Posts

Showing posts from March, 2020

Simple Dessert Math!

Image
Creating meaningful, learning activities does not have to take weeks of planning and lots of supplies.  In fact, it can and should be flexible and impromptu!  As a teacher I tend to have things that most families don't have lying around the house, but that doesn't mean you NEED to have these materials to create a cool experience! For example, at my house we try to incorporate learning into little things.  So when I make something new for dinner we go around the table and rate it from 1-5.  This sounds silly, but it's a great conversation starter AND a way to incorporate math into the daily routine.  Yes, actually using a rating scale and rating a meal is math.  Children are developing sense of quantity and measurement by deciding what to rate food they ate!  Want to take it a step further and incorporate writing?  Record it on paper! The other day my niece was over and she doesn't like to try new foods.  I know this, so we had an impromptu COOKIE TASTE TEST!  Not on

Day 6: About One Week In, How's it Going?

Image
Spring Break is only one week long.  We've only been home (all of us) for 6 days.  So why does it feel so much longer?  I guess social distancing makes a big difference.  When the week started we were more relaxed.  The kids went outside and played with neighbors, we went to the store, we left the house at least!  Now we're staying in, watching the news, and trying to keep the children busy!  But that's where I think we need to focus... the children. Many people, including me, have posted schedules, ideas, and activities to keep the children busy.  This is from a good place, of course, but it's not all that matters.  Today I posted what my family would be doing for the day.  It involved quiet time, an interactive YouTube video, and doodling.  A family member commented on it and said something along the lines of, "Now this I can do."  She then said that she was worried about "doing enough".  This made me think.  What is "enough"? With c

How to Trap a Leprechaun

Image
Can you make a leprechaun trap?  It's easy!  Just start by collecting recycled items from around your house.  Then, look for shiny things that might attract a leprechaun.  Old, broken jewelry, old game pieces, or you can be sneaky like they were in the book and paint some rocks gold!  Set your trap out tonight and see if you catch anything.  Watch out because sometimes leprechauns leave messes or surprises behind.  One year, our toilet water turned green! LEARNING: When children make leprechaun traps they are using creativity, critical thinking, innovation, and more.  This is a STEAM activity because it incorporates Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math.  You may not realize it, but finding the right size box and fitting some tape around it involves mathematical thinking and measuring.  The way materials can be reused and repurposed is science.  Finally, talking about what you're making, how you're making it, and making predictions is all language developme

Day 3: Starting a Schedule

Image
My children have had a bit of a free for all while my husband and I have binge-watched news updates and been glued to social media.  We decided today that it was time for a schedule.  We cannot have all three children glued to screens all day.  When that happens, as I'm sure you've seen, they become cranky, irritable, and meaner to each other.  This is because being on a screen actually harms the brain.  There have been studies that compare screen time use to cocaine use! If taking away a screen causes a meltdown we shouldn't be surprised as being on that screen activates the same areas of the brain that drugs do.  Today, cutting down screen time was my goal...  here's what we came up with. We looked at this schedule that is making the social media rounds first. After attempting this schedule, we realized that our morning walk was FREEZING and we were practically pushing the children out the door. So, we changed this to make it our own....

Talking to Children About COVID-19

So how do you discuss a pandemic to children?  First of all, keep in mind the child's age.  As children grow, so does their brain.  It’s important to know what stage of brain development a child is in to really understand what they are able to comprehend.  For example, did you know that a child is able to BEGIN abstract thought around age 7/8?  Abstract thought means anything that isn’t concrete or physically present. So reasoning skills and understanding complexities like relationships between verbal and nonverbal ideas, metaphors and analogies, critical thinking, etc.  Jean Piaget explained that the last stage of cognitive development (formal operational stage) occurs when children are between the ages of 11 and 16, although it may begin to develop earlier.  You can read more about abstract thinking here . What is most important, is that you explain and answer questions differently based on each child’s understanding. I have a challenge myself with this.  I have an 11-ye

COVID-19 Spring Break Day 1

COVID-19 #CoronaBreakDay1 As of yesterday, I am on a 3-week Spring Break mandated by the Ohio governor, Mike DeWine.  I brought home half of my 3 classes’ portfolios to work on, my computer to write lesson plans, and my 2 class pets:  one hedgehog and a rabbit.  I am in a great position because as a teacher, I am able to be home with my 3 children while we are all on our extended Spring Break.  My husband, however, will be working through the COVID-19 outbreak as he is a police officer.   I am also NOT in a great position as I have asthma, an underlying condition that professionals have advised to avoid contact with people during this pandemic.  As we all watch social media and new outlets for updates on how many cases there are and how many people are going to be tested, we are all trying to make sense of the unprecedented closures that continue to go on around us.  We’ve been at stores where shelves are bare, and people are wearing masks and gloves and it all seems a l