Book Review: How Children Fail

As my husband is a teacher by trade, he has read several books on children and education that he recommended I read. One of these is How Children Fail by John Holt. I found it to be profound and fascinating and recommend it to anyone who cares about what their children learn or education. (Plus at under 200 pages, it's a quick read.) John Holt was a teacher and this book is a collection of memos that he shared with other teachers and his administration. His memos were based on observations in teaching his own students and observing other teachers in their classrooms. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:

• The only answer that really sticks in a child's mind is the answer to a question that he asked or might ask of himself.
• Our aim must be to build soundly, and if this means that we must build more slowly, so be it. The work of the children themselves will tell us.
• The invention of the wheel was as big a step forward as the invention of the airplane—bigger, in fact... Above all, we will have to avoid the difficult temptation of showing slow students the wheel so that they may more quickly get to work on the airplanes...Knowledge that is not genuinely discovered by children will very likely prove useless and will soon be forgotten.
• There must be a way to educate young children so that the great human qualities that we know are in them  may be developed. But we'll never do it as long as we are obsessed with tests...How can we foster a joyous, alert, whole-hearted participation in life, if we build all our schooling around the holiness of getting "right answers?"
• A child is most intelligent when...he cares most about what he is doing.
• When a child gets right answers by illegitimate means, and gets credit for knowing what he doesn't know, and knows he doesn't know, it does double harm. First, he doesn't learn, his confusions are not cleared up; secondly, he comes to believe that a combination of bluffing, guessing, mind reading, snatching at clues and getting answers from other people is what he is supposed to do at school; that this is what school is all about; that nothing else is possible.
• Kids really like to learn (they) just don't like being pushed around.

Throughout the book he talks a great deal about the use of fear to get children to learn. Fear is not an effective motivator. It may have immediate results, in that children grasp at whatever means possible to find the right answer, but they don't usually understand or retain the process this way. As he described the children he worked with and their various learning failures I thought back to a girl I had worked with during my psych rotation of nursing school. She started out as bright, smart, cheerful, healthy and happy. After a weekend visit to her father, she was found abandoned and huddled in a little ball. No one knows exactly what happened to her. They suspected some extreme abuse, but she never came out of the secret world that she had run away to. I observed her more than a dozen years after the incident and she was still rocking and hiding somewhere else, only emerging occasionally to scream. This is obviously an extreme example, but I think that it holds true. Children can become so crippled by fear and stress that they don't learn. Afraid of failure and disapproval they often hide away within themselves, away from the unpleasant stimulus that they can't bear.
 Another method that he speaks against is tricks and formulas. I remember as a student being bothered by formulas. They didn't tell me why I was getting the answer I was getting. And when I would I ask why, my teachers would be annoyed and generally tell me in an exasperated manner, that's just the way it is. As a result I forgot most algebra as soon as I possibly could. No one could ever tell me where these answers were coming from, I was just manipulating numbers. The "right answers" were not relevant to me, so I didn't retain it.
 This book makes me resolved to be a better teacher of my own children. I want them to love learning. To do so, I can't push them into learning the things that I feel are important. If my daughter wants to learn about bears or bugs, I've got to run wear her curiosity takes us. And when it comes to things like math and reading, the essentials, I've got to apply things in ways that make sense to her and never give her the answer "That's just the way that it is."  or "because I say so."  When I don't know an answer, I must admit it and try to find it. She is and is becoming an intelligent person, and I must treat her as such. I must teach her that it is ok to fail, we just need to learn from our mistakes. So many people don't try because then they can use the excuse 'I didn't do well because I didn't try'. But if they put forth their best efforts and still fail, then how do they face their peers? Now I think to a great extent, all of us want our children to love learning, but effectively kindling that love in them is much easier said than done.

What To Do With Your Expired Coupons

So I had heard before that expired coupons can be used by military families stationed overseas for 6 months after their expiration date. However, I could never find out how to get them to them. I did a little searching on-line, but no where could I find a place to mail my growing mountain of expired coupons. This past weekend I finally stumbled upon the answer:

You can send your expired coupons to U.S. military bases around the world. The coupons are placed in various common areas throughout each base and families can use them for up to 6 months after they expire! We have family friends currently stationed in England who have confirmed to us that the coupons really do make it into the hands of the military families and are valued and appreciated.
For over 17 years, the Overseas Coupon Program has facilitated the transfer of coupons to U.S. military bases. To sign up to send coupons, just visit the website, and click on Base List to browse the list of bases that you can mail your coupons to. After you choose a base, send an email to adoptions@ocpnet.org to let them know you will be participating. You can find more details and information here. And since the packages ship to APO/AFO addresses, the cost to mail the coupons is the same as sending a card to Grandma in Texas. You can drop your coupons in the mail for the cost of a stamp or two and you will help our wonderful service men and women (and their families) at the same time!

Thanks Mama Cheaps for the great tip!

 How it works is you "adopt" an military base and you mail them coupons. That's it. They do ask that the coupons that you send are expired by no more than two months because it does take time for the organization to process, organize and distribute them. So instead of just throwing away those old coupons, why not help someone else out? And really I feel like it is the very least I can do for the families of those in military service. I am grateful for all that they sacrifice.

Meatless Mondays

When perusing Skinny Bovine Kitchen I came across a link to Meatless Monday. Their goal is to get people to reduce meat consumption to improve personal health and the health of our planet. Hoorays! I can't go full vegetarian, but I can go meatless once a week. Here's a great quote from their site.
"Going meatless once a week may reduce your risk of chronic preventable conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. It can also help reduce your carbon footprint and save precious resources like fresh water and fossil fuel."
 So for the past couple weeks we've gone meatless on Mondays. One week we had Black Bean and Mushroom Burgers and last week we had Creamy Tomato Basil Soup with Garlic Knots. I nabbed the garlic knot recipe from Skinny Bovine, and I have to say it was a big hit in my house. It went perfect with my tomato soup which I will share below.Tonight I'm going to try burritos with my own refried beans. I'll let you know how that goes.
 Once I had a terrible experience at the Olive Garden and was determined never to go their again, (which rule didn't last that long) however, I was very much in love with their Creamy Tomato Basil Soup. So I decided to make it myself. After some internet searching I found a copycat recipe that had 75% of your  RDA of saturated fat for the day in one small serving. Yikes! So I cut out the butter and cream, experimented with it several times over the last few years and finally came up with this recipe. My husband hates tomato soup, but he readily eats this and every time I take the leftovers to work I get comments about how great it smells. I will admit that it doesn't taste quite as good as the recipe with butter and cream, but it is still very satisfying. Plus, it's easy to make.

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup
2 cans of diced tomatoes
1 large red onion
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 can of 2% evaporated milk (or you can make it from nonfat powdered milk)
2 cups of chicken stock
1 tsp of sugar
1 package of fresh basil (I have used 1 Tablespoon of dried basil before, but it's not nearly as good)

1. Finely chop onion and saute in a soup pot with olive oil. When onion is clear transfer to blender with a can of tomatoes (not drained). 2. Puree onion and tomatoes and return to pot. Puree second can of tomatoes  with basil and add to pot. (I found that if you try to puree both cans of tomatoes at once you will most often have a large mess. I've also tried fore-going the puree step. It is worth the hassle, because it really gives you a smooth creamy texture.) 3. Add milk, sugar and chicken stock. Stir until heated all the way through.

Book Review: The Essential Mormon Cookbook

I received The Essential Mormon Cookbook: Green Jell-O, Funeral Potatoes, and Other Secret Combinations by Julie Badger Jensen as a wedding gift and in the years since then it has served me well. I find it amusing that so many times I have found a "new" great recipe in a cooking magazine, at a church function or from a neighbor and as it turns out the same or nearly identical recipe  to what was in this book all along. It's like this woman has been to every LDS ward function everywhere and taken note of all the good stuff.
 I love this quote from the intro "Written to gladden the heart, this book is meant to strengthen families and friendships and to encourage and inspire both new and seasoned cooks with confidence in their own abilities and creativity and to celebrate the good things which come of the earth..." Yes, that is what I believe cooking should be about! There are lots of great recipes in here, however I will put in the disclaimer that many of them are not what I would consider "healthy" or "low-fat". More like "comfort food". (But not all are like that.) A favorite recipe from this book that has been a hit with even some very picky eaters, is one that I've come across in at least four other places. That means it has to be good right? I changed it in that I put in the crock pot, because I love my crock pot. It makes my life easier.

Apricot Chicken
4-5 lbs of chicken (You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts, drumsticks, whatever you like)
1 cup of Russian dressing
1 cup of apricot jam
1 package dry onion soup mix
1. Combine last three ingredients in a bowl.2. Put all ingredients in a crock pot. Cook on low for 4 hours.3. Serve with brown rice. Serves 8.
If you don't want to make this in the crock pot you can bake uncovered in a casserole pan @ 350 degrees for one hour. I generally only make this when someone comes over because it makes way more than my little family can eat.

Why You Should Probably Be Taking a Prenatal Vitamin Even If You Aren't Pregnant

The process of growing and breastfeeding a child for six months sucks out 5 years worth of nutrition from your body. This means that if you are not supplementing your diet while pregnant and/or breastfeeding your body will remove mineral and other nutrition stores from your body in order to create/ feed that little bundle of joy. Your body will actually take calcium from your bones and give it to your baby. This is one of the reasons women are more likely to suffer from bone loss. (There also another  bigger and more complex explanation that has to do with estrogen, but I won't get into that.) So if you plan on having a child in the next five years, or even if you have had a child in the past few years, you need to build (or rebuild) those nutrient stores by taking a vitamin. (This is a tidbit that I didn't learn until I had to start teaching it to people,  and is a good reminder for myself because I haven't been good about taking them lately.)

If you're pregnant or breastfeeding, prenatal vitamins are good for your baby. Taking a prenatal when pregnant drastically reduces your risk of having a child with birth defects. The problem with prenatal vitamins is that for many women the iron in them has a tendency to make pregnant women nauseated. When I was pregnant with my son, every time I took a prenatal vitamin I started vomiting. There is a method of getting around this. If you take prenatal vitamin with a glass of milk, the protein in the milk decreases indigestion, and your body also when given the choice of calcium or iron, will choose calcium. It can't effectively absorb both at the same time. (There's a long explanation involving chemistry, but brevity I'll fore-go that one too.) The downside is that you're not getting the iron. (But that's better than throwing up all of it, right?) If you can't handle that go for the gummi vites and some folic acid.
 Other good reasons to take a prenatal vitamin: They make your hair and nails grow stronger, faster and healthier. I started taking a prenatal vitamin when I was fifteen for this very reason. (and I took them consistently until I got pregnant, the irony) Also, prenatal vitamins are super cheap. However, you should be forewarned that the iron can make you constipated, so make sure you are drinking plenty of water.

March Giveaway: Austenland by Shannon Hale

This book doesn't have much to do with the things that I normally blog about, other than it's a book. But it's an awesome book. One of my favorites, by one of my favorite authors. It's about a single woman in her 30's who inherits a trip to a Jane Austen-themed resort park. It's about her adventures there and her getting over her infatuation with the Collin Firth-Mr. Darcy. And it's hilarious. Sorry, that summary really didn't do it justice. Trust me you should read this book, especially if you are a fan of Jane Austen or the A&E Pride and Prejudice. (And PS I'm so excited for the upcoming sequel.) So, if you would like to enter to win become a follower and leave a comment on this post. The winner will be announced on April 1, 2010. You have until  March 31st to enter.

Easy Homemade Chicken Stock

I love soup. I eat it about once a week, spring, summer, winter and fall. (It's just something that MLM deals with.) I have a couple cookbooks devoted just to soup. And everywhere that I read says that to have really good soup you have to make your own chicken stock, which is a 8-10 hour process. I can just buy the canned stuff and deal with it. It occurred to me last week when I found myself with a chicken carcass, I may have better things to do than spend an entire day making chicken stock, but my crock pot doesn't! So I did some internet searching and compiled this recipe from a few I found using things that I had on hand. And it smelled sooooo good. This stuff is ridiculously cheap to make and is better for you than what you purchase in the store because lacks the salt and preservatives.

 Easy Chicken Stock
1 whole chicken carcass
4 large carrots chopped into quarters
1/2 bunch of celery into quarters
1 onion, quartered
1 twig of fresh rosemary
3 cloves of garlic chopped
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 lemon, sliced
6-8 cups of water (Depending on the size of your chicken, you want it to be just covered with water.)

Put everything in the crock pot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Remove stoneware from pot and cool. Pour through a large colander into a bowl. Voila! Chicken stock. If you're feeling ambitious (and I was), you can take a few of the cooked vegetables and blend them with a 1/4 cup of chicken stock, then pour and mix it back into the big batch. (My family can use every vegetable I can sneak to them.) Pour it into plastic containers and freeze for later use.