Homeschool Art Show

First of all, I have to send out a big, huge THANK YOU to Christin for putting this together. "This" was an art show for our local homeschool group. Kids from nine different families participated, and Christin graciously turned her livingroom into an art gallery for the occasion.

Second, I have to say I was impressed with the variety of submissions from the kids. No two artists used the same media or technique or style, and there was quite a bit of thinking outside the box, such as BooBoo Bear's submission, "Mr. Balloon Head"...




This past Christmas BooBoo had picked out our "new" lighted decoration for the lawn, and some scoundrel(s) stole 2/3 of it on the second night it was out. Only 2/3, because the legs were very firmly staked into the ground, not conducive to a "snatch and grab" decor theft. BooBoo was so upset over the matter, that he insisted on keeping the legs. He added one of his hoodies, a flexible plumbing pipe (the arms), two kid-sized golf clubs (to operate the legs), and a happy balloon head. A masterpiece!

Display of artwork.

T-Bear's "virtual" LEGO creation.


BroBear's portrait of Papa Bear.

The artist's wall.

One of my favorites....Nic's rain painting.

H's town square.

RobotSon created a stop-motion music video featuring LEGO characters.

Grace's daughter's paper doll wardrobe.

The awards ceremony.

A Typically Random Day

Okay, show of hands. All of you full-time, at-home parents out there: How many times in your full-time parenting career have you been asked the question, "Yeah, but what do you DO all day?" Kind of annoying, idn't it?

Those of us who happen to homeschool at least get a bit of a break as most people envision homeschooling as some sort of intensive school-at-home operation that takes at least as many hours per day as the local public school does (it doesn't), but it's a trade off because we have to deal with the same tired old question, "Yeah, but what about socialization?" But, that's a topic for another post.

In answer to the the first question, here's a quick look at my typically random day yesterday.

My day started out pretty quietly, with reading The Omnivor's Dilemma in bed. Don't mistake this for a bit of "light reading"; it will make you want to change everything about the way you feed your family. And, I read for the umpteenth time The Velveteen Rabbit to BooBoo (his current absolute favorite read). And the first chapter of Anne of Avonlea to T-Bear.

After hubby'd had his tubby, I slipped in for a quick wash-up (sharing baths saves on water and gas for heating said water) and got dressed. Then, downstairs I made summer squash soup.

Post-boiling, pre-puree'ing.

BooBoo Bear, my kitchen helper.

The finished product. Yes, it was quite lovely.

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The past couple of weeks I've gone nuts making fresh soups of every description I can think of. Some have been not-so-great, but most have been fabulous. As the first "meal" of the day (we don't really do breakfast), it really gets me feeling good, and just bustin' to get outside and into the garden. Hubby agrees. The kids, not so much, though BroBear has been raving about just about every soup I've made, as long as he can follow it up with at least to PBJ's.

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After we'd had our fill, I put the rest into ice cube trays and froze them for Mimi (she's been recovering from surgery, so we're bringing her soups for light, easy meals). I also negotiated a composting co-op with her whereby we combine our kitchen and green waste, and our two composters, to see if we can get a little compost factory going. We'll use my composting bin to "collect and hold", then transfer to her tumbling composter to compost the batches. We both had terrible luck with the tumber getting far to wet, and I couldn't get the bin to compost completely. So, hopefully we can strike just the right balance to get some good compost going.

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BooBoo decided he wanted to plant some spaghetti squash in "his" garden, so we put the seeds onto a paper bag out on the table on the back deck to dry.

BroBear and BooBoo both decided they wanted to grow avocado trees (even though neither will allow an avocado to pass their lips, and I doubt they will thrive in our area). A few days prior, two pits from a previous meal were skewered with toothpicks and put into jars of water on the window sill (has anyone else ever done that?). I decided they were not getting enough sunlight, so moved them to the back deck. Made a mental note that BooBoo's pit was up-side-down, so I can point out the difference between the two plants when (if) they sprout.


I spent about an hour in the "yarden", tending to the newly-sprouted irises (weeding, composting and mulching), and finished mulching the bulbs I'd transplanted last week. I actually used the mulch PapaBear and the Cubs made last weekend with the chipper/shredder, which was cool. It got me thinking all about "suburban ecology" and the importance of re-investing nutrients taken from your property's soil back into your property's soil, rather than throwing it away in the green waste bin or (goodness gracious) burning it in the back yard.


Somewhere throughout the day, the kids did some "learning". We take a relaxed, eclectic approach to home learning, with a healthy dose of TJEd thrown in. Student interest-directed, lots of reading, and a bit of on-line computer learning for good measure.
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Although I don't count this type of thing as "studies" (the State of Georgia does have it's standards, even for homeschoolers), I consider these types of project to be at least as valuable as academics, if not more so. Bro and BooBoo joined forces to create this elaborate ramp, which BroBear mastered on his scooter (the helmet was an intensely negotiated qualifier, thus the slightly "tween" look on Bro's face at the end of the video).



Okay, let's see. Somewhere along the line we had afternoon snack, and I'd been tracking T-Bear's BG throughout the day. Overall, his BG has been drifting slightly upward, so upped his Lantus by 1u and was keeping an eye on him.
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And, I grabbed some "left over" organic cotton yarn from my stash and started knitting a kitchen scrubby. Also in The Basket are a holiday stocking for Grace, a red bear for T-Bear (BTW the pattern can be found in Last-Minute Knitted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson recommended to me by Grace, and BooBoo is insisting on a bunny from the same pattern), and a sock for ME!.


This was inspired by Tanya's Paperless Kitchen. Last week I hid the paper towels in the pantry, and replaced them with this:

Do you like my sign? ;) We already have piles and piles of "clean up towels" in the kitchen for every assortment of disgusting clean-ups, as well as cloth napkins (though, probably not nearly enough for the entertaining we do).

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I'd been having some difficulty getting my artisan bread to rise this winter, since I keep the house on the cooler side (to save gas) and we don't have a pilot on our gas stove. But, I came up with a solution. I put a cast-iron frier on the stove, heated it up, turned off the gas, and put the dough container near enough to it to benefit from it's long-radiating heat.

It worked. Ain't that lovely?

Since PapaBear went to the trouble of buying me a new baking stone (I have a knack for shattering them), I figure it's time to get back to baking bread. I compromised my "whole grain" standard by using all-natural, unbleached white flour because this bread just does NOT do what it's supposed to with whole wheat flour. Let's just say, this is one of our guilty pleasures.

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Nana (MIL) arrived in the late afternoon (hem, Hubby, a little notice would have been good) to work on her taxes. It gave me the perfect opportunity to alternately chat, listen to Shakespeare's Sonnets for Classic Moms Book Club, and finish the first washcloth (which was immediately put to use in the kitchen).

PapaBear ordered Japanese for dinner from a local place, and picked it all up for us...in this box, which kinda blows my mind.

And, after dinner we sat down for a game of Canasta. BroBear loves this game as much as Papa, Nana and I do (I'm all about Cut-Throat Canasta), and I love that he loves it. It's a fabulous way for the kids to learn complex addition...counting by combinations of 5's, 10's, 20's, 50's and 100's...as well as strategy. BroBear won the round, though I was only 150 pts behind (we both scored over 4,000...not bad considering I did not get a Wild Card Canasta).

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And, thanks to Nana's card holders, I was able to finish up my second wash cloth while playing...

Yes, I AM a multi-tasking maniac. When I pulled out my camera to take this shot, Nana just about lost it.
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So, that was just about the brunt of my day. Except that my day rarely ends when I go to bed. I had to take a wild guess at the carbs T-Bear ate for dinner and figure his insulin dose accordingly, because I couldn't find a carb count for tempura. And then check his BG more frequently than usual in case I mis-guessed.

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About 1:00 am I woke up with Tempura Revenge and was sick for a few hours (sooooooo not used to fried food, and I wasn't the only one experiencing Fried Food Regret). Checking T-Bear's BG at 3:00 am he was too high to let slide (over 300), so I gave him a correction...which means I had to check again in 2 hours to be sure he didn't crash. Still high 2 hours later, but not so high I had to risk another correction (and possible crash). And, sleep simply would not come for more than 30 min at a time.

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Got out of bed later than usual today, and tried to guide my family through the day today...but, really, mostly read and knitted. Some days are better, and more productive, than others.

So, what does this review of my day say to me? That I spend a lot of my time and energy on things that are not necessarily valued by our modern industrial society.

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Things like reading to improve oneself and one's understanding the world. Reading aloud for hours at a time to our children, so they develop a love of learning and exploring and understanding and literature and their human history.

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Saying "yes" to a child's need to build something on their own, to master the use of tools, and to show off what they have accomplished. Supporting children in exploring what may very well become a passion in their lives.

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Baking bread from scratch, making soups from fresh ingredients, and supporting a beloved friend through her recovery by delivering said fresh soups so my friend knows that she is loved, and so my children, hopefully, will develope the compassion to do the same for others during their lifetime.

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Putting aside the convenience of resource-killing paper products in favor of re-usable towels and cloths, which will have to be laundered ad-infinitum in a desperate attempt to keep up. Just because it's the responsible thing to do.

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Combining my energy and attention with those of microbes and critters I can't even see to re-invest green matter back into our little patch of Earth in the form of compost, and recruiting others to help in the process. Showing as much love and attention and respect to our little bit of Earth as possible, so our kids will develope the same sense of reverence and awe.

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And, so much more than I can express.

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This is what I spend my life on. This is what I "do" all day... For just one day. Because tomorrow will most likely be completey different.

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And, so do a dozen other parents I know personally, and dozens more through the internet.

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We're all out there, every day, doing what we do everyday, whether we are acknowledged or not.

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Because, what we do is IMPORTANT, whether we are acknowledged or not.

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So, Rock on! I'm right there with you, and I KNOW what YOU do everyday.

Ready For Camping

Now that we’ve taken the plunge and committed to meeting up with my family in Oregon in July, and now that Papa Bear has plotted out a panoramic tour of the National Parks, we’re now taking a look at the practicalities of this type of vacation. Papa Bear had been looking at various camping trailers and such to see if there is something suitable to rent for the three weeks, and has found a few options. But, they’re a little pricey for “just” a rental. Since we’re likely to be using a pull-behind rig frequently, we thought it might be worthwhile in the long run to just buy one, if we could find a good deal. Which my genius brother, JoBro, did. From California. Believe it or not, he located a nice little pop-trailer right here in town being sold by an RV dealer who is going out of business next Friday. They need to liquidate their remaining inventory. So, we went and took a look, and put down a deposit to hold it. A few hours later they called to say the financing came through, so we’re scheduled to pick it up on Saturday. After a 1 ½ hour orientation on how to work the thing. My other genius brother, C-Bro, has already sent us a list of accessories we should consider getting. Camping is in our family's blood, and my bros are pros.

In the meantime, BooBoo is ready to camp. He’s been hounding me for weeks to help him set up a tent in the front yard so he can camp out there. He doesn’t seem to be the least intimidated by the 20 degree nights we’ve been having, or even the slushy snow we had the other day (he was insisting we set up the tent in the snow). He finally got the better of me today, we located our small tent, I helped him set it up, and he’s determined to sleep in it tonight. And tomorrow night. The night after, he’ll be sleeping in the pop-up in the driveway. He’s got his sleeping bag and pad, PJ’s, a lamp, and two fresh baked biscuits he swiped off the cooling rack. He explained that he can’t survive two days without food, so he’s got one biscuit for each day he plans to be out there. Thinking ahead, that one.

The Tent

The Determined Occupant(s)

For my part, I took a stab at baking fresh bread in the electric roaster. It may be foolishly optimistic for me to even consider making fresh bread while camping, but we’ve got plenty of time to figure out whether or not it will be worthwhile. My baking stone had cracked in half last time I used it for pizza, so the two pieces set on the rack in the bottom just fit. I grabbed some dough from the fridge and made some biscuit-sized bits, popped them in, poured in the water, and they turned out just as fabulous as the oven variety. Maybe even better, if you can believe it.

My Cracked Stone in The Roaster. No comments, please.

I swear, I made more than two biscuits...


Ah, the missing biscuits...in the tent.

So, another day of homeschooling. I’ll have to figure out how to classify RV shopping and tent set-up on my attendance form. As with appliance dismantling and kitchen faucet installation, I’ll probably just put it down as “essential life skills.”

And, tomorrow is another day…

Goals and Assessments

It seems almost inevitable that at the end of each year I get a bee in my bonnet about “doing” homeschool “better” next year. I’m not sure exactly what that means, but I’m sure this urge is related to the Seasonal Resolution Virus that just about everyone gets infected with right around now. So, I’ve decided that I’m going to get back to setting quarterly goals (or objectives?) and writing up quarterly assessments, at least for the older two Cubs. Although I've written assessments in the past, I’ve never really done formal educational goals with/for the kids, but I think the time is ripe for Brother Bear to begin participating in that process.

So, I pulled out my tried-and-true assessment form, which I originally took from Lynn Stoddard’s book Educating for Human Greatness. I feel it supports the TJEd approach, with its focus on developing the individual rather than pressing conformity to a system. Assessments have never been my strong suit, mostly because I have very little idea what to write, especially about my own children. But, this format gives me some basic areas to focus on, and something to think about. It still may take me a month to finish the assessments, but at least I’ve got some place to start.

If you happen to be looking for an assessment format, here’s the basic outline.

For the older students:

Directions: Please indicate how much you feel this child is growing in each of the categories listed below:

Identity:
1. Self-esteem, self-respect, and self-confidence.
2. Sense of responsibility for his/her own learning and behavior.
3. Awareness and development of his/her unique strength, talents, gifts, interests, and abilities.

Interaction:
1. Kindness, trust, thoughtfulness, tolerance, and respect for others.
2. Social attitudes and skills; the ability to listen with understanding, express ideas, and get along with others.
3. Enjoyment and ability to express him/herself in writing.
4. Responsible citizenship, understanding of the workings of the democratic process, respect for environment and laws.

Inquiry:
1. Enjoyment of learning.
2. Enjoyment of school.
3. Curiosity, initiative, self-direction, and independence in trying to learn.
4. Studying and seeking information from a variety of sources.
5. Ability and desire to read for recreation and personal growth.
6. Ability and desire to use knowledge to create, invent, think, and solve problems.

To this form, I’ve added the following:

Academic Goals/Progress: Last Quarter’s Goals, Progress, Next Quarter’s Goals
1. Language/Communication:
2. Literature:
3. Reading:
4. Writing/Grammar/Composition:
5. Penmanship/Keyboarding:
6. Math/Economy/Finance:
7. Music/Art:
8. Physical Fitness/Health:
9. Domestic Arts:

For the younger children:

Directions: The parent or teacher is to read each question orally to the student, who then draws a smiling face, a frowning face, or an “in-between face” to represent his/her feelings about the question:

Identity:
1. Do you do a good job of learning?
2. Are you good at some things?
3. Does your teacher like you?
4. Do your classmates like you?

Inquiry:
1. Do you learn about the things you want to learn about?
2. Do you ask a lot of questions in your class?
3. Do you read outside of school?
4. Do you like to figure things out by yourself?

Interaction:
1. Do you get along with other students?
2. How do you behave in school?
3. Do other people listen to your ideas?
4. Do you get along with your family?
5. Do you like to write?


That’s about it. I feel like I need to add a "spiritual" category to the form, but not sure what I'd say about it. Regardless, hopefully I’ve started the process early enough I can get the assessments done, and some goals sketched out before we get “back to homeschool” next year. While I'm at it, maybe I need to set some goals for myself, too….

Back to School

Yesterday was our first day “back to school” after a break of about a month and a half, and I’ve changed things a bit. Again. I’ve backed off being a TJEd purist, and have begun scheduling content, and requiring. Heh. We’re even using workbooks and flashcards. Scandelous, I know. But, we’re also back to reading our classics. Brother Bear and I are reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe again. T-Bear is back to listening to audiobooks on his headphones to help his CAPD. And, we’re back to working on our penmanship. So far, so good. No mass rebellion yet. Haven’t gotten through today, though. The day is still young.

Inagural Homeschool PTA Party

A great big THANK YOU to everyone who was able to attend our first Homeschool PTA Party, BBQ and Crab Boil! Everyone, I’m pretty sure, had a fabulous time, and we were able to relax, chill out, and enjoy one another’s company. We're looking forward to getting together again.

Spidy mask, clown shirt,

"I don't wanna grow up" helecopter beanie,

and New Orleans bling.
This outfit pretty much embodies

the tone of the evening.