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The 2011 InHome Conference will be Thursday, March 24, through Saturday, March 26, at Pheasant Run Resort and Spa in St. Charles, Illinois. Registration is open.

Attend the Meet & Greet Event on Thursday!

Thursday, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m., in the New Orleans Ballroom, join the fun and make new friends! There will be something for everyone, from craft projects to ice breakers to cooperative games and a scavenger hunt. Win prizes! Choose one or two activities or do them all!

Registration and more contact info on their website.

This is coming quickly, so if you are interested in attending, jump on their website soon to register your family.

Just a quick request . . .

For those of you that do not already, would you take a minute to click on the “Connect with us here” icon in the sidebar. It will just take a minute, but it is a huge favor for me as it helps us have a more accurate picture of how many people are really connecting with resources, people, and information through our website. I hope that this website is a help to you as you homeschool and seek out resources to help you in that endeavor. Connecting publicly can be an easy way to say “Thanks.”

To those of you that already follow, thank you so much for doing so!

Thank you for taking a minute to show your support here.

As always, please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you out further. If you have suggestions or additions that you would like to see to the website, or events you think others would like to know about, please let me know. I love to hear from you about what you love (and what you don’t . . .) about this website and the resources posted here.

Thank you!!!

~Erin

Sincerely,

The BOOK IT! Team

My kids have definitely enjoyed their share of online “worlds” in recent years, and they were excited to try out another one.

Tiny Planets has  a Sesame Street feel to it while giving kids a safe place to play and explore. The site has a vast amount of information including lesson plans, science information, as well as games. Kids enjoy playing around on it and parents can find information and helpful teaching tips.

Product: Tiny Planets

Details: A website with activities and fun for kids. Membership is free, but you can purchase keys to unlock various features on the site. Various sections of the site offer learning opportunities, fun games, videos, picture stories, science information, and a galaxy filled with adventure for each “cadet” to explore in their space ship.

Price: Free, but additional purchases of keys will add to the enjoyment of this site

What we loved . . .

• Entertainment. Yes, it was fun. My kids all enjoyed a little mental break as they roamed the universe. Flying their space ships around allowed them to play games, build their own planet, and “shoot” things. My 5 year old enjoyed the shots which look like fireworks and don’t cause any damage. Not something I want him sitting around doing all day, but it was not the focus of the game either.
• Free. No cost to sign up your kids, and they can find lots of fun activities.
• Educational content. There is information on various planets, space discovery, and other educational information. There is a lot of information throughout the site that is targeted at different ages. Some is definitely for preschoolers (fun activities with mirrors) while other sections would be geared toward middle school (like when they discuss the different gases in the atmosphere on various planets).
• Safe. They have taken some important steps to make a safe place for kids to play on the internet. There are no ad pop ups to worry about. Kids can only chat with pre-chosen phrases. And, even the cadet names are assigned by the program (although you can flip through them if you don’t like the first one) so you don’t need to worry about those sometimes questionable names that other kids come up with on internet worlds.

Some considerations . . .

• Can cost money. If you enjoy this and want your child to get the full experience you will have the option of purchasing keys. These range in price from $1.95 for 10 up to $49.95 for 600 (and various denominations in between). These can be used for unlocking videos, books, space ship parts, planet decorations, etc.
• The educational value could easily be skipped.  When my kids got on the site all they wanted to do was fly around and play games or build their planets. They didn’t spend time reading the books, printing the worksheets, reading the articles on the planets, or even watch the videos. They just wanted to play games. So, while the content is there, it is in a separate place where kids might not necessarily go looking for it unless steered there by an adult.
• Based on aliens. Although it is a make believe world, I would have preferred an astronaut as the guide rather than aliens. They are cute and cuddly, but are definitely not my first pick for my children’s teachers.
• Names are a little funny. I’m glad that my kids didn’t have to pick their own names (which usually ends up as some weird variation of their original name with lots of letters and numbers after it to find a user name that hasn’t already been used). But the names were still long and not always easy to remember (Electro Dragon, Buzzy Whale, Rowdy Butterfly, etc.)

Tiny Planets has some fun to offer kids of a variety of ages. While I wouldn’t use this as part of our school day activities, it was a fun, safe place for them to spend some of their free time. Cadet accounts are free, so you might enjoy checking it out as well.

For more TOS Crew reviews on this product, check out the TOS Crew blog.

Disclaimer: This product was provided to me free of charge through Tiny Planets as part of my participation in The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew. I received no additional compensation and the opinions expressed here come from my personal experiences and sincere thoughts.

It’s not next door, but I have heard this conference is worth the drive. We do have lots of great conferences coming up right here in Chicago a little later in the year, but if you love to have the company of thousands of homeschoolers at a massive conference, grab some friends and head to Cincinnati!

Free download at Amazon for Veggie Tales The Incredible Singing Christmas Tree.

Definitely a limited time offer, so check it out right away!

The Race to Nowhere screening October 2nd at 10 a.m.

A group of local parents have teamed up to bring the Race to Nowhere to Oak Park.

It is a groundbreaking documentary about how the high-pressure culture that has schools and  children’s lives.

Here’s the link to the trailer (please note that while the trailer is for all audiences, the movie is rated PG-13):

http://www.racetonowhere.com/node/4494

From the website:

Director Vicki Abeles turns the personal political, igniting a national conversation in her new documentary about the pressures faced by American schoolchildren and their teachers in a system and culture obsessed with the illusion of achievement, competition and the pressure to perform. Featuring the heartbreaking stories of young people across the country who have been pushed to the brink, educators who are burned out and worried that students aren’t developing the skills they need, and parents who are trying to do what’s best for their kids, Race to Nowhere points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating has become commonplace, students have become disengaged, stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant, and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.

Race to Nowhere is a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens.

Featured in the film:

• Dr. Madeline Levine, Clinical Psychologist and author of the best-seller, The Price of Privilege
• Dr. Wendy Mogel, Clinical Psychologist and author of The Blessing of a Skinned Knee
• Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg, Adolescent Medicine Specialist, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
• Dr. Deborah Stipek, Dean of the School of Education at Stanford University
• Dr. Denise Pope, Co-Founder, Challenge Success, Stanford University
• Sara Bennett, Founder, Stop Homework

The Oak Park Screening will be:
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2ND at 10 am at the Lake Theater.

Daniel Ryan is going to participate in the Q&A after the screening.  Please forward this information to others who would be interested.

Thanks, Kimber for passing this along!

There are other screenings as well (in Chicago and Glen Ellyn) in the coming week, check out the full listing on the website for Race to Nowhere.

Many area park district’s offer educational and PE classes for homeschoolers. They are trying to reach out to the homeschool community, but often the info isn’t getting far enough. Please share this information with other homeschoolers, support groups, and co-ops. Elmhurst just canceled one due to low enrollment, and we want to make sure these aren’t just canceled because of the lack of knowledge about these events. Spread the word!

(Thanks again, Kimber, for letting us know about these opportunities!)

Elmhurst Park District
Home School Curriculum Sample

Each session is comprised of four lessons that take place over a two-week period and
include classroom instruction, laboratory and field activities, and homework
assignments to reinforce topics. Each lesson meets age appropriate state learning
standards for science and, depending on the topic, mathematics, social science,
language arts, and physical development and health are also covered.

All classes will take place in the lower level of the Eldridge recreation building. Located
in the Southwest corner of Eldridge Park, 363 Commonwealth Elmhurst, IL 60126.

Class Times:
Grades K-2 9-10:30 am
Grades 3-5 11am-12:30pm
Grades 6-8 1-2:30pm

Session Structure:
Day 1, Classroom work, In-class activities
Day 2, Review, Lab (indoor and outdoor)
Day 3, Review, Lab exercise, Classroom work
Day 4, Review, Lab, Assessment
– Homework will be assigned daily or bi-daily depending on the session.
Costs:
$30 resident/ $38 non-resident per student, per session
Based off the resident rate, students will be paying $5 per instruction hour.

This Fall we will be offering 5 sessions starting September 21, we are now accepting
online registration under the environmental heading

If you have any questions please email or call Matt Poole, program manager at:
mpoole@epd.org or 630-993-8980

Check out their brochure for more class details and further information.