Waking Forest School

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Field Trip Friday: World of Wonders Science Museum

While compiling my list of 400+ Northern California field trips, I came across a hands-on science museum in Lodi and decided to check it out.

The World of Wonders Science Museum certainly encourages hands-on science discovery. Although situated in busy downtown, the museum showcases a relatively large space filled with dozens of exhibits. Admission is more than reasonable:

First Day of Third Grade: Minecraft Schultute

As homeschoolers, we celebrate the first day of school a little but differently than our public-schooled peers. On the first day of first grade, we had sort of a Christmas-homeschool morning with educational gifts like a chess set and a Rubik's cube. On the first day of second grade, our family went spelunking at the Moaning Caverns in Vallecito, Ca.

This year we had another Christmas-homeschool type of morning, mostly because I'm about seven months along in my pregnancy and that's about the only physical adventure I can stand right now. But I still wanted to make his first day special. Lately, Aidyn has joined the millions of other Minecraft fans and, on most days, eats, breathes, and sleeps all things Minecraft.

The night before I made him a Minecraft schultute. A schultute is a cone-shaped holder of goodies, a first-day-of-school German tradition going back to the early 1800s. It's also fairly common in the homeschool world to give these schultutes, but this was our first time.

We filled and overflowed it with all kinds of goodies-- a Minecraft foam sword, kinetic sand, Create and Destroy Fortress Invasion clay, glue sticks, Minecraft benders, a Guardians of the Galaxy dog tag, a Minecraft creeper poster, a box of Buddy Bars, a box of Nerds...

AND a new-to-him scooter. The weekend prior, David and I found a scooter at a thrift store for $7, so we brought it home, cleaned it up, and added new handlebar grips and Minecraft stickers.

He rode it outside before we started school and during every break throughout the day.

For breakfast, I made him a creeper pancake.

And we eventually started our day.

I regret not taking many pictures of the rest of our day, but Aidyn worked on a sheet of Minecraft Math (addition and subtraction sheets can be found at this link) until our math curriculum comes in on Thursday. Aidyn took the placement test for Spelling Power, learned about mapping a story with our grammar book, restarted our reading program and listed things he wants to learn about in 3rd grade (most of which are underwater creatures like piranhas and sharks.

We had a good, Miecrafty sort of first day and are looking forward to the new school year!

Here are some other first-day-of-school traditions and ideas:

First Day of School Traditions
Back to Homeschool and End-of-the-Year Celebrations on Pinterest

And if you're wanting to fit Minecraft into your learning:

Minecraft Activities, Coloring, and Worksheets Pinterest page
Learning by Playing Minecraft-- Resources for Parents and Teachers

And if you want to make your own schultute:

Make a Schultute!
Make a Schultute for Your Child's First Day of School

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Wednesday, August 13, 2014

400+ Northern California Field Trips

Oh, California, you have so much to offer. We live smack dab in the middle of California, which means we're within the agricultural belt that runs down the state. We have the beautiful and busy Bay Area to the west, the quiet and peaceful splendor of Gold Country to the east, the capital of Sacramento only an hour away, and Southern California only 5 hours south.

We've spent a lot of time exploring our state, for educational and entertainment purposes (usually both!). Because we're Northern Californians, the list favors this area. If you have any more suggestions, please let me know and I will add them to the list! Links marked with asterisk are places we've visited and can vouch for.

Northern California

{Amusement and Theme Parks}

Great America in Santa Clara*
Children's Fairyland (storybook theme park) in Oakland
Sonoma Train Town in Sonoma
Emerald Hills Golfland in San Jose
Gilroy Gardens (family theme park) in Gilroy
Nut Tree Theme Park in Vacaville
Pixieland in Concord
Raging Waters in San Jose
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk in Santa Cruz*
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo*
Small World Amusement Park in Pittsburg
Pixie Woods in Stockton*

Playgrounds~
Adventure Playground in Berkeley

{Animation and Film History}

Cartoon Art Museum (animation) in San Francisco*
Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum in Fremont
Lobe Pine Film History Museum in Lone Pine
Central Coast Aquarium in Avila Beach

{Aquariums/Oceanography}

The Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco
Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco
Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey*
Santa Cruz Surfing Museum in Santa Cruz

animal shelter
antique store
art/craft store
bakery
bank
beekeper
car dealership
cave/caverns
cemetery
college campus
courthouse
dental lab
eye doctor
farmer's market
fire station
fish hatchery
ghost town
greenhouse
grocery store
hardward store
hiking trail
an historic site
hospital
ice skating rink (Oak Park Ice Arena in Stockton)
jeweler's shop
library
local monument
newspaper
nursing home
pet store
pick-your-own farms
pizza parlor
police station
pond
post office
power plant
recycling plant
religious facility (different than your own)
skating rink ( like Rollerland in Merced)
sports team/activity
state park
soup kitchen
theatre
TV station
veterinary office
virtual field trips
water treatment facility

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This is an ongoing list of field trips in the Northern California region. You can even see some field trips we've taken. If you have suggestions and places to add, let me know!

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Thursday, July 31, 2014

{Return to Reading}: Perfect by Rachel Joyce

"The rift between the past and this moment is so huge it is like being marooned on a square of ice, seeing other patches of his life also floating around him, and unable to piece them all together. Sometimes it is easier, he thinks, to live out the mistakes we have made than to summon the energy and imagination required to repair them" (Joyce 376).

Perfect by Rachel Joyce circles around the theme of lost time. Byron Hemmings, a bright 11-year-old, discovers that the powers that be have decided to add an additional two seconds to time. Terrified, he worries that two seconds is the difference between something awful either happening or not happening. His story exemplifies how two seconds can completely alter someone's life.

I have a tendency to look back too often, at the past, at what could have been, at mistakes I have made. Nostalgia is a pain as real as heartburn. And what is even more devastating is that the past is already written and unchangeable, but the ache to change it or recreate it burns just the same.

As a parent I worry that my son isn't living some idyllic childhood, isn't swinging on enough swings, playing with enough cousins, or creating enough carefree memories like I did. I look back and see my "perfect" childhood and mourn that Aidyn might not be living his. But it's a silly worry.

I catch him in the depths of childhood wonder and imagination ("I think I might have ice powers after I read that spell book," he told me yesterday.). I watch him sled down the stairs on a "magic carpet." I see him bond with his cousins, eating ice cream sandwiches in the back seat of the car or staying up late on summer nights.

His childhood may not include everything mine did (which might actually be a good thing), but he's effortlessly creating his own. The past isn't meant to be recreated. It cannot be brought back. But in looking backward, we can see the beauty and possibility of today. Someday today will be a memory, and we have the power to influence and shape it.

Perfect reminded me how hung up we are on time, especially time past, and the frustration we feel at our inability to change it. For some reason, we are hell bent on living out what has happened to us in the past, allowing ourselves to be defined by it. It can feel imprisoning to always be that person who we were. And again, it's silly, especially when, each day, we have the new and awaiting possibility of doing Something Else.

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For the past couple of weeks, I have made an effort to return to reading. As a child, teen, and young adult, I had love affairs with books, but after years of college coursework and forced readings, I lost that love for simply picking up a book and getting lost in it.

I recently picked up Tolstoy and the Purple Chair by Nina Sankovitch, a gentle memoir about reading books to escape back into life.

Sankovitch's book is ushering me back toward books and the rewards of reading. I have been randomly plucking books from library shelves, such as 1914 by Jean Echenoz and The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide.

If you have a book recommendation, I would love to hear it! Have you read anything lately that I shouldn't miss?

Sunday, July 13, 2014

3rd Grade {Sanity} Schedule

I recently posted our 3rd grade curriculum goals, and, to be honest, the long list ~~majorly~~ kind of freaked me out. A few weeks ago, I outlined a new schedule for third grade given the new changes this year, most importantly our baby boy set to arrive at the end of October!

As Aidyn gets older and more mature, we're leaning more toward a classical learning style though we're still eclectic and flexible.

This year we are finishing up SOTW: Volume One and ~~attempting to~~ finishing SOTW: Volume Two. We'll see how that goes.

We are also continuing to work on language arts skills, especially spelling. Aidyn has become a quick and proficient little reader so I imagine his breadth of reading will expand this year. I sincerely hope he gets bit by a major reading bug.

We are introducing Latin this year with Song School Latin, and Aidyn is actually excited about learning a new language. And not just any new language, but a cool dead new language. We'll try to liven it up as much as possible.

We are also focusing on chemistry and earth science this year (our kitchen table will be a rotating experiment lab), and working on a new big book of Saxon math.

After a very recent move, we're pleased that Aidyn has some neighborhood friends and has resumed his play-all-day-until-we-force-him-back-in-at-9pm habit. After school, the outdoor play with friends will be just the break we both need.

The routine below is more for my sanity throughout the school year than anything else. In other words, it's my buoy when I've waded too far in.

First Half of Third Grade:

Normal Week:

Monday:

Math
Spelling
Grammar
Reading (SRA textbook activities)
Writing (copywork)
History
Latin
Free Reading
Outdoor play
Outside classes: CrossFit P.E. and Pre-Engineering Lego class

Tuesday:

Math
Spelling
Grammar
Reading (read-aloud)
Writing (dictation)
Chemistry experiment
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play
Outside class: Recorders (school band)

Wednesday:

Math
Spelling
Grammar
Reading (SRA)
Writing (retelling)
History
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play
Outside class: Hands-on science and (once a month) Character class

Thursday:

Math
Spelling
Grammar
Reading (read-aloud)
Writing (handwriting practice)
Earth science
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play

Friday:

library, field trip, messy activity, "catch-up" day, movie, etc.
Outside class: (once or twice a month): Study club with K-8th graders

Saturday/Sunday

Finish any read-alouds from the week
"Catch up" with Daddy
Outdoor play

FIAR week: (1x a month)

Monday:

Math
Phonics (Explode the Code)
Read FIAR book
Social Studies/Geography related to the book
Writing (copywork from the book)
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play
Outside classes: CrossFit P.E. and Pre-Engineering Lego class

Tuesday:

Math
Phonics (Explode the Code)
Read FIAR book
Language Arts related to the book
Writing (dictation from the book)
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play
Outside class: Recorders (school band)

Wednesday:

Math
Phonics (Explode the Code)
Read FIAR book
Art related to the book
Writing (retelling the book)
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play
Outside class: Hands-on science and (once a month) Character class

Thursday:

Math
Phonics (Explode the Code)
Read FIAR book
Math/Science related to the book
Writing (handwriting)
Latin
Free reading
Outdoor play

Friday:

field trip, activity, movie, hike, etc.
Outside class: (once or twice a month): Study club with K-8th graders
Outdoor play

Saturday, July 12, 2014

{Return to Reading}: 1914 by Jean Echenoz

"Sometimes this absent arm became more present than the other one, insistent, vigilant, as mocking as a guilty conscience" (Echenoz 104).

Anthime finds himself in war-torn France, hunkered down in putrid trenches and dodging scraps of shrapnel blazing toward him and his comrades. What I enjoy about Jean Echenoz's little novel is that it doesn't pretend to be the only war-novel around. Echenoz is clear that he is dropping us readers into trenches we've seen before, although they are no less terrifying. Some scenes are described so beautifully and matter-of-factly that it seems I'm seeing a photo of World War I more than I am experiencing it as a reader

But 1914, in being only a slice of WWI accounts, reminds me that the past continually haunts us. We carry things no longer visible and swear they cause us just as much pain as when we could stare them in the face. And, if we let them, they will nag and irritate and loom over us. Just as a severed arm can deliver a soldier from out of the frontlines, trauma (even an accident or chance of mishap) can yank us from where we were, transplanting us elsewhere. But why, no matter how thankful we are to be removed, do we insist on looking back? Why can't we forget?

Should we even forget?

I doubt I'm alone when I say that things (namely, people and places) that are lost cause the most pain. Nostalgia, though sweet, is bitterly painful. Etymologically, it's a "painful homecoming" (OED). It's not so simple to avoid nostalgia or remembering what has passed. It's simply what makes us human, vulnerable little energies that live out our lives and disappear, causing the same void in someone else's heart.

So, feel. What else is there to do?

Friday, July 11, 2014

{Return to Reading}: The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide

*A note about Return to Reading:

I was an early and avid reader in my youth. Libraries were second homes, books were comforts, and reading a pure pleasure. I looked forward to English classes and even enrolled in a slew of them in college. Once I spent a few years in college, especially in upper-division courses, reading became a chore. My hobby became intense work. Instead of flying through books, I deconstructed, analyzed, criticized, evaluated, and overworked them. Books could not draw me in like they used to, and my reading list was crowded with books I had to read by this specific date so I could write a paper and be done with it.

I miss books. I've tried a few times to relearn that love for reading. I visited the library the other day, minus a book list and that inner English professor voice that scolds me about which great classics I should be reading. I just thumbed through the shelves and selected a few like flowers.

As a homeschool mom, it's important to me to show Aidyn, through our lifestyle, that learning and self-teaching is rewarding. I want him to feel sometimes like a book has me so engrossed I can't be interrupted. I want him to respect that please-do-not-disturb aura around a reader.

On my first day, I read a little Japanese novella called The Guest Cat by Takashi Hiraide.

"So let us liken fate to a destructive river here as well. The river rages, flooding the plain, consuming trees and buildings before it, washing away the earth and carrying it away to the other side. As it surges, people flee, but ultimately they succumb to the water's momentum. Nothing--no one, escapes" (Hiraide 20).

The Guest Cat is a neat and precisely written story of an unnamed married couple who occupy a guest house in a quaint little neighborhood. They are soon visited by a cat, whom they later call "Chibi," and in her sweet and elegant feline way crawls into their hearts and balances the way they appreciate life.

This book couldn't have come at a better time for me, when my life feels like it's in flux, twisted by events out of my immediate control. Hiraide communicates this simple beauty of allowing fate (whether in the form of a guest cat or having to relocate from his home) to move you. Fighting against fate is useless. Fighting against any current in life beats us down, even if we are victorious in the end. In just "going with it," the narrator finds peace, connection, and meaning.

During one episode of everyday struggle, the narrator focuses on triangular surveying as a means to find a new home within eyesight of a beautiful zelkova tree near the guest house. He "was merely seeking comfort in the thought that something as serenely transparent as an ancient surveying method might be applicable to this place of loss and bewilderment where [he] now found himself" (87). We, too, are in the middle of a search for a new home, and in the stress of dealing with our current property management, reading this book has brought me peace. The Japanese way of focusing on one singular event at a time and always spotlighting nature calms me. It gently reminds me to focus on the simple joys in the midst of this stress.