Received by email –

SciTech Science Camp of the Week for Aug 1-5 :

For Ages 8-10 and For Ages 11-14 CSI Crime Scene Investigator: You'll be able to say "Book 'em"
once you are done with this Summer Camp! Today's police work is part leg work, part hunch and a lot
of Science! Spend the week learning how to find and analyze clues, examine evidence and draw
conclusions. See what it means to get "booked" when you tour the Aurora Police Station.  Oh yeah,
we'll see how ya look...with your own mug shot!

Two other great camps are available 8/1-8/5 each one with slots open for eager Science Campers:

Ages 11-14 Kitchen Chemistry: Crystals can be fascinating-and delicious, yes you can eat them!
What else?  Make your own S-L-I-M-E! (You will get to keep the recipe!)
Amaze your friends with "Kitchen Science" magic tricks!

Ages 8-10: Totally Ballistic: Launch Rockets! Cannons! Tennis ball Mortars!Sling a catapult
from SciTech's own back yard.  Design your own Rocket and prepare for blast off!

These week long Summer Science Camps are Outrageously Fun! Camps are open from 9 am through 3 pm.
Lunches available for $4, just call the number below to arrange lunch for your hungry camper.
Register now at www.scitechmuseum.org or call 630-859-3434 ext. 218

We look forward to seeing you at one of SciTech Museum's Summer Camps!

Best Regards,
the SciTech Museum Team

SciTech Hands On Museum
18 West Benton St
Aurora, IL 60506

Science often strikes fear into the hearts of homeschool moms. It is the topic that many feel unable to teach when they first begin, but with the right tools we can all succeed and enjoy our science experience. Many homeschool moms actually say that science is their favorite subject to teach after a few years under their belts. Eagle’s Wings’ Considering God’s Creation can be a great tool for the new mom that needs some help figuring out how to bring science easily in their home, or for the veteran mom that loves teaching science and is looking for a quality, affordable product.

The book has 36 lessons which covers topics such as: Creation, The Universe, Weather, Kingdoms, Anatomy, and more. The authors present the lessons from a solid Biblical worldview in this easy to use and easily adaptable science book.

Product: Considering God’s Creation

Details: A science curriculum covering natural science and adaptable for second to seventh Grade.  272-pages plus Teacher’s Manual with audio CD. The authors, Sue Mortimer and Betty Smith, are sisters that grew up as homeschooled missionary kids in Mexico. They initially wrote this curriculum to use in homeschooling their own kids.

Price: $29.95

What we loved . . .

• Science for almost the whole family. Made to easily work with 2-7 graders, but my K and 1 are easily following along with it all. They suggest even having an older child teach this to the younger ones as their own science. We didn’t try that, but I am considering seeing how it goes. You always learn so much more when you dig in to material to actually teach it. This might be perfect for my 7th grader to actually teach to the younger ones and all their science would be taken care of for me. I really like the sound of that.
• Created by homeschoolers for homeschoolers. There is a lot to be said for curriculum written by someone who has been there and knows what homeschoolers need in a curriculum. We want easy to use, all in one, multi-age, accurate info, hands on supplements, and I especially want Biblical grounding. These homeschool veterans had all that in mind when creating this science course. It’s not the flashiest, most beautiful book on your shelf, but it has everything you need to teach your kids science well.
• Lots of learning styles. They use music, experiments, discussion, crafts, projects, observations, listening, and reading to get their lessons across. My kids enjoyed the simple activities, the catchy tunes, and the suggested studies. This program was definitely a good fit for us. I look forward to finishing it in the year ahead.
• Can be reused. We didn’t tap into these, but at the end of each lesson they offer “Digging Deeper” resources for use on your second run through the material a couple years later.
• Biblically grounded. If you have read me for any length of time you know this is of utmost importance to me. Each lesson is tied in to Scripture. You could easily use that portion as your Bible lesson for the day as well.
• Student book may be copied for your kids. You only need to purchase the one set that comes with the student book which you are free to copy for your own children. This is wonderful for kids that love to redo favorite crafts and it is helpful on the budget since you don’t need a workbook for everyone.
• Focus on Creationism — This kind of goes with the Biblical grounding, but it bears repeating because they repeat it so often. They often present “evolution stumpers” that focus on truths that validate Creationism and weaknesses in the evolutionary theory. This is a huge part of why I want my kids to learn science at home, so I really appreciate their intentional emphasis on this area of teaching and learning.

Some considerations . . .

• Lessons aren’t broken down by days. Although the lessons are scripted, it is up to you how much you do in a given day. Each of the 36 lessons are meant to fill a week of science classes so the curriculum takes a full school year to complete. But you have the flexibility to determine how much you do in a day, how many days each week you cover science, and how deeply involved to get with each lesson.
• Black and white. The student book has lots of graphics that it uses for the different notebook activities, but they are all black and white. If you have a kid that loves color they can of course color their own, but be aware that the cover is the only page in color in these books.

Eagle’s Wings has created exactly what I like to find in a curriculum. It offers you a quality product at a reasonable price and creates an easy to use curriculum at the same time. This might not be a good fit for every family, but it has really clicked with us. The activities are easy to pull together and I’m not tempted to skip them because I know they won’t take a lot of time or clean up and the kids will enjoy them. This is exactly what I needed in a science curriculum.

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 Eagle’s Wings 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.

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Dr. Callentine boasts an impressive resume. A doctor, a homeschool mom, a former teacher, a parent rights advocate, and much more. Some of you may have run into her at the ICHE convention in past years.  If you have not had the privilege of meeting her you can do so again this year at the convention, or you can check out her other already scheduled classes, or schedule one of your own.

With her background she brings all of her passions to her presentations. As she says, she is passionate about, “the biological sciences, children, education, families, and the God who created all things.”

If you are looking for someone to lead a dissection or present on a certain biology related topic, you will want to look more closely at her website. She has lots to offer in areas that many homeschoolers are looking for a helping hand.

Need a little science in your week?

Hands on science is often a favorite subject for students. Since they could talk they learned to ask, “Why?” I am always on the lookout for products that will keep my kids learning about the world around them, encourage their curiosity, and keep their hands busy. Science Weekly works to do all of those things.

Product: Science Weekly

Details: A publication geared toward students K-6 that offers a close up look at various science related topics. Each subscription comes with 15 issues (4 page booklet) over the course of the school year and has 6 different levels available to target your child’s specific age.

Price: $19.95 per student per year or if you order 20 or more only $4.95 per student (so, if you are getting more than 5, you are better off with the group discount — they do not all have to be from the same level)

What we loved . . .

• Built for multi-level learning. The little magazine comes in different levels from Kindergarten through 5th/6th grade. If you have a few kids at different levels, you can still learn together, while they each have their own paper at their grade level. The teacher’s guide covers all levels.
• Variety of activities. Each sheet comes with articles to read, puzzles to complete, and activities to work on to reinforce the information presented. Most of them could probably be completed in 30 minutes or so for the entire level. There was some interesting information and activities, but nothing too complicated.
• Easy to use. This was easy filler material as my kids could for the most part read and interact with it on their own. We did some of the activities together to discuss the material also.
• Volume discount. While the individual subscriptions are a bit pricey, the group rate is pretty reasonable. So, find another family or two if you are considering this — ask around your co-op or support group and get the classroom rate rather than the individual rate.

Some considerations . . .

• Teacher’s guide only comes with 25 subscriptions. So, if you are ordering fewer than that it doesn’t seem that you have an option to get the guide.  The guide is only a four page booklet covering all of the levels, but has answers to the questions, activity ideas and tips on the weekly labs. It also helps you by offering some questions to initiate conversation on the topic and to follow up the activities to check learning and retention. You could still teach the material without it, but it would not have as much meat to it.
• Younger levels seem too basic. Maybe I’m just used to pulling my kindergartener and first grader in with everybody else, but pretty much all they got out of their papers were how long to wash their hands. The upper levels talked in more detail about viruses and vaccines and contamination and other more detailed topics.
• Tries to cover lots of subjects. Trying to integrate other material, I think they end up short changing the depth of the science presented. They have kids practice writing tally marks and riddles; space that would be better used learning more about science topics. They showed cells and talked about how long they live in different surfaces, but it seemed confusing to me. They said that the flu only lives a few minutes on skin and yet they emphasize handwashing for 30 seconds. However, if it’s more than three minutes since we were in contact with someone with the flu, aren’t those cells already dead? Maybe they should have emphasized the importance of not touching your eyes, ears, nose, and mouth as much as they emphasized hand washing.

Science Weekly has a good idea — to bring science easily and naturally into the child’s world. I don’t know if they really deliver. The topic is introduced, but not really covered. It could be helpful to those looking for additional at level reading material and want something fresh delivered to their home every couple weeks during the school year.

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 Science Weekly 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.

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Engineering: The Gateway to Tomorrow’s Technology

You are invited to The Twenty Seventh Annual DuPage Engineers Week Expo:

Date: February 26, 2011
Time: 11:00 AM to 3:30 PM
What to find there:

• ZOOM into Engineering and Design Squad
• DuPage Children’s Museum
• LEGO® Robotics — Chicago Robotics
• Mr. Freeze Cryogenics
• 4,500 Years of Structures
• Working Bikes — Robot Design Engineering

Where: The School of Applied Technology
Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Campus
Illinois Institute of Technology
201 East Loop Drive
Wheaton, IL. 60189

Visit their Website – http://dupageeweek.iit.edu There you will find all the details as far as schedules, display descriptions, and even a floor plan of the building with what will be set up where. Some of the displays I am familiar with from other events and I know my kids would really enjoy this. It is free and geared toward kids K-8. Definitely looks like fun for everyone.

This weekend birders of all shapes and sizes will head to their back windows, or maybe even outside into their backyards and count birds.

I had heard of this event in the past, but did not have any interested kids. Well, today in our science we read about it once again. The book said it took place sometime in February, so I jumped online to see when. And, it is this coming weekend! February 18-21, 2011, you are encouraged to spend 15 minutes at least one day counting birds in your yard or other outdoor area.

There are a few organized events in Illinois:

Illinois

GBBC event
February 19, 9:00-Noon
Peck Farm Park Interpretive Center
4038 Kaneville Road, Geneva, IL
Contact: Tina Rossi, (630) 262-8244, trossi@genevaparks.com

_________________________________________________________________

GBBC participation
February 19, 1:00 – 3:00 PM
Citizens Park, Jewel Pavilion, 511 Lake Zurich Road, Barrington, IL
For ages 4 and up, Cost: $5 per child, families with multiple children pay $1 for each additional child. Registration is required.
Contact:Citizens for Conservation, (847) 382-SAVE (7283), cfc@CitizensforConservation.org

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GBBC activities
February Noon-2:00 PM
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, 2430 N. Cannon Drive, Chicago, IL
Join our celebration of the 2011 Great Backyard Bird Count! Learn bird watching skills and discover how your family can participate in this year’s bird count. Compete in the Bird Olympics to test your athletic abilities against those of local bird species. Fun for all ages!
Contact: (773) 755-5126, www.naturemuseum.org

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GBBC participation
February 19, 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Anita Purves Nature Center, 1505 N Broadway, Urbana, IL
Join Champaign County Audubon Society members and Anita Purves Nature Center staff as we make an important contribution to conservation by counting birds for the GBBC. Help identify and count the birds at feeding stations and along trails in Busey Woods. Dress for the weather and bring binoculars if you have them. Free! All ages (under 15 with adult)
Contact: (217) 384-4062

If you would rather spend time on your own in your own space there are lots of resources at the Great Backyard Bird Count website:

- Ideas just for us educators including bird feeder construction, backyard activities, and ideas for getting kids involved.

- Links to more sites with information about bird identification.

- A page to input your zipcode and come up with a list of birds you might expect to see. This is a great tool to look at ahead of time to be prepared for quick identification during the count.

We also enjoy the site “What Bird?” for bird identifications. It helped us identify a flock of Sandhill Cranes that passed over our house last year. You need to be observant, and the longer you do it, the more you know what to look for. I still have a lot to learn to advance beyond a casual birder, but it is a fun activity, and something all ages can enjoy together.

When it’s all over, don’t forget to jump online and submit your count to the official database.

Learned about this fun looking contest over at Kathy Wentz’s blog.

The link to the full contest information is here. Developed by West Point and sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers, this contest is open to all kids age 13 through Grade 12. They can do this on their own or in pairs and it looks like it can all be done from the comfort of your own computer. It has a download for both Macs and Windows, so hopefully all interested students can enter.

Looks like a great science and math supplement or motivator. Scholarship money is available to the winners, too, if that motivates any students.

Download and install the West Point Bridge Designer 2011 software. Use the software to design and test a virtual bridge. Register your team. Log in and submit as many designs as you like. It’s absolutely FREE!

The Beacon Homeschool group has once again arranged a resource fair for homeschoolers in the greater Chicagoland area to share their services and look for opportunities.

Find this annual event at the Elk Grove Village Public Library.

From their website:

5th Annual Resource Fair
Tuesday, January 25, 7-9pm

Check out the many programs especially for homeschoolers.
Arts, Music, Academic Classes, Field Trips and more!

This event is open to all home educating families for free. Come out and browse the many opportunities uniquely designed for homeschoolers including Co-ops, Museums, Field trips, Art/Music/Horseback riding programs, Sewing/Science/general Academics classes, and Services for homeschoolers.

The first 100 attendees will receive a Resource booklet with many more resources.

Click here to be a vendor at the fair.

Homeschoolers looking for resources don’t need to register, just come any time during the open house to find more resources in your area.