Hello Again !

Back to blogging after a long break. I have been busy and just could not force myself to write . I sat down this morning with a cup of iced down coke and thumbed thru the Rod and Staff 2010 catalog that arrived yesterday. I was amazed at the wonderful coloring books ! There are life like coloring pages for birds, flowers, insects , bridges, lighthouses and more; plus coloring books of maps and other educational materials, great for science and history or social studies. There are coloring books to fit from toddlers up to adult ! Here is the website link for the coloring books http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/list/Coloring_Books/ . I had to share this link with you all . Well, got to go , the weather is sunny and warm but not hot; perfect ! So you know where we are going, OUTSIDE !

HOT !!!!

Wow ! It has really been scorching for the last two weeks. The weatherman says no rain in immidiate sight, I am praying for a cooling off for all those who have to be in this heat. I cannot let my children play outside very long at a time because it is too hot for their little bodies to handle, they don't always understand or like what mom and dad say about things; but they will realize it all later.Heatstroke is a very real problem for everyone when weather gets like this so be on guard duty for yourself, family, friends, neighbors. If you see your neighbor looking way too hot, go check on them and ask them to sit in the shade or a c and have some cool tea or water; you may just save their life. Well, on a lighter note, there is still cooking to do even in a hot kitchen so check out the freeze dried foods that can be used for quicker cooking.Click here to visit Harmony House Foods, Inc. . They are great for camping and snack mixes with nutritional value and just great taste. Try them if you need to make a meal in a short time, you won't be dissapointed. Also something my children love to snack on are burrito sized tortillas with peanut butter and jelly or no jelly. They go great with a glass of milk or juice and can be used as a quick healthy lunch. Hope you got a useful tip, Blessings to you and yours

Good To Be Back !

Well, my neighbors and I have been offline with dsl and telephone thru the weekend because of line replacement. Having great weather here in southeast Texas, have been on the street behind our home looking at birds and woodsy critters. I am reminded that I might need a new pair of binoculars ! For a great place to find some you can visit Mountains Plus here Binoculars from Mountains Plus. . I feel kind of stupid for not recognizing that the elusive chirpping sort of sound that I was searching for at one place turned out to be two robins ! I really should have remembered which bird made that sound ! I still had fun hunting the little sound makers though. My children were ahead of me riding their bikes and picking flowers , we brought their beautiful finds home and put them on the bathroom vanity. We need to look up which flowering tree branch it is we brought home. I think having a " back road " is wonderful ; we are constantly finding neat critters and plant life back there and we don't have much traffic there which makes the shaded wooded area a really relaxing place. I plan to be back there again this evening. God bless and may you enjoy your space too !

Summer !

As you know, school is officially out, that means we all need to be extra careful driving around and such. We are on a small break in the school schedule. I am considering the end of June to be a good date for getting back into the typical amount of work, right now it is only a few subjects a day, but that's okay ! It's summer ! Hooray for water play in the sun, iced tea, evening coolness as a break from the day's heat. There is a place just before the gate to our veggie garden that would be great for a gazebo or something similar, but the mosquitos are really too bad right there for such. Lovely shade though, and the honeysuckles were so awesome last month along the garden gate. A very refreshing place to be, I think that we all need to have our own refreshing place to be in this fast paced world. Be safe and remember to keep extra caution for the summer !

Great picks !

Here are a few excellent choices for children , some for younger and some for older. ( These are affiliate links that will take you off site.)

Our Favorite Fun & Learn Activities

Our two favorite learning fun activities are movie time and trail I D. For movie time just make your favorite popcorn and pop a good educational movie on and have a open discussion of the subject learned. We make kettle corn and also hot buttered . The animal in it's habitat type movies are some of the best. Also interesting are videos of factories making some of the products that you use, we also really like weather related videos. Be sure to watch the video beforehand to first, make sure it is suitable; second, to make a list of learning points and testing type questions for after the video. Trail I D can be simple fun that can be great for science and history learning . We have several books that we use such as a field guide type book and habitats of certain geographical areas. It will help to have more than one resource on hand to look up and identify the plants , leaves, animals, rocks, etc. that you will find. If it can be made into a hiking trek then that's great; just don't forget the backpack with guidbooks to I D with, water, notebook, pen, binoculars, camera . Just a simple walk into your back yard will do for this activity as well. Collect a few specimens such as rocks, leaves, flowers, feathers,and such to identify. It would be excellent to make a chart to document your finds. You may be surprised to learn some of the names for the common, everyday things we are so used to seeing. Don't forget that internet resources for identification are numerous, so to save valuable time bookmark some sights for reference. I know that these are two commonplace activities that are nowhere near being a new idea, but they are still our favorites. God bless and may you find joy in your families and God's beautiful creation. Life is precious, enjoy it !

Hello !

Welcome to No Ordinary Education ! This is a blog for people who homeschool or public, private or other school to gather ideas that make education fun for their children. It is meant to be a friendly, informative place to exchange great ideas and methods without judgmental attitudes . Most parents actively look for new and innovative ways to make learning fun and peak their children's interest in learning certain subjects. Yes, I do homeschool; but I also realize that homeschooling is not an option for some because of different circumstances . Not everyone feels the need to homeschool, but I am convinced that if you are reading this , then you are striving to give your children the best of education and a love of learning no matter your teaching mode. Read others' posts and contribute as well, we are a community tied together by love for our children and their educational well being. God bless, get some good ideas and give some good ideas as well !