Monday, December 14, 2015

2015 Homeschool Christmas Party

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Had a great time planning our 2015 Christmas party with my friend, Janet. So thankful that she graciously opens her home to all the Christmas chaos! :)

Such delicious, festive food! I definitely ate too many pigs-n-a-blanket and the best sugar cookies ever.

Christmas crafts - decorating take-home tins and making candy trains. Lots of fun!

Puzzle Race Game - I got the idea from my mom several Christmases ago when my hubby and I had to compete against my brother and sister and their spouses to see who could put a 100-piece puzzle together the quickest. I thought it was super fun, especially because my hubby and I won. ;) I passed on the fun to the kids in our homeschool group.

Group pics - Teens that were able to make it. (Both my boys were working that day.) And all the hardworking homeschool mamas!

Just a quick post for memories' sake. :)

Wednesday, December 09, 2015

Entertain Kids with Cinnamon Toast Crunch Movie Maker

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*Updated - original post 10/20/2010

Cinnamon Toast Crunch isn't a cereal I let my kids eat for breakfast (more for dessert), but they sure had fun with the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Movie Maker!!

I can't believe it's been 5 years since my boys had fun making silly movies with animated Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares. Today, my daughter saw the title of my old post and wanted to know what it was. I clicked on my link and was surprised that it still worked. So, now she's had fun making some silly movies.

I think your kids will have fun making Cinnamon Toast Crunch movies, too. :) They are super simple to make, so even little ones who know how to click can do it. :)

There are also games and videos for your kids to enjoy. Finding good, on-line entertainment works for me!!!

Linked to WFMW, Hip Homeschool Hop

Images are screenshots from the website. (Hopefully I'm not breaking any rules by using them. Just wanted to share the fun!)

Wednesday, December 02, 2015

Fun Writing Curriculum for 4th/5th Graders

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After my oldest son and I reviewed The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain by Melissa Forney 6 years ago, I couldn't wait to pass it down to my other two children. Well, that time has come and gone! My youngest finished it last year while she was in fourth grade.

One of the main reasons I liked this curriculum is that my kids approached writing with much more enthusiasm than they did before "Teddy", as we call it. It's a HUGE deal when your kids actually get a little excited about writing. :)

*You can click the above link to read my original review, but I will highlight a few things here as well.

The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain is a historical novel told through 130 letters of a 10-year-old girl. In her letters to her friend, Martha, she shares her many exciting and sometimes sad adventures of traveling in a wagon train from the Old South to Florida in 1892. That may sound like a lot of letters, but your child only reads one letter per day throughout the school year. The curriculum can be completed in about 8 months following a one-letter-per-day schedule.

Each letter corresponds to a daily assignment such as a writing prompt, language arts questions, or comprehension questions. Language arts questions are multiple choice while the comprehension questions require short or long written answers depending on the assignment. Writing prompts will cover 3 types of writing styles: personal narratives, expository writing, and persuasive writing. Recipes to foods that Teddy ate on her journey are included in the back of the book. We made Johnny Cakes and Essie Mae's Pound Cake, however, I can't seem to find the pictures I took. :(

There are answers provided for the language arts questions but not for the comprehension questions. It's not that difficult to scan the letters for the answers, though. 

The complimentary books, Razzle Dazzle Writing and Writing Superstars, will help you teach the writing skills necessary to help your child complete the writing prompts and become a better writer. I didn't follow a particular order with these books but taught different skills as needed. Very helpful in my opinion!

My kids read one letter per day on their own. They read straight from the Teacher's Edition.  After reading a letter, they'd complete that day's corresponding assignment. Also, as needed, I taught skills from the other books mentioned in the previous paragraph. I would choose to focus on certain writing skills, usually one at a time, so as not to overwhelm my kids. It was neat to see their writing improve as we moved along.

I used this curriculum in addition to our normal grammar/writing program. I chose not to go as heavy with literature during the year my kids worked on The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain. We read out loud and discussed books, and my kids have also always read for pleasure on their own. I wasn't too worried about the lighter literature load. :)

I loved this curriculum, and so did my kids. Read more on Amazon, and if you decide to purchase, thank you for using my affiliate link! (Now, there is also an additional companion book, Teddy Bodain's Adventure Quest, that you can check out. We've never used that one, though.)

Linked to Hip Homeschool Hop, WFMW, A Little Bird Told Me

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Sarah, Plain and Tall: Study Questions {FREE}

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What a sweet, well-written classic. Truly deserving of the Newbery Medal. I don't remember reading this book as a child, but I'm glad I had the privilege of reading it recently in order to write up some questions for my fifth grade daughter.

Here are the questions by chapter. Feel free to click the link and print for yourself. :)

Sarah, Plain and Tall Study Questions

Chapter 1
1. How did Mama’s death affect each character—Anna, Caleb, and Papa?
2. Who is the narrator of this story?
3. How did Anna and Caleb feel about their father’s advertisement?
4. Describe Sarah Elisabeth Wheaton.

Chapter 2
1. What do we learn about Sarah in her letters to the children?
2. How would Papa be able to recognize Sarah when she got off the train?

Chapter 3
1. Describe how each of the characters felt as they anticipated Sarah’s arrival, and tell why you think they felt that way.
2. Describe the gifts Sarah gave to Anna and Caleb.
3. Why do you think Sarah chose those items as gifts?
4. How do you think Sarah felt at the end of her first day in a new place? Why?

Chapter 4
1. Look up images of all the flowers mentioned: paintbrush, clover, prairie violets, roses, bride’s bonnet, seaside goldenrod, wild asters, and wooly ragwort. Which is your favorite and why?
2. Have you ever touched a sheep or a seal? How did they feel? How does Sarah describe seals?
3. What are some hints in this chapter that make the children think Sarah might choose to stay?

Chapter 5
1. Does Sarah like the sheep? How do you know?
2. Thinking about everything you’ve read so far, what are some things Sarah misses about Maine?
3. What was the “dune” that Papa spoke of? Did Sarah like it—why or why not?
4. In your opinion, what do you think Sarah thought was missing from her picture?
5. Any more hints that Sarah might stay?

Chapter 6
1. Describe winter where Caleb and Anna live.
2. If Sarah asked you to describe winter where you live, what would you say?
3. How does Sarah describe the sea?

Chapter 7
1. Who is Maggie? How does she help Sarah?
2. What does Sarah miss?
3. Look up images of the flowers: zinnias, marigolds, wild feverfew, dahlias, columbine, nasturtiums, and tansy. Which is your favorite and why?

Chapter 8
1. When Sarah wrote Papa (Jacob Witting) for the first time she said, “I am strong and I work hard and I am willing to travel. But I am not mild mannered.” Can you give examples from chapter 8 that make these descriptions of her seem pretty accurate?
2. What’s a squall?
3. What did Caleb say was missing from Sarah’s drawing?
4. What are some differences between Sarah and Mama?

Chapter 9
1. Why are Caleb and Anna sad?
2. What made Anna think that Sarah might come back?
3. Why does Sarah decide to stay?
4. Though the book never says exactly, where do you think Papa, Caleb, and Anna live? Why?

Click link to print Sarah, Plain and Tall Study Questions 

My daughter is currently reading Skylark, the next book in the series. You can get the 5-book set on Amazon:

Linked to WFMW, Hip Homeschool Hop, A Little Bird Told Me, Literacy Musing Mondays

*Affiliate link in this post

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

The Fairy's Mistake: Discussion Questions

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The Fairy's Mistake by Gail Carson Levine, the author of the wonderful book, Ella Enchanted, was the second book my daughter and her book club friends read this past summer. It's actually a novella, so it's pretty short - less than 100 pages. It's part of a novella collection, The Princess Tales, but for the book club the girls only read The Fairy's Mistake.

I enjoyed this novella very much! It involves twin sisters, one nice and one not so nice. A fairy "blesses" the nice sister which turns out to be more of a curse, and she "curses" the not-so-nice sister which turns out to be more of a blessing.

You can read through the discussion questions here, and then click on the link to print them if you wish. :) Please note that page numbers may not match up if you read a different version.

Discussion Questions for
The Fairy’s Mistake
By Gail Carson Levine

1.  Think of adjectives to describe the twins, Rosella and Myrtle.

2.  Do you think the mother played a role in Myrtle’s behavior? How so?

3.  What was Rosella’s motive for being kind?

4.  Should good behavior be rewarded? Why or why not?

5.  What should your motive for obedience/kindness be? Read 1 John 5:3. 
Does your answer to this question match up with Scripture?

6.  Why did the fairy’s reward turn out to be more of a curse for Rosella?

7.  What was Myrtle’s motive for wanting to be kind? (p. 9)

8.  How do you know that Rosella wasn’t a greedy person? Give specific examples.

9.  Why did Prince Harold stop to talk to Rosella for the first time? (p. 11)

10. Did the prince really love Rosella like he claimed? What do you think true love should look like? Read 1st Corinthians 13:4-7 for a great example to follow.

11. Why did Rosella agree to marry the prince? Would you have agreed to marry him if you’d been in her shoes?

12. Think of adjectives to describe Prince Harold.

13. Ethelinda was upset that her magic wasn’t working the way it was supposed to. Have you ever said or done anything that you’ve regretted? What were the negative effects of your actions? What should you do when you’ve hurt someone?

14. How was Myrtle able to turn her punishment into more of a reward for herself?

15. Finally, Ethelinda finds a way to help Rosella. What is the plan? Why does Myrtle agree to help? (p.52)

16. Even though the plan worked, do you agree that using deception was the best way to help? Do you have any other ideas that could have helped Rosella?

17. If you were Ethelinda, how would you reward kindness? How would you punish wrongdoing?

18. If you were Rosella, what would you do with all of those jewels?

19. Most fairy tales seem to end “happily ever after.” Why was everyone happy at the end of this fairy tale? Is it really possible to live “happily ever after?”

20. Tell why you did or didn’t like this story.

The Princess Tales, Volume One, is available on Amazon. Thank you for using my affiliate link!

Food Fun

Thanks to help from my sweet friend, Janet, I was able to prepare a fun, fairylicious table full of jewels and nasty little creatures!

We decorated each plate with a rock candy wand. I also made Frosty Fairy Mints at my daughter's request.

A feast fit for Prince Harold.

Rosella's treasure chest full of brightly colored candy jewels. (We used gumballs, sixlets, rock candy, Frozen themed jelly beans, etc.

Sour gummy worms and plastic bugs and such - perfect for Myrtle. 

The girls enjoyed eating jewels and worms. After you read the book, you'll know why I had them pose with their mouths wide open and full of food! ;)

Hope you enjoy the book and free discussion questions. If you missed the first book the girls read for their summer book club, check out Rump: Free Discussion Questions and Activity Ideas.

Linked to: The Homeschool Link-up, Literacy Musing Mondays

Thursday, November 19, 2015

2015 Ornament Reveal {A must-see if your kids love anything Mario}

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One of my all time favorite traditions with my family!! As my kids get older, it gets harder to find and surprise them with the PERFECT ornaments. However, I found these . . . and they were a huge hit!!

Super Mario Brothers 6 Piece Christmas Holiday Ornament Set Featuring Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Toad and Princess Peach - Shatterproof Ornaments Range From 1.5" to 3" Tall

My kids have all enjoyed playing Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros together, so I thought these would be perfect for remembering all the fun times and even bets won and lost over this game. :)

   Lincoln: Luigi & Yoshi       Mullin: Mario & Donkey Kong     Shiloh: Princess Peach & Toad

Awww, and they even decided to hang all of their new ornaments next to each other. :)

If your kids love all things Super Mario, check out these ornaments and more on Amazon! I thought this 6-piece set was an excellent price.

*Affiliate links included in this post for your shopping enjoyment. :)

Monday, November 02, 2015

Stone Fox Study Questions & Activity Ideas {FREE}

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I recently read Stone Fox and wrote study questions and activity ideas for my fifth grade daughter. I choked up at the ending just like I did when I read it in elementary school so long ago. It really is a great book -- I highly recommend it! (Age range: 7-11)

*For this book, I had my daughter read the whole thing before I gave her the questions. It's only 83 pages, so it didn't take that long. I didn't want her to read through the questions, especially since I didn't do them by chapter this time, and spoil the ending.

*I wrote these questions with my 10-year-old in mind, so you may need to adjust some of them for younger children. My daughter completed all three additional activities, and for #2 she chose to write about Samoyeds which was no surprise to me since she LOVES all things dog! (Scroll down for printable link to study questions.)

Stone Fox Study Questions

1. Describe Little Willy’s grandfather and make sure to include his occupation.

2.  What do you think is wrong with Willy’s grandfather?

3. Who is the protagonist?  By the end of the first chapter, what’s the main thing the protagonist wants? (If you don’t know what a protagonist is, look it up!)

4. In chapter 2, how does the protagonist go about accomplishing what he wants?

5. What is Little Willy’s discovery?

6. Why did Willy think his grandfather was sad about money problems?

7. Little Willy is forced into taking care of himself and his grandfather—what are some of his responsibilities?

8. If you were suddenly on your own, what would some of your responsibilities be, and how would you accomplish them?

9. Describe Searchlight. What is her role in the story?

10. Tell about the stranger who showed up at the farm. Why did he come?

11. After Willy realizes the farm could be taken away, how does he try to find a way to help? Be thorough—retrace Willy’s steps in chapter 5. End your answer with what Willy finally thinks is the way to save the farm.

12. Do people encourage or discourage Willy from entering the race? How so?

13. Write a short paragraph describing Stone Fox.

14. Why do you think Willy lied about his black eye? Do you think he should have told the truth? Why or why not?

15. Do you think everyone in the town showed up at the race to see Willy or Stone Fox? Give reasons to support your answer.

16. The first time you read the book, who did you think would win the race?  Why? Were you surprised by the ending? Why or why not?

17. Why do you think Stone Fox let Willy and Searchlight win the race?

18. Do you think Stone Fox would have let Willy win had Searchlight not collapsed? Explain your answer.

Additional Activities

1. On a separate sheet of paper, write a narrative prompt about one of your grandparents. Be sure to include vivid descriptions about things like looks, job, likes/dislikes, where he or she lives, etc. Also tell about what makes him or her special and what kinds of things you like to do together.

2.  (a) Write a short expository essay on why Little Willy is a character who shows great courage. Use examples from the book. Be creative and make sure to grab the reader with your first sentence! The first sentence should make the reader feel curiosity, humor, wonder, sympathy, mystery, fear, sorrow, anger etc. Suggestions for creating a great first sentence: Use a quote, a rhetorical question, a shocking or mysterious statement, onomatopoeia, an opinion, a scenario type statement starting with the words, Picture this:, etc. Make sure your essay has a beginning, middle, and ending.

     (b) OR research Samoyeds, the dogs Stone Fox owned, and write a short paper about them.

3. Wyoming Project: Use poster board or sturdy construction paper to cut out the shape of Wyoming. Use sticker letters or write neatly the name of the state. On your poster board state, draw or cut out and paste pictures of the state flag, state bird, state flower, state tree, important crops, landmarks, and anything else you can think of. Be sure to label all of your pictures. Mark with a star and label where the capital is. Also include somewhere on your state of Wyoming the state nickname and the year it became a state. Do your best to make your project neat and colorful!

Click on link to download Stone Fox study questions.

Here's my daughter's Wyoming project. It was definitely an easy state to cut out! :)

Hope you enjoy the book, and feel free to ask any questions you may have. If you  need the book, please consider using my amazon affiliate link -- thanks!

Linked to WFMW, Mommy Monday Blog Hop, Hip Homeschool Hop, A Little Bird Told Me, Literacy Musing Mondays, Thoughtful Thursdays

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Rump: Discussion Questions & Activity Ideas

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This past summer my daughter and I hosted a book club for a few girls (ages 8 & up) in our homeschool group. We started off with a list of around 50 books from which to choose. With a little help from girls in the group, we finally narrowed down our choices to 4 books: Rump: The True Story of Rumpelsiltskin, All-of-a-Kind Family, The Fairy's Mistake, and Remarkable.

The girls met twice a month during June and July, so they had about 2 weeks to read the assigned books before meeting for discussion and fun. :) (It also gave me time to read the books and make up questions!) We kicked off the book club with Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff.

Rump was by far my favorite book out of the 4 we read. Full of magic and everything fairy tale, it was fun following Rump on his quest to find his true name and his destiny right along with it.

Following are 21 discussion questions (no need to have a book club to answer them), and at the end you can click on a link (google doc) for a free printable version. After the questions, you'll find a link to an activity and some ideas for food fun.

Book Club Questions for
RUMP: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin
By Liesl Shurtliff

1.  Rump is set in a magical kingdom where destiny is determined by a person’s name. How do you think names affect people? Do you think your life would be different if you had a different name?

2.  Share what’s special about your name (first and middle) or how your parents came up with it.

3.  Have you ever made fun of someone because of his/her name? Has anyone ever made fun of your name?

4.  Why do you think you should be careful to not to make fun of others?

5.  If you’re familiar with the original story of Rumpelstiltskin, can you think of some events or actions from that tale that are explained in Rump? What are some things Liesl Shurtliff changed in her story?

6.  Who is Red? What do we know about her? What do Rump and Red have in common? How are they different from each other?

7.  Who is your favorite character in the story? Why?

8.  Which character are you most like?

9.  What are pixies in this particular story? Are they helpful or harmful? Why?

10.  Try to name other fairy tales mentioned in the book. I think I counted at least 6.

11.  Rump wanted to see Kessler turn one thing into something else – remember that? (p. 31) If you could turn only one thing into something else, what would it be? Can you think of any instances in the Bible where one thing was turned into something else? (There’s more than one example!)

12.  Do you think Rump was greedy for wanting to spin straw into gold? Why or why not? Before Gran dies, where does she tell Rump to spin gold? (p. 61) What do you think she meant by that?

13.  Greed could be considered one of the themes in Rump – do you ever struggle with being greedy? How so? What does the Bible have to say about greed? (Verses to look up: 1 Timothy 6:6-9; Luke 12:15)

14.  Granny says to Rump, “Every strength can become a weakness.” What do you think she means? (p. 85)

15.  This book is full of magic, and it has serious consequences. What was the main consequence of Rump’s magic? (p.87) (p. 172-173 also explain consequences of magic further.)

16.  Would you be tempted to use magic even if you knew it was evil and could cause bad things to happen?

17.  What does “rumpel” mean? (p. 176)

18.  What does “stiltskin” mean? (p. 88)

19.  Hadel, one of the wool witches, says on p. 195, “When you get your wool tangled in a knot, only the tangler can get it untangled.” What does she mean by that?

 20.  A quote to love: “It’s the people who cause the trouble, Rump. Not the magic itself.” Do you like it? What does it mean to you?

21. Did you like the book? Why or why not?

* Note: depending on which Rump book you use, page numbers referred to in the questions may or may not match.

Rump is available on Amazon:


Activity ideas: 

1. Your Name Is Your Destiny Worksheet

Rumpelstiltskin is a fun, silly name. Not only that, it's also quite a mouthful! I had fun creating a simple name activity that all the girls enjoyed. Basically, you come up with a new name using your own first name spelled backwards and adding on a few things that pertain to you. Look below at the picture of the worksheet that I filled out to get a better understanding of what to do.

* I created this worksheet with girls in mind since it was for an all girls book club. If you want to use the activity for a boy, you will probably want to change the birthstone and tree/flower fill-in-the-blanks to something else. ;)

2. Read Rumpelstiltskin story based on original fairy tale

Online resources:

Grimm Brothers fairytale

Read-aloud story on YouTube

Animated fairytale on YouTube


Food Fun

I wanted to go with a straw-into-gold theme for the book club snack, so I chose veggie sticks (the yellow ones) and a can of shoestring potatoes to represent the straw and yellow cupcakes surrounded by gold coin chocolate candy to represent the gold. 

I wasn't sure which would work better, so I bought both veggie sticks and shoestring potatoes. If I did it again, I'd probably just go with 2-3 cans of shoestring potatoes.

Other ideas to represent gold: gumballs, lemon drops, butterscotch candies, Rolos, and really any type of yellow candy. For a healthy gold option, you could cut up fresh pineapple into bite-size chunks. Even though I think decorating with candy is so pretty, I didn't use it exclusively since it can get a bit pricey!

Gold candy options to check out on Amazon:

Quantity will depend on how high you want to pile your gold. I'm not linking to anything chocolate since it might melt in the mail! Check out party stores if you really want chocolate gold coins. :)

Amazon also has shoestring potatoes if you can't find them at your local store:

Quantity will depend on how high you want to pile your "straw."

The girls had fun discussing Rump questions and decorating folders to store all of their summer book club questions. 

Hope you enjoy Rump as much as we did!! Be sure to check out Liesl Shurtliff's latest book, Jack: The true story of Jack & The Beanstalk. My daughter finished reading it not too long ago. :)

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Friday, October 09, 2015

The Secret Garden: Cookbook & More

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My daughter recently finished reading The Secret Garden for homeschool because it's one of those classics every girl should read, right? I honestly can't remember if I ever read it as a girl, but somehow I am familiar with the story.

The Book

I found an irresistibly beautiful hardcover illustrated by Inga Moore at our local library. It truly made the story come alive. Unfortunately, this particular version is unavailable on Amazon right now. However, there is a different hardcover illustrated by Graham Rust if you want to check it out:


Besides having to write a short summary for each chapter and having to look up unfamiliar words, my daughter also had to answer a set of discussion questions I found online for free. For some reason, my printer only printed off page 10, so I didn't know there were other pages. :( Anyway, we only used the Topics for Discussion part.

One night we watched The Secret Garden movie which was really good. And we both love Professor McGonagall (The actress, Maggie Smith, who plays Mrs. Medlock).

Our favorite assignments by far were the cooking ones! I was so excited when I came across The Secret Garden Cookbook by Amy Cotler.

This cookbook is such a treasure that I am going to share a few more details about it with you. :)

This lovely hardcover contains lots of English recipes inspired by The Secret Garden novel. But, it's so much more than just a cookbook! Recipes are compiled according to 7 different categories:

  1. Yorkshire Breakfasts
  2. A Manor Lunch
  3. An English Tea
  4. The Kitchen Garden
  5. Dickon's Cottage Food
  6. A Taste of India
  7. Garden Picnics

Each category is described in detail before the recipes begin. Quotes from The Secret Garden, English fun facts, food tidbits, and more decorate every single page of this cookbook.

About half way through the book, my daughter chose to make a delicious cottage treat: Dough-Cakes with Brown Sugar. And tea to drink, of course!

Once my daughter finished the book, we decided to recreate a Yorkshire breakfast minus coddled eggs. I don't own custard cups or ramekins, but even if I did, this mama doesn't like runny yolks! We also substituted sausage links (bangers, according to the English) for the sausage cakes.

My daughter made the cheese muffins (biscuits) all by herself.

The hot cocoa was definitely homemade! So yummy that way.

Oh my. The Yorkshire breakfast was so filling. Soon after, my daughter and I headed to the park to walk it off. :)

Hopefully cooking up some English fare together made The Secret Garden unforgettable for my daughter! We still might make some more recipes just for fun.

Linked to Works for Me Wednesday, Hip Homeschool Hop, The Mommy Monday Blog Hop, Literacy Musing Mondays, The Art of Homemaking Mondays

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