Saturday 12 March 2016

March 12 Homeschool Mothers Journal.


 In my life this week…
  • We are New Zealand citizens who are currently living in Australia under a bi-lateral agreement.  Recently the Australian government announced a new pathway to citizenship for NZ citizens who arrived in Australia between 27 February 2001 to 19 February 2016.  Please be in prayer for us over this as this is something we desire for our family having a pathway to citizenship.  For my New Zealand friends who are in Australia here is some information for you: Additional citizenship pathway for New Zealanders
  • I'm still on a mission to regain health and strength this year.  I just found a wonderful post by Dolly: How to get started on THM on a budget. 
  • Goodness I'm looking forward to next week we are going away for a weeks holidays!
Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

In our home school this week…


My favourite thing this week was…

 Things I’m working on…

 On the WWW I’m reading…
 Trim Healthy Mama…
A photo, video, link, or quote to share…
This week Joey passed from earth to glory.  This is an amazing video of her singing a love song to her husband for the first day after she is gone and walking on streets of gold...  Be sure to have your tissues handy when watching When I'm Gone.  It was a timely reminder for me to appreciate Paul more.

Joey+Rory - "When I'm Gone" from Hickory Films on Vimeo.

Blessings
Chareen


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A Week In Review Link UP

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Week in Review
Field Trips
School Work&nbsp
Homeschool projects
And anything homeschool related.

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Thursday 10 March 2016

Places to Explore near Melbourne

One of the things I enjoy about home educating is the opportunity to make use of the things within our community in order to make use of immersion learning. The second thing I love about this life style is the opportunity to meet families from around the world which in turn encourages us to explore local places and 'show' our guests a little piece Australia.

Michelle from Homeschooling Down Under and Belinda from Live Life with Your Kids have invited us to show you our little piece of Australia. In our 'back yard' we have a number of gorgeous places to visit and today I would like to introduce four of them to you.

1. Victorian State Rose Garden

This is a little piece of heaven earth-side.  The garden beds are arranged in the shapes of rose petals and filled with roses from around the world.



Photographs do not do the Rose Garden justice.  The Rose Garden is open every day of the year to the public and entrance is free.

2. The Mansion

Here is a place you can spend a full day and not see everything there is to see.  Entrance to The Mansion property is FREE but if you would like to look inside the historical home there is a small fee.  Walking through these gardens is magnificent.  The trees are enormous and the grounds are beautifully kept. Continue round the back and you will walk into history.  The farming part of the mansion is still there to take a look at.  If you like art there is also a sculpture walk to enjoy.

3. Werribee Open Range Zoo

A visit to us is not complete without experiencing a little piece of Africa or the Werribee Open Range Zoo.  Paul works here and if you'd like to meet his serval be sure to attend a presentation (You can watch Paul introduce serval at a night zoo presentation on YouTube).  Depending on the time of year the zoo is open after dark (Night Zoo) and during summer for Rhythm of Africa.


 You can also meet many of the animals up close and personal.

4.Geelong

 Geelong is a beautiful waterfront city not far from our home.  There are a number of museums and areas to explore here.  Among them the Wool Museum which often has exhibitions on.






If you all looking for some family friendly things to do in Melbourne do not forget to check out this post: 10 Family Friendly Places to Experience in Melbourne Australia 

Blessings
Chareen
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Wednesday 9 March 2016

Step ONE of our Repeated Sweets Project {Virtual Fridge}

This Week
A few years ago I reviewed an art DVD from See The Light.  I was so impressed with this course we invested in a few more of their DVD's.  They have some wonderful FREE resources available here:
  • Pinterest (There are 30 boards brimming with wonderful art ideas and inspiration)
  • Blog here you will find art tips, video tutorials, resources, free downloads, How to ..., etc
  • Free Video lessons
  • Downloads (Mini Projects, Lesson Plans and Line Art)
This month we are working our way through one of the art projects DVD's called Repeated Sweets. The DVD is divided into four 20 minute lessons with the goal of drawing a watercolor painting in the style of American Pop artist Wayne Thiebaud!

This weeks Feature

This weeks feature is a tutorial from over at My Full Heart.  Megan has done an easy to follow tutorial to make a beautiful stained glass picture with your children.  All you need is a picture frame, acrylic paint and two types of glue.

Your Turn
I invite you to take some photo's of your children's artistic pursuits put them in a post and link up with me I would love to come over and see the wonderful art your children have enjoyed doing.
Virtual Fridge Link Up

Blessings
Chareen

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your ART along with a link to your art/tutorial.

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Tuesday 8 March 2016

Week 2 - Thoughts on Math and Science {Virtual Curriculum Fair}

Welcome to week two of the 2016 Virtual Curriculum Fair.  This year I will be co-hosting with  Kristen over at Sunrise to Sunset and Laura over at Day by Day in our World.

If you have any posts on the topic of maths, science, logic and critical thinking please add your link to the linky at the bottom of this post we look forward to seeing what you use to address these areas in your homeschool.

We have finally found a good fit for our Math now.  We are using Teaching Textbooks.  I'm still trying to find a good way for Nathaniel to work on his math facts.

For science we are following a number of pathways. I have shelves and shelves of wonderful science books that this year I've decided to work my way through these and as I do so I will be sharing the living books we choose what we will read and learn from on Instagram. We will be continuing to use our Learning Journal this year.  I discovered this fabulous resource on Instagram last year and really loved the concept.  You can samples of the authors work here: Learning Journal on Instagram.  Nathaniel really enjoys watching anything to do with Science so we often check out a couple of channels on YouTube. (Tested, Chris Hadfield, Slow Mo Guys, How It's Made and Brit LAB)

For logic this year my aim is to blow dust off the board games pile and use these as well as teach Nathaniel how to work his way through Sudoku.  I will be using this to do it: Sudoku Training Kit for Children {FREE Download}
 
On This Blog
The sciences are my favorite subjects here are some posts about science, mathand logic

Read posts from the last two fairs here

More on Math and Science this week

You can find last weeks Language Arts posts here and if you have posts relating to Science, Math and Logic which are related to Week 1 - Language Arts link up below.
Blessings
Chareen


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Monday 7 March 2016

Week 1: Why did you start blogging (and why do you keep blogging)?

This post is going to have to be in the style of a Throwback Thursday post {but posting on a Monday}.  I had so many good intentions of joining in this wonderful opportunity hosted by Live Life with your Kids and Homeschooling Downunder.

Why I blog?
  • I love the act of writing and sharing.  
  • It's encourages me to research and find out more. I've always loved information and I love to share it with others.  Blogging gives me a platform to share
What attracted you to blogging
  • When I was doing my computing certification many many moons ago I learned how to build a website.  I really liked working with HTML but couldn't afford to rent web space.  Blogging allows me to be creative on the internet.
  • I loved sharing the new books I had discovered with my friends and had no way of doing that other than flooding everyone's mailboxes.  This got me wondering how I could share what I loved without writing an email but still have access to my own information.
My blogging story.
  • Oh my this little space looked so different back then.  I started blogging on the 20 May 2011. Back then my only two regular features were Tuesdays Treasures and the Homeschool Mother's Journal.  
  • These two things continue to this day on the blog. 
  • The Homeschool Mother's Journal posts up on a Saturday morning most weeks, we're up to edition  number 145 now.   Here is where I share what I've been reading online.  I share about the books, YouTube clips etc we watch and what Nathaniel has been learning at school.  I share about new homeschool posts of interest.
  • Tuesday's Treasures is in the process of being revived. This is where I love to share about books and resources for the family, home education and books I've enjoyed.
What I’ve learned because I blog
  • That there are many other woman out there who struggle with the same things I do.
What do I do other than blog (yes, I do have another life)
  • Read.  I love a good book. 
  • I'm in the process of setting aside one evening a month to catch up on all those Unfinished Projects lying around my home.
  • I co-ordinate a homeschool support group called: Christian  Home Educating Families. 
  • Work a few hours a week for the Schoolhouse Review Crew.
What are some things about you that you’ve never shared on your blog
  • Even though I've been homeschooling for over 17 years I still panic about it every now and then.
  • I'm six foot tall. 
Do you read other blogs? Which blogs inspire you
Links to your top blog posts 
I was a little surprised when I looked up the stats to find the answer to this question.  Here are a couple
Thank you Belinda and Michelle for hosting this link up it was so much fun reminiscing over why I blog and where I am going with my blogging.

Blessings my bloggy Friends who read my little world on the WWW I appreciate you company and inspiration.

Chareen



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Saturday 5 March 2016

It's March! {HSMJ Week 5}

Sunrise at Foxhill in Beremboke, VIC

 In my life this week…
  • I've always wanted to write the bible and many years ago when Timothy and Jane were younger I started but I never finished even one book...  There was a family who challenged each of their children to write out the whole bible word for word during their teen years and this really touched my heart. Candace over at His Mercy is New has a challenge this month to write out the book of Philippians along with a FREE printable.  It's been good to slow down with the Word and begin a new tradition.   
  • I found a new homeschool Mom on IG (Follow Heather @lifeofahomeschoolmom) who has a photo challenge for the month March that looks like fun.  
  • Amy from over at Homeschool Blogging Connection also has an IG challenge for the month of March and three participants will win a $10 amazon gift card!
  • Needless to say these three challenges have kept me on my toes this week ...
  • On Monday we went up to Foxhill to house-sit for a few days for one Paul's work colleagues. It's always so good to go up there and enjoy the sound of silence.  There is no phone coverage for our network so we are phone-less and without internet while there.  
  • I have decided to re-read some of the books I first read when I started home educating years ago before the internet became my main source of information.  I've taken For The Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay off the shelf again.  Let me just say WOW.  There is so much richness I had forgotten.  I have been inspired to write out quotes in a journal which in turn is helping me slow down and bask in the excellent information I have found here.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

"Identify the child's actual needs and capacities, to serve him as he is, on the basis of what is right and good for him as a person." - Susan Schaefer Macaulay. For The Children's Sake Page 14

In our home school this week…

My favourite thing this week was…
Things I’m working on…



 On the WWW I’m reading…
 I’m cooking…

Blessings
Chareen


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Linking to
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Photo collages made with: Photoscape a FREE photo editor


A Week In Review Link UP

Join Lisa and I each week and share your week in review.  We look forward to reading about your

Week in Review
Field Trips
School Work&nbsp
Homeschool projects
And anything homeschool related.

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My Week in Review Link UP



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Friday 4 March 2016

Clever DIY {Review}

While I enjoy hobbies like crocheting, scrapbooking and sewing (in my former life before mommyhood and homeschooling etc) I do not have a lot of hands on items around the home for Nathaniel to experiment with DIY projects and art.  I was recently introduced to Clever DIY who graciously sent me their January Project Box: My Room.

 I was blown away when our box arrived.  The staff were super helpful and our order arrived within 24 hours.  The box was full with helpful information and contained ALL the items we would need to successfully complete our projects.  They even supplied a messy mat to protect my table!

Wooden Key Ring Holder
 The first project Nathaniel wanted to make was the Wooden Key Ring holder.  Clever DIY supplied the wooden key holder, wooden pegs, Permanent markers, Glue tube, Embroidery Thread, Paint Tubs and Paint brush.

Wooden Pen Holder 

This part of the kit surprised me. The project was to make a wooden pen holder.  Clever DIY even supplied 10 coloured markers to go into the completed project!  We used the wooden Pen Holder bits, Glue Tube, paint brush, Paint Tubs and Permanent Marker to complete this project.



Bag Tag/Key Ring 
This kit inspired Nathaniels creative juices far more than I though it would.  Each of his Key Ring / Bag Tags have a name and a purpose.

We used the supplied permanent Marker to add detail to the glued tags and we both love the characters as they've come to life before us.

Door Hanger

Our final project for the month was this door hanger.

It was so much fun watching him go through the process of design, painting and altering his design as it unfolded before us both.  It took him a quarter of an hour to complete.


How it works

New Project boxes are released on the first of each month and shipped to subscribers.  The project boxes become available to the public two weeks later where they can be purchased separately.

Subscriptions are available for single and Share the Box options.
  • Single Box option is $24-90* (free postage) with no lock in contract.
  • Share the Box is a single box containing enough components for two children to complete all the projects.  $24.90* + $15.00* (second set of components) = $39.90* (free postage) with no lock in contract.
  • Purchase individual Project boxes at $24.90* each + shipping. 
  • Shop for materials to do your own inspired projects
*All prices are quoted in Australian Dollars and subject to change.  Please check the Clever DIY website for up to date pricing and product options.

Current Projects available for purchase are:
Their March project box is called - Easter and will be available for purchase from the 15th of March.


Connect with Clever DIY on Social Media
If you have a child who loves to be creative and you find yourself running out of ideas then Clever DIY is for you.  These kits are aimed at 5 to 12 year olds.  The projects require very minimum parental supervision and the end results are impressive.  Children feel as though they accomplish great things.

Blessings
Chareen


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