Homework During Christmas Vacation?

By Meg Hodson

My kids' Christmas vacation is winding down. They are officially back to school next Monday.  They've been on break for 2 1/2 weeks.  We've had a great "staycation".  I really enjoy having them around so much, although it can get a little crazy at times!

One thing I like to do during extended breaks is extra learning and teaching at home.  I make sure they keep up on their reading.  We do workbooks.  We practice fun things like state capitals.  I try to focus on subjects that are at their grade level (or a little above).  I try to make it fun.  Sometimes an art project is involved in the work.  

I was a little surprised when both my 4th grader and 2nd grader were sent home with a significant amount of homework for the break.  Although it's not due until a few days after they are back at school, it was still an amount that would require them to work during the break.  

I welcome extra work for my kids.  I like homework.  But this just seemed like a slightly painful reminder of the state of our classrooms today.  My children attend public school in Oregon and we seem to get hit with more and more budget cuts as each school year passes.  I am not sure if this is what specifically contributes to extra homework over the holidays.  But I do know classrooms sizes are large and teachers' resources are getting stretched thinner and thinner.  

Did they feel the students would fall too far behind without homework over the long break?  Maybe.  We are very involved parents with our children, but for other students, this might be a good thing for them.  

But I also understand the need for "kids to be kids".  They need that break to play more, do new activities they don't get a chance to do with school commitments, and, quite honestly, to give their brains a rest!  It's important to remember that learning is occurring, even if they aren't writing or crunching numbers.  

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Hey Mr. President: Can Thanksgiving Be The 3rd Thursday In November Again?

Merry Christmas Eve, readers!  Every year, it does seem like there are always the quintessential comments from friends and family: "Wow, it's already Christmas?"....."Didn't it seem like it was just Thanksgiving?"  I think most of these comments are from people who feel unprepared for the holiday:  they haven't finished up shopping and wrapping, or don't know what they're fixing for dinner. No matter how you do (or don't celebrate) Christmas, my point here is that is simply was a shortened season and came way too fast!

I didn't get the memo that the "rule" of Thanksgiving always being the 3rd Thursday of the month had changed back to the last Thursday of November.  Abraham Lincoln officially made Thanksgiving a holiday and it was always the last Thursday of the month....until Franklin D. Roosevelt became president. Here's a synopsis from Wikipedia:

But in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt broke with this tradition. November had five Thursdays that year (instead of the more-common four), and Roosevelt declared the fourth Thursday as Thanksgiving rather than the fifth one. Although many popular histories state otherwise, he made clear that his plan was to establish the holiday on the next-to-last Thursday in the month instead of the last one. With the country still in the midst of The Great Depression, Roosevelt thought an earlier Thanksgiving would give merchants a longer period to sell goods before Christmas. Increasing profits and spending during this period, Roosevelt hoped, would help bring the country out of the Depression.

While some today would call this greedy or pulling from the true spirit of Christmas, it made sense at the time.  For me, though, it's not about extra time to shop and wrap presents.  It is more about the enjoyment of the season.  I love driving around and looking at Christmas light with my kids.  I even love just walks through our neighborhood, peering through windows at trees and seeing the decorations.  We help out those in need, such as gifts for those less fortunate.  We bake cookies.  We watch our favorite Christmas movies.

Now, I know a lot of these activities can happen after the actual date of December 25th.  But it's a significant celebration for a lot of people; is it so wrong to want an extra week to savor it?

Have a great Christmas!

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Why Thanksgiving Is Like Parenting

By Meg Hodson

1.  You get out of it what you put into it.  The more time and attention we give to our kids, the better they will be, right?  The same holds true for Thanksgiving dinner.  If you go up and beyond, it will show in the food.

2.  Whining.  Well, that's a given with kids.  But when it comes to Thanksgiving, some is always whining either about the turkey or the pies.  "It's too dry..." "There's only dark meat left...." "Who even eats pecan pie?"

3.  Staying up way past your bedtime.  Well, we all know we've had those nights of a late movie with kids or nights where they are restless and can't sleep.  And if you're in charge of preparing Thanksgiving dinner, you are definitely going to be working into the wee hours Wednesday night.  

4.  Fussy eaters.  Wait a second, not everyone loves green bean casserole?  You can't have nuts in your dressing?  Thanksgiving guests can be picky just like your children when it comes to food.  

5.  I think I ate too much.  Ahh, don't you love pizza night when you warn your children to not have another piece because you know they will overstuff themselves?  Well, how is Thanksgiving any different? Well, I suppose we know the overfill is GOING to happen.

6.  I don't want to sit by them.  If you have kids, you've undoubtedly done the "chair shuffle" at movies, restaurants, in the car, on amusement park rides.  Unless you have assigned seating at your Thanksgiving table, it's going to happen here, too.

7.  You like that?  You probably know all the food preferences of both your guests and your children. You know who's a vegetarian, who would rather have their potatoes baked than mashed, what everyone likes to drink.  Yet on Thanksgiving, that all goes out the window.  Your once particular child who would never touch cranberries now loves them.  And your vegetarian friend is suddenly okay with bird stuffing.

8.  Extra Alcohol Might Be Needed.  We've all had those trying days as parents where nothing sounds better than a glass of wine at the end of the day.  If your Thanksgiving is filled with family and friends, the same might be true!

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Celebrating MLK With Your Children

I actually like three day weekends and holidays that give me a chance to educate the kids.  It's nice to actually be able to reflect, celebrate, and honor the holiday that the kids are taking time away from school for.  

With the upcoming birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I saw this as a good opportunity to bring you some good, fun projects and activities to do with your children to keep them busy on Monday, January 21.  And they won't cost you a thing!

1.  Online Activities, Coloring Pages, Etc.   If you Google this topic, you will find a lot of options for coloring pages.  One of my favorite images can be found here. I love the image of the flag behind him.  Here's a great crossword puzzle for those age 5-8 from Crayola.  It would be helpful to have a book reference for this (see note below).  For a great comprehensive, one page biography for the younger set, look here. Last, here's a good bio with questions to answer. 

2.  Books.  Patronize your local library and check out fun books on MLK.  One that I love for young readers is entitled "Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.?". It's part of a series of "Who Was...?" books that are a must read for your young children.  It's a thorough book, but has nice drawings in an easy-to-understand format for young readers.

3.  Quotes.  I get teary-eyed when I read through the many inspirational quotes by MLK.  They speak miles and are so relevant to our current day!  Again, if you Google "MLK quotes", you will get a lot of returns.  Here are a few of my favorites:

--"The arc of change is long, but it bends toward justice."

--“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” 

--“I have decided to stick to love...Hate is too great a burden to bear.” 

--“I have a dream that one day little black boys and girls will be holding hands with little white boys and girls.” 

This is a good opportunity to discuss the history with your kids, even your young kids.  You might start with questions derived from these quotes.  For example, you might ask "Do you think it's right that little black boys could not hold hands with little white girls?" or "Why is love so important?" You'll be surprised at what might pop out of the young, impressionable heads of babes!

Enjoy your day celebrating this wonderful leader!

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