Carnival of Homeschooling: The Mystery Hat

I usually try to make the theme I choose for the carnival educational, but this one is just for fun. We've had our own little "Flat Stanley" story going on in my family the past few months. Prepare yourself for some silliness...

My sister found this "mystery hat" under the bed in her spare room and in searching for the owner, posted about it on her blog:

"Well, this post will reveal just what kind of housekeeper I am. Today, I actually looked under the bed in our spare room, and this is what I found. We don't know whose it is...because it could have been there for years. I have a hunch that it may be my nephew Timothy's hat. If you know who this belongs to, please let me know." ~Cheryl

After searching though pictures, we found that the hat does belong to my grandson, Timothy. He received it as a gift and wore it on a trip to Nevada to see my sister in April 2007. It must have slipped under the bed and we missed it when we packed up to go home.

It was what happened next that cracked me up. The Mystery Hat, or CamoDove as it has been nicknamed, has been searching all over for his lost companion.

CamoDove goes for a ride

It was a nice day in Carson City, so CamoDove decided to go for a drive around town looking for his owner.

The first post this week, Award winning “Anna Goes Hiking” children’s book teaches kids about nature and the outdoors, comes from Bur Bur & Friends: Community Blog. Anna Goes Hiking is the fourth in the award winning Bur Bur and Friends children's book series. Bur Bur and Friends is a cast of multicultural characters who educate kids about sports, outdoor exploration and active play through their experiences. Explore the site a bit and you'll find coloring pages, a hide and seek game and Bur Bur's theme song. You'll also find a personal letter from Barack Obama to Malia and Sasha.

The Reluctant Homeschooler shows how you can Make your cake and eat it too. She says, "For decades, I've wanted to learn how to decorate a cake. I finally got my chance, so I took my daughters along, too. You can see what we learned in just three lessons! But what do you do with all those cakes?"

HappyCampers presents Come Escape Suburbia With Me! posted at Reese's View Of The World. A good friend of mine is the author of a new book and I thought sharing her views of life & homeschool would be interesting!

Kerry Jones presents Essay Writing For Homeschoolers posted at Time4Writing Teacher Blog.

In Routine posted at Lionden Landing, Michelle discusses how routines and rhythms make for happier, healthier people all around.

CamoDove flies over Lake Tahoe

Having no luck on the ground, CamoDove tries an aerial view. Can he be united with his friend?

Wendy Metzger of A Divine Calling…Musings on Motherhood takes a humorous look at the questions often asked about homeschooling…sometimes by complete strangers! In Whatever You Do, Don’t Ask Me About… Wendy discusses the typical questions we often get asked.

ChristineMM at The Thinking Mother talks about a lecture she attended about a new book by Sir Ken Robinson about creativity and education.

Dave Roller presents Unbelievable (No Child Left Ahead) posted at Home School Dad. His wife is a school pyschologist and observed a teacher berating a student for working ahead.

Over at Prose Politics and Piety, Alan Metzger encourages homeschoolers to persevere the fearful, exhausted moments when it seems it would be easier to just stop and let things slide and Never Give Up! Homeschooling can seem a daunting task at the beginning of every semester….but the rewards are great.

Catherine Eagleson presents Learning with fun. posted at Crosswords For Fun. Puzzles can be a great educational asset but are sometimes overlooked by parents as they seek ‘educational’ materials. Puzzles have long been favorite playthings for children and for this reason they seem as toys rather than objects of skill and learning development.

CamoDove goes to WalMart

CamoDove has searched high and low still with no luck, so he heads to the local WalMart to begin his search indoors.

In dropping new teachers into a war zone, Katherine of No fighting, no biting! recalls her own early days of teaching in a similar program to Teach for America. She likes homeschooling much better.

Yes, even homeschooled teens can be temperamental at times. Barbara shares about Temperamental Teens over at Barbara Frank Online.

Stephanie presents Is Big Brother Watching? posted at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood. Stephanie has discovered that the WV Department of Education has been visiting her blog regularly. This has revealed a bit of her insecurities. She also shares a music video that's a little creepy.

Kris at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers presents Step-by-Step: Making an Edible Map. Personally, I love the green Great Lakes, it matches well with the lighter green.

Karen presents Homeschooling By the Fire posted at The Stone Age Techie. With the couch too far away from the fireplace, homeschooling has moved to the floor. I had both the Star Wars Cookbook and the Fisher Price desk pictured in the blog post. Oh, the memories it brings back.

Denise presents Free Online Math for Middle School and Up posted at Let's Play Math!. The Art of Problem Solving people recently announced their new Alcumus program, which provides online lessons on assorted math enrichment topics. Current lessons focus on probability and combinatorics, which most math textbooks do not cover well, if at all. I am signing up all my MathCounts students. If you’re a homeschooler, we would love to have you join us!

CamoDove meets new friends

CamoDove meets new people on his search, still no Timothy.

Sarah presents Introducing SmallWorld's WordSmithery posted at SmallWorld. She'll be sharing some exercises for teaching creative writing at home for all ages, hopefully weekly.

Cristina presents Iron Homeschooler Chef posted at Home Spun Juggling. Christina shares about all the fun of an interest based curriculum, this time it's pirates.

I guess this post should have been with the WalMart picture. Matthew Paulson presents Teach Values While Shopping for Your Kids Clothes posted at American Consumer News.

Ahermitt presents Colleges with best return on investment that accept CLEP posted at Notes From A Homeschooling Mom.

In Pacifying the Beast, Becky at The Life Without School Community Blog talks about what she does when she feels herself begin to trip and fall on the slippery slope of self doubt and worry. She says, "When I start to let my mind wander into the murky depths of the future homelessness, mental illness and unemployment of my children as a result of their unschooled life, I make mental lists of the things we do, every day, all day long, which prove my children are learning."

CamoDove goes to work

CamoDove visits the shipping department longing for the day he'll be shipped back to his owner.

Motivate your kid to read the Thomas Edison way. Dana presents A Buck A Book posted at The Sunny Side.

Amy Smith presents Homemade Stage and Puppet Theater posted at Kids Love Learning. Using an extra shower curtain rod and some long curtains between our kitchen and living room, a perfect theater stage was built.

Mary Nix presents Ohio S.B.E's Review of Home Education Rules Complete posted at The Informed Parent. She is trying to get the word out about the recent home education rule review in Ohio.

Sometimes you need to just slow down and look back at your life to see the changes for the better. After celebrating her 15th birthday, Molly Metzger of Not Your Average Teen reflects on the past years and how she has had A Change of Perspective.

Dana presents Apologia Biology Giveaway posted at Principled Discovery.

CamoDove celebrates Christmas

The holidays came and went and CamoDove still hasn't been reunited with his owner.

Ever wonder how well socialized our adults are? Timothy Power presents And Then I Socialized Them posted at Sometimes I'm Actually Coherent. This is a cute story.

Two Kid Schoolhouse muses about her homeschooled boy growing up and fitting in with other kids in Growing up, fitting in.

In How to Travel More: Perks for the Homeschooling Family, Amy Davidson of Neighborhood Clubhouse talks about a travel concept called home exchange that can help homeschooling families save hundreds of dollars on travel accommodations. They are also offering a giveaway.

There are many learning activities that don't come from the pages of a textbook. Perhaps schools should rethink their definition of the term “learning activity.” From Carletta Sanders of Successful Homeschooling.

In Do we count yet? posted at Petticoat Government, a mother is teaching her almost-kindergarten age daughter to read and starting other formal instruction. Is this homeschooling already?

Cindy presents Winter Nature Study - Sissy Version posted at Our Journey Westward. Cindy hates the cold and finds a way to continue their nature study during the winter without venturing out in the cold.

Remembering the good ol' days

CamoDove reminisces of the good times he had with Timothy before they were separated.

Have you wondered what school skills go with what age? A great book and ideas for your homeschool year by grade. Misty presents What Do I Teach, When? posted at Homeschool Bytes.

Elena LaVictoire of My Domestic Church talks about allowing her homeschooled teen to follow his own passion as part of their homeschool experience.

Mary presents Feed the Birds posted at HEM Takes a Closer Look. She writes, "We recently had a large snowstorm and I thoroughly enjoyed watching the different colored birds gather at our feeder. Their beautiful feathers against the bright, white snow left a picture that has lingered in my mind all day and inspired me to see what type of “bird resources” I might find in past issues of HEM."

NerdMom shares her KinderBach Review posted at Nerd Family Things.

This post at Welcome to my Brain brought a smile to my face. Christinemoers shares the video clip, Brainiacs - Miniature Stuff for your Webkinz, of one of the Brainiacs showing how he collects all sorts of things to make miniatures for his Webkinz.

Laura muses about Emily’s Adventures Around the House posted at Practical Homeschooling. Little ones love to explore.

Henry's posts always make me think, and The Pied Piper and government schools is no different. "As I was rototilling my garden today I mused on the difference between public schools and the Pied Piper." That's what I always think about when I'm rototilling my garden.

Bonnie Way of The Koala Bear Writer talks about the importance of having support from other "parent teachers" in Parent-Teacher Interviews. The support can be found in the form of phone calls or through internet forums and blogs. The post begins with a story about her mom from her early homeschooling years.

Where will CamoDove turn up next?

CamoDove hasn't returned to its rightful owner yet. Will he ever make it home to Timothy? Even if he does, we have a dilemma now. The problem is that the hat brim styles have apparently changed. Previously, you'd work hard to get just the right curvature in the brim of your hat, now it has to be flat, flat, flat. Any curvature at all and it's rejected.

Where will CamoDove show up next?
Will CamoDove ever make it home to Timothy?
Can CamoDove survive the style change?
Will Timothy welcome CamoDove with open arms?
Or will CamoDove be rejected as outdated?
Did CamoDove waste its useful years under a bed in Nevada?
Oh, the life of a hat...

Well, that concludes this issue of the Carnival of Homeschooling. I hope you enjoyed our silliness.

~ Beverly

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Next week, the carnival will be held at Life on the Road. Join the fun, submit your post.