Homeschool Legacy ~ Horsing Around ~ Review

Hi Friends, I'm pretty excited to share our newest review with you today.

Are you a fan of unit studies? We are! As a matter of fact they are our favorite studies. We recently had the opportunity to review a once-a-week unit study called Horsing Around from the wonderful company, Homeschool Legacy. I have to say that this was probably one of our favorite studies this year so far. My children love unit studies and horses. So doing this review was definitely a win-win.

What is Horsing Around? 

Horsing Around is a 4 week, no prep, once-a-week unit study for grades 2-12 that allows children to learn life science and explore basic horsemanship. Children are able to choose from a wide variety of quality, library reading selections within the unit that focus on classics, breeds and characteristics, equestrian events, biographies, cowboys, and the pony express. The unit includes wonderful library lists that are alphabetically and numerically arranged, field trip ideas, and even movie suggestions. Another great thing about this study is that it is Boy Scout & American Heritage Girl friendly. Your children have the opportunity to earn merit badges while completing the unit study assignments. Also, this unit study is Biblically centered and very flexible.

How we used Horsing Around

The first thing I want to say is that I love that their was no prep work required. I can't say enough how simple it was to do this unit study with my daughters. Before starting the unit, I briefly looked it over and was pleased to find a page with suggestions on how to schedule our unit study time. I found this to be extremely helpful and we tried to follow the suggestions. I also wanted to say that instead of this unit being only for my daughters we used it as a family study. It was a ton of fun having the whole family involved.

Week One - 

Week one was such a fun start to the unit. We took a trip to our local library and picked up a few of the books that were on our reading list. After that, we were able to learn about the different breeds and characteristics of horses. We analyzed and discussed the character traits that God describes the horse as having, we traced and labeled the parts of a horse, and we started reading King of the Wind. We also watched The Black Stallion as a family. I was amazed at how much we were learning in just week one. It was fun to watch my daughters enjoying the unit. Our favorite part of week one was the field trip we took to our local horse veterinarian. They were able to spend time asking him wonderful questions about proper horse care, immunizations, common horse injuries, and what colic is.

Another favorite is a section called stump your dad trivia. In this section my daughters learned fun facts about horses. They were always eager for their dad to arrive home to try and stump him.  

Week 2 - 

In week 2 we were able to learn about horse and tack care. We also learned the parts of the saddle and brindle. We learned about a famous poet and his works, as well reciting a famous poem. My daughters also learned about horse safety and even memorized stable rules of safety. This weeks field trip was a two part trip. The first part was a trip to our local horse supply store. We were able to look at various types of horse care products. Our local store didn't have much of a selection, so we visited another store virtually using the internet to locate and view different products. The second part of the trip was to visit with a horse expert. We were unable to visit one, but once again we used the internet to find answers to the questions my daughters were wanting to know.  

Week 3 -

Week 3 focused on equestrian events. We started reading Black Beauty and learned about a famous composer. We watched two movies and still have one on our want to watch list. My daughters also had the opportunity to start planning a cowboy fun night party. They absolutely had a blast planning out their party. They called a couple relatives and invited them to it. At this time the date is set and we are really looking forward to it. There is going to be yummy food and lots of fun games. A list of games to play is actually included in the unit. I loved this, as it made planning much easier.

Week 4 - 

Week 4 my daughters used a cookbook to plan a chuck wagon meal for their upcoming party. They are pretty excited to come with me to buy the supplies and also help me make it when the day of the party arrives. They also started working on a skit that they want to perform during the party. We took a trip to watch an actual cowboy skit. It was a ton of fun and it gave them plenty ideas for one of their own. 

They also started reading and learning about the pony express, which was suggested on week 4's library list. So it was a ton of fun when they visited an actual Buffalo Bill impersonator.  He had a ton of information to give them about the pony express. I truly loved watching them ask him questions and learn all about it. 

One thing they really wanted to do during the course of this study was to ride a horse. They have rode before because their grandparents own horses, but they wanted to ride again. They weren't able to actually ride a horse but they did meet some really nice gentleman that explained a little bit about horses and gave them a nice carriage ride. 

 

Our Favorite Parts 

Each week in this unit has a family devotional section, this was one of my favorite parts. I loved how biblically centered they whole unit was. I also loved how thought out and put together the unit was in whole. It was a very flexible study, yet I feel like we learned so much. My daughters favorite part was the field trips. They loved being able to not only read and learn, but also get out and be hands-on with their learning. The trips taught them some pretty valuable skills and lessons. 

Final Thought

As you can probably already tell, we fell in love with Horsing Around. There is so much wonderful information and ideas in this unit. I absolutely love putting together unit studies for my daughters, but there is no way I would have ever been able to put a unit like this together. It's pretty wonderful and I highly suggest it to anyone wanting to do a horse unit study. As a matter fact I highly suggest Homeschool Legacy period. I can't wait to try out one of their other units. 

Homeschool Legacy offers a ton of different unit studies. Some of the titles are:

Birds of a Feather 
Forest for the Trees
Horsing Around
Weather on the Move
Christmas Comes to America
Knights & Nobles
Native America 
Early Settlers
Revolutionary Ideas: The Story of the American Revolution 
We the People: Getting to Know Your Constitution
Lewis & Clark: From Sea to Shining Sea
Westward Ho I
Westward Ho II 

Want to Connect with Homeschool Legacy?

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/homeschoollegacy?fref=ts

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/hslegacy

Twitter: http://twitter.com/homeschoollegac

Affiliate Program: 

http://homeschoollegacy.com/idevaffiliate/

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Not everyone on the crew reviewed the same unit.
Click Below to read more reviews from The Schoolhouse Review Crew

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Autumn Unit Study Ideas and Resources

~Autumn Unit Study Resources~

Why Do Leaves Change Color in Autumn?

Free Fall Unit Study Ideas– For Older Kids Too

Connections ~ Fall Autumn Unit Study, Lapbook, Printables ...

Tinas Dynamic Homeschool - Fall Season Units 2

Fall is our favorite season! 

Fall crafts are some of our favorite ones to do throughout the year. My children absolutely love leaves. There are so many things you can do with them. 

Here are their top 4 favorite things to do with leaves. 

1) LEAF ART

2) Play in them

3) Leaf Study

4) Nature Journals

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We love fall nature hikes.

What better way to learn about nature, than to get out in it?

Plan a nature hike 

Check out our FREE AUTUMN PRINTABLES 

Follow Jennifer Silcott (Home Grown Hearts Academy)'s board Nature Study on Pinterest.

Does your family take nature walks?

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Click Below to check out more fun Autumn homeschool studies.

Moving Beyond The Page ~ Tornado & Amazing Weather ~ Review

Are you fan of unit studies?

Unit studies are some of our favorite studies. We love them because you can learn so much and they can be really hands-on. That's why we were so excited that we recently had the opportunity to review a Language Arts Package - Tornado and a Science Package - Amazing Weather from Moving Beyond the Page. Moving Beyond the Page is a fantastic company that sells complete curriculum, but they also sell individual units so you can customize your studies or supplement a curriculum you are currently using.

We were able to pick two individual units from a fantastic list. The reason we choose Tornado and Amazing Weather is because we live in what is essentially known as tornado valley. I figured these studies would be wonderful for us and I figured right! They were more than I had anticipated and we are very thankful we had the opportunity to learn using them. The two units can be done separately but were designed to compliment each other. We choose to do both of them at the same time. Both units are recommended for ages 7-9 and they include everything you need for a full study. This was fantastic, as it really made doing the lessons stress free.

Tornado

Language Arts

The Tornado Unit included:

• An Online Tornado Teacher's Guide

We received the online teacher's guide for the language arts unit. It includes all of the lesson plans, and you can print the PDF worksheet pages as you need them or all from the start. You also have the opportunity to save them in a file. I choose to print them all and place them in a folder so I would have them ready as they were needed. This worked well for us.

I felt that the lessons were laid out nicely and I loved how they gave you an idea of how many days a lesson should take. I didn't worry though when a couple times we took three days instead of the suggested two.  I love that these can be customized to your child's needs. I also really appreciated that they also include a page that shows what a typical days use looks like. Although, I did appreciate being able to work at our own pace.

Lesson 1: Weather on the Farm (2 Days)
Lesson 2: The Storm (2 Days)
Lesson 3: The Tornado
Lesson 4: A Card Trick
Lesson 5: Turtles (2 Days)
Lesson 6: The Best Pet Award
Lesson 7: Conflict
Lesson 8: The End of the Storm (2 Days)
Lesson 9: Plot
Final Project: Think-Tac-Toe

I found the online lessons easy to navigate and liked that they were checked off as they were completed. They can also be accessed from a tablet. Having this option is very nice, especially for the family on the move.

My favorite part of the online lessons is that in the lesson there is a button called IdeaShare. If other parents/teachers have submitted ideas for that particular lesson, there is ideas and links to check out. I found a bunch of fantastic ideas using IdeaShare. Some I tried and others that were just as great but just didn't get around to doing.

One con to the online lessons is you only have 90 days to complete the unit from the day you activate it. So if you would like to revisit a lesson in the future a physical copy would be more ideal.

• Tornado by Betsy Byars

This book was fantastic! I loved how each chapter is broke down with a worksheet for question and answers. I felt that this really helped us retain what we were reading. The story is about a dog and his friend, a young boy, that meet during a tornado, hence naming the dog Tornado. The boy develops a great bond with Tornado. My daughters were thrilled with the book and at times had a problem stopping for the day. We also had the opportunity to learn more about life on a farm and what a tornado is capable of doing. I liked that it was easy to read and that the print was large. Another great thing about this book was the dog, Tornado, looks a lot like our black lab, Cujo. My daughters could really relate to the bond the boy felt with Tornado.

• (A Little Golden Book) How the Turtle Got Its Shell - Tales From Around the World 

 Another fantastic book and a great opportunity for us to learn more about turtles. We had a lot of fun doing research about turtles during this study. We now even have a pet turtle. My daughter even made a turtle out of boxes and insisted he watch a show about turtles with us. It was pretty cute.

Amazing Weather

Science 

The Amazing Weather Unit included:

• Amazing Weather - Physical Teacher's Guide Book

The Teacher's Guide is a spiral bound book with lesson plans and student activity pages. We found the activities to be very educational and hands-on. We had a ton of fun doing the activities and a favorite of ours was creating a weather vane. Other examples of hands-on activities we did, was making a barometer, a tornado in a bottle, recording temps and rainfall. Recording rainfall couldn't have came at a better time. We live in an area that has been in a serious drought for some time. We just recently starting receiving a good amount of rainfall. I have to admit, it felt good to be able to complete this activity.   

Lesson 1: Whatever the Weather

Lesson 2: Heat and Temperature (2 Days)

Lesson 3: The Wind (2 Days)

Lesson 4: Precipitation (2 Days)

Lesson 5: Wild Weather

Lesson 6: Geography and Weather (2 Days)

Lesson 7: Reason for the Season

Lesson 8: Habitats and Weather

Final Project: Weather Report

One con to the physical copy is that the pages cannot be copied. However, you can buy a separate set of student activity pages if you want an extra or to use with multiple children.

• On the Same Day in March - Written by Marilyn Singer and illustrated by Frane Lessac

This book was a great addition to our weather study. It is beautifully illustrated and we loved how the author describes the many different types of weather, agriculture, geography and cultures from all around the world

• DK - Eye Wonder - Weather

Another great addition to the unit. This book was used when learning more in depth on a particular subject. It was nice to be able to open to a certain page to gain more knowledge and the illustrations were fun and eye catching. It was also easy to read.

• Boiling Point Thermometer

This was used during an activity, where my daughter had to record a daily temp. I thought it was great that it was included and my daughter enjoyed learning to read it as well.

Final Thoughts 

Both units were filled with fun activities to do and learn. There was never any dull moments with these units. Both units were thought out and put together so well. I really loved not having to plan, but just do. I did feel that some of the writing activities were a bit hard for my daughters, but we were able to change things to make it work. Sometimes by drawing and other times by having them tell me, me write it, and them copy it. The thing is, it worked for us. That's what I loved about both units.  Overall, we had a ton of fun learning about the many different subjects and I would highly recommend them to someone looking for a unit that requires little planning and lots of fun learning.  I will definitely keep Moving Beyond the Page in mind when I'm looking for units in the future.

What do these Individual Units cost?

Language Arts Package - Tornado -  Physical Unit is $24.97 and the Online Unit $20.91

Science Package - Amazing Weather - Physical Unit is $36.97 and the Online Unit $32.91

 

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Want to Connect with Moving Beyond the Page?

Facebook – www.facebook.com/movingbeyondthepage

Not everyone on the crew received the same units. Click below to read more reviews from the Schoolhouse Review Crew 

Sunflower Unit Resources

Sunflowers make me happy. There is something just so cheery about them that just warms my heart. My family and I planted some mammoth sunflowers this year in our garden and have very much enjoyed watching them grow. 

We recently had fun measuring them.

This activity prompted me to find sunflower resources for my daughters to learn more about them. I wanted to share my finds with you. Enjoy! 

I can't wait to try my hand at making ALL NATURAL, HOME MADE TOASTED SUNFLOWER SEED BUTTER. 

FREE - All About Sunflowers - Printable PDF

Toilet Paper Roll Sunflower Stamp Craft

$0.50 - All Sunflowers! A Fun Study! - Lapbook PDF

Sunflower Journals - Journal Pages FREEBIE

Sunflower Labels - FREEBIE

FREE - Sunflower Graphic Organizer

 write about sunflowers by using this graphic organizer

FREE- Sunflower Daily Journal

make observations and log findings

FREE LESSON - Oil Pastel Sunflowers Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh

Build a Sunflower House

Sunflower Facts - PDF

National Sunflower Association 

Sunflower Pattern - PDF 

Make a 15 Minute Sunflower Peep Cake

Fun with Sunflowers - PDF 

Sunflower Facts for Kids

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We hope you enjoyed the resources. :) 

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Ocean Unit

Today we had a whale of a good time. Having fun and learning as well, makes for a pretty productive homeschool day. 

Today was day 1 of our - Ocean Unit

Follow Jennifer Silcott's board Ocean Unit on Pinterest.

Ocean Unit     

      

                           Day 1         Day 6 

                           Day 2         Day 7

                           Day 3         Day 8 

                           Day 4         Day 9 

                           Day 5         Day 10

We started off the day with blank folders barring each of the girls' names. They each decorated the outside with ocean related pictures. I have to say, they turned out pretty darn cute. The folders proved to be useful, as they were able to store all of their work inside. 

 We then learned a very neat ocean song that I found on Pinterest.  Click Here to find it

This song sure makes it easy to remember the oceans. 

Catchy little tune :)

By the time we finished some comprehension stories, book work, and a little computer time, we were getting hungry.  So for lunch I mixed us up some Tuna with cheesy noodles and some corn. Yummy! Tuna was the perfect lunch for an ocean unit.

I didn't think to get a picture, probably because I was huuuunngry, lol  

I did however manage to get a picture of the nifty snack we made up. I also found this on Pinterest. Blue Jello, with candy fish and octopus candy. This treat was a big hit! 

After cleaning up, my mother-in-law had a great idea to make an ocean in a bottle. Excellent idea. So we gathered the materials and started to make it right away. I thought I knew how to do it, but I ended up using way too much food coloring. Anyhow, we rinsed the jug and I pulled up the directions found here and tried again. I'm happy with how it turned out. 

Below is an ocean sensory tub I made to get the girls talking and wondering. 

It is filled with seashells, seashell identification cards, ocean toys, and fish identification cards.

 We finished off the day, reading about dolphins and sharks. We also learned about ocean zones, which we plan to learn more in depth as the week goes by. 

We hope you have fun following us on this ocean journey!