October 1 , 2006

Dear Oklahoma Homeschool Subscribers,

Beginning with this issue of the OKHS E-newsletter, I'll be sending only an HTML version to my mailing list. I have had enough response from you, my readers, to know that the majority of you prefer the HTML version. It takes me extra time to do an HTML version and a plain text version for email, so this will save me time on which I can write the newsletter and create more resources for homeschoolers. If you unable to receive HTML emails, then please log on to my website to read the current issue.

I look forward to seeing some of you at my seminar on October 7th. Please come up and introduce yourself and let me know you're on my mailing list. I'd love to put faces to my emails!

I hope you enjoy this issue of the OKHS E-newsletter.

Have a great October!

Cindy Downes

Oklahoma Homeschool Newsletter, October 2006

Index:

• What's New on the Oklahoma Homeschool Website?
• Book Reviews
• Teaching Without Textbooks
• Free Forms
• The Checklist & Multi-Level Teaching
• Internet Resources for Homeschooling
• Quote for the Day
• Oklahoma Resources

What's New on the Oklahoma Homeschool Website?

1. Organize Your Homeschool for Success by Cindy Downes.

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Book Review:

In the Hands of a Child. Are you looking for a quick, easy & fun way to teach history and science? Then check out the kits at Hands of a Child. Each kit becomes a colorful, lap book made of file folders and construction paper that illustrates what your child has learned during the unit. Each kit comes with a lesson plan and printable masters. You supply paper, file folders, brads, and glue. All you have to do is copy the masters, cut out, and then have your children complete the lessons. You can even buy a kit already printed - all you do is cut out and teach!

The lessons are written from a Christian perspective and include biographies, literature, state history, science, and history. Topics range from the Human Body to Wireless Communication to the French Revolution. Each lesson is multi-level so you can use it, as is, for several grade levels or you can adapt it for PreK-12. All of the newer kits come with a study guide which gives you all the factual information you need to complete the lesson as well. For the older kits, you will need to research the factual information yourself using a textbook, encyclopedia, or the internet.

For example, In the North Carolina State history unit, your child learns state facts, geography, climate, government, economy, people, religion, important dates, major cities, colleges and universities, wildlife, and vocabulary of the state through reading of the text included. They reinforce this learning by completing "projects" that go with each lesson and are added to the folder as they progress. When completed, the folder is easy to store and makes great "memory book" of your child's school years.

These kits are perfect to use along with The Checklist and highly recommended for the Read/Write and Visual Learner or any child who likes to make booklets, color, cut out and paste. To see samples, prices, and how to order, please check the website: http://www.handsofachild.com/.

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Teaching Without Textbooks: Civil War Theme

Internet Resources - General Information:

• Reading: Civil War for Kids: http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/civilwar/cwar.htm
• Civil War biographies: http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/warweb.html#bios
• Civil War Primary Documents: http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/warweb.html#letters
• People, Weapons, Timeline of Events: http://www.civilwar.si.edu/
• Civil War Battles by State: http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/battles/bystate.htm and map of battles: http://find.mapmuse.com/re1/interest.php?brandID=CIVIL_WAR_MAJOR_BATTLES&authCod=oran
• More Civil War Battles: http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/warweb.html#specific
• Camp Life in the Civil War: http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/gettex/
• Letters from the Civil War: http://www.civilwarletters.com/letters_toc.html
• Virtual Civil War: http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/Welcome3.html
• Valley of the Shadow (great for research papers): http://valley.vcdh.virginia.edu/
• Frederick Douglass: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/activists/douglass
• Harriet Tubman: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/activists/tubman
• Abraham Lincoln: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/presidents/lincoln

Internet Resources - Photos & Illustrations:

• Confederate Money: http://www.cwc.lsu.edu/cwc/BeyondFaceValue/collection/index.htm
• Civil War Photos: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwphtml/cwphome.html and
  http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/warweb.html#graphic

Lesson Plans & Unit Studies

• Lesson Plan: http://www.smplanet.com/civilwar/civilwar.html

Music & Art of the Period:

• Civil War music: http://memory.loc.gov/learn/community/cc_music_kit.php
• View Paintings of Winslow Homer: http://cgfa.sunsite.dk/homer/ and http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/homer_winslow.html
• Winslow Homer Activity: http://gardenofpraise.com/art15.htm
• Activities (Composition, Music, Art): http://www.pbs.org/civilwar/classroom/activities.html

Crafts, Recipes, Games, & Hands-on Activities:

• Civil War Recipes: http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Barracks/1369/recipes.html and http://web.archive.org/web/20031205204216/http://www.eden.rutgers.edu/~sirak/uscwcc/recipes.html
• Recipes of the Civil War : http://www.angelfire.com/me/civilian/recipes.html
• Addy's World Game: http://www.americangirl.com/agcn/addy/escape/index.html
• Underground Railroad Game: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/j1.html
• Civil War Crafts from clothespins: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Museum/8072/civilwar.html
• Civil War Costumes for kids: http://home.rochester.rr.com/inwoods/civilwar-costumes.htm
• Civil War Days: Discover the Past With Exciting Projects, Games, Activities and Recipes
• Multimedia Collection: Civil War Days (Book & CD)
• Civil War, Thematic Unit by Teacher Created Materials
• Hands-on History: Civil War (Hands-On History) by Michael Gravois
• The Civil War for Kids: A History with 21 Activities (For Kids series) by Janis Herbert
• Robert E. Lee and His Family Paper Dolls

Worksheets, Coloring Pages, & Quizzes

• Civil War Cause & Effect Worksheet: http://www.edhelper.com/clipart/teachers/civil-org-causeeffect.pdf
• Civil War Timeline Worksheet: http://www.edhelper.com/clipart/teachers/civil-org-timeline.pdf
• Civil War Who,What, Where, & When worksheet:
  http://www.edhelper.com/clipart/teachers/civil-org-whowhatwhere.pdf
• Trivia Quiz and Quiz About People in Civil War: http://library.thinkquest.org/5663/
• Civil War Map (Blank): http://www.edhelper.com/clipart/teachers/civil-map-blank.pdf
• Civil War coloring page: http://www.edhelper.com/teachers/civilwar_coloring2.htm and http://www.edhelper.com/teachers/civilwar_coloring3.htm and http://www.edhelper.com/teachers/civilwar_coloring4.htm and http://www.edhelper.com/teachers/civilwar_coloring5.htm
• Book Report Form for Uncle Tom's Cabin: http://www.edhelperclipart.com/clipart/books/UNCLETOMSCABIN.pdf

Books to Read:

• Abe Lincoln Goes to Washington, 1837-1865 by Cheryl Harness. illus. 3-8+ (ISBN 0792269063)
• Abraham Lincoln (Heroes of History), by Janet Benge/ 218 pgs. , All ages.
• Abraham Lincoln by Lola M . Schaefer. K-2
• Abraham Lincoln’s World. by Genevieve Foster, 3+
• America in the Time of Abraham Lincoln 1815-1869, by Sally Isaacs, nicely illustrated, 3+
• The Boys' War: Confederate and Union Soldiers Talk About the Civil War by Jim Murphy
• Civil War Medicine by Douglas Savage, 7th+
• Clara Barton (Heroes of History) by Janet Benge, Geoff Benge
• Dear America: When Will This Cruel War Be Over? by Barry Denenberg
• The Drinking Gourd (An I Can Read Book) by F. N. Monjo
• Escape From Slavery, The Boyhood of Frederick Douglass in His Own Words by Michael McCurdy. 4-12
• Faith in God and Generals: An Anthology of Faith, Hope and Love in the American Civil War compiled by Ted Baehr & Susan Wales
• Fields of Fury: The American Civil War by James McPherson, Excellent. Use for basis of unit study. 3rd+
• The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln, Illustrated by Michael McCurdy. B/W illus. Excellent. K-12
• George Washing Carver (Heroes of History) by Janet Benge, Geoff Benge
• Harriet Tubman (Heroes of History), by Janet Benge/ 218 pgs. , All ages.
• Harriet Tubman (Early Biography) by Dana Meachen Rau. K-8+
• Hitty's Travels: Civil War Days by Ellen Weiss. Easy Reader, K-3rd+
• If You Grew Up With Abraham Lincoln by Ann McGovern, 2-6+
• If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War by Kay Moore, 2-6+
• If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine, 2-6+
• In Their Own Words: Abraham Lincoln by George Sullivan. 128 pgs, illus, 4-8+
• In Their Own Words: Harriet Tubman by George Sullivan. 128 pgs, illus, 4-8+
• Listen for the Whippoorwill, Harriet Tubman by Dave Jackson(
• Meet Abraham Lincoln. by Barbara Cary, 3+
• A Picture Book of Robert E. Lee (Picture Book Biography) by David A. Adler
• The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
• Robert E. Lee, Young Confederate by Helen Albee Monsell (3+)
• Thee Hannah! by Marguerite de Angeli. 98 pgs. (Fiction) 1-6+
• Ulysses S. Grant (History Maker Bios) by Susan Bivin Aller
• Uncle Tom's Cabin: Young Folks Edition by Harriet B. Stowe, 3+
• Welcome to Addy's World, 1864: Growing up During America’s Civil War, all ages, American Girls, 4-8
• With Lee in Virginia by G. A. Henty
• Your Travel Guide to Civil War America by Nancy Day. Excellent. K-12

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FREE Forms:

1. Civil War Report. I've created this composition booklet for you to use with your Civil War units. Each page is divided into two sections. The top section is where you child can draw a picture or paste photos related to the topic. The bottom part is where they can write a short paragraph about the page. I hope you enjoy it. It is free for my readers for a limited time. Eventually, I may create a set of them and charge for the set. The booklet is in pdf format, so you must have Acrobat Reader 5.0 or higher to print this form. After you download the pdf file, simply print on your computer and bind either with staples, a 3-ring notebook, or spiral binding. There are two cover choices: one with Lincoln on the front and one with Clara Barton on the front. Download your free booklet here.

2. Sample Weekly plan (pdf ). Read my webpage at http://www.oklahomahomeschool.com/CPsample.html for more info.

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The Checklist & Multi-Level Teaching:

1. Christmas Unit. Now is the time to start thinking about (and purchasing supplies for) a Christmas unit if you're going to do one. I've created a simple, 4-week unit that covers the birth of Jesus, John Newton, Hymns and Hymnwriters, and sharing. It is recommended for PreK-5th.

2. Be sure to add what your children did for the Civil War unit to your copy of The Checklist!

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Internet Resources:

1. Current Events site: Students read about current events and take a quiz afterwards. This is a great way to teach kids current events! http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/.

2. Career Pathways. An online tool for exploring careers. Excellent! http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~pathways/Surveypage.htm. Also check out the page that shows related courses to take for each career: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~pathways/student/courses.htm/.

3. Children's Storybooks Online. Free storybooks for kids. Some are talking books. http://www.magickeys.com/books/.

4. International Children's Digital Library. FREE e-books for kids! A large database of children's book that can be read online! This is also a good tool for foreign language study too. Read a book in the language you are studying! http://www.icdlbooks.org/.

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Quote:

"In regard to this Great Book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book." — Abraham Lincoln (Source: September 7, 1864 - Reply to Loyal Colored People of Baltimore upon Presentation of a Bible)

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Oklahoma Resources:

1. Home Educators’ Capitol Day, Tuesday, February 20, 2007. Capitol Day is the most important event of the year as it is designed to communicate with our state legislators and senators that home education is a viable and credible educational alternative. The freedom we have to home educate our children rests on the work we do here. Please check the OCHEC website for more info: http://www.ochec.com/ and make plans to attend. Your freedom to home educate depends on you! Contact: Rick and Jeannette Webb, Oklahoma Christian Home Educators’ Consociation, Capitol Day Coordinators. Email: webblings@gmail.com

2. The Museum of Creation Truth displays fossils, replicas, and artifacts that tell the story of creation. Creationist-based movies can be viewed in the theatre. Each attendee receives a free DVD from Dr. Dino! Hours: Saturday 10-4. Monday - Friday by appointment. Free. Address: 3290 State Rd. 22, Bokchito, OK 74726 (From Durant go 14 miles East on Hwy 70 to Bokchito. Go six miles south of Bokchito Bank on State Rd. 22). Phone: (580) 924-0803. Email: billygordon@redrivermail.com.

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Have a great day!

Cindy

Have you seen The Checklist? It's an assessment tool, lesson planner and K-12 Recordkeeper created for Christian Home Educators: http://www.oklahomahomeschool.com/checklist.html

Oklahoma History Online is now available! Check it out at: http://www.oklahomahomeschool.com/okhist.html

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