Here's one of the sites we haven't been back to for a while, but it was nice to drop by for a catch-up today...
This afternoon I thought I'd get Tamāhine to read this cute book entitled, "The Giant Mushroom."
~~ooOoo~~
We've obviously not been to this site for some time because the following feature didn't exist the last time we were there. You can enlarge the print by clicking on the text area. That's brilliant. Makes reading soooooooo much easier and more enjoyable for the children!
You can choose by age, language, short or long story etc. There's a great selection and like I say, being able to enlarge the text area makes a very big difference. Something for everyone.
Tamāhine 1 read the above book. She only had trouble with the words:
Chinese (she may recognise China, but not Chinese)
wear
Cinco de Mayo (when I asked her what the word for five in Spanish was, she said cinco, so was then able to identify the rest of it, lol)
Native (well, she didn't really have a problem, just stumbled/hesitated)
carve
July (kept saying Julie ... a name she has read a few times in books recently, so I think she was simply getting confused over the two)
~~ooOoo~~
Edgar, Allan & Poe
Tama 1 read the above. I explained to him that Edgar Allan Poe was a famous American writer and that the author of this book has been ingenius in her use of Poe's name.
... seeing your child sit down with a dictionary to find a word/phrase.
Tama 1 didn't even ask for help to look up the word. We'd been talking about adaptations and he wanted to figure out what physical adaptation meant without interrupting me as I worked with his younger siblings. It took quite a while before I realised he was engrossed in the book so I took this photo without him even realising it!
For me, this was a powerful moment. Although he's looked up the dictionaries and encyclopaedia for a while now, this was really quite a big deal for me because he had gone off to figure it out without me being aware. It's kind of on a par with him no longer needing me to read with him. It's a rare moment indeed that he reads a book to me anymore. He simply finds a book and reads.
The title of this post should probably have been "They grow up so fast" eh?!!!!
This website is a great resource. We followed this link as part of tama 1's Lesson Pathways Science programme.
I scrolled down and found a section "Habitats: Desert and Forest." So, we started on that after our MUS lessons. We learned more about what types of cacti are located in different deserts and how they retain water. Interesting to learn that the Saguaro Cactus has a large net of roots which extend far away from its trunk. It has a pleated expandable stem, so water keeps the saguaro alive until the next rain.
We read about many different animals in deserts all around the world. My least favourite so far is called the Thorny Devil from Australia. To quote from the website "the grotesque thorny devil is the only species in its genus and one of the strangest of lizards."
We didn't achieve as much school work as I would have thought today, however, I'll share some of what we did discuss during our science lesson from this afternoon.
[NB: The bulk of our lesson covered
Deserts although we did touch on Wetlands also.]
I have more notes on deserts because I don't know much about deserts. Considering we only have Rangipo Desert (known more affectionately as Desert Road), it is the closest NZ has to a desert but that's only because of the poor soil quality and drying winds.
One of the first things I [we] learned about was something called a "Rain Shadow". Some deserts are made from what's called the rain shadow effect. When warm moist air rises over the mountains, its water vapour condenses into rain or snow. The mountains catch all the moisture so the air reaching the other side is dry as a desert.
The next thing we learned were some of the animals found in a desert. Okay, I've at least heard of Roadrunners and Jack Rabbits but I didn't know why the Jack Rabbit has such big ears!!! Well ...
You know how a car radiator cools off hot water from the engine? Some desert animals have big ears which do the same thing. When the warm blood moves through their big ears it gets cooled off in the same way...
Some of the animals I've never heard of before are Collared Lizards, Gila Monster or a Horned Lizard. I admit also that I didn't even realise there was such a thing as a Desert Tortoise!!! I couldn't see how a tortoise could handle the heat ... Hello!!!! They have an underground shelter (yes, a tortoise burrow). How clever's that?! Here's me thinking they only live near water!!!!
I did at least know that when the sun goes down the desert totally changes, ie different animals appear.
Oh, here's another animal I hadn't heard of ... Peccary - a desert relative of a pig!!! I think they come out at night? Could be wrong about that, but hey, it's okay to be wrong ... like I tell the kids all the time ... we learn from our mistakes.
So we learned that animals learn to run fast, or have spikes to avoid being eaten. Put another way ... Everything in the desert has adaptations to help cope with life in the desert.
And of course, we talked about the fact that although it may not rain often in the desert, it does receives some water at some point in time. One of the most prominent plants we would ever associate with a desert is cacti. We learned that it retains the water and has a waxy exterior to help keep that moisture in.
Really clever how the plants and animals adapted to meet their requirements. It's all a case of survival.
~~ooOoo~~
So, okay, like I said at the beginning, the bulk of our lesson we spent on deserts because there was a lot to learn. Wetlands we are somewhat more familiar with, and the vital role they have for many species of wildlife. Without their wetland environment, they simply wouldn't survive. Plus the plants themselves have an important role, eg cleaning the water that passes through to streams and rivers etc.
~~ooOoo~~
Anyway, we may not have spent a great deal of our day doing formal 'classroom' type activities, but I will happily say we did actually learn "something".
I managed to bowl over kete 3 in less than two days. I'm absolutely stoked!
~~ooOoo~~
I thought I would share some of the websites I used to do my research on my chosen Maori leader. If anyone is interested in learning something about our culture, heritage and leaders of the past, then you may find the following websites of interest, and good starting points. I chose Sir Maui Pomare because he was our first Māori doctor. Well, that's pretty much my main reason. That and the simple fact I felt he was an important enough character in our history.
~~ooOoo~~
The first website is an interview with his great grand-daughter. I like reading first-hand personal accounts. They bring the character to life and you read things you wouldn't find with other write-ups eh?
The plan was to work on the kete all weekend, but Nana Nancy rang Saturday morning to say she and Maureen were coming over for a visit. Of course I wasn't going to be rude enough to study while they came, so my plans were changed. This meant I couldn't start on the kete until 5ish that afternoon. In my typical fashion, it became "head down bum up". I stopped at 8.30 and decided to get stuck in straight after breakfast on Sunday. And that's exactly what I did.
With all the breaks I took I'm surprised I finished it at all, lol. But by 8.30 Sunday night it was done.
~~ooOoo~~
I received the final kete last week so I opened it up this morning and I have to say I'm at a loss as to how to work on this assignment. It's absolutely nothing like the previous kete but I have to reserve my initial comments until I've really looked over it in more depth. Knowing me, I've misread or misunderstood the instructions. It's probably easier than I think, but it's a bit of a headscratcher at the minute.
~~ooOoo~~
But anyway, I wanted to share the above to encourage any kiwi who happens to pass by this blog, to sign up for this free one year course. I hope like anything it does make it into the school system because the history of our country was presented poorly when I was at school. I had to go to university to learn it properly. In saying that, I perhaps didn't need to do this course, but I am truly grateful I did. Not only is the entire course free, with FANTASTIC free resources, a kaitiaki to help guide you when needed who will also pick up and drop off your assignments!!!!, but also the satisfaction of gaining a better understanding of our country's history. Considering we're still a very young country, it's surprising how little of our TRUE history is being taught in the school system. Luckily, as homeschoolers, our children will learn the real history without having to wait until they're a young adult!!!!!
So all you New Zealanders, I present you with this challenge ... sign up with the Mauri Ora programme and learn your history. The journey you will experience will not only benefit yourself, but your family AND anyone you feel brave enough to broach the subject with.
We had fun creating this thermometer and practising how to read in Celsius and Fahrenheit. We watched the weather report last night to see what they said the temperature would be for today and noted their prediction of 16°C. Using our thermometer print-out, we worked out that would be 60°F. Then we [tried] to check the real thermometer around lunch time to see if it did in fact reach 16°C.
We kind of missed the best time to check because whaiāipo came home around 12-12.30pm. He had a fall during work hours and had concussion. So, school went on the backburner for a while eh?! When we did check the thermometer however, it read 14°C-15°C, so that was close enough. We'll try again for tomorrow but there's a high probability whaiāipo will be home tomorrow to rest from his ordeal. He has quite a lump on his head and a saw jaw from where he knocked himself.
Because he was home, the children were allowed to finish work a little earlier than I planned because I wanted to keep an eye on whaiāipo as best as I could.
~~ooOoo~~
The children revised some math facts this morning. As much as I might say it was a waste of time what we covered, I would also say it is important to cover even the simplest of facts as often as possible to ensure the children haven't forgotten such basic skills. If there's one thing I have learned - it doesn't take much to forget certain facts once you move on to new facts.
~~ooOoo~~
In the afternoon we moved into Language Arts and Social Studies. We learned a little bit about Alaskan Inuit. I didn't even know that Inuit = "the People" or the "Real People", so I learned something immediately!!! We touched a little bit on what physical characteristics means and why they live near the sea (for hunting and fishing).
~~ooOoo~~
I will leave the post here as I am keeping an eye on whaiāipo. Whether he goes to work tomorrow or not, I am unsure - hopefully he doesn't for his own sake eh?!
When our friends were packing in preparation of their return to Reporoa, we were the lucky recipients of much needed clothing etc. In amongst some of the wonderful things we were given, I found the following and decided it was too good to leave lying around anywhere, and thought perhaps it may be encouraging for us all to read from time to time and what better place to store it, than on your blog!!!!
I have the courage to embrace my strengths get excited about life enjoy giving and receiving love face and transform my fears ... ask for help and support when I need it spring free of the superwoman trap make my own decisions and choices befriend myself complete unfinished business realise I have emotional and practical rights talk as nicely to myself as I do my plants communicate lovingly with understanding as my goal honour my own needs give myself credit for my accomplisments love the little girl within me overcome my addiciton to approval grant myself permission to play quit being a responsibility sponge feel all of my feelings and act on them appropriately nurture others because I want to not because I have to choose what is right for me insist on being paid fairly for what I do set limits and boundaries and stand by them say "yes" only when I really mean it have realistic expectations take risks and accept change grow through challenges be totally honest with myself correct erroneous beliefs and assumptions respect my vulnerabilities heal old and current wounds savour the mystery of spirt wave goodbye to guilt plant "flower" not "weed" thoughts in my mind treat myself with respect and expect others to do the same fill my own cup first and then nourish others from the overflow own my own excellence plan for the future and live for the present value my intuition and wisdom know that I am lovable celebrate the differences between women and men develop healthy and supportive relationships make forgiveness a priority
but most of all, accept myself just as I am now
(from the courage to be yourself) by Sue Patten Thoele
~~ooOoo~~
As I read some of these lines I could relate to many and although I would enjoy discussing them, the one that stands out above all in our current circumstances is "grow through challenges". The thing is, I do not fear our future because I know our family is strong and united in love, but that doesn't stop one from being concerned about making the right decisions does it?
Our friends face the challenge of employment. Our family face the challenge of keeping our home. My prayers and best wishes I pass to our friends and for everyone really who face any challenge at the moment.
We are proud to announce that ABC Reading Eggs has received Kidspot's Best Website for 5-7 year olds for the second year in a row!
What makes this award so special is that parents who use and love the ABC Reading Eggs program took the time to vote. ABC Reading Eggs is parents' Number 1 website for 5-7 year olds! The feedback from parents, carers and teachers has been overwhelming. It has encouraged the ABC Reading Eggs team to continue working to produce new content for the program that is fun, interactive and educationally sound.
Tell your friends and family about ABC Reading Eggs! If you are enjoying ABC Reading Eggs, why not tell your friends with children aged 3-7, about the program?
For each new unique user who registers on the site by the 31st of October 2009, using the code below,
The Institute has a fantastic record in researching ways to improve the chances of children fighting cancer. The vision of the Institute is to cure 100% of children with cancer through world-class research.
To access your FREE time on ABC Reading Eggs, simply sign up by clicking on the Registerbutton located on the top orange bar at www.readingeggs.com. Then add the code: KLW99SAT by 31st October 2009.
Not only will your friends thank you for helping improve their kids' reading skills for up to 3 weeks absolutely FREE, but you will also be helping a great cause!
Last night, while whaiāipo gave tama 1 and tamāhine 1 another math lesson, our little man, tama 2, hovered about doing his own thing and (obviously) picked up on what was being discussed. While daddy was in mid-flight with an explanation about this and that, tama 2 came over to me and showed me these π equations. He made such a fantastic attempt at it that I simply couldn't resist sharing it to this blog. Of course "π" is "pie"!!!!
More on the above a little later in today's posting
It is not our intention to be solely computer-aided learners, yet it would seem of late that my posts are about exactly that ... e-learning/online learning/call it what you will. Aah well, it's like any fad I guess --> when it's working well and you have loads you want to share about what's new and exciting, you kinda end up talking about it for as long as you need to huh?
~~ooOoo~~
Today was such a muddle. Thursday mornings I check the bank accounts, move funds around if needed and pay the bills online. This means the kids get to do whatever they like for a little bit longer. The bills don't actually take too long, but I always like to get that side of finances organised so that by the time we do the groceries in the afternoon, I'm sorted knowing exactly how much I can spend.
{Ooh, that reminds me!!!! We went into Pak 'n Save and I am not entirely sure if this is relevant to all Pak 'n Save stores, or whether it's only the Rotorua store, but just in case you are doing your groceries, and spend $150 or over then get in before Sunday and you will get 20 cents off per litre of petrol!!!!}
~~ooOoo~~
Tamāhine 1 (above) working on her maths
Tama 1 (below) reading about Greece at Big Universe
Tama 1, Tama 2 and Tamāhine 1 happily working on their individual lessons.
It felt good to see them all engrossed in their mahi, asking me questions if needed
and/or answering my questions to them to keep the learning momentum going.
~~ooOoo~~
Mid-afternoon we headed into the city to the supermarket, return library books and rendezvous on my parents street address with the
Mobile Library to find a book that was supposed to be on there!!! I scoured the shelves but do you think I could find it? Not a chance. Oh well, my search may not have come up trumps, but I at least grabbed some other reading material for the children. The bus was less than 100m from my parents house, so we didn't have far to go to pop in for a visit.
~~ooOoo~~
Now to tell you about ...
I had planned to discuss the e-learning website I joined in recent weeks called LessonPathways. Like most things, it's American-based and I haven't a problem with that. It's like every other good thing I find, you simply have to modify/tweak what you need to, to add the Kiwi flavour.
It's very early days with this curriculum and the first thing I would emphasise is that this is not our sole curriculum. I am wanting to blend it with the other things we use. I've grown accustomed to tweaking things to suit us here in NZ, but for the most part, I can find ways to have it work for us.
I will let you in on a little secret though ....
My decision-maker to join this particular online learning, was the fact that I jumped on board while they offered an over 50% discount. You have to appreciate that what looks incredibly cheap in USD, can look considerably different when you convert into NZD. In saying all that, I do think it's a respectable price even on a monthly basis.
Because, why? Because it's not per child. (Golly, I hope I'm correct about that?! Yikes, you better not quote me on that!!) I've made planners for the three big kids for that one price, so that's a huge advantage to take into account when comparing to some other online learning courses.
So in a way, I guess what I'm saying here is that it's still a trial period for me. If at some point (which at the moment I don't think will happen), but IF at some point I decide it's no longer what we requiret, then I know I'll walk away saying I got a good deal for the length of time I used it for.
But, as we move our way into this new curriculum, I will introduce what we learn along the way. I'm not entirely sure how long it's been going, suffice it to say, everyone is encouraged to help develop it as we are asked to suggest what we'd like more of etc.
The forum is semi-active which I'm hoping will be an area to meet as many of the other users as possible. It's at least an area where I get to ask my dilly questions without being shot down as a dodo for not knowing something, lol.
For the most part, I am quietly confident I will be able to use plenty of subjects from this curriculum with the other things we use. Lesson Pathways does require the parent(s) to be organised, ie to organise lessons and have resources available, but this is something I personally need. To focus and follow a process. At the moment, let me just say I am still trying to learn about the whole thing, so I haven't introduced it properly to the children. Once I feel truly comfortable, or feel like I'm on track with understanding it, then we'll be into it with gusto.
I'll keep you posted, and if anyone feels like participating, then follow this link and try the 14 day trial. You don't have to use your credit card (like other sites you may trial), so there's no risk involved other than you may like it eh!!!!
Whaiāipo left for work yesterday saying to the kids that if he got home early enough, they would do some more math if they wanted.
I made sure we had dinner on the table by the time whaiāipo arrived home, and once we'd let the meals settle, the kids asked dad if they should grab a pencil and paper...
The children learned about degrees first (eg a full circle is 360° and also used a full circle protractor to help demonstrate this).
Whaiāipo quizzed them on square roots and they got all of them correct. Whaiāipo tried to be cunning and asked tama 1 what the square root of 10,000 was. He got the shock of his life when tama 1 questionly responded, "100?"
Whaiāipo was impressed beyond belief!!!
Then they went back over circumference and volume. To aid his teaching, whaiāipo grabbed a couple of biscuit tins and a ruler. [He was going to use an ice-cream container but I pointed out the little ones would think that meant dessert... but as it was, tama 3 still took the biscuit tins to mean dessert and headed off to the cupboard to grab some bowls!!!](Tama 2 wasn't missing out on math. Whaiāipo assigned him some exercises and he busied himself to impress daddy too.)
~~ooOo~~
After another 10-15 minutes, I needed to take tamāhine 2 and tama 3 to bed. I suggested everyone come upstairs so the littlies didn't get upset that they were going upstairs but everyone else was still downstairs. So, class continued in the boys bedroom. I think it's traditional to "read stories" to your children before bed, but not Romankids, we talk about math facts, lol.
Because I was getting tamāhine 2 and tama 3 off to sleep, I didn't have the opportunity to take a photo of the older kids with their dad.
~~ooOoo~~
My own mahi
My days are spent with the kids, focussing entirely on their school work, yet I simply MUST find time to work on my Mauri Ora kete 3 !!!!! I've opened the box possibly half a dozen times on receiving it, without starting even the easiest of questions yet!!!
Trouble is, I really find it hard to do anything but enjoy concentrating on the kids during the day and then by the time I get upstairs I'm so tired that I can't be bothered doing my own wananga assignments. I better pull a marathon effort this weekend and get something accomplished. Considering my girlfriend is just about finished ... or possibly she is by now? ... I best get my A into G and do something!!
My friend and her family have moved back to Reporoa and yesterday was her birthday. I had to email her because they probably won't be connecting a phone line any time soon. It feels odd not to talk to her, but oh well, wireless internet helps keep communication alive eh?!
Isn't technology just amazing? Fifteen years ago, if you had no phone, it meant no contact!
We practised some multiplications using the cards we brought yesterday for $4.00 from ...
When we got home on Sunday I opened the box and held them up to tama 2. We got through nearly half the pack and he had answered the bulk of the cards himself. Granted, many were __ x 0, __ x 1, __ x 2, __ x 10 and __ x 11. But isn't it exciting to know your child of four actually knows so much? So at $4.00, I was pleased with the cheap purchase.
The kids got stuck into school work around 10 this morning. Considering they had worked with whaiāipo until late last night, I wasn't expecting them to start any earlier. Until they started with Math-U-See, tama 1 actually worked on yet another construction design. I am amazed at his ideas, concentration and method of design. He just gets so involved and enjoys being accurate with his method. Although I wanted him to start his maths, I held back on saying anything because I believe it is important to allow the children time to explore their own learning and if this is the sort of learning he wants to do, then I encourage him. I do get excited watching him. He looks so grown up, as if he's been employed to design something.
Following on from his lesson with his dad last night, I know that he tried incorporating what he had learned into his design today.
When whaiāipo got home tonight, tama 1 and tamāhine 1 both asked him if they would be doing more math like last night. I know that whaiāipo was pleased as punch they were keen, so here they are, 7 o'clock at night following their kai and they're up at the bench already.
Tamāhine 1 especially can hardly hold back her little grin that daddy is teaching her something and when she would get the answer correct, she has a particular grin she makes. Although I couldn't capture it tonight, I think this grin is gorgeous enough.
~~ooOoo~~
Math lessons went from 10 o'clock till lunch time. We had a two hour break and they were on the computer doing Social Studies and Language Arts. Luckily I had things timed that tama 2 worked on the computer till his older siblings came to the computers, that way I was able to help everybody as much as I could.
The weather today was the worst I have experienced in months. There was snow down the line even and just our luck, we had to next to no wood ... and what wood we did have was wet!!!! But, we persevered with class and had whaiāipo not arrived home when he did, we probably would've continued. The kids were that involved with their work, they were happy and that made me happy. I wasn't pushing them to continue, they simply continued of their own accord. So for them to ask their father if they were going to do some more maths, I was happy. They don't realise it's all "schooling". They find it "fun", and that's all I want for the kids. To enjoy and have a desire to learn when they find it fun.
Well, it's after 8.00 pm now and as much as I want to enjoy their lesson, I simply can't handle the coldness. I'd rather snuggle up in bed now!!
Whaiāipo spontaneously held a math lesson with the kids after kai tonight. He seemed keen to re-visit π. I encourage such lessons and I'm glad the kids didn't hesitate to focus rather than saying, "but I wanna watch the rest of the movie ..."
We don't expect the children to retain everything, but to be familiar with the workings of real life things, ie relating what whaiāipo was teaching them to everyday activities they know about.
Whaiāipo started off by giving tama 1 a triangle to work out the perimeter.
Then they started talking about volume!!! By this stage I'm on Skype to my brother in Auckland and then phoning my younger brother to see how mum is doing.
Tamāhine 1 tuned in to the lessons by this stage though if I recall.
I think whaiāipo used a hot water cylinder as one of his examples for the kids to relate volume with ...
Shocking photo of the next one, but I don't expect anyone to double click to get a good look at the picture. The pictures are really only there for me to record what dad taught his kids tonight.
Anyway, they discussed circumference, diamater and radius. I can at least say that tama 1 remembered that π = 3.142 from whenever the last time whaiāipo spoke to him about such things. That was impressive to me that he could remember that!!!
And then to top off the lesson, he had the kids working out how many kilometres per hour they are going. The first hour they were travelling at 100 kph and the second hour they could only go 50kph. So in two hours, they travelled .... 150kms.
Tama 1 just asked whaiāipo if you can write kilometres per hour as "km/h". Not bad. I'm impressed with his working out. I know he understands kph, but to ask about km/h I don't think I taught him that. Jolly good.
~~ooOoo~~
It's now been over an hour since whaiāipo started this lesson, so I've asked if they could finish as it's getting awfully late and time to get to bed!!!! Whaiāipo jokingly said, "oh my goodness, it's 9 o'clock." (It's not, it's actually 8.20pm). Tama 1 announces, "I don't care!" and his father's reply, "that's because you're enjoying your maths eh!" and his son's reply, "yep!"
Wicked!!!!!
So, thanks for dropping by
ka kite ano
Regardless of whether they stop now or not, I am!!! I'm tired, but it's fun listening in to their continuing lesson.
Who says lessons only occur during 9.00 am to 3.00 pm?
I enquired two months ago (possibly not even that long ago) about subscribing to Big Universe, because (1) we've been enjoying the site for a very long time now, and (2) I wanted to take advantage of their Create & Publish area.
So anyway, I made the decision I'd join and as I tried filling out the online form, I was stopped at the point where you're asked to provide your "State". There was no option for "outside the USA", so I fired off an email and within a matter of days had the reply "sorry, Big Universe is not available outside the USA at this point in time." Of course they added "we'll keep you in mind/on the list for the future ... rah-dee-rah-rah ..."
Oh well, to be in honest, I am kinda okay with not being able to subscribe. Save money 'n' all eh? Besides, we really enjoy having the weekly free reading books so as long as that's still available, I'm okay with it.
~~ooOoo~~
What sparked me to mention this site today is the wet, miserable Sunday afternoon we're having. Just before lunch, I decided to look at the free reading for this week to break the boredom of being stuck indoors, and decided it was an opportune moment to share Big Universe with anyone who hasn't discovered it yet.
~~ooOoo~~
Tamāhine 1 read this first book without too much trouble. Only the words "meddling" I think and "YEOWCH" were slightly tricky for her. Hardly Dolch words now are they? lol
We haven't read the next one at the time of blogging, but that's because we're having a late lunch. We will read it a little later this afternoon though.
Anyway, I thought I would share what website we use from time to time online and hope you enjoy it also.
A few reasons I like reading from here is that it's (1) free; (2) something different to read when we can't get to the library; (3) quite often has educational books such as the latter book, "Migrating Animals of the World" and (4) you're emailed links to the current week's free reads so you don't forget (which I'm notorious for doing).
[I thought I'd quickly pop this link through while I thought about it. Hopefully I'll return with some discussion about our school day a little later.]
~~ooOoo~~
Although I haven't purchased a great from Curriculum Concepts, I will at least take advantage of their free downloads when I can and keep an eye on prices on anything that tickles my fancy.
This week's freebie is called "Sequence Stories Book 1". If you're interested in it then follow any of the links.
Thanks to selling dear old Dora, we were able to purchase our third computer.
~~ooOoo~~
We might need to start charging for the usage of the
Romankids Cyber Café
lol
~~ooOoo~~
My brother Craig and niece Lizzie (my eldest brother's daughter) came down for the weekend. They were here as part of the entourage for Sir Howard Morrison's tangi and kindly popped out to see us on Sunday morning.
Well, typically, Craig and Lizzie merged to the computer without too much encouragement, lol. Both of them are very computer-savvy and are usually armed with their laptops, so I think they enjoyed the fact they could use our Cyber Café today.
Tama 1 drew this picture about the recycling process. Although he didn't complete it (interruptions and mum moving it), he's happy enough for me to load it on now as he explained it pretty much indicates what he knows about the recycling process. It's rather self-explanatory so I won't go into depth about it.
The following is yet another of tama 1's bridge building ideas. I'll try my best to explain it.
The dark parts are the main bridge. There's a tower which a few cars can park in. You can also climb up inside the tower and have a look at the view from atop using your binoculars. He has a couple of walkways, a boat which can go underneath the bridge, there's a river running on the left-hand side, a tree and garden area for the landscape aesthetics. This following picture is of a café which tama 1 drew yesterday before breakfast. Actually, there are many things he draws before, during or immediately following breakfast!
Anyway, I looked at this picture and thought it looked particuarly Parisian. I mean, check out this Vincent van Gogh picture to see the similarities, lol.
Okay, this last picture tama 1 drew today. A crane with outriggers, a concrete truck with the chute ... and chute extension on the deck of the truck if you look closely enough. I like the way he drew portions of vehicles and what-have-you to give depth and detail to his picture. So although you don't realise it, there's a forklift up in the top left corner. There's even the indication of a door and window in the bottom right corner.
~~ooOoo~~
Tamāhine 1 made a fantastic job of her Felicity Wishes. She was such a good girl too, because she even used the two sides of her paper. That may explain why the photographs don't do her drawings justice.
Then at the completion of school tamāhine 1 made a mirror ...
and a wand ...
They reminded me of the story she had made earlier this morning about a princess and a magic mirror. Quite timely.
Here are the boys returning from their excursion down the back after lunch break. They had a great time exploring while tamāhine 1 worked on her art project. [I think that's the first time I can recall tamāhine 1 staying behind while the boys headed off around the track.]
[Ah well, a girl's prerogative I guess eh, lol?] This afternoon we dropped off some more of the kids completed reading to the library. Because I had a few errands I decided to head into the city just after lunch. I couldn't stop long at the library though because tama 2 decided to fall asleep just minutes before finding a car park. So rather than wake him I just raced in and did what I needed to do.
Well, I just have to share this little part of our day.
When I clambered back into the car I passed a book to Tama 1. Anyway, he read it within 5kms. The book, I should point out, was actually intended for tamāhine 1, but as always if tama 1 is interested in reading something, he'll read it.
Because he finished it, I handed the book back to tamāhine 1 when driving past Te Ngae shops. By the time we got home she had almost completed it herself. Within five minutes of getting in the house she was heading to the library basket and I (astoundedly) asked, "have you finished it already?"
"Yes."
"Well, how about you read it to me at the bench while I prepare kai?" (because I needed to be sure she read each word correctly).
And sure enough, within 15 minutes she had this book done and dusted. Needless to say I was very impressed with her reading. I didn't have to help her with any words whatsoever.
Level 2 Reading Independently
More-complex stories
Varied sentence structure
Paragraphs and short chapters
Looks like I'll have to look for more Level 3 Reading Proficiently
I tried to get the best copy I possibly could of tama 1's bridge building.
This is the best I could get. Because he uses pencil,
I find it difficult to bring out on the scanner and camera sometimes.
If you double-click on it you'll get a better perspective,
otherwise a little imagination will be required.
~~ooOoo~~
The above pictures he drew a fortnight ago.
Tama 1 really likes planes, so maybe he'll design planes or the like?
~~ooOoo~~
There are many pictures tama 1 shows his creative engineering thinking. What an exciting process to be part of ... to watch your child develop and wait in wonderment as to who they will become.
Nau mai haere mai and welcome to the adventures of our family. Join us as we travel through our eclectic, Catholic Charlotte Mason, Classical mix of homeschooling in beautiful Aotearoa (New Zealand). Introducing nga whanau: Maree, whaiaipo (my wonderful soulmate of 15 years), tama 1, tamahine 1, tama 2, tamahine 2 and tama 3.
"The many troubles in your household will tend to your edification, if you strive to bear them all in gentleness, patience, and kindness. Keep this ever before you, and remember constantly that God's loving eyes are upon you amid all these little worries and vexations, watching whether you take them as He would desire. Offer up all such occasions to Him, and if sometimes you are put out, and give way to impatience, do not be discouraged, but make haste to regain your lost composure."
~~Francis De Sales(1567-1622, Bishop, Preacher, Author)
There are two ways of spreading light; to be the candle or the
mirror that reflects it Edith Wharton
Do not confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving
but does not make any progress Alfred A. Montapert
A Simple Path - A Prayer by Mother Teresa
The fruit of silence is prayer,
The fruit of prayer is faith,
The fruit of faith is love,
The fruit of love is service,
The fruit of service is peace.
It feels right, it feels natural and it feels wonderful to be involved in our children's education 100% Maree (Yes, me!!)
Homeschool Treasure Trove
at YAHOO! Groups
Kiwi Home Educators
