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Summer Changes and Governmental Tangles

 I'm emptying out my cupboards of school supplies, craft boxes, puzzles, science kits-- and there is now a huge mess on our table, and multiple piles of donation/trash items by our door.  It's summer, time for a fresh start. I want to be out having fun and not shoving miniature dinosaurs and ripped papers in the cupboard to deal with later.  We're getting the Museum Card this year, and train passes for July. I'm beyond excited at the upcoming adventures. More time out learning and exploring, less time dealing with vacation boredom. The kids are older and have longer attention spans, and loved Leiden's Boerhaave museum and the Prinsenhof in Delft. I'm hoping to revisit those, plus add in famous new places like Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum, Leiden's Museum of Antiquities, Rotterdam's Maritime Museum, and a whole list of others. Art wins over boredom and paperwork any time.  Besides these motivations, there's another reason I'm fo...
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Summer Travel Unit Study - Morocco

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Our first summer-travel-virtual-trip was Morocco. The Netherlands has a high percentage of Moroccan expats, so it's not hard to find resources on the country. Pippin even said cheerfully, "And I have a new friend from Morocco that I met at the playground!" Books we got out from the library: We bought this 'Marokkaanse couscous' meal packet from the supermarket, and Ay helped with peeling vegetables, tasting apricots, and poking the courgette. He also helped me with the garlic crusher and giggled wildly. I didn't take a picture of the final meal, but was honestly surprised that all the kids enjoyed it, since the spice mix was very different than anything we usually use. The couscous was definitely a hit. Honestly, I think that the amount of raisins and apricots mixed in with the meat and steamed veggies was the persuasive factor for the kids. But for an easy, healthy meal with different flavors than usual, it's worth adding to our list.  We watched this vlo...
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USA History Unit Study

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USA History Unit Study We've just finished a nearly-year-long focus on Dutch history. I was impressed with the range and depth of the Dutch canon of 50 major events, which gave us plenty to explore. From the first monolithic tombs in 3000BC to artists like Rembrandt, from scientists like Christiaan Huygens to the World Wars, and from Van Gogh crafts to heavier subjects like racism- it has been a good history year! To finish up the school year, I'm planning a 6 week unit study on U.S. History. (As the kids get older we may do a full year on it, and I'm thinking of doing another round of World History in another year or two.) I wasn't able to find the equivalent of the Dutch canon, so instead I looked at broad historical eras in the USA as a backbone. Of the 9-12 most often used, I'm just choosing 6, 1 per week, based on resources and applicability to the age and level of my kids. For example we could focus on the Cold War - but that's not going to work as well a...
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Thuisonderwijs Startpakket

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Welkom bij mijn lijst voor hét volmaakte thuisonderwijs startpakket! Grapje. Het fijne aan thuisonderwijs is dat je zelf je geloof en leerdoelen mag doorgeven op een manier dat bij jouw gezin past. Er is dus geen één volmaakte manier om te starten. Maar zou je het fijn vinden om wat opties te hebben voordat je de diepe waters induikt, bij deze. [Kanttekening: ik geef voornamelijk onderwijs in het Engels. Als je denkt, zo, haar Nederlands kan echt wel beter, klopt dat ook. Maar hier hebben we over een start pakket, niet over een universiteit pakket. Dat verzin ik zonodig over 9 jaar. Wat het vak Nederlands taal betreft, heb ik uitstekende werkboeken voor de kinderen, dat ze minder gaan struikelen over het/de dan ikzelf….] Startpakket benodigdheden: 1. Liefde 2. Flexibiliteit, humeur, leergierigheid 3. (Kinder)Bijbel 4. Alfabetkaarten of poster 5. Duplo 6. Speelgoed dieren 7. Speelgoed etenswaren 8. Speelklei 9. Verf en schort 10. Internet 11. Bibliotheekpas 12. Printer Onmisbaar: li...
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History Lesson - Michiel de Ruyter (Canon van Nederland # 20)

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History Lesson - Michiel de Ruyter  (Canon van Nederland # 20) We mix and match these materials for our lesson on Michiel de Ruyter, the famous Dutch admiral. With a mix of older and younger children, it helps to have books and video clips for different ages. The main book we're using for history this schoolyear is "Over Vroeger en Nu", which has a historical fiction chapter for the 50 events of the Dutch history canon.  https://artprojectsforkids.org/how-to-draw-a-ship/ A "How to Draw a Ship" instruction page for the kids to work on during readaloud.  https://www.leukvoorkids.nl/wp-content/uploads/zeilschepen-0012.gif Also a coloring page. Probably not a historically accurate printable, but it seems that coloring pages of ships from the 1600s aren't that popular :D                                                            ...
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'Bibliotheek' Means 'Library' - 2021 Edition

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                                                                                                             When we gather up our pile of library books to return them, sometimes I remember to snap a photo. This is a handful of photos taken throughout 2021, showing the kinds of books we like. With a 10 book limit per child, we go about every 2-3 weeks,  and come home with a mix of picture books, 'educational' books, and random finds from the shelves.                         Sometimes we repeat favorites. "We eten hier geen klasgenootjes', first published in English as 'We don't eat our classmates' is one of m...
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October 2021

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 October 2021 Quick post about October to catch up on our months! We had Picasso, Tchaikovsky, and space themes. For Picasso, we read library books and did an art craft.    Picasso book For Tchaikovsky we listened to the 1812 overture (and I think the Nutcracker suite?) and wrote a report on the composer himself.  We had a mini-coop class with some fellow learners, which gave us the excuse to really have fun with the space theme. An astronaut 'hand scanner' by the door, edible marshmallow constellations, create your own planet and rocket crafts... am of course some Star Wars music playing in the background. 
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