In Our Homeschool....Teeth and the Tooth Fairy

Now, I'm so sure that this must only be of interest to a very slight few……but we have had quite a few teeth flying around our house for the last, oh, say 5 years!! This was an easy and fun unit to do since we only had a few legitimate school days until we are done for the year.

Even taking plenty of snow breaks, we were able to finish it in about four days. We learned soo much about teeth and the customs that other countries hold with regard to children losing their teeth. It was very, very interesting. If you read the books in order and do the lessons in relatively close order of how they are presented, it comes together nicely. This study is FREE from Homeschool Share!

First, we started our days with Geography. There was sooo much geography involved that we had to break it up and do some map searches every day. I printed out these little clipart pieces and the children would hunt for the places I called out. For the 7 yr old, I provided the continent as well as the country. The olders had to search a bit before I would give them the continent.

We did the egg/vinegar/soda experiment. All through the day, the kids couldn't help but to walk by and touch or dunk the egg back down into the vinegar. :) The egg in the soda sank and stayed there. But the one in vinegar dipped and danced a little.

We have now posted charts for every single child and they have been diligently checking off when their dental duty is done!

Snow Break!!

Well, what do you expect?

Even motorcycles have fun in the snow!

Seasonal Doings: Five in a Row Ornament Exchange

We began our homeschool journey 6 years ago, using literature based unit studies from Five in a Row.  The forums there are fabulous and each year, there is an ornament exchange.  I have only participated the last three years, but we have quite the collection, as you can see.  Many of the ornaments symbolize a favorite book that is included in Five in a Row, although some do not.  I have been using this wreath to hang our ornaments on, but it's looking like next year, we'll have to have a separate Five in a Row tree.  Lots of fun memories here!

Thrifty Re-do: Terry Bathtowel---Swiffer Towels

                                                  
I've never claimed to be green or crunchy or any of those things...but I have been being accused of it more and more lately. I am just one who uses what she has to serve the purpose at hand. So, this was the problem: the floor was so bad I couldn't stand it any longer. It seemed unthinkable at the time to load up the crew to head to the store for only a few things. Baby wipes would have taken too long and my back didn't seem excited about the hands-n-knees method. So, off I went to scrounge around in my sewing room (AKA: dumping ground). And, once again, voila'! Success....now these are not cute. They are actually unsightly at this point, but they work. And they wash. And they go again. And I don't have to add it to my grocery list, either! After more than 40 washes, I'm sure, these are still workin' out for me.

I just took the old towel that had been sentenced to the rag bin and cut it up into 9 X 14 rectangles and there you have it! Do you know how many of these you can get out of one old towel????


                                                            

They stay in a basket near the cleaning stuff and are just referred to as 'cleaning cloths.' That is because we use them for many other things and they wash just as well. No glass cleaning wipes or any other of the style of cleaning products. They are good for dusting, windows/glass, general stuff such as cabinets and baseboards, etc. But, we only use one per job. After a use, they go in the wash basket. We don't mix cleaners !





Just a thrifty note for ya!

Seasonal Doings: Gingerbread House

We have the niftiest little homeschool group over here in our neck of the woods. We have a few 'already' friends and even met some new folks. Our group leader organized a gingerbread house decorating party at her house and we had a wonderful time. My crew is pleased to present our creation:

TOS Review: Download ‘N’ Go Creation Camouflage

TOS Review: Download 'N' Go Creation Camouflage
Creation Camouflage: The study is in e-book format and very simple to use. The only preparation required is to search out optional library books to read along during the week for enrichment. This already contains in-depth studies in every subject in this lineup:

Day 1: Hiding in Plain Sight

Day 2: Getting to Know the Rain Forest

Day 3: What Is in the Desert?

Day 4: Hiding in the Ocean

Day 5: Cool Things About the Tundra

This study is recommended for grades K – 4 but I feel confident that my 5th grader would do quite well with the study presenting it as-is, or even independently.

Download 'N' Go Creation Camouflage is chock full of great stuff on many impressive creatures. But, that's not all it covers. I was pleasantly surprised that all of the subject areas were covered.   There wasn't anything for me to add in or have to pull together to supplement.  Download 'N' Go studies make it effortless to inspire my children and feel confident that they are learning. It's almost too easy with this unit. This unit is a stand-alone core study, but I couldn't help but to notice how many other paths of study you could cover using this unit as a springboard. Creation Camouflage makes it quite simple to focus on biomes, ecosystems and even geography. I immediately thought of the related Scriptures for each day being a good opportunity for copywork. There are several conservationists' biographies that would make excellent topics for deeper research studies for older children as well as read alouds. The possibilities are endless with this unit!

If you'd like to read more reviews from other homeschool parents, click here and see what they think of Download 'N' Go Creation Camouflage.


Disclaimer: A copy of this unit study was provided for my use in exchange for an honest review.

Molly’s Money Saving Digest - November

    
The November, 2010 issue of Molly's Money Saving Digest, was just in time to get my wheels turning about the important things of the holiday season. I am already in thinking and planning mode so that my family has a rich holiday season. Many of the articles and helpful hints had not even crossed my mind yet for this year. But, they are a gentle reminder to me of how to create a festive atmosphere in my home and in my heart.
For my kitchen, there were wonderful recipes, complete with the shopping list to go with them (can you say, timesaver!) If you are new or interested in freezer cooking, there's a dash of that thrown in, too. It isn't all about me, though. I was encouraged with all the information on manners and etiquette for children. Place settings and being a gracious, welcomed guest don't come easy to our little ones. We have to train them in this, too. I do not know if my children will attend a formal dinner party this season, but they can be attend right here at home. Tea time would be a great time to work on this, I think. To invite my family to my table and see their hearts and eyes gleaming with celebratory peace this season.
I am a list person and enjoy organization. Lots of things in this issue called out to me. As many homeschooling mothers would be, the list of important dates to remember this month inspired me to think about potential unit study ideas. And the poem on the first few pages stood out to me as potential copywork and/or memorization exercise right at my fingertips. But, I can't help myself with those types of things, they just come to mind without my giving permission. There is also plenty of organization, decluttering and other ideas that make it so easy to take the lead in creating a masterful celebration of the seasons approaching. I tried my hand at beautifying my table:

(Disclaimer: I inherited none of the interior decorating gene)
Yes, there's financial encouragement and frugal ideas abound. There are plenty of inks and ideas. However, I felt the most value was in turning my heart and hands' work toward my home and those within the walls. It helped me to think of the many things I file away in my "to do" folder in my mind. Molly was a reminder to bring them forth for my family to join in with me to celebrate this time of this year.


I was provided the November 2010 issue of Molly's Money-Saving Digest, in exchange for my review.