Klutz Books

Klutz books are great.  They teach you all sorts of crafts and come in a neat package with a book.  We first got the Chicken Socks books which are Klutz books for little kids.  Hand Art, Melty Beads, and a book to make puppets entertained our kids for a long time.  They don't require much explanation and the kids can pick them up and teach themselves.

We bought a lot of others after that:  Paper Airplanes, Paper Dolls, Shrinky Dink Art, Lettering, Paper Stain Glass Art, and Pipe Cleaner Art.   Our favorite so far was "Beadlings" which you make little bead creatures.  I am afraid that was discontinued but you can still buy used ones on Amazon.

Playdough

My kids still love to play play dough even though they are going to sixth and fourth grade.  :)  This is a fun summer activity.

Playdough Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon oil
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
Food coloring by drops

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a pan and stir.  Cook over low heat, stirring until a ball forms.

2. Add food coloring and mix thoroughly until desired color.

3. Cool on foil. Store in covered container.

This is an easier to make version of a playdough recipe, there is no cooking involved.

No-Cook Playdough Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup salt
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup water
2 Tablespoons oil
A few drops of food coloring

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients very well and store in plastic bag or covered jar.

This was taken from momswhothink.com

More Great Books For Kids

My son just recently read Brayden Rider:  Tales of a Medieval Boy by C.L. Barnett.  This is a new author from Northern Virginia.  He really loved it and said it was well written.  I am reading it right now.  It's rare to find books that you think will become classics.  He is planning to have sequels to this book. 



Another book that my daughter read recently was another in the Starlight Snowdog series called "Arctic Adventure" which is about a girl that found a magic dog that could transport her to the Arctic.  She becomes the leader of the Starlight snowdogs.


Another good book that my kids just read was "The Middle Moffat" by Eleanor Estes.  

Anyone found any good novels for kids?

End of WW I links

We finally finished studying WW I.  We ended with coloring maps of Europe before and after the war. I found good before and after maps on the following website.  I copied the maps and printed them.  We discussed the differences they saw in the two maps.
http://todayinsocialsciences.blogspot.com/2013/05/15052013.html

Then, I showed the interactive map on this website to the kids and we wrote some major terms of the Treaty of Versailles down.
www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/mwh/ir1/thetreatyrev1.shtml

The Spark

I just read the most amazing book recently. My husband actually recommended that I read it.  It is called "The Spark" by Kristine Barnett.  Her story is really incredible as she describes how she deals with having an autistic child.  Rather than letting that label discourage her and limit her son, she does everything she can to provide an environment where he can thrive and develop his gifts.  In the process, she helps many others like her son.

This book is really a must read. I do not have an autistic son.  However, he is very rule bound and schedule bound.  He has just a few passions in his life:  books, history, military strategy games, and Legos.  He loves facts and telling us about the historical facts that he has learned.  

Reading this book helped me to appreciate more the way God has uniquely created my son.

I hope you all can read this and be encouraged!  My son actually read this book himself and loved it.  

A Good Book and Movie for WWII

Although we are still not finished studying about WW1, I wanted to share with you two good things that have been helpful for us.  Watching historical movies and fiction really helps to make history come alive.

I recently bought a 4 American Girl movie DVD set.  Some of you guys may roll your eyes when you hear American Girl.  I was pleasantly surprised that my very boy boy enjoyed the movies.  "Kit" is about the Great Depression, "Samantha" is about the Victorian period, "Felicity" is about the Revolutionary War time, and "Molly" is about World War I.  Overall, they were pretty entertaining for the whole family to watch and I really liked seeing the period costumes and sets.  I highly recommend them and if you live nearby, feel free to borrow from me.  :)



A book I am reading out loud to the kids right now is "Eleanor Jo, The Farmer's Daughter".  This is another book by Eleanor Clark.  It's based on her life growing up in the WWII era.  What's really interesting is that she describes her life in a Texas town which made it all the more real for us, having spent part of our life in Texas.  We got this on Kindle.

Homeschooling blog to read and More Reading Books for Kids

I just recently found a homeschooling blog that seems very helpful.  You may want to read it.

halfahundredacrewood.com

They gather links and ideas for every weeks lessons.  They are doing the classical school method, but they had some helpful ideas for american history and world war 1, etc.  Plus, they have some free giveaway raffles from time to time!

I am always looking for books to read since it's hard to find quality books.

Here are some books that the kids have enjoyed on Kindle recently:

For 9 year olds and up
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls (About a boy and his dogs)


Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls

The Captain's Dog by Roland Smith (about Lewis and Clark expedition)

For kids who like animals:

Obi Gerbil on a Mission by Michael Delaney

Dog Diaries:Buddy by Kate Klimo (this is a whole series about different kinds of dogs written from their perspective)