Week 33 & 34 - Battles, Fishing, Chickens, and More Spring Goodness

What a crazy busy two weeks!!   I don't think we have stayed home all day even once.  The weather has been nice and we've had places to go! 

The one rainy day we did have, we took a trip to our local Bass Pro Shop.  Every Wednesday at noon they feed the fish in their big tank and give a little talk about the different types of fish and what they eat.  Then the kids (or anyone that is interested) can help feed the fish in the side tanks.  They have turtles and several varieties of fish including an albino fish of some sort.  (He told us all the name of the fish, and I bet the kids remember a whole lot more than mom does!)  I was proud of Big K and Little E, they weren't even the littlest  bit squirmish about feeding live worms to the fish!

We've also been finishing up learning about the Revolutionary War.  We finished our map which included several important battles of the war and then we took a special field trip to a local cemetery where there were several soldiers from the Revolutionary War buried!  After a lot of help from the staff, we found two grave sites and did grave rubbings.  The grounds of the cemetery were gorgeous, and it was one of those perfect spring days, so we spent most of the days wandering around looking at the flowers and trees and even had a picnic with some surprise visitors!

 

Afterwards, we came home and decided to research one of the men we visited in the cemetery - Col. Oliver Spencer.  We practiced our researching skills to track down who the man was, and how he ended up in Cincinnati.  It was a great way to make history personal!  

 

 I forgot to mention in one of the past entries that we are babysitting some chickens!  A fellow homeschool family had a whole flock of little chicks and let us take two home to watch for a month as they grew.  And boy have they grown!  Big K is responsible for getting them food and water as well as cleaning on their cage and spending time handling them.  And I think this experience, as awesome as it has been, has made Big K decide being a farmer is NOT in his future!  It has been a great learning process though!

We also had the chance to spend one afternoon at the park with several other homeschool families geocaching!  We had a great time tracking down several caches (although our group wasn't exactly discrete like you are supposed to be!).  And there was plenty of time for exploring as well.  Little E found some awesome rocks and even some fossils! And Big K spotted a deer skull in the woods! 

And what week would be complete without a trip to the library?  This week was extra special since it was Tail Waggin Tutors day!  We have really gotten to know the dogs and their owners this year, and it has been fun visiting them every month to read!  Even Little E got in on the reading action this time!

And with all of that, we still had time to just enjoy the outdoors.  The spring weather has been beautiful and completely conducive for LOTS of park time!  The park in our neighborhood is going through a renovation and the kids have really enjoyed watching the big machines work to reroute the creek and play on the rocks after hours!  And Baby W has grown REALLY fond of the swings!

Our end of the year assessments are coming up a the end of the month, and we are working hard to put together our final portfolio for the year!  Looking back it really feels like we accomplished a lot, and gives me a great idea on what we need to keep working on!  We plan on schooling year-round though, so just because we are "officially" done and signed off on for 1st grade doesn't mean we will stop learning! 

Happy Learning,
Momma C

Week 32 - War and Spring

This week most of the local schools were on spring break, but it sure didn't feel like spring to us!  Not all week at least!  We kicked off our week by attending a field trip to Granny's Garden School.  It is an organization that maintains several garden areas at a local elementary school.  We went on a nature walk, complete with binoculars to see several bird nests and even found a fossil in the little creek on the property!  We also had a chance to learn about seeds and plant some in their garden - our group planted peas, kohlrabi, and radishes and then search for bugs in the soil.  It was a chilly day to be outside, but that didn't stop us from having fun! 

The rest of the week was spent learning a little more about the Revolutionary War. We've been doing  a lot of reading about one of the most important players in our early American History - George Washington.  We spent one day learning about the Battle of Trenton and studied the painting of Washington Crossing the Delaware.  We also did a writing activity thinking of what we would do if we were going to create our own country.  Big K decided he would call his "Republic of the Cheerio".  I think he was feeling extra silly that day. 

Although the weather hasn't fully decided it is spring, we did spend a lot of time outdoors this week!  One of the most exciting things we have noticed is that our local city park is changing.  There are tons of heavy equipment being used to modify the creek bed to reroute the water.  According to one of the workers we talked to, they are making the space more accessible and safer for children and it should be able to house wildlife!  The possible science lessons are already bubbling up inside of me!  And the kids have really enjoyed walking down to the park to see the machines in action!

Happy Learning,
Momma C