This is the first year we have had more than one science curriculum going at the same time.  In the past, I've done science with all the children together, but this year I decided my oldest son was ready to move beyond the elementary Apologia. He is doing General Science this year. I had planned to have the rest of them do Botony, until son #2 spotted the new Zoology 3 book in a catalog. Being the animal nut that he is, he promised to read through both the botony and astronomy books during the summer if I would let him do the Land Animals book. So, both of the older boys are doing science on their own this year.

With three science curriculums being used, it seems like somebody is always doing an experiment. And, being the well trained observers and life learners they are, all my children gather to watch.  I've also noticed that, even though my older childern are doing their own work, they still have half an ear on the little kids lessons. This morning, the younger children and I were studying spore producing plants. I explained that the black spots on the back of ferns are actually spores. My oldest son exclaimed, "I didn't know that!" (Maybe he should have read botony over the summer too.)

I sent three of the children down to the creek to pick a fern to draw and was suprised when they came in with four different types, all picked within a few feet of each other. The road on which we live is lined by ferns and I have counted between five and six different kinds as we walked down to my in laws house, but I didn't realize they would find so many in just that one spot. The diversity in God's creation is absolutely amazing!

Son #1 recently did a chemical change experiment which was a big hit. He actually got to do it twice because I didn't get to take pictures the first time. There were two different reactions taking place here.

Son #2 did an experiment to show how camoflague works. Sadly, the experiment did not work as expected, but he still enjoyed eating the Skittles. I also had him complete the sample chapter of the Live and Learn lapbook. I decided not to purchase the kit because he really doesn't like hates lapbooking. So, he is doing a nature notebook instead.

I was a little nervous about the schedule this year, but it actually seems to be going pretty well so far. I think the older children are enjoying a little more freedom to work on their own (we are also doing two separate history curriculums this year) and are keeping up with projects a lot better than if I were responsible for setting them up. And I'm enjoying having a little more time to spend with the little ones. 

On Labor Day weekend, the entire town of Hillsville, Virginia,  becomes one giant flea market. Most people who live anywhere nearby are sane enough to stay at home. But in thirteen years of living here, I haven't missed it yet.

You used to be able to find some really good deals there, but in recent years it seems to be mostly food and antiques. I think about the only reason we still go is to get socks for the kids. You can't beat four pairs for a dollar. The boys have also been able to find themselves some great deals on workboots the past two years.

And look what else I found this year!

Puppets! Yipee!

Last month, on a particularly hot day, I decided to discard my preplanned menu and cook up some breakfast instead. After all the comments from husband and children on how this was the best supper we'd had in a long time, I decided there was no reason we couldn't do this every week. So now Monday nights are breakfast night at the Telling home. Usually we just have pancakes and sausage, but ocasionally I cook up some eggs too.

So what traditions has your family started recently?

This 'vase" is an old Bromo seltzer bottle that my son dug up in our pigpen. I believe the old Vicks jar below came from the same place. The owners of our property years back used to have a log cabin somewhere in our woods and we think this was their garbage pit.

wild and garden flowers

Have you ever seen a pink Queen Anne's Lace? I never had until my children brought me this one.

Queen Anne's Lace

Here is a more recent picture of our little kitties. Sadly, we lost one. I think the mother smothered it.  Aren't they cute?

The mother cat's name is Snow White. She was named by my three year old. I think it's a pretty clever name considering we have seven kids.

Do you see her two colored eyes? When we studied Turkey last year, we learned about the swimming cats of Lake Van. They are called the Van Keddis and they are white with one green eye and one blue eye- Just like our cat!  Isn't that neat?

(No, ours doesn't swim.)

My boys think it would be great to to spend a week out in the woods living off the land and eating only what they could find and cook themselves. This is due mostly to the fact that they have never tried it, mixed with a steady supply of wilderness survival themed reading materials such as The Dangerous Book For Boys, The American Boys Handy Book, and The Pocket Survival Guide. My oldest son has even decided recently that he will live in Alaska when he grows up. (I find this highly unlikely since he is extremely picky about what he likes to eat and he is extremely cold blooded. But I guess it's OK to dream.)

All this week they have been trapping crayfish so they could make their own supper tonight. I have two rules about crayfish. First, they have to cook them by themselves. Second, they have to eat them by themselves. There's just something wrong about eating something you have boiled alive, inards and all. Yummy!

Crayfish Dinner

 Close up of one unfortunate dinner guest

They also collected wild apples for "desert." I supplied some bread and veggies to round out the meal.  About half way through, my 11 year old son drew our attention to these:

crayfish jaws

Only in a homeschool do you get dinner AND a dissection!

My youngest son celebrated his seventh birthday yesturday. This morning he told me, "I don't know if it was that cake or turning seven, but I feel different now."

I asked, "How do you mean?"

He answered, "Well, all my life it was like I was asleep in my bed with the lights out. But now it's like I finally woke up. I don't know if that makes any sense. "

Any of you have any idea what he's talking about?

See what we have at our house?

My two little girls are doing Evan Moore's Folktales & Fairy Tales Literature Pockets. Right now we are on The Three Little Pigs. Ofcourse, we have to add in a few extra activities like this Three Little Pigs Snack Mix.

I believe this recipe originally came from Family Fun magazine, but we changed it a bit. We like to serve it with cupcakes decorated like pigs. My youngest daughter pointed out that we should have wolves too. Maybe next time.

You will need:

• shoestring potatoes
• pretzel sticks
• red licorice
• a clean pair of scissors or kitchen shears
• medium sized bowl

Using the scissors, cut the licorice into  1/2 inch pieces.  Make 1 cup of these "bricks" and add them to your bowl.

Measure 1 cup of pretzel "sticks."  Add to the bowl.

Add 1 cup of shoestring potato "straw" and stir.

Serve and enjoy!

Tasha Tudor is the Fiesta  author for the month of August. I'm so excited! She has the most beautiful illustrations.  I think we will have a tea party in her honor while we read a few of her books. I found this link to some really cool craft and activity ideas  on her website. What  a wonderful way to spend these last few weeks of summer!

A few days ago, I was telling my mom my strategy for Christmas shopping and she told me I should write about it. So, this entry is dedicated to my mom, who doesn't have a computer and will probably never read it. LOL!

1. Shop the back to school sales.  I know, telling a homeschooler to shop the back to school sales is like telling you to breath. But while you are drooling over those piles of fresh white notepaper, new crayons, and gluesticks, try to imagine a home where every closet is not packed with colored paper, markers, and paintboxes. Yes, such places do exist. And in homes such as those, a box full of art supplies will be welcomed with shrieks of joy. The recipients will be amazed at your generosity, since such items cost a great deal more in December, never suspecting that you were clever enough to stock up when prices were ridiculously low.  Don't  forget those homes with preschoolers. Preschoolers LOVE  a new box of crayons.

2. Visit the dollar stores. There are two reasons you should be shopping now. First, you will find a lot nicer merchandise than you will at Christmas. Second, the crowds are smaller. Be sure to look for some coloring books to go with those crayons.

3. Yard sales, Goodwill, and other second hand or discount stores are a great  place for Christmas shopping.  Baskets and jars can be purchased cheeply for creative packaging. Also look for craft supplies and get statred making a few gifts. Toys can often be found in very good condition. Even if you don't feel comfortable giving a second hand gift to someone else, your own children probably won't mind. My children enjoy buying affordable gifts for each other.

4. Hit the clearance racks on November 1.  Halloween clearance items make great gifts.  Also, look for clearance candy that you can use in your holiday baking. Put it in the freezer to keep it fresh.

5. Take advantage of the bounty of nature. Keep an eye out for plants and flowers you can dry which would make nice additions to your holiday decore.

6. FOR NEXT YEAR: Stock up on Christmas clearance items for next year. If you don't want to store things that long, at least look for stuff you can use for other holidays. Red for Valentines and fourth of July, green for Easter and Saint Patricks.

I want to introduce you all to a fantastic new product: educational scrapbook kits from ScrapandLearn.com!  Imagine being able to purchase scrapbooking supplies to match your current area of study. Use these kits to decorate your lapbooks, create fabulous notebook pages, or make pages for your school yearbook. 

ScrapandLearn Pirates kit

Over all, I am very impressed with this product. All the papers, stickers, and embellishments are high quality. There is a nice selection of papers. These, with the exception of the gold print page, are all cardstock. Another page or two of plain paper or some journaling boxes would have been nice, but  the variety of prints was good. The resource list was very handy and includes some wonderful books and websites I had not heard of before.

I did wish there was a little more instruction as to how the kit might be used. A list of ideas would be nice.  Also, the inclusion of "realia" in the form of pirates coins and jewels is a nice touch, but we were at a loss as to how to attach them to the pages. But creative students will have no problem finding ways to use this product.

Currently, the pirates kit is the only  one available, but I am looking forward to seeing more of these in the near future.

Here my daughter is working on her page about Mary Read

And here is her finished page.

We actually finished our study of Mem Fox  last month. I checked out every one of her books that our library had and we read them all that same afternoon. Then we read Where Is the Green Sheep about twenty more times. It is definately my little girls new favorite.  I think we will check it out again on our next trip to the library. Joann at Ten Kids and a Dog came up with a really cute idea to use with this book, and I'd like to try it out.

I also found a unit study  for Hattie and the Fox that looks like a lot of fun. There are also these instructions showing how to Make Your Own Chicken. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of the books our library had.

I must say, I wasn't entirely impressed with this author. Though she did have several books that we really lliked, there were several others that had witches and magic in them. These are not things we like our children to read about. It just shows that you can't make asumptions when choosing books for children.

My blogging friend Jimmie  has inspired me to stretch my brain by writing the title to my own memoir using only 6 words. I was leaning towards "You'll miss me when I'm gone"  since that's what I tell my husband when he complains about something I've done.   I also came up with a few that summed me up really well, but were a little too personal to post on a pubic blog. But I finally settled on a fragment of one of my favorite verses:

YET, THE LORD THINKETH APON ME

"But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh apon me." Psalm 40:17a

I'm also supposed to tag five other bloggers.

1. My real life friend, Karen from Fritzemeier Family Blog

2.  Sonia from My Homeschool Treasure Trove

3. Heather from VA Homeschool Mom For God

4. Sharon from Momn4Boys

5. SchoolinRhome from School In R Home

The rules
1. Write the title to your own memoir using 6 words.
2. Post it on your blog.
3. Link to the person that tagged you.
4. Tag five more blogs.

There's a local store that my children and I like to visit. It sells items from South America in vibrantly bright colors. Our favorite items are these cute hand knit finger puppets from Peru. As you can see from our collection, they are rather adictive.  I'm always looking for an excuse to buy more.

So, here it is:  Write a blog entry listing your favorite ideas for summer fun. Tell about games you played as a child, educational ideas, favorite summer reads, craft projects, ideas for staying cool, favorite snacks that children can help make, etc.  Just remember to write about things that anyone could do in their own backyard. We don't want to be running a taxi service all summer. Leave a note in the comments section of this post telling me where I can find your entry.  At the end of the month, I will draw the names of two winners who will each receive four of these cute little puppets. (Puppets will vary from the ones pictured above.)  Have fun!

Yesterday I was teaching my daughter a song I had learned as a child. It was actually used in a hand clapping game my sister used to do with her friends while we road on the bus (in the four years I attended private school before my parents began homeschooling). Unfortunately, I was the "pesky" little sister, so she never bothered teaching the hand motions to me.

The song went like this:

Say say oh playmate

Come out and play with me

And bring your dollies three

We'll climb my apple tree

Slide down my rainbow

Into my cellar door

And we'll be jolly friends

For ever more.

After indulging in this bit of nostalgia, I began thinking about some of the other childhood games I remember, but haven't taught to my children, and all the ones I've probably forgotten.  I was thinking it would be nice to make some kind of website to record these games. That afternoon, I received this email from the Games For Learning Yahoo Group list:

I have an idea I'm starting to put into action that I need your help with. I've created a group at YouTube for people to upload videos of step-by-step instructions of children (or grownups) teaching how to do different playground games.

Examples would be:

hand clapping games
jump rope rhymes/games
chinese jump rope
traditional/chinese jacks
hop scotch
playground ball games
cat's cadle/string games
etc etc

The idea being a place to go to be able to learn all these wonderful games from our childhoods and to be able to pass them along to the next generation and so on. I want to see a resurgence of these games! I know they are still out there but doesn't seem like they are as prevalent as they used to be so I want to change that!

So help me out!! All you have to do is get your digital video cameras out and let your kids know that they can be a star on YouTube and help share some fun games with kids around the world! Break the how-to video up into short segments...Multiple videos will probably be necessary for many of the games...Just make sure you label them all with the same title and a very clear "PT 1, PT 2, etc" and go through it slowly and carefully to ensure that its easy for someone who's never heard or seen the game to be able to fully learn it from your video. Once you have a video you're happy with, go to the link above and join the group and upload it!

Make as many of these instructional videos as you like...Even ones that have been done already because there are so many variations of so many of these games! Ihope you will help me out and that your kids will enjoy making how-to videos!! I hope to hear from many of you soon!

Let me know if you have any questions.

Tina

Talk about providential! I love when God works things out like that, don't you? If you're interested in seeing what is posted or posting some videos of your own, please visit Playpalooza. Let's all renew our childhood memories this summer and help our children create some of their own. (And if any of you know the hand motions to THIS clapping song, I'd be extremely greatful if you'd teach them to me.)

It's June and time for a new author  at the Author Fiesta blog. This month (actually two months) we will be reading the books of Mem Fox.  Time for another trip to the library!

We really enjoyed getting to know the works of Patricia Polacco.  She does a wonderful job of turning her simple childhood memories into fascinating and touching stories. I am amazed at the details she remembers from those times long ago. Her illustrations are also wonderful.  I think the children and I will try writing a few of our own stories.

If you decide to join us in studying Mem Fox, you may want to check out  the Pirates Multi-book Theme Unit at Homeschoolshare using her book Tough Borris.  Currclick also sells a book called Teaching With Favorite Mem Fox Books which has various activities you can use.

A while back, Jimmie introduced me to Squidoo and I love it. Building lenses on Squidoo is a great way to organize information and resources so you can keep track of everything  without filling your computer memory with zillions of bookmarks. And they even pay you a little something for doing it!

Check out some of the lenses I've created, then build one of your own:

Notebooking 

"Notebooking" is a term used to describe the process of creating a written and illustrated record of learning. Unlike other methods of education which are based on cosumable workbooks and texts, notebooking produces a journal of past educational adventures, which can be added to whenever additional learning takes place. Notebooks are a great way to review information and are an excellent way to share your learning experience with others.

What To Do With Lapbook Scraps

Although lapbooking is a great educational tool, it does create an abundance of scrap paper waste. This is a major turn off for some who are considering this method of education, and a source of guilt for many avid lapbookers.

But good stewardship and lapbooking can go hand in hand. There are many ways to recycle lapbook scraps, and some are as fun and educational as the lapbooking itself. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

You may also want to check out the Notebooks and Lapbooks Group  for more great notebooking and lapbooking lenses.

Sewing Lapbook

This lens provides ideas for completing a lapbook on the topic of "sewing." It's not anything fancy, but hopfully it will provide you with a few ideas. I will be adding to it as I think of additional topics to include.

Books For Girls

In an effort to help our daughters prepare for their futures, my husband and I began a hopechest for each of them at birth. This is a collection of high quality household tools as well as precious heirlooms.

Along the same lines, we have also begun a library for each of them by purchasing the highest quality books we can find- some newly published and some which are old favorites. We hope that by reading these books, both now and in the future, our daughters will develop the skills needed to be sucessful women- wives, mothers, and homemakers. Take a peek at our girls' bookshelf.

Table Manners

As the party guests gather around the table and begin gorging themselves, your glance shifts to the man seated across form you. His impeccable table manners add pleasure to your meal. Noticing your stare, he politely asks if you are enjoying your meal. Replying with an empathetic "Yes!", you shower him with food particles. After a scene like this, you may feel like giving up and becoming a hermit. But, there is still hope! Proper table etiquette is easy to learn and will save you from future embarassment.

Teatime Treats

Teatime is once again gaining popularity as many young mothers seek to establish this tradition with their children. Ofcouse, the sweetest part of these times together is the memories made, but here are a few recipes for some other sweet things you can serve with your tea.

Bringing The World To Your Living Room

So, you've made the decision to do a geography unit study. You've finally let go of your boring (but safe!) textbooks and made a trip to the library. But now what? Just follow these easy steps and soon you will find yourself touring the world from the comfort of your own home.

Creating Geography Treasure Boxes

Continent Boxes are sort of like treasure boxes- one for each continent- which contain maps, books, and artifacts from the countries on that continent. You can buy or create things specifically for your continent boxes, or you can do a "scavenger hunt" around the house to see what objects you can come up with.

Country Unit Studies

I've also mead some unit study lenses for different countries. These have ideas for crafts and for notebooking or lapbooking.

 China Unit Study

Mexico Unit Study

Japan Unit Study

Native American Crafts and Ideas

This is a list of projects and ideas that I will be using with my children as we study the Native Indian tribes of North America.

How To Teach Your Three or Four Year Old To Read

Teaching your child to read can be one of the most enjoyable things you will ever do. Preschool aged children are eager to learn and have an amazing capacity to absorb information. The key is to keep it simple and keep it fun. Do a little each day and maintain a relaxed environment.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

This simple book has been a favorite with generations of children. The simple, repeating text and bright, colorful illustrations are perfect for engaging young minds with short attention spans. However, this is more than just a storybook. The Very Hungry Caterpillar contains a wide variety of themes. So many, in fact, that this one simple book could be used as the basis of an entire preschool curriculum!

Making A Yearbook For Your Homeschool

At the end of third grade, my parents removed my sister and me from the private Christian school we had been attending and began home schooling. While I eventually grew to like being at home, I still to this day enjoy looking at my old school year books from the private school. I'm sure I would enjoy looking at my home school year books as well, but there aren't any. Nor are there any pictures. Not one single photo to prove that I ever attended school after the third grade. So, when I was paging through an old Teaching Home Magazine and read about the yearbooks someone else had done, I knew this was a tradition I was going to start.

Slime Science

Let's face it, most kids love to make a mess! And, yes, slime can be messy. But it is truely amazing how many different things you can learn about just by playing with this oohey gooey goop. Come on, admit it. The kids aren't the only ones having fun!

Holiday Freebies

There are tons of freebies available online. All it takes is a printer and some common art supplies to add some fun and educational activities to your holiday routine.  

Yipee! After years of waiting, Mystery of History 3 is finally here! Isn't it beautiful? I hope Mrs. Hobar doesn't mind me posting pictures of her baby on the web.

Speaking of babies, we have two new kids at our house!  Their names are Darby and Lazerus.  When our neighbor told us their mothers didn't want them and offered to pay us to raise them, we jumped at the opportunity. Our children are so excited to have some new little friends.  Oh, did I metion they are goat kids?  Hee, hee! Aren't they cute?

Here's a picture of my baby. She's a big help around the house.

And here is another little baby we found in the yard yesturday. I hope he learned to fly before our cat found him!

 This guy obviously thought he could fly. Good thing the rails stopped him.  

OK, enough silliness! I'm just so excited that my copy of the Mystery of History book came today!!! Yipee!

*If you are interested, you can see some sample lessons HERE.