Tag: homeschool

Swap Shop coming to Elburn

This is an amazing opportunity that I heard about kind of late in the game last time around. It is coming again in two weeks, so no excuses! You’ve got extra stuff, grown out of stuff, unneeded stuff to pass on to another family. And, you need bigger stuff, new stuff, different stuff for the new season, growing kids, and yourself. This is the event for you!

It’s the Back to
School Moms’ Swap Shop!

Open to the public August 19th and 20th

What is a Swap Shop you may be wondering? It is an opportunity for
moms to swap out their clothing as well as their children’s gently used
clothing, shoes, books, and toys for other sizes and items. Children’s
and adult accessories as well as furniture will be accepted. The event
is hosted by Authentic Moms, a local Christian mom’s group. Whose
desire is to follow 1 John 3:16-18 and to love with actions and truth,
not just words and speech. The Elburn Community Center will host
this year’s event in their gym. This event is free. The Swap Shop begins
Friday, August 19th with drop-offs taken from 10am till 7pm. The
swapping starts Saturday August 20th, 9am till 2pm.

All items remaining will be donated to Wayside Cross Ministries.
More Swap Shop events to follow, with a Christmas Swap
December 9th and 10th.

For more information feel free to email authenticmoms@gmail.com

In case you are wondering — yes, this is the real deal. This is a great volunteer run quarterly event to help us manage our homes and our finances better. You donate what you don’t need on Friday. They organize it and Saturday everyone is welcome to come pick out new stuff. I walked out with a few bags of new-to-us clothes for my whole family last time. I cannot tell you what a blessing this was. So, take advantage of this easy way to bless others and be blessed yourself!

Taste of Tall Ships

A fun family event coming once again to Chicago. If you haven’t heard . . . the tall ships are returning.

At Navy Pier you can enjoy these spectacular boats at the Taste of Tall Ships, August 11-14, from 10 am to 9 pm most days. That page will take you to info on each of the ships and some of the scheduled events. Some are just for looking at and some you can get on, and some you can enjoy a ride on.

You can board the Pride of Baltimore II & Flagship Niagara.

Adult Boarding $9

Child Boarding $6

Group rates available as well if you get a group of 20 or more. That will knock a buck of each pass.

While on the subject of tall ships . . .

Today Groupon has a special deal as well for a ride on Chicago’s own tall ship, Windy. THE GROUPON IS NOT VALID DURING TASTE OF TALL SHIPS. But, you can enjoy this ride some other day and avoid the crowds of the tall ships. Or, you can do a unit on tall ships and start and end it with two different tall ship events.

50% off at Tall Ship Adventures of Chicago
50% off at Tall Ship Adventures of Chicago
Before the invention of sails, armadas relied on outmoded ship designs such as the Vikings’ 30-man paddleboat and the languorous, elegant war gondola. Sail on a ship as swift as the wind with today’s Groupon: for $15, you get a…
view deal

IEW Seminars coming to Chicago

Institute for Excellence in Writing
Institute for Excellence in Writing Presents
Two Days of Writing Seminars with Andrew Pudewa
Chicago, IL area – August 3-4, 2011

Please forward this message to friends and colleagues!

Location:
Judson University
1151 North State Street
Elgin, IL 60123

Wednesday, August 3 – Student Workshops
Thursday, August 4 – High School Essay Intensive
Friday-Saturday, August 5-6 – Chicago Homeschool Expo (CHE), Andrew Pudewa, Featured Speaker
(Descriptions Follow)

To register or for more information about these events, go to www.excellenceinwriting.com/IL2011 or call 800-856-5815.

Contact us:
Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW)
8799 N. 387 Rd.
Locust Grove, OK 74352
800.856.5815
info@excellenceinwriting.com
A day of workshops for students Grades 3–10, new to the IEW writing program.
  • Introductory Workshop*: Grades 3–5: 8:30 AM–10:15 AM
  • Introductory Workshop*: Grades 6–8: 10:30 AM–12:15 PM
  • Advanced Workshop: Story Writing – Grades 3–8: 12:30 PM–2:45 PM (Full)
  • Advanced Workshop: Research Papers – Grades 5–10: 3:00 PM–5:15 PM (Full)
Cost: $20.00 per student per workshop. Teachers & Parents may observe at no cost.

The Introductory Student Workshops are enjoyable, informative and motivating for the children who attend, but they are also meant to serve as demonstration classes. Parents are encouraged to remain in the room, observing and participating with their child. Please make arrangements for the care of non-enrolled siblings. Please register early as theseworkshops fill fast. Sorry, no enrollment accepted at the door for Student Workshops.

August 4: High School Essay Intensive

8:30 AM-3:30 PM
Get immediate experience and inside tips on how to do your best on the SAT or ACT essay. Also includes strategies for composing the college application personal essay.

Cost: $50.00/participant (accompanying adult, $25.00)

August 5-6: Chicago Homeschool Expo (CHE)

Andrew Pudewa will be a speaker!
His sessions include:

  • Teaching Boys & Other Children Who Would Rather Make Forts All Day (August 5)
  • Teaching and Evaluating Writing (August 5)
  • The Profound Influence of Music on Life (August 5)
  • Reaching the Reluctant Writer (August 6)
  • The Four Deadly Errors of Teaching Writing (August 6)
We will also have a booth, so please stop by.
More information here: www.excellenceinwriting.com/CHE-2011

Review — Fitness 4 Homeschool

Mom, what are we doing for PE today?

Ummm, oh yeah, that.

It’s on the schedule, but sometimes turns into unplanned active time rather than a formal teaching time. We do calisthenics, practice basketball skills, or run around the walking trails at the park by our house. So, while we don’t generally miss PE (it is required), we don’t always have a good plan for it either.

Until now. I got a new follower on Twitter one day and had to check out this Family Time Fitness company. They offer a PE curriculum geared toward homeschoolers. It comes complete with warm ups, cool downs, and fun activities to go in the middle. Each class took us about a half hour to complete, but your family might take slightly longer or shorter than that depending on the age and focus of your kids. It was just right for our school day.

Product: Fitness 4 Homeschool

Details: A complete PE curriculum especially for kids in K-8. This one year program will give you activities for 5 days a week for 52 weeks.

Price: $77 (not much more than you would pay for one child’s PE class for the year at many co-ops!)

What I loved . . .

  • Beyond a PE class. More than just filling a class requirement, this program is about being healthy and active. That’s why it doesn’t fit in a neat 180 day school year. Fitness is for life and this program helps you toward that end.
  • Builds on basics. Arm circles, leg lifts, calf raises. Fitness isn’t really complicated, but coming up with a plan can be time consuming. They have done that for you. Took lots of familiar activities and exercises and added in some fresh ideas to make it sparkle, and packaged it up in an easy to use format for everyone to follow along with. PE planning with this product takes a few seconds of clicking each day rather than a half hour or more to plan the week.
  • Made for in house. While you could definitely enjoy these activities with another family they are designed to be done in house. We have our own little one room school house, but even if you homeschool one child, most of these activities could be done together without a larger group.
  • Video demos. We all hear those instructors saying to make sure you do it the right way so you don’t strain anything. With short and to the point videos that you access online, you can all see what it should look like. The demonstrations have an adult and children performing the various actions.
  • Great for an age mix. We used this with a kindergartener, an 8th grader and a few sprinkled in between. They all were able to participate at their levels and really enjoyed the activities. In watching it I was thinking it was geared a little young for my 8th grader, but he did not complain one bit and especially appreciated that we actually had a more planned PE everyday rather than getting pushed off or made more informal because it was unplanned.
  • Can be reused, or stretched over a couple years. In the summer we tend to be more active, so our formal PE tapers off a bit. If that is the case in your house you could easily stretch this over two years. And, many of the lessons could be repeated without boredom for even longer. You have permanent access to the videos so this is a great one time purchase that can establish your PE plans until high school!
  • Excellent exercise. I love these classes. I work up a light sweat while doing the activities along with my kids.  Again, nothing complicated, but just some simple activities that require me to get up out of the “teacher’s chair” and get moving with them. It is definitely helping me get and stay in shape in this season where homeschooling consumes my days.

Some considerations . . .

  • Do need some room. We run out of room in our school room for these, so it is really better to head outside if the weather is tolerable. Allow yourself plenty of room to swing those arms without smacking file cabinets or children. You can watch the videos inside and then head outside to actually perform them.
  • Might want to supplement with team sports or other group activities. What this program does not do is teach your kids basketball skills or soccer drills. I think this is also an important part of the PE program, so we try to balance our time and make room for team sports here and there throughout the year.  And, they say they have something in the works to do that type of thing at home as well. Definitely keep your eye out for more products from this homeschool friendly company.

We definitely needed this product right here, right now. My PE was getting a bit dull and needed more direction. I was so thankful for the videos and planning that were packed in there to keep all of us moving. I definitely believe that a good PE class helps the rest of the day go  better as well. In our house anyway, they’ve got to move before they sit.

Disclaimer: This product was provided to me free of charge through Family Time Fitness For the purpose of reviewing it. I received no additional compensation and the opinions expressed here come from my personal experiences and sincere thoughts.



Tweet

Book sale at the HRC

Homeschool Resource Center OPEN HOUSE & FLEA MARKET (the following taken from the library’s calendar):

When: July 30, 2011 – 10:00 am until 4:00 pm

This free event is the perfect opportunity for current homeschoolers to get re-energized, and for those thinking about homeschooling to ask questions and get real answers.

10:00 am to Noon: Used Curriculum Flea Market

A limited number of tables and half-tables are available by advance reservation only. Those who do not register in advance may bring a blanket and use the lawn to sell.

1:00 to 4:00 pm: Open Forum Panel Discussion and Q&A

Learn about the different homeschooling styles, curriculum choices, legal information, where to find resources, and much more. (Guest speakers to be announced.)

To reserve a free space to sell at the flea market or for further information, please call our Homeschool Parent Advisor at 847-497-4407.

Sign Language classes

Information on some upcoming sign camps and classes starting at the end of June!

Website: http://www.alwaysfeelconnected.com/

Hurry to sign up as spaces are filling fast!

Please feel free to pass this on!

Summer Classes:

Early Bird Registration is $25.00

**If you sign up for 2 weeks you will receive $5 off your total price,  or for all 4

weeks then you will receive $10 off your total price!**

A)  June 20th – June 24th   6:00pm – 7:00pm

B)   June 20th – June 24th   7:10pm – 8:10pm

C)   June 27th – July 1st       6:00pm – 7:00pm

D)   June 27th – July 1st        7:10pm – 8:10pm

Summer Camps!!!

Join us this summer for some exciting and fun summer camps at Always Feel Connected!  At these camps you will be enriched in deaf culture and history while learning vocabulary, games and at least one song in sign language!  At the end of the week the kids will perform the song for their parents.  There are many to chose from so chose one or as many as you want!  I hope to see you there!

Time:  9:00am – 12:00pm

Early Bird Registration is $75.00

**If you sign up for all 4 weeks you will receive $20 off your total price**

A)  June 20th – June 24th

B)   June 27th – July 1st

C)   July 11th – July 15th

D)   July 18th – July 22nd

E)   To Be Announced – Deaf Theater

**This will be a week where the kids will learn a play/musical and perform it ALL IN

SIGN LANGUAGE at the end of the week**

Contact:

Stacey Borrego

Always Feel Connected

630-479-9094

www.alwaysfeelconnected.com

alwaysfeelconnected11@comcast.net

College planning workshop

I received this from a host of a radio show geared toward those headed to college, and their parents:

Over the past year I have had dozens of Home Educators throughout the Midwest contact me requesting information on “How Home Educators Can Send Their Kid’s to College Without Draining Their Life Savings, Raiding Their Retirement or Just Plain Going Broke.”

Until now, I simply have not had the available time to conduct such a specialized workshop.

On Tuesday June 14th, I will be conducting an Online College Planning Workshop for Parents of Home Schooled Junior HS & HS Students.

If you would like to attend this event, click to link below to register.

College Planning Event for Parents of Home Schooled Students

We have reserved 100 spots for this event and we expect them to be taken very quickly so please register now before you are locked out.

College Planning Event for Parents of Home Schooled Students

-All the Best

Ken Schreiber
Host of ‘College Bound’ AM 560 WIND
Premier College Planning Associates
608 S. Washington St. Suite 207
Naperville, IL 60540
Phone: 630-717-4998
Fax: 630-364-5869

P.S. If you have other friends, family members, co-workers or neighbors who Home Educate their children, feel free to forward this invitation to them. They’ll be happy you did!

College Planning Event for Parents of Home Schooled Students


TOS Crew Review — Read for the Heart

Photobucket

Reading is an integral part of learning, and more so it is an irremovable part of our family life. Because of this, I am constantly on the lookout for good books. You know the ones. The ones that have withstood the test of time. The ones that both boys and girls can’t wait to hear more of. The ones during which you would never fall asleep. The ones that spark meaningful conversation even after you have closed the cover for the last time.

Sarah Clarkson wrote Read for the Heart to do more than just recommend some good books. She wrote it to help cast a vision for giving reading a place of prominence in your home. By the time you get to the book list you can’t help but be fingering your library card debating which book to put on hold or check out first. I know reading is important, but this book helped reignite my desire to pass my love of reading on to my kids.

Product: Read for the Heart

Details: A 384 page book with encouragement to make family reading and individual reading time a priority. Over 300 of the pages are lists of books that include summaries and background information to help you choose the best reads for your family and your kids.

Price: $17

What I loved . . .

  • Inspiring. I can find oodles of book lists all over the internet. While I appreciate getting a good book recommendation now and then, I really appreciated Sarah’s casting of a vision for reading. I love to read, and yet it is one of the first things I drop from my schedule when time gets tight. She reminded me with a passion how important time spent reading is in our home and school.
  • Personally and statistically supported. Creating beautiful word pictures, the author shares what crafted this love for reading in her heart. And, she shares statistics, quotes, and other encouragement as to the importance of reading. We owe it to the development of our kids’ minds to read early and read often, and this book can be a great catalyst to encourage you in the endeavor and give you the tools (great books!) to enjoy doing so.
  • Lists and more lists. Not just an alphabetical listing of books (although the index does provide that), this book breaks down the lists by popular genres (historical literature, fairy tales, picture books, etc.) Beyond that, each entry includes the author, other books by the author, illustrator, copyright date, and a brief summary of the book. A few quick lists also reference Caldecott winners, Newberry winners, and books especially for boys, girls, and families reading together.
  • Reading tips. Aside from rich motivation and abundant lists, she also gives some tips to making reading time special. From locations to treats she will stir your own imagination in this area.
  • A must have book. This book offers an incredible resource when doing your book shopping. I am always looking at books at a used book sale and trying to figure out by reading a sentence here and there if I or my kids will like the particular book. I will definitely bring this guide along with me now to see what it has to say when purchasing unfamiliar books. Obviously it won’t have all the good books listed either, but it does have many, and many that I am not familiar with as well. I look forward to bringing Sarah with me to all the book sales now and ask her advice before  I buy. 🙂

Some considerations . . .

  • One person’s opinion. You might feel differently. Her glowing opinion will not guarantee that you will like it. For example, she loved Across Five Aprils (which I have also heard many other people rave about), and I had to force myself to trudge through this book with my kids a few years ago. I was not impressed. But, we are all entitled to our own opinions and will love what others didn’t and vice versa.  You will still need to determine what books are a good fit for your family’s interests, values, attention span, academic subject, and personalities.

This book stirred up an incredible amount of enthusiasm within me. I cannot wait to finalize plans for the coming school year and include some of the great books recommended in this resource. I would strongly recommend this book to any homeschooling mom needing encouragement and ideas for making reading come to life in your home. You can check out the table of contents as well as a sample chapter if you would like to see a bit of the book for yourself and accept Sarah Clarkson’s invitation to more than just a “reading list, but to a reading life.”

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 Apologia 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.



Tweet

TOS Crew Review — Pearson Education


  • Grade 1

    • Product: Pearson Education enVision MATH 2011

    Details: A full year math program for first grade in a consumable workbook. Each day the student removes a page from this book that measures about 11″ x 17″ and then folds their lesson in half like a booklet. They complete the booklet and can then stick it on their refrigerator or some other location for display. Contains 20 topics each with 4 to 13 lessons, a problem solving lesson, a test, reteaching material, a game, and “home-school” connection sheets.

    Price: $34.47 for the student book

    What we loved . . .

    • Made to display. Each lesson is made to be torn out of the book, folded in half, and put on display. When my son saw that he didn’t hesitate to get to work. As soon as we opened the package and he saw it was for him, he ripped out a page, worked hard at it, and put it right on our fridge. I love that motivation.
    • Fun to use. My son loved using the book. He liked the activities, the fun pictures, the ripping and folding. It is a very kid friendly product.
    • Internet connections. Although this is a paper product, it mentions web based games as well that reinforce the learning done on the page. I had to Google it to find them because the student book did not have the actual web address, but we did find it and were able to play the games that fit the activities online as well as  in hand.
    • Gentle math. If your child is just easing into math at this age this is a fairly gentle introduction. No speed drills, no sheets of adding and subtracting. Games, activities, application of math principles, mostly fun, hands-on learning.

    Some considerations . . .

    • Not a reasonably priced teacher book available. Since this is not really initially designed with the homeschooler in mind, the teacher’s guide is included in a $525 resource pack. Obviously not something you would purchase to help you teach one or two kids for a year. And, without it there were spots in the book that we had to make up as we went along. I don’t think we missed out on too much, but it would have been more beneficial if we had some instruction through certain segments. Even where to jump on the web was not included although I could figure it out with the help of Google.
    • Awkward shape. This book is ginormous. It would not fit on a bookshelf or in a backpack and barely fits in his arms when he carries it around. I assume it is made to fit in a school desk, but it is not a convenient size for at home use.
    • Doesn’t have much built in review. The book covers 20 topics, but doesn’t revisit them as you go. I prefer math programs that review at least every couple weeks to make sure that young minds don’t lose what they have already learned.

    While I did find this a cute book and one my son really enjoyed pulling out the pages and working through, I did not feel it was a good fit for homeschoolers the way it is right now. However, if you have a kids that loves workbooks and is always asking for more pencil and paper work like the big kids do, this would be a helpful book to have on hand. You can tear a page out, keep your child busy for a while, and then show off their work on your wall or fridge.

    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 Pearson Education 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.



    Tweet

    TOS Crew Review — Mad Dog Math

    With school age kids ranging from Kindergarten to eighth grade, my younger kids seem to have a greater drive to learn early because they want to do what everyone else is doing. Recently my younger two took an interest in learning about multiplication. Not typically part of the scope and sequence for Kindergarten and first grade, we decided to give it a try anyway.

    At the same time we received Mad Dog Math to review and this was a great opportunity for them to learn their basic math facts on their own. We did a quick little lesson on what multiplication means and how to figure out the answer and then sent them off. They started with reviewing some of their addition and subtraction, and then could switch to level 3 and work on some of their new found understanding of “times.” Now they feel like big kids. 🙂

    See a little more of what this program is all about in this video they put together (this is a little long — just under 10  minutes):

    Product: Mad Dog Math

    Details: A downloadable program that helps kids in K-5 practice their basic facts in a systematic, easy to use format. They get a set of problems to answer in a period of time and gradually progress to more difficult problems.

    Price: $19.95 for a one year license, $29.99 for 2 years, $39.99 for perpetual license

    What we loved . . .

    • Basic presentation. Not a flashy, “read a 100 page manual” program. Download, read a paragraph of instructions, and start drilling. My kindergartener was on it within two minutes of getting it on and he flew through the first through levels as he got used to the program.
    • Covers all the basic operations. This one program will cover addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division in one computer based program so you won’t have to keep flash cards around that mostly got used by your toddler to decorate the school room floor anyway.
    • Different levels to start at. Each child can start at their appropriate level. Level one starts at the very basic, “0 + 3.” It then very gradually progresses through each of the groupings first through addition and then subtraction. Once they can add everything up to 18 they will complete that level and earn their sticker. They can redo them to improve their times trying to complete the facts in less than 30 seconds with only a couple errors.
    • Good length. The speed drills vary in length and are appropriate for the levels they are at. As they progress they get a bit longer, but they are all able to be completed in 2 minutes by most kids. I could finish most in 15 seconds, so that allows a good bit of time for kids to find the correct number on the keyboard an move on.
    • Varied presentation. Most of the problems ask for a solution (the sum, difference, product, or quotient), but some leave out one of the other numbers that kids need to figure out instead. I like that they vary this to help kids stretch their thinking, solidify their skills, and keep it fresh.
    • Can be untimed. Some kids really struggle with the anxiety of a timed test. Mad Dog offers timings of 2 minutes, 1 minute, or 30 seconds. They also give you the choice of not being timed. This can be a great help to some kids struggling with success in this area.

    Some considerations . . .

    • Simple program. While this is a plus for ease of use, it also means that it does not have some extra features that I like to look for in a program. It doesn’t track specifics of how your child is doing. It lets them continue when they have made mistakes (I like to be able to set the mastery level and change it as I see necessary). It does what it is meant to do, but not with
    • Kids need to advance themselves to the next level. Once a child has mastered one level it tells them what they need to do next, but they need to change the selection in order to move to that next step in the program. It will let you stay at the level you were working on, but you don’t earn anything new until you select the next level.
    • Watch the bark. When I first started the program up I must have had my speakers on too loud. The program does not have any talking or background music, but it does have a loud bark now and then when you click on something or move to a new section. It about knocked me out of my seat. So, keep your speakers at a reasonable level when you are trying it out. 😉
    • Unique groupings. It seems most math programs I use learn all the “+ 1” at once. Mad Dog instead does everything that adds up to 0-3 first. So it is working with a smaller sample set each time. This worked well for the gradual progress, but it was different than what we were used to.
    • Rewards are a long time coming. While kids can earn rewards, they take a while to get there, especially at the lowest level. At level one I felt like I had been on it a while and the “encouragement” that showed up on the bottom after one quiz said something like, “Great job, just 35 to go to earn your sticker!” Wow, that was not encouraging.
    • Explanation focuses on vocabulary. In the instructions there is a little button to click for the program to explain the math terms. I expected it to tell you what “addition” means, but instead it tells you the technical terms for each number in an addition problem (and for the other operations as well). This is interesting, but not really helpful if a student didn’t know what “multiply” even means.

    Mad Dog math is basically a computer based flashcard program. It is easy to use and most kids would much rather drill their math facts on the computer as opposed to with real cards. It obviously costs a lot more than a deck of flashcards, but if it will get kids to learn their basic facts without an argument, that is money well spent. And, you don’t have to worry about your kids not learning “7 + 8” because you lost that card and never realized it.

    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 Mad Dog Math 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.



    Tweet