Cranberry Thanksgiving

Cranberry Thanksgiving is one of our all time favorite books.  I don't know if it is because it was one of the first successful unit studies our family did , if it is because of the yummie treat the reading of the story always demands or if it is just the signaling of the changing seasons we enjoy most.  Whatever it is, this story is here to stay and a family classic in our home.

This season I decided to share the story with our homeschool co-op class.  This class was for k and 1st graders.  We started out by identifying the New England States on our maps and coloring them.  I used a printable from Homeschool Shares Unit Study found here.

Then we watched a video from You Tube of the cranberry harvest:

From Bog to Table

I think the children really love seeing all the equipment used to bring cranberries to our table.

After all the background information it was time to read out story:

And of course, we followed it with a tasting of Cranberry Bread:

Here is a good recipe to try from Ocean Spray. I don't have a picture of it but we also cut the berries in half and used them to stamp a decorative border on a copy of the recipe to take home and try.  I really loved how the stamping turned out and gave so much detail of the berry's insides.

After our snack and a bit of play we strung cranberries and popcorn to take home and hang on a tree or bush to feed the birds, chipmunks and squirrels.

That's it.  A quick study for Thanksgiving.  Thanks for stopping by and I am linking up with Montessori Monday.

Spring Math Work

Hello, thanks for stopping to visit our little neck of the woods.  We have been busy enjoying spring and our unseasonably warm weather.  Here is a look at a bit of what all the children have been working on during math lessons

This is the Montessori Peg Board.  E and A were working on factoring numbers up to 30.  This picture is of A but I had really pulled this work out for E but when he saw the board A wanted in on the action.

K is working with the small bead frame making numbers, adding and subtracting.

Here K is working on her money counting skills using a file folder game.  She can do this folder completely by herself, I so underestimated her abilities.

Here A is practicing measuring skills using a ruler as he follows directions to build a house. This activity is from the book Shoebox Math.  This simple activity based book I have returned to over and over again for each of the children.

Quadrilateral sort for geometry.

B is working on counting from 1-10.  On this day we were using number tiles from the game Rummikub and old marker caps.



 We have faithfully stuck with our math rotation this school year and I am so happy with our progress.  We had 3 focus areas for math: geometry, fractions and operations.  I picked a focus area each month rotating between the 3 subjects and it has worked wonderfully.  We are currently working on geometry focusing on lines, triangles and circles.  Study Jams has been so great to add some video learning to our lessons when  
introducing or reviewing a concept.

I came across these funsheet books on Teachers Pay Teachers that may be helpful for fall or summer review.
Mastering Math Facts: Multiplication and Division
Polygon Explorations
Geometry: Exploring Basics

It is Montessori Monday and I am Linking up.

Playdough in 5 Minutes

Our playdough spontenaity all started with this coupon that the little ladies clipped from the paper

 and ended with this oh so cute cake creation from the Play Doh Cake Makin Station.

If you have been reading here for awhile you know we like play dough.  Some mom's don't because of the teeny tiny bits that are hard to clean up but give a child a hand vac and it is no problem.

We have several Play Doh sets like the one above and the latest set to join the ranks is the Candy Cyclone, seen below.  The children love the Cyclone because it makes Play Doh gumballs.

Well seeing as how the children had a Play Doh coupon and how I was not going to drive 45 minutes to the nearest Target, we made our own.  Our recipe comes from this book:

The Busy Book is a long forgotten gem in our household but when it comes to DIY playdough it is what I reach for every time.  Here is our favorite recipe from the book and it really does take 5 minutes.  The littles love to play with the final product and the older children love to work the stove and mix the ingredients.

Combine in a saucepan and heat until warm:
1 cup water
1 TBS. vegetable oil
1/2 cup salt
1 TBS. cream of tartar
food coloring

Remove from the heat and stir in:
1 cup flour

Dump out the dough and knead until smooth.

See it is a very simple and quick recipe.

Now have fun with one of the sets I mentioned above or strike out on your own and make something like this:

Isn't that a cute face to start the week with?

I'm linking up with Living Montessori Now.

Saturdays & Free Time

I always feel so bad that our younger children do not receive as much creative arts time as our older children did in their primary years.  Well I figured out how to add it in---Saturdays.  Saturday is the perfect day for  us to enjoy some creative time that is not available during the week.  Now, I know Saturdays are a day off so to speak, not another day of education, and I whole heartedley agree.  I just keep a mental (and sometimes on paper) list of quick creative activities that might engage the children.  So I thought I would share a few of their recent endeavors:

K painting a flower.  I picked up several small wooden shapes for the children to paint at Michael's, I think they were $.25 each.  These shapes were stocking stuffers but would also be great for Easter hunts or baskets.

Sensory play with shaving cream.  I think next time I will add a bit of food coloring for some color mixing fun.  I can hear B's excitement now.

This was an idea I saw last summer on Pinterest.  It is baking soda on a sheet pan then a dropper is used to drop vinegar mixed with food coloring.  Fun.

Painting with watercolors.

More watercolors.



Picture book reading is also another wonderful Saturday activity to pull out.  The younger set also have been read to far less than our older children.  Saturday reading makes me stop my tasks and focus on time with my children to enjoy quiet moments of togetherness.  You can see below that I like to mix our reading up with some classics, some seasonal stories and some stories in areas of interests, trains for example.

 All of the above activities were things I suggested when the children came to me needing something to do.  Now here is a look at the creative things they come up with on there own during free time.

I know it is winter around here when our stairs become cluttered with race track and cars.  This track is a darda track that we have loved to death.  The cars are long since broken but it is still a great create your own set with lots of options and fun. And yes that is a giant pile of cars at the bottom of the stairs, many we have bought and many more have been passed down to us from friends and family.

Playdough! Here you see the playdough cake set and candy shop.

Perler beads.

And somedays even if it is cold we go and enjoy our neighborhood school and play for awhile.

If you need some activity ideas check out our Kid Crafts and Concoctions board on pinterest. Also the blog Let's Explore has a monthly play list that I keep in my planner to stimulate ideas.

What do your children do with their at home free time and weekends?

It's Montessori Monday, go have a look!

Preschool Update

Good day everyone!  Thank-you for stopping by to see what we are up to.  I hope that your visit here will be both inspiring and encouraging in your education journey.
I was given a copy of the book The Resolution for Women at Christmas.  The book is a spin off of the resolution that the men signed in the movie Courageous but written specifically to women.  There is a quote that I read from the book 2 weeks ago that I wanted to share with all of you because I keep coming back to it frequently.  It is:  "with new resolve I started scraping up everything I could salvage, not wanting to leave behind any part of this delicious experience...Promising never again to miss anything in my life."  In this passage the author is drawing a picture of "licking your plate clean" and that is what I want to do with each day I spend with my children and husband.  I want to lick the plate clean and not miss one single drop of this sweet life. That is one of the reasons we chose day in day out to raise our children wholely and completely at home.
I have been enjoying some great times with our resident preschooler, he is just ripe for learning numbers and letters.  Last year at this time B wanted very little to do with numbers and letters and was solely focused on practical life work, it is fun to move forward and see his excitement.

Learning His ABC's
Who knew an alphabet puzzle could be so interesting and multifaceted.  First we matched letter rocks to the letters on the puzzle.  B knew a lot more than I expected, it was a delightful surprise.

Then B dumped out all of the letter pieces and matched them up to their spots. I was amazed by his sustained attention span.

Then he sung (it had to be by himself, without my help) the ABC song and pointed to the corresponding letters.  Simple activities but so much fun for a preschooler.  I think he even impressed himself with what he knew.

B also loves this letter matching set from Parents.  Last year we worked with this a lot but his attention span is so much longer so he can complete a lot more cards at one time.

Learning Numbers & Counting
This boy is in a counting sensitive period.  He counts and counts whatever he can find.  Here are a few things we have been working on to reinforce his interest:

Matching numbers and bead bars.

 Counting cards to match numbers and items.

Matching number tiles and number cards. I think these are from Confessions of a Homeschooler.

More Fun
B has been a bit puzzle crazed of late.

Melissa and Doug Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles in a Box

The World of Cars 24 piece puzzle

Sorting winter and non-winter items.

Playing Sequence for Kids. (My he looks shaggy.)

Working on fine motor skills with locks and keys.

It's Monday so I'm linking up at Living Montessori Now.

A Quick Look at Preschool

It has been awhile since I have reviewed what the children have been working on, so today I will show you what B has been enjoying.  B just turned 4.

B can count all the way to 13 before getting confused but is still working on one to one correspondence.

He is loving Automoblox.

There is no end to the fun of these automobile 3 piece puzzle cards.  I got them years ago at the Dollar Tree.

Working with a stencil.

A bit of play.........

Fall has been absolutely beautiful, so there has been a lot of outdoor time.....

Swinging--he can almost pump himself.

Down by the river, throwing rocks.

Sliding--we visited a new park and all the children had fun and played non-stop.

Today is Montessori Monday and I'm linking up.

Practical Life--Cake Decorating

B recently turned 4 and Birthday cakes are a big part of the celebration here at The Middle of Somewhere. 

It always seems that the birthday child has a fantasy cake in mind that I am to reproduce from their brain to the plate.  I use to make the cake in private and keep it all a secret but over time I have started letting the birthday child take part in the cake making and decorating.  So a few afternoons ago when B was complaining that there was "nofing to do," I suggested that he help me make his cake.  This year his main request was that the cake be chocolate with red frosting.  In 10 years of parenting this was my first ever request for a chocolate cake, I know amazing!  Last year green was the demanded icing color, so I can't wait until next year's color of choice.

 I was so glad B helped because him with frosting all of his face was adorable and we found a new practical life activity.

Do you have a cake decorating set of tips and such hiding in the dark corner of a cabinet?

 Well, pull it out and put it on a tray and watch the fine motor practice happen as your little one removes, explores and puts back the tips or twists and turns the couplers.

 So much fun and interest was right under our noses and I didn't even know it.

Today is Montessori Monday, stop over for a visit to see more Montessori in action.