Thrifty Thursday

Happy Thrifty Thursday!  Below are the deals for today.  If you find something I've missed, please leave a comment below!  I would love to hear from you!  

Homeschool Freebie of the Day
Today's freebie is The Outdoor Handy Book.  Make sure to look around for past freebies while you are there.

FREE Tea

Go to any McAlister’s Deli and get a FREE glass of tea TODAY ONLY.

FREE Krystal BBQ Burger

Go to Krystal on Facebook and get a coupon for a FREE BBQ Burger.

FREE Honeysuckle Breast Milk Storage Bags

Go to the Honeysuckle Breast Milk Storage Bags Facebook page to get FREE samples of Honeysuckle Breast Milk Storage Bags.

Jillian Michaels: 30 Day Shred Only $6.99

Amazon is currently offering Jillian Michaels - 30 Day Shred for only $6.99.

L.L. Bean Sale and FREE Shipping

This backpack is marked down to $9.99 on L.L. Bean today. And they are offering FREE shipping on any order.

FREE Working Mother Magazine

Take a short survey to qualify for a FREE Working Mother magazine subscription.

FREE Benjamin Moore Paint

Get a FREE Pint of Arborcoat Paint from Benjamin Moore locations with coupon. Good through 8/31/11.

FREE Sample Roundup
For anything I missed, you can get your FREE sample roundup from Deal Seeking Mom!

FREE Digital Edition of TOS Magazine

Take a look at the brand new Summer digital edition of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine.  TOS is offering this digital issue of the magazine totally free with no strings attached. 

Enjoy this free gift from TOS—no registration or email address required to view the magazine! Take a peek here. Then share the link with your friends by clicking on the share button at the top of the magazine pages.

Wordless Wednesday: Spelling Bee

Our daughter was in her first Spelling Bee last night, and although it was just for fun with friends, it was a good experience for them all and they had a great time!

Extracurricular Activities

Yesterday I wrote about our Curriculum Plans for Third Grade and today I thought I would lay out our plans for the extra activities we will be participating in for the year.  Of course this list will be ever-changing, but I think I have a handle on the bulk of what we will be doing.

Dance
Starting in September, dance will take up almost four hours a week.  Tap/Jazz and Company (which covers several forms of dance) on one day and Lyrical and Ballet II on another.  She loves her classes and instructor and all the girls get along very well. 

Music
She has been taking piano lessons for almost two years now.  She really enjoys it and still likes to practice.  Her 30 min piano lesson will be once a week before dance.

Book Club
About 11 girls whose ages range from about 7 to 12 years old are in an American Girl Book Club that meets just once a month.  We have only been to one club meeting but we are hopeful it will continue throughout the year. 

Jr. Homemakers Club
A friend is starting a Jr. Homemakers Club which will run twice a month.  She will be teaching about 14 girls to sew on machines, hand stitch, crochet, and bake.  We are very excited about this starting next week! 

Art Club
Another mom is starting an Art Club that will run twice a month.  This won't start until the end of August and we are hoping to make the majority of the meetings.  The first project will be making a robot.  My daughter is excited about it.

Field Trips
Like every year, I'm sure we will be going on a ton of field trips.  Our first one is already scheduled in a couple weeks. 

We are blessed to have so many moms in our area excited to start groups!

So that sums up most of our activities for the year so far.  All of them, except the field trips, will take place in the afternoons so no school will be missed.  :)

Curriculum Plans for Third Grade

I think I have finalized our plans for our third grade year.  I'm sure I will tweak things here and there and possibly find some new things, especially since I will be doing curriculum reviews again this year for the TOS Crew, but I think this will cover the bulk of what we will be doing.

We will be using Bigger Hearts for His Glory, from Heart of Dakota, which uses a biographical approach to American history from the 1500's-1970's. 

For History the main spines will be First Book in American History, Journeys in Time, and Stories of Great Americans.

For Science we will be reading through One Small Square: Seashore and Woods, Science in Colonial America, and A Pioneer Sampler. 

For Bible we are currently reading through Proverbs and in the fall we will start Community Bible Study, where we both will be studying Luke.

For Math we are using Righstart Level D.  I went back and forth about this for a while and was very close to choosing another math program (we've been using Rightstart since the first level). 

Our daughter struggled last year and I just wasn't sure if it was the program or just her not liking math.  I've decided to slow our pace down and play more games in between lessons.  My plan is to take a year and a half on this level. 

In addition to Rightstart and math games, I am going to have her work through Daily Word Problems, Grade 3. 

For the past two years we used First Language Lessons for Grammar.  We enjoyed it but I have heard good things about Rod & Staff and just happened to find the third grade books at a used curriculum sale.

So for Grammar we are using Beginning Wisely, English 3. 

Spelling is the only subject I am not 100% sure on.  We have used All About Spelling for two years but I wanted to try something new before we continued.  I found Sequential Spelling 1 at a used curriculum sale but I it seems a bit too easy (their online test places her in book 3).  We are currently working through some of it along with a 4th grade spelling list I found online.  Spelling comes naturally for her so once we get through the lists I have made, I'll focus on the words she gets wrong.  At that time I may revisit All About Spelling and purchase level 3.  Oh, and we are also working through Explode the Code 5.

For Writing, we are currently working through Writing Strands 3.  My daughter is enjoying it and we can speed up or slow down the pace as we see fit.

Once we finish with Writing Strands, which will probably be in late fall, I am going to be starting her in Excellence in Writing's Student Writing Intensive (SWI) A.  I am excited about this program and hoping it will take her writing to the next level.

For Handwriting she will be using New American Cursive Book 3.

For Independent Reading we are using the Drawn Into the Heart of Reading Teacher's Guide and Student Book Level 2-3.  I've chosen nine books, each in a different genre, that she is to read independently.  After each chapter is read, we go over discussion questions and sometimes there is a worksheet for her to complete. 

For Read Alouds, I've chosen a different set of nine books, each in a different genre, that I read aloud to her.  These correspond with the units in Bigger Hearts for His Glory.

For Latin she will be working on Latin for Children A. 

She finished Song School Latin already and enjoyed it so we are going to continue with Classical Academic Press.  I think it will be challenging but CAP makes it fun with their songs and online supplements.

So that is the bulk of what she will be working on this year.  I have a couple other workbooks, like Maps, Charts, and Graphs D and Building Thinking Skills Level 2, which she will just work on once a week. 

Looking at this list does seem like a lot, but really it all gets done in no more than about four hours a day.

 

Weekly Wrap-Up: Third Grade #6

This week we finished up Unit 4 ~ Captain John Smith and Pocahontas in our Heart of Dakota book, Bigger Hearts for His Glory.

History

In History we finished reading about Captain John Smith and Pocahontas in both our history reader and our read aloud chapter book.  The two projects for the week were to draw an Indian blanket and make an Acrostic using the letters of Pocahontas.  She also did one for John Smith. 

Bible

This week we focused on Proverbs 3:29-30 and the character trait "Trustworthy."  We had some real life examples of trustworthiness this week right at home.  ;)

"Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you.  Do not accuse anyone for no reason — when they have done you no harm."

Science

In Science we continued with One Small Square: Seashore.  She completed a notebooking page on Shelled Mollusks and how they are grouped.

Fun

This week a friend came over to play three days in a row.  They spent most of their time making American Girl dresses, bookmarks, and beaded jewelry. 

Yesterday I took the girls to see Madagascar II at the movie theatre since it was $1 movie day. 

Today our plan is to finish up school before lunch, head to the pool, and then Yobe for some yummy dessert!

How was your week?  Thanks for joining Our Homeschool Reviews and for more Weekly Wrap-Up, this week I am linked up with Kris over at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.

 

Amazon Deals

Did you know that with Amazon's Toy Outlet you can save 25% to 70% on popular toys!  Think early Christmas shopping!  ;)  Here are some good deals I found today.

I had to list this Webkinz Schnauzer because we have a Miniature Schnauzer and this is so cute!  Only $4.53 down from $14.99.

The U-Build Monopoly is just $8.11 down from $19.99.  I think it looks pretty neat.

This I Spy Memory Game is just $11.98 down from $21.99. 

We have always loved Cranium games and I found Cranium Cariboo Island on sale.  It's only $10.56 down from $21.99!

Reading Aloud Challenge: Week 3

Debra over at Footprints in the Butter has been hosting a Reading Aloud Challenge each week on her blog so I will be linking up again this week.

I finally finished reading Pocahontas and the Strangers aloud.  We were scheduled to read just a chapter a day so it took about a month.

It was a great book and we both learned so much about the life of Pocahontas, her tribe, the settlers at Jamestown, Captain John Smith, and John Rolfe. 

I would definitely recommend it if you are studying American History.

Today we started a new book called Almost Home.  It's an Adventure based on the life of the Mayflower's Mary Chilton. 

I have only read part of the first chapter but it looks like we will be enjoying  it. 

This book is part of the Daughter's of the Faith Series so if you enjoy it and are looking for others you may want to check those out as well.

I am also continuing to read aloud A First Book in American History and Journeys in Time for History and One Small Square: Seashore for Science.

What have you been reading aloud this week?

American Girl No-Sew Dress Tutorial

A couple weeks ago I wrote about the American Girl Book Club my daughter is participating in.  A friend of ours has been very gracious in hosting it at her house.  She searched online and found a really neat no-sew dress craft for the girls. 

Several of you have asked for the instructions on making the dress so I thought I would put together a tutorial of my own.  It's super easy and a lot of fun!

Step 1

Choose your material and cut a piece that is about 15" x 22".  It does not have to be exact, just close.

Step 2

Fold it in half so it is now about 11" x 15".

Step 3

Cut a hole in the middle of the folded side about 2" to 3" wide.  It's best to play it safe and cut it small.  You can always make it slightly wider if it doesn't fit over the doll's head.

Step 4

Cut fringe all the way across the bottom of the dress. 

Step 5

Cut fringe on the sides for the sleeves. Start about half way and make five or six cuts going toward the top. 

Step 6

Place the dress over your doll's head.  You can make the belt by taking cord or string, adding a few beads, and just tying it in the back.  The headband can be made by cutting a coordinating piece of fabric, wrapping it around their head, and tying it to the side.

You can see others we have done here.
 

 

And the ecomom $15 GC Winner Is...

Comment #1: Melissa said...would love to give those vitamins a try for my kiddos - they love gummy vitamins!

I used Random.org to pick the winner and I have already notified her via email.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the ecomom Giveaway via Our Homeschool Reviews and thanks again to ecomom for allowing me to offer this great product!