Moving Beyond The Page Update

Madeline has been working on the "Moving Beyond the Page" curriculum this year.  We have been progressing slower than the curriculum lay out, mostly because Madeline wants to spend more time on the lessons.  The curriculum lends itself well to discussion, and we tend to spend time expanding on the topics in the curriculum.  We were recently talking about needs and wants. One of the "needs" Madeline listed was, of course, a home.  This lead to a discussion about different kinds of houses and shelters people live in around the world.  We ended up searching the internet for pictures of homes around the world.  Here are a couple of the websites that we found that were interesting:

http://www.shelterpub.com/_wonderful_houses/wh-book.html

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

Headsprout Complete!

Madeline completed the last lesson of the Headsprout Reading Program, episode 80.  She was very pleased with herself, and is now happy to read aloud to anyone who will listen!

What is Homeschooling?

There are so many different ways people homeschool. Some people are unschoolers, some do a more traditional school-at-home type of program, some use pre-packaged programs from an accredited school, some use online schools, and some are eclectic. Within these groups, there are those who focus on classical education, some who provide education with a religious focus, some who use a Montessori approach, and others who prefer a Waldorf approach. And, there are several others that I have not listed here. It is difficult to define exactly what homeschooling is. I think that most of the people we come across, who do not homeschool, have the view of a school-at-home approach. They imagine homeschoolers sitting down each day and conducting the exact lessons that woud take place in a traditional school, only at home.

The reality is that homeschooling allows a freedom in learning that is not available in the traditional classroom setting. We are free to learn what we want, when we want. We are free to explore dinosaurs, if we so choose, for as long as we are interested. We are free to take field trips when we want, where we want. Learning is a journey, not a task to get finished so that we can go out to recess. Homeschool allows us to draw on the interests of the girls to help them develop a love of learning - actually, I think children are born with a love of learning, we just have to nurture it and watch it grow. While we do have probably a more school-at-home approach, and we do pay attention to the state and national education standards, we also enjoy the freedom that homeschooling allows so that we can explore everything we want to.

Homeschooling is also a way for us to ensure that our children learn through an instructional approach and at a level of that is appropriate for each of them.  We are able to tailor the instruction and the instructional speed to each child. While traditional schools are forced to use one curriculum and attempt to differentiate it for individual students, we can use different curriculums for each child, and even change curriculums within the course of a school year if one approach is not working well (which we have already done, a couple of times).

Instead of going away to school all day, sitting at a desk, returning home (exhausted), eating dinner, doing homework, going to bed, then getting up and doing it all over again, learning is a much more continuous process and a much less exhausting process. There is no start and no end to learning. We can learn about deserts at 7 am or 7 pm, depending on when the mood strikes us.

Homeschooling Comic

I just found this website, which contains a homeschooling comic as well as a blog to go along with it.  Just for fun!

Schools Are For Fish

"It Must be One of Ours!" - A Monarch Update

Since we released our first Monarchs, the girls have been on the lookout for more.  We have had several Monarchs come and lay eggs in our milkweed plants.  Some have even made their way into our house so that the girls could watch more develop and change into butterflies.  Our milkweed plants have now been eaten bare and grown back several times, and our garden has hosted several chrysalides.  

The girls have developed a real interest in and concern for these small creatures.  Madeline even points them south now that it is getting cooler when she releases them so that they know where to go on their long migration.   Whenever we see a Monarch outside the girls inevitably yell, "It must be one of ours!"  Learning about Monarchs has definitely caused the girls to take a great interest in them, and has hopefully inspired them to have a greater respect for all living things and take ownership in caring for their environment and the people and things that live there.

Building a Community

Madeline is truly enjoying the Moving Beyond the Page curriculum!  She was so excited about working on this project, and was so proud when it was finished!  This curriculum is certainly holding her interest.  I am so pleased that she does not have to sacrifice her creativity.   She is engaged and learning!

Fort McHenry

Okay, to be truthful we really only went to Fort McHenry because Bill really wanted to go.  In the end, however, we all found it fascinating (except for Hailey who slept through it).  The girls were so curious about where the soldiers slept and ate, and what all of the areas were used for.  The size of the cannons and cannon balls was amazing!  Despite the modernization of the harbor, it was easy to picture the history that occurred there!

The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

While in Baltimore we also took the opportunity to take the girls to the Maryland Zoo.  They were able to see lots of animals, which was different than most trips we take to zoos.  We seem to either go on days that are too cold for the animals or too hot for the animals.  The day we went was quite warm, but the animals were out and about where we could see them - well, all except the giraffes.

We spent the first part of our trip in a section of the zoo that seemed to be pretty typical.  The girls got to see elephants, penguins, camels, chimpanzees, gorillas, crocodiles, etc.  Then we moved to another section of the zoo which contained animals that were native to Maryland.  This was by far the highlight of the trip.  This portion of the zoo was set up with a lot of hands-on activities for children.  Madeline, Isabella, and Hailey pretended they were birds, in two different types of nests, hopped across child-sized lily pads, climbed like bears, and wore "turtle shells".  They all agreed it was a great trip!

The Fire Museum of Baltimore

We took the girls to the Maryland Fire Museum during our trip to Baltimore.  The girls really enjoyed seeing the old fire equipment.  The museum has a separate children's room where the girls were able to dress like fire fighters, "drive" and climb on a real fire engine, and see how an emergency response system works.  Here are some pictures from out trip.

Madeline liked seeing the different vehicles that have been used by firefighters throughout history.

 

Hailey tested out some old buckets for carrying water.

For more information on the Fire Museum of Maryland, you can visit them at http://www.firemuseummd.org/

Nonconformity

Madeline "officially" missed her first day of kindergarten at the public school yesterday. While I don't think we ever truely considered sending her, it gave me a moment of pause to think that she was now doing something different than the majority of her peers. Then a good friend of mine called and talked about how she and her children (about the same age as mine) were doing, and the struggles and joys of raising very independent children. I was reminded of one of the many reasons we have chosen to homeschool. We do not want our independent daughters to have to conform to all of those things they must at school. We want them to learn to think for themselves, not follow the pack. We want them to develop their creativity, not get caught up in the monotony of conformity. When I think of Madeline in particular, I always think of a story I heard once about a teacher who told her student that her picture was incorrect because she drew the grass purple instead of green. I wonder how many teachers would tell her to stop coloring her grass purple instead of seeing the beauty of her creativity.  

We want them to love learning for the sake of learning.   Children are born with that great desire to seek out answers and information.  They are great observers and learners!  I always find advertisements this time of year so sad.  I hope that children are not as sad about having to go back to school as the ads make you think they are. New clothes and locker decorations should not be the excitement - learning should be. 

I think we will stick to being nonconformists!

Where are we going?

Well, it seems that the answer to the question, "What curriculum will we use?" is a map that is always changing. It seems like there is a never-ending quest to find materials that are a good fit for the girls' learning styles. My ideas for what we would use this year have changed several times this summer, but I think I have settled on some appropriate materials for the year (subject to change at any time, of course).

I ran across a curriculum that is designed for "gifted and creative" children, Moving Beyond the Page, that addresses that is based on the standards, and is very hands-on. I will be using the 5-7 curriculum materials for Isabella and the 6-8 curriculum materials for Madeline. The girls seem to like the lessons so far, and the material seems to be appropriately challenging for them.

In addition to this curriculum, we will be using ABeCeDarian Reading. This program is a nuts-and-bolts, how to read curriculum. To me, it seems, it is a combination of the best of every program I have used. It has "making words"-type activities; is very methodical in the teaching of phonics, like Sigfried Engelmann's work; and includes writing activities as well. I even like the handwriting portions as much as I like the Handwriting Without Tears curriculum. It is really the type of curriculum I would develop myself, if I was so inclined. We are all happy with it. The girls have seen success with it, and even Hailey asks to learn to read when she sees her sisters doing it. We will also be using LOTS of library books at their reading levels for independent reading, and probably some guided reading.

I think we will also continue to use the Write Source materials for writing. I like the direct instruction in the 6 Traits of Writing that the program provides, and Madeline enjoyed the kindergarten program last year. We will also continue with journaling, and we will encourage both Madeline and Isabella to continue to write down their wonderful stories.

As I posted previously, we are using Singapore Math, and we continue to really like that program. Isabella especially has made huge progress in the past month with it. We will continue with it.

We have experimented with a few art programs this summer, and have been happy with all of them, for what they offer. The Atelier Homeschool Art program has certainly held the girls' attention and lead to lots of spontaneous art being done in between the lessons. The geeArt program has also been enjoyed. They just do not seem to be a complete program, and since we are almost 1/2 finished with the Atelier program (Level 1), and we just started this summer, it will probably not get us through the whole year. I just heard about a program that is suppose to be fabulous, called Artistic Pursuits, which I think I am going to check out. I am also going to use ideas from Discovering Great Artists

and Great American Artists for Kids, both by MaryAnn F. Kohl and Kim Solga.

We are also planning to purchase a used piano or keyboard so that the girls can learn to play. If that doesn't pan out, we might go back to taking a music class, as we have in the past.

Physical education gets covered through the many classes that the girls are involved in. We have dance and gymnastics planned. Madeline would also like to take a karate class, and she and Isabella have played soccer in the past, so we will see what happens later this year.

Well, I think that is what is "mapped" for now. I'm sure it will be adjusted and changed as the year goes on, and I am sure the girls will add their own ideas to it as we progress through the year.

Learning About Migration

As a follow-up to our walk at a local park, we have studied migration and hibernation. We began with migration, since Madeline was quite excited about learning about geese and whooping cranes. We found several resources online to help with our study. The first two were Operation Migration and Journey North. We also found (or rediscovered) Enchanted Learning (http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html). This site has drawings and information about animals that both migrate and hibernate (along with lots of other animal-related topics).

We also ordered the video "Fly Away Home," which was a big hit with the girls. They would watch it over and over again if I would let them. It has also served as a springboard for them to tell and act out stories of their own about saving geese and leading them south, and as stated in a pervious post, Madeline used it as an inspiration for a story she wrote in her journal. It has also been the subject of several drawing and painting Madeline has done in the past week or so.

We also found a documentary video from Operation Migration, "Hope Takes Wing," which documents some of the efforts to reintroduce the whooping crane. The girls did not find it as exciting as "Fly Away Home," but it was full of great information.

Here is a poster Madeline made to show some of the animals that migrate (a hibernation poster is still in the works). For those of you who need help with Madeline's "invented spelling," the labels are, beginning on the left and proceeding counter-clockwise, are "The Whooping Crane," "The Arctic Tern," "First Hummingbird," "Whales," "The Blue Bird," and "The Monarchs." "Migration" is, of course, written in the center.

Journaling

Writing is such an important component of learning, but Madeline has been somewhat resistant to the idea. She has, though, for the past year, been happy to write on her own terms. This means she writes what she wants, when she wants. Truthfully, I would expect nothing less from her! Her "invented spelling" has improved over the year however, and we can now read most of what she writes. Mostly she writes cards for people, or notes on her artwork. So, I decided to introduce journaling (yet again), and this effort was met with some success.

Madeline wrote a very nice story, which was illustrated, based on the movie "Fly Away Home," which the girls just watched (and love, by the way), as part of our study of migration and hibernation (a subject of another blog entry, coming soon). She was so proud of it that she read it to everyone at bedtime.

Isabella also decided that journaling would be a good idea, when she saw Madeline doing it. She "wrote" and illustrated a story about "The Very Hungry Princess," which was very loosely based on Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar. She also "read" her story to us at bedtime!

Hopefully their enthusiasm will continue and lots of writing will take place in the days, weeks, and years to come. It is so wonderful to see them expressing their own creativity on paper!

Here are some pictures of the girls in the act of journaling.

A New Math Curriculum

We started our academic year (which we have chosen to begin June 1) with Everyday Mathematics, which I have used with Madeline for a few years, and before that taught in a couple of different schools. I have been pretty happy with it. It is a well researched program. Plus, since it was out of the University of Chicago, and I am partial to anything from Chicago, well, I was happy to be using it.

I found, this year, however, that it was just not moving fast enough for Madeline. We started the 1st grade curriculum back in March, actually, and she was just wizzing through it. She was not really needing to practice the skills past the initial introduction, and she was transfering the skills to new situations without any effort at all. So, I went in search of a new curriculum that would move faster and challenge her.

Well, after looking at several different curriculums we have settled on Singapore Math. I have had several other parents tell me about their successes with it, and I found some great reviews online of the program as well as information comparing it with other programs. It appears to be a solid program, and it seems to fit our needs. The research studies supporting it are impressive.

I ordered Primary Mathematics 1A for Madeline and Earlybird Kindergarten Mathematics A for Isabella. I actually debated on whether to start Madeline in 1 or 2. She was on the border when I gave her the placement test. I figured that any new program has its own quirks and new language to learn, so I decided on 1.

The Earlybird Kindergarten Mathematics A seems to be a really great fit for Isabella. The activities are definitely at the appropriate level for her, and move at an appropriate pace. I also ordered Essential Math Kindergarten A for her for some extra practice, and I am happy with that as well. She has enjoyed the activities from this program: coloring, cutting and pasting, some writing and drawing lines for matching. She even used a ruler (with some help) to draw straight lines.

Madeline has moved at quite a fast pace through Primary Mathematics 1A, but it has been appropriate for her. It has held her attention well, and she often wants to keep going, even after the lesson is finished (actually we have been completing more than one lesson in a sitting). The curriculum moves quickly, which is what we were hoping for, and there are some activities available in the curriculum that will provide review if we get to a topic for which she need extra practice. I suspect that we will be beginning Primary Mathematics 1B before the summer is out, however.

I will keep you updated on our progress.

More Homophones (and Homonyms)

We found a great book to help us learn more about homophones and homonyms, How Much Can a Bare Bear Bear?: What Are Homonyms and Homophones? by Brian P. Cleary. It has some cute illustrations to go along with the text.

The Value of a Walk in the Park

The girls and I went to the park today for our weekly playtime at the park. We were suppose to be meeting other kids from La Petite Ecole, however we were the only ones who showed up. So, after a few minutes of playing on the playground equipment we decided to go for a walk. Although we have been to this park several times, we had not taken the walking path that goes around the park.

The girls made many discoveries on our walk. They found several different species of butterflies, and compared them to the Monarchs we have been raising (they were all a lot smaller, for one). They also noticed the flowers that were attracting the butterflies and suggested we plant some in our yard. They saw several bees, and discussed how the bees were collecting nectar to make honey, and how the butterflies were also interested in the nectar, but not to for storing.

After a while, we moved further down the path and found a small pond with some geese. The girls watched them for a while and collected some feathers. They compared the sizes and textures of the different feathers they collected. It was a nice walk!

Afterwards we started discussing the butterflies we saw and how the Monarchs migrate to Mexico to their overwintering site, but other butterflies do not. We also discussed that the geese migrate as well. That lead to a discussion about migration versus hibernation, and which animals migrate and which hibernate. We decided to check out the Journey North website (http://www.learner.org/jnorth/) when we got home to find out more about migration.

We revisited the information at Journey North about the Monarch migration and the map of their overwintering sites in Mexico as well as the awesome pictures of the Monarchs on the trees there. We also explored the information about the migration of the hummingbird. They learned about the 2 different types of hummingbirds in the US, and which one is found in our area (Ruby-throated Hummingbird). Then they looked at the Whooping Crane information. Madeline was particularly interested in the whooping cranes.

After checking out the wealth of information about the whooping cranes on Journey North, we proceeded to Operation Migration (http://www.operationmigration.org/) for some additional information and resources. It is amazing how much you can find on the internet... pictures, video, articles, diaries, lesson plans, free printable books... the list goes on and on! We will be returning to these sites for further study!

It looks like we will be studying whooping cranes next (and maybe more about migration and hibernation) , and all because of a simple walk in the park.

An Adventure

Today we spent some time at Rock Bridge State Park. They were giving cave tours, so we all joined a guide for a tour of Connor's Cave. The girls got a chance to see some cave formations and experience total darkness (not their favorite part). Here are a few pictures of them ejoying the trip.

We also made some interesting discoveries on the trail and in the creek.

Making Words

Here are some pictures of the girls enjoying lessons from Systematic Sequential Phonics They Use.

Beginning Reading and Writing Resources

My sister, Kris, asked me about teaching beginning reading and writing, so I thought I would post some of the resources we have found useful. This is not a comprehensive list of all of the things we have used. Some materials we have tried for a while and found that they are not a great fit for us. I will not bother to list them here.

I really like the book How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons by Siegfried Engelmann. I think I favor it since my Master's program was focused on Direct Instruction, and so it is very familiar to me. I find it very easy to use and very systematic. The kids have found success with it.

We have also really enjoyed using Systematic Sequential Phonics They Use. The lessons are simple and relatively quick for those with short attention spans.

We have also used the Letter Factory DVD by Leap Frog for learning the letter sounds.

We have also found a few great websites.

Starfall (http://www.starfall.com/) has lots of reading resources and it is FREE! They have great little songs for remembering vowel sounds and all of the girls have just loved the stories, especially Zac the Rat and Gus the Duck.

We have also used Headsprout (http://www.headsprout.com/). The girls have enjoyed the "episodes" in this program, and I have certainly seen great improvement in their skills as they have progressed through the program. Madeline is almost finished with the program and Isabella is about a third of the way through.

As I stated in another post, we have recently started using ClickN Read Phonics (http://www.clicknread.com/). I think this program is a bit more comprehensive than the Headsprout program. It does require them to find the letters on the keyboard. It has the added benefit of the child being able to start on any lesson, based on his or her ability. This was great for Madeline since I felt that there were skills that she still needed reinforcement with, but she certainly did not need to start all over at the beginning. Also, with ClickN Read Phonics, once one child has completed the program another can begin at no extra cost.

To help the girls enjoy literature and its elements (including illustrations), we have used Before Five in A Row and Five in a Row. This program uses children's literature to teach language arts, social studies, science, math, and art. Both the girls and I have enjoyed reading the stories and they have learned about things like onomatopoeia, where Paris is located, and different mediums illustrators use. You can find the guides at http://www.fiveinarow.com/. The only difficulty is that then you either have to buy the children's books to go along with it or find them in your library.

As for writing, I have found the Handwriting Without Tears program to be a great curriculum for teaching letter formation (http://www.hwtears.com/). It provides many different ways for the children to experience the letters (and numbers). The girls have really enjoyed the activities from this program. Madeline was particularly fascinated with the wood pieces when she was younger.

That is all I can think of, for now.

Potatoes?

It is fascinating to see the girls' minds at work! I was getting ready for the next days art lesson, and the girls were intrigued by the fact that I had gotten out potatoes. They started trying to figure out what exactly they would be doing in the lesson with the potatoes. Madeline decided that we were going to glue the potatoes onto the papers to make faces and then paint them - actually not that far from that actual project, which was using potato prints to begin a family portrait project (another project from Atelier Homeschool Art). So, she ands Isabella proceded to design faces made from some small potatoes.

Here are the girls designing their "faces" with the potatoes.

Here are their "Family Portraits" that were the intended product of the art lesson.

Goodbye Butterflies

We said goodbye to our Monach butterflies and released them on our milkweed plants. They left us with at least 13 new caterpillars to care for and watch grow. Here are a few pictures of the release.