Michelle My Bell Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 So I have started reading (I mean REALLY READING) the Well Trained Mind page by page. I have a habit of skimming books like this. Oh MY, I need to change my focus. I realize I agree with so much of what is said in there and I still have little ones thankfully so I am going to do this right for them. First of all, I want to have some sort of preschool calendar / number of the day / letter etc... displayed for my kindergarten son. I would like to make it myself and would love to see your ideas or even ideas you have seen on the internet. My second thing is I want to display memory work all over the place to we are constantly saturated with it. What are some effective displays you have done or seen? I am going to get rid of all the visual clutter and make space for these important things. I don't care if they a permanent or written on white boards, I just want your amazing ideas! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amyofPA Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 Have you ever seen the blog called "Confessions of a Homeschooler'? She has some wonderful printables on there, and she uses some sort of "Letter of the Day" curriculum and would have great ideas for you. Check is out if you get a chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 My second thing is I want to display memory work all over the place to we are constantly saturated with it. What are some effective displays you have done or seen? My best memory work display strategy wasn't the most decorative, but it works. I started posting memory work in the bathroom on the wall facing the toilet. My sons memorize twice as fast. (I'm not joking. Ds10 says he likes having something to read.) I also display a nice copy on the bulletin board where we work, and sometimes post a copy above each boy's bed. Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted July 9, 2011 Author Share Posted July 9, 2011 My best memory work display strategy wasn't the most decorative, but it works. I started posting memory work in the bathroom on the wall facing the toilet. My sons memorize twice as fast. (I'm not joking. Ds10 says he likes having something to read.) I also display a nice copy on the bulletin board where we work, and sometimes post a copy above each boy's bed. Cat :lol: That's fantastic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted July 9, 2011 Author Share Posted July 9, 2011 Have you ever seen the blog called "Confessions of a Homeschooler'? She has some wonderful printables on there, and she uses some sort of "Letter of the Day" curriculum and would have great ideas for you. Check is out if you get a chance. Off to check it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 My best memory work display strategy wasn't the most decorative, but it works. I started posting memory work in the bathroom on the wall facing the toilet. My sons memorize twice as fast. (I'm not joking. Ds10 says he likes having something to read.) I tried posting memory work on the bathroom mirror, but they don't seem to look at it--they prefer making faces. If only our toilet didn't face a shower curtain! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 I've also put memory work on the back of the seat of the car facing my DD's booster :). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted July 9, 2011 Author Share Posted July 9, 2011 I would also like to know how you display information you are currently just working on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 I just spent two days making copy work sheets for my first grader. I turned some of his history memory work into copy sheets to be used the day we start new memory work. I also have sheets that correspond to the chapters in SOTW. Our memory work is on CD as well, we can listen to it. For PreSchool and Kindergarten I wrote words on cards and my son helped tape them all over the house. They stayed up until he was reading really well. We labeled: doors, windows, lights, books, bookshelves, the couch, chairs, tables, etc. I really like the idea of putting in front of the toilet! You could easily change that out once a week if you start something new. My white board flips over to be a cork board. I plan to print some of our memory work and post it to that each week so he can look at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pink Fairy Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 Mini Offices? Might fit the bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted July 9, 2011 Author Share Posted July 9, 2011 Mini Offices? Might fit the bill. OHHHHHHHH I LOVE This!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitten18 Posted July 9, 2011 Share Posted July 9, 2011 :bigear: I'll be following along to see what you come up with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtotkbb Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 For the Pre-School/K calendar - I took a science display board from Staples. Purchased a calendar kit - it's a blank template w/ places for the dates to be slid in each month, the month name goes at the top and there is a place that says..Today is...., Tomorrow will be.... Yesterday was... and it's slit so you slide in the day-- I had it laminated at our school supply store. I have a set of Abeka Bible memory cards from when I first started homeschooling, a hundreds chart, names of colors, Place value chart to hundreds, etc. Everything is laminated and I mounted it with spray adhesive. I then mounted baggies that held the names of days, numbers for the place value chart to track our days of school, etc. Every month ds helps me change the month and dates - then daily he places the days of the week that go in the "Today is..." slots, places the numbers for days of school, colors a bar on graph for the weather, etc. Before he knew all the days of the week, could count to 100, etc. We went over the board with those quick things in song form. This year I've added a spot to put up his Bible verse for the week to say each day together, definitions of parts of speech, etc. For this year I've printed inspirational messages that I want to surround us with - it's just pictures and sayings or quotes --some silly (like Dory w/ "Just keep swimming...") and others that are Bible or quotes from Lit that I find inspiration in and want the kids to memorize without realizing they are. I printed them and placed them on card stock and I'm hanging them around the room. Each dc has a bulletin board that hangs over their desk and I give them memory work - my little one I print his and he can decorate it if he wants before hanging it on his board. For my olders it's their job to create their own "poster" of sorts and hang it on their board along w/ whatever else they choose for the time they are working on it. Each child also has "mini-office" or what I always called cheat sheets that we design each year that's appropriate to what they are working on and they can add to it if they feel the need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i.love.lucy Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Did you ever see Jennefer from SSA's preschool board? I thought it was awesome and then promptly didn't get around to making it for ds. Even though he'll be in 1st grade this fall I'm going to make this for him and just adapt it to what he needs to know now. Pretty neat! I also agree about using your memory work as copywork. And posting in front of the toilet! I also copy ours on index cards and bind those with a ring so dd can hop in the car with them and we can do it on the run. We make songs or hand motions to go along with it too. I am using Classical Conversations as our memory base and our content and working heavily on SKILLZ this year. DD is going to narrate, and dictate, and copy and memorize and learn to type and keep a daytimer, etc. Those posts by Nan in Mass taking it back to the basics was the kick in the hiney I needed!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I tried posting memory work on the bathroom mirror, but they don't seem to look at it--they prefer making faces. If only our toilet didn't face a shower curtain! Time for a new shower curtain, maps, periodic table, ... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imagine.more Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Time for a new shower curtain, maps, periodic table, ... :D Seriously, I've seen a shower curtain map before, it was the coolest thing ever! Anyway, how about prettying it up and using a frame with just the glass and writing on the glass in dry erase marker? Or just using one simple frame and changing out the 'picture' inside to be a printed quote every week or every month. Ikea has some magnetic boards as well I think. In fact, Ikea has everything I want for our schoolroom, lol! Love that place :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle My Bell Posted July 10, 2011 Author Share Posted July 10, 2011 Did you ever see Jennefer from SSA's preschool board? I thought it was awesome and then promptly didn't get around to making it for ds. Even though he'll be in 1st grade this fall I'm going to make this for him and just adapt it to what he needs to know now. Pretty neat! I also agree about using your memory work as copywork. And posting in front of the toilet! I also copy ours on index cards and bind those with a ring so dd can hop in the car with them and we can do it on the run. We make songs or hand motions to go along with it too. I am using Classical Conversations as our memory base and our content and working heavily on SKILLZ this year. DD is going to narrate, and dictate, and copy and memorize and learn to type and keep a daytimer, etc. Those posts by Nan in Mass taking it back to the basics was the kick in the hiney I needed!! Love it, I am going to make one of those for sure. I love the mini-office for my older girls. Do you have a link to Nan in Mass' back to basics posts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T'smom Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Someone posted a link to someone's "calendar time" blog post not too long ago, but I can't find it now. You should be able to find some cool examples if you google for them. The one a PP mentioned at Smooth Stones is great! If you go to a teacher store (or they even have some at B&N) they have bulletin board packs that are all decorated with the same theme and include things like a reusable calendar, weather graph, counting the school days, etc. Lots of preschools/kindergartens do this in "circle time". HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwg Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 This may have been mentioned but Target has calendar dates/weather in their bargain bins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelissaMom Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 http://halfdozenmama.com/our-homeschool-room-2/ Here's a link to my school room from last year with pics of our calendar. Also, if you scroll to the very bottom, you'll see a little chalkboard desk for my preschoolers with a frame above it. It's just hung on the wall empty and I used sticky tac to hang the little laminated art prints, but this would also work well for posting other memory work and making it look kinda cute. There's always empty frames at the thrift stores and you can paint them too. I'm loving these ideas for hanging memory work around:D were doing CC at home and I'm gonna do some of these things when I finally get around to working in the schoolroom;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgonczi Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 My boys have a shower curtain that is a map of the world. You can get it at Target for about $15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i.love.lucy Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Love it, I am going to make one of those for sure. I love the mini-office for my older girls. Do you have a link to Nan in Mass' back to basics posts? Best get a cup of tea and settle in. This is good, deep reading with spin-offs and will take a while to sink in. I had to take notes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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