Nature Study the Charlotte Mason way...

For the last couple of years,  I have been wanting and working towards  a more relaxed homeschool, following more of an eclectic Charlotte Mason style for our education and school plans...I also wanted to begin a regular nature study... I was inspired by e-mails from the Outdoor Hour and the "Handbook of Nature Study" blog..



So last spring the kids and I got some "Nature Backpacks" together and started going on little hikes and short adventures in different areas and just seeing what we discovered...

Today we went with some HS friends  (at the suggestion of my friend, THANKS RHONDA) to a park about 1 1/2 hrs. drive from our house... It was a beautiful park and a great place to have some relaxed impromptu school and nature study...

Armed with or backpacks containing our miscellaneous nature guides, binoculars, field mini-microscopes, bug nets, sketch pads, and colored pencils down the trails we went... One of my favorite books for this is Anna Comstocks "Handbook of Nature Study" , a must have for any homeschool library in my opinion... I had always borrowed it from a friend or the library, but I broke down in the spring and purchased my own copy...



Here are some pictures from our adventures today...

[caption id="attachment_772180" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The kids and their friends about to take off on their ourdoor adventure..."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_772181" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Looking at the ducks..."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_772183" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Looking for tadpoles..."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_772184" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Doing some sketching of items we saw along the way... "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_772185" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Just enjoying the beautiful park... "][/caption]

Slip N' Slide Fun

Nothing beats getting wet on a hot day!! 

We've been having record 90+ degree heat for the whole month of July (and part of June)... Looking forward to the cooling temps. of fall!!

And yes, those are my toes!! *LOL*

This week's Freebie from Currclick

This week Currclick as something for those lapbook lovers out there (of which I am one~ even though we do more notebooking with some mini-books and lapbook pieces thrown in now)...

It's the Vaera or Exodus 6-9 Interactive Lap Folder~ which contains a lesson from Exodus...In this lapbook you learn about the first 7 plagues that God brought upon the Egyptians in preparation for releasing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and creating the Jewish nation.  It contains over 10 activities including cutting, coloring and pasting to make pop up books...

We look forward to adding this into our bible and history studies!!

Top 10 Answers You Should NEVER Give to the Question "What?! No School Today?"

School Planning for the New Year 2010-2011

Yes, it's that time again... Every July I begin the practice of planning my new school year... I usually have a good idea in mind what curriculums to use and what areas to cover, but I always refer back to a specific book that has helped me tremendously since I started homeschooling 6 years ago...

Home Learning Year by Year by Rebecca Rupp



It cover Preschool through 12th grade and is very detailed with specific comments about what is expected... It is perfect for those who have questions about what to teach next, whether they are on the right track, or like me just want an idea of where to go next... The resource lists are great and it is a definite help for those of us who like to use unit studies or like to make our own...

Another great resource is, yes, another book by Rebecca Rupp... "THE COMPLETE HOME LEARNING SOURCE BOOK"



I pull this out every year as I look at different curriculums and when I am planning our unit studies... It's classified by subject area and sub-divided into topics, so you can easily find resources for what you are looking for whether it includes books, films, science kits, board games, coloring books and more ... A treasured item in our HS library for sure... The only draw back is that it could use some updating as new curriculums and resources are continually coming out...

And last I always turn to "HOMESCHOOL SHARE" ... This has to be my favorite FREE resource ever!!! I use things from this website all year long, whether it be a literature-based unit study, a lapbook, mini-books to go along with a book or subject that we are using or studying... I can't say enough about the wonderful things you will find there... and all the hard work put in by different homeschoolers and their willingness to share their work with others.. It has definitely been a blessing to our homeschool...

Well, these are the things that I use every year as I plan... If you have any other resources, I would love to hear about them... Anything that makes planning easier is certainly a benefit to us all...

Have a great week!!

Junior Rangers

This year the kidlets finally completed their Junior Ranger Programs and were sworn in and received badges making them full "JUNIOR RANGERS"... This is a program sponsored by the National Park Service where kids visiting National Parks attend classes (which are FREE) and complete a workbook... My kids have been working on theirs for a couple of years as we have always been able to attend a few classes but never met the requrement for that summer... This year the number of classes was lowered to 3 and we were able to complete all of them and count them as school days  as well...

BTW, DH and I also got to complete our "NOT-SO Junior Ranger" programs and recieved our patches in the mail...