Starry Sky Ranch

File Folder games 101

4real ladies were asking about pics of the folder games so am uploading a few in case you haven't seen them in person.  Our favorites are the Carson Dellosa line, not for the great art (it isn't) but for the variety of skills addressed and the age range covered by the series. Another mom reviewed the Evan-Moor books quite favorably. And there are some printable games free online. Free File games   preschool printables  free games from Mormon Chic  yet more games  Most of us prefer the books to the freebies in this case.

Some wondered about the prep time involved for the teacher. That depends.  If you personally are doing all the coloring, laminating and cutting then yes, its time consuming - at least initially.  There are short cuts though. One is printing directly onto colored cardstock vs coloring by hand.  The other is to enlist an older child who could use the fine motor practice.  If you choose the latter the game is not going to look as glitzy as the ones on the books' covers but they enjoy them just the same.

The earliest games include things that go together, visual discrimination (matching pictures/patterns), shape work, basic counting (to ten), beginning letter sounds.  At the next levels they progress to single digit addition/subtraction, beginning phonics work (consonant and vowel sounds, capital and lowercase letters, etc), time telling to the hour and half, and so on.  The highest levels include games for parts of speech (noun, verb, etc), multi-place value addition and subtraction, fractions, contractions, ending punctuation, and the like.

What I like about these games is that they cover the same skills found in basal workbooks but they are nonconsumable and don't depend upon writing ability.  Kids can progress based on their academics and not on their fine-motor finesse. This was huge for some of ours!

Basic construction: copy the game pieces onto cardstock (white or colored), tape half into an opened file folder as directed. Laminate or cover the matching pieces with clear packing tape and cut them out. Affix a small ziplock baggie to the back of the folder to store the loose pieces.  That's it! You can store them in magazine holders upright on a shelf you can file them in a file cabinet. You can hole punch the folded file folder and store in a larg 3 ring binder as well.  You can also use poster board cut in half and folded if you wish for more vibrant colors than those which most file folders come in. They may not fit into the mag holder or cabinet however.

Now, take my word on this one, under no circumstances allow the children to play with the games when not supervised. You will be pulling your hair out when you open it next and find some of the pieces have gone AWOL.  Been there, done that. : / 

Just Another Day in Paradise

I was reading Sallie's post on her A Gracious Home blog.  She linked to this article: Sorry but my children bore me to death .  She warned readers that it was appalling.  I wasn't prepared to be as appalled as I was however. The author drones on and on about how "mind-numbing" conversing with her offspring is and that they "have got used to my disappearing to the gym when they're doing their prep (how boring to learn something you never wanted to learn in the first place). They know better than to expect me to sit through a cricket match, and they've completely given up on expecting me to spend school holidays taking t hem to museums or enjoying the latest cinema block-boster alongside them".  And what is so much more stimulating to her than the look of utter joy that crosses a child's face at the park or when they strike it rich at Monopoly: "...thoughts of my own lunch and which shoes I plan to wear with what skirt. "

Whatever.

Frankly I find shoes mindnumbingly boring.  Food is a close second. You eat it, it's gone.  Kids are forever. Although if you are unsure of the purpose of life then you are likely to be perplexed when faced with the ultimate reminder of same - children.

It's ironic because all I could think of while reading was yesterday. A day not unlike all the ones that came before. We were rolling through downtown on the way to the midwife's office.  We were late. Why are we always late??  Maybe because the goats got out of their gate at the last minute and the milk jar spilled and the baby had a diaper disaster. Any number of explanations!  Anyway, as I drive I am telling the girls to brush out their hair before we get out of the van. I see through the rear view that Kieran is sporting his new boots and tattered felt cowboy hat.  He is very pleased with his outfit but it IS one of those bite-your-tongue-mom moments. We call home to ask the big boys to check and see if the goats were successfully corralled and I miss my turn.  While I am backtracking the little ones notice Daddy is following us and they wave at him through the back window.  As I am thinking how crazy wonderful my life is at any given time I hear the words of Phil Vassar's song on the radio:

The kids screaming, phone ringing

Dog barking at the mailman bringing
That stack of bills - overdue
Good morning baby, how are you?
Got a half hour, quick shower
Take a drink of milk but the milk's gone sour
My funny face makes you laugh
Twist the top on and I put it back
There goes the washing machine
Baby, don't kick it.
I promise I'll fix it
Long about a million other things

Well, it's ok. It's so nice
It's just another day in paradise
Well, there's no place that
I'd rather be
Well, it's two hearts
And one dream
I wouldn't trade it for anything
And I ask the lord every night
For just another day in paradise

Friday, you're late
Guess we'll never make our dinner date
At the restaurant you start to cry
Baby, we'll just improvise
Well, plan B looks like
Dominoes' pizza in the candle light
Then we'll tippy toe to our room
Make a little love that's overdue
But somebody had a bad dream
Mama and daddy
Can meand my teddy
Come in to sleep in between?

Yeah it's ok. It's so nice.
It's just another day in paradise.
Well, there's no place that
I'd rather be
Well, it's two hearts
And one dream
I wouldn't trade it for anything
And I ask the lord every night
For just another day in paradise

Finally we arrive and shuttle everyone into the Victorian house turned midwifery office. The midwife squirts gel on this body of mine that has been down this road 8 times before while I say a silent prayer it will come through for me one more time.  We all squeeze around the ultrasound monitor and suddenly appears this teeny tiny hand flexing and stretching and truly all I can think is "Man! Does it get better than this???" 

I am firmly convinced "happy" is a verb.  As my friend Elizabeth says it is a decision we make everyday to wake up and do it all over again. Not only to do it all, but to do it with the acknowledgement of the blessing hidden inside every trial.  We have to decide if this is "monotonous, lonely, and relentless" or if is it an embarassment of riches.  We are swimming in blessing if we just open our eyes and embrace it. Shame on us when we neglect to notice.

Two more games

Figured I would explain the two games shown in the storage post while I am at it. First is a simple sound discrimination game made from craft sticks and varied sizes of bells.  (both available in the craft section of Walmart or the like) You put a bell on each end of a pair of the sticks.  In case you are thinking glue would have been faster let me save you the trouble.  The bells stick yes, but they dont jingle. : P   Play is most effective when the children are blindfolded so they can't identify by sight. you can make the game harder by making intermediate pairs from, say,  small and medium bells.

Next is the poker chip patterning game from I Can Do It (see left sidebar - it is a must have!). You make mats from standard craft sized felt rectangles and trace chips in various patterns onto one side of the mats. To play the children can initially place chips right onto the tracing. I made dots on the outlines so if they wish they can practice patterns and counting by placing that number of chips in the pattern. Later they can reproduce the pattern on the blank side of the mat.  Much later yet they can make mirror images of the patterns such as those found in books like Building Thinking Skills.  I like games like this that have multiple levels of play.  More bang for your buck. ; D 

Storage or where to go with it all

Elizabeth Donna Marie Theresa and the 4Real Ladies  have been sharing hands-on learning ideas lately which got me thinking. Homeschools rich in manipulatives are soon challenged by what to do with them all, especially if there are tiny people to watch out for.  Traditional Montessori environments call for open, uncluttered displays of the manipulatives. This works well if you have a LOT less books and furniture than most of us have. It can be done however!  This site http://www.berteig.org/melanie/Haifa/Homeschool/montessori.html  shows a smallish home set up with traditional Montessori principles.  If you are just starting out (with kids, with *stuff*, with furniture) you might want a goal room like this to work towards.

If displaying ALL your manipulatives at once is not practical, and it was not for us all the years we lived in military housing, you may elect to rotate smaller displays while storing the rest. Boxing and bagging are your best bets.  We love heavy duty zipper top Ziplock bags for storing just about anything. There are now two gallon sized bags perfect for oversized puzzles. I have typed out basic directions for use and taped them to the bag so if an older sibling wants to help they can easily see what to do.  The bags are see-through so there is still the element of self selection possible.

Bags can be stored several ways. You can put a small square of clear tape on the top corner and hole punch. Then several good sized bags can be strung on a large ring. Small bags can fit onto key rings. You can also hang the bags from multi-rack slacks hangers and store them easily in a closet.

Don’t forget other kinds of bags. Hanging shoe bags have unlimited uses! This site http://www.geocities.com/helenasplayhouse/PicturesNewChildCare.html has pics of of a home daycare provider’s setup.  She has labeled the pockets and hung them strategically throughout the house.  Just think!  You could store art supplies, flash cards, child sized table settings, fabric match games, color box cards, craft stick games, Cuisenaire rods, magnifying glass….  While your mind is full of closet organizer-turned-homeschool-organizer options consider hanging sweater bags as well. You can stack puzzles and games in those very nicely.

Natural Structure recommends these screw top plastic containers for small items.  By the time their hands are large enough to open the tops they are generally responsible enough not to eat (or lose) the contents.

There is no end to box options. We like the clear cheap Ziplock containers.  Sterilite boxes are sturdier. Both stack well.

You don’t need to purchase new containers by any means. Look at what you are throwing out. Plastic baby wipe boxes are favorites of mine.  They stack also and have attached lids.  Empty oatmeal containers are good for storing large materials like braiding and lacing boards.  Neither the wipes nor the oatmeal boxes  are see through however so labeling is more important. 

What else?  CD cases are very nice for holding the Montessori cards which are readily available from the Montessori Materials groups. They are the perfect size and you can store them vertically in a CD rack.

The playschool6 yahoo group has photo files of members’ environments.  These are great to give you ideas for how to house materials. Surfing for home daycare center images is also helpful.  These people generally have lots of stuff to store with the added pressure of home inspections.  As a result they have become savvy about storing their materials.  Whatever you decide to do commit to not bringing anything into the house without an appropriate storage  container.  You will save yourself lots of grief and lost pieces later.

The things we do for love : /

These pics started out as part of my photojournalism of the latest peep retrieval.  The girls rushed out of the haystack last night during chores insisting they heard more peeping. Unfortunately this time it was from the second of the last two broody hens who has been perched on top of Old Smoky about a foot from the ceiling. Not that the ceiling was that high, but it was precarious on the top of the hay bales and she has been regularly laying eggs that roll off the stacks like a bad cartoon assembly line scene. This time it was the chick who fell off.... between the hay bales and the wall.  She survived and was vocally complaining her fate.  So was the Ranch Foreman (aka Dad) when he got the word. ; o

We assessed the situation and it was a logistical nightmare.  Moving her wasn't a great option since broody hens are NASTY.  She was sitting right at the edge of one bale so moving the bales next to her meant it was likely that some eggs were going to fall.  Since we couldn't how many of those eggs had chicks in them it was really creepy to consider an egg falling and opening.  Ewwwwww! So we had called in Dad.  Doesn't he look thrilled?

Dad decided to move the adjoining bales and catch the eggs if need be.  The hen wouldn't budge so we stuck the falling eggs under the other hen, which was likely wrong on some chicken level but hey, it's warm down there. The peeping got louder so we kept moving bales until she was sighted. The girls grabbed her and took her in to the brooder. She warmed up but was clearly a new hatchling, tinier than any we have had so far. She seemed to be doing fine so we went to eat dinner finally.

Later, Moira came and whispered to me, "Mom, you better go get that chick.  I think she is dead."  Now, Moira is more matter of fact about farm things.  And not as fond of chickens as her sister.  We all sorta went : / at the prospect of breaking it to Alannah.  She took it better than expected but she is tenderhearted and these things hurt. A lot. So please send a happy thought her way! At least she has a hero of a dad who changed from suit and tie to gloves and boots and chucked hay bales for half an hr to retrieve a dying peep. I hope in the end that is part she remembers most.

How hot is it?

It is toasty here at the ranch.  We don't have a/c and for 10 mo out of the year it is really unnecessary since it cools down so dramatically at night.  Not so during the day however. To give you an idea of just how hot it got in July check out Brendan. And dont worry - no blades in that fan:

So we have spent a great deal of time doing this:

 

Hope you are all staying cool!

More Peepers

Or maybe I should say Peeper in singular. Saturday Alannah noticed another chick. In this case it was a good thing that they hadn't leaped upon my directions to clean out the haystack of any leftover eggs. Apparently this is the rooster's swan song to us. I was hoping he/she would have at least one companion in the brooder but so far not. Here is the newest as she brought it in to be warmed up.

Oh pretty!

Sandy Clough came to my attention today when we visited the scrapbook store.  Her beautiful watercolors stopped me in my tracks. I came home and surfed her site.  Lovely!  Full of images of delightful things that make a house a home. It makes one feel restful just to look at them.

If you are a tea fan you will especially enjoy. 

Less is More - History

Dear friend Jen and I have been hashing out her boys' high school (homeschool) history options.  The available syllabi have been universally expensive or cumbersome.  While reviewing some of the options I stopped and googled "world history outline" thinking it best to give palatable hooks to hang knowledge upon rather than inundate with details. Look what I found! Student's Friend  It is very similar to the geography core book recommended in an earlier post

This course focuses on core knowledge the student can be expected to retain.  We assume that the student will read widely from primary and secondary sources and historical fiction to round out the course, but this would provide a free, thorough core. Since the information is reduced to core facts there is less editorializing than is typically found in such a course. Big plus. 

Included are blank outline maps, a basic list of questions, quizzes, and a short course in teaching philosophy for mom. This last part is a short summary of the ideas found in many homeschool manuals and websites. Good overview explaining the value of narration, timelines, and other home education standby's with the added perk of translating them into edu-ese for you should you ever need to explain them that way.

To flesh out such a course consider these sites:

Timeline Helps from Homeschool in the Woods  gives lots of practical help and examples for creating timelines and notebooks. Historical Movies in Chronological Order  has a list and short descriptions of movies to enhance your studies. Mr. Donn's has a collection of unit studies for each era, should you desire more hands on activities for some time periods. Chronological Art lessons is just what it sounds like.  One, not 5,000<g>, art projects for each major era. A History Reading List like this one is readily available in homeschool catalogs that specialize in teaching with real books. Keep it handy for library trips. The linked list has the advantage of including several free ebooks of original source material.  Kidipede History for Kids is a site suggested by Theresa which I had forgotten about.  It is perfect for incorporating younger students in your studies. This site Picture History is a great aid for narrations once you get to modern times. Otherwise we do google image searches to illustrate timeline and narration pages like this Download Esther.doc narration from our newly 12 yr old daughter's Old Testament notebook.

Just remember it is NOT by any means necessary to all of these things, every week.  If you try your head may spin.  If you do incorporate art or geography or literature into the history course be sure to document that work for credits in those areas on your transcript. If you already have a history course you are satisfied with you might want to download this pdf file to use as a quick review of the essentials.

Happy history rabbit trails to all! (Speaking of which remember the 4Real board has a wonderful history forum )

Fast Food

Tried something new today and thought I would share our success. We make almost everything here from scratch, less because I am a SUPER-mom and more because I am sensitive to corn and cows milk and you can forget buying anything without one of those in it.  Add to that the fact that I am SUPER-cheap.  Oh, and also rather taken with nutrition as a hobby. Put all that together and it makes for slow food.  That's ok most of the time but we reached an impasse, my family and I, over breakfast.   They don't like oatmeal unless it comes in little paper packages with labels like 'Apples and Cinnamon' or 'Maple and Brown Sugar' on the label.  Convinced, as I am, that there is nothing a person cannot find by googling, I surfed to see if some good soul out there had figured out a copycat recipe for same.  They have.

This morning we mixed up our first batch of instant oatmeal and thus far it looks to be the same as the Quaker variety.  The basic recipe involves blenderizing 1/4 of the oats to a powder then mixing all the oats with sweetner and spices and perhaps dried fruit to mimic the boxed flavors. You then bag in 1/2 c measures into baggies.  Voila!  (I know you hate that word Jen!; ))

While we were on a food prep roll we also made up all the sandwich fixings into lunches for Dad this week and froze them so there is some hope they will still be available when he leaves for work. This isn't exactly once a month cooking but doing little bits of food prep en masse whenever possible saves minutes (and lunch dollars) later in the week.

Here are the oatmeal mix recipes:

Plain Instant Oatmeal
Yields: 8 servings

3 cups quick-cooking oats: Blend 1 c of the oats in a food processor =
until powdery (if using a blender, blend 1/2 c @ a time). Leave the =
other 2 c as is.
You will need 8 plastic sandwich bags.
Optional flavor ingredients (below)

Into each sandwich bag: 1/4 c unpowdered oats, 2 TBSP powdered oats, and
a scant 1/4 tsp salt. Store in a box or airtight container.

To make:  Empty packet into a bowl/cup. Add 3/4 c boiling water; stir and
let stand for 2 minutes. For thicker oatmeal, use less water; for
thinner, use more water.
Note: For a creamier oatmeal: Mix the bag with 3/4 c cold water; let
stand 1 - 2 min; then cook to heat thru (or eat as is).

VARIATIONS:
Sweetened Oatmeal
To each packet, add 1-2 tsp sugar.

Creamy Oatmeal
To each packet, add 1 TBSP powdered dry milk.

Creamy & Sweetened Oatmeal
To each packet, add 1-2 tsp sugar & 1 TBSP powdered dry milk.

Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal
To each packet, add 1-2 tsp sugar, dash or 2 of cinnamon, and 2 TBSP
chopped dried apples.

Cinnamon-Spice Oatmeal
To each packet, add 1-2 tsp sugar, 2 dashes of cinnamon, and a dash of
nutmeg.

Oatmeal with Raisins & Brown Sugar
To each packet, add 1 tsp packed brown sugar and 1 TBSP raisins.

Wheat Germ Oatmeal
To each packet, add 2 tsp wheat germ.

Fruit & Cream
To each packet, add 1 TBSP powdered dry milk and 2 TBSP chopped dried
fruit.

(In addition to the above) To flavor, sweeten, & fortify bland oatmeal,
try:
Extracts: (1/8-1/4 tsp of 1 ext.) vanilla, almond, rum, etc; cloves,
allspice, mace (very strong spices; use as a 'dash of'); instant coffee,
brown sugar, date sugar or dates, molasses, honey, syrups, dehydrated
fruit compote or fruit medley, rehydrated; crushed candies, Red Hot
candies (cinnamony); chocolate, butterscotch, or peanut butter chips;
mini marshmallows, any dried fruits (or a combo of any), instant drink
mixes/crystals/powders, instant cocoa (mixes), malted milk powder,
jams/jellies, yogurt (plain/flavored), flavored gelatins, pudding mixes,
seeds &/or nuts, fruit leathers, peanut butter (or other nut butter),
margarine (or Butter Buds), BacoBits, (meat) jerky bits, tofu "bacon",
tofu jerky, bits of mincemeat or pemmican, dried &/or candied
orange/lemon peel, Nutella, or anything from your gorp bag, etc, etc.

Try combining other quick-cooking cereals (cream of wheat/rice/barley,
Malt-O-Meal, etc) or dry cereals (granolas, muesli, Bran Buds, All-Bran,
etc) to the oatmeal packets.

*For an even creamier oatmeal, add 1-2 generous heaping tsp powdered
creamer (& it improves the taste of the dry milk, when used).
(recipes copied from Backcountry.net)

Here is a more basic version:

Instant Oatmeal

8 C oatmeal
1T cinnamon
1C dried fruit (raisins, dates, apples, whatever)
1C brown sugar

Mix together well.
To serve: put 1/2C cup oatmeal mix into cereal bowl, add 1C water and microwave 2 - 2 1/2 min. Let stand 3-4 min.