"What shall we do today?"

OK, I'm not sure if the drop in temperature has changed the boys' attitude towards work, but it's helped mine!  It's as if I have a switch triggered by full-on sunshine that says "we need to be outside now".  Now that it's clouded over again (although is still fairly warm out), I'm feeling like the boys ought to be catching up on their "learning" (though still not in a big way).
This morning DS2 was on Reading Eggs for an hour first thing, before we all went to craft club in Hitchin (more socialising!) where the boys thoroughly enjoyed doing some junk modelling.  DS1 had a go at making a working submarine using a plastic bottle, some tubing and a balloon; DS2 made a lovely space rocket, and DS3 also made a rocket, plus a lighthouse (photo below - I always try to take photos of the things they make as nothing lasts forever, but they put so much effort in it seems a shame not to have a record)...

Once we got home, DS3 straight for the computer to play on Reading Eggs, DS1 made a beeline for his library books, and spent a good while reading first about the lifecycles of different forest creatures, and then finding out which is deadlier out of a scorpion and tarantula (scorpion wins - just).  DS2 was looking a little purposeless, but jumped at my suggestion to do some baking - and made (with help) some chocolate crunch cake for lunch - yum!

One resource that I have found really useful is my list of  things we could do, for use when the boys get bored or just run out of ideas for things to do.  I'm actually really enjoying the challenge of thinking of things to pique their interest, before they even ask.  To be fair, they don't ask often, as they're getting much better at thinking for themselves... it's just for every now and then!  I keep a list on my laptop that I add to - for example every time they ask 'can we do such & such?' and I haven't got the necessary equipment immediately to hand (in which case I order the equipment and add the activity to my list), or when I'm reading a Home Ed blog and see something that looks really interesting and fun that I think they'd enjoy...

This is our list at the moment, but obviously it changes frequently.  The observant ones among you will have noticed that there are six items in each box, loosely grouped according to subject (art, science, miscellaneous, maths and english).  I have deliberately not labelled the subjects as - for example - if DS2 knew that sudoku was Maths, he might rapidly go off it! The six items per box are for DS1, who sometimes likes the game of rolling dice to decide what he is going to do (with the power of veto if he doesn't like what he has been landed with).  DS2 does NOT like the uncertainty, so he just chooses whatever grabs his fancy.  Today, that was baking - hooray!  Obviously not every thing in each box is appropriate for each boy (there is a big difference between a 3yo and a 10yo), but there is something that each of them can do in each box.  It seems to be helping so far...
Using this has also helped me to discover that DS1 particularly enjoys investigating the world around him, with science experiments etc., and DS2 also likes experimenting, but in a more 'creative' way - he's more likely to want to do an art project than science.  Without HE, I'm not sure I'd have found that out so clearly... one of the loveliest Home Ed benefits has to be the chance to get to know your children better, rather than them spending the best part of their days somewhere else!  It made me laugh today when I was getting my hair done, and explaining home ed to my hairdresser who obviously hadn't heard of it before... she asked how we did it, and after my reply she said, "I want to come to your school!  In fact I think everyone should come to your school!"  Now I do know it's not for everyone, but the more I do it, the more I wonder why more people don't home ed too...

PS For those who read my entry yesterday, having left the egg in vinegar overnight, the egg had finally developed a rubbery shell (well, sort of - it didn't bounce, but was definitely squishy), but I dropped and broke it, just as I called DS1 to come and see that it had worked... aarrgghh!  So we put another two eggs in to soak - one in brown vinegar, one in white, to see if it makes any difference - will check again tomorrow.  The flowers in food colouring have still not changed in the slightest - sigh!