Little bits

Our real lives are full of little bits of this and that… The witch and the cherry tree in Lego… all just because…..

two weeks out

We are so incredibly lucky! We got to spend two weeks totally out of our normal life volunteering for the Department of Conservation at a Lodge at Nydia bay. Only 5 hours of power a day, no cellphone reception… no roads, shops and not even many people! We got dropped there by boat with our…

testing

There is always something in the press about testing and how the kids are failing. Testing is a thing I associate with science. The importance in science is a fair test and this requires This makes sense right. If, for instance, you grew a plant in two different places but were actually testing the the…

the Tests

I found some UK kids tests in my teachers college stuff, we must have been given them as a ‘this is kinda like a P.A.T test with out us giving you one’ thing. They are for year 5, level 3-5. I have taught in the UK but couldn’t tell you if that us the same…

drive

I love my job. I think it is because there is so much to watch and think about. I get so much energy from the children. It’s like their excitement is contagious. It feels like you are somehow involved in the most exciting project ever and there is no boss to take you back to…

Playing school

It turns out homeschool kids play school. Helena plays it with her neighbors (7 and 4), her toys, and me!!! This has happened before. I go to bed to find a note on my pillow letting me know I have to sign up to some school like activity. I am currently not doing my Science…

the week that was

About an hour ago I was feeling totally successful. I felt we had accomplished a lot during the week. Our meeting on Monday was actually kinda fun – I went through the areas of the NZ curriculum (that I said I’d use in my homeschool application) and we thought about whether we had done something…

colouring in

I found some posters that my mother brought way back when and Helena is colouring them in. I kinda thought of this as a filler activity, a little mindless fun. H thought differently… so far we have used many reference books (contents, index, scientific names vs common names), she has used the internet to look…

Waiting

We have had test tubes and various other scientific equipment for years. I have even made Helena a mad scientist dress up/lab coat aka a clothes protector… It is usually me who gets out the stuff as a provocation to play with it. My Dad talks science as often as he can. My sister gave…

everyday can be an opportunity..

A little thing I have noticed is that when we had to get up for school it was an effort, when we get up for Everyone Out it is an effort, even though we really like it, yet when we get up at home on the whole Helena bounds out of bed whether I am…