Hot New Author: Maya Jo Anderson

Yes, Maya has decided she is now an author. She loves reading, and is now reading well past the fourth grade level. So, she has decided she wants to write a book of short stories. We are really encouraging her, and has just completed her eighth entry! She was writing a story on the computer in Clay County as Seth and I were packing up all our stuff to head back home. She had to hurry the ending, but it's a pretty good one! Here it is:

Once upon a time there was a pretty butterfly who lived in the woods. She lived happily there. But one day a moth came and did not like the butterfly. So the moth thought that he was smarter then the butterfly. But the buttrefly already new his plan. So the butterfly thought that she would make a war with the moth. So the next morning the butterfly went to the moth,s house. The moth agreed to war and the butterfly won and moth was never seen again. THE END

I'll be sure to send you the link once her book is published. :D

Children: When They Leave the Nest

As most of you know, on Maya's latest report card, she made it on the high honor roll with all As.  She loves to read, and can learn many new things very quickly.  However, also on that report card was a "not so great" Conduct grade.  From what I gather, she talks during class, ignores some of her teacher's commands, and basically tries to be the center of attention.  (On a daily basis, her teacher gives the students one or two warnings, then gives strikes 1, 2, or 3 depending on the situation.)

I'm still a little shocked that I'm faced with this situation, but I must also find a way to deal with the problem.  So, we've adopted a new rule in our house: Get a strike during the school day, go to bed an hour early while everyone else is still awake.  Also, no electronics of any kind.  Get a strike 2 or 3, and the punishment escalates.  Think that will work?  We instituted it starting this week, so I guess we'll see soon enough.

I have also tried to think of ways to reward good behavior, so that she wants to follow the classroom rules.  I told Maya that once a week, she and I get an hour of "Maya and Mommy" time...no brother or sister to interrupt.  I figure this will give her some of the attention she is craving, as well as give me a chance to connect with her on a regular basis.

Any thoughts?  Any suggestions?  I'm definitely out of my element here, so any help would be greatly appreciated!

What Do You Think?

Parents - Are you aware that President Obama will be addressing K-6 students in their classrooms next Tuesday?  He is.


http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/academic/bts.html


How do you feel about this?  Just interested in your thoughts...

In the words of Jesus, "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world."

Yes, summer is officially over. School supplies line the aisles at all the department stores. Bedtime is rolled back an hour. And Mom is getting back into a routine. :)

Maya is beginning first grade, and I am plugging away at my degree in education. In a world where money is the goal, and school is the means to get there, how do we keep God at our center? How do we make our children separate from the world? As Jesus teaches in the 17th chapter of John, we live in this world. The difficult part is not being of the world. I'm looking for suggestions from you, but here are a few ways we have found at our home to keep Christ at the center.

Morning Devotions : I bought a devotional for kids, and we have begun reading this in the mornings. I have learned that my day starts so much better with prayer. Along the same lines, the kids' days go much smoother when they are reminded of the importance of God at the start of their day.

Nightly Bible Readings : For over a month now, Maya and Max have been anxiously awaiting our nightly Bible readings. They no longer go pick a book from the play room. They bring their Bibles, and we all read together. I think what makes this work best is that it is their idea.

Prayer : Obviously Max has never been forced to pray. :) He and Maya both have been taught to pray before every meal, to pray at bedtime, and to pray for forgiveness when they have hurt someone. It's important that they know that it isn't just Mom and Dad who are disappointed. God is always watching, and we should want to please Him. Remind your children to pray before lunch at school. The Lord can use them as a witness to others!

Communication : Preparing our children for school includes more than buying their school supplies. We should make sure they know exactly what we believe, and prepare them as best we can for opposition to that. Within our own friends and families, we have conflicting parenting styles. This is much more apparent within schools. We should be open and honest with our children, which (hopefully) will encourage the same communication from them.

Involvement : There are many organizations that encourage parental involvement. Take advantage of this to stay up-to-date on things going on at school. Make your voice heard. As my husband pointed out, we should try to be bold, yet humble. Also, try to read ahead in their textbooks to know what they are going to learn about inside the classroom.

Do you have any other suggestions? Let's try to encourage each other as we embark on another school year!

SHE LOVES ME!!!

Yes, ladies and gents, love abounds once again!  :)  While looking through Maya's papers in Monday's folder, I found the answer I had been anticipating: 

She loves me...She loves me not...

Although Maya's first year of school has been pretty uneventful, I find myself wondering what it is like inside that classroom every day.  Although I have spent the better part of 6 years at home with Maya Jo and know her every move before she makes it, I can't help but wonder what my little girl is like when she's away from my watchful eye.

Maya brings home her folder every Monday with all the previous week's work graded, and we spend the better part of an hour scrutinizing every piece of paper found within that folder.  Maya loves that time, as do I.  What I have learned is that Maya talks more freely about school time when she can control the conversation, instead of just answering my questions.  These pages give me a window into her classroom.  Maya Jo very proud of her work, and even enjoys the 'Extra Practice' pages Mrs. B. sends home with her so that she can work on her new cursive letters.  She has now read four books, and she has proudly lined them up on her desk in the play room.  Yes, Maya loves school, and all the benefits from learning to read and write.

On most occasions, inside Maya's folder I find that Mrs. B. has written notes on a couple of pages that lets me know how she's coming along with her school work.  For the most part, I see notes like, "Good job!" or "You can do better!" or something along those lines.  Maya, of course, reads those notes to me.  Occasionally, however there is a note that gives me a very clear picture of what is really going on.  For example, a few weeks ago, on the top of one of her papers were these words written inMrs. B' neatly lettered red pencil: "I love you too, Maya Jo!"  I asked Maya  why Mrs. B. would write that on her paper, and she showed me that on the back of almost every piece of work, she had written, "I ♥ miss  boss (that is how Mrs. B's name sounds to her!) in her best cursive writing.  Since then, I find that more often than not, those love notes are written on the back of her work.  

On a side note, I should mention that Maya Jo wears her heart on her sleeve…if she likes you, you know it.  If she doesn’t…well, that’s not too hard to figure out either.  :)

Last week, however, when Maya brought home her coveted folder, there were no notes to Mrs. B. on any of her papers.  “That’s odd,” I thought.  I wonder what happened?  As I thought about the previous week, it hit me.  On Tuesday, library day, I received a call from Mrs. B. explaining to me that Maya Jo had broken one of the library rules that day.  (Uh oh.)  And not only that, but that she had hit another girl because she was going to tell the librarian what Maya had done.  (I think we’re getting closer!)  I should also mention that Mrs. B. made this phone call from her desk, making sure Maya, and her classmates, heard every word of our conversation.  (Jackpot!)

Yes, I think this explains that absence of those endearing notes to her beloved teacher.  And this week?  Well...I guess we'll see on Monday when Maya brings home her folder.  I'm going to go on a limb and predict that the love is back, because Maya has informed several people this week that she is going to be a teacher when she grows up...a kindergarten teacher.