How we Homeschool: Ancient Egypt

We studied Ancient Egypt for about 2 weeks.  After finding it on a map, studying weather, studying a little of its history, etc., the kids each had to read a book about a famous Egyptian.  J. chose King Tut, and K. chose Cleopatra.  They were at the grandparents' for VBS, so they had to make a visual presentation to present to Mommy and Daddy when they got home.

At the end of our unit, we cooked an Egyptian meal.  The kids chose Falafel, Beef Pitas, and Baklava.  They decided they LOVED it all!  Who knew?

How we Homeschool: Daily Problems

Daddy leaves problems on our board in the mornings each day to get the brainwaves moving, and the kids answer them in their math journals.  The goal is to see how many different ways they can come up with to get the same answer(s).  We want them to know that while there is often one RIGHT answer, there are often multiple ways to get there, and different strategies work for different people. We want them to develop a "toolbox" of strategies, so that as they progress in math, they have many places to pull from when solving problems.  They love running downstairs to see what surprise he has left that day!

Here are some samples:

How we Homeschool: Outer Space

Our Outer Space unit was so much fun!  Our initial text came from The Explorer Series by Apologetics press, and we jumped off from there.  We talked a lot about the magnificence of the universe and how amazing God must be to have made such an incredible place.

We covered about a planet a day after introducing basic space words like galaxy, planet, and star.  For each planet we studied facts about it and wrote an acrostic poem with details.   (For time and focus' sake, I wrote them down, but the kids composed them.  Daddy accidentally deleted Earth and Neptune, so you'll have to come up with those on your own. :)

We read a LOT about the planets, and the kids wrote down any interesting facts on this little booklet from Amanda Post   We also watched several YouTube videos with solar system songs, and the kids created paper solar system masks for each planet and "performed" a few of these songs for Daddy as their cumulative project.   Those pictures are apparently missing, so I'll post them when/if I find them!  

Planets Song for Kids

Solar System "Rap"

The Solar System

At the beginning of the unit, we made nebula with jars, cotton, glitter, food coloring, and water.  We also made glow in the dark star jars for the kids to keep in their rooms at nights.   Overall,  I was amazed at how much they learned!  A few days ago, my son's Sunday school class talked about creation and outer space, and my son apparently shared all of his many facts!  :)