Thank You Letters

Perhaps we're old-fashioned, but over the years we must have sent hundreds of Thank You Letters. These began as large splodge paintings, cut up and stuck onto cards. Next was the computer phase - photographs of the children or clip art ballet dancers and the like. Now we're moving on to the real challenge. So we decided on a recipe and a technique which is as follows:

After writing your address and the date at the top, the letter itself has a pattern of just four sentences.

1. Write Thank you for.......
2. Write something that you like about the gift (or if you don't like it write something positive about it).
3. Explain how you have used the gift, or how you hope to use it.
4. Write something that shows you care about the person who sent you the gift.

To begin with we composed examples of letters out loud taking turns to think of a sentence. This turned out to be thought-provoking and fun. Even after a couple of attempts I've noticed a real improvement in using this technique to think of more interesting sentences than the usual 'Hope you are well'.

To carry out the task we bought some small notebooks and notelets. Each letter is drafted on just one side of A6 in the notebook. It is then checked for accuracy, spelling, punctuation and word flow and copied carefully into a notecard. We can then look back over the draft letters for ideas if we get stuck. The girls seem to like: the 'small' page per letter; the choice of notelets (kittens and puppies seem popular); and the envelope, stamp and posting part of the process. We've had some really good conversations about why handwritten letters, particularly Thank You Letters, might make a difference to the recipient's day and to the sender's future.

Acrostic

Flowers, I's acrostic poem,

August 2009

Something that's always interested me is I's enthusiasm for poetry. We've read quite a lot of poetry to her over the years, as we've read countless other books, but poetry seems to be her preferred form. She became fascinated by acrostic poems several years ago and always enjoys writing them. The one shown here was written for I's maternal great-grandmother's 90th birthday. I decided to look up 'acrostic' in my dictionary and found this definition: 'a poem, word puzzle, or other composition in which certain letters in each line form a word or words'. Therefore this simple literary exercise could be expanded and made much more subtle. I shall try to find some more intricate examples.

Lion Masks

Lion Masks by A and I, card, paint, collage

A and I had fun making Lion Masks when our neighbours invited them along the Lincoln Baptist Church Holiday Club to learn the story of Daniel in the Lions' den.

http://www.lincolnbaptist.co.uk

Seastar-Sandpiper

Handmade Ceramic Button from Sandpiper Gallery, Mousehole


There are several small galleries in Mousehole. I always visit Sandpiper Gallery http://www.sandpipergallery.co.uk in search of ceramic buttons and to look at the paintings and textile arts. Some wonderful paintings this year... also ceramics and wooden boats, and some beautiful wooden furniture. My favourite Mousehole gallery at the moment is Seastar http://www.seastargallery.co.uk a newer gallery, very friendly, selling jewellery, gifts and paintings, many made by female artists. In the spirit of the place, we'll be making our own art over the next few weeks, and as I couldn't afford a painting this year, we'll have a change around at home by getting some more of the girls' artwork into frames and onto walls... I've been meaning to do so for months now.

Family History

I spent several hours today mapping out some of my Family History and putting together some census information I've had in a folder for years. Even though there are many mysteries yet to be solved, I enjoy looking at the names and the patterns between them.

My favourite ancestors at the moment are: May Eleanor Richardson, Esther Tilbrook and Lucy Rawlinson. May Eleanor was my great-grandmother, Esther was my great great-grandmother, and Lucy was my great, great, great-grandmother. I like this part of the family because they go back via the Tilbrook line into farming the land in Cambridgeshire. West Wratting, Borough Green, Weston Colville, Six Mile Bottom... these are some of the Tilbrook places. I've visited them once but it might be time for another visit soon because I'd like to take some photographs.

22 Days

Just a little jotter to remind me of our days away...

... green drive into Devon day ~ splash around at Granny's day ~ "it's blue in the sky" day ~ daisies in a vase day ~ gifted to us books day ~ birthday number 12 day ~ wetsuits in the harbour day ~ sunshine now and then day ~ mermaids by the rockpools day ~ friends reunited day ~ new place Kolossi day ~ up the hill to Paul day ~ cats and chats by the harbour day ~ Seastar-Sandpiper day ~ pouring down with rain day ~ pathway to Lamorna day ~ treasure from the tide day ~ ebb and flow of years day ~ festival at Sidmouth day ~ across the field to the mill day ~ along the lanes to Silverton day ~ ending up at Joan's house day...

... and now we're back home... and the grass in our garden is very long and full of clover and buttercups!

Invisibility

"Just because a friend is invisible doesn't mean they're imaginary" said A as we drove along the lanes. "Interesting point," I replied. This was the beginning of a new conversation about Treenenee during which I discovered the following information.

First, that the pronunciation of the name is Treenunee, not Truneenee (I had assumed the latter and was corrected). Also, that Treenenee was secretly present at A's birth, having "crept in quietly". Significantly, she is now 12 years old, and was born just one day after A's older sister. Of course we celebrated the occasion with an invisible cake.

Butterfly

Using carefully chosen colours, I began to bring her Butterfly design to life.

Butterfly, (work in progress) by I, felt, 28cm x 18cm

The Butterfly has always been one of I's favourite motifs. This project was inspired by a string of embroidered butterflies brought back from China and an old book Butterflies and Moths that belonged to my mother. I's original drawing was traced and transferred onto felt, cut out very carefully and the pieces laid down onto a piece of white backing felt. To keep them secure before any embellishment is added the edges have been tacked very neatly. The white backing felt is to give stability. It's also to provide a padding because when the front has been decorated, we'll make some wire-covered antennae will be inserted and the whole piece cut out and backed in a contrasting fabric.

It's all over

"It's all over, Mummy", they said. "Yes, I know", I replied. So I tried to set both girls the task of writing a little piece about Wimbledon 2009. I refused, on the grounds she had something more interesting to write about, but A wrote the following to console me:

"This year's Wimbledon was very exciting for me and my Mummy. Every afternoon me and my Mummy watched it on T.V. I felt very sorry for Mummy because Rafael Nadal was not playing this year, and I wouldn't hear "come on Nadal!" from her."

We then had a Wimbledon spelling test choosing words together that we think could be useful for a more extended description of the game: tennis - championship - court - player - singles - doubles - racquet - volley - service - ace. Our spelling tests are more spelling discussions and can last quite a while... and they're always lots of fun, with surprise insights along the way.

Crazy Patchwork

Yesterday we spent most of the day on sewing projects, some new, some that have been in the making over a course of weeks.

Crazy Patchwork, by A, 13cm x 19cm

In the crazy patchwork a mix of cottons and sparkly fabrics have been combined and sewn down with tacking cotton onto the pink background. In the centre is one of my 'samples' from a beading workshop. Below left a children's fairy print, above which is a paisley chiffon. Next, a woven orange-yellow glitzy striped fabric, then a blue sheer fabric encrusted with glass beads, followed by two sequinned nets. A has started to embellish the sequinned net fabrics using contrasting embroidery cottons, ric-rac, and beads.

The interesting thing here is A's fearlessness of putting together fabrics that clearly don't 'match', and without all the usual concerns about difficulty of sewing technique on a small scale. She is very patient with this work and I've noticed that she's beginning to work for more prolonged lengths of time, becoming more absorbed in the task as it develops.

Annabelinda

1982 Design 378 Sunray pleated silk organza, postcard

When we visited Woodstock we saw the Annabelinda exhibition at The Oxfordshire Museum. This was a beautiful exhibition of couture dressmaking. What interested me to begin with was the story of Annabelinda...

Belinda O'Hanlon went to Oxford to study for a geography degree in the mid 1960's. She made dresses for her student friends and for some of the tutors, having acquired dressmaking skills at home with her mother. This activity flourished and so she left her degree course before graduation to set up her couture business. So there's a tale of home education!

Wonderful fabrics and combinations of silks, chiffons, brocades, velvets and wools. In the early years Liberty prints were combined with plain coloured fabrics. We saw gorgeous surprise patterned linings, hand-embroidered finishes. The neckline details were especially noteworthy: also Chinese braids, hand-painted silks, and lots of symmetry, piping, sweeping sleeves and skirts.

The 1970's designs were my favourites. They made me feel very nostalgic as I recalled the first skirt I ever made in the front room at my Nan's house. The fabric was a lightweight brown cotton with small pink and cream floral patterns. Meanwhile Jenny, a family member, then in her thirties, sat alongside me and recalled the dresses she had worn in her teenage years. A very special memory so thanks to Annabelinda for reminding me.

I came home very inspired and determined to make her first dress on the sewing machine.

The Annabelinda exhibition runs until 12th July. http://www.annabelinda.com

Rome

A few years ago, I received a present from her Granny R. It was a book called Treasure Trove of an Ancient Roman Child. She's always liked the book, which has a secret compartment full of replica Roman artefacts.

Family Portrait, imaginary painted plaster fragment

Following a visit with some other home ed families to a nearby archaeological dig, where a Roman Bath House is thought to have been unearthed, this book has been opened again and scoured for information. The most exciting part of the dig was using the hand trowel to search for fragments. We found a lot of flint, but also some pieces of mosaic and clay tiling material. http://www.friendsofsudbrooke.org

Both girls are now grappling with the concepts of 'history' and 'pre-history', as well as the realization that the city of Rome has had such a profound impact on our lives today. From the book we found several motifs of particular interest: laurel-leaf, bulla, votive, genius, and oil lamp. Next follows a local Ordnance Survey search for Roman features!

The Treasure Trove of an Ancient Roman Child, by Fiona MacDonald, Smithmark, 1999

My Needlework Box

Shiny thimble,
Sharp needle,
Patterned material.

My needlework box.

Silver needle-threader,
Long tape measure.

My needlework box.

Colourful ribbons,
Interesting buttons,
Thin cottons.

My needlework box.

My Needlework Box, A's poem, 22nd June 2009

Sailing Boat

When we visited Devon recently, we put together this simple wooden jigsaw puzzle of a sailing boat from the toybox at Granny R's house.

Sailing Boat, vintage wooden jigsaw puzzle

I love the design of this puzzle, especially the use of colour: the predominant summer blue sky contrasted with the deep slice of Cornish blue sea; the starchy white sails, and the small red tug boat behind.

Made with Love

We've been home educating for about four months now. Lots of people have helped us - other home educators we've met or spoken to on the phone, and all the home ed children of course.

Made with Love, iced sponge cakes by I

So here's a plate of cakes, made with love by I to say thank you!

Wimbledon

Wimbledon day three. A quiet day at home. We measured up our small sitting room and worked out how to plot the dimensions on graph paper, using one small square to represent 5cm. We also made a list of how we use estimates of short lengths in everyday life. At the hairdressers: "how much shall I take off?"; following instructions: "take a piece of ribbon approximately 10cm long", and so on. A walk round the village with the dog, an attempt at recall training in the park, interspersed with conversation about this year's BB, which I've hardly watched at all, and then back, armed with a large bag of popcorn from the local shop, for another afternoon watching the tennis.

Samebarn

It's always interesting to see what turns up in the post. Today a Norwegian postcard arrived showing three Samebarn children.

Samebarn, Norway, postcard

The postcard was sent by Granny R who wrote: "The children are dressed in their national costume which they make themselves. This is the land of the midnight sun so the sun shines all day and all night".

As I know nothing very much at all about Norway, I now feel inclined to have a look in the atlas and online etc to see what I can find out. The costumes look beautiful, and the baby's cradle is especially stunning.

Inspiration

I love this little collage made by I several years ago, after she had looked through a book about the artist Sonia Delaunay and was thinking about how artists find inspiration. I especially like the slightly irregular shape, and the way two pieces of card are layered together, with the overlap line still showing through the colours.

Dear M+D by I, 11cm x 12.5cm, paper collage on card

The First Day

Visited the dentist first thing this morning. Then onto The Lincoln Piano Centre. After about eighteen months of piano lessons it's about time we moved on from our tiny keyboard. We had great fun looking around and playing on all the different pianos. Very excited because in the workshop is a small piano that looks like it has our name on it. We had a look at the undone structure, with all the strings and pads and other bits and pieces.

Then a trip to buy sewing stuff - fabrics, needle threaders, pins, bias tape etc for our learning-to-sew project. Back home for a snack lunch, followed by dog-training, bread-making, poetry, piano practice, music theory, estimating short lengths (maths project)... and a wonderful hour amidst all this activity watching Laura Robson play on The First Day at Wimbledon. We're really sorry she lost, but such an inspiration to us all at just fifteen years old.

Some people will do anything to get out of school...

Little Book of Happy Stuff

At Tipton St John we saw friends, swapped stories and joined in activities at the School Fair.
A even managed an impromptu after-school drama class.






Notebook: little book of happy stuff

We looked around the village to see how the river bank had changed. We sat in the play park and watched the swings and slides, and heard how the earlier floods had changed the routines of the village for several days.

A exchanged gifts with her best friend Thea and returned very happy with her new notebook (one of very many!) into which she began writing without delay.

Devon

AJHJ was busy with his Devon research projects, so we visited friends. First stop, a visit to Granny R and Grandad D just outside Exeter, with A and I taking lots of flower photographs in the garden.


A Rose in Granny R's Garden, photograph by A

Treenenee

"How do you spell it?" I asked A when she announced the name of her new imaginary friend. "t - r - e - e - n - e - n - e - e", she replied. Then, "she's invisible and she lives in a hole underground... you can't see her, but she's always watching things and she makes furniture out of mud". A combination perhaps of reading The Borrowers, going to pottery classes and our puppy Bethan digging large holes in the garden?

Treenenee is the latest in a succession of imaginary friends that A has described over the years. The first friend was her 'brother'. He was nameless but clearly identifiable as he had so many pet cats. A was very informative about his daily routines and games, and, most importantly, her brother didn't go to school I'm reliably informed that he's got a job now - as a dentist.

To me, the most amusing of the friends so far is Charlotte Milly. After numerous epic adventures in which Charlotte Milly managed to get away with the most outstanding tricks, A discovered that Charlotte Milly is not called Charlotte Milly after all. Her real name is Charlotte Molly!

Jumble Sales

You either love them or hate them... Jumble Sales... and I love, love, love them! When I was a child I looked forward to visiting my Great Auntie Renie and my late Great Uncle Tom as they always had some new jumble sale 'treasures' to show.





How to Live with a Neurotic Dog by Stephen Baker, Muller, 1961

Today's finds from our local jumble sale include a 1940's dress, some 1970's fabric, a 1950's doll's cot, and a copy of How to Live with a Neurotic Dog by Stephen Baker, published in 1961, and illustrated in typically 1960's style by Peter Gurney. We shall have fun looking through this whilst continuing to train our puppy.

Friendship

A made this ceramic Friendship heart for her friend Thea who lives in Devon. Tomorrow we shall wrap it up in layers of tissue paper. Then it will be ready to travel with us on the journey...




Friendship heart by A, glazed clay, 18cm x 18cm

Castles

A fun little book full of questions about castles - architecture, lifestyle, culture and customs.





Why are Castles castle-shaped?
by Philip Ardagh, Faber, 2002

Lincoln Castle

Yesterday was a very sunny day. We spent the morning with with friends from the Home Education Lincoln Meeting (HELM) in the grounds of Lincoln Castle.

Part of the Lincoln Castle by A, 21cm x 14.5cm, pencil

Topics of discussion on the way to the meeting: 1) How would you prepare for a radio interview in which you wanted to promote home education? 2) How does the shell of an egg form?

Topics of discussion on the way home: 1) Are we all in agreement that the Robin Hood outfit in the Lincoln Castle shop would be just right if it was made to fit an adult? 2) When we visit Lincoln Castle again can we walk all around the wall and then make a painting of The Bath House?

Free Swimming Initiative

Thanks to the government's Free Swimming Initiative, we've taken our first trip to the local swiming pool since starting home education.

http://www.communityleisureservices.org.uk/

We had great fun in the small pool with parents, grandparents, babies and toddlers splashing about and then moved across to the big pool for a while. So we were 'big fish in a small pond' and 'small fish in a big pond'. The girls enjoy the whole ritual of the swimming pool - preparing the swimming bags, the £1 coins for the lockers, swimming goggles and floating woggles, and (most importantly) the chocolate bar reward at the end!

Muffin and Paws

The highlight of the aforementioned Half Term week (for the girls) was looking after Muffin and Paws (our neighbours' new pet rabbits) so that our neighbours could go on a trip to Lego land etc. In spite of our best efforts we've not yet managed a good photograph - the rabbits just keep hopping about and hiding in their play tunnel.

Carrot by A, 2cm x 8cm, hama beads

Bethan

Bethan is our puppy. She's about ten months old and came from a small rescue centre near Boston, Lincolnshire, called Mill Rescue. http://www.millrescue.co.uk/

Bethan in Saltfleetby, April 2009

Half Term

You might think that Half Term would have little meaning to home educators and their children. Of course I'd never thought about it until now, but there is a definite change of mood and pace, as the school-educated children socialize in between visits to grannies, theme parks, and swimming pools. Lots of activity outside this week, especially cycling, playing in the park, and trips to find an old den along a nearby woodland pathway. New friendships, developing friendships, and the usual squabbles along the way.

A New Cousin

Preparations are in progress for a ceremony to be held this weekend in honour of A New Cousin. She is ten months old now and very popular with friends and family. I am so pleased for my brother who is a father for the first time and for his partner who is a fantastic friend to us, and I gain a very special niece!

Both girls are very excited about the event as it will be a fun family gathering with various gift offerings being made for the special day, including poetry, music and visual presentations. A will play a little piece for piano by Barbara Kreader from which she's learning the basics of musical intervals. The words are fun too:

'Please, no bees! Please, no bees on my nose or neck or knees! Bring no sting! Bring no sting! Find a rose, not my nose! Ouch!'

I is busy making a cross-stitch of the letters of her new cousin's name with a decorative border.



'Minnie', cross stitch (detail), 12.5cm x 18.5cm

This is something I enjoys as it involves working out how to centre the design, making lines of symmetry with tacking cotton, choosing a typeface, colours and types of threads, and appropriate decorative motifs.

Basking Sharks Love Cornwall

We read an article in the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust magazine about Basking Sharks. The article included a map of sightings of Basking Sharks around the coast of Cornwall over the past few years and information about dangers to the future of the sharks' habitat, especially the injuries caused by fishing nets and boats.


Front cover of I's 6 page information leaflet

Some of the language in the article was technical and complicated. So we set a task: to design an information leaflet using the same context - Basking Sharks and Cornwall - that would be suitable as an introduction to the subject. The leaflet was to include basic information such as a description of the size, weight and lifestyle of a Basking Shark. Research used texts from books and the internet. The colours/style of the design layout was to reflect the Cornish context. I worked hard on this project which relates to one of her preferred learning styles - presentation, particularly re-packaging information to target audiences. Although she used a pre-set design, she chose the colours carefully, including the Cornish blue.

The Cat Sat on the Mat

The cat sat on the mat.
The fluffy cat sat on the pink mat.
The fluffy lazy cat sat on the pink royal mat.
The fluffy lazy silly cat sat on the pink royal soft mat.
The fluffy lazy silly funny cat sat on a pink royal soft flowery mat.
The fluffy lazy silly funny cat called Daisy sat on a pink royal soft flowery mat.
Daisy the fluffy lazy silly funny cat who sat on a pink royal soft flower mat... was bored!

In the afternoon, Daisy had a fantastic idea. She thought about her friends. They could all do gymnastics. Daisy wished she could do gymnastics too so she tried doing a back flip, she did an astonishing one... but she wasn't very impressed at the end because she landed on her head!

To be continued.... A

Tiger

A year ago today our cat Tiger died. We still miss her and talk about her a lot. Even though our new dog Bethan is now part of the family, Tiger had that certain independence that all cat lovers admire.


Tiger at home in Devon, 2007

She came to us from The Blue Cross in Spring 2007. We lived in Devon then and she enjoyed some happy days in the garden at our old house, climbing the apple trees and the outhouse roof, and walking up and down the hill. When we relocated in August 2007 she enjoyed the luxury of fitted carpet for the first time (the Devon house had floorboards) and perhaps her greatest adventure here was the day she climbed onto the roof of my neighbour's bungalow. I only wish we had taken a photograph! Tiger was still a young cat when she died and her passing brought back memories of other cats from days gone by, who are household names. Rest in peace Tiger. May you know the blessing of cool grassland in the summer time. We miss you.

Where's Toto?

Today we went to Gainsborough for the first time. The weather wasn't great but we'd planned the visit so we decided to go ahead. We visited The Old Hall, St Michael's church and the library. As we're just getting started on our Medieval project, I thought a visit to The Old Hall would be inspiring, which it certainly was and we hope to go again soon.
Where's Toto? by Elizabeth Laird

The highlight of the trip for the girls, however, was finding a little paperback book in the library, a French/English Reader - Where's Toto? Perhaps this is typical home education... I'm sure I remember this book (or at least something very similar) from my own school days. Anyway, it's a fun little book and we'll enjoy reading it all the way through tomorrow!

Mexican Crosses

Mexican Crosses
at Alfington, Devon

The onset of traditional flower festivals in the rural churches reminds me of the wonderful time we had a few years ago helping to create a flower festival for the parish church at Alfington in Devon. The theme was Crosses and our inspiration was one of my all time favourite books Mexican Churches by Eliot Porter and Ellen Auerbach. Our display was outside in the churchyard close to the church door.

Share the World

Share the World http://sharetheworld.org.uk has produced an excellent resources pack called Everyone Matters that encourages respect and compassion for animals. This morning the girls watched the dvd as part of their research into animal charities. This is a really fun resource pack that makes learning so much easier! Another dvd resource pack Battersea Dogs & Cats Home Enterprise Challenge http://dogshome.org gives insight into how the charity operates - including its history, funding, and the day to day working practices. Also some wonderful photographs of the animals. We're looking forward to using both of these resource packs in the days ahead.

A lovely sunny day today so we decided to prepare a picnic lunch and took it along to the park at the end of our road. Swings, climbing frames, a tree to climb, and our dog charging around. Afterwards we returned home for a quiet reading session followed by some sewing. Inspired by the book covers she made a couple of days ago, A decided to begin another book cover, this time using a crazy patchwork technique. Then out to play with a whole bunch of friends and a visit to a neighbour's new pet rabbits.

Fillingham Marriage Buns

Fillingham Marriage Buns, 2009


This afternoon we visited churches taking part in the Churches Festival 2009 http://churchesfestival.com At St Andrew's Fillingham we discovered the tradition of Marriage Buns. These are 'simple sponge buns clad in white sugar icing, for the sweetness of love and simplicity; and decorated with silver dragees, for fidelity and sterling worth'. The legend of the buns suggests that sometime during the nineteenth century buns were made as a cheaper alternative to the traditional wedding cake, leaving more funds for the bride and groom to spend on setting up home, whilst still ensuring some special food for the wedding feast.

Handmade Stitched Books

I's Holiday Journal, back and front, 10cm x 15.5cm (approx)

Young Embroiderers (Lincoln Bailgate Branch) met today. I and A went along for the first time. The concertina style books were made using fabric, ribbon, beads, buttons, and stitch. The inner pages are hand-dyed paper, with stitched pockets in which to insert special treasures. Thanks to Christine, Robyn, and the other helpers, the girls enjoyed the day and came back inspired not only to complete their holiday journals, but to make more books using the same techniques.

A's Holiday Journal, back and front, 10cm x 15.5cm (approx)

Blue Cross Tea Party

After lunch we went to a Blue Cross Tea Party at the home of one of our new friends. This was a good opportunity for I and A to think about their animal charities project. Sitting amongst a group of people interested in the welfare of animals we added a few more animal charities to our A-Z list. It was also an ideal way of showing the girls how charity fundraising works in an informal setting involving a small group of friends. What were the ingredients? A kind welcome, a cup of tea, some cakes and biscuits, a raffle, a comfy chair and a chat with some like-minded people and the job was done... although I did explain to the girls that planning, preparation, good publicity and the washing up afterwards are also part of the task! We're going to collect the publicity materials to see how this kind of event works as as national project.

http://www.bluecrossteaparty.org.uk

Rainbows

We had a good morning at home today. The weather was quite strange but also very interesting: lots of short sharp showers interspersed with bursts of brilliant sunshine. So inbetween the learning tasks there were quite a few sightings of rainbows.

A managed to work on the following: ballet practice, adding up sums using columns, a letter to a new penpal and finding out some information on polar bears and other endangered species. We looked at an atlas and found the equator, the tropics, the north and south poles, and climate maps.

Wildlife in Danger (Earth Watch Series) by Sally Watts

I continued with her maths project, which is all about speeding up in areas she is confident in and finding new challenges, particularly in geometry and presenting data. She also read the first pages of her new book.

Anne Frank. The Diary of a Young Girl

Stixwould

Today I went for a day out to meet some friends at Stixwould, near Woodhall Spa. It was fantastic! The sun was shining and the views were really stunning. I saw swans flying across the sky - the wind was almost 'stilling' them as they flew. Good company and very inspiring.

Animal Charities

One of our interests at the moment is animal charities. We're making an A-Z list of charities, beginning with the well-known ones, and then finding more obscure ones as we go along. Some are international, some national, some local. Our list so far is as follows:

Animal Rescue Centre
Blue Cross / Bransby Home of Rest for Horses
Cats Protection League
Dogs Trust / Donkey Sanctuary
E
F
Guinea Pig Rescue
Hedgehog Care
I
Jerry Green Rescue Centre
K
Lincoln Cat Care / Lincoln English Springer Spaniel Rescue / Lincolnshire Greyhound Trust /
Lincolnshire English Springer Spaniel Rescue
Man's Best Friend / Mill Rescue
Northcote Heavy Horse Centre
Old English Sheepdog Rescue and Welfare
PDSA / PETA
Q
Rat's World / Redwings Horse Sanctuary / Retired Greyhound Trust / RSPB / RSPCA
Seal Sanctuary / Silver Florin Equine Centre / Stray Dog Sanctuary
T
U
V
Weirfield Wildlife Hospital / Wildlife Trust
X
Y
Z

We're investigating how animal charities promote themselves, how funds are raised, and the principles on which individual animal charities are set up and run. Our aim is to make a sequence of presentations to explain something of the essence of selected animal charities from the list. In the meantime we're having lots of fun with our research!

Teapot

A made this teapot as her first project in clay. She began with a careful pencil drawing showing the dimensions she hoped to achieve. The teapot has a beautifully fitting lid, golden handle and spout and a pink flower decoration. It was fired and painted with acrylic paint. A was able to make this teapot thanks to local potter Andrew MacDonald of The Pot Shop, Lincoln, who allows people to use his workshop once a week.

Teapot by A (2009), clay with acrylic paint, 10.5cm x 17cm (approx)

Maypole

The history of the Maypole is fascinating. A tall tree trunk was decorated with flowers, branches, garlands and flags, and often painted with brightly coloured stripes, and the people danced around it in a circle. Sometimes the Maypole stayed in place and was used for other celebrations of late Spring, such as those associated with Whitsuntide.

At Welton, near Lincoln, the tradition of the Maypole is still celebrated under the direction of Mrs Susan Gaisford, a local ballet teacher. Rain or shine, the May Queen is crowned and the Green Man appears amongst the crowds alongside other traditions old and new. The Maypole retains its place at the centre of the celebrations and the children continue to dance.

Chambers Book of Days has more information about May Day traditions.

Cats

Cat by A (2007), 6cm x 8cm, pencil and coloured crayon

Photography

Photography is a favourite activity. Here is one of A's pictures taken at Gibraltar Point. We went there to look for birds. A was curious about the wildflowers along the pathway.

Suddenly I See

In February 2009 my daughters I (11) and A (8) asked if they could come out of school and be home educated. It seemed like the most interesting question I'd been asked in a while. Once the decision to say "YES" had been made, we've woken each day to fresh ideas and insights into what education means to these two young people. We look forward to seeing life in new ways each and every day that we spend together.