Progeny Press ~ Frog and Toad Together {Review}

Over the years I have heard many wonderful things about study guides for books but have never actually used one. When I heard about Progeny Press a Christian Publishing company that produces study guides for literature from a Christian perspective via the crew I just had to give it a try. Their company mission is "To teach our children to think clearly, to understand literature, and to rely on the scripture for truth and values, and enjoy themselves while they do it!"

I am a huge fan of Arnold Lobel's books and so was thrilled to be given a copy of the downloadable Frog and Toad Together - E-Guide to use with Sir N.

What we received

• Frog and Toad Together - E-Guide
• Author: Leslie Clark
• For the Book:  Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel
• Pages: 36
• Format: PDF  

The guide consists of

• Table of Contents
• Note to the Instructor - a short note about how the guides are to be used.
• Synopsis -  A short synopsis of the book the guide is based on.
• About the Author - a synopsis of the life and work of Arnold Lobel
• Before you read  activities - these questions helped set our attitude before we started reading the book and helped us discover our own perspective about the issues surrounding friendship.
• Chapter 1 to 5 This covers the five chapters in the book Frog and Toad Together.
• Venn Diagram and Word Search
• Suggestions for Further Reading
• Answer Key
• List of available study guides from Progeny Press.

How we used it
I downloaded the guide which arrived in a PDF format (523 KB).  It had a total of 36 pages with a full colour cover.  This PDF is a secured** copy. I printed our copy at home on our printer.

Starting off our study we used the before you read questions to think about friendship. We looked at friendship from two perspectives.  One of ourselves and the other from what we enjoy in our friends. We then took Sir N's bible and had a look at what friendship means from a biblical view from Proverbs. The before you read activity encouraged us to make new friends.

We borrowed Frog and Toad Together (a Newberry Honor book) and Sir N and I took turns reading the stories together. This is a beautiful book illustrating the depth and breadth of friendship in a collection of five adventures that Frog and Toad go on together. Each chapter provides a valuable life lesson for the reader regarding friendship and commitment. After Sir N read the chapter to me I would re-read the chapter to him so he could sit back and enjoy the beautiful illustrations and the sometimes very humorous situations that Frog and Toad find themselves in.

Chapter 2 Sample question page

We then moved to the table and looked through that chapter's study guide questions.  I wanted Sir N to have the opportunity to think and share with me his thoughts so I was the scribe and reader of the guide to him. From the guide I learned to turn to God's word and dig deeper and draw parallel's to what we were reading and learning. Together we learned to think more clearly about the story we were reading together. This had a benefit as Sir N got to look in his own bible to discover more about what God said on the subject. Each scripture reference was followed with thought provoking questions to help the student dig a little deeper and apply the knowledge of what they had just learned both from the Word of God and the book they had just read.

Sample of digging deeper in scripture questions.

Each chapter was then finished off with a fun hands on activity.  Sir N really enjoyed baking biscuits after reading about the Frog and Toads biscuits. There were recommended memory verses and fun projects for each chapter as well.

**Please note if you are taking a secured PDF to print at Office Works the self service machines can not print these correctly.  The staff are very friendly and will help you to print it from the counter.

Cost of Study Guide

• Frog and Toad Together - E-Guide AU $12.96
• Frog and Toad Together Printed Fromat or CD AU $12.96 

All of the guides are available in three different formats: E guide, CD or printed book.

Recommended Age Range

• K through 2nd grade 

Categories available

• Lower Elementary 
• Upper Elementary 
• Middle School
• High School 

Connect with Progeny Press

• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Twitter
• YouTube 
• Blog - Ask Rebecca

What we thought
Sir N and I both enjoyed our very first literature study guide together.  I enjoyed the digging deeper questions and watching him grasp the impact upon himself of reading a story had on him. He also enjoyed the hands on projects and some of the further reading and listening suggestions at the end of the book.

This guide was easy to use and there was very little preparation work for me the teacher.  I liked how the layout was easy to follow and simple to use.  

If you are looking for a study guide to use with your children that digs deeper and goes beyond asking mundane questions like who is the main character and what did they do ? A guide that relies on scripture as the plum line. Progeny Press study guides are your answer.

I look forward to using more guides in the future with Sir N.

Blessings
Chareen

Logic of English {Review}

Sir N has been reading for a while now but I noticed that sometimes he was just guessing the words in front of him.  I started watching a little more closely and realised that he was memorizing what words looked like and was reading that way.

I know that there are a lot of intensive phonics programs on the market today and wondered which one would be best for him. I needed something that was more remedial phonics based. I did not want something that I would need to take classes in before I taught him.  I was recently introduced to the Essentials program which is produced by Logic of English. This is a full curriculum to help students read, spell and write successfully.

What we received
I was super impressed with the quality of the product that arrived at our home. It was well packaged. I received a tracking number when my parcel was dispatched and it arrived here within 10 working days from the USA.

• Essentials Teacher's Manual You can watch a full walk through of the teachers manual on YouTube. Yes this is as good as they show you! This book contains 40 step by step lessons. 537 pages. It is a hardback well bound book.
• Essentials Student Workbook(s) in Manuscript This book is available in a choice of manuscript or cursive.  We received the manuscript version.  It is a softcover book.  The pages are perforated. 470 pages.
• Spelling Journal
• Basic Phonogram Flash Cards
• Spelling Rule Flash Cards
• Grammar Rule Flash Cards
• Advanced Phonogram Flash Cards 
• Phonogram & Spelling Game Book
• Game Card decks You can choose between Green Cursive,  Blue Bookface and Red Manuscript versions.
• Phonogram & Spelling Rule Quick Reference Chart

How we used it

Essentials program consists of 40 lessons that introduce the 74 Basic Phonograms and 30 Spelling Rules. Students learn thousands of words because they are taught to write compound words and the use of prefixes and suffixes. This basic skill helps them to write any word.

When my box arrived I felt a little overwhelmed by the volume of the contents.  I had been warned about this by fellow crew who had used the Essentials program last year.  I was encouraged to put away all the lovely goodies and to take some time to read all the introduction information in the begining of the the manual and become more familiar with the materials before I started with Sir N.

We started with learning the basic phonogram's. To aid us in mastery Logic of English have provided a YouTube clip. I loved the fact that a full set of Basic Phonogram Flash Cards are provided.  These cards are not small they are 4.5 x 5 inches (11.4 x 12.7 cm) printed on heavy card stock and plastic coated for durability.

On the once side the letter of the alphabet is printed on it's own and on the other side is the three phonetic sounds for A along with examples of the sound in words.  The A is in bold in each word clearly showing the student what is being learned. I like the size of these cards,  they are clear and easy to read and easy to use too.

Top: Blue Bookface Bottom: Red Manuscript

I'm learning more and more that Sir N is a hands on learner.  Personally I am not a hands on learner so looking for things or ideas to help him learn can be very time consuming.  I really appreciate the Phonogram & Spelling Game Book. It is divided into nine chapters.  Each chapter is broken down into games. There are a couple of games that use only one deck of Game Cards otherwise you will need two or three decks.  We have two decks.  We used Blue Bookface and Red Manuscript decks to play with. These cards are 2.25 X 3.5 inches (5.7 x  8.9 cm) and printed on card stock and plastic coated. Each deck contains the 74 basic phonograms and 15 additional cards to enhance game playing. A few of the games also use the Basic Phonogram Flash Cards.
A few of the games are like your traditional Go Fish! and Rotten Egg. There are gross motor games too where you use your whole body or run around the room finding cards etc.   Some of the games are played using the templates supplied in the back of the book such as Tic-Tac-Toe and Phonogram Bingo. We have used the cards to work on ordering them into alphabetical order as well.

For storage I have purchased a small box.  I then took each set of flash cards and used a large foldback clip to keep them together.  The game cards are kept together with an elastic band.  I have a separate group of flashcards clipped together that we are working on with our lesson each week.

The teacher's manual is worth it's weight in GOLD!

There is no way I could teach phonics without this book's support.  It is a step by step tutorial for me too. It contains a full scope and sequence so if you have a child that is stuck on a particular thing you can go here and it will tell you which lesson to go to. Every lesson covers: a set of phonograms,  spelling rules and grammar. 
All the Spelling Rules and Grammar rules cards have the rule on one side and and example on the other. The grammar cards are pink and the spelling rule cards are green.

The teachers manual gives you recommendations on how to schedule your lessons depending on the individual needs of your student.  It does not use a one class suits all.  I really like the flexibility and the examples that they provided along with a full detailed step by step tutorials.  We decided to use the half an hour a day schedule.
The BEFORE YOU BEGIN section is invaluable and really helped to lay an accurate foundation for me. It gave me a comprehensive understanding of the phonics program without overwhelming me.  There is also a great list of teacher's resources in this area.

Each lesson is divided into three parts. Part one covers the phonics,  part two covers spelling and part three covers grammar.

The student manual is referenced in the Teachers manual so you always know what to fill in as you work your way through the lesson.  Each aspect of the lesson is applied in the students workbook without being overwhelming.

Last but by no means least is the Spelling Journal.  I have looked at creating a spelling journal / dictionary for Sir N in the past but have never got around to do it.  I am very impressed with this journal.  It is different in that you make your spelling lists according to the spelling rule  and not just the alphabet.  This is a wonderful way of reinforcing what the student is learning.

The Phonogram & Spelling Rule Quick Reference Chart is a very handy tool. This chart is plastic coated for durability and is a concise reference guide to all the phonograms and spelling rules taught in Logic of English.

Cost of Logic of English Essentials Program

• Complete Program $243.00
• Essentials Teacher's Manual $95.00
• Essentials Student Workbook(s) in Cursive or Manuscript $25.00
• Spelling Journal $8.00
• Basic Phonogram Flash Cards $18.00
• Spelling Rule Flash Cards $15.00
• Grammar Rule Flash Cards $22.00
• Advanced Phonogram Flash Cards $15.00
• Game Book $15.00
• Game Card decks $10.00 (You will need two decks)
• Phonogram & Spelling Rule Quick Reference Chart $10.00 

Some of these items are available as PDF items via the Logic of English store.

Recommended Age Range
Essentials has been designed for age seven to adult age.


Connect with Logic of English

• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Blog
• YouTube 
• Forum

What we thought
I am very impressed with the quality of this product.  Each day we use it I can see an improvement in Sir N's phonic awareness and understanding.  His grasp of the finer details of the English language is improving daily and his confidence is blossoming.

I highly recommend this program for any homeschool family looking for an English phonics program that covers more than just the basics without being overwhelming. The Teacher's Manual is worth it's weight in Gold!

The Blog and YouTube channel is a gold mine as well.  If you are wondering about what to do once you complete the Essentials program you can read What next after Essentials?

Blessings
Chareen

Maestro Classics {Review}

Over the last few years I have been refining my home education methods.  We are endeavoring to follow a more delight directed approach along a Charlotte Mason philosophy.  Charlotte Mason encouraged classical composer studies and the listening of great compositions. Personally I have a very limited understanding of classical music and would love to introduce more of this genre of music into our home school.  Last month we were given the opportunity by Maestro Classics to review two of their products Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel  and My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music.

I am so pleased to have discovered  Maestro Classics. Their aim is to introduce children to classical music through stories. The music on each CD is played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

What we received

• Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel in the iTunes format as well as the 24 page PDF activity book. There are seven tracks to the story. Total Duration (51:14)
• My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music in the iTunes format as well as the 24 page PDF activity book. There are seven tracks. Total Duration (48:45)

How we used it

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
After downloading the MP3 version in a zipped file I burnt it to CD and printed off the PDF to accompany the story.

We have long been fans of Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel Annie. Sir N loves me reading our compendium of books by Virginia Lee Burton.
We grabbed our copy of Mike Mulligan and put the CD on. The CD has seven tracks.

• The first one was a reading aloud of the book intermingled with beautiful orchestral music.
• Track two introduced us to the author Virginia Lee Burton. I loved hearing a little more about this interesting lady and how she started writing books for children along with the story behind the story of Mike Mulligan.
• Track three is the Mike Mulligan Song
• Track four is about the music the conductor himself (Stephen Simon) explaining why he chose certain instruments and pointing them out in the story
• Track five some of the music is played again giving us an opportunity to hear the new instruments that we have learned about in the music.
• Track six and seven is preparation for and a sing along.

I cut and glued the little booklet together. Sir N loved looking through this and trying his hand at the puzzles in them. He is also looking forward to learning to play the short piece of music in the booklet on his recorder.

 My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music

A few months ago we read about the life of Handle and it was interesting to note when I started the CD that Sir N remembered some of the history of who Handle was. The accent of the story teller made for an interesting CD.

After downloading the MP3 version in a zipped file I burnt it to CD and printed off the PDF to accompany the story. I grabbed the CD and we listened to this one in the car as we had a rather busy day out and about. It was really worth listening to a few times as each time we listened to the CD we learned some thing new or became aware of something in the music we had missed the first few times we listened.

This CD has six tracks.

• Track one picks up the story of Handles life when he is released by his employer and given a leave of absence for one year to travel to England. It follows his life introducing the children to different aspects of Handle's composing career up until he presents Water Music to the King of England on the river Thames.
• Track two gives some historical back ground to the music along with some new information.
• Track three introduces children to a song to help them recognise the music Handle composed.
• The Maesto gives a lesson about the music in track four explaining concertos, suites, and oratorios.
• Track five and six is for the children to join in and sing. 

Extra's
I just discovered that they have an amazing Homeschool Music Curriculum guide covering history, science, geography, language arts, art, music and math available for the following CD's: The Soldier's Take, Casey at the Bat, The Tortoise and the Hare, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, The Sorcerer's Apprentice,  Peter and the Wolf and My name is Handel.  We will definitely be exploring all the information and links provided here there is a ton of information!

There are also some fun home projects to attempt. I think that Sir N would definitely enjoy trying his hand at a glass Xylophone.

There are also some Montessori inspired music appreciation guides available for four CD's in the Educational Materials area.

Cost of
MP3 Version

• Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel $9.98
• My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music $9.99

CD Version

• Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel $16.98
• My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music $16.98

These are available in iTunes format as well.
Recommended Age Range

• Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel - Ages 4 and older
• My Name is Handel: The Story of Water Music - Ages 5 and older

Other CD's available 

• 11 CD Collection
• Peter and the Wolf - music by Prokofiev
  
• Carnival of the Animals - music by Saint Saens
• The Soldier's Tale - music by Igor Stravinsky
• The Tortoise and the Hare - music by Stephen Simon
• Casey at the Bat - music by Stephen Simon
• The Sorcerer's Apprentice - music by Dukas
• Classic Pack
• Story Pack
• Swan Lake Orchestra
• The Story of Swan Lake - Music by Tchaikovsky
• Juanita the Spanish Lobster - Music by David Haslam

Connect with Maestro Classics

• Pinterest
  
• Facebook
• Twitter
• YouTube
• Blog

What we thought
Sir N's thoughts: My favorite part of Handle was when he went up to the king in his boat with his orchestra. The CD was fun to listen to. I enjoyed listening to it very much.
My favourite part on Mike Mulligan is the end when the boy had the idea of turning the steam shovel into a furnace. The music was great and I loved it.

I love the quality of these productions. They are an excellent way to introduce children to classical music. We are looking forward to purchasing more titles from  Maestro Classics and listening to them at home.  A wonderful addition to any classical learning library.

Blessings
Chareen

The Brinkman Adventures Season 2 {Review}

Have you heard of The Brinkman Adventures? Neither had I until Brinkman Adventures asked the crew to please review The Brinkman Adventures Season 2: Episodes 13-24. We are officially hooked!  Wow!

The Brinkman Adventures are the result of a vision and idea the Lord gave to Ian Bultman one day when he was away on a prayer retreat.

The vision was to create radio quality dramatizations retelling actual modern day missionary stories using the day to day lives of his own family (there are 9 children in his family).   Each of the children's names have been changed in the production but they all play themselves.

The aim of the series is one of changing lives and encouraging young people to become missionaries.

What we received

• We received the complete iTunes download version of Season 2 of the Brinkman Adventures containing 12 episodes. 
• Each of the 12 episodes is 26 minutes long. 
• The file arrived in a 530MB zipped folder this unzipped into 26 files in one folder (576 MB). 
• There was over five hours of listening fun.

How we used it
After downloading and unzipping the folder I imported them into iTunes and burnt them to four CD's. As soon as the first one was ready we decided to listen to Episode 1.  The original plan was to listen to an episode a day.  As soon as we started listening we were hooked and could not stop.  We had an appointment later that afternoon and we took the CD as well as the next one with us so we could continue our listening adventure.   

Each episode has a follow up link on the website with more background information on the missionary story featured along with links to organizations and pictures of the actual events represented in the episode.  You can see these pages by following the links below. 

Ep. 01 - The Mystery Ring
Ep. 02 - Blue Hat and T-Shirt Bible
Ep. 03 - How Big Is Your God Pt. 1
Ep. 04 - How Big Is Your God Pt. 2
Ep. 05 - Mexico By Bus
Ep. 06 - Treehouse Academy
Ep. 07 - Pirates of Mayan Island
Ep. 08 - Sapphire Slave Pt. 1*
Ep. 09 - Sapphire Slaves Pt. 2*
Ep. 10 - Hadi's Choice
Ep. 11 - Castle of Secrets
Ep. 12 - On the Run

Each and every episode of the Brinkman Adventures is based on real family life.  The missionary stories are all based on actual events of missionary families around the globe.   The names of the missionaries have all been changed to protect their identities.

Each story has scripture and prayer in them and real every day life conversations.  The family pray together and do bible studies together demonstrating how to apply christian principles in daily living.

The dramatizations are excellent and you feel as though you are actually in the country where the story is taking place.

Cost of Brinkman Adventures

• Physical 4 CD set at $25 suggested Donation
• MP3 / iTunes download at $17.00 suggested Donation

The Brinkman Adventures operates on a donation basis. You have the option of choosing your donation value.  ALL proceeds raised go towards funding new episodes and supporting missionaries.

There are two sample episodes available for you to listen to online. Episode #1 is available to listen to at the bottom of the Fun Stuff page and episode #9  The Provider has it's own dedicated page.

You can watch behind the scenes recordings of the family recording the episodes on YouTube.

Recommended Age Range
These stories are intended for family listening.  Some of the stories are dramatic and some of the themes can be a little frightening for younger students.  If an episode is going to be intense it starts off with a recommendation that parents do listen to the story alongside their children.

Connect with

• Contact Brinkman Adventures.
• Facebook

What we thought
We loved listening to The Brinkman Adventures Season 2: Episodes 13-24 so much that we have purchased Season 1 and are looking forward to Season 3. Each and every episode is sit on the edge of your seat anticipation story telling at it's best.

If your family are looking for something to listen to that is encouraging, brings truth and light into the hearts and minds of your children then The Brinkman Adventures is for you! Be warned once you start listening you will not want to stop!

Blessings
Chareen

Philippians in 28 Weeks {Review}

I've always admired people who memorize complete chapters or books of the bible and wondered how they do it.

For me scripture memorization work has always been difficult.  I hate to learn things by route it's always just been in the to hard basket. This however has never diminished my desire to memorize chapters or books of the bible.  Recently Home School Adventure Co offered us the opportunity to study and memorize the book of Philippians in 28 Weeks.

What we received
We were given Philippians in 28 Weeks ESV eBook version.

The book contains: the story behind memorizing the book of Philippians in 28 weeks, instructions on how to use the program, Chapter 1 - 4, Chapter 1-4 review, the log, the cards and about the author.  There are a number of suggestions on how to use the book and the steps to memorize the book of Philippians are explained in the instructions in the front of the book.

How we used it
I printed two copies of the eBook one double sided for me and one single sided for Sir N.  Having the pages single sided made it much easier for him to do the copy work of each scripture and the fill in notebook pages. I took it to Office Works and had it bound to keep the pages together in one neat book.

We also printed the scripture memory cards and laminated them for durability.

The principle behind the program is summed up in five basic steps

1. Read
2. Record
3. Repeat
4. Review
5. Recite

The recommended pace is to memorize approximately one new verse a day for six days and then recap the verses already learned.  We had every intention of maintaining this rhythm but soon discovered it was not working for us and becoming a chore rather than a joy.  We have since slowed down and are enjoying it much more.

Whenever we start a new verse to memorize we write out the verse in our journal using the copywork page.  Having the scripture already there on the page made it so much easier for Sir N to write and copy.

Sir N copy work

Every six days the journal contains a reflection area where there are specific questions relating to the scriptures you have learned as well as a page to note the insights you have gained from reading through the book of Philippians during the week. These questions are a wonderful tool in helping with your meditation upon the word.  I'm looking forward to seeing what I have learned in the weeks to come as we move through our journey of becomeing a walking epistle once we know the book of Philippians.

Cost of Philipians in 28 Weeks

• ESV / KJV** Complete print edition $28.95
• ESV* Complete eBook edition $14.95
• Philippians memory cards $9.95

* ESV = English Standard Version
** KJV = King James Version

Homeschool Adventure is offering you 10% discount on the following eBook purchases (expires 15 May 2014).

1. Philosophy Adventure
2. Mere Christianity Journal
3. Philippians in 28 Weeks
4. The Wise Woman with Literary Analysis Journal Questions

Use the code: CREW-10 to receive your 10% discount on the download purchases until the 15th May.

Recommended Age Range

• For ages 12 and up. 
• For read aloud and discussion as a family: ages 9-11. 
• High schooler's can do this independently.

Connect with Homeschool Adventure

• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Instagram
• Blog
• Google+

What we thought
If you want to become a walking epistle then Philippians in 28 Weeks is for you.

Spending time in one book of the bible is helping us to better understand and grasp the Word and become better acquainted with it's meaning and more importantly it's application to our lives. The more we memorize the more scripture is permeating our daily living.  I am looking forward to completing this memory challenge and becoming more importantly a living epistle of our Lord and Saviour.

I do hope that Home School Adventure Co produce more books of the bible to memorize in this format.

Blessings
Chareen

FREE Language Arts Resources for Homeschool

Welcome to Day 4 of the 5 Days of ... Blog Hop brought to you by the 2014 Schoolhouse Review Crew.  Today's list of links are for resources to teach Language Arts for FREE gathered from around the web.

Last year I shared with you my Homeschool for FREE list and then updated it in January this year.  I have been feeling a little frustrated with it's length and it's been difficult to find the information I want in it so this week I will be sharing shorter lists divided into subject areas.

With the advent of the internet and the generosity of many homeschool mothers there are some amazing resources available for us today.

On this blog
We enjoy great literature and are trying to follow a Charlotte Mason approach with reading twaddle free literature.  I share a new book each week on a Tuesday called Tuesday's Treasures.  Be sure to come back each Tuesday for a new book.

• Ode to English Plurals
• 5 Days on Teaching Children to Read
• Why the english language is hard to learn
• 15 Grammar Goofs

Books we love
(Libraries are an excellent resource to teach for FREE)

• The Usborne Illustrated Thesaurus
• Dickens His Work and His World

Narration & Copy Work

• Mom- The Narration Scribe over at Practical Pages
• Narration over at Jimmie's Collage
• Copy Work
• Pixar's 22 Rules of Story Telling

On Pinterest

• Language Arts
• Charles Dickens
• Composition
• Composition writing prompts
• Copy Work
• Grammar
• Shakespeare
• Poetry
• Phonics
• Spelling
• Language Arts for Homeschool by Jimmie Lanley
• Language Arts by Meet Penny
• Grammar and Writing by Homeschool Creations

FREE on the WWW

• Language Arts Printables A collection of 141 homeschool language arts printables
• How DO you incorporate language arts into unit studies? 
• Designing Your Language Arts Curriculum EBook
• 
• FREE Reading Resources For Homeschoolers! 
• Free Online Writing & Grammar Homeschool Resources 
• FREE Classic Literature Studies! 
• FREE Online Phonics Lessons! 
• Homeschooling For Free  Excellent list of homeschool for FREE list arranged by subject.  Scroll down to see:
  Phonics and Beginning Reading {12 sites}
  Literature/Reading Guides and Units {12 sites}
  Free Books {11 sites}
  Audiobooks/Stories {5 sites}
  Spelling/Vocab {13 sites}
  Grammar {12 sites}
  Writting {5 sites}
• Home Learning Family has a long list of FREE links Scroll down to see
  Writting / Grammar {11 sites}
  Reading {13 sites}
• Only Passionate Curiosity  has a HUGE list of resources.
• Money Saving Mom has some great lists of FREE Homeschool Curriculum and Resources to look through.
• Free Phonic Programs list over at Blessed Beyond a Doubt.
• Homeschool Share Language Arts Connections
• Print-a-palooza 
• Ambleside Online Shakespeare
• Ambleside Poetry
• FREE Online Spelling Resources
• Free Online Writing & Grammar Homeschool Resources!
• Reading Homeschool Resource List
• Writing Homeschool Resource List
• Spelling Homeschool Resource List
• Squidoo Literature Resources
• Squidoo Language Arts Resources 
• A2Z Homes Cool Language Arts 
•  Spelling Lists
• Word Mastery
• Starfall
• Blend Phonics
• Sadlier-Oxford
• Progressive Phonics
• Fun Fonix
• Free Reading
• McGuffey’s First Reader
• Teach Your Child to Read (Canadian)–Free Registration Required
• Kind Conversation Alphabet Path
• The Phonics Page
• Homeschool Reading
• ZB Spelling Connections
• Splashes from the River
• Webster’s Spelling
• Spelling City
• Merriam-Webster
• K12 Reader Spelling Curriculum
• Spelling Whiz Practice
• Wordsmyth
• Vocabahead–If you sign-up for the email, they will send you a new word every day.
• Big IQ Kids–Basic online play is now free.
• Kids Spell
• Spell by Color–3rd Grade
• Vocabulary .com
• Young Novelist Workbooks
• WordSmithery Creative Writing Lessons
• Writing Fix
• Read, Write, Think
• Scott Foresman Grammar and Writing Books
• Harvey’s Grammar
• English Banana Elementary Workbook-Individual Pages
• English Banana Elementary Workbook–Complete Download
• Scott Foresman
• KISS Grammar
• Daily Grammar
• Road to Grammar
• English Grammar 101
• Intermediate Language Lessons Book 2
• Sheldon’s Primary Language Lessons
• Glencoe
• Kind Conversation Language and Literature 
• Homeschool Language Arts for FREE @ Passionate Curiosity
•  FREE Language Arts Help and Curriculum

 What are some of your favourite FREE resources for teaching Language Arts?  Leave a link in the comments and I will add them to the list

Blessings
Chareen

Please take some time to read the posts by my fellow crew mates this week who are sharing on their chosen topics.  Here are a few to get you started.

• Ellen @ Grace Tells Another Story ~ Making Homeschooling Fun! - Fun ‘n Games!
• Marcy @ Ben and Me ~ Helping Children in Uganda - Love Hopes
• Wendy @ Simplicity Breeds Happiness -- International Meals - U.S. Chicken Fried Steak (Recipe)
• Melanie @ FinchNWren ~ FinchNWren's Fabulous Family Movies - Date Night
• Sarah  @ Delivering Grace ~  learning about England - the language
• Victoria @ Homemaking with Heart ~  Keeping a Nature Journal
• Joanie @ Simple Living Mama ~ 5 Days of Charlotte Mason Preschool - Teaching Reading, Handwriting, and Math
• Gwen @ Tolivers to Texas ~ A Happy, Peaceful Home Quick Tips

FREE Stamp graphic courtesy: Stuart Miles

FREE History Resources for Homeschool

Welcome to Day 2 of the 5 Days of ... Blog Hop brought to you by the 2014 Schoolhouse Review Crew.

Last year I shared with you my Homeschool for FREE list and then updated it in January this year.  I have been feeling a little frustrated with it's length and it's been difficult to find the information I want in it so this week I will be sharing shorter lists divided into subject areas.


With the advent of the internet and the generosity of many homeschool mothers there are some amazing resources available for us today.

On this blog
As we travel the globe on our discovery of Geography I will be adding more geography unit studies to this blog.

• Make your own Time Line Tutorial. 
• Winter Olympics 2014 Unit Study 
•  Olympics 2012 - 30th Olympic Games

Field Trips that incorporate History

• Immigration Museum
• Shrine of Remembrance
• FORD Museum

Books we love
(Libraries are an excellent resource to teach for FREE)

• Australian Story (An Illustrated Timeline)
• G.A. Henty Books
• A Port Through Time
• Carry on Mr Bowditch
• Queen Elizabeth II
• A Journey Through Time

 On Pinterest 

• History {General}
  
• History {Ancient}
• History {Middle Ages}
• History {Mystery of History Vol 1}
• History {Modern}
• History {Time Lines}
• History {YouTube}
• i Homeschool Network 
• Curriculum Choice 
• Jimmie Lanley
• Charlotte Mason: History
• LaToya
• Tara
• Enchanted Homeschooling Mom
• Meet Penny

On the WWW

• Print-a-palooza History
• Homeschool for FREE History
• Scripted People of America History Lessons
• Little City Kids
• American Heritage
• Mosaic Introduction to World History
• iCivics
• American History–High School level, put out by Stanford
• Ancient History for Homeschool
• World History For Us All–Middle School and up.
• Kind Conversation History
• American History 1
• American History 2
• Ancient Mesopotamia Unit
• ALMA Project–Mostly units concerning Native American and Latino History.
• Digital History Online Textbook
• U.S. History
• Ben’s Guide to U.S. Government
• Story of the World Volume 1 Workbook Pages
• National Archives Teaching with Documents
• Edsitement–This site covers humanities.
• Google Images–Type in the person or item you are looking for.
• Clipart Etc–Lots of free pictures
• Mosaic Introduction to Timelines
• Simply Charlotte Mason Book of Centuries
• GuestHollow’s Timeline Pages
• University of Texas Portrait Library
• Timeline Collection
• Timetoast--Free registration required.
• Timeglider–Free registration required 
• Ancient History through the Middle Ages 
• Early American History 
• Modern American History 
• High School History
• High School History Early American History
• Free Ancient History Curriculum ~ FreeBEE Friday Link Up
• Free American History Curriculum ~ FreeBEE Friday Link Up
• Homeschool Share Connections History
• Teaching History 
• History.com (Australia / New Zealand)
• School History 

What are some of your favourite FREE resources for teaching History?  Leave a link in the comments and I will add them to the list

Blessings
Chareen

Other Posts in the 5 Days of FREE Homeschool Resources are

1. FREE Geography Resources
2. FREE History Resources
3. FREE Science Resources
4. FREE Language Arts Resources
5. FREE Fine Arts Resources

Please take some time to read the posts by my fellow crew mates this week who are sharing on their chosen topics.  Here are a few to get you started.

• Ellen @ Grace Tells Another Story ~ Making Homeschooling Fun! - Take it Outside
• Marcy @ Ben and Me ~ Helping Children in Uganda - Orphan Care
• Wendy @ Simplicity Breeds Happiness -- Around the World: Jamaican Jerk Chicken (Recipe)
• Melanie @ FinchNWren ~ FinchNWren's Fabulous Family Movies - Pixar!
• Sarah  @ Delivering Grace ~ Learning about England: history resources
• Victoria @ Homemaking with Heart ~  Nature Study: Out and About
• Joanie @ Simple Living Mama ~ 5 Days of Charlotte Mason Preschool - Outside Play
• Gwen @ Tolivers to Texas ~ A Happy, Peaceful Home: Genuinely Enjoying Your Family

FREE Stamp graphic courtesy: Stuart Miles