Day 50 / 105 - Daily Learning With My Kids

One of my favorite, and most rewarding, questions to ask my children at the end of any event (or day) is "What did you learn?"  I prefer this so much more than "What did you do today?"  About 15 months ago I repeatedly asked my children everyday for a month, "What did you learn today?" and I posted all their clever responses here.

As a home educator, I am constantly seeking to create an environment of learning and discovery, regardless of the time and regardless of the day.  Then, I want to celebrate with my children when we've learned something new and noteworthy.  Little celebrations keep the joy in the journey.  Memories of learning refresh my vision.  Truthfully, my main priority as a homeschooler is that my children will love to learn.

So, I thought I would begin documenting those 'new learning' moments with photographs.  Times when we've had an a-ha moment.  Times when we've made a new discovery.  Times when my children have taught me something (this often has to do with technology).  Maybe it's a new game, a new song on the piano, or a new history fact.  Maybe we learned of a new author or artist.  Perhaps a math shortcut or a new recipe. Maybe my children learned a quicker way to complete their household chores.  No lesson is too small.

If you visit this blog (even just once in awhile) you know that I firmly believe in documenting all the notable moments of your life.  Even more so on your homeschool journey.  Reflecting periodically on the learning in your children's lives will only motivate you to continue on this journey.  Einstein said, Learning is experience.  Everything else is just information.  Let's document, share, and celebrate those experiences.

Last year, my friend Gina taught me how hashtags work when we began documenting all the happenings around our table.  This year, I'm excited to add a new memory-keeping blog post series, #DailyLearningWithMyKids.  Monthly, I'm planning on sharing new discoveries we've learned on our educational journey.  I want to remember the daily-learning, so that one day I will look back and exclaim, "This was all worth it!"  Here are a few new things we've learned over the past few weeks.

Denali National Park is the only national park with a working dogsled team.  Their website boasts bios of each dog as well as provides a GPS tracker so that you can see the location of the team in the park.  They also are training a summer litter of pups, and will post occasional Pupdates.  We love dogs, and we long to visit Alaska one day so the amount of time we've invested into following the team has been totally worth it!

Somehow my daughter figured out that AAA batteries will work as AA batteries as long as you complete the circuit with a piece of aluminum foil.  This is valuable information.

While reading about the Apollo 11 mission, my son informed us that NASA didn't provide Aldrin, Armstrong, or Collins with life insurance.  Instead, the astronauts signed hundreds of autographs for their families to sell if the mission was unsuccessful.  

We learned to play the 24game.  This probably warrants its own post.  This game has been ideal for quick thinking and drilling of math facts.  Try to manipulate the numbers on the cards above to equal 24 using any operation.  You must use all four numbers.  I downloaded the app so we can play on the go.  Yesterday, I rolled it out in my Essentials class.

I'd love for you to accompany me in taking note of the new learning happening in your lives.  I'm excited to learn new things from you.  I'm documenting on Instagram using the tag, #DailyLearningWithMyKids.  Monthly, I'll recap on my blog.  Follow along and share your learning.  Enjoy the experiences and enjoy the journey.  Let's celebrate and encourage one another.

Plus, as I've repeatedly stated before on this blog, if you have to provide a year-end homeschool assessment, this is a simple way to document and remember educational moments!

Day 49 / 105 - Mastering Geography With Color -- Cycle 1

This is identical to a post I've done in the past.  Repetition provides much constancy and simplicity in our lives, so we do the same activities over and over and over.  We use a color coded system to drill Geography for Memory Master.  Since I implemented this system five years ago, I've seen it work successfully for both my children.

 I make a few copies of the maps and the Geography memory work from the Foundations Guide (pages 62, 216, and 217 for Cycle 1).  Then we assign a color for each week.  We mark that color on the landmarks on the map and mark the same color on the Geography memory work page.  We also mark whether it was on map #1 (Africa map) or map # 2 (world map).  To label all 24 weeks takes a little bit of time, but it's time well-invested.  Plus parents, if you take the time to make a map for yourself also, I guarantee you will master the Geography in no time.

This year, since my daughter is 12, she actually did all the marking and labeling independently!

But, the simplicity and the usefulness of this color-coded map comes when you begin to drill with it.  I use this map to now prompt with the Geography title and the color.  For instance I would say, "Hittite Empire in blue", or "Japan in red".  My daughter can easily locate the features on the map that she's colored.  After drilling this way for a few weeks, my children can comfortably transition to a map without color.

We have successfully drilled for Memory Master all three cycles using this technique.

Day 48 / 105 - For the Love of Dance

My daughter has settled into a phenomenal dance school here in Charlotte.  We feel very fortunate to be a part of this school.  Last weekend, along with Southeast Psych, Sullivan Dance Centre hosted For The Love of Dance, featuring Andrew Nemr.

Andrew is an internationally renowned tap dance artist, TED fellow, and former mentee of Gregory Hines.  He has a love for the arts, and he shares that love while tap-dancing.  Following his performance, he was joined by a panel of dance experts, and they facilitated a discussion to equip parents, dancers, and dance educators with a framework to foster a healthy dance experience.  I loved the evening.  I walked away with a new appreciation for the art of dance and how to help connect my daughter to the beauty of that art.

However, the highlight for my daughter was spending the afternoon tap-dancing with Mr. Nemr.  Graciously, he spent the afternoon before his performance directing a workshop for the girls.

Day 47 / 105 - Knight's Tour

Our local YMCA offers homeschooling classes.  This winter I signed my children (and me!) up for a 10-week Logic class.  Its description: A focus on developing logic, mathematical problem solving, and reasoning skills. Students will learn how to think mathematically as well as develop a love for logic and reason. We will practice quick recall of facts through fast-paced games.  Geometry, algebra, and pre-calculus will be integrated with logic and problem-solving. 

Neither of my children were thrilled with this opportunity.  To be honest, the main reason I signed us up was to hopefully gather a few new ideas for my Essentials class.  Truly, I had envisioned I would post once about the entire class.

Well, imagine my surprise when during the first week of class I felt that I had stumbled into a gold-mine.  The class is taught by a former high school and college math and science teacher who is now a homeschooler.  Each week, she has offered something fun yet challenging that has renewed my vision to teach my children math.  I've now realized I will be posting many times about all the wonderful new tools she has equipped us with.

Last week, we "warmed up our brains" with a few rounds of a Knight's Tour.  If you are a chess player, you are probably familiar with this game.  The student is given an 8x8 checkerboard.  The object is to fill the board with as many numbers as you can (up to 64) only moving in the sequence that a knight can move on a chessboard (an L-shaped pattern).  Start anywhere on the board with the number 1.  Then move in an L-shape and place the number 2.  Continue the sequence until you are blocked.  Once your number is blocked, the game ends.

I made a few copies of her worksheet and placed them in page protectors, so that we can play this game regularly throughout the week.

Highest praise came from my 12-year-old daughter who exclaimed, "This can't be math.  It's just too much fun!"

If you are interested, I found an online printable checkerboard here, and if you want to try your hand at online play, follow this link.  

Day 46 / 105 - Winterplace Ski Resort

Last weekend, my son 'lived the dream' of any outdoor enthusiast.

He began Saturday morning with a muddy 4-mile trail race at the U.S. National Whitewater Center.  We then sped (literally) across Charlotte in order for him to catch a bus and return to a place that is near and dear to his heart, Winterplace Ski Resort in southern West Virginia.

He spent Saturday and Sunday snow tubing and skiing with his Boy Scout troop.  He spent the better part of Monday sleeping.

Day 45 / 105 - It's What's For Dinner (simplified)

If you're a mother, you've definitely asked other mothers how they organize mealtimes.  Even more so if you're a homeschooler.  One of the fallacies (I believe) about homeschooling mothers is because we spend most of our day at home, probably standing up in the kitchen, we should produce a dinner meal rather effortlessly.  It only a takes a few weeks into your homeschooling journey before you realize how difficult it is to manage dinner after spending a day educating multiple children.  Since my theme this year is simplicity, I thought I would post how I've learned how to simplify our mealtime over the past seven years.

The real secret to my success is for about 9 - 10 weeks at a time, we have the same thing for dinner on the same night of the week, every week.  That's it. So, if we're having tacos on Tuesdays, we're going to continue to have tacos on Tuesdays, every week, until everyone gets tired of eating tacos on Tuesdays (which I've discovered is roughly 9 - 10 weeks).  The truth is, I can only make about 20 recipes really well.  And of those 20 recipes, about 7 - 10 of them are my family's favorites.  By rotating their favorite meals, everyone eats, everyone is satisfied, and mom really doesn't have to work all that hard.

This simplifies my life in two ways.  First, and most importantly, I can usually get everything I need at the store in less than an hour, once a week.  I know exactly what I need for these recipes, and I know the exact location of the items in the store.  The second part of that sentence is what saves me all kinds of time. I try to shop once a week always at the same store, on Sunday, with my husband.  I can breeze in and out of the store because on previous trips I have already located what I need.  Usually I keep the same hand-written grocery list for multiple weeks.  I indicate on the list what I need, or what I'm stocked up on for that trip to the store.  (Someone more organized than me could easily type up a master list with boxes to check and print it off each week.)  Preparing in this way also helps us to follow a pretty conservative food budget.

Secondly, when my children know what to expect, they are able to learn and to usefully assist me in the kitchen.  My children aren't going to learn long division by watching me solve a problem once or twice.  They need repetition and practice.  They need to see it modeled.  Similarly, they aren't going to learn how to make a lasagna by watching me fix one once.  In the kitchen, they still need repetition, practice, and modeling.  By fixing the same meals repeatedly, while my children watch, learn, and assist, I have confidence that when they move out of our home they'll be able to survive a few weeks without resorting to a dollar menu.

I plan meals for Monday through Friday.  One weekend meal we will usually eat out and for another weekend meal I might try out a new recipe for a future meal plan.  There are usually plenty of left overs for lunches throughout the week and even on the weekend.

My recipes are incredibly simple -- whole foods usually with four ingredients or less, often in one pan to minimize clean-up.  I've always enjoyed simple recipes, but even more so as I embrace simplicity as a theme this year.  Like many others, I like to use the crock pot, so that meal prep and most clean up is complete before my children even stumble out of bed in the mornings.  Here is a look at what we're having this winter.  Disclaimer: Try as I might, I'm still not a food photographer!

Clockwise from top left:

On Mondays we have salmon.  Actually, the salmon is the one thing I don't buy at the grocery store over the weekend, but purchase from a market on Monday mornings.  I marinate it in a bottled Caribbean sauce throughout the day, and then bake it for about 20 minutes.  It's often everyone's favorite meal with little to no left overs.  Along with steamed rice, I toss broccoli in olive oil and seasoning salt and roast in the oven for about 25 minutes.  For the last five minutes, I sprinkle Parmesan cheese and pine nuts on top of the vegetables.  Sometimes instead of broccoli, this shows up as cauliflower.  Sometimes both.

On Tuesday mornings I throw kale, small potatoes, cooked ground sausage, and chicken broth in the crock pot with salt and a little red pepper.  Voila.

Wednesday's meal is also a crowd-pleaser -- very similar to loaded fries you would order at a restaurant.  I roast potatoes in olive oil and seasoning salt for about 20 minutes.  Then, in the same pan, I top the potatoes with boneless chicken thighs and hot sauce.  I bake this until the chicken is cooked through. The deliciousness comes from the potatoes cooking in the grease from the chicken.  Then, I sprinkle with cheese, let that melt, and top with cooked bacon and green onions.  If you're not watching your calories, this can also be topped with ranch dressing or sour cream.

On Thursdays, I make Mississippi Roast.  Have you ever had this?  It is superb, yet an incredibly simple crock pot meal, and the recipe can be found here.  (Plus this gal is a food photographer, so her pictures are far better than mine.)  I discovered this recipe about eighteen months ago, and we have eaten this once a week since then.  I make it on Thursdays because that is the one day we are out of the house.  This takes so little effort that I can have the roast fully prepared and cooking in less time than it takes to brew a cup of coffee.  Left overs are perfect served on buns for sliders.

Because this is so blasted simple, I spend the most amount of time on Thursdays making actual mashed potatoes (with butter, cream cheese, and heavy whipping cream.  Yum!)  My 14-year-old son has a New Year's goal unlike many others -- he's hoping to gain 40 pounds in the next eight months.  He will eat mashed potatoes by the potful, so on Thursdays I make that happen.  As a result, I wind up with a few more dishes at the end of the day.

Fridays look similar to Monday, although I grill boneless chicken thighs in wing sauce and serve on steamed rice with the same broccoli side.  This meal is also a hit, and we've eaten it regularly over the past six years!

Benjamin Franklin stated:  By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.  It's amazing how a workable meal plan simplifies my homeschooling journey.  And as a result, makes the journey that much more enjoyable.

Day 44 / 105 - December Happens At The Table

Food.  Drinks.  Merriment.  December is a joyous month.

Naturally, we spent most of the month celebrating.

We enjoyed a very relaxed school schedule, which allowed my daughter to focus on what's truly important to her -- crafting gingerbread houses and mastering the Rubik's Cube.  

My very simple, disposable tree (which I posted about last month) fulfilled its duty when yesterday I cleaned up the entire thing in less than half an hour.  My 14-year-old son even stated, "I've never seen you clean up Christmas so easily and quickly."  I'm aiming for an abbreviated school schedule this week while we get a little more organized.  Next week, we'll be off and running.  

Happy New Year!  Wishing you an enjoyable start to 2016.  #LifeHappensAtTheTable