Argonne open house!

Argonne Public Open House 2009

Directions to Argonne
Download Program of Events (PDF)

Argonne is opening its gates to the community Saturday, Aug. 29, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. — rain or shine. Nearly 100 engaging exhibits, demonstrations, tours and presentations are being planned for a day of fun and education for the entire family.

A program of attractions and events, including a map of the Argonne campus, will be available free at the Argonne gates and is downloadable here.

Photos and videotaping are welcome.

Come and enjoy our beautiful campus and learn more about exciting new research in:

  • Energy
  • Environment
  • Safety
  • Chemistry
  • Computing
  • Engineering
  • Biology
  • National security
  • Physics
  • Materials science and nanomaterials
  • X-ray science
  • Transportation
  • Nuclear energy

Tours

Tours include the Advanced Photon Source, the Western Hemisphere’s most brilliant source of X-rays for research; the Center for Nanoscale Materials; ATLAS, the Argonne Tandem-Linac Accelerator System; and the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator.

Featured presentations:

  • To be announced.

Directions

Argonne is located just south of I-55 near Darien. Visitors to Argonne’s open house may enter through any of three gates:

  • Northgate Rd.  located off Cass Ave. immediately south of I-55. Take the Cass Ave. exit south from I-55.
  • Westgate Rd.  located off Lemont Rd. immediately south of I-55. Take the Lemont Rd. exit south from I-55.
  • Eastgate  located off Cass Ave. near Bluff Rd., about a mile and a half south of Northgate Rd. Take the Cass Ave. exit south from I-55.

Shuttle service

Free on-site shuttle service is available all day.

Free all-day shuttle service to the open house is available for visitors who park in the Argonne Park, located on Cass Avenue, directly across from the Argonne campus and about a half-mile north of Bluff Road.

Food service

Food and beverages are available for purchase at Buildings 213 and 401. Snacks and refreshments may be purchased near Buildings 200 and 362.

Information booths

Information booths will be open all day near Buildings 203 and 362 to answer your questions about activities and services Information is also available from Argonne hosts wearing white baseball hats imprinted with “Argonne National Laboratory.”

Fall happenings — Chicago Ridge Homeschool opportunities

Many co-ops and support groups have exciting opportunities dotting their fall calendar. Check out individual websites (see tabs above for contact information for many groups across the Chicago area) for more details information about meetings and events open to homeschoolers in your neck of the woods.

The following came from a group in Chicago Ridge:

Here is a brief summary: (all are at 1 p.m.)

Sept. 11–participate in a Readers’ Theatre presentation of The Buffalo Storm

Oct. 9–Bicycle safety program

Nov. 13—Fine Arts Fest

Dec. 11—Stampin’ Up Christmas edition

All Homeschoolers are welcome to join us!  Please call to reserve your spot! 708.423.7753

The more, the merrier!

Constance VanSwol

youthdesk@chicagoridge.lib.il.us

Head of Youth Services

Chicago Ridge Public Library

10400 S. Oxford Avenue

Chicago Ridge IL 60415

Scholastic Warehouse sale

More sales . . .

I have personally enjoyed shopping this sale to stock up on free reading books, craft sets, and even stocking stuffers. Much of the warehouse is available at 50% off or more, they often have items for $1, and you can print out a coupon for $10 off a $50 purchase when you register in advance. I don’t usually have a hard time finding $50 worth of items to fill my cart with.

Scholastic Please add BookFairs@emailer.scholastic.com to your address book.

Scholastic Book Fairs 'Back to School' Warehouse Sale!
Stock Up for the New School Year at Our Clearance Sale!
Deep discounts on selected titles
100’s of items below $5
Build home, school, and classroom libraries at a fraction of the price
50 to 80% OFF!

Sign Up Now to Receive a Valuable Coupon!
Go online to pre-register (enter source code: EMAIL) for a sale and get your Fast-Cart Pass. You’ll skip the sign-in lines and receive a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $60-$100 or $15 off a purchase greater than $100!
Exclusively for educators and Book Fair chairpeople / volunteers. Sale applies ONLY to preselected items marked down for clearance.

Visit Scholastic.com Book Fairs | Find a Warehouse Sale | Contact Us

Office Max Teacher Appreciation event

We rely on Office Max for lots of little, and occasionally big, items throughout our homeschool year.

Here is an event I have enjoyed in recent years (important note: check your local store for dates. Some have held these already, and others may not be on this same day, call ahead to make check your local details) :

OfficeMax
Office Supplies Paper Technology Ink and Toner Furniture
IN-STORE EVENT - AUGUST 9 TEACHER APPRECIATION DAY
Receive a FREE Reusable Shopping Bag and get 15% off everything you can fit inside*
Find a Store
PLUS, Receive a Coupon to EARN 15% in MaxPerks® Bonus Rewards on any printer purchase. Present your MaxPerks ID card and the coupon in-store to earn 15% in Bonus Rewards. Coupon Valid August 9 thru August 15.

*Valid August 9, 2009. Offer available to MaxPerks® Rewards for Teachers members or new teacher member sign-ups only.
All merchandise must fit inside this bag to qualify for the 15% discount. 15% discount applies to all regular, sale and clearance priced items, before taxes. 15% discount offer not valid on purchases of computers, monitors, printers, gift certificates, OfficeMax brand gift cards, general-use prepaid cards, phone cards, MaxAssurance® or assembly. Merchandise must be in original packaging. Discount applies to in-stock items only. Discount may only be used once. Special orders are not eligible for the 15% discount. Not valid with any other coupon offer, Associate discount card(s) and/or Retail ConnectSM Card pricing. No price adjustments from previous ads will be made. One bag per customer. Valid in-store only. No rainchecks will be given for this 15% discount. Void if copied, sold, transferred, taxed or where prohibited. Not valid on prior purchases or for credit card payments. No cash or credit back. Cash value .001¢. © 2009 OMX, Inc.
In the event the store runs out of the reusable bags, a substitute bag will be provided for use with the 15% discount. See store associate for complete details and exclusions.

♦Offer valid for MaxPerks® Rewards for Teachers members or new teacher member sign-ups only. 15% Bonus Reward valid on any printer purchase. Bonus Reward offer is available from August 9, 2009 to August 15, 2009. Items, and related Bonus Rewards, are available while supplies last. Member’s MaxPerks ID card and coupon must be presented at time of purchase; no Bonus Reward adjustments will be made after purchase. Bonus Reward offer valid in-store only. For percentage based Bonus Reward, percentage of Bonus Rewards issued is based upon price actually paid by Member, as advertised price can be reduced by any applicable coupon or discount. Bonus Rewards will be issued in the next statement cycle. Bonus Rewards for these offers, along with any other Bonus Rewards a Member may have earned during the same period, will be issued in the form of a reward card redeemable toward future purchases. Reward card expires 90 days from date of issuance except for reward cards for FL Members, which expire 1 year from date of issuance.

Private in-store event is for personal use only. Excludes gift cards. We reserve the right to limit quantities. Commercial credit cannot be used for payment. No other coupons will be honored at this event. Delivery items included. Not responsible for printing or typographical errors. All amounts represented in this email are subject to change. OfficeMax®, officemax.com, OfficeMax Express®, OfficeMax ImPress® and FurnitureMax® are registered trademarks of OMX, Inc.

Six Flags homeschool day

If you have not received a flyer in the mail, be on the lookout!

Six Flags

Many people have been searching for more details about the upcoming homeschool day at Six Flags Great America.

I received my flyer today, and they have now posted the registration form on the website. If you did not get a flyer mailed to you, you can print this registration form for yourself.

Here are the details:

  • 2009 Home School Day Thursday, September 10
  • FREE PARKING!!!
  • Park hours — 10 AM to 5 PM
  • Hurricane Harbour is not open on that day
  • Picnic Grove buffet from 11:30-1:00 for $10.25
  • $10 processing fee to mail order tickets
  • Get a free ticket for every 20 you purchase — get a group together and you can go free!

Tickets:

  • $27.50 per person if purchased before August 24, 2009
  • $33 per person if ordered 8/25 through 9/4
  • Online ticket promo code: HOMESCHOOL
  • $37.75 for ticket and all-you-can-eat buffet if ordered by 8/24/2009

Early bird specials give you less than three weeks from now to get your orders in, so get your group together and get your order in soon.  Don’t miss out on a great opportunity to enjoy Great America with other area homeschoolers.

Book Sale!!!

Home School Textbook and Guided Reading Sale

When: Friday August 7th from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Where: 439 S. Liberty St. Elgin, IL 60120
What: Great bargains on individual and whole book sets including —

  • Houghton Mifflin,
  • Saxon
  • Purposeful Design
  • A Reason for…
  • Open Court
  • and more.

Plus guided reading sets to build your school library.

From K-12, new and used.

Cash only.

North Aurora Library Used book sale

books

This isn’t specific to homeschoolers, but most of us have more books that we need, but still not as many as we think we need.

If you feel this way, you might find some interesting books at the Messenger Public Library in North Aurora.

This is just about to wrap up for today, but will be open again tomorrow, August 1 from 9-3.

Check out their website for all the details and directions.

Christopher Columbus’ boats spotted!

The Niña

This taken from an article in a local paper:

Replicas of two of Christopher Columbus’ ships are scheduled to spend nearly a week at Waukegan Harbor beginning July 29.

The “Pinta” and the “Nina” will be docked next to the Waukegan Yacht Club until their departure early Aug. 3. They will be open for viewing for a charge.

Both ships will be touring together as a new and enhanced “sailing museum” for the purpose of educating the public and school children on the ships used by Columbus and many early explorers to discover the world.

While in port, the public is invited to visit the ships for walk-aboard self-guided tours. The prices are $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and $5 for children. Children 4 and under are free. The ships will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. No reservations necessary.

Teachers or groups wishing to schedule a 30-minute guided tour with a crew member should call the ship directly at (787) 672-2152. Minimum of 15 and the cost is $3 per person. Visit the Web site at www.thenina.com for additional information.

Sounds like a great educational activity! To prepare for your trip here are some links on Christopher Columbus:

Happy Exploring!

CHAMPs orientation meeting

As we race toward the start of school, don’t forget to consider how co-ops may play a part in your homeschooling. The Chicago area offers an abundance of classes and support group for you to plug into. Check out the tabs at the top of this site for many options. Many of these host get-acquainted opportunities this time of year. As we become aware of them, we will post them here.

CHAMPs homeschool co-op is having a parent and teacher orientation night

When: Monday, Aug 3 from 7-9 

Where: Mount Prospect Bible Church, 505 W Golf Rd, Mt Prospect (just west of Rt 83, south side of street)

You can view the CHAMP’s website for information on classes and schedules.   If you would like to meet the teachers and ask about classes or the co-op program, please come join them on August 3. 
-Cheryl Seda

Curriculum giveaway

Photobucket

Got some curriculum you would like to bless another homeschool family with?

Would you like to win some gently used, new-to-you homeschool books?

Then, I have found the bl0g event for you . . .

Jolanthe, over at Homeschool Creations (a fellow CREW member), is hosting a Curriculum Cleanout Giveaway the beginning of August.

Read her site for all the details, but basically she is asking homeschoolers to look through their shelves and come up with a new or gently used item to give away the first couple weeks of August (the second through fifteenth). You can post about it on your blog or just leave a comment with an email address for people to enter to win your giveaway.

You are responsible for shipping costs on any books you give away.

Any one can enter to win, so be sure to check out her site in a couple weeks and see if someone might be giving away something you have been wanting to own. You just might get it for free!

Head on over and check it out. Get your goodies together to giveaway, and get ready for entering some drawings for homeschool books and curriculum.