We are moving to a new blog web address.

We just wanted to let everyone know that we are moving to a new blog web address.
This will not effect our blogging in any way, however for those that are on our e-mail updates list will have to sign up again under our new name.
There is not much difference in the name we just added a letter "g" in our homeschoolinggarden.

To make a long story short the facebook updates dating September 2012 and older, will still be going to our old name with one "g" and anything new will be posted under our new name.
After a while the old page will automatically re-direct you to our new address.
Thank you everyone and enjoy.

OUR NEW ADDRESS IS 

http://homeschoolinggarden.blogspot.com/

Skip counting books

It took a while to find skip counting books that would be fun and easy for the kids to follow.
So to make your life easier, we included those that we used here for you.

Skip counting using sticky notes

This is a fast and fun idea to use while teaching skip counting. Get a stack of multicolored sticky notes and a poster board. Use one color for the numbers that you are skipping therefor that you don't see, and use the other color for the numbers that you are actually saying out loud. We are skip counting by twos all the way till 20 so it all worked out nicely in two rows of 10 notes - 5 being invisible numbers and 5 visible.

I use this method for practicing skip counting after I already explained it to them and read them some books on that topic. 

 

We used the same activity for skip counting by 5s and 10s. I had the kids switch the sticky notes themselves and they LOVED that! We didn't only say the numbers out loud, I also removed one of the numbers and they had to figure out which one was missing by repeating the skip counting in their head. We also stood up, faced the numbers, and read them out loud while jumping. For more advanced, you can turn around and say them without looking (watch for the mirror on the opposite wall, that I forgot about but the boys didn't :-D ). Have fun skip counting!

Skip counting socks

 We used this activity while we were learning skip counting by two. I started by explaining to the boys that skip counting by two is like counting pairs of something. Ask how many feet they have? How many hands or eyes? Tell them that having two of something means you have a pair - pair of hands or pair of eyes. We tried to find other pairs around us (shoes, ears, knees...) And that is when I pulled out the socks! We are counting till 20 so I had 10 pairs of socks for them to hang on the clothes line.

Everytime they pined a pair to the line, they would skip count from the beginning all the way to the one they just pinned.

 

They thought this was such a funny idea ;-)

Jonah and the Whale

Nearly everyone knows the story of Jonah, who refused to listen to God when He asked him to go to Ninive. What happened? When someone doesn't listen to God, there is a consequence, right? And so Jonah got swallowed by the big fish! 

After reading the story in the Bible, kids got to work to recreate the scene of Jonah's misfortune.

 

For step by step instructions please go here and visit Danielle's Place
Thanks for stopping by!

Kite counting

As a part of letter K week, we created this Kite hopscotch for the little kids to practice their number order from 11-20. Click here for your free download ! We found it best to be laminated but you can also print it on card stock paper.

Make a kite

We are back from our summer break and we are ready to dive right back into work. First up is letter K and so we are making a kite. I should stress that this kite is NOT meant to fly, it is just another cute art work we can hang up to decorate our house ;-)

First cut out a diamond out of a stock paper in the usual shape of a kite and draw a line that connects opposite corners. Have the kids color the shapes whatever way they want.

Then have them glue skewers that you cut before hand so they match the length of the lines you drew earlier, on top of the kite.

 

Punch a hole on the bottom of the kite and tie a string through it. Have the kids tie ribbons to the string just like this.

We had them tie 3 to 4 ribbons.

Your kite is ready for display!