Beverly Hernandez's Homeschooling Blog

Cool off with a tall glass of iced tea while you read the Summertime-and-the-livin-is-easy Edition of the Homeschooling Carnival. Shuan has several nice quotes about summer...it makes me think of Chris Rice's song, Deep Enough to Dream. I'm going to go dig out my old CD.

The next carnival will be hosted here at Life on the Road. Submissions are due by Monday at 6 p.m. I look forward to reading your submissions.

Carnival of Homeschooling Schedule

In response to the protest by homeschoolers about being excluded in their earlier contest, Subway apologized and promised to include homeschoolers in their next contest. They have kept their promise by running a summer edition of their Every Sandwich Tells A Story Contest. Homeschoolers are encouraged to participate. It's a nice summer project for the kids. The deadline is August 31, 2008, 11:59 p.m. EST, so don't dilly dally.

Shez is hosting The Book Arts Bash - A Summer Writing Program for homeschooling families. She says, "Write your book, create your story, draw your comic, bust out your illustrations! Send us your work, and get your manuscript read by our judges: bestselling authors and industry professionals. Imagine having the opportunity to have your work critiqued by a New York agent or editor. Imagine having one of your favorite writers, or your kids' favorite authors, reading your work! Who knows - will this be the start of a beautiful career?" Submission deadline is October 1, 2008.

Sherene Silverberg of Homeschooled Twins has published the 3rd edition and the 4th edition of the Carnival of Cool Homeschoolers. If you'd like to make a submission to the next edition, you can do so here.

It seems as though ice cream is on the minds of a lot of people these days. With the hot days of summer upon us, SuperAngel has a solution - ice cream! Check out the Homeschooling Carnival. Then how about a good old-fashioned ice cream social? If you have an ice cream freezer, dust it off and invite some friends over for a cool treat and a fun time. No ice cream freezer? No problem, provide sundae making ingredients and enjoy!

More Ice Cream Fun:

• A Tasty Math Lesson For Kids
  
• Ice Cream Cone Rolling Machine

I've celebrated Independence Day in various places over the years. One of my favorites was at Mina Lake in South Dakota when the kids were young. For a city girl, this was a real treat…from the Aberdeen Liberty Parade, to the lakeside barbecue to the fireworks out over the water of Mina Lake. Since fireworks were legal where I lived until I moved to Anaheim 5 years ago, most celebrations were neighborhood streets filled with "safe and sane" fireworks. But, gone are the days of spending money at the local fireworks stands, now we generally barbecue at home then try to find a convenient place to watch one of the community fireworks shows.

Math and Finances: Is it more economical to purchase safe and sane fireworks or attend a community fireworks display?

In Hooray for (Math) History posted at Let's play math!, Denise says that the story of mathematics is the story of interesting people. What a shame it is that our children see only the dry remains of these people’s passion. By learning math history, our students will see how men and women wrestled with concepts, made mistakes, argued with each other, and gradually developed the knowledge we today take for granted."

A homeschool mother wants to earn some money while homeschooling and asks Carol of the HomeschoolCPA blog, the question, "Can I homeschool other children?"

History and Civics: Take the Independence Day Quiz to find out how much you know about the origin of independence day? Need to review?

Music has played an important role in American History. Mark Monaghan at eLearning stresses that music can also play an important role in preparing a student to learn and getting the brain into learning mode.

In 21 Things a 21st-Century American Citizen Should Know, Susan Gaissert of The Expanding Life paraphrases comments made by President William Jefferson Clinton during his lecture at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on June 17, 2008.

Science - The science behind the fireworks is fascinating. Check it out and try making a few of your own! (I suggest parental assistance!)

PJ of Let A Woman Learn writes about one of their several garden (science-nature study) projects this summer experimenting with different "greenhouses" for starting seed and watching the growth and root system.

Read more...

Join in the fun this Saturday, June 28th, by venturing outdoors for the 4th annual Great American Backyard Campout sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation. Rather you pitch your tent in your backyard or just sleep out under the stars, this is a great opportunity for making some family memories. Make sure to turn the automatic sprinklers off for the night...a lesson I learned the hard way.

Don't forget your Camping Printables. Lisa Hallett Taylor, About.com Guide to Pool & Patio, offers plenty of tips in this get-your-outdoor-space-ready checklist. The About Camping Guide, David Sweet, has basic camping information that will help you get started. So pitch your tents and have fun!

"Trees, canoes, and crickets in your sleeping bag. Swimming, counsellors, talent shows, hot dogs, mosquitoes, and lost laundry." Mama Squirrel shares her experiences in this weeks theme: Summer camp! This is sure to bring back some summer camp memories.

The next carnival will be hosted here at About.com Homeschooling. Submissions are due by Monday at 6 p.m. I look forward to reading your submissions.

Carnival of Homeschooling Schedule

We've had a word game going on in the Homeschooling Forum since 2003. Here's how to play:

Form a sentence from the acronym of the last word found on the latest post. Quirky, funny, silly, serious, whatever your post may be, the words are yours. You can relate it to kids and homeschooling if you're clever.

We've been stuck on "syllabicate" since March...anyone up for the challenge? Can we bring the game back to life?

June is fruit and vegetable month. The fruits of summer are just heavenly...peaches, nectarines, apricots, yummy! Summer is the perfect time for a fresh garden salad, pasta salad with veggies, veggies and dip - cool and refreshing. I got a kick out of my granddaughter helping herself to this avocado. She loves them, skin and all I guess.

Learn all about vegetables with these printable worksheets and activity pages. Shereen Jegtvig, About.com's Guide to Nutrition, says that fruits and vegetables should make up a large portion of your diet. She also shares ways to make fruits and vegetables convenient at home.