Play time!

A good introduction to the dramatic art, this role play can take place in a mini theater made out of cardboard... See here

Make this strongman dance! Or play with a mermaid, the Big Bad Wolf, Little Red Ridinghood, a very charming Prince or the Fairy Princess!

Download the Theater printable here

(pdf contains 3 A4 pages, 872 kb)


What we did with ours:

- Print in color

- Stick to cardboard (cereal box will work)

- Laminate

- Cut each piece leaving a 2 mm margin

- Join with butterfly clips at joints

- Play!!! :)It is interesting how many stories come from this eclectic mix of characters...

 Can't wait for the next one!! I'll keep you posted!!

Botanical Book with wonderful art

 Today, I'm sharing this resource  TOTALLY FREE, courtesy of Botanicus.org.

Botanicus is a free, Web-based encyclopedia of digitized historic, botanical literature from the Missouri Botanical Garden Library. They have been digitizing materials from their library since 1995, focusing primarily on beautifully illustrated volumes from their rare book collection.

 Go here, scroll through the pages list on the left  and enjoy. And if you want to download the whole book in .pdf format, just press "download" at the top of the page. The individual plates then can be printed as needed.

I personally find this botanical plates quite fascinating, and even young children, with their enormous appetite for everything natural and real, are quite attracted to them.

You can browse the complete catalog here

Drawing with children

I found the book by Mona Brooks, "Drawing with children", very inspiring, since it introduces children to drawing in a very gentle and systematic way, training the eye to see detail in order to be able to draw better.

In her next book, "Drawing with older children and teens" she explores the ideas further. I really enjoyed the way copying doodles help to train the eye, and even foster new tools for creativity.



That is why I've created my own doodles for my children, and I am sharing the file  . Please for personal use only, thank you! You will find 3 pages of designs to copy, plus a blank page at the end to incorporate your own. I truly believe children enjoy things better (and learn more) if they see us enjoying it, too :)

Classical education magazines

Classical Homeschooling Magazine is a free online magazine. 

 In its four issues it analyzes the burgeoning homeschooling renaissance of classical education from A to Z – the primary importance of the family to education, the Great Books movement, the liberal arts, the Socratic method, the paideia reforms, philosophy and education, homeschooling academic statistics, poetic knowledge, legal implications of homeschooling, ancient Greek education, medieval education, reading lists of the classics of Western civilization, restoring education at home, the ideal university, the future of homeschooling, where to begin and many other captivating topics.

You can access them here:

 
Classical Homeschooling Magazine

Art sessions

Montessori observed that children become acquainted with the world through movement and experience. The process of making something instills an inner satisfaction in the child which he wants to share. By "doing it myself," the gift becomes a gift of the child's self.

That is one of the reasons we love making Birthday cards with the kids... it is an art project that turns into a one of a kind gift... even our 2 year old joins in the fun!!!

We start very simple, with white cardstock folded in two (or pre-made blank cards) We brainstorm about what the person receiving the card would enjoy best, since the main point is to let them realized that the gift is meant to make the other person happy (as opposed to just drawing what they like best). This also helps getting them out of the"artistic comfort zone" some children fall into - (rainbows and stick people anyone?)

Holy Heroes 12 days of Christmas

The website "Holy Heroes" is offering a free download every day for the 12 days of Christmas. The offer for each item is valid only for one day, so you need to check the website every day.

Today it is a coloring book of the life of St Cecilia.

Holy heroes 12 Days of Christmas

A star is born

Constellations are always such a wonderful theme, since it combines Earth and Space Science with mythology and imagination!! If we add to it a bit of art and a bit of music, then it is an awesome theme for integrating different bits and pieces of knowledge and experiences into a beautiful whole.

We started out with some basic printables of the traditional constellations from this website. It also has a free printable with a short explanation of the history behind the main constellations.

Art, History and Science:

We also made some constellation cards:

After studying them for a while, we made our own constellation cards. 

All you need is 3 by 5” white cards, and 2 ½” by 4 1/2 “ blue construction paper rectangles.

Pick a constellation. 

Mark with a pencil in the blue paper where the stars would be. With a puncher, punch out the blue paper in the places marked, and glue onto the white cards. You may trace the lines joining the starts with a white pencil. Prepare labels if desired.

Drawing your favorite constellation story.

Together with your child (children) draw your favorite story. You can incorporate some writing into it.

Music and history:

Listen together to “Constellations” by Jonathan Peters (more about it in this site).

You can even download a free teachers guide for this CD  here