Have Yourself a Musical Little Christmas

It’s that time of year. :) If you haven’t quite finished your Christmas shopping yet and would like to consider some musical instruments as gifts, I have a few recommendations for you. 

In general, you’ll find that instruments sold in a kit marketed towards young children are not going to hold up well, and, generally speaking, don’t make the beautiful musical sounds. Quality instruments made by makers such as Nino, Hohner, and Remo tend to make much better music and hold up better to use throughout the years. 

I’ve compiled a list of instruments that have held up well in our home for the past few years, as well as a couple recent discoveries. Next week, I’ll do another post with resources for learning about composers and music history. 

First Note Melody Harp

approx. $45

M received this for Christmas when he was almost 5. I would say it’s best for ages 4 and up. You’ll need a reference for keeping it in tune - a piano or even a smartphone with a tuning app. 

Woodstock Pipedream

approx. $50

Little Miss A received this last Christmas at 19 months old. It was an instant hit. Because it is based on the pentatonic scale it is not possible to play dissonant notes. They can, however, still play loudly :) This is an instrument we keep out at all times in our living room and is played by adults and kids alike as they pass. 

Remo Floor Tom

approx. $30

Remo makes great drums for kids. They sound just as nice played with a mallet as they do played with hands - a great, mellow sound. They make them in several sizes and price points. 

Nino Wood Frog Guiro

approx. $25

Who doesn’t want to play a wooden frog? Actually makes a ribbit sound! 

Nino Egg Shakers

approx. $8 for 4 eggs

We’ve had these for a number of years in our home. They’ve been great for pleasant music making….and held up to being chucked across the room :) 

LP Santana Chick-itas Shakers

approx. $4 for a pair

For the youngest musicians, these are basically shaky eggs with a handle. They come in several colors. We have red ones that are used in the preschool music class. 

Movement Scarves

approx. $20 (can get them for less at Oriental Trading)

These are similar to what we use in the preschool class. They also double as great ninja headbands :)  We do have some of these at home, but have actually gotten more use out of play silks I dyed with Kool-aid a while back. 

Hohner Wooden Calves

approx. $6 for pair

A simple, clear sounding instrument. 

Nino Caxixi

approx. $9 - many price points available

We actually don’t have one of these at home, but I just added a couple to our co-op collection recently. There are many styles and types available on Amazon. I think they’re a great sounding instrument that looks interesting and will fit in nicely in a home environment. 

Rhythm Band Handbells/Deskbells

approx. $50 for 8 bell set, approx. $135 for 20 bell set

This is a link to the 8 bell set. We’ve had a set of handbells for a few years, but they always make me so nervous that someone is going to get clocked in the head as the kids swing them. These are great because they can be used as either desk bells or handbells. Right now, all 3 kids, ages 2 1/2 to 7 1/2 are VERY interested in them, and I don’t see that interest fading soon. I actually ended up ordering the 20 note set because they were trying to play songs they knew and needed a wider range of notes to play the full melodies. You can also start with the 8 note set and add the expansion sets separately as the kids get older. 

Do you have any winning instruments around your house that you can share with us? 

Books and Resources

As autumn comes to a close, I thought I'd return to this space and share a few things that have been working around here.  Last week several moms gathered and shared ideas and suggestions for working with the curriculum and homeschooling in general.  It was such a fruitful evening, and I was reminded of my hope that this space might be a place to share those ideas, albeit without the wine and chocolate!

With labels by year (this is Year One of our 3-year cycle) and subject, the resources we share now can continue to bless moms who join us down the road.  The blog is not password-protected, but it is unsearchable. 

We have enjoyed some fun supplementary reading this fall in addition to The Heroes of Israel in the Schola Rosa suite. 

My kids really loved the Gilgamesh Trilogy by Ludmila Zeman as we studied the Ancient Sumerians.  The story is well written and the artwork is beautiful.  The borders of the pages show cuneiform design and characters.

As we studied Ancient Egypt the kids really enjoyed Ancient Egypt: Tales of Gods and Pharaohs.  It is a fun book, and although its busy, cartoon-strip style isn't my favorite to read aloud, the kids loved it.  It covers all of the Pharaohs mentioned in the timeline, as well as some basic Egyptian mythology.

We also read Casting the Gods Adrift by Geraldine McCaughrean, a short novel about a young boy working for Pharaoh Akhenaten.  It provides a very good picture of Egyptian life and beliefs, and uses the tension between the traditional Egyptian polytheism and Akhenaten's monotheism as the dramatic focus of the story. 

We are also reading A Child's History of the World by V. M. Hillyer.  We are a little behind the history memory-work, and I find that his concise, simply-worded summaries are a great way to remind us of what we have been studying.

We use the timeline figures from www.homeschoolinthewoods.com to create a wall timeline, and I have been using some of them with my 4th-5th grade class at co-op as well.  They can be printed in a variety of sizes, including a full-page coloring sheet.



My girls love completing the Latin Root word searches that Sandy shared with us last week.
 
I have always used Start Write software to create handwriting worksheets for my kids.  Since I didn't love the sheets provided by Schola Rosa, I have continued making my own, and I think this has really helped our poetry memorization.  Basically, on Sunday night I print out four copies for the week, and they copy the week's poetry memorization every day.

I also like the geography quizzes at www.lizardpoint.com.  They don't include everything on the CCMemory lists (deserts, for example!) but are a great quick and independent way for the kids to review countries and hydrography.

I supplement our math with the fact drills at www.xtramath.org, and on Ursula's recommendation just ordered the first book from the Life of Fred series.


So, what's been working for you?  I have already enlisted Sandy to do a post sharing all of her great music history and listening resources.  Share in the comments or send me an email and I can add you as an author to the blog.

Timeline Units 7 through 12

I uploaded a video of the timeline units 7-12 (all that we covered before Christmas) at youtube because it was too big to load here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIK_efQ8ZOo&feature=youtu.be

Timeline Unit 17

World War I

The Treaty of Versailles

The Russian Revolution

Our Lady of Fatima

The Great Depression

Pearl Harbor

World War II

Israel Becomes a State

Timeline Unit 16

Reconstruction

Vatican I

The Industrial Revolution

The Victorian Era

St. Therese of Lisieux

Europe Colonizes Africa

Immigrants arrive through Ellis Island

New Inventions

Truth, beauty, and avoiding burnout

"Children not only need a diet of truth to thrive, but they also need to be surrounded by beauty."

As I assess my first full year of homeschooling, I remember what my husband said when we found each other again after the ten year hiatus, "you will be a source through which truth and beauty will flow into my life again." When I have a hard day, I go back and open that journal we used to pass back and forth during our long-distance courtship between Ohio and NYC. 

In homeschooling, I'm starting to see what other mothers have shared about avoiding burnout by using real books rather than just mountains of text books. I like this article about burnout: http://higherupandfurtherin.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-to-recover-from-homeschool-burnout.html

She notes, 

The object of children's literary studies is not to give them precise information as to who wrote what in the reign of whom? - but to give them a sense of the spaciousness of the days, not only of great Elizabeth, but of all those times of which poets, historians and the makers of tales, have left us living pictures. In such ways the children secure, not the sort of information which is of little cultural value, but wide spaces wherein imagination may take those holiday excursions deprived of which life is dreary…” Charlotte Mason, British educator

Wide spaces sound wonderful, but I also like that this co-op and Classically Catholic Memory expose our young children to information they will remember and build upon for years. It's fun to hear what you all use for curriculum - anyone want to share in the comments? 

I have been enamored with the many homeschooling philosophies I have encountered this year, amid the vast curriculum choices.

- Seton

- Kolbe

- Mother of Divine Grace

- Catholic Heritage Curriculum (I use this)

- All About Reading - Spelling

(To name a few...)

The Math options are vast, as well. This book has proven interesting to me in math considerations: 

Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics by Liping Ma

I've found truth and beauty through prayer, really looking deeply into my kids' eyes and listening, reading and writing blogs, watching all of you in all of your beauty, and good books like "Holiness for Housewives," not a new book but one from the 50's, a time for which I am nostalgic. I also love Small Steps for Catholic Mothers by Foss & Bean. What are you all reading right now?

Seeking truth & beauty,

Mrs. K

Timeline Unit 15

The War of 1812 (ASL for fire - like the White House!)

The Battle of Waterloo ends the Napoleonic Wars (ASL for "water" and then "end")

The Trail of Tears

The Alamo, The Republic of Texas, and the Mexican War (ASL for "Texas" and "Mexico")

The Gold Rush

Slavery

Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War

Lee Surrenders to Grant at Appomattox (ASL for "South" and "surrender")

Depression and World War II Reading

 

We had a great time studying the depression around here, mainly because my kids were all captivated by Kit Kittredge.  We watched the movie together, which was surprisingly fun to watch and included a star-studded adult cast.  My kids were particularly interested in the lives of hoboes, and in "hobo code."  The supplementary book Welcome to Kit's World was also a good resource.

We also read and enjoyed Rudy Rides the Rails and Potato, and looked at the pictures in Russell Freedman's Children of the Great Depression.  I remember listening to my Grandparents talk about growing up in the depression as a kid and finding it fascinating, too.

Studying World War II with little ones is challenging.  Much of it is just so horrifying, it is really beyond their scope of understanding.  We read two picture books about organized resistance against the Nazis: The Cats in Krazinsky Square, by Karen Hesse, and The Butterfly, by Patricia Polacco.  Both were good and age appropriate.










The Molly series from American girls talks about life on the home front.  We also read Number the Stars, by Lois Lowry, an excellent story about the successful evacuation of almost the entire Jewish population of Denmark in 1943. 



I also had my 8-year-old read Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, the story of a young Japanese girl who gets leukemia in the aftermath of the bombing of Hiroshima.  She was very, very sad about the ending!  Still, it is a classic.

What about you, what have you been reading?

Unit 14 Timeline

The Stamp Act, A tax on tea, and the Boston Tea Party

The Battle of Lexington Begins the Revolutionary War (ASL for "minute" and "war")

The Declaration of Independence: Fourth of July, 1776 (ASL for "Independent" and "Fireworks")

George Washington (ASL for "Washington," probably the state)

Cornwallis Surrenders at Yorktown (ASL for 'Biitish" and "surrender")

The Constitution Becomes Law: 1789 (ASL for "law")

The French Revolution

The Louisiana Purchase and Lewis and Clark (ASL for "Louisiana")

(I guess we'd better call this my red "timeline" fleece.  And pretend I don't wear it every day.)

My Thoughts on Music Lessons

Awww, thanks, Melinda! :) I started to write a comment to your post, but was told it was too long for the comment box!

Wonderful post. You've covered everything and said it so well. I still struggle with feeling that maybe I have done my kids a disservice by starting them later (than 3), but when I think objectively about it, I think I've done the right thing for them and us. Honestly, I just could not see the value to any of us of getting involved in formal lessons when Mr. P was 3. It would have only been a battle, and he expressed no interest. He started piano when he was 6, and it has been perfect for him.

I think the goal in music from birth to age 5 should be exposure, exposure, exposure - to different genres of music, different instruments, to opportunities to develop pitch matching and rhythmic skills. You don't have to consider yourself musical in order to create a musical environment in your home through listening and providing accessible instruments.

I was not able to match pitch until I was 6 or 7. My mom was very worried she had a tone deaf child! I didn't start piano lessons until age 7. From birth, though, I was surrounded by music-making - my mom played piano often and participated in church music while my dad played the guitar for my brother and I to sing along. My brother played piano for a couple years, but quit because he didn't like it. Later, in high school, he took up the guitar and trumpet.  Our temperaments are very different - I wanted to please and do as I was told, my brother didn't want to learn anything until it was his idea and he could see a clear purpose as to why he should learn it. He has become the most accomplished musician of us all.

In my experience with my own children, I can see a huge difference between the amount of music exposure they each had as toddlers. Even though I am a musician, I didn't do a great job exposing Mr. P to a wide variety of music and music experiences as a toddler. While he's in a good place now, he was late in developing his rhythmic and tonal skills. Doing the Music Together Class last year, and the MMPT class this year has advanced them all immensely…..but it's not only because of the weekly class. It's because of listening to the music in the car and playing with the songs around the house throughout the day. We make up words to the songs (which I'm TERRIBLE at doing on the spot in class!), we change the rhythms and enjoy them. Sweetpea is already beginning to match pitch and follow rhythms because I'm singing and making music with her more informally than I ever did with the boys.

So my recommendation is to follow your motherly instinct and make music with your children as much as you can - tapping rhythms with a spoon on a tabletop counts! If your child is asking to learn a particular instrument when young, then go for it. But if your child isn't showing interest in a certain instrument, it is my (very humble) opinion that it's not worth it to start lessons before age 5. Use the opportunity to develop his musicianship skills using small instruments (glockenspiel, melody harp, drums, percussion instruments, ukele) and play along with CDs or make your own music. Those experiences will accelerate his progress when he does begin lessons. If your child shows no instrument preference between ages 5 and 7, then piano is an excellent place to start. They will get a chance to learn how to read music on both clefs and develop a great foundation from which to move to any instrument they desire.

Music lessons

I ran across this article recently and thought it might prove interesting to some of you.  I have been having lots of conversations lately with different parents trying to discern the best time to start music lessons, and thought it might be useful for me to pull together some of my thoughts in one place.  I am hoping that Sandy will chime in, too, since in addition to teaching and parenting experience in the department, she also has a degree in pedagogy!

As a piano teacher, I have taught beginners from age five to fifty. For years I accepted every student who came my way in order to pay for my third of the bedroom I shared with two other musicians in the city.  (So, rule of thumb number one, never rely on a potential teacher to tell you whether or not your kid is ready to take music lessons, unless they are affluent!)  I have had great results with a five-year-old, and have also seen plenty of promising beginners struggle or quit down the road, so as with all parenting endeavors, there is no perfect formula.

Since having kids of my own, I've gained some experience on the other side of the parent-teacher relationship.  (Yes, that's also known as eating humble pie.)  As most of you know, Miss A began violin at 5, and Miss C began cello at 3.75.  Mr. L has not begun lessons yet.  In the school of hard knocks that is Suzuki parenthood, I have learned a few things over the years.

Some signs that your little Mozart is ready for you to start writing checks:
      - He can match pitch.
      -She can clap back a simple rhythm.
      -He can take instruction, and can stand or sit still at something for at least a few minutes.
      -She has good fine motor skills.  (I am not expert at assessing this, but in hindsight can see a big difference in my three oldest in this department, which probably affected their early musical careers.  Miss C was drawing people (and pigs!) before the age of three.  Miss A and Mr. L both took much longer to do so, and Miss A struggled terribly with penmanship until she was close to eight, when, almost overnight, it became a complete breeze - this was also right around the time when her violin lesson stopped being agony.)
       -He is demanding an instrument, has a fixed idea of which instrument he wants to play, etc.
       -She often experiments with sound or musical instruments.

Some reasons to wait:
       -Your child has significant issues with any of the above, especially if they are younger than five.  Honestly, you will feel like the biggest sucker ever for paying a dollar a minute to watch a music teacher trying to cheerfully wrestle your little wiggler back onto the bench after the fiftieth time he "slips" off, bringing his elbows crashing into the keys.
       -Money is really tight.  Unless your child is really precocious, the advantage of early individual instruction (as opposed to early musical exposure) is probably not huge. Other factors are MUCH more important, and I'll speak briefly about those in a minute.  So if you are really scrimping and saving, consider it $5000 in the bank to wait another couple of years.
        -I won't take a piano student younger than five.  They are just too little, and the piano is too big.  


Some advantages of starting early:
       -Those little violins are just so. stinking. cute.  Also, the video footage you will have of her picking her nose during her first play-in is classic.
       -You do get to the cool music earlier, even if your start is bumpy.  If your child excels, this means more time with real repertoire before college.   I remember the things I played in high school better than what I performed last year, so the more big repertoire you get under your belt in your teens, the better.
 
 Some advantages of waiting:
        -Your child can choose his instrument himself.
       - Your child can practice independently and learn to read music much sooner, making it less of a time (and patience) investment for you. 
       -You can develop your child's musicality in other fun ways, like Eurhythmics.

Some (tongue in cheek) reasons why you should never start music lessons at all:
       -You are unable to keep a weekly appointment.   Regular lessons are critical.  I can't tell you how many families I worked with for whom this was a major problem. 
        -You "just want it to be fun."  Seriously, if a parent says this it is pretty much a guarantee of failure. Music is a discipline.  In order for it to be fun, you have to put in some sweat equity.  As Dr. Suzuki says, you should only practice on the days that you eat.
       -You aren't willing to invest in a decent instrument.  Although I had one student excel with only a cheap keyboard at home (the family really couldn't afford more), every family who told me they were waiting to "see if she likes it" before buying a piano didn't last long.
  
Other random advice:
       - Make sure the teacher is experienced with really little students if you are starting young.  The best teacher for beginners at our Suzuki school is not the best violinist, but she is a brilliant pedagogue.  The school usually switches students who continue past book three to some of their other teachers, who are better players.
        -Look for lots of opportunities for performance.  This makes a huge difference.  Kids get a big boost out of preparing for, participating in, and celebrating after a recital. 


If you have made it this far, you will be happy to know that CCC families are the kind of families music teachers hope for, so none of you can really make a wrong decision.  And the good news is, after listening to me whine about my first year of Suzuki parenthood for years, you will probably think it's not that bad. No matter what age or instrument your little ones begin with, they already have years of excellent musical training under their belts.  Making Music Praying Twice is a great program, and Sandy is the best! 

The up and coming class

Playing nicely with Legos around the table :) Surely a sign of good things to come for these little ones!

Unit 13 Timeline

I think that we should keep our timeline edits and handsigns for next year.  For one thing, I don't know if Schola Rosa has corrected the CCM timeline in the same way that we have.  For another, as Sandy mentioned to me recently, sometimes it helps to know the reasoning behind the handsigns.  And finally, I just think its a shame to let go of all the hard work the kids have done over the past two years on the timeline.  I can post videos, and print out a corrected timeline for our CCM books.  What do you think?

If we continue, our little "timeline break" now puts us on schedule to learn the last six units on schedule.  Here is Unit 13, which I taught to the kids back in January.  I can continue adding these for the rest of the year, and go back and do videos for Units 7-12, too.

Emily

As we finish memorizing "Hope" by Emily Dickinson, I wanted to share this picture book with you.  I read it to some of the kids in class, but I think it merits a place on the bookshelf year round.  On the surface this book is a simple story about a little girl who lives across the street from Emily Dickinson.  It describes a brief encounter between poet and child.  Woven into the story, however, are beautiful insights on art, beauty, and the true nature of the human person.  I find more to love in this book every time I read it.

Electromagnetism

As Liam puts the finishing touches on an opening argument for the morning, I collect materials for my first experiment with electromagnetism at CCC in the morning.  I realize that I only have a 9V battery, and the book calls for 6V.  I ask my beloved if he thinks this is a problem, and he says no.  Then, as I head into another room to try it out, he adds, "Make sure you are sitting down when you try it, just in case.Nine volts is what they use to power a stun gun."

Thanks, honey!

Some of our Irish favorites

beautiful paper doll coloring page

another here

Indoor sand table

I imagine I may not be the only one who struggles with ideas on how to keep an almost 2 year old busy during school time. It is enough to make one question the whole homeschool thing altogether. In an effort to gain a few minutes of peace, I decided to try bringing our sand and water table inside for the winter. Cleaning it up was no small task, but it has been worth it. I filled it with river rocks, pebbles, pom poms and other things I had on hand. (Obviously choking hazards need to be considered, but I think we're in an ok place with that right now.) Since September, I've been collecting random containers in this big blue bin. Sweetpea enjoys dumping and pouring over, and over, and over again using the various containers, spoons, and scoops found in the bin. I found a list online of all kinds of ideas of what to put in your table. (I'll try to edit this post later with that list.) The best idea is to switch the contents every month or so to provide new sensory experiences. Honestly, though, the only sensory experience I really care about right now is that of a peaceful household...for at least a few moments.

February Reading

So, we survived February!  With half the month spent nursing the flu, it was pretty February-ish for us, but, all things considered, it wasn't too bad.  One advantage of  cold weather and runny noses is that we usually get more family reading in.  I thought I'd post some follow-up to my reading suggestions for the last two units.

Our reading on Industrialization included the Samantha series from the American Girl books.  We also enjoyed the movie, although the factory scene was upsetting for Miss Eight.  She also found photographs of child laborers by Lewis Hines very difficult.  I read Counting on Grace and decided that it could wait, as it is not quite beautiful enough to be a family read-aloud, but a little long and possibly too sad to be good independent reading for now.  For the littles, we read A Teddy Bear for President Roosevelt, a sweet story about the invention of the teddy bear during this time period.

As we studied Colonialism, we listened to A Little Princesss for the one hundredth time.  It is still a wonderful story with lots of references to British colonialism.  We also read The Jungle Book aloud.  I had never read it before, and enjoyed it very much, as did Miss Eight.  Little Miss Six had a harder time keeping up with the story, but seemed to enjoy it.  We also read some Just So Stories, which are a little shorter and much sillier.   I looked at Kipling's poem, The White Man's Burden and thought it would be a great basis for discussion for older kids, but not for our 6-8 year olds.

We didn't do much reading about Africa, but in the past we have enjoyed the Anansi stories as retold by Eric Kimmel very much (there are several), and also Why Mosquitos Buzz in People's Ears.

Finally, I checked out this biography of Ghandi by Demi and read it at CCC last week.  It was good and kept the kids' interest.  Her explanation of Ghandi's Hindu faith is straightforward and clear.  I think Demi's books are beautiful - I love her Joan of Arc and St. Nicholas biographies, too.

We are still making our way through the Little House books.  Mr. Four loves them, although he often falls asleep in the middle.  Miss Eight and I don't mind reading them for the second time at all, and Miss Six is entranced.  I ordered a number of the My First Little House books, too.  Although we are quickly moving past this time period in history, we will finish the series. (Reading the part of Little House on the Prarie about the whole family getting Malaria sort of put our small flu woes into perspective.)

On my own time, I just finished The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni.  I started this book back in the fall because it is set during the Thirty Years War.  Yeah... that was a long time ago, wasn't it?  It is a beautiful book. I highly recommend it. It's so Catholic, it is almost like spiritual reading, except that it has a very exciting plot and is set around beautiful Lake Cuomo and Milan.  And, if you want a real treat, discuss it with Mrs. P!   The final drama of the book all takes place during a major outbreak of the plague.  Needless to say, that really made my February blues seem tiny!

This week we move on to World War I in our history studies, a difficult subject to study with little ones.  Today I checked out The Donkey of Gallipoli, and it is well done but quite sad.  We also have Christmas in the Trenches, a great story.  The best chapter book I can think of related to World War I is Rilla of Ingleside, but I am not sure I want to skip ahead in the series with my kids this time around. 

It's not mentioned in the memory work, but the Irish Revolution and Civil War happen during and right after World War I.  I'll try to put up a post of some of our Irish favorites this week, to get ready for St. Patrick's Day.

What about you?  What have you been reading?

Typing

I hope all of you have enjoyed this blizzard.

What a fun few days we've had together.  Praying the rosary, reading Little House on the Prairie, eating three meals together at the table (which will keep our kids off drugs).  And, we kept up our lessons through Saturday, just to take advantage of these days indoors and to build up a surplus so we can go outside when it's nice.  I can't wait for sunshine.  Slick slack wrote a poem for ccc last week about me, and I'm still gushing over it.  (Yes, I'm pregnant, but that's not why I'm crying over it.  Really.)

As my fellow homeschoolers are wrapped up in the legalities and constitutional infringement in the latest CT legislature's proposals to require behavioral assessments for our children at ages 12, 14, and 17 (now adding public school children to the homeschool children), and others are heading to a romantic Valentine's Day in Hartford to March for Change, I'm resisting my former self's instinct to jump in and write a long brief about the fourth amendment, equal protection, the second amendment or anything legal at all.  I'm quietly praying. We are called to continue to be faithful Catholics, remembering our purpose.  Lead our families to heaven. And somehow, I feel called to do more.  Yet, I know my current limits, don't I?

And in the meantime, I will teach my children to type, so they can write briefs and great articles like the latest George Weigel on the future of the Church and the New Evangelization:

Here is a really cool (free) typing program.

While the kids are learning to type, watch this awesome made for tv movie, The Battle of Athens, Restoring the Rule of Law, and keep praying.

Hope to see you all Wednesday. 

Mrs. K

Listening suggestions....

During these long days at home due to sickness and icky weather, screen time is extremely tempting. TV, iPad, computer, etc.....it's all so convenient and easy. Yet often it seems to backfire when it's supposed to help. One area of technology that I've been trying utilize more deliberately is audiobooks and the like. There are two that have been extremely popular in our house the past month:

The Scrambled States of America

Beethoven Lives Upstairs

The Scrambled States of America comes just as a book or with book and CD. We have the CD and the boys have been listening to it multiple times a day for the past 2 weeks. A very silly story, but enjoyable nonetheless and a few random facts are learned along the way.

Beethoven Lives Upstairs is a wonderful introduction to the life and music of Ludwig van Beethoven. It's the story of a boy who's mother rented the upstairs apartment to Beethoven. He then writes letters to his uncle telling of the various things that happen while Beethoven is living in their house. They use Beethoven's music in the background to set the tone for the story. It is wonderfully done, and I look forward to exploring more CDs in this series.

Other audio series the kids have enjoyed for a while are Cat Chat and Glory Stories. We have listened to both the 1st and 4th volumes of Cat Chat (Mary Leads Me Closer to Jesus and The Mass Comes Alive). They seem kind of silly upon first listen (talking cat?!), but the music is very catchy (with a couple exceptions) and the kids have learned a lot. Glory Stories tell stories of various saints in a engaging way. I've learned a lot! The links to both are below. 

Cat Chat

Glory Stories

Now that I've discovered our new car will actually record CDs and store them in it's memory (crazy, huh?!), I hope to have more things at the ready for our listening pleasure. Hopefully it will make these LONG days pass with a little more joy.

Be perfect

I was an athlete growing up. My family lived and breathed sports. I played basketball, a team sport where team truly meant everything to me. I called teammates on Saturday mornings in June to rally together at an open court in the summer heat. To win, we had to prepare. We had to be perfect.

When a team mate was injured, I felt the injury as my own. When a team mate lost a boyfriend or a grandparent died, we all felt her pain. We passed notes during class, sharing bible verses. Philippians 4:13 is still engraved on my plaque in the all-Ohio school trophy case. During the National Anthem before games, I prayed the Our Father and asked God to take away my teammates fear of the opponent or sadness over a parent divorcing. To win, we all had to experience joy together. I couldn't appreciate the win knowing another of my teammates was grieving. We had to be perfect.

I've prayed for guidance in this homeschooling journey. I've begged Our Lord for Catholic friends. Look at this team we have. How abundantly blessed we are. I second Melinda's nudging - lets be generous with each other, lift up those grieving, and be perfect.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=o-iPiN_YHjY&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Do-iPiN_YHjY

The above link summarizes my point.

You are all in my hearts.

Mrs. K

What's working around here

For the past two weeks we have been using a new checklist system to provide some order to our days.  On day two of my system I joked with Sandy that I was going to blog about it immediately, but look how I have prudently waited two weeks to prove the lasting effectiveness of the system.

The truth is, we have had different checklists over the years and I have always found them helpful.  My kids have either learned or inherited my love of checking things of the list (I have been been known to add things to my list after completing them, just for fun) and I think it helps them have a good sense of what is expected of them as well as what they have accomplished each day. 

My latest list system is aimed at having the girls take a little more responsibility for their independent work in the morning, and has been working.  I call it ten by ten, and the deal is that if they finish ten things on their morning list by ten, we can go out or they can play.  We have had trips to the zoo and library as well as just headed outside or to the porch to play.

The 10 by 10 list has things that they can do on their own: review songs for Suzuki, Saxon Math fact sheets, math drills, computer maps, unload the dishwasher, get dressed for the day, etc.  While they do their 10 by 10 I can take a shower, start a load of laundry, and read books to the baby and Liam.

The second part of their checklist has "with mom" activities: math lesson, spelling lesson, new music pieces, handwriting, and a daily subject like science, history, or latin.  We do these during naptime, so that we can focus.  Also, they are quiet during naptime, a huge plus for my rotten little napper.

Finally, there is a third "bonus" category that lists a few more chores and activities, including reading silently.  They are supposed to do 20 things per day, and if they finish their list for all four of our school days, they get a treat on Friday night. 

In my experience, motivational tools like this usually fade away after a few weeks, but they leave some habits behind.  I'm sure some aspects of this new system will become irrelevant as we add or subtract activities from our list, but I'm hoping the idea of getting up and doing several things on their own every morning will stick.  I also like how this system has helped me to get out of the house with them at 10am, which is supposed to be one of the joys of homeschooling.

So, that's what is working around here! 

Another little gem we recently discovered it Times Tales.  There is a longer review of it here.   Since my kids regularly make up stories about their math facts anyway, I thought it was worth a try.  It works.  Caera knows her upper multiplication tables, and they have only watched it twice.

We have also been doing lots of Civil War reading.  We went ahead and read Rifles for Watie together, and the kids loved it.  I did skip over a couple of the more violent parts, and I wouldn't bother with it for kids under 8 or 9.  Aine loved Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln, and we also enjoyed A Voice of Her Own.   I checked out Ulysses S. Grant, Military Leader and President from the library.  It is part of a series by Chelsea House Publishers, edited by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., and every title in the series we have read has been excellent.  They are short biographies, good independent reading for fourth grade and up.  Aine read some of it, and I read other parts aloud.

Since we are almost done with the Civil War, I am thinking about our next read aloud.  Next up in history are Industrialization and Colonialism.  I just started previewing Counting on Grace, and I'll let you know what I think, but I might skip straight to Colonialism and do The Jungle Book, The Secret Garden and/or A Little Princess.  This is also a perfect time to start the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

I think we might need a snowstorm to get us through this reading list!

Underground Railroad website

Just came across this link. Very good introduction to the topic for the littler "big" kids :) They also have more information for older kids on other pages. I'll definitely be exploring the rest of the their website for other appropriate topics. 

National Geographic Underground Railroad Website

Presentation Skills

Before my recent promotion in 2006 to mother/homemaker, I was a corporate/university trainer for legal and soft-skills. Presentation Skills was one course I facilitated for faculty and employees. Now that I'm teaching the 5-6 year olds, I thought I'd share some of my own ideas for teaching presentation skills to them. Obviously, after watching our Christmas presentations, this group is already well on our way. These are tips for for kids for presenting in front of any group.

1. Prepare. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice in front of a mirror, iPhone video, stuffed animals, friends and mom and dad. Create a stage at home - an ottoman, a stool, your own stage built by your parents (anything!) and speak. Articulate. Go for it.

2. Props Rock! Use props, humor, poster board, PowerPoint or handouts.

3. Sing it! Sing your presentation once at home as if you are singing in the shower. It's good practice to try to be heard over the shower water or other competing noise. We are rarely as loud as we think we are. While presenting, imagine you are having a talk with the person in the back of the room. Be loud and project your amazing voice!

4. Eyes Up! Use eye contact with all of your audience. If you are nervous, imagine they are all in their pj's and giggle to yourself.

5. Pace, walk, and talk. Move around the room - purposefully- so the left, right, and center audience get some time with you.

6. Consider a theme. Start your talk with a topic and wrap up with that topic.

7. Watch others. Watch comedians. Watch priests. Watch your CCC teachers! Note what successful presenters do. Go online together and find good examples of presentations and not-so-good ones. Discuss.

8. "And I was like...." Catch your filler words. Pause when you are moving from sentence to sentence. Avoid "like", "um", "you know", and "did you know that..." Watching yourself on a video will help you hear your filler words.

9. Be expressive. Use gestures. Clap your hands. Make 1, 2, 3 points and use your fingers. Video your practice presentation and when you watch it, turn off the volume. Watch your "filler gestures". Do you move your hand like you are waving in a crowd into the stadium? Do you mess with your notes? Do you look down the whole time?

10. Smile and have fun. We love to hear what you share.

What other ideas can you seasoned parents or children share that work for you?

See the awesome presenters below...

Civil War Reading

Here at our house we are easing our way back into school after a nice vacation by reading some new books on the Civil War. Some are Christmas gifts and some are library picks by our favorite librarian, Grandma Susan.  I thought I'd share some of our favorite finds with you.

The Drinking Gourd and Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt are gentle introductions to the subject of slavery for young readers.  Both focus on the Underground Railroad.  Amistad Rising: A Story of Freedom is also good, and brings in a little bit of the legal and political history surrounding the Amistad trial. 

We just read Pink and Say last night.  Based on the true story of Patricia Polacco's great-great-grandfather, it is powerful but has a very sad ending.  We also enjoyed Dadblamed Union Army Cow, a funny and touching fictionalized account of an actual cow who traveled with a Union company in the Civil War.

Aine is currently reading the My America series Virginia's Civil War Diary.  These three books are light on battle, blood and gore, but describe one family's experience living in Washington DC during the Civil War.  They are written by Mary Pope Osborne, author of the Magic Treehouse series. My kids have read all of the "Jack and Annie" books, and the two on the Civil War (Abe Lincoln at Last and Civil War on Sunday) are among my favorites in the series.  These make great read-alouds, especially if you can make your third grader read them to your first grader and preschooler.  School for everyone!

While they're busy with that, make yourself some coffee and read the The Killer Angels, a novel of the Civil War that is powerful, informative, and serious enough to impress my hubby, who is something of a Civil War buff.  If you are feeling more scholarly, he recommends you read the three-volume series by Bruce Catton. 

(Or, you could just re-read Gone with the Wind.  Come on, you know you want to.)

For older kids (9 and up), I love Rifles for Watie and one of my best elementary school memories is of preparing to act out the amputation scene with my fourth grade classmates.  Another memorable read from my late elementary years is The Root Cellar. I have not read either of these with my kids yet, so do give them a preview.  I remember Rifles for Watie being quite graphic, The Root Cellar less so.

Okay, that's all I have for you tonight.  Happy reading! I just added eight items to my amazon cart, so you should be hearing back from me again soon...