Welcome to our Big Dreams Homeschool Room!
2020 has been a crazy one so far, but we are so excited to get started on a fresh new year of learning!
I've had a lot of new-to-home-learning parents ask about the learning materials/supplies/tools that we use, so I've compiled a list of all of our most favourite things!
I purchased most of these things from Amazon because our DL school (TLA) orders them from my wish list, and they arrive at our door in a couple of days. I've included the Amazon links for easy hunting ;).
Interactive Globe
This is one of the best things we've ever purchased for our school room. The boys love it so much, and have learned a lot geography while having so much fun with it! It's been a hit with all three of them (ages 7-13). It's even fun for me!
Digital Microscope
This microscope is incredible! It's so simple to use, and so much easier than the traditional style microscope where you have to look into the viewfinder. Everyone can enjoy it at once! It magnifies 1000X, which is enough to see the very tiny fibres on fabric, and the hairs on a spider's legs (we've checked!). I wish we had bought this years ago!
"Magnatiles" Picasso Tiles
These are endless hours of building fun. (And so much cheaper than the actual Magnatiles brand ;). This is a good sized box, with 100 pieces (enough to build a 3' high Empire State Building!).
Wooden Multiplication Table
This is a great way to solidify times tables, and also work on those fine motor skills. We've learned our multiplication using songs (post to come on this!), but this is excellent for putting them to practice in a fun way that doesn't involve paper and pencils.
Wikki Stix
If you haven't tried Wikki Stix, you need to get these! They're full for all ages and levels, and can be used for so many activities! Today, Finn (10) used them to make angles for math, and Rory (7) created a replica of our dog, Reggie. There are so many ideas on Pinterest of ways to use Wikki Stix from making a model of the human body with the organs, to creating 3D art. I'm excited to find new ways to use these in our room!
Molecular Model Kit
This molecule kit is the best one we've had yet! It's sturdy, and easy to put together (not frustrating, like some of the others we've encountered). The pieces are good quality, and stay together! Highly recommend for learning chemistry!
STEM Challenge Cards
These STEM challenge cards is great for a simple way to work science into the day. They're easy enough to not be overwhelming, but fun enough to keep the learner engaged. I'm looking forward to using these this year! We've had science experiment books in the past, but I always found that we rarely had the needed supplies to do the experiments, and I'm not so great at being super prepared ahead of time. These are perfectly simple, with somewhat common items needed to complete the challenges.
Write-On Journal
I love this journal so much! And, more importantly, my very reluctant 10 year old writer loves it too! It's got some great writing prompts, and presents them in a cool, modern way. I also love that it's a beautiful quality hardcover book that I plan to keep for my memories (and theirs!).
ME Journal
This is the cutest little "All about Me" journal for preschool to lower elementary kiddos! I already can't wait to look back on the cuteness for years to come (yes, I'm crazy sentimental like that ;). Rory (7) is loving it, and already wants to fill out multiple pages every day.
Keva Building Set
They've spent hours building all sorts of contraptions with these Keva planks. They're an excellent tool to use for building ball ramps/tunnels, towers of all sorts, or even replicas of structures from history. Simple, but so great!
Gumball Machine
We've had a gumball machine in our learning room for a couple of years now, and it's been very helpful time and time again. Just sayin'. ;)
I'll be adding to this list as I think of things to add, and will only include items that we love using! I'm still signed up as an Amazon Associate from my blogging days of yore, so can possibly receive a small percentage of any sales from my site to help fund more cool learning materials (depending on the product) :).
Happy Learning!!
