Teaching Cloud Identification

See the fish in the cloud?

We will be learning about the atmosphere and clouds and weather this year, so I wanted to share what I am using to teach Cloud Identification with you guys.  
This site has a free 2 page pdf file to print out with questions that help your student i.d. specific clouds.
http://www.usc.edu/org/cosee-west/March06Resources/OtherResources/CloudID.pdf

And this site has many photographs and descriptions of each type of cloud.
http://www.invectis.co.uk/cloud/cloud.html#pic

Teaching Anatomy with Online Games

Anatomy Arcade makes basic human anatomy come ALIVE through awesome free flash games, interactives and videos.

Anatomy Arcade is perfect for the novice teenager in the classroom, right through to students and professionals of health care looking for a fun way to review.

Anatomy Arcade comes highly recommended by other homeschoolers and nursing students!  

http://www.anatomyarcade.com/

Teaching the Moon's Phases

So, I found this idea on teaching the moon's phases and am definitely going to do it this school year!
Use Oreo Cookies, with cream taken away, to mimic pictures of the moon's phases!

Science Bob's Link 

Find out your Child's Learning Style to Enhance Learning

Find out your child's learning style to enhance their capabilities! 

Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic?

Visual

It is estimated that 80 percent of what we learn is through our vision. From an early age, a child acquires valuable information about his surroundings through his or her eyes. Because of this fact, normal schooling makes use of methods that favor visual learners. Children who are primarily visual learners tend to get information through reading books. They can also learn more from pictures and other visual materials. If you notice that your child is tidy and organized in their learning habits, then he might be a visual learner.

Auditory

For some children, their sense of sound allows them to gather large volumes of information and have them processed accordingly. A child is most probably an auditory learner if he or she is good at listening to instructions and is very sensitive to variations in spoken words. They excel in gaining knowledge from conversations and lectures. Because listening requires more concentration than seeing, students of this learning style can be more discerning. They are usually more attentive in class and can distinguish different ideas just by listening to them. Because information revealed through speaking are not usually recorded accurately in class, the memory capacity of auditory learners exceed those of visual learners. Children of this type also enjoy studying with music in the background.

Kinesthetic

A child who has a kinesthetic learning style cannot just sit still and wait for information to be given. They surpass in finding out things for themselves without any needs for guidance. Explorers at heart, kinesthetic learners are known to be quite active even before a lesson proper. Their natural curiosity drives them to make new discoveries, making it hard for regular schools to limit their movement. Children of this learning style are often mistaken to be rowdy and undisciplined. That however, is a grave misconception. Kinaesthetic learners always seem to be moving around because they see their surroundings differently. For them, the world is just a huge playground full of wonderful things they want to discover and explore.

The entire article can be found at:

http://www.child-central.com/learning-styles-children.html

Free World U- Homeschooling Course K-12

FREE WORLD U
is REALLY free!
They use flashcards that break subjects down into smaller units.
Interesting. 
I will be trying it out, for sure,
that is if my child learns well using this method.

Here is a sample page, which is 2nd Grade Social Studies. 

From site:
"We are a 501(c)3 nonprofit online school offering our students a complete preschool through 12th grade curriculum. Our proven program is supported by research that shows that children can learn faster and enjoy learning more using our methods. The curriculum is taught via flashcards that break subjects down into small, easily assimilated fact units. The flashcards are presented through a program that remembers what each student has learned and what they need to keep working on."

Check it out!

Spring is Coming! Learn About Plants

 Spring is right around the corner!  Use this opportunity to teach young ones about how things grow and where we get our food!

Plant a bean in a cup and observe the growth.  Beans sprout very quickly and children will be able to appreciate how a plant grows.
This is not a complicated experiment, but it IS an important one for young ones to learn!
Here is an alternative to what you may know about growing these simple beans! 

States and Their Capitals Online Game

My son is in 2nd grade and learning States and their Capitals, to gear up to learn all about the U.S.A. next school year.
So, we found this game, which he is enjoying.

VectorKids - State Capitals Game

Rainbows- What do they Mean?

Roy G. Biv- Remember this mnemonic for learning the order of the colors in a rainbow?

1. Red
2. Orange
3. Yellow
4. Green
5. Blue
6. Indigo
7. Violet

Here at Wonderopolis, you can show your kids why rainbows even appear.
Then, here is an easy, do-at-home science experiment on how to make a rainbow!

U.S. Mint Lesson Plans

Did you know that the U.S. Mint provides Lesson Plans for your classroom?
All grades, many subjects, many ways of learning something new!
Language Arts, Math, Science, Technology and Social Studies are covered, as well as Grades K- 12!
Very nice resources provided, too.

Interactive Weather Maker Online

What would it be like to be a real weather person - not just someone who reports the weather, but someone who can actually control it? Well here's your chance.
Using our Interactive Weather Maker, you'll be able to turn a sunny day into a windy day. Or create a rainy day. And if you create the correct conditions, you can make a blizzard - complete with a whiteout!
http://www.scholastic.com/kids/weather/

Typing Tutor: FREE Typing Program

Rapidtyping.com - Learn and Practice Typing

Fast typing is a skill that is extremely useful in life, although not all children get properly trained in typing. While many schools often try to offer typing to some degree, usually funding and resource limitations either limit or prevent typing classes.

Why Does Salt Help with Snow and Ice?

Ready for a really simple, really cool experiment?

• Take an ice cube from your freezer and place it on a plate.
  
• Sprinkle a pinch of salt over one half of the ice cube.
  
• Put the plate with the ice cube in the refrigerator.
• After about 10 minutes, take the ice cube out and observe what has happened.
  

My 8 yo son and 11 yo niece did this today and they made their observations, now, what do you notice about the salted side of the ice cube?

Thank you to Wonderopolis! Wonderopolis.org is a great site that introduces a new idea to your kids everyday!

Free Printable Certificates and Rewards

Children love to receive stickers, bookmarks and certificates as recognition of a job well done or progress made within the classroom or home.

Reading Certificates, Special Award Certificates, Diplomas, Certificates, Sticker Charts, Reward Charts Certificates that you can color yourself and MORE!
The link is at Activity Village. co.uk

Teach With Games

Teach With Games Website has FREE Printable game samples, to see if learning with games is right for your child.
and TODAY, CurrClick is having a GIVE-AWAY of Multiplication Games, Level One for FREE!
Just sign in and add it to your cart to download.

By the way, if you don't know about Curr Click, it is a great website that has curriculum resources, a lot of them for FREE, just click the FREE STUFF LINK on the left-hand side of the page.

Simple Science Frozen 2-Liter Bottle Experiment

I found this on Homeschool Creations' website.
What will happen to a quarter put on top of a soda bottle that has just come out of the freezer?

Items we used for this experiment:

~ 2 liter bottle

~ quarter

~ a little cold water

You may be surprised. See her site to see what her kids found out!