This blog is my attempt to document our busy but BLESSED lives raising and educating our children for His glory. A child of God, wife to one, and mom to 6 fabulous kids. We are in our 15th year of homeschooling using a Classical ~ Literature based approach.

Come along for the good, the bad & the ugly.



Friday, October 29, 2021

Biochemistry/Microbiology for 7th - 12th graders with Greg Landry's Homeschool Science

Disclaimer: I received a Complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Regulations.
Greg Landry Homeschool Science   
Morning friends! Earlier this year I was able to share a review of the half-semester, self-paced Study Skills / Measurement / Lab Reports / Graphing, course from Greg Landry's Homeschool Science. I was so excited when Mr. Landry did another crew run since McKenzie was interested in enrolling in a science course, specifically the Biochemistry / Microbiology - Self-paced 7th-12th grade. 

Mr. Greg Landry is an experienced science teacher who is also a homeschool dad. He has not only taught homeschoolers, but also university students as a former college professor. He has brought his love of teaching science to the internet through the Canvas learning platform.
  
 ~ For 3rd - 12th Grade Homeschooled Students ~

The Biochemistry / Microbiology course is a pre-recorded course. We received 12 months of access so it’s perfect for McKenzie so she can take her time learning over the course of the year, especially since this is an add-on science for her. The course comes with a PDF study guide and contains the reading and reference material that you need to complete the course. You can choose to either download and print the file or just read it from your computer/tablet. For this course I choose to just have the file stored on the computer for easy access.

  ~ Christ-Centered Live & Self-Paced Online Classes ~

Since Mr. Landry is a follower of Christ he begins each video lesson with prayer, which I love. Then you get into the actual lesson. The Biochemistry / Microbiology course includes 20-30 minutes worth of video instruction on a multiple of topics including: 

carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, DNA, vitamins, hormones, viruses, bacteria, epidemics, antibiotics, pathogen cultures, top 10 pathogen diseases. 
 Since McKenzie is already enrolled in an online course for science this year, we have had to take this course slow. She has been working on this course over the weekends about twice a month. The first weekend she will watch the lesson fully. The second time she will watch the video and take notes and complete any work necessary. This is probably not the best way to complete the course but it works for us and her busy training/school schedule. 

 - Christ-Centered Focus
 - See & Hear Teacher
 - "Life Prep" & "College Prep" Options 
- Veteran Science Teacher 
- Community with Other Students 

While I am fully confident in my ability to teach upper level science as well as to complete labs at home, I am grateful for homeschool science labs online such as the Virtual, interactive homeschool laboratory courses from Greg Landry's Homeschool Science. Not only did McKenzie learn a about an interesting topic of Biochemistry, but it has also sparked her interest in the topic more and she thinks she wants to study Chemistry at University down the road. 
Since it is almost time to start thinking about next year’s science course, Greg Landry’s Homeschool Science is at the top of our list! We are thinking that McKenzie will jump into his Live Pre-Anatomy & Physiology and Pre-Biology courses for her 7th grade year. Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of this course or the other course options that were reviewed including: 

 self paced online - start any time:
 - biology / anatomy and physiology - chemistry - physics 

- Young Scientist Anatomy & Physiology - Young Scientist Biology - Young Scientist Chemistry - Young Scientist Physics - Young Scientist Earth & Space Science 

 - Exercise & Sports Physiology - Biochemistry / Microbiology - Embryology / Endocrinology - Earth & Space Science - Study Skills / Measurement / Lab Reports / Graphing 

 Click on the banner below to read their thoughts!  
Self Paced Online Homeschool Science Labs
 Product ~ Self-paced 7th-12th grade half-semester classes in Biochemistry / Microbiology 
 Format ~ online, 12 months access 
Price ~ $120.00 
Ages ~ 7th-12th graders
Greg Landry Homeschool Science 
 © 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Wordless Wednesday

© 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.

Tuesday, October 26, 2021

Roar Like a Lion from Tommy Nelson Books ~ a TOS review

Disclaimer: I received a Complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Regulations.
  
Morning friends! Today I am excited to share a new devotional with you. As part of our morning time together my daughter McKenzie (12) and son, Micah (7), and I have been reading Roar Like a Lion: 90 Devotions to a Courageous Faith from Tommy Nelson Books.
The cover of the book is just beautifully stunning. It really captures the eye and draws you into wanting to see what is beyond it. Filled with colorful pages you and your children will be drawn into the book right from the start.
 
The book starts off with an introduction and telling you just what it means to “Roar like a lion” as well as telling how to use the devotional book. A table of contents books lists all the included devotionals for easy reference in case you want to jump around by topic. Topics covered in this devotional include devotions on courage, anxiety, brave, bravery, fear, faith, trust, peer pressure, and bullying to name a few. 
The format for the book is similar for all 90 devotions. Each one is featured in a two-page spread and begins with a scripture verse. After the scripture reference, there is a short devotional that ties it to everyday life. Each devotional ends with a simple prayer to help your child further connect and grow closer to Jesus. A neat sidebar feature called, “Did You Know”, is also included with each devotional and provides a historical or scientific fact to further connect the devotional. We found these to be interesting and fun to read. 
Using this devotional book with McKenzie and Micah was fun and encouraging for us all. Micah really enjoyed this book and while he could read the pages on his own I opted to use it together during our Morning Time. Since each lesson is short and sweet it usually only took us 10-15 minutes to get through it with some discussion time as well. I will say that McKenzie felt that it was a little “too young” for her but she still enjoyed the time we spent together. 
If you are looking for a children's devotional I highly recommend you check out Tommy Nelson Books' Roar Like a Lion: 90 Devotions to a Courageous Faith. With the holidays fast approaching it would make an excellent book to give as a gift or just because. 

You can purchase the book at online retailers such as Amazon, Christian Book, Barnes and Noble, and Walmart. Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of this book by reading their thoughts. Just click on the banner below and you will find 15 other reviews and thoughts.

Roar Like a Lion Devotional Book for Children
   
 Company ~ Tommy Nelson Books
 Format ~ hard cover book 
Price ~ $16.99 {Amazon Prime}
Ages ~ 6-10 years old
Tommy Nelson
 Find Tommy Nelson on these Social Media Links:

 
© 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.

 http://astablebeginning.com

Friday, October 22, 2021

Life update ~ Our first 9 weeks {long}

 Hi friends!

Whew, we made it! Today we ended the first quarter of our 13th year of homeschooling. It feels great to have the first 9 weeks of school down. As I have said before this year marks a milestone for us in that 
my last three children have been educated entirely at home. It’s a huge honor and one that I don’t take lightly. It’s been said that “I {just} homeschool”, but I think I do more than just “homeschool", I educate my children to fear the Lord and guide them as they walk the road of compulsory education. So far, this endeavor of educating our children at home has paid off and we have three outstanding, self-sufficient young adults (I’m a little biased), and I am excited to see my younger three continue to flourish and achieve their educational dreams over the next 11 years we have left homeschooling.

Montana, McKenzie, and Micah have worked hard and put in the time needed to follow through with our ongoing school theme of “striving for excellence in all we do” (yes, the same thing that an Air Force Airman strives for). We are just starting to get into our groove especially with our nighttime study hours. As a team we have decided that we will not stop and take our typical Sabbath break week but to continue so that we will have the full week of Thanksgiving off. The kids are all excelling in their courses, and we are having fun learning together! 

 


We have reached the stage with Montana where I am here to guide her through her day. The only course I am actively teaching her this year is Algebra 1. We have daily check in’s and a thorough check in each Friday but she is pretty self-sufficient at learning all the while keeping a once a week Mother’s Helper job  and a busy softball schedule. {Keep hanging in there Mama if your child is not at this stage yet, it will come!}

Montana has found a love of Biology, which makes my heart happy since it’s my favorite science as well. Math has finally clicked for her, and she is doing an amazing job in Algebra 1. Because we do keep grades in high school for our transcripts, I am pleased as punch to say that she has A’s in all eight of her courses, whether online or mom taught. Including two 97% in Biology and Spanish 1 that are online with Veritas Press Scholars Academy. 

McKenzie is rising to the occasion as well and doing a great job in her two upper middle school VP online classes, General Science and Latin Transition 1 (this is actually a 1cr course, but I am still considering if and how to include on her high school transcript). She is sitting at solid B’s in both courses after having a few mix ups at the beginning of the course on her quiz in Latin and her formal Lab report in science. Latin seems to come easy to her, yay! All those years of me teaching and chanting with the older girls, she must have been listening. 

Her love of science is growing too, and it seems like we will have to make the decision come February if we will move her onto high school science with Physical Science in 7th grade or not. Trying not to think too much about it right now though. In math, I am torn with what to do. She is currently in Saxon 7/6 and it is “easy” for her. She rarely gets any problems wrong and does a lot of the work in her head even though she knows it drives me bonkers, LOL. I’m considering giving her a test each day next week to see where she stops getting a 95% or better and then start there. Or should I just move her to Saxon 8/7…? Hmm, decisions, decisions that need to be made this weekend.

Micah is really coming along too. He sometimes has a hard time getting started doing his lessons as he would rather play but it’s not as frequently as last year. We changed his spelling out week one to the 3rd grade book when I discovered that he knew how to read and spell all the Spelling 2 words. He also knows how to read and spell many of the words in the first half of the grade 3 book so we are just using those lessons as review until we get mid-book. I moved him to an online course for Bible because he was feeling left out with his sisters having online classes. He loves his Bible teacher, Mrs. Lawson, and is really proud of his new big kid Bible. 

For history, we stopped using the Sonlight history Core C portion and have switched to doing the SOTW with McKenzie. Science we are doing Earth Science in conjunction with the Co-Op course I am teaching. I have 17 1st-3rd graders and each week the class is so much fun! We “exploded” our volcanoes this week and had a blast. The joy of discovery through their eyes is fun with these littles each week. In math we are working hard on memorizing his math facts and he enjoys using the math centers in the Math Made Fun curriculum from The Moffatt Girls. We do this at home and at the Co-Op class I am teaching. Reading and Writing have been going great too. The only thing I feel we are “behind” in is Grammar. However, I am reading aloud so much, and he is writing throughout the curriculum I think we are good. Micah is looking forward to start learning cursive in a few weeks, hopefully before we break for Christmas. 

Below is a summary of the courses/curriculum we have switched up as a result of cancelled classes and/or just needing changing. 

 

Montana:

Art History (Co-Op class) --> Artistic Pursuits High School, book 1 (1cr)

BJU Cultural Geography (Co-Op Class) --> BJU Press Online Cultural Geography (1cr) 

 

I gave Montana four options to complete her history credit and she choose to stick with the BJU Cultural Geography, but she wanted to try the distance learning online (DLO) video course. Since we had been taking the course at Co-Op before the class was cancelled, we just jumped right into the DLO course at her same spot. I just had her re-enter the answers to the first 3 quizzes and tests she had already completed, and she has taken off right where we left off.

 

McKenzie:

Positive Action for Christ, Wise Up --> BJU Press Online Bible Truths 6

 

I initially switched McKenzie’s Bible a few weeks into the schoolyear to BJU and just recently added her to the online DLO course from BJU. 

 

Micah:

BJU Spelling 2 --> BJU Spelling 3

BJU Bible Truths 2 --> BJU Press Online Bible Truths 2

Sonlight Core C History* --> SOTW, Vol 2

*still using the literature

 

Marie, Madison, and Mikayla are also thriving in new jobs and University life!( I haven’t decided if I should call them by their real names on this blog or not since they are all young adults). Marie has just started a job with GAP Inc as a UX Designer. She self-taught herself the coding needed and upgraded her portfolio over the course of the shutdown this past year. So proud of her for working hard and pursuing this job even though she is just 2 years out of University. 

Madison is a Junior and loving her new responsibilities in her AFROTC Cadre. She said her physics major classes are difficult but enjoyable and she is confident that she will make the Dean’s List again this semester. She always sees the bright side in things. She is living in an apartment this year and has been enjoying being able to cook her own meals. Her roommates are also enjoying her cooking/baking abilities and we are counting down the days until she returns in December. They had really bad tornado’s in her area a few weeks ago. So bad that she had to go to the storm shelter, yikes! All turned out well but I was on pins and needles each time my phone blared the tornado siren.

Mikayla is living her best life at University right now. She is thriving in her courses and has nothing lower than a B (which makes Mama so happy)! Her roommate is fantastic, and her teammates are great! They all really support each other, and it makes it easier to know she has 17 people to count on when she needs something. She just picked her courses for the Spring semester and is looking forward to the photography class she’s enrolled in. Gymnastics training is going well, and we are hopeful she will make the lineup for three events this first year. She is currently battling Achilles’ tendonitis (you wouldn't know it from this jump), but we have purchased her new sneakers and inserts for all the walking around the campus she is doing. 

The Mr. has been home for a year now and it’s been great! He pinned on his new rank at the beginning of the month, and we are all looking forward to the next steps come March of next year. He got a smoker for his birthday and has been enjoying smoking all kinds of meats for us.

As for me, these last 9 weeks have honestly been a blur between school, Co-Op, Cub Scouts, and everyday life at the fields or at the gym. I love that we have a firm schedule now each day as I thrive on routine. I have had some added stresses in my life, but I am working to not let them affect me too much. I am looking forward to a little slow down of just one sport as the ball games close out next week. However, McKenzie’s gymnastics gears up mid-November with many fun meets to travel too. 


Unfortunately, as I suspected my iron and Vitamin D have both dropped since my last check 6 months ago. This explains the extreme coldness and tiredness I have been having. I have vowed to myself that come November 1st I am going to get back on track with my weight, eating, and stresses etc. I can’t pour into my family and all of our activities we like to participate in if my cup is half full. For example, a few weeks ago I missed a curriculum review for the first time in my 12 years with reviewing for TOS Review Crew. Honestly, I was so disappointed in myself for being late, but the bosses were gracious so that took the sting away a bit.

 So, if you have read this far, YOU are a Rockstar! I hope you have enjoyed the tiny glimpse into our last nine weeks, and I hope you’ll stick around for more. Until next time friends, be blessed!

 


© 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.

 http://astablebeginning.com

 

 

Wednesday, October 20, 2021

Wordless Wednesday


© 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.

 http://astablebeginning.com

Tuesday, October 19, 2021

LightSail for Homeschoolers ~ a TOS review

Disclaimer: I received a Complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Regulations. 
LightSail for Homeschoolers

Hi there! For the last few weeks we have been using LightSail for Homeschoolers that focuses on the four areas Reading, Writing, Vocabulary, and Fluency with Micah. He really has been enjoying this program to work on improving his reading. LightSail for Homeschoolers is a complete language arts program built to advance literary skills of students in grades K-12. There program offers a huge variety of books, audio books, encyclopedias and more to help your child succeed at reading.
 

 The complete platform of learning offers materials in faith based or secular based resources. The faith based resources are broken down into different denominations such as Catholic, Christian, Judaism, Islam, and Orthodox to name a few. I will be upfront and say that the secular based resources contain materials that deal with LGBT, Horror stories, Dating, and such. To navigate this, I used the parental controls and blocked any material that I do not wish for him to have access to. I also stayed close to Micah as he picked his reading activities to make sure they were appropriate for him. 

Getting started with the program was really easy! Micah took an assessment that helped determine his first reading level. He was distracted at the time of the evaluation, and I believe he would have scored a bit higher if he was not. However, he placed in the right level and then a few weeks later the program self evaluated him and bumped him up even higher in his Lexile scoring.

 

 Micah reads well for his age and grade. He is constantly wanting to read and learn or listen to the audio book selections. His new favorite are the books on coding since he wants to code his own video game in the future. 
  
 The LightSail for Homeschoolers also includes Writing, Vocabulary, and Fluency sections. There is so much to this site we have only hit the surface! I can’t wait to continue this with Micah and McKenzie too as we dive into the program more over the course of the rest of the school year. Be sure to check out what my CrewMates think of this program by clicking the banner below to read their thoughts.  

Improve Reading Skills with LightSail for Homeschoolers
 Product ~ LightSail for Homeschoolers Reading, Writing, Vocabulary, and Fluency 
 Format ~ online platform
Ages ~ K-12
LightSail for Homeschoolers
   
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 © 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author.
 http://astablebeginning.com

Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Bible Study Printables from Teach Sunday school ~ a TOS review

Disclaimer: I received a Complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with FTC Regulations. 

Teach Sunday SchoolMorning friends! I hope this blog post finds you well. Like many Christian parents my greatest goal in life is to make God known to my children in every aspect of our life. To teach them His words and help them hide them in their hearts so that when needed they can call on scripture in times of trouble. And most importantly know the truth found within the 66 most important books you will ever read found in the Bible. As part of my morning quiet time I have been journaling scripture with help from the variety of Bible study tools such as the Book-by-Book Bible Breakdowns from Teach Sunday School.  


 We received a digital download for this Bible study tool. I chose to print this curriculum out and punch it to fit on the disc’s of my big Happy Planner. I also decided to reprint the Books of the Bible At-a-Glance that I received from Teach Sunday School a few years ago to include as well so I would have both to reference as I do my personal Bible study. 

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament Breakdowns are formatted in the same way. The top of the page includes the background information for the book as well as colorful graphics that detail the number of chapters, book type, date written, the time period it covers, as well as the author.

Below this information you will find the books of this book broken down in chronological order by chapter, verses, and subject. Each subject is broken down with a brief phrase and popular verses found within that chapter. The blue colored verses indicate a popular Bible verse for quick reference. 
I really love the simplicity of these printables and how they enrich my quiet time. I definitely plan on printing these out again for my University girls to bring back with them after Christmas break. 
Having quick access to key verses on hand will make it easy to find a particular verse whenever they need it. Many of my CrewMates also reviewed these Book-by-Book Bible Breakdowns, be sure to check out their thoughts by clicking the banner below. I wholeheartedly recommend you checking out this Bible study resource!
Boob-by-Book Bible Study Printable Breakdowns
 
Company ~ Teach Sunday School 
 Product ~ Bible Breakdowns
 Format ~ digital download 
Price ~ $34.99 

Teach Sunday School
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 © 2008 - 2021 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author. http://astablebeginning.com