July Thrifty Round-up

Thrifty Homeschooling Posts from July 2012.

I started theme days this month and I've divided them by the theme days. Sorry the first week looks different.; Blogger don't let me change it.

1st week in July

Monday: Contractions

Tuesday: Science  

Wednesday: holiday- no posts 

Thursday: Holiday- Living Math 

2nd Week in July 

Monday: US Geography
Tuesday: No posts
Wednesday: Workboxes
Thursday: Tangrams

 

3rd Week in July 

No posts since I was sick

 

4th Week in July

Monday: Planners
Tuesday: Basic Notebooking
Wednesday: Toddlers and homeschooling
Thursday: Money (Math)

 

 5th Week in July

Monday= Book Reports
Tuesday= Nature Study
Wednesday= Homeschool Room
Thursday= Life Skills for Kids

 

 

Week of July 2nd

Monday: Contractions 

Now for out posts related to topic of the day: CONTRACTIONS.
Cut and paste sheets (2). Plain but good for kids who are easily distracted by colorful graphics.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Contractions-Cut-Paste

 

Another cut and paste sheet. Only one page with a cute bee theme. Only practices "not" and "will" words.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Contractions-Freebie

 

Not a printable but a neat thing to put in a Language Arts/Phonics Notebook.

http://www.lessonplandiva.com/2012/03/foldables.html

 

Another cut in paste. 1 sheet in black and white. The word order here seems random but a good sheet for review or assessment.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Contraction-Cut-and-Paste-2

 

This is actually one of my favorite downloads. Rainy Day Contractions. It's a neat memory game for skill building in contractions. I would not use the whole game set at once. It's too many cards and very overwhelming to a child. I would pick 4-7 words (each word has a pair of cards) to review every 2-3 days. PLEASE print on white cardstock. If you use regular paper you will be able to see the other side. Not good for a memory game.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Contractions-for-a-Rainy-Day

 

A whole literacy pack for Contractions. It has a little of everything in here.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Cupcake-Contractions-Literacy-Pack

 

Neat file folder game. Warning though, it does use alot of colored ink but it's not a big deal if you plan on using this with more than one child.

http://www.filefolderfun.com/Pages/FirstGradeLanguage/HeartContractions.html

 

Tuesday: Science 

Science Theme Day!
This site has all kinds of neat things but today I'm featuring the "science video report". Have the kids watch the video like Bill Nye the Science Guy and they write a report afterwards to show that they were paying attention.

http://www.lauracandler.com/filecabinet/science.php

 

The Skeletal System Notebooking Pages. Sorry the image doesn't have anything to do with the pages.

http://www.cyncesplace.com/Journal/skeletal-system-notebooking-pages/

 

How roller coasters are made. I can see a Unit study could be made with this outline.

http://www.madehow.com/Volume-6/Roller-Coaster.html

Living Books can be hard to find for science. This blog has suggestions for books on different topics of science.

http://wildflowersandmarbles.blogspot.com/2011/09/elementary-living-science-resource.html

 

Virtual Dissections Online. Several animals to choose from. A great option for squeamish parents/kids.

http://www.examiner.com/article/free-virtual-dissections-online

 

 Thursday: Holiday- Living Math 

Here is a sneak peek of what's in my blog post. Math Notebooking Pages. The link will also be in my upcoming post. These pages are fun and easy to incorporate. I did not make these.

http://printables.homeschoolswag.com/?p=180

 

New Blog Post: Beginning Living Math. A very basic outline to Living Math. More detailed articles to come.

http://thriftyhomeschooling.blogspot.com/2012/07/beginning-living-math.html

 

Subtract-It game. Hands-on learning with basic math

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2010/04/subtract-it-math-game.html

 

Free Math Curriculum from grades 3-5. This is the whole shebang. It's pretty hands-on and utilizes math notebooking and literature. It looks like fun.

http://mathlearnnc.sharpschool.com/cms/One.aspx?portalId=4507283&pageId=5051238

 

Free math curriculum for K-2nd grade. This is the whole shebang. It's pretty hands-on and utilizes math notebooking and literature. It has all the printables you'll need. You might need a workbook or use a math worksheet generator for extra practice.

http://mathlearnnc.sharpschool.com/cms/One.aspx?portalId=4507283&pageId=5048438

 

 Note: this site also has grades 6-8 for free but I haven't really looked through them.

 http://mathlearnnc.sharpschool.com/cms/One.aspx?portalId=4507283&pageId=5149151

 

Article about using foldables (like in lapbooking) in math notebooking.

http://www.rundesroom.com/2011/09/math-journals-loving-them.html

 

 Math is in everyday life and the kitchen in no exception. This article offers great tips on teaching math in the kitchen.

http://healthymamainfo.com/2012/04/10-ways-teach-kids-math-kitchen/

 

Neat idea on teaching area and perimeter.

http://love-to-learn-homeschool.blogspot.com/2011/09/math-game-lots-of-boxes-multiplication.html

 

 Math notebooking ideas from Kindergarten to high school

http://letsplaymath.net/2008/10/06/writing-to-learn-math-ii/

 

Random Posts

Take a look at my pinterest page for homeschool planning. If you like making your own planner this is the board for you. I think there is something here for everyone. Even planning pages for bloggers.

http://pinterest.com/hsmama3girls/homeschool-planner/

 

Curriculum Planning Pages from Timberdoodle. Most pages are grade specific and can be used with their curriculum packages. There is also a blank planning set.

http://www.timberdoodle.com/Articles.asp?ID=158&utm_source=FB&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=schedules#

 

A homeschool mom's blog post. I agree with all of her points..... especially 1-5! I think I do get a high from buying books. lol

http://www.raisingarrows.net/2012/07/what-i-wish-someone-had-told-me/

 

 Monday: US Geography

My own blog post: Our State Study. We have had so much fun with this study.

http://thriftyhomeschooling.blogspot.com/2012/06/our-state-study.html

 

Love these US Geography games. My children and I have learned all our states and state capitals because of these games.

http://sheppardsoftware.com/web_games.htm

 

USA Coloring Pages in different variations.

http://www.coloringcastle.com/state_coloring_pages.html

 

50 states coloring pages

http://www.usa-printables.com/50_States/

 

State Bingo Game

http://deceptivelyeducational.blogspot.com/2011/09/united-states-bingo-game.html

 

State Unit Studies

http://homeschooling.about.com/cs/unitssubjgeog/a/susindex.htm

 

 Massive free state Notebooking file. The file says it's for grades 1-3 but I can see this being for grades 1-6

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/State-Notebook

Wednesday: Workboxes

Workbox day! This is a modified workbox approach.

http://www.meetpenny.com/2012/03/our-homeschool-workboxes-updated/

 

This is my favorite workbox system and it has free printables

http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/2010/07/our-new-workbox-system-workbook-weekly/

 

Homeschool Share has great printables and things to put in the workboxes

http://www.homeschoolshare.com/workbox.php

 

Modified Workbox. plus File Folder Games

http://boysschoolandfun.blogspot.com/search/label/workboxes

 

Most unusual modified workbox.

http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/2009/08/how-were-using-workboxes/

 

Thursday: Tangrams 

Tangram Day! Tangrams are a math manipulative. To get a better understanding of what they are and how it will improve your child's spatial awareness this article will get you started. It has Tangram templates, activities and literature links.

http://www.squidoo.com/tangram-activities

 

Tangram and Pattern block puzzles

http://www.abcteach.com/directory/basics/math/geometry/tangrams/

 

Tangram activities and literature. Grandfather Tang's Story is one of my favorite math literature books.

http://www.mathwire.com/geometry/tangrams.html

 

More Tangram template and puzzles in PDF form with choice of black and white or color. Nice option when you're low on one of your ink cartridges.

http://ideas.gstboces.org/programs/tangrams/printables.cfm

 

I love this Tangram bag and Tangram card set on a ring this mom made. Keeps everything in one place.

http://www.jonahlisadyer.com/2011/07/cheap-easy-tangram-set.html

 

Teacher blog post on Tangram activities and Tangram ART. Great idea.

http://lessonplansos.blogspot.com/2011/03/some-bunny-knows-about-tangrams.html#

 

DIY Fabric Tangram set plus bag. Great for travel and different texture for sensory sensitive children.

http://www.sewhomegrown.com/2011/06/diy-fabric-tangram-with-drawstring-bag.html

 

Random Posts 

High School Credit Planner

http://fivejs.com/free-homeschool-high-school-credit-planner/

 

Do you love the Little House on the Prairie books? Have you read "Farmer Boy" about Almanzo Wilder's (Laura's husband) boyhood? This family has taken a field trip to visit the old homestead. A wonderful post and it makes me wish I could go to Malone, NY. Beautiful pictures and references to the book.

http://blogshewrote.blogspot.com/2012/07/wilder-homestead.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FlEhdP+%28Blog%2C+She+Wrote%29#

Write a letter to a Disney character and get a postcard in return. Neat idea to practice letter writing.

http://www.couponingtodisney.com/2012/03/21/write-a-letter-to-a-disney-character-and-get-a-postcard-in-return/#

 

Sharing this because it's an awesome blog post for a "homeschool" room. Very organized small space.

http://mysmallpotatoes.com/2012/05/30/an-educators-guide-to-creating-learning-spaces-in-small-places/#

 

Free Canada Notebooking Pages from Currclick

http://www.currclick.com/product/47058/Country-Study---Canada-Notebooking-Pages?src=s_pi&it=1

 

Handwriting sheets, worksheets and copywork. They have collected some great links for handwriting. ALL FREE!

http://www.gricefullyhomeschooling.com/2012/08/homeschool-freebee-friday-handwriting-copywork-edition.html

 

Free Place Value Poke Game. My kids love these poke games and they come in all kinds of math concepts and phonics too! Get your freebie and check the other poke games out (Not free but a good value). Just a note from experience: print these out on cardstock otherwise the answer will show through to the other side.

http://www.currclick.com/product/68678/Cupcake-Place-Value-Poke-Game?%3Faffiliate_id=122076&

 

Fact Family Triangle Printable. A fun dice review for addition and subtraction. Print on cardstock and laminate for a fun, reuseable math resource.

http://thisreadingmama.com/?p=10537

 

Monday: Planners

Free 2012-2013 school year calendar. Landscape and portrait format

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/FREE-School-Year-Calendar-2012-2013

 

Always a winner: Donna Young's planning sets

http://donnayoung.org/forms/planners/sets.htm

 

For FIAR users: Five in a Row planning sheet

http://www.homegrownlearners.com/home/2012/6/13/using-five-in-a-row-with-a-printable-planning-page.html

 

Not a planner but an article on the different ways you can schedule your school year.

http://www.hsclassroom.net/2011/06/scheduling-your-homeschool-year/

 

Customizable weekly student planner. This one is the one I use to keep my kids on track and on task.

http://fivejs.com/homeschool-weekly-assignment-planner/

 

Printable school year calendar that you color in. Use different colors for weeks off, holidays, birthdays, school weeks, doctor appointments and more.

http://fivejs.com/free-printable-school-calendar-2012-2013/

 

Neat self-made planner. Great for those of us who write our own curriculum.

http://blogshewrote.blogspot.com/search/label/planner

 

Tuesday: Basic Notebooking 

Notebooking Day! You can't mention notebooking without mentioning Jimmie. She is one of the best bloggers on this method.

http://notebookingfairy.com/

 

Article on Notebooking. Great for beginners.

http://notebookingpages.com/notebooking

 

Has lots of free notebooking pages by homeschooling moms

http://www.hslaunch.com/mypage/

 

How to make your own notebooking pages

http://www.squidoo.com/make-notebooking-pages

 

Don't forget to check out my "Notebooking" pinterest board. It has LOTS of links and free notebooking pages.

http://pinterest.com/hsmama3girls/notebooking/

 

Wednesday: Toddlers and homeschooling

Toddlers and Homeschooling: A helpful article on what to do about Toddlers when you're homeschooling

http://www.habitsforahappyhome.com/2009/10/what-about-the-little-ones/

 

Quiet Time Bins.

http://www.holistichomemaking.org/2010/04/mammas-bag-of-tricks-quiet-time-bins.html?m=1

 

Busy bags are another great idea. The idea is that these only come out when it's "school time" to keep them special.

http://totschool.shannons.org/?p=4087

 

Quiet books: another cute idea I see floating around on pinterest. I may make one for my toddler as a Christmas present.

http://homemadebyjill.blogspot.com/2009/06/finished-quiet-book.html

 

Another great article on Toddlers and Homeschooling. Keeping a workboxes for little ones.

http://creeksidelearning.com/2011/04/08/keeping-toddlers-busy-while-homeschooling/

Thursday: Money (Math) 

 Money Math Day~ Print your own play money. I like the realistic looking (and sized) play money rather than the tiny bills. I laminate them for durability. I had problems printing the $20 bill though.

http://www.printplaymoney.net/contact-us.htm

 

Print out a coin money dice for your own homemade money game.

http://eisforexplore.blogspot.com/2012/04/money-cubes.html

 

Online Money games

http://www.math-play.com/money-games.html

 

Coin War. Neat fast paced game

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BzMDchcR0e5gY2Y5NTNhZDktYjYzZC00MjNlLWFjY2MtM2RkNjQ0NGFhMDA4/edit?authkey=CMOd-OEF&pli=1

 

Cha-Ching money game. Kind of like Race to a dollar

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0ByqNOZyPC_-0OTI2ODhjZWItMTAxZi00ZWRiLTliZjEtMTlmMTNiYTUwNjUw/edit

 

Money fractions foldable

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Money-Fractions-Foldable-Freebie

 

Money match up game. Can also be used for a memory game. I suggest printing on cardstock and laminating.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Coin-Money-Match-Up-Freebie

 

Great online money games on this site

http://sheppardsoftware.com/math.htm#dollarsandcents

 

Monday= Book Reports 

Lots of great printable book report pages

http://printablehomeschool.com/bookreport.html

 

More Book Report forms by Grade level

http://www.lovetolearnplace.com/BookReports/BookReport.html

 

Article about alternatives to Book Reports for elementary aged students. Especially great for kids who are reluctant writers or have problems with their fine motor skills.

http://suite101.com/article/book-report-ideas-for-primary-age-homeschoolers-a202830

 

More creative book report formats

http://suite101.com/article/creative-book-report-formats-a52037

 

Cereal Box Book Report. How fun is that?

http://homeschool-musings.blogspot.com/2011/05/cereal-box-book-report.html

 

More Book Report Forms. A little more creative than your regular forms.

http://donnayoung.org/english/composition/book-report.htm

 

More Forms. They're pretty plain jane but that can be great for a kid who gets easily distracted by a busy page.

http://voices.yahoo.com/free-printable-book-report-forms-2031045.html?cat=38

 

 
Tuesday= Nature Study 

Nature Study Day! Most of these pins are from Pinterest. Isn't Pintrest just awesome!
Wildflower Coloring Pages.

http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/kids/coloring/index.shtml

 

This site has great blog posts about nature study with your kids but this page that I'm posting are notebooking pages. Some are generic nature study pages and some are a specific theme. Great freebies.

http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/p/freebies.html

 

Huge list of Nature Themed Children's Books

http://greeningsamandavery.typepad.com/greening-sam-and-avery/must-see-childrens-books.html

 

Audubon Society: Just for Kids website

http://web4.audubon.org/educate/kids/

 

Your A-to-Z Guide to Summer Backyard Nature Fun

http://www.goexplorenature.com/2011/06/your-to-z-guide-to-summer-backyard.html

 

Birding in Mississippi. For members in my home state.

http://www.a-home-for-wild-birds.com/birding-in-Mississippi.html

 

Nature Study for Children. Great article on Squidoo with lots of useful links.

http://www.squidoo.com/naturestudywithchildren

 

Don't forget to check out my "Nature Study" Pinterest board.

http://pinterest.com/hsmama3girls/nature-study/

 

 
Wednesday= Homeschool Room 

Homeschool Room Day! Lots of great ideas for organizing or decorating your homeschool room or area.
This blog post has lots of great links to other homeschool bloggers and their rooms posts. Love their ideas!
http://www.realmomresources.com/homeschool-room-ideas/#

 

A Tale of Two Homeschool Rooms. I love the transition she made and it's so true. The first year always seems to copy the public school classroom model and then you loosen up and do what really works for your family and her room reflects that.

http://www.notconsumed.com/2012/05/24/tale-two-schoolrooms/

 

Sort of a homeschool room. This lady has students that come to her home and she teaches them. I love her room(s) and organization.

http://mysmallpotatoes.com/2012/05/30/an-educators-guide-to-creating-learning-spaces-in-small-places/

 

Not a homeschool room but I really like the set up with a bonus sewing room. I'm a little jealous. Can you tell?

http://thepleatedpoppy.com/2011/07/house-tour-playroom-studio/

 

Not a room design but a simple craft for pocket organizers. Now you don't have to but that expensive set from a teacher supply store.

http://thesilverlininginteaching.blogspot.com/2012/07/monday-made-it.html

 

Math manipulative organization plus free printable labels.

http://acupcakefortheteacher.blogspot.com/2012/06/organize-your-math-manipulatives.html

But I like these labels more.
http://kindertastic.blogspot.com/2011/06/math-manipulatives-labels.html

 

I love this idea for little supplies that you need but don't really have a place for in your homeschool area.

http://teachingsuperpower.blogspot.com/2012/07/monday-made-it-and-inspirational.html?showComment=1341676451506

 

I also have a Pinterest board for "School Room" ideas. More ideas there for your homeschool room.

http://pinterest.com/hsmama3girls/school-room/

 
Thursday= Life Skills for Kids 

Life Skills for Kids Day! This site has a listing of what kids should be able to do around the house and for themselves for the ages of 2-18. Great list and it's printable.

http://www.busykidshappymom.org/p/life-skills.html

 

List of things all kids should learn before they're teenagers.

http://digitalreflections.typepad.com/digital_reflections/2010/07/10things_all_kids_should_learn.html

 

Easy Table Setting Tips for Kids

http://hisugarplum.blogspot.com/2011/11/easy-table-setting-tips-for-kids.html

 

Life skills list with printables. Great ideas like how to use a phone book and phone skills.

http://fivejs.com/homeschool-downloads/life-skills-for-kids/

 

Teaching kids about grocery shopping and sales flyers

http://fivejs.com/like-skills-for-kids-grocery-shopping-and-sales-fliers/

 

First Aid Skills for Kids.

http://fivejs.com/teaching-first-aid-to-kids/

 

Teach kids to sew with 100 easy projects. Great tutorials with pictures. Some come with PDF files that can be printed out. Would make a great sewing curriculum.

http://www.kids-sewing-projects.com/kids-sewing-projects.html

Posted by other members

free bible curriculum for age 3 to kindergarten
http://www.calvarycurriculum.com/littleones.php

 

free bible curriculum for 1st to 6th grade
http://www.calvarycurriculum.com/childrens-curriculum-ot.php

not sure if it's always free or just right now.
http://www.currclick.com/product/73237/Let's-Print!---Letters?affiliate_id=122076

 

saw this on another homeschool page and wanted to share. these are benchmarks for middle school to senior.
http://www.knowhow2go.org/

 

benchmarks for K to 5th grade.
http://www.greatschools.org/students/academic-skills/531-K-5-benchmarks.gs

 

just in case some on here are not part of a homeschool group, this site has hs id cards. print your own for free or have them print a card for you for $6.95. good for those times when you need a teacher discount. joanns. michaels. hancocks.
http://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/homeschool-id/

 

 

September Theme Days

I have really enjoyed the theme day posts on my facebook page. It has given me the opportunity to dive deeper into so many topics.  So far I have been doing theme days for 2 months now and have covered 30 topics so far and I already have the next 2 months planned out but before I get ahead of myself here is the September theme day list.


 


Week 1
Mon- Labor Day- no theme
Tue- ASL (American Sign Language)
Wed-  Bible
Thur- Botany


Week 2
Mon- Ultimate List of Math Literature
Tue- Timelines
Wed- Math Calendar Notebook
Thur- No post


Week 3                      Girl's Week
Mon- American Girl
Tue- Tea Parties and Manners
Wed- Sewing for kids
Thur- Read Alouds for Girls


 Week  4
Mon- Music Appreciation
Tue- Crafts
Wed- Poetry
Thur- No theme 

I hope you enjoy the up and coming posts!

Free Vocabulary Notebooking Pages

Instead of posting each individual link for all the free vocabulary Notebooking Pages that I've found, I'm going to post them all on my blog. So here they are and all FREE.

From Notebooking Nook. Three pages for different levels.
http://notebookingnook.blogspot.com/2009/04/vocabulary-practice-pages.html

Google Document with graphic organizing theme
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B6s6X6hF66_WZDdkMTRjMjItNmM5MS00ZjU4LWFhNDctZjAwYjdlMTY4OTBk/edit?hl=en_US

Two different pages from Notebooking Fairy. One for vocabulary and the other for word study
http://notebookingfairy.com/2011/05/vocabulary-notebooking-pages/

Teacher created vocabulary notebooking page
http://mrsrojasteaches.blogspot.com/2011/08/word-of-week-freebie.html

Vocabulary Rock and Roll Activity from Teacher's Notebook
http://www.teachersnotebook.com/product/Christina%20Bainbridge/vocabulary-rock-and-roll


Magical Words Page
http://oneextradegree.blogspot.com/2011/06/survival-guide-info-and-freebie.html




Another teacher created vocabulary page
http://www.ladybugsteacherfiles.com/2011/03/vocabulary-graphic-organizer.html

Vocabulary page.  Click on the picture and it will take you to Teachers Pay Teachers site for the free download
http://www.ateacherstreasure.com/2012/03/all-good-things-must-come-to-end.html




There you have it.  A nicely compiled list of vocabulary notebooking pages; all free.  I'm sure you'll be able to find a page to meet your needs.  

June Thrifty Round-up

Welcome!  The following are posts from my Thrifty Homeschooling facebook page that I've posted in the month of June.  This was before I began theme days.  It's mostly random resources that I've found and wanted to share

SpellingCity.com I can't recommend this enough. It's a site that they can practice spelling words of your choice for FREE. There are some premium games and features for subscribers ($30.00 a year for 5 children).
My kids love this and ask to play every day. :)
http://www.spellingcity.com/

 

Have a PreK or Kindy child? Pattern blocks are so much fun and can be used for a large list of math fun. Free pattern block mats.  

http://www.heidisongs.com/Free_Downloads/assets/Pattern_Block_Masters.pdf

Don't have a set? You can print them out (on colored CARDSTOCK paper or get your little one to color the page) and laminate them for a make due set before committing to spend the money on a real set (they're expensive).

http://www.heidisongs.com/Free_Downloads/assets/Pattern_Block_Masters.pdf

 

Free printable calendars. If you make your own homeschool planner or have a household binder this could really be a help to you..... and it's FREE

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Polka-Dot-Monthly-Calendar-for-201213

 

This mini book report page may be a great start for children beginning book reports or for reluctant writers. Free and printable.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Mini-Book-Review-A-fun-way-to-review-a-book-quickly

 

Another early book report page. Would be great for a child who likes to doodle instead of write. Click on the picture and it will take you to a K5 teacher's blog and the page is halfway down her blog with a link to download the 4 book report pages.

http://pinterest.com/pin/245375879668081646/

 

Teaching Fractions? Here's a fraction match up game. It's made by a teacher who couldn't see paying big bucks for a similar game at the teacher store.... so she made her own. I love it!

http://primaryfilefoldergames.blogspot.com/2011/07/fraction-match-up.html

High School Transcript Packet. I don't personally know how useful this will be. I don't have any children in high school but I thought there would be someone out there who would find this useful

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/High-School-Transcript-Packet-for-Homeschools

New Blog Post: Blueprint for field trips with some practical advice on how to notebook about your field trip.

http://thriftyhomeschooling.blogspot.com/2012/06/blueprint-for-field-trips.html

 

Free Field Trip Notebooking Pages. This link is also in the previous blog post.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5JIM5_1C7ZBNThjZmRhNTMtZTY4Mi00OGFhLTkxNzYtODk2NGY0NDY1NjIz/edit

Base Ten Blocks Game Center. Great for teaching place value, whole numbers and decimals.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Place-Value-Math-Center-Game

Place Value cards.... Star Wars theme.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Place-Value-Cards-for-Representing-Numbers-to-120

Place Value Concentration/Memory Game.
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Place-Value-Concentration

Literature Based Printables for PreK and Kindergarten

http://homeschoolcreations.com/LiteratureBasedPrintables.html

4th of July Printables

http://www.gricefullyhomeschooling.com/2012/06/freebee-friday-62912-4th-of-july.html

Spelling Test Primary lines. 12 words plus 2 dictated sentences. This one is my favorite out of all the free spelling templates on this site.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Spelling-Test-TemplateMaster

10 spelling words plus two bonus words on regular lines. You can do 2 tests on one page. Money savings. Of course you could use a regular notebook but sometimes you have to spice things up a bit.

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Spelling-Test-10-words

Spelling Test for 20 words with regular lines. You could make this yourself on Microsoft Word but why would you want to when someone else is offering it for free?

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Test-Template-Spelling

Had to share this. A great article on how to "reset" your kids when you're having a bad homeschool day. Very handy to print out and have.

http://thepenningtonpoint.com/2012/02/20-ways-to-reset-when-the-kids-are-having-a-hard-day/

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My next post which will be July's facebook freebie posts will have themes and will be much easier to navigate.  Until next time....

 

Happy Homeschooling!! 

 

 

 

 

Beginning Living Math

Last year was the first time I'd even heard of living math and I was puzzled.  "What is it?  Is this ANOTHER thing to add to my homeschool to-do list?"  I was surprised to find that it was easy to add living math to our current curriculum (which was A Beka Arithmetic).  Living Math is in everyday life.  I can't really give you a simple answer or a general outline to fully describe the great potential that is Living Math. You can read a children's math literature book (yes, they make them and no they aren't boring) and work a related activity to the book. You could also replicate the book results and come up with your own conclusions and record it in your math notebook.
Math Notebooks are essential with living math. My kids love their math notebook.  In fact, it is the only part of my Kindy child's math lesson that she finds enjoyable.  Anytime your child learns something new in math, just have him write down what they've learned and add some illustrated examples in their notebook.  Next week when they can't remember what fractions are equivalent they can simply refer back to their notebook.  I know I'm not giving living math it's full justice but there are some great articles that can explain in it much more detail.

My favorite living math article is written by Jimmie on Squidoo. She does a fantastic job explaining living math and has some great links and ideas to get you started.

Free Living Math Ideas download from Confessions of a Homeschooler. She has suggestions, ideas and printables to get you started.  She makes it look so easy.

Math Notebooking is another article my Jimmie but this is on her Notebooking Fairy site.

Math Read Alouds are another key component to living math.  Here is a great book list by category. Your library should have most of the books already.  Try them out before you buy and start building your living math library.

Another living math book list.  This one is by title rather than by category.

This is a whole site devoted to nothing but living math.  They have the ultimate book list and ideas for teaching living math.

Another great living math book list by category

To get you started on your math notebook you could by a composition book and use your scrapbooking supplies to embellish your pages and add more detail.  You could also use a 3 ring binder and use printable Math Journal Pages from the internet.

Math Notebooking article with links and practical advice.  It's a nice break-down of what Living Math is and how easy it is to add to your homeschool day.  


Loving Living Math Ebook.  A how-to living math ebook for beginners for $8.95.  I actually did buy this ebook and it was helpful but honestly for the price, I kind of expected more.  I gleaned alot from the above articles but if you feel you need more hand-holding, you may want to buy the ebook.

While this blog post is more of an outline, I will use future posts to explain each component of living math in more detail.
*Math Notebooking
*Teaching Math with literature
*Everyday Living Math
All coming in the near future along with links to my favorite resources, tips and tricks and also pictures of our math notebooks.


UPDATE: Loving Living Math ebook turned out to be a lot more helpful than I thought.  I flipped through it again recently (I printed the whole thing out) and found more ideas to improve our living math days.  I still think it's a bit pricey but then again I'm a cheapskate but it's a very helpful book to anyone wanting to venture out into Living Math.