Looking for Rainbows

More On Matching Interest and Reading Levels

A few months ago, I wrote a post on matching a childs interest level and their reading level.  I have found another range of books specialising in this:

Barrington Stokes Go! Dare or Danger Books

Fiction interest age 11+, reading age 6

Entry level fiction for struggling secondary students

 

• Great variety of stories to suit all tastes - from comedy to horror
• High quality, age appropriate illustrations throughout support the story
• Extensively trialled with students in the target age group

Heavenly Farm

Heavenly Farm

We took the kids to Heavenly Farm which is in 100 acres of beautiful parkland. Heaven Farm is steeped in 600 years of farming history and includes the Bluebell nature trail (featured many times on BBC TV), wallabies and rural life museum.

Museum of London

Most of the experienced home educators I meet say that children have a natural interest to learn and an extraordinary ability to think diversely. Many of them believe that mainstream schooling damages this natural interest. My kids are only recently out of mainstream schooling and generally they don't demonstrate a natural interest to learn. However, I have recently seen sparks of interest and a pride in their work. I am determined to encourage these sparks by allowing them to access a diverse source of learning.

I am on a mission to visit as many FREE museums, park and gardens as possible. Yesterday, we visited the Museum of London Docklands. I thought it was very interesting but Owen spent most of his time lying on the floor saying it was boring. Taking his shoes off did seem to help a little. However, both the kids said they liked learning about slavery. They both asked me lot of questions about this difficult subject.

Snacks

Fruit and Cheese Kabobs Recipe

Peanut Butter & Raspberry Lolly

Yam and Jam Muffins recipe

Confetti Yogurt Pops recipe

Sweet Potato Chips recipe

Strawberry Peanut Butter Crepes recipe

Oatmeal Cookies recipe

Fimo Monsters

Anya has been developing her quirky creative style by experimenting with fimo. She has created a really cool range of monsters.

Measuring The Output of a Solar Panel

Go The Fuck To Sleep

After my vague success at the South Bank graffiti reading, I came across a book called Go The Fuck To Sleep.  I thought it was worth a mention!

Go the Fuck To Sleep is a bedtime book for parents who live in the real world, where a few snoozing kitties and cutesy rhymes don't always send a toddler sailing off to dreamland. Honest, profane, and affectionate, Adam Mansbach's verses and Ricardo Cortés' illustrations perfectly capture the familiar--and unspoken--tribulations of putting your little angel down for the night, and open up a conversation about parenting in the process. Beautiful, subversive, and pants-wettingly funny, Go the Fuck to Sleep is a perfect gift for parents new, old, or expectant. Here is a sample verse: The cats nestle close to their kittens now.
The lambs have laid down with the sheep.
You're cozy and warm in your bed, my dear
Please go the fuck to sleep.

the owl & the pussycat

Measuring The Voltage of a Coin Battery

Anya Horse Riding

RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms

Decorating A Gingerbread House

Numerical Sequencing Problems

When Anya left school at 7 she was barely able to count or write to 20.  I understand children all learn at different stages but what concerned me was that I had been battling at home to assist Anya to count but the school seemed unaware that she had problem with Maths at all!  Owen leant to count fairly ‘naturally’ and naturally understood decimal schema which allowed him to count in units, tens, hundreds and then thousands.  As with most children, he didn’t need any special reinforcement to facilitate counting. 

I have been working with Anya and another home educated girl who also has difficulties with counting.  They are not able to ‘organically’ learn to count like most children.  They need imagination and hand on exercises to remember. Both girls are good with money and seem to demonstrate a clear understanding of the value of each number but cannot remember sequencing and confuse the names or certain numbers.

Anya is a kinaesthetic learner so needs to 'do' in order to learn.  We have been labelling the stairs with numbers.  The stairs are a really good resource as they go up along with the numbers and so reflect an increase in value.  After mastering the sequence of steps from 1 - 11 us started labelling the stairs from 4 to 15 etc.  I tend not to stop at obvious points such as 10 as it is these point that present most difficult to Anya, perhaps because these were break points at school. After about a month, Anya became confident with numbers up to 20 (although she does still confuse 12 and 20).

Owen Sledging

View From The Front of Our Sledge

Snowball Fight!

Handwriting Exercises With Chalk

Taekwon- Do - Yellow Tag

Owen and Anya have been attending Virtue Taekwon-Do since September. Anya has really picked up the moves. Owen initially found the classes too noisy but each week he has been able to stay in the class for longer and longer. The teacher and assistant coaches have been very flexible with Owen which has meant he has maintained an interest. I was worried that they would insist on him remaining in the class for the full duration which would inevitably result in him it quiting.

Over the past few weeks that have been learning the 10th Kup which are the moves and theory for their Yellow Tag. Last week they were both assessed and both passed!

Home School Resources

A fabulous list of resources that have been put together by the South London Home Educators.

Free Home Education Links

Brain Pop Jnr - Educational Videos

Brain Pop Jnr was recommended to me by another home educator. It is my favourite educational site. Owen and Anya love the site and spend hours watching the videos. There are free videos but it is worth paying $85 for a years membership.

Blackboard Handwriting Excercises

Finding Something to Inspire Reading

My kids hate reading.  They have never liked looking at books even before they were subjected to the torture of the schools reading books.  They enjoy being read to at bedtime and love books that are quirky and alternative.  But. they rarely want to look in a book on their own.  They will occasionally flick through the pages of a super hero comic or natural world book with striking illustrations but that's about it.

One of my friends (also a home educator) who has a mildly autistic child suggested that I just try and read the words that surround us in everyday life eg road signs, packaging, adverts etc.  I am sure that generally this is a good idea and would be an organic and natural part of a child reading development.  However, my kids simply refuse to read anything.  No matter how clever I try to be to 'trick' them to read something they always see through it!  However, they do take an interest of anything or of place or different to the norm so I took them to the South Bank to see if there were any words they could read in the graffiti.  They took great pleasure from reading the inappropriate words!  It’s a start...

Salt Battery

How To Make a Salt Battery

1Clean each coin with a solution of water with a drop or two of dishwashing detergent. The coins don't have to be shiny and new looking, just make sure to remove any debris and dirt from the coins and dry them with a towel.

2Cut the paper towels into small squares, small enough to fit under the smallest coin.

3Create a solution of saltwater by mixing about t2 tablespoons of salt into a glass or bowl of water. Use a spoon to thoroughly mix in the salt and continue to stir when the salt begins to settle to the bottom of the glass.

4Place the paper towel pieces in the saltwater solution, allowing them to soak fully.

5Layer the coins and squares of paper towels. Start with a 1p, then place a piece of paper towel on top of it, followed foil, then another square of paper towel. Repeat the pattern until you use all coins, foil and paper towels. Make sure the top coin is a penny and the bottom coin is a nickel.

6Touch the exposed wire ends of either a voltmeter or a LED light, which is similar to the indicator light in many electrical items showing that the item is on and receiving power. The coin battery should get a reading of at least 1 volt on the voltmeter or make the LED light turn on to show that the coin battery is generating power.

Anya's Halloween Art

Pumkin Calving

Halloween

Halloween has roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain. Christian's tried to claim the holiday as All Saints' Day but with little success as today it is largely a secular celebration. Our children's previous school was a Church of England school were Halloween was completely banned dening our children their historical and culture education.

How To Make a Dalek

Social Interaction

It is a misconception that home schooled children do not get adequate social interaction with other children. My kids have had more interaction with other kids since they left school. We meet up with other home educated children almost every day. During this time they learn and play together within a group of respectful children that do not have the competitiveness that I have witnessed so often in school. I have rarely witnesses any bullying type behavior and language which was a daily experience for my children in school.

Willow & Anya Skating

Anya is wearing a girls dress from Stardust

Ice Skating

Every Friday, Owen and Anya kids join a large group of South London home educated kids for ice skating lessons at Streatham Ice Rink.

Tescon

We attended a demonstration this evening against Tesco's plan to demolish Streatham Ice Rink which has served the local community for nearly 100 years. Tesco's plan to build a new Tesco in place of our beloved ice rink. As a condition of their planning consent they are required to build a new ice rink in the place of the old ice rink. However, Tesco's are trying to break this promise and have come up with a new plan which involves demolishing part of Brixton market to house the new rink which is not a good solution for the Brixton community.

Felt Toy Animals

We made felt animal toys today. Both Owen and Anya were captivated by this activity. They cut out their own shapes and sewed the pieces together on their own. I purchased a few toy animal eyes from Ebay a few weeks ago which really brought the toys alive but buttons would also work well.

How To Hold a Pencil

My son has motor skill difficulties which contribute to his difficulty with handwriting. He was at school for 4 years but it was not until we paid for him to see a private Occupational Therapist that it was identified he was not holding the pencil correctly. Although children hold pencils in many different ways there is actually only one way that will ensure comfort and control in handwriting. This is called the Tripod Grip. Amazingly schools do not teach or correct children in correct way to hold a pencil.

Owen wraps this thumb over his other fingers which put a strain down the side of his thumb and hand. We use a Crossover Grip to prevent his thumb wrpping over his other fingers.




There are many kinds of pencil grips that can be purchased to help correct how the pencil is being held.



Draw Your World provide many grips and exercises to improve pencil control and posture.

Matching Interest Levels With Reading Levels.

Owen and Anya were severely struggling with reading at school.  Whilst, they were at school we struggled to help them progress with their reading but made very slow progress.  In hindsight, they probably were not ready to learn to read but the books provided by the school were so painfully boring that they only added to a general lack of interest in both reading and books.  The school did not understand the concept of books with appropriate interest levels combines with a child reading age.  For example Owen was 8 years old with a reading age of 6.  This meant he was subjected to reading 6 year old books about teddies and puppies. 

I have discovered a range of books called Boffin Boy which address this problem with matching different interest levels and reading levels.

Boffin Boy

Listed in The Times Top 160 Books for Boys | Nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal

Interest Age 8 - 14 years | Reading Age 6 - 7 years

A popular manga comic style series designed specifically for reluctant and struggling readers.

The superb manga style illustrations, imaginative plots and wacky characters will appeal to children aged 8-14, yet the books are carefully written for a reading age of 6-7 years and feature simple speech bubble text with controlled vocabulary and low word counts.

Another Stop Motion by Owen

How To Make a Dalek

Home School Calling's First Harvest

Pumpkins, Courgettes and Tomatoes were a success. Carrots and spring onions were okay and beetroots, cauliflower were a disaster!

Ferrets, Pets & Home Education

Our lovely pet ferret Red died in June. Red's death was tough for both kids as they had a special relationship with him. We explained what death meant in different cultures but Owen is a non-theist so found it hard to deal with the literal end of Red's life. However, we have two young crazy, bitey ferrets called Foxy and Freddie. The kids are building new bonds with them but have to be extra careful of their fingers!

Electronic Wizard

Owen expressed an interest in the Electronic Wizard course at HESFES. The first kit is due to arrive at the end of September.

It is a Postal Course providing an adventure into the magical world of electronics, starting with the basics, and rapidly building to more advanced practice. It gives kids an insight into the workings behind technology & helping you understand some of the ‘Magic’ that holds our modern world together.

Magic Glue

Pope Benedict Protest March, London 2010 #7 (5515)

Pope Benedict Protest March, London 2010 #7 (5515)
Originally uploaded by Grey Photography

Owen and Anya at the Protest The Pope Demo on 18th September 2010

YouTube - Richard Dawkins at Protest the Pope Rally in London Sept2010

YouTube - Richard Dawkins at Protest the Pope Rally in London Sept2010

Protest The Pope

We are trying to raise our children to be free thinking and to have a healthy cynism to what they are told. We feel this is hard after the four years they have spent at a Church school were we feel their young minds were subject to indoctrination. We are keen to redress this balance and open their minds to other view points.

Therefore, we joined a demonstration of over 12,000 people yesterday to protest against the Pope's visit to London. We marched with a diversity of people including Christians, gays and women all united against the Popes and the Catholic churches values. At the end we listened to Richard Dawkins talk about his cynical view on the Popes visit to the UK.

EGYPTIANS AT THE HORNIMAN

History starts with the Ancient Egyptians. Our first lesson includes a trip to the Horiman Museum with other Home Educated children. We were allowed to handles real object from Ancient Egypt which were 2000 - 5000 years old. The objects included a piece of a sarcophagus (tomb), mummified bird, mummy's mask, hieroglyphics written in papurus paper. The handling of these object was a really good methods of engaging my kinesthetic learners. The question and answer session proved to much for Owen who has almost no ability to learn though purely auditory methods.

YouTube - Lego Police

YouTube - Lego Police

Owen loves making Stop Motions Films. This kind of hand on learning is great for his kinesthetic learning needs.

Coke Expolosion

Method: Put one packet of mint Mentos (must be Menthos) into a large bottle of Cola. Stand back and watch the explosion. The mints make the carbon dioxide suddenly escape from the cola. We also compared the same reaction with diet cola, lemonade and sparkling water.

Home Made Slime

Homemade Slime Recipe

Borax
White Glue
Water
Food Coloring (optional)
Ziploc bag

1. Borax is available in the laundry section of your local grocery shop. Take a cup of water and add to it 1 Tbs. of borax (approx 4% solution). Stir until completely dissolved.
2. Make a 50% water 50% white glue solution (eg PVA but not washable kind). Take 1/4 cup of each and mix thoroughly.
3. In a ziploc bag, add equal parts of the borax solution to equal parts of the glue solution. 1/2 cup of each will make a cup of slime.
4. Add a couple drops of food coloring.
5. Seal bag and knead the mixture.
6. Dig in and have fun. Remember to wash your hands after playing.
7. Keep your slime in the sealed bag in the refrigerator when not playing with it to keep it longer. Unfortunately it may eventually dry out or grow mold. Just throw it out and start again!

Explanation:
The borax is acting as the crosslinking agent or "connector" for the glue (polyvinyl acetate) molecules. Once the glue molecules join together to form even larger molecules called polymers, you get a thickened gel very similar to slime. If you've tried this recipe (formula) before using blue starch (instead of the borax) with mixed results, you won't be disappointed with this one. Works everytime! If you have access to a chemical supply house, try a 4% solution of polyvinyl alcohol instead of the glue for a less rubbery polymer and one that is transparent showing off the color better.