Adventures with animals

Yesterday we went to Massachusetts to visit my Mother. There was a festival in her town and much fun was had by all. We saw many demonstrations, vendors and displays. The thing my kids liked the best was a presentation by a company called Animal Adventures. There were snakes, a blue tongued skink, a tortoise, an alligator, a giant rabbit, a chinchilla and I forget if there was something else. The speaker was very good giving good info about each animal and having children participate in the demos.

Below, Colin pats an alligator.

Hayley helps to hold a HUGE snake!

Tristan helps a chinchilla show what great balance it has!

It was a really great presentation and we'd love to see more of their shows in the future. They put on a variety of different shows or can schedule presentations for groups based around certain themes or animals. I liked that a lot of the animals were rescued, basically from people who'd gotten in over their head with an exotic pet. The animals now live in a place where they can be cared for and can help teach kids about their species!

As it was such a busy day we headed home late. We stopped at a "bullfrog pond" which is about halfway between Mom's and our house. It was quite late in the day though and no frogs or tadpoles were spotted.


Colin was hoping to catch a couple more bullfrog tadpoles to raise, we had such fun with some last year. It was not to be today though, maybe next time.

Raising Freeze, Freeze encounters a window

Freeze may look innocent.....

I don't have pictures of the incident but in the attempt at full disclosure about Raising Freeze ('cause we'll laugh about it later) I must document one of Freeze's latest escapades.

There was a fly in the living room. Freeze wanted to catch the fly. The fly flew towards the window which was slightly open. Freeze jumped over the couch towards the same window.

The fly made it out.

Freeze jumped at the window and it broke into a zillion pieces.

Clearly Freeze thought that if the fly could fly out so could he. He missed the part that he is much larger than the fly.

Thankfully Freeze wasn't hurt even a bit and all the glass went outdoors so clean up was easier. Also thankfully it was one of the "older" windows in the house not a newer one.

So now we have yet another "Raising Freeze" story. None of our other dogs has ever done anything like this!

Time with Tristan

My kids are close in age and there is a lot we have always done together in our homeschooling. Tristan as the youngest doesn't always remember some of the fun learning things and so this year I've been trying to make a conscious effort to spend special time with Tristan here and there.

For Tristan's phonics today we made fun and funny words and sentences using the reading rods (basically plastic connecting blocks with letters printed on them). We got word ideas from Usborne's First Thousand Words.

Later we made fruit roll ups snacks with a discovery science fruit snacks kit. Tristan loved this but oh my the fruit snacks came out so sour! You could use a fruit of choice and we picked natural applesauce but you add two drops of lemon concentrate (from the kit) to the mix. It is VERY strong lemon. Tristan of course wanted me to try the fruit snacks so I really had to (a Mother can't really say no!) and it was the most sour thing EVER.

I didn't get a picture of the mixing up of the fruit snacks but this is what they look like after 4 hours in the oven on a very low heat. All the fruit and liquid has evaporated down to a fruit roll up consistency.


Tristan shaped the fruit snacks and put surprises in some (popcorn, ROFLOL).


Yum, but sour!


I like it....mostly!

It was a fun day spending extra one on one time with Tristan.

Review CLE Math

As we wander towards the end of our homeschool year I'll be reviewing some of the materials we've used this year. I will start with CLE Math, otherwise known as Christian Light Education Math or Sunrise Mathematics, further information can be found here www.clp.org.

We tend not to use a lot of formal math in the early years here but as the kids get older that is changing. Last year I stumbled upon CLE's sunrise math when I was looking for something short and independent for Colin, my whirlwind child! He likes to know what must be done and then just do it when he's ready not wait for help. The CLE math was such a good fit for him that this year I tried it for Hayley and Tristan too. Trevor was working on pre-algebra topics with different materials so he didn't use the CLE. The levels we used this year were 3rd, 4th and 6th grade.

The first thing we like about CLE's sunrise math is that the lessons are a mix of topics. In one lesson you might find a real mix of math problems such as a multiplication table for the 3's some subtraction with regrouping, naming the points on a line, matching congruent shapes, a couple word problems, fractions or decimals problems and a speed drill of basic addition facts. If you or your child likes to work on just one topic until it's mastered this is not the math curriculum for you. If your child gets bored with a lot of repetition this one may be a good fit.

The next thing we like is that most of each days lesson can be done independently. The kids don't have to wait for me. There is usually a couple new things in each lesson (fully explained t the child right there in the lightunit) and then the rest is called " we remember", basically review. Then in the back of the book there is a short speed drill of one of the basic operations for each day. I usually go over the new material and then the kids complete the rest of the lesson alone. One of my children, Colin, likes to be timed for the speed drill so he usually gets me to time him when he gets to that point. (Hayley and Tristan prefer not to be timed, which is fine too, make the curriculum work for you don't be it's slave!).

The third thing we like is the small size of the workbooks. Ten workbooks make up a years work so one book only holds about 17 lessons. It's a very manageable size.

Lastly the cost is great, about $3.00 per light unit (workbook) and you can buy them a little at a time.

The thing we don't like as much is that the lessons seem a little long. They are used in classrooms as well so might be meant to take a certain amount of time. I prefer to keep math time to about 20 -30 minutes a day until high school. I must admit that I cross out some things almost every day so that the kids don't get overloaded. For instance if there is a 3 times table and then also a row of multiplying by 3's I will cross out one or the other section. If there is something I know the kids have totally mastered I often cross it out. If one of the kids is getting bogged down I ask to look at their light unit and see if it's gotten too repetitive and then I might skip them ahead a couple lessons.

In other words this seems to be a good fit for us, just a little long.

Colin and Hayley both plan to continue using math light units next year, Tristan on the other hand has mentioned that he'd prefer math on the computer so he probably won't use this math again or maybe just use it every so often.

One tip I would have is to try a single light unit if you're interested in this math. The "01 light unit of each set is a review of the prior years math (except for first grade) so you may want to try the '02 light unit 202, 302....

Another tip would be to try the placement test on CLE's website as apparently this curriculum has quite a different scope and sequence than many others. Your child may place higher or lower than you would expect but it's best to put them where they need to be not worry about the grade level.

Last tip would be that if you're buying used make sure you get Sunrise edition. Apparently CLE used alpha omega life pacs years ago and the scope and sequence is very different now. If it doesn't say Sunrise than you're getting an older product that doesn't have a lot of the same benefits that makes people like Sunrise math.

Frost advisory and Trevor's birthday

Woke up to a very chilly morning! There was a frost advisory and boy was it cold. Thankfully the day warmed up by about noon, not good to have freezing weather in late May!

It was Trevor's birthday, I've been a Mother for 15 years! We had a low key day since Trevor doesn't like change, celebrations tend to be full of change. No singing the birthday song, candles to blow out or friends over for this child. He just wanted pizza, ice cream and to play an old Star Wars PC game with his brothers all day. He never even opened his gifts, perhaps he will tomorrow. Autism is such a funny thing.

I helped Hayley practice the song This Land Is Your Land as the girls will be singing this at the Girl Scouts bridging ceremony next week. Hayley is bridging from Junior to Cadette.

One the day warmed up I sat outside for an hour or so reading a mystery and that's about it for the day.

we're going to watch it eat a bug

Only 9:00 AM and already the day is interesting. Hayley ran over and showed me a spider she had caught (it's name is Marty). Then the kids ran off saying now we're going to watch it eat a fly.


A Banner homeschool day.


No really, I think the best days are the ones where my kids are actively engaged in something they are interested in. (Except Media...my Kids will probably exclaim) Yes we all know mom (me) doesn't love kids in front of tv computer, game system for long periods of time.... and tries to limit it. I don't hate media I can envision some of my children in careers involving it. I just don't want it to be the biggest part of their childhood.


That's why Marty the Spider was a good start to the day not an unfortunate one. Well Marty might not feel the same.


Early on in our homeschool lives we all make choices. Will I be an unschooler or a school at home type? Will I use living books, hands on kits or computer curriculum, co-op classes or BJU. I personally would have been a literature based learner. I read and read and read and wanted to read instead of going to school. The first curriculum I chose to try was Sonlight, lots of great books! This learning style didn't fit my children, although I loved the books. Since then I'm pretty sure we've tried a little bit of everything. The best fit for us in younger days was anything hands on and plenty of free time. The best fit for us now seems to be a mix. As the kids have grown their goals, strengths and weaknesses have changed or become more apparent. Our homeschooling is very eclectic with some of it being videos and computer (yep media), some being living books, lots still being hands on, some workbooks, conversation and still plenty of free time.

I find that the best learning always, ALWAYS happens during that free time.

This is a reminder to myself as we head into the middle and high school years with the kids. Never bog them down, never give in to fears. No good ever comes of it when I overload them with work or try to copy a school like routine. They will learn what they need and will be happier doing it if they have time to play, dream and discover even now that they are all big kids.

Past week or so

We've been enjoying the spring weather which seems to take so long to arrive in New Hampshire. Getting outdoors a lot and even a couple real beach days last week with temperatures of 90F! Basically the past two weeks have been spent finishing up various homeschool work and projects. Getting to final or nearly final scout meetings for the year. Getting to the lake and other outdoor pursuits. Bike riding, walks, gardening, cleaning out the pool, setting the guinea pigs up for their outdoor summer accommodation... Also the big events of Tristan's birthday, getting ready for Trevor's upcoming birthday (next week) and Freeze our now one year old puppy (birthday last week- lots of spring birthdays here!) getting neutered. My camera is out of commission so most of the photos in this post are courtesy of Hayley (thanks, Hayley!). The ones we missed included:

90 degrees and at the beach, so fun.

Frenzied Freeze fiasco's-most recent went like this: Freeze escaped...again. Freeze ran down the road with Tristan in hot pursuit. Me shouting: Tristan don't run he thinks you're chasing him. Tristan not listening and making a dive for Freeze's leash. Tristan caught the leash and suddenly Freeze is dragging Tristan down the road. We are all now shouting Tristan LET GO. Tristan, while being dragged along the ground into someones driveway (a long way down the road BTW!) shouts back "no I've got him, I've got him". Tristan disappears down that persons driveway (being dragged). We wait not knowing how it all might turn out. Freeze suddenly appears and yes so does Tristan, still being dragged. (LET GO TRISTAN!) "I've got him, I've got him..."(NO he's got YOU!). Somehow they both end up back home none the worse for wear. Since it all turned out o that one would have been fun to have on film!

Have net will travel-Colin outside the place where Hayley has Girl Scouts (there happens to be a pond there)

He caught two frogs and I don't now what else.


Tristan waiting with Freeze right before the veterinarian took Freeze away to neuter.



Colin in the car with duct tape

you never now when you'll need duct tape!


While waiting for Freeze to be neutered we stayed in the town where the vet is located since it's an hour away from home. We decided to visit local parks.



The first seemed promising but the stream there was really polluted and not much was living there.



a bridge of sorts

This is a much bigger town than where we live and it seemed the parks were polluted both by trash and also run off from what appeared to be a corn field or other crops.

We all ended up with these sticky things on us!

Colin found what turned out to be a Dobson Fly larvae, creepy bug!

Hayley, photographer extraordinaire

We then headed to a second park where Colin found a frog.

The boys were fascinated by this plaque on a rock!

back at the vet to pick up Freeze Tristan begs to adopt this cat (we didn't).

Freeze-drowsy but happy to be going home.

Later in the week we head to the lake not quite warm enough to swim but a few days later it was.

We had to make sure Freeze didn't go in since he was still healing.

Then before we knew it, it was time to go back to the vet for a re-check.

Freeze got the all clear and was happy to have a swim on the way home. Unfortunately this swamp was not meant for swimming. hat fiasco is detailed on video in the post below.

Bonkers had come along for the ride this time and enjoyed the slide with Tristan.

Freeze, wet, smelly, happy.

Freeze goes to the park

Freeze had his neuter surgery last week. This week after his re-check (after all hedidn't need stitches out, he already took them out himself!) we took him to a park in the town where the Vet. is located. Unfortunately that park hasa smelly swamp and Freeze escaped his leash. Above is a video we made of the "event". After all who wouldn't want to remember driving an hour home with a massively smelly dog. The video was short but Freeze "enjoyed"the swamp and park for an hour before we could convince him to go home and have a bath!

Rocks and Minerals

We've been studying rocks and minerals. I tried to pull together a unit that would cover the Girl Scouts patch Rocks Rock and the cub scouts achievement Geologist.

To begin this unit study the kids started (or added to) rock collections. We worked on identifying some rocks by type (igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic) and also determined where they might fall on the hardness scale. We also examined the soil in our area.

We learned how rocks and minerals are used in building, in jewelry and other ways also rock use through history.

We discussed careers that have something to do with rocks and minerals.

We learned more about the weather and it's affect on the land. Volcanoes, earthquakes, other storms, erosion, freezing temps- frost heaves....

Looked online for aerial photos of the earth and landforms.

Draw pictures of volcanoes and label the parts

Researched the effect a volcanic eruption has on the surrounding area, people, plants, animals

Looked at various rocks under the microscope

Experiments included freezing bottles which were completely full of water to see the effects of freezing temperatures on the land (and roads). Making "fossil" imprints with plaster. Basically just made up a batch of plaster and the kids pressed leaves, rocks and such into the plaster, then let it dry. Removed the items when dry and notice the fossil like imprint.

Just for fun we made pet rocks.

Resources:

Videos:

Eyewitness Volcano

Eyewitness Rocks and Minerals

The videos were short, about 30 minutes each yet very good and full of information.

online

various including Google earth

Books

Junior Girl scout handbook

Webelos Cub scout handbook

Evan Moor Giant Science Resource book- earth science pages

DK Eyewitness Explorers Rocks and Minerals

DK Eyewitness books Rocks and Minerals

DK Eyewitness books Fossils

A Look Inside the Earth

Rock Collecting- Roma Gans

If You Find a Rock- Peggy Christian

There were a couple more about volcanoes and the earth but they've gone back to the library and the titles escape me.

Hayley, Colin, Tristan show off their fossils and pet rocks, Trevor didn't want to make a pet rock!

Colin's Critters

Spring means many things to many people but to Colin it means salamanders. He's always so happy to see them back after the long winter. He always keeps some for a day or more in various habitats. This year I helped Colin make a bigger habitat for his critters. He can keep things for a few days, release them and find new ones.

For some reason though Colin was feeling anti-photo this day and did everything to avoid my (well Hayley's mine is still broken) camera!




For the terrarium we used a 30 long aquarium that we already had. We bought 4 terrarium plants and some salamander and newt food and the rest came from the outdoors. soil, moss, rotting wood and some salamanders.



a red eft newt is peaking out from the moss below. Red eft's are by far the most common salamander we find around here. They are the juvenile stage of eastern newts. Colin's favorite color is orange so he loves these newts for their bright orange-red color. They are a very interesting creature to study.

The terrarium came out nicely and Colin has fun finding various salamanders to keep in it.

Girl Scouts and the Bronze Award

Today was a girl scout day. When my only girl was little I never thought of Girl Scouts as an activity she would likely do. Yet now she has been a girl scout for 5 years and has had a lot of fun with it. Hayley spent two years as Brownie in a homeschool troop, one year as a Brownie on her own (a Juliette) since the troop she was with ended and we couldn't find another. Then 2 years as a Junior Girl Scout with another homeschool troop. Next Hayley will become a Cadette Girl Scout. She bridges to the next level soon. Cadettes wear Khaki colored vests and work on harder requirements and projects. Most of the girls Hayley has been with for two years will be bridging to Cadettes as well. The time and place will remain the same. Not much will change except the vest color.

Hayley and Freeze heading home from Girl Scouts.

One of the things the leaders had the girls work on this year was a Bronze award project. This is the highest award a Junior Girl Scout can earn. The project needs to be fairly independent and must take at least 15 hours to complete. Hayley's project was to clean up the beach area at our nearby lake. There was a lot of ice storm damage and a lot to be done. After the project was complete there was a lengthy packet of forms for the girls to fill out (by themselves no leaders or parents could fill them out). I heard the girls talking and they all seemed to think filling out the forms was harder than their projects. LOL Basically they had to describe their project in depth and also make note of other girl scout patches and awards they had earned as Juniors. Some of these things were required before they could do their Bronze Award Project. Lastly we found out that the girls had to add a pretend interview about their project and a photo. We had only a day or two to do this because the forms needed to be signed off on by the leaders today. I think the interview came out pretty well. Below is the interview and photo Hayley used. I eliminated a few identifying details but this is almost unedited.

Interview with a Girl Scout

Hayley is a Junior Girl Scout who has been working on her Bronze Award Project. She chose to clean up a beach near her home. The beach had suffered much damage from last December’s ice storm.

Reporter: What gave you the idea for a beach clean up project?

Hayley- We live near this beach and when I walked with my dog there I noticed all the fallen branches in the handicapped parking spot. I realized that a handicapped person wouldn’t be able to park there and get to the beach easily. There were broken toys and trash all around the beach and the play area too and the rocks from the rock garden had washed away, it really needed to be cleaned up.

Reporter:
What was the hardest thing about this project?

Hayley-Moving broken tree branches, some of them were pretty big!

Reporter: Did you have any help with this project?

Hayley- Sometimes I worked alone like when I fixed the rock garden but sometimes my brothers were working on the beach clean up. They are cub scouts and were doing a service project too.

Reporter: What is your favorite thing to do at the beach?

Hayley- Playing with my puppy Freeze! I throw sticks in the water and he swims out to get them.

Reporter:
What would you say to other girl scouts thinking about their bronze award project?

Hayley- If you’re having a hard time thinking of a project, walk around areas near where you live. You may notice something that needs to be done in your area.

Photo: Hayley relaxes with her puppy, Freeze, who was a big help picking up sticks and even big branches at the lake!

No More Training Wheels!

Tristan has been reaching many milestones since getting his eyeglasses last year. The latest is that he can now ride his bike without training wheels! Colin has worked patiently with Tristan over the last couple weeks to this end. Bobby took Tristan down to one training wheel last week, removing one since Tristan didn't feel ready to have them both off. Suddenly 2 days ago, Tristan decided the other training wheel could come off- and off he goes! Tristan is now able to ride around fast with his siblings, no more training wheels slowing him down. It now makes sense why he couldn't seem to do some of these things before...he could not see well and felt unsafe!

Go Tristan!


I caught him riding with his ferret!


I mentioned that this was not safe and his ferret needed to stay with me.

Tristan said "we could get my ferret a helmet then he'll be safe". LOL


Off he goes! Freeze watching and wishing he was loose not harnessed!

Poppy watches too and she was on the loose. She is a very good dog and never tried to escape the house loose until she saw Freeze making a break for it. Now Poppy has tried to escape 3 times! She is 10 but has been having a second puppy hood I guess. We will keep working on Freeze's training and also retraining Poppy since there is a leash law in our town.

Speaking of Freeze he, took Colin's bike helmet! Ran off with it outdoors and now we can't find it. Colin's helmet does needed replacing as it is quite old and the design had worn off but still I didn't want it to run away before we got a new one! That Freeze is alternately a bundle of laughs and a bundle of trouble!

A fun day for kids and dogs.