Barnes & Nobel Summer Reading Program Info and other Helpful Tips

We've received lots of useful information from Barnes & Nobel. This info is from the Eugene Store, but is available at all Barnes & Noble. Be sure to get your educator discount card. You only need you EDS paperwork showing your child is homeschooled to get this discount. If anyone has any questions they can contact Andrea at the Eugene store by phone 541.687.0356 or by email at crm2978@bn.com. I hope to see some of you in the store soon to pick up those Summer Reading Logs!

Educator Discount Card
To educators of grades PreK-12, Barnes & Noble offers 20% off the publisher's listprice on titles for classroom use. You can apply for an Educator Discount Card at any Barnes & Noble store- simply present your valid school ID, state registration, or pay stub. A valid driver's license or state ID must be presented each time you use your card.

Educator Appreciation Events
To honor our PreK-12 educators, Barnes & Noble offers a 25% discount on classroom and personal book/gift purchases and 10% off music and DVDs during several Educator Appreciation Weeks throughout the year. We also host Educator Receptions, inviting local educators and school librarians to hear presentations on new book titles and to receive free classroom resources through raffles and giveaways.

Extensive Education Selections for Parents & Teachers
Our stores are great resources that offer an abundance of curriculum-based materials, as well as books about the process of schooling and the nature of education. We also feature reproducible books ideal for use in the classroom and workbooks to aid parents with skills practice at home.

Summer Reading Program
Students in grades 1 through 6 can earn a free book in the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program by reading eight books and completing a Summer Reading Log. When students return the completed reading log, they can pick a free book from a list of popular titles. This program begins May 26 and goes through Sept 7, 2009. Stop by the store to pick up your Summer Reading Log today!

In-Store Tours
Kids love to visit Barnes & Noble for a personalized store tour. Options can include a personalized storytime, scavenger hunt or "Red Dot" music appreciation lesson!

Summer Break

We finished classes on Monday with a wrap up/field day. It was great fun, and I'm hoping that someone will e-mail some pictures, as I neglected to get my camera out there! Check back, just in case someone takes pity, and e-mails some pictures this way!

The weather was beautiful, the luncheon very well organized by some great volunteer parents ( I usually say ladies, but this year we had a Dad help out--yahoo!) Thanks ladies & Brent for the great job in the kitchen.

Great news...Fetal Pigs for next year's science class have been ordered, and will be shipped to us in mid September, so when we are done with the systems of the body in late September/early October, they will be ready to go. Hoping that some parents might consider helping out with this big venture!

We will have a meeting in August for September classes, which are estimated to resume Monday, September 14th. Watch your e-mail and this website for details. Please remember, if your address, phone or e-mail info changes, please drop us a line, so we can keep you informed.If you have not filled out your end of year survey, letting us know if you are returning or not, please e-mail your answers to us soon!

Boxtops have been submitted, we gathered 400 to send in! We have 32 in our can for the next round! Great job. Keep saving those boxtops through the summer. Those sure add up to help us with science supplies, sign language books and PE supplies.

Have a FUN & SAFE Summer! Thanks for a great year!

RUMOR

School is on for MAY 4th, 2009--


The rumors about the district being closed due to Swine Flu are not true. There have been no outbreaks, and we are on for classes tomorrow, May 4th!! See you then!


PS. While you're here, check out the pictures from our field trip on the post below!

Civil War Re-Enactment Field Trip May 1st, 2009

Brownsville Homeschool Group heads to Cheadle Park to view our 2nd Civil War Re-enactment. We were not disappointed! The rain held off until we were at home!! Yahoo!

The weather was perfect, the stations informative, and the re-enactment,small, but enjoyed by all!!

Angel was chosen to get dressed up in the many layers that women in 1863 wore!

It was a great day at Cheadle Park. There were fewer school groups due to Lebanon and Albany both having in-service days....so therefore, no school for those districts. Bad for them, great for us, who had pretty individualized attention at some stations. With many stations (there were more than 12 this year), and only the ability to hit 7 of them, it makes it tough to decide where to hit. Like last year, many of us spread out, to see the things that most interested us. Even though we go as a group, it's fun to be able to get the group benefits, yet still be able to oversee what your kids do. Those of us that attended last year, were able to catch those stations we missed last year, and visit the favorite ones...still, it wasn't enough. Many headed back today (Saturday) to see the actual enactment, with many more re-enactors than there were yesterday.
Micah with a very heavy cannon ball

The school day is one that is loved and appreciated by us. Thanks to the NW Civil War Council for putting this on. It's all volunteer, and put together well. Thanks again for another great year!!

Ryan & Miranda in the bandage contest at the medical tent

For more info on the NorthWest Civil War Council & events-- visit http://www.nwcwc.org/events.html

Our favorite horse & rider.....Ken Morris & Jeffy....of the 10th NY Cavalry http://nwhorse.com/10ny.htm

Home School Dissection

Today was a big day in Science Class for the students. We were fortunate enough to have a very large cow heart donated for us to dissect! Today started off with a very excited science teacher (Shawnna) and a very helpful aide (Dan Giles) who was gracious enough to help us out today. It was great to have the extra help as three teachers in class are always better than one! Thanks Dan!




The students seemed to enjoy the dissection, some of them wanting to get in there themselves, others content sitting where they were and watching. It gave us a good feel for who is going to be good at this when we do our fetal pigs next fall, and who is going to be our note takers! I must say, I was VERY impressed, as some that I thought would not want anything to do with it, stepped right up, touched, held, and did a great job! Well done!

Unfortunately, I did not get pictures of the older class during dissection, but did get a few of the younger class, and also some students after class that wanted a closer look. Check it out!

Thanks also to friends Bill & Debbie who went the extra mile to help us get this incredible cow heart and to Marcus (one of our students) and family for bringing a deer heart (AND for storing it all winter in your freezer). They were great learning tools today.

TESTING FOR HOME SCHOOL (ESD TESTING)

To be compliant with ESD Home School Laws, you need to test your child in Grades 3,5,8 & 10. Some parents choose to test each year, just to make sure they have covered all the bases for the grade they are teaching. If you need to have testing done for ESD or for your own knowledge, then check out the following dates, and/or one to be added sometime after June 3rd.

Dana Giles has graciously set two testing dates so far. There will be one more testing date set sometime in June. If you are interested, please get with Dana to schedule. The cost for each child is $40.00. 466-3525

May 8th, Testing Grades 3 and up, 9:00AM

May 14th, Testing any grades, 1:00PM

Civil War Re-Enactment May 1st 2009

Join us on May 1st at 8:30 AM (events start at 9am) at Cheadle Lake Park for the Civil War Re-enactment. This is more than a re-enactment though--it is a day geared for kids to learn. There are stations set up around the battlefield, where kids can switch stations every 25 minutes to see all aspects of the Civil War.

These are the stations that are available:

Artillery

Medical

Infantry

Calvary

Civilian Life

Period Dance

Period Fashion

Music

War Reporting

Military Music

At the end of the stations, approximately 1:30, there will be skirmish re-enactment. The battle will be finished around 2pm.

Lunch is sack lunch, and seating is on the ground. Please come prepared.

The cost is 2.00 per person, and needs to be paid by April 20th. If you are not able to attend with your child, please make arrangements prior to the day of the event for another parent to be responsible for your child. We can not have kids dropped off at the event without supervision. Please sign up in the hall outside the K-3rd grade class, or contact Shawnna for other arrangments.

If you have any questions, please contact Shawnna at 367-5178. Thanks!

Check out last year's trip here http://bvillehomeschool.blogspot.com/2008/05/civil-war-field-trip-05-16-08.html