Homeschoolist

Tonight’s Sky is a great website for astronomy lovers.  It tells what to look for each night as far as visible stars, planets and comets.  This is really going to come in handy for us this summer as G is fascinated with all things space-related.  Thank you Star Wars. 

My son has started a project raising red worms with his grandma. Together, they built a worm bin and will now observe how the worms turn food wastes into compost. They will weigh, measure, and count the worms as the weeks pass.

According to Journey to Forever Organic Garden, it should be an exciting study: “Worm populations double each month. In ideal conditions they can reproduce much faster than that: 1 lb of worms can increase to 1,000 lbs (one million worms) in a year…”

Worm Resources:

• Vermicomposting Information
• How to Make Your Own Worm Compost System
• How to Build a Worm Bin
• Cheap and Easy Worm Bin
• Worm Bin Plans

Family Fun: “You might not be able to pull a rabbit out of a hat, but you can keep your kids entertained with a trio of Easter bunnies made from a tangram, an ancient Chinese puzzle.”

This simple craft project only requires cardstock, scissors, and glue.

I just ran across http://www.homeschoolmath.net/.  They have customizable math worksheets among other things.  I was looking for beginning time-telling activities and it gave me the perfect worksheet.  They have activities and worksheets for a range of skill levels.

www.homeschoolshare.com is a great place where mommy-made FIAR-type unit studies are shared for free.  There are tons of different ones, so you’re sure to find something that will work for your theme.

“To encourage and celebrate the creative talents and skills of students, Landmark House, Ltd. is pleased to announce The 2008 National Kids-in-Print Book Contest for Students.*

A qualified panel of judges, composed of professional editors, writers, illustrators, teachers, and librarians will judge the book entries on the merits of originality and the writing and illustrating skills displayed.

Landmark House, Ltd. will then publish the three winning students’ books, one from each of the three age categories. The books will be printed and assembled according to the finest quality standards of book publishing.

What wonderful experiences await the three winners! When their books are selected for publication, they will be offered publishing contracts. They also will enjoy all-expense-paid trips to our offices in Kansas City, Kansas, where Landmark’s professional staff will assist them in the editing, refining, and final production of their books. Within months, the winners will become published authors and illustrators and will be paid royalties annually on the sales of their books.”

Angie, this made me think of your young writer for sure!  ~C

On the Bookshelf:

Snow is Falling by Franklyn Branley - This book is from my favorite elementary science series, Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science. It discusses the good and bad things about snow and includes a snow activity guide.

Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin - This book is the story of a boy who was truly fascinated by snow and how his passion led him to take ground-breaking photographs of snowflakes.

The Art of the Snowflake by Kenneth Libbretch - Breathtaking photos of ice crystals. It’s true that no two snowflakes are alike. This beautiful coffee table book is definitely worth the purchase.

Activities:

• Crafts - Make paper snowflakes
• Narration - After reading Snow is Falling and Snowflake Bentley, or other snow selections, have your child provide a narration about each book. Write the child’s narration on a piece of paper or on his paper snowflake.
• Snack - Make snowcones using fresh snow, or crush ice in a blender and top with juice.
• Play in the snow - If you live in a warm, snow-free climate, make some Insta-Snow and/or finish your unit study with a trip to the snow.
• Experiment - Grow your own snow crystals

Here’s a thought-provoking article on homeschooling rights by Chuck Norris.

You can subscribe to Geeguides for $27.98 for a year of fun, interactive learning about art.  We haven’t yet subscribed, but G loved the free trial.  I think it will better suit him in a couple of years.

This is more for older learners, but I thought the first hand accounts of WWII here were pretty powerful.  http://www.hfcsd.org/ww2/