Skip to content

Satori Smiles

Archive

Category: Subjects

Bird Journal

Mar 9
Nature Study

Just wanted to share Satori’s new bird journal which we’ll be using as we read The Burgess Bird Book for Children.  You may notice below that she re-did some of her words and drawings, I put on a white sticker so she could redo them (just in case you’re wondering why 3 parts look strange). The below binder will house information about the birds we’re learning in the book.  We should actually make a new cover page.

Each chapter I’m printing out several bird photos of the bird we’re studying.

Then if we find a bird coloring page we’ll do that first while taking care to notice that bird’s particular markings. I’m taking one  of your suggestions and also printing off a fact list, map, and other helpful stuff. Even if she can’t read it all this year, one day she’ll look back and read it all with pride. :)

Here is Satori’s very first drawing, it is Jenny the House Wren.


This is Bully the House Sparrow. I blurted out that it looked more like a turkey, so she didn’t want it in her book. I gave her a quick bird anatomy/drawing lesson and she wanted to try again.

Here’s her second attempt of which she is more proud. She traced a drawing I had printed out, then used black marker to outline it. Finally, colored it in with her Lyra Ferby pencils.

I thought it would be cool if both Satori and I could draw realistic looking birds, so we’re doing a quick study of simple bird anatomy. I printed off this “Parts of a Bird” PDF page several times, and we’ll refer to it several times until the parts of a bird become second nature. Hopefully being familiar with the parts of a bird will help both of us draw future birds.

Here’s a interactive Bird Anatomy page that deserves a look! After  you play with that page, surf around for more fun stuff.

I also started printing off bird photos. These are all 4″x4″ and then laminated. On the bag are stickers with some facts about the bird.

Finally, another great idea I got from you readers is a bird tree to post these birds on! I’m still thinking about how to do this. Of course once it’s up we’ll share the pictures!

4 Comments , Read more

A Burgess Bird Book Companion

Mar 8
Nature Study

The following is a sneak peek at a document I’ve been working on this past weekend.

A Burgess Bird Book Companion

I’ve put together a list of resources to complement this fantastic book. This companion document is not affiliated with the Burgess Bird Book, it is simply a handy reference to list related links. I’ve linked to the top bird identification sites and to free coloring pages. I couldn’t resist looking up the Audubon plush birds with sound calls, we have a few in our collection.

The Burgess Bird Book For Children by Thornton W. Burgess – This book is in the public domain and I’ve provided links to read the entire story free online, which you can print out or read on-screen. If you want a physical copy of the book, the link above will take you to a newly illustrated, full-color version. There is also a Kindle version, which has B&W illustrations.

Each chapter describes a story about Peter Rabbit and the birds that live around him. The chapter covers two birds on average. Children will learn their physical appearance, characteristics, eating and nesting habits, behavior, songs, and calls.

Chapter List

  1. Jenny Wren Arrives
  2. The Old Orchard Bully
  3. Jenny Has a Good Word for Some Sparrows
  4. Chippy, Sweetvoice, and Dotty
  5. Peter Learns Something He Hadn’t Guessed
  6. An Old Friend in a New Home
  7. The Watchman of the Old Orchard
  8. Old Clothes and Old Houses
  9. Longbill and Teeter
  10. Redwing and Yellow Wing
  11. Drummers and Carpenters
  12. Some Unlike Relatives
  13. More of the Blackbird Family
  14. Bob White and Carol the Meadow Lark
  15. A Swallow and One Who Isn’t
  16. A Robber in the Old Orchard
  17. More Robbers
  18. Some Homes in the Green Forest
  19. A Maker of Thunder and a Friend in Black
  20. A Fisherman Robbed
  21. A Fishing Party
  22. Some Feathered Diggers
  23. Some Big Mouths
  24. The Warblers Arrive
  25. Three Cousins Quite Unlike
  26. Peter Gets a Lame Neck
  27. A New Friend and an Old One
  28. Peter Sees Rosebreast and Finds Redcoat
  29. The Constant Singers
  30. Jenny Wren’s Cousins
  31. Voices of the Dusk
  32. Peter Saves a Friend and Learns Something
  33. A Royal Dresser and a Late Nester
  34. Mourner the Dove and Cuckoo
  35. A Butcher and a Hummer
  36. A Stranger and a Dandy
  37. Farewells and Welcomes
  38. Honker and Dippy Arrive
  39. Peter Discovers Two Old Friends
  40. Some Merry Seed-eaters
  41. More Friends Come with the Snow
  42. Peter Learns Something About Spooky
  43. Queer Feet and a Queerer Bill
  44. More Folks in Bed
  45. Peter Sees Two Terrible Feathered Hunters

1. Jenny Wren Arrives

“Introducing the House Wren”

2. The Old Orchard Bully

“The English or House Sparrow”

3. Jenny Has a Good Word for Some Sparrows

“The Song, White-throated and Fox Sparrows”

4. Chippy, Sweetvoice, and Dotty

“The Chipping, Vesper, and Tree Sparrows”

5. Peter Learns Something He Hadn’t Guessed

“The Bluebird and a Robin”

Product Details

Product Details

6. An Old Friend in a New Home

“The Phoebe and the Least Flycatcher”

7. The Watchman of the Old Orchard

“The Kingbird and the Great Crested Flycatcher”

8. Old Clothes and Old Houses

“The Wood Pewee and Some Nesting Places”

9. Longbill and Teeter

“The Woodcock and the Spotted Sandpiper”

10. Redwing and Yellow Wing

“The Red-winged Blackbird and the Golden-winged Flicker”

11. Drummers and Carpenters

“The Downy, Hairy, and Red-Headed Woodpeckers”

12. Some Unlike Relatives

“The Cowbird and the Baltimore Oriole”

13. More of the Blackbird Family

“The Orchard Oriole and the Bobolink”

14. Bob White and Carol the Meadow Lark

“The So-called Quail and the Meadow Lark”

15. A Swallow and One Who Isn’t

“The Tree Swallow and the Chimney Swift”

16. A Robber in the Old Orchard

“The Purple Martin and the Barn Swallow”

17. More Robbers

“The Crow and the Blue Jay”

18. Some Homes in the Green Forest

“The Crow, the Oven Bird, and the Redtailed Hawk”

19. A Maker of Thunder and a Friend in Black

“The Ruffed Grouse and the Crow Blackbird”

20. A Fisherman Robbed

“The Osprey and the Bald-headed Eagle”

21. A Fishing Party

“The Great Blue Heron and the Kingfisher”

22. Some Feathered Diggers

“The Bank Swallow, the Kingfisher, and the Sparrow Hawk”

23. Some Big Mouths

“The Nighthawk, the Whip-poor-will and Chuck-will’s-widow”

24. The Warblers Arrive

“The Redstart and the Yellow Warbler”

25. Three Cousins Quite Unlike

“The Black and White Warbler, the Maryland Yellow-Throat and the Yellow-Breasted Chat”

26. Peter Gets a Lame Neck

“The Parula, Myrtle and Magnolia Warblers”

27. A New Friend and an Old One

“The Cardinal and the Catbird”

28. Peter Sees Rosebreast and Finds Redcoat

“The Rose-breasted Grosbeak and the Scarlet Tanager”

29. The Constant Singers

“The Red-Eyed, Warbling, and Yellow-throated Vireos”

30. Jenny Wren’s Cousins

“The Brown Thrasher and the Mockingbird”
Product Details

31. Voices of the Dusk

“The Wood, Hermit and Wilson’s Thrushes”
Product Details Product Details

32. Peter Saves a Friend and Learns Something

“The Towhee and the Indigo Bunting”
Product Details

33. A Royal Dresser and a Late Nester

“The Purple Linnet and the Goldfinch”
Product DetailsProduct Details

34. Mourner the Dove and Cuckoo

“The Mourning Dove and the Yellow-billed Cuckoo”
Product Details

35. A Butcher and a Hummer

“The Shrike and the Ruby-throated Hummingbird”
Product Details

36. A Stranger and a Dandy

“The English Starling and the Cedar Waxwing”
Product Details

37. Farewells and Welcomes

“The Chickadee”
Product Details

38. Honker and Dippy Arrive

“The Canada Goose and the Loon”
Product Details Product Details

39. Peter Discovers Two Old Friends

“The White-breasted Nuthatch and the Brown Creeper”
Product Details

40. Some Merry Seed-eaters

“The Tree Sparrow and the Junco”
Product Details

41. More Friends Come with the Snow

“The Snow Bunting and the Horned Lark”
Product Details

42. Peter Learns Something About Spooky

“The Screech Owl”

43. Queer Feet and a Queerer Bill

“The Ruffed Grouse and the Crossbills”"
Product Details

44. More Folks in Bed

“The Pine Grosbeak and the Redpoll”
Product Details

45. Peter Sees Two Terrible Feathered Hunters

“The Goshawk and the Great Horned Owl”
Product Details
9 Comments , , Read more

Pencil Grip

Mar 7
Handwriting, Other Products

We’ve taken a step back in our handwriting progress, but it should help out in the long run. This year I’ve noticed that Satori doesn’t have extremely neat handwriting, especially at a point where I thought she’d be improving. This became apparent to me after having local girls her age over, who demonstrated very neat and in control handwriting. Then I saw in one of the photos I took that Satori’s grip was all wonky.

I then discovered that I myself had an incorrect grip! Actually I have two different grips, both not good. I’m not too worried about myself, as I mostly use the keyboard now and the little handwriting I do is still neat and legible. But this is an opportunity to correct Satori’s grip. She is really working hard at it now. We used all of Handwriting Without Tears tips on using a correct grip. It got a little frustrating trying to get everything right. Poor girl might get turned off of writing at this stage if I push too hard though.

A few months ago I believed that pencil grips were unnecessary, but we need some kind of help! So I found these colorful pencil grips and got a bag of 6 – The Pencil Grip Crossover Grip Ergonomic Writing Aid. They have little flaps so your thumb and index finger stay in the right place. There’s a comfy spot for your middle finger to rest, and together, it all promotes a proper tripod grip. It is ergonomically correct for both right- or left-handed people.

Both Satori and I are using them. For me, my fingers just fall right into perfect place. My thumb won’t cross over anymore. For Satori, all I have to remind her is to keep her middle finger tucked under, as she used to keep it up on top. We’ve been using them for just over a week now, and they are fun and feel good! Time will tell if Satori can get this new grip ingrained in her head and use a correct tripod grip from now on.

We’re also working on tilting our paper up on the right side while writing. Here she is doing some copywork for Writing With Ease, a program we are growing to love.

4 Comments , Read more

The Latin-Centered Curriculum

Mar 2
Curriculum Musings, Geography

Have you noticed a lot of geography posts lately?

I recently finished reading The Latin-Centered Curriculum by Andrew Campbell. I had to purchase it used, but I did get the second edition version that was written in the past year. You can get new in stock at the Memoria Press website, including an eBook version.

It has given me several things to think about for our classical education style of homeschooling. I already knew we have been following more of a neo-classical style, but wanted to see what this book had to offer. I won’t be following it 100%, like everything, we’ll take what we like and leave what we don’t. I appreciated the inclusive manner the book spoke to me, and am considering adding a few more subjects to our lineup now. (Namely geography and I’m still debating about a few more I’ll post on my self-education blog soon.) I read this book to help convince myself to include Latin in our homeschool subjects, but mostly what I came away with was the urge to simplify and streamline our studies. Due to my personality, I would find it hard to let go of a subject, but now I’ll be looking at all our subjects with a critical eye and deciding whether they are necessary. Ironically, mostly I came away compelled to add several new subjects to our already full schedule!

Anyway, now you may understand why the sudden urge for geography in our household! We now have geography books, workbooks, coloring books and more coming in the next few weeks and I hope to officially study geography once a week from now on. Satori has missed studying it, as we did a quick burst of geography lessons a few months ago. I’m very open to any suggestions at this point – geography for the K-2 years.

Geography has been a priority for me all along, I just figured we’d include geography in our history studies. For Christmas, all I wanted was a high quality globe. Thank you Mom and Dad (Satori’s grandparents)! We totally love it. We carefully chose a globe that will reflect our family’s style. We wanted a colorful, raised relief large globe. One that would allow both adults and children to stand up, twirl around easily, and familiarize ourselves with the world.

So our Trafalgar globe is now a great addition to our household.

If the globe ever needs an update, we can get a new ball at a greatly reduced cost.

14 Comments , , , Read more

LeapFrog Explorer Smart Globe

Mar 2
Geography

Last week on one of the forums I frequent, someone mentioned this globe and after clicking her Amazon link, there was a message saying I had purchased it last February. Indeed, we did get our LeapFrog Explorer Smart Globe just over a year ago and it has been a delightful homeschooling tool. Amazon’s price seems to have more than doubled though! Here it is at on WorldGlobes.com for $119.98.

At this point, Satori is just starting to learn about Geography, so she can’t use all its interactive features yet. I am thinking about adding more Geography to our weekly lessons, maybe just one day a week. I gave her a whirlwind tour of Geography a few months ago, and she loved it.

Today we reviewed all the continents and oceans and played the Leapfrog Globe game. Here Satori is listening for the next Continent that she’ll have to find! She now has all her continents and oceans memorized.

This globe is fun for the whole family, and we’re looking forward to getting more and more use out of it every year!

2 Comments none Read more

World Map Shower Curtain – Write-On/Wipe-Off map

Mar 1
Geography, Other Products

Last week we put up a World Map Shower Curtain in the bathroom attached to our Learning Loft. I only regret that we hadn’t done this sooner! You can find this shower curtain at Target for just $14.99 or online on Amazon (ships from Target). Here’s our view while sitting on the toilet, it is such a great tool to catch up on some geography when you’re sitting captive. :)

It’s very easy to read and it doubles as a huge write-on/wipe-off map of the world! We can use our dry erase markers to highlight sections of the world we are studying, and they wipe off super easily. Here’s a closeup of Egypt and the Fertile Crescent area we are reading about this spring.

People looking for an inexpensive map might like to mount this on a few large poster board pieces and have the perfect dry erase map.

Right now we’ll be using it as a shower curtain.

5 Comments , , Read more

RightStart – Sums to 10

Feb 24
Math

I chose RightStart for the lack of emphasis on boring worksheets, but we did have a few short worksheets this past week. No problem, they were short and Satori whizzed through them! I have the order mixed up on the photo below, but the first worksheet was the simple addition by 1, for which Satori did not need the abacus. (She doesn’t need it for simple addition either, as she has been figuring simple sums in her head. She probably does this by counting, which I’m not sure is the RightStart way, but she does it fast anyway.)

We covered Level 41 on Monday, which built upon partitioning 10. Instead of memorizing addition facts that add to 10, here’s how RightStart Math approaches this. The past few lessons we’ve been using a Part-Whole Circle set with 10 in the whole circle, and another number in one of the part circles. (We previously photocopied the Part-Whole circle set and then I laminated it, so we can use dry erase markers to use it over and over.) Using the AL abacus, Satori can figure out the other number easily. We practiced this with all the sums, even writing all the possibilities down when solving word problems. We then did the Handshaking Game which was a unique game and used her toys in adding to 10.

A few days of doing this, Satori was familiar with equations for partitioning of ten. She completed the above worksheet on the left, relying on her abacus for all the equations. Then, we played a game that helped her learn her equations in a much more fun way! Addition Memory is a twist on the basic memory game in that you must find two cards that add to 10. The first time we played with all cards facing up, just to get the idea of finding cards that add to 10, such as a 6 and a 4. Then we started for real.

We like to start our Memory Games with a fun design, like a flower or pyramid. This is a smiley flower.

As we found pairs adding to 10, we lay the numbers in pairs face-up so we can visually see the numbers as added reinforcement. The first game Satori used her abacus for all but a few sums.

Mom won the first game (I do not cut her any slack), so of course we played again and again! I think we played 4 times total, each time Satori was relying on her abacus less and less. She knew when she picked up an 8, that she would need a 2. When she found a 5, she’d need the other 5. 9+1 and 10+0 were easy to figure out, I think the only ones she still needs an abacus were for 7+3 and 6+4 and vice versa.

Next time, we will start out playing the Addition Memory game until she has the last two sums memorized, and then we will play yet another RightStart Game to learn our sums to 10 – Go to the Dump!

The cards we use came with the RightStart Level A Starter Kit, and are very nice cards, sturdy and glossy, which should hold up to hundreds of math games through several children!

2 Comments , , , Read more

Finished All About Spelling Level 1

Feb 23
Spelling

Yesterday we finished our spelling program, All-About-Spelling Level 1! Satori got to put her last sticker up on her AAS chart and I presented her with her Certificate with Achievement.

I framed her certificate and hung it up on the wall above her desk. (I erased out her last name for privacy purposes.) Satori was so excited we had to call Daddy and tell him the news!

Here’s a brief summary of what Satori learned in Level 1, which we started last June, when Satori was 4.5 years old. First off, All-About-Spelling is a vertical phonics program, so right away we started learning all the different sounds for each letter. Some vowels have 4 sounds, and some consonants had some tricky ones to remember, so this took a while! What she didn’t master right away simply went into our Review file. Next up we learned to segment words, how to hear the sounds in the words. We familiarized ourselves with the alphabet – its order, vowels and consonants. We went quickly through the lessons that taught how to spell words using their basic sounds, and the easy digraphs and blends.

Eventually we learned tougher concepts, like when to use a C or K for beginning sounds, when to use K or CK for ending sounds, when to double letters at the end (like “tell” or “dress”)… We learned consonant teams (“ng” and “nk”), compound words, plural words, and lastly, open syllables. The end of each lesson requires the child to spell our phrases or sentences, which was great practice to hear it orally and apply everything learned.

Here’s a sample of what Satori can now spell successfully.

Tomorrow we will pull out Level 2. I’ll have to do a little bit of organizing first, such as updating our AAS tile whiteboard with new sections such as “Vowel Teams” and “The Sound of /er/”. We’ll be starting a “Jail” to hold our spelling Rule Breakers. First lesson will be a review of Level 1, as well as learning more about open and closed syllable tags.

I’m looking forward to furthering Satori’s spelling skills. She always writes books and letters and will greatly benefit from learning more spelling rules. We have progressed far enough in our Reading subject that she already knows how to spell many things, but by systematically learning the rules, she won’t forget to add her silent-E, and so much more.

Here’s a sample of words we’ll learn in Level Two.

7 Comments , Read more

Alis in Wandr Land

Feb 19
Writing

A few weeks ago I mentioned that Satori loves to write books. Normallly they are her own original stories, but today I noticed a new story lying on the table that looked a bit familiar. We had just finished our read-aloud this week of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. We are looking forward to seeing this movie in two weeks. So naturally, Satori felt compelled to recreate the story in her own words and illustrations. I couldn’t resist sharing her story.

Disclosure: Normally I don’t share these stories, as there are rampant misspellings, but just so you know that Satori only recently turned 5 and hasn’t had a lot of spelling lessons that a normal writer would have. ;) So without further ado, I take you through a few pages of Satori’s Alis in Wandr Land.

Title Page

Here is Alice and her sister in the beginning of the story. Her sister is reading a geography book while Alice is sitting in the tree with her cat Dinah. Translation: In spring, Alice was playing in a beautiful (forest?).  The butterfly is saying “Look”.

Translation: Mister Rabbit came but he said, “I’m Late! I’m Late!”

Alice falls down the rabbit hole…

These is just a sample of the wonderful stories and letters that Satori writes everyday. Each time I read a story of hers, I am compelled to rush her through her spelling program, but overall, I’m so very proud of her.

6 Comments , Read more

Classic Science Archaeology Pyramid Kit

Feb 10
4 - The Old Kingdom of Egypt, Ancients, Other Products, SOTW 1: Ancient Times

If you are studying Ancient Egypt, I highly recommend the National Geographic Classic Science Archaeology: Pyramid kit by Thames and Kosmos. It ties all of Satori’s interests together: archaeology, hieroglyphs, mummies, and of course pyramids.

It comes well-protected in a perfectly designed box and you’ll find your pyramid and treasures within, archaeologist tools (hammer, chisel, brush, peg), protective goggles, full-color manual, and a 3D paper cross section model. Satori fondly remembers her “paleontologist days” when studying prehistory, so she was so excited to begin excavating!

*READ THE DIRECTIONS* first, or you might miss out on some of the clever surprises! (You may not wish to read further if you want your own kit to be a surprise.)

Click on the image above to get the full detail and you’ll notice hieroglyphs on a certain level of each side of the pyramid. Satori quickly wrote down a translation, she needed no manual, she already had them memorized! These hieroglyphs of course had a few vowels and other letters that used the same translation, so once Satori wrote down the letters, Mama still had to help translate. But overall, this was a very cool puzzle. Satori was so happy that she basically solved it herself. Each side gave a message to tell you if this side was the entrance. Our first side said “TRY AGAIN”.

(There are more pictures, but I don’t want to spoil this kit for the people who want it to be a surprise!) Click “continue reading…” link below.

continue reading…

3 Comments , , , , , Read more
Satori Smiles
Copyright © 2010 Satori Smiles Design by SRS Solutions top