In the Hand of a Child

The World Leader in Lapbooking and Notebooking Unit Studies! 

In the Hands of a Child is starting to feel the Christmas Spirit and we want to help you feel it too, so…

…are you ready to win big?

 

Just follow these two simple steps for your chance to win $100 worth of lapbooks and/or Note Packs!

 

Step 1.  Post about the STUFF YOUR STOCKING SALE and the

SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY.

 

Where should you post?

 

·         Blogs

·         Facebook

·         Twitter (be sure to include us in your tweet by using @HandsofaChild)

·         Pinterest

·         Public Message Boards

·         Anyplace that will allow you to give us a link to verify your post

 

Step 2.  Come back to our blog and leave us the link to where you posted so that we can view and verify the post. (Except when using Twitter, in which case, be sure to mention us in your tweet by using @HandsofaChild so that we see the tweet).

 

The more places you post to and leave the links for on our blog, the more chances you’ll have to win!!

 

It’s that easy!

 

The winner will be chosen using Random.org on December 23, 2012.

 

SO… What are you waiting for?  Get in the spirit and start posting!

 

GOOD LUCK to ALL!!

And Don't Forget our Stuff Your Stocking SALE!!

http://livingmontessorinow.com/2012/11/08/safari-ltd-review-and-giveaway-5-dinosaur-toobs/

Safari Ltd. Review and Worldwide Giveaway – 5 Dinosaur TOOBS (ARV $55)

Written on November 8, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Activities - Cultural, Giveaways, Resource Reviews

154 Comments - Leave a comment!

If you know a child or students who love dinosaurs, then I have the giveaway for you! I also have the giveaway for you if you want to put together hands-on dinosaur-themed activities for home or school!
I’m a real lover of Safari TOOBS®, and Safari Ltd. is sponsoring a WORLDWIDE giveaway of 5 different dinosaur TOOBS® (ARV $55)! What a perfect gift for a child, homeschool, or school!
You don’t need to be a Montessori teacher or Montessori homeschooler to appreciate Safari Ltd. TOOBS, although the TOOBS are wonderful for creating Montessori-inspired activities. Safari Dinosaur TOOBS are perfect for parents of children who are dinosaur lovers. They’re also great if you’re a homeschooler or teacher who wants to give your children and/or students hands-on dinosaur learning activities which work well for multiple ages. What a great introduction to paleontology!
In case you aren’t familiar with Safari Ltd. products, they’re award-winning miniature collectibles in over 45 themes (perfect for unit studies). The Safari Ltd. sculptors work closely with zoos and museums to create detailed, lifelike molds from which each small plastic model is made. The models are all hand painted and packed in reusable acetate tubes with a spin-able globe on each tube’s lid. Safari Ltd. TOOB collections are phthalate-free and safety tested. Suggested age is 3+.

About the Safari Ltd. 5 Dinosaur Toobs

Safari Ltd. has LOTS of dinosaur replicas, including 10.5″-15.5″ individual dinosaur replicas. Each TOOB of 1.5″ to 3″ H dinosaurs  is $10.99, and Mega-TOOBS are available for $20.99

Dinos TOOB

Replica Size: 1.5″ to 3″ H (4 to 7.5 cm). The Dinos TOOB includes Triceratops, Iguanodon, Corythosaurus, Stegosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Trannosaurus, Dimetrodon, Velociraptor, Spinosaurus, Diplodocus and Pteranodon.

Dinos TOOB Key (Image from Safari Ltd.)

Note: Click on each Dino TOOB Key for larger image. Note: Special thanks to Kateva from Safari Ltd. for putting together these helpful keys in time for this giveaway!

Dino Babies TOOB

Replica Size: 1.5″ to 3″ H (4 to 7.5 cm). The Dino Babies TOOB includes T-rex Baby, Brachiosaurus Baby, Triceratops Baby, Allosaurus Baby, Apatosaurus Baby, Parasaurolophus Baby, Stegosaurus Baby, Raptor Baby, Pteranodon Baby and Spinosaurus Baby.

Dino Babies TOOB Key (Image from Safari Ltd.)

Carnivorous Dinos TOOB

Replica Size: 1.5″ to 3″ H (4 to 7.5 cm). The Carnivorous Dinos TOOB includes Baryonyx, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Elasmosaurus, Kronosaurus, Dilophosaurus, Acrocanthosaurus, Allosaurus, Carnotaurus, Spinosaurus, Pteranodon, Dimetrodon, and Utahraptor.

Carnivorous Dinos TOOB key (Image from Safari Ltd.)

Feathered Dinos TOOB Replica Size: 1.5″ to 3″ H (4 to 7.5 cm). The Feathered Dinos TOOB includes Psittacosaurus, Protoceratops, Pachycephalosaurus, Chasmosaurus, Apatosaurus, T-rex, Caudipteryx, Dilong, Beipiaosaurus, Microraptor, Velociraptor and Sinornithosaurus.

Feathered Dinos TOOB Key (Image from Safari Ltd.)

More information about the Feathered Dinos TOOB from The Dinosaur Toys Blog

Dinosaur Skulls TOOB

These are realistic plastic dinosaur skulls painted to look like fossilized bone. Replica Size: 1.5″ to 3″ H (4 to 7.5 cm). The Dinosaur Skulls TOOB includes Carnotaurus, Velociraptor, Brachiosaurus, Oviraptor, Nigersaurus, Diplodocus, Dilophosaurus, Dracorex, Triceratops, T-rex, Parasaurolophus.

Dino Skulls TOOB Key (Image from Safari Ltd.)

Educational information about the Dinosaur Skulls
You won’t have a hard time finding activities to use with the dinosaur TOOBS. I have a Montessori-Inspired Dinosaur Unit filled with hands-on dinosaur activities and links to dinosaur printables. There are activities for preschoolers through elementary and up.
I also have a Dinosaur Unit Study Pinterest Board with even more Dinosaur activities of all types and for a number of ages!

UPDATE: Check out my Montessori-Inspired Dinosaur Activities Using Replicas! I share a number of Montessori-inspired activities created using the five Safari Ltd. Dinosaur TOOBS and Montessori Print Shop materials.

More about Safari Ltd.

Products: Safari Ltd. isn’t just about dinosaurs. With over 45 different themes, you can find hand-painted replicas for TONS of educational activities or free-play fun. You’ll see an example of the Safari Musical Instruments TOOB in this post: Montessori-Inspired Music Appreciation: Swan Lake.
You can read about the fascinating history of Safari Ltd.
At the Safari Ltd. site, you’ll find educational information about many of the replicas.
You can also follow Safari Ltd. many places online, including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+. They’re revamping their Remarkable Replicas Club, but by signing up you’ll receive the monthly Discover the Scoop e-newsletter. (There’ll be optional entries for following Safari Ltd. on the Rafflecopter form.)
Here are the answers to F.A.Q.
Disclosure: I received the 5 Safari Ltd Dinosaur TOOBS for this review. I was not required to write a positive review, and any opinions expressed are my own.

Now for the Giveaway:

What You Will Win: 1 lucky winner worldwide will win the 5 Dinosaur Toobs with a value of approximately $55!

WIN a set of World Maps and Pin Map Flags

 

There has been a lot of discussion lately about the various ways to introduce children to geography by way of the traditional wooden puzzle maps and how 'pin' maps make an excellent substitute to the beautiful (but expensive and large) wooden maps.

We've shown you a typical progression through the geography materials and the extension lessons here. We've shown you in this tutorial how to prepare the geography pin maps and flags - and we've shared with you a fantastic alternative to 'Pin' Flags.

To top all that, we've given you a FREE Map of the World and Pin Map Flags that are available on our Free Montessori Downloads page.

But how would you like to WIN our World Maps Bundle


Each of the 9 sets of Maps includes:

• 1 black and white blank map
• 1 color map
• 1 black and white labeled map
• 1 colored and labeled map
• 2 sets of map labels (1 set has color-coded borders, 1 set with no borders)

*Maps print on to 8½ x 11" paper. * Map labels are for large wooden puzzle map or floor map (not sized for these paper copies)

Sample - Maps of North America

and also WIN our Pin Map Flags Bundle:



It includes all the flags for the maps listed above.
You can choose from the Color-Coded set or the plain set.

Two lucky winners will received both the World Maps Bundle and the Pin Map Flags Bundle. These are digital files in PDF format. You download the file and print the maps and pin flags yourself.

Entry is very easy using the Rafflecopter widget below. Some entries can be done each day to gain additional entries. Open worldwide to anyone over the age of 18 years.

Starts: 12:01am on Tuesday Oct 30 2012
Ends: 12:01am Tuesday Nov 6 2012

Record Keeping For Sandpaper Letters

http://tothelesson.blogspot.de/2011/07/record-keeping-for-sandpaper-letters.html

First, each child has their own booklet with the entire alphabet on the inside cover while the remaining pages are blank.  There are enough pages for one letter per page.
 

I've made one booklet for each child - they are delightfully small, only about 2x3 inches.

  Here is a closer look at the alphabet on the inside cover:

Handwritten in cursive.

 Once a child is introduced a letter, a mark is made like this (on the letter on the inside cover...):

As the child works to master the letter, a second mark is made:

When the child masters the letter, a final mark is made, completing a triangle around the letter:

As each letter is mastered (not necessarily in order), the teacher (or child) writes the letter on a page in the booklet.  The booklet stays at school until all letters are complete.  Eventually, the entire booklet has one letter on each page which the child can use to review.



I plan to keep them in the classroom using this adorable basket on a shelf...Seriously,  how much fun will this be to carry to each lesson?!

 I appreciate how this method not only helps the teacher keep track of progression within the lessons of the Sandpaper Letters, but also the child has a beautiful booklet to take home and share with family.  I know that the children in my class LOVE to take home booklets that are part of lessons we've had together!  Additionally, I feel this method gives the child more opportunities to see the written symbols (inside cover) as we work through the letters.  Likewise, my assistant can easily surmise by looking at through the booklet which letters the child has worked on and which ones still need a lesson.

It will be exciting to implement this new method of record keeping for Sandpaper Letters in the classroom this Fall. In case you are wondering, yes, we use cursive for teaching writing in my class...  you can read more about it in this post.  Also, I'd be most interested in hearing how others record lessons for Sandpaper Letters in your classrooms!

Montessori Print Shop Deluxe CD Rom Collection Giveaway

A few weeks ago we asked our Facebook Friends to help us increase our Google+ standing. We said that once we reached 150 Google+ we'd have a Deluxe CD Rom Giveaway. And so here we are .... we've surpassed 150 Google+.
This Deluxe Collection includes 1182 Printable Montessori Materials
It's currently selling for $599.99 USThis CD Rom Collection is sent via mail (Canada Post), not by email.

• 1078 printable Montessori materials (all files are in pdf file formats)
• 4 Primary Montessori Teaching Manuals

Materials Include:

1. Primary Teaching Manuals
2. Classified Cards / Picture Cards (vocabulary enrichment)
3. Culture
   • Celebrations
   • Music
   • Peace
   • Visual Arts
4. World Geography
5. Pre-Reading Activities
6. Phonics, Moveable Alphabet, Language, Grammar (including 6-9 Grammar)
7. Math
   • Introduction to numbers
   • Operations
   • Extension Lessons
   • Geometry
8. Nomenclature
   • Botany
   • Zoology
   • Other (Health, Science, etc)
9. Science
   • Animals
   • Astronomy
   • Plants
   • Science
   • Weather
10. Sensorial
11. Teacher / Administration
12. Toddler

Pink Phonic Language Series

 Pink Series

• words & pictures
• sheets & labels
• word & picture match
• word lists
• sound choice cards
• sound cards
• spelling cards
• sentence cards

 Blue Phonics Series

Blue Series:

· words & pictures
· sheets & labels
· word & picture match
· word lists
· sound choice cards
· sound cards
· spelling cards
· sentence cards

 Green Phonogram Series (includes phonograms, blends, diagraphs)

Green Series

• words & pictures
• sheets & labels
• word & picture match
• word lists
• sound choice cards
• sound cards
• spelling cards
• sentence cards

(All Pink Blue Green Language is also included with no color borders and is referred to on our Product List as "Step 1, 2, 3".)

 Additional Language Materials

Grammar Materials for Boxes #2-9 for Elementary Grammar

Available in both Traditional Elementary Colors and Primary Colors, this material is for all of the Grammar Boxes, Filling Boxes, and Command Boxes. Please note that there is no Grammar Box #1 in this series (if there was, it would be for the study of the noun).

Geography Folders

(with color-coding and without)

 

 

Geography Materials for 7 Continents

 

 

 

Montessori Math Materials

 

 

 

Montessori Nomenclature

 

 

 

Montessori Science Lessons

 

 

 

 

And so MUCH more!!

 

A HUGE collection of 1182 printable Montessori materials. See full details here.

The Great Giveaway from MontessoriPrintShop

The Animal Kingdom Bundle - Giveaway

It's the summer and it's Friday ... so a Giveaway seems in order!  We know many of you take time over the summer to make new materials for your classrooms and homeschools - so be sure to visit the "Learn How To.." section on our website (see screen shot below - red circle). You'll find lots of information on preparing and using our materials.

Anyone who has shopped in our online store can see that we've created a lot of animal lessons and last month we finally released the Six Kingdoms, Animal Kingdom , and Vertebrates & Invertebrates material. Children just LOVE learning about animals and you'll surely find something to capture their attention in our Science/Animals section.

Now, on to the Giveaway. We have 2 Animal Kingdom Bundles to give to 2 lucky winners! The first entry is very simple and then you'll have several opportunities to gain additional entries (some options will give you 3+ additional entries). See the Rafflecopter widget below to enter.

Giveaway ends: 12:01am EST on July 20, 2012

The Animal Kingdom Bundle includes the following:

Animal Kingdom Bundle

This Bundle includes 11 files for the Animal Kingdom.

Animal Kingdom - Charts

Animal Kingdom - Information Cards

Porifera 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Cnidaria 3-Part Cards Cards (8 types)

Platyhelminthes 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Nematoda 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Mollusca 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Annelida 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Arthropoda 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Echinodermata 3-Part Cards (8 types)

Chordata 3-Part Cards (8 types)

http://blog.montessoriprintshop.com/2012/07/13/the-animal-kingdom-bundle---giveaway.aspx

Montessori Print Shop Primary Teaching Manuals Review and Giveaway – 2 Winners!

Written on June 21, 2012 by Deb Chitwood in Book and Resource Reviews, Giveaways, Montessori Homeschool Classroom and Materials

69 Comments - Leave a comment!

Montessori Print Shop Primary Teaching Manuals Bundle

I’m very excited to host an AWESOME giveaway sponsored by Montessori Print Shop – 2 full sets of primary teaching manuals for teaching ages 2½-6 (open worldwide)! I was lucky to have the opportunity to review the teaching manuals created by Jennifer at Montessori Print Shop.
You’re probably already aware of Montessori Print Shop’s free printables, inexpensive printables, blog, and information and resources.

Review of Montessori Print Shop Primary Teaching Manuals Bundle

The Primary Teaching Manuals Bundle includes 4 Montessori Teaching Manuals – Practical Life, Sensorial, Language, and Math. The manuals are  based on AMI principles from Jennifer’s AMI training through the Foundation of Montessori Education (Toronto, ON). The courses were taught and guided by Renilde Montessori in 1993/94.
The presentations and lessons included are for children who are approximately 2½ to 6 years of age. This, of course, depends on the individual child, and many activities also work well for 7- and 8 year olds. (Note: In Montessori education, primary is generally ages 2½-6 or 3-6 with elementary at ages 6-12.)
Each lesson includes:

• materials list
• material photo(s)
• detailed step-by-step instructions
• notes to the teacher
• purpose of activity
• points of interest
• control of error
• suggested age for presentation

Montessori Print Shop Primary Teaching Manuals

Over the years, I’ve accumulated a number of Montessori teaching albums from my training course as well as from other training programs. My first experience in Montessori was through an AMI-trained teacher who let me photocopy her albums and gave me guidance in creating a Montessori environment and activities for a day care center. Later on, I completed Montessori training and worked with Montessori teachers from different types of Montessori training programs. Here are my thoughts on the Montessori Print Shop AMI-based albums:

• AMI albums always feel like I’m coming home. There’s so much available online, which I thoroughly appreciate. Yet it can be very overwhelming, especially for parents or teachers who haven’t had the opportunity to take a Montessori training course. The Montessori Print Shop albums are wonderful for both parents and teachers new to Montessori and for parents and teachers wanting to keep a firm foundation in Montessori principles and techniques.
• I love the clarity and simplicity of the Montessori Print Shop albums. AMI training courses stay the truest to Maria Montessori’s original ideas. You’ll find photos of the traditional Montessori materials in each of the manuals except the practical life manual, where they aren’t essential. There are a number of hand-drawn illustrations for the practical life activities that need illustrations.
• I love that the presentations follow the original Montessori guidelines. Montessori presentations are not all the same. It’s surprising how many presentations there can be for one activity when you look at different Montessori manuals. In general, I like to stay with an AMI presentation when there’s more than one way to present an activity. It’s well-thought-out and focuses on the essentials. When I created DIY Montessori materials in the past, I preferred to use traditional Montessori colors and designs whenever possible. There can be variations. You can count on AMI information if you’d like to stay with the original Montessori colors, designs, and presentations.
• I also love that you’ll find links to Montessori Print Shop materials within the lessons. Montessori Print Shop has so many wonderful free and inexpensive extensions for Montessori lessons as well as printables that are essential parts of many lessons. Having the links within the teaching manuals simplifies the preparation process.

Leap into Summer Reading with the Extraordinary Miss Rhonda’s Readers {Giveaway}

What do I absolutely adore about these books?

• The characters are cute and colorful. They aren’t licensed characters, which, at least to me makes them more authentic and approachable.
• The stories make sense. They aren’t confusing and actually follow a plot.
• Montessori phonetics based learning (even though if you are into “sight words” based learning, these readers are still an excellent choice)

Now, you have a chance to own your summer reading kit! Here is what we have to offer you:

• Alphabet cards*
• Phonetic word cards*
• Action word cards*
• Sight word cards*
• Set ONE
• Set TWO
• A stitchery patterns kit
• A hand sewn tote (with a Miss Rhonda’s fox tail on it)

Wow, right? Thanks to Miss Rhonda, I had the chance to preview and work with my son using this kit. A clear home run in our home.