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A home schooling principle for this fall

by Mary Ann on October 18, 2010

Fall Is For “Cleaning House”

Fall is in the air- I love it! Although it still seems a bit like summer here in the west where I live, I know fall is just around the corner. There is a slight chill to the air and the suns rays seem a bit thinner. The flowers are brilliant and blooming like mad in the final days of warm weather.

Why do I love autumn so much? Well, things begin to gear down. It feels somehow, restful. It feels peaceful. I have a desire to sit on the porch and soak up the sun. I want to bake bread! These autumn months make me feel cozy. I have a desire to be home, puttering, preparing for winter.

Mostly, I love this season because the falling leaves remind me that to everything there is a season. There is a time for gathering and a time for letting go. This is a time when I feel the need to simplify.

Just as the leaves of fall must let go so the tree can rest we too need to occasionally take stock of what we have and ask ourselves, “Is this serving a purpose or is it just clutter?” Are there commitments or obligations that I have taken on that are not serving my family or me? Is my calendar cluttered? Is there too much ‘stuff ‘in my home? Are the cupboards of my mind too full? What about my emotions? Are there any old wounds and hurts that I need to release to the wind? Fall is a time for taking stock and cleaning house.

When we think of this type of cleaning many think of spring. But for me fall is the time. I don’t want to be closed up for winter with too many obligations, too much stuff, too few hours for home and family or feelings that burden my days and nights. Winter is for rest and I want to be free to rest.

This is rule number four of the Five Rules of Engagement. It is a true principle which allows us to have a great deal of freedom: Keep it simple – when you put something in, take something out. It is a principle, which if observed, can help us keep plenty of time for family, relationships and learning.

As my darling daughter, Jenny, so elegantly said, “Precious Autumn demonstrated graceful change to me today. To change…..and release…..with grace.

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How to find a mentor for your children and its importance

by Mary Ann on October 14, 2010

Let me tell you how I found a mentor for my grandchildren and how you can easily find one too.

I found a geologist!! Do you remember the story about my granddaughters and their interest in crystals? When they asked where crystals come from I didn’t know anything about crystals or what makes them grow. But with a little computer time, which we spent together, and a trip to the library we found out all their little eight and six year old brains could absorb.

I detailed that wonderful adventure with Ashley and her sister Elizabeth in a number of blogs. In those blogs on how we had a study on crystals and rocks, I said that one of the ways I could extend their learning was to find a geology mentor who would share information with them, possibly their own rock collection or going with our family on a field trip.

That is what I want to talk about today, finding mentors and others to help us, to help our children walk through open doors to greater learning.

I have said that you can find just about anyone you need if you just ask around. I want to let you know that despite what you may think it is really true!

Two nights ago we had some friends over for homemade ice cream. We had a varied conversation about spiders, snakes and other creepy animals. Don’t ask me how we got that conversation started! That led to talking about rocks and my learning adventure with Lizzy and Ashley. Amazingly their 15 year old son said, “My best friend’s dad is a geologist.” Voila, I had found my geologist. It was about a month after the original adventure.

Recently, a mom in one of my classes realized that her son was in LOVE with rocks, minerals and crystals. By asking around she discovered that they had a geologist right in their own neighborhood and he was willing and even excited to share his own collection and knowledge with her son.

This mom had really responded to this “spark” that her son was showing. They had visited the planetarium to view moon rocks. They sat up one night and watched a meteor shower. They had had many rock related activities and learning moments; out of all that the thing that excited her son the most was his new mentor.

At dinner each night they go around the table and each member tells one thing that they are grateful for. This is what Miles was most grateful for – “…Miles said he was grateful to have a neighbor who is a geologist who he can learn from!”

A few days ago I wrote an article about always wanting to know how gyroscopes worked. When I was researching for the blog about gyroscopes I found a lot of information that I could share with my grandchildren. I must admit, however, that there was plenty that I just couldn’t understand. I need someone who understands how they work and can explain it in terms I can understand. Guess what? If I ask around long enough I know I will find a gyroscope mentor.

Mentors can be wonderful, valuable and important assets to you and your children. A good mentor is one of the seven keys of great teaching. Leadership Education: The Phases by Oliver and Rachel DeMille)

Don’t be afraid to talk about what your family is learning. Mention the doors that you are trying to open for your children. You will find the help you need, to help them go through those doors, to develop a true LOVE of learning.

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Three best ways to instruct children in home school

by Mary Ann on October 13, 2010

Questions come up often about what to put in The Spark Station. There are a number of ways to approach the Spark Station content and instruct children in home school, all acceptable. But let me suggest three ways to do this.

The Martineau Family

1. You can make your Spark Station a colorful explosion of selected toys, books, games, and other materials. When you have structured time your children are free to explore the contents any way they want. If they ask for more information on an item, that is a Spark and then you respond by helping them get more information. For example if you have a gyroscope in your Spark Station and a child asks you how it works and why, you respond by providing specific materials and projects to answer that question over the next few days or weeks.

2. You can pick topics that you want your children to engage with or respond to Sparks they have given you by following the pattern I have shown. You do your research and then put materials for learning in your Spark Station based on what you found in the way of information, games, projects and activities. This can be all that you have in your Spark Station. You may have 2 or more learning topics going at any given time. You would need to add new information, activities and projects for those topics every few days for as long as interest lasts. In the pattern I have demonstrated, in 30 minutes of research you can gather enough to very effectively keep your contents fresh without it becoming a burden. Before a topic is fully explored (age appropriately) or interest wanes you would add another topic.

3. You can blend both of these approaches. On some days your child many engage with a random item from The Spark Station. They may ask for more information about it or not; or they may choose to be fully engaged with one topic of learning that you have provided for days before switching to something else.

The approach you use will depend on your family and your current situation. If you have just had a new baby, are in the process of moving, or all your children are under six or you are new to home school, option one may serve you best for a time. If your children are all over eight then option two may be just the thing. With families of many mixed ages and busy moms option three would work well.

I loved a beautiful blog by Andee Martineau. It has some fabulous pictures of her Spark Station both before and after. She has a unique approach to her Spark Station’s use. She has a morning bookcase with all of their “normal’ school stuff”, which is used in the a.m. hours. Then in the afternoon they have another “’Structured Learning Time” when The Spark Station is available. As Andee said, “It will help us change gears, be 100% present with each other, learn a little more about something that interests us, do a project we’ve been putting off, play a game together, or do whatever else we find in the magical Spark Station.”

The Martineau’s

There are many ways to implement The Spark Station. The important thing to remember about this tool, The Spark Station, is that the principles which make it work, the Five Rules of Engagement, are more important than The Spark Station content or the approach that you choose.

Andee gets that! She understands that Spark Station content, although important, always takes second place to the Five Rules of engagement. Children love consistency, structure and our presence. They love having time with family and knowing that parents are planning ahead. “Please can we open the Spark Station??!!!”, the Martineau children.

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How to assist your child’s love for learning by responding to their sparks

by Mary Ann on October 12, 2010

To assist your child’s learning interest you should watch them and listen to them. Watching and listening will help you to capture their sparks, and by responding, increase their love for learning. Through sparks they show where their interest lies. Here is a parents response to one of my classes.

Miles and Payton Spencer

Sometimes I get the BEST letters!! They really make my day. I got one of those little gifts today. The original article about this family was written on August 6, 2010. Here it is October 12, 2010 and this spark which brought so much joy to Leah’s family is still going strong!

“I cannot tell you what a fan of yours I am! Thank you for all of your hard work and inspiration. You are truly opening my eyes and helping to transform my family.

Miles, age 8

I nearly forgot that I needed to send you a picture of my son Miles with some of his rocks from the “big spark” I was able to nurture and understand a little more during your first webinar… Actually this has sparked a love [for rocks and minerals] in all three of my boys – so I have attached a picture of each of them with their rocks. Leah Spencer

You just have to read the article about Leah’s “big spark”. It will enlighten you as nothing else will. It is the perfect example of seeing with new eyes, of helping a child walk through a door to a love of learning; of trusting that children want to learn and will learn if we just pay attention to what they are saying, sometimes without uttering a word! Here is an except from that article.

“Last week’s comment about “changing your attitude about kids” really hit me. Mary said to look at them in a different light; like they aren’t just “work” or a “huge responsibility”, rather they are fun and have so much to offer…. I realize as I tried desperately to begin to change my attitude, that their ideas and play really are “sparks” and not just another big mess I have to clean up!

I should have seen this particular spark coming for a while with my oldest son

Payton, age 5

Miles (age 8). He loves rocks. He loves gemstones. He loves crystals…you name it. Rather than being a nag all the time and telling him to pick up his rock collection, I realized this is what

Owen, age 2

Mary is talking about – it is a spark! And geez – I can’t believe I didn’t realize it before – but these sparks really can turn into big burning flames and that is what I want for my kids, right?”

In this wonderful article about the joy of leading a child through a door of learning and watching them LOVE it, Leah details all the wonderful ways that she found to respond to this silent conversation that her son was trying to have with her about his love for the earth.

She ends with this – “Miles isn’t a very animated kid, so sometimes it is hard to know if we are even on the right track with him. But all of this was reaffirmed last night at dinner. We each go around the table and say one thing we are grateful for. His cousins (who live with us right now) said little things like being grateful for the earth and for nature (so it seemed that they may have been picking up on some sparks too). The big clincher was when Miles said he was grateful to have a neighbor who is a geologist who he can learn from! Yea hoo! We are on the right path – and it was all because of sparks!”

Learning, real learning is like magic. The best way to teach your child effectively is through inspired learning. Inspired learning happens when a child decides to learn because of their interest in the subject and not because of any compulsion. We enable children to do this when we respond to the sparks they give us and when we hear the silent conversations they are trying to have with us through their actions.

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