Focus on the Family’s Super Bowl commercial with Pam and Tim Tebow

February 15, 2010 WP Admin Leave a comment

Well the commercial came and went at the beginning of the first quarter. It was plain and simple but had a great message. Not sure what all the fuzz was all about in the liberal side. It’s funny to watch people comment on all of the cable news channel about something no one had seem at the time.

Resources

No-Cost Online Math Curriculum & More!

February 15, 2010 WP Admin Leave a comment

Age Range: 4-11 (Grades PreK-6, however, only PreK-2 is currently available. Content for 4-6, will be released later in 2010.)

I’ve been hearing lots of buzz on the launch of the “Head of the Class” website that provides “free resources for math, reading, writing, spelling, science, history, geography, Spanish, art, music, and more!”
This free online, curriculum-based instruction is delivered through multimedia including:

Videos presenting how-to activities
Applications that teach math, phonics and spelling
Online Coaching by the site’s mascots, Happy & Max
Dynamic Worksheets – the content changes each time they’re opened
Assessment Tests that measure progress and automatically adjusts the curriculum to the student’s level

When you get to this ad-supported site, use the menu on the left to view the course outline for grades PreK-2. You can also see samples pages of the course content. To access all of the free content you must create a login account.
Use the menu at the top of the page to view “Getting Started” that explains (through online videos) how this site works.

Events

Used Curriculum Sale

February 14, 2010 WP Admin Leave a comment

HEARTS HOMESCHOOLERS is having their Used Curriculum Sale on Thursday, May 6th during their regular monthly meeting. Save the date…..the location is as follows:

New Testament Baptist Chuirch
13900 Griffin Road
Southwest Ranches, FL 33330

This event is free for all HEARTS Members. If you are selling curriculum you will need to sign up to reserve a table. We will be limited to 50 tables. The fee for non-HEARTS Members will be $5.00. To reserve a table email Gladys @ gladysvandesande@comcast.net or use the form below.

Please use the form below to send an email to the site administrator.

Legal Defense

Oppose Federal Funding for Early Education Programs

September 16, 2009 WP Admin Leave a comment

The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote today or tomorrow on H.R. 3221, the “Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009.”

This bill should be opposed for the following reasons:

It will create federal funding for state early education programs for children from birth to 5 years old, allowing government officials to make parenting decisions for children in these programs;
States may use the funds to create mandatory early education programs, since the bill does not require that the programs be voluntary;
The states will have an economic incentive to increase the number of children in early education programs, and may pressure families to enroll their children in these programs;
It will greatly increase the size and scope of the federal government’s involvement in education.

You can read HSLDA’s detailed legislative analysis of H.R. 3221 here: http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=6971

ACTION REQUESTED

Please call your U.S. Representative with the following message. There is no need to identify yourself as a homeschooler:

“Please oppose H.R. 3221. This bill will create new federal funding for early education programs in the states. The federal government should not expand its involvement in early education programs. Parents, not federal or state officials, should decide what is appropriate for their children.”

You may find the contact information for your U.S. Representative by using HSLDA’s Legislative Toolbox: http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?id=6972

Fun Stuff

How to Make a Marshmallow Gun

August 27, 2009 WP Admin Leave a comment

Marshmallow guns are fun, while remaining accurate but non-lethal. The basic idea is that you blow into a series of PVC tubes to push out a marshmallow. Great for parties and having fun with your kids.

For step by step detail go to http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Marshmallow-Gun

Resources

The Top 100 Educational Websites of 2009

August 20, 2009 WP Admin Leave a comment

Homeschool.com product testers have selected the Top 100 Educational Websites of 2009. They asked 7,000 Product Testers to send a list of the educational sites that they like the best and use the most often. The three sites mentioned most often were:

The Top Sites for 2009

1) www.starfall.com
2) www.edhelper.com
3) www.time4learning.com

Note: Normally we would not include a commercial site on this list. However, so many people nominated Time4Learning, it seemed unfair to leave them off the list.

Click on a site name
Explore their site for awhile
If you love it, add it to your bookmarks
Then use the back button to come back to the main Top 100 list

All of these sites are safe, proven and used by thousands of parents just like you. So grab a cup of coffee, put your kids on your lap, and have fun exploring these wonderful sites.

Reference

Ed Helper
http://www.edhelper.com

School Express
http://www.schoolexpress.com/

Learning Page
http://www.learningpage.com

Tools for Educators
http://www.toolsforeducators.com

Britannica
http://www.britannica.com

Discovery School
http://school.discovery.com

Internet Public Library
http://www.ipl.org

New York Times Learning Network
http://www.nytimes.com/learning

Enchanted Learning
www.EnchantedLearning.com

Miscellaneous

Autism Today
http://www.autismtoday.com