Trivium Tuesdays-Classical Link-Up #81

Welcome to another week of Trivium Tuesdays!  For those of you who are new here today, this is a link-up aimed at encouraging and informing other homeschoolers who use the Classical model of teaching.  Here we can share with each other and learn from one another.

Don't forget to follow all my Pinterest boards that are a part of the All Things Classical List!

Also, please remember to only link up posts that have to do with homeschooling using the classical model of education.  Thank you for understanding this link-up's theme.

Featured Post from Last Week

I'm really enjoying the 31 Days of Classical Education {lite} from Our Catholic Homeschool.  Last week she linked up her post titled Kindergarten Authors.  I agree with much of what she said about teaching little ones to write.  I you have a preschooler or kindergartener, check out her post for some great thoughts about teaching handwriting!

Most Clicked on Post from Last Week

Surviving the Library, from As He Leads is Joy, got the most clicks last week!  If you missed it, take a minute to check it out.  We love the library around here, but it can be a bit overwhelming if you don't use some of the tips Beth shares!

This Week's Link-Up

Here are the rules:

• Your post must have to do (in some way) with classical homeschooling (any age children).
• Your post may be from your archives as long as you only post it one time on this link-up.
• Please link to your direct post, not your blog in general.
• Please place my Trivium Tuesdays button (found on my right sidebar) on your blog post so others can learn about this link-up!
• It may be helpful to state in your link description what stage of the trivium or what subject your post is about, if applicable, so others can easily find posts they are interested in looking at.
• Remember, everyone loves comments =) So don't be shy, and tell someone if you liked their post!

I reserve the right to remove any link-up that does not have to do with classical homeschooling.         

If you are a regular here at Trivium Tuesdays and have something to share that is a little off topic, but still would be an encouragement to the readers here, please still share it =)  I'm referring to people who are just trying to get their blog more exposure without following the rules above.

I will visit each of your blogs this week and feature my favorite link-up for all to see next week!  Also, if your blog has a button I will place it on my sidebar (under Friends to Visit) for the week until it is replaced by the next week's favorite =)

Reformation Day Celebration

The Reformation is a wonderful thing to celebrate.  It falls on October 31st each year to commemorate when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door in Wittenburg in the year 1517.  There is so much rich history to learn about from that time period, but when you have little children, sometimes you just need to have a party...with games!

Last year, we had a family from church over to celebrate Reformation Day. Everyone had a great time and the kids got to learn a bit about church history.  The kids dressed up in costumes that related to Reformation Day in some way, and I taught the kids about Martin Luther through the games that we played.

If you would like to have a Reformation Day Celebration, or just looking for ideas to enhance your history studies, here is a look at what we did.  You can even download all the information for your own use (look for the link at the bottom of the post).

Reformation Day Costumes

I dressed my daughter up as a peasant girl and my son as Martin Luther.  You could also be a princess, a king, a horse, or anything else related to the 16th century!

Reformation Day Games

You can come up with lots of fun games to play on Reformation Day!  The ones that we played told the story of Martin Luther in a simple way for our young children.

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Coin in the Coffer:

Story to say to the children:

Did you know that in Martin Luther's day, people were told that if they gave money to the church, they could save their relatives that had already died?  We know that this is not true, but they were not allowed to read the Bible for them selves, so they didn't know!

Instructions:

Give each child 4 coins.  Have they try to throw each coin into a pan.  The child gets to keep each coin they get in.  We let the kids keep trying until they got all of them in =) 

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Pin the Theses on the Door:

Story:

Martin Luther realized that this and other things people were learning at church were wrong and he wanted to let everyone know, so he wrote a long list of many things that he wanted to share with the people.  He then nailed the list to the church door for everyone to see.

Instructions:

Blindfold each child and let them take turns trying to tape their 95 Theses onto a door.  The girls from the family we had over loved watching their mom get in on the game!

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3-Legged Race for Your Life! 

Story:

After a few years of defending what he wrote, the church declared him a heretic and ordered his arrest!  martin Luther had to flee for his life!

Instructions:

Pair the child up and tie their legs together.  Have them run around a circle to remember how Martin Luther had to run for his life after the Catholic church ordered his arrest!

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Translating the  Bible:

Story:

Martin Luther was rescued by friends and kept safe in a basement where he translated the New Testament from Latin into German (the language that the people understood).

Instructions:

Give each child a picture of the word Bible with an illuminated letter B.  Let them color the B and then have them try to make their own illuminated letters!

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If you want to have your own Reformation Day Celebration, you can download all of this information (and more!) to make your planning easy.  Included you will find:

 

Suggested Order of Events

Snack Ideas

Games (Stories and Instructions)

Reformation Day Balderdash (Instructions and Suggestions)

95 Theses (typed small so you can print them all, back-to-back, on one page)

The word Bible with an illuminated letter B

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Download the Reformation Day Celebration Idea Booklet

 

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Here are some ideas and resources that we have enjoyed!

Want More?

Trivium Tuesdays-Classical link-Up #80

Welcome to another week of Trivium Tuesdays!  For those of you who are new here today, this is a link-up aimed at encouraging and informing other homeschoolers who use the Classical model of teaching.  Here we can share with each other and learn from one another.

Don't forget to follow all my Pinterest boards that are a part of the All Things Classical List!

Also, please remember to only link up posts that have to do with homeschooling using the classical model of education.  Thank you for understanding this link-up's theme.

Featured Post from Last Week

Last week, Annie Kate shared with us a book that has an important message.  It is called Reading with Purpose by Nancy Wilson, and it is about teaching our older children how to think about the books that they read.  If you have children who are growing out of the grammar stage, take a look at Annie Kate's review!

Most Clicked on Post from Last Week

Last week you overwhelmingly clicked on Joanna's post, 6 Ways to Improve Your Homeschool Day, more than any other.  I understand why you did!  Joanna shared some great helps, so if you missed it last week, make sure to check it out today!

This Week's Link-Up

Here are the rules:

• Your post must have to do (in some way) with classical homeschooling (any age children).
• Your post may be from your archives as long as you only post it one time on this link-up.
• Please link to your direct post, not your blog in general.
• Please place my Trivium Tuesdays button (found on my right sidebar) on your blog post so others can learn about this link-up!
• It may be helpful to state in your link description what stage of the trivium or what subject your post is about, if applicable, so others can easily find posts they are interested in looking at.
• Remember, everyone loves comments =) So don't be shy, and tell someone if you liked their post!

I reserve the right to remove any link-up that does not have to do with classical homeschooling.         If you are a regular here at Trivium Tuesdays and have something to share that is a little off topic, but still would be an encouragement to the readers here, please still share it =)  I'm referring to people who are just trying to get their blog more exposure without following the rules above.

I will visit each of your blogs this week and feature my favorite link-up for all to see next week!  Also, if your blog has a button I will place it on my sidebar (under Friends to Visit) for the week until it is replaced by the next week's favorite =)

Teach Your Child to Read in 20 Easy Lessons with The Reading Lesson

I have a three year old little girl and just before she turned three we started using The Reading Lesson.  I had been teaching her the names of the letters and she was beginning to learn some of the sounds that they make, so I thought it would be a great time to start learning to read!  When I taught my son to read, I essentially created my own curriculum and found little readers to go along with what he was learning.  It was a lot of work.  This time around I really needed something more "open and go" since my time is more limited with two children, and The Reading Lesson fit the bill! From the website:

The Reading Lesson is an easy-to-use recipe to make learning to read painless for both parents and children.  The program is the best way to take a child with no reading skills to about the second grade level in reading.  Never-too-hard and never-too-easy, step-by-step the lessons teach phonics and build the sight vocabulary.  We make phonics easy without flashcards or worksheets - everything you need is right here in one book.

 

Head on over to The Curriculum Choice to see my review of The Reading Lesson!

 

Trace and Cut Pages for Preschoolers

If you have been around the blogosphere and you have preschoolers, I'm sure you've seen many cute, themed tracing worksheets.  Three years ago, I was looking for this type of worksheet to use as pre-writing practice for my son, but I couldn't find any.  Maybe my problem was that I wasn't on Pinterest back then, or maybe people just hadn't started making and sharing them yet, I really don't know.  So, I created just what I needed.

These are not fancy, with cute themes and pretty pictures, but they are exactly what your child will need to master pre-writing skills. Honestly, I get overwhelmed if I have to think of finding just the right pages to complement a particular theme, print them all out, and keep them sorted.  Sometimes it's just nice to have materials that work for everything and get the job done well!

Disclaimer *** I do love all the cute, themed sheets I see all over the place, I'm just saying that sometimes it's nice to have a worksheet that works any day of the year =)

Here are the 6 pages that are included in this download:

How to Use Trace and Cut Pages

• Print these pages out and laminate them.  Your child can practice tracing them over and over with a dry-erase marker.

• Print these pages out and have your child write directly on them.  Save them to track his progress.

• Print these pages out on cardstock for your child to practice cutting along the lines.  The slightly thicker paper will make it easier for them to learn to use scissors.

• Print these pages on regular paper once your child is comfortable using scissors.

• However else you can think to use them with your child!

Download Trace and Cut Pages 

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Looking for more preschool information?  Click on the picture below to find a list of all the preschool posts here at Living and Learning at Home, plus some of my favorite preschool resources!

Trivium Tuesdays-Classical Link-Up #79

This post contains affiliate links and product recommendations that I wholeheartedly endorse.

Welcome to another week of Trivium Tuesdays!  For those of you who are new here today, this is a link-up aimed at encouraging and informing other homeschoolers who use the Classical model of teaching.  Here we can share with each other and learn from one another.

Don't forget to follow all my Pinterest boards that are a part of the All Things Classical List!

Also, please remember to only link up posts that have to do with homeschooling using the classical model of education.  Thank you for understanding this link-up's theme.

Feature

 

This week is a little different in that I want to feature a giveaway I have going on here at Living and Learning at Home!  I have partnered with The Great Homeschool Conventions to give away a Family Pass (and more!) to one of my readers.

As I looked through the list of speakers, I noticed that there are a good number who are associated with classical education.  This would be an amazing convention for all of you to go to!  A huge bonus is that there are three locations to choose from.  I'll be at the Cincinnati convention!

Great Homeschool Convention Speakers - Classical Education

• Christopher Perrin, from Classical Academic Press

• Cheryl Swope, author of Simply Classical: A Beautiful Education for Any Child

• Adam Andrews, on the founding board of Westover Academy (a Classical Christian school in Colville, Washington)

• Janice Campbell, author of Excellence in Literature (among others)

• Martin Cothran, author of some of Memoria Press' programs and is the managing editor of "The Classical Teacher" magazine

• Duke Pesta, academic director of FreedomProject Education (an online school for providing a classical education)

• Linda Lacour Hobar, author of The Mystery of History

• Andrew Kern, co-author of Classical Education: The Movement Sweeping America, and The Lost Tools of Writing

 
So please take a minute and enter the giveaway and then come back, link up your posts, and read what others have shared!

This Week's Link-Up

Here are the rules:

• Your post must have to do (in some way) with classical homeschooling (any age children).
• Your post may be from your archives as long as you only post it one time on this link-up.
• Please link to your direct post, not your blog in general.
• Please place my Trivium Tuesdays button (found on my right sidebar) on your blog post so others can learn about this link-up!
• It may be helpful to state in your link description what stage of the trivium or what subject your post is about, if applicable, so others can easily find posts they are interested in looking at.
• Remember, everyone loves comments =) So don't be shy, and tell someone if you liked their post!

I reserve the right to remove any link-up that does not have to do with classical homeschooling.         If you are a regular here at Trivium Tuesdays and have something to share that is a little off topic, but still would be an encouragement to the readers here, please still share it =)  I'm referring to people who are just trying to get their blog more exposure without following the rules above.

I will visit each of your blogs this week and feature my favorite link-up for all to see next week!  Also, if your blog has a button I will place it on my sidebar (under Friends to Visit) for the week until it is replaced by the next week's favorite =)

Great Homeschool Conventions 2014 Tickets are for Sale! (WIN yours here!)

Have you heard? Tickets for the Great Homeschool Conventions are for sale and you can WIN yours here!

Great Homeschool Conventions is a sponsor here at Living and Learning at Home and I am excited to be partnering with them to bring you this giveaway!

If you have not been to one of the Great Homeschool Conventions before, make sure to check out the website to see what an amazing event this is.  One thing I love is that this event is actually three events!  No matter where you are (in the U.S), you won't be too far from one of these locations.

The price is just right, too.  

• Individual Pass - $30
• Family Pass - $45

Plus, don't miss the Comedy Night with Mark Lowry and the Teen Track (Real Faith for the Real World).  Each of these are just $5.

Great Homeschool Conventions GIVEAWAY

I am so excited to share that you have the chance to WIN tickets to the Great Homeschool Convention of your choice.  One person will win the following:

• 1 Family Registration
• 2 Passes to the Family Comedy Night
• 1 Pass to the Teen Track (Real Faith for the Read World)

Enter below for your chance to win! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
This giveaway is open to U.S. residents age 18 or above.  The winner has 48 hours to claim their prize.

How I Teach Art Appreciation to Classical Preschoolers

Art appreciation is a great thing to work into any homeschool child's studies, even preschoolers!  One of the best things about art appreciation is that it can be a completely no-pressure subject.  It is a nice break from the routine of math, spelling, reading, (repeat).

This year my kids are 5 and 3 years old.  I am trying to incorporate art appreciation into our studies once a week.  My goals are simply: exposure to great art and increased observation skills.  Perhaps these goals will change as my children grow, but for now this is a wonderful, simple activity for us.  I hope you will give it a try too!

We use the Grade 1 Overview Year from my sponsor, Harmony Fine Arts, for our art appreciation.  It offers lots of great options for you to do as little or as much art appreciation as you want!

First of all, in my theme of trying to keep the paper clutter down this year, I made a Fine Arts notebook for each of my kids.  I'm in love with my super-simple spiral binding tool and honestly use it every chance I get.  I have a post dedicated to it, so hop over there and check it out if you need a simple {and cheap} way to keep your kid's work together too!

The notebook consists of all the pieces of art that Harmony Fine Arts includes in their curriculum, printed back to back with one of the notebooking pages that is included in the ebook.  Each two page spread looks something like this:

Ok, now on to how we actually do art appreciation...

Observation

The first step is observation.  I simply set the picture in front of my kids and ask them to look at it quietly for a minute.  For little kids, a minute is seriously all they need.  I find that my kids have a hard time keeping their thoughts in their head, so this simple exercise takes discipline!

I ask them to look at things like colors, shapes, what is the picture of, and what is in the background.  After they look quietly, I ask them to share what they say.  Usually they will say simple things like "There are apples in the picture." or "It was red and brown."  I usually like to take the picture away when I have them tell me what they saw.  This makes them think and remember, not just look down again and say what they see.

Barb, from Harmony Fine Arts recently shared {free} Printable Art Question Cards to use along with her curriculum or any art you are studying.  The are simply a series of questions that help you ask your child about different aspects of the picture they are looking at.  Sometimes I just don't know what else to look at in a picture, and these cards are really helpful.

Imitation

Next is imitation.   As you can see above, I actually print two of the same picture on each page in the notebook.  One is in full color, and the other is in a lightened black and white (I just change this is Word under 'format picture').

Preschool aged children are most likely not able to draw or paint anything that would resemble the original picture.  This black and white picture lets them feel like they are re-creating the original work.  I treat it like a coloring page, and ask my kids to pay careful attention to try to coloring in the right places and with the right colors.

My son really doesn't have the time of day for coloring, so I don't make him color the whole picture.  I just want to see him exert some effort =)  My daughter is a little more of a free spirit, so it's harder to contain her to using the right colors and using them in the right places.  I don't sweat it.  Art appreciation is meant to be fun and inspiring, not tiresome and aggravating.

Narration

After that I have my children do a simple narration.  Once again, I make them do this without looking at the picture.  Narration is hard in general.  It is a skill to be learned, and using this skill while thinking about art takes some extra thinking (in my opinion).  I use this time to help my children learn to describe things in complete sentences and to use their recollection skills again.

The picture above is what my son had to say about the art he had just looked at and colored.  He speaks his narration and I write it down.  I try to let the kids say whatever they want, without critiquing it or making too many suggestions.  I will just chime in if they say things like, "Ummm...she had a green shirt....mom and baby....washing feet." and try to help them form good sentences.

Just like in the imitation portion, this narration shouldn't be frustrating for the child or the parent.  It is just to get the child thinking about something they might not otherwise think of.  Let the child speak his thoughts and you capture them on paper.  My kids always love to have me read back to them what they 'wrote.'  It's like their own little story =)

Replication

Last is replication.  Let you child become the artist!  I ask my children to try to draw the picture themselves.  Of course their replication won't be much like the original, but it helps them learn to pay attention to detail and practice getting messages from their brains to their hands.  As long as I see effort, I am happy.

In the example above, I had my kids just replicate the part of the picture with the basin of water.  The round part is the basin and those things sticking out to the right are the little girl's feet.  Looks good to me!  I can tell that he even tried to show the rim of the basin and the water inside.  Good effort, son!

Of course every child is going to be at a different ability level for each of these exercises.  Maybe my son's work looks amazing to you...or maybe it looks awful!  The great thing about art appreciation and preschoolers is that it doesn't really matter =)  Let your child explore great works of art.  Help them learn to pay attention to detail and learn to express what they see.

Trying to copy great works of art (no matter how simply your child does it) is a wonderful exercise for a classical education.  The thrust of the grammar stage is soaking in information and learning from what has already been done.  Observing what other artists have created will give your child the tools they need to one day create masterpieces of their own!

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This post is a part of the "How I Teach" link-up at the iHomeschool Network.

Trivium Tuesdays-Classical Link-Up #78

Welcome to another week of Trivium Tuesdays!  For those of you who are new here today, this is a link-up aimed at encouraging and informing other homeschoolers who use the Classical model of teaching.  Here we can share with each other and learn from one another.

Don't forget to follow all my Pinterest boards that are a part of the All Things Classical List!

Also, please remember to only link up posts that have to do with homeschooling using the classical model of education.  Thank you for understanding this link-up's theme.

Featured Post

This week I am featuring Pronouns, Pronouns, and More Pronouns from Sola Gratia Mom.  We are learning parts of speech this year and I never really learned them, so this post was helpful for me!  Colleen made a great printable to share with us and also suggested a book.   The book looked so neat to me that I put it on hold at my library.  It is called Mine, All Mine by Ruth Heller.  Turns out that she has a whole series of books to help with language.  Anyone read these before?

This Week's Link-Up

Here are the rules:

• Your post must have to do (in some way) with classical homeschooling (any age children).
• Your post may be from your archives as long as you only post it one time on this link-up.
• Please link to your direct post, not your blog in general.
• Please place my Trivium Tuesdays button (found on my right sidebar) on your blog post so others can learn about this link-up!
• It may be helpful to state in your link description what stage of the trivium or what subject your post is about, if applicable, so others can easily find posts they are interested in looking at.
• Remember, everyone loves comments =) So don't be shy, and tell someone if you liked their post!

I reserve the right to remove any link-up that does not have to do with classical homeschooling.         If you are a regular here at Trivium Tuesdays and have something to share that is a little off topic, but still would be an encouragement to the readers here, please still share it =)  I'm referring to people who are just trying to get their blog more exposure without following the rules above.

I will visit each of your blogs this week and feature my favorite link-up for all to see next week!  Also, if your blog has a button I will place it on my sidebar (under Friends to Visit) for the week until it is replaced by the next week's favorite =)