Science Fusion May Giveaway

Here is a great homeschool resource on facebook that is having an amazing science giveaway this month.Science Fusion- With a visually appealing write-in worktext plus an online curriculum loaded with features, ScienceFusion is the ideal science program for today’s students. This new program offers unmatched resources for grades K-8.

Each homeschool kit includes a Student Worktext plus student and teacher access to the online eLearning Curriculum (one-year subscription).

• The Write-In Student Worktext uses visual cues to draw students through a progression of informative elements.
• The Student Interactive Digital Curriculum includes digital lessons, video-based projects, animations, simulations, and online access to the Worktext.
• The Online Teacher Digital Management Center helps parents plan, teach, and track their students’ progress.
• Leveled labs are also included in the online curriculum, with easy-to-find materials and multiple labs for different levels of inquiry.

Giveaway #1:

A homeschool kit of your choice (grades K-5)

For grades K–5, kits include materials for one year of science study. In addition to traditional science topics, each elementary homeschool package includes a unit on science and technology, progressing from science skills to understanding technology to the engineering process.

Kit components: Interactive Worktext, Online Student Interactive Online Curriculum, Online Teacher Digital Management Center

Giveaway #2:

Three homeschool modules of your choice (grades 6-8)

For grades 6–8, we offer eleven modules, ten covering key life, earth, and physical science topics, plus one on science and technology careers. These modules are not designed as full-year science curriculum; three or four modules can be completed in one year. Modules are appropriate for all middle grades, so parents can choose whether to mix life, earth, and physical science topics or focus on one.

Middle grades modules include:

• Cells and Heredity
• The Diversity of Living Things
• The Human Body
• Ecology and the Environment
• The Dynamic Earth
• Earth's Water and Atmosphere
• Space Science
• Matter and Energy
• Motion, Forces, and Energy
• Sound and Light
• Introduction to Science and Technology

Kit components: Interactive Worktext, Online Student Interactive Online Curriculum, Online Teacher Digital Management Center


Be sure to enter to have a chance of winning this great science curriculum!!  Secular Homeschool.com May Giveaway

Christmas Party

Michael had his Christmas party yesterday for one of the homeschooling groups we belong to in Seguin.  First we met at a local nursing home so the kids could sing Christmas songs to all the residents.  They had been practicing for a couple weeks now and did such a good job.  The residents were so appreciative of the kids coming to sing and visit with them. 

We then went back to the Activity Center for our party.  Everyone brought lots of delicious food to share and the kids enjoyed trying everything!  They played several games, Santa Limbo, Candy/Stocking Toss, Cake Walk and instead of winning a cake if your number was called you got your face painted, and guess how many candies are in the jar. They did some little Christmas crafts and then played tag and some other games in the gym.  Michael had such a fun time and I'm glad he got a real Christmas party with friends like he is use to at public school.   

Lunar Landing Module

In Apologia Astronomy today we talked more about Mars rover expeditions and about what it would be like if scientists were able to build an artificial ecosystem on Mars one day.  He built a lunar landing module and dropped it from different heights testing to see if his astronauts fell out of their cockpits.  He used cardboard, an 8 oz. Styrofoam cup, mini marshmallows (astronauts) index cards folded to use as springs, tape, straws, and rubber bands.  He had a fun time testing his different design plans and the highest he was able to drop his landing module without his astronauts falling out was 15 feet up from our stairs.  

One of the fun Christmas books he is reading this week is "Judy Moody and Stink The Holly Joliday". 

In Story of the World we talked about the Phoenicians being great sailors and starting new settlements around the Mediterranean Sea including the big trading city of Carthage.  We learned about how the Phoenicians were the first ones to invent glass blowing and tomorrow we are doing a project where we will make our own stained glass.  We already visited a glass blowing factory which was very informative and neat to see how things have not changed much in thousands of years. 

Toddler Activity Bags

I have been thinking about making these toddler activity bags for a while now but have never gotten around to it.  Kylie is now 2 1/2yrs. old and wants to always be right in the middle of things "doing work".  Thanks to some inspiration from a friend wanting to do a swap and an unused Hobby Lobby gift card from my mom I have finally started to make some the past two days.  These are great to use on rainy days, car rides, and restaurants.  Here are some of the bags I have made so far. Please feel free to comment on any ideas you have for future bags. 

Magnetic Pom Poms: Glue a small strip of magnetic tape onto different color pom poms.  You can print off a lot of different free templates like pictured online.

 Personalized sticker books

Color Wheel Matching

I Spy Bottles (Still need to print out picture sheets with items needed to find)

JIF Peanut Butter Jar full of minis and random household items such as paperclip, marble, lego, etc. 

alphabet I spy jar (I made this one mostly for my 7yr. old who has to find the letters in alphabetical order)

mini I spy jar to fit in purse (plastic McCormick spice bottle)

Play-Doh





          Bead stringing/sorting/pattern matching on a straw and on shoelaces

                                                                   

Name letter Recognition                                                                  Dora Matching Game

Noodle Stringing on yawn

Foam number recognition/matching with pom poms

Fingerpaint

                                             Number recognition/counting with beans                                                    

Cutting skills with cut-assisting scissors for toddlers

Fun with Beans: Transferring/Sorting/Counting/Measuring/Fine Motor Skills with Tongs

Colored bags to take around the house finding same color items

Felt pieces to put on felt board

Shapes/Coors Lacing

Fine Motor Skills/Sorting/Counting with Pom Poms that look like marshmallows: I started out using real marshmallows but you can imagine how long those lasted

Alphabet Touch and Feel Cards

Colors and Numbers Cards

HERE ARE SOME CHRISTMAS SPECIFIC BAGS

KEPT IN CUTE SANTA ZIPLOCS

Christmas Personalized Sticker Book

Foam Sticker Bookmark Craft

Red and Green Playdough with Christmas Tree and Gingerbread Man Cutters

Foam sticker matching puzzles

Christmas scene felt pieces to place on felt board

Christmas Beads Stringing/Pattern Matching with Shoelaces and Pipe Cleaners

Christmas mini-clothespins matching game

I Spy Bags with rice and 10 Christmas themed miniatures (I still have to make and attach a picture sheet with all the items to find)

Bead stringing/patten matching

Christmas colored bags for collecting same colored items around house



December 8, 2011

So I have not written anything in quite a while because well, I have been busy.  We have been busy schooling, I went back east for a week for a family funeral and then we had family come for an unexpected visit and I just plain forget half the time to take pics of all the things we are doing with school.  Those are my excuses.  The co-op that we attend on Mondays stopped meeting for the semester but we are still going once a week to the homeschooling group we belong to in Seguin.  We get together once a week and there are some really amazing women apart of this group who happily answer all my homeschooling newbie questions.  We went today and the kids had lunch, PE, music, and play time in the gym.  The kids are singing Christmas carols at a local nursing home next week and sounded great while practicing today. 

In history we finished talking about the Biblical story of Moses and the Israelite's exodus from Egypt.  Michael really enjoyed learning about the plagues.  He watched the animated version of "The Ten Commandments" on Netflix was a great reinforcer to our lessons. 







In science we finished up a unit on the natural resources of rock, water, and air and did a little hands-on activity of weathering our own rocks.  Thanks Brookstone Ranch of New Braunfels or supplying our gravel for free!  This is a super easy activity:
1) Split evenly a 1/2 cup of gravel into two jars with a tight lids and fill them with water.

2) Shake one jar as many times as you can in 2 minutes. Do not shake the other jar.
3) Place a coffee filter inside a strainer. Hold it over a bowl big enough to collect all the water.  Pour everything from the jar you shook into the filter. Let the water drain.

shaken jar

unshaken jars








4) Take the rocks out of the filter, but leave the sand.  Then lay the sandy filter flat to dry.
5) Repeat steps 3 and 4 with the unshaken jar.

What Did You Discover:
1) What did the coffee filters catch? They caught the smallest pieces of gravel.
2) What effect did shaking the jar have? It broke down the gravel into smaller particles and sand.
3) Why did one filter have more sand?  The gravel in the shaken jar was broken into smaller particles.