Bedtime Reading Choices

These were Nicholas' bedtime reading choices tonight...



Book #1: "Baby Animals on the Farm" - although he knows he's too old for Sesame Street books, he still loves anything having to do with animals, especially the cute little baby animals. I've tried to suggest that he pass this book down to Rachel. He said yes but then quickly changed his mind and said he'll keep it just a little longer.

AND

Book #2: "Prickly and Poisonous" - because he loves to read and learn about about real-life scary creatures.

He's a tough one to figure out sometimes!

Come To The Tropics at Texas Discovery Gardens

Yesterday we spent some time at Texas Discovery Gardens in Dallas for their "Come To The Tropics" event.

We looked at giant hissing cockroaches...



...and big scary scorpions...



But the highlight of the event was the warm, humid butterfly house where butterflies fly freely around you as you walk through the tropical gardens of the two story greenhouse.



We were disappointed that we didn't get more pictures of butterflies but they were very active and hard to capture. But the kids saw a lot of them flying all around and they learned about the stages of butterfly development.



Rachel especially loved the giant colorful butterfly kites just outside of the butterfly house.



Next we did a fun butterfly craft. Take a piece of construction paper and fold it in half. Then use a template that looks like a curled up caterpillar and trace it on the construction paper. Make sure the curved side of the caterpillar is on the folded side of the construction paper.



Cut out the pattern and decorate your caterpillar.



When the caterpillar is "grown" you can open up the contstruction paper and he becomes a butterfly! Decorate the inside to look like a butterfly.



We decided to take a break and listen to a live band that was playing. I got us each a glass of Bubble Tea. What? You don't know what Bubble Tea is? Don't worry, I didn't either but it sounded fun. Nicholas and Rachel got Blue Raspberry Bubble Tea.



Bubble teas come in various fruit flavors and while it has a tea base, it is actually quite milky in texture. What is most unique about them is that there are small tapioca balls or pearls called "boba" in the bottom of the drink. You get a superwide straw with the drink so that when you take a sip you can also get a tapioca pearl to "eat" along with it.

It sounded neat but the pearls were much bigger than I expected and I found it too unusual for my taste. I kept having a hard time figuring out if I was drinking it or eating it.

Rachel didn't care for it much either.



Actually neither of our kids liked it at all. Maybe that's why one of their drinks got spilled all over the floor.



We decided the great outdoors was a better place for us so we headed out to the gardens for some fresh air. We watched the minnows and koi fish in the pond.



Of course, our kids are free-range kids so if there are wide-open spaces then they can be found running freely.





And, like most kids, they have an innate attraction to water that they just can't resist.



Even when the water is near freezing temperatures. Note Nicholas' appreciation of said cold water!



Yep, maybe just sitting next to the fountain is a better idea.



Rachel was so cute as she held out her arms and walked on the edging of the grassy area as if it were a balance beam. I see gymnastics in our future!



I love outdoor sculptures. It's fancy artwork that is ok for kids to touch!



It was nice getting to see the butterflies and spending time in the gardens as a family.

Texas Discovery Gardens is located at 3601 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Dallas. You can reach them at (214) 428-7476 or get more info from their website at www.texasdiscoverygardens.org. Texas Discovery Gardens is open daily from 10 am to 5 pm. Each Tuesday, the gardens are open for free (butterfly house admission is regular price). Butterfly House and Garden Admission is $8 Adults, $6 Seniors (60+), $4 Children (3-11), and free for under 3.

Pinewood Derby Car Race

It's Cub Scout Pinewood Derby time! Each boy in the Cub Scout pack was given a pinewood derby car kit at the Cub Scout Christmas party. The kit is just a small box that mostly contains a simple block of wood and some other essential car parts. There is a lot of work before the block of wood becomes a race-winning car. But Nicholas loves race cars and Stuart couldn't wait to get in the garage and teach his little guy about using power tools!

Nicholas wasn't sure where to begin with designing his car so Stuart suggested that he pull out some of his favorite Hot Wheels cars so they could talk about some of the features that Nicholas likes the most.

Nicholas drew a few different designs on paper and then he transferred the final design to the block of wood. Then he got to hang out in the garage with Daddy and the tools.

This was his first time to do anything like this and certainly his first time using a Dremel. He was totally pumped about it and had a great time.





I'm so proud of Nicholas for being excited about his work and for taking the time to do his best instead of just playing around with it and rushing through it.

Next Nicholas sanded the car and it was ready for paint. He primed it and gave it a base coat of green.



He then did some design work with the blue and gold paint.



And, of course, every race car needs flame stickers!



Off to the race!

Nicholas finally got to check out his competition. These are all cars from his buddies in his Tiger Den. I love the one that looks like a Wii remote!



Nicholas got assigned number 22. Go 22!



The track was set up through the middle of the room. This was our first derby race and I must say it was a bigger production than I had really anticipated.



Nicholas was quite excited!



I was really impressed with the high-tech components in the timing process. This is a shot from the car's perspective as it is approaching the finish line. The timing system not only records the order in which cars cross the line, numbers their winning position, and then displays the car's number, child's name, speed, and winning position on the big screen for all to see. Quite a neat production for a little cub scout wooden car race.



To start the race, the cars are lined up at the top of the ramp. There is a bumper that keeps them all in place.



When it's time to go, one of the scouts releases the bumber and the cars zip down the track by gravity. Shape of the car is important for what little aerodynamics is involved but weight of the car is probably most important to help pull it down the ramp faster.




As they cross the finish line, the readout above each car's lane states it's winning position. Each car makes 6 runs, one in each track position. Nicholas got first place for the first several races.



Nicholas was loving it!



At some point, the weights on the car started loosening and the jiggling may have affected it's speed because he soon started dropping in his position. However, he finished in second place for the Tiger Cubs and 5th place overall for the pack.



Way to go! High five!

Highlights from our School Days

We've been homeschooling for just a few months now and it has been a challenge to us all. We've overcome some hurdles, set expectations, gotten familiar with our curriculum, and are working on improving our daily schedule.

Overall, it is great. It is a challenge finding time to prepare my lessons, teach school, and get all the housework and other errands done each day. I realize that teaching my children is my primary job now and some things might have to slide a little until I can juggle my time a little better. Although I'm teaching both children at home, it is hard to really teach difficult concepts to Nicholas when Rachel is distracting every few minutes so I save most of those things for her nap time. I need to work on arranging more activities for her while Nicholas and I are focused on school.

Here are some highlights from our last few months.

I created a file folder game to help Nicholas learn the constellations. He loves playing games so we play this a lot.

Math is going well. He is really a wiz, especially when we get to pull out the LEGO bricks to use for manipulatives!

We did a craft project on Joseph's Coat of Many Colors. Nicholas used crayons to completely cover a piece of paper with all different colors.

Then he colored over the whole thing with a black crayon.

We then used the end of a paper clip to scratch out Joseph's coat.

I know I've done this kind of craft before when I was little but I think I used black paint of some kind and it had a much more dramatic result. We might have to try this one again because Nicholas just loved the concept.

We talked about how a magnifying glass concentrates light and used chocolate to demonstrate it.

One piece of chocolate had magnified rays while the other two did not.

Look how bright the light is.

In the spot where the rays were concentrated, the chocolate was melted but the rest of the chocolate was not.

But they all tasted equally good!

We're having fun and creating a love for learning while we're at it!

Body Art Toddler Style

So after our recent art work with watercolors was such a success, I decided to let the kids make more watercolor paintings today. They do their artwork at the kitchen table and it gives me a few minutes to wash dishes, clean countertops, or prepare dinner while they are occupied and entertained.



I felt a sense of accomplishment at finally emptying the sink of its overflowing pile of dirty dishes. I closed the door to the dishwasher, took a sigh of relief, and turned around to find this...





NOW I remember why I haven't been letting them have paints during art time!

A Study of John Audubon

One of the stories that Nicholas read this week as part of his reading curriculum was a brief biography about John Audubon. As a nature-lover and wanna-be artist, I really enjoyed hearing the story and found it very interesting. Nicholas loves nature as well and he talked about the story with me briefly the following day.

I thought it would be fun to delve into John Audubon just a little bit more. So instead of moving on to the next classwork on the lesson plan, today we had a John Audubon themed field trip for school. I sometimes have to remind myself that I can do things like this - I'm the teacher and I can adjust the curriculum however I think it will best serve my children's love of learning.

"One of the beauties of homeschooling is that we can teach in ways that are not practical for tightly scheduled classes with scores of children. We can adapt out teaching methods to engage students in learning more, doing more, and thinking more so that they become participants in their own discovery of knowledge. they will remember and understand far more because they have experienced it firsthand."
- quote from Lynn Dean, "Discovering Texas", TX Home School Coalition Review Magazine, Feb '11

Man, I love homeschooling!

We started with a trip to the library to find books about John Audubon. Nicholas looked up books on the computer, got their Dewey Decimal numbers, and found them on his own. He seemed to like the challenge of the hunt. He found several in the juvenile section that included biographies but also a book of many of Audubon's beautiful paintings.



Next, we ran through Sonic to pick up some lunch and headed to the Grapevine Botanic Gardens to have a picnic lunch while we watched and listened for birds.

Nicholas hates it when I take his picture as he is saying the blessing before a meal, but I just love the sight so much that I can't help but want to capture it sometimes.



After lunch, we read some of our library books and learned more about John Audubon.



Rachel sat with us for the most part but eventually her wandering nature got the best of her and she started toddling away. We didn't get through all of our books but it's ok. We will bring them home and read some more of them tonight before bed.



We walked through the gardens for a while. I love this garden. It's rather small but there is so many interesting things to see.



As the kids found new and exciting things, we talked about them. They told me about colors and features on the fish as well as the habitat they live in.



Of course, sometimes it's just fun to stand on a bridge and watch the fish swim underneath you!



Next we found a quiet spot in the wooded area with some nice benches that became our make-shift artist studio. I got out the watercolor paints, brushes, cups, and the jug of water. We talked about some of the things we had seen on our tour of the garden and I asked them to paint something they had seen. They both decided to paint the koi fish.



Rachel soon tested out the texture of watercolor paints on her finger. Slippery and messy is all that comes to my mind.



Then she decided to use her finger to paint with. I love the artistic and creative approach...or maybe she's just being a normal 2 year old and experimenting with all that she can do with her fingers and hands.



I fell in love with Nicholas' koi fish. The colors were perfect and he really took his time and did a good job.



Next, he decided to paint a bird.



I love seeing them work side by side so well. I don't know if it was the art work or being outdoors but there was no sibling bickering. It was just really peaceful and sweet.



Of course, Rachel had to get creative again and tried to pour her cup of water all over her painting. My knee-jerk reaction kicked in and I said, "No, don't do that". To which she promptly fussed at me, "It's my water!"



I quickly came to my senses and realized that there was really no harm in what she wanted to do...it would satisfy her curiosity about what would happen when the water poured on her paper plus it would keep her busy and content for a while longer. All good things.

Sometimes you just have to choose your battles.



I actually like the swirl effect that the water created on her painting!



Of course, I love Nicholas' bird painting too.



The kids draw with markers, colored pencils, or crayons almost daily. But it's been a while since we have gotten the paint out - maybe since before Rachel was born. I already feel like I'm constantly cleaning up a mess so why give them ammo to make yet another one. But after today I think we might have to make room for a little paint in our regular art projects too. I was so proud of Nicholas' art work that I was thinking about picking up some picture frames and hanging them up in his bedroom.



As we were packing up to leave, I noticed this plaque right next to the benches we were working on. How true.



We put our art work and supplies back in the van and walked through the garden to the adjoining playground. On our way, I tried to get a picture of the kids in front of the fountain. But Rachel was too distracted by the water to bother to look at the camera. She then stuck her foot all the way in the water!



The kids had a blast at the playground and it was a great way to get in a little exercise and play time with other kids.



We made it home and I started unloading all of our stuff from the back of the van. I was horrified when I saw the pictures that we had laid out so carefully to be sure they completely dried.



The jug of water that I had brought along had rolled around on the ride home and some of the water leaked on to the paintings. I gasped aloud and Nicholas said, "What?" I didn't know what to tell him. He came over and saw his paintings. He seemed sad for a moment but then said, "That's ok! I'll just paint more".

It's really neat because this actually ties back in to the reading story where we first read about John Audubon. That story talked about John's first paintings. He had proudly displayed some of them on his wall but put most of them in a box under his bed. Later he went to retrieve the paintings only to find that rats had destroyed most of them in the box. But John did not let that discourage them. He considered those practice works and he went right back to painting even more beautiful paintings.

This was a wonderful outing. It was fun but we also covered so many educational subjects. We learned about finding books in the library, reading, science through the study of birds and fish, art, physical education, and even character development. There are actually homeschool curriculums that teach subjects by tying them all into a common theme like we did today. They are called Unit Study curriculums. I just might have to pull some of that into our curriculum. It's such a fun way to learn!