Lunch Ideas: Bagel Faces

I don't know about you, but I am always on the lookout for new lunch ideas. As I have mentioned before, my kids would probably eat the same thing every day, but I prefer a little more variety.

On our last trip to the public library, we found this book, which I have been eyeing online for a while:

Before I really had a chance to look through it myself, however, N had swiped it. The next day, he came to me with a list of all the recipes in the book he thought worth trying, complete with a list of ingredients we would need for each one. (Ah, my list-maker! Don't know where he gets it . . . .)

One day last week, we decided to try something from his list--the Bagel Faces. We used mini bagels, with each person choosing a favorite spread (mayo, whipped cream cheese, and swiss cheese spread were the winners). For decorating the faces, we had grape tomatoes (whole and sliced), sliced cucumbers, sliced carrots, and cheddar cheese cut into "matchsticks". The possibilities for toppings, of course, are endless, but these are the faces we created with what we had:

So much fun! What an easy way to make lunch into a creative project instead of just another meal. I think next time, we'll try peanut butter as the spread with bananas, apples, raisins, and nuts as the toppings.

The rest of the book is delightful as well, with each recipe in both text and step-by-step picture format (for ease of use by children). The authors also include helpful tips for cooking with small children and quotes from the preschool "critics" they tested the recipes with. The book is illustrated in a simple, whimsical, hand-drawn style that is very appealing to both me and my children. Now that I've seen the book for myself, I may just add it to my wishlist!

For other tot-friendly projects and recipes, visit Delicious Ambiguity.

Tot School: Fun with Plastic Containers

B is currently 30 months old.

One day, I decided to pull out one of our "container buckets"--this one filled with all sorts of plastic containers we've saved:

The idea was for Baby P to enjoy exploring something new, but B decided he wanted in on the fun, too. He rummaged through the bucket for a while, just figuring out what was in there. Then, next thing I knew, he had found five matching halves of tube-style travel toothbrush holders and decided they would make great bowling pins! After several attempts to find the best ball for the game as well as modifying the entryway "alley" with pillow "bumpers", we came up with this arrangement:

He had lots of fun, and also lots of counting practice, since the best thing is announcing to everyone how many pins you've knocked down each time!

A little later, I found him "pouring" this ball back and forth between two containers. This was especially entertaining, since the ball in question is one that erupts into electronic sounds each time it hits or is hit by something.

Although I didn't snap any photos, he also spent quite a bit of time sorting all the containers into similar types, opening and closing lids, and hiding small objects inside containers and getting us to guess which one the objects was in. These and other activities with the plastic containers kept B (and Baby P) occupied nearly all day.

Aren't children amazing? Given the right environment and opportunities, they will direct their own learning and practice the things they need with such creativity! I love the chance I get to be reminded of this on a daily basis.

For more fun ideas on how to learn with your tot, visit Carisa's blog.

How We Workbox

Recently, Alyssa asked about how we use and organize workboxes in our homeschool. I did write a post a couple of months ago detailing some of the modifications we've made to the system, but I've recently tweaked it even further. I've been planning to write more on that topic, but I never seem to get around to it. Thanks, Alyssa, for giving me the push I needed!

As I looked back through my records, I realized that we have been using Sue Patrick's Workbox System for almost an entire year! How did that go so fast? I was introduced to the concept back when I was expecting Baby P--a time when I needed a little more organization and a little less daily preparation in my homeschool life. From all I read about it, workboxing definitely promised to help me realize those goals.

If you're not familiar with Sue Patrick's system, it's basically a method of physically and visually organizing a child's learning materials. Although Ms. Patrick recommends a very specific setup which she feels to be optimal, I have been fascinated by the infinite number of adaptations others have developed to fit their own needs and styles. (This is what the agile homeschooling philosophy is all about!) If you're interested, do a quick search on Google Images with the term "workboxes" to see a wide variety of these personalized systems. Read here about how we originally did things, as well as some changes we made at the beginning of this year to make the system fit our style.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, we use these craft carts by Sterilite with lidded, removable drawers, which I absolutely LOVE. I started out with one 7-drawer cart each for N, K, and B. I recently purchased another cart, which I took apart in order to add more drawers to each child's "tower", as well as two sets of open 3-drawer units (no lids) to add on top. These are wonderfully modular in construction, meaning that they can be easily disassembled and snapped back together in different configurations. (Seriously agile!)

Here's the way our setup looks at the moment:

N's boxes are on the left, K's in the middle, and B's on the right. As you can see, we use a couple of stand-alone bins to contain bulky items. I've also taken possession of a couple of drawers at the top of each tower for my own prep materials:

This is much better than the helter-skelter stacks of books and papers I was working with before!

Another recent addition is an attached card on the right-hand side labeling the subject focus of each box:

This saves on pulling out two or three drawers before finding the one we're after.

Here's what one of the drawers/boxes looks like out of the cart:

The attached lids make them very portable, and they are a perfect size for fitting almost all of the materials I ever want to put in them.

For example, here's what you'll find in N's math box at the moment: his textbook and workbook, a weekly schedule card (laminated for use with wet-erase markers so as to be reusable), a calculator for checking answers, wet-erase markers, and two of what we call "erasable sheets". (I've also seen them called "worksheet extenders", but I made these myself by sticking together two sheets of clear contact paper and cutting them into book-sized pieces. The point is to be able to reuse the workbook with each child.)

The most important thing to me about this system is that it makes it possible for our homeschool to be extremely agile. Workboxes have seriously been a lifesaver to me, making it possible to maintain a fairly consistent routine through a very challenging period. There are many more details about how we implement workboxes throughout our day, but I'm afraid this post is already HUGE! If you have any specific questions, leave a comment and I'll get back to you. I may also write another post soon on how the "working with workboxes" actually looks at our house.

Tot School: Lauri Number Puzzles

B is currently 30 months old.

The hands-down hit this week in our Tot School has been this set of number puzzles by Lauri:

I've heard wonderful things about Lauri's products, but this is the first one we've actually purchased. What a great toy! The weight and texture of the crepe rubber is very tactilely pleasing, and the pieces fit together perfectly. B kept wanting to do them over and over again all week, and he really enjoyed the variety of shapes. I've been doing lots of different activities with B that emphasize number recognition, but this is the week it's finally starting to click for him. Coincidence? I think not!

We'll definitely be adding other Lauri puzzles to our wishlist now that we've seen the quality and effectiveness of this learning toy.

To see how much fun other families are having this week, visit Carisa's blog.

Anti-Social Studies

Okay, here's something that's been bothering me, and I need some input. For as long as I can remember, I have felt a strong dislike ("hate" is overstating it) for the term "social studies". I'm really not sure why, to tell you the truth. I can usually get to the bottom of a feeling like that, given enough time and thought, but this time I'm stumped. (Does that ever happen to you--reacting negatively to a word for no reason, I mean--or is it just me?)

We've been doing things that fall into the category of "social studies" all along, but I'm to the point where I want to create a weekly workbox for N and K based on a more cohesive curriculum (which I'm currently putting together). This means it will need a title, but I'm really rebelling against calling it our "social studies" box! Am I just being ridiculous?

I took a look at Wikipedia's article on the topic, and I especially like the idea of the subject encompassing "human behavior and interactions" (though I personally believe and teach my children that God is an important part of the equation as well). Unfortunately, I just can't envision us calling it our "human behavior and interactions" box, either. Maybe an acronym? Any ideas?

Morning Walk Challenge

You may recall our neighborhood scavenger hunt, one idea I had for spicing up our (sort-of) daily morning walk. This week, I asked N to come up with a list of "physical challenges" that the kids could do while we were out and about. Here's what he handed me:

1. Run, then skip to the fire hydrant.
2. Gallop to the mailbox, then run to the street sign.
3. Run to the signposts, then hop to the corner.
4. Run to the red car.
5. Walk backwards to the street lamp.
6. Run to the black mailbox, then gallop to the front door.

I won't lie and say that this activity was a resounding success, but it definitely has potential. Despite a little whining at the beginning, by the time we hit the last challenge, everyone had decided to let it be fun after all.

Afterwards, I asked N what he would do differently if we decided to do this activity again. For one thing, he realized that he had written a pretty demanding list, and it would be good to balance the more strenuous activities (like running and galloping) with some that would let them catch their breath (like walking backwards). He also figured out that hopping isn't something they can sustain for very long, so he would use it for a smaller stretch. I would also encourage him to think of other ways to move, such as jumping, walking sideways, tiptoeing, etc. to increase the variety.

We'll definitely have to try this one again with those modifications in mind!

A New Resource

Just a quick post to mention a great new resource for LDS homeschoolers. Latter-day Homeschooling is a group blog that aims to become "a gathering place for LDS homeschoolers to share their homeschooling experiences, offer tips, resources, ideas and encouragement to each other." I've only just begun to scratch the surface of what is available there, but I look forward to digging in deeper and making new connections. Be sure to drop by and see for yourself!