Story Picnic

See you at Cybher!

On Saturday I will be going to Cybher with my lovely friend Jo. It will be my first blogging conference and I’m really looking forward to it. This time last year I had only just started blogging. I remember reading Merry‘s tweets and blog posts about Cybher, and thinking it sounded like fun. In fact, it was reading Merry’s blog over several years that led to me starting to write mine. I wanted to help and inspire people who were thinking of home educating, as I had been inspired by Merry, Jax and other home educators. I didn’t know how much I would enjoy being part of the blogging community which is full of friendly supportive people, and it will be good to meet some of them in person. If you are going and want to say hello beforehand (okay, I haven’t left much time for that I suppose) I’m on twitter @readlearngrow. And do come and say hello on the day, especially if you have any questions about home education. Or maybe don’t push that button. Depends how much time you’ve got 😉

Playing with Paint

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Almost two weeks ago Rabbit and Tiddler had a lovely time playing with paint in the Tuff Spot. It was worthy of a separate blog post, but instead it got rather lost in a round up of a busy and somewhat stressful week. We squirted blobs of paint around the Tuff Spot, and then made marks in the paint with cardboard tubes, cars and balls, and our hands too . It was a lot of fun, and I would like to do it again soon. We need to use heavier balls, such as marbles so that we can roll them around the Tuff Spot, and I’m sure we can think of lots of other toys to use for mark-making as well. I will also experiment with putting paper in the Tuff Spot first, or laying paper on top of the patterns to take prints of them, although I think the process is a lot more important than the product.

After the painting session, we had lunch then headed out for a walk in the woods. When we returned home, Rabbit and Tiddler decided they would like to wash the cars and balls. I think if anything this was even more fun than the original activity. I placed a bowl of soapy water in the middle of the Tuff Spot, gave them each a cloth and let them get on with it. They had a wonderful time!

Food for thought

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I recently had a discussion with some other bloggers on twitter about the ethics of messy play with food. Is it alright to encourage our children to play with food, inevitably wasting some of it, when there are many children in the world who do not have enough to eat? I would be really interested to hear people’s views on this. The consensus on twitter was that it was probably okay to continue, but that we shouldn’t do so unthinkingly. We are, most of us, able to spend money on materials and resources to support our children’s play and learning. We buy art materials such as paint, paper, pencils, modelling clay, glue and glitter, and we also spend money on books and magazines for our children. We can choose to do this because we have enough money to feed them, and some (though maybe only a little) money left over. So perhaps the issue is not that we sometimes choose to use food for play, but that we can allocate money for play materials in the first place. This is a good thing, but we should be conscious of how fortunate we are.

This conversation came back to mind this week because Save the Children have published a ground-breaking new report Food for Thought which shows that chronically malnourished children are, on average, 20 per cent less literate than their better nourished counterparts.

Globally, one child in four is chronically malnourished. The report shows that not having a nutritious diet can severely impair a child’s ability to learn to read and write, no matter how much educational input they receive.

Far from being able to play with food, these children do not have enough food to eat to give them energy to play or to enable them to learn. Their future choices are being limited by their lack of adequate nutrition now.

One such child is Ngouth, a 12 year old boy from South Sudan.

Although he is 12 years old, Nguoth looks about eight. Like many students in his class, for two years he had to drop out of school because there wasn’t enough food at home. He still misses school at least two days a week to go into the bush to find wild fruits. On the other days, he comes to school hungry. In 2010, the UN declared Akobo, the region where Nguoth lives, the ‘the hungriest place on earth’. Drought, floods and inter-communal conflict have left a third of children malnourished.

This is Nguoth’s story in his own words
“I was five years old when I started school. Sometimes I had to stop coming because I was hungry. For two years I dropped out because I had to go to the river to fish and to the bush to collect wild fruits for my family. I think the situation is getting worse and more children are stopping coming to school to help their family.
I have two brothers and one sister. My sister left school in P2 so she could help our mother by collecting food and firewood. My older brother left this school and went on to finish P7 but then dropped out. My younger brother is still in school with me.
Many of my friends are absent again and again because they’re going to the bush to collect fruits. At the beginning of the year there were 28 children in my class. Now it’s around 21.
Today, most of my schoolmates have gone to fetch water from the river or to work in the market. Some have gone to a school in town where there’s food [a school feeding programme]. Most of my friends are in P5 or P6, but I’m still in P3 as I had to repeat some years. This is my second year in P3. When I’m hungry, I feel sick and go to the bush to find wild fruits. At least twice a week I stay home and don’t go to school. That’s why I’ve had to repeat some years.
Hunger is very bad in this area. We have no gardens to grow food because the floods destroyed them. The people are angry with each other and there’s no peace. People are very sick, malaria is very high and lots of children are absent from school. It’s hard for children to be happy and take part in class because they’re hungry.
There’s no food at home so I feel hungry. We eat once a day. I don’t eat anything before I come to school. Sometimes I find the classes hard because I’m hungry. Sometimes I feel shivery. If I continue to suffer like this I’ll have to leave school.
My favourite subject is science and when I finish school I’d like to be a doctor.”

The Food for Thought report is part of the IF campaign. Over 170 charities are joining together to call for the G8 to take action on World Hunger. Their message is simple. “The world produces enough food for everyone, but not everyone has enough food. We can change this in 2013. IF we act together, we can make this year the beginning of the end for global hunger.”

You can make a difference. Be part of the generation that ends world hunger. Sign the IF petition now.

Polesden Lacey

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On Saturday Tiddler and I went to Polesden Lacey with our friends from 3 Kids and a Gluestick. It is one of several National Trust properties not far from where we live, and though I have been there a long time ago, I haven’t been with the children before. It is in Great Bookham near Dorking, and it’s surrounded by amazing views of the Surrey Hills.

We arrived in time for a picnic lunch, and when the children had finished eating, they played inside a large rhododendron bush which formed a perfect den. To entice them out, after quite a long time, we blew some bubbles which did the trick.

We had a lovely walk through the woodland. Tiddler enjoyed using the binoculars he had borrowed on the way in to look for birds. We saw very few, but that didn’t seem to bother him. We hunted for bugs, looked at wildflowers and played in the natural playground.

Tiddler also enjoyed looking at the sheep in the fields , and we found some wool which he thought was very interesting.

He also enjoyed climbing on tree roots, and walking through a tunnel of trees. We ended the walk by rolling down the hill in front of the house (another one of our 50 things), blowing some more bubbles and enjoying the beautiful views before heading home.

We had a lovely day with our friends, and I enjoyed spending time with Tiddler. We will be back soon to explore further with all the children.

This week

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This week I have not written anything on the blog at all. That is quite unusual, and it was not for lack of things to write about. The lack of blogging has been caused by a busy weekend, a week of sleep deprivation, two sick children and technical problems (solved by the lovely Jo from Mum Friendly, The Adequate Parent and other places too numerous for me to remember.) Now that I am back, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the posts I would like to write, so I think I am just going to have to combine them or they are not going to get written.

Last Friday, Suburban Dad had the day off to help with preparations for the party we had planned for Saturday. He spent a lot of the day in the garden tidying up, cutting the grass and taming the weeds and overgrown borders. I spent most of the time inside cleaning, doing laundry and making cakes, but late in the afternoon I joined him outside and had some fun with the children. They had been making a woodlouse house, which by this time had quite a lot of residents for me to admire, and then the big three and I had a lot of messy fun repotting the seedlings grown from the seeds they had planted at Morden Hall Park on the last Bank Holiday Monday.

On Saturday, we had a joint party for Tiddler and Owl. It was roughly between their birthdays which are in April and June, and they both thought it was a great idea to have a sharing party, as Monkey and Rabbit had done in February. We hired a bouncy castle, provided large quantities of food and let them get on with it. I think there were 27 children altogether, and it was very lively but quite successful. We attempted to do a Science experiment in the Tuff Spot, which turned out to be a rather unimpressive volcano – well I think the little ones quite liked it but it didn’t impress any 8 and 9 year olds.

In the afternoon, after most of the children had left, we had a lovely and more peaceful time with our friends from 3 Kids and a Gluestick, daddy’s cousin and two of his children, and Granny and Grandpa. The highlight of the afternoon was making giant bubbles with Dr Zigs bubble mixture and wands. Rabbit was particularly good at this, and very patient. We finished the afternoon with a barbecue, and luckily the weather was perfect all day.

On Sunday, the children and I had a quiet morning at home to recover from the excitement, while daddy went to church. In the afternoon, a friend of mine came to visit. As she arrived, Rabbit, Tiddler and I had just decided to do some painting in the garden. We started with the easel and then moved on to the Tuff Spot. We squirted several different colours of paint in, added some cardboard tubes, plastic balls and toy cars and experimented with different ways of making marks and patterns in the paint.

The children also enjoyed showing my friend the giant bubbles, and then with her help they made vegetarian kebabs for another barbecue lunch. In the afternoon, we went for a lovely walk in Banstead Woods. The bluebells were still out and it was beautiful. We didn’t get very far because the children discovered a tree in which someone had built a platform of planks, and underneath a den, so of course we had to spend the rest of the afternoon on tree climbing and attempts to extend the den.

On Monday, after another quiet morning of work and play at home, we went to Morden Hall Park for the afternoon with our friends from 3 kids and a gluestick. After an expensive visit there for the May Fayre, it was nice to visit when it was free. The afternoon got off to an eventful start when Tiddler fell in the stream, but one we had got him out and moved away from the water we had a lovely time. We ticked off a few more of the things on our National Trust 50 things list – making daisy chains, making a grass trumpet (not very successful but we had a good try), playing pooh sticks and holding scary beasts (worms and woodlice!) We also discovered a hollow tree which the children had fun climbing in and out of, and we want to go back to take some bark rubbings. We finished the afternoon with a play in the natural playground, which the children really enjoyed. I am sure we are going back soon so we will review it properly then.

On Tuesday, the big boys went for a Maths lesson (and Lego play session) with my friend, while I took the little ones to Toddler Group. I really enjoyed it and had another go at crochet, which a group of us had started to learn at Toddlers last week. In the afternoon, another friend and her daughter called round and ended up staying for an hour or so. The children had fun playing schools (!) which led to making clocks out of paper plates, and playing with letter and word tiles and magnetic letters. After that, the big three went to Dramabuds. It was a good day, but in the evening Tiddler was sick, and he spent the night in our bed. He was sick several more times and none of us got much sleep. Sadly on Wednesday we had to miss Tiddler’s swimming lesson and another outing to Morden Hall Park with our Home Education Group. I can’t remember what we did at home (I am quite tired!) but I’m sure when I look at my photos I will be reminded. In the evening, Rabbit went to Rainbows and Monkey went to Beavers. Thursday was another day at home, in which the children did lots of Maths, English and Science, and worked on their Prehistory projects. Owl went to Cubs in the evening.

We had lots of lovely plans for today (Musicbox, meeting with friends afterwards and then a visit to a PYO farm) but sadly they too had to be cancelled when Rabbit was sick this morning after breakfast. The children spent the morning playing with playdough while I caught up on some housework. Owl also wrote an issue of his local newspaper, in which the top story was a shark being found in the Ponds! In the afternoon, the children played, watched television, did some of their Prehistory project, tidied their bedrooms and did some music practice. It was sad to cancel so many fun activities, but quite good to get some down time at home.

A Pink and Purple Tea Party

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This morning we started on the preparations for the messy play we had planned for this afternoon. Rabbit and Tiddler and I made raspberry and blackcurrant jellies, and then I made some strawberry blancmange. I put some pink, white and yellow sweets in some of the jellies, and added some mini marshmallows to the blancmange. After lunch, Owl and Monkey joined in and we all made fairy cakes together, and then I made a heart-shaped cake with the leftover cake mixture. (I always have leftover mixture because I can never pass up the opportunity to do a quick Maths lesson in doubling quantities!)

Next, I made some butter icing, and divided it into three bowls. I coloured some of it pink and some puple, leaving the rest white. And finally, I made up a quick batch of raspberry Angel Delight. When everything was ready, we set up the Tuff Spots with all the cakes and puddings, and added hundreds and thousands, edible pink glitter, pink and white flower decorations, and mini and micro marshmallows. I also put out some pink wafers, strawberry milk and pink rolling icing, plus lots of cutters, rolling pins, spoons and other utensils. The children also set out a blanket with some cushions, a wooden chocolate cake, and lots of cuddly toys ready to enjoy the tea party.

We decorated cakes, rolled out pink icing and cut out some hearts and circles, poured out pink milk and spooned pudding into bowls. After making sure the dolls and cuddly toys had enough, the children ate rather a lot themselves. As usual, I nearly let them ruin their appetites but remembered just in time, and got them to eat some beans on toast before letting them get back to their tea party which lasted for over an hour.

This post was written for Jennie‘s Messy Play for Matilda Mae linky which has a pink and purple theme this week. Please also take a look at the Matilda Mae Memorial auction and bid for some lovely things to raise money for the Lullaby Trust.

I’m going to BritMums

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Name: Hannah

Blog: Caterpillar Tales

Twitter ID: @readlearngrow

Height: 5ft 8

Hair: Brown (I’m studiously ignoring the grey bits)

Eyes: Greenish brown

Is this your first blogging conference?

It will be my second, but my first BritMums

Are you attending both days?

Yes

What are you most looking forward to at BritMums Live 2013?

Spending time with friends, meeting people I have talked to on twitter and whose blogs I love reading, and getting to know new people

What are you wearing?

Umm, some clothes… the ones which have the least food/ paint/ glitter on at the time

What do you hope to gain from BritMums Live 2013?

New friends, creative ideas, technical knowledge

Tell us one thing about you that not everyone knows

Today I learnt to crochet!

1983

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1983. The year I turned 10 years old.

This is the only picture that was taken of me in the whole year, to my knowledge. It’s hard to imagine that now. I may occasionally go for a day or two without taking any pictures of my children, but it doesn’t happen very often.

In 1983, my life plan included the following:

Read every interesting book that has ever been written
Own lots of horses and dogs
Have 10 children
Run a riding stable
Above all else, do not become a teacher.

All through my childhood, I remember being told I would make a good teacher. I heard it so many times, that it put me off completely. By the time I graduated from university with a degree in English Literature (What do you say to an English graduate who has a job? Big Mac and fries, please…) I had moved on from the idea of running a riding stable, but didn’t really have any better ideas. I worked in a bookshop for a while, then went to Cairo on an overseas experience placement and found myself teaching in a small primary school for the children of mission workers. I discovered that I loved it after all, and after a few years of voluntary work (in Cairo, then Bristol, then Cairo again) I came back to do my PGCE. I thought I would get some teaching experience here for a year or two, then return to Cairo, but I got married, we reluctantly settled down in suburbia and somehow we seem to be still here.

I didn’t have 10 children. I didn’t even have 6, like my granny. That would have been fun. But having four chidren is pretty amazing. I do know how lucky I am.

I have been somewhat put off the school system, both by my experience as a teacher, and as a parent, so now I am “teaching my own.” Home educating is the most rewarding job I can possibly imagine. Running a riding stable would probably come a pretty close second.

I don’t own any horses, even though I think I asked for one for every birthday throughout most of my childhood. I don’t even have any dogs. We have some tropical fish…It’s a bit of a come down.

I can still remember the moment, in my early teenage years, when I realised that my lifetime would not be long enough to read all the books on my wishlist. It was a terrible disappointment. Now, if I read a whole book from start to finish, it’s a major achievement, and it happens only a few times a year. That will get easier as my children get older, right? I hope so.

2013. The year I turned 40.

(Excellent birthday pavlova. Full marks to Suburban Dad.)

This is me now. And I mean right now. So I’m sorry if I look a bit tired. That’s because it’s nearly 1.30am.

Have I changed? Yes and no. I might have made a few compromises along the way, but books, horses, dogs and children are still among my favourite things.

Another one of my favourite things is breakfast cereal. But not particularly for breakfast. Usually very late at night (or in the early hours of the morning) when I have finally published the blog post I have been working on all evening. This may sound like a tenuous link (oh alright, it is a bit), but those who know me well will know that it’s true. My default setting is Muesli, but if I’m in the mood for something different I often choose Special K, which is why I have signed up for the Britmums Special K challenge. Other people have written some amazing posts, and haven’t left it till the last minute like me. There will be some very deserving winners, I am sure. As for me, I was happy enough to receved a somewhat battered box of the new recipe Special K in a sparkly purple jiffy bag. I’m quite easily pleased.

Special K has changed its recipe for the first time in 30 years. It now contains three grains (rice, wheat and barley) instead of two, and it’s made with wholegrains as well as 8 vitamins and minerals. I was tempted to hide the box and keep it all for my late night snacking, but I decided to put it to my discerning panel of taste testers. These are the findings of my extensive research:

Owl and I like it slightly more than the original recipe, as it seems more substantial and satisfying. We both think it is still a bit too sweet though, and possibly even sweeter than it used to be?
Supergirl says it’s okay, but she prefers the original version.
Suburban Dad still isn’t interested in cereal and I don’t bother to persuade him to try, because that means there is more for me.
Monkey, Rabbit and Tiddler say “Mmm, it’s nice” with their mouths full. They are too busy tucking in to give any further comments. Then they get distracted, so do I, and before I know it, the packet is finished.

I think it lasted barely 24 hours. We’ll definitely be buying more!

This is my entry for the Britmums/Special K “How I’ve changed Linky challenge.”

#specialk30

A Mile in Memory of Matilda Mae

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Today we walked a mile in memory of Matilda Mae at the Rare Breeds Centre in Kent with Jennie, her family and friends, and many who have read her story and were moved to come along and show their support for her today, and to raise money for the Lullaby Trust. Many more people attended several other organised walks around the country, as well as families and individuals who walked a mile wherever they were and remembered babyTilda.

We walked around the woodland trail, through a sea of bluebells. They were so beautiful, and from now on they will always remind me of Matilda Mae.

Half way round, we stopped to collect a packet of seeds each. They had been hidden in the trees and in the notches of a totem pole. We are looking forward to planting them, and watching them grow. Another lovely reminder of Matilda Mae.

Towards the end of the walk, we came out of the woods and into the open. We walked back to the starting point, where there were pink and purple balloons for baby Tilda.

We blew bubbles for Tilda, and sang Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, accompanied by the violin, which the children then had the opportunity to play. Owl played Twinkle Twinkle Little Star beautifully, and Rabbit had a go as well. She looked like a natural and now can’t wait to join her big brothers at their violin lessons. It was a wonderful opportunity, and was one of the highlights of the day for me.

After a picnic lunch, we spent most of the rest of the afternoon in the two playgrounds which the children loved. Owl and I also watched a falconry display which was excellent. Then we joined the others to watch the pig races, and lucky Owl was picked to take part. Eight children, in pairs, had to steer four pigs to the finish line. Owl and his partner came third, and he commented that they had unfortunately been given a stubborn pig. (I’m afraid I couldn’t resist responding that I had been given stubborn children, so I knew how he felt.) We ended the afternoon with a rather quick look at the butterflies, rabbits, chickens, turkeys and other small animals, before setting off to have supper at Pizza Express. We definitely need more time to explore the Rare Breeds Farm, so we have already planned our next visit.

We had a wonderful day, and we are proud to have been a part of such a special event. We will always remember Matilda Mae.

Today, as well as the walk, the Matilda Mae Memorial Auction opened. This auction, run by Tots 100, is raising money for The Lullaby Trust, the trust that supports families affected by Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and carries out research into preventing it. Please take a look at the auction, or you can also donate to The Lullaby Trust here.