When we got to AZ one of my first sight-seeing goals was mission San Xavier del Bac. It has been several years since we have been to a mission site. I believe San Antonio, TX was the last which means it’s been a looooong time.  The morning we drove out to San Xavier was warm and sunny. The mission church exterior is being restored so you will see some tarp on the outside. The inside of the church is ancient and ornate. I love love loved the stenciling over the doorways and on the ceiling (see last pic) and am wondering if I could pull off a bit of same here at the house. Our interior is very mission-esque but we have a heavy texture on the walls. You already know I am going to try this don’t you? ; )

We are reading through several children’s books about the early missionaries. One of the classics is Song of the Swallows which Amazon has for TWO dollars!. My friend Maureen Wittman has  written a unit study to go along with this book. Bless her, she has offered it for free. Some titles that she uses are Never Turn Back: Father Serra’s Mission, and the Dover Missions coloring book. After scouring my bookshelves I found another Leo Politi title, The Mission Bell. It is out of print and NOT two dollars on Amazon so check to see if your library has it.

The 4Real ladies posted this map of CA missions.This link takes you to another free unit on California Missions in art for older students. This one covers Life in a Mission with a printable worksheet. More links: The Missions, CA missions.

Ok we are off to make some mission notebook pages here. Happy Friday. : )

"…..fifty cents a cap!"  Aidan came marching through the kitchen announcing same and looking like this. I guess this is Caps For Sale: The Starry Sky version ; D   I love children’s books. Even more, I love it when I hear one of my kids allude to a book we have read. Even more than that I love that all the children in the room, from 2 to 16, knew exactly which book he was referencing. <g>  We have had all sorts of Story Stretcher type of curriculums but most often we just read the books.  Occasionally we will wander off down a rabbit trail inspired by the book. Other times we will just smile knowing that our family has a whole collection of inside jokes, silly allusions, and quirky quotes born of the books we have enjoyed together.

Speaking of funny book stories, I was rolling over an unlikely favorite new title this weekend. I usually grab an alphabet book at the library. They are wonderful for letter reinforcement and usually serve as a dictionary of sorts for whatever theme they are based upon. The Beetle Alphabet book is a visual treat. The best part is the dry humor woven into the explanations. If you get a hold of it, do check out the dedication page. It took me a second to figure it out but I was chuckling once I did. The author/illustrator info is equally wry. ; )

This set me off to locate more Pallatta books:

Hershey’s Fractions looks particularly promising lol! To whomever wrote the tirade review, I can only say get over yourself. ; ) Who doesn’t like chocolate?? ‘Course its possible having given up sweets for lent is clouding my judgement. That may be why I reserved the Hershey Kiss weights and measures title too….

The Construction Alphabet Book  ah well, you get the idea.  Surf around his titles. If you have to read the books 5 or 20 times, as my little people request that we do, it helps if they keep you grinning.

I ran across this old time radio link online the other day. Found out there are more where this came from too.(below)  We listened to a show or two and had such fun. I tend to live a black and white, vintage-y kind of life anyway.  Ok, except for the computer part lol! Growing up as a latchkey kid I watched way more television than any human being ought to.  My favorite shows were always the old reruns and the classic channel, which btw was also the only channel besides the three networks and PBS.  I know, it’s hard to believe,my 20-something friends who cut your teeth on cable. ; D   But truly we had just that. On a black and white portable set to boot.  Thanks to this beginning I was well versed in Charlie Chan, Japanese monster movies, the original Mickey Mouse Club, Ma and Pa Kettle, and Blondie (the comics spin off movies not the rocker).  These online stations really take me back.

Should you have a hankering for old time entertainment check the links out! 

radiolovers

rusc

yesterdayusa

Coming on the heels of St Valentine’s day last week our reading yesterday came from 1Corinthians. It reminded me of a wonderful essay written by Carole Thaxton of Konos:

I Corinthians 13 for Home Schooling Moms and Dads

By Carole Thaxton, co-author of KONOS Character Curriculum

Though I teach with the very best skills,
But do not have love,
I am just drawing attention to myself.
And if I have experience, and knowledge of all the best techniques, And test results proving my effectiveness, But do not have love, I am wasting my time. And if I work hard, sacrificing all my money, my time, and my energy But do not have love, It adds up to nothing.

The loving teacher is patient with her children, allowing them to learn according to their God-given temperaments and developmental rates. She is kind, treating her children respectfully. She does not compare herself with others. She does not brag about her accomplishments, and is not smug about teaching her own children. She does not try to be like anyone else, but acts appropriate to the way God made her. She is not irritable and pushy and insistent upon making her children fit into her lesson plans. She is more concerned with promoting truth and beauty than with criticizing those who do not. She perseveres in developing her own character, believing that God’s ways are always best. She is not a quitter.

Love never fails.
If there are creative ideas, they will be replaced.
If there are great curricula, they will be superseded.
If there are effective techniques, they will be improved.
All that we know now is only a part.
Only later will God reveal education at its best.
When I was a child, I had unrealistic expectations.
As an adult, I know better.

Now abideth faith, hope, and love, these three;
But the greatest of these is love.

Copyright – KONOS, Inc. 1989, 1999

There are some online teacher training program beginning shortly for those who have a heart for hands-on learning but could use a bit of inspiration and guidance along the way. First, the Montessori album class will be starting up again on March 1st. Karen shares 3 pages from her albums each week along with explanations. Cost is $10/mo or $30 for the quarter I believe. 

Next, and this is short notice, Jessica Hulcy begins the next virtual Konos co-op on Monday. Cost is $30/mo for a semester long program. She gives detailed plans, assignments, and teaching tips along with suggestions for field trips and book lists.  There is a yahoo group called Catholics Using Konos for those who want to adapt the program.

The online Montessori games have been unearthed once more!  Our-Montessori had been defunct but the good ladies at playschool6 (yahoo group) found a new link. You can try your hands at many traditional Montessori manipulatives in this interactive format. Free!

The girls have been keeping lovely science notebooks this year. Alannah is drawing heavily from another new book of ours, Everything You Need to Know About Science Homework.  It is a companion to the geography book we use and just as helpful. These books are heavy on graphics and short on text which is perfect for very visual folks like us. They make for awesome copywork sources. Alannah recreates the diagrams and drawings on our portfolio pages and then narrates or copies the explanatory text into the text box areas. The result has been lots of learning and an expanding keepsake notebook.

Ok I promised to share our latest finds so here goes.  Before Colin went back to school he had a dental appt. In typical fashion for our family we got there at the wrong time. In Atypical family fashion we were actually early lol! With an hour to kill we ran over to the Christian homeschool/book/gift/you name it store. Colin waded through posters and tee’s and I dove into the school books. I got hooked on these Evan-Moor Take it to Your Seat Centers.  WOW! 

Some background is in order. I have been moving towards a more Montessori approach for my elementary kids but materials have been a challenge. There are lots of make it yourself sites for preschool and early elementary materials – mostly math and language. I drooled over the Albanesi card sets but they really would break the bank. Still I liked the independent learning and the command card format.  Enter the Evan Moor bks!

The first book I bought was the Geography Centers for grades 4-5 for  Moira. We found that some of the games were plenty challenging for Alannah (12) however. They are like file folder games grown up and then some. Each center in this book is stored in a file folder. The full color graphics are ready to go. (no coloring!) There is one to be glued to the front of the folder. The Student Directions go on the back cover.  In the inside right pocket got the task cards, maps, self checking answer keys, and other learning materials. Reproducible record sheets (ie the worksheets) and writing paper where necessary go in the left pocket. The cards and record sheets for the twelve centers included are all in different formats so there is plenty of variety. At this level students cover the 50 states, a world puzzle and mystery country game, learn the countries and characteristics of North America, globe work,parts and kinds of maps, and landforms and bodies of water. (hello! Montessori!)

We are having a lot of fun with this and look fwd to collecting the rest of the series.  This won’t happen overnight however. There are books for six subject areas and six grade levels. I will let you know what we think as we get more books!

Pleasant View Schoolhouse quoted this exerpt from the Homemaker’s Encyclopedia today:

Kristin just linked me to the Hands of a Child freebie for this term – What is Snow? This is a limited time freebie so if you visit this link at some point down the road it may no longer be available.  For those of you who haven’t yet tried a HOAC lapbook unit you are in for a treat. This project pack is 45 pages long with experiments, history, and predesigned minit books and graphics for your lapbook. You just cut and paste!  Great way to try your hand at a lapbook.  Thanks Kristin!