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Sheri's Soapbox Reviews: Colonial Economics Regions by Pass-Ed

Picture it: You are hired as a consultant to determine if Sir John's sons should set sail to the British colonies, in that far away place called the New World.  Your job is to use your Pinkerton detective skills to dig up enough information to make sound recommendations based on the individual personalities, and desires of each of his three sons. Do you think you can do it?  How do you go about collecting enough data to surmise the best life changing decision for all involved? 

Actually, it is easier than you may think.  By working through the The Colonial Economics Regions Unit, you will glean enough information to do just that, and more.

The Colonial Unit is an early American* (history-based) supplemental program-with a tad of  the ole  "Lobster backs"** involvement sprinkled in; created for your 6th through 12th grade student(s).  With the use of Google Earth, the newly contracted "adviser" will mesh information from 18th Century history, with today's advanced research technology-so that they can present sound recommendations to their "client" at the conclusion of the study. This is accomplished by following the questions found in the student packet, along with the prompts and internet links strategically placed within the Google Earth program.   The Colonial Economic Regions Unit covers such subjects as:  slavery, the economic diversity of the regions, British laws and regulations that started to fracture the relationship between the colonists, and the religious ideals of the newly established colonies.

My Pondering Points:

I think this is a  unique program to have your older students work through, when you are discussing the 13 Colonies with your younger children.  Honestly, a lot of the programs get a bit "boring" or "dry" by the time the students enter the upper elementary grades and high school. Finding something to draw them in, while keeping them involved with the material at hand-can be somewhat daunting at times. Especially if you do not want to draw the lessons out for weeks on end.  This program is designed to take about 15 hours (give or take) to complete.  That alone gives the homeschool educator more freedom to work it into their schedule, as they see fit.  Plus, it allows the student to do something a bit more "mature" for their study on the colonies-and not have it be so overwhelming that interest is lost before they are half-way through it.


I found this to be a really interesting way to approach some of the aspects of the early colonies, and the dynamics surrounding the beginnings of our country.   The implementation of Google Earth, within this study, was something I have not seen used in historical units before. It is not your typical "just answer the questions and move along",  then "forget it" worksheet activity.  I also like how it encourages the student to use their findings to "consider and make decisions" based on research and deductive reasoning-a skill that is somewhat ignored, and not nearly exercised, as it should be.  I also like that it is a tag-a-long supplemental program [to enhance your "backbone" curriculum]-enough to offer more insight, but not so overwhelming that the project takes a semester to complete. All in all-I find this Colonial Economics Regions Unit a be a nice "extra" to have.

So, for those looking for some extra bling for their history studies; this gem will add some dazzle, without a lot of outlay of one's cashola.

Only those who have good internet access can utilize this program, due to the use of the Google Earth, and the linking to on-line articles while on it. Those with dial-up service simply will not be able to use this effectively. Speaking of Google Earth, you will have to download, and familiarize yourself with its features before beginning the study, to ensure this an enjoyable experience.

*Denotes the United States region of the Americas.

**Denotes a common term used by the Colonists, to describe the British soldiers' red coats.

Pass-Ed HS Homepage

Colonial Economic Regions HS page

Includes the Student Packet (worksheets), The Google Earth unit file and the Teacher's file with additional information, and suggestions for grading.


$20 Email Delivery download [license allows for use with your family only]

Pass-Ed also offers units on the Cuban Missal Crisis, Gatsby of the Twenties, Considering the Realities of the Holocaust, and the Okies Head West*** . 

***The units are, or will be, undergoing some revisions. You can purchase them now-and then you will receive the updated file when it is completed.

This could work in a co-op or group situation; as long as there is a good internet connection, and enough computers for the students to use. Contact Pass-Ed for information regarding license fees.

A little side note here: for those who teach in a public or private school, please visit the Pass-Ed School Homepage for more information regarding the licensing fees for classrooms.


***Pass-Ed provided me with a free version of the Colonial Economics Regions Unit, in order to test and use with my family, so that I could write this review.

Reformatin Day is Oct 31-thought I would repost this ditty I wrote last year

I am pulling this post up from last year. With Halloween tomorrow, I figure I could do this a day ahead, so as to give my readers something else to ponder. I am not about to tell folks whether they should or shouldn't partake in Halloween-as we do but at the bare minimum-we have about 30 homes [some are empty] in our section that the boy goes to [takes like 30-40 mins] and that is it. I don't even have a pumpkin yet-and I really want it so he can carve it and do the pumpkin seed count activity, not necessarily to just make a jack-o-lantern. The kid doesn't even have a costume at this point-but we're going to see if we can find something that he can use as dress up the rest of the year.

We'll be reading the Martin Luther books today, and discussing what when on during that time in history. I prefer to focus on harvests, fall activities and such-not this over-marketed, sugar explosion of a day. Actually, my kids are well aware of the history of it because they had to do research on its origin and how it evolved to today's celebration; and that it is far from my fav. holiday of the year. We choose to look at it as about a 1/2 of hour of excitement for the boy and leave it at that. I know many folks have their ideas and stance on Halloween-and I like to think we're all capable of making the decision as to whether our families partake in it, ourselves. We personally, have prayed about it for years, and have not been convicted to avoid participation-but when and if that happens, we'll certainly follow the Lord's leading. Until then, it remains a very downplayed event round these parts.

And now for the post on the Reformation:


Today we are reminded that in 1517, Martin Luther hung his 95 Thesis on the church door in Wittenburg, Germany. This very act ushered in the beginning of the Reformation. Praise God for this man's tenacity and courage. Because of these 95 concerns, the world was made aware of the erroneous teaching of the church of the day-and learned that we receive God's righteousness, as a gift, it is not something to be earned-by believing in his son Jesus Christ.

Paul wrote in the book of Romans:

"There is no one rigteous, not even one;
there is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
not even one." Rom. 3:11-12

and

"But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Rom. 3:21-24

May the grace and peace of the Lord serve you well today.
Blessing-
Sheri

Excellent book to read to your children about Martin Luther:



This can be found at Amazon.com for a great price. Or check your local library.

Blessings-

2009 HS Blog Awards

Well it seems there are some award opportunities for the HS bloggers out there.  I have been nominating all of those that I can.  Wish I could pick a few per title-but alas-cannot.  Head over to Homeschool Post and vote for yourself!  Blessings!

I am seeing that nominations need to be in before Nov. 9th-so I am guessing they need these in even before that point. So if you feel inclined to nominate some fellow bloggers-please do so.

Oh, and Learning Through Lapbooks (The Road Less Traveled blogger) noted their link is a dead one on their icon-so use the highlighted one. I haven't gone back there to see if they have that fixed, so you may want to copy/paste their direct addy to avoid this too.

I have posted the links for the All About Spelling Workbox listing charts on my other blog

I have finally been able to get these posted without them moving all over the place. You can use these charts to help you fill the workboxes with the very items and supplies you need for each Step. Sometimes, not all the goodies are listed in the top section, and so I found I was hunting for the specific tiles and such-more than I was teaching. Hopefully, these will help reduce that for you as well.

Links to the Scribd pages

Oh, another fine award!

My blog friend,Bronwyn at Loving My Life as a Mother and Wife has blessed me with this pretty award. Guess all I need to do is write up 6 random things about myself, and pass it along. So-not sure if I can find 6 interesting things to say-hmmm.

1. I have been to all but one of the Little House on the Prairie historical/home sites (that would be the SD one); with Laura's house in Mansfield, MO being my absolute favorite. I would love to go back in time to get to know her, be her neighbor and hear the tales straight from the ole gal. She is my favorite author for children (and adults I do believe).

2. I am not a big fan of talking on the phone. Sure, I can have my times/days where I would prefer to chat via the phone line-but more than not, notta. I would rather do it face to face (the old fashioned way) or thru email.

3. I am actually a quiet person. I need quiet downtime with no interruptions. I would rather stare out the car window (on long trips) and think about all the things I am seeing, than to carry on a convo with someone (for the most part), but when something interesting comes up-I am more than happy to converse. I guess those type of folks are called "deep thinkers"- I speculate that I am one of them.

4. I can get caught up in a project (like designing and putting together a lapbook or workbox project) and won't quit until I am done-even if that means my back is screaming in pain, my eyes are blurry and I have not moved out of my creative zone for several (like 10 or more) hours. Maybe that is why I can do those all weekend-long scrap events. Once I get a rolling-look out. But when I hit my wall-my brain shuts down and not a creative juice is to be found in me for days.

5. I won a coloring contest when I was in the second grade. It was Thumper (from the Disney movie, Bambi) hitting his back paw against a tree. I was coloring, as one would expect, when oops-the crayon slipped and went over the line. I panicked. I almost cried (as a former perfectionist this was a big deal!)-then I got the bright idea to take my black crayon and outline (over the lines) everything on that page. It must have worked, b/cuz it covered up the boo-boo and I won a 4 pack of marigolds. I didn't understand when they called my name, that I had won. I thought I was in trouble! So up thru the entire school body, I trudged my scared self and wow! I got flowers to take home! I was so proud. We planted them in our little garden. That was the only thing I really won for several, several years-but I remember it like it were yesterday!

6. I pray for the Lord to supernaturally bless me with the ability to speak and understand many, many languages. I become sad when I hear folks speaking in their native tongue (say when they are trying to find something or are looking for some place) and no one can understand what they need. I would like to have this knowledge, so I can help them out, so I can talk to them about Christ, the love of God, and so forth. I honestly do not have time to dedicate hours and hours to learning languages-and I am not so sure I could learn it anyhoo b/cuz I simply get befuddled with trying. It will take the Holy Spirit to supply that. I am not sure if I will ever even have one language firmly planted in my noggin, but I have had a few very realish dreams where I was speaking Russian, and another where I was speaking another language (cannot remember which it was) and working like as a missionary or something like that.

"I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Phil. 4:13 and
"Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26. NIV

Wouldn't that be a testimony to Him! Even if it never happens, it is fun to think and pray upon it.

OK, I am passing this on to 3 buds (not 6) b/cuz I need to get a moving here today...

Heidi from Reviews by Heidi (she is my TOS Crew Review Cap'n and friend-she has some great info on her blog! Take a look!)

Joyful at Joyful Journey (I met this fine gal last year via blogging. She is good at finding out what is going on out in the world and posting contests, giveaways, and helpful stuff)

Michelle at A Life Better Than I Deserve (a fellow TOS Mate and pal, Michelle has some great info on her blog too!)

That was fun and I hope you enjoyed learning some silly little things about me.
Blessings-

YUM! Fall Candy Pizza-gone haywire!

OK, first things first-

WARNING!  Do not put the cookie dough on a non-sided pizza pan!  I had thought about it, but opted for my stone pizza thing-and was that a mistake!  See picture below:  I need not say anymore.

Granted, this oven was on my "to clean" list anyhoo-seems like as soon as I get it all sparkly, the hubby or chitlins will make something super messy and well-there goes the clean oven. So, after grabbing the thing out of there, carefully cleaning the residue off the racks and bottom-I put the stone circle into my sided pizza pan. So at least the dripage will stay in one spot. Hopefully, the spreading of the said cookie dough had ended.

Now, back to the Fall Candy Pizza-

My buddy Bronwyn at Loving My Life as a Mother and a Wife, posted this yummy looking food craft. We decided we'd give it a try. The only thing we swapped out was the PB for the "sauce". I wasn't sure some members of the fam (altho we all love PB) would eat it on the cookie-so I bought chocolate frosting and layered that as our "sauce". I had also thought of tinting the white frosting red to make it more tomato looking-but naw-the more chocolate the better.

OH-head to her post for the recipe :0) as there is no need to retype all that.

Second note to fellow Pizza makers: Put it on parchment paper or tinfoil, like Bronwyn suggested (a very important step I somehow missed).  For our attempt-the edges stuck and it was hard to get off. Very disappointing indeedy. Well, it still tasted good. This is pretty rich too, so small slices are best. 

TOS Store offering FREE Autumn Unit Study and Lapbook eBook

Autumn Unit Study and Lapbook

The Old Schoolhouse Store is offering up a free, downloadable eBook on Autumn related fun. Be sure to grab yours today.


Oh, and they have this article to offer encouragement as well-go here to read the:
Are You Trained to be a Homeschool Momma Article.

Old Timey Activity for modern needs

For a part of a review project, we had to make our own laundry detergent.

So with instructions in hand, an empty 1 gallon water jug, a pan, spoon , a funnel and some H2O-we were all set to give this a whirl.

It took only a few minutes to make the goo, and then all we were required to do, was to give it a good swirl as it cooled (every 20 minutes or so) and we were done! It was a fun activity for all of us, and especially the boy!

The Laundry Kit (trial size) from Virginia Soaps and Scents, made about a half gallon of liquid detergent. I found that I have to shake it up a bit before using-so the water jug with a lid-is a very good storage unit for this. I have used up at least 1/2 of it so far, and am pleased with the results. You can read the whole review, over on my TOS Review blog.

Just received an award

I received this from my 2008-09 TOS Mate, Sister Tipster's blog-Thriving with No Green $. I am honored. Now to pass it along to someone deserving of praise-well, that is a totally difficult decision-because I know all too many who fall into that category. I just gave out some awards yesterday, so I will not overload them....let's see....

The Frog Academy, this down under mum of 7 is a hoot. I always find something fun to read on her blog!

The Snail's Trail, Momma Snail is a TOS Mate this year and a blogger with great ideas. I enjoy reading her blog too-

SO there we have it-2 very deserving bloggie pals. Thanks again Sister Tipster for the award.

Oh, I just got mine today-I say this is a great and helpful book

So I got this announcement thru homeschool.com about the book Homeschooling and Loving It! 

For the cost of shipping you can order this book-and I am already 1/2 way thru it and finding some real gems inside.  It has taught this old dog some new tricks!  I am glad I spent the 6 bucks to get it.  They still have them available-so if you are looking for some new ideas to help you homeschool better-I suggest buying one for yourself!

This also includes info about Laurel Springs School-and hey-even tho I cannot afford to sign my kid for their online classes, I sure can go thru the catty and glean some great ideas for my kids. The forward is by the gal who started Laurel Springs.  The author-Rebecca Kochenderfer runs the Homeschool.com site-the largest site for homeschoolers!!  This book is really good-and I don't say that too often. She covers not only learning styles, but how to build a plan that is unique to each child. I need this-yes, even after 16 years of doing this!  I
am finding the info quite easy to digest-I am excited to try out some of the curriculum customizing ideas.

Lauren Springs Homepage

Be sure to type in the code: LSS (you can order up to 5) shipping has a charge. I think I paid $5.95 or something like that.

 Homeschool.com
great site to visit and find even more resources and help

Last car show of the season

 Bit chillier today (this show was rained out in Sept.)

My boyz decided to do one last car show-their second-for the season.  It was right in our sub, at the Older Person's retirement complex.  There was not a ton of folks there, but it was for fun and a charity-so they partook.  There was a judging contest and door prizes too-and funny thing is-my 15 year old won the biggest one!  She was so cute-I had to run some things to our eldest daughter's pad (she is house sitting this week with her best bud in the sub, right by the complex) and so on the way home, we spun back in to see the boyz one last time, and here comes my hubby carrying the package. Sissy says to me, "Wouldn't that be funny if I was the one who won?"  Sure enough-it was her!  She got a bunch of little things from the complex and the sponsoring dealership (like flower seeds, candy, a Frisbee, pens/paper/stickers and a little stuffed bear) and then there was a $25 gift card for Applebees.  Her smile was priceless.  So guess where we'll be going sometime soon!  Now, before you ask-no, I don't think Applebees has the Burrito Supreme on their menu-thankfully, and so we won't be going that route this time 'round.  That was our Saturday, and best of all-the sun actually made an appearance for some of it!  That was such a nice blessing-as it has been lost behind a thick wall of clouds for some time.

I keep forgetting to post this-

SO we went out to celebrate my daughter's B-day at the end of Sept. It is our family tradition, and so off we went. The child decided Mexican food sounded good-so we went to a local restaurant-and then it happened.

I ordered something that sounded innocent enough-a Burrito Supreme. Now, because I wanted the rice and beans in the burrito, and the fact it came with avocados-it sounded delish. I have made these several times at home and know, that you can stuff a large tortilla shell with a couple tablespoons of rice, beans, meat, then add cheese, avocado chunks, some lettuce and sour cream- to get a decent sized dinner to chow down on. I mean "decent" as something reasonable. Something within the range of normal-which to me means that your average diner can eat the whole thing in one meal, in one sitting and feel stuffed, but not feel glutenous.

Well folks-this is what I had placed in front of me-and no this isn't a joke!

I am not sure if this picture does this thing justice! That is on a large, full-sized DINNER PLATE! I have served roasts and turkeys smaller than this to my family of 6! I (seriously) looked down at it and exclaimed-

"Is this a joke?"

Where upon the waitress answered, "No, that is the normal size. [It was at least 4 to 5 " tall, close to a 8-10" long, or more, and at least 4-6 inches wide.]

OK, so then I thought surely I am on Candid Camera or something like that! I literally spun my head in all directions searching for a camera! Then I set my eyes upon the beast that lay before me. How, in all total seriousness, was a person supposed to be expected to polish this monster off?

At this point, I had some chips and salsa in me and one jumbo Coconut Shrimp too-plus 2 glasses of water (there was a 40 min. plus wait b/cuz of all times-there was a fall festival just down the street-so the place was packed. We were thirsty and hungry-and those chips were good-but I knew not to "pig out" on them...so I didn't), and the thought of even trying to cut into it almost made me puke.  I wanted to cry.  I felt embarrassed.  I was at a loss for what to do with it.  Never in all my years have I ever been served something so huge-and for ONE person!

This is all I could muster-and it was mostly the folded over tortilla shell, and sauce and cheese-I did manage to taste a bit of rice and chicken.  It looks like a lot is gone-but no-the picture angle is deceptive-I measured, and it was less than 3 inches gone.  Because if you look at the top pic, you can see it is mostly sauce on the side I chose.  Obviously, I asked for a box to take this monster home.

This is one of those moments where you nod in agreement-the serving sizes in this country have become so outlandish-almost criminal.  What a total waste.  I wonder how many people just leave it?  I was able to get 2 sections of 2-3"w x 6'L x 2 or 3" high, out of the "left overs" to feed my hubby and I lunch the next day. Yah, great, we were able to get 2 meals for the $7 and change price of it-but still...a bit over the top if I do say so myself-and I do!


Oh, and to show you what a "normal" plate looked like-this is what my daughter ordered-

That is a burrito in the center-much more normal in size.

And there you have it-my shocking dinner of a MONSTER Burrito Supreme.  I still get ill looking at the picture of it-man that was huge!  The only thing that made me feel better was the fact that my daughter noticed the kid (yes KID -maybe 10ish) behind me ordered it too-and his eyes were as big as saucers when he saw it as well-so I am not joking when I say this thing was disproportionately huge!

Thought I would share that experience with ya all.

Note to self:  Do not order Burrito Supreme from Sagebrush.

Free eBook download from TOS Store

Head over to the TOS Store and get your free eBook download. Enjoy!

Oh, Carol Topp responded to my to eBook or Not to eBook post

So very happy she (Carol) took the time to read my post-I am honored. I pulled her post comment up here for all to see another side to this crazy debate:

Sheri, You did cover the pros and cons very well. As an author, I have gone back and forth on ebooks, too. My first book, Homeschool Co-ops, is in print and I plan to offer it in ebook format now that it is about a year old.

I'm working on another book, Micro Business for Teens, that will start as an ebook and then after a year or so I'll offer it in print also. The reason I am doing this is cost. I hope to make enough from the ebook version of Micro Business, that I can pay to set up the print version (minimum of $500). I also hope that the younger generation is more willing to buy an ebook. We'll see how my plans turn out.

Just thought you might want to hear from the author/seller side. Consider this: there are some books that you would never see if the author only had the printed option because of the cost. So ebooks are opening up an entire new world to authors and their readers.


I agree-you posted a [great] different view to this issue.  The cost of printing is pretty prohibitive to many authors...and I totally get that.  I also understand that one can make a bigger profit by selling eBooks, which can help sustain smaller businesses, and provide avenues for the author to afford running print versions,  too. I still need to do my second part to this-one in which I was/am going to highlight the very things Carol pointed out. :0)

It is a love/hate relationship with me.  I guess it is hard to convince a print loving gal to switch sides-LOL. 

Well, hopefully, once I have a handle on the rest of this month's reviews, I will be able to focus my brain and come up with the second section for this debate.

Oh, and if you don't know who Carol Topp is-well, she is such a blessing to the homeschool community. She has a great book on how to set-up and keep your co-op running and it looks like some other great ones coming out!

You can visit her site:Homeschool CPA for more info.

Thanks Carol for taking the time to read and respond to my blog-