A reminder and a little more info

I posted this once, but since have received more info. It was added as a comment on the orginal post, but I am afraid that it may be missed. So,...here it is again.
Also,
Parent meeting scheduled for APRIL 30th at 6 p.m.
300 E Bird Street
Hamilton, MO 64644

If you have never belonged to a homeschool coop, they are WONDERFUL. We would be lost without ours. It is a great way to meet other homeschooling families, for your kids to meet new friends with the same interests, parents to find support, and a great way for your child to get those classes that are harder to do in just your family, such as band or choir, PE, and to learn what you may not know, such as Spanish, French.....
Home school families of NW Missouri ,

LEAD (Leadership Education and Development) Home School Cooperative has been presented with the opportunity to rent rooms in the old Hamilton High School, in Hamilton Missouri, which has been acquired by Christian Legacy Academy .
We would like to begin holding cooperative meetings there when school starts for the 2010-2011 school year.

We will meet each Friday, September to May. Parents must be willing to teach or volunteer in some way for coop classes. It would not be a drop off program. We hope to keep fees very low.

The school has a gym with a stage, kitchen, science room with sink, numerous classrooms of various sizes, a large play area with playground equipment. It looks like the perfect opportunity for our organization. We will be able to use classrooms as needed.

Are you interested in meeting weekly for 3-4 hours? Sessions would be 8-12 weeks. Let us know the number of children in your family who would be participating.
Please send this on to any families you think would be interested.

Reply to Sasha Grove at wondersinisael@yahoo.com
Or Deanna Gordon at deannaggg@yahoo.com

History weekend

This Saturday and Sunday, Plattsburg held an reenactment of the Civil War Battle that had been fought here. The event was held at Perkins Park, despite the cold and rain. I have to admire the reeactment soldiers, they were shot and fell right in cold mud puddles, but it didn't stop them! After the battle, we wandered the camp and watched the horses, weaving (I learned a new way to make a rug!),cooking over open fires and more. I am glad that we no longer wear hoop dresses. I think the long dresses would have been very uncomfortable on rainy days. Meanwhile, Watkins Mill in Lawson also was having a living history event with its Fun on the Farm--in the rain.

Homeschool Track

Dear Home Schooling Families,

The Kansas City East Lions Home School Athletic Association have two track
meet opportunities coming up, and we are recruiting students who can run,
jump, and throw.

May 1 and/or May 22, the Lions will be competing at the State and Nationals'
Home School Track Meets. Both meets are in Springfield, Missouri, just a
little over a 2-hour drive.

You can do both or either, with meets generally starting around 10:00AM.

Events can include: sprints, hurdles, jumps, throws, longer runs and relays.

If we can get enough athletes to compete, we might have a pretty good chance
to win these meets. We need athletes from our region to compete.

We are looking for students, ages 6 years old to 19-year-old high school
seniors. The cost is $10.00 per meet per athlete.

PLEASE CONTACT: Larry K. Johnson, at mlkj1004@sbcglobal.net, for the MAY 1
MEET BY APRIL 27 & THE MAY 22 MEET BY MAY 12.

Wings over Weston

Wings over Weston event planned May 7 and 8 at Weston Bend State Park

Learn about birds and their importance to the environment May 7-8 at Weston Bend State Park near Weston. The two special days of activities are sponsored by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

On Friday, May 7, classes from several local schools will be at the park to get hands-on experience learning about birds. The day will include demonstrations with live birds, various educational stations covering the topics of migratory songbirds and avian habitat, touch tables and a guided bird hike. On Saturday, May 8, there will be similar activities from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the general public as well as a wild bird presentation by Operation Wildlife.

This event is being co-sponsored by Audubon Missouri, Burroughs Audubon, the city of Weston and the Missouri Department of Conservation.

For more information, contact Weston Bend State Park at 816-640-5443 or the Department of Natural Resources toll free at 800-334-6946 (voice) or 800-379-2419 (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf). For information on state parks and historic sites, visit us on the Web at mostateparks.com.

HOME-- a new group

Introducing HOME (Homeschool Organization for Midwest Educators) -- a non-profit homeschool organization registered with the state of Missouri with a focus to serve homeschool families in northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas. Shared ground amongst homeschool families can serve to encourage and support one another while making a positive impact in and around the region.



Two informational meetings are scheduled for early May in that will include discussion on obtaining an HSLDA group discount number, membership, and group insurance. Please follow the link below to the website for more details and information.



***It is not the intention of HOME (as an organization or its Board) to compete with any existing group but rather to bring the home educating community together in shared events and activities for the benefit of home education across the area.***



To find out more information, please visit www.athomeresources.org or find us on Facebook under H.O.M.E.




__._,_.___

New NW Missouri Homeschool coop forming in Hamilton

Home school families of NW Missouri ,

LEAD (Leadership Education and Development) Home School Cooperative has been presented with the opportunity to rent rooms in the old Hamilton High School, in Hamilton Missouri, which has been acquired by Christian Legacy Academy .
We would like to begin holding cooperative meetings there when school starts for the 2010-2011 school year.

We will meet each Friday, September to May. Parents must be willing to teach or volunteer in some way for coop classes. It would not be a drop off program. We hope to keep fees very low.

The school has a gym with a stage, kitchen, science room with sink, numerous classrooms of various sizes, a large play area with playground equipment. It looks like the perfect opportunity for our organization. We will be able to use classrooms as needed.

Are you interested in meeting weekly for 3-4 hours? Sessions would be 8-12 weeks. Let us know the number of children in your family who would be participating.
Please send this on to any families you think would be interested.

Reply to Sasha Grove at wondersinisael@yahoo.com
Or Deanna Gordon at deannaggg@yahoo.com

Watkins Mill

Spring on the Farm

Spring on the Farm will be held at Watkins Woolen Mill State Park and State Historic Site on Saturday, April 24th, 2010 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Spring has come to the Watkins farm and join us for a day filled with fun and learning! Witness 1870’s style sheep shearing. Enjoy our American Livestock Breeds Conservatory display of rare and endangered livestock. Take a stroll through our heirloom garden while 1870’s attired interpreters prepare the raised beds and plant vegetable seeds saved from our heirloom plants the year before. Other activities will include toy making, wood stove cooking demonstration, rag doll making, and more. For further information contact the park office at (816) 580-3387.

Missouri Department of Conservation Homeschool Fieldtrips

Missouri Department of Conservation Homeschool Fieldtrips are Back!



Part-time MDC Naturalist, Shelly Cox invites homeschooling families with kids of all ages to join her at the NW MO Regional MDC Headquarters located on McCarthy Drive on the campus of Missouri Western in St. Joseph MO.


Wednesday, May 5, 2010

10:00 - 12:00 noon



This month's program will feature native plant seeds and nature journaling.



FREE!



Mark your calendar & make a reservation for your family by Wednesday, April 21 by calling 816 271-3111 ext.242



Questions? Feel free to drop me a line!

~Julia Brooke jeffjuliabrooke@sbcglobal.net

National Park info for homeschoolers!

http://groups. yahoo.com/ group/Homeschool ers_Exploring_ National_ Parks/

You are invited to join Homeschoolers Exploring National Parks in the United States group. We are a national, all-inclusive group; but please stay off of the topic religion and politics, as it never goes well.

Our members are always interested in the educational experiences that we can have while homeschooling, and why not tie into it our great national parks. In this group, we can share the educational experiences, ideas and resources that we notice there, and even ideas for pre-trip and follow-up activities at home. Sharing appropriately related websites, links, and resources will be appreciated. Any member can post details about when they will be attending and invite others to join them.

This looks like fun! Two things I have learned about National Parks in the past, it cheaper to buy a season pass usually than a single pass if you plan on returning--plus they are good at any National Park in the US. 2nd, they have tons of usually FREE info for kids, great for homeschooling. Join the rangers--they have free classes and activities for the kids of all ages (and parents) to do, such as identifying animals by their tracks, scant or markings left on a tree, learning about fossil and rock formations and more.

Who will remember our lessons in family history?

This week our family has attended two funerals thus far, which is sad since it is only Tuesday. Sunday we attended the funeral of a co-worker of my husband, and yesterday, one of my cousins. Both persons had lead full lives, full of experiences many of us never get to experience.

In the case of the first man, he was born in Slovakia. When the Russian invaded his country in 1968, and killed neighbors in front of him, he took his wife and two daughters and fled. He left all he owned behind-including his home, money, furnishings and more. He did manage to have a few photographs and copies of his two college degrees. He spoke no English, but made it across boarders into Switzerland and then onto a ship bound for the United States. At his memorial service they told of many stories of his past, including things that happened before his daughters were even born. The family produced photos and letters that spelled out his life. By viewing and reading them, I felt as if I had somehow lived a small part of it or watched him portray himself in a movie.

Yesterday we attended the funeral of my father’s cousin Joe Espey. Again a full life and well documented with photos that were laid out in chronological order showing his life, beginning with his young life, and FFA days and later being a grandfather to eleven grandchildren.

I keep a lot of family history-some of it I gathered, and much came from my Aunt Mina Alice Espey Robison and some from my cousin Matt Wilson that he traced back to Austria. I thought I knew a lot of the history, yet I found out more yesterday. I didn’t realize that Joe had gone to England with the International Farm Exchange Youth, or that in 1982 he was an Ambassador to China. I knew him as a retired banker who farmed on the side with a son and 3 daughters, and a wife who has beautiful flowers planted in their yard.

Before the funeral we went to my cousin Karen’s house and I heard some of the stories I had heard several times, and a few new ones. After the funeral we went to visit an aunt in the nursing home, and then to visit another cousin in her 90’s. Hear again I heard some more stories.

These stories are what make our families, our history and our heritage. Often I have told a person they should write down a story or an event and they laugh at me, and reply that no one would be interested in that. True, your child may not be interested in that now, but what about later, after your gone? Or perhaps your grandchildren or great grand children?

Each year our family has a reunion in Maryville MO. It is the “Shinabarger reunion”. We are descendants of the Shinabargers, but it has been years since a Shinabarger has been there on a regular base. Each year our group gets smaller, as people die. In recent years we have lost several- Helen, Fran, Charlie, Dick, Beverly, and now Joe, among others. Each year we can feel the emptiness of those who are no longer there. The younger ones have moved away, or are too busy to attend.

We also have a family cemetery, the Whitecloud Cemetery. Even though it has been years since anyone was buried there, at our family reunion each year we see to it that someone has been appointed to mow and maintain it, and is reimbursed partially for their fuel. Our family has chosen to try and preserve some of our past.

Many a time, if we are in Nodaway County with my dad, we will drive through the county and my dad will point out various farms and houses with comments-I lived there, that was the Todd place, my dad farmed here and we used our mules to farm, this is where I lived while I went to high school, this is where my momma would sell her chickens each spring, this is where Charlie’s house was, this is where we would go to butcher hogs and the entire family would come and make a day of it….

But, how do we get the younger ones involved and interested? I have, as part of our homeschooling gotten my daughters to do a bit of genealogy. My 13 year old even took it a step further and made a 4H project with it, for a self-determined project, and it earned her a leadership award.

But, I fear family reunions are becoming a thing of the past. I have heard many people say, “We used to have them”. Why did they quit?

I would like to challenge all of my readers and followers to write down some of the stories, or start a photo collection or a scrapbook of your family. If you know the past, include it. If you don’t know your family past, start with your own life. Create something that can be added to by your children and passed down for generations. Include the hardships that show how you made it to where you are. Include favorite recipes (Yesterday I got my Aunt Leola’s pie crust recipe), photos, event programs, fair ribbons, tell stories of your first job, of learning to ride a bike, your favorite birthday, of your school days... Pass it down for the future generations to enjoy and learn from.

From the radio to trash

Monday, our 4H group was asked to be on the radio out of Cameron, 100.1 to help promote 4H and to tell of some upcoming events. Two of our 4H families went. The kids had fun. Our extension office was also there to answer questions as well. I think the kids had a lot of fun, and enjoyed seeing the control room.

This morning, our 4H group was on of several groups that was involved in helping the city to pick up trash in one of the parks. It really needed it! We filled numerous bags of trash (big barrel sized bags). We had 4 families represented and afterwards 3 of the families stayed to play for awhile. They played a game of football and enjoyed some sunshine.

Homeschoolers Dream House for Sale in Missouri

For Sale by Owner
4000 sq. ft.,6 bedroom,4 bath, 10 acres

The main floor has been completely remodeled. The 15x16 kitchen is any chef's dream!
48" Jenn-Air four burner gas stove top with griddle and grill, double wall oven, two dishwashers, and refrigerator, all appliances stainless steel. Awesome cement countertops!

Kitchen is open to a huge 14'x 20' dining room, a convenient 5'x7' pantry and lovely 12'x 14' sunroom. 16" tile flooring throughout this area of the home.

Living room is 14 x 23, walnut laminate floor
Bedroom 1- 12 x 14, carpet
Bedroom 2- 9 x 15, carpet
Bedroom 3- 10 x 15, carpet
Bedroom 4 or Den 12 x 15 has french doors off the Sunroom, laminate floor
Laundry room, 9 x 10 Cabinets match the kitchen. Laminate floor
Lots of closet space throughout the home.

Master Bedroom suite on second level. 17 x 25, with separate sitting room or office 9 x10

Basement has new 2nd kitchen with tile countertops! Gas stove, dishwasher and fridge, new in 2008, rarely used since. Bathroom with laundry hookups, bedroom is 12' x 14' with 5'x6'walk in closet. Large family room in basement. Basement could be separate apartment.

Very large 17 x 36 one car garage
Two independent heat sources for entire house. First is a standard propane high efficiency HVAC system. Second is a wood burning furnace with separate ducts. Both are new.

New since 2007; septic system, wiring, plumbing, hot water heater, electrical service to the house.

Numerous outbuildings, all with electricity. Main barn 32 x 76 with 12' clearance, Machine barn 24 x 24, Hay barn 24 x 36, Small livestock barn 24 x 31, Garden or wood shed 14 x 20

10 acres, partially fenced. Beautiful view of the surrounding countryside. Wonderful neighbors!

It has been a wonderful place to homeschool 7 and now 8 children I thought I would let you all know in case you know a family who would be interested. Call 816 351-0095with any questions. Sasha and Bryan Grove

New Species?? Or newly discovered

I found this online after hearing someone talk about it. They were calling it a "new species". Well, it may be newly discovered (new to man), but God new it was there all along, after all, he made it. I found this article interesting, and so did my kids, so I thought I would share it with you!

http://apnews.myway.com//article/20100407/D9EU7P881.html
Giant lizard discovered in the Philippines
By JIM GOMEZ
MANILA, Philippines (AP) - Researchers have concluded that a giant, golden-spotted monitor lizard discovered in the forested mountains of the Philippines six years ago is a new species, according to a study released Wednesday.

The 6.5-foot (2-meter) -long lizard was first spotted in 2004 in the Sierra Madre mountains on the main island of Luzon when local researchers saw local Agta tribesmen carrying one of the dead reptiles.

But it took until last year to determine it was a new species. After capturing an adult, researchers from the University of Kansas and the National Museum of the Philippines obtained DNA samples that helped confirm the lizard was new to science.

The Northern Sierra Madre Forest Monitor Lizard or Varanus bitatawa feasts on fruits and snails rather than carcasses, unlike many monitors, including its larger relative, the Komodo dragon, according to American and Filipino researchers who wrote about the discovery in Wednesday's peer-reviewed Royal Society journal Biology Letters. It spends much of its time in the treetops and has unique claws that allow it to reach its favorite fruits.

"I knew as soon as I saw the animal that it was something special," Luke Welton, a graduate student at the University of Kansas and one of the co-authors of the study, said in a statement.

It is not that unusual to find a new species of tiny fish, frog or insect these days. But Welton and his colleagues said it was a "rare occurrence" to discover such a large vertebrate, particularly on an island hit by deforestation and nearby development. They compared their find to the 1993 discovery of the forest-dwelling Saola ox in Vietnam and a new monkey species discovered in the highlands of Tanzania in 2006.

"The discovery of such a large, charismatic, and strikingly distinct new species of vertebrate in the unexplored forests of the northern Philippines accentuates the degree to which the diversity of this global conservation hotspot is still poorly known," Mundita Lim, chief of the country's Department of Environment and Natural Resources Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, said in a statement.

Eric R. Pianka, a lizard expert at the University of Texas at Austin, said in an e-mail interview that it was an "incredible find."

"This is truly a spectacular discovery," Pianka said. "Worldwide, there are about 60-plus species of monitor lizards. In all probability, some as yet undescribed species will be found on various islands in Indonesia," he said.

The new lizard is related to two other fruit-eating monitors in the Philippines, all of which have seen their numbers drop significantly due habitat destruction, as well as hunting and trapping for the pet trade.

"We hope that by focusing on protection of this new monitor, conservation biologists and policy makers can work together to protect the remaining highly imperiled forests of northern Luzon," Rafe Brown, leader of the team that discovered the new species and curator of herpetology at the University of Kansas, said in a statement.

Our Easter

We have a nice Easter, and hopefully you did too. Friday night we went to church for our annual Passover dinner. The dinner had the highest attendance so far. The dinner follows the Old Testament traditional Passover and is very informative as to the hows and whys of Passover.

Sunday morning we were up at 5:30 to be to church at 6:30 for an outdoor Sunrise Service. After the service, we had a carry in breakfast, followed by our usual Sunday School and church.

Sunday afternoon I took the twins to Shatto Dairy in Osborn MO. Every Easter they have a large outdoor egg hunt, and let people tour the barns and visit with the new spring calve, and peek into the bottling plant and the cheese room. As we were leaving Shatto, it began to cloud over and started to sprinkle. Shortly after we got home, we had hail and the wind picked up and the rain started. It didn't last too long however, and we were able to grill out. My mother in law and sister in law joined us for dinner.

3rd day, Spring must be real

Today was our 3rd warm day, so I guess it is the real deal. Being April 1st, I half way expected mother nature to pull a joke and snow again, but she didn't.

The kids spent a good part of today outside playing. It was windy, and the chickens did have some problems trying to walk in a straight line. They are rather funny to watch in the wind. The baby calves are starting to venture further away from their mommas and the babysitter cow. We also have some geese that have stayed behind the rest of their gaggle and are calling our front pond home. I have not ventured to the back pond to see if any are setting up housekeeping there as well or not. I am glad these chose the front pond because they can be seen from the house.

Matzah Bread

The girls and I went to church this evening to help set up for Fridays Passover meal and to bake the unleavened bread (matza). I added the recipe for the bread on my recipe link (upper left corner).
If you haven't noticed, I have added some new pages. The links to click onto them are on the upper left. Hopefully, this will keep the site a little neater and easier to find things. So far, I have added pages for recipes and homeschool friendly events. Someone else suggested I also add a page for money saving tips and couponing, so that may also be in the near future.
Let me know what you think!

Musical drama camp for families

Bill Nichols of His Kingdom Ministries did a vocal exercise class last year & is willing to come up from Branson to do a
Spring Musica & Drama Camp for our families. The Orientation is scheduled for April 16 and and the 2-day Camp
(followed by a performance on the 2nd evening) is held May 17-18 or May 19-20, to be decided by the group.

The musical drama is called Living Inside Out in an Upside Down World. It is targeted for ages 6-16. Camp topics are:
-Building Vocal Muscles
-Big Ball Belly laugh
-S-t-r-e-t-c-h Voice to its Full Potential
-Exciting games like: Sing, Dance, Freeze; Read My Lips; Fun with Skits

Venue will be decided when we see where most of the participants are based.

Bill has a gracious fee of $45.00 per family, which includes all material & DVD of drama for practice before camp begins.
Half is paid at Orientation & remainder at Camp.

Contact Vienna Schmidt at amomfirst@hotmail.com or 913-220-7233 with questions.

Please feel free to post on other homeschool lists in the Kansas City area.

Easter egg hunt at Shatto

On April 4th, you and your family are invited to the 6th
Annual Easter Egg Hunt. This free event is one you
and your family will not want to miss. Last year we had
more than 400 participants in this fun event, and hope
to get an even bigger crowd this year. The Easter Egg
Hunt starts promptly at 2:30 p.m. Kids of all ages are
welcome. There will be three areas divided by age,
one for children ages 4 and under, another for ages 5
to 7, and a third area for kids ages 8 and older. Prizes
will be awarded to those children that find the “special
eggs”.
There is no charge for this fun event and we suggest
participants arrive 20 minutes before the event, so
everyone has time to check in, find their line and get
ready to go! If the weather is iffy, we encourage folks
to check our Facebook site as we will have up to date
information on the status of the event.
Peter, the Easter Rabbit, will be present, so bring your
cameras and have your child's picture taken with him
and a Shatto Milk Company Cow. Your family can
cherish this for years to come.
If you have any questions or would like more
information about this or any other event, please
contact us via phone at (816) 930-3862.

http://shattomilk.com/newsletter/March_2010.pdf

More websites to check out

Home Science Adventure Products
www.homeschoolscience.com
Ring of Fire
www.scienceforkids.com

First Strokes-The Handwriting Clinic
www.firststrokeshandwriting.com

School day at the K

School day at the K is on May 13th. It is a day of education at Royals stadium. There will be a lesson on weather put on by channel 4 out of Kansas City. Tickets are around $9 for field seats.

Here is the link to check it out.

http://www.fox4kc.com/weather/wdaf-school-day-2010-story,0,4151783.story

Free visit to Powell Gardens May 7

Free admission in honor of National Public Gardens Day

Enjoy the Gardens for free! This event is part of an annual celebration highlighting the role of public gardens as a leading resource on environmental stewardship, plant conservation, environmental education, ecosystem management, species preservation and efficient use of water. Areas to explore include the Island Garden, Rock & Waterfall Garden, Perennial Garden, Heartland Harvest Garden, visitor, chapel and Byron Shutz Nature Trail. Powell Gardens also has two cafes and two gift shops. More information is at 816-697-2600 or www.powellgardens.org.

Fee: free

Date: Friday, May 07, 2010

Time: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Curriculum Sale in Lee's Summit

LSHE Used Curriculum Sale

Friday, April 9

6:30pm-8:30pm - LSHE Members

7:30pm -8:30pm General Public

Lee's Summit Community Church

1440 SW Jefferson Lee's Summit, MO



$1 Admission fee for all non-LSHE members

Only LSHE members will be allowed to sell

Spring is finally here (I think)

I think spring has finally sprung, and in time for Easter this Sunday. Yesterday it got up to 75 here on the farm, and today it is a little warmer than that. With spring in the air, we got out the egg incubator and fired it up. I usually have it plugged in for a couple days to get the temperature and humidity regulated before I add the eggs.

This week has been a busy week so far. Sunday afternoon our youth minister Dustin was ordained. We had a reception following. Then Sunday evening, the girls and I were in the an Easter contata with our Community Chorus. Tuesday evening we had another performance.

Now, we are getting ready to go bake bread for our passover meal at church. Easter time is normally not this busy for us, but we have enjoyed it.

Final snow?

Last weekend we had, what I hope was our final snow of the season. I am now ready for the farm to dry out enough that I can encourage my husband to plow the garden spot for me. I am making my list of what I want to plant this year. The last 2 days we have had rain, so we have a lot of mud and lots of puddles. The duck and the pigs are content however.

We did have a break on Tuesday with no rain, so Elizabeth, JD and I went out and ripped up the split and rotten boards on the decking of our front porch. We replaced the decking with new decking and got the tools put away just an hour before the rain hit again. That is the major part of that job finished. We still have a couple boards we need to replace, but the worse of it is done, and we ran out of decking. But at least we have started on our spring "to do" list. Next is the garden and to finish the chicken pen project.

It has been a little harder to school since the weather warmed up. The girls are wanting to be outside and run, play and ride bikes instead of studying. I can't say I blame them much!

For the most part, spring has been much waited for, except it did bring a leak in the roof. We had some hail damage last summer, and then with the added winter snows and ice, the roof developed a weak spot that started leaking. But, it is better to repair it now, than when we still had snow on the roof.

Third Annual Post-Secondary Education Fair for Home-schooled students

You are invited to attend the Third Annual Post-Secondary Education Fair for home-schooled students. This event will take place Friday, April 9, from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. at Woodcrest Chapel, 2201 Nifong, Columbia, MO. This fair is a wonderful opportunity for home schooled students and parents to visit with many different universities, four-year colleges, community colleges, and vocational-technical/trade schools at one time. The 2008 and 09 fairs included 45 different types and styles of schools, not only from Missouri, but also from states as far away as Wyoming and Tennessee. The schools in attendance will showcase their degree and certification programs and the relaxed environment encourages students to converse with the school representatives. The fair not only gives students and parents information concerning schools and their offerings to our home- schooled students, but it also allows home schooled students to explore the variety of opportunities waiting for them in post-secondary education.

We will again offer the mini-seminar, "Preparing your High School Home-schooled Student for Post-secondary Education," lead by Cindy Campbell, a home school mom of three. Mrs. Campbell's seminar was much appreciated by the families that attended the past two years. She guides and advises home schooling families as they prepare their home-schooled high school student for college. The seminar will address what subjects and records are needed to assist your students with their college preparation. Mrs. Campbell's oldest child is working as an ASL interpreter and on a master's program to prepare for a career in speech pathology, her middle son is a full-ride-scholarship graduate of Westminster College and is now earning his master's at MU on a full scholarship, and her youngest has attended Westminster and is now attending MU to pursue a career in Occupational Therapy.

Woodcrest is located in an area that has many types of restaurants close at hand. The church has been very good to us and we would like to respect their building by asking that you eat away from the building and do not carry food/drink into the building. Closed water bottles would be fine to bring.

If you have any questions about this Post-Secondary Education Fair, please contact the sponsors, Ron and Brenda Crowe, past home-schooling parents of three at rcrowe@ktis.net or at their home-based business number 573-642-0659.

Owl Cam & Snow

This site is pretty cool. It shows an owl named Molly sitting on her eggs in her owl box. There are also other links to view other animal cams as well.

http://www.sportsmansparadiseonline.com/Live_Owl_Nest_Box_Cam.html

Here on the farm.....
Last night we got some rain, which turned to sleet then snow. It is still snowing. We probably have 4-5 inches now which isn't too bad. What is bad, is that it is blowing and drifting. Our county road is not clear at all. In some spots we have 18inch drifts. In front of the girls play house there is a 3 foot drift. (Remember that Thurs it was almost 70 degrees)...Tomorrow it is supposed to be close to 40, so hopefully it will start to melt off, although as deep as the drifts are it will take them several days. The girls and I went to the city today and saw quite a few car accidents and cars in the ditches. The chickens didn't even come out of the coop today-they wanted nothing to do with the snow, and I don't blame them.

Homeschooling wise....
Elizabeth went to the Missouri Christian Convention with our ministers family. She has called me several times. Her favorite things? Riding in the elevator and escalators and swimming in the hotel pool, which was a salt water pool. Since we was gone for a treat, we took Friday and today off from schooling. However, I did some thrift store shopping, and found in Kearney MO at Trash to Treasures some great consumable math books for $1 each, so of course I bought each of the girls one in each version. They consist of: Probability and Logic, Introductory Geometry, Measurements, Arithmetic with Fractions, Fractions, Decimals & Percents II, and Introductory Algebra. So, each girl gets 7 books, each consisting of at least 26 worksheets (front and back). The worksheets are colorful and have pictures and illustrations, which they all seem to like, and I liked the price!

Thursday Emily gave a demonstration speech to a boyscout group. It was over smoke alarms. Later they will help her install some smoke alarms for community service, as part of a project she is doing for 4H and Girl Scouts.

$5 Discounted rate at CoCo Key ends April 30

Hey!! Spread the word to everyone you know!! PLEASE--pass this on to all area homeschool groups who might be interested! Post it to your Facebook page! If attendance is high, the discount prices will continue!!

Right now, CoCo Key is offering special $5 per person rates, every weeknight from 4 to 9pm, now through April 30th, 2010.

After April 30th, 2010, they will be offering "Homeschool Discount Days" with admission prices of $8 per person every weeknight from 4 to 9pm, and $15 per person Friday thru Sunday, extending through December 31st 2010!! This will include all the summer months through next fall & winter!!!

To get these rates, simply ask for the "Homeschool Discount Days" prices at the CoCo Key Front Desk. If you are going before the 30th of April, be sure to ask for the special $5 rate.
Available Monday - Thursday only.
Blackout dates do apply.
Pizza Hut & A&W located on property.
No outside food or beverage allowed.
Remember to bring your own towel.

(Subject to availability. May not be valid on holidays or special events. Restrictions or blackout dates may apply. See calendar on the CoCo Key website for opening times & holidays. )

For more questions; Call Greg Madden at 816-737-4775.

With over 55,000 sq. ft. of indoor Key West adventure,
CoCo Key Water Resort is Missouri's Largest Indoor Water Resort and
has all the fun and excitement you and your friends can handle!

Co Co Key
9103 East 39th Street, KC MO 64133
www.cocokeywaterresort.com
Front Desk : 816-737-0200

Our family has been there, and this place is FUN!!!

Free sources for homeschoolers (and teachers, and kid group leaders)

I have mentioned numerous times that we get a lot of our resources free. Several people have asked me what my sources are. So, I will start listing some of them, and I am asking my readers and followers to join in and add their sources as well.

A few are not open to homeschoolers, but are open to scout leaders, 4H leaders, public school teachers....I am a 4H leader, and work with scouts and other youth activities, and sub teach, so, often even though I homeschool, I still qualify. Some will also send materials if you belong to a coop and plan to show the video or use the lesson plan in the coop.


Some of these also have an option of sending you an email daily or weekly to update you with what they have added to their site. Many also have links to more sites.

Free videos--there are many sources, but 2 I like the best are:
Video placement, located at http://vpw.com and also

Izzit.org
Both of the above do request that you give them feedback on the videos.

You can also get free John Stossel in the classroom videos at http://stosselintheclassroom.org


A favorite of mine that has lots of useful information, worksheets and links is
About.com:Homeschooling. There website is http://homeschooling.about.com/



Another great resource is our Department of Conservation (state level). For Missouri it is located at http://www.mdc.mo.gov/teacher/classroom.htm but you will want to check on all the links and the entire site as well. From this site, and mailings we are received from them we have learned to identify Missouri trees and plants, and have learned about our wildlife and some Missouri history as well. You can also visit a state park and receive lots of brochures and information as well as talk with a park ranger. Many parks also have free hands on programs for kids as well.

Countrymart Grocery stores also have a neat link--it is really designed to advice you of sales, but they always include a recipe or two. Since my girls are actively collecting recipes for their recipes as part of an ongoing home-ec assignment, we like their weekly emails as well. You will need to ask at your local store what the web address is--ours doesn't actually have a website, but rather a weekly newsletter we receive via email.

Another great online source is your public library. Some even have online homework help, which is nice to use sometimes if your child doesn't understand how you are explaining something. Often hearing someone say the same thing, but worded differently is a great help. Some books are available on line as well as genealogy information.

Freely Educate sends out emails with links for the free resource of the day.

http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/links/toolbox/free.html Sometimes this one is good, but sometimes I find dead links or expired offers--but is is always worth a try.

Most companies will send you free information and resources if you send them an email. We sent one to Heinz, and got neat books about how they make catsup and relish, as well as some pencils. Georgia Pacific sent us some free rulers and posters about various trees and logging, and how they plant new trees to replace what they log.

My girls each have an "animal notebook". It is a 3 ring notebook and we find the animals online, and either print off a picture of them or a coloring page to color of that animal or draw it (sometimes we add photos also while we are at the zoo. We also fill in a page that tells about that animal. No cost involved.

OK. That is a few of mine that come to mind, but there are thousands of them out there. Also, don't forget sources such as your extension office. Worksheets are everywhere, just google "free worksheets math" or "free worksheets science"...

So, what are some of your favorite ones??

Young Eagles time again!

EAA Young Eagles Program
Get A Free Flight!
If you are between 8 and 17 years old, the EAA Young Eagles programs wants to offer you the chance of a lifetime. Turn your dreams into reality on a free Young Eagles flight and become one of over 1 Million Young Eagles! To find out where and when check out EAA Chapter 91 Young Eagle Events.

Young Eagle Events at Lee's Summit Airport (Breakfast is available 7:30-11:00 on Lee's Summit dates.)
Date Location Time
April 17 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon
May 15 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon
June 19 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon
July 17 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon
August 7 K.C. Downtown Airport 9:00-3:00
September 18 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon
October 16 Lee's Summit Airport 8:30-noon

What will the flight be like?

The biggest question on your mind might be about the actual flight. So what should you expect?

First of all, your pilot will explain what will happen during the flight. This might include talking about the airplane; reviewing an aeronautical chart (or map); identifying reference points during the flight; completing a careful "walk around" preflight inspection of the airplane and identifying the parts that control the airplane.

Once you are ready to go flying, your pilot will help you buckle your seat belt and describe the interior of the airplane, including the instrument panel. Pretty soon, it will be time to go flying!

Once in the air, you’ll see the earth and sky in a new and exciting way. You’ll experience the wonderful freedom of flight that many people only dream about. If you are like most Young Eagles, you’ll remember this experience for the rest of your life.

Most Young Eagle flights last between 15 and 20 minutes. Once back on the ground, there will be additional time for you to ask questions about the flight. Ask away! Your pilot will be happy to tell you more about flying and their particular airplane. And don’t forget, you’ll also receive an official Young Eagles certificate, which is signed, by your personal pilot and our Chairman Harrison Ford.

We look forward to adding your name to the ever-growing list of EAA Young Eagles!

For more information, visit the EAA Young Eagles Website.

The program

The EAA Young Eagles program was launched in 1992 to give interested young people, ages 8 - 17, an opportunity to go flying in a general aviation airplane. These flights are offered free of charge and are made possible through the generosity of EAA member volunteers.

Since 1992, more than 1.25 million Young Eagles have enjoyed a flight through the program. Young Eagles have been registered in more than 90 different countries and have been flown by nearly 40,000 volunteer pilots.

Participation is easy. Simply contact the EAA Young Eagles office to find the closest volunteer pilot. From there, arrange a convenient time to go flying. We hope you enjoy a Young Eagles introduction to the exciting world of aviation. Make sure you come back to visit this web site after your flight to continue exploring the wonderful world of aviation!

For more information, visit the EAA Young Eagles website.

4H Contest Day

Today was our 4H contest day for our county. All the kids in our club who participated did great! I think every kid in our club got at least one blue ribbon, if not more.

Each girl did a speech and judging. Emily did an impromtu speech and judging. The twins did judging and demonstration speeches. Rebeccas was on drawing horses, and Elizabeths was on vet science.

My girls each came home with an assortment of blue and red ribbons (they each entered in several different areas) and Emily also got a gold medal and will be sharing a speech at the state 4H contest in September. Several others are also going to state as well.

Way to go Plattsburg Pioneer kids!!!

We all passed!

I am very proud of my girls. Tonight the family went to training to learn CPR and AED for first responders. I was rather familiar with it, as many years ago I was an instructor for the American Red Cross. It has changed since then. It is much simpler now, and less to remember. JD did not need to take it, as he just took it again a couple weeks ago at work (plus, his card from taking it during his EMT class is also still valid..). Tonights class was through the American Heart Association.

It was however, the girls first time to take the class. Emily (who is a cadet at the fire department) did very well, and earned her advanced card.

The twins being younger (and are not yet cadets, but would like to be in the future), earned their basic CPR and AED. Since JD did not need to take the class, he worked with them during the class and they did very well.

All they girls were able to properly demonstrate for an infant, child and adult.

All 3 girls will be getting 4 hours credit in Science (health) for homeschooling, as well as being able to use in Girl Scouts.

Needless to say, I am very proud of them all. Many adults have not taken and earned their card, let alone 11 and 13 year old kids. I encourage everyone to go and take the class. It saves lives!

New homeschool group forming

This is from an email I received.

" Well, thanks to the snow, etc. the FIRST official meeting of the Southland support group will be Monday, March 8 at 7PM. We will meet at First Baptist, 1416 Main St. Grandview, in the lower level. Bring something to take notes, be prepared to sign up for activities, and bring a calendar! Oh, yes, and bring a finger food to share...drinks and paper goods will be provided. Let's get to know each other!

Sorry, but child care will not be provided. This is a parent's meeting. However, nursing babies are always welcome."
Deana
dmahaines@yahoo.com

Mud, mud and more mud

The farm is a muddy mess from the snow that has melted. To add to it, it rained for awhile this morning, creating more mud. Although the rain did melt a bit more snow. The majority of the snow and ice behind the house is gone, although most the snow and ice in front of the house remains-it only gets a few hours of sunshine a day, so it doesn't melt as fast.

Tysa left this morning for a cruise to Jamaica. It will be a nice change for her after wintering in Chicago, but I just hope she doesn't have a shock when she comes back to the winter cold.

Spring will be bringing a lot of chores here on the farm. Getting the garden ready will have to wait--it is too wet to even dream of having it ready by March 17 to plant potatoes.

We did have a scrap guy come out and pick up some old farm metal and tin, so that was a start to our spring clean up. We also went to get some lumber to replace some bad boards on the front porch. That was supposed to have been a fall project, but early cold and snow ended that one.

Next week the girls and I are going back on our homeschool schedule. We dropped off of it in November, just too many daytime activities that interfered. But, with the holidays over, we are going to go back on a schedule again. Sometimes a schedule keeps us on track better, other times it is more of a hindrance.

Homeschool Days at Arrowrock

Home School Day
Arrow Rock, Missouri

May 19, 2010
10:00-12:00 a.m.

Visit People and Places of the Past: 19th Century Arrow Rock

Meet John and Nannie Sites at home and at work. Tour a period print shop
and discover the secrets of the Odd Fellows Lodge Hall.

Students and accompanying adults will rotate among five stations at their
own choosing during a two-hour period.

* Meet Johnny Sites at the Gun Shop

* Play old-time games on the Tavern Lawn

* Tour the Print Shop and Odd Fellows Lodge Hall

* Enjoy cookies with Nannie Sites at her 1870s Victorian home.

Reservations: call 660-837-3330 or 1-800-334-6946 (ask to be transferred to
Arrow Rock State Historic Site) between the hours of 8:30 and 3:30.

There will be a $4.00 fee for each student age six and over. Supervising
adults are free. Please have the total amount due for your family ready at
check-in at State Historic Site Visitor Center. Checks payable to Friends of
Arrow Rock.

You will receive a confirmation letter and map. Please be sure you are
familiar with the map and check-in instructions.

For information about the village: www.arrowrock. org www.friendsar.org

Following the 10 a.m. to noon program, you may want to allow time to tour
the Arrow Rock State Historic Site Museum and view the orientation film at
the Visitor Center.

You might also wish to take advantage of three marked trails to the Missouri
River and through a woodlands area. These hikes can be made following the
two hour program. Maps will be available at the Visitor Center upon
check-in.

Homeschooler Booksale

Annual CPHE Used Book Sale


Date: Saturday, March 20, 2010

Time: 11am – 4pm

Place: Heartland Church of Christ

6120 NW Prairie View Road

Kansas City , MO 64151

Contact: Jenni Eckhoff

sale@cphecorp.org (preferred)

816) 237-6646 (may need to leave a message, because we have a crazy schedule)



The time to clear out your old curriculum and make room for the new to you is here! The CPHE book sale will be at Heartland Church of Christ (where the sale was last year). Start marking your items and spread the word!



There is a very limited amount of tables available for use. The pricing determined by members/non-members, those who use a provided table and those who bring their own or just use floor space.

The pricing is as follows:

Free for current CPHE members who bring their own table or use floor space.

$3 for current CPHE members who use a table provided (tables are limited and will be assigned first contact first serve).

$5 for non-members, who bring their own table or use floor space.



$8 for non-members who use a table provided (tables are limited and will be assigned first contact first serve).



The tables provided are both round and the standard 6’ length. For those who would like a provided table, please indicate if you have a preference. Remember, bookshelves are a great way to display your books as well.

Film focuses on Missouri’s complex legacy of slavery - KansasCity.com

Film focuses on Missouri’s complex legacy of slavery - KansasCity.com

This afternoon we went to the local high school and watched a film on Missouri's slave history. It was presented by the Plattsburg Historical Society. It was very interesting and very educational. Once aspect of the film was pointing out the differences in slaves from Missouri compared to those in others states.

The group that put it on is putting on several more around the KC area, and hopes to take it across the state. If you have a chance to go to a viewing, do so. Following the film, Dr Jimmy Johnson, dressed in character of his great grandfather slave George Washington made an appearance to answer questions.

So, today we will be putting down 2 hours of Missouri history.

Test for the US Deptmartment of the Treasury

HSLDA--Financial Literacy Challenge Opportunity

Dear HSLDA Members and Friends,

HSLDA recently learned that the U.S. Department of the Treasury has
launched its 2010 National Financial Capability Challenge. This
recognition program uses a voluntary, online test to determine and
recognize high levels of financial literacy among America's high
school students in public, private, and homeschool programs.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has asked for HSLDA's help in
getting this test into the hands of homeschoolers. High scoring
students will receive awards from the U.S. Treasury Department, and a
select group of outstanding schools and educators will be recognized.
This recognition is competitive and will look very good on a job
resume or high school transcript.

To register for this challenge, please visit
http://challenge.treas.gov/. You can then register for
the test. Please note that the deadline to register is Monday, March
1, 2010.

Students must be between the ages of 13 and 19 years old. There are
no prerequisites for student participation, and there is no charge to
participate.

We hope that your homeschool program can benefit from this unique
opportunity.

Sincerely yours,

Mike Smith
HSLDA President

Coop needs a new home

Things are starting to look up again-sort of. My dad was released from the hospital yesterday with no long term damage from his fall. He will be sore for awhile I would think.

Our 4H group is starting to work on their projects. Tonight the kids who are doing photography are meeting. In a couple weeks, more project groups will be starting as well. That just means we are getting closer to the fair and SUMMER!

The girls are working on their spelling words for the upcoming spelling bee. There are some pretty tough words on the list and some we have to look up, and others that we can not even find in the dictionary.

On the down size, our homeschool coop is not meeting this semester. Basically we lost the building we had been meeting in. So, our leadership team is trying to find us a new location before the fall semester starts. Meanwhile, we will try to meet with others every month or so to keep friendships active and for the kids to socialize some. It is sad that we lost the location we were at, as it was the perfect location. So, if anyone out there in the North KC/Kearney area has a large facility that will house around 400 kids plus their parents with rooms for classrooms, let us know!! We meet once a week. A large church or empty school would be perfect.

Info on the EXPLORE test (pre ACT) for 8th graders

There will be three different test dates this spring for taking the EXPLORE test (a pre-ACT test) designed for eighth graders. Seventh and ninth graders are welcome to take the test too. It is a new test every year now, so even if your student took it last year, they are welcome to take it again. This test will cover the same areas as the ACT test required for college admission: English, Math, Reading, and Science Reasoning. You will receive your student's test questions back, along with the correct answers, so it is a very good practice tool. Testing dates will be:

Monday, April 26, 2010, at Harmony Vineyard Church, 600 NE 46th Street, Kansas City MO 64116 from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm.

Monday, May 3, 2010, at Coronation Church, 13000 Bennington Ave, Grandview, MO 64030, from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm.


Thursday, May 6, 2010, at Brighton Academy, 10100 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park KS 66212 from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm. Brighton Academy is located in the Emmanuel Baptist Church.


This is a one day test. You may pick which date and location works best for your family. The test time includes time for a snack/lunch break. The cost for the test at the two Missouri test sites is $20, and the cost for the test at the Kansas site is $27. You will also need to include 2 business-size SASE's (self-addressed stamped envelopes); one with a regular stamp and the other with a $.61 stamp, and a completed registration form. You will receive an e-mail you confirmation when they receive your information. If you have any questions, you may either e-mail whereismonette@gmail.com or call 816-781-5531. Monette will get back to you as soon as she can. Deadline for registration is April 10, 2010 for the Missouri test sites and April 20, 2010 for the Kansas site. Please write very clearly on the registration form as it is sometimes hard to read the email address or phone number and those are needed these to be able to contact you. :)


Student's name________________________________________________________

Address______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________



Parent's names _______________________________________________________

Phone_______________________ E-mail__________________________________



Test date/location ____________________________________________________

Please send completed registration form, 2 SASE's (with differing amounts of postage), and payment to:

Monette Anderson

901 Cambridge Circle

Liberty MO 64068

Its been complicated

This week has not gone to plan. Not at all.

Sunday, we were hit hard with snow. It was very cold and very windy as well. As a result, roads (and of course our driveway) were drifted shut. It snowed all day Sunday and as a result our church cancelled services. The girls had a friend from church spend the night Saturday night and she went home on Sunday. They had a fun time. They didn't get to sleep until around 2:30 Sunday morning, but since church was cancelled, I let the girls sleep in.

Monday we managed to get out of the driveway and JD, Rebecca and I headed to Liberty. I was shopping for a new clothes dryer. I new exactly what I wanted--the Bosch that went with the Bosch front loader washer I got last year. When we got to Lowe's, we found out it was discontinued. So, I started checking out the others, and saw NOTHING I liked. They all, every brand had chrome all over it. I don't want chrome, for one, its harder to keep clean and besides, we are talking a clothes dryer here, not a Harley Davidson.... But, Jacques (Lowe's rep we usually deal with in appliances) came out with a grin on his face. Said he found something in the back I may be interested in. There she was, my dream dryer, the Bosch in all her glory, about 40% off the original price because she was the floor model and had no box. We bought it. To add icing to the cake, I had $150 in gift certificates to bring the price down further. So, we left the store with the high dollar dryer that I wanted and I paid the only price for a standard dryer.

When we got home, we unloaded it and the girls and I headed for community chorus. (The plan was to get the dryer and most likely install it on Tues because of other commitments we had Monday night). So we had the new dryer sitting in the living room, the old one had been moved from the laundry area to the middle of the kitchen--you know, one of those messes that you usually have going on when either company comes or something happens.

Well, it happened. While we were at chorus practice, my phone and then my daughters phone started vibrating over and over. I ignored mine, after all I was trying to sing. But, Emily being a typical 13 year old could not ignore a text. That is the meanest form of torture to her. Thankfully she disobeyed me and peeked at hers, to see we had been ignoring messages from my brother and husband, who were trying to reach us. My dad had fallen on the ice, landing on his head and was in route to the hospital, where he was admitted. Today is Wednesday, and hopefully he can go home tomorrow. My mom has been staying with him most of the time. My brother went out to the area where my dad fell, and found 3 breaks in the ice--one from his head, and 2 from his elbows. Needless to say, he is sore.

After he fell, he had some short term memory loss, but that has all returned now. For a short time, he could not remember who the president was. But he could remember that he was a republican. Later, he remembered who the president was and said he was wishing he didn't. If you knew my dad, and his politics, you would agree that was a good sign! I have several cousins who like to get my dad riled up on his politics.

Oh, we finally did get the new dryer in on Tuesday afternoon. But the old dryer still has not been carried out-but, at least I can do laundry and we don't have one sitting in the living room anymore!

We are still having computer issues as well. Very often I can't get on line, or cant check my email. I have come to realize and bunch of my email has been lost--my outlook box is empty when it had at least 30 in it the night before that I had not read.

So, basically here at the farm we are now waiting for spring. Hopefully when the season changes so will our luck!! Our schooling has gotten a little behind this week, but we will be able to catch it up. (Actually we have been running ahead on our hours, so it really isn't an issue). We have gotten in our home-ec, a little social studies, our Bible readings, our spelling and a little math. I count Emilys time at the fire station towards her schooling, but we will be missing that tonight as we will be heading back down to the hospital.

Our spelling words

Since we are getting ready to do the spelling bee in May, I thought you may want to see our spelling words. We are now switching over to the bee words, in order to be prepared. Last year, we didn't find out about the spelling bee until just a couple weeks ahead. This year, we have several months notice.

Each grade has several hundred words. Here are the A''s and B's".

6th Grade abbreviate
 abruptly
 accessible
 achievement
 acrobatic
 affluent
 aisle *
 alibi
 allegiance
 alliance
 amphibious
 anagram
 analyze
 armor
 asterisk
 astronaut
 attempted
 audible
 autonomous
 bachelor
 ballast
 balsam
 bauble
 bayonet
 befriend
 benediction
 besieged
 bibliography
 biennial
 binoculars
 bitterness
 blaspheme
 boulevard
 bounteous
 buoyancy


8th Grade abjuration
 abnegate
 abysmal
 abyss
 accelerator
 acreage
 acrophobia
 acumen
 adjutant
 aerobics
 aesthetic
 alimentary
 allegory
 allemande
 aluminiferous
 ambidextrous
 antihistamine
 apologetics
 armadillos
 arpeggio
 arrhythmia
 asceticism
 asymmetrical
 auspicious
 bagatelle
 bellicose
 belvedere
 beneficiary
 benevolence
 bespectacled
 bilingual
 bioscopy
 bivouac
 blithesome
 boorish
 borough
 botulism
 buccaneer
 bureaucrat

Meanwile, my laptop is in for repair, JD's computer is windows 98, so won't open sites with many graphics. My old pc with xp is acting up, won't print, and keeps telling me failure is about to happen. A good part of the time I can't access my email. But, I printed several emails off today and am working on them. So, if you sent us one and we haven't responded, we will--we are just running way behind!

Spelling Bee for homeschoolers in KC area

Announcing the Clay Platte Home Educators

Regional Spelling Bee



Friday, May 7 at 10:00 a.m.



New Location:

Platte Woods United Methodist Church

7310 NW Prairie View Road

Platte Woods, MO 64151

Near I-29 and 72nd Street
http://plattewoodschurch.org/418826.ihtml
This relaxed spelling bee is for students who want a friendly bee but with real competition. It is open to any homeschool student* who is in grades one through twelve. A copy of the rules, guidelines and word lists can be found at: http://www.cphecorp.org/spelling/

To have a successful bee we really need judges, so please consider serving your homeschool community in this way. Parents of participants may serve as judges.



Registrations are due April 23rd. We need to have at least two spellers in a level to hold the bee for that grade. If there are not enough registered spellers in a particular level the speller will be notified by April 26th and will be given the option of competing at the next highest grade level.



To register, volunteer, or ask questions you may contact Kellie Wiersma at:

spellingbee@cphecorp.org


Cost to participate in the bee:

CPHE member: $3 per speller - ($9 max per family) plus one plate of
refreshments to share with the group
Non-member: $4 per speller - ($12 max per family) plus one plate of
refreshments to share with the group


Those registering should send the following information:

Student Name
Student Grade
Parent Name
Parent Email
Parent Phone number

CPHE Member? Y/N

Once this information is received you will be given instructions for sending your payment.



Judging volunteers should send the following information:

Name, email and phone number.



* CPHE defines a homeschool as one that is in full compliance with Missouri homeschool law for ages 7-16. Students outside this age group must receive at least 50% of their education at home, exclusive of enrichment programs and/or college courses. Students from other states should be homeschooled according to their state law.


We attended this last year for the first time and Emily placed very well (I believe it was 3rd place). It was very well organized and the awards take place as soon as it is over.

Logo contest for Liberty July 4th open for ages 14 and up and poster contest for ages 5-14

Liberty Fourth of July Committee seeks Logo

Area artists young and old are invited to design a patriotic logo for the City of Liberty's 4th of July celebration-Liberty's Salute to Freedom.



The July 4, 2010, event will feature a greatly expanded celebration of freedom, complete with a parade of military and patriotic units and the reading of the Declaration of Independence on Liberty Square.



Two art contests are planned. The first, a logo contest, is for adults and teenagers 14 and up. Entries must be in a digital format. The winning design may be used on t-shirts, banners, literature and advertising.


In addition, a poster contest for youth, ages 5-14, is also planned. Poster entries may be displayed at the Liberty City Hall, on the City's cable channel, at area businesses and during the Salute to Freedom celebration.



A complete list of rules, entry form and a release form will be available online beginning January 27 at www.ci.liberty.mo.us/SalutetoFreedom or at the Liberty City Hall, 101 E. Kansas. Entries must be mailed or delivered to the Liberty City Hall by 5 p.m. February 26, 2010.


The winner will be announced at a March Liberty City Council meeting. For information go to www.ci.liberty.mo.us/SalutetoFreedom beginning January 27 or call 439.4415.




__._,_.___

Links for Biblical geology & Noah's Flood

Some articles you may find interesting. This came from our preacher Larry.

1. Thousands of dinosaur footprints found in China. More evidence of
Noah's Flood. See: http://biblicalgeology.net/blog/archives/293
2. Eerie silence on Tiktaalik's demise. Wiki slow to include contrary
evidence for famous fossil story. See:
http://biblicalgeology.net/blog/archives/193 3. Wikipedia silent on Tiktaalik no longer. See
http://biblicalgeology.net/blog/archives/229
4. Edits needed on Wikipedia entry for Panderichthys. Prize fossil
becomes dead-end but who would know? See
http://biblicalgeology.net/blog/archives/260

$5 for group admission at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum

Family Five Dollar Sundays

$5 Group Admission

Due to the great response from the Family $5 Week during Christmas break,
AKMA has decided to extend this fun offering for families. In an effort to
encourage family visits to the museum, the Albrecht-Kemper Museum will
offer $5 group admission on Sundays. Children are welcome to bring
friends, but all youth must be accompanied by an adult, and we do ask that
there is at least one adult per 5 children.
Gallery looking-activities and Winter-themed craft projects will be
available!

Sunday Museum Hours 1-4pm:
February 7
February 14
February 21
February 28
For more information, call the Albrecht-Kemper at 816 233-7003.

This effects all Missouri Homeschoolers!!! Please Read

This is from Brad Haines, Executive Director of Familes for Home Education.

(Here is a link to find out who your legislators are: http://www.senate.mo.gov/llookup/leg_lookup.aspx )
The Following “E-Lert” is being sent by FHE to all Missouri Homeschoolers requesting immediate action. Phone calls need to be made NOW to your Representatives regarding amendments to HB 1543 lowering compulsory age, and as many as are able need to attend the hearing on SB 805 which gives Social Workers (many without sufficient training) sole “legal” authority to remove children from their parents, without due process, based on the social worker’s assessment of the need for “protective custody.” HB 1543 will likely be debated on the House Floor sometime tomorrow (probably towards evening), so lobbying against lowering the compulsory age can continue in person throughout the day. Please pass this on to all Missouri home school and pro-family friends. (For more information if you are able to go to Jefferson City on Tuesday, Feb 9th, contact Kerry Messer when you get to the capitol at 314-971-2477)

Education Policy

Compulsory Kindergarten



Monday

February 8, 2010

5-6 pm



House Hearing Room 5

Basement, State Capitol



HB 1543

See previous E@lerts.



This bill is expected to clear the House Rules Committee with no problems and be placed on the House Perfection Calendar as soon as Tuesday morning. This will clear the way for floor amendments as soon as the bill is taken up for debate.



Rep. Sara Lampe plans to offer at least two amendments aimed at lowering the state compulsory attendance age and to hold parents criminally liable for not placing their 5 or 6 year old children in formal education.



One of her ideas is to lower St. Louis and Kansas City to age 5. The second idea is to require a minimum age of 6 for the rest of the state. Uncooperative parents would face prosecution and prison time!



ACTION NEEDED:

Call your State Representative immediately ask them to vote against any amendments proposing to lower compulsory attendance ages from the current state law of age 7.

Parents who are afraid of the sex, drugs and violence in their schools should never be forced to send their children to such schools. Those schools should be made to clean up their system rather than asking the state to criminalize good parents.

Also, those parents who do not believe a child is developmentally ready to go to kindergarten should not face prosecution for doing what is best for their own child!




Social Workers

Your Children or Theirs?



Tuesday

February 9, 2010

8:15 am



Senate Committee Room #1

1st Floor Missouri State Capitol



SB 805





The Senate Health, Mental Health, Seniors and Families Committee (Senator Norma Champion, Chairman) is scheduled to take public testimony on Senate Bill 805. Any Missouri resident may participate and all concerned citizens need to be present. The State already claims too much authority in removing children from their homes.



This bill expands the list of people empowered by the State with the authority to remove your child(ren) from your home even though many others already have this subjective power.



SB 805 Allows social workers with the Children's Division to request a juvenile officer to take a child into protective custody even though they have never received any training regarding law enforcement or legal jurisprudence. They do all their work under civil law where criminal law and constitutional rights mean little to nothing.



Current practice is for social workers to have law enforcement or certain authorized persons to assist when taking a child from a home. This bill would allow the social worker the unilateral right to sweep up children with no properly trained law enforcement officer involved.



ACTION NEEDED:

Please attend the public hearing at the time and location listed above. You have the right to have your appearance noted for the record, or to speak to the committee about your concerns if you so desire. It is important that as many folks as possible come to Jefferson City for this hearing to remind Senators how serious it is to take children away from parents, even if the social worker grew up in a better socio-economic situation and cannot understand how poorer people still love their children!






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KC area Incredible Kids

March 15 is Incredible Kid Day and KCParent.com will be celebrating incredible kids with a feature article. We want to know about outstanding Kansas City Kids who deserve recognition for achievements, awards, volunteer work, etc. Simply send nominations including the child's name, age, location (Kansas City area) and contact information to kristina@kcparent.com by March 1st. You may submit multiple entries.

Emily is back

This past weekend Emily went to Columbia MO for the weekend for a 4H leadership teen conference. She had a lot of fun, and learned a lot. She also had a tour of the MU campus. Her classes included Skits, Trips & Awards, Parli Pro and Etiquette, Global Education, and Self Defense. She got to meet with other 4H kids from her region and other regions. Being homeschooled, she thought it was cool that she got to ride a school bus from the hotel to the MU campus.

Yesterday it started snowing, and it has not stopped yet. It is also blowing, so we have some drifting as well. somehow a little calf managed to get out of the pasture and into the back yard, but its momma called it back. I was grateful the momma called it back, as I was afraid she might opt to go after it herself. Her momma has been known to climb the gate like a ladder a few times.

They have cancelled the community chorus practice for tonight, along with a few other activities. Hopefully we will still be able to have 4H tomorrow night.

We are breaking down and down and down....

In the last month, we have broken, fixed, replaced or still waiting to fix or replace ALL of the following....

furnace--fixed--thanks Alex and if anyone in the KC area needs a great furnace man, let me know and I can give you his info.

dishwasher--on the to replace list--if I "whack it" just right, it won't leak.

clothes dryer--waiting on Lowe's next sale to be replaced. I already have 3 gift cards waiting to be applied towards the purchase.

suburban--waiting on the husband to have 2 days off in a row where nothing else breaks to over ride it

my cell phone--replaced for free at Radio Shack--AT&T store was going to charge me for it, and said my name was not on the account. So, we went to Radio Shack, who did show my name on the account and told me I actually could get one for FREE since I was due for a regrade--so I now have a new working Free phone!!

My PC and my laptop...I am planning on getting a virus scanner tonight and hopefully that will fix it--I can get to my email, but not to any websites, so downloading a free one off line is not an option at this time.

2 out of 3 of the microscopes quit. I think one is a wiring issue (aka job for my dad), and the other may just be a light bulb that needs to be replaced.

There is a CD stuck in the pick up CD player--it will play but won't eject. Any tips for how to fix that one???

We also lost a cat, rabbit and a calf. The calf was actually a stillborn one we were not even expecting. Not sure how the cat got hurt.

Also needing to fix a fuel line on the big tractor--that's another project on the husbands list.

Oh, and the stove oven has a short in it--sometimes she bakes, sometimes she doesn't. We have a backup stove from my parents in the basement kitchen we are making, but the outlet for it has not been put in yet. But, if worse comes to worse we can switch those out.

So goes life on the farm.

It started snowing last night and is still snowing this afternoon. So far about one inch is on the ground.

Monday night I had a big shopping trip at CVS. (I'm bragging here). My bill started out around $72. Then they took off my extra bucks, coupons and my buy one get one free items. I got it down to $26. After I got home, I realize they overcharged me on the cereal. It was supposed to be 2 for $4.00, and one 2 boxes they did charge me right. But, on the other 2--different type, same brand, same sale, they charged me $4.99 a box, which was the original price. So tonight I will be going back for a refund. Then, they also charged me for 2 boxes I didn't buy at $4.99 each. But, I already called them and we will work it out. That will then bring that bill down to around $10. The trick is to match the really good sale items with coupons and to be in the bonus buck program.

Reduced rate at CoCo Key!!

Holiday Inn Kansas City - SE

More splash, less cash!

Have you heard? CoCo Key in Kansas City has lowered its prices! Through the end of February, you can get weekend day passes for $15 each and weekday passes for $5 each! Overnight package rates start at just $139 per night!

Book an overnight getaway today!

Or, plan a family play day!

Holiday Inn Kansas City - SE
9103 East 39th Street - Kansas City, MO 64133 - 866-754-6962

This is a huge savings!!
CoCo Key is an indoor water park, with activities for all ages, including a kiddy pool. Makes a great day of swimming to add to your PE activities. Our girls love it there, and these prices (esp the daytime $5 weekday one) make it affordable fo the entire family.
Call first, as in the past to get the reduced rate you had to show up by a certain time--so call to get the scoop first.

For those without dental insurance--

This came from my friend Jenny. I am grateful my husbands job is still there and he has good benifits. Every week we hear of 2-3 more friends or family members who have lost their jobs.

DOCTORS WITH A HEART DAY!


WHAT: Providing FREE dental treatment to families WITHOUT access to dental care or who do not have dental insurance
WHEN: Friday, February 26, 2010
WHERE: Seaport Family Dentistry 2 Westwoods Drive, Liberty, MO
SERVICES: Cleanings, exams, x-rays, fillings, extractions

An appointment is required and must be made on February 12 between 10
a.m. and 12 p.m. by calling 781-1430.

Our History Lessons

I was asked to give some more information about our history. All the girls use Alpha Omega Publications LIFEPAC History and Geography. We use 2 sets, the 6th grade set for the younger girls and the 8th grade set for Emily.

Basically the LIFEPAC books come as a boxed set, containing 1 teacher book and 10 - 12 student books. The student books are broken down, one unit per book. Each unit is further broken down into chapters. The student books are those that you can write in, but we don't. Emily's books get passed down to the twins, and the twins do theirs on separate paper. That way, they can be used again or used for tutoring.

Each chapter has a list of objectives and vocabulary words (which make great spelling words). There are self tests every so often. The books are in color and contain a lot of maps and pictures.

The teachers book states how to reach the objectives and gives various Bible verses to look up that go along with the lessons, experiments, additional readings, and of course tests and all the answers.

Right now the girls just finished working on the globe--they learned the longitude and latitudes, continents, time lines, mapping and geography. Next we start the continents in more detail and learn some history of each.

You can buy the LIFEPACS directly from alpha omega at http://www.aophomeschooling.com/index.php?utm_source=cj&utm_medium=cpa&PID=2203897&afsrc=1, from a Christian book and school store or off ebay. However, make sure if you go through ebay that you are getting the complete package with the teachers book and all student books.

Expect to pay around $45-$50 per LIFEPAC new. For some, this may seem like a lot, but remember, we don't write in ours--and 3 girls use it. So, that makes it around $16 per girl. Then I can resell them for around $20 when the youngests are done with them. On ebay, I have gotten LIFEPACS for as low as $25 plus shipping.