Come! Come! Come!

(did that get your attention?)

OK friends, the next Old School Monday is upon us!

Next Monday, April 27. 10 am in the Vintage Gym.

Things I have in mind (not in order):
--teaching your kids the consonant song
--new monthly activity called "word play"--this time, Verb charades!
--jump the snake get-em-movin'game
--Pt. 2 of our animal classification series--PLEASE BRING 2-3 little animal toys per child so we can have fun classifying them all. Moms, you might want to encourage different types of animals so we get to classify something from each category. Pictures of animals from magazines are fine too! *Big kids can bring fantasy creatures and have fun explaining to the younger kids how they would classify those!
--circle time--kids can bring a picture or tell about 1) either their favorite animal, or 2) if they were an animal, what would they be?
--please bring any completed projects you would like to share with the group!
--and I will try to remember my spelling book this time so we can give the Spell-down another run if we have time!

Don't forget lunch for your family and one canned good to share with those in need! (And see our previous postings for other general info about these gatherings) And invite your friends!

Tina, do your boys want to come with a game in mind to teach the other kids? Anyone else want to add something to the fun for the day? Please post comments at will!

Book Reviews from the McNabbs

Hey friends! I have been wanting to share a bunch of the books we have been reading for our Kindergarten Curriculum - all Read Alouds (books we read aloud together) for ages 5 and up. I am sure you could find them at the library!! Also, I would love to hear other recommendations you might have for great quality books too! My mom might come for a visit in September, so I can might begin looking now!!

My Father's Dragon - by Ruth Stiles Gannet (Newberry Honor Book)
An adventurous fantasy of Elmer Elevator and the wild island of Tangerina. We loved this story: such beautiful imagination and unpredictability for a young listener. Elmer packs some very unusual things in his backpack for the trip....which keeps you guessing how he will rescue the baby dragon! Our girls were very attentive for this sweet tale. I think there are 2 others that follow in the series, which I would love to check out. I also loved taking my time reading one chapter a day, and asking questions after each chapter to help them with comprehension.

The Boxcar Children - by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Four little kids make their home in an abandoned boxcar after they are orphaned, without knowing they have a grandfather nearby. Very easy vocabulary and with just enough suspense & mystery for youngsters. I love the simple interaction, the sense of wonder, the sweet character of the children and the outcomes of the stories. The girls now pretend to be the characters almost daily, which is wonderful for their imaginative play and manners too. I also love how the characters are so resourceful, independent, responsible, positive and grateful for everything. We have liked these books so much, that we have already read the first 4 in the series of 19. I am hoping that Asia will begin reading these on her own soon.

The Apple and the Arrow - by Mary & Conrad Buff (Newberry Honor Book)
Historical fiction - recounting the legend of William Tell of Switzerland. Told from the perspective of his son, 12-year-old Walter (who gets the apple shot off his head) during the time of revolt against the tyrannical leaders during that time (1291). This story was pretty intense with mature themes and kept us on the edge of our seats. There were parts that were somewhat violent (with some name-calling), action-packed & yet Asia was into the adventure. We actually learned a bunch too! Great themes of freedom, independence, faith and responsibility. We had great talks about standing up for what is right, non-violence, righteousness and courage. It gave us an opportunity to teach her some discernment.

I have a bunch more...but I will write again later. Hope you can find one of these treasures to enjoy soon!

tidbit--cool placemats

hi moms--

i just wanted to tell you that at OSH in the home section, they have really cool placemats perfect for homeschooling and lunch! solar system, world map, united states (the map ones also label everything in both English and Spanish, so that doubles the learning value!) and the presidents (through GWB). They are really smooth, so function well as art placemats, but if they are on the table while the kids eat, they really enjoy looking at them! Bronwyn esp. likes the one of the Presidents.

And they only cost $1.49 each!

hi girls!

Hi friends, fellow moms & teachers of the next generation. I miss you all! I hope you are all doing GREAT, and continuing to be inspired and energized by one another. Are you still going to the park for connection times, and exercise for the littles? I truly miss the mommy-connections, and I think of you all often!

The Old School days sound so amazing - I hope you have enough help & creativity to share the load. You gals are pouring your very lives into those sweet kiddos - and its so worth it! We have gotten into a great routine over here too, using our mornings to learn - and afternoons to play & create. Of course, I have many other things sprinkled in throughout my day, but this schedule seems to work well for now. I love that homeschooling is so flexible, since our lives tend to be quite unpredictable. I was wondering if any of you adhere to a "schedule" - or a fixed routine of subjects, time table of the day, or anything like that. If so - I would love to take a gander. I wonder if I am missing anything....or oblivious to a topic that might be helpful. Asia will be 6 this June, and Eden will be 4 soon too. Anyhow....please share your knowledge and expertise with me!

Also, please let me know if your kids might want to be pen-pals with our girls here. We'd love to correspond with you anytime. Hugs, Ali

Opening up Old School Mondays

Hello Vintage Moms,

Please read the last TWO postings I did that are important to the upcoming Old School Monday.

Then, I would very much like to hear your opinion: I was talking with my friend Alberta, who is the mom who got us to homeschool in the first place, and she commented on how much she enjoyed the Valentine's Day party we had and how the gathering of moms and kids felt like a good fit for their family, but the kids are mostly younger than hers (3rd and 5th grade) and that limits how much they will be involved. I am sure Tina would have the same thoughts, since her boys are older. How would you all feel about me advertising Old School Mondays in the Coast and Valley email newletter, to get more families involved and broaden our age range?

I would value your feedback.

Thanks!

Lisa

Author's Fair!

I am proposing now that we as a group host a table at the Student Author's Fair on May 2nd at the Capitola Mall, representing Ocean Grove. It would be a chance for our kids to show their work to others (they can even read their books to those who stop by and are interested), which is great incentive for you and them to do a fun writing/art project. My ES, Terry, said that OG cannot yet do a table because they do not have anyone to host it. I said I would suggest it to you all--we have the bodies and it would be so much fun! So here is Terry's response, in an email:

Hi Lisa,

The Santa Cruz County Reading Association and the County Office of Ed. co-sponsor a Student Author's Fair each year. Schools can request a table and students can enter and display books they have written and created. If OG is registered, we will need students to participate and volunteers to set up and staff the table. I have a family that has participated through another school, and they want to continue. Here are links to explain the program.
http://sites.google.com/site/sccra2008/
http://www.santacruz.k12.ca.us/ed_services/student_authors_fair2008.html

Thanks for helping promote this,

Terry

We probably need to decide soon, to get the official gears in motion. So think about it, check your calendars, and let's talk when we get together at OSM. (Or you can post a comment here!)

Next Old School Monday!

Ok, Vintage Moms, I want you all to get the date for the next OSM written down on your calendars: March 23, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. See the previous postings for the info! But I thought I would tell you in advance what we will be doing, so you can prepare (or not, as you choose).

We will start out the morning with our first spelldown, so if you are currently working on a list of words with your child, then bring it! That way each child will definitely have words that are appropriate for him/her. If you do not bring a list of words, that is fine too--I will have my "Eclectic Speller" that will give a really wide range, so we can find words for everyone. Each mom who brings a list, be prepared to test your own child when it is his/her turn, and that will keep the game running smoothly. For the moms of little ones, if you have them, bring alphabet flash cards so your child can read a letter of the alphabet for his/her turn. If we have a lot of kids, we will break up into two different groups: readers and ABCers. If there are not many of us, then we will just line up and do it all together! I think the kids are really going to enjoy this.

Then we will either do the get-em movin' game next or do circle time, depending on how antsy the kids are. Any mom want to volunteer to host the game? I was thinking of kick the can, for which I have instructions too (and a can!), but any other organized game would be fine too.

For circle time, please bring a project or some school accomplishment to share, or something your child wants to recite--or you and your child can just come and model good listening. : ) Gwynneth and I will be bringing our completed Preamble Book to show. And that will lead into our project for the day: making a book!

If you have made books already and want to bring them to show and inspire us, please do! (Tina?) If you want, you can start work on a book now and bring it for your student to work on during our OSM project time. If you don't want to start something ahead of time, then I will have a fun and easy book project we can start all together and then you can finish up at home. If you want to participate in this craft, please bring:
--some stickers that have characters (cars, people, animals, shells, etc), and
--$1 per child for the other materials.
--and don't forget your Monday box! (supplies--see previous posting)

Then we will have lunch/running around with balls and noodles time, so the kids can play and moms can chat.

The, if we still have time, we will have a little lesson about something academic and approachable for a range of ages, which I will prepare--but I would prefer we have plenty of time to do the book project, so that will get top priority.

I recommend that you bring a blanket you don't mind eating on, so we can keep the food mess down to a minimum (they can be shaken outside) and we will keep the food on one side of the gym. You can also use the blanket for you and your child to sit on during circle time, since the floor can be pretty cold and dirty!

Anyone have questions, thoughts, suggestions? Post them here! And please invite your homeschooling friends to these events!

Lisa

Old School Monday--Monday!

Ok, Ladies, it is time to get on this blog and give some feedback! Our first Vintage homeschool gathering on the 13th was great--at least I thought it went well, and people seemed to enjoy themselves. So! Who is up for another gathering this Monday, which is when we are to start our Old School Mondays? I would like to know how many kids I should plan for, since I have a fun counting craft in mind that I might need to pick up some more stuff for. So, if you know you are coming, would you please post a comment or email me? Thanks!

Please see the older post for the details of time, place, etc.

NEW DETAIL: If you plan on joining us for these school times, please put together a "Monday Box" for your child. (Siblings can share, but you will of course want to modify the amounts of things in your box accordingly) Your Monday Box should have the following:
--scissors
--tape
--glue stick (preferrably NOT bottled glue, just to keep down the potential mess in the gym)
--2 pencils and sharpener (or you make sure they are sharp)
--eraser
--ruler would be great
--tablet of plain white paper
--some basic colors (marker, colored pencil, crayon, you choose--at least the primaries and black)

Anyone think of anything else we should have every week to be ready for a multitude of activites? A shoebox or one of those clear zippered binder organizers would work--just so that when we get together all the kids are ready to participate in what we do. Does this sound good?

Also, I have a question about how we want to get the word out about these homeschool events. We have quite a few moms who might want to attend who are not linked to this blog--do we keep this blog's postings semi-private for just us, or do we give out the blog address to other interested moms so they can know what will be happening? Might be an encouragement and blessing to the greater Vintage/Santa Cruz communities, but this is not my blog, so you all (Ali!) let me know your vision for this space and let me know what you think is best (and offer ideas). Thanks!

Update on Vintage Homeschool Days

Hello ladies,

After spending $80 yesterday on supplies for projects we are doing this week (did not have enough notice on some of them to get Ocean Grove to pay for them--bummer!), it occurred to me that when we get together to do crafts on Old School Mondays, we should all be prepared to chip in and help the hosting mom with the cost of whatever craft stuff she brought. So, I thought one dollar per child participating each time we do a craft. Does that sound fair? This would be strictly voluntary--not like, where is your dollar or your child cannot participate--but a way to help keep this going without a financial burden on whichever mom is hosting. Sound good? So if at all possible, please bring $1 for each kid who wants to make a Valentine's mailbox on Friday. Thank you!

Also, I wanted to suggest a donation for each Musical Monday Morning: one canned good per family. We will thus be benefitting a local charity when we get together for school!

Let me know what you all think about this.

Hey, and I hope you are all inviting people to join us Fri! : )

Please bring your Box Tops for Education!

Hello moms,

Meredith's school is collecting Box Tops for Education symbols, and the classroom that collects the most will earn a pizza party. Would you please look around your house and save any of those symbols you see, cut them off, and bring them to the Valentine's Day party? Thanks!

We usually find them on Chex cereals, Cheerios, Kleenex boxes, and Huggies diaper boxes. Please ask your friends to collect them too! Even if you don't give them to us, each symbol is worth 10 cents to a school, so please encourage those you know to collect them and pass them on to friends with kids, to donate to a school. : )

Please Mark Your Calendars

(for some odd reason I found myself saying the title, as I typed, as if I were that famous wrestling announcer saying "Now, let's get ready to rumble!" Is this a Freudian thing representing the choreographed bloody mayhem I expect to ensue when we get all our kids together in the church gym? Yikes!)

Please get on your calendars for every month between now and May the bi-monthly Vintage Homeschool Gym Morning! (Still need catchier names for these events--anyone?)

Second Monday morning of every month, from 10-11: Monday Morning Music!
--each time we will do different activities having to do with music, rhythm, dance, etc. I do not expect we will take more than an hour, but the gym will be reserved until 1:00 if any moms want to hang out and let the kids play afterwards.

Fourth Monday morning of every month, from 10-1: Old School Mondays!
--spelling bee
--snack/lunch time
--get-em-movin' game
--recitations
--group sharing
--mini-lesson/craft
(not in that order)

Huzzah! I will get this rolling, but will greatly appreciate any moms who want to come forth and take over even just one aspect of one month's gathering. For example, maybe you are studying snakes with your kids at home, and find a great, no-fuss snake project that you think would be great for a range of kids to do--you can volunteer to host the mini-lesson/craft for one morning. Or maybe you know how to play an instrument and would like to lead a sing-along for the kids on a music Monday morning--great! I am particularly hoping some moms feel like hosting the get-em-movin' game some mornings, since I can come up with great ideas, but after leading the whole morning, will probably not have the energy to lead. I will do so, though! Just letting you all know in advance the areas where I will be weakest and where your involvement will be most appreciated. Oh, and sweeping the floor after we are done would be something else we could share doing. It is all up for grabs, and the more moms who host the more fun for everyone!

Ok, let's see what else you need to know for Old School Mondays:
--Bring lunch/snack for your own child.
--Have your kids wear comfy clothes and shoes they can run in
--Please be present with your child the entire time, unless you make specific arrangements with one of the moms present to be responsible for your child for you. And please be prepared to help your child with the activities throughout the day, esp. the craft--the volunteer moms will not be able to help everyone!
--The hosting mom (most likely me) is not a teacher, per se, and will NOT be disciplining your children, so please intervene if your child is not all that interested in what we are doing and is distracting others
--We will all do the activities together at the same time. So if Johnny does not want to participate in one part, that is fine, but he should be sitting quietly with his mommy and not running around.
--Please bring friends! (As long as you will be responsible for the extra kids you bring, or bring their mommy too)
--Come when you want, leave when you want--we will have fun with whomever shows up. : )
--Our lessons, recitations, etc. may have Christian content! Esp. feel free to use the recitation time for your child to share a Bible verse he/she has learned.
(Any more guidelines we should have? Please suggest them in the comments!)

Pretty much the same guidelines for Monday Morning Music (Morning Music Mondays?), esp. those about moms being present, about keeping your own child involved and not distracting others, and about Christian content. I can't wait to teach your kids our ABC version that spells out the Gospel! : )

SO, our first Old School Monday will be Feb. 23. Our first MMM will NOT be this month--we will start this whole adventure off with the Valentine's party on the 13th, so see the previous posting for that. Our first MMM will be Mar 23.

So excited! Please give me comments so I know you read this post!