We can say without a doubt that the Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack is the best resource out there when it comes to studying the sun.

My kiddos are obsessed with studying astronomy right now. 

They can not get enough!  

Jason and I have been creating so many printables and activities to keep up with their constant need for more.

When it comes to studying the sun, Jason and I struggled to find resources for our classroom. 

As a result we decided to create our own.

Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack

The Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack (30 pages) is designed to be used in Montessori preschool and elementary classrooms, but can be used for non Montessori settings, especially the home.

If you have a child who's obsessed with astronomy as ours are, this is a must have!

Just take a look at all that's included!

Sun Do-a-Dot Printable

Whether you're using yellow pom poms, beads, do-a-dot markers, erasers, stamps, or stickers, this printable is a fabulous way to practice fine motor skills.  

This activity requires so much concentration and hand-eye coordination for little ones.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

Layers of the Sun Activity

Most children learn the layers of the Earth, but how many learn the layers of the sun?  

These printables are the perfect resources to help your child learn all there is to know.

You can use the diagram on it's own with clay or play dough and have loads of fun creating a three dimensional model of the sun.

If your child loves to read or write, he can use the fill-in-the-blank diagram to label the sun.

For those ready for more advanced work and are great readers add in the description cards.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

The Solar Eclipse Activity for Kids

A solar eclipse is a very fascinating event that happens around the world more than we think.  

These printables are the perfect resources to help your child learn the facts.

You can use the chart alone and have children create a model using materials at home or in the classroom.

For those who are practicing sequencing skills or want to understand a step-by-step process of how a solar eclipse occurs the sequencing sheets are great!  

Children can draw their own sequence, or print out two copies of the control, cut one set out, and they can place them in the correct squares.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

Solar Eclipse Art Cards

My kiddos are big into art and music right now. 

Whenever I stumble across art work that goes along with one of our themes of study, I can't resist adding them to our shelves.  

Put a magnifying glass with these images and the kiddos go crazy!

I love these art pieces in particular because they all vary so much and show how solar eclipses are a big part of our history.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

Sun Vocabulary Nomenclature and Description Cards

There is so much to learn about the sun! It is absolutely fascinating, especially when you take a closer look.  

These vocabulary cards come in nomenclature form for little ones, and picture and description form for older children.   

The descriptions are great for parents and teachers too.

What is a sunspot?

Is the sun always perfectly round?

How are the northern lights related to the sun?

All of these questions are answered on these cards.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

Sun Benefits and Sun Dangers Sort

A unit about the sun wouldn't be complete without talking about how it benefits us and how dangerous it can be.  

Benefits and dangers can be introduced separately through various lessons and then can be combined. 

This is the perfect sorting activity for little ones that will encourage so much conversation.

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

Sun Safety Cards

It's one thing to talk about the dangers of the sun, but yet another to understand what you can do to protect yourself.  

These adorable cards come in nomenclature form along with picture and description style.  

They can be used how you'd like.  

Picture cards can be paired up with fun practical life activities or can be used with the danger cards.  

It's completely up to you!

Source: This activity is included in our Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack.

A Trip Around the Sun: A Birthday Celebration Printable

One of my favorite Montessori birthday traditions is the trip around the sun.  

A beautiful set up is placed on the floor in the home or classroom.  

The birthday boy or girl holds a globe and makes a trip around the sun for every year old he or she is.  

With each trip, emphasis is put on special memories or accomplishments from the year.

This printable provides you with everything you need to create your own set up.  

It goes a step further and includes images of the Earth as it orbits around the sun for every month of the year.  

A control chart is provided so you can see how it works.

This is such a fabulous way to teach how the Earth orbits around the sun, even when it's not someones birthday!

As you can see the Montessori-inspired Sun Printable Pack is an incredible resource.  There's something for everyone here.

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In August both Princess and Sunshine were enrolled in school outside of our home.  Sunshine attends a special needs day program.  Princess is attending our local public elementary school.

To say this has been a huge transition for our family is quite an understatement.

There have been many strong emotions expressed over the past few months. 

The phrase, "What happens at school stays at school," has been a life saver.

What Happens at School Stays at School

The Decision to Send our Girls to School

There were definite reasons we didn't send our girls to school prior to this school year.

Reactive Attachment Disorder was number one on our list.  We wanted to work on attachment at home as long as we could.

We were concerned that school outside the home would bring more behaviors and trauma. 

But then we met those who would be working with our girls.

All of our fears were put to rest.

We have an amazing village for our girls.

I can't say enough about the girls' teachers and how wonderful they've been at communicating with us, no matter what situations arise.

The Transition to School

Communication is great, however it does not change behaviors that occur while at school. 

Nor does it change the strong emotions the girls have when they arrive home from school.

The transition can be extremely difficult for everyone, especially when Mom and Dad open up book bags and read daily reports.

Some days are good.  Other days not so much.

No matter which emotions the girls are feeling, their first hour home sets the tone for the rest of the night.

More importantly my husband's and my reaction to everything can salvage or completely ruin whatever shot we have left at a peaceful evening with our girls before bed.

Our Philosophy about School Behaviors

This is why we've adopted the philosophy, "What happens at school stays at school."

It all started when Sunshine came home upset almost every day due to the behaviors of other children in her classroom and how they directly affected her.

Then there were the days she really struggled and was so upset at how she had behaved and treated others.

I noticed very quickly that I had to teach her that it's okay to have a bad day at school and a good day at home.  The return home from school is a fresh new start.

It took a lot of work but after a couple of months she finally understood.  She could repeat the phrase I repeated every single day.

"What happens at school stays at school."

As we communicated with her teachers, they began to help us reinforce this philosophy.  They even went as far as thanking us repeatedly for feeling the way we did, explaining that many of Sunshine's classmates are punished at home for behaviors at school.

My response...

I want to enjoy the time I have with Sunshine. 

Teachers are already giving consequences at school.  There's no need to make my life more difficult at home by giving out more.

The Choice to Let Behaviors Go

Princess' experience at school has been a little bit different.

As notes from teachers and reports from bus drivers have come home, my husband and I have had a choice to make.

We can be frustrated and upset.

We can lecture.

We can give consequences.

We can make Princess' life miserable until she decides to follow directions.

Or we can:

1. Lay out the natural consequences that may occur if the behaviors continue.

2. Give her a choice as to how she wants to behave.

3. Trust the consequences her teachers are giving at school

4. Let it be so we can enjoy our night.

In other words,

"What happens at school stays at school."

This has been by far the best philosophy for our family as our girls attend school outside of our home.

It has eliminated so many battles.

Our relationship with our girls has become stronger.

They feel comfortable communicating anything and everything, knowing that home is a safe space to do so.

We are able to enjoy the little time we have with them at home each evening, no matter what has happened during the day.

Processing What Happens at School

We are all for leaving the cares and worries of the day at school, but we know there are some days the girls need to vent.

If the girls have a desire to work through strong emotions related to what has happened during their day at school, we always make sure they know we're available to do that.

Some days they come home pretty upset.

Sunshine loves to talk about others' behaviors and decisions made in her classroom she disagrees with. 

We are very quick to ask her if she's talked to her teachers about her feelings and then remind her that what happens at school stays at school. 

She needs to talk to her teachers about that stuff.  We weren't there.

Princess can become very upset about social mishaps she experiences which can throw off the rest of her day.

We're able to remind her that what happens at school stays at school and that she can relax at home with her family, with no need to worry about things like that.

School Grades

This philosophy carries over to grades too. 

Confession:  I could care less what grades my daughters bring home from school.  

If Princess decides she's not going to do her homework or even bring it home for that matter,  that's a choice she's making.

If Sunshine works as hard as she can and only manages a 75% on an assignment, oh well.

What happens at school stays at school.

Grades do not define my children at home.

Final Thoughts about School Behaviors

Looking back on my life, I never thought I'd even consider parenting this way.  Doing well in school was everything to me.  

So much has changed though.

Parenting children with Reactive Attachment Disorder and other special needs has changed me.

I always want my children to know that no matter what happens at school, good or bad, it doesn't define them.  

What happens at school stays at school.

There is so much more to life.

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A while ago I received a message from a reader asking about our morning routine.  This mother was struggling with a child who takes medications, and how morning behaviors affected siblings and their home environment.

At the time, I was struggling myself and felt very inadequate answering the question.  Today, I finally feel confident sharing what we've discovered works for us.

The challenge to survive morning routines with special needs can be so overwhelming!

The Challenge to Survive Morning Routines with Special Needs

Time

One of the many ways we made the world work for our family in years past was to not commit to anything outside of what was absolutely necessary at a required time.

It was just too hard.

Our world was designed around the order of daily events, not by the time on a clock.

Anything related to time caused severe anxieties and behaviors we did not want to deal with unless absolutely necessary.

My husband and I had personal time goals for each part of the day, but if things were derailed we didn't worry.  We'd finish the days events when everyone was ready.

Our feeling was it was more important that we finish a task from beginning to end than stick to time as if the day was controlled by a stop watch, especially in cases where behaviors were a way to try to get out of doing something.

The Ultimate Challenge

Needless to says our world turned upside down when both of our girls started school in the fall.

Sunshine continues to attend her day program.

Princess started at our local public elementary school.

The boys continue to homeschool.

To say this transition was hard is an understatement.

Our biggest challenge was figuring out a morning routine that worked for everyone.

The process took months.

Why did it take so long?

The Thoughts in My Head

Like many moms out there, I felt I was a horrible mother if I didn't make sure my girls had a healthy, delicious breakfast before they left for school.

I thought I wasn't good enough if my girls didn't look their best (according to my standards) when leaving the house.

Growing up I was taught that your room is clean, your bed is made and your chores are done before you leave for school.  I had those same expectations for my daughters.

This may work very well for some families, but for us not so much.

A Brick Wall

Reactive Attachment Disorder, a mood disorder, anxiety, PTSD, ADHD and autism do not agree with my morning routines plans AT ALL.  It was as if I was running into a brick wall every single morning.

Here are just a few reasons why:

Medication

Sunshine requires medication to regulate her moods and other aspects of her functioning.  When she wakes up in the morning, her dose from the night before has completely worn off.  Her morning dose of medication takes at least 30 minutes to kick in.

A lot can go on in thirty minutes, especially when she's supposed to be getting ready.

Safety

Sunshine lacks a significant amount of safety awareness without her meds.  She tends to be more physical in every way.  She may be bouncing off the walls or ping ponging around the kitchen.  Sometimes she just feels like picking a fight or kicking her walls.  If a sibling is nearby...  Beware!

Social Boundaries

Sunshine does not understand social boundaries in general and tends to be in your face all of the time. This behavior is much worse before meds have kicked in.  Interactions between Sunshine and parents can be a bit unpredictable, depending on her mood.  Without medication working, they can go south quite quickly.

Limit Testing

Every child is great at testing limits when it comes to morning routines.  But a child with Reactive Attachment Disorder is the ultimate master at the game.  When you have two children with RAD...  A referee is required at the very least.

So you're probably wondering how in the world we manage to survive each morning.

This is how we do it:

Our Morning Routine

My husband and I wake up and give each other a little pep talk and affirmation that we can make it calmly through another morning routine.

I promise I'm not kidding about this.  It helps so much and is necessary more often than not.

He then immediately goes downstairs to do his own wake up routine and gets Sunshine's medications ready.

I wake up Princess and send her to the bathroom (where she tends to take her sweet time) and start my day's work.

When the medications are ready, I wake up Sunshine and send her downstairs where my husband administers them to her.

Sometimes this process goes well, especially if she's still a little drowsy.

Sometimes Sunshine decides to have a little fun though, especially if she was awake before I went to get her.

In these cases we instantly remind her about the consequences that come if she decides not to take her medications and at times a timer is required to work through the process.

Meanwhile Princess makes the transition from the bathroom to her room where she closes her door and gets ready for school.

We do not permit interaction between our children before Sunshine's meds kick in.

Sunshine returns to her room upstairs and then we wait for that magical moment when she calms and functions.

Sometimes she bounces around, plays, and entertains herself. Other times she decides to pick a fight with me or her sister.

I remain upstairs to keep the girls separated and push them along while my husband prepares lunches and backpacks for the day.

Most days this goes well.  Rarely do I need back up.

Princess goes downstairs ten minutes before her transportation to school shows up (only 40 minutes after she's woken up) to gather her things and get ready to go out the door.  

My husband then walks her to the end of the driveway and waits with her.

It's not usually until Princess goes downstairs that Sunshine actually gets dressed, puts her socks and braces on, and is ready for me to help her with her shoes.

When she hears Princess' transportation leave the house we head downstairs to get ready for her ride to arrive.  They come between five and fifteen minutes apart depending on the day.

On our way downstairs I wake up the boys and they start their morning routines.  They know to stay upstairs in their room with the door shut until their sisters leave.

Both girls' rooms are often a mess when they leave.

It's not worth the fight.

They know when they come home from school before they do anything else their room needs to be clean and chores done.  (I'll share how that goes on a different day.)

Princess does her own hair every morning. (She absolutely loves this!)  It may not look like how I would do it, but it works, especially since she takes it out a million times a day to redo.

Sunshine's hair is cut short because of battles we've had over taking care of it correctly and being safe with hair accessories.  It takes two seconds to brush through it.

Neither girl eats before they leave in the morning. Breakfast is served at both of their schools. We take advantage of this program, not because we don't have food, but because our goal is a peaceful morning and trying to fit in breakfast is just too much.

(Princess is trying to work towards breakfast at home, but knows if she isn't dressed with shoes on and hair done by a certain time, she will need to grab it at school.  

Due to Sunshine's food allergies I provide food for her breakfast at school.)

Both girls know my husband and I will not hesitate to send them to school with pajamas on, teeth unbrushed, hair messy, and shoeless.  

This idea is unbelievably appalling and embarrassing to them so we haven't had to do it yet.  (Thank goodness!)

Everyone knows it's not an option to miss transportation services.  

If my husband or myself have to lose an hour of our day transporting one or both of the girls to school (30 minutes one way) they lose an hour of fun with us.

I never anticipated our morning routine working the way it does.

Other than a goodbye before transportation comes, none of our children interact with each other.

It takes two adults, one downstairs and outside and the other upstairs.

I will say my husband survived a week on his own while I was on vacation with my boys.  

He made sure lunches were packed the night before.  

Sunshine waited with him on the porch while Princess waited for transportation at the end of the driveway.  

But when the week was over, he was VERY happy to have my help again and needed some time to recuperate.

Ultimately a successful morning routine is dependent on me following my children to know what each can and can not handle, and then adjusting my expectations. 

There are so many opportunities for chaos to occur in the morning.  Eliminating those chances has made all the difference.

What does your morning routine look like?

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Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Math Activities

I am so excited to celebrate Chinese New Year in our classroom this year.  It's been a while.  But with the new Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack I have all I need to create the most amazing unit ever!

This resource is 92 pages of incredible printables for Montessori preschool and elementary classrooms.

Today, I want to give you a preview of the math printables included and how we are using them.  Be sure to also check out all of the other Chinese New Year activities and printables we have available.

I hope you enjoy our Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Math Activities!

Before moving forward with our activities I wanted to mention that we have chosen to use the term Chinese New Year because these activities specifically focus on how the holiday is celebrated in Chinese culture.

The activities do not include a focus on other Lunar New Year celebrations around the world, especially those that do not take place on the same day.

Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Math Activities

Odd and Even Numbers

A couple of our younger students don't know the difference between odd and even numbers yet.  What fun it will be to teach them using Chinese Ingots.

Source:  This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

Addition with Chinese New Year Lanterns

The kiddos are huge fans of clip cards and are super eager to practice math skills right now.  These addition clip cards are perfect.  The glass beads are used as markers and Chinese lanterns used as counters.

Source: This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

Subtraction with Pistachios

Pistachios are often part of the Chinese New Year cuisine and given in candy boxes.  In our classroom we'll be using them to practice subtraction.  

Source: This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

Multiplication with Good Luck Coins

Good luck coins are often a part of Chinese New Year celebrations.  In our classroom they're going to be used to teach multiplication with these beautiful clip cards.  We're multiplying by eight, as eight is a lucky number associated with Chinese New Year.

Source: This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

Division with Red Envelopes

Red envelopes are given to children, relatives and friends during Chinese New Year. They contain gifts of money.  For this activity, the kiddos will divide money between the eight envelopes.

Source: This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

Sequencing the Days of Chinese New Year

Are you familiar with the events prior to and during Chinese New Year?  This activity is the perfect introduction.  Kiddos will match up pictures with descriptions and sequence the days of the holiday.

Source: This printable is part of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack.

The math printables in the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack are absolutely beautiful.  They are culturally sensitive and researched.  When combined with hands on manipulatives they are unbelievable.

Get your own copy of the Montessori-inspired Chinese New Year Printable Pack today!

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Children's Books About Antarctica

 As we prepare our Antarctica activities for the classroom each winter, we continue to notice that there is no list of recommended children's books about the continent. 

(This is not to be confused with books about penguins, which are plentiful in libraries and on the Internet.) 

We'd like to remedy that problem today and introduce our favorite Children's Books about Antarctica! 

Check out the list of ten fabulous books below!

10 Children's Books About Antarctica

A Trip to the Bottom of the World is a good introduction for beginning readers to the continent of Antarctica. The artwork is done in a comic-book style by Frank Viva. 

The story follows Mouse and his human companion on a cruise to Antarctica. Mouse complains for almost the whole trip, but the reader gets to enjoy the beautiful scenery while giggling at the characters' dialogue.  

Antarctic Journal by Meredith Hooper and Lucas deLeiris is a great example of detailed, in-depth nonfiction writing combined with lifelike artwork that sets the scene perfectly.

Hooper is on assignment for National Geographic.  This book is a child-friendly account of her experiences in Antarctica.

The author brings a scientists' eye for detail and an animal lover's heart to the text. This is the best kind of nonfiction writing.

Antarctica by Helen Cowcher is another good title for beginning readers who love wildlife. The text is simple, but the focus is on the beautiful artwork. Antarctica looks alive with color and energy on every page of the book.

Antarctica by Mel Friedman provides a brief overview of all aspects of the continent for more capable readers.  Scholastic produces the True Book series, so the emphasis is on vocabulary building and covering several subject areas, including history, geography and biology.

Antarctica by Wendy Vierow is another good book for more confident readers, but this one is aimed at the student who enjoys geography. Detailed maps and charts are the main focus. The author provides simple explanations for how to read maps.

The photographs inside are also very helpful, and fit this book better than paintings would. This book is part of a seven book series on the continents.

Here is Antarctica By Madeleine Dunphy with art by Tom Leonard is more poetic than any of the previous books we have reviewed so far.

The text is in the style of the song about the old woman who swallowed a fly. It builds one line per page, accompanied by the beautiful artwork of animal life and majestic scenery.

This book is fun to read aloud with a young child.

Introducing Antarctica by Anita Ganeri does exactly what the title suggests: provides young readers with a brief overview of the icy continent.

Another unique feature here is the focus on the scientists and the research that takes place on the continent. This is a good choice for any aspiring young explorers out there.

One Day On Our Blue Planet in Antarctica by Ella Bailey wins the prize for cutest book about Antarctica. Readers join a young Adelie penguin as she journeys from the nest to the open ocean, and back home again, exploring the terrain and wildlife as she goes.

The illustrations are less life-like than most of the books we've seen, but more animals are named and represented here, too. Great choice for young readers who love animals.

Sophie Scott Goes South is a favorite among the kiddos this week.  This book is unique because it is a first-person account of a voyage to Antarctica on an Icebreaker ship, written by a nine-year old girl.

She joins her ship captain father and his crew on a 30 day round trip voyage, filling readers in on every detail of the trip.

 Another great feature is the artwork, all of which was created by Sophie's classmates, who were asked to create art inspired by this adventurous young lady's experience.

When the Sun Shines on Antarctica by Irene Latham is a great addition to our list because it is the only poetry book about Antarctica that I am aware of. Even if there were others, it would be hard to top this one.  The simple, fun-spirited poems are matched perfectly with illustrations by Anna Wadham.

It's nice to break up all the hard science reading sometimes with some poetry. This book would be a great addition to your bookshelf for any study of the amazing, inspiring continent of Antarctica.

Whether you're borrowing books from your local library system or purchasing these books for enjoyment for years to come, we hope you enjoy them as much as we have!

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