green thing from Joanna

Your Life is 76% Green
You live a very green life, and you’re aware of how your actions help the earth. Of course, it’s hard to be totally green. But when you make a tradeoff, you know why you’re making it.

Last day of the hols

well, feels like that here with 6 long days ahead. SO we made the most of playing today.
SB has really been enjoying the Jane and the dragon series on TV, so will prob buy some books for her. She read some felicity wishes today, and assorted early readers.

Chris and SB went for a bike ride on the quieter village roads, learning how to indicate and turn right – she thought it was fab. Chris said she was riding really nicely – all that scootering has given her extra balance. not that her balance on 2 legs is that brill always!

BB and I sowed some runner beans in modules, counted them – in her own fashion, and played outside while they were out. When they came back we had crumpet pizza – yummy.

The whole day was spent outside. the girls wanted to do something messy, so we did papier mache around some plant pots to paint and decorate when dry. They then wanted to get wet, so we got out the old paddling pool [now deflated and puncture! But it was enough to hold a bit of water, and when BB’s cube slide ended it it there was much fun and mayhem for the rest of the afternoon!

As I went in to make dinner [moroccan ish stew!] I cage SB and BB the face paints, so they painted themselves. SB was particularly gorgeous [though the picture will be cropped for general consumption! While it cooked we played spraying with the hosepipe – always a favourite!

Chris planted some of the potatoes – pink fir apple, again wy late, but hopefully will do something. They’re through cardboard boxes, hopefully to keep the weeds down.

A bath – and they really needed it! BB fell asleep nearly instantly, and SB and I played games before bed, SHe is such a sweetheart as she made me a flower display as a present, and hidden in it was some chocolate for me.

Anyway, I have had a lovely break, but don’t imagine I will blog much in the next week!

sorting the crops

today has been a good gardening day. I put in some more peas, finally put in the onion sets [way late!] cleaned out some of the greenhouse and started potting up the tomatoes. I was helped [sort of] in these tasks by both girls at various different stages. so some of the onion sets are upside down, and some roots detatched to some extent from peas. however it is all a good learning experience. SB also dug up one of our leeks from the garden – i am proud of the leeks, first time they have been successful. I also sowed the first french beans in modules. Chris put some more of merry’s boxes over unused veg bed. The pear tree – and most of the fruit trees still alive – are covered in flowers. I’m hoping that this year will be a good fruit and veg year. i think the last year we truly did well was when SB was 2!
it has been an outdoor playday – the girls playing hide and seek, races, climbing etc etc and helping me. i have been narrating stories, races etc for them to do whilst gardening and then joining in with hide and seek. SB has read to me several times, and also to BB. I read both girls the cat just so story [prob my favourite one].

We did some painting outside. SB painted a house – putting her ‘sign’ in the picture as well. BB mostly painted herself – so an outside bath in order too!!

Getting on with the reading then…..

Resding the Grauniad

reading the money guardian

never too young to start!! [photo to follow]

Babies

Had a lie in this morning, and overheard SB and BB playing with their babies. SB calls the gorgeous corolle doll from Bead merrily ‘Annie’. I could hear her giving instructiosn to annie on climbing stairs, with BB mirroring the instructions – same inflection and everything.? they loved the babies, gave each others a hug – all in that gorgeous little girl way. V cute

fossicking

today we went fossil hunting with the not-so-local group! it was really good fun, at a brickworks. the ex quarry is a nature reserve, and a fossil section. We mostly found ammonites, belemnites and gryphaea. How cool is that!

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We all enjoyed it. SB met up with old friends – including the quietly noisy crew. All were amazed at how many fossils there were. BB liked finding ‘something’ though she was the first to find the gryphaea – a snail she said. Lots of geology and dinosaur conversations in the air!
After quite a while, we moved on to do a bit of pond dipping. BB caught a fish!! SB caught a fair number of bugs.

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SO I texted Merry, and we popped round to cheer her up. Though SB in particular was not very cheery – mostly at a loss due to lack of the older girls I think. BB and Josie more happy though BB was a bit violent at times – aargh. We should have taken cake, or grapes – better for the throat. Lovely to sit and chat. Also had a look in the bead merrily stock room [ and a box before it even got in there – mostly to fish out some little cutters for SB] and came away with this as well.

Home for a chippery tea and a UNO marathon. While having the chippery tea, we looked again at the oil and water, and this time counted how long it took to seperate enough for us to see a faint line, and then to see a strong demarcation – though still a bit mixed. 14 for the first and 20 for the second.? BB fell asleep in the car and declined to wake up. No doubt will do any minute now! Got to Robert the Bruce in Britannia. As an aside, SB has devised her own heraldic banner – will photo and flickr. She is very proud of it.

gifted and talented

rage – just lost a whole post on gifted and talented. be very glad – probably karma as i have ranted so much today.

points of rant -

1.nomenclature – gifted and talented vs average or struggling

2. there being a national register of gifted and talented children

2.not being frank that what labour wants to do is reintroduce setting/streaming

3. pretending that individualised option is a reality in most schools

but mainly the words!!!

but doesn’t this

General Characteristics of Gifted, Talented and More Able Pupils – he or she may:

  • be a good reader
  • be very articulate or verbally fluent for their age
  • give quick verbal responses (which can appear cheeky)
  • have a wide general knowledge
  • learn quickly
  • be interested in topics which one might associate with an older child
  • communicate well with adults – often better than with their peer group
  • have a range of interests, some of which are almost obsessions
  • show unusual and original responses to problem-solving activities
  • prefer verbal to written activities
  • be logical
  • be self taught in their own interest areas
  • have an ability to work things out in their head very quickly
  • have a good memory that they can access easily
  • be artistic
  • be musical
  • excel at sport
  • have strong views and opinions
  • have a lively and original imagination / sense of humour
  • be very sensitive and aware
  • focus on their own interests rather than on what is being taught
  • be socially adept
  • appear arrogant or socially inept
  • be easily bored by what they perceive as routine tasks
  • show a strong sense of leadership
  • not necessarily be well-behaved or well liked by others

sound like characteristics that lots of HE kids you know have? And isn’t it sooooo meaningless in the HE world of individualised education!

oh, and blogging for the LEA

I don’t think so! I might agree that these pages may help us write a report if we are minded to do so, I don’t intend to point to the blog either. LINK

anyway, grump grump privacy, grump grump commenting anonymously, grump grump at tone and because I can!

but I don’t do it that way

in the singapore maths, for 43 – 27 you would say there were 4 boxes, 30, 13, 20, 7 and get to 10 and 6 = 16.

Sb suddenly said to me, but mummy, I don’t do it that way now, I say the difference to 10 is 3, and another 3 is 6 when i take the ten [you get the drift?] so I think she must now have cracked it.