Please note my posts may contain affiliate links. The money we earn from affiliates goes towards funding our homeschool supplies and our Website, and doesn't cost you anything extra. You can read more about how that works here. Thank you in advance for your purchases.
I wanted to set a goal of doing more extensive Map work this year. In addition to Geography, we plan on integrating map work into our other studies. The maps I bought last year were just too big, so this year I invested in these Brewster Wall Pop Maps-both the U.S. and World Maps. I really liked the size of these maps 24"x36"-Big enough to see the details, but not so big that they are cumbersome to handle and work with.
Finding a place to display a map, can be a bit of a challenge in our space. These maps are peel and stick if you have the wall space. Knowing I wanted something portable I went on the hunt to find something that work work for us.
I knew I wanted something that we could take out and put away, and I was so excited when I found that Staples carried a large 30x40 Foam Project Board for about $6! Sold!
With some help from the Hubby, I was able to place one map on each side. My initial plan was to trim the edges, but after some re-thinking (Honesty: I really didn't want to deal with the trimming) I decided to leave the border around the edges. I figured if we get into a project we could have a space for sticky notes and information.
So there you have it our Portable Map! How do you display your map? Have you come up with an inventive way of displaying it in your space? I'd love to see it. Please note my posts may contain affiliate links. The money we earn from affiliates goes towards funding our homeschool supplies and our Website, and doesn't cost you anything extra. You can read more about how that works here. Thank you in advance for your purchases. In April of this year we raised Baby Praying Mantis'. You can find out directions on how to do this here. We were lucky enough to find our Mantis Egg sack at our Local Fred Meyer (in the indoor gardening section) but you can also purchase them on Amazon. It felt like it was taking a long time, and we almost gave up, so happy we didn't. We successfully released our Mantises into the wild (of our backyard) and wondered if we would ever see them again. As we approached the end of Summer we are surprised to see a Large Mantis Clinging to our Rock Wall. We gently placed him in our Butterfly Cage, and picked up some small crickets from the local pet store. Watching the Mantis eat was so exciting! After a few days of observation we let it go. Of course there is know way of knowing if this was one that we raised, but we sure enjoyed it's visit! Can you find him in the Rose Bush? Have you raised any insects?
We plan to use this Website as a Daily resource much more! I am working hard to add our supplementary resources (Website Links, Videos, and Book Links, etc.) . Without further adieu- here is what we have chosen for 7th grade:
Math: Teaching Textbooks Grade 7
We started Teaching Textbooks last year. I want to shout from the roof top how much I LOVE this program. Not only do I love it, but my Son enjoys it as well. Some of the Things we like: the lessons are perfect in length for Connor, and He is able to work independently. The Narration is done in a clear. Normal voice (not "Cartooney") like some of the other "on-line" programs we have tried.
Science: Harcourt Science Fusion For Middle School
We started Science fusion at the end of last year. We purchased their Module on Cells and Heredity. Science Fusion offers 11 Modules to cover in Middle School in no particular order. My Thoughts on this program: We really enjoyed the workbook. It is easy to read, we enjoy the graphics, and the pacing is nice.
Some things that turn me off about the program: The on-line component. I so wanted to fall in love with this component, but I just didn't. It was mostly re-reading the text in the workbook, and the other activities were too slow and boring for Connor. It was also very difficult to get logged on and set up on-line (They set up your home as a "School"-it's clear they haven't done much to customize the ordering process for homeschool families). It is also expensive at $55 a Module ($605 for the program). We decided to continue with Science Fusion this year, but we purchased the Textbooks On-line. We got a Slamming deal! $50 for all Modules. I plan to supplement the Books with On-line resources (Links to youtube/netflix videos, Websites), hands on Science Experiments from Pinterest and resources from Home Science Tools. Social Studies
History: We are focusing on U.S History this year. We are taking more of a Unit Study approach to Social Studies as well. I am collecting supplemental resources for different periods and posting them here-so feel free to use them for your child! We did U.S History Last year, but this year we will focus more in depth, and will tie in literature.
We are also starting a History Timeline Binder this year, to record the the things we learn about.
Geography:
We purchased two new Wall Pop Dry Erase Maps this year! I'm so excited about that! We have limited wall space, but I'm working on a "Portable Option"-I'll be sure to post it and link up once we complete it. We plan to mark places we discover during our lessons with dry erase markers. We plan to assign colors to each subject (For example: Red: History, Orange: Language Arts, Green: Science, Purple: Places we've visited etc.) Obviously a work in progress that we'll be sure to share.
I've been so fortunate to find so many great resources at our Goodwill. Last year I found a 1,000 Places to See before you die board game. It has Great Photo cards of so many amazing places. We plan on using the cards as a fun activity (Pick a few each day) to explore and mark on our Map. Connor enjoys cooking so we are also going to explore new places through cooking this year.
Current Events: We purchased a Subscription to Junior Scholastic this year. If you order be sure to let them know you are a homeschooling family. They have a special rate for Homeschoolers that includes the Teacher's Guide, and On-Line access to resources. We also renewed our annual subscription to our News-O-Matic app, it's one of my Son's favorites! The stories are up to date and easy for kids to understand.
Language Arts
Literature:
Connor will read books related to our History Units, in addition to his free reading choices. He's currently reading The Hobbit. Grammar: We are going withGrowing with Grammar again this year. We really like these books from Jac Kris Publishing. Spelling & Vocabulary: We Choose Soaring with Spelling and Vocabulary from Jac Kris Publishing Writing Composition: This year we connected with a Writing Tutor from Wyzant. I don't know why I never did that before. She is so great with Connor. I know it's a shameless plug but if you sign up using our link you will receive a $40 Credit towards your first tutoring session! We will be starting a Weekly Writing Workshop with Connor's Wyzant Tutor this year. We plan to have about 4-5 more kiddos join us for a 1-hour session every week. We are also going to start a new curriculum called "Writing with the Best" Volume 1 and Volume 2. The nice thing about this curriculum is that it covers up to Grade 12. Extra Curricular
P.E: Connor is enrolling PT at our local school for P.E this year. He also plans to sign up for some of their extra curricular offerings (I'm not sure which class he'll get in yet).
Culinary: Connor will work on his cooking skills some more this year. He will continue to work on his Dog Treat Business "Connor's Canine Confections". We will be using the Eat your way around the world cookbook, and some other cook books he found at Goodwill. Woodshop: Connor has requested to start wood working projects-this has been assigned to G! The two of them will be using "Woodshop 101 for Kids". I've just browsed this book, but it looks to be outlined really nicely with a Skill presented (Such as hammering), Followed by a related wood working project. Greg has already made a mental shopping list of supplies he'll "need". I see a trip to ACE Hardware in his near future. Art: We are going to be using "Art Is Fundamental: Teaching the Elements and Principles of Art in Elementary School". This book is geared for elementary student-but it will make a great jumping off point for Connor this year. I like how it teaches the elements and principles of Art. I'm not a big fan of "re-creating" Artists work, but would rather focus on how to use materials and techniques. For High School I'd like to look into Elements and Principals of Design. Inspiration
I have been inspired by Homeschool Blogger Tina and her "Experience-Based Learning" system over at her Experienced Realm Blog, so this year we will put extra emphasis on Creating, Listening, Watching, Playing, and Writing-in addition to Reading which we do the most of.
I've also been inspired to record more of our Homeschool Journey on-line this year. If you are following us please be sure to leave a comment. Throughout our webpage you will find affiliate links for the products we are using (and plan on using). We receive a small commission from the affiliate as a referral with no extra charge to you! We appreciate you using our links for your purchases and they help maintain this page, as well as purchase our homeschool supplies. If you are using some of the same curriculum as us, please be sure to share anything you loved! |
AuthorHi, I'm Melissa.. Mom to Connor. Archives
February 2017
Categories
All
|