Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Our Lapbooking Journey

We started making lapbooks in October 2008. It was just a fun way for my 4yo to document his learning of special subject matters. I like it that it can be treated as a special project on its own that we work together for. At the end of the process, there is a book that we can add to our home library.

The first lapbook - Triple Decker Bus was entirely a product of his own effort. It was my idea to make a lapbook on that subject matter, but the only other credit I could take was putting the pages together. He drew and wrote everything in the book. 

Even before he completed his first lapbook, I had the idea for his  second book - A Book About The World. That stemmed out of his interest on geography, flags and maps and curiosity about the countries in the world. 

The subsequent lapbooks on Goodnight Moon, Blueberries for Sal and How to make an apple pie and see the world were done based on themes found in these titles. My 2yo was also involved in most part of our lapbooking journey and it is amazing to me to witness the tremendous amount that he has picked up from the experience. 

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A handful of readers of this blog have suggested to me ever since we began lapbooking that I consider starting a home-based lapbooking class. After some thoughts, I am planning to start a pilot class on this soon. Read more if you are keen. 

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These supportive readers recognise the time and effort required for a parent to prepare the homeschooling materials for each theme, not to mention the discipline and patience required to coach their kids through every activitiy. 

As I am a firm believer of the importance of trans-disciplinary learning, all my homeschooling themes and lapbooking process include Language Arts, Math, Science, Geography or History, Arts and Crafts, Chinese activities and more. There is also a strong focus on activities that encourage inquisitiveness and independent exploration.

It is true that I do put in countless hours every week planning the curriculum, researching and preparing for the resources for each theme. While there are materials that we can find on the Internet, I have not found a single site that I can count on to meet my focus on delivering a trans-disciplinary learning experience. 

Like I mentioned earlier, the lapbooks are just the end product. The true benefits of this lapbooking journey is the learning experiences that the kids had during the process of lapbooking.

How we deliver the content and how engaging our approach is to our young ones is key to ensuring that they learn whatever we set out to teach. 

From our experience so far, both my 4.5yo and 2yo (who will be 2.5yo in a week) have benefitted significantly from our learning journey as evident from my earlier posts.

Edited to add on 2nd April: All classes are full. 

Monday, March 30, 2009

Till The Lights Are Out

On some days, the 2yo still naps for one to two hours in the afternoon. That is the time when I catch up on homeschooling activities with the 4yo if he is not too tired. Sometimes, I do leave him to play on his own if I deem him too distracted/tired/cranky etc. I work around him basically - what kind of activities we do is highly dependent on his state of concentration. 

One rule I have - I only work on homeschooling activities with the kids when they are in a receptive mood to achieve optimum results. 

However, there are also days when I keep both kids up without a nap so that they go to bed around 7pm. Sometimes, I take the 2yo to the park or arrange a play date for the morning, a trip to the play gym after lunch and some quiet activities at home before I take them for a swim. Then it is a mad rush of baths, fixing dinner and bedtime routine all within 75 min.

It helps a lot when E is not travelling as he usually gets back from work by 630pm. But on days when he is away on trips, I still try to stick to this routine and get the kids to bed by 730pm. 

Once their lights are out, it is me-time to catch up on chores, planning, reading and whatever else. Though it can get really tiring on some days, I still prefer it this way instead of relaxing and napping in the afternoons with the boys and then have them stayed up till past 9pm. 

Saturday, March 28, 2009

4.5yo's Recent Art Pieces

Here is a selection of pieces done in Art School in the last few lessons.

His grandparents in London. A super fat bunny with a big carrot and teeny weeny one by the side. At first glance, I thought it just doesn't look like his style. 

So I checked with the teacher who told me she drew some people on her paper and after demonstration, took the paper away. So all kids could do their own interpretations. According to her, this is actually not a very close resemblence to the ones that she had drawn. So he added his own interpretations like the hair, clothes and things they carried.

Really fat hippo that ate too much next to a coconut tree. Entirely his work. I love his tree! 

Horse walking on tight rope. Ever since he has been drawing horses so often at home.

Self-expression piece with multimedia. I think it is supposed to be An Assortment of Donuts. His idea.  Not sure what the arrow is doing in the painting though.

Self portrait!! 

A really nasty queen bee in the garden. Look at that meanie look on the bee!  The teachers were full of praises for the details he added. 

Apple tree in autumn. 

Boat in the sea. Hmm.. lilac coloured water.. ??

School bus. He added seats and rear view mirrors! :) 

Cheeky boy with an outstretched arm, standing next to a bus. 



This last piece was drawn at home. That was Mama waving (notice I am bald!) and right next to Mama is himself bending down, so we can only  see his butt! And the really tiny figure on the left is his baby brother. Hee hee.. 

Friday, March 27, 2009

Why Grape Seed Oil

I just responded to a reader's question on the use of grape seed oil. After typing it all out, I figured I will just post it here for everyone else's benefit. :) 

See here for the post and all related comments. 

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I use grape seed oil for many reasons but the most important is the first one.

1. high smoking point which makes it a healthier choice for stir-frying and deep frying though I don't do much of latter.

The high smoking point is very important as the smoke point of an oil is the amount of heat an oil can withstand before it begins to break down, forming free radicals in the process. And we know that free radicals are really bad stuff.

When heated, grapeseed oil neutralizes free radicals, allowing your food to retain its freshness and flavour when cooked.

2. It has a clean and light taste and sometimes described as 'nutty'. Though from experience, it depends on the brands you use.

3. it also has a 'neutral' taste unlike peanut, olive, sesame oil for instance, grape seed oil is also often used as an ingredient in salad dressings or as a base for infusing or flavoring with garlic, rosemary, or other herbs or spices.

4. And because it is so light, the food that is cooked with grapeseed oil just don't seem to be very oily. For instance when I make fried rice, noodles or stir-fried meat/vegetables, the cooked food just don't taste/look oily at all.

5. Also I realise that I can use much less of it to cook a dish compared to other oils that I used before. 

6. Lastly, grapeseeds have antioxidant properties. Though it is debatable how much made it to the oil and cooked food.

I have been using grapeseed oil for years, though I still use olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, canola and sesame oil for other purposes.

For the recipe of the chicken nuggets, you don't have to use grapeseed oil. Any other oils are fine but perhaps not as healthy as grapeseed.

Bento #37


For the 4yo's school lunch this week.  The star of the bento this week is the homemade wantons that were baked instead of fried. 

My boy loves the wantons. The first time I placed these on his dinner plate, he took a quick bite and went "hmmm.... these are so delicious mama. I love them. Will you make them for me everyday?" 

No, he didn't get them everyday. Of course not! :) 

I made a bento for Chipsy too since he had a date with the adorable Ethel.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

In That Week-Long Break

For this March week-long school holiday, I decided to do just a couple of hours of homeschooling on the Monday morning and take a break for the week.

So the rest of the time was spent on plenty of play dates, sand play, swim and a few visits to several indoor gyms, zoo and playgrounds. 



The bulk of our time at the zoo was spent at the Rainforest Kidzworld. And on the trams of course. The kids just weren't that interested in looking at the animals after our repeated visits before. 


Going absolutely nuts over the tricycles in a really crowded place...

Sliding down... and cackling away... 



He must have gone on it at least ten times, each time with a different ball. 



This pair is definitely forming a strong friendship. Maybe we can start a sleepover routine real soon. 

The 4yo also went for a half-day art camp but I have no photos for that since it was a drop-off session. Really, it should be called a craft camp instead since all that the kids did was craftwork. And in my opinion, very uncomplicated crafts too. 

As I do lots of more challenging crafts with my boys at home, I just don't see the value of sending them to another craft class. But since the fee was very reasonable for the duration, I let him try especially when he is so keen on returning to his art school. It's alright for a one-off 4-hour camp though, just for the fun and experience. At least now I get a sense of the value of the craftwork I have been doing with my boys at home. 

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Sweet Treats



I am sure he could eat all of them in one sitting if I had allowed him. But I didn't. 

He didn't protest either, being the sensible boy that he is. I just need to tell him that it is not that good for him. Once I answered his questions about why and what and everything else about it, he was contented enough to leave the rest for me. 

But I am going to bake him some soon. Simply because he loves them so much.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Parenting Thoughts: Giftedness and Underachievement

I have been reading about Giftedness and the Myths of Underachievement. 

There has been so much misunderstanding about giftedness - what it really is, how to recognise it and address the related issues. 

The term 'underachievement' referred to here, is about not achieving one's potential. It isn't about setting goals like the number of As to achieve in exams or passing a Grade x piano exam at age 5 for instance. 

One issue that I have particular interest in is about taking charge of my children's education. 

To me, it isn't about selecting a branded school, or what others deem to be the most expensive or best in the market. As advocated by experts and confirmed by so many books that I have read, we simply can't assume that the educators know best about helping our child reach his potential. It takes a rare educator to recognise giftedness and is trained enough to handle the related challenges.

By taking charge, it is about selecting an education option that best suits the child's learning abilities. As a parent, we should know our child's strengths and weaknesses better than the teachers. 

If schools aren't meeting the child's needs and when our child slides through school with easily obtained As from teachers who don't know the extent of our child's abilities, we also need to ask ourselves 'Is this good enough?'. Each child gets only one childhood. There are no 'do-overs' and no second chance to be a 5yo again.

The reason underachievement exists in some gifted children is because we teach them to underachieve by asking for little more than blind devotion to a curriculum that is either too easy, or too irrelevant.

Addressing understimulation and underachievement:

- eliminate or reduce significantly any work already mastered;
- allow independent projects on topics of personal choice;
- place your child with teachers who understand and appreciate gifted kids' intelligence, humour, and sarcasm;
- incorporate problem-solving techniques instead of rote learning to learn or practice needed skills; and 
- whenever possible, combine typical school subjects of math, science, language arts etc so that students see the 'the big picture' of how these areas overlap in real-life situations.

Learning should be fun, interesting and meaningful, with a bigger purpose than just obtaining good grades in school. 

My ultimate goal is to inculcate in my kids the desire to learn that is accompanied by a hunger for knowledge. I see my role as one to inspire my boys to have a natural and undying curiosity and interest about the world around them.

I've learnt so much more from reading and discussing with people in similar situations or those with relevant experience. However, this post is not meant to go into details but to highlight a few points for my own reminder.

To Get Them Moving

Sometimes when the outdoor playgrounds aren't inviting enough, we head to indoor options for the boys to expend some energy. 

The 2yo can really go on and on for the full hour. He mingles with other kids, kicks a few balls to impress some girls and dances to his favourite songs without inhibitions. 



Clapping and stomping to "If you are happy, and you know it..."

He loves going through tunnels and all these little windows. Just not through the doors.

Sliding down with a ball in one hand. Repeatedly. The other boy just sat there watching him for the whole 20 min. 


Trying a new stunt - riding the truck up the slide. He didn't succeed. I stopped him.

Monday, March 23, 2009

New Playmates

Of all the play dates that my boys have in a week, two of them are weekly arrangements with regular play mates. There are also a few families we meet with once to thrice a month. Throw in a few more ad hoc sessions with neighbours and friends from school and my boys easily have between 3 and 5 play dates a week.

Some weeks, our schedule is so packed that when friends ask to meet up, we ended up having to schedule for a few weeks ahead! It sounds really crazy, but that is the reality when there is more than a child in the family and I try to include play dates for both kids. 

Lately, Chipsy has been talking a lot about a few of his new friends. Out of the blue, he would ask about Ethel or say how much he likes to play with Lucas. 

It is always lovely to see our kid interacting freely and confidently with others.

During a craft session in one of the playgroups. Some kids tend to participate more enthusiastically when the activities are led by other adults and when they are with friends. Thankfully, Chipsy is as zealous about learning at home alone with me as he is with a bunch of friends.

A little competition here on who can slide down faster. :P

A little friendship blossoming here...  Little Chip asked where his friend was and when he spotted her alone on the bench, he dashed over to keep her company. They stayed like this for over 15 minutes before the adults hurried them off to lunch.


The water babies hit the pool after one of our play dates. 

M has also been asking daily if he could invite this boy and that girl over to play after school. He is clearly forming strong friendships with a few kids from school. So I shall try to accomodate his request at least once a week.

On some days when I feel especially energetic (and ambitious), there may be a play date in the morning, a swim in the afternoon, followed by another sand play session in the evening. Time just flies by so quickly that I don't even have time to realise how tired I am till the boys hit the sack. 

I figured that should be what childhood is all about - lots of play and more play. And since children don't remember much of their early years, my daily journaling in this blog should help jog their memory in future. And probably mine too.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

2 Minute Performances





The 2yo tells me sometimes 'Mama watch me! I can play piano too.' 

Then he proceeds to position himself in front of the piano with his fingers nicely curled. As he begins his little performances, he will occasionally steal a glance coyly in my direction and is always pleased to see his mummy smiling proudly at him.  


Friday, March 20, 2009

Toys For Creative Play



















A while back, the boys were given a box of this as birthday present. 

This is the kind of wonderful toy which encourages creativity and enhances fine motor skills. It is highly manipulative. Perfect for little hands and big minds. 

It doesn't take long for the 4yo to create shapes of vehicles with the pieces. 


A dump truck with the tipper body up. The boy made this in under 10 min just before bedtime.

My 2yo plays with it sparingly still, but he is quick to form simple recognisable shapes with them. At the moment, his interest lies more in throwing them all into his huge remote-controlled Caterpillar dump truck, so that he can mimic the dumping work done repeatedly by the trucks he sees daily.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Our Good Wet Times

My boys always love their two hours of pool time when the weather permits.

They get into the pool with their water toys and have a blast splashing each other, sailing their boats, watering the plants and each other.


My beautiful baby!  Here he was really tickled as I shot jets of water at his tummy. Only because he asked me to. And he laughed every time and asked for more! 




Both giggling away as they took turns to be shot with water. I had to balance my camera with one hand and shooting with the other. It was really funny watching them laugh and laugh though. 

After repeatedly being shot at the tummy, that cheeky 4yo asked me to shoot his willy and promptly pulled down his pants to expose himself!! K who was with us that day, couldn't stop laughing at his antics. :) I had to put on a straight face and order him to pull his pants back up. But he had other ideas. He turned around and exposed his bum crack instead. Hmmm... that little monkey!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Learning About Volcanoes

Ever since my 4yo got fascinated with volcanoes, the terms 'volcanoes', 'lava', 'magma', 'crater', 'caldera' etc.. just keep popping up in our daily conversations. My 2yo talks about volcanoes as frequently as he mentions Bob the Builder.

So after reading a few books about volcanoes, my 4yo started painting volcanoes and recreating volcanoes during playtime with sand and playdoh.

We also did some crafts on volcanoes using different materials and made an erupting volcano! 



The one on the left was done by the 4yo, depicting violent eruption with lava shooting out of the crater in all directions. 


Our Volcano that they kids helped to make. They took turns to mix and pour the liquids into the volcano. It took barely a second for the 'eruption' to start. 

The kids didn't care that the 'lava' was too bubbly and way too diluted and pink. They were stunned and speechless for a few seconds watching the bubbly liquid rushing out of 'their volcano'.

The 4yo seems to prefer volcanoes in cold countries a lot more, hence his decision to opt for the white plasticine to mould the volcano. 

This was how we made our volcano. 


And last night he composed a piece of 'volcano music' on a whim and enthusiastically performed it for us. :) 


One day, we shall go visit a real volcano. I am sure the little boy will be truly thrilled by it. 

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Parent Fail

My hubby is very good at sending me stuff which really cracks me up. 

Go check out failblog for more funnies. 

fail owned pwned pictures
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