Integrating lesson plans

Making lessons practical, memorable, and doable!

So, as mentioned, we are doing YEAR-ROUND 7 day a week school. This means 340 days with 2 to 2.5 hours of learning on average each day!

We break it up into 30 min. or 1 hour blocks. By doing this I hope to integrate what we are learning into what we are doing, making it both practical and doable! To get my five year old to sit still and focus on "lessons" for more than 15 or 20 minutes is nearly impossible! Yet he is a smart whipper snapper! He works best when his hands are moving and he can do or see what he is hearing about.

At his level, lessons include time, days, beginning reading, adding and subtracting, etc. Nothing too intense, so at this point it is very simple to integrate lessons into every day!

Day one of school I had him use his fine motor skills by cutting out 62 little squares containing the numbers 1-31 (twice, in two colors)

His number recognition up to 30 and counting went into play as I had him put the numbers in order and glue them properly onto his June calendar.

We discussed seasons, months, the year, and days of the week as we put the calendar together and admired its awesomeness.

We talked phonics as we tried to sound out the days of the week.

All of this took about an hour from start to finish. And now we have a calendar to work with for the whole month!

We will do more integrating with all the lessons, and I hope with daily USE (not just "practice and memorization") these things will be more than taught, but actually put to use!

More to come!

*we used the FREE printable calendar from mrprintables.com
I highly recommend this site for a variety of fun idea to get started!

And we're OFF!

Let the race begin!
Yesterday, after hours of research, we finally OFFICIALLY began our FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN! (home school)

Zeru created this calendar almost entirely on his own!

This is SO exciting! Not only for me (I love teaching and coming up with new entertaining ways to learn) but also for Zeru who is getting some much needed undivided attention and momma time! But also for Zeru's Place because I've never been more motivated to coming up with fun learning than when I am forced to do it!

SO, keep posted for some fun new learning tools, ideas, games, printables, etc. in the weeks and months to come! Perfect timing for those kiddos preparing to go into kindergarten next August, or those on break between school!

(We are doing a year round school year with fewer hours per day, 7 days a week. I hope this will keep Zeru more engaged, help him forget less, and make learning FUN not BORING).
Besides that, I take Zeru to work with me, so this helps us to get school and work done!

Some subject we will be exploring this summer: Bar graphs, Dolch words (common sight words), Time & Dates, Phonics, Amharic (2nd language), Earth science (plants, biology, etc.), geography and culture, directions and maps, and so much more!

Can't wait to share the adventure with you!

Road to reading buy and build!

Zeru's Road to reading is now for sale! Get the kids in on the action! Decorate and color yourself and add your own shortcuts, bridges, buildings, and landscapes! (Directions, stencils and ideas included)

Comes with directions, one set of cards with removable road signs and the fabric road!

The fun thing about this particular car road (besides that the kids get to decorate it themselves) is that it is SOFT and DURABLE made from a white denim on the front.

It is difficult to ruin them, they can be washed, rolled, crinkled into a ball, shoved under the bed... they can be easily stored small and won't bend, break, crack, tear like paper, board, or other materials.

As always we will have FREE printable downloads of the cards and signs or you can purchase finished laminated sets. Road to reading. On our way to fun!

 

Zeru has decorated his with some "bridge shortcuts" houses, trees, and other fun things. It is one of his favorite activities to do during the busy day- and what makes me happy is he is actually learning!

 

The concept is very simple. This "game board" has slots for 12 road signs (included- additional sets can be downloaded and printed for free, or purchased finished) with corresponding flash cards.

 

Flip the top card over. Have your child identify the word (by picture or reading) then search for the matching road sign. The fun is finding a route to get to the location!

 

This forces the recognition of letters and combined letters in association with a word. It is a very useful tool for beginner readers. Not to mention it is fun!

Beginning math sets coming soon also!

 

Road fits hot wheels/matchbox size cars- two lanes. Cars not included- but I am sure any house interested in this product has cars lying around!

 



Life application learning

One afternoon while getting lost in the largest market in Africa, Zeru and I found a little café to retreat to for some tea.

We received our receipt and I noticed the arch it made on the table, like a little bridge or tunnel. My mind quickly jumped back many years to 8^th grade science class and a lesson on air pressure.

When you place a piece of paper under your bottom lip and blow across the top of the paper, the paper does not go down as many people would first think- but rather goes up because the air pressure is moved by your breath, but the air pressure below the paper says the same- pushing the paper up.

 

Pretty simple lesson, but I obviously never forgot it.

 

As we sat tired and quiet I picked up the receipt and excitedly got him interested in my cool trick.

 

I explained with my hands the invisible air pressure pushing equally on both dies of the receipt- and explained to the 4 ½ year old mind that I was going to blow those invisible pressures away! Just watch! They cannot press on the paper any more! So guess what happens when you blow the ones on the top away? The ones on the bottom still push! And look- the top ones cannot push back!

 

He actually got it pretty quickly and was eager to try himself. Many months later he will still pick up a rolled receipt and try this “trick” so the lesson must have stuck.

 

It is my hope in the near future to incorporate this lesson into some lessons on weather.

 

Counting beans construction!

 

In Ethiopia we had to get extra creative. Thankfully we had a dump truck on hand!

 

One of the cheapest foods we got at the local market was red beans- apparently only poor people eat them, so the average people refused to buy them. We loved them (except the 4 hour cook time of course) because they were a cheap, reliable, and non-perishable form of protein!

 

But perhaps what was best was their use as “construction blocks” for Zeru’s math lessons.

 

We started with number recognition (some how 7 and 9 get mixed up often- not sure how) then moved on to addition, subtraction, and even multiplication and division.

 

Here you can see our number recognition lesson.

 

There are many construction “Sites” and each site needs a specific number of “blocks” or “bricks” to build its building. Make sure each site has the correct number of bricks.

 

This is also useful for his learning to count to higher numbers (like those tricky teen numbers which make no sense. Why don’t we just say “five-teen?” That would be so much simpler! Or what about eleven- what does that even mean?)

 

For multiplication and division we make “construction sites” and each site takes the same number of “bricks.” If the contractor has 12 bricks, and 4 sites, how many bricks can he use for each site? Or if he has 3 sites and each uses 4 bricks, how many bricks will he need all together?

 

Pretty simple fun application of division and multiplication. And all we need is beans!

 

For added fun use real blocks and let your little builder create something which each set of “bricks” set out in each site!

 

Don't leave them at home!

Zeru came to Ethiopia and lived there for almost seven months.

Though there was culture shock, and many challanges, it was worth it.

He now has a new appreciation for o many things in life. He does not take things for granted, and he will always hold a place in the hearts of the street boys he helped.

Check out what we accopmlished the months we were under the radar.

You can become a part of  it also! Find out how.

Club Anbesa

Zeru in Africa

So- While we are here living in Ethiopia the ideas are still coming but the resources and internet access is very limited!!! I am very happy to report that when we return we will start a product line as well as our free idea area!!! And Zeru is learning Amharic more eagerly.

Stay tuned for more!!

This is David the sheep (which Zeru named) whom he saved from slaughter- the much leaner Max got eaten instead. Zeru watched the whole process. There is nothing like real life experience. I am thankful that he has gotten the opportunity as I know it is unlikely most people have experienced all he has already.

In every opportunity I try to make a learning experience- the other day at a cafe we discussed air pressure with a receipt. today weights and balance at a cafe with a pen and receipt folder. Yesterday we discussed the different reasons for poverty and the social dilemma faced in the country as he tried to make friends with begging street kids and they would not stop following us through town.