Easy Greek Bowls Recipe
What are your favorite ingredients for easy Greek Bowls? Amid a busy season and party food, sometimes you just need a healthy recipe like Easy Greek Bowls. It also makes a good meal to take to a friend because it isn’t lasagna and can be prepped ahead for the mealtrain. My favorite ingredients are the tzatziki sauce and the kalamata olives! Whether you are a busy teacher, a tutor who works afternoons, a stay at home mom, or a single professional, here’s my recipe for Greek bowls. The meatballs can be made ahead and stored in the fridge or freezer. To serve, warm the meatballs and rice and top with the rest of the Greek bowl ingredients. This also makes it super easy to double and take to a friend. Greek Meatballs: (serves 4-6 people) 1-1.5 lb of lean ground turkey ½-¾ c grated zucchini, squeezed 1-2 tbsp minced garlic ¼ c minced red onion 1 tbsp dried oregano ½-¾ tsp each, salt and pepper ⅓ c crumbled feta (skip if you are dairy free, I like goat feta) ½ tsp lemon juice Preheat oven to 375*. Stir ingredients to combine. Use an ice cream scoop or your hands to…
Thanksgiving Logic Puzzle
What activities have you planned for Thanksgiving day? Around the kitchen table or classroom, this Thanksgiving logic puzzle will whet your appetite for food and fun during the holiday. Grid puzzles require critical thinking skills to determine the relationship between people, places, and things based on the clues given. This “print and go” PDF contains two versions of the same puzzle (easy and medium), a completion celebration sign, and an answer key. Work individually or in teams against the clock. This Thanksgiving logic puzzle is ideal for ages 10-100. Download and print a few copies of pages 3 and 4 for your classroom, your dinner table, or your Thanksgiving celebration. Take a photo and tag me on social media. @tailorjoy #tailorjoylogicpuzzles How to solve logic puzzles If you have never solved a logic grid puzzle and you need a visual explanation, here’s a simple video. The same concept is used to solve bigger puzzles. Typically you have a set of clues to read through and a grid with categories to mark your answers on. Use the clues and logical deduction to solve the puzzle. It may take a few times through for the clues to be useful so keep reading…
Thankful Tree in 4 easy steps
What are you thankful for today? A thankful tree is a great way to decorate for Thanksgiving and an interactive activity that lasts the whole month. Over the years we have had several different thankful trees. Here’s a picture of the start of one. We usually leave it up until we put up the Christmas tree. Anyone that comes into the house in November gets asked to add a leaf to the tree. Here are 4 easy steps to make your own thankful tree. 1. Gather a base for your tree It can be sticks, a tree branch, or even a few branches from your artificial Christmas tree. Put them in a jar or container. You might need to rubberband the base or add in some rocks for weight. 2. Get some leaves You can order colored paper leaves, buy them at the craft store, cut them out of construction paper, or gather fresh ones in your yard. Punch holes in them and add some string for hanging. I have shared a link below. 3. Select pens Your pen selection will be determined by what kind of leaves you choose to use. Test it out by writing what you are…
Influence of Adoptive Parents
Who influences your image of who you are? Adoptive parents know the feeling of lavishing love on a chosen child before the child can even love them back. Words, like loved, chosen, and adopted, have a sweet ring to them. Families who have experienced earthly adoption connect with this language and concept of being adopted much easier than those of us who just observe it from the outside. Adoption involves sacrifice, expenses, sorrow, blessings, assurance, and joy. It’s a beautiful metaphor for the Christian faith. There are many blessings bestowed by God on His children. We are loved, chosen, adopted, forgiven, alive, and so much more. We are God’s masterpiece! The book of Ephesians, in the Bible, is full of truth and rich with the privileges of being a child of God. Our worth is defined by how God sees us, not how the world sees us or how we feel about ourselves. Christians describe this as being adopted into God’s family. By faith, we become children of God with all the rights and privileges of being His child. This isn’t just a future blessing when we die and go to Heaven, it starts immediately. I get a smile on…
Book Review: Everything No One Tells You About Parenting a Disabled Child
What do you wish you knew about parenting a disabled child? Parenting a disabled child is a daunting task, and author and advocate Kelly Coleman turned her experience into a disability resource book so that other parents and caregivers would have access to explanations and resources that make navigating the systems a bit smoother. This newly published book Everything No One Tells You About Parenting a Disabled Child – Your Guide to the Essential Systems, Services, and Supports is an incredible resource for parents and caregivers. Schools, medical offices, and therapy clinics should have a copy of this in the lobby. Not only is it helpful to parents, but it gives others insight into the struggle and loneliness families feel when navigating systems and services. No parent ever thinks they will be there, but if you are, you are not alone in the journey. No matter where you are in your journey, this book is a roadmap and a comfort to find you are not alone. As a teacher and tutor, this book gave me talking points to use with clients as I help them understand what an IEP meeting looks like and how to advocate for their child at…
5 Fall Activities for Families
What have you put on the calendar for fun fall activities? Here are some fun and educational fall activities to try at home that will build memories during pumpkin spice season. As the leaves are beginning to turn colors and the rhymes of school are settling into our communities, it’s time to make a list of less caffeinated ways to spend time with the kids. Leaf hunt Make an afternoon walk or yard work more fun by hunting for beautiful or unique fall leaves. You can trace the leaves, make a leaf art rubbing, or make a graph of the colors/types of leaves you collected. These activities are customizable from PreK to high school. You could identify native trees in your neighborhood or discuss photosynthesis. I bet you are already thinking of variations you can try. Comment below to let me know how you modified or used these ideas. Cooking lesson Cooking is a tasty educational activity, especially when fall spices are involved. You can involve the younger years by helping mix premeasured ingredients, involve reluctant readers by handing them the recipe to read aloud, teach fractions to elementary age, or engage the launching years by having them find a…
Overcoming Learning Challenges: 4 Strategies for Parents and Tutors
Is it better to avoid distractions or learn to deal with them? Not seeing joy in your child’s education because of learning challenges, grumpy attitudes, and lack of confidence? Here are 4 strategies for parents and tutors to help children with overcoming learning challenges. Much of the application of these strategies comes from talking over the changes, context, and benefits of the strategies instead of just giving a list of rules. For the younger years, parents should take the lead in setting up expectations for learning. For the middle years, parents and students should talk about options and expectations. For the launching years, students should take the lead if they have shown the maturity and self-discipline to complete tasks. If not, parents and students should discuss expectations and problem-solve learning challenges together. Establish study routines Whether your child does homework right away or not until after dinner, establish study routines. Talk about options for locations. Is the kitchen table a good fit or too distracting? Is the bedroom desk a good fit or too removed for accountability? Talk about establishing time routines to work on homework, do daily reading, organize papers, and study over notes taken in class. Talk about…
3 Easy Tips For Reading Picture Books With Children
What picture book could be enjoyed by all ages? I love a good picture book discussion with little kids, big kids, and grandkids! Megan Dowd Lambert, in her book Reading Picture Books with Children: How to Shake up Storytime and Get Kids Talking About What They See, explains The Whole Book Approach to reading picture books with children through examples, tips, and stories of her own journey. It’s a phenomenal resource for parents, teachers, tutors, speech therapists, artists, and librarians that will turn your storytime into a picture book playground. I happened upon this book while browsing the “new book” section at the library. Surprisingly it is not a new publication, but I have been delighted with the find and immediately added it to my educational resource list for my tutoring business. I also knew I would write about it in my newsletter. It’s fine to read a book cover to cover and enjoy the story, but it’s a much richer experience to read and discuss the text, the art, and the book layout. Along with teaching the reader about all the parts of a book, from the jackets to gutters to endpapers, Lambert addresses the importance and steadfastness of…
5 Reasons to Hire a Private Tutor
What is the best benefit when you hire a private tutor? Tired of the lack of harmony at home when it comes to homework time? Hire a private tutor! Not seeing joy in your child’s educational experience? Hire a private tutor. Private tutors do more than just help a child who is failing a course. Tutors help students improve grades, manage workload, strengthen academic and critical thinking skills, reduce stress, and cultivate a healthy attitude about education. All of these help a student to gain confidence at school and at home, ensuring they are prepared for the next grade and beyond. One-on-one personalized educational attention is the primary reason to hire a private tutor. There are big companies like Huntington Learning Centers that provide tutoring or private tutors running small businesses like mine. Some of us are retired certified teachers who love what we do and want to keep on helping students! Sometimes a child needs tutoring for a semester and sometimes for their whole academic career. Those who see the value in tutoring become adept at telling me what they need help with. I love hearing stories about how they later use free campus tutoring in college or go…
10 Necessities to Pack for the ER
What one item would you grab on the way to the hospital? Whether you get the phone call that a family member is headed to the hospital emergency room (ER) or awaken to discover an urgent situation, it can be overwhelming to think about all the immediate tasks, including what to pack for the ER. Clearly, the patient is the number one priority over grabbing a phone charger, but if you have time to pack a bag, here’s a list of 10 necessities to pack for the ER and a few niceties too. Necessities to Grab on the Way to the ER – If You Have Time Phone charger Hearing aid charger or extra batteries Phone Hearing aids, eyeglasses ID and insurance cards List of medications and allergies Emergency contact numbers Book or tablet Comfort items for kids or adults Puzzle books or coloring books If Overnight, Add: Extra underwear or change of clothes Bathroom bag with toothbrush, hairbrush, chapstick, etc. Bathrobe and slippers If possible, leave jewelry and valuables at home or with family POV: Your quiet morning has taken an unexpected turn. As a caregiver, you grab some clothes from your closet and wonder whether you will be…