Awesome American History 1901-1911

This was actually two weeks.  The first covered oil, Teddy Roosevelt, and the Wright brothers; and the second covered the San Francisco Earthquake, Typhoid Mary, and the Panama Canal.  All together it was pages 195-214 in The American Story by Jennifer Armstrong.

For the first week we did paper airplanes as both our art and active activities.  Making them was art, and then we threw them from the carport and tried to get them as far up the driveway as we could.

Our snack was lava cake (for the oil discovery, the pockets of gooey chocolate were like striking oil).

Did I take pictures. Nope.  Completely forgot.

The next week I did better though!

We made sugar cube houses on a truly large bed of jello, then patted the jello to make earthquakes.

Cover the jello with plastic wrap if you want to use it for your snack!

This was very cool because you can see the waves passing through the jello.

We started with each kid making a separate 3 cube house, and then they wanted to make one giant building.  Very fun, and tasty, so this was art and snack.

For our active activity, we used Glo-Germ to simulate Typhoid Mary.

This is a lotion that fluoresces under UV light, so you need both the Glo-Germ and the light.

The idea is that you put it on your hand and then, as you shake hands and touch things, you can see where the "germs" spread.




I was the primary carrier, but the "germs" got spread by handshakes.  We were able to show them how I had spread it to them, but also by objects by touching the doorknob, light switch, and faucet handles when I went to wash my hands.

For extra bonus education, I first just did a quick wash/rinse of my hands so they could see you need a good soapy wash to get rid of the germs.

By the end, everyone was very good at washing their hands!

Wordless Wednesday: Leaf Walk at the Arboretum

Awesome American History: 1898-1900

  This covered Edison, Labor Unions, and Prohibition, pages 184-194 in The American Story by Jennifer Armstrong.

For our art activity, we  made a newspaper and kids sold it, like the Newsies (news boys) who organized a union near the turn of the last century.

Our paper was a big hit!

















For our active activity, we did a smuggling game based on Red Light Green Light.

I was the "catcher" looking for smugglers and I stood at one end of the yard with the kids at the other end.  Every time I looked away (searching for smugglers) they moved forward, and every time I looked back, they froze.

For our snack, we were going to have root beer floats, but I had also made peanut butter cookies, and the kids had so many of those, we decided they didn't need more sugar.

Poem of the Week: For the Chipmunk in My Yard

For the Chipmunk in My Yard

By Robert Gibb

I think he knows I’m alive, having come down

The three steps of the back porch

And given me a good once over. All afternoon

He’s been moving back and forth,

Gathering odd bits of walnut shells and twigs,

While all about him the great fields tumble

To the blades of the thresher. He’s lucky

To be where he is, wild with all that happens.

He’s lucky he’s not one of the shadows

Living in the blond heart of the wheat.

This autumn when trees bolt, dark with the fires

Of starlight, he’ll curl among their roots,

Wanting nothing but the slow burn of matter

On which he fastens like a small, brown flame.

HT: Poetry Foundation

Wordless Wednesday: All Saints Costumes

Pumpkins

Poem of the Week: Theme in Yellow

Theme in Yellow

From Last Year

By Carl Sandburg

I spot the hills

With yellow balls in autumn.

I light the prairie cornfields

Orange and tawny gold clusters

And I am called pumpkins.

On the last of October

When dusk is fallen

Children join hands

And circle round me

Singing ghost songs

And love to the harvest moon;

I am a jack-o'-lantern

With terrible teeth

And the children know

I am fooling.

HT: Poetry Foundation

Not So Wordless Wednesday: Because Sometimes the Day Doesn't Follow the Plan

 So.  The plan was to do a leaf walk at the Arboretum with Adventurers, and then head north to pick up baking supplies.

But. This seasonal clothing change.

I'm fighting the good fight, but it's winning. And laughing at me.

I asked a friend with 8 kids for sage advice and she laughed at me too.  Immoderately. Apparently more kids doesn't make it easier, something I probably should have known.

So I decided to take the entire morning, dump my plans, and just get it done!

 Well, I certainly worked hard all morning.

Can you see a difference?  Kinda? Squint.

The main problem seems to be that I am missing the three bins  containing all of Choclo and most of Oob's winter clothes.


Yes, I have rechecked all the clothing bins in the basement, all the way to the bottom of each bin.  I predict it will take me 6 months to recover.






 In the mean time, I was running low on flour and sugar, so we used the afternoon to  make  a trip to the warehouse.


Final tally: 800 pounds!

300 lbs of sugar, and 500 lbs (total) of pastry and bread flour.

Judging from the most recent receipt, that will last me nearly a year.

And that, at least, was easily found and is now neatly stored away!

Spider Problems

 Big spiders












Very webby












Kinda spooky





Almost Halloween!

Poem of the Week: Among the Rocks

Among the Rocks

By Robert Browning

Oh, good gigantic smile o’ the brown old earth,

This autumn morning! How he sets his bones

To bask i’ the sun, and thrusts out knees and feet

For the ripple to run over in its mirth;

Listening the while, where on the heap of stones

The white breast of the sea-lark twitters sweet.

That is the doctrine, simple, ancient, true;

Such is life’s trial, as old earth smiles and knows.

If you loved only what were worth your love,

Love were clear gain, and wholly well for you:

Make the low nature better by your throes!

Give earth yourself, go up for gain above!

HT: Poetry Foundation