President's Day Activities

Around the different holidays I scour some of my favorite websites looking for activities to do with my children.  Since our children are younger and have special needs, I prefer activities that are multi-sensory.

Our Stovepipe Hats:

  

1.  Long piece of construction paper
cut in half lengthwise, then rolled
up and attached.

2.  Trace two circles on another piece of black
construction paper (inner circle should be the
same size as the top of the hat).

3.  Starting at the center of the inner circle
cut circle in eighths then fold pieces back.

Glue to top piece.

 And the President is...

Johnathan

James

Amada
(looking a little like the mad-hatter)

 

Alex

Here are a few links of some of the activities I discovered:
Here is a coloring page of Washington and Lincoln (from Crayola).
KidsSoup President's Day Activities & Printables
Want to build a log cabin out of pretzel logs?
How about reading Abe Lincoln's Hat then making your own hat?
Abraham Lincoln Alphabet Code
Abraham Lincoln: Printable Early Reader Book
Penny Coloring Page (Abraham Lincoln)
Quarter Coloring Page (George Washington)
George Washington: Printable Early Reader Book
George Washington Alphabet Code
First-school President's Day Ideas (Preschool/Kindergarten Activities & Crafts)
February Calendar Connections: Presidents and blog post from 1+1+1=1

For your older children:
Abraham Lincoln: A Printable Book for Fluent Readers
George Washington: A Printable Book for Fluent Readers
Another favorite website of mine is Homeschool Share. Here is their President's Day Lapbook.

Six Flags: Read to Succeed

Are you a homeschooler?  I am excited to share that Six Flags is giving away FREE tickets in their Read to Succeed program.  Each homeschool child in grades K-6 is eligible and the teacher is provided a ticket as well.  All you have to do is register and each child needs to read 6 hours.  You will need to verify these hours BY March 1, 2012.

Expanding Expressive Language

Our children are currently receiving speech and language services through our local school district even though we homeschool.  It was there that I was introduced to the Expanding Expression Tool Kit.



It is a really great multi-sensory approach for improving oral and written language.  I created this free worksheet to go along with it as a visual tool for my children.  I printed & laminated one for durability.  Feel free to use for personal use only.

Adoption Tax Credit Awareness Day - February 13, 2012

Yes, there is an adoption tax credit and for tax years 2010 and 2011 it was made refundable.  Let me reassure you this is true.  You may have to wait several months (5 months in our case) to receive your refund and you may have to do some work (phone calls and mailing documents), but if you are entitled to take the credit you will receive the refund.  In our case, we finalized the adoption of our sons (3 biological brothers who were in our home as foster children) in 2007, but because we were able to carry-over the unused credit from previous tax years we were able to now claim it as a refund.  Imagine our surprise!

I am attaching this post from Voice for Adoption which also has links to the exact IRS forms/instructions.  Even if you adopted children from foster care and didn't spend any money on the adoption, you may still qualify.  I would recommend consulting a tax advisor if you are unsure.

Does This Compel You?

I came across this article written by a public school educator and administrator: 12 Most Compelling Reasons to Homeschool Your Children and I thought I would share it.  Some of these were definitely true for us, but they are only a handful of the reasons we chose to homeschool.  One comment from a teacher last year (when our children were still in public school) that really sticks out in my mind is "I treat all the kids in my classroom the same.  I don't want anyone to stand out as different."  Really?!?  As a parent, I know that what works as a reward for one child may not work for the next.  That's the joy of getting to know your children.  We do not all speak the same Love Language. We are all unique individuals with our own quirkiness.

Math, The Fun and Easy Way

Sometimes you need a quick activity and here is what we came up with one day.  We had these foam number dice on hand (I knew they would come in handy for something).  I had each of the boys sit down with a piece of paper, pencil, and a set of dice.  Dad helped too!

They rolled their dice and wrote their own equation, then solved it.  Everyone was just working on addition on this particular day.  To make it easier for Johnathan, I divided his paper into squares which he was to write the equations in.  This helped with his organization!

Even though this wasn't particularly challenging, the boys had fun and were able to practice setting up their equations.  I didn't have to copy any worksheets beforehand which made it even better.

~Nicole~

Chicken Salad

This is a family favorite for lunch and very simple.  I boil the chicken (seasoned with fresh onion and garlic powder).  Let it cool, then mash with our Pampered Chef Mix 'n Chop.  Chop celery and dill (or sweet) pickles.  Add mayonnaise and mix.  Serve with Wheat Thins, on a salad, or as a sandwich. Enjoy!

Fall Tree Craft

I found this idea from one of my favorite blogs.  Here is her post on this project 

(plus SO much more): 1plus1plus1equals1.blogspot.com

First, we dot-painted the ground (white construction paper) to represent the fall leaves.

Then we painted paper towel rolls to represent our tree.  This was the favorite part and the kids concentrated so hard making sure to cover every spot.

Love how Amada is "observing"

To finish it up I cut slits on the bottom of the paper towel tubes and glued/taped to their "ground".  I also cut slits in the top of the tubes and bent them for the branches.  I cut leaves out of construction paper using fall colors, then the kids glued them to their trees and ground.

Here is the finished product!  Theses turned out great and the kids had a fun time making them.

Budding Photographer

Our oldest daughter, Adriana, is a senior in high school and has recently taken an interest in photography.  We invested in a REALLY nice camera and she is now in charge of taking family pictures.  Take a look at some of her recent captures while we were camping.  

Alex, 9

Amada, 2

Amada, look at those dimples

Dad, climbing a HUGE rock

James, 7

Johnathan, full of energy

mom, in camping mode

The kids found a fort on the beach made from driftwood.

Alex hiding.

Camping Trip to the Ocean

Our family recently returned to the community of campers with our purchase of a travel trailer. In my opinion, that is the only way to camp, especially with little ones who have special needs. We are able to go away from home and still have some level of sameness and predictability. It's already stressful enough traveling with children who NEED routine so it is nice that we are able to bring our own food and sleep in our own trailer every time we travel. Besides, when (not if) the kids have a meltdown we can close ourselves in our relatively soundproof trailer and watch a familiar DVD. The car ride is a little tricky as towing the trailer puts added stress on our van so we can't use the air conditioner, one of our children has anxiety when driving on the freeway, and a few of our children experience motion sickness on curvy roads. 

Our solution is to leave early in the morning when it is still cool and some of the children will sleep. When all else fails, we distract the children with the iPad, scenery outside the car, or treats. We discovered the Seabands for motion sickness and they work wonderfully without having to use medication.

Everyone in our family loves visiting the ocean and what better way to wrap up our homeschooling unit on the ocean than to visit one.  (This was a very private beach and we were the only ones there most of the time.)

The kids were able enjoy the full sensory experience of the ocean: the smell of the moist salty air; the calming rhythmic sounds of the waves; the feel of the wind and sun against your face and the sand in your toes (some of our children prefer to wear shoes and socks on the beach and that's ok too); the taste of eating a picnic lunch at the beach with a little sand mixed in; and the sights of sandcastles, driftwood, and sea life. We were very fortunate to see dolphins and seals jumping and swimming through the water.

Even though our children experience the world differently, and sometimes the world IS a bit scary, we still want them to have the opportunity of different experiences.  And we will be there right beside them.

Mommy & Johnathan

In Honor of Columbus Day

We didn't go into much detail, but we talked about who Christopher Columbus was and what he is known for.  We made ships out of egg cartons, play-doh (to hold the toothpick in place), a toothpick and post-it notes cut in half vertically (wrap the sticky end around the toothpick).  I assigned a ship name to each of the boys (Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria) to remember and quizzed them periodically throughout the day. 

We also made binoculars from toilet paper rolls and the kids went "exploring" throughout the house to see what they could discover.  It was raining outside today so we weren't able to do this activity outside.  I love listening in while our children are playing.  I overheard one of the boys say he spied an octopus.  Too funny!

Enchanted Learning also has ideas for more projects.  This is one website I subscribe to for homeschool activities and worksheets. This is where I downloaded the world map.  

I also found this rather short (3 min) video on National Geographic Kids which might be helpful for those children who are a little more attentive.