Bear: Ummi! Ummi! I want to tell you something!
Me: Oh? What is it?
Bear: Ummi, I saw a spider just now. I said to it, “Salutations!” and it waved its leg at me!

Can you guess which book she’s just finished reading? :)

Reading Rainbow was an American children’s television series aired by PBS to promote the joy of reading among children. Hosted by LeVar Burton (how many of you remember Kunta Kinte??), each episode featured a children’s story book which would be narrated and accompanied by catchy illustrations on-screen. The books’ themes would be further explored in a fast magazine-style format through field trips, on-location adventures and interviews with children. Episodes dealt not only with Language, Science and Math but also social issues like slavery, gangs and homelessness.

The series ran for some 26 years, making it the third longest-running series (after Sesame Street and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. It won 24 national Emmys, including 10 for best children’s series. The series is no longer being broadcast (the last episode was telecast in August 2009) but you can purchase DVDs from the Reading Rainbow site.

If you are sorely disappointed that I’m not featuring any freebie today, DON’T BE! There are teacher guides, themed lesson plans, parents’ guides and more available for download for FREE!! Yay-ness! Visit their Classroom Resources Page to download them.

Right… carry on then!

My kids and I are huge fans of award-winning writer, Linda Sue Park. Her book, A Single Shard, is one of our favourites. It is a vividly told tale set in Ch’ul’po, a potter’s village, in 12th-century Korea. The protagonist is 10-year-old orphan, named for a mushroom that grows “without benefit of parent-seed”. He was raised by Crane-man (he has a shrivelled leg). These two outcasts make their home under the bridge and scavenge for food, refusing to beg or steal. When he accidentally breaks a pot belonging to Min, a master potter, he has to work off his debt and this sets off a series of change. I won’t say more except that if you like a story about loyalty, courage and love, then this is the book for you.

My friend at Tea and A Think is a fellow fan of the book :) She has compiled a wonderful list of facts on Korea and links to celadon pottery and Korean food. You can do a great unit study based on these links and her other book recommendations.

We’ve also enjoyed Linda Sue Park’s other books. I strongly believe in using living books and hers are wonderful for History and Geography. See Saw Girl tells of Jade, a girl of good social standing in 17-century Korea who longs to see the world. Women then did not leave home (LITERALLY) till they married and then, did not ever step outside the walls of their marriage home. The Kite Fighters is about two brothers Kee-Sup and Young-Sup in 15th-century Korea. Young-Sup, the younger, often feels envious of his older brother, who seems to be favoured simply because he is the first-born. When the young king enlists their help for a kite competition, they learn to complement each other and understand each other better.

When My Name Was Keoko takes us to a more contemporary time - 1940 to the end of the second World War. Korea has been occupied by the Japanese since 1910 and their oppressive rulers are determined to erase the Korean identity and culture through propoganda and outright force. We see the struggle of the Korean people through Sun-hee (who is forced to take on the Japanese name Keoko) and her brother Tae-yul who narrate the story in turns. Each of the characters we meet show courage in their own unique way. We learn not just about role of Japan in WW2 but also what happens to Korea after it regains its independence. What makes this story even more meaningful is that the characters were inspired by true stories told by the author’s friends and family.

Korean paper doll - lots more paperdolls from all over the world available for download at Education.Com

Thanks homeschooling mums for the comments/private messages and link backs. I am sorry that I don’t have any way for you to subscribe to my blog to get updates. This site runs on WP 1.5.1.3. (I think the most recent one to date is WP3.0.)

So why have I not updated my WP? Well, I was a little lazy because my host does not have a one-click install/update, but it really started out just as a joke, to see how long I could hang on to a decrepit old version of WP. It turns out the joke is on me because now that I’ve let things go too far, I might lose the look of my site if the site is upgraded. (I love my design!) If I start over, I’ll lose the comments because I can’t export this site.

What to do?

Well, I’ll pray nothing goes wrong with my site in shaa Allah and continue with recommending freebies! :P

Scott Foresman offers a free grammar & writing curriculum for Grades 1-6. There are separate handbooks for each grade and they are all in pdf format.

Cool? I think so :)

The Daily Grammar lessons consist of 440 lessons and 88 quizzes. Lessons 1-90 cover the eight parts of speech, which are verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Lessons 91-300 cover the parts of the sentence, such as appositives, predicate nominatives, direct objects, prepositional phrases, clauses, and verbals. Lessons 301-440 cover the mechanics of grammar, which is also known as capitalization and punctuation.

You can download the Daily Grammar Lessons eBook for $6.95 USD or purchase the Daily Grammar Lessons eBook on CD - $10.95 USD.

But why when you can get it all for free? Muahahaha…

The lessons are archived here.

Sheppard Software offers HUNDREDS of online educational games. Their Geography games are particularly awesome but there are many other activities for Science, Math, History and Language Arts. They aren’t just for kids! There is a little something for everyone from pre-schoolers to adults!

Yes, yes, free.

Lives of the Prophets - Prophet Ayoub (Job), `alayhis salaam
narrated by Ms M. Kiyani

Once, there was a man named Ayoub. He was a Prophet of Allah and he was a wealthy man. He had many children and a good wife. He had every kind of wealth - he had cattle, land, a big house and a lot of money.

But one day, Allah decided to test him, which meant that all his wealth was taken from him. All his children died and even his health was taken away from him. One by one, his family began to desert him. Finally, the whole town threw him out of the city onto a rubbish heap. Some scholars say that his flesh began to fall off, leaving only muscle and bone behind.

His wife stayed with him, carrying out things he could not do. One by one, the people did not hire her as she was the wife of Ayoub. One day, she became so desperate that she went to the rich people of the town and sold her braid for good food. She brought the food to Ayoub `alayhis salaam and he asked her, “Where did you get this food?”

She gave a very vague answer, saying, “I provided service somewhere.”

The next day, again, she became desperate and she sold her other braid for good food. When she brought it to Ayoub `alayhis salaam, he refused to eat it, saying, “I will not eat this food until you tell me how you got it.” She removed her hijab/scarf and he saw that her hair had been cut. He was very angry and upset and swore that he would beat her a hundred times.

One day, Ayoub `alayhis salaam was instructed by Allah to strike the ground with his foot and from that place, there came a pool of water gushing. He was instructed to bathe in the water and while he bathed, all his sickness was washed away. After he had bathed, Allah sent to him a dress from Paradise. He was told to put this on by Allah and after that, he sat down in a corner.

When his wife came, she did not find Ayoub `alayhis salaam as she had left him and she did not recognise him. She asked the man who was sitting there, “O servant of Allah. Where is the man who was inflicted with disease when I left him? I am afraid that the dogs or wolves have carried him away and eaten him.” She kept talking.

When she stopped talking, Ayoub `alayhis salaam stood up and said, “O my wife. I am Ayoub.”

She said, “Do not mock me!”

He said, “It is me. I am Ayoub.”

Then, she finally recognised him.

All his children were returned to him and the like of them.

All his wealth was returned to him and then more.

On top of all that, Allah rained down golden locusts on top of him. He was catching them in the folds of his clothes and Allah said, “O Ayoub! Have you not enough of my blessings?”

Ayoub `alayhis salaam laughed and said, “O Allah! No one can have enough of your blessings.”

Ayoub had to beat his wife a hundred times because he had promised, remember? He did not really want to beat his wife because she had been a good lady when he was sick and had worked without complaint. He had lost control in the heat of the moment. Allah told him to tie bundle of one hundred reeds together and to tap his wife once.

I learnt from Ayoub `alayhis salaam that you should always be patient. He never complained about his sickness and he was always grateful for what Allah had given him in the past seventy years. We should also follow in his footsteps in being grateful. We should also follow his wife because she was a good woman and never complained about her husband’s disease and having to work hard.

The reward from Allah is great for one who is patient.

The Children’s University of Manchester presents an excellent opportunity for The University of Manchester to share, with the wider community, and particularly primary schools, the excitement of the knowledge created through its pioneering research activities and teaching and learning practices.

Resources include online interactive learning materials for use on whiteboards or PCs; video clips which will bring the University to your desktop; downloadable resources and educational games. Content will be aligned with, and complement existing Key Stage 2 web-based learning resources.

My kids had a really fun time with this site! There are sections on the body and medicine, energy and the environment, ancient Egypt, Earth and beyond, teeth and eating, micro-organisms, the brain and senses, textiles and words.

Note: The site relies heavily on Macromedia Flash to provide interactive learning environments. Flash player 8 or above is necessary to play the interactives.

Integrating Mathematics, Science and Language: An Instructional Program is a two-volume curriculum and resources guide developed by Paso Partners - a partnership of three public schools, an institution of higher education, and SEDL specialists.

The resource is designed to help elementary school teachers organize their classrooms and instructional activities in order to increase achievement of Hispanic primary-grade children whose first language is not English. The guide offers a curriculum plan, instructional strategies and activities, suggested teacher and student materials and assessment procedures that focus on the acquisition of:

* higher-order thinking skills to apply newly learned knowledge and understanding;
* understanding of relations between mathematics and science concepts;
* knowledge, i.e., specific items of information and understanding of relevant concepts; and
* language to gain and communicate knowledge and understanding.

Although written for children whose first language is Spanish, the lesson plans are useful for any teacher. Check them out here.

Yes FREE!!! Woo hoo! Need I say it? :)

My buddy Iram who homeschools her 3 lovely children in California has returned to blogging. About time! She has a million wonderful things to share and her latest post on The Islamic Homeschool is a real gem, ma shaa Allah.

I don’t usually enjoy shopping in crowded places but there is a market here in Islamabad that has a certain charm. It is open on Fridays, Sundays and Tuesdays and sells fruit, vegetables, meat, cooked food, baskets and household items. It is called Jumma (Friday) Bazaar or Itwar (Sunday) Bazaar. (I don’t know what it is called on Tuesdays :P)

It is quite an interesting place, for sure, if you know your way around. My mother-in-law’s helper, Anees, is a resourceful little thing who has managed to land numerous bargains like beautiful serving bowls and glasses, branded winter wear and miniature toys for my girls at excitingly low prices :)

I’m rubbish at photography but here are some shots of a market day in Islamabad…

The bazaar is a good place to buy groceries in bulk as it is cheaper than the neighbourhood markets. You don’t get to choose your vegetables and fruits usually, unless you’ve established a good relationship with the grocers though, so you may end up with food that is less than fresh.

Most of the serrano chillies sold in Pakistan are green. Pakistanis do not use fresh/blended red chillies generally (no sambal tumis for me!) and use chilli powder instead .

I think these radishes look pretty and dress up salads very nicely even though I don’t like the taste :)

I like chalkboards and slates like these which are used all over the bazaar. It gives such a vintage feel. I just wish I had done a better job on the photo - so much noise evident!!!

Traditional balance scales… how quaint!

Back at home with strawberries to munch on.

We have been blessed to find loads of books on a variety of subjects here in Islamabad courtesy of our two favourite booksellers - Alvi Book Bank and Jumbo Book Sale. Mr Alvi really needs to get larger premises - I worry that my kids will be injured by an avalanche when they try to tackle his precarious piles of books. Still, he’s helped us secure such wonderful literature and enough Science texts to last us for at least 3 years that we are not complaining (much). Jumbo Book Sale has been wonderful in that we have found many vintage Weekly Readers (I just love the thick papers and monochrome illustrations… they really don’t make ‘em like they used to!) and award-winning chapter books.

I’d love to do some reviews here but I am wondering if I should use our Goodreads account or just feature them here on my blog. For those of you who read my blog (there must be … what? two of you? :P), I’d like your opinion on this.

Thank you Raihanah for the link to Monterey Bay Aquarium. It is simply STUNNING ma shaa Allah! If you and your kids are interested in marine life and conservation of oceans, then you will love this treasure trove. Monterey Bay Aquarium has loads of classroom resources that you can download. Their inquiry-based curriculum is designed to motivate and engage students and support the California and National teaching standards through classroom or field experiences.

Check out their stash of resources here. Nice, right??

Blick Art Materials is a family owned business and a premier art supply source for professional artists, students, and teachers. What I really like about the site is that it offers hundreds of printable lesson plans and video workshops for teachers … um hmmm, for FREE! Yayy! Lessons can be sorted by grade level and discipline. Check out the Multicultural Lesson Plans - really wonderful resource for country unit studies/Geography!

Spelling Connections is the only spelling program for Grades K–8 that utilizes a 5–day plan for spelling success. A complete program, Spelling Connections offers a full line of program components, including online and optional resources as well as a variety of assessment options.

Spelling Connections makes it easy for students to

• learn valuable spelling patterns and strategies.
• retain more of their learning using practical study tools and activities.
• transfer more spelling knowledge for success in reading, writing, and test-taking.

You can download Home Spelling Practice and Spelling Worksheets (Grades K-8) for FREE (wooo hoo!!). These pages may be printed for use at the beginning of the week to introduce the current spelling words and at the end of the week to preview next week’s spelling words. Homework Master pages (English only) may be printed to provide additional spelling practice in a game-like format.

For students, summer is a time for fun and play. It is also the time when children’s learning slides. Research (Brace, 2002a) shows that during the summer students forget many of the reading and math skills learned during the school year. This “summer slide” requires schools and teachers to spend valuable time during the next school year helping students “re-learn” lost skills, and it greatly reduces the time available to master new skills and subjects.

A child’s ability to succeed in school takes a partnership—one that begins at home and continues in school. To increase learning and stop the summer learning decline, the Michigan Department of Education has developed summer literacy activities for preschool, prekindergarten, and early elementary students to practice at home.

These activities are being distributed on a pilot basis as part of our ongoing effort to help teachers teach and children learn. Activities are aligned with the Michigan Curriculum Framework, Michigan Literacy Progress Profile and the No Child Left Behind Act.

Visit this page to download free Literacy and Math activities from pre K - 3.

An old one… but still relevant.

A nonprofit subsidiary of the National Geographic Society, JASON connects young students with great explorers and great events to inspire and motivate them to learn science. Its core curriculum units are designed for 5th - 8th grade classrooms but are flexible enough to be adapted for higher or lower grades.

The JASON Project was founded by Dr. Robert Ballard, the scientist and oceanographer who, in 1986, discovered the wreck of the ill-fated RMS Titanic. Ballard’s breakthrough development of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) enabled scientists located far from a research site to remotely observe and record scientific phenomena otherwise inaccessible to them. Impressed by the many requests he received from students who wanted to learn more about his Titanic expedition, Dr. Ballard began to explore ways to bring the excitement of real scientific discovery into the classroom. In 1989, he established The JASON Project, a pioneering organization that uses multimedia tools and cutting-edge technology to engage students in scientific research and expeditions led by leading scientists.

You have to register to access all the materials. After registering, you can create a classroom and then assignments for students. Best of all, there are materials for download! And all for F-R-E-E!

Patty of Deep Space Sparkle says:

I believe art should be a part of every child’s day, especially young children, but school budgets don’t often support art programs. I want to share my best lessons with you, providing complete instructions, photographs of actual kid’s artwork and helpful tips. I hope this site inspires you to introduce, explore and teach ART to the children in your lives!

As an art teacher, I strive to introduce lessons that are easily adaptable for kids of all ages and abilities. My goal is to introduce as much variety in my subject matter as possible. Not every lesson can feature birds, flowers or butterflies (which are my personal favorites!) so I work hard developing lessons that feature different cultures, animals, architecture and geography.

Deep Space Sparkle promises out of this world art lessons and it delivers! I’m inspired already!

Mars (examining a zip-up boot) : I was wondering… how did people in the old days keep boots like these fastened. You know, before they had zips.

Me (quite horrified) : Heard of buttons? Hooks? SHOE LACES!?

Mars : Oh yeah! Haha!

*sigh*