Snow Day Links

Stuck at home on a snowy day?
Here are some things to enjoy:

Vivaldi's Four Seasons - Winter


Ezra Jack Keats - Snowy Day - in English & ASL

Reading Rainbow Snowy Day Stories and Poems


Treeschoolers - Weather

Snow Day!

Zilla is 8 years old

Mega is 5 years old 

Lesson:  You snooze, you loose!

Since we live in an area that boarders on tropical in summer our winters are pretty mild If we are lucky we'll get 1-2  good snowfalls in winter. The snows may not stay for a full day so if we wake up to the silence and erie glow of a snowy morning we know we need to move quickly so we can enjoy it while it lasts!

Lesson:  Snow Days are a Blessing

Yes, I'm aware that not everyone sees snow days as a blessing. Yes, they mess with the work and school schedules. They make going anywhere a challenge. 

At the same time, snow days force us to slow down. To take a break for the normal daily craziness. To spend time doing things we don't always get to do.  

As annoying as it can be to have upheaval it is also good for us. It helps us not to take things for granted. 

Snow days are fleeting (here at least) and the kids will be grown and gone before we know it so a snow days is a great family bonding and memory making day!

Before getting into the snow day ideas I have some Dos and Don'ts I'd love to share with the neighbors! 

 - Don't ride your bike while holding an umbrella in one hand on a snowy/slushy/icy road.

     - Do wear proper shoes on a snowy day.

 - Don't try to shovel with a broom and dust pan, especially when it isn't powder snow.

     - Do get a small shovel so you can make a safe walking space in front of your house.

 - Don't leave home without checking to see if you can get to where you want to go.

     - Do make the most of the extra time at home if you can't get out.

So, here is how we spend a snow day.

Wake up - Listen to the silence. Stay in bed and just be. Have the kids listen and identify what sounds different.

Check e-mail - Our schools e-mail delay and cancellation notices

"Home Snow School" starts at from 7 am, earlier if there has been a lot of snow. I hope my neighbors appreciate the restraint I show by keeping the kids in till 7AM! ;-)

Home Snow School Lesson 1 :Preparation is Key

I must admit that I sometimes rush this step and usually end up regretting that. With the impending change from snow to rain we're rather anxious to get outside as quickly as possible.   

One thing we do is prepare something warm to eat & drink when we come in. Blueberry muffins are easy to throw together & pop in the oven.  I also prepare a thermos of hot cocoa for the kids at a drinkable temperature.

Another thing to do is have a warm bath waiting.  The wet/rainy/slushy/sloppy snow will chill a body faster than lovely fluffy snow. Kids are especially susceptible to hypothermia and frostbite as they can tolerate a lot when they are too busy having fun to notice!

One other essential preparation is to have the genkan (entry area) ready for wetness.  We put away all the extra shoes, have hangers ready for wet snow gear and towels for wiping off so we don't drip all the way to the bathroom.

If I remember we'll also have extra gloves sitting in the genkan so it is easy to put on a dry pair when the current pair gets soaked (<-- completely="" font="" forgot="" that="" today="">

Home Snow School Lesson 2 : Shoveling Basics - Safety Before Fun

      Since we live on a key intersection where many people turn to go to the station the first thing we do is make a path on the road for the commuters to use.  The snow here tends to be very wet and heavy. It is not unusual to have a layer of ice below or above the snow. Combine that with people who aren't used to snow and it is a recipe for disaster.  While shoveling this morning we noticed that most people didn't have on proper snow boots. That was a teachable moment about how to dress in snowy/slushy weather. The kids also discovered how quickly a wet pair of gloves can become too cold to wear and that it is rather slippery to walk where the road has not been cleared.

       The 2nd shoveling task is to clear the drainage areas. When the snow starts to melt it will make little floods and possibly freeze, covering the road with slick ice, if the water can't get into the drains. Often we have a day like today where the snow quickly turns to rain and makes a slushy mess since the water can't drain.

Home Snow School Lesson 3 : You know you come from a snowy area when you are the only family on the street with snow shovels or snow toys.

The past couple of years our shoveling or the road has been rewarded with snacks from the neighbors. While I appreciate their token of appreciation I really want to kids to get the idea that we shovel because we can, not because we get snacks.  We have shovels, able bodies and time therefore it is something we can do to be of service to our neighbors. 

Of course there is the added benefit in that we love to shovel and that shoveling makes bigger snow piles to play in.

We all love playing in the snow. The quest for the perfect snow angel is like the quest for a prefect wave when surfing. The competition to build the greatest snow man is one that can lead to hours of hard work. Snowball target practice can't be beat, unless you are the target!

After a warm lunch and a some time to dry off we'll curl up for a nice movie & some popcorn in the afternoon as it is usually rainy by then. If it isn't raining we'll head out again to enjoy the last bit of snow on our snow day. In the evening we'll have a round out touch-up shoveling if needed and an early bedtime as the kids are exhausted! (parents too...)

Salad Success!

Zilla is 8 years old

Mega is 5 years old 

Lesson:  Watch shows with healthy recipes for inspiration!

During Winter Break we've had some time for channel surfing and relaxing. The kids have seen recipes they would like to try on a few cooking shows. However, we often are missing key ingredients.  Zilla latched onto the idea of a spinach strawberry chicken wrap but as our local stores don't sell tortilla shells (and I don't have time today to make them) we had to find an alternative way to serve it.
If I had suggested to the kids that they should eat a spinach salad they would have said "no". However, since it is their idea, they were willing to give it a try!

So, we have a new Zilla approved recipe!

Before I forget how I made it I'm going to write it down.
If you make this with your own twist please share that in the comments.  We'd love to try some other variations!

Ingredients:
Fresh Spinach - 1 bunch (250-500g maybe?)
Skinless Chicken breast - 6oz. (200g)
Strawberries - 1/2-1cup
Homemade Granola - 1/4 cup
Honey Mustard Vinaigrette dressing

Directions:
1. Wash, dry and cut/rip the spinach into bite size pieces.
2. Cut the chicken breast into 3 oz sections (about the size & thickness of a deck of cards). Fry it in a frying pan, seasoned lightly with salt & pepper.
3. Wash and slice the strawberries
4. Toss the spinach and strawberries with 1-2 tbsp of dressing.
5. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces.
6. Add chicken and granola to the top of the salad. Sprinkle with a little more dressing.
7. Eat & Enjoy!

A few things to consider...
 - The granola I made this time had a cup of chopped almonds and a 1/2 cup of flax seed so it had a nice nutty flavor.
 - Other vinaigrette dressings would probably work well.
 -  This could work well as a mason jar salad or make-ahead salad where you add the dressing, and maybe the berries, just before eating.
 - Next time we have tortillas we'll surely try this as a wrap!

Keeping Up English At Home - 1st Grade

One of the ongoing discussion in nearly every international parents group that I'm a part of includes the question of 

"How do I keep up my child's English?"

There are many families like our which are raising bilingual/multilingual children in a place where English is a minority language. This means it is not the community or school language. During the baby/toddler/preschool years language is mostly something you hear and repeat, which makes it easy to reach "native level" or "fluent level". However, as the child gets older, the challenge increases exponentially.  In this series of posts I'll share what had worked for us with the hope of inspiring others to give it a go.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First grade is a time of many changes and challenges. New school, new schedule, new responsibilities...  One of the things that helped provide stability for Zilla during the transition was our English homework time. Since he was used to having this time it was something comfortable and expected.

As the year went on we did have less and less time for English study so I had to adjust the plan to fit with the amount of time and energy that Zilla had.

We started the year with a goal of doing 3 things each day - a writing activity, a reading activity and a math activity.

The reading activity focused mainly on phonics.  We found the Bob Book series to be perfect as it is graded readers. Each book is small so I could slip a couple in my purse to read together on the train to/from school.

The motivation for the math activity was twofold. The first was to continue the math Zilla had been doing previously (montessori based with some Kumon mixed in). The second was to give him the English vocabulary needed for math along with the English/American style of math.  In the end we only did math about half the year, until he finished the Star Wars 2nd Grade Math book was completed because he needed more time for the school math and he had a good grasp on the vocabulary.

The area Zilla dislikes the most and incidentally struggles with the most is writing.  Perhaps this is because it requires so much practice? Or because he was studying 3 other writing systems at school? When a child is really not interested it becomes part of the teacher's job to create interest. The thing that caught his attention and held it to the point that he was able to get over the wall that he had been up against was the Star Wars Writing Skills book. After that we could move on to other writing exercises.

There are many great books and activities to choose from. Each child's area of interest will differ as will the area which needs a little more attention. It is ok to slow down, speed up or change courses as needed. We have gone through times where it was fun to work on English together, and times where it was very frustrating. It is all part of the process.

So, if you're headed down the same path and want some more ideas click on over to the Amazon.jp store for links to other books and activities we've enjoyed and found useful!

Setting up a Child's Room in Earthquake Country

Q. How do you set up a child's room in a small house in an earthquake prone area?

A. Very carefully! 

Luckily for us many of the items used to make a room safe for little kids are the same items that we need for earthquake preparedness.

This topic comes up from time-to-time. It is something I also wondered about and tried my best to do at our house so I'll share what I've learned.

On 3/11 (large earthquake in Japan) my baby and toddler were napping in my bed, upstairs, when the quake hit. Even though we were far from the epicenter the quake was strong enough to give our area a good shake. I was downstairs when the quake started and upstairs with the kids when it intensified. I don't remember going up the stairs but I must have flown!

Here are some things you can do to prepare a child's room (and any room for that matter) with earthquakes in mind.

1. Have as little furniture in the room as possible.
Many quake related injuries in Japan are from falling items. The homes and apartments here are built pretty well but that won't stop them from shaking.  If you can, don't have dressers, bookshelves and other heavy pieces of furniture in a room used for sleeping.
When placing things on shelves keep in mind the kind of damage they could to if they fall off. We try to have heavy items on bottom shelves and lighter ones on top shelves.

2. Brace the furniture that is in the room
There are poles (braces) that can be used to help stop dressers and bookshelves from tipping over. There are also plastic strips and non-skid pads that can go under pieces of furniture.

3. Consider sleeping on futon.
Since futon is on the floor there is no danger of falling out of bed.

4. Be aware of glass.
Lamps, windows and other items can crack or shatter in a quake.
We chose a lamp made of strong plastic that was pretty durable. It holds up well when the kids accidentally knock it down so I feel confident it won't break if knocked over by a quake.
The ceiling light fixture should also be looked at. While most are fastened with a back-up hook to prevent falling in the case of a quake, I try not to have a glass fixture in the sleeping rooms.  If the place you are living is not your own you may not have any control in this area but I'll address that in the next point.
Check the windows. Sometimes there are already shatter proof window panes in sleeping rooms.  In older places like ours that is not the case. There are plastic sheets which can be used to line windows so if they crack the glass does not shatter all over the room.

5. Arrange the room wisely.
Sometimes there are things you can't change like light fixtures or needing a dresser in the room. When that is the case think about how things might move in a quake.
For example, if a dresser or bookshelf fell over would it hit a space that someone is sleeping in? If a light fixture seems potentially unsafe, don't have someone sleep directly below it.

6. Keep shoes/slippers handy.
If there is a strong quake and things fall it can be dangerous to walk around even inside the home. Having thick soled shoes or slippers near by for both kids and adults can save you from accidentally stepping on something while checking to see if everyone is ok.  Our house slippers are crocs-like clogs.

Here are some simulations of what can happen inside during an earthquake.
Earthquake Test: Bedroom Simulation
Shaking Effects Simulation
Bedroom with anchored furniture

One of the things that we have from the 3/11 quake is a lot of footage of the quake happening. It gives us a chance to look inside real homes to see how things may moved with a strong quake. There is much to be learned here but these can also be difficult to watch, especially for those who have experienced a strong quake.

During a real quake (Warning: may be hard to watch)
News report with real footage  (Warning: may be hard to watch)

Here are links to other pages with more earthquake preparation information:
Tokyo Disaster Preparedness Manual
American Red Cross Earthquake Preparedness
CDC Earthquakes

Check out the Amazon.co.jp store page for some more earthquake preparation items.