Red Cabbage pH Strips

We completed a fun experiment earlier this week in science.  Using juice from red cabbage and coffee filters, we created pH testing strips.

The kids enjoyed wearing the gloves so they could work with chemicals to test.

We gathered pickle juice, BBQ cleaner, window cleaner, hydrogen peroxide, lemon juice, vanilla, sesame oil, ketchup and mustard. (Everyone got to pick at least one item to test--they came up with some interesting choices!)

 We put just a small amount of each test liquid into a small disposable cup.

Everyone took turns picking up a strip and dipping it in a liquid of their choice.  It was neat watching the strips turn colors to indicate acid or base.

After everything was cleaned up, we had a great discussion about pH and ways it's really useful in real life situations (like for testing quality in Uncle Danny and Aunt Joanne's swimming pool!) We also watched a quick video about pH on YouTube (Owen LOVES when we integrate videos.  He really engages in them!)

Experiments and discussions are one of my favorite activities in homeschooling!  I love learning with my kids.
Have you ever made cabbage pH indicator strips?

Easy Elephant Toothpaste

For school this year, we are mainly utilizing the free Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool website.  It incorporates many videos and hands on projects, and Owen is really thriving with those inclusions.  We're working slowly but surely through Chemistry and Physics for science.

Today's experiment brought giggles all around, and it was so simple I wanted to share.

First, gather up your supplies. 

*1 20 oz empty plastic bottle (Thanks Bryan for drinking the Coke so we could do this!)
*1/2 cup of 3% hydrogen peroxide
*1/4 cup dish soap (we used Kirkland brand, but don't think it matters!)
*1 T yeast
*1/2 c warm water
*Food coloring (optional) --we did this experiment twice, once without and once with.  With was WAY neater looking!
*A large cooking pot or baking pan to catch the overflow

Next, you need to prepare for the experiment.

Combine the yeast and the warm water in a small cup and mix well. 

Let this sit for about five minutes to get bubbly (activated).

Meanwhile, carefully pour your peroxide and dish soap into the plastic bottle.  Add food coloring if desired.

Swish the bottle around (be careful not to get over excited here and splash it out the top!) to mix the ingredients.

Place the bottle in your overflow container.

Once the yeast is bubbly, carefully pour the yeast into the bottle.

Sit back and watch the elephant toothpaste grow!

The website linked to above has a wonderful scientific explanation so you can explain what is going on. 

Have you completed any neat experiments this year?

Our Columbus Day Project

Happy Columbus Day! 

As part of history today, the kids and I took a few minutes to learn a bit about the voyage that was supposed to result in a shorter route to India for trade.  I kept it short and simple since we mainly have little attention spans.

After the talk, we set to work painting egg carton cups for boats. (I got the idea from here after a quick Google search for an easy craft.)  Each child painted three.  One for the Nina, one for the Pinta and one for the Santa Maria. 

While Sydney, Jeff, Ellie and Jayme painted their egg carton cups, Owen finger painted directly on the table.  I knew he'd just eat the egg carton cups, and didn't want to deal with the mess of shredded paper on top of paint! He made himself VERY pretty...

To keep craft time manageable, I made sure to do it while Simon was down for his morning nap.  I didn't want to see the mess he'd create. 

Once the cups were dry, we stuck a wad of play-dough in the bottom of each.  We were supposed to use toothpicks to create masts for the sails, but we didn't have any.  Thankfully we had a bunch of wooden chopsticks.  Those worked quite well.  The kids decorated their sails and put everything together. 

Jayme decided that the sides of the egg carton pieces she had looked like sails, so she painted those instead of adding the playdough and chop-stick pieces.  They turned out nicely. 

Once everyone else had their pieces together, we moved them to the kitchen counters to continue drying while we cleaned up.  Here are Jeff's boats.

It was a simple way to get some extra art into the day.  The kids all love craft time!

Do you have any memorable craft projects you did?

Why I Homeschool Owen

Meet Owen.  I talk about him a lot here at Maggie's Milk.  Owen is our oldest son, and second child.  He's 8 now (it's so hard to believe!)

Owen has Angelman Syndrome.  You can read more about his health in a five-part series starting here.  But this post isn't about that. This one's about education.

When I tell people I homeschool my children, many of them assume I don't mean Owen.  They think he should be in school.  My own extended family has asked me over and over again why I don't send him to school.  They think it'd be easier.  And they are right. I know.

Owen attended preschool at our local school for three years, while I was working full-time as a teacher.  Life was easier.  In some ways.  

But I'm not in life for easy.  I don't think life is supposed to be easy.  And I am happy to homeschool Owen, and the rest of my crew. 

Want to know why?

Here are ten reasons why I homeschool my severely disabled child:

1.  I am called to homeschool my children.

That means ALL of them.  How would it make Owen feel if I sent him off on a bus each morning, but kept everyone else home for hours of learning, love and laughter?  I can only imagine the rejection he'd feel.  He is smarter than most people give him credit for.

Also, we homeschool because we have serious doubts about public schools in general.  Why in the world would I be okay putting Owen in one but not the rest of our kids?

2.  I don't like NOT knowing what happens all day.

Owen can't talk, and doesn't really have a viable means of communication currently.  That means I'd be sending him off for the majority of his day, and have no idea what was going on.  I used to teach in a high school severe-profound class.  I know how hard it is for teachers to have time to fill parents in on what happens every day.
        
But I NEED to know.  I need to know about Owen's days. Some subtle signs of behavior are seizure related.  Perhaps he is trying to communicate something.  Looking at patterns really helps me to figure Owen out.  If we're apart for over half the day, I can't look for them.

3.  Owen has severe medical issues.

 

We're talking issues that have required week long hospital stays.  And even more minor ones like seizures that force his body to sleep during random hours during the day.  I hated calling the bus garage and the school when Owen was in preschool and cancelling.  Again and again.  And I hated getting called in to pick him up, not knowing exactly what happened.  Not having all of the details about the situation.  I'll just keep him home with me, thanks. That way he can sleep off a seizure when he needs to. I can adjust his schedule (and ours) based on how he's doing medically. 

His Pica is also a major concern.  This kid eats everything.  I'd rather at least know that the random tissue he picked up and ate was from someone in the family instead of a random kid in school.  Finger sweeps have also been necessary at multiple points in Owen's life to keep him from choking.  I know what to look for, and can take care of it immediately.

4.  Owen needs routine and continuity in his life.

Trying to balance home and school was hard.  I felt like if I was doing something that worked, I'd like them to do it.  And if they were doing something that worked, I should be doing it.  But trying to find the time to actually communicate those items,  that was hard.

At home, there's no need to inform a teacher that we're trying this, or then forgetting to update that it wasn't working so now we switched to this. We can just adjust as we need to.

5.  We have a built in social community.

 The other kids love Owen.  They have naturally figured out what so many teachers struggle with--how to include a disabled person in their day.  Owen's been a shark in the water, a passenger on a bus and a shopper at the store--without ever leaving our living room.  The kids are really creative with their play, and love to find ways for Owen to play with them.  

We're surrounding Owen with people who love him.  And that's really important to me!

6.  I'm working on potty training Owen.

And he's figuring it out pretty well.  But I can't explain how I know when he has to go.  We'll call it a mother's intuition.  I know that his potty training success would be far less if he were in school. Remember that Owen can't tell anyone that he has to go.  But by being able to have him here, he's been in underwear (except at night) for several days in a row.  It's amazing! 

7.  Expectations for Owen are low.

No one seems to think that Owen can learn anything meaningful, and  I do not want his days to be focused on social skills and life training.  Why?  Because those are taught naturally and modeled for him at home.  School time is for academics.  And I expose Owen to everything that he can while we homeschool.  He's been engaged in letter play, math, history and science. 

I used to teach special education, both in a self-contained class and in a resource room.  I had the kids that everyone had given up on long ago.  And you know what?  They made progress.  I loved shocking parents and other staff members by what these kids were doing.

Because I didn't give up.  I didn't listen when others said they couldn't.

But since I've been in the school environment, I know it happens.  People are quick to give up.  It's much easier to assume that someone  can't learn than to actually take the time to try a new method to help them learn.

I'll keep Owen home and let him sit in on our lessons.  I'll adapt them as I can, add new apps that correlate to his iPad and let him pick up what he can.  He may never be able to show me what he learned, but that's okay.  Teaching academics is the right thing to do.

8.  Owen would be a major distraction to other learners in a school setting. 

Let's be honest for a minute.  Owen is loud.  He is hardly ever sitting still.  He tries to eat every paper he can reach (and I swear his arms are made out of elastic and can stretch!) In a typical school environment, he'd distract the other kids.  A lot.  I imagine he'd get taken out of the class.  And miss out on all of the academics so the others could learn. 

Oh he'd be included for PE and Music, and his teachers would love on him.  But he wouldn't be there for reading.  Or math.  Or history.  Or anything academic.  He'd be on his own with an aide somewhere else in the school doing something fun.  Not learning from a teacher. 

But isn't he a distraction at home?

 At times.

 But everyone here is used to him.  They can push his hand away if he tries to take their paper and keep right on doing what they're doing.  They are used to him.  And Owen is used to us.  He doesn't have a new group of kids to get to know every year--a  new teacher, possibly a new aide.  He just has us.  And we're used to each other.

9. Owen is being presented with the Gospel and God's love.

This is a major reason we decided to homeschool in the first place.  So we can show God's love to our children and help them to grow strong before being out in the darkness of the world.  Much of that instruction is taught during our homeschool time.  Owen would miss out on that.

Does Owen have the ability to understand salvation--is he mentally aware enough to realize that he's a sinner?   I have no idea, and thankfully I'm not the one in charge of that.

I do know that I would much rather err on the side of believing him to be capable then not.  And so he listens to Bible stories, plays with large blocks while his siblings build pieces of the story, finger paints Bible stories along with us, and is here for his family to love on and show God's love. 

10. Owen doesn't have to be reevaluated every three years. 

Guess what?  In three years Owen will still have Angelman Syndrome.  He probably still won't be able to communicate what he knows.  And he would absolutely fail the tests that the law says he has to have every three years to stay in the special education system.

And I don't want that for Owen. 

I'll just keep him home and document progress through a portfolio of goals and progress monitoring.  I know that he's not retarded.  I can see the brain neurons firing in his eyes when I look at him.  And yet that is the labeled that special education law would force on him once he ages out of the developmentally delayed category. 

It's not fair to be required to give a child a test every three years that you know is unfair.  Owen is unable to communicate his responses.  It doesn't mean he doesn't know anything. 

--
Please know that my decision to keep Owen home doesn't mean that I don't like the teachers and aides in our local school.  Owen went there for three years, and I know that they would do their absolute best with him. That just isn't what is right for Owen.

Does this mean that I think everyone should homeschool their disabled children instead of sending them to school? 

Nope.  That's a decision for each family to make individually. 

Here's to a great new school year--whatever academic choices are selected for your family!

Memory Hymns for 2014-2015 School Year

Bryan and I had time over the 4th of July weekend to sit down together and select our memory hymns for the upcoming school year.  As we memorize "I Want to Be Faithful" for the month of July, we'll be wrapping up last year's selections.  It's the first time we ever memorized a dozen hymns in a year.  What an amazing way to worship our Lord!

Our current method for memorizing is working well.  We sing through verse one and the chorus the first week of the month.  Then we add verse two the next week and so on.  If there are more verses than weeks, we simply add them in a bit faster--after four days or so instead of a full week.  The kids are picking up the songs quickly.

Throughout the year, we revisit the songs we learned previously to keep the words and tune in our minds.

A quick note on tunes...those of you who know me in real life know that I cannot carry a tune!  In fact, my college piano professor (I took beginning piano thinking it'd be an easy humanities credit...) told me that I had no rhythm and should try singing along with my playing.  Until I started.  Then she quickly said...um never mind!

So what's a tuneless gal doing teaching all of these songs to her kids?  Teaching them the words!  I figure that they can always adjust to the "real" tune when they are singing with others, or in a worship type setting with piano in the background.  The words are more important anyways!  We also always listen to a YouTube video or two the first few days of the month, just to hear what it should sound like. 

My husband has amazing musical talent.  He works with us on Saturdays and Sundays, and is very patient with my invented tunes.  We sound much better on the weekends when he leads us!  But alas, his crazy work schedule doesn't allow time for singing together during the week.  So I do what I need to do--and lead singing most days.

I said all that to say this...don't let a lack of musical knowledge or ability keep you from memorizing hymns. After all, the Bible says we are to make a joyful noise unto the Lord--not a perfect noise.

Here you are...our selections (and the section of our church's hymnal that they are in...):

August 2014
Just As I Am (Invitation)

September 2014
A New Name in Glory (Salvation)

October 2014
At Calvary (Repentance & Forgiveness)

November 2014
Here Am I, Lord (Commitment & Consecration)

December 2014
Go Tell It On the Mountain (Christ's Birth)

January 2015
Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus (Faith & Trust)

February 2015
Tell It to Jesus (Prayer)

March 2015
Lead Me to Calvary (The Cross)

April 2015
He Lives (Christ's Resurrection)  

May 2015
Blessed Assurance (Assurance)

June 2015
Heavenly Sunlight (Peace & Joy)

July 2015
Got Any Rivers (Comfort)

Do you have any plans to memorize hymns for the new school year?

Owen's Favorite Apps

Owen loves his iPad.  It's been a wonderful investment for him.  He's learning how to navigate the different buttons, how to distinguish between icons, and how to isolate his touch.  The apps we selected for him also expose him to a variety of academic skills.

Exposure is what we desire for Owen.  We aren't entirely sure what he is learning and what he's not, as he can't tell us or show us very well.  But we want to make sure he has the opportunity to learn what the other kids are learning.  We want to expose him to the academics. By picking games that he can play with his siblings (and then practice independently), we help to meet that goal. 

So what does he like to play? 

Here are five apps that are Owen approved.




1.Starfall ABC
We enjoy the Starfall website for early learning, and were delighted to discover that they have several inexpensive apps.  The ABC app is a favorite. You click on a letter and work through different activities based on that letter and sound.


2. Toca Band

Toca Boca games are delightful.  They have fun characters and are very interactive.  Owen's favorite of the series it their musical one.  There are several characters you can pick and choose from to make a band.  Each makes a different beat. By combining them, you can create some interesting music.  He plays on this one for long periods of time. 

3. Counting Bear

The apps from Grasshopper Apps are highly recommended by our family.  They are all completely customizable, and the parent can change the features to make it at just the right level.   I can decide the min and max number, if objects need to be touched in order to count, or program my own sounds in. 

Basically in this app, a single object appears first.  You touch it and it counts 1.  Then two objects appear (different from the first) and you touch both of them. It says, 1, 2.  And so on.  Very good for one-one correspondence and also vocabulary building when Owen plays with others.  (Let's touch the horses Owen.  How many horses are there?)

4. 


Another musical app!This time a freebie.  Owen loves the tunes on this one.  There are five different games that you can cycle through, and you can touch just about everything, which is perfect for teaching interaction and finger isolation.  There are opportunities to match picture cards, put legos together into simple creations, and make a car speed up and slow down.  Colors change, weather changes, there is so much to talk about with this app!

5.








Another Grasshopper App finishes out this list.  This one can be single or double player.  It starts off with just a couple of pictures, and gives a word for the picture you need to touch.  (There might be a zebra and a pear, and it says, pear.) Building vocabulary is really important, and this is a fun way to do it.  I like that it has both one and two player modes.  It's a fun one to have Jeffrey or Ellie play with Owen, and then he can practice later on his own. 

Are there any apps your kids really enjoy?  Or do you have any recommendations for other musical type apps?  Owen loves those, and I like to surprise him with new games. 

Note:  All pics from this post are taken from iTunes. 

Tips and Tricks for Painting With Kids

Today was a painting day.  We bought paint and primer for our chicken coop yesterday, and I decided that since we were going to be painting outside, we should do some painting for art first.

Painting with children can be a bit messy.  Especially when one of them tries to eat everything.  And you know it'll end up everywhere. 

He started off so well!

I found a few solutions for making painting easier on everyone.  Here they are:

1.  Newspaper is your friend!

Lay a thick layer out.  It'll get painted on.  But it protects the table. At least until your child with Pica rips and tries to eat the part protecting the table in front of him... But that's another story. 

2. Have a variety of brushes. 

I found a pack of twenty some paintbrushes at Wal-Mart for five bucks.  It was  good buy.  The kids can use a different one for each color. There isn't as much fighting over brushes.  Everyone can find one they like. 

Sydney painting.  But you can see our jar full of awesome brushes!

3. Paper muffin cups are useful.

I pour the paint colors into these.  The kids can each have one of each color.  I also gave them a few empty cups. They were able to experiment with mixing colors that way.  And no one could complain that someone else got blue into the yellow they needed.  They have to be responsible with their own colors.

4. Use a variety of paints based on skill level.

Jayme, Jeffrey, Sydney and Ellie used acrylic paint and had a blast.  They know how to paint without making a huge mess, and are pretty independent in their artwork.  I had to talk to Sydney about keeping it on the paper, but she really did well for only two. 

Owen, on the other hand, eats paint.  I mixed cornstarch and water to a thick, goopy consistency.  Then I added just a couple drops of acrylic paint to get the color.  I didn't give him a brush.  He just used his fingers. 

5.  Know that messes happen.

He didn't end up quite as neat as he did when we started....

We don't paint everyday.  When we do paint, I just expect a mess.  That way I'm mentally prepared to clean a mess.  I don't do it on a day when we're rushing around.

6.  Cornstarch paint cleans up really easily!

Seriously.  I was a bit worried about the mess Owen was making.  He dumped it on his head.  He trickled it through his fingers, enjoying the texture.  And dripped it onto the floor. 

Me (well my hand) becoming less worried about the mess when I realize that I can pick up the cornstarch paint!

But...it hardens almost instantly.  I was able to SWEEP the paint mess up! Then just a quick spot mop to get the cornstarch powder off took care of everything.  A damp rag cleaned up Owen's head. 

So I really recommend this mixture if you are painting with really young kids, or any with special needs. 


And our chicken coop?  Yeah---I realized once we got all ready that I didn't have a paint tray.  So I picked one up this afternoon after taking Owen to the doctor to get his eye laceration from 10 days ago checked.  It healed nicely.

So tomorrow?  It'll be another painting day!

Any other painting tricks?

Protecting Books: Help Needed!

A while back I shared about Owen eating books. I was struggling with trying to balance having books out for the kids to read with knowing that a book left out would be destroyed. 

After writing my post, I felt better--just writing about it helped my mental struggle.  And then, one of my readers offered a great suggestion--to deconstruct pages of a book and then protect them in page protectors and seal them with packing tape.  (Thanks for the inspiration Michelle!!!).

Except...I didn't have any page protectors.  What I did have was a bunch of low quality gallon sized Ziploc type bags.  And so I selected a book that the kids love.  And one that we have two copies of (you know...in case I really messed it up!).  Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. It's a book we read frequently in our homeschool.

And so, with a quick thrust of a knife, I removed all three staples from the book.  And then took advantage of the marvelous creases to carefully pull each page apart.  My spatial sense definitely got a workout trying to get everything back in the correct order.  But I did it.  I now have all the pages in bags.  And I'm ready to put it together.

But I can't...I'm just not seeing how to make this work.  I'm hoping you can help me.  It may be that my bags are just too tough. In which case, I'll just have to pick up some page protectors next time I go shopping.  I was just hoping to get this one book done while I'm waiting. 

Here's what I've got....

A book with each page in a ziploc type bag. 

My problem...

These are too thick to hole punch, even one at a time.  I was hoping to tie them together with some natural bailing twine we have rolls and rolls of.  But without being able to punch the bags...I don't think that'll work. 

I'm not quite seeing how to make taping them work.  I know it probably would...but I don't see it.  I tried using packing tape, and I got the covers taped together.  But then...the inside pages all fell out. I'm sure there is a way to tape the pages to the next one somehow.  But yeah...I couldn't make it work.  Did I mention that spatial sense is my lowest intelligence?  It is...

I thought of stapling, but my stapler won't cut it. 

So....I thought I'd ask   beg for help.  Any ideas?  I'm totally seeing how page protectors would work.  And I'll pick some up for the next book(s).  But anyone have a way to make this work?  I'd love to let Owen have this soon. 

Thanks so much!!!

The Talking Donkey

Monday begins T week in the Tanner house.  I'm really looking forward to this Bible story!  We'll be learning about the talking donkey from Numbers 22. 

I love this story.  It really shows God's complete control over everything in our lives.  He made the donkey talk.  As in actually speak words that Balaam understood.  That is amazing!

We have some neat donkey crafts planned.  And we'll be learning about God's grace.  He could have easily kept the donkey silent and had the angel kill Balaam.  But we serve a gracious God.  And I'm so thankful for that! The timing is perfect, since our January hymn was "Amazing Grace."  I love how it is all tying together! 

In addition to learning about the Talking Donkey, we'll be making a T Tractor. I know that activity will be Jeffrey approved.  We have a book or two about tractors that will make an appearance in our homeschooling days.   

Any other fun T activities you can think of? 

Jayme's Animated GIF

I love the things Jayme is learning in computer!  It's a subject I really didn't think she'd show so much interest in, and boy did she prove me wrong.  She's really enjoyed creating Scratch programming projects, and is now tackling HTML.

As part of her assignment today, she had to find a GIF animation maker program (with my help) and then create an animation.  She learned quickly, and whipped out several animations quickly.  We wanted to work together on a project, and I asked her to make a GIF of me milking. 

Jayme started up while I was cooking dinner.  She had it all planned out and 90% of the drawing completed.  I helped with some touch up color work.  (One of those "working together" projects where I felt completely worthless!)

Here it is...

Pretty good for her first day!  I'm looking forward to seeing more animations in the near future!  I love how homeschooling can focus in on individual interest areas and talents.  She never would have discovered computer programming or animation creation in the traditional 6th grade at our local school. 

We have Adobe Creative Suite, and I'm thinking there might be a GIF creator in there somewhere...I'll have to investigate that in the near future. 

O is for Oatmeal!

Our final letter of 2013!  We'll start back up with P in January.

Oatmeal Sensory Box

This one was fun to put together!  I took a large Tupperware container.  I added about a cup and a half of oatmeal. 

I made two batches of oatmeal playdough (1 c oats, 1/2 c water, 1/2 c flour all mixed together + food coloring).  I colored one red and one green. 

The kids got involved.  I asked them to pick things out of the kitchen drawers that they wanted to use.  A potato masher, cookie cutters, random lids, an empty medicine bottle and a piece of an old fashion coffee pot were all selected. 

We played!  Owen liked the playdough.  I liked that it wouldn't hurt him when he sampled it.  I still stayed with him and tried to keep him from eating it, but at least two small pieces made it down the hatch.  He is quick!

Jeffrey and Ellie used the lids to make Os.  They poked the middle out with their fingers.  They really liked the texture.

Sydney shoved it all in the coffee pot piece.  Then she tried to squish it out the bottom, but it was too thick.  She then started picking up the oatmeal and letting it fall back down on her arms.  She giggled a lot!

Ellie got the idea to try and add the oats to the clay.  It became pretty stiff.  Then Jeffrey filled up the medicine container with water and tried helping her out.  They ended up getting workable clay again.
 That's a huge reason why I like sensory play--the kids can explore the materials and try and problem solve on their own.  And they work together at it. 

5 Ways to Work Towards Kindergarten Language Arts Standards with Thinking Putty

Standards.  Like them or not, they are here to stay in the world of education. But you know what?  Teaching these standards isn't difficult.  It can even be fun.  And most of you are probably already hitting the standards without realizing it.

Just to prove how simple it can be, here are five ways to meet at least one kindergarten language standard with a favorite tactile toy--thinking putty.  In case you aren't familiar with this product, let me give it a quick summary.  Silly putty...on steroids.  Seriously.  Just a large amount of awesomeness in a tin.  It stretches.  It bounces.  It works on fine motor skills.  Very cool stuff. And very useful for teaching.

Without further ado, here we go.  All of the standards are Common Core State Standards for Reading/Language Arts for Kindergarten since my state has sadly switched to those.

Materials for all lessons: 
At least one tin of thinking putty (if you have two, you use one and your child use one...otherwise you can share!)

1. Recognize and name all letters of the alphabet (both upper- and lowercase).  

Thinking putty activity.  Have your child build letters out of thinking putty.  You make a capital, and have your child make a lowercase.  Switch.  Have your child call out the letter to build.  See who can build the biggest capital M.  See who can make the smallest capital L.  

Make a letter and have your child guess it.  Guess what letter they built.

Building familiarity with the alphabet through play is one of the best ways to ensure reading success.  So play with your letters.  It's good for the brain!

2. Describe familiar people, places, things and events

Can you build Dad out of thinking putty?  How about Grandma?  Ask your child these things, and build people you know.  Together. Once you have two faces assembled, ask questions. 

 How can I tell which one is Dad?  Oh--you're right.  He has a beard and wears a hat.  Grandma has longer hair.   (Or whatever features can be used to distinguish two people.)  The attention to detail that young children have is remarkable. Even if the people are hard to build, the conversation you have will work towards this standard. 

Do the same thing with places.  Can you build our  house and Grandma's house?  What's different about them?  How are they the same?  These simple questions will get your child's mind going.  

3. Sort common objects into categories (like shapes and foods) to gain a sense of the concepts the categories represent. 

Triangle, Square, Circle (Apparently my thinking putty skills need work!) 

Make three things out of thinking putty that all fit the same category.  Ask your child if he or she can guess what your category is.  (If your thinking putty skills are anything like mine, you might have to tell your child what your objects are first! :) )

If you've made a triangle, a circle and a rectangle, ask your child what else could go in that group and then create it.  (Perhaps an oval or a heart...)  Or if you made three numbers, have your child add another.  

Then switch.  Have your child build three things and you guess the category.  Then you add something new.  

This game is building vocabulary skills and helping your child see how different objects are related.  

4. With prompting and support, retell familiar stories, including key details. 

Thinking putty is a great medium for retelling stories.  Since each tin holds a good amount, you can break it into smaller chunks.  This is Jonah.  This is a big whale.  This is the boat he was on.  Using those three simple pieces, a child can retell the story of Jonah.  

Change it up a bit.  Make a house.  A bed.  A chair.  Tell the story of Goldilocks.   

Even if the objects don't look exactly like what their supposed to, you are building the key skill--retelling a story from memory.  

Take turns.  You tell a story.  Then your child tells a story.  Build the key elements of the setting.  By demonstrating how to retell a story, you are helping build comprehension skills that will serve your child throughout a lifetime. 

5.  Understand and use question words (interrogatives) (e.g., who, what, where, when, why, how). 

 Ask your child to create a new creature out of thinking putty.  Then, ask questions about the creature.  Have your child use words to answer. Here are a few to get conversations rolling: 

What would you like most about having this creature as a pet? 

How would it feel to hug this creature? 

What is that part used for?  

Then, you build a creature.  Have your child ask you questions.  Take turns building and asking.  

There you have it.  Five super simple activities using only thinking putty and conversation.  Five activities that link to Kindergarten Common Core State Standards.   

Linked up to: Raising Arrows

N is for Noodle

This has been a fun week in our little homeschool!  We've made it all the way to N.  N is for noodle!  I've been making an effort to incorporate more sensory play into our learning.  It's good for Owen.  Actually--it's good for all the kids! 


First, we had to make colored noodles.  With Christmas just around the corner, I picked red and green.  I put dried macaroni noodles into a gallon Ziploc.  We added several drops of red food coloring to one bag, and several drops of green to another.  A little rubbing alcohol was added as well. 

Then my helpers shook, shook, shook.  Eventually the majority of the noodles got covered.  Then we let them dry on a cookie sheet.  When they were done, they looked like this:

I divided the colored noodles between five sparkly boxes I found in the dollar section at Target.  I added a few goodies--gold chocolate coins, Christmas stamps, ribbon for lacing, and a cinnamon stick.  The kids loved digging through their noodles to find everything. 

Then I used glue to write a name on construction paper.  Each child put noodles on top of the glue, and had a tactile name. Great practice!  I just did a big O for Owen, and a big S for Sydney.  Those two needed some help.  Owen had hand-over-hand assistance, and Sydney just had big sister work with her until she understood what she was supposed to do.

 But, macaroni noodles aren't the only ones we used for play this week.  Spaghetti noodles worked wonderfully as well.  I cooked a big 3 pound bag. Then I colored half of it red and half of it green.  I used the same bags as before, but used olive oil instead of rubbing alcohol to  help transfer the color.

This is the perfect sensory medium for Owen.  It's cooked, so if when he eats it I don't have to worry about it expanding internally.  After reading about noodle baths on this website, I knew that Owen would love one.  He did!  He had noodles on his head, noodles on his toes, and he even threw noodles on the floor.  Thankfully, it was easy to clean up!

Then the little girls asked if they could take one too.  I dug out their swim clothes and refilled the tub.  They had a blast! The noodles turned the water an interesting color.  They picked it up and cooked with it on the sides of the tub.  They threw it at each other.  They let their toes dangle in the noodles. 

That website (Growing a Jeweled Rose) also has directions for making glow in the dark noodles.  I want to try that sometime, though I probably won't let Owen play with those ones.  He will eat them after all. Thanks to the Pica.  Don't want him glowing internally!  

 

Other possible noodle activities for the week:

 

Noodle Necklaces

Noodle Patterns

Noodle ABC dig

 

Do you have any fun ideas for noodle play?

The Alphabet Castle

We've been hard at work learning letters around here.  One of my favorite ways to practice letter identification is with a large foam puzzle.  I'm sure you've seen them around--the letter pops out and back in, and you can connect them to make a large mat.  The kids love playing with it.

After we take all of the letters out, I usually throw them all around the room.  I grab up a case and call out the letter.  The little guys run around trying to be the first to find it.  Once all the letters are retrieved, we order them.  Great letter practice!

Owen can easily be included in this activity.  He usually chews on a letter or a case, and we all tell him which letter he has.  Exposure is our big goal with Owen, so it works great!

Jeffrey and Ellie decided to do something different.  They recruited Jayme and had her build them a letter castle.  They could pop out letters to make windows.  It was another fun way to play with the alphabet.

Jayme puts the finishing touches on the door to her castle.

Ellie demonstrates the peep hole.

Sydney, Jeffrey and Ellie in the completed castle. 

Enhancing Creative Story Telling: The Story Bowl

We've been watching too much TV lately.  With temperatures reaching a high of 10, going outside to play as a family isn't an option.  Brr!  It's bad enough going out to do chores.

So with dark coming early, and cold, cold weather, we've been snuggling on the "couch bed" and watching DVDs.  Which is fun. Except it's been taking a toll on  behavior.  The kids are just wanting too many movies.  They wake up in the morning asking if they can pick a movie.  I'm all for snuggling on the couch and watching a movie this time of year, but not before breakfast and chores and school!

Time for a change.  Something to spark some creative thinking.  Something that used items we already had.  I've been wanting to work on story telling with the younger kids, and creative writing with Jayme.  And then I had one of those lightbulb moments.

I asked Jayme to get the big mixing bowl.  Jeffrey was sent on a mission to round up five Lego people.  Ellie was sent for some toy animals.  Jayme selected five toy blocks.  A few other items were dropped in the bowl, and the kids looked at me like I'd lost my mind.

After getting Sydney and Owen settled with the rest of the blocks, I announced that it was time to play The Story Bowl.  I instructed Jayme to close her eyes, and reach into the bowl.  She was to select five random items.

Once she had her items, I asked her to tell us a story.  Her story had to use all five of the items.  She could include other things as well, but those five HAD to be included.

Jeff and Ellie loved listening to Jayme's story.  Then they asked for turns.  Selecting the items was their favorite part.  On my turn, I got a rubber duck, a cylinder block, an airplane, a boat and a frog.  I told a story about a lonely duck who decided to leave his little pond and go looking for a friend.  He tried the boat and the airplane, but they didn't answer him.  Finally he came to a frog sitting on a rock.  They became friends.

On Ellie's next turn, she asked if she could look at the bowl while picking.  I said yes, and she reached in.  She picked the same five items I had, and proceeded to retell my story.  She added a cool waterfall by using her legs though.  Retelling a story is a great way to practice literacy!

This was such a simple game.  But, so much fun!  It hit many learning goals.  And the kids didn't even realize they were learning.  Creativity, sequencing, organization...all essential writing skills.  Those writing skills are honed through oral stories as well as in the written word.

Here is what was in our bowl:

Rubber bath toy animals

Transportation!

Every fairy tale needs a princess/king crown!

Blocks created wonderful background objects--hills, flagpoles, rocks, etc.

Lego People

If you need a fun way to build literacy on a cold winter night, grab a big bowl.  Gather some random objects and play The Story Bowl!

Linked up with: Raising Arrows

K Is For Kangaroo!

We had a fun time with the letter K today.  Jeff and Ellie decorated a kangaroo onto a large letter K I cut from construction paper.  I cut out the pieces for their joey as well, and then turned them loose. They had glue, scissors, wiggly eyes and other basic art supplies handy. It was neat how they both went in different directions with their creations.

Ellie's finished kangaroo is on the left, Jeffrey's on the right.

Since we don't homeschool on Fridays for the most part, we try to end each Thursday with a fun craft.  It helps to reinforce the learning from the week and uses some creativity. Brown paper would have been better, but we were out and used black.  Use what you have and avoid unnecessary trips to the store.  Even if that means black kangaroos. 

Ellie is adding a smile for her joey.

Sydney is helping Jeff with the wiggly eyes.

What crafts have you created lately?

Free the Frozen Animals

Integration and exposure are the main goals of homeschooling for Owen.   This activity was a perfect way to tackle both of those, AND hit some fine motor goals simultaneously.

I borrowed some of Jayme's small plastic animals (the kind that come in tubes...) and stuck two each in several different sized containers.  I added water and a few drops of food coloring.  When the color mixed, I stuck them all in the freezer overnight.

When it was time to free the animals, I covered the table in bath towels.  I grabbed a dish basin for extra ice.  Pulled out a handful of knives and explained the rules to the kids. 

Their job was to completely free their two animals.  They could use knives, or any other tools they could think of as long as they were being safe.  I passed out the ice chunks and started to work on mine. 

Ellie and Jeff use table knives to free the animals.

Jeff was the first to go search for a different tool.  He brought back a hammer, gave his ice two good thunks, and exposed both animals.  A knife quickly broke off the little chunks that were left.  I set him to work helping Sydney--since she decided it was too cold.

Sydney tries to get her animals out.  But declares the ice cold!

Owen loved playing with the ice.  He was fascinated by the edge of the animal sticking out.  He picked up ice chunks from everyone else and ate them.  Finally, using hand over hand motions, he was able to help hit with the hammer.  He eagerly grabbed his animal and warmed the remaining ice off by mouthing it. 

Owen loved this activity!

When all the animals were free, we picked up the ice and tossed it into the dish basin.  The towels went in the wash.  And that was that!  A fun fine motor activity accomplished.