Sweet Dreams

Bedtime

Sometimes when I get into bed

And cannot go to sleep,

And after all my prayers are said,

And I have counted sheep,

I call to Mother, and I say,

"A drink of water, please."

She knows that I'm not thirsty, and

I only want to tease.

And so I laugh when she comes in

And opens wide the door,

She knows I only want to kiss

And hug her just once more.

~Kate Cox Goddard

I'm sure this situation sounds familiar to all of us.  Despite the never ending urgency children exhibit during the day, they sure do know how to drag out the bedtime routine!

And perhaps we should take our cue from them on this one.  It takes quite a bit for children to settle their bodies and minds down at the end of the day.  You can't just expect then to plop into bed and go to sleep.  So make bedtime a time of slowing down.  Of course, it helps a great deal to have a predictable daily rhythm to every day.  Then bedtime won't come as such a sudden surprise.  ("What?  Bedtime already?)

 

A bedtime ritual can ease the transition from busy day to peaceful night.  The book, Seven Times the Sun has lovely rituals for bedtime and any other time of day.  If your bedtimes (or days in general) are hectic, than I strongly recommend reading this.  It's inspiring.

Here's how bedtime goes at our house:

~after dinner, wash up and brush teeth (we put some quiet "bedtime" music on at this point)

~story time (about 20 minutes.  One story for my 3 YO son, and one chapter from a book for my 5 YO daughter)  I'm firm about limiting the number of stories here.  Too many can counteract the settling effect.

~bathroom visit

~bedtime

Now, the bedtime rituals for my 3 year old son are different from my 5 year old daughter's.  But both are simple and pretty quick, so I don't mind having different routines.  Each child will have different needs at bedtime.

My son, being three, is one who has more trouble physically slowing down, so his routine incorporates a more tactile approach.

~after bathroom visit, hop into bed

~turn off lights and light bedtime candle

~while I recite a poem, I give him a firm back rub (or scratch!) Sometimes a firm leg rub if he's feeling wiggly.  This can help a lot.

~Blow out candle (he likes to make a wish)

~Kisses and hugs

~Blow kisses while I'm at his door

My daughter, being five, knows when she's ready for bed, and almost never resists bedtime.  I take a different approach with her since she's one to lie there thinking about all sorts of things once she's in bed.  (Just like me!)

~after bathroom visit, turn on night-light and hop into bed

~turn out bedside lamp and light candle

~I read her a poem from her Sweet Dreams cards (more about those later) and tuck it under her pillow

~blow out candle

~hugs and kisses

~wind up the musical bear (which was mine when I was little.  Very special for her)

~blow kisses at the door

Both routines are simple, meet each child's needs, and are done in under five minutes.

So often I hear other parents complain about bedtime and the three big things that I notice when they describe their days are:

~The child is not getting enough physical activity.  Outside.  For at least three hours a day.  Yes, really.  Indoor play is not enough.  Children need to run, jump, climb, and really move around.  Sitting inside with toys, while it is valuable play, is not physical play.

~too much media.  Especially at night.  I could site a bazillion studies on the effects of TV on a child's brain here, but I'll let you Google that on your own.  Let's just say it is counter-productive to a child's brain development, and watching TV will not help your child truly settle down.

~there is a lack of structure/rhythm during the child's day.  Daily rhythms are so important for a child, and adhering to one will help you tenfold in getting through the day with minimal transition issues with your child.

Bedtime can be a peaceful and reassuring time for bonding with your child.  It can be something special that your children will remember fondly as they grow.  For me, it's a time to spend a few minutes alone with each child, treasuring them and truly seeing who they are.  Children are so peaceful at sleep, and watching them sleep can be a reminder of just how little they still are, despite the fact that they're growing, in my opinion, way too fast!

Here are some bedtime related items that we love:

Sweet Dreams:  36 Bedtime Wishes  These are beautiful little cards.  Each one has a vintage children's book illustration one one side, and a lovely poem on the other.  I've been using these since my daughter was two, and you wouldn't believe how many poems, some quite long, that she's memorized from hearing these every night.  These make a great stocking stuffer, tooth fairy gift, or Easter basket treat.

Seven Times the Sun

Beyond the Rainbow Bridge

You Are Your Child's First Teacher

Simplicity Parenting

All these books offer valuable suggestions for simplifying your (and your child's) life and providing a strong daily rhythm that will benefit the entire family.

The Wonder of Lullabies

Dreamland:  World Lullabies and Soothing Songs

Celtic Dreamland

These are our favorite three cds for bedtime.  The kids will often request one of the Dreamland cds during the day, just for some quiet time.

August Nature Table

maggie and milly and molly and may

~E.E. Cummings

maggie and milly and molly and may

went down to the beach (to play one day)

and maggie discovered a shell that sang

so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles, and

milly befriended a stranded star

whose rays five languid fingers were

and molly was chased be a horrible thing

which raced sideways while blowing bubbles; and

may came home with a smooth round stone

as small as a world and as large as alone.

For whatever we lose (like a you or a me)

it's always ourselves we find in the sea

I haven't had time for much blogging this summer, but I did manage to get together our August nature table after a recent trip to the beach.  August is usually a month of beach trips for us, and probably the busiest month of the summer.  We're trying to enjoy the summer one day at a time, although thoughts and plans for the upcoming school year are bubbling up to the surface of my mind each day. 

I hope you are all enjoying the last few weeks of summer vacation before commencing another fabulous and creative school year!



Our sea themed nature table.







I made little sailboats with shells and twigs. 
The twigs are stuck on with modelling wax
and I sewed on the little sails.




The squid, turtle, and jellyfish are happily
drifting along in the current.




And on the sea floor rests a little mermaid among
her  treasures.



June Nature Table

There are fairies

at the bottom of our garden!

They often have a dance

on summer nights:

the butterflies and bees

make a lovely little breeze.

and the rabbits stand about

and hold the lights.

Did you know that they could sit

upon the moonbeams

And pick a little star to make a fan,

and dance away up there

in the middle of the air?

Well they can.

~Rose Fyleman

 First, I must apologize for the timing of this post!  The month's half over!  At any rate, we decided that this poem would be a great inspiration for our June nature table as this is the month of the Summer Solstice.  We could just imagine such goings on under the moonlight our little yard, perhaps near the apple trees where S is always busy building fairy houses and leaving special things for the fairies and gnomes.  Enjoy, and Happy Summer!



The whole nature table, with the
poem written on a little card below.



...the butterflies and bees make a
lovely little breeze...



...and the rabbits stand about
and hold the lights...



...did you know that they can sit upon
the moonbeams, and pick a little
star to make a fan...

 




May Nature Table

May

May's a month of happy sounds-

the hum of buzzing bees,

The chirp of little baby birds,

and the song of a gentle breeze.

~Holly Hobbie

I finally finished our May nature table last night.  A few days late, I know, but it's such a busy time of year with garden planting, yardwork, and spring cleaning!

I needle-felted the little Maypole maidens and the little busy bugs.  The flowers came from our yard:  Muscari (grape hyacinth), geraniums, and blossoms from one of our apple trees.

Happy May!

Now I Know My ABCs

As some of you may know, I teach my 5 1/2 year old with a mix of kindergarten and first grade curriculum.  At age four, she was an early reader and writer, and I didn't really see any point in holding her back until she was seven before introducing letter instruction.  While this goes against the typical Waldorf timeline, I made a judgement call and decided she was ready.  We took a gentle approach though, and she enjoyed her work immensely.

We began instruction after our Christmas break.  A few days before we started work in her Main Lesson Book, we started reading The Wise Enchanter: A Journey Through the Alphabet.  Here's a brief description of the book from Amazon.

  "Words are disappearing from the world. Something is lurking in the deepest waters, devouring all the words that are no longer used. No one has noticed, but the world is slowly growing darker. For many years no children have come to the Enchanted Islands in search of Wisdom, and the Wise Enchanter is growing old. Four children from the corners of the earth have been sent on a quest to rediscover each letter, unlock the treasure of language, and thereby grow wise. Time is running out; if the children do not reach the castle of the Wise Enchanter in time, Wisdom and light may vanish from the world altogether."

I should also mention that during the story, as the children rediscover each letter, they make a visual record of it in their "magic book."  These drawings are living images of the letters found in their surroundings over the course of their journey.  I'm sure you can see how this would fit in so well with creating our own "magic book" as our Main Lesson Book.  This proved to be such a great way to introduce this six week lesson block.  We read one chapter each day during story time, after lunch.  Each chapter is based around a letter of the alphabet.  Even though our lessons didn't always match up with the letter of the day in the story, it didn't seem to cause any kind of confusion at all. 

Our first lesson went as follows:

-During circle time, introduce a letter (for example here we'll say "B"; vowels come much later)

-Recite a tongue twister to go with the letter [e.g. "A big, black bee bit a big, brown bear.  The big, brown bear bled blood"]

-Read a story, usually one of Grimm's, containing an image to go with the letter [We read Snow White and Rose Red, which has a bear in it]

Day two and the following days would proceed as follows:

-During circle, review previous day's tongue twister and story.

-Introduce a new letter and corresponding tongue twister.

-Read story to go with the new letter.

-In main lesson book draw a picture for the previous day's (in this case, the letter "B" story.  We drew a big, brown bear inside a letter "B.")
-I also integrated some handwriting practice into this since S was already writing.  We also included lowercase letters, which are normally introduced much later in a true Waldorf setting.

When the book was complete, we hand bound it together.  Fortunately, I had taken a book making class in college, and was able to bind it in a reasonably proficient manner.  S was very excited to go to the art store to pick out some beautiful handmade paper for the cover and end papers.  It really made her feel so proud of her six weeks of hard work to see the book beautifully bound.  She sat in her rocking chair for quite a while reading through it and reciting all the tongue twisters again.

And here's how it turned out!



The front cover of the book.  S wanted her book to
look magical too, so she just had to go for some paper
with a little gold on it!  The end papers inside are
plain metallic gold as well.  Magical, indeed!



A big, black bee bit a big, brown bear.
The big, brown bear bled blood.
The image is also suitable for the story we
read for the letter "B", which was Snow White
and Rose Red.
This was the first picture she drew for her book.

This is the handwriting practice page which follows the picture
in the book.

Here is the "U" page.  I had a hard time coming up
with a fairy tale for this one so I told
The Pied Piper of Hamlin.  I was surprised that
I remembered the story from my own childhood!
Both kids had fun following me around the house
as I told the story and pretended to play my flute
to the children who follow him at the end of the story.

You're right, "flute" doesn't begin with "U."  But the (oo)
sound conveys the feeling and mood of the letter, as well
as capturing the musical quality of it when spoken or heard.
Like when someone plays the flute, for example.

We are currently in the midst of our introduction to numbers as a quality, and are creating a similar, although somewhat smaller, Main Lesson Book.  I'll post the results of that endeavor when it has been completed!

Easter is Coming!

Easter is coming!  Are you ready?  Time to start growing that Easter grass for your baskets, if you haven't already.  It's a great eco-friendly alternative to that awful plastic traditional "grass."  Plus, it's fun to watch it grow, and it only takes two weeks for a nice full basket!

Here's how we did ours:

Get yourself some baskets, potting soil, wheat berries,
plastic (we used garbage bags), and some kids who
like to get dirty.  Line the baskets with plastic so
you don't ruin the baskets and so they won't leak
when you water them.  Fill with soil and sprinkle a generous
amount of wheat berries in a nice layer on top.

Cover with about 1/4"  or 1 cm soil and pat done lightly. Water until soil is damp.

Trim plastic liner to about 1/2" above soil line.  You won't even
see it once the grass starts growing.

Spray with water twice a day until seeds sprout.
Here they are just four days after we planted them.
Once they've sprouted just water them enough
to keep the soil moist.

It grows fast!  Here it is at only six days!

And here we have our baskets at two weeks.  I actually had
to give the grass a trim by then!  In the bigger basket, I
stuck in some twigs from the yard to hang our egg
ornaments.

If I had had some foresight, I would have popped in a few flower seeds or crocus bulbs, too.  Maybe next year...

If growing your own grass isn't an option for whatever reason, here are still some great alternatives for filling your baskets:

-green cotton or wool yarn

-green or natural wool roving or fairy wool

-shredded green or multi-colored paper (run some construction paper through a shredder!)

Does the Easter Bunny hide eggs at your house?  He does at ours, but they're not filled with candy (who needs a sugar rush/crash at 7am?).  This year he'll be hiding eggs filled with polished crystals and stones.  And they won't be plastic eggs either.  This year they'll be in real eggs, which have been blown out, dyed, had a hole trimmed in them, filled with treats and sealed back up with tissue paper.  This is a bit of an experiment on my part, so I'll let you know how it goes.  If it goes well, I'll post a how-to.  

We have added some bunny stories to the kids' bookshelf in addition to the other spring books.  Marshmallow, The Easter Egg, and The Golden Egg are some of our favorites, and are not all specifically Easter books.  I heard a rumor that the Easter bunny will also be dropping off Reg Down's new Tiptoes book, The Starry Bird, which is an Easter story.

Have a warm, renewing, and fun Easter!

April Nature Table

We change our Nature Table pretty frequently, but not as often as I'd like during each season.  So to keep it fresh and interesting, I've decided to become a little more diligent about changing it at the beginning of every month.  This has become part of our Circle Time on the first day of each month. 

We use the circular Grimm's calendar (really the best calendar for kids, such a great visual of the circle of days/weeks/months) and light a candle on the first day of the month while we recite a little poem about that particular month.

So for April, I took a poem from a book I've had since I was a little girl, Holly Hobbie's Through the Year Book.  Here is the poem:

April

April is a rainbow month

of sudden springtime showers,

Bright with golden daffodils

and lots of pretty flowers,

Our Nature Table reflects the feeling of that poem, but was also influenced by actual events in nature, of course, like the emergence of flowering bulbs and spring grass.  We have only three little flower children right now, but we'll be adding to them over the course of the month.  The following is a picture of the table thus far.  Enjoy, and I hope this inspires you with some ideas for your own Nature Table!

Our April Nature Table
with King Sun up on his cloud up top,
rainbow and sheep in the middle with
modelling wax swans in the stream,
and flower children sprouting from the soil below.
The postcard is from a set, one for each month.