Saturday, February 26, 2011

Old School Monday--THIS MONDAY! And its all about China

Hello Vintage Moms!

It is THAT TIME AGAIN. Can you believe it?  So this MONDAY, Feb. 28 come join us for OSM.  We are going to learn a little bit about China, hear a traditional Chinese folktale, and do a little Chinese New Year's craft, maybe do a little Tai Chi, and some of our gang will give a surprise performance! 

Time is noon to about 2:30, as is our new "usual."

TO BRING:
If you are interested in joining our Chinese studies for the day, maybe talk to your kids about China a little, and have them bring something from home that was made in China.  Bonus points to any family who brings any Chinese snacks. ; )

I just posted some fun links to things online for anyone interested.
Can't wait to see you all!  Have a great rest of your weekend.

a few resources for China studies

If your family is interested in a unit on China, here are some fun and interesting sites I recommend to get you started.


A really neat map of China and its provinces with a key that your child can color-code:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/16586491/China-Coloring-Map-FREE-from-Berkshre-Publishing

Look up your child's name and see how it looks in Chinese characters:
http://chineseculture.about.com/library/name/blname.htm

How to count to 10 in Mandarin:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2306214_count-ten-mandarin-chinese.html

A youtube video of cute kids counting in Mandarin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dijFA3kqDaU

I found lots of good free printable coloring sheets too, and can send anyone interested files--just don't think I can do that here.

And there some very good videos on China available for instant download through Netflix at the moment:
http://movies.netflix.com/Movie/Wild_China/70099791?trkid=2361637

http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Discovery-Atlas-China-Revealed/70058855?trkid=438403#height1338

(Don't forget Netflix offers a free trial membership, so if you are not already using their services, you can get a couple of weeks or even a month for free, just the right amount of time to study a topic like China. : ) When you watch these titles, you have to read between the lines--everything is so beautiful and the narrator overall so positive about China. But throughout there are subtle hints of the less positive side of China that you can catch and then talk about with your kids.)

If anyone is interested, I can also recommend a couple of really neat Chinese stories for your younger kids.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Our Valentine's Party!--THIS FRIDAY

Hi Vintage Moms!

I have been trying to spread the word for a couple of weeks now, so that hopefully you all would set aside the date, but I did not post anything sooner because I had not yet heard officially if we could use the classrooms.  Turns out poor Janene in the church office has been sick, but YES we can use the rooms, so we are on!

This Friday, Feb. 11 from noon until 2:30.  Please come and invite friends!

--We will be making valentine "mailboxes"--very simple ones this year--and then filling them with valentines, so please have your children prepare valentines ahead of time and bring them to share.  

--It's a party!  So please bring some party snack to share

--to cut down on waste, would everyone please bring small plates, utensils, napkins, etc. for your own family?  Thanks!

--I would like to have the older kids do a special craft in the attached classroom, so would one mom volunteer to watch my littlest in the main room in the meantime?  Thanks!

If anyone has a favorite book dealing with "Love," please feel free to share it for circle time!

I hope you can all come!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Kaleidoscope Craft Day!!

Hey everyone! this Saturday (Feb 5th) at Kaleidoscope in Capitola - there is a fun crafty event from 10:30 - 12:30 outside their store. They will have a table set up for kids to come and make Valentines. Younger kids will need supervision, but the event is FREE!!

I got the impression that this is a monthly event (1st Sat of each month), so it might be a fun "art class" you could regularly attend. Maybe we will see you there!!

love Ali

totally unique history/music learning opportunity

It's local, and I *think* it will be FREE too!  (finding out for sure)

Here is the original post by a local homeschool mom:

Hi everyone, I was intrigued that the SC Baroque Festival is having a glass armonica concert coming up on February 12. http://www.scbaroque.com/concerts.html In case you didn't see my previous note about this, this is an instrument that Benjamin Franklin invented and which had a brief period of popularity before the piano took over. The performer is both a musician and a historian of this instrument.


I inquired about getting some kids in to meet the performer and see the instrument that afternoon, and they are open to having a small group come. They also wanted me to point out that every Baroque Festival concert has youth (under 18) tickets for only $3, so if you have a child old enough to sit through the concert, they'd love to see more interested kids at the actual concerts, too.

They can't give me an exact time yet, but the fieldtrip will be in the afternoon of February 12 at the UCSC Music Recital Hall. Please e-mail me if you want to attend, and I will put together a list and let you know what time the week of the concert. Kids any age are welcome, but of course your child should be able to be respectful of the instrument and the musician in order to be able to participate fully! :)

Suki
Susana (Suki) Wessling
suki@sukiwessling.com