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The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

Written by Joy
4 Comments
The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

  • In my life this week…

     In my life this week, I finally feel like I am on track with schooling and keeping up the house.  I think we have found a system that works for mom and the kids.

  • In our homeschool this week…

     In our homeschool this week, we have talked more about the sun and how Elisha performed so many miracles and what some of those miracles were.  My son finished up his math book and we are moving on to the next level.  We visited the Colorado Symphony and have played in the snow!

  • Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

     My tip for the week is if you are having a bad day, set aside the books and take time to figure what the problem is.  Pull out a favorite book to read or snuggle on the couch to watch an educational film.  It is okay to put the books away for a day.

  • I am inspired by…

    I am truly inspired by my friend, Lena.  She blogs at Lovin’ My Crazy Life.  Her heart is pure gold.  Best of all?  She loves Jesus!  She uses her blog to talk about her life with a child who has autism.  I am telling you, she is a sweetheart!  Stop by and tell her hi!

  • Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

    We actually had tickets to see Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan speak on Tuesday evening.  When we got there, there were about 20,000 people ahead of us!  Yes, they gave out 25,000 tickets to a place that only holds about 10,000 people.  We were about 50 feet from the gate when they closed it, due to fire code capacity.  We did get to see Paul Ryan pull up late in his bus!

  • My favorite thing this week was…

    We had our 2nd snow of the season on Thursday.  We got around 4-5 inches of snow.  We are supposed to get 2-4 more inches of snow through Thursday night and Friday morning.  I had a wonderful time watching the kids play in the snow together!

  • What’s working/not working for us…

     I am thoroughly enjoying our curriculum this year.  I am loving our Science and History lessons we have been doing!

  • Questions/thoughts I have…

     Since moving, I have been wondering what plans God has for me.  Where does He see me serving at in our new community?

  • Things I’m working on…

     I am working on reviews for Knowledge Box Central, Jim Hodges Audio Books and Heritage History.  I can’t wait to share with you all about these amazing products!

  • I’m grateful for…

     I am so thankful and grateful for those who have been lifting my family and I in prayer.  It is always a transition when you move and having people pray for you always makes it a little easier.

  • I’m praying for…

    One thing I am definitely praying for is this election.  As we get closer to election day, the words being slung around are getting a lot worse.  We need a miracle to get America  back on the foundation it was built on and only God is able to do that.  I am praying that other Christians are also lifting this Nation up in prayer.  Yes, we need a miracle!

  • A photo to share…

    We went on an amazing field trip to the Colorado Symphony on Tuesday.  I can’t wait to take the kids back to another concert!
    Colorado Symphony field trip.

Stop by iHomeschool Network and see what all the other homeschool moms have been up to this last week!

2012, homeschooling, ,

Mystery of History ~ Elisha helps a widow…

Written by Joy
4 Comments
Mystery of History ~ Elisha helps a widow…

My kids and I are really enjoying the Illuminations by Bright Ideas Press.   We are using Illuminations Year 1 and have chosen Mystery of History as our history spine. We started using Mystery of History Volume I, last year, but never finished it.  So I figured we would start over and reuse it this year with the Illuminations Year 1.  I am glad we did.

We just finished up lesson 37 on Elisha (Israel’s Prophet).  During this lesson, we read that Elisha was compared to Jesus.  They both loved being around people and performed many miracles.  A few of the miracles that we talked about Elisha performing are; Elisha telling soldiers to dig pools in the earth and they would be filled, the healing of Naaman, and miracles for the Shunammite woman (her having a baby and then Elisha bringing the boy back to life after dying) and the widow who had a debt that needed paying.   Those are just a few of the miracles that Elisha performed!

The Mystery of History activity for lesson 37 was doing an experiment with water and oil.  During this experiment, we were able to talk more about how Elisha performed the miracle for the widow woman in 2 Kings 4:1-7.

Samuel pouring oil in a measuring cup.

First, Samuel took the oil and poured a 1/2 cup in a measuring cup.

Claire getting a bowl of water.

Next Claire, got a bowl and filled it with water.

Claire putting drops of purple food coloring in the bowl of water.

She then put purple food coloring in the bowl to tint the water.

Putting drops of colored water in the oil.

The next step was to put drops of the colored water in the cup of the oil.  We were to watch and discuss what the reaction of the water to be in the oil.

The results of adding the colored water to the oil.

The results of adding the colored water to the oil.

The kids noticed that the water drops stayed in balls and dropped to the bottom of the cup of oil.

We also talked about why Elisha would tell the lady and her sons to go get as many empty vessels as they could find and to keep pouring the oil in the vessels.  When they could not obtain any more vessels to pour the oil in, the oil stopped flowing.  Elisha then told her to go and sell the oil to take care of her debts.  She did.  It is so amazing how God provides right when you need it!  I have seen many miracles in my lifetime and they do still happen!!

I am thankful for this opportunity to have found this amazing curriculum that has been published by Bright Ideas Press.  I am also thankful they have allowed me to be an affiliate for them.  You will see their buttons on the side of my blog. If you click on those and order any product, I will get a small portion of that purchase.  The links in this post also contain affiliate links.  Again, if you click on those links, I will get a small portion.

However, even if I wasn’t an affiliate, I would still recommend this amazing curriculum to you.  I always enjoy sharing curriculum I love and is working with us.  I am hoping to share more throughout the year as we go through this curriculum.  If you have any questions,  please email me at jumpforjoy at gmail dot com or message me on my Facebook page A Journey of Joy.

 

This post contains affiliate links.

2012, homeschooling, , , , , , , , ,

Apologia Astronomy, the sun and melting chocolate…

Written by Joy
10 Comments
Apologia Astronomy, the sun and melting chocolate…

The kids and I are having so much fun with Exploring Creation through Astronomy by Apologia.  After our first lesson and project with Astronomy, we have now moved on to the Sun.

The chapter on the sun has been split up into two sections.  The first sections talks about what the sun is, how far away it is from the earth and how hot the sun is.  Did you know the sun is almost 93 million miles from the earth and is about 10,000 degrees on the outside and millions of degrees on the inside!  Wow!

It also goes into detail about sunspots and solar flares and how they affect the earth.  Did you know that the solar flares have so much energy that when it is thrown towards the earth that people in the far north (like Alaska) and far south can see colorful lights light up the sky?  Those lights are called the auroras!  I didn’t know that until I read this lesson!

The sunspots on the sun are also cooler than the rest of the sun.  Scientists actually believe that the sunspots affect the weather on the earth.

The first things the kids had to do was draw a picture of the sun with sunspots and solar flares.  I think the kids did a great job on them.  I am considering framing them and hanging them up!

thesunandmeltingchocolate

The next project they kids got to do was melting chocolate with a magnifying glass.  The point was to focus the heat with a magnifying glass to a certain spot to see if it would melt.

Samuel and Sarah taking a turn with the magnifying glass.

Samuel and Sarah taking a turn with the magnifying glass.

By putting the magnifying glass either close to the chocolate or farther away from chocolate would depend on how concentrated the heat was when it hit the chocolate.

Look! We have a flame and smoke!

Look! We have a flame and smoke!

The kids got some chocolate (that I had previously in the freezer) and put it on a plate.  They then took turns holding the magnifying glass really close or far away from the chocolate.

Claire getting a turn holding the magnifying glass.

Claire getting a turn holding the magnifying glass.

Depending on the distance of the magnifying glass to the chocolate, would depend on how soon it took the chocolate to melt.  I think next time I will actually time it to see how long it would be before the chocolate started melting and smoking from the heat.  It would be neat to see the difference in the distance to the amount of time it took.

Chocolate with burnt holes from the magnifying glass.

Chocolate with burnt holes from the magnifying glass.

We really enjoyed this yummy project learning about how intense the heat from the sun can be.  We are looking forward to the next projects in the astronomy book!

Have you ever tried this project before?  What were your results?  What science project have you done lately?  Please share with me in the comments!  I would love to hear about it!

 

Linking up with:

Science Sunday Link-Up

Apologia Link-up

2012, homeschooling, , , ,

The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

Written by Joy
The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

When we started the school year this year, it was my intention to blog about our school week every week.  I was able to do it that first week and have not done it since.  So I figured a good way to get back to doing that, was join up with iHomeschool Network with their weekly meme of The Homeschool Mother’s Journal.  I have does this before, but it has been a while.  I think it will be a fun way to share our week with everyone.

  • In my life this week…

    We have had a pretty good week.  After not feeling well the last couple of weeks due to a fibromylagia flare-up, I was able to get the house back in order.  It feels good when the house is clean and all the laundry is caught up.

  • In our homeschool this week…

    We were able to accomplish a lot of school this week.  We enjoyed doing a couple of science projects/experiments.  My kids are loving the Apologia Astronomy book.

  • Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

    Find a good support system.  Whether it be online or in real life.  Find those homeschooling moms to talk with.  I know I would be lost without my support system that I have.  If you do not have a good support system, please email me or message me!  I would love to help encourage you in your homeschooling journey.

  • I am inspired by…

    I am inspired by those who have fought for our freedom to homeschool.  To not give up when those rough days happen.  o keep going on!

  • Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

    While we didn’t go anywhere this last week, we have plans to go to a Symphony concert next week.  We also have plans of meeting up with the homeschool group at the local Recreation Center for a swim day.

  • My favorite thing this week was…

    My favorite thing this last week was watching the kids get excited about doing their science experiment.

  • What’s working/not working for us…

    As of right now, everything seems to be going great.  We are enjoying the curriculum we are using.  Mystery of History, Apologia Science, Bob Jones Math and English.

  • Questions/thoughts I have…

    I have had a lot of thoughts about our recent move.  It has been hard meeting people.  I hate that my kids have had to start over making new friends.  I am praying we can find some soon!

  • Things I’m working on…

    I am working on my blog, A Journey of Joy, a lot.  It is my goal to help and encourage others in their homeschooling journey.  I also want to be more open and honest about my love of Jesus and what he means to me.

  • I’m grateful for…

    I am so grateful for my online homeschooling community of friends that I have.  I know there would be days that would be rough if I did not have them to turn back on.  I am praying to find a group of friends here in our new area to be able to turn to.

  • I’m praying for…

    I am praying for our family to find a church soon.  We are missing that fellowship with other believers.  I know God has the perfect church for us, it is just a matter of us being obedient to Him and listening to the direction that he wants us to go in.

  • A photo to share..

    This is one from the kids doing their science experiment.  I have a post coming about it soon!

    Claire getting a turn holding the magnifying glass.

2012, family, homeschooling, ,

Apologia Astronomy project #1 – Balloon Solar System

Written by Joy
6 Comments
Apologia Astronomy project #1 – Balloon Solar System

I am excited about our science this year.  My younger kids decided they wanted to learn about Astronomy.  What better curriculum to use than Apologia’s Exploring Creation through Astronomy! This past week, the kids and I have been reading lesson one in the Astronomy book.

Project #1, Balloon Solar System from Apologia’s Exploring Creation Through Astronomy.

 

The kids have learned what Astronomy is and why God created the Universe.  We talked about God making the planets and what scientists have named them.  We also talked about why scientists don’t consider Pluto a planet anymore.

We have learned words such as; gravity, constellations, instinct and gravitational pull.

The kids and I read about the scientists Nicolas Copernicus and Galileo Galilei, who believed the sun was the center of the solar system and the planets revolved around the sun.

However, I think the best part of the lesson was at the end and getting to make our own Solar System.  The kids and I had a great time trying to blow up the balloons to the dimensions that they gave us.  While we didn’t hang the balloons like they suggested, still had a fun time with the project.

The kids are really enjoying the Apologia Astronomy and can’t wait to read the second lesson and work on the project.   I am just happy that we are having fun and learning about science!

What are you using for science? Are you and the kids having fun?

 

 

2012, homeschooling, , , ,