Homeschool Group

We had a great homeschooling meet up today. The group met in a park we'd never been to before, in a town the group hadn't yet explored, so it was really nice to go a bit further afield and to branch out to new people.

The park is huge, much bigger than anything else in the area, and there were cycle paths, so the kids had a great time riding around

Then Littletree and her friend Princess played a game of giant chess

We mostly hung out in the shade chatting and sharing a picnic of fresh fruits and home made brownies.

Hopefully plans for a new chapter of our homeschool group closer to our new home will manifest, if we can organise it together with some of the new comers :)

oh, and the battery in my camera was flat today, so these pics were taken on my cell phone camera - sorry for the crap quality.

Schach Spielen

Littletree has gotten really interested in Chess lately, since she saw me playing a game against my computer.

Me and Purple used to play all the time when I was pregnant, but we gave up shortly after Littletree was born; somehow breastfeeding made me loose brain function, and I just couldn't think well enough to make playing worthwhile. I have a theory that it's the equivalent of men not having enough blood to work their brain and their penis at the same time. LOL

Anyway, Littletree started playing chess. I'm playing with her, and we talk a lot about which pieces can make what moves, and possible strategies. I don't have any expectation on her to actually learn the moves and what not. I figure she'll pick it up as she needs to, and with something this complicated, it will just come with time, exposure and practice.

Mostly, I tell her all the possible moves, make some suggestions and let her play. Somehow I had this idea that Chess is a game too advanced for someone not yet 5, but it's really amazing to see how she's picking it up.

She's started begging me to take her to the Cafe all the time, so we can play on their board. So, I guess a chess set is in order for her birthday! (which is in 2 weeks! eek!)