Civics/Government
Help your child to become an active citizen by incorporating civics education into your homeschooling plan. Learn about the federal and Colorado government, how to contact your legislators, how government works, and more.
Things to See & Do in Colorado
Third Armored Cavalry Museum
Located on Fort Carson, this museum offers a look at regimental history. Admission is free.
Museum of Colorado Prisons
Cañon City, in southern Colorado, is the home of the Museum of Colorado Prisons, a showcase of the atmosphere and exhibits of days, staff, and inmates gone by. The remodeled facility now welcomes visitors to explore the history of Colorado Corrections. Audio tours guide visitors through 32 cells filled with exciting exhibits and life sized models that link the past to the present in dramatic presentation. Other artifacts and exhibits include: The hangman's noose used for the last execution by hanging in Colorado; confiscated inmate weapons and contraband; the gas chamber; rare, historic photographs depicting life in prison facilities; displays of disciplinary paraphernalia used from 1871 to the present; Federal Bureau of Prisons display; Inmate Arts and Crafts; and a Gift Shop.
Denver Firefighters Museum
The Denver Firefighters Museum is located in an historic firehouse, built in 1909. The collection includes firefighting equipment dating back to the days when horses provided the locomotion. Learn all about the games that firefighters used to hone their skills, the big Denver fires that they have fought, and how trained horses and dogs helped the firefighting effort. Try on a firefighter's uniform and visit the gift shop, which offers many hard-to-find firefighting memorabilia and souvenirs.
United States Mint Tour
Touring the United States Mint is a fascinating experience for those of all ages and one that will be remembered for a lifetime. Tours cover both the present state of coin manufacturing as well as the history of the Mint. Learn about the craftsmanship required at all stages of the minting process, from the original designs and sculptures to the actual striking of the coins. There is a also a gift shop at this location selling commemorative coins, books, games, and other souvenirs. There are some security procedures associated with your visit. Be sure to check their website for their current security status. The U.S. Mint at Denver offers free tours of its production facilities.
Activities & Experiments
How to Create a Midde School/High School Political Science Club
Tips for creating a political science club.
TeenPact Leadership Schools
TeenPact is a dynamic, hands-on leadership school for Christian students. Their mission is to train youth to understand the political process, value their liberty, defend their Christian faith and engage the culture at a time in their lives when, typically, they do not care about such things. The core program consists of the State Classes offered around the country.
H.E.A.R.T.S. - Homeschoolers: Educating, Assisting, & Reaching-out Through Service
H.E.A.R.T.S.' goal is to join together a diverse and inclusive group of homeschoolers in community service projects – to increase public awareness, understanding, and acceptance of homeschoolers and homeschooling through combined service, outreach, and public relations efforts.
Teaching Tips & Ideas
H.E.A.R.T.S. - Homeschoolers: Educating, Assisting, & Reaching-out Through Service
H.E.A.R.T.S.' goal is to join together a diverse and inclusive group of homeschoolers in community service projects – to increase public awareness, understanding, and acceptance of homeschoolers and homeschooling through combined service, outreach, and public relations efforts.
TeenPact
TeenPact is a comprehensive leadership experience that challenges students to grow both personally and spiritually. During TeenPact, students meet and interact with other Christian young people and leaders from across their state. The first step in the TeenPact Leadership School is the State Capitol Four-Day Class for ages 13-18. Here students learn about the political process and the basics of state government. The students then move onto a behind the scenes look at how their state government works. Workshops focus on the political process, parliamentary procedure, public speaking, and the bill-to-law legislative process.
Online Resources
Colorado General Assembly
The Colorado General Assembly's official website. Includes contact information for each House and Senate member, along with session information and details on current pending legislation.
House Joint Resolution 05-1040
Recognition of April 8, 2005, as Home Education Day in Colorado.
Support
Colorado-HEARTS
This is a discussion list for the Colorado chapter of H.E.A.R.T.S., which stands for: Homeschoolers Educating, Assisting, and Reaching-out Through Service. Begun in New Jersey by a homeschooling activist named Michele Pulis, this program encourages homeschooling families to get involved and to help make a difference.
Featured Resources
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Perrine's Sound & Sense: An Introduction to Poetry
Perrine's Sound and Sense is a fantastic book for studying poetry with your children. It is a great resource for high school students. It includes clear and thorough explanations of devices, forms, how to analyze poetry, and more, as well as a huge variety of poems, both classic and contemporary.
Smart Mouth
Ages: 8 years and up; For 2 or more playersSmart Mouth is a quick-thinking shout-it-out hilarious word game that helps build vocabulary skills. It includes variations of the rules for category play and for younger players. Players slide the Letter Getter forward and back to get two letters. The first player to shout out a word of five or more letters using those letters wins the round. The game includes tips for teachers. This is a fun game to play with children and adults together.
Montessori Method
This book is Montessori's own exposition of the theory behind her innovative educational techniques. She shows parents, teachers and administrators how to "free a child to learn through his own efforts".
Name That Country Game
"Dear Pen Pal, Konnichi wa! We've been to see Mt. Fuji. Name my country! Sayonara, Michiko." Challenge your group with this fast-paced geography game, created in 1992 by Educational Insights, Inc. Everyone begins at the post office. Players twirl a finely printed spinner (built into the game board itself) to select one of 60 countries. If the player can correctly identify the country's location on the board's numbered map, he or she may advance along the path to the finish. Bonus moves are won b...
Teach Me to Do It Myself: Montessori Activities for You and Your Child
Based on the key Montessori principle that children learn best through active experience, Teach Me to Do It Myself presents simple activities through which children explore and develop their skills. These skill areas include sensory perceptions, body coordination, language, understanding of numbers, and movement. This practical, color-illustrated parenting book is filled with activities and instructions for overseeing children as they carry out a variety of learning activities. Most activities w...