unschooling

planting & growing

This week, we planted pumpkins, butternut squash and rainbow swiss chard seeds in the garden and admired our rapidly sprouting carrots and less rapidly sprouting but still growing quite nicely kale.

We met up with the local unschoolers again, played hard, and afterward decided to invest in foam swords so we don’t constantly need to borrow them, since they are an essential play item when groups of boys of all ages get together and play outdoors. Chris and I have been having long conversations about how we deal with toy weapons and weapon play in our household and I think our approach is shifting. I’ll write more on that soon.

On a Memorial Day adventure with dad the kids noticed some horsetail by the stream, recognizing it from Lilah’s Wildcraft game and told us about its healing properties. (It’s good for headaches, low energy, etc.)

We went to the Museum of Natural Curiosity where the kids favorites were the bank where there is play money, a teller window complete with vacuum shoot and a back alley where robbers are constantly in action, and the outside play area where they love the cave and spend long periods howling like animals inside the caverns.

We hiked up by Jeremy Ranch, saw wildflowers, deer tracks and droppings, lots of mushrooms and then got rained on and hailed on and headed back down quickly, though not quickly enough to avoid a thorough soaking.

We swam again, working on going underwater, swimming strokes and kicking and propelling ourselves through the water. Lilah discovered she could somersault in the water and was quite pleased.

All four of us went up to Silver Lake and enjoyed walking on the boardwalk, climbing rocks, spotting a beaver? muskrat? otter?, watching ducks and squirrels and butterflies and maneuvering through areas with snow and areas with spring run-off streams rearranging the landscape. We spotted a dark colored butterfly with yellow edges on its wings and Gavin wanted to know what kind it was so we looked it up at home and decided it was probably a mourning cloak butterfly.

On all of our drives lately we’ve been listening to the first book in the Brotherband Chronicles: The Outcasts, by John Flanagan.

In between there was lots of building, imagining, reading. Bedtime and othertime requested stories lately are The Ranger’s Apprentice series (also by John Flanagan) and Castle in the Air by Dianna Wynne Jones. I think Castle in the Air may be one of the first stories the kids have encountered with a genie (and a magic carpet) in it, and they are enthralled.

unschooling

Up to the mountains

I’m still working on another post about the last several weeks, but here’s a story about today. After some card games (war and speed) and some Playmobil play and some puzzling this morning, we headed up to Storm Mountain for a hike. It’s been awhile, partly because we’ve been busy with soccer and gymnastics and partly because it’s been raining almost every day lately.

The kids were getting into arguments before we left but as is almost always the case, once outside there was no conflict. They love going on hikes where there are a) rocks to climb and b) water to play in, so Storm Mountain is always enjoyed even though the short hike up to the stream is steep. We saw flowers and new growth on trees and shrubs. We saw birds who frequent the stream. The kids tried drawing with rocks on other rocks and enjoyed the different colors and textures they could make. Lilah found bunches of what she called ladybugs but were different varieties of red beetles some with dozens of spots, some with none.

We spotted a snake by the stream and many striped spiders. I was thrilled to watch Lilah excitedly discovering and interacting with ladybugs, roly poly bugs and was even moving closer to see a spider. When she was three she got stung by an insect and was terrified of anything that wasn’t a butterfly for years. She calmed down about it after that but was still wary, even last summer. Today, she was friendly with those beetles.

They were discussing what kinds of trees were on the path (they remembered maple and pine but not scrub oak) and I gave them a refresher on what stinging nettle looks like because there’s a bunch of it up there. We found itty bitty male pine cones that had fallen and we admired new patterns in the trail from all the rain lately.

They climbed and drew and dug in the dirt and picked dandelions. I sparked an interest for the kids today in natural art by arranging dandelion tops on a rock crack and later on the kids were excited to try their hand at it.

On the way down the trail, the kids tried to hide and camouflage themselves. Fortunately for me, they were wearing purple and blue so I found them and found them again. Lilah was also showing interest in tracking and leaving signs of what’s ahead or behind, possibly picked up from some books we’ve been reading lately. So, we made a cairn and we put certain rocks this way or that way to show, “I’m going ahead” or “the trail goes left”. It’s so good to get into nature. I love it but it’s so easy to forget or not make time for that. Maybe a scheduled hike day each week is in order.

As an added bonus, we got to listen to Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling on our way up and down in the car. They are hilarious and captivating, O my Best Beloved.

unschooling

Goblin Valley

We spent four days camping in Goblin Valley, in Southern Utah. It was lovely weather and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly and also got to work hard through the challenges of being together all day and all night for several days.

The kids explored the campground, full of sand and boulders and hills and towering spires. They’re up on the tips of the rocks in the above picture.

We hiked in the narrows.

In the canyon they climbed on top of the boulder and then I remarked that Daddy’s feet were in the picture so he proceeded to do a dance for good measure.

We explored the goblins and played many, many rounds of hide and seek.

Down the dirt road we found petroglyphs

and an old mining town ruins.

There were lizards to watch and ravens and tiny little birds that sang sweetly and then punctuated each phrase with a kissing noise.

There were mud puddles to climb over or through and rocks to collect and warm sand and cool sand and bubbly holes in the rock.

We listened to many chapters of Harry Potter while we went to and fro in the car.

There was this plant! Amazing! What is it and can I fill my yard with these?

What a beautiful place.

unschooling

another full week

We visited the Treehouse Museum. There was flag designing, castle play, illuminated manuscript making, a sword in the stone, and much more.

We went to the library, enjoyed reading in their inviting kids lounges and brought an armload of books home, most of which were read that very day!

We found a new playground and tried it out thoroughly.

Lilah and I baked Toffee Cinnamon Bars and then we watched Song of the Sea, a new favorite movie.

They’ve played My Little Pony Life, Puerto Rico, Magic the Gathering, Carcassonne, and Candy Land together in the mornings.

We got out some instruments and played music. Lilah made a rug on a square loom with stretchy loops for her dollhouse.

Lilah and I practiced for her upcoming gymnastics meet. She’s working on her beam routine at the moment.

Gavin and I biked to a playground while Lilah and Chris walked. Gavin’s really enjoying biking and Lilah’s so close to being able to go on her own but it hurts so much to run in the crouch that it takes to support her that I haven’t gotten around to doing it with her recently. I think that might be my least favorite part of parenting; running in a crouch while holding a bike with a nervous kid on it. Incredible pain. Still very much worth it though.

We took a very short walk up on Bonneville Shoreline Trail to play Ingress, stopped at a playground on the way there and then picked up a friend afterward and came home to play elaborate storylines filled with queens, invisibility cloaks, potions and special royal bathrooms.

We did some cooking and talked about how to add fractions like 3/4 and 1/8. We drew pictures to figure it out on the whiteboard.

They did some building with Gavin’s physics set.

Chris and the kids went to Spiral Scouts and tried playing different instruments. Gavin’s favorite was the ukelele and Lilah’s was the didgeridoo.

There was roller skating down the hall, crashing (kids were fortunately not hurt enough to stop skating back and forth) and sometime soon we’ll get to work together to patch up a small hole in the wall. There’s a lengthly list of home repairs and maintenance that needs doing… at some point soon I should knock a few things off with the kids help.

We finished Little House in the Big Woods and immediately began Little House on the Prairie. They are very much enjoying those stories.

We took a trip up the canyon and visited Hidden Falls.

Here they are looking at the waterfall.

The kids loved it and afterward when I asked them if they wanted to climb further and find the top of the fall they said yes so we hiked up further and discovered the stream and the pines and the top of the fall.

It had snowed and so the kids ate quite a bit of “fresh snow” on the way. We saw squirrels and old dead trees tattooed underneath the bark with squiggly lines from beetles and butterflies, orange, white, yellow.

On the logs, the kids noticed there were different sized squiggles and wondered if they start small and grow or if they were different beetles. We talked about climbing safely in steep places and how to cross streams on log bridges. It was beautiful! On the way down we spotted a “cave” made by a huge boulder perching on top of several other boulders and decided to check that out.

Here’s the view from inside.

They each wrote a letter to Grandma & Grandpa. It was stressful for Gavin but the results were good. His handwriting and spelling are both much improved but how he feels about writing hasn’t changed.

And, after much asking and wishing for weeks, we made it to the skating rink. When we arrived they had a mist over the rink and were flashing strobe lights with the main lights off which made Lilah a bit nervous. But she ended up enjoying it and then they turned the lights back on and the music back down and we had a wonderful time. They can do tricks like turning around that I can’t now. Here they are dancing and doing tricks in the center of the rink.

unschooling

Out & about

Up to Red Butte Garden.

Lilah took along a pen and notepad and drew some observations and fascinations.

Exploring. Enjoying.

Off to Kingsbury Hall to take in American Tall Tales by the youth theatre group. It was a fun performance and we sat on the second level for the first time, which the kids were excited about. My favorite part was that they included part of Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett, a tall tale we’ve read many times in Steven Kellogg’s book, where a little girl is more powerful than all her brothers and sets off to find challenges in the wild.

A haircut for Gavin. “When it’s long it bothers me during soccer.”

Over to the Leonardo museum with friends, playing with electricity, motion, giant blocks, goo, and a green screen.

Biking to the park.

We pulled out our pvc pipes that we used once upon a time to build a Magic Treehouse fort for Gavin’s birthday party years ago. They’ve been asking about fort building and this was perfect for some building fun.

Enjoying a fort.

Visiting the cat sculpture park.

On a hike we’ve never tried before.

Enjoying each other.

To the botanical center.

Magic playing.

Digging rows and planting carrots. Finding the first roly poly of the year.

Playground with friends.

In between we cuddled and cried and snuggled and built and played Pandemic and practiced gymnastics and finished Island of the Blue Dolphins and began Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder and listened to Harry Potter and picked flowers and played with modeling clay and ate huge sticks of celery like bunnies.

Things are good.

unschooling

Up Storm Mountain again

We haven’t been on our favorite hike up Storm Mountain since last fall but it’s been so nice that we ventured up today!

We also played with Lego elves sets, started reading Island Of The Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell and Lilah made me feel so special and loved by making me a necklace with pages that read: Mama, I love you to the moon and back, I love you infinity and beyond, etc. Am I lucky or what?

After lunch we headed up the canyon. It took us an hour or so more than it could have to leave the house so I was feeling grumpy by the time we left but when we got up there and breathed in the piney air and felt the sun on our skin I felt great. The kids were very excited to get to the stream where they love to climb, but it’s a steep path up.

We made it with a few short stops and they spent the next quarter of an hour throwing rocks into the water and watching them splash. After that we had a snack on a sunny boulder, discovered a rock that drew colored lines on other rocks, collected sparkly rocks and arranged them on the boulder, we continued up, climbing, splashing, leaping, balancing. We even tried putting some snow balls into the icy stream and watching them float down over waterfalls.

It was so wonderful to be there and watch both kids reveling in the challenges and explorations of the mountains!

unschooling

the modern era (or this week)

The kids played My Little Pony Life.

Lilah read a whole stack of Elephant and Piggie books under an umbrella. Because it’s cozy, I think.

We made designs out of pipe cleaners and then mixed up some borax solution to grow crystals on our ornaments.

The borax crystals are especially enjoyable because they grow in mere hours and are ready to take out the same day or at latest the next day.

The kids often ask about how healing happens so I found this video and shared it with them.

We picked up a friend and the kids played all afternoon with playmobil castles and people and animals.

On our way out to the car today, Lilah kissed our tree. She said, “I love you, Whomping Willow.” It’s Harry Potter all the time, around here. And it’s such fun!

There was a hike up by Jeremy Ranch, muddy and snowy and beautiful.

Gavin and I played No Stress Chess. The kids played alone as well.

Lilah and I made some oatmeal chocolate cranberry cookies, changing our old vegan but not gluten free to vegan and gluten free. Yummy!

We watched the first bit of the 6th Harry Potter movie, as well as listening to the 4th book on our drives around town.

In the evening Chris took the kids to scouts for their service project meeting and I stayed home. Alone. It was good. I’d been feeling itchy to have some time with my own thoughts.

When they got back we read some more Wizard of Oz in bed.

There was letter writing and card making. The kids enjoyed using some new stationery with owls on it.

Many games of Carcassonne were played, some with new rules negotiated.

We visited the natural history museum to see a new Extreme Mammals exhibit. There were some fun things to look at but mostly it was information to read. We saw what baleen look like, which was great because we were just talking about that a week or two back. We saw an animal with lower teeth that looked and functioned like a shovel.

Gavin took a special interest this visit in reading all of the signposts leading into the museum, each one focusing on one era… jurassic, triassic, etc. We decided that the furthest ones from the museum are longer ago and then the closer ones are less long ago until the one right outside the entrance is the current time, Holocene, if I remember correctly.

Lilah drew this. It’s she and I as mermaids. She is wearing a purple sweater dress.

unschooling

Wednesday

Lilah rediscovered a Winnie the Pooh lamp that I had in my room when I was a kid and was looking at how it’s put together this morning.

After some lego play and pop bead story telling, the kids and I spent a lot of time playing Ingress.

It’s a brand new game to us, where you walk and capture portals which are located in specific places so you have to move to them in the real world. We did a mission which was walking along the trail to Ensign Peak. It was fun and good to be out, even though it was chilly, especially up on the very top of Ensign Peak!

We enjoyed seeing the city from way up high and reading about early settlers in the valley. Unfortunately you can’t see our house from the top because we’re right below a hill that juts above but we spotted the University and the temple and the Capitol building.

At home, we played Hedbanz, a game where you have to guess what you are without asking “What am I”? Instead you ask things like, “Am I an animal”? “What letter do I start with”? We laughed quite a bit. The kids got better at their question strategies. Gavin’s first card to figure out was purse and Lilah’s was key.

We read some more of Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George. Gavin is enjoying that and Lilah is getting bits and pieces here and there. They are both intrigued by the idea of communicating with animals, as I am. They have been talking about that idea together more since we’ve been reading this, though they both have always loved animals.

We did some more rhyming with Hickory Dickory Dock.

After we’d spent much of our energy walking around, we watched a documentary called CaveDigger by Jeffrey Karoff about Ra Paulette’s life digging and carving caves solo in New Mexico.

It was fascinating, though some of the interpersonal dynamics included weren’t as interesting as the story of how and why he digs. The website for the film is: http://cavediggerdocumentary.com/index.html.

Later on we adventured up to the Capitol grounds with Dad for a bit more Ingress.

unschooling

Tuesday

There was Pokemon watching and Dora The Explorer playing on the computer. (Spanish practice!)

There was Lego play.

We read a picture book about riots and racial division from a kids perspective called Smoky Night by Eve Bunting. It’s a beautiful book, story and illustrations both.

We went to the library to return an armful of books and to check out new interesting ones. We came home with quite a few kids poetry books – Yay! I am really enjoying taking the kids to pick out books in the kids non-fiction sections as well as fun picture books.

Then the three of us headed up the canyon to hike. We went to Lake Mary and then Dog Lake. It was chilly but not miserably so.

There was snow on the ground, though only in bits and pieces yet. We spotted chipmunks and birds. We even saw what I think is a grouse very close. It didn’t mind us being in its’ space so we enjoyed a good view before heading down to Lake Mary.

The lake was very low today. We talked about how lakes and rivers and streams change with the seasons and with the amount of snow and rain fall.

Gavin and Lilah did some experimenting by tossing snow into the stream and watching it melt and then tossing packed snow in and seeing if it did the same thing. They decided the packed snow stayed together longer and must be colder than the unpacked snow.

We took a quick peek at Dog Lake which was more of a pool. Then we headed back down with stops for rock climbing and puddle stirring and skiing on the snow in our shoes.

On the way down Gavin asked if we could make lasagna for dinner. I explained that no, we would not have time. It takes hours and it would be dinner time when we arrived home. He asked if we could make it tomorrow. I said that I was concerned with getting his costume done so I would like to focus on that project for the day or days it takes to finish and if we have time after that then maybe. He understood and was perfectly happy with my answers. When I see how much more flexible he is able to be now that we are unschooling, I am so very grateful. Things not happening exactly as he expected or hoped was a huge problem for us, regularly causing big upset in our house. So, the ability to step back and feel alright with things being done in a different order or on a different schedule than he’d really prefer for his own immediate interests is such a huge success for us! I am so excited that he’s feeling comfortable and heard and respected enough to make that jump this afternoon! I have seen it in other conversations recently too and it makes me so happy for him and for us.

On the way down the canyon the kids read Charlie and Lola books by Lauren Child we checked out of the library today.

My sister came over for dinner and then we read books and had cuddle time and talked about plans for the week before bed.

unschooling

Tuesday

Gavin played Lego Chima on the computer. Then they watched Pokemon and Leapfrog: Amazing Alphabet.

There was Magformers and pony play. Then breakfast and more pony play.

“Let’s play Real Ninjago but in the real world.” “Okay!” They play Real Ninjago almost every day together. It’s a pretend game based loosely on Lego Ninjago, but populated with whatever characters/environments/challenges strike their fancy that day: dragons, Pippi Longstocking, poisonous plants, slavery. Sometimes they use toys as characters, sometimes it’s just oral. They negotiate together and tell a story that weaves their many interests together. It’s a beautiful thing to watch. I’m not ever invited to play and I’m glad that it’s their world, just for the two of them.

Then we began a big project: cleaning out and organizing the kids’ closet. It’s mostly toys, supplies in there rather than clothes though there are some of those too. We took everything out. The kids loved this part as they found long-lost favorite toys.

We sorted things into groups. We have a big pile of things to keep, another big pile of things to give away to bring someone else joy, and a few things that the kids aren’t excited about using but we will keep for other friends or perhaps Gavin and Lilah’s kids someday. The kids did most of the work of pulling everything out, making decisions, putting things back in their places with my assistance. I got to take several armfulls out to the recycling and garbage bins, but other than that they did most of it. Now the closet is organized and cleaner and the kids should be able to find what they’re interested in pulling out and able to put it back when they’re done. Woohoo!

Lilah and I picked tomatillos, serranos, carrots and cherry tomatoes.

After lunch, we pulled out a bunch of games from the closet to the game shelf in our living room and put some in the closet. It’s fun to switch what’s out. We played with our stacking tops and then Lilah and Gavin decided to play Connect 4 and spent several hours trying different approaches and techniques.

I left for a hike on my own for an hour or so. It’s been more a struggle than I had expected to have bits of time on my own. I find that I feel guilty, more than I used to when we were not unschooling, if I am not with the kids, even when I know it’s not a problem. However, it’s important for me to just be alone here and there, just explore my own thoughts without interruption. It helps me feel happier and healthier and be more present with the kids when I am with them. I enjoyed spotting butterflies and enjoying the sights and smells and sounds of fall. The clouds in the sky swirled like the top of a latte when I was walking back down the road. When I got home the kids were playing together and had the chess set out.

Then it was time for Lilah and I to drive to her gymnastics class and Gavin and Dad to play Civilization and make Palaak Tofu for dinner. That’s an Indian dish with spinach that usually uses Paneer, an Indian cheese, but we use tofu instead. Yum!

Yes is a World

Tag Archives: hiking

planting & growing

Up to the mountains

Goblin Valley

another full week

Out & about

Up Storm Mountain again

the modern era (or this week)

Wednesday

Tuesday

Tuesday