Favourite books for boys ...

We are passionate about reading here at Sunnyside.  From the oldest to the youngest we love the feel of a new (to us) book in our hands.  With 3 grandparents & 2 parents who were strong readers it comes as no surprise that our 4 children love to read as well!   A well composed story is always appreciated & one of our favourite times of the evening is when I curl up in the Boys room with all 4 children & read aloud a specially chosen story!  During winter we snuggle under thick, soft covers and in summer we bask under the air conditioner, but always we enjoy it.

Today I wanted to share with you some of our favourite reading books for boys. Our boys enjoy reading a huge selection of varying genre's, so I found it rather hard to limit this post to just a few books.  I decided to focus on the 'story' books rather than the large proportion of other non-fiction books they mentally consume to keep a balance to their reading 'diet'!

Affiliate Disclosure: As an affiliate of the Book Depository I would receive a small compensation through any purchase made through the marked links on this post ~ Thanks :)

Sugar Creek Gang (affiliate link) by  Paul Hutchens:

 Zai has loved reading this series since we brought the first pack for his birthday years ago.   Slowly over Birthdays & Christmases he has collected almost the whole series ( one birthday to go until it's complete!!).  I was initially concerned with some of the names of the books, but when I read the actual book they were harmless.  These are Christian books & not only give a wonderful, fun adventure story, but also encouragement in living a Godly life as a boy!

The Barn Chronicles by Rosie Boom

This series of 3 books would have to be a favourite here at Sunnyside & we are eagerly anticipating the publication of the fourth!   These are true stories of the adventures of a homesteading, homeschooling family living in an old barn in beautiful New Zealand.  We initially read these aloud as a family, but quickly they are then reread & reread & reread!  I would be remiss if I didn't include these in any list of books we read!! 

The Moody Family by Sarah Maxwell  

These are quaint stories of a sweet homeschooling family!  They will encourage your children in their faith in the Lord & maybe even help around the house as well. Loved by both the boys & girls as either a read aloud or during their personal reading time.

Tintin  (affiliate link) by Herge 

We all enjoy reading these.  I once read that these comic books are a bridge between picture books & chapter books & I would have to agree.  Each of my children enjoy them at their various levels whether it is observing the carefully drawn illustrations or reading each book through from cover to cover.  There are a few issues such as alcoholism that come up in the stories, but they  are always presented in a negative light. 

Famous Five (affiliate link) by Enid Blyton  

These were one of my first chapter books when I was a child & my children are equally enamoured.  Both boys & girls enjoy these & we are so excited to see that they are being rereleased.  I know there are loads of 'newer' versions, but we all agree here that the original stories (by Enid Blyton) are the best.

Horrible Histories  (affiliate link) by Terry Deary

These are so very entertaining & they add a historical element as well.  I'm not sure how accurate all the 'facts' are or how suitable all the books are.  You might want to have a quick read to check that they are suitable.  Our boys thoroughly enjoy the majority of these!

Battle Boy by Charlie Carter

 My boys are often borrowing these titles from our library.  These are an adventure book where the main character goes back in time to famous battles & meets key historical figures.

Charlie & the Chocolate Factory / James & the Giant Peach (affiliate links) by Roald Dahl 

We enjoy some of Roald Dahl's books, but be careful as not all are suitable for children.  Always be aware of what your children are reading ~ one of my friends was almost caught out with a couple of titles by this author .  These two books are classics & our children love them.  

Richard's Hammonds Blast Lab (affiliate link) by Richard Hammond

Not necessarily a story, but all my boys agree that this is one of their favourites.  Although it holds numerous science experiments, it is read as a book by some of the occupants here.

This is by no means a full list of the many titles that are enjoyed here on a daily basis.  All those listed here have been reread numerous times & loved by more than one child!  

What do your boys enjoy reading? 

Have a lovely day

Farmschooling in real life...

Tuesday dawned a beautiful winter's day after a long weekend break to celebrate the Queen's Birthday.  I had completed all my school planning on the weekend (as I try to do each weekend) & so we were ready to begin a very full day of educating.  I was attempting to condense what we generally do in 5 days into 3 days ( we have an excursion day on Friday with our homeschooling group). Now I know I should stop trying to do the impossible, but if you know me, that's what I do anyway... All was proceeding well & we completed our devotional/ table time & the older two commenced their various maths books independently so I could focus my time with the twins ( year one students need a whole lot more attention than older learners especially for english).  We all worked hard & they completed a good amount of their work before lunch ( since we have farm jobs to complete in the morning, we sometimes get a later start in the morning, but I count on a long afternoon stretch to catch up).  Very quickly the clock was telling me it was time for our noon meal &  so I began heating our left overs from dinner on the stove top (our microwave has died ~ I know it's better for our health, but it sure isn't as convenient) when the telephone rang.

Studious students... I love it!

We were selling our ewe lambs from last year as we just have to destock (usually we don't sell til September, but this time we had very little choice)  & Dave had spent a couple of hours the evening before making sure he had them all locked tightly in the yards.  The buyer was bringing his truck to pick them up sometime during the day & could easily load them himself .  I had noticed his truck pull up at the shearing shed a few minutes earlier but didn't think much of it because he was expected.

The telephone call was the said buyer & I was rather surprised since I knew he was just down at the sheds.  He quickly relayed to me that there was a problem.  The sheep were gone! There were not one sheep in the yards.  There was however an open gate... I could feel my well-planned day beginning to dissolve ...

I quickly gathered my diligent easily distracted students to attention.  They were only too eager to get outside (I'm sure the outdoors calls to my boys especially loudly during school hours).  They were off, grabbing gumboots & jackets & tumbling out the door.  I quickly followed after thankfully remembering to turn off the bubbling pot in my care ( of course I should have put it in the fridge too, but I didn't think about that).  

Our kitty cat loves to sleep on top of their work boxes while they are doing schoolwork!

Our buyer was waiting at the shed & we quickly came up with a plan to herd those pesky, mixed up lambs back into the yards.  Unfortunately by this time they were making their way into the forest where the only way to travel is by foot. (Because if you really want difficult herding ~ do it in a forest full of trees & fallen logs & undergrowth that loves to trip the less than cautious.)  Thankfully I had a full team of 'sheep herders' ready to go.  So we sent three of the children into the forest & Eli & I took the side & the buyer went around the shed to prevent them going directly past the gate & down into the newly emerged crop paddock (which is just as likely to happen to us).

I thought the children couldn't do it.  I quickly gave up my place & went to aid them in their pursuit of those wooly beasts, but to my surprise when I rounded the edge of the dam they were all coming towards me.  I quickly retraced my steps until they had passed & then helped the completely proficient team of shepherds ( who did not need a speck of help from their mother) complete the movement to the open area where they were used to being fed.

They only got away once, but some quick sprinting on Eli's part got them turned ( Mum is not quite as fast & took the side) & they moved amazingly well back & around into the yards.

Then it was time to draft them.  You see not only had the ewe lambs escaped the yards, but they had gone for one last play with their brothers and were all mixed up!  So we ran them through the draft which sounds so very easy, but can be so very difficult depending on the sheep you are drafting.  I think by this time they were regretting their morning of fun  ~ either that or they felt sorry for the poor, hungry farmers ~ because they moved considerably better than I expected.  

This is Ellie's 3D art project ~ any medium, but had to be about Joshua & Jericho!  I love it!!!

Eventually we had the ewe lambs back where they had originally been placed, ready to load through the shed & onto the loading ramp into the truck.  They didn't hesitate ~ maybe they'd heard rumours about the lush pastures they were going to.  The truck drove away with a very patient, understanding buyer driving.

The hungry children & I finally moved the wether ( males without their male part) lambs back into their paddock & returned to the house only to find our half heated lunch stone-cold on the stove top.

After coming up with a lunch alternative ( rather than risk food poisoning) & taking a well-deserved lunch break, the school day didn't pan out quite the way I had hoped.

Real life learning ~ on an excursion with our homeschool group!

This is life for children on a farm.  Some days the jobs come unplanned ~ chasing pigs/cows/sheep/chickens are all things that just can't wait.  (In fact Zai is just now leaving his maths to once again chase the escapee pig out of our house yard).  As a person who likes plans to go exactly as they were made at times I struggle with this, but I need to remember that schooling just doesn't happen at the desks or table.   In fact I'll add that a lot of the best education happens in these moments where we drop the books & real life takes over (yes, it's hard for me to write that ~ I'm a 'complete every page & tick every box' type of Mum).  I'm fairly sure that God is teaching me all about flexibility!

And what a great PE lesson.....

Real life...farmschooling

Blessings

TOS Review ~ Christiany Cove

Christianity Cove provides products that aid in Children's ministry.  They have a selection of products including Sunday School lessons, Devotionals,  Bible games, Drama scripts & Crafts that assist the teacher in providing a fun, creative & relevant lesson. As both a homeschooling mother & a Sunday School teacher I was interested in these products & their relevance to both roles.    I was provided with two products to review from Christianity Cove:

Daily Dilemma's: 26 True-to-Life Devotions for Kids and The Divine Dozen: 12 parables of Jesus Every Child should know. 

Daily Dilemma's: 26 True-to-Life Devotions for Kids :

This contains a  selection of 26 different lessons for 6-12 year olds using real-life scenarios to encourage Biblical choices.   Within these lessons over 47 topics are raised which can lead to some lively  & interesting teaching & discussion times.  Topics vary from Bed wetting, Occult, Cheating & Funerals to Fairness, Sportsmanship, Honesty & Trusting God.

Each lessons commences with an open-ended scenario in which  you are introduced to a variety of characters with various life issues. A list of Scripture verses is then provided to 'help the character decide what to do' in their unique situation.  4 different options are then presented for the students to rate from best to worst.  After discussing these you then turn to the relevant reflection page which contains teaching about  the choice being made & then finally the 'most Christian Response' is revealed.

We used Daily Dilemma's: 26 True-to-Life Devotions for Kids during our morning school Bible time.  I found these very easy to present with very little preparation required on the teachers part. My children were particularly enthusiastic about this part of their Bible time  & thoroughly enjoyed the process of listening to the scenario & voting for which option they had chosen .  The reflections were interesting & they were rather passionate when the best response was revealed. Overall the lessons were engaging & fun for both the teacher & students.

As a homeschooling family I found not all the scenarios were relevant.  Most occurred in a public school setting.  I occasionally found it difficult to choose the very best option myself and I did not always agree with the best choice given.  Some of the Scriptures presented did not seem to relate to the choices given.

Overall we enjoyed these lessons & it opened up opportunities to discuss various topics that we haven't previously.   Even our 7 year olds could understand the lesson & think about what was being presented, although I do feel that some of the topics were a bit mature for such a young age.  However this would be a wonderful tool to use for my Grade 5 & 6 (10-12 year old) Sunday School Class and it would be completely relevant to children of that age & stage.

Daily Dilemma's: 26 True-to-Life Devotions for Kids is available as an instant download in pdf format for $29 from Christianity Cove.

The Divine Dozen: 12 Parables of Jesus Every Child Should Know:

This contains 12 different Bible lessons on the Parables of Jesus.  These lesson present the parable's message in fun & memorable ways & engage the children in activities that help to emphasize the underlying what you are teaching them. Each lesson is designed to cover one single parable & takes 30 to 45 minutes.  The lessons commence with a 'Lesson Capsule' which provides an overview of what the main topic is within the parable & why it is relevant.   The Scripture is then provided including being printed in it's entirety.  Materials for the activity are then listed & any prior preparation required by the teacher is given. Various application lessons are then given to ensure a full understanding of Jesus' teaching in that particular parable.  This is followed by an activity related to the teaching.  It may be a discussion, a game, a craft or a simple worksheet. Although no age group is recommended my children are in grades 1 to 5 & all enjoyed it, however some of the sheets were a little difficult for my first grade students.

I used these lessons to reinforce my children's knowledge of the parables.  They were already familiar with them as we emphasize Biblical knowledge in our family & life.  The children enjoyed the lessons & the activities we tried.   I thought there were some interesting interpretations of the messages of some of the parables, but overall I think this is a good resource to have.  I did find that the lessons were rather too long for our daily school devotions, however once again these would be excellent for a Sunday School class or a specific lesson time set aside weekly in your homeschool.

The Divine Dozen: 12 Parables of Jesus Every Child Should Know is available in pdf format to download for  $24 from Christianity Cove.

TOS Review - Math Mammoth

Around the homeschooling community I'd heard whispers about a popular maths program written by maths teacher & homeschooling mother Maria Miller called Math Mammoth.  I was so excited when we were given the opportunity to review one of her products & so I chose to try the Light Blue Series for Grade One to use with our twins.

I received the Light Blue Series -Grade One as a download.  It contained:

*  Work text Grade 1A & Answer key

*  Work test Grade 1B & Answer key

*  Chapter review sheets & Answer keys

*  Practice worksheets (including worksheet maker)

*  Tests on all chapters as well as end of year tests ( Tests also come in an editable format should you wish to utilise this option).

*  Money chapter 8 for different countries (original contains USA) & answer keys.  This contained separate chapters for Australian currency, British currency, Canadian currency, European currency & South African currency.

* Bonus softpack.

The Light Blue Series texts are available for grades one through to six and come  as a complete curriculum which is fully inclusive containing both the teaching instruction & the student work questions.  This enables simplicity within the teaching process and structure for the maths lessons.  Mammoth Math  emphasises on conceptual learning ( the 'why' not just the 'how').  This is apparent throughout the whole text with mental maths being written into the program.   The lessons are simply written, easy to follow, understand & administer.  The books are bright, colourful & engaging.  They contain a variety of different styles of  maths questions to both cement the concept & keep the student interested. To properly place your student, a diagnostic test is available at their website.  

At the beginning of each chapter is an introduction followed by a list of 'helpful resources on the internet' that can be used as a supplement to the 'bookwork' if your child requires additional work or some fun games to test their newly acquired skills.  This is followed by the work pages which is broken into sections and finally a review of work completed is at the end of the chapter.  Once the whole chapter is sufficiently understood & completed, the chapter test is administered.  This gives the teacher a good idea of how thoroughly each concept has been grasped by that particular student.

Light Blue Series - Grade One covers:

- Addition concept and facts within 0-10

-Subtraction within 0-10

-Connection between addition and subtraction

-Graphs

-Two-digit numbers and place value within 0-100

- Addition and subtraction facts within 0-10

-Clock and calendar

-Shapes and measuring

-Adding and subtracting within 0-100

-Counting coins

We used Math Mammoth Light Blue Series -Grade One as our main maths curriculum for both Eli & Jud this term.  I was so very happy that it required such little effort on my part as it seems my time is very limited at this point of the year.  Both boys found it very understandable & easy to work through whilst challenging enough to make them think about the answers they were trying to achieve.   I was pleasantly surprised at the variety of questions contained within the sections and the ease which the boys understood each part.  Very quickly they were working ahead whilst requiring only minimal teaching from me.  I also appreciated that they were able to work at their own pace & were not held back or pushed forward before they were ready (as is often the case with 'teacher taught' programs with two students so very close in levels ). Math Mammoth makes teaching multiple students of various levels & grades easy!

AUSTRALIAN STUDENTS:

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Math Mammoth tries to be as user friendly as possible for families all over the world.  It covers Australia currency, metric measurement & even has a small section on mass which caters for both  kgs or lbs. When compared with a national curriculum text I couldn't identify any areas that would need to be supplementing for my boys.  I am confident that  using this program will ensure a great mathematics grounding for any Australian student.

The Math Mammoth Light Blue Series - Grade One all inclusive package as I received is available as a download for $38.00 or on CD for $43.00.  It is also available for purchase as separate worktexts &  in a complete Light Blue Series Packaged together with the other grades HERE.

  As a mathematics lover it is important to me to ensure that my children fully grasp their mathematics topics whilst still cultivating a love for this subject in them.  This program helps to ensure this is done.   I am confident that using Math Mammoth will aid in laying the foundational elements required for  future success in  their mathematics studies!

Literally Bacon & Eggs...

We all like it for breakfast don't we ~ the iconic bacon & eggs!

Here at Sunnyside we have it as a treat on a Saturday morning & it's a confirmed favourite!  

But lately we've been having a problem around here that seems to put this breakfast pleasure onto another level... well I'd better go back to the beginning...

Last year was a wonderful growing time for my 'Chook Nook'.  I'd generally had a pretty steady mid-teen number of hens with one ugly rooster ( Zai's silky) strutting around as 'lord of the henhouse'.  Then a friend from church decided to close down his free-range egg farm & was selling his laying hens really cheaply... so Dave decided to purchase 20!  I was just so excited to have such a wonderfully stocked coop & we were delighting in numerous eggs &  the ability of keeping precious friend well supplied as well!

As you know, we free-range our hens.  That's right ~ we just open the door of the morning & close it at night & they spend the day delighting in finding tasty, nutritious morsels amongst the pastures of the farmyard ( oh, yeah & my garden, but that's another story...).  

We began to notice that the number of hens was dwindling.  Slowly & surely we were loosing hens.  It wasn't very many at a time so we noted it & kept our eyes out for foxes that enjoy absconding with random members of the fowl community never to be seen again.  It seemed that no matter what we did other than locking them in permanently ( which forfeits the purpose of happy hens which lay nutritious, delicious eggs) we couldn't stop this decline in numbers.  

Our pigs were also delighting in the free range life & while we had them in the front paddock all was fine, but then we separated the piglets from their parents & then the parents decided to take a well-earned vacation &  visit a neighbour for an extended stay.  Once one particular piglet found he could handle the shock of the electric fence (he must have had his brain fried early on as it stops the other piglets in their tracks) he frequently squeezed his ever-growing body under the fences & extended his roaming territory to wherever he pleased which included all over the farmyard.  

As our chicken numbers dwindled, our piglet kept growing & we never, ever put two & two together until one fateful night.  

Dave went down to lock up the chickens as is part of the summer evening routine at Sunnyside  when he found to his horror this escapee piglet feasting on a freshly killed chicken dinner!

(We have been so very strict with our pig's diet always making sure any kitchen scraps given to them were devoid of meats & oils & always ensuring they had a good supply of grain in addition to anything they grazed on.  So you can imagine how we felt to know that he was eating not only our egg suppliers, but meat as well.)

These are obviously not the escapee piglet & yes, this is what pigs do to a pigpen ~ very quickly!

Unfortunately no matter what we did that rascally piglet continued to get out of the enclosures we would put him in ( & yes, we had to put the pigs into a smaller area this summer as we needed the feed for the sheep due to a severe lack of water & pasture all over the farm).    It seems he also introduced his family to the delight of 'poulet' as should any chicken meander into the pigs pens they were swiftly consumed.  

So we are counting down the days until the end of this month when the butcher comes & those naughty piglets become our breakfast ( & dinner)....Chicken flavoured pork anyone???  And then & only then will I restock my very small chicken flock to hopefully ensure at least some eggs come spring!

Meanwhile we are expecting another batch of piglets any day ( Delores is waiting in the farrowing area as we speak).  I have been inspecting another shed that will be alright as either a pig pen or a chicken coop with only a few minor repairs, but I'm sure in another month or so once the grass has regenerated itself the pig family will be able to range further afield (within the confines of a good fence line) & won't enjoy the sport of chicken catching quite as much.

Image Source: HERE

Life on a farm....never, ever dull that's for sure!!!

Who knew ~ bacon & eggs before the bacon & eggs...hmmmm...

(And after talking to more experienced pig farmers apparently this is not unusual)

Hope this hasn't put you off your breakfast!

Have fun

Joining up:

BLAH...

Is anyone else experiencing warnings while trying to read my blog?  I keep getting blocked from it so I'm wondering if it is just me or if it is the blog (so I need to contact blogger about it).  Could you please email me if you are having problems at renataatsunnyside@gmail.com.

~Of course assuming you can get through to read this ~ 

Thanks lovely readers :)

Molly Review - Simplified Pantry

I know I've mentioned briefly that I've had to change my diet in the past 9 months.  This is something I have battled with as I'm still trying to get my head around what works & doesn't work for my body. I've found if I generally maintain a gluten free diet, my body is happier & I don't suffer the debilitating pains that I previously have.  You can imagine my excitement when I was asked to review one of a selection of 3 ebooks by Misty Winckler from Simplified Pantry.  I chose Simplified dinners gluten-free/dairy-free.

Simplified dinners gluten-free/dairy-free comes as an ebook in pdf format.  It is easy to download & very user friendly for the busy cook. It provides quick & easy recipes with very little preparation requirements.   The book  begins with a basic introduction to gluten & dairy free eating & an overview of ingredients that potentially contain gluten or dairy.  It then gives a master pantry list that I found particularly helpful in this new diet I am attempting  to follow. It then continues with a wonderful assortment of recipes including slow cooker recipes, beans, taco bar, burritos, stews, soups, salads & a wonderful selection of desserts!

Simplified dinners gluten-free/dairy-free has a unique way of presenting a recipe.  It begins each page with the process at the top of the page (often giving the option of stove-top or slow- cooker) following with an assortment of variations to the recipe.  It is unique in that it doesn't always give amounts, but rather relies on the cook to be able to work out how much is required for their own family.  Misty shares in the introduction that "The primary purpose of these recipes is not so much to provide recipes as to give reminders of the general method of certain standard family dinners." (GF DF Simplified Dinners p5)   This makes adapting for your own  family sizes & eating requirements simple.  I found this ebook easy to follow & kept it on my ipad which made it accessible whilst both menu planning & also in the kitchen.  I enjoyed the various adaptions to the meals that were presented & was surprised with such a selection.   Each meal we tried was tasty & enjoyable! 

Peanut Butter Cookies ( choc added) ~ these are a 'must try' !!

We tried:  *   Peanut Butter Cookies ~ multiple times ( I added choc chips to for one batch ~ yes, I know they contain a tiny bit of gluten...not a problem!!) p 32 *   Hearty Stew p 25 *  Brunswick Stew p25 *  Teriyaki Sauce Stir fry p22 *  Honey-Balsamic Foil-Packet Fish p14  & *  Teriyaki marinade p 13 All meals were delicious & the whole family enjoyed trying out these new recipes.  I intend to continue to incorporate these recipes in our menu.

Hearty Stew (with rice & various other vegetables added).

Simplified Dinners also comes in a 'normal' version. This contains many of the same recipes as the GF DF version, but without the dietary restrictions. For reviews on this product please visit my fellow review crew members.  

I was also provided with an additional ebook from Simplified Pantry called Paperless Home Organization.  This is a step by step manual for introducing a paperless home management/ life management system into your home.    For reviews on this product please visit my fellow review crew members. Both Simplified dinners are available as ebooks (pdf) for $12.99. Paperless Home Organisation is available in both pdf & kindle formats for $3.99 Mystie is kindly offering a 30% discount to all my readers using the code: TOS 2013  at checkout.   This applies to all her ebooks until the 3rd June.