Homeschooling Web Sites

Below is a list of web sites pertaining to homeschooling.  I'm just learning of many of these.  There are tons out there.  If you have any more to add, please share.  Also, if you find yourself needing a laminator, the cheapest ones are at Sam's for $24.  Target also has them for $27.  Sam's also has 3 ml laminating sheets for $20 for 200 sheets.

For the Parents

http://www.mrsperkins.com/ - Preschool through about 5th grade - free printable games, resources.  Lots of resources for 1st grade especially.

http://www.theschoolbell.com/ - Mostly first grade material.  Print off basically a complete first grade curriculum.  Lots of creative games.

http://www.homeschoolshare.com/ - Free printables.  Lots of great resources.  Type in a subject in the search box.  I've used it for key word "Workboxables".

http://www.homeschoolhelperonline.com/

http://www.sunflowerschoolhouse.com/- Variety of free printables and downloads.  Links to homeschooling blogs.

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.blogspot.com/ - Great blog with lots of downloadable activities, especially for preschool through 2nd grade. 

http://www.edhelper.com/ - This is an online subscription for $19.95 per year.  I signed up for this recently and it looks very good.  You can customize games and worksheets using your own curriculum, or they have worksheets by grade level.  It goes all the way up to high school.  I recognized the school bus logo on the top of all their printables.  Apparently, my daughter's public school used this web site quite often.  Many of her take home worksheets were from this web site. 

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/ - This is another subscription web site for $20.00 a year.
http://www.teachervision.com/ - Another subscription web site for $39.95 a year

http://www.mathworksheetsite.com/ - Print out math worksheets.

MEP (Mathmatics Enhancement Programme) http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mep/default.htm

This is a free online math curriculum. It is the math curriculum used in the UK schools, but it is also available to homeschoolers for free. You do need to contact them (CIMT - Centre for Innovation in Mathmatics Teaching) and request a password, letting them know that you are a homeschooling family.  They don't want passwords to get in the hands of their students.  If you join the MEP yahoo group, you can get the password and assistance on how to use the program. It is a program with teaching involved but it is a complete math curriculum and from the reviews I have read, it is also a very good one.  I plan to look into this one.  I couldn't find where to actually sign up from this web site.  It would probably be easier to sign up for the Yahoo group and ask there.  They probably have all the right links too.  Here is the link for that Yahoo group. 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mep-homeschoolers/


http://www.sonlight.com/ - This is a curriculum, but I list it here because I have used it to supplement my oldest's reading (he's in private school).  Go to your child's age and look at the Core packages and pull it up so you can view all items in the package.  It will give you a list of books that come with the package.  You can get most if not all of these from your library.  Granted, you won't get the Teacher's Guide that comes with the Core that includes questions after each chapter, but we've found that the books they choose for these cores are outstanding.

For the Kids

http://www.spellingcity.com/ - Free spelling games.  Type in your child's spelling words and it will produce games for the kids to play.  It will also speak the spelling words to the kids and test them.  Part of this site is a paid subscription but you can use the basic spelling games for free.

http://www.starfall.com/ - Great reading web site.  Interactive books and videos.

http://www.freerice.com/ - Free web site for older kids that tests their knowledge in different subjects.  The web site donates so many grains of rice for each correct answer your child gets.  So, as they are learning and honing their academic skills, they are also helping to feed hungry people around the world.

A Visit from Johnny Appleseed!

Johnny Appleseed stopped by the Nature Center last week, carrying along his sachel filled with apple seeds!  The kids loved listening to him tell tales of how he journeyed across the midwest into the east coast, planting apple orchards along the way and selling seedling trees to settlers.  He reminded the children of how important it is to plant seeds of kindness, generosity, and God's love as well. 

Royal Farm Apple Orchard Field Trip

On September 23rd, we visited the Royal Farm Apple Orchard in Hebron, IL. We had fun picking apples, feeding the farm animals, eating apple donuts, and playing on the playground.

Extracurricular Activities

Below is a list of some activities that our kids might enjoy. Please let us know of any other activities that you hear about and we will add them to the list.

Legoland in Schaumburg

You must go to their web site and print out the Homeschool Days registration page and fax it in. Below is the link to the homepage. Click on Schools and then Homeschool Days.
http://www.legolanddiscoverycentre.com/chicago/us

The cost for the Homeschool Days is $7 per child, with one free adult for up to 5 children (limit 6 tickets). The cost includes a free 30-minute workshop where the kids will learn about structures, etc. The Homeschool Days is only offered on Wednesdays from now until mid November and then again from January through May. You must send in your request about 2 weeks ahead of time for a reservation. About a week before your requested date and workshop time, they will e-mail you a voucher that you need to print and bring with you.  I have read some reviews that they are overpriced, it was overcrowded, and they were disappointed, but for $7, I think it's worth one trip, and I would expect the place to be pretty empty on a school day. They have a little lego museum of sorts to walk through, a slow ride, a 4-D movie, and a builders area where the kids can play Legos of course. I expect to spend most of our time there. The normal admission price is $19 for adults and $15 for kids. Please post a comment if anyone has already been there.

Right now, they are also running a special promotion of $5 per ticket if you come after school, arriving between 3pm-5pm, and they close at 7pm. However, each adult must pay $5 as well and it would not include the free workshop.
For fun at home, you can go to the link below and print out pictures and instructions of some lego creations that you and your kids can try to build.  Under the "Inspiration" tab, there are some more pictures with a number to them.  I believe you can plug that number in somewhere to get the step-by-step instructions on how to build those.  I'm thinking we will be asking for Legos this Christmas.  There is so much you can create, but it seems we don't always have all the pieces.  Also, at the top, there is a "Play" tab where your kids can play some Lego games.  My 9-year old loves this site. 

http://creative.lego.com/en-us/Familytime/buildinginstructions/default.aspx


Swim & Gym

This is a class offered at The Centre of Elgin, off Route 31, across from the Elgin Library. The class is offered to homeschoolers between the ages of 5 and 15. It includes an hour of instructed gym time (much like a P.E. class), and then an hour of swim lessons (40 instruction time and 20 minutes of free swim). The days and times are 1:00pm-3:00pm, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays. It is a 10-week class running through mid November. The cost is $54 for Elgin residents and $64 for non-residents. If you have a toddler, there is a parent-tot open swim from 1pm-2pm while the older kids are in the gym. Some of the classes are full, but if you do join now, you will pay a pro-rated fee for the remaining classes.  Their phone number is 847-531-7000.  Ask for Brett Lind.

For the younger kids, check out your local gymnastics gym for Junior Open Gym times.  We go to Excel Gymnastics in St. Charles or Batavia.  It's $5 per child for an hour (for kids under 6 only).   Sometimes we do the open gym for older kids (6 and up) on Friday nights from 7-8:30pm in Batavia.  The cost is $10 per child.  They watch the kids for you.  Most parents just drop their kids off. 

Apple Recipes

To coincide with our unit study on apples and our field trip to the apple orchard, I'd like to collect all your favorite apple recipes! Apple pie, apple cobbler, apple cider, caramel apples, baked cinnamon apples, apple french toast, apple pancakes, fresh apple juice, smoothies...whatever you can think of! If you don't have a favorite, get with your kids and pull out the cookbooks (or get some from the library if you don't have any), or look up recipes online. Experiment with an apple recipe, and then share it with us!

Cooking with our kids can be a great real life learning experience, but more importantly, it's a time for making some great family memories. If you have little ones, let them help by dumping the measuring cups into the bowls. I always say, the measure of a mom's patience is her ability to remain calm when baking with little ones. :) Don't worry so much about the goodies coming out just right. Just remind yourself, you're not just making cookies, you're making memories! So, if your little one turns on the Kitchen Aid a little too high (or a lot) and flour goes flying everywhere, or if they turn on the smoothie maker before the cap is on and you have blueberries all over your kitchen (and your little one's head), just laugh and mark that one down for the memory book. Then, teach your kids the art of cleaning up. :) (By the way, both of those things have happened in our house - more than once!)

So, send me your recipes (to sheridavis27@mchsi.com) and if you have pictures, send those too! We'd love to see the fun you had baking together, or of your final product. Or, make one of the recipes listed here, and leave us a comment and let us know how you liked it.

Here is our favorite apple recipe. (FYI: My brand references are to the Feingold Diet which avoids artificial ingredients.)

Triple Berry and Apple Pie

You can buy a pre-made pie crust. I use one from Trader Joe’s. Take out of the freezer and let sit at room temp for an hour before using. Below is the filling and topping.

1 cup sugar
5 tsp of quick cooking tapioca (sometimes this is found near the canning jars for some reason)
½ tsp cinnamon
4 cups frozen mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries)
2 or 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into small slices
2 TB butter, cut into small cubes (optional - see below)

Grease bottom and sides of pie pan with melted butter. Place pastry in pie pan.
In large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, tapioca, and cinnamon. Add the berries and apple slices. Toss gently till coated. Let stand 15 minutes.

Spoon filling into pastry lined pie plate. Dot with 2 TB of butter. (Do not need to do this if you are using the crumb topping below.)

If using a pie crust as a top, place pastry over fruit and crimp edges to seal. Cut 4 small slits in the crust near center. Cover edges of crust with foil (optional).

Place pie on a foil lined cookie sheet to catch any over flow.

Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.

Remove foil and bake another 30-45 minutes or until pie is bubbling at slits.

For a crumb topping: (If you use this topping, you won’t need to dot top of pie with 2 TB of butter as per above).

1 cup of flour (I like to use King Arthur unbleached flour but any will do)
½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed (Light Brown Domino Sugar)
1/8 tsp salt
½ cup of butter (1 stick - Land O'Lakes or organic)

Combine the above ingredients. Blend until crumbly (I cut up the butter with a butter knife into small cubes), then sprinkle over fruit. Bake as above. Allow pie to cool for a while before cutting (at least an hour - but who can wait!). Top with vanilla ice cream (Breyers All Natural Vanilla or Haagen Dazs). Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Boston Market Cinnamon Apples

6 apples, peeled and sliced (once sliced, cut slices in half)
1 1/3 cups of water
2 tsp cornstarch
1 cup brown sugar (Domino Light Brown Sugar)
1 TB of flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 tsp butter
2 dashes of salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, combine the water and cornstarch. Then add the flour, cinnamon, salt, sugar, and butter. Place the sliced apples in an 8x11 baking dish. Pour the cinnamon mixture over the apples. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 60 minutes, or until apples are tender, stirring every 10-15 minutes. (I doubled this recipe. The original recipe called for 3 apples and to cook them for 40 minutes. When I doubled the recipe above, it needed to cook much longer. I think 60 minutes will work.) Sometimes I set the timer for the first 15 minutes, so I don’t forget to stir them. Serve alone or over vanilla ice cream, pancakes, apple muffins, whatever you can think of. Store in the refrigerator.

Our Mission Statement

Cornerstone Enrichment Co-op Mission Statement

Cornerstone is a private cooperative group designed to offer enrichment electives to local Preschool-5th homeschooling families. We meet in Elgin, Illinois, on Thursday mornings from September through May (2009-10 academic year). Our mission is to collaborate with other parents, in order to supplement and enhance our children’s education in a God-honoring way. Our program can only happen with the cooperation and partnership of participating families.
As this is our first year of operation, our class framework was established based on the needs, interests, and resources of our initial participating families.

Our values are as follows:

1. We desire to enrich our children’s home education experience through group participation in subjects such as creative art, music, writing/presentation skills, and science/outdoor education.

2. We come together in order to enhance our children’s education at home, not to replace that experience.

3. We commit to train our children in godly character through Biblical principles, using God’s Word as the foundation to all our learning, both in Cornerstone and at home.

4. We provide an opportunity for our children to inspire and encourage one another through social interaction in a shared learning environment.

5. We expect parents to be responsible for the behavior of their children at all times.

6. In the spirit of cooperation, we ask all parents to assist and participate in Cornerstone in some capacity. Please contact Kristen Baker, our coordinator, to discuss the best option for you.

7. Payments are to be paid in full one month prior to the start of a new semester. (August 15th and December 15th) A late fee of $15 will be incurred if not paid on time.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or would like to join our group, please contact Kristen Baker at 847-553-1193, or e-mail to kristenbaker11@yahoo.com.

The address for mailing is:

Cornerstone Enrichment Co-Op
P.O Box 5686 Elgin, IL 60121

For questions or comments regarding our blog, please send to Sheri Davis at sheridavis27@mchsi.com.