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Great ideas advocate!
Wish I could send my kids to your house

Thought I'd let you know what we've been up to lately, now that summer is upon us.
We've been to zoo camp for a week. DD had a great time, because it was fun, but she was frustrated some of the time because all she ahd to do to answer the counselor's questions was to read the sign she was standing near. (She told the counselor that all the answers were there, but she was the only one who could read the signs!)
We've also recently found out she's been accepted to Univ. of Northern Colorado's Young Child Summer Enrichment Program. Has anyone ever done this with their kid before?
Otherwise we've been going to the pool, the park and horse riding lessons. We have also been learning about astronomy, bugs and doing math games.
We spend a morning with a ladybug, another with a turtle (both visitors to our yard), and another doing a math treasure hunt complete with a barbie doll as a "treasure". (I could have done without that particular treasure, but when it's been given to her by Grandma, what can you do?)
We haven't gotten to starting the alphabet photos yet, but I think we'll do that soon.
What have the rest of you been up to?

Ahhhhh summer is the best time for all of these things. We will fish and hike, grow things in the garden, collect and identify insects and amphibians, travel and let kids help plan and map, go swimming, visit relatives. This year we are doing summer journals and kids can draw or paint pictures, write fiction or poetry or a days narrative, or jot down notes from research on something that is interesting them at the moment. Both DS 8 and DD 6 love this and it makes for a great keepsake. We also add pages like Favorite Parks or Favorite Lakes or Ice Cream Parlors(and list what we like or don't at each. They are so fun to look at at the end of the summer and then again the following year.

It's been a great and amazing how fast it's flying by! I'm grateful for lots of ideas from this board which have enriched our summer.

We've spent quite a bit of time at the pool for swim team. DD7 completed her first kid's triathlon and got a medal to boot.

Summer reading has been going well. DD's were excited about free book rewards from the library and Barnes and Noble (read about that program here -- thanks!). They are also enjoying a program that combines reading and ponies. DD5 read her pony to sleep today (literally! flat out sprawled on the ground sleeping ) and the older girl who was helping her was excited about how well she could read.

We've enjoyed working our way through the Number Devil (read about it here -- thanks!) Today DD7 completed a problem multiplying a 3 digit number by a 2 digit with regrouping and no mistakes. She's been understanding the process for a while but kept making little mistakes, so it was exciting to see her pull it all together.

Quite a bit of travel too so I have been (and will be) hit or miss with posting. Creating travel "journals" with notes jotted on the back of postcards, using a hole punch and slipping them on a binder ring.

DD7 has been doing theater camp after lobbying for it all year. Tonight she said she wishes there was an archeology camp so I'll have to see if that's an option for next summer.

This has turned into more of a brag post than I'd intended but you're like extended family who LIKE to hear this and not rolling you eyes, right?

P.S. I've also been reading Raising Your Spirited Child which I'd heard about here. Thank you, thank you, thank you for the recommendation. I cried and laughed reading the first chapter "Who is the Spirited Child."
Check!

Now there's a great idea! Thanks, inky!

(and you can brag about your kids all you like! They sound wonderful--totally brag-worthy!)

peace
minnie

My 12 year old daughter and I just finished a volunteer week at Mesa Verde Nat'l Park. We learned so much and got to take tours that are usually not taken by visitors. It was an incredible experience for both of us. We were in discussions about the Ancestral Puebloans and heard all theories and got to listen to brainstorming by archaeologists and historians.

What a wonderful experience Ellipses! How did you find out about volunteer week? I didn't have any luck searching the website.

I was interested in that park and emailed the volunteer coordinators. We chose the week ourselves. Hope you have luck with this. It was a growth experience for both of us.

Thanks Ellipses, you've inspired me once again!

I've got to report on the great time DD6 had at camp this year. She went to Univ. of Northern Colorado YCSEP (young child summer enrichment program). She has a wonderful time! The only complaint she had was that she could only do 4 classes and not all of them! The only thing that didn't go so well was that the residential part of the camp, for the older kids, had an outbreak of strep and the flu and since the programs shared teachers the health dept shut the whole camp down after the first week.
We live 5 hours away, so we drove up and stayed in a new dorm (nicer than most hotels I've stayed at) - in a suite with 2 bedrooms, a living room and private bath. It was a great decision for us, because the yc program is only in the mornings, so we spent the afternoons being tourists!
DD took Dawn of the dinosaurs, rainforest creations, once upon a time and digital photography. There were also classes in science, drama, language, cooking, water, math, and others I've forgotten.
The programs are divided up for 4 & 5 yr olds (they have the same teachers all morning and have a single course), then 1st-4th grades (with these kids picking from the same choices for classes, but being divided by gr 1&2 together and 3&4 together). Then there is the residential program for the gr 5-10s.
If you're looking for a program for next summer, I would highly recommend this one. We may even be going back, even though we'll not live in Colorado anymore it was so good!