Xahm
-
Posts
2,108 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Classifieds
Store
Posts posted by Xahm
-
-
4 hours ago, WTM said:
My kids read Hakim’s History of US alongside SOTW. The chapters are short and easy to read, so it really didn’t feel like work.
This is what we are doing. My kids have loved History of US, and I've been really impressed.
-
Let me start by saying 2 things: 1. nothing about your plan is bad. I'm suggesting alternatives because you are still a ways from implementing it. If things change between now and then, you may want to have alternatives in mind. 2. I have a slightly negative view of Montessori curriculum. While I've known several smart, capable people who went to Montessori school, a childhood friend when to one from toddler through 8th grade, and they never caught that she has severe dyslexia and dyscalculia. She faked her way through the "works" without gaining any understanding for years upon years. That probably says more about the school than the method, but it means I personally distrust the method. That colors my advice, and so I'm telling you to be fair
To me, the best thing about Montessori school for little ones is that it creates a more traditionally home-like rather than school-like setting, creating ways for children to take personal responsibility for their own needs and the needs of the group while engaging with a variety of ages. It seems odd to me when I hear of home educators trying to make their home be like a school that's trying to be like a home. Instead, I'd rather lean into the advantages of being home and working with the kids right in front of me. My kids are currently 9, 8, 5, and 3, so I've had the "teaching with baby in tow" and "teaching while toddler rampages" experience a few times now. What has helped me is using the strengths of that instead of only trying to work around it. Instead of using manipulatives I was worried about a baby putting in his mouth or otherwise destroying, we counted Cheerios, baby toys, or even baby toes. We practiced sharing equally. Older siblings teach younger ones things, which itself is pretty Montessori. We have certain routines we follow, certain chores each one knows to do automatically, which again is pretty Montessori. I guess what I'm suggesting is that, while you still have time before academics need to start, you read Montessori philosophy and other philosophy (which it sounds like you're doing already) and concentrate on making your home the best home for learning you can rather than the best school-like. Then, if life throws you a curve ball and baby number 2 is twins, or child number one hates manipulatives, or any of a number of circumstances comes along, you won't feel bound to plans you made and already purchased expensive supplies for.
We get questions here all the time from people who had a great plan and have sunk lots of money into that great plan and then feel stuck when it turns out it wasn't a great plan for their current situation. They aren't stuck; they are legally free to change whenever they want, but they feel horrible stuck because of the amount of money they've already invested.
There really are so many cheap and free options that are actually very good. The problem is that such options have an advertising budget of zero, so it's easy to be convinced by slickly produced big-budget productions. You've clearly been doing a lot of good research and are spotting potential flaws, so I think you are on track for making great choices. I just don't want you to feel like a great education needs to be expensive. Anyway, if you, an intelligent, educated woman are staying home and devoting your work to your own children, you are already spending a huge amount of resources on your children. After taking into consideration the $70,000 or so of lost income you are spending on your kids, it's not being cheap to go with the great program that's 30 bucks to implement instead of the great program that's 2,000 bucks to implement.
-
2
-
-
Those are all pretty expensive, especially for that really young age. I know the idea of teaching math can be intimidating, but there are really a lot of very cost effective and even free ways to teach young ones. You are clearly very drawn to Montessori methods. Is that because you particularly like their scope and sequence, their philosophy, the materials, the emphasis on manipulatives? If you tell us what parts are most important to you, we may have some alternatives or suggestions.
Since this is such an investment, I'd start with something extremely simple and cheap, like Kate Snow's Preschool Math at Home, or even free, like MEP. Before investing in something that you are going to be committed to for the long haul, practice teaching your child. Find out what works for you. Do you like using the child's own toys so that they will naturally keep practicing in their free time? Or does your child resent it when you control their toys, so it's best to have dedicated math manipulatives? It maybe your kids quickly jump to doing everything in their heads, so spending any money on manipulatives world be a frustrating waste.
I applaud you for looking ahead and preparing, and I assure you that I enjoy doing so as well. I'd urge you to hold off on getting any serious curriculum until first grade, or Kindergarten at the earliest. The math that is helpful for little ones to learn is constantly surrounding them. Kids who are introduced to fractions while maiming ingredients to bake cookies generally have no problem understanding that 1/2 is bigger than 1/3 and is equal to 2/4. Kids counting out raisins to share discover all sorts of principles and relationships between numbers. If you can take this time to discover that with your children, you'll be laying a solid foundation for your children's math future and for your future as their teacher. You may even discover that you are more math-y than you think!
-
2
-
-
23 hours ago, macmacmoo said:
Someone at Co-Op mentioned Science Mom
My kids who liked Mystery Science as little ones now like Science Mom. We've been doing Earth Science and plan to continue with others.
-
That sounds a lot like my son. He's finding he likes Magic Tree House books, I think because he can read multiple chapters in one sitting and feel accomplished. Books with lots of pictures give that accomplished feeling really well, so maybe look for books with really short chapters?
-
1
-
-
I've got Cub Scout Day camp coming up. It's my first time as program director and I'm trying not to have panic attacks. It's going to go at least ok. Everything is coming together well enough. But if we could just get about 5 more full week volunteers, we would have a good chance if it going very well.
We've got lots of kids and some great leaders and activities, but some institutional knowledge has gotten lost along the way, so we're scrambling a bit more than I'd like. If they got through last year even more by the skin of their teeth, we'll make it this year. I've just got to take some deep breaths.
After that's done, I'll get to look forward to next year. I'll have 3 in the pack until March, when my daughter will join a new Girl's Troop. I'll be leading the Tigers, which I'm looking forward to. I feel like I learned and grew a lot laying then as Lions and this will be much easier in many ways.
-
2
-
-
Very glad to hear from you, and I deeply respect your decision to not post much during a rough time. (Though for those who do post their difficulties, that can also be something I deeply respect)
-
2
-
-
I don't know this word, but I would guess the second pronunciation if I came across it.
-
1
-
-
17 hours ago, Kanin said:
Since oldest is just missing their license, I'd say just drive. Getting pulled over is unlikely if they're usually careful driving. My DH drives all the time and forgets his wallet. I don't think it's illegal to drive without your license physically on you, is it?
In our state it's still illegal to drive without it with you, but it's a super minor thing, like a 5 or 10 dollar fine for "No license on person." If an officer pulls someone over and can't find them in the computer system, they'll get a "driving without a license" ticket, but it can automatically be lowered to the "No license on person" if the person takes their license with them to the courthouse any time before the fine is due.
-
2
-
-
1 minute ago, johnettesarate said:
I honestly don’t understand how you can argue with bots. I mean, you should understand that it’s a bot, and there is no point in arguing with him. Besides that, I truly don’t understand why a bot would take onto a house renovation thread. People are looking to find answers to certain questions, and these bots just annoy us. I was also discussing with some people on the forum about the equipment from (deleted link) and these bots took on that thread and started writing all kinds of shit.
Irony
-
2
-
2
-
-
23 minutes ago, Gil said:
I'm a little confused. Since you work at a WWII Museum, isn't explaining to folks about the war (and the Atom-bomb) which played a pivotal role in both ending that war, and also in preventing a lot of would-be-wars since then, a part of your job?
I'd guess they are careful with this with the younger set, looking to parents to get guidance on how much to share. My older kids have known a little about the bombing of Hiroshima by about 8, but it wouldn't have been best for them to first hear of it casually in a museum gift shop
-
2
-
-
We've used the MAP mentioned above. I like that it's untimed and adaptive, but I also chose it because our local school district uses it. If I ever decide to enroll my kids, it will be handy to have scores the schools easily understand.
It is a bit more expensive than some tests and some kids don't like the fact that it's designed to go until the questions get too hard to answer. I like that feature because I don't want my kids to assume they are supposed to get 100 percent correct on a standardized test.
-
3
-
-
18 hours ago, HS Mom in NC said:
As a monogamous heterosexual, I wouldn't wear it on the finger next to my pinky on my right hand because I wouldn't want it misinterpreted and I wouldn't want the awkward situation a misinterpretation could become. Some swingers wear their bands on their right hands as a signal to others, some heteros do when cheating, and some lesbian couples do as a sign of their commitment.
I would gladly have it sized to fit any of my other fingers or thumbs and wear it daily.I would guess that any swingers, etc depending solely on "ring on the right hand" to judge potential interest are going to face lots of confusion and rejection. Others have mentioned Greek Orthodox have a tradition of right hand marriage bands, and I know that's also Turkish and Russian custom. I think, but don't know, that it's common in other Eastern European and Middle Eastern cultures as well. I know some Americans wear rings on both ring fingers when traveling to make sure they are signaling "married" to everyone they encounter. I know other happily married individuals who don't like jewelry and so don't wear rings at all and are able to avoid extramarital entanglements with ease.
I'm glad you will wear and enjoy the ring.
-
2
-
-
On 4/28/2022 at 11:57 AM, Jann in TX said:
Living this scenario with my 2yo grandson right now! My DD is medically disabled so DH and I are raising GS (DD helps a few minutes each day as she is able).
We had a somewhat similar child. He clearly understood everything and could follow multi step directions at 2 but had maybe 5 words. I wasn't worried because I had some other slightly late talkers and my husband was a late talker, but I wanted to get the ball rolling in case there was a problem. He was evaluated as havering a kindergartner's receptive vocabulary, which got me to thinking. This but had frequently heard us say since variation of "he doesn't really talk" over and over again. I switched the script to "he's a great communicator and really working to add spoken language to the mix," which still communicated needed information to those interacting with him but also encouraged him to talk more. Almost immediately, he began speaking much more and we ended up dropping speech therapy because by the time we got off the wait list, he had zoomed past all the milestones. I'm sure it was partly a matter of timing, but I am firmly convinced that he had been listening to us and it affected him considerably. I have no idea if that story can be of use to you, but I encourage you to think about what he's overhearing and if you can make changes to that to encourage him to speak.
-
16 hours ago, Spryte said:
Why is it that these cameras *can* be turned off? It seems like that misses the point, if part of the point is keeping cops accountable.
Officers do need to go to the bathroom and they and the others (if it's a public restroom) have a right to privacy there. They come home to their families still wearing their uniforms. Not commenting on this specific situation, but that's why they can be turned off.
-
3
-
-
BA does have some teacher resources online that give an idea of how to break things into lessons as well as explain the methodology for each chapter. These are free on their website, but somehow many people overlook them. They also have free placement tests, but the placement tests tend to be easier than the level they place you into, so if your child is on the border with the test, go lower rather than higher.
-
To answer the original question. Sure. Sometimes I let people lie to me. If someone lies and I know it, it still gives me useful information. I might learn that they are uncomfortable talking about a thing, that they don't respect me, that they are scared of confrontation, or something else. Generally I take that information and use it to inform future interactions with that person.
My kids are young. When they lie to me, we sit down later and talk about trust and truth telling, but in the moment, I generally don't confront because defensive kids generally aren't open to learning.
-
2
-
-
I think there are least used to be a setting that would prevent your name from coming up in search requests or as friend recommendations. A lot has changed in recent years, so I don't know about now.
-
1
-
-
Praying for you and him and his brother that you may find rest, comfort, and peace.
-
1
-
-
36 minutes ago, Night Elf said:
My library system is not a part of PINES. I don't know why it's not state wide, but it's not. The closest county to me is Cherokee which is where we lived before moving to Forsyth. I had problems with them when I was homeschooling the kids when they were little. I remember having great difficulty getting books I needed. We still used the library but it was when we'd go browse and just pick out what looked good.
Ours isn't part of Pines either, but I just got access to their electronic resources for free with my GA driver's license, and it looks like if I showed up at a physical location I could get a physical card, though I probably won't do that.
-
Look at the library systems next to you. For 35$ you can get a card to DeKalb, which has a robust collection of print and e-books. I was just looking up Walton County's fees for you since they are part of the PINES system serving the rest of the state, and it looks like you can get a PINES card free if you live in Georgia. I'm applying now to see how it goes!
-
Have you talked about this in the Pack Committee Meeting? I just sent out an e-mail yesterday to the other members of our committee suggesting we look at the fees we charge to find a way to pay for leader's fees and materials as a standard thing, not just when we have extra money from a gift.
My husband and I are both den leaders. We are both very frugal and know our limits. At the first meeting and in an early e-mail, I told the Lion (Kindergarten age) parents that if anyone wanted to be sure we have snacks, they could volunteer to be snack coordinator and set up a Sign-up Genius or similar. No one volunteered. We don't have snacks. It's okay with everyone. Over the course of the year, I've bought stuff to make trail mix for one activity, a kickball, potting soil, bean seeds, and cups. That's probably 25$ worth. Everything else I've scrounged and made do with stuff around the house or Scout Hut, and it's all gone really well. If there's something I don't have, I either shoot out an e-mail to the parents, or I substitute a different activity. One of my children is in a den with a very generous den leader. She buys cool supplies, gives snacks each week, and even buys the kids Christmas presents. She loves to do it, but it's probably much more than she should do.
My recommendation is to figure out your limits and then communicate them clearly. Probably you should lead one den as a maximum. I was just thinking yesterday how much volunteering with Scouting has given me the opportunity to really improve my communication and leadership skills. Three times this past week, I did something that would have made me very nervous before, as I have a certain amount of social anxiety, and each time went well (or well enough). I think the pack committee chair may be a little annoyed with me, but other members have thanked me for bringing up difficult issues.
-
2
-
-
I have, sort of. It's better for kids who are a bit older than who I was having do it. My fourth grader enjoyed the reading and the few experiments but didn't like the assignments, and that was ok with me at this point, so we didn't implement much from the workbook or teacher's guide past the first third.
I can look up any specific questions you have, but I think you could easily do the experiments with either the teacher's guide OR the workbook, but you wouldn't need both.
-
Probably not something of immediate concern, but not too far from us is a neighborhood originally built as really nice, with a good course and everything. Fortunes changed, it became run down over time, and in the housing collapse the golf course completely went under. Thieves criss crossed the course as they broke into houses, but otherwise it was unused by humans, bringing some wild life closer than was appreciated.
That's probably rare, but it soured me a bit on the idea.
-
3
-
Meals with less meat for my family-advice wanted
in The Chat Board
Posted
I'd love to cook healthy meals for my family that involve less meat, but between not being raised that way and some strong dietary preferences in our family, it is hard! Most members of my household are very thin and don't care about food or eating, so generally I'm trying to cram calories and nutrients into every bite. One kid is very picky (no sauce on things, only certain kinds of pizza) though is starting to try new things more often, while the others are typically kid-picky. They claim to like spicy food, but most people would call it "mild" at best. They all hate green beans and peas though will eat most other vegetables, at least a bit. "Keep giving it to then and don't offer a substitute" doesn't work because a couple go from being hungry to not feeling hungry and just being extremely irritable.
One meatless dish they will eat multiple times a week is oatmeal full of stuff: peanut butter, apple sauce, regular butter, cinnamon, etc. I can make meatless spaghetti, but Mr no-sauce then just eats plain noodles. Fried rice works if it's not too often. Does anytime have any ideas of dishes or cookbooks that may help?