Creating your own Unit Studies is rather time-consuming, but if you start with a topic your children are deeply interested in, you will find that the kids will enjoy learning and the time spent creating the unit will be time well spent. Here are some ideas and resources to help you get started. Websites We [...]
Archive for January, 2008
Jazz Kids
Posted by ginac on January 25th, 2008
PBS.org has some good Jazz lessons for kids of all ages. Although intended for classrooms, it can be adapted for homeschooling. I found that some portions of this website are no longer maintained, so some of the music clips are no longer available. However, with a bit of planning, you could borrow the necessary resources [...]
The International Crane Foundation
Posted by ginac on January 24th, 2008
A friend recently shared the International Crane Foundation website with me and I think it is worth sharing. The International Crane Foundation (ICF) is a charitable organization created to protect cranes and their wetland ecosystems. The website has some nice educational materials that can be used in a unit study or just in a lesson [...]
Posted in Activities, Art, Ecology, Environmental Conservation, Interdisciplinary, Science, Unit Study 
Comments OffHomeschoolers can publish their own book
Posted by ginac on January 23rd, 2008
A fantastic way to showcase a student’s collection of works is to publish them in a book. Self-publishing is an inexpensive and innovative way to reward a budding author or artist. We found lulu.com to be a very inexpensive way to publish a small collection of poems and related art work done by our homeschooler. [...]
Posted in Books, Eclectic Homeschooling, Gifted, Interdisciplinary, Writing 
Tags: Eclectic Homeschooling Comments OffInterdisciplinary Chemistry Resource
Posted by ginac on January 20th, 2008
We recently acquired a chemistry textbook and are enjoying it’s interdisciplinary approach to learning. The book, entitled simply ‘Chemistry A Project of the American Chemical Society‘, (ISBN: 978-0-716-73126-9) has an added bonus – A full-featured companion website. The website is useful even for those who don’t own the text because the content can be used [...]
Posted in Books, Chemistry, Eclectic Homeschooling, Interdisciplinary Tags: Eclectic Homeschooling Comments OffThe Adding Square
Posted by ginac on January 18th, 2008
We discovered a really creative tool for teaching addition. The ‘Adding Square’ is an easy-to-use table that kids can use when first learning addition. To use it, print it out and have the child place a finger on each of the two numbers to be added. Move the fingers along the table until they intersect [...]
Posted in Eclectic Homeschooling, Math, Teaching methods Tags: Eclectic Homeschooling, Homeschool Math Addition Comments OffThe secret of the circle
Posted by ginac on January 16th, 2008
Teaching little ones about math is fun, especially when you tell them that you are going to teach them a ‘secret’ about something they are already familiar with. The word ‘secret’ gives the concept elevated importance and kids can’t wait to learn more. I found this lesson in one of my favorite math teaching aids, [...]
Use toys in your lessons!
Posted by ginac on January 13th, 2008
To make learning an important lesson fun, we always incorporate toys. We use toys in lots of our lessons because we believe that learning should be fun! Toys work really well for us, especially when teaching a new or tough concept for the first time. Here are highlights from some of our successful lessons: MATH Addition, [...]
Posted in Art, Eclectic Homeschooling, Math, Physics, Science, Teaching methods Tags: Eclectic Homeschooling Comments OffWe call it Space Camp
Posted by ginac on January 9th, 2008
Just for extra fun, we gave a really cool name to our space unit study — Space Camp. We kicked it off a few months ago by visiting Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Fl. Owned and operated by NASA, the visitor complex and Astronaut Hall of Fame were fabulous. We plan to visit again in [...]
The Coolest Cross-Sections Ever!
Posted by ginac on January 8th, 2008
We are currently reading ‘The Coolest Cross-Sections Ever!’ book by Stephen Biesty and it is a very cool book. This book covers all kinds of cross-sections, but our favorite cross-sections are the Saturn V rocket and the digestive system. This book is packed with detailed information and beautifully illustrated. There are entire chapters devoted to [...]
