Category Archives: numeracy

crosspatch

Posted on January 17, 2007 by | 7 comments

i knew i was being one all day, and though very contrite, had the tolerance level of kamikaze on acid. Mainly I think with worry that this is not going to be a weird one of joint thing, but…

Anyway, SB did lots more education city – she does really enjoy it, and getting there to the french without so much help [i nearly bought rosetta stone though Deb!]. She has also done some singapore maths MPH 1B – and as we are 2/3 through, have bought 2 series from half moon books – well, nearly, I have sent them an email! – so they are across in resources bit. I had bought the original 2a and b textbooks half price from sonlight when they went to the us ed, so though i had better have matching workbooks – so we will be doing a not MPH year – shouldn’t matter!

My mum and dad popped in on the way back from Little Nanny’s, and were a bit shocked at my cronkiness. Anyway, they played with the girls a bit and had a bite to eat before carrying on.

BB had a look at toddler cd – though prefers still just to irritate SB! we read some apple tree farm, she played ‘yego’, and had great fun with a magnetic break apart ball that SB also loved at that age from ikea. we all stopped for a ‘yup-a-tea’

SB and I finished the marco polo jigsaw in our explorers book and discussed that a little bit, before moving on to story of the world, where we got a bit stuck with the punic wars – cos unlike my usual ask very little questions, and minimal narration back, i got fixated on her remembering carthage! [why i don't know, as i hardly expect that telling her today will give her instant recall in 30 years time!!]. however, we made up over the Hannibal and the elephants story. She read me 1/3 of a level 8 ORT book – the magic carpet – and she is def getting more fluid. Apparently, whilst at Jax’s, she had a go at one of Big’s fairy books, but they are too difficult.

I got grumpy so left her and BB to play, and looked at sonlight core 1, rosetta stone and worried that we dip around a lot and aren’t organised, and maybe should be sonlighters etc etc [usual panic there]

BB wanted to play a game, so we got out the marble run, and SB made her runs and it all went predictably pear shaped, but they kept trying. eventually giving up to play bouncy ball games.

My sister rang to commiserate – well I think that was what for, but in a jovial way she said i have got it too, and it is worse than yours and yours will get far worse, so I pretty near hung up. tea really was ready, but I was rude, and feel bad as I just took it the wrong way rather than her meaning to make me even more grumpy. [she is a much lovelier person all round than me] I will ring tomorrow if I am less grumpy.

Ah well. the girls had a bath whilst I grumped. SB came down and saw big’s castle. she def wants a castle for her birthday, but no longer tower of doom, but perhaps the pintoys mediaeval one – which I also like. SO I guess that is on. She then got stuff ready for tomorrow, as BB goes to a toddler gym session first one, and SB will have to sit at edge as quiet as a mouse – fingers crossed for chris there, as it will be difficult for SB who will be desperate to join in.
I have now eaten loads of chocolate – which I had banned from my diet – sigh.

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Posted in Books, Butterbean, General, geography, history, language, literacy, numeracy, online resources, science

monday

Posted on January 15, 2007 by | 2 comments

The beans went to local group this morning all about favourite things. SB took heaps of jacket potatoes – and we had some of them for tea!
in the afternoon, when we had all got home, she did some education city – enjoying it, and I have stared with the easiest bits doing a my city. She wanted to do the spanish, but that doesn’t seem an option at her level. i might email and ask if we can have access to it. she did like the french though. i helped identify the sounds the first time and thenn left her to carry on so I could read apple tree farm to BB.
BB did some oogly googly gears and playdoughing, and SB looked at a DK history book with me – rather lovely – and we did early people in it, picking up the theme at bedtime by reading about otzi the ice mummy. She also did some letter formation with getty and dubay – they’re big letters, but I guess she needs to start in the right place, as she otherwise chooses bottom up. we all playdoughed for a bit.
tea of jacket pots, and then watched some more trials of life before bed.

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Posted in Books, Butterbean, Cooking, General, geography, history, language, literacy, numeracy

The value of money

Posted on January 15, 2007 by | 2 comments

This was from last week – Thursday I think, somehow it got left as a draft and dnot posted, so here it is.

Yesterday SB emptied out her purse and counted up all the money. She did very well, did it pretty much all herself. Got bit lost with lots of 2p’s, until I showed her how to sort out the money into piles of 10p each and then count them all up. She had the grand total of ?19.01 (there was ?10 of xmas money in there). WSo she was quite excited by that :-)

She has just sat down with a Vertbaudet catalogue looking at all the kiddy furniture, bedding and stuff, deciding what is too much, what she can afford, and whether or not it would be really owrth it spending all her money on it. :-)

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Posted in Daft Stuff, numeracy, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE

Party time.

Posted on January 12, 2007 by | 2 comments

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Stringbean has had this Jump Ahead Starting Maths CD-ROM for ages – 3 years? dunno, but she was doing it in our old house anyway. She’s done it on and off in spurts, probably redone it at least a couple of times, so? a little bit of a fan fare when she finally completed the last bit tonight tonight, had got the 100 candles and had the party :-)

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Posted in IT, numeracy, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE

Migraine Monday

Posted on January 8, 2007 by | 4 comments

I am having a lot of them again aren’t i. must be something to sort out. Actually have had all weekend, and as working it has been really difficult. I would have gone off sick Sunday it was so bad, but my backup rang in to say he was too unwell to cover, and I didn’t have the heart to ruin the only option available’s weekend. SO when I couldn’t open eyes or lift head off pillow this am without wanting to shoot myself, I took today off – and feeling guilty still. got out of bed after lunch though. Not sure what the girls had been doing in the morning – lots of screaming anyway! Chris had been tidying, and BTB was on the vid.

the ebay oogly googly arrived – wahey. [btw, there seem to be a fair number of wacky wigglers on there atm] so although an eyeball missing, still a bargain! we set to making an oogly googly – well, as I was still very rough I observed and enhanced/scaffolded from the semi recumbent position on the sofa! SB and BB both very happy to get on with it, and loved having weird eyeballs. I mainly got it as the cheapest way to have another motor so the girls didn’t argue. rofl.

blank mind – o yes, a late lunch. read BB some more apple tree farm – which she loves – and did jigsaws, then she went for a lap. SB and I then did roman sotw, with other roman book on the go and colouring in. She loves story of the world – she said today anyway. oh, before, she had started the getty and dubay how to form letters, as hers are a mishmash. she chose to do i, and then wrote as other i words, ivee and iys, with suitable pictures. She then read some ORT book to herself – rather well. BB came down and we did some blocks and building, and mostly jumping on mummy – very helpful for head! So then SB was detailed maths – argh 3/4 through MPH 1B, so have to buy some more! and BB insisted on doing her maffs too. So cutesy homeschool picture of them both at table doing workbooks. [if i ever get round to flickring them!].

we then all looked at our model heart and discussed the arteries and veins – I wonder if she will remember their names – she certainly remembers [atm] that the pulmonary ones are odd as the vein is red and the artery blue, and even why. we matched it up to all of us, and decided it probably was a 10 year old heart!! BB enjoyed wiggling her fingers down the holes. SB wants a body shlef – so far we have a heart and eye. I think i have been watching too much bones [yep Jax, it does get much better when you stick with it!] and a body bits shelf just sounded a bit, well…..

We did a fair bit of dancing around, talking about little house on the prairie [firmly identified with laura there!] making sure her plaits were like lauras!! We also did our french conversation, and have added how old are you, I am 5 to it.

more obligate kleine hippo watching for BB as room tidied [very very slowly by SB with many accompanying wails, but this is her LHOTP task - evil grin]. They both watch this, and SB has started asking me what some of the words are – eek, as if I know!! Promised SB I would pay for education city. she really likes the next stage webland too. story tonight was the lion witch and wardrobe, and they are both is SB’s bedroom. SB took some ORT books to bed to read though – rofl.

I looked on Gill’s blog about compulsory NC , and it gives me the shivers. I don’t think I could pretend we follow it, as we don’t do it in the ‘right order’. I could write an ed phil that should satisfy anyone, and I’m sure if we ever allowed a home visit that it would be hard not to show we were providing an education. However I realise that is the stated not actual goalpost. After all, I don’t have lots of evidence of work or progression, as it is practical based or verbal as SB not keen on writing. I am sure they would say ‘behind’ too. I would just say she has only recently shown an interest in it, and so it is appropriate for a starter position. I used to do a list of what NC areas I thought we had covered, and maybe will start that again, but I just don’t want too! I guess I have the tags. So here’s what it might look like [though TBH, I couldn't bear to look at the national curriculum for actual places on it!] and it doesn’t account for the actual time on any item [think bite-sized!].

PS, Chris has just checked on SB, and she is very proud of the fact she is reading her ORT book to herself. Is this an official reading milestone - reading in bed!!!!

maths [mph adding 10's and units]; literacy [ORT, LWW]; geography [SOTW] history [SOTW, roman flap book, LHOTP], design and technology [gears], science [gears, heart, carrot experiment [ongoing]], modern language [KH, conversational french], writing [GD], ICT [KH], arts [SOTW, photography]

OK, OK, linking to years 1 and 2 [SB in year 1] it is all really waffly, and I guess if I was BOVVERED, I could stuff lots of it in little category boxes of waffle. but it would still be pointless. At a push, I could change the categories to the NC ones. Still not BOVVERED. I still think the great thing about HE is the FREEDOM to follow SB’s interest at the time she is interested. I list and tag because I am weird like that [see below] rather than because I think its required.

oh, and as for citizenship, isn’t that what PARENTS and FAMILIES are good for. I don’t need to TEACH this, she just needs to live it – I quote the goals

  1. to recognise what they like and dislike, what is fair and unfair, and what is right and wrong
  2. to share their opinions on things that matter to them and explain their views
  3. to recognise, name and deal with their feelings in a positive way
  4. to think about themselves, learn from their experiences and recognise what they are good at
  5. how to set simple goals.

etc etc!!!

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Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, General, geography, history, language, literacy, numeracy, science, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE, writing

Getting back to normal.

Posted on January 3, 2007 by | Leave a comment

With Helen being off all the week before xmas, and only having two days at work last week and then the Bank Holiday it seems like we’ve al been at home for a long time we’ve had together, which has been good. So yesterday we started getting back to normal, in a fairly gentle way. Starting off with SB having a much needed bit of sleep catch up and not getting up until past 10.30 am. -Not sure exactly as she’d come down stairs before 11 and the TV had been left on, so she’d sidled into there and was watching Toms Midnight Garden on the TV :-)

It did mean that I had a nice time playing with BB, with the animals, lego, books, playdoh and stuff. as well as exciting things like sorting out washing. Got SB moving when i mentioned the Library and she realised it was ‘Bic-bic day’ – they have a fund raising stall on the first Tues of the month – with drinks, biscuits etc. So we went round to the library, had biccies, coffee, chatted about xmas, the girls did their usual we are cute and lovely thing, and even got some books just before it closed :-)

Home to lunch with Littletoe show, and then enforce nap tiem for BB – she just isn’t making it through. So I basically give her an enforced cuddle on the bed until she gives up making? big fuss about it and falls asleep. Seemed to work ok though. She was asleep by 1.30, we got her up before 3 and she went to sleep ok at about 8.30, which was rather better.

SB sat and spent ages looking at her library books, then me and SB did a fair bit of reading of them. She did a bit My Pals are Here, felt ages since we had done any so did it in gentle-ish sort of way. There was bit of something happening when BB got up, but I forget what exactly. Made a pasta bake for tea and then we sat down with tea/hot choc and toasted teacakes (BB – ‘I need choc-choc cup’) to watch the rest of Toms Midnight Garden. Then? a bit of tidying up before dinner. One of the targets for this year is to be tidier in general through the day, worked ok yesterday, kitchen ended the day pretty tidy, playroom was tidy (the main chaos areas).

Need to have a bit of think about where we are going with/approaching HE though. SB mentioned Education City again, so time to sign up to that I think.
Visitors due any minute now (M and family, a girl from a local HE group, almost the same age as Sb, and they hit it off from the first meeting) so time to be organized – at least the lunch soup is cooking

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Posted in Books, Butterbean, literacy, numeracy, Out and About, socialisation, Stringbean, Stringbean's HE

On the fifth day of christmas – I made toffee fudge

Posted on December 20, 2006 by | 4 comments

Today was prob always a bit of a push! We are well behind schedule – does that surprise anyone? However, the aim of the game is to have a great family Christmas, so top of my list of to dos were some yoghurt pot bells for the christmas tree, and decorating some mugs for the grandparents, and some family baking.

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BB was ecstatic about the bell making – which was good as the craft was pitched for her. Sb also enjoyed it, so they painted and glittered together, with a bit of sticking. I threaded the bells in [well, its more fun if they actually jingle!] when they had dried. Much singing of jingle bells [still usually to the bring me back theme by BB] and other Christmas carols.

SB moved on to decorating the mugs using ceramic pens in her own inimitable freestyle way. One was made up of a drawing of computer wires, one an exploding comet, the other a trajectory of a golf ball… BB carried on with the painting and sticking.

They both did some christmas sticker book before lunch, and general play – with all the noisy things BB could find [a lot!] including that ELC footpath thing. Chris went out, so we took the opportunity to wrap his present from the girls. Carefully chosen by SB, its the first pressie she has wanted to buy either of us!
After lunch we made choc/banana porridge muffins. yummy. SB and BB worked together very cooperatively [well mostly with a Christmas eye of faith!] and with a wing and a prayer were cooked and worked out. So one for them to eat, and the rest in the freezer for Christmas morning. I am making some marmalade ones for the grown ups. [mum is bringing gammon for the traditionalists!]. I quickly made the brandy butter with them too. SB doesn’t like it – good!

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SO there we were, all achieved with lots of fun by 3! So we tidied and sorted SB’s bedroom – well overdue. Now my sister and family can sleep in their quite safely. SOme general playing, but BB in particular was getting fractious as we didn’t allow her a nap today as she has been being a nightmare. So we put on another episode of the great britain series with allen titchmarsh – the ice age [SB choice] and quickly gave BB a tea. bath and she perked up, so a latish bedtime after all, and will hopefully stay asleep.

I am waiting to see what my fudge has done, but early impressions are of toffee. i don’t get fudge right ever! in fact last time i gave up [edited aside, SB down as her egyptian and world war 2 now finished, so I’ve suggeted she goes for a longer cd!] and made fudge with soft cheese, but didn’t like it – I’m more of a tablet person. this time have used this recipe for the first [and probably last] time. Anyone with any surefire recipes! [i have a jam thermometer, so know the temps]

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Chris now making soup. watched the battlestar galactica on mon – nice cliffhanger – and getting into bones as I forget the books! Must do some wrapping up, but feel can’t start anything till I ‘know the worst’ with the fudge! We have taken loads of photos btw, just haven’t yet flickred!

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Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, Cooking, General, geography, history, music, numeracy, photos, Stringbean's HE

Hama Deeds/ on the second day of christmas

Posted on December 17, 2006 by | 5 comments

well, we did quite a lot of hama deeds. SB had to do hers twice, as B ‘helped’ her. The first version was better, and so never mind to the receiver of the gift! I also did 2 hama stars as presents, so will remember to flickr them to Merry’s group. i have now run out of christmas green though.

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A bit of general mayhem, and book reading and the BB went to sleep. SB and I had been going to do something fiddley then, but she prefered to get stuck in on the baking, so we made Delias chees and olive scones [where she tipped out approx half the egg, so we made up with milk and it is fine]

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and then some choc choc chip cookies for CHEF tomorrow. I didn’t get them out of the oven earlier enough though. I just am no good at cookies – they are either biscuits or soggy. Anyway, they are edible. Bb helped with the end of the cookies, having woken up. She mostly ate the choc chips, but did wodge some of them in. We have been using the great big solid balance scales, which are rather lovely, in oz! SO SB adding, doubling etc like mad all by herself.

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We have posted out the early years HE cards at last – sorry everyone. I still have my own cards to do.

bit of relaxing with the yoga DVD, SB definitely getting much better at it, and then more general mayhem. lots of singing carols – i quite liked BB’s jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle bells my legions [to the bring me back tune - rofl] Bit of ad hoc talking around the chinese calendar from the restaurant, and the years of thing. Chris and I are apparently totally incompatible! I have promised to celebrate the chinese new year.

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Dinner and now bath. How does the day go so quickly? we were supposed to be making yoghurt pot bells for the Xmas tree? AH, wailing from upstairs – shall I see what Chris is doing?? [it sounds like SB is saying BB bit her nipple? def one for chris to handle]

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Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, Cooking, General, literacy, numeracy, SB-PE, Stringbean's HE

A breather

Posted on December 6, 2006 by | 2 comments

for me anyway. I have been working hard. I have my yearly appraisal tomorrow, so have been busy finding excellence in everything I do – always a hideous prospect – and filling in huge pointless forms – even worse. I guess the forms are pointful to SOMEone to say I have been duly processed for another year. I still have about 4 hours of finishing some online learning module, and somemore form to do.

Our local hospital is still up for grabs. Due to politics, they aren’t likely to shut it, but are doing the death by a thousand cuts option – i guess oping we all leave without being paid redundancy money. Think again! I have earmarked that money.

Anyway, in case chris doesn’t blog, they went to CHEF sports and played on Monday. We have done loads more Cnristmas cards monday eve and lots of education city, read the usboune starting point science under the earth.

Not entirely sure what they did on Tues as I got home at nearly 11.

SO today I had a lie in. When I got up, SB was helping Chris with the washing, and BB and I did painting – she is very keen on painting. I will pop here before I forget that one of her newer tunes is the Hallelujah chorus from the Messiah. very funny. She loves painting and her talking is getting more and more obvious – except when she has a strop. SHe has rather enjoyed the whole idea of advent calendars – she has a chocolate one and a sticker one. She’s not so keen on the waiting for it idea though.

SB also joined us painting, then we did an usbourne puzzle book – school before she moved onto general playing and building things with BB. BB and I read all the red nose readers as she is very fond of them. Ahe has obviously remembered her birthday as sang the first line of happy birthday fairly interminably when she saw the birthday cake.
SB did some more education city – definitely something that she is much more keen on this year, whilst BB and I looked at pictures and messed around. Some lunch was had, and I was rung 3 times by work – sigh.

After lunch we did one of those science test-tubes you can uy in tescos. we did the gravity one which was fun. SB had a good memory for gravity and its effects, and we talked about defying gravity and ways to do it. thrust/lift/ energy etc. the popper was fun, though BB lost it. Our staircase was perfect for throwing the parachutist down the gap and seeing it work. Also good for the experiment was seeing what might happen if BB packed your parachute. The extra boingy ball kept all 4 of us amused. A quick revision of the key ideas and how flight worked and then we went to the next activity prepared fby chris

Which was mincemeat making. Lots of raisins scattered across the kitchen. BB mostly played games scooping the nutmeg around in a bowl. Smelled gorgeous. has to settle overnight [a delia recipe] and then jarred ready for when we make mince pies.

A calm down reading roman gods in story of the world leading into a discussion of the planets again, and ranking them to likely gravity. The a day late we started the barefoot books while the bear sleeps. Chris also picked up something called christmas soup for the soul, with a small story for each day of advent, and we started to catch up.

The girls had a wild bath with the jacuzzi bit on and then have done a dancing show, eaten curry for tea [tea was running late] and now BB has done some more sticking Xmas cards. SB is still eating – she is very slow at eating! Bed any second now. Am contemplating reading The Hobbit as a bedtime story now she has finished Charlie and the chocolate factory. [BB shrieking that she 'Hadding a bath' - as in she has already had it] . yep bedtime. just finished in time!

raterh cutely BB has been singing a Josie song – as in for josie i think! SB said we were supposed to be sharing pomegranates, so that is what all 3 of us are doing before bed. really juicy pomegranate too

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Posted in art and crafts, Books, Butterbean, Cooking, Dance/drama, General, history, numeracy, science

reduced to tears

Posted on November 29, 2006 by | 5 comments

by BB. A lot of the day she has cried as if we were torturing her. completely incoherent with rage that we aren’t getting it right. she has just cried herself into oblivion on the sofa.

SO with that as the background, we have survived remarkably well. We didn’t get to the CHEF meeting today – which was a real shame as sounded really fab as in the archaeology museum, and I had been looking forward to it.

So, we made a start on th XMas cards. actually, we first did painting – which was the first word of BB’s we understood. so having allowed paint to go everwhere in the name of peace we moved onto xmas cards, and SB was very understanding of the concpt of BB got exactly what we could understand her to want. They made 20 between them. oh enjoy muddlepuddlers! Not too much in the way of glitter, but definately a 2 and 6 year olds take on how to stick/print as much as poss on a card. Of course more mess everwhere, but 60 mins screech free, so worth it!

BB then screeched continuously and went of for a walk in the buggy. SB read me a book and then did education city. Actually, she did loads, cos even though BB came back asleep, she soon woke up. So I went off into the garden and carried her around all the plants. Deciding the neighbours may call SS if she screeched any more outside [though a lower volume than indoors] we came back in. Eventually she settled with bucking bronco and then SB’s leappad [which she really loves, and Merry has given us a first leappad she can get for Xmas] SB made up a complex game about greek gods, including various of the legends – she was heard to peck livers out etc.

More utter screeching later, and we managed to develop some peace watching the makings of walking with beasts not for as long as we would like, so some desperate offerings of books/activities etc, and a book became suitable. BB did some colouring. Chris is cannabalising an old computer to try and set it up for BB, who otherwise tries to perch on SB’s lap and ‘do the puter’. Fine when SB is welcoming… this also distracted BB from screeching for a short while, so I hid.

cowardice finished with, and I returned to help make pizza, and then we all watched? robin hood together while eating it – a short break though for me to take BB up to a bath whcih she was desperate for, sat in for 3 secs and came out.

She has then screeched so much, and nothing has been satisfactory, which was the reducing to tears bit, as we have had not a great deal of sleep. It really is the torturing wail business. It IS a shame she finally gave in on the sofa though rather than in bed, as we will have to move her…

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Posted in art and crafts, Butterbean, General, history, literacy, numeracy, science, Stringbean's HE