Mount Vernon Homeschoolers

October / 2000

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"Bagels and Books", 10:00 a.m., Sherwood Library

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Play Group, 1:00 Grist Mill Park

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Co-Op 1:00-4:00 Carriage House, Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

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4-H, 10:00 a.m. Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

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Co-Op 1:00-4:00 Carriage House, Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

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Play Group, 1:00 Grist Mill Park

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Co-Op 1:00-4:00 Carriage House, Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

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4-H, 10:00 a.m. Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

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Co-Op 1:00-4:00 Carriage House, Mount Vernon Unitarian Church

Newsletter #10

Mount Vernon Homeschoolers

October Newsletter.

Mount Vernon homeschoolers live in the suburbs surrounding the Mt. Vernon estate in Alexandria, Virginia. We are parents who choose to work with our children and we are an eclectic mixture. We welcome newcomers and anyone who home schools to join us at activities each month. I've heard that the month of Halloween is a high, holy month for us. But, we treat every month with energy, fun and great times. With fall approaching, we have some traditional activities to indulge ourselves. We welcome all to come as you are and bring your children to the different activities. We expect to glean and share the bounty with those who need it.

Grist Mill Park

First and third Wednesday of every month 1-3 P.M. Like energizer rabbits, we keep playing and socializing at this Play Group. Ages from zero to 13. The sun is usually out, the group swings, plays, chats at the tables or walks around in the mud flats and marches with grass blades swinging in the sunshine. The children structure the play and we have some innovative group dynamics with good respect for younger feelings. Everyone who comes admires the way the older teens talk to and include the children. We just let it be. Might bring a drink or a snack,the energy expended is enormous. There are some bathroom facilities. We meet through the winter. Here is a map.

4-H

4-H This month is recruitment month. We ask all members from last year and their friends to join us. We meet at 10:00 A.M. at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month.

Cloverbud Leader Suzanne

Active 4-H'ers Leader Lisa

We have spent two weeks in September designing costumes for Halloween. We can enter a parade in Vienna and march as a group, or go with our costumes on our regular celebrations. Some of the older group is deciding to stay home and deliver candy to the crowds. It has been so much fun to glue, sew, and help make masks and horse heads. We already have so many great things going. We will finish the costumes and have a Dr. Demento monster mash if I can find my cd's. Some people really think 4-H is not for city kids. We think it has a tradition of farm, and family but we city folk like some of the ideas of the club and what it represents for wholesome activity. Both of the groups have been working together with parental help to make the costumes so far.

Bagels and Books

Bagels and Books We will announce the new books tomorrow. On Monday, October 2, this group meets at Sherwood Library. It's for the older kids. A librarian gives generously of her time to lead discussions about books read by the group The rest to the family stacks up some serious reading matter and takes it home. Some of the younger children have asked for a Mother to Read in Circle so they can discuss books, too. Join us in the children's section and we will let it happen.
Carol sends this note:

Bagels & Books, a reading club for children ages 10-14, meets at 10:00 AM the first Monday of each month at Sherwood Hall Library. Please email Carol, cooper@patriot.net, or call the children's librarian at the library, for more information or directions.

The books for November are Catherine, Called Birdy and The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, No 2).

Parents Support Group(not meeting in October)

We usually have a Support Group that meets at Sherwood Library at the same time as Bagels and Books 10:30 AM. on the first Monday. That is canceled this month. It's an informal circle with discussion about homeschooling that helps mentor and keep us on a road of discovery and the session though informative and fun centers the parents. We'll look forward to the facilatator, Cecilia making it available in November.

Co-op news

Carol has organized and started a Co-Operative Learning Center e.mail for information.
We will mention that there will be a newsletter for the Co-Op. But, several people are asking for writing club and we want to let you all know. It's back! Writing Club is presented at the Co-Op You can check the calendar for date and time through Carol. Separate by age and keep writing those great stories and journals. Carol works with the older group who really enjoy her classes. Suzanne and Annette are working with the younger crowd and looking forward to seeing Lisa L. and the V's there. Lisa has helped in the past and we sure like the direction Writing Club went with the three year olds.
Carol writes:

We're seeking families to participate in a cooperative learning center in the Mt. Vernon area for several hours on Thursday afternoons. A variety of activities or classes will be offered and children will be able to choose the one(s) they wish to attend. The more families that participate, the bigger the selection. Each parent will facilitate or mentor a group of learners. Below are some activities or classes that have been offered this month:

Math Olympiads Club, ages 9 and up (approximately grades 4-7)
Math Club, ages 7-9
Art Room, all ages
Game Room, all ages
Writing Club, ages 10 and up
Writing Club, Ages 9 and below
Nursery and Toddler Play Group
Nature Walks and Learning Games, ages 5 and under
Read Aloud, Chapter Books, this month Gary Paulsen's 'The Hatchet'
Read Aloud, Picture Books
Please email Carol, cooper@patriot.net, for more information or directions.

Orph music at the Co-op
Singing, movement, poetry, and playing instruments in warm and affirming environment are all part of an integrated approach to learning music based on the philosophy of composer Carl Orff. This whole approach to learning music, along with a class focused on singing( the nucleus of a home school chorus) is being offered on Thursday 12:40 -2:10 (6-8 year olds) and 2:15-3:45 (ages 9-up) Tuition of $12 covers both classes. Multi-child discount. Call Lynnell Lewis 703-660-0018 or email: lynell@offchants.com.

Note from the Editor

There is still time to bring your children to this class. Thanks to Lynnell we have one of our dreams met. We wanted to offer tutored programs to our children as a group. The success of this group will lead us to more ventures. So come over and visit the Co-Operative Center and for the price of teaching a class and a small monthly price for rental, we have selections for groups of children based on age and interest. They even let the editor do art lessons. Some of you who missed Art Camp hold on to your hats. We'll be painting landscape soon and doing puppet plays from the ground up. Still have a musical about cat's on a fence singing about a pillow cat in a window. Some hint of West Side story revivals and Cat's on Broadway. The teens in the group are already calling for a rewrite.Thought we could learn to scat the blues and make more up as we go along. You may have heard that art has a "can-do" approach, and we keep a positive attitude. We also learn about the creative part of our spirit that pops out like a jack-in-a-box. Please bring a box to paint with designs to our next meeting. Shoe box or smaller. We'll take a look at a design for an Alaskan Eskimo box and paint on of our own.

The first of my e-mail Art Lessons is provided here for any teen who wants to join our friend Neil in Art Mission 1. Here are Neil's solutions to the mission.

You have a job as an intern at a Graphics Designer shop called Silver Work, located in Tulsa. You do your work as a contractor out of your home office. You are called in by your supervisor Alice. You are in the office and hear Alice talking with Mr. X. He owns a recording company that has some of the hottest new bands in the nation.
Mr. X was talking to Alice about a graphic illustration for a new Cd as they walked down the hall. Mr. X was quite loud, "I want symmetry, Alice. Like a kaleidoscope design. Present me with four different designs by next Friday. Make them 8" X 10".They can be black and white or color. The name of the band is Beat Drums and Be Degenerate. They are a rage in Austria. Make it a power presentation."
When Alice gets free she will offer this job to you.
If you want it, you will need to look up symmetry. Base your drawing on a square based design or a circle design. Get on the Internet and look up geometric art, symmetry, tessellations and what a graphic artist does.
Scan or mail your designs to Suzanne. Next weeks art project is all ready so do this first and we'll see your work soon. Good luck with Art Mission I.

Gymnastics
Cecilia sends this note about gymnastics: HOMESCHOOLER GYMNASTIC CLASSES by Soraya start Monday, October 2nd:
Junior Gymnastics (Level 1 & 2) (beginner's up to cartwheels) ages 3 to 8 Monday, 10:00 - 11:00
and
Gym (Level 2 & 3) ages 5 and up Monday, 11:00 - 12:00
Terry's School of Dance and Gymnastics is offering two hour long gymnastic classes to homeschoolers for $7/class. (Terry's normally charges $10/class.) Fully equipped gym with Olympic size equipment, spring floor, trampoline and overhead spotting belt - and lots of preschool equipment!
Contact the studio directly or show up to try out a class for free:

Terry's School of Dance and Gymnastics Woodlawn Shopping Center 8730 Richmond Highway Alexandria, VA 22309 (in the Woodlawn/Mt. Vernon area) (703) 780-7878

Dance classes to start in November!

Extra Activities

Pumpkin carving at Suzanne's house Bring your pumpkin and we will carve, slice and dice a special face to put a candle in and light the way.
Celtic Fire October 27 At Mount Vernon Unitarian church.
Huntley Meadow sketch book trip to record life in the marsh email for a date to meet and we will hike with others.
Meet at Torpedo Factory. (this could be a possible field trip. Let me know if you are interested) Saturday morning to meet artists and look at work in progress.
Dance lessons available through Terrys Dance Studio with special homeschool classes available.
Here are some spooky Halloween stories to scare the kids.

Calendar
There is a calendar at the end of the newsletter.
We will add or delete information if something comes up during the month.