Many people are buzzing about the 7.0 earthquake that happened in Haiti a couple days ago. The devastation is widespread and tragic. SO MANY PEOPLE have died or are dying right now! I took the opportunity today to teach Ladan a little bit about it. Here's what we did:
I showed him a map of the earth's plates and the various ways that they move against, toward, and away from each other. We talked about the effects of this movement. Then we built a Lincoln Log house on a flat square lego plate, put some people and animals inside, and shook it. The house crumbled on the plate, and then everything fell off. The people were trapped under the rubble, and we couldn't even find the mother. We talked about what that would be like if I were trapped underneath our house and no one could find me. We talked about the poverty that existed in Haiti long before the earthquake and how that impacts their ability to recover.
Then I showed him real pictures on the internet of the people and places in Haiti. He did see piles of bodies, which may be a lot for a five-year-old... but it's real... and it's what five-year-olds there are dealing with. We didn't stare at the images for a long period of time like the kids there are having to do, but he did get a glimpse of what has happened.
We talked about all the kinds of ways that people in Haiti are going to need help, the most important of which is to know and trust the Lord of heaven and earth for their help and salvation. Then we prayed for the people of Haiti. We prayed for the people who are helping them. And we prayed that we would know if there is any way that we can help them.
And now Ladan is sitting in his comfortable, stable home making disgusting sounds with his Flarp. It is yet another reminder to me that one of the biggest dangers we face in America is complacency. We like to think we know what's happening in the world because we get a 30-second report on the evening news. We like to think we know something about poverty because we sometimes have to choose between buying a new accessory or a dinner out... and can't have both at the same time. To put this in perspective, I was listening to a missionary pilot talk on the radio yesterday about how quite a few people in Haiti eat mud just to have something in their empty stomachs. THAT is poverty. And that was BEFORE the earthquake.
May God be merciful to the people of Haiti as they attempt to recover!
For an interesting read, check out the following article by Dr. Albert Mohler: "Does God Hate Haiti?"
And if you're looking for a way to help the people in Haiti, may I recommend that you consider giving to one of the following organizations, who will not only help provide physical aid but will provide the people of Haiti with the Gospel of Jesus:
Baptist Haiti Mission
Samaritan's Purse
Missionary Aviation Fellowship
Compassion International
For His Glory Adoption Outreach
There are many others out there, but these are a few I know about and am convinced will make good use of the funds they receive to help with aid efforts.
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Showing posts with label education. Show all posts
Friday, January 15, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Starting School
Well, we started school again on Thursday. Ladan is now working on his 1st grade phonics/reading/handwriting/art program; Saxon 1 Math; his catechism and scripture memory program; and some fun and random science stuff. He's so fast at learning new phonics rules and figuring out new words! He's also great at addition and subtraction and is beginning to learn how to tell time on a "real" clock along with some very basic fractions. I was pretty surprised at how quickly he dove back in after two weeks off. Well, at least with regard to his understanding. He's still a bit distracted by his desire to play, which hopefully he's figuring out ends up stealing his time to actually play with the things he's pining after. Isn't that so true of many adults though? We sit and stare at what we want to be doing, and rather than just getting the mundane stuff over with so we can move on, we sit motionless chewing our fingernails and staring out the window. Well, I don't chew my fingernails, because I think that's gross, but you get the picture. The point is that he's doing great for the most part and just has to get back into structure mode.
One thing that's been really fun is that Ladan has been running up to me giving me totally random HUGE hugs much more often than normal for about a week now. I don't know what it's all about, but I'll take it!
He's learning to make sense out of so many things in the world, and his conclusions are often very observant and entertaining. For example, today he was eating an apple for his snack. He was just walking around the kitchen while I was doing dishes, and he said, "Mom, I really like apples because they're crunchy and sweet. And they have vitamins that are good for my body. But the seeds are NOT the vitamins. They're the part in the middle that we eat around and then throw away so we don't choke!" And a couple weeks ago I told him I needed to dust the television, and he said, "Don't you mean 'undust', Mom?" Well, yes, I guess that does make more sense, doesn't it?
For Christmas, Gabe received a copy of My Giant Sticker Activity Book. I went through this book with Ladan when he was three, and it really got him moving in the direction of paying attention to instructions and learning quite a few basics about spelling, numbers, vocabulary, fine motor skill development, etc. Well, when I started school with Ladan last Thursday, Gabe ran to find his new sticker book because he wanted to "start school" too! And boy, was he serious! He went from A through N in the alphabet section of the book, breaking only to run up and show Chet his "work" every couple pages. I finally had to stop him and tell him we'd do more the next day. He was so excited about it. My favorite part was when he got to the letter M. He said, "That's a letter M! It says 'Mmmmmm'. Marvewous!" I love that my three-year-old boy exclaimed "Marvelous!" all on his own. His great-grandma would be proud. It's one of her favorite words.
Sure enough, on Friday, Gabe went running for his sticker book to start school again. He finished the alphabet and was ready for more when I had to stop him again. Today he did the same thing. I was so disappointed that I couldn't help him with it today because so many things were going on, but I'm going to make it a point to work with him at least 3 times a week. It seems like he may be ready to start Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons this summer. For sure he'll be ready by the fall. I'm so excited that he's so excited! The only two things that can hold his focused attention for longer than 10 minutes are "doing school" and playing in a sink full of water (that still wins by a long shot seeing as how he literally will play in the sink with three toys for 2 hours or more at a time).
Gabe is a drama star! His favorite thing to do when he has the attention of a crowd is to recite the lines from Bambi when Thumper says, "Eating greens is a special treat. It makes long ears and great big feet. But it sure is awful stuff to eat. I made that last part up myself." He says all of this with the appropriate motions and then dives into a recitation of a monologue given by a caterpillar in the Veggie Tales move, Jonah. It's something about how Jonah is going to chase off a band of camel thieves, and in the process, he's going to break the heart of the woman he loves! [Huge gasp!] He has all of the appropriate motions with this as well. It's my goal to get this on video this week before he changes the way he does it. He's such a fun kid!
Claire is still a remarkably happy baby. She still throws up often enough, but it's SO MUCH BETTER than it was! She's very easy-going, which is a lifesaver for all of us. Just tonight, I found Gabe happily slapping her in the face with her new Sophie Giraffe, and she was just sitting there like nothing was going on at all. Thank goodness Sophie is made of very soft and pliable natural rubber, so she wasn't getting pelted in the face with something harmful... but you'd think that she would have at least tipped me off that something was going on. I guess Gabe's cheerful smile was enough to calm any nerves that may have been frazzled by the onslaught. She's starting to laugh every once in a while, and it's so cute! I hope we can get it on video soon.
As far as her motor development goes, she's able to grab and hold onto quite a few things. She definitely knows when she wants something and will go for it. My favorite is when she sees me and reaches out to grab both sides of my face and pulls me toward her so she can give me a big sloppy kiss on the face! She absolutely cannot stand tummy time, and she's content to just lay still on her back for LONG periods of time playing with the same toy or just staring at something, so she's not in any hurry to roll over it doesn't seem. Unless some major shift happens, she's definitely not going to be crawling by six months. And to that I say, "Praise the Lord!" I'm not ready for her to be mobile yet, so I'm fine if she wants to take her sweet time like her oldest brother. Well, actually, a balance between her two brothers would be ideal, but I'll take what I get as long as she's okay. She's starting to get better at holding herself in an upright position in her exersaucer. I still have to pack a little blanket in around her so she doesn't tip over, but she's able to stay up for a minute or two before I have to support her.
I regularly find her laying on her back with her left leg stuck straight out at a 45 degree angle. Random and kind of funny. She loves it when we tickle her feet and will stick her feet out to us when she wants to play. Speaking of her feet, they are some of the cutest little baby feet I have ever seen! They're so dainty! Claire is dainty herself, I guess. I take her in another couple days for a shot visit and a height/weight check, so we'll see how big she is then.
That's a little peek into the recent educational/developmental milestones the kids are making. We are so blessed to have healthy children who are growing and learning new things all the time! I do not take that for granted and realize it could change at any moment. We thank God for every day we have with these little ones! They are amazing! They point us regularly to the grace, mercy, and glory of God. Who else could create such intricate and unique individuals?
One thing that's been really fun is that Ladan has been running up to me giving me totally random HUGE hugs much more often than normal for about a week now. I don't know what it's all about, but I'll take it!
He's learning to make sense out of so many things in the world, and his conclusions are often very observant and entertaining. For example, today he was eating an apple for his snack. He was just walking around the kitchen while I was doing dishes, and he said, "Mom, I really like apples because they're crunchy and sweet. And they have vitamins that are good for my body. But the seeds are NOT the vitamins. They're the part in the middle that we eat around and then throw away so we don't choke!" And a couple weeks ago I told him I needed to dust the television, and he said, "Don't you mean 'undust', Mom?" Well, yes, I guess that does make more sense, doesn't it?
For Christmas, Gabe received a copy of My Giant Sticker Activity Book. I went through this book with Ladan when he was three, and it really got him moving in the direction of paying attention to instructions and learning quite a few basics about spelling, numbers, vocabulary, fine motor skill development, etc. Well, when I started school with Ladan last Thursday, Gabe ran to find his new sticker book because he wanted to "start school" too! And boy, was he serious! He went from A through N in the alphabet section of the book, breaking only to run up and show Chet his "work" every couple pages. I finally had to stop him and tell him we'd do more the next day. He was so excited about it. My favorite part was when he got to the letter M. He said, "That's a letter M! It says 'Mmmmmm'. Marvewous!" I love that my three-year-old boy exclaimed "Marvelous!" all on his own. His great-grandma would be proud. It's one of her favorite words.
Sure enough, on Friday, Gabe went running for his sticker book to start school again. He finished the alphabet and was ready for more when I had to stop him again. Today he did the same thing. I was so disappointed that I couldn't help him with it today because so many things were going on, but I'm going to make it a point to work with him at least 3 times a week. It seems like he may be ready to start Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons this summer. For sure he'll be ready by the fall. I'm so excited that he's so excited! The only two things that can hold his focused attention for longer than 10 minutes are "doing school" and playing in a sink full of water (that still wins by a long shot seeing as how he literally will play in the sink with three toys for 2 hours or more at a time).
Gabe is a drama star! His favorite thing to do when he has the attention of a crowd is to recite the lines from Bambi when Thumper says, "Eating greens is a special treat. It makes long ears and great big feet. But it sure is awful stuff to eat. I made that last part up myself." He says all of this with the appropriate motions and then dives into a recitation of a monologue given by a caterpillar in the Veggie Tales move, Jonah. It's something about how Jonah is going to chase off a band of camel thieves, and in the process, he's going to break the heart of the woman he loves! [Huge gasp!] He has all of the appropriate motions with this as well. It's my goal to get this on video this week before he changes the way he does it. He's such a fun kid!
Claire is still a remarkably happy baby. She still throws up often enough, but it's SO MUCH BETTER than it was! She's very easy-going, which is a lifesaver for all of us. Just tonight, I found Gabe happily slapping her in the face with her new Sophie Giraffe, and she was just sitting there like nothing was going on at all. Thank goodness Sophie is made of very soft and pliable natural rubber, so she wasn't getting pelted in the face with something harmful... but you'd think that she would have at least tipped me off that something was going on. I guess Gabe's cheerful smile was enough to calm any nerves that may have been frazzled by the onslaught. She's starting to laugh every once in a while, and it's so cute! I hope we can get it on video soon.
As far as her motor development goes, she's able to grab and hold onto quite a few things. She definitely knows when she wants something and will go for it. My favorite is when she sees me and reaches out to grab both sides of my face and pulls me toward her so she can give me a big sloppy kiss on the face! She absolutely cannot stand tummy time, and she's content to just lay still on her back for LONG periods of time playing with the same toy or just staring at something, so she's not in any hurry to roll over it doesn't seem. Unless some major shift happens, she's definitely not going to be crawling by six months. And to that I say, "Praise the Lord!" I'm not ready for her to be mobile yet, so I'm fine if she wants to take her sweet time like her oldest brother. Well, actually, a balance between her two brothers would be ideal, but I'll take what I get as long as she's okay. She's starting to get better at holding herself in an upright position in her exersaucer. I still have to pack a little blanket in around her so she doesn't tip over, but she's able to stay up for a minute or two before I have to support her.
I regularly find her laying on her back with her left leg stuck straight out at a 45 degree angle. Random and kind of funny. She loves it when we tickle her feet and will stick her feet out to us when she wants to play. Speaking of her feet, they are some of the cutest little baby feet I have ever seen! They're so dainty! Claire is dainty herself, I guess. I take her in another couple days for a shot visit and a height/weight check, so we'll see how big she is then.
That's a little peek into the recent educational/developmental milestones the kids are making. We are so blessed to have healthy children who are growing and learning new things all the time! I do not take that for granted and realize it could change at any moment. We thank God for every day we have with these little ones! They are amazing! They point us regularly to the grace, mercy, and glory of God. Who else could create such intricate and unique individuals?
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Proud of My Boys!
I've been attempting to edit one of Chet's papers for an hour and a half now, but I'm totally delirious and can't focus. I guess four hours of sleep last night didn't turn out to be enough to sustain me for a late night of academic paper reading tonight. Shocking!
I just thought I'd post a quick note to say I'm so proud of my boys... all of them! Chet's been working HARD to get through this semester. In about six weeks, he'll complete his last full semester. Then he's got two classes to finish up. He's totally exhausted and has a ton on his plate right now, but the end is in sight! He's such a hard worker!
Ladan and I finished lesson 16 in Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons today. He's reading some short words, some short sentences, and has been introduced to some picture interpretation over the course of the last few lessons. And he's TOTALLY LOVING IT!!!! He can hardly wait for his lesson every day, and he is so excited throughout each one. It's so much fun to see him learning and enjoying it so much. I forgot what he did the other day, but when he finished, I told him he did a really good job. He replied, "Yeah, I'm so proud of myself!" This may sound a bit puffed up to some of you, but I am so excited to see this new confidence coming out in him. We've worked and prayed long and hard for this, and it's finally showing up! Rather than hearing him say, "I can't," I see him backing up, thinking, and then trying again until he gets it.
Gabe has really made some big progress in the last few weeks with his letters also. I wasn't too sure if he was going to be into letters and sounds, but he's really blown me away. He stands at the refrigerator or the white board and points out all his letters. He still gets about 5 or so of them confused every once in a while, but considering that he only knew 5 letters total about a month ago, I'd say that's pretty great. And considering that he does it all voluntarily, I think it's REALLY great!
Learning is so much fun! And lest you think that my boys are the only ones doing the learning, I'll let you know that I too am catching on to new things. I had a chance to take Beth Bloom's senior photos yesterday. In preparation, Chet had to teach me a little bit more about our big flash. Beth, Kathy (Beth's mom), and I went out to a few fun spots around town to snap the photos. We had so much fun! I almost fell in the creek about five times, but thankfully I managed to stay on dry land. I had downloaded the 30-day trial of Photoshop Lightroom to play around with, and I had a blast using Beth's photos as a learning experience!
Then tonight I went to a meeting of current and potential homeschoolers at our church to learn more about how to homeschool on a tight budget. Homeschooling freaks me out in many ways... but every time I think about acquiring materials/supplies, taking time to learn or re-learn all that content myself in order to teach it, and then watching my kids' faces light up every time they learn something new, I realize it could the perfect combination of all the parts of school that were my favorites!!! Only the Lord knows if it's what we'll end up doing for sure, but I'm so thankful for the opportunity to learn from so many wise, experienced people here. My friend, Becky, is always telling me that I'm already homeschooling my kids, and she's right. It's just not structured-sit-down-and-do-worksheets homeschooling.
Ladan and Gabe are both having a great time singing. Their current favorite is "Holy, Holy, Holy". Ladan knows all the words and sings it along with his air guitar while he dances around. And Gabe apparently doesn't want to miss out on the fun, because he inevitably chimes in, "Woewee, woewee, woewee!" and then belts into an endless stream of babbling with the occasional clear syllable until finally at the end, when Ladan is shouting out, "Blessed Trinity," Gabe ends on cue with "i-tee!" as if he just sang the song as clearly as his older brother. Great!
Ladan is loving his Jesus Storybook Bible. We've been through it quite a few times already, but he still can't get enough of it. Whenever it's time to read together, he only wants to read his Bible. I can't argue with that. He saves his other books for his independent "reading" time. Tonight we were reading about God's message to Isaiah, and the story referred to the coming king as a servant. I asked Ladan if he knew what a servant was. He kind of stumbled around for a bit, so I explained that it's a person who helps another person. He replied, "Yeah, Jesus is that servant. He helped us because he died on the cross to take our punishment." Okay! I guess he knew right where this story was headed!
Gabe, on the other hand, tends to have a hard time sitting still for books that have any length to them. But that kid cannot get enough of prayer time. Especially before bed, he loves it when we hold him and whisper our prayers in his ear. He bows his head, snuggles close, and says, "Pay?" So we pray with him, and when we finish, he'll ask again. My prayer is that this time will provide a foundation for him and that he'll know without a doubt that the Lord is near and that He hears us.
I just thought I'd post a quick note to say I'm so proud of my boys... all of them! Chet's been working HARD to get through this semester. In about six weeks, he'll complete his last full semester. Then he's got two classes to finish up. He's totally exhausted and has a ton on his plate right now, but the end is in sight! He's such a hard worker!
Ladan and I finished lesson 16 in Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons today. He's reading some short words, some short sentences, and has been introduced to some picture interpretation over the course of the last few lessons. And he's TOTALLY LOVING IT!!!! He can hardly wait for his lesson every day, and he is so excited throughout each one. It's so much fun to see him learning and enjoying it so much. I forgot what he did the other day, but when he finished, I told him he did a really good job. He replied, "Yeah, I'm so proud of myself!" This may sound a bit puffed up to some of you, but I am so excited to see this new confidence coming out in him. We've worked and prayed long and hard for this, and it's finally showing up! Rather than hearing him say, "I can't," I see him backing up, thinking, and then trying again until he gets it.
Gabe has really made some big progress in the last few weeks with his letters also. I wasn't too sure if he was going to be into letters and sounds, but he's really blown me away. He stands at the refrigerator or the white board and points out all his letters. He still gets about 5 or so of them confused every once in a while, but considering that he only knew 5 letters total about a month ago, I'd say that's pretty great. And considering that he does it all voluntarily, I think it's REALLY great!
Learning is so much fun! And lest you think that my boys are the only ones doing the learning, I'll let you know that I too am catching on to new things. I had a chance to take Beth Bloom's senior photos yesterday. In preparation, Chet had to teach me a little bit more about our big flash. Beth, Kathy (Beth's mom), and I went out to a few fun spots around town to snap the photos. We had so much fun! I almost fell in the creek about five times, but thankfully I managed to stay on dry land. I had downloaded the 30-day trial of Photoshop Lightroom to play around with, and I had a blast using Beth's photos as a learning experience!
Then tonight I went to a meeting of current and potential homeschoolers at our church to learn more about how to homeschool on a tight budget. Homeschooling freaks me out in many ways... but every time I think about acquiring materials/supplies, taking time to learn or re-learn all that content myself in order to teach it, and then watching my kids' faces light up every time they learn something new, I realize it could the perfect combination of all the parts of school that were my favorites!!! Only the Lord knows if it's what we'll end up doing for sure, but I'm so thankful for the opportunity to learn from so many wise, experienced people here. My friend, Becky, is always telling me that I'm already homeschooling my kids, and she's right. It's just not structured-sit-down-and-do-worksheets homeschooling.
Ladan and Gabe are both having a great time singing. Their current favorite is "Holy, Holy, Holy". Ladan knows all the words and sings it along with his air guitar while he dances around. And Gabe apparently doesn't want to miss out on the fun, because he inevitably chimes in, "Woewee, woewee, woewee!" and then belts into an endless stream of babbling with the occasional clear syllable until finally at the end, when Ladan is shouting out, "Blessed Trinity," Gabe ends on cue with "i-tee!" as if he just sang the song as clearly as his older brother. Great!
Ladan is loving his Jesus Storybook Bible. We've been through it quite a few times already, but he still can't get enough of it. Whenever it's time to read together, he only wants to read his Bible. I can't argue with that. He saves his other books for his independent "reading" time. Tonight we were reading about God's message to Isaiah, and the story referred to the coming king as a servant. I asked Ladan if he knew what a servant was. He kind of stumbled around for a bit, so I explained that it's a person who helps another person. He replied, "Yeah, Jesus is that servant. He helped us because he died on the cross to take our punishment." Okay! I guess he knew right where this story was headed!
Gabe, on the other hand, tends to have a hard time sitting still for books that have any length to them. But that kid cannot get enough of prayer time. Especially before bed, he loves it when we hold him and whisper our prayers in his ear. He bows his head, snuggles close, and says, "Pay?" So we pray with him, and when we finish, he'll ask again. My prayer is that this time will provide a foundation for him and that he'll know without a doubt that the Lord is near and that He hears us.
Friday, September 26, 2008
How About a Nut?
I was just standing in the kitchen eating a few walnuts. Did you know that just 1/4 cup of walnuts provides a TON of omega-3 fatty acids? Well, Ladan walked in, and I asked him if he'd like a nut.
He replied, "Sure! I like nuts! They're good! I need protein." I wanted to just squeeze him at that moment! Isn't it amazingly exciting when a 4-year-old realizes that he has certain nutritional needs and that they can be supplied by a variety of food items?!?
We've completed the first 8 lessons in Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and Ladan is really enjoying it! He breezes through most of it, but there are little spots where he needs a little extra help sometimes. I'm so excited that I'm getting to help him eliminate these small errors before they compound and cause him big problems! He's already able to sound out some short words, and we only have a few more lessons before we start reading short sentences and working through some picture comprehension exercises.
He replied, "Sure! I like nuts! They're good! I need protein." I wanted to just squeeze him at that moment! Isn't it amazingly exciting when a 4-year-old realizes that he has certain nutritional needs and that they can be supplied by a variety of food items?!?
We've completed the first 8 lessons in Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and Ladan is really enjoying it! He breezes through most of it, but there are little spots where he needs a little extra help sometimes. I'm so excited that I'm getting to help him eliminate these small errors before they compound and cause him big problems! He's already able to sound out some short words, and we only have a few more lessons before we start reading short sentences and working through some picture comprehension exercises.
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