Starry Sky Ranch

So You Wanna...learn something?

I am knee deep in file cabinets and filing system set up this wknd so am sending another link for grins. The So You Wanna site is like a "For Dummies" online. It has cheat sheets and short explanations of all sorts of basic educational topics like avoiding writing errors, delivering a speech, interpreting poetry, etc.  The ettiquette section has additional edu-categories, but do but careful with some of the other categories.  A few of the topics are definitely not those you would want to share with children.  Consider yourself forewarned <g>

Copywork Kids

    The little boys are on a transcription frenzy this week. After several rounds of "how do you 'pell....." I suggested to Kieran that he might like to take the pink and blue series control cards (the uncut set with the pics and labels) and copy down his favorites. There was dead silence while he worked only broken by his final sigh of satisfaction when he finished all the words he set out to write. It reminded me of Julia Fogassy's article describing her girls as preschoolers deep in thought while working on different tasks. That "Montessori sigh" is a beautiful thing!

   

Aidan was similarly inspired though he decided to 'write some books'. He took his Bob books and began carefully copying the text word for word. This was an all-consuming task as evidenced by the protruding tongue. ; ) Please ignore the syrup spill on his shirt - it was right after breakfast. <g>

   On the Games4Learning yahoo list Heidi shared an idea she heard from a special ed teacher. Save the broken crayons, the tiny ones you would normally throw away, to be used for writing practice. The small size forces the child to use the correct grip (thumb/finger).  They also reminded readers of the various pincer grip activities we have talked about over the yrs like pushpin work, tweezer games, bead sorting. Kristen had a nice idea on her blog.  Her son was busy putting the colored head straight pins into the holes of a sugar shaker lid. All this pre-writing work is so much more fun than teary agonizing over workbooks in the early elementary years.

Country Living

It is errand day here. Thought you might like to go on a field trip too. Country Living has a lovely Parade of Rooms to peruse.  Better Homes and Gardens has a great slide show and galleries as well.  Lots of inspiration there!

A Few of My Favorite Things - the home

   I am working on updating and rearranging my sidebars to include our favorite curriculum picks and things we love to fill our home with. The Prairie Home is finished and the math has begun.  Over the next few weeks I hope to have it all uploaded.

   The Prairie Home Picks include things we own or collect, namely my Blue Willow dishes. Nothing says country and heritage and warmth to me like Blue Willow on a crochet tablecloth. : )  Guess that is the midwest childhood in me. I was very pleased to find an inexpensive source for sets. Allen will see this on my wishlist lol! The image uploaded here is from our China unit this summer. The girls and their friends each got a paper plate and blue marker. After reading the Blue Willow legend they proceeded to create their own.

   The curriculum picks will be largely self teaching and inexpensive as well as limited to things I have actually used over the yrs.  I am so glad I am a pack rat in that sense because so many books that I bought and shelved are now standbys in our program. I think life was overwhelming when we first began with the medical issues and constant moves.  In looking back over these books I would come to find they were delightful and incorporated them into our days.  Not ALL of them at any one time mind you. Each year we have subjects that are more notebook based and a few that we hit with worktexts.

All coiled up and hissing

 

No way!      

Way!

   Aidan went out to feed the dog yesterday and came running back in to say there was a snake by the doghouse.  We weren't too concerned since we have found a few garter snakes in recent weeks. The only other big snake we have seen here was a giant gopher snake a few yrs ago.  He was carried off by a hawk shortly after that. This, howevever was another story.....

   There in the yard was a smallish (3 feet?) snake coiled and hissing at the frantic dog.  The snake's tail was poised and rattling in the middle of the coils and its head was tracking the dog menacingly. It was venomous. Allen got his gun and shot it, though let me just say these buggers are remarkably resilient. : /   Took a few shots to finally do it in and safely remove it from the yard. We were able to all get a good close up look so we know what to look for in the future.

   The future is our concern today. This snake was clearly not full grown which begs the question of where it came from and if there are more. Everyone is on snake alert. We can't figure out what the draw would be to the house since we are pretty much rodent free with all these barn cats.  The net did say that snakes are more active in early fall as they seek warmer winter quarters. It is enough to give a mother a good case of the heebie jeebies regardless of the snake's original intention. Thank you guardian angels!

and yet more

pRebecca commented about fantasy play:

<<How would you discourage them from doing so? Would you? I just can't imagine being able to do it. In theory I could but it would be difficult in reality. >>

   I think this is where the confusion arises.  Fantasy play would be considered more of an indicator than an end in itself.  Akin to attacking a fever without addressing the underlying trigger.  Like you said, it is more prevalent after tv viewing.  In our family it is way more prevalent after stressful times or times when the little ones are left to their own devices. 

   We have found that, just as the articles suggest, our small people resort to fantasy play less as the opportunity to do 'real stuff' increases. If they can prepare real food and serve a real family - and it can be done!- they eagerly abandon the toy kitchen. If they have sports equipment they will generally choose to play real games. If they have help working with the horses they will trade the toy animals for real any day. Now animals may not be available but usually yards are and real tools can have their handles cut down for smaller hands.

   Ditto cleaning tools. Rebecca says,"Everyone is willing to repair the fence with a hammer and nails but no one want to sweep the floors."  Sometimes it's the accessories that seal the deal lol! Individualized chore aprons, a personal set of tools and nontoxic cleaners etc. Moreover I think the European Montessori school linked to yesterday said it best when explaining the practical life activities - the motion of scrubbing the table and the suds created are both more important to the preschool child than the end effect of a clean table.  To me this is the whole point of prepared practical life activities. Rather than being artificial they serve as a sort of mental and physical calisthenic to refine motions, a lab of sorts. No one likes to do a job they are not able to do well. Practical life trays can be an important precursor to effective real life helping.

   Likewise the school says that children "spontaneously and naturally seek order".  This may not be evident at home though I noticed that when it was not it was usually due to the fact that we had gotten snowed under with stuff. Once they have a space that they are able to maintain they tend to do so much more willingly.  This was driven home to me last night. We took the toys out of the boys bedroom. Some had migrated back in during the wknd and there was a mini-tornado left from church prep since we had gone to the park after church last week and had not put one pair of church shoes away properly. It looked daunting but the boys knew where everything went and didn't fuss over picking up. Aidan even remarked LOOK Dad, that didn't take long at all to pick up!!  this is rather revolutionary in my life. <g> Huge incentive to stick to the routines and continue the purging.

   So bottom line,I try to keep the little ones right with us doing meaningful things like carrying the library bks or helping bathe and dress the real baby. Read about real people who did fascinating things. They get the impression early on that they, and their contributions, are greatly valued and that they positively impact the family.  This is important because when left to themselves they tend to get mischievous and they quickly sense that they are a liability rather than a blessing. We work to be  blessing - all of us. All of us are coming around to cultivating a deep appreciation of our roles in maintaining our environment. (yes, mom too!)

   Anyway, no I wouldn't discourage the play. I would use it as a gauge to see if it may indicate a need for less tv (no tv?) or less stimulation (clutter, over-scheduling) or more satisfying activities.  I think once we read the method over and over we generally know when we are dealing with a proper use of imagination and when it signifies a deviation or a stress reduction technique.  A good measure would be our comfort level.  I don't allow for fantasy play with school materials. That would be a good example.  If they don't understand a concept or are over(or under)stimulated in an exercise it tends to disintegrate into sword fighting or tossing the pieces about the table. Actually this happens with toys as well. IMO,that is normally my cue that something is amiss, rather than a sign of immense creativity.<g> If they were playing St George slaying the dragon I would be tempted to smile and leave them be.

   It is usually easy to discern if you are dealing with reenactment - which I would interpret as the child working out the functions of different roles - and disordered play. In the latter they are still working internal things out but it might signal to us a need to assess the environment.

more on imagination and fantasy

Do check out Willa's series of notes today to learn more about this controversial and fascinating aspect of the method.

Use of fantasy and imagination among Montessori kids

Wi   It is a fairly common concern among Montessori parents and critics of the method that Montessori discouraged imaginative play. Willa, whom I deeply respect, rightly questions why this might be in her blog entry. If the purpose of redirecting the child to reality is arbitrary, and based only on the directress' preferred use of the materials then it is highly inappropriate. Our motivation in teaching should never be to impose our subjective preferences upon the child for no other reason than that we prefer them. But I think Montessori's opinions about fantasy play stem from deeper observations, whether or not all contemporary Montessorian's articulate it well.

   The authors of Natural Structure address this same issue in their comparison of various early childhood educational methods. They encourage readers to explore the origins of their preconceptions of childhood. "The concept of play and imagination according to Froebel and Montessori is also worth looking at in depth," they believe because Froebel's  theories have become such an integral part of contemporary educational systems. As such they may be influencing our opinions about young children whether we realize it or not. They go on to quote Dorothy Sayers, a classical educator, who describes Froebel's goal of "breaking down of all distinctions and forms... the flowing together in the universe in one great whole." Indeed many imagination-based early education methods consider themselves to be 'wholistic' for this reason. Sayers explains that Montessori tends to be Catholic and latin in origin and "presents a universe with definite and abiding forms, eternally distinct, and distinct from its Creator."

   Montessori herself says this: "Adults, even thought they punish or patiently tolerate the errant and unruly actions of these disordered children, actually favor and encourage their fantasies, interpreting them as the creative tendencies of a child's mind.  Froebel invented many of his games to encourage the development of a child's imagination along these lines... Toys furnish a child with an environment that has no particular goal and , as a consequence, they cannot provide it with any real mental concentration but only illusions.... 'divided' children of this sort are regarded, particularly in school, as being highly intelligent, evne if they lack order, neatness, and discipline."

   Silvia Dubovoy, PhD has an essay online called Reality, the Most Powerful and Integral Key to the World. She elaborates about the qualities of reality and fantasy and what roles both play in the development of children. She does not forbid fantasy but challenges readers to consider the most optimal timing for introduction of fantasy - generally after the child is well grounded in reality in the second plane of development which roughly occurs between ages  6 and 12. She includes quotes from Plato suggesting we avoid stories that can create the  “the presence of falsehood in the soul concerning reality. To be deceived about the truth of things and so to be in ignorance and error and to harbor untruth in the soul is a thing no-one would consent to” (The Republic, Book II). She concludes that "He believed that the stories children hear early in their lives have a profound influence on them."

   The belief that runs through her essay is that fantasy play usually occurs in children "who are living stressed lives in constrained environments, full of traffic and pollution; traveling long distances in cars; with working parents that do not have the time to be with them; or with parents that, when they are with their children, besides overprotecting them, are busy with their own complicated life (including the latest cellular telephone or computer). For these children, it is extremely difficult to find work that can engage their attention or concentration."  Unfortunately this can be true of homeschoolers as well much as any other segment of the population. Many parents and teachers are dealing with taxing situations that demand their attention. Toys and entertainment are a tempting solution to the time crunch dilemma. She questions whether this is a good longterm option however.

    Now at this point it would likely be good to make a distinction. Montessori also believed that fantasy play was more prevalent in children who had developmental difficulties.  From my reading I get the impression that while they would redirect the child back to the reality of a situation or a material they wouldn't and couldn't force a child to abandon their fantasy play. That the Montessorian would percieve as a natural side effect of the normalization process.  It would come on its own. Likewise, the introduction of fantasy stories etc (again in my opinion) would fall under a different category.

   Duboyvoy makes  a clear distinction between fantasy and imagination as well, a distinction which is critical to the argument and is often blurred among adults today. Imagination is properly defined as Willa did when she says that "..investing of objects with imaginary significance is a rudimentary use of symbolism which is a wonderful human capacity". Dubovoy and other Montessorians would likely concur, though they would tend to believe that this capacity is best developed by ample reality based experiences in the first plane (ages 0-6).  This is in line with Sayer's and other classical educators who consider the early years to be a time of concrete learning followed by the abilty to grasp more abstract thought.

   European Montessori School explains it as 'building imagination with the real'. They assert that 'imagination can have  only a sensorial basis'. They believe that accurate understanding of the qualities of real things is part of the process of 'collecting from the real world the material for imagination'.

   So, lots to chew on here. We have our basic challenge to discern the origin of our opinions on the matter and whether we are in fact basing those opinions upon prevailing cultural norms and/or our personal religious beliefs (and fwiw I would consider the latter to be a justified basis for these opinions regardless of which side of the fence we would then fall upon).  Then to make the distinction between early fantasy play and authentic imagination development.  Finally to determine how all of this may impact the choices we make in our children's playthings and pastimes. Ultimately it may be worth considering whether our schedules and use of time is contributing to or hindering our child's grounding in reality. Hmm.  Better go milk a goat on that note!

Lapbooks, life skills, Montessori, and special needs

I promised Dani I would upload my links today.  In looking around I was intrigued by the success stories of Montessori kids with special needs. We have two delightful little boys visiting us this week while their parents attend a funeral out of town. While visiting when they got dropped off she was sharing about the dyslexia curricula they used for an older boy years back.  It sounded remarkably like Montessori as well. Tracing letters, visual cues, etc.  Anyway, we have been busy here this week so will just jump to the links:

Do 2 Learn life skill clip art.  These can be used a lot of ways.  You can make wall charts such as these and these  or use them for lapbook lessons like Dani plans to.

The Preschool Power tapes teach by showing rather than by telling. They are offering a special price through the end of Sept for teachers of special needs children.  Don't miss these!!!  They are awesome for all preschoolers and for their parents who want a visual presentation of Montessori lessons. Nothing like having lessons at the ready on your VCR.

I am including an article  about Montessori being used for Autistic children.  In this one Montessori Mom answers some questions about using the method for special needs.  Here is a very encouraging story written by a young lady who has Down's Syndrome.  She presented this testimony to the entire school in a speech given during Disability Awareness Week.

and finally LOTS of lapbooking links! I am very happy to be able to share several links to free templates and fold directions. Now you really can try before you buy: 

Tamy Duby has a visually appealing new site called Lapbook Ladies

At Scrapbooking to Learn you can access fold directions for the file folders and booklets.

a few more can be found here, not many but I really like her illustrations <g>

Candle in the Window is another how-to site.  (Crossover content with Scrapbook to Learn)

Mirkwood Designs has tons of templates to download and resize to your needs.  These are designed as cards so there is a great deal of potential here for all kinds of projects. There is nothing so nice as 'press and print' imo!

And should you want it just that easy you can check out Hands of a Child.  They sell lapbooking kits along with topical study guides for a host of subjects. If you click on a title you can pull up a free downloadable sample for each.

If you want more more more then ck out the yahoo lapbooking group. They have oodles of shared images in the picture files for the group.

Hope that helps, Dani!   Back to school here!  : )

Long in the Tooth

The vet came last week to do Taylor's 'float'.  His teeth had become overgrown and he wasn't processing his feed well.  We got some pics and I am including Alannah's narration of the big event. And let me just say if you have never seen a doped up horse it was quite a sight. Like one of those cartoons where the horse accidentally drinks the moonshine or something. Poor guy was weaving and swaying.  In all he really wasn't uncomfortable though. Not unduly uncomfortable anyway - more just annoyed.

                                     

             Equine Dentistry

   

          On Friday morning the vet came to float Taylor's teeth. A float is when the vet straightens a horse's teeth. Taylor needed this because his teeth were curvy and caused him to lose a lot of his food.

The first thing the vet did was give Taylor a sedative shot. The shot made him very sleepy and wobbly.  Then he made me get a crutch and hold it under Taylor's head to keep it up.  After that he got a halter with a flat metal that covered his teeth.  Then he cranked his mouth open. He got his tools and began to file Taylor's teeth down.It looked like it hurt him a lot.  Then he showed us what he did. Taylor's teeth looked much better.

The float was important because we didn't want Taylor to starve to death. Now that he is done we can expect him to fatten up.  I didn't realize it was so dangerous, but now I know more about it.