Jungle School

We're moving folks!!!

2012-04-20T18:00:00.001-06:00

I've separated our school and home life into two different websites.

Jungle School now has a new home at www.jungleschooladventure.com. I am still cleaning house and adding lots of material, so I have not moved the subscription over quite yet.

To find out what's new in our home (including recipes, green living, organizing and more) stop by www.casacrizon.com.

Hope to see you soon!!

Handprint Art - Native Americans

2011-11-22T22:53:00.001-06:00

I was trying to think of an easy way to make Native Americans for our new book, and this idea just popped into my head. I still can’t believe it worked!! ~~I'll update this tomorrow after we add the details, but had to post now in case it would help someone else. ;-)~~

For the boy, paint each finger (not the thumb) a different color. Paint the entire palm brown.

For the girl, paint the index and pinky fingers black, then continue those lines down to form a U. Paint the rest of the palm brown.

Note: The girl is made with fingers pointing down, while the boy is made fingers pointing up.

Here is the finished product:

Handprint Art - Fall Trees

2011-11-19T19:21:00.001-06:00

For Fun Friday this week, we turned some broken crayons into a wonderful fall keepsake...Handprint Trees!

Begin by tracing your child’s hand and arm on brown paper. Cut it out, and set it aside. Next, give each child a piece of waxed paper and a few crayons in fall colors (with the paper peeled off). Give your chid an old pencil sharpener, and have them make a few crayon shavings onto half of the wax paper.

(We used a fine grater for this step, and I’m still trying to figure out how to clean the wax off! So, ignore the picture and skip the grater!) Another option is to have another JungleMama make a bunch of shavings for the children to sprinkle on to make their creation. Thanks Jen!

Next, fold the wax paper over and place a sheet of copy paper or an old T-shirt over the top. (I tried it with a towel and it was too thick to work well.) Use an iron on medium heat, to go over the top. This is the most fun part, so make sure the children are gathered around! The finished result will be something like this...

The colors sometimes bleed through the wax paper, which is why you want a thin layer of paper or fabric to protect your iron.

Cut the wax paper into a cloud shape to resemble the leaves of the tree, then glue on the handprint trunk. Simple, and beautiful in a window. ;-)

Jedi Spelling

2011-10-27T20:38:00.000-06:00

I had to post this today in honor of my favorite Jedi's birthday! Levi is officially in the Star Wars phase. As soon as he wakes up, he dons his cape and lightsaber to conquer the world. Rather than fight it, I decided to use it to our advantage and do a little spelling practice in the meantime.

Simply give your child a word to spell (verbally, on a flashcard, written on a whiteboard, whatever) and let them swoosh away. Of course, speaking in a crazy accent at the time makes things much more fun. ;-)

Visit 1+1+1=1 for more word play ideas...

PDF Calendar Site

2011-10-26T20:44:00.000-06:00

I stumbled across an awesome site for creating customized printable calendars. I like to look the big version of my school year when sketching out unit/thematic plans, and this site makes it super easy!

I forgot to post it in my back to school stuff, but remembered as I flipped the page over to work on our 2nd quarter plans today. Oops! If you would like a copy for yourself (for lesson plans, blog posts, menu, whatever)...

- Click on this link

- Make sure the date is October 23

- Click on the icon of the PDF, or click at the bottom where it says “Download Calendar PDF”

Then you’ll get an overview from now to the year end all on one page!

Pumpkin Watercolor Paintings

2011-10-21T19:33:00.000-06:00

I saw this idea on Pinterest and knew we had to try it!

First, we looked at our pumpkin and discussed the shapes we would use to create it. Next we practiced drawing our picture on a whiteboard.

Then on to the glue step. (I ended up doing the continuous squeeze while they moved my hand around to draw their picture. Levi tried going at it solo, but soon got frustrated with the way it beaded up.)

Set your pictures on a babyproof spot to dry overnight. ;-)

The original directions used a fine tip Sharpie to trace on either side of the glue lines.

I opted for some very thin markers I had, that would help them see what colors to use (that would also camoflauge if they bled a little.)

On to the watercolor step...

What focus!

I think these turned out great!

Indoor P.E. - Hallway Liners

2011-10-04T12:26:00.000-06:00

We have been cooped up lately between rain, sickness, and no car. I was desperate for a way to burn some energy and was inspired by a high school flashback. It’s basketball season here, and as soon as that came to mind, so did the dreaded ... liners!

To set up the scene: You first need to find some lines, or markers. (We used some foam circles since we had too many lines. hehe)

We had one child at the end of the hallway, another timing,

and the baby watching safely from the stands.

When the time starts, the runner has to run and touch the first line, then run back to the wall, run and touch the next line, then run back to the wall...

Timer stops when they touch the wall (after touching the final line).

"Oops, is it this button Mamita?"

This is great for burning off lots of energy in little time! See, just 21 seconds to a sweaty boy. hehe (Next up, a haircut for the sweaty boy. Yikes!)

Cat Day

2011-09-17T20:53:00.000-06:00

We had an alumni drop in to visit this week. Peter came to hang out with us for the day!

He thought it was way cool to point and sing the Days of the Week song while Levi worked on his calendar notebook.

Then we did our TLC art project for C week...cat! We work on body parts while waiting for everyone to catch up. “Put your paper on your elbow!”

I love these projects because even though everyone follows the same directions, each one is so unique.

Each cat is sitting on a rug, but everybody added their own touch (cat, mouse, rockstar glasses, and....banana? Silly Sissy.)

I know I will soon regret this, but we were having a cat face contest at the dinner table. Papito had to get the camera to capture the moment...He thought my eyebrow was hilarious.

Pretzel Spelling

2011-09-10T14:10:00.000-06:00

We were at the pool when I hear “Look Mamita, I can spell ‘beep’ with my pretzels!” By golly he did...and correctly too! (Well, before he flipped the P.) hehe

Your word choices are a bit limited when using regular pretzels (although B, e, p, d, and o can be made with some quick nibbling). However, add some pretzel sticks and your vocabulary grows rapidly. I think we might make pretzel spelling a weekly sight word activity around here! hehe

Bible Memorization Reward - Heart Date!

2011-08-25T22:59:00.000-06:00

I’ve been thinking for awhile on how to approach bible memory this year.

In the past we’ve been part of a larger group, so the easiest was for all of us to focus on the same verse every week. However, with two more “official school years” under his belt, Levi has already memorized our alphabet verses. So, I was looking for a way for them to have flexibility in their verses and to work at their own pace. I also wanted to motivate my children to memorize scripture, but didn’t really want to use “stuff” like sweet treats, money, etc. as rewards.

Enter the lightbulb moment (thank you Holy Spirit) ... a Heart Date!

I created this little worksheet to slip into our Bible Memory binders. Every time they memorize a verse, or “hide it in their heart” like Psalm 119:11 says, we write the verse inside their heart. When they have 5 verses written down, we celebrate with a heart date. Each child gets to choose an activity they love or that is “dear to their heart,” and include whomever they choose. Some ideas we brainstormed were:

- bake a cake with Mamita

- have an entire afternoon of playing with Papito

- invite some friends over for a tea party

- go to the movies as a family

- go bowling

- have a picnic at the park

- make bananas spilts

- have a lego party

So as you can see, it doesn’t have to be some expensive outing, mostly engaging with your children in something that they enjoy doing. If it is easier for your family to make a list together beforehand, go for it. My children are still young and easily swayed my enthusiasm. hehe

Here are the printables (with a couple options so you can customize them depending on how fast your children memorize scripture.):

Heart Date sheet (w/5 verses)

Heart Date sheet (you fill in how many verses)

First Week of School

2011-08-19T23:26:00.000-06:00

Well, it is official...We finally had our first day of school! A couple of weeks after anticipated, but due to birthdays and sickness, not to mention boxes filling the house, unpacking, and preparing for this Saturday's yard sale...we did it!

There is nothing like the fun of new pencil boxes, crayons, and school supplies!

I surprised them mid-week with our new "Kindergarten" set of manipultatives...Zoobs! It was a team effort to open all the bags and get them in the tub.

After that, it didn't take long for the creative brains to flow, and the baby to chew.

Here is the princess, complete with suspenders. HA!

We also had our first Fun Friday of the year, and decided to make some cookies together.

2011-2012 Curriculum

2011-08-12T21:47:00.036-06:00

I don't know why, but this year has been the hardest to plan so far! I've been dreaming of the day I would have my very own Kindergartner, and now that it's here I feel like a first year teacher again. That's the fun thing about homeschooling I guess, every year you ARE a first year teacher! (Yikes, hadn't really thought about this before.) Even though they are your children, you have most likely not had the exact same combination of ages, personalities, and circumstances as the year before. Woohooo! Nothing like a challenge.

Anyway, here is our current curriculum plan for the year with my 4 year old PreK and 5 year old Kinder:

Bible:

-Grapevine Studies Old Testament Beginning Book

-Learn OT book names

-Memory Verses

-Hubbard’s Cupboard verses recorded by Matt

-Steve Green’s Hide Them in Your Heart

Language Arts:

-Zoophonics (dot 2 dot, Level A sentences/Coloring page)

-Picture Dictionary

-Heidi Songs color/shape books

-Starfall

-You Can Read by 1+1+1=1

-Word Family Minibooks by Hubbard’s Cupboard

-Hooked on Phonics

Writing:

-Kidwriting at every opportunity

-start Mrs. Meacham’s mini-lessons mid-year

-Science Journals

-Thankful Journals

Math:

-Pattern Block Books

-Marcy Cook (Early Skillboard, Math Tiles)

-Workjobs

-Number Journals by Hubbard’s Cupboard

Science:

-Animal Investigation Binders (add Zoophonic’s animal friend every week)

-Habitat theme, one per month (add spanish vocab. in calendar)

-Science with Sid, weekly theme and experiment

Art:

-TLC Alphabet Book

-Monthly directed drawing

Note: I hope to go through and explain how we use some of these components over the next few months. I will add a link on this blog post everytime I make an update.

Week 23 - Ruth is Modest

2011-05-08T12:37:00.025-06:00

Printables for this week:

Modest Bible page

Modest Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Philippians 4:6 from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter x

Zoo Math X - #24

This week we learned about being modest using the story of Ruth. Modesty (or immodesty rather) is a bigger issue for preteen/teens, but I figured it would be good to introduce the concept. At the preschool level, we focused on how our beauty comes from the inside, not what we look like on the outside. There was still plenty to talk about, especially to little girls thinking that putting on certain clothes and fixing their hair a certain way make them “more boo-afull.”

Our zoo friend this week was Xavier Fox, so of course we had to play a couple of rounds of “What time is it, Mr. Fox?” We also made Fox cookies for our cooking project (since I had some orange frosting left over from the sport’s ball cupcakes). The children frosted a Maria cookie, then added chocolate chip eyes, and drew on the rest of the face using chocolate frosting. X-cellent!

Fun Friday was X-ray day! We made x-ray name art by using white out pens to write our names on a piece of black construction paper folded in half. (Hint: Since the white-out dries so quickly, we learned it worked best to fold the paper and rub after every letter, rather than wait until the entire name was finished.)

The name section is the ribs, then we talked about what bones are connected to them and how they move...joints! (For example, the leg bends in the middle, so we decided there must be a bone on top and one below connected at the knee joint.)

Next we glued on Q-tips to represent the arm and leg bones. We finished it off with a dot paint head, and googly eyes. Ta-daaaa!

We even had an x-ray snack, by frosting a graham cracker then drawing on some white frosting bones. Say "X-ray!"

Week 32 - Jonathan is Faithful

2011-05-01T21:24:00.002-06:00

Printables for this week:

Faithful Bible page

Faithful Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Proverbs 17:17 from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter w

Zoo Math W - #23

This week we learned about being faithful using the story of Jonathan and David. Since the chart defined faithful as being a good friend, we focused this week on “how” to be a good friend. Keeping your promises, using kind words, not saying or doing hurtful things to our friends were all put into action this week. (And what a week to practice with a major case of spring fever going through this place! hehe) In fact, in an attempt to calm some of the spring craziness, I decided to start Monday morning with some new playdough infused with lavender essential oil. The girls have been asking for pink or purple, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity.

It was also fun for them to watch the colors mix from this

to this!

Our zoo friend this week was Willie Weasel, and I must admit my weasel resources are rather slim, except for this one book I remembered called Earthquack!. It is a version of the classic "the sky is falling" tale and has a weasel for the villian. Quite the tongue-twister to read, but the children enjoyed it.

We went looking for videos, but didn’t find any good enough to share with you. One thing we learned was that weasels build their nests in rock piles, or take over other animals nests rather than building their own. Levi got a kick out of this sneakiness, and has been testing it out all weekend. “I was tricky like Willie Weasel and snuck some chocolate chips, then hid over here to eat them.” Not looking forward to one more week of this, as tricky Xavier Fox is coming up next week. :-S

Wednesday was our last day of swimming lessons, and a very exciting day for one of our Jungle Families. Miss Peggy had her baby, making Gaia an official big sister! There was lots of praying involved, and lots of faith built, as our prayers were answered and Peggy was able to have a natural birth. We still haven’t been able to meet baby Sitka, but are looking forward to meeting her soon!!

This Thursday’s cooking day might have just been the most popular one yet. We made Waffles, and they were indeed wonderful. Miss Niki whisked everything together,

and Papito came home just in time to help us cook them up!

Toppings included berry syrup, whipped cream, nut butter, and honey. Berries and cream took the landslide vote in everyone’s book (except Josh’s), and all went for seconds, thirds, or even fourths!

We visited Miss Jennifer, Nat, and Abi for Fun Friday, and the children had a Wonderful time in the fort.

It took up half the living room, and their imaginations took up even more. hehe

Rachel and Gio joined us too, for a fun-filled morning.

Rediscover the Resurrection - Everyday!

2011-04-25T22:16:00.001-06:00

"Now what?" That was my children's response after finding Jesus out of the tomb.

I think that happens with many. It seems like with holidays the build up is so exciting, then the day passes, and the celebration is over...right? Well, that's the best part of the Good News. On Resurrection Monday (and every day thereafter) the party is just beginning!

We were talking today about what happened to Jesus AFTER he rose from the dead. I love it...he broke all the rules, AGAIN! hehe You would think if Jesus were going to appear to anyone, it would be his disciples. First he appears to Mary Magdalene (out of whom he had driven seven demons), then to Cleopas (not a well known follower), and finally Peter (who denied him three times), before appearing to the eleven. Why does that matter? To me it says, "Jesus can't be put in a box!" He breaks the mold. It didn't matter what the people of the day said about women, or how popular or well-known you are, and He didn't hold a grudge against a good friend who denied his existence. He knew exactly who needed to hear from Him and He spoke!

He is as alive today, as He was 2000 years ago when He rose from the dead, and the most awesome part is "He still speaks!" How do I know? It's simple. I hear His voice.

What got me all worked up today, well this crazy video. It is a group of people who hear His voice in Texas and they danced their shoes off and gave them to people in need, just because He told them to.

P.S. I know I'm having posting issues once again...will have time tomorrow to figure it out, but today I'm gonna Dance My Shoes Off too. ;-)

Rediscover the Resurrection - Day 5

2011-04-21T22:39:00.001-06:00

Thursday - Crucifixion (Matthew 26:36-56, Matthew 27:27-54)

Tonight our scene had lots of action! I'll let the photos tell the story...

Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane while his disciples slept...

Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss...

(I wasn't able to capture the flurry of activity, as Peter cut off the guard's ear, Jesus put it back on, Jesus was arrested and put on trial, and was thrown around between all family members until someone finally found a rubber band and asked Papito to attach Jesus to the cross...)

The lights went out as darkness covered the land, and Jesus cried out "It is finished!" Levi began shaking the table for the earthquake, and the (napkin) curtain was torn from top to bottom!

Rediscover the Resurrection - Day 4

2011-04-20T23:40:00.001-06:00

Wednesday - Passover/Last Supper (Luke 22:14-21, John 13:1-17, )

Tonight we rediscovered the Last Supper by having our own Passover. We cleared out the school room (as I knew I would be much more relaxed with grape juice spilled on foam mats versus the living room carpet), and made a short table out of the laundry basket and tray. The children helped me set places for everyone in the family, including Bibi and Judah (who ended up sleeping through it. hehe) They also set out a pillow for Jesus, then decided to set one for Elijah too, after reading about the Jewish tradition.

Here is what our Seder plate contained:

- a candle (Partylite brand that burns like red liquid, very cool)
- 4 glasses for the four cups
- a plastic lamb
- parsley and a bowl of salt water
- 3 pieces of "matzah"
- charoset (I put two apples, a splash of grape juice, a few dried apricots, and handful of almonds in the Vita-mix)
- horseradish (not pictured, because I could not find it anywhere!)

I used a combination of two great resources to guide our night. The first was a great post called A Messianic Passover Sedar for Families with Young Children written by Jennifer @ Getting Down with Jesus. The second is a step-by-step guide, with biblical text and a script for the leader all included in a printable booklet. I purchased the entire Biblical Holidays book, but you can now download just the Passover guide for $5 at the Heart of Wisdom link.

These combined resources weaved together the Exodus story and the Last Supper in a way that kept everyone's attention, and taught even the grown-ups many new things!

Highlights included:

-Washing each other's feet just like Jesus washed the disciples' feet

- Serving each other communion (and the irony of the grown-up being the one to break the glass, hehe)

- Searching the house to find the Afikoman, "Mamita, can you just give us a little hint?" and a few minutes later, "Mamita, what about if we play the hot/cold game." hehe

For more activities:

- Mighty Moses Scavenger Hunt from se7en

- Passover Platters from se7en

Rediscover the Resurrection - Day 3

2011-04-19T16:23:00.003-06:00

Tuesday - Judas Betrays Jesus (Matthew 26:14-16, Luke 22:3-6)

There were plenty of events that happened on Tuesday, but we focused on Judas betraying Jesus. Betrayal is when someone lies, pretending to be a friend, but is really an enemy. Judas was one of Jesus' disciples, his group of closest friends, but he turned against him. He did this for just 30 silver coins (the cost of a slave at that time)!

There was much discussion amongst Judas and the chief priests, before we counted out 30 pieces of silver to add to our scene.

For more activities:

- Squeeze out some toothpaste and ask your child to put it back into the tube. (Obviously this is impossible.) Talk about how words are the same way...once you’ve said something, you cannot take it back. Encourage your children to be mindful of the words that come out of their mouths, and use kind words rather than evil words.

- Experiment with dominoes. First give your children free time to play with the pieces, then demonstrate how dominoes fall, creating a chain reaction. Let the children try lining the dominoes up and knocking them down. Tie this activity into a discussion of how wrong or bad actions/choices can create bad chain reactions, just like Judas’.

Rediscover the Resurrection - Day 2

2011-04-19T00:15:00.001-06:00

Monday - Jesus Teaches (John 12:20-36, Mark 11:15-18)

The enthusiasm was still very high for Day 2, with reminders on the hour "Is it time yet? What is Jesus going to do today?" Tonight we talked briefly about Jesus clearing the temple, but I had planned to focus on two parts of his message. First about "if a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it produces many seeds." They weren't really interested in this illustration and were having more fun trying to decide what to use for the temple in our scene. Levi thought of a napkin holder we have in the china cabinet. Hey, why not? It's only collecting dust in there. hehe

So I let them set up the scene. They dug Philip and Andrew out of the disciple pile (since they were the ones who it says were with Jesus) and stood them up on either side of them. Levi was a little frustrated that Jesus wouldn't fit inside the napkin holder temple, but they decided he would be facing the people to teach them.

When I began talking about walking in the light, they got it immediately. They jumped up to turn off the lights and tell me how dangerous it is to walk in the darkness and how that is what Satan wants us to do. Then on came the light switch, and "See Mamita, the darkness is gone! Jesus is the light!" We went with it, and I dug out some tealight candles to add to the scene. We lit one for tonight, then added six more on the way to the cross.

My favorite moment was catching Sissy fascinated with the light long after our story was finished.

For more activities:

- Clean your temple. Explain how the area Jesus was clearing was the place where people who were not Jews were allowed to pray, but it had been become dirty, noisy, and corrupt...not a place of worship. Together, clean up a space in your home that is peaceful and conducive to worship. Add some candles or little white lights to be turned on only during your Rediscover the Resurrection! time to make it more memorable.

- Create a Peace Retreat. Similar idea as above, but used in a slightly different way. We have recently designated a rocking chair in our corner to be that peaceful place for us. (Check out this post by A Holy Experience on how to make and take a peace retreat.)

- Plant some seeds. Choose grass or a quick sprouting herb in order to be able and see results fairly soon.

Rediscover the Resurrection - Intro & Day 1

2011-04-17T21:37:00.001-06:00

I was inspired by this post about creating an Easter garden at A Holy Experience, and decided to begin a new family tradition we are going to call “Rediscover the Resurrection!” I love eggs (hard-boiled, scrambled, jelly bean, marshmallow, chocolate, and especially Reese’s), and bunnies are fluffy and cute...but eggs and bunnies really have nothing to do with the true meaning of the season. I’ve been looking for a fun way to get the family involved, and really learn about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection...and I think I found it!

Every day this week we will be reading chronologically about Jesus’ life during his last days on Earth. (I am really enjoying The Narrated Bible in Chronological Order, but feel free to use any bible or storybook you have available.) Then we are going to make our own mini-scene to “rediscover” the story. Every night I will share photos, activities, and our readings in case you would like to join us! (We will be using whatever we can find around the house, and I encourage you to do the same. My children have much more imagination and creativity than myself in this department, so I let them take the lead.)

Sunday - Triumphant Entry (John 12:12-16, Luke 19:29-44)

We started with a big foil container, and added some sand to the bottom. We discussed the main locations of the story, so we could plan a little better and decided to include the tomb on one side and Golgotha (the hill where Jesus would be crucified) on the other side. We used an old frosting container with a hole cut out of it for the tomb, and two large rocks for the hill. We were pondering whether to use lego men, trio block men, or army men, when Ary said “Let’s use Jesus and the Disciples!” See why I need them? hehe We have this set of Jesus and the disciples, and it is most definitely a favorite.

Then there was much dialogue amongst the characters, and a little sand flying.

We found a little brown horse in the farm set, and decided to call it a donkey, then had two of the disciples take the colt to Jesus. We found a purple dress in the scrap container, and laid our "cloaks" down on the road. Then we cut off some branches and laid them in the road as well.

We learned that it was common tradition for a king to ride on a donkey in times of peace, and ride on a horse when it was time for battle. By entering Jerusalem riding the donkey, Jesus was essentially proclaiming himself King and coming as the Prince of Peace, and the people recognized the symbolism and significance of this. That is why they covered the road, waved the branches, and yelled "Hosanna!" Here's a bird's eye view of the finished product.

For more activities:

- Learn this Hosanna Song (adapted from www.ChristianPreschoolPrintables.com)

- Add this little song booklet to your Resurrection Lapbook (link and blog post coming soon)

- Have your children find branches outside (living in the tropics is helpful for this, as we have an abundance of palm branches...hehe) and re-enact the story. My children didn't care that the donkey was actually a pink stick horse. ;-)

Of course a Hosanna branch bash is great fun too.

Linked up to The Practice of Easter at...

Week 22 - Anna is Prayerful

2011-04-10T22:56:00.001-06:00

Printables for this week:

Prayerful Bible page

Prayerful Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Philippians 4:6 from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter v

Zoo Math V - #22

Our character trait this week was prayerful. I had so many ideas and wanted to start some prayer journals, but the time just seemed to fly right on by! Maybe that’s because we were learning about flying along with our zoo friend Vincent Vampire Bat. I must admit, bats are not my favorite creatures. In fact, I am really, extremely, VERY afraid of them! In college I took a 3 week summer biology course, and as part of it we had to go very quietly into this cave where the bats were roosting. I couldn’t do it. Got the cold sweats, shakes, and everything, and was ready to risk my grade if necessary, but could not bring myself to go in there even on my hands and knees. hehe So maybe it was a good thing for me to explore bats a little more this week. We actually didn’t talk about real “Vampire Bats” much, but focused more on the fruit eaters. Levi was so curious as to what are the largest bats in the world, and I found this cool video from National Geographic for Kids. The answer...Flying Foxes with a 6 foot wing span that live in Australia. Check them out...

Our cooking project this week was short and sweet, Vanilla Pudding in the Vita-mix! A few children just went for the whipped cream on top, but us Mamas were more than able to take care of the leftovers. Right Miss Peggy? ;-)

It ended up being more like “Fun-ny” Friday this week, as many JungleMamas had various things going on. Amy and Bella were our only guests of the day!

On the agenda for the Mamas was a Vita-mix demonstration day! I had ingredients ready for nut butter, frappes, ice cream, or smoothies...whichever sounded the best. For the children, we were supposed to make a volcano erupt, but whenever I asked the children if they were ready they wanted to just “play a little longer.” So, Amy and I decided to make our own experiment...lava cake! We followed this recipe from Savory Sweet Life. Check out the photo...isn’t it just amazing? It was fairly easy, smelled great and tasted yummy. However, the middle was not like molten chocolate lava like we were expecting. :-( (I think I overcooked it by just a minute or two, because one of the children got a tiny bit of goosh in the middle.) We also made some vanilla ice cream in the Vita-mix to go along with our very tasty dessert. These were the only photos I got, as the lava went down the hatch mighty quick. hehe

I became so consumed with striving for that molten lava center, that we tried again on Saturday afternoon. This time using this recipe from Recipe for a Gluten Free Life by Mrs. G.F. It smelled great and tasted great too, however...no lava. I was paranoid to overcook it this time, and instead undercooked the first one I tested. A bunch. hehe So, I ended up with three overcooked and one batter bowl of lava cake. What’s a creative Mamita to do? Well, dig out the center of the overcooked and replace with a little batter of course. Cover it with a little scoop of Vita-mix ice cream, and nobody questioned. hehe I still want mine to look like that first picture though. Any lava cake success stories out there?

Week 31 - Jacob is Diligent

2011-04-03T21:16:00.001-06:00

Printables for this week:

Diligent Bible page

Diligent Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Colossians 3:23 from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter u

Zoo Math U - #21

This week we talked about being diligent, and practiced not giving up in little ways throughout the week. Our bible character was Jacob, and how he worked diligently for seven years (twice) to earn his bride’s hand. We incorporated some number writing into our bible page this week, too.

Our cooking project was a no-brainer...“Upside Down Cake!” Pineapple Upside-Down Cake to be exact. I used a recipe online, but the cake texture wasn’t my favorite, so I’m not recommending it. It was a very fun one to make with children though. What we did was drizzle some arequipe in the bottom of a pan, then “plop” in the pineapple rings. We put a cherry inside each ring, then split up for the cake making. Miss Peggy and the girls measured out the dry ingredients, while the boys and I measured the wet. Then we put it together and poured it in the pan. I think my plain wacky cake recipe would go great instead, but we’ll have to experiment with that later.

The best part is when you take it out of the oven and get to flip the pan Upside Down! I was surprised that so many of them wanted seconds. It is amazing how much more adventurous children are with food, when they are involved in the preparation. As you can see, we already made a good dent in it before I remembered the photo. hehe

For our Fun Friday activity, we had a great day at Miss Amy’s house. It was supposed to be a bubble day, but I couldn’t find the batteries for our bubble machine. (Thankfully, the children didn’t know the difference.) They all piled in the hammock for awhile, then the heat and humidity chased everyone upstairs. While the children played, Miss Amy prepared an Unbelievably delicious lunch!! We got to actually sit at the table together and enjoy our gourmet chicken, date, and olive dish. Thanks Amy!! Sorry for the point and shoot but had to capture the fun...

Week 30 - Elizabeth is Patient

2011-03-27T21:25:00.004-06:00

Printables for this week:

Patient Bible page

Patient Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Ephesians 4:2b from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter t

Zoo Math T - #20

This week we learned about being patient...hhhmmm. I think this was for Mamas (or at least me) as much as for the children. Funny how that works. Click here for a little reminder of patience I just happened to come across this week from Ann Voskamp’s blog. (Her writing is so beautiful...it always calms my wearied soul.)

Our bible character was Elizabeth, and what a good reminder she is. Waiting for years with no child, in a culture where that meant everything. Through the shame, disappointment, and loneliness, she remained a righteous woman. Another translation says she “enjoyed a clear conscience before God.” Ouch! How many people can keep their heart and attitude clear when life is not going the way we want it to. We took the initiative to recognize and practice waiting patiently this week for snacks, stories, speaking, and especially “our turn.” For our bible page, they were to draw a clock (to symbolize time passing and Elizabeth waiting patiently) and a baby named John. Here is Levi's work with the clock "hands spinning so it looks like a long, long time!" I have been delighting in his creativity lately.

Our zoo friend was Timothy Tiger, and we discovered lots of great tiger facts. Did you know that a tiger's roar can be heard up to 2 miles away? Tiger Time for Stanley by Griff integrates lots of facts in a very cute story about a boy comparing his cat to a tiger (especially for a certain 3-year-old girlie who dreams of having a pet “meow-me” too). We also read A Tiger Cub Grows Up by Joan Hewett, and learned that Tara (the tiger in the book) lives in San Fransisco, CA where our airplane will be landing this summer! We were checking out Six Flags Discovery Park and found this cool video of a white Bengal tiger diving underwater to get it’s dinner.

We had great fun with our cooking project this week...tiger toast! We first talked about color mixing, then added some food coloring to cream cheese to make orange and black. Each child got a piece of toast and a little watercolor paint brush to create their tiger designs. A little tip for success: Use orange first, then black. Just like in watercolors, the black will quickly overpower any other colors.

For our Fun Friday activity, we had treats at Miss Jennifer’s house! The children were so entertained, there was not even an interest in the tea party we had planned. So us JungleMama’s continued to talk and eat treats. Hope we didn’t tear up your house too much Jen!

Week 28 - Esther is Compassionate

2011-03-20T21:45:00.050-06:00

Printables for this week:

Compassionate Bible page

Compassionate Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Ephesians 4:32 from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Zoo ABC - letter s

Zoo Math S - #19

It was a royal week around here as we learned about compassion using the story of Esther. During calendar time we learned how to bow and curtsey, (and got a great thigh workout curtseying the date might I add.) This week, I explained the bible page, and they worked very independently to finish. Check out Levi’s Esther page (those motor skills have come so far this year)...

Sammy Snake was of course a favorite, with our two favorite books being The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash and Snake Dictionary, along with the song “I’m being swallowed by a Boa Constrictor!” We also made spiral snakes out of paper plates thanks to this post from Made by Bedtime Tales. They turned out great, and served as a weekends worth of entertainment, too.

What a better cooking project for S week than, S’Mores! When you have a gas stove, S’Mores can be made year round. hehe This makes a great, fast dessert when company comes. We especially like our Panamanian version: Spread some chocolate frosting on a Maria cookie, use a fondue fork to roast a marshmallow over the burner, then use a plain Maria cookie to scrape off the marshmallow and make a S’Mores sandwich. Is your mouth watering yet?

For our Fun Friday activity, we attended a Royal Ball at the Richardson’s. The ladies wore their finest, and the men dressed in their knightly attire.

There was much playing, sword fighting, and more dressing up.

Miss Clare read A Parable about the King by Beth Moore,

and served a special snack on her royal silver.

Miss Jennifer gave a lesson in chivalry (before the rain interrupted),

with the boys kneeling before the girls to present them with flowers.

I think that was the highlight of Ary’s day, and rumor has it that someone wants to marry Levi now. hehe The JungleMamas ordered out for lunch while the children finished the day by watching VeggieTales, Esther the Girl who Became Queen.

Although my children were exhausted after all the fun, Ary had to finish out the day like a princess by wearing her fancy (long sleeved, hot, oh-not-so-cozy) red dress to sleep in. It matched her tired red eyes.

Week 29 - Dorcas is Kind

2011-03-13T11:42:00.000-06:00

Printables for this week:

Kind Bible page

Kind Chart from Hubbard’s Cupboard

Luke 6:31

It was a holiday week in Panama for Carnaval. Woohoooo!!! Not really. hehe For us, that basically means a time to enjoy the lack of traffic and people in the city, as they all head to the beach or other locations to party it up. We were planning to keep on our normal school routine, but ended up just focusing on our character trait - kindness.

Since we had a full house of girls, I decided to plan a ladybug day instead and put off Sammy Snake until next week when most of the boys return. Actually, the ladybug day was a last minute idea that came to me in bed the night before. (Am I the only crazy one in this world whose last thoughts of the night are receiving new lesson plans? People who choose the teaching profession for the 3 months vacation are clueless, because most teachers I know never get to turn their brain off. It is like a computer running 24/7, whether on sleep mode, stand-by, or full power.) Okay, I'm stepping off the soap box now. Back to ladybugs and kindness...

We read this book that talks about accepting others even though they are different than us. Especially fun since 2 out of our 4 girls have "boing-yoing curls" just like Dottie in the book.

We watched this YouTube video of Eric Carle’s The Grouchy Ladybug (since I didn’t have the book. Hurray for YouTube!) The opposite of kind is mean, and this grouchy ladybug is a perfect example of that. However, in the end he changes his tune and decides to use kind words.

For this week’s cooking project, we made ladybug cupcakes! Just frost a regular size cupcake with pink or red frosting. Add a half oreo for the head, and some chocolate chips for the spots. Delicioso!

For our Fun Friday activity, we went to visit Miss Amy again! It was a beautiful summer day full of hammock play, making monster truck tracks in the dirt, and playing in the “clubhouse.” Lots of opportunities to practice our kindness in the real world. hehe My camera memory was full, but I hope to post some borrowed pics soon. Here is one of my Three Amigos after a full day of Friday fun.

This week had lots of Life School fun too. Two summer BBQ's, a "Girl's Only" playdate for moms and daughters and a swimming day at Miss Peggy's house, plus some special family time. Levi wanted some time just with Mamita, so we stayed home and worked on his Trio Block binder (post to come soon.) Papito took the other two out, and Ary was so excited to have Papi Time that they dressed alike. hehe