what we're up to this december...

It's December!!  We've been having fun adding some Christmas activities in our school day...

i found a great Advent downloadable book and have been using it with the kids each day.  It's called, Truth in the Tinsel and you can check it out here:   http://www.facebook.com/#!/TruthInTheTinsel

i found this calendar idea on a homeschool blog!  Very easy to make :)  Each day has a clue, Bible verse to read, ornament craft to make, and a 'talk about it'... we are enjoying it.  i always say that i'm going to make my own 'next year', but so far haven't done it... so very thankful for the ambitious people that do the work! :)

Aden is learning (well reviewing since he has the basic idea) about the 5 senses... so easy to incorporate that into Christmas time :)

Here is his 5 senses gingerbread man:

Yesterday we talked about 'touch' specifically.  i put 6 items in a stocking, he reached inside and 'touched/felt' the items with his hands and tried to figure out what they were.  Then he drew them on a paper stocking. 

Today we talked about 'sight'.  We made a list of all kinds of things we 'see' at Christmas time (ex. nativities, lights, etc.)  Then he used his Toy Story binoculars (that have a button to make things look red) to go on a 'hunt' for a special 'window' box that i made.  When he found it (with his sight) he brought it to the table, looked through the window, and drew what he saw. :)  He is loving this unit and made Kendyl and i use our senses to find his stuffed animals and other items he hid.

He is very excited about the 'taste' day! :)

For sight word practice, i found this cool idea on pinterest from a teaching blog.... i had made these cute little gingerbread guys at Haveman Hardware when Kendyl & i were working on a project together (i just knew those extra guys would come in handy!)  i wrote some of his sight words on them.  I gave Aden the gingerbread guys and a little bread pan and a timer... he had to read each word and put the gingerbread guys in the pan before time ran out.  he loved this!

He also got to add some more sight words to his 'sight word caterpillar!  This is always so exciting to him! :) Look how big it's getting!

Then another activity i found on pinterest... pattern candy canes!  He loved this too!  And of course, tiger had to watch :)

This week we've also been working on his name snowmen poster.... (yes, i found this on pinterest too!!)  i think it turned out pretty cute!

Poor Kendyl doesn't get to do quite as many 'fun' actitivies... but she plugs away at her work like a trooper and is doing VERY well in 2nd grade! :)  Here she is working on adding with regrouping 3 digit numbers and money!  She is doing SO well with it!  WAY better at math than i ever was!!  (although, she will tell you she doesn't like math--and i don't blame her!) :)

She enjoys History, Social Studies, and Science... here she is working on learning the States: 



She is a GREAT reader and simply loves reading!  She doesn't like the act of writing, but can tell 'stories' well... so we continue working on getting better at the writing part... because she dreads it, i try to make it as fun as possible... so, here is one writing assignment:  she had to pretend an alien landed on earth and kept hearing all about this guy named Santa... he didn't know anything about Santa, so Kendyl had to describe him so he would know what Santa looks like, where he lives, etc.

Kendyl is excited for this coming Sunday.  She will be playing 'Silent Night' at our Church Christmas Celebration.  Her and Aden both have lines during the program too... both are so good at memorizing... so proud of them.  Then the following Sunday she will be playing 'Jingle Bells' and 'Away in a Manger' at her very first piano recital!  Next Thursday she is so excited that her CBS class gets to 'act out' the Christmas story as the older class reads it... she loves the stage! (i wonder where she gets that from?? hmmm) ;)  Exciting weeks i tell ya!

In between our schoolwork, piano lessons, and program practices, we've been trying to get some homemade gifts finished and also some baking done... I just love Christmas time... even when it is crazy busy!!! 

here's something fun i'm working on while they're in bed this week: kendyl's rag quilt!! 
notice that handsome guy in the background?  well, he even helped me iron these squares the other night!!!

last night i finished 2 rows completely... only 9 more to go! :)  i hope they love these quilts as much as i love making them!  they are nice and warm and cozy! :)

okay... off to get some more lessons prepared and Christmas cards addressed!! 

Merry Christmas Everyone!!

2 quilts, 2 little time... what was i thinking? ;)

Apparently, i enjoy being overscheduled! 

What was i thinking, taking on making 2, twin size quilts, a few weeks before Christmas?

With a Christmas program to plan/prepare, sunday school lessons to prepare, Community Bible Study lessons to prepare, homeschool lessons to prepare, daily Advent activities, shopping for Christmas presents, making Christmas presents, attending Christmas parties, and all the other things all of us moms do this time of year.... i really think i have lost my mind to add these projects to my list... but, alas, i am doing this :)

i LOVE sewing-- LOVE it... have never taken classes, lessons, or anything else to do with sewing--just like playing around with material and a sewing machine... taught myself to use patterns, but enjoy coming up with my own stuff better.... my mom did give me a quick lesson on making quilts about 10 years ago, but i'm not at all 'good' at it... i simply enjoy making things.... so, it makes sense that in the throws of holiday chaos, i would choose to add something i love--sewing :) 

my kids sleep upstairs and it gets cold in the winter... the 'warm' blankets they have are only infant/toddler sized... so, they need warm twin sized blankets... now, i COULD buy them cheap fleece blankets--but what's the fun in that?!  so, i'm making them each a flannel rag quilt... i'm quite excited about them! :)

now... finding the time.... since these quilts will be for the kids for christmas, i can't do them while they're awake... so, last night i worked on aden's quilt from 9pm until 2am!

praise the Lord, my sister stephanie took my kiddos for a few hours yesterday afternoon so i could have some time to work on these quilts... i was up until 2am again that night!!! crazy!

i really want to get kendyl's done in the next few days too... we shall see! :)

so, for any crafty people out there... here is how i'm doing aden's quilt...

first, i planned it out... i HATE math.... so, this is the part i HATE... after much help from my good friend, melissa, i finally figured it out! lol... 

i wanted to do a strip style rag quilt, so i HAD to get 2 yards of each material, so that it would be long enough strips...

i figured that i was going to have 6 sections that were 10 inches tall/ 2 yards wide, and 7 sections that were 5 inches tall/ 2 yards wide when finished... (this is wide for a twin size, but i wanted it to BIG) :)

i found 6 fabrics that i liked.  i purchased 2 yards of each fabric... (note: i ended up not using the one on the bottom...found one with snowboarders on it that i liked better)

for each fabric, i cut this:

2 of each fabric @ 11.5 inches wide x 2 yards long
(with rag quilts you need each piece to be 1.5 inches longer and wider so you can have a 3/4 inch seam)

2 of each fabric @ 6.5 inches wide x 2 yards long
(and 2 more of these of which ever fabric you want more of--these will be the top strip and bottom strip)

with this style, you use the same fabric on the back as the front and you do it all at the same time (AWESOME because you don't have to do the hardest part of making a quilt--putting the back on!)
(you cut 2 of each because it will be the front AND the back) ... side note: you CAN use ANY fabric you want on the back--doesn't have to be the same as the front... your choice :)

after you cut them, lay them out in the 'pattern' you want.... mine isn't a pattern at all...but it's how i liked it :) the only 'pattern' is: short, tall, short, tall, etc. :) 

you need to cut batting now... (sorry, i didn't take a pic of this)
cut 6 pieces @ 10 inches x 2 yards (well, 1.5 inches shy of 2 yards)...
cut 7 pieces @ 5 inches x 2 yards (same)

then put the batting inbetween each fabric style to make 'sandwhiches'...

this pic shows the fabric, batting, fabric sandwhich :) 

next, you sew a line down the middle of each short piece-- this is the 'quilting' part (sewing the batting into place)

next, you need to sew 2 lines down the tall pieces... i just eye-balled it and made one between half way and the edge on one side, and then the other.... those of you that don't like to eye-ball things, can measure it at 3.25 inches in at each side if you want :) .
.. sorry these pics aren't that great :(

next, you lay them back in order again (so you don't get confused as to what comes next)

next, you are going to sew the top & 2nd pieces together... so that the fringe shows on top of the quilt.... i like to flip over the top piece and then just pull the other piece on top of that and pin it...

then sew them together with a 3/4 inch seam (stopping 3/4 inch from each end)... lay back down with fringe up... (your quilt will have the seams showing on the top--the fringe... the back will be flat)

continue until each strip is sewn together

once they are all sewn together, you need to sew around the edge... first, pin all the seams open... then sew around the whole quilt (3/4 inch-1 inch seam).

notice that my seams aren't completely even... that's okay with a rag quilt!! :)

okay... it's movie time, girls!  cutting the fringe is a LONG process... easy, but time consuming... took me over 2 hours!  :)

cut almost to the stitching, but don't go through it (yes i did cut too far a couple times... no biggie... just sew a little more in that spot :)

2-3 hours later, you have all your fringe cut.... it's looking pretty good... but, just wait! :)

throw it in the wash... then the dryer (you will probably need to clean the lint trap a couple times during the dry cycle--there will be a LOT of lint!)... take it out of the dryer.....

looks pretty good :)

close-up, it is super cute... very comfy and warm! 

i'm sooo excited to give it to aden for christmas!!  first, i'm hoping to make a rag-quilt stuffed animal to go with it (from the little bit of extra fabric i have) 

if i were to do it again, i would do almost a 1 inch seam for the fringes... but i do like how it turned out :)

Ocean Unit Study

We had fun doing a unit study on oceans!

We read Nim's Island by Wendy Orr, then watched the movie based on the book--many differences, but both very good in their own ways.

Nim has a pet iguana named Fred... so when David found a salamander in our backyard, Aden named him Fred.

We read about sea turtles, sea lions, whales, sharks, and other ocean creatures. 

We painted sea pictures... blue/purple water with glitter for the sparkle... then the kids created their own sea creatures.

Kendyl created her own crazy creatures on the left... Aden had some help tracing his stuffed tiger and made a 'tiger fish'.

We also wrote stories and journal entries about ocean animals. 

We may revisit this theme again later in the year, as it was a lot of fun! 

mummies...

Studying Ancient Egypt.... It's kind of a given that you have to make toilet paper mummies :)

More Egyptian activities to come... :)

trip to John Ball Zoo

We surprised the kids with a trip to the zoo this summer.  We didn't tell them where we were going until we were already in the parking lot. 

It was so funny because the second we got out of the car (and the kids still didn't know where we were) a squirrel ran across the parking lot... Kendyl yells, "Look, a squirrel!" with a ridiculous amount of excitement.  Hehehe, a squirrel is cool, but we were at the zoo. :)

Riding the Camel.

Petting the Sting Rays.

The bears were pretty cool.

Playing on the John Ball statue.

We happened to go on the day they were releasing hundreds of monarch butterflies!  And there was a news reporter to capture the event.  The kids entered their name, along with about a hundred other kids, to 'win' a chance to release a butterfly or get to take home a caterpillar.

Aden was called to release a butterfly!  Awesome!

Then Kendyl was called -- she got to take 3 little caterpillars home!! She was SO excited!!!

John Ball Zoo is not that exciting of a zoo, but the kids enjoyed it, and we did too.

     Our favorite thing was the        

Budgie cage!        

    

                                                        All in all, it was a great family day! 

(side note... all 3 caterpillars died... and another one we found on some milkweed plants in the backyard... lots of tears...)  maybe next year we'll try that again! 

Our classroom and basic schedule 2011-2012

Here is peek into our classroom and a look at our basic daily schedule.

We always start the school day with our calendar and morning board time.  This time usually takes 15 - 20 minutes, but is packed full of learning and fun. 

Here is our calendar...

Here is our 'morning board'.... Most of the ideas are from 2 amazing homeschool blogs, http://homeschoolcreations.blogspot.com/ and http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.com/Calendar.html

Basic run-down of our morning board:
We write and say the date 2 different ways and usually sing some calendar songs.  We also 'make the date' with change (ex. 26th would be 1 quarter and 1 penny)  We record the temperature on our weekly chart.  We then write and mark off how many days of school we've had, bringing in some math/place value.  We have a Bible verse for each letter of the alphabet, and since Aden has his basic phonics down, we are switching letters everyday or every other (we are on K already this year).  We learn the sign for each letter, as well as a verse and sight word with the verse.  Then we use the 'Judy clock' to practice telling time (Aden has an identical clock that he matches to this clock each morning and tells me what time it is).  Every couple weeks we practice different types of skip counting.  The first 2 weeks of school was counting by 2's (Aden LOVES this one).  Right now we are counting by 5's (we incorporate games to make this fun).  We will sometimes use the hundred chart to count and we also practice our address and phone number frequently.  We also practice 'left' and 'right' by moving the Cat in the Hat from one side of the board to the other.  And once in awhile we practice ordinal numbers, using our ordinal number train.

When we switch to a new letter, we learn a new poem and talk about words that start with that letter.  We also just started learning the States (there is the Michigan card on the right).  We are also adding in historical facts, monuments, etc. each week (there is Stonehenge).  And we will frequently add an animal or insect to the board (here is a grasshopper).

When we're done with this board, the kids check their picture schedules for what they will do next (they have different schedules). 

Here is Aden, proudly pointing to his schedule. :)

During the day, after calendar time, and in addition to family Bible study, we usually have a math 'lesson' and reading 'lesson' with Aden. 

 He also has 'Workboxes' (thank you, http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.com/index.html)!  He LOVES workboxes -  SERIOUSLY.  LOVES.  THEM.

He goes through them in order.  He looks at the picture to see if it is an 'independant', 'with mom', 'with dad', or 'with kendyl', box.  I usually put mazes/small motor activity sheets in one or two boxes, a cut & paste activity to go with the letter of the day, playdough or other fine motor activity, matching/rhyming/counting and the like activities, other 'math' and 'science' games, etc.  The final box is a 'star' box and contains a more open-ended/'fun' activity or game. 

One of his favorite (and my favorite) reading activities, for the work boxes, is the sight word dice... Everytime we add new sight words to learn, I add them to a set of 4 blocks I purchased (I'll find the website and add it later).  He rolls the dice, reads the word, traces the word, and writes it on his own. 

When we introduce a sight word, it also goes on our Word Wall... the difficult words on here are the ones from the Bible verse, which I don't expect him to actually 'learn' this year--it's more of a memory trigger when learning the verses and working with alphabatizing. :)

Once he masters a sight word, we will add it to our sight word caterpillar... I am in the process of making this, as I just found this great idea!  We will display the caterpillar on our classroom door and see how long it gets by the end of Kindergarten! 

While Aden is doing his workboxes, I will do Kendyl's Math & English lessons with her.  We usually do Bible and History, right after lunch, as a family.  They always get some 'fun with daddy' time before he goes to work.  In the afternoon we will either do science, social studies, art, or music together.  We are still trying to get a 'regular' physical education time scheduled.  Aden is in soccer right now, so that is good, we just need to get more scheduled in the 'regular' physical training with the kids... we'll get there :) 

phew.... okay... I know I missed a lot of things in the schedule... and I don't have any cute pics of Kendyl's scheduled activities, but those will come. 

So far, we're off to a great start this year, and I'm hoping and praying that God will give us strength and wisdom throughout the rest of the school year!