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why I love Bright Ideas Press, a History link-up and a giveaway!!

Written by Joy
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why I love Bright Ideas Press, a History link-up and a giveaway!!

Every since I started using Bright Ideas Press History and Geography last year, my kids and I have truly fell in love with it.  This curriculum works for our family.  How does it work?  The Mystery of History Volume 1 that we have been using, teaches Ancient Civilizations through the time of Christ.  We did start this volume last year, but started it over this year when I found out about their Illuminations program (which I also highly recommend!).  I am so glad that we did start over.  I am able to use this history book with all three of my children that I am homeschooling this year.  They are in the 9th, 2nd and 1st grades.  I love the fact that I can use it with all three kids.  Each lesson consists of a lesson that can be from 1-3 pages long.  Then at the end of the lesson, there are activities and projects for younger, middle and older children.  It works out great for us.  Also, in the back of the book, they have a book list for extra reading for the lessons.  I also have to mention the WonderMaps program.   The amount of maps that they have, starting with the ancient civilizations and going through chronological order, up through modern times is amazing!  We are also enjoying the Hands-On Geography and the Time-line.  It is so fun to see my kids enjoy history coming to life!

Just look at what we did this past week!

Soap Carving talking about Jonah and the Big Fish

Olympic Wreath Making

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So as you can tell, we love all that Bright Ideas Press has to offer!  That is I am going to host a history link-up for those who are using Bright Ideas Press curriculum.  If you use ANY of the history or geography curriculum that they publish, this link-up is for you!

Since it is Thanksgiving weekend and I am late getting this post up, I won’t do a link-up today.  However, come  back next Wednesday with your posts ready!  I will also have a landing page at the top of the blog that you will be able to click on with all the info needed.  I will also have a button in the side bar that you will be able to put on your blog as well. (Thank you to Honey at Honeycomb Design Studio for creating the beautiful buttons and banners!)

I also have to let you know that this was my idea and I am doing it all on my own.  While Bright Ideas Press does know about the link-up, they do not have anything to do with it.  I will be hosting it on my blog .  They are supporting me and have even donated $20 in store credit as a first giveaway!

That’s right, the giveaway that Bright Ideas Press is donating, is a $20 store credit.  It is just in time for this weekend’s sale!

All you have to do to enter the contest is leave me a comment telling me what you would use the $20 store credit on at Bright Ideas Press!  I will choose a winner late Friday night.  That will still give you plenty of time to use the store credit!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

**UPDATE** Using Random.org, the winner is Cindy!!  Congrats!!

Disclaimer~ “This link-up is not officially affiliated with Bright Ideas Press but is my own project. I am a customer and fan.  There are affiliate links in this post.  If I do make any money from you using the links, I will in return use it to purchase curriculum for our schooling.”

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

The Homeschool Mother’s Journal and a History Link-Up in the works!

Written by Joy
2 Comments
The Homeschool Mother’s Journal and a History Link-Up in the works!

 Don’t forget to drop by iHomeschool Network and look at what other homeschoolers have been doing!

  • In my life this week…

    I have had a pretty good week.  I was able to get up and dressed, get the kids breakfast and get started on school.  It has been a good with with not much pain. I am thankful and blessed by God for keeping my pain away.  I also am working on a new link-up for history!

  • In our homeschool this week…

    We got a lot accomplished in our homeschool this week!  I am so proud of my kids.  Other than our usual math, phonics and writing, we carved soap into big fish (Jonah lesson in MOH), made Oylmpic wreaths (Olympic lesson in MOH) and read about Mercury in Astronomy.

  • Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

     If you are able to, try to have a few minutes of quiet time at the beginning of the day and ask God to bless your day and your homeschool.  By putting God first, my days definitely go a lot smoother.

  • I am inspired by…

    I am inspired by Jenilee and her family.  Jenilee blogs at Our Goodwin Journey.  Jenilee and her husband Jeremy just announced that they are missionaries for Senegal, West Africa.  Will you join me in prayer for this blessed family and perhaps pray for how you can help and bless them in their new journey?

  • My favorite thing this week was…

    Claire, Sarah and Samuel making their Olympic wreaths.

    Claire, Sarah and Samuel with their big fish carvings.

  • Things I’m working on…

 I am working on the History link-up.  I share a little more about it at the bottom.  I am also helping out with Teaching Creation   Thursday at Creation Conversation!

  • I’m cooking…

    I have been in a baking and cooking mood lately.  The holidays and cooler weather always seems to get me in the baking mood.  This past week, we baked chocolate chip cookies.  They didn’t last long enough for me to get a picture of!  I also made a Pumpkin Spice Banana Nut Bread at the beginning of the week!

  • I’m grateful for…

     I am so thankful and blessed by the many friendships that I have made since I have started blogging.  I am encouraged by all of those who blog about their faith and those who encourage others through their faith and their homeschool journey.  It is my goal to do the same.

  • I’m praying for…

    I am praying for our family and that we find a church home soon.  I miss the fellowship with other believers.

  • A photo to share…

I am so excited about this new link-up I am having.  It will be a History link-up for those who are using Bright Ideas Press      history and geography curriculum.  I will begin having it once a week.  We will begin this next Wednesday and I have a giveaway from Bright Ideas Press!  It is a $20 store credit!!

 


 *This link-up is not officially affiliated with Bright Ideas Press but is my own project. I am a customer and fan.

* Affiliate links are included in this post.

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

Denver Zoo has a free day! ~ field trip

Written by Joy
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Denver Zoo has a free day! ~ field trip

We recently found out that the Denver Zoo has free days for the public. One of those days was last week. I asked our neighbor who homeschools her 7 year old son if they wanted to go with us. They said yes, so off we went! We packed a lunch, snacks and bottled water for the day. We got to the zoo fairly early and there were already a lot of families who were taking advantage of this wonderful opportunity.

King of the Jungle

As you walk in through the front gate, the first animals that you come to is the African Lions.  They were absolutely gorgeous!  And huge!

Cape Buffalo

Being a zoo with a lot of animals, the one thing you do notice right off is the smell.  I kept giggling at Samuel who kept asking why the animals smelled so badly.  He walked around the zoo with his shirt over his nose, most of the day.  The smell was really horrible at the Cape Buffalo area.

Dall’s Sheep

I have seen mountain sheep before on Mt.Evans.  Was even able to get some really close pictures of them.  So I liked watching these that were at the zoo.  The one with the horns was the dominating one.  He would go up to the younger ones and push them below him.  He was definitely playing king of the mountain and succeeded!

Claire with the Capuchin

Claire had told me before we arrived at the zoo that she wanted to see the monkeys.  Her Papa calls her, his little monkey and so she wanted to have her picture taken with them, so we could send it to him.

Samuel seeing how tall he is next to am Emperor Penguin

Samuel thought this was pretty cool, being able to compare how tall he is to an Emperor Penguin.

Grizzly Bears

While we have seen black bears in North Carolina, this was our first time seeing grizzly bears.  I loved watching the grizzly bears.  Tundra (female bear), kept pacing back and forth while watching Tipani (sp?- male bear) eat his bone.  Tundra was waiting for him to walk away from his bone so she could take it, even though she had her own!

Kids checking out an Elephant skull

The Denver Zoo has just recently added a new section to the Zoo.  It is a much larger Elephant exhibit.  From what we were told, they have added several more elephants to the zoo.  It is amazing how large and graceful these animals are.

Elephant

Another highlight for the kids were seeing the giraffes.  We also got a lesson in giraffe anatomy.  When we walked up the largest giraffe was going to the bathroom.  They must have a bladder the size of a basketball or larger.  The make giraffe stood there urinating for several minutes.  Adults and kids all got a giggle out of seeing this!

Giraffe

The last exhibit we went through, was the Tropical Climate building.  This building had so many different types of frogs, lizards, fish and snakes in it.  It was very humid and damp.  This was also a big hit with the kids.  It is so amazing to see all the different types of animals that God has created.

Kids looking at a Komodo Dragon

We spent about 3 hours at the zoo that day.  I would have stayed longer, but the kids were all tired.  So we left after leaving the Tropical building.  The zoo was so big that we didn’t even get to see everything.  We are excited about going back again on the next free day.  This time, dad is going to take off a half a day so he can go with us.  The kids can’t wait to show him all the animals we saw.  I can’t wait to see the animals that we missed on our first trip.  We enjoyed the zoo so much, that we are planning on buying a yearly membership.

Do you have a zoo that is close by?  What are your favorite animals?

 

2012, field trips, homeschooling, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

a solar eclipse and pinhole viewing box project ~ Apologia Astronomy

Written by Joy
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a solar eclipse and pinhole viewing box project ~ Apologia Astronomy

The kids and I are moving right along with the Exploring Creation with Astronomy from Apologia.  We have made it to the end of the 2nd chapter about the sun.

The first thing we did, was create a solar eclipse using our globe, a small ball attached to a string and a flashlight.  By putting the ball between the light source and the globe, we were able to cast a shadow, showing the kids how a solar eclipse works.

showing the kids how a solar eclipse works.

We then moved on to making a pinhole viewing box.  I gathered the supplies that we needed.  One of the things I really like about Apologia and their projects,  it is stuff you can find laying around your home.  For this project, I had everything on hand.

supplies for the projects

Sarah started out cutting a hole in the side of the box.  This was to view the sun when we finished the project.  However, you could have cut the side of this box off.

Sarah making a hole in the side of the box.

Samuel had the job of cutting a piece of aluminum foil and white paper to go on the end of each box.

Samuel cutting the aluminum foil and paper.

Claire helped Sarah tape the aluminum foil over a hole on one end of the box.  She then helped tape the white piece of paper on the opposite end.

Claire getting a needle.

Sarah helped Claire poke a hole in the aluminum foil.  We found out the bigger the hole the needle made the bigger and fuzzier the sun showed on the white paper.  The smaller the hole, the clearer the picture of the sun.

Sarah helping Claire poke a hole with the needle.

The kids and I had a great time looking at the sun through the pinhole viewing box.  It worked really well.  We were hoping to be able to see some sun spots on the sun, but we didn’t notice any dark spots at all.

seeing the sun through the pinhole.

Trixie even came out on the porch and wanted to look in the box!

Trixie wanted to see the sun in the pinhole in the box!

While we were sad to end the chapter on the sun, we are looking forward to the next chapter about Mercury.  We can’t wait until the next project!

Linking up with:

Science Sunday

 

2012, homeschooling, , , , , , ,

so thankful and blessed… #1051-1060

Written by Joy
so thankful and blessed… #1051-1060

When I see this verse, other than thinking about God sending Jesus to die on the cross, I can’t help to think about another group of people who have put and continue to put their lives on the line for us.  That is the men and women who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.   Because  of those who have served and are serving,  We have freedoms that a lot of others do not have.

John 15:13

13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

So in honor of Veteran’s Day, I thought I would share a few freedoms that I am thankful for.

1051.  the freedom to worship how I believe.

1052. the freedom to attend a church.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

1053. the freedom to stay at home with my children and homeschool them.

1054. the freedom to have a gun.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

1055. freedom of speech.

1056. I am thankful for my Uncle who served in WWII.  He lost his life while he was in the Army.  He was only 22.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

1057. I am thankful for my great grandpa who was the youngest to serve in the Civil War in the state of Florida.

1058. I am thankful for my father-in-law who served in the Air Force in Vietnam.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

1059. I am thankful for my step-father-in-law who served in the Air Force in Vietnam.

1060. I am thankful for the many more who served, are serving now and their families who sacrifice so much for us.

Vietnam Moving Wall Memorial

I would love for you to join in counting the many blessings that God gives. Stop by A Holy Experience and visit others who are also sharing their many blessings.

2012, multitude Mondays, , , , , , ,