Weekly Wrap-Up....{the one where the dogs wore clothes}

Speaking of clothes, this dark load really sums up our week - a lot going on, but it sure wasn't laundry.  I did eventually get all this washed just in time for two kids to get the stomach flu.  Blah!

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Here are the adorable pups Amber's been watching.  I think I mentioned last week they wear ski jackets.  I didn't make that up.  Amber just brought them in from a chilly evening walk.  

They went home yesterday, and I actually miss them.  I can't say that too loud or everyone will be begging for a dog again.

Bella is wearing a cheetah fur trimmed sweater vest while she studies "Civilizations of the Fertile Crescent"

Maria had such fun dressing Teddy all week.  And what a trooper Teddy was, she actually would lay on her back like a baby, letting Maria velcro the clothes on.

And when it doesn't work out quite right, ask your 12 year old brother for help.

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Amber and I participated in a 5K.  It was the first one of the year - cold and had one killer hill.

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When I shared the recipe for Southern Pork Barbecue, I listed the other new recipes I'd tried.  This is Frank's Chicken from this cookbook cooking in the crockpot.  I'll share this recipe soon.  It turned out very tender chicken.  I think I'll use a little less rosemary next time, though.

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Noteworthy Homeschooling News

Amber finished Algebra 1 Teaching Textbooks this week.  She worked so hard this year, never missing a day, and it's really paid off.  She's very prepared for Geometry.

Joseph read a book to me at the library.  I pulled a Margaret Hillert book off the shelf and while I typed out a blog post, he sat and read the entire book to me.  I heard a few missed words, but I let them go and a couple times he went back and reread the sentence with the right word.  That's a HUGE win in my book because that means he's actually comprehending what he's reading.

Margaret Hillert's Beginning to Read series has become a favorite of mine this year.  Joe has been responding so well to the limited vocabulary in her books.

That about wraps up our week.  It's a windy, dreary day here in Wisconsin.  Springtime temperatures are welcome anytime now!!

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How to Preschool at Home....(start in the laundry room)

Preschool.  It's a big step for both kids and parents.  We've chosen to keep our kids at home for preschool.  It kind of makes sense considering we homeschool.  Lot's of reasons might have you thinking about preschool at home.  Distance, cost, impressionable minds, time.  Whatever your reason for keeping your kiddos home for preschool, rest assured, you can provide an excellent repertoire of preschool skills.  And I believe it can all begin in the laundry room.

Yes, you read that right.  Preschool in the laundry room.  Let me explain.

Moms spend a lot of time in the laundry room.  Instead of pushing the youngsters away to play so the work can be done quickly and efficiently (sounds nice, doesn't it?), why not include them.  Laundry becomes a time of teaching and learning, rather than just another mom chore.  The laundry folding may take longer, but for good reason.

What can be learned in the laundry room?

--matching socks

As I pull clothes from the dryer to fold, I let all the socks fall to the floor.  Maria lines them up waiting for its match.  Then she pushes one sock inside the other and hands them to me.  I always ask, "Who wears these?"  Then I place them on the right pile. (skill learned = matching)

--naming items 

For young beginners this is a great way to start incorporating preschool into the task of laundry.  Maria loves to reach into the dryer, grab something and then tell me what it is.  She'll say things like, this is a sock, this is a underwear, this is a hoodie, this is a pants.  It's so cute, especially as she starts using the correct subject/verb agreement (skill learned = vocabulary)

--identify owner of laundry

This is a favorite of Maria's.  We call it the "Who wears this?" game.  As I fold and she looks on, I say "Who wears this?"  She looks at each item and then yells out the rightful owner.  It's amazing how observant a two year old can be.  She knows everyone's socks and underwear and shirts and pants.  Sometimes she even catches me as I place socks on the wrong pile.  "No, mom, those are Joseph's." (skill learned = observation/memory)

--name colors

Another obvious preschool skill is learning colors.  This can be as complicated or simple as you want to make it.  Socks can be grouped by colors:  white, black, multi.  Clothes come in so many shades of colors, so it's very easy to expand on the simple sort.  Try lining up all the blue clothes from light to dark.  Or how about naming the colors of the clothes like a box of crayons.  light pink=carnation pink, dark blue=midnight blue, bright green=leprechaun green.  Older preschool age children love this and can get very creative in their color naming. (skill learned = colors, adjectives)

--practice math concepts
I like to incorporate math into folding towels and washcloths.  The simplest is to count the towels and washcloths, separately.  Which is more?  Or spread out a bath towel, hand towel and washcloth.  Let your child put them order from big to small.  How about geometry?  How many hand towels does it take to fully cover a bath towel?  Separate into squares and rectangles.  Joe, Peter, and Maria all love to fold washcloths.  Kitchen washcloths are folded in half.  Bathroom washcloths are folded in fourths.  Fractions don't have to be scary. (skill learned = counting, size relationships, fractions)

--caring for your home
A favorite job is always cleaning out the lint catcher.  I like to remind my kids that a job worth doing is a job worth doing well.  And doing it well means completing the task including the cleanup.

Preschool can be done at home without any extra materials, extra cost, or extra driving.  I've found that including my kids into my daily tasks I can provide them with opportunities to learn all the necessary preschool skills.  Laundry takes longer this way, but that's ok because soon enough they'll be on a plane to Ecuador and I'll be left to do laundry alone.  That last sentence doesn't make sense to you?  Emily is in Ecuador (that's 3,155 miles from here) and I'm feeling a bit like:

Where did the time go?

Wasn't she just 3 years old and folding washcloths and matching socks along side me?

Hold those little ones tight

And teach them skills so one day they can take flight.

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For What It's Worth

Amber: I have a golden dollar and it's probably worth a million bucks.

Not quite sweetie.

What She Won't Be When She Grows Up

Grace: If I'm ever a math teacher, I'll need a whole bottle of Tylenol on my desk.

Distracted by Candy

Today's lesson with Lou was about exchanging one set of coins for another single coin. We started simple with 10 pennies and 1 dime. My plan was to work up to exchanging dimes for 50 cent pieces and nickels for dimes. We never got there because candy won.

Me: A dime is worth 10 cents. A penny is worth 1 cent. 10 pennies is 10 cents, so 10 pennies is the same as 1 dime.

Lou: ok (her eyes were a little hazy)

Me: If you went to a store to buy a piece of candy and it cost 10 cents you could give the clerk....

Lou: How big is the piece of candy?

Me: Big! So you could give the clerk 10 pennies or....

Lou: Like a giant candy bar?

Me: Yes. 10 pennies is the same as 1 dime. You could pay with either....

Lou: Does Wal-mart have 10 cent candy?

Me: Probably not! Now listen. You could pay with either 10 pennies or 1 dime because it's....

Lou: I have 10 cents; I can buy candy.

It's official, Math is now over.

Come Again?

after correcting his math assignment

Lee: Jeez, this is getting boring.

Me: What is?

Lee: Math, I got them all right again.

Today's Toy of Choice

Initially, the mom that doesn't want her stuff broken, almost blurted out, "Put that away, I don't want it broken." But quickly I realized they were actually using it as intended - to weigh items. So I just kicked back and watched them have more fun with it than I ever have. The kids had so much fun weighing their wallets, full of change. They weighed math books and pencils and toy tractors and then started a game of, "Which weighs more?" And to think I almost stifled all that learning.

FYI: The toy scale cannot be found at Toys "R Us.

Freedom

How do two children celebrate the completion of Saxon Math 3? For starters, they hug like they've never fought with one another and scream freedom...no more math. Then they promptly place the lesson book in the recycle bin and mill around aimlessly, giddy smiles across their faces. And best of all we all celebrated at Pizza Hut for the lunch buffet after violin. Even dad came with us and, bonus for me, the grocery shopping was finally done. Back on May 1 we calculated the day lesson 140 would be done and it worked out to be middle of June. I told them their was no way I wanted to be doing math in June and threw out a bribe. If they finished by May 31, I'd take them to Pizza Hut. I didn't need to say anything more. They found that if they did 4 pages of math a day, the task would be completed. And it was, one day early to boot.



By the way, it's time to sign up for Pizza Hut's BookIt program.