Category: Must Read

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Vertebrates-Invertebrates — and Frogs!

Last week we spent quite a bit of time outside enjoying the wildlife in our yard.  We are really lucky in that we see a wide variety of critters every day.  We spotted a little Northern Brown Snake, a small mouse that was in the strawberry garden (corralled briefly in an empty pot and then released) and a toad.   We also came across a large millipede (probably four inches or...

Celebrating Moms! 0

Celebrating Moms!

20 Things to Keep Yourself, Your Household, and Your Homeschool Fresh and Inspired We are a homeschooling family, so the kids are always with me. Always.  I find I need to remember to take care of myself in this equation. With Mother’s Day just a couple days away this seemed like the perfect time to think about how we Moms can celebrate and take care of ourselves.  This is a...

Let’s Talk About Homeschooling Successes 4

Let’s Talk About Homeschooling Successes

If you’ve been over to my facebook page in the past day or so, you’ll see we’ve had a rough time of it. Last week DD was under the weather and slept for a couple of days. This weekend LD came down with a virus and spent many hours hunched over a bowl. Unfortunately for LD, he tends to get illness-induced asthma.  So the nasty virus also progressed into a...

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Holding a Family Meeting

This year we started holding family meetings.  It has been a real positive experience for our family. We use this as an opportunity to share good feelings, to talk about what’s going well in our family, to brainstorm ideas that might make our family work better as a team, to talk about things we’d like to be going better and probably most importantly of all, to have fun together.  We...

Science Experiment Packet for Preschool-kindergarten 17

Science Experiment Packet

In honor of last weekend’s science celebration I wanted to put together something to inspire other budding scientists out there! I put together a packet of a dozen science experiments that my kids have loved. These are easy-to-prepare experiments and you should have most items on hand around the house.  The download is free! Download the Science Experiment Packet At this post you’ll find three more science experiments and another free...

Technology in Education and in your Homeschool (Part 1) 9

Technology in Education and in your Homeschool (Part 1)

Technology can be integrated into the educational setting (your classroom, your homeschool) as seamlessly and easily as it has made its way into your daily life.  Your computer, tablet, reader, iPhone, video machine and CD player all can supplement your teaching with the right tools.  Many kids already play educational games at home or on the go. Streaming video brings science and history to life.   Slip in a CD of...

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Spectacular Science (at least that’s what the kids think of this experiment!)

  We were so impressed and inspired by the science festival that the kids begged for science experiments during collection (our group time). Our experiment today was the Fireworks in Water experiment. I saw over on A Bit of This and A Bit of That back a half a year ago or so a twist on the experiment we’ve always done.  We took shaving cream, sprayed it on top of...

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USA Science and Engineering Festival

Beep, Beep! Class, it’s time for another field trip! We went to participate in the largest science celebration in the U.S.A.  The kids got to participate in hundreds of hands-on exhibits! We got up really early and drove down to the 2nd annual USA Science and Engineering Festival last Friday.  It was phenomenal!  The mission of the festival was  “to re-invigorate the interest of our nation’s youth in science, technology, engineering and...

The Future of Space Exploration as the Space Shuttle Program Ends 2

The Future of Space Exploration as the Space Shuttle Program Ends

We learned some really amazing space missions are in development!  Last week we watched the Space Shuttle Discovery in awe as it flew close by our house towards its final destination. The Space Shuttle Program has truly come to an end. We went to see the space shuttle is in its new home at the Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum, but we were surprised to learn just how much...

The Space Shuttle Blasts by our House! 1

The Space Shuttle Blasts by our House!

We were outside this morning on the lookout for the Space Shuttle Discovery.  We were so excited to have it fly by at tree-line! Naturally we had to take a million pictures as it flew by! A little while later we went inside to watch the drama unfold on NASA TV as it landed at Dulles Airport! Pictures courtesy of  NASA TV. We talked a lot about the space shuttle...

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Black Plague Activity

Would you believe this is an activity that I created as an introduction to our physics unit on simple machines, gizmos and gadgets?!! Sometimes inspiration just hits! So here’s how it came to be.  I was doing some background reading on Sir Isaac Newton, the scientist who developed the Laws of Motion among other things. I learned that while he was at Cambridge University an outbreak of the Black Plague...

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An Interview with a Montessori Homeschooler

In this series, I have had the privilege of interviewing other homeschoolers from across the country. Here to tell us how her family got started homeschooling and what her family’s homeschool style looks like is Tearri, the author of the blog, We Don’t Need No Education  and The Work Plan. Tearri homeschools her children and also runs a Montessori preschool. Welcome Tearri! First I’d like to ask you how old...

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Fossil Hunting

We love fossils!   I guess the fire was first lit in Australia.  My scientist friend told us about a creek south of Alice Springs where people have found lots of fossils. (See original post here: Fossils in Australia and the photos below.) We took the kids and made some great finds. Even my friend, Peter, was impressed!  LD was hooked on fossils!   Not too long after that we...

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An Interview with a Homeschooling Dad

In this series, I have had the privilege of interviewing other homeschoolers from across the country. Today I am talking to a homeschooling Dad. Here to tell us how his family got started homeschooling and what his family’s homeschool style looks like is Jason, the author of the blog, Homeschool Daddy. He’s been online at his personal blog bnpositive and many others for almost a decade. Welcome Jason, First I’d...