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pehp

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Everything posted by pehp

  1. I did not see the bathroom or read the article. I couldn't bear to look at all the photos. It was horrible. I think that goes way beyond a little messy or dirty. Children should not have to live like that. My house is not spotless, but it is very clean and pretty tidy. No comparison. I feel so sad for the people who were living like that; it seems so unhealthy and depressing.
  2. I did a bit here and there during June/July......then my dh took the kids for a day of fun and that is when I worked on finishing all my copying...printing.....scheduling....etc!!!
  3. What are the most important math goals to meet in kindergarten? We are halfway through the year and I need a pulse check. My son recognizes numbers 1-20, many numbers 21-100 (he is learning that....he reads prices to me at the grocery store!). Weare doing a bit of drill and he is good at that. He can add all one-digit #s. Skip counting by 2-3-5-7-8, so far. He understands shapes....I cannot think of what else? I am unsure of exactly what he should know by the end of the year. I'm satisfied with his progress thus far, but also want to be sure we are heading in the right direction. FwIW....we do MUS primer here and there, playing with c-rods, LOF apples....I plan to use MiquonOrange.....haven't decided if we will begin that sooner or later. TIA!!!
  4. I don't think I completely internalized the idea that you should do two ENTIRE review lessons. My son wouldn't sit through that! What I do is start with a quick drill of various words we've done in the past--I just make it up on the fly. Sometimes it's just a list of 8-10 words, sometimes it's a crazy sentence I make up and write on the whiteboard, to make him laugh. Then we do the day's lesson (and I do one lesson per WEEK with my 5 year old ds)--very brief. Then I either use OPGTR sentence suggestion or I create another 1-2 silly sentences w/ the new words. We are in and out of there in 10 minutes or so. He is steadily learning! I am starting to incorporate some easy readers in--we got the BOB books at the library the other day. They are bo-ring, so I might write my own readers for him in the next month or so. I love to write and create and illustrate (my illustrations are kind of like Fred's in LOF, ha) so that would be fun. HTH!
  5. I think it's b/c she has to teach a classroom of children who are at different levels, have different needs, etc. Lots of juggling. 1:1 is very efficient!!! Plus, because children are expected to be at school all day (unless it is a half-day program), they add in activities (crafts, arts, 'centers' etc) that we don't really count as 'school' at home b/c it's just....life! I honestly cannot imagine teaching 20+ 5-year olds. My hat is off to kindergarten teachers!!
  6. We are on Apples.it is a supplement, & my son enjoys it a lot! Real-life math but lighthearted.....we will continue using LOF for a while. I think!!
  7. We are using CM-inspired methods for kindergarten this year. I would hasten to note that CM is basically classical. Just a slightly different approach in the earlier years than TWTM, from what I can tell. (Even the WTM approach in kindergarten is pretty lightweight.) Mason seemed to believe that prior to 6 children mostly needed lots of fresh air....so we do that! I teach kindergarten by doing math and reading everyday, for about 10 minutes each. I have done some handwriting, but I'm not convinced my son is ready for a lot of that. So we do a tiny bit, probably 3 days a week. For reading I just use OPGTR with a whiteboard and markers. I really like this book; it's simple to use and very straightforward. We do one lesson PER WEEK (yes, per week--we go slowly, so there are no tears and no one feels overwhelmed). (ETA: he already knew his letter sounds, etc, so we fast-forwarded through all of that....I will go faster when need be, but try to keep it relatively slow--I just interject my own common sense into the book's pacing!) For math I am working through the MUS primer, rejecting some parts, but next time around I will not even do that. I'll just do fun math--manipulatives, counting, etc. We do that, too, here. Next year we will be doing Miquon. For handwriting I use lined paper and he copies my strokes. No program. We fill out a calendar each day (numbering the days of the week). We've done some Bible memory work, as well as other memory work (like phone number, parents' names, address, birthday etc...) We try to spend lots of time outside. My son asked to do science, so we do Elemental Science's Intro to Science 2-day a week program....it's super duper lightweight. We read through a chapter book slowly. We read lots of picture books. We have lots of time to cook and do free play. Library visits. Museums, when we can wrangle the two year old. We do chores!! Of tantamount importance in my mind is establishing a GOOD working relationship. So I focus on that, mostly. No stress on academics yet. My son is learning to read and understands basic math concepts and enjoys lots of topics/books...I'm satisfied. We are members of a Classical Conversations community, so my son has one morning a week of 'classes' taught by a tutor. We are mostly doing this for the social and community-building aspects, although he does listen to the CDs, etc. I don't emphasize it much. Ambleside Online, Charlotte Mason Help and Simply Charlotte Mason are my favorite sites for reading about how to implement this method!
  8. My son is 5.5 and we have not discussed it....not even in the context of Jesus (we are Christian). So I would not be ok with introducing the idea to a 3 year old at all!
  9. pehp

    Aesop's Fables

    Another vote for Milo Winter!
  10. I had not intended to do science or history for K but my son asked for 'science.' I am using Elemental Science (Intro to Science) & we like it just fine. I do consider it wholly extraneous and think experiences, natural world observations etc are much more important.....
  11. I clean as I go--routine things (kitchen, make beds, wipe down counters in bathrooms, etc.) daily, also try to tidy up the main room and our bedroom daily. I will let my son's room get to Pit Status and shovel it out once a week to vacuum it. I try to vacuum the house a few times a week (we have an indoor dog and allergies). Do laundry daily. My children are 5.5 and 2, and they help a bit, but I figure in this season of life some things just aren't going to get done. I am not sure when I last scrubbed down the shower stall or washed a window. But I'm training these little ones to help...ultimately I want us to clean daily for about half an hour before starting school. Probably wont happen until my youngest is 5. ;)
  12. For kindergarten I don't think curriculum is super-important; a child needs to learn to read and appreciate books and learn basic math. I would agree that you make a list of goals you want to meet for kindy. For me that was something like start learning to read, get into good chore routines, learn to enjoy/problem-solve with math, establish a good teacher-pupil relationship and get tons of fresh air. I am also highly dubious of spending a lot of money for a 5 year old. So I bought OPGTR & c-rods...Life of Fred.. a small whiteboard and markers....I bought MUS primer used (it's okay, I'm not continuing w/ MUS)...plus lined paper for practicing handwriting....minimal investment, maximum impact (I hope). I checked several phonics books (100EZ lessons, Phonics Pathways, OPGTR) until I found what resonated with me. I figure things will evolve and change a lot over the coming years, and my goal for the early years is to establish our relationship, do lots of chores/outside time (although not in the cold weather now, alas!), get a strong reader and get rock-solid math skills. Everything else is gravy. (To me ;))
  13. I value efficiency and a relaxed child and a cooperative relationship, so for my 5.5-year old son I keep it short-n-sweet. We do about 10-15 minutes of OPGTR, 10-20 minutes of math (a variety of things), and a few days a week I will work with him on basic handwriting (just basic strokes and simple copywork, being careful not to fatigue him). (I think he's a slower handwriting-developer than other children might be, so I keep this light and happy.) We do a bit of science 1-2 days a week (Elemental Science....just b/c he asked for it). Otherwise life is all about outside time, read-alouds (good quality), exploring, tinkering with toys, chores, helping me cook and building stuff. So far this works well for us. He's happy and I'm happy! :) He is learning to read and is a clever chap when it comes to building and creating things.
  14. I just think they are inelegant, and will look very odd in old age. I don't think less of a person with one, but I don't see the appeal of something so painful and permanent. I think it is trendy. I'm not very trendy I guess!!
  15. All you need are the Foundations Guide and tin whistle. I bought the CDs and am glad I did....my son enjoys them....and they are fun. We got timeline cards for Christmas because my son was asking for them. They are $$ so I got the grandparents to make that part of their gift to him! But the CDs and cards are definitely just optional. ;)
  16. Thank you all. I just thought of this new question too--should I be an absolute STICKLER for teaching him the order of strokes in letters? I give him letters/words of mine to copy and he does a good job....but I also see his letter formation is different than mine. (For instance, he writes an N differently--it ends up looking about the same, just a bit messier ;), but he starts at a different spot; similarly with T and I.....does this really matter??)
  17. My son, who is 5.5, is doing kindergarten work this year--very laid-back. :) He is doing just fine, but one thing I feel a little weak on, and need guidance on, is handwriting. He can form letters (we usually practice on lined paper--he just copies things I write). His handwriting is decent, IMO--not that I have a lot of experience. And he LOVES to draw/color--he's really, really into drawing/art. The thing that confuses me is that he doesn't use the correct grip consistently. I will gently correct him when I see him doing it wrong (wrong=the pencil in the fist, like a preschooler might), but invariably he tends to return at some point to the more immature grip. I wonder if I'm not teaching it correctly...or perhaps he's just not mature enough to hold the pencil properly....and I wonder if I'm overthinking this. Or under-thinking it, and should purchase a handwriting curriculum that will give me more guidance. Any advice would be WELCOME!
  18. My son ADORES k'nex. I had purchased a basic set at a yard sale last year, then he got the gears set for Christmas. He comes up with all sorts of creations!! In fact he's in his jammies building a k'nex train trestle (?!) now. :)
  19. Thank you all! This is very helpful. I don't want to push him...I want him to enjoy math....but I also don't want to plod along in the MUS Primer 'just because' it was in my plans to just finish it out for the kindergarten year. I need to educated myself on Miquon now--I have the basic idea, but I need to look over the Lab Annotations and the Diary (?) to prepare myself as well. I want him to think of math is playful, problem-solving, interesting and fun. MUS primer is ok--he certainly doesn't dislike it, but I was looking through my plans for spring and wondering to myself "why finish this out if I'm just switching to something else anyhow? and do we NEED to really do this?" I look at things that don't need to be done as busywork.....and I'm uninterested in busywork. :)
  20. We are definitely starting with orange....I am just trying to figure out if we should begin it now or wait until a bit later (when he is 6 & beginning first grade!).
  21. I was originally planning to wait and start Miquon (Orange book) in September when we 'start first grade.' Right now my son, who is doing what I'm calling kindergarten, is probably about 2/3 or more of the way through the MUS Primer. He can do basic addition problems...skip counting....he understands place value fairly well.....he gets that if you have 10 chocolate chips and you eat 3, you have 7....stuff like that. :) And he can identify numbers....up into three digits most of the time. We can continue going through the MUS primer (we go fairly slowly, doing a few pages per week, with lots of games, playing shop etc mixed in), which is what I'd originally planned. But then today I started to wonder if I should just start the Orange book now. We're doing the MUS primer for exposure to basic concepts, but I feel he's got a pretty firm grasp on them. At the same time, I don't want to rush things--school is very VERY fun/happy/enjoyable for him now and I wouldn't want that to change if he's feeling too overwhelmed or challenged. So--would Miquon Orange be too advanced for a 5.5 year old who has these (described above) math skills/concepts down? Would it behoove me to just let him wait and mature for another 8 months? Does it take a great deal of concentration on the part of the student? (He can concentrate well, but I will be working with him while also running interference w/ his 2 year old sister--this may not be a big issue, though, b/c she tends to do pretty well w/ little activities I give her. Sometimes I imagine that the toddler effect is worse than it really is!) He's my oldest, and my first 'pupil', so I'm not experienced at figuring out the 'whens' of schooling. My common sense guides a lot of what we do--I can usually gauge whether he's ready to speed up or needs to slow down (we've really accelerated reading beyond what I'd anticipated for the year b/c he just 'gets' it). I will need to do some prep work on my own to learn the Miquon approach (I have the Lab Annotations).
  22. My son is in kindergarten this year and is doing CC. He's in a class that has 4/5 year olds. They have 'new grammar' (just new stuff to memorize, but at this age it is VERY LAID BACK--my son does some memory work but we do not emphasize it much), an art or music project (I think this changes every 6 weeks-right now he's doing art), a science project, a presentation (ie show and tell)/snack time and then 'review' of some of the memory work in past classes--this is done by playing fun games that our tutor creates for the kids. Then we have lunch and rec time. My son really enjoys CC. I use it solely as a supplement. We are fortunate to have a good tutor who 'gets' that 4/5 year olds are kind of wiggly creatures and need some 'fun' time along with the 'learning'. I've been pleased and we'll be signing up for next year--again just to use as a supplement/social outlet for the time being. :) you should visit a CC group to see how you like it, b/c I think a lot can vary depending on personalities, etc. Our director is very sweet and I've found the other parents and tutors in our group to be nice as well. So much depends on personalities, though!!
  23. I live in the Roanone area...grew up here. What has been said is very accurate! I have a bias in favor of my home city...I will admit that. It is a good small city with some cultural opportunities (we have season tickets to the symphony...there's a good, although financially floundering, art museum...Hollins U and Roanoke College provide some interesting opportunities). Downtown is growing, and has a nice array of restaurants and little shops. I think Roanoke is also politically diverse. We have a good natural foods co-op...good farmers market....etc. Cost of living is good, I think. Real estate prices in some areas can seem a but inflated, but in general I think it is a great place to live, financially speaking. And there are plenty of hiking trails and outdoor activities to enjoy!!
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