Special Connection Homeschool

My latest review has been one of the most challenging I have ever done.  God in His infinite wisdom brought this product to us at just the right time and I am so grateful for having seen it.  I am also very eager to share it with all of you!  The Captivated DVD by MediaTalk101 addresses the dangers of living in a media saturated society.   Now before you start to think this is going to be some legalistic challenge to throw out your computer or TV, bear with me.  It is not about that at all.  It is about heeding the call of Scripture to take every thought captive, including those thoughts that come to us through some source of media outlet.  We are indeed saturated by media and whether we admit it or not it does affect our every day life and it is impacting our culture as never before.  They are very careful to point out that media can be used for good, but it can also be used for evil.  It can either make us deeper or more shallo...

OK, so it's not out yet, but it will be in just a few days.  Starting on Monday March 31st the movie Building the Machine will be available to view online for FREE.  I have been very skeptical of Common Core for quite some time.  As more and more states have signed on and began its implementation it has become apparent that it is a nightmare, at least for the public school student.  While I am a homeschooler I am also concerned about how they will eventually want to impose these standards on us. While there is much I still don't know, I do know that I trust the people behind making this film and I am eager to hear what they have to say.  Here is a trailer that might peak your interest.  If it does, be sure to go to the Building the Machine website on March 31st and see it for yourself! 

Gess has been really slow about memorizing her math facts.  She does fine if she memorizes one set at a time but when she starts to mix them up she seems to forget the ones that I know she knows.  She seems to do much better if she has a visual tool to help her out.  We used the book  Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome to make visual Math Fact Doubles cards.  They were really great and now she has those down by heart, even if they are all mixed up. Now we are trying to memorize all the facts that add up to 10.  Well using flash cards for this doesn't make much sense because the answer is always going to be 10.  So how do we get her to see which numbers we need?   I came up with a couple of activities to help her out. The first one we used for completing a worksheet or computer activity to practice the facts.  Since they weren't yet memorized she had this tool to help her find the answer. I had a pack of colored Unifix...

We have a lady at church that teaches oil painting.  Over the course of her life she has taught many students to paint.  Most of her work was with children who had been through troubled homes and environments.  It is a wonderful way to help heal some of the hurt and to get the children to express themselves in a positive way.  Now she is teaching Gess to paint and she is very pleased with how quickly Gess took to it.  She thinks that Gess will become really great at it.  That excites me.  Here are pictures of Gess going to one of her recent lessons in which she got to bring home her very first oil painting!

Today is March 21st and we are using that day, 3/21, to educate people about Down syndrome.  Trisomy 21 is the technical name for most cases of Down syndrome because there are 3 copies of the 21st chromosome instead of two.  That anomaly is what we refer to as Down syndrome.  While Down syndrome can be accompanied by many challenges, both medically and intellectually, life for a person with Down syndrome can be quite positive.  People are sometimes surprised to find that persons with Down syndrome have many of the same goals and desires as anyone else.  While the limitations that come with this particular genetic makeup does make it somewhat harder, with help, support, and the right resources many of those obstacles can be over come. Gesserine loves life.  She is a great reader and has a strong desire to learn about so many things.  She is fascinated by the weather and wants to be a meteorologist some day.  She is thrilled to learn about new t...

March 21st (3/21) is World Down Syndrome Day.  This day was chosen because the most common form of Down syndrome is Trisomy 21 which means that the person's 21st chromosome has 3 (tri) rather than the usual pair.  That anomaly is what causes all of the traits and medical issues that are common in persons with DS.  So they chose the 21st day of the 3rd month which makes 3/21 to help bring awareness to Down syndrome. To welcome in World Down Syndrome Day the International Down Syndrome Coalition hosted meet greets at several Great Wolf Lodges around the country.  We were super blessed that we were able to participate to this year.  Gess had the time of her life and was thrilled to go.  Besides the indoor water park, which is the big draw to the Great Wolf Lodge, they have other activities for the youngsters. Gess enjoyed the morning Wolf Walk where they learned about three types of animals.  A wolf, of course, was first. They learned that wolves are...

We had a sick day today as Gess is struggling with a sinus infection and bad cough.  The meds have finally started to work and so she woke up feeling better than she has in a few days.  Since it is Friday I decided to do no school and just let her rest.  So, what does a homeschool kid do when there is no school?  Study maps of course! Well that reminded me about this cool FREE tool I found awhile back.  I have been meaning to mention it on some Free Friday, so here you are!  It's the National Geographic MapMaker .  They have printable 1 page Maps as well as a colorful Interactive MapMaker where you can add your own data, tools, and themes to make your own maps. We were just studying about salmon so Gess wanted to learn about Alaska. Now she can add her own icons on the map.  Here she has fishing boats and of course fish to represent the salmon in the region we learned about. If you need some maps for class or have an aspiring map-o-olg...

I just want to remind everyone that the 321 eConference is just a little over a week away!  I will be presenting the session Homeschooling Helps on Friday March 21 at 3:00pm EST.  My desire is that the session will include quite a bit of participation and very little lecturing.  While I will share some ideas, struggles and tips I mostly want us all to feel free to share our experiences, ask questions and network for support.  I know so many families who homeschool and so many families who have a child with Down syndrome, but not enough families that do both! So considering joining us, not only for my session, but for the many other great topics related to Down syndrome!  I know I plan on attending quite a few! 3 days (March 21, 22 and 23) 21 hours of learning 21 sessions a day Only $21 per day.  To learn more about the 321 eConference or to register visit their website by clicking on the image below.

Easter is upon us and many parents are going to wonder how to get the true meaning of the holiday into the minds of children who are filled with thoughts of eggs and candy.  The latest product I reviewed is trying to address that very issue.  Egglo Entertainment has put a unique twist on hunting eggs. For the purpose of my review I recieved: Glow in the Dark Egglo Eggs The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Book The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Audio Book Download Egglo Treasures Scripture Scrolls The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Program Guide The Egglo Egg Experience is designed for kids ages 4-13 to help keep the focus of Easter on Jesus by reminding children that Jesus is the light of the world.  It is based off of John 1:5 which says "The Light shines in the dark and the darkness has not overcome it."  Instead of hunting eggs in the day time, you have a night time hunt and emphasize the importance of Jesus to light our way, not simply in the dark, but ...

We have been studying money so to put it into practice I decided it was time to see how much money Gess has saved up in her missions jar.  Gess made her jar a few years ago and started saving up money to buy a goat for people who were hungry.  We started with buying a goat because it did more than feed a family for one meal.  It gave them milk for many meals among other means of sustaining them.  We then purchased some ducks and water filters as other ways to help the needy.  Each time she saves up money in her jar she chooses where she wants it to go.  This time after we counted the money in her jar I asked her what mission she wanted to support. She enthusiastically said "the Sudan!"  I am not sure exactly what she knows about that region since we haven't studied it recently but it doesn't really matter.  If that is where her heart was, that is where we gave.  Well, sort of.  As a Baptist who is familiar with how their charities work...

Since I just shared about how I have used Motivated Moms to help me keep my house in order and also recently blogged about how Gesserine does not get allowance for doing her chores, I thought today I would share some tips on how we motivate Gess to actually get her chores done. First of all we started training her at an early age that she was expected to clean up her own mess.  Singing songs can sometimes make it seem like play.  "Now it's time to clean up, clean up, clean up. Now its time to clean up and put away our toys." Or "Gesserine is a helper. Gesserine is a helper.  Gesserine puts away her toys. Gesserine is a helper." As Gess has gotten older, she has gotten more responsibility and we have had to come up with new ways to motivate her to do her chores.  While we can't always make chores fun, we can help to make them a positive experience.  Below are a few of the ways we do that. 1. Have a great attitude .  If you hate chores, so will your k...

Motivated is not generally a term I would use to describe myself, especially when it comes to completing those every day tasks like dishes, laundry, and scrubbing toilets.   That is exactly why I asked to review Motivated Moms .  My house, like my life, is often in disarray and I needed some extra incentive to get things done.  When I read about my opportunity to review the Motivated Moms Ebooks I jumped at the chance!  Actually I was a bit less enthusiastic, but I knew I needed it for my own good. The Motivated Moms Ebook is a printable chore planning system for us mothers to use but of course it is useful for anyone running their own home, even if you are not yet a mom.  It comes in sixteen different formats which covers daily or weekly lists so there is one to suit just about every need.  I chose the 2014 Motivated Moms Chore Planner with Scheduled Bible Reading in Black and White .  You can also get it in color and without the bible readin...