Field Trip to the Creamery and Math Musings

We decided to chuck the schedule and run to the creamery. We are really blessed by being able to get raw, whole milk from a local Amish farm.






And now, math chat. (Cross-posted on MDC)
So, we're about a month into it and I'm just not digging Miquon Math. I feel like she's not learning anything, and she doesn't seem particularly "Rah! Rah!" about it either. Not that she needs to be, but it would be nice if one of us sort of liked it.

OK, what I like:
- the playfulness
- the fact that it goes whole to part
- the fact that it teaches all 4 operations together
- the fact that it uses manipulatives
- it seems to fit in somewhat with Waldorf philosophy
- the cost
- it isn't just memorization and drill, but teaches mathematical thinking

What I don't like:
- lack of practice/drill--this may be why it feels like she isn't learning anything
- it takes a huge amount of time, and I just don't have it, with a baby and a preschooler and a third grader who might be coming home. I don't have endless amounts of time to watch her free-play with materials and then handcraft lessons for her
- the Cuisenaire rods annoy the snot out of me
- so do the workbooks
- the first grade diary and lab annotations just aren't all that helpful to me, and they seem to end come January. The directions are all very nebulous, and I don't deal well with nebulosity.

In our brief foray into k12, we used Sadlier. I'm looking for something sort of like that, I guess. Something where I can teach a brief lesson and she can then work on her own with me nearby. I wish there was a stand-alone Waldorf math curriculum. I'm so conflicted.

That said, I did feel like we did something today. We played the yellow rod game, where Katie Grace had to find various ways to make 5:
Then, I diverted from Miquon and did a Waldorf thing. She wrote down different ways to make 5 in her main lesson book. I also showed her how her body makes five-head, arms, and legs:


So, I don't know what to do with math. I don't want to quit something before I really give it a chance, but I don't want to dig in my heels and be stubborn about sticking with something that doesn't seem to be working.

Also on the math front, we finished our qualities of numbers unit through ten:

Lullaby

For some strange reason, Katie Grace and Daniel are both digging this lullaby lately:
Arrorro, my baby,
Arrorro my own.
Arrorro my baby,
Sunshine of our home.
Sleep will not come to you,
Always runs away.
Lovely little baby
Wants the sleep to stay.

I've been looking all over the internet for a place that plays the tune, but no luck.

Maple Leaf Roses

I have a migraine for the second night in a row, but stumbled upon this on another blog:
How to Make Maple Leaf Roses

I thought this could be sweet on a nature table!

The Sea Is So Wide, and My Boat Is So Small

One of the things that has always fascinated me about my children is how they manipulate language to fit their meaning. Nicholas, for example, has foregone words like "yesterday," "today," and "tomorrow" and instead uses "last day," "this day," and "next day." They suit him better, and more fully express his meaning. I've noticed he has other ways of labeling his days, as well. Sundays are "Church Day." When Pastor DH has lots of events that necessitate us being at church a lot on a weekday, Nicholas is confused. Weekdays aren't Church Days.

Long ago, families could number their days by what chores were done--wash on Monday, etc, etc. Nowadays, we can wash or sew or bake any day of the week and make an easy job of it. And yet, I know my children still crave that weekly, daily, monthly, yearly rhythm. I picture those routines as a boat that carries us through our lives. Especially for a small child, the world is so wild, so unpredictable, so changeable, and they are so small and helpless in the face of it all--a rhythm and routine anchors them, and gives them a predictable fixed point to guide them safely from the unknown to the known.

And so, instead of the abstract Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc, we have Church Day and Painting Day and Muffin Day. We even have Crazy Day--Tuesdays, when soccer and ballet and Brownies causes us to bump into each other around 7:30 rather than sitting down for a meal together as we usually do. By naming our days in a more concrete way, the children are better able to understand what is happening, and what will happen next. Having a predictable routine and rhythm helps them feel safe and secure.

So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 90:12

Dear Lord, be good to me, for the sea is so wide, and my boat is so small.
Prayer of a Breton Fisherman

Autumn Nature Table and Some Math

It's a bit more cluttered than I generally like, but the kids really got into it this time around. We made the forest fairies today.




Gnome treasure--we matched numerals to number words, and then gave each gnome his due.


A Cuisenaire rod step ladder. I did one side, and Katie Grace did the other.

The Rhythm of Our Day, Part 3

After read-aloud, we have quiet time. They can have their screen time now (1/2 hour a day. Nicholas usually watches Bob the Builder and Katie Grace usually skips it, but lately they've been watching Preschool Power or a yoga or ballet video together). I nurse the baby and rest. Getting up at 5:30 AM leaves me pretty tired!

Around 2, I get up and we have a main lesson of sorts. Right now, we're focusing on fairy tales. That is followed by an art/music/or PE time, depending on what I feel was lacking that day. I might also put out some math manipulatives to explore. Then we have a general tidy and end our school day by 3:00.

Semsi Mountain, Take Two

We had another mellow day. I actually pretty much got everything done that needed to be done, which seems like a minor miracle, especially since Dan the Man cut a tooth today. (!)

Here is Katie Grace's alternate ending to Semile Mountain (keeping in mind I already had to change it from him getting his head lopped off to him being shut up in the mountain):
...and the little brother came along for fourths and said, "Semsi Mountain, open!" And it opened. He saw the big brother and said, "If you are good and have a loving heart from now on, I will let you out." And they both lived happily ever after.

Here are her drawings--forgive the weird glare:
"M" Mountain pictureThe Jewels


And an awesome drawing she did of the 4 seasons to represent the number 4.

The Rhythm of Our Day, Part 2

So, we've had snack, the baby is fed, the children have run around in the fresh air, and I've cleaned up a bit.

Around 11, Katie Grace and I snuggle down for some language arts. We maybe do one lesson from The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading, or something from First Language Lessons. We read a picture book together, or maybe do some copywork. It's pretty non-pressured, but she does know how to read, so we're just going on in little chunks.

At 11:30, if he's awake, I put Daniel down on the blanket and he and Katie Grace play together for as long as he's happy about it. Nicholas and I have have some Seasons of Joy preschool time. This is also the time that I do anything he wanted to do from his "Mama Basket." The "Mama Basket" is where he puts any books, games, or toys that he wanted me to play with him while I was working with Katie Grace.

Noon is lunch. The kids help clean up and wash the dishes. This is more an exercise in water play than in actual cleaning. I take a few minutes to pray and catch my breath, and then we have read-aloud time. Right now we are reading Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. I try to read a picture book to Nicholas when we're finished.

I'll finish up our day tomorrow.

Semsi Mountain, Shut Thyself!

Today we told the tale of Simeli Mountain. To be honest, I don't know that Katie Grace is ready for some of the "heavier" fairy tales. I saw her little face when I got to the end part where it says

"Bird, have we caught thee at last! Didst thou think we had never noticed that thou hadst been in here twice? We could not catch thee then; this third time thou shalt not get out again!" Then he cried, "It was not I, it was my brother," but let him beg for his life and say what he would, they cut his head off. - -"

And I could see the look of panic on her little face, so I changed it to "and they left him shut up there forever." And she was still ticked off! I promised her that tomorrow she could dictate her alternate ending to me.

Also, we played a spontaneous game of Simon Says that was also PE. When I said "Semsi Mountain, open!" they would do an open jumping jack, and when I said "Semsi Mountain, close thyself!" they would go into a closed position. But if I said Semeli Mountain open or close, they didn't move.Ugh, Nicholas's shirt is dreadful. You can tell it was after lunch. *hides head in shame*

The Rhythm of Our Day, Part 1

I thought I would share a snapshot of how our days are shaping up thus far.

5:30 AM (!) I wake up and nurse the baby/pray. Then either he's upstairs with Daddy or asleep in the swing or bassinet and I do laundry, clean, get the kitchen in order, precook anything that needs precooked, wash dishes, pack lunches, etc while listening to NPR. I also set something out on the dining room table for the children to do.

7:00- Hop in the shower. On my way out, I wake everyone up. I supervise them getting dressed while I get dressed.

7:30- Breakfast.
Monday: Eggs
Tuesday: Hot cereal
Wednesday: Pancakes or Waffles
Thursday: Hot cereal
Friday: Eggs
Saturday: Pancakes or Waffles
Sunday: Cold cereal
The junior chef helps me cook and get drinks, the host or hostess says the blessing, and the clean-up crew takes out the recycling.

After breakfast, they go upstairs, wash their faces and brush their hair and teeth, and make sure their room is in order. Michael tidies the bathroom, Katie Grace checks the hall, and Nicholas makes sure all the lights are out. Then they come downstairs and make sure everything they need for the day is ready. They can read or work quietly at the table.

8:30- Michael goes to school and Katie Grace does what we call her "daily warm-up". It might be a word problem, a short piece of copywork, or something like that. Then we have circle. At some point, I put the baby down for a nap, but otherwise he hangs out on my lap. If he's super fussy or nursing to sleep, we read/recite nursery rhymes and poetry instead of having circle.

After circle, we have "Jesus Time" (Christian Ed). We have a couple projects going. We're making a prayer book, and we also have a saint main lesson book. It doesn't go into detail, but if we're celebrating a saint's day she might draw a picture or write a quote. We're also working on a Bible timeline to hang on the wall, beginning with Creation. Again, nothing deep, but it's part of the Great Story and it's one more way to help make sure she knows it.

Then we have math. We're using Miquon Math this year, but jazzing it up with Waldorf. Gnomes live among our Cuisenaire Rods and find lots of treasure. We're also working on a "qualities of numbers" book. We write the numeral, draw a picture, and maybe copy a short rhyme or verse.

By now it's generally 10:00 and we take an hour off. We have a snack and maybe do some baking. This is also cleaning time. I encourage Katie Grace and Nicholas to go outside and burn off some energy.

Coming soon... part 2 :D

Where We're At,...

I think we're slowly wandering out of the strictly Waldorf aisle of homeschooling and into the eclectic section. This is really a difficult thing for me to admit. I love the beauty of Waldorf, as well the pedagogy and even some of the spirituality. I am not, however, married to a strict interpretation of the curriculum sequence.

The problem is, I see so much beauty and truth in many different approaches. I love the orderliness of Montessori, and I love the nature-centeredness of Charlotte Mason. I love the freedom to follow a child's interests found in the Project Approach and Emergent Curriculum, and I went to grad school when Developmentally Appropriate Practice standards were being developed. I love the short lessons in The Well-Trained Mind, as well as the respect for the fact that if a child wants to learn, they can and should learn. Waldorf probably resonates with me most strongly, but I don't feel like following a strict Waldorf path--at least as interpreted by some of the "Steiner-Says"-gurus of today--works for our family.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not rushing out to buy workbooks for every subject or a computer curriculum or anything. But I'm giving myself permission to follow the lead of my children and to, as I tell mamas at La Leche League meetings, take what we can use and leave the rest.

That said, we had a lovely first week. We're getting back into a rhythm, and I've managed to work in time for everything I wanted except a nature walk each day. I suspect that's going to be something that is catch as catch can. Maybe one day we'll walk to the corner grocery to pick something up and notice that Mother Earth has changed her clothes, maybe another day we'll walk to pick up Big Brother from school and see an interesting flower. Whatever we do, I am sure we'll find a way to make it work for us!

Back to School!

We're back into a school rhythm. I can't believe Katie Grace is in first grade! And Nicholas desperately wants to do "preschool," which sounds entirely too academic for my taste, but he has been resistant to my attempts to call our special time "nursery time."

I hope to have more pictures, details, etc later. I actually meant to have them up Monday, but it just hasn't happened. It's a good sign, I suppose, that we're so busy actually doing school that I don't have time to write about it.