by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | Jun 7, 2019 | Education Materials
Ready for Reading Phonics – Level 1 is a brand new curriculum recommended for ages 4-6. (Post contains affiliate links).
Ready for reading is a complete, thorough course, from beginning to end, and includes the following course objectives:
Ready for Reading Phonics Course Objectives:
Recognize and name all letters of the alphabet.
Learn initial consonant and short vowel sounds for all 26 letters of the alphabet.
Begin reading words with short vowel letter patterns and consonant blends.
Master 20 sight words.
1) Lesson Plans: Each week a letter of the alphabet is introduced and a flow
of activities is suggested. Alphabet (saying letters), Sounds, Tactile ideas such as clay and sand.
2) Thematic Units: A list of thematic unit ideas for each letter. For example, incorporating other subjects (besides reading, math, writing). This is a great time to pick something your child is interested in!
Jen gives a list of possible subjects. For example, animal types, insect types, fruit types, and tons more.
3) Reading Tips: Ideas for guiding your child and promoting reading in your
home!
4) Assessment Forms: Help with keeping track of letter and sight word mastery.
5) Alphabet Strips: Correspond to flashcards and provide guidance during
reading and writing lessons.
6) Flashcards: All 26 letters, both capital and lowercase. Corresponding
sound/picture card for each letter (available in black+white and color). 100
sight word cards.
7) Worksheets: Each letter of the alphabet has 4 corresponding worksheets.
- Circle the letters
- Write the letters
- Color the beginning sound picture
- Match the upper and lowercase letters
HELP WITH IDENTIFYING THE LETTERS
Different variants of each letter to help reduce confusion when seeing letters in the “real” world. For example, the letters are shown with different font types, sizes, with upper and lowercase as well.
LOTS OF COLORING AND PICTURES FOR VISUAL LEARNERS
LOTS OF WRITING PRACTICE!
8) Games: 8 ORIGINAL games for fun practice, plus ideas for creating and incorporating
more games and play into your lessons.
ALL THE GRAPHICS YOU NEED TO PRINT AND CREATE YOUR OWN GAME BOARDS.
9) Readers: 10 engaging ORGINAL beginning readers are provided so children can
begin reading and experiencing success!
Flexible lesson plans provide a suggested sequence of letter introductions. However, if you prefer to teach the letters in alphabetical order, or present letters in context of a thematic unit, please feel free to do so!
Alphabet Strips to print and attach to your child’s desk or other work area.
Alphabet and sight word knowledge sheet records so you can keep track of which letters you child knows.
NOTE: You can use the Ready for Reading Phonics curriculum with everyone in your household. And Since it's a printable, this means you can print more than one copy as needed. This will save you money when compared to traditional workbooks, which usually require you to purchase a separate workbook for each child.
You will have the ability to print out a color copy or a black and white copy if you prefer to not use color ink. The Ready for Reading Phonics curriculum is available through Teachable.com and Jennifer Merckling has created videotaped step-by-step instructions to help you set the course up and be ready to roll.
And don't forget to use the code save20 to receive 20% off. But hurry, you don't want to miss this limited time offer.
Other things you might be interested in (within this site):
10 Ways to Encourage Math and Reading
5 Best FREE Nutrition and Exercise Apps
Etsy Masterclass for Teens
Colors of Nutrition Food Science Activity Pack
by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | Jun 7, 2019 | Creation Education Resources
Why My Son Doesn’t Believe in Evolution – Creation and our kids.
I authored an article recently that is posted on LifeschoolingConference.com
To avoid confusing Google, I couldn't post the entire article here. However, I have included a short blip to get you started. Read the rest of this well-written, thought-provoking post here.
And after you read my article, don't forget to sign up for the conference. The conference will bless you and it's FREE!
Here are the first few words of the post just to give you a taste of the subject matter:
First to clarify, I want to make sure that everyone reading this understands that there is a distinct difference between macroevolution and microevolution.
Creation and our Kids – Macroevolution versus Microevolution
Macroevolution states, “All things evolve in a positive beneficial direction.” For example, macroevolution is defined as the process by which one type of animal, for example, fish, evolves into a completely different type of animal, for example, amphibian.
This requires an increase in genetic information, which has NEVER BEEN SHOWN to happen.
Natural Selection, on the other hand, is the process whereby organisms adapt to their environment, survive, and thus, produce offspring. Natural Selection is an example of microevolution, which HAS been observed in the laboratory. For example, microevolution is what happens when bacteria develop immunity to antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance is not the result of click here to read the rest of the article….
For more information on Lifeschooling and to sign up for the FREE conference, click here.
Click here for God Created Dinosaurs Freebie in my store.
To read more about Creation and Evolution:
Why My Son Believes in Catastrophism
When Did Dinosaurs Live?
Did Humans and Dinosaurs Live at the Same Time?
What the Heck is Coelacanth and why should I care?
My Autistic Son Hates School
What Does the Bible Say About Race?
Bunnies: Cute and Cursed
Are Easter and Passover Related?
Click here for Father's Day Gift Ideas
Click here for FREE Father's Day Cards
by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | Jun 5, 2019 | Education Materials
Sara Bean's MLK Jr K-12 History Curriculum provided me with some surprises. I actually thought all of this time that MLK Jr. was a Christian. Now, I'm not so sure. (Post may contain affiliate links)
For example, a little internet digging will uncover that he didn't hold to the same beliefs about Jesus and the virgin birth. In fact, it appears he denied much of what most Christians believe about the gospel. Also, many sources claim that he was unfaithful to his wife numerous times, including the night before he died.
Another thing I had never heard was that MLK Jr. was beaten by his dad because he didn't believe his son was studious or hard working as he thought he should be. It turns out that MLK Jr. never wanted to be a preacher, though he did eventually receive his doctorate in theological studies.
The first thing to remember when purchasing this MLK Jr K-12 History Curriculum, is that it's meant to be a supplement, as opposed to full-blown curriculum
So, for example, this would be a perfect short unit study to use for MLK Jr.'s birthday or some other time when you want your children to remember MLK Jr. The MLK Jr K-12 history curriculum is not too complicated, so if your kids don't like school, this might even be a great way to break up the “monotony” of school and give your kids a chance to just have some fun.
In other words, you can sneak in some new vocabulary words and reinforce history with this curriculum without bogging down your school day.
As far as activities for the kiddos to learn about Dr. King. There are many. For example,
Lists of facts
Including details about his college experiences, and how he got involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Also, some of his favorite quotes are included. Information about his boycotts, marches, and movements is also part of the curriculum package. You will learn about some of the things MLK Jr. struggled with as well.
Vocabulary
For Elementary through 12th grade is included, and I learned some new words!
The number and complexity of the words increases by age. However, all kids can learn all words, if you want. It's up to you as the teacher what words and how many you choose to assign to your kids.
Creative Writing Projects
Opportunities to write. For example,
- School Life – The creation of a school.
- Learning and Writing about Rosa Parks.
- Your children's opinion on various subjects related to boycotts, Rosa Parks, and civil rights in general.
- An opportunity (towards the end of the curriculum) to envision something the student can change, with the inspirational quote, “I Have a Dream” as a backdrop for unique ideas.
- An organizational diagram is included to help with brainstorming.
Research and Writing
- Writing Prompts – Children are given the opportunity to choose a topic of their own, do their own research. They can choose the internet or books.
- Students have an opportunity to discuss their own opinions about segregation, for example.
- Students can express verbally through a speech, drawing (perfect for right-brain thinkers), or traditional writing.
Arts and crafts Activities
For example, the curriculum pack includes suggestions for researching MLK Jr. quotes and creating bookmarks. Children can make their own unique bookmarks. Here are a couple of examples of what they can do:
Also, a page with blank books so that the child can write the names and authors of books they have read on MLK Jr. They can also decorate and color these books.
Cooking
Martin Luther King Jr.'s favorite meal is mentioned in the MLK Jr K-12 History Curriculum, with a suggestion to cook and eat it. Yummy!
And last, but not least, supplemental links are provided to give children even more ideas.
Good Job Sara!
Click here for Sara's K-12 Heart Unit Study Curriculum
10 Ways to Encourage Math and Reading
Healthy Choices to Make When Eating Out
by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | May 9, 2019 | Education Materials
The heart is an extremely complicated organ. No matter how many times I have studied it, including in college, and while teaching my son, I have had difficulty remembering the details. Sara Bean's Heart Unit Study simplifies many of the difficult-to-grasp concepts. This complete curriculum set is for all ages, kindergarten through 12th. (Post contains affiliate links).
Three examples of science based unit studies: Sara Bean's Heart Unit Study, Penguin Unit Study and Plant Unit Study.
Adding color and fun to the process of learning always makes learning more fun. with Sara Bean's Heart Unit Study, your children can learn about the heart while having fun.
Sara Bean, from “Love at Home Education” designed this curriculum for kindergarten through 12th grade.
Regardless of Your Child's Age, Kindergarten through 12th grade, they will benefit from the Heart Unit Study.
Also, like I said before, remembering the facts of the heart is not as easy as it sounds. So, even if your child has already studied the heart, this cute little study will be perfect for a review.
Also, since the unit study pack provides activities for all school-age levels, if you have several kids at different ages. They can all work on the unit together. This would be an awesome opportunity to practice collaborative learning.
What's Included in the K-12 Heart Unit Study
- Heart Sight Words for younger kids with directions on how to use them
- Two Heart Words to Learn for Kindergarten through second grade, complete with definitions. Cards can be printed and have a pretty red border.
- A total of four words for 3-4 grade (the two previous plus two added).
- Two additional for 5-6, another two for 7-8, and two more for 9-12. This may not sound like a lot of words, but the heart is a complex organ and the definitions of these words are hard to remember.
- Super interesting heart trivia facts, for example, how many times does a heart beat, how much blood does it pump, and more.
- Parts of a heart diagrams – for K-6, for coloring and labeling, with beautiful color pictures and cut and paste labels.
- For 7-12, more advanced labeling, learning and memorizing
- A black and white diagram for coloring and labeling
- Questions on “How Does it Work?”
- Memorization exercises for all grade levels
- Research assignments for 7-12 grades
- Copy writing practice for Kindergarten through 1st
- Three Writing prompts for K-1; Three writing prompts for 3-6, with more advanced requirements. For example, sentences to paragraphs. Specific questions are provided.
- More advanced writing prompts for 7-12 grade
K-6 Parts of Heart – Coloring and Labeling Activity – Sara Bean's Heart Unit Study
And the price for Sarah Bean's Heart Unit Study is right. If you want a digital-only copy, it's just $6.00. She even offers the option to purchase a digital and printed copy as a set, for only $10 plus shipping (which is very reasonably priced).
One thing I want to mention, since I have a son with learning challenges.
Just because a curriculum is set up for specific grade levels doesn't mean you have to stick strictly to each grade level.
For example, if your child is in third grade but is still struggling to form letters with a pencil. In this situation, I would strongly suggest to use the copy work exercises in the heart study, even if he or she is older than the stated age.
Writing stuff down helps everyone learn better.
And don't forget something important. Typing can be a form of copy work as well. If you have a child like mine, who is now 14, and has too many writing assignments to do, for example. It would not be time-efficient to make them write everything down. Instead, have him or her type some of the work. It's okay to allow your child to type instead of handwrite everything.
Never Forget: The Goal is Learning
So, if your child is in 1st grade, is brilliant, and can handle the 7-12 grade activities, then give it to them! Whatever is developmentally appropriate is, well, appropriate. 🙂
I have discovered that kids never really outgrow the “hands-on” stage despite that most traditional schools stop hands-on work for most subjects. So, no matter how old your kids are, they're not to old for some hands-on work! All of Sarah's unit studies, including the heart study, will give your children plenty of opportunities to do hands-on activities.
To check out this awesome heart unit study, and to grab a copy for yourself, click here.
About Homeschooling Dietitian Mom
For other k-12 curriculum reviews, click here.
For Sara's MLK Jr. K-12 History Curriculum, click here.
For a book review on a cute book about what snow teaches us about God, click here.
by Deborah Hanyon, MPH, RDN, ACE-CHC | May 3, 2019 | Creation Education Resources
When did dinosaurs live? Is there evidence that dinosaurs existed with man? (post contains affiliate links).
Most people aren’t aware of the fact that it wasn’t until 1841 when Sir Richard Owen first termed the word “dinosaur,” (great or terrible lizard).
This means that the term “dinosaur” did not exist in the human vocabulary until 1841—thousands of years AFTER the bible was written.
Not only that, but when dinosaur fossils were discovered in the 1800s, there were very few specimens.
Thus, scientists would reconstruct the skeletons based on the specimens they did have and extrapolate the rest. The attempt of scientists of this time period to reconstruct the fossils into how they imagined they would look is comical in light of what we know today about how they looked.
However, an intriguing thing is that ancient cave paintings, murals, tapestries, rugs, statues, carvings in stone throughout the world dated hundreds, and even thousands, of years ago depict accurately what we only know today about dinosaurs. So, how did these people know how to draw these amazing animals so accurately?
Is it possible that men saw dinosaurs with their own eyes?
I mean isn’t that what artists do? Draw and paint what they see?
It makes perfect sense that they would know what the dinosaurs looked like IF THEY SAW THEM WITH THEIR OWN EYES! And there is A LOT of evidence that this was the case. For example, legends and “myths” from all over the world include stories of sightings of animals that very closely match what we know about dinosaurs.
Haven’t you ever wondered why, out of the 12 animals in the Chinese Zodiac, all are REAL LIVING ANIMALS, except the last one, the dragon, which is supposedly fictitious?
We need to be careful when we evaluate evidence. We don’t want to put our pre-conceived ideas into the mix. When we do this, we are often guilty of doing what even “objective” scientists do when they dig up a dinosaur fossil.
Consider the following scenario. A paleontologist discovers a dinosaur fossil in Montana, USA. He or she already “knows” that the dinosaurs lived 65 million years ago. So, the scientist doesn’t bother with the actual dating process. (This is basically what paleontologists do). As a result of this assumption, the scientist uses the date attributed to the fossil to date all of the surrounding finds.
But how do today’s scientists date dinosaur fossils?
Have you ever heard of the term “index fossil?” An Index Fossil is defined as “a fossil that is useful for dating and correlating the strata in which it is found.” In other words, a fossil that has ALREADY BEEN DATED is used to date a like fossil when discovered and dug up.
To save time and money, dinosaur fossils are dated using “index fossils” instead of going through the rigamarole of testing and dating the new fossils when they are discovered.
But, wait a second! Isn’t science supposed to be based on observation?
And what about the index fossils? How are they dated? I did an internet search recently. I couldn’t find anything from a non-creationist background that explained how the index fossils got their original dates. Another term for you to learn is “circular reasoning.”
Circular reasoning is defined as “a logical fallacy in which the reasoner begins with what they are trying to end with.”
Applying index fossils as an example. The index fossils are dated based on an assumed age and then the assumed age of the index fossils is used to date new fossils dug up. Index fossils are dated based on rocks they were found in:
Pre-determined Date of Original Rock –>Index Fossil dated based on Pre-determined Date of Original Rock–>Like Fossils Dated Based on Date of Index Fossil.
So, a group of scientists, at some point in time, determined that a particular rock in a particular strata was 65 millions years old. Then the fossil later used as the “Index” Fossil is based on the supposed age of that rock. Thus, the conclusion is that the Index Fossil is 65 million years old.
And the final conclusion is: since the rock is 65 million years old, the index fossil found in that layer is 65 million years old. Thus, the dinosaur fossil found in this layer of rock – must be 65 million years old.
Wait a second! What did they use to date the Original Rock?
That’s circular reasoning for you. That does not sound scientific to me! 🙁
So, what would happen if an honest scientist decided to date their newly found dinosaur fossil and it showed up to be much younger than they assumed it was?
There are several types of dating methods used, one of these is called radioactive carbon dating. C14 is the isotope used because of its instability.
Carbon dating is limited and is only used on “newer” fossils less than 60,000 years old.
This is because C14 has been determined to have a half-life of around 5,000 years.
One half-life refers to the length of time a substance takes to break down by one-half.
For example, if you start with 10 grams of carbon-14, you will theoretically only have 5 grams left after 5000 years, and then only 2.5 grams after another 5000 years, etc.
What this means is that if a fossil is 65 million years old, there would not be any carbon-14 remaining. Unless the specimen has been contaminated. This is why Carbon-14 isn’t used to date dinosaur fossils.
The assumption is made by most scientists today, that since dinosaurs died off 65 million years ago, C14 dating can’t be used.
Have you ever heard of double-blind or single-blind experiments? These blind experiments are conducted to reduce bias either in the experiment population, in the researchers, or both.
Blind experiments are conducted to prevent bias on either side.
For example, when a group of creation scientists decided to have a dinosaur fossil carbon-dated (C14) by the University of Georgia. They did not tell the lab what kind of fossil it was. Thus, a single-blind experiment was conducted. The University conducted the dating without knowing what kind of fossil they were testing. Thus, they were not biased for or against C14 dating, or the results thereof.
When the University of Georgia conducted the tests, the first thing they did was decontaminate the specimen. They then used radiocarbon (C14) dating to determine the relative age.
Can you guess what the results were?
Based on the amount of C14 found in the dinosaur fossil, the maximum age given by the University was around 25,000 years.
That is quite a bit shorter time period than 65 million years, wouldn’t you say?
Unfortunately, if you were to try to tell an evolutionary scientist about these results, he or she would most likely not accept the test as valid. Instead, he would come up with some sort of alternative explanation for what they would view as “inaccurate” results. ☹
However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.
Sometimes we need to chip away at an unbeliever’s belief-system foundation, a little at a time, before it will come crumbling down.
https://answersingenesis.org/wild-brothers/missionary-blog/2015/09/15/keep-chipping-away/
IN PART TWO OF THIS SERIES I DISCUSS A FEW AMAZING EXAMPLES OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL ARTIFACTS. EXAMPLES THAT GO BACK TO THE MAYANS IN 200 AD. ARTIFACTS THAT MAKE IT NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO DENY THAT HUMANS AND DINOSAURS ONCE LIVED TOGETHER THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.
In the meantime, my ALL TIME FAVORITE dinosaur/dragon book is “Dire Dragons, untold secrets of Planet Earth.” Absolutely AMAZING book, and where I have gotten most of my examples that I will be talking about soon.
If you ever buy a dinosaur book, this should be the one. This book is a MUST HAVE. “Dire Dragons” discusses the University of Georgia C14 test as well as providing picture after beautiful picture. It begins with the history of the first dinosaur discovery complete with photographs of the first attempted reconstructions by early dinosaur paleontologists.
Also, be sure to pick up a copy of my Paleontologist Kids Dinosaur and Fossil Unit Study.. It is a thorough study of the issue of the age of the earth from a flood geologist versus evolutionist perspective and is complete with an AWESOME Jeopardy game that I made myself! Click here to see it.
Paleontologist Kids Unit Study and Jeopardy Game
Is the Paleo Diet Biblical?
What Does the Bible Say about Race? Free Workbook
What the Bible NOT Say about Race Article
Dinosaurs and Fossils Activity Pack for Kids
Dinosaurs, Dragons, and the Bible Bundle
References and Further Reading
Dire Dragons Vance Nelson
Job 40-41
https://creation.com/crouching-tiger-hidden-dinosaur
https://creation.com/chinese-new-year-dragon
Dragons of the Deep – Carl Wieland
https://answersingenesis.org/wild-brothers/missionary-blog/2015/09/15/keep-chipping-away/
https://creation.com/dragons-animals-not-apparitions
https://creation.com/the-dragons-of-komodo-island
https://creation.com/vietnamese-emperor-sees-flying-dragon
https://creation.com/are-there-dragons-in-the-british-museum
https://creation.com/mary-anning-fossil-hunter
https://creation.com/dinosaur-questions-and-answers
