Math Mammoth Sales...

Note: I do not get compensated for this advertisement.  I just really like Math Mammoth!

This notice came from an e-mail by Maria Miller @ Math Mammoth today regarding current sales :

1) Homeschool Buyers Co-op

The traditional group buy for Math Mammoth and Make It Real
Learning bundle products at Homeschool Buyers Co-op is now live
- for the whole month of August.

https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/math-mammoth/?c=1

The discount is 20% up to 50% depending on the number of participants.


2) Rainbow Resource is running a sale on the PRINTED books and CDs
for the Light Blue Series. Save $2 on workbooks, $5.45 on CDs.
and $6 on sets.

http://www.rainbowresource.com/prodlist.php?subject=10&category=9820
I've been using Math Mammoth Light Blue series for a year now.  I can honestly say that is has helped me teach my children math.  It is a worksheet oriented but not overwhelmingly so. I think that's because it's mastery based.  You can go at your own pace and Maria has many of suggestions and suggested web sites to visit for addition practice.  When you have multiple ages under 9 to teach sometimes a worksheet can be your best friend.  Anyway, homeschooling is all about using what fits your needs and family and this has definitely fit our math needs.

So go ahead and check out her materials.  They are already affordable even without the sales. 

First Day of New Learning Year...

Monday is officially our first day of our new learning year and I'm already making adjustments before we even begin.

This year we're putting more focus on our language arts since I feel we were a little weak.  I'm wanting to do more dictation and copywork. My biggest task is implementing it.

Here's the thing, my 85 year old grandfather has some how managed to rupture his hip muscle and is pretty much immobile right now and in need of 24/7 care till we can get him mobile again.  He's taking it pretty hard considering he's a very active, independent man for his age.  Not to mention, he's still dealing with a broken heart from losing my Grandmother last December. But because he's such an awsome "Papa", the kids and I for 3 days out of the week are helping care for him.  So, between caring for him and runnning after the 3 year old and 1 year old, I think there will be more copy work than dictation.  I'd still like to dictate once out of the week as a sort of test.  But it will have to be on the days we are home and my house work load is low. (Scratching brain right now.) Maybe, I can get the three year old and one year old to take a nap-their schedule has been so messed up that they don't know up from down right now.

Any-how, I think what I'll do is use the on-line worksheet makers and print copywork ahead of time using text from the McGuffey Readers and Scripture for the older two.  For my five year old, I'm going to use some free worksheets from Confessions of a Homeschooler (thanks Sheri) to help her with letter formation as well as use her composition book (just to get her use to it).  We'll read the text, then discuss the text/letter formation, then they'll do the copywork, and then review.

For our Math, we are going to review our math facts and previously learned concepts these next few weeks since we took two months off.  We'll be using Math Mammoth and supplementing with Ray's.  Though, I see us using Math Mammoth more than our Ray's considering our situation right now.

For our Bible Study, I have been reading a bible story right after breakfast and have the children read a Psalm and Proverbs to my grandfather-hoping it brightens his outlook a bit.

For History/Geography and Science, we'll read from our history based or science based literature. Then go over unknown vocabulary and do Notebook pages and a science project once or every two weeks. I'm trying something new with our History/Geography and Science we're going to alternate quarters-hoping this will elimate the rushed feeling I get when teaching these subjects due to we heavily depend on library books and always seem to have to return them before I'm ready.  I thing we'll do the same for our Art and Music Appreciation.

Piano lessons have been put on hold for the moment. So, I'll sub with a forgein language-Spanish preferably.

I actually had a schedule all done up-but now needs re-tweeked.  Maybe when I find some more time I'll post it.

Thanks for listening to my rambling and please pray for the healing of my grandfathe's hip. Thanks!

PS- There's a new tab above blog for Handwriting/Copywork gernerating.  Feel free to take a look.

Freebie Alert!!!!

Dollar Homeschool is giving away a free e-book (for just one week) called Homeschool Sanity written by Sherry Hayes- a Homeschool mama of 15 (that's right-15) children.

You can visit her blog Large Family Mothering and learn more about her and her insight on homeschooling.

Enjoy!

The Homeschool Bus "Book Spotlight"...

The book in the spotlight this month for our family is "Blockhead: The Life Story of Fibonacci" by Joseph D'Agnese.

I checked out this book from our local library.  It was recommended by another from a yahoogroup  Living Math Forum. Living Math, also, has it's own website, owned by Julie Brennan, with many helpful resources.  I highly recommend it to homeschoolers and people who are good or not so good at math.  They are a great support system for those who are interested or have questions regarding math and math curriculums.

Back to the book.  My children (8-1yr olds) and I really enjoyed this book. It's a brief biography of Fibonacci (the man responsible for the use our number system today) from his childhood years to adulthood.  It tells about his fascination with numbers and how people misunderstood his ability to think outside of the box-hence, being called "blockhead".  It contains humor and charming pictures that my children loved with the history and math that I wanted to introduce to them.  It is just long enough to keep the attention of a 3 year old-though geared for 6 and up. 

I highly recommend this book for any Read-a-Loud or individual reading for a child who is capable of reading on a 3rd grade level and up.

And remember to enjoy the ride!

Planning Our Next Homeschool Year...

With our Annual Homeschool Assessment done, I'm shifting gears in planning mode for next year.  Though officially I'm homeschooling 2, I will be focusing on my five year old as well.

These past couple years we have done our Bible Study and the 3 R's (Reading, Writing, Arithmetic) daily and all other subjects twice a week with a Ruth Beechick feel to applying BPA.  This has worked OK for us-but, I always feel rushed in our studies.  I'm never really satified with the amount or quality of projects we incorporate with our studies.

So, I'm thinking this year, I'd like to try to do a quarterly cycle on subjects like History/Geography, Science, Art & Music Appreciation.  My thinking is as an adult, I don't pursue a study on several interests all at once.  I focus on the necessities daily (Bible, Home Management, find Gluten free recipes). But, study other interests (photography, painting, quilting, etc.) one at a time, till I feel satisfied with what I have learned.  Then I move to another interest. I know standard education doesn't work this way. But, outside of the standard education-educating oneself does.

For me, it allows me time to focus, ruminate, and reflect on what I'm studying.  Couldn't it do the same for my children?  And possibly, make it more enjoyable?  And allow me more time to plan a project and feel like we've accomplished some quality learning?  I don't know.  It sounds good.

So, I think I'm going to try it.

Now, I have to come up with our Study Goals and draft up our Schedule.  Plus, I want to research more on Charlotte Mason to see if and how I can integrate that method into our studies.  Ambleside Online is a great online resource for learning Charlotte Mason. I'll keep you posted. 

What does your homeschooling schedule look like?  What's worked or not worked for you?  Feel free to share!

Something for us Mamas...

Sometimes we, mamas, need something to help us see God's Graces:
(And Right now it's 50% off!!!! at Christian Book Distributors.)

One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are By Ann Voskamp Discover a way of seeing that opens your eyes to everyday amazing grace, a way of living that is fully alive, and a way of experiencing the constant presence of God that will bring you deep and lasting joy. There is purity in simplicity and a breathtaking beauty that can be found even in life's slightest details. Ann Voskamp welcomes you in to explore her grace-bathed life of farming, parenting and writing and encourages you to draw nearer to Him and experience your own life in a deeper way, no matter where you are. Renew your appreciation for the beauty that permeates all creation with the wisdom-soaked pages of this Christian Living treasure.

Selections from One Thousand Gifts: Finding Joy in What Really Matters By Ann Voskamp Selections from One Thousand Gifts features powerful, life-changing passages from Voskamp's compelling story and her own exquisite photography, framing a seemingly ordinary, gritty life around true amazing grace. Because if joy is a matter of gratitude, and gratitude is a matter of perspective, then giving thanks changes not only your perspective, but also changes your life. Open these lyrical pages and slow down to discover the joy you've always been looking for. Come find God in the moments! I love her writing.  You can, also, visit her site any time you need to feel encouraged: http://www.aholyexperience.com/

At Currclick ...

Fireworks are just a week away and do your children know why there are fireworks on this day? Celebrate the 4th with Simple Schooling's 4th of July Unit Study!

Hottest New Title Simple Schooling 4th of July Bundle

here are some other suggested 4th of July resources...
(Note: I have not used these materials-but, have looked at their descriptions and previews and found them interesting for consideration.)

Lapbooking Pages from Homeschool Notebooking.com

Patriot Holidays Activities from Teacher Created Resources

The Fourth of July Lapbook Study Guide from A Journey Through Learning

And if you're not into these, here are some suggested books to pick up at the library or local bookstore:

  

Happy Learning!
Brook