Disclosure of Material Connection:

Some of the links on this blog are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and/or believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Friday, May 30, 2014

Share it Saturday

Chestnut Grove Academy Share It Saturday Blog Hop

 
new share it saturday hosts
Please visit my co-hosts:

Karyn from Teach Beside Me
Colleen & Leann from Sugar Aunts
Mary Catherine from Fun-a-Day
Kate from Laughing Kids Learn
and Tiffany from Life & Lessons From a Country Road

Last weeks highlights:
If you are featured – feel free to grab a button to display on your blog!

Chestnut Grove Academy Share It Saturday Blog Hop


Quietest Classroom Pencil Sharpener *GIVEAWAY*

Did you catch my review of the Quietest Classroom Pencil Sharpener?? 

Classroom Friendly Supplies

Classroom Friendly Supplies have graciously offered me ONE pencil sharpener to give away to a reader (color of their choice)!

They have also give me a 5% discount code to share!

**Get 5% off when you enter the code 3CLLU4NTER3T when checking out, good until June 14.

Enter to Rafflecopter form below to win, open to US Residents Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Field Trip #125 Friday Blog Hop–Sharp Farm & Conservancy

Field Trip Friday!
Photobucket
Blog Hop designed to share 'FIELD TRIP' related Blog Posts

(does not have to be a 'home school field trip', can be any trip to any place with your children!)

Please stop by and visit my co-host’s blog and give them a shout out!
Lisa @ Our 4 Kiddos

A couple more fun field trips we have done since moving to MD.
 
Sharp Farm has homeschool days, there are 3 different classes that we signed up for and this is the first one we attended.  This one was Spring is Growing.  They discussed plants and how they grow, they toured the greenhouse and got to plant a plant of their own.  We also had a hay ride and got to feed the goats!
 
2014-05-11 23.17.35
 
Next up was the Howard County Conservancy.  This was the first Homeschool Days they held, but it was lots of fun.  They had stations set up that we rotated through.
1.  Insects
2.  Birds
3.  Habitats
4.  Owl Presentation

2014-05-11 23.17.55

 

**NOTE:  Before linking up please review guidelines HERE

 

    Wednesday, May 28, 2014

    Workbox Wednesday Link Up #2–Second Grade Boxes

    Chestnut Grove Academy
     

    Welcome to Workbox Wednesday!  If you use workboxes, tot trays, or anything similar, feel free to post a link to your blog post or a picture (pictures can be from Facebook, but please make sure they are PUBLIC so we can see them, or use a host like photobucket.com to get a URL for your photo) that shows WHAT IS IN YOUR BOXES!

    Please visit my co-host at Tots and Me

    Visit others that link up, leave comments, follow, etc.  The favors will be returned!  Feel free to grab a button too, so others can find the link up and join in the fun!

    This week I am featuring my 2nd graders boxes.  His boxes do not change a whole lot from day to day for the most part.  BUT, we have just started a new review for Moving Beyond the Page.  These are his boxes from DAY 1 of the unit study.

    2014-05-22 20.19.07
    The front of the boxes.  I label them by subject, there is a with Mom card I use if he has to do it with me (teacher guided).  There are a few other cards I may sticker here as well, as you’ll see with the history box.

    2014-05-22 20.19.262014-05-22 20.19.332014-05-22 20.19.40
    L to R:  WriteShop Lesson (another review we are doing), Vocabulary exercise from Moving Beyond the Page, Atlas, Desert Toob and Biomes worksheet (MBP).

    2014-05-22 20.19.462014-05-22 20.19.532014-05-22 20.20.03
    L to R:  Texas worksheet (MBP) and Texas items from Continent box, Geology book and project items which include Chocolate Chip Cookies, toothpicks, Periodic Elements Table, Data Chart and Graph (MBP), Math U See Gamma Unit 13 test

    2014-05-22 20.20.102014-05-22 20.20.162014-05-22 20.20.39
    L to R:  Gemstones worksheet (MBP), All About Spelling, Church History Reader

    2014-05-22 20.20.26
    Since History is on the computer, this drawer is empty and I placed a computer tag on the box.

    We do not have a particular order we do our boxes in with the exception that Religion is FIRST and History is LAST.  I will ask him to do boxes that do not need my assistance in place of those that do IF I am busy with the other kids. Sometimes he doesn’t really feel like doing any of the boxes, and he will be indecisive, in those cases, I choose…otherwise he has the say in the order of which he does his school work.

    Tuesday, May 27, 2014

    US History–Jamestown

    us history series2

    ROANOKE

    We Watched:

    Roanoke:  The Lost Colony – Amazon Prime

    JAMESTOWN

    We read:

    We watched:

    Nightmare in Jamestown – Netflix

    Jamestown: The Beginning – Amazon Prime

    We did:


    They played with the figures while I read the books, and made log cabins from Lincoln Logs. 

    2014-05-14-21.47.14_thumb1

    Lapbook – Hands of a Child

    2014-05-22 12.59.242014-05-22 12.59.28

    We will also hope to attend Homeschool Days at Jamestown in September.  They are not selling tickets until end of July though.

    Coming up:
    We just started reviewing Veritas Press Self Paced History (Explorers to 1815), we will get caught up to Jamestown in that curriculum and then go from there.  Next post will be Pilgrims and other early US settlements, but it may be a couple weeks.  Stay tuned!!

    Update: 
    See or review of Veritas Press and see our Jamestown Fort model!

    Monday, May 26, 2014

    Poppins Book Nook–Using Folk Tales in your Geography Studies *GIVEAWAY*

    Poppins Book Nook
    <div align="center"><a href="http://enchantedhomeschoolingmom.org/2014/02/poppins-book-nook/" title="Poppins Book Nook"><img src="http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/enchantedhomeschoolingmom/ProfileImage_zpse3f27ae8.png" alt="Poppins Book Nook" style="border:none;" /></a></div>
    Grab the code above to come and link up each month and share what YOU do with the theme!  We look forward to hearing from you!


    This Year’s Co-hosts


    Enchanted Homeschooling Mom ~ 3 Dinosaurs ~ To the Moon and Back ~ Planet Smarty Pants ~ Farm Fresh Adventures ~ Growing in God's Grace ~ Chestnut Grove Academy ~ Learning and Growing the Piwi Way ~ The Usual Mayhem~ Preschool Powol Packets ~ Monsters Ed Homeschool Academy ~ Adventures in Mommydom ~ Teach Beside Me ~ Life with Moore Babies ~ Kathy's Cluttered Mind ~ Are We There Yet? ~ Our Crafts N Things ~ Hopkins Homeschool ~ ABC Creative Learning ~ Joy Focused Learning ~ P is for Preschooler ~ Laugh and Learn ~ A Mommy's Adventures ~ Inspiring 2 New Hampshire Children ~ World for Learning ~ Ever After in the Woods ~ Golden Grasses ~ Our Simple Kinda Life ~ A glimpse of our life ~ Journey to Excellence ~ Happy Little Homemaker ~ Little Homeschool Blessings ~ Simplicity Breeds Happiness ~ Raventhreads ~ Learning Fundamentals ~ Tots and Me ~ As We Walk Along The Road ~ Stir the Wonder ~ For This Season ~ Where Imagination Grows ~ Lextin Academy ~ The Canadian Homeschooler ~ School Time Snippets ~ Peakle Pie ~ Mom's Heart ~ A Moment in our World ~ Every Bed of Roses ~ Finchnwren ~ At Home Where Life Happens ~ Suncoast Momma ~ The Library Adventure ~ Embracing Destiny ~ Day by Day in our World ~ Our Homeschool Studio ~ A "Peace" of Mind ~ Thou Shall Not Whine ~ SAHM I am ~ eLeMeNo-P Kids ~ Simple Living Mama


    folktales


    Picture of Illustrated Stories from Around the World


    What better way to learn about other countries than through fun and entertaining folk tales from around the world!


    Great stories with beautiful illustrations, this book lives up to the great Usborne name of books!


    The Baobab Tree - a story from Africa
    Baba Yaga the Flying Witch - a story from Russia
    The Stonecutter - a story from Japan
    Dick Whittington - a story from England
    The Three Wishes - a story from Scandinavia
    The Fish that Talked - a story from India
    King Midas and the Golden Touch - a story from Ancient Greece
    Brer Rabbit Down the Well - a story from America
    The Magic Pear Tree - a story from China
    The Genie in the Bottle - a story from the Middle East

    Fun for all ages!  A great early reader book for first/second graders or a read aloud for younger children. 

    Find the country on the map before and after reading.  Illustrate the story yourself on a small piece of paper to place on the map for that country/region!

    Other Resources for some of the countries included in this book:

    Africa -
    Free Africa Unit Studies and Lapbooks
    Africa Unit Study
    Montessori Inspired Africa Activities
    Animals from Africa FREE 3-part cards
    Short clip about the Baobab Tree
    Mosaic Baobab Tree Placemat

    Russia -
    Free Russia Lapbook
    Witch Art Project
    How to use a Mortar and Pestle video
    Try it yourself if you have one!

    Japan -
    Free Japan Lapbook
    Montessori – Japan

    England -
    Free England Lapbook
    Montessori – England

    India -
    Free India Lapbook
    Montessori – India

    Greece -
    Free Ancient Greece Lapbook

    China -
    Free China Lapbook


    Poppins Book Nook Giveaway!


    Every month the Poppins Book Nook group will be offering readers a chance to win a brand new storybook or product that ties in with our theme for the month. This month one lucky entrant will win a copy of the E.H.M. curriculum Journey into the World of Folktales (PDF) and one copy of the book that is required to teach it called Around the World in 80 Tales by Saviour Pirotta to further their learning all about folktales. Entrants must be 18years or older and reside in a country that receives U.S. Postal mail. This giveaway is brought to you by the company Enchanted Homeschooling Mom who is owner and founder of the Poppins Book Nook. By entering this giveaway you are also acknowledging that you have read and agree to all of the Rafflecopter terms & conditions as well as Enchanted Homeschooling Mom's disclosures found here. Just enter the Rafflecopterbelow to win:


    Jill R. Ehm-Creator's photo.


     a Rafflecopter giveaway


    Friday, May 23, 2014

    Share it Saturday

    Chestnut Grove Academy Share It Saturday Blog Hop

     
    new share it saturday hosts
    Please visit my co-hosts:

    Karyn from Teach Beside Me
    Colleen & Leann from Sugar Aunts
    Mary Catherine from Fun-a-Day
    Kate from Laughing Kids Learn
    and Tiffany from Life & Lessons From a Country Road

    Last weeks highlights:
    If you are featured – feel free to grab a button to display on your blog!

    Chestnut Grove Academy Share It Saturday Blog Hop


    Review: Rhyme to Read iOS app and Giveaway

    I’m happy to be able to share a review with you on a new learn to read phonics/rhyming based app called Rhyme to Read for iPad iOS. 
    iPad Screenshot 2
    This app contains 20 books based on the short vowel sounds.  They are cumulative stories, building on each other.  You can purchase it in it’s entirety for $9.99, or download a FREE sample and purchase books individually as in app purchases at 99cents each (the first is definitely the better deal). 
    The app is designed for ages 5+ whom are beginning readers.  I have been using it with my son who just turned 5 last month (April). 
    The page on the left side sounds out the word when touched, the same word(s) are repeated on the right side page; however, when touched the word is said in it’s entirety.  The words are also color coded, with the initial sound in black and the ending sound in blue. 
    Site words are also introduced, the site word is show in a black box, in black, in the top right hand corner.  When touched, the site word, is read in a different vice from the other words in the book. 
    iPad Screenshot 1
    The use of site words help make the story flow more.  Beginner reader books are always full of incomplete sentences in ways that no one really talks.  Adding a few site words like and, the, to, etc..  helps the story flow better and makes it more like an actual book.
    iPad Screenshot 1
    Pages are easily turned by swiping the surface.  While this aids in the ease of use, it is also a negative in my book.  The reason is that when I am using this app with my son and try to follow along with my finger on the words, it turns the page.  This started to be rather frustrating!
    Another thing that I found frustrating was the pronunciation of the site word ‘the’, it is pronounced as ‘thee’.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t pronounce it that way when talking or reading, even if that is the ‘rule’ of pronunciation because of the e at the end (like me and be).  *UPDATE:  They have fixed the pronunciation and it now says THE instead of THEE!!
    iPad Screenshot 2
    Despite those two simple things that I did not like, these are great stories, adding both fun and entertainment to learning to read!
    My 5 yo has enjoyed them thus far.  We will continue to work with these stories as we work on rhyming words and beginning reading skills.

    Disclaimer:  I received this product free in exchange for my honest review.  I was not required to write a positive review, nor was I compensated in any other way.  All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family.  I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Regulations.
    I have been offered one product to giveaway to a lucky reader!  Enter using the rafflecopter form below! 
    This app is for use with Apple iPad only, please keep that in mind when entering!
    a Rafflecopter giveaway

    Thursday, May 22, 2014

    Field Trip #124 Friday Blog Hop–Sweet Frogs and Baltimore Zoo

    Field Trip Friday!
    Photobucket
    Blog Hop designed to share 'FIELD TRIP' related Blog Posts

    (does not have to be a 'home school field trip', can be any trip to any place with your children!)

    Please stop by and visit my co-host’s blog and give them a shout out!
    Lisa @ Our 4 Kiddos
     
    We found a great facebook group for our current location and had field trips lined up already before even arriving!  Our first trip was to SWEET FROGS in Westminster, MD.  Did you know FROG stands for Fully Rely on God?  This is a small Christian owned chain.
     
    2014-05-11 23.01.59

    For our 2nd Field Trip we had plans to go to St. Mary’s City, but once we piled in the car and plugged it into the GPS I realized what I thought was 1hr away was more like 2.5hrs away!  YIKES!  So change of plans (since we were not prepared to spend the ENTIRE day away).  We hit the Baltimore Zoo.  My aunt who was off of work from surgery joined us.  We got a year pass, so we will be back!
     
    2014-05-11 23.02.23
     
    I’ve heard that the St. Mary’s City is a great location, so I think we will attend the next event, we will just plan better!
     
     

    **NOTE:  Before linking up please review guidelines HERE

     

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