Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kids. Show all posts

A Working Parent’s Guide to Homeschooling

A Working Parent’s Guide to Homeschooling 


Homeschooling used to be somewhat nice. However, with school closures during the pandemic, more parents have had to balance teaching at home with managing the home and work. 

This sudden change was a major shock for many families. Children had their routines turned upside down, and parents had to work to figure out solutions for things like working on lesson plans and planning homeschool kids’ meals. This is even harder if you have kids who are fussy eaters. 

If you are going to get a handle on homeschooling, you need to create a plan. This includes sitting down as a family to review everything that needs to be done and then making sure each point is covered. 

Develop a Schedule 

One problem for many who are new to homeschooling is that they never took the time to create a new schedule. Instead, they just decided to handle schooling in the time they have leftover from their normal routine. 

If you are going to have any chance of balancing work and homeschooling, you need to start with a new schedule. Make a list with everything that you and your kids need to do, and then start from the top with the available time to make sure it all gets covered. 

You should also realize that the needs of kids in different age groups will differ. If you have kids who are toddlers or as old as kindergarten, that means that they are being supervised by you or someone else during the day. You probably have a light amount of schoolwork to do, but you should still plan activities to keep them busy. 

If you have kids in elementary or middle school, they can have a bit more independence, but they probably have more work to do. You will have to consider the work they have to do and figure out a rough idea of how much time they need. You will then need to schedule the time that you expect them to be working on their schoolwork. 

Most high school aged children can be allowed to work on their own schedule, but you will still need to exercise some oversight and make sure they are planning their day well. As long as they are getting their work done, you should also allow them time to talk with friends and freedom to choose more of their activities. 

Plan for Homeschool Meals 

Meal planning is another part of homeschooling. Along with having a meal plan for dinner, you will need to work on some lunch ideas for kids. If you work from home, you will be able to help, but you will still want something quick, easy and nutritious. 

For parents that need to leave home for work, you will need to plan and prepare food ahead of time. One simple solution is to pack a lunch and leave it in the refrigerator ready for your kids to eat at lunchtime. If your kids are a little older, you could trust them with a little more of the preparation work if they know their way around the kitchen. For kids that have problems with picky eating, you might need to spend a little more time talking with them about what they will eat. 

Physical Activity 

Homeschooling should cover more than just the academic subjects – you want to raise healthy kids with physical activity. If you are home for part of the day, you can plan for a little outside time to play a game. Depending on your schedule, you could also plan for time out after dinner.

The internet can be a good resource for physical activity as well. If your kids are a little older, you could put a fitness video in their homeschooling schedule. Have them do yoga or aerobic exercise to keep them fit. You could even spend time watching videos with them to find the ones that will keep them interested. 

For most homeschoolers, academics and physical fitness will not be enough to fill the day. Once you have all of the “must-do” items in the schedule, try to fill the rest of the day with activities. Plan for them to read a book or work on arts and crafts. You could even allow a little screen time with their phone or tablet.


WW: Student of the Month

I am a super proud mom indeed :).


Congratulations, Abang Bo :)



happy for you, love :)

Congratulation to Bo for being the Student of the Month for December 2016!



super happy :))

With Vice-Principal Mrs. Praya

Keep up the great works and enjoy your days at school, love.



Join us on (almost) Wordless Wednesday and 
click the WW HQ to get more links

WW: Obi's Pokemon Story

A little story from Obi, my  6 year-old daughter :).

She has started to learn how to read and since she loves drawing as well, she recently loves to create her own stories, involving her favorite characters. Still working on her English and her writing but I love to see her creative ideas.

One day in the village of Pokemon ...










Check out the (almost) Wordless Wednesday Headquarters and enjoy the blog hopping party!

Preparing Siblings for New Baby

Recently, I just received a great news from home. 
One of my dearest friends who used to be assigned here in NYC just deliver her baby. How excited! I remember all the feelings and the excitement when I have Bo et Obi. Not only the fun part, but also the challenging one, like dealing with sibling rivalry issues.


Welcoming baby Obi..back in 2010

Welcoming a new baby into the family is fun and exciting, but for the toddler who has been the center of your universe since taking his first breath, it gets a bit confusing. All of the sudden, people are talking to your stomach instead of talking to him/her when they visit.  They keep asking if he is going to be a big brother, but he/she has no idea what a big brother is, so how can he be one? People keep bringing toys and blankets, but he is not allowed to touch them. Something is definitely odd around here! 

I remember Bo, my son, when Obi was born. It was like a mixed feelings of excitement as well as uncertainty, if not confusion, as he welcomed his little sister.

About a month before (or a month after) the arrival of the new baby, consider celebrating with a “New Sibling Party”.  

Your little boy is the guest of honor. He is being celebrated as the big brother. (Our preference is a month after the birth so the toddler can introduce the family and friends to his new baby). The decorations can be recycled from your baby showers. Instead of finger sandwiches or cake, consider an easy to put together candy buffet. A candy buffet is easily made from containers or jars you have around the house, scoops, some colorful balloons, streamers, and some paper bags for the guests to take goodies home with them.  There is no mess or clean up.

Invitations
Be sure to specify what time the party begins and what time it ends. This will keep you from tiring out. Write on the invitations, “No gifts” because your guests will wonder.  It would be a bad thing if a guests showed up with a gift for the baby and nothing for the big brother, on his special day.

Theme
While the theme is baby related, make sure you point everything to your son, who is the guest of honor. Have a few games set up.  One is to set a jar filled with candy on the table with slips of paper and a basket next to it. Each guest writes his or her name on the paper and their guess of how much candy is in the jar. Winner get the candy when they leave. Set up some dolls and diapers and a timer. Have a baby changing contest. 

Candy
You will buy your candy in bulk. The best bulk candy supplier we have ever used is Sweet Services.  They are great for candy, containers, goody bags, and advice. You will need about eight ounces of candy per guest. Think kids.  Have Pacifier suckers, lollipops, M&M’s, Skittles, and foil wrapped candy (like coins). Sweet Services can tell you of any specials they have going or of any specialty candies that will go well with your theme.


sweet treats, anyone?
photo is taken from http://www.sweetservices.com/

Set up the candy table with a stool and a wide jar and scoop for the big brother to scoop. (a plastic shovel and bucket works great) Let big brother serve and talk to the guests as much as he wants.  Give him a disposable camera and tell him to mingle and take everyone’s picture. It will be great new experience for him as he started to take pictures and have fun with it. For sure, he will have some attentions he deserve

The main event
Have everyone gather and follow your son to the nursery to introduce the family to the new baby. If you want, you can put the baby in a stroller and have him (with your help) push the baby to them. Have him tell everyone her name and have him tell the baby who they are.  Your son will get a kick out of being the big brother and your family is off to a great start.

Note: It is natural for people to make ove the new baby. But mention to your close friends and family that you are concerned about your son. Ask them to be sure to speak to him before they start making over the infant. It is important that your son understands his place in the family unit is not threatened. Never let anyone tease him by saying things like “you will be traded in”.  Let your child feel special, because he is.  Let him develop a good relationship with his sibling, because one day he will need it. Your celebration means all of these things and more.


So hopefully this will help and your kids will have a great time welcoming their sibling.

Cheers,
Mama Bo et Obi


Throwback Tuesday: Bo et Obi

I decided to put more sweet, unforgettable memories and photos in my blog. I know I probably put a lot already but I guess I still have more to share here.

As you probably are aware of, I started blogging seriously in 2014. Or perhaps late 2013, if you consider moving my files from soon-to-be-close multiply account to blogspot as blogging :). But I have such incredible memories and experiences while we stayed in Geneva, Switzerland in 2007 - 2011, or even way back in 2005 - 2007 when we lived in Melbourne, Australia.

Tons of photos? Sure.
Unforgettable moments? Abundant.
Shared? Only a few :).

So I decided to start my own Throwback Tuesday series. And I would like to invite anybody to join me as well. Any pictures and/or stories that bring the good out of you, your family and friends, or simply anything that worth a share will be warmly welcomed. I won't bother with links, bloghop or anything. If you like to share it to the world, like I do, just simply post your entry and use the title, Throwback Tuesday.

So now, to start with, here's what I have.
Some mementos from Geneva, Switzerland, with the pictures of my angels, Bo et Obi.


My daughter Obi was born in Geneva, Switzerland in 2010. We took this pictures at Mas Habib and Mba Alma's house, using their beautiful antique set of chairs. Then Udi decided to use one of the apps to process the photos et voila, this is what we have.




While the following photos of Bo were taken in our first days in Geneva. Still staying at the hotel, Bo was a happy 11-month chubby boy when we arrived in the land of chocolate and cheese. Do you notice the resemblance of the two?



So, that's what I have at this point.
Do you have a lovely memory to share? Feel free to have your Throwback Tuesday as well



Pinky Flamingos at the Bronx Zoo

Flamingo...



Anybody here loves this pink and cute long neck wading bird?
I do..




Saya sukaaa banget dengan burung anggun berleher jenjang yang berwarna merah muda ini. Sepertinya kakinya yang panjang dan leher jenjangnya layak membuat flamingo menjadi bintangnya burung air yang selalu menarik perhatian semua orang. To me flamingo is like the bird princess. Paling tidak buat saya :)

Sudah pernah melihat flamingo dari dekat?

When we went down to Miami, we were planning to see the flamingos. They are pretty famous around the area and there is one specific place where you can go to see them. But we didn't have enough time and we had to choose whether we were going to see the flamingos or go snorkeling at the Key Largo. We chose the later one.

So, we missed the real flamingos there but I managed to grab some pinky flamingo souvenirs from Miami's South Beach :). Then, I also get some hot pot holders and brick-a-brack with pink flamingos adoring it. Super cute indeed.

But still, rasanya belum afdol kalau belum melihat burung yang super cute ini langsung. Saya masih penasaran bangeeet, walaupun tau kalau mau melihat flamingo pasti di kebun binatang dan dari jauh. Well, that should do :). Dan di awal musim gugur yang lalu, kami menyempatkan diri main ke Bronx Zoo. 

Bronx Zoo is certainly one famous spot people   love to check out while in NYC. Zoo is always for the kids as well as adults, so we won't miss it. As you know, NYC has several zoos, including one in Central Park and Queens. But Bronx Zoo is rather special because we have more animals here. So a lot to see and learn at the same time here.


cheeers ;0)

Karena Bapak Udi asyik mencoba downhill bike di New Jersey, kami bertiga berangkat ke Bronx Zoo dengan menggunakan subway yang disambung dengan Uber taxi supaya jalannya tidak terlalu jauh hehehe. Walaupun sudah menggunakan sepatu jalan yang oke, tapi kala itu cuaca lumayan panas. Daripada Bo et Obi sebelum sampai di kebun binatangnya, akhirnya kami duduk manis di taksi yang membawa kami langsung ke gerbang kebun binatang ini.Antri sebentar (dan mama dapat tiket gratis thanks to NYC ID ;)), kami pun langsung menikmati Bronx Zoo dan para penghuninya. Saya juga janjian dengan tante Mpok, teman kerja yang sudah seperti kakak sendiri dan juga tante favoritnya anak-anak.

And Bronx Zoo is huge indeed. It's like entering a big woods and some part of it, especially for the gorillas, looks like a jungle. They have many attractions as well and you need extra tickets to see some of those certain animals. But even the regular ticket allows you to see so many great animals. 

We saw the camels, bears (different kind of them :)), lions, tigers and many kinds of birds. We also saw many types of snakes, lizards and the likes in the special cages. And besides these animal exhibits, you can also enjoy the carousel, 4D-theater and many more with extra ticket.


beberapa hewan yang kami lihat :)

Banyak sekali hewan-hewan yang kami lihat di kandang mereka yang luas. Mulai dari beruang kutub yang senang bermalas-malasan di kandangnya yang adem dan dikeliling kolam air ataupun beruang madu yang besaaaar banget tapi lucuu dan cudly. Juga harimau, singa dan macan yang ternyata memang besar.

Bahkan kami sempat melihat dari dekat program enrichmant untuk salah satu harimau yang ada di sana. Jadi 2 orang pawang memanggil satu harimau muda (yang besarnya minta ampuuun :)) sampai ke batas terdekat pagar pengaman. Kemudian kami melihat latihan singkat ketangkasan harimau tersebut. Anak-anak happy banget melihatnya, sementara saya ngeri-ngeti sedap karena membayangkan kalau harimau itu iseng loncat keluar pagar >_<. But of course it was just my imagination :).


don't get to close..and psssst, be quite :)

But as I said earlier, one of the main reasons we visited this zoo is because Obi and I would like to see the flamingos. We are indeed smithen with its cute pinky feathers as well as its long neck and legs.

Dan kami pun berhasil melihat kumpulan burung warna pink ini meskipun dari jauh.


aren't they cute :)

Kolam tempat flamingo di kebun binatang ini terletak di dekat cafe dan toko souvenir. Dari kejauhan pun kami sudah mendengar suara khas kumpulan flamingo sehingga mudah mencarinya. 


staying around the pinky flocks :)

Such a cute scene..pinky birds flocking together :). Some of them were intertwining their necks. Too bad I only use my smartphone for photos so it wasn't that detailed and close.

Dan karena Bronx Zoo memang luaaas sekali, masih banyak exhibits yang belum sempat kami datangi, seperti jerapah, salah satu hewan kesayangan Obi, dan taman kupu-kupu. So, for sure we will come back for more :).

By the way, as I definitely fall in love with this cute birds, I have found a lovely flamingo skirt as well :). Setelah melihat flamingo di sana sini, entah karena sudah jodoh mungkin ya, saya pun menemukan rok lucu banget dengan motif 2 burung flamingo. Satu putih, satu pink. Asliiii lucuuu :). Lucky me.

aren't it cute...

And it pretty much perfectly matches my pink top :)

the flamingos and I :)

Speaking of flamingo, do you know that this bird only lay one egg each and every year? Only one. Nothing more. Jadi, kalau telur yang ditetaskan flamingo dalam 1 tahun itu rusak atau tidak menetas, maka harus tunggu 1 tahun ke depan untuk telur yang baru. Berbeda dengan burung biasa yang kayaknya bertelur jauh lebih banyak yaaaa setiap tahunnya. Mungkin kalau burung cantik memang agak susah lahirnya :).


Sooo...do you like flamingo too?
What do you like most to see while you visit a zoo?

Bronx Zoo
2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460
Opening hours vary, feel free to check the official website.