Best Sellers Countdown Part 1

Ever wondered what the top selling Picture Book Explorers packs are?

In third place, we have Picture Book Explorers ~ Tabby McTat to use with the book Tabby McTatwritten by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler.

The pack contains instructions on different techniques that lead to the opportunity to create artwork in the style of Axel Scheffler. Children can explore science, maths, crafts, performing arts and creative writing through music based activities. Among other topics, your family can also learn about London, the River Thames and rivers in general.  Full instructions for all 23 activities are included along with all necessary printables to help save you, the parent, precious time better spent with your family than trawling the web.

As with all PBE packs, this UK-centric literature-based unit study can be used with multiple ages simultaneously and you can tailor the study to suit your family whether you home educate or not. The exploration can be as short as a week if you pick and choose the activities, or it can be extended for up to a month if you do one activity every day for 5 days a week.  Perfect for homeschooling families who like to have control over their curriculum rather than have the curriculum control their family's learning time :)

A glimpse at some of the activities on offer

Pocket Garden :)

It's Mother's Day :)

Do you celebrate Mother's Day aka Mothering Sunday? It's a day I  look forward to because my children have created a whole little ritual in which I get breakfast in bed on a tray complete with cards and presents :) It's so sweet.

Mother's Day in the UK has different origins to the US tradition which occurs later in the year. 
You can find out about the origins of Mothering Sunday in Britain here.
You can find lots of cards, puzzles, colouring pictures and worksheets here.

In the meantime, I'd like to wish all mothers everywhere ....

NEW! Chapter Book Explorers

Who are Chapter Book Explorers?
They are families travelling together across a landscape of learning opportunities. They love to test all the tasty morsels offered, keeping their hearts and minds open for knowledge and keeping their hands at the ready to make, bake, craft and experiment.
They are child adventurers who may still sometimes need a guide to help negotiate the twisty-turny road towards independent learning. The path is sometimes mapped for them by older, more experienced travellers and sometimes, the path is of their own choosing as they hone their skills and sharpen their taste-buds.
They are independent readers who can navigate a pdf by themselves to determine their own learning adventure. They take on fellow travellers only when necessary and confidently carve their way forward, printing only what they need, exploring new ideas and learning what they want.
Chapter Book Explorers are all these things. They are ready for longer, more in depth, more complex studies that Picture Book Explorers. They are home educators, home schoolers, tutors and families who enjoy learning together and they are young learners who are ready to learn by themselves.

Chapter Book Explorers ~ Tom's Midnight Garden is written for learning adventurers between the ages of  8 and 12 years. The unit study can lead you on a journey that takes anywhere from 2 to 6 months to complete, depending on the number and type of activities chosen. Unlike Picture Book Explorers, it is written to the child rather than the adult so children can work with the material independently, if they wish.

This literature based unit study is cross curricular, with the geography and history projects focussing on England and the UK. There are hands-on science experiments for all seasons and a range of interactive notebooking pages included. With over 200 varied activities this pack has something for everyone :)

Find out more and view a sample chapter here.

You will also need a copy of the novel Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce.

Happy New Year 2016

Coming Soon - Chapter Book Explorers!

I'm very excited to announce that there will be a new cross-curricular literature-based unit study in the New Year. The last few activities have just been delivered to the tester families and I'm waiting for their feedback with bated breath.

This will be a larger, longer unit study for children aged 8 - 12. Older children will be able to complete the unit independently; younger children will need parental support with some of the activities.

Notebooking pages are included so that children will have a single unit Logbook as a momento of their explorations. There are over 50 hands-on activities, over 50 discussion/essay suggestions and over 50 extension ideas.

Win a copy of the new Michael Morpurgo book

Do you love Michael Morpurgo books?
We do. I think they are real book to home educators and homeschoolers everywhere. They're always moving and always pave the way into deep discussions and further learning.
I reckon that it's very likely that each one of his books would make a good springboard for a literature-based unit study of its own.
Most of them look at events in British and European history, fictionalising true stories in a way that engages modern children.
Last year, we explored The Best Christmas Present in the World and we will be revisiting the unit study, even if only for the recipes :)
If you want to win a copy of his new book An Eagle in the Snow, pop on over to Never The Same 2 Days Running for their free to enter competition.

Good Luck and Happy Exploring!