In the spring I bought the boys a book. The kind of book that every boy devours and pours over for hours and hours. It is the kind of book that is more than just a good read – it also inspires. The American Boy’s Handy Book is the type of book that ought to be in the hands of every boy from 3 to 103. It inspires the mind to move the body and the body moves and the mind grows. It was written by Daniel Carter Beard, the co founder of the Boy Scouts of America.

Last week this appeared at the edge of my woods as a direct result of this book….

View from the back

The Fort Framework on one side - not completed

The Fort Entrance

After having so much fun with all the other puzzles I’ve run across in the last few days (here and here) I decided to hunt for a word search maker. What I found what an awesome teacher resource page from Discovery Education. Not only is there an entire page devoted to making puzzles (math, crossword, cryptograms, word scrambles, and more) but there are also some great links to Unit Studies in all subject areas. (Keep in mind that if you are teaching Creation Science that Discovery science units are going to be filled with the theory of evolution.)

We are learning the history of Africa this year and I was delighted to find an entire Unit Study complete with a few videos on Africa that we can explore and learn from. There are units on literature, science, health (a VERY interesting one on digestion especially – H.S. level) and mathematics, weather, and more. They also have three different grade levels to browse. The best thing about it – the resources are free except for some printer ink.

Go ahead and browse around and see if you find it to be a useful resource and leave me some feedback and what YOU think!

]]> http://missourihomeschool.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/crossward-maker-more-puzzle-fun/ Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:51:57 +0000 Jonine http://missourihomeschool.wordpress.com/2009/12/16/crossward-maker-more-puzzle-fun/

Nothing makes me happier than finding a useful homeschool tool that is free to use or download. Today I browsed through different puzzle making programs  online until I ran across EclipseCrossword. Eclipse Crossword is a free download which means you can make your puzzles without having to be online. The download itself was very short with my dsl. It was so easy to use that in less than 15 minutes I had created my first crossword puzzle with it, printed it out, and grinned that I had next weeks vocabulary test safely tucked away in my teacher’s notebook.

We really like copywork and I have just discovered a new way to introduce it for the week. Every child loves puzzles in my experience and while wandering around the web today looking for fun things to do in the month of December I ran across this cryptogram creator.

There is the option to type your own phrase or use one of the themes provided for you. On the next screen you can select whether or not you want them to crack the cryptogram on their own or give hints to the puzzle or the solution itself and the student just fills in the letter. It can be as easy or challenging as you choose to make it.

Have fun!

By Annette C. Silva

The most rewarding gift for any teacher is to see the ‘light’ appear in a child’s eyes. That light means “I get it!….I want to know more!”

When I taught Spanish at The Jefferson School, I was impressed by the students’ passion for learning. It was up to me to rise to their level. By that, I mean the teacher needs to show not just knowledge of another language, but what fun it can be to learn another ‘code’ for communicating. Kids like the concept of the code.

All language is code. Children realize that a new code is the key to another culture, another world, another way to see life. Children love stories and they love to participate. Spanish literature, music and poetry speaks eloquently and children naturally warm to it. When Kyle or Cody or Brenna read aloud, they read with emphasis and their best pronunciation…and everyone was listening for the story. When other kids didn’t understand, it gave us all an opportunity to talk about it.

I used to write a new refran (Spanish proverb) on the board each day and I found that the kids came in the room figuring it out before class even started. Why? They were having fun. I believe one of the most important motivators for learning is a passion to know more. I found, in my brief time at The Jefferson School, that love for knowledge is implanted and reinforced every day by everyone involved at the school.

Here is a great electoral college map you can print & color tonight as the votes come in to calculate who won.  I found this via the craftzine blog

For my friends at game development.

Source: Kotaku

Also check: Amanita Design Games (pt-br)