Now I’m Reading: Pre-readers

I chose Nora Gaydos’, “Now I’m Reading” ,beginning readers over the Bob Books.  This series is wonderful & offers great suggestions for developing necessary pre-reading skills for ages 3-6 years old.  They are a collection of soft-covered mini-readers that come together as a set in a hard covered binder.  A parents guide & stickers are also included. 

Inside the parents guide you will find an explanation of the format of the included books, suggestions for using the books, & ideas to help your child learn the alphabet.

My Mustangs are currently enjoying the My World Pre-Reader books.  I am truly pleased with the format of these readers.  Each book has a different theme & includes a couple sight words:

1. Opposites
2. Number Sequence (First, Second, Third, etc.)
3. Places
4. Things that go
5. Rhyming
6. Animals
7. Actions
8. Farm
9. Household
10. Baby Animals

We also have the Look Around!  Pre-Readers, which include the following themes:

1. Colors
2. Numbers
3. Emotions
4. Food
5. Pets
6. Jobs
7. Shapes
8. Body Parts
9. Family
10. Clothes

I’ve found these books to be great read-along books with cute little pictures that the boys enjoy.  They have gained initial confidence with the predictable text format & are so excited to add a sticker after “reading” their books. 

At the end of each book is a page with words to know: sight words & picture words.  There is also a “Stretch Your Mind” page which lists simple activities to reinforce the concepts focused on in the book. 

Check out Montessori For Everyone for a very helpful comparison of beginning phonics readers.

He’s a climber!

Workbox Planning

When do you find the time to plan the workbox activities?

I DON’T!  I’m still working this system out.  I truly believe in it & have seen (when used correctly) how smoothly our day goes by implementing it; however, it seems to be that I’m preparing for them at 10pm each night or not at all.  I haven’t planned them out (on paper) for the entire week, but usually 1-2 days at a time.  I’m a mess! 

I am trying to update boxes throughout the day to prevent me from doing it at 10pm.  It seems to be working pretty well.  Part of it is just discipline on my part.  By the time we are done with school – I am done.  I’m checked out!  I’m ready for a break.  This has been an issue that has also overflowed into dinner & bedtime. 

I’m sure there is a better, more time saving, organized way of going about this, but at the time being here is what how I’m doing it:

I’m using my Well Planned Day Planner:

I just ignore the subject titles on the left.  I use every other space for the mustangs & momma’s boy.  Sometimes if we have to finish at a certain I’ll mark times in (like you see on Monday).  I’ve really been experimenting with the whole system & trying to figure out how to make it best suite us.  Some activities don’t require a box, but an activity card, so I started numbering the boxes on my schedule (see Tuesday’s circled numbers).  I use the very last boxes at the bottom for daily activities.  See Monday “BB 6:15”  That reminds me we have baseball practice at 6:15 that day.  I have to have this constant reminder so I know how on task we need to be.  Sometimes if Big Daddy is off I’ll sway from our boxes & take more breaks & come back to them in the evening – only to realize we have an activity planned for that evening. 

It would be nice if it were color coded, but time has not been an abundance around here lately (I’m saying that as I’m blogging when I should be making dinner – LOL). 

I’m still trying to figure out how to schedule boxes according to the time frame.  For example I need the Mustangs to be on a box that is independent while Momma’s boy & I work on his reading together.  If anyone finishes slower or quicker than anticipated – IT IS ALL MESSED UP!  Which then brings me to the schedule cards – Not so sure they are helping or making me more annual.  I will admit, I am a little frustrated with them.  I have a activity tab thief crawling my floors which doesn’t make matters any better!!  Ahem, Truman!  Not to name any names or anything. 

I’m not discouraged yet.  Just getting more creative.  So look for a revised post of our system soon!

Please feel free to leave any suggestions in comments or let me know how you are planning for your boxes.

Thanks!

DINOmite!!

D week was soooo much fun at my house.  We ate, breathed, & slept dInOsAuRs!  We even got so lucky to visit the Forth Worth Children’s Museum’s Dino Lab (*the Dino Dig was disappointingly closed – BOO!)  The kids had a blast romping around the Dino Lab, discovering fossils, comparing bone sizes, & climbing inside a dino-print. 

If you didn’t visit Nicki’s blog, 400 Things, when we did our blog hop you’ll want to click here to see more of what we did during our DINOmite D Day’s!  My post there is full of fantastic dinosaur activities & links.  I really out did myself on this one, if I do say so myself! 

While we were at the Children’s Museum we saw the Animopolis I-Max show.  Hilarious!  It was a perfect fit for our Animals & Their Worlds studies.  I love killing 2 birds with one stone.  The kids had a wonderful day . . .

Curriculum Show & Tell

 

When you get a bunch of homeschool mom’s together what do they almost always end up talking about?

CURRICULUM, right?!

This year I have overheard several moms at our enrichment group complain about the curriculum they were using.  They were so stressed out because they didn’t know what to do, but were too intimidated by the big homeschool convention.  I decided to organize a Curriculum day for homeschoolers in our area.  But first, I hit Nicki up for help :)  Once she was on board, it was a GO!

We wanted it to be very relaxed – like a bunch of girlfriends sitting around chatting about what they like & what they don’t like or how they have made their curriculum work for them.  You know, kinda like “Show & Tell.”  Hint’s our first annual Curriculum Show & Tell was born. 

We took about 4 months to plan & honestly, it went very smoothly.  Our planning was actually more fun than stressful.  Nicki & I truly enjoyed organizing this event.  Outside of 2 or 3 meetings we did most of our planning via e-mail & telephone. 

• First, we chose a location – FREE won over location.  We held our event at Nicki’s church.
• Next, we brainstormed how we wanted to schedule the day & utilize our space. 
• We decided to use the entry way for a welcoming table, display of homeschooling books, & a table with door prizes (both purchased & donated).  Our welcoming table had name tags, paper for note taking, & used curriculum info.
• We thought of having Sunday school room’s designated by grade (Preschool, Elementary, Middle, High School) for guests to leave their curriculum at  for display *even if they weren’t planning on speaking on it in a group setting. 
• We also decided to allow people to sale their used curriculum.  We chose the fellowship hall for this area.  We set up tables & marked them if people reserved them in advance.  We asked that they price their curriculum & leave a jar for people to leave cash or checks in.
• Nicki’s daughter organized snacks & sold them as a fundraiser.  We split the fellowship area between the used curriculum & snacking area.  We set tables up with table cloths & flowers for the snack area.  We also placed pens & sheets of cute little note pads for guest to exchange e-mail and/or phone numbers on each table.  
• We offered a “Donations Welcome” nursery for ages 4 and under.  A few homeschool girls from our group worked in the nursery for us as a fundraiser as well.
• The sanctuary was used for speakers.  We placed a table at the font for the speakers to use to place their curriculum on.  We tried to make this as comfortable & informal as possible. 
• We made a to do list & split the tasks.  We listed curriculum we wanted to hear about, then made a separate list of people we wanted to hear from (you know, the ones you think have the perfect kids & the perfect homeschool).  Nicki began calling mom’s we were interested in the curriculum they used & I searched the internet & ordered catalogs (*you can request a bulk order of catalogs – I didn’t know this until too late). 
• Once we had an idea of speakers we decided on a time frame – we thought 5-10 minutes would be appropriate & we made a rather tight schedule.  (*We went an hour over!  -Do to a train making half our guest 30 minutes late!  & speaking, Q & A going over the estimated time.)
• We organized our speakers list based on topic & timing priority (*not all the speakers could stay the entire time). 
• About a week before our event we began with follow-up calls.
• We also did quite a bit of advertising.  We made flyers & handed them out to our enrichment group.  We advertised on our website & facebook page.  We attempted to invite other co-op groups in surrounding areas & invited the closest Home Educator’s store.
• About a month before our event we planned a fundraiser – sold pizza at lunch at our enrichment group.  Our budget was about $50.

I cannot tell you enough how blessed we all were by this event.  We had about 30 guests/speakers total.  Which was a great turnout consider the timing, location, & fact that this was the first one.  I can’t wait to share my notes with you! 

Now Nicki & I are chomping at the bit to attend the BIG Arlington Homeschool Bookfair Mother’s Day weekend. – We are not the least bit intimidated :)

Next, we will be planning a “Don’t Sweat It” event for the fall.  Details to come!  

Creative Corrections

  About a year ago on some blog I came across a parenting book, Creative Correction, I jotted it down on a sticky note that stuck to my computer until a couple of weeks ago when I threw it out while cleaning.  Then low & behold, I came across it again while surfing Confessions of a Homeschooler’s blog.  After reading a few of her ideas, I decided to order it.  I HAVE NOT PUT IT DOWN SINCE!!  And I refer to it several times a day!  Some of my favorite suggestions she offers in her book are:

• Putting a blind-fold over your child for 30 minutes when they roll their eyes or give you that look. 
• Picking out your child’s outfit for them if they leave their clothes in the floor.
• Having a problem getting your child to turn their light off?  Take the light-bulb out.
• Are your boys as rowdy & loud as mine?  Have them go outside & run laps to get some of that energy out.

This book is by far, the BEST parenting book I have EVER read.  After beginning to read this book my mind set changed immediately.  It will seriously revolutionize the way you discipline & react to your kids.  I have found myself giggling like a school girl at times I would typically be screaming like a lunatic.  I am so excited to implement & test out her creative corrections.  The amazing most gratifying feature of this book is that it is a GODLY guide.  Not only do the punishments fit the crimes, but they are all inspired by scripture.  As a homeschool mom & full-time step-mom, it is easy to get discouraged with the task of correcting/disciplining my children ALL DAY LONG.  I love staying home with them.  I love them.  It is because I love them that I discipline them, but it can be totally exhausting & one of those days, can just suck the life out of me.  But after reading this book, I’ve been quite creative in my punishments lately:

After shopping for Spring/Summer clothes for Daddy’s girl I decided to make a little bargain with her – every week she goes without leaving her clothes in the floor she gets to get a new outfit out of the bag.

Now that I am almost finished reading this book, I am searching high & low for more of Lisa Whelchel’s books.  Barnes & Noble offers a free ebook sample of her book, Taking Care of the ME in Mommy.  It is another one that you will not want to put down!  And I just received her homeschooling book in the mail – yes, she homeschools her three children!

So, do you have any creative corrections you’d like to share?  If so, leave a comment! 

Focus On Reading

I have been so busy this week working with Nicki preparing for a Curriculum Show & Tell for homeschooling families in our area – I didn’t have time to work on my Phonics reading post for this week.  So, next week!  Hopefully!!

While you are waiting on me to get it together :)  Check out Heart of the Matter’s March Edition: Focus On Reading. 

It is fantastic! 

The authors are very honest about the struggles & emotions involved with struggling readers – for children & moms!!  You will find wonderful suggestions for early reading games, as well as other tools for teaching reading.  Including audio books, book recommendations, assessment tests, links to websites, & numerous ideas for getting your child to love reading.  I cannot tell you enough how much I enjoyed & learned from this magazine.  And it’s FREE!  ENJOY!

Going On A Bear Hunt

Now that the weather is pretty, it is perfect for a day of school at
the park!

This week I took advantage of the sunshine & took my boys to the park to do school. One of the activities I had planned was to read, "Going On A Bear Hunt" with them (we are learning about bears). The park we were at was perfect for this! We took our shoes off & went on a bear hunt (while reading the book)... We trailed through the grass, walked through the little stream of water & even went through the mud! The trees were our forest. We used the area under the playground for our cave & when we spotted a bear we ran to the car, shut the doors, locked them, & went home! Whew! We were scared!!

 

What are you doing to take advantage of these beautiful days between all the April showers?

What’s In The Box?

Outside of our regular “school work” here are some things that have been in our workboxes lately.

Mustangs’ Boxes:

        

 

 

 

 

Momma’s Boy:

 

Magical Number 4

Right before Tucker turned a year old I discovered I was pregnant AGAIN.  As delightful as a girl sounded, I knew how much easier another boy would make things. 

Although my labor was much easier than it was with Tucker, my labor was NOT.  The cord was wrapped around Trevor’s neck 4 times!  It was a miracle that he was okay & an even bigger miracle that I was able to deliver him naturally.  A true miracle he was from the beginning!

Two babies at one time was A LOT of work & totally exhausting,

but worth every bit of it!

He stole another hunk of my heart & held his.  I love how he is such a big momma’s boy!  I love that he still climbs in bed with me at night.  The way he looks at me with those big blue eyes just melts my heart every time!

My blond haired blued eyed boy, he is something else . . .

He is a total MESS!

A WILD CHILD . . .

   

With quite the temper . . .

And a mean streak a country mile wide!

But oh so sweet!

   

“Trevor, I love you.  I love your blue eyes, your little nose, your tiny hinny, your sweet smile . . .”

TREVOR:  “Mommy, GO TO SLEEP!”

TREVOR:  “I want more!”

“What do you want more of?”

TREVOR: “You mommy!”

 

TREVOR:  “Mommy, when is God coming?”

“Someday honey.”

TREVOR:  “SUNday?”

TUCKER:  “It’s raining because God is takin’ a shower.”

TREVOR:  “No, Tucker.  It’s raining because God is peeing on us!”

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Trevor!!

Not Me! Monday – Only In The Country!!

You will NEVER believe what climbed down our chimney!

Do you see it?

How ‘bout now?

What does a city girl momma do when a squirrel climbs down her chimney & runs around her living room?

Well she definitely does NOT let her 3 COUNTRY boys shoot it with their bb guns! 

And she would never chase it around her living room screaming like a girl & almost crying like a baby each time it found a new hiding spot.  Not Me!

 

I mean if I had a squirrel in my house, not that I did or anything – I mean WHO has a squirrel in their living room? I would be totally cool about it.  I would never leave the dirty work to my brave fearless boys.  Not Me!

And I wouldn’t bother my hard workin’ man at work with such a matter, begging him to come home.  Not Me!

Or try to bribe his best friend to come over & chase it around.  Nope, Not Me!

But I’m just saying if any of you have a squirrel in your living room, it probably has a nest of babies in a nearby tree . . . just sayin’  Maybe about 6!!  Not that I saw 6 babies go in a whole in the tree right outside my kitchen window or anything – Not Me!  And not that we had a blast watching them run all around their gymnasium tree. 

But if just by chance, something like this did happen, it would ONLY BE IN THE COUNTRY!!