Hi 5 for Friday

Another busy crazy week behind us. 

my little Ava gravy :)

One///I somehow managed to have all three of my children within two weeks of each other (not really by my doing but their doing - this little one came over a month early!!) and did I also mention my husband's birthday is within two weeks of that too? 

This makes July, August and September crazy birthday time!  Factor in the age differences and we're almost always having separate celebrations even though I would love to throw them all into one.  I still haven't figured out the right birthday combo for a 40, 13, 9 and 2 year old I guess! 
Three down and one more to go!




Puss Caterpillar

Two///This horrible dog tail looking caterpillar landed on my chest leaving Target the other day.  I was just minding my business strolling to my car parked in the nice shady spot under the big oak tree when WHAM! this guy and a small nest of baby spiders fell on me.  Luckily, I saw the spot on the news informing the Tampa area of the poisonous nature of the Puss Caterpillar.  No worries though, my son batted him off of me with a frozen loaf of garlic bread as I was screaming and wailing for someone to call 911 and to tell my husband that I loved him!

Three///Cross Country is in full swing which means waking up at 5:00 a.m. for practice 2-3 times per week.  This along with meets almost every Friday have me feeling blah! 

I would like to thank the Florida heat and especially the humidity.  It just wouldn't be the awful same without that rotten humidity. 

Actually, it hasn't been too horrible now that I can get iced pumpkin spice lattes. :)


Four///Getting super excited for our upcoming vacation.  We now have one week before we leave!!!!  We will be gone 10 days, splitting our time between Williamsburg, Va. and Washington D.C.  We are doing a White House tour this time since last time we did the U.S. Capitol Building tour.  We will also be visiting the Bureau of Printing and Engraving $$$.  The kids were so small last time and we went during the cherry blossom bloom season (is that how you say that?) so this will be a totally different experience.  More to come!

 

Five///Fall everything for sale and on sale!  And, yeah pumpkin everything too. Enough said!

Constitution Day

Today is Constitution Day!  I love special days where we can escape our normal everyday course work.  Today we are taking on the Constitution and it's three main parts. 

Are you wondering how I knew it was constitution day?  Well even if you weren't, it is my segue to pointing you in the direction of what I consider a fun resource. :)  The Scholastic.com website has a great teachers section and every month I head over to their site to print out the monthly planning calendar.  It is fantastic and fun and colorful and...!  It tells you some special fact or observance for each day and provides links for printables, lesson plans and more.

Here is a sample of the monthly calendar:

You can find this at the Scholastic website under the planning calendar tab along with other resources.

As you can see on 09/17/2014 it lists Constitution Day with a link to Scholastic.com/constitution.   Today we are using printables and activities from the link to discuss the PREAMBLE, the ARTICLES and the BILL OF RIGHTS. 

Since we will be focusing the greatest on the Bill of Rights, we will take some time to talk about Patrick Henry (my son's fave).  It was this quick tempered delegate from Virginia that helped fight for the Bill of Rights so America wouldn't be ruled by another King.  Thanks to the contributions of Patrick Henry and many others, The Constitution is the ruler of the land and not a king!  Yay Constitution Day!

School Is Back In Session

After a nice summer break, we are finally back in session.  Our first official day was September 2 and that whole week was an adjustment period for sure.  Our schedule is packed!  The biggest issue for me is my son's cross country practice.  It is Mondays & Wednesdays at 7:00 a.m. but this means we (baby included) are waking up at 5:30 a.m.  This makes our day feel soooooooooooooooo long!  Despite being tired, we managed to fit in our first field trip of the school year.  Yes we at least waited for a whole week of school to pass. :) 



Tampa Theatre glory days - from the Tampa Theatre website

 


We toured the Tampa Theatre in downtown Tampa.  It was gorgeous!  The theatre was built in 1926 as one of America's most elaborate movie palaces.  The building was designed by architect John Eberson and makes you feel as though you are outside in a Mediterranean courtyard.  It still has a working Wurlitzer organ that rises from the floor to play some show tunes during the tour.  The tour is informative and takes you back to a period in time when the big movie houses were owned by the studios and were the most ornate "palaces" in America.  There are also a few ghost stories to go around.


If you are in the area and want something interesting to do with or without kids, this is for you.  They operate tours twice a month for a small fee and they also told me they are more than happy to set up tours for school and homeschool groups.



I will be posting more on what our weekly schedule looks like as well as what we are loving this year!

Dealing with the day.

We have been desperately trying to finish up our school year before our homeschool conference in a few weeks and it has been challenging.  When you are homeschooling a middle schooler, elementary kiddo and have a little one entering the terrible twos it might be easy to give up what some would say is an unrealistic goal.  Enter: Frozen.

Frozen has saved me on those chaotic days!  She is a bit obsessed with this movie.  She wants to watch it all the time, sing it all the time and dance to it all the time.  Luckily for me, I wait until we're getting thick into Algebra before I pull out my ultimate baby soothing weapon.

I know I haven't had a lot of content in the past week or two but we're really trying to pull off some serious work despite the fact that we extended almost every break we had this year.  An extra week for Christmas, a few days for spring break, an extra week here for Easter - you get the picture.  Just trying to dig out of a little hole so we have the freedom and peace of mind to totally let loose!

The Next School Year

FPEA 2014 Convention Flyer

Our homeschool convention is only three weeks away!  We are trying our best to finish off the school year so when we are at the convention we can only focus on fun (for the kids) and all the possibilities of the next school year.

We have an excellent convention.  In fact, they tell us every year it is the largest one in the country.  Wow!  People come from across the U.S. just to attend (I think the fact that it is next door to Disney World doesn't hurt).  The hotel is always full and the vendor area can be crowded and chaotic so I feel like I always need a plan and a few goals.  These goals never match what my family has in mind.

Interior Images: Gaylord Palms Resort

I like to go through the program and catalog and decide ahead of time what I want and need to accomplish.  A lot of vendors offer you free shipping as well as a convention discount if you purchase their products on site so I try to take advantage of those offers provided they are the best deal I have found.  Also, I'm a "hands on" purchaser.  I like to see what I'm going to invest in before I jump in.

The whole convention can be a little overwhelming and crowded but in the same sense it is so inspiring to see all of the homeschool families in one place.  Such an amazing mix but somehow we are in
a journey together.

Interior Images: Gaylord Palms Resort

While I'm planning, shopping and researching (read - work!), the fam is partaking in the kid activities and enjoying every moment of the pool party(read - not work!).  It doesn't hurt that the convention hotel itself is a destination.  It is held at the Gaylord Palms Resort - Kissimmee.  It is amazing.  Beside the wonderful pool areas, you can feed fish and baby gators.  It is a pretty stunning place and keeps everyone busy!


I hope to get lots of pics and blog a little from the convention especially as I weigh some heavy curriculum changes for the year.  I'm in a math dilemma at the moment and thinking about a big switch but a little scared.

Do you attend a homeschool convention every year?  Maybe it's here!

Kids and Glasses

Ella has been complaining about her eyes for the past few weeks and although we had a basic check up at the pediatrician we scheduled her for a thorough eye exam with an optometrist.  She was really nervous and went crazy over having the puff of air blown in her eye.  We had to do the same eye four times because she kept moving.

After a full exam we got the news.  She is a little farsighted and needed glasses for all day wear.  She was excited, I wasn't so much.  We only have vision insurance for my hubby since everyone else was blessed with my excellent vision (or so I thought).  Wow there is an upcharge for everything in the eyeglass world.  Instead of making the decision that day, I decided to take the prescription and shop around for a decent deal on glasses especially for a 9 year old who isn't very careful with her things.  I found what I thought was a reasonable deal and she was very happy with the end result.

It was funny how they kept telling her how it will help her see the blackboard better and help her do better in school.  Every time they made a school reference, Ella would just look back at me and give me a wink.  When they asked her if she liked her teacher, she said "of course I do, she's my mom!"  Then she tells them she's homeschooled and that's when you get a few looks and a lot of questions but mostly we got really cute glasses.

Cute.  Right?

After Easter Freezer Meals

Ella and I were watching the Pioneer Woman this weekend on the Food Network and her freezer cooking episode aired.  I have tried freezer cooking in the past but have not been very happy with the taste or final product of some of the recipes but since Ella and I have done several of Ree's recipes with great success I was ready to give it another go.

After watching the episode we made a list of things we wanted to make and decided to make two of each (just in case they didn't turn out so yummy).  I was really excited to try the chicken pot pie.  I love chicken pot pie and I have never tried to make one because I was just too lazy to do the steps involved.

We made:

1. Chicken Pot Pie
2. Lasagne
3. Chili
4. Beef & Turnip Stew
5. Chicken Spaghetti
6. Pepper Steak
7. Carrot Soup

These were the recipes that appealed to us and our taste buds though there were others.  Most of the recipes can be found on the Pioneer Woman website or on the Food Network section for Pioneer Woman.

The Chili, stew, soup and pepper steak were easily stored flat in freezer bags.  The chicken pot pie, lasagna, and spaghetti we stored in disposable tins.  It took about five hours total start to finish (Netflix on the IPad in the kitchen really made the time fly) and the supplies cost close to $70 thanks to some nice sales at Super Target including $2 coupons on ground beef!  We had a few leftover veggies and some ground beef too.  That made each meal around $5.  We were really excited with the cost, the prep and the finished product. 

 (not sure how I didn't get ANY prep pictures)

We had the chicken pot pie tonight and it was awesome.  There wasn't a drop of anything left in the tins and everybody had that happy comfort food feeling look as they settled in for the night.  If the other recipes taste near as good, I wouldn't mind doing this more often.

Next time, I'll be sure to get pics from start to finish.

Ironic!

During our day spent on St. Simons Island we expended so much energy we were dead thirsty!  The kids asked someone at the lighthouse where the closest stop for a drink was and they said "somewhere in the village".  That's what happens when kids ask for directions, you get the answer "somewhere in the village".  So, somewhere in the village it was.  Unfortunately, we didn't know where the village was or might be so we decided to wander the island sans navigational aides.  While wandering the kids decided they wanted ice cream instead of a drink or maybe both.  During the drive we saw many seafood restaurants but not much else.  We decided to just head back to the hotel and find something on the main road we had become familiar with when we saw THIS:

 GOOGLE MAPS STREET VIEW

 

 

We were intrigued by the little car with the camera tower so we followed it.  As we were driving, we were looking around us at the people walking dogs or going about their daily lives and wondered if they would be frozen in time, soon to appear on Google Maps Street View. 

 

After following the car for about a minute (like some out of town creepers) my daughter yells "Mom!  Pull Over!"  After remembering how to breathe again, I saw it.  There it was.  A Dairy Queen!  Happiness.  Ironically, the Google Maps car led us right where we wanted to go.  Coincidence?  Hmmmm.  We were grateful and took the time to enjoy some delicious ice cream, ice cold drinks sprinkled with Google conspiracy theories and jokes.  It was a good day. 

 

Ironic.

 

 

Flexible!

Being a homeschool family allows for so much flexibility in life.  This is one of the top reasons we started homeschooling.  My husband can work crazy shifts sometimes and be sent off to random places on a whim.  Sometimes, we are fortunate enough to go with him. If we were traditional "public schoolers" this would cause disruption but for us, it just causes excitement!

Last week was one of those exciting times.  We had the opportunity to explore St. Simon Island and Atlanta while we were in Georgia. We have been to Atlanta plenty but we never had the chance to explore the Golden Isles.  We were very excited and the area delivered.  What a beautiful place!  We spent our whole first day just visiting the St. Simons Island Lighthouse.

You can see, it was an absolutely perfect day! 

For the kids, one of the best parts was that the lighthouse was next to a county rec center but not just any rec center.  It was on the water, had a pool, mini golf course and tons more.  Why don't we have these in our area? So cool!!!  Needless to say, it was a full day!

Here are some St. Simons Island Lighthouse factoids:

• In 1807 James Gould of Massachusetts was commissioned by the U.S. Treasury Department to build a brick lighthouse and one story frame home.
• The lighthouse was mostly made of tabby (oyster shell, lime, sand and water) since brick was a hard item to come by in the area.
• In 1810 President James Madison appointed James Gould as the first keeper for a salary of $400 per year.
• In 1862 Confederate soldiers destroyed it so the Union Troops couldn't use it as a navigational aide.
• In 1872 it was rebuilt with the structures we were able to tour on our trip. 
• Charles Cluskey the architect on the project, designed many Greek Revival buildings in Georgia from 1830 - 1847 and even assisted on remodeling the U.S. Capitol.
• Many crew members did not get to see the final build of the beautiful Victorian inspired structures as Malaria was widespread and very destructive.

I will post more trip highlights later in the week.

Enrichment Science

Science is my daughter's favorite subject.  She is an artistic learner and I try to keep that in mind when choosing curriculum for her.  For science, we use Cut and Paste: Science which is wonderful for her because of the involvement of art, manipulatives and science.  Since this is catered to her learning she retains so much more than when we used a very route science curriculum.  We also supplement it with science experiments for every lesson and the occasional enrichment class.

We are members of the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa or MOSI as the locals call it.  We take several enrichment classes throughout the year.  For only $12 per class it is a great deal. 

Yesterday she did a class called Blossom Buddies.  In the class they learned the parts of a plant, diagrammed a plant and dissected a flower.  They also made a flower and took home seeds that they helped prepare for an ongoing project.  This worked out well for us because this is exactly what we were working on at home so we were able to bring it all together.



MOSI normally publishes the class schedule at our local homeschool convention in May so it is easy to align the curriculum with the classes that you want to take.

Having two very distinct learners I love finding the things that will boost their learning and passion for learning.  What do you do to boost your homeschool experience?

Pumping Up History With Liberty's Kids

This year I chose to teach the same history to both my homeschoolers.  For most subjects I have two completely separate and different curriculum but history is a place I felt I could easily teach on both of their levels.  Saving me some work!  :)

Currently we are covering the American Revolution.  I purchased the full dvd set of Liberty's Kids with the idea that it could help out my 3rd grader reinforcing what we were learning in our class time.  We did history Monday to Thursday and on Friday we ate lunch and watched a few episodes of Liberty's Kids.  I have to say I was really surprised that it wasn't my 3rd grader asking to watch more throughout the weeks but instead my 7th grader.  He absolutely loved it!  If I would have allowed it, he would have stayed daily for the Liberty's Kids marathon.  For him, it brought the historical figures to life and gave them personality.  With the combination of classroom learning and the dvds he was a walking history buff.  He would go places and engage in conversations about the American Revolution.  He wanted t-shirts with Ben Franklin and George Washington.  He was "living" through it and it stuck!  What more could a parent educator want?


As for my 3rd grader, once the Marquis de Lafayette made an appearance, she was on board too.  He helped bring a certain life to history for her as well. He certainly was a character!  Her favorite subject is science so when she was also talking to people about history and drawing pictures of the American Revolution for fun (gasp) I felt a sense of accomplishment.

The Battle of Trenton - Win! Win!  Poor Hessians :(

In the final episode where George Washington became president and Ben Franklin was reciting the Constitution both my kids sat with tears in their eyes.  You could see the impact of the moment.  The amount of bravery and fortitude they witnessed leading to this point really was compelling.  It gave them a greater sense of what their country is, where it came from and what it can mean to them.  It also foreshadowed the impending civil war.  All in all the dvd set really was a wonderful addition.  I wish they made something like this for every era!

Now you can find us reading and learning the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. 

Junior Achievement Biztown: Update

Well the day has come and gone.  All his preparation for this one day!

 

 

He did a great job as the Security Advisor.  He presented the Safety Award to Busch Gardens that day but he tells me Met Life was a close second. 


As his sits behind me cooking mac & cheese for lunch, I have to say I am one proud mama.  I received so many compliments of his behavior and he had such a great time.  All those early mornings were worth it I suppose.




No.  I still have not updated my phone :)

Thank You Cards

We live in sunny Florida and we have a large family spread all over the country or the world for that matter.  It used to be very hard to keep in touch with everyone.  I'm "young" enough to remember the days before the numerous social platforms we have (like Facebook).  Constantly having to send pictures, cards, etc. to each address.  Digging out the big address book that has seen better days.  Not my cup of tea but now we can use social networking and the various tools to keep in touch with everyone and we have the ability to say things we need to say - instantly.  Great for a person like me!

Last Christmas, my aunt sent us a Facebook message asking if we were going to be home because we would be getting a package.  The kids were so excited they watched the door until that moment that the FedEx guy thought he was going to ring our doorbell.  Instead, Ella opened the door and said "I was waiting for you. Thanks! Merry Christmas! Bye!" (picture really fast tween speak).  She tore open the package and inside were four Amy's Gourmet Caramel Apples!  Have you ever had these? Oh. So. Good.  Nom. Nom.



We texted Aunt Marlene as soon as we received the package and sent this "thank you" card.  Isn't that great?  Minus the mess on the floor of course.

 

We love sending thank you cards, birthday cards and all sorts of picture messages.  It is so easy for the kids to get creative and it gives the receiver the intended message plus a nice picture of the family or sometimes the family mess.  I really love spelling out messages with Scrabble tiles too!  It is such a cute touch.

 

These pictures or messages are our way of being together even though we are all so far away.  I always love a personal touch!

Homeschooler Socialization and Public Speaking

As a homeschooler one of the most common (read annoying) things you are asked is "Aren't you worried about socialization?"  Short answer: No.

I think homeschooling can provide the most real form of social integration as well as unique opportunities.  If my child were in school for 3rd grade she would only be dealing with other 3rd graders on a social level.  I find that to be a very narrow social category.  As a homeschooler it is necessary for her to interact with children of all ages, races, religions, and abilities.  She has to deal with adults, business people, sales people, instructors and more.  When she is at Target and wants to find something, she asks the associate not mom.  Homeschooling often requires the ability to hold a conversation with an adult the same as a 3rd grader.  It is these experiences that help to build a comfortable and natural confidence which is core to her "social" abilities.  Sitting in a classroom setting for 7+ hours with children of very similar age isn't what bears socialization. 

The mission of public schooling is not socialization but according to congress it is "assuring access to equal educational opportunity for every individual".  I even remember a teacher telling my son in 2nd grade "you don't come to school to socialize you come to learn." - wait...what?  Socialization, like education, happens everywhere. 

Standing tall speaking with confidence :)

 

C.J. spoke on Scout Sunday in February about being a Boy Scout.  His small speech really was awesome!  I was sooooo nervous for him.  I knew he was a little nervous too but as he spoke to over 600 people he spoke with a strong confidence in his voice and demeanor.  He was a professional speaking in front of a large crowd FOR THE FIRST TIME!  Part of this is his natural personality and another part is the confidence building that homeschool has provided him.

Some basic keys for confident speaking are:

1. Eye Contact
2. Voice Projection
3. Inflection
4. Gestures / Body Language

There are a lot of great books out there to help build on the strengths your child already has.  Here is one we have used but this also looks great!  Think about including public speaking and oral presentation into your yearly school schedule.

Junior Achievement Biztown

Junior Achievement Biztown "map"
 

Wow it has been a crazy week!

We had a lot to fit in this week for homeschool.  C.J. has been preparing for his JA Biztown trip for the past month and it has kept us busy.  Our co-op has had a class of 45 5th-7th graders preparing for the big day.  JA Biztown is a wonderful program.  The program has been around since 1919 and it's core purpose is to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy.

If you haven't been a part of the program before, it is a mini business commerce district placed inside a building.  JA Biztown is a working mini community.  It has a Mayor and other elected officials as well as numerous businesses.  Here is a "map" of a JA Biztown in another area.  How cool is that?  The JA Biztown in Tampa has sponsors like:  Outback Steakhouse, MetLife, Bank of America, Busch Gardens, Citi Financial, USAA, McDonalds, Tampa Bay Lightning and many more.  The career opportunities are abundant!

"Prior to visiting JA BizTown, students engage in a comprehensive 16-hour classroom curriculum that leads students through the study of business principles, career exploration, banking procedures, business decisions and economic terms.The curriculum immerses students into the exciting and challenging free enterprise system. The goal is to enable students to relate economic terms through the hands-on experience of running an interactive town. Students must demonstrate the skills involved in maintaining a checking account and will begin to identify the various banking services.

The curriculum emphasizes the importance of ethical business practices, teamwork and making sound business decisions. Throughout the program students also begin to recognize that career and job choices are related to personal interest, skills, knowledge and education."

 

I can't begin to explain the wealth of information and the excitement of each class when the students are able to relate their real life experiences.  My son was so disgusted the day he found out that when you buy a car for $25,000 and finance it with an auto loan you can end up paying over $30,000 for that car.  It was such a priceless moment :)



Interview Day!

This week was interview week.  There were so many fascinating positions you had the chance to interview for.  It was very impressive!  C.J. interviewed for the position of head security advisor and was excited that he was selected for the position.  Next week they attend the JA Biztown Tampa location and actually work a full day in their positions (minus their lunch break at McDonald's which is also worked by other students).  I will fill you in on the final process and outcome.  I can't wait!!



Homemade Birthday Cards

Do you have your kids make homemade birthday cards?

I LOVE to have my kids make them! I think it adds a sweet, personal touch and it allows them to be more involved in the birthday process.  Normally I am the gift purchaser $$$ so these original works of art count as their contribution/gift.  I also love to see the crazy things they come up with!!  Kids can be so creative, funny and original!



Momma Birthday Card

Here is my birthday card from my daughter Ella.  It just so happens my birthday is shared with Abe Lincoln and as you can see aside from wearing the same cool hat Abe and I are very different.  Yes, I have hot pink lips but according to this card I am awesome AND cool and poor Abe is just cool.  Sorry Abe!  Wow!  I look so intense!

I'm sure Hallmark is not happy to lose the business but I see too many benefits to do it any other way!  Also, I think Hallmark could benefit from some of our most recent designs :)

St. Patrick's Day

This is what's for dinner!  Well....it will be when it is finished cooking.



Corned Beef & Cabbage

Our dinner menu today (which we are preparing as a homeschool project)  consists of:  Corned Beef and Cabbage with Potatoes.  Don't forget the GREEN Kool-Aid and these yummy treats.




YUM!

For the rest of school, we spent the morning learning about St. Patrick and here are some memorable and interesting tidbits:

•  *St. Patrick was actually born in Scotland.
•  *His parents were Romans living in Britain in charge of the colonies.

 *At 14 he was captured by a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave to herd and tend sheep.

 *Ireland, at the time, was a land of Druids and pagans so during his captivity he turned to God in prayer.

 *He escaped slavery at age 20 thanks to a dream where God appeared.



* As a bishop he was charged to bring the Gospel to Ireland. 

*Why a shamrock?  He used the shamrock or the THREE leaf clover to teach and explain the TRINITY.

Through The Orange Grove

Thursday was perfect weather for our orange grove and packing house tour.  It was a sunny 70 degrees with a slight breeze - FLORIDA PERFECTION!  The kids were super excited and we met up with some home school friends to check it out.


Dooley Groves - Florida

When we entered we were greeted with samples of fresh orange juice and grapefruit juice.  Then we got to sample the different types of oranges that were being picked.  They included pineapple oranges, valencia oranges and my favorite, temple oranges. 


Yummy Samples

While we waited we perused the shop area.  They had local honey, jams and so much more for sale. 

We purchased some local orange blossom honey but another product caught my eye.  It was called F.R.O.G jam.  I have never heard of it so when I read the ingredients it all made sense.



F-R-O-G Jam

                                              Fig
                                              Rasberry
                                              Orange
                                              Ginger
                                                            Doesn't that sound yummy?






We learned a lot about running a grove and packing house.  Some interesting tidbits we left with:

• 90% of the oranges picked in Florida are used for juice and only about 10% are sold as fruit
• Behind chocolate and vanilla, orange is the worlds favorite flavor
• Meyer Lemons are a cross between a lemon and an orange
• Florida is second only to Brazil in orange juice production



YES! Those ARE lemons.

All of this has really inspired us to grow our own lemon tree.  We have officially put it on our home school to-do list!



Rainy Day With The States

During our impromptu spring break this week we had a rainy day :(

After our adventures on Monday and the wonderfully fun chaos of Tuesday, we woke slightly sun burned to a dreary, rainy day.  After deciding to stay in our p.j.'s and do nothing for a while, I figured I could fit in a little school time in the form of a game.  Enter....U.S.A. Bingo.

I have a 3rd grader and a 7th grader and they both love it!  My 3rd grader is just learning all of the states and their locations so this is such a fun tool.  My 7th grader gets to master his knowledge and I make him name the capital or a fun fact as he yells off a "bingo".   This bingo version brings color and fun to a rainy day. 

I love incorporating games like this to help secure and build knowledge in a fun way.  Sometimes I'm surprised how much more they learn and retain through these paths. 

We paid around $14 for our version shipped from Amazon.  I've also seen them used or you could use your next rainy day to make your own version with old cereal boxes :)

 

Unexpected Spring Break

One of the great benefits of home schooling is making your own calendar.  Right? We love being able to schedule vacations around our family needs or wants as well as my desire to avoid crowds.  We normally schedule a nice big vacation in the fall when everybody is in school.  For spring break, I try and pick a not so busy Florida week and always opposite of the local school district schedule.  I just like the feeling of having the town to myself.  Is that so wrong?




Spring has Sprung

This year, we took an unexpected spring break and it was the same week as our school district.  Yikes!  Because the kids have cousins and friends in public school there were just too many opportunities to catch up with them instead of trying focus on school.  Ahhhhhhh flexibility. Florida home schooling is wonderful.  With limited restrictions it truly puts the parent in charge.  I hear from parents at conferences every year about certain hours or days they have to register and log and certify and it is head spinning.  I am very thankful!


So, to kick off our surprise spring break during C.J's weekly Boy Scout meeting, us girls had an American Girl meeting for our American Girl Club that we started this month and we made hair bows for our dolls and a few for us girls too!  It was great.  Muffins, juice, bows and a discussion about suffrage since our feature girl is Samantha Parkington.



Our American Girl Club

If that wasn't enough, around 9:45 PM we decided it was a great night for some night swimming!  Again, gotta love Florida!  Sorry for my Pennsylvania family snowed in! 



Night Swimming!

We are really excited for our impromptu break and we have big plans.  A beach party and tennis tomorrow with (gulp) 12 kiddos, gymnastics party, museums and an orange grove tour!  I'll post those activities later in the week. 

Painting A Still Life With Those That Don't Sit Still

Today we tried our hand at painting a still life.  A still life is a work of art (in our case a painting) depicting mostly inanimate objects like food, flowers, books, etc.  It was my job to set up our in-spah-ray-schion (inspiration) piece.  I channeled my inner Paul Cezanne or how I imagine Paul Cezanne speaking and working, to set up the perfect inspiration piece.  This is my fake fruit masterpiece.

Though the children were not as still as the still life, I think their wanderings were a quest for added inspiration.  Everyone really enjoyed having the creative outlet and as a mom it was really enjoyable to see the individuality of interpretation displayed by everyone.

The finished masterpieces.

 ACRYLIC ON CANVAS

Art is very important to our family and it is very easy to incorporate into your home school program. The benefits are far reaching and well documented. While many traditional schools have had to limit or cut their art programs, art can thrive in your home school day.  You can take something small and simple like our project and turn it into a full lesson with minimal cost and effort.  In our venture today we learned the definition of a still life,  the history of still life art, the techniques used when painting with acrylic paint on canvas, the color wheel and the nuances of paint mixing.  Hello psychedelic pink!  We also discovered we have a freakish amount of fake fruit and we even had the opportunity to discuss Paul Cezanne as well as his famous works thanks to my horrible French impersonation.  As you can see, my inspiration piece channeled his famous "Still Life With A Curtain" circa 1895 seen below.  Do you see the similarities?  Well it is a loose interpretation.

 

 

For the project today we bought our supplies from Jo-Ann Fabric using a 40% off one item coupon and our 15% educator discount.  We purchased paint, brushes and canvas for just under $20 with our discounts. Use things around the house for your inspiration or go for a walk and pick flowers or gather rocks.