Today I've mostly bin...

[giraffe]

Less than a year until Kingsley is of driving age (as she keeps reminding us!)

[Bunnylump]

I'll tell you what, Giraffe, it's ABSOLUTELY nerve wracking when they first take you out in the car!! I got told off for "wincing" every time she drove to close to something....

[Cenwulf]

Interesting to hear that the Bunny is only now getting round to baking the festive fruitcake.
Mine's been made for almost a month: to give it time to mature, we usually make sure it's been done before my brother's birthday in early November. It's the same recipe we've been using for years, dating back to the early 1970's. It's not for the teetotal - the fruit is soaked in rum overnight, sweet sherry is added in the mixing and the day after it's baked it is 'fed' with a few tablespoons of brandy.

[Bunnylump]

I used to be more organised, when I wasn't working so many hours (and clearing out Mum's house and foolishly listening to Scurra when he asks me to write puzzles... ) It'll still be a damn fine cake, even if I say so myself. The big shame is that it's traditional for my son to go round to my Mum's and make her special recipe Christmas pudding. Mind you, I'll just have to make my husband make Cloo'y dumpling instead.

[giraffe]

I'll tell you what, Giraffe, it's ABSOLUTELY nerve wracking when they first take you out in the car!! I got told off for "wincing" every time she drove to close to something....

I'm less worried about her than Fernando. She must be fairly co-ordinated with hands and feet from playing the piano and is fairly cautious by nature. He might be far more reckless. My mother taught me to drive and she took me to a completely deserted absolutely straight road for the first few lessons, and wouldn't let me out of second gear.

[Laura]

My driving instructor said that it helped having played the piano. You were used to co-ordinating your hands and feet, and having to think about the next thing while still doing the previous thing, and reading the road signs while still managing to drive in a straight line. It's very similar. It's all about taking in and interpreting visual information, and then responding in the correct way (hopefully).

It doesn't mean you'll be any good at reversing round corners though.

[giraffe]

That's what worries me. I've seen F play the piano!

[LAT]

Oh my daughter only learnt because she really needs to drive to get to her new job. Public transport involves a 15 ish minute walk into town, half an hour on the bus and then a 20 minute walk down a country lane.
She's been lucky so far though as since her first morning (when someone stopped and picked her up after she got off the bus) she has been given lifts virtually every day.

Cambridge is not the best place to have a car and she has been perfectly content with her bike (or walking) up to now but decided the time was right to learn. At least now she can offer some lifts in return for all those she has had from her colleagues.

My son had one set of lessons and thinks he will go on one of those intensive courses next. But has yet to get around to booking it. But to be fair he doesn't really need to drive so there is no rush.

[Bunnylump]

My son announced that he wanted to do a "crash course" in driving. I just hope that's not literal...

[LAT]

I tried very carefully not to call it that!

[MBH]

My Dad taught me to drive (almost 30 years ago --- WOW ) and it is amazing how many memories I have about the things he taught me. Lots of things I still use today in all walks of life.

I'd been teching people computers for some time before I realized how his essence of 'over teaching' had affected me. "If you can do this then nothing on your test will phase you!"

For hill starts he took me on the banks down to North Shields fish quay - looks like about a 1-in-1 decent but probably isn't. Once I had the hang of the hill start, he took me down one particular bank and just past a factory gate that had a bit of roadway coming out to join the road. Totally casually he said he wanted me to reverse up and round the corner to the gate.

Practiced a few times and he declared the hill start AND the reverse around corners "taken care of" Then he found a road just the right width that the best he could do was a 7-point turn (without bouncing the wheels off the curb). Oddly enough th 3-point turn on the test was easy

He also taught me to read the road, and think for every other idiot I could see - driver or pedestrian. Mind you, long before that, I'd learned road-craft as a bycicle rider when I was regularly reminded that a bike is for the ROAD, not the pavement. Somehow I don't think kids these days are doing the same ground-work

How does all this relate to my teaching? While always keeping things FUN, I taught them far more than they need for the exam (although everything I taught would be good for 'real life' rather than getting a tick in the box). If the exam needed the heading in bold - I created exercises that made 3 or 4 things bold and have the heading change size and colour as well. That sort of thing.


Back to the driving - I didn't realize that my piano playing may have helped with transferrable skills. Interesting.

That's what worries me. I've seen F play the piano!

Thinking about who you may be comparing the poor lad to, I'm not necessarily reading this as a serious criticism He could probably wipe the floor with most of us.

[Bunnylump]

I'm thinking of getting my daughter's boyfriend insured on my Mum's car for a couple of weeks at Christmas when my son is back from uni. There's NO WAY I'm teaching him to drive (he'd think he knew better than me!!) and I just KNOW he'd clash with my husband in that situation. On the other hand, my daughter's boyfriend is a) a very good driver and b) my son would LISTEN to him!! MBH, it sounds like your Dad not only had his head screwed on the right way round, but was also a great Dad! I can see where YOU are coming from - and for your lovely calm and caring nature we must thank your Dad, it seems!

[giraffe]

Thinking about who you may be comparing the poor lad to, I'm not necessarily reading this as a serious criticism He could probably wipe the floor with most of us.

No seriously! Listening to him play the piano was like watching a car crash. Everything completely out of control and a disaster waiting to happen around the next corner!

[eirian]

think I'd better refrain from making a comment about piano playing, driving and Scurra....

[Bunnylump]

Oh go on...

[Laura]

Today I've bin trying to write a letter to my Brownie parents explaining the complete chaos of the next few weeks. We're not meeting on the nights we usually are, in the places we usually are, for the lengths of time we usually are, wearing normal uniform for some things and not for others. Sometimes they need to bring money and others they don't. Some, they need to bring a form back before the event, others to the event. If we get to new year without losing any of them, it'll be a blooming miracle!

[clvrlad]

think I'd better refrain from making a comment about piano playing, driving and Scurra....

I think that says everything we need to know

If we get to new year without losing any of them, it'll be a blooming miracle!

just remember to count them all on and off the minibus
btw why not have every permission slip be due the b4 the event?

[Bunnylump]

Oh dear, Laura, that all sounds rather complicated!! I have to say that I always have a few palpitations during school trips, thinking I've lost kids!! I've never ACTUALLY lost any, even if there are some of them I'd quite LIKE to lose...

[Laura]

We can't have reply slips back before the event, because there are no more meetings before the events, and bringing reply slips to one event for a different event is far too complicated. And I didn't organise these events, so its not my fault we only have a weeks' notice.

[MBH]

Today I've bin trying to write a letter to my Brownie parents explaining the complete chaos of the next few weeks.

Sounds like a good excuse for an 'activity'. Pull together a cheap & cheerful raw calendar (Word, or Publisher) with all of the activites and details marked on - print it out for all the 'girls' - then get them to design and decorate the edges so they can take it home and display it.

Putting it into words in a letter depends on people's reading and data processing abilities - a box on the calendar saying "Take Slip Now for Saturday" or "Money Tonight £x.xx" is a lot easier on the eye.

Just a thought