Raptors!

While we were in Providence we took some time to go to the Children's Museum and we had the opportunity to see a raptor show. Aside from the fact that the museum was so crowded that day I don't think we'd have made it to safety had there been an emergency, the show itself was very good. This woman even had facts that E11 didn't know!

This one was my favorite...a female red tailed hawk. She was huge!

Here the lady red tail showing us her wings. We have a resident red tailed hawk. I always try to find him when I hear him call.

Aren't screech owls tiny? We have a few of these on our street too- near the woods, but apparently these guys can throw their sound and blend so well you rarely see them.

Barred Owl

So pretty...

Barn Owl- a farmer's best friend

The presenter has been taking care of injured raptors for 30 years and she had photography and artwork of her birds to share.

We'll be doing some work on owls/birds of prey when our new nature art kit arrives. More on those next post or so.

It took some doing to get J4 into the room after seeing something in the main area that freaked. him. out. Apparently, he does not like big faces of ANY sort. However, it was worth the effort!

Some Snow Fun!

Well we know the folks "back home" have had gobs of snow this season and while we have had snow cover most of this winter, we really have been missing the really great storms. So, I've been singing, "Let it Snow!" all week in anticipation of this snow storm. I was not disappointed.

Dan taking a break from shoveling all the heavy snow... yes shoveling...snow blowing would require the maintenance of another gas powered machine. No thanks says Dan.

I had to mention this part- at first the kids were playing on the other side of the snow bank. They were having the best time. And in all the fun, snow was landing back in the driveway. Dan stopped them and said, "It's just like Laura and Mary and Pa's haystack!" I just had to blog about how Dan used a quote from the Little House series. That rocks. In case you don't remember, Pa gave the girls specific instructions not to play on the stack of hay and of course they did anyway and wrecked all that work. Great read...you really must visit the Ingalls if you haven't!

navigating snow caves...

or tunnels...

J4 after the snow tunnel collapsed on him...not too happy.

We have 2ft easily and it's about time! Love the snow! It's still snowing out there...the storm is over so maybe this is the bonus...lake effect snow (which are possibly my favorite three words of winter)!

TOS Crew Review: Math Mammoth

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was given the opportunity to review several digital items from Math Mammoth - a workbook and worktext program written by Maria Miller. The downloads are designed to help students really understand math concepts. The material is available by concept, by grade level, and you also have the option of choosing a full curriculum. Some series have explanations and practice and some are just practice. It's really up to the user to decide how they will implement Math Mammoth and then decide which products are right for your situation.

As a Math on the Level user, I chose to review items from the blue series to supplement some concepts we are working on right now. My first choice was Multiplication 1- Master the Times Tables. I have been using it with my 2nd grader to introduce him to multiplication. He'd memorized a few problems from the tables, but I needed to make sure he really understood the concept. I used the introduction of groups in sets to help him see that multiplication is really a lot of addition. It also emphasizes that multiplication includes many patterns.

This is a terrific worktext that has both explanations and practice problems. At the cost of $5.00 for the download, you really can't miss with this product.

I also had the chance to use the following Math Mammoth downloads:

Clocks: (cost $3.50)

• telling time to the half hour, 5 min intervals, and to the minute
• elapsed time
• calendar math
• changing time units

Measuring 1- a hands on approach to: (cost $4.50)

• length
• volume
• weight
• temperature
• customary and metric systems

Measuring 2: (cost $4.00)

• time calculations
• temperature
• length
• weight
• volume
• conversions between units
• customary and metric systems
• decimals in measuring units

Money: (cost $3.25)

• counting coins
• counting and making change
• dollar amounts
• mental math
• solving simple money problems
  

Multiplication 2: (cost $4.25)

• multiplying in parts
  
• multi-digit multiplication
  
• order of operations
  
• word problems
  
• estimating

Division 2: (cost $5.00)

• long division and why it works
• remainder
• order of operations
• problems solving
• divisibility
  

Each of these Blue Series items includes websites with games that relate to the topic. The kids and I checked some of them out and a favorite was from the money unit. We played a game where we had to click on the least number of coins to give back change at a store. Everyone tried it and they all enjoyed it.

I just love Math Mammoth! I really like how it is so flexible that you can use it on its own or with another program for extra practice, more explanation or just for fun with all the games and websites picked out for you. The cost is nominal for the whole collection ($70 for the complete blue series download or $75 for the complete CD) or you can purchase only what you need for $5 or less. You can also purchase the blue series product which are only for grades 1-3 for $40.

Maria also has a blog- Homeschool Math Blog which I love to visit. There are tutorials, games and general math ideas for parents there. One thing I love about these products is that they are so homeschool friendly. I have found her products and philosophy so helpful as I navigate the world of leaving a formal curriculum behind.

Finally, I'm happy to share with you some new products coming your way from Math Mammoth. There are some new products coming out next week which will be of interest to teachers of older students. Next week she is releasing three new books in the Blue series for grades 5 and 6:

• Ratios, Proportions, and Problem Solving
• The four operations (with a touch of algebra)
• Place Value 5

One Wintry Day

The result of the Winter Bulletin Board from the other day...

A Poem by R9

One Wintry Day

One day I went in the snow,
so wintry were the things I wore-
coat, hat, mittens and more
I went out in the snow

So wintry was it
being in the snow
sledding- heading toward the bottom.
To the top I pull my sled,
after I reach the bottom.

When the snow was no more,
I put a bed on the hill to
sleep where I once sled.
Then I lay down my head on the hill

TOS Crew Review: Presidential Penmanship by Zeezok Publishing

As a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I received a CD of Presidential Penmanship- the complete program in Italic Style from Zeezok Publishing for review.

It is a supplemental handwriting skills program for first grade through senior high. It's made up of quotes from Presidents and starts with shorter quotes and beginning handwriting directions and moves up to long quotes and more advanced handwriting through the older grades.

The copy that I was given is in the Italic Style of handwriting. There are also other styles represented in the collection. A sample page is provided for you to see an example.

The cost for the program is $39.99.

I really liked the penmanship program. If you use it from start to finish, your students will certainly learn a lot about Presidential character. The advantage of having a CD over a workbook is that you can print as you go printing only what you need. You can use it in a way that suits your handwriting/copywork needs.

I will probably continue to use Presidential Penmanship. I will have to modify it though because my kids did not learn Italic style handwriting. This will not be a problem for you seeing as you can choose the style you want to match your kids' style of handwriting when you purchase the program.

TOS Crew Review: The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling

As a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was given a copy of Apologia's Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling by Debra Bell to review.

The book is a compilation of sage advice from an experience homeschooler, recommendations on curriculum, and information for beginners. It has enough content to satisfy a more veteran homeschooler as well serving as encouragement along the way.

A look at the table of contents reveals the following:

• Homeschooling: Is it for You?
  
• Choosing a Curriculum
• Organization and Planning
• Preventing Burnout
• What to Teach- When and How
• Homeschooling Teens
• Computers in the Homeschool
• Creative Solutions
• Measuring Your Success
• Pre-Game Pep Talk
• Resource Guide

She addresses such things as how to get high schoolers into college, how to avoid burn out, how to determine your child's learning style, and what resources you will need. Mrs. Bell speaks to special challenges to homeschooling like being a single parent or having children with special needs. She comes from the perspective of a mom who has been homeschooling since before it was as mainstream as it is today and from a mom who has grown children graduated from her homeschool.

She uses personal anecdotes to share her advice and touches on so much of what concerns new homeschooling parents. The book is a fun read and I enjoyed taking it around with me on my recent travels to get a boost for our own school. I'm still reflecting on "burnout buster #1" which is raise an independent learner. I've been thinking about how that happens in a school where we study together.

The cost for the book is $20.00.

All in all, this is a terrific homeschooling resource. I encourage you to find a copy. I'm still enjoying mine!

Road Trip!

Hello from Providence, RI! We are on a little road trip with Dan this week. Our first stop is Providence, RI. We arrived last night and today we are going to the Providence Children's Museum- we have a membership to our local Science Center that allows us to get into many science museums and children's museums for free. We pay the top tier price for a family membership, but with the size of our family we only need to visit two extra venues a year for it to more than pay for itself. I highly recommend this strategy if you have it available! I've even gotten friends from Maryland to be members at our science center for the same reason.

This evening we are heading to Boston for another stop on the "Ivy League Tour". Dan is visiting Brown and Harvard Universities for lab business. We are tagging along!

Tomorrow we are going to explore Boston and make a stop at the Public Garden so we can meet these fellows below. This is going to be an awesome Five in a Row moment even if it's the middle of February! The kids are so excited to see the statues of Make Way for Ducklings fame. The story, of course, takes place in Boston and you better believe we might even just follow the route of Mr and Mrs Mallard to discover Boston. Not to mention that last year we spent a lot of time with the American Revolution and we are going to see some sights downtown where Paul Revere made his ride.

Saturday morning we are leaving for home and on our way out of town we are making a stop at American Girl Place Boston! R9 has been saving for a new doll for her collection and you just might be able to guess that Addy is her next choice. This will be a short stop and we just cannot believe we forgot to bring a doll for the trip! Ack! Not to fear though...we are head to NYC in April and we will be sure to bring along some guests for a more extended stay at American Girl Place.

And because we like to make the most of our road trips, we are stopping at Old Sturbridge Village for a day of excitement in the 19th century village! I'm excited about this one and I can't believe we'll make it there before we see Farmer Boy's house in Malone, NY but here we are. We are going to purchase the membership for the year so we can come back in better weather and camp at a nearby state park and enjoy another day at the village. At that time, I have plans to hit Plimoth Plantation and Salem and quite possibly the New England Aquarium. The plan is to wait until school is back in session so we can go blissfully about town as homeschoolers. And the membership to the village will give us discounts/free admission to those other venues.

Of course I will take copious pictures and blog appropriately. Until then we are off for more adventures in downtown Providence, RI! First stop...Lego Robotics store which is reportedly just down the block.

Sketch Tuesday Fun

It's been a while since we've participated in a Sketch Tuesday, but last week we did just that. The assignment was to draw a train. You could do just an engine or you could add cars. I missed the chance to hook up with Barb's slide show, but we'll made the deadline next time.

R9's

I7's

E11's

I like to just give them a few minutes to do the sketch. I think this was about a ten minute sketch time.

The sketch topics are given each week and they are due on Monday for her to include with everyone's sketch on Tuesdays in a slide show on her blog.

Winter Display

This is our most recent unit display which has on it some winter books to enjoy along with one copy of our Birds of New York book. You never know when a fun bird will happen by or you have a question about a bird.

There's a Civil War Fandex along with a copy of If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War. We returned the library books we had on the topic, but these two resources get a lot of time. On the other end are gobs of books about westward movement because I had been wishfully thinking we'd step back in time to the Oregon Trail and follow along with the Westward Ho! Program. I've since changed my mind, but I'm still working on what might be next on our itinerary this year.

I came across some cute bulletin boards at By Sun and Candlelight. Check out Winter Learning with Dawn and February with Dawn.

My plan for our words is to have the kids do some writing. R9 will be given a poetry assignment with the winter/February words and I7 will have to choose several to write sentences with. Nothing earth shattering here, but it is a novel way for them to choose words and it requires a small adventure just to find the words they are to use.

We'll also do an art project to put in our gallery frames above the display. Sometimes we forget and right now I think the thankful poems need to come down!

Trail Guide to US Geography

Since we've been studying the Civil War and talking about states AND the kids really wanted to do some daily geography (what can I say? My kids LOVE maps), I thought it would be fun to pull a resource off the shelf- Trail Guide to US Geography.

During our Morning Gathering Time, the kids work on a two question geography drill using an atlas or whatever other resources they can come up with.

One day a week we do a mapping exercise with the current state.

Then there is a section of the book called Trail Blazing. Actually, each state has a Trail Blazing opportunity which consist of more indepth questions or a project of some sort.

What a perfect source for The Daily Quest! So, each day the kids find something in the box that will coincide with their skill level. The kids are having a lot of fun with it.

The Measuring Scavenger Hunt

On Friday I had the kids do a measuring scavenger hunt. It's an idea I modified from one I received through the Math on the Level yahoo group. It had been a little while since we'd done a family math adventure so this came to mind and I put the idea in motion.

Part 1:

The first step was for me to measure some items around our school room (you could choose any place around your home) and record the length on a sheet of paper. I got a little crazy and went for 10 items. This would prove a little tough for I7, but E11 and R9 did just fine.

I put two blanks next to each measurement because I figured there was more than one item in the room that could have measured any particular value. The kids had to use rulers or yard sticks to measure items that they estimated would match a particular length. If it measured the same, they wrote down the object on the blank.

I used some metric and some English units and the kids had to determine which tool was best for the job. They had a good time being let loose with measuring tools.

Part 2:

Tomorrow we will work on some conversions. I7 can convert inches to feet or yards to feet and the older kids can do that and they will do some English to Metric conversions and vice versa.

This was a fun way to practice using rulers and to investigate with some estimation. Good math!

Public Presentations 4-H Style

If you've been a Blog, She Wrote reader for a while, then you know that R9 participated last year in the 4-H public presentations. After seeing the fun last year, her brothers decided to join her this year.

E11 did a narrative talk on using Scratch for computer programming. He did a fabulous job despite the fact that we should have had an extension cord for the projector. You know...I thought about the set up ahead of time, but I made an assumption about there being an outlet close by to the area in front of the screen in the classroom. And why wouldn't I? In my defense, I taught in a science classroom with a large demo table at the front with outlets- all.over.it. It never occurred to me you could have anything less!

He did a fabulous job and earned a blue award and a chance to move up to the county level. He'll do the talk again next month. He taught the group how to get started and what the different elements meant at the same time with great poise. Next time, we'll be sure to have an extension for him, but it might be harder to come across a screen at the next venue. That's one to think on...
R9 did a demo of Face Painting and I7 was an absolutely cooperative client as he patiently stood still to be painted upon. She is a delight to watch in action. R9 has some serious craft show hostess capabilities! She also received a blue award along with the chance to once again advance to the county level.

Finally, I7 is a Cloverbud and did a talk on "How to Build a LEGO Space Ship without Using Directions". He did an excellent job building and talking about it at the same time. He was most emphatic about having a symmetrical ship repeating this fact several times. When asked about why at the conclusion of his talk, he answered simply and without delay, "Because it won't look right."

Public Speaking- what a great skill to hone as a young child. As our kids get older, they will refine their style even more and they can take on any manner of category as well. I would love to see a debate at some point for example!

TOS Crew Review: Eclectic Education Series & Ray's Arithmetic

As part of the TOS Crew, I received the electronic downloads for both Ray's Arithmetic and the rest of the Eclectic Education Series by Dollar Homeschool.


Ray's Arithmetic is a curriculum for teaching mathematics for K-12. The books are broken out as follows: (click on the picture to better see the topics)

Ray's Arithmetic is available on one CD for $59.00.

The entire Eclectic Education Series is available as a CD for $159.00 and includes Ray's Arithmetic, Science, History, Grammar, and the McGuffey's Reader Series. Science topics include chemistry, physics, botany, and industrial mechanics. The history includes a collection of historical books focusing on a Christian world view. The grammar and readers are the same used in the early days of American education and continued on for over half a century.


While I think the compilation of texts and standards for public education in the 19th century found in EES is convenient for users (and cost effective), I find the idea of implementing these items as they were used for the first 50 years of public education rather puzzling. The standards of what was required for students early in America's educational history may be more rigorous, but the way in which instruction was delivered "back in the day" is not a standard to which I believe we should all strive for today.

TOS Crew Review: Math Tutor DVD

As a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was sent two Math Tutor DVDs to review. The first is from the Young Minds series and it's called Numbers and Counting. This DVD shows the students sets of numbers as animals and objects like trucks. There are also some puzzles that allowed you to count to connect dots by counting and a game where you saw part of a picture and the kids had to identify what animal it is.

The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor contains the following topics and has an 8 hour running time:

Disc 1

Section 1: Adding Whole Numbers
Section 2: Subtracting Whole Numbers
Section 3: Multiplying Whole Numbers
Section 4: Dividing Whole Numbers
Section 5: Adding Decimals
Section 6: Subtracting Decimals
Section 7: Multiplying Decimals
Section 8: Dividing Decimals

Disc 2
Section 9: Adding Fractions
Section 10: Subtracting Fractions
Section 11: Multiplying Fractions
Section 12: Dividing Fractions
Section 13: Percents, Part 1
Section 14: Percents, Part 2
Section 15: Ratio and Proportion

The cost for the Word Problems DVD is $26.99 when ordered from the MathTutor DVD website and $19.99 for the Young Minds DVD. Right now there is an offer to receive 60 minutes of free online live tutoring if you become a MathTutor DVD customer.

The Young Minds DVD I would say is meant for very young children and with the recommendation of kids 2 and under not watching TV (from the American Academy of Pediatrics) I'm not sure it captures the intended audience. J4 enjoyed it at first, but he was not captivated for long. If you are young enough to really enjoy it, you probably shouldn't be watching it.

I had E11 watch the sections on dividing fractions and dividing decimals because those are two things he sometimes mixes up. I thought the instructor was easy to understand and thorough in his explanations. I think this is a great resource if you are having trouble conveying a concept to your student or if you are not a math scholar or even a person who understands the concept well enough to teach it. E11 grew bored quickly because the instructor spends a lot of time explaining the problem before he begins to solve it. E11 is not the kind of student who would benefit from MathTutor DVDs. He likes to read how to do it and get on with it. Typically, this is a great way for him to learn math. However, this would be a great tool for a child who really is stuck. Any parent of a school-aged child could use this series to supplement a math program.

TOS Crew Review: Kinderbach

As a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was given 3 months access to Kinderbach, a young child piano online instructional program for ages 3-7.

There are 6 levels of the program which are broken down into weeks with 4 lessons in each week. Young children are introduced to the keyboard and the basics of music theory.

The instructor is engaging and fun and she introduces fun characters the kids want to visit again and again. There are pdf downloads that go with the lessons which help to reinforce what the kids see in the online video.



The cost for the online program is $7.99 a month which is billed in a one time payment of $95.88 or you can be billed monthly for $19.99 a month. The one time payment is a 60% savings.

You can also purchase the online program on DVD and activity book CD. The prices vary depending on how you choose to purchase the various ways it is packaged and you can view them all here.

All in all, I thought this program was a lot of fun and really effective at teaching beginning piano to young students. The online program gives you continual access to the instruction without the cost of both the DVDs and the activity CDs. However, if you have more than one child who would benefit from the program, then perhaps the DVDs would be a more frugal choice.

The cost is comparable to live preschool group programs you might find locally and this is a great option for those who are not nearby to such programs or find them difficult to negotiate with the schedules of other members of the family. Also, if you have some younger kids they can follow along together. That's what we did with J4 and I7.

If you are looking for a preschool to young elementary music offering for your homeschool, I highly recommend Kinderbach to you without reservation.

Civil War...still?

Well the vote has been taken and after reviewing the alternatives and what's left to study, the kids have decided to finish well the unit on the Civil War which we have been immersed in for months. We will be hearing about various battles and leaders of the war and then will finish up with Gettysburg (the turning point), Abraham Lincoln, and lastly reconstruction after the war.

We have a lot of fun left ahead of us and when I shared it with the kids, they insisted we carry on. Lots of illness for all of us, holidays, and various interruptions like buying new vans have led us off the straight and narrow path to the finish of our unit study. So, we are making careful plans to finish well our study of the Civil War.

While checking out some resources for making some confederate and union soldier uniforms and scoring some Yankee and Rebel hats for the cause, I have found some other fun things along the way.

I found lots of good fun at the National Park at Gettysburg site. They have quite a lot going on that I'm going to try and take advantage of and when we visit Maryland and our family in warmer weather this spring, we'll make a trip to Gettysburg to see it all first hand.

Gettysburg Lesson

The link above accompanies the show at the Gettsyburg Park.

Civil War Music J4 really enjoyed hearing the tunes from the Civil War. Some have words and some don't. Others provide the sheet music and the music is played for you.

Lapbook on the War between the States- fellow blogger and FIAR friend Kendra shared with me her Lewis and Clark lapbook links and when I visited I simply had to poke around within the pages that were devoted to the Civil War.

There's some great information and lapbooking elements on the cotton gin and the cotton plant as well as battles of the war and important people of the war and everything in between. This one is definitely worth checking out.

Don't forget that we are using the Homeschool in the Woods Time Travelers History Study Series on the Civil War as a guide to our monster rabbit trail. I talk a lot about these so if you'd like to see a sample lesson click here. This is the same sample available on the website.

We spent gobs of time studying the plight of American slavery and the Underground Railroad plus the causes or what led to the Civil War in the United States. So, we are finally studying the various battles of the war.

I hope to make some replica soldier uniforms. If we can't manage it for the kids, then maybe just puppet costumes.

You know, when you don't have clear goals or an end point in mind and in addition to what's out of your control (like illness) you let other things distract your good intentions...units can last forever! That's definitely the case with this one, but the kids are learning a whole lot about that time in history and it's provided us with all sorts of lessons.

On New Routines or the Refinement of Old Ones...

You know how it is, right? With very good intentions you establish a "schedule" and you vow to stick to it. Then as time goes on, the things begin to slide and after a time you need to make some changes. We've been there for some time now. We have passed the time of the resident toddler and it was past time to reassess how we spend our time. Being careful not to fall into the "older kid trap" (the one where a more relaxed person like me suddenly feels the need to turn on the hose and import much more schooling than necessary in the name of "I have a middle schooler!") Having an older student can wreak all kinds of havoc on the minds of homeschooling parents. It messes with you. As if the dabbling of homeschooling in elementary school is over and you've hit the big time...where futures are made or broken.

Avoiding this common and dangerous pitfall is a constant process, one that requires focus and resolve. However, it is a fair thing to take a look at what you are doing and to make sure there is consistency and growth in your day.

Given my relaxed homeschooling nature, any routine I came up with would need margin. Steve Lambert, publisher of the Five in a Row curriculum, describes margin this way:

I talked in a recent article about margin. As a book publisher we think about margin whenever we publish a new product. Margin is the white space that surrounds each printed page. It’s largely margin that makes a page readable. A page that utilizes every square inch of paper to contain printed text is very cost-effective. Paper costs money. Why not use every last square millimeter of paper to help carry the printed words? Because a page with no margin gives the eye no room to “breathe” as you look at the page. It’s too busy. It makes you anxious. It appears overwhelming. It often means you don’t even attempt to read the page because it just looks like “too much” before you even begin...

I'd like to share a few more snippets from Steve's blog post on margin that specifically apply to where I am right now in needing margin.

Our homes need margin. We need room to breathe. A room packed to the ceiling with belongings and treasures may be efficient use of square footage, but if there are only narrow paths to walk through the mountains of possessions there is absolutely no place to rest or relax. The room makes us anxious.

Our schedule needs margin. An activity packed day with every minute accounted for, every calendar block filled in leaves us cranky and frustrated. Unexpected interruptions inevitably occur which leave us “behind” our own self-inflicted schedule with no time to relax or recuperate.

And our homeschool needs margin. We need unscheduled time in our teaching day for unplanned “bunny trails” that are often the very best part of the teaching day. We need time to pause and ask the Lord what HE wants to do with the next 20 minutes of our day- which are often the most important part of our children’s education.

Margin is essential in every area of our life. Talk with your children about new ways to plan margin into your daily schedule, your monthly calendar and your home’s space. Children need space in their room to spread out on the floor and play with toys, read a book or just sprawl out and daydream.

So, now that I've referred to having margin and leaving times in our day unscheduled, I'm about to share a "schedule" with you. We've been at this all week. This has really been working well. This pattern for our day leaves margin! We have a road map, a target to hit, but the way the pattern is designed we can take more than one way to get there. If we follow a "bunny trail" of learning, there is always the map to get back on the road to our target. What's our target? To consistently hit the items in our day that provide us with the most discovery. That's it. A pattern in our day means we have less wandering on the path so we get to that awesome view at the end of the hike. Some days the hike itself is more fun and the view can wait until another day. But having a trail map is always helpful to keep us on track. And of course having a Trail Guide to confer with helps a lot too.

Daily School Routine

*Wake up/breakfast/chores
*Read Aloud Time (book of choice)
*Morning Gathering Time (at school table)
*Math- family adventure/Five-A-Days
*SOTW/Geography/Nature Study
*Language Arts
*Lunch
*Read Aloud Time (unit study related)
*Unit Study
*Passion Pursuit (approved activities)
*Silent Reading Time (book of their choice)
*Free Time/Screen Time
*Chore Time
*Dinner Time
*Family Time
*Read Aloud Time (second book of choice)
*Bed Time (olders read in bed for a bit)

In addition to this daily pattern, I have a weekly one as well which accounts for the regular times we are out and which days we do what if there is more than one item in that time slot.

I think my favorite part of the new pattern is that we are more purposeful about our reading aloud. We are blasting through The Last Battle by CS Lewis. The other thing is that we have been more finished each day which is nice. Yet, we still have unschooling moments like yesterday when I7 came in and said he had done an experiment to see when J4 could jump farther from the slide in our basement- when he's holding the ball and when he isn't. He determined that he jumps farther without the ball and he made a graph. Being the homeschooling mom that I am, I told him to go measure the distances. Voila! Awesome math lesson. We can't be owned by the routine so much that we lose those moments.

Buildings and Forts

Around here if you leave the kids to their own devices for too long, they begin to build...in every space possible.

R9's Kapla block creation...

I7 has been building castles with the Klutz castle cards.

E11 builds elaborate forts using whatever he can for his LEGO Star Wars characters.

I know what you are thinking...WHERE can I get that lovely paneling on her wall? If paneling with farm equipment on it would compliment your decor, leave a comment and I will have Dan set it aside WHEN it comes down. One whole other wall is already down and I believe makes the backing of our metal pantry shelf in the basement, but I can save some for you. No problem...

The Great Backyard Bird Count

Have you ever participated in The Great Backyard Bird Count?

Starting next Friday, February 12th you can count the number of birds you see in your backyard and name them by type. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is one of the sponsors of the event along with Audubon and Bird Studies Canada.

There are many resources for families and classrooms participating including a section on kids and the Backyard Count. There is even a section for educators.

There's advice on tricky identifications- birds that are close in how they appear. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology even has an online guide to birds you can check out.


Inside Birding is a resource for new birders to learn how to identify birds. I've had a post on this in my drafts since summer and I figured this would be a great time to mention it. There are videos on size and shape, color pattern, behavior, and habitat. Take a few moments to learn a little more about identifying birds. The videos are very good.

So, I'll admit to you now that we have no bird feeders at our house. Even wild birds are high maintenance. I mean once you start feeding them you have to keep going and they eat a lot. I've got my own little birds who are hungry constantly (it seems) and I don't need to add bird feeders to the mix.

However, we have a lot of trees in our yard and we have a lot of bird families. So, we just count the ones that enjoy our habitat even though we don't feed them!

Once you submit the data you collect, then you can have fun graphing the data that comes in from this year's count.

So join the fun!

TOS Crew Review: FactsFirst

As a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was given a 3 month subscription to FactsFirst an online math program by Saxon. The program is designed to help students develop instant recall of basic facts in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

In addition to math fact practice, there is an opportunity for students to solve real world word problems. The program is highly visual and the problems are launched in a setting that is a pretty detailed version of where the problem takes place. You learn math facts in pairs and do word problems and subsequent drill on each pair.

It is a timed drill which R9 did not enjoy- particularly because even if you get the answer correct it may only give you a check instead of a check plus. That was a deal breaker for her.

The cost is $49.99 a year and each household license has four student profiles.

Although, this seems like a great program specifically for learning math facts which is essential for students to progress well in math, I'd be hard pressed to pay almost $50 a year for just the four operations and low level operations at that. There are no options for advanced arithmetic with FactsFirst. It seems to me that my dollar goes farther with a program designed to practice all levels of math concepts not just operations.

TOS Crew Review: Christian Keyboarding

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I was given an electronic copy of Keyboarding for the Christian School and Keyboarding for the Christian School Elementary Edition. Leanne Beitel, the author, aims to "fill your student's mind with God's word using typing skills."

The elementary edition is for grades K-5 and has a colorful keyboard as a feature on some pages. Touch typing on a QWERTY keyboard is taught beginning with the home keys.
The revised edition is for grades 6 and up and is not as visually pleasing since it lacks a picture of the keyboard on each lesson page. This edition teaches kids how to use the tab key and how to make elements of a written paper based on MLA standards. This is a very useful tool- especially for those of us who learned to type some time ago. Plus, it's a great resource on formatting a paper which may be new to a homeschool mom.
The contents are Biblical in nature so students learn verses as they learn keyboarding. Skills specific to computer keyboards are taught such as using the number pad.

Cost: Right now on the website there is a special running where you can purchase both of these books for $22. The author also has other products to see including a lesson plan book for the keyboarding class.

If you are going to teach your children touch typing technique, this is a great alternative to web-based programs which are very popular. Students can learn transfer skills which are required if they need to type from a paper or rough draft.

The cost is reasonable for the product and the bonus is the content. So much of what we introduce kids to is interactive which is the advantage of the computer based typing programs. However, I think Ms. Beitel does a good job of providing a product that is easy to use and effective and doesn't require the internet. In addition, the teacher has the option of printing the whole book or a portion at a time for the lesson which are short so you can implement the program in a variety of ways.

TOS Crew Review: MATHSCORE.COM

As part of the TOS Crew, I received access to MathScore.com which helps kids to improve their math skills through adaptive math practice.

Once you are logged in (and there is a free trial version to test out), your student can choose a topic for example, multiplication. The choice generates a worksheet of math problems your student must finish within a certain time frame.

On the home page there is a 2 1/2 minute video introducing you to the way MathScore works. This is a great way to see what the screen looks like to the kids and how they interact with the problems.

Students have a choice of either doing practice worksheets or seeing a concept explained in a mini-lesson.

Once the students log out, then a report is generated that day of the work they have done. You can see a sample of a report below. This one is from the first time E11 tried out MathScore. The copycat is a session where you follow the leader so that you learn how to use the program. It records idle time as well though I'm not sure how that is defined. I had to remind my kids not to run somewhere for a moment because it counts as idle time. R9 went to eat lunch and then continued and since she was logged in it docked for not doing anything.

Topic Name	Rating	Points	Overall Accuracy	%	# Worksheets Completed	Worksheet Time	Engaged Time
Copy Cat 10:35:54 - 11:03:55	0 → 50	50	206/206	100.0%	11	0:06:06	0:07:27
Fast Addition 10:40:09 - 10:44:21	0 → 15	37	53/55	96.4%	5	0:02:13	0:03:34
Copy Cat Preparation 10:47:08 - 10:50:42	0 → 100	145	100/100	100.0%	10	0:02:49	0:03:54
Total		232	359/361	99.4%	26	0:11:08	0:14:55
Long Idle Times	594 seconds, 10:52:44 - 11:02:38 Total Long Idle Time: 0:09:54

The cost: the home version is $9.95 per month for the first student. The second student is an additional $5 and each student beyond two is $3.95 per month. There is also a free trial for you to check out.

My kids enjoyed getting to use MathScore quite a bit. The cost is reasonable in comparison to the other computer based practice programs we have used this year. I really like the significant discount for each student beyond the first. That makes it doable for a large family to try it out.

This program is reader intensive with less graphics to make it fun. So, I7 had a harder time with it. I think once he spends more time with it, things will be easier, but his first time was rough.

I thought the page long worksheets with a time limit were pretty clever compared to the rapid fire pages that come up one at a time in other programs.

Once again, if you and your children like computer practice then this is a nice addition at a reasonable cost.

I will be reporting back to you on MathScore as we use it even more and in full disclosure the vendor has allowed me to use and try out MathScore.Com for free for another 5 months in exchange.