Worm Loves Worm... an emotional roller coaster.

Never has a single book given me such a roller coaster of emotions.

Worm Loves Worm by J.J.Austrian, illustrated by Mike Curato

I can’t even begin to explain how this book had me flipping and flopping at the turn of every page. Let me try.

First, my daughter picked it up. As a general rule, I try to read everything she brings me… only saying no to the truly bad books. Ya, know. The ones that, literally, hurt your feelings as you read them or worse, make you dumber as a human being.

I have to say, that with FEW exceptions… books were characters are ‘named’ as their species, have, in my experience, been high on the list of books that hurt my very soul to read them. So ‘Worm Loves Worm’ was instantly low on my list of exciting things for my daughter to bring me.

But when she wants to read it… we suck up our feelings and read it. Even if it hurts. So we opened the book.

Spoiler Alert!

Worm marries worm… I just wanted to make that clear. Not only are they in love… they marry.

So, as they discuss getting married, other creatures impose their ideas on what a wedding includes. These impositions include, a minister, a best beetle, and brides bees. Then a cake, rings and a band. 

‘Oh great.’ I think to myself, another book about how a marriage isn’t real unless you have a “traditional” wedding. Am I reading too much into a picture book… No. No, I’m not.  

But, she’s loving it so I read on. I did appreciate Worm and Worm retorting each suggestion with perfectly valid reasons they didn’t need those things. They don’t need rings, they have no fingers. They don’t need a band, they have no feet for dancing. I also began to appreciate Worm and Worm for remaining optimistic and finding ways to incorporate these things they don’t really need and having such a positive attitude. 

Even still, after several pages of this, I’m getting annoyed with their acceptance of every demand made by their friends. Then, the final straw for me? Wedding attire. As someone who married her high school sweetheart almost 10 years after graduation, at a park, wearing jeans… I almost put the book down when everyone suggested they needed a dress and tux.

Now, if you’re reading this book along with your kid… or along with this post. Don’t close it just yet. I promise. 

Keep going.

Because, Worm and Worm finally stand up for themselves, completely. They each wear part of a dress and part of a tux… rendering them each completely unisex. Gender Neutral? Equal. 

“We can be both.” they declare. Even after Cricket tries to shoot that down, their response is perfect… and I’m sold.

Worm and Worm are now married. I retrace my emotional roller coaster to snap these pictures for this lovely post and I realize… the worm with the white in it’s eyes… never speaks! It’s always the worm with only pupils, who’s mouth is open, talking. 

Now, what started as a book that was surely going to hurt my feelings to read. Turned into a great book on gender equality, using a wedding, the most UNequal gender event (possibly)…. but then turned into a dark book about abusive relationships. (and don’t even get me started on the cannibalism, I’m looking at you spider)

FRIENDS! If you’re in a relationship that denies you a say in how your life turns out, PLEASE! Get help. Just because Worm was preaching equality in the wedding does not mean they were practicing it in the relationship. Lesson learned!

Nothing is ever as it seems… not even Worm Loves Worm.

ING

!jen

Homeschool Weirdos! Yep, we have those.

Homeschoolers are weird. This is probably the most common phrase regarding our lifestyle choice and it's also the most common UNtruth. But don't take my word for it, see it for yourself. 

The kids and I have been talking about what we'll do in June when they finish their experiment public school year, all the things we'll do over the summer and what our schooling will look like next year as we look forward to retirement from the Navy. One of the things they decided was joining the ranks of YouTubers. Not wanting to wait until school was out, they decided to start making video's now.

They wanted to let people know what homeschoolers get to do all day. How we learn by doing and exploring and experiencing the world. 

We started as fairly regular homeschoolers with a very Montessori flair. I'm certified in the Montessori method and have years of education experience so I knew just what to do when we started this 'homeschooling' thing. 

Famous last words.

Each year we continued homeschooling, following our kids to what they wanted to learn and love (as Montessori does), I realized that we are way more UNschoolers than anything else. 

We learn about whales by going to the coast and whale watching after a bit of library research. We explored building and mathematics and following instructions at Lego School. We learned about the rainforest by hiking in it and seeing it first hand. 

These are the experiences that my children thrive in and beg for. So when they said they wanted to start making YouTube videos... you bet I was on board.

They made a list of ten different episode ideas, then gave each episode a list of materials it might need. We sat down and gave each episode a 'budget' and discussed using it wisely. We talked about making videos with no cost to save up for a video with more materials. 

Do you see where I'm going with this?

Yeah, it's 'school'. 

Each episode requires such planning and organization, when I involve them in it, they learn. Learn by doing and being responsible and planning and even editing.

Yes, you read that right. 

#WestWind is the editor. I record them (like, I actually push the record button... go me!). We decided this would be best, as them watching themselves in selfie mode would just be disastrous. Then I upload the clips and she takes over in iMovie. 

She LOVES it. After working all day at school, asking to edit is the first request when she gets home. If there aren't episodes to edit, she is actually sad. She has learned about royalty free music and where to obtain it. She has leaned about cutting out 'dead air' and watching for when her brother might feel the need to scratch himself (ahhhh), so she can cut that out too. No one wants to see it ;)

The aforementioned brother? #FlyBoy is a natural in timing and poise. He knows just how to move the video along and sign off when everything is done. The youngest? #MoonSeeker is just an adorable addition for now. But don't you worry! She's working on her own segments too, you'll see. 

Do you have weird homeschoolers? 

What are they doing lately?

How are they learning and loving it?

ING

!jen

Barbie, Life in the Dreamhouse: Where education really begins.

Do you know what 'alliteration' is? My kids do, they are 5 (Icky) & 9 (Z). is this a huge academic deal? not really. But what I love about this fact is HOW they learned it. 

**while driving in the car and listening to a song by Cowboy Mouth.

Z: Hitch hiker hike home. Mom, that's alliteration.

Me: (a little laugh) Yes, sweet girl, it is.

Z: Just like Barbie.

Me: (laughs again)

Icky: Hot tub Huge. (quoting Barbie)

Z: we get it. You like alliteration. (quoting Barbie's friend Raquel)

Would our family have had a discussion about alliteration, had Barbie and friends not introduced it to my kids? Probably, eventually, but when? Who knows! Maybe years from now. But no, we had it sooner rather than later. Z asked what alliteration was after hearing Raquel say it. We explained by repeating Barbies' lines. We then were able to talk about it and revisit it a few times as it came up in daily living. Then the Cowboy Mouth song came on one day, not the first time she's heard it, by the way, and BAM! A connection, a deeper understanding of whats going on around her. A way to link things together. 

THESE moments are why we will continue homeschool as long as we can. I got to be part of that and many more like it. I got to SEE it. Nurture it. Laugh at it as we all quoted Barbie as part of a "lesson". 

There are days that we watch some form of tv MOST of the day. After an exhausting week, or when I'm sick, or if we're just having a fun movie day full of popcorn and singing and playing. It's ok. Is it our daily routine? Of course not. We're WAY to involved in a million different things to get these 'tv days' often. But I'm alot less afraid of them given what we learn from these silly shows. I'll name just a few. 

Barbie: you already know my favorite lesson from her ;) 

Phineus and Ferb: We've learned about eternal optimism from Phineus and from Ferb the ever effectiveness of keeping ones mouth shut ;) They've also learned about schematics, planets and general kindness.

Rescue Bots: Is all about 'doing what's right'. We all have our favorite character and we all know that My mom needs to meet a real life Chief Burns, cause he's the perfect guy... being cartoon is his only flaw ;)

Backyardigans: we learn to accept everyone's way of playing. We also have learned more than our fair share of little ditty's. 

Wild Kratts: Easy to learn here, the animal facts are presented in such fun and playful ways that my kids never forget them!

Octonauts: Again, silly and playful, while presenting facts about ocean life. 

What are your kids watching? What are you Loving about it? Share with us! We're always looking for our next favorite. 

ING

!jen

Bishop Museum? Yes Please!

Quick Tips.

**Located at 1525 Bernice St, Honolulu, HI 96817, the Bishop Museum is close to town and still easy to get to as it's right off the free way. 
**I believe parking is now paid, so be prepared for that. There is a main lot to the left of the entrance gate and a secondary lot if you follow the road to the right after the entrance gate.
**If you get a membership, it includes a parking pass, I believe.
**After a day's fun is done, you can put your ticket purchase toward a membership. So save your receipt.
**The gift shop can help you with daily stickers after you're a member if the ticket window has a long line.
**The gift shop also always has a few items themed to the changing exhibit.
**The cafe is fabulous!! We liked planning our trip for first thing in the morning and eating before we headed home.
**Before the cafe opened (and sometimes still after it had opened), we packed a lunch and ate on the grass, or tables or ramada.

Shortly after arriving on Oahu, my brother and sister in law gifted my kids (and lets be honest, ALL of us) with a family pass to the Bishop Museum. We have seen every exhibit over the last 2 years. Every. One.

My kids never tired of going, even the exhibits that didn't change were always a big hit. The psychedelic tunnel of Hawaiian creation, the volcano, the lava, the wind experiments, and the stage with bug costumes...the giant whale with the half exposed skeleton! never gets old.

The changing exhibits were ALSO amazing.
The very first one we saw was the Roller Coaster exhibit, possibly the best exhibit I've seen at a museum, ever.

But since all those pictures were on a hard drive stolen from our old house... I'll just give a nice Bishop Museum overview.

Comprised, largely, of 4 exhibit buildings, and a massive central lawn, it's never a bad day when you visit.

The entrance is a good place to start (hehehe, get it?). 

So in this building is the: J. Watumull Planetarium. 

We've seen several of the shows available there (not all because we usually have a the baby and chancing it is always out voted). But the few we HAVE seen were SO fabulous. The kids loved them and I learned a few things too. Also, while waiting for the show, there are a few hands on activities regarding the planet. My kids are a big fan of the 'sand pit'. They move the sand around to create valleys and peaks and then hold their hands over spots to make it rain. This activity uses a thermal sensor... maybe. Now that I think of it I'm not sure what the camera is that hangs above the sand pit. Way To Go Blogger. nice research ;) 

Hawaiian Hall

This hall has an amazing display of royal Hawaiian artifacts. Head dresses, paintings, jewelry. Very impressive to see.

Across from the artifacts, is a changing exhibit room. Last time we were there, it was all about birds of Hawaii. Native and invasive species, how to identify them, how to assist in population efforts, lots of neat information and a few interactive elements. 

Continue through this room and you come to the "The Realms of Hawaiian Hall". This three story exhibit follows many years and areas of Hawaiian history. Not a nook or cranny is left uninformed. 

 

The Pacific Hall

Attached to the Hawaiian Hall, this two story exhibit focuses on the oceans role in the islands of the entire Pacific. Again, every nook and cranny is full of information and there are a few hands on activities that explore boats and clothing. 

MAN! were they excited when the sign said "Please" touch.

Paki Hall

As I'm going over the map... I realize, I don't think we ever went in that hall. I assumed it was offices and such. So someone go there and let me know. Mahalo Plenty!

Castle Memorial Building

THIS is where we spent most of the last 2 years. It's the location of the changing exhibits. The roller coasters were here, then dinosaurs, then World of Wearable Art, then Candy, then Sharks... non-stop fun for my kiddos and their homeschooling friends. 

Hale Ikehu

This is a great little ramada. We have met here for a story with our co-op. We have eaten here when it starts to rain a bit. A nice little resting spot.

Richard T. Mamiya Science Adventure Center

Explore wind, lava, volcanoes, wildlife, Hawaiian creation, Earth and Water relations and take a break at the stage upstairs. This kids put on costumes and play out invasive species taking over or being thwarted by the "good guys". My kids love the costumes!

Hangin' on the Goose outside the Science Center

That's all the Halls. I hope you're able to enjoy some time at the Bishop Museum and by 'some time' I mean two entire years like we did ;)

ING

!jen

Scholastic News at Home

Scholastic News at Home

I’m Homeschooling…. Now What??

Our journey to and through homeschooling has been quite, well, Tumultuous. My oldest just turned nine, in public school, she’d be starting 4th grade in August. Here at home? She’s reading at a 6th grade level, playing with numbers on lots of levels in many operations and still counting on her fingers at times. Her little brother will be five next week and we’ve been officially doing preschool at home since he was 2. He LOVES to listen to audio books (another blog on this later), counts about average for his age, and until recently, couldn’t care less about the sounds letters made. My youngest will be two next month, is already counting quantity to 5 and loves to practice letter sounds. These are simply facts. I care much more about their personality, kindness, compassion, daily living skills and willingness to help others. Even with academics not being MY priority… as I follow my children, academics happen and I roll with them. 

Such was the case with Scholastic News.

In our first year, I was SO torn over not being able to offer my daughter the full scope of Montessori materials for her age that I started her in a Montessori Homeschool Co-op. It was a beautiful blessing! Her teachers were right after my own (Montessori) heart and they were fabulous, beautiful people. They offered a subscription for Scholastic News. It was like $8 for the year, so why would I NOT?? Scholastic News started coming home with her. She’d read a bit on the way home and then pile them in her room. After a few months we had a ginormous stack and I couldn’t bring myself to just toss them. So we read a few together and I saw how AMAZING they were. 

As far as I can tell, you order them in ‘class’ amounts. So maybe I’ll have to get a group of homeschoolers together when we move to keep this going ;)

Anyway, they had a predicable format, quizzes at the end for comprehension, and links for videos online to further knowledge.  

Front covers with great images really catch her attention. even in subjects I wouldn't think she's care about.

Fun short stories to get her thinking, interested and engaged.

So I, being the tech savvy, Montessorian that I am, saw opportunity. I looked over a few scholastics and created a worksheet for my daughter to fill out while/after reading each one. 

Click 

on 

the 

picture 

to 

download 

it 

for 

FREE! 

:) 

She did these intermittently for a while. As part of lots of different options to her school day. Now, she does them as her ‘days work’ when we have a co-op event, field trip, or other learning opportunity that takes us out of the house for most of the day. She’ll do her Scholastic news before we leave or after we get back. 

It’s easy to see when our kids encounter things they love. It’s also easy to see when those things are helping develop their ‘thinking brains’, as we say in our house. But it’s not always easy to see how we, as parents, can help them take it a step further. 

I’ll eventually blog on a few other things; ‘games’, that we’ve incorporated into our homeschool routine at different points over the past few years. Oh, and side note? On non-outing days she’s currently working through a self guided workbook that she loves. So Scholastic News is not the only thing we’re doing right now. We live an eclectic life and thus our schooling has the same philosophy.

ING

!jen

8 ways to Tame your own 'NO' monster and maybe the little monsters will follow :)

A simple guide to taking 'No' out of your homeschooling day.

This is my No monster. When I say NO, unnecessarily, I feel like I look like this... :)

The word 'No' is such an easy go to. It roles off the tongue with such simplicity. Which isn't surprising with the amount of times its simply true. 2+2=5, 'No'. The puzzle piece clearly doesn't fit, 'No'. How many bald eagles are left, according to the chart? 7, 'No'. The picture gets cut THEN colored, 'No, the instructions tell us to color then cut'. Mom, is this right? 'No'. A simple, accurate, correct answer, that just might be killing our child's sense of accomplishment, independence and confidence. I was a student once... many years ago :) I hated going to that one teacher who "always" said 'no'. Even when I had truly tried my hardest, worked through every answer twice, checked my work, and then had a friend edit it. She still said 'no', at least to SOMETHING on my paper. You remember, we all had that teacher. Some of us more frequently than others. 

Do you really want to be that teacher for your child? I'm guessing 'NO'. :) haha see what I did there :)

Anyway, In my Montessori training we did an entire project/paper on avoiding the word 'no'. It was brilliant. It forced me to think ahead to potential problems with different materials and decide on at least 3 ways to correct a child without saying 'no'. So I will attempt to offer these suggestions to you, my fellow homeschooling parents. Because even with my training and background in a Montessori classroom, my own children bring out the 'no' monster faster than I ever care to admit. 

1. Wait. The first choice is usually to simply wait. You see them heading to the wrong answer. They have placed the longest pencil in the middle instead of at the beginning where it belongs to properly grade them from longest to shortest. Wait. They have added their ones column wrong which will throw off the entire equation. Wait. Let them work it out to the end. Let them go through the steps of checking their work (make sure you have given a lesson on how to check their work in any given situation). They will come to their mistake, naturally. Without you having to be the NO moster :)

2. Show them their error in isolation. "lets check these two pencils" placing them evenly at the eraser end, "which looks longer to you?" pointing to or exaggerating the uneven ends if needed.

Pretend my red rods are pencils :)

3. Add an extra tool to ensure success. "Here's a picture of the pencils from longest to shortest. Try to make yours look like this." "How can we clean up this water mess? Yes. Thats what the sponge is for."

4. Get tactile. Hands on is the best medicine for finding mistakes. Push the pencil tips against the wall. Walk your finger up the erasers... "do they step up one at a time?" or do you find that there is one sticking out. 

5. Slow down. "This time, lets compare them two at a time until we find the shortest." Compare, and place the shortest first. Repeat for the next shortest. It takes longer, yes. AND adds a level of concentration for your child that many adults can't accomplish. 

6. Gentle reminder. "I think this pencil may be shortest." "Try to remember, we hold the pitcher with two hands, so that it's more steady when we pour."

One hand on the handle and one underneath the spout. Bet you didn't know that :) Because as multitasking adults we pour with one hand and our kids copy us.

7. Build in a 'control of error' to your lesson. This is similar to 'a way to check their work'. And must be planned on ahead of time to ensure your child's success as an independent worker. It may look something like, printing answers on the back of math equation cards, explaining that spills mean we need more practice pouring, etc.

8. Modeling. One of the biggest investments I made as a teacher into getting my students on board with behaviors I preferred, was to model said behavior. For example. You roll a rug on the floor, using your fingers for control. Not standing, while you roll it down your legs. I witnessed this phenomenon in students from other classes and would give another lesson every time. Until I walked into a class at the end of the day to pick up kids that were to join mine, only to see the teacher and assistant rolling rug down their legs cause it was the end of the day and they were too lazy to model the right way to roll a rug. What does it matter how they roll a rug? You might ask. I wont get into that now :) it's for another post entirely :) point being. These kids coming to my class were simply copying the behaviors of their own teacher. Once I realized this, I watched for other behaviors in students and found that many of the undesirable ones were actually coming from teachers who were unintentionally teaching students poor behavior choices. 

You say it before you think, 'NO', and expect it to be met with polite retorts like 'yes ma'am' or even an 'okay'. You sway backwards in disbelief when it's met with a resounding "NO!"... where did you learn to speak like that? we ask them :) If you're kids are anything like mine... they answer 'You, mommy.' thus, my daily dose of humble pie is served and I slump back to my hole in the ground.

So when the NO monster strikes at your pie hole, remember, filling it with Humble is hard to do. So fill it with kindness, gentleness, forgiveness, understanding, honesty and love. And keep at it! Once or twice isn't enough. If a pattern is to change one must live the change, if that pattern is to be passed down to our children? One must BE the change.

What ways do you avoid the NO monster??
What does YOUR No monster look like? I'm just curious :)


ING,
!jen

PS
Please don't assume that I never say NO... or that I'm suggesting you never use it. Sometimes it's completely necessary. Safety is a big place I will use it without regret or apology. The point I'm making here is times when we say it because we're too tired, or annoyed or stressed to be more kind... then it becomes unnecessary and thus could be avoided with beautiful results.

Ecotopia, a life model.

The decision to Homeschool... 

(or how the hokey pokey makes a difference)

We all know the stereotype of homeschooled kids. They are awkward, don't know how to make friends, are endlessly nerdy and have no idea what pop culture is due to their massively sheltered lives :)

I never actually thought I'd end up homeschooling. Especially once I found Montessori. Then 2 things happened. First I found the book called Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach and second, my little sister came to live with us. 

First: Ecotopia. This book Blew My Mind. It truly was a life altering read. For those who are not familiar this is the books synopsis: 

Ecotopia was founded when northern California, Oregon, and Washington seceded from the Union to create a “stable-state” ecosystem: the perfect balance between human beings and the environment. Now, twenty years later, this isolated, mysterious nation is welcoming its first officially sanctioned American visitor: New York Times-Post reporter Will Weston.

Skeptical yet curious about this green new world, Weston is determined to report his findings objectively. But from the start, he’s alternately impressed and unsettled by the laws governing Ecotopia’s earth-friendly agenda: energy-efficient “mini-cities” to eliminate urban sprawl, zero-tolerance pollution control, tree worship, ritual war games, and a woman-dominated government that has instituted such peaceful revolutions as the twenty-hour workweek and employee ownership of farms and businesses. His old beliefs challenged, his cynicism replaced by hope, Weston meets a sexually forthright Ecotopian woman and undertakes a relationship whose intensity will lead him to a critical choice between two worlds.

A hippy book? (as my husband calls it) Yes. But amazing none the less. The 20 hour work week was particularly interesting to me along with the notion that "school" is more like summer camp/homeschooling/unschooling. In Ecotopia, life is about honesty, conservation (of the land and of the self) and community. These are tenets that rang true and deep for me. 

I told my husband that I would move to Ecotopia in a heart beat and realized how sad I was that I couldn't, what with it being an imaginary place and all... I feel that way after reading lots of books with fanciful worlds but Ecotopia seems possible to me. 

My 3 homeschool students :)

Second: My little sister came to live with us. She is 12 now. She was 11 when she came and we got to experience her 6th grade year of public school. It was amazing. We spent the first semester fighting nightly, over homework, until we quit helping her because she was so rude. But the deeper problem was that she was getting assignments that she couldn't complete on her own because public school had failed miserably at "teaching" her prior to her 6th grade year. They made sure she 'knew' something for a test and didn't care if she retained, remembered or held on to it for life. But then expected her to find that information in August for the next grade. This was infuriating. She was expected to fall in step with kids who were beyond her understanding AND keep up. It wasn't until we got her final grades during the summer that I officially lost it. In the first month of school she was put into a math support class. So she attended her normal math/science class AND she then went to another math class where they went over all work from the normal math class. Sounds great, right?! A whole other class that assists her in getting her math homework done. It was brought to our attention through, observations of her work and inability to complete simple math equations, that the math support class was simply "going over" the work, which resulted in the giving of answers.... not the learning of skills. So her grades came and she had failed math... but aced the math support class. She also failed 2 other classes. 

And they were passing her to 7th grade!! Lets pass her till 12th grade and then hold her diploma till she "learns" how to pass the tests. 

Now, I don't blame teachers... mostly. I blame the system. (now, if teachers stood up for individual students rights and needs and say... went on strike to force a reform... well there's a story, but I digress). 

I believe the public school model is out dated, and I'm not the only one.

Trevor Eissler has a few takes on the subject

Ryan Normandin, staff writer for The Tech online edition 

Has a few thoughts.

Ken Robinson: 'How school kills creativity' Is funny but serious and brilliant.









These are just a few of examples. Take a moment, watch, read and most of all think.

So there I am, Ecotopia on the brain and a sister who failed 6th grade and is still passing. My own daughter would have started 1st grade in public school this year, based on her birthday. So I did a bit of research on homeschooling before we made the choice. I first went to the Hawaii Department of Education website... if I was going to homeschool I needed to know what standards were expected of us. I read over the 7th grade set... then the 6th... then the 5th, there I found mostly where my sister was. Except in math... she was below 5th and I couldn't bring myself to set her at 4th grade standards, so we took the Montessori approach, assessed her as an individual and made our plans from there.

Then I read through the 1st grade standards to see what my daughter should be learning. I could count on 1 hand the number of 1st grade standards that she didn't already know... as a kindergarden graduate. So I went into the 2nd grade standards and found where she was in math... but still not in language or world languages or technologies... I didn't go to the 3rd grade... I gave up. I have the standards printed for each girls respective "grade level" (1st and 7th) but we rarely reference them. And I felt bad about that... at first.

Then I got a dose of Montessori memory. Montessori assesses each child, plans for them and teaches them, period. No "standards" or grades. So why was I suddenly guilty about not adhering to the standards... and the guilt was gone. I believe the public system is flawed, so why would I follow the standards of a flawed system? Because I've been conditioned, brainwashed to follow it.

I went back to my Montessori roots and planned our curriculum for the year WITH the girls. We made a list of things we were interested in learning about. This is where 'only passionate curiosity' was VERY helpful. This blog gave me a few pages to get me started on organizing my thoughts and plans. Once I had that all planned out. Daily lessons came fast and furious. Take a look at her simple pages and use them to get your homeschool experience organized and moving.

I know homeschool is not for everyone. And realistically, if we weren't on an island that had NO Montessori programs for my sister... we might not be homeschooling, they would probably be in a Montessori school. But now that we're here and doing it, I wouldn't trade it. At all. My daughter is still moving at a pace to be reckoned with, reading into the 2nd grade level and my sister has taken up cooking, do you realize how much math is in cooking?? Even though she constantly has to add or subtract fractions, convert teaspoons to tablespoons and reread recipes when she tries to tell me we need 10 4oz packets of ranch mix for our dressing... she sticks with it. The ability to use what she loves to teach has made a great difference in her learning to love learning.

Which is totally Hokey Pokey (what it's all about).

ING
!jen