March for Babies Fundraising Auction #3: The Ultimate Birthday Party Package!

Visit the Auction and Bid Now!

You are bidding on a birthday party package which includes:

• 2 hours of professional face painting.
• Use of the Joy Troupe Bubble Machine INCLUDING bubble liquid
• 24 cupcakes iced and decorated with cupcake picks
• a $10 Shutterfly gift certificate so you can get prints of your beautiful photos!

Some young kids do not enjoy having their faces painted, so Joy Makin' Mama Danette is happy to paint the backs of their hands, instead.  She is donating her time and materials in support of healthy babies!  Yay Danette!

The JT bubble machine pumps out hundreds and hundreds of bubbles, and has a larger reservoir for bubble liquid than toy store machines, for extended fun without breaking for refills!  (You'll need to have an elevated position for it or the kids stick their hands in it.  It's just too tempting to ignore!)  Kids of all ages adore chasing bubbles, and you'll love, love, LOVE the photos you can get when your child is transported by joy and surrounded by bubbles!  You can use the machine outdoors or in, but you will want to protect surfaces if you use it indoors as the bubble liquid does make a mess and the floor can become slippery.  Very windy conditions unfortunately do affect the performance of the machine.

Imagine how much running around you'd have to do to put all that together yourself.  (And you'd probably shell out $250 or more by the time all was said and done!)  Now, remember that every penny of the net proceeds from this auction goes to help save babies!  Now, start bidding!

***This package is available within 25 miles of the 22152 area code.  In the event that your services must be canceled due to natural disaster, dangerous weather or road conditions, or illness, we will of course be willing to reschedule.  48 hours notice will be expected in the event of a change of plans.***

Please be aware that our face paintin' mama has some out of town dates coming up and will definitely NOT be available 4/24-5/11, 6/18-6/28, or 9/1-10/15.  Please give as much notice as you can (two or more weeks is best) so that she can clear her schedule outside of those dates.

March for Babies: The Joy Troupe Challenge

Sophie wants a Tiger...

The Ringling Brothers Circus is in town and as always they are giving our Joy Making Mommies a discount on tickets to the show. To be honest I hadn't thought about going this year as my daughter won't be 2 until June. I didn't think she could sit that long or really follow the action so I had filed it away as something fun to do in a few years.

But last Thursday we were offered tickets to the show and off Sophie went to the circus with her good friend Gregory (both of whom keep late bedtimes). It was a smashing hit for our family. There is nothing like looking over at your child and seeing how big her eyes get as the show progresses.

Four days later she is still suggesting we go back and see the tigers jump. Yes we are now tiger fans in this house and I've had to desperately search for videos featuring tigers on You Tube.

Some of the athletics were a little simplistic from an adult's perspective with very few truly impressive stunts, but what they did do was highly polished with fun choreography. For obvious reasons the animal acts spoke the best to our little ones: the tigers and the elephants were the high favorites for the evening and the acrobats ran a close third. The kids had little use for the clowns but really enjoyed everything else. The circus is a must see for any family with a child who stays up late and loves animals!

*Thank you Eneas for making this photo available via Flickr Creative Commons.

Montessori in the Home

Washing dishes after snack

The Baby Steps and Building Blocks Co-op opted to go with a Montessori-based approach to preschool.  Below is a compilation of resources from my research for the lesson planning for that group, which started in September.

The group is mainly using "Mommy Teach Me!" as our curriculum. Buy the book or learn more here: http://tinyurl.com/buyMommyTeachMe
Your purchase using this link benefits the General Fund.
Also very helpful has been "Mommy, Teach Me to Read!" You can buy that one here: http://tinyurl.com/buyMommyTeachMeToRead
Teaching Montessori in the Home: Pre-School Years: The Pre-School Years
http://tinyurl.com/kjew73
The general overview and presentation doesn't impress me to nearly the level of Mommy, Teach Me!, but the additional "make your own" materials section and the few extra lesson plans for the age group I'm working with made it worth picking up.

 More sites & helpful articles

Montessori Mom Blog: http://montessoriconfessions.blogspot.com/
Downloadable lesson plans, etc: http://www.montessorifortheearth.com/
Q&A: http://budurl.com/fmwd
About: http://www.preschool-lessonplans-and-activities.com/montessori-method.html
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montessori_method
This article beautifully illustrates the premise at the heart of the Montessori method, plus adds info from new studies that support the value of it.
http://budurl.com/ckx8
Montessori at Home Blog: http://moosehuntress.blogspot.com/
(Includes articles on making sensory materials yourself)
http://kids.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Preschool_Curriculum
What is the "three period lesson?"http://budurl.com/qpj6
Adapting the "three period lesson" for younger children: http://budurl.com/bmnx
Incorporating Montessori ideas into the daily routine at 24-36 months: http://www.dailymontessori.com/montessori-age-24-36-months/
Montessori Index http://www.montessori.edu/
Homeschooling section of the site: http://www.montessori.edu/homeschooling.html
Montessori homeschool activities: http://www.monthome.com/
Maria Montessori's book as an e-book: http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/montessori/method/method.html
Free Montessori printables: http://www.montessorimom.com/welcome/
International Montessori Society: http://imsmontessori.org/what-is-montessori.htm

Preschool Curricula You Can Use at Home

The Joy Makin' Mamas have helped to compile the following list of information about where to get a preschool "curriculum" online. We all know you can't stop kids from learning and that chances are, they'll pick up whatever they need to know without an "organized" course of learning, but it's often helpful to us adults to feel like we have a course charted. 99.9% of the time you won't follow your "plan" exactly, but at least if you KNOW there's a road to come back to, you don't have to feel like you're wandering in the wilderness!

Ian doing his "homework."

Some of these are materials available for purchase, but a great many are free resources, so be sure to browse before you shell out any $$$!

Curricula links

http://www.kidsparkz.com/index.html

This one offers sample pages so you can evaluate the curriculum before you buy. They also have smaller packages of activities each month for ages 2-5 for about 8 bucks.

http://www.preschoolcurriculum.com/

This one has kits you can order that include all the supplies and are ready to go. You can order a single child or a group kit.

http://chubbiecubbie.com/

This one also offers kits and some free printables.

http://www.preschoolcorner.com/

This one has kits or just the curriculum, some $.99 downloads, and says it's for ages 3-5.

http://www.first-school.ws/

First-School features free fun preschool lesson plans, educational early childhood activities, printable crafts, worksheets, calendar of events and other resources for children of preschool age. The preschool crafts, lesson plans and activities are appropriate and adaptable for toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarten level (ages 2 to 6).

same as above, but in Spanish:

http://www.primeraescuela.com/

http://www.valuesparenting.com/joyschool

This is a paid curriculum but has a very inclusive package, with music. I haven't seen it or heard it, but what I can see of their website looks like a really great approach.

http://www.mothergoosetime.com/

this one was recommended by a coop group in another state. Apparently they love it, and it takes a lot of the work out of the planning for them. It comes with all the materials you need for the lessons and seems to be geared mostly toward 3 & ups.

This one has free five day a week plans for several age groups:

http://www.letteroftheweek.com/

Free online Math curriculum: http://ceure.buffalostate.edu/~csmp/

Free online school curriculum : http://www.amblesideonline.org/index2.shtml

Another place to get fun preschool stuff online: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html

This article lists the top 100 educational websites.

http://www.homeschool.com/articles/top100-2009/default.asp

This site is maintained by a teacher and has lots of free goodies.

http://www.freewebs.com/momofallboys/

http://www.everythingpreschool.com/lessonplans/

has some sample 6-day weekly lesson plans and lots of activities organized by theme.

Tips for introducing the Spanish alphabet (page is in English):

http://www.drlemon.net/Grammar/alphabet.html

Lillian Jones' Curriculum

Excerpt:
"If you've been raising a child up to the age of "pre-school" or "kindergarten," you've already begun homeschooling. In those early years, the most appropriate homeschooling activities are things that gently introduce a child into the wonders of his immediate world and the imagination. As Einstein said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge" - and those early years are the perfect time to provide an atmosphere where the child can freely dream and play and explore and grow in both body and imagination.

These are lots of things a parent can do to help a child develop a love of learning and searching - things that will carry through as a foundation for a life of joyful and successful learning. Most of these are things a parent does at one time or other anyway. A bonus is that your child will be getting a good foundation for later studies, even picking up some elements of reading, writing, and math!"

Sophie creating a masterpiece.

http://www.besthomeschooling.org/articles/lillian_jones_ps_kdgtn.html

http://www.homeschool-your-boys.com/homeschool-preschool-curriculum.html

Full of hands-on activities you can do with materials you have around the house. Says it's for boys but equally appropriate for girls.

http://www.universalpreschool.com/how-to/teach/cognitive_development.asp

Starts out by explaining objectives and continues to detailed descriptions of activities to accomplish them.

Circus Discounts

Click here and use the coupon code "MOM" to receive 4 tickets for $44 good for weekday shows (Monday through Thursday and Friday morning) and $4 off on the weekend shows (Friday matinees through Sunday) for the Ringling Brothers Circus!

The annual spring engagement of Ringling Bros. each year brings our latest and greatest production to Baltimore/Washington families each year . This year, through the mystery of magic and the mastery of skill, audiences will be spellbound as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents ZING ZANG ZOOM®, a thrill-filled, mind-blowing circus spectacular where family fun is no illusion. Magical Zingmaster Alex and his assistant Levitytia lead audience members through an extraordinary world of fantasy that celebrates the uplifting spirit of the circus and also wards off the cynical Mr. Gravity and his team of Heavies, who try to bring everyone down.

Reading List for Preschool Moms

Having decided to go the homeschool co-op route for preschool, I needed a reading list. (Sorry, it's just what I do.) I have transcribed the following information directly from our BigTent group, so some of the links go to member-only pages. As I am able to move that information here, to the Joy Troupe blog, I'll update this article to include public links.

Be sure to check out our list of online curriculum resources and add your own, in the forums: http://www.bigtent.com/group/forum/message/14374043

(Non members will find a compilation of information from this discussion thread here.)

And the preschool activity listing: http://www.bigtent.com/group/forum/message/28694281

Toys for Preschool Skills Widget: http://tinyurl.com/buytoysforpreschoolskills

Recommended book list for preschool homeschool mamas or anyone who wants to pursue enrichment for their child age 0-5:

Mommy Teach Me http://tinyurl.com/buyMommyTeachMe
Teaching Montessori in the Home: The preschool years http://tinyurl.com/kjew73
Mommy Teach Me To Read http://tinyurl.com/buyMommyTeachMeToReadAmazon

These books all have lesson plans that are toddler appropriate which have kept us busy so far this year and should take us straight up to kindergarten. I can additionally recommend:

What Your Preschooler Needs To Know http://tinyurl.com/buyWhatYour-PreschoolerNeeds
Mommy, It's a Renoir! http://tinyurl.com/buyMommyItsaRenoir
Unplugged Play http://tinyurl.com/buyUnpluggedPlayamazon