Best learning sites for elementary aged kids

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I’ve tried numerous different learning sites for my nine year old and here are the ones I think are the best.

IXL

ixl.com is a learning site for pre-k to college calculous. My son and I like this one the most because it has every subject from math, language arts, science, social studies, and Spanish. If you get an answer wrong it gives you an explanation of how to do it correctly. It also gives a point system for every correct answer you get and gives him reward stickers for every accomplishment.

EPIC

getepic.com is a learning site for reading. This site has hundreds of books and videos. You can categorize them through reading level, grade level, or age. You can also categorize them through fiction or non fiction. They even have read to me options and books with small quizzes at the end. You can add books to your favorites section. They also have plenty of books for every holiday, season, hobby, and subject. For example, one month we were studying the weather and there was an enormous selection to choose from. We were able to read about lightning, clouds, rain, snow, rainbows, fog, hail, tornadoes, and hurricanes.

TEACHERS PAY TEACHERS

Teacherspayteacher.com or you can also find them on Pinterest. This website is teachers making worksheets or activities for every grade level. I have found worksheets about Christopher Columbus or Martin Luther king. They even can make a whole unit of learning for one specific subject ect. You can pay a monthly fee for full access or you can pay for the individual item that you want.

LEARNING SITES WE DID NOT CARE FOR

ABC MOUSE

ABCMOUSE was fun for him when he was really little. Once he got over the age of about five, everything was too easy for him. There’s an option to change the grade level to a higher grade and that was even way too easy for him. ABCmouse might work for some kids but it did not work for mine.

Christmas inspired pet names

Are you adding a new fur baby to your family this Christmas? I have the best Christmas inspired pet names for you to name your new friend.

A

Angel

alaska

alpine

aspen

B

Bell

Bethlehem

Blitzen

buddy

blizzard

C

candy cane

cookie

carol

charity

cheer

chestnut

chilly

chimney

Comet

COAL

Claus

Canela

cinnamon

candy

cane

charlie

Chicory

cider

D

dancer

donner

dove

E

elf

evergreen

eve

F

faith

figgy

frosty

fruitcake

G

Ginger

gingerbread

gift

gold

grace

grinch

gnome

gabriel

Garland

glacier

H

holly

holiday

I

ice

icee

icicle

ivy

J

jolly

jack

jack frost

jingle

jingle bell

joy

K

king

krampus

kris

kringle

L

little drummer boy

light

little lamb

M

magic

manger

mary

merry

mittens

mistletoe

max

N

noel

north

nutcracker

nick

nutmeg

O

ornamet

olive

P

peppermint

poinsettia

pine

popcorn

prancer

present

plum

puppy paws

pumpkin

Q

queen

R

red

reindeer

rein

ribbon

Rudolph

S

santa

saint

Scrooge

shepherd

silver bells

sled

sleigh

snow

snowy

snowflake

snow angel

snowman

spirit

star

sugar

sugarplum

snoopy

snowplow

santapaws

T

tinsel

tiny

tiny tim

U

V

vixen

velvet

W

winter

wish

wreath

wrap

X

Y

yule

Z

zest

zero

zoom

Top Christmas movies

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Top Christmas movies for younger children

  • Miracle on 34th street
  • A Christmas story
  • The Santa Clause
  • The Santa Clause 2
  • The Santa Clause 3
  • Elf
  • Dr. Seuss the Grinch
  • How the Grinch stole Christmas
  • The Christmas chronicles
  • The Christmas chronicles 2
  • Home alone
  • Home alone lost in New York
  • Frosty the snowman
  • Oliver the other reindeer
  • Mickeys once upon a Christmas
  • Mickeys twice upon a Christmas
  • The nightmare before Christmas
  • Edward Scissorhands
  • Noelle
  • Lego Star Wars holiday special
  • The Muppet Christmas carol
  • A Charlie Brown Christmas
  • Jingle Jangle
  • Klaus
  • Arthur Christmas
  • Christmas with the Kranks

Top Christmas movies for teens and adults

  • Love actually
  • Krampus
  • A very Harold and Kumar Christmas
  • Scrooged
  • The night before
  • Happy Christmas
  • Bad Santa
  • Batman returns
  • Gremlins
  • Happiest season
  • Die hard
  • Office Christmas party
  • National Lampoons Christmas vacation

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

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Christmas gift ideas for all AGES

Relax! I know it’s hard trying to pick out the perfect gift for every person in your life. I’m going to try to make it a little easier for you.

NEWBORN BABY

Gifts to get someone that just had a baby should really only just include diapers, wipes, onesies, swaddles, or gift cards to places that have those items. N

3 MONTHS TO 6 MONTHS

At this age they are growing and observing everything. They can hold their head up on their own at this point. They are trying to grab at things. The best gifts for this age are things like playmats for tummy time, more diapers, or sensory toys.

6 MONTHS TO ONE YEAR

At six months to one year the babies are now crawling or maybe even walking. My son started walking at nine months. This age is a lot of fun. Any type of walker, bounce pad, learning toys with big pieces, anything that makes noise, and big blocks.

ONE YEAR TO FOUR YEARS

Around this age I think is very crucial to use learning toys as much as you can. Any kind of chunky puzzles or puzzle like toys. A push bike, a water play area. Anything that can help with psychomotor and sesnory.

FIVE YEARS TO SEVEN

These are the preschool years and the first years of elementary. At this age I gave my son a lot of learning toys like puzzles with smaller pieces. Also a lot of active toys. Legos, scooter, soccer ball, mini basketball net, cars and trucks,

EIGHT TO TEN YEARS OLD

This is the age my son is right now. Right now he’s very into video games. At this age a tablet is okay. It can be a learning tablet if you are more comfortable with that. snap circuits or other kinds of coding games and toys, A video game system, trampoline, rollerblades, skateboard, headphones, art supplies (this could be a gift earlier if the child in interested). Nerf guns or laser tag guns, or a camera.

ELEVEN AND UP

When you get to the age group of preteen to teenager it can get a little tricky. It really depends on what the child is interested in at the time. Most of the children in this age group will most likely like getting a cellphone, tablet, laptop, gift cards to their favorite stores, makeup, or video games. It really depends on the individual child though. Some children may be really interested in sports and love getting a bat or a tennis racket for Christmas. Others may like space and want a high tech telescope. Some kids may be into making YouTube videos and may want a camera light or something to do with filming. The point being, there’s many different varieties of gifts you just might need to do some detective work and find out what they are into.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Why I homeschool my child and how I make it work.

I started homeschooling my son during the pandemic like most people probably did. To our surprise, we actually really enjoyed it. I make a schedule for the week. I try to span out each subject to every other day. Monday and Wednesday is spelling which usually consists of ABC order, sentences, 3 times each, word search, or definitions. After spelling is language arts. I personally like to use the ixl website. The ixl website has all the subjects on the site. Next we have art. I usually start with a YouTube video explaining certain types of art or artists and then he tries to portray that on paper. We do science on ixl as well and then we eat lunch. Usually during lunch I let him watch a movie to give him a little break. After lunch we do our daily exercise, which consists of just dance, exercise videos, tennis, jogging, or riding bike, This may seem like a lot but keep I mind we only do every subject for 15-30 minutes.

On Tuesday and Thursday, I have him read a book on Epic. This is a website that has al kinds of books and videos for kids. I then make him do reading comprehension about the book he just read. He does social studies on ixl and then math. Tuesday nights he goes to his cub scout meeting, so we incorporate that into his schooling. On Friday, we either do a science experiment, project, or field trip. We do schoolwork everyday from about 8 -11. While he is doing his schoolwork I tend to all the house duties or make any phone calls. In the evening when my husband gets home from work I go rollerblading around my neighborhood and then take my time in the shower taking care of my skin and pampering myself. I make sure to take time for myself. We then have a family dinner together and watch a little t.v or play video games together. Then my husband and I have time together.

My main solution is to stay organized and have a schedule. Some days of course, will get off schedule. He may be sick or we may sleep in. I may have to run to the store or may not feel well myself. Things can happen and you need to have a relaxed attitude. Yes, he is also very socialized and has many friends. Like I mentioned before, he goes to cub scouts on Tuesdays and takes a coding class on Mondays. He also plays sp0orts for the county on the weekends.

Now with work; I had a full time as a vet assistant at an animal rescue. I would take hi to work with me and he would do his school work in my office. I know a lot of people do not have this option. I now have a side business and can make my own schedule. I pet sit and walk their animals for them. This works for our family. I will write a different article about this later. I feel like with homeschooling he learns easier and I can do it in a style that works for him. At school he would always come home saying that he didn’t learn anything. He was always very advanced and would learn everything the first time he was taught. When you are in a classroom with 20 plus kids, the teacher has to go at a slow pace so everyone in the class can learn the specific subject. This process would bore my son. Homeschooling works for our family and our lifestyle but it doesn’t work for every family.

This is the link to Epic

https://www.ixl.com/

This is the link to ixl

This is one of the workbooks we use

How to get glowing skin?

I have had very oily acne prone skin since I was in middle school. My go-to ever since I was a teenager was Proactive. As I got into my early twenties I realized that acne was no longer my main concern, I wanted to help with wrinkles, oily skin, fine lines, redness, anti-aging, and glow. It was a long learning process on what works for my skin. what works for my skin may not work for everyone’s skin. You have to find your own routine that works for you with trial and error or with the help from a dermatologist or esthetician. This is what I found works magic for my skin. I wash my face in the morning with Holika Holika less on skin redness calming cica cleansing foam. After I rinse this off my face I use a toner. I have found that Dickinson’s enhanced witch hazel toner works and I also use one from The Ordinary. After the toner, I use buffet multi technology peptide serum from The Ordinary. Remember when you are putting this on your face you need to do a upward motion. This will help get all of the good stuff into your skin. I will also put Te Inky list caffeine eye moisturizer underneath my eyes and by the corners of my mouth. I will then use The Ordinary natural moisturizing factors moisturizer on my face. I make sure I always add a sunscreen to my face before going outside. I usually use the sunscreen from Pacifica. I prefer cruelty-free products but that is up to the individual. At night I use Nip and Fab exfoliate glycolic scrub fix. This is an exfoliator and I only use it at night. It is not Good to use an exfoliator during the day unless you’re going to put a lot of sunscreen on and try to stay out of the sun. I then use some kind of facial mask. my favorite has been the Dead Sea mud mask from Majestic pure, a charcoal peel off face mask, or I use a face mask from Pacifica with some kind of vitamins or green teas. I’ll leave a face mask on for about 10 minutes. Sometimes I do put under eye patches on my eyes while I have the mask on so I can have all of it soak in. I use the ones from Pacifica, the vegan ceramide hydration fill under eye and smile line jelly patches. I also leave that on for about 10 minutes. Then I rinse my face with warm water, use a toner, buffet serum, my moisturizer and then lip balm. Now you could always add another serum in with these, like a vitamin c serum or retinol. Whatever your skin needs more. Some people need an oil cleanser. I make sure I do this routine every morning and every night. Also, if you wear a lot of makeup I have a hemp cleansing balm from Pacifica, that takes your makeup off really well and then you just follow the process right after you get all the makeup off. These are the secrets that has helped my skin to become amazing and something that I actually like to look at. I hope this helps.

https://www.stylevana.com/en_US/holika-holika-less-on-skin-redness-calming-cica-cleansing-foam-150ml.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=freelisting&sonid=55423
https://www.sephora.com/product/caffeine-eye-cream-P443840?country_switch=us&lang=en&skuId=2211514
https://www.ulta.com/p/glycolic-acid-7-toning-solution-pimprod2007097
https://www.amazon.com/Dickinsons-Enhanced-Witch-Alcohol-Hydrating/dp/B00KX32J26/ref=asc_df_B00KX32J26/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312030484745&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3268441661087232737&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9052682&hvtargid=pla-649498417143&psc=1
https://www.sephora.com/product/the-ordinary-deciem-natural-moisturizing-factors-ha-P427414?country_switch=us&lang=en&skuId=2210581&om_mmc=ppc-GG_1987723160_104475246392_aud-1211675839600:pla-302724607581_2210581_447984098043_9052682_m&ds_rl=1261471&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhMOMBhDhARIsAPVml-GYPrhVAiFqhC40rKW4Nhyo6ZLM6a0rz3HEjfrg3B5QbeEYQnb7H8caAnkGEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
https://www.sephora.com/product/the-ordinary-deciem-buffet-P427420?country_switch=us&lang=en&skuId=2031367&om_mmc=ppc-GG_1987723169_73804052351_pla-418153771427_2031367_353494828263_9052682_m&ds_rl=1261471&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhMOMBhDhARIsAPVml-F7YPvxtDFLul4BAMrsSgp1hlbt4WzOTYXKAKbuosvW1jhrc1vFu_QaArGWEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
https://www.amazon.com/Nip-Fab-Glycolic-Scrub-Ounce/dp/B00DDOW9CC/ref=sxts_rp_s_a1_0?cv_ct_cx=nip+and+fab&keywords=nip+and+fab&pd_rd_i=B00DDOW9CC&pd_rd_r=36cbe815-948d-4ec5-a526-3fcd4697238e&pd_rd_w=HohJh&pd_rd_wg=5AHYK&pf_rd_p=812b2be0-02a1-4215-9297-6bb9c9661086&pf_rd_r=2NBDB8TQTYQGBVHYGKWT&psc=1&qid=1636937774&rdc=1&sr=1-1-ea136695-3596-4534-80e7-1570345d02b9
https://www.pacificabeauty.com/products/vegan-ceramide-hydration-fill-undereye-smile-line-jelly-patches?utm_campaign=shipping-confirmation-email&utm_medium=email&utm_source=OrderlyEmails&utm_content=product
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