A came out of school extremely excited because her Math teacher evaluated the class and A scored on an 8th grade level for math. The last time they did this, in February, she had scored a 6th grade level. Now, apparently, at the end of 4th grade, she was scoring an 8th grade level. Which was very exciting!! Although sometimes I am not sure how accurate these tests are and if they can really be believed. I much prefer seeing the grades on her test and if she understands what she has been taught.
When we got home, A informed me that she had a poetry project due tomorrow. She had typed up the poems in the computer lab and saved them all, but the computer lab was closed because it was the end of the year, and she had to re-write all of the poems! I was ready to scream because I run an American Girl Club at the library and today was the last meeting! I had spent the day preparing activities and we wouldn't be able to start on homework until 5:30pm!!
I helped both girls do their math homework and then we all headed to the library for American Girl Club. I inherited this club from a woman that used to run it and today is our very last meeting as we are trying to run programs that will not discriminate boys or girls. Each month, the girls read about another one of the American Girl characters. I have been going in chronological order and hoping the girls get some historical perspective. They are supposed to read a book or books at home and then when we meet, we discuss the life and times of the character. I try to get them to compare and contrast the different girls, what was different, what had changed. This month was Julie. She is the girl from the 1970s, so that was a fun one, as I basically grew up in the seventies and with the resurrection of peace signs and other hippie type things, it was a big hit. We talked about how her parents were divorced and divorce was just starting to be accepted, prior to that you didn't hear of too many people getting divorced, some did, but it became acceptable in the 1970s. We compared how Julie's mom not only worked, but owned a store and how none of the other characters mom's had worked, but today many moms work, we actually think it may be more acceptable for a mom to work than stay home. We talked about the women's movement. We talked about how Julie started a petition so that she could play basketball. The girls were shocked to know that there were not a lot of sports for girls when I was growing up, sports were considered more of a boy thing. We also talked about social unrest and people fighting back when they thought something was unfair. It was a GREAT discussion.
My mom had made all the girls crocheted caps like Julie wears :)
And we made God's eyes. In the beginning of the craft time, the girls were all saying that they "couldn't do this" and "aren't good at things like this". Sure enough, they were all getting very confused and just wrapping yarn around sticks. I convinced them to STOP saying that and start thinking that they CAN do this. And, sure enough, before long they all had the knack of making God's eyes and couldn't stop making them. They started talking about making them for Christmas ornaments or to give as gifts or to sell for a fundraiser.
It was a great meeting!! I am so grateful to all of the girls and parents that made this program such a success for so long at the library! And I look forward to these girls being part of the new environmental, recycling, go green at the library club that I have pitched and have to just outline some project ideas for!
When we got home, I told A that I would type the poems if she wrote them. I was amazed at how much she remembered of what she had written in school! She had to write 11 different kinds of poems. My favorite was this haiku:
We need to be free
so we can think, hear and see
all that we can be
Although I am biased because she is my daughter, I think she did a great job!
