Homemade Birthdays: Out and About

We have a lot of fun with birthday parties around here.
We spend time together planning them and try to be as creative as we can making and using what we have on hand to put them together. Occasionally we will plan a party away from home, but we go for educational kinds of parties.

We had a party at a local historical museum and a party at a science center (where everyone had fun). This summer we are planning a nature class (on birds) at a local environmental center.

See Homemade Birthdays:



Decorations 

Food and Cake

Games and Activities

Crafts

Keepsakes

Dress-up

Out and About

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

Poppa Schooling the Kids [Warning-Dissection ahead]

 And so...there are times when I don't have the stomach for homeschool my Ceesa. When she looked at me one day and said, "I want to see what a muscle looks like," I knew the day was coming sooner than I thought it would.

I love learning with the kids, but well...

I can't dissect.

However Poppa can,

so without further ado...

The sheep's brain dissection...

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

Making Clouds

This is a really fun experiment we did this week.

The ice water on top and the hot water on the bottom makes clouds and "rain."

From Super Charged Science (affiliate)

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

Disclaimer: This post contains an affiliate link. All affiliate links are for things that we use and are comfortable recommending to you based on our experience. We will not share a product or company if we don’t use the item in our homeschool. If you click on our affiliate links, you support our homeschool and blog. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations.

Camping Meals from your Camper

When you are going camping, you have lots of options for food. And while your kitchen might be minuscule, your cooking doesn't have to suffer. Our camper has a small oven and stove and a mini-fridge with a freezer.

Cooking things ahead is key to great meals on a camping trip. Try pre-cooking sauces and meats, freeze them in baggies that you can stack flat for optimal room. Some can stay frozen in the little freezer and others can defrost in the fridge so that you can use them first.

Take as much canned and dry food as you can. Make batches of pancake mix, muffin mix, or biscuit mix with everything but the water. A stash of veggies that are canned make excellent add-ins to mix with your cooked meats for a casserole. Mix up some biscuit mix to top your casserole.

Take your crock pot. If you will be at one site for several days, you can put a frozen lasagna in the crock and let it cook all day.

Make doughs ahead. You can make pizza dough ahead to refrigerate and pull out before you want to bake it. You can also make ahead a cookie dough and make the whole camper smell lovely with a batch of cookies.

Fresh fruits and vegetables from roadside stands make terrific sides. Corn can be grilled and there is nothing like juicy watermelon dripping down your chin on a hot day!

For over the fire, you can make bacon and eggs in a skillet. Or you can make packets with meat and veggies in foil to cook in the coals.

A lot of spots have grills and grilling is a great option. Burgers, steaks, chicken, pork, and loads of sides can be grilled. Peaches are terrific warmed, too.

Simple granola and cereals can fill in for breakfast when it is time to hit the road.

Always remember to pack lots of water and drinks, too! And don't forget the salt and pepper or your can opener!

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

End of Year Assessments and Narratives

What should you take to your year end homeschool evaluation? I'm a licensed teacher for our state, so for the last six years I've completed many, many evaluations for homeschoolers. In my state, the child only has to make improvement according to his ablities, not be perfect. As a homeschool parent, I see that distinction very clearly.

You can help out the person doing your evaluation by a little advanced preparation.

Bring a portfolio for the year with samples of your child's work. Not just the best assessment type of work. Bring samples of what your child has really spent his time doing. Pictures are great for things that aren't documented any other way.

I ask the folks that I do evaluations for to spend a little time filling out these questions. It helps me tremendously and saves time. The subject titles are those required of us to teach in a year.

Your Child’s Name:

Grade:

Language Arts
What did your child read, if applicable?
What pieces were read to your child (that wouldn’t be considered social studies or science content)? Include poetry.
What kinds of spelling/vocabulary/word learning did your child participate in?
What pieces did your child dictate or write?

Math
What concepts did your child cover in mathematics? (For example: fractions, geometry, skip counting)

Social Studies & History
Did your child have any social studies/history field trips?
What topics were covered?
What literature did your child use in this area?
Were there any particular social studies skills were acquired? (Example: Mapping, family responsibility)

Science/Health
Did your child have any science field trips?
What topics were covered?
What literature did your child use in this area?
Did your child participate in any experiments? What were they?

Art/Music/Physical Education
What types of art projects did your child participate in?
Did your child study an art time period, an artist, art pieces, or a style?
Did your child go to an art show?
What types of music did your child participate in? Vocal or instrumental?
Did your child attend any concerts?
Did your child learn any particular pieces?
How does your child like to exercise?
Did your child participate in a physical education program or a class?
What types of exercise play does your child enjoy?

First aid, Safety, and Fire Prevention
How did your child meet this requirement? (For example: Field trips-fire department)

Have a great year end evaluation!

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

This Moment: School with Poppa

this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.

A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Inspired by soulemama

Wishing you homeschool blessings,

Joyful Moments: Fiddler Crabs

Join us for Joyful Moments

at Little Homeschool Blessings.

This week we've found joy here...

We'd love to see the Joyful Moments in your home. Whether you homeschool or not, feel free to join in every Thursday! Then visit the other links and see Joyful Moments from other places!  Just add our button and leave your link in the comments.

Wishing you homeschool blessings,