Geography Apps

So in our quest to make good use of the iPads this year, I've finally gotten around to investigating apps and will be doing that for a while.  My hope is to give the girls a little down time from the nitty gritty of school work and entice them to keep learning with fun tools.

My 1st/2nd (she's between years) has done next to no Geography - though she can identify all the continents, oceans and maybe a couple rivers in Egypt.  Since we live in the US, I figured we should probably get started with US Geography soon!  So to that end I'm hoping to use the Which Way USA by Highlights magazine along with Roadtrip USA to get us moving in the right direction.

Today we picked up a couple useful Geography apps for the iPad - namely "Stack the States" which is a fun game that asks questions about various states from Capitals to what borders it to things they are known for like the Lincoln Memorial or Mt Rushmore, etc.  Once you reach a certain number of states dropped on to your 'plate' you earn a new state for your map, kinda like a sticker!  I didn't describe it well but my oldest and I played the light version a few times before we ended up buying the full version for $0.99.

Because my oldest (6th grade) has had a fascination for the states since she was really little, I figured a better challenge for her would be Stack the Countries.  By the same creator as the Stack the States it was equally fun but way more challenging for both the oldest and I!  We spent at least another 30 minutes testing out the Lite version of this before we ended up buying the full version for $1.99.

I'm still hoping to find a bunch more apps that will tie in with Math, Language, and Science, so if you are reading here and have some favs, I'm all ears!

Floundering - Time to Let the Hair Down

I'm floundering here.  I have a to do list a mile long for the girls after a week down with some weird funk the girls picked up in the local school during their scout meeting or in the community at large which all appear to be coming down with the flu.

I'm tired of being driven by the books, and the to do list of school work.  I'm ready to let down my hair and have some fun with all three girls not just the older two.  I'm afraid my littlest one who should be getting the most attention is getting the least attention due to the amount of work the older two need to put out.  I just want to sit down and enjoy the girls for who they are today - because they are so rapidly changing!

I'm reading up on the new "Common Core" that is being foisted onto our local schools and find myself wondering what the heck it really is.  Should I be taking it seriously, can I safely ignore it, or should I be steeling myself to fight against it.  I'm finding my 11 yr old is slammed with school work and projects for girl scouts.  I'm finding that the school work is standing in the way of her actually completing girl scout projects that would be of benefit for her and actually put her in a good place to pursue her other interests.  She has gifts to make for the holidays and no time to actually get them done.

I just want to sit down and go back to the basics.  Find out about our family customs - since DH's and my parents come from a totally different backgrounds.  Neither of us really paid attention to the things our families did growing up but suddenly this year it seems important to investigate the traditions and customs of our families.   It seems important to find out why our holidays happen the way they do before we run off and learn more about other cultures and customs.

In the spirit of the season, I think I need to lighten their schoolwork load and have them search out some fun.  Cause right now none of us is having any fun!  So without further adieu... the girls and I are lightening up our calendars and getting down to some real research - research that tells us what we are really made of.