CT Homeschoolers Conventions

There are 2 notable and local homeschooling conventions coming up...

TEACH 2010 Convention (early registration ends June 4th, save $10)
Friday & Saturday, June 11 & 12, 2010
First Cathedral
1151 Blue Hills Avenue
Bloomfield, CT

TEACH also is having its 2nd Annual Used Curriculum Sale in Waterbury
Saturday, April 17, 2010
10a-1p
Waterbury Christian Fellowship
1 Dube Lane
Waterbury, CT

MASSHope 2010 Convention (early registration ends April 1st, save $10)
Friday & Saturday, April 23 & 24, 2010
The DCU Center
Worcester, MA
View the convention brochure
This is one of the largest conventions in our area. You have your choice among 5 or 6 workshops for each session. There are about 5 sessions each day, as well as a lunch session and general session. There are also separate sessions for teens. Ages 5-13 may also partake in a Children's Program.

Classical Conversations Groton/Mystic CT

Today in Hamden, we enjoyed a visit from Leigh Bortins, founder of Classical Conversations. She reviewed the trivium of the Classical model for Education and founding principles behind the CC curriculum.

Leigh has a weekly internet radio show called Leigh! At Lunch. You can access previous shows at her blog 1 Smart Mama. Also, her newest book "The Core", published by MacMillan, is geared toward a secular audience. It will be available for sale on Amazon.com in June. With this release, the CC community hope to make it a best seller by purchasing during the first week of its availability.

Additionally, we received her self-published book for being the ones who traveled the farthest at 1hr and 10 minutes. "Echo in Celebration: A Call to Home-Centered Education" sends "forth a call to anyone who loves children to consider the challenges of academically preparing sturdents during the age of global technologies... to teach children to echo in celebration the wonder of great thoughts well understood". The book "challenges parents to believe that they are created to competently pass on the love of learning aboutl life to their children"

I also met a family from East Hampton CT who were eager to here that I am opening a CC Chapter in Groton/Mystic for Fall 2012. Actually, they are praying that I open it this fall!

Our first year at CC Hamden (and first year homeschooling in general) has been an enjoyable learning experience. I've observed what it takes to smoothly manage a CC chapter, to tutor (I filled in as a Substitute Tutor), and to teach the curriculum to Rilla. Although I am eager to open a CC chapter in Groton/Mystic, I am planning to become an office Tutor while Rilla continues in her 2nd year and Max enrolls in his first year at the CC Hamden chapter. With that, it makes the most sense that I spend my third year increasing my responsibilities as a Director to Classical Conversations in Groton/Mystic for Fall 2012! This seems to me the most natural evolution of our journey. But what do I know? He may have other plans for me...

Edible Books @ Bill Memorial Library

Today we presented our edible creations at the local Bill Memorial Library. Rilla chose "Madeline" by Ludwig Bemelmans and we both brainstormed ways to recreate it in edible form. She suggested building the Eiffel tower as shown on the book. I suggested it be made using a cookie dough. She came up with the peeps for the friends while Sam offered that Madeline be a single Madeleine cookie. Rilla added a bow made with Fruit Roll Up. I remembered having on specific cake pan on hand (Wilton 2105-2861 3D Choo Choo Train). Max agreed that it should be for "The Little Engine That Could" by Watty Piper. For both projects, I did the baking while the kids decorated, for the most part. Here are photos of the just-baked train and Eiffel tower pieces. The 2 faces are on top and 3 side pieces on bottom. I made an extra side piece just in case.



In the end, Rilla's hands hurt after decorating one side of the Eiffel tower with X's using the black icing tube. I finished the other side. Sam and I assembled the tower made of 2 decorated faces and 2 sides to give it a 3D look. Max colored the icing and covered the train blue. I added details. He dyed the coconut green and sprinkled this grass. I made the ascending platform/hill out of cardboard covered with foil. In all, a fun time designing, creating, and eating.

7th Annual Irish Mystic Parade

What a beautiful day for a parade, Mystic's St. Patrick's Day Parade to be specific. Today was sunny and high 60's! It certainly brought out the crowd.

The parade was scheduled to start at 1p near the Mystic Seaport on Greenmanville and wind its way to Main St, finally crossing the drawbridge and ending near the bookstore and Mystic Pizza. We arrived a bit after 1p and grabbed a private spot in my friends driveway (Thanks Em!) just blocks from downtown. Good thing - parking was already overflowing onto Allyn street near the I-95 junction!

High school bands, fire departments, police departments, trucks, motorcycles, go-carts made to look like mini-fire engines and mini-trucks, plenty of bagpipes and pipers, local organizations, civic groups, scouts, and local retailers were represented for about 2.5 hours! The last was the traditional Wells Fargo, horse-drawn wagon bringing up the rear.

If you've never been, it really is a great site to see.

Tercentennial Playground, Groton CT

We love this playground - a variety of climbing playscapes, swings, slides, rubber turf floor, and sand playscape make it a local favorite. It is situated right beside Poquonnock Plains park which has several fields (great for playing ball) and a pebbled track around its circumference.

With our recent run of warm weather, we're finding that it gets pretty busy at noon through 4:30. Here are recent photos that I took early this morning...

When we go the park(s) before school lets out, it has become a habit of mine to scope out children who are Rilla's age, who might be homeschoolers. Funny thing, I think other homeschooling parents have the same habit, too.

One more than 2 occasion, an observing parent has asked Rilla: So, what grade are you in?
Rilla: (looks at me then looks at the parent not really sure what to say)
I jump in: I suppose you can say K/1st Grade. We homeschool (I say apologetically as if they won't understand)
Other Parent: (smiling) We do too! Glad to meet you...
And so begins our conversation of how we started, challenges, rewards, what we've found to work, etc. We are already part of several co-ops and networks, but it continues to be encouraging for me to have these chance encounters. It's like we've each stumbled upon this wonderful secret and delight in sharing our experiences.

Irish Blessings

May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
And the rains fall soft upon your fields,
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

I've started running a measley 20 minutes around Eastern Point beach in the mornings to get my day started. tofor the day. This is much needed as I haven't transitioned well with the time change. And with this blessing, I've gained a newfound appreciation for the phrase... "May the wind be always at your back,..." Nearer to the beach, I'm running with my face to the wind until I make that turn from Beach Club onto Shore Rd. Upon reaching this halfway point and having the wind at my back, it is quite encouraging indeed. Here's to a little Irish spring in your step...

Daylight Savings Time is kicking my...

Today is our usual CC Hamden day when the kids and I are supposed to be out the door by 7:30a. I was in complete slumber until 6:45 when I quickly showered, ate, packed lunches, gathered teaching supplies. The kids had to be woken at 7:15 and we made it out the door 15 minutes late but arrived nearly on time at CC. The traffic was lighter than usual - I guess everyone else was DST challenged, too.

Do we really need to be adjusting our clocks nowadays? Might we take this moment to research the origins of DST and question its effectiveness?

Regarding DST as a benefit to farmers... "The chickens do not adapt to the changed clock until several weeks have gone by, so the first week of April and the last week of October are very frustrating for us.", Canadian poultry producer Marty Notenbomer.

Regarding DST encroaching on our individual liberties: "I don't really care how time is reckoned so long as there is some agreement about it, but I object to being told that I am saving daylight when my reason tells me that I am doing nothing of the kind. I even object to the implication that I am wasting something valuable if I stay in bed after the sun has risen. As an admirer of moonlight I resent the bossy insistence of those who want to reduce my time for enjoying it. At the back of the Daylight Saving scheme I detect the bony, blue-fingered hand of Puritanism, eager to push people into bed earlier, and get them up earlier, to make them healthy, wealthy and wise in spite of themselves." (Robertson Davies, The Diary of Samuel Marchbanks, 1947, XIX, Sunday.)

There are non-participants to DST in the U.S.: "Hawaii and most of Arizona do not follow daylight-savings time. The Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona DOES observe daylight saving time; the rest of Arizona does not. And the territories of Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa do not observe DST. The Eastern Time Zone section of Indiana also does not observe DST."

For me, this tradition seems unnatural and inconvenient. I'd rather do away with it for the sake of simplicity.

Beware...

the Ides of March. We've moved on from our studies of Julius Caesar and Rome in our Story of the World curriculum. These included Chapters 28: The Roman Empire, 29: Rome's War with Carthage, 34: The Rise of Julius Caesar, 35: Caesar the Hero, and 36: The First Roman Prince.

...mile stones, aqueducts, gladiators, Servius, Hannibal, Cincinnatus, "Crossing the Rubicon", Pompeii, "veni, vidi, vici", Cleopatra, Octavian (Augustus), princeps... Again as I teach Rilla, I learn what I was supposed to have learned years ago.

I have few memories of school where I actually learned, or was challenged, or was even given individualized attention. Frankly, I was one of the top students set on auto-pilot (as I'd like to say). In any case, one fond memory that comes to mind is in 9th grade English. We had just finished reciting (we were assigned parts and read) Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar". When we had finished the play, we were asked to choose one of several speeches, memorize it, and recite it to our class with fervor and emotion. After much struggle and work, I completely memorized Antony's dialogue to citizens after Caesar's death ... "Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones;..." With much difficulty (as oration isn't a big part of the public school system philosphy), hard work, and intensity, I was able to complete the assignment with a great feeling of satisfaction. The exercise also brought me closer to being comfortable with public speaking.

It is the consistent practice of memorization, class presentations, public speaking, oral narration, and (in later grades) debate that I value the classical model of education. And that is why we currently use the Classical Conversations curriculum.

Lights Out, Daylight Savings Time

Yesterday, we lost an hour to Daylight Savings Time. The time change occurs around 2a.m., but for ease we usually take care of it before going to bed. To make matters complicated, our area had a severe wind/rain storm and our power was out for about an hour and a half after having dinner. It had been a while since we had an outage that lasted for more than a flicker, so I gathered our candles, holders, flashlights, and radio. Fortunately, we have city water and were able to put the kids to bed after baths. Sam did dishes while we listened to a radio station that played swing music from its original LP recording. Dim lights, retro radio, and general quietness, made for a lovely and relaxed evening. We even joked that this was something we should do more often! Alas to our slight disappointment, the power resumed (good thing was the only way to identify which lights were left "on"), and it was time for bed...

Edible Books Festival at Bill Memorial Library

Entry forms were due today for the Edible Books festival. This year, Rilla, Max and I are entering 2 creations inspired by the books Madeline Lost in Paris and The Little Engine that Could. I visited a few sites (Books2Eat, Austin TX Edible Books, Univ. of Illinois Edible Books) for ideas but ultimately asked the kids for their suggestions. One was Rilla's choice and the other was my idea, because I have a Wilton train pan. Max enthusiastically agreed and said he'd have fun with decorating. Here is the flyer for the festival:

Please join us for the Fourth Annual Edible Books* Festival

March 28, 2010

Hosted this year by the Bill Memorial Library

240 Monument St, Groton

*What is an Edible Book? We’re looking for donations of any creation that look like a book, pun on a title, refer to a character, or have something to do with books - it just has to be edible.

Event Schedule: 12:30 to 1 p.m.—set up “books” 1 to 1:45 p.m.—ooohing and aaahing by public 1:45 p.m.— “book tasting” 2:00 p.m.—raffle

Sponsors: Friends of the Bill Memorial Library 860-445-0392 Friends of the Mystic & Noank Library 860-536-7721 Groton Public Library Circle of Friends 860-441-6750 For further information or to help out with this “tasteful” event, please contact one of the sponsors. Entry forms are available at all three libraries.

Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel

Today was Classical Kids Co-op at the Old Mystic Baptist Church. This is where we spend our Fridays with other homeschool families where the classes are taught by the parents. These include: Preschool Games, Story of the World, Cultures of the World, Preschool Science, Fun with Music, and Montessori Journey, to name a few of the younger classes that my kids are enjoying.

For Story of the World, Chapter 38: The End of the Ancient Jewish Nation, we created a sand art craft and molded a dreidel out of clay with decorated letters N, G, H, and S. The kids learned how to play the game of dreidel, spinning their own creation, and used candy for the "counters".

• We started with 10 counters for each player.
• Every player contributes one counter into a central pile. This becomes the "pot."
• Players spin the dreidel in turn and contribute or collect items from the pot based upon which letter faces up when the dreidel stops its spin.
• For N - Nun - Nisht - the player collects nothing from the pot.
• For G - Gimmel - Gantz - the player gets it all.
• For H - Hey - Halb - The player collects half of the pot.
• For S - Shin - Shtel - The player sets one of his own items into the pot.
• The player who gains the most (or all the counters) wins.

Rilla enjoyed this game so much that she played it with Max using marbles when we returned home.

8lbs Quick Cooking Oats, 7 craft drums

I teach a "Fun with Music" class at our Classical Kids Co-op on alternating Fridays. For a last minute craft, I decided to have the class make drums (1 cardboard cylinder, 1 decorated paper wrapped around said cardboard, 1 wax paper top, yarn to tie it down). It was a hit. After the craft, the kids banged on their drums to the music of Laurie Berkner and (a 3CD-set I highly recommend) The Best of the Best Preschool Play Songs! When the kids are busy like that, it's easy for the moms to carry a conversation:

Friend: That was a great idea. But, you'll have to tell me if you saved all these oats containers or if you have a bag of oats in your car.
Me: Ha! I have 8lbs of oats waiting for me in the car... any ideas?

Including the usual Oatmeal Raisin cookie recipe, here are some others to consider if you're stuck with 8lbs of oats:

• Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
• Oatmeal Butterscotchies (pretty sweet, consider cutting sugar by 1/8c of each white and brown)
• Oatmeal Bars
• Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars
• Easy Homemade Granola
• Caramel Pumpkin Oatmeal Bars
  

A great, free, resource @ DonnaYoung.org

What a plethora of free (and importantly) useful information! DonnaYoung.org is a wonderful resource for homeschoolers that includes lesson plans, printable worksheets, calendars, planners, blank pages, journal pages, ideas, and links. I have found great use for the calendars in our record/profile keeping and planning. The art curriculum pages of line drawings to copy or make mirror images of, are simple, engaging, and fun to do. I regularly print out the penmanship pages (available in various “levels”), especially the ones with blank tops for drawing and photos. As a side note: we’re currently assembling a recipe booklet that uses these “blank top” pages to incorporate a photo of the finished product and handwritten recipe below – I’ll have a separate blog for that project. Also, these pages are easily readible using free Adobe Acrobat Reader or if you prefer MS Word .doc format and MS Excel .xls format. Additionally, you may purchase the CD for $25 that includes all of the resources available online, including additional info.

This is our first year of homeschooling and I have to admit that I have bought more materials than I really need. I suppose it’s because I am *really* excited about all the teaching resources out there. However, this website shows that you don’t have to spend a lot of money to homeschool with quality materials. Websites like this are out there, you just have to dig around or keep your ears open to others’ comments and what they have discovered. I’ll continue to blog about more sites like this (as I find them on my journey) that have quality, free, materials for homeschoolers. Enjoy!

Storywalk @ Poquonnock Plains Park

Another beautiful day! We played at the Tercentennial Park (aka Poquonnock Plains or Soccer Park) after returning from CC Hamden. Turns out, our usual group of moms had the same idea and so it seemed we “resumed” our Tuesday afternoon meet-up with the nice weather. It was great to catch up. The park was busy. We also learned of the Storywalk that was set up beside the loop which outlines the soccer fields. Starting at the Tercentennial Park sign, 2-page spreads of the book “The Big Storm: A Very Soggy Counting Book” by Nancy Tafuri, are posted at regular intervals. My kids enjoyed running from board to board, reading along as we followed along the track – a half mile loop! And it was a good read.

The “Storywalk” project was done in collaboration with Groton Parks and Rec, as well as the local libraries including Bill Memorial Library and Groton Public Library. That “The Big Storm” was chosen for “Storywalk” was based on this year’s One Book Every Young Child book selection by representatives from 13 libraries over southeastern CT.

Lil Maxwell Award for Creativity!

Today marks the opening of the Young at Art exhibit at the Mystic Arts Center gallery. Rilla won the Lil Maxwell Award for Creativity for her construction paper mosaic. Her eyes were as big as saucers when I told her the news. How exciting! She asked if Max’s pizza won a prize. I said, “No, but everyone gets really hungry when they see it”. Max who was listening intently got a kick out of that comment and started laughing. He seemed to be a pretty good sport about it.

Here are their creations, “Strawberry Pony” and “Pizza, my favorite!”

Mystic Arts Center
9 Water St
Mystic CT 06355
860 536 7601

Stonecroft Country Inn and Restaurant

Yesterday was my dad's 75th birthday and we celebrated it with a surprise dinner at this lovely establishment, Stonecroft Country Inn. Tucked away on Pumpkin Hill Road in Ledyard, Stonecroft is set on 6.5 acres of peaceful countryside.

Chef Shaheed Toppin helped me to create a customized menu for the birthday celebration. It was a 3-course meal and our guests could choose the following:

for soup,

• Butternut Squash Bisque or
• Lobster Bisque

for salad (served with toasted bread and an delicious garlic spread),

• Stonecroft House Salad (mixed greens, julienne vegetable, plum tomatoes, croutins, balsamic vinaigrette) or
• Caesar Salad with seasoned croutins or
• Natalie Salad (baby spinach, walnuts, soft goat cheese, dried cranberries, raspberry vinaigrette)

for entree,

• Oven Roasted Tilapia with Deviled Crab Gratin or
• Chicken Piccata with a White Wine , Lemon & Caper Butter Sauce or
• 8oz. Grilled Filet Mignon with Grilled Portabello Mushroom Demi-Glaze

For the kiddos, Chef also made available for their choosing, a gourmet platter of lightly fried chicken tenders and wedge-style fries.

For dessert and celebration, we ordered a 3-layered birthday cake from Mystic Market. It featured a delicately flavored mango mousse filling between the layers of vanilla cake. The icing was lightly sweetened whipped cream... a simply sweet ending to a wonderful meal.


Tea, coffee, wine, and other beverages were readily available. The staff (we had about 6 on hand for 40 people) was smooth and attentive, the food divine, the service impeccable, the ambience simply lovely. The inviting dining area featured a partial stone interior, exposed beam ceiling and a wood burning fireplace. Everything made for a wonderfully memorable evening. It's one of those places that you mention to everyone because you want more people to know and enjoy this place hidden on Pumpkin Hill Rd - you won't be disappointed!


Stonecroft Inn
515 Pumpkin Hill Rd
Ledyard CT 06339
800 772 0774

Kitchen Little (Mystic) Tiny space, huge delight!

The eight of us, being aware of Kitchen Little’s limited space, snuck in early for lunch at 11:25 today. It’s a small establishment whose dining area seats 18 (in tables of 2 and 4) with bar-style seating for an additional 6. Nothing fancy, but it’s a clean, cozy, and sunlit space. There’s room for more if you count the outdoor seating (under canopy) with immediate (and picturesque) view of the Mystic River.

We were lucky and grabbed a corner area of 3 tables that sat 4, 2, and 2. Our order was taken quickly, drinks served, and within 20 minutes our order arrived: 2 kiddie cheeseburgers, 1 kiddie hotdog, 4 hot lobster rolls, 1 scallop roll and 4 cups of clam chowder. First off, the clam chowder is Rhode Island-style clear broth and was tasty with onions, potatoes, and clam-generous. The meat in the rolls was hot and fresh, lightly seasoned, and butter’ed just right. All meals were served with perfectly/lightly toasted New England rolls and crispy fries, also very good. The kiddie burgers were about a quarter-lb and perfectly portioned for the little ones. Speaking of portions, the sizes of our meals were just right. We finished our rolls (overflowing with just enough meat) and departed satisfied with fries remaining on our plates.

Lucky for our group, we were able to get in on a slow winter day. If you are in Mystic during the warmer season, stop in for a bite. It’s well worth the wait (and you will have to wait)! There’s a nifty whiteboard sign-up near the entrance to give you an idea of how long the wait will be.

Kitchen Little
135 Greenmanville Avenue (Route 27 )
Mystic, CT 06355
(860) 536-2122

KidCity Childrens Museum photos, Middletown CT

Paid a visit to KidCity Childrens Museum yesterday and I can’t say enough good things about this place! What a thoughtfully designed, creative, and engaging place to play and discover! Come to find out that a lot of the work is done by neighboring Wesleyan art students. This museum is essentially 2 older homes combined and expanded with modern flair to house rooms upon rooms of creative play areas. The KidCity site was very informative, but the photos were few. Browsing through the internet, I came up with nothing as well. With that, here are some of my photos to give you a better idea of what to expect. I was able to take photos of the rooms empty because there seems to be less visitors during the week and in the early opening hours.

These photos are just some of the creative spaces that delighted me including: the Fishery with ship, Asia with mountain and bridge, Farm with clubhouse and chicken coop, Train table village, Diner, and Farmhouse kitchen beside a fun carrot patch, the Rocket Ship (there’s also a UFO Saucer!).

There are still more rooms that I didn’t show like: the Victorian reading room featuring an oversized brush that serves as the bench, the Puppet/Dress-up Studio room featuring a working video camera that can be manipulated during performance, the Sea Caves on the bottom floor for ages 3 and under, to name a few.

In short, you’ll find artfully painted rooms with attention to detail, PLENTY of seating for adults, engaging activities in each room. My kids’ favorite was the Fishery where plastic fish are transported and gathered via sliding belts and pulley systems throughout the room. Also a hit was the Farm room with a clubhouse and bucket system between the ground and 2nd floors, as well as the neighboring egg activity area.

Logistics… there is plenty of parking, ample coat storage that features a newly added eating area with fountain and hand washing stations (so pack those lunches!), and many spacious bathrooms (at least 7!) spread throughout the museum. Here are photos of the eating area near the coat room.

Finally, consider getting the Association of Children’s Museums reciprocal membership for $100 which will get you into any participating ACM museum in the United States or abroad. In CT, your ACM membership also gets you into the Childrens Museum in West Hartford, Childrens Museum of Southeastern CT in Niantic, Imagination Nation Children’s Museum in Bristol, Lutz Children’s Museum in Manchester, Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk.

KidCity Children's Museum

119 Washington St

Middletown CT 06457

860 347 0495

Enrollment for the Pizza Hut’s Book It! reading program starts today and runs through June 2010, or while supplies last . This program rewards grades K-6 students for their reading activity between October 1, 2010 through March 31, 2011. Homeschooled students are also eligible to participate!

Teachers who have registered will receive their materials packet which contains a pad of award certificates for each of the month’s reading goals, good for each student that the teacher has registered.

There are ideas to motivate your students with games, incentives, arts, crafts, and various activities in the Teachers Section.