A tour of our schoolroom/dining room/playroom

I got a little restless this weekend and rearranged our "multipurpose room". You see, it's getting a little noisy and chaotic to have all five of us around the table all the time, and this leads to cranky children who can't get their work done. So I was left with the challenge-- how, in a small house with four little ones, can we make this work? So I did what I could to give everyone their own space.
I'd like to find somewhere else to put the trash can but, alas, we are fresh out of room. The gray box on the floor holds the stuff I'm saving for portfolios. The red file thingie on the wall holds reading logs, spelling test papers, papers to file, and a folder with each child's lesson planner and other papers for the week. Next to that, we have the paper storage-- from the top down it holds paper ruled for early elementary school, lined paper, graph paper, construction paper, and scrap paper. On top of that sits the finished work box.

I took apart my big cabinet and made two little cabinets. I miss having a high place to stasg things though.

This is Michael's corner, with his desk and his workbox. Eventually, I want to get something to set him box on so it's not on the floor. It's a little bare right now, but I'm sure Michael will make it his own in time. That is, if Daniel doesn't get to it first!

Yesterday...

And today!

This is the part I'm most frustrated with. We have Nicholas's workboxes and a shelf with toys. I really want to replace Nick's shelf with... something else, I don't know what... and move the toys shelf... somewhere else, I don't know where. We have a small house and many children. Space is hard to find.

And here's Nick's little corner of the room!

And Katie Grace's space. Again, workbox on the floor. Must remedy this situation.

And finally, our cubbies. I need to get our nature table back up. I'm also trying to get rid of the "non-Waldorf" elements, for the most part, and move back towards where we started.

Well, there you have it. It's small and cluttered, but it's ours.

Shakespeare, Week One

Remember how excited I was to start Shakespeare with Michael? Well, a week into it and I'm still excited! One of my favorite parts about homeschooling is getting to be the one to introduce books and stories I love to my kids.

We're using the Charles and Mary Lamb adaptations, Tales from Shakespeare. I remember reading these in Mr. Garbrick's seventh grade English class, back in the day.

I also found a great book from the library called Starting with Shakespeare. This book has lots of great ideas for making Shakespeare accessible to kids without dumbing it down or trying to be too trendy, two approaches that always send Michael running for the hills.

We started with The Tempest. We've also been reviewing adjectives, so Michael drew the five major characters and included adjectives to describe them all.
He also did some copywork from the play.
We read some of the original play, including Come Unto These Yellow Sands

COME unto these yellow sands,
And then take hands:
Court'sied when you have, and kiss'd,—
The wild waves whist,—
Foot it featly here and there;	5
And, sweet sprites, the burthen bear.
Hark, hark!
Bow, wow,
The watch-dogs bark:
Bow, wow.	10
Hark, hark! I hear
The strain of strutting chanticleer
Cry, Cock-a-diddle-dow!

and Where the Bee Sucks, There Suck I
Where the bee sucks, there suck I:
In a cowslip’s bell I lie;
There I couch when owls do cry.
On the bat’s back I do fly.
After summer merrily:
Merrily, merrily, shall I live now
Under the blossom that hangs on the bough.

We looked at art inspired by The Tempest as well, and talked about the appeal of "stranded on a desert island" stories.

Finally, inspired by this lesson plan, we watch Cast Away together. This led to some really great discussion.

Next we read A Midsummer Night's Dream. I had to giggle when Michael complained about how frustratingly confusing it was, and I could tell he felt relieved when we learned it was Shakespeare's intent that the play be a bit confusing and difficult to follow.

Michael made a map of the fairyland in the story.


And since we were discussing similes, he did a page of similes for Puck.
He chose 4 characters and drew their pictures, copying some of their words from the original Shakespeare.




Some other activities included discussing laws and customs of Greece, discussing Helena and journaling about things he had a choice about and things he didn't, and memorizing Nick Bottom's speech:

Let me play the lion too: I will roar, that I will
do any man's heart good to hear me; I will roar,
that I will make the duke say 'Let him roar again,
let him roar again.'

Michael likes roaring.

We also spent some time this week learning who Shakespeare was and where he fit in history. Here is Michael's timeline.

And last, but not least, the cover of his main lesson book:
I'm not sure who first said "virtue is its own reward," but it wasn't Shakespeare. Michael, however, thought it a very Shakesperian thing to say. He did say, however, "Assume a virtue if you have it not."

D, E, F, Gee!

A continuation of our alphabet journey, begun here. Again, these are just things that caught my fancy or inspired me.

Dd
Fairy Tale: Hansel and Gretel
Book: Hansel and Gretel
The D is the door of the oven. Later, the letter H can be seen in the house.
I love this little wooden play set.
Little play dolls
A Hansel and Gretel paper craft-- definitely needs a good deal of adult help, but it could be fun!
Lots of gingerbread ideas here.
And how cute is this Hansel and Gretel fabric?

Ee
Fairy Tale: The Magic Key
While this is definitely one of the lesser known Grimm's fairy tales, I love the openendedness of this story.
The E is found at the end of the key. We see "Wheeee! A key!"
Check out this Waldorf-inspired treasure ball! Very cute. It reminded me of the ball of yarn with surprises wrapped up inside described in The Children's Year.
And here is a treasure box felting kit.

Ff
Fairy Tale: The Magic Fish
Book: The Magic Goldfish, a Russian Tale by Demi
The F is found in the shape of the fish's body.
I love this fishing game from Whip Up! It would be great on a blue play silk pond.
Another great fishing game is here-- what a great way to recycle old paint brush handles!
Of course, if you didn't feel like making one, you could always just buy one from Sarah's Silks.
These color scratch fishbowls could be fun as well.
Wrap it all up with these homemade goldfish crackers!

Gg
Fairy Tale: The Goose Girl
The G is the goose's form
I love this little puzzle with gnomes riding a goose. This goose girl puzzle is sweet as well.
And Ostheimer sells a Goose Girl, geese included! You could also buy a handmade set here.
Check out this cute little goose hat on Etsy!
And this beautiful Goose Girl ornament would little pretty on a nature table as well as a Christmas tree.

And a cute project for the whole alphabet!
Soft Sculptured Letters

Workbox Wednesday: Katie Grace

It's Workbox Wednesday, today starring Katie Grace!

Workbox 1: Drawing a Day of the Dead picture to go with her narration from the other day.


Workbox 2: Modeling the seven times tables in her math main lesson books. She's still reversing her 3's. Sigh.

Workbox 3: A boring old cursive handwriting sheet.

Workbox 4: Practicing her spelling words by writing them with sidewalk chalk outside.

Workbox 5: Handwriting. She's beginning to learn about antonyms.

Workbox 6: A library book to look at. Tomorrow she'll make a page in her main lesson book.

And then a little break-- we're off to the dentist! This is the real reason my kids like to go to the dentist.

Home again, change for Awana, and then Workbox 7: Black Beauty.

Workbox 8: Subtraction review.

Workbook 9: Making a main lesson book page with a quote from King Louis XIV. This is also a good way to practice cursive.

Workbox 10: See that little skunk? Katie Grace made it!

Workbox 11: Katie Grace is working her way through this book. Today we read B is for Bread. Tomorrow, we bake!

Last but not least, Workbox 12: A letter to Katie's friend Maya!

A Day in the Life

It's Tuesday and we haven't done this for while, so here we go!

We were all up on time for a change. It was oatmeal for breakfast followed by chores, and we were starting our school day by 9 AM.

Michael and Katie Grace got started on their independent work while the little boys and I had circle. We're doing the Harvest circle time from Autumn Seasons of Joy. It was hard to get a good pictures as they rang their bells to celebrate the harvest!

The boughs do shake and the bells do ring
So merrily comes our harvest in
We've ploughed, we've sowed,
We're reaped, we've mowed,
We've got our harvest in.

Daniel's favorite part of circle is "Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley Grow". I keep catching him singing it throughout the day!

Daniel opened up his "surprise boxes"- his Playmobile train set from Grandma and Grandpa, a coffee can with a slit cut through the lid with juice can lids to put in, and a little wooden horse on wheels.

Nicholas and I told the story of Jack and the Beanstalk again, and then worked on his main lesson book. Michael and Katie Grace, meanwhile, continued to work on their own.

One of Katie Grace's projects today was to place animals on a world map.
Nicholas worked on Unifix cube patterning
but it's hard when Daniel steals all the yellows!

Katie Grace had her main lesson- farming- and we learned about the seasons cycle. We also reviews the six times tables.

By now it was time for a snack and a little break, and then it was time for Michael's main lesson.

Full fathom five thy father lies;
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes:
Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell:
Ding-dong.

Hark! now I hear them,--ding-dong, bell.

Michael declined to be photographed today, but he did some very nice work!

While Michael worked, Nicholas and Daniel did some more workboxes.

Making ice cream comes from the geometric solids-- yum!
Clipping the "feathers" on the turkey-- I'm not so much concerned with the color matching, although that's an added bonus, but the clothespin clipping is great for his small motor skills.

When Katie Grace was finished with her morning work, she got out her stamp and color set.



Daniel liked one of Nicholas's activities so much (placing buttons into egg carton sections labeled with that number) that he asked me to make him one!

Michael went outside and I made lunch. After lunch, the kids cleaned up. It is so cool to finally have the kids be at an age where they can help out. We began our new read-aloud, Charlotte's Web, and followed it up with some map work we missed yesterday. Then we read Story of the World. By now, it was time for Katie Grace to go to orchestra and time for us to end our school day.

Starting with Shakespeare

I am really, really, really, really, really excited for Michael's main lesson block this month. It's not a fifth grade Waldorf block, but rather recommended reading from Ambleside Online, a Charlotte Mason homeschooling curriculum. We're starting with Shakespeare this month!

When I was in college, I remember reading a book called by E. D. Hirsch, Jr called Cultural Literacy. Cultural literacy is the idea that we, as a culture, have a shared bank of idioms, allusions, stories, slang, and other informal content that we draw from in order to communicate with one another. One of the points of the book is that we, as Americans, are losing that cultural literacy. I remember one example being that children no longer could be counted on to know nursery rhymes. One of the things that drew me to Waldorf education was its recognition of the rich heritage to be found in nursery rhymes, fairy tales, and children's songs.

What better example of shared culture than Shakespeare?! We'll be using the Charles and Mary Lamb adaptations-- another thing I remember well from my childhood-- and started today with The Tempest. Of course, we'll also include a good bit of the original Shakespeare as well.

I'm very excited to start this main lesson block with Michael. I'm not sure he shares my enthusiasm, though. His take on Romeo and Juliet? "Well, the part where everyone dies sounds interesting, but the kissing part? YUCK!"

He is, after all, still a ten-year-old boy.

So, what's your favorite Shakespeare tale? I'd love to know!

Michael's Main Lesson Block: Folk Tales

Michael just wrapped up a main lesson block on American folk tales. While folk tales are often covered in the Waldorf curriculum in fifth grade, I decided to use a non-Waldorf resource for teaching this block. I'd heard a lot about Moving Beyond the Page, and decided to try it out. Because we're also hitting American geography pretty hard, I decided to go with American Tall Tales and Legends.

Billed as "a homeschooling curriculum for creative, hands-on, and gifted learners," Moving Beyond the Page has been the talk of the message boards this past year. In my opinion, it doesn't live up to the hype. The books' organization is confusing, with information needing to be pieced together from two or three different places. There was a good bit of creative writing involved, but "hands on" seemed to be a bit of an overstatement, with a lot of cutting and pasting and worksheets involved. As far as the claim that it's great for gifted kids, it did not present much of a challenge for my fifth grader.

The best thing this curriculum had going for it was the recommended books: Cut from the Same Cloth and American Tall Tales.

Cut from the Same Cloth: American Women of Myth, Legend, and Tall Tale fills in an empty gap in folk tale canon-- stories of strong, courageous women. Bess Call, Annie Christmas, Old Sally Cato, Sister Fox, and Otoonah are just a few of the tales told. The stories represent America's rich multicultural heritage as well, featuring women from Native American, African American, Mexican American, and Canadian backgrounds.

American Tall Tales by Adrien Stoutenberg tells the tale of eight American folk heroes: Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, Stormalong, Mike Fink, Davy Crockett, Johnny Appleseed, John Henry, and Joe Magarac. These were a quick, no-nonsense read... other than the nonsense of the tall tale of course! Last of all, we used some Stephen Kellogg's picture books to fill in the gaps.