Python Programming

OK, homeschool mom confession time!  Sometimes I bite off more than I can chew.  I know, I know, it is something I am working on.  BUT, in my defense there are just so many amazing curriculum out there and not enough time, or kids, in this house anymore to use them all.

In this case though, I bit off more than my child could choose!   CompuScholar Python Programming was just that tempting! 

And still is...when my 8th grader is a bit more ready for it!  (There is a reason we should heed age recommendations sometimes, ladies!)

Like all moms, I profess my kid is a genius.  And he is in many areas.  But while he loves all things computer, programming at this level was just a bit more than he was ready for.

Python is one of the most popular basic computer programming languages. Python Programming, a one semester course, is a great subscription that takes you through multiple, well designed lessons, to teach basic programming.  It requires no software installation to your computer and does not have your child running willy nilly through the vast internet world!  The student writes their coding on Python's online engine, something I greatly appreciate.  Each video lesson works through a specific learning objective and then there is a time for your child to take a quiz and complete a corresponding project.  Luckily for you, the projects and quizzes are auto graded!

My son began this as a new 8th grader and did well on his own for the first few lessons, really enjoying the activities.  Unfortunately for him, I am NOT a computer lover and was having him do the lessons on his own,  That worked well until he got stuck and needed my help.  um.....  nope, I had no clue!  We were able to push through with the help of a fellow homeschool mom (it takes a village, ya'll) but after that he was discouraged, not happy with my lack of knowledge, and finally asked if he and dad could just start over.

So...that is the plan!  Huge praise that as a homeschooling family we have the freedom to know when to stop and regroup and have the freedom to know what is best for our children.  I KNOW with a little age and maturity on him, Python Programming will be a great program for Colby and be a nice addition to his transcript for a Computer Science credit.

It is well organized, affordable, and let's face it, the wave of the future.  Computers are not going away, ya'll- time to learn to  better use them!  And yes, I am speaking to myself!

Topics Covered:

Printing and User Input

Data types and variables

Logical expressions and flow control

Debugging skills

Lists and Loops

Working with numbers, dates and strings

Writing and using functions

Simple Object-Oriented Programming

...and more!

Python Programming is also a part of Timberdoodle's 11th grade curriculum kit.

 

 

Medical Investigation 101

Homeschooling for the most part has been fairly easy for us.  After all, I have been teaching our four kiddos for over 23 years!  I plug in reading, writing, math, science and history to our schedule and off we go!  

The hard part?  Electives!  All our kids are quite different and therefore have quite different ideas of what an elective should look like.  Sometimes I let them chose and sometimes something catches my eye to try.

 

Such was the case with Medical Investigation 101, given to us by Timberdoodle Co to review.  I mean, just the name sounds cool, right?

 

 

Medical Investigation 101 is comprised of a 247 page Student book, student work text, and teacher's edition.  The subtitle- "A Book to Inspire Your Interest in Medicine and How Doctors Think" gives you a good idea of what this book is really about.

 

The book begins discussing the medical field and introduces many vocabulary words by talking about various kinds of doctors.  It mentions some of the challenges of the medical profession (should be required reading for any current doctors) and encourages the reader to explore the world of medicine on their own.  It then turns to medical complaints by the presenting of "patients", giving patient backgrounds, symptoms and such, and encouraging problem solving skills using the background information they have provided to diagnose the patient.  As you proceed, more medical information is provided such as the role of blood, food-borne illnesses and common conditions including diabetes, respiratory illnesses and heart attacks.  You can think of it as a mini science lesson!

 

The accompanying student workbook begins with a good amount of vocabulary review and then has corresponding pages to each medical case.  After taking notes on each patient, further activities include vocabulary, fill in the blanks and matching activities, and word puzzles.  Do not let the graphics fool you though, this is not fluff and will challenge a high schooler to use their brains a bit! 

The teacher's edition is basically the workbook with the answers filled in (thank you!), but also has a short summary of each chapter to help you as a teacher keep up.

OK, every mom wants their child to be a doctor, right? ;)  But this is not only a neat way to introduce the world of medicine to your student in a fun way, but also to challenge their problem solving.  We often tell our kids they need to think outside the box, and that, I believe, is most certainly true in the medical world! 

So yes, if your child is even the bit interested in medicine you will want to grab this set!  It is also a great way to expose them to more areas in medicine than most of us are familiar with.  I am a firm believer in our kids would have more choices deciding their chosen career if they actually KNEW what choices were out there!  But even if you have a kiddo who does not long to be a doctor- this is a great elective offered in a fun, non threatening way that will challenge their problem solving skills.

Medical Investigations 101 can be found in the 11th grade curriculum kit offered by Timberdoodle, or ordered separately.  I would recommend it for 8th grade and up.

Oh, the Irony!

This poor blog has been so neglected lately!

December is a busy month no matter how you cut it.  Add in Covid times 5 people, and then a wedding and well, you get dead silence from me!  (If only my husband had had that too, haha)

I was down for almost three weeks, and here at the six week point I am still feeling run down and coughing.  I continue to spread the message, no matter how you feel or don't feel about the vaccination, mask policies, etc, Covid is NO JOKE!  Praise the Lord the rest of my family recovered quickly and I am now on my way.  We continue to pray nightly for those who have suffered greatly with this disease, whether through being sick or through the loss of those they love.  It is heartbreaking.

Most of you I know, have seen pictures of Ashton's wedding, but on the off chance you have not I will share with you with a few of my favorites! 

A final note...

As you do when you are stuck in bed for three weeks, I had A LOT of time to think and dream and plan.  When I was not asleep, of course.  One of the things I decided during that time was it is time to shut this blog down.  I originally started it to be able to share homeschool curriculum reviews with you.  I have done that since February 2012.  Since then, we have graduated three kiddos with only one left to go.  He will begin his freshman year in August and the need for new curriculum is in the past.  (As is the photo willing kid!)  I have two reviews left in the cue, so by the end of February we should be done.  

The irony?  My page view per day have been sky high the past four weeks!  Go figure!

I will have more to say about that closer to time, but in the meantime, know I have loved every minute of our shared space.  Saying goodbye will not be easy.

Oh, one more thing...  if you know how to transfer a blog into a book type product (for me personally) would you please let me know?  I have tried two sources but one would not let me edit anything out (like, signatures, linkys, etc) and one was gong to cost me $1600.00.  Who knew my ramblings were worth so much!  NOT!

Love you guys...more to come!

Covid and Following the Rules

By now you know there are no rules for Covid.  Ok, there are some rules, but they change every day depending on who you ask and what their opinion is.

Do this, don't do this! 

Whatever!!!

We have followed the rules and done what we were supposed to do-

• Wear masks.  Not a fan, but we have worn them when we were supposed to.
• Sanitize and wash hands.  Yep, all. the. time!
• No large gatherings.  Nope, not one, including church since March which breaks my heart.
• Don't eat out.  Check!  We have ordered in, done drive through, and eaten outside at a handful of places. 
• Grocery pick up.  Another, yep. Walmart online and I have become great friends. 
• Stay out of stores.  Except for a handful of time since March (Lowes and Home Depot with masks mostly)
• Take your vitamins.  We do, all year round, regardless of Covid. Vitamins C and D are always a part of our lives, and zinc was added prior to getting sick.  Not to mention all the essential oils we diffuse and use.
  
• Create your pod.  Did that too, only hanging out with a few sets of friends and our kids.
  

 And yes, we ALL have Covid.  Which we got from our kids.

Praise the Lord "mild" cases, but frankly, it has been a rough two weeks!

• Two had mild "cold" symptoms.  Stuffiness and mild cough.
  
• One has had mostly stuffiness and headaches.
• One complained mostly if a sore throat.
• One held on til the last and now has headaches, stuffiness, and exhaustion.
• I am the one who got hit the hardest, go figure.  Temperature, aches, headache, stuffiness, and now loss of smell. 

Are we having fun yet?  And did I mention our oldest is getting married in 14 days? (Why yes, I am buying an outfit online since I can't shop, in case you were wondering!!! And yes I am quarantined until just two days prior to said wedding. ugh!!!)

Here's my takeaway on all this-

 

Do all the things you can do or feel like is right for your family to keep yourselves healthy, but know in the end you may still get sick.  

Covid is real and it is NOT fun!  While we are in the mild category, we have not had fun.  I cannot imagine being older or in poor health and having to deal with this.

People need to stop the shaming stuff.  I know the feeling out there is well, if you got sick you weren't careful enough.  Stop it!  Other than not seeing our kids, we were careful.  Hey, we wiped down groceries those first few months! ;)

2020 cannot end soon enough! 

Blessings,

Before the Wrath Review

I love Bible history.  The older I get the more I love to study the mysteries of the Bible.  Some things are pretty straight forward and easy to understand.  But let's face it, some things are quite a mystery.

The end of times, for example.

Whether you believe in one timetable or another (pre-tribulation, post- tribulation, etc.) is not really important.  The important issue is the need for Christ's return.

In the new documentary, Before the Wrath, Bible scholars investigate and explore the parallels between a Galilean wedding timeline and the coming of Christ timeline. This one hour and twenty four minute film will get you thinking about many things, but the most important being that our preparation for His return is far more important than the actual date.  So contrary to our modern way of thinking, which desires to KNOW upcoming dates ahead of time, this film's creators try to show the listener how the Galileans would have understood the importance of the timeline of the return of Christ by comparing it to their culturally relevant weddings.

Examples of this would be drinking of wine by the bride and then the groom as also seen by Jesus and his disciples in the New Testament, the groom leaving to prepare a house for the bride and no one knowing when he would return except his father, and the bride preparing for his return while she waits.  Sound familiar?

Before the Wrath is narrated by Kevin Sorbo and features-

• Jack Hibbs - Theologist and host of “Real Life” on SiriusXM 
• Amir Tsarfati - Founder and President of Behold Israel 
• Jan Markell - Founder of Olive Tree Ministries 
• JD Farag - Theologist and Eschatologist
• Scott McConnell - Exec. Director of Lifeway Research 
• Jay McCarl - Ancient Middle Eastern Anthropologis
• Lizette Dillinger - Qualitative Director of LifeWay Research

"Bible scholars continue to debate the timing of the Rapture, but why is such a mysterious event prophesied to happen in the first place? Is there a deeper understanding surrounding this occurrence that we've lost over the millennia that those living in the first-century clearly understood? Newly rediscovered ancient anthropological evidence from the time of Christ finally reveals unprecedented findings that could prove the upcoming Rapture is not only real to a skeptical world but sheds new light on how and why this event must take place. Regardless of your Tribulation Period views, "Before the Wrath" will captivate believers and non-believers alike; revealing new depths of theological understanding regarding what Jesus revealed to the ancient Galileans about the end of the world in ways you could never have imagined."

The discussion of prophecy in the Bible may divide people if we are not careful, but will pull us together if we remember the purpose of it is to remind us that "God is God!"  If you are interested in seeing this documentary, I have one code to give away to one of my readers.  Just leave me a comment and tell me how I can reach you and we will choose a random winner on Monday!

“Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”):

Many thanks to Ingenuity Films for providing this prize for the giveaway.  Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.  I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, from the same blog, you are not eligible to win.  If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again.  Winner is subject to eligibility verification.