It's For the Birds

A pair of mated bald eagles is raising two eaglets in the U.S. National Arboretum, and we can see it all via the live cams that have been set up!  Now THIS is reality television I can get into!

In our little arboretum (i.e. our backyard), we're busy with birds, too.  We've made our own bird seed blend by picking and choosing through the bulk bins at the feed store -- we went with thistle and black sunflowers to woo our goldfinches back.  The chickens love the black sunflowers, too, so that's a bonus!

The hummingbird feeder has been washed and refilled with a new formula.  I have given up on the homemade versions.  It gets syrupy in the feeder and mildews quickly.

And I'm daily trying to unravel the mystery of who is pecking the chicken eggs and for what reason (for the love of Pete!).

{celebrating dailiness} Double-take

golden egg

Linus and I have seen lots of eggs.  We've seen a lot of the inside of the chicken coop.  But we had never seen the two together.  And we hadn't expected to yesterday!


Joining Amadna (@hello_alm) for #celebratingdailiness
See more on Instagram & Twitter!

Creatures in Our Kitchen

::  Triops have been around for 200 million years.
::  They are crustaceans.
::  They live in standing fresh water, mostly temporary rainwater pools & are rarely found in permanent water sources.
::  Eggs survive drying and freezing & hatch when pools refill with water.

We don't keep proper pets.  I'm wise to the whole "who will take care of the animals?" bit.  But, I feel we do need creatures around sometimes, of some sort at least.

We did a double your pleasure, double your fun life science extravaganza this spring.  Triops AND butterflies.  Our kitchen/nursery was a hotbed of hatching-emerging activity.  Wild times here.

I sure do love being a homeschooling family.  With a big chalkboard.  We kept track of what we were growing, when to feed, how much to feed, who was doing what.  Linus was first to run down to give us the triops count each morning (big ones sometimes eat little ones -- eek).  Sela tended to check on the butterflies on her morning stroll through the house.

Right now we have several mysteries we're working on.  One: what are those creatures that hatched in the tank that don't look like triops?  And, two: what should we feed these water creatures, now that we've run out of the food that came with the kit?  

We've now released our butterflies.  We watched all five little (dead-looking on arrival and often thereafter) caterpillars form chrysalides, but we only had the opportunity to see one butterfly emerge.  The others all did -- just not when we were awake.  Watching the process unfold was a really special experience -- I'm so pleased we did it.  Next time, I'd like to carry our adventure over into raising a second generation, as Shelli did.  You can read about it here.  Very inspiring!

Now I'm trying to figure out what other creatures would fit nicely with our offbeat-pet lifestyle.  Suggestions welcome. 

Project: Anything That Goes

What is Linus interested in?
Action.  Things that move.  Preferably, things he can make move.

That Santa -- he's a smart guy.  He brought a Thames & Kosmos Air + Water vehicle set for Christmas.  Boy, do they make some great sets!  (I imagine we'll have a few of these when it's all said and done.)

We've built a few of the models so far.  This was the "tank," and it got great reviews!

I love this activity as an illustration of how much (academic) learning is happening using a project-based learning approach.  And to be clear: this isn't the real point.  But I think it's worth noting.  He's just "playing."  He loves to make things go.

"I want to build this, Mama!"

"Where does this piece go?"

"Do we have two big circles?"

"If we snap all of these together they make a chain that connects the gears."

"I can do it!"

"We need a ruler!"

"Fifty pumps to make it go!"

"When I pump it, the water goes from this tank to this bottle."

"We need signs!"

Ordinary, Everyday {Amazing} Science

I think you know how much I love library book sales.  Last time, I bought seven great books of poetry for children.  Seven.  And, I was barely trying.  

In my delightful stack was a little book called Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman.  We didn't get to this one right away.  (Between you and me, I'm really not a bug-lover.  I fake it.  If my kids like them, great.  I can appreciate bugs in theory.  I love the beautiful photos that people take of them, the magnifications.  But, in real life, I'm okay with us each going our own separate ways.  You know?)  So, poetry book on bugs.  Probably great.  Probably really great for the kids to read and enjoy.  I was willing to come along for the ride.  But, seems I picked up the other new books first.

While later scanning the audiobook titles in the library proper I came across Joyful Noise again -- seemed like I really should try it.  We have a lot of car time.

It's... FANTASTIC.  I know that you're getting great book recommendations from lots of informed, well-read, interesting people out there.  I don't mean to add to your list.  But really -- I recommend this one so highly.  The poems are interesting and expressive.  They are beautifully recited.  It's informative!  (And John McDonough -- enough said.  Hearing him as Mr. Putter and Misty of Chincoteague's Grandpa Beebe makes this an especially easy sell.)

This same week, we mailed our collection for a nature exchange hosted by Mud Puddles to Meteors.  What a way to get into nature!  Again, I hate to be bossy (okay, I don't really), but do check out this site.  Find a way to participate that works for your family -- there are a lot of options.  And catch the next exchange when it happens.

 Aaaaand, we spent as many days of fall that we could at our favorite farm.  Open just one month every year, we go as many times as we possibly can.  We get to see baby animals of all kinds from almost the day they're born. We get to hold them and watch them grow and change.  We watch the chicks learn to fly, the puppies open their eyes.

So, where have I been lately?  Doing science with my two favorite lab partners.

(Did I happen to mention the fall tomatoes in our backyard?!  Yeah, science can be a tasty business, too!)

Here Comes Science Sampler: Dinosaurs!

I am a payyyyyy-leon-taaaaah-lo-giiiiist!
It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I aaaaaaam.
(Watch the video -- it's a jazzy song you just have to sing all day.  At least that's what we do.  It's Linus's favorite.  It's good, I promise.  Even if you don't love dinosaurs.)

We're back!!  The Here Comes Science Sampler is BACK!  Resurrecting a lot of things lately (no seasonal pun intended)!

We've read a lot of dinosaur books.  This is the best glossary we've unearthed -- hands down.  (Bonus: minimal number of pictures of bloody, fleshy predator-prey situations.  It is what it is, of course, but so many dinosaur fans are about 3 years old -- it's nice to have books that are enjoyable and less likely to cause this question to be asked at bedtime, "Mama, do predators come to our house?"  No, honey, they don't  <3 )

I could go on (and on and on and on) with good titles.  But, you can discover your favorites at the library.  The section is usually well marked.  Or, the carpet is worn in that patch, about the size of three-year-old feet.

If you like dinosaurs, why not:

put together little dinos? (Thank you, Michael's dollar section.)

 Or BIG dinos?

Or excavate dinos? (We ARE paleontologists.)

There's also Diggin' Dinos Monopoly Jr. and breadstick "bones."
We're starting some dioramas next.  Sela renamed them "dinoramas."  That cracked us up.

I'm actually really fascinated at this point, too.  How to hold the dinosaur phenomenon in one's head??  The geography of it, the climates, the concept of time, extinction.  The factoids.  For instance, the skull of the T. rex weighed... 750 pounds.  The brain of a stegasaurus... size of a walnut.  A creature that weighed 100 tons.  100. Tons.

It's good stuff!

There's Nothin' Like a Field Trip!

Sela asked me what "physics" was recently.  Well, my dear, it just so happens that we, Mamas, have been conspiring to take a field trip to talk about just that!  What better place to talk about physics than at the bowling alley?!  Dawn blogged the details better than I could -- check them out!  I'm just spreadin' the word about about how fun and fruitful field trips can be.

So, Sela's most recent question on the topic was (in a truly exasperated tone), "Ma-maaa!  When are you going to teach me PHYSICS?!"  This was funny for so many reasons: a) the phrasing; b) that she thinks I could actually; and c) because I had *just* nearly tripped over and tossed into the library bag an audiobook about Newton and his laws of motion!

We listened to it; we enjoyed it, even as it got complicated at parts.  I don't need for her (or me!) to understand all the nitty-gritty details.  We're interested -- and that's enough.  I've pulled out a couple physics experiment books I picked up at a library book sale, thinking we might be interested in exploring it some day.  So, it's some day.  Great!  I love living with curious people.

Check these out:
Isaac Newton and Physics for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities by Hollihan
Janice VanCleave's Physics for Every Kid by VanCleave

Nature Journaling

 

Even as I let summer be summer, ideas for fall percolated lazily behind the scenes.  How to strike a balance between time at home and time out doing activities and classes?  How to arrange our homeschooling so that there is balance between what each child needs?  What I need?  How to make sure there is plenty of time to just "be"?  What projects can we create to support learning?  What are my goals?  What are we not great at getting to & how can I make adjustments to this?

 

I live in a community of creative and engaged parents. I am so fortunate.  Over the years I've had the supreme pleasure of coordinating and joining rich learning groups.  This summer, I talked casually with a friend about writing.  What will writing look like this year?  What is each child ready for?  How would it work to put the children together to write?  We loved the idea of combining our shared interests.  She offered to organize nature journaling. 

 

It's been a huge success.  Sela is loving it.  She's worked on it every day since she started it.  She asked me it if would be all right for her to fill three journals this year, instead of one.  Yes, indeed -- that would be all right.  She's full of ideas and questions and plans.

 

 We bought a spiral-bound notebook at an art store and customized! We outfitted it with a ribbon for tying up, covered it with a bird-patterned paper, and on the inside, we added a vellum envelope for specimen collection.  (I knew those salvaged envelopes would be great for the right project!)  She LOVES it.  And I love to see her loving it.

 

We bought an inexpensive notepad for Linus & covered it. We added a vellum envelope and a rubberband closure -- just right for his little hands. He's enjoying the process, too. Here he had the idea to trace a branch he found!   

 

Journals, pencils, colored pencils, pastels, crayons, tape & sharpener in handy bags...

Lessons from My Garden: A Nest

Today's lesson:
Dreams come true!


I have always wanted a bird's nest in my very own yard.

Here Comes Science Sampler: Put It to the Test

Today's Song:  Put It to the Test
It's the Scientific Method!
It's Science Fair time.

  

are you sure that thing is true? or did someone just tell it to you?  
come up with a test

yeah, think of a test

 

Great books to make learning about & practicing the scientific method easy & fun:
Make it Work! Science Fair by World Book
Guide to More of the Best Science Fair Projects by VanCleave
Science Fair Success Secrets by Haduch
And these are just the ones I found at the most recent book sale for a dollar!  The library shelves are loaded.

 

if you want to know if it's the truth, then, my friend, you are going to need proof

come up with a test

yeah, you need a test

  

My advice: Don't wait for an Official science fair - just do it!  You can do them at breakfast, or set up experiments to explore more ideas.  They don't have to be hard.  Sela said to me, shocked and in disbelief, when I told her that some people think science fairs are a lot of work, "What?!  Science fairs are AWESOME!"  That's my girl.

More unsolicited advice: Organize a small science fair for a group of friends.

  

don't believe it 'cause they say it's so.  if it's not true, you have a right to know! 
put it to the test!

  

We all use the scientific method all the time & don't even realize it.

• What's my question?
• How can I test it?
• What do I think will happen?
• Test it out.
• What happened?
• What does it mean?

What will you test out next?

 

 

Here Comes Science Sampler: ROY G BIV

Today's Song:  ROY G BIV

First of all, Dress the Part (naturally).

Then... find something to do!

Read about it.

The Rainbow and You by E.C. Krupp
The Magic Schoolbus Makes a Rainbow by Cole
What Makes a Rainbow: A Magic Ribbon Book by Schwartz
A Rainbow of My Own by Freeman

Take your experiments outside. 
We used:
Exploratopia: More than 400 Kid-Friendly Experiments and Explorations for Curious Minds by Murphy

Barron's Science Wizardry for Kids
Experiments with Colors by Tocci

You can use whatever you have on your shelf, go to the library, or just use your favorite search engine for ideas.

Explore.

Discover.

Be amazed.

Play some games.

Start with Rainbow Sudoku

Make a rainbow maze.
(Try using drinking straws and 1-inch graph paper.)

Read some more.
A World of Colors: Seeing Colors in a New Way by National Geographic has us all WOW'd by its' simple and stunning exercises.

Be on the lookout for more related activites!

Have you ever noticed the rainbows on bubbles?

What else do you know about light and colors?

Ever been on a rainbow hunt?
How many creative ways can you play with color mixing?
Where would you hang a prism to make wondrous rainbows every day?

How about rainbow art?

How delicious can a rainbow be?

Just like the rainbow, there is *no end* to the possibilies.  There is, however,

...plenty of gold.

Here Comes Science: A Science Sampler

Do you know the cd Here Comes Science  by They Might Be Giants?  If you don't: you must!
In service of fun, science & education, we're going to work our way through it -- one science-y song at a time!  Now, this is a science curriculum.

Turn yours on & join us!
Stay tuned for our first selection...

"A scientific theory isn't just a hunch or guess--it's more like a question that's been put through a lot of tests."

"Science is reeeeeal..."

Knee Bone's Connected to the...

Halloween skeletons got us started on a really fun study of the body.  We started with bones.
Here's a little trivia to get you started -
1. How many bones do you have?
2. How many bones make up the skull?
3. Where is the smallest bone in your body?

We printed the template for the paper plate skeleton and used some really great books to discover the names of things.  We had a good time experimenting with the different kinds of joints we have -- sometimes it was downright humerous (hee hee)!

• The Search for the Missing Bones (Magic School Bus)
• The Human Body from Teacher Created Materials

From here, we've got big plans for experimenting, game playing, and art project making about all-things-body.  Well, maybe not all things.  But, you get my point.  Here are the books on deck for that:

• Adorable Wearables that Teach About the Human Body from Scholastic
• Arty Facts: Our Bodies & Art Activities (Linking Art to the World Around Us) from Crabtree Publishing
• My Body from Teacher Created Resources

How well did you do?

1. There are about 206 bones in an adult body.

2. There are 22 bones in the skull.

3. The smallest bone in the body is in the cranium.  The "stirrup" is smaller than a grain of rice and is found deep inside the ear.

Source: The Search for the Missing Bones (The Magic School Bus)



Apple, Apples, Apples! (and Apples)

Which apple is your favorite?
We chose a few varieties and rated their texture and flavor.
What would you rate?
Sela suggested we add these scores together for an "overall" score.
We used a 1 - 5 rating system.
Looks like we have room to pick up a couple more varieties.

Some books about apples that we like:
Golden Delicious: A Cinderella Apple Story by Smucker and Kemly
Apples by Gibbons
Apples, Apples, Apples by Wallace
Apple Fractions by Pallotta
The Ziegler's and Their Apple Orchard by Flanagan

No graph paper on hand?  You can find lots of sites with free downloadable graph paper.

I Wonder... (Or, Homeschooling Means Using What's Handy!)

Lately, we've been using the little chalkboard in our kitchen to collect data, analyze stuff, ...wonder about things.  Hmmm...

We made tea from the mint in our garden.  Here's the taste-test data.

First, the comments.

Then a "bar graph" of which sweetener each of us preferred.  The results interpreted: 1 person said Honey, 1 person said Agave, 1 person said Plain (unsweetened). Hee hee.

The data from our homemade butter experiment.

We tasted the butter (B) and the buttermilk (BM).  The buttermilk was gone by the time it got to me : )

This was a question Sela asked after noticing how the sunlight came through the window during breakfast.  Now, we're talking about it, wondering about it, experimenting with it...



Eureka!

Look what I stumbled into -- a round-up of some pioneer crafts on one handy page!

quilt-to-be


You'll find these gems, or shall I say "nuggets" (ha!) here: homemade bread & butter, homemade taffy, whittling, carved soap, braided rug, cornhusk dolls, quill pens & berry ink, rag doll, stick horse, covered wagons, weaving, tin can lanterns, woven paper baskets, quilting, and dipped candles.

These are great for us -- as follow-up to our Gold Rush Day and gearing up to go back to our American Girls Group (Kirsten, 1854) -- but if you find yourself less inspired to do them, you really should make homemade butter and do this science experiment.  It's SUPER easy -- and you get to eat your results!  What could be better?  Remember to sing a silly butter-shaking song, too!  We love Sara Sponda.

Sara sponda sara sponda sara sponda ret set set

Sara sponda sara sponda sara sponda ret set set

Ador-ay-o. Ador-ay boom-day-o.

Ador-ay boom-day ret set set

ah-say pah-say oh.

(And for good measure, here's a little background to the Sara Sponda song and "Eureka!")

Now THIS is Summer

Family Fun Magazine awarded this their "Most Active Recipe."  I'd also add: fun, fast, easy, silly, exciting, very little clean-up, and YUMMY.

Combine 2 Tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1 cup half and half in pint-size ziplock bag and seal it tightly.
Place 1/2 cup coarse salt (table salt worked fine) in a gallon-size ziplock, then fill it halfway with ice cubes. 
Place smaller bag inside as well, and seal.
Shake the bags until the ice cream mixture hardens, about 5 minutes.


Did it work?!
Because I have my spoon, and I'm ready.

Check out the science behind it

We saved ourselves the trouble of washing dishes and ate right out of the bags.  We're doing it again tomorrow.