Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!!!

We recently had the opportunity to take a field trip to an animal safari. I have to admit, I was a bit nervous upon viewing the sign posted above. The gates were enormous and it reminded me of the movie Jurassic Park, which was frightening, to say the least. This was one of those safari expeditions where you drive through in your vehicle and the animals come REALLY close to you. I had thoughts of wild animals suddenly stampeding us like you see on one of those TV shows. Thankfully, nothing that drastic happened and the  kids enjoyed traveling through each section of the safari. We were able to view many different animals. You are given a CD to listen to as you journey through each different habitat and so it was quite educational. At the end, we were able to get out and go to the hands-on section of the park where we hand-fed birds, pet baby goats, and fed giraffes. It was a fun day for all of us!

Dollar Tree Treasures

I have long been a fan of the "dollar sections" at various stores. My favorites are The Dollar Spot at Target and the Five and Under Finds at Michael's. Recently, I found these great items at our local Dollar Tree. I couldn't believe the great deal I got on the science project boards- $1 each! I have spent as much as $5.00 at other stores! I found large foam dice for various math games we like to play. I picked up 2 bags of colored clothespins for all the great letter and number matching printables you can get for free from Confessions of a Homeschooler. I found several different sets of sightwords and some inspirational stickers. Last but not least, I found these nice spinners. One is just a normal spinner you can use for all kinds of activities and the second one is a Word Wall Spinner. On it are various directions regarding words. For example, "Choose a word and use it in a sentence" or "Choose a word and define it." I thought this would be great for not only word walls but also for spelling or vocabulary words! So, if you live near a Dollar Tree, get out there today and find your treasures.

Color Cards Ideas

I found these cute little Disney paint color cards at Home Depot yesterday. We love all things Disney and so I thought these cards would be something I could use with my little guy for Kindergarten this year. I laminated the cards with my Xyron machine (which I absolutely adore!) and then I printed off these color word strips from Confessions of a Homeschooler (thank you!!!). What can you do with these color cards and words? Well, some ideas I came up with are:

• identify the colors by sight

• match the color word to the color card

• use 2 sets of color cards to play memory

• give the set of cards to your child and have them find 1 item in the house for each color

• Cut up the color word strips and have your child spell the colors using the letter tiles

What other ideas do you have? I would love to hear anyone's suggestions for using these cute little cards, and the next time you're at the Home Depot, why not pick up a set or two?

Isn't Life Great???

Rain is falling, it's falling, it's falling

Rain is falling, down on me!

One of the joys of childhood is playing in the rain on a hot summer day. My children absolutely love running through the backyard during a rain storm- no thunder or lightning of course! When is the last time you played in the rain???

Hurray For S'mores Day!!!

We are always looking for a reason to celebrate. Today happens to be National S'mores Day and so of course we just HAD to participate in a holiday that involves 2 of my favorite foods- marshmallows and chocolate!

OOOOOH!!! So good.....

My Favorite School Supply

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love school supplies. I could easily spend hours wandering through Office Depot. All those isles of pens, calendars, filing systems, and more send me into a state of giddiness! There is one item though at the very top of my list of favorites and that is my laminating machine. A friend of mine actually discovered this one day and after her demonstration, I knew I had to have one! I was spending WAY too much on laminating at our local store and the thought of being able to do it myself was thrilling! This machine is called the Xyron Creative Station and it is so absolutely simple to use that I became addicted immediately. Even my children can do it and they actually argue over who is going to get to laminate. The best part about it is, it does not use any electricity or batteries- just old fashioned hand cranking. Although the cartridges are somewhat expensive, I am able to purchase them 40% off the regular price at our local Michael's or JoAnn Fabrics. So, all you homeschooling moms out there- if there's one item to invest in, it would be this fantastic laminator. It will save you time and money, and its lots of fun!

Starfall Has Arrived!!!

I was very happy when the UPS truck showed up today with our Starfall materials! Starfall is the Kindergarten reading program I am using for my youngest child this year. I can't say enough about this program. It is a complete reading curriculum and includes science, social studies, and other subjects as well. The materials are colorful and engaging. When you order the Homeschool Program, it comes with everything you need and includes very detailed lesson plans as well as a year subscription to http://www.more.starfall.com/ where your child can play extra games and you can print out puzzles and worksheets. They also provide free support if you have any questions regarding lesson plans or materials. My little guy will be so excited when Backpack Bear shows up on the first day of school!