Summer School | Goals

Working through more of our weekly curriculum, I realized it would be good to lay down some goals for our summer for reference later. Most of what we are doing this summer is in preparation for the Fall. Getting in the habit now of planning weekly lessons, as well as working these activities into our daily schedule is one of the major goals I have with this summer adventure.

Most of the following goals are meant to foster learning in areas that Miss J is already showing interest naturally:

1. Character Traits (Fruit of the Spirit)

• Basic understanding of concepts 
• Memorize Galatians 5:22-23 (and maybe a couple other verses too like John 3:16)
• Ability to connect the concept to what it looks like in real life, for example:
• Patience: waiting for mommy to finish feeding Miss M, before getting a snack without yelling, demanding, etc.
• Gentleness: playing carefully with Miss M, not hitting or being rough
• Kindness: sharing toys with friends 
• Love/Peace: saying "I'm sorry" when you have hurt someone

2. Letter Sounds 

• Miss J already knows the ABCs and quite a few of the sounds. As a pre-cursor to reading, I want to focus more specifically on letter sounds beginning with the most frequently used. We will also include some daily reading lessons in a limited capacity depending on how she connects with the material. 

3. Numbers 

• Miss J already has a good handle on numbers 1-15, both visual recognition and counting. For summer, we want to work on counting to 20 along with the ability to recognize the numbers when not saying them in order. 

Summer School | The Fruit of the Spirit

We kicked off our summer preschool curriculum this week...well, I am calling it our curriculum, but really it is a lot of fun activities to drive home some basics in building character in Miss J. I feel like most often we are in behavior management mode, trying to get her to act a certain way when the real problem is heart change and we want this summer to be more focused on pointing her little heart to God. Do we want a child that behaves appropriately, is polite, and plays well with her sister and others? Absolutely! But just like me, as an adult, it will take heart change to build a solid foundation for good behavior to thrive. Enter the Fruit of the Spirit.

Source: beautifullyrooted.com via Amanda H. on Pinterest

Now, it's pretty clear to me that Miss J will not be able to exhibit all of these qualities from the heart because as the verses allude, they are gifts from God...it's the Spirit working inside us that allows all of us to produce this fruit. BUT, what I am hoping for is the opportunity with each week to present her need for a Savior. My hope is that with each Fruit we talk about, I am able to present all or part of The Gospel to her...and that a seed is planted in that little heart of hers. Because, seriously...I don't want to raise some drone of a child who just does what I say out of fear/behavior modification/consequences. I want to raise a daughter of the King who is going to change the world because of her love of Christ! Yep...so those foundations need to be built now, while her heart is pliable and open for me to help direct the course. I am praying for big things for her!! (And truth be told, it wouldn't hurt for me to be reminded of these as well! ha!)

In addition to the spiritual lessons each week, we will also be throwing in some regular preschool activities related to reading, writing, and math. It's never a bad thing to work on fine and gross motor skills...and since my girl looooooooves to get her craft on, there will be plenty of that as well!

Week 1 | Introduction

Verse Introduction | Wall Chart and Coloring/Painting Page

Lessons | Used these links for wordings or examples about good fruit/bad fruit and what each character trait means.
Known by Our Fruit -- Object Lesson
General overview of the Fruit of the Spirit (great wording for each week's lessons for individual fruit)

Song | Fruit of the Spirit by Go Fish Guys


Craft | 
Paint fruit and basket. Miss J glues fruit to basket. Printables here.
Coloring Pages - Printables here.
    


Activities | 
Fruit matching game - Fruit Pictures here -- Laminate and use for game.
Letter Sounds - Letter F

Reading Readiness - What is Different? Picture Matching
Pre-Printing Skills - Practice Tracing Lines



Praise System | Fruit of the Spirit Tree

While I don't want this to be about behavior modification, learning to identify the "fruits" (aka character traits) by her behavior will be important for laying this foundation. The Fruit of the Spirit Tree will be used as a way to praise Miss J when my husband or I see her exhibiting one of these traits. For example, when she shares a toy with her sister, she can hang the Kindness fruit on the tree. When she waits her turn for something without complaining or yelling, she can hang the Patience fruit on the tree and so on and so forth.  My hope is that she will be able to put together what each quality looks like in life rather than just a word on the page and it will begin to click.

Clean Eating in 2013!

Source: dryinkdesigns.wordpress.com via Erica on Pinterest

Wow! 2013...seems like only yesterday I was wondering how it could already be 2012. A lot can happen in a years time. I was sick for a good portion of time, had a baby, had surgery, and then all of the other little life stuff that happens all around the big life stuff. Because of everything that happened last year, we are making some changes around here. The first one up is our eating.



After my gall bladder issues, and since the removal of said organ, I have still noticed a difference in my digestive system. With a little  reading and research, I am figuring out that the removal isn't really the solution...that you have to address what is the underlying cause of the problems. So what better place to start than what you put into your mouth! ha ha! Over the course of January, we are doing a little experiment called the Whole30. It is somewhat of an elimination diet to discover is there are specific categories of foods that cause inflammation and other issues in your body. Once you know what causes issues for you, you can steer clear of those things. In essence, it is very similar to eating Paleo, but with a few more rules. I'm actually enjoying the food so far and have only had a few issues with what we need to eat or having cravings. My cravings right now are mostly for sugar which I am sure is due to starting right after all the wonderful holidays complete with pie, pie, and more pie consumption. ;)

 I hope to document the meals that we like as well as how I am feeling over the next few weeks so that we can continue with some better habits related to food.

Recipe Resources:

• Practical Paleo (This actually has a great month long menu plan that we are using as the base for our meals. It lays out breakfast, lunch and dinner, which is really helpful when you are starting out and have no idea what to cook. Also has a lot of great scientific info on food and the body.) 
• Well Fed (Another great recipe source with lots of yummy food.) 
• Nom Nom Paleo (Currently she is walking through a Whole30 recipe a day which is really enlightening...Paleo Mayo anyone?? Ummm, I say yes!!) 

Week 1:


Whole30 :: Day 1 :: Garlic Skirt Steak & Peppers (PP), Butternut Squash (WF)


Whole30 :: Day 2 :: thai plate with spaghetti squash (WF)


Whole30 :: Day 3 :: tuna/lettuce/evoo & balsamic


Whole30 :: Days 4-5 :: We had a family dinner this day so I didn't get a picture until the next day's leftovers for lunch which means several items aren't pictured.

Thanksgiving Meatballs (PP) with Rhubarb/Berry Chutney (not pictured), Autumn Chopped Salad, Cinnamon Coconut Butter Squash (PP), Jicama Home Fries (WF) (not pictured), Broccoli & Cauliflower soup (PP) (not pictured)

Day 5 dinner was a bust...we went to a birthday party and had a couple things not allowed...oh well.



So far I feel fine...besides the cravings, but J has told me that I am super irritable. I guess some of that can be from the detoxing from sugar. I have felt a little off -- and snappy -- but I wouldn't say it is ridiculous. But that is my own perspective I guess -- ha ha! Let's see how this next week plays out...

Spinach & Ricotta Stuffed Shells

Public Service Announcement: These are delicious. You should try them. :) Watch the amount of salt you add to the cheese mixture, but other than that...enjoy! Find the recipe here.

Grace

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:9

The idea that power comes from weakness seems so impossible. The world I live in promotes strength and having it all together -- don't show weakness or you will get eaten alive, or people will judge you, or choose to not associate with you because of it. We wear a mask of strength to keep others at arms length -- pride wants to hold us in this pattern believing that whatever imperfections we see in ourselves can be taken care of by us as well. We strive to keep up appearances before God and others...all the while forgetting...

His grace is sufficient...

Right here, right now if I stop and embrace the fact that I don't have it all together and invite Him in, it is only then that I am able to be real.I need the reminder that my inadequacies should draw me closer to Jesus rather than inward into my own little prideful hole.  Self-sufficiency...the "I can do this alone" mentality will always keep me from experiencing His presence and blessings fully.

Dependence on God first and foremost is the key to living an abundant life with less stress and ultimately better inter-personal relationships. I can't rely on myself...to grow spiritually, to make people like me, to have a great marriage, to love others (friends & enemies). I have to lean into Him and the more I do this, the more it will become second nature.