posts tagged with 'homeschooling,'
first day of... school?
I was talking to a friend today and she mentioned how unfair it seems that the school year starts so soon after the County Fair. Sure, there was a full week in between but the fair was pretty intense, and we're definitely still recovering. But recovering or not today was the day the calendar said, so we got down to work. It actually went pretty well in our house: the boys even made first day of school signs, though I didn't get a chance to take their pictures. Tomorrow maybe? We worked through the morning, and then after lunch we went grocery shopping (with a stop for a 45-minute hike on the way). When we got home we had to get the house cleaned up and make food to be ready to host six adults and five kids—that's besides the five of us—for dinner. And I had to try and stay awake: Leah wasn't feeling well in the morning so I was the one up before 5:00 with the dogs. Then just now I had to continue to stay awake to do the dishes. I'd love to continue to build routine with another great school morning tomorrow, but I have an in-person meeting at work from 10:00 to 3:00. Oh well, there's always next week, right?
connecting with literature
As the "school year" winds to a close I'm leading a book group for the smallest kids in our bubble school. It's mainly because all their older siblings are doing book groups, so one of them at least requested that the first- and second-graders get one too. We're happy to oblige! Other adults led them through Dragons and Marshmallows and Catwings earlier this year; now I'm taking a turn with Betsy and Tacy. Of course, the main feature of a book group is that the kids do activities related to the text, so I need to satisfy that requirement. I think I'm doing ok: last week we cut out and colored paper dolls, which was super fun, and this week we went even bigger with a project to make colored sand.
the finshed product
In the story Betsy and Tacy are playing with leftover builders' sand, and realize that they can color it with the dyes that Betsy saved after dying Easter eggs. Then they sell the jars they filled with colored sand. That sounded like something the kids could do and enjoy! Naturally, I didn't try it ahead of time to make sure it worked, but I did supply food coloring and play sand and a number of jars. And it came together pretty well! We mixed the colors in a jar, added sand til there was so extra liquid, stirred it up, then poured it out onto pieces of cardboard to dry in the sun. Betsy and Tacy made their sand in early May and it took hours to dry; with a little bit of stirring under the mid-June sun ours was ready in about an hour, and we poured each color into a cup of its own. Then with a funnel the kids laid in stripes into the vessels of their choice.
hard at work
They were very excited about the selling part of the project until they saw how nice their jars came out. Despite all the work and starting with plenty of sand we only ended up with enough good colors for each kid to make one jar, and they couldn't bear to part with them. But they were inspired by another bit in the story to make calling cards and drop them in all the neighbors' mailboxes, so they were able to scratch their awkward-interactions-with-unfamiliar-adults itch another way. Though actually, they didn't see anyone as they dropped off their cards. I wonder what people will think next time they check their mail? Maybe the kids could have left flyers for a colored sand sale... we could make more next time!
we colored skin too!
Backyard Farm Club
This past Monday we started a new thing: Backyard Farm Club. Well, not just us; there are five families interested in getting together from time to time to share experiences of trying to do something different in our suburban yards. And also put our kids to work! That's what it's all about for me.
whips not pictured
The idea germinated at Park Day when a couple of us were talking about our mixed feelings about the 4H clubs we're part of. There's definitely things we enjoy and appreciate about 4H, but it's not all that we expected. So one parent wondered about creating a homeschool-oriented club, which reminded another parent and I that we'd been talking before the pandemic about collaborating to share work in our gardens. Maybe those two ideas could go together?
For now, we're not worrying about the 4H part. We're going to try things out and see if we can figure out a schedule and a routine that works. Then maybe in September we can get more official. So far, our idea is to rotate between houses and at each gathering have a selection of chores and projects that the kids (and the parents!) can take part in. For our first meeting at our friends' house, we cleaned out the chicken coop, weeded the garden, fixed some broken fencing, and pulled out grass from a piece of ground that is transitioning from lawn to food forest. Or, some people did. I was on grass removal duty the whole time. There was also a nature drawing scavenger hunt. At the end we had snack: we brought cookies and rice-crispie treats and someone else had some delicious egg tart things, but the best of all was the "apple nachos" made right on the premises. Not all the kids loved being made to do things, rather than just playing with their friends, but hopefully the snacks will keep them coming back.
this is what apple nachos is
And hopefully we can host the next meeting. There's a lot of work that needs to get done around here!
history schooling
Doing this Park Day thing has gotten us more plugged into the homeschooling community than we have tended to be otherwise, so we're able to learn about some opportunities that otherwise we'd never be aware of. Like a field trip to the Garrison House historical site in Chelmsford. I'd never heard of the place: spending as much time as we do in Lexington and Concord we have no need of additional historical houses. But when we were invited I saw no reason not to go. Doing things is better than not doing them! And what do you know, we learned some things.
direct instruction
Not that the visit was a complete success. The Garrison House is where all the Chelmsford elementary school kids go once in their social studies career, and it's also open to 4th grade groups from other towns. So the experience was pretty schooly, which put our kids off. The first part of the program was an hour in the craft building, where they got to churn butter, make soap, dip candles, and sew quilt squares. Which sounds awesome! But liability issues meant that they could only do a little bit of each project under careful direction, and the number of kids there ensured that there was a lot of waiting around between turns. Standing up. Plus with all the history we do anyways no one in our family was surprised to hear that, in the olden days, people couldn't go to the store and just buy what they needed. Like, duh.
The second hour, a tour of the Garrison House itself, was better. The house was continuously occupied from 1690 to 1954 before becoming a museum, and its different rooms show what it was like in the 1690s, 1750s, 1870s, and 1900s. Pretty cool! We don't have anything like that in Lexington. I could write lots about that, but the boys already did. Here's what Zion learned:
Yesterday we went to the garrison house. The garrison house was made in 1690 and a half and people lived in it til 1954. It was made as a garrison a fort. In 1690 to 1750 the house only had like 1 room and that 1 room was the kitchen the dining room the living room and the bedroom. Later in the 1700 they had better technology like beehive ovens and a crane. AND they had bricks for their fire places. Then in the late 1800s they got facterey rugs and curtains they also had time for a piano. Then in the 1900 sumbody put a wood stove in then changed it to kerosene. They also had a ice box and a pump. Later it became a mousem.
Then after the program we got to picnic and play on the grounds. That was the best part. And the benefit of doing big schooly things is that you can meet some new friends!
mine are up there somewhere...
our school is music and outdoor education
Years ago, as I looked forward towards a time when I had older children—children who could read and divide and make responsible choices for themselves at least some of the time—I imagined that managing this project of home education would get easier. Wasn't that stupid! As it turns out, even though Harvey and Zion can do all those things, it's actually kind of a challenge to manage learning plans for boys who, were they in school, would be in 7th and 5th grade. It takes up a fair amount of my time. Not that I mean to complain: it's all pretty good fun. I like coming up with word problems and art projects and trying to get the boys to care about writing (well, that last one is a little stressful). But when it comes down to it, what has seemed the most important this winter has been music and spending time outside.
You've heard plenty about the outside part, so here's a music update. Zion has started trumpet; he's in the early stages of his study, so he's making noises that only a brass player trained in early education could enjoy (hey, that's me!). I wrote out a few exercises for him, then remembered I hated writing music and bought an elementary method book. Since the fall he's been doing great at learning to read music on recorder, so he was able to jump right into learning fingerings and building up his face muscles and breath control. He's having fun with it, too; long may it last.
Harvey, for his part, is a multi-instrumentalist. He hasn't picked up reading music as quickly as Zion (or maybe he's working on it at a higher level), but he's great at playing by ear and remembering the songs he's figured out. He's using the recorder as his melody instrument, and has advanced to being able to play in both octaves in several keys. He plays banjo with my guitar for fun, and is reading chord sheets and expanding the range of chords he can play. And on bass he's moving beyond memorizing songs to reading chords and tabs. Up next, learning to read bass clef! (well, maybe in a couple months). All that and he also composes tunes electronically on Garage Band! While he still gets frustrated sometimes when things are hard—because that's his personality—he's starting to reach the point where, instead of just learning his instruments, he can actually play music. That's where the fun is! And it's super fun for me too, so I wholeheartedly approve.
experiment a success
When I conceptualized this park day thing I scheduled four meetings, thinking that was a sweet spot for encouraging people to commit: they would know the meetup was something that would definitely happen for a period of time, and they knew that they had an automatic out after that period. I don't know if that was the key factor, or if there was just a big demand for connection among homeschoolers in the greater Lowell area, but Varney Park Day has a been a huge success. So much so that it's still going strong into November. There's always a good-sized, diverse group of folks, and there's always something different going on. Last week it was "hammock town," with one real hammock and a bunch of other ones improvised out of big pieces of fabric one of the parents was genius enough to bring along; this week we were trying to catch falling leaves. Best of all, as the weeks pass we can see kids starting to play in more different groupings and arrangements—not just by who they knew coming in and played with before, but by age and interest as they get to know each other. That's something that happens in a good community. I think we can call this experiment a success!
a day at the park
Our park day offering is going well. Yesterday was the third meeting of the four I committed us too, and it was the biggest one yet, with at least 14 families. The playground certainly felt filled up! Besides lots of free play and climbing, there was also some dodge ball, races, tug-of-war, and jump-roping. And for the most part, it was all kid-organized, with the parents free to relax and chat (and mind the babies, as applicable). I did step in a little bit to organize the tug-of-war and also joined in with a small group who were wishing their pirate game could have more participants. I only had to walk the plank three or four times before some of the big kids saw the appeal of the idea and joined in (and I could make my escape!). Parks Days are good. To quote an email from Advocates for Homeschool Education in Massachusetts (AHEM):
Park days are a melting pot. Homeschooling in Massachusetts attracts a pretty diverse group of people, and the families at our local park day have come from all different backgrounds and perspectives. I have seen the same scene countless times — kids of different genders and ages running around together. And not just running but playing organized games without any adult input. If you have doubts that homeschoolers can be properly “socialized,” this is the place to go to put those doubts to rest.
socialization in action
outdoor learning in the suburbs
One of my favorite things about learning at home is how much time we get to spend outside. Tons of playing, of course, and educational play opportunities like when the kids spent an hour last week picking wild grapes and then made grape lemonade. But also the chance to do more traditional schooling stuff out of doors amidst the beauty and decay of the early fall garden. All the fresh air makes those math brains work better! The only problem with outdoor learning in the suburbs is that you have a good chance it's going to be hard to hear each other. Because pretty much, as long as it's nice out someone's going to be busy with loud gas-powered lawn care.
the joys of garden school
I don't keep records, but it seems to me that the same thing happened last week at the same time. At least the lawn-service guys know their business and get in and out pretty quickly so we only had to deal with the obnoxious drone of the mowers, trimmers, and blowers for about 20 minutes—and it was only too loud to hear each other talk for about half that time. Then they left, and we were able to converse easily again... at least when there weren't airplanes buzzing overhead on their way to land at the airport a mile away.
As for our own lawn care, I'm proud to report I haven't contributed one bit to the noise pollution of the neighborhood in the past couple months. I'm so impressive, using the push reel mower exclusively ever since my gas mower stopped working!
can I organize things?
I don't think of myself as a particularly organized person, much less one who can organize groups of other people. And yet that's what I find myself doing this week. This past Sunday I had to lead a workshop at church for folks who wanted to learn more about the elementary kids program and possibly—hopefully!—volunteer, and with admirable forethought (if I do say so myself) I prepared a sign-in sheet so I could remember who was there and track em down later. In the event only two people came—two people who I already know well—so it wasn't needed. But I would have been ready! Then on Wednesday we ran a Park Day at Varney Playground in Chelmsford, which I advertised on a homeschooling group on Facebook. We're planning to meet weekly through the first part of the fall at least, and since I don't like Facebook I wanted to get people's email and phone numbers. So another sign-up sheet! And this time it was well worth it, since of the eight families who showed up I only knew three ahead of time. Plus getting the kids' names written down helped me learn them all instantly, unlike the last couple homeschool gatherings we've attended where I wasn't even sure at the end who all had come for park day and who just happened to be at the playground. The afternoon was fun for all, and we're looking forward to doing it again next week! Unless it's pouring rain, in which case I'll be able to email folks to cancel. Organization!
crystalized expectations
School started today in Bedford for the public school kids, but not for us: we've got a vacation trip planned next week so we're in summer mode for a little while yet. But that doesn't mean we're not learning! In advance of our geology study this September I checked out a book of experiments for kids, and the photos of crystals were deeply attractive to Elijah. For days he asked me if I'd help him make one, but I put him off: my feeling is that those things never work. You do all that prep work and imagine a beautiful crystal growing before your eyes, only to have nothing happen at all for days, and then only a vague scattering of grains. I wanted to spare him the disappointment. But he persisted, so a couple days ago we followed the instructions for experiment one: we boiled a cup of water, added three-plus cups of sugar—slowly, stirring the whole time—and some food coloring. Then we poured it all in a jar, let it cool a little, and put in sticks coated with sugar (seed crystals) for the thing to grow on.
As I expected, it didn't work. But the failure mode was the opposite of what I though would happen. Rather than nothing happening at all, within 12 hours nine-tenths of the solution in the jar had crystalized solidly to the point where we couldn't even pull the sticks out. Maybe we used too much sugar? Boiled it too long? The recipe doesn't say anything about what might possibly go wrong, so I guess more experimentation is required. Which is really the point of science, I suppose! It's going to be a good year.