Science Bob is a great resource library for the elementary science classroom. It is an excellent place for students to explore science concepts. Students can get some fun science fair ideas, experiments (that can be done offline), research helpers, science questions/answers, and science videos.
Videos can be watched as a class to introduce a new science topic or just to build a little excitement in the science class. Let students explore the experiment section and choose an experiment to perform. Each student can choose a different experiment to test at home. Hold a class science day where students can share the experiment with the class. Let them be the science ‘expert’.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
eField Trips
These virtual eTrips are composed of 4 parts. The first part is a pdf called the Trip Journal. Teachers download and print out the trip journal to guide students on their journey and to give them a place to record what they are learning on their trip. Second is the virtual visit, this is a flash video where students go on the actual trip at their own pace. Generally trips take about 15 minutes to complete. Third is a form where students can ask experts questions they have about the trip they took. Actual experts will respond to the question in 1 to 2 days. The fourth is a live chat. These chats allow students to interact with the experts in a live session at a scheduled time.
Available eField Trips include: Pearl Harbor, bats, underwater ecosystems, brown vs. board of education, butterflies, western exploration, caves, climbing Denali, desert dwellers, Dred Scott, Earthquakes, mountains, and glaciers, fires roll in an ecosystem, Glacier Bay, Grand Tetons, invasive species, whales, renewable energy, sea turtles, mammals of Denali, manatee, reptiles and amphibians, wetlands, and more. I would categorize eField Trips more like a webquest than a virtual field trip. These are great webquests!
Available eField Trips include: Pearl Harbor, bats, underwater ecosystems, brown vs. board of education, butterflies, western exploration, caves, climbing Denali, desert dwellers, Dred Scott, Earthquakes, mountains, and glaciers, fires roll in an ecosystem, Glacier Bay, Grand Tetons, invasive species, whales, renewable energy, sea turtles, mammals of Denali, manatee, reptiles and amphibians, wetlands, and more. I would categorize eField Trips more like a webquest than a virtual field trip. These are great webquests!
Mighty Book, Learn to Read
Early Elementary and ESL
Mighty Book
MightyBook is an online publisher that specializes in children's illustrated, animated read-aloud eBooks and Story Songs for ages 2 to 10, plus children's sing-along songs. All eBooks have an original sound track, many with music and sound effects, and are created in Macromedia Flash animation. Words in the stories highlight as they are spoken by the story teller. It is truly entertainment that helps kids read.
Make sure to visit the teachers page for some great integration ideas as well as some free printouts!
Mighty Book
MightyBook is an online publisher that specializes in children's illustrated, animated read-aloud eBooks and Story Songs for ages 2 to 10, plus children's sing-along songs. All eBooks have an original sound track, many with music and sound effects, and are created in Macromedia Flash animation. Words in the stories highlight as they are spoken by the story teller. It is truly entertainment that helps kids read.
Make sure to visit the teachers page for some great integration ideas as well as some free printouts!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
House Complete…well almost
Yippee, we are done with all the remodeling we set out to do. Of course now that it is done there are other things to improve, like the kitchen. That of course will wait until after the holidays.
This is the new front door we put in after removing the solid ugly blue double doors. Directly opposite is an Egyptian mirror and Indian statue of Shiva and Pavarti.
Turn directly right and there is a new door entering the study. This once was a solid wall. There was a platform and railing in the entryway prior to demolition.
Egyptian wall hanging from a dear friend for Egypt, Liz. Also felucca batik created by Kimberly. Furniture local to Colorado.
Indonesian carved vases and artwork from by Aurele. Also we had all the windows custom fitted with treatments.
Turning left you are in the fireplace room also called a living room by Coloradoans. We call the living room the room with the tv. Peg’s furniture adorns this room and fits in perfectly. Alabaster in the window seat with batiks on the wall. LL Bean rocking chairs frame the window and are split by Egyptian table.
Humidor on the wall with a gift from Basma above. Behind the peasants couch would have been the platform and railing.
Fireplace was redone with slate and painted MDF. Previously it was brick and very dark wood. New wall sconces flank the fireplace and add at great deal of ambiance. Buddha takes center stage and is accompanied by lanterns and bean pots from Judie. Metal sun from Playa Del Carmen…what a story. Peg’s King and Queen chair.
Holiday Cacti from Dad and Peg when we moved in.
New lights throughout the house and new wider window sills.
Dining room with furniture from local store. Art from Sudan and Tanzania.
Beam was sheet rocked, textured, and painted.
Wall to the right was removed and rebuilt with help from Tom.
New stair railing, new treads and carpet removed to make way for hardwood. Mask from Australia.
You can see in the picture on the right the wall Tom did. TV covers plenty of new outlets for tv components and speakers that are in most rooms of the house.
TV room has leather furniture from local store. Sewed wall hangings from Egyptian craftsman and batik by Kimberly. Lamps Mike and I made. Plants from Peg.
Curtains what a nightmare. Wall is too long. Love the sliding doors though. Tom wired the light and fan to be on a switch so no more remote.
All brand new doors that were painted. New hardware too. This door on the left is new, was the old entrance to the office. Right is cellar…still yucky down there. Bench I made! :-))) Tiled floor, this is entrance from garage and laundry room.
Massage table with Egyptian Tree of Life wall hanging
New closet that was added to replace the one removed to wide entry area. This was where the guest shower was.
Master bedroom not much changed in here.
This wall was added, before the sink was in the bedroom. New walk in shower, vanity, tile, toilet
Guest bath was 12 feet wide with a large cabinet. Now 6 feet with smaller sink, new toilet.
Shower was a redone too. New tub, fixtures, lights, tile surround.
The house finally feels like it is ours. The colors are all neutral, Copula Yellow and Mesa Tan…except the red on stairs. Everything has been painted and textured. New insulation and electricity where we could. All new doors and trim. New hardwood floors…bye bye carpet. Long project but well with it.
Had a Halloween party and the neighbors raved about the improvements. The neighborhood is made up if a handful of the same houses so everyone knows what they looked like way back when. This house was not updated since 1972 when it was built. It is now (excepting kitchen) a house worthy of the 21st century.
Visitors welcome!
Thanks for following the progress.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Highlights for Kids
I remember sitting in the doctor's office when I was a wee one and loving reading Highlights. I especially liked the find the Hidden Pictures and What's Different. There are also stories to read, Games and Giggles, Finish the Creature, and many more things to do.
This is a magazine for the younger kids and great to use in the mini lab in your classroom or the computer lab for free choice.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Wow, Things Move Fast with a General Contractor
Where to start with this entry. Not really sure what has been told and what has not so here we go, sorry if you heard it before. It is a little jumbled but you all know me well enough to understand it.
We hired a person, we will call him Ben, to drywall our upstairs bedroom because Mike and I decided it was best. Ben came in quoted the job and then sent, Bill to do the job. Bill tells me that Ben does not like to work if the home owner is present. How does he get any work done?
So Bill does the job, I pay Ben, and then after the paint dries the drywall starts to crack on the tape joints. Ugh, cannot find good help.
Mike and I see an ad for a popcorn ceiling removal guy in our local HOA (Home Owners Association) newsletter and decide to give him a call. Well he is a painter and not really a popcorn ceiling remover dude so he says too expensive better off rehanging sheet rock. Away he goes and the house is on hold except for what I demo.
Sat we have 4 guys come in to bid the master bath remodel. 2 never even submit a quote and the 2 that did were $6,000 different. What to do?
Popcorn dude swings in and says he has a friend that can do the bathroom remodel and he has time if I want. Sure, great, let's "Get It Done!" He sounds competent and like he knows what needs to be done. Works for an hourly rate that I keep track of and I reimburse building materials at no markup cost to me. Great!
He shows up a little after 8 with painter dude and they start framing the walls, pouring the shower pan, and supporting the floor.
Shower pan was poured 4 times before he thought the slope was correct? Will the floor handle that much concrete?
Electrical mess to hang our new ceiling fan and light.
Light over the vanity that is invisible.
Outside vendor added our solar tube that provides moonlight and excellent sunlight. Who needs electricity? Well of course at night we do.
Everyone needs a break now and again so I tend the garden and Mike eats the peas.
This is the new office enclosed wall.
We decided on tile and laid out the pattern. The guys had laid the tile floor and again it was not done correctly and the toilet would not sit flush, the lines of grout do not really line up either. 
When he saw the pattern we decided to make a few cuts to see if the angles would come out correctly. We decided that he was not the best man for the job and we decided he was better at other projects.
He was good at hanging doors and sheet rock so that is what I had him do. Dustin, Verna and Brisa were coming so I wanted to have the house some what safe for her. She did a great job not falling through the holes in our house! BTW that is the bench I made.
Painter dude recommends a texture guy to me and he is fabulous, so excited to have something come out right! This is the new texture called Knock Down.
Bob pulled out a bunch of the tiles around the toilet and re floated the space so the toilet would sit correctly. Unfortunately he used ABS piping onto existing PVC and the plumber later ripped it all out.
12x12 on the floor a slightly darker color than the shower.
But, he has done some amazing things elsewhere. Brian is a General Contractor and he has hired all these experts to come instantly and help out. Stan shows up and removes the ridiculous step into the house.
Crawl space beneath step.
No mice or no snakes!
Removes closet door
Gas line to the worthless fireplace that does not produce any heat.
New entry to the office.
I paint the ceilings and the master walls, mesa tan. Bathroom is interesting aqua. And we are now stuck in this one room for the duration of the remodel.
I have a new low flush ADA height toilet.
Carpet is ripped off steps and the treads are ripped out too. It is Monday trash day.
And replaced with plywood.
New front door, thanks Jason for your speed. We had no door for 4 days.
Guest bath is demoed, gone is the sink.
and the toilet and shower and drywall.
Now that I am done demoing they come into rebuild.
Electrical inspector shows up and decides we need these ugly "hammers" on the shut offs for the washer. Ick! We passed electrical.
Plumber shows up and ripps apart all of the plumbing without telling anyone. So no water for the painters, drywallers, or me to flush a toilet. He was the rudest person I have met so far. I complained about no water and his response was "this is a construction ZONE!! Grrr.
He left the basement a mess. All the old PVC pipes with their grossness still in them, wood chips from the floor, and water on the ladder he simply borrowed from us.
Passed plumbing inspection and built a closet behind the guest bath for the bedroom. Tub is in. Subfloor in. 
Painter painted the ceilings and walls of the living, dining and family rooms. I was done painting I need 3 rooms and the texture is a killer to paint. All the little valleys want to stay white. They (3 of them) painted in a day what took me 4. The main part of the house is Cupola Yellow. See fireplace not touched yet.
Richardo did all the crown molding in a day.
Life is getting hard sleeping in this room. It is too hot to sleep upstairs.
Silvano back to texture some more.
So things are crazy with our house remodel but who is really surprised about that!
We hired a person, we will call him Ben, to drywall our upstairs bedroom because Mike and I decided it was best. Ben came in quoted the job and then sent, Bill to do the job. Bill tells me that Ben does not like to work if the home owner is present. How does he get any work done?
So Bill does the job, I pay Ben, and then after the paint dries the drywall starts to crack on the tape joints. Ugh, cannot find good help.
Mike and I see an ad for a popcorn ceiling removal guy in our local HOA (Home Owners Association) newsletter and decide to give him a call. Well he is a painter and not really a popcorn ceiling remover dude so he says too expensive better off rehanging sheet rock. Away he goes and the house is on hold except for what I demo.
Sat we have 4 guys come in to bid the master bath remodel. 2 never even submit a quote and the 2 that did were $6,000 different. What to do?
Popcorn dude swings in and says he has a friend that can do the bathroom remodel and he has time if I want. Sure, great, let's "Get It Done!" He sounds competent and like he knows what needs to be done. Works for an hourly rate that I keep track of and I reimburse building materials at no markup cost to me. Great!
He shows up a little after 8 with painter dude and they start framing the walls, pouring the shower pan, and supporting the floor.
Shower pan was poured 4 times before he thought the slope was correct? Will the floor handle that much concrete?
Electrical mess to hang our new ceiling fan and light.Light over the vanity that is invisible.We closed the bathroom in as it was wide open to the bedroom. Odd design we are glad to be rid of. Unfortunately the drywall was not correctly hung and you can see 2 bubbles on each side of the door.
Outside vendor added our solar tube that provides moonlight and excellent sunlight. Who needs electricity? Well of course at night we do.Everyone needs a break now and again so I tend the garden and Mike eats the peas.
This is the new office enclosed wall.
We decided on tile and laid out the pattern. The guys had laid the tile floor and again it was not done correctly and the toilet would not sit flush, the lines of grout do not really line up either. When he saw the pattern we decided to make a few cuts to see if the angles would come out correctly. We decided that he was not the best man for the job and we decided he was better at other projects.
He was good at hanging doors and sheet rock so that is what I had him do. Dustin, Verna and Brisa were coming so I wanted to have the house some what safe for her. She did a great job not falling through the holes in our house! BTW that is the bench I made.
Painter dude recommends a texture guy to me and he is fabulous, so excited to have something come out right! This is the new texture called Knock Down. Mike and I are at Floor Decor picking up MORE tile and Bob says hey do you need an installer, yes we do, hire him and this is what the inside of the shower now looks like. 6x6 tiles on diagonal on the top, then a 2x2 tile that is 3 rows straight, then 12x12 tiles on the bottom with 2x2 every corner. Floor is 2x2. Looks really good.
Bob had to fix the height of one of the walls the other guy did as they were not the same height. Grrr!!
Bob pulled out a bunch of the tiles around the toilet and re floated the space so the toilet would sit correctly. Unfortunately he used ABS piping onto existing PVC and the plumber later ripped it all out.
12x12 on the floor a slightly darker color than the shower.Good help has been really hard to find and everyone blames the one before them. They all say I can do it all no worries. Well we have learned that you have to hire out for each specialty...hence specialists!
Silvano comes and scrapes all the popcorn off the ceilings and re textures the walls. House in covered in plastic for days.
I email the guy who helped us design some of the areas and he referred me to someone who could help with the fireplace I ripped out. The mortar around the bricks near the mantel were gone. Wee bit of a fire hazard. Brian shows right up and says no problem I can fix that. 3rd week in and still looks like this.
But, he has done some amazing things elsewhere. Brian is a General Contractor and he has hired all these experts to come instantly and help out. Stan shows up and removes the ridiculous step into the house.
Crawl space beneath step.
No mice or no snakes!
Removes closet door
Gas line to the worthless fireplace that does not produce any heat.
New entry to the office.Closet were the old entry was.
I paint the ceilings and the master walls, mesa tan. Bathroom is interesting aqua. And we are now stuck in this one room for the duration of the remodel.
I have a new low flush ADA height toilet.
Carpet is ripped off steps and the treads are ripped out too. It is Monday trash day.
And replaced with plywood.
New front door, thanks Jason for your speed. We had no door for 4 days.
Guest bath is demoed, gone is the sink.
and the toilet and shower and drywall.
Now that I am done demoing they come into rebuild.
Electrical inspector shows up and decides we need these ugly "hammers" on the shut offs for the washer. Ick! We passed electrical.
Plumber shows up and ripps apart all of the plumbing without telling anyone. So no water for the painters, drywallers, or me to flush a toilet. He was the rudest person I have met so far. I complained about no water and his response was "this is a construction ZONE!! Grrr.
He left the basement a mess. All the old PVC pipes with their grossness still in them, wood chips from the floor, and water on the ladder he simply borrowed from us.
Passed plumbing inspection and built a closet behind the guest bath for the bedroom. Tub is in. Subfloor in. 
Painter painted the ceilings and walls of the living, dining and family rooms. I was done painting I need 3 rooms and the texture is a killer to paint. All the little valleys want to stay white. They (3 of them) painted in a day what took me 4. The main part of the house is Cupola Yellow. See fireplace not touched yet.
Richardo did all the crown molding in a day.
Life is getting hard sleeping in this room. It is too hot to sleep upstairs.
Silvano back to texture some more.
So things are crazy with our house remodel but who is really surprised about that!So as of August 21st, our 16th annivesary, we have accomplished the follwoing:
- ripped out 2 closets to expand mudroom and reframed area
- replumbed 2 baths and mudroom
- added a closet
- added new entry way to office
- walled up old entranbce to office
- removed front step and lower door and closet
- new copper wiring to replace aluminum in office, master bedroom, 2 spare bedrooms, baths, living room, mudroom, and half of the garage (basement and family room still needs it)
- remodeled master and guest bath
- reinsullated all open areas
- removed carpet
- added harwood or tile
- added crown
- paint whole house (accent wall by stairs in burgundy)
Brian and Stan have been great and very excited they have been here.
Still need to do a few things but should be able to move back into a few rooms next week. We are both exhauseted but anxious for the finished look. Mike's company bought a new dealership down the road so he is workign crazy hours then coming home to the mess of a house to pull electrical or what not. We head to ME next week for a well deserved break. I also finsihed a masters course over the last 2 weeks. 2 more to go.
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