MEMORIAL DAY May 31, 2010

I love it when communities put flags out.  We are one of only a few in our neighborhood who has flags in their yard.  I remember when the boy scouts used to come around and place a flag in everyone’s yard not too many years ago.  THAT might be a good COMMUNITY SERVICE ACTIVITY for DS to do on for Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Fourth of July.  I’ll have to ask him about it.

I Can Do This February 11, 2010

Spotted this cute wall hanging on a blog called  Secret Pie Shoppe and I thought, I can do this!

I will use the GW frame that the glass broke out of to “frame” it so that will be different and I’ll probably use some old scrapbook paper instead of the sheet music she used because I don’t have any of that but I do have scraps of scrapbook paper leftover from making DS, the younger’s valentines.  I’ll probably put the hearts on a piece of old posterboard we have and tape it to the frame then find a hole in the wall that needs something on it and ta da, there it will be.  (When I make it and take a photo of it, I’ll post it here).  Head over here to check out other clever things she has made with little to no money being expended.

It Just Occurred to Me to See if my Library Carried These Books and February 9, 2010

 they do!!!!! and they have them in the audio version which will be great!!!!!  That way we can both read them at the same time!!!!!  Can you tell I’m excited?

Check this Article on Physics Out January 30, 2010

http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschool_Reviews/reviews.php?rid=925

and this
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/

Have I Mentioned That My Son

is very interested in time and space distortion, the fabric of space, expanding of distortion in space; I have no idea really what any of it is but I am trying to find information and books for him about these topics.  I found this list of books to further check into.  I’ve got a few already on order from the library. 

Books

E = mc²: A Biography of the World’s Most Famous Equation
by David Bodanis. Walker Books, 2005.

Einstein’s Cosmos: How Albert Einstein’s Vision Transformed Our Understanding of Space and Time
by Michio Kaku. W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2004.

Einstein 1905: The Standard of Greatness
by John S. Rigden. Harvard University Press, 2005.

Lise Meitner: A Life in Physics
by Ruth Lewin Sime. University of California Press, 1997.

Einstein’s Miraculous Year: Five Papers That Changed the Face of Physics
by John Stachel, ed. Princeton University Press, 1998.

Albert Einstein’s Vision: Remarkable Discoveries That Shaped Modern Science
by Barry Parker. Prometheus Books, 2004.

The Expanded Quotable Einstein
by Alice Calaprice, ed. Princeton University Press, 2000.

Dear Professor Einstein: Albert Einstein’s Letters to and From Children
by Alice Calaprice, ed. Prometheus Books, 2002.

PS  I think he may have figured out what LOST is about.  He scares me a little.

This Stamper Has Such Cute, Creative Ideas

you have to visit her at No Time To Stamp and just look at how talented she is and then who all she links to.  Definite eye candy material.  The photo below is what I am thinking I will make for DS Fifth Grade Teacher and as my treat to DS.  What do you think?

Time4Learning Parent Community – Time4Learning Parent Community January 23, 2010

The absolute best place for spelling lessons in my opinion is Spelling City spellingcity.com. It has lists, games, and more. And its FREE! Its absolutely fantastic.

via Time4Learning Parent Community – Time4Learning Parent Community.

A New Tool For Education May 3, 2009

I saw this article on YAHOO and thought I’d have my son view someof the over the summer.  I followed the link to YouTube where I found this site which I think will be very useful over the summer and will help and entertain my son.

Great Learning Ideas April 23, 2009

1. When multiplying 9’s; write 9 to 0 in the ones column and 0 through 9 in the 10’s column.
   This gives you the nines tables.
   0×9= 0
   1×9= 9
   2×9= 18
   3×9= 27
   4×9= 36
   5×9= 45
   6×9= 54
   7×9= 63
   8×9= 72
   9×9= 81
   10×9=90
2. How many feet are in a mile? 5 tomatoes
   ( 5 )five ( 2 )to ( 8 )mat (0)oes
3. To remember where the states, California, Oregon and Washington are, it spells COW.
4. Treble Line in reading music: Notes EGBDF
   Every Good Boy Does Fine. (Treble is people)
5. Treble Space in reading music: FACE (Treble is people)
6. Bass line in reading music: GBDFA
   Great Big Dogs Fight Animals (Bass is animals)
7. Bass Space in reading music:
   All Cows Eat Grass (Bass is animals)

1. The order of the planets.
   My = Mercury
   Very = Venus
   Educated = Earth
   Mother = Mars
   Just = Jupiter
   Showed = Saturn
   Us = Uranus
   Nine = Neptune
   Planets = Pluto
   (This is what I learned in school, now that Pluto is officially not a planet, I don’t have a new one.)
2. When trying to remember the compass, always remember that it spells WE across. (West to East)
3. He pat my liver, is good to remember that HEPAT is the Latin for liver.
4. When dividing fractions don’t ask why but flip the last one and multiply.
5. 4 quarts = 1 gallon like 4 quarters = $1.00
6. Order of Division
   Driving = Divide
   My = Multiply
   Super = Subtract
   Cool = Compare
   Buggy = Bring Down
7. < & > Less than and greater than
   > always eats the bigger number because he is hungrier.
   < always points the little number.
   (i.e. 3 < 7)

1. The 11 Times Trick – We know the trick when multiplying by ten – add 0 to the end of the number, but 11’s are simple as well when multiplying by double digits.
   Take the original number and imagine a space between the two digits (in this example we will use 52:
   5_2
   Now add the two numbers together and put them in the middle:
   5_(5+2)_2
   That is it – you have the answer: 572.
   If the numbers in the middle add up to a 2 digit number, just insert the second number and add 1 to the first:
   9_(9+9)_9
   (9+1)_8_9
   10_8_9
   1089 – It works every time.
2. To get the first eight digits of pi, count the number of letters in each word of this phrase:
   May(3) I(1) have(4) a(1) large(5) container(9) of(2) coffee (6)?
3. Divide a number by 3? Just add up all the digits until you have a single number. If THAT number is divisible by three, so is the original number. (I.e.  4545  . If you add 4+5+4+5 you get 18. Then add 1+8, which equals 9. Nine is divisible by three, so you know that 4545 is too.)
4. Order of taxonomy in biology: 
   Kids Prefer Cheese Over Fried Green Spinach (Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species)
5. Red sky at night, sailor’s delight;  (meaning pretty day)
   Red sky at morn, sailor’s be warned. (meaning storms)
6. MISSISSIPPI – M,i, crooked letter, crooked letter, i, crooked letter, crooked letter, i, hump back, hump back, i.
7. A song to learn the order of the presidents of the United States of America.
   

 

 

 

Cincinnati is a word
Hard to spell but easy heard.
It need not cause you irritation,
Just drop the ON from CIN CIN NATION.

Massachusetts is tricky,” the teacher confesses,
“Just remember to spell it with two tees and four s.”

Let’s put an end to all this confusion.
We can’t tell the difference between Tuscan and Tucson.
The best way to end typographical stress
Is to remember to put the C before S.

ANTI­DIS­ESTABLISH­MENT­ARIAN­ISM is really not the longest word, do you know what is?

To know the difference between b and d, make a bed using b and d.  b-d.

HOMES on a Great Lake:
H-Huron, O-Ontario, M-Michigan, E-Erie, S-Superior (I had forgotten this one but Mom2fur had given that suggestion to us.)  I love it!

Learning the 10 commandments:

H/T to ilovemy5kids

If I Were To Homeschool My Son April 18, 2009

My youngest has shown some apprehension about middle school, which is normal, I know.  I have apprehension about middle school too; having had three boys already go through it.  I did not enjoy the experience.  We live in a good school district so it is not the education; it is the social crap.  DS is a sweet, sensitive, shy boy.  He isn’t the most popular, doesn’t have a lot of friends, is intelligent, has ADHD, is afraid of flying insects, is wise, isn’t team sports inclined and I just love him to pieces.  Part of me thinks that life is hard enough, why put him through middle school.  Anyway, I have looked at homeschooling before in a general way as I find the whole thing fascinating.  This year, however, I am going to investigate it further.  I plan to attend our areas Catholic Homeschool Conference in June.  In looking at different methods of educating a person I believe that I prefer the unit study method.  I plan to start accumulating that type of information in the event we decide to go that route. 

There.  I made is public.