My children have renewed their love of birds. My daughters have always enjoyed it. When they were younger, they would walk around the backyard with their drawing books and their bird books looking for birds. They knew all of the different bird calls.
They have begun again and have introduced their little brothers to the study. The boys have been sharing with their "Punkin" (my father) their favorite bird books. We have come across so many new birds since this has started. My most favorite was this fella:
That is the most beautiful Pileated Woodpecker I have ever seen. Of course, it is the FIRST Pileated Woodpecker I have ever seen. My girls have been looking for it because they just realized they have been listening to it for quite a while. Now, how to get a better shot! |
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Mar. 9, 2008 Fun With The Uncle!
Do you not agree that every "good home schooling family" should dissect owl pellets? Well, maybe you do not. I am not sure I would even lump myself into that category, but we can now check "owl pellets" off our list!
My children were not overly excited about the prospect, but after watching a nature movie about owls, it seemed like a good next step! My oldest Darling Daughter was the least enthused about it, but she was the last one standing at the table. She was determined to pick out every little rat bone in that pellet.
My second Darling Daughter was "blessed" with the largest pellet, which she and her two brothers picked apart. That pellet had a gold mine. She was able to pick out two rat skulls and one vole skull. This was their pellet:
When we were done, we gathered all the bones and put them into plastic bags. I was not really sure what we were going to do with them after that, but we brought them home. Before supper, we showed them to Dad and then left them on the counter. I felt two days was more than enough time for them to "ferment" in their juices so it was at that point we disposed of them.
I highly recommend owl pellets. It is a wonderful opportunity to research owls and rats. I would not recommend saving the wet rat bones in a bag, though...
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Jan. 23, 2008 Tips From Our Meeting
Okay, I am not a good note taker. I rely on what is left of my brain to remember what I need to remember. That is a dangerous thing, but I will attempt to recall what our wonderful guest shared with us last week. Any of the gals who attended are more than welcome to add your two cents to the comments section.
She began the evening sharing from her childhood about when her mother home schooled her. They were missionaries in Brazil, so opportunities for school were mainly what they made them. Being missionaries, they had the opportunity to use everything around them to educate. She encouraged us to utilize everything at our disposal to teach. Not to get "bogged down" by curriculum. Raising her children, they learned quite a bit of their science while working on their family farm. She brought a goat skin that my friend had skinned when she was growing up.
She reminded us that we are all made differently. She split our group into four sections. She described four different types of people: The drivers, the list makers, the social people and the laid-back bunch. This, of course, is my interpretation. She was much more eloquent when she described it. We were given the assignment of coming up with ideas for next years meetings. The ideas fit our personalities so well (not to mention that I got a lot of new ideas).
She helped us to realize that we should not be intimidated because the school system says they are "qualified" to teach. The qualification that we have is that we love our children. She realized this when she sent her first to school and saw the Kindergarten class simulating the home in the classroom.
One of the neatest things that she stressed was rather than focusing on your child's achievements, focus on their character. Use everything that happens to train character into your children. Be sure that they know and understand what each character trait is and what it means. They will not understand the need to persevere if they to not know what the word means.
So how did I do, ladies? For those of you who were there, did I hit everything? What did you take home from last week's meeting? Given the fact that everyone hears what God opens their ears to hear, you may have been at a different meeting than I was. Share what you learned!! |
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Jan. 18, 2008 Our Home School Meeting...
Let me tell you, we had the best home school meeting EVER last night!! In our group, we are blessed to have a second (really third) generation home schooler. After I met her and found out about it, for the last two years I have been trying to get her mother and she to come speak to our group. It finally happened last night!
There was so much that she shared with us. I was completely overwhelmed by the wealth of information. She was so gentle and loving, truly teaching us how to love and teach our children. I probably gushed over her...I can tend to do that when I am excited! I told her that we definitely wanted her back.
I love mentors. No home school support group should be without one. If you do not have one, start praying about it today. I can promise you, God will hear your prayer and deliver. |
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Jan. 13, 2008 Something New...But Not So New
I am home this morning with a slightly under-the-weather child. She is not dreadfully sick, but I figured it was better to "laze" around home rather than going to church and feeling worse. We are sitting here listening to audio books.
Have you heard of Librivox? I had heard about this website when we started on our Ambleside/Charlotte Mason adventures, but I never checked them out. I love the wonderful literature the children are being exposed to. One situation we have run into is being overloaded by the books. We have been able to complete our lessons, but I would love to give them the ability to "catch up" with some of the reading.
I finally googled Librivox. What a treasure trove! This is their objective:
"To make all books in the public domain available, for free, in audio format on the internet."
We are so excited about these old books! Trust me, it is not just for the children! I have already downloaded Stepping Heavenward and I plan on downloading The Three Musketeers for my Wonderful Husband and I to listen to!!
You have to check it out!!!! |
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