Debi Taylor-Hough

Bright-Kids
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Vol. 5, No. 39 - September 29th, 2008
http://brightkids.wordpress.com/
mailto: debi@simplemom.com
Copyright 2008 Deborah Taylor-Hough
ISSN: 1536-0466 All Rights Reserved
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Subscribe: join-bright-kids@hub.thedollarstretcher.com
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IN THIS ISSUE:
-- "Dear Readers"
-- Quote-able
-- Using a Terrarium as a Learning Tool for Kids
-- Children Must Be Educated on Books
-- Reader Tips
-- Assorted Information (resources, archives, etc.)
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< < O U R . S P O N S O R > >

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Dear Readers,

This is the first issue of Bright-Kids that's being sent from our new
mailing list server. Hopefully it'll all come through all right. :-)

I'm hoping to be able to send out this newsletter in HTML format in
the not-too-distant future. So stay tuned.

Simply Yours,

--Debi
(Deborah Taylor-Hough)
Editor, Bright-Kids Email Newsletter
--Author of the popular 'Frozen Assets' cookbook series, 'A Simple
Choice,' and 'Frugal Living For Dummies(r)'
--Editor, Simple Times and Bright-Kids email newsletters

http://brightkids.wordpress.com
http://thesimplemom.wordpress.com
________________________________

QUOTABLE

"An educational system isn't worth a great deal if it teaches
young people how to make a living but doesn't teach them
how to make a life."

--Source Unknown
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USING A TERRARIUM AS A LEARNING TOOL FOR KIDS
Copyright Will Kalif
Used with permission from EzineArticles.com.
All rights reserved.

A terrarium is a great way to teach some lessons about the
importance of nature, its interconnectedness, and our role
as stewards in helping with the care. With something as
simple as a small terrarium you can raise a child's awareness
of the Earth and of the interconnectedness of everything.

There are three lessons that can easily be taught with a
terrarium as small as a plastic container and a few bean
plants. They are stewardship, the life cycle of plants,
and the importance of interaction in eco-systems. I will
cover all three of these lessons in this article.

Stewardship of the Earth

It can be as simple as a few bean plants in a Styrofoam
cup but it is a living thing that kids will take care of.
nd stressing this point can have a dramatic impact. Kids
will respond very well to the responsibility of caring
for a living thing. The plants can even be elevated to
the status of pets. But a very important thing that can
be stressed is that the small terrarium is a small example
of the bigger world we live in. And this bigger world is
filled with plants, animals, and eco-systems that also
need us to be responsible stewards. From the smallest of
seeds you can expand the stewardship awareness out to
encompass the whole world.

The Life Cycle of Plants

Some of this will depend of the selection of plants but
most common plants that are used in a terrarium follow a
standard life cycle that can be observed and understood
by children.

Here is an overview of the life cycle of a plant:

1) The seed is planted in fertile soil where it
germinates using nutrients it has contained within
itself. This system is made of of the embryo or the
small plant ready to germinate surrounded by the
Cotyledon or the seed covering where the first food
for the seed is stored. This configuration of seed
and food gives the seed its start

2) When the seed germinates it grows a root into the
ground and a shoot into the air. These things acquire
water and nutrients from the soil and sunlight from
the air. These sources of nutrients become the plants
supply of food as the cotyledon is exhausted

3) The plant grows into maturity and grows buds that
develop into flowers

4) The flowers are pollinated and produce new seeds

5) The seeds are distributed by a variety of creative
ways and the cycle begins anew

Interaction Systems

In the real world eco-systems can grow to become
tremendously complex systems of interactions where
many types of plants, animals and insects contribute
in their own ways. While you probably can't build a
complex eco-system in a small terrarium you can display
and discuss the importance of how your plants interact
together to create a whole unit.

The best example of this is the sharing of, and
competing for the resources of water, sunlight, and
nutrients. This is particularly noticeable if you
use different types of plants. Some plants will send
out extensive root systems in an attempt to monopolize
nutrients in the soil while other plants will shoot
tall and have large leaf systems that can potentially
block sunlight from reaching lower plants. Some plants
will grow extremely fast in a race to get all the resources
before other plants have a chance to take root. These
factors are only a small part of the interaction that
happens in even the smallest of eco-systems but they
are a good way to begin the thought process for how
plant and animal systems interact in complex ways.

A terrarium is a very simple yet profound thing that
can enrich a child's life in ways that are very important.
It can teach a child to care for living things and to be
more aware of the complexity of the world of nature that
we live in.

For more interesting terrarium projects and ideas, visit
the authors website at:

http://www.stormthecastle.com/terrarium/index.htm

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Will_Kalif
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< < O U R S P O N S O R > >

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CHILDREN MUST BE EDUCATED ON BOOKS
by Charlotte M. Mason. Public Domain.
From: School Education -- Developing a Curriculum
Volume 3, pages 226-227

No education seems to be worth the name which has not
made children at home in the world of books, and so related
them, mind to mind, with thinkers who have dealt with knowledge.

We reject epitomes, compilations, and their like, and put into
children's hands books which, long or short, are living. Thus
it becomes a large part of the teacher's work to help children
to deal with their books; so that the oral lesson and lecture
are but small matters in education, and are used chiefly to
summarise or to expand or illustrate.

Too much faith is commonly placed in oral lessons and
lectures; "to be poured into like a bucket," as says Carlyle,
"is not exhilarating to any soul"; neither is it exhilarating to
have every difficulty explained to weariness, or to have the
explanation teased out of one by questions. "I will not be put
to the question. Don't you consider, sir, that these are not
the manners of a gentleman? I will not be baited with what
and why; what is this? what is that? why is a cow's tail long?
why is a fox's tail bushy?" said Dr Johnson.

This is what children think, though they say nothing.

Oral lessons have their occasional use, and when they are
fitly given it is the children who ask the questions. Perhaps
it is not wholesome or quite honest for a teacher to pose as
a source of all knowledge and to give 'lovely' lessons. Such
lessons are titillating for the moment, but they give children
the minimum of mental labour, and the result is much the
same as that left on older persons by the reading of a
magazine.

We find, on the other hand, that in working through a consider-
able book, which may take two or three years to master, the
interest of boys and girls is well sustained to the end; they
develop an intelligent curiosity as to causes and consequences,
and are in fact educating themselves.

EXCERPTED FROM: School Education by C. Mason
--From the third volume of Charlotte Mason's six-volume set of
educational writings, often referred to as "The Original Home
Schooling Series." Her entire work is in the public domain and
can be reprinted and distributed freely, much to the benefit and
delight of today's parents/educators.

The Original Homeschooling Series (six-volume set)
http://216.64.96.8/t/3281776/3348354/259/0/
________________________________

Visit our new Nature Study Bookstore online!
http://astore.amazon.com/naturestudy-20/

________________________________

READER TIPS
Submitted by Bright-Kids' readers. Share your favorite family
educational tips by emailing Debi at: DSimple@aol.com

== Educational Traveling Tip ==
We recently took a 10 hour trip to Mt. Rushmore. I was kind
of dreading the 10 hour car ride with 3 kids. However, my girls
learned a game in summer camp. You take an inexpensive paper
plate. Write the names of all the states around the edge; start in
a couple of inches and write out to the edge. Then cut between
each state. As you pass each car, look at their license plate
and fold in or down that state it corresponds to. When we would
stop for lunch or at a rest area, the kids would run and look at all
the license plates. We had electronic games in the car but that
simple paper-plate-license-plate game is what kept their attention
the whole way. They eagerly grabbed for those plates when we
got back in the car and excitedly called out state names. It was
great! It also started discussions on state facts and capitols.
--Marlene D., Cedar Falls, IA

== Cooking Tips ==
    I have been reading your email for years, and I always enjoy it,
so thank you!
    Just a tip or two on the home-made chips. I have been making
these for 15 years or so, and I have never sprayed the cookie sheet.
I have never had any problem with sticking, with either corn or flour
tortillas. I haven't tried pita, but I sure will now!
    On the oven thing -- I have a little trick, it's a little energy saving
thing. My oven has a feature where it beeps when it reaches the
pre-set temperature, so this won't work for everyone. The tortillas
go into a cold oven, then I set the temperature to 425 degrees.
When the oven reaches that temperature, it beeps, and the chips
are perfectly done. You might need to adjust the temperature up
or down a bit to get the optimum color on your chips.
    Thanks again for your informative email.
--Donna M., San Diego, CA

== PTA Information Help ==
I am on the PTA and my position is "Health and Safety". I just
want to say I love your articles they are so informative and I plan
to share this information with at our meetings. Thanks!
--Diana D., E. Rutherford, NJ

== Preschool Grandma ==
My three year old grandson loves to learn so, instead of taking
him toys, I try to collect interesting items or thoughts to share
with him. A few weeks ago, I found a large rhino beetle in my
garage. Although it was dead, it was well preserved so I put it
in a jar and took it to him the next time I saw him. He was so
excited and showed it to everyone. Cost: nothing but my time.
Interesting facts also amuse little ones, like, last week I learned
that butterflies smell with their feet. He's going to love that one.
These facts are funny and little ones seem to remember them.
Anyway, it doesn't cost anything but time when you are creative.
--Sharon Young

== Clear Contact Paper Tips ==
My tip is this: My 8 year old daughter would forget that she
had after-school activities, and then be heartbroken when I asked
how the activity went. I made up 8 1/2 x 11 reminders on my
computer on brightly colored paper (brownies, art class, play
dates) and then covered it with clear Contact paper. It's hard to
miss when she packs her backpack at the end of the day, and
it's reusable.
Clear Contact paper is also a fabulous way to extend the life of
your soft cover books. My mother was my grade school's librarian,
and every paperback book was covered in clear Contact paper. So
were my schoolbooks - I got the most when I resold them at the
end of each year, because they were basically pristine!
--Jenne :)

* * Your Tips? * *
Do you have some great family fun, educational, or parenting
tips/ideas you'd love to share with other parents and caregivers?
Just send your tips and ideas to Debi at Bright-Kids:
DSimple@aol.com
______________________________

READ-ALOUD BOOKS FOR FAMILIES:

http://snurl.com/reading4kids

Recommended books for children and families
(This is a great list to print out and hand to your kids'
grandparents for suggestions at gift-giving times!)
_______________________________

A special thanks to Gary Foreman and the friendly folks at
The Dollar Stretcher for making this mailing list possible! :-)
http://www.stretcher.com/
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Bright-Kids - 09/29/08 - Educated on books; terrariums