[Field Trip] National Fossil Day @ Texas Memorial Museum

National Fossil Day was October 17th, so we took a group field trip to the Texas Memorial Museum.







Where the Paleontologist works. She showed us all sorts of fossils.


















UT film students interviewed some of the children for a film they're making on how children interact with dinosaurs.



Such a phenomenal museum. We will be back!

Picture Day!

2012-2103 Group Photo



It's always quite entertaining trying to get a group of children to look at the camera at the same time, and smile, but I finally got this one. Here is our group shot from last year.

Headshots were taken too.
I just love these kids. Each and every one.

Thirst for Learning and Power of Imagination

This is something every good educator and parent wants to see from their children. Igniting that fire.

I was emailed this article last night (thank you Tess!) and all these points are informative, and oh so true. I especially connected with the last one.

"Allow time for your own learning. A teacher can’t really be inspiring if she is burnt out. It’s important to take time for your own learning. The things that interest you, might very well be things that you can bring into your classroom." 

Crystal Singing Bowl
Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo =
I call upon the teacher within me and outside of me.

As all our families know, the schoolhouse is my other child. My baby, so to speak. The co-op was only born a year ago, and now that we're past the post-partum haze, the dust has settled and we're in a steady groove, and it's a space that we all enjoy being in.

What I enjoy about teaching in our setting is the flexibility and freedom that not only the children have, but that I have as an educator. Being able to learn the things I want to learn, bring in things I love, truly help me be a better and happy educator. Where else could I bring in my crystal signing bowls, and do a opening mantra with the children every morning? What a way to start our day! Thank you Ruxi, for teaching us this mantra.

Even though I've been teaching a while, I'm still learning, still growing, and still transforming as an educator.

This beautifully written article is a good reminder and worth the read.

Read More: How To Ignite Passion In Your Students: 8 Ways Educators Can Foster Passion-Based Learning.

This Year's Tribe

Here's a group shot from our creek day last week. The ranch is bursting with vibrant yellow wildflowers right now. What a beautiful landscape.



Other group school pictures to follow...

Fossils, Rocks, Minerals and Crystals

Currently on our shelves




I thought gathering and setting up materials for the Insect focus was great fun, but setting up the Science and Nature room with Fossils, Rocks, Minerals and Crystals, was just as exciting. The room is overflowing with beautiful items for the children to explore and investigate. I don't have photos of all the goodness yet, but will share those soon.


Agate



Fossils






We even have Rock Soap in the restroom!

In the Atelier

What do you do on *off-school* days?

One of the things I enjoy about our program is that we have a part-time schedule, which gives the children and their families time to do different things outside of school hours during the week. When we meet people and they ask Sophia where she goes to school, we get to tell them all about our schoolhouse and the unique opportunities our schedule gives us.


Sophia reading on a Monday morning. Duke enjoys storytime and is quite the literary cat now too.

Today is Friday, which is a "homeschool day" since we're not at school. Sophia and I enjoy our slow morning, head over to swim lesson (no crowds during weekday morning, win-win for us both!), then I dropped her off at a friend's house where 3 of the girls from our co-op gathered to practice their trio for their upcoming piano recital and then have a playdate.

I enjoy hearing about and seeing the other things families do on their off-days.We've been learning about Ancient times in history and Alaira's been doing these terrific projects at home with her mom.

A Nomad Tent, by Alaira


She made this Egyptian crown and brought to school for show and tell.


Homemade Egyptian Bread. Alaira brought some to school for me and it was delicious. (These parents are going to make me overweight, with all the yummy treats they bring to school!)

Moving Along Beautifully...

Making a Ten


Thank you Lora for lending us the Double Nine Dominoes. We'll be able to stretch the game even further with those dominoes next week!



A peek into the science and nature room. What do you think we'll be delving into in geology?



In the Atelier




Any guesses as to what the children are making here?





Hint: It has to do with Ancient Egypt...






Scarab Seals!

We learned that the bottom has to be absolutely flat in order to create a proper stamp. The children enjoyed the process and using the special tools Ms. Karen brought from home too!

::

A note about the Atelier:

Sometimes we bring in ideas for the children to work on. This is tremendous fun especially when tied into something the children are learning about, and in history, it's about Ancient Egypt, which they're enjoying immensely. Since families rotate through and spend a lot of time in the Atelier, I wanted to share some thoughts that I had when visiting the school on a weekend. I  took a moment to look around at what was created only a year ago. I was reminded how amazing our little schoolhouse is, stood in awe looking at our environments, especially in the atelier.

The atelier is full of materials and abundant media.
Wire, clay, paints, pastels, liquid watercolors.
Tons of textures, papers, fabrics.
Stones, feathers, shells.
A mammoth light table that would make any artist drool.
Books for inspiration. Goldsworthy, Matisse, O'Keefe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Escher...  
Opportunities for open-ended exploration and creation. 

The atelier is the heart of our school.

Yes, the children are receiving a great foundation in academics too. I work hard to make sure they're armed with everything they will need to succeed. In reading, they're soaring. They're learning about the process of writing. Getting an in-depth understanding of math concepts. And then there's science, and nature, and history... all that good stuff. However, nothing makes my heart sing more than seeing inspiration and the open-ended self expression that comes from this space.

This quote below resonates so well with me.

Inspiration, hunger: these are the forces that drive good schools. The best educational planners can do is create the most likely conditions for them to flourish, and then get out of their way.

-Ted Sizer