Uncategorized

Nitpicking terms

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Okay, it’s your nitpicky friend Gina here with a lesson on trendy terms right now.
I am seeing and hearing (looking at you Van) a lot of people saying they are in ‘quarantine’.
Most of you are not.
Ok— there are several terms in use here.

Most of us are in what is called ‘social distancing’. It’s when you aren’t showing any signs of being ill, and you are spending most of your time away from anyone not your core family. Some work sites are open to allow people to do this. Same with stores. Working from home, not going to school, closing museums and restaurants are all ways to do this.
Stay 6 feet away from people, spend minimum time around people, clean everything, don’t touch your face.

‘Sheltering at home’ means you are staying put in your house and only going out for emergencies. Locally, that includes trips to the parks, as long as you still follow social distancing. If you are only at home and no one is going out, life can be pretty normal.

Shelter in place is the same thing, only DO NOT GO OUT unless it’s required. If you *want* to go out, it’s not required. If you are missing an ingredient for dinner, it’s not required. If you are going stir crazy and want to shop, it’s not required. Going to a doctor’s appointment, going to essential work, those are ok.

Self monitoring means you may have been exposed at some point in time, and you are checking your symptoms to see if you have been infected. Say you went shopping a few days ago, and the county has announced a confirmed case went shopping at that store a few days ago- that’s when you self monitor.

Self quarantining is different. If you were at that store on the same day and you talked to the person who has now been confirmed, you self quarantine. You check your symptoms and you watch yourself carefully. And you stay away from other people for the 2 weeks you need to be sure. Even the people in your home.
IF YOU ARE MEDICAL STAFF this is your daily life, because each 2 week period starts with each exposure. I am emphasizing this for non medical people. I am sure medical staff are doing it. People whose jobs and vocations require them to have contact with people who are infected are living incredibly stressful lives right now. Cut them some slack, and stay home as much as possible to ease their loads.

These are all individual things, and as much as the government is mamdating them, they aren’t being literally policed.

Group things include:

A containment zone. Everything is closed and people in an area are supposed to shelter in place. People are free to come and go from the area, however.

An area quarantine. Everything is locked down by local or federal government. You are not allowed to leave the area or go into it. This is what’s happening in Italy, and on that cruise ship. An individual can be under a legal quarantine as well.
Isolation is when you are sick, either at home or in the hospital. This is much more than self-quarantine. People near you would wear protective gear. You are a risk to others.

Uncategorized

So, you are suddenly a home schooler?

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So you are homeschooling suddenly? Scared and confused?
Here’s some advice, facts, tips and resources so this doesn’t stress you out in addition to everything else that’s going on right now.

First: you do NOT have to attempt 6 hours of ‘school at home’ a day. Not at all. At home you have no classes to walk to, no announcements over the speaker, no assemblies, no ‘open your books to’ no breaks, no down time. Most homeschoolers can do a full day of work in 2-3 hours. This isn’t counting free reading time, which if you have a reader is great. If you don’t have a reader, there are so many other things to get them learning voluntarily. Yes, again, that’s 2-3 hours of work entirely, not ‘homework’.

Second: Do not feel lost or overwhelmed. You do NOT need an education degree to teach your own child. You’ve been doing it since they were born. You do not need a degree at all to teach your child. And there are tons of resources to help you out. One of the best parts about homeschooling is that you get to learn a new thing along with your kids!

Third: There are already a ton of free resources on line and around you. This will not cost you anything. Of course, if you have access to your child’s school books, use those. I am going to list a bunch of sites at the bottom of this so keep scrolling to get to them. If you do not have internet access, if your library is still open, hit it for books and videos. If you have nothing, grab anything. And it doesn’t have to be boring to be educational.

Fourth: what do you need to do every day? There are some skills that get lost if they aren’t practiced all the time. All kids should try to get some math in daily. Kids who play music should practice daily. Same with a foreign language. Exercise is good daily, even if gym in their school has been dropped to once every 10 days. Do art every day. Draw, paint, carve a mound of instant mashed potatoes. Use MSPaint. But do some art every day. If your student (or you) are a certain age, do some SAT prep every day.

There is school work you don’t have to do every day. English Language Arts, history, sciences can all be once or twice a week.

Ok, so your students’ day will probably look something like this:
Wake up late. Enjoy it, you might as well. Learn life skills of cleaning and cooking.
Math (30 minutes)
Foreign language (30 minutes)
Music and art (30-45 minutes).
Be active. Learn a new word. (30 minutes)

Pick English Language Arts, Science or History (30 minutes+).
You don’t have to do only one a day. But don’t force yourself. Do some reading or listening or viewing. Think about it, and talk about it. Maybe write about it. Our kid has a blog where his thoughts go.
That’s 2 hours and 45 minutes so far.

Spend the rest of the time reading, listening, or enjoying things. Playing a game with family, watching a movie and talking about it, having fun. All of that is educational as well.

Resources and hints are below, but I hope that helps if you need a schedule.

Lastly- there is a type of homeschooling called ‘afterschooling’, when you keep educating your child after the bell has rung. Some of you may be thinking ‘what? Everyone doesn’t do that?’And the answer is no. Everyone doesn’t do that. I hope you have enjoyed your time with your children, and that when schools start up, if you send them back, you continue to be an afterschooler.

If your kids do this— maybe for 2 hours a day— they will advance over this time, instead of falling behind.
Of course, if they have access to their own books, use those. Most importantly, everyone else is in the same boat. Don’t be scared.

Resources and how to use them. I am assuming you have internet access.
This is no where near an exhaustive list. There are games, resources, and very exciting things out there fro students. This is just a list of things so you can get started. Everything here is free.

ELA, history: If you have a subscription to something like Netflix, Hulu, Prime, etc use it. Find those movies based on true events, historical movies, retelling of great novels, etc. Find documentaries and cool events. These things do not have to be dry. Use over drive and Libby to download books. Get those novels you need to read on audiobook and just listen to it. Find biographies of people you are interested in during the time period you are studying in school. Find something like Guns Germs and Steel or something on the 1918 Flu epidemic for fun. You can also do some SAT prep work with Kahn Academy. Download the PBS app and watch all their amazing shows for free. Watch all the Ken Burns history, to start.
If you are having trouble understanding a work of literature, hit up the cliff notes and read the why’s about the book.
A favorite here is Crash Course History on YouTube. Once you start finding cool and interesting things to watch, you will find more things and your school day may expand.

https://www.overdrive.com/
https://www.overdrive.com/apps/libby/
https://www.pbs.org/pbs-video-app/
https://www.khanacademy.org/
https://www.cliffsnotes.com/

Math: If you do a search for Algebra on YouTube, you will find multiple channels dedicated to teaching algebra for free. Type any math in, and you will get results. You can pick and choose what teachers you like!
Daily life has math in it as well. Think about cooking, and splitting meals, and how long the isolation will last, and anything.
Odds are your student will recognize where they are in math, and a resource like Khan Academy will let them jump right in where they are comfortable with a video or a lesson.

https://www.youtube.com/
https://www.khanacademy.org/

Languages other than English: Download Duolingo or Mango (from the library) to continue learning. Or to pick one up. Duolingo even has Klingon.
LifePrint offers classes in American Sign Language as well.
Go to YouTube and watch videos in the language you are learning, as well.
If you have Netflix, download Dioco’s app that is designed to help you learn another language while watching movies.

https://www.duolingo.com/

Libraries


https://www.lifeprint.com/
https://www.youtube.com/
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/language-learning-with-ne/hoombieeljmmljlkjmnheibnpciblicm

Science: Again, Kahn Academy has classes in all the sciences. YouTube will also get you lessons in anything you want. Again, your library card will get you access to audio books and texts in any subject you are interested in. You don’t have to stick with what you would have done in class, you can explore whatever you want! And again, that PBS app- all the Novas and science shows PBS offers, at your fingertips.

https://www.youtube.com/
https://www.khanacademy.org/
https://www.pbs.org/pbs-video-app/

Finally, CK-12 is a series of textbooks and classes you can access for free in any subject for any grade (K-12!). Just leap in where you are at, or try out something new.

https://www.ck12.org/student/

This is hardly an exhaustive list. There are so many resources available. There has never been a better time to school at home. There is that list going around with an ever growing list of resources, and I am including it here. But with what I have listed, you ought to be fine for 5 weeks or more.

You may even decide that going back to school is no longer the goal.

http://www.amazingeducationalresources.com/

You can do it!

Maintenance, Vehicles

Car tips for … Summer?

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Being in Buffalo, we are used to seeing all the tips and tricks to keep your car and yourself safe and running in the winter. But the summer? That’s a perfect time to ignore the car and hit the festivals, events, and beaches, right?

There is nothing that can ruin a summer outing than a break down. So a few tips to help prevent that from happening.

Have your vehicle’s alignment checked. A spring of pothole season can work wonders on knocking your car out of alignment, and it ought to be pretty easy to fix *before* you have a breakdown.

Check your car’s belts and hoses for winter wear and replace anything that is worn, cracking or has blisters.

Check fluids and top off or replace anything that needs to be. Your car shouldn’t be dehydrated in summer either. Check your battery for corrosion, and under the hood and under the car for leaks. Summer needs for a car are different than winter needs.

Check your tires air pressure and for wear and tread depth. Don’t forget to check your spare! And pay attention to your tires during any hotter than usual weather. Blow outs are more likely to occur in summer because of the heat. Have any bulges checked out right away.

Check that your wipers are working well, and change from snow wipers to rain wipers, if you switch out.

You can safey remove all the winter stuck in the snow/at the office gear, but keep your jumper cables, car maintence stuff, first aide kit. You will also want to keep water in the car, both for you and the radiator. Sunscreen, a baseball cap, and a diaper changing sheet (in case you need to get home in a wet bathing suit!) are all good additions for a summer car kit.

And while you can take a break from worrying about driving in ice and snow for a few months, there are hazards in the warm weather than can just as easily cause accidents. There are more people on the road, especially during what are normally ‘school hours’ when teenagers are more likely to be driving. There are bicyclists and motorcyclists sharing the road who aren’t there nearly as much in winter.  And in residental areas, there is a far better chance of a child rushing into the street after a ball than in winter.

But with a few checks and precautions, summer driving can be fun and simple. Have a great one!

 

Surviving independently in a city.