Product Review Expedition Australia

Our adventure in learning about the "Land Down Under" was fun and exciting! The Download N Go™- Expedition Australia Ebook is divided in to 5 days. This is for K-4th, yet I used it for my 9 year old, as well as my 2 high schoolers. It is written by Amanda Bennett and The Old schoolhouse. There are several book suggestions for each day. I was able to find many of these in my local library. The Ebook is set up to make a lap book through the week. We made a lap book but then upon our final day we made a few poster boards to tie it all together. We unfortunately had a death in the family so rather than the 5 days to complete this we had to take a break in the middle. This is why we did the poster boards, it was a way to "refresh" our memory of all that we learned.

On our first day we went to a web site that was included in the ebook that the youngest child loved! It was a nice interactive way of learning. This was a great start! Some of the video clips included in the lessons were a bit dull and so we expanded the lesson with some of our own resources. Each day we learned about a different animal, geography, a new word to add to our vocabulary, music, crafts, history, science and many interesting things about a culture other than our own. Every day there is several links for sites that all have the same info, yet some of the sites were easier to understand than others. I liked having multiple resources to use.

To adapt this to fit my older children we expanded our research and the older children had to write a report. The younger child had to give an oral report upon completion of the lessons. We had a great time learning as a family. They challenged dad everyday with a new fact.

We have many people we know that have been to Australia so upon the completion we played with boomerangs, and didgeridoos. We made our own boomerangs as well. The children were able to view pictures that other had brought home from their trips to the "Down Under."

I would highly recommend this Ebook if you enjoy lap booking or unit studies. With having multiple ages and levels in my home I found this to be a fantastic resource for family learning. Not only did the children and me learn a lot, we also had a great time as a family. At a low price of $7.95 you can not go wrong.

To order or see more product information please follow the link below.

http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=429&products_id=13952

Model: ebok-TOS-DnGo-Australia
5000 Units in Stock
Manufactured by: The Old Schoolhouse - Affiliate

Last Chance to Get a Good Look at Mars Until 2012 - Yahoo! News

Last Chance to Get a Good Look at Mars Until 2012 - Yahoo! News

Home - LowesBuildAndGrow

Saturday Mar 27, 2010

Home - LowesBuildAndGrow

10:00 AM

Saturday Apr 10, 2010

The Knack(SM) - Where Kids Discover(SM) - Michaels Birthday Bash

The Knack(SM) - Where Kids Discover(SM) - Michaels Birthday Bash

http://www.theknackkids.com/EventView/Code/ev0056.aspx

Home Sweet Home

Well we had yet another death in our family. My husbands stepfather passed away. The last 5 months have been very hard for our family. We got the news a few weeks ago and packed up and headed to Indiana to be with family. We returned home just a few days ago and we are recovering from what feels like a whirlwind.

While we were up north my hubby and I celebrated our anniversary. We were able to take a bit of time and remember to be joyful for what we have.

As many know I have been sending prayers out for my son Jacob, his father and stepmother. They have been having much turmoil in their home and have had many struggles. The wonderful Lord has responded to the prayers and Jacob came home with us! At this point it is a temporary situation. I continue to pray for his father and stepmother and for us all to be able to agree upon the best for Jacob. With him moving in with us our house seems a bit small. But I have chosen to believe that we are not overfilled within our HOUSE, But we ARE living in a HOME filled with LOVE!

While we were north my daughter, Alexis, enrolled in college and will be starting in May. I am so proud of what a beautiful, mature, amazing young lady she is becoming!

Today I take a deep breath and unpack from our trip, get chores caught up, and get a game plan going! I love new challenges and I have been blessed with another homeschooler in my home!

"It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home." ~Author Unknown

Homeschooling Support Group Meeting Feb 23, 2010

It was so nice to meet with you all again. I really enjoy chatting and sharing ideas with like minded families. I would like to thank all of the children who attended, I was so impressed with such a great group of children! I am so excited about this group.

Goals for this group.

• To share ideas and resources
• Field trips
• Support group
• Occasional guest speaker
• Socialize with other homeschooling families

Old News

• Science Fair (Have an Offer from John S. Riley, Ph.D. to Judge. While he was a Chemistry professor he judged both Middle/High School Science Fair projects as well as Undergraduate Research presentations.)
  

We decided that was would be GREAT! Yet, it would be much better after the group has been built up a bit.

• Mary Jo shared her experiences from the Modesty Seminar. This sounded very exciting! Her daughter said, "We should dress modestly not only to protect our own marriages, but also to protect others marriages". What a wonderful thing to have our children learning! As we think about this, has anyone seen the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue? I asked Food lion to remove it from my child's line of vision.
  

New News

• Book It Program Opens On March 1st
• Fire Department Tour Thursday 10AM
• Ideas For Field Trips
• Page shared with us a series of books she reading (teenage level) called 39 Clues. http://www.scholastic.com/teachthe39clues/

New Ideas

• Monthly public speaking for the children.
  

Mary Jo said that she would like to start having the children do a monthly public speaking. This seemed like a wonderful idea. Mary Jo will be organizing this, if you are interested in having your child/children participate please let us know.

• U pick, start planning on an event of picking strawberries. YUM!
  
• It mentioned that it would help to be able to add links or documents for all to see, I am working on a way to do this.
  

Local Happenings

• LoweBot: Saturday 02/27/2010
  
• The Knack Science 2/27/2010 1:00pm
  

Resources Shared

• TOS product testing http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/homeschool/Homeschool-Crew-2010.htm
  
• Local Testing http://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B4Be5ok1vL8aNzk1NTFkNzUtMjk3NC00NzQxLWE0NjItOGU5NGNlY2JhNDI4&hl=en
  
• Maritime Museum Schedule http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B4Be5ok1vL8aODM5OGMyZGItNzZmYy00N2E5LTljZTctZWVjNDNiNWVkOTM3&hl=en
  
• Secret Keeper girl (this looks like a wonderful program)
  
• Book site http://www.libraryanded.com/
  
• Site to take quizes on books and earn prizes http://bookadventure.com/
  

Busy, Busy, Busy

So much is going on here at Sunset Learning Academy. We had a taste of nice weather on Sunday, so bright and sunny. Hubby sure was happy to be able to be riding! Monday was 66 degrees, it did however turn to rain. Today, Tuesday I noticed the tips of my flowers starting to sprout out. A few falls ago I planted Iris' and tulips. I had no idea if they would grow or not. The main reason I planted them was because my hubby was deploying yet again and I knew that in the grey of late Feb and early March I would be a bit blue and needing a smile. Well, they bloomed so beautifully that year! It was just the little thing I needed to give me a spring in my step. Now as they continue to bloom every year I continue to smile as they emerge. The years I watch them grow alone, I remember my husbands love as he helped me plant them. The years we watch them bloom together they remind me to be thankful for our time together.

Today was our second meeting for the Homeschooling support Group. I will post the happenings tomorrow. For now I will simply say that I am enjoying my time with the other families and love the networking of resources! It is so exciting to see this coming together. I also must add at this point what a WONDERFUL, well behaved, helping, caring, fun loving group of children we have within the group. Again a BIG thank you to Wheels of The Promise for use of the church.

We are in the process of learning about Australia. We have received an ebook from TOS to use and review. Watch for my review over the weekend! We are continuing our study of ABC's for the Proverb Girl. I just love this! It is teaching my daughters such wonderful morals. Some may say that some of the teaching within it are "old fashioned", I, for one, am NOT embarrassed to be a keeper of my home. We are also still learning new sign language songs. Johnny just loves it when we sign to him. The girls feel they are a bit old for the songs, Johnny is our excuse to learn them.

I have been working strongly with Lexi on habit training. She is in charge of making a well balanced meal one night a week for here on out. Nice break for me and GREAT training for her. As she nears her 18th birthday and continues her "big" plans of entering adulthood I am having a nervous breakdown about all that she still needs to learn! She has come leaps and bounds since moving in with us. I am proud of her daily. Watching her grow into a respectable young woman is such a blessing. I pray that she continues to develop her relationship with the Lord.

Tyra is trying to master her multiplication and division skills so that we may move on to a more advanced level. We are also working on handwriting and NEATNESS! Tyra is working on habit training along with Lexi. She is working on helping out around the house and taking on an active role within our family by noticing what needs done without being told. Tyra also has begun going to a Wednesday night bible study at our church. As many of you know she asked Jesus into her heart on Friday, Feb. 12th, 2010 (Lincoln's birthday). She will be singing at church this Sunday. I am very proud of her!

Johnny is finally over being sick! He has cut 2 more teeth through and now has 4 bottom teeth. His appetite is back in full force as well. He is walking around all the furniture. I just know his first steps will be soon. I wonder if he will take them while Aunt Sheila is here!

As I come to a close for today, one more thought needs to be added. I would like to say that I have a wonderful husband whom without I would be lost. He is always there for me, and has never ending love. I appreciate all that he does for me, our family, our community, and our country. I love you!

I hope all are having a wonderful week and may everyone be blessed this week!

This week....

The baby has been sick this week. it started out with a night of vomiting Monday night, then um... let's just say a messy diaper Tuesday, a crying Wednesday and now a fussy, clingy Thursday. Poor baby! He has two top front teeth trying to come in. I think this is what is the cause of all of this.

This week was full of meetings, cheer practice, bible study, and household disasters. And many more unexpected events.

With all of the above going on this week we have fallen a bit behind on our goals so it is looking like Saturday school for us! When thinking back on my life I always chuckle when I think about weekends. Once upon a time they meant no work, and party time. Then it meant no work and family time. Then a time came that weekends meant my hubby does not work and we get family time. Then for a bit while he was deployed I never knew the difference between Saturday or Wednesday. NOW, with a baby in the house, weekends mean SLEEP for me! My hubby can take over and I can nap, maybe a long bath! My husband is such a wonderful man!

This week has seemed like a disorganized mess. I feel like I am stuck in rut and need pulled out. Thank You to the Girl Scouts for these yummy cookies. They have really helped me through it! Okay, seriously it was the love from God, my husband and children that get me up every morning! But the cookies were a nice treat!