Living With Live Wires

This morning I went to the computer to check email, the temperature reading for outside temps read -22 degrees! The arctic weather continues!

Earlier this week we completed some very intense science and math lessons that really strechted their thinking.  Yesterday, they had time for creative learning projects (reference back to entry).  So, today Sean and Sophie did an independent study day. This is a day, or part of a day when they make a list of the assignments they need to complete and any projects they want to work include. Some reading assignments and lessons need to be completed individually, some need to be done together, and there a few they can choose whether to work together or not.

This morning was peaceful and they worked very well on their own. They completed reading for chemistry(Real Science 4 Kids) to prep for experiments, and language (Sentence Island). They reviewed their memorized poems and are currently memorizing all the prepositions (Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind-level 3). They completed spelling lessons (Spelling Workout), lessons and tests on CyberEd, and practiced their keyboarding (Typing Instructor). As I was preparing lunch, they acted out the stories they wrote yesterday about their lentil wilderness.

At lunch we had a few problems. I spilled a glass of water on the counter and we had to rush to rescue pictures, papers, a camera, and various other things that we didn’t want wet. They had to eat their lunch in a very small area of the table because our projects have taken over our space. Food was spilling on the floor attracting the cats and dog. They were getting a feast. Then, after I set them up for afternoon activities, I came upstairs to see the cats taking over the lentil boxes. After all, they are cat litter boxes with litter-looking lentils inside. I feared the worst, but realized they were just playing with the lentils, the paper props and eating a few lentils as a snack. I hope dried lentils will pass right through the cats!! Maybe good for a little fiber? Just more homeschool adventures in the midst of “creative clutter.”

The afternoon activities included the Great States Game for geography. They really enjoy playing that game. They wanted to do more keyboarding. We have had good luck with this software. It is very appealing to kids because of the games. I don’t mind these games because they are all typing and it really challenges them to increase their speed. I allow them to work on keyboarding as much as they want as long as they get their assignments done.  They completed their math assignments, conducted science experiments that gave them practice in scientific measurement (The Young Scientist Series). They planted their seeds to plot their growth and measured melting ice towers. They recorded results on charts and graphs.

Lentil science is on the afternoon schedule again since we have all the materials out. Right now, this is one thing we are doing that is at grade level. The activities are engaging and fun for them and they get practice in following directions, organizing themselves and taking responsibility for the entire project. Today they made a new landscape (adding a lot of their own Lego characters), hid treasure, made maps and wrote directions for others to find the treasure. This simple exercise has turned into an adventure against the perils of skeletons, aliens, and monsters who have created traps and secret codes.  I liked this activity because it provided more opportunity for them to integrate creativity into their learning activities; creating stories, writing, spelling, map-making and giving directions. They were free to make the exercise as hard and creative as they wanted. They extended their “lentil worlds” into several boxes and made more elaborate worlds. Writing came easier because they were inspired by their own creativity. The cats watched very closely and tried to become part of the lentil world to our dismay. Looks like the lentils will need to be stored in containers tonight.

After all their projects, experiments, lessons and reading they still had the chance to get in several hours of imaginary play. They dressed up as warrior knights and played with stuffed animals and legos. Today made me think about the luxury of time you experience in home school.  You can get the lessons done, design creative projects,  and still have plenty of play time. And, I also thought about the huge range of activities my 2nd -grade aged gifted kids have shifted between this week (and sometimes within the day); dress-up, playing with stuffed animals, and creating lentil worlds to 4th – 6th grade math, science and language.

Their reward for a big day of work is an episode of Gilmore Girls, our favorite Net Flix Pic right now.

We may be stuck inside today, but we still have fudge and Gilmore Girls!!

Today we were supposed to go into the cities to the Minneapolis Institute of Art to have a tour lead by their art teacher. But, the trip was canceled. An Alberta Clipper has been immobilizing most of the U.S. It was 20 degrees below zero and roads had black ice . Tony broke his all-time record for longest commute time yesterday with 3.5 hours on the way to work and 2.25 hours on the way home. His commute takes 45 minutes in good weather without traffic jams. The arctic cold is really taking it out of us. We have had several weeks now of 0 and below zero temps since the beginning of December. Where is that global warming when you need it?

We started our day slowly with our usual chores and breakfast. Sean and Sophie finished up some math assignments and were very happy to complete another math book. They both did a happy dance.

Today I decided to get motivated to do some of the lessons and projects that have been repeatedly put off due to our busy schedule and illness during the last few months. We started a geography program last year that they like, and it is finally time to get back into it. It is called Geography Matters. (do a review of this and have links to the website) We only made it through the units covering, the world and North America lessons last year.  I added a lot of supplemental materials to make more comprehensive and interdisciplinary lessons. We supplemented with Earth science units and U.S. History and cultural studies covering Canada, United States and Mexico. Today we reviewed the work that we did last year to get ready to continue with new units. Our Discovery Education United Streaming subscription is now over, so I signed up for a 30 day trial of United Streaming Plus, Discovery Science for Elementary School and Discovery Science for Middle School. This will help get us started before we have to pay for an entire year subscription. They watched videos about different kinds of maps and how they can be used. It was a helpful review to begin thinking about geography again. They also watched the Magic School Bus goes Cellular for a fun video to support our cellular biology lessons from yesterday.

Lunch and playtime were spent making fudge and preparing for our afternoon activities. I have wanted to do more with our TOPS lentil science books. The experiments are easy, but I usually find that they are very engaging and fun for the kids.  I found one experiment that will combine the subjects we are studying today. It is creative and active, so Sean and Sophie will love it. The experiments in lentil science are done in job boxes. This is cardboard boxes to hold the lentils.  We use (clean, never used, of course) cat litter pans. The exercise involves a review of landforms, creating landscapes and townscapes, drawing a map of their worlds, writing out directions to their map, telling imaginative stories about what happens in their lentil worlds, and writing the story.

We managed to do a little science, art, creative storytelling, mapping, spelling and writing in one afternoon activity. They enjoyed the entire activity including the writing assignment because they were able to write about something meaningful to them – their world that they created. We also prepared for experiments tomorrow by planting wheat and bean seeds and getting everything ready for chemistry experiments.

The tastiest part – we had fudge for a snack! A very special treat. Sean and Sophie kept asking what fudge was because they had never had any.  We talked about the differences between how various candies and cakes are are made. I shared with them the stories of my Mom making fudge at Christmas time when I was young. All the Christmas candy was stored in a breezeway where my nephew and I spent time sneaking candy before Christmas dinner.

Cooking and preparing projects and experiments can take a lot of time, but the payoffs are REALLY worth it!

We have always had well-behaved children who listen to me, in most cases.

I remember orderly, usually quiet classrooms growing up, where the kids sat in their desks and did their assignments – at least in most cases, that was my memory.

So I wondered, why was I witnessing more and more crazy behaviors?

They were always talking about other things, doing other things, getting stressed out from having to sit still and go through lessons.

They never sat still in their chairs – my choice of chairs made it worse because they constantly tipped on them, fell over backwards and stood on them, and they preferred to balance on two of the chair legs more than sitting in them correctly. We now have a term for this at our house- it is called “Monkey Time.”

I bought wonderful math manipulatives that only served as building toys and great distractions to our learning- I called them distractions, they called it great fun.

They both preferred to ask numerous questions and they wanted to do their own projects more than the lessons I chose.

Certain things were very easy for them, and other things, like reading directions were not.  I didn’t think we would ever get anything done.

But, of course we did, just not in the way I planned.

[excerpt from my Minnesota Council for the Gifted and Talented State Conference presentation: Don't Fence Me In - Mastery, Creativity, and Adventure in the Home Education of Bright Children]

Over the next several posts, I will present our experiences of discovering the joys, struggles, confusion, and thrills of educating our children.  Our story is not unique, but one among many families seeking the best education program for their children.

The beginning of our educational journey with our children began when they turned five.  I decided to chose a few workbooks to complete for reading and math. I wanted to see what level they were at since we were beginning to look at schools. 

But a month later, they were done with them. So I chose a some that were more difficult.  They thought they exercises were fun because they were so easy.

Two months later they were done with the next grade level of materials. It was still not time for them to begin their Kindergarten year, and I was struggling to find appropriate materials at the 2nd grade level for them. The schools we visited in our small town just weren’t an option. I realized my children were not going to spend their Kindergarten year learning to glue, color, cut and count.

So I began the GREATEST research project of my life. This was an intense journey, sometimes overwhelming and yet exhilarating in search of the best methods and curriculum to use; activities, programs, and events available; and finding answers to many of life’s burning questions as one homeschools bright kids.

The first year was tiring, confusing, basically a big trial and error experiment – but that was my experience. My children, on the other hand, spent most of their days in playful imaginary bliss, except for those moments when I tried to get them to sit still and do their learning.

Most days were fine and we had a great time, but increasingly, more days became frustrating for my son, who didn’t like to sit still and focus, and subsequently, my daughter began getting headaches from his tantrums. And, so did I.

I just couldn’t understand why such a simple lessons in reading and math could cause such upheaval and emotional episodes. We weren’t doing anything that seemed difficult , nor was I pushing them to get through material. I simply attempted to establish a routine for doing some lessons for part of our mornings. Why was learning causing so much distress?

[excerpt from my Minnesota Council for the Gifted and Talented State Conference presentation: Don't Fence Me In - Mastery, Creativity, and Adventure in the Home Education of Bright Children]

Sometimes, whether we want it to or not, raising bright kids can completely challenge and change everything we have been conditioned to think about how people learn, what is involved in a good education, and how to raise children prepared for their future.

During the process of educating gifted children one can gain insights about oneself, how we were raised, and how society and our culture pressures us to think, feel, and act. Sometimes we get stuck in the path of mediocrity and buy into society’s expectations without even knowing we are doing it. We listen to others, become compliant and get brainwashed without even giving our informed consent.

We are constantly being told that our kids need to be made into the image society expects. But as many of us have learned, we have to find the courage to find our own path and define for ourselves what will be best for our children.

This becomes a tremendous task of research, study, experimentation and reflection. When our children have special needs that require us to customize their education, the task becomes daunting.

But, this is the path that we have chosen. And, we will continue to persevere, experimenting and reflecting on what to do at each stage.

And, in this process, we change, grow and evolve into more thoughtful, insightful, and hopefully, more compassionate parents. Our families are irrevocably changed and we have a chance to question the beliefs, traditions and social pressures that impact our lives each day. We have the chance to question their validity in our own lives and to create a way of life that is of our own choosing; to live more consciously in the way our hearts and minds lead us.

We have amazing children who have arrived in our lives. And, as we help them, they help us break out of our mold of habitual thinking. They are set on following their own path and in the process they will teach us to do the same.

[excerpt from my Minnesota Council for the Gifted and Talented State Conference presentation: Don't Fence Me In - Mastery, Creativity, and Adventure in the Home Education of Bright Children]