Monday we had another concert with Orchestra. This was at Golden Hill, and though we were late, I have to say that I noticed a big difference between this old age home and the other one we have performed at. The people here were so much more responsive. I know that's a good thing, but I can't help feeling bad for the people at the other one. Does the quality of care make such a difference, or is it just a matter of certain types of people going to one versus the other?
Anyway, we finished in plenty of time to go have lunch at McD's, our fav of late with the dollar menu and all, and on to Aikido.
We then went home and worked on a new project. I had downloaded some MP3s from the Institute for Excellence in Writing web page, and one was about Reaching the Reluctant Writer. The speaker went through the process of actually giving young students something to write about. He said that students most often have trouble with what to write, since they are young and, honestly, don't have the experience to draw on that us older folk have. His solution is to take something that is at or below their reading level, and pick it apart sentence by sentence to make an outline. For each sentence, the student is allowed 3 (4 if older) words. Pull three words to help them remember the gist of the sentence. For instance, in The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog, I might choose "fox", "jumped" and "dog". The student then can rewrite (or recite) the story back, changing it being ok: The crazy fox jumped high over the dumb dog. You still get the idea. The speaker suggested Aesop's fables, and so we did one. Title words and symbols/quick pics are free, so don't count as part of the three words. The kids really got into it, and it was neat to see how the stories came out differently. We will definitely do this again, and maybe after a time or two will even try some non-fiction.
Tuesday. I'm pooped. Not sure how the kids are still awake at 11:02pm. This morning we did some test prep Math, then we were off to buy plants for the veggie garden with Nana and Grandpa. I ended up buying more than I expected, as usual, but I think it was worth it. Got some flowers that the kids planted in the front garden and the back garden. Got all the veggies and we planted them today too. Tomatoes, bush beans, snap peas, lettuce, watermelon, cucumbers, pickling cukes, zucchini, and probably something I forgot as well. Luke helped Nana with her bed, while Emily helped me with ours. Grandpa and I had prepped the beds earlier, which made things a lot easier today. I was really psyched to see how engaged the kids got with digging and planting and watering. Now if we can keep the enthusiasm through weeding, I'd really be amazed! :) I'll post some pictures if the plants are still there tomorrow and I can snap a shot.
Tonight, the kids went to the web site Hooda Math. Lately I think they prefer it to the annoying and ad-driven Poptropica. I am sure they find the least 'educational' type game they can find, but I think it's still better than most game sites. They do have some serious math type stuff, but I'm just glad they can find a site we all like, and it still has them screaming with laughter.
Ok, reading over all we've done in the past two days has made me more tired. Tomorrow, Dancd, Dairy Farm Field trip, Aikido, and a fracking discussion at UCCC from 6-8. Busy busy!
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