Celebrating spring

A wreath on the door...

Some decorations outside...

Dog torture

obligatory egg decorating

And a family party.

We made a cricket

Which looks suspiciously like a grasshopper, but we didn't have any black pipe cleaners, and honestly, that wouldn't be as cute.

This didn't come entirely out of the blue. Calvin started reading The Cricket in Times Square today, a book I'd suggested to him because we'll be going to a stage adaptation later in the month. He read the first two chapters today and probably would have continued if I hadn't stopped him to ask him to tell me about it so far. I can tell it's going to be a hit, but in general any book with critters is a big hit with him.

I got the craft idea from this website, although we altered it to look a little more like a cricket.

Spring was meant to be rainy

I woke up this morning and stretched lazily under warm blankets, enjoying the bright morning light streaming in through the south facing window in our bedroom. Seconds later, the morning still bright, and a heavy rain was pouring down. As much as I enjoyed 80 degree sunny days, this is the spring I know and have missed. Tulips dripping in a cold but nourishing rain, tree buds breaking out, clouds floating overhead, only lightly masking the brightness of the sky.

Lots of reading today, and meandering through ancient Egypt. A little math, a little map play. Shelving books at the library. Walking the dogs, creating the Book of the Dead.

Calvin is fascinated by this piece of history. He has made a Book of the Dead before, the last time we explored Ancient Egypt, but he wanted to do it again now that he has "more drawing experience."

So how about another blast from the past? From March 2011:

The Titanic Artifacts Exhibit, Henry Ford Museum

We went to the Henry Ford Museum today to take in the Titanic Artifacts Exhibit. It's a traveling exhibit, I assume one of many, and Calvin has been looking forward to it for weeks. It was very well done, the artifacts nicely spaced out and visitors admitted in small groups every fifteen minutes so that we never felt crowded or rushed. The had artifacts recovered from the wreck as well as photographs, quotes, videos, and even life size models of parts of the ship. Photography was not allowed in the exhibit, so we just snapped a few shots outside.

And of course while we were there we stopped by the Driving America exhibit, the Allegheny Locomotive, and had lunch in Michigan's Cafe.

As a side note, some recommendations from Calvin for books about the Titanic: Tonight on the Titanic, Mary Pope Osborne, and the Magic Tree House non-fiction companion, and Finding the Titanic, by Robert D. Ballard.

Then we came home and enjoyed a warming sunshine (although not quite warm), and played with newspaper and glue. There may be a couple of mummies in our future, assuming our experiment works.

The journal, a recap

A year and a half ago I bought a stack of composition books on sale for a whopping twenty cents each. Shortly after that I encouraged Calvin to start keeping a journal in one of them. I figured that was the best possible way to encourage ownership and pride in writing while providing lots of fun, individual practice. I tried to get him to write at least once a week, and most weeks he wrote three or more times without prodding, but some weeks he required more encouragement than others.

The journal did turn out to be an invaluable tool in his quest to learn reading and writing, and I credit it almost entirely with his quick grasp of these skills, the only other tool we used being his constant immersion in a reading household, and the multitude of books we read to him each and every day, plus loving support and encouragement. Now, 18 months later, he has filled the journal, and it is additionally a rather loved keepsake. Good thing I bought a whole stack.

Calvin used his journal in lots of different ways—accounting for the happenings of life, writing stories, reviewing things he'd been learning, and summarizing books he'd read. In the beginning I encouraged him to write at least three words, and to draw the rest of his entry. Over time words took the place of the pictures, and by the end I was encouraging him to add illustrations, which I think are just as precious and important.

Here are some of my very favorites.

Calvin's very first journal entry, a short account of a day in which he and I read a book while eating lunch, and either practiced piano or had a lesson, dated 9-9-10 (date written by me)

Calvin's last entry in this journal, a book review of The Enormous Egg, by Oliver Butterworth (a three pager, including the accompanying picture), dated 3/29/12

A trip to the store, 9/21/10

Calvin's first book review, a review of Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White, 9/31/10

Calvin and I read the Wizard of Oz series together over the course of about six months. Calvin reviewed each and every book in the series, and his writing grew and changed immensely over that time. Here are just three:
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, 10/21/10

The Lost Princess of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, 3/29/11

Glinda of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, 5/18/11

And Calvin's own story, A Story About Steggy, 7/11/11

A Penguin Acrostic Poem, 9/21/11

All about Halloween, 11/1/11