Hands-on History

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How many times have you studied history with your children and just wished you could dig a little deeper?  Maybe history is one of those “boring” subjects for your kids and you need a way to bring the subject alive. 

If either of these thoughts have crossed your mind…. let me take a moment to introduce you to a solution that will take care of both issues.

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Home School in the Woods has compiled everything you need to dig deeper and incorporate hands on fun into your studies.

Hunter and I had the chance to explore one of their great elementary school offerings; The Great Empires.

This year we have been studying World History and The Great Empires completely expanded and enhanced our regular textbook study.

When it arrived we were just beginning to study Ancient Greece, so, that is where we began with The Great Empires.  Home School in the Woods provides informative supplemental text that went deeper than what our textbook provided.  It was easy to read and kept Hunter engaged. After reading about Greece we used the map and key to plot and record the placement of the ancient cities.

Our next activity was decorating Greek pottery.  This way by far Hunter’s favorite activity.  We researched different styles of pottery on the internet and printed out a few examples to use as reference.

 

Hunter then drew his design and painted his very own piece of pottery

Our study continued, with designing our own shield, and making hummus, a yummy Greek treat.  We also read seven books ( all provided in each empire’s project list) to better understand the culture. The books were very easy to locate either electronically and free for my Kindle, or at our local library.

With all the in-depth study, visiting the provided links and reading the books,  our study of Ancient Greece lasted a little over three weeks.  

Our next  stop in our study of The Great Empires has been Ancient Rome. We followed the same path as our study of Greece and read the provided material and mapping the ancient cities. We are just wrapping up all of our reading choices, and as soon as I can gather the materials, we are going to paint our own fresco!

We really can’t wait to start our next ancient adventure.  Hunter has so enjoyed our extra study time that he want to invite the neighbor kids over to study with us this summer!  He is looking forward to learning more about Viking Coins, I am excited for Koi Fish. :)

We chose to use The Great Empires as an in-depth study.  We used all the resources they provided to help us learn more about the subject. If you wanted to just use the activities, you could do that as well.  There are no set rules on how to use the study.

The Great Empires will help you and your children learn more about 14 of the great empires of history.  For a detailed list of the empires that are covered go here. The cost is $18.95 for a downloadable version, and $19.95 if you would like a CD.  We used the downloadable version and it was easy to unzip and use.

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My prep time for each study was about an hour and that was mostly to locate the books we would be reading.  The projects have been easy to gather materials for in my local hometown.  I would recommend this curriculum to any homeschooling family, I do not feel that it would conflict with any particular curriculum or learning style, it would only enhance it.

 

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green food

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I have been looking for a way to eat a bit healthier, and maybe lose a bit of weight in the process.  So, I have been researching and I stumbled across eating raw. 

I am not sure how this will all work out for me.  I do not think I am ready to embrace this whole raw food culture that is out there.  I am willing to try something new.  I joined in with Young and Raw on their 30 day cleanse challenge for the month of April and so far I have had two of their green smoothies.

Yesterday was day one. 

My smoothie was kale, parsley, ginger, and coconut water. 

It tasted like I ate a handful of lawn clippings.  Really, it did.  I think I was still chewing on the kale and parsley hours later.

Not to be deterred by one recipe, I bravely made the drink for day two.

It was blueberries, parsley, spinach, and coconut water.

It still tasted vaguely of fresh cut grass, apparently parsley will do that to a beverage, but the blueberries made it much more tolerable.

I have no idea if this smoothie thing will work.  I have noticed that I have had a bit more energy through the afternoon when I drink these in the morning. 

…. I will let you know how the next few days go….  maybe I will even find a recipe that doesn’t taste like grass…. 

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C is for compassion

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com.pas.sion   (n.)  - a deep awareness of the suffering of others, coupled with a desire to alleviate it.

My dear children,

I pray that you will cultivate compassion in your hearts.  To have compassion for others you will need to learn to look beyond your own reflection, you own home, your own yard.

Look for the people who sit quietly.  Are they hiding behind sad eyes with a lonely heart? Sometimes your smile is enough to speak to their soul.

As you grow older, you will have friends who will experience profound loss; their parents will pass, and heaven forbid, they may lose a child.  Their ache will be your ache.  Sitting quietly, holding their hand while they make phone calls, fix a meal, fold their laundry, each task is an act of compassion.  It says, “I see you are hurting. I am here.  I will help.”

It is easy to forget in your everyday life, that many of the people you meet are lost.  The biggest act of compassion you could perform is to share with them the hope that resides in you.  Your hope for eternity.  Ask God for a compassionate heart so you can see those who need him most.

~love, mom

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Thoughts from a veteran’s wife

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Today on that little social media website that we call Facebook, a picture was posted and a tidbit of an article was shared. 

The writer of the article, a Bill McClellan from the St. Louis Dispatch, proposed that the government cut costs by ending the policy of funerals with honors for Veterans.

McClellan agrees there are large areas to cut governmental spending, he feels that the small cost saving areas should be addressed as well.

His article quotes possible cost figures for what the government might pay to the veterans organizations who help staff the funerals for our veterans.  In doing the math, I can see where his point takes on a certain level of validity.  From a purely mathematical perspective I could agree with him; and had his article remained devoid of his personal opinion, I may have backed his cause.

His suggestion that “most veterans didn’t do anything heroic anyway…..”, is where my opinion of his argument began to wane, if not screech to an abrupt halt.  I find the day in and day out donning of a uniform to put yourself in the path of harm, very heroic. He finishes his article by giving all veterans a call to action.  He asks them to set aside their entitlement to a funeral with honors as a sacrifice for the country they loved enough to serve.

I do not like these last two statements from the author. Our government entered into a contract with each of the men and women who have served our country. In exchange for their service, our government has promised to help them attend college, provide for their medical needs, and when they die, their family can request a funeral with honors.  Out of the three contractual promises, or entitlements, that I listed above; the only one that I know the government consistently meets its obligation on is funerals.  To do as Mr. McClellan suggests would not be a grand gesture of sacrifice for a veteran, it would be a slap in the face, and yet another entitlement denied.

While I am the first person to look for a way to save a dollar, please do not suggest cutting costs by taking the last exhibition of thanks away from our veterans. They gave their sweat, tears, time, and in some cases their blood, for this country. A flag, a few shots fired, and a bugle, don’t seem to cost too much when weighed against a life.

To read McClellan’s original article: http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/columns/bill-mcclellan/mcclellan-one-last-call-to-service-end-military-funeral-honors/article_8495bfa5-33b5-5fd0-bfd9-9415fde97e13.html

To read an article about McClellan’s article:  http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/mar/28/columnist-wants-end-military-funeral-honors-vets-w/

What do you think?  Is cutting funeral honors for a veteran a wise cost cutting choice? 

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