Thank You for Your Ideas!!! Here's Our List.

A while back, I asked help for ideas for a list of things the kids could do, not only here, but also on a couple of forums I frequent, and I got some good ideas. So I sat down to type up the list and Kaytie and Nate joined me to give their suggestions. They had some really creative ideas and we wound up with quite the list.

Before I show you the list we came up with, I want to clarify a couple of things... 

First, this list is for them to browse and use on their own. I am willing to help gather necessary supplies, but otherwise, they choose and implement completely independently. I am not standing over them giving instructions or ideas. They can choose whatever they want from the list or simply use the list to inspire an idea of their own!

Secondly, this list is for their own free time. They do chores and help me at other times of day. I want them to value work, but I also want them to fully experience the timelessness of playtime when they can be creative, use their imaginations, or just lie on the grass and cloud gaze. 

Third, this list is more for Kaytie and Nate than for Daniel and Abbie. The younger two have the type of personalities where they entertain themselves easily, and it really seems to be easier to amuse yourself when you are three and four than it is when you are six and seven.

This list has really worked wonders with curbing our afternoon tv time. When someone says, "Can we watch a movie?" I say, "No, but you can choose something from The List." And they run off to read it until they find something. I printed the list off and they know where it is kept in the schoolroom. 

Oh, and yes, the last one is sorta a joke. They both understood that it really meant, "If you have read this entire list and STILL not come up with an idea, then there is no help for you. Sorry."

You May Choose Something To Do From This List

1. build an ancient city in the garden (make rivers, mountains)
2. make a fairy house in the backyard
3. have a “picnic” or “tea party”
4. hunt for bugs
5. go outside and sketch
6. bring in a rock and sketch it
7. take binoculars out and birdwatch
8. play with the trains
9. use blocks/lego/Jenga or all 3 to:                                                                                                      

build the great wall of China   

build the Eiffel Tower  

build a farm  

build an ancient city

10. play with k’nex
11. play with dollhouse:

have dolls visit different states that we have learned about

have the dolls take a field trip to the farm

take the dolls on a world tour

12. take some dinosaurs on a trip to France
13. build a fort with pillows and blankets in the bedroom
14. make a city of bird’s nests in the garden
15. compose a dance and write down the steps
16. create your own game and write down the rules
17. paint the sidewalk with water
18. wash baby dolls in front yard
19. write a poem
20. make paper airplanes
21. practice your skateboarding
22. read a book
23. have an archaeological dig in the garden
24. be a jungle explorer in the yard
25. collect leaves and sketch them
26. turn the front yard into the Arctic and choose your favorite Arctic animal to be
27. science box
28. build/invent/fix around the house with the toolbox
29. make up an exercise program and write it down
30. go on a scavenger hunt outside
31. write a story
32. set up an obstacle course
33. play dress up
34. set up a zoo with the animals
35. do a puzzle
36. get animals/dinosaurs/dolls (little people) and write a play for them to act out
37. play detective and write clues for each other to solve
38. draw a map of the yard
39. hide treasure in the yard and make a map so someone else can find it
40. play pirates with the climbing tree as the mast of your ship
41. make a museum in the playroom
42. act out a Bible story
43. use the flannelgraph board
44. write a “Magic Schoolbus” book
45. set up a restaurant or bakery in the garden
46. play Wonderpets
47. art project
48. build an invention
49. use the playroom as a ship or airplane and go on a journey
50. go camping
51. be firemen
52. set up a grocery store
53. play with playdough
54. make paper dolls
55. be doctors
56. be dentists
57. make an insect, bird, or flower guide
58. write about your favorite animal
59. play house
60. find shapes in the clouds
61. dance to music
62. take a nap

Thank you all again for your ideas and suggestions!!!

We Are Party People

So a lot of people apparently noticed that yesterday was 10-10-10 day. But I wonder how many of you celebrated? With chocolate cake?
I have always loved holidays and when I had kids, I determined that they would have great memories of Christmas, Easter, 4th of July, birthdays and even Halloween and Valentine's Day. We have traditions for them all. However, at some point, a certain kid got a little carried away when it came to special occasions. I was okay with being wished, "Happy First Day of Fall, Mom!" but got a little nervous when I heard, "Happy Last Friday of September, Mom!" and "Happy First Monday of October, Mom!"
And sure enough, when she heard it was Ten Ten Ten Day, she requested a proper celebration... aided and abetted by her father, I was forced to produce chocolate cake and games to play. They are already planning for 11-11-11 Day. Somehow, I have lost control.

TOS Review: Talking Fingers

Out of all of our TOS Review items, this one has been the universal favorite. My kids enjoy playing on the computer. I limit them to educational games only and they don't even mind that they have to learn something in order to play. (Now if I could just figure out how to mix green beans and chocolate cake...)
Anyway, we were given a chance to try out Talking Fingers' Read, Write, and Type program and have spent the past few weeks learning to, well... read and type. This is a phonics program that includes spelling, keyboarding, and word processing. It incorporates seeing, hearing and, in a way, touching, so that the children learn through more than one sense. This method always works best for my kids.
The program follows the storyline of a virus that has stolen all the letters and the kids must help get them back so they (the letters) can tell their stories. It's a little bit cheesy, but even my practical, eye-rolling kid has not been bothered by this and the two younger ones love it. The kids are introduced to the letters one by one and have a phonics exercise and a typing exercise for each letter. Once they rescue it, the letter goes to the story tree and  the kids help them type their "story".
Talking Fingers was incredibly generous and allowed us four online user accounts so each of the kids got to use this program. Here is how it worked for us:
Daniel and Abbie both know most of their letters and sounds already, so this was a great way to reinforce their knowledge and move them on to the next level. I think, however, if they were just beginning to learn their sounds, this program would have moved too fast for them. The second letter introduced "middle sounds" (finding the "a" sound in words like "cat" and "bag"). And learning finger position, letters, and letter sounds all at the same time could be a little daunting for the beginner.
They are both small for their age and keeping their hands in the correct typing position was difficult for them. Daniel was very good about trying to use the correct finger for each key, even though he couldn't keep his hand positioned on the keyboard. Abbie was a little more sloppy. They were both able to follow the instructions on their own and I never had to explain what they were supposed to do. They both loved the premise of the story and talked back to the hands. It was very cute. :)
Kaytie and Nate both know how to read, but I was excited about using this for them as a typing program. Teaching one letter at a time, and giving them plenty of practice all the while gently reminding them of correct hand placement on the keyboard, Read, Write & Type is a great way to teach typing at this age. One of the things I really liked was that the action on the screen drew their attention so that the temptation of looking at their fingers was almost non-existent.
I asked the kids to share their opinions with you, and this is what they said...
Kaytie: I like it, it's really good. Especially when the Toucan turns into an eagle, that's my favorite. I would recommend it to moms for a typing program, it's really good. I learned that to type "t" you just need to put your pointer finger just a little slant and then back. I like it because it is teaching me to spell more words and helping me to review words that I already know.
Nate: It's cool and I really like it because it is educational. I learned how to type. I love when the boy turns into a strong man. I would recommend it.
Daniel: It's good, it teaches about reading and I love it because it helped me read about things. It's fun. Yeah, I would recommend it.
Abbie: I liked it. I like the talking hands. I learned how to read!
So, to sum up, we all thoroughly loved this program and after using it, I would gladly invest the money to buy it if I needed to do so. Although, since I have four kids, I would get the CD instead of the online program.

For the opinions and experiences of others on the Crew, click here.

This product was given to me free for the purpose of this review. All opinions are honest and are mine and my children's.

Chores

We believe in the importance of working and having a good work ethic. So we start our kids off right from the start. Each of our kids got their first chore as soon as they learned to walk. They were responsible for helping to pick up toys every evening. At first, it was a simple: pick up the toy, throw it in the basket, then we went on from there.
Now, at ages 3, 4, 6 and 7, they have a lot of chores that they are responsible for every day. I prefer to give them the same chores over and over so that they know what they are supposed to do, and so they can gain mastery over that skill. Because, although I keep my expectations age-appropriate, I do expect them to get better and better at it as they go along.
We are strong believers in a stable, scheduled environment for children. We are flexible when we need to be, but the kids know that 99% of the time our day will flow in the same general direction. I am not a clock watcher, but we have ALWAYS laid down for naps directly after lunch. There is no argument about it because they just accept it as a part of life. So the bulk of their chores happen in the mornings, between breakfast and school. With that in mind, I created our chore cards and pockets.
They have a picture on a card for each chore. I used pictures because I still have two non-readers and the pictures are more visually appealing to the readers. Each card is color coded to the child.
I found these cool paper pockets at the Dollar Tree, so I glued eight of them onto the inside of a folder. Each night, when they pick up toys, they are supposed to put all their cards in the left-hand pocket. Then, after breakfast each morning, as they do their chores, they shift each card to the "I did it!" pocket. (Nate, who sometimes forgets to sound out words, was, at first, slightly indignant that I would write "idiot" on the pockets.)

Every day they are expected to: put their dirty dishes in the sink; wash their hands and faces; get dressed; put their pjs in the laundry; brush their hair; and make their beds. Nate wipes the table and Kaytie rinses the breakfast dishes. Additionally, they have chores that they do throughout the day on an as-needed basis. They fold and put away their own clothes. They pick up toys every night before bed. They unload and load the drier. Daniel and Abbie take turns setting the table. Kaytie and Nate are learning to vacuum. And we all work together to unload the dishwasher, fold towels, and empty the trash. These are extra cards that I load in the left-hand pockets each morning so that they can move them as they do them. 

When we work together on jobs, everyone has their own particular part of the job that they are responsible for. This eliminates "I did all the work" fights. Kaytie folds big towels, Nate folds hand towels, and the washrags are divided evenly (I divide them) between Daniel and Abbie. 

The cards and the pocket are for visual reminders for the kids. I can say, "Go do your cards." And the responsibility is then on them and I don't have to remind them of each individual job. At this point, they get nothing for doing their cards except for a happy momma and the satisfaction of a job well done. We do eventually want to give them an allowance in order to teach them the value of money. However, I have pointed out that they will not ever get "paid" until they can do their jobs cheerfully and without reminders from me. I have no problem with saying, once, "Have you done your cards?" but after that, I expect them to be able to complete them on their own.

Back to Totschool!

We have two new students in our little school for penguins. Kevin and Gracie come over three days a week and they have started Totschool. Kevin is three and Gracie is not-quite-yet two. They join in our Circle Time with gusto (although Gracie prefers to hand out high-fives instead of listening to the books I read aloud) and then they have their own little boxes and mats to work on. For the first week, they did great. The first day, we talked about their mats and I went through each box, to show them how it worked. They each colored a bit, Kevin did one box, and they were done. The second day, I reminded/helped them with their mats, Kevin did each box one time, Gracie colored and played with the puzzle, then they were done. The third day, Kevin remembered his mat and did it on his own while I helped Gracie. He worked for about ten minutes on his boxes before heading off to play. Gracie colored, played with the puzzle and then spent a long time putting the pebbles in the jar and taking them out again.

I'm thinking that having them do the same boxes is not going to be the best for them, though. I think Kevin is going to be too far ahead of her and is going to need to be challenged a bit more.  I'm excited, though, and having a lot of fun dragging back out all the Totschool stuff I had had to put away!

TOS Review: LanSchool

We were given the opportunity to try LanSchool classroom manager software.Click here for a quick overview of what it does. Basically, it gives me, at my computer, complete control over the kids' computer at all times. I can limit what they can do, blank their screen completely, remove their control over their mouse and keyboard, send them a message (that they must read before they can do anything else) or just take a peek at what is on their screen.
I can also put whatever is on my screen up on their screen, which is handy for when we are doing research or reading e-books, because it keeps all five of us from squeezing around one computer screen.
My kids are really a little young for me to fully appreciate this software, because I am still hovering in the background to help with things like mouse control and finding keys, but we did have a lot of fun playing with this and I am looking forward to using it in the future. I really like the control options, so that as my kids grow and start using the Internet more and more on their own, I can limit, block, and easily keep track of what they are up to. It's also great fun to put on your husband's computer and harass him with it. ;)
This product was very easy to install. I did it all on my own without once having to ask my husband for help, which just tells you how simple it really was.
They offer a free, fully functioning trial version that lasts for 30 days, so you can try it out for yourself.
You can also check out what other crew mates said about it here.


I was given this software for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Daybook: Oct. 4

Out my window: It's crisp and fresh. :) I love autumn!!! Oh, and there's a puppy out there somewhere, stalking crickets.

I am listening to: dinosaurs roaring in the playroom.

I am thankful for: the entertainment of small children and the blessings that God gives us even when we don't deserve them.

From the kitchen: I'm working on creating a good chicken spaghetti recipe.

I am creating: lots and lots of blog posts, Totschool lesson plans, and order in the schoolroom (hopefully)

I am reading: The Kings of Clonmel and Fresh Wind Fresh Fire

I am praying for: trust and faith and obedience

Around the house: accountability is a wonderful thing. Small children growing big enough to be helpful is an even more wonderful thing. 

One of my favorite things: the sound of a horde of little kids playing peacefully together

A few plans for the rest of the week: science lessons for tomorrow, and lots of playing outside in this beautiful weather

I am thinking: that it is great when God blesses, but it is even greater when we don't "throw fits" waiting on His timing for that blessing

I am going: to stay home all week! :)

From the learning rooms: wrapping up ancient China, "swimming with" whales, learning the letter U in many different facets, and jumping back into Totschool...

A picture thought I am sharing:

Ideas Needed

We are cutting back on "media" around here and I am creating a list of acceptable alternative activities for after school times: preferably things the kids can do with little or no help from me so I can actually get some housework done.
If you have any ideas for what I can add to my list, would you leave me a comment? I would so greatly appreciate it!