Our Field Trip to a Local Mosque

     We had the opportunity to attend an event called Open Mosque Day.  When I heard about it, I was excited to take my family and make it an educational field trip.
     My husband and I are members of the LDS church, but we have always embraced knowledge of other faiths.  We enjoy being open-minded and continually learning.  We find it brings us personal realizations and encourages philosophical developments.  This also leads to a valuable lesson in tolerance and love for all people.  These are important principles that we want to pass onto our children, so it is nice that we are able to incorporate it into homeschooling.

     When we first arrived, I was a little nervous because I felt so different from the women there who were dressed in ankle length skirts and had their hair covered.  I wondered if I was going to be allowed in. Haha.  But the attendants were so friendly and made us feel very welcome.  They enjoyed interacting with our girls and engaging in conversation about motherhood.
   
     We were directed into the mosque where we were given a tour of the building.  During the tour we learned about the Arabic calligraphy and architecture.  We took off our shoes in order to enter the prayer hall and we were able to see where and how the five daily prayers are done.  It was a very pretty room.  Here is a YouTube video I found of the Islamic Call To Prayer, which I think sounds beautiful.

   
     There were many interesting details we learned throughout the tour. For example: The prophet Mohammed married a very successful entrepreneur businesswoman.  She had hired him to work for her and then proposed to him.  Isn't that great? Strong women figures making history way back then. ;)
   
     After the tour, we were provided refreshments and were able to sample some middle eastern finger foods.  Marley and Dylan loved this part!

     Our experience concluded with a short history lecture about the Islamic religion and a question/answer session.  I was very impressed with the historical knowledge shared.  I could see many closely related themes we have in our own religion, such as peace and kindness to all, worshipping of one deity, and personal accountability.
   
     The open house was very well presented and both our daughters had a great time experiencing the tour and making new friends.  I was surprised at how quiet, calm, and well behaved our girls were throughout the entire tour.  We discussed the experience with our daughter afterward and she said she liked the writing on the walls and that the carpets were cute. Haha.  We definitely felt comfortable enough to go back and seek more knowledge.  Thank you to the Islamic Center of Irvine!

     For further information about the Islamic religion, this booklet is very informative and answers frequently asked questions: A Brief Introduction to Islam.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Lesson Plan for Young Kids

     I have always loved the story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow! And being that my 4 year old has taken after mom and enjoys the spooky things, I am dedicating a week to talk and learn about Sleepy Hollow.  We will read and review the story together and learn about Colonial New York.

     Although, there are many more ways of studying this subject as an older student.  For example: Fact or Fiction? The Story Behind Sleepy Hollow is an interesting read, and could ignite an interest in colonial history for middle schoolers or high schoolers.  If my daughter was older, I would probably assign her to write a short research paper on the history behind the story.  There are also many activity and worksheet packets available for purchase for older children, such as this Sleepy Hollow Activity Packet.

Here is an outline of my lesson plan for younger kids:

PICTURE BOOKS:
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
- A to Z Mysteries: Sleepy Hollow Sleepover

EDUCATIONAL BOOKS:
- Colonial Kids: An Activity Guide to Life in the New World
- If You Lived In Williamsburg in Colonial Days 

WORKSHEETS:
- Sleepy Hollow Coloring Page
- New York State Coloring Page

ART/CRAFT PROJECTS:
- Flaming Pumpkin Head
   


     I fed orange construction paper through my printer and printed out a jack o lantern outline.  I instructed my daughter to cut it out, giving her a chance to practice her cutting skills.  She glued the jack o lantern on white paper.  Then, I showed her how to dip a fork into yellow and red paint and make flame prints.  She covered her pumpkin in flames, making it a nice representation of the headless horseman.
- Build A Cardboard Bridge

VIDEOS:
- The Haunted Pumpkin of Sleepy Hollow YouTube cartoon
- Legend of Sleepy Hollow YouTube narrated picture book
- And I highly recommend Disney's The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, which is a nice way to introduce a different time period to kids. (You can check your local library to see if it is available for check-out.)

GAMES/ACTIVITIES:
- Pumpkin Bowling
- Ichabod Crane Tag
     On a large area of grass set a starting point and a finish point and mark where the "bridge" would be.  This can be a simple game of tag, and the one who is getting chased would be Ichabod Crane.  The person running would be the headless horseman.  You can get creative with this and make pumpkin flag tags or use orange water balloons to throw at Ichabod.  It's fun and lots of good outdoor exercise!

SCIENCE PROJECT:
 - Make Slime

10 Halloween Costumes for Couples & Families...and a sneak peek at our costumes for this year!

     My husband and I have been married for 8 years now and we have had a blast dressing in matching Halloween costumes every year!  Here are ALL of our Halloween costumes over the years.  Watch our family grow through Halloween fun!

2006 - PIRATES: The Captain & Pirate's Wench
     We volunteered at my preschool carnival to make and distribute cotton candy.  The kids loved the pirate talk. Aaaarrrrgggg!!

2007 - FAMOUS COUPLES: Darth Vader & Padme
     Romance + the Dark Side = quality entertainment!

2008 - SPORTS: Football Player & Hockey Player
     Sports are timeless and usually pretty easy DIY costumes.  Daniel and I both had ice hockey gear already, so he dressed as a hockey player and I used my hockey pads and got a cheap jersey and helmet to complete my football player costume.

2009 - STAR WARS: Darth Vader & Yoda
     Star Wars is another classic theme.  I chose to dress up as Yoda because I was pregnant at the time and preferred to wear a comfortable robe and cloak over my big baby belly.

2010 - SCI-FI: Men In Black & Alien Baby
     These were my favorite halloween costumes! Very original and super cheap.  Daniel and I dressed in our black suit apparel to be Men In Black.  I dressed my baby girl in all lime green clothes and sewed on black felt pieces to her beanie to create the alien face.  This one was a huge hit!

2010 - THE 80s: Punk Rockers
     We were invited to a pre-Halloween gathering and I wanted to keep our Men In Black costumes secret, so we all whipped out our rock band gear and dressed up like 80s punk rockers.  80s is always a fun option.  Neon, layers, belts, and headbands. Fun!

2011 - FAIRY TALES: Little Red Riding Hood, Grannie, & The Big Bad Wolf
     Fairy Tales are so adorable and when I pictured my girl in that sweet little red hood, I was hooked!

2012 - DISNEY: Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, Mother Gothel, & Pascal

     My daughter chose to be Rapunzel, so naturally I made sure the rest of the family matched.  I had my second baby just a few weeks prior so she was tiny and perfect as pascal.  I actually purchased a lizard costume from a pet store for $10 and strapped it on my baby's back. It worked out well. Haha!

2013 - CLASSIC TV SHOWS: Punky Brewster, Brandon, Henry, & Cherie
     My child hood hero was Punky Brewster, so I was thrilled when my daughter asked to be Punky for Halloween.  We have the DVDs so even though Marley is about 30 years removed from that time, she is still a Punky fan.  I dressed as her best friend Cherie.  My husband was Henry, and Dylan dressed up as Brandon the dog. I think these costumes took the most effort to piece together.  My mom sewed the Punky vest for my daughter.  And I had to search far and wide for the perfect golden retriever costume and Henry's hat.  It was a lot of work but was also a big hit.  It even landed Marley on the news for original costumes in Hollywood.  Also, we were recently notified that Soleil Moon Frye (the real Punky Brewster) had seen our family costumes and really liked them.  I was quite flattered that she took the time to see them and comment on them.

And this year...*drum roll please*... we've decided to dress as...

2014 - PATRIOTIC AMERICAN SYMBOLS: The Statue of Liberty, Uncle Sam, & 2 Rosie Riveters
     We already had made Marley's costume for a 4th of July Show she was in this past summer. She loved being the Statue of Liberty, so we decided to re-use it and have the rest of our family dress to match.  We bought Uncle Sam's Wig and Goatee Set, and White Top Hat (I had to add the blue strip and stars from construction paper) on Amazon.com, and the polka dot wire headbands we found on eBay.  We are so excited about our costumes this year.  God Bless America!

     

Why Homeschooling Is Awesome: Reason #3 - Learning Becomes Contagious (MOTIVATIONAL MONDAYS)

Welcome to Motivational Mondays!  I am inviting all bloggers to link-up with me and share your motivational posts for moms/parents and homeschoolers.  I think reading supportive and encouraging words is a perfect way to start off your week.  
*Please remember: Prior to adding your link, you must review the link-up guidelines here.
Thanks for stopping by!
 
     When your primary directive is to learn, education becomes part of your family culture.

     I have been researching curriculums and programs for years.  It made my head spin and I became overwhelmed with all the options!  At first I was frustrated and close to giving up on the homeschooling idea. But then I realized that there are unlimited educational resources all around us.  This is a great thing!  The possibilities are limitless.  Sharing this with my husband, allowed him to start looking at everything as an educational opportunity.

     For example: While walking into Home Depot on a Saturday morning, my husband noticed the free children's workshop taking place.  He said, "Hey, I should do this with the kids and start them on early homeschool wood-shop."  I was so incredibly proud of my husband!  He is excited to take part in the teaching opportunities.  Just the idea of homeschool has put us both in the frame of mind to seek out knowledge and education wherever it is offered.

     Marley catches on to learning opportunities very quickly and often takes them further than I intended.  When I start asking her to observe something and ask her questions about it, she begins to make observations on her own!  She even starts to ask me questions to help me learn.  I love it! It becomes an innate desire to ask and learn.

     I have already witnessed how homeschooling can have a wonderful impact on younger siblings.  Marley's little sister Dylan copies almost everything Marley does.  Dylan is only 2 years old and she enjoys learning her alphabet, numbers, colors, and shapes.  She hears Marley answer questions and Dylan starts to answer them also.  She is enjoying our "school time" because we all engage in the activities together.  She always wants to be involved in the activities, even tracing and writing. Dylan says "I want it too." "I help too." "I know it too." It is so precious.  Watching her older sister really encourages her to participate in the ongoing learning in our home.

     We have watched less television and become less concerned with things in life that seem insignificant. We have read more books, done more scripture study, and engaged in more memorable experiences together. The overall perspective in our home has become about exploring possibilities and seizing learning opportunities. And the journey has just begun.  We are excited!

An InLinkz Link-up

Pumpkin Patch Field Trip (includes FREE educational worksheet "Pumpkin Investigation Report")

     Our annual trip to the pumpkin patch was adventurous this year.  I say "adventurous" because we had a very giddy daddy, an energetic 4 year old, a rambunctious 2 year old, and a VERY pregnant mommy.  It was fun, but when we arrived home I was extremely ready for a nap.  There was so much to do and see!

     It has been our tradition the past few years to go to Tanaka Farms.  It is the largest pumpkin patch in all of Orange County and they have so many activities!

     *Wagon Rides
   
     *Kids Tractor Course
   
     *Carnival Games
   
     *Pumpkin Cannon (our favorite!)

     *Corn Maze
(The corn maze was actually a lot more fun than I thought it would be.  Marley was excited about "exploring" the maze.  We split up into two groups (Me and Dylan, Marley and daddy) to see who could arrive at the center of the maze first.  Dylan and I got there first so I was happy to catch Marley's face on camera when she found the center.  She was so happy to have completed the maze.  On the way out she explained to me that she found her way through the maze by looking at footprints in the dirt and trying to follow our tracks.  Um, brilliant!  I was very proud of her tracking skills. ;)


   



     *Pick Your Own Pumpkin
(We picked out a family pumpkin to carve and the girls each got to pick a small pumpkin to decorate.  I made sure to take pictures of the pumpkin's weight to help complete the pumpkin worksheet later at home.)

     I have attached my FREE printable worksheet to enhance the pumpkin picking experience and add some educational value.  I call it the Pumpkin Investigation Report. 

Skeleton Lesson Plan for Preschool (includes links to FREE printables, instructions, and videos)

     We are continuing with our Halloween theme for October, and next week we are studying SKELETONS!
     I am aware that some people are following my theme schedule for the year, so I have decided to post my lesson plans the weekend prior, so that anyone who is following along can have time to prep.  If anyone is interested in following a more detailed step-by-step schedule, here is the link to my Daily PreK Schedule.  I was able to do one activity this week with Marley as a fun preview to what we will be learning about next week.  

This is an outline of my Skeleton theme curriculum for the week:  

PICTURE BOOKS:

- Skeleton Hiccups 

- The Skeleton Inside You
- Skelly the Skeleton Girl
- The Skeleton in the Closet

EDUCATIONAL BOOKS:

- Bones: Skeletons and How They Work

- DK Eyewitness Books: Skeleton

- Scholastic Reader Level 2: Skeletons

WORKSHEETS:

- Build a Skeleton  

- Cutting Practice   

ART/CRAFT PROJECTS:
- Q-tip Skeleton
- Q-tip Hand Bones

VIDEOS:

- Schoolhouse Rock: Them Not-So-Dry Bones

- Silly Symphony: The Skeleton Dance

- Animated Skeleton Video for Kids 

GAMES/ACTIVITIES:

- Skeleton Game 

- Why We Have Bones (Option 1) (Option 2) 

- Make Your Own X-Ray

     I taped together two long strips of butcher paper and had Marley lay down so that I could trace her body.  I then drew in with pencil the major bones of the skeletal system.  I let her use a black marker to trace the bones.  Then I labeled the basic bones.  I did not ask her to copy the words, but she wanted to do it.  So she ended up writing the words below my labels.  It makes me so happy that she is always enthusiastic to do more work than I ask of her. :)