| Mount Vernon Homeschoolers |
September Newsletter.
The Mount Vernon Homeschoolers newsletter is for parents who
homeschool in the area of
Alexandria, Virginia, close to Mount Vernon, the home of George
Washington.
Welcome back from summer fun, homeschoolers. We sure had fun swimming, bicycling, running, watching mega discovery channel show, going to the latest movies, and doing Art camp for two weeks. We did two puppet shows, made the puppets, wrote the shows and performed them one week each. Still have a spare show written if anybody wants a musical with cats on a fence getting paper shoes thrown at them. I'm ready whenever you are. We have our usual slate of activities and we welcome newbies and seasoned home schoolers to join us at the events.
We are publishing the newsletter with activities for each month. Next
newsletter is October 1st.
Mount Vernon Homeschoolers Association is organized to provide our
home schooled children an opportunity to play and learn together.
Here is link to editor's email address.
Editor:
Suzanne
 "Not Back to School" Picnic
Not Back to School Picnic scheduled for the first day of school on
September 5,2000. We meet at Ft. Hunt Park at the pavilion where
they have a shelter, bathrooms, tables and a fireplace to gently roast
whatever. The favorite is hot dogs, or veggie burgers, we pile the
potato chips and drinks on the table, and turn the children loose on
the playground. They come in starved and leave the tables
humbled. Mothers and parents and children mingle and we can have some
sports stuff there if there is a mood for soccer. Start around 11:30,
ends around 2:00. Free to come and go.
Grist Mill Social (formerly known as "Play Group") Bagels and Books
The reading club has been enjoyed by the older children while the younger ones stay in the library looking at book with their mothers. We always have a good time checking our books out and taking them home for later reading. The meeting is at Sherwood Library again.
We want to give a Big Thank You to the LibrarianBagels & Books will meet September 11, 10:00 am, at Sherwood Hall Library. The selections for this month are:
 4-H
The first activity for 4-H is to participate in the "Not Back to School" picnic at Ft. Hunt park. See you there.
4-H Club Lisa is facilitator for Active H'ers (10 up) Suzanne is
facilitator for Cloverbuds (age 6-9) This year the Cloverbud Moms will
have a sign up chart and those who want to help with the meetings will
be able to choose what they want to do from a list of activities or if
they have an activity to share, they can sign up to present it. We will work with everyone in September to create
the children's idea of a perfect Halloween costume. We should bring our
hot glue guns, and sewing machines, and set up to create fantastic
things. We will discuss and try some make-up tricks, and paint three
posters at the first meeting. We planned three meetings for this.
Then the big Halloween Parade. Once again we will collect $1.00 from
each family to pay the church for meeting in the chapel and the
entrance hall at each meeting. We will also collect $20 from each
family at the first two meetings. Last year, we discussed a
social group for the teens who wanted to go out once a month for a
movie, bowling, or skating. We may continue the discussion of a once
a year dance to celebrate the 13-up group and their growth to
responsible elders. (Although all the parents could come and we could
have the teens baby-sit. The idea could grow on the parents.)
Tap (Teens at Play)(printed with permission) Editor thinks we should join our teens up! TAP (Teens at Play) a social group for homeschooling teens (age 12+) would like to announce their September Activities. Note: The people that coordinate these events are not providing supervision for your child. You should plan to attend the event or arrange for supervision by another parent prior to the event. September 8 Noon - (Skating ends at 3 PM). This is a family event. Mom, Dad and any other members of your family are invited to attend with your teen.
Go Carts And Skating
We must have at least 8 participants to get the reduced prices
mentioned
above.
You must RSVP if you will attend and you need to let the coordinator
know at
least 48 hours in advance if your plans change.
Where: Planet Splash & Play Chantilly VA From 66 go north on 28. (You will be approximately 1 mile south of the intersection of 28 & 50) Turn right on Willard. ( There is a stop light at that intersection.) Turn right on Daly Rd. Turn right on Brookfield Corporate Dr. The Fun Park will be on the Right. Cost: $4.00 per ride on the go-carts (Must be 10 or 58 inches to drive.)
Who: Tell the cashier that you are with TAP and you can purchase your ride tickets and skating at that time. There is no need to send me money. RSVP: Tonja Racine pottershop@aol.com 703-753-8604 THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. September 22 2 PM - Dark. This is a family event. Mom, Dad and any other members of your family are invited to attend with your teen.
Picnic and Mini GolfWhere: Fountainhead Park in Fairfax CountyMore Details Later RSVP: Cindy Miller 703-690-3274 or Turtlerun_1@email.msn.com Do not read this unless you still need Curriculum
The postman asked the kids today why we had so many packages. They were cool. He said eBay? They came in with my $3.00 Physical Science book and Math manipulatives for Algebra, and piled them in the bay window. ONe of the other mothers knows where you can get even cheaper books. I'm back at the library for Encyclopedias because Bigdaddy went to $300.00. He wanted those books bad. Of course if anyone wants to know how to set up for school, or how much is too much, come to meet us and we will talk. Most homeschoolers homes resemble a used book store. Last year, at the Not Back to School Picnic, a mother talked to me about Charlotte Mason. This affected our whole year. We hardly looked at the curriculum. We conversed and all the family spent time together to share knowledge. The older kids worked with the younger ones. We were supportive, and used the community, the library and the Kennedy Center. We did science and had wonderful fun. We need some of this magic back. In homeschooling, Mother's can spread themselves thin. We can overbook. We provide a calendar, the scheduled events are posted. We feel free to come and go at Mt, Vernon Homeschoolers Association. We need no apology to or from one another if we commit to our children. They come first. We did a lot of science last year. This year, we may do a lot of something else. Maybe Math, Maybe Art, Maybe once a month Smithsonian Field trips. Maybe, jump in the car and drive through the Blue Ridge or go meet a Fiddler on a Friday night. We aren't inflexible. We bend, we have a Bulletin Board for email specials. We disappear, we call, and go glean vegetables, or stay and fix a faucet while everybody else is going someplace. Mt. Vernon used to be less friendly than it seems now. We have many families staying home to teach. Or, unschool .At one time the Ft. Hunt community had a membership of over a hundred families who met without their children. That is not compatible with us. Our children are with us, pesky or not. They are welcome and we hope they enjoy all the wonderful people we have surrounding them. We provide games and ask the older teens to supervise if the parents need to concentrate. |
Orff group
Orff group with Lynnell Lewis. Chorus, orchestra, dance, recorder,
drum, terrific opportunity for the children to learn music.
They handle instruments, and learn to use their voices. They learn
songs and improvise. There is a charge per student.
Here is the message from Lynnell:
Appreciation: Big Thank You's!We want to thank Maureen for a great start on Cloverbuds group. Maureen has decided to concentrate on homeschooling. After much thought and meditation, I have had to make the decision to not participate in the Cloverbud group this coming year. Unfortunately, our schedule next year is not compatible with doing 4-H on a regular basis. We can't express our appreciation enough for her leadership this past year. In reflection, we enjoyed many activities with her as our leader. We also thank Lorraine for the thrilling unit on constellations. And we thank Lisa and her family for the circus activities. Writing Club -- Due to other duties, this is on hold for this month.Writing Club We have Carol and Denise to thank for the excellence of this club. And, Cecilia thought to offer it to the younger ones.
More about Writing ClubThe older group meets in a room at Sherwood Library. They usually have writing exercises . . . But, the younger group (9 - 3) meet in another room to color, finish their stories, then we gather in a circle and everybody who wants to share, reads or tells their stories. We critique the work (gently) and we even have an oral tradition for those who forget to bring a story. We made many good stories last year. We meet twice a month. If you haven't come to this activity, put it on a priority. One mother thinks she may want this to travel from home to home with mothers working with the different ages and leading activities. Let us know what you think. It has encouraged my children to love writing and look forward to speaking in front of a group. And, sometimes the younger crowd will go on for longer than two hours. Believe me, this is fun. We bring a box of crayons, pencils, scissors and glue and paper. We even make origami and paper airplanes. If there is interest, contact Suzanne and we will discuss meeting. The mothers who started this activity are busy with other duties during September and October. Lisa worked with this club last year and it was getting better all the time.
Mount Vernon Homeschoolers -- Plans for Group ActivityShould we offer a mission statement? What is best for our emergent learners? Do we do more? Or, less? Come prepared to discuss and reason through the potential for growth. It seems to me that we come to events if we want to, or the schedule allows. We share knowledge and interests. We value our friendship. No group can be everything to everybody. Some of our children are progressing to the teen years. We need to offer more community for them. We have talked about a prom/dance, and a yearbook. Let us know if the teens request an activity. With the coming election, we might make an effort to meet the candidates or have an election eve party. Make all the children's year special with parental involvement. We're in the trenches here, we've got to get messy. Support Mount Vernon Homeschoolers. Please think about the experiences we had last year, and be prepared to discuss what we want to offer as a group.
Not Back to School PicnicThe next big event for us is the Not Back to School Picnic at Ft. Hunt Park on the day school starts. We had a cookout, and a fun time last year. Bring your own lunch and join us again this year. Come prepared to discuss our activities. Or, come and have a good time. More Thank You'sSports Day was also a wonderful activity. Cecilia encouraged some pottery and activities. We joined a Field trip to the Pride of Baltimore with Tara.Carol and Denise started writing club. Talk about amazing fun. Cecilia offered writing club to the younger group and this has to be one of our more exciting groups. Thanks to each one of the parents who tirelessly supported, drove to and met us all over this area. We had the best year. And, look forward to great unschooling and home schooled year. We know some of you came from Reston and Woodbridge and all over looking for active new interests and our children found a wealth of new friends and acquaintances. Turn Loose of your Art Work!Art Gallery could use some artworks for the month of September. Suggest bees, bugs, butterflies, flowers. E-mail or give Suzanne your art work at the events during the month of September. The art gallery is open to everyone to be included. Poetry and stories are welcome. I love to scan in works of art, writing, and editorials.Ready for New ideas for 2000?
More Big Thank You's for 1999-2000 Homeschooling Year
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Books are chosen by the librarian and
it does stimulate reading. Snacks may be provided.
Yahoo and eBay Auctions. Looking for curriculum? We've been having
some reckless fun on these auction sites. Some of my personal
favorites: homeschool, reading (skip the palms and the heads),
writing, grammar, phonics, science, math, arithmetic, movies, books,
music, art, geography, physics, earth science. Also, watch out for the
people who can predict the future for $4.99. I can predict
homeschoolers often have homework, because they want to. Free
prediction. No, I can't cook supper. Open the big can of pork and
beans. I have to watch Pompom, she's trying to get my curriculum.
She can have it, but she's going to pay for it. You will find yourself
up in the wee hours pounding the keyboard because you lost Saxon math
by $.36. Then, you have to wash the bean can, recycle it and kiss the
kids who went to sleep while you fight Bigdaddy for a $9.99
Encyclopedia Britannica from 1973. Then, you have to say somebody
help.
