Saturday 31 August 2013

HSMJ The one where I discover Poetry

In my life this week…
This week was a particularly restful one as it's our week of rest.  We follow a four weeks of school followed by one week of rest.  It works really well for us and I enjoy the time off and so do my children.
In our home school this week…
  • We rested and learned from our environment. We also followed up our mummification experiment.

We will be repeating this experiment as we were rather surprised by the outcomes.  We used course salt.  So we want to see what happens.  I will do an independent post with the results of both.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
Austalian Homeschoolers Please be aware 
We need to stand together and help oneanother because what happens in one state often filters through to other states.
You can sign a petition over at CHANGE.ORG
I am inspired by…

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
  • We did the usual Tennis and Kelly Sports
  • Visited friends and family
  • Tonight we are going to see a high school play.  Oklahoma
My favorite thing this week was…
  • Visiting friends
  • Being selected to review The Homeschool Mothers Devotional Bible 

Things I’m working on…

In Bloggy world I’m reading…
On Pinterest I found...
I’m grateful for…

A photo, video, link, or quote to share…

Source

Blessings

Chareen


Photo collages made with: Photoscape a FREE photo editor

Bee Crafty Kids {Crystal Snow Flakes}

Today I am guest posting over at To The Moon and Back where I am sharing a tutorial on making Crystal Snow Flakes. This post has been deleted so I've shared it on my blog you can find the full tutorial here: Crystal Snow Flake {Tutorial}


A couple of years ago Sir N and I tried our hand at growing crystals from a kit set.  While this was fun to do it took a L.O.N.G. time.

On my many Pinterest travels I discovered a wonderful pin on Pinterest on making Borax Snow Flakes.

Pop on over to see a tutorial on how easy it is to grow crystals in 24 hours at home.

For those of you who love Snow Flakes the Twisted Sifter has the most amazing macro photographs of snowflakes to look over.


Blessings
Chareen

Linking with

Welcome to the Virtual Fridge a weekly art meme where we can hang our children's art on a virtual fridge.

Your hosts are

Wednesday 28 August 2013

A Day out with Dad

As some of you may know my husband has started a blog: Bush Tales by Paul.  One of Paul's passions is bird watching.  On Monday Sir N decided that he would like to go along with Paul on a bird watching expedition.  The two of them packed up an afternoon tea picnic and off they went.


Sir N came and asked if he could please borrow my point and shoot camera.


 Sir N's Photographs
 Here are some of the photographs he took on his day out with Dad.

Just to make sure the camera is working Mom
A Selfie on the way to the bird watching site.
Okay we are here and I am ready to capture some birds
Hey look this is what it looks like inside my binoculars
This is Daddy behind the lens
Lots of yellow flowers in the fields
Looking for birds from the hide
Pelican footprints along the beach
Look at all those tentacles on that Jelly Fish
 I really enjoyed looking at the world through Sir N's eyes.  We recently opened an Instagram account for him and he is enjoying taking photographs.  The best part of this is seeing how he views the world around him. 

As much as I enjoy seeing the world from his perspective the hardest part is actually not inter-fearing and acting director the whole time.  Do any of you struggle with stepping back and letting them be ?

Blessings
Chareen

Tuesday 27 August 2013

How do you teach poetry ?

The idea of "teaching" poetry always leaves me filled with panic!  I love words and the clever use of words can be a real pleasure to enjoy in poetry. For me however, when I think of teaching poetry my mind drifts to school days. At school we had to dissect poems and try to work out what the teacher thought of it.  We had to analyse it, search for symbolism and hidden meanings, look for and explain the rhythms and or patterns, categorise the different parts of speech and then the dreaded composing of poems ... 

I'm sorry this post will not contain a detailed how to on teaching poetry as this is a new season of home education for me. One of the methods I am keen to incorporate in my homeschool is a Charlotte Mason approach.  Charlotte says of poetry
"Children should practice reading aloud every day, and their readings "should include a good deal of poetry, to accustom him to the delicate rendering of shades of meaning, and especially to make him aware that words are beautiful in themselves, that they are a source of pleasure, and are worthy of our honour; and that a beautiful word deserves to be beautifully said, with a certain roundness of tone and precision of utterance. Quite young children are open to this sort of teaching, conveyed, not in a lesson, but by a word now and then." from volume 1 pg 227 Older (age 9?)

I'm always amazed at how life unfolds.  On Monday we had a home school mothers meeting and the theme for the meeting was Poetry. The guide for this conversation was taken from The Charlotte Mason Companion Chapter 29 Approach to Poetry.

Karen shared some of her view on teaching poetry online over at Homeschool World in her article The Charlote Mason Approach to Poetry.

My gleanings from Karen
  • Through carefully chosen poetry, mothers can teach their children to recognise sin, be inspired, and be filled with admiration of God's gifts to man.
  • Poetry is not just a means to moral instruction. It is part of the humanities.
  • It's a deep expression of thought and feeling.
  • It should be permissible to have a different taste for poetry than that of the teacher. Making a connection with poetry 
  • If you do not like poetry, there is an obvious remedy: introduce the child and the poem and leave them to make friends for themselves.
  • Poetry is strewn with ideas. Saturate yourself in the words - they can have an intoxicating effect on the intellect.
  • After years of a relationship with poetry, built on shorter poems, children will be capable of enjoying and comprehending longer and more abstract works.
Ways to incorporate Poetry
  • Read out loud daily (no twaddle allowed)
  • Mark the seasons 
  • Use poems in nature journals
  • One Poet a week.  If you have an anthology choose one poet and immerse yourselves in their poems for a week or two.
  • Use a child's favourite poems in copy work.  If it's a long poem choose a stanza a week.
  • Memorise poetry and present it at a special tea or a homeschool co-op
Poetry Books

On the WWW
Charlotte explained that “the magic of poetry makes knowledge vital, and children and grown-ups quote a verse which shall add blackness to the ashbud, tender wonder to that ‘flower in the crannied wall,’ a thrill to the song of the lark(Vol. 6, p. 328)
I would love to know your thoughts and favourite books in this area of your home school
Blessings

Chareen

This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of homeschool Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.


This week
 ---ooOoo---
This post is linking to

The Informed Parent

TT - Favorite Poems of Childhood



Favorite Poems of Childhood
*Unabridged*
  • Format: Paper back
  • Number of Pages:96 pages
  • Publisher: Dover Publications Inc.
  • Publication Date:01 February 1993
  • ISBN 10: 0486270890
  • ISBN 13:9780486270890
  • Edited by:Philip Smith
  • Illustrator: Harriet Golden

Contains poems such as:
  • Lewis Carroll's "The Walrus and the Carpenter, " 
  • Edward Lear's "The Owl and the Pussy-cat, " 
  • Eugene Field's "Dutch Lullaby" ("Wynken, Blynken, and Nod"), 
  • Emily Dickinson's "I'm Nobody! Who are you?, " 
  • William Blake's "The Tyger, " 
  • Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Swing, " and many more.
Poetry is not my forte but it is something I would love to do and do well with Sir N.  Yesterday we had a home school mother's meeting where we discussed incorporating poetry in our homes.  I was remided of this little treasure I read to my first two 15 years ago when we first started home educating.  Sir N and I recently started reading our way through it.

It's a small book with a few illustrations sprinkled through out.  If you are starting out with poetry with primary aged students I encourage you to start with this one.  The poems are beautiful.  It's not complicated simply read a poem or two a week and enjoy the words together.

What is your favorite poetry resource ?
Blessings
Chareen
Every bed of Roses

 Welcome to Tuesdays Treasures.  I started these posts as a way of sharing great books in honour of my friend in New Zealand who would arrive with the treasures she had unearthed at her weekly trip to the library!

There are so many wonderful books out there hiding on shelves so I invite you to blog about a book on your shelf, one you're reading or one you found at the library. Grab the button for your post and add a link to your post below. I would love to read about your treasures. 


Saturday 24 August 2013

HSMJ - Scientific Adventures and Fireworks

In my life this week…
My mom discovered a book written about the life of my great great great great grandparents. I have ordered a copy and am looking forward to reading it.
I'm still trying to get my act together and join The Pebble Pond Beauty Captured challenge ... I was extremely frustrated about a photography course that was touted as being Free turned out to be an advertisement to sign up after the first week...
In our home school this week…
  • This was week four of our five week cycle.  Sir N was sick for three out of the five days.  So we will do a light school week next week to make up for what we missed this week even though it's supposed to be our holiday week.
  • We are enjoying Charlottes Web and Seed Sowers Gospel Planting Adventures 
  • Science this week was a blast.  We went across town (an hour and a half drive one way) to play in a highschool science lab!
  • We had heaps of fun making and playing with HexaFlexagons

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
I am inspired by…

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
  • We travelled across town to go to a science class and played with milk, water and soap to explore the properties of surface tension. 
  • Spent the evening in Docklands and went to see the Docklands Fireworks.  Boy was it cold out there!
  • Tennis
  • A birthday party and a mini trip to the zoo
My favorite thing this week was…

What’s working/not working for Me…

Questions/thoughts I have…
  • How on earth do you use Google+ ?  I finally found a way to add a widget with my Google+ account to this blog BUT I realised that for some reason my stuff is not public :(  Please can you tell me how to use it or where I can find a good tutorial for my tired brain ...

Things I’m working on…
  • Applying for positions to review some new products on the Schoolhouse Review Crew.

On My Bedside Table ...
  • I've been reading instruction manuals to use a DSLR camera
In Bloggy world I’m reading…

I’m cooking…
  • same old same old ...

On Pinterest I found...

I’m grateful for…
  • Saints who are faithful prayer warriors and pray for me diligently
A photo, video, link, or quote to share…


Blessings

Chareen


Homegrown Learners Hammock Tracks It's a Wrap

Photo collages made with: Photoscape a FREE photo editor

Thursday 22 August 2013

HexaFlexagon


Welcome to the Virtual Fridge a weekly art meme where we can hang our children's art on a virtual fridge. This meme was started by Jennifer over at A Glimpse of our Life who kindly invited three other bloggers to take turns hosting this weekly meme.

Your hosts are


This week Sir N and I have been playing with HexaFlexagon's.

A Flexagon is a flat geometric model constructed out of folding strips of paper to form a moveable/flexible shape.  When flexed these shapes reveal different faces/facets of the shape produced. They were discovered by Arthur Stone in 1939.

Over at Aunt Annie's Crafts you can download and print either a patterned, numbered or blank template to colour in. She also has a step by step tutorial.

My nephews school sent home a pdf link to some instructions and templates you can find HERE.


I had a little trouble with folding it so I watched this video which is a step by step on making one from a piece of blank paper without a template.





For an over view and history of the Hexaflexagon is watch this clip. She speaks very fast but it's still interresting.


I have since found out that you can make a TriHexaFlexagon which is a lot easier.

We're having a lot of fun with these.  Do you know of any other mathematical game puzzles along these lines that we could try ?

Blessings
Chareen

I invite you to take some photo's of your children's artistic pursuits put them in a post and link up with me I would love to come over and see the wonderful art your children have enjoyed doing.

Every bed of Roses

Tuesday 20 August 2013

My teaching style goals for 2013/14

Personality wise I am a very strong sanguine with a slight touch of choleric.  This as some of you might know results in a lot of talk but sometimes not quiet enough action!  If I had my way I would love to read read read and make loads of lap packs.  Unfortunately the season of life I am in results in very little energy (I've spent far too much of it on anxious worry as of late.  Yes I'm learning to let go and let God but that my friends is not as easy as it sounds...)

In order to understand teaching styles one also needs to understand learning styles and a multitude of other factors that influence this area of your life as a home school parent.  It's important to note here that learning and teaching styles having nothing to do with intelligence. They are the vehicle by which we impart and receive information.

A few years ago I embarked on a journey of discovery of just how complex we have been created.  It is not my intent to share everything about this topic today, however I shall touch upon a couple of areas and point you to those better equipped to help you understand these vital areas in yours and your child's life before sharing my goals with you.

I first heard about teaching/learning styles around 10 years ago when I attended a conference with Diana Waring.  One of the workshops was titled: Different Strokes for Different Folks.  If you are ever at a conference and this is an available elective I would highly recommend it. Chapter 6 in Beyond Survival (as you can see from the cover of my book it's well loved) covers this topic in detail.

If you look into this huge area of human development you will come across a plethora of ideas.  There is left / right brained, personality,  seven intelligences learning modalities, gender and the list goes on. Bill and Diana did a wonderful job of simplifying the information. In this workshop they used information from the book: Learning Style and Tools.


After doing this particular workshop I came away with a much better insight as to how people learn and how this in turn effects the way we teach.  I am a visual learner.  I am quite happy to watch you do the experiment or read about it in a book.  Sir N however loves to do everything hands on.  Sigh

She recommends the following resources
  1. People Types and Tiger Stripes: Practical Guide to Learning Styles  by Gordon Lawrence
  2. The Way they Learn by Cynthia Ulrich Tobias
  3. Learning Styles by Marlene LeFever
The Seven Learning Styles
I discovered that there is a Learning Styles website where you can read more about the seven learning styles.
  1. Visual (spatial):You prefer using pictures, images, and spatial understanding.
  2. Aural (auditory-musical): You prefer using sound and music.
  3. Verbal (linguistic): You prefer using words, both in speech and writing.
  4. Physical (kinesthetic): You prefer using your body, hands and sense of touch.
  5. Logical (mathematical): You prefer using logic, reasoning and systems.
  6. Social (interpersonal): You prefer to learn in groups or with other people.
  7. Solitary (intrapersonal): You prefer to work alone and use self-study
 They also have a FREE learning styles inventory available.

Intelligence's pay a huge role in how our children assimilate information.  I have enjoyed learning about this influence over our children's inbuilt style of learning
 Teaching Styles
  • Formal Authority - Teachers who have a formal authority teaching style tend to focus on content and feels responsible for providing and controlling the flow of the content and the student is expected to receive the content.
  • Demonstrator or Personal Model - This type of teacher acts as a role model by demonstrating skills and processes and then as a coach/guide in helping students develop and apply these skills and knowledge
  • Facilitator - Teachers who have a facilitator model teaching style tend to focus on activities
  • Delegator - This type of teacher will often give students a choice designing and implementing their own complex learning projects and will act in a consultative role.

You can take an online teaching style self evaluation.

For More information
Pinterest

For me I still have a lot more learning to do about this area of education and how it affects my home school.  For now I do know that Sir N enjoys hands on learning, hates writing, and would rather be outside building forts all day.

Seeing as I am not a hands on learner and he is my one goal this year is to pursue a more hands on approach for him so that we can have a more delight directed approach in our homeschool.

My aim over the next six months is to follow this advice from over at The Mom Inititative:

  1. Observe patterns of behaviour. What excites your child, what frustrates them? 
  2.  Listen to the way your child communicates. Listening carefully can teach you how you need to talk to them. 
  3.  Experiment with what works and what doesn’t. Remember that even if an approach to learning doesn’t make sense to you it may work for your children. 
  4. Focus on natural strengths, not weaknesses. You can’t build much on weaknesses, but strengths provide a much better foundation. 
  5. Learn more about learning styles in general. Find out what your own style is and how you can relate to your child’s learning style.
I would love to know your thoughts and how you approach this delicate area in your home school
Blessings

Chareen

This post is part of the Homeschool Help series brought to you by a group of homeschool Mom's from around the globe.  Do not forget to visit and read their inspirational insight.


This week
 ---ooOoo---


TT - The Dig Tree


The Dig Tree
  • Format:  Paperback
  • Number of Pages:384 pages
  • Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • Publication Date:06 January 2003
  • ISBN 10:0747562989
  • ISBN 13:9780747562986
  • Author Sarah Murgatroyd ( 1969 - 2002)
  • Illustrator
Last month I left on a trip to see the Outback of Australia.  Unfortunately things did not go as planned (I will share about that another day).  One of the highlights of this trip however was listening to the audio book of this particular book.

For any family studying Australian History I would say this is one of the must have's on your shelf.  Sarah Murgatroyd has done a phenomenal job of correlating historical fact in a story format.  She has expertly woven historical documents, letters, news paper clippings, political events and characters of the day. Sarah's vivid retelling of the events of this famous historical misadventure is a feat unsurpassed in the telling of Australia's history.   For anyone interested in the story of crossing the center of the great Australian continent this is the book for you. A definite must read for any avid history buff or immigrant wanting a better understanding of Australian culture and history.

The thing I enjoyed about this book is the way that each character is introduced.  I loved the historical back ground of each character it puts their role and choices they make in context.  I also enjoyed that she has included South Australia's race to the north of the continent, alongside Burke and Wills expedition you will follow the journey of John Mcdouall Stuart .   

Book Depository's Description

In 1860, Australia remained the truly dark continent. Although there were European settlements in its south, much of the north remained unknown and dangerous. But things were changing. On 20th August, 1860, The Victorian Exploring Expedition left Melbourne to make the journey into the Gulf of Carpentaria in the northern coast. The expedition was headed by an Irish policeman called Robert O' Hara Burke - a charmer, gambler, and a man infamous for taking long baths in his back garden. Burke and his team of eighteen men made a confident start. After leaving most of the group behind in Cooper Creek (in central Australia), three of the party, including Burke, reached the Carpentaria. They were the first ever to do so. But the journey back was riddled with mishap and bad luck. By the time the three had returned to Cooper Creek, exhausted and starving, they discovered that the rest of the party had retreated, leaving behind only a carved message on a coolibah tree. The "Dig Tree" is the tale of this tragic expedition. Sarah Murgatroyd brings the story vividly alive - the political events in the background, the colourful characters, the spectacular and, often, unforgiving landscape, and the awful desperation of the final days. It is an intelligent, evocative and above all, utterly gripping book.

Blessings
Chareen
Every bed of Roses

 Welcome to Tuesdays Treasures.  I started these posts as a way of sharing great books in honour of my friend in New Zealand who would arrive with the treasures she had unearthed at her weekly trip to the library!

There are so many wonderful books out there hiding on shelves so I invite you to blog about a book on your shelf, one you're reading or one you found at the library. Grab the button for your post and add a link to your post below. I would love to read about your treasures. 

Monday 19 August 2013

Easy Meatpie Topping



Last year while we were in South Africa for a family reunion my sister in law shared her favourite Easy Meat Pie topping.  It takes less then 5 min to prepare and is delicious.

Last month I did a guest post over at  A Dusty Frame.  Pop on over for this 5 min dinner recipe.

Blessings
Chareen

Friday 16 August 2013

Start preparing for the new crew applications ...

 This year I've had the pleasure of participating in my first cruise with The Schoolhouse Review Crew.  I have been having an amazing time and have learnt so much. 

Applications for the 2014 crew will be opening in October this year. For those of you who are interested in possibly applying to be on the crew I thought I would share some information with you.

Application Criteria
  1. An active blog with a minimum of 50 public** followers and actively use one social media*** platform. 
  2. Must blog at least once a week. 
  3. Home school all or some of your children. 
  4. Be willing to actively use products with their children for a period of six weeks; review your experiences, and post your review to your blog within the due date window. 
  5. Reviewers must be willing to use our private forum, check in each day, Monday through Friday, and respond to all age-appropriate vendors. 
  6. Take their responsibility to their readers and to the vendors seriously. 

** Public {Numbers can be seen when looking at your blog home page}
** Follower numbers can be on: Google+, Google Friend Connect, Bloglovin'Linky Followers, Networked Blogs,Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram

*** Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram
Benefits of being on the Crew
  1. Meet 250 homeschool bloggers
  2. Access to a private forum
  3. Try out curriculum for FREE (I've had over $1 000 of curriculum in eight months!)
  4. A Social Media Share opportunity
  5. Fortnightly Blog Cruise opportunities
  6. Spotlight on the Crew guest posting
  7. 5 Days of ... Blog Hop  opportunities
  8. A personal mentor to help you
  9. Leadership who support encourage and are available.
If you have any questions please ask
Blessings
Chareen

Wednesday 14 August 2013

Simplified Dinners {Review}

I was really intrigued when Mystie Winckler contacted me and offered Simplified Dinners to review. I enjoy cooking and am often on the lookout for simple but tasty quick meals to put on the table.  I get a lot of satisfaction trying to get them into one baking dish with minimum fuss.  The title jumped at me and I thought yes that sounds like me.

One of my goals is to simplify life so that I have more time for other things.  Having said this though the one thing I have come to realize is that feeding a family well involves becoming more health conscious and aware of what products contain. 

I loved Mystie's insight that in order to cut out the bad she needed to go on a simplification journey.  I'm there but in all honesty this takes a lot of effort.  Once I received Simplified Dinners I realized that Mystie has done all the work for me.

This is not just another cookbook to have on your shelf. (Most of mine are there collecting dust) This little gem is as it's name suggests simple to use!


Master Pantry List
This is one page of items. You can view a list of the ingredients online
It is divided into
  • Produce
  • Seasonings
  • Dry goods
  • Bottled Goods
  • Canned Goods
  • Dairy
  • Meat
  • Frozen 
  • Other  
I print it off, highlight what I need and go to the store. I stock up with only the items I need for the week. It takes less than ten minutes to prepare a grocery list this way and all the items are wholesome.

Index
Each and every page contains a simple 3 - 6 step set of directions and between six and nine easy variations to the one recipe. These variations make having variety easy to accomplish.
Simplified Dinners
  • Slow-Cooker Roasts
  • Slow-Cooker, No-Defrost Chicken Pieces
  • Chicken-in-a-Pot
  • Skillet Cutlets with Pan Sauces
  • Marinades for Grilling or Broiling
  • Foil-Packet Fish
  • Stovetop Pasta
  • Bean Pots
  • Fajitas
  • Quesadillas
  • Taco Bar
  • Burritos or Enchiladas
  • Taquitos
  • Frittata
  • Oven Omelette
  • Pizza
  • Simple Stir-fry
  • Potato Hash
  • Baked Potato Bar
  • Bean Soups
  • Stews
  • Blended Vegetable Soups
  • Quick Soups
  • Main Dish Salads
  • Vegetable Side Dishes
  • Side-Dish Salads
  • Starchy Side Dishes
Simplified Dinners Gluten and Dairy Free
  • Slow-Cooker Roasts
  • Slow-Cooker, No-Defrost Chicken Pieces
  • Chicken-in-a-Pot
  • Skillet Cutlets with Pan Sauces
  • Marinades for Grilling or Broiling
  • Foil-Packet Fish
  • Stovetop Pasta
  • Bean Pots
  • Lentils over Rice
  • Fajitas
  • Quesadillas
  • Taco Bar
  • Burritos or Enchiladas
  • Taquitos
  • Frittata
  • Oven Omelette
  • Simple Stir-fry
  • Potato Hash
  • Baked Potato Bar
  • Bean Soups
  • Stews
  • Blended Vegetable Soups
  • Quick Soups
  • Main Dish Salads
  • Vegetable Side Dishes
  • Side-Dish Salads
  • Starchy Side Dishes
  • Gluten- & Dairy-Free Desserts
eBook Cost
  • Simplified Dinners $12.99
  • Simplified Gluten Free & Dairy Free Meals $12-99
There is an affiliate program available.

Connect
  • Blog.  
  • News letter subscription.  There are two options available. Simplified Pantry posts or a Monthly Newsletter.
  • Pinterest
  • Monday's Mystie shares Menu Plan Monday
  • Subscribe to all Blog updates
This 16 page eBook has more than lived up to my expectations.  It's easy to use. The best part is it uses every day items in your pantry to create delicious home made from scratch cooked dinners. I love the simple inspiration on each page.  Pop on over to Simplified Dinners and purchase your copy from Mystie.

Blessings
Chareen