My 6th grader just finished a mini French and Indian War unit study that was a great pit stop in our regular history studies. I just love the slow and steady pace we're taking to go through the Story of the World curriculum this time around. I used to follow pretty strict 4-year cycles in history, but with this 3rd child of mine, I'm confident that moving at a slower pace and savoring certain events is as good a way to learn as any. As we read through the Story of the World and something strikes our fancy, we take some time to dig deeper. Sometimes through extra reading or a documentary. Other times through mini unit studies. The mini unit studies give Eli a chance to practice ... Read More
Your Kids Will Love This Quick Viking Unit Study
Eli and I have certainly enjoyed a meandering pace through Story of the World for history. Because we're never rushed to move on to the next chapter, it provides plenty of time for rabbit trails when he shows special interest in a topic. One of those special interests this year was the Vikings. We had so much fun taking a quick unit study break to focus more deeply on Viking history! Viking Unit Study I think it was likely the strength with which Vikings are portrayed that may have first caught my son's attention. Or, the story his brother told about Viking funerals and burning boats. Either way, Eli was very motivated to learn more. And, I was happy to oblige. That reminds me: Don't be ... Read More
Nature Study: Fossil Walk and Follow Up Fun
(This post contains links to my products.) Boy, I hope your neck of the woods contains as many fossils as mine. In Central KY, we can find fossils hidden just about everywhere - and that makes our rock walks so much fun! We get to be scientists (petrologists, paleontologists, archaeologists or rockhounds - you decide) and detectives, which are pretty motivating titles for my children! Since we've been studying rocks for many years now, we're getting better at identifying rock types without the help of a field guide. Fossils, however, are not as easy for us to identify. That means a fossil hunt is followed by a research-based identification session on the internet when we get home. ... Read More
Homeschool Geography For All Seasons
(This post contains affiliate links.) I'm a fan of research-based learning. This is learning that requires action from my children - not just pulling up rote facts or answering simple questions. In research-based learning, my children must dig deeper to determine answers. It forces independence and competence in knowing how to learn. While it's not difficult to design research-based assignments, it can end up near the bottom of my long homeschooling to-do list. I am so, so happy to introduce you to a new-to-me book that supplies ready-to-go, research-based geography lessons! Geography for All Seasons by Brenda McGee is one of the books I requested as a brand ambassador for ... Read More
13 Colonies Travel Brochure
An Easy 13 Colonies Travel Brochure Project In an effort to share more of our project-based learning, I thought I'd highlight Caleb's latest middle school research & writing assignment. As part of a Colonial History unit study, Caleb and I read a two great books about the 13 colonies. Afterward, I asked him to choose his favorite of the 13 colonies. His assignment was this: Using legal-sized paper, create a travel brochure of the colony of your choice. The travel brochure can be written from the perspective of then or now, however, the main focus must be on historical information. The brochure should: include thorough information about the colony: its founder(s), ... Read More
Project-Based Learning
In my last post, I focused on how I prepare unit studies in our homeschool. I wrote very briefly about using projects at the end of the unit for evaluation. In this post, I’d like to explain further why I believe project-based learning is important and how to incorporate projects into your unit studies (or into any type of schooling style.) Just what is project-based learning? Quite simply, it’s a learning method in which your children dive into a subject and complete a project to show what they know. Projects can really be anything! play/skit/speech/storytelling story/report/book report/article/newsletter mobile/diorama/model experiment/demonstration ... Read More
World Geography Projects
One of the end-of-the-year writing projects I gave the kids was to research any country of interest around the world and create a report and presentation. I only gave a few parameters for the world geography projects and reports: The report needed to include nice-sized paragraphs, correct grammar/punctuation/spelling, and be more than simple facts. In other words, I wanted them to infuse a little opinion into the information, too. They had to include at least the following topics, but could include others if desired: where in the world (maps), a brief history, current day culture such as food, clothing, homes, etc., things that are native to the country such as animals and crops, ... Read More
US Geography Resources
We had a great time studying United States geography! One of the coolest projects during the study included research, some technology skills, writing and a bit of art. US Geography We took some time to learn about famous national landmarks during the unit. As a final project, I gave the kids a list of several landmarks from which they had to choose eight to research. They created informational postcards to highlight what they learned. You can see the front of each postcard shows a picture and the name of the landmark. On the back, they had to write a paragraph of interesting information for each. National Landmark Accordion Postcards (This post contains affiliate ... Read More