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The Early Bird Catches a Co-op

Mar24

bird_wormI was reviewing some information I had posted in July about homeschool co-ops and thought I’d send a note about when to inquire about them. NOW is the best time to do that as many co-ops are registering families before the school year ends. I have listed some reasons for and against participating in a co-op since it is important to consider what you are committing your family to participate in for the year.

3 Reasons to Join a Co-op:

  • Co-ops can enrich your academic program. Many co-ops have science labs, art, music, and physical education programs available to students. You may not have the equipment at your home or it can be difficult to do these activities by yourselves.
  • Co-ops provide social interaction opportunities for your child(ren) and you. It is not only important for your child to meet other children, but it is just as important for you to meet with other fellow homeschoolers. You just might meet your best friend at a co-op. 🙂
  • Co-ops support and encourage you. There were quite a few times that I needed some suggestions or a person to discuss matters with in regards to homeschooling. It’s nice to have other women who are on the same journey as you.

3 Reasons to Not Join a Co-op:

  • It is time consuming. You will be away from home for at least half of your school day. Look at your  school calendar and see how you will complete your academic subjects if you join a co-op. You will need to make accommodations to accomplish this, whether it is for your children to do schoolwork before you leave for co-op, or do it when you return home, or do it over the weekend. My boys were early risers so we did a math lesson beforehand.
  • It is a commitment. Once you make the decision to be involved in a co-op you are agreeing to be there for the entire duration of that session. Some co-ops have semester-long classes and some have year-long classes, so be sure and see what that entails before signing up for classes.
  • You will be required to help. A co-op is different than a drop-off program in that you will need to volunteer to help in some way. You may need to teach a class or be a classroom aide, so be sure to check and see what is expected of you.

If you are interested in finding out about co-ops here in the greater Cincinnati area, click HERE for a list of local co-ops. I hope you find a group that works for your family.

If, by chance, you don’t get into a co-op you could organize a small group of your own, but that’s a topic for another day…

~Lisa

 

Indoor Activities with Balloons

Jan29

Balloons1-612x300Brrr! It’s cold outside and everyone is getting antsy.  Here are some fun ideas using balloons to help your children expend their energy. You can also incorporate some math and science with that physical education!

Balloon Juggling  Blow up two balloons and practice “tossing” them from hand to the other. First, throw one of them high into the air so that it is floating. As it begins to descend, add toss the other balloon into the air. Hit the one that is descending, causing it to rise. Hit the next balloon as it descends, causing it to rise. Keep the cycle going! Add a third balloon when you have mastered two balloons.

Balloon Rockets This activity is fun for all ages. The longer the room, the further the rocket will go.

You will need:

Balloons (elongated ones work best, but round ones work too)

1 Straw

Masking tape

1 clothes pin (the type with a spring)

Fishing line

2 Chairs (Ones which you can attach fishing line)

Tape measure, pencil, paper, graph paper

First, place each chair on opposite sides of the room.

Tie one end of the fishing line to one chair, making sure it is taut, otherwise the balloon rocket will “stall out”.

Next, thread the straw through the fishing line and then tie the fishing line to the other chair. This will be your rocket line.

Inflate the balloon, pinching the end closed with the spring clothes pin.

Use two pieces of tape to secure the balloon to the straw on the fishing line. Be sure the clothes pin end is pointing towards the end of the track and the nose of the balloon is pointed toward the chair across the room.

Move the straw with your rocket toward your beginning line.

Remove the close pin and let the rocket fly!

Okay, you know you can’t pass up the teachable moment so grab the tape measure and see how far the rocket flew.  Record the results and do it at least two more times. 🙂 How about graphing the results? balloon rocket data sheet   You can also compute the average distance, how long it took for the balloon to fly, and which one flew the farthest.

Balloon Volleyball

Items Needed;

1  balloon ( I like the 12″ balloons for this activity, but a 9″ balloon will work too.)

Masking tape

Directions:

First, lay the masking tape across the carpet, creating a boundary line. Next, create volleyball teams. Nest, inflate and tie the balloon.  Then, have your  teams stand on each side of the line. The object is to hit it over to the other side. The team who can keep the balloon from hitting the floor and not stepping over the line when it is on their side gets a point. The first team to reach 10 points wins.

Mini Marshmallow Popper This looks like a lot of fun and only requires for each popper a paper cup, a pair of scissors, a balloon, a rubber band, and some mini marshmallows. Be sure to make extras for friends to come over and play too!

Enter a chance to Win a Free Homeschool Portfolio!

Jan29

fireworks-clip-art-5CONGRATULATIONS TO  DEBORAH CODY AND MELISSA, THE WINNERS OF THE PORTFOLIO GIVEAWAY results were determined by using random.org

I know many of you are beginning to plan next year’s school year and are thinking about having a portfolio review for your student. No? That’s okay! Perhaps I can start you on that process. 🙂

You can enter a chance to win one portfolio review ($40.00 value) in five different ways. Each way will give you 1 chance to enter. I will choose 2 winners and you may schedule your appointment with me between March 1, 2014 and August 8, 2014. Contest ends January 28, 2014 and the winners will be picked at 5:00 a.m. on January 29, 2014.

1. Become a follower of my blog (if you aren’t already). If you become a follower, please let me know in the comments below so I can enter you in the contest and welcome you!

2. Tell a friend about my blog.

3. Leave a comment about why you choose to do a portfolio review.

4. If you have a blog, please repost this. Let me know too so I can drop by and say hello!

5. If you are already a follower, just say hello and say how your year is going up to this point.

I hope you win!

~Lisa

Stretching Your Dollars: Free Online Curriculum

Jan20

stylized-dollar-bill-money-clip-artThere is a home school mom who has done something I wish I had time to do for you- create a year-long curriculum. This website was created by Lee Giles, a Christian mom of six, who lives overseas. She wanted to make home schooling available to families who either don’t have the time or the resources. She has endeavored to make homeschooling available for all who would like to have this option of educating their children. Currently, the grade levels that she has completed are preschool through eighth grade and she is in the process of completing the high school levels.

Probably all of you have your curriculum and your year is all set, but I know that you are looking ahead to next year. I always started looking in January! 🙂  If you don’t feel this curriculum is meaty enough, use whatever you find to be beneficial as a supplement. You can always use the online links she has for introducing and reinforcing concepts.

I looked at several websites on different grade levels and thought the activities were good. Children will enjoy the interactive games and activities and some things can be printed if you like.  (These are what I clicked on: crossword puzzles, Dolch Sight Word review, and geography games) Let me know what you think!

Easy-Peasy All in One Home School

There is also a high school sister site that I reviewed and as I said previously, it is in the process of being completed. I perused the Spanish I, Oceanography, Algebra 1, and Literature and Composition courses. Each course has a description and a grading sheet for the student’s progress and for your records. How awesome is that? The explanations for each of the websites that I watched  were easy to understand and if a concept was gone over too quickly or your student doesn’t quite understand, he can always watch the video again.

Easy Peasy All-in-One High School

Indoor Activities for PE

Jan13

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For us who live in the colder climates, winter can tend to get long and children tend to get antsy since they can’t get outside and burn off excess energy. How about some different types of bowling? It is a whole lot cheaper than going to the bowling alley and you don’t have to wear those [ugly] bowling shoes!

Indoor Bowling You can create your own bowling pins by using 10 empty  2 liter plastic bottles. Set the empty bottles up in a V shape where the first row has one pin, the second row has 2 pins, the third row has 3 pins, and the back row has 4 pins. You can set the pins on a mat if you’d like to minimize the pins flying everywhere. Use a tennis ball with each player, having two attempts for each of their turns to knock down all ten pins. Children should be 15 feet away, but you can shorten the distance if you do not have the space or you have younger players. Each player gets 5 turns. The one who knocks down the most pins after 5 rounds is the winner.

Table Bowling Use paper cups and arrange with the drinking side up. (The table should be at least 4 feet long.) Have children stand facing the bowling pin configuration. Use a tennis ball to roll and either knock the down “pins” or completely knock them off the table. The first one to reach 50 points wins.

Wii Bowling Tournament We had a bowling tournament a few weeks ago and it turned out to be a lot of fun. I found a bowling tournament template on the internet that was set up for double elimination. Each person had to lose two games to be “out”. I went to the thrift store and found a ceramic gold star so the winner got to sign his name with permanent marker on the star. We even had iTunes gift cards for winner and runner-up. That kept everyone excited about winning! Our oldest son was the champion and he strutted around the room showing off his name to everyone as the 2013 Bowling King. We are looking forward to playing next year.

Hope you and your children have a ton of fun!
~Lisa