I just got this in my email and I wanted to make sure that I get the word out about a convention that highlights the necessity and rewards of saying what you mean. If you have a chance, check it out. It’s Virtual & Free! Thanks Teri for letting me know about it! And Teri is also one of the many homeschooling business sponsors.
The Say What You Mean Convention is being hosted by JoJo Tabares and it’s happening on Wednesday, February 3. It’s absolutely free and completely virtual so you can attend even in your PJs! This year’s theme is The Three Flavors of Communication: Writing, Speech and Conversation. Tune into the live events on Wednesday, February 3rd. There will be a total of six live events, seminars and workshops throughout the day teaching various aspects of communication beginning at 8am PST/9am MST/10 am CST/11 am EST.
P.S. Teri has a brand new re-designed newsletter a little bit. Check it out at: http://www.knowledgehouse.info/KHnews/02-2010.html. You will find a biography of a famous homeschooled photographer, lots of downloadable freebies and interesting links!
Kinderbach is a lovely program for parents who want to expose their children to the wonders of music. It is designed for children three to seven years old and is a great introduction to more formal piano lessons. But don’t mistake this to be one of the “cutesy” toys parents buy their children to pretend that they are learning music. This is the real deal. Children will be learning about sharps and flats, keyboard placement, rhythm and notereading. But it’s done in such a gentle and fun way that even parents with music-phobias are able to relax and enjoy themselves.
Kinderbach musical curriculum consists of videos (available as online or DVDs), ebooks and a piano keyboard. For this review I concentrated on my middle daughter’s enjoyment and learning experience since she’s six years old. She was immediately engaged with the videos of the teachers. She finds them to be very entertaining and in many cases funny. She especially likes the way that the instructors teach the concept of higher and lower. They use this beautiful golden retriever and a set of stairs. As the dog goes up or down, the male voice has to pitch his voice accordingly. Those lessons give her a full case of the giggles. She also enjoyed doing the workbook pages which include coloring and minor craft work.
I liked the way that the instructors taught the children to remember the names of the keys on the keyboard. I found it interesting that they started with Dodi the Donkey (key of D) because when I was taking piano lessons many eons ago Middle C was king. But after watching the subsequent videos it made a lot of sense. Children need reference points, especially if they aren’t reading yet. So having illustrations like Dodi’s house for the key of D and making tents for Dodi all over the keyboard really is quite ingenious.
It was never a chore to get her to do her lessons and she learned a lot. Even her “over the hill” sister (at 10 years of age) took part in many of the activities because they were just so much fun. My three year old son, who is a perpetual motion machine, really enjoyed doing some of the musical routines that are in almost every video. We even formed a little band of drummers, piano players, singers and kazoos.
The children had a lot of fun with the program and Alaya, who never got a chance to take in-person piano lessons, was able to play simple songs on the piano after the first week of the program. I think that this is very important because drills don’t give you the satisfaction of being able to play a little tune for yourself or others. I didn’t have to fight with Alaya to do her musical lessons either, so that was definitely a plus.
Kinderbach can be utilized in a variety of ways. If you’d like an online subscription, the cost is $7.99/mo. for the entire family. If your internet connection is shaky, you might want to invest in the various DVD sets. The DVDs start at $55.95 (2 DVD set) and go up to $222.88 for the 10-DVD set. Before investing any money into the program, you can take advantage of the free trial to see if this is something that you and your children would enjoy.
P.S. Kinderbach has also been kind enough to give my readers a 10% discount on their product orders if you click the discount link. And don’t forget to have your kids enroll in the “Dodi Loves D” – Valentine Draw! The contest ends March 1st with the winner of the Everyday songbook being announced on March 3rd. Check out the main page, but your children’s masterpieces can be submitted by email or snail mail. So break out the crayons and begin your musical journey with Dodi. Khalid Family Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
Although I’m not an unschooler, I just can’t resist this Unschooling Conference Cruise because one thing that I promised myself this year was that I want my children to have a fabulous learning adventure this year. And after reading this I think I’ve found the perfect venue to fit the bill. Check it out!
2010 Life Rocks! Unschooling Conference Cruise
Click here for all of the information, including pricing…
April 18-25, 2010 (7 Nights)
Ship: Royal Caribbean’s “Freedom Of The Seas”
Departure Port: Port Canaveral, Florida
Ports of Call:
* Labadee, Haiti
* Ocho Rios, Jamaica
* George Town, Cayman Islands
* Cozumel, Mexico
Join your hosts, Dayna & Joe Martin, for the ultimate week-long Unschooling adventure and celebration!
You are invited to sail on board the Freedom of the Seas ship, and visit four different exotic locations with other Unschooling families! This is the ultimate, all-inclusive vacation within an unforgettable Unschooling Conference! Swim with the Stingrays in Grand Cayman, Visit Mayan Ruins or swim with the dolphins in Cozumel, Mexico, Enjoy a blissful day at our private water park on the beach of Haiti, Climb Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios, Jamaica and explore jungles, ancient cities and beaches.
This Unschooling Conference Cruise is like nothing you have ever seen or experienced before! Whether you are just exploring Unschooling, or you are an experienced Radical Unschooling family, this conference cruise is a life changing and life affirming experience.
This ship is one of the newest and best in the Royal Caribbean fleet. This leading-edge line of Cruise ships happens to be the same Royal Caribbean line of ships that Nickelodeon Cruises uses. Can you say perfect for a group of wild, free, joy-lovin’ families?!
This cruise is not only perfect for families, it is also ideal for teens and young adults who want to travel to four countries/islands and experience something new and fabulous! All leading-edge thinkers and autonomous learners are welcome and encouraged to join our Conference Cruise to the Caribbean!
On the cruise we enjoy support and connections to others walking this path, inspiration and information from our conference speakers, opportunities for growth and learning through traveling to 4 different countries and being at sea on a ship for a week …
Travel, Freedom, Community of Kindness, Respect and Love, and the Joy of creating memories that your children will carry with them for the rest of their lives.
Living on a boat for a week gives you a different perspective on life and the world itself. You can actually see and feel how much water is out there – how huge the ocean is – and by sailing on it, you gain such reverence for the earth in a new way.
Give your family as big of a world as possible: travel and see new places, different cultures, learn, grow and explore together … with your Unschooling tribe!
See you on the “Freedom of the Seas” ship on April 18th at the Life Rocks! Unschooling Conference Cruise
Visit www.UnschoolingontheSeas.com, Alumni Cruises, 1-800-516-5247, www.alumnicruises.travel for more information.
I'm a homeschooling mom with seven children: 3 human, 2 feline and 2 canine. I'm also the wife of one very patient husband who seems to like the role of ringmaster to our circus. I am a virtual assistant who enjoys writing, crafts, music and laughter. I hope you'll visit often. Please be aware that this blog is supported by affiliate links, although every link isn't necessarily an affiliate program.
