Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Park PALS & Friends Picnic

Georgia received an invitation to attend the Park PALS & Friends picnic on Sunday at the Nature Center.

After a mixer activity, and supper, the kids played some games.









Georgia also received an award for her attendance at her nature classes.


Next...we were off on a hayride!!



The hayride was a lot of fun...and we got to see parts of the park that we had never been to...it is HUGE. The naturalist that was driving the tractor stopped periodically to tell us about what we were seeing, or to explain things they did there...such as prairie burning.


Here, he is telling us about the different plants found on the prairie, such as the Indian Grass.



And we got to see a beaver dam and lodge!!!



We had SOOOOO much fun!!!


The Great Pumpkin Hunt

On Saturday, we attended the Great Pumpkin Hunt at the Nature Center. We were given a list of ten clues and a map, and we had to figure out where to find the ten pumpkins that were filled with treats.

The girls got pumpkin placemats, cups, pencils, straws, lollipops, stickers, chocolate, activity book, reptile book, and coupon. Olivia called it geocaching.


We found a lil fuzzy wuzzy on one of the paths.




After the hunt, the kids got to pick a pumpkin and decorate it.

When we were done, we had some time to explore the nature center and visit some of the animals. One of their favorite things to do there is to look at various objects through a microscope.


Thursday, October 18, 2007

September and October Update



Georgia had fun trying to put together our "Mr. Bones" after learning the names of some of the bones. We also had fun learning about the brain, skin, heart, and lungs at http://www.nationalgeographic.com/guides/science/humanbody/index.html#


We were able to watch demonstrations of each system as well.

We also enjoyed trying to place the internal organs of a human and get the body working at http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/incredible-human-machine/


Very interesting...you should check it out.

We learned a little bit about Greenville's history, and visited some sites around town.




Olivia worked with money, trying to identify the name of each coin and its value. We used some flashcards and real money to sort and count.



She also practiced reading. We read a story together and she had to highlight certain words when she found them.





And she had fun putting together an alphabet puzzle she got from Grampa Trueman. This helped her think of and use alphabetical order.


Olivia also worked with time. The girls both had fun making their own clocks with paper plates. Olivia likes to match her clock to the clock in the living room.


Georgia wondered why oil and water do not mix. So we talked about the properties of water and oil. Then we played around with them. We tried different kinds of oil, and hot and cold water, to see if there was a difference.


Olivia enjoyed this activity, too.


She liked adding blue food coloring and watching the bubbles and waves of color.

The girls painted some pumpkins.



Georgia finished studying Texas. We made Texas Chili and talked about the history of chili, and of the pioneers. She also learned about the Alamo, Davy Crockett, Tornado Alley, armadillos, geography and resources of Texas, etc.
She then studied Ohio. We made Cincinnati Chili, which the girls did not care for. I had never tried it but really liked it...it is unique. We also made some Ohio Buckeye Candy. She learned about Ohio's geography, government, history, we read a biography on Johnny Appleseed, and another on the Wright brothers. She learned a lot about Ohio's resources and biodiversity, such as the cardinal, buckeye tree, flint, and ladybug. The girls both made some salt dough maps of Ohio, too.

They mixed the dough, after measuring the ingredients. I think we did 1 cup of salt, 1 cup of flour, and half a cup of water.





Then the girls shaped their dough on top of a map of Ohio I printed.


Georgia shaped hers, and is pointing to where we live.
I helped Olivia shape hers.

Then they needed to dry....we probably waited about a week!


Once they were completely dry....the girls painted their maps.


Here's Georgia's finished map. The NE corner broke off...oops! She still wants to mark the capital and where we live, too.


And here's Olivia's finished map.



Other topics we have discussed or read about are:

Mythology (Norse, Greek, and Egyptian)
Static Electricity....with a balloon activity
Sound Waves...with a straw flute activity
Natural Disasters (watched a nice overview at nationalgeographic.com)
Fire Safety (reviewed our safety plan, changed batteries in alarms, and other safety tips)
Columbus Day review, with a map and vocabulary activity
Similes
Venn diagrams
International Date Line
Prime Meridian
Differences in Hemispheres
Millepedes (actually caught one and got library books about them)
Center of Gravity and Balance....with activity
Drugs, what it is, legal and illegal drugs, effects on body
Moon, sun, and other space facts
Magazine clippings collage poster
States and Capitals review and game
World Facts
Presidents
Typing and e-mail practice
Game SET (love it!!!)
Life cycle of a pumpkin
Bead jewelry
Painting, and paint by number
Money, saving, spending, values, etc
Military
Library Skills
Math Textbook work
And we have started studying Maine now.

Also...since Olivia turned four, she can now have her own library card. She now takes out her own books, as Georgia does.

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Birthdays!



The girls each had a birthday in September. Georgia is now seven years old. Olivia is now four, but sometimes will tell you she is really six.

Gymnastics, Swimming, and the Y

Olivia is in the Tumble Tots. She loves her class and is always attentive and participates in all the activities.




Georgia is in the Swingers class. She also loves her class and tries her best in each session.








Swimming is a different story. Olivia did great for her first two or three classes, but now she is not into it. She doesn't like to listen to the instructor, she doesn't even like the instructor looking at her. And in her typical Livy stubborness, she refused to get in the pool for class today!


But....while we were in the parent viewing area watching Georgia in her class....Olivia pointed to a sign and READ IT!!! I got all excited and said, "OLIVIA, you just read that!!" Of course, that made her mad and she said, "No I didn't," and then tried saying it said something different, like she didn't know what it said.



Georgia can swim real well now. She has improved a lot. She still is rather timid when jumping into the pool. Today at class the instructor had her class jump off the diving board into the deep end. She did not do it, but did jump in from the side of the pool. She came home saying how she didn't want to go to the rest of her classes! There are only two more left for this session, so I will do my best to encourage them to attend the remainder of their classes. After that, they do not have to take swimming if it does not interest them. We do still go over to the YMCA four times a week, and we swim three of those times. They LOVE to go swimming. We also love playing raquetball, and basketball. So, perhaps they will only take gymnastics next session, or try something else, or not take a class next session and just have fun with whatever activity we choose to do.