Creative Dance

I was beyond impressed with this class.

The instructor made this class everything a dance class should be for 3- and 4-year olds.

It was all about exposure to a variety of music, free expression of movement and exercise!

Pre-Christmas

Jonas picked the smallest, scraggliest tree in the lot.

He said "He's just a cute little guy".

Harland was Aunt Liss' page turner. 

Mom Harker made amazing train toques for all the boys and also adorable sweater vests and Raggedy Andy dolls for the twinners. 

Rhett's snow angel.

Harland's snow angel.

Jonas' snow angel.

Amy and I took Mom to "Nutcracker" for Christmas. I enjoyed the ballet so much I've already bought a ticket for "Giselle" in March (anyone want to join me?)

Merry Christmas!

I thought I would have more done by now (here's looking at you Christmas cards) but we've all had a very lovely, mellow Christmas season so far. We're off to visit family the next four days, then we have two Christmas parties lined up, and then Christmas! At home! For the first time!

My boys are nearly never wearing pants around the house apparently. Pictures don't lie!

Guess that'd make a good New Years resolution.

Book Advent

A book advent pinned on pinterest caught my eye last month. A Mom buys 24 books and then displays them prettily wrapped on the mantel to be opened one day at a time.

I did wrap the first three books... then I started just putting the books in a gift bag and now I just pull a new one (or two or three if there are cries for an encore) out of a cabinet. We also started reading them just at night before bed but now we read them anytime during the day. I wanted all the books to be Christmas books but as I only own three I borrowed most of them from the library.

Fast, free and flexible.

This is going to be an easy tradition to keep!

I plan to buy two or three every year until we no longer need to borrow the library's for our advent. These are all beautiful, timeless Christmas books I want to keep in the yearly rotation:

Move Me to Tears

The Tale of Three Trees: A Traditional Folktale

by Angela Elwell Hunt

At Jesus' crucifixion I literally had to stop a few minutes before I could control my voice. Hopefully, the effect was impressive and not over the top for Jonas.

Christmas Day in the Morning

by Pearl S. Buck   Illustrated by Mark Buehner

Karen- I thought of Neufeld theory on every page of this book!

The Crippled Lamb 

by Max Lucado   Illustrated by Liz Bonham

God has a special place for a sad, crippled lamb. I almost couldn't even begin to read this one!

The Original Classics

The Twelve Days of Christmas

by Laurel Long

Jonas and I can search for minutes on each page without coming close to finding all the illustrations hidden in the amazingly intricate pictures.

The Night Before Christmas

by Clement Clarke Moore   Illustrated by Holly Hobbie

The illustrations are new. They blow the older versions out of the water in my opinion though they look vintage.

The Little Match Girl 

by Hans Christian Anderson   

My Mom told me this story as a little girl without using a book. I'm not sure whether to read this one to Jonas just yet.

The Classics

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

by Dr Seuss

Probably Jonas' most requested Christmas book. He's grown up on Dr Seuss. He quotes it throughout the day and as he falls asleep.

The Polar Express

by Chris Van Allsburg

A train and hot chocolate that tastes like a melted candy bar. The stuff of Jonas' dreams.

I Spy Little Christmas

by Jean Marzollo   Photographed by Walter Wick

Harland's favourite Christmas book.

For Animal Lovers

On This Special Night

by Claire Freedman   Illustrated by Simon Mendez

Amazingly realistic and warm illustrations.

Room for a Little One: A Christmas Tale

by Martin Waddell   Illustrated by Jason Cockcroft

Similar storyline to "On This Special Night" but different enough I'd (Rhett!) would like both. 

The Mitten

by Jan Brett

Rhett's first favourite book. Not strictly Christmas but the grandmother gives a gift to Nicki.

True Meaning of Christmas

This Is the Stable

by Cynthia Cotten   Illustrated by Delana Bettoli

Gorgeous lyrical language.

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

by Susan Wojciechowski   Illustrated by P.J. Lynch

A book I loved growing up.

The Christmas Train: A True Story

by Thomas S Monson

I haven't actually held this book yet (it's still on hold at the library) but I have read this story in the friend (it's by President Monson) and from what I can see the pictures look good.

Project-based Learning

It's been kind of hard for me to talk about doing preschool with Jonas.

It's not a tidy pre-packaged unit.

It's not a "unit study".

Any structured, parent-led teaching has been mostly non-existent.

I've been prayerful because I haven't been able to either make something or to find something "made" that felt right for Jonas (I think there are great preschool units out there by the way, they just don't feel right for Jonas).

I started just doing whatever Jonas wanted to do for 30-60 minutes on weekdays during the babies' nap time in September based on its feeling right. And then I stumbled onto project-based learning book (real project-based learning, there are a lot of imitations masquerading as it online and in classrooms that are adult planned or created or initiated).

And is it powerful stuff! The potential for meta-learning (learning about learning) and developing passions and work ethic is incredible! It is child led and child directed with the parent acting as a facilitator. 

I've been taking baby steps. Trying to make myself wholly available to Jonas (at a supposed to be consistent time) everyday. Playing with new materials. Discussing what interests Jonas. Being careful not to make judgments or to correct mistakes. Reading books Jonas picks at the library. Documenting his learning with a pen and a camera. And now creating workspaces for Jonas where he has access to materials to help him think and learn and create and creating a workspace similarly for me so I can model that. 

It's kind of unconventional. It's kind of messy and kind of inconsistent right now. And it's challenging my thinking and doing. There isn't a neat map to follow, or a full plan to make ahead and I don't get to play "teacher" either. It's a whole new learning process for me! It's baby steps now but they are in a direction we feel good about! 

Jonas working on his steam train's couplers.

Playing with some new materials he discovered in the art bench.

Both space rovers. Interestingly the top one bears a lot of resemblance to the Curiosity and Sojourner, the rovers on Mars. 

Jonas is so quick to pick up on details in pictures and on models and then to capture them and build on his own ideas. Also, he's a genius at capturing the essence of a machine in a block structure. Sometimes he can make such a simple, but recognizable vehicle that it is a study in elegant simplicity to me. 

Space rovers are a fairly recent interest along with planets, satellites and robots. 

I can't wait to show Jonas the new pictures Cassini has just sent to earth of Saturn and Titan.

Saturn is stunning!

The pride Jonas feels in his work is the best.

Summer Photos (I never got around to posting)