HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to your family!  May we all take a moment to remember all that we are thankful for.

Marshmallow Turkeys!

This is a great treat that you can make with your children on Thanksgiving! There are other recipes and activities so just click here!   ENJOY!

Groupon Deal of the Day!

Groupon Charlotte has a great deal today! You can buy admission to the Carolina Raptor Center for HALF OFF! This is a great education field trip for the kids! Go here! Just join Groupon  and not miss any of the deals! ENJOY!

Knot-a-quilt give away!

My friend Heather over at Special Needs Homeschooling is having another great giveaway! She's giving away a Knot-a-Quilt. Heather's blog about homeschooling is an inspiration to everyone! She offers great advice and resources.  Head on over to http://specialneedshomeschooling.com/  to find out more! You can also "like" the site on Facebook, I do! ENJOY! 

Hamburger Helper coupon

I don't usually post coupons on here but BlogSpark sent me this link for my readers. It's for .35 off 1 box of Hamburger helper. Its only good until Nov. 30! ENJOY!

Print Coupon here!

Go Here!

Over at Activity Village, they have a list of Thanksgiving activities for children! And if your children do the fuse beads, they have lots of patterns for these. ENJOY!

Free Thanksgiving Printables

Head on over to Ingles 360 to get some great free printable activities for Thanksgiving. While you are there look around at all the other neat things they have! Click here!

Freebie of the Day

Go Here!

The Thanksgiving File Folder Games Mini-Lapbook from Knowledge Box Central is a wonderful source of fun during the Thanksgiving Holiday!  Your children will enjoy cutting and pasting the game together inside a file folder.  These games can be played over and over, keeping their minds and little hands busy during the break!  These games were designed for Kindergarten through about 3rd grade but could easily be "tweaked" to include younger AND older students (or even adults!)

Kids.woot deal today

http://kids.woot.com/

Melissa and Doug three piece bundle:  24.99 plus 5.00 shipping

Organizing Preschool Supplies

Organizing Preschool Supplies

Submitted: November 14, 2010 | Author: Rachel Paxton | Posted in: Early Learners

If you are doing preschool at home, or even if you are just doing some extra preschool activities with your child from time to time, you probably have a lot of papers and craft supplies taking up space on your countertops and closet shelves.
It was hard for me to get excited about doing preschool activities without being organized first, so I set out to go through all of our supplies and set up an organized storage system that works for me.
Flash Cards and Card Games
I store all of my boys’ flash cards and card games in a small plastic storage container.  This container is kept up in a closet where only I can get it down for them.  It only took one time of me putting all the cards back in the boxes to realize they couldn’t handle getting into this container on their own!
Art Supplies
Most of our art supplies are stored where my boys can get to them.  I purchased a three drawer plastic storage container that works great for art supplies.  One drawer holds their crayons, colored pencils, scissors, and glue.  The second drawer stores a variety of painting supplies.  The third drawer stores miscellaneous items, such as felt pieces for the felt board and plastic letters for the magnetic board.  This plastic container is kept near the kitchen table where my boys do their art projects. This keeps it within easy reach when they want to color, paint, or do some other art project.
Craft Supplies
I have a separate plastic storage container just for craft supplies.  Most of these supplies aren’t used unless we are doing a special craft project, so the kids don’t need to get in there every day.  This container stores things like google eyes, pipe cleaners, crepe paper, etc. This is also where I store the ink pads I don’t want them getting into by themselves.
Worksheets, Workbooks, and Project Instructions
If you like to collect preschool craft and activity ideas like I do, you probably have a lot of piles of paper that need to be sorted and organized.  I purchased several plastic file folder storage boxes for all these papers, and they have worked great so far.  I sorted my papers into categories like Christmas, Thanksgiving, spring, animals, alphabet, etc.  I combined several categories together in one container, and then labeled each container so I would know exactly what is in it.  I also placed all of our workbooks in these containers.  It’s nice to have a place to put all those miscellaneous papers I always seem to run across.  If I cut out an article from somewhere, or photocopy an idea from a book, I have a place to file it away where I can always find it again.  You can put away the containers you don’t currently need and just leave out the ones you are currently using.
Preschool Manipulatives and Puzzles
Hopefully your preschooler has a lot of math manipulatives and puzzles to play with.  These items should be set out where they can just pick up when they are bored.  All of our puzzles are stored inside of benches we have around the table in our kitchen.  When our boys want to do a puzzle, they can get them out themselves.  Our math manipulatives are stored on a shelf in our entertainment center.  Again, the kids have easy access to them and often pick them up when they are bored.  We have sewing cards, patterning and sorting activities, and several number, matching, and reading games. I love to see my boys reaching for these great learning activities when they want something to do.
The preschool years are a fun time for you and your child.  Whether you are doing preschool at home or your child attends preschool, make sure you have lots of stimulating activities for your child at home that are organized and ready to use when you need them.

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Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom of five. For resources for the Christian family, including parenting, toddler and preschool activities, homeschooling, family traditions, and more, visit Christian-Parent.com. 

 Source:

http://www.homeschool-articles.com/organizing-preschool-supplies/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+homeschool-articles%2FjAcO+%28Homeschool+Articles+-+Articles%29&utm_content=FaceBook#

Are You Thinking About Homeschooling? Teachers Are!

Submitted: November 14, 2010 | Author: Roma Cox

One might be surprised to know that the biggest influx to the home school arena today are professional teachers. The reasons they give are very interesting.

• In the 60s, teachers had more say so about what happened in their class rooms. However the government is more in control these days. It is important to know that the Vietnam War taught us that the war cannot be won from the White House. Likewise the teacher, who is in the trenches (metaphorically speaking) knows what her kids need. Unlike the bureaucracy, She sees them as human beings, and not as statistics. Heck, the school lunches were even much better in the 60s.

• Teachers rightfully complain they must now teach their children to pass the government mandated tests requiring them to sacrifice teaching of the basics.

• Class sizes have become so large that kids are taught to act like robots rather than individuals. Teachers find themselves having to teach as if a one size fits all… they are less able to individualize their curriculum.

• Recess and play time are being decreased. Many teachers complain this is creating stress, and forcing little ones to fit into unhealthy and unnatural molds .

Teachers are getting a bum wrap when they are blamed for the increasing decline in the U.S. public school system, and few people are listening to “those in the trenches”.  Evidence indicates that government bureaucracy is to blame. Is it any wonder that so many teachers are choosing to home school their own families?
Most home school students out perform public school children on college entrance exams. Obviously most parents are doing something right whether they have teaching credentials or not.
Are there some sad stories about children that are not receiving an adequate education in the home school venue? The answer is yes, but there are more such stories found in the public school system. Government intervention is not a solution.  Parent awareness and involvement (“those in the trenches”) is the solution. That is the case whether one has children in the home school or public school systems.
This is not said to put an impossible burden or even blame on parents. I say this to empower parents. The solution to today’s education is noticeably coming from you, the people.

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Roma Cox worked as a para-professional in the public school system. She was part of a government funded program called Follow Through in which she was trained by psychologists on how to work with the children. Roma now shares what she has learned with others through her website Read-Phonics.com, workshops, and articles. 

 

Source:  http://www.homeschool-articles.com/are-you-thinking-about-homeschooling-teachers-are/#

Learning Resources Wednesday only sale!

They are offering 10 items at a great deal today only! I personally didn't see anything I could use but some of you might! ENJOY!   Go Here!

Needs,Wants,and Blessings

I found this wonderful little activity that you can do with your children to help them learn the difference between a want,a need, and a blessing.  Go Here!

Bake Aggression Cookies: Playdough Cookies Kids Can Pound! | Activities | Education.com

Bake Aggression Cookies: Playdough Cookies Kids Can Pound! | Activities | Education.com


We were given a sheet last night at school that had the recipe for these cookies.  Making these helps children work off some steam and make a tasty treat! So the next time your little one is having a frustration filled day, have them bake some cookies!ENJOY!

CurrClick Freebie

Head on over to CurrClick and take advantage of their freebie! Sign up for their newsletter and get a freebie for homeschooling each week!Go Here

Simple Schooling Thanksgiving Cursive Copybook
by Simple Schooling

This is a nice project copybook to begin in November leading up to Thanksgiving. Each page includes a rhyme about the history of the Pilgrims, a dotted-line cursive practice of the rhyme, and some “on your own” practice space. The next page is where they can do their project in their best handwriting. There is also space to draw a picture of the events told in the rhyme. 25 pages includes 12 days worth of cursive practice. FREE!

FREE!

Abacus

Here is a site that has a free online Abacus!  Thought some might find this a new way getting their children into math and counting! Go Here!

Freebie of the day! Available only today!

The Sugar Creek Gang in "Swamp Robber" (Part 1)
AVAILABLE MONDAY ONLY!
In 1939, Paul Hutchins began writing a series of wholesome Christian adventure books for boys and girls, known as the "Sugar Creek Gang" stories.  Several years ago Paul Ramseyer was inspired to dramatize the book series for radio. The "Swamp Robber" adventure is the first in the series. Courtesy of belovedbooks.com, today and tomorrow we are able to bring you a complete 3 hour audio adventure of the "Sugar Creek Gang"! Filled with bits of science, poetry, nature study, and a gospel message, these are a favorite of many families. Enjoy! (80 minutes/ mp3 audio)Go Here for this freebie!

Eric Carle

If your children are like my son, then they love Eric Carle's books!  One of his favorites is the Very Hungary Caterpillar!  Well if you head over to his website, www.ericcarle.com, you can get some neat ideals! He offers directions on how to make collage pictures the way he does it.  This would make a great activity to recycle some of the tissue paper that we accumulate at the holidays!

Yummy recipe

I came a across yummy sounding recipe that I thought I would share!  I think I might give this  a try in the near future! ENJOY!

Harvest Pumpkin Smoothie

Ingredients:
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup of milk or vanilla yogurt
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg
2 teaspoons of brown sugar
4 ice cubes
small glass
cinnamon
blender
whipped topping
cinnamon stick

Directions:
Puree the first six ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour the smoothie into a small glass and garnish with a dollop of whipped topping.  Add a touch of cinnamon on the top and finish the garnish with a cinnamon stick.
taken from the October 2005 issue of ParentLife

Great Site for tips!

This site is wonderful for finding ways of surviving this economy! Check it out!

Right now she is offering a free menu planning e-book!

Boogie Wipes / Busy Little Bodies

Boogie Wipes are made with saline to dissolve boogies (mucus) caused by the common cold, allergies or otherwise booger-filled kid moments. Extra soft and scented in Great Grape, Fresh Scent or Magic Menthol (for extra stuffy noses), Boogie Wipes are recommended by Pediatricians as a gentle, effective alternative to a dry tissue.

Email us at freebies@boogiewipes.com for complimentary samples, stickers, and coloring sheets.    Thanks The Old Schoolhouse for posting this!

Old Schoolhouse Magazine

I just got my first magazine and love it! It has so many useful articles plus it has recipes,etc too! This would make a wonderful gift too! Go Here!

Freebie of the Day

Go Here!

Today's freebie is a wonderful site that let's you print out and use lots of historical maps! ENJOY!

Update

I'm sorry that I've not posted much lately. I've been so busy with school,several major projects due at one time. I've also been having several medical tests done the past few weeks. Please bear with me as I try to get caught up on postings!