History Girl and her state report

At my girls school the 5th graders are expected to do a lot of reports, projects and events because because they are the oldest kids in the school and they want to get them ready for the much bigger middle school. Some of the events are just great like the trip down to Boston to walk the Freedom Trail. They have done things like an egg drop and write a report on how they did experiments to end up with the egg holder that they ended up with.

One of the things they have to do is write a report on a state that they picked out of a hat. History Girl ended up with Utah. We discovered that she had very little knowledge about how to do a research paper without using the Internet. So we decided that she should spend the morning at the library doing research the old fashion way. Having paid a good part of my college expenses by working at as an assistant to the reference librarian, it was not a good thing to have my daughter not to know how to do research at a library without the Internet. I did let her use the computer library catalog I didn't make her use a card catalog...I don't think the city library even has a card catalog.

History Girl is sitting at the dining room table right now whining because of how hard we have made this report for her since she has to use real books rather then just looking up info on the computer. Poor poor her, we just torture her. She should contact Department Human Services and report us since clearly we are unfit parents. Maybe we are unfit parents because I just assumed that the teachers would show how to do book research as well as Internet research....well we all know what they saying about assuming things.

So I am not sure if History Girl will ever use the info she is learning about Utah, but she will always remember how she found it. :-) Maybe I made her do this report this way because I still have fond memories doing my report on Newfoundland when I was her age. It was my first big report that I needed to research at the library. History Girl has done many many reports but it seems all of them she did the research online. From now on she will know how to do research even if the power is out and the Internet connection is down. ;-)

Horse Girl

Yesturday I went to see the ADHD specialist once again. She took Horse Girls's Neuropsych eval to three other neuropsychs to find out their opinon. Everyone of them said the wording that the Neuropsych used in Horse Girl's report was just awful no concern about the child's future in school and what the words in the report might do to the child's education. With all that said all three Neuropsychs felt that the one we took Horse Girl to is jumping the gun diagnosing her as ADHD. Since the only symptoms she has of ADHD is some distractablity and being more active them most girls. She has traits that make ADHD diagnouses improbable and then there is the whole genetic componant. So the ADHD specialist is writing a report stating that she isn't ruling inattention problems in or out for Horse Girl at this time, she would like to see us treat the learning disablities first and deal with those and then when she is older...say 10 years old...then have another neuropsych exam if things haven't been totally cleared up by then. If after this letter the school seems to push medication then she will write a letter stating clearly that she doesn't think that is the right thing at this time for her. So that is all good.

To make yesturday even better....Horse Girl read me two sentances from a book she had never seen before. I was driving so I had to make sure I didn't cry since I was so happy to hear her do that. Of course she is really picking up momentum right now when it comes to reading....of course it happens now because there is only 4 more weeks of school. At least she will be getting extended year services for 6 weeks this Summer, so that just leaves a handful of weeks that Fly Guy and I have to keep things rolling for her. I do hope a opening shows up at the local Scotish Rite Dyslexia Center because they are one of the best places for Dyslexic children to get help, but because of financal issues they have had happen to them over the last few years we have no idea how long Horse Girl will need to wait to get a space.

On my Feburary Moms email list one of the moms just posted about her son and how he reads at a 4th grade level and they are having so much trouble because of it. I know she must be having problems with it...I know it is hard when you have a gifted kid...in many ways it is harder then having a kid with learning differances because of the various legal rights and stuff. With all that said it was hard for me to read that email. Horse Girl pours over books and looks at them and looks at the words and I know once we figure out the key for her she will love to read and I so wish that she could read what she wants to read. She works so hard at it. It is also hard because reading did coming very easily to History Girl and she seems to find reading more of a chore then anything else and I admit that it is hard for me who still struggles with reading that it comes so easily to her and she doesn't see gift she has. Oh well I guess that is how it is with everyone it is always easier to see the gifts other people have then the ones we have ourself.

More on History Girl

History Girl has started correcting teachers in the middle of class again. I am glad she is smart and knows the subjects she loves really well, but I have always felt correcting a teacher should be done in private. This is something Fly Guy and I don't see eye to eye on. He feels that if a teacher isn't teaching correct info then they should be corrected ASAP. This is one of the reasons when we were in college the head of the computer science department wasn't sad to see him leave school, since he was always correcting him in the middle of the lecture. If anyone has some sort of view on this subject feel free to leave comments.

History Girl corrected her teacher on the facts that John Hancock did have a wife....her teacher said he didn't. History Girl also corrected her teacher when her teacher said Samual Adams didn't have a wife....well he didn't have _A_ wife....he had two wives over his lifetime.

History Girl has been studying the US Revoltionary War period off and on since she was about 5 years old. It is a subject she loves and she knows a lot about it and she doesn't mind telling people what she knows.

Thursday History Girl and her class are going to Boston to walk the Freedom Trail. She has been looking forward to this trip for years since it has been the tradition in her school for decades that the 5th grade makes this trip. I hope there is good weather and I hope her teachers won't leave her in Boston because she can't keep quite.

The last few days have been good for her. No panic attacks or if there has been some she has been able to work through them herself. I hope this is a good sign.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was nice. Fly Guy helped the girls make me breakfast in bed....fruit salad with yogurt, chocolate chip muffins, orange breakfast rolls and tea. It was nice.

The girls totally understand that their mother is very much a kid at heart. For gifts they got me stuff from scrapbooking. Since I remember sticker collecting when I was 10 years old stickers for scrapbooking is just an offshoot of that. :-) Plus they got me Spider Spud. Fly Guy is getting me a new bike computer for my Tri training, but he wants me to pick it out so I don't have it in hand yet. The other thing he did for me is switch our electricity to renewable energy so now our house a zero carbon admiting home and I will be getting a sticker stating that fact when it comes in the mail. So my girls and my husband seem to know me and what I like. :-)

In the afternoon they took me for a bubble tea which I always love.

For dinner, my parents, and both my grandmothers came for dinner. I am so greatful that Fly Guy did all the work for dinner. I am so please I have a husband that loves cooking so I don't have to stress holidays. The only two holidays I cook for are Thanksgiving because cooking a turkey is easy and Christmas Eve because I can make the dinner a day or two ahead. Everything else Fly Guy deals with.

This past Saturday

On Saturday the 12th I drove my parents down to Boston area to visit my brother, his wife and their new baby. For a baby who isn't mine she is very cute. The visit was great the baby is so sweet and it was great to see my brother being a dad. He is good at it he took care of the crying baby while his wife was trying to eat dinner. The issue was the drive. I haven't been in the car for alone with my parents since I was in high school. The small talk made me want to dig my eyes out with a spoon. Well that is ok. I did get to see my very cute niece. :-)

I gave my SIL her first Mother's Day gifts which was nice. The only reason I beat my brother to it is because I gave to her on Saturday and not on real Mother's Day.

Which Harry Potter Lesser Character are you?

Well I guess I am a member of the Weasley family no matter what. ;-) I have always liked to think I was a Gryffindor and being a Weasley makes it clear that I am. :-)

...and which lesser Harry Potter character are you?

Congrats! You're Gryffindor alumnus Bill Weasley!

You know you're cool when even the kid who defeated Voldemort thinks so. You have a disposition that attracts people to you as friends and allies. And it's not just your outward appearance - under all your coolness, you're smart enough to be Head Boy/Girl, too.

(Your moment of glory - so far, at least - came in Goblet of Fire when Harry Potter declared your undeniable ponytail-wearing cool factor.)

Time Magazine and Harry Potter

I found it interesting that I found several people visiting my blog, by coming through time.com and I was puzzled. I when and checked it out. This is the web site they are coming from. If you click on related blogs, you will see my blog listed, which I just find totally odd since I haven't even been blogging for a month and my blog only once and awhile hits upon Harry Potter.

Here is an artist's interprtation of the covers of the Harry Potter title Time Magazine is suggesting.