Lots of things are still working around here and some things we've had to give up for now, like our nature walks. I mean it's completely freezing outside where just walking from the front door to the car hurts my hands so there's no way we're going to do that until it warms up. And, I should say, that Peanut is VERY upset over that fact right now. She claims that the birds are the smartest because they go "back down souf for da winter where it's not fweezing."
However, since we returned from Christmas, the one thing that it working for all of the campers are their new headphones. Oh the blessing of silence in my home during the day. Well, at least while they have those headphones on. It's a blessing to me not to have to hear several different songs playing at once, or online lessons going through speakers that I have to then attempt to talk over while another child is trying to listen to me.
It's a blessing for the children as well because these headphones are so good that they muffle ALL outside noise, which means they're less distracted from their work. They're also pretty comfortable to wear, unlike all the other ones we've tried in the past, which means the campers are more than willing to put them on. They have discovered, of course, that while these are on if they're listening to music at a certain volume they can't hear when we call for them either... Not such a blessing, but definitely a familiar scene from my younger days.
And while ECJ enjoys his headphones (which are black) for listening to his portable CD player with he still uses his ear buds during his computer lessons because his computer causes some feedback to happen with his new headphones. These were purchased at a store near us called Five Below and cost all of five dollars each.
Other than that one of our major things that is working for us is the use of flashcards and memory games. We use flashcards for the alphabet, number recognition, beginning words, and math facts. We have memory games that are just for "fun" (helping build memory) and some for the alphabet as well. We also found a wonderful ABC go fish game featuring the Sesame Street crew at Dollar Tree.
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You know, I have heard about using headphones before and have not tried it. I have one child who would probably do really well with quiet music running on his while he worked. He's easily distracted. Really easily.
ReplyDeleteWe like flashcards too and every time I find new ones in Target's Dollar Spot I grab them. If the older kids don't want them to learn from the younger boys love using them for games. Some of my favorites have been presidents and world landmarks. :)
The headphones really do work! We use them so that if they're doing something online no one else has to hear what they're doing. ECJ has ADHD and it really really helps him to listen to music quietly while he works. Peanut has a multitude of problems and she's often found plugging her headphones into either one of her siblings portable CD players or her LeapPad Ultra. I do recommend that if you do purchase headphones to get ones you'd be comfortable wearing. The ones we have are nice and cushy on the ears, help block out outside noise even if you aren't listening to anything (YCJ uses them sometimes when she's doing typing lessons even though there's nothing to listen to), and that they're made of a sturdy material. Each one of my kids has a set of their own simply because there's less chance of fighting if they each have one. I've seen similar ones to these at Walmart for around $10 each.
DeleteI buy several things from Target's Dollar Spot myself from flash cards to the little books (especially at the beginning of the "school year"). One of our favorite books is all about the American government and we'll be doing more than just reading through it soon. :-)