Homeschool HUB News Update--March 25 Homeschool HUB phone: 269-240-6094 email: homeschoolhub@yahoo.com website: www.hshub.org Editor: Andrea Bikfalvy The information below is offered to you as a service. Please research and decide for yourself the value to your family. The Homeschool HUB does not endorse any programs or services other than those offered by the Homeschool HUB. Send information to be added to the update no later than the Thursday before the week you want it to appear: homeschoolhub@yahoo.com ON THE CALENDAR: Details for the following events are on the calendar at: www.calendar.yahoo.com/homeschoolhub April 1--Bowling at Strikes and Spares, 1:00-3:00, $5/pp April 14--HUB Board of Directors Meeting, 7 pm at the Niles Police Complex April 15--Homeschool Skate at USA Skate 1:00-3:00, $3/pp including skate rental. GENERAL INTEREST: G 1) Webmaster out of town G 2) Homeschoolers Get Fit G 3) National Homeschool Book Award G 4) Free resource to use for learning about earthquakes (or learning Spanish) G 1) Webmaster out of town No postings to the web site this week, due to a much deserved vacation for our super web master!! Check back next week for new Random Fun Stuff, new scholarships, and more. G 2) Homeschoolers Get Fit Greetings, I just wanted to pass along this CurrClick event as I thought your regional group members might have some interest. Running March 21st-May 30th, CurrClick is putting on it's first annual Get-Fit-Athon. Participation is completely free. Homeschoolers from 4 different regions in the world will be competing to see who can cover the most miles: Team Australia, Team World, Team USA East and Team USA West. Participants will get a free exercise log and will be able to attend free fitness and nutrition seminars. Not only that, but we will be giving away 3 iPod Shuffles to winners of our team spirit awards. Again, there is absolutely no cost to participate. If you believe that members of your group would like to participate and bring your particular region to victory, please pass this along to them. More information can be found at: http://www.currclick.com/cclick_getfit.php Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions! Warm Regards, Leah Nieman CurrClick.com and CurrClick Live http://www.currclick.com Curriculum and Classes in a Click! e: leah@currclick.com p: 309-678-9576 f: 888-283-4133 G 3) National Homeschool Book Award In the Clickschooling review today there is an article about a new program called the National Homeschool Book Award. It looks interesting. They have four nominated books, which they'd like students to read. Then students vote for which is the best. It's a good way to choose some "current juvenile fiction that explores learning experiences occurring outside the traditional classroom setting and that resonates with homeschool readers". Due to copyright considerations we can't cut and paste the article here. Instead we have attached the entire Clickschooling issue to the update. You can read the article there because it does a good job of describing the award and telling why it's a good idea, then go to the website to read about the four books here: http://www.nationalhomeschoolbookaward.com/ By the way, Clickschooling is a great resource for homeschoolers! G 4) Free resource to use for learning about earthquakes (or learning Spanish) Panda's Earthquake Escape is a children's book available free online. It's located here if you want it in English: http://www.sylvandellpublishing.com/eBooks/reader/book/Panda/?lang=en here if you want it in Spanish: http://www.sylvandellpublishing.com/eBooks/reader/book/Panda/?lang=sp There is lots of good info on earthquakes at the end of the book, but the print is hard to read. You might have to print it out and read from that. MICHIANA EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES 1) Homeschool Girl Scout Troop 2) Bethel Play 3) Robotics regional tournament in Niles this weekend 4) Free Jazz and Percussion Ensembles Concert at Bethel College 5) Bethel College Concert Band Presents Free Performance 6) Bethel Chamber Orchestra and Chamber Ensembles to Perform Free Concert 7) 47th Annual International Food Fair 8) Volunteer Opportunities 1) Homeschool Girl Scout Troop Hello, Our troop would like to invite all homeschooled girls in 2nd through 5th grade (or ages 7 to 10) to join our homeschool Junior/Brownie Girl Scout troop. We recently added the Junior level to our troop so now we can give 4th and 5th grade girls this wonderful opportunity too. I am an experienced leader co-leading with another homeschool mom, Lisa Weaver. Scouts is a great chance for girls to learn and experience new things with other girls their age. We have regular meetings every other Friday. We are planning some fun troop activities like a living storybook walk, a garden tea party, badge work, camping, service projects with Reins of Life and a local soup kitchen, and much more. If you have any questions or would like information on meeting times and places please email me directly at abarber1@nd.edu. Also if you would like to get an overview of Girl Scouts in our area, visit www.gsnim.org Our next meeting is April 1. Hope you can join us! Annice Barber 2) Bethel Play Wednesday, April 6 at 1 PM will mark the last Bethel College play of the school year. "The Selfish Giant" will be performed for a special discounted price. Tickets for this event will cost $3 for students, teachers are free. If you are interested in reserving tickets, you may contact me, Diane Day @ 269-370-4589 or Bethel's box office 574-674-3425. Let's turn out for this last play and show Bethel College that we appreciate them providing us the opportunity to see their high quality plays for a minimal fee. 3) Robotics regional tournament in Niles this weekend Friday and Saturday, all day long, high school robotics teams from all over the state will converge on Niles High School for a regional tournament. These are the big robots competing in an arena in the gym. Admission is free and it's really fun to see. Also make sure to wander through the 2nd gym where the "pit area" is located. Teams will be furiously working on their robots between rounds. There are several local team competing. Excel, made up entirely of homeschoolers; Niles High School, a rookie team this year; and Berrien Springs High School, another rookie team with several homeschoolers on it. This is the first year we've had a regional in the area, and it will be an annual event. Come out and support the teams, and see if it's something your students might like to participate in themselves. Note: Robotics teams require builders and programmers, but also web site designers, art and business students to help with designing t-shirts, a logo, marketing materials and more, public speakers for presentations to schools, school boards, sponsoring companies, and the general public. Don't think the only kids on robotics teams are the ones building the robot. It's a team effort requiring many different talents. For instance, there are students making up scouting report sheets and inputting the information the scouts bring them during the rounds into a spread sheet on a laptop. The info helps as the team advances and gets to a point where they have to choose their alliance partners. The fun and excitement during one of these tournaments is infectious. Come check it out (and bring earplugs for any older folks who come along) Friday, March 25, 2011 Pits open 8:00 am Opening ceremonies 10:30 am Matches begin 11:00 am Lunch break 1:30 pm Matches resume 2:30 pm Matches end 7:00 pm Pits close 8:00 pm Saturday, March 26, 2011 Pits open 8:00 am Opening ceremonies 9:00 am Matches begin 9:30am Alliance selection 12:30 pm Lunch break 1:00 pm Elimination matches begin 2:00 pm Awards ceremony 5:00 pm Pits close 6:30 pm 4) Free Jazz and Percussion Ensembles Concert at Bethel College Bethel College will present the spring Jazz and Percussion Night April 8 at 7:30 p.m. in the Everest-Rohrer Chapel/Fine Arts Center – Auditorium. The concert will feature the Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Combo and Percussion Ensemble directed by Reginald Klopfenstein, D.M., professor of music. The wide spectrum of music will include jazz compositions by George Gershwin, Duke Ellington, Thad Jones, John Coltrane and others. The Percussion Ensemble's repertoire will include Kabelevsky's "Galloping Comedians" for mallet ensemble, and "Rain Dance," which is entirely in seven-four time. "The audience will enjoy this entertaining and engaging concert, as these groups present their final concert of the year," says Klopfenstein. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the Bethel College department of music at 574.257.3393. 5) Bethel College Concert Band Presents Free Performance The Bethel College Concert Band will perform its spring concert, "Musical Impressions: The British Isles," on Saturday, April 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the Everest-Rohrer Chapel/Fine Arts Center – Auditorium. Under the direction of Ardis Faber, D. A., the Concert Band will feature wind band music of Ralph Vaughn Williams, Percy Alderidge Grainger and Ron Nelson. Concert selections include: "Children's March and Irish Tune from County Derry" by Grainger; "English Folk Song Suite, Linden Lea;" and "Flourish for Wind Band" by Williams. A smattering of Renaissance dance music, "Courtly Airs and Dances" by Nelson will also be included in our program. "In this music, one hears the depth of simplicity in the music of the dance and in the folk songs of England and Ireland. The playfulness found in the melodies of Grainger's "Children's March" lingers with those who hear it for the first time," says Faber. "With our daily lives being filled with complexity, listening to live music is able to unravel our complex lives for a short time." Admission is free and open to the public. For more information contact the Bethel College music department at 574.257.3393. 6) Bethel Chamber Orchestra and Chamber Ensembles to Perform Free Concert The Bethel Chamber Orchestra and Chamber Ensembles will provide an enlightening learning opportunity and a unique listening experience in concert Tuesday, April 5 at 7:30 p.m. in the Everest-Rohrer Chapel/Fine Arts Center – Auditorium. Conducted by Assistant Professor of Music Vicky Tan Warkentien, D.M.M., the concert is free and open to the public. Repertoire for this program includes: "Egmont Overture, Op. 84," "Sextet in E flat for 2 Horns and Strings, Op.81b" and "Quintet in E flat for Piano and Winds, Op. 16" by Ludwig Van Beethoven; and "Symphony No. 1 'Classical', Op. 25"with the first movement by Sergei Prokofiev. The show will also include pieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with a "Concerto for Flute, Harp, and Orchestra in C major, K. 299 – Second Movement." Also included in this performance is "The Waltzing Cat & Blue Tango" by Leroy Anderson and "Two Chinese Hymns Medley" by Douglas Smith. For more information, contact the department of music at 574.807.7575 7) 47th Annual International Food Fair Date: March 17, 2011 Contact: pr@andrews.edu Phone: 269-471-6395 A longstanding Andrews University tradition, the 47th International Food Fair promises authentic cuisines prepared by volunteers from more than 20 international clubs representing cultures and traditions from around the world. The public is invited to attend this year's annual event on Sunday, March 27, at the Johnson Gym on the campus of Andrews University. From noon to 7 p.m., visitors will enjoy a small taste of the diversity represented among the student body. Admission to the event is free. Each spring, dozens of campus clubs join together for this tasty tradition. Over 150 volunteers help prepare vegetarian entrees, drinks and desserts from countries around the world, including Brazil, Europe, Kenya, Korea, South Asia and South Pacific, to name a few. Each booth will offer an authentic menu while showcasing various displays, music and ethnic décor. Nearly 5,000 visitors attend the fair annually. Each year, there are the familiar ethnic dishes, such as eggrolls, quiche, chips and salsa, and new flavors including pansit, chapati (a special Indian bread resembling a tortilla) and samosas (a Southeast Asian triangular-shaped pastry shell stuffed with spiced potatoes, onions and peas). If you aren't feeling adventurous, an all-American favorite, the corn dog, is sure to please. Satisfy your sweet tooth with tasty bubble tea, Brazilian fudge candy, delicious pastries, cakes, rolls and an assortment of European bakery treats. Approximately $30,000 has been raised each of the past few years through the Food Fair, held annually since 1964. All proceeds benefit the participating clubs. Food tickets can be purchased the day of the event in the ticket office of the Johnson Gym. Tickets are sold in increments of $5 and menu prices range from 50-cents to $6. Students will be allowed to access money from their cafeteria accounts to buy meal tickets. For more information, please contact the Office of International Student Services at 269-471-6395. 8) Volunteer Opportunities A) Volunteer This Weekend 3/26! The Inaugural Predict-A-Time World Championship Half Marathon in St. Joseph/Benton Harbor WHEN: Saturday, March 26, registration and volunteer arrival 6:30 am, race start time 7 am. Runners will finish by 10 am. (estimate) WHAT: Half marathon course starts in St. Joseph , at Schu's Grill & Bar, 501 Pleasant Street and winds over to Jean Klock Park and the scenic Golf Club at Harbor Shores . Volunteers will serve as intersection managers (you point - go that way) and water station managers (hand a glass of water to runner/walkers) If you would like to run or walk there will be 2 divisions, Junior: 17 years and under and Open: 18 years and older. The goal: it is you against the course. You will predict your time before you leave and the person closest to their time is the winner. No wrist watches or personal timing devises are permitted. Splits will be given at the 5k and 10k markers. Early registration: $35. Day of event: $40. Entry fee includes a dry fit t-shirt and a brunch following completion of the event. WHY: All proceeds will benefit the West Michigan Athletic Venture's Local Scholarship Program. BENEFIT: Enjoy the fresh air on a Saturday morning, be part of an inaugural event, join the group for brunch and assist local athletes to pursue their dreams. Just show up on Saturday morning to volunteer. Orientation and assignments provided at 6:30 am. B) Looking forward to Spring break season, the Silver Beach Carousel in St. Joseph , plans to be open everyday to provide a fun place for the families who stay nearby for their spring break vacation. They will be open all day from March 24 to April 10. Spring break for Indiana starts before southwest Michigan . Even if the weather may be cool it will be warm inside with the smiles and laughter of the Carousel riders. They plan to be delightfully busy. If you would like to see what volunteer options are open, check on line to view the job descriptions and time slots available. There will be additional shift opportunities to be filled. silverbeachcarousel.com and link to the volunteer section. There are some volunteer options that could be ideal for a young person and an adult to do together. Check it out! Questions? Contact: Debra Panozzo Adult and family volunteer coordinator Volunteer Center of Southwest Michigan 269-983-0912 ext 13 St. Joseph 269-683-5464 Niles www.volunteerswmi.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LINKS TO SHARE: Check out the new links on www.hshub.org ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CLASSIFIEDS Looking for a group? Join the HUB! There are several benefits of membership including a travel club and a resource library that includes things like books, games, laptops, video cameras and other items to borrow (free, members only). Members receive first chance at events and classes when availability is limited. The cost of membership is only $24/year. Information about becoming a member is on the website at www.hshub.org MATH TUTOR Need Help With Math? (Grades 7-12, South Bend/Mishawaka area) My name is Caleb Noble. I'm a private math tutor (and former homeschool student) in South Bend. I have a bachelor's degree in mathematics and over two years of tutoring experience, ranging from pre-algebra to calculus. As a former homeschool student, I know the challenges that parents can face, particularly with high-school math, and I have experience with the Saxon math curriculum (both as a tutor and as a student). I can meet with you and your child in your home or at any other location in the South Bend/Mishawaka area. To set up an initial meeting or if you have any questions, you can reach me at caleb_noble@hotmail.com or at 574-229-4657. First session's free! Have something for sale, free or trade? Advertise here! Homeschool groups are welcome to advertise their group, too. It's free! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LETTING IT RIDE: Amazon.com--Please come to www.hshub.org before you shop at Amazon. You can either shop the Associate Store listed in the Menu bar or click on the "Help the Homeschool HUB - Purchase at Amazon" link just below the Menu bar. By using this link to Amazon The Homeschool HUB will earn money through Amazon's Associates program on everything you purchase. So whenever you think "Amazon" please remember your purchase can help The Homeschool HUB. The Homeschool HUB is collecting used textbooks. Contact Diane Day: joharding_20@yahoo.com or 269-445-1900. The Homeschool HUB is continuing to collect Campbell Soup labels, Campbell's Chunky Soup labels, Campbell's Healthy Request labels, Campbell's Select harvest, Franco-American, Pepperidge Farm, Spaghettios, Swanson, V-8 Beverages, V-8 Fusion, Prego Italian Sauces and Campbell's Food Service. Give your labels to any board member or bring them to our homeschool functions. --AND-- We are still accepting Boxtops for education labels. You can find these on many products. Go to Boxtops for Education.org for more info, and then SAVE SAVE SAVE those labels. Each one nets 10 cents and every 10 cents adds up. You can give them to any HUB board director or bring them to any of our functions that we will be having. Thank-you! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ DISCLAIMERS: While the Homeschool HUB believes that these events or opportunities may be of value to home educators, announcements do not constitute an endorsement by the Homeschool HUB, or its Board of Directors. It is the responsibility of individual parents to determine the appropriateness of any event or opportunity for their children. Participation in any event is voluntary and the participant assumes complete responsibility and liability for themselves, their family, anyone accompanying them, and their personal property. |
Friday, March 25, 2011
Homeschool HUB News Update--March 25
