Traveling Through History with Doctor Who--Win a copy!

I've been very busy the past few weeks getting ready for a new school year, getting started in our new semester of homeschool co-op and oh, writing an entire semester of a history curriculum! What started as a simple idea to make history more fun (and to use an excuse to rewatch a bunch of Doctor Who episodes) turned into a huge project that I am loving!

I have put together a full semester history course for the Doctor Who fan! Now, I like to call it a supplement, because I do not want the pressure to be someone's sole history resource. Also, the state laws vary, so it is up to each family to look and decide how much more they need to do with this course. But the potential to really dig deep is there.

Art Credit: http://bahsyla.tumblr.com/

So what is it? Allow me to explain! There are several aspects.

1. Traveling Through History with Doctor Who is a for purchase PDF download of the entire curriculum. It contains 12 weeks/1 semester of material. You can purchase the curriculum through my Teachers Pay Teachers site. This curriculum has weekly episodes for your student to watch, and then activities to complete, research to do, and essays to write. How involved you get is up to you. I have done my very best to vet all websites, check appropriateness of links and resources. Please preview any materials for your student.
2. There is also an Eliademy online class you can participate in. This semester it is free and is what I call a "light" version of the for purchase curriculum. I will include many aspects from the curriculum in the class, but not all of them. The Eliademy class is all self lead. There are discussion forums to discuss your student's work, talk about the episode, ask questions, etc. But I do not formally grade anything. There is one Graded class but it is currently full. You may join the class here: https://eliademy.com/app/a/courses/085cb3da13# but you will need to sign up for an Eliademy account. If you are a parent and would like to follow along, you will need to either work with your student on the same account, or sign up for separate accounts. In the spring more options will be available, including a paid, full course that will include the above PDF in the course price. The Eliademy course is NOT a requirement of the download and vice versa.
3. A Facebook group is also available to socialize, share ideas, discuss Doctor Who and all it's fandoms, and connect with our families. Again, this is merely a resource, NOT a requirement for either the Eliademy or the download curriculum.
   

So how you use these options are totally up to you! I've created them to be used separately, together or aspects of it used together. The Doctor Who fan community is an awesome group of people and to me, it really is a great motivator. It is loved by children and adults, it knows no political, religious, racial or cultural bounds. Doctor Who can connect a wide variety of people. Learning history in this way is a wonderful way to encourage children to explore their world and past. History doesn't HAVE to be boring!!

Traveling Through History with Doctor Who is designed for students in 6th grade and up. The reason for this is the topics dealt with such as war, death, and ethical/moral dilemmas can be harsh and difficult. History isn't always pretty. However, I do also have a companion (hehe) program called Little Whovians for younger students. I encourage you to look them both over and decide which one is best for your student. A free sample of TTHWDW is on my TPT store and is completely free. Little Whovians are also free and will always be free. They are uploaded per lesson and can be used totally independent of the main curriculum.

So, now for the fun! How would you like to win a copy of the download PDF curriculum? Well, check out this RaffleCopter giveaway and enter to win! Super easy ways to enter and get your hands on this awesome curriculum for FREE!

Please share to your Whovian friends!

Allons-y!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

December Homeschool Themes

Well, I'm getting a little late start here for the month, eh?? Oh well!

It finally got cold here so it's a good time to do our short December themes of "Snow" and "Penguins"

We never get snow here except literally once every 5-10 years and its a scattering of icy flakes, but we can pretend!! So for this month, we will try to get some of these activities done:

Instant snow in the sensory box. The boys LOVED playing with instant snow last year, I think we used it all up but I'll get my hands on some.Even yoda wasn't safe from the snow.

Popsicle Stick Snowman: http://armywifequilter.blogspot.com/2010/11/my-100th-post-popcycle-stick-snowman.html


Borax Crystal Snowflakes: http://www.workitmom.com/bloggers/familycraftideas/2013/11/29/kids-craft-borax-crystal-snowflakes/

Read some Snow Inspired Books: http://blog.playdrhutch.com/2012/01/15/books-for-a-snowy-day/

Eat a melted Snowman! http://spoonful.com/recipes/serve-melted-frosty

And of course, make Star Wars inspired snowflakes: http://manmadediy.com/users/chris/posts/1522-how-to-make-star-wars-snowflakes-free-templates-included
http://www.anthonyherreradesigns.com/index.php/8-ahd-blog/7-star-wars-snowflakes-2012






Some Penguin Fun:

Watch Mr. Popper's Penguins and Read Aloud

 

Fun Penguin Crafts: http://www.havingfunathome.com/2012/01/preschool-penguin-crafts.html

Cute penguin template for paper, felt, fabric. http://sweetandlovelycrafts.blogspot.ca/2012/11/cute-penguin-craft.html

And of course go to the Audubon Aquarium and visit the penguins!



~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We are only doing a few weeks of "real" school during December so we can enjoy the holiday break. We don't celebrate Christmas, but our public school friends are off for their break and we'd like to spend some time with them.

So happy crafting, schooling and stay warm!
~~Amy


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Egyptian Sensory Box

We are using "Story of the World Volume One" for our history curriculum and are reading about the kingdoms of Egypt. Harrison seems really into history, especially anything that connects to biblical times. He loves the Bible and stories from it! (Of which I am REALLY happy!)



I like SOTW because we can dig as deep into it as we want (or not) because using the Classical Education method approach, you repeat the cycle every four years, digging deeper as they age. The stories are entertaining and informative.

I used sensory boxes all the time as a former preschool teacher and I'm surprised the boys are still digging them. So since we've been talking a lot about Egypt, I thought I'd grab this Egypt "Toob" from Hobby Lobby one day. You can find this one and more like it on Amazon as well. SUPER cool little tubes of education!


So I added the Egyptian themed figures to a sensory box of play sand. We've been keeping it outside since it is SAND, but it has a nifty top to keep it clean. The boys have been playing with them almost every time they go outside (which is much more frequent since the weather has been BEAUTIFUL!)

I can't wait til we do some other themes and I can get more of these little things!

Play is Learning!
~~Amy


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October Home School Themes

Wow, it's almost October. Where does the time go?? We enjoyed an awesome trip to Alabama for 9 days, of which I am still unpacking from, editing pics of and getting back to 'home' life from! I sat down tonight to get this week's homeschool work planned and realized I didn't get any stuff ready for next month's theme!

October's Themes are: Fall Leaves and Pumpkins

So here are some activities I'd like to try for the month! Fall doesn't exactly come full on here in October but we can pretend!

Fall Bucket List: http://www.upsidedownhomeschooling.com/homeschool-fall-bucket-list/

Fall Tracing Sheets for Eli and his fine motor: http://sjthomeschool.blogspot.com/2013/09/fall-tracing-practice-package.html

Arts and Crafts: Paper Roll Pumpkin: http://www.littlefamilyfun.com/2012/10/paper-roll-pumpkin.html

Messy Sight Word Fun! http://schooltimesnippets.blogspot.com/2011/10/sight-word-pumpkin-smash.html

And I may make some of these or I may just crochet some pumpkins! http://www.domestifluff.com/2009/10/how-to-make-pom-pom-pumpkins/

Huge list of pumpkin activities here: http://www.123homeschool4me.com/2013/09/36-pumpkin-crafts-kids-activities.html

Huge list of Leaf Activities here:http://www.123homeschool4me.com/2013/08/36-leaf-crafts-kids-activities-for-fall.html

Pretty Fall Leaves: http://ourcraftsnthings.com/2009/10/pretty-fall-leaves/

Yarn Leaves: http://3dinosaurs.com/wordpress/index.php/red-leaf-yellow-leaf-yarn-tree/

Sticky Wall Leaves: http://kidsactivitiesblog.com/18717/early-learning-2

 Clay Leaf Bowls: http://www.redtedart.com/2010/10/01/how-to-make-autumn-leaf-bowls-guest-post/

There are a ton more activities to do, these are just some fun suggestions!

Happy Fall Y'all!

Roaches, Butterflies and Jelllyfish, Oh My!

We took our first homeschool field trip of the year last week! We are members of the Audubon Institute so we decided to do a field trip to the Insectarium since we are studying Insects this month in our Apologia Science lessons. We'd been there before but I was very happy to see H take his time and look at the exhibits. He genuinely wanted to learn about the bugs.

We were able to go with another family and it was great to see them again. Both the Insectarium and Aquarium were undergoing some modifications so I'm looking forward to seeing what new exhibits they are cooking up in there!

Both museums are doable in one day, and we enjoyed it immensely. We had lunch on the river in Woldenberg Park and the boys had a blast. As we walked back to the car, E said, "This was the most AWESOME field trip!"

If you're in the New Orleans area, take the time to check out everything the Audubon Institute has to offer, it's amazing!

Roach TV!! It's so creepy it's awesome! Check out this one and many more at www.apl.tv.

 It's hard to get these two to take a normal photo!

 The butterfly garden is awesome!

 The Crescent City really is an amazing city. I complain, but all it takes is one trip to the French Quarter and I'm in love again.

 Even Jedi's need to go on field trips.

 Trapped!!

The jellyfish are one of my favorite exhibits at the Aquarium.

I hope we can go on at least one field trip a month! We'll save the zoo for when the weather is a little cooler. If you go in the summer months the animals are just sad and hot!

~~~Amy

Butterflies are grown!

We studied some butterflies earlier this summer. We didn't do a full on study as we will do Insects in September when we start back up to school. But I couldn't resist a deal on a butterfly garden net we found and we loved it.  You can reorder more caterpillars when your first batch goes free so I think we will do that again in September.
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Get your own butterfly garden here:


I was a little worried the little guys wouldn't make it at first because it was SO hot when they arrived.

But they did, crawling all around the cup.

We followed the directions, watched them turn into their cocoons, and when it was time, moved them into their habitat and watched them grow into little butterflies fluttering around! The boys got a big kick out of it and I plan to buy more caterpillars so we can do it again!

I encourage every family to give this one a try, it's super fun and easy!
~Amy

I Could Never Do That....

Since I started homeschooling I've had several conversations that went like this,
"So you're homeschooling?"
"Yes." Waiting for the barrage of questions.
"Wow, I could never do that."
"Sure you could! Let me know if you ever consider it, we'd love a buddy!" and I move the conversation on to something else.

Why? Because I'm tempted to say this.

"Yes, you COULD homeschool, you just choose NOT to. There is a difference. Ask me how I know!"

I WAS that mother. I totally supported homeschooling moms, hats off to them but I did NOT want to. I knew it was in our future because of the district we were in, but I was not AIMING for it, not longing to do this.

I'm not gonna lie. I miss the quiet.

But you know what, you CAN homeschool....you just may choose not to. So if you are considering it, and think you CAN'T, let me remind you this.

You are you. Your children are yours. No one else's. Homeschooling doesn't require some wonderful knowledge or training. Do you think teachers knew everything first day of college? No! They LEARNED, studied, picked concentrations, focused. But they worked at it. Do you not do that as a parent? Is there some big instruction booklet I missed getting, because if so I'd SURE like one because my kids are irking my damn nerves lately.

You learn as you go, just like you do EVERYTHING in life. Practice makes perfect....except in parenting. And homeschooling. Every day, month, year could bring a new challenge, interest, child, plan, and so on. You never know what's going to happen....just like in PARENTING! And this crazy thing we call LIFE!

So, don't say you CANNOT homeschool. Say you want to but you're ________ (insert descriptive word here, scared, nervous, selfish, etc.) Because it's ok. I am too. So are a LOT of homeschooling moms. So are a lot of teachers! How many teachers do you think might drink themselves to sleep in the first few weeks (years?) of teaching because it's just such a new and different job? But they keep going back, learning new things, learning new skills and bonding with their students.

Except you don't have to do it with a whole new batch of 20 every year! You have the joy of seeing your children understand concepts and grow and learn. It can be awesome, I've learned that in the short time we've done it.

And it can also make you lose your ever loving mind. You will scream, cry, curse, stomp, drink, eat, and threaten to send them back to public school. Guess what, it's ok. Move past it. Seek solace in something. Talk to a friend. Write a blog! (I mean, hypothetically...)

Do not compare yourself to the other homeschooling moms you meet. Especially the one who's done it for 12 years. Because guess what, she started somewhere too. However, get her number because you're going to need it. Pride cometh before the fall after all, don't be stupid, listen to the veteran's advice!

In the end, they are your children and your decisions. You're going to fail at some things and excel at others. That is REAL LIFE. Contrary to the nice little box the current educational system wants us all to fit in, we're not like that. We are all on learning curves every single day of our lives. Striving to learn.....something.

I don't understand the pissing contests we all get into as parents. I am all for advice, venting, chatting, etc. But, my spawn, my decisions. Homeschool moms are no better than any other mom, and the different types of homeschooling moms are not better than public vs. private school moms. We are all just women who want what's best for our babies.

One of my favorite quotes is, "It's okay not to know how, it's not okay not to try." And that's all, we really can do, every single day.

No matter where your child goes to school.

~~Amy

Throwing Rocks

Recently we took a little nature scavenger hunt and spent some time throwing rocks into the water near Fort Pike in between Slidell and New Orleans, Louisiana. We found most of the things on our scavenger list, watched thunder clouds roll in and ran from dragonflies.

 We found a crab hiding in the rocks!

This little trip was proof you can disconnect kids from their gadgets, stick them out in nature, and they can have fun with ROCKS.

We are now on break from homeschooling until after Labor Day but we've had a pretty good time over our summer session! I put a lot of fun pics on Instagram if you are there, find me, :) I'm "mamaslittlemonkeys"

~~Amy

Monthly Themes for Homeschooling

I am trying to do some monthly themes since E is in kindergarten and I loved doing themes as a preschool teacher. We are still following certain curriculums but I thought the themes would be fun to give us extra things to do and learn about. So here they are, in case you're curious! Themes change every two weeks and we do not do traditional holidays like Christmas, Easter, Valentine's etc.

I have ideas plotted out to go with each one and will post them as the time gets closer!

Monthly Themes

September:
Angry Birds
Insects

October:
Fall/Leaves
Pumpkins

November:
Thanksgiving

December:
Snow
Penguins/Polar Bears

January:
Presidents
Dental Health

February:
Human Body
Dr. Seuss

March
Weather/Spring
Plants/Flowers

April:
Farm
Zoo

May:
Outer Space/Star Wars
Ocean

~~What are your favorite themes?? Feel free to share them and delight me with a comment!!
~~Amy

Summer Homeschooling Progress

I am definitely the Hesitant Homeschooler, as my blog name says, but I'm pleasantly surprised that we are making it. We've had some very rough days of the boys (and I) totally losing our ever loving minds, but we've had good days of getting work done in a timely fashion so we can play with friends, go swimming, etc.

We've cut way back on the screen time, they only get it on Sundays, with limited TV during the week (which has mostly lately entailed of Star Wars movies...they're obsessed.) This has resulted in much less fussing, bad attitudes, and scary mommy. I'm making a very concerted effort to yell less, listen more, and learn their learning styles. 

So things are moving along...I'm not saying it's easy, I'm not saying I wouldn't send them back to school if I could, but I admit it's going okay, and I'm learning a lot about them as human beings, and myself. We have just four more weeks of "summer school" and then we take a month off!! I've timed it so we can be off when public school starts...so while other kids head off on buses, we head off to the pool!!

I'm looking forward to some upcoming field trips and projects I have planned for them. I'm not sure how much Eli is really getting since Kindergarten work isn't very labor intensive and he's basically ahead of where he should be, so I'm working mostly with him on the basic 3 R's and social/emotional activities.

My buddies...

 Boba Fett climbing a tree.

 We spent a cloudy but beautiful Sabbath on the lakefront recently.

 He's looking so grown up!

 What, you don't see Boba Fett in your town out and about?

Testing the lake water.

Can't wait to see what we get into in the coming weeks!!

~~Amy

Fun on the Fourth and More

Summer has been pretty good so far! We've been knocking things off our Bucket List, which is good since I KNOW they will soon whine, "We didn't do ANYTHING this summer!" and I can directly point to the Bucket List.

We had some fun this Fourth of July, and I hope you all did, and took the time to remember what is really important about our countries Independence. 

 Made a yummy flag inspired dessert!

 Smoke Bombs are always a favorite, especially for Eli, he hates the noisy fireworks.

 Harrison rocking his Duck Dynasty shirt with sparklers.

 Eli, aka, Anakin Skywalker, even put on a brave face and used a sparkler.

 Managed to get a few fireworks shots!

Hope everyone had a great Fourth!!!

~~Amy

Water Balloons and Popsicles

We've been working our way through our Summer Bucket List.

We've crossed off several including water balloons and making popsicles.

 I love that I caught the splash of the balloon popping!!

 And the balloon about to hit Harrison!

Cherry-Limeade popsicles, Yes Kool-Aid, as much as I try to avoid food dyes, sometimes you just gotta do a little something!

Hope we can cross them all off by September!

~~Amy

To the Fair

Recently we went to the fair with Grandpa and they had a good time, especially Eli as he was very brave and went on rides I never imagined he'd go on!

 Eli made me ride the ferris wheel with him, which I didn't love, because I hate the height!

 Eli enjoying the smaller roller coaster.

 They love that super slide thing.

 This is the big coaster Eli and I went on, three times! He LOVED it. I couldn't believe he wasn't scared.

 Harrison refused to go on the big coaster, maybe next year!

 I lost count of how many times they went on the slide.

 NO one went on this ride, Harrison said he did it last year with Grandpa and it is INSANE how it goes round and round and then goes backwards....insanely fast! No thank you, I don't enjoy throwing up.

The obligatory swing photograph.

They were still grumpy throughout the day and on the way home (God forbid they drive an hour without a screen!! THE HORROR!) But I know they had a blast and would love to go again. Who doesn't love the fair??

~~Amy