Healthy Pancakes

Now what's the point of homeschooling if you don't randomly make an awesome breakfast on a Wednesday morning? I know... I know... plenty of points. Anyway, here are two yummy and healthy pancake recipes to give those kids something healthy and special on a weekday.

Coconut Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 3 Eggs
• 3 Tbsp Coconut Oil
• 3 Tbsp Coconut Milk 
• 1/2 Tsp Xylitol (or sugar)
• 2-4 drops Pure Vanilla
• 3 Tbsp Coconut Flour
• 1/2 Ts Baking Powder

Whisk everything in except the last two ingredients. When it's mixed well continue whisking while adding the coconut flour and baking powder.

Once the batter is mixed well heat some butter or coconut oil in a skillet or griddle. This batter is sort of thick. Use a spoon to drop the batter onto the hot skillet making the pancakes about 3 inches in diameter. Then just simply cook like a normal pancake. (I put too much coconut oil in my skillet)

One thing to know about these pancakes- if you don't like the flavor of coconut you might not like these. Although, I'm hoping you would have figured that out. ;)

Oatmeal Pancakes

Ingredients:

Use equal parts of first 3 ingredients

• Steel Cut Oatmeal
• Cottage Cheese
• Eggs
• 1-2 Tsp Pure Vanilla

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Batter will be a little runny. Heat butter or oil on skillet or griddle and then pour batter onto it and cook like a normal pancake.

I'd like to point out that my extremely picky family will eat pancakes from both recipes. One very nice thing about these pancake recipes is that they do not make you feel sick after eating, actually, they make you feel good. My favorite of the two recipes is the Oatmeal Pancakes- I'm not super into coconut. Anyway, I hope you like them. 

Happy Homeschooling!

~Mickaela

Chinese Songs: Our Favorite Way To Practice

Below I've laid out a couple of our favorite songs to sing in Chinese. I wrote out the pinyin and the english... more like copied and pasted them from a word document I have. I also provided Mischa's favorite youtube videos of each song. Hope you like it and learn a bit of Chinese. 

Mo li hua (Jasmine Flower)

hǎo yī duǒ mĕi lì de mò li huā


What a beautiful jasmine flower

hăo yī duŏ mĕi lì de mò li huā

What a beautiful jasmine flower


fēn fāng měi lì mǎn zhī yā


Sweet-smelling, beautiful, stems full of buds

yòu xiāng yòu bái rén rén kuā


Fragrant and white, everyone praises

ràng wǒ lái jiāng nǐ zhāi xià

Let me pluck you 


sòng gěi bié rén jiā


Give to someone's family

mò li huā ya mò li huā

Jasmine flower, oh jasmine flower

Liǎng Zhī Lǎo Hǔ(Two Tigers)

liǎng zhī lǎo hǔ,  liǎng zhī lǎo hǔ

Two tigers,  two tigers

pǎo de kuài,  pǎo de kuài

Run so fast,  run so fast

yī zhī méi yǒu ěr duo

One has no ears

yī zhī méi yǒu wěi ba

One has no tail

zhēn qí guài,  zhēn qí guài

So strange, so strange!

Ní Wá Wa (Mud Doll)

 Ní wáwa, Ní wáwa,

Mud doll, Mud doll,

Yīgè ní wáwa

A mud doll

Yě yǒu nà méimáo,

Has eyebrows too,

Yě yǒu nà yǎnjīng, Yǎnjīng búhuì zhǎ.

Has eyes too, Eyes do not blink.

Ní wáwa, Ní wáwa,

Mud doll, Mud doll,

Yīgè ní wáwa,

A mud doll,

Yě yǒu nà bízi,

Has a nose too,

Yě yǒu nà zuǐbā, Zuǐbā bù shuōhuà.

Has a mouth too, Mouth does not speak.

Tā shì ge jiǎ wáwa,

She is a fake doll,

Bú shì ge zhēn wáwa,

Not a real baby,

Tā méiyǒu qīnàide māma, Yě méiyǒu bàba.

She does not have dear mother, Also has no father.

Ní wáwa, Ní wáwa,

Mud doll, Mud doll,

Yīgè ní wáwa,

A mud doll,

Wǒ zuò tā māma, Wǒ zuò tā bàba,

I'll be her mother, I'll be her father

Yǒngyuǎn ài zhe tā.

Always love her.

Wo you yi zhi xiao mao lu (I have a small donkey)

wo you yi zhi xiao máo lu.

I have a small donkey

wo cóng lái ye bu qí.

Which I never ride

you yi tian wo xing xue lái cháo.

One day I feel like riding it

qí zhe qu gan jí.

So I ride it to the fair

wo shou li ná zhe xiao pí bian.

I have a small whip in hand

xin li zheng dé yi.

And I am enjoying the ride

bu zhi zen men hua la la la

I don't know what happened

wo shai le yi shen ní.

I fell off of it and got muddy

Yi shan yi shan liang jing jing (twinkle little star)

Yi shan yi shan, liang jing jing

One twinkle, one twinkle, shine so bright

mang tian dou shi xiao xing xing

All the sky is full of little stars

gua zai tian kong fang guang ming

hanging in the sky shine the brightness

hao xiang xu duo xiao yan jing

look like many little eyes

tou jian bang xi gai jiao (head shoulders knees & feet)

tou, jian bang, xi gai, jiao, xi gai, jiao

head, shoulders, knees, feet, knees, feet

 tou, jian bang, xi gai, jiao, xi gai, jiao

head, shoulders, knees, feet, knees, feet

yan jing, bi zi, zui ba, he er duo

eyes, nose, mouth, and ears

tou, jian bang, xi gai, jiao, xi gai, jiao

head, shoulders, knees, feet, knees feet

tou, du zi, pi gu, jiao, pi gu, jiao

head, tummy, bottom, feet, bottom, feet

tou, du zi, pi gu, jiao, pi gu, jiao

head, tummy, bottom, feet, bottom, feet

yan jing, bi zi, zui ba, he er duo

eyes, nose, mouth, and ears

tou, du zi, pi gu, jiao, pi gu, jiao

head, tummy, bottom, feet, bottom, feet

Bao Bei

Wo de bao bei　bao bei　gei ni yi dian tian tian
My baby, baby, giving you a bit of sweetness

Rang ni jin ye dou hao mian

Allowing you to sleep well tonight

Wo de xiao gui xiao gui dou dou ni de mei yan

My silly, silly kid, teasingly playing with your eyebrows

Rang ni xi huan zhe shi jie

making you like this world

Wa la la la la la wo de bao bei

Wa la la la la la my baby

Juan de shi hou you ge ren pei

When I'm tired, there's someone to accompany me

Ai ya ya ya ya ya wo de bao bei

Ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby

Yao ni zhi dao ni zui mei

Wanting you to know you are the most beautiful

Wo de bao bei bao bei gei ni yi dian tian tian

My baby, baby, giving you a bit of sweetness

Rang ni jin ye hen hao mian

Allowing you to sleep well tonight

Wo de xiao gui xiao gui dou dou ni de xiao lian

My silly, silly kid, teasingly playing with your face

Rang ni xi huan zheng ge ming tian

Allowing you to like every coming tomorrow

Wa la la la la la wo de bao bei

Wa la la la la la my baby

Juan de shi hou you ge ren pei

When I'm tired, there's someone to accompany me

Ai ya ya ya ya ya wo de bao bei

Ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby

Yao ni zhi dao ni zui mei

Wanting you to know you are the most beautiful

Wa la la la la la wo de bao bei

Wa la la la la la my baby

Gu dan shi you ren ba ni xiang nian

When I'm lonely there's someone to think of

Ai ya ya ya ya ya wo de bao bei

Ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby

Yao ni zhi dao ni zui mei

Wanting you to know you are the most beautiful

Wa la la la la la wo de bao bei

Wa la la la la la my baby

Juan de shi hou you ge ren pei

When I'm tired, there's someone to accompany me

Ai ya ya ya ya ya wo de bao bei

Ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby

Yao ni zhi dao ni zui mei

Wanting you to know you are the most beautiful

Yao ni zhi dao ni zui mei

Wanting you to know you are the most beautiful

(Okay, Mischa's favorite Bao Bei version is Hayley Westenra... but this is the original.)

Alright. There are a couple of our favorites. We have about a hundred others that we like and can't wait to learn. Hope you liked them as much as we do. 

Happy Homeschooling!

~Mickaela

Nurtured by Love- A Musical Environment

From the moment she was born we played beautiful music for Mischa while she slept or played. My goal was to produce a love for music and a kind of sensitivity for classical pieces in her. I remember one of my professors explaining that children and teenagers should be surrounded by beautiful music and thought provoking talk about God and life. My main choices were classical and celtic- Bach, Tallis, Mozart, Vivaldi, Pachelbel, Hayley Westenra, Celtic Woman, Anuna, Meav Ni Mhaolchatha, Loreena McKennitt, and Sissle. Unknowingly, for I had not read his book or heard his name, I was also following the advice of Shinichi Suzuki who said:

"Teaching music is not my main purpose. I want to make good citizens. If children hear fine music from the day of their birth and learn to play it, they develop sensitivity, discipline and endurance. They get a beautiful heart."

Shinichi Suzuki taught many children to develop remarkable musical talent and wrote a book about it called Nurtured by Love.

The first section of his book is titled, "All Japanese Children Speak Japanese." His point being that children do not produce an ear for music any differently than they do their mother tongue. Both are taught by repetition. Suzuki explains:

"We don't have to look for specific innate abilities or talents, It is a superior environment that has the greatest effect in creating superior abilities... I firmly believe that cultural and musical aptitude does not come from within, and is not inherited, but occurs through suitable environmental conditions."   

After reading I thought a bit and realized how much sense he made. How many times have you come across "musical families" and just figured it some part of their DNA? I know I have... but he makes such a valid point that I have to think maybe it's something more. Perhaps, the parents have formed such an environment to give the children the ability to become wonderful musicians.
My husband's family presents a perfect example. He and his 3 sisters are all extremely musical. However, the first time I visited his home to get to know his family for dinner, I noticed they didn't have a living room. It was, in fact, a music room containing all forms of instruments. A piano, a drum set, acoustic guitars... etc. Then I learned they all had piano lessons by a classically trained pianist (his older sisters had the most) some had violin lessons, one had guitar lessons and singing lessons. They knew how to play and still can play beautiful music pieces and they were raised with this type of music surrounding them. Not only that but I then learned my father-in-law has an amazing voice and my mother-in-law could pick up a wind instrument and play rather well- though neither did so often (my father-in-law goofily singing random phrases does not count). My husband and his sisters were in an environment where they could grow musically. I imagine they would not have developed very well in many other homes, Suzuki points out:

"To look at a school-aged child with stunted or damaged abilities and say this is inherited is a grave mistake. The destiny of children lies in the hands of the parents...if a child born today were to be brought up and educated in a society of five thousand years hence, he would adapt to the customs and habits of that society."

Suzuki uses the example of a nightingale to reveal the learning/teaching factor of music. Unbeknown to most, a nightingale is actually taught how to sing beautifully by another bird. The younger bird will develop beautiful or tone deaf pitch based on the pitch of the older bird teaching it. In relating a nightingale to a child Suzuki says:

"Isn't the example of the little nightingale a valuable hint for the development of human potential as well? I myself believe this very strongly. For the sake of our little ones, therefore, I stress as much as I can the need to provide the best influences in rearing children... But just as nightingales are not born tone-deaf, neither are human infants. On the contrary, a baby absorbs perfectly any out-of-tune pitch of its mother's lullabies. It has a marvelous ear."

Again, after considering his words I couldn't help but think how much sense he makes. Have you ever met someone raised in the deep south by parents from the south that didn't have a bit of that country charm to their voice? Have you ever met someone from New Jersey without that so familiar accent? They were indeed raised from infancy hearing how certain words ought to sound and they mimic them perfectly.

As my mom often informs me about Mischa, "She is just a little sponge soaking up all that information."
I can't emphasize how true that statement is of Mischa and of all children. They will soak up what we place before them. It really is our job to insure they have the highest quality environment for learning any given thing. As Suzuki is quoted, "Any child can be developed, it depends on how you do it." Let us take pains in providing the best environments for our children. To produce within them not just a talent but a beautiful character. Suzuki, no doubt, believed that beautiful character produced beautiful music as he said things such as "beautiful tone, beautiful heart."
As we begin to provide an environment of music for our children we ought to also remember as Suzuki tried hard to convey, to help our children look for love, truth, virtue, and beauty. I'll end with a very beautiful response he had to a mother who longed to know if her child would "amount" to something.

"No. He will not become 'something'. He will become a noble person through his violin playing. Isn't that good enough? You should stop wanting your child to become a professional, a good money earner. This thought is concealed in your question and is offensive. A person with a fine and pure heart will find happiness. The only concern for parents should be to bring up their children as noble human beings. That is sufficient. If this is not their greatest hope, in the end the child may take a road contrary to their expectations. Your son plays the violin very well. We must try to make him splendid in mind and heart also." 

So, there you have it. A bit on the importance of providing a quality filled musical environment for children based on what I've read in Shinichi Suzuki's autobiography, Nurtured by Love. I hope it encourages you to encourage your own children both musically and mentally.

Happy Homeschooling!
~Mickaela

Mischa's Weekly State Projects

My Plan:

Every week in 2014 we are going to study a new US State and by the end of the year we will have gone through them all with just over 10 days to spare. Join us if you'd like to! We are going in alphabetical order starting with Alabama on  January 1st and ending with Wyoming December on 19th. What better way to take advantage of the fact that we homeschool than to have something planned all through the year?

What we'll do:

1. Get books about the State we are on at the library every week.

2. Have Mischa color various things related to the State she is learning. She can then cut out the pictures and paste them onto a large piece of paper making a collage. Get information and printable coloring sheets for each State from these websites.
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/usa/states/
http://www.doodle-art-alley.com/state-coloring-pages.html
http://www.50states.com/

3. At the end of the week quiz her on what she's learned. Throughout the week the focus will be on the State's Capitol, flag, Statehood, nickname, bird, flower, tree, and song.

5. At least twice a week go over all the States and their Capitols. I will use a puzzle Mischa has that is made by Melissa and Doug. You can find it here... http://www.melissaanddoug.com/united-states-of-america-usa-learning-sound-puzzle

Our goal:

1. To memorize all the States and their Capitols.

2. To have a better understanding of all the States individually.

3. To have a better understanding of US geography.

4. To learn a bit about our country "from sea to shining sea."

Happy Homeschooling!
~Mickaela

My Favorite (Free) Resources

My daughter is strange. She gets a ridiculous amount of enjoyment from doing schoolwork. So, oftentimes even after she does all her worksheets from the curriculum I assigned her she still wants more. 
Below are a few websites that sustain her and I suppose any child eager to learn all through the day via worksheets, videos, reading, and more.

School Sparks has definitely been one of my favorite websites for Mischa. In the past I have printed out nearly 15 pages a week and could have done more. They have worksheets suitable for pre-k and kindergarten aged students in math, reading, writing, fine motor skills, and more.
http://www.schoolsparks.com/kindergarten-worksheets

First-School is another great one. It is a little bit more coloring oriented and might be a little easy for kindergartners but if your child likes to color (like mine) then these pages are perfect to print out. They have pages that are animal themed, holiday themed, alphabet themed, and a bunch more. I shouldn't neglect to point out that they also have a bunch of craft ideas to do with young children. This is a great website to look through. 
http://www.first-school.ws/INDEX.HTM

TLS Books provides worksheets suitable for pre-k to 6th grade in a wide variety of subjects. Language arts, math, geography, science, nursery rhymes... they have just about any subject you can think of. Again this is another site that is easy to look through for quite some time... but when you do you'll find about 100 worksheets you want to do with your child and it's all worth it.  
http://www.tlsbooks.com/

National Geographic is a great website for bored kids. It has photos, videos, games, at home activities, printable pages, and even has lesson plans. This is definitely a website you can get stuck on for quite some time. An extra plus is that your kids can be next to you learning as well, because what child isn't interested in learning about cheetahs, meerkats, and polar bears?
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/kd/?ar_a=5

Kids Answers is another great website for kids. I enjoyed Ken Ham and all his material for adults on the Answers in Genesis website so I was thrilled to see there is an entire section for children that contains free resources like videos, animal information, and printable activities. 
http://www.answersingenesis.org/kids

Last free resource we like is our local library. Mischa could live at the library. She'll sit at the table with a stack of books next to her and read as I search for school related books. The only time this resource costs is when Mischa decides to put a library book in her bookshelf at home and we don't notice until they send me an email. 

So, there they are- mine and Mischa's favorite free resources. I hope they can become some of your favorite resources as well. 

Happy Homeschooling!
~Mickaela

My Chinese Mischa

I am not an expert at learning different languages. I do know that learning a foreign language is really hard sometimes. I also know that learning a foreign language can be really fun. No, my daughter is not Chinese... but she'd like to think that she is. About 2 years ago my husband and I watched a movie that only spoke Chinese (Cantonese) and she was captivated by the language. Shortly after that movie I decided to teach her Mandarin and her joy for learning new words and phrases hasn't faded. (I chose Mandarin because my grandfather speaks it so it just seemed obvious.)
Below I am going to go over the variety of things I do to teach Mischa a language even when I don't know how to speak it that well. Hopefully, these things I do with her will spark ideas for you on how to reinforce any language that any child desires to learn.

First, I ought to point out that I do try to learn alongside her so we can try to have conversations. Only problem is I rarely remember the words well. Anyway, two programs I use for learning a foreign language are Rosetta Stone and Little Pim. Both of these immerse the learner with the language and teach them their second language in the same manner they learned their first. I recommend both because Mischa has learned from and likes both. I use these as my foreign language staples for Mischa. Some days Mischa will watch a Little Pim dvd and other days she will do a couple lessons on Rosetta Stone. Little Pim is for younger children so as she gets older I noticed her liking Rosetta Stone more. For instance, right now I am listening to her use Rosetta Stone in the other room and whenever she answers correctly I'll hear her whisper, "Yes!"

However, I have to admit, even though these are my main forms of curriculum and I know Mischa gets a lot from them they are not my only source. While these programs teach you the language they don't get you interested in the culture of that particular language. How is anyone, especially a child, supposed to continue to desire to learn a language when they don't even know about the people who speak it or the interesting culture that surrounds it?

Another way Mischa enjoys learning Chinese is through various youtube videos. I found a girl who teaches and is constantly posting new things about Mandarin and the Chinese culture on youtube. Mischa likes her and will watch her channel all day. I noticed you can find people teaching most languages on youtube. It's a great free resource for any child to have extra practice and gain a little extra pride in the language they are learning. Another thing I've looked up on youtube is shows in Mandarin Chinese. One of Mischa's favorite shows is called Qiau Hu. It's a little tiger show straight from China. Every now and then I'll let her watch a 30 minute episode- all in Chinese.

Also, since Mischa likes to sing lately, I've been finding Chinese children's songs and teaching her the words. I downloaded an app onto my phone that is just a bunch of songs in Mandarin and she will listen to it as we shop, drive, or just hang out around the house. Learning the songs actually comes much easier for her than it does me just as it would for most children. Mischa learned how to sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" in Mandarin just from listening to it however many times over a 1 or 2 week period. Songs are definitely one of Mischa's favorite ways to learn Chinese. She can sing the songs all day.

The last thing I do may seem strange but I do it anyway... I try to find Mandarin speakers for Mischa to communicate with. One main place I go to is a Chinese restaurant near our house owned by people who speak Mandarin. I think they enjoy the little blonde girl who is so interested in everything Chinese... except the food. Once she gets a bit older I hope to find a Mandarin teacher she can do lessons with... but for now I'll stick with the above.

So there you have it... how do I teach Mischa Chinese? I just throw a bunch of stuff out there for her and see what she catches. Even though she doesn't get every word and phrase perfect I'd say she is doing pretty good at picking it up just like any child would if they are given the chance.

Mischa singing a traditional Chinese song...

Breakdown:

1. Rosetta Stone

2. Little Pim

3. YouTube learning videos

4. Foreign Children's Shows

5. Foreign Children's Songs

6. Find Native Speakers

Basically, immerse them in that language. 

Thanks for reading. If you have any questions or comments feel free to comment and I'll get back to you. 

Happy Homeschooling!

~Mickaela

Christmas Books: Reading Together Under the Tree

While it is tempting to have the television on at all times during the holiday season because of all the Christmas specials I challenge you, as I challenge myself, to say "goodbye" to television and "hello" to wonderful classics. Christmas can be a perfect excuse to sit down with your children and read with them. Yes, read with them. Oftentimes it seems parents think they only ought to tell their child to read while they themselves mindlessly surf the internet or watch television or YouTube. Yes, youtube counts as TV! I am definitely guilty of this! It is the parents job to lead. Act out what the child ought to become- a reader. An important example of literacy for your child comes with your own. It ought to be commonplace for a child to see their mother and father sitting quietly with a great book. It is horrible to think my generation and my parents generation are who Allen Bloom was speaking of in his book "The Closing of the American Mind" when he writes:

"...our students have lost the practice of and the taste for reading. They have not learned how to read, nor do they have the expectation of delight or improvement from reading."

How sad is it that so many have lost such a wonderful facet of personal and intellectual growth. However, whether or not our parents or our teachers expressed to us the great importance of getting lost in a wonderful book we need to learn how and in turn teach our children how. Starting with the click of a button literacy can grow in our homes- that is turing off that TV. What better time to turn off that obnoxious blue glow in your living-room than Christmastime? When the soft glow of your Christmas tree enhances the beauty of your home. Sit under it, or more comfortably sit beside it, and read a classic with those wonderful gifts you've had all year long. 

There are so many wonderful books to read during Christmas and most of them are vastly appealing to children of all ages. From "The Velveteen Rabbit" to "The Cricket on the Hearth" there are a multitude of options. We have a bunch that our daughter can read without our help like "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" and "The Night Before Christmas." Then we have others that she can cuddle up next to us these exceptionally cold nights and listen to- Christmas stories by Charles Dickens or O. Henry.

This Christmas season find a good book, with more words than pictures, and read it to a child- your daughter, son, niece, nephew, granddaughter, or grandson. This year my husband, my daughter, and I will read a chapter of "A Christmas Carol" every day until Christmas. So, we will start on the 19th of December. Then, of course, on Christmas we will read about the birth of Christ directly from Luke. I challenge any parent to do the same. This year make some cocoa and some popcorn then pull out a great book and have fun reading together. Merry Christmas.

Here is a short list of Christmas books I have, I like, or I want to read...
1. A Christmas Carol (By. Charles Dickens)
2. The Chimes (By. Charles Dickens)
3. The Cricket On The Hearth (By. Charles Dickens)
4. The Polar Express (By. Chris Van Allsburg)
5. The Night Before Christmas (By. Clement Clarke Moore)
6. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (By. Dr. Seuss)
7. The Very First Christmas (By. Paul L. Maier)
8. The Gift of the Magi (By. O. Henry)
9. The Little Match Girl (By. Hans Christian Andersen)
10. The Tale of Three Trees: A Traditional Folktale (By. Angela Ewell Hunt)
11. A Charlie Brown Christmas (By. Charles M. Schulz)
12. The Christmas Story (By. Jane Werner Watson)
13. The Animals' Christmas Eve (By. Gale Wiersum)
14. The Poky Little Puppy's First Christmas (By. Justine Korman)
15. Corduroy's Christmas Surprise (By. Don Freeman)
16. The Velveteen Rabbit (By. Margery Williams)
17. Room for a Little One: A Christmas Tale (By. Martin Waddell)
18. The Crippled Lamb (By. Max Lucado)
19. The Legend of the Candy Cane (By. Lori Walburg)
20. *Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas (By. Tim Burton) 
*This is the poem which the movie was based on made into a book.

Happy Homeschooling!
~Mickaela