Since I'm kind of known as "the nature lady", I've written about nature study more times than I can keep up with. If I can't keep up with it, how could I possibly expect you to do so? So…I've decided to round up all the important nature learning posts in one handy spot. It's all here! Nature Study: Start Here This post thoroughly explains the why's and how's of studying nature - whether you're a Charlotte Mason homeschooler or not. Next Stop: Nature Study Ideas Warning: This post is HUGE and can overwhelm even the veteran NaturExplorer! If you find yourself becoming overwhelmed, you might be better off to start with a NaturExplorers ... Read More
Interest-Based Ocean Study
(This post contains affiliate links.) Interest-Based Rabbit Trails After our early autumn trip to the beach, Eli was immensely interested in beach life. When I found him pouring over one of our souvenir attraction maps, I knew it was wise to capitalize on his enthusiasm. So...a quick, delight-directed ocean study started immediately. Map Skills: I just let him explore the souvenir map. We talked about things we remembered seeing, where we stayed, how far the attractions were from us, why all those businesses would be there, our favorite memories, the difference between the bay and the ocean, and more. Collage of Memories: Rather than keeping piles and piles of brochures as ... Read More
Planning a Small Unit Study
We’re finally into some practical posts in my series about unit studies! In my first post, I posted about how I design unit studies for our homeschool. In the second post, I wrote about incorporating project-based learning into the units. Now, I’d like to share with you a very short and simple study we completed on magnets. I’m sharing this one so you can see how easy it really can be to pull together a thorough study. Next time, I’ll share the planning process of a much longer unit. One week. That’s all the time it took for us to efficiently cover the physical science topic of magnets. (This post contains affiliate links.) Planning a Small Unit Study I own three books with ... Read More
Patriotic Fun
Looking for a simple way to engage your children in some fun learning this summer? Why not try a few learning centers! What is a learning center? Quite simply, a few goodies based on a certain theme that you put together for your children to explore. Yep, that's it. Easy and intriguing. Here's the latest summer center at our house. The topic for the next couple of weeks is the good ol' USA! I've included a few library books, a Patriotic colors chemistry experiment kit, Wee Sing: America, a few games, a U.S.A. Puzzle, U.S. Presidents flash cards, and some patriotic stickers. Everything on the table (almost) was under $1.00 or free! I've told you many times before how much I love ... Read More
Inventors and Inventions Unit Study
Gotta Admit... I was somewhat dreading this unit about inventors and inventions because the topic seemed rather dry and dull, but I was in for a pleasant surprise once we dove in!! The A Journey Through Learning lapbook was an outstanding spine. I had never used one of their lapbooks before, but it won't be the last one! It was put together in a very organized, simple to implement way - refreshing!! We also completed some of our own inventions using ideas from the Inventions Thematic Unit (Thematic Units) book. The kids LOVED creating their own inventions. I've put together a little slideshow of our lapbooks and inventions.... Inventors and Inventions Unit ... Read More
Thanksgiving Resources
We won't be doing a Thanksgiving unit this year, but several books will be in books baskets and book nooks around the house. Here are some of my favorites. Here are a few internet resources that have been useful in the past. Cindy Downes' Pilgrim Unit The Homeschool Mom's Links LaCelle Family Unit Study Eclectic Homeschool Online Resources ... Read More
Magnet Unit Study
Our study on magnets only took a week - but a fun, hands-on week it was! Magnets Lots of Free Lessons Even More Free Lessons ... Read More
Presidents of the United States Unit
A thorough Presidents of the United States unit study can be a unique way to learn American history and geography. However, a quick study of one or more presidents can be just as great. In this mini unit study, my children completed research-based, project-based learning as they each explored the lives of five presidents and completed five creative projects. They had so much fun in the learning, planning, and presentations! A Mini Presidents of the United States Unit Study This unit took only two weeks! I'll get right to the short and sweet of how we did a Presidents of the United States unit so thoroughly, yet so quickly. We simply read a book everyday about past presidents, the ... Read More
Energy
Well, another unit bites the dust! We had a great time learning about energy, with a main focus on heat and electricity. This slide show gives you just a glimpse into some of our hands on experiments. What turned out to be THE BEST of all the curriculum we used was the Electric Kitbook. In fact, I liked it so much, I'm going to do a review about it soon at The Curriculum Choice. At the end of the unit, I gave the kids a test that you can find on my Homeschool Launch page. I've been enjoying adding more tests to the curriculum this year. It keeps everyone on their toes! Below is the resource list that's been in my sidebar. I hope you find some treasures the next time you need ... Read More
US Government Unit Study
(This post contains affiliate links.) A Very Thorough US Government Unit Last week we finished a unit on US Government and Civics using The United States Government 7th-12th grade lapbooking unit from Knowledge Box Central. It was a great refresher for me and a super way to teach my children everything from the history of the Constitution to the design and procedures of our government to the rights and responsibilities we have as citizens. We should all be teaching US Government and Civics anyway, but in light of so many political issues in our country right now, it's extremely important to teach our children the fundamentals of how our government is supposed to work and what we can ... Read More