From Melissa's Desk

Earth Day Eco-Friendly Learning Opportunities

In the upcoming months there will be many great opportunities to teach kids about saving energy and the environment.

• On Saturday, March 28^th at 8:30 p.m., during the World Wildlife Fund’s Earth Hour, hundred of millions of people around the world will turn off their lights for one hour in a vote for action on the climate crisis.
• Then on April 22^nd more than 500 million people and national governments in 175 countries will celebrate Earth Day.

On March 27, at special “Stepping Up for the Environment” events across 320-plus Goddard Schools nationwide, more than 40,000 youngsters will help spread the message that even very young children – toddlers and preschoolers - can make a positive impact toward a sustainable future. Education experts at Goddard, the country’s leading child care franchise company, offer the following fun projects that you can do at home to teach your kids about the environment:

1. Create the Earth. Eco-friendly coffee filters make great miniature earths. In two separate cups, use food coloring to make blue and green colored water. Then allow the children to use eyedroppers to drop the colors on their Earth (coffee filter). When the colored water is dropped on the filter it spreads a bit and the children can create land and water shapes on their “little earths.”

2. Lights Out, Flashlights On. Play “I Spy” in the dark. Have the children use flashlights to locate objects they can use to become more “green,” such as a light switch or recycle bins.

3. Go for a Nature Walk. Place tape, sticky side out, on the children’s wrists and take them outside to collect things in nature. You could also decorate a sack and go around the neighborhood picking up litter.

4. Dress It Up! Hold a fashion show using old newspapers as the runway. Create vests by using grocery sacks decorated with recycled supplies such as used yogurt cups, etc. Glue recycled materials to the vests and decorate with paint. Then let your kids show off the “beauty of recyclables” while learning what items can be recycled.

5. Make Rainsticks. Recycle old paper towel rolls by making rainsticks. Have the children close the bottom of the stick with paper and tape. Then fill with beans or rice. You can also crumple up some aluminum foil to make a louder sound. Let the children decorate the rainsticks with construction paper. Use this activity to talk about the importance of clean water and water conservation.

Courtesy of Goddard Systems, Inc. www.goddardschool.com

What’s also cool is World Wildlife Fund has created a website, www.EarthHourKids.org which features lesson-plans, games and songs children can download. There is also a section for parents to email their state and federal representatives.

Information provided by Team Mom.

No Pressure Reading

I recently told you about My Little Guy's natural abilities in math. And I believe I also mentioned how he's prone to wiggling, which does not help with his struggling in reading. It's kinda hard to read while running and jumping, his two favorite pastimes.

It seems like I've tried every homeschool reading curriculum you could think of. Oh it would work for a while, but he never would get past the slow stammering sounding out of words.

This year I finally decided to ditch the curriculum that only served to discourage him and me when he couldn't do what it called for. I opted for just having him read and read some more. I started using children's picture books. Not readers with sentences like...Nat ran. Ann ran. Nat and Ann ran...We had already been there and they were so boring! I picked fun children's books like the Little Critter books by Mercer Mayer or Dr. Seuss' treasure trove of rhyming books. If there are bigger words that he can't get, I just tell him. No pressure.

Then I heard about Click N' Read Phonics, an entire Kindergarten through 3rd grade phonics curriculum taught through 100 interactive online lessons. I was sceptical at first, because, like I said, I felt like I had tried everything. But, I decided to give it a shot.

Of course we are still reading all of the classic children's books and he's improving every day. I can tell a real difference in his fluency. He doesn't stammer near as much. He's probably improved more in the last 6 months than he has since I started trying to teach him.

I don't know if it was me taking the pressure off him, the Click N' Read Phonics curriculum, or a combination of both. Whatever it is, it's working! I'm so proud of his efforts.

Math Anyone Can See

I have a very wiggly little boy. I would liken him to how it looks when your are trying to bait your fishing rod. You hold up the little worm and it thrashes all about. That's my boy! To coin a phrase from the movie Madagascar: He likes to move it!

As a result of his wiggliness, he struggles with reading. Although, he's making great progress in that area now, but that's a post for another day. He is, however, all about math. It comes natural to him, and I give partial credit to Math-U-See.

With Math-U-See, the problems aren't just memorized. Concepts are learned through the use of manipulatives helping the student to know why they've given that particular answer.

Each book focuses on building on one main concept. Which, in turn, provides plenty of practice and review.

I am in no way benefiting from recommending this great math program to you. This is just me sharing what has worked for us.

If you're looking for a good math curriculum, I suggest you consider Math-U-See.

Egyptian Studies

We have been studying The Old Kingdom of Egypt in History. Our studies have included how to make a mummy and the Great Pyramid that Pharaoh Cheops built. In our quest to build our own Great Pyramid we decided Legos would be much easier to lift substance than 3 ton stone blocks.

Our Struggle With World History

I'm not a big fan of World History and for that reason I really struggled finding a World History curriculum that would suit us without making me completely nutty (okay, nuttier that I already am, satisfied?). Anyway, after much trial and error, we tried The Story of the World, by Susan Wise Bauer and so far it's been the perfect fit!

That's where today's picture comes in. The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History has proven to be one of my favorite resources for supplemental history reading. It's loaded with info and just like it says in the title, internet links for even more learning opportunities.

I'm starting to think World History isn't so bad after all. Shhh! Don't tell anyone!

Pressure: Pressin' Down on Me

I despise feeling like I haven't accomplished enough, but that's exactly how I'm feeling.

Homeschooling drives me nuts sometimes.

While chatting with a lady at church the other night, she mentioned meeting a homeschool family on vacation and just how well-behaved and impressive they were.

This was a friendly comment meant to be a complement to my own family.

But, I immediately began to question my own skills as a homeschool mom.

Are my children impressive?

Not so much.

One of my kids is a struggling, reluctant reader who I sometimes wonder if he will ever catch on. Would the school system do a better job? In all honesty, it would be nice if I could blame them, instead of dealing with those who wonder if I'm teaching him at all, or who think he needs an "expert" teaching him.

My other child would be satisfied to never learn a thing. Even though she's a very bright girl, she doesn't put forth much effort academically.

My kids aren't educational whizzes. They haven't skipped any grades. They won't be attending college at twelve years old. They don't do school work just for fun.

They are just normal everyday kids with normal everyday struggles.

The only difference between our family and others is I've taken the responsibility of their education and dumped it squarely on my own shoulders.

Can I handle the pressure?

Sometimes.

But right now, things are feeling a bit weighty.

A Release of Built Up Tension

I've been doing lots of reviews lately, and trust me, there are many more to come. Let's just say Melissa's Desk is covered up right about now. But, I enjoy trying out new products that I otherwise might never think about using. I only hope you like reading about them.

This post, however, isn't so much about reviewing any kind of product. It's more about me letting off some steam...some frustration...some down-right growl-inducing feelings. Grrr!

I really like for my blog to be a "happy place", but the reality is things aren't always a bowl of cherries around here. Especially in the homeschooling area.

Please don't get me wrong, I adore homeschooling. As far as I'm concerned, there is no other option right now. I'm in it for the long haul, so to speak. But, as much as I adore it, I find myself despising it sometimes too. And right now is one of those times.

For the past two weeks, nah, let's be honest here, for the past month our lessons have been hit-or-miss. Every time I think I can get back to a normal routine, something comes up that throws everything out of whack. It's really frustrating actually.

I know they are learning and we are still getting quite a bit of work done, plenty as far as the state requirements are concerned. I just like a nice routine...I'm not a person of change (Oooo! revelation: maybe that's why I dislike President-elect Obama so much!). I've been told all my life that "change is good"..bah!...I hate change. Change is uncomfortable at best.

I like things to fall into place just so...but that's not life, is it? Life is filled with change and disruptions to the routine.

Well, group all that change/disruption together with children, who when they get out of routine assume that everyday is a holiday and it's like pulling teeth to get them to do the work...and you have one stressed mama...a mama who is questioning her sanity...a mama who would like to scream at the top of her lungs.

Whew! That's better.

Boy am I glad it's Friday!

6-Week Curriculum Review

What is that old saying?...Time flies when you're having fun...Perhaps more appropriate for our family would be something like...Time flies when you're so busy that you can't think straight...Yes, that's much more like it.

The first 6 weeks of this school year have really zoomed by leaving me wondering who pushed the fast forward button.

So after 6 weeks of our current curriculum, does anything need adjusting?

Well, let's just see, shall we?...

Easy Grammar - Two words: LOVE IT!! This is the easiest to follow, most thorough curriculum for grammar I've ever had the pleasure to use. I found it last year and have been in love ever since. I'm using this for both of my kids and they are both doing wonderfully with it.

Vocabulary from Classical Roots - This has quick, easy to use lessons that have been helpful in My Girl's daily reading. We're sticking with this too!

Bob Jones Reading - My Little Guy is improving so much with his reading. He's gone from being forced to read a couple of sentences each day, to pulling out the book himself and asking me to sit with him while he reads several pages. He is still behind as far as what is average for his age, but he's learning at his own pace. We will continue this curriculum as long as it continues to help him improve.

Lightning Literature - I could not love it more!!! I'm using this with My Girl and really loving the books, worksheets and writing activities that go along with it. No changes here either.

Sequential Spelling - I'm using this for both kids this year. It really has helped My Girl in her poor spelling and My Little Guy likes it too.

Handwriting Without Tears - Finally! I found a cursive handwriting curriculum to use with My Little Guy that doesn't rush too quickly through the letters or require you to copy a passage as long as a book.

Math-U-See - No problems here. Both My Girl and My Little Guy are using this and doing well. My Girl dislikes math, but is learning just fine, and My Little Guy is a math whiz and loving it.

Apologia Science - Fabulous! We bought the full General Science course on CD for My Girl and she works through several sections per day, answers questions, and does many easy, yet fun experiments. This has become her favorite subject. We are using Zoology 1 for My Little Guy and he's in the process of studying insects. What could be more appropriate for a little boy?

Mystery of History - This is my second time trying this curriculum. The first time we were bored within a few lessons and ditched it, never to really settle on anything the rest of the year. I decided to give it another shot, since My Girl needs to learn some world history. We have previously only studied American history. This is still not my favorite curriculum, but we're hanging in there. I see no need to change right now. We bought the CDs with the author reading the material and both My Girl and My Little Guy listen to a lesson each day. There are some cute activities and we could probably get more involved with it, but right now it's fine the way we are doing it.

Artistic Pursuits - Excellent!! Both kids love art and this is the perfect art curriculum!

La Clase Divertida - This is the surprising favorite of our whole family. We all are having a blast learning Spanish!

So can you believe it? No adjustments! I, myself, am amazed. Perhaps this the sign of a good year ahead!

*Visit my Links page for links to each of these curriculums.

A Little of This, A Little of That

Our school year is pluggin' along quite nicely. Tomorrow begins our sixth week. It's at the 6-week mark that I try to review our curriculum choices for the year just to get an idea of how things are going and if anything needs adjusting. So I will be posting that review sometime toward the end of the week.

Speaking of homeschooling, I put together our support group's monthly newsletter. It's just a fairly simple list of our activities. But, I found the cutest cartoons to add to it.
Todd Wilson's The Official Book of Homeschool Cartoons are the perfect thing to add a little truthful humor to spice up our simple newsletter.

In other news, I'm tending to My Girl, who broke her nose last night doing high-flying stunts on our trampoline. I know what you're going to say..."those trampolines are dangerous"...right? I know they are, but this is the first real injury either of my children have suffered at its expense and we've had it for 8 years. My Girl just misjudged her jump and it was...Miss Nose, meet Mr. Bar...Ouch! It's big, blue and swollen, but not crooked, thank the Good Lord.

Now I'm off to do a little lesson planning and grab that Sunday afternoon nap I so desperately want.

"Wow, Mom, Science is Fun!"

I took her temperature...nope, no fever.

Who was she?...and...What had she done with My Girl?

My Girl, otherwise known as The Science-Hater, would never say such a thing.

But unbelievably this was My Girl and she really was enjoying Science.

Perhaps it was the density experiment that snagged her interest.

I thought it was pretty cool too.