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sleepymommy

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Posts posted by sleepymommy

  1. I've been looking at the MEP materials online for my kindergartener. She's bored to tears with the counting practice going on at school, so I want to supplement with something more challenging at home. I love the look of the MEP program. I'm wondering if I need to buy the textbook or if I can just use the worksheets with some explanation. I'm a teacher, so I don't need a lot of guidance, and this is only enrichment work, not my daughter's entire curriculum. Any opinions?

     

    I used MEP yr.1 with ds7 as our second math and only used the online material that you can print. I did not see any need for the textbook. The teachers notes are basically the lesson plan and it has activities to do with your child in it as well as when to assign certain worksheet problems. It's a great program!

  2. Thank you everyone for your thoughts! I think I'll continue with the book but I won't emphasize learning the tricks too much. I'll let him try to "see" how it works and then try to deepen the understanding to other larger numbers as suggested so he can understand why.

     

    If he takes to them then great! But if he doesn't, well then there are a ton of problems in the book, at least he'll have had a lot of extra practice.

     

    Thanks again!!!

  3. Ds7 has known his math facts for awhile now but I just want him to keep practicing because he tends to forget or get slower with them after some time.

     

    I picked up the book "2+2 is not 5" from B&N today because I remember reading some good reviews of it on here. It's a pretty straightforward book with lots of math 'tricks' in it.

     

    For example, for adding 9s it is called Magic 9s:

     

    9+8 = 17 because 7 is one less than 8, then put a 1 in front.

     

    or 9+5= 14 because 4 is one less than 5, put a 1 in front.

     

    This is different from SM's 'make ten' method.

     

    Another example would be "Number in the Middle":

     

    6+4 = 10 because 5 is the number b/w 6 and 4 and you double it.

    3+5 = 8 b/c 4 is the number b/w 3 and 5 and double it.

     

    I think it's nice to have an arsenal of math tricks in you back pocket to help when you need it, but I also don't want to confuse him with too much and cause him to over think about simple addition.

     

    My question is do you think it would confuse him OR conflict with the way he has learned math via Singapore method?

  4. I did pick up a copy of The Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading and we have phonic workbooks which he loves.

     

    I spoke with his teacher this morning and she said that his reading is fine but it's his comprehension that is at a lower level. He doesn't retell the story/events sequentionally. So I'm going to work on this a bit more and see if we can't get his comprehension up to his reading level.

     

    This. I was pretty shocked at the books that were assigned to ds as well, but I have volunteered at the school during the weekly DRA evaluations and it focuses nearly completely on comprehension. The child needs to be able to retell in detail the story-beginning, middle, end, the problem, the solution, the characters, etc.

     

    It is quite difficult for my ds to remember the names of all the characters after only reading a short story once. Some names are completely new to him.

  5. Ethically palm oil is not a good choice, not in this part of the world anyway as it's production destroys the habitat of the orang-utan. Local zoos are actively campaigning against it, and it's inclusion in products is now being labelled separately to enable consumers to make educated choices.

     

    I use olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil and sunflower oil. and butter of course, mostly butter.

     

    I have read this somewhere recently. Thanks for bringing this up.

  6. I've felt this periodically throughout the year and it is a struggle internally. I've looked through some of my old college papers too and sometimes think I'm looking at the work of another person entirely. The name on the paper will have my maiden name and that person almost feels like a stranger to me now.

     

    It's kind of sad really, but I feel guilty for being sad about it for I have been so blessed with a wonderful husband and children. Our life is good.. really good. So I shouldn't feel like I've lost something, since I have gained far more.

     

    I don't have any words of wisdom, but I do get how you feel.:grouphug:

  7. I have not watched a weekly TV show is YEARS, but for some reason this show popped up on my "suggestions" box and I decided it give it a try. Well now I know why I haven't let myself get sucked into TV, I'm seriously hooked on this show!!

     

    I've been staying up way too late every night trying watch one or two episodes and I'm so tired in the morning!

     

    I'm on season 1, episode 14 or so. Anyone else watching?

  8. Yup. Shave their heads...just leave a bit of hair.

     

    Most lice shampoos do nothing these days. You can slather the boys' heads with an oil-based substance and cover it overnight (showercap) or close-crop their hair and hope for the best. Most shampoos do nothing for lice, even the lice shampoos.

     

    FWIW, this is not a PS thing. I've seen it in homeschool co-ops, too.

     

    I will probably go ahead and shave their heads if they get it. Ds4's birthday is this week and I just don't want to do it until I get some pic's of him though!

     

    I have to tell you guys this. When I first started working in the pharmacy, I had a customer come in with an rx. He was very well dressed. Professional guy. He had to fish around in his pocket a bit to find the rx. Finally found it, handed it to me, I wrote his birthdate and phone number on it, etc. I never actually looked at what drug the rx was written for.

     

    He told me he'd be back in 30 minutes and left.

     

    I had been holding the rx the entire time. Then I really looked at it. Read it. It began to concern me. I spoke to a pharmacist, just to make sure. Yup. I was right. The rx was a lotion for body lice. Not just head lice...the all-over, everywhere even in those icky places lice. *ACK!!!*

     

    I typed up the rx. I did my job. I then spent the next 10 minutes sanitizing (Purell), cleansing (Joy detg) and washing myself almost raw in the bathroom.

     

    Shudder.

     

    I was fine. Physically. :D

     

    EEEWWW! I would have done the same thing!

    1. Lice has become resistant to the chemical treatments, so I would not consider those a first-line-of-defense option the way it was when we were kids

     

    2. Get this comb to have on hand should you have an infestation - it's peace of mind that if you do find the bugs, you can start delousing everyone ASAP. Terminator Comb. If you google you will see why this is the top comb for lice treatment. Having it tucked in the back of a drawer 'just in case' has brought down my anxiety level about lice :).

     

    3. Tea Tree Oil. You can put it into water/spray detangler. What I do is rub a few drops on my fingers and then rub it into the kids' heads and behind their ears

     

    4. Talk with them about never letting their heads rub other kids. They likely won't follow it, but it will plant the idea in their minds to be more careful.

     

    I agree with those posting about a spray w/tea tree oil, mint, etc in it. The other thing I do is to have a really good lice comb and comb out my kids' hair with it for up to a week after exposure. I do it in larger sections right after they washed and conditioned it. It doesn't take very long. I think I may comb out the girls hair once a week. Even though we homeschool, we've had lice 3 times because we are around so many kids.

     

    I'm going to order that comb! Even if they don't get in now, it will be great to have on hand.

     

    I am itchy now. Dd got lice once several years ago, it was awful, I felt like the worst mom in the world. One thing I instituted with my kids in school is that they are not to hang their jackets or sweatshirts on the hooks in the coatroom. I always had them put their jackets inside of their backpacks. Nothing major but I got so paranoid after my dd got lice, I was a freak for months.

     

    Good luck just keep an eye out for his hair. It's easy to check for them in the sunlight too.

     

    I'm feeling itchy too! I go into total girly girl mode when it comes to bugs and even the thought of little critters in my hair or the boys' makes my stomach turn.:tongue_smilie:

     

    I can't believe I'm going to say this, but my husband refers to those critters as "cr*tch crickets" Everytime I hear that term it makes me :lol: I don't know why, it just does.

     

    :lol:

     

    It seems like I saw an ad somewhere for some sort of lice prevention shampoo in a magazine. Family Fun maybe?

     

    Also remind kids NOT to share hoodies, hats, wigs, etc. Be careful about padded reading corners in schools (bean bags, piles of pillows) and nap mats.

     

     

    Ewwww

     

    I hadn't thought about the "reading corner". Now I've got paranoid thoughts of critters everywhere.:ohmy:

  9. Well this was only the first full week of public school for ds7 and we've already received a note in the newsletter about lice being detected in a couple of classrooms :eek ! Ugh, this is definitely one of several major downsides to PS!!!

     

    It didn't say which classes but I would hope that if it were in his the teacher would let us know.

     

    As a precaution, I've washed both of my boys' hair with TTO shampoo with a couple extra drops added in. Stripped their bed linens and they currently in the washer.

     

    Is there anything else I can do to try and prevent any infestation here or in the future?

  10. I agree with getting the titer.

     

    The separate M, M, and R vaxes are still available abroad so I've not given up hope yet that they will put them back in production here by the time my boys hit puberty. There is also on manufacturer (can't remember the name of hand) that produces the MMR both separately and combined without egg. But it's not available here. :(

     

    I'm not anti-vax, I just prefer a slower introduction to the vaccines to a growing child's body. I wish Merck hadn't stop production of the single vaxes, thus taking away my choice to do so.

     

    I've called them and requested that they put the single vaxes back into production and I think it would be great if a everyone who wanted them would call. Right now ds4 has not had any of the MMR and I would certainly give it to him if they had it available singularly and I know many other families that would also vaccinate for measles, mumps and rubella if they had the one-at-a-time option.

     

    Ds7 had a bad reaction to his MMR at 12 months and I would never give him any more vaccines. I was told his egg allergy was not very severe so I wouldn't have to worry about the vax. THEY WERE WRONG! So I'm trying to be more careful with ds4.

     

    How old is your dc? If you have time before puberty hits, I would try to contact drug companies and request them to produce an egg-free and singular version. Hopefully if they get enough of a demand for it they would consider it. If another manufacturer can do it, they can too.

  11. Our school year just started so I haven't gotten any exact schedule down yet. So far it's been pretty scattered. We've done some Singapore CWP problems orally afterschool. Yesterday we did WWE before school. Dancing Bears a couple of times afterschool. I'd like to do some handwriting, but right now I just don't see fitting that in. I'm planning on doing some GWG on the weekend as was suggested here, but was out of town this past weekend so will try for it this weekend.

     

    I think doing the SOTW audiobook would be great in the car if you are spending a lot time there. I've been trying to compile some things to listen to in the car, but it's hard for me to not listen to NPR (public news radio).

  12. If she has a large oversupply of milk then I do think the one-sided feeding is probably best. I was severely engorged for the first 4 months (I had huge rock like lumps even in my armpits) and this was the method I did, it helped a lot. I didn't start it until after the first month though because that is when I learned about it. She could even just do the one sided feeding every 2 hours instead of every 3 if the baby is hungry quickly. It was more painful on the side that I had to wait with, but it does regulate itself after a week. For me, it was the only way to decrease my milk supply. I ended up breastfeeding for a little over a year, so it did not get rid of my supply it just normalized it since I was making too much.

     

    If the situation is just that the baby is gaining a lot of weight but the mother is not severely engorged, then I would just continue to feed on both sides like normal. If she doesn't have an oversupply, then decreasing the amount could be detrimental to keeping up with her supply. Breastfed babies tend to be more plump then formula fed babies during their first few months and with so many more formula fed babies the doctor's are probably not as aware of this difference.

     

    Ds7 went from 6 1/2 lbs when we left the hospital to 10 lbs at his 1 week appt. His Dr. was delighted, said I must have some magic milk! He didn't stay so large and in fact he is a tiny thing now, but it was just all the fat from the breastmilk at that time.

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