Forest schooling

I will forever be grateful for the times that we are able to get out of the house and go into nature for our day of schooling... The girls see it as a day "off" and probably nothing more than a fun field trip but what they don't realize is that they are always learning... and sometimes never so much as they do when they are able to be surrounded by nature...

We are part of a number of homeschool groups in our area, all offering something a bit different from the other. This particular group is more geared towards Tacoma/Seattle and rarely go in that direction but jump at the chance to go to anything in Olympia so the tour of a local mushroom farm was right up our alley! :)

Christian was GREAT with the kids and very patient with their questions or stories. I think in the end, he was very impressed with our group of kids and their knowledge of mushrooms too! I always love to just stand back and listen to homeschool kids talking and asking questions. Now, I'm not discrediting kids who are public schooled but there is just something about a group of homeschooled kids that tends to be amazing... This group of kids ranged from toddlers to probably 6th grade or so, and yet they were all learning side by side... standing out in the rainy woods of Washington state no less, and yet they all got along, were respectful and for the most part, all very interested in what what being said.

They started by sanitizing the table and all the little hands, then covering the table with straw and then adding the mushroom spores and mixing it up...

Next, the kids got to pack their own bags for having a mushroom growing kit to take home!

 

They filled the bags tightly with straw and then tied them up tight to suck the air out.

 When they were done, we got to tour the tents/greenhouses where they grow the mushrooms... the kids thought it was really cool (Ok so us adults did too!)

A definite hit of the tour was the Lions Mane mushroom! Isn't that just the coolest thing??? So, of course we had to get a kit to grow some of those at home!! The girls were just bubbly at the thought of having those at home. Some of the moms there said that they have cooked with them and that they are so yummy and have the consistancy of crab meat!! We can't wait to try it!!

I remember as a kid thinking that it must be so cool to be done with school and to know everything... little did I know just how much there is still to learn in this world!!! We are never done learning and I'm just so thankful that my girls don't have to dread school... most days they don't even realize we've done school, they just know that they love to learn... and isn't that what life is supposed to be about? 

Games to grow with

Like most homeschoolers, we make the most of every chance we have for learning... and games are no exceptions! Stephanie over at Ordinary Life Magic is hosting a giveaway of  one of their favorite games!! So, to join in on the fun (and to get an extra entry!) we are sharing our favorite games with you! I don't know about you, but I am always hesitant spending big bucks on a game for fear that it will be a real dudd so this idea is great for finding games that real families love!!! Won't you join us?

1. Walk The Dogs is by far the most expensive game I've ever bought. Actually I think I earned it by having a party (which I highly recommend- the benifits are amazing!) but this game is also by far our VERY FAVORITE game. It is our go-to game when people come to visit and we have given this game as a gift and gotten great feedback every single time! It is fun to play as a family and can be adjusted for any age involved. Our three year old likes to simply collect the dogs while our 6 year old is getting more into the strategy of it... and my hubby and I really get into stealing dogs.... just watch out for the dog catcher! :)

2. Lunchmunch would be a close to tie with Walk the Dogs. I happened onto this game on clearance one year for just a couple dollars and bought them up for gifts to stash in my closet. WhenI got down to one game left, I figured I should keep one for us and boy am I glad I did!! This game is great for little ones learing matching skills but i fun for older kids and adults (we've been known to play a more competitive game after the girls are in bed!) too! Great for quick action and thinking things out.

3. Dog Bingo

4. Sorry

5. Clothespins Game

6. Chocolate Fix by Thinkfun

7. The Lady Bug Game

8. Don't Break the Ice

9.  UNO stacko

10. Mancala is a new favorite, having just bought it in a thrift store last week! My husband and I started off plying it and loved it! (Which is saying alot coming from him) and then I started playing it with my 6 year old and she is obcessed with it! :)

An artful journey

For years my husband has been teasing me about this bag of "sticks" that we've been moving along with us for no other reason than I collected them on a trip to Homer, AK and I thought that they will be useful someday! Well, today is the day! lol





This large piece of driftwood (along with many others) was found on the spit in Homer, Alaska on a fishing trip we took with friends who were visiting from Montana. Little did we know at the time, but we were expecting J! I'm not sure what is was about that trip that made it so special...I didn't go fishing or do anything major but we were with friends and we were making memories... while the men were off fishing, the ladies and I went to art galleries and after the men returned with hundreds of lbs of halibut and a few salmon to make up for dinner, we headed to the spit...





I just remember taking lots of pictures of the details...like my husband's hands hold my stepson's tiny 5 year old hands while they fished (with no luck!) and the details of the rocks and the piles of drift wood that had spent so much time at sea but landed there on that spot for me to find and treasure! I had no idea at the time what I was going to use them for but they have come in handy a number of times and make our projects that much more special! That is why I was so excited to think of this...











What better way to use a treasured item than to make it useable and welcome the nature into our schoolroom in one more way!

The girls sat stringing beads and practicing their math (counting for R and adding for J)

...to make their own art display!

We simply attached hangers to the back of it, beaded fishing string onto painted wooden clothes pins and beaded on the galss beads!!! SOOO simple but the girls are so proud of what they "made"!

I love the way the room is FINALLY coming together and starting to feel more welcoming! Let the creative juices start flowing!

Wonder what she's working on? Check out The Letter Writing Revolution! Since our move J has been hard at work on letters to her friends in hopes of getting mail in return someday! *Hint hint* and has even picked up a few new penpals along the way! She is currently working on a detailed letter to one of those said penpals about what we've been doing in school and what she's learning about fall....Emails are great but letters are better!! Go check out the blog and grab a piece of paper and a pen...someone is anxiously awaiting mail too! :)

A day of dragons

While exploring the Waldorf approach to schooling, we've happened on to a few celebrations that we otherwise wouldn't have known about. Some of these festivities are small and others are much more exciting and detailed...whatever the case my be, they are all simple and beautiful and I wish we were close enough to a Waldorf school to experience them fully. Until that day (hopefully someday) we just have to learn the best we can from what others share with us and make each festivity our own...




With that said, I introduce to you our day of dragons in the spirit of Michaelmas...a fall celebration of courage and determination. This is one of those celebrations that I knew/know little about, however we have always loved dragons so we thought we could give it a try! As I unpacked our book collection, I held out all the books we have about dragons. Surprisingly we had quite a few and the girls were anxious to read them all...all in one sitting if I'd let them...but then we wouldn't have had time to make this...











The girls loved decorating him with almond teeth, walnut spikes and cranberry eyes!







He looked a little rough after being baked...but boy was he yummy! lol This dragon bread was a nice addition to our chicken noodle soup for dinner and yummy spice cake for dessert! I had lots of other ideas for how the day would go but for a first time go around I thought it was pretty good. The girls played outside on the "new" swingset while I read this story of St George and how he slayed the dragon...by the end of it, the girls were sitting silently watching me read and so intend on listening that I could help but smile...I love homeschooling!






If you'd like to know more about this celebration, please check out these great blogs...they are great and such an inspiration to me. The education I have gotten from my fellow bloggers and homeschoolers is better than anything I learned in college! :)




Watkinseveryflavorbean


Crookedmoonmama




Frontier Dreams



Ancient Hearth



Twig and Toadstool


Our Little Nature Nest


The Lothians




I hope this season of change is a good one for you...and that you have the courage to slay the dragons in your life!

Could use some fairy help here...

When the fairies built this tree house, we thought it was great! We thought it was grand! We thought they did such a good job! One little detail we didn't think of was the fact that after dismantling it for moving....we didn't have any directions on how to put it back together! lol And where were the fairies when we needed their help?? Nowhere to be seen! lol

After many attempts on my own, I finally had to break down and cheat...by looking up pictures on my blog for a visual of what went where! lol When all was said and done, I did get it back together but I still think that tree house was made for fairies to put together because only a fairy could get those little screws to actually work in those long, dug out holes! lol

It feels good to be getting back to some semblance of "normal". The squealing that has been going on lately as we open more boxes of forgotten toys are almost deafening! I am enjoying the pure joy that surrounds us when a "new" old toy is unearthed tho...The girls are loving the unpacking and can't wait to dig in to another box, while I am a bit slower at it and make them wait for a bit (a few days at most) while they enjoy the new found toy for a bit longer before pulling out more. There have been days that I swear I only see them when they get hungry enough to pull themselves away from this tree to eat and then right back in they go!

I love to watch them, and the details with which they play...placing each little toy in place and then hearing the giggling that follows like they did with this one....Who knew a gnomes head was good for balancing?

J made sure that I saw that her fairy was watching out the window, much like we did when we had the deer in our yard....oh how I love the way their little minds work! Speaking of deer, check out what's next on my list to make! :) I just know I can hear the fabric and pattern calling me..can't you hear them? lol

On a side note tho, our schoolroom is FINALLY starting to take shape and feel like the end is near. I have been looking at Waldorf classrooms online for months, saving pictures and making plans the best I could without knowing where we were going to be living! :) I wish so badly they could go to a Waldorf school but it's just not feasible so we'll do the best we can here at home! I really like the way it is turning out! I'll share more when I have a finished product to show off! Stay tuned!

The speech everyone should hear!!

I can't begin to thank SimplyMontessori for sharing this on her blog!!!

As the sun is coming up on my quiet morning, often times I wonder if what we are doing to school are children is enough, is it the right thing for them, could I be doing it better...and after watching this (which I think every person should do!) my answer to all three of these is YES!!! Yes, we are doing enough...we are doing enough when I can see the love of learning growing in them everyday...Yes, we are doing the right thing to make our children free thinkers...to give them the opportunity to learn freely and with passion! And YES, I can and will do better! I am constantly striving to be a better teacher to them...and in turn they are teaching me...re-training my thought process of what learning is...they are giving me back the passion to learn that was long ago stiffled in a classroom of "must do" rather than "must inspire"....Watching this video/speech gives me hope for the future, hope for the students to come and the teachers who will teach them...hope for the parents to make a stand for their children....