Books of the Bible Lapbook and Game

 

This one is really neat!

 

Books of the Bible Lapbook and Game

 

This is a file folder game or lapbook game to learn the books of the Bible. It includes 84 Bible trivia questions (easy and medium levels) and blank cards to make your own questions. Availble to download and assemble.

 

http://heartofwisdom.com/blog/books-of-the-bible-lapbook/

 

 

Free analogies, critical thinking

 

Free printable analogies and online games or online quizzes with analogies to increase analytical and critical thinking.

http://www.superteacherworksheets.com/analogies.html

http://www.funtrivia.com/trivia-quiz/ForChildren/Analogies-for-Kids-194435.html

http://www.rhlschool.com/eng3n24.htm

http://edhelper.com/Back_to_School_analogies.htm

http://www.edhelper.com/language/Analogies.htm

http://www.geocities.com/tonyswebquests/print_analogy

http://www.geocities.com/tonyswebquests/print_analogy2

http://edhelper.com/language/analogies6601.html

http://www.quia.com/cb/7146.html

http://sat.saab.org/satenglish.cgi

 

 

Free biblical creation science videos

 

 

Here is a large online library of biblical creation science and history videos. These are all free! What a wonderful gift!

"Educational documentaries may be the best witnessing tool available to combat evolution indoctrination. People have become more accustomed to multimedia education than any other type, and new and exciting creation science programs are becoming available each year."

http://www.nwcreation.net/videos/index.html

 

 

 

Teaching to your child's strengths

Teaching To Your Child's Strengths

by Kajsa Huckaba

You will spend a ton of money and everyone in your home will be frustrated until you learn specifically what makes your children each tick. Maximize your student's learning and time spent learning by teaching to their personality and strengths.

If you do not know what those are, spend some time in prayer regarding each one of your children. Ask the Lord to reveal these things to you and for you to have your eyes open to see them.

Keep a notebook for you of each child and make notes, revelations and relevant scriptures that will help you better understand your child's learning styles, strengths and weaknesses and character issues.

If your child really likes to hear audio CDs of history but hates to read it, write that down when you notice it. Where are the character strengths and weaknesses. You may be surprised! If your child is creative, how is she or he creative? With creating music melodies or rhythm? With planning out how a project should lay or color usage? Think outside the box and pay attention. Soon a picture will start to form of all your child's strengths and loves. In the same way, watch what your child loathes or struggles with and jot it down. This will help you to see where the weaknesses are and hopefully you will pray and ask the Lord how to strengthen those areas. He is always faithful!

Important to note, when you see a strength, be sure to share that with your child to encourage them! And if you see even a small improvement in an area of weakness, be sure to mention it and give praise to them! Record these improvements! With younger children, you may want to make some kind of award or medal that you made to give out periodically. Take their picture wearing it!

Timelines for history

Timelines For History

by Kajsa Huckaba

One of the coolest things you can take advantage of as a homeschooler is using timeline. It can be added to every year or a fresh one made. If you add to it every year, it becomes this wonderful living history project that will both cement learning and inspire learning. Discoveries/landmarks in science and family history are great additions to any time line.

Each student could have their own timeline or the whole family might share one. The benefit of each student having one is that your children may be studying different time periods and if they are making their own timeline figures it will be entirely their own creation, instead of a shared project. Each student's timeline would be a cool keepsake, too.

The whole family may decide to have one! It is possible to have a family time line and each student to have their own. What ever your family decides, it will be a project you all will benefit from and enjoy.

Styles of timelines can be mounted to the wall like a hallway, a folding accordian style, or as pages in a binder that you flip through. The binder style is more difficult to grasp the layout as it is not laid out in a linear fashion. If you want to use butcher paper, keep in mind that it may roll up on the edges. There is always the option to laminate it before you add the time line figures and that may help with the rolling edges. Another option is to tape pages together end to end on the back (with strong tape such as packing tape). You may opt for cardstock for a more sturdy project, which I recommend. The heavier, the better. The benefits of this page to page style is that it can be added to if need be on the end, can be folded, can be mounted on the wall, and is small enough to go into a folder or on a shelf.

Your student may create their own artwork for timeline figures, do no art and just write what happened when or use premade artwork for it. Many families enjoy the Homeschool In The Woods products for premade figures and you can reproduce them to save big money. Then all your figures "match" if that is important or you have a child who is not comfortable with their craft skills. I have included some links for free or nearly free timeline figures here below.

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/ClassicalEducation4Me/9726/

http://www.squidoo.com/homeschooltimelines

http://www.abookintime.com/timelines.html

http://isaiah5413.blogspot.com/2007/01/free-or-almost-free-time-line-figures.html

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?p=296481

(A topic thread here gives an address to a yahoogroup with 850+ members that share timeline help. I am a member myself.)

http://www.angelfire.com/or/mtdewbydo/timelines.html

http://www.biblioplan.net/timeline.htm

http://www.phillipmartin.info/clipart/socialsciences_ancientcivilizations.htm

37 Weeks of American History

 

This is a new site that offers up a complete homeschool curriculum, "People of America".
This is a 37-week schedule of scripted American History lessons, geared to kids ages 6-8, and includes units focusing on Native Americans, European Americans, African Americans, Latin Americans & Asian American History. It's a very large site. These are interesting, easy-to-use lessons for primary students. Check it out and see if this is a resource you can use in your homeschool.

http://www.prontolessons.com/

 

Tired of art messes?

 

 

Does a big mess keep you from doing art projects? Here is an idea I came up with recently as I am beginning to implement the "Workbox System" into my home.

You can make up a workbox (plastic tote) for a particular kind of craft or art method.
Like watercolor painting, coloring in colorbooks, stencils, scrapbooking, lapbooking, etc.

One craft per workbox.

If you do this then all the supplies needed for that activity are there. Make sure the scissors, glue sticks, colored pencils or whatever are all in there- whatever is required to that art activity! The child just goes to retrieve the workbox and will not need to search for this and that! The bonus is that it makes it really easy to clean up and put away too!

Bible: Huge portal - Middle school, high school, adult

 

This site is not particularly exciting to the eye, but it has an incredible amount of information and files!!!

There are surveys of the Old & New Testaments, geography, interactive lessons, games & quizzes, Sunday school lessons, articles, entire classes, entire ebooks, just a ton of rich good material that you don't want to miss. I am so delighted to have found it!

We will be using one of the in depth surveys for high school this year.

BIBLE STUDY GUIDE .org

 

 

More free math

 

Ray's Arithmetic

 

CSMP Materials. Grades k-6.

 

First Lessons in Arithmetic

Math

NC Public Schools

DPI Instructional Services: Mathematics: Grades K-2 Resources (2003 SCS)

Centre for Innovation (UK)

Centre for Innovation in Mathematics Teaching - Mathematics Enhancement Programme

Living Math History (Lesson Plans on Right side of Page)

C1 Outline and Booklists

(Online) Math Magician

Oswego City School District Math Games

Printable Math Sheets

Free Math Worksheets

(online) Math U See

Math·U·See Drill Page

Math Worksheets to create and print (generator)

http://themathworksheetsite.com/

 

CSMP MaterialsRay's Arithmetic - Google Book Search

Spine Book teaching - making your own curriculum the easy way

In this post I have some "overviews" that can be used as a guide for you to use to teach from. Like a spine. See my other post on teaching from a spine (HERE). These are just guides, as all curricula and teacher manuals are only a tool for us to use.

The one from Heart Of Wisdom is very good. I say that because it also incorporates science and integrates Bible & Theology heavily. Which in itself should be a top priority in teaching our children at home. (See Deuteronomy 6)

All overviews and especially chronological teaching should, in my opinion, use a timeline. Some families will post one along their hallway or make a big long fold up one (accordian style).

These are mostly based on a four year rotation, as is popular in current education.

Four Year plan

http://heartofwisdom.com/homeschoollinks/four-year-plan/

Four Year plan

http://www.highlanddove.org/history.htm

http://myhomeschool101.blogspot.com/2007/11/rc-history.html

Four year plan

http://www.pennywiselearning.com/The-Weaver-Curriculum-Scope-and-Sequence.html

Four Year plan for high school

http://www.janice-campbell.com/2008/09/09/high-school-a-four-year-plan-for-homeschoolers/

Four Year living book list sequence

http://homescool-ed.blogspot.com/2007/04/sonlight-books-arranged-by-well-trained.html

Overview plan 1

http://www.konos.com/quickoverview/scope.htm

Overview plan 2

http://www.sonlight.com/scope-and-sequence.html

Overview plan 3

http://www.triviumpursuit.com/articles/suggested_course_of_study.htm

Overview plan 4 - year by year

http://www.bjupress.com/catalog_pdfs/scope_sequence09.pdf

Overview 5

http://www.anchorchurchresources.com/scope_sequence.pdf

Overview  6 – editable

http://www.bjupress.com/resources/christian-school/curriculum-guides/word-format.php

Art Resources and Art Links for Homeschoolers

 

Homeschooling Art Resources and Art Links for Homeschoolers

The homeschooling art resources and homeschoolers art links on this page come from Incredible @rtDepartment at Princeton Online, which is a marvellous resource for kids and adults alike. Find art lesson plans for K-12 and lots more.

 

http://www.ionart.ca/homeschool_art_resources.html

 

 

992 Page Companion Study for "The Book of Virtues"

Free: 992 Page Companion Study for "The Book of Virtues"

 

Unit Study Companion to William Bennett's "The Book of Virtues",
created especially for homeschoolers by Patty Thompson.

Each of the ten units in this 992 page study companion
covers 10 of the stories/poems/essays
that are included in the Book of Virtues. Each story has
worksheets, notebook pages, vocabulary, character study sheets,
copywork, 1-2 projects (plus a long-term project) and a Lapbook
with an optional unit wrap up activity. And to top it off there's
a full lesson plan for older kids, and a separate one for
primary aged children.

Check it out... it is a wonderful character building resource
that can be tweaked and used for all ages. All you need to go
along with it is a copy of Bennett's original "Book of Virtues"... and
that can be found el cheapo - like 99 cents - on ebay, etc.
It is a WONDERFUL book, by the way, and all homeschool families
ought to have a copy.

 

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/ShiverAcademy/Book%2Bof%2BVirtues/

 

 

Free Supplimental Literature - "Living" history

 

 

Age of Chivalry
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=bulfinch&book=chivalry&story=_contents

Alfred the Great
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=abbott&book=alfred&story=_contents

 

Famous Men Of the Middle Ages
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=haaren&book=middle&story=_contents

G A Henty books
free ebooks
http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/h#a1032

God's Troubadour, The Story of St. Francis of Assisi
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=jewett&book=troubadour&story=_contents

Heroes of the Middle Ages
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=middle&story=_contents

In the Days of Alfred the Great
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=alfred&story=_contents

In the Days of William the Conquerer
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=william&story=_contents

King Arthur
free ebook
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/trt/index.htm

King Arthur and His Knights
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=warren&book=arthur&story=_contents

Legends of the Middle Ages: Beowulf
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=guerber&book=middle&story=_contents

Men of Iron
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=pyle&book=iron&story=_contents

Nero
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=abbott&book=nero&story=_contents

Otto of the Silver Hand
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=pyle&book=otto&story=_contents

Our Little Crusader Cousin of Long Ago
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=stein&book=crusader&story=_contents

Our Little Norman Cousin of Long Ago
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=stein&book=norman&story=_contents

Page, Esquire, and Knight
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=lansing&book=page&story=_contents

 

Robin Hood
free audio stories
http://storynory.com/category/educational-and-entertaining-stories/robin-hood/feed/

St. George and the Dragon
free audio story
http://storynory.com/2008/04/14/st-george-and-the-dragon/

St. Patrick
free audio story
http://storynory.com/2008/03/10/st-patrick/

St. Valentine
free audio story
http://storynory.com/2008/02/03/st-valentine/

Stories of Beowulf Told to the Children
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=marshall&book=beowulf&story=_contents

Stories of King Arthur's Knights
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=macgregor&book=arthur&story=_contents

Stories of Robin Hood Told to the Children
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=marshall&book=robin&story=_contents

Stories of Roland
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=marshall&book=roland&story=_contents

Stories of the Vikings
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=macgregor&book=vikings&story=_contents

The Burning of Rome
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=church&book=burning&story=_contents

The Chaucer Storybook
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=chaucer&story=_contents

The Crusaders
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=church&book=crusaders&story=_contents

The Early Church, From Ignatius to Augustine
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=hodges&book=church&story=_contents

The Story f Joan of Arc
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=lang&book=joan&story=_contents

The Story f the Middle Ages
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=harding&book=middle&story=_contents

The Story of Rolf and the Viking's Bow
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=frencha&book=rolf&story=_contents

Viking Tales
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=hall&book=viking&story=_contents

When Knights Were Bold
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=bold&story=_contents

William the Conqueror
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=abbott&book=william&story=_contents

Stories of Robin Hood Told to the Children
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=marshall&book=robin&story=_contents

Stories of Roland
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=marshall&book=roland&story=_contents

Stories of the Vikings
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=macgregor&book=vikings&story=_contents

The Burning of Rome
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=church&book=burning&story=_contents

The Chaucer Storybook
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=chaucer&story=_contents

The Crusaders
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=church&book=crusaders&story=_contents

The Early Church, From Ignatius to Augustine
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=hodges&book=church&story=_contents

The Story f Joan of Arc
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=lang&book=joan&story=_contents

The Story f the Middle Ages
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=harding&book=middle&story=_contents

The Story of Rolf and the Viking's Bow
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=frencha&book=rolf&story=_contents

Viking Tales
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=hall&book=viking&story=_contents

When Knights Were Bold
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=tappan&book=bold&story=_contents

William the Conqueror
free ebook
http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=abbott&book=william&story=_contents

Rain Gutter Bookshelves

 

Super cool way to put up a long bookshelf along your hallways or an otherwise unusable wall can be filled with rows of these nifty bookshelves. Some people do not use the "cap" on the end of the shelf, but I think it looks nicer and poses less of a chance to maybe catch a sweater sleeve or something.

These are also great ways to show off projects and lapbooks!

 

http://www.shawnandfrank.com/Blog/2009/03/02/inspired-rain-gutter-bookshelves/

 

http://family.go.com/entertainment/craft-ff-26696-rain-gutter-bookshelves-t/

 

http://www.ware.k12.ga.us/departments/eip/RainGutterBookshelvesArchive.htm

 

http://www.amitymama.com/vb/marketplace/379492-come-see-our-rain-gutter-bookshelves.html

 

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lagomorph/134170294/

 

http://www.americanseamlessgutters.us/Bookshelves.htm

 

Writing To Learn

 

I am not sure where this article came from or who wrote it, but it is so good that I had to share it. I found it in my files "un-named". Enjoy!

Writing to Learn One of the best ways for a student to understand a topic is to write about it. Students must comprehend the material, restructure the new information, and then share their new understanding. Writing to learn is much more than an accumulation of report writing; it helps students think and learn carefully and completely. Writing assignments are about creating both ideas and learning. During writing assignments, students learn how to assess information and determine its appropriateness, to evaluate and compare, analyze and discern, add their own feelings, organize information, and communicate conclusions. Through these processes, students learn to manage and use information to solve problems, interrelate knowledge, and effectively communicate learning outcomes. Students develop excellence in achievement by producing the required quality assignments; they develop diligence by continually practicing clarity, accuracy, relevance, prioritizing, consistency, depth, and breadth through writing activities. Charlotte Mason's narration methods for younger children involve telling back favorite stories read by parents. In later years, students progress to reading passages and telling back in verbal or written form what they have learned. Talking it out, whether aloud or on paper, helps students think.   Often teachers use writing as a way of testing. They use it to find out what students already know, rather than as a way of encouraging them to learn. But the active processes of seeking information, compiling notes, and evaluating, analyzing, and organizing content, as well as the processes of personal reflection, choosing and constructing words, and expressing ideas in writing, are valuable learning tools which students will use the rest of their lives.   Catherine Copley explains in The Writer's Complex: Writing provides food for thought—it enables you to knead small, half-baked words and sentences into great big loaves of satisfying thought that then lead to more thoughts. Developing ideas involves getting some ideas—in whatever form—onto paper or screen so you can see them, return to them, explore them, question them, share them, clarify them, change them, and grow them. It really is almost like growing plants or kneading bread and waiting for the results: plant the seed, start the process, and then let your mind, including your unconscious, take over. Go to sleep and let your dreaming continue to develop your ideas. Humans were born to think; it's almost impossible to stop us. Writing helps us to bring all that activity into consciousness, helps to clarify and direct our thinking, and generate more thinking. Writing, thinking, and learning are part of the same process.2   Writing Activities in Unit Studies Writing Summaries—A Narration Method Unit studies often recommend the student to read passages (particularly Bible passages) and write a summary. This is an excellent way to tell how well people understand something they have read. This method is almost always required preparation for deeper thinking, and is an important tool for research writing. Adding summary writing to a study routine will increase the student’s ability to understand and remember what has been read. Knowing how to write a summary is an essential skill for studying and writing in college. A good summary captures the essence of a piece of writing in your own words and indicates the degree to which you understand what you have read. Writing summaries helps you understand your sources, reduces your reliance on the words of others, and helps integrate the ideas and information of others into your own thinking. As with most writing, the length of your summary is determined by its purpose and audience. To write a concise, accurate summary means you first achieve basic understanding of the material you have read and then carefully paraphrase the selection. One reading will not, in all likelihood, enable you to write a good summary. Using reading strategies including previewing, skimming, and scanning, read your material several times, locating the main idea in each paragraph. Highlight and then write down the main ideas, in order, on a separate piece of paper. Always plan on writing and rewriting this information so that you can condense, arrange, and write the summary in the best fashion. Rewrite and reread, and then select, eliminate, and add information. Remember, the summary is conveying in your own words (paraphrasing) the meaning of what you have read, using the fewest number of words and sentences, and without your subjective opinion. Be objective, as you are writing a summary of what the author stated, not your feelings or evaluation of the material. (Linares) Informal or Free Writing Informal or free writing is probably the easiest to implement of all writing-to-learn activities. In its basic form free writing is simply writing down everything that comes to mind, usually for five or ten minutes without stopping. Focused free writing, which uses some kind of prompt—a term, an issue, a question, or a problem—is useful for the thematic units.   This type of writing is unconstrained by any need to appear correct in public. It is not yet arranging, asserting, and arguing. It is still reflecting and questioning. This is probative, speculative, generative thinking that is written in class or at home to develop the language of learning. It may not always be read by a teacher. Specifically, informal written language will help your student to:   Develop abilities to define, classify, summarize, question, generate criteria, establish inferences, imagine hypotheses, analyze problems, and identify procedures. Improve methods of recording and reporting data (observing), of organizing and structuring data into generalizations, of formulating theories, and of recognizing and applying the methodsthemselves. Learn about central concepts, problem-solving, thinking, learning, language, and about knowledge itself, while developing the ability to question, to create problems and solutions, to wonder, and to think for oneself. Understand one’s own beliefs and attitudes toward learning, toward knowing oneself, toward one's work, toward mistakes and errors, toward the knowledge and opinions of others, and toward the attitudes that affect behaviors. Journals Assignments can be gathered together in a "learning log" or other type of journal. A more powerful type of journal is the "double-entry" or "dialogic" journal in which students copy down quotes, facts, or concepts from a unit study in one column, and write responses, questions, and insights in the next column or on the facing page. In this way the writer engages in an ongoing dialogue with the material —an ancient but still essential activity of serious intellectual life in any academic field or profession. Examples of Writing Assignments Write a letter to a person studied in the unit Keep a diary or journal as if written by someone in the unit Write a news article about an event in the unit Create a web site about the unit Make a mind map about the unit theme Write a summary about a concept learned during the unit study       Footnotes 1. For more on this subject see the “Writing to Learn” chapter in Writers Inc or Writing to Learn by William Zinsser, Harper Collins; ISBN: 0062720406. 2. Copley, Catherine. (1995) The Writer's Complex, Empire State College