MrBaby's HomeSchool

And it is Leap Day!!!

2012-02-29T16:51:00.000-08:00

And I either got through to Karl about what Leap Day is and why it exists (there's a saying that there is no man-made institution that doesn't have a purpose, and I have yet to figure one out that doesn't have a purpose), or he's tired of hearing me yap about it.

This is one of those fantastic things about homeschooling your kid - you can harp on something until they get it, which is not something they do in public school.

How I explained it to him was that the earth doesn't know our calendar, it is something we made up, and it's not perfectly lined up with the seasons. If we didn't do Leap Day, in a couple hundred years, we'd end up with Christmas in the Summer, like they have in Bolivia, and Bolivia would have Christmas in the Winter, like we do now. He understands their seasons are the opposite of ours, so I am hoping that he does understand, and not just telling me he gets it now.

Great Kids

2012-02-27T17:03:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the post, Lorraine Gregory

We’ve got some really great kids. They do their homework like they’re supposed to and they spend time outdoors playing sports and they have a lot of great friends. I wish I could get through to them how proud I am of them and how much I think they’re doing to prepare themselves for their future. I recently got some DIRECTV Packages for home so we could institute a family togetherness night – I want to make sure we get to spend a lot of time with the kids before they go off to college in a few years. I can’t believe they’re that old or that things have to change because they’re getting older. I have so many friends whose kids are really getting attitude problems as they get older and I’m just thankful that’s not something we’re dealing with. I can’t believe we’ve been married for 20 years and that our kids are old enough to be out on their own soon. It’s been a whirlwind of a life!

Sisser's 19th Birthday, and She Came Over (With Visitors!)

2012-02-25T21:22:00.003-08:00

Sisser is 19 today, and she came over. Dylan and his younger brother came over too. Seth is taller than Dylan, though, so now Karl is hoping he will be taller than Corey and Josh. I'm hoping he is as tall, but I doubt he will be taller.

Karl is still having trouble counting correctly to 20, he still jumps from 13 to 18, so I'm going to try something new, and that's to make a chart where he is 0, then 1, then 2, and so on up to now, where he's six. Then I'm going to put Sisser down, also, because she was almost 13 when he was born. I'm hoping that showing him that Sisser's age didn't jump from 12, almost 13, when he was born, to 18 (and now 19 - and next year, 20, when he will have already turned 7).

It'll look like something like this:

.......0.......1.......2.......3.......4.......5.......6.......7

12.....13.......14.....15......16.....17......18.....19

And, they said that they'd love to go camping with us, too, so the big camping trip is going to have even more people. Looking forward to it!!!

Camping Trip Being Planned

2012-02-16T22:33:00.014-08:00

It's Theresa's birthday today and when we talked she told me she is wanting to go camping this summer, for at least a week, maybe even longer, and that she wants it to be a bigger event. So we're going to see ow many people we can get to go, even if they only stay a few days at a time. I love to go camping, and it's the tearing down of the site that I hate to do, unless I know I'm going to go again very soon. I told her since I work online, and she's not working right now, and she said they have wifi, and (yes, I'm rambling) that if she let me borrow her laptop, I could go for longer than a week. I'm shooting for a month. She's worried about her puppy, who can't go (breed isn't welcome at the location we're planning on going to) being let out, but she should be able to go home a couple times a day, or have Gene let him out, too. It's workable, I know it is.

With our two tents, and her two, and then one of the guys having a camper (he's wanting electric), we're pretty set. We already have all the cooking gear, and I told her I can bring the coffee maker, and the electric stove, so with a fire pit or two going, as well, we're set.

This should give Karl a good chance at checking out the nearby river (which is toxic and even has warning signs not to come into contact with the water, joy), ride his bike all over the place, and play on the playground equipment, and maybe, just maybe, get used to taking showers, lol. This is going to be a good field trip for his homeschool studies.

Happy Valentine's Day, Everyone!

2012-02-14T09:43:00.004-08:00

Karl has been practicing his artwork by drawing a bunch of hearts, in all different colors. As soon as I can get either a new camera, or the scanner up and working, I'll post some of his creations.

We've also been working on spirals, and not just drawing them, but also cutting them,and seeing what they do when they are held up in the air.

When we were looking on Youtube for spirals, well, he loves UFO's also, and we ended up looking at this video of a rendering of a spiraling rocket, and what it would do to clouds.

Ground Hog Day with Leap Day Soon to Be Here

2012-02-02T12:00:00.013-08:00

Well, some say Ground Hog Day was yesterday, but I've always felt it was the second of the second, and that would be today. Then, 27 more days, and it will be Leap Day. Karl wants to catch a ground hog now (I should have known, right?) and we have plenty here. They are all over the place, even here in the city. These are some very large animals, too, for something that lives underground. I really need a camera! I don't care what the news people say, or even if they agree with me - I think we only have a very short time left before SPRING hits, and it's going to be a nice one, without any of the common floods we usually have here.

I think it's Karl's very young age that is making it so difficult to explain that we add a day every four years to the calendar. But, I have all month, so I'm going to try another approach and see if explaining it from a solar system and climate and seasons approach will work. Wish me luck!

Big Brother Corey's Birthday - He's 25 Today!!!

2012-01-27T06:08:00.017-08:00

Time sure does fly when your kids are growing up. It seems like yesterday that Corey was Karl's age, and in homeschool himself. Now, Corey's a quarter of a century old!

Wow, that makes me feel a bit old, lol. Even though Corey won't be coming into town, and he has his Facebook privatized so nobody,not even his friends, can post on his Wall, I've sent him a couple of messages.

We also made him a cake, and Karl wanted to put 25 candles on it, but I told him we didn't have that many. I'm using this as an opening to move him up to 25 in addition. In about a week, we'll start the subtraction up to 25, but I have to make some of our own flashcards for that.

Making your own flashcards is quite easy, just use heavy paper or light cardboard, and a marker. Make them all the same size, and write in very small size numbers at the top the numbers, with the answer, on the opposite side, using a pen.

Packing China

2012-01-26T11:43:00.000-08:00

Guest post from: Constance Rodgers

I had so much to do today. When I woke up this morning, I was totally over whelmed. I have been putting things off for our big move for quite sometime. Now, with the move only two weeks away, it was time to really get moving. I had to meet the painter at the new house, to make sure that the baseboard work they the previous owners were doing before we moved in got finished. Then, I had to call and make sure that the boarder’s had the reservations for our dogs for the next few weeks. We still don’t have a fence up at the new house. I also had to meet Home Security 101 at the house so that they could install the security system. The last thing and biggest thing that I had to do was finish packing up the china. I was really beginning to regret my habit of collecting vintage patterns when five o’clock rolled around and I was still not done packing up the china. I do know one thing, I am definitely not going to be collecting anymore china unless we decided that we are NEVER going to move again. It is just way too much work.

Reasons Why We Homeschool

2012-01-18T16:50:00.000-08:00

1. Socialization in most public schools is of extremely poor quality. Parents have no idea who their child is going to meet, interact with, be influenced by, or if the other children are who they want their child associating with. Worse, bullying is on the rise, and educators seem to be uneducated on not only what bullying is, but how to deal with it when it happens.

2. Educational standards are slipping, and quickly. More and more children leave school with no skills, including the very basics of reading and writing.

3. Pressure to perform, and also to conform, fails to intrigue me, except for the passing fancy I have of it and why so many parents are fine with it being aimed at their children. Then I remind myself, there is no logic behind it, except it's easier to control people who conform. I want my child to grow up to be a leader, not a follower. Nothing wrong with followers, it's just the day and age that's bad for followers. At the rate things are going, it might be harder on those who end up being leaders.

4. I enjoy being with my son, day in and day out. He doesn't seem to mind my company, either. I know what he's learning, what methods are being used, I never have to worry about the dreaded PTA meetings, nor the parent-teacher conferences, where all of a sudden, your child, who you've been told all grading period is near saintly, now has problems that you've never been told about. and I also know what he's eating, without ever having to pack a lunch.

5. Flexibility is wonderful. I can teach at a bowling alley, lecture while he's laying down to go to bed, help him write better while talking on the phone, use his favorite TV shows to reinforce something we covered before, and combine subjects into lessons however I think he'll learn best.

6. Risk of several things is eliminated, and even though they may have been low-risk if he attended 'regular' school, there's no chance of him being bullied, ending up in a poor quality school system (FWCS, where we live, is rated a 4 out of 10!), being a victim of violence, or failing. That's right, he has no risk of being held back a grade. I teach him at what level he is capable of learning, not by his age. He also doesn't risk becoming ill from other students, and I don't mean the flu or colds, I mean contagious diseases that run long-term health risks, such as e-coli. He also doesn't run the risk of being kidnapped while on his way to or from the bus stop.

7. Lack of his time being wasted while a teacher catches other children up with the rest of the class. He's not forced to learn at the average rate of the other students in his class.

8. He's also freed of permission slips for field trips, lunch money lost (or stolen), homework left at home, and so on.

9. His curriculum is actually increased, not decreased. He's learning how to cook, parasitology, beginning chemistry, beginning physics, and not only geography, but also topography.

10. His teacher, me, studied Liberal Arts, and I'm comfortable teaching many different subjects, even though I'm a bit rusty on the calculus.

Last Thursday to today

2012-01-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

Covered animal sciences, with Squeaky the mouse, as well as social studies through interactions and observations on the #9.

In beginning addition, in which he did surprisingly well, and even though he refused help, after begging for it, he got every equation correct on the first two pages of the Spiderman workbook he received for Christmas. For practical math, we went today with his sister and Dylan to a book store, where he sold some of his baby books, and received $8.75 for them. (I then turned around and spent about $7.50 on a couple of new books for him, one is a very well-rounded resource fact book, and the other is a bilingual workbook.) He's not as upset as he originally was about selling his baby books as he was before he got the money for them.

With reading, we covered a few different words again, and then he sounded out a few words on his own. We then discussed exclamation marks, because he thought it was an 'i' and sounded it out, as well.

Geography was covered in the usual way, by using the map on his wall. We also discussed the globe, and I again stressed that even though it looks like a ball, it's not able to bounce like one, and it will break. I'm really hoping he doesn't test me on that point!

The Business

2011-12-07T12:35:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the post from Sylvester Campbell

There’s nothing good to say about owning your own business once you get past the flexibility and the total control. In my opinion, those things are kind of negatives anyway since I’m a bad time manager and I have a tough time delegating! I guess the biggest problem I’ve found is that I spend so much time doing what I’ve already hired other people to do because I want it perfect that I don’t really have time to just sit back and be the boss. I spend all my weekends working because I don’t want to get behind and from bank card processing to hiring and firing to paying for utilities there’s just a lot to keep up with when you run your own store! I love my job, don’t get me wrong, but it’s a lot more work than I ever anticipated and I definitely thought being my own boss would be a lot easier and more relaxing. I guess it’s something to think about before you haul off and start your own company!

Book Reading - Mommy? by Maurice Sendak

2011-10-09T20:14:00.000-07:00

Did really well, building confidence on oral reading, only two words in the book, "Mommy?" and "Baby!"

The artwork also helps.

We also went and picked up a bike trailer from a very nice FreeCycler. Looking forward to getting it cleaned up!

The Provider

2011-10-07T14:16:00.000-07:00

This guest post from Lenny McKnight

Being the provider at home means it’s my job to take care of the family. I’m not just talking about money, either, I mean when it comes to their entire well being. I went to http://www.homesecurityfamily.com/ when we first moved in to feel better about their safety and even signed my wife up for a self-defense class. I’m really proactive about the kinds of groceries she buys and even give her extra money each week so she can buy organic. There’s just nothing too small when it comes to my family for me to be involved in and I think that as the man of the house it’s my job! My wife may tell you different and ask that I butt out every once and a while but I know that at the end of the day it’s all about making sure my family is taken care of. That’s what’s really important in the world and no matter what kind of job or salary I have, I’m going to make sure that happens every day.

We have a new kitten!

2011-09-22T19:29:00.000-07:00

Our new neighbor, Patricia, gave us her kitten. His name is Gene, after Gene Simmons of KISS. MrBaby just looks at him as a new kitten, but I am going to use the kitty to teach MrBaby some responsibility skills, and increase his compassion levels. He really loves this silly kitty, and he's ecstatic we now have a feline friend in the house.

Here are some pics of them together. You can tell they both like each other.

Future Science Books for Us

2011-08-09T14:01:00.000-07:00

Right now, MrBaby's favorite subject is science, and lots of it. We have another frog, who will be going into a larger terrarium soon (after we move), and he can't wait. I'm hoping that needing to learn to read will become less of a chore for him when he realizes there is so much knowledge in books. From the several sources I'm looking over, I really love the detail I see in the National Geographic-style books available online. Books like these have facts, diagrams, photos, maps, as well as text, and are entertaining and informative. There are books on animals, insects, ecology, weather, and many other topics.

The best science teachers know that to teach students well in any setting, be it a homeschool, or a more formal public school, requires getting the kids' attention and holding it. Without that, science is reduced to memorizing facts and figures, tables, charts, and graphs, and that's not something any student retains easily. If a student doesn't retain knowledge, a student can't manipulate that knowledge later on, or even easily build on it.

That is why my materials are so important to me, and I want books and manipulatives that I can use for years and build on. MrBaby will benefit from what I choose for years, so it's really important that I choose right. If you're an educator, it's important you choose good materials, too, and continually build your library.

Out in the Boonies!

2011-08-04T11:52:00.000-07:00

Guest post, posted by Gaylord Campbell

I love being out in the country and my new home just proves it. It’s totally authentic log cabin style and we have a lot of really natural fixtures – our dining room chandelier is made out of deer antlers! I try to be as eco-concious as possible and not use too much water or AC…for example, I went to HTTP://www.shopelectricityratestexas to make sure we were getting the best rate and have my kids save their shower water for us to use on the garden. It’s nice being so outside the city and away from all the hustle and bustle and I feel like it’s been good for my family, too, so that’s an added bonus. I like Texas a lot but some of the big cities are just too darn big and I needed some space or I was going to go crazy. I wish I had thought to do this sooner but I guess it’s better late than never or whatever it is they all say! I’m here now and that’s what matters.

Survivor

2011-05-31T12:12:00.000-07:00

This guest post from Edgardo Rosa

I have been a huge reality TV fan and I never discriminate. I will watch it all no matter how 'scripted' or fake it seems to be. Ever since we have gotten http://www.direc4u.com I have been watching more reality than normal and my favorite show to watch has to be Survivor. I have watched Survivor for years but never really gotten into it until now. Mostly I just watched the seasons on DVD whenever there was nothing good. The past season really got me hooked though! The thing I like best about this show is how much it really takes to win. It do! es not just test athletic ability or strength or smarts but all those things combined as well as a level of sneakiness needed to ultimately win the game. So far my favorite season has been the villains versus heroes. This season took contestants from past seasons that were fan favorites for being either really sneaky, conniving and just overall bad and pitted them against previous contestants that were known for being honest and forthright and generally good. It was fun to watch previous contestants pitted against each other and see whether it was possible to win the game without lying and breaking alliances. In the end the 3 final contestants that went to tribal were all villains, but at least Sandra, the lesser of the three evils, ultimately won the million dollars.

Learning to Write English

2011-04-02T11:30:00.000-07:00

MrBaby has learned to write most letters well, and is still working on writing the letter 'S' which can be a problem for most children, simply because it starts opposite from where most other letters do. Now, we're working on learning that words are groups of letters, and the same word means the same thing, no matter where it is seen. Teachable moment of seeing that one of Ben 10's aliens has the name of 'Ditto' and comparing it to the name he had written down yesterday for Bear's sister Ditto. It took him a minute to realize that 'Ditto' on the Ben 10 page was not 'Bear and Ditto' like he had written on his piece of paper, though.

His fluency in verbal English, though, is something that he will be able to rely on when writing longer texts, beginning first with short stories describing simple, everyday items.

For those who rely on writing articles as their livelihoods, but don't have English as their first language, finding out what sounds as good as some of their ideas are can be a daunting task. It's not impossible, but there is a big difference in what readers think after reading something written in broken English, and another article with the same content, but written in smoother English.

English lessons cost money, and few are free, or always directed at an article writer's problem areas. It's another obstacle that needs to be overcome in addition to finding article ideas. My best advice on article ideas are to write what you like, but also that has an audience. Without an audience, you're writing is wasted, and so is your time. But, if you don't like what you are writing about, that will show up and irritate your reader, sometimes enough to click off your content.

I don't teach just MrBaby for his homeschool, I also teach English to those who aren't fluent in it, and having been in South America before, I'm accustomed to using online translators myself, so I know first hand, the meanings I am trying to communicate sometimes get lost in translation. Many of those I have helped are involved in writing articles for money online.

Some translators are better than others, but here's a new one that you might want to try. I think it's pretty good. WhiteSmoke improves the use of synonyms, grammar, translations, spelling, and much more. It's simple to use, as well. If you wanted to take a break from working in English and write in your native language, you could do that, and then simply click to translate the entire article. Your choice.

I've also thought about using it myself to increase article generation, but in different languages, and seeing if I can post these additional articles elsewhere, in markets and on pages already using those different languages. Writing articles for money is more profitable the more articles you have posted. The debate with this is that the new article isn't written by the person submitting it. However, I believe that if you've written an article, and you pay someone else to translate it for you into a fluent version in another language, then it's the same as hiring someone to write an article for you in your own language.Sometimes you need to spend a little bit to make a lot more money online.

Homework in college is a little different

2011-02-22T10:09:00.000-08:00

Guest post written by Marla Brighton

I barely even had homework in high school, even when I had honors classes. I really realized how much of a joke that was when I got to college and I had work all the time, every day. So last semester, the first time that I went away to college, I realized that I needed to make some changes in my existing study habits to make sure that I would get all of my work done and study.

I went online to try and find some study tips over winter break that I could apply to my work this semester. While I was online looking for those I randomly found some clear TV bundle packages and after I read some more about them, I signed up for one of them for my college apartment.

IÕm really excited to use the new college schoolwork tips that I found, like keeping my notes in chronological order, which sounds really simple but that was something I wasn't doing before and will just make my life easier.

Fwd: Ice Experiments

2010-11-30T05:23:00.000-08:00

We noticed the pool out in the front yard was frozen so we broke it up with a ball peen hammer. Then we added food coloring, blue, to be exact. Then it froze again. Today, we went out there and broke it all up again, and then added purple food coloring with a bunch of red. We pulled a few pieces out, and also looked at the ice that had frozen inside some toys. The ice that had been in the pool had air bubbles throughout the ice. The ice that was formed in a sheet on one of the toy covers had bubbles in it, too.

MrBaby opened the little cooler up all the way and found more ice. The ice found in the cooler, that had been mostly covered, was clear and free of bubbles.

So our discovery is that either air, or the sun, make bubbles form in ice. It also could be from the cooler being more static in its temperature, or possibly a lack of air currents.

The Aquarium, Now

2010-11-17T11:44:00.000-08:00

Our latest project in science is an aquarium of different insects. We worked really hard on getting a good ecosystem going for a variety of of insects. We have a grasshopper that we found in my bedroom, another baby grasshopper that was hatched in the aquarium, a brown and orange caterpillar that still has not decided to create a cocoon, a very large cricket, several slugs, some stinkbugs, more than enough fruit flies, oh, and a really long worm. This is the same aquarium we had the frog in.

We let him go one day in the late summer, and we'll be starting with tadpoles instead of frogs in the spring. MrBaby wanted to keep him with the insects, until I explained he would eat them, which he agreed wouldn't be good for the bugs. When he is older, I plan on getting a TENS unit and, gross as it sounds, doing the old electricity-on-a-dead-frog-to-see-how-it-jumps lesson. Besides, having a TENS unit would be great for my back, and probably help me get the muscles relaxed enough I can adjust my own back, particularly when my one trick rib decides to go out on me. It's very painful, most times it feels like I am having a heart attack. I have gone to see a chiropractor close to IPFW for a while after I had MrBaby and these are some wonderful machines. I think everyone should have one. I read on their blog, that reads sort of like a FAQ, two questions, 'is it effective?,' and 'is it safe?' From my own personal experience, I'd answer 'yes,' to both, plus if you get the right intensity, it's quite relaxing. I was usually disappointed when my session would end. I doubt it's addictive, but it sure does feel good!

The one I want for myself is the Dual Combo TENS and Muscle Stimulator because I believe that would also help with building up my muscles, not just relax them and relieve pain. I'd like to get the additional muscle stimulator because I know it's harder to injure yourself when you're in shape than if you aren't. I just dealt with a sprained rotator cuff, found some exercises online, plus some stretches, and worked through it. I wish that I would have had one of these units. I wouldn't have had the internal debate on if I should go to the chiropractor's office or not. I did get MrBaby to rub, scratch, and pound on my back inbetween my shoulder blades and that did help a great deal, besides teaching him a bit about human anatomy. He came up this morning and asked me where his own shoulder blades were. They're so small and slight, I wondered for a minute, before I actually looked, if maybe they were like knee caps and developed over time during childhood!

But speaking about shoulders and shoulder blades brings me back to where I started at with this post. I don't think it added to my sprained shoulder, because moving it to another location will require a lifting-up motion, and I got this sprain pushing down on something, like when I closed the stupid windows here at our new place when it started raining. Right now, we have the aquarium in a southern-facing window, but some of the morning ray's of the Sun are blocked by another part of the house. I'm debating on if we should leave it there, or move it to an eastern-facing window. It would be lower, not over the heat vent, but it would also be where MrBaby watches TV and eats his snacks. It would be on a stabler table, too. When I am a bit more healed up, in a week or two, I'll probably move it and see. For now, I need to go water the plants that we have around the house. I need to get pictures of them up, as well as ones of his insect project. Since we have worms and slugs, we might rename it. How does 'Backyard Ecology Tank' sound?

We have Found a FROG!!!

2010-08-16T22:38:00.000-07:00

He is a green and grey, squirrel tree frog. A one-time contributor to Wikipedia made his sole entry states that yes, these cute little critters are indeed poisonous. Glad we know better than that! He's not poisonous at all.

He eats crickets, moths, and whatever else he can find that has crawled into his lair.

Pictures coming soon.

Here's a video of another frog that we found. He's very tiny!

Groundhog Skeleton - NOT for the Squeamish!

2010-08-15T02:26:00.000-07:00

I found out about a groundhog skeleton that had pretty much gotten to the point it was free of the soft tissue, and went to go get it for our homeschool. I then soaked it in bleach solution for two and a half days. I brushed it off with an old toothbrush, and let it dry. It's not complete, but most is present, and it's beautiful!

Since we used bleach, the connective tissue in the oral areas disintegrated, and the teeth are removable, including the larger ones. they slide out very nicely, and it's amazing to see just how long the teeth, from tip to root end, really are.

I didn't realize until later, I thought it was just debris from the grass where I picked this up at, but the brains came out in the bleach solution. The brains looked weird, kind of hard to describe, and I am really disappointed I lost a teaching opportunity. MrBaby is very interested in brains, because I told him they are the computers of the body. But they came out in two pieces, and looked like clumps of mildew, almost black in color. I know they were decomposing before the bleach solution got to them, and I would have had to crack the skull open to get them out intact, and that they still would have only been good for a quick lesson, but knowing I flushed them without pointing them out to my eager learner, kind of disappoints me.

We're planning on wiring it together soon, after I find some suitable wire in adequate amounts. I'll post pics soon.

Homeschool Lesson for Adults - Grandma Barb had an accident!

2010-05-15T12:51:00.000-07:00

I just found out my mom had an accident. Some guy backed into her car in the parking lot. She was so upset, she only got his policy number. Now, she has to pay for the damages to her car on her own. I am hoping I can help her out some by seeing if I can find out who he is.

No insurance is required in Bolivia, but you can get good insurance in the USA by clicking the picture above! And you won't be ashamed to give your other policy information if you do have an accident.

Word lists - ca*e

2010-05-07T19:17:00.000-07:00

We worked with ca*e noun words today.
cave
cage
cape
cake
cane
case (remember, we just won in court against Alan and Teresa in Indianapolis, and we will soon have at least some of our things back from those people, and soon receive damages from them for the things they have disposed of. Mr Baby is VERY excited to know he will soon have many of his precious toys back!)

And also the verb forms below:
care
came
Just remember, when you are teaching a young child new words,make it relevant, and when you hear them say 'enough' or something similar, stop. Learning should be fun, not tiresome! If there's no pressure, and it's fun, and empowering, they will remain receptive to what you teach. take those little lessons you come across in everyday life, and expand them for your child. use his or her curiosity to open their minds to your lessons. The best curriculum out there is where your child naturally goes.

Spring is almost over, and here comes summer!!!!!!

2010-05-03T17:18:00.000-07:00

With Alan and Teresa in Indy stealing our things, it's getting time to get some outside toys for MrBaby. I'm looking at the portable ones, not the regular swing sets, but the Little Tikes Cubes. those would be best, plus I think it would be cute for him to hide from King and JuJu that way. Then there's always the option of putting a sheet over it for him, and turning it into a tent, too. We go to court in three days! I'll keep you posted!

Biology - Skeletons

2010-05-01T10:31:00.000-07:00

Interactive game here. Put the skeleton back together to see and hear him clap his hands. Or maybe it was a girl skeleton! One of the other links at the website has a tutorial on what the bones do. The link leads to not only the skeleton unit, but also to the brain, heart, and digestive tract pages for their website. It is available in English and Spanish.

We also pointed out different bones on the glow in the dark skeleton.

Pictures of Bolivia

2009-11-19T18:29:00.001-08:00

Not really happy with the taste of this country's food, I believe.

Here are some pictures. Enjoy! Hopefully more coming soon, if I can get them to download.

coordinates from seriousteachers

2009-11-09T18:08:00.001-08:00

200.119.211.137

Parque Autonomia, in Santa Cruz

2009-11-08T16:55:00.001-08:00

Parque Autonomia, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

Essay, Book Report, and Research Paper How-To Information from InfoPleaes

2009-07-30T04:41:00.001-07:00

For David's Homeschool Requirements

http://www.infoplease.com/homework/writingskills1.html

How to Write a Five Paragraph Essay

While the classic five paragraph essay is a form seldom if ever used by professional writers, it is commonly assigned to students to help them organize and develop their ideas in writing. It can also be a very useful way to write a complete and clear response to an essay question on an exam. It has, not surprisingly, five paragraphs:

    * an introduction
    * three main body paragraphs
    * a conclusion

We'll look at each type of paragraph, and at transitions, the glue that holds them together.
Introduction

The introduction should start with a general discussion of your subject and lead to a very specific statement of your main point, or thesis. Sometimes an essay begins with a "grabber," such as a challenging claim, or surprising story to catch a reader's attention. The thesis should tell in one (or at most two) sentence(s), what your overall point or argument is, and briefly, what your main body paragraphs will be about.

For example, in an essay about the importance of airbags in cars, the introduction might start with some information about car accidents and survival rates. It might also have a grabber about someone who survived a terrible accident because of an airbag. The thesis would briefly state the main reasons for recommending airbags, and each reason would be discussed in the main body of the essay.
Main Body Paragraphs (3)

Each main body paragraph will focus on a single idea, reason, or example that supports your thesis. Each paragraph will have a clear topic sentence (a mini thesis that states the main idea of the paragraph) and as much discussion or explanation as is necessary to explain the point. You should try to use details and specific examples to make your ideas clear and convincing.
Conclusion

Your conclusion begins with a restatement of your main point; but be sure to paraphrase, not just repeat your thesis sentence. Then you want to add some sentences that emphasize the importance of the topic and the significance of your view. Think about what idea or feeling you want to leave your reader with. The conclusion is the reverse of the introduction in that it starts out very specific and becomes a bit more general as you finish.
Transitions

Transitions connect your paragraphs to one another, especially the main body ones. It's not effective to simply jump from one idea to the next; you need to use the end of one paragraph and/or the beginning of the next to show the relationship between the two ideas.

Between each paragraph and the one that follows, you need a transition. It can be built in to the topic sentence of the next paragraph, or it can be the concluding sentence of the first. It can even be a little of both. To express the relationship between the two paragraphs, think about words and phrases that compare and contrast.

    * Does the first paragraph tell us a pro and the second a con? ("on the other hand . . .")
    * Does the second paragraph tell us something of greater significance? ("more importantly . . .")
    * An earlier historical example? ("even before [topic of paragraph 1], [topic of paragraph 2]")
    * A different kind of consideration? (money versus time).

Think about your paragraph topics and brainstorm until you find the most relevant links between them. Click here to see more suggestions for transition words.

You'll also want some kind of transition from the last paragraph to your conclusion. One way is to sum up your third body paragraph with some reminders of your other paragraphs. You don't need to restate the topics fully (that comes in the conclusion) but you can refer to a detail, or example, or character as a way of pulling your ideas together and signaling that you are getting ready to conclude.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How to Write a Book Report (Middle and High School level)

Book reports and book reviews are similar. Book reports tend to be a little more descriptive (What is this book about?) and book reviews are usually more persuasive (Why a reader should or shouldn't read this book). Both offer a combination of summary and commentary.

They are a way to think more deeply about a book you've read and to demonstrate your understanding.

Most teachers have their own requirements, and sometimes a specific format they expect you to follow, so be sure to check, but the following general elements of a book report or book review should be helpful.
Introduction

Here you want to provide basic information about the book, and a sense of what your report will be about. You should include:

   1. Title (underlined)/Author
   2. Publication Information: Publisher, year, number of pages
   3. Genre
   4. A brief (1-2 sentences) introduction to the book and the report/review.

Body

There are two main sections for this part. The first is an explanation of what the book is about. The second is your opinions about the book and how successful it is. There are some differences between reports on fiction or other imaginative writing and reports on non-fiction books.

But for both, a good place to start is to explain the author's purpose and/or the main themes of the book. Then you can summarize.

      For fiction or other creative writing:

      Provide brief descriptions of the setting, the point of view (who tells the story), the protagonist , and other major characters. If there is a distinct mood or tone, discuss that as well.

      Give a concise plot summary. Along with the sequence of major events, you may want to discuss the book's climax and resolution, and/or literary devices such as foreshadowing. But, if you are writing a review, be careful not to give away important plot details or the ending.
      For non-fiction:

      Provide a general overview of the author's topic, main points, and argument. What is the thesis? What are the important conclusions?

      Don't try to summarize each chapter or every angle. Choose the ones that are most significant and interesting to you.

Analysis and Evaluation

In this section you analyze or critique the book. You can write about your own opinions; just be sure that you explain and support them with examples. Some questions you might want to consider:

    * Did the author achieve his or her purpose?
    * Is the writing effective, powerful, difficult, beautiful?
    * What are the strengths and weaknesss of the book?
    * For non-fiction, what are the author's qualifications to write about the subject? Do you agree with the author's arguments and conclusions?
    * What is your overall response to the book? Did you find it interesting, moving, dull?
    * Would you recommend it to others? Why or why not?

Conclusion

Briefly conclude by pulling your thoughts together. You may want to say what impression the book left you with, or emphasize what you want your reader to know about it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Research paper information is on the link at the top of this post.

Most Recent Posts

2009-07-30T04:24:00.001-07:00

These last few posts have been for Josh, MrBaby's older brother. These are suggestive of the curriculum requirements, not explicitly what is actually required. Requiring Josh to turn in three essays, a book report, and a how-to explanatory paper is not overly heavy for a course load. I was reading about some different types of assignments, and perhaps including letter writing would have been a good idea. Teaching him to write an opinion letter, and also a complaint letter might help him later on.

See: SENIOR ENGLISH – SELF DIRECTED 178

2009-07-30T04:23:00.001-07:00

From http://mths.schoolfusion.us/modules/cms/pages.phtml?pageid=49506&sessionid=5fe83c70df9a951743291f349c8

SENIOR ENGLISH – SELF DIRECTED 178

Year - 1.0 credit; Senior requirement for graduation;

This course is a study of significant types of writing which teach advanced composition structure and style in the following major units: definition, argument, persuasion, comparison/contrast, critical analysis, and creative writing. Required assignments include short essays, research papers, a literary critical analysis, researched biography paper, and creative projects. The final project is an occupational study requiring research, interview, and observation of a chosen career. The course requires independent reading, research and note-taking outside of class for the writing of essays in class. This is a computer lab-based course with all work to be done on the MTHS computer system. All essays must be turned in also to TurnItIn.com to check for plagiarism and proper documentation. Sufficient time is allowed for each assignment and students have access to the lab during study halls and before/after school. This self-directed course allows the student to choose research topics, careers, author for analysis, and career for the final project. Once an assignment is made, the student is responsible for meeting the deadline, managing his/her own use of class/lab time.

NOTE: For the junior year, students must choose a literature-based course (British Literature, American Literature, or World Literature), or the honors versions thereof. Students may also elect to take these courses as electives their junior/senior years.

For Josh's Homeschool - English Class, Essay Experiment

2009-07-30T04:02:00.001-07:00

From http://www.jacweb.org/Archived_volumes/Text_articles/V8_Fuller.htm.

A nice social sciences experiment, I think, regarding disparity in grading amongst teachers of the same essay..

A Curious Case of Our Responding Habits:
What Do We Respond to and Why?

David Fuller

For a two-week summer seminar on the teaching of writing, I conducted a class exercise that yielded surprising results and made me reconsider how I respond to student writing. When planning the exercise, I remembered Gary Sloan's "The Wacky World of Theme-Marking" and his claims that writing teachers' marking habits are contradictory, biased, and often useless and incorrect, as well as "wacky." I prepared the exercise to see how the teachers enrolled in the seminar would respond to a given text and to prove that they were not as wacky as Sloan and others suggest.

I divided the class into two groups of seven, separated the groups so that they could not hear each other, and gave one group a typed and the other a handwritten version of the same paragraph. Both versions were dear and legible, but the handwritten version was deliberately uneven, the penmanship resembling that of a young writer: circles for the dots above i's, slightly exaggerated curls on the tails of y's, and two minor cross-outs. I instructed both groups to respond to the writing as if it had been submitted in response to an assignment asking for a paragraph describing a relationship between two people. I didn't tell either group anything about the writer, and they didn't ask about the student's age or grade level, or whether the draft was finished or in progress. Each person was allowed approximately ten minutes to read and respond in writing to the paragraph. I instructed them not to discuss the paragraph until they were finished and I had collected the responses. Before collecting the responses, I asked them to put a grade below their written comments. I instructed them to grade the piece after they had written comments in order to ensure that they would not write comments to justify a grade. I then collected their responses and we discussed the paragraph.

Teacher Responses

The behavior of the teachers as they responded and later as they discussed the paragraph was interesting. Those given the handwritten version were at first disturbed, noticeably perplexed by the task of responding, and hesitant to begin. After they turned in the papers, their behavior indicated that responding to the paragraph was especially difficult; they seemed pleased to find consensus about its quality, and they talked mostly about lines and words they thought were poorly written and unclear. In contrast, those reading the typed version were at first noticeably interested and dedicated to reading the text and writing comments. Later, they remained intent and serious, noting details they liked in the paragraph. I was naturally curious about the reasons for the difference in the behavior of the groups and began to anticipate that the grades and written responses might differ, but not significantly.

Everyone then returned to the main group to discuss the exercise. A spokesperson from the group responding to the handwritten version explained that the student had not addressed the assignment well. This group suggested that the paragraph, while 'somewhat" interesting, needed work, especially on style. The spokesperson for the other group explained that the group found the paragraph mature and "intense," and believed the writer had accomplished the task exceptionally well, except for some minor punctuation problems. As soon as a teacher mentioned that one of those minor problems was vague pronoun reference, a participant from the other group recognized the scam and asked if both groups had read the same paragraph. I admitted that they had and explained the difference between the two versions: one had been typed and the other handwritten. I read to them the grades assigned by each group as well as selected responses to the paragraph. The differences were startling and obviously surprised the members of both groups.

The differences in the comments on the paragraphs dearly reflected differences in the attitudes of the two groups. While the participants in both groups attempted to praise the student, the praise in response to the typed version was much more sincere and confidently phrased:

•Excellent mood created here; soft words—emotion. I feel frightened for her—the fright comes after the calm I sensed at the beginning.

•Effective mood is created. This has some tender emotion. I like this softness [arrows are drawn to the first two lines].

•Very good thoughts. You seem to be in touch with them. This paragraph is excellent. I feel I can see those eyes!

•Emotional intensity good! Mystical quality heightened by not naming the person in question.

•I like the way you allow me to "feel" her fright. Your thoughts are very good, but we could do some work together on word choice (you use "look" six times).

•The feeling and visual images are fantastic. I can picture this! I have been through the same emotion.

•Great technique—showing me in a unique way much more about this person than meets the eye.

In contrast, the comments on the handwritten version, particularly attempts at praise, were much more reserve

• I think you really have some insight into this other person. I do not see your side of the relationship. I like the idea about seeing her through her own eyes.

• A good subject. You surely feel something for this subject. Good effort—description is good.

• The third sentence intrigues me with the character. But most of the sentences are run together. Too gushy.

• Interesting piece of writing—very distinct style—a lot of thought.

• You appear to really care about this person and want to know her better. You must be very observant about human behaviors.

• I can tell you've given a lot of thought to the way she looks at things. Your idea is a good one.

• Your idea comes through.

Members of both groups wrote recommendations for revision. Recommendations for the typed version were polite, suggesting that the writer, if he or she wished, make the changes:

• Perhaps more physical environment would help. "Eyes" description is almost too abstract.

• Some problems with punctuation that cause some reader difficulty.

• First line, after her—second sentence could be made easier to envision.

• Describing your surroundings is a possibility.

• Maybe write more like this [an arrow is drawn to a line].

Note the qualifiers "perhaps," "some," "is a possibility," "could," and "maybe" and the general courteous and respectful tone. Participants responding to the handwritten version, however, were more resolute, identifying definite problems and stating their observations firmly. Note the definite evaluative tone and imperative constructions in the following:

• "They would look on" (use comma to avoid confusion).

• No sense for punctuation in correct places. Too many thoughts within one sentence.

• Try to find substitutes for Look. Revise the second sentence. Try using subordinate phrases or clauses.

• Shorter, more concise sentence.

• All of your sentences are basically the same.

• You need to work on sentence structure.

The marks and responses given by both groups to individual sentences in the sample were surprisingly different and idiosyncratic. Of the fourteen samples, very few marks or notations directed to individual sentences addressed similar concerns. Most of the notations occurred only once, indicating general inconsistency among teachers in their observations about stylistic features. The teachers inserted commas, crossed out or changed conjunctions, and noted problems with clarity and pronoun reference. But very few of these notations were consistent. In fact, at times the notations were noticeably contradictory.

While the tone was dearly different in the responses given the two versions, the responses from both groups were similar in that they addressed the text from the perspective of an "authority," and they followed the traditional response formula—identifying strengths and weaknesses and making recommendations for changes ("This.., is good, but. . . , so I'd recommend that you.. ."). The responses were essentially product centered and expressed different audience roles: friend, advisor, teacher, authority, and judge (see Cowan for a discussion of the effects of mixing these roles). The inconsistencies, the "praise . . . but" format, and the unusual reader expectations revealed a mode of response that these teachers were accustomed to. Admittedly, some of the inconsistencies and idiosyncrasies resulted from the exercise itself, which presented unusual time limitations and instructions as well as an artificial context. The teachers had to play a hypothetical game—they didn't know the student, they hadn't created the assignment, and they didn't know that the paragraph had been excerpted from a large prose selection. Thus, the idiosyncrasies expressed in the commentary may have partially resulted from the exercise itself.

Judging from the differences in the remarks, one might anticipate differences in the grades assigned by the two groups. The typed version received these grades: A-IB+, A, B, B-i-, B+, A, A (averaging an A-); the handwritten version received these: C+, C, C-, C-, C, C-, D (averaging C-). Clearly, the differences in attitude between the two groups' written remarks are emphasized by the significant difference in grades.

I asked the seminar participants what these differences in grades and responses suggest about the way we handle a student text. A few teachers remarked, and the others seemed to agree, that we need to look beyond the surface to acknowledge a student's intent. Many of them were astonished y the differences in the grades and the obvious conclusion that a typed paper will receive a much higher mark than a handwritten one. One teacher remarked that what could happen to a student with poor penman-hip is sad; the student may be interested and concerned about writing nothing of importance but receive responses and grades that fail to acknowledge his or her message.

This exercise reveals idiosyncrasies and inconsistencies in how we ad and respond to student papers; it also suggests that writing teachers made compositions, as Paul Schumann observes, "on a host of unconscious and/or superficial factors which often have little to do with what students actually write" (1164). The only consistency I was able to observe that the various reactions often expressed an authoritarian stance. It is safe to assume that during students' years of education they receive many authoritarian responses and directives. It is no wonder that they come to class asking, "Now what does this guy want?" Certainly, the mixed and disparate messages we send students do irreparable damage to their attitudes and, most strikingly, to their ability. But how can we solve this problem when most of us are faced with piles of papers and feel obligated to respond to content, style, tone, and format? My experiment seems to suggest that we need to develop the ability to read and respond as real readers to student writing and not to poke and pick and draw arrows to surface problems divorced from what the writer is doing—that is, unless the aim is editing later drafts. What I would like to recommend is that we change our traditional "marking" habits—a change which requires that we also change the way we perceive ourselves, our roles, our students, our expectations of their writing, and the ways we read their writing.
Teacher Role

Many of the responses to this sample writing, I suggest, are partially a result of the "teacherly" role-a role that can distort the reading process and make responses peculiarly condescending and critical. Most of the people in my class, all of whom had studied and discussed essays on contemporary writing theory, resorted to the safety of an authoritarian role when they responded to the writing. But that traditional role is not a very satisfying or effective role to assume. As Carol Berkenkotter insists, it promotes an "unreal" sense of writing, in that it does not permit students to experience the variety of rhetorical situations but instead requires them to "write for a single authority, the teacher" (396). Peter Elbow recommends that we "think about what it means to 'be an audience' rather than just be a teacher, critic, assessor, or editor" (65), and Robert Brooke suggests that we think carefully about our "identities" because neither "writing teacher nor student is content to rely on the expected roles of teacher and student" (151). Brooke believes that we should accept our "underlife," an identity that lies under our many public roles. Doing this requires not that we dramatize "the presence of the reader," which Nancy Sommers argues is the aim of response; it requires, instead, that we become real readers, thus allowing students to "internalize" gradually the concept of a reader (Knoblauch and Brannon 285). To accomplish this aim, a responder needs to offer consistent and actual "reader" responses.

Insisting that we drop the masks that inhibit learning, Thomas Newkirk argues that we must "act as the fallible, sometimes confused, sometimes puzzled readers that we are" (765). Elbow recommends that we "respond by 'replying' (as in a letter) rather than always 'giving feedback"' (65). Inso doing, we would show students that we are readers, not critics of classroom performances or observers disguised as readers. We can dispel the destructive notion that they need to decipher our commentary to determine how to play the game for us. "If our response is to tell students what's strong, what's weak, and how to improve it (diagnosis, assessment, and advice)," Elbow maintains, "we actually 'undermine' their sense of writing as a social act" (65). Instead, we might emphasize that we are actual readers and prove it to them in our responses. What we need for response-to replace the pedagogy of exhortation, which Arm Berthoff claims is no "substitute for instruction" (754)—is a pedagogy of collaborative learning, which as Kenneth Bruffee argues, "naturally challenges the traditional basis of the authority of those who teach" (649).

Several responses to the sample paragraph show that some teachers do engage in a pedagogy of collaborative learning; their responses show their engagementinreading the paragraph: "I feel frightened for her—the fright comes after the calm I sensed at the beginning" and "I feel I can see those eyes!" But comments such as "This paragraph is excellent" or "You should develop either the introduction or the last three sentences" reveal a critic, an authority who hunts for strengths and weaknesses in the text. These responses do not come from a participant in a writer-reader dialogue; they come from an observer peculiarly detached from the rhetorical situation. Such responses are similar to that of a person who has just finished listening to someone describe fear experienced in a car accident and who then responds that the speaker has good ideas but should improve the introduction.
Teacher Reading Processes

The "traditional" teacher role and the habit of dealing with large numbers of papers at once distort our reading of student texts. And we expect to read well and even write effective comments on batches of the papers we assign. But in these situations, we are not participating readers; instead, we are good lookers and examiners, doing the kind of work accomplished on an assembly line.

I understand why many writing instructors look at the reading of student texts as a service and not as a particularly interesting task—many do not look at student texts as writing worth reading. We expect student writing to be "student" writing and not writing we read for pleasure, reading which Wolfgang Iser says is "only a pleasure when it is active and creative" (51). Louise Wetherbee Phelps makes a distinction between an "ordinary" reading and an "unnatural" reading. The "ordinary" reading to which she refers is dearly different from the reading of the writing instructor who assumes a "teacherly" role when responding to a student text. Joseph M. Williams also notes a difference between an "ordinary" reading and one that is "consciously directed" at specified features of the text. He explains it this way: "When we read for typos, letters constitute the field of attention; content becomes virtually inaccessible. When we read for content, semantic structures constitute the field of attention; letters—for the most part—recede from our consciousness" (154). A reason for this difference in reading habits, according to Phelps, is that we are not capable of observing critically all the elements of discourse with "equal attention and emphasis" (23). Perhaps we look for what we want to see and when we read in the traditional role, what we want to see is determined by the standard response formula (strength + weakness + advice) and its emphasis on predetermined product features. As a result, we often do not see other rich features of students' language.

To help myself see those rich features of language, I schedule collection of papers so that I do not burden myself with an excessive number to read at any one time. And, realizing that the value of written teacher commentary is easily overestimated, I conduct regular individual conferences and frequent peer-group readings. Further, I try to make my reading of student writing "active and creative," as Charles Schuster suggests, so that I can "more fully participate in the rich discourse of others" (607). Schuster argues that "once we realize the extent to which all language is saturated with other styles, idioms, and modes of speaking and writing, we become better readers and, by extension, better teachers of reading and writing" (607). If we confront student writing eagerly and engage ourselves in the "textual" conversation, "bringing to bear on the text broader experiences and expectations" (Warnock 74), then we will not be guided by unusual "teacherly" expectations for the student text. We could become better readers and, consequently, better responders.
Teacher Expectations

"Unnatural" reading is caused in part by the preconception that a piece of writing is inferior—inferior, that is, to sophisticated "real" writing that one reads as an ordinary reader. The handwritten paragraph in my workshop caused the participants to assume that the text was inferior. But even the typed version, which was greeted more favorably, received commentary that revealed teachers' preconceptions that the text was a student's in need of revision. If I had announced at the beginning of the session that the paragraph was Hemingway's (it was, in fact), I suspect that the responses would have been much different, that the teachers would have actively read the paragraph, participating as readers engaged in "ordinary" reading. Sommers says that this teacher-response phenomenon is created because teachers are trained to read and analyze literature but not to do the same with student writing. She explains that "we read student texts with biases about what the writer should have said or about what he or she should have written, and our biases determine how we will comprehend the text. We read with our preconceptions and preoccupations, expecting to find errors, and the result is that we find errors and misread our students' texts" (154).

To avoid such misreadings of texts, we need to try to approach a student text with no preconceptions about quality. We need to attempt what Stanley Fish recommends: to make no distinction between ordinary language and literary language and to recognize that both are a "product of reading" (97). As a product of reading, a student text has the potential, if read with sensitivity by a real reader, to do to us what we assume literary texts do: engage us in "textual conversation" and rich discourse. Our reader responses can help engage students in that conversation as well.

I am convinced that we should look at student texts from a new perspective: reading each text with the same engagement that we experience when we read "literary" texts. From such a perspective we can, I believe, enjoy the job of reading and responding much more, and, subsequently, our responses can be more meaningful and motivating to students. 11 we keep in mind Fish's observation that "ordinary language is extraordinary because at its heart is precisely that realm of values, intentions, and purposes which is often assumed to be the exclusive property of literature" (108), we will not be tempted to hold pen in hand and pick at language, as if we were bone cleaners. We will be more likely to read, appreciate, and become involved in a writer's language, recognizing the person and the expression within and behind the words. Responding from such an orientation, we may indeed discover the "extraordinariness" of ordinary writing; in fact, we may even be able to recognize the extraordinariness of anonymous literary language, such as a handwritten copy of a Hemingway paragraph.

As teachers of writing, we hold considerable power when we respond to student writings. We can damage a student's willingness and interest in writing, or we can encourage and motivate the student to do a lot of writing, and, perhaps, to become a professional writer or even a novelist like Hemingway. I wonder what Hemingway would have thought about receiving a C- on that paragraph had he turned it in to a teacher handwritten because he did not have a typewriter. Maybe he would have become discouraged, or perhaps he would have laughed at some of the corrections and recommendations. Perhaps he would have gone back to the paragraph and attempted to revise it as instructed. Or, perhaps, he would have deleted it from The Sun Also Rises. If he had been a student writer submitting the paragraph in response to an assignment, he conceivably would have confronted all of these options. Hemingway could probably have negotiated such a situation, but I wonder how a young, inexperienced writer, experimenting with language and expressing something of much concern to him or her, would have handled it.

Northern State College
Aberdeen, South Dakota

Works Cited
Berkenkotter, CaroL "Understanding a Writer's Awareness of Audience." College Composition and Communication 32 (1981): 388-99.
Berthoff, Ann E. "Is Teaching Still Possible? Writing, Meaning, and Higher Order Reasoning." College English 46(1984): 743-55.
Brooke, Robert. "Underlife and Writing Instruction." College Composition and Communication 38 (1987): 141-53.
Bruffee, Kenneth A. "Collaborative Learning and the 'Conversation of Mankind."' College English 46 (1984): 635-52.
Cowan, Greg. 'The Rhetorician's Personae." College Composition and Communication 28 (19Th: 259-62.
Elbow, Peter. "Closing My Eyes as I Speak: An Argument for Ignoring Audience." College English 49 (1987): 50-69.
Fish, Stanley E. Is There a Text in This Class? The Authority of Interpretive Communities Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1980.
Hemingway, Ernest. The Sun Also Rises. New York: Scribner's, 1970.
Iser, Wolfgang. 'The Reading Process: A Phenomenological Approach." Reader-Response Criticism: From Formalism to Post-Structuralism." Ed. Jane P. Tompkins. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1980. 50-69.
Knoblauch, C. H., and Lil Brannon. 'Teacher Commentary on Student Writing: The State of the Art." Freshman English News 10.2 (1981): 1-4.
Phelps, Louise Wetherbee. "Dialectics of Coherence: Toward an Integrative Theory." College English 47(1985): 12-29.
Schumann, Paul F. 'What Criteria Do You Use in Grading Compositions?" English Journal 57(1968): 1163-165.
Schuster, Charles I. "Mikhail Bakhtin as Rhetorical Theorist." College English 47(1985): 594-607.
Sloan, Gary. "The Wacky World of Theme-Marking." College Composition and Communication 28 (19Th: 370-73.
Sommers, Nancy. "Responding to Student Writing." College Composition and Communication 33 (1982): 142-56.
Warnock, Tily. "Reading Kenneth Burke: Ways In, Ways Out, Ways Roundabout." College English 48 (1986): 62-75.
Williams, Joseph M. 'The Phenomenology of Error." College Composition and Communication 32 (1981): 152-68.

Science with Water

2009-06-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

We worked with a tub half filled with water tonight. He placed the whistle tube in it and found that it makes music when the ends of the 'U' shape are alternately pulled up and down. Then we learned about buoyancy by using a clear plastic case (it was originally for a pair of his water sandals) that has unequal sides (the opening, from top to bottom), and then the buoyancy of different balls. Cute video of it except he decided that he was going to have to go potty in the middle and he kept holding himself during the video we were shooting.

Botany Discussion

2009-06-24T11:26:00.000-07:00

I found a maple tree that had just sprouted, and the seed pod was still attached. He thought the roots felt funny. Here are some pictures of our discussion.

We found a maple leaf, much larger, though, that had had an insect egg laid on it, that had later hatched. Here are a couple of pictures of that.

MrBaby is Still SIck

2009-06-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

But he did ask to take his meds and slept some today, up til about 1 PM. Poor lil guy.

MrBaby is Sick Today

2009-06-15T20:01:00.000-07:00

Very runny nose, major icky stuff, bleh. Refuses to take any medicine, and yes, it's the same medicine he begs to take when he's not sick.

We still did some different activities. He's discovered his ankle bone, so we looked at xray pictures of that. This lead us to xrays of feet, and then hands. I also showed him an xray of a skull, which, at first, he thought was a dinosaur. I showed him how the ankle bone moves and helps us walk. We saw one photograph that showed where someone had sprained it very badly, almost looking like it was broken.

We also looked at photographs of the planet Venus after seeing it in the northeast sky. I'm assuming it's Venus, last year it was straight across the street, so it's something I need to look up and check on before too long.

We set up the tents, with the new tent, traded from Donny, having one of the longer poles snap on me. Glad it was on the very end, and not in the middle. I ended up asking Josh for some help on getting it set up. He did finally tell me that he was late getting home yesterday because the guy driving (not Danny) ended up driving them within a mile of Chicago. He ate most of his supper in the larger tent. This was around the same time that James showed up, during the day. I got to talk to his mom, and she gave me the number to her cell. She seems like a very nice lady, and told me she is 30. I told her Crystal is also 30, and the age difference has never been a problem to either of us, and if she ever wanted to hang out, to just come over. I told her about the 'lunch in the park' program, and she said she will most likely come to that with James. I didn't bring up her homeschooling him, I'll save that for later if we do meet. She said they aren't from around here and none of them know too many people. She said they live over on Warsaw at Rudisill.

Knock knock Jokes

2009-06-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

We used this page. Too cute, and MrBaby just gigles and giggles.

Back from Camping

2009-06-05T13:03:00.000-07:00

MrBaby started his leaf collection using the old photo album. We got back late Thursday and Rakkie actually helped us get unpacked. Waiting on the pics from Kathy to come in now. Need to get the thumb to her soon.

Dental Hygienist Appointment

2009-05-26T18:06:00.000-07:00

We took the bus all the way around the south part of the route, and Karl looked at the routes for the 6 (which we were on), and the 8. Mommy explained that the routes were like maps.Today, we went to the dental hygienist at M25. Karl had hands-on experience with one of the teeth models and its accompanying toothbrush. He also was able to play with a fruit basket and its contents. Each time Suzy would offer him a toy, he'd refuse and say he already had that item at home, including the egg timer she showed him. He said 'me already have sand.' Suzy says he's adorable, and Mommy agrees.

Then we went to Burger King, took photos at the fountains at Freimann Square, ran into Dave, got back on the 6, and went home.

Summer Preschool Starts Tomorrow!!!

2009-05-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

I will be keeping a record of our summer preschool activities here instead of in a new blog. We are expecting to do swimming, zoo trips, backyard science, counting objects wee see, such as cars, trucks, buses, motorcycles, bees, ants, spiders, and also with money at various stores and at yard sale transactions, plus you can't forget the ice cream man, when we can catch him, that is. There will be social studies at the park, science studies on plants and seeds, animals we see, day time and night time, sun and moon movements, more activities with mirrors, magnifying glasses, binoculars, the telescope, and the NASA website. He will be keeping a notebook of what he learns. It looks like an exciting summer! We already have one trip, to Rose-Hulman to see big brother Corey graduate, scheduled for this coming Friday, with a camping adventure worked in. Josh is also going with us. My friend Kathy is driving us down, and she will be visiting nearby friends, in Shelburn, while we are down there. Packing is going to be quite fun for this. We are taking the sheepskins with us. I can finally get that firewood off the porch, which reminds me to get marshmallows.

MrBaby is Learning to Share!

2009-05-05T22:43:00.000-07:00

He wanted to go to Leo's today and see if Nigel and Marquis could play. They weren't there, but while we were talking to Leo, Charlene arrived. MrBaby asked her if they were with her, and she said 'no, honey, tomorrow'. He told her that 'borrow means return it', meaning if he borrows toys, he knows he has to return them. He wanted to show Nigel his new slinky, just like Nigel's, and share it with him, too. We'll see if he really does it, and if so, sporadically, or consistently. I think he'll make a good effort, but that the newness of sharing will fade quickly. His heart's in the right place, though.

New Use for Shape Sorters

2009-03-24T08:18:00.001-07:00

Trace the shapes onto paper, and have your child match the shapes up with the outlines on the paper. We have more than one set, but the second set is only partial. Here are some pics.

This helps with pre-reading skills, eye-hand coordination, fine motor development, and shape and color recognition.

Gears!

2009-03-15T21:19:00.000-07:00

We learned about gears yesterday and today. There are lots of things to know about gears, and they are used all over the house. Even the popcorn maker has gears! They are used to turn the mixing arms that keep the popcorn kernels from sitting in one place too long.
We watched videos of gears on YouTube. They are very short, but most are very interesting. We watched how windmills work. They have lots of gears, and they have right angles, too.
I am thinking that we will try to make some gears out of clay, and see if we can learn even more. He likes to play with the popcorn maker, but it is used mainly too cook Bear. Poor Bear......

Reflection or Ghost?

2009-03-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

MrBaby told me that the 'ghosts' I was 'scared' of were really reflections from the car lights at the gas station shinning in through our windows. Good job figuring it out! I explained about the skewing of the window to make the shape, and that it was caused by the angle of the car lights. I tried to get it on video, but I couldn't pick up the 'ghosts' flying across the ceiling.

This is what it looks like after being stretched in Paint, and looks very similar to what was 'flying' across the ceiling.

The second picture is the actual window.

Testing

2009-03-08T18:24:00.001-07:00

Update on Aquarium

2009-03-07T18:22:00.000-08:00

Been dosing it with hydrogen peroxide and it worked wonders. It kinda hurt the plants, but I'm sure they'll recover ok. However, we are back down to only three fish. Maybe that is the healthy max for this tank.

We had the three parent fish, then four babies, then another baby, which died shortly after I placed him in the snail tank. Just before he was born, I placed a bunch of pennies in the tank, to get rid of the hydra. That killed the hydra, but also killed our favorite snail, plus all the other ones. It killed off all the aquatic life we had in there except the planaria. After that, we had a bite on the nice mommy fish, and she died. I lowered the temp a bit. Then we ended up with black mold all over everything in the tank, and the mean mommy fish died, and about two weeks later, we lost daddy fish. One of the baby fish also died. That is when I looked it up about the h2o2. Down to three again. Still waiting to see what their sexes are.

Power Ranger Costume

2009-03-03T15:12:00.000-08:00

I made him a Red Power Ranger costume today. Here's a pic of him sleeping in it.

Tomatoes

2009-03-03T10:27:00.001-08:00

These are the tomatoes that I found already growing inside of a tomato when I went to slice it up to put on sandwiches. We put them on a paper plate for a few days, and then cut them open and planted them. Very unusual, we are hoping they grow good tomatoes this summer.

Here's another one, taken later on, after having turned them.

MrBaby Choked Today, Poor Lil Guy

2009-02-25T20:18:00.000-08:00

He choked on a chippie, and ended up throwing up. It cut his throat, poor guy. I hope he slows down on the gulping food down like he does sometimes.

MrBaby learned About Friction Today

2009-02-25T20:03:00.000-08:00

We took one of those opportunities that life throws at you and learned about friction. MrBaby kept grabbing onto my shirt, and I asked him if he wanted me to pull him, and he said YES. Well, that isn't good for my clothes, so I got him a lid from his play doh to sit on. That worked a bit, then we made ski handles from carboard tubes, tape, and clothesline. Then we tried it with MrBaby sitting on top of the rectangular sheepskin. That didn't work too well. We tried it with MrBaby sitting on top of the upside down smaller dish drainer rack, with the sheepskin on that. That was a lot better. I pointed out that plastic bottles are very smooth and have very little traction, the wooden bookshelf has a bit more friction to it, and the floor has even more. We talked aobut how the carpet is smooth when MrBaby pulls his toys on the rack over the carpet, but that when it has more weight, it presses down into the carpet, and that keeps it from moving easily. I asked if the foam mat would be good to pull on, or would the wire of the upside down dish rack dig into the foam too much, and MrBaby's eyes lit up, and said it would dig in and not pull across. Very smart little boy.

Dentist Today

2009-02-20T23:39:00.000-08:00

We went to Mommy's dentist today, and while we were in the waiting room, MrBaby learned to gallop! He is so darling, the little things he does. He was running, and when Mommy said he couldn't run, he started to hop around, well, one foot went out first a couple of times, he got into a rhythm, and then he was galloping! Little sweet heart. he's so very smart, figuring out how to do that all by himself, just like learning how to do somersaults on his own. He catches on so fast, he learns before he can be taught.

Tomato Plants?

2009-02-12T18:26:00.000-08:00

Sometimes life throws opportunities at you that you just can't resist. Today we had one of those opportunities. When I sliced a tomato open for sandwiches, I found that plants had already started growing from the seeds. Here is a picture of them:

Mean Mama Fish Died Today

2009-02-10T22:37:00.000-08:00

The planaria were hard at work, cleaning up. We are wondering what the skeleton will look like. We'd have a funeral, like we have with the others, but I think it is time to see what is inside the fish, if possible. I'm not sure how dense the skeleton is in a fish this small, so MrBaby and I will learn something together.

You can see one of the planaria climbing up on the front of the aquarium in three of the pictures. The other one shows Mean Mama Fish, plus some of the planaria around her.

Workbook - Shapes' Sizes, Biggest, Smallest,Same

2009-02-08T20:44:00.000-08:00

He did really well, especialyy since it was his first time using an academic workbook. I am going to have to write in any changes in how we use certain pages. I've also found that copying the pages, certain ones, will let me use some pages in more than one way. Very cool workbook, it really had his attention, and he didn't want to quit. I have to watch his frustration level, and also maintain his activity-oriented focus. He often wanted to start an activity before I was done explaining the directions and sequenced steps for it. Overall, for effort as well as the academic aspect of the activity pages he completed, I would have to give him an 'A+'

We Made a Mobile!!!

2008-12-31T23:32:00.000-08:00

It looks great!!! We made it because Crystal wanted the old mobile for the baby over at her place, and MrBaby got VERY upset about it. Mommy got his work bench out of the garage, and we put that together, and then Mommy made a mobile for him, too. Will upload a simple video of it to YouTube here in a bit. This will teach science, math, art, physics, and a bit of nature.

Sticker Books

2008-12-30T21:36:00.000-08:00

We used a sticker book today from the Skippyjon Jones series to work on some fine motor skills, as well as some prewriting skills. We made a video of it. I'll be editing it later on this week, then uploading it. Later, MrBaby did a bunch of really good somersaults, and I caught that on video, too.

All the SNOW Melted!!!

2008-12-27T07:22:00.000-08:00

It is supposed to be almost 60 today, so we are going outside!!!!!

Christmas pictures, and some from today, too.

2008-12-26T11:13:00.001-08:00

http://s544.photobucket.com/albums/hh323/MrBabysHomeschool/Christmas_2008/

Video - Book - Dinosaur Versus Bedtime by Bob Shea

2008-12-25T22:00:00.000-08:00

Dinosaur Versus Bedtime, by Bob Shea

Story from Ask Dr Sears Website sent by MrBaby's Mommy

2008-12-25T09:45:00.001-08:00

Full details can be found online at the following address:
https://www.askdrsears.com/faq/ap7.asp

Message from MrBaby's Mommy :
Even three years old can be too young to be left overnight....

IS IT OKAY TO LEAVE OUR AP'D BREASTFED 3-MONTH-OLD FOR A NIGHT?

“I'm feeling a lot of pressure from my husbands parents and my mom. They think it would be good for us to leave our baby with them overnight. They even bought us a hotel gift certificate which expires soon. I don't feel comfortable leaving my baby overnight. She is a very high need baby. Our parents don't think we trust them but it doesn't have anything to do with that. Am I being overprotective? What is an appropriate age where a baby is ready to stay overnight? She is three months old and she sleep with us. I breastfeed. They offered to stay at our house while we stay at the hotel, but my heart aches thinking about leaving her.”

I have said this before… but some grandparents are so clueless when it comes to raising babies! Of course, they love their grandchildren and probably mean well, but times have changed. Sure, leaving a three month-old was probably encouraged 30 years ago, but today, most child development specialists would say this is too young. Most children that are being “attachment parented” MIGHT be ready between 2-3 years old. My children were ready to stay at a friend’s house before they were ready to stay at the grandparents. Regarding the gift certificate expiring soon: if it was sold in California, Connecticut, or Washington then state law says that it can’t expire. Many other states are considering laws like this, so most likely you will be able to use this certificate in a few years. Sure, mom and dad could use some time alone, but with a three-month-old, were talking about dinner and a movie…

Dr. Jim

Our First Post

2008-12-18T17:06:00.000-08:00

This blog is an addition (not a continuation) of our other blog. I will be posting here under this ID (email) and alsounder the other one.

This blog will have instructions on lessons featured at our YouTube website, printouts you can use for your own homeschool (or enhancement of your child's traditional education), ideas you might find useful for your own lesson plans, news regarding homeschool families nationwide, and also our daily activities in our own homeschool. This last part will also serve as our attendance records, which is the only requirement Indiana has regarding homeschools.

Our homeschool focuses on hands-on learning. There is some paperwork done, of course, but it is in areas where that is part of the hands-on experience, such as some art projects, writing practice, writing stories, labelling parts of a project, and so forth. Pre-writing activities involve a lot of matching activities, and these activities will also involve paperwork.