Speechy Sunday: Activities for Karma Wilson's Bear Books

Don't all you teachers and SLPs (and parents/aunts/grandparents!) just love Karma Wilson's wonderful "Bear" books?  She has written so many lovely rhyming books about Bear and his friends (the raven, the wren, the mouse, the hare, the mole, etc.).  My favorite of her books is "Bear Snores On," which is about a hibernating bear whose friends come by while he is sleeping and basically have a potluck party in his cave, and the craziness that ensues when he wakes up!  It's a great little book, and my daughter Flannery has loved it from the time she was 1 1/2, and she still enjoys it (and she's almost 6 now!).

I love these books because they typically include some wonderful more challenging vocabulary for young children (ex:  cuddle, heap, howl, flutter), and the books are usually very sweet stories about a group of animal friends being kind to one another in different ways.

But best of all, I just discovered that Karma Wilson has some free teaching materials and ideas for how to tie her book into other activities throughout the school day.  She lists some really great activities such as an imaginary potluck, a glitter activity to help children learn about how germs are spread, a seasons coloring page featuring Bear, and many more cute ideas.

Check them out, and let me know how it goes if you end up using them with your own students or kiddos!



What resource have you just discovered that you're excited to use or share?

Flanna's First Day of School

Flannery started school this month.  We were soooo lucky that she got into a wonderful preK just minutes from home and my work, AND it's the one so many of my friends had recommended to me. 

Flannery seems to like it.  At her old montessori school, they called all of the toys and manipulatives "works," and so the other day when I asked her how her new school was different than her old montessori, she said,

"Well, this new school doesn't have any works...it's all just toys, and we don't do any work...we just play!"

A lot of parents would freak out at this news. 

But I want her to love school and enjoy learning and not to think of school as work for as long as possible. 

So, more power to the toys!


What do you remember enjoying about your preschool experience?  I remember building with those large wooden blocks for hours on end, and cracking pecans on the back steps of the preschool during recess.  Such peaceful little moments of learning. 





 

Create Name Songs to Teach Preschoolers Spelling of First Names

Has anyone else created a song to help your child learn to spell her name?

I thought that I was soooo creative for coming up with this idea.  And then I mentioned it to my friend, Lisa, and it turns out that she had come up with individual name songs for all three of her kids, to help them spell their names, too!

Aren't we both just brilliant?  And you can be brilliant, too!  Here's how:

First, you try to sing your child's name letter by letter, trying a variety of different tunes.  You can add in lines such as, "That's how you spell _____."  I think it's harder for very short or very long names, but here are some suggestions of good songs to try:


When the Saints Go Marching In - good for 4 letter names, you can just repeat the spelling a few times:
Oh my name's John.
J - O - H - N
Oh my name's John,
J-O-H-N.
Oh, yeah, my name is easy to spell.
John is spelled J-O-H-N


My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean:  good for 5 letter names; For example:
My name is spelled E - L- L -I - S.
My na-ame is easy, you see.
My name is spelled E- L- L- I- S.
Now, spe-eell my name with me.


The Farmer in the Dell - best for 6 letter names:
A -M- A- N- D- A,
A- M- A- N- D- A,
That's how you spell my name,
A- M- A- N- D- A.


Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - good for 7 letter names:
M-A-D-I-S-O-N
That spells Madison.
M-A-D-I-S-O-N
Madison, yes, Madison.
M-A-D-I-S-O-N
That's how you spell Madison.


Row, Row, Row Your Boat - good for 8 letter names
F-L-A-N-N
E-R-Y
That is how you spe-ell
Fla-an-nery


 Good luck!  (And, I'd love to hear how your song turned out!)




What mnemonic device do you still remember from school?

Montessori Moments

Flanna's wonderful teaching assistant sent us these photos of her doing several of the "works" during her morning montessori program.  It's so neat to see what she's been working on!

What new thing are you learning right now?    

Taking Stock: What did I learn last year?

My cousin sent me this cool pic of my great aunt .

Random things I've learned:

1.  Happiness is important, but not everything.
2.  Sadness is inevitable, and can push you to change for good.
3.  It takes a village, but villages no longer just exist...we have to create our own.
4.  Family stories are important to our sense of ourselves.
5.  Reflection is good.
6.  Goals are even better.
7.  Clutter is stressful.
8.  Funny stuff happens every day.
9.  Taking photos makes you notice beauty everywhere.
10.  I have a lot to learn.


What did you learn last year?

Taking Stock: Happiness Resolutions Progress Report

It's that time of year already!  Time to take stock and see how I did in keeping my New Year's Resolutions for 2010.  Here are the happiness resolutions I made this year, along with my progress.


MY HAPPINESS RESOLUTIONS:

1. Learn Something: Read in Spanish at least 15 minutes 5 times per week. -  I only partially met this resolution.  I did well with it for a few months at a time, but not consistently.  I did find other ways to learn Spanish throughout my week regularly, though, including doing online Spanish verb quizzes  when I had a spare few minutes, reading easy books in Spanish (like the Little Red Hen, the Three Billy Goats Gruff, and others from this series) with my daughter, listening to the Pimsleur language series in the car on the way to and from work, and listening to Spanish/English music CDs like Hop Skip & Sing Spanish.  I'm still planning to take a Spanish class this coming spring semester, because I'd really like to perfect my past-tense use and just generally improve my comprehension of fast speech.  

2. Be social: Start a girls’ night by June. - I did have a girls' night with my neighbors.  And I've definitely made some good friends this past year.  So, even though I don't have a regular girls' night, I do have pretty regular playdates and fun outings with friends, so I think the spirit of this resolution was met.  

3. Really listen: Interview at least 5 past clients about happiness amidst struggles. - This one is partially met.  I've interviewed 3 past clients and chatted with several other clients about interviewing soon.  I've really appreciated those interviews, and love learning from the parents of the children I work with.  This project has been really inspiring to me, making me more attentive to the quality of life of my clients, and adding a greater sense of purpose to my career.  

4. Cut the chaos: Tidy up the house for 10 minutes each night, every night. - This continues to be an ongoing battle for me.  But I do have to say that this past year has been the most tidy year in my home's history.  (Yikes, what does that say about my home's tidiness history?!)   I think the ideas of having my home be a reflection of things I truly love, of making my home organized to reduce stress, and of having regular times to sort/clean-out different areas of my home (which I was inspired to do by my friend Dianne's 100-day clutter challenge) made a big difference for me.  

5. Exercise: Dance with Flannery on Mon, Wed, Fri afternoons. - This one was met for about 6 months.  And then, not so much.   I think I sense a New Year's Resolution in this area for 2011!

6. Eat Well: Bring a lunch on Tues/Thurs. - Finally, I can say a goal is met.  I typically bring my own healthy leftovers each day to work, which saves me both money and calories.  Yay!

Overall, I think just working toward these goals made me happier this year, even if they weren't all completely met.  And seeing little bits of progress throughout the year inspired me to try new things and learn more.  I'm mulling over ideas for new resolutions for next year.  I've really got to think about my top priorities and areas of my life that I most want to change.  I also think that next year, I'm really going to keep up with a resolutions chart regularly.  







How did you do with your New Year's Resolutions this past year?  Any ideas for new resolutions for 2011 yet?

Halloween Phonics Fun

This week, in my speech class, I made some "Bat Books." First, we cut out the bat from construction paper. Next, we glued the "at" on one wing. And just in front of the "at" block, I stapled about 12 rectangles of construction paper to make a little flip book. The kiddos enjoyed making their own "-at" family words. And because the books were cute, they were motivated to sound out the words to me several times over and over, and to their teachers several times, as well.

I also had them write the real words they created on the other wing of the bat in pencil. You probably can't see it here, but the kids were able to create lots of -at words like, "mat, hat, fat, cat, pat, etc."

Flip books are a fun way to work on word family patterns, and I'm using these not only with my speech kiddos, but also with Flannery at home.





What fun halloween decorations do you display at your house?

Grow a Little Bit

One of the biggest things that makes me happier is to grow in some way each day. And right now, I'm really trying to grow by: a) learning Spanish, and b) learning to garden.

This weekend, we visited my in-laws, and, as promised, I took some neat photos of their amazing garden. It made me realize I have SOOO much to learn! Very inspiring!

Here are some of the little gems we found in the garden:












What would you like to learn from your parents or mentors in your life? There are so many things I never asked my grandmother about before she passed away (about her life and family, and just her take on things), and I think about that a lot. I hope we can learn as much from my parents, and Robi's parents and grandparents, as we can while we have time together.

Learn Something New

A few days ago, my husband found a caterpillar eating some of our basil outside. We brought it inside and kept it in a jar for a few days, and then, just when I was trying to decide whether to keep it so Flanna could watch it become a butterfly or moth, my husband brought home a butterfly habitat tent. So, we're keeping this cool little guy until he's ready to fly.

My hubby has been reading up on how to take care of it. And the caterpillar is thriving under his care. (It had sort of been eeking out a meager living in my care.) I'm so glad Robi decided to learn something new and create the perfect sanctuary for our new little caterpillar friend. The funny thing so far has been that this caterpillar can EAT! He's munching through the leaves Robi gives him like there's no tomorrow. I guess "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" isn't an exaggeration!

I'll try to get some good pics of the little guy tomorrow. Or girl? I'm not sure how it works for caterpillars.



What are you learning this summer?

Baby Steps

Is this not the cutest picture ever? I tried to find a picture of Flannery's little feet to post here, but this one of her with my mom when she was tiny was just too adorable not to post. Seriously. Those cheeks!

Annnyway.

For some reason, today I decided to take stock of where I am on my path to meeting my happiness resolutions for this year. Maybe it's because I had a few moments to myself after my last client before I had to pick up my daughter, so I could ponder my life a bit. Or maybe it's because I read a few books in Spanish today, which energized me. Or maybe it's because I get ambitious in a delirious way when I stay up late. In any case, here are my happiness resolutions for 2010, along with my current progress:

MY HAPPINESS RESOLUTIONS:

1. Learn Something: Read in Spanish at least 15 minutes 5 times per week. - I have fallen off of the-reading-Spanish-wagon for a few weeks, but today, I listened to Spanish music CDs in the car and read 2 books in Spanish, so I'm hoping to climb back on. Since I don't commute to Chapel Hill for work anymore, I've lost a good routine for learning Spanish. (I used to listen to the Pimsleur language series - conversational Audio CDs--to learn a little each week.) I really think tying the learning time to something that I do regularly each week is going to be key for consistent progress. But what routine?

2. Be social: Start a girls’ night by June. - done. OK, so it's not a regular girls' night yet. But all the mommies of young kiddos on my street went out for drinks recently, and it was a huge success. So I'm hoping it will be a regular thing soon. (Have I mentioned how neat and diverse my street is? The people are so wonderful.)

3. Really listen: Interview at least 5 past clients about happiness amidst struggles. - not addressed. Can someone send me some nerve, please? I hate to bug busy people. But I know that these stories are just lovely and would make the world a better place by being told. Sigh. Not sure why I can't execute this one yet.

4. Cut the chaos: Tidy up the house for 10 minutes each night, every night. - Wow. My house is so not tidy right now. I've realized that now that the "100 Day Clutter-Free Challenge" is over (from the inspiring Clutter Free Journey blog), I've really let this resolution fall away. Maybe I should start the challenge again from day one by following her archives. OK. I think I'll try that.

5. Exercise: Dance with Flannery on Mon, Wed, Fri afternoons. - met on days that I'm home (I work Friday afternoons now, but we do dance pretty regularly on Mon/Weds!)

6. Eat Well: Bring a lunch on Tues/Thurs. - Um. Sometimes I drop by my house between clients and grab a cereal bar for lunch. Does that count? Yeah, I didn't think so. A scary thing has happened to make this resolution more difficult. I now pass a Taco Bell every Thursday around lunch time, between clients. And I admit it, I am a sucker for a 99 cent bean burrito. I mean, it's cheap, it's fast, it's protein, and it's not as terribly unhealthy as...um, a hamburger? yeah. I still do need to pack a salad.

So, there we are, folks. This progress report is not as glowing as the last one was. But maybe that will make me get myself in gear so that I can focus on growth this summer.



Have you kept any of your new years' resolutions this year? What areas of your life are you moving forward in? Stalling in? Do you think that taking stock of where you are makes you happier or just depressed? Or depressed in the short run and happy in the long run if it inspires change? OK, I promise I'll stop asking questions now, especially multiple choice ones. :)

Grow Each Day

One of the major things I've learned about myself during my little happiness project so far is that, for me to be happy, I have to be growing in some way at all times. You know, like learning Spanish, or exercising more, or learning about gardening. Right now I'm on an herb garden streak, so forgive me the zillions of photos I'm posting today if you're not at all interested in plants.

Our basil that we started from seed is now all grown up! And it graduated to a bigger planter this weekend. The cutest planter ever, if I do say so myself. Which I do! I used some for homemade bruschetta today. Yum!

Our marjoram is also growing to be gorgeous. I still haven't used any yet, though. Maybe I'll put it in my pasta tomorrow. Ideas?



We started some new basil and oregano seeds in our windowsill this weekend. Flannery has dutifully (over)watered them every day. And I love that she has crazy bed head in the watering picture. It's kinda endearing.


The roses are my neighbors' bushes, but I just had to share them! So beautiful!

The herb "garden" now consists of: basil, cilantro, rosemary, mint, chives, & marjoram. I'm also trying to grow some peppers and tomatoes. I had no luck with starting my strawberries from root bunches. I've been faithfully watering a planter full of soil and rootlets for 2 weeks now, and I'm rather disappointed. Apparently there must be a trick to that. A very secret trick. Oh, well.




In what area are you currently "growing", and is it boosting your happiness? Or, if you're not growing right now, what area of your life might you think about "growing" in?

Learn Something New

One thing I know about myself is that learning new things makes me happy. Since last Christmas, I've been trying to learn new kid songs on guitar to share with my daughter, which has really brought me a lot of joy! And now I'm trying to be brave and use my guitar skills at work, too.

Every Tuesday afternoon, I co-teach a bilingual preschool group. It's one of the things I love best about my job right now. And lately, I've been pushing myself to learn new songs each week to share with the group. This week, I learned how to play "The Wheels on the Bus" on my guitar...luckily my coteacher knew the lyrics in Spanish. For next week, I'm hoping I'll be able to sing along a bit better. So I'm challenging myself to learn some verses this week.

Here are the guitar chords for "The Wheels on the Bus" in English. And below, I'll post the lyrics of the song in Spanish, in case anyone's interested. Fun stuff!


The Wheels on the Bus – Guitar Chords

D
The wheels on the bus go round and round
A D
Round and round, round and round
D
The wheels on the bus go round and round
A D
All through the town

-----------------------

Las Ruedas Del Autobus (en Espanol)
(To the tune of “The Wheels on the Bus”)

Las ruedas del autobus van girando van,
girando van, girando van.
Las ruedas del los autobus van girando van,
por toda la ciudad.

La gente en el autobus sube y baja,
sube y baja, sube y baja
La gente en el autobus sube y baja,
por toda la ciudad.

La bocina del autobus suena
piii piii, suena piii piii
suena piii piii
La bocina del autobus suena piii piii
por toda la ciudad.

Los bebés en el autobus lloran waa waa waa,
waaa,waaa,waaa
waaa,waaa,waaa
Los bebés en el autobus lloran waa, waa, waa
por toda la ciudad.

Los padres en el autobus dicen
shh, shh, shh,
shh, shh, shh
shh, shh, shh
Los padres en el autobus dicen
shh, shh, por toda la ciudad.

Las puertas del autobus se abren y cierran,
Se abren y cierran, se abren y cierran
Las puertas del autobus se abren y cierran,
por toda la ciudad.

Los limpiadores del autobus hacen suish, suish, suish,
suish, suish, suish; suish, suish, suish,
Los limpiadores del autobus hacen suish suish suish,
por toda la ciudad

Los conductores de los autobuses dicen pasen atras,
pasen atras, pasen atras
los conductors de los autobuses dicen pasen atras,
por toda la ciudad

La gente del autobus se sube y baja,
sube y baja, sube y baja,
la gente del autobus se sube y baja,
por toda la ciudad

Cuando sube un bebe va waaa,waaa,waaa;
waaa,waaa,waaa; waaa,waaa,waaa
Cuando sube un bebe va waaa,waaa,waaa
por toda la ciudad

Las mamis del autobus dicen te amo,
te amo, te amo
las mamis del autobus dicen te amo,
por toda la ciudad.



What's something new you'd like to learn?

Be a Know It All

It's what you learn after you know it all that counts.
~Attributed to Harry S. Truman

Learning new things is fun for me. Not exactly the whole process--I actually really hate the hard work it takes to get started when learning something brand new. But once I'm on my way to learning something new, when the ball gets rolling, and I start seeing a little progress, it really boosts my happiness!

I enjoy a challenge. Not everyone does. But the moment I stop feeling challenged, is the moment I get bored and am ready to move on. (Which is probably why I've changed jobs every 2 years since I graduated! I'm working on that!)

Maybe it's also why I love working in early intervention, with those tiny clients who are such a puzzle to figure out. And why I love working with children with autism so much. These complex kiddos teach me something every time I'm with them, and I'm constantly having to scramble to figure out a new way to do something when the old way stops working.

Here's a website I've been learning a ton of information from: Autism Games. I also like to watch videos on the Autism Speaks website, especially the personal stories from families of what has worked for them. Oh, and have you watched any of the amazing videos on TED about "ideas worth sharing"? Here's one by Temple Grandin that's pretty interesting.



What are you learning right now?

Learn Something New

Learning new things makes me happy.

The most fulfilling time of my career was when I was on an interdisciplinary team for early intervention in Athens, GA, for about 4 years. My team met weekly to discuss the families we served, to problem-solve about certain kiddos, and to reflect on our job performance and how we could improve. I learned SO much during those years, and I think the learning component of the job was what made me so happy in it. I find that if I’m not feeling challenged to grow constantly in my job or pretty much in any area of my life, I’m not as happy as I’d like to be.

Right now at my job, I’m most enjoying the bilingual Spanish preschool language group I co-teach each week here in Durham. And the occasional Spanish evaluations I do when they come up, as well. I think it’s the challenge that makes me happy to be doing these parts of my job. It’s funny to think that challenge can make me happy, but I really think it’s true.

On weeks I keep my happiness resolution to “Learn Something: Read in Spanish at least 15 minutes 5 times per week,” it definitely boosts my happiness. It makes me feel like I’m in control of my life, like I’m doing something that I want to do that makes me a better person. And on weeks I don’t keep my resolution, I'm just not as happy.

This is one of those weeks that I’m not keeping any of my happiness resolutions very well. But I have a sick kiddo at home, so I’m trying to cut myself some slack.

And I’m actually learning a lot while taking care of a croup-y toddler.

Like, how chicken noodle soup is completely unappealing to a 3 year old unless it has Shrek-shaped noodles.

Or, how popsicles can lose their appeal, but Sprite never does.

Or, how if I put the words, “The DOCTOR says that _____” before something, my preschooler takes it much more seriously than if just “Mom says so.”

Or, how mommy loses her temper much more easily after day 4 of co-sleeping with a restless daughter.

See how much I’m learning?

And even in my short-tempered, exhausted, still-in-my-PJs-at-2 p.m. state, that makes me happy.



How’s it going with the keeping of your new year’s resolutions? Any successes to report?

Keep Growing

My daughter likes to say, "Mommy, when I get big and you get little...." It's sooo cute.

Growing is such a big part of who we are when we're young. It makes sense that it makes us happy even as old folks to continue to experience growth.

When one area of my life seems to stall (like, for instance, when money is still tight after ten years of marriage :), or when I'm still trying to figure out how to integrate regular exercise into my routine after 7 years of failed attempts), it's nice to find a small area (or two) where I can still experience growth (like how I'm learning Spanish, or how I'm almost keeping up with our laundry for the first time ever in our married life!).

Here's a quote one of my friends introduced me to. It works for me right now.

The measure of success is not whether you have a tough problem to deal with, but whether it’s the same problem you had last year. ~ John Foster Dulles

What problems have you overcome in the last few years?