Nativity Puppet Play

Back in 2011, my daughter Lara, who was about 9 years old, and I created a Nativity puppet play. I would love to share our narrated play as a wonderful family activity to enjoy during the this festive season.

We created rod & wire puppets, but simple hand puppets or finger puppets would work just as well. There are animals, props and backdrops patterns, templates, instructions and suggestions.

The script is written in rhyming couplets so that it is easier for young children to memorize. A parent or older child who is good at reading aloud acts as narrator. You can view all our photos and detailed explanations of how to construct the puppets and backdrops in the original post.

This free download includes:

• Welcome to this Nativity Play
• How to perform using your puppets
• Some simple hand puppet tips and ideas
• Animals
• Props
• Stage setup
• How to make your puppets
• Ideas for backdrops
• Scene 1:  Outside a stable
• Scene 2: Outside night time on a hill
• Scene 3:   In King Herod’s Palace
• Scene 4:   In the Stable

Our hand puppets have been enormously popular and have lasted for years!

We recycled them for other plays such as our Esther Play for Purim.

You can read about all our other puppets here – Narrations 103 -Puppets

Here is your free download ~

nativity-play-updatedDownload

Enjoy and be blessed!

Nadene

Free Download – Sight Words

Revisiting archives ~ Offering a FREE Sight Words sampler

Teaching sight words is a very important and helpful tool to make reading easier for young students from pre-K to Grade 3.

Sight words are words read from memory and often cover almost half the reading material on a page.  By memorizing sight words, a child can quickly recognise and read these words without sounding out every letter of each word, making his reading process easier.

“Sight words = often also called high frequency sight words, are commonly used words that young children are encouraged to memorize as a whole by sight, so that they can automatically recognize these words in print without having to use any strategies to decode.” – Wikipedia

What sight word lists to teach? There are 3 main sight word lists:

1. Dolche Sight Words
2. Fry’s 1000 Sight Words list using more modern words.
3. First 100 high frequency word lists

Choose a list, introduce one or two words each day, gradually adding a new word or two, repeating and practicing the previously learned words until your child has learnt the entire list. In a short while, your child will have a wonderful, rich memory bank of instantly recognized words which he can read almost instantly, building his reading speed and ability.

Download your FREE sampler  ~ Sight Words Sampler including the Dolche lists with words in sentences and the Dice & Spinner templates.

How to teach sight words? A general rule = Always say the whole word, then spell it out and then say it again, underlining the whole word with the first 2 fingers from left to right. 

As in all teaching, you should customize your child’s lists to suit their levels of maturity and ability.  When they are ready, they will quickly learn new words and enjoy the learning process.

Sight word games to play

The best way to practice is to have fun! Once the words have been taught, the child must practice those words daily.  Many of these games involve physical exercise which, in turn, strengthens core and fine motor muscles and reinforces directions and spatial awareness. 

My full 30-page Sight Words EBook has ready-to-print flash cards, suggested games and activities, templates and posters for fun teaching and learning sight words.

Click over to my Packages page and support me by ordering the full 30-page Sight Words Ebook which includes ~

• How to teach sight words lessons with detailed examples.
• 18 Creative Spelling games (one or two players & physical activities
• 24 Spelling ideas with unique activities &fun ideas
• Dolch sight word lists with flashcards & words in sentences
• Fry’s 100 Sight Words
• 100 Frequently used sight word lists
• Spinner and dice templates for games and activities
• Board game and Bingo template
• Links to websites and YouTube videos

References ~ You will find lots of other lists, flashcards, games and downloads on the web ~

• Sight word lessons – www.sightwords.com/ and several additional helpful techniques to teach sight words – http://www.sightwords.com/sight-words/lessons/
• Dolch flash cards – www.sightwords.com
• Dolch word lists for all the grades –www.sightwords.com
• All Dolch words alphabetical order pdf download –www.sightwords.com/
• Sight word games – www.sightwords.com/
• More new sight word games – www.sightwords.com/
• Online sight words games –www.education.com/
• Interactive Printable Flash Cards – www.apples4theteacher.com

 Blessings, Nadene

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Solar System Mobile Tutorial

Revisiting a tutorial from my archives ~ A wonderful hands-on activity that displays beautifully as a mobile:

“Another mobile?” you may ask.  Here’s a tutorial on how we made our Solar System Mobile:

While browsing a large crafts store in a big city, I purchased some polystyrene balls especially packaged to form a solar system mobile. When we started our Exploring Creation with Astronomy by Jeannie K. Fulbright, we launched (yes, pun intended!) into our theme by creating the solar system mobile.

We referred to printouts of the planets to correctly select the appropriate-sized balls and paint them the right colours. My daughter figured out how to support each ball to paint and let them dry without smudging them.  She used a small piece of wire stuck inside candle stick holders and pierced the wire into each ball.  We used acrylic paints and sponges.  

We needed a large, large sun that would not be too heavy.  We compromised on the sun’s size and covered our inflatable earth globe with paper mache.  (A beach ball would also do, but the world globe has a stand which allowed us to turn and cover the ball with paper and glue.) I used a small amount of wallpaper glue mixed with water in the correct ratio, so I also sneaked in a little maths lesson!  Wallpaper glue lasts for several days in a sealed container, and spills and drips wash off easily.

The next day we recovered our sun’s newspaper layers with white paper strips and let it dry. Then, when dried, we deflated the globe enough to insert the scissors and snip a large slit and pull the flattened globe out our ball.  A few layers of  new paper mache to close our slit, and another day to allow to dry completely.  Somehow, the newly glued section softened previous layers and our beautiful ball became a bit wonky.  But my daughter was completely unfazed because, “The sun is a burning ball of gas and it’s not perfectly round, is it, mom?” Absolutely!

I bent a large piece of wire to form a large ring and we used fish gut to suspend all the globes. There were a few problem-solving moments because our wire ring did not hang level.  We decided to add some blue, yellow and white glass beads to balance the mobile.  What an ingenious idea, because these beads looked like stars!  We could have hung planet moons too, I suppose, which would also be a great idea …

A great hands-on activity!  It was really educational too, because by the end of this activity, my daughter knew all the planets’ names, their relative sizes and colours, and could easily identify them in our studies.  A wonderful introduction to Astronomy! Our solar system mobile hung proudly for most of the year while we completed our astronomy studies.

Have fun making your solar system model!

Blessings, Nadene

Bedtime Moments

A post from my archives ~ To form meaningful connections with your children, it helps to focus especially on the two ‘book ends’ of your day – the waking moments and the bedtime moments. In this post I share some ideas and tips I found useful in seasons of our homeschooling lives.

Bedtimes are a good time to build relationships, deepen our understanding of each other and to even cover some of the reading in our homeschool schedule.  Here’s some of our bedtime activities ~

1. Read alouds at bedtime – Often this was with just one child, but in the seasons where my daughters shared a room, they would both listen to the story before sleeping.  I usually read their fiction books in our curriculum at bedtime.  Night-time story time helped me keep our school time shorter in the mornings.   Bedtime stories also sometimes helped me catch up if there were interruptions during the day.  Read alouds are our homeschool glue and often saved our days! We read books when all else failed. We loved reading any story.  It didn’t have to be a book from the school schedule.  Sometimes we read an inspirational missionary story or spiritual book. Regularly reading good stories built a love for reading and a love for words, language, story-telling and imagination in our family.
2. Reviews and oral narrations – Narrations or telling-back is a very natural way for a child to relate what they understood and remembered from the read alouds.  At bedtime, lying cuddled together in bed, my daughters seemed so relaxed and thoughtful, and they could easily tell me what they learnt from the read aloud.  Charlotte Mason’s narrations are power-packed with skills and narrations are a fabulous way to witness your child’s learning.
3. Best and Worst moments – Nighttime reflection is a wonderful way to connect with your child’s experiences through the day.  It is a good time to listen to their happy moments, their joys, their delights, as well as their fears, hurts and disappointments.  I reflected back what they just told me by saying what they said in my own words, without commenting, e.g. “You really loved playing at the pond today…”  Or I acknowledged their feelings without judgement, saying, “You must have felt really mad when …”  which helped them feel that I hear and understood them.  It is a very important way to validate and empathize with your children., building strong, trusting relationships.
4. Pray together – Night time prayers flow so easily from #3 “Best and Worst Moments“, praising and thanking the Lord for all the best and praying over the worst.  Teach your child to be thankful.  Thankfulness and gratitude are powerful resources to motivation and health.  Teach your child how to forgive others, to ask for forgiveness and to receive forgiveness.  Dealing with challenging circumstances, difficulties, challenges, or repeated failures is very hard for a child.  Praying together over any of these issues helps your child roll the burden onto the Lord, to learn to trust Him and to know that your child is not working through these things alone.
5. Affirm and encourage – Bedtime is one of the best times to affirm and encourage your child.  Focus on building up your child with positive affirmations and genuine, focused acknowledgements of your child’s character, personality and her importance to you and others.  Again, relationships are key, but this is also a good time to acknowledge where your child did something well, accomplished something challenging or coped with some difficulty.  Long after the lights are out, as your child lingers in the dark, falling asleep, these words penetrate deeply and are the final thoughts for the day.
6. Ideas for the next day –  Talk about the upcoming events, or meetings with others,  or dentist appointments, etc. at night gave my child the time to prepare emotionally.  I found this very helpful, especially for my more anxious child. Sometimes we would talk about how a meeting with so-and-so would go, imagining and talking about how to handle the situation. Sometimes using humor made these discussions funny and gave a different perspective to something my child felt anxious about.  It was a good time to gently discuss my expectations about my child’s behaviour, being very positive and encouraging.
7. Bedtime notebooks – Once your child can write, we enjoyed private and very special notebooks which we would slip under each other’s pillows at night.  I treasure their deeply personal letters.  They often shared things we could not speak about.  This is really valuable when children reach their tweens and teen years.

My children really valued these special night-time moments together with me, and there were times where dad took over their  bedtime routine  and his bedtimes with the kids was very different from mine.  He often was louder, funnier and their bedtimes activities were often far more physical.  They often spent their time with dad doing tickles, wrestles, pillow fights and jokes. They loved him reading funny stories, usually with sound effects, and they would eventually go to sleep, happy and exhausted, which was a win for me!

What special moments do you have with your children?  Please share with us in the comments below.

Trusting your family has very blessed bedtimes.

In Grace, Nadene

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Tears & Tantrums

Revisiting a post from the archives ~ I started Practical Pages with the aim of  encouraging moms,  and although I love to share what works here on Practical Pages, I admit that I often showcase the best sharable moments. Of course, I am not supermom and things are often less than perfect!

In another Getting Real post I will widen my exposure lens and share some of the real nitty-gritty realities of our homeschooling lives ~ Tantrums

First, let’s look at a definition ~

tantrum  ~ˈtantrəm/ noun

• an uncontrolled outburst of anger and frustration, typically in a young child.
• synonyms: fit of temper, fit of rage, fit of pique, fit, outburst, flare-up, blow-up, pet, paroxysm, frenzy, bad mood, mood, huff, scene

Looking at the synonyms, I have seen my children and myself doing quite a few of those actions in times of frustration in our homeschooling, especially in our first year!  Part of the problem was me and my idealistic expectations and perfectionist approach that I used when I first started homeschooling.  Add a high-need, or sensitive or strong-willed children to the mix and there was a guarantee of outbursts of anger, tears, sulks, flare-ups and meltdowns.

I caused tension with my demanding teacherly approach.  I could have spared us many meltdowns if I had been more sensitive, more spontaneous, more fun, calmer.  I was a pain in the neck, uber-serious, stressed-out mom trying to get everything done and to do it “right”.

Looking back, I am glad that I learnt to add more time to our schedule by stretching out a one-year curriculum over 18 months to 2 years .  This margin of time created a sense of safety and certainty that I didn’t have when I was chasing to keep up to a demanding prescribed schedule which I had allowed to be my task master instead of my guide.  Also, I had to learn what worked for us in our home and not constantly strive for perfection I saw reflected in the homeschooling books I read and the homeschool blogs that I followed back then.

Some days simply started with a person in a bad mood, or with feelings anxiety or fear. Avoiding tantrums can feel like walking on egg shells.  No one person in the family should have so much power over the rest of the members, but it is not easy to figure how to manage that person’s inability to control their emotions.  That is where homeschooling is more about character formation and habit-training than about learning one’s  multiplication tables or spelling.  Homeschooling is the perfect place to work on character development.  It is exactly these moments that are a necessary ‘pit stop’ to stop the learning and deal with the child’s attitude.

Sometimes a difficult subject, a challenging task or school activity was the cause of feelings of fear and anger.  It helped to switch the timetable around and do something fun and easy first before tackling a tough subject.  Sometimes, it felt better to start with the challenge and get it done and out-of-the-way.  Sometimes we simply left it out until we felt ready to face it with a more positive attitude.

A child feeling ill, family members experiencing poor sleep, bad diet choices, or overwhelming schedules or too many expectations, visitors and interruptions are so draining that children just don’t have the capacity to control their feelings.  In times like this, I recommend moms stay home a few days, keep things simple, create a calm and predictable mealtime and bedtime routine and nurture relationships with their children. Spend some cuddle-time together reading a good book aloud, go on nature walks, or listen to classical music, or bake, or whatever nurtures your family.  On tough days I changed our school routine and started with a read aloud, or a song or a fun “Simon Says” game to diffuse the tension and release the anxiety.  Our Fabulous Fine Arts Fridays was the result of choosing one day of our week to be creative and more relaxed. 

One of our best methods of clearing the air after a tantrum or meltdown, was an apology.  We used a “whiteboard” image and asked if we could quickly erase the horrible experience and start again.  Use the expression, “Can I try that again?” Fresh starts are such an expression of grace.  Rather than live in the shame and guilt of a tantrum, offer yourself or your child the opportunity to try again, to start with a clean slate, to be their best in the new moment.

Children in school learn quickly how to hide their feelings, whereas at home, children feel free to express their emotions and vent their feelings.  Have you every wondered way your children ‘play up’ when they are with mom but not with others?

In sharing my imperfections, I extend grace to you in yours.  Grace to every mom.  Grace to every child.  Grace to you in the real and imperfect life you are living right now.

Please feel free to share your experiences, questions or offer any advice in the comments.

Blessings and grace in these real moments,

Nadene

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Children should be free in their play

Revisiting an earlier post ~ Looking back at my innocent young children in these pictures, I can see how fast time flies. My daughters are all grown up, married, with darling little babies and children!

Nowadays, families are stressed, often rushing from activity to activity, with over-full schedules and lots of pressure.  Parents are anxious to keep their children entertained and hate their children to “be bored”.  May I encourage you to make free play a priority? 

Charlotte Mason said, 

“Children should be free in their play.  Boys and girls must have time to invent episodes, carry on adventures, live heroic lives, lay sieges and carry forts, even if the fortress be an old armchair; and in these affairs the elders must neither meddle nor make.”  Rights of Children as Persons (Vol.3 Chapter 4)

Moms, may I urge you to relax and nurture your children’s freedom and allow them creative white space.  Don’t over-plan their days.  Don’t add too many outings, excursions, activities, sports and cultural events to your schedule. Leave at least 1 day open in your week and stay at home.  Let them just play!  

When my girls were young, they would play with creativity and enthusiasm for hours.   They often acted out scenes from our read alouds, DVDs and classic stories like “Anne of Green Gables”, “Little Princess”, “Emma” by Jane Austen and “Little Women”.

They loved to play using dress up clothes.  They have wonderful olden-days games with bonnets and pinafores, or an American Indian squaw dress, or a corset and long skirt.  They also enjoyed playing as spies, policemen and adventurers.  They spent hours playing with Polly Pockets and Legos, creating beautiful scenes and stories.  

Boys love capes, a bow and quiver with arrows, a cowboy hat and chaps, or belts with swords.  A hand-made knight’s armor is a young boy’s delight!  Nothing quite beats giving children a large piece of cloth to create a tepee or tent.  Very young children love to simply play with water or sand (or both!) while mom watches.

Offer your children items to stimulate creative play, problem solving and building, such as a tool box with appropriate tools, a length of rope with a book on knotting, a compass, a magnifying glass, a treasure box, a special crossbody bag to keep special things in, a bug box, etc. Encourage them to learn to ride scooters, bikes and roller skates.  Let them learn to skip, play hopscotch, throw balls at hoops, and skim rocks on water.

Go outdoors with your children every day, if possible.  If you don’t have a garden or lawn, then try to visit a local botanical garden or a play park, and find a safe place for nature walks, or go the beach.  Outdoor time is restorative for children who are hard-wired to move, run, push, pull, climb, spin, crawl and scream.  They need opportunities to be in fresh air and sunshine, rain and mud, wind and peaceful surroundings.  They need to develop their muscles, learn challenging skills, solve problems, play out their wild imaginations. They need to relax, pretend and play — it is the job of a child!

Moms, outdoor time is good for you too — a mom’s tired body and soul finds a moment of respite.  Cultivate a gentle awareness while keeping an ear and eye on the children while you drink some tea, read, draw or knit.  Please, stay off your phone.  It is distracting and intrusive and shuts you off from being available to witness your children play. Avoid taking charge, playing “policeman” or listening to tittle-tattlers, and definitely do not teach, instruct or intrude in any way. Avoid offering praise. Soon, your children will find their momentum and play freely.

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me.”  He loves them for their innocence and simplicity.  We are granting them such a precious gift when we let the children play.

Wishing you and your families the joy of play! Blessings, Nadene

Maths Matters – What Works!

“What Works!” post from the archives~ 

After tutoring my daughters through from kindergartner through high school maths, all the way to graduation, I know that maths matters … but it also can bring tears and the mutters!

Here’s 12 maths principles that I’ve seen work ~

1. Maths needs daily exercise – much like having to walk the dog!  My kids do 2 pages of maths exercises every day except for Fridays. We mix it with maths drills, times tables practice or word problems.
2. Use manipulatives. Maths comprises of abstract concepts. Young children especially need to work with real objects.  When teaching any new concept, start with real objects and teach with examples. Use blocks, Unifix cubes, real measuring jugs and scales, work with tape measures and rulers. Use number lines, pie pieces, apples and oranges.  Whatever works, use it.  Keep trying until you find the “one thing” that clicks with your child.  Let your child practice with these objects. (Pop over to my free Maths pages for these manipulatives.)
3. Take your time here at the physical level.  Don’t rush.  Make sure the child understands the concept well and is confident before going back to the books.  If your child forgets, revise with manipulatives.  If they get stuck, go back to manipulatives.  This is vital.  Confidence is a huge factor in maths success.
4. Encourage mental maths muscles.  Train your children to think maths problems. Exercises with number order (what comes before/ after a number), bonds (adding numbers to each other) and times tables are essential.  This follows the manipulative stage. Train them to get the answer quickly.  Speed and confidence here will make the rest of problem solving and other exercises a breeze! (Check through my mental maths pages here.)
5. Do drills.  Even just 2 minutes of drills (oral, physical fun or mental maths pages) daily will help ‘cement’ the maths skills.  Do this before the maths book work.
6. Make it physical and fun.  Do fun physical workouts when ordinary drills and manipulatives are not working to combat tears and tantrums. Recite the tables while jumping on a mini trampoline, while skipping with rope, when bouncing a ball, clapping hands, doing hopscotch … it is fun and it stimulates the brain!  Use playing cards and dominoes for fun maths drills and mental maths.
7. Maintain the course ~ if it works.  Stay on the same curriculum if it works. Don’t switch around too much.  Each curriculum has been designed to follow concepts. Some conceptually spiral, each year developing the concepts to the next level.  Jumping from curriculum to curriculum may cause your child to stumble across ‘new’ concepts without having the introductory work.  Many moms have shelves filled with maths books and maths courses and they still haven’t found a good ‘fit’.  May I suggest that you choose the best of the lot and supplement here and there with other exercises or examples.  BUT, I also encourage you to abandon a book that does not fit (it may not have enough examples/ too many word problems and not enough clear explanations) with gentle grace and look for an alternative.
8. Tutor high school maths.  If you or dad can tutor, great. It worked for me and my daughter.  If not, find a friend, student, retired teacher, high school student or professional tutor to help your child.  This is especially important with high school maths.  Don’t let maths tantrums and upsets cause you to ditch homeschooling!  Often a 3rd party person makes a huge difference in a teenager’s attitude. The student must report regularly to the tutor and be accountable for the work they understand and the concepts that they struggle with.  Often tutors are great for pre-exam revision.  The tutor can prepare the student for the type of work to focus on and the questions to practice.
9. Practise the skills.  “Practice makes perfect” is absolutely true for maths.  Many maths books lay out brief explanations, give an example, and then go on to the practice exercises.  Generally most students need to practice with the introductory examples several times to completely understand the new concepts.  When the child starts a maths problem, they have some doubts and questions.  When they manage the examples and the initial, easy problems, they gain confidence.  But they need to establish this process with a few more similar problems before moving on to more difficult sums.  Where maths books progress too quickly to more difficult exercises, or provide too few similar practice problems, children lose confidence.  If they haven’t “got it” with the easy work and then struggle with more complex problems, they become afraid.  Fear forms into frustration which then manifests into anger.  Supplement your child’s books with examples or go online to find similar work.
10. Do maths early, when your child is most awake and fresh.  Maths requires mental fitness and this is most often early in the day. My teens often put off their maths lessons because they didn’t enjoy it much, but when they finally had to do their lessons, they were tired and they struggled more. I advised them to do it first and get it over with for the day.  For young children, maths and handwriting should be done at the table, early in the morning.  We do our seat work (or disciplinary subjects = those 3R’s) first and then go on to read alouds and narrations.
11. Estimations are essential skills!  Along with mental maths and confidence, the most important maths life skill is to estimate within range.  I only discovered this as an adult, but I find that it is perhaps the most underrated skill at schools.  Teach your children to “guess” quickly and then “prove” their guess.  It is fun, quick and it builds enormous confidence in their maths ability.  This can be done as “living maths”; in the kitchen while cooking and baking, in the garden when laying out vegetable beds and planting seedlings in rows, while cutting material, making dresses or designing woodwork patterns, while packing away toys, doing hobbies and crafts, or travelling on road trips.
12. Many children will always “hate” maths.  Their brains are just not wired to excel in maths.  However, maths literacy is vital and will greatly improve their independence and confidence in daily life.  Stick to the most reasonable maths program and assist your child to at least master the basics. My artistic, creative daughters have been unhappy about maths for years, but I have not negotiated with them that they drop maths until at least grade 10.  For matric, maths or maths literacy is a compulsory subject and your teen will still need the above skills. Our South African maths literacy course is excellent.  It is real, relevant and within the ability of a ‘non-maths’ student.

I share this all with this background ~ My early childhood years of insecurity with maths made me literally throw up with fear, especially in high school!  Then, when I was a student teacher, I was once assigned to a school’s maths teacher for all the grades 3, 4 and 5 maths classes.  I spent hours and hours on my lesson preparation because I was terrified that I couldn’t teach maths.  It quickly made me realize that the best method to preparation and understanding was lots of “scratching of pencil on paper” and using several different textbooks to see the different approaches to teach the concepts.

A brilliant mathematician does NOT necessarily make a great maths teacher!  In fact, the teacher who may have struggled with maths may make a more compassionate teacher and will know exactly how they learnt the maths skills through practice.

When I tutored my high schoolers, I did the maths work for them (with them sitting watching and listening), then with them, and finally I sat next to them as they worked.  If they were stuck, I would try another approach or break it down differently.  Even though I taught these lessons, I didn’t always have time to prepare before hand, and so the two of us figured it out together.  We battled, struggled, sympathized and encouraged each other as we went along.  It was the one place in their independent studies that we were vitally connected!

Mom, you can teach your child maths!  You do not need to be a maths whizz!

Blessings, Nadene

The Wonder of a Reset – Practical Tips

A reset is a wonderful way of restoring rest in our lives. Our days are a rhythm of routines that form resets; waking and sleeping, eating and working. When homeschooling and raising young children, it is vital to reset throughout the day and especially, I find, the most importantly, at the end of the day.

Make it a habit to clean up and pack away at the end of each day. Involve everyone, even toddlers, as they pack away the toys, books and papers, clear tables and surfaces, tidy up and move furniture back into place. My young kids loved to sing Barney’s clean up song, “Clean up, clean up, everybody, everywhere ….” as they packed away their toys before bath time. This prepares a clean slate for the next day.

May I offer some practical advice to moms with young children ~

1. Make it fun! Sing songs, play upbeat music, talk with an accent or silly voice instead of barking out instructions, Think of fun ways to toss soft toys into baskets, scoot small objects with a dustpan, find and pack items by colour, hide a special toy secretly and ask them to see if they can find it while tidying.
2. Work together – Teams, partners, helpers makes the job easier. Assign an older child with a younger child.
3. Simple predictable schedule – young children feel secure with routines and schedules and love repetition. Use what works again and again! Keep it simple. When your days are too full, too many outside the home activities, children become stressed and start to resist and refuse routines. Pare back your activities, stay home to reset for at least 3 days to re-establish basic routines.
4. Use a timer – Set a timer for 5 minutes to 15 minutes to do a chore or clear a room or pack away things. There is so much momentum created when children know that there is very little time left … and then the reward!
5. Use rewards – “Yes, you can go play outside — as soon as you pack all these blocks into the basket/ as soon as we have cleared the carpet/ as soon as you have put … away.” Food, snacks and drinks make lovely rewards. I would prepare some popcorn and a DVD for afternoon rewards. Free time, play time, outdoors time, playing with friends are all marvelous options other than screen time. Screen time is a very powerful reward tool if not over-used or abused.
6. Do it all through the day – young toddlers create constant chaos. Clean and pack away as they move on to the next thing. This way you aren’t left with every room filled with scattered toys and stuff.
7. Get physical – let your young child get rid of some energy by skipping rope, mini-trampoline or swinging. While they play, you can reset the room for the next activity.
8. Let them choose – ask your child where they would like to start, “Do you want to clean the carpet or the table?” Giving your child options makes them feel that they can take charge.

Early morning quiet times is a crucial reset for me. I love to wake and spend time alone before the family wake up and the demands of the day begin. Sitting at a clear desk, with calm and quiet, I focus on my spiritual walk, journal, read the Word and pray. I would also spend time planning and writing out my to-do lists. Here’s a wonderful verse that spiritually resets my heart!

"Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” Lamentations 3:22-24

When homeschooling, I found that my children loved to come to their schoolroom that was all tidy and ready, rather than flounder through chaos, mess and muddles. I loved to surprise my kids with new lessons, new books, posters or art materials laid out ready for them. As a professional school teacher, I learnt that preparation was essential to good classroom discipline, and it is the same when homeschooling. A mom who is lost in mess and confusion, hunting for the CD or book, gives her children that time to play, chatter and even disappear before the lesson starts! After the last lesson, I would rather spend 15 minutes filing and packing away my papers, books and school prep in the late afternoon than arrive at my cluttered desk the next day and feel overwhelmed before I even started.

Meals form natural resets and homeschooling allows for these times to be family times. In our family, we would all help prepare the food and then eat together before the children that were responsible for certain chores cleared the table, washed the dishes and cleaned off work surfaces. Meal planning when I use our AGA or slow cooker meant that I prepared the main meal early in the day that would simmer away while I worked and taught.

Late afternoons before bath time was a big reset when my children were young. The children helped take washing off the line. fold laundry and pack clothing away. We often sorted and folded laundry while watching a DVD. Then bedrooms were tidied and they all went to bath. Bath time was a wonderful time to calm everyone down, preparing for evening and bedtime. After supper, we had read-aloud time, bedtime routines and one-on-one with the kids before we ended the day.

Reset your house at night. Before I go to bed, I spend a few moments in the lounge and fluff up pillows, fold blankets and take any coffee mugs to the kitchen before switching out the lights. I loved to have my kitchen work surfaces cleared and cleaned off. Any dishes or mugs that didn’t make the evening dishwasher round, I would quickly rinse or, on a “bad” night, simply soak them in the sink. I would check the bathrooms and tidy up, hang up or straighten bath towels. Then I would go to bed feeling as if my home was in order. (I used to follow the Fly Lady routine for many years.)

An intimate evening reset is a wonderful habit. My children and I wrote special notes to each other. I love to spend time chatting with my hubby, giving thanks for the day, planning for the next day and the week, problem-solving, finding perspective, talking about finances, business, dreams, wishes, praying together, being intimate, is the most rewarding way to reset and end each day. There were seasons of keeping a gratitude diary.

Trust that your family has blessed times of resetting. In what ways do you reset your lives?  Please share with us in the comments below.

P.S. Here’s a very relevant related blog post that I wrote several years ago – Unrealistic Expectations

All In Grace, Nadene

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Fake or Fortune BBC Art Series

I stumbled upon an incredible series called “Fake or Fortune” on YouTube. (This link is to a playlist of all the episodes.)

Fake or Fortune is a BBC One documentary television series which examines the provenance and attribution of notable artworks. In each episode the presenters Philip Mould, an art dealer and historian, and journalist Fiona Bruce focus their attention on a painting (or a group of paintings), usually related to one particular famous artist. They travel around the country and the world, studying the artists at exhibitions, meeting up with international experts and following up local leads. 

Each episode follows the presenters as they investigate the paintings on a number of fronts: establishing the provenance of the piece by working backwards from present day to the time of the work’s creation; on a forensic level, with investigation and scientific tests on the materials used to help establish specific time frames; and examining the unique painting styles and quirks of the artist. This evidence is then presented to established authorities to help demonstrate the legitimacy of the work and its possible addition to the relevant catalogue raisonné.

I have loved watching this beautifully filmed documentary series. I have rejoiced at seeing famous artworks, learning about an artist’s life, works and legacy as they research the artwork, I have literally clapped my hands with joy when an artwork was declared an authentic masterpiece, now worth a fortune! I highly recommend you add the relevant episode relating to an famous artist or artwork to your Charlotte Mason Famous Artist studies.

New Introductions

Hi there! It’s been a while since I have posted here. My blog began in 2009, and many of you have followed my homeschooling journey as I taught my three daughters from kindergarten to graduation. But I am currently no longer teaching nor working on developing educational materials.

This year I began a new career as a freelance artist on Fiverr. As an avid art teacher and art journaler, I often said that I would love to do art every day, and now I am! I spend much of my time painting and illustrating Christian art for clients, and I absolutely love it!

Recently I noticed that there are several new Practical Pages subscribers and I wondered if they would know of the precious posts in my archives. With this in mind, I have decided to repost some of my most popular blog posts now and then. Practical Pages is my treasure trove of practical tips, experiences of what works, encouragement to new moms, and tons of free pages and free downloads.

You are welcome to email me if you have any homeschooling questions and concerns, or any requests for teaching tips and advice. Please click on About & Contact and fill in the contact form and I will do my best to respond.

Blessings, Nadene