Resource for Free Printable Children's Stories: Vintage Graded Readers(ebooks)

I've added new categories to my Happy Hearts Homeschooling Library which makes it much easier to search for children's academic readers by grade level. To search by grade, see the quick lists in my contents for Google books and Project Gutenberg books.

These vintage readers are a super resource for accessing quality printable fiction and non-fiction children's short stories. Each book is linked to the table of contents for easy scanning. The books(and then some) are listed in my Google library which can be searched with key words. The search engine is not the best, but if you keep adding words and fiddling with it, you'll hit on some resources.

Free Curriculum: Teaching Table Manners

From The School Kitchen Textbook, by Mary Johnson Lincoln, published in 1915:

There is no place where it is more essential, or where there
is a better opportunity to observe the golden rule, than at the
daily home table. "

If you please," and " No, I thank you," are in far better
taste than " Yes, thanks," and " No, thanks." Accept what
is offered or placed before you ; but should your preference
be asked, and you have any, it is allowable to name it at once.
When a plate has been filled for you, keep it, and do not from
mistaken courtesy pass it to the next person. Make some
sign of acknowledgment for what is served you, either by an
inclination of the head or a quiet " thank you," whether it be
offered by those presiding at the table or by the waitress.
Courtesy to all, and especially to a child or a servant, should
be the daily habit.

In family serving, wait until all are helped before you begin
to eat, and be on the alert to assist in the serving as much as
possible. But where there are trained waiters and several
courses, begin as soon as you are helped that there may be no
delay.

Keep the spoon in the saucer, because if left in the cup,
both may be overturned.

Do not talk or drink while food is in the mouth.

Take your soup quietly, from the side of the spoon, lest
in bending your arm to put the end of the spoon in your
mouth you interfere with your next neighbor. Dip it into
the plate from instead of toward you, and thus avoid dripping
the soup. Read more here.

And from The Goops, published in 1900: Table Manners, Parts I and II.

The Goops character training books have been republished in color.

Canning Jar Labels: Free Printables

Click on title.

Homeschooling, Old Fashioned Education: Speyer School Curriculum Guide for Grades Kindergarten Through Eight

By Columbia University Teachers College and published in 1913. There are some nice graded book lists. Click here. Many of the books mentioned are available at the library, online in the form of free ebooks(downloadable), and in reprint at stores like Amazon. com or Barnes & Noble.

Free Printable Grocery Store Price Log

Click on title.

Free Children's Ebook: A Wonder-book for Girls and Boys(Classical Mythology) By Nathaniel Hawthorne

Beautifully illustrated, published in 1892, free and in public domain. Readable online, downloaded, and printable in HTML mode(right click on image of pages). Click here.

Vintage Scouting for Girls: Official Handbook of the Girl Scouts

Published in 1920 and in public domain. Click here. Read online or download. To print, right click on image of the page. Make sure it is in HTML mode in order to save image or print, see sidebar on bottom.

Excerpt:

1. THE HOME MAKER
By SARAH LOUISE ARNOLD
Formerly Dean of Simmons College

The Keeper of the House. Every Girl Scout knows
that good homes make a country great and good; so
every woman wants to understand home-making Of
course that means "keeping" a house; and of course that
means that Girl Scouts should try for the Housekeeper
Merit Badge, the "Home Maker."
Now "making a home" doesn't mean just having it,
owning it and holding its key. It means making it a
good place to live in, or helping to make it so. This
sounds like the House that Jack built ; but all this belongs
to the making of a home.

CONTENTS
Foreword by Sir Robert Baden-Powell.
Preface by Josephine Daskam Bacon, Editor.
SECTION :
I. HISTORY OF THE GIRL SCOUTS 1
II. PRINCIPLES OF THE GIRL SCOUTS 3
III. ORGANIZATION OF THE GIRL SCOUTS 13
IV. WHO ARE THE SCOUTS? 17
V. THE OUT OF DOOR SCOUT 35
VI. FORMS FOR GIRL SCOUT CEREMONIES 44
VII. GIRL SCOUT CLASS REQUIREMENTS. 60
VIII. WHAT A GIRL SCOUT SHOULD KNOW
ABOUT THE FLAG 67
IX. GIRL SCOUT DRILL 84
X. SIGNALLING FOR GIRL SCOUTS 97
XI. THE SCOUT AIDE 105
Part 1. The Home Maker 106
Part 2. The Child Nurse 157
Part 3. The First Aide 164
Part 4. The Home Nurse 217
Part 5. The Health Guardian 254
Part 6. The Health Winner 257
XII. SETTING-UP EXERCISES 273
XIII. WOODCRAFT 280
XIV. CAMPING FOR GIRL SCOUTS 313
XV. NATURE STUDY FOR GIRL SCOUTS 373
XVI. THE GIRL SCOUTS' OWN GARDEN 456
XVII. MEASUREMENTS, MAP-MAKING AND KNOTS 466
XVIII. PROFICIENCY TESTS AND SPECIAL MEDALS 497
XIX. REFERENCE READING FOR GIRL SCOUTS . . . 540

Make Your Own Crayon Organizer Using Recycled Boxes

Click on title.

HILDEBRAND AND HELLELIL

Beautiful painting, tragic story.

They stood at the door with spear and shield:
‘Up Lord Hildebrand! out and yield!’
He kissed me then mine eyes above:-
‘Say never my name, thou darling love’
Out of the door Lord Hildebrand sprang;
Around his head the sword he swang.

HILDEBRAND AND HELLELIL, TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH.

Painting: "The Meeting on The Turret Stairs" by Frederick William Burton, Pre-Raphaelite.

Light Blocking Drapery Liners Which Actually Work

We've gotten heavily lined drapes and blinds which were labeled "light blocking", but they never truly blocked the light. I wanted heavy drapes like the kind you find in hotel rooms, super heavy duty light blocking drapes, the reason being that the children's bedrooms faces west, and it gets really hot in their rooms in the late afternoon and into the evening. The sun shoots right through two layers, the lined drapes and closed blinds, especially in my daughter's room. I planted a Japanese Cherry tree in front of their windows, but it is not quite tall enough yet.

So today while I was searching for a tension rod at Walmart, I found some Roc-lon drapery liners The package stated that they were made of the same fabric used in hotels worldwide, so I tried them, and they work really well! You can hang them behind your curtains or drapes on a pocket rod, or attach them with drapery pins to the back of your existing drapes. I spent about $24.00 for a two panel package which included the drapery pins.

These liners will definitely save us on air conditioning costs. They advertise that they cut down on noise as well. We've got traverse rods in both the children's bedrooms, so these were very easy to loop onto the existing pins behind the drapes.

Read Walmart reviews here.

One small issue is that each package fits a window width of up to only 50 inches. The larger size would need a patio panel(drapes that open only on one side). Our window width was a bit wider, but the liner still blocked out enough light to make the room almost pitch black. For complete coverage I'd have to double up the liners - one pack for each drapery panel, but that's for an absolute black out which is a little creepy for the kids. Another way to make it darker would be to hang the liners on a tension rod in the window where you'd normally hang your blinds, or if you have room, in front of your blinds. This blocks out the light/heat from above the drapes and from the sides. The only downside is that you can't move them on the rod during the day; the fabric is very thick.

Tips for Slicing Homemade Bread

Click on title.

Fifth and Sixth Grade Nature Study Resource/Curriculum

I hadn't realized this, but ds's fifth grade science book is all nature study. I had to order additional books(newly published) which cover regular fifth grade science. I was flipping through this book tonight, and it reminded me so much of a Charlotte Mason type nature study. The entire book is in black and white with charming hand drawings throughout. It's a thorough nature study with Scripture sprinkled among the pages. We'll be using both books, the nature study and the regular science from Rod & Staff. The nature study is just too good to skip.

There are two books: Book One for fifth grade, and Book Two for sixth grade.

God's Marvelous Works, Book One is 30 lessons covering Insects, Birds, Flowers and Reptiles.

God's Marvelous Works, Book Two is 30 lessons covering Algae and Fungi, Mammals, and Aquatic Creatures and Amphibians.

Links above show sample lessons.

I got mine on ebay for a few dollars plus shipping. Use Bigcrumbs.com as your shopping portal to ebay for additional discounts. I get a rebate of 36% of the seller's fees. Not a fortune, but every little bit counts.

Curly Haircare Product Review: Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil with Ginseng

I have long hair with naturally loose curls. In the summertime it goes bonkers with the humidity. Frizz and dryness are a real problem. I've tried numerous products to control the frizz, and many cause scalp irritation or blemishes around my hairline. I even tried olive oil and mineral oil, but they didn't work well, and the olive oil was very hard to get out of my hair.

For the past week I've been using Africa's Best Ultimate Herbal Oil with Ginseng(made in the U.S.A.) in an 8 ounce bottle which I picked up at Family Dollar for $2.00. I had to use it twice, leaving the oil on my hair overnight, and it worked quite well! My hair is a lot softer and no frizz. You can use this on your skin as well, so it's dual usage is thrifty.

Here are the ingredients:

Soy Bean Oil , Walnut Seed Oil , Kiwi Fruit Extract , Olive Fruit Oil , Castor Seed Oil , Sesame Seed Oil , Jojoba Seed Oil , Carrot Seed Oil , Sweet Almond Oil , *Tocopheryl Acetate , Safflower Oil , Calendula Extract , Yarrow Extract , Cucumber Extract , Carrageenan Extract , Ginseng Extract , Sage Extract , Comfrey Extract , Aloe Extract , Fragrance.

*I looked up Tocopheryl Acetate, also known as vitamin E acetate, and it is a common vitamin supplement.

The fragrance in a little strong, but the ingredients are almost all natural which makes a big difference for my skin and hair. I have a sensitivity to many haircare products for curly hair.

See the good customer reviews at Walgreens online.

7/09 Update: I am still using this product and it's the only thing that really works on my hair. I tried some organic rosemary oil specifically for hair and scalp, but Africa's Best is much more effective. I do wish that this oil came unscented, but this is just a minor concern .

Free Old Fashioned Color-By-Numbers Preschool Sheets

These Mennonite coloring books are so cute! I'm going to order the first one, Color-By-Number For Little Hands - Number 1 (ages 3-5). My two year(2.10) old loved the cat and food sheets. I like that they have a few sample printables(click on "Look in the Book") so you can try them out with your little ones.

There are two others we enjoyed:

Color-By-Number For Little Hands - Number 2 (ages 4-6)

Birds - Color-By-Number

I helped with the more difficult ones, but she really enjoyed matching the colors to the numbers. I think it's because they provide large drawing spaces for very young children, and the pictures are simple, but appealing.

Have you seen the Little Jewel Books? These are wholesome hand drawn Amish/Mennonite books about nature, family values, and Christian lessons for young children. My son loved these, and now my daughters picks them up for me to read, often bypassing our Barney books! It surprised me, but I was glad because they teach as well as entertain.

Maybe it is our strong German background(Pennsylvania Dutch: Non-Mennonite), but we are so drawn to these Mennonite resources. The books feature rural scenes so similar to my grandparent's old home outside of Hellertown, Pa(Wassergas). I love the Pennsylvania countryside; it's in my blood even though I've never lived there. My grandparents sold their "gentleman's farm" in the 1980's, and sadly, have since passed away.

If you like wholesome children's books with simple drawings of farms, rural life, nature and animals, these resources will be a hit. They are very inexpensive as well!

Mulching the Garden Frugally

A local tree company delivered free mulch earlier this week, so we have been working on whittling down the huge pile. We got the front yard done and almost finished the backyard today. It's quite a bit of work, but the trade off is it doesn't cost us a dime.

If you can obtain free tree chips(mulch)from your municipality or a tree company, this is a very frugal way of keeping the garden beds moist during hot summers. It also keeps down the weeds, and makes the beds look "finished".

We don't water our garden, so mulching heavily is the only way we can keep a garden without paying large water bills. Our water bills since the drought last year as high enough without having to water the garden. We do water our little vegetable garden, but we use water from our rain barrel.

Free Children's Educational Resource: Kids.gov.com

See here: here.

Saving Money on Water: Homemade Rain Water Barrel

I finally decided to make my own rain water barrel for the garden. The ones I priced online were almost $100.00! Our local Ace Hardware has a huge one that is ready to install but it was $118.00, so we settled on a large garbage can from Wallyworld for $7.99. It was a bit more expensive than the ones at Dollar General, but this can was light weight and easy to cut. The can is eco-friendly, made with 75% recycled materials.

We bought a flexible drain extender from Home Depot, disconnected the top gutter, and then screwed the flexible extender into place. We cut a hole in the top of the lid and fit the plastic extender right through it. The lid was thin enough that I was able to cut into it with a knife, and then heavy duty scissors.

Last night it rained for about 30 minutes, and the can overflowed. We'll be adding a hole near the top as an overflow, and probably hook it up to another can. I'm thinking this could be done with some caulk and a large funnel or PVC pipe. Speaking of caulk, here are is a free sample.
We get a lot of water coming off our roof in this particular location. If we add another extender, I could probably reach it to the kiddie pool and fill it when it rains.
It was so nice to use free water today on my garden! I just dunked the watering can in and was able to water all my new plantings, vegetables, and indoor plants. I have plenty left. This was so easy!

See more at the Make It From ScratchCarnival