New Montessori Albums!

I'm excited to have ordered some new Montessori Albums! I ordered from Montessori Research and Development. I've never ordered from them before, but so far so good...

New Montessori Manuals! 

Kaylee and the Doll Making Kit

Kaylee and I found a doll making kit really cheap at a consignment store. We thought it would be a great activity. It turned out to be a fun project!

The doll making kit that we found at a consignment shop.

I helped Kaylee wrap yarn around a book to create the dolls hair.

Kaylee gluing on the hair and making sure it is just right.

Putting double sided tape on the doll's shirt. 

Sticking the back of the doll's skirt on to the doll. 

The finished doll! It was a lot of fun! 

Big Girl Desk

Kaylee was getting way too big for her plastic Step 2 desk. Her long legs barely fit under the desk anymore. She'd had the desk since she was 2 years old. It has served us well. She made many crafts and created a lot of art work at that desk. But, it was time to get a big girl desk.

I searched yard sales, consignment shops, and Craigslist for suitable desks. The trick to finding a good deal is patience. You can't expect to find something the first few times you look. Finally, I found a nice wooden desk for sale on Craigslist for only $15. It is solid wood and in very good shape. It also fits perfectly in front of the window in her playroom. Success.

Kaylee and her new big girl desk. 

Kaylee's First Book Report

At the beginning of the school year, Kaylee joined the Homeschool Book Club. She had to keep track of the books she read and write a book report on her favorite book. She decided to write her report on her favorite series "The Rainbow Magic Series."

She wanted to do it entirely on her own. I helped her sound out a few words, but I was working in the kitchen as she wrote the report. It turned out very nice. She took her time and wrote neatly.

Kaylee's book report on "The Rainbow Magic Series" for her Homeschool Book Club.

Then, she could attend the Homeschool Book Club party and she receive gifts, went bowling, and put her name in the drawing to win a bike. Kaylee was very excited to win the girls bike at the Book Club party! 

Kaylee won the girls bike! 

Addition Work

We've been making our way through the Montessori Addition Math Facts charts. It is to help with understanding and memorizing addition facts. I got the charts for free at Hope4Me Math. You could spend a lot of money and buy the official wooden charts, but we prefer the free ones printed on card stock. There is a good guide at THIS website that describes how to use the charts.

The last chart, chart 6, I had Kaylee randomly choose an addition equation and then record the answer on the chart. She had noticed the pattern and was quickly filling in the chart. Although she could have just filled in the answers, I still had her choose an equation and use it to fill in the chart.

Kaylee filling in the Montessori Addition Chart 6. 

Our Vegetable Gardens 2014

We are very excited because we have a new raised vegetable garden this year! It means twice the amount of planting space! Now we have two raised vegetable garden beds, 6 container gardens, and one small raised bed. Planting things brings a lot of joy to Kaylee and I. She loves to help plant the seeds and seedlings. She gets really excited when things start to grow and ripen. It's a great learning experience for her (and me).

We've planted: strawberries, cucumber, tomatoes (two kinds), bell peppers, hot peppers, lettuce, salad, cilantro, rosemary, mint, parsley, yellow squash, zucchini, watermelon, cantaloupe, cauliflower, brussels sprouts,and corn. We are hoping for a good harvest this year. Many of our plants have blossoms and some have little baby veggies.

Our plants in mid-May...

Our raised vegetable gardens in May.

Our container gardens in May.

Our gardens in June...

Our raised vegetable gardens in early June. 

Our container gardens in early June.

Our mini raised garden in early June.

Nature Club: Making Bird Feeders

Last Fall, we joined a homeschool nature club. Kaylee has really enjoyed it. It's inexpensive, it's fun, and it meets once a month. Perfect for us.

During a recent nature club meeting, the project was to make a bird feeder. We went on a bird watching walk on a trail. The group spotted some birds and turkey scat and scratch marks. Then, they made bird feeders to take home.

Going for a nature walk to look for birds. 

Kaylee is making a hole in the toilet paper roll to make her bird feeder. 

The finished bird feeder. It's really cute. Eventually, something carried the whole thing away. I'm going to assume it was a squirrel...

World's Greatest Artists, cont...

We are still working through the World's Greatest Artists study. The library has the books we need. We are almost finished with the first volume and will be starting the second volume soon. Each volume only costs $5.50. It's a really great deal.

Kaylee and I are learning a lot about these artists! My favorite part is the lap book. It keeps all the information for each artist neat and organized. Each artist has its own mini book, puzzle, and flashcard. They are great because when we have to return the books to the library, we still have mini pictures of the art work to study and remember.

Kaylee working on the Matisse puzzle for her World's Greatest Artists lap book.