Registration for PhysicsQuest 2011: Spectra Heats Up!

Each year I register our homeschool for the PhysicsQuest challenge.  By doing so, we are sent a great science kit with supplies for several experiments, all provided free to educators (including homeschoolers).

I received an email today notifying me that registration for 2011 is now open. I've copied and pasted the notice below for those of you who also might want to register.  Kits will arrive after the holidays, usually in February, if I remember correctly. Have fun!

PhysicsQuest 2011: Spectra Heats Up!  

REGISTER NOW FOR YOUR FREE KIT

Sign up to receive a FREE PhysicsQuest kit.  Students will do experiments relating to heat and temperature as they try and help Spectra solve the mystery of Tesla Junior High’s mysterious weather.  Kits contain all the materials needed to do 4 fun and exciting physics experiments as well as a manual and comic book.  As the students complete the activities they will be learning the physics they need to save the world, or at least Tesla Junior High.  There are a limited number of kits so sign up now!

A few weeks into their second year at Tesla Junior High the gang realizes things are really changing, well, the temperature at least.  Why is Lucy’s pool too hot to handle?  Snowed in in the middle of September?  No one can figure out what is going on.  On top of all this physics confusion, Lucy is being harassed by the newest student at Tesla Junior High, Tiffany Maxwell.  Could she be behind the odd things happening or is Lucy just blaming her because she is trying to steal her spot on the relay team?  Is she just a typical “mean girl” or is there more to her than her well-manicured nails, high-heeled boots and a sharp tongue?  Join Lucy Hene (aka Spectra) and her gang as they once again use their physics knowledge to save the world, or at least Tesla Junior High.  

Register now! 

Free Medical Science DVDs

Do you have a student interested in medical science? Howard Hughes Medical Institute offers free DVDs and related PDF documents to educators, homeschoolers included.  Check out their online catalog to see if there is a topic that interests your student.

Kaplan is giving away FREE e-books!

Through 1/17/11, you can select from 130 titles entirely FREE for your Nook, Kindle, iPad, or Sony eReader.  Even if you don't have one of these nifty devices, you can download software to your PC and have access to the ebooks.  While I'd love a Kindle or Nook, I don't own one (yet).  Instead, I downloaded the Kindle software to my PC.

FREE Kaplan e-Books

Of the available titles, over 25 are directly related to college prep, covering SAT, ACT,  PSAT, AP, and SAT subject exams.  I'm off to do some serious downloading...

PhysicsQuest 2010 registration has begun!

PhysicsQuest 2010, free to teachers of students in 6th - 9th grade, including homeschoolers, is now open for registration!

From the website:

About PhysicsQuest

PhysicsQuest is a middle school competition that consists of four physical science experiments centered on a mystery. The experiments are designed to be done by small groups in a classroom or after school setting. Each of the experiments gives students a clue that they need to solve the mystery. Classes can submit their answers online and be entered into a random drawing for prizes. PhysicsQuest kits are provided free to registered classrooms.

 To read a bit about this year's challenge, as well as past challenges, visit the PhysicsCentral website.

Below is a an excerpt from an email distributed to subscribers and past participants, describing the kit a bit more:

The kit contains all the equipment you need for your class or group to preform 4 fun physics experiments focusing on for and motion.  Use yo-yos, tart pans, play-dough and much more to explore how things fall, spin, swing and fly.  The kit comes with a manual that explains the experiments as well as the physics involved.  All of it is wrapped up in the third installment of the popular Spectra comic book series.

The kits are usually sent out mid-January.

Sound like fun?  Then go to the registration page to sign up!

Free Audio Books!

I'm really excited about the free resource that Kristi over at Clothesline Musing has shared!  Both of my kids like to listen to audio books.  Now that they both have speaker systems for their ipods, listening while cleaning, drawing, or just hanging out in their room is even easier...and now cheaper!

Check out www.booksshouldbefree.com!

My daughter is taking a literature class on Mark Twain and several of his works are available, among many other classics. The audio books will be a perfect supplement for her class!  This is definitely a site to be bookmarked.

Enjoy!

Journey to the Stars: FREE DVD from NASA!

From the website:

Are you ready to take a Journey to the Stars? The American Museum of Natural History and NASA have joined forces to produce a planetarium show about the amazing variety of stars that dot our cosmos--exploding stars, giant stars, dwarf stars,neutron stars, even our own star! But you don't have to go to a planetarium to experience this mind-blowing journey. NASA will send you a DVD, for free!

The price is definitely right! This offer is open to educators and parents. You can even request a DVD for each student. All you need to do is fill out the form linked below.

http://journeytothestars.org/

Free Homeschooling Podcasts!

Can't make it to your spring convention, but need some renewal and homeschooling revitalization? Or maybe you are about to head to your local homeschooling convention and want to check out a speaker ahead of time, rather than get stuck in a workshop that isn't your style.

Homeschooling.com offers a variety of homeschooling podcasts, free-of-charge! Enjoy!

Homeschooling.com Free Podcasts

FREE US History DVD from the History Channel

The History Channel is offering an America: The Story of US DVD for free, shipping included, to every school in the United States - homeschools included!

This 12-hour, 6-week series will premiere on The History Channel April 25, 9 pm/8c. Requests for the DVD must be made by July 1, 2010 and DVDs will ship out in August.

Fill out a request form to get on the mailing list.

WatchKnow - "You watch, you know"

It is no mystery that the internet is full of free educational video resources. But if you are anything like me, keeping these resources organized is a bit more difficult. I'll find a video clip, throw it into my bookmarks under a subject, and promptly forget I have it.

Someone recently shared with me a fairly new website, WatchKnow. This website takes free educational videos hosted elsewhere and organizes them on one site for easy accessibility. The website targets information from ages 3-18, with search filters and categories to make it even easier to find just what you are looking for.

WatchKnow is definitely one to keep an eye on as it develops as a one-stop resource for free educational online videos.

Journey North Online Mystery Class

The Journey North Mystery Class is a free online class, running February through May. Students unlock ten secret locations through a journey in the exploration of the seasons by tracking and recording day length, sunrise, and sunset.

I don't know much about the class, having only recently heard of it. It is a FREE resource, though, and certainly worth checking out.

Fun with Phun

A couple of months ago I ran across a free download for a software called Phun. Phun is described as a 2-D physics sandbox. You can see what sort of things can be done using the program on the video below.



I'm always up for trying out free software and we've found some great ones out there. This one is a keeper and enjoyed by both of my kids. I love the creativity it inspires! You can download your own copy at http://www.phunland.com/wiki/Home. Enjoy!