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i am a stay-at-home mom living, learning and loving by the bay!I love to take pictures. I love to crochet cozy things for my family and friends.

May 31, 2009

Friday Fun!








We had a day of fun at the park on Friday. A friend called and said meet us there, so off we went, faerie dust and rain boots(no it wasn't raining, just fun to wear!) in tow. This park is filled with ogres, faeries, gnomes and other fantastical creatures! There are tree sprites and pixies, too! We were supposed to be cleaning house for a dinner guest later that night, but this was way more fun!




May 27, 2009

Sacajawea

Sacajawea and her son, Pompey


Story cube with the trail Lewis and Clark took with Sacajawea.

A beginning, middle, and end diorama.

Lewis and Clark met an indian chief with the most beautiful fur coat they had ever seen! They offered everything they had to trade for the fur coat, but the chief only wanted the blue beaded belt Sacajawea was wearing. Blue beads were very valuable and the chief would only trade the coat for the belt. So Sacajawea gave the belt with no complaint and the trade was made.

Goose decided to make Sacajawea's blue beaded belt out of sculpey and paint. It turned out great, don't you think? She has been wearing it out and about. Goose also did a venn diagram comparing herself to Sacajawea, a feelings report on how Sacajawea felt in the beginning, middle and end of the book with a short description and drawing. Unfortunately, I turned these in to her teacher yesterday so I can't post them. Goose really enjoyed reading and learning about Sacajawea and Lewis and Clark. I know she is quite impressed with Sacajawea's inner strength and survival skills. I know I certainly I am!





May 19, 2009

more M O O N

We had another great day studying our moon! These are sculpey beads we covered with glitter and made into necklaces according to the phases of the moon.

Very fun! And so stylish!

We also made our own moons with, yes, sculpey clay. After rolling them into a ball, we used marbles, erases on pencils, and tin foil balls to make craters. I really like the way these turned out!

We even looked at the makings of the moon. Did you know the dust that covers the surface of the moon is called regolith? Very fascinating stuff!

And our study would not be complete without a space suit for exploring the moon. Last week we joined some friends at our local space and science center and had a blast!! There has been so much fog at night we haven't seen the moon for several days.;( Maybe tonight will be better!





May 15, 2009

M O O N study

We have been studying our solar system and right now we are focusing on the moon! This book from the library is great!! A must read for young children.



Goose and Binky are starting a record of the moon's phases. Unfortunately, there was no moon last night!


These meteorites were perfect for impacting the flour moon we set up in the front yard.


Dropping the meteorites onto the moon's surface was the most fun!



And we finished with a moon phase mobile with cutouts of the crescent, quarter, gibbous, and full moon shapes covered in silver glitter. This lesson came to me out of nowhere yesterday and it was a lot of fun! I ended the day with a bedtime reading of "Papa, Please Get The Moon
For Me." Today we are going to make our own moons from Sculpey and read about its crust, mantles and core. I'm hoping to do a frontyard telescope viewing of the moon this weekend!





May 12, 2009

Leonardo Learning Station

I set up a Leonardo da Vinci learning station in a small corner of the house. Binky is fascinated by contraptions and the way things work. And Goose is fascinated with nature and art. And who better to learn from than Leonardo da Vinci! I got this idea from a small pamphlet at our charter school and I like the way it turned out!
I filled the table with Leonardo books, a nest, a statue, a wooden egg, driftwood, animal bones, some nature Sculpey imressions we made last year, some feathers...

...an ancient mini globe,


some stones, shells, and old coins. I filled the cupboard with crayons, pencils, a quill and ink, parchment paper, oil pastels, a measuring tape, wax for making little sculptures, a magnifying glass and a few other things. I am hoping to add some old, used clocks and other fun things to take apart. I am looking forward to seeing what the kids create and learn from this station!




May 8, 2009

Birthday Boy

Binky turned 7 today! He was born at 2:14am on May 8, 2002. How did he get so big?

His party is tomorrow night but we had a celebration of our own today! We went bowling! Binky even hit a strike!

We finished off the fun with some video games. We had a great time!!
Where did those 7 years go? Now he doesn't want me kissing him in front of anybody!
Happy Birthday to my brown-eyed boy, my love boy!!!!!!!
We love you more than we can say!



May 1, 2009

s i c k

We are sick with a cold! Trying to rest and heal our bodies. Not the best time to be sick! Happy to be homeschoolers in this crazy time! And we are at home! This crazy flu has hit the SF Bay Area and some schools have closed. This is the first time we have been sick since last year and even then only one kid had a very mild cold. All I can say is, wash your hands!! Whenever we leave the house, the moment we walk in the door, I remind everyone to wash their hands. What else can you do?! Hope to be back soon!