Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
The Preschool Planning Page
While I'm on the topic of planners and planning pages, I thought I'd give a closer look at the planning page that I made for J3. This one is modified from an older one which included all the days of the week and a rainy day row.
On the left is a column for the activities we will do whether it be Before Five in a Row related or just a preschool craft or skill of some sort. On the right is a box for reminding me what I need to prepare ahead of time in order for the activities to happen.
So, many times our best thought up plans get set aside for the immediate. Small children do not wait patiently for mom to get her act together and get the paints out or cut out small pieces for gluing. All too fast the moment for cooperation can pass. You have to stand at the ready for those moments and try to structure them in on occasion.
If I can register and figure out how to create a profile on a site that allows me to share this page. I certainly will do that! I just need my administrative assistant/IT guy take care of converting it to a pdf file for me.
On the left is a column for the activities we will do whether it be Before Five in a Row related or just a preschool craft or skill of some sort. On the right is a box for reminding me what I need to prepare ahead of time in order for the activities to happen.
So, many times our best thought up plans get set aside for the immediate. Small children do not wait patiently for mom to get her act together and get the paints out or cut out small pieces for gluing. All too fast the moment for cooperation can pass. You have to stand at the ready for those moments and try to structure them in on occasion.
If I can register and figure out how to create a profile on a site that allows me to share this page. I certainly will do that! I just need my administrative assistant/IT guy take care of converting it to a pdf file for me.
Can't see it well enough? Click on it and it will be larger than life (as I just found out...)
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
The Busy Books- A Review
Per a recent reader's request, I've decided to review some of my homeschooling stash. I thought I'd start with some of my first and favorite books. Come to think of it, I probably should have grouped my baby and toddler books together (as they were my first purchase), but I will go with a trio of books I have by Trish Kuffner- one of which was the first I purchased...back in the day.
Mrs. Kuffner has written a few other books for kids including another one I will review shortly. She is a homeschooling mom living in a rainy region of Canada. If you have kids in any of these age groups, I highly recommend these books. They are just full of simple ideas for kids to have lots of fun. She also has some words about the habit forming tendencies of the television. Great stuff!! Her words of encouragement and wisdom are worth seeking out. Enjoy!
This is the one! The Toddler's Busy Book- A book I bought when E9 was a toddler of 18 months. I googled "activities to do with toddlers" and came up someone's list of fun things to do. Being resourceful, I checked this woman's bibliography and this is one of the books that was listed there.
My copy is worn and loaded with small post it notes! I adored this book when I needed it most. Some categories in this book include: rainy day play, kids in the kitchen, water play, outdoor adventures, out and about, early learning, music and movement, arts and crafts, birthdays and holidays, an appendix full of recipes for modeling dough and bubbles, and the first part of the book has general ideas of encouragement- organizing the activities, planning them and stocking your craft cupboard. Here we have the origins of my preschooler planning sheet and my craft closet.
One of my favorites from this book is the felt face from the out and about category. I cut out a round face out of felt and then bunches of face accessories from ears to hats and hair and everything in between. It goes in a little plastic container and travels with me to doctor's offices.
My copy is worn and loaded with small post it notes! I adored this book when I needed it most. Some categories in this book include: rainy day play, kids in the kitchen, water play, outdoor adventures, out and about, early learning, music and movement, arts and crafts, birthdays and holidays, an appendix full of recipes for modeling dough and bubbles, and the first part of the book has general ideas of encouragement- organizing the activities, planning them and stocking your craft cupboard. Here we have the origins of my preschooler planning sheet and my craft closet.
One of my favorites from this book is the felt face from the out and about category. I cut out a round face out of felt and then bunches of face accessories from ears to hats and hair and everything in between. It goes in a little plastic container and travels with me to doctor's offices.
The Preschooler's Busy Book- This book is organized in much the same way only the activities inside are for kids ages 3 to 6 years old. Imagine a book full of a year's worth of fun activities and games for kids. One of my favorite activities from this book helps kids to learn to recognize their name. You write out the child's name on a strip of cardstock and then cut out the letters individually. Then you have the child arrange the letters in order. Brilliant!
She has ideas for setting up centers and playing grocery store, bakery, and library with your child- among other similar ideas. She has instructions for learning games like Number Match. You write numbers on index cards and then make matching cards that have magazine pictures of things with the corresponding number of them. The kids have to match up the number with the corresponding set of objects.
Or how about Dictionary Zoo? On a rainy day have your child write out a letter of the alphabet on a sheet of paper (or you could write it out for them) and then draw an animal that matches the letter. What a great on-going project for a preschooler.
She has ideas for setting up centers and playing grocery store, bakery, and library with your child- among other similar ideas. She has instructions for learning games like Number Match. You write numbers on index cards and then make matching cards that have magazine pictures of things with the corresponding number of them. The kids have to match up the number with the corresponding set of objects.
Or how about Dictionary Zoo? On a rainy day have your child write out a letter of the alphabet on a sheet of paper (or you could write it out for them) and then draw an animal that matches the letter. What a great on-going project for a preschooler.
The Children's Busy Book- This one is for 6 to 10 year olds and is, as you might guess, patterned in the same fashion as the other two. Rainy day play includes the alphabets of codes such as American Sign Language, Morse Code, Braille, and Semaphore among others. Pretty cool.
Even for this age she suggests having busy boxes and bags, rainy day boxes, baker's boxes (full of items to play with dough), tickle trunks (full of dress up items), etc. There are 365 of these fantastic ideas for this age group.
One of her ideas is the Crazy Can- aka The Boredom Bottle at my house- this is full of little slips of paper that have ideas on them. Ideas for things to do that require little of my time or supervision. When things get a little crazy or the kids are bored, I send them to the bottle.
Even for this age she suggests having busy boxes and bags, rainy day boxes, baker's boxes (full of items to play with dough), tickle trunks (full of dress up items), etc. There are 365 of these fantastic ideas for this age group.
One of her ideas is the Crazy Can- aka The Boredom Bottle at my house- this is full of little slips of paper that have ideas on them. Ideas for things to do that require little of my time or supervision. When things get a little crazy or the kids are bored, I send them to the bottle.
Mrs. Kuffner has written a few other books for kids including another one I will review shortly. She is a homeschooling mom living in a rainy region of Canada. If you have kids in any of these age groups, I highly recommend these books. They are just full of simple ideas for kids to have lots of fun. She also has some words about the habit forming tendencies of the television. Great stuff!! Her words of encouragement and wisdom are worth seeking out. Enjoy!
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Using the Computer to Plan and Record
I use a software program called Edu-Track to record activities we have done, attendance (school days), books the kids have read, field trips we have taken. This program is incredibly powerful and this year I plan to figure out how to use the teacher journal section to write out my IHIPs for NY State (Individualized Home Instruction Plan) and to plan out my unit studies for the whole family.
This is the field where I record all the assignments my kids have done. When the day is done or throughout the day, I record what of the plans we actually accomplished. Some days we are overly ambitious and other days we get it all done and then some.
I'm getting more familiar with the unit study planner this year. I am putting together a few studies so this will be helpful in keeping my ideas together. You can record books and other resources you will use, objectives, supplies needed, and any curriculum you will use.
The student data section is a powerful tool. You can record books, movies, audios, software, games, testing, achievements, goals, chores, things borrowed or lent, expenses, supplies, and curriculum for EACH child in your family. I mainly use the book list and the field trips so far. I'll add videos, audios, and games this year. There is even a spot for health records.
This is the field where I record all the assignments my kids have done. When the day is done or throughout the day, I record what of the plans we actually accomplished. Some days we are overly ambitious and other days we get it all done and then some.
I'm getting more familiar with the unit study planner this year. I am putting together a few studies so this will be helpful in keeping my ideas together. You can record books and other resources you will use, objectives, supplies needed, and any curriculum you will use.
The student data section is a powerful tool. You can record books, movies, audios, software, games, testing, achievements, goals, chores, things borrowed or lent, expenses, supplies, and curriculum for EACH child in your family. I mainly use the book list and the field trips so far. I'll add videos, audios, and games this year. There is even a spot for health records.
It has the capability of making chore charts with icons for each child. You'll find this within the student data section. Again, you can print these out for each child each week and it has pictures!
You can record attendance for each student easily and mark what kind of day off it was. This is just helpful to keep general track if you aren't required to turn in days. In NY, we have to record hours.
You can record a repeating activity like co-op or music lessons that will show up in the lessons and activities section. This cuts down on the amount of data you need to manually put in. You can create certificates of achievement and transcripts that look very official. I can just see as your kids get older, this software will be super helpful in recording things for universities and future programs for the kids.
In addition to the PC version, there is a version for the Palm or other handhelds! If you knew me in real life, then you'd know that I'm a big fan of my Palm Z22!! I recently acquired the Palm version and I'm still getting to know it. The idea is that I can record what we did that day (data entry can be a stumbling block to using this software to its potential) while I'm in the doctor's office or at a game. It's much more manageable than a laptop when out and about and I can synch it with the PC and have it all show up in the Edu-Track on there. I'm most interested in recording books read and lessons complete using my Palm.
This is just a brief overview of the tools in the program. Make sure to check out Edu-Track for yourself and take note of the teacher planning journal and filebox plus other great sections I didn't highlight. This software is a great tool if you have to do any sort of reporting for your homeschool. If not, then it is super for some personal accountability.
In addition to the PC version, there is a version for the Palm or other handhelds! If you knew me in real life, then you'd know that I'm a big fan of my Palm Z22!! I recently acquired the Palm version and I'm still getting to know it. The idea is that I can record what we did that day (data entry can be a stumbling block to using this software to its potential) while I'm in the doctor's office or at a game. It's much more manageable than a laptop when out and about and I can synch it with the PC and have it all show up in the Edu-Track on there. I'm most interested in recording books read and lessons complete using my Palm.
This is just a brief overview of the tools in the program. Make sure to check out Edu-Track for yourself and take note of the teacher planning journal and filebox plus other great sections I didn't highlight. This software is a great tool if you have to do any sort of reporting for your homeschool. If not, then it is super for some personal accountability.
Friday, July 25, 2008
My Planner- Hardcopy Version
Ok so I've been mulling over my planner for this upcoming school year for a bit now. I've settled on a combination of current and past planners and it's pretty much all done. The base of the planner is the FIAR sets of planners for Before FIAR, Five in a Row, and Beyond FIAR.
I've tweaked it some to suit my needs. I'm trying something new this year with our school in an attempt to build some more relationships between our kids. Instead of everyone or half of our students working on separate unit studies, I'm going to try having the kids do more unit studies together using FIAR and some other resources. More details on the units and my plan coming soon. For now, I need my planner to reflect this effort. Care for a tour?
The printed calendar is from the FIAR planner. The pink sheet is a quarter planning sheet. I will use these to set up our timeline for each study.
Calendar pages from FIAR. I honestly prefer last year's which had larger blocks and filled the page. The graphics are nice though, huh?
Journaling pages from the FIAR planners
Preschool planning pages- the Before planner has just the journaling sheets to jot down what you do with your youngest student. However, years ago when I realized my toddler needed some structure, I began to plan it. Trish Kuffner, in the Toddler's Busy Book brought it to my attention that you have to plan out all those awesome activities with young kids sometimes or they just don't get done. Little ones lack the patience to wait on you to pull it together and before you know it, the moment is gone. The "pre- official homeschooling version" had all days of the week and a rainy day plan. I modified this one so that it only has Monday to Friday and no rainy day bail out plans- or at least no space for it. There are two columns. On the left a place to write up to three activities and on the right is the space for what to prepare ahead of time. Pretty simple. But oh so useful!
From the Beyond planner a Beyond course of study sheet- this one I plan to use to outline the details of each of our unit studies.
Pages from last year's FIAR planner- this is the actual FIAR weekly planning page. I ran them back to back and the green sheets are for I-6.
Same sheet in pink are R8's pages
E9's Beyond weekly planner pages- again last year's version had bigger blocks (I bought this year's Beyond planner to get an updated version of all the household pages and calendars- the planner comes with a menu planner, shopping pages, resource and library sheets, FIAR book plates, a what we did today sheet for books, movies, field trips- the works!). I'm using the old weekly planners for the middle two kids. If I get frustrated by less working space on these pages, I'll refer back to last year's weekly Beyond pages as well.
This planning notebook is where I do my pre-planning and the sketching and fleshing out of details of each unit and our weekly lessons. However, just like assemblies, field trips, and snow days or delays can mess up the best laid plans for a classroom teacher (I have plenty of first hand experience at this!) so can the happy homeschool experience some snags that force us to change things up. We take it all in stride, but at the end of the day I use a software program to record what we actually DID that day.
I've tweaked it some to suit my needs. I'm trying something new this year with our school in an attempt to build some more relationships between our kids. Instead of everyone or half of our students working on separate unit studies, I'm going to try having the kids do more unit studies together using FIAR and some other resources. More details on the units and my plan coming soon. For now, I need my planner to reflect this effort. Care for a tour?
The cover- FIAR offers several color schemes each year
The printed calendar is from the FIAR planner. The pink sheet is a quarter planning sheet. I will use these to set up our timeline for each study.
Calendar pages from FIAR. I honestly prefer last year's which had larger blocks and filled the page. The graphics are nice though, huh?
Journaling pages from the FIAR planners
Preschool planning pages- the Before planner has just the journaling sheets to jot down what you do with your youngest student. However, years ago when I realized my toddler needed some structure, I began to plan it. Trish Kuffner, in the Toddler's Busy Book brought it to my attention that you have to plan out all those awesome activities with young kids sometimes or they just don't get done. Little ones lack the patience to wait on you to pull it together and before you know it, the moment is gone. The "pre- official homeschooling version" had all days of the week and a rainy day plan. I modified this one so that it only has Monday to Friday and no rainy day bail out plans- or at least no space for it. There are two columns. On the left a place to write up to three activities and on the right is the space for what to prepare ahead of time. Pretty simple. But oh so useful!
From the Beyond planner a Beyond course of study sheet- this one I plan to use to outline the details of each of our unit studies.
Pages from last year's FIAR planner- this is the actual FIAR weekly planning page. I ran them back to back and the green sheets are for I-6.
Same sheet in pink are R8's pages
E9's Beyond weekly planner pages- again last year's version had bigger blocks (I bought this year's Beyond planner to get an updated version of all the household pages and calendars- the planner comes with a menu planner, shopping pages, resource and library sheets, FIAR book plates, a what we did today sheet for books, movies, field trips- the works!). I'm using the old weekly planners for the middle two kids. If I get frustrated by less working space on these pages, I'll refer back to last year's weekly Beyond pages as well.
This planning notebook is where I do my pre-planning and the sketching and fleshing out of details of each unit and our weekly lessons. However, just like assemblies, field trips, and snow days or delays can mess up the best laid plans for a classroom teacher (I have plenty of first hand experience at this!) so can the happy homeschool experience some snags that force us to change things up. We take it all in stride, but at the end of the day I use a software program to record what we actually DID that day.
Next post: A review of the planning software I use.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Our Hero
I can't tell you how many times Dan has invited the kids to work with him on various projects. I have pictures over the years of him with E9, R8, and I-6 working on a task together. When our 3ft high Blue's Clues Mailbox came to live with us and it needed to be put together, E9 (then maybe 3) got out his "tools" and worked with his daddy. Each time a new baby arrived and a crib had to be put back together, out came those same tools to help with assembly. Each time a big girl or boy bed was put together and a crib taken down, the tools came on out. It's no different for J3. Only he's up for the mediocre tasks. He mows with Daddy every chance he gets and he's been itchin' because it's been raining constantly. He could hardly wait to get down from dinner and get started this evening!
Gasin' up just like Daddy
Gasin' up just like Daddy
They work hard together...father and son...
Just look at that total devotion to his task...and his daddy. Dan better soak it on up now! That fierce loyalty may slip just a little.
The real question is...will he enjoy it so much when it actually becomes his job?? With three boys, I can tell you that Dan looks forward to that day when one of them will mow for him. Not that R8 can't, but if she's like me then small mammals everywhere will be in mortal danger. Right, Dad?
Monday, July 21, 2008
US Geography Fun
I want share some recent finds for traveling or school geography fun.
Fandex of the 50 States holds a map at the top and then a set of facts or stories about each state. Bonus- I found this one at a local children's consignment store for $1.99.
Picked this up at Barnes and Noble with my teacher discount (yes, the give those to homeschools too)- the box is magnetic so it stays shut
Check out the contents! The book has a picture of the actual license plate (one official design) and facts on the back. It also comes with a booklet on the history of plates and an offical checklist with small pencils. How cool is all that? Nothing like taking an old car game and taking it up a notch!
Friday, July 18, 2008
Camp Little Guys- Day 6
Yesterday was terribly hot and humid. Yuck! Before noon we had a big storm come through so we holed up in the learning area to have some gluing fun. I had mentioned to J3 the night before that we could do some Jesse Bear gluing. He was excited! Day 6 also included a trip to the grocery store, a stop at Barnes and Noble to pick up our very own copy of Night of the Moonjellies, and a stop at Office Depot for .01 folders.
The front page
He made a B book and we talked about all the things pictured that begin with B. When he showed Dan he told him all the words below while he pointed to each picture. Nicely done J3! See the green pants? He cut those himself and told me they were Jesse Bear's pants. Conveniently, they are made from a post it note.
We took out the birthday box of fun and he had a grand time
J3 also requested frogs and the balance
I-6 wanted to make a Batman lapbook
The start of the Jesse Bear Lapbook- these items are from Homeschool Share. He did a good job coloring Jesse Bear's shirt and pants and cooperating on the correct colors!
The front page
He made a B book and we talked about all the things pictured that begin with B. When he showed Dan he told him all the words below while he pointed to each picture. Nicely done J3! See the green pants? He cut those himself and told me they were Jesse Bear's pants. Conveniently, they are made from a post it note.
Inside the two books- this time when he colored he was all about the orange
We took out the birthday box of fun and he had a grand time
J3 also requested frogs and the balance
I-6 wanted to make a Batman lapbook
Camp Little Guys- Day 5
I took the little boys to a local park on the lake to spend some time there before we picked up Dan from the airport. It was blazing hot here on Wednesday!!
We've been reading Jesse Bear books for a while now every day and one of J3's favorite Jesse Bear books is Better Not Get Wet, Jesse Bear. J3 loves to play with the hose and get wet. This book is perfect for him. Here he and I-6 practice a "pebble throw" just like Jesse's.
Check out this pebble stash- how can you not spend time skipping stones when you come to this place?! When is the last time you skipped a rock? Get out there with the kids and DO it!!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Warm and Cool Colors
I thought I'd share this link for a "cool" art project for the kids. There are a number of FIAR titles that approach the subject of using warm and cool colors. Night of the Moonjellies is one of them.
This project is over at Art Projects for kids. Check out the Warm and Cool project
You can't go wrong with a collage and it gives the kids a chance to work with the concept more before attempting their own drawings.
This project is over at Art Projects for kids. Check out the Warm and Cool project
You can't go wrong with a collage and it gives the kids a chance to work with the concept more before attempting their own drawings.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
The New Homeschool Filing System
Ok...I know you all are super excited about this new system I've put together! Hold onto your hats!! Here we go.
First of all I'd like to acknowledge Dawn over at By Sun and Candlelight for the inspiration for this method along with Kendall in GA over at the FIAR message boards who does something similar and helped me to clarify why this is going to work. I couldn't have done it without them!
Step 1: Get your materials ready.
Starting materials include file crates and a set of file jackets- aka: pocket file folders. They have sides so the folder forms a pocket. These can gusset open to about 1.5 inches- I think that will hold plenty!
Step 2: Determine what labels you want to have on your folders aka: What am I filing??
This is where my system differs from both Dawn's and Kendall's. Dawn's filing system seems to be for household business- holidays and seasons listed throughout the year and she mentions saving mementos, cards, etc. here. I don't have that kind of time in my day girls. Though I do save things to scrapbook and you'll see momentarily where that stuff will gather. Kendall uses hers strictly for FIAR book units. I had a flash of brilliance while reading about this earlier in the week and I will attempt to combine these two schools of thought.
My system is for homeschool items only. Any item like a certificate, picture, etc from children's activities or maps/pamplets from family trips will no longer stack on the work surface in my secret lair. I will have a hanging folder on my paper file cart (in the secret lair) where those things will gather labeled with the current year. Clever, huh? Then when I'm ready to scrapbook the event I know right where to look instead of peeking through stack.
My labels:
Seasonal folders- will hold craft ideas, lapbooking resources, places to go- whatever pertains to that season of the year that we can do for school.
Homeschool Administration- will hold all documents that I send in to the county or I receive back from them. The plan is to print the documents as they are made or come in and store them here. At the end of the year, all the documents from the year will be neatly kept in hardcopy form- in case we need them. In NY, those documents include a letter of intent, Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP), quarterly reports, and year end assessments- for each school aged student.
Co-op- will have papers, reminders, sign ups, etc. from that semester's coop. These items may remain here or be transferred to the scrapbook folder if that's where it goes.
Nature Study- here I will stash bits and pieces I find for notebooking our nature studies, printed forms from the FIAR Nature Unit Studies and outdoor hour challenges.
Book Titles- each folder is labeled with the name of the book and as I'm online I can print and store right away activities that I come across instead of bookmarking them to return later. I figure this will be a time saver AND I won't have to scramble to get items printed so close to lesson time or on lesson day- that is a real lesson buster if the kids have to wait on me.
This was the thing I clarified with Kendall. She uses the book title method and has a pocket for every FIAR book. She prints and saves and I asked her about two things. Does she purge? and Does she use everything she prints? Her answers: She never purges! The system is the way it is. She will keep them set up and uses the stuff for the next child. When she's all done FIAR, she isn't sure what she'll do with all the stuff. LOL. She does not use everything that looked good when she printed it, but might use it with the next child. So, it's all good.
In order for this to work, it has to be low maintenance. No excessive all out purging at year's end, etc. Only adding NOT taking away!! I will do some purging though. Stay tuned for those details.
Non-FIAR units- here I will store items that go with unit studies that I am writing or using from homeschool share. Ideas, articles, craft ideas, resources, etc for the unit will go in here until they are used or put together. The beauty of homeschooling is tailoring the program to suit your students needs and while FIAR is a huge success with our family, I do recognize that there are interests not addressed that we can do on our own like EXPLORATION. (stay tuned for a sneak peak on our explorers unit)
FIAR Review- review ideas, story disks, passports, etc to help the kids to go over the places they've been and the things they've discovered. Our "Are you Smarter than a Homeschooler" Game will go behind that folder.
World Geography- maps and activities on world geography that can be used with lots of FIAR units
So, the above picture is the mostly finished project. A couple things to note as I leave you to think about this system:
For those wondering what our FIAR and non FIAR units will be this year...come back because I will be listing those out shortly!
Let me know what you think...leave a comment! Happy homeschool organizing!!
First of all I'd like to acknowledge Dawn over at By Sun and Candlelight for the inspiration for this method along with Kendall in GA over at the FIAR message boards who does something similar and helped me to clarify why this is going to work. I couldn't have done it without them!
Step 1: Get your materials ready.
Starting materials include file crates and a set of file jackets- aka: pocket file folders. They have sides so the folder forms a pocket. These can gusset open to about 1.5 inches- I think that will hold plenty!
Next make sure your label maker is ready to go. Could you do this job without a label maker? Well I suppose the technical answer is yes, but why would you EVER want to do that?? There is just a crazy sense of satisfaction when you use a label maker- am I right Jenn?
Step 2: Determine what labels you want to have on your folders aka: What am I filing??
This is where my system differs from both Dawn's and Kendall's. Dawn's filing system seems to be for household business- holidays and seasons listed throughout the year and she mentions saving mementos, cards, etc. here. I don't have that kind of time in my day girls. Though I do save things to scrapbook and you'll see momentarily where that stuff will gather. Kendall uses hers strictly for FIAR book units. I had a flash of brilliance while reading about this earlier in the week and I will attempt to combine these two schools of thought.
My system is for homeschool items only. Any item like a certificate, picture, etc from children's activities or maps/pamplets from family trips will no longer stack on the work surface in my secret lair. I will have a hanging folder on my paper file cart (in the secret lair) where those things will gather labeled with the current year. Clever, huh? Then when I'm ready to scrapbook the event I know right where to look instead of peeking through stack.
My labels:
- Autumn 2008 (Sept/Oct)
- Co-op Fall 2008
- Holiday 2008 (Nov/Dec)
- Winter 2009 (Jan/Feb)
- Co-op Spring 2009
- Early Spring 2009 (Mar/Apr)
- Late Spring 2009 (May/June)
- Summer 2009 (July/Aug)
- Homeschool Administration
- Nature Study
- Book titles for the year
- Units for the year- non FIAR units (*gasp* I do have a few of those)
- FIAR review
- World Geography
Seasonal folders- will hold craft ideas, lapbooking resources, places to go- whatever pertains to that season of the year that we can do for school.
Homeschool Administration- will hold all documents that I send in to the county or I receive back from them. The plan is to print the documents as they are made or come in and store them here. At the end of the year, all the documents from the year will be neatly kept in hardcopy form- in case we need them. In NY, those documents include a letter of intent, Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP), quarterly reports, and year end assessments- for each school aged student.
Co-op- will have papers, reminders, sign ups, etc. from that semester's coop. These items may remain here or be transferred to the scrapbook folder if that's where it goes.
Nature Study- here I will stash bits and pieces I find for notebooking our nature studies, printed forms from the FIAR Nature Unit Studies and outdoor hour challenges.
Book Titles- each folder is labeled with the name of the book and as I'm online I can print and store right away activities that I come across instead of bookmarking them to return later. I figure this will be a time saver AND I won't have to scramble to get items printed so close to lesson time or on lesson day- that is a real lesson buster if the kids have to wait on me.
This was the thing I clarified with Kendall. She uses the book title method and has a pocket for every FIAR book. She prints and saves and I asked her about two things. Does she purge? and Does she use everything she prints? Her answers: She never purges! The system is the way it is. She will keep them set up and uses the stuff for the next child. When she's all done FIAR, she isn't sure what she'll do with all the stuff. LOL. She does not use everything that looked good when she printed it, but might use it with the next child. So, it's all good.
In order for this to work, it has to be low maintenance. No excessive all out purging at year's end, etc. Only adding NOT taking away!! I will do some purging though. Stay tuned for those details.
Non-FIAR units- here I will store items that go with unit studies that I am writing or using from homeschool share. Ideas, articles, craft ideas, resources, etc for the unit will go in here until they are used or put together. The beauty of homeschooling is tailoring the program to suit your students needs and while FIAR is a huge success with our family, I do recognize that there are interests not addressed that we can do on our own like EXPLORATION. (stay tuned for a sneak peak on our explorers unit)
FIAR Review- review ideas, story disks, passports, etc to help the kids to go over the places they've been and the things they've discovered. Our "Are you Smarter than a Homeschooler" Game will go behind that folder.
World Geography- maps and activities on world geography that can be used with lots of FIAR units
So, the above picture is the mostly finished project. A couple things to note as I leave you to think about this system:- I prefer to think of my file as a current school year edition. So, I'm not apt to label millions of folders with all the book names on them to have on hand. I will make them as I go and my files will expand. Last year's files are in a different box. I did book titles only last year. Any book we didn't do that I want to do this year has been transferred over along with the review folder.
- All titles already in folders that are not for this year are in another file box- storage location to be determined...(no comments Dan!)
- Small Purge will occur on the coop folders, homeschool admin (will get a whole new folder each year), and the book titles and other unit folders will be culled and stored elsewhere if will not be in the current year's IHIP.
For those wondering what our FIAR and non FIAR units will be this year...come back because I will be listing those out shortly!
Let me know what you think...leave a comment! Happy homeschool organizing!!
Camp Little Guys- Day 4
Yesterday Camp Little Guys took us on a trip to our local Science Center. I organized a field trip for all the local MOPS groups and we had some good turned out! J3 really loves the Curiosity Corner for 4 and under. That's him above "vacuuming" up foam shapes with the vacuum tube.
There are many water tables and a whole new outdoor area with a waterfall, sand table, and a huge web climbing structure. Plus a moving things exhibit is back in town so it's always fun to move red balls around. We visited the animal room and the coral reef before we left too.
Late in the afternoon we went to the library to turn in some reading jars for the summer program wall and to exchange some books out. After dinner at home we went to the local ice cream stand for some cones.
Days 2 and 3 involved errand running, stay and play at the Y which the boys LOVE (they have a fun play structure room), church and either lunch or dinner out. Now I have to plan out days 5 and 6 and I guess 7- wow!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Glasses? You Can't Be Serious??
Oh but it's true! My doctor told me on Friday afternoon that glasses were no longer optional. Stink!
So, I trekked out to Sterling Optical at the local mall for no other reason than they take my discount and well...they are at the mall. Need I say more? Obviously an easy place to get eye glass maintenance should the need arise and I can throw a little Target or AC Moore into the mix.
I discovered two things about shopping for glasses:
There's always a first time for everything and this was spectacular. 'Cause you know that eyeglass shops are typically outlined in mirror-backed, glass shelving with -you know- many pairs of glasses on them. Let's just say that J-3 experienced a slight miscalculation and the whole display- twirly top item and the tall rectangular cube base toppled over and brushed the glass shelving. The counter girl practically screamed as she watched it happen- while I slowly turned around with the heart shaped mirror in my hand. J-3 was crying loudly and the counter girl was sufficiently freaked out. I picked up a few pieces of the glass shelving and uprighted her display case which is now cracked at the corner. I moved it next to the cube which I also uprighted for her and then I calmed Mr. J-3. Finally, one handed with 35lbs in my lap I completed my decision and took care of the paperwork. Spectacular indeed.
I had to get back there today to get measured so the optician could do his thing. My whole day was orchestrated then re-orchestrated around getting these spectacles. I will say there was no surcharge based on store destruction and that little twirly display was back together. I think I'm the only one who will notice the crack, but I think we are safe from an engineering failure. J-3 had to sit with me while I tried on the real deal. My very own glasses- that aren't sunglasses. Wow.
And now without further ado...here I am! Don't these frames remind you of...what is her name? Oh yeah- Tina Fey! Incidentally we are the same age. Isn't that nice? She has a TV show...but I have a cool blog. We're both funny.
So, I trekked out to Sterling Optical at the local mall for no other reason than they take my discount and well...they are at the mall. Need I say more? Obviously an easy place to get eye glass maintenance should the need arise and I can throw a little Target or AC Moore into the mix.
I discovered two things about shopping for glasses:
- This is really an activity for you and a friend. One that can give you running commentary on which frames are the right ones for you. I asked the counter girl to be my friend. See below to see how she did.
- Really...this is a venue that is best done without small children. That is shocking I realize but it's worth mentioning.
There's always a first time for everything and this was spectacular. 'Cause you know that eyeglass shops are typically outlined in mirror-backed, glass shelving with -you know- many pairs of glasses on them. Let's just say that J-3 experienced a slight miscalculation and the whole display- twirly top item and the tall rectangular cube base toppled over and brushed the glass shelving. The counter girl practically screamed as she watched it happen- while I slowly turned around with the heart shaped mirror in my hand. J-3 was crying loudly and the counter girl was sufficiently freaked out. I picked up a few pieces of the glass shelving and uprighted her display case which is now cracked at the corner. I moved it next to the cube which I also uprighted for her and then I calmed Mr. J-3. Finally, one handed with 35lbs in my lap I completed my decision and took care of the paperwork. Spectacular indeed.
I had to get back there today to get measured so the optician could do his thing. My whole day was orchestrated then re-orchestrated around getting these spectacles. I will say there was no surcharge based on store destruction and that little twirly display was back together. I think I'm the only one who will notice the crack, but I think we are safe from an engineering failure. J-3 had to sit with me while I tried on the real deal. My very own glasses- that aren't sunglasses. Wow.
And now without further ado...here I am! Don't these frames remind you of...what is her name? Oh yeah- Tina Fey! Incidentally we are the same age. Isn't that nice? She has a TV show...but I have a cool blog. We're both funny.
The new me...let's just say that driving without them is NOT an option. That doctor was soo right. These things have like taken every greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere- I didn't realize the haze was only temporary. Yikes. Maybe the government should look into that for everyone. Global warming/Ozone Deterioration or Do We Need Glasses?
Sunday, July 13, 2008
2008 Postcard Exchange
Every year or so we participate in a postcard exchange with families across the country and if we're lucky around the world. This year 47 families took part and so far I think we have 41 cards- not bad.
I usually put them up around the map (we do have one from Costa Rica that is on our world map- Hi Molly!) and this year we added the strings which lead you to the state and sometimes but not necessarily the city depicted on the card.
E9 helped by sorting out the cards on the floor and J3 helped me to put up the strings yesterday (during Camp Little Guys) by getting tape out of the dispenser. Thanks guys!
What fun to teach geography! We send out facts on our area and give fellow rowers an idea about where we live. Close to mail out day, we glued, stamped, labeled and cut out labels and facts. All the kids helped with the assembly line. While we were sitting and looking at the finished wall, J3 points and says there are the Rocky Mountains Mommy!
It was worth it just for that!
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Camp Little Guys- Day 1
This week I'll be doing activities with I-6 and J3. Today is the first day. I'll let you know how Camp Little Guy is going throughout the week.
I-6 tries his hand at making wavy stripes
Based on a watercolor tutorial, I tried ribbons.
I also tried graduations in color...
As requested, I'm adding the link to Hearts and Trees where Amanda does a watercolor tutorial on thin and thick lines. You can also go to her first two tutorials from that post. Enjoy!
J3 grew tired of watercolors and graduated to play dough.
I-6 tries his hand at making wavy stripes
Based on a watercolor tutorial, I tried ribbons.
I also tried graduations in color...
As requested, I'm adding the link to Hearts and Trees where Amanda does a watercolor tutorial on thin and thick lines. You can also go to her first two tutorials from that post. Enjoy!
4-H Fair Awards!
Great news from the county fair! The kids did really well for their first time around. E9 entered two items and R8 entered four as a Cloverbud. We went back on Wednesday to see how the judging went and again last night to take Dan.
R8 had some really nice comments on this one. The reviewer can't wait to see her work next year (when she'll enter as a 4-Her) Personally, I can't wait to bring it home so we can hang it up in her room! I'm seriously considering a frame for it from AC Moore- with a coupon of course.
Their club turned in a display on survival skills and kits. Our kids made the kits and contributed to the content but missed out on putting the display together. It got an excellent award. Great job poster makers!!
E9's popcorn experiment was being judged when we came in and it took over 20 minutes for the review! In the end, he got a Good Award for it so he's pretty pleased. I think if he works on presentation, next year he'll do even better (his content was super). Admittedly, if we get it together before the day it is due at the fair that would be a start! LOL Great job E9!!
This one has some good comments too. I'm just happy that FIAR art assignments hold their own against the competition! Her work stood out among the other entries particularly for her age.
Cloverbud ribbons all around! R8 holds up her poetry.
I knew this picture was special! He got another Good Award for this black and white digital of his grandparents. There were a lot of good photographs entered, so this is pretty cool.
I was just hoping they'd get some sort of recognition and I'm happy for E9 that the only two things he entered did well. He's proud and so are we. All in all, the kids really enjoyed participating and now that we know how things go, we'll set things aside as we finish them this year. Look out 4-H fair!
R8 had some really nice comments on this one. The reviewer can't wait to see her work next year (when she'll enter as a 4-Her) Personally, I can't wait to bring it home so we can hang it up in her room! I'm seriously considering a frame for it from AC Moore- with a coupon of course.
Their club turned in a display on survival skills and kits. Our kids made the kits and contributed to the content but missed out on putting the display together. It got an excellent award. Great job poster makers!!
E9's popcorn experiment was being judged when we came in and it took over 20 minutes for the review! In the end, he got a Good Award for it so he's pretty pleased. I think if he works on presentation, next year he'll do even better (his content was super). Admittedly, if we get it together before the day it is due at the fair that would be a start! LOL Great job E9!!
This one has some good comments too. I'm just happy that FIAR art assignments hold their own against the competition! Her work stood out among the other entries particularly for her age.
Cloverbud ribbons all around! R8 holds up her poetry.
I knew this picture was special! He got another Good Award for this black and white digital of his grandparents. There were a lot of good photographs entered, so this is pretty cool.
I was just hoping they'd get some sort of recognition and I'm happy for E9 that the only two things he entered did well. He's proud and so are we. All in all, the kids really enjoyed participating and now that we know how things go, we'll set things aside as we finish them this year. Look out 4-H fair!
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