Is it just me or has Christmas time come fast this year? Seems like the new school year just started and now we are already half through it. Speaking of schooling, I am sure by now, you
have realized that 5th grade math, is much harder than 4th
grade math. The good news is, thankfully, there are tons of printable math
worksheets, how-to videos, and math games that can help you teach and help your
child learn. One of our favorite resources is a free game called “MatchItAlgebraic Terms”. It really helped my daughter learn those terms! ;)
I hope everyone has a Happy Holiday & a Happy New Year!Monday, December 15, 2014
Monday, November 3, 2014
Happy Thanksgiving!
I don’t think I mentioned it yet, but fall is definitely one
of my favorite seasons. I love feeling the weather cool down and seeing all of
those leaves start to change. Plus, I love Thanksgiving! Since, my kids were little I have always managed to incorporate
this holiday into our homeschool lessons, even in Pre-K. As always, we read about the first
Thanksgiving and I always print out some themed printable worksheets for my child
to do. However, my favorite part of this time of year is teaching my daughter
home-ec. The older she gets the more she gets to help and learn. I mean what
better day than Thanksgiving, to teach your child how to cook. I think
learning how to cook is an important skill for your child to learn. Plus, one
day you will be older and they will be the ones making that yummy Thanksgiving feast.
You will want them to be able to make it taste good ;)
Monday, October 6, 2014
Halloween ideas to add to your Homeschool lessons
Halloween is a time for spooky things and lots of candy! So, why not mix those two things into your homeschool lessons. How? I always like to use this month to learn about the human anatomy. The skeletal system is my favorite for obvious reasons. Each year, I go a bit more advanced, in the different bones and the proper names. Of course, you can be creative with what you add to this. You can do some themed crafts, anatomy games, etc.
Another thing, which you can do for October, is learning how to make candy. It is not only educational & fun, but yummy too! There are so many recipes available to you on the internet and even some that may be too scary looking to eat!
Thursday, September 4, 2014
Teaching Typing

Since we are living in the age of computers, I think
learning the skill of typing is important. Besides the need to be able to type
for school/college, one day when your kids grow up and are in the work place,
they may need to type for their job. Now, I know most of us can do the “one
finger peck”((LOL)), but in most jobs, that will not be sufficient enough to finish a
typing project in a reasonable amount of time. Learning the proper way to type,
will definitely help to be able to increase ones speed, and reduce any typing
errors. So, you may be wondering, how do
you teach this? Besides showing your
children how to type, or creating paragraphs for them to practice with, there
are some awesome free resources that can help. There are free typing speed test that will time your child, while keeping track of their errors, as well as some free typing games that they can do. This really is a great age to start teaching your kids this
valuable skill. Even if they never use it in their professional career, it will certainly serve a purpose when they are writing essays for school/college, or
blogs for fun! ;)
Friday, August 1, 2014
Back to HomeSchool Time Again!

Even though, I consider myself a year-round homeschooler,
I still have, to prepare as well. While others may be shopping for new curriculum
to purchase, I too am going over what we use in our schooling, making any
adjustments if needed.
We love our core curriculum that we use, and luckily
have not found a reason to change it in years, but that doesn’t mean I don’t
still love to browse the internet for anything new I can add to it. There are
just so many free printables on the internet. Plus, I just love a good unit
study! I also consider this time of year my “Spring Cleaning” for everything
homeschool related. I go through everything, my book case, storage compartments,
etc. I clean out anything I do not need, file last year’s work, and make
a shopping list of what schooling supplies I will need for the following year. I do all my shopping for my supplies during this time of year for the savings. I just love our tax free weekend!
Monday, July 7, 2014
Summer Reading

Sunday, June 1, 2014
Summer School
Summer is here and just like public/private schools, for
many homeschoolers, this is the time of year that they also take time off from
their day to day studies. However, for “year-rounders” like me, we choose to continue
lessons throughout the summer. Does this mean we never take a vacation?! No,
we do. We just take our vacation time, throughout the year, when we choose to.
If you're interested in homeschooling during the summer. There are some fun online summer school programs available
to use. Not wanting to jump on the “year-rounders” band wagon yet, but still
would like something educational for your kiddos to do over the summer? You can
always create a reading list for your child to complete over the summer or have them do some free learning games on the internet.

Monday, May 19, 2014
The Subject of Music
When we decide that we want to homeschool, we all know that
we will need to teach: language, art, math, science, and social studies.
However, music is often forgotten.
I suppose that for many of us, we don't look at music as being a subject, or at least one of the basics. Still, there is a lot of
value that learning about music and playing an instrument provides to a child.
Friday, April 11, 2014
Easter Time is almost here!
Easter, is one of my favorite holidays; my kids too! No
matter how young or old, there is just something about coloring Easter eggs,
waiting for Easter morning to come, all the goodies, and of course dressing up in
your best to go to church. Plus, there is the fun afternoon with family and
friends, Easter egg hunts, and an Easter feast.
Easter of course brings with it fun learning opportunities. There are several ways to incorporate the holiday into your studies. Maybe you would like to teach how to make your own natural dye, so you can make natural Easter eggs this year. Below is a chart
on how to create those colors.
Natural Easter Egg Dyes
Helmenstine, Ph.D., Anne Marie. Natural Easter Egg Dyes-Colored Easter Eggs Using Natural Dyes. About.com-Chemistry, 2014. http://chemistry.about.com/od/holidayhowtos/a/eastereggdyes.htm. April 3, 2014.
Color | Ingredients |
Lavender | Small Quantity of Purple Grape Juice Violet Blossoms plus 2 tsp Lemon Juice Red Zinger Tea |
Violet Blue | Violet Blossoms Small Quantity of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Hibiscus Tea Red Wine |
Blue | Canned Blueberries Red Cabbage Leaves (boiled) Purple Grape Juice |
Green | Spinach Leaves (boiled) Liquid Chlorophyll |
Greenish Yellow | Yellow Delicious Apple Peels (boiled) |
Yellow | Orange or Lemon Peels (boiled) Carrot Tops (boiled) Celery Seed (boiled) Ground Cumin (boiled) Ground Turmeric (boiled) Chamomile Tea Green Tea |
Golden Brown | Dill Seeds |
Brown | Strong Coffee Instant Coffee Black Walnut Shells (boiled) Black Tea |
Orange | Yellow Onion Skins (boiled) Cooked Carrots Chili Powder Paprika |
Pink | Beets Cranberries or Juice Raspberries Red Grape Juice Juice from Pickled Beets |
Red | Lots of Red Onions Skins (boiled) Canned Cherries with Juice Pomegranate Juice Raspberries |
Or maybe an in depth look into the origin of Easter is
something you rather do. Of course there are always themed Easter word lists, games, and of course fun
Easter crafts.
Whatever you decided to do, I hope you have a Happy Easter!
Monday, March 24, 2014
Spring is Here!
It seems like just last week it was still winter... O' wait, it was!
Seriously, though, it is hard to believe that spring is already here. Since it is one of my favorite seasons, minus the allergies, I am delighted. So, how are we planning to add some "spring" into our homeschool classroom?
A Spring Unit Study of course!
Wondering what a unit study is? Well, don’t worry. They are super easy to do. The hardest part is deciding on a topic. Once you choose your topic, you just combine the different subjects, with the theme in mind. There is no set time line for a unit study. It can be long or short, done over a day or two or several weeks. You can do them alongside your regular curriculum or all by itself, with tons of activities or just a few. That is the fun thing about them, you get to decide.
We will be doing our unit study alongside our regular studies. Some of the spring inspired activities will be to read, One and Only Miss Violet Remy, The by Angie Renich, which also has some great spelling games that you can use from SpellingCity.com.
We are also taking a field trip to a butterfly garden. We love them and go every year :)
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