Picking Berries

We went to pick hawthorn berries. The boys had fun being in the mountains. The men did the harder work of shaking the bushes, which look more like trees because they tower over you. We also picked a lot by hand.

The boys were introduced to elderberries and loved them. They are a little sour, but I thought they tasted great. I think the boys were mainly excited that they could find berries outside and eat them.

Cedrik and Freddie stayed by the adults and found ways to entertain themselves in the dirt. I love when they figure out how to play by themselves peacefully.

They passed out on the way home because it was so late and they had run around so much.

Julia and I made some hawthorn berry syrup which took way longer to make than we expected. We thought it would be a couple hours and it turned into a 4 hour production. Now we know for next year.

Land and Water

This week was slow. We only did two days of school. We talked about land formations and different water bodies.

By far, the favorite land formation is a canyon. I found an awesome video set to some fun music (Cedrik loved the music) that were different shots of the Grand Canyon.

The next day we went to find dirt and make mud. The boys had to figure out how much dirt and water needed to be added to make mud that we could mold. We first made a canyon, which also had a cliff. We also made mountains, hills and a valley.

It was an easy school week and making mud is still fun, even as an adult. :)

Baby wrap

This is the new cool thing in town, have you heard?

Minerals Week

During our minerals week we discovered that all of the minerals we tested sank in our super scientific sink/float test.... Except for one. Can you guess which mineral floated? ICE! Ice is a mineral (which we now know thanks to a very knowledgeable geologist on YouTube. We also learned that glass is not a mineral and we got to watch him break some glass-cool).

We tested all of the minerals with magnets and examined them under magnifying glasses as well as doing a scratch test and seeing if they were harder or softer than a nail. Cedrik loved this. Freddie just liked putting his hand in the water and making the magnets sick together.

For our last week of Michelangelo, we studied a few more of his sculptures which are gorgeous.

Opa visited and he came over for dinner one night. The boys love him and they had to show off their bike skills and they read him Little Blue Truck. He seems to really enjoy the kids.

Forgotten Rocks

I forgot to include a few other pictures and things we did during our rock week.

We used rocks to spell and Cedrik practiced the letter "r."

We also made a few "rocks" out of crayon shavings (the best part for them was trying to use the pencil sharpener) and hot water. You put the shavings in aluminum foil, float it on top and allow it to melt slightly, then remove and press the aluminum together. Sedimentary rock.

Then, put it back on the water, allow it to melt longer, and mix it together, preferably not making the mistake i did by letting a 2.5 year old mix it with a toothpick and punch a hole in the foil. It started filling with water. I smashed it between the aluminum and put it in the freezer which hardened it quickly. Metamorphic rock.  They loved it.

ROCKS!

I have been excited about this unit for about a month.  This is what got me motivated to get our homeschooling schedule in order.

Rocks.

Yes, rocks.

They collect them every chance they get.  Finally the light went on that we should study them. 

We learned the three types, igneous (formed by volcanoes), sedimentary and metamorphic.  We had to do baking soda volcanoes of course.  We did the sink float test for all the rocks in our rock classifying kit.  They loved using magnifying glasses and although they haven't quite figured them out, it was still cute. 

Thankfully, Michelangelo fit right in with rocks.  Wejob!udied David.  Since he was a sculptur, we were able to talk about that and we even made some clay.  It was supposed to harden, but after sitting most of the day, we didn't want to wait any longer.  So, of course we hit them with a hammer.  The boys love breaking things (what boy doesn't?) And on Freddie's first attempt, he hit the plate.... The clay was on the ground, not the plate.  I don't know how it happened. 

They have actually retained some information they learned. 

We are also working on a little math and Freddie worked on classifying small, medium and large cards. For only being the first time, he did a great job! Cedrik is enjoying Bob books and he downy fight about those like he ends up doing after a few weeks of the reading lesson. I'm hoping to continue to listen and understand his reading needs so I don't push him too fast, but also, so I don't miss the opportunity. 

Books: Everyone Needs a Rock, Rocks are Lively, Julie the Rockhound, and various research books. 

New desk

Our bedroom has been a black hole. It was really horrendous. We finally have somewhat of a "flow" to it now. Jordan built a new desk. It hides the cabinet, printer, extra paper, piano technician tools, etc. The fabric wasn't exactly what he had in mind but I love it. We bought some throw pillows for the bed and moved it into the corner so it's in its own space now. So comfy. :) He also repainted the nightstand and recovered the drawer with extra fabric to it really ties everything in together. He's trying really hard to talk me into one or two accent chairs now. We (meaning me!) are so lucky to have such a talented man in the house. He makes every day better.