River of Words

A nature hike was a beautiful way to end our week.  Leaving the city before the sun rose too high and the air got too hot, we made our way to a peaceful patch of land.  A place where we could walk amongst the aspens, anticipate what would await beyond the bend in the path, and feel peace enter our bodies with each deep inhale.  A place where we could be playful, romp with friends, and be transfixed by the little creatures we met along the way.

At the mid-way point of our hike we came to an intersection where several paths met.  It beckoned us to dump our packs, sit down in the shade and enjoy a little time in contemplation.  I brought out a book we're reading excerpts from - The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon - and read a passage to introduce our first opportunity to write out a list poem, as suggested by a writing program I found, River of Words.   

Our family has been reading passages from The Pillow Book all week.  The author, a lady-in-waiting living in Japan about 1000 years ago, writes about nature and the world that surrounds her.  Some of her revelations are surprisingly as relevant now as they were a millennia ago.  In what we've read so far, she manages to observe the simple, finer details that one hurriedly passing by might otherwise miss.

After reading a passage, we would go around the table and add our insights to the topic of her poem.  A wedding gown might be added to the list of Elegant Things; a puppy without an owner might be added to the list of Depressing Things.  It was all very impromptu and off-the-cuff...no transcribing what was said (though there are moments I wish I had), just slipping off into a dream world and sharing the first thing that came to mind.

We did something similar while on our walk in the woods.  I prepared index cards with some of the passage titles from The Pillow Book.  We picked one...Elegant Things...then went around the circle to each person to add their own thoughts.  Each child had an opportunity to share a category or topic that wasn't on the index cards, such as Things that Fall From the Sky, Flowers, Insects.  Lastly, each child was invited to pick a card, including the blank ones not used, to write their own list.  The younger ones had an adult scribe for them while the older children worked on their own. 

Now, I sit in my kitchen with a bulletin board, and the cards we used this morning are affixed to it.  I'm not sure what permanent home this bulletin board will have, but my hope is that it will be referred to often.  New ideas can be jotted down.  Lines in the poems can be rewritten, reordered, or reread.  New poems can be mined from the lists already started.  It gives us a visual cue to think about the world around us, from the most grand and magnificent to the most minute and timid.   

Club Day. The Nature Version.

Part of getting back into the summer-winding-down swing of things is getting the children's clubs back up and running on a more consistent basis.  We kicked off the 2013-2014 club year with the first Nature Club and a trip out to the community garden to check out how wild, luscious and abundant the tomato plants the Club started from seed had become.  I wanted the Club to have some sort of a connection between the seeds we planted and the pizza we soon will make, most of which coming from the pizza garden we dreamed up so many months ago. 

We also "foraged" our own snack by searching for cucumbers hiding underneath their lovely large green leaves, digging for carrots, and discovering the last offerings from the pea plants (peas in September seems unreal).

While we munched on our found goodies, we talked about the important role of bees.  We talked about how the bees pollinate the plants so that they will bear fruit, and how they might unknowingly cross-pollinate them and create fruit that looks a wee bit different than expected (like the few baseball-sized Roma tomatoes we found - they look suspiciously like a mix between my Romas and the neighbour's beefsteak tomatoes).  We also talked about how the cucumbers protect themselves by being slightly prickly.

In the next couple of meetings, I'd like to make cheese with the group (now that I know how to do it), and then make our garden pizza.  Looking forward to the upcoming mouth-watering meetings!

   

Our homeschool planner

I was so excited when I downloaded this lesson planner!  We would be organized!  I wouldn't be rushing around at the last minute gathering books and supplies for a project or lesson!  We would be intentional about our outings and celebrating the changing seasons!  It would be a game changer.  I just knew it.

But then, at the beginning of August, I sat down with my blank planner.  And I froze.  Where to begin?  I had all these grand ideas and plans and intentions, and how would they fit into each neat little box?  How in the world would I plan an outdoor field trip for November when I had no idea how harsh the weather might be?

Then I took a breath.  I reminded myself that this wasn't a plan set in stone.  It was meant to be a flexible guide.  I traded my pen for a pencil and eraser.  On a scrap piece of paper, I jotted down the things that I wanted us to make time for...a monthly field trip out to a nature reserve...the equinoxes and the solstices...major holidays.  Next, I noted the things that I needed to accomplish at any given time of the year...gardening, preserving, sewing, hitting the once-a-month grocery store sales.  Lastly, I scribbled down the topics I wanted to cover during the year...the first part of the year being focused on the body and the second half of the year covering more Canadian history.

Referring to my list of things to accomplish, I started to slot items into the calendar.  Nature hikes outside the city...the middle of the month sounded good, as there are very few mid-month holidays to distract us from reaching our goal.  I wrote these into the calendar for each month. 

The fall equinox...I noted the date and referred to All Year Round for some projects we could do, which include reading St. George and the Dragon, making harvest bread, decorating candles, and crafting a harvest ring.  All of this would require a little pre-work on my part, so I also set aside time  in the calendar for gathering materials well in advance.  While I was perusing the projects, I noted the materials I would need to find, and once I added the supplies for our body science experiments, I had quite a unique back-to-school shopping list.

While I couldn't plan exactly when I would be preserving fruit or veggies from the garden, I kept in mind that most of my nights would likely be occupied with all things food.  Which was why I strived so hard to know what projects we were going to do and get the supplies well in advance - I could spend my evenings in the kitchen instead of at the shopping mall.

I wrote into our planner any daytime activities I knew were already scheduled - Nature Club, Birds of Prey Club, our homeschool coop, Jaelyn's art class.  Then I wrote in project time for the afternoons when we would be home.  I want to keep this time sacred and fairly consistent, so it can be something my children look forward to.   

And, finally, I started to write down the formal bookwork we would be doing for the month of September and October. 

It took quite a bit of time to massage the entries in the planner until it felt right.  I was hauling it and all sorts of books with me on our vacations and to football practices, as well as revisiting it on evenings when I had free time.  It's still growing and evolving, but it's nice to know that at least the next couple of months have been thought out and taken care of.

Now, our planner looks a bit like this...

It is full, I admit, but I think I've done a good job of making sure the activities we want most for our children - being in nature, having space to follow their own passions and interests, time with friends - is honoured.

Super Monday

I seem to recall that we had quite a few Mondays that were over-the-top fun.  Busy, but in a good way.  Children diving into work and play that is so important to them.  Mama getting a moment or two to get a start on some of her own projects.  It's looking like our first Monday of the homeschooling year is starting off on the same foot.  Here's a peek at what's been going on in our house so far today...

...finishing up our practice ornithopter.  We purchased some kits for self-propelled flying machines from Birdkit.com.  We'll be making these with Birds of Prey Club next week and I wanted to get a feel for how tricky and complex some of the model-building would be.  And Nicholas has been begging for some time to help.  By help I mean taking over after the first step in the instructions.  He did an amazing job.

...drawing, cutting, labelling, and pasting our digestive system body parts onto the children's alien bodies that adorn our hallway.  Though this may be obvious to all of you, I discovered that adding the body parts would be a great introductory activity, rather than a wrap-up activity.  It is now obvious to me as well, and we'll try it next time as we start on our next system - the circulatory system.

...drawing on the sidewalk with the littlest of my loves.

...painting.  Oh, it's been so long since we painted!

...getting ready to make some homemade cheese tonight!  All equipment has now been through scalding water and has a date with me after the last child is in bed.

...read some poetry as we prepare for our next nature hike.  I've witnessed in the past that just being in nature is all that is needed to open the door to creative expression.  Excerpts from The Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon will hopefully inspire some poetry or encourage us to feel nature with all our senses and to the tiniest detail.  Yes, we had a most agreeable lunch today.  I think I'll need to bring poetry to the table more often.

...preparing to get back to the sewing machine, with a lovely playcape (from Growing Up Sew Liberated) and birthday crown (from The Creative Family) for a special little boy turning three this weekend.  I'm sure the fort-building going on in the backyard now will continue for a while yet.  And there is nowhere to be tonight but here - how blissful is that!  Yes, I think I just might get some of it cut out right after I hit "Publish".

I'm starting to acknowledge that along with every up must come a down.  Every day cannot be a Super Monday.  Every Monday, in fact, cannot be a Super Monday.  With every burst of energy we send out into the world there must be a rest...a pause...to grow, learn, dream, and have the physical strength for the next burst.  Fighting to stay at the crest of a Super Monday wave is not ideal, nor is being in the trough or somewhere in the middle.  So I'll work to be mindful of this new realization.  Rather than fight the descent back down, I will embrace it and consider the days, and perhaps weeks, as a time of preparation.  For there will be another Super Monday sometime.

Aliens...but not what you think!

We kicked off the formal part of our homeschooling journey last year with a unit study on the solar system.  It seemed to work for us to do a deep dive into a topic, with lots of hands-on activities and links to language arts and math.  I loved reading the poetry we found, the paintings we created, and the Greek and Roman mythology we followed up every planet with.  And the factoids and science behind the planets and the solar system as well, of course.

This year we're starting off the year with a deep dive into the human body, with any and all links to others in the animal world happily accepted.  After chatting about all the different body parts - bones, muscles, organs, skin... - we took some time to trace each other.  These life-size representations of the children are now hanging on our walls, and greet any and all visitors who make their way through our front door.  As I was snapping pictures of my new paper greeters, I stood back and realized that they each, in their own unique way, look a bit like aliens.  So alien greeters they are.

In all seriousness though, our intent is to learn about a new body system each week, culminating at the end of the week with drawing, cutting and pasting the system onto the tracings now gracing our walls.  Our first look is into the digestive system.  We've taken a first look at the organs within that system and read a really accessible book - What Happens to a Hamburger? - describing what happens during the digestive process.  We found a length of rope and measured off the length of the digestive system if it was laid out flat on the ground as opposed to twisted and bunched together in the abdominal cavity of a person.  We talked about how long food hangs out in each part of the digestive system.  Fun, quick, hands-on, and great for all ages!  And plenty of factoids too!

Welcome banner

As we enter our second homeschooling year, I wanted to create a simple yet meaningful visual to mark our transition back into our homeschooling routine.  Something we could all be a part of and see ourselves in.  Something unique.  Something natural.  I arrived at the idea of a banner with pieces created by each of us to represent what we would like the coming year to be.

The idea was grounded in a sweep of paper stars we used to have hanging in the hall that leads from our mudroom into the rest of the house.  In India, people would hang a sweep of stars in their doorway to keep bad vibes out of the house, including the bad vibes either they or guests may be carrying as baggage.  To this we married needle felting...handwork that my children have adored in the past, and have been away from for awhile.  Each piece is as unique as its creator...a boat representing wanting to be in water...a bone representing wanting to work with animals...a hammer representing building things...a Christmas tree for sharing...a heart for sharing love and being a house full of love...a person that represents our entire family...a snowman representing winter fun.

 

May peace, love and light fill your home.

Homeschool organization

Well, well, well...here we are.  We will be entering our second season of watching the school bus drive by our house without rushing the children out the door.  We're finishing up our second round of reading all the Facebook posts of back-to-school and not at all feeling the same dread and loneliness.  We've had a quiet, local summer and are ready to dive into some new projects, spread our wings, and experience things we've never done before.

I know intellectually that we don't need to start our homeschooling bookwork at the same time that school kicks in for everyone else.  But it feels so much to me like a chance for a fresh start, that the leaves changing colour and the cooler evenings are beckoning us to start.  It doesn't mean we'll be caged inside all day, or even all morning.  It means we'll get reacquainted with where supplies and materials are, what our books look like and where we left them at the end of last year, and do some art.  Play outside.  Pick some flowers.  Go to the library.  Read to each other.  Really, most of the day will be like any other day. 

Speaking of getting reacquainted with our books and materials, I did some organizing over the summer...okay, over the last two weeks...in a bid to make it easier for my children to keep their supplies neat and organized.  We had a day where every single pair of scissors was missing in action.  And that seemed to be the final straw for me.  Everything needed to have a home and the organizational system needed to be easy enough for the 2-year-old to master.  We may not have entirely reached that lofty goal, but we made a start.  What exactly did we do to make all our lives a little easier, you ask?

Last year, Jaelyn stacked her books on the buffet that sits by our table.  Nicholas had a stack in his room.  Astrin accessed the mess inside the buffet for paper and left it wherever when she was done.  In the end, we couldn't get to any of the materials (markers, crayons, pencils, erasers, and the missing scissors, to name a few).  This year, each child has their own basket (labelled with the felted valentines we made last year).  Their books and started project work can go into the basket.  The top of our buffet now has room for a nature basket and a globe!

I also struggled last year with organizing all the different types of paper that entered our world...lined paper, graph paper, coloured paper, printer paper, construction paper...you get the drift.  I did my best to stack it neatly in our buffet, along with sketch books and notebooks, but it wasn't practical for the little hands that dove in their to get stuff.  Once one thing was pulled out the rest was shuffled around.  By the end of the week it was a disaster.  This year, I found a Banker's Box brand mail sorter that had slots large enough to fit 8 1/2" by 11" paper.  It's perfect!

Last year, our books were randomly organized.  Truth be told, I grouped them by hardback and paperback, then placed them on the shelf according to their size, for some reason or another.  This year they are organized by topic.  I cleared out some of the supplies that were in boxes to make room so all books the children may ever want to access are right there.  I adjusted the height of the shelves so all the titles could be seen.  I put labels to let the readers in the house know where to put the book back, in case they forgot where they got it from in the first place.  I also got rid of the shelf that was for library books and found a basket instead where they could be placed when they were finished being enjoyed.

Last year, many of our instruments were out of reach.  This meant that my children could either be monkeys and climb to get them or I would (unintentionally) have control over whether the instruments came out or not.  I also had instruments stored in different places, as some were given as gifts to Astrin and others were not quite appropriate for her yet.  As a result, we didn't have much music-making going on in our house.  This year, I moved all the instruments down into a cabinet, and they are all in the same place so anyone can enjoy making music.

This year, I needed to come to the realization that my little baby is really no longer a baby.  Every day, both she and I talk about how she is getting bigger.  So it also came time for me to realize that all those baby toys might not be so appropriate for her anymore.  While there is a basket on the floor with a few items that anyone can use, I've put some items especially for her in a cabinet...a rice bin with measuring cups, funnels and bowls, large beads and shoelaces, puzzles, a wooden farm set.  Items for the bigger girl that is making her way around the house now.

Our last little touch for this year is finding a more permanent home for our "Creative Kids" banner.  You may have seen it in other posts, wrapped around our masonry heater, but we discovered that some of the letters were covered up just because of how it hung.  This year, the banner brings a dash more colour to the space above the window in our dining room, where coincidentally, our homeschool happens to hang out to do bookwork if we don't choose to do it outside.  I love it!

Here's wishing you and yours a September full of excitement, challenges, and moments soaking up the last little bits of summer!