Dec. 28, 2008 - Happy Christmas!
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Jun. 4, 2008 - Telling Mathematical Tales
In English a car can circle a building but it can’t do any rectangling or pentangling; at least not without a switch to another language. But there are other languages says Associate Professor Bill Barton, Head of the Department of Mathematics at the University of Auckland where shapes do behave as verbs, and it is possible to speak of pentangling, and a rectangle is seen as something that rectangulates. One is the Navaho people of
If we imagine then, as Bill does, what sort of geometry might emerge from a language where shape is seen as an action, we are likely to concede that it could be quite different from the geometry we learned at school. The chances are it would be more dynamic, perhaps with the basic unit as a moving circle rather than a straight line.
If maths is a creative human activity rather than a set of finite rules waiting to be discovered, this has pedagogical implication. An important one in Bill’s view, is that “play” and exploration need to be more highly valued at all levels.
Play is encouraged at the elementary level of arithmetic in primary grades, then vanishes to be replaced throughout high school and through undergraduate studies with an unremitting focus on acquiring knowledge and skills. It emerges only at postgraduate level and beyond, where for mathematical researchers, it becomes the centre of the creative part of their work.
“Mathematics is a created world, a world of the imagination a kind of academic Middle earth,” says Bill. “Research mathematicians play with abstractions. They make things up. And then they manipulate things in their made-up world to see what happens. It’s much more creative than making up a game. Often they’re making up the playing field as well.”
“Mathematical thinking is about relationships between abstractions. Teachers aim to help learners manipulate abstract concepts. But what do we do when children have trouble with maths,” says Bill “we go back to the concrete.” A much more useful approach Bill believes would be to give learners more practice with the abstract, perhaps by drawing maps, or plans of houses, or playing games with sequences of numbers, to see what happens and find patterns but without any expectation of a “correct” result.
“Learners need to get used to numbers being things to play with, because that’s what mathematicians do.”
Apr. 25, 2008 - ANZAC DAY 2008
In rememberance of those who "took a stand"; lest we forget
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.
When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.
--Martin Niemoeller (1892-1984)Dachau Concentration Camp survivor
Apr. 16, 2008 - Quite the quote!
Okay I admit it sounds a bit trite but q isn't the easiest letter to work with you Wordless Wednesday people!
Still all that aside I am inviting readers of this blog to share from their current readings passages that have impressed them, made a difference to their life or just plain made them laugh.I have another one ready(hint its another children's author[is this genre all I read these days!]and has nothing to do with the plot of the book which is..."Down in the Cellar" by Nicholas Stuart Gray)
I have just discovered that a second-hand copy of this book starts at $125! And to think I bought it originally because I liked the illustrator!
Apr. 16, 2008 - Listen to the Nightingale
Once upon a time- a hundred years ago the smallest children at Holbein’s believed- Madame had been Niura, a little Russian girl living in the country with her grandmother.” ’ Niura,’she used to tell me,” Madame in turn told the children,” ‘listen to the nightingale.’
“Why did she tell you to listen to the nightingale?” asked Archie, an inquisitive boy.
“I think she was trying to tell me that, though I was a dancer first and foremost, there are still other things in the world that I should need- yes, need,” said Madame.
“What sort of things?”
“Oh, cats and dogs, flowers, books, parties, wine and people of course. All things far removed from Lottie. We all need them and I have listened to nightingales and their kind ever since.”
From “Listen to the Nightingale” by Rumer Godden
Lottie is a little girl who has been primed from birth to be a dancer.
Dancing is her life and the expectation that this is to be the focus of her life is emphasized by all those around her.
How Lottie incorporates nightingales in her life forms the theme of the story
.
I picked this book up to take on a recent trip across the Tasman for “light” reading.
But I knew that because it was written by Rumer Godden it would also have something to say to my soul.
“Listen to the Nightingale” is one of the author’s children’s books.
Until now I have mainly read her adult fiction and biographies. I think the book itself was one of “their kind” for me but it also gave me permission to actively seek other nightingales.
I am a wife and mother. I believe God has called me to these vocations. These are if you like the focus, direction of my life. I could not and indeed it would not be right if I were to devote my time to themes outside these were God not to call me!!.
But the small and important secret is that as I nourish my soul with nightingales my focus or life’s direction is also fed; coloured in if you like by the other experiences I bring to it.
I think this wise fictional grandmother was reminding me that my life can become overly obsessionally directed in its focus if I don’t. How can being a mother, wife become an obsessional focus?
Well I’m thinking I suppose of the homeschooling aspect of mothering where without moving from my chair my eyes graze over titles such as “Ten things Parents must teach their children” “Babies Need Books” “”For the Children’s Sake” ”Education in the Heart of the Home” ”Designing your own classical curriculum” “Beyond Survival” ”Let us Highly Resolve”. Many of these books are favourite friends, and ones I would wholeheartedly recommend to those starting their homeschooling journey, they help me to stay focused.
But a focus needs diversions to survive, to stay fresh and to grow stronger.
Without it the converse applies dryness, burnout being some of the effects.
How have I applied this quote this week? Where are my nightingales? Well since returning home last Thursday I would count the following: a walk Sunday afternoon amongst “wonderfilled” plants. (You should have seen the colours of those dahlias and the shapes those melons could grow into!) with a close friend(thank you Mary)
Noting how Autumn is at last touching our district ,rejoicing in the vibrant reds on our otherwise ordinary trees that dot one of the main roads in our suburb as we drive to Mass. Savoring a cup of white tea(a sweet and subtle flavour from the Fujian mountains). Closing my eyes and remembering the smile, the hug, the touch received from my family.
Listening and watching the birds that visit our yard; such tiny delicate honey eaters come to drink nectar from our parched garden(amazing that they can find nourishment; take joy in the cycles of life).
I remember reading not so long ago how for one woman one of her nightingales was actually her salvation; turned her life around, drew her away from the obsessions in her mind gave her permission to start again. Try it! 
Mar. 19, 2008 - Check this out !
There is an interesting new blog on blogger. I really liked her bucket list: check it out!
http://mezza-randomthoughts.blogspot.com/
Mar. 6, 2008 - SEASONS
Recently a friend reminded me that it has been a while since I’ve updated this blog. Don’t know why exactly,things happen life gets busy,…. but last year/ month had the same amount of business, so I’m not sure why; seasons?
This Lent has been a time to come back to a more regular prayer time. I have been using the Divine Office and thanks to ds leaving the books behind have begun by praying the morning and evening prayers and the office of readings.
Have loved finding connections in this too. No surprise that our school readings from “The Young Josephus” match often my Lenten readings in the morning.
Also I have been revisiting this blog http://holyexperience.blogspot.com/ and through it I read a recommendation for a book ” The Contemplative Mom” by Ann Krocker. I am really enjoying this book. It is not that it offers anything new but more that it’s the right time to be reading it, seasons again?
Today: simply being with God; experiencing God by simply being His child is really freeing. Living conscious God is there always. Going about my day practicing the meditation”I am a child of God” , picturing Him holding my hand, walking beside me.Repeating,”my Father in heaven cares what happens to me His child” He is the parent I am His child; a perfect parent-perfect in caring, love and wisdom;always available. Rest in the moment. Not rocket science, not earth shattering or going to change the world but where I am now this season.
Jan. 17, 2008 - Mel in Jan
A photo of Mel before she went back. As you can see we will all miss her very much.
Jan. 15, 2008 - Some gifts at Christmas
Here are some Christmas presents made by ds18. for ds6 and ds10 (ds18 received an equivalent TER of 99.15 and an offer to study in Journalism and International Studies. Wouldn’t you say that was something to be proud of!)
Aug. 19, 2007 - FAIRY TALES
"In making a myth, in practicing 'mythopoeia,' and peopling the world with elves and dragons and goblins, a story-teller .. is actually fulfilling God's purpose, and reflecting a splintered fragment of the true light." J.R.R. Tolkien
Then Bacchus and Silenus and the Maenads began a dance, far wilder than the dance of the trees; not merely a dance for fun and beauty(though it was that too) but a magic dance of plenty, and when their hands touched and where their feet fell, the feast came into existence--- sides of roasted meat that filled the grove with delicious smell, and wheaten cakes and oaten cakes, honey and many coloured sugars and cream as thick as porridge and as smooth as still water, peaches, nectarines, pomengranates, pears, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, pyramids and cataracts of fruit. Then in great wooden cups and bowls and mazers, wreathed with ivy, came the wines…..Then Aslan feasted the Narnians till long after the sunset had died away, and the stars had come out; ….The best thing of all about this feast was that there was no breaking up or going away, but as the talk grew quieter and slower, one after another would begin to nod and finally drop off to sleep with feet towards the fire and good friends on either side, till at last there was silence around the circle…But all night Aslan and the moon gazed upon each other with joyful and unblinking eyes.
Aug. 18, 2007 - CRAFTING IN AUGUST
We have been doing a lot of making lately. Dd made this dress for one of our “ancient” dolls. She designed it without a pattern and it was her first use of the sewing machine. I think she did a really good job.
Two other projects she made were quilts for dolls house beds. The squares are very tiny. It must have been a real test of patience!
And finally I decided to make a minature babushka pincushion for a friends birthday
I also made her some chocolate fudge.
Here is our seasonal table in autumn/winter. Dd sewed the gnomes and ds6 + ds 10 found things to put on the table. The table is constantly changing as more treasures are found.
Aug. 17, 2007 - THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY
For the feast of the assumption. We put our art work on our sky bulletin board beneath a rainbow with this beautiful poem.
The Angels Prepare the Assumption
By Thomas H. Cosgrove
We'll hew a highway through the skies
And pave it white with sheen
For pure must be the pathway
Where walks a stainless Queen.
We'll fuse the fairest rainbows
In one symphonic hue
And gaily tint the fabric
Of our Lady's avenue.
If Heaven's brightest beauties
Should dare her pathway bar
We'll cleave the sun in splinters
And shatter every star.
We'll drain the fresh new dawning
Of all its dewdrop spray
And with it soothe the roughness
That mars the maiden's way.
Then all the angel choirs
With anthems swelling sweet
Shall lead the lovely Lady
Along her spangled street.
A destiny of glory
This roadway shall complete
When at its end the Mother
And the Son of God shall meet.
We had this delicious salad with our main course:
Assumpta Salad:
Salad
8 medium-size ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 cup pitted black olives, drained
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh oregano
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 cup cubed feta cheese (I omit)
Vinaigrette
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
5 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Whisk the vinaigrette ingredients together until thickened. Let stand for about 1 hour before using to steep the garlic.
For the salad, arrange tomato slices on 6 to 8 salad plates. Sprinkle the onion and olives among them. Sprinkle the herbs evenly, then add the cheese cubes in the middle of each dish.
Whisk vinaigrette just before serving and drizzle evenly over each plate. Serve immediately.
and we ate mixed berries with vanilla ice-cream for dessert.
Finally ds made these angels and Mary from beeswax. What he got out of this was so much more than the shaping and forming into recognizable models which he could have done more easily from sculpey if that was the only purpose of the activity. He found he really had to persevere with the beeswax even just to get it malleable but of course all the time he was doing this there was the beautiful soft smell of the wax to inhale.
Aug. 3, 2007 - She's been gone One Week
A photo of Mel before she left for a 6 month working holiday in N.Z. Lachlan says"Now I've got 2 people from my family in foreign countries. " But L," I say" I'm a New Zealander and so are 3 of your brothers and 1 of your sisters." "well," came the prompt reply"Its still foreign to me."!
Jun. 10, 2007 - The next stage of the journey
The postulants about to embark on their journey.
St Fidelis Friary, Kansas
I guess you could call this the pre-novitiate "settling in" process!!
Apr. 17, 2007 - EASTER 2007
Easter 2007.
Wonderful memories! The seventh anniversary of us “coming Home” as a family!
Master 9 served at all the Holy Week services; even to carrying a torch at the Easter Vigil. I am so proud of the way ds(17) has trained him in serving; albeit the training began only 2 weeks before Holy Week!
Master 9 put up ALL of our vine Lenten devotions” add-ons”.(On Holy Saturday the vine is decorated with flowers, caterpillars, butterflies and the like).
Master 5 rang in Easter Sunday by ringing the Alleluia bell.(master 9 not so happy about this as ds + dd in teens had stipulated after a late night with the Easter Vigil they did not one of the littles ringing the bell before 8am!...but said Master 5”I can’t tell the time yet”).
Grandma was with us for all of Holy Week and has just gone home today. What a treasure for the children to see their grandmother whenever she had a free moment “fingering her beads”.
Ds(17)presented me with a beautiful monogrammed egg he had decorated on my birthday.(even down to the crack he had sp painstakingly mended just hours before when it crashed from his desk to the floor it was perfect!
Dd(15) prepared and cooked beautiful treats for our family including magnificent “hot cross buns”. She decorated beautiful eggs including an egg tree.
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