Ecclecticmum
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Posts posted by Ecclecticmum
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Our house is probably made up of magnetic whiteboards LOL.
We have one HUGE teachers sized one, on wheels, this goes against the counter/breakfast bench, one side is used for meal planning (side facing kitchen) other side is used of schoolwork, roleplay, AAS etc.
We have another smaller one (about 2 A4 sheets big) that is used for reminders/bills/notes etc, its on the wall in the dining room/schoolroom.
I also just purchased a little pink one for tabletop use, meant for maths, but since its magnetic, it could also be used for AAS lol.
Since most of our stuff is multi-use items, I have been looking at using a file folder like this: http://www.hopeforhomeschool.blogspot.com.au/2011/11/aas-letter-tiles-mini-office.html for the tile storage.
I know its not what your after, but hopefully it shows some ideas and alternatives for others, since we use different sizes. I also can't keep the tiles out, because I have little ones, and they will pull the tiles down (or as DH just said "destroy the world as we know it" LOL) :lol:
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A dictorionary called "A First Dictionary" meant for elementary students. I saw it at a charity shop and immediately grabbed it. Its the same one I used when I was in primary. Its small enough to fit into a little tiny bag, carry around a lot, and for when I need to explain the definition of something and am not quite sure how to explain it to the kids, I grab that (I find the dictionary you get from google, tends to end up having another word they don't understand in the definition lol, so we could end up on a major rabbit trail if we used that as our basis.
Walter the Farting Dog - LOL! My kids are still all in the stage where bodily movements are completely fascinating so we have a couple of the Water the farting dog books, and Zoo Poo.
Children Just Like Me - I actually have 2 copies of this. 1. so that I can read it out easily whilst they have the other copy and look at that and 2. Because they love it soo much, So I have one copy that stays on my reference shelf, so as not to get damaged, and the other they are aloud to read at will.
Any of the internet-linked encyclopedias
Classics like House at Pooh Corner, Charlottes Web etc These get read over and over again.
Roald Dahl Books - I find reading these tend to make the kids find reading interesting, so its an author I love to use here. They can see that books can even be funny & silly, with lots of words for things like "disgusting" (dispicable, horrible, filthy, nasty etc).
Poetry Books - We get the little summary "best works of" books. I read it out slowly, and then we discuss what the kids think the poem means.
Other than those I can't really see particular things being used over and over, as all of their books are read over and over, if they aren't then they are donated, we don't keep unused books around as we don't have the room.
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What OPs have said
- Bookcase/armoires
- Curtains
Other ideas (some are crazy lol):
-Kitchen Towel Tubes (yes, I have seen dividers made out of a mount of towel tubes)
- Old doors (similar to asia style room dividers, connect doors with swivel brackets)
- Large Maps hung from ceiling
- Rope divider. Hang rope from ceiling to floor with a bit of room between each rope lot, then weave other rope or fabric through it to make a weave wall divider.
- Simple frame (possibly with wheels) and just attach fabric across frame at top at bottom to form a more canvas styled divider
- cardboard. Use large cardboard box, open and flatten, they can deocrate how they want.
- Use old pallets
- Plants faux or real, create a jungle of plants between then tall/short, ones haing from ceiling.
Basically heres what you have to decide:
- Whether is full-block out or partial block out
-How big the room is
- How much you want to partition (completely cut it in half, or just a couple of feet at the heads of their beds etC)
- Whether you want the partition to be easily moved back and forth throughout the day, or removable if need be, but stays where it is, or more permanent type solution
- What sort of weight your ceilings can take
- Your budget
- Amount of time you have to do it in.
These are all things that create a difference. For example if you said, full blockout, full partition, moneys not really important, large room, ceiling can't take too much weight, and its not urgent, can be done slowly - Then I would suggest something like a complete two sided bookshelf that completely partitions the room with a "secret" bookshelf door in the middle.. But thats not going to be good if someone is on a budget, its not a big room, and you don't want something that permanent. Then I would suggest something like the curtain, simple frame or jungle plants depending upon your needs.
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I'm always tired, but thats just 'cause I have CFS :tongue_smilie:
I'm pretty much a wrung out exhausted wreck right now, I think I managed to give myself food poisoning :ack2: (good job, go me!) I'm pretty much just a broken shell, and I would be in bed...but unfortunately I don't have the energy quite yet to get up to go there....so for the moment at least, I am stuck sitting on this chair with the netbook, groaning and clicking. :crying: sad panda is me :(
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Education" Bachelors in Mechanical Design Engineering
Works as: Product & Packaging Development Officer, but soon to transfer over to IT in the same company (hopefully this will change his working hours/overtimes to be more normal since he won't be doing product runs)
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Education: skipped end of year 8, and 9, (so went from 8th to 10th) did halfway through year 10 at TAFE, I had a disagreement when I got sick and had to cancel (talking to my mentor who told me to cancel tafe and enrol in distant education) when he would not allow me to do the 2nd semester of Maths and Take the test (or just take the test lol), as because of doing half through Maths at Tafe that qualified me for pass level, and I needed to continue to get credit or distinction in order to pursue the field I wanted to, that coupled with another red tape barrier due to suburb & artifacts (see, ultra long story) meant I just quit. I'll be attempting to finish through another alternative I found with a local homeschooling company, so will be homeschooling myself as well as my kids! yey!
Degree in Beauty (Mum insisted long ago on a back up job, this was my answer, means I can work in Fields of Make-up, Frangrance, Consulting, Advice etc)
Pre-homeschooling work:
Paid
- Real Estate
- Animal Industry (Retail & Vets)
- Research Assistant (Not labs LOL, researching for a company, hard to explain)
- Library Assistant/Liaison (helping out children and adults requiring more than a yes/no answer, the librarian basically referred them to me if she had to answer more than one word or move from her spot, which meant most of the time :lol: )
- And one more job that will be kept private :tongue_smilie:
Volunteer
- Animal Industry (Pounds & Welfare Organisations)
- Charities (Red Cross, Muscular Dystrophy etc). This required anything from working with people involved (blood donors, children etc, to doorknocking, Administration, Website & Brochure designing, fund-raising ideas etc
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No.
Even the highest purebreds out here for Malteses, ****zus etc are $500, but average is aorund $350. and i still WOULDN'T pay it.
Because....I have worked with Animal Welfare Leagues, Pounds, re-adoption places and to me over 85% of the dogs I have seen have been white and small (i.e. maltese, ****zu, bichons and any other breeds similar or crossbreeds there of) most of these were purebred, well bred dogs. This is in Aus, though, there is an overabudance of these breeds in Australia, so for me, I would hesitate against getting any, even from the pound. The only way to stop these breeders over-breeding and over-populating certain breeds is to not purchase them.
Seems everyone likes the white little fluffball puppy they buy, but soon grow bored of them. Then, when I rescued my mix breeds from people who did actually have "accidents" (as opposed to those who deliberately breed crossbreeds or don't care) I get purebred enthusiasts breathing down my neck for dare not letting my dogs go to the pound and be put down. I will take them seriously, when they stop over-breeding small, white dogs. :lol: And seriously, who in the average population is going to rescue a labrador x german shepherd x Rottweiler x kelpie if I don't? :D And shes a big ginormous licky sook!
ANYHOOO Gigantic insane rant aside :tongue_smilie: I always say to have a look around (2 months minimum browsing) first, if you are going to buy from a breeder, check there AKC registration (actually ring up the AKC, and make sure the person is legit) get (argh, giant fly couple landed on my heart, I think I may be dying :lol:, okay, waiting for heart attack to settle) get references from the lady for people you can actually go see whom have an adult one of her puppies (i.e. previously purchased off her and have had the puppy for at least a year or two).
If you can, I would suggest going to your local pound (ones that don't have a "no kill" policy should be first) and take a look around there. Rescue dogs are often insanely sweet and overjoyed at even the slightest attention :)
Oh ,and very important. Make sure you see "all" her property. You should be able to see the mom, the dad, and the surrounding land, and inside any iffy looking buildings. I have even come across a puppy mill in Australia (that is somehow counted as legal here, which has angered me to no end). Be wary of any "appointment necessary" places. If they require a few days just for you to come and chat, thats suspicious. If you have their address, if possible, view from a distance away before the alloted "appointment" so you can see the outer of it without any pretenses on their part.
I also usually do a google of the intended breeder to see if anything bad pops up.
Good luck with finding your new best friend! xxxx :grouphug:
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What about Elemental Science?
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Awesome, awesome, awesome! Thank you so much! I will definitely search for the poster you mentioned.
So, do your kids work straight from the binder or do you remove the pages they're doing that particular day? Also, when you put in a week's worth of work, is it ordered by subject (say, all of the week's math work first, then all the week's copywork, then all the week's spelling, etc) or is it divided into daily chunks (so, math, copywork, spelling, math, copywork, spelling, etc.)?
Since they are young, I do everything myself right now (especially since a lot of it is interactive rather than plain worksheets) so I remove the pages for the day.
Here is basically what I think you want (done by 3blessings4me, gosh shes an inspiration!) http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=298516#post3000691
Thats her folder/workbook/binder for the kids. Thats probably the sort of thing I will do as they get older and have more independant lessons.
Another option is Weekly folders for the kids by Homeschool Creations (or called aka Organizing the Paperwork) :http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/2010/04/organizing-school-paperwork/
She uses weekly folders with the inner flaps and paper clips according to the days work.
Theres another one I was going to link to, but I have forgotten it, I have so much going on today, that my brain appears to be frying up midsentence :tongue_smilie:
Oh yeah! I remembered! lol:tongue_smilie:
This ladys ways of organising/planning: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=241024
She uses a comb binder to create mini books for lessons that need to be done, so you could use that idea to create the weeks work, just bind it together.
Aren't you lucky to have me? :D:lol: I spent a WHOLE lot of time wandering around every thread to do with planning and organizing last year, and love organizing/planning so I always remember these cool little ideas.
I really hope those help, they should give you different points of view for inspiration. And of course, all of them have photos, which go a long way for ideas/understanding....and there prettttttyyyyy :D
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I used the filebox system last year. I am amidst final planning for this year and have decided to go with binders.
I use a sonlight type template (I looked at the sample of the new sonlight schedules) and used that as inspiration for my planner.
I am planning to put a blog post up when I have finished (very soon), but basically I have:
- Summer school binder: Separated into subjects, this is for items that go over the 36 week curriculum (SOTW etc)
- Teachers Binder: This has a normal dated calendar in the front, I use this for field trips, notes, family stuff, its basically my normal calendar for dated things. In it is also stuff I need for multiple weeks that can't be put into a certain weeks folder (alphabet cards, science lapbook sheets, teachers guides etc) In the back of this is my supply lists, and a enclosed folder which I put in school receipts (for tax time) and a page protector which hold various bits and pieces (co-op cards, school registration number etc)
- Binders Labelled 1-6: Each contains 6 weeks worth of shedules, sheets and activities.
Weekly Guide/Binder: Every week I put the new weeks worth of stuff into the weekly binder, behind tabs 1-5. The schedule sheets are at the front, and the notes are removed and put on my clipboard.
Filing: I have folders (left over from filebox system lol) labelled 1-36, at the end of each day, I just toss all the sheets etc into that weeks folder, at the end of the week, I plop that folder into my filing box (I "file" about every 4-6 weeks lol). I have a binder for each child, and I just plonk the work into there.
Once I get photos up, it'll sound a lot more amazing, and easy :lol: lol.
I don't like putting days, so everything is labelled Week 1, Day 1. It would frustrate me to no end to teach Mondays subjects on Thursday lol, so I avoid days.
I am always inspired by 3blessings4me's posts, I would do a search for her stuff :) It sounds like what your after (or at least if you adapt her idea a little)
HTH xxx
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Same as OP, a lot LOL.
Basically my budget for curriculum, and larger purchases is budgeted to the tax return. Office supplies aren't included in that. Its really to variable to say. I would actually need to sit down, research and write up a sheet on what I spent for one child for last year and this year.
Hopefully others can give you a nominal amount.
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I am having trouble accessing her site lately, but I know after she did SOTW 1, Angela went on to American History, so her site may help http://www.satorismiles.com
We live outside the US, so the current trouble I am having is trying to find fun supplements/mini unit about USA for a Unit Study (for culture/geography). Considering most people who write the unit studies are in the US, this means they don't tend to write about their own country, but write about every other (india, australia etc) :lol:
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Explode the Code - I originally thought it was brilliant! Handwriting practice and phonics AIO. We did the primers, and to me, it was a years waste of work. She retained the sound for a week after learning it, and thats it. By the end of the book 2 she had forgotten most of the letter sounds (and we got the wallchart and teachers guide, I spent a fair amount of time going over each and every exercise recommended in the TM), finally on the last page of Book 2, I called it quits, and we left it at that. She'll start AAR this year, so hopefully that will fix her up, as shes already basically wasted a year on instruction. Letter Factory has done better than ETC for us. But for some reason I purchased more (1-4 1/2) of ETC to plan to use it for this year :confused::001_huh: because thats how much of an idiot I am LOL. If AAR doesn't work, we'll possibly try Hooked on Phonics, and if that doesn't work, well I will probably go completely insane (I'm halfway there already). :lol:
(ETC wasn't the whole year, it was half a year, we had already tried dabbling in 100EZ (she was so frustrated, "is it over yeeeeeet?", OPGTR - which she kept zoning out to stare at the wall, and happy phonics - Which was too much of a pain to set up) Thats why I was so disappointed with ETC, at least the others were problems from the start, ETC seemed to be working, so we continued until the end of the year, only for me to realize nothing was being retained for long).
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Thank you so much! This is super helpful! I feel like a moron, I thought the books had the art lessons in them, but upon further investigation, you are right, they are blank notebooks. That makes that set really overpriced IMO!
Nah, anyone can make that mistake. I never looked closely at the craft kit, because I tend to buy supplies separately, elsewise I probably would of made the same mistake.
It does look quite pricey, but when you add those items up (especially getting from a curriculum place rather than office supplies etc) it can add up quite quickly.
Hopefully you find something your after :)
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I went for a bit of a wander for you (ok, I may have gotten waylaid on the Walmart site, going ooooooooh, I want that, and that, and that! LOL)
I found these on Amazon:
Sterilite White baskets with Titanium inserts - 6 pack :http://www.amazon.com/Sterilite-16248006-Basket-Titanium-Inserts/dp/B002BA5F0M/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hg_1
Shabby Chic Wire Baskets: http://www.amazon.com/Shabby-Cottage-Rectangle-Basket-Handles/dp/B005FAGBWG/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hg_55
Or more primary colour book baskets: http://www.amazon.com/Romanoff-Products-Inc-74904-Basket/dp/B005IH85OS/ref=sr_1_19?ie=UTF8&qid=1333543633&sr=8-19
I usually just follow the rabbit trails (i.e. find an item of interest like those above, then look at the "what others purchased as well as this item" section)
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I would say get SOTW, and the Activity Book, and just go with that. Use the library for any extra books.
For science, have a look around Elemental Science site. I love her stuff :) We are using it this year for 1st grade, it follows the basics of WTM, with a CM feel. But theres even a couple of preschool/overview programs that would be just as fun for 1st :)
With Abeka Health 1- Its really just literally a reader (book). I was excited when I saw it too, but after a friend lent it to me to look at, I was really disappointed. We've made up our own Health, Safety & Etiquette curriculum for this year. There is links and ideas on my blog if you want to think about other options.
HTH xxx
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Its sounds like your in quite a bind.
From what I am gathering (please tell me if I got any of this wrong) you have your chosen read-alouds, and they aren't anything to do with core subjects (history, science, maths etc) and you don't want to change the books, plus have activities & work in the afternoon.
I'm not sure really what to say then :confused: lol. If you could somehow make them part of your core subjects as one of the main reading spines etc, then it could work. Ditto for reading assignments...don't read all the books out to them, but get them to read it (take turns, so each child by the end, ends up reading all the books).
I would say to try to find a way to compromise. Either you have to go through them slowly and have much shorter read-aloud times or put reading assignments into them and not read them aloud. Perhaps, another idea, is to make it a kind of book club, either have multiple copies of the same book, or wait till you & the last child have read through it, then discuss it as a group.
We don't have many "separate" read-alouds, as any read-alouds are planned into our cores. The only read-alouds we have is 2-3 chapters of a chapter book and one picture book (and associated activity) a week. These are scheduled about middle/last part of the day. We do them after our LA and at the end of our Core subjects, but before we start Electives or Crafts.
xxxx
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Hmm,,,....thats a lot.
I mean, I do a lot more than that with my kids, but I sort of combine them where possible, where as your approach is to sort of take two seperate programs. hmmm....
Well what I do is have a special planner, colour co-ordinated. I use DD as my main program (since shes the eldest) I fold the others in on there.
So I get the younger ones to follow along whereever I can, and then in parts we're they need to be occupied, I have a separate thing for them to do. Heres an example (it will be much easier once I get pics up my blog and can just SHOW people LOL :tongue_smilie: )
Maths - All the children have Singapore Math workbooks. If the younger two don't want to do theirs, they can play with manipulatives. Rightstart is kind of teacher intensive, so if that what you want to do with your younger one, you going to have to make sure your older one is doing something that requires minimum involvement from you at that time.
History - All the kids follow along.
Science - All the kids follow along
Electives - All the kids follow along
Language Arts - This is another separated place. Because the youngers are doing AAR Pre-level, I decided to just let the eldest play along too (she'll love it, and she'll feel left out if I don't) Other than that, for all the language arts stuff I do with DD, I have something for the other kids to do at the same time e.g. Sensory Tubs, Activity Sheets, Crafts, Montessori Trays, etc.
Geography - Everyone follows along.
Basically I choose my program for the eldest, but I always keep the younger ones in mind, and adjust the program where neccesary. For example for Health, I have dramatic play boxes for each subject we study, as well as fun craft, activities, songs etc. For Geography, i made the program more interactive, by included movies, crafts, pretend play items (tickets to the country etc).
So I don't really try to "separate" them, rather actually include and fold them in where ever I can. Next year C will be starting Kinder, and I will be using something like Oak Meadow for him, but I will be re-arranging it, so it can be done around other studies, and during times when the Eldest needs minimal supervision.
i don't know whether that helps at all though :)
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I think somewhere like Confessions of a Homeschooler converted her attic into a schoolroom, naturally both sides were slanted, so she used the walls to put the workboxes and the kids tables up against.
Ahh, here we go it is "Homeschool Creations" who did it:
http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/2011/10/our-new-home-schoolroom/
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We do a chapter a week. so 36 chapters in the formal school year.
The rest of the chapters (6 I think for current one) is for summer school, informal schooling, to do at our own leisure during the hols.
But we have a lot of supplements, I use History Odyssey, the Activity Book, Library Books and Movies. So if you were just reading the book, once every 6 weeks just add in another chapter.
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This is a very old thread LOL.
Anyway,
I've scheduled in SOTW for 5 days a week. We do a chapter a week. Left over chapters are counted as summer school.
I'm not at my computer at the moment, but my best guess is:
Day 1 - Read Chapter and discuss.
Day 2 - Read reference books, and do some activities
Day 3 - A library book or two and a movie
Day 4 - Hands-On Activities
Day 5 - Audio Supplement, Tests and Lapbook component.
If I ever get back to my computer I will re-write whats necessary :tongue_smilie:
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You can't dangle the idea of chicken pasta salad without posting a recipe!
Its about the easiest thing there is! lol
Cooked chicken - shredded
Pasta - Usually the best is the elbow macaroni, but any type is pretty much fine
Corn Kernels
Grated Carrot
Some sort of mayo/white cream - Everywhere in the world is different, like mayo out here (Aus) is equal to salad cream or something in the UK. Depending upon my mood I either go with a more subtle/bland type whole egg mayo, or the more tangy mayo if I am looking for something with a little zing.
You just throw the cooked pasta, chicken, kernels and carrots in there and smother in the mayo and toss.
Variations - Add spring onion, celery, capsicum for zing & crunch, or boiled egg slices to give the mayo that extra homemade feel. Its all about experimentation of what your particular tastes are. Leave out the kernels if you don't like those.
It is usually served cold, like you would a potato salad. I only eat it warm when I have just made it and don't feel like waiting :tongue_smilie:
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Naw :grouphug: poor you.
Our car is falling into pieces...literally :lol: I can give you the run down to make you feel better?
- Something to do with the transmission (I kind of zoned out when DH was talking :lol: )
- Hole in the Radiator, so it leaks, DH has taken to filling with just water before each and every trip, and unfortunately the radiator is not made of something easily fixable, and we have to basically remove the whole innards of the car to get to it
- Air-con hasn't worked for about 3 years (and we are in Australia lol)
- The drivers side window is missing
- You can hear our car coming from a mile away, it sounds like its taking off into outer space
- Theres various clunks/groans etc
- DH lost the keys, so he uses a screwdriver to start it :lol::lol:
The theme song for our car is Adam Sandlers "Piece of s*** car" :lol:
Oh and anytime you fix one thing on it, 3 more things go wrong, and the original thing you fixed breaks again :tongue_smilie:
We really, really, have to get a new, used car, but 1. We don't have the funds right now and 2. I'm having a little wobbily, as I made DH promise this would be the last car we would get for a long time (we have had a lot of cars over the past few years, due to more babies coming, change in jobs etc).
Besides I love the old stupid thing, its interior is nice and soft, and all the seats fold down to make a double bed for camping. I don't want to get rid of it, but we're probably looking at $5,000 or more for repairs. :( Sad Panda
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I can't imagine what people are making out here.....
The store seems to be bereft of zucchinis, cauliflower, Broccoli and barley...:ack2:
I guess everybody is making some sort of gross soup? LOL.
There were quite a number of people lining up to stare at the cucumbers, then glancing dazedly around. I guess they wanted to make that stew with Zucchini too. :D
ANYHOO, back to the Me and U, I always recommend chicken pasta salad....because its like my favourite event food. "What do you want for Christmas?" "Chicken pasta salad" "What do you want for your birthday?" "Chicken Pasta Salad". I think it goes with practically everything, and even had the word salad in there, so you can make believe its healthier than it is. I especially like making it at home, as I eat it whilst its still warm lol, and leave out the celery & chives (don't like crunchy sour stuff in my pasta :p ) Great.....now I have a craving for it...guess I know what I'm getting as soon as I get paid.
Another thing if you have younger kids (or even big kids :D ) is to use the easter cookie cutters to cut up fruit, so you have bunny & egg shaped fruit salad. :)
Poll--Did previous generations live on one income?
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
I'm counted in the "young" area of the boards *blush*
So my mother was a real-life career first woman. She KNEW how to bake, make a bed, etc, put out a kitchen fire (LONG STORY that one).....and she learnt all this off her mother (my great-grandmother) then, as such, never taught me ANYTHING. Just expected me to know it. Her career came first, she's never been a housewife. And as such, I make a poorly housewife, and have had to learn even to do the most simplest things myself, and at my age, asking anybody how to do "housewife-ly" things leads them to say them same as my mother did to me at 10 "you should know how to do this!" ummmm....how? When I haven't been taught? As such, I am guilty of getting Home Economics from Pearables, so my daughter will not end up having the same problem. And I have ended up having a great affinity for collection homekeeping books.
So yes, my mother always worked. I believe their was one time (when she was still with my biological father) she was "forced" into being the housewife. Cooking, cleaning, not allowed to work, she separated from him when I was in Year 1, so I don't remember much of her being an actual housewife. She rebelled against it, I suppose you could say.
My Grandmother has always been the stereotypical housewife. You could bounced a coin off her sheets :lol: Thats the first time I actually knew that saying to actually be true! She's never worked as far as I am aware, has always been the kitchen wife (and seems to enjoy doing so :) ) She's always busy.
As for my dads parents, I don't know. I can't really remember them.
My step fathers parents are strict catholics. The Mother stays at home with the kids whilst the father works. I never met them, thats about all I know. I think his sister (since she's held onto the catholic beliefs) seems to be the same way, I don't remember her working at all either.