September 2012 Newsletter

Happy Back to Homeschool everyone! 

FALL TESTING

To meet the 3rd, 5th and 8th grade testing requirement, the Richman's from PA Homeschoolers will be providing testing again this fall. 

The date/location nearest us is:  

October 17th in Columbus, PA

Click HERE for testing costs and information

Homeschool Swim Classes 

begin this Friday, Sept 7th.  at the YMCA

$13 for members, $41 for non-members for each 5 week course you sign up for.  Call the YMCA at 726-0110 or stop in to sign up.

Classes go through the school year.

10am-10:30 am for 4th - 8th grades

10:30 am - 11 am for 1st - 3rd grades

SPELLING BEE PRACTICE

The 2013 Spelling Bee will be held near the end of January.  Nan doesn't usually get the details of the Warren County Bee until after Christmas, which doesn't leave a lot of time to prepare and practice.

In the mean time, here are some links that Nan has provided to help the kids study.

spelling bee info: http://www.spellingbee.com/

helps for the spelling bee: http://myspellit.com/index.html

Cub Scouts Sign Up

North Warren - Sign up is Wednesday, Sept. 12th from

 6pm-7pm at the North Warren Fire Hall.

Warren - Sign up is Monday, Sept. 10th at 6:30pm at the Presbyterian Church on PA Ave & 3rd.

2 different troops, so whichever is more convenient for you I would assume is where you'd want to sign up.   For boys grades K through 5th grade.   There are homeschoolers in each troop, so either way, you'll be in good company! 

Learn To Skate!

Things to Do

September 7:     Seldom Seen Tour of the Victorian Mansion

Location: 210 Forth Ave. Warren PA 16365   Time: 6:00pm - 8:00pmCost: $5 per person at the door warrenhistory@kinzua.net   www.warrenhistory.org

September 8:      Bird Banding with Emily Thomas

Location: Chapman Dam State Park, Environmental Learning Center     Time: 8:00AM - 11:00AM   

Don't miss the fall migration! Join Emily Thomas, a avid birder, to learn about the birds of Chapman State Park. Mist nets will be set up to catch the birds. Participants will enjoy handling and identifying various species.

September 8:    Geo-caching 101

Location: Chapman Dam State Park, Amphitheater Time: 1:00PM - 3:00PMJoin the Park Naturalist for an introduction to the high tech game of geo-caching. After learning the basics, enjoy searching for caches in the park. GPS units will be provided, but feel free to bring your own.

September 8-9:      Wild Wind Folk Art & Craft Festival

Location: Warren County Fair Grounds, Barton Run Road. Pittsfield PA 16341Time: 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM Cost: Adults $6, Seniors (65+) $4, Children 12 and under freeContact: 814-723-0707 or 814-688-1516 wildwindcraftshow@yahoo.comwww.wildwindfestival.com

September 15      Conewango Creek Cleanup - 8am-1:30pm
Cleanup volunteers will meet in Larimer Park in Russell.  Sign up starts at 8am with coffee & donuts.  Then go in groups to the shore or water to begin cleanup.  A picnic lunch will be served for all volunteers in early afternoon. Reservations should be made by Sept 13th by calling Jane Gomory at 726-1441.

September 21:      Sunset & Moonlight Paddle

Location: Chapman Dam State Park, Mooring Area
Time: 7:30PM - 9:30PM
Registration: 814.723.0250 by 9/20 Come for a short lesson on basic boating safety and then take a canoe tour on the lake and the creek. Kayaks will also be available to try. PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED as boats are limited. You may bring your own canoe or kayak but YOU STILL MUST REGISTER.

September 21:     Owl Prowl
Location: Cook Forest State Park, Log Cabin Inn Environmental Learning Classroom
Time: 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Please bring your flashlights for an evening owl prowl. Explore Cook Forest at night for Pennsylvania's owls as wer car-pool to owl hotspots in the park. Barred, great horned, screech and sawwhet owls have been known to make an appearance.

September 22:     Poets, Writers and Readers "Open Read" Night
Location:Authors Books & Music, 227 Liberty Street, Warren PA  Time: 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Phone: 814.688.3009     An opportunity to read your work in front of an audience or, listen to others read theirs. This event is held inside the book shop the 3rd Friday of each month. It is FREE and open to everyone      www.authorsbookstore.com

September 22:     Extreme Home Edition: Bats
Location: Chapman Dam State Park, Environmental Learning Center    Time: 1:00PM - 4:30PM
Join the Park Naturalist in an effort to save Pennsylvania's bats! Help with the installation of bat boxes throughout Chapman State Park. Refreshments will follow.
September 22:      Bats Galore
Location: Chapman Dam State Park, Pavillion #4
Time: 6:30PM - 7:30PM
Meet the Park Naturalist to learn about the many species of bats and then make your very own to take home.

September 23: Paws Along the River Open House 
and Pet Celebration
Location: Paws Along the River Shelter, 212 Elm Street Warren, PA
Time:12:00-4:00 PM     Cost: Free     Contact: 814.726.1961Bring your dog, enter the cat photo contest, Blessing of the Animals, food, music and dog games. Come and enjoy a a fun afternoon with your dog. Donate a pie for our pie and hot dog lunch.

October 5-6:      Haunted Halloween Open House
Location: Warren County Historical Society 210 4th Ave. Warren PA 16365      Time: 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Cost: $7 Trolley Ride Tickets. Available in advance at 210 Fourth Avenue, Warren
Tour the haunted historical society and enjoy free refreshments. Take a horse-drawn trolley ride through the historic district and listen to spooky Halloween tales! warrenhistory@kinzua.net
www.warrenhistory.org

October 13 - SCANDIA MOUNTAIN PUMPKIN FEST.

	This event is from 10am - 5pm. There will be crafts, kid area, vendors, chinese auction and bake sale. Entry fee of $3.00 per person. Cornhole tournament: $10 per team, registration at 9am and begin at 10am. Located at Scandia Volunteer Fire Department, 5950 Scandia Rd, Russell, PA 16345.     Time 10am-5pm

October 19:      Poets, Writers and Readers "Open Read" Night
Location:Authors Books & Music, 227 Liberty Street, Warren PA    Time: 6:00pm - 8:00pm      Phone: 814.688.3009
An opportunity to read your work in front of an audience or, listen to others read theirs. This event is held inside the book shop the 3rd Friday of each month. It is FREE and open to everyone     www.authorsbookstore.com

Favorite Websites

Here are some informative and helpful websites that our homeschooling families recommend:

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/geobee/quiz/today/

http://www.sfsocialstudies.com/g3/u3/index.html

www.mathsisfun.com

www.internet4classrooms.com

www.funbrain.com

www.worksheetworks.com

http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/games/spelling-bees/spelling-bees.html

http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/

http://home.comcast.net/~askpauline/index.html

Thanks Chris Smith, for providing this info on these great Apps!

Here's a great introductory note from a Sizzle Bop member--

When it comes to homeschooling, the iPad is one of those things that you don’t know what you are missing until you get one.  I had no idea how much it would help!  I love it!  I have a 6 year old and 2 year old, and they both “play” it.  My two year old has learned all the states, their shapes, and locations better than most adults just by playing an app (listed below).  She knows all her letters, numbers, and can tell time to the half hour all from playing apps.  We use the iPad everyday in our school for math and spelling.  My 6 year old sizzler will easily do 30+ math problems on the iPad were as before he would just glaze over at the thought of a math worksheet.  Most of the time they think they are just playing a game and have no idea they are actually learning.

I have found that the apps that have virtual prizes work the best. Some apps have the option of adding multiple kids to be able to track their progress individually.  That is great when there are 2+ kids wanting to play the same game, but they don’t want the other kid(s) to mess up their virtual prizes or score.  I don’t remember the costs of each of the apps, but most of them are free or will have a free version you can try. The paid for apps usually cost a dollar or two. I tried putting the names and companies as it is shown in the App Store.

Preschool (There are a lot of Preschool apps, so I just listed a few favorites) :

• LetterSchool by Boreaal – My favorite preschool app!  A creative way to teach kids to form letters (capital and lower case). My two year old loves this one. It has a free app, but I quickly bought the full version.  It doesn’t let the child draw form the letter the wrong way which is why I like it so much.  I don’t think they could develop bad habits with this app.
• Teach Me – There are several grade level apps. It has virtual sticker prizes. You can have multiple kids for this app, but I think you have to pay $0.99/per kid if you want them to have separate profiles.
• Abc Lite by pockettp…cslite – teaches how to form letters and how they sound.
• Super Why! By PBS – It has games like the actual show.
• First Words Animals by Learning Touch – It is a simple app, but it can be customized to where your child can learn the letter names or sounds, capitals or lower case, among other things. It says the letter sound or name each time the letter is touched.
• ABC Tracer – teaches letter and number formation. It has several sections to it. It has a balloon section where you have to pop the balloons in alphabetical order. You can customize the letter formation section.
• Elmo Loves ABCs – Elmo teaches the ABC’s.
• Montessori Crosswords by L’Escapadou
• Bugs & Buttons – Cute app!  It seems to be popular.  My two year old loves this one.  It does mazes, patterns, sorting, pinching, alphabet order, and more.

Geography/History:

• Puzzle Map by Jenny Sun – This company makes several map apps (USA, Africa, Europe, South America). This is a GREAT app! My two year old has learned all the states, their shapes, and locations using the USA map. It has several options. Easy has the state abbreviations on the states and the outlines on the map. The medium removes the outlines, and the difficult removes the outlines and abbreviations. I like that the state’s name is said every time the state is touched. That’s how my two year old learned them so quickly.
• Stack the States – Stack the states as high as you can to earn states. You have to answer questions with the correct states to be able to stack the state. If you answered enough of the questions correctly, you earn states for your map. There are a couple of other games that you can unlock as you earn enough states. This one is fun for mom too!  My two year old likes to play this one too.  She can’t read, so I have to tell her the answer.  She can pick out the correct state by the shape.
• Continents by iLearn – Learn the Continents. There are learn, game, and test modes. You have to touch the continent or ocean that is called out.
• Continents by Mobile Montessori -- A puzzle. It can go by shapes, names, or Continents & Oceans.
• USPresidents – I haven’t used this one. It looks like a fun one for a kid that has already learned or is learning the presidents.
• Presidents vs. Aliens (by the makers of Stack the States) – Answer questions by selecting the correct president. When answered correctly you can shoot that president at some aliens. You earn president as you answer enough correctly. This one allows for multiple kids.
• Presidents by Pickids – It gives the name of a president and the picture of four presidents to choose from for the answer.
• Oregon Trail
• Oregon Settlers – fun way to think about what it was like to live as a settler.

Science:

• Bone Scan by Brain West – Identify the correct bone by touching the bone.
• BodyWalk – Explore the body, assemble the body, color the body options. You can explore the different body systems. It is has cartoon like graphics. It might be better for the younger kids
• Build-a-Body – Touch and drag the body parts to the correct location. This might be better for older kids.
• My Planets – Learn about planets. It isn’t too exciting, but my two year old likes the puzzle part.
• Planets – There are several apps like this. You hold your iPad up to the sky and it will show you where the constellations, planets, etc. are.
• AnatomyACU by ACU Exercise Science – This would be better for older students learning anatomy.
• Jeffy’s World – This is an interesting app that shows how day/night, seasons, etc work. You can rotate Earth and see how the sun shines on it. It is more of an interactive visual than a game. There is a little character on the planet. I don’t like his attitude. The character doesn’t do much, and you can talk to your child about how the character’s attitude.

Math:

• Math Drills by Instant Ineractive – We use this app almost every day. This app can be completely customized and keeps track of different children. It will show speed, strength, accuracy for the problems the child has been working on. It shows one problem at a time, so my six year old doesn’t feel overwhelmed by worksheet full of problems. I give him incentives for reaching a certain speed. I have had take the iPad away from him, so we could move on in school. One time he had done 120 problems when I finally took it away. This is a great app!
• Rocket Math – You have to do math problems to earn money to build and launch a rocket. The rocket has to be built correctly, or it won’t fly or won’t fly straight.  My 6 year old loves this.
• Amazing Coin(USD): Money learning & counting game for kids by Joy Preschool Game – We have only tried this one a couple of times. It is a game for coins. It includes half dollars and silver dollars.
• 1^st Grade Math: Splash Math Worksheets App for Numbers, Counting, Addition, Subtraction and others by StudyPad – I haven’t used this one much. This app gives prizes to go into a virtual aquarium. This app will send you reports via email to let you know how your child is doing. This app has options to add multiple kids.
• Chicken Coop Fractions Game by Lumpty Learning – Chickens lay eggs on the correct fraction. You have to get the nest to the correct fraction, so the egg doesn’t break. It is too advanced for my kiddos, but I thought someone else might want to give it a try.
• Pizza 1 – A pizza is shown. You have to determine the fraction of the pizza that is left. My 6 year likes that you can shake the iPad to get the next problem. It has an option where you don’t have to shake the iPad. It is simple but effective.
• TellingTime by GiggleUp Pty Ltd – This has several different ways of learning to tell time. It is completely customizable too. It also has a virtual aquarium where fish are earned as rewards. You might want to turn off the volume on a couple of the games to keep the child from waiting for the app to tell them what time it is.
• Freefall Time – Another app for telling time. I would use this one after doing the TellingTime app. This one has a virtual aquarium for prizes.
• Freefall Money – I like this app. It has several different ways for the child to learn coins. It does not have half dollars or silver dollars. It has a virtual aquarium for prizes.
• Cash Cow DLX by Chillingo – There is a free version available. This is a fun way to work with coins. You combine coins to earn money to buy things for a virtual fun. This one is fun for mom too!
• Mathopolis – fire fighter math

Music:

• Rhythm Cat by LMuse Limited – I have the lite version (free). It was a fun app. It doesn’t take long to go through the levels. It has a green button that you tap in rhythm with the music notes. My son plays it and has learned whole, quarter, and eight notes as well as rests. It is a fun introduction to note rhythm.
• Blob Chorus Ear Training by Lumpty Learning – This is supposed to train your ear to hear music tones. The blobs sing in different tones, and you have to match the two blobs that sing the same tone.

Language Arts

• Grammar Games by Tap toLearn Software – You work as the air traffic controller to land airplanes on the proper runway. The airplanes have words attached to them. You have to determine if they are a noun, verb, adverb, etc. and land them on corresponding runway without the airplanes running into each other.
• Cursive Practice by Brainstop – I was looking for an app to learn cursive letters. I didn’t find many, and this was my favorite of the ones I found. I’m pretty sure this was a free app. I haven’t played with this one much.
• Super Speller by Quiet Spark – We use this for spelling. You “create test” by entering spelling words and you record your voice for them, so they can be played back for the study and test sections. There is a study section that also has a word search and word scramble. When all are answered correctly, balloons fall down for the child to pop. My two year old likes it when I have her say the spelling words for the recordings. The app has a chalkboard or dry-erase board appearance.
• Toontastic by Launchpad Toys – This app teaches the parts of a story where the child creates a virtual puppet show. My six year old love this one. The videos have an option to upload to the internet if you want to share the stories your child creates.

Other:

• Classic Board – It works like a chalkboard.  Sometime you just want a simple drawing app.  : )
• Khan Academy – I haven’t used this one. It seems to be for high school students, but I thought others might find it handy.
• Flashcrds+ by Connor Zwick – I haven’t used this one yet, but it looks useful.
• Flashcards – another flashcard app. I haven’t explored this one yet either, but it looks useful.

                                                                                         ~Brian
*** (some of you lovely folks write in on your husband's email account so if this was actually sent in by Brian's wife, please know we still honored you. :-) )Thanks to either or both of you!

Also, from JessicaMy favorite "Mom App" is called Our Groceries.  It is a mobile grocery list that you can share with other people.  So I never forget my list anymore and if my husband's at the store and I remember one more thing, it shows up on his phone right away!  I also really like Flashlight.  It is super-bright and has come in handy more than once!

                                                                                         ~Jessica

And from CoryMy 5th grade Sizzler is using a school issued Ipad and an app they use that seems to work well is called "Reminders".  Type the note in the list and then it will pop up when you turn your Ipad on the next time.    Great for adding a note right before bed to remind him to turn homework or field trip slip in.

                                                                                         ~Cori

From Nan:

Great opportunity for a family field trip!!

Colonial Williamsburg offers 2 homeschool experiences.

Tuesdays through Saturdays - Sept. 11-22 - special homeschool days.  Join them for the next installment of an immersive game series: RevQuest: The Lion and the Unicorn.

Also Winter time experiences - Feb. 16-24.

go to http://www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/plan/groups/homeschoolers/

 for further details.  In the past they have given great discounts for homeschoolers.  Check it out even if you don't go during one of their special times.