Bard has been an ENORMOUS help with the Open House preparations. She has been organizing, cleaning and doing laundry. So far, she has cleaned the kids' bathroom, Sweetheart's room, the computer room, the family room, and her own room.
Today, she was called away to do chores at a neighbor's house--scrubbing floors and cupboards. This will help to earn her money for her trip to China.
Thank you so much, Bard! You're a blessing!
Friday, September 24, 2004
Writing Practice
Monet has been enjoying e-mail correspondence with his grandma, which has been great for his writing practice as well as his computer skills.
Sweetheart has been working on drawing princesses. Fantastic practice for hand-eye coordination, shapes, and writing readiness. The princesses have oval faces, triangle bodies, lines for hair, and zig-zags for crowns. :-)
Sweetheart has been working on drawing princesses. Fantastic practice for hand-eye coordination, shapes, and writing readiness. The princesses have oval faces, triangle bodies, lines for hair, and zig-zags for crowns. :-)
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
Radio Programming
We had a great discussion last night about radios and television. It was initiated by the fact that Grandpa bought each of the kids a small radio and headphones, which immediately became a problem. None of them could hear us, which made it impossible to follow our instructions. Also, Monet, at nine years old, has no idea what kind of garbage is rampant on radio and so doesn't know what to avoid.
Bohemian decided to sit down and discuss the issue. We talked about our television viewing, how we're selective about what we view because once you put garbage into your head, it's very difficult to get back out. The garbage can be in the form of unpleasant images, scary scenes, sexual images, or what seems as benign as materialistic commercials. This is why we don't have network television. Our TV is a receiver for DVDs only, and those are selected by us as a family to enhance our imaginations, inspire us, or educate us.
In the same way, we don't just play the radio. There is so much on the radio that's unfit for adult ears, let alone children. But, again, the materialistic bent of commercial broadcasting is just that, commercial.
To prove our point, we threw out a few random words which also happened to be keywords for local radio commercials. All it took was for me to say, "I met my husband," and they could finish, "on E-Harmony dot com!" Or I could say the word "gimmicks" and they could sing the jingle for the local car dealership.
This, children, is the point of radio programming. To program the minds of those who listen. To create in you a need you never knew you had, and then make you restless enough to sell you something to meet your need. Radio and television programming is designed to unsettle us, to make us selfish, to tell us that we're not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough, clean enough and to convince us that we need more more MORE!
It's important to make wise decisions about what you put into your head. Some things, no matter how benign they may seem, will never come back out.
Bohemian decided to sit down and discuss the issue. We talked about our television viewing, how we're selective about what we view because once you put garbage into your head, it's very difficult to get back out. The garbage can be in the form of unpleasant images, scary scenes, sexual images, or what seems as benign as materialistic commercials. This is why we don't have network television. Our TV is a receiver for DVDs only, and those are selected by us as a family to enhance our imaginations, inspire us, or educate us.
In the same way, we don't just play the radio. There is so much on the radio that's unfit for adult ears, let alone children. But, again, the materialistic bent of commercial broadcasting is just that, commercial.
To prove our point, we threw out a few random words which also happened to be keywords for local radio commercials. All it took was for me to say, "I met my husband," and they could finish, "on E-Harmony dot com!" Or I could say the word "gimmicks" and they could sing the jingle for the local car dealership.
This, children, is the point of radio programming. To program the minds of those who listen. To create in you a need you never knew you had, and then make you restless enough to sell you something to meet your need. Radio and television programming is designed to unsettle us, to make us selfish, to tell us that we're not good enough, pretty enough, smart enough, clean enough and to convince us that we need more more MORE!
It's important to make wise decisions about what you put into your head. Some things, no matter how benign they may seem, will never come back out.
This Magic Moment
Last night, we watched a movie about illusion called The Mysteries of Magic, The Impossible Made Possible. It featured the history of illusion, especially as it related to people producing ghosts and conjuring up "spirits." It was very enlightening to see how far people would go to make a person believe something.
One of the illusions involved reflections in glass. It was an illusion called "Pepper's Ghost," where people would enter this old house, received all sorts of sensory deprivation, drink "poison" (which was actually some type of narcotic to make them more open to the trick), and then be lead to the edge of death where they would see a beautiful girl turn into a skeleton, right before their eyes.
After the video was over, Bohemian jumped up and said, "We can do one of those! We can do one of those magic tricks!" So he sent all of the kids from the room, except for Bard, and then he arranged us thus: Bard sat on a stool on one side of the room, just behind the french door. I sat on the other side of the room on a stool where I couldn't be seen but facing the french door. The room was completely dark, and we each held a flashlight. When both of our flashlights were on, Bard could be seen through the french door's window, and my reflection could be seen ON the window. Thus, we could line up our faces so that we would be in exactly the same place. Then, Bard turned her flashligh on and I turned mine off. When Bohemian would count "three," Bard would turn her flashlight off, and I would turn mine on. Her image would then disappear, and mine would appear exactly where she had been!
We called the other three kids down and showed them the illusion. They were amazed! It was as if Bard were disappearing and I were appearing in her place! The other kids had great fun with it, Monet figuring the mechanics of the trick out right away and putting it to other uses. He was able to make himself disappear and immediately started talking about all of the possibilities for the trick. Bohemian explained that it was through a trick like this that David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear.
This magic moment went right along with our discussion on light and darkness, in more ways than one!
One of the illusions involved reflections in glass. It was an illusion called "Pepper's Ghost," where people would enter this old house, received all sorts of sensory deprivation, drink "poison" (which was actually some type of narcotic to make them more open to the trick), and then be lead to the edge of death where they would see a beautiful girl turn into a skeleton, right before their eyes.
After the video was over, Bohemian jumped up and said, "We can do one of those! We can do one of those magic tricks!" So he sent all of the kids from the room, except for Bard, and then he arranged us thus: Bard sat on a stool on one side of the room, just behind the french door. I sat on the other side of the room on a stool where I couldn't be seen but facing the french door. The room was completely dark, and we each held a flashlight. When both of our flashlights were on, Bard could be seen through the french door's window, and my reflection could be seen ON the window. Thus, we could line up our faces so that we would be in exactly the same place. Then, Bard turned her flashligh on and I turned mine off. When Bohemian would count "three," Bard would turn her flashlight off, and I would turn mine on. Her image would then disappear, and mine would appear exactly where she had been!
We called the other three kids down and showed them the illusion. They were amazed! It was as if Bard were disappearing and I were appearing in her place! The other kids had great fun with it, Monet figuring the mechanics of the trick out right away and putting it to other uses. He was able to make himself disappear and immediately started talking about all of the possibilities for the trick. Bohemian explained that it was through a trick like this that David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear.
This magic moment went right along with our discussion on light and darkness, in more ways than one!
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Getting back to it...
Sometimes, when I wake up in the morning, I feel like I didn't sleep at all. It's all just a long continuation, day after day of the same thing. It's just one day, just longer. :-)
Saturday, September 18, 2004
Off to see Pierce Pettis
We're heading out to Kidron tonight to see Pierce Pettis at the KidronFolk Music Festival. I'm very excited and can't wait to meet some new people! I plan to take some invitations to our open house/jam session so that we can hand them out to any musicians we might meet.
We've spent today sanding and finishing the kitchen cabinets. I hope to post a pic later! They look much nicer, and we distressed them just a bit more than we had before. We have an 8' island in the center of the kitchen with a maple butcherblock top, and we hope to get that finished tomorrow, painted with a coat of buttermilk milkpaint, and then lexington green milkpaint, sand, distress, hand-rub, then finish. We should be able to get it done tomorrow. It will be so awesome to finish before our family gathering.
I called to have the piano tuned, and there's hope that it should be tuned within the next two weeks. Bohemian was going to try to do it, but with all of the work he has to do to finish the house before the gathering, I said it would be best to leave it to someone else.
We put the hardware on all of the french doors. It was so awesome to open the french doors off of the schoolroom onto the side porch. It opened the whole room up SOOO much! I hope to hange a hook on the side porch for our three budgies to enjoy the weather when it's warm, yet still be able to hear them "talk" to each other from inside.
There's a parrot looking for a new home on FreeCycle. I submitted a request, and I really hope they choose us. What a wonderful thing it would be to find a healthy parrot for a pet!
Off to get ready for the festival!
We've spent today sanding and finishing the kitchen cabinets. I hope to post a pic later! They look much nicer, and we distressed them just a bit more than we had before. We have an 8' island in the center of the kitchen with a maple butcherblock top, and we hope to get that finished tomorrow, painted with a coat of buttermilk milkpaint, and then lexington green milkpaint, sand, distress, hand-rub, then finish. We should be able to get it done tomorrow. It will be so awesome to finish before our family gathering.
I called to have the piano tuned, and there's hope that it should be tuned within the next two weeks. Bohemian was going to try to do it, but with all of the work he has to do to finish the house before the gathering, I said it would be best to leave it to someone else.
We put the hardware on all of the french doors. It was so awesome to open the french doors off of the schoolroom onto the side porch. It opened the whole room up SOOO much! I hope to hange a hook on the side porch for our three budgies to enjoy the weather when it's warm, yet still be able to hear them "talk" to each other from inside.
There's a parrot looking for a new home on FreeCycle. I submitted a request, and I really hope they choose us. What a wonderful thing it would be to find a healthy parrot for a pet!
Off to get ready for the festival!
A Man for All Seasons
I'm writing this post backwards...from tonight to Monday.
Tonight, we watched the DVD A Man For All Season about the life of Sir Thomas More during the reign of King Henry VIII. We discussed Sir Thomas' obedience to God over obedience to a king. We discussed the scripture, "What does it profit a man if he gains the world but loses his own soul?" as was mentioned by Sir Thomas to Richard Rich. We talked briefly about the Pilgrims and their leaving England to worship as they saw necessary as opposed to being ruled by a church that was ruled by a king.
On Thursday, Edison, Monet and Sweetheart had art appreciation where they learned about Seurat and practiced a bit of their own pointilism. They found that sometimes art takes much, much patience. Photos of the art class are here.
We also spent time at The Hartville Marketplace where Edison spent some time talking to a magician friend of his. Bard and her friend Kat wandered around looking at things they wanted to buy but couldn't afford. Bard and Kat had spent the morning babysitting, but Bard is saving money for her trip to China in 2005.
When we got back to Kat's house, my dad called to say that Poochie (who almost has a name now) was missing and had been gone all day. He had followed us to feed the chickens and apparently never went home.
On Thursday afternoon, the kids and I shopped Goodwill for some new (to us) clothes. Bard carefully chose her things based on the sales and prices as well as the styles. We'd had a great conversation about What Not to Wear, about how cruel the "fashion gurus" are and how hurtful it must be for some contestants to know that their friends thought so poorly of their clothing choices. We discussed how much more important it is to be kind than to be fashion-conscious, but that you could still be fashion conscious without breaking the bank. She stayed with this theme during her shopping trip. I hope to go back to this particular Goodwill earlier in the day, as it was a really nice one, but so much of the stuff was picked over. Still, a tag that said Old Navy or GAP was about 200% more expensive than one that said Faded Glory or Cherokee. Brand consciousness, even at Goodwill. Afterwards, Bard and Houdin went to the grocery with a list and a cash card and came out with all that was on the list.
Thursday evening, we had dinner with our friends, S and B and their kids. We were there when B came home from work, and S took him aside to talk to him for a minute. When they came out, S informed us that she had just taken a pregnancy test and are now expecting #4! How exciting! They've chosen a name already...Seth Joshua Louis.
After dinner, Bard, Kat, S and I went to another friend's home for a PartyLite party. I feel guilty buying...but I do love their stuff. While I was there, Bohemian called to say that Poochie was home, safe and sound. My friend Jen's mother offered Bard a job cleaning house once a month, to help with her China tour.
I made my case to Bohemian that we should stay at S and B's overnight, since Bohemian had taken Friday as a vacation day. It was dark, rainy, and we had driven into town seperately. Bohemian wanted to drive home...so we left our Jeep and drove the van. On the hour-and-a-half-long drive home from S and B's, the alternator in our van failed and we spent an hour in a Wal*Mart parking lot at 2:00 AM, walking a dog we're dogsitting (yes, that makes five) and watching the live bat that was frequenting the Hallowe'en display, ironically! After brainstorming for a solution to get us the 45 minute trip back home and coming up with nothing better, we finally purchased a battery, and we were able to get back home.
On Wednesday, we drove to Toledo to pick up Bard from her visit to Chicago. We had lunch at Tony Packo's--fried pickles, a chili sunday, hot dogs and chicken paprikas. While there, Edison (who has decided to change his name to Houdin, so will henceforth be known as such) saw a picture of David Copperfield along with his signed hot dog bun. At Tony Packo's, celebrities sign hot dog buns which are then encased in acrylic and hung on the walls. There are hot dog buns signed by President Clinton, several of the Kennedys, and many famous musicians. Apparently, Tony Packo's was made famous not only by Burt Reynolds dining there, but also by Jamie Farr mentioning Packo's on M*A*S*H.
After lunch, we went to a park in Toledo called Pearson Metropark. The Baby got to play with her cousin while Sweetheart made friends. Bard stuck close by my side, hugging me and being so glad to be home after her almost-two-week adventure in Chicago nannying for her aunt. I missed her so much, and now she's gone again for the weekend, scrapbooking with Kat, and then to choir in the morning and then a hayride for the choir with Ash in the evening on Saturday. We'll pick her up on Sunday...and I will be very glad.
The Baby at Pearson Park
All of the kids at Pearson Park
Wednesday night, we all went for a nightwalk up to Aden's Hill where we talked about the constellations, pointed out the summer triangle, asked who could see The Milky Way (we all could) and saw that The Big Dipper was low on the horizon but could still be used to point to Polaris. We could see Pleides and Casseopia (I'm probably spelling all of these wrong), and then it was time to head for home, because it was getting cold. Now the kids are asking for night hikes every night. :-) Bard kept talking about how good it was to be back home, out of the light pollution of the city, and how she knew she could just never live in the city...it was the country for her. :-) She was anxious to hug her siblings, listen to their stories, and just be home again. What wonderful things she learned while away!
On Monday, the kids had choir, and I had to pick up a phone from a freecycle offer (did I write this already?). While in the car, Houdin told me all about the books he's been reading--he's been working his way through all of the condensed classics. He told me about Journey to the Center of the Earth, which was his favorite, and explained why Little Women was not his favorite (Beth dies, and there was nothing they could do about it).
Tomorrow, we hope to finish the kitchen cabinets, and then, maybe, go to the Kidron Folk Festival to see Pierce Pettis.
Another late night. It's off to bed...
Tonight, we watched the DVD A Man For All Season about the life of Sir Thomas More during the reign of King Henry VIII. We discussed Sir Thomas' obedience to God over obedience to a king. We discussed the scripture, "What does it profit a man if he gains the world but loses his own soul?" as was mentioned by Sir Thomas to Richard Rich. We talked briefly about the Pilgrims and their leaving England to worship as they saw necessary as opposed to being ruled by a church that was ruled by a king.
On Thursday, Edison, Monet and Sweetheart had art appreciation where they learned about Seurat and practiced a bit of their own pointilism. They found that sometimes art takes much, much patience. Photos of the art class are here.
We also spent time at The Hartville Marketplace where Edison spent some time talking to a magician friend of his. Bard and her friend Kat wandered around looking at things they wanted to buy but couldn't afford. Bard and Kat had spent the morning babysitting, but Bard is saving money for her trip to China in 2005.
When we got back to Kat's house, my dad called to say that Poochie (who almost has a name now) was missing and had been gone all day. He had followed us to feed the chickens and apparently never went home.
On Thursday afternoon, the kids and I shopped Goodwill for some new (to us) clothes. Bard carefully chose her things based on the sales and prices as well as the styles. We'd had a great conversation about What Not to Wear, about how cruel the "fashion gurus" are and how hurtful it must be for some contestants to know that their friends thought so poorly of their clothing choices. We discussed how much more important it is to be kind than to be fashion-conscious, but that you could still be fashion conscious without breaking the bank. She stayed with this theme during her shopping trip. I hope to go back to this particular Goodwill earlier in the day, as it was a really nice one, but so much of the stuff was picked over. Still, a tag that said Old Navy or GAP was about 200% more expensive than one that said Faded Glory or Cherokee. Brand consciousness, even at Goodwill. Afterwards, Bard and Houdin went to the grocery with a list and a cash card and came out with all that was on the list.
Thursday evening, we had dinner with our friends, S and B and their kids. We were there when B came home from work, and S took him aside to talk to him for a minute. When they came out, S informed us that she had just taken a pregnancy test and are now expecting #4! How exciting! They've chosen a name already...Seth Joshua Louis.
After dinner, Bard, Kat, S and I went to another friend's home for a PartyLite party. I feel guilty buying...but I do love their stuff. While I was there, Bohemian called to say that Poochie was home, safe and sound. My friend Jen's mother offered Bard a job cleaning house once a month, to help with her China tour.
I made my case to Bohemian that we should stay at S and B's overnight, since Bohemian had taken Friday as a vacation day. It was dark, rainy, and we had driven into town seperately. Bohemian wanted to drive home...so we left our Jeep and drove the van. On the hour-and-a-half-long drive home from S and B's, the alternator in our van failed and we spent an hour in a Wal*Mart parking lot at 2:00 AM, walking a dog we're dogsitting (yes, that makes five) and watching the live bat that was frequenting the Hallowe'en display, ironically! After brainstorming for a solution to get us the 45 minute trip back home and coming up with nothing better, we finally purchased a battery, and we were able to get back home.
On Wednesday, we drove to Toledo to pick up Bard from her visit to Chicago. We had lunch at Tony Packo's--fried pickles, a chili sunday, hot dogs and chicken paprikas. While there, Edison (who has decided to change his name to Houdin, so will henceforth be known as such) saw a picture of David Copperfield along with his signed hot dog bun. At Tony Packo's, celebrities sign hot dog buns which are then encased in acrylic and hung on the walls. There are hot dog buns signed by President Clinton, several of the Kennedys, and many famous musicians. Apparently, Tony Packo's was made famous not only by Burt Reynolds dining there, but also by Jamie Farr mentioning Packo's on M*A*S*H.
After lunch, we went to a park in Toledo called Pearson Metropark. The Baby got to play with her cousin while Sweetheart made friends. Bard stuck close by my side, hugging me and being so glad to be home after her almost-two-week adventure in Chicago nannying for her aunt. I missed her so much, and now she's gone again for the weekend, scrapbooking with Kat, and then to choir in the morning and then a hayride for the choir with Ash in the evening on Saturday. We'll pick her up on Sunday...and I will be very glad.
The Baby at Pearson Park
All of the kids at Pearson Park
Wednesday night, we all went for a nightwalk up to Aden's Hill where we talked about the constellations, pointed out the summer triangle, asked who could see The Milky Way (we all could) and saw that The Big Dipper was low on the horizon but could still be used to point to Polaris. We could see Pleides and Casseopia (I'm probably spelling all of these wrong), and then it was time to head for home, because it was getting cold. Now the kids are asking for night hikes every night. :-) Bard kept talking about how good it was to be back home, out of the light pollution of the city, and how she knew she could just never live in the city...it was the country for her. :-) She was anxious to hug her siblings, listen to their stories, and just be home again. What wonderful things she learned while away!
On Monday, the kids had choir, and I had to pick up a phone from a freecycle offer (did I write this already?). While in the car, Houdin told me all about the books he's been reading--he's been working his way through all of the condensed classics. He told me about Journey to the Center of the Earth, which was his favorite, and explained why Little Women was not his favorite (Beth dies, and there was nothing they could do about it).
Tomorrow, we hope to finish the kitchen cabinets, and then, maybe, go to the Kidron Folk Festival to see Pierce Pettis.
Another late night. It's off to bed...
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Government, handwriting, etc.
Since we're working on the KONOS unit study for obedience, we spent this morning talking about government and how important it is to pray for those who are in authority over us. The scripture verses that we read from The Message were very interesting. I'll post them later.
We also worked on handwriting. Edison chose a poem to copy and I'll work with him more closely on his handwriting one-on-one later. One of the problems I have with the handwriting is that the do it perfectly during their lessons, and then when it's time to actually write, just in "real life," they slip back into their sloppy handwriting patterns. We use Getty-Dubay, and someone mentioned on one of my e-mail lists that there is a software company that provides fonts for Getty-Dubay so that you can type out the verse or practice writing instead of handwriting it. I think I'll invest in this.
The kids are taking a few-minute break for me to blog and regroup. I can't believe how quickly the day has gone by! We'll go back to our study, where I think we'll break from KONOS for a bit and move on to the Flat Stanley project.
We also worked on handwriting. Edison chose a poem to copy and I'll work with him more closely on his handwriting one-on-one later. One of the problems I have with the handwriting is that the do it perfectly during their lessons, and then when it's time to actually write, just in "real life," they slip back into their sloppy handwriting patterns. We use Getty-Dubay, and someone mentioned on one of my e-mail lists that there is a software company that provides fonts for Getty-Dubay so that you can type out the verse or practice writing instead of handwriting it. I think I'll invest in this.
The kids are taking a few-minute break for me to blog and regroup. I can't believe how quickly the day has gone by! We'll go back to our study, where I think we'll break from KONOS for a bit and move on to the Flat Stanley project.
FLAT STANLEY PROJECT
FLAT STANLEY PROJECT
The Flat Stanley project was listed on one of the e-mail lists to which I belong. I had heard about it before and thought it was a great idea, but I didn't look further into it. After reading through the description of the project, checking the participant list and seeing that there are other homeschoolers, I shared the idea with Monet by telling the following story:
"Once upon a time, there was a boy named Monet. He was just sitting at the table, quietly doing his homeschooling project, when the chalkboard came crashing down on top of him, squashing him as flat as a sheet of paper. His mother was alarmed, but Monet wasn't bothered at all! In fact, he was a wee bit excited! 'Mom!' he cried, 'now I can go anywhere in the world...in an envelope!'"
Monet was really excited about this idea. We came up with a few variations, such as provide our Flat Monet with pockets and a backpack. Edison got in on the game, too, and thought it would be cool to send a dollar along with his Flat Edison so that it could be converted to whatever country's money Flat Edison happened to visit.
Monet wants to send his Flat Monet to a cousin in Chicago. Edison would like to send his around the world. His idea was to do a "round robin" type of thing where he sends his Flat Edison along to someone and then they send it along to someone else when they're done. We'd have to figure out how we'd get him back!
We signed up on the Flat Stanley website and hope to get approval soon so we can begin participating!
The Flat Stanley project was listed on one of the e-mail lists to which I belong. I had heard about it before and thought it was a great idea, but I didn't look further into it. After reading through the description of the project, checking the participant list and seeing that there are other homeschoolers, I shared the idea with Monet by telling the following story:
"Once upon a time, there was a boy named Monet. He was just sitting at the table, quietly doing his homeschooling project, when the chalkboard came crashing down on top of him, squashing him as flat as a sheet of paper. His mother was alarmed, but Monet wasn't bothered at all! In fact, he was a wee bit excited! 'Mom!' he cried, 'now I can go anywhere in the world...in an envelope!'"
Monet was really excited about this idea. We came up with a few variations, such as provide our Flat Monet with pockets and a backpack. Edison got in on the game, too, and thought it would be cool to send a dollar along with his Flat Edison so that it could be converted to whatever country's money Flat Edison happened to visit.
Monet wants to send his Flat Monet to a cousin in Chicago. Edison would like to send his around the world. His idea was to do a "round robin" type of thing where he sends his Flat Edison along to someone and then they send it along to someone else when they're done. We'd have to figure out how we'd get him back!
We signed up on the Flat Stanley website and hope to get approval soon so we can begin participating!
Pen Pals from all over the globe...
Room 108 Pen Pals
This site collects the names and e-mail addresses of pen pals from all over the globe. You can choose from pen pals in North America or elsewhere. I haven't checked further into this, so if you do, let me know!
This site collects the names and e-mail addresses of pen pals from all over the globe. You can choose from pen pals in North America or elsewhere. I haven't checked further into this, so if you do, let me know!
Mad Math Minutes for Web
Mad Math Minutes for Web
Can you do this page in a minute? Lets you set the type of problems, number of problems, highest number given and more. Great customized practice for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Can you do this page in a minute? Lets you set the type of problems, number of problems, highest number given and more. Great customized practice for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Spelling Assessment
Assess your spelling
You need to have sound for this one. The program dictates a word to you and you spell it. You will be assessed using a standardized assessment method.
You need to have sound for this one. The program dictates a word to you and you spell it. You will be assessed using a standardized assessment method.
Virtual Lemonade Stand
Virtual Lemonade Stand
Do you have what it takes to run a successful lemonade stand? Decide how many lemons you need, how much ice, how many cups, what to sell for, etc.
Do you have what it takes to run a successful lemonade stand? Decide how many lemons you need, how much ice, how many cups, what to sell for, etc.
A Maths Dictionary for Kids by Jenny Eather
A Maths Dictionary for Kids by Jenny Eather
Did you know that a Magic Square is numbers arranged in a square so that the numbers add up to the same total vertically, horizontally and diagonally?
Did you know that a googol is the numeral 1 followed by ten zeros?
Do you know how to convert kilometres to miles?
This wonderful interactive dictionary defines math terms for kids in an easy and friendly way. It's a great tool when you come across a mathematical term whose meaning you just can't recall. It's also kind of fun just to read through the terms and practice the little activities accompanied by each definition.
I'd love to find something like this for science and language arts!
Did you know that a Magic Square is numbers arranged in a square so that the numbers add up to the same total vertically, horizontally and diagonally?
Did you know that a googol is the numeral 1 followed by ten zeros?
Do you know how to convert kilometres to miles?
This wonderful interactive dictionary defines math terms for kids in an easy and friendly way. It's a great tool when you come across a mathematical term whose meaning you just can't recall. It's also kind of fun just to read through the terms and practice the little activities accompanied by each definition.
I'd love to find something like this for science and language arts!
Monday, September 13, 2004
The Long Day is Over
Feeling tired
By the fire
The long day is over
The wind is gone
Asleep at dawn
The embers burn on
With no reprise
The sun will rise
The long day is over...
~Nora Jones
The end of our first day of academic focus is over. It was both good and bad. We had fun, and we had tears. It's amazing how living can be so hard on one's soul.
We began the day with a few workbook pages. Sweetheart did pages of a number book to learn to read, recognize and use her numbers. She was anxious to do them and was disappointed when it was time to move on to the KONOS stuff.
Monet started off with a workbook on multiplication and immediately deemed it "too easy." I assured him that what he was doing was only an introductory review and that it would, indeed, get harder. :-)
Edison started the day with a game of pizza math, something I picked up in the clearance aisle at Wal*Mart. It's a game that helps to understand fractions and division.
While they worked on their notebooks, I served up toast and gave The Baby some cottage cheese (her current favorite). After I finished with that, we moved right on to the KONOS obedience character study. We started with a game of Mother May I/ Simon Says where the three of them had to line up facing me. I would call out an instruction saying, "Mother says," or "Father Says, " or God Says," and they had to decide if they were to obey or not. The object was to get to me, so I would say something like, Mother says take three baby steps forward," and then they would decide if they should obey Mother, and if they should, they would. Then I would say something like, "A stranger says take one step backwards," and they would decide whether they should obey or not. The last instruction was, "Mother says give Mama a hug," so I got three big hugs. :-)
We discussed authority, helping 5 YO Sweetheart understand what the word "authority" means. We listed the different people who are in positions of authority over us, and we discussed what the Bible says about our obedience to God, to parents and to others. Later, in the car, Edison asked why it's so important that everyone vote, so we discussed what it means to have someone be in a position of authority over you, and how our founding fathers came from a monarchy where they weren't given any control over who would be in authority over them, and how hard they fought to have independence and a democratic government, or a government run by the people. If we don't vote, I explained, we can't complain about who has authority over us in the government.
We played another game where I let the children choose a room in the house, anywhere they wanted, and they had to listen for the dinner bell. As soon as it was rung, they were to come as quickly as they could and I would time their results. They were able to hone their skills down to eight minutes! I plan to give these drills daily.
We played another game where I would call out an instruction. The people who obeyed each received a point, and the one who obeyed the quickest received an extra point.
I assigned them to read the story of Abraham and Isaac and to dramatize the story in some way. Edison and Monet had a falling out over it and eventually I separated them and assigned them to each dramatize the story in their own way. Monet chose to make popsicle stick puppets while Edison chose shadow puppets. They'll put on their productions tomorrow.
Monet and I practiced counting by tens from any number, adding double digits, dividing and multiplying. We also discussed percentages as they relate to fractions.
Sweetheart and I did a reading lesson...she's still doing well. She practiced writing the letter "d" on paper and then in jello powder in a pie pan.
This evening, Edison and Monet had choir practice and then we stopped to pick up some old school lockers that I got from FreeCycle, and then we stopped for pizza, where Monet and I tried this trick on Bohemian:
Explain to a friend that you can predict a mathematical outcome based on the number of their choosing. Write down your prediction on a piece of paper, fold it in half and put in their hand, instructing them to place it in their pocket or some other safe place. Have them choose a number, any number, but suggest that it's one that will be easy with which to work because they will be adding, subtracting and dividing using the number. After they've chosen a number and written it down without telling you what it is, have them do each of the following steps:
Add your number to the next higher number. For example, if your number is six, add seven to it to get 13. If your number is 42, add 43 to it to get 85, and so on.
Add nine to the sum.
Divide that sum by two.
Subtract your original number from the quotient.
After they've done their math, checked it for accuracy and then checked it again, let them take the slip of paper out of their pocket and read it. They'll be amazed that you predicted right!
The reason? No matter what number they choose, the answer will always be five!
Lessons I learned today:
Do all of the workbooks and copying first.
Have finger snacks that don't cause stickyness. Toast is probably not the best choice for a worksheet table breakfast. :-)
Have Edison and Monet work seperately from the beginning.
Be flexible.
That's all for tonight. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
By the fire
The long day is over
The wind is gone
Asleep at dawn
The embers burn on
With no reprise
The sun will rise
The long day is over...
~Nora Jones
The end of our first day of academic focus is over. It was both good and bad. We had fun, and we had tears. It's amazing how living can be so hard on one's soul.
We began the day with a few workbook pages. Sweetheart did pages of a number book to learn to read, recognize and use her numbers. She was anxious to do them and was disappointed when it was time to move on to the KONOS stuff.
Monet started off with a workbook on multiplication and immediately deemed it "too easy." I assured him that what he was doing was only an introductory review and that it would, indeed, get harder. :-)
Edison started the day with a game of pizza math, something I picked up in the clearance aisle at Wal*Mart. It's a game that helps to understand fractions and division.
While they worked on their notebooks, I served up toast and gave The Baby some cottage cheese (her current favorite). After I finished with that, we moved right on to the KONOS obedience character study. We started with a game of Mother May I/ Simon Says where the three of them had to line up facing me. I would call out an instruction saying, "Mother says," or "Father Says, " or God Says," and they had to decide if they were to obey or not. The object was to get to me, so I would say something like, Mother says take three baby steps forward," and then they would decide if they should obey Mother, and if they should, they would. Then I would say something like, "A stranger says take one step backwards," and they would decide whether they should obey or not. The last instruction was, "Mother says give Mama a hug," so I got three big hugs. :-)
We discussed authority, helping 5 YO Sweetheart understand what the word "authority" means. We listed the different people who are in positions of authority over us, and we discussed what the Bible says about our obedience to God, to parents and to others. Later, in the car, Edison asked why it's so important that everyone vote, so we discussed what it means to have someone be in a position of authority over you, and how our founding fathers came from a monarchy where they weren't given any control over who would be in authority over them, and how hard they fought to have independence and a democratic government, or a government run by the people. If we don't vote, I explained, we can't complain about who has authority over us in the government.
We played another game where I let the children choose a room in the house, anywhere they wanted, and they had to listen for the dinner bell. As soon as it was rung, they were to come as quickly as they could and I would time their results. They were able to hone their skills down to eight minutes! I plan to give these drills daily.
We played another game where I would call out an instruction. The people who obeyed each received a point, and the one who obeyed the quickest received an extra point.
I assigned them to read the story of Abraham and Isaac and to dramatize the story in some way. Edison and Monet had a falling out over it and eventually I separated them and assigned them to each dramatize the story in their own way. Monet chose to make popsicle stick puppets while Edison chose shadow puppets. They'll put on their productions tomorrow.
Monet and I practiced counting by tens from any number, adding double digits, dividing and multiplying. We also discussed percentages as they relate to fractions.
Sweetheart and I did a reading lesson...she's still doing well. She practiced writing the letter "d" on paper and then in jello powder in a pie pan.
This evening, Edison and Monet had choir practice and then we stopped to pick up some old school lockers that I got from FreeCycle, and then we stopped for pizza, where Monet and I tried this trick on Bohemian:
Explain to a friend that you can predict a mathematical outcome based on the number of their choosing. Write down your prediction on a piece of paper, fold it in half and put in their hand, instructing them to place it in their pocket or some other safe place. Have them choose a number, any number, but suggest that it's one that will be easy with which to work because they will be adding, subtracting and dividing using the number. After they've chosen a number and written it down without telling you what it is, have them do each of the following steps:
Add your number to the next higher number. For example, if your number is six, add seven to it to get 13. If your number is 42, add 43 to it to get 85, and so on.
Add nine to the sum.
Divide that sum by two.
Subtract your original number from the quotient.
After they've done their math, checked it for accuracy and then checked it again, let them take the slip of paper out of their pocket and read it. They'll be amazed that you predicted right!
The reason? No matter what number they choose, the answer will always be five!
Lessons I learned today:
Do all of the workbooks and copying first.
Have finger snacks that don't cause stickyness. Toast is probably not the best choice for a worksheet table breakfast. :-)
Have Edison and Monet work seperately from the beginning.
Be flexible.
That's all for tonight. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
Our first day...
Today will be our first day to start formal academics and delve into themes and units for the year. Because we are learning-oriented and tend towards the unschooling philosophy, our whole family learns all the time about many different things, and we gravitate towards things that have educational (particularly historical) significance.
Today, we will begin a character unit study on obedience using the Konos curriculum. Throughout that study, we'll be learning about light, lighthouses, authority, kings and queens, printing, candlemaking, and more.
Today, we will lay the groundwork for the unit study. We'll begin copying verses and memorizing poetry. We'll begin practicing our multiplication tables. We'll begin timing each other to see how fast we can come when called. We'll play Mother May I and Simon Says.
Sweetheart will continue her reading lessons (she's doing so well!) and she is also doing pages from a workbooks called God's Colorful World and God's Animal Alphabet. I'm normally not into workbooks, but Sweetheart really is, and she asks me daily "what she can do," looking for ideas to feed her mind. Maybe she and I can make a book called, "What Can I Do Today?" to which she can refer when she's bored.
Yesterday, Monet asked when we were starting lessons. He said, "I think I'll do really great with lessons this year." :-) I think he will, too.
Here's to balanced learning...
Today, we will begin a character unit study on obedience using the Konos curriculum. Throughout that study, we'll be learning about light, lighthouses, authority, kings and queens, printing, candlemaking, and more.
Today, we will lay the groundwork for the unit study. We'll begin copying verses and memorizing poetry. We'll begin practicing our multiplication tables. We'll begin timing each other to see how fast we can come when called. We'll play Mother May I and Simon Says.
Sweetheart will continue her reading lessons (she's doing so well!) and she is also doing pages from a workbooks called God's Colorful World and God's Animal Alphabet. I'm normally not into workbooks, but Sweetheart really is, and she asks me daily "what she can do," looking for ideas to feed her mind. Maybe she and I can make a book called, "What Can I Do Today?" to which she can refer when she's bored.
Yesterday, Monet asked when we were starting lessons. He said, "I think I'll do really great with lessons this year." :-) I think he will, too.
Here's to balanced learning...
Saturday, September 11, 2004
Crazy busy
Today was full. After staying up half the night to mess with my blog, I woke up early this morning and didn't feel a bit tired. Strange. I had to force myself to go to sleep last night, and I laid in bed this morning for a half hour trying to go back to sleep before I decided it was no use. So I got up.
A trip to Wal*Mart (found a few learning materials, bought a couple of baskets, a wood carving set and whittling blocks for our upcoming unit on printing, got some more stuff for homemade pop) then a trip to the library, and then home, where I did some organizing and staining while Bohemian worked on the lawn. And that's a lot of work.
The kids watched an old Walt Disney video about birds...can't remember what it was called, but it was a special feature on The Rescuers. I stained the oak leaf carvings above the door, which was Monet's idea (of course), so he got to stain a few things, too. Looks nice. I'll post a photo when I can get the pics off of my digital camera.
Our tiger kitty had kittens in the barn, so Monet and Sweetheart spent a good part of the morning in the loft playing with the kittens. At one point, Sweetheart came in to inform me that Monet had fallen asleep in the loft with a kitten in his arms. :-)
The boys cleaned out the van and cleaned the windows. Afterwards Edison rode his bike to Richard and Penny's, and then Richard brought him home. Edison was in a really good mood and was very helpful. He even made the comment that when the house is messy, it "drives him nuts." He's been doing a lot of reading lately, too. I hope to interview him (maybe tomorrow?) about all of the books he's been reading.
I looked at the Rainbow Resource Center catalog today, the one that I picked up from the homeschool meeting. Wow! I know what my kids are getting for Christmas this year! I was so inspired! Cool stuff.
When we were in the car on the way home from the grocery store, the chocolate cupcakes that Sweetheart picked out went crashing to the floor of the van. It was kind of Edison's fault because he put them in a precarious place. A couple of people were giving Edison a hard time, but then Monet said, "Well, they still are what they are." Very good observation, indeed.
Bohemian and I spent the evening staining and polying the stair railing, window casings and windowsills. We'll be having a family gathering next month, so that has kind of lit a fire under our tails to get stuff done.
Bard is still in Chicago...or did I mention that before? She's spending two weeks nannying and helping my sister-in-law, who is a midwife in the Chicago area, because she has a lot of ladies due right now and a one year old who doesn't care to share his mother. My SIL has so graciously agreed to pay Bard her first month's China payment in return for her help. I miss Bard a great deal. She's a wonderful helper and a good companion. But it has also been nice to take this opportunity to try to train my sons to be keepers of a home, too.
The Baby is begging to nurse, so I'm going to sign off. There's so much more I want to say. Maybe I'll blog again tonight after she falls asleep. Until then...
A trip to Wal*Mart (found a few learning materials, bought a couple of baskets, a wood carving set and whittling blocks for our upcoming unit on printing, got some more stuff for homemade pop) then a trip to the library, and then home, where I did some organizing and staining while Bohemian worked on the lawn. And that's a lot of work.
The kids watched an old Walt Disney video about birds...can't remember what it was called, but it was a special feature on The Rescuers. I stained the oak leaf carvings above the door, which was Monet's idea (of course), so he got to stain a few things, too. Looks nice. I'll post a photo when I can get the pics off of my digital camera.
Our tiger kitty had kittens in the barn, so Monet and Sweetheart spent a good part of the morning in the loft playing with the kittens. At one point, Sweetheart came in to inform me that Monet had fallen asleep in the loft with a kitten in his arms. :-)
The boys cleaned out the van and cleaned the windows. Afterwards Edison rode his bike to Richard and Penny's, and then Richard brought him home. Edison was in a really good mood and was very helpful. He even made the comment that when the house is messy, it "drives him nuts." He's been doing a lot of reading lately, too. I hope to interview him (maybe tomorrow?) about all of the books he's been reading.
I looked at the Rainbow Resource Center catalog today, the one that I picked up from the homeschool meeting. Wow! I know what my kids are getting for Christmas this year! I was so inspired! Cool stuff.
When we were in the car on the way home from the grocery store, the chocolate cupcakes that Sweetheart picked out went crashing to the floor of the van. It was kind of Edison's fault because he put them in a precarious place. A couple of people were giving Edison a hard time, but then Monet said, "Well, they still are what they are." Very good observation, indeed.
Bohemian and I spent the evening staining and polying the stair railing, window casings and windowsills. We'll be having a family gathering next month, so that has kind of lit a fire under our tails to get stuff done.
Bard is still in Chicago...or did I mention that before? She's spending two weeks nannying and helping my sister-in-law, who is a midwife in the Chicago area, because she has a lot of ladies due right now and a one year old who doesn't care to share his mother. My SIL has so graciously agreed to pay Bard her first month's China payment in return for her help. I miss Bard a great deal. She's a wonderful helper and a good companion. But it has also been nice to take this opportunity to try to train my sons to be keepers of a home, too.
The Baby is begging to nurse, so I'm going to sign off. There's so much more I want to say. Maybe I'll blog again tonight after she falls asleep. Until then...
Friday, September 10, 2004
A ton of links...
I added a ton of links for learning resources in Ohio. I hope to add more for Holmes County as well. Searching for links, I'm amazed at the amount of stuff that's here to see! Ohio really is awesome. If you can think of any Ohio or Holmes County links I should add, please let me know and I'll do my best. In the meantime, be sure to visit a few of the links, and then a few of the places!
Homeschool Support Group Meeting
Well. I went. I did it. And guess what.
I survived. :-)
Actually, I had a good time! I met a few people, saw that there are actually a lot of very nice people there, and no one yelled at me. I didn't make a single enemy, and I actually may be on my way to making a few...ahem...could it be...FRIENDS? :-)
They served punch, not Kool-Aid. There were some wonderful people there, and there were some people I had even met before. There was a woman there named Connie (if you're reading this, "Hi, Connie!") who I'd seen at Wal*Mart once a year or more ago, wearing her baby in a sling, and I'd thought, "Oh my goodness! I should go talk to her! I've never seen another person wear their baby in this county!" But I chickened out and gave it to the Lord (I know...I must be a real geek to pray for friends...but I'm in a new community, for crying in the mud!). We had also seen each other another time at Edison's fiddle lesson, where she and her son had been taking lessons. It was really fun to talk to her and exchange e-mail addresses.
The Baby was a bit difficult to maintain. I'll have to make sure to prepare for that next time. I was able to pick up a Rainbow Resource Center catalog, which is very cool because I ordered one online and haven't received it yet.
There were quite a few people at the meeting. I'd say there were about 20-25 families there and it seemed like there were quite a few who were coming to the meeting for the first time, just like us. At one point (and I think you'll appreciate this, Heather...I thought of you), everyone was introducing themselves. When the families with quiverfuls or larger introduced themselves, people actually APPLAUDED! Where on earth would you ever find that kind of response??? There were many families with three or more, five seemed about average, and there was one with 11 (including adopted children).
The kids and teens all seemed to socialize well with each other, but I didn't hang out with them to see for sure. I'm looking forward to some more activities and opportunities to get to know people.
One of the cool "schooly" things that happened tonight was that they had a Human Scavenger Hunt which gave Sweetheart a chance to practice writing her name. One of the women prepared a list of about 30 attributes, such as "owns a horse," "speaks spanish," or "wearing a jumper." You had to find people with that attribute and have them sign your paper, and it had to be someone outside of our immediate family. One of the attributes was "under 36" tall." Many people had Sweetheart sign her name on the paper. It was good practice, but she was so nervous that she would forget how to spell her name. :-) Monet was really into the game, asking people to sign his paper and telling others which people he'd found that could sign for which things.
The down sides: no matter HOW many times I tell my kids, they will NOT stop interrupting me when I'm talking! Ack! I just can't get them to understand! It wouldn't be so bad if I had one child, but I have FIVE. So as soon as I finish telling one to stop interrupting, here comes the next. I swear, it seems like they have a meeting beforehand..."You go first. Tap her on the shoulder four times. If she doesn't answer tap again and again until she answers you. After she gets mad at you, I'll come up and ask her the question. That way she'll be mad at you and so exasperated that I'll get the answer. If that doesn't work, we'll send Sweetheart. She's not as hard on Sweetheart..." They took turns tapping and talking all evening!
And no matter HOW many times I tell them NOT to talk with food in their mouths, they still DO! I intentionally stopped at Burger King ahead of time so that they wouldn't ravenously attack the snack table, but they filled their plates to the brim and continually spewed banana bread crumbs from their lips. ACK!
And no matter HOW many times I tell them NOT to bicker with their siblings, they insist on nagging and picking each other over EVERY SINGLE THING! And they really don't care where we are! They'll come hollering. The exchange goes something like this:
So, yes. I survived. Barely. :-) And I actually think I'll go back next month. If I can get the kids to be civilized.
*NOTE: This is a dramatization. This did not ACTUALLY happen. This is a gross exaggeration! But...well...okay, it's pretty darn close. ;-) Still, if you have any suggestions on how to train these children in this area, please, please, please let me know!
I survived. :-)
Actually, I had a good time! I met a few people, saw that there are actually a lot of very nice people there, and no one yelled at me. I didn't make a single enemy, and I actually may be on my way to making a few...ahem...could it be...FRIENDS? :-)
They served punch, not Kool-Aid. There were some wonderful people there, and there were some people I had even met before. There was a woman there named Connie (if you're reading this, "Hi, Connie!") who I'd seen at Wal*Mart once a year or more ago, wearing her baby in a sling, and I'd thought, "Oh my goodness! I should go talk to her! I've never seen another person wear their baby in this county!" But I chickened out and gave it to the Lord (I know...I must be a real geek to pray for friends...but I'm in a new community, for crying in the mud!). We had also seen each other another time at Edison's fiddle lesson, where she and her son had been taking lessons. It was really fun to talk to her and exchange e-mail addresses.
The Baby was a bit difficult to maintain. I'll have to make sure to prepare for that next time. I was able to pick up a Rainbow Resource Center catalog, which is very cool because I ordered one online and haven't received it yet.
There were quite a few people at the meeting. I'd say there were about 20-25 families there and it seemed like there were quite a few who were coming to the meeting for the first time, just like us. At one point (and I think you'll appreciate this, Heather...I thought of you
The kids and teens all seemed to socialize well with each other, but I didn't hang out with them to see for sure. I'm looking forward to some more activities and opportunities to get to know people.
One of the cool "schooly" things that happened tonight was that they had a Human Scavenger Hunt which gave Sweetheart a chance to practice writing her name. One of the women prepared a list of about 30 attributes, such as "owns a horse," "speaks spanish," or "wearing a jumper." You had to find people with that attribute and have them sign your paper, and it had to be someone outside of our immediate family. One of the attributes was "under 36" tall." Many people had Sweetheart sign her name on the paper. It was good practice, but she was so nervous that she would forget how to spell her name. :-) Monet was really into the game, asking people to sign his paper and telling others which people he'd found that could sign for which things.
The down sides: no matter HOW many times I tell my kids, they will NOT stop interrupting me when I'm talking! Ack! I just can't get them to understand! It wouldn't be so bad if I had one child, but I have FIVE. So as soon as I finish telling one to stop interrupting, here comes the next. I swear, it seems like they have a meeting beforehand..."You go first. Tap her on the shoulder four times. If she doesn't answer tap again and again until she answers you. After she gets mad at you, I'll come up and ask her the question. That way she'll be mad at you and so exasperated that I'll get the answer. If that doesn't work, we'll send Sweetheart. She's not as hard on Sweetheart..." They took turns tapping and talking all evening!
And no matter HOW many times I tell them NOT to talk with food in their mouths, they still DO! I intentionally stopped at Burger King ahead of time so that they wouldn't ravenously attack the snack table, but they filled their plates to the brim and continually spewed banana bread crumbs from their lips. ACK!
And no matter HOW many times I tell them NOT to bicker with their siblings, they insist on nagging and picking each other over EVERY SINGLE THING! And they really don't care where we are! They'll come hollering. The exchange goes something like this:
*Me: So anyway, Mrs. Homeschool Support Group Organizer, your children are so well behaved. How do you get them to...?
One of my children: MOM! I WAS JUST ABOUT TO TAKE THE LAST PIECE OF BANANA BREAD, AND HE TOOK IT RIGHT OFF THE PLATE IN FRONT OF ME...
Me: (whispering in the child's ear) Please do not interrupt when I'm talking. you know that...
One of my children: DON'T YOU EVEN CARE? YOU DON'T EVEN CARE ABOUT ME. I WAS TRYING TO GET THE LAST PIECE OF...
Me: Okay, we'll talk about it later...wait a minute. You don't even
like banana bread...
One of my children: THAT'S NOT THE POINT! I WAS JUST ABOUT TO TAKE IT...
Other child interupts: YEAH, HE WAS JUST ABOUT TO TAKE IT BECAUSE HE HEARD ME TELL SWEETHEART THAT I WAS GOING TO TAKE THE LAST PIECE, AND THEN HE RAN OVER
AND TOOK IT AND...
One of my children: THAT'S BECAUSE I WAS GETTING IT FOR BABY! SHE WAS CRYING BECAUSE YOU TOOK HER DOLL AWAY...
Other child: DID NOT!
One of my children: DID, TOO!
Other child: DID NOT!
Me (looking back at Mrs. Homeschool Support Group Organizer whose mouth is hanging open in amazement): So, tell me, how do you get such well-behaved kids?
So, yes. I survived. Barely. :-) And I actually think I'll go back next month. If I can get the kids to be civilized.
*NOTE: This is a dramatization. This did not ACTUALLY happen. This is a gross exaggeration! But...well...okay, it's pretty darn close. ;-) Still, if you have any suggestions on how to train these children in this area, please, please, please let me know!
Carschooling
Carschooling.com - Over 350 Entertaining Games & Activities to Turn Travel Time into Learning Time
This is such an awesome idea. My sister-in-law, who is a midwife, was just telling me the other day how much time they spend in the car and how she often takes her homeschooled children's work along with her. I will DEFINITELY pass this information on to her. A fellow homeschooler in my area said she got her copy of this book from Wal*Mart.
From the website:
I have logged over 218,000 miles in the car with my kids. Here’s my solution to introducing fun education into traffic jams, cross-town jaunts, and endless road trips.
As a homeschooling parent, I spend a lot of time in the family car with my two sons. I cart them around to science, music and gymnastics lessons, to libraries, friends’ houses, and homeschool park days for recreation and socialization. I also take them on numerous field trips to distant points of interest.
This is such an awesome idea. My sister-in-law, who is a midwife, was just telling me the other day how much time they spend in the car and how she often takes her homeschooled children's work along with her. I will DEFINITELY pass this information on to her. A fellow homeschooler in my area said she got her copy of this book from Wal*Mart.
From the website:
I have logged over 218,000 miles in the car with my kids. Here’s my solution to introducing fun education into traffic jams, cross-town jaunts, and endless road trips.
As a homeschooling parent, I spend a lot of time in the family car with my two sons. I cart them around to science, music and gymnastics lessons, to libraries, friends’ houses, and homeschool park days for recreation and socialization. I also take them on numerous field trips to distant points of interest.
Homemade Pop and David Copperfield
Because of Edison's interest in magic, I've been renting some magic and illusion DVDs from Netflix. Over the last couple of days, we've watched David Copperfield: Illusion and today Mysteries of Magic: Volume I. Mysteries of magic contained a lot of history about illusion. From the Netflix description:
Last night, we made homemade soda pop ala Honest Pretzels by Mollie Katzen (I just looked her up and she has a webpage here, thought it looks like it may not be updated regularly). The soda was very simple. I used:
You might want to check the flavor as you add the lemon little by little, in case you don't like it as tart as we do.
Marvel at Houdini's escape from the Water Torture Cell. Watch illusionists stop everything from bullets to cannonballs with their bodies. And, see Penn & Teller perform the scariest trick of all -- conjuring up a million bees, on stage.
Last night, we made homemade soda pop ala Honest Pretzels by Mollie Katzen (I just looked her up and she has a webpage here, thought it looks like it may not be updated regularly). The soda was very simple. I used:
- 2 liters of club soda
- 2 cans of frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
- 1 container of lemon juice (the little ones that look like a lemon)
- and the juice of 2 limes.
You might want to check the flavor as you add the lemon little by little, in case you don't like it as tart as we do.
First Meeting
I have my first homeschool support group meeting tonight. I am SO nervous. Will my kids swing from the ceiling? Will get there before it's over? Will I have time to take a shower or will I have to go in my pajamas with my hair in knots? Will The Baby want to nurse and pull my shirt up in front of the president of the support group? Will they all be right-wing fundamentalists? Will they all think I'm a left-wing liberal? Will all of the children be wearing headcoverings? Will they serve Kool-Aid? Will I get my finger food done, or will I have to take Triscuits and Spam? Will Bohemian get home in time to go with me? Will someone want to come and check my house to see if I'm a good enough homeschooler? Will I make any enemies? Will I make any friends?
Monday, September 06, 2004
Snoopy
Snoopy, the 80 pound lap dog who has to be eased into meeting new people, barks loudly at people she doesn't know and eats kittens. She's a beagle-basset mix which also makes her the perfect porch dog, because her long, velvety ears hang over the edge of the front porch where she lays, unmoving, most of the day, just like Fletcher from the Something Queer
Four Dogs
When the Man waked up he said, 'What is Wild Dog doing here?'And the Woman said, 'His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always.'"
- Rudyard Kipling
"No matter how little money and how few possesions you own, having a dog makes you rich." - Louis Sabin
I never would have thought we'd be a four-dog family. Four dogs is way too many. Four dogs is stupidly too many.
Growing up, I had one cat and one dog and never felt that it would be right to have more than one. After all, I was an only child. One of each was the exact right thing to have. How could you love them enough if you have more than one? How could you devote the time and attention that each needed if you had more than one? How could they be unique and special if you had more than one?
So we started out with just one dog. He was unique, sweet, and so very special. From the moment I saw him in the pet store, where my then 14 year old brother-in-law convinced me that it was okay to take home a puppy, I knew that this little golden guy was my doggie soul-mate. I dragged Bohemian back to the pet store later that night to buy the puppy I'd already named Gordon and took him home to be our one and only very special family dog forever.Whoever said you can't buy happiness
forgot little puppies. ~Gene Hill
But I accidentally hung that one. Long story, very painful. I'll spare you the details. We'll just say that what Bohemian said is right..." If you give a dog a long enough rope... " and we'll leave it at that.
"Heaven goes by favour. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in."- Mark Twain
It took me a while to get over the death of Gordon. I just kept thinking about how it was all my fault, how, because I'd been so careless, I had dashed all of the plans I'd had for him. Romping in the fields (though we had no fields at the time), accompanying my kids down to the fishin' hole (that didn't exist in our neighborhood) and taking long walks on country roads with us (even though we lived on a very busy road in the suburbs, which was the reason for tying him up in the first place, which was the cause of his hanging).
Labradors are lousy watchdogs. They usually bark when there is a stranger about, but it is an expression of unmitigated joy at the chance to meet somebody new, not a warning.
~Norman Strung
It was Edison's third birthday that finally inspired me to research what would truly be the best kind of dog for our family. After reading about all of the different dog breeds, buying a few dog breed books at the bookstore, and talking to different breeders, I brought home a dopey, four-month old black lab the week before we travelled to Chicago to help prepare for my sister-in-law's wedding, a time when he wasn't old enough to be left alone but was just old enough to tear the wallpaper off of my in-laws' bathroom walls (Note to my mother-in-law, Kathie: I'm very sorry for what Indy did to your bathroom).
For the fifth year in succession I have pored over the catalogue of dogs in the show at Madison Square Garden without finding a dog named Rover, Towser, Sport, Spot or Fido.Who is the man who can call from the back door at night: "Here, Champion Alexander of Clane o' Wind-Holme! Here, Champion Alexander of Clane o' Wind-Holme"?- Westbrook Pegler
The dog had no name (well, he did have a name, but we didn't like the name "Oscar," which reminded me of hot dogs) until we took him to the Indiana Dunes where he romped excessively in the lake and then collapsed on the beach, seemingly comatose. We thought he was going to join Gordon in Great Doggie Heaven. But he continued his dead-dog-like state only until he miraculously recovered his strength and was ready to jump up and do it all again. That's when we decided to name him Indiana, after the Indiana Dunes. We also thought it was a clever dog name, since it was mentioned in Indiana Jones ("We named the *dog* Indiana!"). He would be our one and only, very special, family dog forever.
Until one day about five years later, when our pastor and his wife mentioned the sweet yellow labs their son was selling to raise money to buy his new bride a bedroom suite. They wondered if we might want one. Well, we thought, Edison has a dog. Wouldn't it be nice for Bard to have a dog, too? It's for a good cause. And labs are such social creatures, you know? Indy really should have a pal. So we brought Nutmeg home and she would be our...other...very special family dog forever.
Until one day about five years later, when our pastor and his wife mentioned the sweet yellow labs their son was selling to raise money to buy his new bride a bedroom suite. They wondered if we might want one. Well, we thought, Edison has a dog. Wouldn't it be nice for Bard to have a dog, too? It's for a good cause. And labs are such social creatures, you know? Indy really should have a pal. So we brought Nutmeg home and she would be our...other...very special family dog forever.
But Meggy had wanderlust. We decided not to have her spayed because we thought we might want to become professional breeders. Before long, Meggy was a walking hormone. Even though she and Indy were both indoor dogs, she continually begged to go outside. Once out, she refused to stay in the fenced-in yard with Indy, who had officially become an "it" at six months old, and she decided to seek greener pastures and a more productive companion, digging new holes as soon as we'd fill the old ones and actually chewing through a section of lattice to get out of the yard. One fast-moving car, four sobbing children and a huge vet bill later, we were back to one dog.Happiness to a dog is what lies on the other side of a door. - Charleton Ogburn Jr.
My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet. ~Edith Wharton
One September day after we moved to the country, we were enjoying the activity of the local farmer's auction when there came an extremely tall Amishman named Big Ben. Big Ben was toting a dog kennel full of sweet, tiny puppies--toy fox terrier/jack russell mix.
Monet was smitten. I thought about taking home the little guy cradled in Monet's arms. The tiny creature looked just like a min-pin, the price a mere twenty bucks (is there every a "cheap" dog???). At the thought, my legs began to shake. I thought about the two dead dogs in Great Doggie Heaven. I thought about how Bohemian would react. He'd already told me "No more animals!" after I had, week after week, brought home chickens, guinea pigs, rabbits, goats, guineas, pheasants, pigeons, ducks and kittens. But I have a disease, I've since discovered, that causes me to make impulse decisions when it comes to living things. I picked up my cell phone and told Bohemian, through the spotty reception, that I had found a puppy who was just s-o-o-o cute, that he would be a great pet for Monet (who has an animal-acquisition disease, too), and that it was such a deal at a mere twenty bucks! "Whatever you think is best..." he said, his resigned voice trailing off as I lost the call and was left to interpret his response. Legs still shaking, I handed Big Ben my last twenty dollars and went home with that sweet little pooch. We named him Jack, after C.S. Lewis, and he is one of the best friends a little boy could want. He sleeps under Monet's covers, follows the kids to the creek, the neighbors' houses, the bakery.... He comes when you call and does cute tricks. Of course, he also kills chickens and chases rabbits, but I'm still so very glad we took the chance and brought Jack home with us. And I'm so very glad that we've kept him alive.
"Every boy should have two things: a dog, and a
mother willing to let him have one" - Anonymous
Two dogs is a nice balance. I could have been fine with two dogs. They were actually a good set, in a humorous kind of way. This big, clumsy, gentle giant of a black labrador and this tiny, rabbit-and-chicken-eating bundle of energy of a terrier. Two dogs. A good balance. Big and little. Yin and yang.
So when one of Bohemian's coworkers wanted to find her dog a better home on someone's country farm than she was giving her on her city lot, I was very clear about my intentions. I would do the co-worker this favor: Snoopy could come to us just to spend the weekend. We would keep her for a few days, see if we could find a home for her on a nice Amish farm, and if we couldn't, she would go back.
When Bohemian dragged her down the footpath to our cabin in the freezing rain, and I say dragged bccause she was absolutely adamant that she was NOT going to come willingly, I knew that she would be going back to her lot in the city. She growled at the kids, hid under the table, and was generally very anti-social. She caused us a panic attack when she ran away from home the first night, causing us to comb the neighborhood and put up fliers from dawn to dusk. As the darkness fell and I was certain I was going to have to call Bohemian's co-worker to tell her we'd definitely given Snoopy a home in the country, the silly dog slinked back to the cabin as if she'd always lived here, her huge tummy leaving a belly-shaped path in the snow as she waddled.
Cowardly dogs bark loudest. - John Webster
I now know that Snoopy is very shy, that coming into a house full of strangers was enough to cause her deep doggie depression. I know this because she weasled her way into our hearts over the course of that weekend and endeared herself to my dad, who also lives with us and refused to let her go back to the city.
So now, we have an 80 pound lap dog who has to be eased into meeting new people, barks loudly at people she doesn't know and eats kittens. She's a beagle-basset mix which also makes her the perfect porch dog, because her long, velvety ears hang over the edge of the front porch where she lays, unmoving, most of the day just like Fletcher from the Something Queer books. She's probably the dog who gets the most comments from visitors. "Love your hound dog!"
After a year and a half, I'd become fairly certain that our dog number was set, that we didn't need or have want for another dog until Indy, who will be 10 in March, goes to meet his Maker. And I would still feel this way today.
If it weren't for FreeCycle.
So now, we have an 80 pound lap dog who has to be eased into meeting new people, barks loudly at people she doesn't know and eats kittens. She's a beagle-basset mix which also makes her the perfect porch dog, because her long, velvety ears hang over the edge of the front porch where she lays, unmoving, most of the day just like Fletcher from the Something Queer books. She's probably the dog who gets the most comments from visitors. "Love your hound dog!"
After a year and a half, I'd become fairly certain that our dog number was set, that we didn't need or have want for another dog until Indy, who will be 10 in March, goes to meet his Maker. And I would still feel this way today.
If it weren't for FreeCycle.
"My dog is usually pleased with what I do, because she is not infected with the concept of what I "should" be doing." - Lonzo Idolswine
So far, through FreeCycle, I have given away two Zebra Finches and have acquired the following: two easy chairs, a very decent working refrigerator, a dishwasher (I don't know whether it's working or not because we haven't installed it yet), an antique upright piano, two old school lockers, and two potted plants.
I was supposed to be putting in a new lawn with Bohemian when I snuck inside to check my e-mail and saw the following FreeCycle post.
"FREE TO GOOD HOME: Black lab pup about four months old."
I resisted the urge to open the e-mail and read it...for about two seconds. When I replied to the post, it was only to encourage the woman who was having a difficult time maintaining her sanity after purchasing two lab puppies that were destroying her seed-selling business by uprooting and eating all of her flowers. I wanted to give her some advice, to let her know that crating a pup really works, that I've used the method on several occasions, and that it's the best way to go. Much better than hanging or locking the pup in your in-laws' bathroom (Kathie, did I ever apologize for that? If not, I'm so very sorry...)
Somehow, accidentally, my fingers typed:
"We live on a farm, have an older black lab, an 'adolescent' female bassett and a 3-year-old jack russell/toy fox terrier mix, all spayed/neutered. I'd love to take your little guy if you don't change your mind or can't find a more fantastic home for him. We're definitely a dog family. Our dogs live right along with us. We use gentle training methods and crates. We don't live close to the road, and they have plenty of room to romp and play. "
And then, I accidentally hit "send."
Within twenty minutes, the reply came back.
"OK Where do you live LOL, I had several replies, yours sounded the best to me and also you were the first one (by the time in my inbox), so you win both ways here LOL"
And then I slunk back outside to continue working on the yard.
Bohemian was trying to fix the old John Deere mower, again, so I sat on the hill to watch him. It was so hot. After a few minutes, he came and sat beside me, wiping his brow and shaking his head. As usual, the dogs started to congregate around the humans who were now at their eye level and not moving.To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious
afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring - it was peace. ~Milan Kundera
"Would you like another lab?" I asked, as if asking him if he'd like a big glass of ice cold, homemade lemonade. It really was a fair question. We've talked about getting another lab since Indy started sporting a grey beard. We've talked about getting another lab lots of times...when Indy passes to that Great Doggie Heaven to join Meggie and Gordon.
"Sure," he answered, "When we lose Indy."
"I mean now..." I ventured. I knew that I had to explain. Fast.
"AwomanonFreeCyclepostedablacklabpuppy.He'spurebred,butshegottwoand can'thandlethemboth.She'sgivingoneawayandIaccidentallyresponded andshejustreplied..."
Bohemian reached his hand out to pat Indy's old, black, greying head. Snoopy and Jack pushed their heads under his hand. Indy resignedly looked on. "Did she say we could have him?" he asked.
I nodded.
"Well, when do we pick him up?"
So now we have four whole dogs. I never thought there would be room in my heart for four whole dogs, but I've surprised myself. Or maybe the dogs have surprised me. Each one has a different personality, a different set of endearing qualities that makes each a very important part of our family: Indy, with his calm, mature, unconditional love; Jack, with his boundless energy and wiley ways; Snoopy, with her guarded enthusiasm and possessive spirit, and now Poochie (who isn't allowed to have a anme until Bard returns from Chicago), who's like watching Indy come home for the first time all over again. I guess dogs are kind of like a cross between children, snowflakes and flowers...they're so darn cute, no two are alike and you can never have too many."He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your
dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion." - Unknown
Well, unless you have five dogs. Five dogs, without a doubt, is way too many. :-)
"How can there be too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers!" ~Mother Theresa of Calcutta
Friday, September 03, 2004
Edison's Magic
Edison has been going to the bakery two to three times a week to perform magic tricks for customers entering and exiting the bakery. This was a big deal for me, to let him go, but I've been doing well about allowing him to go after all of his chores are done. Each morning, he's responsible for making his bed, straightening his room, feeding and watering the goats and chickens and then doing whatever else I ask him to do, like sweeping the garage or carrying something up or down the stairs for me. This morning, I asked him to clean the refrigerator, and he did an awesome job. He fell off of his bike yesterday and scraped up his hand, so he wasn't able to wash the shelves and drawers in the sink, but I did it, he dried them and then put them back. It's wonderful to open the fridge and not be afraid of what might jump out at you.
Learning to use the phone
After listening to my children scream into the phone one too many times, "MOM!!! MOM!!! THE PHONE IS FOR YOU!!! MOOOOOOMMMM!!!" while I am repeating helplessly on the other phone, "I've got it. Hey. I've got it. I'VE GOT IT!" I finally decided to teach the children to use the intercom system on the phone. We brought each of the cordless phones into one room, along with the cell phone, and I called our home number. I showed Monet and Sweetheart how you answer the phone politely, press the "hold" button, and then transfer it to the appropriate floor's phone. When the party you are transfering to answers, say, "Mom (or whomever), the phone is for you," and then hang up so that I can talk. We first practiced by making the phone calls while we are all in my room, then we went to separate rooms, then to separate floors, and then I had people outside of the house call in. They both did really well! I think that's the end of the screaming into the phone! YEAH!
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Shakin' Down the Acorns
Whispering Hills RV Park in Shreve hosted a music fest called Shakin' Down the Acorns. They had an open mic night on Friday where there were just a ton of incredibly talented and FUN musicians sharing old-time, celtic, folk and bluegrass music. On Saturday, we had a birthday party to go to during the day, and then we headed back to the festival where they had a band contest. There were so many very neat people there! One of the neat things that happened was that when I walked in I recognized the face of a boy whom I hadn't seen for 8 years, and then had only seen briefly. But I knew it was him! I turned to Bard and said, "See the boy in the white shirt?" She nodded. "I was there when his little brother was born!" I'm not sure she believed me, but sure enough, I found his mom, Kathy, sitting at a picnic table and, while her back was turned, sat right beside her, touching her knee. She looked at me puzzled, and then her eyes widened and she gave me a big hug. :-) Keep in mind that she and I haven't seen each other since the day her son James was born, nine years ago! It was so wonderful to see her again, as her labor had been my first and one of my favorites. I don't believe any other birth even came close to being as memorable as hers was. It turns out that her four boys, ages 14 down to 8, all play instruments and had just finished playing in the band contest, so I missed their playing. But we were able to spend the evening reaquainting ourselves with them and finding that they only live about 30 minutes from us now, farming, selling organic produce and homeschooling (organic learning). We exchanged e-mail addresses and phone numbers and I hope to invite them out so their boys can play for our open house in October.
After the band contest, there was a concert by a man named Robin Kessinger, a national flatpick guitar champion, which was really fun and inspiring. When he finished, a jam session was formed, a caller came to the front of the room, and there was DANCING. Line dancing, square dancing, reels, contradancing...it was SOOO much fun! I couldn't get Edison or Monet to dance, and Sweetheart wouldn't dance in the group, but off to the side, and Bard wouldn't dance at first. But Bohemian and I started right away and had a blast! Then Bohemian took Baby and I begged Bard to dance with me. She did, and then she didn't stop! She loved it! Given that Kathy's boys were all dancing, too, and that there were only a couple of young girls there (including Edison's fiddle teacher and her sister), Bard was a pretty popular dance partner. :-) We had such a fantastic time, I think it will be in our regular schedule to attend dances and jam sessions from now on.
After the band contest, there was a concert by a man named Robin Kessinger, a national flatpick guitar champion, which was really fun and inspiring. When he finished, a jam session was formed, a caller came to the front of the room, and there was DANCING. Line dancing, square dancing, reels, contradancing...it was SOOO much fun! I couldn't get Edison or Monet to dance, and Sweetheart wouldn't dance in the group, but off to the side, and Bard wouldn't dance at first. But Bohemian and I started right away and had a blast! Then Bohemian took Baby and I begged Bard to dance with me. She did, and then she didn't stop! She loved it! Given that Kathy's boys were all dancing, too, and that there were only a couple of young girls there (including Edison's fiddle teacher and her sister), Bard was a pretty popular dance partner. :-) We had such a fantastic time, I think it will be in our regular schedule to attend dances and jam sessions from now on.
Intended Plans
Today the kids and I sat down with all of our favorite learning resources anddecided on what we'd like to begin learning. What I realize is that there'sno shortage of stuff to learn, just a shortage of time and energy! I thinkwe came to a good balance, which I'll soon be posting Basically, I just decided to have a few things that we do daily, like copy poetry for handwriting and spelling practice, do some creative writing, keep a journal, do math drills or worksheets, reading lesson for Sweetheart and whatever else we happen to hit. We used a journal to make lists of what we'd like to accomplish this year, what we'd like to do each day, each week, each month,when we feel like it, when we're waiting for something or someone, and all of the topics we'd like to learn about. I also hope to go through the No-Cost, Low Cost Curriculum book for Edison, Monet and Sweetheart so that I can have an approach that feels comfortable. We're planning to subscribe to and use aleks.com to tutor in math. I will also go through my skills evaluation for the homeschool, part of The Weaver by Rebecca Avery, and see how we're doing. As far as "boxed" curricula, I really don't have any. We will probably use Saxon Math for the younger kids, Beautiful Feet history books, because I have them, we're thinking about having a Konos day once a week since I have the Konos book, and I want to go through both Five in a Row and The Prairie Primer with the younger kids.These are our plans, all very ambitious. This is more of a plan than I've done in the past couple of years because of our building process, and I'm sure it will change as we change, as our schedules change, as we find different materials, and as we burn out. But, hopefully, this will be our learning path.
How Do I Start the First Day???
This post was written by veteran homeschooler, Norma Curry in response to a new homeschooler who wondered how to start her first day of home education. I thought it was absolutely excellent advice, so I asked Norma's permission to republish it here. So, with her blessing, here is Norma's advice:
The beauty of home education is that you get to decide what kind of scheduling works for you and your family. If you have early birds in your family you can begin your day early (lucky you!), and if you are like more of us and have kids who would rather sleep than breathe you will probably begin your day late. Teens are definitely prone to the latter.If you have things that your student must do at any time of day, like mucking stables, or getting to practice ice for skating, or the gym for gymnastics, or fencing class, or to an art class or cello lesson, then you can arrange your schedule around those things.
If you must work part of the day you can arrange your direct interaction with your child around your work schedule. And your child can do more self-directed learning activities, too, giving you more freedom.
If you have a child who loves discipline and routine then you will probably devise a disciplined and routine oriented learning schedule. If you have a very creative type learner then you will probably go for a more ecclectic mode of learning. All are viable and all can work, depending on the learner.
Remember that learning does not only take place while reading a textbook or "doing" school work. Learning is all around us, everywhere, all the time:
- in the kitchen;
- in the workshop;
- in the backyard garden or bird feeders;
- on hikes in the woods;
- helping grandma make a quilt;
- singing in a choir;
- dancing;
- taking care of animals;
- volunteering;
- hanging out at the library;
- watching movies and educational videos;
- traveling;
- reading;
- writing;
- watching PBS;
- doing research at the computer;
- visiting a museum;
- going on lots of different field trips;
- organizing events and activities;
- doing art projects;
- in clubs and organizations;
- in sports and recreational activities;
- and so on.
So be sure to count ALL your instructional hours. You will be amazed!
Learning does not have to come packaged in textbooks and workbooks unless you have a child who really enjoys that kind of thing. If so then you might start out doing lots of "school at home" type activities. If not then you will be fighting all the time to get your child to do things he or she simply does not want to do, and, truth be told, does not have to do to learn. And forcing a child to do something is not conducive to good learning.
Ecclectic learning does not eliminate excellent learning options. Start out spending lots of time at the library. Find out about any programs for homeschoolers they might have. And there are always other programs for kids after school and on weekends. Check with your local parks and recreation folks to see what they are offering; again, often there are classes for homeschoolers. And then follow your child's interests and organize activities that feed those interests. Learning does not have to be painful or boring or sitting in a chair at a table.
The best learning is hands-on so you can help your child find activities that she enjoys and that inspire him to want to learn more.
Plan visits to interesting places whenever you can:
- go to the Renaissance Fair;
- visit your local dairy, factory, bakery, food processing plant;
- attend historical re-enactments.
- Buy one museum or special facilities membership per year (or more if you can afford them) and attend all the great events available to members in these facilities. These might include:
- the Cincinnati Art Museum;
- the Taft Museum;
- The Cincinnati Museum Center ($55/year for a family membership,
special
to home educators!);- the Newport Aquarium;the brand new Freedom
Center;- the Contemporary Art Center;
- the Berringer Crawford Museum;
- Heritage Village Museum;
- and many others
If your child already has special interests then further support those interests:
- join a rock and minerals group;
- join a group into fossils, like Dry Dredgers;
- join 4-H and do projects, whether or not you plan to show them at the county or state fairs;
- join a club for any sport;
- join an astronomy group;
- and if you can't find a group form one of your own and tell others about it.
Scheduling? Take your pick. The day is yours and no one else has any right to tell you how to organize it. Figure out what is best for you, your student, your family, and go from there. Generally you will do lots of tweaking and adjusting as you go along. My daughter started her first job at 12 and has been working ever since, so some of her scheduling had to revolve around her work, and still does. She also skates everyday, so again, her scheduling often revolves around when she can get ice time. And she has, over the years, taken many classes. We then had to work her schedule, and mine, around those classes.
Basically home education is a juggling act. The difference is that you have far more time in which to juggle everything. You do not lose that big 6-8 hour chunk of each day that most kids spend sitting in school, plus getting to and from school. And that really makes a difference, stretches out all your options. Give yourself some time to feel your way through what works best for you. Never assume! Just because something works for someone else does not mean that it will for you. And just because the folks in public or parochial school do it that way does not mean it is the right way, or the only way to do it.
Stay open to new ideas. Have fun! Look at every situation you encounter every day and ask yourself what you are learning, or what you could be learning from that situation.
- Do math at the grocery store, or on any kind of shopping trip, or when planning family travel.
- Do science in the kitchen or with household cleaning, or in the backyard.
- Do literature in the car with books on tape.
- Or listen to classical music, or foreign language lessons as you travel in your car.
- These days you can even have personal DVD players in the car so each kid can watch good educational DVDs while you drive anywhere, or while waiting in the doctor's or dentist's office.
- Check out my recent posting about how to get hundreds of free educational DVDs.
Relax! No one is keeping tabs on you. No one is going to come in and tell you what you have to do or when you have to do it. Find your own rhythmn. Allow some time to "deschool" for a while. And then do whatever works best for you. That is what home education is all about.
Written by Norma Curry
SoYouWanna improve your table manners?
SoYouWanna improve your table manners?
Here is a site that can teach children (and adults) table manners in a quick and "for dummies" style.
Here is a site that can teach children (and adults) table manners in a quick and "for dummies" style.
Friday, August 27, 2004
Theatre Meeting
We attended a meeting last night for the arts council's theatre project for Make a Difference Day. They're planning an hour long presentation with three vignettes about history in our county. Bard and Edison attended. We had a discussion about homeschooling with the meeting leader, as he had been homeschooled his 6th and 7th grade years. We also discussed opportunities and career goals, and talked about how things change and you really never know what your career will be. He said he wanted to have a career in radio, and is now an actor and writes for the local papers. We also discussed historical theatre in the area, and he gave us some good ideas of shows to attend.
Excusal Letter
Yesterday, August 26th, I received my excusal letter from compulsory education for this year.
Thursday, August 26, 2004
Edison's Scooter
Edison decided that, now that he's making money by doing magic tricks at the bakery, he will begin to save money for an electric scooter. Bohemian and I both had separate talks with him about how he will spend his money, including discussions of how to determine what you really want to do with your money and the importance of honoring your parents when you spend your money. We explained to him that "his" money is not actually his at all and is only in his pocket because we allow him to go to the bakery and don't make him pay his way through life just yet. We came to the conclusion, mutually, that he will keep half and spend half of the money he makes. I think he'll be amazed when he sees how quickly he can save money.
We told him that he is to do some research and write a report about scooters, asking others their opinion about buying scooters and doing research about particular makes and models. Bohemian seemed to feel that any scooter that would cost $100-150 would not get you very far before the battery needed to be recharged. Right now, Edison is riding his bike to and from the bakery, and I told him that, if he does buy a scooter, he needs to make an agreement with me that he will continue to ride his bike to the bakery. I'm so thrilled that he's getting exercise daily, and I don't want him to give that up.
We told him that he is to do some research and write a report about scooters, asking others their opinion about buying scooters and doing research about particular makes and models. Bohemian seemed to feel that any scooter that would cost $100-150 would not get you very far before the battery needed to be recharged. Right now, Edison is riding his bike to and from the bakery, and I told him that, if he does buy a scooter, he needs to make an agreement with me that he will continue to ride his bike to the bakery. I'm so thrilled that he's getting exercise daily, and I don't want him to give that up.
Bard's First Job
When Bard realized how soon her China money would be due, she began a plan of action. One of the first things she did was go to some of the neighbors and offer to do odd jobs. Yesterday one of the neighbors called and asked if Bard could come and scrub her porch and weed her flower beds. Bard spent most of yesterday and a couple of hours today doing that work. Today, the neighbor gave her a check for $50.00! Go, Bard!
Martha Ballard
Bard and I went to a neighbor's house today to watch the PBS video about Martha Ballard. On a day where I was feeling rather down and sorry for myself, seeing what M.B. dealt with in her life was very humbling. I think it was eye-opening for Bard to see that the late 1700-early 1800's weren't as innocent and quaint as many like to imply.
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
Quick update before I forget
We were playing Scrabble tonight, which is an excellent practice for spelling, of course, but also for math. Monet wanted to keep score, so we let him. When it came to adding nines, I saw that he was struggling and wanted to help him learn "the trick" to adding nines. As soon as I started explaining the adding method, he broke down. In some ways, I attribute this to our time with a charter school and the necessity of teaching in a manner that was not received well by the child and at a time when he just wasn't ready. Before long, he had completely shut down and was rubbing his eyes and crying. Because he had reached the stage of totally shutting me out, I sent him to his room to cool off. After he had stopped being hysterical, Bohemian and I both went up, and I explained to him that I loved him very much and wanted to help him, but that he was shutting me out, much like he did the time he made muffins and then realized there were too many for each person to get only one, but not enough for everyone to have two. Thus, the lesson of fractions. However, when I began to teach him the lesson of fractions with the muffins, he shut down. When I reminded him of this time, and how we solved the problem by counting each muffin and "naming" each one for a person in the family and then dividing the rest and "naming" each half for a person in the family, he nodded. Yes, he remembered that. I told him that this was the same thing. He just needed to relax and be open to being taught. Sure enough, we were able to take adding nines step by step. First, we counted on by tens. Then we counted backwards from any given number. Then we counted on by tens from any given number. Soon, he was able to count by tens from any number and could count backwards from any number (but with some difficulty. This will need some work). Before long, he was able to understand the concept of adding nine to any number...add ten, subtract one.
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Edison's Magic and Growing Up
Last week, Edison made over $50.00 doing magic tricks in front of the local bakery. Yesterday, we took a trip to the magic shop and he spent $30.00 on new tricks. We also found out about a magic club that meets about 45 minutes from us the last week of each month. I think we'll try to keep that on our calendar.
Last night at the choir meeting, Edison informally performed tricks for some of the choir kids and their parents. I was impressed that he did so well. :-) I hope he keeps up with it, because he does a great job.
He and I discussed future plans. He really hopes to be a performer of some sort. I'm so glad he can be home so that he can pursue his interests. If he were in a school setting, this might not be so easy for him to pursue.
We also discussed growing up. He was surprised to see that some of the kids in choir have grown so much over the summer. Since he's not in school, he doesn't always see this kind of development with his friends. This year, he sees that big change that starts to take place from 13 up. We talked about some of the physical changes that take place when you're a teen. He's started to grow hair on his upper lip. :-)
Last night at the choir meeting, Edison informally performed tricks for some of the choir kids and their parents. I was impressed that he did so well. :-) I hope he keeps up with it, because he does a great job.
He and I discussed future plans. He really hopes to be a performer of some sort. I'm so glad he can be home so that he can pursue his interests. If he were in a school setting, this might not be so easy for him to pursue.
We also discussed growing up. He was surprised to see that some of the kids in choir have grown so much over the summer. Since he's not in school, he doesn't always see this kind of development with his friends. This year, he sees that big change that starts to take place from 13 up. We talked about some of the physical changes that take place when you're a teen. He's started to grow hair on his upper lip. :-)
Bard's Trip to China
Bard will be going to China with her choir in July of 2005, and she's working on raising money to be able to go. On Sunday, we had a discussion with her about whether or not she wants to go (she does), how she will raise the money (many options), and what action steps she'll take to get the money raised. She started on her action steps right away, and as a result, our neighbor called this morning asking her if she would come to do some work! So I'll have to set aside some of the things I had planned for organizing lessons today, since I was going to enlist her help with caring for Baby and cleaning the kitchen, and send her to do some scrubbing and painting at the neighbor's house! Exciting!
::: notification :::
As I wrote before, I sent in my notification letter. I finished it, took it to the post office and mailed it by certified mail. This weekend, I received the receipt that it had been received by the educational center. Now, I will wait for my excusal letter! Yeah! I'm unusually excited about this. :-)
::: gearing up for a new school year :::
Today, I started pulling all of my promising learning resources off the shelves. There's so much good stuff! I hope to take today to begin organizing a bit so that we can add some academics to our interest-led learning. Bard could use some math assistance, Edison some writing and spelling, and the younger children just learning in general, including introduction of concepts. I plan to go through the Skills Evaluation for the Homeschool book to assess the current levels and learning needs of each of the kids.
Sweetheart is really excited about doing lessons. She says she "loves school" and wants to be a cheerleader. ;-)
Edison has been given a clear guideline for doing lessons along with keeping up his visits to the bakery and Penny's house.
We discussed future goals, how important academics are to pursuing a career, and what grade levels mean, for those we encounter who will want to "test" the kids about their grade levels, etc. We also discussed notification and assessment, and how important it is to keep good records of our activities.
I'm excited about this year. I'm hoping to keep a healthy balance between hands-on learning and rote memorization. I also hope to refine my skills of determining when a child is ready to learn something, and letting go if they're not.
I have a lot more on my mind, but I'll come back to it later.
Sweetheart is really excited about doing lessons. She says she "loves school" and wants to be a cheerleader. ;-)
Edison has been given a clear guideline for doing lessons along with keeping up his visits to the bakery and Penny's house.
We discussed future goals, how important academics are to pursuing a career, and what grade levels mean, for those we encounter who will want to "test" the kids about their grade levels, etc. We also discussed notification and assessment, and how important it is to keep good records of our activities.
I'm excited about this year. I'm hoping to keep a healthy balance between hands-on learning and rote memorization. I also hope to refine my skills of determining when a child is ready to learn something, and letting go if they're not.
I have a lot more on my mind, but I'll come back to it later.
Friday, August 20, 2004
::: the freedom on homeschooling :::
freedom
A cute article about "freedom" from homeschooling. Thanks for sharing it with me, Mrs. Chaser. I knew I had a good reason. :-)
You homeschool your kids? You must be a saint. Think of the freedom you’d have if you sent your kids to school. You’d be free to get up at 6 am to drag them out of their warm beds, so they can get ready to go out into the cold to wait for the bus. You’d be free to mediate the fighting over the bathroom (“No fair! I have to leave first! Make her get out!”). You’d be free... .. to make sure each one takes the right lunch. ...to figure out who left their lunch on the counter. ...to send the right permission slips with the right child. ...to make sure each one has the right books in the right backpack. And if there’s no bus for your neighborhood, you’d be free to drive the kids to school, along with someone’s else’s kids, if you carpool.... Which would leave you free to sit in their driveway honking the horn, shivering and waiting, while your kids fight in the back seat because no one wants to sit next to the kid you’re waiting for. Of course, if you sent your kids to school, now your real freedom would begin, because once the kids are actually in the school building, you’d be free to do what you wanted for an entire six hours: To clean the whole house all on your own, with no help from the kids. To watch “Regis and Kelly” or “The View” (didn’t you love the time the ladies on “The View” interviewed that famous actor, and to impress them he pulled off their shoes and juggled them? What a great show....). To go shopping, though you can’t buy the kids clothes unless they’re with, because you don’t know what’s “in”, and they can’t wear anything to school that’s not “in”. Cardamom Publishers Home Page The Imperfect Homeschooler Text Box: Though But still, you’d have the freedom to do what you want, uninterrupted..... Except, of course, for when the phone rings, and you answer it in case it’s the school nurse calling to say one of your kids got sick at school....(but of course it’s a siding salesperson). Or when you need to run back to school at 11 am because you’re one of the Volunteer Computer Moms (at a school which is already costing you $3000 a year in property taxes), or you’re a Field Trip Chaperone, or a Library Mom, or a Room Mom, or an Art Mom, or a Lunchroom Mom. But still, you’d have freedom for a little while, until it’s time to meet the bus or pick up the kids. Then you’d have to make them all sit down and do homework (even though you feel like a meanie because they just spent all day at school), And listen to them fight because they’re overtired and cranky, And comfort the one who’s crying because “I still don’t get what I’m supposed to do!”, and you’re not much help because you don’t see the point of the assignment, either, And rush them through dinner, because it’s almost time to take one to soccer practice, and another to gymnastics, or to Scouts, or to dance class. And by the time you drop off the last one, the first one will be ready to be picked up, and so you retrace your route, and then head home, where everyone collapses.... For a few minutes, but then it’s time to make them finish the unfinished homework, and take their baths, and lay out the clothes for tomorrow, and get to bed on time, so they won’t give you so much trouble about waking them up at 6 am and dragging them out of their warm beds, so they can get ready to go out into the cold to wait for the bus...... Homeschool your kids? You must be a saint. Think of the freedom you’d have if you sent your kids to school. © 2004 Barbara Frank
A cute article about "freedom" from homeschooling. Thanks for sharing it with me, Mrs. Chaser. I knew I had a good reason. :-)
You homeschool your kids? You must be a saint. Think of the freedom you’d have if you sent your kids to school. You’d be free to get up at 6 am to drag them out of their warm beds, so they can get ready to go out into the cold to wait for the bus. You’d be free to mediate the fighting over the bathroom (“No fair! I have to leave first! Make her get out!”). You’d be free... .. to make sure each one takes the right lunch. ...to figure out who left their lunch on the counter. ...to send the right permission slips with the right child. ...to make sure each one has the right books in the right backpack. And if there’s no bus for your neighborhood, you’d be free to drive the kids to school, along with someone’s else’s kids, if you carpool.... Which would leave you free to sit in their driveway honking the horn, shivering and waiting, while your kids fight in the back seat because no one wants to sit next to the kid you’re waiting for. Of course, if you sent your kids to school, now your real freedom would begin, because once the kids are actually in the school building, you’d be free to do what you wanted for an entire six hours: To clean the whole house all on your own, with no help from the kids. To watch “Regis and Kelly” or “The View” (didn’t you love the time the ladies on “The View” interviewed that famous actor, and to impress them he pulled off their shoes and juggled them? What a great show....). To go shopping, though you can’t buy the kids clothes unless they’re with, because you don’t know what’s “in”, and they can’t wear anything to school that’s not “in”. Cardamom Publishers Home Page The Imperfect Homeschooler Text Box: Though But still, you’d have the freedom to do what you want, uninterrupted..... Except, of course, for when the phone rings, and you answer it in case it’s the school nurse calling to say one of your kids got sick at school....(but of course it’s a siding salesperson). Or when you need to run back to school at 11 am because you’re one of the Volunteer Computer Moms (at a school which is already costing you $3000 a year in property taxes), or you’re a Field Trip Chaperone, or a Library Mom, or a Room Mom, or an Art Mom, or a Lunchroom Mom. But still, you’d have freedom for a little while, until it’s time to meet the bus or pick up the kids. Then you’d have to make them all sit down and do homework (even though you feel like a meanie because they just spent all day at school), And listen to them fight because they’re overtired and cranky, And comfort the one who’s crying because “I still don’t get what I’m supposed to do!”, and you’re not much help because you don’t see the point of the assignment, either, And rush them through dinner, because it’s almost time to take one to soccer practice, and another to gymnastics, or to Scouts, or to dance class. And by the time you drop off the last one, the first one will be ready to be picked up, and so you retrace your route, and then head home, where everyone collapses.... For a few minutes, but then it’s time to make them finish the unfinished homework, and take their baths, and lay out the clothes for tomorrow, and get to bed on time, so they won’t give you so much trouble about waking them up at 6 am and dragging them out of their warm beds, so they can get ready to go out into the cold to wait for the bus...... Homeschool your kids? You must be a saint. Think of the freedom you’d have if you sent your kids to school. © 2004 Barbara Frank
Thursday, August 19, 2004
The United States Mint's Site for Kids
The United States Mint's Site for Kids
This is the U.S. Mint's site for kids. It has a course on coin collecting and lesson plans for teachers. The site states that coins are History In your Pocket, thus the Hip Site for Kids.
This is the U.S. Mint's site for kids. It has a course on coin collecting and lesson plans for teachers. The site states that coins are History In your Pocket, thus the Hip Site for Kids.
::: edison's coin collection :::
Edison has started a collection of state quarters. Since he's been riding to the bakery a few times a week, he has been asking them to trade him for state quarters. Today he created a chart of state quarters to keep track of the ones he has, from which mint they come, and which ones he still needs. He also started collecting pennies and hopes to collect $100 worth, $50 of which he plans to donate to Bard's China trip.
::: bard's fundraising letter/commas/proofreading :::
Bard began her fundraising letter yesterday and has been working on the rough and final drafts today. She wrote the rough draft, edited for clarity and interest and then edited again for punctuation. We discussed using commas properly per Punctuation Made Easy. We also used this book to discuss correct proofreading symbols. She's doing the dishes now, but when she's done she'll read the proofreading symbols I used on her letter and correct the mistakes.
Kevin's Playroom
Kevin's Playroom
This site has a ton of links for education, ranging in information about subjects from drama to math.
This site has a ton of links for education, ranging in information about subjects from drama to math.
CNN.com - Put your feet up, It's time for school - Aug 13th, 2004
Put Your Feet Up, It's Time for School
This is a fair and encouraging article on home learning, though there's still the banal argument of socialization. Do these experts really believe that socializing only takes place in a classroom of 20-30 children of the same age and neighborhoods and one or two teachers? My children have relationships with people of many ages, belief systems, backgrounds and cultures. Just last night, we met with the arts council meeting, which was made up of an adult male actor, a middle-aged married couple, an elderly couple who is very active in the historic preservation of our community, a Christian author, a health food store employee and our homeschooling family. That's pretty diverse! And if my children were in school, they'd probably miss opportunities such as these because they'd be home doing homework or involved in extra-curricular activities in the evenings. We're able to take advantage of so many diverse learning opportunities because we can explore ideas and environments whenever we wish.
I think the last line in the article sums up my whole philosophy of learning at home.
"If you know how to learn," she says, "and you know your kids, you know how to teach your kids."
This is a fair and encouraging article on home learning, though there's still the banal argument of socialization. Do these experts really believe that socializing only takes place in a classroom of 20-30 children of the same age and neighborhoods and one or two teachers? My children have relationships with people of many ages, belief systems, backgrounds and cultures. Just last night, we met with the arts council meeting, which was made up of an adult male actor, a middle-aged married couple, an elderly couple who is very active in the historic preservation of our community, a Christian author, a health food store employee and our homeschooling family. That's pretty diverse! And if my children were in school, they'd probably miss opportunities such as these because they'd be home doing homework or involved in extra-curricular activities in the evenings. We're able to take advantage of so many diverse learning opportunities because we can explore ideas and environments whenever we wish.
I think the last line in the article sums up my whole philosophy of learning at home.
"If you know how to learn," she says, "and you know your kids, you know how to teach your kids."
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
::: arts council and upcoming activities :::
Bard, Edison, Monet and I went to the local arts council meeting tonight at a nearby restaurant. There were a handful of people there, and I think the group needs some fresh blood. It seems that those who are interested in art are actually busy being *artists* so it's difficult for them to find the time to attend meetings. Hopefully, some organization can come of it, and we can help with that.
They did discuss the possibility of a theater group, which would be cool, and they have a couple of other things planned. like a trip to the art museum. I think we'll plan to participate. Also, I volunteered to host the gathering at my house in October, the third Wednesday. I also have a PartyLite party scheduled for sometime in there, I think the second or third week in October, as well as our upcoming family gathering.
I mailed my homeschool notification today by certified mail. Hope this comes out well. It's the first time I've notified in years. I hope to ask to assess my own children, as per the state regs which indicate that the children can be assessed by a "mutually agreed upon" person between the parents and the superintendent. If not, I do have a friend who has volunteered to do the assessment, since she is a certified teacher and a former homeschooling parent.
I also mailed my application for the local homeschool support group. We'll see how that turns out. I mailed the registration for Mrs. Lake's group, too, and I hope to help her with some of the field trips she's planning. Could be very cool.
I also hope to plan a field trip for our own family to the Shakespearean Theatre in Cincinnati. We could hit the aquarium, zoo, etc, while we're there. Could be fun.
Now, it's time to finish our Phase Ten game.
They did discuss the possibility of a theater group, which would be cool, and they have a couple of other things planned. like a trip to the art museum. I think we'll plan to participate. Also, I volunteered to host the gathering at my house in October, the third Wednesday. I also have a PartyLite party scheduled for sometime in there, I think the second or third week in October, as well as our upcoming family gathering.
I mailed my homeschool notification today by certified mail. Hope this comes out well. It's the first time I've notified in years. I hope to ask to assess my own children, as per the state regs which indicate that the children can be assessed by a "mutually agreed upon" person between the parents and the superintendent. If not, I do have a friend who has volunteered to do the assessment, since she is a certified teacher and a former homeschooling parent.
I also mailed my application for the local homeschool support group. We'll see how that turns out. I mailed the registration for Mrs. Lake's group, too, and I hope to help her with some of the field trips she's planning. Could be very cool.
I also hope to plan a field trip for our own family to the Shakespearean Theatre in Cincinnati. We could hit the aquarium, zoo, etc, while we're there. Could be fun.
Now, it's time to finish our Phase Ten game.
::: bard's sponsorship :::
Bard began writing her sponsorship request letters for her trip to China. She has really, really talked herself into believing that she won't be able to go. I'm very hesitant to send out the letters or to prod her into sending them. I've made it clear that the whole thing is in her hands. Hopefully, she'll finish the letter today and get it sent out so that I won't have to worry about it.
Edison went to Penny's to do some work and then rode to the bakery. In the evening, he went to the neighbor's house, too.
I finished my notification letter (did I already write that?) and will send it today. I also hope to order the Little House and Anne of Green Gables curricula today.
We watched The Secret Window last night. I hated it. After 15 years of trying to detox myself from Stephen King-like thoughts, they all came flooding right back. I had to sleep with my back against Bohemian because I was frightened like a child. :-/
Edison went to Penny's to do some work and then rode to the bakery. In the evening, he went to the neighbor's house, too.
I finished my notification letter (did I already write that?) and will send it today. I also hope to order the Little House and Anne of Green Gables curricula today.
We watched The Secret Window last night. I hated it. After 15 years of trying to detox myself from Stephen King-like thoughts, they all came flooding right back. I had to sleep with my back against Bohemian because I was frightened like a child. :-/
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
::: our sponsored child/letter writing :::
We sponsor a child from Brazil through Compassion International. We started this sponsorship because Edison heard a membership drive on our local Christian radio station and really wanted to be a part of it, so we looked into it. I allowed Edison to search through the children on the website and choose someone to whom he'd like to write, and he chose Diego.
Diego is close to Edison's age and has very similar interests, including soccer and music. It seemed like a good match.
We've now been writing to Diego for about two years. It's a little frustrating, because the lag time is so long. Today, we received a letter dated June 29th, and Diego talked about Christmas! Since I write to him often, it's hard to tell what letter he's responding to.
Today, each of us wrote a letter in response to Diego's most recent correspondence. Monet didn't really want to do it, but I gave him four questions to write about, and he did it. We talked about Brazil, looked up a few facts about their language, culture and customs, and looked at a globe to find where we are in relation to Brazil.
I worked with Edison on spelling, paragraphs and punctuation. I found a very helpful book at Wal*Mart called Punctuation Made Easy. I can't seem to find a link for it, but it's a very helpful book geared towards children that explores the different types of punctuation and their proper usages.
I also found a website called Punctuation Made Simple which gives a basic overview of colons, semicolons, commas, dashes and apostrophes.
Anyway, because Edison was anxious to go for a bike ride to the bakery, he was happy to do his letter and get it done. When he finished, he was actually proud of his letter and the fact that he wrote 88 words!
I think part of this pride comes from something that happened yesterday when we were with The Chasers. He and Josh are very good friends, have been since they were babies, and if Edison were going to write a letter to someone, it would be Josh. Edison came to me while at Josh's house and held out three letters, written on his Superman stationery. He told me to read them in the correct order, which I did. I wouldn't have needed him to tell me which was the first and which was the last because of the marked improvement in his spelling and his handwriting! I think the pride of seeing his own improvement spurred him on when writing to Diego.
I would like to get back into the habit we had formed last year, which was to write a letter every Sunday. I think it really reinforces handwriting, grammar and communication skills, as well as helps them to keep in touch with friends and relatives. It's always fun to receive a letter in the mail, and the best way to get one is to give one!
Diego is close to Edison's age and has very similar interests, including soccer and music. It seemed like a good match.
We've now been writing to Diego for about two years. It's a little frustrating, because the lag time is so long. Today, we received a letter dated June 29th, and Diego talked about Christmas! Since I write to him often, it's hard to tell what letter he's responding to.
Today, each of us wrote a letter in response to Diego's most recent correspondence. Monet didn't really want to do it, but I gave him four questions to write about, and he did it. We talked about Brazil, looked up a few facts about their language, culture and customs, and looked at a globe to find where we are in relation to Brazil.
I worked with Edison on spelling, paragraphs and punctuation. I found a very helpful book at Wal*Mart called Punctuation Made Easy. I can't seem to find a link for it, but it's a very helpful book geared towards children that explores the different types of punctuation and their proper usages.
I also found a website called Punctuation Made Simple which gives a basic overview of colons, semicolons, commas, dashes and apostrophes.
Anyway, because Edison was anxious to go for a bike ride to the bakery, he was happy to do his letter and get it done. When he finished, he was actually proud of his letter and the fact that he wrote 88 words!
I think part of this pride comes from something that happened yesterday when we were with The Chasers. He and Josh are very good friends, have been since they were babies, and if Edison were going to write a letter to someone, it would be Josh. Edison came to me while at Josh's house and held out three letters, written on his Superman stationery. He told me to read them in the correct order, which I did. I wouldn't have needed him to tell me which was the first and which was the last because of the marked improvement in his spelling and his handwriting! I think the pride of seeing his own improvement spurred him on when writing to Diego.
I would like to get back into the habit we had formed last year, which was to write a letter every Sunday. I think it really reinforces handwriting, grammar and communication skills, as well as helps them to keep in touch with friends and relatives. It's always fun to receive a letter in the mail, and the best way to get one is to give one!
Monday, August 16, 2004
::: baseball with the chasers :::
We're heading out to a baseball game today with The Chasers. Just as I suspected, Edison got up early and is out taking care of the chickens, goats, rabbits, dogs and cats. Good for you, Edison!
Photos forthcoming.
Photos forthcoming.
Sunday, August 15, 2004
::: phase ten :::
We spent the evening playing Phase 10. Edison kept score, which was helpful in practicing his addition, carrying, etc. Monet was able to practice sorting, waiting his turn, counting on, making runs, making pairs, and counting by 5's, 10's and 25's. Sweetheart drew pictures. Bard drew pictures, practiced neat handwriting.
::: today's reading list :::
Edison recently finished:
Bard recently read:
She is currently re-reading There's a Girl in My Hammerlock by Jerry Spinelli and Macbeth by William Shakespeare.
Monet recently read:
- Jedi Under Seige
- Shadow Academy
- Lost Ones
- Lightsabers
- Shards of Alderaan
- (all by by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta)
- Coin Magic by Klutz
Bard recently read:
- The Moon by Night by Madeleine L'Engle
- Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
- Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
- Hamlet by William Shakespeare
- Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
- The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
- The Whisper of Glocken by Carol Kendall
- M.C. Higgens the Great by Virginia Hamilton
She is currently re-reading There's a Girl in My Hammerlock by Jerry Spinelli and Macbeth by William Shakespeare.
Monet recently read:
- The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash by Trinka Hakes Noble
- Midnight on the Moon by Mary Pope Osbourne
- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by
- Favourite Woodland Tales: A Collection
- Oh Say Can You Say by Dr. Seuss
- Eloise in Moscow by Kay Thompson
- Bible Tails Picture Book for Children by The Donut Man
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