Twizzlers Geometry

 We’ve been doing loads of science experiments with candy.  I’m trying to find ways to use all of my Twizzlers.  Lines and Angles uses Twizzlers and Skittles.  Perfect!  I still have loads of jelly beans, too, from Jelly Bean Dichotomous Keys.  Here are multiplication and division activities with Twizzlers and Skittles.  The author is promoting her TPT store.  Make your own arrays—possibly with Skittles or jelly beans.

Create a Digital Portfolio

I’m creating a slideshow to submit to Paul’s online school for quarterly grades.   I’ve been taking photos, videos, and scans to enter into Slides.  I’m in the habit of documenting work and recording grades into Google Classroom.  The slideshow is another step to make things easier for the advisor at the online school to evaluate Paul’s work.  I had the idea to make short videos of Paul playing guitar, shooting baskets, and demonstrating the exercise station in the basement.  Going forward, I plan to enter work samples in slideshow whenever I post a grade to Classroom.  Next quarter, most of the work submitting grades and work samples will be done.

Candy Math Lesson

 I’m an advocate for science and math.  Paul, ten, campaigns for more science and math with candy.  Here is a math lesson, Twizzlers Linear Regression.  We did the lesson with the graphing calculator.  Below is a video explaining how to graph a linear regression in the TI 83–which operates similarly to the TI 84.  The kids eat and measure Twizzlers, then record and graph the data.  This is fun!

Want another great lesson? Clean!

 Our oven is a mess!  I’m reluctant to use the self-clean setting.  The repairman said it could strain or destroy sensitive electronics.  I don’t want to asphyxiate our little household with commercial oven cleaners.  There are many DIY mixtures.   This blogger tested eight recipes for oven cleaners.  What a great home-school lesson!  Let your kids research and test different cleaning recipes.  I have a brass tray and want to test these DIY ideas.  What about DIY laundry detergents?  Stain removers? Let your child take the lead, do some research, and conduct the experiments.  Let her create a folder on Google Drive to save the most promising recipes.  Would she like to create a book of recipes with her own notes and photos to make Christmas presents?  Let her compare prices to upload and creat a book.  It’s another way to add a bit of tech and experimentation to your home-school routine.

Want a great lesson? Bake!

Do you want a great home-school lesson?  Bake bread.  Try  this No Knead recipe.  We baked a boule on a pizza stone and rolls in a cast iron skillet.  Compare this recipe by kneading the dough.  Bake similarly sized loaves on different surfaces: aluminum pan, baking stone, and cast iron skillet.  Unleash your creative child.  She’ll be reading and testing recipes for hours.

Do you work on every subject every day?

 Do you work on every subject everyday?  It depends.  Our little household is working to complete quarter exams.  This week the bulk of our energy has gone into studying and testing.  Usually, we make the Core Four, Math, History, Science, and English a priority.  We make adjustments.  If Paul is writing a book report, we do Vocabulary, and ease off Grammar that day.  If we are doing a science lab in the afternoon, we do one page in the Science workbook.  

I home-school a teen, too.  She does much better with blocks of subjects on different days.  Together we save blocks of time for editing papers.  We meet by Zoom frequently, sometimes daily to assess progress.  We make adjustments all the time.  

Young kids thrive in structure.  Assign a bit of work in every subject every day.  As the kids mature, try to balance the work.  If we have a heavy load of tests, we assign reading in the textbooks, rather than loads of written work.  If a science model takes an hour, I divide the Grammar into smaller chunks.  How does your child thrive?  Go ahead and make adjustments.

Great Courses

 Good Will has several listings for The Great Courses.  These DVD sets can be a tremendous supplement o your home-school program.  Your teen can try a language or a course, such as photography, to see if she likes it.  Don’t forget to check the shipping before you bid on any Good Will listing.  The listings are,from Good Will stores across the U.S.  Some stores gross up shipping or attach large handling fees.  Take a look?

Montessori Letters

 Good Will also have moveable letters.  There are several trays or sets available.  Anything Montessori is expensive.  Take a look.

The Great Writing Great Fiction at Good Will

Along with educational curriculum, Good Will has a listing for The Great Courses Writing. It looks as though it includes the DVD.  These programs are pricey.  This is a bargain.

Lifepac Curriculum at Good Will

 Occasionally Good Will offers curriculum, such as this listing for Fourth Grade Lifepac Curriculum.  The shipping price is fair.  Take a look.

Grades

 I’m organizing quarterly grades to submit to Kolbe.  I scanned or took photos of tests, activities, book reports, projects, and lessons.  I organized this with Google Slides.  Below are a few screen shots.  There are over forty images and notes.  I want to make it easy to evaluate.  Take a look.

History: Heritage Studies

 This past summer, our little household tried BJU Heritage Studies.  I bought a 2e edition set for 5th grade.  Most of the time we use Catholic Sea to Shining Sea.  But BJU 5th grade Heritage history set has a nice unit on the United States.  We’re using this to supplement Geography.  Fifth grade is the time to learn the states and capitals.  The Heritage Series sets are much less costly and offer a Christian perspective.  I wanted more rigor and a Catholic perspective.  Read Cathy Duffy’s review before you try the series.

Record everything!

 Our little household keeps records for everything home-school related, including PE.  Usually, we go on a long walk/bike ride.  But the weather is changing.  We added a little calisthenics.  Right now, we exercise for ten minutes after lunch before resuming School.  Our plan is to do a second set of exercises and a fitness program on the TV when the weather is bad.  My husband has kept a record of exercises and reps for years on a spreadsheet.  We have these exercises: jump rope, squats, step ups, crunches, grapevine, and three weight routines.  You might add a log of exercise to Google Classroom.  Take a look at our fancy gym.

Saxon Math

 If you poll home-school families, many of them use Saxon Math.  There’s a reason.  Saxon includes clearly written lessons.  Every lesson has review problems to check and reinforce student understanding.  Paul, ten is using Saxon 65.  There are review quizzes at regular intervals.  After he completes five lessons, there is a cumulative test.  Paul does one lesson every day.  I recommend buying a home-school set: tests, textbook, and solution guide, also available as a CD.  Saxon takes out the guesswork of constructing a math program.

Buy an inexpensive or used globe.

 Go ahead and buy a used globe or an inexpensive globe.  The first lesson with your kids is to determine if the globe is accurate.  Look carefully at the names for African and Eastern European countries to see if the names are up to date.  Make corrections and tape these to the globe.  You’ll be surprised how much your kids learn from that one lesson.  Hey!  Now your globe is accurate.

Create a Digital Portfolio

 Do you have a digital portfolio?  Let me show you how I keep records as both hard copies and in digital records.  This is going to seem like overkill.  It is.  I had a family friend toss most of her work before I could scan samples to send to the online school.  Now, I am neurotic.  Okay, more neurotic.

I grade the hard copies of worksheets, quizzes, and tests.  Materials are hole-punched and saved in a binder.

Google Classroom saves the grades in a spreadsheet.  Paul is ten.  I use my husband’s email address for Paul’s grades.

Graded work samples are scanned.  iPhones and iPads can scan with the Notes app.  I save the scans and email them to myself.

You can save the scanned documents in Google Drive or in a folder in Gmail.

 

Here is the folder in Gmail.

Here is the assignment in Google Classroom.

After I scan documents with the Notes app, I upload the pdf documents to Google Drive.

Teach with names.

 The first word a little one learns to write is his or her name.  Guess what?  This idea works in Math, too.  Rewrite the math problem with the child’s name.  See how much more interested he or she is in math.

Teach how to study!

 One essential skill kids need to learn is how to study.  My first tip is to have your child do hands-on activities and projects first.  How does this help the child learn to study?  Kids need to relate to the topic.  Kids need to connect to a topic.  Read it, say it, and do it.  Let me give you an example. We’re working on Genetics in Science.  Paul, ten, extracted DNA from split peas, made a Mitosis model, did an inventory of traits, and looks at an onion root tip under the microscope.  I draw from labs to explain how DNA stores the codes for genes and traits.  He can see the stages of mitosis under the microscope on the onion root tip.  The textbook material makes more sense.  He’s better equipped to understand the material when tested.  

We use Catholic Textbooks for History.  All of our efforts work toward the tests as a measure of understanding.  Paul reads the chapter in the book.  Then he does workbook pages.  Each time, he rereads the section in the book, attempts as much as he can without the book, and finally uses the book to answer the exercises.  We use the same approach for quizzes.  Reread the section, answer the quiz questions, then use the textbook to complete the quiz.  We use the quizzes and review questions to study for the test.  Our goal is for Paul to begin to apply this method independently.  

Try different methods to study: write out Latin declensions several times or vocabulary lists.  Draw pictures as memory aides.  Keep the goal in mind.  You’re teaching your child how to attack his subjects independently and successfully.

How to enter matrices in TI 83 calculator

 I’m helping my husband create videos for his Algebra 2 Co-op Class.  Here is how to enter matrices and graph linear regressions in the TI 83 calculator.

Keep your supplies handy!

 Many home-school families have a dedicated space set aside—often the dining room.  We use a small space adjacent to the kitchen and keep supplies nearby in bins.  We sorted subjects into bins, complete with syllabi, notebooks, textbooks—even flash cards.  All the bins are in one spot—will, region.  I need a pile-file system to stay organized.  As long as the books and supplies are in their respective bins, I can locate class materials in seconds.  Take a look.

Geography

 We are using Evan Moor for Geography.  The program is great.  We do a week’s lessons once a week.  What resources do you need for Geography?  Walmart sells Globes for $12.  Paul, ten, needs to learn the 50 states and capitals this year.  Here are flash cards.  Here are a host of resources: maps, games, and worksheets.  

Make Models

 I’m a believer in hands-on activities—particularly models.  My husband just had his Alg 2 class make 3D models.  PUl, ten, has been making models for Mitosis and DNA. at this Paper DNA model.  Kids remember activities they do; you’ll have a model to use when you explain a new concept.  Take a look.

Make Instruction Prescriptive

In addition to my Co-op Chemistry class, I home-school Lacie, tenth grade, and Paul, fifth grade.  Often, their instruction is prescriptive.  What do I mean?  When I run across a problem, we address it.  For example, Lacie was struggling with pronouns in Warriner’s; Paul seemingly forgot how to identify prepositions.  Both received extra practice.  I downloaded a Pronouns and Antecedents for Lacie and pulled out Easy Grammar for Paul.  Easy Grammar teaches grammar by first eliminating prepositional phrases.  

When Paul needed more practice with area and perimeter, we downloaded more examples.  When a child has a problem, hit pause, and make time to address it.  Are you using novels to teach?  Make vocabulary lists from new terms in the novel.  Classic novels, such as The Swiss Family Robinson Or its  inspiration, Robinson Crusoe, have loads of new terms.  This study guide for Swiss Family Robinson has some of the terms.  Try to get your child to write down unfamiliar terms.  You’ll probably want to download a study guide, such as this one for Robinson Crusoe.  

Use the lessons your child is doing to drive instruction.  When Paul was studying Mitosis, I had him make a Mitosis Wheel.  Mitosis is hard to understand; manipulative help.  Whenever your child hits a blockade, stop and do extra practice.  You’re sending a message about the need for complete mastery of the material.