Homeschooling

For those of you considering homeschooling, you will be happy to know that there is a very active home school group here in the GK/Triborder area.  Connect with these folks and use Europe as your classroom and you’ll have a marvelous time.

POC/More Information:
       Scott M:  smenhennet@yahoo.com

Activities:

• Music lessons, Science Lessons, Private Guitar lessons = a lot of talent sharing among parents.
• Homeschool library at the GK chapel.  Contact Donna at the GK chapel.
• Amazing field trips to places like Cologne, Aachen, Amsterdam’s NEMO, Museums, and England!  

Educational Resources for Children

Because every school is different.  Because every district, state, and country has a slightly or grossly different curriculum.  Because we move a lot and education matters.  Because every little bit of help – helps tremendously.  Because these resources are free for you and available now.  It’s worth checking out.  
 

1.  The Military Child Education Coalition has created a checklist for transferring students to assist families in compiling education records for their students.

www.militarychild.org/military-parent/checklist-for-transferring-students

2.  SchoolMatters is a service of Standard & Poors to search for information on public schools (for returning back to the US).  One can research schools by name and location.

www.schoolmatters.com

3.  March 2 Success is an online test preparation course that will provide help with taking standardized tests, and improve math and English skills.  It is a free program developed by the Army to help prepare students for assessment exams, college entrance exams, trade school entrance tests, military entrance tests and applying for a job.

www.March2Success.com

4.  The Defense Department has launched a free, online tutoring service for service members and their families. The site – http://www.tutor.com/military  — offers round-the-clock professional tutors who can assist with homework, studying, test preparation, resume writing and more.  Amazing – your child can get help with a real tutor live online.  For your login/password, go to you base library or send an email to:  debbie.meyers@us.af.mil
                      – Chat with Your Tutor
                      - Draw on the Interactive Whiteboard
                      - Studying
                      - Share and Edit Files
                      - Browse the Web Together
                      - Every subject they tutor is open all the time, every day. You can get a tutor whenever you want, from anywhere in the world.

 5.  This is the one to do before a move.  Student Online Achievement Resources at www.soarathome.org.  Students take an assessment aligned to state standards and SOAR directs them to individualized tutorials to improve skills where needed.  Parents can monitor their children’s progress and are provided with resource materials.

6.  www.militarystudent.org – a good overall site with many links for other resources that may be helpful.

School Supplies

Our first year at GK, summer rolled around, people wanted to shop for school supplies and this was the historic year that somehow, someone, overlooked that detail and ABSOLUTELY no school supplies came – ever. Yeah, there were the handful of measly basics for about a split second and then they remained essentially sold out for months while folks in the states were buying 10 packs of crayons for a dollar.

So, lesson learned, plan ahead, take advantage of trips to the states, online sales, and family members willing to ship things to you. The BX dare not repeat that mistake again; however, it’s a small store supporting A LOT of children, so it’s wise to not wait until the last week.

That being said, you need a list. If you don’t have one printed from the school, use this one. It will ensure that you have ALMOST everything that you need.

The official list: http://www.eu.dodea.edu/home/supplies.php

The official list with my notes:

All Schools Levels:

• Pens and pencils (GK Kindergarten and 1st, ONLY pencils, no ball point pens)
• Rubber eraser
• Colored pencils
• Glue (sticks, bottled) (4 sticks and 2 bottled in younger grades)
• Pocket folders (usually 4ish)
• Highlighters (older elementary and up)
• Book bag or backpack
• Spiral notebooks
• Plastic supply box
• Notebook dividers
• Bound composition book
• Gym shoes (GK Elementary lists usually don’t include these. AFNorth JR and High do.)
• Notebook – 3-ring binder
• Paints (watercolor)
• Colored markers
• Tissues (1 box, max.)
• Planners*
• Paper – loose leaf

For Elementary Schools only:

• Child’s round end scissors
• Crayons
• Bath towel (Usually only for Kindergarten at GK)
• Paint shirt (I’ve never actually seen this on a school list, but it wouldn’t hurt)

For Middle Schools only:

• Crayons
• Clipboards
  Save Now
• Scissors
• (A really nice calculator depending on what math class your child is in. For Algebra at AfNorth, a TI-34 graphing calculator is extremely helpful)

For High Schools:

• Clipboards
• Scissors
• Protractor
• Compass
• Rulers
• (ditto on above calculator comment)

English/Math Tutor

Just in time for the start of school, here’s information on a local tutor who can help!

Alicia Baller is currently in her last semester of her English degree and is currently working on her associates in Mathematics.

She is available now for tutoring Math (pre-algebra, algebra, trig and calculus soon) and/or English (mostly how to write essays and papers). She charges $7.50 per hour and can provide references if needed.

To contact Alicia, send an email to: hottieballer@ gmail.com

Educational Websites for Kids

If you’re PCSing, or just curious, you can test your child’s academic levels according to the school they will be attending using the website below.

• www.soarathome.com

Websites: The best resources for knowing about the best websites are our teachers. Most of my favorites, I’ve learned from my children’s teachers and the school website. Look at the classroom links at the GKES website for lists of even more amazing FREE resources for your kids. http://www.geil-es.eu.dodea.edu/

All Grades: (many of the websites below have areas for other grades, I have just not had time to thoroughly search through them all to figure out which ones yet)

• http://www.iknowthat.com
• http://www.brainpop.com — free trial available, then paid subscription only
• http://www.learner.org/interactives/story/index.html
• http://www.learningplanet.com/
• http://www.readwritethink.org/student_mat/index.asp
• http://www.spellingcity.com — spelling
• http://www.starfall.com/
• http://www.mhschool.com – Click on the grade to find online tools and games

Elementary Math:

• http://www.abcteach.com/directory/basics/math/ — free math worksheets
• http://ejad.best.vwh.net/java/patterns/ — math: pattern blocks
• http://www.aaamath.com/plc12c-placevalue-specific.html — math: place value quiz
• http://www.primarygames.com/math.htm — math: games
• http://www.aplusmath.com/flashcards/index.html — math: flashcards
• http://www.cut-the-knot.org/Curriculum/Arithmetic/VeryTiles.shtml — math: match math questions with answers
• http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/vlibrary.html – math: online manipulatives
• http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skills_1st.htm#math — review of 1st grade skills and tests

Elementary Reading Skills/Read Aloud Books

• http://www.bradleys-english-school.com/online/alphabet/index — practice alphabetical order
• http://www.starfall.com — reading: Love this site!
• http://www.literacycenter.net/lessonview_en.htm# — pre-school practice, letters and numbers
• http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skills_1st.htm#lang
• http://www.sightwordswithsamson.com/sw/sight_words.asp — reading
• http://www.tumblebooks.com/library/asp/home_tumblebooks.asp — Read Aloud Books: LOVE IT! But sometimes it will only work if you access it through the GKES website here: http://www.geil-es.eu.dodea.edu/Classes/1ALinks.html
• http://www.storylineonline.net/ — Stars read stories
• http://www.rif.org/readingplanet/content/read_aloud_stories.mspx — nicely done, stories read out-loud.
• http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/interactive/onlinestory.htm — you have to complete a puzzle to start the story. Nice site!
• http://pbskids.org/jakers/stories/ — Read aloud with follow along text
• http://www.mightybook.com/ — Funny read along, read aloud stories
  
• http://www.bookpop.com/bookpop.html — read aloud or read alone Stephen Cosgrove books
• http://www.eduplace.com/marketing/leveledbooks/sampler/content/index.html — Many nonfiction books to choose from – read alone or read aloud
• http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-stories.htm — read alone or read aloud
• http://www.kizclub.com/level3.htm — printable books
• http://www.weread.org/kids/index.asp – read aloud
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/drilldown/stories/3/1/1/ — cute British read aloud stories
  
• http://www.beenleigss.qld.edu.au/requested_sites/storiesontheweb/storiesontheweb.html – selection of stories to read across the net
• http://www.earobics.com/gamegoo/gooey.html — reading: fun!
• http://www.leapingmatch.com — Fairytale stories and games (the text page is quiet to give the child a chance to read, then on the illustration page, the previous page’s text is read aloud)
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/laac/story/sbi.shtml — Read aloud stories
• http://www.janbrett.com/games — Jan Brett’s site with games and stories
• http://www.storyplace.org/eel/eel.asp
• http://www.primarygames.com/social_studies.htm — social studies
• http://www.primarygames.com/science.htm — science
• http://www.playkidsgames.com/

All Subjects:

• http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/

6th grade:

• http://www.eslus.com/LESSONS/GRAMMAR/Gram.htm
• http://www.funbrain.com/grammar/
• http://www.chompchomp.com/
• http://yourpage.blazenet.net/bterney/practice.htm

Schools

Geilenkirchen Elementary School
http://www.geil-es.eu.dodea.edu/

Geilenkirchen Elementary is a K-6th school located on the Geilenkirchen Air Base. If you are an American stationed at the NATO base at GK, and have a student in the K-6th grades, this is the most likely school that they will attend. GKES is also open to international students on a space-available basis, tuition-paying basis.

Kindergarten is ALL-DAY.

AFNorth International School
http://www.afnorth-is.com

AFNorth International School is a full-day preK-12th grade school located just outside the base at Brunssum, NL. Students moving on from the 6th grade at Geilenkirchen Elementary School continue to AFNorth for the junior high and high school grades.

Homeschooling

There is a very active homeschooling community here that organizes classes and field trips together. If you homeschool, you won’t have a difficult time finding other students and parents to connect with and share ideas.

Preschools

International Preschool at GK (http://www.e3a.nato.int/affiliates/PreSchool/default.htm)

The International Preschool offers a part-day educational experience for children ages 3 and 4. The morning program runs from 0800 -1230. The afternoon program runs from 1400-1630. Students may register for a 5 day, 3 day (MWF), or 2 day (TTh) per week space. There is almost always a waiting list, so do register early if you are interested in a space. Prices are set in Euros.

German Schools

As is true for schools in the United States, you will find local schools in Germany that are wonderful and others that are not to your expectations. It will depend on the school, the principal, and the teachers as well as your child and how well they’ll adapt to a drastically different situation. Go to the school in your area for more information and ask questions as you would in any new school situation. Since English is taught in German school, your chances of finding an English speaking administrator to talk to are very good.

German Kindergartens

Children ages 3-5 may attend a German kindergarten. These programs do cost, but the fee is prorated according to your salary. Kindergartens are places where the children play, sing, and have art time. They do not learn to read or count. Traditional academics are at a minimum. They do have breakfast at school. Most kindergartens run from 0730 until 1215 and from 1400-1600. Spaces for the lunch break are very limited with priority given to families with both parents working. These slots do cost extra, but a hot lunch is provided.

Children will walk to the church for a children’s mass, spend a lot of time outdoors on the playground as the weather permits, and will take walks with their class.

You will hear both positive and negative stories about the German school system. Only you know your child well enough to decide what is best for them.