I'm Bored Box: Scavenger Hunt

Picture Credit



It is 100F today. Needless to say we are stuck indoors most of the day due to high UV ratings. That is pretty much the norm for Texas summers and this year, it seems for spring too. With our outdoor time limited to early morning and evening time, that gives us a lot of time cooped up in the house. That, as you are probably aware, can lead to some cranky kids. So today, to break up the monotony of the day I made this I'm Bored Box. One of our activities is a Scavenger Hunt. The girls LOVED this activity and it kept us occupied for about 45 minutes as they read and solved each clue!

Here are the clues I made. They may not work in your house but there are sites like this one (thanks Monica!) that have more clues and even some picture clues for younger ones.


My legs are made of wood and top is of the same, your second clue is here if you want to finish this game. (Table, Chairs or Desk)


Sometimes when I am sleepy I go lay down my head. Your next clue can be found under a ___________on the bed. (Pillow)



To find your next clue add the numbers and walk up that many stairs.
4+3= (7)



You will have a SWINGing good time finding the next clue! (Swing)


That took you long enough, but this time I will let it SLIDE. (Slide)


You are doing really well and you have almost reached the end. To find the final clue look where we put the mail that we want to send. (Mail Box)


Yay You have done it, just one more clue to solve! Use these letters to find out what your surprise is!

EIC MERAC

__ __ __ __ __ __ __
(ICE CREAM)




Change it around to fit your home or re-do it completely with your own clues. Teach reading, math, logic, reasoning, critical thinking, sequencing, and team work all in one fun simple activity!

Summer Curriculum Choices with Quick Reviews

I went to the Arlington Homeschool Book Fair with a list. I was organized and had a plan. Then I got there, and the plan went out the window. I mean seriously! Do you know how many vendors are at a typical homeschool book fair? It is unreal. I went with the full intention of getting the next level of Abeka. I browsed and picked out my books. Then the lady tells me that they don't keep stock. Now maybe this isn't the best reason to ditch a well researched and thought out curriculum choice, but I did. I walked around the corner and found Rod and Staff. I ended up purchasing the full year of language arts for both the girls.

I'm pretty excited about all of the things we are trying this year so for those of you still deciding here is what we are going with for this "semester":

Language Arts, Spelling and Reading: Rod and Staff

Coming from Abeka I thought we pretty much had intense covered. I was wrong. The 1st grade is starting a bit below where Keira is, but it picks up quickly. Brianna is struggling with her attitude with the new stuff. Not because she doesn't know the work, but more because there is so much of it compared to the Abeka. Each lesson consists of 2 phonics pages and 4 reading. She is thriving on it though and once I get her past the tantrums of having to do the pages, I think she will match very well with it. It gives a good phonemic base and has them reading stories that are very Bible based. Even better is it is reasonably priced.


Latin: Song School Latin

We will actually start this on Monday and do it either once or twice a week. I haven't decided yet. It's very basic, using songs and chants to learn vocabulary. The one thing I am worried about is the apparently huge jump between Song School and Latin for Children Book A. I have heard that they are working on Song School Latin Book 2 though. For the cost, this one is definitely worth exploring.

Bible, Science, History and Social Studies: The Weaver Volume 1

This is every parents dream, especially if you have more than one spread over multiple levels. It literally takes these 4 subjects (also included are Language Arts and Creative Writing. We will are not using the Language arts because I didn't feel it was comprehensive enough. The creative writing we wing by using journals and just writing what is interesting to us), and weaves them together. One just flows into the other. Best of all every child stays on the same topic while Weaver adjusts the difficulty to that level! Here is an example of both ideas. One day your Bible lesson is about the wise and the foolish man. You read the Bible story and talk about how Jesus is our foundation and so on. Then you go outside and collect soil samples. You pour water on them and talk about the result. The younger children then talk about things needed to build a good strong house and then build one out of Legos or what ever. Middle elementary makes a list of materials needed to build a strong building, and upper writes a paragraph on what it takes to build a strong building. Now these are just my examples (though some of these are things we have done with Weaver), but you get the idea. For a more comprehensive review you can visit Christa's Weaver Review Here.

Cursive: TBD

I just haven't found anything I love so at the moment cursive is random bits of copy work.

Art: Artistic Pursuits Book 2

We love this art. It gives us the perfect mix of art appreciation and art instructions. And it's real art. I don't feel like I need to be an artist myself to teach this book. However, I have heard some parents say they prefer more art instruction so be sure to check the book out before you buy!

Lot's of Lapbooks:

Because Weaver is designed to last 9 months and we are stretching it to a year (blog coming soon!) we will be adding in lapbooks as a fun way to supplement. Currclick offers lots of fun and sometimes FREE LAPBOOKS.

One of the great things about homeschooling is getting to start fresh and change up the things that didn't work for you. I am very excited and am looking forward to sharing how everything worked for us!

The Curiosity Files Explorations: The Platypus Review

We have alot of fun with most of the products I am asked to review. In fact I can't think of any that we haven't been able to enjoy or make enjoyable. However, I don't often find one that I want to rave about. This one is it! The Curiosity Files- Platypus, a downloadable unit study (the bundle can be purchased on CD), by The Old Schoolhouse, has been a truly enjoyable unit study! Professor Ana Lyze (bu dum ching!), does an excellent job of making the oddities of the platypus and interesting and fun experience. Plus, it is very reasonably priced at just $6.95! Even better is that there are 9 in the series, and they can be purchased as a bundle for a nearly $2 savings per study!

The study is very comprehensive and while we did squeeze it into a few days (we were having so much fun we couldn't stop!), it could easily be spread out over a week or maybe even two if you followed the "rabbit" trails that pop up, and trust me, even with my younger girls we had plenty of them.Because it included Bible, math, language arts, poetry, copy work, science and even some history, you could easily put all other work on hold to do this study. And, anytime I don't have to search down extra links and resources for a study I am excited. Dozens of links and website suggestions are included in the study. It saved me alot of time not having to search for graph paper, pictures of platypus burrows, and so on. As with most studies you can always add library books, but I didn't find them necessary at all. The reading portion is well laid out, though for my children's ages (6 and 7) I did have to use some different wording and I skipped portions of it that were more geared towards older children. However, considering the study is rated for ages 8-13, I found it very easy to adapt to my own children's ages. After we got past the reading is where the real fun began for us. The platypus unit study has numerous hands on skills in all areas. We glued beans into drawn illustrations of burrows, graphed beads, made tent "burrows", solved word searches and there were so many things I either didn't list or we didn't have the time to do! I am telling you, this study was just packed with these activities!

I think what I loved most as teacher, is the adaptability of the study. A few ways we adapted included counting out our beads by 's and 10's instead of using the worksheet and as I men

(I should say that since my kids are younger we leaned towards and enjoyed the hands on activities in the study, but there were plenty of more in-depth lessons and worksheets for older students as well. Though, the activities are enjoyable for the older ones as well! )

I only have one complaint about the study and it is just a matter of personal preference. I like to print out hard copies of my unit studies that I keep in binders. I just find it easier for me to read that way. This particular study has alot of graphics and background images that make it impossible to print without using an enormous amount of ink. This is minor though and is not going to keep me from purchasing the other studies available in this series.

You can purchase this unit study as well as many other great products from The Old Schoolhouse website or you can call at 1-888-718-HOME. Be sure to check out the sales. Some of this series is on sale for just $1.00! And if you buy and don't love it, The Old Schoolhouse has a 7 day money back guarantee on all e-books published by TOS.


PS: As soon as my husband reveals the top secret location of the cord I need to download photos from my camera, I will add a few pictures of some of our favorite things we did!

I was given this unit study free from TOS to review. Everything written here is 100% honest and 100% mine.

Easy Grammar and Daily Grams Grade 3 Giveaway

I know that grammar has been one of the most challenging things for me to teach. My children are just getting into it and I am already struggling to find the righ curriculum. Easy Grammar and Daily Grams looks like it might be it!





Easy Grammar: In this text, capitalization, punctuation, and parts of speech are presented in units.



480 pages; reproducible
only 28 prepositions introduced
materials presented in an easy, step-by-step
manner; easy reading
pre/post assessment

age-appropriate, interesting worksheets
Writing section includes how to write items in a
series and appositives
contains unit reviews, tests, cumulative reviews,
and cumulative tests
reproducible worksheets (answer key on left side and reproducible page on right)
Tests are also in the teacher edition.
This student test booklet saves you from having to make copies of the tests.
Not reproducible for student use.

Now for the fun part! I am giving away ONE copy of Easy Grammar Grade 3 and Daily Grams Grade 3!! For one(1) entry you can Follow My Blog. For one(1) entry you can "Like" Molding Minds Homeschool on Facebook. . For one(1) entry you can Share On Facebook or on on your favorite social media site (to share just cut and paste this blog into your status and let me know where you shared). For one(1) entry you can follow Molding Minds on Twitter. And for one (1) entry you can like Like The Homeschool Exchange! .This is a total of Five(5) chances to win! Please post a SEPARATE COMMENT for each entry and be sure to leave an email address for me to contact you at if you win!

Winner will be chose April 22nd and will be notified via email. Winner will have 72 hours to respond.
I was not compensated for this review. The giveaway was provided to my by the publisher. Any opinion is 100% mine and 100% true.

St Patrick's Day Crafts and Lesson Resources

Just a quickie with some links to St Patrick's Day Crafts and other resources!

DLTK's Site has resources for all ages! Crafts, songs, coloring sheets, and word searches are just a few of the resources you will find on this site!

Enchanted Kids is another great site! Check out the cute potato face craft or make a rainbow in a cup! There is also a nice number of printable worksheets and lapbook printables.

Lesoon Plans Page has a list of St. Patrick's Day lesson plans.

Alpha Omega The Weaver Curriculum Review

My good friend over at Hearts4Home did an excellent review of Weaver Volume 1. Since we are considering giving it a try, I thought I would share her very comprehensive review:

It just isn't possible to sum up The Weaver in a paragraph. So I suggest that
you grab a cup of tea or some chocolate and put your feet up for a few minutes
while I tell you our experience thus far! We've not been using it that long, but
I have to share what a blessing it has been for our family!

When I first
started homeschooling my preschooler in 2004, I was drawn to the idea of a Unit
Study approach. I loved the idea that I could teach both kids on the same topic
but at their own level. I looked over some types of Unit Studies and just didn't
feel like God was opening the door for me to use any of them. Either it was
clearly not for our family, or it was so overwhelming to me that I couldn't
picture how to make it work. I tried various styles of learning, and all of them
were wonderful in their own way. But something still seemed to be missing and my
longing for unit studies didn't go away.

Unit studies have a base that
all other subjects are centered around. For example, many are history based. As
the student learns a new part of history, all the other school subjects deal
with the same topic. Some are based on science. But still, none of them stood
out.

Now, if you have read my article My Foundation for Homeschooling
you will understand where I was coming from. I didn't want to just have 'Bible
time' as part of our day. I wanted every part of our education to point our eyes
to our Creator. And, it is sad to say, sometimes Bible time would get left out
of our day because we ran out of time.

No matter how good my boys are
(and I do think they are pretty good kids), they had many days where apathy was
the attitude toward their school work. I know that we had the curriculum we had
because I prayed and felt so certain in what I bought. And I still feel certain,
I believe God had us where He wanted us, using what we were supposed to use.

In the late fall of 2010, I once again found myself asking the Lord if
there was something else I had missed. I truly don't recall where The Weaver
first popped up. But it was online somewhere. One reference lead to another. I
was getting very curious and excited!

I wasn't looking to change things
THIS year. I was thinking ahead to next year. But along came a sweet woman who
happened to have an extra set of Weaver volume 1. I didn't expect to see it come
so soon, but the mail moved FAST and it was at my home in a matter of a few
days. I tore open the box and started to devour the information inside! It was
as if this was written just for us!

What is it that makes me love it so?
First, this curriculum is based in Scripture. So let's say that today we read
about the Tower of Babylon. We'll then start learning about architecture. Then
we'll build some sugar cube buildings. You can see how that little project
turned out on my article
http://hearts4home.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-year-goals-weight-lifting.html New
Year Goals. With that in mind, you will never run out of time for Bible, because
it all STARTS in the Bible! You can't do any other school work without opening
in the Word

To read the rest visit HERE....

American Girl Samantha Valentine's Lapbook

Currclick has a great deal on American Girl Samantha Valentine's Lapbook! For just $1.00 you can get this great Valentine's Day lesson plan and lapbook for your Valentine's Day but only until February 15th, so get it quick!

For other great Valentine's Day activities, lapbooks and lesson plans visit here!

Phonics Vs Whole Word Reading

If you have a TV then you know all about the Your Baby Can Read that promises your that your baby, as young as 6 months old will learn how to read. Sounds amazing doesn't it? And we all want to give our children a head start with reading. But what is the science behind these types of whole word reading methods and are the better than teaching phonics?



Whole word reading or whole word language, is exactly what the name implies. Instead of breaking the word down into individual sounds, it teaches the child to look at the word as a whole and memorize it by the way it looks. Kind of like looking at a picture of an elephant and memorizing that picture as an elephant except with words.

Benefits: Children can be taught whole word language reading at a young age. It also, generally results in faster results. This may be beneficial to struggling readers. Visual learners have also been shown to benefit from whole word reading. Whole word reading is believed to give better understanding of the text being read.

Cons: Children who use only whole word reading may have difficulty decoding complex words, because of this, whole word reading also leads to greater reading inaccuracy. Spelling unfamiliar words may also be an issue since the reader has nothing to base the spelling on.

Phonics, uses sets of rules to break down individual sounds and blends in order to decode words. Once these rules are learned, readers learn to recognize and obey the rules instantly.

Benefits: Because phonetic rules give a reader the ability to decode, the reader is more likely to be able to read unfamiliar words. Spelling is usually easier for readers who are taught phonics since the reader is able to apply the rules learned.

Cons: Phonics rules can be repetitious. Early readers may have trouble with comprehension due to the constant stopping to break down words. This usually passes as the reader becomes more proficient.


Which is better? Most likely the answer is both. A combination of phonics and whole word reading in the form of sight words will give the ability to decode words but also give the reader words that s/he does not have to decode. Readers who fall severely into visual learning may benifit more from whole word while extreme auditory learners will most likely thrive on phonics.

(Just as a side note)How do I feel about Teach Your Baby to Read? I actually think that it is a bad idea. Besides the fact that there is no scientific evidence that says that early reading is good for baby, you also have to sit your very young child down in front of a TV and then in front of flash cards. I am all for just for letting your baby be a baby!

Whole Language Curriculum Resources
Phonics Approach Curriculum Resources