FPEA Connects

In this episode,  Sherri Seligson joins Florida Parent Educators Association’s (FPEA) Chairwoman, Suzanne Nunn to talk about STEM and Marine science what it is and how you can get excited about it and incorporate it into your homeschool. Specifically, focusing on Marine Science. Listen in and get excited about the many ways to explore Marine Science! Make plans to join us and Sherri this September for our STEM Conference. Find more information at the link below.

Please join us as we travel along this journey on our podcast adventure. Let’s get connected! Learn more about the Florida Parent Educator’s Association and homeschooling in the beautiful state of Florida.

Please visit www.fpea.com to learn more about who we are!

Sherri Seligson will be joining us for this FUN and INFORMATIVE field trip in the FLORIDA KEYS!

There will be opportunities to Snorkel, Dive and many other fun events over the weekend.

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Does High School scare you? Are you concerned your children won’t be ready? Many people feel overwhelms at the prospect of homeschooling the high school years. Well, put those fears aside! You can do it! With a little planning, you will be ready to successfully teach prepare your student to graduate.

Cheryl Bastian joins us as we talk about preparing your teen for high school.

About Cheryl

Cheryl Bastian can’t remember a time when she wasn’t teaching. What started with making her brothers play school evolved to job shadowing and tutoring in high school. Through experiential learning, Cheryl’s passion for education grew. She completed post-secondary coursework and internships at Illinois State University, first as a special education major and then continuing in early childhood education. Concerned she would miss once-in-a-lifetime milestones in her children, Cheryl left the classroom and brought learning home.

Twenty-four years of homeschooling, eight children—ages twenty-eight to toddler— allow Cheryl and her husband Mike to journey alongside families at many stages of parenting and learning, from toddling to adulting. As a magazine columnist, blogger, and speaker, Cheryl shares her experiences, stories and challenges as she enthusiastically encourages parents to be intentional, real, and relational as they raise life-long learners. Her resources are available at Celebrate Simple www.cherylbastian.com.

The post Preparing for High School with Cheryl Bastian appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

Gameschooling.. what? Learning with games. Since the beginning of time, children have learned through play. This was a fun topic to cover, because who doesn’t like games?   We are joined with Hannah Kartagener, who we consider to be a “game expert” and she talks with us about “Gameschooling”

While many electronic games and apps can be a good addition to your homeschooling experience, today we are talking about traditional board games and cards.

A great resource for reviews and instructions for play is YouTube. There are many channels dedicated to the review of board games. Have a hard time with reading instructions for play? You are not alone – YouTube is a great place to find instructions on how to play a game.

Traditional Games:

Modern Games:

Educational Games

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Cheryl Bastian joins us as we talk about Busy Bags! Which also happens to be a new workshop she will be presenting this year at Convention!

About Cheryl

Twenty-four years of homeschooling, eight children—ages twenty-eight to toddler— allow Cheryl and her husband Mike to journey alongside families at many stages of parenting and learning, from toddling to adulting. As a magazine columnist, blogger, and speaker, Cheryl shares her experiences, stories and challenges as she enthusiastically encourages parents to be intentional, real, and relational as they raise life-long learners. Her resources are available at Celebrate Simple www.cherylbastian.com.

Cheryl Bastian will walk parents through the process of making three ready‐to‐use busy bags sure to keep your little learner engaged and curious. These bags are perfect for use this weekend during convention or anytime where quiet waiting is necessary. While parents build the bags with other attendees, Cheryl will offer practical tips and extension activities for each bag with the purpose of empowering and encouraging parents in their role as parent educators.

Deadline to register for the Busy Bags workshop – May 3rd

Busy Bee Game

Picture Books

Suggested items for busy bags or just simple fun!

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Suzanne and I walk through the Convention program in this podcast. We look at some of the new events happening this year. We also talk about what parts of the program are very useful to new convention attendees.

I want to invite you to attend the 2019 Annual FPEA Florida Homeschool

We are the biggest and the best Convention for homeschooling families

Take your time to peruse these offerings as well as the many exciting events for the entire family. Then, log onto www.fpea.com and REGISTER!

Looking Forward to Seeing You There!

Our upcoming cruise REFRESH FPEA Marriage Cruise 2020……Cost baseline $544….tax, gratuity and port fees…first deposits are due by the end of March and final payments are due in October

Special Guests Heidi & Jay St. John and Todd & Debbie Wilson!

Join us January 4th – on the Carnival Magic

The post Wild Florida Live Free: 2019 Convention appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

Connie Albers joins us today to talk about Parenting Beyond the Rules, which happens to be the title of her new book! We discuss the book and more specifically, how to deal with apps and children. What to look for and why it is important to know what your children are doing on the internet and their devices.

About Book:

Parenting teens is one of the most challenging seasons of parenting, isn’t it? While this can be a difficult time of transition for parents and teens, there is hope. You can parent well and build a stronger relationship even through the teen years.

After 30 years of parenting five children and 20 years of working with teens, Connie Albers has witnessed the negative impact of well-intentioned but misguided parenting styles; all focused on managing teens rather than guiding them. But through learning to focus on the hearts of your teens, you can avoid those pitfalls and build relationships that last beyond the transition years as you intentionally learn about, connect with, and listen to your teens. In a world filled with distractions and devices, it is possible to guide their hearts and remain the primary influence in their lives. In Parenting beyond the Rules, you will discover how to raise a teen according to his or her strengths, talents, and personality type, as these things equip teens to manage life.

Join Connie Albers in discovering practical solutions for every parent trying to raise a responsible, godly teenager.

Connie Albers  ConnieAlbers.com

Join us January 4th – on the Carnival Magic

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Welcome to episode #67 of FPEA Connects. We have a fun topic. We have been busy planning toward some upcoming events with FPEA. One of those awesome events is REFRESH FPEA Marriage Cruise 2020. Let’s just talk about cruising and the sunshine state because you know thousands of people fly in, drive in, whatever it takes to cruise out of Florida to the Caribbean and some very exotic ports of call.

For the love of Florida! Cruising is definitely a reason to love Florida. It is easy to jump on a ship and escape from the everyday.

It was in the 1970s and 1980s that Florida began to experience a bit of a boom in the cruise industry  which drives a huge part of Florida’s economy today.

What we discuss:

Our upcoming cruise REFRESH FPEA Marriage Cruise 2020 ……Cost baseline $544….tax, gratuity and port fees…first deposits are due by the end of March and final payments are due in October

Special Guests Heidi & Jay St. John and Todd & Debbie Wilson!

Join us January 4th – on the Carnival Magic

The post For the Love of Florida…Cruising with FPEA appeared first on Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network.

For the LOVE of Florida…..take two! Welcome to episode #66 of FPEA Connects.

We talked last time about some of the earliest roadside attractions in Florida. Those that really cemented our tourist destination appeal….and several that you can still visit. So many of those attractions were founded in Florida’s natural beauty and the paradise that tourists had found here. And we LOVE all of those things. But I think both of us also have an affinity for the Florida we remember as kids. And some of those attractions we talked about last time were still popular. But as we move into the 1960s, Florida begins to explode with other exciting things that have become iconic tourist destinations. One of those destinations is the Space Coast. Kennedy Space Center.

First let’s do a little timeline history. Starting in the fall of 1961, NASA formally requested money for the initial land purchases on Merritt Island. Moving on through those next few years, buildings were constructed, launch pads built and the vehicle assembly building. That was a little before our time, but we know that with the building of the space program, Florida took on celebrity status…..in the form of astronauts. The area exploded with new housing, businesses, hotels….I Dream of Jeannie….and of course those who came fell in love with paradise too.

The 80s….space shuttle program was huge. After the ending of the Apollo program, the Space Program took a new turn with a new orbiter for manned space flight.

The Space Shuttle program has been retired, but the space program at the cape is still very active and thriving with both private and government launches occurring very frequently.  And now, there is the United States space force a proposed 6th branch of the military set to begin in 2020 that could be part of our future.

FPEA is your source for all of your Florida homeschooling needs. You can check out our website, www.fpea.com for exciting opportunities and valuable resources. Also, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram for other great tidbits and resources that are sure to help you as you create your customized homeschool journey.

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We thought it would be fun to have a love theme for our February podcasts…..so today the topic is……FOR the LOVE of Florida!

Yes, Florida is beautiful……and I could just camp out right here. We live in a fabulous place. You know, since we’ve been doing these podcasts, one of the things that we have seen over and over again, is that some of the most popular episodes are the ones that focus on field trips or just great excursions to take around the state. So, I don’t think I’m alone in my admiration for all things Florida…the wild side, the history, the small town, the big, the famous….whatever it is….we Floridians enjoy sharing and experiencing it, apparently together.

So we’ve picked a couple of new places to explore together. With an underlying focus on the development of tourism in our state too. For you and for me it is hard to imagine a Florida that wasn’t a tourist destination. I mean now it is a challenge to find any small place in Florida that hasn’t been touched by tourism and/or the imprint of people who have vacation homes or retirement homes here. But….there was a time that Florida was a wild frontier and not heavily populated or developed….and then paradise was found. So I wanted to just share some fun facts about some of those places that began to draw visitors and vacationers in….and what those places were like then AND what they look like now.

First…..I should state what may appear to be the obvious…..but Florida was originally a destination that drew wealthy and famous people, people who could afford the time to travel and vacation here. This was, of course, before the invention of some of our common modes of transportation but one man who had discovered Florida and the virtual paradise that it is, was Henry Flagler.  Flagler loved Florida so much that he decided, in the 1880s, to begin investing in building he built railroads and hotels, and hotels along the railroads. With the expansion of the railroad systems, more people could travel to the sunshine state. By the early 1900s, thousands of tourists came to visit. Those tourists were drawn, of course, to the natural beauty, the warmth and sunshine, the salt air and a climate that would bring healing from illness and disease…..soon, there were winter homes being built by those who could afford it….and they would live here for months at a time.

The invention of the automobile opened the opportunity for more affordable travel and people continued to come.

During these years, the attractions were simply natural…..the white sand beaches, the Wild of the Everglades, the coral reefs, the Florida Keys……boating, swimming, fishing, hiking….relaxing, sunbathing…..

It wasn’t long before Flagler started investing in building Florida, that a man by the name of Hullam Jones, invented the glass bottom boat. In the bottom of a row boat, jones installed a pane of glass and charged people 5 cents a piece to ferry them above the crystal clear Silver Springs. Voila…our first tourist attraction is born. Silver Springs features one of the largest artesian springs in the world. It became famous for its glass bottom boat rides which you can still enjoy today. In 1971, Silver Springs as a National Natural Landmark. Definitely worth a visit.

So it is, we begin to move into a season of building attractions that embrace wild Florida…..the springs, the alligators and the flora….as people begin to build beautiful gardens that will become some of the most famous Florida roadside attractions.

Bok Tower Gardens is a prime example. Dedicated in 1929 in Lake Wales, it was one of Florida’s first major attractions during that era. People would drive long distances to see the gardens, the tower and to hear the tower sing. Edward Bok, editor of Ladies Home Journal, built the gardens. The tower was actually built to cover the irrigation system that would water the gardens. There is a 200 bell carillon that plays music in the gardens each afternoon. This is honestly one of the most beautiful and peaceful places.

Weeki Wachee Springs…this old Florida attraction brought international attention…..why?? Well, because of the live, underwater mermaid shows, of course……believe it or not….you can still visit the original attraction where the mermaids are still swimming along with other shows, entertainment and activities. It has now been designated a state park. Sounds like a good day of fun….right?

Cypress Gardens is one of my all time favorites. It was in Winter Haven. It was really the states first theme park (1936). It’s well known for a couple of things…..first of all, an amazing array of flowers and gardens. Girls that wore antebellum-style dresses and walked around, you know, southern belles, we called them, who would pose for pictures. Cypress Gardens was also the birthplace of performance water skiing. The man who opened it, Dick Pope, during WWII, introduced the water ski shows to entertain troops who visited the gardens. Even though tourism was a bit stifled during the war, the military played a role in continuing to bring people into Florida. Cypress Gardens basically became the water ski capitol of the world. The park closed in 2008. In 2010 the land was acquired with plans to turn it into legoland. Legoland opened in 2011.

Sunken Gardens in St. Petersburg was built in 1935. The gardens are 100 years old so it is home to some of the oldest tropical plants in the region. Built in an ancient drained lake, it was the perfect place for the owner, George Turner, to enjoy his favorite pastime, gardening. The beautiful gardens he built became a real treat to his neighbors and they would spend hours strolling through them….so eventually, he began charging 5 cents for tours. So it became a destination….the family later purchased the building that is now the housing the ticket office and a children’s museum, it was previously the Coca Cola bottling company, but they purchased it to build worlds largest gift shop and a wax museum. It is a great afternoon/Saturday morning excursion, a beautiful botanical garden with several water features and flamingos.

Another neat little old Florida day trip is Winter Park. This is one of the cities that was developed as a winter resort for wealthy northerners, seeking warmth from the harsh winters. It’s just north of Orlando, so in a very over developed part of the state, but it is like stepping back in time a bit when you visit. The men who developed it did so with a great design that included residential communities and business, a large Central Park in the downtown area. Rollins college, which is still there, was built and winter park developed a bit of a reputation as an art and literary colony of sorts. It was, and still is a gorgeous area, surrounded by several lakes and of course, citrus. It was a little slice of paradise. There were beautiful homes built on the lakes and the lakes are connected by little canal systems. Hence one of the oldest attractions, the winter park scenic boat tour…. opened in the 1930s and is still operating today. Also, a throw back to that art colony, we always visit the Morse Museum of American Art which houses the worlds largest collection of Tiffany glass, plus other beautiful art.

Another great excursions farther south that had some early tourist beginnings are the Theatre of the Sea (1946) which is in the Keys….Islamorada to be exact. It is a marine mammal park with dolphins, sea lions, sea turtles, tropical gardens and birds. It’s family owned, beautiful to explore. Plan on visiting it this summer if you and your family decide to join us for our FPEA fun in the sun Florida Keys trip.

Miami Seaquarium…built in the height of the 1950s when families were hitting the road and enjoying these attractions. At the time, it was the worlds largest marine life attraction and quite popular. Then in the 1960s it actually became one of the primary locations where they filmed the TV show Flipper.  The Seaquarium is still a fully functioning park with great options for wildlife experiences. It’s a neat experience and they still play with those bottle nose dolphins.

So there you have it……for the love of Florida….get out there and enjoy some of these places with your family.  Let’s keep them on the map for the generations to come because they truly are a tribute to establishing Florida as the tourist destination that we see today with the more recent theme parks.

FPEA is your source for all of your Florida homeschooling needs. You can check out our website, www.fpea.com for exciting opportunities and valuable resources. Also, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram for other great tidbits and resources that are sure to help you as you create your customized homeschool journey.

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Travel with us to Ybor City!  Learn about the history and culture of this unique city.

In this podcast, Suzanne gives us a brief history and what it’s like today, it’s cultural significance and how it to came to be. What influenced the city that we see today? Take a look at the economic and cultural impact this city has on the West Coast of Florida. Explore Ybor today with your family and take a step back in time.

Here are some ways to explore Ybor City https://yborcityonline.com/explore/

Ybor City holds a unique place in Florida’s social and economical history as our state’s “first industrial town.” The founding of this community in 1886 was based on what turned out to be a very shrewd “business decision” by Don Vicente Martinez-Ybor to move his cigar factory from Key West to Tampa. This was at a time when points south were literally “Indian Territory.”

Tampa’s city elders offered low-cost land, “the incentive of the day,” to Don Vicente. He built his factory, which was at that time, the largest brick structure in Florida. Other cigar-makers followed, building their own factories. Immigrants from Spain, Cuba and Sicily came to work in them and Romanian merchants opened stores to serve the community. As the industry matured, German lithographers brought the latest in printing and engraving technology to Ybor and a whole new commercial art form, the cigar label, was born.

Ybor city is not only a great example of turn-of-the-century capitalism, but also of organized labor – and this in what has always been a “right to work” state. The Labor Temple was an integral part of the industrial infrastructure. This moderate form of collectivism was not limited to just work, but formed the basis for the social clubs that offer mutual aide and a rich social life.

Ybor’s social clubs provided “cradle to grave healthcare” at a time when the HMO was not even on the drawing board. These mutual aid societies provide a home base for each ethnic group and with their cantinas, theatres and ballrooms, a range of social activities that were more sophisticated than the general environment.

Rather than trap the workers “beholden to the company store,” Ybor and many of his fellow entrepreneurs encouraged cigar rollers to own their own casitas or “little houses.” This allowed skilled, hard-working people to build equity in their homes and gave them a growing piece of the “American Dream.” The children and grandchildren of these Tampanians are successful professionals, business owners and community leaders.

What is so fascinating about Ybor City is that the buildings and architecture are still here and tell a story. The sturdy cigar factories, elegant social clubs, quaint casitas and balconied storefronts are preserved and in productive use today – giving another generation “roots and wings.” Why even the “art of the label” foreshadowed Ybor City’s modern roll as a center for high-tech creativity.

Read more at  http://ybor.org/ybor-story/

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