With Beeper's interest in the 50 states, I have been gathering up all of our postcards and inventorying them. We are still missing several states:
Alabama
Colorado
Iowa
Indiana
Idaho
Mississippi
New Jersey
North Dakota
Ohio
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Vermont
If you live in any other those states (or could get access to a post card from there) and wouldn't mind sending us a post card, please contact me at evenspor at gmail dot com. We would, of course, be happy to send you a Nevada post card in return. Or we could send Utah, if you prefer.
If you would like to swap post cards but are not in one of the states listed, contact me anyway. We like getting mail, no matter where it's from!
I would also be interested in hearing what other people have done with their post cards. I had thought of putting ours in a photo album, but many are too big, and we have too many for any of the albums I have anyway. I was thinking of maybe making a scrapbook with a page for every state. What do you do with yours?
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Accidental Geography Study: U.S.
This last week firebirdluver did something he has been intending to do for a while. He hung a U.S. map we bought a while back. He got it for a specific purpose. This is our "Great American Road Trip" map.
He called a family meeting where he explained that the map is for keeping track of all the places in the U.S. we'd like to visit some day. He made little pin flags that we can write on anytime one of us things of a place we'd like to visit. We write the name of the place and stick it on the map. We hope to be able to take a big road trip every few years to hit several of those places.
Beeper has always had an interest in learning about the states, but this has caused his interest to surge. Well, this combined with a panel I recently bought at JoAnn of a U.S. map. I will be turning it into a lap quilt/play mat soon, but the boys already love it.
I have been trying to provide other things I think Beeper will enjoy to build on this interest. Fortunately, we already had several things on hand. It is convenient that this interest coincides with an interest in puzzles, because in addition to the Montessorri puzzle maps we have a U.S. puzzle map book (another one of our bargain bin grocery store finds) I have been saving for the appropriate time. Oh, and don't forget the Slightly Odd USA book by Klutz Press (which is apparently on sale at Amazon at the time I am writing this for only $5). We find this to be an invaluable reference.
I also pulled out a map from a set I bought a while back from the clearance section of scoutstuff.org. The set was supposed to be a den meeting kit for Cub Scouts. It came with ten maps and sets of stickers of all the states (plus a few other things) to put on the map. So I still have 9 left to do this again in the future with the boys (a few times). I was surprised at his interest in the project. We mostly did it together so that we could talk about the states as we added each one, but he did some on his own as well when I couldn't help (the set came with a master sheet). The stickers were so old that they didn't stick anymore, so we had to use a glue stick, but that wasn't a big deal. He's very proud of the finished map:
I also downloaded a free app where you can learn about the states (state bird and flower and things like that) and be quizzed on them. Beeper likes it, but mostly just for scrolling around the map and clicking on states.
So far he has gotten excited about everything I have brought out having to do with states. This learning stuff is so much easier when you can follow their interests.
He called a family meeting where he explained that the map is for keeping track of all the places in the U.S. we'd like to visit some day. He made little pin flags that we can write on anytime one of us things of a place we'd like to visit. We write the name of the place and stick it on the map. We hope to be able to take a big road trip every few years to hit several of those places.
Beeper has always had an interest in learning about the states, but this has caused his interest to surge. Well, this combined with a panel I recently bought at JoAnn of a U.S. map. I will be turning it into a lap quilt/play mat soon, but the boys already love it.
I have been trying to provide other things I think Beeper will enjoy to build on this interest. Fortunately, we already had several things on hand. It is convenient that this interest coincides with an interest in puzzles, because in addition to the Montessorri puzzle maps we have a U.S. puzzle map book (another one of our bargain bin grocery store finds) I have been saving for the appropriate time. Oh, and don't forget the Slightly Odd USA book by Klutz Press (which is apparently on sale at Amazon at the time I am writing this for only $5). We find this to be an invaluable reference.
I also pulled out a map from a set I bought a while back from the clearance section of scoutstuff.org. The set was supposed to be a den meeting kit for Cub Scouts. It came with ten maps and sets of stickers of all the states (plus a few other things) to put on the map. So I still have 9 left to do this again in the future with the boys (a few times). I was surprised at his interest in the project. We mostly did it together so that we could talk about the states as we added each one, but he did some on his own as well when I couldn't help (the set came with a master sheet). The stickers were so old that they didn't stick anymore, so we had to use a glue stick, but that wasn't a big deal. He's very proud of the finished map:
I also downloaded a free app where you can learn about the states (state bird and flower and things like that) and be quizzed on them. Beeper likes it, but mostly just for scrolling around the map and clicking on states.
So far he has gotten excited about everything I have brought out having to do with states. This learning stuff is so much easier when you can follow their interests.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Montessori Monday
One of the things Beeper asked me to bring out of storage recently was the decanomial square. He's never completed it before, and honestly, I didn't think he would, but I brought it out. I forgot to factor in that he is two years older than he was when I first made it.
I told him to let me know when he wanted me to show it to him. A few days ago he picked a time when I was available and he was in the right mood for such a project (does that show some maturity?) I showed him how to do the first few rows. Then he caught on and took off with it. It only took him a few minutes to complete the whole thing.
A note to makers: the inexactness of our squares didn't seem to impede him much, but I think if I were to make it again, I'd do things differently. I think if I were making a new one, I'd iron a stabilizer, like medium-weight interfacing, to the felt (or other unlikely to fray fabric), then cut out the squares (with roller-cutter and quilting ruler for exactness) and leave it at that. That should give you something relatively thin but stable, as well as more tactile appeal and durability than card stock. Someone let us know if you try it.
After Beeper made the square, I got out the beads and showed him the relation between the two. We didn't lay them all down - just the sqaures and enough bars that he got the idea. I need to make more of the smaller bars so that we can lay them out the "other" way sometime.
I used the opportunity to briefly explain the idea of multiplication to him. I knew that he already knew that three threes were nine and two twos were four, so it was mostly a matter of terminology. I briefly showed him also how anything times one is itself.
At least some of it must have stuck, because the next day he said to me, "I know what two times four is. Eight."
Watching your kids teach themselves has got to be the best part of homeschooling.
In other Montessori news, Super Fish had his first three-period lesson last week. He's shown a great interest in colors recently, so I thought I'd see how he responded to a three-period lesson on red and yellow (I was never successful doing three-period lessons with Beeper). Super Fish responded quite well to the whole thing.
There are some things that I have learned since Beeper. One is to spend the most time on the second period and make it a game. The first period is just giving them the information in a simple matter and requires no special emphasis. The second period is the practice period. Super Fish likes it when I say things like, "Put the _____ on your nose/forehead/ear/etc." The third period is like the test to make sure they have learned the vocabulary (but to them it is still a game). He had trouble with the third period, so I knew to do the first and second periods again later with the same colors. The next time, though, I added in blue to keep it interesting.
He still needs a little work on them, but I can tell that it is helping. He is funny, because when I ask him the name of something and he doesn't know, he says, "You tell me the password?"
I told him to let me know when he wanted me to show it to him. A few days ago he picked a time when I was available and he was in the right mood for such a project (does that show some maturity?) I showed him how to do the first few rows. Then he caught on and took off with it. It only took him a few minutes to complete the whole thing.
A note to makers: the inexactness of our squares didn't seem to impede him much, but I think if I were to make it again, I'd do things differently. I think if I were making a new one, I'd iron a stabilizer, like medium-weight interfacing, to the felt (or other unlikely to fray fabric), then cut out the squares (with roller-cutter and quilting ruler for exactness) and leave it at that. That should give you something relatively thin but stable, as well as more tactile appeal and durability than card stock. Someone let us know if you try it.
After Beeper made the square, I got out the beads and showed him the relation between the two. We didn't lay them all down - just the sqaures and enough bars that he got the idea. I need to make more of the smaller bars so that we can lay them out the "other" way sometime.
I used the opportunity to briefly explain the idea of multiplication to him. I knew that he already knew that three threes were nine and two twos were four, so it was mostly a matter of terminology. I briefly showed him also how anything times one is itself.
At least some of it must have stuck, because the next day he said to me, "I know what two times four is. Eight."
Watching your kids teach themselves has got to be the best part of homeschooling.
In other Montessori news, Super Fish had his first three-period lesson last week. He's shown a great interest in colors recently, so I thought I'd see how he responded to a three-period lesson on red and yellow (I was never successful doing three-period lessons with Beeper). Super Fish responded quite well to the whole thing.
There are some things that I have learned since Beeper. One is to spend the most time on the second period and make it a game. The first period is just giving them the information in a simple matter and requires no special emphasis. The second period is the practice period. Super Fish likes it when I say things like, "Put the _____ on your nose/forehead/ear/etc." The third period is like the test to make sure they have learned the vocabulary (but to them it is still a game). He had trouble with the third period, so I knew to do the first and second periods again later with the same colors. The next time, though, I added in blue to keep it interesting.
He still needs a little work on them, but I can tell that it is helping. He is funny, because when I ask him the name of something and he doesn't know, he says, "You tell me the password?"
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Number Beanbags
When I made the letters from my alpha-numeric fabric a while back, I had the numbers left over, because I had already made the irresistible numbers. I decided this week to make some beanbags out of them. The boys love them.
They are pretty big. I had to use 5"x6" pieces of fabric to make sure I had plenty of room for all of the seams.
They went together pretty quickly. I sewed buttons on the back (before sewing them together), but that was the most time consuming part. I just did a zigzag around the numbers on the sewing machine this time instead of hand stitching them (again, this step comes before sewing the beanbags together and after ironing the numbers to the fabric).
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Back to Montessori again
Sort of.
We've been on a school break for about a month. Things got really busy, and I think we were all feeling a little burn-out as well, so I stopped doing anything school-related with the boys for a while. Yet somehow, during that time Beeper's reading improved and we had a sudden surge of interest in puzzles and in learning about the United States. He's currently about halfway through labeling a map of the U.S. But maybe I should save that for its own post.
The library (aka school room) has also been a disaster area for the last couple months. It gets that way every so often, because it serves several functions, including Mama's sewing room. I finally had a chance to clean everything out last week and switch out all the school stuff.
Before I did that, though, I sat down with the two older boys, and we looked through our book together. They told me all of the things they wanted available, and I wrote them down. When I switched things out, I tried to include as many of those things as would fit.
The funny thing is, even though it was Beeper that made most of the suggestions, it's Little Fish who has been using most of it. I think that's because Beeper was picking the things he remembers enjoying when the pictures in the book were taken - when he was two or three. He's been spending most of his time the last couple of days focusing on art. He painted a fantastic (Mama's bias) picture of a bald eagle the other day.
Yes, Little Fish is officially allowed in the library now. We decided that he is old enough to pick things off the shelf for himself and work at the little table in there when he chooses (and when there's room - it is a pretty tiny room). The same day that I talked to the boys about what to put in there, we also decided on some library rules. Of course, Little Fish isn't too good at remembering rules, and he still needs a lot of help, but he's been pretty good so far. He's actually pretty good about using a mat (Beeper never got into that habit), and he remembers to put one thing away before getting something else out at least half the time.
Hopefully I am more relaxed and less pushy this time around so that Little Fish can continue to enjoy the arrangement. He mostly chooses practical life activities (his current favorite is pouring), though he has access to a few sensorial options as well. He can build the pink tower correctly, when he is in the right mood. Mostly, though, he likes the blocks because they are pink, and pink is currently his favorite color. He wanted to try the brown stair the other day, but it was quickly clear that he is not to that point yet.
Not so little anymore, and definitely not the littlest, Little Fish is going to be getting a new blog name - or rather, an upgrade of his old blog name, something that suits him better. From now on, he will be known here as "Super Fish."
We've been on a school break for about a month. Things got really busy, and I think we were all feeling a little burn-out as well, so I stopped doing anything school-related with the boys for a while. Yet somehow, during that time Beeper's reading improved and we had a sudden surge of interest in puzzles and in learning about the United States. He's currently about halfway through labeling a map of the U.S. But maybe I should save that for its own post.
The library (aka school room) has also been a disaster area for the last couple months. It gets that way every so often, because it serves several functions, including Mama's sewing room. I finally had a chance to clean everything out last week and switch out all the school stuff.
Before I did that, though, I sat down with the two older boys, and we looked through our book together. They told me all of the things they wanted available, and I wrote them down. When I switched things out, I tried to include as many of those things as would fit.
The funny thing is, even though it was Beeper that made most of the suggestions, it's Little Fish who has been using most of it. I think that's because Beeper was picking the things he remembers enjoying when the pictures in the book were taken - when he was two or three. He's been spending most of his time the last couple of days focusing on art. He painted a fantastic (Mama's bias) picture of a bald eagle the other day.
Yes, Little Fish is officially allowed in the library now. We decided that he is old enough to pick things off the shelf for himself and work at the little table in there when he chooses (and when there's room - it is a pretty tiny room). The same day that I talked to the boys about what to put in there, we also decided on some library rules. Of course, Little Fish isn't too good at remembering rules, and he still needs a lot of help, but he's been pretty good so far. He's actually pretty good about using a mat (Beeper never got into that habit), and he remembers to put one thing away before getting something else out at least half the time.
Hopefully I am more relaxed and less pushy this time around so that Little Fish can continue to enjoy the arrangement. He mostly chooses practical life activities (his current favorite is pouring), though he has access to a few sensorial options as well. He can build the pink tower correctly, when he is in the right mood. Mostly, though, he likes the blocks because they are pink, and pink is currently his favorite color. He wanted to try the brown stair the other day, but it was quickly clear that he is not to that point yet.
Not so little anymore, and definitely not the littlest, Little Fish is going to be getting a new blog name - or rather, an upgrade of his old blog name, something that suits him better. From now on, he will be known here as "Super Fish."
Monday, March 12, 2012
It's Greek to me
It's been a while since we covered Ancient Greece, but I never got around to posting about it. Here's a summary of some of the things that we did.
Read:
Naturally we read select chapters in SOTW: vol 1 (I am afraid I forgot to write down which chapters we covered).
We also read Magic Tree House: Hour of the Oympics. At the end of this one they talk about constellations too, so we did a mini unit on that. I hadn't thought about it ahead of time, but since most of the constellations we are familiar with are based on Greek mythology, talking about constellations fit in well.
I found a book about Greek Gods and Myths on Amazon for only $2. This is perfect as a read-aloud, as it summarizes some of the more popular myths and the "history" of the Greek gods.
I also got a picture reference book about Ancient Greece from a used book dealer. Beeper loved looking through the pages and asking me questions about what everything was. It didn't have the Parthenon model in it, which would have been fun, but it was still good without it.
We didn't read Percy Jackson this time, but we might when we come around this way again in four years. (Maybe by then the library waiting lists won't be so long.)
Watched:
Fantasia - This is a favorite at our house anyway, and I thought the segment with the cupids and pegasi and things would be a fun introduction to Greek mythology for the boys. They loved it. Warning: it does involve animated nudity of female centaurs and cupid bums, so some people will find it inappropriate.
The Storyteller - This was a Jim Henson production. We watched the version with the Greek legends. There's also another one with a variety of stories.
Clash of the Titans - This is another one people may find inappropriate for children (it was firebirdluver's idea) but Beeper and Little Fish really seemed to get into it. We actually watched this a little later, after the unit was finished, and we found out Little Fish had been paying attention to everything more than we thought, because he kept saying, "Pegasus!"
Mission Odyssey - Firebirdluver picked this DVD up somewhere last year for something like $3, thinking it looked like something Beeper would enjoy. He was right. Beeper watched it over and over again, and we wish there were more episodes available. This was apparently a cartoon series based on the stories of Homer. The DVD comes with three episodes. I thought they were goofy, but, like I said, Beeper loved them.
Other fun things:
On a warm day we held our own Olympic games. We did some javelin and discus and short races and going-all-the-way-around-the-house races. Then everyone got "I did my best" prizes.
I came across a Mythical Realms Toob, which Beeper was absolutely tickled with. Everything in there was something he was familiar with, either from the videos we watched or from Harry Potter. He thought the Minotaur was especially cool.
Speaking of Minotaurs, to go with that story, we also got out a board game I love called Labyrinth. The game involves making your way around an ever-shifting maze to "collect" wizard and magic-themed items. We had it was I was a kid. It's suppedly "7 & up" but Beeper is able to play it (with occasional help).
Read:
Naturally we read select chapters in SOTW: vol 1 (I am afraid I forgot to write down which chapters we covered).
We also read Magic Tree House: Hour of the Oympics. At the end of this one they talk about constellations too, so we did a mini unit on that. I hadn't thought about it ahead of time, but since most of the constellations we are familiar with are based on Greek mythology, talking about constellations fit in well.
I found a book about Greek Gods and Myths on Amazon for only $2. This is perfect as a read-aloud, as it summarizes some of the more popular myths and the "history" of the Greek gods.
I also got a picture reference book about Ancient Greece from a used book dealer. Beeper loved looking through the pages and asking me questions about what everything was. It didn't have the Parthenon model in it, which would have been fun, but it was still good without it.
We didn't read Percy Jackson this time, but we might when we come around this way again in four years. (Maybe by then the library waiting lists won't be so long.)
Watched:
Fantasia - This is a favorite at our house anyway, and I thought the segment with the cupids and pegasi and things would be a fun introduction to Greek mythology for the boys. They loved it. Warning: it does involve animated nudity of female centaurs and cupid bums, so some people will find it inappropriate.
The Storyteller - This was a Jim Henson production. We watched the version with the Greek legends. There's also another one with a variety of stories.
Clash of the Titans - This is another one people may find inappropriate for children (it was firebirdluver's idea) but Beeper and Little Fish really seemed to get into it. We actually watched this a little later, after the unit was finished, and we found out Little Fish had been paying attention to everything more than we thought, because he kept saying, "Pegasus!"
Mission Odyssey - Firebirdluver picked this DVD up somewhere last year for something like $3, thinking it looked like something Beeper would enjoy. He was right. Beeper watched it over and over again, and we wish there were more episodes available. This was apparently a cartoon series based on the stories of Homer. The DVD comes with three episodes. I thought they were goofy, but, like I said, Beeper loved them.
Other fun things:
On a warm day we held our own Olympic games. We did some javelin and discus and short races and going-all-the-way-around-the-house races. Then everyone got "I did my best" prizes.
I came across a Mythical Realms Toob, which Beeper was absolutely tickled with. Everything in there was something he was familiar with, either from the videos we watched or from Harry Potter. He thought the Minotaur was especially cool.
Speaking of Minotaurs, to go with that story, we also got out a board game I love called Labyrinth. The game involves making your way around an ever-shifting maze to "collect" wizard and magic-themed items. We had it was I was a kid. It's suppedly "7 & up" but Beeper is able to play it (with occasional help).
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Library Bag
I decided to convert a freebie tote we had lying around into a library bag for Beeper. I used a swatch of some of my Spoonflower fabric to make a pocket, which I divided to hold his library card and the receipt that lists the books and says when they are due.
It's amazing what a difference a bag can make. It makes it easy for Beeper to keep track of his cards and books himself, which he really likes. The receipt pocket was an afterthought (the leftover space just happened to be just the right size for a receipt) but even that has been handy so that we can count the books and make sure we didn't lose any.
It was easy to keep track of library books when I just had one kid, but these days I have been wary of checking many out, knowing I'd have a hard time keeping track of them. I am glad I found an easy solution, especially since it helps Beeper learn some responsibility.
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