REALITY CHECK

Here is another wonderful letter from Homescholfreestuff...

Reality Check

The other day my daughter was struggling over a simple word... cow. This coming from a little girl whose been reading for quite some time now, I was a little frustrated. Was she kidding me? I informed her I was not going to tell her the word, but she had to sound it out herself. Then came the tears. "Just tell me Mama," she'd whine. I could see she was tired, hence not going to read another word or answer another question without a fight. So, I gave up. I told her we'd finish tomorrow. Maybe in the morning we could sound out that word

This did not sit well with her. She began to whine and whine. If I'd just tell her, she'd be all right. The day just could not go on without me giving in... or so she thought.

Ok, now we're playing tug-of-war. Over what? Over "cow?" I told her how smart she was, how much I loved her, and how she would just have to sound it out for herself or wait until tomorrow for my help. End of discussion.

"Maybe I'm too smart for homeschool!" she cried. Well, to that, I looked her straight in the eye and said, "Maybe you are. Maybe I do need to go ahead and enroll you down the street with the other kids!" The look on her face fell hard. She looked at the floor, tears streaming down her face. Then she turned those beautiful, wet, blue eyes up at me. Through deep breaths and loud sobs she said, "I want you to homeschool me because when I'm a mommy, I want to homeschool my kids, and I want to be like you! If you send me to school, how will I learn to be like you?"

My heart broke for her. I scooped her into my arms and held her close, reassuring her that I don't want to send her away and that I loved her.

I don't think I've ever been complimented like this before by anyone. How humbling was it to hear someone wants to be like me. And not just anyone, but someone who sees me grumpy, unshowered, sassy, and God knows what else! I still cannot believe she sees good in me when I struggle daily to see the beauty God sees.

Oh God help us to remember we're building a legacy, shaping not just our children's future, but the future of our nation as well. "Its amazing the difference one person can make in the life of a child." I heard that a lot when I was an education major. But when I think on it now, I would say, "A parent does more than make a difference in the life of a child; a parent MAKES the life of a child."

Just like our children look to us, I need to focus on Him, trying desperately to imitate Him. My prayer today is to be the bright light in my children's lives that points them to their Savior. Who doesn't want to be remembered as beautiful in the eyes of their children? I know I do.

"The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise."Proverbs 11:30

Thank you.

~Jennifer~

WORKSHEETS

Following grid lines. Nikki made a mistake in the last few lines but I showed it to him and he corrected it.

Math/Addition. Nikki did this with no problem at all. =D

Maze. Nikki loves doing mazes.

This one was another easy activity. =D

Math/Addition. Another easy yet fun activity.

Nikki didn't want to do this at first because he was too conscious about what his drawing would look like but when I encouraged him and showed him some of Pooh's photos, he finally drew the arms. =D

PLAYTIME

PREPARING FOR DADDY'S ARRIVAL

Ruther is arriving home today from Japan! Nikki is so excited! When I suggested that we make a banner for Ruther he was really excited about the activity. So we got a piece of cardboard paper and I used a pencil to make the words. Then, Nikki used a permanent marker to trace the pencil lines. After that, he used some colored chalk to color the letters and it came out so colorful and so wonderful. I just know his dad is going to be so proud and happy!

Here are some photos:

NIKKI IS IN SP MAG!

Yay! Another reason to celebrate! This is a wonderful early birthday present! =D

Happy Birthday soon, baby!

CHICKS

Nikki is fascinated with the baby chicks. This hen had 5 yellow and 3 black chicks. They were so cute! Nikki was so excited about them, he watched them one afternoon and fed them seeds. I think this is a great way for him to learn about farm animals. =D

RHYTHM AND MUSIC

http://www.bbc.co.uk/parenting/play_and_do/toddlers_rhythm.shtml

Rhythm and music
Clare Walters
Preschool children really enjoy musical games and activities.

The rhythm's going to get you
Clapping a rhythm - help your child recognise rhythms by clapping a simple one and asking him to clap it back to you.

Copy the tune - melodies can be taught in the same way, with you singing a short tune (only a few notes) to "la, la, la" and your child singing it back to you.

Mirroring - put on some music, stand opposite your child and ask him to mirror your actions (arms in the air, leaning to one side and so on). Then let him do some actions for you to copy.
Make a shaker - an old plastic drink bottle filled with dried rice, beans or pasta makes a great shaker to use while you're dancing. Make sure the lid is secure so you don't end up with rice everywhere.

Music pictures - play different types of music and let your child move a pencil around a piece of paper in a way that reflects what he's hearing.

Shake, rattle and roll - if you can stand the noise, make a band. You could include a toy drum, a couple of different rattles, a tambourine made from a paper plate with circles of foil around the edge, and a couple of saucepan lids.

Use slow, gentle music to calm down a rowdy play session.