Making Grammar Fun!

So I was putting around the library one day just looking for some good books to read to the kids, not looking for any specific subject but melding learning and fun. Man did I find a jackpot! I found the Magic of Language books. These are books that look at one aspect of grammar and expolres it fully. So far we have read Nouns, Interjections, Verbs, Pronouns, and Punctuation. They are colorful, entertaining and very interactive. They ask questions and have answers in the back in case your kids are reading them alone. I will be checking out the rest of the series as soon as we get a chance!

Frugal Homeschooler: Science

Once again I am out there looking for ways to homeschool on the cheap and this time I am sharing great science websites.

First up is MSNucleus. They have complete, free science curriculum for K-12. You can use the units as is or, like I do, canabilize them to use specific resources for specific points. Next is The Gorilla Foundation. You can get information on gorillas, got to the kids club or see KoKo the gorilla sign. This is very useful to me this year as we are doing 10 animal units. The third sight is a cool Nasa weather sight, SciJinks. They have activities in 4 areas: fun, People, Weather Technology and How & Why.

You can't forget the hands on science experiments with the TWINKIES Project. They have all kinds of cool experiments that teach real science principles. The last site for today is Extreme Science. They have facts and info on areas of science. I am sure that we will be spending loads of time here.

There are just a few of the science site the web has to offer. If you have any that you like, please share. As always remember homeschooling doesn't have to be hard or expensive!(Yes, I am trying to develop a tagline;)

The Princess and the Pea

The NerdPie picked up The Princess and the Pea when we were at the library last week and I internally rolled my eyes. We have all read this story before and I was reticent to read it yet again. But this was a delight to read. The kids and I both loved it. The vocabulary was great because it enabled the kids to develop theirs a bit further and the illustrations were fabulous. I highly recommend this to anyone!

Frugal Homeschooler: History

Here are some free history resources.

First up are some fun and interesting sites from the BBC. They have one history section for ages 4-11 and another for 11-16 year olds. They have some interesting history games. They also have stuff on specific time periods(WWI and WWII, etc) and on specific people.

Kids Dig Reed give virtual tours of the 19th century Reed Farmstead in Virginia. It also gives the specific history of the site, talks about artifacts and has games and puzzles.

Colonial Williamsburg also has a great site with cool history resources. The front page has some games but the real learning is under the Teachers/Parents tab. It has an electronic field trip, info on people and the place. It even has a lesson plan.

So that wraps up this Frugal Homeschooler. Look, explore, use and if you have any great resources please share with me. As always remember homeschooling doesn't have to be hard or expensive!

Encyclopedia Brown: Boy Detective

NerdDad and I both loved the Encyclopedia Brown series when we were kids and so we decided to check out Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective (Encyclopedia Brown) for NerdBug. He absolutely loved it. This book was a entertaining and wonderful as we remembered. The part I loved seeing in my son was his logic development. NerdBug could start at the beginning of a case and would slowly start trying to figure them out. While he hasn't quite gotten to the point of solving any cases before Encyclopedia Brown it is adorable to watch him try. We will be checking out more of these for this and all of our kids!