All In a Days Work

Say yes, smile and ask to be involved. A great policy which has been getting us into all sorts of opportunities this year. The latest is a ride on a float in the grand parade at our local show. Sounds cool doesn't it! I like to roll the Grrrrrr in grand just to make it sound even more fun, much like a drum roll. So get set, I'm going to flood this space with pics from our first ever parade dressed as chimney sweeps from Mary Poppins.

Our little town claims the birth of P.L. Travers, the author of Mary Poppins, and annually we're lucky enough to enjoy a festival dedicated to the celebration of all things Mary Poppins. Massive fun! Especially the Nanny Race and the Chimney Sweep challenge but that all lies ahead in the coming months but today we have had ourselves a fab new experience and some very filthy little boys to scrub.

Strolling around the show later it was easy to forget the soot on my face until someone would ask why the charcoal and costumes. Well, me 'ittle urchins ain't seen no soap for a good many weeks and dis is the result. :)

Can you see the lady with red scarf holding the bag and umbrella? That's our Mary Poppins and joining her on the far left is Admiral Boom. We have a very colourful town!



A bonus was whilst having to wait for the parade to start, well not particularly good in that hot afternoon sun, but it was so much fun seeing all the other floats getting ready for the parade and catching up with a few familiar faces we've missed since The Music Man wrapped.

I have some fun big news to share too. On Tuesday, the councils events team will be shooting an add for local television promoting the upcoming Mary Poppins Festival and our little urchin sweeps will get to be involved :D! Fantastic, but I do wonder if the crew with the camera are going to be prepared for the onslaught of questions when faced with our two inquisitive critters. Well, good luck to them I say ;)

Cut, Cull, Include

Currently I'm reviewing our homeschool. It happens regularly. I frequently question the validity and effectiveness and worthwhile-ness (a new word out of necessity :D) of what we do in our home. Everything is under fire and examination and it's time-consuming! Should we have so many extra activities, are homeschool meets worth the effort, how is my time-management, is the curriculum we're using consuming too much of our boys all important play time, how much of their time should I control constructively, can I include more art etc.

There is so much more on my mind but what I do know is that for many reasons, particularly critical thinking, board games, like reading aloud, need to be included daily.

This week we were watching childrens program Behind the News together and they reported the inclusion and benefits of board games as part of the school curriculum. I was already aware that author and school principal of The Candlebark School, John Marsden includes Chess as part of the schools curriculum to enhance math skills. Linking to Behind the News online is a Scholastic article touting the social and educational benefits of playing board games.

I've tried googling with little success for some scientific study to support the validity of including board games in the curriculum but realize without the scientific backup that if I encourage our boys to play a board game of some description regularly they will benefit socially through the interaction of cooperation and will learn fair play by following the rules and that their critical thinking development through strategy and planning will be enhanced. But the benefits are a bonus. Seeing our boys playing together happily like this is valuable in itself.

Really Reading - and it's a novel!

It's happened. Finally :) Kookaburra is really reading, successfully, without assistance, novels! What has really helped was getting his eyes tested again after he'd been complaining of headaches usually in conjunction with reading quietly for about twenty minutes. Turns out he has astigmatism, which is very common and means that when he has been reading, one eye has been blurry and the other is working harder to compensate for it. Poor little chook. But doesn't he look a treat in his new specs?! Scrumptious little man. I'm so proud of him. What has also helped on the road to reading novels was purchasing the large print read aloud editions of the Narnia series - difficult to find but well worth the trouble of relieving the strain and making the reading experience just a whole lot nicer for him.

Kookaburra only has a few chapters to go and he's finished The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe which means for him that he can finally watch the movie. Kangaroo and I chatted about how he was going to feel when Kookaburra can stay up later then him and watch this special movie. Incredibly jealous but levelheaded would be an accurate description. He totally understands but wants to feel special too so in celebration of his brother's achievement Kangaroo is allowed to borrow The Cat in the Hat movie as his special treat and go to sleep in Mum and Dad's bed with me afterwards. Hopefully he'll be happy with that and everything will be swell.

Hopefully ;)