Archive by Author | Lisa McAfee

2019 Portfolio Review Giveaway

Feb25

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2019 Portfolio Review Giveaway

Soon spring will be here and that means the portfolio review season will be underway. I have good news for you. It is time once again for my annual Portfolio Review/ Written Narrative Assessment Giveaway!

I am elated to announce that I am having a Portfolio Giveaway this year for two people to win a free portfolio review (a $40.00 value per assessment). I have several chances of ways for you to win that are listed below.  If you schedule your portfolio review, I will give you a code to enter for 5 additional chances.  Here’s a bonus- if you have a friend that books an appointment for an assessment, you will have additional chances to win!

Winners will be chosen announced on the morning of Monday, March 11 on my blog and Schoolmarmohio FaceBook. I hope you win.🙂 CLICK ON LINK BELOW.

2019 Portfolio Review Giveaway

Ways for Chances to Win:

  • Schedule an appointment with me this spring/ summer. (Mention my Giveaway for a code to have 5 additional chances to win.) Not local? No problem! You can send me your paperwork and we can meet over the Internet or by phone; just let me know that when booking your appointment.
  • Refer a friend for a portfolio review. (2 chances for each friend who books an appointment. Have them mention your name when they contact me so I can give you credit.)
  • Answer a question about homeschooling.
  • I want to thank you who have been following my blog for a while. You are awesome! If you are already a subscriber, leave a comment on how long you have been reading my blog.
  • Subscribe to my blog and leave me a comment on something you would like to cover regarding homeschooling.
  • Like my FaceBook page.

Have a great week! Best wishes on winning a chance for a free assessment.  ~Lisa~

CLICK ON LINK BELOW.

2019 Portfolio Review Giveaway

 

5 Inexpensive Valentine’s Ideas

Feb11

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Valentine’s Day is a wonderful way of showing your husband how much you love him. I know money can be tight, so here are some ideas that won’t break your piggy bank.

Create a coupon book. These coupons can be created to do simple things for your husband such as vacuum out the car; give a back rub; watch one of his favorite movies with him; go for a hike; listen to his favorite music with him, etc.

Food! The old adage, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” may not be accurate, but a good homecooked meal or a yummy dessert is greatly appreciated by my husband.  If your hubby has a favorite meal, why not cook that for him?

Have a quiet evening together. After the kids have gone to bed turn the lights down low and snuggle on the couch. I bet you can’t even remember the last time that happened! lol

Get a sitter and go on a date. Can you trade off with a friend for watching the kids for an evening? You could go out for dinner, go bowling, window shop at a sporting goods store or do something that your husband enjoys.

Tell him how much you love him. I have a confession to make. Sometimes life just gets busy and days go by without me saying, “I love you!” to my husband. Telling him that and letting him know why I love him is something I want to do with much more frequency. It doesn’t cost anything but is priceless. 🙂

Have a great week! ~Lisa~

 

 

5 Online Math Courses

Feb4

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Are you looking for some help in math or different curriculum for next year? I have several that have come recommended by fellow homeschool moms.

Math Help Offers courses from pre-Algebra through college algebra. The classes have lessons, tests, and help if needed. Classes are $49.99, which I think is a great deal!

Learn Math Fast Offers math courses from 1st-12th grade. It is self-paced so your student can move as quickly or as slowly as needed. Books are $45.00 and can be bundled for a discount.

CTC Math Offers online tutorial classes for students in grades Kindergarten through 12th grade. They also have worksheets, tests, and reports so that you know the progress of your child. This is great not only for you but if you do a written narrative or need to document your child’s work. You can purchase a monthly or yearly subscription.

Aleks Math  From their website- “Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces is a Web-based, artificially intelligent assessment and learning system. ALEKS uses adaptive questioning to quickly and accurately determine exactly what a student knows and doesn’t know in a course. ALEKS then instructs the student on the topics she is most ready to learn. As a student works through a course, ALEKS periodically reassesses the student to ensure that topics learned are also retained.”

Acellus has a program called Power House that your student can take up to 6 classes. The fee is $25.00 per month and is available for students K-12. It is a self-paced online video lessons program and tests are automatically graded, saving you time. 🙂

COURSE FEATURES INCLUDE:

    • Video-based lessons
    • Interactive practice problems
    • Help videos for difficult concepts
    • Reviews & exams
    • Memorization drills*
    • Digital books*
    • Onsite lesson plans

Have a great week! ~Lisa~

 

 

 

6 Reasons to Attend a Homeschool Convention

Jan21

screen shot 2019-01-20 at 4.32.57 pmThe Midwest Homeschool Convention is just around the corner! (April 25-27, 2019) Perhaps you are wondering why you should attend a convention. After all, it costs money and takes up time. If you are just wanting to go to look at curricula, it won’t cost you to attend on Thursday evening. This will save you money, which of course, is a great thing! But, unless you have a list of items you know you want to purchase you may want to attend the convention for the weekend. I have found the convention to meet many needs (and wants).

  • You can actually look at the curricula. There can be such a buzz about a certain curriculum, but you just don’t know if you should purchase it or if it would work for your student(s). I have been all ready to place an order and then gone to the convention only to find out that once I have seen it that it wouldn’t work with my sons. I have also found some cool books and curricula that wasn’t even on my radar!
  • You can save money. Instead of paying shipping and handling you can purchase your books and take them home with you! Some vendors have convention deals, saving you even more money. 🙂
  • You can hear great speakers. It’s nice to listen to well-recognized authors and get their perspective, thoughts, and philosophy of homeschooling. It might be the same as yours, but it also might challenge you to change your thinking.
  • You are encouraged and empowered. When you attend a convention you realize that there are many others who are homeschooling as well. You and your children are not the only ones! There are lots of workshops to attend on a wide variety of topics.
  • You can talk directly to the authors or salespeople. It’s great to be able to talk to those who are familiar with their products and can help you determine whether that particular curriculum program or extras ( for example- a science kit) will be a good fit.
  • It’s a time for y-o-u! I have attended the convention with my husband at other times have just gone with my girlfriends. Both have been a lot of fun and have given me a boost to finish the year strong and to look forward to the next year.

You can register now! Here is the link to do so-> Great Homeschool Conventions

Have a great week! ~Lisa~

 

 

January 18: Winnie-the-Pooh Day

Jan14

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What child [or parent] doesn’t love Winnie- the -Pooh? This lovable, adorable bear has been a wonderful companion of children since 1926.

In honor of the day that will celebrate the impact of literature, here are some facts about the characters and the author, A.A. Milne.

  • Winnie-the-Pooh is so well loved and recognized that he even has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame!
  • Winnie-the-Pooh’s name came from a combination of a real bear and a pet swan.
  • Pooh was purchased at Harrods department store in London and given by A.A. Milne to his son Christopher Robin on his first birthday, August 21, 1921. He was called Edward (proper form of Teddy) Bear at the time.
  • The above picture is a set of a lot that was sold at Sotheby’s in 2008 for $1,262,863.00 British sterling pounds ($1,623,029.00 US dollars)

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  • The original toys are encased in bulletproof glass and live at the New York Public Library in the Children’s section of the building.
  • The stuffed animals range in height from 25″ (Eeyore, the biggest) to 4 1/2″ (Piglet, the smallest).

I thought it would be fun for your child(ren) to have some quotes from Pooh and his friends for copywork. I hope you enjoy these and spend some time discussing them. There is a link below to click on for the document to download for your convenience. (The adorable bees border is from ClipArtMag.)

Winnie the Pooh copywork

winnie-the-pooh copywork