.  This summer, though, it is time to revisit some...