Reading is FUN

I tricked the kids into reading and learning with this neat little activity I found at 1+1+1=1 website.

They are cards that you print out and use to label objects around your house. I used it as a game for the kids.

The cards are great...there are so many words!

Even some that we don't even have (like crib, stereo, candle, and stairs)

And there were blanks so you could write your own.



What I did: I would pull a card out of a bowl and put a piece of tape on it and give it to Nick or Stella to read and then match to the household object.

Here is a video of several little clips of the kids playing my game. You can see that point when their lightbulbs come on! At the end you will see Henry trying to read one. He makes some sounds then puts the word on the tv. If you listen closely, you can hear him say "TV, Yeah!" then clap.



Now this may have been too easy for Nicholas because he can read. But he is definitely a beginner reader. And his speed has picked up tremendously this summer! I think I saw the most improvement when he noticed that Stella was starting to sound out words. Little peer pressure maybe? Whatever works. He is reading so smoothly now! I was only able to stump him on a couple of words. The rest he read silently and went directly to the object. That's why you didn't see much of him in the video. He did great! And little Stella...I really was shocked as she sounded out her words. I discovered about a week ago, that she can read short 3-letter words and a few other simple words. But some of the ones she managed to sound out in this game-- WOW!!! I was astounded! I don't know if it is a boy/girl thing, but I do notice some distinct differences in the way these two have come about reading. Nicholas could sound out small words at Stella's age (4yrs old) but she is attempting much harder words. All her choosing, too. I promise I am not teaching or pushing her. Don't have the time or patience for it. But while the ball is rolling I will try to help her keep it rolling. I was just really shocked that she was able to sound out words on her own.



--Kate

More fun from Yesterday

Yes, more pictures from yesterday. The kids have been so so so bad. Last week I was ready to throw up my arms and quit. They were so so so bad. But this week has been Waaaaay better. I actually have successfully taken them in public twice, no three times this week, and they have been close to perfect. Thank goodness! (I can't even begin to tell you how bad they have been.)

Henry had his 2yr check up yesterday. WAIT...I just realized I have not posted pictures from his birthday! Waaah! OK. I will put that on my list! Ok, back to the Dr. appt. At 2yrs and 15days, he weighed 24lbs and was 34 inches. In case you wondered how he compares, at 2yrs old Nick and Stella were both 35 inches. But Henry is feeling better now that he is getting over strep throat. (What 2yr old gets strep? And in the summer yet? geesh.) But after his long nap today he was raring to go! He and Nick can be such "boys" it is funny! See what I mean...

Boys playing guns or something. Complete with sound effects. BOTH do sound effects.

Lighting up Thomas and his train friends.


But we also made some crafts. Nick and Stella painted these plastic suncatchers. There is so much paint on them that they will take 4 days to dry and I don't know if they will really "catch" the sun.


And OH my I will have to write down the "recipe" for this: Homemade Birthday Cake Ice Cream! Our latest addiction.

--Kate

Summer Cleaning

A few months ago I found these microfiber dusting mitts in the dollar bins at Target. I grabbed three- one for each kid. Why did I wait so long to give them out!? They were cleaning fools this morning!





Cleaning the fireplace? Really?


Note to self: Bust out cleaning mitts every Tuesday.
And do they make something I can put on their feet to clean my kitchen floor? I will be thinking about this one...

And yes, we have a train table in our living room. There is no place to put it.

--Kate

Think We Might Be A Bit Obsessed

With trains that is. Henry has fallen in love with Thomas the Train and any other kind of train for that matter.

Guess we will have a Thomas party for him on his birthday next month. Which will go well with my red, white, and blue theme (which he may have to put up with every year).

Maybe you have noticed that I don't have as many pictures of H as I do the other two. That is because once he realizes that I have a camera he runs behind it to see the screen. Obviously then he is no longer in the picture. But last week before bedtime I caught him carefully playing with his trains and got this video on my phone. You can see we brought in an old coffee table so he could play trains on it. We don't have a real train table but this one is working ok for now. Besides...we have no place to put a train table in this house! This coffee table is in our foyer! Geesh. Feels like it is time to move again. Probably in a year.

Tonight is N's first t-ball game. Can't wait. It is 90 degrees today.


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Summer has started.

Last week began our summer. Kids had school up until June 1st!

We started our summer with a $2 movie downtown. They show kids movies all summer at 9:45am which was perfect for us. Last week the movie was Clifford- you know, the big red dog. Even Henry enjoyed it. Mostly. That was only Nicks third movie, Stella's second, and Henry's first. They did great and though I really wanted to take them to lunch in Bricktown I knew better not to press my luck! Even though I can't remember the last time I was in Bricktown...

I took these pics from the front of theater. Don't they look so cute!



Nick gripes when I make him "dress nice.". Meaning not basketball shorts and a tshirt. Oh nick just wait until school next year!! Polos everyday and shirt and tie on Wednesdays! Ahahahahaha!!!!!!!

And here's one more...WHAT is she doing!?? Modeling? Geesh.



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New Sports

Just wanted to drop some pictures here. Soccer is over. And T-ball starts now.

Both kids are playing T-ball. At least we think. Still haven't heard from Stella's coach. Looks like Shawn might have to coach t-ball, too! He has already coached soccer twice. I bet he will be better at t-ball because at least he played baseball when he was younger.

Tomorrow is the last day of school for our school Public school was done last week. I am glad to be done. Wait. I am not the one in school! Now it is time for Mom's Summer Fun School!!! I have compiled websites and free downloads of all.kinds.of.activities for the kids from teacher blogs and homeschool websites. I have computer games, worksheets, reading lists, crafts, montessori activities- you name it! I am trying to compile at list of where I found all this stuff. I will post it on my craft blog (link on right sidebar) if I get it done today!


--Kate

Kindergarten Graduation

The last day of school is not until next week, but tonight we celebrated Nick's Kindergarten Graduation!

I do think that Kindergarten "graduation" is a bit much. But I suppose for parents like me who aren't good at being sentimental it is a good reality check that our kids are growing up. And quickly.
--Kate