I have an eleven-year-old who loves to sew. She also has read all of the Little House on the Prairie books. This time period in American history interests her greatly. I believe she probably would have been happy living the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Our family just returned from a trip to see parts of the Oregon Trail. We saw the wagon ruts, visited an Army fort, and also toured a Bison ranch. It was an experience of a lifetime, that’s for sure. When we arrived home I wondered how I would extend our learning, for both of my children. (My son took a great interest in the Bison and my daughter very interested in the life and times of the people on the prairie.)
Waiting in my mail pile after a long trip was a package from Amanda (you may also know her mom, Harmony Art Mom). In the package was the PERFECT answer to my question of how to further our learning: The Hearts & Trees Prairie Kit.
What The Kit Includes
- A Bison woodworking project – complete with sandpaper and directions for painting
- Notebooking page for artist Albert Bierstadt, including a print of his painting “Buffalo Country”
- Art element worksheet – using Bierstadt’s element of atmospheric perspective your child will learn how other artists do this, too
- 9 inch square pathwork potholder – complete with EASY TO FOLLOW instructions and all supplies. *Note: Directions are for hand sewing, but you can easily machine sew, too — but you don’t need sewing experience for this project!
- A paper quilt activity to help your child plan their potholder
- A full nature study lapbook, helping your child explore prairie animals and plants
Advantages of The Kit
- Everything you need is included (with the exception of needles and paint for the Bison). You can complete several fun activities without having to do any extra planning.
- There is something for all learners! My daughter appreciated every element of the kit (especially the sewing), but the woodworking spoke to my son. It is also good for varied ages (I would recommend this for upper elementary and middle school.).
- The activities are simple, achievable, and meaningful. A lot of time and care has been but into the quality of the materials and activities, and it SHOWS.
- It is only $11.95 plus shipping!
Amanda is a talented young lady who has put together a great resource for homeschoolers. You might want to see what else she has for sale: (newest! pictured above) Winter Fun Fleece Hat, Prairie, Lavender and Bubbles and the Spring 2012 kits.
Now for the giveaway!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
~ Written by Mary, of Homegrown Learners
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Mary is a former public school music educator and degreed administrator. She now homeschools her two children - one middle school, and one elementary school. She runs a small piano studio and wants to make teaching music easy for the homeschool parent. Reading, writing, and swimming are things she enjoys in her "spare" time!
Rebecca December 28, 2012 at 8:58 am
This looks fantastic – if I do not win, I will definitely purchase.
Kerstin December 28, 2012 at 9:34 am
Having grown up on the prairie, this is TOTALLY appropriate for my children!! I hope I win!
Christine December 28, 2012 at 9:34 am
My 5.5yo is just starting a Little House obsession…she’d love this!
Rhonda Abercrombie December 28, 2012 at 9:44 am
My girls would LOVE this!!
SheilaC December 28, 2012 at 10:02 am
sounds great!!
Dawn The JOY Lady December 28, 2012 at 10:51 am
I don’t add enough handcrafts in our Homeschool. This looks like fun!
Phyllis December 28, 2012 at 11:03 am
We include crafts in many subjects in our schooling!
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Debbie December 28, 2012 at 11:13 am
This would be great for my Dd!
Joesette December 28, 2012 at 11:31 am
I try to incorporate period crafts when studying history, or if we happen to be reading a particularly good read aloud.
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Melissa December 28, 2012 at 11:34 am
I try to include hands on things, but I’m often unsuccessful.
Jessica A. December 28, 2012 at 11:34 am
I try to include hands on activities and crafts as much as I can in my lessons with my little guy. It all depends on what the lessons are about.
Lisa Cross December 28, 2012 at 12:38 pm
This is great!! I love when the materials are included. Makes things soooo much easier!!
mattie December 28, 2012 at 1:03 pm
I incorporate at least one hands on activity a week, but try to make it an every other day occurrence. I also have knitting, sewing, painting and drawing materials available at all times with special, non mandatory projects rotating regularly.
Deb December 28, 2012 at 1:15 pm
What a great review! My family and I spent some time in Yellowstone this year and it was magical. The bison ARE amazing! I am pinning this.
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Melissa D December 28, 2012 at 2:17 pm
My sweet girl is 4.5 and I’m hoping to add homemaking/crafts into our homeschool plan for 2013. This looks awesome!
Jacqueline December 28, 2012 at 4:16 pm
My girls would love this!! Looks like fun!
Treasure December 28, 2012 at 7:19 pm
These activities look so enriching. I’d love to use them with my children. We’re planning to spend all next year reading the Little House books.
Theresa Slauf December 28, 2012 at 8:32 pm
At our home we love to add crafts and hands on activities to what we are studying at the time. The activity will match the time period or the subject and it has always helped their memory of certain things and brought subjects to life. This sounds like it will help them to walk in another’s shoes.
Thank you for making this available.
Tabitha Zehner December 29, 2012 at 2:05 am
I try to do something crafty at least once a week. The crafts we do are usually pretty simple because i’m not very crafty at all! My daughter on the other hand, loves to sew and crochet. And my son loves to build things. This would be a great gift for them!
Amanda December 29, 2012 at 2:45 am
Mary,
Thanks for the great review of my Prairie Kit! I love hearing feedback about my kits and love seeing them “in action!”
Amanda @ Hearts and Trees
Leslie December 29, 2012 at 4:29 am
I’ve been wanting to try one of these kits! My daughter would love it!
Kristina Best December 29, 2012 at 8:46 am
Haven’t yet but would love to. My boys love the Little House books too.
audria December 29, 2012 at 10:09 am
These look like so much fun!! I would love to win one!M
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dawn finch December 29, 2012 at 10:19 am
We really have not done many crafts in homeschool but my son would love to.
Tracey December 29, 2012 at 10:47 am
We don’t really have a schedule for adding handy crafts right now, we just kind of throw them in as something interesting comes along. I would like it to be more of a regular part of our homeschool week.
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Kel White December 29, 2012 at 12:57 pm
We try to find print outs or use pinterset to find art projects that go hand and hand with our lessons. Sometimes its over stuff they didnt really care for much. So this really helps them enjoy it more.
Delia Jones December 29, 2012 at 1:53 pm
What a fun kit! We will be studying the Pioneer era later this year.
Christie December 29, 2012 at 3:36 pm
We try to do handcrafts and art projects that coordinate with our history studies; this prairie kit will be great for my boys in a few months!
Christine December 29, 2012 at 5:34 pm
We do the hands-on things that are a part of our curriculum, but nothing beyond that.