What is the history of the United States? How were states formed? We are learning all about it this year as we study the United States. It is like taking a road trip from the comforts of our own home. Today we learned that Alabama was the twenty-second state. It can be difficult to remember the capitals of all the states, so I was delighted when I found this fun way of learning it from Kids Learn America! by Patricia Gordon & Reed Snow. They recommended imagining a mountain made out of gum and a owl sitting on top of the mountain. The owl will help you remember Alabama (owl/al) and the mountain of gum will help you remember Montgomery (mount gum).



I love the free printables from USA-Printables. I print them out and my 3rd grader colors them for his USA Notebook. It shows the capital, the state bird, and the state flower. Here is the link for the Alabama coloring page.

Download my free PDF notebook cover to keep all your coloring pages in. It makes a nice keepsake memory too!

We learned that Helen Keller and Rosa Parks were born in Alabama. That the Tuskegee Institute  is where George Washington Carver found all those interesting uses for peanuts.

You will find some free printables on Rosa Parks here.
There is a free resource and activity pack if you would like to learn more about Helen Keller here.
Also, you'll find a free resource from George Washington Carver here.

We laughed at funny things we read in books. Things like, it's illegal to wrestle a bear in Alabama.

Learning is supposed to be fun, right? It is all about how you present the material and allowing kids to be hands on while learning. Children love being read to. If you find interesting things and present them in a fun way, they will love what they are learning. Allow your kids to learn what they are interested in. Don't feel like you have to do everything. A page here and there will enhance their learning without overwhelming them. Be hands on, grow a peanut plant. These are things that they will retain.

Have fun creating memories with your child. This is a special cherished time.

Blessings,
Bridget

My high-schooler has been observing the process of osmosis this week. What is osmosis anyways? According to the Biology Dictionary, "Osmosis is when a substance crosses a semipermeable membrane in order to balance the concentrations of another substance."



We did a fun experiment to learn about osmosis. This experiment takes three days to complete. Here is what you will need.

1 coffee mug
1 uncooked egg
1 3/4 cup measuring cup
1 tape measure
3/4 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup Karo Syrup
3/4 cup distilled water

Start by measuring the widest part of the egg. Then pour 3/4 cup vinegar in the coffee cup and place the egg in the mug. Allow it to sit for 24 hours. (Hint: the shell should start dissolving).

After 24 hours remove the egg from the mug and carefully rinse it off. The egg shell should have dissolved. Measure the egg again around the widest part. (Hint: your egg should measure a little larger). Wash out the mug and add 3/4 cup Karo syrup. Place the egg into the Karo syrup and let it sit for another 24 hours.

Remove the egg from the Karo syrup. (Hint: the egg should look a little dimpled). Rinse the egg and measure it around the widest part. It should have gotten smaller. Clean the mug and add the 3/4 cup distilled water and allow it to sit for another 24 hours.

Then remove the egg and measure it. (Hint: It should measure larger). What you have just experienced is osmosis. This would make a fun science fair project, just create a hypothesis, take some photos, and make some graphs. I have included a free downloadable PDF for you to record your results. You will find it here.

I hope you get a chance to try out this fun experiment and connect with your teen.

Happy experimenting!
Bridget

P.S. If you have boys like me, they will love throwing the egg after the experiment and watching it splat!

Sweet tea and me belong together! When I decided to kick refined sugar, the first thing I missed was my sweet tea. I scoured the internet looking for the perfect honey sweetened ice tea. I tried several recipes, and just didn't find what I was looking for. Then, I set out to create it on my own. The result was perfectly sweetened, delicious, honey iced tea.


Here is what you will need:

6 Organic Black Tea Bags
7 Tbsp. Raw Honey
12 Cups of Water

Place 12 cups of water in a pot. Bring the water just to a boil. Turn off the heat, add honey, and stir till dissolved. Add the tea bags, and allow it to sit for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags. Pour over ice and serve, or place in the refrigerator until chilled.

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do. Try flavored black tea too. My absolute favorite is Allegro Organic Decaf Ginger Peach Tea from Whole Foods. It is so delicious!

Let me know what fun flavors you try!

Have a sweet day!

Bridget

Science is so fun. What could be more enjoyable than watching your child learn hands on with a fun science project. This week my 3rd grader has been learning about floating. Why do some things float and others sink? What makes pool rafts and large ships float? Why do balloons float in the air?


We learned that density determines whether something floats or sinks. If the object is more dense than water or air it will not float. What is upthrust? Upthrust is created because water pushes up on things more than it pushes down. So, something that is more dense than water cannot create enough upthrust and it sinks. I know those ships are really heavy, but they contain air inside them making them less dense than water, therefore they float. As for those balloons floating in the air, the gas in the balloon is less dense that the air therefore, it floats.


This is really a cool topic for a science fair project. Have your child determine a hypothesis, and then test that hypothesis. A hypothesis is a guess. Then have them document with photos and graphs what they found out. It would be really fun to have a display of a few things to show the experiment hands on.

I am including a free PDF file  that I created for my son to do a simple experiment on what floats. Feel free to print out this PDF and work through it with your child.



I hope you enjoy spending time with your child. These little moments create lasting memories? Do you remember your science fair or geography fair projects as I child? I know I do, and I want to create lasting memories for my boys!

Enjoy,
Bridget

Spelling has never been a favorite subject for my boys. Let's face it, most kids don't love reviewing and writing their spelling words. I was on the look out for a method to improve their grades while making it fun, and I found just what I was looking for. With just a few minutes per day my kids are now making straight A's in spelling!

Thanks to the A+ Spelling Test app my kids are now doing awesome in Spelling. If your interested in trying out this app you will find it on the App Store . The best part is it's free and it works! I start the week by entering and recording their words. They have four days to study; then they are tested on day 5. They start day 1 with practice, A+ Spelling's introduction to the words. On day 2, they unscramble the words. By day 3 they are challenged with Ace it, basically the system continues to review the words until they spell them correctly. On day 4 they are tested on the words, with the option to retest on the words they miss. The repetition of the words helps them with troublesome words. On day 3 and 4, I am emailed their progress so that I can help them with any troublesome words. On day 5, we do a written test of the words. They also write their words daily in their spelling notebook. This has been life changing for my family, as it can be done with very little supervision. It frees me up to work with my other child, or catch up on grading some other assignments.

I have referred a few other homeschoolers to this app and they have loved it, so I thought I would share it with you. It doesn't matter whether your child is homeschooled or attends a traditional school this is an awesome app.

Let me know what you think!

Blessings,
Bridget

Every year on March 2, we celebrate Dr. Seuss' Birthday. Dr. Seuss was my favorite authors as a child, and I don't pass up the chance to read Green Eggs and Ham to my boys. Our day starts out with green eggs and ham (aka organic turkey bacon). The best thing is, you don't have to use food coloring to achieve this green color. Simply add a little spinach and eggs to your blender, and you have a delicious, nutritional breakfast. Then ask your kids, "Would you Eat Green Eggs and Ham?"