Copy Work ~ Please have your child copy the following scripture passage into his/her journal. (This was God's promise after the Flood):
"As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night will never cease." ~ Genesis 8:22
Journal Starter: My favourite activity to do during the winter is ...
Students did a great job on their quatrain poems during the month of January. If your child completed a quatrain poem and would like to have it posted here, then please email me his/her writing. Below are some of the quatrain poems that students worked so diligently on - Great Job everyone!
In winter weather is chilly
It makes my face cold
Kids like to be silly
and crazy and bold
~ Jeffrey - grade 2
When water is frozen its ice
I think that is nice
When the wind is freezing
I start sneezing
~ Jeffrey - grade 2
God's Winter Poem
The ice is slippery,
the storm gets worse and worse.
God flicks His finger and the sky goes clear -
And God's sparkles on the earth appear.
~ Olivia - grade 3
The slippery ice is sparkling bright.
The snow is cold and very white,
When the snow falls from the sky,
It makes the snow so very high.
~ Shekinah - grade 2
Happy Birthday, Jesus
I can't wait until Christmas.
The presents are under the tree.
It's all about you, Jesus.
We worship you in our family.
~ Abby - grade 2
The Cold Weather
Cold water and slush,
Snow is falling down.
When I step it goes mush,
When I slip I frown.
~ Caleb - grade 2
One day it was sprinkling
And it was sparkling.
It was so glistening.
And we had so much fun glittering.
~ Jordyn - grade 3
Copy Work ~ Please have your child copy the following poem into his/her journal:
The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow,
And what will poor robin do then, poor thing?
He'll sit in a barn and keep himself warm
and hide his head under his wing, poor thing.
~ Dallas Sharp
Journal Idea: Have you noticed any birds this winter? I have a couple of bald eagles that live near my home. What about you? Write about a bird that you have spotted this winter.
This video clip is a little retro, but it gets me all teary eyed when I watch it. It includes a narration by Gloria Gaither and then a song by Bill Gaither. Although the Gaithers were not a homeschooling family, I think that Gloria Gaither speaks a lot of truth with her narration about her own family life. It reminds me again of why God has entrusted me with some of His little children ...
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ~ Deut. 11:18, 19
Focus on the Family presents, "Raising Truly Great Kids" on Saturday, January 24/09 at the Peace Portal Alliance Church in Surrey, BC. The workshop runs from 8:00am to 4:30pm and costs $34 USD per person to attend. The keynote speaker is Dr. Tim Kimmel, a popular author and speaker. Anyone interested in attending this event can visit the following link for more info: Raising truly Great Kids
Copy Work ~ Please have your child copy the following scripture passage into his/her journal:
The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon. It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter. ~ Psalm 74:16,17
Journal Starter: Winter is a fascinating season. One of the things in nature that I think is fascinating is ...
Thanks to Mrs. Wessels, I have been introduced to a new favourite website: Eco Kids.
There is a kids area and a teachers area when you first arrive at the website. As a homeschooling parent, you can register as a "teacher" and get access to all of the neat resources available. You just need to provide an email address to use as your log in.
One of the resources that I am enjoying with my kids is the calendars. Each month has a different Eco theme, and each day has a little fact, riddle or activity related to the theme.
For example:
January - Winter Wonderlands (meets kindergarten and grade 1 learning outcomes)
February - Global Village
March - Water (meets grade 2 learning outcomes)
April - Earth Day (meets kindergarten, grades 1, 2 and 3 learning outcomes)
May - 3 R's - Recycling, Reusing, Reducing (meets kindergarten, grades 1, 2 and 3 learning outcomes)
June - Looking At What We Eat (meets grade 3 learning outcomes)
The calendars are easy to print off, hang on the fridge, and use as a new way of learning about environmental ideas.
There are also book lists available that work nicely with the environmental learning outcomes for grades 1, 2 and 3. They even have the books listed by grade level!
There is much more available on the site, so take a moment to look around at Eco Kids.
During the month of January, the theme for Journal Writing Wednesdays is "Winter". Both a copy work assignment and a journal starter will be provided as suggestions to encourage your child to practice writing. Enjoy exploring a little bit of winter through writing during this chilly month.
Copy Work: Please have your child copy the following poem into his/her journal:
First Snow~ Marie Louise Allen
Snow makes whiteness where it falls.
The bushes look like popcorn-balls.
The places where I always play
Look like somewhere else today.
Journal Starter: When the snow covers the ground I like to ...
Just prior to the Christmas break, a colleague blessed me with a reading recommendation: Educating the WholeHearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson. I am one of those people who loves to learn from the wisdom of those who have gone before me and thoroughly enjoyed the insight of the Clarksons.
As I spent time reading, I felt God speaking to me in the area of peace. Peace within my home. Peace within my relationships. Peace within my conversations. Peace within my attitude.
Right alongside the desire for peace was the reminder of my need for Grace.
Daily Grace.
Grace to make it peacefully through this day, this week, this term, this year.
In God's perfect timing, He had a fellow colleague send me an email that directed me to this beautifully written excerpt on how to maintain Peace within a homeschooling home. Take some time this evening, when your home is quiet and your mind is still, to read these words of encouragement: How to Parent: Just Guide Gently
Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. ~ 2 Thessalonians 3:16
Even though each of us have our own curriculum agenda during these chilly winter months, I hope that we can all find some cozy moments to curl up on the couch with our children and read some wonderfully, warm hearted books about winter. Below are some suggestions that you may want to order from your library in preparation for your own cozy story times on the couch.
Snow by Uri Shulevitz
Winter Lullaby by Barbara Seuling
The Mitten & The Hat by Jan Brett
The Log Cabin Quilt by Ellen Howard
Emily by Barbara Cooney
Antler, Bear, Canoe: A Northwoods Alphabet by Betsy Bowen
Marven of the Great North Woods by Kathryn Lasky
Winter’s Gift by Jane Monroe Donovan
Below are some of the rhyming couplet poems that students emailed to me or read aloud during the December conference call. Enjoy!
I am driving in my car,
I can drive very far.
Today is Jesus' birthday,
I am worshipping today.
Caleb ~ grade 2
Snow is falling on Christmas day,
I like to go outside and play.
But the presents are under the tree,
And look, there is one for me!
Kara ~ grade 2
I have a pet dog,
He can stand on a log.
I have a pet dog,
He faces a frog.
I have a pet dog,
He can see in the fog.
Shekinah ~ grade 2
Jolly old Santa,
Are you a grandpa?
On Christmas your grand kids
Flip their lids. (Not sure if this last line is correct Abby - let me know if it's not.)
Abby ~ grade 2
Christmas carols are so much fun.
I don’t want the singing to ever be done.
Karlee ~ grade 2
