Rainy night in the sandpit

Well, not in the sandpit, thank goodness, but certainly some of the best (most) rain I've seen for a while.

We have been watching the waves run down the footpath outside the house. (It's after bedtime, but the girls have given up on bed and are watching the show.)

Had a huge hailstorm, which Sophie said made the road white right across. The hail on the top of the waves made it look like whitecaps down the footpath.

Lightning and Thunder also, of course.

Then some of them watched as a car slipped and crashed into our neighbour's car, which was parked on the street outside our house. Bern went out to talk to the guy. I phoned the neighbour and got him up to the street. (They live down a cul-de-sac.) The guy was apologetic - could hardly be anything else with all the witnesses (and number plate written down).

(It has been our car affected like this in the past - but our car was parked a bit high up to be hit tonight, and was protected by neighbour's car in any case. The guy would have wrapped him self round the power pole, which probably wouldn't have had as much 'give' in it!)

Glad Bern hadn't gone to bed yet.

Challenge quilts

Sophie and I have had a busy week (apart from all the normal things). Yesterday we had to submit the quilts for the Challenge for this year's quilter's guild exhibition.

The challenge was to interpret a playing card in a quilt of a given size. Each person who wanted to do the challenge was dealt 4 cards from a deck, and they had to choose one of them on the spot.

This was repeated until the deck was used up, although I think the guild issued more than a full deck of cards.

Here, in no particular order, is Sophie's quilt, and mine.

You can tell what the card was because we had to put the number and suit in the usual place for a playing card.

I saw a few other ones when we went in to drop the quilts off, and it's going to be a stunning exhibition.

This is only one small part of the exhibition, as there are also general quilts, which are judged under a whole range of categories, such as best use of colour, best appliqué, and so on.

Sophie and I both have another quilt to exhibit.

The exhibition opens on September 4 or 5, and will probably run for 10 days or so. I'll post the whereabouts closer to the time.

Sophie and Elanor Ice Skating

Sophie and Elanor have spent a few days in Christchurch with Nana and Poppa.

They don't get to go ice skating very often (we don't often go down there in Winter), but it's always good fun.


It was their first time flying without a parent (and our first time sending an unaccompanied minor on the plane). Note to self: arrive early (there's paperwork) and make sure the person picking them up has photo ID.

Blocks Workshop

Well, I've been busy all day today.

It was the day of the Rainbow in my Head workshop day, which is run in Wellington every two years. Over 700 people turn up for a keynote speaker and a choice of about 75 workshop. (They get three choices over the day.)

I bet you'll never guess what the workshop I ran was on.

Oh yes, you're right - Block Play!

The workshop was in the after-lunch slot, and had 23 participants, which is many more than I would usually have, so a wee conceptual challenge. However, it turned out very well indeed.

I invited the participants to choose some blocks at the start (some of the smaller ones), and build as we were talking. Then, if they were tired and tuned out they would get something out of it anyway.

In the second part I got them in groups of 3 and they built large structures, inspired by photos of both commonplace and crazy architecture which I had got from various sources.

(I suppose you could say that something like the Beehive is both commonplace (around here, anyway) and crazy...)

At a couple of points I had them reflecting on the process, and all sorts of discussion about providing for children's learning in centres all through.

Anyway, it all went very well, and I sold a few books into the bargain.

I didn't get to any other workshops myself, because (you'll never believe this...) I was sell at the Publications stand!

Inspired to build - book cover

I've just found a .gif file of the cover of my book - so here it is!

(Can't upload the words - sorry.)

Book Launch

Man-oh-man it has been a busy month!

Blogging has been rather pushed to the side during the month of May. Two big essays (both handed in during the last week of May - yay!), and the final running backwards and forwards with the design of my book to keep track of.

But, here's the result (assuming you don't want to read the essays...!) - me signing copies after the book-launch at Playcentre Conference in Auckland on 30 May.

It was wonderful to finally get to the podium with my book before an appreciative crowd - and at least part of that had to do with being at the finish line of the "May Marathon."

The book was very well received, and the stall sold out of the 300 copies they had brought to the event. I signed copies for my life. We had blocks on every table at the conference during the launch, and people were encouraged to build a construction. Block building, by adults and the children present, became a quiet side-theme for the ensuing two days.

We still have a lot of workmen around Brooklyn, though thankfully not so many just outside the house as before.

But the digger does sometimes do some work on the road outside, which still causes great excitement for the little girls.

I had my camera with me on a recent walk to playgroup, and I said to the girls to tell me if they wanted me to take a photo of anything.

We usually stop to check on progress on the building site across the road from playgroup, and the fence is a good (and safe) place to stand and watch.

Eva insisted that I take a photo of them watching the men, and then watched me to make sure I did!

Cutting and drawing

We have been doing lots and lots of drawing and cutting lately. The children tend to either make snips into the sides of a big piece of paper as Isla has here, or manage to cut or tear a strip and then cut piles of tiny pieces.

The children have also been doing a lot of collage at playgroup as they have been making the effort to provide collage materials every session. I've improved my own supply of collage materials too - stickers and gluesticks, etc. But often we don't get around to that at home.

Book - the Homework Myth

I have a new author I am reading at the moment, and I like his stuff.

He is an American educator called Alfie Kohn. I've got two books of his off Amazon in the last few weeks. The first was recommended by Bern, who had had it from the library - "Punished by Rewards: The trouble with gold start, incentive plans, A's, praise and other bribes." This book essentially debunks Behaviourism, which is a theory which says that people are only the sum total of their behaviours, and the best way to get them to do something is to train them by offering a 'goodie' for doing what you want, or a 'stick' for failing to do it.

He uses examples from teaching, raising children, and the workplace, and it's very readable. To sum up, he explains how extrinsic motivators (anything that's outside of the task or behaviour itself) only make people do a worse job, and take shortcuts - that is, do the minimum they can to get the 'goods'. Alternatively, if a person is intrinsically motivated (that task is worth doing for its own sake) then people are likely to do better, work longer and harder, and enjoy it more.

(Sounds a lot like me and reading education books!!! But then, I only read the ones I'm interested in.)

I highly recommend it. We own the book, so can lend it when we have finished.

The other book of this author's I'm reading is "The Homwork Myth: Why our kids get too much of a bad thing." Again, this is based on an American schooling model, but I don't think it's so far of what we have in schools here. In summary, 6-7 hours of school a day is actually quite long enough for kids to learn the academic things they need (although the teachers may have to make good use of that time). Time spent doing homework is usually time wasted because: 1) it is often 'practice' work, and either the child already knows how to do that task and doesn't need to practice, or they don't know how and the teacher really needs to be able to give them instant feedback, or 2) it takes up time the child could better use on activities of their own choice (like cooking a meal - in our house anyway - or reading for pleasure, or playing a board game), and especially the chance to make decisions about how to use their time.

Also, the author claims there is absolutely no research evidence that more hours doing homework helps kids to learn more or better. I haven't looked into the research myself.

Here's what I think about homework:
1. When your child is young, read to them every day. And when they get a bit older, keep reading to them every day. Also, let them see you reading (be a role model) and take them to the library so they can choose books. But this must always be pleasant. If it gets to be a chore, take a break and do something else.
2. Talk with your child. And listen. If this is a 'conversation', so much the better. 'Conversation' is a special kind of talking where each person's input depends on what the other person said in their turn. This means it includes so many high level thinking and emotive skills I don't think I could list them. The best time to have a conversation is when you are doing something else.

That's it.

Having said that, my kids' school gives homework, and every year the teachers say that they have some parents who want more homework, and some who want less. I'm in the second group. New entrants bring home a reading book every day, and that's just fine - since we were going to be reading anyway! If the child wants to read it, well and good. If not, just read it to them. That's just as good. (We would also read other books.) After all, they don't have to learn everything about reading this very day.

My favourite kind of homework the kids have had is 'choosing' homework. Sophie and Elanor often had this in year 3 and 4, and its a compromise to appease both sets of parents I suppose. In this, the child chooses a task to complete during the week. A long list of suggestions are given (like, 'bake a cake', or 'make a model', or 'read a book and write about it', or 'learn an instrument') but the kids can alternatively choose anything they like. They do have to write a few sentences about it, and 'evidence' is good (especially in the form of food to share with their table group). Sophie once made fudge, and we took a photo of it for her homework book (and took the fudge to school). Elanor once made a collage. Then she talked about it with her table group. Fabulous!

In high school, Katie and Rowena are also getting homework, but not as much as we were led to believe before they started the school (as far as I know). What is noticeable is that the subjects they like they will do more work for, and we have dinner table conversations about many of their subjects as a matter of course ("what are you doing in Maori lately?") which seems to head off any problems. All good so far anyway.

Highly recommended, and an easy to read book. He may be 'preaching to the converted' though, so I'd be interested to hear the impressions of someone whose kids were struggling.

(This post was a bit of a book chapter in itself - congrats to any reader who is still with it!)

Train trips

We have had a couple of trips to do with trains in the last two weeks.

Firstly, Cara, Grace and I took the bus to the train station to watch the trains come and go. If you go right up on the bridge (on the way to the stadium) you get a good view, and it's fully fenced, so the kids can safely run around.

Yesterday we went to the station again, but this time we took the train to Johnsonville! This is a great trip with little kids as there is lots to see, plenty of tunnels, and it's only 21 minutes. We had morning tea in the mall, and then came back again.

Cara has a strong interest in trains - Thomas & Friends especially! - and our train set gets lots of use. The girls are also interested in tunnels and tunnel shapes. So this trip was great extension of those ideas.

Shakespear Day

Today is Shakespear Kay for 6th formers at Katie's school. Here she is with her friend before school. Small groups from each English class are acting out a scene from a Shakespear play. I don't know who Hannah is being, but Katie is Lady McDuff. (She looks far too cheerful.)

The costume cost $40 to hire - not sure of the place as Kate got it herself. I could have made something suitable, but I would have needed a 'running start' - been able to see some examples, and possibly a pattern, and some spare time! In any case, it would have come in for about the same cost I suppose, but you get to re-use it if it's your own.

Also working on... block book

This is the other thing I have been busy with just lately. Getting photos for my block play book.

The manuscript went to the editor last month.

(When I say 'manuscript' it sounds quite substantial. To put it into perspective, this is a small book - about 8000 words, A5 format, and lots of photos. You can all have a copy for Christmas!)

I got it back this week, and now have to make changes. What I have just realised is that I need to have all the photos, with notes on where in the text I want them inserted, by middle of next week at the latest. This is so it can go to the designer, and be signed off shortly after that.

So I sat down at the start of the week and worked out what shots I had that are usable, and what other shots I still need. I went off to get some more photos on Monday morning, and will need to do so again tomorrow.

Of course, I can't just tell the kids what to build - I have to play, and wait and see what comes up. (So... I could tell them what to build, or build the things myself, but that's cheating!)

I've got a photographer working with me for the last few shots, and to do some editing. She's a friend of mine, and it's great to have someone to collaborate with.

We haven't got a good 'cover' shot yet though. Fingers crossed for tomorrow!