Saturday 30 April 2011
Hitting Letter Balloons
Age: From 2 years old
Activity Duration: 5-10 minutes
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Objective(s):
1. To provide a fun and cheap way of teaching alphabet through movements.
Materials:
1. 4 balloons each written with 1 letter (c, m, a, and t, for example) with a black marker.
2. 1 string (I use 2 shoe laces)
Directions:
1. Blow up 4 balloons and tie it with rubber bands. Then write the letters on them. Tie them to the string. Find a suitable spot in your home and connect the string of ballons to two points (I use two door knobs as shown in the picture).
2. Demonstrate by calling out the sound of one of the letters on the balloons and ask your child to run over to hit the balloon with the alphabet that you just called.
Additional Information:
We tried this during "Fun with English" class for toddlers yesterday, and J (2Y1M25D) and Amy had a lot of fun.
Labels:
Balloons,
From 02 years old,
Language,
Teaching Alphabet
Montessori Activity: Removing & Placing Back Pens' Lids
Age: From 1.5 year old
Activity Duration: 5-10 minutes
Preparation Time: 3 minutes
Objective(s): To train hand and eye coordination skill.
Materials:
1. 4-5 different types of pens with lids
Directions:
1. Show how to remove the lids from the pens and place them back.
2. Encourage your child to try.
Additional Information:
A very natural way to do this is during drawing or scribbling time. During this time, consciously show your child how to remove and put back the pen's lids. We did this activity on 30 April 2011. J was 2Y1M25D.
J Summary (2Y1M25D) - Developing A Sense of Humour
I am teaching J the sound of the letter 'a' and J could say the sound of 'a' as "aaaaaaah apple". These two days, he began to say "aaaaaaahhhh monkey" and looked at me for a reaction. Going along with him, I pretended to look "big-eyed" shocked at the mistake and said to him, "no no no, J it is aaaaaahhh apple!", and he would laugh and laugh and laugh and said "aaaahhh monkey" repeatedly. This went on several rounds for these 2-3 days. This evening, I was actually beginning to worry if I should stop going along with his joke, as he might get confused by his own joke, and truly begin to associate the letter 'a' with monkeys instead of apples!
Then this evening after putting him to bed and getting out of the bedroom, Daddy told me that he could hear from behind the closed door that J was practising hard the alphabet alone in his bedroom and he was practising "aaaaaahhhhhh apple" correctly. I breathed a sense of relief, his joke would not confuse his understanding of the sound of letter 'a' and 'm' after all. He is clear about it, that it is a joke. We were very amused and amazed by J's sense of humour, that he could make fun of us. No doubt when he sees us tomorrow, it would be back to "aaaaahhhhh monkey", my "big-eyed shocked" look and his rolling laughter :-)
J sometimes like to practise his learning during bed time alone in his bed. I am amazed at children's capacity to learn. The Danish education system only starts teaching at the age of 6 years old. From 6 years old and below in the kindergarten, it is just all play and no learning. When I observe J and other toddlers his age, I really think that it is very wrong to think the children cannot learn and play at the same time. They can learn so much and enjoy learning. J (and other toddlers his age) practising alphabets at his bedtime on his own shows that they have a lot of fun learning, thus confirming the theory of Montessori, that children wants to learn, and they have great capacity for learning. If parents in Denmark do not roll up their sleeves and teach the child at home in Denmark, the child not only would be lagging 4-5 years behind all the other children in the world i.e. US, UK, Japen, Singapore, China, etc., but the saddest part is that the child would have lost 4-5 years of learning opportunities, because there is no formal learning in the Danish kindergartens. The Singaporean system, on the other hand, tends to load too much into a little toddler's head. Oh I wish that these two systems could come together in the middle and it would be perfect!
Then this evening after putting him to bed and getting out of the bedroom, Daddy told me that he could hear from behind the closed door that J was practising hard the alphabet alone in his bedroom and he was practising "aaaaaahhhhhh apple" correctly. I breathed a sense of relief, his joke would not confuse his understanding of the sound of letter 'a' and 'm' after all. He is clear about it, that it is a joke. We were very amused and amazed by J's sense of humour, that he could make fun of us. No doubt when he sees us tomorrow, it would be back to "aaaaahhhhh monkey", my "big-eyed shocked" look and his rolling laughter :-)
J sometimes like to practise his learning during bed time alone in his bed. I am amazed at children's capacity to learn. The Danish education system only starts teaching at the age of 6 years old. From 6 years old and below in the kindergarten, it is just all play and no learning. When I observe J and other toddlers his age, I really think that it is very wrong to think the children cannot learn and play at the same time. They can learn so much and enjoy learning. J (and other toddlers his age) practising alphabets at his bedtime on his own shows that they have a lot of fun learning, thus confirming the theory of Montessori, that children wants to learn, and they have great capacity for learning. If parents in Denmark do not roll up their sleeves and teach the child at home in Denmark, the child not only would be lagging 4-5 years behind all the other children in the world i.e. US, UK, Japen, Singapore, China, etc., but the saddest part is that the child would have lost 4-5 years of learning opportunities, because there is no formal learning in the Danish kindergartens. The Singaporean system, on the other hand, tends to load too much into a little toddler's head. Oh I wish that these two systems could come together in the middle and it would be perfect!
Labels:
Memories
How to Organize Your Child’s Toys/Playroom?
J’s toys are fast degenerating into a disorganized mess, which makes retrieval difficult and is soon driving me crazy. Thus, I have to find a way to organize them so that J can find his toys easily and I will have the satisfaction of keeping track of the toys at my finger-tips. Here is what I have done, which I would like to record down for future reference, in case I forget what I have learned and improvised to suit my needs:
There are 7 main steps:
1. Organize Overall Space
2. Create Activity Areas
3. Design Storage System
4. Sort Toys
5. Label Toys
6. Rotate Toys
7. Implement Rules
Here are the elaboration of the 7 main steps:
1. Organize Overall Space
By Singaporeans/Japanese/Hongkonger standard, we are probably seen to have a lot of space, but by American standard, we have very little space. Making do with what we have, here is how I organize our overall space 266 x 240cm (8.73 x 7.87 ft) for the play area:
• For ergonomics, I opted for a square-shaped space for the play area and place the closets and open shelves along the sides, keeping the middle area free with sufficient space for playing.
• I try my best not to make the playroom too busy (although it tends to slowly crowd out again, and I need to do spring cleaning once in a while), so that it would not be overwhelming for J that he does not know where to start playing. Nevertheless, I still need to fine-tune the floor furnishing as it is too colourful at the moment.
• The mirror door from the IKEA Pax closet makes the play area looks like a gym, so that J can see and observe his own actions.
• I laid the floor with cushioning rubber pads and place a carpet in the middle to define the space for J’s floor activity. (I am thinking of changing the carpet to one which is more "muted", but haven't found one which I like that is of the right price yet. This will help to minimize too much colours and therefore minimizing over-stimulation and distraction from the main work/activity of the child).
• I use sliding doors to close up the play area, which double up as “wall space” for a poster as well as for displaying J’s recent artworks.
• For the books and puzzles, I place them on the most prominent spot of the low open cubic shelves for easy access by J, so that he will remember to read.
• I put in a kid-sized desk and chair against the wall for J to carry out his activity.
• I place a dustbin for J to throw away the rubbish himself.
2. Create Activity Areas
We don’t have a big area, but it is possible to allocate a theme to each corner as activity area. Having a designated location for an activity provides order and helps to keep things neat and easy to understand for the child.
For example, at the moment, J loves playing with kitchen toys. Thus, I have allocated a corner for play kitchen. The following are the activity areas I have created in J’s play area:
a) Work Station – kid’s size table and chair together with IKEA Expedit open cubic shelves for display of books and toys for play nearby
b) Cleaning Station – bucket with cleaning kit
c) Play Kitchen Station
d) Musical Instruments Corner
e) Art Corner with easel and basic art supplies
3. Design Storage System
Largely the storage system that meets my needs consists of 4 types of storage as follows:
a) IKEA Expedit open cubic shelves for books and toys on display
• For the cubic shelves for books and toys on display, I opted for a cubic solution from IKEA Expedit shelves, with each cubic shelf space displaying a category of toys.
• For the two top rows of display cubicles, I display activities for important areas clearly labelled as:
- English
- Chinese
- Maths
- Christian Education
- Art and
- Room Time toys such as Lego, Wooden Train Set, etc.
Although this is beyond the reach of J, at 2 years old, he can easily see them, and he would ask me to get it for him. Once he has outgrown the Montessori Practical Life activities, these will move down to the two bottom rows, I imagine 1-2 years from now.
- English
- Chinese
- Maths
- Christian Education
- Art and
- Room Time toys such as Lego, Wooden Train Set, etc.
Although this is beyond the reach of J, at 2 years old, he can easily see them, and he would ask me to get it for him. Once he has outgrown the Montessori Practical Life activities, these will move down to the two bottom rows, I imagine 1-2 years from now.
• The two bottom rows of the Expedit display cubicles are reserved for Montessori activities for now. One cubicle for each day, and thus total 7 cubicles and I change the activities once a week. The eighth cubicle near the desk is for books with easy access to J.
• One of the cubicle of the second row of the Expedit display cubicles are strategically reserved for books. It is nearest to the work station. Traditionally, the Chinese treat books like gold. We are not allowed to put books on the floor or anywhere near the floor. I want to teach J to respect books too. Placing the books on the second row elevate them off the floor and at the same time, put them at eye-level for J. This provides J the convenience and easy access to books, and transmitting the message that mommy hopes that he will always remember to read.
• It is my goal to pick out 7-8 books at the beginning of each week from the storage shelves to place on this display shelf. It serves to remind J and me that these are the books we plan to go through this week:
b) SMARTSTORE transparent boxes for Montessori Materials and toys to be stored away in different sizes.
When considering the sizes, think far ahead to your needs in a few years' time, when you need to expand. It is easier with standard size boxes so that toys can be placed in the boxes according to category. Each box can just stack up on top of the other as you expand. In this way, you save a lot of space - trust me. I speak with experience.
I choose three base sizes: 50 x 39 cm, 40 x 30 cm and 21 x 17cm. The variation in sizes for the other boxes would be the height, so that the boxes can be stacked easily in three different groups. An example of different sizes of base 40 x 30 cm smart boxes are stacked together:
Thereafter, I would recommended 7 different sizes: XX-Large, X-Large, Large, Medium, Small, X-Small and XX-Small
Base size 50 x 39 cm
1) XX-Large (50 x 39 x 41cm): Good for clunky trucks, musical instruments, etc.
2) X-Large (50 x 39 x 26cm): Good for balls, out-door toys, etc.
Base size 40 x 30 cm
3) Large (40 x 30 x 32cm): Good for large building blocks such as LEGO Duplo
4) Medium (40 x 30 x 19cm): Good for LEGO, wooden toys such as train set, wooden blocks, Montessori supplies, kitchen toys, etc.
5) Small (40 x 30 x 12cm): Good for standard LEGO blocks, cutting fruit toys, etc.
Base size 21 x 17 cm
6) X-Small (21 x 17 x 15cm): Good for small LEGO parts, counters, etc.
7) XX-Small (21 x 17 x 6cm): Good for small LEGO parts, scissors, stationery, etc.
• For toys with parts, I use cubic baskets or transparent boxes that could fit into the individual cubic space.
• On the top of the IKEA Expedit, I store the Montessori supply materials i.e. the sensory materials, bottles, and pouring containers, sorting items, etc. in medium-sized SMART transparent boxes. This provides me with an easy overview.
c) Transparent tool containers are very useful for sorting and storing small toys:
d) Baskets on the floor for large toys such as musical instruments and vehicles:
e) IKEA Pax storage closets for stocks and toys for rotation or toys not used on a daily basis:
• For the storage closets, I opted for IKEA Pax closets and put a mix of shelves and small, medium and large containers if necessary.
4. Sort Toys
To organize the toys, section-by-section, I went through each item and sort it into three piles: give, keep and throw.
Next I categorize the toys for storage into the following groups:
1. Puzzles (both wooden & jigsaw)
2. Board Games
3. Wooden blocks
4. Toy for rotation
5. English Books
6. Danish Books
7. Chinese Books
8. Art Supplies, magnetic drawing board, etc.
9. Lego
10. Science + Nature
11. Balls
12. Little People + Animal Figurines
13. Wooden Train Set
14. Theatre play puppets & props
15. Cleaning toys such as brush and dustpan, vacuum cleaners, etc.
16. Alphabet & numbers toys
17. Alphabets materials (A,B,C letter magnets, alphabet puppets, Leap frog)
18. Numbers materials (1, 2, 3 number magnets)
19. Play dough supplies
20. Art supplies + Colouring books (Stock)
21. Finished Artworks
22. Tray supplies
23. Educational DVDs and music CDs
24. Toys for rotation (a few shelf spaces)
25. New Books for future
26. New Toys for future (a few shelf spaces)
27. Baby Toys (toys that J almost growing out of)
28. Empty toy storage boxes/containers
29. Sports equipment (e.g. table-tennis bats and balls, tennis rackets and balls, badminton rackets, etc.)
I place these following groups of toys in baskets for play on the floor:
30. Musical Instruments
31. Cars & vehicles
32. Kitchen toys
33. Dress up Chest
34. Stuff toys
35. Dolls
5. Label Toys
• I first labeled the shelves/boxes with sticky yellow post-it-note, so that I can easily move around until I am satisfied.
• Once I am happy with it, I will label them with words and picture for quick recognition (I haven't completed this yet). This is a good way to familiarize your child with words while helping him stay organized.
• If a sticker label doesn't adhere to the boxes or baskets, I can tag it with a luggage tag or ribbon instead.
6. Rotate Toys
• Although I don't always succeed, I try to only give J just a number of toys on display on the open cubic shelves and store the rest in the storage closet.
• When considering what toys to put out, I try to consider J’s current interests as well as what I think will be developmentally appropriate for him to have a go at it now.
• Although I don't always get to do this, I try to remember to rotate the toys once their appeals or novelty are lost.
7. Implement Rules
• I implemented the rule of putting back one set of toys before bringing out another set and try my best to encourage J to keep it. Sometimes, when I am tired, I let this slip.
• When putting back toys, we sing a clean-up song that I learned from the church nursery.
• I am also in the process of implementing the rule that if a new toy is purchased, J or I must pick out another toy that will be donated to charity. Hopefully, this helps to prevent the play area from becoming overcrowded and cluttered again in the future!
References:
Some of the storage equipment and supplies are available in Amazon:
Thursday 28 April 2011
J Summary (2Y1M24D) - Taking the Role As Our Translator
I am trying my best to talk as much to J as possible during this sensitive period for language. Yesterday (J:2Y1M23D), I said to J, "妈妈要去冲凉了。" meaning mommy is going to take a shower. J then turned around and said to daddy, "Mor bad" in Danish meaning mommy is bathing. J has started translating Chinese Mandarin to Daddy!!!
For the past week, I noticed that whenever a crisis struck J, such as when a dog came running after him, the language that first came to his mind which he used has been Chinese Mandarin "不要", meaning no.
J started talking Chinese Mandarin to Daddy. He will say, "不要" to Daddy, meaning no, instead of saying Danish "nej".
For the past week, I noticed that whenever a crisis struck J, such as when a dog came running after him, the language that first came to his mind which he used has been Chinese Mandarin "不要", meaning no.
J started talking Chinese Mandarin to Daddy. He will say, "不要" to Daddy, meaning no, instead of saying Danish "nej".
Labels:
Memories
Monday 25 April 2011
J Summary (2Y1M20D) - Teaching Mommy How to Say Thank You
J fed me his pancake this morning. I was busy talking with Daddy, then I heard him said, "谢谢慨恩。 " J was saying that I should say "thank you, J". Hmmm.... J is now teaching mommy to say thank you... how the table is starting to turn around!!!
Labels:
Memories
Saturday 23 April 2011
Easter Daffodils (Påskelinjer)
23 April 2011 (2Y1M18D): Our Little FECS admiring the daffodils
Montessori Activity: Growing Sunflowers/Dyrke Solsikker/种植向日葵
Age: From 2.5 years old.
Activity Duration: 30 minutes
Preparation Time: Including buying seeds, pot and compost - half a day.
Objective(s):
1. To refine the child’s sense of smell.
2. To increase the child’s understanding and vocabulary of different smells.
Materials:
1. Giant sunflower seeds (you can get the giant species from the nursery, but you can also get it 3 packets for 10 DKK at Tiger)
2. Picture of a grown sunflower
3. 1 big pot with saucer
4. 1 potting compost for each pot
5. 1 pitcher of water
6. 1 tray
Directions:
1. Put the pot, seeds, compost and pitcher of water on the tray.
2. Tell your child that he is going to plant some sunflower seeds. Show him the seeds and then show him a picture of a sunflower. Tell him that when fully grown, the sunflower might be taller than mommy or daddy.
3. Ask your child to fill the pot with about 1 in (2.5 cm) of compost and then tell him to put a seed in the pot. Then ask him to put in the rest of the compost up to 1 1/2 in (4 cm) from the top and to water the pot.
4. Find a sunny spot for the pots and ask your child to check the soil daily to see if it needs any water. As the sunflowers grow, you will need to support them with a stick.
5. As the sunflower plant grows, measure the height using the height of your child. Take a picture of your child at various stage of the growth.
Additional Information:
It's spring time in Denmark, and I can't wait to try this activity with J!!! Although at 2 years and almost 2 months old, I think he is a little too young to probably understand everything. But we can repeat it again next year. I am really tired now, but so excited about all these activities, that I wonder whether J is the child or I am the child!!!
Here is a brilliant idea from the book "Teach Me To Do It Myself" by Maja Pitamic to grow sunflowers as an excellent way for introducing measuring. I can't agree more with Pitamic that few flowers have such a "wow" factor than the sunflower for the child - and even adult, if I should add. It starts as a tiny seed and grows to a tall height, all in the space of one season. Check which variety of sunflower you buy and if possible, go for the tallest.
Instead of a ruler, your child can use his hands, with the heel of the palm to the fingertips. When the sunflowers are taller than your child, record this with a photograph. And as they continue to grow, take more photographs of other family members, so that your child has a visual comparison.
This is a fantastic book providing hands-on guide on Montessori activities that is practical, simple and easy to follow. The book also provides lots of ideas on using simple equipment that you can find at home. I found this idea in this book:
References:
Teach me to do it myself by Maja Pitamic
5.6.2011 - The Sunflower plant is now reaching the ear-height of J |
6.6.2011 - The sunflower plant is now reaching the head of J |
27.7.2011 (2Y4M22D) - Our sunflower plant is now taller than Florian, J and I!!! |
Labels:
From 02.5 years old,
Growing Sunflowers,
Planting,
Science
Oatmeal Pancake/Havregrynpandekage/燕麦薄煎饼[mài báo jiān bǐng]
This recipe makes about 15 pancakes of 18cm in diameter.
Ingredients:
- 1½ cup rolled oats ground - ½ cup grahams wheat flour
- ½ cup white wheat flour
- 2-2½ cups low-fat fresh milk
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 TBS olive oil
- 2 TBS brewer's yeast (optional)
- 2 tsp brown sugar (optional)
- ½ tsp sea salt (optional)
I like to substitue ½ cup of rolled oats with millet flour (I like to grind my own), because I love the nutty crunchy feel of millet in pancakes.
Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients together but don’t overbeat the batter. Stop stirring once the mixture is moist or the pancakes will be tough (don’t worry about a few lumps)
2. Heat pan until hot (Its temperature is just right when a few drops of cold water dropped on the pan will jump and sizzle. If the pan is not sufficiently hot, the water will lie there and boil. If it is too hot, the water will evaporate instantly).
3. When the pan is hot, add some oil just enough to spread a thin layer on the pan by rubbing it with a piece of kitchen roll when making the first piece of pancake.
4. Turn to medium-low heat (no. 7 on my stove) and pour in a ladle of mixture just enough to spread it to cover the whole circumference of the pan.
5. Cook until the surface of the pancake is filled with bubbles and the underside has turned slightly brown (about 45 secs to 1 min). Raise the edge of the pancake with the wooden spatula to test if it is firm and brown.
6. Flip over and cook the other side for 30 secs more. DO NOT flip again or the pancake will be tough. (Although you may be tempted to do so, don’t use the spatula to press down the pancake or it will be heavy).
Storage:
Cool them completely before freezing. Freeze them in freezer bags between sheets of waxed paper for 3 months. To re-heat, place frozen pancakes single layer on a baking sheet in a 190°C oven for 7-10 mins. or microwave each pancake for 20 secs.
Nutritional Value:
Oats are an excellent source of soluble fibre, protein and the B vitamins thiamin, riboflavin, B6 and vitamin E. They also provide iron, calcium, magnesium, selenium, phosphorus and zinc.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Additional Comments:
J loves the millet pancakes. We started making pancakes together last Saturday and he keeps requesting for them after that. So I have decided to learn to make more different kinds of pancakes including oatmeal pancakes. I made it together with J on 24.4.2011, and Jsohua ate 3 pieces for lunch.
References:
http://www.suite101.com/content/oatmeal-pancakes-recipe-a46578
Labels:
Brewer's Yeast,
Egg,
Frying,
Milk,
Oats,
Olive Oil,
Pancakes,
Sweet Treats,
Wholesome Breakfast,
Wholesome Snacks,
Wholewheat Flour
J Summary (2Y1M18D) - Room Time Breakthrough
Room Time breakthrough continues...
Today, J played for 45 minutes during Room Time, with incremental of 10 minutes each. The sliding door was closed, and I took the opportunity to teach him respect, by respecting his personal space. I knocked on the door and asked him to please open the door. Then I waited for him to open the door. When I finished giving him his snack, I told him that he may close the door now. He was very thrilled with it, and closed the door and continued playing on his own. I am so happy that he is happy playing on his own in the playroom behind closed door. I think I can safely say bye bye to the risk of ADHD (which runs in my family) now :-) He played with cars, ktichen toys and spent a lot of time playing with playdough.
Language Development
Today, we were out for a walk, and Daddy had to go home. J then said to me: "爸爸回家了", meaning dad went home already in Chinese Mandarin, consisting a subject, verb, object and past tense.
Today, J played for 45 minutes during Room Time, with incremental of 10 minutes each. The sliding door was closed, and I took the opportunity to teach him respect, by respecting his personal space. I knocked on the door and asked him to please open the door. Then I waited for him to open the door. When I finished giving him his snack, I told him that he may close the door now. He was very thrilled with it, and closed the door and continued playing on his own. I am so happy that he is happy playing on his own in the playroom behind closed door. I think I can safely say bye bye to the risk of ADHD (which runs in my family) now :-) He played with cars, ktichen toys and spent a lot of time playing with playdough.
Language Development
Today, we were out for a walk, and Daddy had to go home. J then said to me: "爸爸回家了", meaning dad went home already in Chinese Mandarin, consisting a subject, verb, object and past tense.
Labels:
Memories,
Milestones,
Room Time
Friday 22 April 2011
Heritage Education: Sharing the Successes of Your Heritage with Your Child
Last week, I met a mother, whose daughter refuses to speak Chinese Mandarin. Yesterday, we met another friend, whose 3 year old daughter refuses to speak English anymore. It is very common that after children started school or even kindergarten, they would feel ashamed of their own mother-tongue and heritage. That is so sad... I have been thinking about how to solve this.
This morning, I got an idea as a solution to this problem, which I am going to try it out over the coming years:
Counter your child's feelings of shamefulness with pride of his heritage.
Here I am compiling a list of achievements of J's heritage, so that when he is older, I would have it ready to inspire him, and to instil pride in him for being a Chinese-Singaporean Dane.
If you are a living in a country where you are a minority, do not despair. Celebrate any small achievements that your heritage contributed to the human kind, no matter how small it may appear to be.
Objectives:
1. To inspire your children
2. To help them feel proud of their heritage
Achievements of Singapore
1. Another S’pore A-level student bags top Literature prize
http://edvantage.com.sg/edvantage/news/news/610986/Another_S_pore_A_level_student_bags_top_Literature_prize.html
2. Singapore teen tops world English examination in 2011
http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_670678.html
3. Singapore ranks 3rd at International Mathematics Olympiad 2011
http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_694880.html
4. Singapore ranks 1st at OECD's first PISA problem-solving test
http://www.oecd.org/pisa/singapore-and-korea-top-first-oecd-pisa-problem-solving-test.htm
5. Singapore tops OECD’s global education ranking in 2015
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-tops-oecd-s/1843546.html?cid=NEWSCNSA
http://news.asiaone.com/news/singapore/singapore-tops-worlds-most-comprehensive-education-rankings
http://borsen.dk/nyheder/oekonomi/artikel/1/304062/choktal_for_danske_elever_kun_22_bedst_i_matematik.html
http://www.b.dk/nationalt/danske-skoleelever-halter-efter-asiaterne-i-matematik
Achievements of China
1. Shanghai Owns the International PISA Science Math Test 2010
http://www.asianweek.com/2010/12/10/shanghai-owns-the-international-pisa-science-math-test/
2. China ranks 1st at International Mathematics Olympiad 2011
Achievements of Denmark
1. Susanne Bier won an Oscar
http://www.visitdenmark.com/international/en-gb/menu/turist/susanne-bier-won-an-oscar.htm
Labels:
China,
Denmark,
Heritage Education,
Singapore
Tang Dynasty Poem: 乐游原
乐游原
向 晚 意 不 适 ,
xiàng wǎn yì bù shì
驱 车 登 古 原 。
qū chē dēng gǔ yuán
夕 阳 无 限 好 ,
xī yáng wú xiàn hǎo
只 是 近 黄 昏 !
zhǐ shì jìn huāng hūn
Literal Translation:
Feelings of sadness this evening,
Drove to “Deng gu yuan”.
No matter how beautiful sunset is,
It is near dusk.
Author:
This poem was written by a Tang poet, Li Shan Yin (812-858). He specializes in writing Parallel Prose and poetry, the most famous poem “Qilu”.
Modern Translation:
The author was feeling rather melancholic this evening. He drove to Le You Yuan (a place of interest south of Chang An in China during his time, where palaces had been built here during the Western Han dynasty 206 BC–AD 9) for walk. The colour of sunset is very beautiful, but alas this beautiful sight is very short-lived, as it means that the night is near... very soon the sun will set and this beautiful sight would dissipate away.
My After-Thought:
This is a very well-known and popular poem in China, as it expresses the universal feelings common to every human being i.e. in life, there will always be sorrow, as life is so transient... just like sunset and spring time cherry blossom, for example. Nothing stays the same, nothing is of permanence. Beauty and joy will fade. With the joy of birth, comes the eventual sorrow of death.
Makes me think of J. We had a beautiful Good Friday today. Perfect weather, and we enjoyed ourselves with the nature walk, admiring the flowers that are all now springing forth. The day is gone... leaving behind sweet memories, but still memories nevertheless. As parents, we can’t be with him forever. The joy of the day is put into perspective. He can’t live forever. No one can. What then is the meaning of life, of joy... everything is transient. Yet we rejoice, because we will that we will all meet together in heaven, as after death comes eternal life. The meaning of life eternity brings meaning to life.
The Bible says it is wise to consider the number of our days in Psalm 90:12: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom”.
At the same time, it is wise to be content with what we have, and to thank God for gladness of heart, to appreciate and live in the presence:
“Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun during the few days of life God has given him – for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work – this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart” – Ecclesiaste 5:18-20
Here lies, to me truely, the meaning of life. God is the one who gives me the gladness of heart in this life, and the life to come, by sending His Son Jesus, who have conquered death, and gained victory over death. He rose on the third day, that we no longer have to fear for death.
Labels:
Chinese,
Tang Dynasty Poems
Thursday 21 April 2011
J Summary (2Y1M16D) - Room Time Breakthrough
J playing in the room with the door closed |
J playing with Kitchen toys |
J taking his snack |
Finally after 1.5 months of persevering and after approx. 5 sessions, today was also the first time, J played by himself with fully closed door during Room Time!!! But I relaxed the rules by allowing him a snack of goji berries and water and picking his own toys. It was very cute - he asked for Goji Berries refill by sticking his hand out of the door with the empty plate, indicating that he had now understood that during Room Time, he is to stay in the room.
I used the timer, as usual with initial 10 minutes and adding 10 minutes and 3x5minutes. So altogether, the Room Time today lasted approx. 30 minutes. But J did step out for a moment, because he wanted to eat, and I had to put him back in between.
Build a Cozy Little Hut
When you are in the forest, and if you have some time, it would be very fun to collect some long pieces of wood and build a cozy little hut together with the kids.
When you are in the forest, and if you have some time, it would be very fun to collect some long pieces of wood and build a cozy little hut together with the kids.
Labels:
Cozy Family Traditions,
Forest Walk
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