Under Construction . .

I am doing a blog redesign at Ohio Homeschool Assessments!  I am excited for a new look.  During the next week things will start to look different.  Let me know what you think!

Becky

Homeschool Planet

When two of my friends who quite honestly are vastly different told me that they used Homeschool Planet I thought that was interesting.  I should have stopped right at the moment and realized that this was something I needed to take notice of.  Instead, I foolishly delayed looking into it.

But luckily, I am no longer foolish.  This spring I took the plunge and did a free trial of Homschool Planet.   Within 3 days I purchased a year subscription which they added on to my 30 day trial.  It changed my life. Truly!

The Homeschool Planet is an online planning, calendar, and scheduler.  It is a way for you to post the lessons that your students need to complete AND more importantly at my house, know whether people have actually completed them!

I love this!  I pull up my view and say things like. . . Why is math not completed?  I am confused as to why you have not done that for two days?  Hmm, it looks like you will be doing math on Saturday.   I also say things like, WOW!  You completed all your work today. Look at how close we are to the end!  I am so proud of you!

The other part that has been powerful for my students is that it has the feature of moving all the assignments forward.  My students began to understand that not doing something adds it on to the end of the year.  It was a good visual reminder.

You can also add music practice, track grades, put your vacations in, send your students an email with their assignments, and much more.

So this would be a great time to try a free trial.    I HIGHLY recommend it.

Create! A Girl's Guide to DIY, Doodles and Designs by Ashley Mays

Ready, set, create! Whether you’re an aspiring artist or a just-starting-out doodler, Create! A Girl’s Guide to DIY, Doodles, and Design is the perfect book to inspire your creative side. From coloring pages to quick-and-easy crafts—like photo frames and duct-tape bags—and everything in between, this full-color book from the trusted Faithgirlz brand provides step-by-step guides to more than 50 fun and easy projects. Learn how to make your own DIY projects, create one-of-a-kind jewelry, and draw like a pro. Perfect for individual use or for sleepovers, birthday parties, and more, Create! is sure to bring out your inner artist.

I saw the cover of this book, and I had to know more!  Create is a crafting books for girls ages 8-13.  The book includes décor crafts, frames, duct-tape projects, jewelry, designs, doodling, and coloring.  The book includes crafting ideas with pictures, step by step directions, and ideas to elaborate on the crafts called “Jazz It Up.”  It is part of the Faithgirlz series.  

My girls are crazy about this book, and it already looks well loved.  They like the variety of the projects included in Create.  The book includes projects that you can easily do with supplies at your house, and other projects that require some basic supplies you would get from a craft store.  I told them to start with what they were able to do and make a basic list of what they would like to buy.   That has worked very well.   I felt like the crafts were realistic for this age group.  

The pictures are wonderful and give you a good idea of what the craft will look like when completed.   I enjoyed looking through Create and my daughters have spent hours gazing at the book.   It would be a great gift with a few supplies from the book included. I would highly recommend Create to anyone with tweens.  

  I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review

Some pictures of the crafts made by my daughters.  

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”