Arkansas Homeschoolers Reminder

If you are homeschooling in Arkansas this year your Notice of Intent and waiver must be received (not postmarked) by August 15th to legally homeschool in the state of Arkansas.  To get a paper form, you can stop by your local school board and pick up a form, or print one off from this link.  This year they have given you the option to register online which you can do here.  There is a parent tutorial for registering online here.  The forms are very easy to fill out and only require basic information.  You must fill out every section, but the section on curriculum and schedule does not have to be detailed.  A brief description is all that is required.

Even though it is an option to register online this year, it is said that within three years this will be mandatory and the online option will disappear.  I do not think this is a good thing.  I registered online this year, and although filling out the paperwork was easy, I do NOT like the process at all.  Once you fill out your form, you are sent an email that says your form was submitted, but you must wait to receive another email saying that your form was reviewed and approved before you can be considered legal to homeschool.  Nowhere in Arkansas homeschool law does it say that your forms must be approved to legally homeschool.  All you have to do is submit them.  I do not like the wording of this at all.  A receipt email stating that our forms have been received should be sufficient to be considered legal to homeschool.  And, I submitted my forms weeks ago and never received the approval email.  Also, it has been stated that within three years we will have to submit forms online, but in Arkansas first year homeschool parents have to submit their forms to their local superintendent in person.  I do not understand how they can require you to submit forms online without their being a change in the law.  I hope that changes will be made to the process of submitting our forms online, but until then I will be mailing my forms in rather than submitting them online until we no longer have the option to do so.

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Preschool Plans for 2013/2014 School Year

Preschool in my house usually consists of reading great books, arts and crafts, learning through play, and listening in as I work with the older children.  But, Lily (4) thinks that she is a big kid and wants school work like her big brothers and sister.  So I did get some curriculum for her so she will have some schoolbooks that she can work on on her own, and some things that I can do with her.

Writing- Handwriting Without Tears Letters and Numbers workbook and Wet Dry Try iPad app.


Math- Kumon Are You Ready For Kindergarten Math Skills- I don't think it is going to take her long to complete this workbook because she does several pages a day.


Reading- All About Reading Pre-1 - I love All About Reading and their Pre-1 is perfect for preschoolers!  Lily loves the craft pages in the student workbook.  The illustrations in the hard back books are adorable!  I just cannot say enough good things about All About Reading!

Piano- Adventus- I reviewed Adventus (you can read my review here) a few months ago, and Lily loved it! So she has been continuing on with the program.

Lily likes the AAR Craft pages so much that I ordered another book from Kumon My Book of Easy Crafts, that is a coloring, cutting, and gluing craft book that she can work on.

Other Preschool Activities that she likes to do include:

Lacing Activities- I found a cute set of animals and their habitats that you lace together at Mardels for $7.99.

Stringing Beads

Playdough- I found a really cute pack of playdough toys in the $1 bin at Target.  I need to add some other playdough toys to this bin.

Magnet Letters and Numbers-  I bought 2 cookie sheets in a pack at Dollar General for $4 and found a set of Letter Magnets and Number Magnets for $1 each at Walmart.

Cothespin Cups- Plastic Cups numbered 1-10 with a pack of clothespins.  She clips the correct number of clothespins to the cups.

Sensory Play- I made 3 bins.  One with dinosaurs and black beans, one with farm animals and rice, and one with sea animals, water beads, and sea shells.

Math Manipulatives- We have an abacus, which I love because none of the pieces can get lost!  We also have Math U See blocks, and from a review of Touch Math earlier in the year we have Texture Cards, Math Fans, Touch Shapes, and 3 D numerals.  We have several different types of building blocks, including a set of pink legos just for the girls!

All of these activities are on a shelf that she can easily reach on her own, along with construction paper, glue, crayons, scissors, paint and other crafts when she wants to get crafty.

Our Favorite Preschool Apps include:

Wet, Dry, Try

Bugs and Bubbles

Telling Time

Curious George Sunny Safari

*link to All About Reading Pre-1 is my affiliate link.  I only form affiliate relationships with companies whose products I actually use and can recommend.

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Schoolhouse Review Crew: Notgrass Company

I had been looking for several months for a good American History curriculum that I could use for the children.  I had looked at several, but none of them had everything I wanted.  I had heard of the Notgrass Company,  but I thought that all of their products were for High School age children.  I was very surprised when they showed up on our vendor list to find out they had an American History curriculum suggested for grades 5-8 but able to be used with younger siblings as well.  I took a look at the America the Beautiful Curriculum Package along with the America the Beautiful Student Workbook and discovered it was just what I was looking for!  I have to say, that after using and reviewing it for several weeks, it has more than exceeded my expectations!!!




America the Beautiful was designed for students in grades 5-8 (ages 10-14.)  It is more than just a history curriculum.  It is a one year, Christian based American history, geography, and literature course.  There are 150 lessons in the course beginning with God's Wonders that He placed in America even before people lived here, and continuing up to the present through the presidency of Barrack Obama.  The America the Beautiful Curriculum Package includes:

America the Beautiful Part One- This is a hardcover 452 page textbook containing the first 75 lessons starting with life before Europeans and continuing through the Civil War.  In addition to the text, it contains both color and black and white illustrations, and also assignments and activities to be completed for each lesson.

America the Beautiful Part Two-This is a hardcover 572 page textbook containing lessons 75-150 starting with America expanding West of the Mississippi and ending in modern times.  In addition to the text the book contains both black and white and color illustrations and also assignments and activities to be completed for each lesson.

We the People- This is a hardcover 220 page book that contains 150 original journal entries, newspaper articles, advertisements, poems, songs, letters, short stories, speeches, and other historical documents from American history.  Illustrations in this book are black and white.

Maps of America the Beautiful- This is a 61 page paperback consumable book of 30 maps specifically drawn to accompany this curriculum.  There are mapping activities at the end of each lesson and children can refer to maps while reading the lesson.

Timeline of America the Beautiful-  This is a 57 page paperback consumable illustrated timeline of American history from AD 1000 to the present.  Some facts are already written in for the students, and after most lessons the student will add a fact that they learned in that days lessons on the timeline.  The illustrations are in black and white and can be colored if the student would like to color them in.

America the Beautiful Answer Key- A 55 page paperback book with the answers to the Timeline, Lesson Review, Student Workbook and vocabulary assignments.

The 6 books in the America the Beautiful Curriculum Package can be purchased for $99.95.  Components can be purchased separately as well. Extra consumable books can also be purchased if using this curriculum with multiple children.

Also available to go along with the curriculum is:

America the Beautiful Student Workbook - This book was designed for 5th and 6th grade students, but older children (and a little younger) may enjoy it as well.  It is 150 page consumable coil bound book containing cross words, find a word, matching, codes, drawing assignments, and other activities to review what was learned that day.  The Student Workbook can be purchased for $11.95.

America the Beautiful Lesson Review- A 110 page consumable coil bound book designed for 7th and 8th graders, but could also be used for younger children who enjoy the activities.  The book contains daily review questions, literature review questions, and weekly quizzes.  The Lesson Review Book can be purchased for $9.95.

There are 10 works of literature assigned in the America the Beautiful Curriculum.
You can purchase the Literature Package from Notgrass for $59.95 or buy or borrow the books from another location.  The literature selections are:

The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Spears
Amos Fortune: Free Man by Elizabeth Yates
Brady by Jean Fritz
Bound For Oregon by Jean Van Leeuwen
Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt
Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor
Blue Willow by Doris Gates
Homer Price by Robert McCloskey
Katy by Mary Evelyn Notgrass

So how does it all fit together?  There are 30 units in the curriculum with 5 lessons per unit.  Students complete one lesson per day, but if you find the pace isn't working for you or you want to stretch it out to last longer than a year, you can easily adapt it to fit your schedule. Each lesson has an assigned reading in the text.  At the end of each lesson in the text, the activities are listed including: Thinking Biblically (Bible assignment), Map Study (using the Maps of America the Beautiful book), Vocabulary (words to look up and define), Literature (reading assignment from We the People, assigned Literature book or both), and the Student Workbook or Lesson Review assignments.  Some lessons also include a Creative Writing Assignment. You choose which activities you would like your student to complete.  Length of the lessons will depend on how many activities you choose to complete.  One day per week an optional family activity is also included in the lesson.  Some examples of these activities are: making an Iroquoian Longhouse, making Navajo Flatbread, Pocahontas Museum, creating Colonial Printing, cooking a Plantation dinner, and much more. Assignments are given in the lesson with specific instructions for each activity in the back of the textbook. These activities were designed to be completed with parent involvement.  Each activity has a list of supplies that are needed.

I have been using America the Beautiful with my 9 and 11 year old boys, with the younger children listening in to the readings.  My eleven year old could easily read and complete the assignments without help, but we like to do history as a family so I have been reading aloud the text and literature assignments.  I purchased an extra set of consumables (Timeline, Map, and Student Workbook) for my 9 year old.  After we finish reading aloud from the text and literature assignment Nick and Alex complete the Map, Timeline, and Student Workbook assignments.   My 9 year old is a little younger than the suggested age range and needs a little help at times with the Student Workbook, and filling in the Time Line entries.  We have been completing one lesson per day and it usually takes 30-45 minutes to complete a lesson.

First of all, I have to say that the title America the Beautiful is perfect for this curriculum, because the textbooks are absolutely beautiful!!  Hard cover, high quality, and full of wonderful black and white and color illustrations.  I really did not expect them to be so beautiful!  America the Beautiful truly has every element I was looking for in an American History curriculum!  It is Christian based and I love that every lesson ends with a scripture that applies to that lesson. I love teaching history using historical fiction, but also like to have a text to fill in all of the facts, figures, and other important elements.  America the Beautiful uses both and even goes one better because in addition to great literature ( the literature choices are fantastic!)  and a wonderful text book, it also uses We the People which is a collection of original source documents, letters, songs, speeches, articles and more.  The text is very interesting to read and the illustrations help give a visual understanding of what is being read.  We love making timelines.  I think timelines really help the children not only remember dates but to understand an order of events in history.  The Timeline of America the Beautiful is another beautiful book in this curriculum!  We love the black and white illustrations!  Mapping exercises to teach geography is another element that is important to me in a history curriculum.  We love the Maps of America the Beautiful book and that the assignments help the boys understand where the lesson we are reading took place in relation to other lessons that we have studied.  The boys really like the assignments in the Student Workbook.  These fun exercises help reinforce and review what we discussed in that days' lesson.

Another one of my favorite things about America the Beautiful is that it requires very little teacher preparation!  The only advanced preparation you need to do is decide which activities you are going to assign to your children, and take a look at that week's family activity.  If you choose to do the Family Activity, you will have to buy the necessary supplies to complete it and make time to do it.  The lessons themselves are open and go.  All you have to do is start reading or assign reading to your students if they will be working independently.

I would highly recommend America the Beautiful!!  I am thrilled with this curriculum and look forward to continuing on with it this year.  In fact, I was so impressed with the Notgrass Company that I purchased  Exploring Government to use with my daughter who is a senior this year.

Members of The Crew reviewed America the Beautiful and Draw to Learn.  To see what my Crew Mates had to say, click on the banner below.

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Schoolhouse Review Crew: Bible Study Guide For All Ages

Bible Study Guide For All Ages  takes children ages 3 through the 6th grade through the Bible at the same time studying some Old and New Testament each year completing the entire Bible in four years.  Students will have an opportunity to learn the big picture of the Bible, study the Bible in depth, and be able to apply to their lives.  I recently had an opportunity to use and review:

Beginner Student Pages
Beginner Time Line
Children's Songs CD Set

Intermediate Student Pages
Bible Book Summary Cards 


The Student Pages guides the student and teacher through the learning experience.  The Beginner Student Pages are for ages 3-K or 1st grade.  The Student Pages are consumable, so you will need to purchase them for each child.

The Beginner Student Pages contain the following sections;

Learn the Basics-tells the teacher which time line page the teacher needs to go over with the student.
Sing and Remember-memory work drill, song that relates to the lesson being studied, long and short term review questions.
Get Active-activity to introduce the application concept to get children excited about what God will be teaching them.
My Bible-every 4 lessons instead of a Get Active section you will find a My Bible section that helps students learn the Bible, identify words, and understand the Old and New testaments.
Discover the Bible-this is the days Bible story/lesson.  The teacher reads the story, starting with the Number one section, then allows the student to complete the activity for that section.  Then the teacher moves on to number two and allows the student to complete the activity for that section, until the teacher has read the whole story and the student has completed all of the activities.
Apply It-The apply it section includes an application verse, coloring page, questions about the picture, questions relating the picture to the Bible lesson, questions relating the picture to the student's life, and an invitation to pray about what they have learned.

You can see a sample of the Beginner Pages by clicking here.

The target age for the Intermediate Student Pages is 3-4th grades, but it can be used with students a little below and a little above that age range.  The Intermediate Student Pages contain the following sections:

Remember It-long term review section
Memory Workout-a variety of drills all teaching general Bible information.
Guess What-provides definition of words and historical information
Discover the Bible-This is the Bible story/lesson.  Students read (or you can read for them) the section for #1 in the Bible and then they complete the corresponding activity.  Then they move on to number 2 until they have read and completed all of the activities.
Time Line-Time Line Activities are included in every other lesson alternating with a map activity
Maps-a map activity is included in every other lesson alternating with a Time Line activity
Get Active-allows students to break away from their lesson and do something fun and active that relates to the lesson
Apply It-Students reread the application verse and apply it to a modern day situation.

You can see a sample of the Intermediate Student Pages by clicking here.

How long a lesson takes to complete will depend on whether or not you choose to complete every section, and how long it takes your child to finish their activities on the activity pages.  Each set of student pages contains 26 lessons.  The Bible is not studied in order, but instead contains sections from both the Old and New Testaments.  Lessons 1-26 has 14 lessons on Joseph, 6 lessons from Daniel, and 6 lessons on Jesus. Student Pages cost $5.95 each.

The Beginner Time Line is used alongside the Beginner Student Pages.  The Beginner Time Line has 34 full color 8.5x11 pictures on sturdy card stock that asks student one question about the picture, teaching them to remember major people and events in the Bible and the order in which they happen.  You can purchase the Beginner Time Line for $24.95.

The Children's Songs CD set contains 90 Bible based a capella songs.All of the songs listed in the Bible Study Guide For All Ages curriculum are on the CD.  These songs are great for memory work, or as a listening CD for children.  You can see the complete list of included songs here. You can purchase the Children's Songs CD set for $19.95.

The Bible Book Summary Cards are large flashcards that help children learn the 66 books of the Bible.  The front side has pictures that represent the main idea of the book of the Bible.  The back side has a short description for the teacher that explains the picture and questions the teacher can ask the student.  The Bible Book Summary cards come in two different sizes.  You can buy either the 8.5x11 full color cards or 11x14 posters that are black and white and can be colored for $24.95.

You can see a sample here.

I have been using Bible Study Guide For All Ages with my 4,6, and 8 year olds.  We have been working on it 2 days per week completing one lesson per day.  Our lessons usually take around 30-40 minutes, but Lily likes to spend more time coloring then the boys do, so she goes back and colors more detail after we finish the lesson.

I was very interested in having an opportunity to review Bible Study Guide For All Ages because I was looking for a Bible curriculum I could use with a wide range of ages.  With this curriculum you can have all of your children ages 3-6th grade all learning the same Bible lesson with age appropriate activities. My three children that have been using the program have really enjoyed it.  They have enjoyed the Bible lesson and the activity sheets.  They like the Children Songs CD.  The Bible Book Summary Cards and the Beginner Time Line Cards are fantastic!  I love the color and the quality of them, and it really helps the children learn the Bible and the books of the Bible.

One of the challenges is that even though you are learning the same Bible story, the lesson are set up differently.  I chose to have my 8 year old do the Intermediate pages because I thought he was too advanced to do the Beginner pages, and although there is a Primary Level in between, it does not match up well with the other levels.  But, because we are doing two different levels, it was a little difficult to get a good flow to our lessons.  I floundered a bit in the beginning because I felt like I was going back and forth between the two instead of feeling like we did the lesson together.  But, we figured out a flow that worked well for us by starting with the Learn the Basics and Sing and Remember activities from the Beginner pages and having Anthony do those with us, then doing the Memory Workout from the Intermediate Pages and have the younger two work on that with us, then moving on to the Discover the Bible section and all doing that together with me reading the Bible Story and telling the younger children their instructions and then giving Anthony his instructions.  After we finish that, I read the Apply it section for the younger two and they can color their sheet while Anthony and I go back and do his Remember It question, Guess What, Time Line or Map.  I really love Bible Study Guide For All Ages, but I do wish that all of the Student Pages had the same format for the entire lesson not just the Bible story, and  changed the difficulty of the activity according to age.

To see what other Crew Mates had to say, click on the banner below.

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Schoolhouse Expo

Have you ever seen the speaker list at some of the bigger homeschool conventions, and wished that you could go, but it is just too far away?  Or maybe you do have the opportunity to attend a big convention, but you do not have the opportunity to listen to everyone on your list.  The Old Schoolhouse Expo might be just the thing for you!

The Old Schoolhouse Expo is a special 5 day event that is scheduled from Aug 19-23rd from 1-8 pm eastern time.  For the $24 cost of a ticket, you will have an opportunity to listen to popular speakers from the comfort of your own home!  And, if you cannot listen during the scheduled time, no worries!  The recordings will be available to everyone who purchases a ticket so you will be able to listen at your leisure.

The list of speakers include:

Ray Comfort
Dean Butler
Barbara Beers
Antony Kolenc
Diana Waring
Hal and Melanie Young
Dr. Jay Wile
Kim Kautzer
Jessica Hulcy
Todd Wilson
Carol Topp
Adam Andrews
Andrew Pudewa
Ann Dunagen
Christine Field
David C Gibbs III
David Stelzl
Davis Carman
Evonne Mandella
Terri Johnson
Tyler Hogan
Andy Harris
Marie Rippel
Jennifer Courtney
Deborah Wuehler
Joachin Fernandez
Heather Laurie
Malia Russel
Eli Dahan


Click here for more information and to purchase a ticket.

Have questions on how the Expo works, click here to access the FAQ page.

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Schoolhouse Review Crew: Legacy Documentaries

 I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie on TV.   It was one of my all time favorite shows.  When I started reading chapter books, my parents bought me The Little House books.  I was fascinated to know that Laura Ingalls Wilder was a real person and to read the stories of her life. While the TV show was a good one, it didn't even come close to the greatness of the books and the real stories.  When my oldest daughter was in the 3rd grade, we spent a whole year studying The Little House Books using a unit study called the Prairie Primer.  She loved the books as much as I did as a child and we both gained a deeper insight into Laura and Almanzo's life through the study, activities, and even a field trip to their home and museum in Mansfield MO!  We have remained Little House fans and I was very excited to see that Dean Butler (who played Almanzo on the show)  with Legacy Documentaries has produced two new documentaries: Almanzo Wider: Life Before Laura and Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder.  We were thrilled to have the opportunity to review Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura.





Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura is an all new documentary that was produced in partnership with the Almanzo and Laura Ingalls Wilder Association in Burke, NY.  It is a look at Almanzo's early life growing up as a boy on his family's farm in Burke NY in the 1800s.  The DVD contains two sections.  Life Before Laura and The Wilder Homestead Today.  Life Before Laura is 41 minutes long and is narrated by Dean Butler.  The DVD shows illustrations from sections of Farmer Boy along with original footage that has been filmed at the Wilder homestead to recreate sections of the story. William Anderson, author and historian discusses Laura and Almanzo and things that were going on during that time period.  There is also discussions of Morgan horses, and a food historian to talk about the differences between food now and then and why Laura focused so much about food in the book Farmer Boy.  It focuses mainly on Almanzo's life before Laura, but does talk about Laura and Almanzo's meeting and courtship, and how the fist books came to be written.  The Wilder Homestead Today is 12 minutes long and is also narrated by Dean Butler.  This section of the DVD discusses the restoration of the Wilder Homestead in Burke NY and shows the activities that are going on there today.  Although the targeted age range for the book is 8-13 years old, this documentary is suitable and enjoyable for children and adults of all ages.

Here is an excerpt of the video.



You can purchase Life Before Laura for $21.95 by clicking here.

I mentioned in my introductory paragraph how much we loved Laura Ingalls Wilder and Little House on the Prairie.  I was so excited to have an opportunity to review this DVD!!  As we were waiting for it to arrive, I decided it would be a great idea to read aloud Farmer Boy to the children.  Every night the boys 11,9,8,6 and the little girls 4 and 2 (Chelsea 16 was not here for several days and she has read the books numerous times) gathered in the boys room before bed to read several chapters of the read aloud.  I wanted the boys and little girls to wait until I finished reading the book before watching the DVD.  Chelsea and I watched the DVD together once and then we all watched it together after finishing the book.

We LOVED it!  It was so cool, for the children (and myself! )to have an opportunity to see the book come to life through Life Before Laura.  We loved to be able to see the real Wilder Homestead.  We loved the inclusion of the illustrations and sections of the book being read aloud.  We loved being able to see the real photos of the people we feel like we know and love through Farmer Boy.  I thought the reenactments with the actors playing Almanzo and his father were really well done.  The documentary encouraged the children to dig even deeper into the life of Almanzo.  When the DVD mentioned the older sister that we had never heard of who is not mentioned at all in the book Farmer Boy,  Chelsea was inspired to do some further digging in the Wilder Family Tree.

The section on the Wilder Family Homestead gives a great glimpse into what the homestead looked like in Almanzo's days after it has been painstakingly restored.  It also shows all of the fun and educational activities and special things that are going on for visitors today.  Sigh.  It made me really, really want to go and visit! Maybe someday.

I would highly recommend this outstanding documentary!  I am so thankful that Dean Butler and Legacy Documentaries are producing documentaries giving further insight to those of us who have loved Little House for generations and also for future generations to come.

To see what my crew mates had to say, click on the banner below.

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Favorite Recipes: Zucchini Brownies

One of the things we grew in our garden this year was zucchini squash.  I can't believe how well it has grown!  Even after two of the plants being partially uprooted in a storm it has continued to grow and grow.  So as the pile of zucchini has grown and grown on my counter, I have been searching for recipes.  I came across this recipe for zucchini brownies and knew I had to try it.  Chelsea and Nick did not want me to "ruin" brownies by putting zucchini in them, but after eating them last night, they have changed their minds.  They were probably one of the best brownies I have ever made.

Brownies

1/2 cup of oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup of cocoa
2 tsp of vanilla
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups of flour
2 cups shredded zucchini

I put all the ingredients in my Kitchenaid mixer and started blending saving the zucchini for last.  Once you add in the zucchini and it is well blended, spread in a greased 13x9 pan.  The batter will be a bit thicker than regular brownie batter.  Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Frosting

While the brownies are baking you can whip up some chocolate frosting.

6 TBSP cocoa
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

Melt butter and cocoa together over medium heat in a saucepan.  Allow to cool slightly.  Add in vanilla, milk, and powdered sugar.  If you would like a thicker frosting you can add in additional powdered sugar until it is to the consistency that you want it.  You can leave the frosting in the fridge to set up while the brownies finish cooking and cool.  Spread over cooled brownies, cut and serve.

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