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Mackfam
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 6:31am | IP Logged
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zookeeper9 wrote:
We finsihed up our year on June 17th. It was a very interesting year around here. We started with one DS home. In November our other DS came home and January, two of our DDs came home.
So we were all over the place in terms of skills, grade levels, and abilities.
We are going to be starting our new year on July 11. |
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Wow, Donna! Congrats on finishing your year, and many prayers as you start rolling in a couple of weeks with the next!! Sounds like your year last year was indeed VERY interesting, starting out homeschooling one, and ending up with 4 to homeschool...and I see you have 4yo's at home (those little treasures make things fun!!) Have faith! Amazingly, God works mysteriously and with grace even during those crazy times when we barely have time to catch our breath and smooth the collective wrinkles in the days!  Thanks be to God! I'm excited for you next year, and cheering for you!
And, I'm so glad you're here!  In sharing with each other the blessings and challenges of our days and sharing the resources we find, we end up serving each other in such a way that adds so richly to an individual family's home education experience. This has certainly been my experience here anyway, and I pray it is yours!
Good luck on the 11th!! And happy planning til then!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19 , ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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herdingkittens
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 6:44am | IP Logged
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What a great thread. You all are scratching an itch for me.
We are in Michigan, and we go with the weather, too. I never plan this, but it seems to go this way -
End of April/Beginning of May we begin to lighten up. We are still doing most subjects, but I cannot bear to keep anyone indoors. If it is nice out, we do a little work. If it is rainy or crummy, we hunker down.
June I am focusing on gardening/outdoor stuff, so we are pretty much done. We do math and read a lot and work on projects. I have a list of fun independent things to choose from for the big kids to do when they run out of ideas, and the littlest ones are just outside....all....the.....time.
July is filled with Math, Reading and this summer, lots of community events (library programs, outdoor concerts, etc.) - plus our little American History book-a-thon. Also swimming lessons and a few weeks of summer ballet.
August we will be up north in Michigan's beautiful UP for a few weeks (the astronomy unit I've been waiting for will be fully realized up there!!  ) and then preparing for the "start" of a new year in Sept. My husband will be planning his HS English classes, and I will be polishing off our plans.
I am with Erin, too, on the long break with littles.... The idea of totally stopping sounds good in theory, but for us, it would be ugly fast. Just the tiny bit of structure keeps us all happy during the summer. The littles are fine with this, too. I think on some level, they get that they cannot be totally left to their own devices without melting down.  That being said, MOST of the day is free and easy and up to them.
This topic is one of the big reasons I love to have my children at home.  We get to pick what works for us!! We get to plan what we need to thrive and enjoy ourselves!! Oh joy! Love this job!!
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my peeps: girl('02), boy('03), girl('05), twin boys ('07), boy ('11) and sweet baby boy ('13)
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Mackfam
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 6:49am | IP Logged
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Donna Marie wrote:
| We are doing year round school with house renovations in between Sound like fun? |
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Ugh. Not fun. Here's hopin' and praying that the house renovations move peacefully alongside the lessons!
We're painting...and schooling. Also not fun. I'm looking forward to the blissful reward of being done with painting!!!
Donna Marie wrote:
| I want the learning spaces to be visually clean with books easy to get to ...lined up by the basic subject areas or themes that we are covering. I have printer ink, colored pencils and plenty of paper so we are golden there...lol |
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A girl after my own heart!
Donna Marie wrote:
| Money is tight so I have my reading lists and also I have annotated how many people need to read each book so I am aware that if I get the book through Interlibrary loan, how quickly the book needs to be read and about how long I should wait before putting in the next ILL request. |
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This is great! And I assume you've seen all the fantastic shared ideas for frugal/free resources on this thread, right?
Donna Marie wrote:
| One of my teen dds is the librarian for library books and one of them is the librarian for my shelves...we often have to hunt for both kinds of books so it is nice having some designated help. |
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This is a fantastic idea!! Making one of your teens your *shelf librarian*!! I'm definitely going to run with that one!!
And...I love your strategies for keeping your materials and resources visually separate from everyone elses!!!
Donna Marie wrote:
I also am trying to plan some activities/toys to keep my energetic 2yo and my mobile 10mo busy when we need them to be distracted. My 2yods always finds something to do when he is idle and it...ahem...is usually something that he shouldn't be doing...like dumping things that were left out...like baking soda to make "angels" on the floor in the kitchen...IYKWIM any ideas on that front would be LOVED and APPRECIATED!!  |
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Oh, I do know what you mean! I had the most success doing exactly what you're doing, devoting a little time to considering some spaces just for the littles!!
Good luck with the house reno and enjoy your planning!!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 6:59am | IP Logged
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alexmom wrote:
| We're on week 3 of our first year of Homeschooling |
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WOW!!! You guys are doing great!
alexmom wrote:
| right now.. DS is only in Preschool, so "school" isn't very long, too structured, or too intense, so it doesn't take up too much of our day, but still adds to it, in a good way.. :) |
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Oh, that sounds wonderful, Kym! I know what you mean...I just love little preschool time! I have a preschooler this year, too, and she is so into her *schoolwork*!! ....which consists of tracing shapes, counting little glass marbles, having big sister teach her music, reading picture books, watching Leap Frog DVD's and having HER OWN pencil and pile of scratch paper.
alexmom wrote:
| We started this month, one, because my DH had/has his doubts and concerns about whether I'll be able to HS DS and was talking about signing him up for a local preschool, so I'm working on it during the summer, to show DH we don't need to sign up DS for school in the fall.. it also gives me a chance to dip my feet in without much pressure since it's not the official school year yet.. ;) |
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Wonderful pro-active strategy! I'll pray that your time is blessed, rich and fruitful!
Good luck and enjoy your year, Kym!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 7:12am | IP Logged
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herdingkittens wrote:
| This topic is one of the big reasons I love to have my children at home. We get to pick what works for us!! We get to plan what we need to thrive and enjoy ourselves!! Oh joy! Love this job!! |
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You are exactly right! Home education is a lovely expression of an individual family's priorities, and over the course of days (years) there begins to emerge a sense of your own family becoming what they are (JP II). Days are blessed as they begin to take on a relaxed measure, even when they incorporate plans that have been considered and fleshed out. Of course, this is dependent on our being relaxed enough to sometimes "be still and know" and attentive enough to pay attention to God's timing and planning when it trumps our own!
What a lovely summer plan you have before you, herdingkittens! Enjoy!!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Martha
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| Posted: June 29 2011 at 5:48pm | IP Logged
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We have done this for years for the same reasons Jen mentioned.
Due to new baby, we have had 2 weeks off and it will probably be another 2 weeks before we start back up.
I did most of my planning before baby arrived, so now I'm just sitting here pinned underneath my champion nurser. :)
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Martha
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Yes, they're all ours!
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JuliaT
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| Posted: June 30 2011 at 3:25pm | IP Logged
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We have always schooled year round but this year I felt like we desperately needed a break. We finished our year at the end of May and then will begin again at the beginning of Aug. We live in Canada where school doesn't start until Sept. so this is the middle of the summer for us.
I am looking forward to our new year. I have been reading more of CM's writings and am finding that I have had a faulty idea of just what the CM method actually is. I have been learning lots during my readings and want to implement this knowledge into our studies of the new year. The problem is, though, that this translates into lots of work on my end.
I will also be having a Gr. 7 student which means our workload will increase a bit. I thought I would have lots of time before this happened but actually it occured within a blink of an eye.
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Julia
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CrunchyMom
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| Posted: June 30 2011 at 4:16pm | IP Logged
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Mackfam wrote:
| I'm looking forward to the blissful reward of being done with painting!!! |
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Amen.
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Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony
[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
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mommyjane
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This is our first year of homeschooling. Our books just arrived and I'm so anxious to get started! I'm trying to figure out when the best start time would be for us. Maybe August 1.
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Mackfam
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| Posted: July 02 2011 at 8:04am | IP Logged
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Martha wrote:
| I did most of my planning before baby arrived, so now I'm just sitting here pinned underneath my champion nurser. :) |
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Enjoy your quiet(ish) snug time, Martha!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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| Posted: July 02 2011 at 8:16am | IP Logged
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JuliaT wrote:
| We have always schooled year round but this year I felt like we desperately needed a break. We finished our year at the end of May and then will begin again at the beginning of Aug. We live in Canada where school doesn't start until Sept. so this is the middle of the summer for us. |
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Oh, I do know years like this, Julia! Glad you gave yourself permission to enjoy some space and a break!
JuliaT wrote:
| I am looking forward to our new year. I have been reading more of CM's writings and am finding that I have had a faulty idea of just what the CM method actually is. I have been learning lots during my readings and want to implement this knowledge into our studies of the new year. The problem is, though, that this translates into lots of work on my end. |
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I know what you mean here...about the reading and learning! I too have enjoyed reading and re-reading CM and find that I enjoy uncovering nuances or details I either mis-understood, mis-applied, or missed altogether. It's a challenge to correct course, but sometimes it's simply a matter of me brainstorming how to make the best of use of my (our) time when I have to invest it again in another area. And, I confess that I've always found that my time is more efficiently served in implementing CM's methods so that it seems more like a blessing even though initially the idea was daunting and challenging to brainstorm. Hope this is encouraging since that is how it was meant! It's a fruitful way to invest your time!
JuliaT wrote:
| I will also be having a Gr. 7 student which means our workload will increase a bit. I thought I would have lots of time before this happened but actually it occured within a blink of an eye. |
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I know! Where does the time go? BUT....I LOVE home education in the older (high school) years! LOVE it!!! The conversations and rich discussions...and seeing the fruit of all those earlier CM years is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! And the richness, variety and depth of CM in high school is an absolute delight to tag along for!!
Enjoy your break, your reading, and good luck with your new year, Julia!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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mommyjane wrote:
This is our first year of homeschooling. Our books just arrived and I'm so anxious to get started! I'm trying to figure out when the best start time would be for us. Maybe August 1.
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Welcome, mommyjane! I pray your first year is a delight! It will be a year-for-learning for your children as well as for you, as you begin to discover what works and what doesn't in your family! I'm glad you're here to share with us! August 1 is a delightful time to start!!! Praying for you as you wrap up your planning!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Mackfam
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| Posted: July 02 2011 at 8:30am | IP Logged
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Our first week went well! I discovered a few places on our lesson plans that needed adjustment, and made them! A delightful week is behind us, fresh lesson plans are printed for next week, and the children are excited that they have July 4th off!
Kids' top picks and mentions of FAVORITE THINGS:
** CLIP ON LIGHTS FOR THEIR DESK/TABLES (inexpensive things from Walmart)
** NEW POETRY SELECTIONS/BOOKS
** A 2nd GRADER WITH HIS VERY FIRST NATURE SKETCH BOOK! He feels so big!
** NEW NATURE FRIEND STUDY GUIDES - I decided to order the additional study guides that are available now with the Nature Friend Magazines. My older children really love these, and I'm sort of surprised at how much this has extended the usefulness (and their interest) in this magazine. My 10th grader esp loves the photography section.
** CONTACT PAPER CHALKBOARD!!!!!
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If you started last week (earlier), did you find any little favorites mentioned that you added for the first time to your days/spaces this year? Do share!!!!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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kristacecilia
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Mackfam wrote:
** NEW NATURE FRIEND STUDY GUIDES - I decided to order the additional study guides that are available now with the Nature Friend Magazines. My older children really love these, and I'm sort of surprised at how much this has extended the usefulness (and their interest) in this magazine. My 10th grader esp loves the photography section.
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Jen, sorry to derail, but I wanted to ask you about these. We recently got Nature Friend and we are enjoying it. I toyed with getting the study guides, too, but I thought maybe they would be more well received and well used in an older audience. I figured I would wait until my oldest was maybe 10 or 12 to get them. Would you say that was a good assessment?
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God bless,
Krista
Wife to a great guy, mom to two boys ('04, '06) and three girls ('08, '10, '12!)
I blog at http://kristacecilia.wordpress.com/
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Mackfam
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kristacecilia wrote:
Mackfam wrote:
** NEW NATURE FRIEND STUDY GUIDES - I decided to order the additional study guides that are available now with the Nature Friend Magazines. My older children really love these, and I'm sort of surprised at how much this has extended the usefulness (and their interest) in this magazine. My 10th grader esp loves the photography section.
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Jen, sorry to derail, but I wanted to ask you about these. We recently got Nature Friend and we are enjoying it. I toyed with getting the study guides, too, but I thought maybe they would be more well received and well used in an older audience. I figured I would wait until my oldest was maybe 10 or 12 to get them. Would you say that was a good assessment? |
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Not derailing at all! Happy to answer!
I do think the Study Guides work well for an older (or at least slightly more motivated child), while the regular Nature Friend features (Invisibles, scavenger hunt, You Can Draw) are a good fit for my 6 1/2 yo, and of course they all like the articles. Actually, the You Can Draw feature has been and remains my kids ABSOLUTE FAVORITE section. When they get a new Nature Friend (and we've been subscribers since '03), they flip to this section and draw! It's been a really neat way for them to improve their drawing abilities. But I digress....
I have a dd that would have enjoyed the study guide around 8. My son is 10 and that's about the right age for him. So, it really depends on the interests and abilities of the particular child.
My kids love puzzles and find those extras that are included in the Study Guide very enjoyable. My dd (14 1/2) really finds the Writing Inspiration section helpful, and loves the Photo Critique/pointers pages! My 10 yo son really enjoys the extra research ideas and the photo section.
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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jawgee
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kristacecilia wrote:
| We recently got Nature Friend and we are enjoying it. I toyed with getting the study guides, too, but I thought maybe they would be more well received and well used in an older audience. I figured I would wait until my oldest was maybe 10 or 12 to get them. Would you say that was a good assessment? |
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You can see a PDF of one of the past study guides here.
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Monica
C (12/2001), N (11/2005), M (5/2008), J (8/2009) and three angels
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kristacecilia
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| Posted: July 02 2011 at 10:48am | IP Logged
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Thanks to both of you, Jen and Monica!
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Krista
Wife to a great guy, mom to two boys ('04, '06) and three girls ('08, '10, '12!)
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Grace&Chaos
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This looks like something I could use, perfect for my little boys! What have you put it on so far?
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Blessings,
Jenny
Mom to dds(00,03) and dss(05,06,08,09)
Grace in Loving Chaos
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Mackfam
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Grace&Chaos wrote:
This looks like something I could use, perfect for my little boys! What have you put it on so far? |
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Everything.
Seriously, I put it on my supply cabinet doors (in my learning room) and it works great. Have some on our wall and it also works great. It just needs to be a smooth-ish surface. It peels off nicely and smooths on very nicely!
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Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19, ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
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Grace&Chaos
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I forgot to ask, what are using it for? My chalkboard door is great, I love it to practice begining letter formation (upper half for sight words), but there is only one door and now three little boys that really need to use it.
I've tried the wipe erase boards but have found markers don't clean off as easily as chalk on little boys hands  .
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Jenny
Mom to dds(00,03) and dss(05,06,08,09)
Grace in Loving Chaos
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4Real Forums : Planning and Ordering our Days
Topic: The Early Beginning of a Fresh Year
