Free Homeschool Resources

The Tale of Peter Rabbit Printables for a Fun Spring Unit Study

April 9, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Along with The Tale of Peter Rabbit printables, I’m also sharing fun hands-on activities during my spring unit study with Mr. MunchKing. He is such a sweet kid to mentor, and he had so much with this spring unit study. It is one of his favorites already.

Tale of Peter Rabbit Unit Study

Before I started blogging or had a website, I used parts of Five in a Row unit study curriculum with my three homeschooled grads. FIAR uses The Tale of Peter Rabbit as one of their literature studies.

Doing the same unit study years later allowed me to dig deeper, to make it fit another generation, and to use my own unique ideas.

I planned this unit study with my ideas and ideas from other educators. Why invent the wheel when so many good unit study printables and subtopics abound on the internet? A pinch of my own way of teaching and add in other wonderful ideas and it’s a fantastic fun study.

One more thing about Five in a Row is that many unit study providers have come along since I started 25 years ago, but Five in a Row remains one of my very favorite for elementary and middle school. The way they use hands-on for all subjects is head and shoulders above many other so called unit study providers.

Keep in mind that this delightful book can be used all the way up to high school as well. Topics can be slanted to teach children like figurative language, drawing inferences, and an introduction to analysis.

Don’t think it’s just a young child’s tale; a picture book is one of the best tools for teaching beginning analysis in the middle grades.

Now, let’s dive into this fun spring unit study about The Tale of Peter Rabbit.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit Printables for a Fun Spring Unit Study

First, look below at my unit study planning page from my Ultimate DIY Unit Study Planner of how I adapted the tale to fit what I want Mr. MunchKing to learn at the PreK/K level.

My unit study planning page is just a guide, but is not everything you cover. Again, as a guide it gives you a framework of important points while following your child’s lead.

Unit Study Concept/Ideas for Peter Rabbit Tale

In addition, I start with unit study idea concepts which are usually like one or two words for me to glance at to use as a springboard for another teaching idea.

Look at some of the unit study idea concepts or word glances for The Tale of Peter Rabbit which fits the age of Mr. MunchKing.

England, country garden, farm animals
rabbits, berries, sparrows
types of robins, fir tree, obedience, and
various cultures.

Next, look at various activities and ideas for each homeschool subjects. Beginning with language arts, the best part is reading the book over and over again.

Watch and listen to this beautiful read aloud of Peter Rabbit on YouTube using an English accent.

I have included a few more videos to help the book come alive:

Peter Rabbit Unit Study Language Arts

Learning how to tell back a story builds fluency in reading and comprehension. It begins with excellent literature.

Further, I created this fun printable story telling cube which can be used in different ways. Reading should be hands-on to allow your child to listen while using his other senses.

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I used this printable in several different ways:

ask questions about events in the story and have your learner find it on the cube
read a part in the book, ask who was talking in the story and have your child find it on the cube
tell your child to choose a character or event on the cube and retell what is the picture illustrating
have your child “roll” it and play guess what the picture is illustrating
let your child listen and follow along showing the correct illustration

Free The Tale of Peter Rabbit Book

And you’ll love having access to The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter for free here at Gutenberg.

Free Literary Terms Notebooking Pages

Because I know how hard it is to find things for older learners, I’ve created 3 free literary terms notebooking pages based on the book.

Please hear my heart when I say that I don’t encourage any literary evaluation until a child is in middle school. Young child will struggle with understanding literary terms. Wait until they are older.

The first notebooking page is Fiction versus Nonfiction. Have your child write under the correct column which key words match the correct column.

For the second notebooking page, Elements of Fiction, have your child research the definition of each of the elements of fiction.

Literary terms is the third page. I have included a brief definition of a few terms on that page.

Help your older leaner to understand the definitions and then find examples of each one in the story. For example, to explain foreshadowing point out this part below to your child.

NOW, my dears,” said old Mrs. Rabbit one morning, “you may go into the fields or down the lane, but don’t go into Mr. McGregor’s garden: your Father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs. McGregor.”

On the last part of the third notebooking page there is a part to add specific genres like mysteries, science fiction, historical fiction, realistic fiction and epic poems to name a few. I hope these brief explanations about each page will help you guide your child.

These notebooking pages are subscriber freebies. That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my Exclusive Subscriber’s Only Library which has these notebooking pages in the library.

This is how you get access to these pages quickly.

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Exploring Space and Astronomy Free Unit Study for Multiple Ages

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Fine Motor Activities for The Tale of Peter Rabbit

To further enhance language arts skills for Mr. MunchKing, we added dot printables and other fine motor skills craft fun.

The list below of fun printables is from Making Learning Fun which we loved to enhance language arts:

3 sisters Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cottontail printable
Peter Rabbit emergent reader
ABC Dot to Dot
Emergent Reader
Pre Writing Tracer Cards
Baggie Rabbit Rhyme and Craft

Count by 2’s Dot to Dot
Feed the Rabbit Game
Rabbit Hopping Measurement Cards
Coat Button Activity
Measurement Worksheet
Peter’s Coat Pattern

Also, look at some of these fine motor skill activities we added.

How to Sew a Felt Carrot

First, Mr. MunchKing sewed an adorable little felt carrot. You don’t need much to do this and your little learner can make many of the vegetables in Mr. McGregor’s garden.

Begin by gathering felt, a plastic sewing needle, yarn, scissors, and some stuffing.

You can use cotton or whatever you have on hand for the stuffing. As some of our school supplies, we add to our craft supply and added a pack of felt. You’ll need two colors, orange and green.

There are a few easy steps:

First, our square had to be cut into a wide triangle.
Fold over the triangle to form the shape of a carrot.

Thread the needle with a long piece of orange yarn and have your child sew on the long side.
Don’t cut off your yarn yet. Leave enough room to stuff.
Next stuff the carrot and use a pencil to push it down to the bottom of the point.
Then, lay the carrot aside without sewing across the top yet either.

Take the green felt and stuff it inside the carrot with the stuffing.
Sew the sides and tie. Thread the needle again and sew across the top of the carrot
Lastly cut the green felt to make leaves.

How to Use The Vegetables in Mr. McGregor’s Garden for Playing to Learn

Too, we cut free hand from the rest of the felt the other vegetables in Mr. McGregor’s garden.

After cutting out the vegetables, Mr. MunchKing glued the small vegetables together.

Next glue them on popsicle sticks and now your can use the vegetable sticks in many ways.

your little learner picks up the correct vegetable when he hears that part in the story
try to count how many vegetables are in the garden
name the vegetables after they’re mentioned in the story
poke holes on a shoebox lid and put the sticks through and color the lid like dirt to make a pretend garden

Geography for The Tale of Peter Rabbit

Of course, some of the best subjects to include in this unit study are science, nature study, art and even geography.

Because the author Beatrix Potter was born and raised in England, many of the illustrations in her books are of the English countryside. If you want to know more about Beatrix Potter, the Victoria and Albert Museum has a huge collection of her drawings, letters, and work.

Comparing the English countryside to where your child lives gives your child a foundation of beginning geography. For beginning geography, some of the fun hands-on activities we included was making an edible peanut butter dough map of England and focusing on mapping Mr. McGregor’s garden.

How to make Make an Edible Peanut Butter Dough England Map

Start by making an edible map with peanut butter dough and form the country of England. You could also use cookie dough from the store, bake it and then add icing.

I’ve waffled between these two recipes during the years doing variations of each. So, mix and match until you have the taste your child loves.

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons honey

1 cup of dried instant milk
1/2 cup of smooth peanut butter
1/3 cup of honey

Mix until you have a smooth consistency. We have peanut butter lovers here, so a little bit of licking and a little bit of learning is the way to learn about maps at this age.

Next, grab a printed outline of the country of England after you locate it on a globe or map and talk about the pictures in the book.

Tape a clear piece of parchment paper on top of the printable map, so your little learner can follow the lines with his fingers. As your child grows, he can pencil in the border of the countries and landmarks.

Locate the cottage garden in the book, explain about the English countryside and explain what is a country setting versus a city setting. Then let your little learner form the map with the peanut butter dough.

In addition, another easy hands-on geography idea is to map Mr. McGregor’s garden. I loved this idea over at Children’s Book and Reading.

Mapping Mr. McGregor’s Garden for Fun Geography

Drawing pictures of what your child is learning cements the story line and you know that your child is understanding. It has been my experience that many older readers who struggle with reading didn’t have enough time to visualize parts of the story.

When a young learner can draw, he visualizes key details. In addition, maps are great visual aids.

Having your child map his backyard is another fun way to begin mapping. Geography comes alive because your child is connecting the story to his life and surroundings. It’s fun to see what your child focuses on too.

Then we downloaded the sweet printable over at Children’s Book and Reading which contains empty vegetable patches. As you begin to read the story, have your child follow along on his map.

You can do geography of the garden other ways too. Using a white board, have your child use his fingerprints and thumbprints to draw pictures of where the vegetables are as he hears the story. We grabbed the washable paint colors orange, red, green, and brown.

This activity was a two-pher as I call it. Teach your child about geography while painting and using his fine motor skills. What fun we had.

On the printable, your child can map the vegetables, draw pictures of animals where they belong.

And use the printable to explain Peter Rabbit’s route.

Finally, there are many nature and science activities to plan from book.

Nature and Science from The Tale of Peter Rabbit

We had a hard time narrowing down what nature and science activities we wanted to do. The first science activity which was to compare soils best for growing plants came from Inspiration Laboratories.

Compare Types of Soil To Grow Plants In

Comparing the types of soil needed for plants to grow in is a fun segue to learn about gardening.

It’s also an easy activity because you need just a few materials most of which you have on hand at home.

Too, your child can begin with this hands-on science and observe the growing process each day to record in a journal if they are writers. If they are budding writers, a picture of the day-to-day growth works too. It encourages pre-writing skills.

Grow Seedlings Like Mr. McGregor’s Vegetables

Another fun idea for a spring garden is to grow seedlings. With a young learner, you don’t need to plant a whole garden unless you want to. Mr. MunchKing really loved this activity as he watched his babies grow each day.

If you do this with a young learner, try to get seeds which sprout fast, so you child has fun instantly. I don’t have a green thumb by any stretch, but I’ve always managed to introduce gardening to each child.

And in my experience fast growing seeds work best. We just used what we had on hand which was an empty egg carton, seed packets, and potting soil. Seeds like beans, radishes and peas can grow quickly.

This was a huge unit study for us; we did it for several weeks, stepped back, and then came back to it.

If you’re planning this unit study, do the garden projects first so children can observe while you do the language arts portion and other fun ideas.

Add these fun videos about vegetables to your day.

Tale of Peter Rabbit Printables

While we were working day to day on the fun activities, we found this beautiful lapbook at Homeschool Share.

The beauty of lapbooks is that your child can create them anyway they like to. We used some of the free printables from Homeschool Share and added Mr. MunchKing’s work he loved about Mr. McGregor’s garden.

Although lapbooks can take more planning and be more work, in the many my kids have created, they are also memory keepers.

Besides memory keepers, lapbooks are hands-on tools which aids recall.

While true that I don’t hail to be a crafty mom, I do know the value of mess and play learning.

Lapbooks fit into this category for me. Have you ever seen a child filled with excitement as he explains a worksheet? But turn that worksheet into a mini fun book folded into a creative way, and now you have an engaged learner.

Look at my video How to Lapbook EZ on my YouTube Channel.

So The Tale of Peter Rabbit lapbook is a fun way for a child to remember the information in a fun and natural way.

Peter Rabbit End of Unit Tea Celebration

Finally, always try to end your unit study with a memorable activity. I found this adorable tea set which has is a 15-Piece Woodland-Themed Tin Tea Set, Includes Teapot, 4 Plates, 4 Cups, 4 Saucers, Serving Tray and Carrying Case for our spring tea. And what better way to remember this unit study than to have a tea party. Plus we can use it for many more themed parties!

We served raspberry muffins and rabbit shaped cookies. Also, you could serve scones, but the muffins and cookies were great hits.

Mr. MunchKing dressed up in his Sunday finest and we pretended Peter Rabbit invited us over for tea. What a fun time he had!

Finally, here are a few more fun things I found to help make your The Tale of Peter Rabbit Unit Study memorable.

More The Tale of Peter Rabbit Free Printables and Activities

Download these precious and free I Spy printables to use while your child watches the movie and listens to you as you read aloud.
Fun pop up garden paper plater craft.
Lettuce wraps for kids.
Grab these printable ABC carrot patch.
And there are even more ideas here at The World of Peter Rabbit site. You won’t be short for ideas.

**Free Literature Printables for The Tale of Peter Rabbit for Older Learners**

As you can see we had an awesome time with this fun unit study using beautiful literature. Do you think you’ll try it?

You’ll also love these other hands-on posts about gardening, spring, and beautiful literature.

A Homeschool Beginner’s Guide to Figuring Grades and Saving Time

March 28, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

In this homeschool beginner’s guide to figuring grades, I’m sharing tips I didn’t know when I began.

Figuring Grades

Although I live in Texas where grade keeping is not required by state law, I started keeping grades before high school for two reasons.

One reason is that my teen wanted feedback. The second reason is that I wanted to know how to figure grades sooner instead of tackling it on top of learning how to homeschool high school.

Having homeschooled twenty-five years now, I see how figuring grades has changed in the public-school world.

It’s not that we want to keep up with public-school changes, but eventually our kids may be graded by those same standards. It’s important to be somewhat familiar with how to figure grades.

In addition, understanding how the public-school world decides grading gives us reason to not follow them because we don’t have a classroom of 30 kids.

It’s a conundrum to somewhat follow a similar pattern of grading with widely acceptable ways of determining grades while meeting our unique circumstances at home.

Look at these tried-and-true tips and pointers.

First, I didn’t realize that public school teachers aren’t really taught how to grade. Sure, there are some exceptions to this. But several public-school teachers turned homeschool mom who took my workshops revealed that they didn’t really learn how to grade. It’s a skill they’re supposed to pick up while in training. You can do the same while homeschooling.
Second, grading needs to be purposeful. It’s one thing for me to show you various grading scales, but another for you to wield the tool of grading effectively.

A Homeschool Beginner’s Guide to Figuring Grades and Saving Time

Reasons to Grade

So, beyond your state requiring it, grades should give valuable feedback to your children. Grades serve other reasons:

they communicate what your children have learned,
they give valuable feedback where your children are along the learning continuum, identify skills mastered and identify skills which need practice,
and motivates students to grow and advance in proficiency.

Besides, if the grading tool is not created and wielded correctly, it can also have the reverse effect.

Homeschool Grades for Elementary Children

Once I realized balance was needed, I moved forward with these distinctions.

In the elementary grades, a check system like satisfactory or unsatisfactory is perfectly acceptable.
Trying to not follow public school standards in the early grades is important. Kids at that age are building their foundation of knowledge. To constantly test, quiz, and drill can be harmful to their confidence.

However, you may need a guide at this age. Below I will give you various grading scales to use for both elementary and middle and high school students.

Be sure you’re following me on my YouTube channel How to Homeschool EZ for awesome tips. Look at my video How to Gauge Your Homeschooled Child’s Progress.

In addition, high school is the time when grades become important. A lot of states have relaxed laws which means you create your own high school transcript and grading system. It’s important to become familiar now with easy ways to grade. I have a free editable transcript and helps for high school too at the bottom of this post.

Homeschool Grades for Middle and High School Teens

Next look at these two different, but easy ways to figure grades.

ONE.

Whatever subject your child is covering, convert all grades and numbers to 100. That system is understood by us because a lot of us were graded on this system.

It’s also an easy way to quickly create grading standards. Letter grades are converted to numerical value or percentages.

This system is based on the thought that 100% means all answers are correct.

Afterwards, decide how to grade assignments based on a 100 percent.

Two Easy Ways to Figure Grades For Different Subjects

Look at these various examples of how categories of assignments are divided to see what I’m talking about:

daily work 50%, quizzes 20%, projects 10%, and final test 10% = 100
assessments 75%, practice 20%, and extra practice 5% = 100
project 25%, quizzes 25%, test 50% = 100

From this you can tell grading is very subjective. You can apply equal percentages to types of assignments or different percentages like above.

Too, if you want a guide of what to teach your kid when, you’ll love my online self-paced course Teaching the Stages of Homeschool. From PreK to High School, Learn at a Bird’s-Eye View of What Subjects to Teach & When to Teach Them.

I am your coach as I take you though the ages and stages of homeschooling.

Furthermore, your grading form can list under each category the objectives or assignments.

Look at this sample below where I used Assessments, Practice, and Extra Practice breakdown from above.

Assessments – 75%	Practice – 20%	Extra Practice – 5%
daily assignments	daily handwriting	typing
essays	create a lapbook	spelling game
book reports	science experiment	watching videos

This is how I kept things easy. I decided what I wanted to grade (not grading everything) and which type of assignments or activities were more important to the subject we’re studying at the time.

It can feel a bit complicated in the beginning.

While some subjects are easier to grade than others, once you have the hang of it, just repeat the same percentages.

6 Easy Steps to Calculate Grades on Numbered Assignments

Also, look at my video How to Successfully Begin Homeschooling Middle & High School.

Additionally, some assignments are more straightforward to grade. Math is one type of subject which is easier to grade.

TWO.

Look below at these 6 easy steps to determine grades on numbered assignments like math. One of the best tips is to have a calculator handy or your phone calculator.

Here is how to easily grade an assignment like math which normally has a set number of problems like 20 or 30 problems.

Correct any wrong answers on your child’s assignment.
Look at the total number of problems on the assignment.
Calculate the total number of problems correct.
Divide the total number of correct answers by the total number of problems in the assignment.
When you get that answer, multiply it by 100.
Consult your grading scale to determine a letter grade if you want one. (I’ve shared grading scales below.)

Look at this real-life example from our math. The math assignment had 30 problems. My son missed 5 of the problems; he got 25 correct.

I divided 25 correct answers by 30 total number of problems which equals .83.

Next, multiply .83 x 100 or 83%. Finally, look for the percentage grading scale and find the corresponding letter grade if you’re keeping letter grades. Too, you’ll love this free EZ grader tool online tool.

As I mentioned, grading scales are subjective, but these are the two most common I’ve used in my homeschool. These grading scales can easily work for any grade level.

Easy Grading Scales For Homeschool

90–100% = A	93–100% = A
80–89% = B	86–92% = B
70–79% = C	78–85% = C
60–69% = D	70–77% = D
below 59% = F	below 69% = F

Noting the easy 6 steps above and based on my example about math, you can see that my student can make two different letter grades, namely a B or a C, depending on which grading scale I choose.

Now, let’s switch back to understanding the basics of percentages or the first method I mentioned.

In addition, look at my video How to Choose the BEST Middle School Literature for Your Homeschooled Child.

It’s important to understand how to categorize assignments using the 100 based system because some subjects or assignments especially like writing have very different objectives. Grading essays is an art and is subjective.

In addition to the different genres of writing, there are many skills to learn as your student demonstrates writing. Art is another subject that can be tough to grade. Those types of assignments do not have a set number of problems.

Because you have specific goals for your children to meet, the best method to grade those types of subjects are percentage based.

Tina’s Time -Tested EASY Grade Figuring Tips

You can literally get overwhelmed with all this information and I’m going to keep it easy for you.

I have used these three easy grading tips and recommend them to you.

choose one grading scale and stick to it
use third percentages (more on this in a minute) on writing and other subjects which are hard to grade like art, writing, hands-on projects, and life skills.
use both grading systems to keep grading uncomplicated.

My own opinion is that the grading scale of 90 to 100%= A is more reflective of a wider range of skills and it’s the one I’ve used more often.

Also, when grading essays, writing, or any other type of subjective assignment I keep my percentages divided by thirds only.

Having only 3 broad categories with assigned percentages kept grading easier for me. Under each of those broad categories I created objectives.

Of course, you can use any combination of 100 to create your unique goals based on the needs of your children.

Back to mentioning thirds. I understand that 100 can be divided different ways and it has great flexibility. Again, I prefer easy segmenting and having objectives within those sections.

For example, with the free form below for descriptive writing, I have 3 segments. One section is Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics 30%, Content and Style 35%, and Organization 35%.

However, you will notice I have objectives within each of those 3 categories.

Look below at my sample of the free form Middle School Descriptive Writing Grade Record which I created for you. The grading record is for middle school, and it is to be used for a descriptive essay. Thank you to Kimberley, my follower, for allowing me to create it for her and for you.

Free Middle School Descriptive Writing Grade Record

The Middle School Descriptive Writing Grade Record is a subscriber only freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my Exclusive Subscriber’s Only Library which has this form in the library.

This is how you get access to this form quickly.
► 1) Sign up on my list.
► 2) Go to your inbox and confirm your email from the automatic reply I sent you.
►3) Look for the automatic reply giving you the password to the private subscriber’s area. You should have it soon.

IF you are already a follower/subscriber, PLEASE do NOT email me asking how to find it. You may not want to wait on me replying since I get bombarded with emails.

IF you’ll find the MOST RECENT email from me, the password and link to the Subscribers Area are ALWAYS at the bottom of every email. Look for the most current email since I change the password frequently.

Rubric Versus Grading Scales

Another term which can make grading hard is understanding what is a rubric. A grading scale is a way to convert checkmarks to letter grades or to a number grade.

Although in the educational world now that has somewhat changed to a 1-to-4 point system. However, that still would have to convert to a letter grade for purposes of a report card. Don’t let me lose you.

A rubric is a term used more in the educational world and not as much in the homeschool world. A simpler term to understand is checklist.

Some homeschool evaluators with a teacher background prefer the term rubric. Whatever term you use checklist or rubric, it can be used different ways.

A rubric is a tool used by a student as a guide to view assignment expectations and objectives set by the teacher. It is a way to encourage students to self-check and can be used as a grading tool. Many rubrics exist on the internet and a lot of them are based on a 1-to-4 point system. Rubrics can be complex or simple.

Four is the highest and can mean achieve, accomplished, or even mastery. Three can be interpreted to mean proficient or practiced. Two can mean developing and one can signify incomplete.

Right away you see that a rubric or self-checking list may be more beneficial to a student of any age. We homeschool for mastery, not just a letter grade.

In addition, a checklist or rubric can encourage children to be challenged and show what they know instead of always measuring what they don’t know.

I think it’s important that if you use a rubric with young kids to assign positive terms to each number one through 4.

You’re encouraging growth at every age, but it’s especially important in the early grades that your children value practice and progress.

How to Calculate Homeschool Grades Using Rubrics

Here are a few more terms to describe each 1-to-4 point level; they can be mixed and matched based on the ages of your learners, subject type or project.

Needs Improvement, Satisfactory, Good and Well Done
Just Beginning, Getting There, Right On and Wow
Poor Effort, OK, Great, and Exceptional
Novice, Intermediate, Proficient and Distinguished
Beginning, Developing, Experienced and Exceptional
Beginning, Developing, Accomplished and Exemplary
Novice, Approaching, Proficient and Advanced Understanding
Not So Much, I Tried a Bit, I Did a Good Job and I Did My Best Ever is a cute one for art by Art Projects for Kids.

One thing I did when my children were teens was to show them my grading record, objectives, and goals. Can you see from that morphs a checklist or rubric?

Whether you use a checklist or orally convey your expectations to your children, I hope this information about figuring grades helps to simplify the process for you.

Look at these other helps.

2021 New Year New Goals Setting Beautiful and Practical Form

December 14, 2020 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I’ve never been more happier to say goodbye to a year. However, I always like to take time to reflect not just on the past, but to look forward to the 2021 new year new goals setting.

2021 New Year New Goals Setting Form

I love this form which I do each year because it reminds me to keep goal setting simple and not pen so that I can reach them; most important I remind myself to have Less of This.

It’s important to remind myself that some things I need to let go.

I don’t want to have pie in the sky goals, but to remember to homeschool and live simply.

Letting go of things that are not working at the end of the year is important to growing the next year.

I like something more generic that lets me decide what goals I want to make instead of focusing on only the 4 areas of education or homeschool, health, spiritual, and personal goals which I normally focus on,

I jot down 3 things that I want to improve or do more of and 3 things I need to do less of.

New Year New Goals

Don’t forget, I have 2 other printables too for goal setting.

One is Goals for the Year and the other one is an End of the Year Flashback for the kids. It has several color choices.

To download the Goals for the Year go to my page Step 3. Choose Goal/Objectives.

For the End of the Year Flash Back for your student planners, go to my DIY Best Student Planner page.

You’ll LOVE these other planner forms.

Download the 2021 New Year New Goals Setting Form here.

What about you? Have you thought of something you want to change this year? I know I can think of a LOT of things.

Hugs and love ya,

The BEST Viking Unit Study for Homeschooled Kids

October 3, 2018 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

The fierce Norseman or Vikings came from what we now know as Scandinavia or Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. An ancient Viking unit study makes for a fascinating study for kids of all ages.

Ancient Vikings Unit Study

Vikings prospered in Scandinavia from about 800 AD to 1066 AD. From their homes in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, the Norsemen (Northmen) explored much of the northern hemisphere between Europe and North America. A Germanic people, the Vikings had a great love of adventure.

Ancient Civilizations

Vikings became infamous for sacking villages and towns, destroying churches, and easily defeating smaller armies in their search for new avenues of trade and the spoils of war.Fearless warriors and superb shipbuilders, Vikings left their mark on Europe, Asia, Iceland, Greenland, and North America before they were absorbed into European Civilization.

Viking lands

Viking civilization began in the Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, but in the nearly 300 years of their power they traveled to and traded with many distant lands. They also created settlements in England, Ireland, Iceland, Greenland, and other countries.

Viking Expansion Watch a short video about Viking exploration.
Viking Settlements Learn which countries the Vikings settled in outside of Scandinavia.
Life in Viking Settlements Learn what life was like in a Viking settlement.
Viking Houses See the types of houses Vikings lived in.

Viking Society

Viking society consisted of jarls (nobles), karls (middle class freemen), and thralls (slaves).

Viking social classes Learn how the classes worked together and how a Viking could up and down in social status.
Viking social classes in Iceland Learn how society differed abroad from Scandinavia.
Gender and age in Viking society Learn the roles of men, women, and children in Viking villages

Viking warriors Learn what it took to be a warrior, what a beserker was, and the role women played in war

Futhark Learn about the runic alphabet of the Vikings

Viking Mythology

Vikings believed in a pantheon of Gods led by Odin. The pantheon included Thor and Loki of Avengers fame.

Norse mythology Read an overview of Norse mythology along with a brief history of Vikings.
Norse mythology dictionary Learn about Norse mythology with an A to Z listing.
The Nine Worlds A more in-depth look at the worlds of Norse mythology.

Viking Ships

Viking ships were the fastest and sturdiest of the era. The Norse skill in shipbuilding helped enable the exploration and settlement of other lands

Types of Viking ships:

Faering
Knarr
Longship
Karve

Viking ships Learn the different types of Viking ships and how they were used.
Vikings at sea Learn more about sailing and ships in the Viking Age.
Navigating the open seas Learn how the Vikings knew where they were going and how to get home.

Viking Vocabulary

Althing Yearly meeting of all Viking tribes to discuss laws and solve disputes
Beserker Warrior who wore a bearskin cloak or shirt and worked himself into a frenzy before battle
Brooch A decorative piece of metal used to hold a Viking’s cloak closed. The more ornate the brooch, the richer and more important the Viking.
Burial Ship Used for the wealthiest Vikings, these ships were filled with the belongings of the deceased and set ablaze or buried under mounds of earth or in underground chambers
Fjord A long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs found along the shores of some Scandinavian countries
Flax Cloth made from the stalks of the flax flower
Futhark The runic alphabet of the Vikings
Jarl A Viking Noble
Karl A middle class, free Viking
Keel The lengthwise timber structure along the base of a ship that supports the framework of the vessel and sometimes extends downward to increase stability
Loom A machine that weaves yarn or thread into cloth
Lyre A string instrument resembling a small, u-shaped harp
Norseman Northman
Pantheon A religion that believes in a group of gods/more than one god
Prow The portion of the front of the ship that is above water
Runes Letters of an ancient Germanic alphabet
Stern The rearmost part of a ship or boat
Strake A continuous line of planking from the stem to the stern of the ship
Thing Local assemblies where all freemen could file complaints and voice opinions
Thrall A Viking slave

Famous Vikings

Erik the Red Viking explorer who discovered Greenland
Leif the Lucky Son of Erik the Red
Harald Bluetooth Viking king of Denmark (also namesake of Bluetooth technology)
Olaf Tryggvason Viking king of Norway
Sweyn Forkbeard Declared King of all England in 1013
Gunnar Hamundarson Icelandic chieftain

Also, we love the hands-on ideas for studying history over at Home School in the Woods. They cover Vikings in their middle ages lapbook.

Recommended Books

Eyewitness Books Viking stuffed full of information and real photos
National Geographic Kids Everything Viking Short, interesting facts and large, colorful illustrations
Make This Viking Settlement by Iain Ashman Just add scissors and glue and create your own cardboard model
Who Were the Vikings? by James Chisholm and Stuan Reid Detailed drawings and answers to kids’ most pressing questions (like what kind of toilets Vikings used)
The Norse Myths by Kevin Crossley-Holland A collection of the stories from Norse Mythology
Focus on Vikings by Anita Ganeri Includes history, information, and cool art projectsAlso you’ll love these other unit studies and lapbook:

How to Teach Science Through A Story – Middle & High School

August 7, 2017 | 118 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I stalked the mailman waiting for these books from Beautiful Feet Books. I was given this product free and I was compensated for my time. However, paid for my time does not mean paid off or that a company will receive a glowing review. I don’t roll that way. ALL opinions are my own and for sure I will always tell you what is on my mind. When I do accept a product it’s because I’m giddy to tell you about it. Read my full disclosure here. Now on to the fun stuff!

Using storytelling as a powerful teacher is not a new concept to homeschoolers. Not only do we love reading stories but we understand their power to captivate and convince readers. However, until I started using Beautiful Feet Books I wasn’t so confident that teaching science through a story or through biographies would benefit my kids all the way through to high school.

First, I need to back up and explain what curriculum we’ve been poring over. For the past couple of months, it has been a delight to use the History of Science. I knew it was geared toward the 3rd to 7th grade level but we were over the top excited to ditch the science textbook and learn the history of science through living literature. Too, I know science biographies can also be used for older kids.

History of Science Living Literature

I already figured out that my worksheet approach, as academic and bookish as it sounds, didn’t work because my boys retained lessons better using a learn-by-doing approach.

Next, early on in my homeschooling journey, I had stumbled upon Early American History with my then first kindergartner. After using it with him, I learned that other equally important elements which stir a child’s thinking are living literature and absorbing history through a story. There has not been a more enriching way to teach him or my other sons to high school than a literature-based approach.

What I’m saying is that storytelling, learning-by-doing, and living literature are inextricably linked. Using those same elements while teaching science are the same ones used in teaching the History of Science and used for teaching an older child.

7 Creative Ways to Adapt Curriculum for Older Homeschooled Kids

Learning how to adapt a multiple age curriculum for upper grades can be challenging, but look at some ways I did this with the features of History of Science. They are the same tips I used with my sons all the way through middle school and into high school.

With a yearlong program geared toward 3rd to 7th grade, there is a lot of room to allow exploring topics in more depth. Using a yearlong program is key. Your time is valuable and by using a curriculum that is laid out for a year, you have more than enough ideas in place to use as a springboard for all the ages of kids you’re teaching.
Even though the biographies are geared toward a lower reading level, they are likable by an older child. Many essay points can be gleaned from each biography. For example, previous to studying this curriculum, we hadn’t researched much about George Washington Carver. Reading about this American Pioneer and his many uses of peanuts made for a fun rabbit trail or research project. Even though your younger kids can join in the project to list the many uses of peanuts, I had Tiny delve deeper into this since it piqued his interest. I required that he explain the history of the peanut. I had questions like what is the history of the peanut, why was Carver encouraging farmers during the American Civil War to break away from cultivating just cotton, and explain the growing process of the peanut. For example, he had to know that it wasn’t a peanut at all but a seed and understand that the boll weevil could devastate cotton crops.
Another fascinating point to glean from the History of Science is understanding and seeing science through the eyes of great scientists. We use this concept for history all the time. We want to learn history through the eyes of a character who lived in a particular time period. Learning science through biographies of Archimedes, Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Sir Isaac Newton, Marie Curie, George Washington Carver, Wright Brothers and Albert Einstein keeps kids equally inspired to learn about the wonders of science instead of dry, boring facts.

In addition, with many notebook pages, vocabulary words, and hands-on ideas the study guide is just that. It’s a springboard for you to use and add your own ideas. I really love how the guide is laid out because if it was totally scripted it’s hard to use that for older kids or younger kids. A guide on the other hand gives me a nudge or jump to another teaching concept that my son is interested in.
After I abandoned my wrong and stereotypical view that hands-on learning means no learning at all, I’ve been touting for years how hands-on learning needs to be used through to high school. The best books have been culled through and selected for easy hands-on activity that can be used for a variety of ages. Not only did we start our science portfolio notebook, but we did many hands-on learning activities like this one Day 4. Ancient Greece (Hands-on Science) 3 EASY Activities, ice cutting, and writing the Greek alphabet.

One more fun way to engage older kids through a story is to let them learn through a timeline. A timeline is a visual and natural way to learn. Kids can race ahead and place figures on a timeline while they read about scientific discoveries, events, and biographies. This is another key benefit to this curriculum. The timeline can stand on its own. It can be used completely separate. Instead of quickly placing the key events or scientists in order, challenge your older kids to learn about them before seeing the dates. Which significant event happened first, next and so on? Your middle school kids can memorize the events in order. It’ll give your kids foundational pegs as they fill in with more information with each time period.
Another tip that makes this curriculum especially useful to me is that it has scientists from different time periods. It’s organized into 3 parts that coincide with history, which are Ancient Scientists, Medieval & Renaissance Scientists, and Modern Scientists. I can easily add one section in depth this year and come back to this resource another year to focus on a different time period.
One last tip I do is to completely turn the teaching guide and everything over to my older kid. When you’re finished with the younger kids, let your middle or high school kid work through the lessons at their pace or at their will. For example, Tiny skipped all over the place when it came to reading and what interested him. That is such a liberating feeling for any learner and it’s the way to encourage independent learning. A lot of Beautiful Feet Books curriculum can be used that way, which is why I’ve been a user for a long time and couldn’t be more pleased.

The last thing I know you want to know about is whether it’s Christian or secular. I guess that depends on your definition of those two concepts. It’s easier to tell you that it’s very friendly toward both type of views which I appreciate.

While it has some parts that ask your child to write a Bible verse, you can leave it, use it, or add your own. That part shows they support a Christian view. However, their goal with their curriculum is to leave it up to you as the parent to add your worldview. I can say it’s more easily done with this curriculum than many I use which saturate their curriculum with their Christian or secular worldview and makes it almost impossible to tweak.

If you’re wanting to use curriculum that teaches science through storytelling with a focus on hands-on learning by using a part unit study approach and part Charlotte Mason, you’ll love this curriculum like I do.

Read about the other curriculum I’ve used here at Early American and World History, the Medieval History Sr. High levels and Medieval History Adv. Int. & Jr. High Pack history curriculum.

Guess what? You read down to here and I told you there was a surprise!

Beautiful Feet Books is giving away $100.00 of living books! Oh, you want this and please don’t think you’ll not win! I have to give this sweet giveaway to somebody! Go ahead and enter below.

How to Purchase It.

►Product Name: History of Science
►Website: Beautiful Feet Books – BFBooks
► Don’t Miss: The Getting Started page. It’s been such a helpful guide for me through the years.
►Type of product: These is a physical product but the study guide is available as a digital download too. From their site: Our newly revised and updated History of Science is a popular and exciting read-aloud approach to the study of science! Rebecca’s course uses biographies to tell the life stories of famous scientists like Archimedes, Galileo, Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, George Washington Carver, Einstein, and others as well as hands-on experiments to prove the scientists’ theories and test their discoveries. An enriching way to introduce biology, chemistry, and physics. For grades 3-7, this one-year study will cover basic scientific principles and the history of scientific study beginning in ancient Greece and continuing through the 1990s. Contains 85 lessons, dozens of experiments, lab reports, and much more.
►Price: Regular Price: $182.49 17% OFF! BFB Price: $150.95 but this is a yearlong curriculum.