Spanish Resources

They loved it! My two oldest completed going through the entire course and had a blast following along this full of suspense drama series that teaches Spanish in a very interactive manner: "Mi Vida Loca"  The setting is in Madrid, Spain and this journalist is running away from the mysterious pursuer to keep her away from doing her work.



Now onto another recommended program: Destinos. Its like a "telenovela" style but it also comes loaded with vocabulary and practice exercises.


An idea I have is to get movies in DVD form  the kids have watched and set the language into Spanish. Ask them to write a few words for vocabulary build up.

Trying to make sentences and using what they learn is essential to getting a better grasp of the language. 

Computer Science

One fun way that my kids have gotten involved into computer science has been using scratch. It is geared towards kids ages to 8-16 and grades 3rd grade to high school. It uses a visual programing language. If you think that learning  Chinese and Hebrew is hard then you will find it hard to start to learn computer languages. But the best way my kids have enjoyed computer science is by using this visual programing language. They also take Khan Academy's computer programing free classes. Javascript is a programing language that is used in one of their favorite video games-Minecraft. Khan Academy's Javascript lessons are fun. If you are child is able to be in dual enrolment at the college your student  can take computer science classes for free while in highschool.


Check out:

  • Scratch  (create an account)
  • Khan Academy (create an account):

 Computer Programming  My kids have taken this one.
Pixar in a Box My kids have taken this one too. 

  • Check out dual enrollment at the college for free courses during highschool. Student has to pass the PERT test to be able to be dual enrolled. Check out free PERT classes and practice tests here
  • W3schools  lessons  from left menu or click next. Follow lesson all the way through the end. Lots of practice here. This website is great as a resource and cheat list.
  • Code.org 
The following are online resources where you pay  a fee for computer science courses but you can do them at your own leisure and pace.  Jquery, HTML 5, ASP,  Cloud Computing, Python, C,  C++, Javascript,  PHP,  SQL, web and app development are all part of the world of computer science.
  • Coursera offers online computer science courses for a fee
  • Codecademy free to a certain extent. I  have tried this one myself and I really enjoy it. I have done some PHP, Javascript, and HTML classes with them (their free ones). I would pay gladly if the level requires it.  Not there yet.
Animation:

Blender It is as professional as what Pixar uses for their animations only difference it is free. This program uses python and you can tell by your favorite animations and movies that use visual effects that software like this  can really be an amazing tool. We have taken tutorials online. I figure with 50 tutorials you shoulg get the hang of it,

Physics

Are perpetual motion machines possible?

You Tube Channels for Homeschooling

I want to keep this resource handy for youtube channels that are good for homeschooling:
Best educational channels for homeschoolers

As always view the videos before letting your kids watch.

Horse Animal Science

Check out these resources for horse animal science:

Equine Science

4H Horse Science

Netflix and Youtube Educational Resourcesl

Cross and Quill Media has a list of educational resources that can be found in Netflix and Youtube. Just click the tabs on the top of the page to find the list.

Swimming Techniques



Breaststroke Swimming Technique
Backstroke Swimming Technique
Butterfly Swimming Technique
Freestyle Swimming Technique

Pert and ACT prep

Mometrix is full of prep videos and resources:

ACT Math prep

ACT Science Prep

ACT Reading Prep

ACT English Prep

Khan Academy videos for ACT prep

PERT Test Prep Course

PERT Practice Tests
Study Materials

Algebra: Functions


Study Functions with Khan Academy:

  • Algebra 2:

Manipulating Functions
Polynomial expressions, equations, and functions
Radical equations and functions
Rational expressions, equations, and functions
Exponential growth and decay
Trigonometric functions
Advanced Functions

Celebrating Pi Day!

"Celebrated each year on March 14th (3.14), Pi Day is dedicated to the mathematical constant, Pi. First recognized 30 years ago in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw, Pi Day observers often celebrate with a slice of their favorite pie in honor of the number’s delicious sounding name.
Notated by the Greek letter “š¯›‘”, pi represents the ratio between a circle’s circumference (perimeter) to its diameter (distance from side to side passing through the center), and is a fundamental element of many mathematical fields, most significantly Geometry. Though modern mathematicians have calculated more than one TRILLION decimal places beyond the standard “3.14,” pi is an irrational number that continues on to infinity! It’s an important ingredient in the formula for the area of a circle, A=š¯›‘r²." (Google)



 Don't forget to work out some math:

Pi Day Word Problems!

Now listen to some music made with Pi:

Piano lessons

Andrew Furmanczyk has a great list for teaching yourself how to play piano. He also offers several videos full of great advice. Click link below:



Work on your Singing Voice




Professional Vocal Warm Ups
Advanced Singing Tips : High Notes in Belt Voice
How to sing Jazz style
Freya's Singing Tips: The 5 best exercises for BELTING
Freya's Singing Tips: Tongue Placement
Singing High: Belting & Getting Rid of Nasality

Learn to sing with Christina Aguilera at Master Class

If you have a child that loves singing yo might want to take advantage of this program. Christina Aguilera class on  how to sing will be available in the Spring 2016 at Master Class. Click link below:



You can find  a review of Master Class here

Apologia Highschool Labs

Great to follow along as you do a lab for Apologia biology.
Biology:
Following are dissections with clear explanations. Make sure to watch them. Very educational material.
Ignore the evolutionary terms used:


more resources to understand the modules here

Marine biology:
Starfish Dissection

Chemistry Lab 2.2
Ionic Compounds Conduct Electricity ~ Apologia Chemistry Exp 3.2
Chemistry Video Instruction - Experiment 4.4
Measuring The Width of a Molecule experiment 5.1
Apologia Chemistry Module 10 part 1

Chemistry Lab 12.1
How to bend water 

Learning about atoms and chemical bonds with dogs

Best Chemistry Lessons

 Tyler DeWitt's videos on Youtube have been very helpful in Chemistry.
Moles


 Scientific Notation 

Atomic Mass


 more here

Physics in a Nutshell

Other than than a few images of ancient art that could be offensive to some (naked or semi naked between between 4:00 and 7:00;23:00-23:20 ) most of the video is very informative as it tells the main aspects of physics in a very engaging manner.  As to the terms he uses in this presentation "being gods"  and "evolve from Africa" make sure to know that he is coming from the point of view of ancient mythology Greeks in the first comment and the latter plus his mentioning of the Big Bang  towards the end of the video comes from typical evolutionist thinking.  I like the presentation as important names and facts in the field of physics are displayed for the first 3/4 of the video and I consider it worthwhile listening to if you are interested in this field of science.  The futuristic science theories at the remaining 1/4 of the video sound fun but they are what they are theories, not facts! Read Answers in Genesis Strange Strings  on the subject of String Theory to see what I mean. String Theory attempts to deny the existence of the Creator.  I found it kind of ironic at the end of the video  that there is an urgent need for  theory physicists to learn how to escape this universe because according to them it is going to get destroyed in the future. The Bible says the earth will be destroyed at the end of the world.


 


To keep everything into a Christian perspective remember: 

 "The Higgs boson does not scientifically supplant the Creator but is a manifestation of His glory and power. Dr. Lisle adds, “It is rather apparently the way that God has chosen to uphold the universe. That’s true of any law of physics. Gravity is an example. Gravity is not a replacement of God’s power; gravity is an example of God’s power. And that’s the way it is with the Higgs boson.” Higgs Boson Not God Particle, Still Incredible by Dr. Elizabeth Mitchell on March 23, 2013

Missing Agebra II Concepts

Math The Easy Way

I am so tired of complicated curriculums with lingo that as a parent I have to decipher. I tell my kids if you don't understand it and I don't understand it then you don't have to do it. I  plan on customizing my kids lessons using the following website: Math Drills. They have a lot of math concepts drills and they have the answer sheet. Parents can use this to help their kids practice math.

For higher math we will be using  algebra resources found  here

Geometry can be done with the math drills website and Khan Academy.

Of course doing math using the real world is  more useful and kids enjoy it better. Here is some ideas to get you going: Math in Real Life  Some of my readers have been enjoying the post on  Aviation math. 

I have collected a series of books from Cliff Notes (highschool math) and a math dictionary ( for elementary and middle school). I also got a couple books by ELP called Math Practice Simplified Fractions and another one on decimals and Percents. I really like the way the put together these books. Easy flow and good amount of practice.  My kids love video gaming so I make it a point for them to encourage them to play math games. See also  kindergarden and first grade games. To help them memorize math facts they use Xtra math.
For those that love manipulatives check out Montesorri math ideas or hands on math on Google. Here is some for highschool:1000+ ideas Highschool Math/

After 10 years of homeschooling, I have noticed that my kids learn differently and I need to always find what helps them thrive to learn.  For us simple is better!




Math Practice Games for the summer Multiplication and Division

Multiplication Practice games:

Grand Prix

Click Multiplication Tables. Memorize a table each time. Start with table of 1, then 2, after that 3, and so on and so forth.

Then click image below to play a game:


Division Practice Games:
Pony Divison
Drag Race
Derby Division




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