Learning by accident

A while back on Facebook Lisa of Crafty Mamas started a conversation about Cuisenaire Rods - something I vividly remember from school when I was a kid.

They are a great way to teach math concepts - in a way that the child enjoys, so they almost don't realise it's learning or 'work'.

They come in a box of their own but she wanted to sort them according to their size

For those not familiar with them they are small timber rods that have been dyed or painted (in my opinion the dyed ones are better quality!), and where each colour represents a different number.

The smallest of the blocks is a white cube, and each rod thereon gets incrementally larger, in proportion.

So the 'two' rod, the red one, is exactly twice the size of the one; the seven is three of the ones plus a four or one five plus one two.

They all work off multiples of that basic block, the one.

Mathematician in action!

It means a child can visually see that four plus three equals seven, because if you lay a four rod and a three rod next to a seven rod they are the same length - showing they are equal to each other.

My clever little chick decided to use them to show me how to work out area, I'm telling you - Prep is not what it was when I was at school!!

She drew three completely different shapes and then using the rods to fill them, determined which had the greater area.
All for the fun of it.

Working together, me on my sewing and her on her area project.

I also love that she set herself up to work on her little 'desk' close to where I had set up my sewing "so we can both do something fun together" was her explanation.

If you want to grab a set (of the good ones!!) visit Windmill Toys, they have the best of everything play and education based I reckon!

Strike up the band

I love 'at home' days when the girls can simply take the time to potter around and do their own thing.
It invariably leads to fabulous games of imagination where they set up a house, an office or in this case, an orchestra.

Making music is a very serious thing!

The guy who lives here comes from a very musical family, VERY!
He plays clarinet and piano, his dad and a niece play violin, his mum plays piano, another niece plays flute and one nephew plays trumpet while two others play saxophone.
Me, well I am pretty good on maracas...

The girls have been learning piano, but just casually with their dad, as a family friend who is a music teacher (and who recently wrote an opera score - I mean really!) advises for the best results and longevity of playing an instrument, it is best to delay starting until at least seven years of age, preferably eight.

The instrument of choice for the four-year-old is always triangle

Which is why I love to see them setting up this impromptu orchestra, I want them to feel music is fun, not something that is a chore or to be dreaded.

It should be noted they were all using different sheet music! And barely a sound note was played, but they had a lovely time.

Recorder is apparently another good starting place for learning an instrument

You can see in the pic below they even bought their own audience along.

They happily played their 'music' for a good 45 minutes.
Yep, lucky us, 45 minutes of screeching recorder sounds and triangle bagning...

Hmmm - look at the finger placement - no wonder there was screeching!

I particularly love this type of play because these days kids have so much structure and organised play in their lives.

This reminds them that it is possible to make their own fun.

What do your kids like to play when they are left to their own devices??

The simple things...

I found this lovely floral 'display' decorating the table the other day and was reminded that the simplest things can bring pleasure.

My girls had picked these from our front lawn.

Thos among you who could be classified as having a green thumb will know they are not any type of exotic bloom, but rather a weed.

But if you look at them through a child's eyes they are bright and pretty.

Hope you find something simple in your day that delights you.