tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8258530957319379392024-03-13T01:29:03.686-04:00Life With MonstersThe ongoing tale of two monsters growing, learning, and exploring.dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-17466559558280352372010-11-24T14:56:00.000-05:002010-11-24T14:56:31.769-05:00Only in The Presence of a Child!<b>Strange things I see...</b><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5204455349/" title="Hmmm...Why? by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Hmmm...Why?" height="500" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4133/5204455349_12384517cc.jpg" width="333" /></a>
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<b>Legos + Mom's shiny silver shoes could only mean one thing...</b><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5205052002/" title="All is clear now! by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="All is clear now!" height="500" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4111/5205052002_c1454078cb.jpg" width="333" /></a><br />
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<b>Isn't he precious!</b>dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-44461886163633169582010-11-24T12:45:00.001-05:002010-11-24T14:31:13.631-05:00Thanksgiving Poems<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Mayflower</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Tossed uncomfortably</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Voyage to Plimoth</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Seasick, scared, optimistic Pilgrims</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Hope</i></span></div>
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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Thanksgiving</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Yummy food</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Lots of fun</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Holiday to give thanks</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i>Thankfully</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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We don't do a lot of creative writing–it's not something that comes easily to EJ so I try to only do small bits at a time. I've been seeing a lot of these poems from my awesomely creative friend at <a href="http://runawaysentence.com/">runawaysentence.com</a> so I thought we'd give one a try and ended up completing two!<br />
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I think I skipped creative writing in school don't actually know what a Cinquain is. If you are like me check out this <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinquain">wiki article</a> for starters. As part of our First Thanksgiving study we did a modified Cinquain from a lesson plan we found on <a href="http://www.lessonplanspage.com/LASSThanksgivingCinquainPoems13.htm">Hot Chalk</a>.<br />
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The form looks like this:<br />
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Title (one word)<br />
Description of title (two words)<br />
Action (three words)<br />
Feelings (four words)<br />
Refer back to title (one word)<br />
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Mayflower was done together, brainstorming for each of the lines before writing. After brainstorming EJ put each line together himself. He then wrote Thanksgiving completely on his own. He didn't do any brainstorming which might have allowed for a bit more creativity but I really liked that he came up with it fairly easily. He was engaged and that's big! These really are very simple and easy to do poems–great for increasing confidence. I think we'll bring this lesson up more often now that I am familiar with the form.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends! </span></b>dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-70775232561490740352010-11-16T15:12:00.000-05:002010-11-16T15:12:32.359-05:00Paper MakingEJ picked this poject. After we finished up learning about butterflies and Monarch migration I asked him what he wanted to learn about; he chose papermaking!<br />
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First we learned a little bit about the history of paper from HP Papermaker: <a href="http://www.hqpapermaker.com/paper-history/">History of Paper</a>. Then we watched some videos from the TV series "How It's Made". This show is so popular in our house that it has become our thing to do on Friday evenings before the kids go to bed so I knew the kids would be captivated.</div>
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Toilet paper:</div>
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO4pEpejE1s">Copy Paper</a> and Handmade Paper <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vapk-Lza6ZY">Part 1</a> (starts at 3:50), <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7hqVzINops">Part 2</a><br />
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Finally we got down to business and made our own paper. I have never done this before so first I did a lot of research. For a good basic overview I found this <a href="http://youtu.be/ySFfdsgNyaI">Arnold Grummer video</a> helpful but as you can see we didn't use Grummer's products. Ours was very much a home made affair!<br />
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Our supplies consisted of:<br />
<ul>
<li>Cat litter box</li>
<li>Homemade deckle*</li>
<li>plastic canvas used for cross stitching</li>
<li>towels</li>
<li>rolling pin</li>
<li>blender</li>
<li>scraps of paper</li>
<li>botanicals—nothing fancy, EJ chose fall leaves and pine needles, JD choose flower petals.</li>
</ul>
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">*I made our deckle from an inexpensive shadow box style photo frame (7.99 at Joann.com). Disassembled the thing, placed a sheet of plastic canvas (if you have it use window screen instead) and closed it back up minus the glass and backing.</span></i></div>
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The first step is to find some scrap paper and tear it into smaller pieces, about 1-2 inches. EJ chose all white, JD wanted green. Do not use old newspaper as the ink will cause your pulp to be gummy.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5182386670/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1283/5182386670_072f9ebc44_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Tearing scrap paper into smaller bits.</span></i>
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We added hot water, about 1-2 cups. It turns out that more water is better than less. Blend for about 1 minute until you have a pulpy mess.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5181787719/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="240" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1410/5181787719_3919a7140d_m.jpg" width="160" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Using the blender to make the pulp.</span></i><br />
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In the cat litter box I have about 3 inches of water. Pour the pulpy mess into the box and then dip the deckle into the liquid pulp mixture. Use your hand gently stir the mixture as it stands in the deckle to help evenly distribute the pulp. I found this to be the hardest step, trying to get the pulp not too thick and not too thin. Add botanicals.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5181787937/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1268/5181787937_fdd9df718a_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Draining the deckle with paper pulp and botanicals</span></i><br />
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After allowing it to drain for a few moments we placed a second piece of plastic screen on top and put the deckle onto a large piece of cloth. We used a hospital blanket we had, but I think dish towels would work well enough. Using a clean sponge gently daub off excess water. This also helps the fibers to lock together.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5182387344/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="240" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1396/5182387344_c2659557ea_m.jpg" width="160" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Gently sponging off excess water.</span></i><br />
<i><br /></i>
The next step is to flip the deckle over and very gently tap the bottom to release your paper, much like turning a cake out onto a dish or cooling rack. Place the paper with the plastic canvas on top onto your towel and release the paper from the canvas. Then I used waxed paper, placed it on top and using the rolling, pin rolled over the paper to squeeze out even more water. Then I transferred the finished paper to a safe place to dry.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5181788593/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1419/5181788593_a7b9e59c43_m.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">EJ's final paper!</span></i><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5182388092/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="240" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4125/5182388092_98d292a75d_m.jpg" width="196" /></a><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">JD's paper!</span></i><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/5182388308/" title="Paper making by Hampchick, on Flickr"><img alt="Paper making" height="240" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1296/5182388308_a5de47fcf1_m.jpg" width="160" /></a><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><i>The boys showing off their dried paper.</i></span><br />
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I think we're all pretty happy with the results, but of course as the grown-up I have to mention a couple of things.<br />
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EJ's paper too heavy. We never quite got the pulp to the right consistency, I think because we used too little water. Also, his botanicals didn't really blend into the fibers well enough and are falling off. If we do this again I'll do more research for this part. I think we could have used a cornstarch and water mixture added to the pulp to help the fibers glue together with the botanicals. JD's paper came out a bit better as our second attempt. It was fun figuring out how we could gather the needed supplies without breaking the bank, some of our supplies were less than ideal but our deckle worked wonderfully! We learned a lot and the boys expressed an interest in doing this project again. I think it would be great to do in the spring when there are more living things available to use.<br />
<br />dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-47599354837507064432010-11-11T13:22:00.000-05:002010-11-11T13:22:58.992-05:00Hot Off the PressesAt a ripe old age of 4 years and 8 months, JD learns to ride a two wheeler! Big brother, mom, and dad are proud as can be. JD says "finally, I can keep up with all the other kids. Those training wheels really slowed me down you know." Mom says, "he's a natural, just look at him take those corners!" JD thanks his friends for helping accomplish this milestone of childhood development as he sports his pink flowered helmet and blue puddle jumpers.<br />
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Not knowing where she was coming from I took the safe answer. Some people who ask questions are genuinely curious. Some are curious because they've considered it themselves. Some have already pre-judged you but want to see if you fit the mold. Some have given it no thought at all. Questions about homeschooling can be loaded with so much baggage that I usually stick to a quick answer and move on.<br />
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As I thought about this later I realized I could have said so much more. I mean, that in this question there are quite a few things the asker could have intended. For example:<br />
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<b>Is it hard to get started - what kind of hoops do you have to go through to be allowed to homeschool? </b><br />
<blockquote>
That depends on your state laws. I didn't find it difficult at all though the Homeschool Legal Defense Association* considers Massachusetts a "red state" meaning difficult or restrictive. A very basic education plan was all I needed. It can be tricky, you have to know your state laws. </blockquote>
<b>Is it hard to know you are teaching the right things?</b><br />
<blockquote>
Sort of. It's very daunting at first. But first you have to figure out what that means: the "right" things. There are books that can tell you what your child would most likely be learning in school and at what grade. Each state or district has their own set of standards that you can probably find online. But you do have to decide whether you even want to stick to the standards. I chose to homeschool in part because I want a less traditional education for my kids, so I feel it's appropriate to make my own way to a degree. What it comes down to is the realization that everyone has gaps in their learning. I try not to worry overly much about it, it's more important for me to know MY children. What are they capable of and what is developmentally appropriate for them. Take 10 kids from the same class and you'll find that they don't all have exactly the same knowledge. There will be things my second grader knows that your second grader doesn't know and vice versa. </blockquote>
<b>Is it hard to teach your own children?</b><br />
<blockquote>
Yes and no. I've discovered for us it's a different kind of relationship. At first EJ seemed unable to see me as a teacher—he questioned everything I told him and it made it very difficult to get anything done. After the first few weeks I think I was able to develop a sort of trust with him and now mostly it's good. I think that doing an hour of homework after school was more of a battle, harder, and more frustrating than doing 4-5 hours of school each day! Seriously! We have a routine now, but for us it's very important to stay flexible and be attuned to the boys when the day isn't going so well.</blockquote>
<b>Is it hard having your school age kids home all day?</b><br />
<blockquote>
Some days it's impossible! Today is hard. It's raining. I have a few things to get done this afternoon, but the boys are having trouble, we're all a tiny bit ill, and they are fighting a lot. Some days I just want to want to scream "why can't you just give me a break and get along!" Other days its fun! Easy, breezy, beautiful! For me, it would be much harder to go to work all day and then come home and try to be there for my kids. No matter how you slice it, raising kids, while rewarding, is hard.</blockquote>
<b>Is it hard to find playmates for your kids?</b><br />
<blockquote>
I'm convinced it's not possible to have a conversation about homeschooling without someone stating matter of fact that homeschooled kids are more isolated. Fortunately there is little evidence that this is true. Yes, it can be more work, but kids don't have to be isolated and most aren't. We are extremely fortunate that the house we rent is in an amazing neighborhood. The boys have an opportunity to play with other kids, outside, usually for two hours or more a day! That's WAY more social time than EJ (7) had when he was in school, and for JD (4.5) it opened up a whole new world. If we didn't have that, it would be harder, but there are homeschool groups (like playgroups), there are classes for homeschoolers, and of course they can take many of the same after school and summer classes that other kids take. This is a frustrating stereotype. Because for me, to believe that homeschooled kids are isolated requires an unspoken belief that homeschool parents don't value friendships and social interactions for their children. It's as if we do all this work to educate our children all the while not lifting a finger to foster their emotional wellbeing. </blockquote>
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I imagine there are more "is it hard..." questions embedded into that single question than I could ever think up on the fly. The truth is in my original answer. Yes and no. But I feel that I can't really adequately answer the question. Is it hard? Of course it is. But it's not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. Not easy, but not too hard. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">*HSLDA is not an organization I am a member of, nor do I recommend. </span>dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-20327734172017569412010-10-26T20:06:00.000-04:002010-10-26T20:06:00.383-04:00One Wonderful Day in OctoberAfter a cold, rainy, foggy week, today was Indian Summer and we took full advantage.<br />
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When the ladybugs came out to celebrate the warm weather we had an impromptu ladybug study, right in the middle of math. The boys captured 2 ladybugs, or ladybird beetles to put in our "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Insect-Lore-2770-Creature-Peeper/dp/B000066HU1/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1288129822&sr=8-1">Creature Peeper</a>". EJ wanted to make sure we had a male and female so they would mate. We found out that you can't tell a ladybug's sex by looking at it. In fact it's often not possible to identify gender without dissection (which we, of course, did not do). Sadly for EJ, fall is not the time for ladybugs to mate anyway. In temps below 55º F they hibernate, or more correctly they enter a wintering state called diapause which is more akin to dormancy than hibernation. We also found that in addition to feeding on aphids some ladybugs eat milkweed, which the kids remembered is the only food that Monarch caterpillars eat. We found out that their coloring, in conjunction with a foul smelling fluid they secrete, is a ladybug's defense against predators. The ladybug is the official state insect of Massachusetts (also New Hampshire, New York, Delaware, Ohio, and Tennessee). The most fun thing we learned is that 4 ladybugs and some aphids were sent into space in 1999. Researchers wanted to find out if aphids were able escape from ladybugs in zero gravity. It turns out the ladybugs did just fine and ate all the aphids. We fed our ladybugs raisins and released them later this evening. It seems doubtful we'll see our friends again this year unless this warm weather continues tomorrow.<br />
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Later we cut our school day short to head to <a href="http://www.lookpark.org/">Look Park</a> where the boys made a giant leaf pile to jump in, played zombie tag with some other kids they met at the playground. They followed the train tracks part way around the park and climbed a big orange maple tree. We walked through the small zoo (while mom and dad talked about the ethics of keeping Red-Tailed Hawks and Bald Eagles in small enclosures). It was so much fun just exploring this huge park when it was relatively empty of other visitors.<br />
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The great thing about today is that we were able be completely spontaneous. T's schedule will always be irregular; weekends, evenings, nights, you name it. If the boys were in school we would have very little time together as a family. Things just came together today. T was off, we had a beautifully warm fall day, and the insight to chuck our schedule to the wind. This flexibility is quickly becoming one of my favorite reasons to home school!dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-80921627726157825782010-10-21T17:26:00.000-04:002010-10-21T17:26:43.339-04:00Hayao Miyazaki and Free Range Parenting<img alt="ponyo.jpg" border="0" height="200" src="http://animediet.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/ponyo2.jpg" width="135" /> If you aren't familiar with the world of Hayao Miyazaki already I strongly recommend you drop everything and watch some of his animation films. Yes, they are distributed by Disney, but are so unlike any Disney animation you've seen. Beautifully done. My favorites are <a href="http://youtu.be/6az9wGfeSgM">Spirited Away</a>, and <a href="http://youtu.be/57r9jjqzJJk">Howl's Moving Castle</a>, but I haven't seen a movie from Studio Ghibli that I didn't enjoy. Yes, these are kids movies, but to be completely honest, they are almost wasted on kids. The animation and story lines are just that wonderful.<br />
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Some day I'd like the boys to see my favorites but I don't think they're ready for them yet (despite the PG rating). So today, after a not-so-great home school morning, I decided to put on a movie. <a href="http://youtu.be/soHf8jnmQNs?hd=1">Ponyo</a> was my choice (if you have Netflix, it's available for instant play). Ponyo is a goldfish who longs to be a human. She is rescued and cared for by 5 year old human boy Sosuke. Eventually Ponyo and Sosuke, through their love for each other (a 5 year old love, not romantic love), restore the balance of nature and save the world. Cool huh?<br />
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Something struck me today as I was watching the movie. Miyazaki is a <a href="http://www.webmd.com/parenting/features/free-range-parenting">free range parent</a> (assuming his characters are his children). The children this movie are highly competent it's true, but that isn't all that unusual in children's movies where children tend to be precocious. What is unusual is that the adults in this movie actually trust the children and treat them, perhaps not as equals, but as fully formed people. I don't know if this is the case in all of his movies, free range parenting hasn't really existed as a parenting concept for that long, nor was I aware of it when I watched most of Miyazaki's movies. Someday I should watch them again with this in mind.<br />
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We first see 5 year old Sosuke down at the shore near his home all alone! Later, during a typhoon, he is left caring for the sleeping Ponyo in his home while his mother leaves to check on the residents of the senior home where she works. Get this. Dad is out at sea. Mom LEAVES her FIVE year old son at home. Alone! Tells him he's in charge and she's counting on him and leaves! Their home is high on a cliff while the senior home is down in the valley, so theoretically Sosuke and Ponyo are safer than the seniors. Of course Sosuke and Ponyo rise to the occasion and save the world.<br />
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I subscribe to the idea of <a href="http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/">free range kids</a> even if I'm not quite sure where to place those limits sometimes. Of course this is a movie and naturally not totally realistic. Free range or not, I wouldn't recommend letting a young child play at the beach alone. Nor do I think that leaving children alone during a severe weather condition is ideal (on the other hand, if my child was safe and someone else was not I'd like to think I'd help the person in need). But I really do appreciate any media source that can portray children as strong and capable instead of under constant threat from the boogie man. We see far too much of the <i>"our kids are in constant danger from everything, and everyone, and must be protected 24/7"</i> hype and far too little about how much safer it is to be a kid today than it has been in the past.<br />
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As I finish up this post, my 4.5 & 7 year old are somewhere out in our safe, quiet, (mostly) traffic-free neighborhood. Hopefully they'll be home soon for dinner but in the meantime, I am confident that they are reasonably safe, working out any disagreements, and having lots of fun without mom tagging around after them. And I know it will do them a world of good as they grow up and become ever more competent to make decisions for themselves.dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-83978315671266108922010-09-05T11:12:00.001-04:002010-09-05T11:12:42.840-04:00...Where the coffee and women are strong.<p><strong>"Northampton, where the coffee and women are strong."</strong> </p> <p> </p> <p>Saw this on a sign as I was entering the parking garage in town the other day.  I can't speak for the coffee since I'm a Chai drinker, but indeed this is a town for women. Specifically, Noho is to lesbian women as P-Town is to gay men. But it's more than that. This is a town that celebrates women; gay, straight, bi, trans., intellectual, geek, soft, strong, opinionated, outspoken. The strength of the female population is something that you just feel here as I have not felt anywhere else. In some ways the area is quite diverse but in others not so much. It's a college town to the extreme: Two of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Sisters_%28colleges%29" target="_blank">Seven Sisters</a> are located in the area—Smith College and Mount Holyoke College. Add UMass Amherst, and two smaller liberal arts colleges—Amherst and Hampshire (collectively called the Five Colleges) and you can just imagine the hubbub come just about now as the students return.  Driving through town is a feast to the eyes. Traffic is slow, pedestrians rule and good luck if you fail to stop for one in a cross walk, someone might just rip your head off. On the other hand I've seen folks wave appreciatively when traffic does stop to allow them to step out into the crosswalk. </p> <p> </p> <p>This is a town full of character and characters and I am just loving it.  My neighborhood is amazingly friendly, we have been welcomed with open arms.  I'm less than 10 minutes from downtown Noho (do locals actually call it this?), close to the Berkshire hills which will be even more beautiful in a few short weeks with the colors of autumn, 2 hours from Bean Town and the coast. I know I'm in a sort of honeymoon phase and after a time I'll start to see the negatives to temper my enthusiasm. Some of them I see already, but they are like eccentricities that make up a lot of the character of the region. </p> <p> </p> <p>When we lived among the brown mountains of the soulless Inland Empire region of California I once told my husband "I don't care too much where we settle, it just has to be pretty". Well, we've got pretty and a whole lot more to boot. To finish off this gushing post here are a few words to describe what I see here so far:</p> <p> </p> <p>Progressive</p> <p>Organic</p> <p>Artsy & Musical</p> <p>Local</p> <p>Toyota Prius, VW, and Subaru</p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community-supported_agriculture" target="_blank">CSA</a></p> <p>Ecological</p> <p><a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=special%20snowflake" target="_blank">Speshul Snowflakes</a></p> <p>Feminist</p> <p>Natural</p> <p>Warm </p> <p>Friendly</p> <p>Opinionated</p> <p><a href="http://www.skepdic.com/woowoo.html" target="_blank">Woo-Woo</a></p> <p>Bucolic </p> <p>Child Oriented</p> <p>Folksy</p> <p>Love</p> <p> </p> <p>I do have one complaint though. Above I mentioned that I drink Chai. I'm having a really hard time finding my favorite Tazo Chai concentrate here except at very high prices. Boo-hoo</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-82962003590577970392010-08-28T22:07:00.001-04:002010-08-28T22:07:29.275-04:00Home School Week 1<p>While I wait for the district to contact me about our ed. plan I figured we might as well get started. I plan to use my blog as a way to keep track of what we've done each week so here's a round up of our first week.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong><font size="4">Math:</font></strong> EJ is doing the <a href="http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mep/default.htm" target="_blank">MEP (Math Enhancement Program)</a> from the Center for Innovation. We are working through Year 1 rather quickly because much of the material he covered last year. We started working back in July and completed the first 6 weeks of lessons before we broke for the move. Turned out this was a bad break. I'm not sure exactly what happened but EJ just couldn't seem to get his mind wrapped around some of the problems in the book and what was more difficult, he insisted that everything I was saying was wrong and that I was confusing him etc. In hindsight I probably should have done some review with him before we really dove back in. Unfortunately this started us off on a sour note. We did get math in every day this week (M-F) though and started to work better as the days went by. </p> <p> </p> <p><strong><font size="4">Science:</font> </strong>We have  <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Building-Foundations-Scientific-Understanding-Curriculum/dp/1432706101/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1283044898&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding K-2</a>. I'm doing this with both boys even though JD isn't kinder age yet. He won't be ready for some of the activities but I think he'll enjoy doing science with us and learning what he can. We did the first lesson "Organizing Things into Categories" the day we moved because it seemed to fit. I found that we didn't need to spend much time on that lesson beyond discussion and some reading. I think it will be a topic we have many opportunities to revisit.  Yesterday we played the "Solids, Liquids, and Gases" game from the next lesson "States of Matter". They had fun with this one and we'll continue to review playing 20 questions. </p> <p> </p> <p>I have plans to set up a calendar area for EJ to practice and to start to introduce the days of the week to JD. I have  <a href="http://www.meetthemasters.com/" target="_blank">"Meet the Masters"</a> for art, and <a href="http://www.hwtears.com/" target="_blank">Handwriting Without Tears</a> ordered for both boys. I have a few other things in mind but for the next few weeks I think this will keep us busy. </p> <p> </p> <p>EJ should be reading more, which he claims to love and yet doesn't really do, but I want to be careful how I get this accomplished. I read to both boys at least once a day and I've had him reading our science supplements out loud. My fear is that I will inadvertently make reading a chore, something he does only because I tell him to. So for now I'm going to think on it and try to find subtle ways to encourage more reading. </p> <p> </p> <p>One thing that strikes me as funny about home schooling is that even the things we do for fun sort of count as school. Today we went to a Tomato Festival. I'm not sure it was particularly educational but we all had a lot of fun and did get to taste a lot of tomato varieties. The boys particularly enjoyed the tomato toss and were filthy with tomato pulp 20 minutes after we arrived. Tomorrow we're going to the Cummington Fair--I can fit some learning in between the rides and fried dough right?</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-46217585898388253862010-08-20T11:00:00.001-04:002010-08-20T11:00:13.945-04:00Semi-Official Home Learners here<p>Well, I sent of our education plan for EJ the other day. Part of me feels like it's no big deal, we're doing it no matter what hoops we have to jump  through. But, the part of me that wants approval, wants things to go smoothly, will have a bit of anxiety tucked away somewhere inside waiting for the day I get my first communication back from the district.</p> <p> </p> <p>EJ is raring to go, I'm still wanting to get the house more in order first. I'm gratified that he seems to be excited--I know it's a big unknown for him. The other day he asked me if we could have recess like he does at school. I chuckled and explained that I expect he will have much more free time than 20 minutes of recess.</p> <p> </p> <p>A funny thing about moving and doing home schooling is that everyone in your new neighborhood immediately asks about school and I can't bluff my way though it. I'm pretty sure they'd notice when my kid isn't getting on the bus. Who knows what most of them are thinking about us "crazy" home schoolers. ;) So far I've gotten reactions from 'cool, we wanted to homeschool' from a jovial "are you crazy!". I'm sure we'll get more questions as we get to know everyone, I just hope I can answer them without sounding like a doofus. </p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-62730144520416878672010-08-17T19:09:00.001-04:002010-08-17T19:09:37.123-04:00I don't think fairies are real...<p>Said Mr. EJ the day his third baby tooth fell out. </p> <p> </p> <p>Let's see if I can recall this. </p> <p> </p> <p>"I think there's someone who's job it is to be the tooth fairy. Like, maybe different people cover different streets or something..." (a bit creepy, but okay...)</p> <p>"Or, maybe there are robot fairies"</p> <p>"Or, maybe it's a tooth mouse. Because mice are real."</p> <p> </p> <p>This morning he Googled the Tooth Fairy but his google-fu is beginner level so I don't think he made much out of his results. He did find answers.com and said: "Mom, no one knows if the tooth fairy is real!"</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-81498192899815600712010-08-16T18:18:00.001-04:002010-08-16T18:18:44.206-04:00Vacation Loves...<p>Loved...</p> <p> </p> <p>Watching Justin teach himself some basic swimming skills (with life vest)</p> <p>Watching the Perseids with Ethan & T</p> <p>The whole family hanging out together </p> <p>Swimming, swimming, swimming</p> <p>No TV for 2 weeks (except the occasional DVD rental)</p> <p>Ethan learning to Kayak for the first time</p> <p>Walking the dog down a quiet dirt road</p> <p>Picking wild blackberries with Justin</p> <p>Meeting new friends</p> <p>Remembering my childhood in the country</p> <p>Roasting Marshmallows and eating Smores on our last day.</p> <p>Adventurous kids rock hopping in the river</p> <p>Feeling the cool dry air of the hills on my arms and shoulders</p> <p>Being sun tired; every day</p> <p>Relaxing, reading a ton</p> <p>Packing up to finally, after two weeks, moving into our new rental house</p> <p> </p> <p>Must we come back to reality?</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-40772993151764501512010-07-26T15:42:00.001-04:002010-07-26T15:42:28.081-04:00I'm a knitter!<p>But first, a crochet project I'm particularly proud of. Not because it's perfect or anything but because I first started this blanket over a year ago and when I began it was REALLY HARD. But I finally finished it in May or June and it's so snuggly.</p> <p><a title="Solas Camoah by dkim6599, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4830829725/"><img height="240" alt="Solas Camoah" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4147/4830829725_8b28281dc1_m.jpg" width="176" /></a> </p> <p>I learned how to crochet some years ago (5? 6? 7? Not sure) but shied away from knitting because I remember my mom trying to teach me when I was a kid and having the hardest time with it. I'm not sure why but I got the urge to try again a few weeks ago. At first it was terrible! I couldn't get the yarn through the loops, everything was too tight and I basically just couldn't make heads or tails out of what I was doing. But eventually it clicked and became easier. I was still terrible but at least I was making progress and continued to practice until I felt ready for a project. These three little dishcloths: </p> <p><a title="Dishcloths by dkim6599, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4830832731/"><img height="160" alt="Dishcloths" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4830832731_83975ebb1a_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> </p> <p>And then this striped one (realizing after I started that I had no idea how to switch yarn for the stripes): </p> <p><a title="Clover Tweed Dishcloth by dkim6599, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4830833217/"><img height="160" alt="Clover Tweed Dishcloth" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4083/4830833217_91e13d1424_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> </p> <p>Yay! They aren't perfect at all. The first one I did is rather, well, not very good. But I'm getting better! I still love crochet, it's just so versatile! But the drape you get with knitting is so scrumptious I'm glad I now have it as an option—assuming I get beyond making simple dishcloths.</p> <p> </p> <p>And for a good laugh, my 4 year old asked me this morning if I could make him a sweater after lunch. Haha! Sure kiddo, I'll just whip one out right now. Pffft</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-45035367542411562102010-06-28T17:12:00.001-04:002010-06-28T17:12:21.640-04:00CitiBlocs<p>The other day we made a trip to Toys R Us so EJ could spend some of his birthday gift cards. We made what I think is a great score on wooden blocks called<strong> </strong><a href="http://www.citiblocs.com/" target="_blank"><strong>CitiBlocs</strong></a>.</p> <p><img height="262" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51iBazvyZxL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" width="262" /> </p> <p>The picture is small, but can you see them?  The kids frolicking in and around their playhouse sized creations? Take particular note of the girl doing the handstand and the other girl leaping to a tower (both in the background). Well EJ saw these and wanted them. I'll admit I was completely turned off by the picture and carefully explained that he wouldn't be able to do what these kids are doing. But they were deeply discounted; the 200 piece set was marked $14.98 down from $44.99. It's his money so I said let's get them. Is it weird that the first thing I did when I got home was to look them up on Amazon to see if we'd made a mistake? These days I can't buy anything without first checking the reviews on Amazon.</p> <p> </p> <p>I have to say I'm rather impressed with these blocks. Yes, they are all the same size which seems a bummer at first. It's really not though. Unlike other blocks that are supposedly "precision cut" these really seem to be. They really are all exactly the same size and they build really well. They are very light weight and therefore easy for little hands to manipulate. There is a little booklet that comes with them showing creations that can be made. I like them so much we went back today and bought a second set. These blocks can't be beat at this price. </p> <p> </p> <p>Here are the boys making their first tower. They made it as tall as they could reach and still didn't use all of the 200 pieces.</p> <p><a title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4743594816/"><img height="500" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4135/4743594816_a7780b8d5c.jpg" width="333" /></a> </p> <p><a title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4743595446/"><img height="500" alt="" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4743595446_ab4f5f6edf.jpg" width="333" /></a></p> <p> </p> <p>With 400 pieces, I envision one day having an entire city just like the one the box.</p> <p> </p> <p>Yeah...right! ;)</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-1782200327806068112010-06-28T16:21:00.000-04:002010-06-28T16:21:15.546-04:00Strange sleeping habits of the youngThis boy just does not want to sleep in his own bed at night. I suspect the crib/toddler bed mattress has outlived it's life span now that it's been in use for 7 years. I keep leading him back to his bed only to have him find even new and and more strange places to sleep:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4742959143/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4742959143_000b8451e5_m.jpg" width="400" /></a>
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If you can't tell, that's under his brother's bed. He's got a crochet pouch around his wrist and out of sight, his crocheted 'baby' (actually more of a little troll doll) under his head for a pillow and he's really wedged in there.dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-19557649874169898912010-06-23T02:09:00.001-04:002010-06-28T17:14:08.347-04:00Wordless Wednesday - EJ's Birthday<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721162763/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1355/4721162763_0bc5e42f92_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721161383/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="240" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1208/4721161383_64f36b4b38_m.jpg" width="160" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721811982/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1221/4721811982_80bf618dec_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721162387/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1115/4721162387_756cbc61f0_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721163355/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1378/4721163355_86d3c1ed15_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721163997/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="160" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1355/4721163997_dfa71fa7bb_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dkim6599/4721164315/" title="Untitled by dkim6599, on Flickr"><img alt="" height="240" src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1115/4721164315_8ec985aa8a_m.jpg" width="160" /></a>dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-37047675632926958522010-06-21T10:56:00.001-04:002010-06-21T10:56:41.491-04:00Music Monday<p><img style="margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px" height="98" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61L6PCCRhqL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" width="98" align="left" /> Haven't posted in a few days, don't have much to say at the moment. Instead I thought I'd share the first track from my (current) favorite kids music CD. <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Family-Time-Ziggy-Marley/dp/B001UREJUY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1277130965&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Ziggy Marley -  Family Time</a></i> is 13 tracks of pure fun that kids of all ages will enjoy. </p> <p> </p> <p>Before I get to the video though I just want to mention that today is a very important day. It's the longest day of the year, first day of summer. As if that wasn't reason enough to celebrate, it's also my big boy EJ's 7th birthday. So happy birthday love! We celebrated yesterday with a small party of his friends. I took some pictures - maybe I'll have time to get them up later today. </p> <p> </p> <p>And now, here's Family Time. I dare you not to smile.</p> <p></p> <p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NB8mZMEo_6k&hl=en_US&fs=1&" width="425" height="344" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" /></p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-26276103369073158172010-06-13T13:46:00.001-04:002010-06-13T13:46:44.709-04:00Self Improvement Sunday<p>This won't be an easy post for me to write. But I think I need to write it anyway. I want to write about my weight issues. Nothing shocking really, like millions of other women, I've had a weight problem for as long as I can remember. </p> <p> </p> <p>I absolutely hate telling anyone that I'm trying to lose weight. My weight is that proverbial "monkey on my back"; telling others that I'm trying to get rid of the monkey makes it visible to all, at least in my mind. I guess for me it's extremely personal. I don't even want my husband to be involved. It's all about failure for me; the last thing I want is to be perceived as a failure. So if I just don't tell, then no one knows if I'm not reaching my goals.</p> <p> </p> <p>I never lost the baby weight gain after JD was born (4+ years). I'm also now 44.  I've noticed an obvious change in my metabolism over the last couple of years. Some of that is undoubtedly due to lack of exercise but it's such a change that I know it's also an age thing. Yippee! When we moved to Buffalo I started to gain weight. I haven't weighed myself very often but I estimate I've gained approximately 25 pounds in 3 years. Obviously this wasn't a surprise; while I avoided the scale like a plague, I could hardly not have noticed each season when I had to buy new bigger clothes. I just tucked the information in the back of my head as something I had to fix later.</p> <p> </p> <p>I rejoined Weight Watchers Online 4 weeks ago. I won't tell you how much I weigh. But, good news; I've lost 7 pounds! Bad news, I haven't used WW since the day I plunked down my $50 for 3 months (okay, to be fair I think I used it for a week.). The good news is that I'm really trying to make changes in my diet that can last. The bad news is that I'm still not exercising. The good news, really good news, is that what I'm doing seems to be working! The bad news is that it's going to take a really long time to get where I want to be. The good news is that I feel positive and even notice a slight change in the way my pants fit. The bad news is that in the back of my mind is the knowledge that sooner or later (probably sooner) I will have a bad week and the scale won't go down or worse it will go up again.</p> <p> </p> <p>Clearly, I've got to get a handle on those thoughts. Shuffle them around, put the right ones in the front of my mind and the wrong ones in the back. I think this mind connection is where the battle really lies. Focusing on the right thoughts won't cause me to lose weight; not directly. But focusing on the right thoughts might be the difference between stalling out after a few months and having the strength to keep going even when it feels most daunting.</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-42749019882694943892010-06-10T08:00:00.000-04:002010-06-10T08:00:04.849-04:00Murphy the marshmallow<p><img style="margin: 0px 15px 5px 0px" height="131" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/1003/dkim6599/3-3-2004_with_murphy.jpg" width="196" align="left" /> Murphy is our dog. Actually, he's T's dog from before we met. He's a handsome, incredibly gentle, well behaved (white) yellow Labrador. In short, the absolute best dog anyone could ask for. But he's been driving us crazy lately and frankly I feel like a bitch for feeling that way. I don't think he'll be with us too much longer.</p> <p> </p> <p>Murphy is now close to 13 1/2 years old. I actually just found out he was this old because for 3 years whenever anyone asked T said he was 10 years old (denial?). I pointed this out to him a few years ago and we laughed. But still, somehow I thought he was only about 11 or 12 maybe, certainly not over 13! Somehow that changes things immensely. At 11 or 12 I figured he'd still have a couple of years. At 13, with the issues he's experienced this year I'm not so sure.</p> <p> </p> <p>His hips are not good. He's on arthritis meds that cost about $50 a month which are also effecting his liver but do help. He has lost some bowel control and poops in the house <strong>a lot</strong>. He's also becoming less well behaved, sticks his nose in the garbage, tries to steal food from the kids plates, won't come when called; fortunately he's still as gentle as ever. We haven't had it checked but I'm fairly certain his hearing is going too—that or he's becoming obstinate in his old age. </p> <p> </p> <p>For now the meds are allowing him to keep walking, but he's slow, falls often and has trouble with stairs and the wood floors. We will have to put him down if he gets to the point where he can't walk. At that point it would be the humane choice. We've talked about it, T complains about him at least as much as I do but I know it's going to be extremely hard on him when the time comes. I'm not sure how the kids will be. I'm not even sure how I'll be.</p> <p> </p> <p>It's strange that I felt like writing about this now. I think I needed to because mostly all I feel is annoyance at him. Thinking about what's really going on, getting past the inconvenience of cleaning up after him all the time helps me feel more compassionate and less anger. Murphy does not deserve any anger, he's been a wonderful faithful companion during his entire long life.</p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-54218620780431677772010-06-09T10:19:00.001-04:002010-06-09T10:21:20.548-04:00In the news 6/9As I perused the morning paper while eating my humongous Golden Delicious apple* a couple of fun stories stood out. <br /> <div style="color: #38761d"><b> <br /></b></div> <div style="color: #38761d"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=825853095731937939%20" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large"><b><span class="headline"><em>Galileo's fingers in Florence museum</em> </span></b></span></a></div> <blockquote><i>FLORENCE, Italy (AP) -- Two of Galileo's fingers, removed from his corpse by admirers in the 18th century, have gone on display in a Florence museum now named after the astronomer.</i> </blockquote> <p>Wait, what? I'm honestly not sure how I feel about this. My gut reaction is "eww".  Also on display is a tooth and in a different location, his vertebra. I really don't think there's any historical value in Galileo's specific body parts. Is it a connection thing? As in, "Wow, those are the actual fingers of the guy who discovered Jupiter's moons!". I'm just not sure I get it. On the other hand the museum also has some instruments designed and used by Galileo—now that would be more interesting to me. </p> <p> </p> <div style="color: #38761d"><span style="font-size: large"><span class="headline"><a href="http://www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2010/06/09/peabody_teacher_makes_a_revolutionary_discovery/?comments=all#readerComm" target="_blank"><em><strong>Peabody teacher makes a Revolutionary discovery</strong></em></a></span></span></a></div> <blockquote> <p><em>PEABODY — As she leafed through stacks of papers and other material that had accumulated over the years on her classroom’s bookshelf, fourth-grade social studies teacher Michelle Eugenio found several sheets of faux parchment paper, designed to have the look and feel of a Colonial period document. “Obviously they were fake,’’ she said yesterday, standing in her classroom in Peabody’s Center School. </em></p> <p><em>But the next document she found caused quite a different reaction. It was a single sheet of linen paper, contained in a rigid, clear-plastic sheath, and had torn and browned edges. It looked old, very old. And it looked original. Eugenio said that as she held it in her hands about two weeks ago and looked at the date printed on the lower right corner, April 1792, her heart raced. “I had a feeling it was real.’’</em></p> </blockquote> <p>Maybe this makes me a geek, but I can just imagine the thrill this teacher must have felt when she first saw this document and thought it might be original. I'm not a history buff particularly, but finding something you think has been lost to history or undiscovered has got to be the coolest thing. I remember a fun hike T and I took that ended with us unexpectedly finding a dilapidated home—what was once obviously a rather grand home—seemingly in the middle of nowhere. That was so exciting and fun to explore even though we assumed that others must also know about it. To find something truly undiscovered, wow!</p> <p> </p> <p><i>*Seriously, when did apples get so big? I swear my hand cramped up while eating it and getting the first couple bites was a feat in itself. I have to buy </i>mini <i>apples for the boys now since they can't possibly eat an entire regular one.</i></p> dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-15928358673932386042010-06-07T21:27:00.001-04:002010-06-10T12:58:48.614-04:00To correct or to not correct.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2010/06/06/redlined/?page=1" target="_blank"><i><b>From Boston.com:</b></i></a><br />
<blockquote>
<i>"For schoolchildren, the red pen has long been a fearsome weapon, blazoning the marks of failure on once pristine writing assignments. And in recent years, many teachers have turned down the volume, switching from red’s loud rebuke to gentler purple pens. Now research has illuminated another aspect of the red-pen effect: A study published last month reveals that teachers armed with red pens actually grade more severely than those using blue.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote>
<i>The study, published in the European Journal
of Social Psychology, found that when participants marked up a paper
supposedly written by an English learner, the red-pen wielders found
more language mistakes to criticize. And when asked to grade a paper
with no actual errors — just some doubtful style choices — the
red-inksters awarded lower overall marks than the blue team.</i></blockquote>
<br /> I love to read things that validate my opinions (who doesn't!) on
education, what works and what doesn't. I found myself nodding in
agreement with much of this article; at least until I got to the
comments.<br />
<br />
Many of the comments posted to the article seem so off the mark to me. Like this one in particular:<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"I am completely SICK of all this talk about
our children's emotions. If you're doing such a horrible job parenting
that your child can't handle hearing that they did something wrong, I
fear for the world when this generation is running it.</i>"</blockquote>
And another:<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"so now you can't write in red because it will hurt a kid's feelings more
or less?? how pathetic. soccer mom nation has taken over this country.
your kids are going to grow up soft useless human beings."</i></blockquote>
And for fun, one more:<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"Give me a break. If students feel bad when
teachers write negative comments in red ink... then tough! Maybe they
should work harder."</i></blockquote>
<br />
These people are completely missing the point here. Whether to correct in red pen or not. whether to correct in that way at all or not. It is <i>not </i>about hurting a child's feelings. It's <i>not </i>about bad parenting and it's <i>not </i>about toughening up our 'speshul' snowflakes so they can survive the big bad world. <b>It <i>is </i>about whether it creates an environment in which a child thrives or an environment that contributes to children disengaging.</b><br />
<br />
<blockquote>
<i>"Toddlers don’t need to be rudely corrected whenever they brave a new construction; “the dog runned away” will become “ran away,” the “mouses” will turn into “mice,” and they’ll end up talking like their friends and families.</i></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<i>Why should writing be different? It’s harder than talking, but like any skill, it’s mastered by imitation and practice. Making prose, like making art or music, is a process of experimenting, revising, and remodeling; the errors that peevers love to
pounce on are often the least important (and most fixable) of all the ways writing can go wrong.</i></blockquote>
<blockquote>
<i>If even good students are writing worse today — and it may be so — my (unscholarly) guess is that it’s lack of exposure to models, not lack of correction, that ails them. If you don’t read much — not only great books, but even everyday competent exposition — you won’t get the rhythm of long-form language into your bones. And without that, writing will be a struggle."</i></blockquote>
<br />
I completely agree with what the author has said here. We don't correct toddler's speech because, much like walking, we know they will get better over time and correction is more likely to cause harm than good. Instead we model correct speech by talking to them while giving them the time to self correct. I suspect early writing should be approached more slowly and be allowed to develop more organically much as we allow speech to develop. I do believe that a person should know how to write formally eventually but don't see why can't that wait until they've had time to experiment and think creatively.<br />
<br />
For quite some time I've been considering how to approach the subject of language arts for our home education. My gut tells me to approach with extreme caution least I scare my budding scholars. EJ has struggled with writing this year, at one point declaring "I hate writing". With some change in approach and gentle work together he's made quite a bit of progress. Now I want to give him a break and focus on things I think he'll be more excited about. At this point I don't intend to do any specific language arts program. We might do spelling and dictation in time but for now there will be no phonics, no grammar, minimal writing as needed. Instead we'll focus on reading lots of books and hands on work for our other subjects. Ultimately I know there is plenty for the boys to learn right now without worrying too much about writing. To a degree, I have to trust that I will know when the time is right and it will come eventually. <br />
<br />
I do know one thing; I <i>won't</i> be using <span style="color: red;">red </span>correcting pens!dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-7550668240475144032010-06-03T21:14:00.000-04:002010-06-03T21:14:45.748-04:00RandomnessT is in Massachusetts orienting for the new job and I'm here in NY in the worst mood! He's going out to dinner with his pal and I'm sitting here getting on my kids for nothing they've done. It must be PMS right? <br />
<br />
Other randomness: My laptop touch pad button is not working; annoying!
There are tons of weeds in our front hedge and every time I think I
ought to do something about it I get started and give up. I spent $100 on shoes yesterday (just 2 pair) and I feel guilty. I shouldn't really, I think I've bought one pair of shoes in the last three years and I needed them. But still. <br />
<br />
Oh, totally random funny thing. Last week EJ and I watched 3 ducks fly in circles around our neighborhood for at least 5 minutes. Two males and one female. I think the males were fighting over the female. The last time they flew overhead they were close enough to see that the first male had a bloody behind--guess he was the loser. <br />
<br />
All of my complaints are nothing. I really didn't need to see <i><a href="http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/06/caught_in_the_oil.html" target="_blank"><b>this</b></a> </i>post on The Big Picture today but I'm glad I did. Utterly and completely heartbreaking. The lives lost, both human and animal is inexcusable. Now I've read that some people (thankfully not the ones that matter) have suggested <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/03/us/03nuke.html" target="_blank"><i><b>nuking</b></i></a> the well. We did this and we need to go to oil rehab. Now. If this isn't the time then when? Forget Cap & Trade, we need legislature that will make it profitable to use green energy sources. Okay, so really I don't know what needs to be done but something right?<br />
<br />
Actually, I do know...My husband's idea*. Molecular transporters. Yes, we need Star Trek tech! I pretend he's a goof, but seriously. Can you imagine! Your morning commute - head to the local transport station and woosh, now you are in NYC, Paris, London. Sure, sometimes our molecules would get scrambled but could that possibly be worse than this oil crap? <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*okay, since Star Trek came up with it first, I guess T can't take credit.</span><br />
<br />
Sigh...'nuff for tonight.dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-825853095731937939.post-67034078520703886132010-06-02T21:07:00.001-04:002010-06-02T21:09:08.215-04:00Atheists Don't Have No SongsThis is hilarious! Steve Martin is a comedy genius- he should stick to comedy and forget movies though. Interesting bit of trivia about my husband (or maybe not interesting to anyone but me), he has expressed an interest in learning to play the banjo BECAUSE Steve Martin plays it.<br />
<br />
For the record, I have NEVER watched football in my underwear and yes, I like my free Sundays. <br />
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<object height="295" style="background-image: url("http://i4.ytimg.com/vi/CWlqpowKkBY/hqdefault.jpg");" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/CWlqpowKkBY&hl=en_US&fs=1">
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* Idea shamelessly stolen from <a href="http://www.raising3thinkers.com/">Raising Three Thinkers</a> and <a href="http://smrtlernins.com/">Smrt Lernins</a>dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00551347235905110899noreply@blogger.com1