Two Little Pumpkins

I BELIEVE IN YESTERDAY: We started the morning off with calendar talk and identifying the day/date (they both did so quickly). Next, they each recorded a weather icon for today. Easy stuff. However, a speed bump was dead ahead. ...

I want to teach them that one of the great things about a calendar is that it can help you keep track of things you have to do on certain days. So, I asked them, "What is it we do every Tuesday afternoon?"

I was met with two long blank stares. You'd think I'd asked them who the Tsar of Russia was in 1547. I gave them a hint: "It's an activity you do. Every Tuesday. Afternoon." More blank stares and a few silly guesses. "We drive there." Still lots of nothing. So - seriously like 10 minutes later - I gave them a hint - a big hint. "It starts with a 'Y'." That had to do it, right? I mean, how many activities begin with a Y?

So they started rattling off Y words (everything from 'yeah' to 'yellow'). Everything but ... "yuh, yuh, yuh YOGA!" Annabelle finally figured it out. So they wrote Ys on all the Tuesdays on their October calendar.

Next, we the covered the concepts of "yesterday" and "tomorrow." I was happy they IDed yesterday right away. Tomorrow was more of a challenge for CJ. We'll hit it again, well, tomorrow.

FIVE LITTLE PUMPKINS: We've been putting it off long enough. Today, it was time to do some old school arts and crafts. : ) Historically, crafty things haven't been CJ's favorite (or even third, fifth or twelfth favorite) activity. And I know I let this influence me toward other types of learning, but doggone it, Annabelle LOVES all things artsy and really, so do I. So today was the day. Being October and all, I figured I would have the kids make jack-o-lanterns out of paper plates. While they were working, I played a preschool favorite song - "Five Little Pumpkins" through the computer speakers.

I also found a version of the song that was presented in a more book-like manner, so they kids watched and read that twice Same words, but presented more like a book. The kids watched it twice.

I had them each make two jack-o-lanterns, much to CJ's disdain. (While gluing the face on his first one, he cried, "My pumpkin's out of control!") After they each had their pumpkin pair, I told them we need five little pumpkins, like the song, so how many more do we need? (A story problem!) They both knew it was one more pumpkin, so I whipped one up, post haste.

I noticed at the end of the Five Little Pumpkins story we watched, there was a slide listing resources used. One was a Web site http://www.dltk-teach.com/. Curious, I pointed my browser there, and there I found a one-page version of the poem, which I printed out. There was also a minibook template for the story. It pleased Annabelle greatly. "I'm always up for a craft!" she declared. (She better watch out - that's dangerous talk. Before she knows it, she's going to be making Twinkie sushi, Nintendo-themed cakes, or three pinatas for the block party.)

Anyway, I made a big deal out of putting our pumpkins and the book together and displaying them, and I could see that the kids were very proud of their work. (They kept going over to where it is hanging all evening, reading and re-reading the poem and talking about whose pumpkin was whose and so on.) It served to reinforce the fact that we absolutely should incorporate crafts frequently. It's great for the motor skills, fosters creativity and it was wonderful seeing their sense of accomplishment.

(If you click on the photo to see the larger version, you can make out the towers on Queen Anne Hill on the righthand side.)

ANOTHER GOLDMINE: While on my Internet pumpkin hunt today, I found a great Web site with free printable math worksheets. We have several books with math worksheets in them, but it's nice to give the kids something with a different look or style from time to time. They have math and other curriculum that can be searched by holiday, grade level, activity type and more.

THE LOTUS POSITION: After taking Kirby for a walk, we headed for Columbia City to Lotus Yoga for their Tuesday afternoon class. The kids didn't say much about it afterward, but they were pleased that eating apples was a part of the class as they're such apple experts and all now. ; )

FONDANT FORAY: After dinner, I started working on Rick's birthday cake. Annabelle got her first lesson in making fondant. She wanted so desperately to be helpful, and mostly she was, but it was a very sticky situation. Tomorrow it will be more fun as we'll be into assembly and decoration mode instead of just the sugary grunt work.

Another Monday

YESTERDAY ONCE MORE: We started the day by revisiting the calendars the kids had created on October 1. We really need to do this first thing every day. Today, my goal was to get the kids to be able to figure out what the date (Monday, Oct. 5) is based on their calendar. We started with "What day is it?" Then, it was, "What month is it?" And lastly, it was, "What's the date?" It didn't come easy, and I doubt that it stuck, but it's a process. I also have a few ideas about how we'll make the concepts of "tomorrow," "yesterday," "later," etc. more concrete. Stay tuned. ; )

SUNSHINE ON MY SHOULDERS: One of the things I had the kids do was add a weather icon to today's date. They both chose to draw a sunshine because it is still very sunny round here. We were heading into working on some basic math worksheets, so I thought it would be nice to play some background music that continued that "sunny" theme. I started off with the lovely Sunshine on My Shoulders. After it concluded, CJ said, "I want to hear it again!" Nice. Next up, the very bubblegum, "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows." Bee liked this one. Third up was a contemporary sun song, "Raining Sunshine," from the movie "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs." While the music had served to enhance their math work up until this point, when he heard this song - and he knew it was from YouTube and there was a video with footage from the movie accompanying - CJ said, "I can't focus on my math with this song playing. I need to watch it afterward." I thought that was pretty astute of him. So, I switched to a simple little ditty from Rick and Ken's early teens: "Steal My Sunshine." CJ soon finished his math and watched "Raining Sunshine" twice. : )

APPLE AFICIONADOS: I love it that since our crash course on apples, the kids now frequently ask (or guess) what kind of apple they're being served. Today I sliced up a Gala, handed it to CJ and he said, warily, "That's not a Golden Delicious, is it?" The Goldens are not his favorites. He was happy to hear it was a Gala.

SAY CH-CH-CHEESE!: We are still working on our consonant blends, of course, and so at snack time this morning, I thought I'd offer some cheese and Cheez-Its and make them tell me which consonant blend the snack represented before they could chow down. They both chimed in, "CH!" immediately.

MORE OR LESS:
This evening, we read "More or Less." I hastily grabbed it while at the library last week thinking, "Looks like it might be about estimating. Math = good." Sold. And it was good. The storyline was that an elementary aged boy was running a booth at the school carnival where he guessed peoples ages. He used estimating, his knowledge of the concepts of more and less, logic and deducing to guess patrons' ages. (If he used too many guesses, he wound up in a dunk tank, so the suspense factor was there, helping keep CeeJ and Bee interested.) After we finished the book, I had the kids each get a Magnadoodle and we wrote the numbers 1-15 on one, and on the other, they took turns choosing a number that the other two of us tried to guess. It took them a couple of rounds to "get it," but before long, they were becoming pretty good guessers. As it turns out, the book is one in a series that helps teach math concepts, so I'm going to try to run a few more titles down.

WE'RE TALKING BASEBALL: This afternoon, CJ and Bee were playing Mario Super Sluggers on the Wii. "I love baseball!" CJ declared at the game's start. It was fun listening to them use their vast-and-expanding baseball terminology. Among other gems, I heard Bee ask CJ, "How do you bunt?" and I heard CJ say, " Can you hit my fastball?" That's our kids! : )

We Had Joy, We Had Fun

WE HAD SEASONS IN THE SUN: Usually Magnolia Prep field trips are a Monday affair, but we bumped it up a day this week so that we could take the kids to the last Mariners game of the season. There will be no playoffs for the Ms - today's the end of the road. Of course we had to be there. We were there for the season opener, and the storybook return of Ken Griffey Jr., and you had to know we'd be there for what could be Junior's last game as a Mariner-or his last game EVER. And so we donned our Mariners "uniforms" for one final time in 2009, swung by Queen Anne to pick up Rick, and then headed for 'The Safe."

First stop: The centerfield play park. While pre-game festivities were going on, the kids clambered around the slides and tubes and nets and such. Christian headed for a concession stand to score the kids a Moose Meal.

Eventually, the National Anthem came on. I stood in the play park, facing the flag, and wishing more people would remove their hats. I was also wishing CeeJ and Bee would somehow miraculously hear the song and come out of the playground and face the flag. A ridiculous wish, I realize, as it was the wild west in there! I watched and listened to Old Glory flap on a very windy day, and at one point I glanced over to my right and there was CJ, standing stoically, silently and at attention, staring at the flag. I was very proud of him.

We headed to our seats - the bleachers in left center field. We were facing southward and staring into a strong October sun. Man oh man was it hot. How ironic that today, October 3, was by far the hottest game of the season we sat through. In fact, by the second inning I handed Rick $20 and gave him the directive to go find sunscreen (which he did, thank goodness).

And what a game it was. I'm not going to pretend that there was a lot - or any - Magnolia Prep-type learning going on. Rather, today was about sitting in the sun and savoring the moment. There would be no more baseball for five months.

And so we luxuriated in the moments - in watching future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. come up for his first at bat and tip his hat to the crowd. Magic. And we saw Cy Young candidate Felix Hernandez pitch 7-plus strong innings. Amazing. We saw Junior get a hit in his last (ever?) at bat. We saw closer David Aardsma come in in the 9th and slam the door shut on the Texas Rangers. And we saw the whole team embrace one another, and everyone was watching Junior, who was crying and not even trying very hard to hide it. I've been watching him for 20 years now. I've never seen him cry before.

Though the team finished just barely above .500, as jubilant as the fans and players were, you would have thought the Mariners just clinched a playoff spot. What was going on here? We saw Ichiro carried on a teammate's shoulders like a hero - which he is. Likewise, we saw Griffey hoisted up (no small feat!) and paraded around the ballpark.

Really, it was just a big ol' love fest - a bunch of people who love watching baseball, and a bunch of guys who love playing it. And really, that's why it was so much fun this season. For the fans and the players, it was all about: For love of the game.

I can't wait until April 12.


THIS GUY WILL ALWAYS BE IN MY HEART: On the drive home, listening to the post-game show, catcher Rob Johnson was being interviewed. When asked what it was like to play with future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, he replied, "This guy will always be in my heart." Amen to that. Junior played in an era when cheating was the norm (yes, I'm talking about you A-Roid). But Junior always took the high road. He played hard and played clean and his accomplishments are amazing and have no * after them. I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to watch him all these years.

And, of course, Junior was interviewed. He was asked what his favorite part of this season was and he said without hesitation it was being with his teammates. He said that to a man, they were each the type that you could call and ask for help and they'd be there. That's something that's hard to put a price on. Junior also made it pretty darn clear that he'd like to be back next year. I have to think that will happen. It's just the way this story is supposed to end.


BASEBALL HOUR: Before the game, we read an eye candy book about what goes on at a youth baseball practice. The photo realistic illustrations by Bill Thomson are in sepia tones-except for the baseball, which is always a bright white with red stitching, which makes it really pop off the page. For whatever reason, CJ asked that we read the book upside down, so we did the first time through.

There's No Crying in Baseball

EARLY BEE: For whatever reason, Annabelle was up at 5:30 this a.m. I honestly think that might be a first. She's usually an hour or two after CJ (who's Mr. 6:30). Because she was up two hours before the sun, Annabelle got to watch the Magic School Bus on an ocean floor adventure. She was rather smug when telling CJ all that he'd missed. :)

BASE NOTES: As has become the norm, the kids had another fantastic time at music class. Today they got cards with lines and dots on them that represent musical compositions. Already they're learning that you read music from left to right, and that some notes are short and some are sustained, some are high and some are low, and that musical notation is the key to what's what. Without a doubt, Musikgarten is laying a great foundation for their musical education.

LEFT OUT?: I got an email from the folks at Scholastic today. I used to order a lot of books from Scholastic when the kids were in a bricks-and-mortar school. Now, Scholastic doesn't seem to want my money, but I digress. ... Anyway, one topic that caught my eye in their email today was under an Expert Advice heading. It read, "Left Brain, Left Behind?" Curious, I clicked on the link. The story starts:

Does your child prefer to work alone rather than with others?
Seem to be bright and intellectually active at home, yet frustrated and bored by
school? Interact more easily with adults than peers?

Yes, yes and yes! (when it comes to CJ).

The story was about a new book "Raising a Left-Brain Child in a Right-Brain World: Strategies for Helping Bright, Quirky, Socially Awkward Children to Thrive at Home and at School" by Katharine Beals PhD. In an interview, Beals says that as she learned more about the "new Reform Math pedagogy" popular in schools at the present, she started "noticing how ill-suited it is to the typical analytical math student. This made me take a closer look at current teaching trends in general, and I began to see how not just in math, but in all subjects, today’s classrooms conflict with just about every left-brain strength and weakness." Beals says by her observation, "Students today spend more time working in groups, and less time working independently, than ever before." I think she's right based on my childhood experience compared to Rick and Ken's years of schooling compared to CJ's disastrous kindergarten experience. Another Beals insight: "The analytic content of math and science has been drastically watered down, and foreign language classes now emphasize informal oral communication over mastery of grammar. All this favors the more outgoing, artistic students, especially those who shy away from rigorous analysis, and who think holistically enough to handle big, open-ended projects. " I think she is spot on in her observation, and spot on in her analysis of how this change affects different types of learners.

The (short!) interview is definitely worth reading, and her book is definitely on my "must read" list.

FREE PLAY DAY: We were supposed to have a playdate in the park with Connor, but it was miserable weather-wise (think sheets of rain). Darn. So instead, we (at Annabelle's suggestion) busted out the Play-Doh. Historically Mr. CJ has had zero interest in self-directed Play-Doh play, so I suggested the two make some items and open up a Fall Farm Stand. So they (mostly Bee) made plums, blackberries, apples and lime juice (yeah, I know - lime juice?). Anyway, I had them set prices for their items, and I came shopping-with green M&Ms as money. (I expected them to hike their prices when they saw the currency I was using, but they stayed true to advertised prices.) The best part of the activity was when the produce stand closed. CJ continued to play with the Play-Doh all by himself - for 45 whole minutes. He made creative monsters and had epic battles - it was terrific!
Of course, all of this serves as a reminder to me that it's important that we build plenty of time for "free play" into the schedule. I, um, have this tendency to overdo things and I realize that I need to balance my attempt to make sure they Learn Everything About Everything with plenty of no-agenda time. Which reminds me of a great quote I saw this week:

If we merely cram kids full of a lot of 'what,' we leave them utterly unready for 'what if?'

THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG: This weekend we'll be going to our last (sniffle sniffle) baseball game of the year, so I thought I'd take the opportunity get myself - er- the kids another great library book on the topic. This go round was Take Me Out to the Ball Game by Jim Burke. The kids are always eager participants in the seventh inning stretch, so I wanted to give them a little history surrounding its song. The book tells the story of Jack Norworth. In 1908, while riding an elevated subway in New York, near the Giants' stadium, the entertainer spied a poster that read BASE BALL TODAY - POLO GROUNDS. Though he'd never even been to a game, the poster inspired Norworth to jot the lyrics to what has become an American standard. Shortly thereafter, composer Albert Von Tilzer, who frequently collaborated with Norworth, wrote the melody for the lyrics. The book includes a photo of the original manuscript, illustrations to bring the entire song's lyrics to life, and includes gems about the great Christy Mathewson and the wild playoffs of 1908.

Annabelle was thrilled to learn that the song is actually about a girl (Katie Casey) who is a baseball fanatic, and the kids hearing the song's verses for the first time gave us a chance to talk about what "verse" and "chorus" mean.

After enjoying the book, we went to YouTube to compare and contrast different takes on the song. I was thrilled to find an audio recording from 1908, the year the song was written (and the last time the Cubs won the World Series).

We also watched a couple of comical-or-horrific-depending-on-your-proclivities versions of the song, one by Christian vegetables, another by creepy cats.

Mercifully, I leave you with this - a must hear. Played masterfully by Bernie Williams, it's a hauntingly-beautiful, guitar-only rendition. As CJ was listening to the music from across the room, he asked, "Why is it so sad?" I explained that for years and years, Bernie played baseball and he loves it, but that he doesn't play any more and he really misses the game. At that, Annabelle burst into tears.

Powerful stuff, baseball and music. ...

A First

OCTOBER ARRIVES - Since this is the first full month Magnolia Preparatory Academy has been in existence, it marked our first opportunity to make a monthly calendar from Day 1. I printed out a blank/boxed template, and had the kids write the month's name, days' names and dates on it. Then, we went through and highlighted some of this month's special days (Rick's birthday, Annabelle's birthday, my birthday, our wedding anniversary). We also marked Halloween. We also talked about how important things happen every single day. Conveniently, every darn day, The History Channel has a one minute video about an event of significance (they call it a lead story) from the past. As it turns out, Yosemite National Park was founded on Oct. 1.

THEY PUT A MAN ON THE MOON: Oct. 1 also marks one giant leap for mankind. NASA was founded on Oct. 1. So, we sang Happy birthday to NASA and talked a bit about what NASA is, and then I hopped online to find a brought-to-you-by NASA learning opportunity, and I found the StarChild Web site. CJ literally came running when he heard these words coming from the computer speakers: "What is the solar system? It is our Sun and everything that travels around it." (Kudos to the Pacific Science Center's daily Calendar of Science for giving us the NASA birthday news.)

LIBRARY LESSON: Annabelle's ballet was cancelled this a.m. (sick teacher), so we all went to the library. My hope was to load up on Halloween/October related books to get us through the month. Yeah, well, apparently I wasn't the only one thinking that. The library has a shelves with holiday-related books and the Halloween section was thoroughly wiped out. I did managed to find some scary-spooky-fall-type titles amongst the general population, so to speak. Having learned my lesson, I also gathered up an armload of Thanksgiving-themed books. The kids, meanwhile, loaded up on a dozen-plus DVDs.

THEY DID THE MASH: Since we're into October, a/k/a Halloween month, I thought it would be fun to find a Halloween-y tune as our song of the day. The obvious choice is The Monster Mash. I found a video on YouTube the kids loved - the original song with animated Lego action. Fun!

APPLE OF MY EYE: Apples were front and center in the Albertsons produce section today. As we surveyed them, reviewing what we'd learned about apples earlier in the week, CJ smiled mischeviously and said, "Did you know that apples grow in a bag in a grocery store?" Too funny. We bought some gala and golden delicious (only 78 cents a pound) and just one prized honeycrisp at $2.99 a pound - yikes!

PETER PETER: On the way back from Albertsons, where I'd let each of the kids pick a 99 cent mini pumpkin, CJ asked, "What's a pumpkin eater?" I responded, "Well Peter Peter would be one example," and went on to recite the very-bizarre-when-you-think-about-it Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater nursery rhyme (which, obviously, seemed to be at the root of his question). Naturally, this led to a discussion about how keeping one's wife in a pumpkin shell is not acceptable. Later this afternoon, while the kids were doing their math worksheets, I played a catchy do-wop musical version of the song. (It's worth noting that CJ completed his math in record time. I seriously did not believe him when he said he was done - I figured he probably skipped some, and would have bet money that he glossed over the instructions (it was mixed addition and subtraction). But lo and behold, he nailed it!

STORY WEAVERS: At one point today, CJ and Annabelle were making what they called "mixed up stories" using the "Bonus Feature" on a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD. It has been my past experience that "bonus" features on DVDs are anything but. They're usually lame afterthoughts tacked on. However, in this instance, it was actually worthwhile - the kids were having great fun picking their stories' beginnings, challenges, solutions and conclusions.
EXTRA! EXTRA!: I can't tell you how often Annabelle takes the initiative to do her own art, writing, reading, etc. projects. Here are a couple of things she's done in the past couple of days. I especially love her spontaneous drawing of cirrus clouds!

Red blooded Americans

DO THE CIRCULATION!: I had to go get some blood drawn first thing this a.m. and knowing the kids would be in tow, I decided that the topic of the day would be blood. And nothing gets the blood going like an upbeat Schoolhouse Rock video! On tap this a.m., a blast from the past: "Do the Circulation," which, as its title would suggest, is all about the circulation system. We viewed and reviewed it (in other words, watched it twice). Oh, and for good measure, we also watched a live version, from an off-off-off Broadway production of "Schoolhouse Rock Live!"

BILL ON BLOOD: You just had to know good ol' Bill Nye would have something to say about blood, and sure 'nuff, we found a (three part) episode on blood and circulation on YouTube. It was a great program - six thumbs up from us! The song "Bloodstream" (sung to the tune of the B52's "Loveshack" late in Part 3) was was a big hit with us, and we got ideas for two experiments while watching Bill. One was to build a pulse-o-meter using a drinking straw and plastic cap:

Another easy experiment was using a disposable cup with its bottom cut out as a low tech stethoscope of sorts. Fun! We need to do more experiments.

GET ANIMATED: I also found a really cool (and short - 13 seconds) 3D computer animation of red blood cells on the move. (FYI, as it turns out, there are approximately 3.8 gazillion animations of blood/circulation on YouTube.)

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND: While scouring the Internet for blood-y lesson plans, I happened upon a friggin gold mine. The New York Times has a Daily Lesson Plan program, complete with a lead story, links to graphics and other resources, a language arts tie in and more. Really Good Stuff. It's for grades 6 and above, but still there were things there that I could definitely use with primary aged kids. For instance, some of the material in the NYT Lesson Plan The Wonders of Blood - which included a link to the ENTIRE PBS WEB SITE about blood . We'll be back to the NYT site for more!

NYT CHART

HEART WORK: I had to poke around a bit, but was happy to find some blood/heart-related worksheets for the kids. The American Heart Association has a kids' Web site and there I found a blood flow dot-to-dot for the kids. (In a perfect world, I would incorporate something video, audio, and hard copy and hands on for each "unit," as we all learn in different ways, and I think a multi-sensory approach makes sense.)
While working, we listened to "Here Comes Science," They Might Be Giants CD that Jake & Holly gave us, which includes a track called "The Bloodmobile." How perfect is that?

GROUP TIME: Wednesday afternoon means hanging with the posse at Befriended. Today they worked on common playground situations. It must have gone well for CJ-at the session's end he had a group high 5 kudos stickers. Way to go CJ! Meanwhile, Annabelle roamed the Meridian Park playground and worked on her bar-crossing skills. She and CJ both played in the park before and after Befriended, as well.

P.E. APLENTY: Like yesterday, we took Kirby for a walk this afternoon. I gave the kids each a chance with the leash. We want to get them established as dog leaders rather than Kirby's peers, as would be the dog's preference. And this evening, we headed down the hill to Smith Cove Park/Puget Sound (about a 4 mile round trip). The kids rode their bikes, we walked briskly alongside and Kirby ran, walked, and hung out (in our arms).

BABY TALK: CJ speaks frequently about being a parent when he gets older. Today, while we were on the way home from the clinic, he started in again and Annabelle chimed in and they started talking about the baby they'd have when they're married. To each other. Christian and I have told them before that brothers and sisters marrying isn't, shall we say, socially acceptable in our society, and genetically speaking, it's not a good idea either. So, I reminded them of these facts. We also talked about how people have babies on their own, or they adopt babies someone else gave birth to, and that some babies have one parent, some have two or more, etc. This prompted CJ to propose a workaround - that he and Annabelle could adopt a baby together even if they weren't married. Hmm. I suppose they could. ... So, then they began planning for this baby and, according to CJ, the first thing on their list of things to do is to visit Nonnie and Bops and take the baby swimming in their pool. Pretty sweet. : )
HE SPEAKS OF FORKED TONGUES: Today CJ was playing with a plastic snake and he asked, "Does a snake have two tongues?" I explained to him that it's a split or forked tongue rather than two tongues. Of course he asked WHY a snake has a forked tongue. Why, in my 43+ years, have I never wondered that? Dunno. But of course I had to get an answer for the boy. So, according to the magic of the Internet, snakes "see" using a sensory organ in their mouth called the Jacobson's organ. They pick up molecules of scent when they flick their tongue, which the Jacobson's organ analyzes when the tongue flicks back in. (The function is so that the snake can tell what's ahead of it.) Interestingly enough, each tip of the forked tongue independently senses molecules in the air,and the organ can tell the directional difference. So, for instance, if the left tip of the tongue has a stronger scent of mouse on it than the right tip, the snake heads left. Fascinating stuff. Thanks for asking, CeeJ. : )

We All Live in a Capital I

TABLE TIME: This morning's worksheets covered placing periods at the end of a sentence, and the "always capitalize the (standalone) letter I" rule. Frankly, the actual work/task itself is a breeze. What is the bigger challenge - especially for CJ - is following the directions. For instance, problem #1 said 'the cat sat." The title on the page was Capitalizing First Word and the directions were to "copy each sentence correctly on the line. Well, instead of writing "The cat sat." (capitalizing the T in The), he wrote "on the mat" beneath it. While true, based on the graphic on the page, it wasn't following the directions. He made the same type of mistake on all four problems on the page. So, he ended up having to do twice as much work. A tough but important lesson.
To reinforce the Letter I rule, we watched the Sesame Street classic: Capital I.


CALENDAR GIRL (AND BOY): We have been hitting the calendar hard the past week, talking about months and seasons. Today's calendar-centered activities reviewing a calendar, noting that each month has a specific number of days. We went over the "Thirty days has September" rhyme and sang the "Days of the Week" song CJ learned in kgarten last year. I found The Calendar Song on YouTube that covers the days of the week and months of the year. I thought the beavers in it were creepy, but the kids were OK with it.
Of course you know I had to show them the classic Purina Cat Chow ad (January, chow=chow-chow-chow-chow) from my childhood. (And, of course, they were singing it all afternooon.) I followed the cat version up with the original Neil Sedaka version. Calendar Girl. Still a catchy tune after all these years.

CONSONANT BLENDS: To help bone up on sight words, letter sounds and consonant blends, the kids viewed a PowerPoint presentation. It was good practice and more dynamic than a worksheet.

FUN & GAMES: The kids spent about a half hour playing "Kitchen Magician" on the Sid the Science Kid Web site. It was about heat is used to change food. It made Annabelle hungry for a grilled cheese sandwich. Of course, I obliged come lunchtime. : )

PARK PROGRESS: We decided to combine some PE (a robust walk) with satisfying curiosity. We wanted to check the progress on the park at the end of our block that's in the process of a makeover. Unfortunately, not much to see on that front. On the way back, Annabelle collected a bunch of dandelions. Back home, she held them skyward and said, "I'm like the Statue of Liberty, but instead of a torch, I have a bouquet." She requested I take a picture and then said, "Put that on the blog." Oh, OK. ...


ARE YOU READY FOR YOGA?: So goes the first line to the welcome song the kids sing at yoga each week. When we got there, I could see that instructor Nicole had set up all sorts of physical activity stations in the studio. I turned to CJ and said, "Looks like today is the Yogalimpics!" That got him - and every other kid within earshot - excited.

IT JUST NEVER STOPS: After yoga and after dinner, the kids were both hot to play PBS Island - a super educational Web site that's an offshoot of good old Public Broadcasting System programming. It's cool because they are playing games (and learning) and when they're done, I can go in and track their progress.