Year Two: Week Four: I Spy With My Little Eye

Be scared. You can’t help that. But don’t be afraid. Ain’t nothing in the woods going to hurt you unless you corner it, or it smells that you are afraid. A bear or a deer, too, has got to be scared of a coward the same as a brave man has got to be.

~William Faulkner

Bug/Nature week brought us new games, a field trip, a scavenger hunt and more. Take a look!

 I picked up this Squirrel Snackin' game at Target. It's great for learning to take turns, following directions, fine motor skills with the squirrel pinchers (being demonstrated above by my sidekick), and the joys of winning...and losing. I am not a parent that will "let" my child win. I don't say that in a mean way, nor will I ever intentionally beat him at a game. But, in a case such as this, where you are at the whim of the spinner, it is what it is. He won a few and lost a few more. The first losing was the hardest. We took a minute to ourselves so I could explain this new concept to him. I told him that I understand his feelings are hurt and that it is much more fun to win. We also put into place that *if* he didn't win, he needed to say, "good game" to the winner before we could play again. A few times, he needed to be upset for a minute before he could work up to saying that, but he always did and that made me proud.

 ZOO TRIP! I have been waiting for this day! Unfortunately, Mr. Sidekick was in a "no" mood. He didn't want to see this animal, he didn't want to walk that way. He didn't want to do or see anything for most of the morning. We had our trusty spy glass though ($1 magnifying glass from the Dollar Store) and that helped him make a few discoveries. After a few bites of funnel cake, our day became magically happier and it was, overall, a pretty good day.

 There's my happy ending! 

 This was a match game I made for us to play. I would put shapes on the left side and let him match on the right. Easy peasy and fun to do together.

Found this little worksheet on survivingateacherssalary.com (Pinterest originally). I need to get us back into practicing our letter writing again. This was a good start.

Oh our scavenger hunt! This was fun! I found a list on Pinterest to get me started. (Found here in the mix of larger camping page.) We made some "bug-noculars" (two toilet paper rolls, tape and some string to hang them around his neck. 5 minutes and done.) Then we were off on our adventure. I read to him what we needed to find and off he ran! After discovering each item with his "bug-noculars" he got to check them off his list which made him even more excited. The kid likes a finished list, what can I say? :)

For this one, I made him food coloring+baking soda+water paints. He got to pick his colors so we got to revisit color mixing with this, as well. After he painted we squirted vinegar over the wet paint to make it fizz and foam. "Look Momma! I made Coke!" Once it dried, he told it was the Earth. What more could I ask for?

We are still playing over at abcmouse.com. It is such a good learning tool for him. If you have a chance, you should really check it out for your little. 

Our schedules are getting a little crazier, so it's harder to work in schooling time. I have to keep it a priority. We still work on our reading, writing and math, and our journaling. I'll have to write soon with a full post on how that's all going. So, sometimes what I have planned for a week takes two. No big deal. We're still on my own lesson plans with nothing is being graded and no missed deadlines. It kind of takes the pressure off. I still want our homeschooling to be important so I keep going. Even if I have to set up experiments after dinner or a quick reading session during breakfast. Even if I'm writing blog posts instead of getting us ready for bed. ;)

Tomorrow is another day and more adventures await! See you soon!

Week 6.2: Spring has Arrived!

 

 

What fine weather this is! Not very becoming perhaps early in the morning, but very pleasant out of doors at noon, and very wholesome-at least everybody fancies so, and imagination is everything.

-Jane Austen (in a letter to her sister Cassandra) November, 1798

 

Hello again! We had a wonderful week last week! Lots of fun doing lots of different stuff! The weather has been AAA-mazing so, we are spending more and more time outside each day. It's fantastic!

Here's a look at what we accomplished:

 

 With our new dotter paints, we are loving letter and shape searches. Such an easy and quick thing to do. Any time of day.

 

 C is for Circle and Caterpillar. I traced circles on the paper and my sidekick insisted on a pattern. I even mixed up the circles after we glued the first three and had him find the pattern. He did wonderfully. After we glued the eyes on, I had him draw a nose and mouth. {This was something new that I had never asked him to do} But LOOK! It's so cute! Then, I showed him how to draw little legs and let him go. Our little C friend turned out great!

 

 S is for Snowman. I know, I know. We've done nothing but wish for Spring for weeks now. I gave my sidekick options on what do make (Pinterest pictures, of course) and he picked this. He loves the snow, so I wasn't surprised. I did a little more pointing than usual so he could get the idea of where things went but it's still his work and I'm proud of him more every day.

 

 Our new fun time is to take silly selfies. I have about 30 on my phone after each session. Lots of fun and together time. :)

 

 

 

 Speaking of Spring! For an FRG function last week, Cam and I made an example of our kid craft. First, he helped me put seeds into the dirt bags. Then he painted his pot! And here's the finished project. The kids had lots of fun, and hopefully will have some new flowers soon!

 We started Music Class this week! Oh man! So. Much. Fun. This kid of mine loves to sing and dance any time but to make new friends, play with fun instruments, and learn new songs? What's not to love! Him and I both wish it was more than once a week.

 

 

 

We've added a new computer program to our schooling time. abcmouse.com It's fantastic. He learned to use a mouse in one lesson and loves doing the different lessons that the site offers. I got a free trial month, so I figured why not. But I will, most likely, be subscribing (it's only $7.95/mo). He asks to play "mouse" daily and will sit for a good 20 minutes, fully concentrating on his lessons.

 

F is for frog! Another Pinterest find that was so fun. This is, of course, the ever-elusive Star Frog. I believe, this is the only one I've ever seen :)

 

 

It's been a great week! We've been keeping up with our workbooks and letter tracings, as well. My sidekick gets better every week. I can't wait to see what this coming week has in store for us!

See you soon!

Lesson Three: Technology

What a world we live in these days! The age of the ever-improving iPhone, tablets galore, handheld everything!

     I'm one of those that can remember when we first got a computer (huge box screen and all) and how it took f.o.r.e.v.e.r. for it to "dial" into the Internet, and twice as long to download anything! I remember my dad's first cell phone. It came in a bag...with a shoulder strap and HAD to be plugged into his car to work. Not to mention, it still had a cord! I had a pager. A what? A pager! A small device that buzzed and dinged with a number across the screen then you had to find a phone (like a pay phone {GASP!} I know) and call the number back. I grew up having to remember phone numbers of my family and friends. I didn't have a device that I store them all in. Unless I carried around a notepad or an actual phone book. What nonsense!

Ok, I'm not really that old or anything. But all this technology sort of swept us off our feet, right?

This toddler of mine has been born in a time where everything we want or need can be found at our fingertips. He plays on both of his parents iPhones. He has his own set of apps on all our devices. He knows how to swipe to unlock them, find the app he wants, adjust the volume. You name it.
{He has a tendency to play, unbeknownst to me, with my alarms. I've woken up a few nights to the blaring of my alarm at 2:42am, only to find the other 12 alarms set for the next 10 minutes, consecutively, as well. It's a good time...for those who like to be totally confounded in the middle of the night.}
He tries to touch the screen on the laptop because as of now, the idea of a "mouse" is nothing more than a squeaky animal. We're working on it. :)

But there is good to all this technology, if you don't let it run you over. For example, we have apps for him to practice his writing, learn his numbers, letters, colors, work on his languages, matching, seek and finds. Of course, he's also into Plants vs. Zombies but we all need a little fun, right?

All I'm saying is, don't balk at the idea of your little one playing on your phone, tablet, laptop, or whatever you have. They want to be like you. They want to learn and play like you. Just give it to them within reason. Give them a game that they can learn something from (remember that repetition is key and games can be very helpful in that area) and watch their little minds expand. If you keep an eye on how long they are on these new-fangled contraptions and what they are doing with their time on them, it can be used to an advantage and not a mind-numbing hindrance.

{Remember to take them outside too! Don't rely on these to do your job (not that you would! Not that I do either!). But, if I didn't put that disclaimer, who knows what people would say about me.}

Enjoy all the ways you get to learn with your little one. Enjoy every moment.