Castles and Medieval Fun

My 13 year old and I read the book "Castle" by David Macaulay together. He absolutely loved reading about the history and building of the castle. He has another larger DK book on Castles and as we read told me about his previous knowledge on the topic we were reading about and expanded our discussion. The images (drawings) being b/w are a perfect match so that details of the castle stand out.

After reading this story, we watched the accompanying PBS special Castle by the same author. The movie is s a perfect tag-a-long going into further details and highlighting real castles and showing the details of the Castle that was discussed in the book.

To follow up on the book/movie, my son is now building his own brick castle. We ordered a kit and it includes everything to make little bricks from molds and then directions on exactly how to build the castle.
I highly recommend purchasing the book, movie and castle building kit together if you or your child is interested in castles and/or medieval studies. All three provide great discussion, for both visual and auditory learners as well as a hands-on learning experience.

Educate your children about safety and crime prevention

A fun and entertaining way to educate your children about safety and crime prevention.

Drugs, bullies, gangs, strangers - the potential dangers facing kids these days are numerous. You want them to be safe, but it's not always the easiest thing to sit them down and give them advice they're going to want to listen to (or remember). So why not try teaming up with McGruff the Crime Dog?

Parents and kids have been looking to McGruff for almost thirty years for facts and tips about safety and crime prevention - now you and your family can look to McGruff.org. The site is loaded with fun interactive games and stories, videos, downloads and advice, all featuring McGruff and his nephew Scruff, helping show your children how they can stay safe. There's even a section with information for parents and educators, so you can reinforce everything your kids are learning from the crime-fighting hound dog.

You don't have to teach your kids about safety alone - let McGruff give you a hand!

Visit McGruff.org

StudyJams! a new online learning experience

StudyJams! is a new online, subscription-based learning experience for kids in grades 3-6. Developed by Scholastic, StudyJams! is dedicated to helping kids learn math and science in ways that are fun, relevant and rewarding.

StudyJams! was designed to introduce and reinforce key math and science concepts. Whether your child needs help to better understand a challenging topic or simply wants to learn more about a subject they already enjoy, StudyJams! can help. StudyJams! was created in conjunction with leading educators nationwide and all of their content is based on state curriculum standards.

Every kid learns in a unique way. That's why we they multiple learning paths to match different learning styles. By using videos, interactive lessons, karaoke, music and more, StudyJams! empowers kids to learn the way that works best for them. All the while, the StudyJams! Crew — RJ, Mia, Zoe and Sam — are there to guide your kids through every topic.

Kids love StudyJams! because on top of being fun, with each Jam they complete they earn Jam points. Jam points are redeemed in the recording studio, where kids can create their own original music. When a song is finished, it can be downloaded as an mp3 file and shared with friends.

They make it easy to sign up and even easier to use. When you sign up for a "parent account", you get three "child accounts". Each child account has its own username and password (created by you), so each child has a unique and personalized learning experience. With the parent account, you can monitor how your kids are doing.

StudyJams.com is fully password-protected, ensuring that your kids will always be safe on StudyJams!

Visit STUDYJAMS!

The Next American Idol

I was trying to keep my almost 3 year old daughter occuped - she loves to sing :)

http://www.gather.com/viewVideo.jsp?id=11821949021862185

My Twins Before Their 2nd Birthday (March 2007)

This video was taken about a year ago (March 2007), right before they turned 2 ... the first part is of the twins coloring their birthday invitations... the second part is of them reading a book together and the third part they are running and playing.

Ball Pit Fun

My little Country Line Dancers

BathTime - BedTime Fun

The first part is of Anthony playing in the tub and the second part is of Mike reading “Good Night Moon to the Kids before Bed.” This was taken at some point over this past summer… Enjoy :)