Highlights of the Week

We've done a lot this week outside of the house, with friends and by ourselves. That's one of the things I enjoy most about learning at home--we are fully in control of our schedule.  Here are the highlights of this week through pictures.

Monday -- Homeschool Co-Op

Tuesday -- Impromptu bowling & rock climbing

Wednesday -- Library Time

Thursday -- Hike w/Homeschool Friends

Looking forward to some new adventures next week.

Be well.

Adventure & Book-Making

Hard to get everyone in the selfie.
But we're all smiles.

Another homeschooling friend shared with me information on a book-making workshop at a 'not-so-local' library.  When I made reservations for my children, I thought that I'd have a way to get there. The closer we got to the date, I soon realized that I would not have our vehicle (DH being out of town and all) but I didn't want to miss it.  So, I decided that we would use our local public transportation. That's what it's there for, right?

Adventure:

Now, we have taken the train/light rail--to major events that take place downtown (avoiding parking fees and traffic before/after the event).  But we have never used the bus system.  Today we did. We made it to the library after taking two trains and one bus.  There wasn't too much walking on either side of things.  We made it in pretty good time as well--this is what impressed me the most.

A quick side note: I share a lot in my homeschooling community about modeling what we want our children to learn.  Part of me preparing my children to be independent is showing them how to get around town.  Today was an effort toward that specific goal and I have to say I'm rather proud of it. They each are different people and can often times be nervous about new experiences (in their own ways).  I was happy to see that each of them embraced this new experience very well.

The children learned several important lessons on our travels.  The most important was about reading signs and paying attention.  We talked about what to do if we were separated.  They also got to view the roads we normally take by car from a different perspective.  I think we all have a better appreciation for our public transportation options now that we've used them.  I must admit that I am eager to go more places now using this option.

Book-Making:

Amy, from Blue Sky Papers Book Binding, hosted a hands-on workshop in book-making.  I had only signed up two of my three, but not as many people attended as expected and so there were enough supplies for my sweetie-pie and I to join in too.

We learned a lot and all got excited about book-making.  The boy has a host of books that we've already written and made.  I was thrilled that she taught us a way to make books that we've never done before.  This widens our book-making repertoire. Here are some shots from our time in the workshop.

Amy giving us a guide for how large our
stack of paper should be.

Deciding the order of pages and stacking them.

Lining things up and clipping pages for binding.

Gluing pages together.

Making book covers; scoring the folds.

As pages dry designing book covers.

Completed book--still bound and clipped
so it can dry evenly.

My book--clipped so it can dry properly.

Once it was over we went into the library.  We couldn't pass up library time in a 'new-to-us' branch. Although it was smaller than our neighborhood library, there were a couple things I really liked. They have window seats with comfy pillows and room for several people to comfortably sit and read. They librarians were friendly--always a plus!!

Browsing the shelves.

One of the three window seats in the children's
section. (The only one without pillows.)

At this point, our books are still trying but I will add a photo of the final products once they're finished.

And now, we're finally home, after a short walk, a bus ride, two train rides, and walking a few more blocks.  With all the excitement of today, I'm tired.  Looking forward to sharing our new knowledge with our friends.

What things did you get into today?  Any new adventures?  Any new skills?  I'd love to hear about them--so comment below.

Happy Life Learning!



UPDATE: 11/9/14
Here are our completed books:

Game Day :: Library Day

We hosted a game day/support gathering for our home school group today at our library.  It was like two days wrapped into one!  I only took pics at the beginning, as once we got engaged in playing/talking I forgot to get more. lol

It was nice to watch the children playing and learning some new games.  And it's always refreshing to have some positive adult interaction!!

After we finished up with our friends, we took our library time, as Tuesdays are reserved for checking out books and reading IN the library.  Here are a few shots of where you'll find us:

Tuesday :: Library Day

Tuesdays have become our official library day.  I think it used to be Mondays, but since our long move/transition Tuesdays have become the day.  There is usually a storytime scheduled, but we have only attended one since being back the West End.  We're waiting for another Children's Librarian to come.  Our favorite librarian is now at another branch, which is not close, so we only make that trek once or twice a month.

We're doing a lot more.  Reading, searching for a particular book or subject.  The boy tickles me with his lists of books he's looking for.  He's watched me well, I see, and scribbles things down on a piece of paper and then 'reads' the list he's made for himself to me.  Last week his list consisted of books on:

1. Pirates
2. Dragons
3. Robots
4. Skeleton (human body)

I was thankful that our local branch had at least one book on each topic for him to check out.  He was thrilled.  Today it was more books about dinosaurs.

As Pretty Girl strengthens her reading muscles, I decided to direct your searching as well.  Normally I allow her to choose exactly what she'd like to read or would like to hear.  Today I started her on researching.  We're studying the animal kingdom in science, starting with mammals.  She was to pick a mammal to write a report on and create a presentation for.  She chose bears.  I showed her how to look through books to get an idea about what information they give and what sort of information she would need to write a report.  We discussed the difference between fiction and non-fiction (again) and this activity of looking for books assisted in her understanding.  I'll have to share more about her project in another post.

We were pleasantly surprised to see how our little neighborhood library has evolved since we've been away.  In the children's section they now have a special carpeted corner with books in crates, puzzles and a few games for younger children to do on their own.  Sweetie-pie enjoyed putting puzzles together and sitting in the bean bag looking through books by herself.

I was able to get a little 'work' done on the computer, pick out some books for myself and make some plans for our homeschool group to utilize the library again. 

Next week, I'll remember to take my camera and get a few shots of our library. It's a cozy little place with great librarians.  We always look forward to our Tuesdays!

Last Friday

Last Friday we attended a special storytime at the library.  Mr. McFeely from Mister Roger's Neighborhood came to share some stories, puppets and wholesome fun.  I was thrilled to be in the right place at the right time to meet him and enjoy some library time.  Here are a few shots from our experience.

Introductions

Mr. McFeely with a Speedy Delivery!

Touching Puppet Daniel Tiger



Singing



The Boy was the first volunteer to sing (alone) next to King Friday XIII



Sweetie Pie ending the round of singing



Those in attendance



Signing his photo



My Crew with Mr. McFeely

For those of you who may be interested.  You can go to this site to view 40 complete episodes of Mister Roger's Neighborhood.  The public broadcasting stations where we've been have stopped showing the program so I'm glad to know that we can still view them online.

The Library

I love books! My children love books! (very thankful for this...I've been working hard so that they would!)  So, today we took a trip to another library.  We went to 'our' library on Tuesday afternoon and got two bags full of books.  Ok. So they're overflowing! lol.

The libraries where we're living now are called community libraries, and for good reason.  All though these libraries belong to a system (by county) each library is unique to the neighborhood/town that it's in.  The library where we went today is one of the 'flagship' libraries (in a very affluent community).

We met our friends for some library fun!  Not only is the children's section well stocked with books, books on tape and CD, videos, DVDs, Leap Frog books & cartridges, computer games, etc. they also have puzzles, puppets & theater, and a Lego table making going to this library an actual playdate! (smile)  I know it's the community's way of making their library a fun and welcoming place.  I think it's great!  We certainly enjoyed ourselves.

While there, I did pick up several books on tape & CD so we can continue listening to stories as we ride in the car.  It really does make running errands a breeze!  No more complaining!  Well, except for the request for "another story!"

What do you enjoy about your library? How are you getting your children excited about books (and ultimately reading)?  I'm listening.... ;D