Rustic, Christmas Charm... The Nut Ball

The Christmas Nut Ball
By Renee Neace

For rustic, Christmas charm, try making some Christmas Nut Balls. These are perfect projects for the crafts-disabled person. No artistic talent is needed, just time and patience. I have fond memories of staying up late one night during Christmastime, gluing walnuts to a foam ball. My husband fondly remembers me emerging from the kitchen, after hours of working on “Christmas crafts,” smiling proudly and displaying my Christmas Nut Balls. “Wow, Mommy made a nut ball!” he said with a sideways grin. Those words have stayed with our family throughout the years and have become a Christmas tradition. Each year as we unpack the decorations, we fondly remember when Mommy made her first nut ball.

The supplies are simple and available at your local craft store and grocery store.

• 1–2 foam balls (3” and 4”)
• Glue gun with plenty of glue sticks
• Bag of green moss
• Large bag of nuts from the grocery store (walnuts or hazelnuts work well)
• Dried baby’s breath
• A bag of potpourri to make the second ball (containing red flowers, like dried roses)
• A decorative vine ball

Instructions  

{See The Christmas Nut Ball Slideshow for detailed pictures.}

Step 1: Glue the moss onto the foam ball. Break the moss apart into small pieces before you begin gluing.

Squeeze the glue onto a small section of the ball and gently press the moss on. Be careful! The hot glue is HOT! Gently pull off the extra moss as you’re working and then reapply, making sure there are no bald spots. Keep working with it until you’ve covered the whole ball. This can be a little messy and sticky, but it’ll look good when you’re done.

Step 2: Start gluing down the nuts. Again, this is easy. Imagine an equator around your moss-covered, foam ball. Squeeze some glue where you want your first nut to go, then press it firmly in. Continue all the way around the imaginary equator, and begin a second row. Do this until the whole ball is covered with the nuts. Don’t worry about being perfect; some space between the irregular shapes is to be expected.

Step 3: You’re almost done! At this point, you can decide to keep it plain or to add in some baby’s breath. First, break or cut off some little pieces of the flowers. Squeeze a tiny amount of glue into the tiny nooks and crannies of the nut ball and stick some of the flowers in. You don’t need to fill in every crevice, just a few spots all over the ball.

You’re done!

Make another one, so that you can create a vignette of nut balls for your Christmas mantle. Or make the Potpourri Ball to display with them.

The Potpourri Ball

Step 1: Glue the moss onto the foam ball like you did for the Christmas Nut Ball. (You can use a different size foam ball.)

Step 2: Start gluing down the potpourri. Pour the potpourri onto the table and pick out the prettiest pieces and start gluing them on. Cover the whole ball with the potpourri.

Step 3: Fill in gaps with green moss. Once you’ve finished gluing the potpourri, gently stick some
little pieces of the moss into the spaces all over it. This gives it a more finished look.

You’re done!

Now, set it down on your mantle next to your Christmas Nut Balls.

Renee Neace lives in sunny southern California with her husband of twenty five years and their four children. They have been homeschooling for several years, including coming up with creative ways to teach their son with Down syndrome. The whole family is actively involved in their church. Renee holds a B.A. degree in communications. She enjoys reading classical literature and loves working from home for The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine.

Friendly Chemistry! Perfect for Homeschoolers & their Moms

Friendly Chemistry
A Guide to Learning Basic Chemistry
3rd Edition
By Joey & Lisa Hajda
friendlychemistry.com

Friendly Chemistry really is very friendly and I have learned so much about the subject. Since I did not take it in high school, I was initially concerned I would not be able to teach it, but my 11th grader and 6th grader are sailing through practically on their own. The course comes with a Student Book and a Teacher Edition, both are needed since there are lesson plans and creative ideas in the Teacher Edition.

Both of my children have "naturally" memorized almost all of the elements chart, by playing the games, such as Element Bingo, and doing the worksheets. The Doo Wop Board is a great visual tool that Friendly Chemistry uses to teach the levels of the electrons. My kids used it so much that now they have the electron levels memorized.

There are 32 Lessons in the course and some topics covered are:

• The Elements
• Structure of an Atom
• Intro to Quantum Mechanics
• Orbital Notation
• Ionization Energy
• Introducing the Mole!
• Writing Empirical Formulas
• Balancing Chemical Reactions

I was heavily involved in the teaching from the beginning, but now I have my 11th grade daughter teach the lessons to her younger brother. This is working out great! I'll count it towards her high school chemistry class, and she'll know chemistry exceptionally well because she is actively teaching it. Here are some of her comments about the course:

• Easy to understand.
• Things are repeated to enforce.
• Lots of involving games for large groups of younger students.
• Lessons start simple and build upon each other.
• Each lesson is easy to finish fast.
• A 6th grader through upper years can finish one lesson in 1-2 days.
• Not trudgingly difficult.
• The concepts are still upper level, but the learning is free and smooth.

Here is a sample of a written narration by my 6th grader. I asked him to tell me what he's learned from the previous week and I use these narrations as a simple test. Remember, he thoroughly understands what he's learned and is able to articulate it in a written form:

In chemistry I learned about Ionization. It's when an atom becomes stable by losing or gaining valence electrons. There are 8 families, noble gas, halogen, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, boron, sodium, and calcium families. Halogen and oxygen gain, sodium and calcium lose, carbon, nitrogen and boron are unpredictable, and noble gas does neither.

Friendly Chemistry gets an A+ in our house.

Building Thinking Skills

Workbooks from The Critical Thinking Co.

Building Thinking Skills • Beginning • Ages 3-4
Question and Answer Puzzles to Improve Academic Performance
and
Building Thinking Skills • Level 3 Figural • Grades 7-12+
Critical Thinking Skills for Reading, Writing, Math, Science

From The Critical Thinking Co.

These are great books for strengthening thinking skills!
I give a big thumbs up!

My family has the privilege of reviewing two workbooks from The Critical Thinking Co. which promotes their product as “The #1 Selling Thinking Skills Program in the World!”
Each workbook provides “highly effective verbal and nonverbal reasoning activities to improve your child’s reading, writing, math, logic and figural-spatial skills, as well as their visual and auditory processing.” Each workbook is full of matching, selecting and drawing activities.

And, if you can’t figure the answers out, no worries!
The Answer Guide is Included!

Building Thinking Skills • Level 3 Figural • Grades 7-12+
Critical Thinking Skills for Reading, Writing, Math, Science

My 16 -year old daughter and I are reading and working through Figural Level 3 book. We sit down together and work on the activities, from page to page. I definitely see the value in doing these exercises.

Training our brains to think and look at shapes and designs differently, to see the similarities and relationships from one figure to another, and to express them through drawing similar patterns - this is more difficult than it seems. We love the gentle pushing it gives to think harder. Sometimes, (many times) we need to peek at the answers.

The introduction discusses the importance of “Discussion,” not simply paper and pencil alone, to solve and work through the exercises. Manipulatives are encouraged since they provide a “concrete basis” and a “richer perception of the analysis talks.”

The workbook is broken up into four categories: Similarities, Sequences, Classifications, and Analogies. The Similarities exercises begin with Matching Figures and have various geometric shapes with lines and shading designs. We are to pick out the ones that match or don’t match. This continues and increases in difficulty for several pages. This section continues with several exercises including (but definitely not all): Recognizing Lines of Symmetry, Identifying Congruent Parts, Drawing Tessellating Patterns, Complete the Cube with One Piece, etc.

Sequences include (but not all): Pattern Folding, Paper Folding, Sequence of Figures, Selecting Pattern Pieces, Matching Pattern Pieces, Rotating Cubes, etc.

Classifications has exercises in: Matching Classes, Changing Characteristics, Classifying By Pattern, Discovering Classes, Overlapping Classes – Intersections, etc.

The Analogies section has practice in: Figural Analogies, Describing Types of Figural Analogies, Follow the Rule, Select the Solid, etc.

Building Thinking Skills • Beginning • Ages 3-4
Question and Answer Puzzles to Improve Academic Performance

The next workbook I am reviewing with my two sons, ages 3 and 8. The Beginning book for ages 3-4 is full of colorful pages.

My boys usually sit on my lap and we talk about each page. They think it’s their game book. My 3 year old takes it to heart and is recognizing shapes around himself. He sees straight lines, curved lines, corners, etc.

I’ve noticed my 8 year old, who is slightly delayed developmentally, becoming very mentally active after a session. He’ll begin to talk non-stop, and begin to engage in conversations with the family.His expressive language is delayed also, so to see him communicating more and beginning conversations is exciting. I believe it is directly related to the work we do in the Building Thinking Skills book.

Activities on each page strengthen Visual and Auditory Processing, Fine Motor Development, Reasoning, Deduction and Creative Problem Solving. The concepts covered are: Colors, Logical Connectives, Lines, Corners, Geometric Shapes, Behind & In-Between, Above & Below, Measurement, Half & Whole, Left & Right, and Open & Closed.

Again, these are great books for strengthening thinking skills!
I give a big thumbs up!

Alphabet Alley's Two By Two Game

Two By Two Matching Game by Alphabet Alley
Click Here for Alphabet Alley

Alphabet Alley is a family-owned company that produces toddler toys with a Christian message.
“Smart fun for little souls,” is their motto.
What’s not to like here?

The Two By Two Matching Game is an adorable matching game for the youngest ones in your family. It is a simple game of turning over the cards and matching up the pictures, and helps to improve memory and concentration skills.

National Parenting Center's 2008 Seal of Approval!

There are 12 pairs of designs: a Noah’s ark, a fluffy sheep, a red bird, a yellow ducky, a baby elephant, zebra, lion, and giraffe, a red ladybug, a round piggy, a blue butterfly, and a little calf.

They’re printed with bright colors and endearing illustrations. The cards are sturdy and chunky making them perfect for little hands to pick up and flip over. These are especially convenient for those working with children with special needs who need fine motor grasp activities.

This game is a big hit in my house with my 3 year old. He loves to look at the animals and match them up. He is learning how to play the game, take turns, and clean up afterwards. He likes to line them up and make a “train” of animals.

I am using the Two by Two Matching Game to teach his older brother to count by two’s. I just work it in while we’re playing a game, but I’ll also use it for part of his math time.

My boys are very happy with this game and
take good care of it.

Definitely worth the $10.99 price.
Click Here for Alphabet Alley

Alphabet Alley's Noah's Ark Go Fish

Noah's Ark Go Fish by Alphabet Alley

The Noah’s Ark Go Fish card game is the same old Go Fish we’ve all played, but these cards have a Noah’s ark theme, with pairs of animals on several of the cards. All are numbered so you can play by calling out the animals or the numbers. The names of the animals are written on each card, too.

Dove • Lions • Butterflies • Pigs • Giraffes • Ark • Noah
Elephants • Zebras • Cows

The Noah’s Ark Go Fish card game is for kids from 3 and up. These cards are over-sized, measuring approx. 3” x 4.5”, and heavily laminated making them perfect for the young ones to play with.

My two youngest boys ask often if we can play cards. They like the bright colors and cute characters.

Again, these are great to use with special needs kids, especially kids with Down's syndrome who have small, pudgy fingers. I know this from personal experience with my own son, Joshua.

It is a little bit of a struggle for him to play with a regular deck of playing cards. Playing with Alphabet Alley’s Noah’s Ark Go Fish, cards are much easier for him to manipulate and he’s learning how to hold them properly.

My only negative experience is with the product box the cards came in, which ripped very easily.

Noah’s Ark Go Fish card game is well worth the $5.99 price!

Click Here for Alphabet Alley

ALEKS Math Review

“ALEKS is a web-based, artificially intelligent assessment and learning system.” It’s an online, interactive Math curriculum that evaluates each student’s math skills and provides instruction in the areas needed.

It can be used as a personal tutor, or a supplement to public school, or as a homeschool curriculum. It offers instruction in K-12 mathematics, up to and including Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry, AP Statistics, AP Calculus, Physics, Chemistry, Fundamentals of Accounting, and Business Math.

My homeschooled children have been using this system for the past month. April is registered in Algebra 2, and Jonathan in 6th grade. After their initial registration, which went smoothly, they were each given an online assessment to find out what they knew.

A list of topics is then assigned to each student in a colorful pie shape, called MyPie. Each time the students log in they are asked to do review work, or they are placed exactly where they left off from a previous session.

ALEKS provides assessment reports for the parents, and the kids can see their progress right on their MyPie charts. They can pick and choose any part of the pie to work in. ALEKS will not let them move on to more difficult topics until current ones are mastered.

Jonathan, my 6th grader, is plodding along quite well. He’s a kid that has meltdowns from mathematics! I have not seen any of these so far. He likes the freedom to pick and choose his topics from the ALEKS MyPie for the day. The instruction is straightforward and uses diagrams and examples for instruction. If Jonathan gets a problem wrong, he can click for an explanation and it solves it for him. Then it prompts him to practice similar problems. Jonathan says he likes it better than the Saxon math he’s doing. I have him in Saxon Algebra 1/2 which is a little above his level. His ALEKS level is easier for him, and less stressful. I’ll continue to use both programs with him. He needs all the math support he can get.

My daughter, April, works in ALEKS Algebra 2. She’s been working slow and steady through it. She wishes there “was more structure to the program in terms of telling her exactly what problems she needs to do and what “grade” she got on the assignment.” But ALEKS doesn’t work that way! It doesn’t give grades; it provides mastery! She will either learn it and master it, or continue to work on it.

Overall, I’m pleased with the ALEKS system. I’d like to continue with them for both of my kids.

Click Here for ALEKS

Times Tales - Times Tables Made Easy!

Times Tales - Times Tables Made Easy!

Click Here for Times Tales

Times Tales is a program that teaches the upper times facts through mnemonic stories.

It is the brainchild of Jennie Von Eggers, a homeschooling mom teaching the multiplication facts to her boys. They had trouble remembering their facts from day to day. She developed a way to teach them through clever stories, which enabled them to recall the facts.

Several years later, she (along with two partners) developed this system into Times Tales.

Cast of Times Tales Characters:
Butterfly – The number “3” drawn to look like a butterfly.
Chair – The number “4” drawn to look like a chair (4 table legs)
First Grade Class – looks like the “6”
Mrs. Week – looks like the “7”
Mrs. Snowman – looks like the “8”
Treehouse – looks like the “9”

Story #1:

The First Grade Class played musical Chairs for 24 hours.

Setting:

A flip chart with a really cute picture of little kids with 6’s on their heads walking around a chair shaped like a 4, and musical notes flying around the room.

Plot:

We talk about the picture and what the kids are doing. Ask questions and get the kids to tell you the story back. Make sure to keep the numbers in order.

Last Act:

Show the kids Flash Cards and have them tell you the story represented by each one. Then reveal to them that their actually doing “math.”

I‘m reviewing this product and have to say I am unsure if it works for my family. My older boy Jonathan, 11 years, still struggles slightly with recalling his multiplication facts. But learning the stories for each one seems cumbersome. He’s farther along in knowing his facts and this just slows him down. He’s not the target audience for this system.

Joshua, my middle boy, 8 years, is thoroughly enjoying it. He carries the flip chart around with him - through the house, in the car, to church,- and talks about the stories on each page. He recognizes the numbers in the characters and reads the equations to me. But, developmentally, he’s not learning his multiplication facts. I wonder if this will hinder his understanding of the concept of multiplying numbers. I may be putting the cart before the horse with this boy. On the other hand, this may be exactly what will help him see and understand his times tables. He’s a boy that likes to experience life, and learns through seeing things, hearing things, and touching things. Teaching him these clever stories is great for his imagination and story-telling abilities. He’s behind in his expressive language skills, but I see him articulating these stories.
I’m willing to continue using this with him and evaluate the outcome. It may be much farther down the road.

Click Here for Times Tales

The Little Man In The Map - With Clues To Remember All 50 States

The Little Man In The Map

By Schoolside Press
Written by E. Andrew Martonyi
Illustrated by Ed Olson
Click Here for The Little Man In the Map

The Little Man in the Map is an imaginary story about… the little man in the map.

Go get your map of the United States. Really, go get it.

Can you see him.. the little man? Look for him near the middle of the United States.

I’ll give you a hint. His hat is Minnesota. There now… you found his hat.

How about his face - did you find it? That’s right, it’s Iowa with his big nose profile.

Now you see him, don’t you?

What’s that you say? Yes, Missouri is his shirt and Arkansas, his pants. Good job!

Can you find his boots? Right there at the bottom—it’s Louisiana.

You found him – the little man in the map. You never knew he was there did you?

His name is MIM. He travels all over the map, (and this book), teaching you the names and locations of all 50 states.
From the day we got this book in the mail, my kids have been intrigued by it. It’s bright and colorful and full of fun illustrations. Before the younger ones even knew what the book was for, (basic U.S. geography) they liked it. JoJo, my three year old pumpkin, carries it around and asks, “Where’s the map?”, “Where’s Mim?”, and “Will you read it to me?”

MIM rhymes his way through these pages giving you clues and clever illustrations to remember all 50 states. It works great! My kids and myself have several of them memorized. Being a southern California girl, I’m still a little fuzzy in remembering the Northeastern states. I’ll work on it! I don’t want to give away all his secrets, but Andrew Martonyi’s MIM has me thinking about the Monster Montana, MAGS (the 4 table legs), and UCAN. You’ll have to buy the book to find out what I’m talking about.

Click Here for The Little Man In the Map

Time 4 Learning Review

Joshua loves his “school time.”

My Joshua is a special child. God has gifted him with an extra chromosome (Trisomy 21, aka Down syndrome) It takes him longer to learn some things. He’s a very visual learner. He makes connections when he can see it, feel it, hear it, touch it. His life and world experiences make his learning come alive. Enter Time4Learning – a new approach that takes advantage of today's technology. It's a convenient, online home education program that combines learning with fun educational teaching games. (From their website.) 

I had 2 of my kids working here this month. My youngest, Joshua, works in the Kindergarten level. Here, he is learning phonics, special sounds, counting by 2’s and 5’s, ordinal numbers, comparing numbers, and odd/even numbers. Joshua is just beginning to learn these number concepts and Time4Learning provides the “fun” school time he needs to reinforce these concepts. He loves it. Since I am homeschooling, Joshua likes to think of this as his “school” time. In Joshua’s experience with Time4Learning, I have been most pleased with the Language Arts section. It does a very good job of introducing new sounds or sight words, and then working with them. Creative-looking, colorful sock puppets, finger puppets, and little bugs are used to teach the lessons. He would be on this site all day if I let him! Joshua loves his “school time.” If I could afford it, (it is reasonably priced) I’d keep Joshua on Time4Learning indefinitely. He truly enjoys it and is making connections. It has been beneficial, indeed, for Joshua.  

The only drawbacks are the size of the graphics in the math sections.

• At times, the items to be counted are too small for him to clearly differentiate.

• The number grids and graphs are also too small for him to see and therefore

• He has a hard time understanding the concept being taught.

The Science and Social Studies sections are fun and interactive also. But, it seems some reading is involved, which the parents will need to read to the student. This is fine in my case. Joshua likes to sit on my lap and learn that way. We read through each section and I help him to understand the lesson, then we take the quizzes together. The program leads Joshua through each section with flashing arrows. He can click on any icon and work in any section, but it keeps track of what he has or hasn’t finished. So, each time he works, it prompts him to what he needs to finish. 

My other son, Jonathan, has been working in the 6th grade level. He’s been focusing on the math and language arts sections. This is quite different for him, since he’s been engrossed in Saxon math for the past 2 years. Time4Learning is big, and bouncy, and loud, and he was a little embarrassed when he began. I think he felt it was too juvenile for him. He’s gotten over that; he keeps the volume down… For Jonathan, I see Time4Learning acting as a great supplement to his math and grammar studies. The lessons are very entertaining and keep his attention.

Reviewing Time4Learning this past month has been a privilege. You simply sign up each child in their appropriate level and then they are assigned a username and a password for each time they log in to learn. There are two levels for logins, an Upper Level Login, and a Lower Level Login. There is also a Parent Login that gives access to a parent forum, and lesson plans. It gives an account status and allows you to make changes to the student levels. 

Time4Learning’s interaction is very similar to the kid’s computer programs JumpStart series and Winnie-the-Pooh learning software. There is also a child’s portfolio icon which shows what they’ve worked on, how successful they’ve been, how much time they’ve spent on each section, etc. These reports can be printed out for reference. 

Their website says...

Time4Learning's curriculum can be the foundation of a homeschool program.

Many homeschool families use Time4Learning as core curriculum in one or more subjects: others use Time4Learning to supplement other homeschool curriculum with a fun interactive reinforcement of the day's lessons. Families with children in school use Time4Learning after school as an alternative to tutoring, learning centers, or supplementary workbooks. Time4Learning is also popular as a summer skills sharpener or instead of summer school.

Click Here For Time4Learning

Spears Art Studio High School Art Survey

Spears Art Studio High School Art Review
By April, an 11th grader

The Spears Art Studio High School Survey is an ideal choice for students who prefer art to be self-taught with a Biblical emphasis.

The format is straight-forward and carefully organized. Each lesson has ten distinct, bite-sized divisions, making the lesson much less overwhelming and easily digested. Each lesson’s sections include titles like:

Objectives,
Vocabulary,
Scripture,
Art History,
Visual Memory Exercises, and
Activities.

The subject matter of each one can be grasped quickly and completed with a fair amount of work.

As I have mentioned before each lesson covers more than just art. The objectives, vocabulary, and scripture are preparatory to the meat of the lesson, while the art history, visual memory exercises and activities are the main learning avenues of the lesson.

Overall each lesson has a good balance of

learning about art and
creating art.

Everyone who wants to enjoy learning art with a Christian view should plainly decide on Spears Art Studio High School Art Survey.

Click Here for Spears Art Studio

This is my daughter’s review of the Spears Art Studio High School Art Survey, written by Diane Shields Spears, Doctor of Christian Education. My daughter, April, is thoroughly enjoying the art lessons. She wants to do nothing else during the day. She says the lessons are easy for her to understand, and they take her step-by-step through the process.

I’ll say when I, as Mom, first looked at the curriculum on CD, I was overwhelmed. But I soon realized, as I began to look closer, that this curriculum leads you through the lessons gently, with plenty of explanations.

There is a 16 page introduction that discusses art supplies, your environment, your internal preparation, how to evaluate your artwork, and a 7-page article “Art is Good for My Brain?” by Diane S. Spears. There are 36 lessons, 75 art activities, and 36 sketchbook assignments.

Thy hands have made me and fashioned me:

give me understanding,
that I may learn thy commandments.
Psalm 119:73

I’m happy we have an art program that points to God’s creation and gives scripture with each lesson. So much in the world of “art” or “modern art” is ungodly.

The Great Master Artist is our Lord Jesus Christ and all things beautiful and lovely come from Him and are inspired by Him.

One of the mission statements of Spears Art Studio is to recognize the hand of God in everything and to give Him glory. Amen!

Click Here for Spears Art Studio

MOVING FORWARD WITH... RIME TO READ

I say to my son Joshua, "Want to learn Rime To Read?"

I sit with him on my lap and open up the first book - Pat. We say it together… “Pat.” We look at the cute girl in the blue dress with the long curly hair. She’s Pat. She’s really cute.

We click the arrow for the next page. We read… "Pat and cat." He smiles big and looks back at me. He likes the cat.

We click for the next page. I read… "Pat, cat, rat."

“No, no,” Joshua says, “I’ll do it.” And he does. And he reads it to me. And he reads, “Pat and cat and rat.” And he smiles big, and he’s proud of himself. And I’m proud of him. I tell him he’s a fantastic reader, and he agrees.

And he finishes reading the page, and then the book,

“Pat and a cat sat. The rat and the bat sat.”
They are all smiling at him from the pages of this little book. And he is smiling back, and happy.

So goes our first experience with Rime to Read. It was sweet...

I am pleased with the simplicity and gentleness of the pages and Joshua likes… to read them. We’ve come back many times to read Dan, and Dad, and Ned in Bed, and Nell, and Joshua’s favorite, The Pet. Each time we reap the rewards of this wonderful reading program.  My son, Joshua, is eight and he is learning to read. He’s a little behind, but we don’t focus on that. We focus on moving him forward. Rime to Read is doing just that. Moving him forward.

What is Rime to Read?
Rime to Read

Pat, Rat, Sat, Cat, Bat.

Pam, Sam, Am, Jam, Ham.

Pet, Met, Get, Wet, Let, Bet.

What do these words have in common?

They rhyme; and they’re rimes.  

Yes, that’s how it’s spelled. “Rimes” are words that rhyme and are also spelled the same way. Rat, cat, fat, splat, hat, - they are all in the same word family and sound alike, and look alike. Rhyming words such as “son, fun” or “care, hair, bear” are not spelled alike, thus they are not “rimes.” 

For me and Joshua, we look forward to sitting together and learning to Rime to Read by reading the sweet, simple stories that bring smiles to both our faces.

Rime to Read is a beginner’s reading program that uses “rimes” to teach reading, starting with basic, simple words and building upon them in their stories. See their web site for a more thorough explanation.

 Some highlights from their web site:

• A program for Beginning Readers is now available ONLINE!!
• Highly effective approach to beginning reading
• Emphasizing word families (rimes)
• Unique color-coded system
• Structured for success
• Having trouble reading a word? CLICK it and it will be read back to you.
• The cumulative 20 book program can be printed or read on your home computer monitor.

Rime to Read

Missing Link: Found Review

Vacations, fossil digs, the FBI, deadly diseases,
buried treasure, campouts, alligator attacks,
explosions, spying teenagers, family ties,
and God’s protection.

What do they all have in common?

They’re all in the book Missing Link: Found – the first book in the Truth Seekers Mystery Series.

Written by 17 year-old Christina Gerwitz and her mother Felice Gerwitz, this book blends an exciting story of adventurous teens with sound, science facts and descriptions, from a creation worldview.

From the book – “While on vacation in the Keys, a devious plot unfolds, and the Murphy’s find themselves in the middle of a full-speed boat chase and encounter with the FBI. Their vacation plans are then cut short by the arrival of a cryptic message from Dr. Murphy’s brother, requesting his immediate presence at an anthropological dig along the Peace River.”

This is such a fun adventure. I really enjoyed reading it aloud to my kids during their evening bedtime. My 16 year-old daughter, who is most recently gaining an appreciation for Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, finds Missing Link: Found to be exciting and down to earth.

She fondly compares it to the Mars Diaries series of books (which she read fervently), except Missing Link: Found is based in today’s reality and is an adventure story with characters like herself and her brothers. She relates well to the Murphy family and their Christian living. Mars Diaries are science-fiction and take place in the future, on Mars.

I had no idea what Missing Link: Found would be about based on the book’s cover. But the title gives a hint to the plot – finding the missing link in man’s evolutionary development.

Knowing this book is written from a creation viewpoint, I wasn’t sure how the missing link idea would fit in. After reading it, I see it fits perfectly, and I am pleased at how well it all works together –

the missing link, God’s creation, family ties, and the FBI.

Your teens and pre-teens will appreciate the author’s writing style, her use of everyday language and descriptions, and the realistic situations she places the main characters in. Girls and boys both will love it.

HelpMe2Teach.com Review

Are you looking for safe, family-friendly websites for your homeschool?
Looking for online, safe resources for your homeschooling needs?

HelpMe2Teach.com is the perfect landing place.

An internet directory for teachers, students, and parents, HelpMe2Teach.com provides safe and educational links for over 2,500 sites. Each one is family and homeschool friendly and has been checked out by the company for kid safety issues. Feel safe when you click on a link.

From Preschool to High School, HelpMe2Teach.com has links to activities, customizable worksheets, and many free resources. Let me stress these are Safe, and educational links. While browsing, I found all of the homeschool websites I use listed here.

Want a place to turn to for listings of homeschool resources available online?

HelpMe2Teach.com is a subscription-based, online resource that provides homeschoolers with access to many websites carefully chosen for their appropriateness. The entries are arranged by category/subject and have grade level symbols for easy scanning.

Some categories:
• Animals
• Bible Study and Christian Links
• Computers
• Foreign Languages
• Holidays
• Jewish Curriculum
• Language Arts
• Mathematics
• Science
• Social Studies
• Sewing, and
• For Teachers and Parents Only.

Navigating through HelpMe2Teach.com is easy and simple. They are constantly updating and improving their web site. This is a great resource for beginning homeschoolers!

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Part 2

Charlotte Mason & Special Needs Children

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Summer 2008, had a couple of articles that spoke directly to me. In their “Style” section they featured Charlotte Mason and her methods with: Charlotte Mason and Susan Schaeffer Macaulay – Mentors of the Modern Homeschool Movement, and Charlotte Mason: Our Heroine for Special Needs, and The Love and Lure of Nature Walking.

A couple of articles also addressed the needs of raising and educating special needs children: Charlotte Mason: Our Heroine for Special Needs, and 10 Reasons to Homeschool Your Child With Special Needs, and Rising to the Call to Care for a Special Child – an interview with Norm Wakefield.

It touched my heart when Norm Wakefield spoke about his daughter Amanda and said, “Although Amanda doesn’t have the capacity to know and understand many theological and spiritual truths, she isn’t as handicapped by many of the sins with which most “normal” people frequently struggle.” He then went on to “wonder if God often sees those of us who appear to have greater intellectual and physical abilities as more spiritually disabled or handicapped.” This made me think about my own son and his sweet, sensitive nature.

Criticisms of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine are few, and far between. What would be great, though, coming from someone who loves Interior Decorating, is a 4-page spread of trendy, efficient schoolrooms. That would make this magazine PERFECT!!

I was so glad my homeschooling magazine came this week. I was unsure what to expect, but was happily surprised by the high-end look of the magazine and its articles. The Old Schoolhouse Magazine – Right on target for homeschooling families.

See Part 1 for beginning of blog on The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, Part 1

Right on Target

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine just arrived at my house this week, and I’ve been thoroughly enjoying it. I was impressed with the great-looking, thick publication and numerous, up-to-date articles on the homeschool community. Quite a few were of interest to me personally and full of relevant information that directly applied to my homeschool situation. I've been smiling from ear to ear since I've received it.

Full of abundant and pertinent information, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine was equally perfect for those ‘brand new’ to homeschooling as well as “seasoned” veterans. It was chock-full of in-depth articles - not simply cursory examinations of the topics.

A “Real Science” section in the Summer 2008 issue, included: Theistic Evolution, Intelligent Design, and an article about Darwin.

The “Homeschool Units” section abounded with: Men and their Flying Machines, Take Flight with Science, and Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!

Teaching gifted children, raising and educating special needs children, personal homeschool stories, and legal aspects of a home education were just a few of the other topics covered. Too many to mention - all interesting.

The look of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine impressed me greatly! Conveniently, this wealth of information was delivered all online, in digital format. Navigating through it was so simple, and there was a particularly useful, built-in magnification option. The pages were laid out well, and easy to read.

Homeschool product ads were positioned throughout, supplying ample opportunities to get to know what’s available out there for the homeschooler. The online magazine was a joy to look through from beginning to end.

Criticisms of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine are few, and far between. What would be great, though, coming from someone who loves Interior Decorating, is a 4-page spread of trendy, efficient schoolrooms. That would make this magazine PERFECT!!

I was so glad my homeschooling magazine came this week. I was unsure what to expect, but was happily surprised by the high-end look of the magazine and its articles. The Old Schoolhouse Magazine – Right on target for homeschooling families.

See Part 2 for rest of blog on Charlotte Mason & Special Needs Children

The Schoolhouse Planner by TOS for your Homeschool

Making a Plan for School and Home

Cheery, delightful, inspiring – not words usually used to describe a homeschool planner. The people from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine combined their creativity and professionalism to produce their newest product, the Schoolhouse Planner.

From unschooling, to the eclectic, to the classical home school, the Schoolhouse Planner has all the forms and charts a parent will need, answering the concerns of the organizationally-challenged home school parent, while providing the creative inspiration for the well-organized mom.

The Schoolhouse Planner, available in digital form, comes complete with over 200 pages of information, with different versions of many of the forms and charts - some for one child, some for multiple children.

Various forms included are: a Curriculum Planning Sheet, Weekly Planning Forms, Nature Journal Sheets, Educational Objectives, Field Trip Log, Science Lab Sheet, Test Score Record, End of Year Evaluation Form, Course of Study, Annual Plans, Yearly Goals, Unit Study Form, Progress Report Sheets, and End of Year Report Card. One great feature is the ability to type right into each form and personalize it for the child, then print it out.

The Schoolhouse Planner is divided into monthly sections, each with a 2-page calendar spread, starting from July, ending with June. Within each monthly section there’s an essay to inspire and encourage the homeschool setting - Lessons Learned Around the Table, Fun with Unit Studies, Tips for Teaching Writing, “Hands-On” History, and several others.

Each monthly section also includes lists of important people, dates and events to remember – Timeline of Inventions, Famous Composers and Artists, Presidents and their Wives, Countries and Capitals, and much more. There is also a complete section of U.S. documents with the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, and the transcript of the Emancipation Proclamation.

The look and feel of the Schoolhouse Planner is cute and bright, right from the beginning, with colorful and whimsical illustrations of an old house and schoolhouse, and pleasing page layouts.

Download a sneak peek sample pack of the Schoolhouse Planner at TheOldSchoolhouseStore.com. It includes July’s monthly section with a calendar, essay, resource list, Cheeseburger Pie and Tropical Chicken recipes, the Annual Plans chart, Yearly Goals, Beginning/Ending Page, Curriculum Planning Sheet, and Course of Study.

Additionally, the Schoolhouse Planner comes complete with a section of over 30 Household Forms, ranging from Chore Charts to Prayer Journals, from Weekly and Daily schedules to Gardening forms.

The Schoolhouse Planner is perfectly made for the homeschool environment. It’s inclusive of every form needed and extremely comprehensible. The editable features are wonderful.

Overall, there’s great structure, great look, and great feel! Visit TheOldSchoolhouseStore.com to buy your own Schoolhouse Planner today. A great resource!

Ambleside Online takes Charlotte Mason into the 21st Century

“But Beauty is everywhere – in white clouds against the blue, in the gray bole of the beech, the play of a kitten, the lovely flight and beautiful colouring of birds, in the hills and the valleys and the streams, in the wind-flower and the blossom of her broom.”

These words, written by Charlotte Mason, speak to her appreciation for the world God made, and the beauty in it. She taught that children should learn to love and appreciate the natural world around them. Seeking to teach these values to the children, she founded many schools in England using her unique teaching methods.

A living wealth of information, Ambleside Online homeschool curriculum takes Charlotte Mason’s teaching methods from the turn of the century and brings them into the 21st century, while keeping all of her philosophies, thoughts, and ideas alive. An appreciation for fine works and things “above the ordinary” is one of Miss Mason and Ambleside’s goals.

Learning of history and science is done through biographies, autobiographies, living history books, and outdoor nature study - hoping to create within the student a relationship and an intimate connection with the study.

The Ambleside Online advisory investigates, reads and researches literally 100’s of books, speeches and essays in order to stay true to Miss Mason’s standards for twaddle-free living books. The simplicity of nature study, the enjoyment of living books, the practice of narration – all are encouraged and taught in the curriculum. Essays, articles, schedules, and books written by Charlotte Mason and her school instructors are greatly encouraged reading for parents.

Amazingly, this great resource is FREE! The Ambleside Online curriculum is available completely free of charge at amblesideonline.org. Understand, it consists of literature available online or through the library, used-book stores, Project Gutenberg, Amazon.com, etc.

Simple and well thought out, the web site has easy to follow guides and simple navigation. It’s divided into 12 years, with booklists and schedules for each grade. Ambleside Online is an advanced curriculum – some students will work well in their grade level, others will need to work one or two years below. If just beginning to home school a 6th grader from public school, Ambleside’s Year 4 or Year 5 will, most likely, be the right level.

There’s so much more to this curriculum. Visit their web site; peruse their booklists and schedules; read some of Charlotte Mason’s articles, and learn about nature study.

Charlotte Mason’s methods and Ambleside Online will inspire and breathe life into any home school program.