Summer has arrived early to the farm, inspiring us to spend long days outside. Phoenix and Sky have been noticing all the animal and insect activity and have become particularly interested in Monarch Butterflies. This has been a wonderful “in” to a study of Monarch Butterflies, their amazing migration to Mexico and ultimately an exploration of transformation, learning from the butterflies how they flow through transitions to complete an incredible journey that spans multiple generations each year.
I continue to start each homeschooling lesson from a place of co -creation with the children. This is not child led learning but a collaboration. Their interest is an opportunity to connect, question and inquire together, to expand our understanding of the world. In practice this usually begins with me noticing an interest emerging, or Phoenix and Sky asking to learn more on a subject. Then we sit down together, and talk about what we know about that subject and what we’d like to know, creating a mind map to guide our learning. Sometimes I have many answers I can share, sometimes I use the questions to guide my research to create lessons, or we research together. Often, we call in a family member or friend who is an expert in that field of study. This can look like informal conversations in the case of family, or projects directed by Dad who is an engineer, artist and foodie who shares many of the same interests as Phoenix.
Inspired by the subject we are studying, alongside the season, I create a simple circle, with a land acknowledgment, songs, poems and a story. The story is often a pedagogical or teaching story which aims to support the children through a challenge or issue that is present in their lives.
Our current story is a story about trusting and flowing through transitions conceptualized through the eyes of a caterpillar and tadpole as they transform through their life stages. I wrote this story last year to help the kiddies through the big moving transition home from Australia. I am telling it again now to support us through the change of welcoming a new baby. Please feel free to use this story with your kiddies if it resonates with you. It has been a powerful one in our family and I hope you enjoy it too 😊 I have included links to the videos of our butterfly inspired circle here 👉 https://youtu.be/4mMoWRaKQMA
and story here 👉 https://youtu.be/UzRENZHASNE
Inspired by butterflies we have also been working on a butterfly attracting wildflower garden. This project has spanned several afternoons and has been a great way to work through extra energy around 3pm, with digging, moving dirt and looking for earthworms.
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HeartSong 