Friday, November 22

Books to Celebrate Chanukah

As part of our continuing series on Celebrating the Holidays through Literature, this month we are bringing you a collection of Chanukah stories to share with your children!

Pop over to the Books for Christmas post to download your freebie, includes cross-stitch patterns for the holiday, easy peasy gift guides, a couple of fun holiday homeschool unit studies, a decorating guide to bring your personal flair, holiday self-care tips, and a cookie recipe collection!

What's the deal with all the different spellings?

There are over 15 possible correct ways to spell Chanukah in English...but why? "Hanukkah" is the traditional Hebrew spelling, while "Chanukah" is the Yiddish spelling. Yiddish is based on Hebrew, but also includes influences from German, Slavic, and Aramaic.

In Hebrew, Hanukkah is spelled Het-Nun-Kaph-Hay. That's four letters, but when they translate into English, especially with the accent marks, it leads to several possibilities. So Hanukah is right, and Hannukah, and Hannukkah, and Hanukkah. And so is Chanuukah, Chanukah, Chanukkah, etc...

Hanukkah Books for Kids

The booklist is alphabetical and includes books for everyone from preschoolers to middle schoolers.

Chanukah Movies for Kids

Download the entire holiday bundle of book lists for free. Can't get enough of the holidays? Incorporate the Bricks Through the Year and History of Our Holidays bundles into your homeschool year, too!

Pick up the Jewish Holidays in Literature Bundle!

Each of the ten unit studies in this year-long bundle centers around a book for middle school level and includes videos, cooking projects, hands-on activities, writing assignments, and more. There are also resources for younger children in eight of the ten units (not in *).

Introduction to Judaism
Solomon and the Trees + Tu B’Shevat unit
The Queen of Persia + Purim unit study (sample)
Devil’s Arithmetic + Passover unit study
The Secret Shofar of Barcelona + Rosh Hashana unit study
The Yom Kippur Shortstop + Yom Kippur unit study
The Mysterious Guests + Sukkot unit study
All-of-a-Kind Family Hannukah + Chanukah unit study
Broken Strings + Fiddler on the Roof + Persecution unit study*
The Golem & the Jinni + Kabbalah unit*

Wednesday, May 22

International Roadschooling: Transportation & Before You Leave

Before You Leave

Planning

Pull out your passport and check the expiration date. It can take a while to get your passport, so have one in hand when you book your trip. Make sure it's good for at least another year.
Traveling during Britain's "shoulder season" (May, September, and early October) is easier and less expensive than in peak season. Plus, shoulder season travelers enjoy smaller crowds and better room availability. July and August are peak months to visit, with very long days and nice, warm weather. July is typically the warmest month of the year and June is the sunniest.
Contact your cell phone company to add an international plan, if available. If not, you'll need an unlocked phone with a local SIM card.
Book hotels with cancellation, whenever possible. Travel insurance can help, but it's easier to simply cancel if that's an option.
Plan to stay in some smaller bed & breakfasts or hotels run by locals, if you have the chance. Get to know people in small towns and learn about cultural differences. (We recommend the Old Schoolhouse in Haltwhistle, if you get that way. Ten stars! Tell them the Oklahoma homeschoolers sent ya. Seriously though, Kate is an amazing cook and Ian is hilarious.)
Let your credit card company know that you will be travelling abroad. This way, they won't cancel your transactions, believing them to be fraudulent.
Get the travel insurance. It can cover financial losses, medical care, emergency transportation, lost baggage, and canceled or delayed flights.

Weather & Clothes

Don't overpack. Packing light will help you to be more mobile. Many places do not have elevators, so only pack what you can carry up the stairs, onto public transportation, and walking through villages.
Contact your accommodations ahead of time to see if there is a place you can do laundry. This will stretch your clothing, eliminating the need for more suitcase space.
Layer your clothing to accommodate various weather conditions. Tank tops, long sleeve shirts, and a jacket can be mixed and matched to cover many settings and temperatures.
You're more than likely to see rain at some point in your trip. Have an umbrella at the ready wherever you go.

Transportation

Planes

If you are certain of your itinerary, book your trip as soon as you have the money. This goes for airfare and hotel, but also train tickets. Choose your seats for both the plane and the trains. In addition to saving money, you'll have the peace of mind that comes with knowing your reservations are set.
If you don't have a connecting flight, choose a seat toward the back for easier access to the kitchen and bathrooms.
Be nice to the flight attendants. Always.
When returning home, use the Mobile Customs app to speed through the customs line.

Trains

While there are some hiccups in rail transit, a lot of train companies allow you to file claims and get refunds online if your train is as little as 15 minutes delayed. Often if it's over an hour delay, you get a full refund.
The British are quite punctual and if you are late, you may be considered rude.
Book a table for longer train legs. You'll have space to read, eat, work, stretch out, and more.
Hold onto your train ticket. At bigger train stations, there are fare gates to scan your ticket on the way out, and the same applies for the Tube in London —you have to tap out in order to leave. On some trains, you'll be asked to show the ticket in motion and can be hit with a fine if you don't have it.
Order a pre-paid Oyster card, which can be used on various forms of public transportation in London, including buses, the Tube, trams and more. Using this card, rides are cheaper, and you can even show them at restaurants, shops, galleries and more around the city for more discounts!

Automobiles

Don't get run over. Driving on the left side might seem quirky and fun if you're not used to it, but the forgotten consequence for pedestrians is that cars are coming from a different direction than you're used to, so your natural instincts when crossing the street will be thrown off. Be sure to check both directions, multiple times, before crossing.

Feet

Don't cut in line. Queuing is almost a pastime in England...it's that important. In England, the right side of escalators is for standing, while the left side is reserved for people who are walking.
Fight against jet lag by getting rest before your trip. Drink lots of water during your flight to helps combat jet lag, and take it easy on the day you arrive. Don't immediately go to the hotel and lay down, but try to walk around and stay up to adjust to the local clock. However, to better avoid illness, give yourself some time to take it slow until you can overcome jet lag completely.
Do the touristy things. Odds are you'll never see the people around you again, so go out and enjoy yourself. Be a little quirky and see every tourist attraction you want!

Transportation websites:

Pick up activities and worksheets to augment your real or virtual trip in the unit study bundle below!

Explore the art, history, geography, food, and culture of England in this cross-curricular unit study….perfect for families getting ready to travel abroad or folks who want to travel via unit studies! Each stop along the roadschooling trip covers a different facet of history and culture with unit information, resources, worksheets, activities, and more...

YES! I want 122 pages of FUN STUDIES!

Table of Contents:

o Introduction & Geography of England
o Portsmouth
- o The Mary Rose & naval archaeology
o London
- o The British Museum & archaeology
- o The Wallace Collection & medieval history
- o The Tower of London / London Bridge & the Tudors
- o Buckingham Palace & royalty
- o Victoria and Albert Museum & medieval art
- o Thames / Globe Theater & Shakespeare
- o Sherlock Holmes Museum & British Literature
- o Abbey Road & British Invasion
o Leeds
- o Royal Armouries & middle ages
o York
- o Jorvik & Vikings
- o York Castle & archaeology
o Haltwhistle
- o Hadrian’s Wall & ancient Celts
- o Vindolanda & archaeology
o Alnwick
- o Alnwick Castle & architecture
- o Poison Garden & herbs
- o Barter Books & WW2 history
o Alnmouth
- o North Sea & train history
o Newcastle o Segedunum & ancient Romans
o Tips & Tricks for Travelling in England

Wednesday, May 8

Roadschool Trip to Leeds: Royal Armouries

The Royal Armouries is Britain's oldest public museum and traces its roots to the Tower of London. The collection is split across three UK sites — Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds; its ancestral home at the Tower of London; and Fort Nelson near Portsmouth. It is also the only UK museum to have a permanent presence in the US at the Frazier History Museum in Louisville, Kentucky.

If you have a chance to visit the museum, be sure to stop in the rock garden on the top floor, where you can see the city of Leeds and experience a peaceful moment of rest!

Once an important part of England's military organization, the museum is one of the oldest museums, and also one of the largest collections of arms and armour, in the world.

The Office of the Armoury grew out of the department known as the King's Privy Wardrobe at the Tower of London in the mid-15th century. Overseen from 1423 by the Master of the King's Armour, in the White Tower, the Office was responsible for manufacturing armour and edged weapons for the monarch and his armies; it functioned alongside the Office of Ordinance, which had responsibility for firearms.

Our teen took a notebook and pen, as well as a folding yardstick, to the museum to get accurate measurements and descriptions of various pieces of historic armour for his blacksmithing / swordsmithing business. Sparks Forge & Armory is a small business where he creates beautiful, accurate, and detailed historical reproduction crossbows, scabbards, swords, daggers, maille (chainmail), armor, and other medieval artifacts. Each piece is hand made and unique!

Visit Sparks Forge & Armory's website to discover the history of each unique piece as it is crafted. Follow the Facebook Page for the Artefacts of the Week!

Pick up activities and worksheets to augment your real or virtual trip in the unit study bundle below!

YES! I want 122 pages of FUN STUDIES!

Table of Contents:

o Introduction & Geography of England
o Portsmouth
- o The Mary Rose & naval archaeology
o London
- o The British Museum & archaeology
- o The Wallace Collection & medieval history
- o The Tower of London / London Bridge & the Tudors
- o Buckingham Palace & royalty
- o Victoria and Albert Museum & medieval art
- o Thames / Globe Theater & Shakespeare
- o Sherlock Holmes Museum & British Literature
- o Abbey Road & British Invasion
o Leeds
- o Royal Armouries & middle ages
o York
- o Jorvik & Vikings
- o York Castle & archaeology
o Haltwhistle
- o Hadrian’s Wall & ancient Celts
- o Vindolanda & archaeology
o Alnwick
- o Alnwick Castle & architecture
- o Poison Garden & herbs
- o Barter Books & WW2 history
o Alnmouth
- o North Sea & train history
o Newcastle o Segedunum & ancient Romans
o Tips & Tricks for Travelling in England

Thursday, March 14

Books Featuring Homeschooled Children (for all ages!)

While we love to teach about other eras, cultures, and people through literature, it's also good to recognize similarities...and homeschooled children don't often see other homeschoolers featured in the books they read. Fortunately, this is a trend that is changing!

It's a fuzzy feeling when your homeschooled child reads about another kid who is learning at home, too, and knows that s/he isn't alone. Whether your children are in elementary or high school, there's a book on this list that they'll be able to connect to, and the booklist is also a great reference tool for families (and well-meaning relatives) who are skeptical about this whole homeschooling thing you've been taking on....

Younger Readers

Middle & High School Readers

You may also like...

Thursday, February 29

Exploring the Kindertransport with Max in the House of Spies

Kindertransport, a German term meaning children’s transport, was the informal name of a series of rescue efforts that brought thousands of refugee Jewish Children to Great Britain from Nazi-held lands between 1938 and 1940. After Kristallnacht, an organized massacre of German Jews, the British government eased immigration restrictions to allow children under the age of 17 to enter Great Britain from Germany and German-annexed territories (Austria and Czechoslovakia). The Kindertransport program was only for children up to the age of 17 because the British government didn’t want lots of adults coming when there was already an unemployment problem in England.

Private citizens or organizations had to guarantee payment for each child's care, education, and eventual emigration from Britain. In return, the British government agreed to allow unaccompanied refugee children to enter the country on temporary travel visas. It was understood that parents or guardians could not accompany the children, but once the war ended, the children would return to their families. The government didn’t cap the number of children who could come, but also didn’t give any money or support to the program, so the refugee aid charities were only able to bring over as many children as they could make arrangements and raise money for covering.

The last transport from Germany left on September 1, 1939, just as World War II began. The last transport from the Netherlands left for Britain on May 14, 1940, the same day that the Dutch army surrendered to German forces. In all, the rescue operation brought about 9,000–10,000 children from Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland to Great Britain. Some 7,500 of these children were Jewish. Many children from the Kindertransport program became citizens of Great Britain, or emigrated to Israel, the United States, Canada, and Australia. Most of them would never again see their parents, who had been murdered during the Holocaust.

Similar to the experience of Jews living in Nazi-controlled areas before World War II, refugees today have no choice but to flee their homes when they are threatened by conflict and persecution. They often encounter immense challenges and adversity in their journeys, including exposure to extreme weather conditions, lack of access to proper food, shelter, education, and job opportunities. Because they are forced to confront difficult circumstances and trauma, studying the stories of refugees and genocide survivors can offer students valuable case studies on skills and character traits they can develop for overcoming adversity in their own lives.

You may also be interested in the World War II unit studies and World War II Booklist.

Read

Saving Hanno (picture book)
Max in the House of Spies (graphic novel)

Max Bretzfeld doesn’t want to move to London. Leaving home is hard and Max is alone for the first time in his life. But not for long. Max is surprised to discover that he’s been joined by two unexpected traveling companions, one on each shoulder, a kobold and a dybbuk named Berg and Stein. Germany is becoming more and more dangerous for Jewish families, but Max is determined to find a way back home, and back to his parents. He has a plan to return to Berlin. It merely involves accomplishing the impossible: becoming a British spy.

Watch

Into the Arms of Strangers

Make / Do

Using a map, follow the Kindertransport (there were several) from points of origin to destination.
Organize a fundraising activity or a donation drive in your community for unwanted clothing and blankets to send to a refugee camp.
Decide if the Kindertransport was a success...
Light a candle on Holocaust Memorial Day, and learn about the Yom Ha'shoah in this unit study.

Vocabulary

Nazis
Kindertransport
Kristalnacht
Anti-Semitism
Refugee
Persecution
Flee
Prejudice

Think

What do you think it is like for modern-day refugee children who come to our country?
How do you think modern experience are the same, or different, from the Kindertransport?

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