Crashed!

My computer has died, so it may be a while before I can get back to my blogging. Merry Christmas and happy new year to all of you!

Viking Food

The kids and I made these oatcakes as part of our unit study on the Vikings. This simple recipe can be found at Ragnhild's Recipes. (*Note: Bacon/meat drippings can be quite smoky in the house. :) Make sure your frying pan or griddle is really hot. Works better.

Vikings

Viking Tunic Pattern-more in depth, but can be simplified

About Viking Clothing

Viking History-everything about vikings aimed at elementary age

Viking Vocabulary:

rune
Denmark
stone
clothes
food
Viking
ship
raid
jewelry
bread
honey
axe
sword
dagger
knitting
woman
man
women
men
child
children
write

Interesting Viking info:

L'Anse aux Meadows (from the French L'Anse-aux-Méduses or "Jellyfish Cove
located in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, where the remains of a Viking village were discovered in 1960 by the Norwegian explorer Helge Ingstad and his archaeologist wife, Anne Stine Ingstad.
A group of Norse colonists lived here around the year AD 1000.

The settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows consisted of at least eight buildings, including a forge and smelter, and a lumber yard that supported a shipyard. The largest house measured 28.8 by 15.6 m and consisted of several rooms. Sewing and knitting tools found at the site indicate women were present at L'Anse aux Meadows.
The settlement, dating more than five hundred years before Christopher Columbus, contains the earliest European structures in North America.

Viking, also called Norseman or Northman, refers to a member of the Scandinavian seafaring traders, warriors and pirates who raided and colonized.

In the 8th century was the arrival of missionaries in Denmark. Actual Christianization of the people was very slow and took at least 150-200 years.-taken from Wikipedia

Ancient Recipes, Clothes Pattern

Want to cook what different people groups did in ages past? Check out this link for recipes.

Want to make period clothing? This site was good source of a variety of patterns.

Charts, Pages, Records, Calendars

hi5 Graphics

Free printable Mini charts (a bit of everything here-check out the science charts!)

Notebooking pages (devotional journal pages, math-u-see records, calculadder progress chart, etc)

Jan Brett (printable calendars, bulletin board borders and anything else for it, posters certificates, and all done with great animal pics)

Library spot (calendars...though this is primarily an online library)

Gone for the holidays-be back in the fall!

Used Books for Sale-Canada

Here are some great links for Canadians to buy used Homeschool books:

*We Love Books-found some great deals here.

*CanBook Exchange-have to join (free) to this yahoo group

I'll be adding any more I find as I come across it :)

Under the Sea

Here are some great FREE links to sea creatures and under water life:


*Sea Creatures-tons of stuff here: sea animal chart, octopus video-Baltimore National Aquarium, Drawing sharks and turtles, Interactive Activities, Lesson Plans, and much more.

*Photographs of Sea Creatures-very beautiful (great for art class and for viewing)

*Sea Life-lots of everything here: research, lesson plans, online and offline activities (ocean writing activities, arts and crafts, jellyfish video, other short video clips of sea creatures)

*Sea Creatures Lately Discovered-some previously thought to be extinct and some never before seen (pictures and descriptions)

*Creatures of the Deep-layers of the ocean,deep sea creatures, hydrothermal vents and life around them, giant squid, activities and games (looks like a really great site!)

*Nova online-Deep Sea Bestiary

*10 Horrible Deep Sea Creatures (pictures may be a little scary for young ones)

*Sea coloring pages

*Moses and the Parting of the Red Sea coloring page(two pages:click on Oude Testament, then on Het volk door de zee 1 and 2)

*Ocean Animal Printouts

*National Geographic-sea life

*Discovery of Sounds in the Sea-large audio gallery (hear different sea creature's sounds)

*Sounds Underwater quiz-How do we hear underwater

Space...Our Latest Frontier

Solar systems, space exploration, sun and the moon and the stars. Here are some great FREE links to these topics:

*Interactive solar system-online learning for teachers and students

*Space vocabulary

*Solar System Model and worksheets

*Solar System Live-see where the planets are right now!(can also track from any given location at any time...and track an asteroid!! Too cool!)

*The Challenger Center-lots here for all

*Solar system-many links to a variety of sites on this topic

*Solar System Web Quest-is advertised for grade 2's (looks very cool!)

Have fun exploring all these great resources and let let me know of any other links that you find and I will post them.

We're Back!

Thanks for being patient-we're back into the swing of things once more!

Field Trips and Tours

Field trips and tours are a fun aspect of homeschooling. Here are some ideas and trips in the works:

*Want to travel overseas with other homeschoolers at a great price? http://masterworkstours.blogspot.com has all the info for you.

*King's Landing Offers Educational Programs in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.

Kings Landing Historical Settlement Spring Session - 2007
Note:School programs during this time will be conducted in one part of the settlement only as we prepare the remainder of the site for opening day, June 2, 2007.
(Available:March 27, 28, 29 and 30, 2007) 19th Century Sugar Bush Program for Schools (by reservations for all grades)
Kings Landing's Sugar Bush will demonstrate methods of sugaring off in 19th century New Brunswick. Explore who the people are we represent at Kings Landing and discover how they made use of their natural environment as you visit our Sugar Bush. Sample maple sap and maple candy on the snow, and experience the process of sugaring off from beginning to end. Length of Program: 2 hours Fee $6.00 per student

May 9 - June 1, 2007
Grades 1 and 2: Role of a Young Child - Students will explore the role of the young child in the 19th century family. The position of a child in the home will be presented through discussion, exploration and chores. Your activity will include experiencing a typical chore for a child and discovering its importance to family survival.
OR
Grades 3 and 4: Community Members and Lifestyle
Students will explore and discover the community members and their lifestyle. You will identify our Loyalist families, their trades and why they settled along the St. John River Valley. You will discuss responsibilities of young people and experience a typical chore of the 19th century.
OR
Grades 5 and 6: Early Settlement and Resources
Students will explore the geographical features of Kings Landing Historical Settlement and their resources available in early communities. You will examine methods of communication and settlement patterns through a newspaper and maps.
OR
Grade 7 - 12: Students are welcome to visit our site. Please contact us and we will work with you to plan a tour to suit your needs.
(Everyone can pick what groups you want. I will call and see what the minimum amount is to have a group. We'll all go on the same day-if we can. We'll car-pool from Moncton and split gas costs.)
May 26'th (Saturday) is the day set aside for this trip. Please mark it on your calendars. We will bring bag lunches for a picnic. Leave a comment if you are planning to attend, which group your interested in, and how many people are planning to attend from your family.

Story Writing and Inspirational Freebies

This is a subject dear to my heart, of late. Writing. Here are some interesting sites to visit on the topic:

*Fantasy and SF Name Generators (Fantasy Character Name Generators, Fantasy Place Name Generators, Science Fiction Name Generator, Villain Name Generator, SF McGuffin Generator (sort of like the ultimate story item-Flux Capasitors, etc)-find all these links at Where the Map Ends. Very cool and a great way to spark your childs imagination (and yours too). (all-some links off site may need parental guidance)

*CSFF Blog Tour has a list of Christian authors in the fantasy fiction/science fiction genres. Check out there blogs, read some of their writings, see what's available for your kids (and you) to read. especially check out Tessa Edwards, a young budding author with lots of stories to read on her blog.(Note:Many of these blogs have tips on how to write and what to expect as a writer) Also see my writing blog Quest Writer.(teens and adults)

*Dragons, Knights and Angels is an online magazine (Christian fantasy/science/speculative fiction) where you can read or submit writing.(teens and adults) (*Note: They have a contest, open as of the 20th, with a $60 cash first prize, plus publication, plus some software goodies from Jeff Gerke.-Thanks Mirtika for the info)

*Faith Writers is a place to read and exercise your own writing. (all)

*The Copyright Symbol Webpage-find out about copywriting and add a symbol to your writing.(all)

*Critters Workshop- a great place to learn how to critique/edit writing. Anyone can do it here, within their guideline. You can also submit work to be editied-for free. A great site. (Teens and adults)

*Story Starters (kids)

* Neat facts about kid authors http://www.realkids.com/authors.shtml

*Young Writers' Clubhouse- a bit of everything here (kids)

*Index to Children's Book Authors & Illustrators

*Open Directory - Kids and Teens: School Time: English: Writing (ABC's of writing for all ages)

Sooo, check these out and start writing:)

Worksheet Makers and much more

This week we are featuring worksheet makers-from puzzles to writing paper, to scrapbooks, to journal pages!

*Handwriting Worksheet Maker -BASIC PRINT, D'NEALIAN STYLE, CURSIVE

*Puzzlemaker is a puzzle generation tool for teachers, students and parents. Create and print customized word search, crossword and math puzzles using your word lists.

*Word Scrambler (puzzle maker)

*Free Online Graph Paper / Grid Paper PDFs(every kind of paper imaginable-including Writing / Penmanship / Note-Taking, etc). Downloadable and printable.

*Can't find what you're looking for? Try this LINK for more

*Or try here for journal pages, scrapbook pages and much more.

Have fun exploring these sites and happy homeschooling!

All Things Medieval

"Fair people of internet land, we welcome thee to our Medieval page of Freebies. Let the games begin!"

Build a medieval castle

Shields, Knights and Heraldry

Heraldry Game

Medieval Demographics Made Easy (Note:Especially for gamers, but I found the info invaluable)

Middle Ages Site (variety of info here)

Middle Ages(another site full of historical info)

Illuminated Manuscripts (not free but free to view)

I'm sure there are many more sights out there. Please feel free to add links to your favorite ones, in the comments.
Enjoy!

Reading Freebies

*Did you know that Home Educators (that means you, mom and dad) can get a free Teacher's library card? This enables you to take out books for 6 weeks instead of the usual 3 weeks. VHS and DVD are only able to be borrowed for 3 weeks.

On the topic of reading, check out these freebies of the week:

*This site will allow you to read books online-many different languages available Read Books Here.
*The Home School Mom has provided a directory of online Christian books.
* This site, Reading A-Z, provides online reading and categorized according to level.
* Free Christian Audio Books provides the teen/adult listener with some great options to hear.
*Clearwater Press offers podcasts of a really interesting book, Runt the Brave. This one has really caught my eye!
Also, see my Quest Writer blog for info and links to more great reads and buys!


As always, please preview this material and make sure it is fit for your family. Enjoy!

Free traceable fonts

-Free fonts to make traceable worksheets! These fonts, when loaded into your computers fonts, enable you to type like usual and yet get traceable letters.
-Both manuscript (printing) and cursive are available.

Note: These links will take you to different sites.

*Print Clearly and Print Clearly Dashed =printing
http://www.bvfonts.com/fonts/fonts.php?show=free&by=date

*Learning curve dashed BV=cursive traceable and non-traceable http://www.reflectdesign.com/bvfonts/learning_curve.html

Q:How do you install the fonts onto your computer?

A:After you have downloaded and unzipped your fonts, keep the window where it is located open (on a downsized screen). Go to start on your computer, then settings, and then control panel. There click on fonts. Downsize this window as well. Then simply click and drag the font into your "font file". It will automatically show up when you type on Word or whatever.

Note: to connect the cursive letters together into words, simply go into (windows/word) format,then font, click onto character spacing. In the spacing option, click on condenced and then click on "by:" to slide the letters closer together.

Happy Writing!

What is going on in your area?

*CHB - Canadian Homeschooler's Board: http://cpeicheff.proboards26.com/index.cgi#general is a forum of Homeschoolers.

*http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/NewBrunswick/ :Homeschool Nations - New Brunswick, Canada (homeschooling in NB-full of freebies and contests, etc).

*Attention Monctoon Area Homeschoolers: View this link to get news on what is going on in your area: http://www.xanga.com/monctonareahomeschoolers.
also Maritime Homeschooling support group online : http://ca.groups.yahoo.com/group/maritimehomeschooling/

*World-wide homeschoolers: http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschool_Nations/ or http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/aroundtheworld

*Military homeschoolers : http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschool_Nations/states/military.php

and also:

*Military Homeschoolers of Monterey Bayhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/montereyhomeschoolmilitary/

*San Antonio Military Home Educatorscyndilh@satx.rr.com

*Hanscom Homeschool Groupaustinsmom197@yahoo.com

*Eielson AFB & Ft. Wainwright Home Schoolershttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/eielsonwainwrighthomeschoolers

*Macdill AFB in Tampa, FL. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/macdillhs/

*Homeschooling/Afterschooling in Japanhttp://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~ja8i-brtl/

*Homeschooling Parents and Children Together (PACT)http://members.tripod.com/~HomeschoolingPACT/

Any others that you know of? Please leave a comment!

Homeschool Blog Tour

In March, we are planning to have a Home School Blog Tour. This is open to any parents who are teaching your children and have a blog and also to homeschooled kids (parents, please take any safety measures necessary to protect your kids). The purpose is that we might all be able to connect and encourage each other and to get tips, lesson ideas, etc.

Free homeschool materials, links to various sites, etc. will be showcased.

Want to participate?
Please email us and we will get back to you with more info.

Happy homeschooling!