Carmel Hillbillies: May 2015

I have already shared about some of our favorite fiction books in this blog post: http://carmelhillbillies.blogspot.com/2015/04/fictional-chapter-books-air-for-our.html
And of course since then we've thought of several other favorite fiction books that we love & that I left out! Micah, almost 12 years old, just discovered the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull and is currently devouring them!

But for this post I want to share some of our favorite resources & books, including favorite curriculum, that we have used, discovered, and/or liked during these past 6 years of homeschooling. This is not a comprehensive list & is only what floats to the very top at this current moment! For example, our experience with Abeka Language, grades 1-2 was very good. The phonics repetition was great & helped Micah a lot with his reading. (Noelle was already past that by the time she started homeschooling.) Also, we used Abeka readers through grade 5 and found them interesting & helpful. However, I'm not including them in this list, even though we had a positive experience.

Also, and I mention it a couple of times in this post, many, many of these resources were used as a springboard for more reading & learning & activities.

Social Studies:
(History is my favorite, so I want to do this one first!)

1. A Child's History of the World by Virgil M. Hillyer.
We have gone through this volume two different times over the course of our homeschooling. Once aloud and once, a couple of years later, with independent reading. This is a big-time favorite & has often provided as a catalyst for us to 'dig deeper.' For example, when studying the section on Marco Polo, the first time around, it piqued Micah's interest, so we then checked several books out of the library about Marco Polo and learned more.

2. "21 Activities for Kids" series.
We did: George Washington for Kids: His Life & Times with 21 Activities by Brandon Marie Miller. Abraham Lincoln for Kids: His Life & Times with 21 Activities by Janis Herbert. Franklin Delano Roosevelt for Kids: His Life & Times with 21 Activities by Richard Panchyk. We also did partial ones on broader subjects, such as the Revolutionary War.
These books provide great ideas for fun projects, (for example, we made plaster masks for our faces), as well as ample information on the subject of the book. I guess I should say a blanket statement that many of our resources were a springboard for more resources. For example, perhaps they learned about Morse code in one of the '21' books, and wanted to learn more, so then a book was checked out of our library specifically about Morse code.

3. "Wicked History" series of books
Micah read these last year & just loved them! And boy were they wicked! Napoleon, Stalin, Hitler, Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Attila the Hun, Ivan the Terrible, Genghis Khan and Vlad the Impaler and more! If you are worried about or sensitive to your child reading some gory details, you may want to avoid these books.
   This would be a good time to mention that we have made great use of inter-library loans! Our library had a few of these books, but the rest of them we borrowed from other libraries. I'm so thankful for the ability to use these resources free of charge!

4. Little Passports
I believe that Little Passports now has a monthly club option for the American states as well as countries around the world. When we purchased it, the only option was countries and that was a good choice for us. It was fun to receive & open our monthly package & to use the code to go online & to do the activities provided.

5. Leagues & Legends
This Geography curriculum, put out by Veritas Press, for the 'Grammar Level' is a fun way to learn geography. The audio CDs & the repetition provided make memorizing easy. There are 4 separate sets: North, South, East & West. The accompanying workbooks include fun recipes and crafts to make as well.

6. Disney's 'The American Presidents' DVDs
   I ponied up and purchased this collection of four DVDs. Each DVD is about an hour and is quite interesting. To quote what Amazon says: "Each DVD includes short-form Presidential biographies, era overviews for historical context, and thematic segments such as “The Making of the Presidency” and “We the People”. The DVD content is based on National Curriculum Standards and features interviews with political luminaries such as Sam Donaldson, Wesley Clark, Paul Begala, Melissa Harris-Lacewell and many more. Try the interactive whiteboard content on every DVD — it’s an exciting, competitive game that uses video clips, photographs and quotes to test students’ understanding of the Presidents, their political positions, and why they matter in the American story."

Math:
I have only ever used Abeka Math & Saxon Math for textbooks. They are my only experience & I think they are both very good. I would heartily recommend either/both of these mathematics curriculum to anyone. What is hard is switching back & forth, as they are put together at slightly different levels.

1. Abeka Math
   One thing that my son really appreciates about Abeka is the high-quality paper, the illustrations & the colors! This may not sound important to most people, but we all have components that we prefer to have our best, individual, learning environment. Micah is highly visual & strongly prefers the illustrations & color! In fact, Micah has only used Saxon once & that was for grade 2 and when we began the year & he saw his math paper, he threw it on the floor and said that he wasn't going to do that!!
I have read many reviews for and against both Abeka and Saxon, talking about the spiral approach of one and not the other. I've taught quite a few years of both & feel that Abeka holds its own academically. It's a strong program.

2. Saxon Math
The biggest advantage, in my mind, of Saxon is that the lesson is in the student book. If you have a student who can work independently, (and this is a big advantage that many homeschoolers have- that they have this ability), Saxon allows for the level of self-teaching that works for your particular situation.
Just like Abeka, I feel that Saxon is academically strong.
My oldest is in 8th grade, so I cannot speak for Saxon high school math. My understanding is that because Geometry is included at many levels of Saxon, they do not have a separate year for it. Some homeschool families choose to supplement with a separate Geometry curriculum.

Science:

1. Apologia Science
   This is the only year that we have used Apologia, and only Micah used it. I think it's fantastic! We used the textbook and workbook combination. Packed with information & extension activities, it's been a successful year of Science for us! (Just the other night, while eating meat for supper, Micah tells us all he learned about tapeworms that day! ICK!) Land Animals of the 6th Day. Swimming Creatures of the 5th Day. Flying Creatures of the 5th Day. Exploring Creation with Astronomy. Exploring Creation with Botany. Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy & Physiology. And more.

2. The Rainbow Science
   This is our 2nd year with Rainbow Science for Noelle. It is both delightful & challenging. From Cathy Duffy: "Serious science is coupled with a light-hearted approach and lots of hands-on activity for this two-year course targeted at junior high level...The course is also unusual because the text is intended to be used for two years. In the first year, students study physics and chemistry, and in the second year they study biology and applied science. The Teacher’s Helper is a guide for the text as well as the labs, covering both years. The first year’s lab set includes both durable equipment and consumable supplies plus a lab workbook. For the second year, you need additional equipment, supplies, and a new lab workbook, all of which is sold as a “year 2” set. I really enjoy Dr. Dobbins personal, friendly writing style, and I think most junior high students will too..." (We agree!)

3. Special Activities
   Dissecting owl pellets & frogs, (in celebration of Leap Day/Year!), are experiences we will never forget! I would suggest taking advantage of local stores, (we got the owl pellets at The Rock & Art Shop in Bangor), as well as ordering unique items online.
The Great Outdoors! How many lessons have we learned through catching salamander eggs & watching goats being born & tromping through estuaries?? We're talking about resources here & the natural world is one, GINORMOUS resource!

Language:

1. Shurley English
I am a fan! I have learned things teaching Shurley English that I absolutely never learned when I was in school! The 'jingles' are catchy, and like anything put to music, are helpful with memorization. Shurley emphasizes writing and diagramming sentences. The teaching part can be a bit awkward and wordy and isn't quite as user-friendly as some Language curriculum is, but in my opinion it's quality makes up for that.

2. Ralph Fletcher
   Ralph Fletcher is unusual. He is the author of picture book, chapter books, young adult novels, and poetry. But he also writes books for young people who are interested in writing. When Noelle was 9 years old she discovered Ralph Fletcher & it was through reading, studying, and applying his book: Live Writing. At 9 years old she fell in LOVE with writing and has been writing ever since! (She's working on a book that is quite good!)
Noelle also read some of his novels, as well as Poetry Matters and How to Write Your Life Story.

3. Magic Tree House Books & Research Guides
I wrote about these books in my post about reading fiction, however I need to mention them here because the experience, content, and triumph Micah felt about reading so many books at a young age was great to experience and watch. Basically, when Micah was 7 years old he read all the Magic Tree House books and non-fiction research guides that were available at that time, 68 books! The books start out very easy but get more challenging & more interesting as the young reader grows.
In Micah's case, he also had a little passport and after reading each book would answer questions online and print out a sticker to glue on his passport. This was very motivating to him.
The non-fiction guides were very interesting! Some were History & some were Science. Perhaps some could be labeled as Fine Arts.

4. Pizza-Hut Book-It Program!
   You are probably familiar with this program. Open to K-6th graders, students can read to earn personal pan pizzas for several months of the school year. Homeschoolers are welcome. Look online early because sign-up is in the summer.

5. Quality Picture Books
   When my kids were younger we enjoyed reading nearly all of Jan Brett books, writing her a letters, and hearing back from her. We also read nearly all of Robert McCloskey books and a few others too. There are many quality picture books available and they are worth the read! Of course, I happen to believe that picture books aren't just for little people!

6. Abeka 'Read & Think' Books
   I loved using these books! The student has a certain amount of time to read the one-page or less story or information, flip the paper over, and answer questions about it. Measures comprehension. The kids thought they were fun & I liked using them.

Other:

1. Contests!
   We did not do a lot of contests, because finding the quality ones, which are free to enter, takes a considerable amount of time, as well as taking the time to teach to & enter the contests!
   Although we never won anything, my favorite is probably 'Letters about Literature'. We have entered this several times. It provides a wonderful opportunity for a student to write a letter to a book's author, living or not, and tell the author how the book inspired them, changed their lives, etc. The Letters about Literature website contains samples, lesson plans, and lots of helpful information.
   You may know that Noelle won an Olive Garden "Pasta Tales" essay contest several years back. She won a $100 Olive Garden giftcard and a $500 savings bond. Micah was a finalist in a JIF peanut butter sandwich contest. He just barely missed out on an exciting trip to NYC, but he garnered some attention and received a very cool JIF gift basket! He also won some prizes in a 'Get to Know' contest. These types of successes help bolster self esteem.
There are many contests out there and although I can't remember the specifics, we have also done poster contests, Science ones and other essay ones.

2. Mike Venezia's books
   These are some incredible books! I purchased nearly all of the 'Getting to Know the World's Greatest Composers' ones as well as 'Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists' ones. They are picture books that are interesting and really do give the reader an overview of the person that they are about. He also has a series about scientists & inventors, and maybe more beyond that.

3. VIDEOS!!
   Jack Hanna & Richard Weiss & Jeff Corwin & Marty Stouffer were our homeschool companions for years! David MaCaulay's videos. A million Animated Hero Classics, learning about all kinds of people. Videos about different cultures & countries. On & On the list goes. I believe we checked out and watched every video our library had to offer!!

4. Memoria Press' LATIN courses
   We never got very far in this curriculum, but it was user-friendly, easy to implement and use. Many levels are available.

5. A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers by Melissa E. Craig & Maggie S. Hogan.
   We did not finish this curriculum either, but it is very good. :)

6. Find Some Resources!
Every area has museums. Homeschool groups. Field Trip groups. Historical places. Other moms. Experts in certain areas. Make your own path & find the resources that will work for your family. Our local art museum has an amazing Young Curators progarm. Also, local libraries provide book clubs. We have participated in many of those and we truly love our local library and librarians. The options under this one are endless!

~I have no doubt that within moments of posting this, I will think of 10 things I should have added to the list! (That's why it's helpful that I can edit, although I rarely take the time to!!)

The very first time I saw the Star Wars movies, the only Star Wars movies at the time, was my freshman year of college, (1994-1995), at Philadelphia College of Bible. It was a Saturday & a student group had set up a Star Wars marathon: All 3 in one day, one right after the other.

I noticed that Luke Skywalker's appearance changed & was told that he was in a severe accident between movies. Frankly, I don't remember any other impressions. Even now, I can't claim to be a true fan. I don't dislike Star Wars, I'm just not very 'into' Science Fiction & I can never understand what is going on in the movies!!

We really did it all wrong with how we introduced Star Wars to Micah! In February, 2014, we were on vacation as a family & decided to watch Star Wars, since most of the movies we watch as a family are more on the 'Girl Movie' side of things. (Not that girls can't like Star Wars!!) However, we were unable to rent the 1st movie. So instead we watched what I call 'the 2nd movie', but what is actually Episode V: Star Wars: the Empire Strikes Back. (I fully recognize that this approach makes no sense!) Micah loved it. Hannah, Noelle & D~I'm not so sure! While on vacation Micah purchased a Star Wars Lego set at Sherman's Bookstore. We also watched Episode VI: Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.

To make mixed-up matters worse, I found Episode I: The Phantom Menace at Goodwill, so he watched that one. He bought more Star Wars Legos. He watched episodes of The Clone Wars.

It wasn't until a couple of months ago, Valentine's Day, 2015, that he was able to finally watch 'the first movie': Episode IV: Star Wars:A New Hope!! (He did say that this helped explain a few things!!!) I wasn't able to afford the DVDs for him for his Valentine's Day gift, but for a few dollars each I bought him Episodes IV, V & VI on VCR tape! Hey, they will do for now! And really, he was thrilled and more than satisfied!

For this upcoming 'May the 4th' Celebration, I ordered him used copies of the remaining two movies. Episode II: Star Wars: Attack of the Clones came in the mail on Saturday & we watched that one last night. Micah is hoping that the final one, Episode III: Star Wars: Clone Wars, will come in today's mail.

So that is how we got to today~ A quick & silly & fun little celebration, in the midst of a busy day, to celebrate Star Wars!

There must be presents! (My kids have been pretty spoiled this last year of homeschooling!)

Today is busy because we have a homeschool Literature Fair in Hampden, we have our regularly scheduled Monday activities: Noelle has dance & she volunteers for 2 hours at the Boys & Girls Club. Plus we have the unexpected things, such as three jakes within 10 feet of our property!! (They got away!) So I put all the food out this morning & basically said, "Go for it!" We ate our breakfasts & our lunches out of the food!

I looked online for ideas that would be fairly easy to do, inexpensive & would not involve too much of an overload of sugar!

At 10:00 last night I looked at this watermelon & said, "I will give you 10 minutes!" So this was as deathstar-y it got in that time period!

See what we did here!? Plus, with feta on the side!

However, if you give your kids light sabers...

sometimes they knock over the bantha milk, even though you promised your son that if he let you borrow his Star Wars legos that no food would get on them! Ah, we are keeping it real!!
Note: No tears were shed over the spilling of this milk! :)

Then, for fun, we played a few very quick games!

1. Destroy the Deathstars!

Even 'big kids' like an excuse sometimes to play with bubbles!

2. Jedi Mind Trick!

I had the kids each pick a number between 1-10. Then I had them do a series of things to it, such as +6, -1, +3, -5, +4, etc. Then I had them subtract their original number from what they had. Then, I was able to guess their final answer, and they were amazed that not only did I guess correctly, even though they started out with different numbers, they ended up with the same one! I used the force!

3. Firing Proton Torpedoes into the Deathstar's thermal exhaust port!

Piper really liked this game!

4. Feel the Force! (A Tasting Game!)

Both Noelle & Micah were blindfolded & fed the same items. At the count of three, they said aloud, at the same time, what they thought the item was! Micah won by only one point & it was fun! Some were easy & some were hard, (coffee creamer!) and apparently the lemon was not a favorite! (On that one, Micah guessed lime & Noelle guessed kimchi!) The stormtrooper water came in handy!