Homeschooling Journal: January 2014 Part 2

Gym / Ballet Co-op

In Ballet, we only had the two girls, but it was lots of fun. We talked about lost teeth, pierced ears and such. We had a hard warm-up and some muscle-building exercises for legs. We also did all of our rhythmic counting in French. We loved it!

Homework:
1) do all five positions, feet only
2) do all five positions, arms only
3) do all five positions, both feet and arms
You can refer to the chart I gave them for Christmas. 

Montessori Math: Numbers and Counters (Introduction to Odd and Even)

                                         
The purpose of this activity is to verify that each number is a quantity on its own, that numbers can be sequenced, and that there are odd and even numbers within the alignment of numbers 1-10 and beyond. In addition, children will begin an informal lesson on division.

This activity is recommended for ages 4 and up (preferably after working with the spindle boxes). I started my son with these when he was 3 years old and did very well. So, if you are unsure, try it and follow the child. If he/she isn't ready yet, try again in a month's time.

French Lessons for Preschoolers and Kindergartners (Basics: Greetings, Colors, Numbers)

This is our window. I made it into functional space, where I

have a high bulletin board and a low bulletin board. The middle

part has a mesh (sun screen) fabric that lets good light in. We

used up the two walls we had and this was a good way of making

good use of the third wall. On the top, I put the colors in 7

languages (English, Spanish, Chinese, French, Portuguese,

German, and Italian) and on the bottom, I posted the

numbers (0-10) in 7 languages as well. We read these about 3

times a week and yes, we do them all. I tried to do one language

a day (colors and numbers), but K always wanted to keep going,

so ok, we keep going. :)

Here, you will see lessons on Greetings, Colors, and Numbers (1-10)

I am currently teaching Spanish and French in our homeschool co-op (ages 1-5) and additionally Mandarin Chinese to my children.
The only thing I stress is that I make sure they notice and know which language we are working on at the time. They switch gears rather easily and do very well. Even those who do both French and Spanish with me (on different days) haven't had a problem. I haven't thought of a strategy on how to teach languages to youngsters because I haven't really encountered the need to have one. 

My 2 year old was mixing letters. She knew all the letters in the alphabet in both English and Spanish, but she'd say some in English and some in Spanish. She is now getting better at differentiating them a bit more.  I hope this helps.

February Packet Review From Little Natural Cottage

Natural Beauty and Health Giveaway

Our giveaway winner is S. Milton from California! She happily picked her prize: an awesome Ava Anderson Non-Toxic Lip Gloss. 

Ultra sheer, hint of pink, moisturizing and conditioning lip gloss made with long lasting organic ingredients. Shiny, moist lips, with natural color.

Ingredients: organic Jojoba, organic avocado oil, organic sweet almond oil, organic meadow foam seed oil, organic shea butter, organic cocoa butter, organic grape seed oil, organic beeswax, candelilla wax, organic purple carrot extract, organic spearmint essential oil.

I love sharing Ava Anderson products!

Our winner picked this because she wants to share an alternative that is titanium dioxide-free with her daughter. 

Congratulations!