Odds and ends

It's windy out today. I feel like a hibernating bear though I'm not burning as many calories as they do.

• Yesterday we wet-on-wet painted some sheets of paper with red watercolor paint. Today we will make some valentines.

• New Zealand Day at the Paterson Museum monthly gathering sounded like it was a success. The next Country Day will be in March and the country to learn about is Egypt. Cap is going to work with the kids on something since he's been doing geography stuff with them. Everyone picks an aspect of the country to put together a presentation on and also chooses a traditional food to bring. First is very excited about the June country: Madagascar.

• I am getting together some materials and ideas to start a Math block next week. I'll introduce them to Cuisinaire rods and we'll continue playing games and doing activities involving counting, sorting, categorizing, patterns, etc. On the shopping list for this weekend: a good set of wooden blocks with cones, cylinders, and various prism shapes. Our set got left behind in California...

• Waldorf-inspired group get together yielded one guest. Marla and I had a nice time chatting and her adorable kids enjoyed playing with Kinder. First was a bit socially awkward and was intense and rigid about wanting us to buy some of the items he had for sale in his store. Marla ended up buying two things willingly (I hope) which helped. Part of my characterization of him has to do with my own unwillingness to fully support his endeavor (you don't invite people over to your house and then try to make money off them if that's not the intention of the gathering). Anyway, it ended up being a nice afternoon and I came away with two important realizations: 1) I really need to cut down on the time the kids spend watching tv (Marla put it so well: "I want my kids' minds to be their own"); and 2) I want to involve myself with homeschoolers with kids who are 5 or older for the kinds of activities I have in mind. It's not actually the content of the activities that would be different so much as the developmental thrusts of the language and thinking and actions that the kids would display and be inspired by that would be different.

• I am thinking about how to form some sort of co-op for homeschoolers to pool resources and give kids the opportunity for multi-age group learning in specific topic or subject areas. I know I could start up a Japanese language class...maybe I will.

• First is planning a President's Day party. He has an interest in presidents that is an off-shoot of his love of money. He slowly flipped through Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire's book, "Abraham Lincoln", the other day and seemed ultimately disappointed that there wasn't any mention of Lincoln's being on the penny or five dollar bill. Other than the outdated illustrated depictions of black people, it's a great book with a lot of information simply presented, but without talking down to kids. I have a feeling that First is going to come back to the book.

• Tonight Silke and her kids will come over for dinner before we all head out to a performance that the Newark Boys' Choir will be giving at a local elementary school. I'm looking forward to it except that the kids have been awake since about 5:00 am and may very well be basket cases by curtain time. The brown rice is in the rice cooker, the teriyaki chicken marinating in the fridge, the spinach and tofu made and the broccoli steamed. I may make latkes too. And Kinder and I may bake some corn bread. It's been one of those meals where I couldn't decide what I wanted to make so I'm making everything :-) They are bringing a German sweet of pitted cherries in sugar syrup that we are all eager to try.