Here are a photos from the spring in Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa. Find a list of historical fiction set in Africa here. These photos are published under a creative commons license (CC BY-SA 4.0). If it seems like the photo isn’t downloading at a res you’d like, please leave a comment with the number of…
Category: History/Social Science
Dachau Concentration Camp Photos
Here are images taken by me at Dachau Concentration Camp in 2008. I put them in order of entering the camp, turning left and going clockwise around the site. Go here for information about each area. Here’s a map of the camp. Find a list of historical fiction related to the Holocaust here. These photos are…
What a Three Year Old Can Learn
I really liked having goals for my two-year-old and myself last year. So, I figured I’d try and do it every year. Then as I wrote this article and titled it “Plans and Goals,” I realized that there are goals for me, but most of what I called “goals” are really just what I see her learning….
Tot School: Airplane Dramatic Play Party
This was such a fun activity! In preparation for a flight we were planning on taking in a few weeks, I thought it might be good to show my daughter what it meant to go to the airport and fly on a plane beforehand. So we did an airplane unit (coming soon), that culminated in…
Learning: Ages 3-4
Cutting basil she picked for pasta I’m still dipping my feet into this whole “homeschooling” thing. I really don’t like the term “homeschooling,” since I don’t like what comes to mind when I think of “school.” As a ten year veteran elementary and middle school teacher, I have seen lots of flaws and learned a…
Tot School: Community Worker Dramatic Play Party
At the end of our community worker theme, we had a little get together. It was a great party. It would have been a lot better if I’d had a few more older kids to show the little ones how to do things, but they did a great job on their own. There was one…
Plans and Goals for My Two Year Old
I like to plan. But, I also like to lay in bed. I figured if I tried to have at least a simple list of things I need to keep in mind each day, then I would not spend all day finding ways to keep my 2 year old busy at home, just so I…
California History Field Trip: Native Americans and Exploring
My sister-in-law is homeschooling her 4th and 2nd grader. She is not a fan of California history (crazy!), so I offered to try and put together some field trips for the kids. We live in the general LA/San Gabriel Valley area, so you won’t be finding us taking any Sacramento trips. I love my niece…
Historical Fiction: The Civil War
[Part of an ongoing series of historical fiction book lists for students and teachers. For the full list and to see more info, click here.] Civil War Causes and Events Lower Grades (K-3) Abraham Lincoln-D’Aulaire (5.2/1) A. Lincoln and Me-Borden (3.5/0.5) Abe Lincoln’s Dream-Smith (3.0/0.5) Alec’s Primer-Walter (3.4/0.5) Billy and the Rebel-Hopkinson (3.2/0.5) The Blue and the…
Tot School: Family Unit
This was a simple unit that I spread out over the month, but probably would have taken a week or so if I’d done an activity each day. Goals: Start to know she has a past Know her middle names and where they came from Know that aunts are girls and uncles are boys Know…
Historical Fiction: African Folktales
[This is a subtopic of Africa and also part of an ongoing series of historical fiction book lists for students and teachers. For the full list and to see more info, click here.] Lower Grades (K-3) The Adventures of Spider: West African Folk Tales-Arkhurst (4.4/1) The Amazing Tree-Kilaka (3.7/0.5) Anansi and the Box of Stories-Krensky (3.2/0.5) Anansi and…
Historical Fiction: Africa
[This is part of an ongoing series of historical fiction book lists for students and teachers. For the full list and to see more info, click here.] There are a limited amount of English historical fiction books about Africa, so I included some modern and generic ones that help explain the culture, tribal life, animals and geography…