MAY
01
2013

Homeschool Science Curriculum Forum

By | Forum, Homeschool, Science

93 Comments

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    Hi readers! Welcome to today’s homeschool curriculum forum on science! As most of you know, I am currently using Abeka science in our homeschool. I have to say that this has been a wonderful addition to our homeschool this year. Not only does it require very little planning on my part, but it does include some hands on activities as well. Since this program has a variety of resources included, I thought it might be helpful if I told you which things I purchase when doing Abeka Science. One thing I don’t love about Abeka are all of the little booklets that you have to purchase. It would be nice if they came all together to make life easier. But for the science I always purchase the teacher’s manual or “curriculum” as they are often called. The student work text, the student workbooks, and the answer keys if I am teaching an upper grade. I also purchase the tests and quizzes and answer keys to those as well. I do not always choose to purchase … [Read more...]

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APR
03
2013

Flower Dyeing Science Experiment

By | Homeschool, Science

7 Comments

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Hi everyone! So a few months ago we did a fun science experiment using food coloring and daisies to show how plants absorb water up through their stems.   Normally, plants have roots which absorb water from the soil. The water travels through the roots and up the stem and into the leaves. The leaves gather sunlight, then use the sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to make food for the plant in a process called photosynthesis. Cut flowers don’t have roots, but the water still moves up the stems and into the leaves giving a nice visual to how the process works. After our last experiment the kids wanted to try it again, but this time we thought we’d try to die one flower two different colors. I have to say this one was a bit trickier!   What you will need: White Daisies or Carnations (However many you’d like to use, we did four) Glass Mason Jars Food Coloring or liquid watercolors Cutting board & Exacto Knife Time to experiment with our flowers! So … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Homeschool, Science Tagged With: ,
APR
02
2013

Animal Classification Unit

By | Animals, Homeschool, Science, Unit Studies

30 Comments

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Hi everyone! Today I wanted to share a fun animal classification unit I created. Although my Expedition Earth and Road Trip USA curricula include quite extensive animal units, I needed something that included a little more detail on the classification of animals along with something hands-on for my younger students.     --> Click here to download the Animal Classification Unit <-- (Having trouble downloading this form? Right click on the link and select “save link as” then click “ok” to save it to your computer.)   Instructions for use: You can use this animal classification unit however best fits your needs. It is a great supplement to a curriculum teaching students about animal classes. It can also be used on it’s own as a small unit on animal classification. Here are a couple ways you can use this document to create a fun hands-on learning project for your students. The study includes fun information for mammals, amphibians, … [Read more...]

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FEB
05
2013

Science Experiment & Colored Flowers

By | Homeschool, Science

12 Comments

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Hi everyone! I wanted to share a quick little science experiment you can do right at home! We’re learning all about plants right now, and so we did this cute experiment to show the kiddos how the stem of the flower pulls up water and nutrients to feed the flower.   Plants have roots which absorb water from the soil. The water travels through the roots and up the stem and into the leaves. The leaves gather sunlight, then use the sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to make food for the plant in a process called photosynthesis. Cut flowers don’t have roots, but the water still moves up the stems and into the leaves giving a nice visual to how the process works. What you will need: White Daisies or Carnations (However many you’d like to use, we did four) Glass Mason Jars Food Coloring or liquid watercolors (We used food coloring, but I think the liquid water colors give a brighter end result.) Experimentation Time! First we filled our mason jars about … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Homeschool, Science Tagged With:
AUG
28
2012

Life Size Human Anatomy Activity

By | Homeschool, Printables, Science

37 Comments

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Hi everyone! I’m gearing up for science this year and have a fun printable to share with you today! It’s a Human Body Anatomy Puzzle and life size organs! We’re going to work on the Human Body a little bit this year, so I created a human body skeleton and organs puzzle along with some life size organs that you can use with a simple outline tracing of your students body! Here is a sample of the puzzle, I used a Xyron 900 9" Creative Station with the Magnetic/Laminate insert to make my puzzle magnetic. But you can also just simply laminate for durability. --> Download the Human Anatomy Printables <-- The puzzle is about 2 feet tall, and includes the skeleton pieces, all of the major organs, and word labels. Here is a closer view of the puzzle so you can see the labels, and pieces. There is also teacher’s manual for this part that includes the body organ functions along with a guide for proper organ placement.   For fun I also created printable color and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Homeschool, Printables, Science Tagged With: ,
AUG
07
2012

Summer Boredom Busters: Science Lab!

By | Homeschool, Summer Boredom Busters

4 Comments

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Welcome to our semi-educational summer science boredom busters! Today we’re experimenting with mystery potions and color mixing!     Supplies: Plastic measuring containers, bowls etc Safety glasses, you know for effect and all. Water Food Coloring Optional: Eye droppers, measuring spoons A few willing scientists I found this Liquid Measuring Kit from Lakeshore Learning, but you can really use any variety of containers you have on hand. Directions: Mix containers with different color water. Set up the containers on a table outside, and let kids have at it. See what colors they can create, and then go grab a lemonade and that book you’ve been meaning to read!   As you can see, the Teeny Tot is taking her mixing quite seriously! She played until all of the water was gone, then asked for some more. The good news is that this activity is super easy to set up, VERY cheap, and fun for the kids!   If you’d like your children … [Read more...]

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MAY
17
2012

Contenders of the Faith ~ Model Rockets

By | Bible, Homeschool

5 Comments

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Since I posted previously on my daughter’ doing the Keepers at Home group, I’ve had a lot of questions about my son’s Contenders for the Faith group. They’ve had a lot of fun this year with all of their projects and so I wanted to share the latest group meeting with you all today. Being that I’m a girl and all, I don’t have a lot of pictures of their activities, you know…boys only…yada yada… Personally I think that mom’s with camera’s should be allowed. And thankfully I convinced my husband of that fact easily! The boys learned all about model rockets this month, and each built their own models. Of course, be being a blogger and all, I couldn’t resist getting some pictures of these boys launching said rockets!   The boys and their dads each had a shot to launch their prepared rockets. They learned how to hook up the engines, a few safety rules, and then each got the honor of counting down to their own lift off!   The … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Bible, Homeschool Tagged With: ,
MAR
22
2012

4-H Robotics

By | Homeschool

8 Comments

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Turbo has been participating in a Robotics club this year and he absolutely LOVES it! Since it’s been such a big hit, I wanted to take a minute to share some information with you as well. They have 3 tracks to work through, Virtual Robotics, Junk Drawer Robotics, and Robotics Platforms. The program Turbo is currently doing is called “Junk Drawer Robotics” because the items used can typically be found in your junk drawer! The group is filled with boys ranging from age 6-12 and they all team up to work together on projects. They are currently working through the Robotics Level 1 “Give Robots a Hand”. They’ll eventually move onto Levels 2: “Robots on the Move”, and Level 3: “Mechatronics”. Each project (teacher manual) book costs around $7-$9.   In order to complete the program, each student needs a 4-H Robotics Youth Notebook ($5.95). The notebook is used to record ideas, collect data, draw designs, and take notes on their projects. Along with the … [Read more...]

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OCT
30
2011

@Ed_Insights: Velociraptor Dino Digs

By | Give Aways, Homeschool

288 Comments

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Oh my heavens were the kids excited to see the Dino Dig Velociraptor kit show up at our house today! The awesome folks at Educational Insights sent it for our review, and I was begged daily to let them try it out. I wanted to wait for a nice day out before starting since it looked like it might be messy.   It was a good plan. It was messy. Very messy. And very FUN! The GeoSafari Dino Dig kits come with everything you need to perform a “life like” excavation of dinosaur fossils. Each kit includes fossils encased in a clay block, an excavation tool, a brush, and a wax block (used to hold the fossil pieces together once completed), and a detailed instruction booklet with more ideas and information. (Just as a side note, these books are written with a secular world view)   I was actually amazed at how long my kids sat and worked on this kit. They were even taking turns which is a miracle! Honestly I was a little concerned that we only received one kit, but as you … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Give Aways, Homeschool Tagged With: ,
OCT
16
2011

Educational Insights GeoSafari® Tuff Cam Review

By | Homeschool

1 Comment

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As you all know, I LOVE Educational Insights stuff! Not only because they are so fun, but also because they are nice and sturdy! So I was totally psyched (yes, I’m an 80’s child) when they asked me to review the GeoSafari® Tuff Cam!    As you can imagine, with all the photos we take around here the kids are always dying to get involved. And aside from handing them my Canon T1i Rebel, which NEVER happens, they are constantly begging to take a picture. I have to say, we’ve used other “kids” cameras before, and the photos are just not that great. But I was pleasantly surprised by the quality from the GeoSafari® Tuff Cam. It is a 12 Megapixel camera with both photo and video capabilities. It has a 2” viewing screen, and frankly whoever came up with the design is a genius! It looks like a store scanner, and for kids its PERFECT! There is an easy point and shoot “trigger” that takes the photo, or video and can be operated easily with one hand. The buttons … [Read more...]

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