Starting school is a BIG deal, and not just for school starters. If I am to be truly honest, I have to admit that I am finding this new transition far more difficult than Cammy. It’s not being right by her side that has me feeling anxious and a little sad.

I guess I am a bit of a helicopter parent. I have never been far away from Cammy. Always watching, guiding, helping, playing and, I’ll admit, often interfering. Now I can only hope that I have prepared her well as she spends a significant amount of her day without me. I hope that she treats people with acceptance and kindness. I hope that she participates with enthusiasm in all areas of school, eager to try and learn new things.  I hope she shows confidence and common sense in new situations. I hope she handles conflict with respect. I hope that she lets her true colours be seen by those around her. Mostly, I hope she enjoys her time at school.

I really wanted to mark this new transition with a gift- a meaningful gift for Cammy and a gift of reassurance for me.

My children usually receive books for birthdays, milestones and special occasions, but giving a book to Cammy to mark her first day of school didn’t feel right this time. We’ve been reading lots of books about preparing for school. We’ve read about Mothball’s funny school adventures (Wombat Goes to School) and Sunita’s first day (Starting School). We’ve read how Jessica made a new friend (Jessica’s Box) and about the girl who had to help her mother through their First Day. We’ve also read about the girl with The Terrible Suitcase. Cammy didn’t need a story about another child’s experience of school. What she  needs is a story about her own experiences.

Starting School Gift: A School Adventures Kit

I chose to create a School Adventures Kit for Cammy. My hope is that this gift will not only mark her first day of school but also capture her school journey. In the kit are:

• A suitcase
• A rag doll
• A journal (Titled My School Adventures)
• Two pens (One for Cammy and one for her rag doll)

About the School Adventures Kit

The School Adventures Kit really has a number of purposes.

DOLL:

• I chose a doll that I thought reflected Cammy; I was drawn to the princess tiara on this dolI. I hope that the doll, which I have named Amity (meaning friendship), will be a confidante for Cammy. Someone she can talk to at night about school once the lights go out; Someone who can give her the chance to formulate her thoughts and ideas before she is ready to talk about them with me.

• I often find that because school days are so busy children don’t even know what to begin telling their parents when they get home from school. Amity will act as a great catalyst for conversation between Cammy and myself because, until  Cammy can write independently, I will help her record her school adventures.  This helps me to stay in touch with Cammy. (I might even add some emotion stones or cards to the kit at some point to prompt thoughts for Cammy to share with Amity).

JOURNAL:

• The journal itself has a number of purposes. Its first purpose is simply as a diary to record significant school experiences and events. I’d love Cammy to keep this journal forever and read it as an adult, reflecting fondly on her school journey. (Once we have a Polaroid photo of Cammy in her school uniform, we will add it to the front page.)

• The second aim of the journal is to allow correspondence between Cammy and Amity. Cammy loves fairies and magical beings and I hope to keep that magic alive for as long as possible. I envisage Amity leaving words of encouragement and praise for Cammy on the eve of important school events.The first entry in the journal is a letter from Amity to Cammy.

• Finally, the journal provides Cammy with another avenue to write meaningfully.

Did you give a gift to your child on their first day of school?

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Upon reading a new book called Edward and the Great Discovery, we were immediately inspired to try an archaeological dig of our own. A choc-chip cookie dig seemed like the best starting place for my little baker. We enjoyed a rich day of reading, questioning, baking, and delving into the world of archaeology.

Quite simply, I love this book. Cammy loves this book. And, I can honestly see this book becoming a favourite with many families.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ll know how much I love books that introduce children to history through clever, interesting storylines and engaging illustrations.

Rebecca McRitchie’s first book, Edward and The Great Discovery, does just that. It is a sweet book about friendship, expectations and ambition but it also introduces young children to archaeology, history, palaeontology and the concepts of animal adaptations and extinction.

Edward comes from a line of archaeologists and, after much waiting, his first discovery is personally and scientifically momentous.

Celeste Hulme’s illustrations are not only warm and endearing, but they are laden with small details that will inspire questions and further investigations. The closing endpaper is also exceptional. It leaves readers with a visual image of Edward’s archaeological kit, hopefully inspiring children to create a kit of their own for exploring and investigating.

Scroll to the end of this post for more details.

Undertake your own Archaeological Choc-chip Cookie Dig for Kids

This is a simple and fun exercise to try with kids. It simulates the delicate work of an archaeologist, and is likely to stir an interest in archaeology and fossils.

You will need:

• Toothpicks
• Unused paint brush or pastry brush
• Magnifying glass
• Clipboard, paper and pen (optional)
• Choc-chip cookies (You could buy these, but we chose to make our own using this choc-chip cookie recipe. This allowed us to add milk AND white choc-chips but it also creates moist cookies that don’t crumble too easily. You could also add coloured M&Ms and/or nuts to the cookie dough)

How to Excavate a Choc-Chip Cookie

1. Prepare your materials and tools (We used toothpicks in place of spades and trowels, a magnifying glass and an unused paint brush)

2. Offer your children the following instructions

• Use the tools provided to help you search and dig for treasure in your cookie (You might demonstrate how to do this by poking around the choc-chips to loosen them from the cookie OR you can let your child explore and find their own techniques. )

• You need to be as careful as possible to protect the cookie from breaking or crumbling

3. To extend the activity further, you can keep a tally of your discoveries, leading to addition and probability exercises.  This works particularly well if you have used a mixture of chocolate chip types (e.g. milk and white).

KEEP DIGGING:

If excavating cookies doesn’t take your fancy or if your kids are keen on finding more great discoveries, then I highly suggest checking out these other fossil and archaeological dig activities:

ICE DIGS

Twenty Fun Things to Freeze in Ice-Blocks, Picklebums

Ice Eggs, A Little Learning for Two

Ice Chiseling, Adventures at Home With Mum

TREASURE DIGS

Sandbox Diamond Mine, The Craft Train for Childhood 101

Mining for Jewels, Adventures at Home With Mum

Gelatine Excavation, Lessons Learnt Journal

FOSSILS AND DINOSAUR DIGS

Dinosaur Fossil Discovery, Adventures at Home With Mum

DIY Dinsoaur Fossils, Lessons Learnt Journal

Making Clay Fossils, Wildlife Fun 4 Kids

EDWARD AND THE GREAT DISCOVERY BOOK DETAILS:

Author: Rebecca McRitchie

Illustrator: Celeste Hulme

ISBN: 9781925059007

Format: Hardback

Publisher: New Frontier Publishing, June 2014

RRP: $24.99 (aud)

Suitable for ages: 4+

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Tomorrow is Library Lover’s Day.

To encourage you to visit your local library tomorrow, I am re-issuing a challenge from our 2012 Little Book Adventure. The challenge to ‘spread your love of books’ received such wonderful feedback the first time around, I thought it would be a great way to show our library books some love again. You can see the original challenge here.

I often wonder too, whether the little notes and pictures we left in our library books were ever found!

LEAVE A MESSAGE IN A LIBRARY BOOK.

How to play:

• Choose your favourite book from your current library book stash

• Download and print a copy of our letter head (or use your own stationery)

• Use the letterhead to write a letter (with or without parent help) to the next borrower of the book. Examples include:

-Describing what you enjoyed about the book

-Describing your favourite part of the book or your favourite illustration

-Describing how you are similar to the book character

-Recommending another book that is similar to this one

-Drawing your favourite part of the book

-Drawng a picture to show how the book made you feel

• You don’t need to disclose your full personal details, but it would be nice to make the letter personal by writing your first name (or nickname) and age at the bottom of the letter

• Slip the letter inside the pages of the book

• Finally, make that special little trip to the library to return the book.

Arts Centre Melbourne is launching an exciting season for families and youth, which will see favourite children’s books come alive on stage for the first time.

The season is made up of a number of shows playing between July and November, 2013.  The program is aimed at families and includes world-class international productions for children aged 3+, which are imaginative and educational.

The shows are unique, and are one-of-a kind experiences for parents to share with their children. The venues are small, allowing for an intimate audience and an ‘up close and personal’ theatre experience.

WHAT’S SHOWING?

Arts Centre Melbourne presents Het Filiaal’s Miss Ophelia as the season opener

Direct from The Netherlands, Arts Centre Melbourne’s winter hero show, Miss Ophelia is adapted from Ophelia’s Shadow Theatre by Michael Ende – author of The Never Ending Story.

Ophelia is going to be a great actress who will travel the world – or at least that is what her parents want for her. When her tiny voice derails the dream, Ophelia stumbles upon a shadow that belongs to no one, and takes the solitary silhouette under her wing. When more shadows arrive, she tucks them into her little purse and soon, unlikely (and unforgettable!) friendships are forged as Ophelia and her sidekicks deliver extraordinary shadow puppet theatre in this heart-warming story full of light.

The performance is told using projections, shadows, small objects, life size actors, an old record player and 8 desk lights.

Performance details:

Dates: 3 August (11: 30am and 2:00pm)  and 4 August ( 11:30am and 2:00pm)

Theatre: Fairfax Studio

Duration: 45 minutes

Price: Tickets are $18 each or $16 each when purchased as a family or group pass (4+)

Read more about Miss Ophelia or purchase tickets now.

There are other shows on the program including Patch Theatre Company’s Theo and the Lion, a whimsical, dream-world adventure inspired by Pamela Allen’s picture book, A Lion in the Night.

To find out more about the other shows on the program, you can sign up to Arts Centre Melbourne’s Families & Youth eNews or visit artscentremelbourne.com.au/kids

FOLLOW UP ACTIVITY:

You can try this activity with your children before or after seeing a performance of Miss Ophelia. Children can explore and capture shadows, and use their imagination to create stories with the shadows they have captured.

This activity is inspired by two elements of Miss Ophelia:

1)  The use of lights and shadows in the production of Miss Ophelia.

2) The role shadows play in the storyline of Miss Ophelia. They belong to no one, but come together to create a story of their own.

1. Set up the working station. Position the desk lamp at one end of the table and direct it towards the white paper.

2. Select one object and place it in front of the lamp

3. Using the charcoal, draw over the shadow that has been created by the object (charcoal is a fantastic medium because it can be rubbed to create a shadow effect)

4. Continue capturing shadows, using objects in a range of shapes and sizes

5. Once you remove the objects, you are left with ‘lost shadows’:  shadows that belong to no one

6. Look at each shadow and talk about what you see. The shadow might not necessarily look like the object it belongs to. Create little stories about each of the lost shadows.

7. Ask children to bring their lost shadows together to create a story. Depending on the age of your child/ren, this could simply be done verbally.

GIVEAWAY:

Courtesy of Arts Centre Melbourne, we have 1 x family pass (4 tickets) to giveaway for the performance of Miss Ophelia on Saturday 3 August 2013 at 11.30am (valued at $64).

The giveaway is open to Australian residents and closes at 5pm (AEST) on the Wednesday 31 July 2013. Please note the full Terms and Conditions of the giveaway.

To enter:

Leave a comment below, answering the following question:.

Why do you want to see Miss Ophelia at Arts Centre Melbourne?

PROVIDE YOUR CHILD WITH A RICH AND REWARDING EXPERIENCE BY OFFERING THEM REAL INGREDIENTS TO EXPLORE.

Cam loves to create, which is why I think she loves instructional texts- Cookbooks being a particular favourite.  I often find her poring over the recipes and photographs in our children’s cookbooks.   She  really enjoys spending time with me in the kitchen, helping me prepare our family meals and snacks,  measuring and mixing ingredients and licking the spoon.

An invitation:

Given her love for baking, I wanted to provide her with an invitation that was related to real food.  I was selective about which ingredients to offer her. I decided to offer fruits that she liked and that were easy for her to cut with her kiddikutter knife. I also felt that the ingredients I offered would result in edible products no matter how she chose to use them.

I was hoping the invitation would:

• consolidate her knowledge and understanding of recipes as an instructional text

• make use of and experiment with the various techniques she has learnt through baking with me

• give her the freedom to explore ingredients in her own way and in her own time

• give her the opportunity to create and to cook independently

Cam did start with more traditional approaches: making neat tarts, using cookie cutters etc.

…………..and then she began to experiment a little more,  creating free-form pastries by rolling,  scrunching and twisting,.

We put her creations in the oven, and she ended up with some edible treats for morning tea.

This was simply an invitation, but in the future I’d like to help her create recipes of her own by recording her processes.

Related Book Lists:

You will need:

• A magnifying glass

• A selection of books

How to play:

There are many ways you can play the letter hunt game, depending on a child’s age or ability.

a) By using a magnifying glass, ask your child to search through the words in the book to find:

• Particular letters of the alphabet: These could be chosen by you or your child. You could focus on letters your child already recognises or  letters they are just  beginning to recognise

• Sounds: Children can look for the letters or letter combinations (digraphs, trigraphs) that make a particular sound (For example, kite, cat, duck, Christmas)

• Particular words of choice: For example, you could ask your child to find words of interest, new vocabulary, sight words or words that appear on their spelling lists

• Small words within larger words

b) Or you could simple leave an invitation for your child to explore the book in their own way.

Who knows what they will explore- letters, words, illustrations or endpapers???????????????

Choosing books

You don’t have to put a lot of effort into choosing which books to use. But if you want to be selective look for:

• Books that feature alliteration: This will give your child many opportunities to see and begin to recognise letters.
• Books that feature high frequency words