Homeschool Freebies: Homeschool Radio Shows

This site is great even if you are not homeschooling, but want some neat stuff to listen to while you are traveling, or whenever! This week’s program is “Listen My Children”…a dramatization of Paul Revere’s ride. With all the Tea Party talk these days, and our yearly tax deadline approaching, this is a great time to teach about this event–this Sunday, April 18th, is the 235th anniversary of this historical event.

At this link you’ll find a listening guide for this program, as well as a link to Longfellow’s poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride.” All free! By clicking here you can sign up to be on the email list for weekly free “radio shows” and get a download for “Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates” when you sign up!

Homeschool Freebies: Free Worksheet Motherlode

If you have searched for online resources for your homeschooling, only to find dead links, too many ads, and not enough substance, this resource is for you. This is the description from the folks at HomeschoolFreebieoftheDay.com:

We surveyed over 1100 homeschoolers and asked: What are your all-time favorite worksheet sites? Which ones do you use most? And which ones have the most value for other homeschooling families. We compiled all their answers, weeded out the duplicates, categorized each site by subject and age, then checked out each and every site to be sure
1) it was really there
2) it really had a good selection of quality worksheets,
3) IT was NOT a stupid, time wasting ad site,
4) and their worksheets were freefor the taking.

We ended up with an amazing directory of over 300 quality resource sites chock full of worksheets and activity sheets yours for the taking. You won’t believe how many treasures you’ll uncover with this new directory…it is the motherlode.

To get the directory, click here to join their email list (also free). The link for this download will be sent to you within 72 hours. Hurry! It will only be offered free for a couple of weeks. There’s no other way to legally obtain this great resource. They’ll also send you a list of upcoming freebies each Monday. Pretty slick!

Homeschool Freebies: Companion Study for "The Book of Virtues"

Here’s the scoop:

Patty Thompson, who runs the Shiver Academy Blog, has just completed a wonderful, HUGE project — a Unit Study Companion for the Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett, especially for homeschoolers. Each unit covers 10 of the stories/poems/essays that are included in the Book of Virtues. Each story has worksheets, notebook pages, vocabulary, character study sheets, copywork, 1-2 projects (plus a long-term project) and a Lapbook with an optional unit wrap up activity. And to top it off a full lesson plan for older kids, and a separate one for primary aged children.

The full Study is a whopping 992 pages long (!) and the download is quite large (18.93 MB) – but Patty also has links to individual units available if you just want to download them one at a time. Each unit is roughly 100 pages, but it is not required to DO all those pages. For instance, if you do the worksheets you probably shouldn’t worry about the notebook pages. If your children are young, you probably should skip the projects. If they are really young, just do the wrap up after reading the stories. In short, tweak the materials to fit your family’s needs.

Go here to join the homeschool freebie email list and have the opportunity to download your free copy of this study resource.

Free EBook: What Every High Schooler Should Know About Credit and Finance

This is a freebie from The Old Schoolhouse. If the crunch of the Christmas season (we have several birthdays and anniversaries to add to the financial load too) has got you thinking more seriously about dollars and sense, or if you are already pondering those New Year’s resolutions to manage your credit or eliminate it altogether, OR if you simply want to use this to help prepare your kids to be responsible stewards, this is a good free tool. Go here to cash in.

Christmas Education Freebies

I enjoy doing things that are deeply meaningful with my kids at Christmas. Yes, we do the “drive around and look at Christmas lights” thing traditionally every year after our Christmas Eve service, but I especially love things that teach in depth about what “God with us” is all about. We have used Chrismons in the past, and our own version of a Jesse tree. We also use an advent calendar that I bought inexpensively at Oriental Trading (I made little slips with scripture readings to tuck in the pockets for daily readings). This year we will be helping as a family to serve Christmas dinner to the needy at our church. It is great to have a giving project to do together at a time when so much focus is placed upon getting.

If you are trying to get beyond the gimmies, Santa, and the “happy holidays” dilution of the meaning of Christmas, you will be blessed by the items that can be found at this link. You will find a printable Advent calendar, Nativity felt board pieces, a Christmas Scripture quiz, several free lapbooks, and a unit studies all about Christmas.

Thanksgiving Freebies

Is it about football? Parades? Food? Family? Freedom? What?

It seems any holiday that has remotely spiritual connections has gotten muddled and commercialized. We should not be surprised. Dr. Bob Jones Sr. said that, “When gratitude dies on the altar of a man’s heart, that man is well-nigh hopeless.” I believe it. The Bible puts it this way:

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified [him] not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Rom 1:21

Boy that sounds like our generation. We are “peculiar people” because we recognize all we have comes from God. We are not self-made (except when it comes to our sin!):

All good gifts around us
Are sent from heaven above,
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all His love.–Matthias Claudius, 1782

Here are some freebies to help you have a correct focus with your family and in your homeschool this Thanksgiving. A free Thanksgiving lapbook, Thanksgiving unit study, and historical background for the holiday, including all the Presidential proclamations.

Charlotte Mason Freebies

If you are a Charlotte Mason homeschooler, or have heard the name but are unfamiliar with this approach, Old Schoolhouse Magazine has plenty to offer:

Who is Charlotte Mason? What is copywork? What are nature studies? What is art study? What is literature-based math? What is twaddle? What are living books? You will find out all about this gentle teaching approach at this week’s freebie links!

I use the Ambleside Online curriculum mentioned here. They’ve done a great job of organizing and providing links for many of the books free online. I have also found the “Charlotte Mason Companion” to be helpful. Just click on the image to follow a link to Amazon.com.

Hope these are a blessing to you.

Homeschool Freebies: Oregon Trail Unit Study, Lap Book and more

South Pass City, WY-500 — South Pass City, WY

We are smack in the middle of Oregon Trail country (the two-tracks can be seen easily from the highway on regular drives of ours past Red Canyon to South Pass), so this was of particular interest to me. Included in these freebies is a link for a free version of the Oregon trail game as well. Click here and enjoy…and y’all come and see us sometime!

Free Lapbooking Resources

Here is a link for some great lapbooking resources for your homeschool. This is a neat learning tool that I am only beginning to investigate, that may put my daughter’s love for creating and her lack of eagerness for reporting all together in a fun little package.

Have fun investigating links for over 300 free lapbooks at this site, including themes like: cooking, money, the “Little House” book series, ABC’s, fire safety, chemistry, lots of blank templates and more. Click here.

Free E Book from Old Schoolhouse–"Planning Your Course, and Letting the Lord Determine Your Steps"

Enjoy this wonderful free resource for the new school year. Lots of great tips for planning, organizing, and determining the direction for your school year. Seasoned homeschoolers share encouragement for unit studies, lots of great links for free planners, charts, and forms, and their own personal insight for what works, and what doesn’t. Just click the green graphic in the left sidebar and enjoy!