email

so, I was just pondering as I was trying to sign into Yahoo mail: (why is it taking so long? is 6am a peak time on yahoo? surely not, it's still the middle of the night in America, is it not?) It sometimes hits me, during my weaker moments, that I have a yahoo mail address, while some of my friends, with careers, have much more important sounding emails, such as rachelredman@ calderdale.gov.uk, or harrietpinchworthy@bbc.co.uk, or even cericrumble@mc.ac.uk, whilst I am a mere nobody@yahoo, or possibly mumsy@no.job.uk
Anyway, why the secret blogging, all of a sudden? long time no see. well I just dont have time for this usually, only doing the other, journal-type blog, which is more public.
anyway, must go as smallest has now woken up. I seem to be getting a strange sort of tinitus, so that I hear things like people snoring and the phone ringing, whereas it is in fact only in my head.

company

grandma says:
Hi
dragon girl says:
your not still up are you?
grandma says:
HI,MARGERY WENT TO THE BEDROOM.
dragon girl says:
ok
dragon girl says:
I'm just going to get some firewood
grandma says:
GOODNIGHT
dragon girl says:
night

So I'm just talking to my mum's aupair on msn- am I desperate for company or what? (I know its him as he's spelt her name wrong)

on doing stuff

I hear, I forget. I see, I remember. I do, I understand.--Chinese proverb

I'm feeling more positive about doing stuff with the children- it seems to be what they want and what works well with all of us and I feel that they can learn so much from doing things. I suppose a lot of it is making stuff, but it is the doing that's more mportant than the end result. The paper making has been going well, and seems to have inspired a lot of questions and other creative activity- being creative just feeds more creative energy. The tactile experience of this kind of activity is quite unique. I'm sure it promotes a deeper understanding of the world around us and to not take things for granted.

building a wall

This used to be my bedroom, but now its going to be 2 children's rooms, which are hopefully going to be 2 very different enchanted forests!

neaps

Spent much of yesterday morning pondering on the futililty of trying to run 'groups', when it seems that most people who say they are interested aren't that into it , or for whatever reason just can't make it when you organise something. I was on a bit of a downer after I put so much effort into organising our Divali session and only 3 other people turned up. I was thinking of packing it in, or else just doing once a month, but it seems that there are a few people who want it more often than that. I think now I might just give it a bit longer, and carry on regardless. Maybe it semed that I had put in a lot of work as I had also done a birthday party in the same week.
I'm still struggling with the whole thing of how much I should 'do' with the kids- I mean some people think its not right to organise stuff for them to do and some times I think maybe I shouldn't impose what I think on them to that extent. But I'm not forcing them to do anything- just giving them the opportunity to try things out. I suppose I try to compromise between the Waldorf idea of givng them certain stuff to do and the more child-led approach. But I think it's possible to be both. It's just difficult to explain how Waldorf works- it is supposed to be about what the child needs at the time, but comes from a deeper understanding.
Anyway, I seem to be in a bit of an agarohobic/paranoid phase at the moment, feeling very sensitive to the fact that my approach to my kids can be very different from other people's. I suppose this is bound to happen, though.
In the afternoon we walked the mile or so up the track to Tom and Elliot's and Sarah picked us some lovely swedes to make lanterns with. I was really inspired up there- it's like another world. Bet it's wild tonight, though- it's really windy and rainy here.
Money is looking a bit desperate at the moment. Brendan has gone to another interview in London- I keep having to lend him money to get there, so I am managing without going shopping this week. Mashed neaps for tea tomorrow, then.

Birthday girl, flower cake 

what is art? (discuss, in not less that 500 words)

Just been commenting on here, and was tempted to go on a bit so I thought I'd better do it on my own blog!
Basically the question is what is the pont of doing children's sticky leaf collages? which I feel compelled to answer in the best way possible, as I am guilty of this by default as the group I have been running did this activity in my absence, but with my tacit consent ; )
(by the way I'm not trying to be funny, only funny ha ha ; oD. People always seems to take me more seriously than I intended on the computer- I try to be light and fluffy, maybe I neeed a comedy font?)
ok, not wanting to go on or anything ;) but I suppose you could break down 'leaf collage' into learned skills. Here are a few examples:
Dexterity: mangaging glue and brush, not spilling glue, getting the right amount of glue that works (this can later be developed into collages/scrapbooks/gluing anything, mending stuff).
Creative/artistic: composition-where to put leaf? how many? what does the result look like? colours, textures etc.
Botany/science: recognising leaf shapes- which tree? why do they fall? what are viens for? why do they change colour? Seasons- why does it get colder? etc
(I'm not suggeting that any of this is self-consciously taught or learned, only out of doing the activity itself and the questions it may trigger).
I think it just helps create a focus- ie, We think about leaves a little bit more than we would have when we are picking them up, seeking them out, looking for trees with particular colours we may want. And this leads to more questions. Ok this is not completely autonomous, but I dont think anybody can operate in a vaccuum. OK we can spend our whole lives without knowing all that stuff about nature, about the world, but personally, I find it all facinating, and it's that wanting to know, curiosity that I suppose is important.

Plus it's something to do when you havent got a telly!

Ok. here's another way of putting it:
An Ofsted inspector is witnessing a 'science experiment' in a Steiner Kindergarten where frosty leaves are gathered and placed inside, where the frost melts.
Inspector: Where are the results of this experiment recorded?
Teacher: In their souls

Ok, I' not going to question everything else I do with the kids- why skate? why Gym? I think I just felt the need to explain something- that I don't do art with kids for the sake of evidence, which is quite a common assumption, I believe. At least I think I don't. I suppose I don't question it that much, it's just what I do, and I don't think it does any harm. I mean the question only leads to 'what is art?' and 'what is art for?' which I remember having to do an essay on when I was at Art College. I didn't know the answer then. I'm not sure if I do now. But, I just see art as a necessary part of life, however you choose to define it.

wheresme dampyjamas

Well, I didn't end up doing that much today, but I suppose that's what I needed. So after a leisurely morning (porridge at 12), while the kids mooched about in and out of the garden and I caught up on a few forums! (how many more do have have to join!) and tried to sort out the Council tax, grrrr (that's what I was doing all morning, I must have blotted it out of my mind), I finally went shopping with Jem and Maeve, who helped me with the heavy stuff. I quite enjoyed it, and was chuffed with my new pyjamas, very ample and covered in moomin-like cat drawings, plus the bargain £4.99 firework set. It was really nice to have Maeve round for tea- we had pizza and chardonnay. I walked her to the bus stop and didn't nag her once or even interrogate her about college, her flat, etc! (Well I had been round there and she was doing some college work and her flat seems quite together.)
I hope I have sorted the council tax out- I sent them 4 letters, one recorded delivery, so they don't lose it this time.
Fugs played on Cat in the Hat game. Jem was very helpful after the others had gone to bed. She was looking over my shoulder (on the computer) and easily sussed out how to do a couple of (forum) things that I was struggling with!

dampyjamas= Swedish for women's pyjamas

blog birthday!

I just realised I have been blogging for one year today!