Let's make a Web page with Motherboard Books

I am excited to share our latest review with you. We received the e-book Let's make a webpage from Motherboard Books for Cameron to use and explore more in his computer programming/ webpage design elective for the year.

This 60 page e-book retails for $19.95 and is recommended for children ages 8-12 and is set up to cover in a shorter period of time, not a full year as it is a project based book.
The book came with the recommendation to download a free trial program called Coffee Cup, I decided to download a different program that did not have a free trial on it, and so I had to tweak the instructions with Cameron slightly. I didn't have a problem tweaking the instructions, but I am kind of an IT geek and studied web design including Java and HTML in college. If you aren't comfortable with tweaking things within the computer world, I would recommend downloading the free trial from Coffee Cup so that it will align with the book.

Cameron enjoyed the freedom web design gave him unlike the previous computer IT program gave him. He was able to work with pictures from his own camera and write about those pictures. He even had the opportunity to test his page live using our blog, although I did not publish his page yet (I'm waiting for the ok from a couple of parents whose kiddos are pictured).
We decided to not include sound on his page as that is one thing that turns me off from many pages and blogs is sound that I can't turn off. We did talk about embedding objects including players where the music or sound could be turned off.  This book has led to his understanding of my blogging and page design a bit more as well as an appreciation when I get frustrated with formatting or HTML coding.
I appreciate e-books like Let's make a webpage not only for the project based learning but for the skills it reinforces such as keyboarding and basic computer skills along with the HTML. It also incorporates project skills including planning, outside issues (photo releases), and problem solving. Cameron also found that a web page can be an art project that includes color, layout, and aesthetics.

Motherboard Books also has another program for the 8-12 age group, Logo Adventures covering computer based drawing and animation as well as several other computer focused programs for kids.
If you are looking for something that will help keep your children involved in computers so that they don't get lost in the technology jungle, but safely educate them I highly recommend Motherboard Books as a company to consider. You can also interact with Motherboard Books on Facebook and Twitter. On their homepage you can sign up for their email newsletter and receive a free Internet Scavenger Hunt to help students get comfortable searching the internet for information.
The Schoolhouse Review Crew reviewed 2 of the products mentioned in this post, click below to read their thoughts on the products.
]

Math Mammoth Green Series: Supplement and Review for multigrades

I love when I find a helpful program that is versitile enough to cover a variety of areas of math. Thankfully we were asked to review one such program. Math Mammoth by Maria Miller, green series is one such program.

We received 3 workbooks for Cameron to work on : Fractions, Geometry, and Statistics. All 3 had elements that we could use as they are graded for 3rd-7th for the most part. We were able to add a worksheet from each book to the mix of math each week.
The fractions worksheets inspired both boys actually to find fraction activities outside of worksheets and improved their understanding of fractions. We worked through 5 fraction worksheets before we got to a point that is was more than Cameron could handle. We will be returning to fractions through the summer and into next school year.
With sections on equivalent fractions, comparing , adding and subtracting like, simplifying , multiplying and dividing fractions and more it covers everything a student will need to understand about fractions over their school career and beyond.
The file includes 61 worksheets for $6.95 as a pdf download. I will be using the same worksheets with Nathan next year to firm up fractions on paper for him as well as continuing with Cameron.



The Geometry section introduced several new concepts to Cameron and reminding me of my freshman year of high school Geometry class. We worked on angles, triangles and other polygons before he got overwhelmed (I think we all get a bit overwhelmed with geometry). These worksheets gave us an opportunity to use some new tools including the protractor We will be revisiting this one more over the summer with area and volume and pythagorean theorem coordinating some hands on activities to firm up the concepts as needed. This workbook is 91 pages with 83 worksheets and sells for $9.00 as a pdf download.  The Geometry set did a really good job breaking down the various  aspects of geometry in a way that we could work through. As we move into area and volume we will spend more time with these sheets to fully grasp each concept and the tools it teaches.




Finally Statistics , while this is a concept you wouldn't normally expect to teach a 3rd or 4th grader I felt he could really gain a solid foundation. this set is really focused the majority for 5th-7th but we did get a strong start on graphs and data analysis. We will save the rest of the information on Mean, Median, and Mode along with Variation and Projects for next year. As a blogger understanding graphs and data is valuable.  This worksheet set includes 47 worksheets and retails for $5.25. I think I hoped he would understand more of the information, but I know we will be able to come back to it later on and include it in our math journals.

Overall these worksheets have added focused practice that Cameron needed in areas of math that were not as strong in our curriculum already.  I am very grateful for the bite size approach offered in Worksheets by Topic. Each of the topics has samples available on the various pages if you are interested in a particular subject.
 The Math Mammoth program offers full curriculum as well. We reviewed the light blue series previously  and will be bringing that one out for Nathan in the fall.

I really like the programs variety and flexibility, I can print what I need when I need it and if we need to work on a concept again , I can reprint that section.

Math Mammoth covers a variety of topics in the Green Series as well as grades in  the Gold Series .

There  is something for everyone with Math Mammoth.
The Crew reviewed some of the variety available and share their thoughts.

Simple Lunch means happy kids

My boys love the snack wraps at McDonald's, but we live in the country and I don't want to drive 15 miles for a snack wrap, so I made my own version.
I started with a few leaves of garden fresh lettuce, 3 small flour toritilla, 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese , and a bottle of Ranch salad dressing (happened to be Ken's)
I also used 3 Foster Farms chicken tenders.

I grilled the tenders on a cast iron pan with a little EVOO until they were done.
While the chicken cooked I prepped the wraps. Each wrap received a piece of lettuce, a drizzle of ranch dressing , and some cheese.
When the chicken was cooked through  I added a piece of chicken to each wrap, folded and rolled the wraps and served to hungry boys. They didn't last more than 5 minutes after serving.

Two happy and satisfied boys means high marks for Mommy!

See the Light with fun art lessons

It is such a blessing to combine any subject with solid Biblical teaching; it is even a bigger blessing to receive the product as a review.

That said, See the Light has been a huge blessing to Cameron over the past weeks. He is finding a voice in art and hearing a good message from the teachers on the DVD God's Special Surprise.

The DVD is part of the Bible Stories series from See the Light and retails for $14.95. With over 4 hours of content including 3 complete art lessons, music video and story, this DVD packed with a solid message of God's Hope for his people contains more than just art lessons. The lessons are designed for ages 6 and up. My 7 year old struggles with writing skills a bit and isn't a huge art fan so I really selected the program for my 10 year old and this is a story he enjoys and it fits into our history lessons on Ancient Civilizations. 

I started out by previewing the DVD and pulling  the art supplies I had on hand. Thankfully all I needed to purchase were the Extreme Colors colored pencils. Since I love anything Crayola I picked up the twistable crayons in the extreme colors as well and a set of cake watercolors to have extra.

When we got started with the viewing and were heading into the third lesson I realized we did not have a single ruler in the house (just a yardstick which wasn't much help), so I put our art lessons on pause to go into town and pick up one missing element.   Cameron's favorite lesson from the DVD was the creative lettering lesson "SURPRISE!" . Not only did he get to practice writing in all capital letters, he was able to pause the DVD when he needed to and really worked hard to put together a page of chiseled letters and a fun stone carving of his name. We are working on creating a "carving" of house rules to go along with our history lesson and things we have learned in these wonderful art lessons.
The boys even want to put a black light in their bedroom so they can hang cool art of the walls and see it in the dark, I love black light so I guess I will be purchasing a couple extra black light bulbs for their clip light.

I also decided to experiment a bit with the boys and art outside. We also purchased a large selection of sidewalk chalk to try sidewalk chalk art using some of the lessons learned with the DVD. It was a lot of fun (wish I remembered to take pictures)   They enjoyed trying some of the techniques from the Hope for a Nation lesson.  By the end of the series of lessons even Nathan showed interest in what we created. Sometimes I just have to let him come to us when we are doing our lessons. Cameron has already asked about doing more See the Light art lessons (guess I know what will be on his wishlist for birthday and Christmas).
Be sure to check out the rest of the Crew and their thoughts on this amazing program!

 

Mom Fashion: Casual Dressy

Some days I want to dress a little nicer but don't want to wear a long skirt and get dressed up. Thankfully I found another multipurpose top at Ross. I love the layers and the Rayon blend fabric. The top layer is a faux vest with rings in a taupe color making it incredibly versatile. The basic shape of the bottom layer makes it comfortable yet stylish. I added the neutral toned necklace and black slacks. The overall outfit is comfortable and a bit dressier than everyday wear. 

 The slacks are my goto Old Navy slacks from 5 or more years ago, the wash and wear perfectly.  I have worn the top with skirts , jeans, and slacks. For less than $15 I added a easy to use piece to my wardrobe. 

Keeping it real and affordable!

Grammar anchor charts for homeschool writing #sponsored

"I used Grammarly to grammar check this post, because even the English major turned homeschool mom can use a little help."

We are hitting the books pretty hard this summer, especially with writing and grammar. Since the boys seem to struggle with very simple plain writing, I was looking at some ways to help them . Searching Pinterest I found a couple of interesting ideas, but actually felt that I could make my own fairly easily. I hit the Dollar Tree for sheets of poster board on the cheap ($.50 a sheet). I cut each sheet into quarters since I do not need huge charts, so each chart starts out with a cost of $.125.

The first chart I made: a collection of NOUNS to go with story stones (I'll share those in another post)

I dug through my stash of old Creative Memories stickers and ABCs and found the perfect collection. I used 2 sheets of ABC stickers and 2 sheets of the coordinating stickers. I color coded the squares and the words to help the boys see the whole word and not mix it up with the word above or below. This chart has 22 simple nouns and is for Nathan more than anyone else.

The  Adjectives chart came from a Pinterest post by Step into 2nd Grade. The boys already love the design and examples. I kept it to 3 colors (Pink, Green, and Blue) as those are the colors we tend to use (Pink for Mom, Blue for Cameron, and Green for Nathan)

Finally, the Adverbs poster. This is a combination of several charts and worksheets. I left space in each box for additional words the boys might find to add.

My next projective includes strong verbs and proof-reading/ editing symbols. I may also include a grammar symbols chart for Nathan to use when diagramming sentences. I am considering a set of anchor charts for Math as well, but that will have to wait.

Thank you to Grammarly.com for assistance with this post. Have you tried Grammarly yet? 

*a portion of this post was sponsored by Grammarly, I have a membership with Grammarly that I pay for.***

Sunday Scripture 6/2/13

This week there were so many verses from our Bible Lesson that stuck with me, but these two really stayed with me, knowing through Christ we walk as children of light rather than darkness and have the armor of God to get us through our trials and daily dealings is such a powerful thing.
Raising two boys with the armor of God is one of the hardest things , keeping them on the right path seems to be a never ending battle. 
At a recent graduation ceremony the speaker gave the graduates a piece of advicse to be cautions of what they listen to or watch as once you see it or hear it you will always have that with you. That bit of advise stuck with me and has been eating at me since. I am really feeling like I need to take away the TV except for school (we watch Artzooka and  Taste Buds on QUBO during lunch).The shows the boys have latched onto are really a struggle of morality and our values. During the summer it should be easier to remove the TV for most evenings. I pray I can stand strong in the decision. It also means I must be more involved in their afternoon and evening activities. 

Ephesians 5:8-11

King James Version (KJV)

8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

Ephesians 6:13-18

King James Version (KJV)

13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;