Ozark Ramblings

You Can Keep Your #2 Pencil

2012-03-04T10:06:00.000-08:00

This week's Blog cruise question is "Do you administer standardized testing in your homeschool? Why or why not?" You can probably tell from my snarky title that we don't test in our home. My reasons are based on two anecdotes I'd like to share.

To begin, we used to live in the state of Indiana where all public school students were required to take the ISTEP exam at several points in their academic career and pass it as a junior or senior in order to graduate. Before I homeschooled, I worked in the accounting department of a not-for-profit organization. One day a co-worker, knowing I had to have a good math background, asked me if I'd ever heard of "Front End Rounding." I confessed that the term was new to me but I assumed it must have something to do with estimating an answer before actually solving a complex problem. She proceeded to tell me just how wrong I was. She had been helping her elementary age son with his math homework. He had a sheet of paper filled with numbers to be rounded. She applied her own math knowledge and helped him to round place values containing 0-4 down and 5-9 up. When they finished the son said "I don't think we did this right," and he showed her the instructions sent home by the teacher. Per the instructions, you only look at the "front end" of the number and change everything else to a zero--so 499 would be rounded to 400 not 500.   My friend helped her son change his answers to comply with the instructions but she had a few questions at the next parent/teacher conference.

Why was the teacher instructing his students this way? Because that's the way the ISTEP test handled rounding. So the state of Indiana was teaching students how to pass the ISTEP but fail at life--at least fail when it comes to determining how much carpet to buy or how much paint to cover the walls. The goal of my son's education is to prepare him to succeed in life, not score in the 99th percentile. We study topics that will never come up on a standardized test and don't cover those ridiculous things just because they will be tested.

Our second tale comes from my mother's nursing school friend. Their test to become LPN's had the same multiple choice, fill-in-the circle format. After the test the friend admitted that when she didn't know the answer she would look at the sweep second hand on her watch.  She would choose her answer based on which quadrant of the watch face the second hand lay--between 12 and 3 was an "A", between 3 and 6 was a "B."   She ended up passing the test but I wouldn't want her taking care of me in the hospital. "Let's see, what pills were you supposed to have today? Well if my second hand is near the 2 I'll give you the blue ones, if it's near the 7 I'll give you the yellow ones."   I can remember taking standardized tests and being told I wouldn't be penalized for guessing so it is possible if not probable to pass one without knowing any of the material at all.

I guess the bottom line to testing is that I don't need it to know what my son knows...I work with him every day in school. I can tell when the light bulb goes off in his head and I can tell when I need to try a different approach because he's just not getting it. I don't need to know how he ranks compared to other students. Andrew Pudewa of Institute for Excellence in Writing says that those kind of test results can only lead to false pride (if he scores high) or false self-criticism (if he's average or below average).

At some point, long down the road, I'm sure we'll need to take the PSAT or something similar to prepare Schnickelfritz for college admission tests. Some of the other participants in this week's Blog Cruise may have an entirely different take on the subject.  But for us right here and now, you can just keep your #2 pencil.

B is for Butter making

2012-03-01T05:52:00.001-08:00

Here we are in week 2 of Ben & Me's ABC challenge. The hardest thing about the letter B is choosing from all the possible topics--biology, botany, the Bible, baking bread (that should earn bonus points for using B twice). I ended up choosing to share how I make butter because I've got a lot of cream on my hands and that's what I need to do today anyway.

This is not about a hands-on experiment to show kids how butter is formed. For that I'd just shake the cream in a jar (good energy dissipation exercise for the kids if you know what I mean). We get three gallons of raw milk fresh from a nearby dairy once a week--that means a lot of cream. By putting our milk in wide-mouth gallon jars, we're able to see and skim off the cream as it rises to the top. We happened to have a friend give us these 1-gallon jars but we've also found gallon jars by buying pickles at Sam's Club--you'll just need to clean them thoroughly. I just use a soup ladle to scoop off the cream and pour it in a quart sized mason jar. You'll know when you've hit the milk layer because it appears darker than the cream. I collect the cream from each gallon as we need to drink the milk, each time adding to the quart jar I keep in the fridge. If you've got plenty of butter on hand, it's also possible to freeze the cream. I've had no problem using it for butter or ice cream later.

I used to try using my Bosch mixer with the whipping blades to make butter (someone else online has the instructions) but I only had one success and many failures. Since I've switched to making butter in the food processor I've had a 100 percent success rate. The day I'm going to make butter I set the quart jars on the counter to bring them to room temperature. This step isn't absolutely necessary, I've actually made butter while there were still ice crystals in the cream. It does speed up the process if the cream is not so cold. I made butter in 2 min. 26 sec. with room temp cream. Cream out of the fridge can take 5+ minutes.

Here's the start of our process--a mere two cups of cream in the Cuisinart. Why so little? Well look at the next picture.....

I've actually made whipped cream at this point and its more than doubled the volume I'd say. We've got to keep going.

Near the beginning of the process.

The cream edges away from the center

As the butter forms you'll notice changes in both the sound and look of the cream--the pitch gets higher and you can hear the splats on the sides of the bowl. Looking at the side of the bowl you'll start to notice swirls of darkness spinning around which I assume is shadows from the butter clumps. If you look through the feeder hole you can see the cream moves further away from the center post. I've hear it's possible to over churn the butter and return it to a liquid so you probably don't want to stray too far away from the kitchen, but I've never actually had that problem.

Here's what we end up with, but it's not butter yet.

Here I'm straining off the liquid. DON"T THROW IT OUT!!! What you've got is REAL buttermilk. It's thinner than the cultured stuff you can buy at the store so it may take a while to get used to drinking it. I use mine as the liquid for pancake batter, biscuits, and muffins. (A great resource is Sue Gregg's books on the blender batter method of baking. She uses buttermilk to soak whole grains).

Now comes the one part I dislike about making butter, and frankly it takes the longest. You have to wash the butter to remove all the excess liquid. Don't be tempted to skip this step. Leaving the buttermilk in the butter may cause it to go rancid quickly. I dump my butter in a large bowl and begin pressing it against the sides. You'll see droplet of liquid escaping from the butter solids. I spray the whole batch with COLD water from the sinks sprayer (can you guess why you don't want to use hot water?) Then it's rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat.

When you start the liquid will be opaque like the buttermilk, but don't bother saving this--it's been diluted.

Here I'm almost done. This liquid is actually rinse water more than squeezed out buttermilk. See how much clearer it becomes? Now you have unsalted butter. While it's still so soft and creamy you can add flavorings--salt, cinnamon and honey, chives, etc. For this batch I used about 1/2 t. of salt. I started the day with just shy of three quarts of cream. Now I have about 6-7 cups of buttermilk and 3 cups of butter.

Check out my latest find on eBay. This mold makes four standard-sized sticks of butter and even has ridges to imprint lines for 2 tablespoon portions. The jury is still out on this gadget though--I'm having to learn how to remove air pockets in the butter so the measurements are accurate. I'm also having a dickens of a time removing the butter after it solidifies.

The end results are sure worth it. I served home-made butter at my family's Thanksgiving and my aunt just raved about how it tasted like what she remembered growing up on the farm.

Now don't forget to check out what the other bloggers have chosen for their "B" week at the Ben & Me blog. I'll be busy trying to choose my "C" for next week. Hmmmm, chess, chemistry, coin collecting....

Review: Reading Eggs

2012-02-26T20:39:00.000-08:00

I shudder to think how many years ago this was, but I can still remember reading comprehension lessons in school. The teacher had sets of color coded pamphlets that she would hand out to the class. We would read the pamphlet then line up at her desk to answer questions about what we had read. If we knew or guessed the correct answers she would exchange our pamphlet for another one and we'd start the cycle again. After so many pamphlets we'd graduate to a new level and the color of the pamphlets would change. It became a competition to see who could complete a level fastest and reach a new color level. We got so caught up in the "game" we forgot we were learning. That's sort of the premise behind Reading Eggs: engage the students with games, competitions, and virtual prizes so they don't even notice they're picking up the skills to evaluate and comprehend reading materials. We used the Reading Eggspress side of the program geared toward kids ages 7-13.

When the student first logs in, he's welcomed to the Floating Island. The four sections of the island are: Stadium, Library, Gym, and Apartment/Mall.

Start with the Gym. This is where the student will take an assessment test. There are twenty questions based on several brief paragraphs to be read. The test will stop after three incorrect answers. There is no time limit to the test.

The student can see his progress by seeing the eggs light up (wrong answers have dark eggs). I found that some of these questions didn't so much test reading comprehension as it did general knowledge. One sentence mentioned the "twentieth century" and the question asked what years that referred to. There was nothing in the reading to give the answer--the student either knew the answer or not. After the test the student will be given the results and be assigned a level for the lesson activities. Fritz had one incorrect answer (because he wanted to know what sound would be made) and ended up with a 5.1 level.

While still at the Gym you can play the "game of the day" or take a "cycling" lesson. THe game during our visit was a memory test.

The game began by showing three pictures for ten seconds. Then the pictures were replaced with eight words. You needed to click on the words that corresponded to the pictures within the time limit. Wrong answers cost you a life (think of Minute to Win It). Higher levels had more pictures.

The gym is also where lessons are given. There were multiple stages to the lesson:

Cover Story-Look at the cover a book and make logical assumptions about the book's content
Dictionary--look up three vocabulary words from the book. Answer questions about what type of word (noun, adverb, etc.) and pick the sentence that uses the word correctly.
Compare & Contrast--read a paragraph from the story and answer questions comparing and contrasting two characters.
Words in Context--Read a sentence and click on the correct definition for a highlighted word based on its context.
Draw Conclusions--Read a passage and decide what the text is trying to convey.
What's your motivation--Read a passage and deduce why a character does what he does.
Read--finally read the short book for the lesson.
Quiz--a reading comprehension test based on the book.

Next we'll visit the Library.

The various shelves of the library can be clicked to bring up a sample of different book genres. In addition to the "Book of the Day," featured in front of the librarian's desk, you can choose from: Sci-Fi, Earth Science, Animals, Science, Space, Plants, Fantasy, Comedy, Ocean, Art, Myths, and Adventure. When you select a book from the virtual shelf you have the opportunity to see the number of pages, the reader rating, and the number of gold eggs you'll earn for completing the book. You can then read the book or return it to the shelf. After reading the book, you'll have to answer several questions correctly to earn your eggs. The eggs are the monetary system of this Floating Island and you can spend them at the next stop---the Mall.

The Mall and the Apartment share a quarter of the island. In the Mall, you can spend your egg earnings to buy a virtual pet, items for your apartment or clothes for your avatar. Normally this kind of frivolity wouldn't interest my Schnickelfritz, but these tasks are necessary to complete a level. The red and white target in the screens upper right corner keeps track of how many tasks you've accomplished. Clicking on the target will bring up a list of what you've finished and what still needs to be done.

In the Apartment building you can take the elevator up to your room where you can customize your avatar's appearance (hair, skin, eyes) or change it's clothes. There is a room to review the Trading cards you've earned by playing games and reading books (there are nearly 1000 cards to choose from). And there is a trophy case: earn 1000 in a week for a bronze prize, five bronzes can be traded in for a silver, and three silvers earns a gold award.

The final quarter of the island is the Stadium. Here competitive games can be played against another human being or against the computer. We're fairly cautious about online interaction with other people so we always chose to play the computer. Sorry there are no screen shots--it's hard to be competitive and worry about control + prtsrn. The game is timed and you are also trying to move your avatar across the screen before the computers racer by answering questions as quickly as possible. Each game has five levels of difficulty. The four games are:

Spelling Sprint--In the first half of the race you are shown to versions of a word and must click the one spelled correctly. In the second half of the game you are shown three words. You must click on the word spelled incorrectly and type in the correct spelling. I actually played this game (at level two) and lost to the computer and I've been spelling and typing for decades.
Grammar Skating--In part one you click on the word that's a verb. In part two you click on the word that is not a verb and then click on the correct word type (adverb, noun, composite noun, etc.)
Vocabulary Pursuit--Part one lists a word and you must choose the antonym. In part two you must read four words and select the one that is not a synonym.
Freestyle (something, I forgot to write it down)-- Part one shows two sentences--one has an error in spelling, verb tense or punctuation. You must click the correct sentence. Part two has a sentence with a blank. You must choose what will fill the blank, again looking for verb tense or matching the singularity or plurality of the subject, etc.

Incidently, when you get the correct answer the crowd cheers. When you're wrong you hear boos and catcalls.

There is a lot to Reading Eggspress as you can see. Your student can always see their progress online. Here's what that screen looks like--

Unfortunately, I cannot reccommend it to anyone with dial up internet service. We were only able to successfully load the program at home one time. Every other time the Internet Explorer would lock up when the loading of the floating island reached around 54%. I had to go to my mother's and use her high speed service to try some of the features and get the screen shots for this review.

If you do have high speed service, you can sample Reading Eggspress and Reading Eggs yourself. A free trial is available on their website. *Check around the internet for some coupon codes to extend this trial). If you sign up a month subscription is $9.95, six months is $49.95 and one year is $75.00. (A second child can be added for 50% off on the six and 12 month plans). You can also read what others on the Homeschool Crew think of Reading Eggs by clicking here (many used the program for beginning readers).

Disclaimer: I received a free 3-month subscription to Reading Eggs for the purpose of completing this review. I receiving no other compensation for my opinion.

A is for Astronomy

2012-02-26T12:34:00.000-08:00

I'm starting a new blog challenge this week --and it will be a long one. A Homeschool Crew friend is hosting a blog through the alphabet, one letter per week. That's a half a year's worth of posts! My mind is already thinking ahead to tough letters like "Q" and "X." Of course you have to start at the very beginning and I've picked A for Astronomy.

So far it's been Fritz's favorite science subject-- I think that's because it's Daddy's favorite too. The Toolman has a 10 inch Dobsonian telescope and a pair of astronomical binoculars. Until the nearby town builds its new sports park with its big lights we have a fairly dark sky--you can just make out the Milky Way if there's no moon. We used Apologia's Exploring Creation with Astronomy two years ago and now we're revisiting the subject so Fritz can earn his Astronomy Merit badge in Royal Rangers.

The great thing about astronomy is it's available to anyone--just step outside your door after sunset. Even in the big city you'll be able to observe the moon and watch it go through it's phases. If you have a good pair of binoculars you can study its various craters and other features. A word of caution though, you won't believe how bright the moon is when you look at it for long. It can make your eyes water.
Move further away from the bright city lights and now you can see constellations. Orion and the Big Dipper (which is technically an asterism not a constellation) our my favorites. Schnickelfritz can also identify Cassiopeia and the Great Square of Pegasus. And did you know that some of the brightest objects you see aren't stars at all--they're planets! Last night when we stepped out our door we saw a fingernail moon with Venus and Jupiter above it. We kept checking on it till it disappeared below the horizon.

Want to learn more but aren't able to afford your own telescope? Check around for an amateur astronomy club in your area. The Toolman belonged to one on the outskirts of Indianapolis. He hardly needed to haul his own scope because everyone was more than willing to let him look through theirs. They take a lot of pride in being able to focus in on specific items of interest (usually referred to as Messier object) and love to share what they've found.

Photo by John Green 2/23/2012

Astronomy is unfortunately one of those sciences that has been dominated by folks that do not hold to the Christian worldview of creation. We prefer to think of it as a missionary field, but you need to be prepared to back up your beliefs. The Exploring Creation with Astronomy text is a great place to start with elementary school kids. An even simpler (and shorter) book is The Astronomy Book, part of the Wonders of Creation series.

If you or your older students would like a more demanding study of astronomy, try the materials by Answers in Genesis' Dr. Jason Lisle. The Toolman actually traveled down to the Creation Museum for an astronomy night hosted by Dr. Lisle. When the lines to view the two telescopes got too long, my husband set up his astro-binoculars for people to look through (remember I said astronomy buffs like to share). After the event Dr. Lisle said thanks with a donation of his Taking Back Astronomy book and several DVDs. The book is filled with gorgeous photographs from the Hubble telescope. The text (and the DVD's) are challenging even for me and I got A's in my two semesters of college physics--topics like the distant starlight problem and the recession of the moon (did you know the moon was moving away from the earth about 3.8 cm/year?)

If this is all too much, then don't neglect the simple things. Our favorite summer pastime is to start a campfire and watch the stars pop out at dusk. We're the family laying on the driveway looking up at the night sky (sometimes we go out early to watch for bats too). Like I said to start, astronomy is there to be enjoyed at whatever level you can manage.

If you'd like to see what others chose for their "A" topic, check out the post at Ben & Me. I gave it a quick perusal and saw adoption, advice, Amazon, and apple. And be sure to check back next week to see what I chose for "B." Will it be basketball, butter, or biology?

Review: Beeyoutiful

2012-02-25T07:06:00.000-08:00

This is our second time to review Beeyoutiful products. Two years ago we tried Berry Well and to be honest I could have used some this past month because I had a doozy of a winter cold. I'll definitely put that on my shopping list because that's one product when you need it, you need it NOW. The two products we received this year will probably make the list as well as I've been pleased with both.

The Peppermint Lip Balm was the secondary product sent to me, but I got the most use out of it. In addition to the regular dry winter air from the furnace I had a nasty head cold--lots of breathing through the mouth. My lips were beyond chapped. The balm was very soothing and the mint was refreshing. I even put some on my finger and applied it to the sides of my nose which were raw from tissues. It really calmed the irritation--probably because two of the ingredients, grapeseed oil and beeswax, are natural anti-inflammatory. A tube of Peppermint or Orange Lip Balm sells for $3 or you can buy three tubes for $2.70 a piece.

A few words before I talk about Hair Shine. We live on well water with a fair mineral content and I have to admit to having dry, middle-aged hair that is starting to turn gray. I'm also the only female in the house so it was up to me to try the Hair Shine. I would spray it on my wet hair after showering and on dry hair when I styled it between washings. I'll be frank and say I didn't notice or receive any compliments on how nice and shiny my hair looks. It may have had to many hurdles to overcome for that. I did, however, notice that it was much easier to comb through my wet hair and detangle it other mornings. I have naturally curly/frizzy hair so this is a blessing.

Hair Shine is made with several essential oils: lavender, rosemary, citrus, so it does have an aroma. A pleasant one to be sure, but I was a little concerned because my husband is allergic to most perfumes. The Hair Shine didn't seem to bother him. Beeyoutiful's website also suggests using the product on sunburns and insect bites. It's a little too early in the year for me to test out those ideas.

A 4 oz spray bottle of Hair Shine is normally $15.00 but it's on sale this month for $12.75. You can also get a discounted price of $12 per bottle if you buy a case of 12.

Be sure to check out all the natural products carried by Beeyoutiful for both health and beauty (and sign up for their catalog which also contains some great articles). You'll want to be sure and check out the other reviews by Homeschool Crew members as everyone received a different variety of products. Just click here.

Disclaimer: I received a free Lip Balm and

Apologia: Who Am I

2012-02-17T02:00:00.000-08:00

This is my third year on the Homeschool Crew. It should cease to amaze me how often God provides just the right review product at just the right time to bless us in some way. If I had to sum up Apologia's Who Am I set in one word it would be just that---a blessing.

Of course I'm not just going to sum it up. There's too much I want to share. Let's start at the beginning: Schnickelfritz and his Royal Ranger patrol are earning their Leadership merit badge. As part of their homework assignments they have been asked to make a craft on the theme "How does God see me?" and pray about what their talents are and how they can use them for God's glory. Driving home on the night of the craft assignment a little voice from the back of the car said "I think God just sees me as just another kid." The tone of voice suggested that if we delved into the topic we would find no talent and nothing special.

I've never bought into the current trend in education of boosting self esteem, sometimes at the cost of actually learning. (Our students rank nowhere near the top of worldwide standards, but they sure feel good about themselves). Still, I drove home wanting a biblically sound way to help my son see his value...and that same week we received a package from Apologia. Inside were all the tools I was looking for:

The Who Am I? (and What am I Doing Here?) textbook ($39.00). The text is designed for kids age 6-14. Younger kids will probably need to listen to someone read aloud, but let them looks at the eye-catching pictures and colorful graphics too. The eight lessons follow the same format. "The Big Idea" and the "What You Will Do" gives a brief review of what's been covered and captures the child's interest to this lesson's topic. Next comes a Short Story with characters working on their own answer to the Who Am I question. The first four chapters deal with a young Russian boy named Sasha, born with a malformed foot. The last four chapters are about a medieval squire named Brandon. Kids are invited to reflect and dig deeper into the story by answering the Think About It questions. The Words You Need to Know and Hide it in Your Heart prepare the child for the Main Lesson. The What Should I Do section helps the student see how to apply the lesson to his life and the lesson itself ends with Prayer. The final portion of the chapter, Worldviews in Focus, gives a detailed "day in the life" of a child being raised in a different culture with a different worldview. The What's the Difference? questions allow the child to compare and contrast their own worldview with the one to which they've just been introduced. Some of the lessons end with the House of Truth--a visual aid to help you remember what God says in the Bible about Himself, who you are, and how God expects you to live. Throughout the chapter are gray boxes with brief articles or exercises that tie into the main topic or give insight into the short story.

The Who Am I? Notebooking Journal ($24.00). Like those offered in the Apologia science courses, this notebook provides a place for students to write their own thoughts and really take ownership of the lessons (in fact there's a place on the cover for the child to add there name to the"Written By" box. Some pages tie directly to the text: there are pages to write definitions for the Words You Need to Know, copywork pages for the Hide it in Your Heart verses, and places to write answers to the Think About It and What's the Difference questions. There are also full color background pages for the child to write prayers, praise reports, and evidences of God working in and through their life. For younger students (or those who dislike writing) there are word search puzzles and mini-books to use in lapbook.

The Who Am I? Audio CD ($19.00). This CD is in MP3 format so it might not work in every one's stereo, but it will work in the computer. My car's radio also takes MP3 Cd's so we were able to listen in the car. The entire text is included. I'll confess the the female narrator doesn't speak with the enthusiasm I use to keep my son's interest so we didn't use the CD often. Her voice is fine for reading a textbook, but it seemed lacking during the short story. She did not change her voice for the different characters or make the tone of her voice change to reflect the character's feelings.

The Who Am I? Coloring Book ($8.00) give the child the opportunity to color pictures from the short story and others to help them remember concepts from the lesson. It is 64 pages long. My son has never been very interested in coloring, but it might be a quiet activity for younger kids while Mom reads the lessons to the older ones.

The lesson plan in the text covers a chapter in three weeks--two days a week. This made each day's reading a little longer than my Schnickelfritz's attention span. Because I really wanted him to absorb the material rather than wonder how long the lesson would be, we broke it into smaller chunks. This worked well for everything but the Short Story, and Fritz found that engaging enough that he didn't mind. He actually gasped when the school bully asked Sasha to teach him how to carve wood. We managed to print out several of the Bible verses and find clip art to correspond to make his How God Sees Me craft project. The book uses "word pictures" that my son could really relate to--the first one was the history of Superman and the lesson was "If You Are Made in God's Image, Why Can't You Leap Tall Buildings in a Single Bound?" Another God-incidence (that's when you recognized God allows something in his perfect timing rather than just luck): we had travelled to Tennessee at Christmas and stopped at Metropolis, IL where the Superman picture in the book had been taken.

I've been especially pleased by the introduction to other worldviews in the text. Who Am I? is a project between Apologia and an organization called Summit Ministries. We have SM's worldview text, Understanding the Times, but it is not written for kids. I've drooled over their school-age worldview curriculum at homeschool fairs, but it was beyond our price-point. This curriculum is designed for homeschoolers, with a homeschooler's budget in mind. The Worldviews in Focus cover: Islam, Secular Humanism, Buddhism, Mormonism, Hinduism, New Age, Atheism, and Christianity. The format of using a child and following them through a day in their life is done in a very non-judgemental way. Sometimes we Christians get so focused on the "their way is wrong" or "that religion is full of terrorists" that we forget these people are still made in the image of God and he still desires that they come to know him.

Who Am I? is the second of four texts. The other three in order are: Who is God? ; Who is My Neighbor? ; and What on Earth Can I Do? Although each book is listed with no prerequisites, Apologia suggests doing the books in order to gain the most from the program. After all, how can you know what it means to be made in God's image (book #2) if you don't have an understanding of who God is? I plan on purchasing all the books for use in our studies but not the Audio CD or Coloring books. I'm still debating on the Notebook--I see it's value but Fritz hates to write.

You can read what other members of the Homeschool Crew think about Apologia's Who Am I? by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received free copies of the items described for the purposes of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my opinions.

I Confess....I Love my Kindle!

2012-02-14T07:29:00.000-08:00

That statement may not mean much to you, a lot of people enjoy their Kindle. But up until a few months ago, my rallying cry was "Save the books", books with real paper and ink and hardboard that is. I'm definitely a bibliophile. My husband (and the moving men) can testify to the number of bookshelves and nooks and crannies where I store the treasures I've picked up at used book sales. I honestly didn't think that curling up with an electronic device could give me the same satisfaction as grabbing a tome, opening it at the bookmark, and carefully turning the pages.

Then I started to discover just how many books are available in e format--books I've never seen on the library shelf (they don't have room to save all the old ones) or at a used book sale. Or perhaps I have seen one but so many other homeschooling parents recognized its value too and thus it was priced out of my budget.

I asked for a Kindle for Christmas and I've been loading it up with books that have passed out of copyright. As I read, I discovered a few advantages to the Kindle. It can automatically keep track of the last page I read in every book. Since I often have more than one going at a time, it's very easy to switch from one to another without having to tear off scraps of paper to mark my place in each. Another great feature is the build in dictionary. I consider myself to have a fairly large vocabulary, but I often run across older terms in my choice of books. Now I can just move the cursor next to the word and up pops a definition. I can keep my reading flow rather than put the book down, get the Webster's, look up the word, and return to my text (or more likely just guess at the meaning and end up missing some of the subtleties of the author's word choice).

So from time to time I plan on sharing some of my finds with you. Will start off with the author James Otis Kaler(1848-1912) who wrote under the name James Otis. Mr. Otis was only sixteen years old when he was sent out by a local newspaper to report on the Civil War. His experiences helped him develop a spirit of patriotism and adventure. He Quoting from Jan Bloom's Who Should We Then Read? "Kaler's interest was war stories and he cranked them out feverishly. His boys were honest, simple, hard-working boys who get caught up in the events around them. Unlike [Horatio] Alger stories, Kaler's boys do not long for respectability, fame or fortune. They just want to go home after they've done their duty. "

If you're trying to use living books for history, here are a few of the free titles you may want to download:

Defending the Island: A Story of Bar Harbor in 1758

Neal, the Miller, a Son of Liberty

Under the Liberty Tree: A Story of the Boston Massacre

Corporal 'Lige's Recruit: A Story of Crown Point and Ticonderoga

On the Kentucky Frontier

Minute Boys of Boston

Minute Boys of the Mohawk Valley

Minute Boys of York Town

Richard of Jamestown

Commodore Barney's Young Spies: A Boy's Story of the Burning of the City of Washington

Review: ALEKS Math

2012-02-13T18:11:00.000-08:00

Our review this week is an online subscription service called ALEKS--an acronym. According to the company's website:

Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces is an online mathematics program that provides personalized learning and assessment tailored to a student's individual needs. Using artificial intelligence and adaptive, open-response questioning, ALEKS quickly and accurately determines what a student knows and is most ready to learn within a course. Learn more by watching a quick 2-minute video.
With a comprehensive course library ranging from elementary school math to complex subjects such as PreCalculus, ALEKS acts much like a human tutor to help take the stress off of homeschooling parents.
ALEKS offers highly-targeted, individualized instruction from virtually any computer with Internet access, making it a comprehensive and mobile education solution for students in grades 3-12. A subscription to ALEKS offers access to all courses and students may take as many courses as needed during their subscription period.

The subscription rate is $19.95/month for one student. The monthly cost can be lowered by selecting a six or twelve month subscription. Families with more than one child can also receive a discount for additional students on the 6 or 12 month plans.

The student begins by taking an assessment test. My Schnickelfritz took the third grade test and for a hoot I set myself up as a beginning algebra student. There is no time limit to these tests and no real advantage to guessing. When Fritz had several geometry based questions he had never been exposed to before, he simply clicked "I don't know." After his 28 questions (and my 30) we were shown our individual pie charts, similar to the one shown below.

The darker colors reflect mastery of math concepts and the lighter areas show where subjects need to be introduced or more work is necessary. For myself, I found the chart to be fairly accurate--I was actually laughing at how much I've forgotten about exponents (but I still aced factoring). Fritz's pie chart was less of a reflection of what he actually knew. As you can see in the sample there are 271 topics to be learned and the assessment test only had 28 questions. The first two lessons suggestions for Fritz was to estimate the answer before solving addition and the subtraction problems--something he has been doing with our regular math curriculum for years. It wasn't really an issue. Fritz just answered two math problems for each topic and the darkened section of the pie grew accordingly.

Clicking on a pie section will open a box with a suggestion of topics to try next. When you click on the topic it appears that you're taking a quiz again, that is it begins with a math problem for you to solve. If you can't solve the problem you can click on the "Explain" button underneath the problem. This puts you in learning mode. The topic will be explained in general terms and then the specific problem you were given will be solved. The explanation can be very brief. It worked for me as I usually just needed a refresher but when Fritz was encountering new topics for the first time he occasionally got frustrated by what he considered "not enough teaching." My concern on the other hand was that it only took two correct answers after the brief explanation to earn the mastered status. Had he really mastered the material or was he just able to hold the idea in short term memory and it would be lost the next day? ALEKS deals with this issue by requiring the student to complete reassessments from time to time to see what has actually been retained.

There were a few types of math problems that seemed awkward to solve via the computer, especially in the algebra level. Writing answers with multiple sets of parentheses with both a numerator and denominator involved typing in a specific sequence and clicking buttons on the side to create fractions or add exponents. It was almost like solving the problem twice--once on paper and once figuring how to put in in computer format, but it was do-able with a little practice. Fritz struggled with using the ruler feature to draw lines. There was a tutorial for this during the assessment test.

As the teacher, every other week I received an email with a progress report. I would be told what percentage of each category had been mastered and how much time Fritz had used the ALEKS program. A more detailed report was available by clicking a link included in the email.

Because Fritz has already mastered his adding and subtracting facts and times tables, he did not use the QuickTables feature or the games available there.

At this time, ALEKS is not a good fit for our family. I see it as more of an assessment tool than a teaching tool. Since I am teaching him in a one-on-one basis, I already know what topics he's mastered and what we still need to work on. ALEKS may be more useful to the mom of multiples that can't oversee every one's math lessons as thoroughly as she'd like. On the other hand, ALEKS has a pretty high monthly cost and using it with large families could be a financial burden.

The best way to see if ALEKS is a good fit for your family is to try it yourself! ALEKS has a two-month free trial available by clicking the box to the left.

You can read what others on the Homeschool Crew thought of their ALEKS trial by clicking here.

A Chance to Go Underground

2012-02-11T13:46:00.000-08:00

I have to say that this week's Blog Cruise about favorite field trips came at the perfect time. A recent computer catastrophe wiped out our last three years worth of pictures, so seeing the photos and what I've written about on the blog has been extra special. This is one of the first field trips we took when we moved to Missouri. Here's what I wrote then:

One of Missouri's nicknames is The Cave State, with over 3000 caves on the registers. There are several "show caves" like the one Mark Twain made famous in Tom Sawyer or Meramec Caverns with its ads painted on barn roofs as far away as Indiana. Schnickelfritz and I were going to a cave "open house" sponsored by the Dept. of Conservation, so no electric lights or paved walkways, In fact, here is the way the conservation newsletter describes it:

This hands-on exploration requires crawling on your stomach for several feet. Wear long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, and bring a flashlight. Helmets will be provided.

I had reservations as I was making reservations...lately Fritz has been afraid of dark hallways and the dark waterslide tunnel; what would he do when he experienced total darkness? Would we see bats and would they scare him? I read him the description and asked if he wanted to try this and he answered yes.

There were 14 of us fitting helmets and checking flashlight batteries at the conservation center. We followed a paved path for several hundred yards and then diverted across a dry creek bed and up a hill till we came to a rock wall with what appeared to be a cage sitting in front...but where was the opening?

As our guide fiddled with the padlock, he explained that this was a "bathtub entrance," so named because you had to sit down as if you were in a tub and then slide feet first "down the drain." He went on to say that no one had ever gotten physically stuck in the cave but getting an arm wedged or a helmet hitting the top of the opening can lead to people getting mentally stuck. I looked down at my son to see if there was any apprehension... Nope, as soon as our guide had disappeared Fritz hopped into the cage to pursue.

Having just seen my son swallowed up by a hole in the ground I realized that I was the one feeling apprehensive and projecting it on him. I approached the opening and here's what I saw:

The arrow marks the "bathtub drain"

At the bottom was just enough room to lean forward and switch from moving feet first to crawling on your belly at least ten feet and going around a corner. Fritz, at 57 pounds and 48 inches didn't even realize this was an obstacle. I felt a sudden thankfulness that I'd lost 20 pounds from walking the dog this year and wondered if 20 was enough. But eventually I was sitting beside Fritz in the "twilight zone" of the cave as we waited for the others.

The twilight zone, yes there really is such a place, describes the area of a cave where there is still some light from the entrance. You may be able to see the silhouette of your hand in front of your face. Here we got our lecture on the three types of animals we might find in the cave. 1) Trogloxenes (cave guests) are creatures that usually live outside caves but may take shelter in one. 2) Troglophiles (cave lovers) live part of their lives in the cave and part outside. Bats fall into this category. The troglophiles we saw today were a millipede and several salamanders.

A salamander wishing the trogloxene with the camera would move on

The third category is troglobites (cave dwellers). These are the creatures with no eyes and no pigment. The guide said he'd even seen some that were transparent and you could see their internal organs, but there weren't any in this cave.

We went through another passage, this one not as tight a squeeze but it was at a 45 degree angle. At times it was easier for me to roll across the rock formations, although Fritz was able to walk through bent over.

Now we were in the dark zone. As expected, the guide invited everyone to turn off their lights and experience total darkness. At the same time he had everyone move their hands forward and backward in front of their faces while making a "shh" sound. Although we couldn't see anything we could detect a change in sound as our hands moved. This was as close as we could come to experiencing the echolocation used by bats. Here's where we learned two things that Fritz remembered when retelling his experience to Daddy (why do boys always hone in on the "gross" stuff?)

First, in the outside world the bottom of the food chain starts with plants converting the sun's energy. But in caves there is no sun and no plants. The troglophiles, particularly bats, who go outside the caves to eat return to the caves and deposit guano (children ask your parents). This starts the cave food chain. Algae can form on the guano and insects may eat one or the other or both.

Second, bats are beneficial creatures that can eat up to 2000 mosquitoes in an hour. Some bats have better hunting nights than others. The ones that haven't done so well may actually have burned more energy in hunting than they were able to consume. This presents a problem when returning to a cool cave to wait until feeding time comes around again. So bats practice "Reciprocal Altruism." If a bat has had a good night and notices a neighbor's tummy rumbling, it will regurgitate some of its meal for the neighbor. The neighbor, having a good memory, will return the favor when the tables are turned.

With those two bits of information our cave tour was over. Our guide informed us that there were two paths back to the entrance. The first, the chute, was short and straight but the catch was it was designed for very skinny people. "Think Gwyneth Paltrow," he said. The second was the path we had taken to get in--slightly bigger but involving a lot of crawling and flexibility. "Think pilates," he said. "Make your choice and I'll be the last one out." The words were still echoing in the cavern when Fritz announced he was heading down the chute.

Another salamander and "The Chute"

I shouted to his disappearing ankles "I can't follow you that way," thinking this would make him turn back. Nope, he yelled back "I'll see you at the top, Mama," and kept right on going. Two other boys were not going to be shown up by a six year old so they headed out the chute next. I sat there for a second waiting for a surprise option three--the one for middle-aged women who wished they had a better exercise regimen. When no other option was presented I headed towards the "pilates" path with all the other women who knew they were no Gwyneth Paltrow. At least we had the comfort of knowing we had all made it in this way and since we hadn't eaten in the cave, we should all fit on the way out.

It did seem harder--was that just the power of suggestion playing with our heads? I was stuck in a traffic jam as we each tried to contort themselves back up the bathtub drain. I could hear Fritz outside sharing all his discoveries with a grandmother who stayed at the entrance.

Sadly, this field trip experience is no longer open to the public. In an effort to stop the spread of White-Nose disease among bats, the Department of Conservation has closed this and many other caves around the state. I hope that this crisis passes and Fritz and I can go underground again.

You can read about other great field trips at the Homeschool Crew's Blog Cruise.

So what am I hoping for when homeschool is done?

2012-02-06T05:50:00.000-08:00

Last November our cruise topic was about why we started homeschooling. You can read my response here.   This week we're looking at the other end of the spectrum. The definition of "success" according to Webster's 1828 Dictionary is "The favorable or prosperous termination of any thing attempted; a termination which answers the purpose intended." So at the end of a day or a year or when my Schnickelfritz has graduated, what will I base my success upon?

1. Is my son a disciple of Christ? I can give my son all the tools and knowledge to get ahead in this world but what will that all matter if he spends eternity apart from God? The epidemic of children abandoning their Christian upbringing when the go to college is alarming. If Christianity is just what he does on Sunday mornings or if the Bible is just a collection of stories he's been told then I haven't provided the good soil his young Christian plant needs to grow strong.   He's liable to be knocked over by the first adversity or plucked from the ground in some philosophy class.

We've begun working through Kay Arthur's inductive Bible study for kids this year. Fritz wanted to start with Daniel (he'd just done a puppet show about the lion's den for Spanish class). The first half of the book involved familiar stories, but the second half is filled with prophecy that can make your head swim. Yet here was my nine year old son studying precept upon precept. He was able to make the connections between the four-headed leopard in Daniel 7 with the goat that grew four horns in Daniel 8. He could see that the small horn that grew from the 4 horns was not the same a the little horn that grew out of ten horns in the final beast.

In addition to studying the Bible, we've also begun learning about other worldviews. Watch for my review of Apologia's Who am I?

2. Does my son have a desire to learn? I have a firm belief that you can learn anything as long as you're motivated to do so. Here I am, waaayyy past my school years, learning about html code and other things to build a blog.   What is the good of cramming his little head full of knowledge if I do so in a way that makes him abhor the process?   I want him to continue to ask why and how outside of school settings and then be motivated to seek the answers to those questions. I want him to experiment and research, enjoy the process as well as the end result. I've said before that I don't believe it's my job to entertain Schnickelfritz all the way through school but I do want him to believe learning can be fun.

3. Can my son think for himself?   In some ways this question ties into the last, but I don't want my son to be satisfied with just accepting another person's account on any subject--be it science and creation of the world, the idea of global warming, or the President's recent claim that Jesus would want us to all pay our fair share of taxes. In a work situation, I want him to be motivated to seek out new and better processes not just buy in to the "We've always done it this way" frame of mind.

These are my top three questions to help me guage the success of our homeschool. Fritz and I still have many years ahead of us so the list will probably grow. You can read others' takes on how to measure success by clicking here.

Review: Celestial Almanack

2012-02-05T17:56:00.000-08:00

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,

The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;

What is man that You take thought of him,

And the son of man that You care for him?

Ps. 8:3-4

One of the first things we noticed when we moved from the suburbs of Indianapolis to rural Missouri was how much darker the skies were. That orange-ish haze that hung over our Indy home hid so many of the stars. Now one of our favorite activities is to set up a campfire and watch the stars pop out one by one. My husband, the Toolman, has had an interest in astronomy for years. He's been a member of an amateur club and I got him a 10 inch Dobsonian telescope for his birthday one year. Schnickelfritz has an interest in the stars (because Daddy does) and can hold his own at finding Venus, Mars, and Jupiter in the skies; locate the Big Dipper, the Little Dipper, Orion, the great square of Pegasus, and Cassiopeia (which he calls the big "W"). I appreciate looking at the stars as a whole, especially nights when we can make out the Milky Way. I can probably recognize the same constellations as Fritz and I can tell a star from a planet although I may not know which planet it is. So this review of the February edition of the Celestial Almanack should be right up our alley.

The publication is available for download ($3.00) through Currclick.com. The February edition is 19 full color pages (with an additional two pages of sponsor ads). This issue had an introductions which thoroughly explained the Leap Year Day and our calendar system, a chart of February with important events and phases of the moon It is FILLED with large sky charts so make sure your ink cartridges are full before printing.

Toolman: Appreciated the graphics, especially those that gave a perspective as if you weren't standing on the Earth but viewing the solar system from above or at least beyond Earth. He could read through and understand the articles but he admitted it wasn't remedial text. He also thought it important that the author explained in both picture and word that the view of a nebula through binoculars or even an amateur telescope would not allow you to see the vivid and colorful pictures we've been priviledged to get through the Hubble telescope.
Schnickelfritz: The text was over his head but he could look at the sky charts and locate Orion and then find other constellations based on their proximity to Orion. He interest was piqued about the Orion Challenge (learn 35 constellations in a year) in upcoming editions.

Myself: I tried to read through and digest information so I could share it with Schnickelfritz. There is a lot of Astronomy lingo here: declination, right ascension, analemma, etc. I could find explanations for some terms (I had to highlight them so I could refer back quickly when the term came up again). Often the text mentioned that the subject was covered in the January issue or in the Curriculum text or would be covered in future issues--which sort of left me in the lurch for now.

If you really have a passion for Astronomy, you will appreciate the depth of information in the Celestial Almanack. If you just have a passing fancy to know the names of some constellations, this material may overwhelm you. You can view a sample on Currclick. You may also be interested in the Signs & Seasons homeschool curriculum for $39.

You can read what others on the Homeschool Crew think of the Celestial Almanack by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the February Celestial Almanack for the purpose of completing this review.

Camp Dubois--The Launching Point

2012-02-02T11:27:00.000-08:00

I just couldn't let this unusually warm and sunny weather slip by without taking in a field trip so Schnickelfritz and I headed east to Illinois. Our two destinations were the Great Rivers Museum (in Alton, IL) and the Lewis & Clark Historic Site, Camp Dubois. Although we saw both in one day, I'm going to divide the trip into two posts because there is so much to share. Will's grandparents came with us and we all agreed that these two museums held plenty of interest for young and old.

Camp Dubois was established in December of 1803 on the east bank of the Mississippi across from the confluence with the Missouri. They remained until May of 1804. The site now boasts a reconstructed fort and a 14,000 visitor's center. Visitors are greeted by a statue of Lewis, Clark and the dog Seaman. At their feet is a blue ribbon of carpeting. Just like Dorothy's yellow brick road, you follow the blue line throughout the three galleries and theater.

The largest gallery contains a life size replica of the keelboat. You can't tell from this picture but the best part is the other side. The keelboat has been cut away so that you can see the living conditions on board and the amazing packing job to hold supplies for the journey.

Here is the one cabin on board. Of course they went to shore at night so there didn't have to be beds for everyone. The box to the right holds a display of the instruments they used--compass and watch, etc. There's a sextant on the case on the floor and the desk has a chain device that must have been used to measure distance. You can get some idea of the packing beneath the floor but here's a better photo.

Even some of the barrels and boxes are cut away to reveal their contents. The colorful bundle by the near barrel contain gifts and trading trinkets for the Indians: beads, cloth, hatchets, etc. Beyond the canvas are barrels of salt pork. Beyond them are lead containers with gun powder inside. Not one to waste space, when they used up the powder, they could melt down the container into bullets.

This is a great hands on museum for kids. Other than one canoe containing animal fur, I did not see a single "Do Not Touch" sign. In fact, touching and exploring were encouraged. Throughout the gallery were bags and barrels and sacks with questions written on the outside. You had to lift lids and open sacks to find the answer. On the walls were wooden replicas of letters between Lewis and Clark in the course of their preparation for the expedition. You had to lift the seal of the letter to reveal the contents of the documents.

This exhibit had to be pulled from the wall. It explains the process necessary for a conversation between a member of the Corp and a member of the Flathead Indians. The English had to be interpreted to French, then Hidatsa, the Shoshone, and finally Salish. Talk about your game of telephone. I wonder how often the real message got lost in translation.

There was one disappointment in the museum. Apparently at one point children were give a journal of some sort and when they found hidden objects or completed a task they could add a stamp to their journal. Unfortunately some children (dare I say, but I bet they weren't homeschoolers) abused the system by stamping on each other and the exhibits and so they had to be removed.

This wonderful little museum is FREE to visit (there is a donation box in the lobby). There's also a gift shop with some great books, shirts, old fashioned toys, patches and post cards. At the same exit is a tower to climb to get an aerial view of the confluence of the rivers ($4). In the summer I believe there are outdoor activities at the Fort. So we may be headed back to Camp Dubois as the weather warms again.

Now Where's That Pencil Again?

2012-01-30T07:53:00.000-08:00

Last Fall ago I wrote about the software I use to schedule and log hours for our homeschool. If you're searching the Virtual Curriculum Fair for that type of product you'll want to read about Edu-Track . For this week's topic "Pulling it All Together," I'm going to show you the tools we use to keep us on track each day.

Having every lesson scheduled in my software is wonderful, but if I can find the colored pencils for Bible study or our read-aloud for history I'm headed for a train wreck. I can't send Schnickelfritz to search for the missing item. He's a carrier of that Y chromosome, can't-find-anything-in-the refrigerator syndrome. After glancing around the room twice he'll lose interest, or find the Transformer he wanted to play with yesterday, or decide that since he's already moved the trundle bed to look underneath he might as well stay and turn it into an "ice cave" and make our dog play cave beast. If I go looking for the lost item I may have a better chance of finding it but I'd better find it during the math lesson video. Once the lesson is done the mind wonders and we still may end up in the ice cave.

For the last two years we've been using a variation on Sue Patrick's Workbox System. Rather than numbering the boxes, I used our Graphic Toolbox software to make subject labels.

These are attached to each box. I found ours at Walmart in a 2-count set for $4. I went with a slightly bigger size so that workbooks could lay flat or I could fit a clipboard inside. We put EVERYTHING we need in the box so if we need a set of colored pencils for art and for Bible study, we buy two (they're only a buck during school sale time).

When the lesson is done, EVERYTHING has to go back in the box. It doesn't matter that we're just going to get them out again tomorrow. There's something about skipping this step that opens an inter-dimensional portal to open in our basement classroom. And that other dimension must have some weird radiation that causes inanimate objects to sprout legs and disappear. Nothing wreaks havoc on a lesson schedule more than not being able to find our history read-aloud for the day (or even a week). I also keep a box with supplies like index cards, extra pencils, and glue sticks.

Our second tool is a set of subject labels that I've lamenated and added magnets to the backs.

My son is a "How much more do we have to do today?" kind of kid. We always start the day with Bible study, but there are some subjects not scheduled every day. This way he can see what our agenda is at a glance. Some days I'll make him follow them in order, others I'll let him arrange the subjects to suit his tastes. It really eliminates the "Are we done yets?" I can just refer him to the board.

I'm sad to say this is the last week of the 2012 Virtual Curriculum Fair. Be sure to visit these other blogs to see their take on the topic The Nuts and Bolts: Pulling it All Together.

Getting a Grip on Things by Susan @ Homeschooling Hearts & Minds

Weekly Homeschooling Schedule by Julie @ HighHill Homeschool

Virtual Curriculum Fair: Week 5: The Nuts & Bolts: Pulling it all Together by Leah @ The Courtney Six Homeschool

Our Schedule's Working! by Eunora @ All Things NoriLynn

Homeschooling: How do I do it all? by Debbie @ Debbie's Digest

Virtual Curriculum Fair--- Wrap-up Angie @ Petra School

Virtual Curriculum Fair: 5 Ways to Use an iPad in Your Homeschool by Pam @ Everyday Snapshots

A Peek Into Our School Day by Melissa @ Grace Christian Homeschool
A Day in the Life... by Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun

Homeschool and Life: How we get it done by Jen @ Forever, For Always, No Matter What

Homeschooling at My House by Jessica @ Modest Mama

Making Home School a part of LIFE by Cindy @ For One Another

Something About Homeschooling I Really Didn't See Coming by Letha @ justpitchingmytent

Curriculum, Kids, and a Frazzled Homeschool Mama leads to Controlled Chaos! by Laura O from AK @ Day by Day in Our World

The Virtual Curriculum Fair – Nuts and Bolts by Kristen @ Sunrise to Sunset

Staying on Top of Everything by Brenda Emmett @ Garden of Learning

“School” and “Fun” in the same sentence

2012-01-29T13:27:00.000-08:00

Ask the average student if it’s possible to use those two words in the same sentence and the answer you’ll probably get is “No.” The roll-call question at a recent 4-H meeting was “What’s your favorite subject?” and the most frequent answer was recess. Let me be clear that I don’t think it is my job to entertain my son through school every day, but I do believe homeschoolers have an edge at making learning more fun. For starters, We don’t have the mundane busy-work that classroom teachers have to assign to keep kids quiet while they deal with the slow learners. Of course I only have one child so when he’s done so is the whole class. We can dive into a new subject or he may be rewarded with a few minutes of free time for finishing so quickly. Class doesn’t have to take place sitting at a desk or in a classroom. We often do Bible study laying on our tummies on the living room floor. Fritz’s favorite place to listen to read alouds is on the porch swing. I do have to be careful with this because he tends to get distracted by the dog.

Field Trips

Everything is more fun to learn on a field trip. I’ve always said the best person to teach a subject is the one who is passionate about it. For the most part, the docents, volunteers, re-enactors, and interpreters at art and science museums or historical sites are there because they have an interest in the subject. And if they find they have a receptive audience just watch them spew out fascinating facts and funny anecdotes. We fortunate to live near a group committed to preserving the history of the Corps of Discovery. These men actually built replicas of the pirogues and keelboat of Lewis and Clark and used them to follow the original expedition during the recent bicentennial. Since we don’t have constraints like being back at school for lunch or only scheduling Monday through Friday during school hours we have a lot more field trips to choose from and a lot more opportunity for one on one time with the experts. Sometimes Schnickelfritz is the only kid surrounded by adults dying to share their knowledge. He has been taught how to start fires with flint and steel, been able to light the fuse of a cannon, and been given samples of goodies being cooked over an open fire. You can click on my Field Trip tab above to see everywhere we’ve gone, but here are a few of our favorite trips.

Rockwoods Reservation Cave (science)

Lewis & Clark Days (history)

Camp Jackson Affair (Civil War/history)

Games

We love to learn with games. My Schnickelfritz is more of a kinesthetic learner so whatever I can do to incorporate motion into learning is a help. I used to take his Spanish vocabulary words and hide them on cards around the basement. Then I’d give him the English word and he’d have have to tear around the room looking for the correct translated word (No classroom teacher who wanted to keep her sanity would try this). Other times we use commercially made games to re-enforce facts we’ve learned in lessons. Made for Trade is based on colonial times. The Scrambled States of America helped us memorize state names, capitals, and nicknames. Of course I just wrote a post about our favorite math game, Muggins. Here’s an excerpt:

You can read the whole post here.

DVD's

Okay, I'm probably dating myself here but didn't you used to get excited when the teacher brought the A/V cart into your classroom? It meant you were going to get to watch a film strip or movie. Yes in those days the teacher had to actually thread film into a movie projector--not even VHS tapes in my day. It's not nearly so hard these days to watch films with Fritz. I picked up a copy of "A More Perfect Union" at a Tea Party Rally. What a great intro to a seldom discussed period of US history--we could hardly be described as "United" under the Articles of Confederation nor during the Constitutional Convention when they debated on how each state should be represented. We've also used Disney's "Johnny Tremain" in our history studies. I'm saving the more violent representations of war till Fritz gets older but we already have "Gods and Generals," "Sgt. York," and "Midway" in our movie line up.

DVD's are not just good for history. One of Fritz's favorites is called EZ Math Tricks. It begins with some short cuts for regular math--how to multiply by 11, squaring a number that ends in 5, etc. Then it teaches you some "magic" tricks based on math manipulations. We checked the DVD out from the library so many times, I had to get our own copy.

In the past year some of our favorite DVD's have been from the series "The Science of Disney Imagineering". We got them all through inter-library loan in preparation for our Disney World Vacation. Each covers a different principle of science, visits several Disney attractions based on that principle, and has a "do it yourself" experiment to reinforce the learning. Titles cover

Energy
Friction
Design and Models
Fluids
Trajectory
Animal Adaptations
Newton's 3 Laws of Motion
Levers & Pulleys
Gravity
Electricity
Magnetism

I've written detailed reviews of most of these titles (a project I really need to finish)-- listing vocabulary, attractions, and the home experiment, etc. You can check them out here.

Be sure to visit the Homeschool Blog Cruise to see how others are adding fun to the homeschool day.

Review: We Choose Virtue

2012-01-22T11:29:00.000-08:00

Character is, in the long run, the decisive factor in the life of individuals and of nations alike.
Theodore Roosevelt

As I mentioned in my last post, one of the top reasons for choosing home schooling is the ability to include religious and/or moral instruction. While I have scheduled Bible Study and made sure our text books are written from a Christian worldview, I have never considered teaching virtues as their own subject. Our latest review product is designed for just that with early childhood through elementary students.
We Choose Virtue sent us the following:

A set of Virtue Clue Cards (normally $7.95 on sale now for $5.99) These twelve cards come in their own plastic case with Velcro closure, perfect to stash in Mom’s purse. Each card begins with “I am” and lists a virtue with a picture of a corresponding character (e.g. Oboe Joe for Obedience). Then comes a catchphrase to help kids understand what they should be doing to demonstrate the virtue (again starting with I am or I choose). Finally there is a list of things the child should no longer be doing if they want to demonstrate the virtuous trait “(I am not distracted” when trying to be attentive. On the back side of the card is a activity challenge for the day. Can you go all day doing things people normally have to tell you to do?

The Kids of Virtueville Coloring Book ($3.00, free with any kit purchase) This is a downloadable item. Each page features on of the virtue characters, the name of the virtue they represent above them and their name at the bottom. Each character also has an object associated with them. I can understand the piggy bank for patient, as in patiently saving coins to make a big purchase. Others, like an airplane for attentive make no sense except they start with the same letter. In addition to the coloring sheets there are three puzzle pages. My son doesn’t like to color so we didn’t use this product. You do have permission to make copies for everyone in your family.

The Teacher’s Handbook ($4.99 download, $19.99 hard copy, included in many of the kits)
This full-color, 56 page handbook is your guide to introduce virtue to your children, daycare or class. It all begins by expecting excellence from yourself, the parent or teacher. If you a not modeling these traits yourself you cannot expect little ones to pick up on them and use them too. (I was reminded of that in vivid detail this week when I did not maintain self-control in the car. Little ears in the back seat picked up on my angry words and started to emulate me). The handbook has short stories, activity suggestions and detailed descriptions of all the We Choose Virtues tools.

The Family Character Assessment (free download)
This tool will help you see where you’re starting on your virtue journey and help you track your progress. Each virtue has a scale of 1 to 10 with a brief description on each side showing the extremes of displaying or not displaying the trait. I let my son fill this out on his own and was surprised by his honesty on some of the virtues. Other virtues though showed me that he doesn’t see or is unwilling to admit his weak points. (I’m sure that my own assessment would have the same issues). At one point during the weak he did act out in anger. When he had settled down, he took an eraser and lowered his score for self-control. The next night at basketball practice the same set of circumstances arose and this time he kept his cool. Again he went to the assessment chart and raised his score this time.
Can I say that we have seen some fruit from these lessons. My Schnickelfritz, aka Mr. Competitive does not take well to coming in second place. He has been known to sulk, pout, yell, and cry because his Upwards Basketball team is “just terrible.” We missed last week’s basketball game, but there was a contest in Sunday School and Fritz’s team placed third. The winners were the kindergarten class and Fritz’s class has been instructed to be encouragers for the younger kids. Rather than react inappropriately to the loss, Fritz clapped and cheered for the little winners. His Sunday School teacher made a point to tell me how pleased she was by his response. Maybe it’s that Self-Control card we’ve been looking at?
In addition to buying these products a la carte, they are available in kits for family, homeschool, church and classroom. Kit prices range from $69.99 to $244.99. Most kits are available in a faith-based or (I presume) secular format. I have to wonder though at how successful a program can be to teach obedience, forgiveness and honesty without the absolute standard and example we have in Jesus Christ.
We Choose Virtues is running a few specials this month. You may also be notified of future specials by liking them on Facebook.
SPECIALS:
JANUARY/FEBRUARY-The 100 Days of Virtue Poster and Stickers will be included FREE with any Homeschool Kit purchase during these months.

2011 Kids Virtue Poster $9.75 (from $14.99, 35% savings)
2011 100 Days of Virtue Chart and Butterfly Stickers $11.99 (from $14.99, 20% savings)
2011 3 Rules Poster $7.75 (from 11.99, 35% savings)

PROMO CODES:
These are the only active promo codes. Please make sure your readers know they can use only ONE at a time.

VIRTUE15 for 15 % off the shopping cart is still available
SHIPFREE for free worldwide shipping

You can see what others on the Homeschool Crew think of We Choose Virtues by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received free copies of the Virtue Clue Cards and free downloads for the purpose of completing this review. There was no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Soup Like Grandma Used to Make

2012-01-18T06:57:00.000-08:00

Before we start with this week's soup recipe, I want you to note that this says "Like Grandma Used to Make" not Grandma's Soup recipe. Both my mom and aunt have tried to recreate the dish based on their best recollections. I don't know if this was a recipe that Grandma never wrote down or if it was in the recipe file she gave to someone who worked in the assisted living center she moved to because she thought no one else would be interested in them. (Grandma got that one wrong). My point is the recipes you customarily make for your family are as much a part of your children's heritage as knowing which boat brought your family to America. I never got the chance to meet my husband's mother and now I can never fix his favorite dish, Beef Manhattan, the way she used to make it. I used to be able to eat a whole jar of my great Aunt Evelyn's dill pickles as a kid. By the time I grew up and had my own place to plant a garden, Alzheimer's disease had stolen the recipe from her mind. So if you love your kids, write down some of their favorite recipes for them. Kids, if you love your mom or grandma, pay them a visit and ask them to share their recipes with you. Heck, go into the kitchen and make some (and some great memories too). Okay, I'm off the soapbox now.

Vegetable soup like Grandma used to make:

1. Put 4 soup bones in a large pot and cover with water. Cook for several hours until the meat falls off the bones.

2. Chop up and add the following vegetables

3-4 potatoes (my mom peels them first)
3-4 carrots
1 onion
several ribs of celery (include the leaves)
enough cabbage to make 2-3 cups chopped
a turnip
a cup or more of green beans
corn cut off the cob

Here's the secret, peel and chop an apple and add to the pot.

Also add:

1 can tomato or V-8 Juice
1 t nutmeg
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste

3. Simmer all this on the stove until vegetables are tender. Because the men in our family prefer meat at every meal you can also add browned ground beef or stew meat to this soup.

The best part about this pot of soup was that I went over to my mother's house and we made it together! Check out the other recipes on the Soup Swap this week and share them with the ones you love.

Science and worldview

2012-01-14T10:25:00.000-08:00

According to the most recent national poll I could find on home schooling, the second most popular reason for teaching your children at home is the desire to provide religious or moral instruction. The top reason, a concern about the school environment, has not been expounded upon so we don’t know if this refers to violence and an exposure to drugs or an anti-Christian bias in teaching and curriculum. Since both answers scored over 80 percent, there is clearly some overlap. Christian parents want their children to be educated in a Christian worldview. God is not brought out of the box on Sunday mornings and then immediately wrapped back up and stored on the shelf for six days. There’s no greater opportunity for including a Christian worldview is school than with this week’s Virtual Curriculum Fair topic--

Exploring Our World: Social Studies and more Science. This theme can include history, geography, world cultures, worldview, biology, botany, geology, etc., etc., etc.

We’ve been using Apologia's Young Explorer series “Exploring Creation with …” since the beginning. Using “Creation” in the title and the fact that the program has been organized by days of creation leaves no doubt that the author will present the material with the assumption that God is the creator of all. There's no checking your brain at the door here. Students will get in depth studies in Astronomy, Botony, Zoology and Anatomy complete with hands-on activites and experiments. Chapters in the books often include sections entitled “Creation Confirmation" designed to show how a Christian/creationist worldview can explain the marvels mysteries we see around us every day.

I don't often post about our science activites (I guess I'm usually occupied with instructing and don't take pictures), but here are two posts about our Apologia work: Week 3 Wrap Up and Paper Clip Solar System.

We’ve found a number of books and videos to complement our science curriculum as well. The first is a series of three DVD’s called “Incredible Creatures the Defy Evolution.” Dr. Jobe Martin had been a Professor of Dentistry and an evolutionist. One day during a lecture on how fish scales had evolved into teeth, two of his students had the courage to stand up and challenged him to consider a creationist point of view. Dr. Jobe set out to collect proof of his worldview and found that it too was an exercise in faith. For more than 30 years he has been gathering evidence on specific attributes in animals that just can’t be explained by “goo to you by way of the zoo” thinking.

Take the giraffe for example: It takes a powerful heart to pump blood, against the force of gravity, up that long neck. What happens though, when Mr. Giraffe bends over to get a drink of water? Gravity working with that heart should cause his head to explode. A dead giraffe cannot evolve. But a creator can build a series of valves in the neck arteries (we only have valves in our veins) that will close when the giraffes head bends down preventing the powerful pumping from reaching the brain. And when the giraffe stands tall again, perhaps because a lion is approaching the water hole? He could pass out waiting for the valves to open and blood to course upward again—lunchtime for the lion, end of evolution for the giraffe. God took care of that detail too, adding a sponge-like organ at the base of the brain. It collects the last little pump of blood before the valves shut and when the giraffe lifts its head again the sponge squeezes that blood into the brain, lasting long enough till the blood starts flowing again.

The three volumes in this series cover a lot of the animals we learn about in the three Zoology texts from above: Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day, Swimming Creatures of the Fifth Day and Land Animals of the Sixth Day. The DVD’s are divided into chapters so I could go directly to the creature we were studying. Each segment is only 5-7 minutes long, but they made great chapter introductions (to entice students to want to learn more) or wrap ups on experiment days.

Incredible Creatures that Defy Evolution Volume 1 – Bombardier Beetle, Giraffe, Woodpecker, Incubator Bird, Chicken Egg, Beaver, Platypus, Spider, Gecko, Chuckwalla Lizard, Human Body

Incredible Creatures that Defy Evolution Volume 2 –Whales, Golden Plover, Dragonfly, Hippopotamus, Glowworm, Bears, Earthworm, Elephant, Sparrow.

Incredible Creatures the Defy Evolution Volume 3 – Lampsillis Mussel, Horse, Ostrich, Vestigial Organs, Hummingbird, Dog, Manatee, Butterfly, Cuttlefish, Penguin, Milopina

The same company that brings us these DVD’s has a book series called Letting God Create Your Day. We own the first 5 volumes but I believe there are eight now. The text comes from transcripts of the radio program Creation Moments. Each page is a devotion complete with Bible verse and prayer. The subjects cover fascinating factoids of mostly science, but also anthropology, history, medicine and chemistry. Trust me when I say you’ve never heard about these things in your public school science class. Here’s an excerpt from “How to Freeze a Turtle”:

In mid-June painted turtles begin to lay their eggs. Each nest holds from seven to nine eggs. Some females will make two nests. The eggs are buried, safely out of sight of predators, and the mother turtle returns to her normal habitat. The young hatch in ten or eleven weeks. After hatching, they remain buried in teh ground, and therefore safe from predators, all winter. The problem is that turtles freeze solid at the temperatures found at nest depth in the winter. Ususally, when living cells freeze, the long, sharp ice crystals that form in them puncture the cell membrane, killing the cell.

As the baby turtles freeze, even the heart and brain eventually freeze. There is no breathing and no heartbeat. Only a tiny bit of electrical activity in the frozen brain reveals that life remains in the body. Why don't ice crystals rupture the cells? The young turtle's liver makes special proteins that are circulated to every cell in the body. These proteins ensure the formation of very small ice crystals that cannot puncture delicate cell walls.

Only God could have invented such a unique method of protecting tiny, painted turtles.

You could read these devotionals before a family meal or to start your school day. My only wish was that there was an index so I could find subjects that tied into our science lessons. You might also consider using these books as source texts for Institute for Excellence in Writing assignments. Mr. Pudewa recommends humorous, dangerous, or gross ideas to keep the interests of boys who'd rather build forts all day. These passages fit the bill.

Be sure to stop by these other blogs in the Vitual Curriculum Fair to read their takes on Exploring Our World: Social Studies and more Science.

Nature Study as Science by Christine @ Crunchy Country Catholic

Virtual Curriculum Fair Week 3- Social Studies and more Science by Leah Courtney @ The Courtney Six Homeschool Family

Curriculum Fair–Exploring Our World by Angie @ Petra School

Paths of Exploration by Jen @ Forever, For Always

Learning Geography at Our House by Jessica @ Modest Mama

The Fascinating World Around Us by Cindy Horton @ Fenced in Family

More Heart of Dakota Praises by Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun

Our History by Melissa @ Grace Christian Homeschool

Playful US Geography for First Grade by Pam @ Everyday Snapshots

Heart of Dakota-The Fine Details-Part 3 History by Lynn @ Ladybug Chronicles

Exploring Our World Through History & Science by Brenda Emmett @ Garden of Learning

Two History Must-haves by Letha @ justpitchingmytent

Learning About The World Around Us by Laura O from AK

Social Studies and Science - What do we do? by Joelle @ Homechooling for His Glory

Picante Onion Soup, it's good for what ails ya...

2012-01-10T14:02:00.000-08:00

This week's Soup Swap recipe came from a jar of Pace Picante sauce a decade or so ago. I tried to find an original copy but when I Googled the recipe I found many variations so I'm just adding another one to the collection.

When it comes to soups and colds, most people think of chicken noodle soup so I know I'm in a minority here. My soup of choice is Picante Onion Soup. I just appreciate the spice when I'm dealing with a sense of taste that has been dulled by sickness. A little internet investigation suggest that the soup may have some health benefits too (I'm not a doctor and I've never played one on TV--this is strictly Dr. Mom stuff). According to Natural Remedies Center: onion is a good home remedy for flu and cough, onions are known to be effective in removing phlegm, and individuals that ate onion soup had better immune responses. So if you feel a winter cold coming on here's what you need.

2-3 onions
3 Cups tomato juice
1 can beef broth & 1 canful of water
1/4 Cup butter
1 mince clove of garlic
1/2 Cup Picante Sauce (pick your heat level)

Begin by thinly slicing the onions till you have three cups worth. I just love this V-slicer I picked up at the State Fair years ago. I usually make one cut throuch the onion so I have half-ring pieces but you can leave the rings whole or chop the onion into pieces.

Melt the butter in a large stock pot (at least 4 quarts) and add onion and garlic. Cook until soft and golden (about 15 minutes)

When the onions are finished, add tomato juice, picante sauce, beef broth and water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes.

Oops, my sous-chef must have had the day off and forgot to wipe around the rim of the bowl.

There you go. A hot soup with little effort (another good thing when you're feeling under the weather). But don't just wait until your sick to try it. This recipe just screams for adding your own optional ingredients. The original recipe called for adding croutons and monterey jack cheese. Here I've used crushed tortilla chips and cheddar. Other ingredients I've tried:

cooked brown rice (an easy way to add whole grain fiber)
cooked chopped chicken
sausage
leftover taco meat
french cut green beans
hot sauce
whatever you need to use up in the fridge

Of course the best ingredient to add is love and really that's why we cook, isn't it? Be sure to check out what the other ladies are bringing to the Soup Swap this week.

Math Facts or Fun? Why Not Both!

2012-01-08T20:04:00.000-08:00

Over the past three years, Schnickelfritz and I have reviewed many products design to help make drilling math facts fun, or at least more palatable for kids. Some offer the reward of game time or an object for a virtual world after the lesson is complete. One had the drill in the form of a race and the faster you typed in correct answers the quicker you crossed the finish line. Because I was reviewing specific products I've never been able to talk about our favorite way to review math facts (you can't mention "the competition" in a review). This Virtual Curriculum Fair has finally given me the opening to talk about the Math Games of Old Fashioned Products, Inc: Jelly Beans, Knock-Out, Muggins, and Opps. All but Jelly Beans can be played by 2-4 players. I've invested in the hardwood version of the games but they are also available as write on/wipe off boards (we think the marbles make it more fun).

Jelly Beans is geared towards the youngest learners--those just learning to count and add and subtract. The board is designed for two players to go head to head each with a row of holes numbered 1 through 12. In the easiest version of the game, the player roles two dice and counts the number of dots showing, placing a marble in the hole that corresponds to the total. The first player to fill in ten holes wins.

Next level: we're ready to add and subtract. The player roles the two dice and places one above the corresponding number (in this case above the five from the previous game). The second die is placed near the subtraction or addition sign. This tells the player how many "hops" to make away from the first die. Here I've made four hops or added four to five to total nine. Again, first player to fill 10 holes wins.

Third game (and this one can be played solitaire as well). The player rolls three dice and tries to fill as many holes as possible in one turn using the face value of one die or adding/subtracting two or all three dice. In the roll above, I was able to fill all the holes all the way to 8 as follows:
1 = face value
2 = 3 - 1
3 = face value
4 = face value
5 = 4 + 1
6 = 4 + 3 - 1
7 = 4 + 3
8 = 4 + 3 + 1

If playing head to head, the first player to fill all twelve holes wins. As a solitaire game, see how few turns you need to fill the board. Jelly Beans is for ages 4-7 (I think you could lower that to any age starting to learn to count but then you need to watch out for toddlers swallowing the marbles). Once the child is comfortable with counting, adding and subtracting you're ready to turn the board over for Knock-Out.

This board features an inner and outer ring of holes, each pair with a number from 1 to 18. The object of the game is to "capture" a number by placing your colored marble in both the inner and outer ring. In the easiest version the player rolls two dice and places a marble in either the sum of the two (the red marble in 10 as seen above) or two marbles based on the face values shown (the blue 4 and 6 above). If you roll doubles, you automatically capture the number. If you've only got one side filled your opponent(s) can knock you out by rolling the same number during their turn. Of course in this version (with two dice) you can only reach numbers 1 through 12. This is the game that really hooked my son--there's nothing better than knocking Mama off the board.

In the next level of the game you use three die. In addition to using face values and the total of all dice, you may also place marbles in any numbers that also add up to the total. In the above game let's say I'm red and I've just rolled a total of 10 (1 + 4 + 5). I could place a marble on the other side of 10 and capture that number. I could also place red marbles in 1, 4, and 5 (the face values) knocking out the blue marble in 4 and starting to stake claims on 1 and 5. This would put three new red marbles on the board. However, there is a way to place four marbles on the board because 1+2+3+4 also equals 10. Now I can knock 3 blue marbles off the board. At this level we're not only working on addition and subtraction, but introducing critical thinking and strategy. Knock-Out is marketed to ages 6 and up.

The next, and probably most popular game is Muggins. This boards has holes numbered 1 to 36 around the four sides and uses three dice. The player scores points for every marble on the board, but there are bonuses for creating a run of 2 or more of your marbles in a row.

In its easiest level, Muggins can still be a game of just addition and subtraction. By using the 12-sided dice included with the game it's possible to capture all 36 numbers. Here it's black's turn and I've rolled a 10, 4 and 6. The 20 (10 + 4+ 6) is already taken by green. I could make a run of three by capturing the 8 (10 + 4 - 6) or I could stop blue's run by taking 12 (10+6-4).

At the next level of the game we use three regular dice but any of the four math functions. You either add, subtract, multiply or divide two dice to get a new number and then add, subtract, multiply, or divide that number by the face value of the third die. You can see where the possible choices of marble placement expand dramatically.
Here are just a few options (assuming I'm blue) with a 3, 4 and 6 :

3 + 4 + 6 = 13, already occupied
3 + 4 - 6 = 1, available but it doesn't make a run or block anyone else
3 + 6 - 4 = 5, this would put an end to one side of black's run
(6*4)/3 = 8, this would keep black from forming a 4 marble run
6*3 - 4 = 14, this would give blue a run of 3

As the board begins to fill it becomes harder and harder to find numbers to capture. I can almost see Fritz's gears churning in his brain as he tries to manipulate the numbers to come up with an open solution. In the official rules of Muggins you are allowed to "bluff," that is try to get away with placing a marble somewhere that you can't reach mathematically. If you get caught, that marble is removed. If you are challenged and can explain your calculations you may remove one of the challenger's marbles. (When we're playing for school purposes, we always "show our work" and explain our calculations so no bluffing allowed). There's an even higher level of game play where you use two dice as noting place value. In our sample game I could use the 3 and 6 as 36 and divide by 4 to make 9 (but that's already taken). I love the age range for Muggins-- 8 to Nuclear Physicist.

The final game, and really one of the best for drilling a concept is Opps. The board layout is similar to Muggins but the numbers run from negative 18 to positive 18, including zero. There are four dice: two red and two green. The reds represent negative numbers. Do you remember all the rules for negatives: adding a negative is really subtraction, multiplying two negatives makes a positive product, etc. What a perfect way to get kids ready for algebra where they'll be dealing with positive and negative x's and y's. The game is designed for ages 12 to Einstein, but my eight year old boy is able to play since he's grounded in math facts and only has to concentrate on how negative numbers work.

A single board game can cost $32 dollars if you buy it on the Muggins Math website. They do have combinations of reversable boards for only $11 dollars more: Jelly Beans & Knock Out, Knock Out & Muggins, Muggins & Opps. There are more combos with games we've never tried. Looking at their website today I saw a whole series of games that deal with fractions (next year's math focus) I see the games as investments because we'll keep playing them long beyond their need as math facts drilling. Each game also comes with several levels of play so it grows with your childs capabilities. If this is still beyond your budget, the write on/wipe off versions are only $12.

This post is part of the Virtual Curriculum Fair. Please visit these other links to read about how other homeschoolers teach Math, Logic, and Science.

Math Lapbooks---Virtual Curriculum Fair Week 2 Angie Wright @ Petra School

Virtual Curriculum Fair Week Two: Discover Patterns, Mathematics, Logic and Some Science by Leah @ The Courtney Six Homeschool

Our Choices For Math by Melissa @ Grace Christian Homeschool

A Magnificent Math Manipulative by Letha Paulk @ justpitchingmytent

Our Math Choices - Virtual Curriculum Fair by Tristan @ Our Busy Homeschool

Math Literature?!?! by Christine @ Crunchy Country Catholic

Learning Math at My House by Jessica @ Modest Mama

Math Using Hamburger Paper by Debbie @ Debbie's Digest

Math Facts or Fun? Why Not Both! by Beth @ Ozark Ramblings

Heart of Dakota- The Fine Details- Part 2 Science by Lynn @ Ladybug Chronicles

Learning Math Block by Block by Laura O in AK @ Day by Day in Our World

Plugging Along with Math by Cindy Horton @ Fenced in Family

What's Working and What's Not: Math Edition by Leann @ Montessori Tidbits

Math Anyone? by Cindy @ For One Another

Ahh, Math. by Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun

Flying Without a Parachute: Math with no Curriculum by Pam @ Everyday Snapshots

Math in Our Homeschool by Christine T @ Our Homeschool Reviews

Math, Math, and More Math by Dawn Chandler @ tractors & tire swings

Thinking Mathematically- How I Choose Math Curriculum by Kristen @ Sunrise to Sunset

Discovering Patterns: Math, Logic, and Some Science by Christa Darr @ Fairfield Corner Academy

The Science of Math by Brenda Emmett @ Garden of Learning

"Mom, did we do math today?" by Chrissy at Learning is an Adventure

Math, Math, and More Math by Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory

The Eagles are Landing!!!

2012-01-07T06:44:00.000-08:00

Okay, the calendar has turned, the Christmas tree has been taken down, the New Year's resolutions have been made. Now do you just huddle inside your home waiting for the first robin of spring? Well if you live in my neck of the woods, January is a great time to go bird watching--and I'm talking about something that will stir your soul a lot more than a dull little robin.

You see all these birds? They're Bald Eagles!!! That's right, the national bird, the bird that made it back off the endangered species list. On this particular day we saw more than 300 of them soaring, swooping for fish, and roosting in the trees along the Mississippi River.

In the winter they gather around the locks and dams on the river because these waters won't be iced over and they can continue to fish. January is prime viewing time and the Missouri Dept. of Conservation holds several Eagle Days designed to make your bird watching special. If you want to avoid the crowds you can go on any day, but Eagle Day weekends have some extra perks you won't find on your own: warming tents, photography workshops, the chance to see eagles up close, spotting scopes, educational material for the kids, etc.

Schnickelfritz learns just how big these birds are

At some locations the Wild Bird Sanctuary offers question and answer sessions to visitors and the opportunity to get as close to these majestic birds that you're likely to get. Look at this guy and tell me he doesn't know he's posing for the camera. (He is permanently injured and unable to fly so he serves as ambassador for Eagle Days).

After the workshop, you're welcome to look but not touch the eagle or pose for a picture (standing on the opposite side of the handler--this is still a wild bird).

If you want to see these Eagles here are some dates to remember.

January 14-15 Chain of Rocks bridge just north of St. Louis There will be warming tents, Wild Bird Sanctuary presentations, a full size eagle's nest replica to have your picture taken in, hands on exhibits by the St. Louis Audubon Society, Lewis & Clark re-enactors, and a chance to learn about the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

January 14-15 Columbia Bottoms Conservation Area. The Dept of Conservation will host its own Eagle viewing days offering Photography workshops (reservations required)

January 28-29 Clarksville Missouri near Locks and Dam #24. There will be spotting scopes, hourly presentations by Wild Bird Sanctuary, exhibits, children's activities, and a MO Dept of Conservation movie: Where Eagles Soar. Local groups offer inexpensive lunch options.

Just a note if you plan to go to Clarksville. The Apple Shed where the presentations are held is NOT heated and they don't use space heater because of the live birds. You may want to bring a throw blanket to snuggle under while you're seated.

These aren't the only spots to see eagles. The MDC map suggests other areas that might be closer to home.

1. Clarksville
2. Chain of Rocks Bridge
3. Smithville Lake
4. Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge
5. Lake of the Ozarks
6. Springfield Conservation Nature Center
7. Schell-Osage Conservation Area

Review: Z-Guides to the Movies

2012-01-04T13:56:00.000-08:00

Last March I posted an entry about feeling puny but still being able to log some homeschool hours by watching educational movies. I have to admit some guilt about that--am I really teaching my son if we're watching a movie together? Our latest review product, Z-Guides to the Movies by Zeezok Publishing, is designed to help formalize the leaning experience.

The Z-Guide is a one week supplement to your current history curriculum (two activities per day). Current titles cover history genre films from Ancient Civilizations to Post World War II. We chose to review Johnny Tremain since we had that film on our shelves. Each guide is based on a specific film, so while there may be several versions of The Count of Monte Crisco, you'll want to get the correct one for the Z-Guide (the Zeezok website actually sells the films but you can also use the information to get a copy at your library or from Netflix).

Let me preface this review by saying I was led to believe it was designed for elementary students but when I received it I saw that it was written to middle school students. My Schnickelfritz was not able to do some of the assignments (he's not allowed to browse the internet on his own for example) so some of the work I had to do myself.

According to Zeezok's website, each Z-Guide should contain the following:

An overview of the topic
A synopsis of the film
Review questions to be answered while watching the film
Research activities built around the historical time of the film
At least one hands-on activity
A Worldview Activity
A Filmmaker's Art activity

Let's take each of these in turn:

The Z-Guide introduction is written to the teacher and the Overview and Movie Synopsis come before the student activities so I assume they are for the teacher to read and then relay that information to the student. You could simply read the paragraphs aloud, but they are so information-dense and compact that I needed to give Fritz a more drawn out and simplified version.

The first activity is always the Movie Review Questions .   These 25 questions (listed in order of appearance in the film) are designed to keep the student attentive rather than fall into passive viewing. The problem was my Schnickelfritz became overly focused on answering the specific questions (like While at the printers, Johnny and Rab discuss the ________ tax.) that he was missing the gist of the scene. He knew the name of the tax but not why the colonists were so upset by it. If you have one of these concrete/sequential learners you may need to watch the film once to get the overall picture and then try and answer the questions during a second viewing. Heck, you may discover some foreshadowing that you didn't see the first time.

Three of the next activities involve research skills. The student is supposed to use print and internet sources to answer questions about The Boston Tea Party, the Battles of Lexington and Concord, and the practice of apprenticeship. A well-prepared Mama would have gone to the library and checked out books with the answer. A middle-school student (the target audience of this guide) could probably find all the answers on the internet, but my son isn't allowed to surf the web solo yet. Some questions were fill-in-the-blank or multiple-choice, others involved more writing e.g. "What were some typical obligations of the apprentice as spelled out in the contract?"

Other activities had the source text provided in the Z-Guide. One involved vocabulary taken from James Otis' pamphlet The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved. The eighteenth century dialogue was certainly over my 9 year old's head (proving again that middle school or higher is the appropriate age level). Another activity would be to re-enact Patrick Henry's "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech (note: the Z-Guide says memorization of the speech is helpful but not necessary).   My son does quite well about memorizing Bible verses, even Psalm 23, but Patrick Henry's speech is for old students. On the other hand, there were some activities that seemed targeted to younger students: two coloring pages, a maze, and a crossword puzzle based on the film.

I assume the the Patrick Henry speech was meant to be the Hands On Activity because there was nothing else close to that description. To my mind "hands on" means the chance to get messy--even something as simple as brewing a cup of tea, or better yet cutting open the tea bag to see what tea leaves look like inside. A middle school student would be capable of more: carving in wax like Johnny did as a silversmith, perhaps.

The Worldview Activity was a series of questions to be answered by short essay. It was possible to adapt this to a younger student simply by making it a family discussion (after all most Christian parents want their children to follow in their worldview choices). They are not necessarily questions of a religious nature, although that's what I think of first when I hear "worldview." One question was "Why did Johnny wait so long to seek medical treatment?"

I searched high and low to find the Filmmaker's Art activity.   According to Zeezok's What is a Z-Guide:

The Filmmaker’s Art activity helps the student recognize the tools being used to influence the viewer. The various guides discuss how filming techniques, music, lighting, humor, character development, irony, foreshadowing, and even character names are used by the director and producer to influence the viewer to get their agenda across. We want the student to be able to discern not only the agenda of the movie, but also how they are being influenced by it. The goal is that when the student goes to the theatre and watches Harry Potter or Avatar or Happy Feet, he walks out not thinking it was an entertaining movie, but understanding the bigger message behind each film.

There simply wasn't such an activity in the Johnny Tremain Z-Guide.

I don't mean to seem so negative about Z-Guides. When I was presented with a list of titles from which to choose, Johnny Tremain was listed as being appropriate for elementary students and I tried to adapt it as well as possible. If I had an older student, I would certainly consider using Z-guides as a means of including other media sources in our history curriculum. Others on the Homeschool Crew reviewed other Z-Guides and you can read about their experiences (hopefully with age appropriate students) by clicking here.

There are more than 25 Z-Guides available now on Zeezok Publishing's website for $12.99 for a single user. This price is for download or CD (then shipping charges would apply). There is also a classroom or co-op license available for $49.99. Other titles (including some of my favorite films) are: Ben Hur, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and Sergeant York.

Disclaimer: I received a free download of the Z-Guide Johnny Tremain for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.

A Soup to Warm Your Bones

2012-01-03T12:01:00.000-08:00

Do you remember that commercial where the snow man trudges into the house and, after eating a bowl of soup, melts down to reveal a little boy inside. To me, that's the value of soup: something to warm my bones up. It has been a fairly mild winter to date, but today I had to walk my pooch in 15 degree weather and that brought soup to mind.

Here's a favorite based on the Cheddar Broccoli Soup recipe from my 30 Day Gourmet cookbook.

Ingredients

1 bunch fresh broccoli (I've also used a package of just crowns)
2 cups water, divided
1/4 cup chopped onion
5 T butter
2 T chicken bouillon granules
1/2 Cup flour
2 cups milk (I use whole, but choose your own)
2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar, colby, or a combo)
1/8 t ground nutmeg
1-2 cups cooked rice

1. Cut the broccoli into chunks (including the stalk if you have one) and steam with 1 cup water in covered stock pot until tender. DON'T DRAIN!! The water holds a lot of the vitamins.

2. Put the broccoli and water in a food processor of blender and puree. If your blender is struggling go ahead and add the second cup of water and chicken bouillon granules in with the broccoli, otherwise save until step 3. If you like the presentation of a few larger broccoli pieces floating in your soup save some of the florets and chop them by hand. Set aside.

3. In a large stock pot saute onions in melted butter until tender. Stir in the flour and give it a chance to cook for a minute. Combine 1 cup water with chicken bouillon granules. Gradually add milk and water/bouillon to the onion/flour mixture. Stir constantly until well blended and thick.

4. Add pureed broccoli, any chopped broccoli, cooked rice and nutmeg. Add the shredded cheese and cook until cheese is melted and soup is hot. Don't let the soup boil.

I happen to be the only one in the family who is crazy for this soup. The good news is that even though it's a cream based soup, it's freezable. I store mine in 1 1/2 cup serving sizes in freezer bags.

This recipes is part of a Soup Swap sponsored by Milk & Honey Mommy. If your looking for some more recipes to warm your bones click the button below.

An In Depth Look at All About Spelling

2012-01-02T08:26:00.000-08:00

As part of the 2012 Virtual Curriculum Fair, we are going to be sharing some of the curriculum and products that really work for our family. Today's topic deals with language arts and I've chosen to focus on spelling.

As the years pass it get harder and harder for me to remember individual subject from my own education but for some reason spelling sticks in my head. I think that's because the pattern was the same for all six years of my elementary education. On Mondays the teacher would provide us with a list of 25 words related by a theme--days of the week, weather terms, etc. We would study that list on our own time and be tested on Thursday. If we got 100 percent right we would be done for the week, otherwise we had to study the words we missed and retake the test on Friday. I don't know what happened to the people who missed words on Friday because we set those words aside to prepare for a new list the next Monday. We never discussed rules of spelling other than reciting "I before E except after C." It wasn't really an exercise in spelling so much as memorizing. One time, the teacher's aide mistakenly marked my spelling of "tomorrow" as wrong and changed it to two m's instead of two r's. When I retook the test the next day writing my newly memorized version of the word, the teacher marked it wrong (this time correctly). To this day I still have to let the spellcheck feature tell me which way is right. I wanted a better system for my son.

Two years ago, I was given All About Spelling to review. I'd never heard of it before but it quickly became a favorite for both teacher and student. I liked it because it showed me step by step how to teach spelling (going so far as to tell me what to say). My son liked it because it used magnetized tiles with individual and combinations of letters to build words (any time he didn't have to write himself was good). We've gone on to purchase the other levels of the program after getting the first one free.

This board gives you an idea of the spelling workspace with all the tiles added. I found this magnetic white board at Sam's Club and it was perfect except that my Schnickelfritz was always removing the tiles so he could draw on the board. Since he no longer needs the practice of putting letters in alphabetical order and because I'm tired of tracking down missing tiles I have relinqushed the board to him and we use the front of our refrigerator as our spelling space.

All About Spelling has a wonderful built-in review system to ensure that previous lessons aren't flushed away to make room for new material. The are fort sets of colored cards: yellow Phonogram cards display a letter or combination of letters and the student must identify the sound(s) each phonogram makes. Red Sound cards instruct the teacher what sound to make and the student must write or say what letter or letter comination makes that sound. Blue Key cards give questions on the rules or generalizations about spelling and the student must provide the answer. Green word cards make up the spelling lists for each lesson. The cards are stored in a file box behind tabs for Future Lessons, Mastered, and Review. Because this filing system is customized to the student--what they have mastered and what they still need to review, you will probably need to buy a student packet and keep separate boxes for each child. Some of the cards move up with the student to higher levels so you also won't be able to just save the set for younger kids moving up.

PLEASE NOTE: All examples are taken from the free download sample on the All About Spelling Website.

Each lesson begins with a review of the phonograms, sounds, key concepts, and words with which the student still struggles. There may also be a Concept Review where we practice dividing words into syllables or review when C makes its hard or soft sound. Every so often there is also a review of mastered cards just so the material stays locked in the mind. We do our reviewing on Mondays.

Tuesdays bring new teaching. This may be a new phonogram or recognizing a "rule-breaker." One of the difficulties in teaching spelling by the rules is that the English language is replete with exceptions to said rules. All About Spelling handles rule-breakers in a fun and better yet, memorable way--the student circles the portion of the word that doesn't follow the rules and the whole card, the teacher asks "What do we do with rule-breakers" and the student responds "We throw them in jail!"
The material package comes with a picture of an old western jail complete with buzzard on top. I've attached a manilla envelope to the back to hold the cards. (While I've never seen it listed in the review directions, we also visit our jail-bird words on Mondays).

Wednesdays may bring additional new teaching (some lessons have two concepts) or we may be ready to spell reinforcement words with our tiles. Nost lessons include at least ten words with the new teaching and 10-20 more words in the reinforcement sections. The big advantange in the All About Spelling method is that the student is learning words that follow a specific rule at the same time rather than words from a variety of rules that happen to fall into the same theme (the way I learned).

Thursdays become the reinforcement day if we've had a second day of New Teaching. There is a second section of reinforcement that involves dictating phrases as sentences. The book suggests dictating several each day rather than leaving them all for the end of the week and my son prefers this as well. There are usually six of each and I assign two per day on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. We're able to get our spelling done in three to four days!

As I mentioned at the beginning, I'm taking part in a Virtual Curriculum Fair. Other participants will have different products that their enthused to share, although they will all be about Language Arts this week. Be sure to check some of them out this week.

Reading on Time by Cindy Horton @ Fenced in Family

Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Christa Darr @ Fairfield Corner Academy

Reading and Beyond: Language Arts in Our Homeschool by Laura O in AK @ Day by Day in Our World

Language Arts that Work for Us by Melissa @ Grace Christian School

Learning Language at Our House by Jessica @ Modest Mama

Virtual Curriculum Fair: Language Arts by Christine T. @ Our Homeschool Reviews

The Learning of Language by Dawn @ tractors & tire swings

Reading and Spelling: Modifying the Magic by Pam @ Everyday Snapshots

Virtual Curriculum Fair: Let's Talk About Words by Debra @ Footprints in the Butter

Why We Love Classical Conversations Essentials (and how I know that is not a complete sentence!) by Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun

Virtual Curriculum Fair---Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Angie @ Petra School

Whole Language vs. Phonics by Christine @ Crunchy Country Catholic

It's All About the Art of Language by Brenda Emmett @ Garden of Learning

Watching Movies for Language Arts Class by Debbie @ Debbie's Digest

Only 5 Spelling Tests a Year! (Can we do that?) by LP @ justpitchingmytent

Playing with Words by Chrissy @ Learning is an Adventure

Language Art at Our House by Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory

Virtual Curriculum Fair Week One Playing with Words: the Language Arts by Leah Courtney @ The Courtney Six Homeschool Blog

Review: R.e.a.l. Homeschool Spanish

2011-12-30T07:51:00.001-08:00

Vendor Name: R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish (R.E.A.L. stands for Relax, Enjoy, Aspire, Learn Spanish)
Vendor Contact: R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish website
Age Range: K – 8 (a kindergartner could certainly take part in the oral lessons, some of the review puzzles are geared towards older kids. A High School supplement is in the works)
Price: $49.95 for download version of the Book, Activity Book, Answer Book, and audio files

$59.95 for all of the above plus Daily Curriculum Guide
Hard copies (with audio Cd's) of above are available for $89.95 and $99.95 respectively with free shipping

Foreign Languages: I think we’d all agree that there are part of a well rounded education. Many college admissions offices expect to see them on a transcript. Being able to speak at least one can give you an advantage when applying for jobs. The problem is how to teach it, especially if it’s not a language you speak. In my high school days I had dreams of standing atop the Eiffel Tower in a striped sundress and a straw hat so I enrolled in French. Those dreams didn’t work out for me and now I’m left in a pickle because both my husband and I agree that Spanish is the more useful language these days.

Our review product is designed to help those parents who are familiar with the concept of foreign languages (conjugating verbs, etc) if not the language themselves. The author, Dr. Karyn Williamson-Coria earned her doctorate in Expanded French Studies and married a native speaker of Spanish so she is certainly familiar with breaking down the study of language into digestible chunks.
The download files include both a color and a black & white copy of “The Book” which I would call an expanded teacher’s manual. The colorized version has Spanish vocabulary and phrases in black and English translations in green. A lot of the Tips to the Home Educator and enforcement ideas have green backgrounds so if you plan to print everything out B&W would be more economical.
There are Ten units broken into smaller lessons:

1A Greetings
1B How are You
2A Colors
2B Numbers
2C More Numbers
2D Telling Time
3A Fruits and Vegetables
3B Meats and Proteins
3C Carbs and Desserts [personal note-the title made me laugh, dieters should avoid this lesson!']
3D Beverages, Condiments, Dairy and Other
4A Family
4B Family
4C Adjectives
4D Adjectives
5A Face
5B Body
6A Clothes
6B Clothes
6C Weather and Seasons
6D Months of the Year
7A Places
7B Days of the Weeks
7C The verb “to go”/ir
7D Transportation/Places
8A Animals
8B Animals
8C Nature
9A Sports
10A Verbs Parts 1,2,3
10B The House
10C Things in the House

Most units also contain tips to the home educator on how to present the material, ideas for reinforcing vocabulary and some grammar tidbits.

The Activity Guide is designed to be printed out and only comes in a black & white version. These reinforcing activities include crossword puzzles, word searches, fill-in-the-blank dialogues, scrambled tiles, and more. I would classify some of this a busy work to occupy students in a classroom while the teacher works with slower learners. Other exercises are really clever ways to see if a student is comprehending what they read, for example putting sentences in order to create a dialogue between two people or reading a dialogue and answering questions based on clues in the text. The Answers Book are the solutions to the Activity Guide’s exercises.

The audio files are broken down to correspond to the unit sections (4A for example). The female speaker will say the word in English first and then in Spanish. The book has the Spanish listed first and then English so you are sort of required to read backwards but this isn’t terribly difficult to overcome. Each word and phrase is only said once and there is no way to select a specific word to hear. You must listen to the entire lesson to reach the word you are seeking.

The Daily Curriculum Guide is optional, but to my mind worth the extra $10. The curriculum is divided into 48 weeks of daily lessons and each week includes a sixth day with preparation for the teacher. Most helpful to me were the reminders to check R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish’s website for links to help bring the culture (mostly Latin American) to life. There are games, history, recipes and more. If you prefer to do your own planning, the Book includes a page you can print out and fill in your own schedule.

Some of these files were zipped, but they were still big. If you live in dial-up land like me and don't want to pay the premium for hard copies you may want to see if you can visit the library or a friend with high speed service and download to a thumb drive.

Schnickelfritz is in third grade so right now I’m content for him to learn to speak and listen to Spanish. We can add reading and writing as he gets older. The lessons are taught by me having a conversation with him of previously memorized sentences (an example in English is below)

Me: Good Morning Fritz.
Fritz: Good Morning Mama.
Me: How are you?
Fritz: Very well, and you?
Me: Very Well.
Fritz: See you later.

This is almost identical to the first lesson I ever had in French twenty-something years ago. Looking ahead (because we haven’t gotten that far) I can see where we begin to conjugate verbs—those that follow a pattern and irregular; learn about masculine and feminine nouns and how adjectives are spelled differently for each. I could not find a lesson on punctuation, specifically why some punctuation marks appear upside down at the beginning of the sentences. Perhaps this will be covered in the more formal High School Supplement.

We will be continuing our Spanish studies after Christmas break. If you think you'd like to add Spanish to your lessons, check out the samples from the Book, Activity Book, and Daily Curriculum Guide .

You can read what other Homeschool Crew members think about R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I recieved a free copy of the R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish Book, Activity Book, Answer Book, Audio files and Daily Curriculum Guide for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my honest opion.

Hanukkah

2011-12-22T09:26:00.000-08:00

A homeschooling mom in our county offered to teach a class on Hanukkah. Schnickelfritz and I had a similar lesson at her house last year. This year was so much better attended (I think it's because most of the HS moms had been attending her year-long course on Biblical feasts) that we had to move to a church fellowship hall. I hadn't planned it this way, but God has perfect timing; Fritz and I had just finished Daniel chapter 11 in our Discover 4 Yourself Bible study and so he was very familiar with Antiochus IV Epiphanes--the cruel ruler that desecrated the temple. It was during the cleansing and rededication of the temple that miracle of the oil took place.

Several types of Hanukiah

After a brief lecture, the group was free to go to several craft stations, play the dreidel game, and sample donuts, baklava, and latkes (everything fried to remind us of the oil).

The boys drifted to the dreidel station (could it be because there was chocolate involved?) According to the tradition, Jews would hide their Torahs and pull out these tops to play with when Greek soldiers would stop by to make sure no one was involved in illegal worship.

The younger kids could decorate a paper menorah with stickers.

More ambitious or older kids could make their own menorah out of paper plates and foam.

While Hanukkah is not one of the Biblical feasts prescribed by God in the Old Testament, it is mentioned in the Bible, referred to as the Feast of Dedication.

Money Monday: Christmas and Commercialism

2011-12-19T10:27:00.001-08:00

Yeah, there's a lot of bad 'isms' floatin' around this world, but one of the worst is commercialism. Make a buck, make a buck. Even in Brooklyn it's the same - don't care what Christmas stands for, just make a buck, make a buck.

Alfred the Janitor, Miracle on 34th Street, 1947

Poor Alfred, what would he think today? In recent years we’ve been treated to headlines about shoppers being trampled to death and one lady resorting to pepper spray in order to grab a bargain before anyone else. Does that put you in the Christmas mood? Whatever happened to Peace on Earth and goodwill towards men? This isn’t the holiday I signed up for—the one where people get in line two days before Thanksgiving to fill their shopping carts with Wiis and Ipads at incredible bargain prices. It’s supposed to be about the Savior, not savings. PS—to those stores that decided it was better to make a buck than let employees enjoy Thanksgiving with their families, I didn’t spend any of my money with you that day or any other since. I will not worship at the altar of your cash register.

At the same time, though sadly not as prominently in the news, food pantries and organizations like the Salvation Army are struggling to stretch their resources even further as demand increases and donations go down. The Boy Scouts’ food drive this year was down almost 30 percent in St. Louis. Our local paper showed bare shelves at a pantry trying to serve 60 families each week. Americans spent around $450 billion on the “Holiday Season” last year on lights, cards, ugly sweaters and Chia Pets. The Salvation Army Red Kettle campaign took in $142 million, that’s 3 hundredths of one percent of the holiday splurge.

For the past five years, our church has participated in the Advent Conspiracy—a radical idea to separate the birth of our Savior from the massive shopping frenzy. It’s done in four simple steps as seen on their website.

It starts with Jesus. It ends with Jesus. This is the holistic approach God had in mind for Christmas. It’s a season where we are called to put down our burdens and lift a song up to our God. It’s a season where love wins, peace reigns, and a king is celebrated with each breath. It’s the party of the year. Entering the story of advent means entering this season with an overwhelming passion to worship Jesus to the fullest.

Before you think we’re getting all Scrooge on you, let us explain what we mean. We like gifts. Our kids really like gifts. But consider this: America spends an average of $450 billion a year every Christmas. How often have you spent money on Christmas presents for no other reason than obligation? How many times have you received a gift out of that same obligation? Thanks, but no thanks, right? We’re asking people to consider buying ONE LESS GIFT this Christmas. Just one. Sounds insignificant, yet many who have taken this small sacrifice have experienced something nothing less than a miracle: They have been more available to celebrate Christ during the advent season.

God’s gift to us was a relationship built on love. So it’s no wonder why we’re drawn to the idea that Christmas should be a time to love our friends and family in the most memorable ways possible. Time is the real gift Christmas offers us, and no matter how hard we look, it can’t be found at the mall. Time to make a gift that turns into the next family heirloom. Time to write mom a letter. Time to take the kids sledding. Time to bake really good cookies and sing really bad Christmas carols. Time to make love visible through relational giving. Sounds a lot better than getting a sweater two sizes too big, right?

When Jesus loved, He loved in ways never imagined. Though rich, he became poor to love the poor, the forgotten, the overlooked and the sick. He played to the margins. By spending less at Christmas we have the opportunity to join Him in giving resources to those who need help the most. When Advent Conspiracy first began four churches challenged this simple concept to its congregations. The result raised more than a half million dollars to aid those in need. One less gift. One unbelievable present in the name of Christ.

Review: Vintage Remedies

2011-12-16T13:17:00.000-08:00

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. I Corinthians 13:11

No disrespect to the Apostle Paul, but here is my version--

When I was a child, I ate like a child. I wanted soft white bread and fizzy drinks. I believed that all food came wrapped in plastic or boxed or canned. I used pine scented aerosols and cleaning products that sent me running from the bathroom choking on the fumes. I believed that the only way to get better was to ask the doctor for an antibiotic. Now I am a woman with a child of my own. I have seen that foods made of chemicals and preservatives have left our nation overweight and yet still undernourished. I have seen children suffering from asthma and chemical sensitivity. I hear stories on the news about organisms that have grown resistant to our best treatments.

Of course I want better for my Schnickelfritz. I could just force changes on him and say "I'm the mom, I know what's best," or I could help him try to understand why I'm making the choices I do. Enter a new Homeschool Crew review product designed to help me do just that: Vintage Remedies for Guys.

This book, geared towards 7-13 year old boys is broken into three sections: Food, Nutrition and Culinary Skills; Health and Body, and Natural Living. Chapter Headings include:

Real Food
Healthy Drinks
Growing Your Food
Healthy and Clean Bodies
Immunity and Prevention
Backyard Medicine
Aromatic Oils
Cleaner Cleaning
Reducing and Reusing
A Natural Home

The Appendices have quizzes, tips for making this a homeschool or co-op curriculum, and information about further learning opportunities from Vintage Remedies.

The book is written to the boy but an adult will want to stand by to elaborate on certain topics and help with the hands on projects. Schnickelfritz is not quite ready for facial wash or homemade deodorant, so we stuck with the kitchen recipes-specifically yogurt, cream cheese, and ricotta cheese.

Technically, I don't know if what we made can actually be called yogurt or cheese because we're not using yogurt culture or rennet for the cheese. Both the cream cheese and the yogurt recipes call for cultured buttermilk. I asked the book's author, Jessie Hawkins, about her ingredient choices. Her reply was that she was trying to use ingredients easily available for the average parent.

Here is Fritz pouring our fresh, raw milk into a pot. I didn't have one big enough to heat one gallon (nor was I willing to use up our precious supply) so I cut the recipe in half--the opportunity to practice dividing fractions.

We're adding raw apple cider vinegar. I realize that not everyone is going to have access to non-homogenized milk or raw ACV. The parent/teacher guide for each chapter gives you a list of ingredients and tools needed so you can determine what you can and can't do.

Our curds are forming. Now the hardest part, waiting patiently for three hours.

Well, the recipe worked but I must say I'm disappointed by the quantity. A half gallon of milk yielded about 2/3 cup of ricotta cheese--no wonder it's so expensive at the store. Our cream cheese experiment didn't work very well either but I think the problem was user error. At the time I didn't have cheesecloth (note to self: always check the parent guide and make sure supplies are on hand) so I used my yogurt strainers. I think the mesh was too fine to allow the liquid to drain so I never got a thick cream cheese. What I did have was perfect to substitute for sour cream in my Thanksgiving recipes.

Schnickelfritz was certainly more interested in doing the projects than reading the associated lessons, but he was certainly able to read the text (I was concerned about the font which resembles handwriting). If you chose to use this for schooling, the quizzes in the back would make great short essay questions to test comprehension.

Our book is for guys, there is also a Vintage Recipes for Girls. My understanding is the main differences deal with hygiene. There is also a kids book for younger children (ages 2-6). Vintage Remedies for Boys retails for $45. If you hurry to the Vintage Remedies website you can purchase the Boys and Girls material in a single volume called Vintage Remedies for Tweens for only $29.95.

You can see what other Homeschool Crew members think of Vintage Remedies by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of Vintage Remedies for Guys for the purpose of completing this review. There was no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Gold Trail Award

2011-12-15T05:23:00.000-08:00

After three years of hard word, my Schnickelfritz earned his Gold Trail Award for Ranger Kids. The presentation was made in front of the whole church. Royal Rangers is a scouting program, like Boy Scouts, but run through churches. In addition to learning to tie knots, he had to memorize scripture and hymns, learn the names of the books of the Bible, the 12 disciples, and more. Fritz has now moved up to the Discovery Rangers and is tearing through merit badges on his way to the Gold Falcon. At this level he needs to complete two Bible merits (each one is a five week study on a particular book) for each skill merit in order to advance. We've been able to incorporate the work into our homeschool. He just completed a Presidential study learning each president's terms, home state, education, vice president, political party and two major events that occurred while they were in office. He had to look up Bible verses on the topic of leadership and write a 300 word essay on his favorite president and how they displayed at least three of those leadership traits. Wow! I never assigned him anything that challenging in our history/English work before.

Review: Fractazmic

2011-12-12T22:16:00.000-08:00

Well December has rolled around again...our burst of enthusiasm for a new school year has waned just as holiday activities and winter sports have kicked into high gear. I don't want to drop school work entirely and yet I'm ready for a break from the "heavy" stuff myself. That's when I like to pull out the educational games--there's still learning going on (or at least refreshing old facts learned), but it's all done in a spirit of fun. It's a perfect time to review a card game like Fractazmic. This is from I See Cards, the same company that provided our Pyramath game last year.

Fractazmic's focus is on fractions, so instead of having symbol suits the cards are organized into tenths, twelfths, and sixteenths. The fractions are reduced to their simplest terms (1/4 instead of 4/16) but you can still keep track of the fraction families by the colored border and the picture on the cards. Tenths are green with a 1 liter water bottle, twelfths are blue with an egg carton, and sixteenths are red with a magnified view of a ruler. This was my one qualm with the picture choices: the magnified view focuses on half of the inch not the full inch. In the above example the grasshopper represents 4/16 or 1/4 of an inch but the picture itself looks like it's taking up 1/2 of the space. This made it a little confusing to my son who's new to fractions.

The object of the basic game is to form "hands" by collecting cards of the same suit to equal one whole. For students just learning their fractions, they can count the number of eggs, etc to make sure they have a full dozen or twelve/twelfths. Once again, you have to keep in mind that the ruler suit represents sixteenths not eighths so you need to "fill" the ruler twice. Players take turns drawing from the draw or discard piles (if you take a card from the discard pile you must use it in a hand immediately). Schnickelfritz and I found that completing the final hand and going out was extremely long for a game with two players. We developed our own rule that the final hand can be made up of different suits as long as it still totals one. There are other game rules as well as samples of all the cards available at this website.

Fractazmic, Pyramath, and Prime Bomb card games are available for $6.95 from the I See Cards website. You can also try online versions of their games and possibly win a free deck. Rather than an age range for this game, I would consider your child's math skills--are they ready for fractions.

You can read what other Homeschool Crew Members think of Fractazmic by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I recieved a free deck of Fractazmic cards for the purpose of completing this review. There was no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Money Monday: The Sodastream

2011-12-12T02:16:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know me personally, I've always had a passion for educating people about money. My degree and business experience is in accounting. When I would see all the errors on troop leader's deposit slips or spend twenty minutes on the phone explaining to a camp counelor why her paycheck didn't match the salary in her hire letter (taxes coming out), I always felt like our schools were really dropping the ball when it came to personal finance. So I'm going to try and start a new series covering various money topics from earning to saving to keeping track of it all.

Today's idea came from a very real conversation I had with the Toolman last week. Our weekly paper had a $10 rebate for the Sodastream, a device that allows you to make carbonated beverages in your own home.   The Toolman is a devout cola drinker and I am a kitchen gadget junkie so this seemed like a good fit. We are however, both recent graduates of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University so we needed to look at this from a financial side.

Kohl's has the Sodastream on sale for $89.99 and as luck would have it, they had just sent us a 30% off coupon. Combined with the rebate the price of the Sodastream was down to $52.99 (I'm not considering sales tax in any of my equations to keep things simpler). The kit includes the machine, one carbonation canister, and one plastic liter bottle to hold to finished product.   The flavor syrups are on sale for $4.99, if I use my same 30 % coupon the cost comes down to $3.49. Each bottle claims to make fifty 8 oz servings. Now lets get to some math. For any parents teaching math to their kids, this example with help them see the importance of including the units in their math equations: $/oz, oz/liter, etc.

50 X 8 oz = 400 oz

$3.49 / 400 oz = $0.00873/oz

That's not the end of the cost for Sodastream soda though--the carbonation canister is a consumable product. Kohl's doesn't sell the canisters separately so I needed to do some online research. According to Sodastream.com, the canister to fit the Kohl's model holds enough gas for 60 liters ( 1 liter = 33.814 ounces).   There are no retailers in my area participating in the canister exchange program so I would need to get my canisters directly from the company.   Just to get the price of the gas, I'm not going to worry about shipping costs right now. Two exchanged canisters cost $29.99 (of course I only have one to exchange from the starter kit) $29.99 .   120 liters X 33.814 ounces/liter = 4057.68 oz.

$29.99/4057.68 oz = $.00739/oz

$.00739/oz + $0.00873/oz = $.01612/oz

A can of soda is 12 oz so the equivalent amount of Sodastream soda is 12 oz X $0.01612/oz = $.19339 or 19.4 cents per can

For comparison, we can buy a 24 case of Coca Cola for $6.98 or (6.98/24=) 29.08 cents per can. Yes, the Sodastream is cheaper but you would need to drink 544 cans before you broke even after purchasing the machine in the first place. If I weren't able to get the syrup on sale that would raise the cost of a can's worth of soda to 26.8 cents--practically the same as the can of Coke.

Bottom line for us, there are a lot easier ways to save money so the Sodastream won't be under our Christmas tree this year.

Christmas in Hermann

2011-12-05T06:23:00.000-08:00

It's a tradition for us to go to Hermann in December, but this year there were a few changes. First, the weather was MUCH warmer than in the past. The temps reached the sixties, which doesn't do much to put you in the holiday mood but it helps wonderfully when you're outside learning about Lewis and Clark. For the first time we skipped the school day for the Corp of Discovery re-enactors and visited on Saturday so we could take advantage of some other events in town: Kristkindl markt (arts and crafts) and Weihnachtsfest (German Christmas) at the Deutschheim historical site. I suppose that a lot of folks picture a Dicken's village when they get nostalgic about Christmas but think how much the Germans have contributed to our holiday traditions: an evergreen Christmas tree, gingerbread houses, nutcrackers, Advent calendars, and carols like Silent Night.

Paper Marbling

Here's an artisan making patterns with nails in the paint he's just dripped into a dish of water. Then he'll lay paper on top to catch the paint and make the wonderful paper designs you see in the background.

This house has been decorated to celebrate a 19th century German Christmas in Missouri. As you can see hanging Christmas trees from the ceiling is not a new idea. I can't tell you why they did it although children will probably say to fit more presents underneath.

: Cookie Molds

These molds are for Springerle cookies (although Schnickelfritz is demonstrating with Playdoh). The cookies have a lot of anise seeds which gives them a licorice flavor.

Making Rope

We also spent time with the Lewis & Clark campers. I was surprised and saddened by the small turn out of visitors, especially on so warm a day. I suppose they were all at the Christmas events. It just meant more attention for Schnickelfritz from the interpretors. I've always said the best teachers are enthusiastic about their subjects. These folk are definately enthusiastic if they will take a weekend in December to camp out and share their knowledge with boys and girls. Here's Fritz making a rope.

Starting a Fire

Fritz got to start two fires--one with this glass lens and one with flint & steel. He'll have to do both for his Royal Rangers merit badge someday so this was good exposure, but he was less than thrilled about holding combustible material in his hands.

Fife & Drum Corps

Okay, these guys don't really fit in with a German Christmas or the Lewis & Clark Corps, but it was very entertaining to hear Jingle Bells and Hark the Herald Angels Sing performed by fife and drums.

The Tale of a Turkey

2011-11-23T04:11:00.000-08:00

As I type, the delicious aroma of turkey is beginning to waft around the house (we are a cook and carve ahead family). Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday, I love the gathering of the family, trying new recipes and preparing the old stand-bys. When I was younger we kids used to sit around the Sears' Wishbook and pick out what we hoped to get for Christmas. Now that stores are pushing Christmas shopping before Halloween I mostly try to avoid all that crass commercialism. When I was fresh out of college I used to organize the Thanksgiving Orphans (those who weren't able to travel home for the day) and we'd end up with 30 or more, each bringing the dish without which it just wouldn't be Thanksgiving.

I don't remember the first time I prepared the turkey, I suppose it was after we moved away from Grandma's house. Those of us in charge of the bird know that some years turn out better than others. Butterball sometimes publicizes the foul/fowl ups that they here about on their Turkey hot line. Someone forgets to remove the giblets from the neck cavity, someone thinks that the golden brown skin means it must be done without checking the internal temperature. I have my own turkey disaster story that might top them all--unless you are one of the poor souls that burnt down the house or garage trying to fry the bird. I can share it now and laugh.

It actually started a week before Thanksgiving. I had discovered an organic farm that was offering free range turkeys. They wanted folks to pick up their birds on Sunday, but I asked if I could get mine on Tuesday since that's when I normally passed by (it was about 40 miles from home). Not a problem, they would save a bird for me--I just wouldn't have a selection to choose from. I was fine with that and only needed a small bird for myself and my parents. When I arrived on Tuesday there were two turkeys left in the freezer and I took the smaller of the two but it was still a whopping 26 pounds!!!

Problem number one: this bird filled and overflowed my roasting pan. Wednesday afternoon I stopped by Walmart on the way home from work. They had moved their aluminum baking pans to the front of the store right behind the cash registers (liek they knew I'd be coming). I found a disposable one that was plenty big enough and had the words "HEAVY DUTY" splashed across the front. We'd gotten out of work early that day and I decided to cook the turkey that afternoon instead of the next morning because I figured it would take much longer owing to its size.

In those days I was a baster (now I follow Good Eats brining method). On about the third time pulling the pan forward to baste my Heavy Duty pan sprung a leak. Turkey juice and fat began puoring into the bottom of my oven at an alarming rate. As it collected under the electric coil it started to smoke. I didn't know what to do but take the turkey out of the oven and set it on top of the stove. I transfered the bird to my old roasting pan where it mostly just rested on top and poured the remaining juice into a saucepan. Now when I basted, the juice just rolled down the side of the turkey and joined the gooey blackening mess at the bottom of the oven. I had to open my patio door and put a fan on to pull the smoke out of the apartment but at least the smoke alarm wasn't going off.

I stopped the basting and decided to use the liquid I had left to make the gravy so I turned on the burner under the sauce pan. Remember earlier that I had put the punctured roasting pan on the stove top--well some of that fatty juice had collected in the reflector. Soon I had a grease fire on my hands. I knew not to throw water on it. I had gotten out my flour jar to make the gravy and began throwing handfuls of it at the fire. PLEASE NOTE : DON'T USE FLOUR OR BAKING SODA ON A GREASE FIRE!!! The Lord was really watching over me because I could have had an explosion at that point.

My mother called me at about 9:30 that night to see if the turkey was finally done. I told her the turkey was finished but that I still had several hours of clean up work ahead of me. T

Review: Time Timer

2011-11-21T03:06:00.000-08:00

There are some questions is life that every child must ask and one that ranks right at the top is "How much longer?" For young ones still dealing with concrete matters, the concept of a few minutes or an hour are difficult to grasp. That's what prompted Jan Rogers to develop the Time Timer. The time to be measured is set by pushing a clear button around the dial for up to 60 minutes. As it's pushed a wedge of red plastic appears, growing in size until it forms a complete circle at the one hour mark. As the timer counts down the wedge grows smaller and ultimately disappears when the timer chirps time's up.

If you've been browsing the Homeschool Crew's reviews on the Time Timer, you're probably familiar with how this device helps young or special needs children "see" the passage of time by the diminishing size of the red disc. I have a different take on it's use. My Schnickelfritz has always been fascinated by time--in fact, I've come to the conclusion that someday he will be in charge of the U.S. Naval Observatory clock. He once woke me up at midnight so I could share his thrill of seeing his watch register 0:00 (he often likes to use military time). He studies maps of time zones and can explain Daylight Savings to my husband who grew up in Indiana and still hates the idea of having to change all the clocks twice a year. He could challenge Phineas Fogg (Around the World in Eighty Days) on precision for when events should begin or end. If I can't find my kitchen timer I know to head towards Fritz's bedroom.

Fritz doesn't need the timer to understand the passage of time, but it has several advantages to my digital timer as far as measuring the passage of time. Fritz would often get mesmerized watching the "count down" on our digital timer, so much so that he forgets to work on whatever task we had set the time limit for in the first place. This red disk moves imperceptibly and there's no sound to distract him either. Now he can glance at the Time Timer, gauge how much time is remaining and return to his work quickly. The timer only makes two little chirps when it's done so if Fritz doesn't hear it because he's engrossed in a story, he'll keep on with his independant reading until he actually looks at the time again--not really a selling point but I'll take any trick that keeps his nose in a book longer. On the other hand, it means that you wouldn't want to use this timer to keep track of the cake in the oven lest you miss the chirp that it's done.

The timer is available in three sizes. The smallest is 3 inches wide and retails for $30. The medium is 8 inches across and costs $35. The large has a 12 inch face and sells for $40. Technology fans can also buy software or timer apps.

You can read what other Homeschool Crew members thought of the Time Timer by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free 3 inch Time Timer for the purposes of completing this review. There was no other compensation for my honest opinion.

The Long and Winding Road…..to Homeschooling

2011-11-14T00:20:00.000-08:00

I had never even heard of someone getting their education at home until I had graduated high school.   I was attending a Christ In Youth conference and the girl sitting in front of me mentioned this during our get-to-know-your-neighbor exercise. I had the same reaction most people did at the time “You can do that?” I assumed everyone went to public school or private Catholic school. Looking back now I realize that her parents must have been some of those brave pioneers that literally had to wonder if the sheriff was going to come knocking at their home school door during its rebirth in the 1980’s.

Fast forward nearly ten years---I was working for a non-profit agency that works with school-age girls. In keeping up with events that might have that demography in attendance I discovered a Home Schooling conference was scheduled at the local convention center. For curiosity's sake more than anything I decided to attend. It was 1990’s now. Home schooling was a little more accepted and there were over 2000 in attendance—most in denim jumpers and matching outfits and having arrived in a mini or regular-sized van. Being an “only” myself, I could not get over the sizes of some of the families I met. The curriculum hall and speakers introduced me to several new concepts in education. Diana Waring spoke about making history come alive with original source texts, living books, and adding hands on activities or historical meals to the learning process---what a vast improvement to the dull textbooks I had to read. I found some vendors with old favorites of mine like flannel board Bible characters and Cuisenaire rods. Still others were explaining how their products could help kids that tended to take in information auditorily or kinesthetically. Until that moment I didn’t know anyone learned differently that the visual way I took in information (and the method public schools tend to use). However , the one thing that made the most lasting impact that day was when I left the closing ceremony to find a restroom. In the hallway were nearly 200 children waiting to enter the convention hall to sing for the parents. They vastly outnumbered the older teens assigned to watching them and yet I saw no one bickering, teasing, fighting, or seeing how far they could step out of line without being reprimanded (all things I’d experience in countless lines in my school days). It hit me that home-schooling was about more than just where learning takes place but about character building as well. I attended several more home school conferences in the following years. I’d be embarrassed to answer the “How many kids do you have?” question from fellow attendees because I had none…I wasn’t even married yet. Generally though their response was that it was good for me to educate myself beforehand. When I did marry, my husband knew that I wanted to home-school any children God would bless us with.

Three years ago we moved to Missouri for my husband’s new job. Although it would mean the loss of almost a third of our family income, we agreed that I would not look for a new job but stay home to teach our son who just turned six. Some family members questioned why I didn’t find work and send Schnickelfritz to the private Baptist school just down the road from our new home as this would provide the Christian worldview we desired.   I knew I had to come up with personal reasons why home-schooling was right for us—something beyond the desire to avoid the risk of violence, the low standards, and the anti-Christian environment of public school. I ended up with three key points.

First, I would be able to customize Fritz’s education to his speed of learning.   I had been one of the fast learners in school—in fact I seldom had any homework. If a teacher were foolish enough to post the homework assignment on the board at the beginning of class, I would have it completed before class was over. I was usually bored in school because teachers have to teach to the average of the class—leaving some bored and others still in a puzzle.   Currently Fritz is the age of a third grader but he’s doing fifth grade math. On the other hand he struggles with writing and penmanship (don’t most boys) and he’s probably a grade or so behind there. Since he’s not feeling the frustration of being pushed too fast though, we have a shot of keeping him interested enough that he’ll catch up some day as his motor skills grow.

Second, I can also use techniques and curriculum that use Fritz’s style of taking in information.   He’s an auditory/kinesthetic learner. He usually has to talk to himself during math or while writing, but he’s not disturbing other students (okay this might be an issue if he weren’t an only child).   Sometimes while I read to him he is bouncing on our mini-tramp. He used to do math problems while standing on a rocking chair in front of a chalkboard. I just knew that if I sent him to a classroom of kids he’d be the one the teacher was constantly reminding to sit still and be quiet. Either he would comply, and not be able to learn because all his concentration would be going to not fidgeting or the teacher would send home a note about looking into Ritelin.

Third, Schnickelfritz used to have a terrible stutter. It developed when we sent him to day care. My own familiarity with school taught me that when the teacher wasn’t around kids will often seek out what makes one of their own “different” and then tease them mercilessly about it. I didn’t want that for my son. The amazing thing was that when Fritz was with us 24/7 for a week, even in a sensory overload environment like Disney World, his stuttering would decrease.   Having him home with me has nearly eliminated the problem.

Review: Keyboard Town Pals

2011-11-10T06:26:00.000-08:00

Back in the day when I was in school, typing was an elective class in Junior High (this was after the abacus but before the personal computer). The computer and the internet have changed all that. My son searches for roller coaster videos on You-Tube and looks at satelite images on Google Maps. He has to know how to spell his desired targets but it also helps if he's not hunting and pecking for the proper keys. Nowadays, typing skills are being taught to elementary students. A perfect example is our latest product review, Keyboard Town Pals--an online typing program that can teach your child the basics in an hour.

Sunny

This product is definately geared toward the lower grade levels, if fact the site recommends beginning typing lessons as soon as the child is able to distinguish the configuration of letters. The lessons are presents by a series of puppets and a costumed figure called Sunny. (My just-turned-nine-year-old found the characters a little childish). Keyboard town consists of three streets: Home Street, where the fingers rest; Downtown, the lower row of letters; and Uptown, the higher row. ( I suppose the space bar could be considerred a fourth row that is only visited by the right hand thumb). A single lesson is only 3-4 minutes long. We are introduced to the character that lives on Home Street (for example, Amy) and the places she visits when she travels up or downtown. Amy feeds Zebras at the Zoo and a man named Qbert who asks Questions.

This first lesson begins with the pinkie of the left hand. I can't help but wonder if starting with the weakest finger might be frustrating to young children. Most typing lessons start with the index fingers which have the most dexterity. You can click on separate lessons to start where you want but the word typing practice is sequential and you may not have covered some keys if you don't follow their order. Beneath the video is a box where the student is invited to practice typing. In an attempt to remove any anxiety from young learners there is no time limit, no grading, no way to correct mistakes (the space bar and backspace keys will not function). This last feature actually created anxiety for my perfectionist son.

If you are only trying to expose your child to the idea of typing, this may be just the gentle introduction you're looking for. It is possible to just watch the videos and never use the keyboard at all. If you want a typing course for school (grading, timed tests, number of errors, etc.) this program won't suit your needs. Keyboard Town Pals is available as a web-based user license or on a CD-ROM for $39.95. Both formats are available in English, French, or Spanish.

You can read what others on the HomeSchool Crew think of Keyboard Town Pals by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received free access to Keyboard Town Pals web-based program for six weeks for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation.

Review: Bower Books

2011-11-04T05:03:00.000-07:00

I love a good wedding, and I don't think I'm alone. How many people woke up early to catch a glimpse of the royal wedding this past spring? A quick look through the TV Guide and I've found shows where brides shop for their wedding dresses, one where brides pick out their bridesmaid's dresses, one where brides try to lose weight to fit into their dresses, and one where brides compete with other brides for the most entertaining wedding/reception.   It seemed we're obsessed with what should be a once-in-a-lifetime event lasting only a few hours. Is anybody considering the days and weeks and years that follow that nuptial event? Apparently not, as there is one celebrity wedding still being shown in reruns, even though the couple has already filed for divorce (72 days later). By my calculations her wedding cost 33,000 times more than mine, but mine has already lasted 50 times longer than hers. You can't throw money at a wedding and expect to have a successful marriage.

Our latest review product, from Bower Books, is designed to help return the focus to the important part of a wedding. It's not the planning, the food or the venue but choosing the right person with whom to spend the rest of your life. I sat Schnickelfritz on my lap (won't be able to do that much longer, he's turning nine) and we read The Person I Marry.



The pictures and Suess-esque style of rhyme make this book geared towards young children as in "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." (Prov. 22:6) God's timing is always perfect and Fritz has just developed a real interest in poetry and rhyming so he was very attentive to the words and patterns. The writing is carefully crafted so that either a young boy or girl could be speaking and the illustrations all show a young pair so you can share this book with a son or daughter. I practiced a Charlotte Mason narration exercise after the book and he was obviously picking up on the idea that a person's insides matter more than their outside.   Decorating the background of the text are adjectives and phrases like : unpretentious, willing to open up, faithful and modest. If you had older children I think it would be wonderful to do a character study of these traits.

The illustrations are some of the most charming I've seen--not quite as realistic as a Norman Rockwell painting but certainly in line with his celebration of everyday life and sense of humor. Fritz's favorite is of the fishing buddies where the girl accidentally snags her baited hook on the boys hat.   There is genuine warmth and a glow on every two-page spread.

The Person I Marry won the 2010 Book of the Year from the Christian Small Publisher Association. It is one of several titles available in the Bright Future Book series available from Bower Books. The hardcover book retails for $11.99. I would definitely recommend this book, especially to parents with young girls dreaming or playing about fairy-tale weddings to Prince Charming. You can read what other members of the Homeschool Crew think about Bower Books by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received free access to an online version of the book The Person I Marry for the purposes of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.

The Person I Marry from Bower Books on Vimeo.

Science of Disney Imagineering: Newton's 3 Laws of Motion

2011-11-02T02:41:00.000-07:00

We've been home from our Disney World trip for about a month so now we're reminiscing as we complete the Disney Imagineering DVD series. This time our topic is Newton's 3 Laws of Motion--a pretty sophisticated subject for a program geared to 5th-8th graders, but I would say it is Schnickelfritz's second favorite in the series so far.

Asa's Invention: There's no invention again. This time Asa starts out in his work area juggling three balls--a recurring theme in the DVD, melons and bowling balls don't work so well although in theory you could juggle these too. We also meet Asa's new intern, ironically (or perhaps predictably) named Newton.

Terms Defined: force, net force, velocity, acceleration, Newton's 1st law, Newton's 2nd Law, friction, Newton's 3rd law, inertia, momentum.

Attractions that demonstrate the scientific principle:

With one exception, all of these attractions were new to the series. The first is hardly an "attraction", in fact you may have walked by it several times at Disneyland's Tomorrowland and never stopped to look. The Kugel ball is art meets science. The 14 ton ball is normally an object at rest, even though it is round. A small current of water from underneath removes most of the friction so that even a child can apply sufficient force to start the ball rolling. There is still some friction so the ball won't stay perpetually rolling (an object in motion stays in motion) or we can use the force of our hands to stop the ball again.

Next, we learn about velocity and acceleration. Acceleration is a change in velocity. Velocity is speed in a certain direction so changing direction is also a form of acceleration. The Golden Zephyr rockets would shoot off in a straight line if they weren't attached to a focal point by cables. Because the rockets are constantly changing direction you get the thrill of acceleration (although I doubt the thrill is anything like that of Test Track).

Calculations also had to be made on how the ride would work with anywhere from one to twelve passengers of different weights and sizes. It sounds complicated, but we often use Newton's laws without even thinking about it. Ever try to figure out how hard to smack the bottom of a ketchup bottle to start the contents flowing--that's physics at work.

Newton's Third Law, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, is demonstrated with a paddle moving through the water. The paddle pushes back on the water and the boat is propelled forward. The principle works whether you're in a canoe at Fort Wilderness or on the big paddle-wheeler, The Liberty Belle.

More reactions occur on Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters at Disney Quest in Downtown Disney. Every time the bumper cars hit they bounce off in the opposite direction. Add to this the possibility of spinning out of control if the targets on your vehicle are hit and you've got quite a fun ride. Again, more calculations were needed to determine the best force for launching the "cannon ball," too much and there's the danger of injury, too little and you've got a dud.

Next we revisit California Screamin' (it seems this series likes to highlight the newer thrill rides). A little time is spent on the launch of the ride (going from stand-still to 55 mph in four seconds). What I found interesting was it's not the speed of the ride that makes it thrilling but the change of direction. Think about it, we usually travel much faster in a car but that trip can be very dull over long, straight stretches of highway.

The lesson end's with a water slide. Usually slides are in the down direction with water to help eliminate friction. The imagineers have figured out how to use a powerful cannon of water to propel riders in inner tubes back up hill so now we're really talking about a water roller coaster. The ride is called Crush n Gusher.

Quiz: 15 multiple choice and true/false questions.

Try it Yourself: Newton had three laws so there are three experiments. One for each principle.

1. The Egg in the Glass Trick. A plastic plate is placed on three glasses of water near the edge of a table (the plate must stick out over the edge). Empty toilet paper tubes are placed on the plate, each directly over a glass and in turn an egg is placed on each tube. (The kids might not be as thrilled, but you can use hard boiled eggs). A broom is placed on the floor and you must step on the bristles and pull back on the handle. When the handle is released it flies into the plate knocking it and the tubes out of the way. The eggs fall straight down into the glasses.

2. Put all your eggs in One Blanket. If you throw an egg at a wall it will shatter and leave a big mess to clean up. This is because the wall is a solid surface and the egg must decelerate instantly. However, if you have to friends hold up a blanket, loosely enough so that there is some sag at the bottom, you can throw eggs at it with all your might and the eggs will not break. The blanket absorbs the force over a slight distance and the egg settles in the sag at the bottom. (Again you may want to use hard boiled eggs or at least limit the number thrown at the wall).

3. Bouncing Balls of Force. Schnickelfritz and I were all over this experiment as soon as we saw it. Hold a tennis ball on top of a basketball and let both drop to the ground at the same time. The basketball will hit the ground first and start up when it hits the tennis ball. Because the tennis ball is so much smaller, the force from the basketball launches it way in the air. Fritz did this for more than half an hour while he waited for friends to come over.

We've only got a few more videos in the series. If you'd like to read about the other's click on the Science of Imagineering tag to the right.

If It Ain't Written Down...It Ain't Happening

2011-10-25T11:09:00.000-07:00

If I were giving a tour of our homeschool, I'd probably be sharing all the bargains I've found over the years--the free chalk board, the binding machine from ebay, etc. This week's Blog Cruise subject is lesson planning and if I had to choose the one item that keeps our homeschool going it would be the record keeping software I paid full price for (and still consider a bargain). I purchased Edu-Track when I learned we would be moving from Indiana to Missouri and I'd be switching from checking off days on a calendar to tracking hours, specifically: 1000 total hours with at least 600 in core subjects, of which 400 hours must take place at the regular home school location. Edu-Track was developed by a Missourian so all this core/non-core gobbledy-gook is built into the software and all I have to do is check a box here and there.

I like to start off my school year having as much scheduling done as possible. I've found if I don't have it written down I'll discover that we haven't cracked open the spelling book for two weeks. This year, for the first time, I'm sharing host duties for our science experiments with another local homeschooling mom. If we don't keep to a rigorous reading schedule, we won't be ready for the experiment on those pre-determined days. I may have to tweak dates as the year progresses but I know my 1000 hours (or at least the 600 core hours) are accounted for up front. Edu-Track has a great recurring activity feature that makes data input easy. If I know we're going to start each week watching the next lesson of Math-U-See I fill in the Recpeating Activity Screen as follows.

Just like that I have 30 core hours scheduled. I can repeat this step for Worksheets B-D on Tuesdays-Thursdays and schedule a test for Fridays. One hundred fifty hours of math input in less than 5 minutes. For other subjects, like science, I may put in a generic activity like "Read pp ____ in Land Animals of the Third Day" to set up the repeating activity and go in to manually enter the specific page numbers later.

At the beginning of each week I print out a schedule by subject.

The paper leaves plenty of room for me to "edit." If a crisis occurs and we don't our social studies done on Wednesday, I just draw an arrow to Thursday. If someone calls to let us know about a great exhibit at the Science Center, I can write in the details of the field trip. When the week is complete, I'll make any necessary changes to our Edu-Track records and print out an updated and accurate copy to keep in our record book. The software allows me to bump individual and groups of activities forward and backward with just a few clicks of the mouse. When Schnickelfritz gets to college I can use Edu-Track to create transcripts. For now, I use other features to keep track of chores to be done, books read, field trips, even Fritz's immunizations.

Review: e-Mealz

2011-10-19T08:08:00.000-07:00

Benjamin Franklin gave us the quote "The only things certain in life are death and taxes." I think if Mr. Franklin had consulted Mrs.Franklin she might have added one more--at sometime during the day someone will utter the phrase "What's for dinner?" In an ideal world, it would be asked by my husband and he tries to identify that delicious aroma wafting towards him at the front door. It's often my son who asks when his tummy starts rumbling around 4:30. Worst case scenario: I'm asking myself this question as I peer into cabinets or the freezer wondering what ingredients I can throw together to make the semblance of a meal. When the Homeschool Crew got the chance to review e-Mealz , a tool to help organize dinner menus and grocery shopping, I was thrilled.

A three-month subscription to e-Mealz costs $15 and entitles you to download a meal plan and grocery list each week. Plans are available for national and regional chains like Aldi, Walmart, Kroger and Publix. You may choose a 2-3 person plan or a 4-6 person plan. There are also options available for dietary restrictions like gluten free or portion control. I selected the Aldi plan as I shop there anyway. My three concerns were: Does the food taste good, am I more organized, and am I saving money?

Delicious or no?

If my family isn't willing to eat what I prepare, it's no bargain no matter how little it costs. I might as well just throw cash in the trash. I can report that my family enjoyed every meal I tried from Shepherd's Pie and Low Country Stew to Swiss Chicken and Taco Salad. Some of these recipes will definitely make it into my rotating line-up of family dinners. There were also some dishes that I purposefully did not prepare--fish is not a favorite in our house and one week had two fish recipes. It's easy enough to cross off ingredients you won't need from the grocery list as everything includes its meal number. If I'm not making Tuna Muffins, I just don't buy anything with meal #7 beside it. You can of course prepare the meals in any order. When we started e-Mealz we had temps in the hundreds and I didn't want the heavy stew that was scheduled. We swapped it out for a chicken quesadilla. Three days later when the temperature dropped 50 degrees the stew seemed more appropriate.

Am I more organized?

I have to say that few things are more satisfying at four in the afternoon than the knowledge that dinner's already taken care of. Even if I still have to prepare the meal, I don't find that nearly as draining and the frantic dash around the kitchen to see what I've got on hand and what I can make with it. I even went the step beyond and kept each meal's ingredients grouped together in the fridge and the pantry. And shopping was easier as well. I think most Aldi stores have the same floor plan and the grocery list was organized by produce, dairy, canned goods, etc. A word of warning though--always be sure to check the list of staple items at the bottom of the shopping list. One night I didn't have pecans on hand because they were listed down in the staples section and I don't consider that as a staple in my house. There was also one occasion when an ingredient wasn't available at Aldi--the shopping list noted this with an "n/a" in the price column. The ingredient was a package of seasoning for white chicken chili. I ended up referring to a cookbook for a similar recipe and copied the spices.

Am I Saving Money?

Shortly after beginning my review period for e-Mealz I was a caller on the Dave Ramsey show. I was amazed at how frequently I heard a commercial for e-Mealz--usually with Dave himself touting how e-Mealz allowed a family to eat much more than rice & beans off a rice & beans budget. I'll agree with him to a point. If you don't have any plan and you're constantly falling back on a trip to the golden arches for dinner, you will blow the family budget. By the same token, if you are making multiple trips to the store to pick up missing ingredients you increase you risk of leaving the store with more than the one or two items you went in for--another budget buster. When I first started e-Mealz, I was surprised that the average weekly shopping trip would cost $65-85 dollars at Aldi's and that's not even covering lunches and breakfasts. I'm already spending much less than that for all my meals. It didn't take me long perusing the shopping lists to see why the sticker shock. Some of the "side dishes" include: potato, tortilla, and corn chips, frozen Texas toast, and canned buttermilk biscuits. I don't consider chips a suitable side dish for dinner. They're snacks, and expensive ones at that. I was also paying for the convenience of pre-cooked meatballs rather than buying ground beef and making my own. Dave Ramsey may be impressed but I think it's possible to do better.

Bottom Line:

I don't believe we will continue a subscription to e-Mealz. I have my own collection of family favorite recipes and I save money by stocking up on loss-leaders at the stores and shopping from my own pantry to make dinner. I just need to be more organized about planning meals beforehand so maybe a menu calendar is in order. I would recommend e-Mealz as a starting point for someone who has does not have their own recipe collection, never planned menus, or shopped from a grocery list before. It would also helpful if your family is adventuresome about what they eat--not from the standpoint that you'll be eating exotic foods but it does take some openness to eat a different meal every night with no repetition for months. You can find one or two day sample menu plans on their website to see which one might be right for your family.

You can read how others on the Homeschool Crew felt about their e-Mealz experience by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free 3-month subscription to e-Mealz for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation.

School Budgets: What would Dave Say?

2011-10-17T02:18:00.000-07:00

If confession is good for the soul then I'll feel better after I admit that for years I did not budget money for our homeschooling.   "What's the big deal?" some of you are thinking, "neither do I." Well, I was an accountant by trade so I knew better. When we were a two income family, I would purchase books and supplies years in advance so we'd have them when I stopped working to homeschool our son. Schnickelfritz is in third grade now and we've pretty much gone through most of those materials now.   In the past I always assumed that we would have had costs associated with public school (we lived in Indiana and families have to pay hundreds of dollars to rent school books each year) and as long as I was doing it for less then we were ahead. Then we moved to Missouri, I stopped working outside of the home, and our family income was cut by more than a third. When I'd go to the homeschool fair I may have drooled over a lot of great products but I was VERY stingy about what I'd buy. In the back of my mind I'd be thinking about how high the credit card balance already was and I didn't want to take it above what we could afford to pay in full each month. (Dave Ramsey, if you're reading this blog, this was before FPU. I know how you feel about credit cards, even if they're paid off every month).

This fall my husband and I started Financial Peace University at our church. Can I first say that FPU is not just for people in serious financial situations? We actually had no consumer debt when we started the course. While paying off debt is the topic of some of the classes, we also are learning how men and women view money differently and how to talk about money instead of squabble (or avoiding the talk all together). Some nights we learn how to get the best bargain possible on purchases, what types of insurance are available and which we need, and we're looking forward to learning about sound investing. I honestly don't think there is anyone who wouldn't benefit from FPU. Wives, if you're worried your husband won't like being lectured to,  every man in our class that has found Dave Ramsey's humorous teaching style entertaining as well as informative. On the Dave Ramsey's website you can type in your zip code and find classes in your area.

Now the point of this blog was homeschool budgets. According to Dave, we need to have every dollar spent on paper before it every gets deposited in our bank account and we need to be in agreement on where it's spent. When our FPU homework assignment was to create a family budget we purposefully included a line item for home school ($25 per month). It's not a large amount, but when we have to pay an entrance fee to a museum or I need to pick up supplies for a science experiment I can pull cash out of the homeschool envelope and take care of it. Of course, I don't spend all of the money. Most of it will stay in the envelope until homeschool fair time. Then I can purchase my ticket and peruse the curriculum hall without the nagging fear that I'm spreading our finances to thin.   Prior to the event, we may discuss adding more to the homeschooling envelope at our monthly cash flow meeting (budgets are meant to be flexible not written in stone) but it won't have to be as big a chunk since we've been saving for it year long.

Be sure to click on the Blog Cruise button to see what others have to say about budgeting for books and supplies.

A binding machine for the home

2011-10-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to share a few pictures and thoughts about my latest ~~toy~~ I mean tool for better organization and efficiency. I had been watching a crafting gadget demonstration on one of those shop at home channels and was drooling over a wire-binding machine. Drooling but not buying, I headed over to eBay to see what bargains I could find. In the end I found a model that can use both plastic combs and o-wire--that way we can fill and re-arrange books throughout our school year and change them to a permanent binding when they're complete. I found loads of different size plastic combs in the clearance section of Office Max (25 1/2 inch combs for $2) . Above is a picture of some of the projects I done so far, going clockwise ....

Schnickelfritz has been working on his President's merit badge for Royal Rangers. This book holds a page for each president in chronological order listing years in office, education, birth state, vice president(s) and two events from each administration. Next comes 10 Bible verses that cover leadership qualities and finally and essay on Fritz's favorite president and how he meets some of those qualities. This book is a definite keeper and I may switch it to a permanent wire binding.

I've been making up my own Missouri history curriculum this year using Where Rivers Meet as a spine. This book contains a timeline specifically for Missouri (our main timeline is in a hallway in our basement), one-page biographical summaries for famous Missourians, a variety of maps, etc. We'll probably add pages with postcards or travel brochures as well (I'm beginning to appreciate the flexibility of comb binding over wire binding more and more). Recently, Post-It advertised an offer to get samples and coupons of their latest products on TV. I found their tabs worked great to separate sections of this binder.

Next is my first project--our school planner (we call ourselves Tanglewood Academy). I've included two-page spreads for each month of the year, a page to list field trips, books read, goals, and more. I use the calendar to note appointments and field trips and any activities I need to add to my Edu-Track lesson planner. When the week is over, I print out the details (which are all accurate at this point) and file them in the back of the planner.

Sometimes I bind together projects for my own reference. This is the users manual for Graphic Toolbox. We reviewed this product during my first year of the Homeschool Crew. I still use it all the time, in fact I made all of the covers for these books with GT. I just find it easier to have a hard copy in front of me that switching back and forth between the online version and my project. Other things I've bound include handouts from a canning class I took at the county extension office, recipes for my pressure cooker and others for cooking in the dutch oven on our campfire.

Last is Fritz's newest merit project--Chess. I'll use it to show you how I make books. It is possible to buy clear plastic, pre-punched cover pages for binders but I much prefer to make my own. After designing fronts and backs, I print them out on card stock and laminate them in 3 mil pouches. I bought 200 pouches at Sam's Club for under $15.

After laminating, you can punch the covers in the binding machine one at a time. My machine has a separate mark for covers at 11 1/4 inches instead of the regular 11. And take care when punching the back page--remember you're making a book so think about which side to punch so the correct side faces out. Of course, you could leave the back blank and then it won't be an issue, but I like to put the date of our project on the back. When assembling the book I start with the front cover face down. This enables me to add any new pages to the back without having to completely taking the book apart.

Weekly wrap-up for Oct 7

2011-10-10T06:05:00.000-07:00

After a week in Disney World, going back to a school schedule was hard for both student and teacher. "Math just isn't very exciting" my Schnickelfritz informed me. No, he's right, after Space Mountain it's hard to go back to dividing with remainders but math and science are necessary if you're going to build the next big thing in roller coasters.

We wrapped up our study of canniforms with an experiment on how the black skin of polar bears keeps them warm. We placed two thermometers on the driveway and covered them with plastic trash bags--one white and one black. We had to weight them done with a lot of rocks as it was a very blustery day. During the interval before checking the temperatures we watched Walt Disney's nature short, "Bear Country." When the kitchen timer went off the kids raced out and grabbed the thermometers but they had a little difficulty gauging the small lines so they handed them over to the two moms. Imagine the disappointment when it appeared that yet another experiment wasn't going to turn out the way it was supposed to--they both said 96 degrees. We decided to redo the experiment, this time using heavy paving stones to hold down the trash bags and keep the wind from blowing the heat out from underneath. Twenty minutes later we had temps of 96 and 107 degrees!

In Missouri history, Louis Joliet has just reached Pere Marquette and they are preparing to journey down the Wisconson river in hopes that it will empty into the mighty Mississippi. We are using the Landmark title "The Explorations of Pere Marquette" and it's hard for me to read aloud when Fritz keeps wanting to turn back to the maps. I've printed out some blank outline maps so he can track the journey himself although my source makes it look like they had a mighty long portage from the Fox to the Wisconsin.

We've completed our President's book. We've included official portraits, dates and number of terms, birth states, education, Vice Presidents and two significant events from each administration. Now we have to list 10 Bible verses that allude to qualities of good leaders and write an essay on Fritz's favorite president to complete the Royal Ranger's badge.

We do have one reminder of our Disney trip--Fritz built several roller coaster simulations at Sum of All Thrills in Epcot's Innoventions. He kepts the magnetic card from the exhibit and we've been able to access a video of his coasts and play other cool games at Raytheon's website www.mathmovesu.com .

Review: Tri-Cross

2011-09-25T23:21:00.000-07:00

I've always tried to focus on the positive aspects of homeschooling, but there is one negative that rears it's head from time to time. We generally finish school early in the afternoon, long before the other children in our neighborhood return home on the yellow bus. This means Schnickelfritz has to amuse himself or (gasp) .... play with mom. We try to keep a good supply of games around for just such times--but it's not always easy to find something that amuses an almost nine-year old boy and his mama. Our latest product to review with the Homeschool Crew fits the bill. Suitable for ages 9 and up, Tri-Cross by Games for Competitors is simple to learn but involves strategy and thinking several moves ahead like chess.

Each player begins placing six pieces on the board as specified in the directions. The pieces are marked with one to six symbols and typically move one space forwards, backwards, or sideways but not diagonally. When a move ends with one of your pieces next to an opponent's it can set off a series of jumps. Usually, the higher numbered piece jumps the lower and removes it from the board. The jump may result in two more pieces being side by side and resulting in another jump and so on... The one exception is the Tri-Cross piece (really a one) can jump the number six piece, making each piece vulnerable to at least one other. This one little twist adds so much to the game--you want your Tri-cross piece out to try and capture the number six yet it is also in danger of every other piece on the board. The winner is the first to occupy the center square for four complete turns or the one who eliminates all the other opponents' pieces. Don't have a piece valued high enough to jump over the competition in the center square? You can force him from the center by placing a lower valued piece next to it (if a jump can be made, it has to be made). Have I totally confused you? Perhaps this video will help.

It only took one or two practice games to get the rules down and then my little Mr. Competitive was ready to annihilate his mama--and he was usually the winner. The game comes with several alternative rules to make the game more challenging. You can start with placing your pieces face down on the board, only revealing them when they come side by side to an opponent's piece. Can you keep track of where all six of your pieces are on the board? In another version your opponent places your pieces face down for you. We only played to two-player games but there are rules for 3 and 4 players.

There are three versions of the game:

The Standard Game ($24.95) comes with a fold-able hardboard playing surface and plastic pieces in a velveteen bag

The Wood Edition ($35.95) has a wooden board and playing pieces

The Eco-Edition ($19.95) features a woven cotton playing board and carrying bag. It also makes a great travel game assuming you have a solid surface to play on. I was very glad we brought this on our recent vacation. It made the one hour flight delay much more tolerable.

Tri-Cross has taken its place in our line up of logic/strategy games and because of its alternative rules it can grow with us for a long time. If you're thinking ahead to Christmas gifts, this would be an excellent choice. You can read what others on the Homeschool Crew think of Tri-Cross by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free Standard version and Eco-Edition of Tri-Cross from Games For Competitors for the purposes of completing this review. There was no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Review: Aims Education Foundation

2011-09-16T00:15:00.000-07:00

While we've never formally studied physics in our home yet, Schnickelfritz and I are always discovering how the world works around us--why we need to add salt to ice makes to make ice cream, why the hill for our K'nex roller coaster needs to be higher or steeper for the little cars to make it through the loop, etc. Recently we were given the chance to review Primarily Magnets by Aims Education Foundation. Here was another perfect example of learning through play.

The book we received is geared to K-2nd graders, but Aims has a whole catalog of math and science materials for students up to eight grade. They also have the supplies you may need for the book activities although they seem to be packaged in quantities designed for public school classes not homeschoolers. We needed ring, horseshoe and bar magnets for this book and Aims only had them in sets of 25. I was able to buy individual ones at a teacher's supply store. You will also need magnetic and non-magnetic objects from around your house. There was one activity the used iron shavings but I didn't want to deal with that potential mess. That may be the most difficult material to get your hands on. The book contains supply lists, teacher's notes and reproducible student handouts for 18 activities (there is also a cd-rom in the back of the book with pdf files of the handouts). Teacher prep time is minimal--I had to read the directions and gather materials.

The first activity we tried was Find the Force. The original instructions call for hiding magnets in emptied and cleaned milk cartons--easily obtainable in a school environment. It wasn't hard to find suitable substitutes in our home, we used a cracker box buta ny thin cardboard container should work. With Schnickelfritz out of the room, I taped two ring magnets inside the boxed and closed the contaner.

I introduced the game as Hide and Seek Without Leaving Your Chair. Fritz had to pass the remaining magnet on the outside surfaces of the box to see if he could detect the attracting or repelling forces and determine the location of the hidden magnets. He enjoyed the activity so much we played it several more times. Sometimes he "hid" the magnets for me and sometimes we used paperclips to "seek" the magnets (which was slightly harder than using another magnet since the force didn't feel as strong). The whole point of the lesson(according to NRC Standards) was to learn that magnets attract and repel each other and certain kinds of other materials.

Our second activity was one of several that involve manipulating an object on one side of a paper by moving a magnet on the other side. Willy the Worm was made with a section of pipe cleaner. By using a ring magnet taped to a ruler we needed to help Willy zig and zag through his underground home. In our first attempt, I must say Willy was pretty lethargic. I don't know if it was because I used cardstock rather than typing paper or because the chenille was interferring with the magnetic pull. We made a second attempt by curling up the pipe cleaner trying to concentrate the thin wire into a smaller area and our efforts were rewarded.

When Fritz jerked the ruler out from under the paper at the end of the maze Willy hopped on and stood up on the magnet as if taking a bow.

Primarily Magnets ends with review booklet the students can fill out and assemble and an assessment (I suppose you could call it a final exam). Most of the student work is done by coloring, connecting lines from questions to answers, or circling multiple choices so it is not neccessary for students to know how to write. I think the book and activities is ideal for the K-2nd grades when my goal is to develop a love of learning rather than worrying if he's learning any hard core science facts. You can see what others on the Homeschool Crew thought about their Aims Activity Books by clicking here.

To Sum up:

Product: Primarily Magnets

Provider: Aims Education Foundation

Retail Price: $18.95

Where to Buy: Check out their Website or request a catalog.

Ages: K-2nd grade

Other Items Needed: Ring, bar, and horseshoe magnets, common household objects

Other Products by Aims: They have a 40 page catalog full of science and math activity books, manipulatives, and science equipment

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of Primarily Magnets for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Week 4 Wrap Up

2011-09-12T00:29:00.000-07:00

It was another interesting week of trying to balance schoolwork with the work of getting Schnickelfritz's grandparents moved into their new house. On Wednesday the moving van arrived. I mentioned last week about Fritz want to help, but only on his terms. Well, this week he was all excited about moving boxes and investigating the truck. Thank you so much to moving men Josh and Earl for saving the light loads for an eager eight-year-old boy thrilled to help. After dropping a load in the house he would race them back to the truck and Earl graciously lost every time.

The flimsy blinds were broken in several places and most likely covered with cat hair so we tossed them out. Until we located the box with new sheers and hardware we improvised with packing paper held up with blue painter's tape for the bedroom and bathroom windows.   Once, when Fritz had been too absent and quiet for too long I found him studying my taping job in the bedroom. "You know if you tilt your head to the side this piece of tape looks like the state of Ohio?" he said to me. "And here's one that could be Georgia." In my head I thought that only a homeschooled kid would be making a geography lesson out of randomly torn pieces of tape.

On to our regular school work: We completed Lesson 13 of Math U See Delta so we've learned all the division facts and how to find the area of a trapezoid. We have been studying the Family Canidae in science but over the weekend we discovered spider webs covered in dew all over our lawn. They've probably been there a long time but the dry weather prevented us from noticing them. Each sheet of webbing had a funnel leading down to the lair of a waiting grass spider. We had to fast forward in our science text to learn about arachnids. Fortunately, I also had a publication by the Missouri Dept. of Conservation on common spiders of the state. Two lessons here: never pass up a teachable moment and take advantage of the free materials offered by your state. We've moved on to lesson three in Excellence in Writing and now have two dress-ups for our sentences--the who/which clause and -ly words. In Missouri history we've reached Marquette and Joliet's journey down the Mississippi river. We'll be pausing here for a while so we can read the Landmark book The Exploration of Pere Marquette. Fritz is always asking for more geography so we'll be mapping their progress as we read.

Our extra-curricular activities are also swinging into high gear. Fritz managed to earn his Matthew Bible merit and his Ropecraft merit in Royal Rangers. These along with a prior Joel Bible Merit earned Fritz his White Falcon advancement patch. Sometime this month he'll have an award ceremony for his Gold Trail Award from Ranger Kids.   We also enrolled Fritz in 4-H where he hopes to participate in the woodworking and bicycle programs.

The Toolman and I are back to school in a way. We started attending Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University at our church.   We learned some amazing and alarming statistics about how many families are living paycheck to paycheck, that the United States has a negative savings rate, and how much consumer debt has increased over the last two decades.   The first video contained a lot of humor to keep our interest, but there was clearly a lot of truth being spoken about the need to take control of our personal finances.

Review: Time 4 Learning

2011-09-10T03:34:00.000-07:00

Schnickelfritz and I were recently given a chance to check out the online program Time 4 Learning. Students from preschool to eighth grade can access lessons and quizzes in math, language arts, science and social studies. There are more than 1000 lessons using screens to read or cartoon animation. The program is marketed as a base curriculum or suppliment for homeschooler or as additional practice and tutoring for students attending a traditional school.

First I had to enroll Schnickelfritz for the programs. I assigned him a login password and then went to a screen to determine his grade level. As a homeschooler of one, I always have trouble saying what grade that is--I know he's advanced in some areas and slow in others. Time 4 Learning offers a questionaire for parents of Pre-K to 3rd graders to help determine placement level. Even with the questionaire, I found Fritz was assigned to a math level that was too eay for him. The program allows students to access the level above and below them at the top of the lesson screen (see below)

If the grade above isn't challenging enough, the parent can log in and choose the Upgrade Education Level icon. The pop-up form will ask what changes are necessary and they will be may by the Time 4 Learning staff within 24 hours. The parent also sets the minimum time needed for lessons and the maximum time allowed in the playground area of the program. The default settings are 15 minutes of lessons and 15 minutes of play. Students may choose from arcade-style games, puzzles or learning games. Some students may need this dangling carrot to get their school work done, Fritz was not interested in the games.

We did not use Time 4 Learning as our core curriculum, so I did not assign specific lessons (each lesson has a code number that can be keyed into a box on the lesson screen for quick access). I allowed Fritz to choose those topics that peaked his interest--naturally he gravitated to the math.

Kids will need some keyboarding skills as Fritz had to type in "true" and "false", numbers, etc. I also discovered while trying a social studies lesson that the answers are case-sensitive so a child will be told the answer is wrong if he types "italy" instead of "Italy."

For this reason, parents might still want to sit with their kids while they take the quizzes rather than just relying on the progress report available for each student.

My one disappointment with Time 4 Learning is the text of the lessons. I preview the lesson on Hernando de Soto thinking we could use it along with our history lesson for the day. We are currently reading from a "living book" about North American explorers. I expected the online lesson to read more like a textbook (dry facts, not engaging), but it seemed more like a report written by a third grader not for a third grader. The sentences are short and stilted. This is not the example I want to set before my son who is still learning how to compose sentences and paragraphs.

I also want to relay an experience my son had while doing a science lesson. At the top of the screen he was reading was a speaker-like icon which he clicked thinking the text would be read to him. A window popped up wanting to install a program called Microsoft Agent with a warning that once installed it could not be removed without reinstalling the computer's operating system. That sounded over my head so we called the Time 4 Learning's customer service. Apperently there is a way to add the read-aloud feature for younger students but Agent is an old program that sometimes stalls the Time 4 Learning program. The staff member offerered to send me an email with a download for another program that would do the same thing. Since my son was having no problems reading the text on his own I declined. In some instances a word beyond the reading level of the text would be underlined and we were able to hear their pronunciation by clicking on them--the speaker had a definite southern drawl.

Time 4 Learning is available as a subscription for $19.95/month (additional children are only $14.95/month). There are lesson demos available on their website. You may also read what others on the Homeschool Crew thought of the program by clicking here.

Disclosure: I received one month's free access to the Time 4 Learning website for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Week 3 Wrap up

2011-09-06T04:15:00.000-07:00

We started our school year early for weeks just like this one. Schnickelfritz's grandparents are moving to town and the house needed a lot of work. The previous owners had a cat and a very different taste in decor so we were scrubbing down walls, scraping off wallpaper, vacuuming and re-vacuuming and more. We managed to cover the essentials--Bible, reading, writing and math, but the rest of the time was used to develop Fritz's servant heart. He was enthusiastic enough about wanting to help but he wanted the "glamor" jobs if you can call them that--painting and scraping wallpaper. When he was assigned to picking up the glue-backed wallpaper scraps he balked at the job. It was hard to know where to draw the line between forcing him to do the assigned task (and listening to his whining and complaining) or just letting him go off and play so at least we had some peace while we stripped wallpaper. He did take to the vacuum cleaner, granted it is easier with no furniture in your way. I'll have to remember that at our own house.

We complete Lesson 12 in Math U See Delta. Fritz has no problems with dividing by 7 or 8. We're up to Millard Fillmore on our Royal Rangers project on American Presidents. I found a Scholastic poster of official presidential portraits that we've cut up and rather than writing their home states we've cut the shapes out using the 50 States cartridge on the Cricut. I made a customized worksheet using Graphic Toolbox and StartWrite lined paper so Fritz can record terms of office, vice presidents, political parties, and two significant facts or events from each president's administration.

I'm collaborating with another homeschool mom in our town to set up our Land Animals of the Sixth Day science experiements. I hosted the first one, to test the effect of camoflauge in being able to elude preditors. Our three kids played the part of Skittles preditors. We scrunched up yellow, orange and green construction paper and tossed them in a box with 42 Skittles of each color. The kids had 2 minutes to seek and seize the Skittles but they were doing such a good job I cut the time to 90 seconds. At the end we were suppose to count the Skittles found and with luck prove that it was easier to find the red and purple skittles because they weren't camoflaged to match their surroundings. Unfortunately, one Skittle predator was a tad too enthusiastic in her role and began loading her mouth with Skittles as fast as she found them. Once we caught her in the act we tried to establish the color and quantity that had been devoured. At the end of our experiment we had found all but 4 purple candies but the color with the most still hidden was red. I was trying to think on my feet and ended up saying that in real life experiments are done over and over to make sure results are consistent. We also discussed other ways animals can avoid being eaten--like being very fast or hiding underground.

Review: Gridley Games

2011-09-02T02:38:00.000-07:00

We're beginning another cruise with the Homeschool Crew and the first product of the year----is a game! This certainly eased the way for my Schnickelfritz, who wasn't quite ready to delve into schoolwork yet. Teachers have known for a long time that students need to review facts in order to retain information. They also know that flash cards, listening to lectures, and filling in worksheets lead to boredom and a bored student isn't going to retain anything. So why not find a game that cover the facts in a fun way and the kids don't even know they're learning. We received Nature Nuts by Gridley Games to review and I think it's going to tie in well with our science lessons on land animals .  The game has received the Dr. Toy award--something that I've come to respect when looking for prospective toys and games for our family.

The packaging of Nature Nuts describes it as an expansion set for Griddly's original game Wise Alec or as a travel game.   You can easily add these cards to the Wise Alec board game since the card colors match up, but it can also be played alone. Instead of moving pieces around a colored board you play for points.   Each card contains a 3-point and a 7-point question with difficulty reflecting the point value. Before the game begins you determine how many points are necessary to win. This makes the game easily adaptable for players of differing ages or science education. An adult might have to reach 100 points while a first grader might only need 30.    It is even possible to earn points without answering questions--the purple Wise Alec cards award points for physical challenges (acting like a monkey for example). There are 50 cards for each category and two questions per card.

A player's turn begins with the roll of a colored die.  The face color will match one of the question categories-yellow for earth, red for animals, green for plants, purple for Wise Alec. A roll of blue allows you to pick any category. An orange roll allows one of your opponents to pick for you. They may pick a difficult subject for you but you can earn double the points. Then you choose the hard or easy question on the card.

I have to say that Fritz and I found the game frustrating at first. He hasn't had much exposure to botany or earth science yet. I felt like I was on the TV game show "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader. " Somewhere in my past I learned that the wiggly tail on a paramecium was called a flagella but that fact had been transferred from the readily available data in my brain to the seldom if ever needed archives. Other questions didn't seem so much science based as trivia, like what do you call a group of kangaroos or what do you call a baby animal X?

Since the game seemed so flexible about rules and game play we made up our own.   We didn't roll the die at all. We presorted the cards and I pulled out the ones I thought he should know. If he missed the question he could use a Wise Alec card as a second chance to earn some points.   As we progress through our science curriculum this year I may even add some questions based on our text.

I'm not sure what Griddly Games had in mind when describing Nature Nuts as a travel game. It's true that your not using the Wise Alec board and the packaging is small enough to fit in a suitcase. To my mind, a travel game is one you can play in the car or on a plane without losing little game pieces. It would be a hassle to lift the entire set of cards from their holder in the box each time you needed to place a used card on the bottom of the deck.   Some of the Wise Alec challenges (seeing who can jump the farthest or doing push-ups) can't be done in the car or plane, at least not without drawing the air marshall's attention.

I think we will continue to play this game. With Fritz's competitive nature, he is likely to try and remember the answers for future games even if we never get to the specific subject in our science books.   You can read what others on the Homeschool Crew think about Nature Nuts and another expansion set, Civilize This by clicking here.

Product: Nature Nuts

Provider: Griddly Games

Retail Price: $14.99

Where to buy: Check their website for online retailers and stores in your state

Age: 8 and up

Other items needed: A paper and pencil to keep score

Other products by Griddly Games: The original Wise Alec game ($24.99) and several expansion packs.

Disclaimer: I received a free Natures Nuts game for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation for this honest opinion.

Science of Disney Imagineering: Electricity

2011-08-23T22:47:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! Less than a month to go before we head down to Disney World and a new Science of Disney Imagineering DVD came in for us at the library. This one covers electricity--a vary dangerous subject so there is a lot of safety warnings and instruction. Well, you know the drill by now.

Asa's Invention: Asa has attached a piano keyboard up to a tesla coil to participate in a futuristic band contest the imagineers are holding. Joined by an electric guitar and a drummer, (wearing a mesh metal suit to become part of the circuit itself) they form the Tesla Trio.

Definitions: This one is chock full--Electricity, insulators, conductors, voltage, current, 1 amp, circuit, load, resistance, series ciruit, parallel circuit, watt, direct current, alternating current, and static electricity.

Disney Rides & Attractions that exemplify the theme:

Say the world electricity and perhaps a light bulb goes on in your head. You'd be hard-pressed to find more light bulbs in one place than the Spectromagic parade (okay, the Osborne Christmas lights display at Hollywood Studios comes to mind but the must not have been filming during the holiday season). There are over 875,000 incandescant lights, 250,000 fiber optic points of light, and 1,096 batteries. We learn the difference between a series and a parallel circuit and why you wouldn't want to use a series circuit on these floats (think about trying to find the one burnt out bulb on your Christmas tree). Asa uses a water hose to demonsrate the flow of electricity and the concept of resistanceand voltage.

We also learn about resistance and this takes us to an interesting science fact (which has nothing to do with Disney). Everything has resistance, including your skin. When you lie you tend to sweat which decreases the resistance. Lie detectors can measure this descrease and tell when you're lying. Asa gets caught as the thief of an ice cream sundae left in the imagineers' fridge.

When imagineers updated the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to the Finding Nemo Subs they also retrofitted the submarines from deisel engines to cleaner electric engines. The three-foot propellers depend on batteries to run. The question is how to get electricity to the sub through water without charging the water (we all know water and electricity don't mix). If you look down in the water you may be able to see the dark track the subs follow. I hope I didn't ruin the magic for anyone, the captain isn't really steering the sub. There is also an insulated coil down there with a flowing current of electricity. Under the subs is configuration of magnets that saddles over that coil. The electric current in the coil produces a magnetic field which in turn produces electricity inside the submarine. This whole section brought back memories of high school physics and trying to remember the right hand rule of magnetism.

The next subject is static electricity and lightning. Asa demonstrates the old rubbing-your-feet-on -the-carpet-and-shocking-your-friend gag. Then he moves on to the more serious issue of the danger of lightning strikes. The ships of the Disney Cruise Line have lightning rods in the masts. If lightning strikes the ship it passes through the rod and the hull of the ship into the water and eventually the ground.

Our last ride is Test Track. Once again we're faced with the problem of how to provide power to the electric motors in the cars. (It's not mentioned in the DVD, but I've heard this system is so complex that it's easier to just let it run 24/7 than try to start it up each morning). There's no way you could fit a big enough battery in the vehicle to power it all the time. Once again we're dependant on the track that guides the car. There are copper bus bars that run along the entire track circuit carrying an electric current. Collection shoes under the cars carry the current to the motors. This means the entire ride is a parallel circuit with each car taking the place of a Christmas light in the Spectromagic example.

Quiz: 15 true/false and multiple choice questions.

Try It Yourself: Since we dealing with something dangerous, there is a safety lesson to start with: always pull appliances from the outlet by the plug which is designed to withstand handling. Pulling by the cord can weaken the insulation and allow the wires to touch creating a short circuit. The experiment itself is based on the old potato clock idea. We are going to try different foods and see if they will carry a current. You need 9 volt batteries, wires with alligator clips, two forks your mother won't mind ruining, led lights and food items from your kitchen. Another safety warning--the food is now part of a scientific experiment and you shouldn't try to eat it before or after the test. The examples in the DVD are a pickle, a candybar, and a glob of mayonaise. I won't give away the results, you'll have to Try It Yourself.

First week in review

2011-08-22T01:38:00.000-07:00

I have to say how pleased I've been with the way we got back into the swing of things with school this week. My greatest fear was Schnickelfritz balking at the amount of writing to be done--we've got composition, journaling for Land Animals of the Sixth Day, cursive practice, and a notebook of presidential facts for a Royal Rangers merit badge. On Tuesday he did ask if his writing on the presidents counted as his writing for the day and I had to explain to him that reading and writing are part of a lot of subjects. He seemed to accept that fact and moved on.

We read the D'aulaire's book on Columbus to start our Missouri history (we couldn't have found Missouri until we found the new world). I'm using another homeschool mom's curriculum, A Guide to Studying Missouri History Through Literature as well as a book I found a used book sale, Where Rivers Meet. We are finishing up All About Spelling Level 2 and Math U See Delta before moving up to the next levels sometime this fall. I'm also trying a few products from Critical Thinking Company this year--Building Thinking Skills and Reading Detective.

By far the best thing I did over the summer was put our schedule in the Edu-Track program. I print out an entire week's schedule at once. I can handwrite additional subject or draw arrows to tweak it and then update the final schedule at the end of the week. Fritz enjoys seeing "how much is left to do" and I enjoy not wondering "okay, what comes next" or "what have I forgotten."

Battle of Wilson's Creek

2011-08-16T08:25:00.000-07:00

Do you remember when we last saw Captain Lyon disguised as a widow at the Camp Jackson affair?   Well, someone in the army must have thought he did a good job prevent secessionist forces from capturing the St. Louis Arsenal because he's been promoted to General.   On the other hand, several civilians including a baby were killed and that prompted the Missouri General Assembly to create a State Guard to protect Missouri from outside forces (either North or South)    Now three months later and clear on the other side of the state Lyon's troops are standing opposed to Missouri troops again.   Soldiers from Iowa and Kansas have joined with Lyon, troops from Arkansas (an officially Confederate state) have joined with the Missouri Guard all near the city of Springfield.

We left the house early Saturday morning to make the trip down to the 150th anniversary reenactment, but it wasn't early enough. When we first heard the rumble of cannon-fire for the morning's battle we were still in a miles-long line waiting to park.  This had been advertised as a national event so there were 2500 reenactors and many times that number of Civil War buffs (or perhaps other homeschoolers on a field trip). Then we had to wait for a shuttle bus to take us to the battlefield. We managed to arrive about five minutes before the reenactors were "resurrected."    There was still plenty to see and do and another battle was scheduled for the evening.

Okay, these guys obviously aren't reenactors. They did have a popular display for little boys (daddies might have wanted to get behind the gun too, but I only saw kids in line). It was a real test of strength to see if they could pull down the handle and pull it back to cock the gun. Older and larger boys also tried on ALL the field gear and tried to run a lap around the hummer. It wasn't even a scorcher that day but they could all see what a miserably hot and heavy load these soldiers bear to protect us. Someone yelled "They could've used you boys in the fight this morning." I don't know which side he wanted them to fight on. The soldier quipped back "They didn't give us any bullets." The first man pointed out that the reenactors didn't have real bullets either so it still would have been a fair fight.

Another not specifically Civil War attraction was an old fashioned baseball game. The St. Louis Brown Stockings took on the Irish Brigade according to the 1860 rules of the game. First we had to learn a whole new terminology: strikers instead of batters, hands instead of outs, ace instead of run.  And there were plenty of other differences. A player could be called out if the ball is caught on the first bounce (this may have something to do with the players not wearing gloves, I'm not sure I'd want to catch any of those line drives with my bare hands either).    There was an occasional horse trotting through the outfield and once the game had to be halted while everyone searched for the ball in the tall grass around first base(see the picture) . I doubt any of those millionaires in the professional leagues would have put up with the conditions, but we thought is was fun to watch. Schnickelfritz even helped hang the numbers on the portable scoreboard.

The reenactment did not take place on the actual battlefield which is now part of the national parks system. We decided to head over to the real site during the heat of the day (the visitor's center had air conditioning). We watched a 30 minute movie about the historical significance of the battle and Fritz was enthralled with the miniture map that lit up to show troop movements. Then we got in our car for a 5 mile tour around the battlefield. There is corn growing in the same location soldiers fought. There is still an old cabin where children hid in the root cellar to protect themselves from flying bullets. I think the map and driving tour helped us better understand the battle we were about to see.

Speaking of battle, it was time to get back and reserve our seats. As you can see we were VERY close to the cannons. Fritz wore his daddy's chainsaw hearing protection. I had a pair of Indy 500 earplugs. The sound was reduced but we still felt the full force of the concussion (it made my straw hat wiggle).   These men represented the Missouri Guard and you can see one of them is just wearing his farm clothes and carrying a scythe. It didn't matter that they didn't have guns, there would soon be plenty of guns available after the battle. The lack of standard uniforms this early in the war also played an important role in the battle. Col. Sigel of the Union forces mistook the approaching troops from Louisiana (which would be the enemy) for reinforcements from Iowa (his allies) because they both wore gray. This allowed the Louisiana troops to get within 40 yards of Col. Sigel before the first shot was fired and by then the Union troops panicked and scattered.

For the first half hour of the battle everyone seemed to be cheating--that is to say no one fell dead or wounded. I suppose they didn't want to miss out on all the fun. Later you could see bodies in the field. Now that I'm looking at close ups of my photos I still see a lot of cheating/peaking going on. Occasionally someone would want his moment in the sun and would come to where the crowd was sitting for his death scene.

Unfortunately, the evening ended on a sour note for us. Unlike the morning battle and contrary to the instructions we had during our wait for the battle to begin, the bridge over Wilson's creek was closed and guarded by police officers.   We were captives on the field until the battle was over.   One lady with a migraine and many small children overwhelmed by the noise and smoke could not escape. And it wasn't much later that we realized we were on one side of the creek and all the port-o-johns were on the other. Children were having to try and hold it or go in the woods (scarier than you might think with cannons and rifles shooting around you, even if they were blanks). I hope future event planners will take this fact into consideration.

Well, I suppose things could have been worse. Remember Gen. Lyon from the beginning of this post? He died in the battle and became the first Union General of the Civil War to do so.

Cahokia Mounds

2011-08-11T02:19:00.000-07:00

As I've mentioned before, we eat pizza at least once a week. Our latest pepperoni pie featured a large yeast bubble that had been baked into it. Schnickelfritz usually insists on eating the bubbled slice and refers to it as Mount Everest. This time he dubbed it with a new title: Monk's Mound. That's when I knew that our latest field trip had really captured his imagination. We are starting our study of Missouri history long before the arrival of European explorers. The Mississippian culture actually lived on both sides of the mighty river, but we travelled to Illinois to see the remains of their great city: Cahokia.

I have to confess that I've never visited Cahokia Mounds even though I grew up within an hour's drive of the site. I always thought it was just the place that the kooky people converged on for the summer solstice. Our trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa in Indiana coincided with the Mound's Archeology Day so we made a slight detour off the interstate. I must say I was pleasantly surprised at what we found.

The visitor's center/museum greeted us with this artist's depiction of what the city would have looked like during its heyday. Cohokia is situated in the Mississippi River Bottoms, a flood plain that would receive annual silt deposits. The rich earth yielded abundant crops--enough to feed a population of 20,000, enough to store some for years of poor crops, and enough left to trade for other goods. Traders would come to Cahokia from as far away as the Great Lakes, the Atlantic coast, and the Gulf of Mexico. The Chief of Cahokia (who probably lived on the top of Monk's Mound) had wealth beyond measure. All this was explained in a 17 minute movie, at the end of which the screen was lifted and we were invited to walk through a life-size exhibit of family life in Cahokia.

The museum had plenty of interactive exhibits: trails would light on maps, drawers could be opened to display artifacts. Schnickelfritz seemed drawn to a diorama showing the changes in activities through the seasons.

Because this was Archeology Day, there were special outdoor exhibits and activities for the kids. One station had shells and rocks for the kids to chip away at to form jewelry and perhaps tools or arrowheads. Other stations held artifacts found in the Illinois/Missouri region.

The boys seemed to congregate at the hunting skills exhiibit--Atlatl spearthowing. Instead of gripping a spear by the shaft, it is held in a launching device. The arm makes a motion like passing a football but at the end of the motion there is a flick of the wrist which really launches the spear. I can see how this device adds to the distance of the throw. It would take a lot of practice to overcome the wobbling of the spear and develop accuracy. I'd say a lot of little warriors would have gone home hungry today.

Schnickelfritz made sure of his dinner though--while collecting his launched spears he managed to jab the cut out target shaped like a turkey.

Cahokia is still an active archaeological site, the largest north of Mexico. We could see two dig sites from atop Monk's Mound. In the shade of the Visitor's center we had the opportunity to get a little taste of the archeologist's work. A volunteer would pour a small sample of findings into a sieve. We would shake the sieve in a tub of water to remove some of the dirt. Then we could remove individual items for a more thorough cleaning with toothbrushes and sponges. Then the items were sorted in a box: bones, pottery, rocks, etc. Fritz seemed most interested in cleaning bones. We found the patella from a deer, a piece of spine, and a leg bone.

The bag that held the items had a detailed label describing exactly where they had been collected.

This meticulous grid system was explained very well in an archeology exhibit in the Visitor's Center.

If we didn't still have a 4 hour drive ahead of us, we could have taken a guided tour of the site. In addition to the various mounds there is evidence of an astronomical calendar structure like Stonehenge but made of timbers. When staff aren't available you can rent an Ipod with a recorded tour. Our visit wouldn't be complete though until we journeyed to the top of Monk's Mound. Fritz wanted the sense of accomplishment, I wanted him to use up as much energy as possible before he was confined to the car.

The last thing I wanted to see after climbing around 50 steps was another set of stairs--nearly twice as many and at a much steeper incline. At least there was a bench to rest if necessesary. Fritz and I both agreed the view at the top was worth it.

Disney on the Cheap

2011-08-02T04:05:00.000-07:00

Even as I wrote that title it seemed like an oxymoron.   A one-day ticket with the park hopper option costs more than a barrel of oil (and you know everyone thinks that's too high). We've saved up, made reservations, and booked our flights and now I'm going to share some of the little ways we've saved.

First--get a Disney Visa and start accumulating points. We've had ours for five years now and use it for all our purchases and reoccurring bills (phones, insurance, cable, etc) .   They are all things we'd have to buy anyway. Now we just write one monthly check to Chase Visa instead of multiple checks to all the utilities. Because we pay off the credit card balance every month we accumulate points for FREE.  If you're not in a situation to pay your bill in full each month or you aren't in control of your credit card use this is probably not the option for you. You'll be paying for these points through the interest you're charged (and if you don't pay the minimum balance due you can't accumulate points at all).   Bottom Line: we're getting our 6 night stay at Port Orleans FREE and there's still plenty of points left to cover our food and souvenirs in the parks.   (There are a few other perks to the Disney Visa like a special character greet and access to resort discounts before the general public).

Second--You know how they say the value of an automobile drops the second you drive it off the lot? Well that's doubly true for park souvenirs. I've been hitting the garage sales and thrift stores for items we may have purchased in the parks. Like the Duggars say "Buy used and save the difference."

The scrapbook was $5 at a consignment store. The stickers that should have been included were gone, but I can buy a LOT of stickers with the $30+ I saved by not buying it at the resort gift shop.    I think Schnickelfritz has outgrown the Mouse Ears we bought him on the last trip (maturity-wise, not size wise). Will pack them just in case I'm wrong. In the meantime I found him this nice denim ball cap for 50 cent at a garage sale. I had to doctor Mickey's eyes with a Sharpie marker.

I've also been able to get a lot of Disney themed shirts--Cars are the easiest to find right now but I didn't manage to snag a Phineas and Ferb. Again, why pay full price at the park when you can get them for less than a dollar at a garage sale. I would much rather get cheap souvinirs and save our money for memorable experiences like a back stage tour of the Magic Kingdom's Train shed.

Here's an item from our last trip to Disney World. The toy store in Downtown Disney has a themed Mr. Potatohead. For a set price you can fill a box with Mouse ears, Goofy hats, and other items for a Potatohead doll. Now most people will buy to potato body and try to fill it with parts to get more in the box. I found a body (and generic arms, eyes, and feet) at a garage sale so I could fill my box with exclusive Disney items.

One of the big things to do at the park is Pin Trading. Each pin cost $5 or more at the park. I'm looking into buying a lot of pins on ebay. It won't matter what they are because we can trade them for pins we like with cast members at the parks. BUYER BEWARE: I have read that a lot of sellers on ebay are in fact selling knock-offs that you may not be able to trade so do some homework.

Coming Next: Cheap Dining

Update week of 7/28

2011-07-28T01:30:00.000-07:00

Our new school year began July 1st. Although we haven't started any official lessons yet, we have managed a few field trips that I can record towards our 1000 hours. First and funnest was a night orienteering event. There were actually two courses to choose from--an beginners and a more advanced, and if you wanted to stay late you could actually run both. The Junior Orienteering coach took the kids on the advanced course for their training. Because visibility is limited to the range of your flashlight, it is a little more difficult to navigate and reaching a control involves breaking down the course into short legs with identifiable

Science of Disney Imagineering: Energy

2011-07-21T01:55:00.000-07:00

Energy--on 100+ degree days like today, I don't seem to have too much of it. And with our Disney trip rapidly approaching we need to get through the rest of the imagineering series. To kill two birds with one stone, we are staying in the air conditioning and screening the latest dvd in the Science of Disney Imagineering. It appears Asa has energy to burn (the sugar induced kind you may have witnessed in your own children), he's bouncing and bound from location to location and insiders will note from California to Florida.

Asa's Invention:    Asa hasn't built anything in this episode. Instead he greets us while bounding up and down (until he gets dizzy) on a mini-trampoline in his workspace.

Defined Terms: Energy, work, mechanical energy, kinetic energy, Law of Conservation of Energy

Disney Rides and Attractions that exemplify the theme:

The Tea cups are a fascinating example of work and energy because in order to get the full experience the riders have to provide some of the work themselves. Gears (mechanical energy) underneath the ride spin the entire platform and the three smaller discs. Riders do their own work on the spinning wheel in the center of the cup. We learn about the conservation of energy--all the enregy going into the ride must come out in some form. In this case some of the enregy is turned into heat energy through the friction of the brakes and gears.

Sumitt Plummet: It is a loonnngggg climb up the stairs to the top of the biggest straight water slide in the world, but once we've reached the top we learn that we've accumulated a lot of potential or stored energy. This is turned into kinetic energy as we swoosh down, going faster and faster.   In theory, they could have constructed an uphill section of slide and we could have converted the kinectic back to potential energy. It would have to be slightly lower than the original drop because there was some loss of energy to friction. Instead the energy is disipated by the dispersal of water at the bottom of the slide and believe it or not some heat energy raising the temperature of the water. (FYI: Asa reached a speed of 51 mph on his descent).

Test Track: This is the fasted ride in all of Disney World and it takes a lot of eletrical energy. A bar located beneath the car draws energy to the motor to drive the wheels, the display panel and the audio system. Heat energy comes from the friction of the brakes (most energy systems end with the creation of some heat).  What you may not know is at the end of the ride the motor is actually switched to a generator function. As it creates electricity, it resists being turned and that slows the vehicle down. There is a similar system in Mission Space that actuall creates energy that goes back on the electric grid.

The Finding Nemo Submarines: Now we enter a phase about renewable and green energy. We see a glimpse of the solar panels on the Energy Pavillion in Epcot as well as the Disney Studios in California. Coal, natural gas, and oil are labeled "bad." Solar, wind, and bio-fuels are labels "good." The example given are the submarines in Disneyland. Originally they used diesel fuel but when the ride was refurbished to a Nemo theme the subs were converted to electricity. They are described as being cleaner but no on carries the system out far enough to realize that somewhere there is a power plant still burning coal in all likelyhood to create the electicity.

Expedition Everest: This coaster appears in several of the dvds. I suppose this is because it's the newest thrill ride and they are still promoting it. The coaster has the longest train of any roller coaster on Disney property. There are two lift hills on the ride to provide potential energy, but even then the imagineers needed to supplement the system. Just before both pauses in the ride, electric booster wheels carry the train higher on the track to create more potential energy for the thrills and spills ahead.

Quiz: 15 questions--either true/false or multiple choice

Try it Yourself: Asa guides us in building a Newton's Cradle. Perhaps you don't recognize the name but most people have seen them in school or as an executive desk toy. Someone will have to sacrifice 5 golf balls for the contraption. Other supples are push pins, fishing line, and tape. It's certainly do-able, even for youger kids although they may need help with alignment. Asa's cradle is built between two chairs so it's temporary in nature. I'm sure an enterprising homeschooler could figure out a permanent stand for the device.

A Tribute to the Tightwad Gazette

2011-07-12T03:34:00.000-07:00

Years ago (dare I say decades? I know it was before the internet) my mother had a subscription to a monthly newsletter called The Tightwad Gazette. The articles were filled with tips for frugal living. Later these newsletters were compiled and published in book format --and you would do well to see if your local library carries them. I still have my three volumes and every time gas nudges upward I'm motivated to peruse the pages in search of another money-saving tip. Some of the ideas are now quaint reminders of the way things used to be--gone is the need to set a timer for long distance calls. Others have stood the test of time. Just a few weeks ago I was helping a homeschooling friend set up a grocery price book to track sales and bargains. My favorite articles were the ones involving math calculations to show how much could be saved by making items from scratch (that was the future accountant in me I suppose). There have been a lot of comercials on TV lately touting the "bargains" by various pizza chains. Dominoes has been selling 1-topping medium pizzas for $5.99. The latest Papa Johns' commercials tout the pizzas they sell are "worth twice" theie sale price of $11. Now pizza is a weekly staple in our family but how do these "bargains" stack up to homemade. Well here are my tightwad calulations. Normally I try to add some freshly ground wheat into my dough but for ease of math I'm using the recipe as it comes from my bread machine manual.

3/4 Cup Water
1 Tbl oil
1 Tbl sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 Cups bread flour
1 tsp active dry yeast

For toppings we add (approx):

2/3 cup pizza sauce
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese
38 slices pepperoni (yes I counted them)

I recently stocked up on pizza making ingredients from Sam's Club so I'm using current prices

Ingredient	Price	Size	Calculations	Cost	Per Unit	Recipe Uses	Final Cost
Bread Flour	$7.86	25 lbs	3.57 C per lb	$0.09	C	2 1/4 C	$0.20
Sugar	$6.43	10 lbs	37 T per lb	$0.02	T	1 T	$0.02
Yeast	$4.68	32 oz	2.25 t= 1/4 oz	$0.04	t	1 t	$0.04
Salt	$1.38	26 oz	5.1 t per oz	$0.01	t	1 1/2 t	$0.02
Pizza Sauce	$3.88	12 C		$0.32	C	2/3 C	$0.17
Mozzarella	$10.98	5 lbs	4 C = 1 lb	$0.55	C	3/4 C	$0.41
Pepperoni	$8.38	816 slices		$0.01	slice	38 slices	$0.38
Water	$0.00		free from well		C	3/4 C	$0.00
Oil	$2.26	96 T		$0.02	T	1 T	$0.02
							$1.27

I found all the ratios for volume per weight on various baking sites on the internet. The number of pepperoni slices was taken by multiplying the number of slices per serving by the number of servings listed on the packaging. I will say that when it comes to toppings I've never been one to cover every square inch of surface. A taste a pepperoni every bite or two is sufficient. My pizza already looks like a bargain at $1.27 compared to $5.99 or $11, but let's keep digging.

My pizza measures 12" X 17" (I use the same silpat mat every time) or 204 square inches

Dominoes medium pizzas are 12" in diameter or 113.04 square inches

Papa Johns large pizzas are 16 " in diameter of 200.96 square inches

The volume of the Papa John's pizza is about the same as mine but at 8.6 times the price. I'd have to buy two Dominoes mediums to get the same volume and it would cost 9.6 times as much. Since we eat pizza every week, I'm saving over $500 per year by making mine from scratch. That more than pays for the bread machine I use to make my dough.

(This post is part of The Christian Home blog magazine Issue 24)

Church camp

2011-07-11T07:49:00.000-07:00

I sent my baby boy off to church camp yesterday. If I'd purposely tried to pick a hotter week I don't think I could have done any better. It is his first overnight camping experience (aside from our front yard) and I so want him to enjoy it. Camping was a big part of my summer growing up and the source of many fond memories. As we unloaded his gear from the car and headed toward check in I wondered why none of those memories included the sweltering heat. I suppose it's like the pain of childbirth, it fades away

Schnickelfritz conquers the slides

2011-07-06T05:25:00.000-07:00

I have to brag that for a small rural town, we have a wonderful pool. There are spashing features in the shallow side for the the little ones. The gentle slope of the walk-in area provides a place for moms to sunbath and still enjoy the cool water. There are two 2-story, squiggly slides affectionately named ketchup and mustard by the local kids (each brightly painted to match their name-sake condiment).    But looming in the 8 ft section where the afternoon sun doesn't shine are two short slides.   After sliding down the enclosed tubed, the swimmer faces a two foot drop into the deep water. The blue one is straight and the yellow one has a 90 degree turn at the top. These two slides kept my son from having an enjoyable day at the pool ALL last summer.

He so desperately wanted to go down them, especially when his younger friends did so without fear.    Sometimes he would get in line but always give way to those behind him and eventually step out of line all together. He almost breathed a sigh of relief when the lifeguards would block off the steps to the slides--apparently the glare of the setting sun would make it hard to see in the water, creating a safety hazard. I wavered between offering bribes if he was successful to feigning indifference to try and relieve the burden he was placing on his shoulders.   He would spend precious swim time studying the slides from every possible angle of the concrete pool deck. He would watch the happy sliders and interview them as them climbed the ladders out of the water. He did everything just shy of asking the pool manager for the scematics. If knowledge was all that was necessary to overcome fear this ordeal would have been over a long time ago. The stumbling blocks were always the same: the water was too deep, the drop was too high, he wasn't allowed to wear his goggles.

Today was our first trip to the pool this season. As we left the car my Schnickelfritz informed me that today was the day, he would go down the slides before the friends we were meeting arrived (I suppose he wanted to avoid the pressure as this was the younger friend who was already a slide veteren).   I prayed that this was not the beginning of another long summer.   We went over the facts together: he'd already been in deeper water, he had left his goggles off before.   He marched straight to the slide as I went in search of lounge chairs in the shade. The next thing I knew HE HAD DONE IT! My mother's ears picked up his voice shouting to the lifeguard what he'd just done. I got a hearty thumbs up as he got in line for the other slide. And then it was as if he had to make up for last years lost summer as he went down both slides over and over and over.

Now how do I tell him that the Church camp he's going to next week has one of those airbags that launches them into the lake like on Wipeout?

How I spent my summer vacation

2011-07-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

It's July 1st which means technically we've started a new school year here in Missouri. We're not starting our "official" lessons yet but any hours I log now (swimming lessons and field trips) will count towards the 2011-2012 year. So how did I spend my June vacation?   You can read about my adventures picking black raspberries--HOT and HUMID. I would have like to done some bulk cooking and freezing of meals but the thought of spending the day in a hot kitchen was NOT appealing. I may feel like doing that when the weather turns--say October.

I did spend some time planning our lessons. Schnickelfritz will be finishing MUS Epsilon and moving on to the next level around mid-year. We're going to finish the Institute for Excellence in Writing Level A that we got to review for last year's Homeschool Crew. Another review item we continue to use is All About Spelling although we've moved on to Level 3. A first for me will be collaborating with another homeschool mom using Apologia's Land Animals of the Sixth Day (we've skipped the Swimming Creatures in order to do this, but I think having other kids for the experiments will be so beneficial).   I'm also creating my own Missouri history course using an out of print book, Where Rivers Meet.   This is a real treasure I found at a used book sale covering history in our area before the arrival of European explorers up to the St. Louis World's Fair.   Finally I'm still trying to decide what to use to teach cursive writing. This has been a real struggle for me as I gave up using cursive as soon as the teachers would let me. In reality, we'll be learning cursive together. I'm also starting my third year on the Homeschool Crew so we'll have other products to try through out the year and usually they turn out to be a blessing we never knew we needed. I purchased a used binding machine on ebay so that I can be more organized this year. I'll post more about it soon but for now I've made a school planner, a Missouri history timeline, and printed and bound several e-books.

It hasn't been all work and no play. We're planning a Disney World vacation this September (reason #997 to love homeschooling--you can go to the parks when everyone else is in school). I've been playing with my Cricut to make some Disney themed t shirts, autograph books, water bottles, etc. I've also been taking a food preservation course through our local extension office--well I've got to do something with all those raspberries. We've covered water bath and pressure canning, freezing foods, making jams and jellies, salsas and pickling. The classes have been very full and the best part is we raffle off what we've preserved at the end of class. I've gotten sliced apples and a 4-berry freezer jam so far.

Some of the topics I hope to cover this year include doing Disney on a budget, our homemade Missouri history course, and of course the products we review for the Homeschool Crew.

Black Raspberries

2011-06-14T05:54:00.000-07:00

Tell me if this sounds strange. I've been dreaming about raspberries--lifting lopped over canes and moving aside leaves in search of the perfect black raspberry. It's no wonder they've invaded my dreams, I've been picking them every morning for the last eight days.   Way to the side of our wooded property, with plenty of sun from the open field next door lies our lovely little patch of berries.  We discovered it our first spring here. Last year I was recovering from surgery and unable to bend over so the patch was left undisturbed and boy did it grow!    I know that you're supposed to prune back the canes that bear fruit in a cultivated patch, but I've found the best producers are the really old, purple canes.

Instead, I've been pruning back some of the newer growth so I can still access the old stuff. I've also been cutting out all sorts of other thorny plants--apparently things that can stick you like to stick together. The thorns are a real deterrent to my little harvesting helper. One time I turned his displeasure into an object lesson. "You know Schnickelfritz, we wouldn't have to deal with all these thorns if Adam and Eve hadn't disobeyed God." I explained that as punishment for the original sin God allowed thorns and thistles to grow. The lesson really stuck and often when we're walking in our woods my son will warn me to watch out for the "sin bush" in our path.

I've also gotten up close and personal with some of the critters in our raspberry patch. One day I saw a chipmunk skedaddle into the underbruch as I approached, another time there was a brown toad trying to blend in with the dead leaves. The least favorite encounters are the ticks. I spray down with Deep Woods replellant but have still managed to collect four in this year's tick tally. The most memorable encounter began with the sound of leaves crunching around my feet.   I have to step over canes and try to get a foothold wherever I can and so my feet aren't always visible to me. The sound rustling was not quick and intermittant like a squirrel or chipmunk might make. This was slow and deliberate. My mind was drawn back to last weekend when my husband, The Toolman, pointed out a four foot black snake he'd almost hit with the mower. He'd casually tossed it out of his way and TOWARDS MY RASPBERRIES!   He said the snake wouldn't hurt me but that didn't mean I wanted him crawling over my toes while I was picking. Now I was afraid of just such an encounter. That thought quickly went from bad to worse as the word "copperhead" flashed through my mind. From where I stood I could see the place my husband had killed a nest of them our first year.

Now it just so happened that I'd been listening to a Summit Ministries lecture the day before. Usually a lecture about World views wouldn't pop into my mind when I'm worried about snakebites, but this particular lecturer had just returned from a trip to the Australian Outback--home to the world's deadliest snakes.   He had been advised to hold still and let the snake crawl over his foot.   I didn't know if I could do that but I also couldn't see the snake and if I tried to move I might actually step on it. "Dear God," I prayed, " help me to keep my wits and hold still."   Well God not only protected me but he gave me a humorous lesson in giving in to fear and worry. Within a minute, the reptile that crawl over my foot and into view was a box turtle!

Post Script--I'm in need of some good raspberry recipes. Please post some in the somments.