Back to School 2011

It's official.  As of today, Miss Girl is in the 3rd grade and J is in the 4th.  Do they look older?  (They're the ones without the fur.)

Our Back to School Party theme this year was: Pizza.  First, we had a clue hunt (Miss Girl's clues were written on pepperoni shapes and J's were on anchovy shapes) that led to their new school supplies.  They love clue hunts, especially J.  When we got home, J quickly made one for me.  He had me climbing up and down the stairs like nobody's business! 

For the second event, we had them draw toppings on a paper pizza. One could go the boring route and have them draw "mushrooms," "pepperoni," and "green peppers." I opted for something different. They had to draw toppings such as "vehicles," "wild animals," and "weather." Then they "called in" and gave their pizza orders. When we got home, J wanted to do that again as well. He gave the choices and I had to do the drawing. Two examples of my "toppings" were "J playing the drums," and "reptiles." Never a dull moment at our house.

We wanted the final activity before settling down to a pizza lunch (we're so good at themes) to be a fairly active one. One internet suggestion was to have a race with empty pizza boxes on their heads. It was raining outside and we had only a small amount of room inside, so I had to come up with another way to use those pizza boxes and their energy. The result of my brainstorm was "Pizza-nastics."

I started out with a calm and peaceful command. I could have suggested a nap at this point but knew that would go over like a stale pizza.

Next we moved into a higher skill set. The old balancing on the head trick. Miss Girl showed exquisite poise.

J, too, seemed to cotton to this particular pizza-nastics event. Of course, it does appear that he's being helped by that chandelier. I'll check the rules on that one...

Next the arms. Careful, careful...

Look at the loft on those! Fingertips, no less!

Now for the final event. Centered precariously, will the boxes remain for the next move?

Success! The extension on those arms is marvelous. Congratulations, new students!

And now, it's time to pack those carbs. (J is pointing to his recently lost tooth--I think. Maybe he's just indicating where the pizza should go.)

First Day of School

Well, it's official. Last Monday, August 30, the new school year began. Third Grade!

The school outfit was chosen (with comfort in mind) with McQueen shoes completing it. Daddy's 1970s lunchbox (Matchbox!) was packed with yummy snacks.

We heard the bus rumbling, so we scrambled around for last minute hugs and kisses, and then off to the bus stop. We arrived just in time.

Back to School "Party"

When J began First Grade, Miss Girl (his cousin) was going into Kindergarten. We got together to celebrate this momentous occasion. (Click HERE to see.) That was 2008. Last year Aunt T and I were actually so organized we had a THEME. Both of us were going to cover Oceanography. (Click HERE for that exciting post.)

This year, though, we kind of decided to wing it and have a day of "activity."

First we went to a park. It was 78 degrees and sunny, so we HAD to go to a park! This one was also a military memorial (hence the canon a few pics down):

This picnic table needed to be conquered:

Then, it was conquered by two:

After the park, we stopped for ice cream. It was, after all, a sunny day. Our final destination was a concert given by a local group that offers "matinee" performances for children. We got there early, so the kids had opportunity to pose on stumps:

Hug a tree:

Sit on a rock:

And generally let off the energy produced by the ice cream:

The doors opened for the concert and we settled in. They provide a program with the selected pieces which are chosen according to a theme. (Yay, a "theme" DID happen!) This week's focus was "Form."

Aunt T and Miss Girl sat separately so that we could explain things as the instrumentalists played.

For the last song, they allowed the children to come up on the stage so that could "feel" the music around them.

Then, we went home. The new school year's start has been commemorated with play, music, and ice cream. We're off to a great new year!

First Day of School Party

Aunt T and I like to kick off a new school year with a little celebrating. Both of us plan to do Oceanography at some point this year, so we came up with a (loose) theme of....Fish.

We had a chance to join a group of kids to take a tour of a Fish Hatchery. Fish. Ocean. It worked. The guide described the process of harvesting eggs, incubating them and then putting them in the "raceways" to grow. There wasn't much room for racing. I was disappointed.

Things picked up when we were given a chance to feed them. You'd have thought that there were piranha rather than trout when we tossed in the food.

(I...can't...resist..."Heil, Fishler!" I'm sorry. Please forgive me.)



There. I can go on now.

After the tour, we went to a favorite summer snack bar to get some lunch. We took our lunch to an ocean-themed playground (what else?). Good. My master plan was falling into place. While the kids and Aunt T ate, I laid out the clues for a treasure hunt. We got a cute treasure chest with fish items at Oriental Trading. J and Miss Girl worked together to follow the clues.

Here, the "Waterfall" clue:

and the "Sea Monster" clue:

Those clues, amongst others, ultimately led to the treasure map:

10 steps forward, 10 steps left, 10 steps left again, and Eureka!

It's now official: J is in Second Grade and Miss Girl is in First Grade. Where does the time go?

First Day of School...Finally

Yes, we have arrived at long last.

To make the day extra special, breakfast was served with a "1" candle for First Day. We teased J when the school bus drove by. "Hurry, J! The bus is here--get your shoes on--no more breakfast!" Ahhhh. No stress. Just a lovely breakfast together and then on with our day.

We finished up morning chores and then began school with our Apple Unit Study. We're calling it "Apple Week." We talked about Johnny Appleseed and how he was responsible for so many apple orchards getting their start. We also talked about how he ministered to the pioneers and the Native Americans as he walked through five states. The story goes that he was never sick a day in his life until he died of pneumonia at age 70! When J was coloring the apple (he thought it should be a Macintosh which is red with some green), he decided to model it as his "adam's apple."



We studied math, grammar, art, and more. We finished up the day with drum and piano practice. All in all, a great first day.

He was surprised to find out we get to do this tomorrow, too. I guess he figured it was just a one-day deal.

Here's a "quote-of-the-day" for you: "I LOVE grammar. Can we do some more? This time can I make the sentences and YOU put the verbs in?"

I think I need a good night's sleep. I'm tired!