Charity Shop Finds

It’s been a good, long while since I’ve posted my charity shop finds.  A few days ago, I ventured into town to visit my favorite charity shops, and I was so excited by my bargains that I had to share them!

1.  Books--I’m always looking for good books.  Isaac loves books by Enid Blyton, and I believe every single book he has by her came from charity shops!  We’re lucky when we find some he doesn’t already have.  We also found Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator.  £2.57 for the 3 of them.

2.  Hairy Maclary book/CD set—set of 6 books with CDs for each book!  These look brand new.  £3.49 for the set.  Even the lady at the checkout couldn’t stop remarking on what an amazing bargain I was getting.

3.  Quercetti Georello building set—I didn’t know what these were until I looked at the brand name on one of the pieces.  They didn’t come with any packaging or instructions, so I don’t really know what set(s) these are from.  However, I got a large tubful for £3.99.  This one also had the checkout lady shaking her head.

4.  British stamp album—I never set about trying to find a stamp collection, but I was absolutely thrilled with this find.  I don’t know much about the value of stamps, but I’m sure these are worth at least the £5 I paid for the album.  They’re all British stamps, and some date back as far as the 1950s.  If nothing else, the album will be fun for the kids to look through as they study British history.  I collected stamps as a child, so finding this made my day.

5.  More books!  Okay, so these didn’t come from a charity shop, but I found them on the same day.  After leaving the shops, I wanted to stop by the library.  I noticed they had a few shelves of books for sale, so I looked through and found these books I couldn’t do without!  £1.30 for the three.

That’s it!  I am well-pleased with my little shopping trip.

Field Trip Chronicles—2012/2013 (2)

Here is part 2 of this school year’s field trips.  To see part 1, click HERE.

11.  Quarry Bank Mill (Cheshire)

12.  Lyme Park (Cheshire)--twice

13.  Chirk Castle (Wales)

14.  Bluebell Woods (Cheshire)

15.  Biddulph Grange Garden (Staffordshire)

16.  Bodnant Gardens/Conwy (Wales)

17.  Sudbury Hall & Museum of Childhood (Derbyshire)

18.  Greenwich, London (park, Cutty Sark, Thames)

19.  Stonehenge

Tuckered out!

7th Grade Curriculum, Revised

Okay, I have all of next year’s curriculum purchased for Isaac.  I did make some changes from what I listed in my original POST.  So, here are the final choices:

1.  History:  British History

Main sources

British History Encyclopedia (Nicola Barber and Andy Langley)

Hamlyn Children’s History of Britain (Neil Grant)

Our Island Story (via LibriVox)

Supplements

Tudors & Stuarts (Usborne)

The Hawk That Dare Not Hunt By Day (Scott O’Dell)

In Freedom’s Cause (G.A. Henty)

Bonnie Prince Charlie (G.A. Henty)

In the Days of Alfred the Great (Eva March Tappan)

William Wilberforce: The Freedom Fighter (Derick Bingham)

William Booth: Soup, Soap, and Salvation (Janet Benge)

Isaac Newton: Inventor, Scientist, and Teacher (John Hudson Tiner)

Brain Box: British History game

Monarchs card game

Great British Speeches (Simon Heffer)

2.  Bible: Christian Growth & Logic

Boyhood and Beyond (Schultz)—1 day a week with dad

Dig Deep (9-week study of Proverbs) (Powell)—3 days

The Fallacy Detective (Bluedorn)—1 day a week

3.  Science: Earth Science

Interactive Science: Earth Science (Pearson, pub.)

This was my big change, but I think it’s going to be a lot of fun for Isaac.  My dad, a retired high school science teacher with a doctor’s degree in geology (and he’s also a college professor), has agreed to do Isaac’s science this year via the internet (since we live an ocean apart).  We selected Interactive Science together, and I’m pleased with the choice.  It is not a Christian program, but my dad is a Christian AND an expert in the field of earth science, so he’ll know how to teach the material.  He has taught junior high as well as high school, so I’m confident this will work well.  He is getting a book for himself and one for Isaac so he can give assignments, lab directions, and occasional lectures/explanations via Skype.  In fact, he’s already making PowerPoint presentations to go with it.  I think it will be neat for Isaac to have a partly online  science course from his very own grandpa!

4.  Math

Life of Fred: Decimals and Percents

Life of Fred: Elementary Physics

I’ll be supplementing these with math games, worksheets, and math apps, in order to completely master his math facts and to give practice on the material he’s learning, so that he’ll be completely prepared for Pre-Algebra.

5.  Reading

Drawn Into the Heart of Reading (Heart of Dakota)—I’ll be using this book some of the time, but I’m also going to have him write book reports and reviews.

Biography: George Muller: The Guardian of Bristol’s Orphans (Benge)

Adventure: Swiss Holiday (Yates)

Historical Fiction: The Bronze Bow (Speare)

Fantasy: Watership Down (Adams)

Mystery: The Windy Hill (Cornelia Meigs) AND The Hound of the Baskervilles (Arthur Conan Doyle)

Folk Tales: The Adventures of Robin Hood (Green) AND The Golden Key and Other Stories (MacDonald)

Nonfiction: Full Steam Ahead: The Race to Build a Transcontinental Railroad (Blumberg)

Humor: Stories of Don Quixote Written Anew for Children (Baldwin)

Realistic Fiction: Old Yeller (Fred Gipson)

6.  Language 1 (Grammar/Writing)

Easy Grammar Plus

Daily Grams 7

Wordsmith

7.  Language 2 (Spelling/Vocabulary)

All About Spelling 6-7

Vocabulary Cartoons

8. Extracurricular

P.E. (2x/week): Family Time Fitness along with an out-of-home sport (swimming and/or soccer)

Music:  Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool’s Music--Ancient

Art:  Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool’s Art—Ancient

Technology:  Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool’s Computer along with Typing Instructor

Field Trip Chronicles—2012/2013 (1)

I neglected to post about our field trips this past year, so here’s a photo log of what we did (part 1):

1.  Astbury Mere Country Park (Cheshire)

2.  Castleton/Peak District (Derbyshire)

3.  North Wales (Marble Church, Conwy, Llandudno, Beaumaris)

4.  Dunham Massey (Cheshire)

5.  Little Moreton Hall (Cheshire)--twice

6.  Lake District (Cumbria)

7.  London #1 (Gabriela only)—Piccadilly Circus, Royal Albert Hall, Natural History Museum—we went by train

8.  Chartwell, home of Sir Winston Churchill (Kent) 

(Jock the cat—always a marmalade cat at Chartwell)

9.  London #2—British Museum

10.  London #3—Churchill War Rooms