From the colour I thought it was Geisha on the shearing table (she’s medium fawn), but when I saw her face on the next frame it turned out to be Nina – white! I should add that the alpacas are not suffering whilst on the shearing table – not keen, but not suffering, and the result feels so wonderful – no more itchy grass seeds against their skin, and ….freedom! Looking at her this way makes me want to tickle her tummy.
Jj is for Jottings 41. Cutting Out Visual Props.
Enlarging upon the comment on Jottings 40 made by Ann on Facebook, who said she finds another great listening activity is to read a story to children without pictures – spot on! When you ask them questions about the story afterwards, you will really begin to find out their ability to listen and to Continue reading
educatingalpacas.com supports the book “Aa is for Alpacas”. See Why This Book?
Welcome to my blog – Educating Alpacas. Does this mean that we are educating the alpacas – teaching them to count and so on – or are the alpacas helping to educate people? Although we do a little bit of educating the alpacas (see blog post “Halter-Training April), it is mainly that the alpacas are involved in helping to educate both adults and children. The starting point for this blog is my book “Aa is for Alpacas”, written out of desperation at being unable to find an accurate alphabet book which measured up to my standards and which I could recommend to parents to help teach sound-letter links i.e. the sound made by each letter of the alphabet. You cannot rely on this happening at school and, even if it does, children need to practise at home.
It is not only the lack of knowledge of sound-letter links which is tripping up children in the early stages of learning to read, but there are many other issues which I have observed during more than 35 years of working as a speech pathologist in education – issues which have arisen during this time and which are contributing to a decline in literacy in Australian children. These concerns are shared by experienced teachers. Via the medium of the blog and its accompanying Facebook page I set out to bring up issues which are affecting children’s learning, many of which may not have occurred to parents; some strategies for parents to implement with their children at home; pictures and anecdotes about the alpacas and their animal friends and neighbours; and any other vaguely-related issues which I feel moved to bring to people’s attention.
Since “Aa is for Alpacas” was the starting point for the blog, there are references made to both the animals in the book and to the information presented in the User Guide. This is the only alphabet book that I am aware of which has a comprehensive guide for adults reading with the children, and it also has a book-reading (click on the Video button at the top of this page) so that adults can check whether they are saying sounds correctly and not confusing the children with letter names. The book is aimed at 3-7 year olds, but can easily be used as a remedial tool for older children.
The Book Launch. This was in an educational supplies shop, Chalk and Chat, in Albury (New South Wales). Our shearer and his wife very kindly brought along two young, very well-behaved, alpacas for the children to meet.
Jj is for Jottings 40. A Listening Activity.
If you have read the introduction to “Aa is for Alpacas”, you will be aware that I have flagged poor listening skills as a growing problem in this increasingly visual world. Children who are poor listeners are limited in their ability to learn in many areas of life, but particularly at school, since teaching will usually have both visual and auditory components (and sometimes auditory only). Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 39. The Spitty Story Didn’t End There.
When I removed the grass seed from Manuel’s eye (see Jottings 36 A Spitty Story), I had noted that it wasn’t a full grass seed but, having carefully lifted both upper and lower eyelids, I had concluded that that’s all there was. How wrong I was. Continue reading
Jj is for Jottings 38. More Comments from Experienced Teachers.
This is a follow-on from Jottings 35. I said that it would be continued next time – and that was on 6th December! Somehow Christmas and other issues intervened, but here is the second half now.
Both primary and secondary teachers comment on the fact that children are less able to make connections and “join up the dots”, which is something I frequently observe myself. Continue reading
The alpacas have decided to wear new outfits for Christmas – much cooler for those hot summer days.
Jj is for Jottings 37. A Christmas Limerick.
Of recent years it has become a family tradition to make my own Christmas crackers and, instead of those dreadful jokes you find in the commercial bonbons, I write a limerick about each person who will be present at Christmas. Here is the limerick I wrote about me in the year “Aa is for Alpacas” was published: Continue reading
On behalf of the alpacas, the administrators, the family and all the two- and four-legged alpacas’ neighbours, Manuel would like to wish everyone a safe, healthy, happy and literate year in 2017 (but he’s too shy to look at the camera).
On the shearing table with the sock in place. For more pics of Manuel see “Aa is for Alpacas” Gg is for gumboot; Mm is for milk; Oo is for oranges; Uu is for Umbrella; Ch is for chewing; Th is for thirsty. My, what a popular boy he is – until he spits!
Jj is for Jottings 36. A Spitty Story.
The one year in which we had the entire back paddock mown rather than having just a fire break, Manuel decides to keep things interesting by getting a grass seed in his eye. You’d think the chances of a grass seed in the eye would have reduced with no long grass in the paddock. Continue reading
1. Shanti decided she would jump onto Glenn’s back to get a good view of the toenail cutting. 2. “A good position – I think I’ll sit down.” 3. Settled in to watch the full performance.
Jj is for Jottings 35. Comments Made By Experienced Teachers.
Following are some observations I have made and some comments made by experienced teachers in the last couple of years. I find that experienced teachers have an excellent understanding of what enhances learning and what undermines learning, partly because of their long experience Continue reading
Picture reproduced by kind permission of This England magazine. www.thisengland.co.uk
Jj is for Jottings 34. Even the Queen’s Swan Marker Thinks Children Spend Too Much Time on Computers.
Every July, David Barber, who is the Queen’s Swan Marker, leads a team of Swan Uppers in a flotilla of skiffs up the River Thames from Sunbury to Abingdon in a colourful ceremonial pageant. Their task is to count and mark the bird population in this section of river. Continue reading