Jan. 7, 2009
New Blog Address
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I've moved. I've been using the two blog addresses for some time now and have found that this new address is just more my style. http://cminamerica.blogspot.com/ Stop by and see me. Patti |
Dec. 21, 2008
The Nativity Through Fine Art
Posted in Art appreciation
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I feel the need to express the utter joy I have felt over the last week. First of all, a little history...
Right before Thanksgiving 2007, my husband experience some medical "episode". When he arrived to the hospital, he was diagnosed as having had a heart attack. (Note: He was 41 years old at the time.) The next several weeks into Christmas and beyond were difficult. Although he is a professional firefighter, he was not allowed to go back to work until he had the okay from the doctor. We did continue to get his base pay, but without overtime and mounting medical bills, things were extremely tight. God did take care of us through that uncertain time and all of our needs were provided for plus some.
Since money was tight and I felt helpless, God moved me to teach a class out of my home to homeschoolers during the last full week before Christmas. Even though I charged a fee for the class, it was full before I knew it. The class was based on Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol. It seemed to be a blessing in so many ways - I made a little money, my kids got to see their friends, we got "school" in even though it was not like "school" at all, moms could leave their kids with me while they went and finished up some holiday errands, etc., etc. I knew right away that I wanted to do this again a year later.
This year, the name of the class was "The Nativity Through Fine Art". I wrote the "curriculum" myself and as I began to write the plans for the week, I immediately felt such peace. I loved pouring over the pictures trying to decide which to use. There are so many good pieces from which to choose.
Back to my joy.
Even though the class was called "The Nativity Through Fine Art", the Bible was the base for the class. We would read from Luke, Matthew, Isaiah and Micah beginning from the Annunciation to Zechariah and we finished with the flight to Egypt.
Typically, we would read a Bible passage, look at a picture, discuss the picture, the students would then write their thoughts and observations. Sometimes, the Bible passage would be copywork and when appropriate, we watched excerpts from The Nativity Story.
As a former public school teacher, this class was a joy because the children were engaged in learning. When they showed up to my house, they would ask "How many pictures do we get to look at today?" I would also hear comments like, "I liked the last picture better than this one" which indicates to me that they are interested and thinking about what is being presented to them. They are forming opinions about the art. Through the discussions, the children would come up with ideas that I hadn't thought of and they all seemed eager to share what each picture was saying to them.
Although I didn't intend for it to happen, we studied quite a few paintings by Sandro Botticelli. We did not study all the Botticelli pictures at the same time. On the third Botticelli (The Mystic Nativity), one of the girls in the class piped up and said, "Hey, look at how Mary is dressed here. It's the same as The Annunciation and The Magnificat! Her sleeves look exactly the same!" That comment was exciting because it showed me that she is starting to recognize Botticelli's style.
Each day, as we met for the class, I felt an overwhelming joy and contentment with what God was doing. This class was a process for me and through this process, I felt God drawing me in. There really is no greater joy.
Here are the Botticelli pictures I mentioned. Do you see how the sleeves are the same?
The Annunciation
 The Magnificat
 Mystic Nativity (detail)
 PS. If you look at the Christmas cards you are getting in the mail, you may find a Botticelli on the postage stamp this year.
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Dec. 11, 2008
Art
Posted in Art appreciation
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What a wonderful time of year to talk about Art and Music Appreciation! Last night we discussed Chapters 25 and 26 in Karen Andreola's book A Charlotte Mason Companion. In Chapter 25 she talks about picture study. Picture study is a wonderful way to expose our children to great paintings and it really doesn't take too long. It can take as little as 10 minutes once a week or every other week. Resources can be found on the internet (see the end of this post), at the library, in the bargain section of your local bookstore (big coffee-table books are wonderful) and at after-Christmas sales. You should be able to find calendars and Christmas cards on sale after the holidays are over. Also, be sure to check any Christmas cards you recieve. Even if the picture is not done by a famous artist, it could still be used for a picture study. How to do it? Give the child a picture face down. Then have him turn it over to look at it for 1 or 2 minutes. Don't talk to him during this time. Just let the artist speak to him. After the time is up, have him turn the picture back over and tell you what was in the picture. Can the child describe the picture? Was there anything that stood out to him? (This is a type of narration and will help the child to learn the habit of attention.) At this point, you can do a couple of things. 1. You can discuss the picture. If you have done some research, you can tell the child about any symbolism that may be in the picture. Or you can briefly (and I emphasize "briefly" so you don't loose the child's attention) talk about the artist himself. You need not go into a lot of detail about the artist at the younger ages. As the child approaches the teen years, then he can learn about the lives of the artists. 2. Give the child a 4X6 copy of the picture and let him write about the picture on a notebooking page. He can write about a detail that stood out to him or the way the artist painted the picture - anything that helps the child to connect with the piece. Do not let the child just write, "this is an interesting picture" or "I like this picture very much." If they write that, ask them to answer the question "Why?" This notebooking page is perfect for your end of the year portfolio. Once you have finished with this, be sure to display the picture somewhere in your house (We put ours on the refrigerator) so the child can see the picture again and again. Be sure it is at the child's eye level. The site with the free notebooking pages can be found here: Notebookingpages. com Just click on the link for Free Resources and you will find all sorts of pages for your porfolios. Art websites that I recommend include (but are not limited to) Web Gallery of Art Biblical Art on the WWW Art and the Bible National Gallery of Art for Kids National Galler of Art National Gallery of Art Loan Program |
Nov. 26, 2008
When Learning Spills Over into Play
Posted in History
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In Karen Andreola's book A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning, Chapter Four tells us that Education is a Science of Relations. I have always said that we make connections with what we already know.
I get so excited when I see my kids making connections. During the month of November, I have been reading Pilgrim Stories by Margaret Pumphrey to them. All the while, they are building their Thanksgiving notebooks. Yesterday, I walked past the living room where my daughters were playing with a friend of theirs. Their friend was wrapped up tight in a blanket and I asked what they were doing. They said they were pretending it was the Pilgrims' first winter at Plymouth and the friend was pretending to be Priscilla Mullins and dd10 was pretending to be Mistress Brewster. Priscilla was sick and Mistress Brewster trying to bring her back to health. DD11 was pretending to be Squanto and was showing them how to grow food. Inside my brain I did a loud "WOOHOO!!!!!" because this form of play shows me that they got something out of what I read to them. They made a connection! This also tells me that they will remember what we learned about Thanksgiving for a long, long time. They didn't learn anything for a test only to forget it right away.
Here are a couple of pictures.
  We are not so sure that Squanto had eggs to bring, but in our version, dd11 went to our chicken coupe in our back yard and brought eggs to the ailing pilgrims.  Mistress Brewster also took care of sick babies at our Plymouth hospital.  |
Nov. 20, 2008
Christmas Carol class and notebook
Posted in Christmas
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Every December is filled with one thing after another. Sometimes it can get busy and lessons sometimes fall to the wayside. Last year, I had the thought to teach a class for homeschoolers from my home that last full week before Christmas. The class was based on Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol. It was nice, because it kept me "on track" but was within the spirit of the season. My kids got to spend some time with friends and their parents had the chance to do some things they needed to do without worrying about the lessons falling to the wayside.
A Christmas Carol was a good book to study. It is written in 5 staves (chapters) and we covered one stave a day. Each day at the end of reading, writing, creating notebook pages, etc, we would watch a different version of the movie. At the end of the week, the kids were to critique the movies and write about their favorite. The versions included a 1935 version starring Sir Cedric Hardwick I found at Target for $1, a Mickey Mouse version, the Muppets version, and the version with George C. Scott. Each day, the kids would write a narration of the stave we were focusing on for the day. Then we would do different activities. One day, they had to sculpt a character from the story out of clay. That was great. On the last day, each child had a notebook that he/she could take home and share with relatives over the holidays. In the back of the notebook, I added a couple of blank pages so that they could get signatures and comments of those with whom they shared their lapbooks.
The following pictures are from dd10's complete notebook. I am only posting the original pages I came up with. There are other pages in the book that I purchased online. The notebook has about 22 pages (counting fronts and backs its 44 pages).
This is the cover she designed herself.
 Inside the front cover.  On index cards, we wrote significant events in Charles Dickens' life. We then put the cards in this pocket.
 A watercolor painting of Jacob Marley's ghost painted on appropriate paper and cut out and placed in the notebook.  A trifold of dd10's Christmas 5 years ago, Christmas present, and Christmas in 10 years from now. Notice my little princess thinks she'll be driving a pink car in 10 years.
 A written narration of "Want" and "Ignorance" along with an illustration of each tucked inside the "rounded triangle petal book" found at Homeschool Share .
  Movie review page. They chose which was their favorite version and gave reasons why.
 My sis-in-law actually took us to see a performance on stage. These are photographs and a ticket stub from the performance.
 Reader's Signature Page
"Each time you share this notebook with others, have them sign and comment on your notebook on these pages."
Whenever a child shares his/her notebook, it reinforces what was learned and provides opportunity for oral narration. It can be fun for them to try to get those last couple of pages filled with signatures.
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Nov. 17, 2008
Trampolines, PE and Music
Posted in PE
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Over the summer I found a little trampoline at Goodwill for $5. I have been wanting one for a while to keep indoors for those long winter months of limited physical activity. In the last week or so, it's been hard to get outside and my kids discovered the trampoline. My 4 year old son likes to jump while shouting out is ABC's. The older girls shout out the Greek alphabet. They are trying to invent games that involve bouncing on the trampoline (kind of like an obstacle course in our basement). My favorite has to be when they get on it and sing their favorite songs. Today, ds4 was singing "Big House" by Audio Adrenaline and "Yo Ho Hero" by the Newsboys. Here are a couple of pictures of ds4 with dd10 getting in on the action.
  This was $5 well spent.
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Nov. 13, 2008
Dirtbikes and Habit Training
Posted in Habits
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One of the things I love about my husband is that he works very hard to provide for us. He works really hard. He is a professional firefighter and works 24 hour shifts. During his shift, he may get a couple of hours of sleep and be out at all hours of the night helping people. While we are snug in our beds, he is out there taking verbal abuse from those experiencing drug overdoses, those who made a bad decision while driving or from those who have been in pain for the last 12 hours and thought that 3am is a good time to call for help. He also sees stuff that the rest of us couldn't even imagine. I realize he censors what he tells me and that is all bad enough. All of that said, he loves his job. He gets off at 7am and drives about 1.5 hours to get home. I try really hard to convey to the children that daddy deserves to come home to a house that is straightened up. He works hard and the least we can do is make sure he has a clear path to the bed so he can rest when he gets here. Somehow, last night, I missed our dirt bike that was sitting out on our sidewalk. The kids had it out yesterday and failed to put it away. They also failed to pick the helmets up out of the yard. This morning he came home and found our dirtbike out on the sidewalk. That made him really angry. I feel that I talk until I am blue in the face and the children just don't seem to be listening. I think the problem is the lack of consequences for bad habits. So this morning, the dirt bike was the straw that broke the camel's back. When I first thought of grounding them, I thought that would be the best thing to do. Then I remembered all the stuff on our calendar for the next two days and started to reconsider. Here is another great thing about my husband, he helped me to see that they may just have to miss these things this time. Although I am following through with this grounding for two days, my heart is breaking because of what they will miss. At the same time, I'm thinking, "Woohoo! I don't have to drive anywhere today!" Is that wrong? |
Oct. 30, 2008
My Camera
Posted in Day to Day
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A little mommy aggravation here. Yes, I'm going to vent. My camera had been missing for days. I looked high and low for it and even asked the kids if they had used it for anything. Of course the little angels knew nothing of the whereabouts of my camera. My 2nd daughter's birthday was Tuesday and that morning, I was looking feverishly for it all up until the moment we walked out the door for her party.
That evening, I started looking for it again. Dh got irritated that I couldn't find it ( I guess I complained a little about the camera being gone.) Well, he found it. Guess where. It was in the chicken coupe out back buried in straw. Here are the last pictures taken on it.
   When I was looking for the camera, I specifically asked the children if they took pictures of the chickens and they insisted that they hadn't. Hmmmmmm.
So my conclusion is that while we were gone, those chicken broke into the house, took the camera and just had the time of their lives taking pictures of each other out there. When they heard us come home, they quickly buried the camera in the straw and said they'd blame the kids. Pretty amazing considering they don't have opposable thumbs. Grrrrrrr. Crazy chickens. |
Oct. 20, 2008
Mount St. Mary's Grotto and mosaics
Posted in Field Trips
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Over the last couple of weeks, I have been preparing for a Charlotte Mason Discussion Group that I will be hosting at my home. It's good to read back through CM books and notes I've taken previously and websites, etc. It reminds me of where I should be in educating my children. Last Friday I had the thought that we needed to take a field trip. We are studying Ancient Rome and I kept trying to think of a way to get mosaics in. I have a hard time with the construction paper cut in squares glued onto other construction paper. I guess it gets the idea across of making a picture with little squares.
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Oct. 6, 2008
Niagara Falls, Canada
Posted in Field Trips
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Isn't it amazing how when you return from a vacation, even if the vacation was only a couple of days, that it takes time to "recover" from it? We went to Niagara Falls, Canada two weeks ago for four days and I feel like our household is just now getting back to "normal". Weird. Our vacation was great. It was sunny and 70 degrees the entire time. We stayed at Embassy Suites that overlooks the falls. The price of the hotel was a little more that what we might normally pay, but we got so much. We stayed in a suite that had a living room area, a small area with a microwave and refrigerator and a bedroom. With 3 children, that was nice because the oldest slept on the pull out sofa in the living room. Plenty of room for everyone.
 The hotel included a breakfast buffet that was out of this world. There were omelet chefs and you could get eggs, sausage, bacon, pancakes, fresh fruit, yogurt, etc, etc. We took the kids to eat breakfast around 10 or 10:30 and that lasted through lunch. For dinner we went to a local grocery store and got frozen dinners and stuff for salads and sandwiches and sat in our room looking at the falls while we ate. Since we did that, we didn't feel the need to go up in the Skylon Tower and have dinner. That was $35 a person!
 Yes, we did go on the Maid of the Mist. "Maid of the Mist" sounds so delicate, but it was quite the adventure. Despite the perfect weather, when we got to the base of the falls, the boat rocked and we were pelted with rain. My 4 year old son will tell you right out that he hated that ride. The rest of us loved it. My daughters brought home their blue ponchos for souvenirs.
 We also got to see a rainbow on the falls every day.
  We had plenty of opportunity to stand and look at the falls and just marvel at the enormity of it all. We were reminded of God's power every time we stood there and heard the thundering of the water pouring over the edge to the depths below. In his own words, my 4 year old son explained to the rest of us that God spoke the falls into being because that's all God has to do if He wants to make something.
I could go on rambling about this trip. It was one of the best vacations of my life and it was one of those where I didn't want to leave. So I'll just add a few more pictures here and stop typing.
Hubby got a picture of me doing what I always do - taking pictures.
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Sep. 24, 2008
Wordless Wednesday
Posted in Field Trips
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Sep. 16, 2008
Roman Roads
Posted in History
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A special project we did today involved making a Roman road. The Romans built roads over 2000 years ago that are still in existance today. I find that completely amazing. Compare that with the roads we drive on today in America. As we work through the Story of the World by Susan Wise Bauer, we supplement with activities from other resources. Today we used an idea from Ancient Rome! Exploring the Culture, People & Ideas of this Powerful Empire. We first read about the roads the Romans built and then we made models. All 3 of my kids enjoyed this project - from the 11 year old to the 4 year old. Here are some pictures.
   I thought the Playmobile Roman soldier was a nice final touch.
That's grass seed on the sides of the road, so the kids will be able to water it and watch the grass grow, too. My 9 year old asked if she could cut her grass when it got tall enough. The 11 year old wanted to know if she gets paid to cut her grass (like when she cuts the neighbor's yard.) |
Sep. 10, 2008
Hurricane Study
Posted in Nature Study
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For anyone studying hurricanes this season, here is a very useful website that includes tracking maps you can print out and use.
Depending on which direction you go, the study of hurricanes can cover many subject areas in your portfolios. It doesn't have to be through a purchased unit study either. The internet and your local library are great resources to find the following information.
Geography - Tracking maps: find out in what parts of the world hurricanes form
History - Study the impact of some major hurricanes from the past and how areas recovered
Safety Ed - What people should do in the event a hurricane is headed their way; What the flags for tropical storms and hurricanes look like.
Civics - Study ways people volunteer in a hurricane aftermath. Perhaps find one volunteer or a group of volunteers and find out what they do in a day.
Reading - Check the daily paper for stories on the current hurricanes.
Don't feel like you have the time to do the research? Go to the library, find books on hurricanes and bring them home. Give your child a blank notebook with the above questions and let him go to it. You might need to set a time limit - tell him this needs to be done by the end of the week. You might be surprised at what he will produce.
I'm sure there are more subjects to be covered, please post them in my comments because I would love to hear your ideas.
NOTE: All of the above subjects were chosen based on Pennsylvania homeschool law. |
Sep. 4, 2008
Credit Suisse Bulletin
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I didn't want to tell anyone about this until I actually read the article. I wanted to be sure that the article wasn't bashing homeschoolers. Last January, I received a phone call from a reporter in New York. He explained who he was and said that the periodical that he writes for (a Swiss financial journal) is doing an education issue and he wanted to write a story on homeschooling. We set up a time for him to come and interview my family and me. He was a wonderful person. When he realized that we were Steelers fans, he told us about his interview he did with Ben Roethlisberger! I thought that was really cool. Any time I get the opportunity, I try very hard to choose the right words when talking about homeschooling. I had a couple of weeks to prepare for this interview. In the end, it was a lot of fun. He interviewed 3 other families for this article and I think the facts are presented well and that homeschooling is put in a good light with the article. Here is the link to the article: Credit Suisse Bulletin Feb 2008 One of my favorite parts of the article is where my husband talks about the disadvantages of homeschooling. |
Aug. 30, 2008
Nineteen Eighty What????
Posted in History
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My dearest friend told me recently about trying on one of her dresses from high school and it still fits her!!! As she described the dress to me, I could clearly see it. I think we must have gone to the prom the same year. Even though I poked fun at her at a homeschool planning meeting, it was nostalgic to think of and I hope one day to get a chance to see her dress. In the meantime, I reminisce about the 80's with all the things I experienced as a teen - growing up afraid of the Russians, seeing Mount St. Helen's explode, Ronald Reagan being shot, the space shuttle going up for the first time, big hair, MTV, etc., etc. What a plethora of history I have seen in my own lifetime that can be shared with my children and future generations. All of us have stories of where we were on important days in history. Write them down. Teaching history should come from primary sources. If you write down your personal experiences, you are creating a primary source! It's inexpensive and a wonderful way to liven up your history curriculum. Speaking of the 80's - here is a picture of me in 1986 at the age of 17. The first thing my girls said when they saw the picture was that my hair looked the same as those ladies in the Walk Like an Egyptian video. (Yes, I pulled that video up on the internet when we studied ancient Egypt. It was fun dancing around the kitchen to that tune and walking like an Egyptian.)  My mom, me and my brother |
Aug. 24, 2008
Art Appreciation and Nudity
Posted in Art appreciation
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Either next week or the following week, we will start taking a close look at art masterpieces. Over a period of 2 or 3 months, we will focus on one artist and look at his or her works. As anyone who has visited an art museum knows, nudity comes along with the territory of art appreciation sometimes. Over the years, I have not covered the nudity in order for my girls to see the whole picture. I've heard of some moms putting a post-it note over the parts they didn't want their kids to see and I feel that takes away from the art and puts too much emphasis on the nudity. I do try to find pictures that don't contain nudity, but sometimes (as in Michelangelo's "David") it's unavoidable. It's a piece of art that identifies very clearly with the artist and something would be lost if it were covered or not even looked at. After we have studied a piece of art, my girls will often cut out a pair of shorts (or other piece of clothing) from construction paper and cover the parts they don't want to see. The following is a refrigerator magnet I purchased when we studied Michelangelo. Forunately for us, we live in the 21st century and have the internet. Ambleside Online is a wonderful resource which provides a schedule and pictures for study. Some have a little nudity, but AO offers a detail of such pictures that doesn't have nudity and can be used as an alternate. |
Aug. 15, 2008
Playground Day
Posted in Summer
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Our homeschool group has playground days every summer - one each month in June, July and August. There are no planned activities. The kids just play and the moms get a chance to sit around and talk. Some families bring bag lunches. There is a pond and stream that the older kids love to explore. Today was our last playground day of the summer. I absolutely love summer (even those hot and humid days) and it makes me a little sad that summer is coming to a close already. While at the playground, I was taken by surprise that my 4 year old son had no qualms about chasing down a toad and catching it. I guess that's what it means to be "all boy". He desperately wanted to hang on to it - tightly! We finally talked him into giving it to his 11 year old sister. As much of a tomboy as she is, she didn't handle it with the ease that this guy did.   Ahhh childhood. Embrace it!!! It's so temporary. |
Aug. 4, 2008
Chores and Money Management
Posted in Day to Day
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Okay, spawned by a discussion I had this afternoon with some ladies, I am asking this question to a wider group to get more feedback. Up until now, I have followed Kevin Leman's idea on giving kids an allowance. Each week they get an allowance in which the dollar amount is the same as their age. (e.g. an 8 year old gets $8). Out of that comes savings and tithing. The rest is for them to spend. My sis in law says that giving a set allowance is "Mommy Welfare" because no matter how much they work, they still get the same amount. She has been telling me about this program by David Ramsey called Financial Peace, Jr (they have a homeschool curriculum). It is where the kids get paid by the chore. The more work they do, the more money they earn. She sent it to me last week and we are trying to implement it in our home. My problem with this method is that the kids won't do anything around the house if they aren't paid. (I can assure you that issue is addressed with the kids with this program. According to this program, the children still have to do chores that they are not paid for because they must contribute to the household. The whole point of the program is to teach children how to manage their money and not go into debt.) When I mentioned it to a group of moms this afternoon, I felt that this method is looked down upon and it's making me question what to do. Also in the last week, I received my copy of Managers of their Homes and Managers of their Chores by Teri Maxwell. (Excellent reading!) What I want to know is what others are doing so far as teaching their children financial responsibility in this time in our country of debtful living. Furthermore, I would like to know what systems others are using to be sure that all the children in the house are contributing as far as keeping the house running. Is there a way to get the kids to do their chores without the monetary gain, and yet have them earn money so they can learn to manage it? |
Jul. 26, 2008
Hanover Dutch Festival
Posted in Field Trips
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The last Saturday of July is always the Hanover Dutch Festival. There are lots of food vendors, craft vendors, etc. This particular festival had a German flair to it. The area was originally settled by German immigrants. During the festival you can listen to a German band and see german dancers. Of course we enjoy doing all of this and again, I count it as school in my mind, but don't tell the children. They just think they are having fun. We are able to count the music and dancing as music appreciation and social studies (world cultures). Any time I go to one of these festivals, my husband teases me because I like to get italian sausage and funnel cakes. He tells me the festival is an excuse to indulge in these treats. So now, I'm trying to figure out a way to include the funnel cakes and italian sausages in our portfolio. ;-) This year, as part of the festival, I learned that there were many facilities in the area giving free tours. Yesterday we went to the firehouse that houses a museum and we went to the post office. While we were at the fire house, the newspaper arrived and today we are in the paper. I'm not sure how long this link will be any good, but I'll post it anyway because the paper quoted me. I tried to choose my words very carefully and I feel they didn't misrepresent anything I said. http://www.eveningsun.com/ci_10005912 We truly did enjoy the tour. My husband is a professional firefighter and it was neat to see some of the antique stuff and how it worked. |
Jul. 21, 2008
Summertime!!!
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I don't know about you, but our summers are filled with activity. This year, we started homeschooling July 1 and it's been great. I did this for a couple of reasons. 1. It's hot and it's nice to stay in the AC 2. There are lots of free summer activities in our area (see below) 3. We started last year in Sept and had to go all the way to the middle of May. We don't want to repeat that. 4. We want a long Christmas break 5. I want to be finished by May 1 so I can completely focus on evaluations. So , back to the topic of summer... We started July 1. There are many activities going on this summer that I am incorporating into our homeschool. 1. My kids are taking a class at the local state park on Thursdays in July. The class is free and all about birds that you can find locally. The kids are loving it and seem to be getting a great deal from it. 2. VBS!!! They do get a lot out of VBS. For our homeschool, this covers music and art and sometimes Bible history. 3. Harp lessons - Our local state park is offering free autoharp lessons on Wednesday afternoons. 4. Free movies - We have been reading and doing activities with Charlotte's Web by E.B.White and the movie is free this week at a local theater. 5. Library Summer Reading Program - The library system in the neighboring county is offering an awesome summer reading program. They have all sorts of special programs from health and nutrition to sign language to astronomy classes and so on. 6. Fourth of July in Gettysburg - see previous post on this one. Life is learning. These are the things my kids will remember much better than anything I can "teach" them from a textbook. Even after the summer is over, I will continue to search for opportunities such as these. |