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Sallie Schaaf Borrink

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Garden Unit Study Ideas

Home in the Woods {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentHome in the Woods {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

Sometimes I see a book in the bookstore and instinctively know there’s a high probability it will be coming home with me. Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler was one of those books.

But I have to be honest. After I picked it up and opened it, I almost didn’t keep reading because the artwork style of the faces on the opening page isn’t something I normally warm to. But I kept reading because I thought I would like the story.

I’m glad I did. This is a wonderful addition to my picture book collection and Homeschooling with Cozy Books.

Home in the Woods is the story of a family that must move into a tarpaper shack in the northern woods of Wisconsin during the Great Depression. It is based on the childhood experience of the author’s grandmother.

I won’t tell you why they must do this. You’ll have to read the story.

They have no money so they must work hard to survive through the various seasons.

Every member of the family plays an important part.

They pull together as a family and make the most of every resource they have access to where they are.

Starting with the summer when they move in, the book goes through the various seasons during the first year they live in this tumbledown shack in the woods.

The family makes the most of every situation, infusing joy whenever possible.

Home in the Woods is a lovely book about a loving close-knit family, working hard, the seasons, and making the best of a difficult situation. I’m so glad I gave it a chance and brought it home. I highly recommend it. ♥

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Bumblebee Paper Roll Craft

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentBumblebee Paper Roll Craft

This cute bumblebee craft made with a toilet paper roll will be a big hit with your little ones. I’ve created this craft to be flexible so it can be made with or without construction paper (in case you don’t have any construction paper in your home right now!).

There are multiple choices for making the bumblebee paper roll craft as shown on the product cover. There are options for the bumblebee face, the number of black stripes, and whether you want to print it in color or have your child color the individual pieces.

Necessary Craft Supplies

Most of the supplies you need for this craft you probably already have in your home.

For this craft you will need:

  • the Bumblebee Paper Roll Craft printable product file
  • a printer
  • white paper or white cardstock
  • construction paper (optional)
  • scissors
  • tape, glue stick, or small stapler
  • toilet paper roll

Your child will be able to choose:

  • how to make the face (printed or original)
  • how many stripes to include
  • whether to use the printed pieces or color them

Simply print the pages you wish to use, cut out, and assemble. I used white paper in the photographed example and printed in color. I was able to tape the pieces into place. If you print on cardstock, you’ll probably want to go the stapler route.

If you have more craft supplies at home, you could do pipe cleaners for the antennae and googly eyes for the eyes.

Purchase Your Bumblebee Toilet Paper Roll Craft

I hope you have fun with this craft! Click the cover to purchase the craft in my shop.

 

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Two Little Gardeners {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentTwo Little Gardeners {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

Two Little Gardeners is a Little Golden Book we discovered when Caroline was quite young. You can tell from the fact that our beloved copy has no trademark gold covering left on the spine that it was, shall we say, well read and well loved.

Truthfully, this was one of her favorite books for some time. We read it over and over again. She would also spend a lot of time by herself just poring over the details of the illustrations (artistic child that she is).

Two Little Gardeners

The story begins after the snow melts in the spring when the two little gardeners come out to plant their garden. They prepare the earth and plant the seeds and starts. They watch as the plants begin to grow and flower into the summer.

The two little gardeners battle the weeds. They devise ways to deal with the animals who want to eat their growing food.

In the end, they have a lovely harvest which they cook and can. How does it all end?

You’ll have to read the story!

Such a wonderful book to introduce small children to growing food, the hard work gardening entails, and what happens after everything grows.

The illustrations by Gertrude Elliott are warm and inviting with lots of intriguing details. The style is unique and different from many other Little Golden Books. I think that was part of the appeal to Caroline.

Two Little Gardeners by Margaret Wise Brown and Edith Thacher Hurd is definitely worth adding to your bookshelf and cozy reading!

Garden Printables & Worksheets

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Learning Geography With Gardening

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentLearning Geography With Gardening

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Miracle-Gro Gro-ables. All opinions are 100% mine.

Integrating multiple subjects is a great way to get the most bang for your homeschooling time. Some topics naturally seem to go together – science and math, history and geography, and reading and writing. If I asked you what you could integrate with gardening, I’m sure your first thought would be science and then probably math.

What about integrating gardening and geography? That’s what we’re doing as we continue to work on our Gro-ables Project.

Hardiness Zones in the United States

Understanding hardiness zones is an important part of gardening. This image below from the USDA shows the various zones in the country. Certain plants can only live in certain zones.

2012 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (USA) 1200

You’ll notice that we live in one of the most diverse states when it comes to hardiness (Michigan). Our location is marked with a smiley face so you can find it. We can drive just a short distance and be in a few different zones. Using hardiness zones will help you, for example, when selecting perennials at a garden store or ordering from a catalog. You have to use plants that work for your zone.

2012-USDA-Plant-Hardiness-Zone-Map-(Michigan)-1200

Frost Dates

You also have to know about frost dates. The spring frost date is the day in the spring you can normally expect to have the last hard frost that could damage plants. The fall frost date is the first date you could expect to have a killing frost that would harm your plants. These are based on averages, remember, and weather has a mind of its own so things can vary from year to year.

If you look up the frost dates for your area online, you will know exactly when it is safest to plant. Where we live, we are generally safe from frost between May 15 and September 29.

Planting More Gro-ables

Now that we are officially past our last frost date, we’ve been able to get back to more garden planting with Caroline. We’re still in the process of planting our shipment of Gro-ables since many of them require warmer temperatures to be safe. This weekend we were finally ready to plant the herbs. We planted basil, lemon basil, flat leaf parsley and cilantro.

Grow-able seed pods come ready to plant in your container

Caroline did a great job of preparing the potting mix and getting the Gro-able pods ready.

Do not cover the Grow-able seed pod with dirt

The Gro-ables are fun to use with children because they are easy to handle. She’s enjoyed using the pods. She also pointed out that it was nice she could change her mind and easily move the pods around while planting.

Grow-ables planted in a planter

Super easy! Just put the Gro-able in the potting mix so it’s level with the potting mix around it and water! I’m especially looking forward to the parsley.

Grow-ables planted in a planter ready to grow

Next weekend we’ll finish planting the rest of the pods that need warm weather. What are you planting and growing with your kids this spring?

➡ See more of my Garden-Themed posts here.

Learning Geography with Gardening

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Growing Vegetables and Herbs With Your Children

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentGrowing Vegetables and Herbs With Your Children

This post brought to you by Miracle-Gro Gro-ables. The content and opinions expressed below are that of A Quiet Simple Life with Sallie Borrink.

Since Caroline was tiny we have tried to provide her with a wide variety of hands-on learning activities and opportunities so she would understand how the world works. One area where we’ve done this is by planting gardens. At one point we had two large square foot gardens. More recently we’ve had to simplify life and we’ve scaled back to pots on the deck. The important thing is making sure she understands the life cycle of plants, how food is grown, etc.

I also do think children are more apt to try out foods that they’ve grown. There is something about being involved in the process that children find enticing. So even starting small if you don’t have time for a big garden can be a simple way to introduce your child to the joy of growing food they can eat right from their deck or porch!

When I was offered the opportunity to try out Miracle-Gro Gro-ables as part of the Gro-ables Project, I jumped at the chance. For one, I knew Caroline would find them fascinating since she loves neat little packaging. I also thought they were a great product to try out and share here with other families who are interested in finding ways to do something fun with their kids now that spring is finally here and we can all get outside.

Grow-ables in pack

Gro-ables are seed pods that include mulch, seeds and plant food. They come in these fun little containers that go directly into the ground.

One aspect that is great about these Gro-ables is how well they will work with little hands. Some of these seeds are tiny, but with the Gro-ables, small children can easily work with the seed pods. If it is the first time you family has tried growing vegetables or herbs, this is a simple way to get started. These would work exceptionally well with toddlers and preschoolers. No tiny little seeds to keep track of!

Grow-ables holding pods

You peel off the top…

Grow-ables opening pod

Make a small hole in your potting mix for the pod…Grow-ables placing pod

 

Put the Gro-able in so the top is level with the potting mix

Grow-ables pod flat

And water!

Grow-ables watering

It truly could not be any easier!

(Caroline had the idea to tape the Gro-able covers to wooden sticks so we would remember what we planted where!)

Grow-ables with sticks

Today we planted only the Spinach and Romaine lettuce since it’s too cool here in Michigan in mid-April to plant anything else. We’ll plant more of the Gro-able pods in the coming weeks as the growing season picks up in our area.

We received a packet of 18 Seed Pods. It includes the following vegetables:

  • Romaine Lettuce (2)
  • Spinach (2)
  • Jalapeno Pepper
  • Cucumber (2)
  • Sweet Pepper (2)
  • Zucchini
  • Eggplant
  • Cherry Tomato
  • Globe Tomato
  • Roma Tomato

It also included some great herbs:

  • Basil
  • Lemon Basil
  • Flat Leaf Parsley
  • Cilantro

Caroline is especially excited about the cucumbers (her favorite vegetable) and David loves red peppers. All of them will be put to good use in our home over the spring and summer!

At Miracle-Gro®, they believe that there’s a lot to learn from even the smallest plants. So they’ve started The Gro-ables® Project: a movement to share the joy of growing herbs and veggies while giving kids truly hands-on learning experiences. Join them by planting your own Gro-ables, taking part in the activities and sharing your story!

What kinds of tips do you have for growing things with kids?

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Growing Vegetables and Herbs with Your Kids

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Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

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View Full Post with Embedded ContentHere We Go Round the Mulberry Bush {Homeschooling with Cozy Books}

Sometimes you happen upon a book that you know is going to become a favorite. This was the case when I found Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush by Iza Trapani at the library. I knew it had everything Caroline would love including the illustrations, the silliness, the rollicking language, and the animals.

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush is a charming and fun story that will appeal to many children and families.

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush is a take-off on the traditional nursery song. Trapani develops it and makes it into a hilarious tale of what happens when a gardener tries to deal with the animals intent on taking over her garden. Told alternately from the point of view of the gardener and the animals, it is a clever telling with great illustrations.

Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush

If you garden and battle the creatures, you will love this book. And even if you don’t, you’ll still appreciate the humor.

We enjoyed Iza Trapani’s books so much, we ended up purchasing a large treasury with multiple stories. You can see all of her books available on the Iza Trapani Amazon page.

If you are looking for fun books, you will definitely want to check them out!

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