ABCs of Life

I admit that I often get caught up in teaching in the mode that I was taught in. A very fact-oriented method consumed with right answers and momentary memorization techniques. However, as I grow older I realize the most important things I learned occurred outside of the classroom.

Our decision to home school has been a tough one for me to navigate. I am a champion of the public school system—I spent 23 years of my life in school and picked up an A.A., B.A, M.A. and PhD along the way. But no matter how many acronyms I put after my name I felt as if I never learned anything at all. My advisor in graduate school summed it up well after witnessing my dissatisfaction with the reaches of science, "It seems as if you are looking for something else."

I admit that I am a lover of science, but I have also become an enormous appreciator of the art of living through intuition. We have both external and internal worlds to navigate. We suffer dearly when we focus on one at the expense of the other. I choose homeschooling because I know learning the lessons of living a purposeful life is just as important as academics. I feel that the distinction between learning about the world and being of it should be seamless. A marriage of science and mysticism—being willing to accept the facets of life that are beyond our five senses, and taking a critical approach to what it is we claim to know.

That is why I have been working on what I like to call "The ABCs of Life". Lessons that both parents and children can benefit from together. They remind us what it means to be the most authentic versions of ourselves that we can be. Which, by the way, is the most important lesson of all. :)  Enjoy!

 

I included one or more words for each letter of the alphabet. I will update this page weekly to include child-friendly definitions, activities that may be used to support the ABCs of Life. If you have any suggestions, or if you simply like the idea, please leave a comment!

A— appreciate, always, aware

B— "be", believe

C— care, complete

D— dare, destiny

E— emotion, eternal

F— focus, forgive, free

G— give, grace, golden rule

H— heal

I— imagine, intent, intuition

J— joy

K— kind

L— love

M— mind, miracle

N— neutral, now

O— observer, open

P— peace, present

Q— quiet

R— receive, release, rest

S— soul, surrender

T— thankful, together, tolerance

U— unity, unique, unlimited

V— vow

W— welcome, whole, will

X— examine

Y— you

Z—zeal or zest

Happy trails!

DeShauna J.

(Photo Credit:photo credit: duncan via photopin cc)

The Mother of Learning is Connection: Tips to Improve Memory

 No matter how many times you bludgeon students with facts, they will not truly understand the material until the information is refashioned as their own.   

In my far too many years spent in school, I heard over and over again that if you study with a certain "frame of mind" or environment, you will be able to recall what you studied better by replicating this same mental and/or physical environment.
 

If you studied in your pajamas—wear pajamas to your exam! If you had a certain writing utensil, answered questions in a certain order or outlined your essays in a particular way—do it on the test. I too prescribed to this logic and even succumbed to dressing up on test day to make me feel better about myself. (Somehow putting on a dress made me forget that I spent the previous eight hours with a box of pizza, a chipped coffee cup and stain-encrusted sweat pants).

Rest assured there is no "magic" going on here. Your pen, lucky socks or any other ritual did not directly impact your test scores, but what did?

Non-physical reality and physical reality interact to create an endless variety of conditions. Belief in magic arises when we are not aware of all of the physical and non-physical "players" or variables in any given situation.

States of mind combine with physical cues that govern the parameters we can witness in any given situation.  When we are learning, we are bringing something into our awareness—we are "expanding" or consciousness.

It is a bit like hearing a song you have always known, but someone says, "Hey, did you notice the singer makes a reference to our hometown in the last chorus?" Then your perspective of the song may change. You are still the same person, the song is still the same song, but your connection to the song has changed. Your brain—representing your conscious awareness—has "rewired" itself to include new subroutines.

Some people will remember those newly discovered lyrics next time they hear the song and others won't. The disparity lies in our individual frequencies. Much like a radio tunes in to specific waves to play music, the human mind responds to cues.  The extent to which we are aware of these cues lies on a continuum from completely conscious to totally unconscious. The more we are able to physically and mentally incorporate a perspective into our own reality, the more "conscious" of it we become. 

Those who remember "more" have incorporated a perspective more completely. They can imagine the information as real, lively, actionable and valid, and thus build a connection with it. The words, pictures and music are more than just letters, lines and notes; there is a bridge built between them. People who remember well are good "meaning makers". 

  

Tips to Developing the Skill of "Meaning Making"

1. Tell a story or situate an idea with a perspective they are already aware of. When we say "mean" in the phrase, 'that didn't mean anything to me', then we are inferring that the intention of the message did not reach us. The bridge between us and the message didn't "work".

2. Create something. When we engage in an activity that allows a great deal of creative latitude we are permitting the learning material to interact with a student's own physical and mental environment. This not only encourages meaning-making, but allows the teacher and fellow learners to experience new perspectives on learning material.

3.  Introduce perspectives, not facts. The mind requires facts to build a solid foundation of knowledge. Yet, when introducing information for the first time, or if a student is struggling with some material, discussing the general viewpoint is more conducive to facilitating meaning-making. Facts have the set-in-stone feeling that seem impossible to amend. However, focusing on the social/economic/political ("human") elements of a body of facts pumps blood into lifeless definitions and formula.

4. Make a bridge from new materials. Many of you may be aware of the Montessori Method of learning made famous by Maria Montessori. One of the paramount techniques of this genre of teaching is creating materials that include a variety of senses. As teachers, we often over-emphasize the logic muscles, and forget that our senses work together to create a wonderful, meaning-making experience. Even if you are teaching college students, find a way to incorporate the sense of touch, smell, hearing, sight, etc into your teaching.

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These tips are meant to help you create material that students can meet with on their own terms. The goal should be to grow knowledge by sowing a seed—not by transplanting whole plants into a new garden. Allow space for revelation to happen and new knowledge to form.

Thank you for your time. I am another you,

~*DeShauna J.*~

Teaching the Inner Child

What makes the experience of childhood so exquisite is the feeling that you exist in forever.

"In the Moment" by Matt Anderson

Children often get caught up in the moment. They feel, touch, taste, smell and generally sense everything that comprises the moment. They are so in tune with that moment that they can't tell you what that moment is because they are coupled to forever.
 

Adults find this place too by surrendering to the sense of now. Forgetting your fragmentary existence as a body who is interacting with other bodies. We let our non physical awareness steer our bodies away from fear of judgment into the joy of unity—which is more easily achieved by looking beyond the body into the timeless spirit that connects us all.
 

When we are in this "space" we hand over the keys to our physical body to our spirit. We see the world differently because we allow the true observer to replace that which is simply the fractured reflection comprised of judgments from parents, peers and passersby. This "observer" knows no judgment, no "sin" because it is aware of the reality-binding power of unconditional love. It views no harm—no foul—only love.

When we see through the eyes of the physical body, and not the spirit, the physical body is given the power to create your experience. It's a bit like giving your car the keys and letting it drive itself. A car doesn't truly understand integrity, honesty, truth…and neither does your physical body. It is a function of the mechanical (in our case organic) parts that make it. 

Applying this to a teaching situation…when approaching your students, teach through your own inner child and you will reach the inner child of your students. Allow space for the student to be more than just a physical body. Speak from the non-judgmental, eternal perspective you hold within you. With this approach, the learner will have fewer reasons to develop mal-adaptive teaching patterns that block information. Nothing can be taken personally if you respond to the spirit, not the person. 

Thank you for your time. I am another you,

*~DeShauna J.*~

Let’s Talk about Unity

I started my "official" homeschooling year with a unity theme. For me, the idea that we are all one is the basis of every eternal truth. However, the lesson is deceivingly simple and in my experience, we have to be really aware of our thoughts and behaviors to be a living principle of unity.  And let's face it--this is an important lesson your kids are probably not going to receive in public schools.

The fact that we are connected as ONE is so simple and fundamental. It is such a basic truth, that we often overlook it in favor of categorizing and re-categorizing ourselves and our relationships with one another and Spirit. At times, our scientific and artistic minds agree on this fact and it is referred to what we would call a "Renaissance" (remembering) period.

 Yet like the yo-yo, we "drop down" from this perspective by forgetting this truth or feeling as though we have learned all that we can from this perspective. Traveling down the yo-yo's string, we long to return back to the lone finger that holds the string and yo-yo together. Some call this God, others Spirit or Creator, but whatever you call it collectively we understand that we feel separated from whatever "It" is, at the bottom of string and we have steered away from something central to our lives. Traveling back up to the string, we remember our interconnectedness and the sanctity of all life and rejoice in this connection. As children, it is imperative to understand the unity of all things before we tearing this connection apart, for this web of causation is our home. 

 When all goes wrong, everything is right in the perspective of unity.

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A *free*coloring pages on the theme of Unity from glad.is:

I am in the place where we all are ONE.

The place where everything begins.

And where everything will end.

And where we all unite as FRIENDS.

 -DeShauna J.

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 _{Talking about Unity with your child(ren)}

 

It seems to me that the idea of unity is quite easy for children to grasp. In the womb it would seem that babies are embedded in a reality of connectedness—the sway of amniotic fluid, the rhythmic beating of the heart and the sweet sound of muffled surroundings.

Of course, I don't remember being in the womb so I am using my imagination a bit here, but it would seem that the infant may first realize its separateness as they come to the realization that they have their own voice, fingers, toes, and other parts. The journey of separation is already underway as this brand new human being learns to navigate the world through cooperation and conflict with other conscious beings. 

The Crayon Kingdom by Jennie Bishop is a great story to read to young children!

Here is an "outline" or storyboard for your unity discussion with your family.  (I had this discussion with my then 4 1/2 year old, and she totally got it and still talking about it 6 months later).

1. We were all created by the Creator. Some call it God, or Spirit, etc.
2. When the Creator created us, a piece of the Creator was placed in everything and everyone. So, although we have separate bodies, we share a connection to the same source (God, Spirit, Tao, etc.) that created all things.
3. We were given minds and hearts that connect us to God/Spirit and all things Spirit created.
4. This place in our minds and hearts is where there is unconditional love…which means that we share love with everyone and everything no matter what they do. Even if they may not act nicely or like us, we still have love for them because we remember the place where we are all one. We can call this Big Heart Love.
5. The Earth is also all connected and we are connected to the Earth. We are connected to the animals and trees, the water and the fire. Every piece of the Earth has a piece of us in it, and we have a piece of us has a piece of the Earth in it. We are also connected to all of the planets, and stars, and everything in the universe because we were all created by the same thing.
6. The word "UNITY" expresses the fact that We Are All Connected. The word UNITY means that everything is brought together as ONE. In the word Unity is the "root word" "uni-". A root word is the one part of a word that you kind find in lots of other words that always has the same meaning. In this case, "uni" means "one. We have heard this root word before in words like UNIcorn (which means one horn), UNIcycle (which means one wheel), and UNIque (which means one of a kind).

 

What does it mean if we are all connected and we are all one?

• What we do and say can help other people feel happier (or sadder). We should play, talk and connect with other people like we want to be played with, talked to or connected with.
• We need to treat everything on the planet (animals, plants, etc) with love because we are connected to them.
• When we work together with unconditional love in our hearts, then we can reach the place in our minds where everything is connected. This is the place where ideas that help everyone and everything come from.

Art project:

• Link paper clips together to create a chain to represent the connection we have to each other, the Earth, space and the Creator who created everything 

Writing/art prompts:

1. What does the place in your mind where everything is connected look like?
2. What can you do to feel connected to everyone and everything?

 Thank you and please share any resources on teaching UNITY to young children!


~The Spirit in me honors the Spirit in you~



-DeShauna J.

Have Yourself a Meaningful Little Christmas-The Christmas Tree

Well, there was (and still is) a little drama surrounding the usage of Christmas trees. Some have considered them Pagan, they have been outlawed, contested, etc. But I like to think of the evergreen as a symbol of eternal spirit.  Evergreens are green all year round, and like our spirit—stays vibrant and beautiful all year round. Today I am sharing a few ideas of how we can teach children about the symbol of the Christmas tree while also addressing the educational basics of math, literacy, science and music.

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Botany {plant identification}

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If you live in a climate with an abundance of conifers, get bundled up and take a walk outside! 

Pine Cone Identification Chart

University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point has tree identification cards that can be used to help your budding botanists identify the conifers in their surrounding area. They include pictures of the bark, needles/leaves, cones, fruit and other features of the tree for identification. There are also tons of plant identification resources on Pinterest.

You can create a baggy book by placing samples of the conifers inside of plastic bags and matching them with the plant identification cards. See The "Unworking" Mom's blog for a great tutorial on making baggy books! Martina Huppertová also has a pretty cool tutorial on YouTube about how to make baggy books out of gift bags rather than plastic bags.

And my favorite conifer-related song (okay, it also the only one I know--but that doesn't take away from it's awesomeness):  "C is for Conifer" by They Might be Giants.

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Math {patterned counting}

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I created a Skip Counting Christmas Tree to give my crafty daughter a chance to work with number patterns. You can get the FREE template for the craft at my TPT store. The pieces of the tree need to be cut out, and then write a number on each piece of the tree to represents a skip count sequence from the smallest to largest number. I made trees for counting by twos, fives, tens and one hundred. I encouraged my daughter to pick one number piece, and then she found the other corresponding pieces. She then chose two number pattern trees to glue on construction paper and created a winter scene.

For smaller learners you can also just count by ones. The size of the pieces of the tree will reinforce the comparison of numbers since the smallest number will be on the smallest piece of the tree, and the largest number will be on the largest part of the tree. You can also use this craft for those learning the order of the alphabet. You can write one letter of the alphabet on each tree—or—for older children, write a word on each tree and have them place the words in descending alphabetical order.

  

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Literacy & Reading {Deeper Meaning Craft}

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From http://www.mynameissnickerdoodle.com/

Here is a new take on a preschool Christmas craft favorite. Many of you may be aware of the cute Christmas wreaths you and your kiddos can make with cut outs of their hands. To ante up on the Christmas spirit and encourage reading and handwriting skills, you can write words on the hands/berries/bows/wherever they fit that relate to the symbolism of the Christmas wreath.

As I mentioned, the Christmas tree is significant because it stays "ever green" like our spirit. When the evergreen is shaped in the fashion of a circle, it reinforces the idea of eternity—like a circle, our spirit goes on forever.

 You can have a casual conversation with your child(ren) about the eternal nature of our spirit when you are cutting out the hands. {These casual conversations really pique my daughter's interest!} Then ask, "What do you think about when you hear the word 'spirit'?" Try again with words like "eternity" or "evergreen" or "circle". The key here is to aid in the creation of "mind maps" that facilitate a deep understanding and connection to the physical and spiritual world.  Have fun!

 

~*Merry Christmas*~

 

 

 

Have Yourself a Meaningful Little Christmas—The Star

Christmas time is rife with symbols that encourage us to look within to assess and get in touch with who we really are. One of my most favorite symbols of the Christmas season is the star.  In the Nativity story, a bright star led the shepherd and wise men to Jesus. Wise men and shepherds represent those who have the wisdom and awareness to find the truth and nature of divine being. In this story, the star represents the internal positioning system that leads us to our divine blueprint—Jesus.  Today I am sharing mathematical, scientific and literary activities that expose the wisdom and meaning behind the star.  

Stars have been an important navigational system for eons. Their rhythmic dance tells us where we are in space and time. Stars represent a light in the dark, or a piece of understanding in a sea of uncertainty. A light we feel in ourselves that leads us to serenity. 

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Mathematics

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Drawings of stars are often depicted as polygons with radial symmetry—meaning that if you fold the shape along its many axes, it will be symmetrical. Thus stars, as we depict them, radiate beautiful symmetrical energy. It's what makes people recognize a "star" rather than some other random shape.

I used star polygon clip art from Clip Art Etc to make some star puzzles. The song "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" works great with this activity because as you see, all of the stars are made up of congruent diamonds (hence: like a diamond in the sky").

I created a puzzle for 4,5,6,7, and 8 pointed stars. (There are also just blank stars). You can download them for FREE at my Teachers Pay Teachers Store (most of my stuff is free).

I printed two copies: one blank one to be used as the template for the puzzle that I printed on blue paper, and another copy that I cut up to be used as the puzzle pieces.

Using the Star Puzzles

Counting & Matching Shapes

• For the littlest ones, you can print two copies of each blank stars and make a matching game. You can also help them count the number of points on the star without counting one twice. (which is quite the struggle for kids starting to count). You can make it fun by placing a star sticker or drawing a star on each point of the star as you count it.
• For fun you can also have your child pick his/her favorite star. Have them glue together their puzzle on a piece of paper with the saying "Like a Diamond in the Sky". Add glitter…lots of glitter…instant smiles.  

Symmetry & Fractions

• Show your children how the star looks the same on both sides when folded along points of symmetry. Challenge your kids to find the points of symmetry on each star. How many points of symmetry can they find?
• I also made a puzzle which shows the fractions for each piece. I am of the persuasion that rather than waiting until 3^rd grade (which the Common Core suggests) to teach fractions, we should be exposing children to the idea of fractions early on while they are in the mode of learning to add and subtract. My child caught on to the concept quite quickly: she has a little brother and knows all about splitting things up into "equal parts".
• To supplement the introduction to fractions, I used the [FREE] Equivalent Fractions Puzzle 1-1/6 from What I Have Learned's TPT Store. I am all of out of colored ink to be quite honest, and so I just made mine of out construction paper and laminated it to make it a puzzle. I love puzzles.   

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Geography & Astronomy--the North Star

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• For fun: cut out a star shape from some cardboard boxes and have your kids shine a flash light on the shape in the dark. You can even turn out all of the lights to show your children how star light can be used as a navigational system. 



http://ursaminorconstellation.weebly.com/facts.html

• Some consider the star in the Nativity story to be the North Star--a part of Ursa Minor or the "Little Bear/Dipper". There is considerable debate about it, but if you would like to include it in your lesson plan, Souledout.org has a good easy to understand page on Ursa Minor (and Major). You can make a drawing of the constellation as well. Love, California even has an Ursa Minor pillow for sale. I'm thinking if you are crafty you can make a template of the bear and make a paper or felt creation of your own.

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Deeper Learning

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• Here is a free writing/drawing prompt to get your child thinking about the star symbolism.
  • Imagine that you had your very own special star in the night sky. It shines brightly and beautifully and is leading you to a place. A magical place where you can become the best person you could ever be. [pause]. What does the person look like to you? What does he/she do Why do they do it?
    
  • "We Three Kings" is a perfect song to compliment this project. 

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Literacy

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I am not going to re-invent the wheel here. There are tons of star-related reading and writing activities out there. Although I really like the idea of using sight words with the "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" poem.

 

~*Merry Christmas!*~

 

∞ Self Discovery as Education ∞

 

The infinity and spiral symbols exemplify the methods and content of 'Mastering.Infinity". The infinity symbol represents our ongoing journey of balancing and integrating our physical and non-physical experiences and environments. The spiral symbolizes the expansion of being that results from the accumulation of a wide array of experiences and perspectives. Both of these symbols signify the ability to understand the position of the self in all environments and to practice unconditional love for all. 

Learning to Heal

(education worth its weight in gold)

     Suffering and dissatisfaction often stems from the inability to fulfill the desire to truly understand and incorporate ourselves as physical and non-physical beings. Our experiences serve as a monumental catalyst to awaken ourselves up to our truest nature and develop the gifts that we are here to share with one another.

However, for many children and adults, their current modes of education fail to trigger or allow room for the pivotal healing situations and environments needed for self-revelation. 

You may call it a "soul", "spirit" or "inner teacher", but all people—including young children—have a guiding light that facilitates self-revelation and peace. We yearn to be connected to this profound wisdom we hold within us. I believe it is the role of education to develop and maintain this connection. Nonetheless, many educational institutions and curriculum supplant the inner teacher with perspectives parading as facts which leads to confusion, dissatisfaction and separation.

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Traditional (institutional) education systems can often be characterized as reinforcing separation from others and compartmentalization of the self through a variety of mechanisms:

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Separation by perceived ability 
Students are constantly in competition with one another through academic and athletic evaluation to assess whether they are meeting the expectations of others. As a result they are placed in "tracks" that can result in rigid life trajectories. These practices may reinforce separation from their own inner-judgment, truest talents and physical separation from those with varying abilities. 


Separation by learning content
Students learn subjects in a "stand alone" fashion that does not allow them sufficient space to develop connections with learning material. Categorizations of the material and spiritual worlds are put in place by human beings, yet school systems often act as though these divisions are unquestionable. Textbooks teach from a limited perspective of the educationally elite and nationalized curriculum overlook the need for students to learn different things at different time in different ways. In this way, students are alienated from the learning process and are treated as the universal, rather than the unique, student. 


Separation by life experience 
Students learn with students who are much like themselves. They are close in age, live in neighborhoods in close proximity to one another, and are probably in similar economic positions. We often think there are stark contrasts in school settings, but if we think about life in a global manner, these contrasts are closer to pink and red than black and white. There is a great deal of healing that can occur from learning with people who are substantially older, younger, richer, poorer, religious, or secular that you are. Since interaction with others is a significant method of self-revelation, we become richer in spirit and gain new understandings of how the world works when we have meaningful encounters with those we consider different from ourselves.

Mastering Infinity is in the business of self-discovery.  I understand that we are created uniquely with divine purpose.  I believe that education is a restorative process that facilitates certainty within ourselves and environments so that we may uncover and share our most profound gifts with the world.

~*Eternal Peace, Love & Wisdom*~

 -D.J.