"How to Be a Happy Introvert Mom," a runcible life's most read post (although that's not saying a whole lot! :), has been included in the spring issue of Mitera Magazine. I am thrilled to be included and have enjoyed the many insightful articles included in this issue Check it out: Mitera Magazine Spring 2013
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Monday, April 8, 2013
5 (Possibly Unexpected) Things I Use Everyday to Homeschool
Its would come at no surprise that we use lots of living books and lots of art supplies in our day to day home learning adventure. But here are a few a little more off the beaten path resources that I've come to rely upon...
1) Split page journals
These are like regular notebooks or composition books, but provide a large space for drawing.
I started using them years ago for my oldest daughter's copy work, since she loves drawing and could be compelled to do just about anything if drawing was also involved. Since then we have begun to use the format for nearly every subject - each kid has history, science, and copy work notebooks. I like the narrow ruled Bienfang note sketch books for science and history notebooks (more room to draw) and the Mead primary journals for copy work (more explicit handwriting guides). After reading our daily selections in history and science and hearing narrations, I have them record a response to the day's reading in their notebooks. Often this is just a picture with a sentence (or few, depending on their age). This solved the reporting issue I had with my Charlotte Mason approach - I have provide work samples for subjects that the primary work comes from reading and narration, which is a bit tricky to show. Their notebooks provide an easy, low key way to show what we are doing, and gives my art loving kids a creative outlet built into their days.I also find that if we don't do official art that week, I still have plenty of artwork to show, and its nice to have everything contained in one space. I also love the somewhat Waldorf element it lends to their work - they are in a way creating their own textbooks.
2) Primary Handwriting Dry Erase Boards
Like this. I use it everyday for writing out passages that we do for copywork. The handwriting guide style helps me make sure I'm writing out in (nearly) perfect form, and is easy to reuse everyday. I do like to use wet erase instead of dry erase markers though, since with dry erase my careful printing can come off on little misplaced fingers.I use a second board to write out weekly spelling words to copy out daily, or various other passages we might be memorizing and copying.
3) Singapore Math Videos from Khan Academy
My oldest is using (among other things) Singapore Math 3a right now, and I was thrilled to find that Khan Academy has a series of explanation videos for it. Although the videos don't exactly match up to the workbook sequence (or maybe they do in a way I haven't quite deciphered), they are proving useful, and are free! I hope they continue to add on for more of the series.
4) Play Away Books
These are mp3 player pre-loaded with books and extremely easy to use. Even my 4 year old can work them with a little help. Although I use this more for quiet time entertainment than school work, I have found a few that I could use as a lazy (or exhausted or vocal-resting) mom's helpers for our daily read aloud novels. A few I've gotten I've used for school work from the library have been The Princess and the Goblin, The Jungle Book, and The Hobbit. Even though I also frequently check out traditional books on cd, these just make things easier, as they only require a set of headphones for individual listening. They would be too expensive for me to buy individually, but if your library doesn't offer these, definitely suggest them to your librarians!
4) Home Science Adventures Kits
My husband (the physics professor) is extremely into hands-on science activities, to a point where I was overwhelmed with my lack of ability to fit in enough said hands on activities to meet his or my science-devouring children't expectations. My hands, or really my brain, is pretty exhausted after our everyday work, and beyond a weekly experiment (which is more than a lot of people do, right?!?!) I had a hard time providing enough. These kits have come to the rescue! They include really well written guiding worksheets to follow as well as everything you need to do the experiments The best thing (aside from never having to hunt for a length of wire or rubber ball) is that they are (at least for my 6 and 8 year old) able to be done independently. That being the case, they are easy to use as a child supervised science exploration activity. I.e, it can be done with mom in a hammock, reading. Score! Of course you could also probably use it as your main science curriculum - there's lots to do and plenty of opportunity for living book supplementation.
5) A Trampoline
Seriously. Studies have shown that children sitting still for more than 10 minutes start to lose learning capacity. So an easy, centrally located activity-generator is a perfect solution. A mini-trampoline doesn't take up a ton of space, but gets out a ton of energy. We do of course have to have strict rules for its use: one kid at a time and no hanging on the bar! But we have yet to have anyone injured on it, which for my children is saying something. It amuses me that they treat it like a hamster wheel - hopping on through out the day, bouncing happily for a few minutes and going about their business. I think it helps put them more in control of managing their energy and stimulation levels, which I think is a great step toward independence.
What about you? Any kind of weird standards that you wouldn't want to homeschool without? I'd love to hear them!
1) Split page journals
These are like regular notebooks or composition books, but provide a large space for drawing.
I started using them years ago for my oldest daughter's copy work, since she loves drawing and could be compelled to do just about anything if drawing was also involved. Since then we have begun to use the format for nearly every subject - each kid has history, science, and copy work notebooks. I like the narrow ruled Bienfang note sketch books for science and history notebooks (more room to draw) and the Mead primary journals for copy work (more explicit handwriting guides). After reading our daily selections in history and science and hearing narrations, I have them record a response to the day's reading in their notebooks. Often this is just a picture with a sentence (or few, depending on their age). This solved the reporting issue I had with my Charlotte Mason approach - I have provide work samples for subjects that the primary work comes from reading and narration, which is a bit tricky to show. Their notebooks provide an easy, low key way to show what we are doing, and gives my art loving kids a creative outlet built into their days.I also find that if we don't do official art that week, I still have plenty of artwork to show, and its nice to have everything contained in one space. I also love the somewhat Waldorf element it lends to their work - they are in a way creating their own textbooks.
2) Primary Handwriting Dry Erase Boards
Like this. I use it everyday for writing out passages that we do for copywork. The handwriting guide style helps me make sure I'm writing out in (nearly) perfect form, and is easy to reuse everyday. I do like to use wet erase instead of dry erase markers though, since with dry erase my careful printing can come off on little misplaced fingers.I use a second board to write out weekly spelling words to copy out daily, or various other passages we might be memorizing and copying.
3) Singapore Math Videos from Khan Academy
My oldest is using (among other things) Singapore Math 3a right now, and I was thrilled to find that Khan Academy has a series of explanation videos for it. Although the videos don't exactly match up to the workbook sequence (or maybe they do in a way I haven't quite deciphered), they are proving useful, and are free! I hope they continue to add on for more of the series.
4) Play Away Books
These are mp3 player pre-loaded with books and extremely easy to use. Even my 4 year old can work them with a little help. Although I use this more for quiet time entertainment than school work, I have found a few that I could use as a lazy (or exhausted or vocal-resting) mom's helpers for our daily read aloud novels. A few I've gotten I've used for school work from the library have been The Princess and the Goblin, The Jungle Book, and The Hobbit. Even though I also frequently check out traditional books on cd, these just make things easier, as they only require a set of headphones for individual listening. They would be too expensive for me to buy individually, but if your library doesn't offer these, definitely suggest them to your librarians!
4) Home Science Adventures Kits
 |
| Microscope Explorations Unit |
My husband (the physics professor) is extremely into hands-on science activities, to a point where I was overwhelmed with my lack of ability to fit in enough said hands on activities to meet his or my science-devouring children't expectations. My hands, or really my brain, is pretty exhausted after our everyday work, and beyond a weekly experiment (which is more than a lot of people do, right?!?!) I had a hard time providing enough. These kits have come to the rescue! They include really well written guiding worksheets to follow as well as everything you need to do the experiments The best thing (aside from never having to hunt for a length of wire or rubber ball) is that they are (at least for my 6 and 8 year old) able to be done independently. That being the case, they are easy to use as a child supervised science exploration activity. I.e, it can be done with mom in a hammock, reading. Score! Of course you could also probably use it as your main science curriculum - there's lots to do and plenty of opportunity for living book supplementation.
5) A Trampoline
Seriously. Studies have shown that children sitting still for more than 10 minutes start to lose learning capacity. So an easy, centrally located activity-generator is a perfect solution. A mini-trampoline doesn't take up a ton of space, but gets out a ton of energy. We do of course have to have strict rules for its use: one kid at a time and no hanging on the bar! But we have yet to have anyone injured on it, which for my children is saying something. It amuses me that they treat it like a hamster wheel - hopping on through out the day, bouncing happily for a few minutes and going about their business. I think it helps put them more in control of managing their energy and stimulation levels, which I think is a great step toward independence.
What about you? Any kind of weird standards that you wouldn't want to homeschool without? I'd love to hear them!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
How Can a Life be "Runcible?"
 |
| "The Owl and the Pussycat" by Edward Lear |
When my oldest daughter was about four years old, her Dad often read to her from an enormous poetry compilation (he just doesn't do picture books). Her favorite poem in it was by far Edward Lear's "The Owl and the Pussy Cat." It was the first poem she ever memorized (pretty much unintentionally), and of course there were quite a few unfamiliar words for a four year old. I found myself looking up "mince," for example (any finely chopped food) and "quince," (kind of like a pear). But when I got to "runcible," as in "a runcible spoon," I was delighted with the definition: there is none. Lear just made it up!
Now maybe I was just in that particular state of young motherhood where everything seems so overwhelmingly serious - I had to choose the RIGHT way to (choose any of the following): work outside the home or not work outside the home, feed babies/children, vaccinate or not vaccinate, co-sleep or crib sleep, nurture children, respond to husband, share housework with husband or assume it all...well of course you get the picture. And strangely, many of the individual choices to be made had silent, sometimes illogical ties to others - like not vaccinating if you breastfeed, or not teaching first time obedience if you co-slept. It was like picking a team more than anything else, and for one with divergent ideas, maddeningly stressful. But in this poem it was as if Lear, upon not seeing the perfect word to use in this particular poem, decided, "well dash it all, I'll just make up my own!" I longed for that exact freedom in my own life, and that is why the word resonated with me. I'm apparently one of those quirky literary types who draw things like this out single words of poetry, but there you are.
So it is in that spirit of responding with creativity to the considerably serious questions of home, family, and education that I began writing "a runcible life." I hope that you will enjoy it and stop by often!
Friday, March 15, 2013
Livng Books Books for St. Patrick's Day
St. Patrick's Day is a fun opportunity to take a little side jaunt from our normal history studies. This week, we've been reading about St. Patrick of Ireland, and I thought I'd share some of our favorite books to that end. Sometimes one is overwhelmed with silly, stereotypical representations of Patrick, but these are excellent sources for a mini-study using living books.
by Tomie dePaola
I love this storybook version of St. Patrick's life. Lovely illustrations, concise prose, and a clear distinction made between the historical life of Patrick and the legends that have been associated with him make for a great introduction to Ireland's beloved patron saint.
by Cornelia Lehn
St. Patrick's story is among many tales of missionaries in this compilation of stories. About a five minute read aloud, I like reading this story as well because it emphasizes a bit more about Patrick's Roman background and fleshes out the circumstances like his pirate capture vividly (although it might be a little much for very sensitive young children - please pre-read).
Saint Fiech, Bishop of Sletty
This roughly 10 page poem describing Patrick's life and and work is an original source of many of the stories we know hear of St. Patrick. The Irish, English, and Latin versions are all included. Being available free on kindle is an added bonus!
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Favorite Resources: Jim Weiss Recordings
So my girls and I had an enormous treat last night - we got to see Jim Weiss, storyteller extraordinaire perform in the flesh at our local library! Last night you would have thought we were going to see Justin Beiber - if my children knew who he was. One of those moments I'm thrilled to have them woefully out of step with culture, but I digress. When we walked in to sit down front and center (yes, we were first in line to get in), we were thrilled to get to chat with Mr. Weiss - my 6 year old daughter was absolutely star struck. I am still kicking myself for forgetting my camera! But we did buy some recordings that we were able to have signed, so my girls have a souvenir. I hope it won't be the last time we see him perform in person! Ok, end of fangirl rant!
Many of these recording have fit wonderfully into our study of history using Story of the World: Volume 1 as a spine. I have just found a new, really helpful curriculum guide that I now have bookmarked over at the Greathall Productions website. There are a few we missed! We have especially loved the three Greek myth recordings (She & He is my favorite!) as well as Tales From Cultures Far and Near. We are currently listening to Julius Caesar and the Story of Rome.
Some of our favorite literature recordings are Tales from the Jungle Book (I let my little ones listen to this while my oldest was reading the actual book independently - this way we could all discuss), Sherlock Holmes for Children (after which everyone begged me to get some of the original books for read aloud), and King Arthur and his Knights.
I hope this helps! Happy listening!
Friday, February 22, 2013
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Books for (tiny) Boys
My 2 year old has been getting in on the reading action lately. Usually our routine is to read a book of each child's choosing both before afternoon quiet time and then again before bed. With three kids choosing, we rack up some serious time reading time!
Now my youngest is insisting on choosing his *own* book for reading times too, and I thought I'd share some of his current favorites in case you need some library list inspiration for your little one. Of course, these are books tiny girls could certainly love, too - it just so happens my tiny one right now is a boy, and I do notice a bit of - shall we say? - masculine flair in his preferences.
This was one that one of my kids picked at the library that I was honestly was kind of "meh" about at first, but its proven entertaining. There are colors to point out, animal sounds to make, and my favorite - imaginative play is encouraged. I can also see this being a fun book for a beginner reader because the text is huge and fairly simple.
Of course you know about TVHC - how could you not? If you're like me you got three copies of the board book alone during your first child's babyhood. It has been such an enduring favorite around here that I made my little guy's 2nd birthday cake an homage to the Caterpillar:
Now my youngest is insisting on choosing his *own* book for reading times too, and I thought I'd share some of his current favorites in case you need some library list inspiration for your little one. Of course, these are books tiny girls could certainly love, too - it just so happens my tiny one right now is a boy, and I do notice a bit of - shall we say? - masculine flair in his preferences.
Dinosaur vs. Bedtime
Bob Shea
Simple, fun, and inter-actable (ROAR!), this story's hero little Dinosaur takes on all kind of challenges. Piles of leaves, big slides, talking grown-ups... and the biggest challenge of all, bedtime! Its like they've been to our house, weird.
Little Blue Truck
Alice Schertle / Jill McElmurry
This book was given to us by my sweet Aunt Marti during our beach trip a month ago, and my 2 year old is still begging multiple readings of it daily. So many elements of a great early reading book - written in charming verse, lots of fun onamonapia, farm animals, vehicles, action / consequence (what happens when big Dump is rude?), team work, and even (though I admit it reads melodramatic) redemption.
See, now you have to read it to find out how someone could really find a board book redemptive. :)
Meeow and the Little Chairs
Sebastien Braun
This was one that one of my kids picked at the library that I was honestly was kind of "meh" about at first, but its proven entertaining. There are colors to point out, animal sounds to make, and my favorite - imaginative play is encouraged. I can also see this being a fun book for a beginner reader because the text is huge and fairly simple.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Eric Carle
Of course you know about TVHC - how could you not? If you're like me you got three copies of the board book alone during your first child's babyhood. It has been such an enduring favorite around here that I made my little guy's 2nd birthday cake an homage to the Caterpillar:
(the eyes bore into your soul... or not)
But I couldn't have a list of books for little ones without it.
I'd love to know - what are your favorite books for tiny readers?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)