Halfway Mark
Here in Northern Illinois, we had a beautiful snowfall that the kids(and dogs) enjoyed.
This week we completed week 18 of our school year. Exactly halfway through the year. We are taking a break until January. We all need a little down time especially during the last few weeks of December.
Now the kids are starting to see the benefits of starting so early in August.
Here is a recent photo of a chemistry experiment in progress.
He was observing how different metals produce different colors of light when they are heated.
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Real World Math
I have many a mornings when Algebra seems way too difficult. My 7th grader comes to me with a blank expression and looks to me for help. We work through it together and he still has a blank look and I get more confused and wonder how the heck I made it through Jr. High math. We started working through a Real World Algebra book last week. It's not making things any clearer!
Example problem:
Larry had the same number of nickels and dimes in his left pocket. In his right pocket, he had an equal number of quarters and half-dollars. When Larry counted all the nickels and half-dollars, it totaled $16.35. When he counted the dimes and quarters, it totaled $10.20. How many quarters does Larry have?
Beagle Approved
No Textbook?
Last year my 7 y.o. struggled through an
Astronomy textbook for his science curriculum. He complained it was so boring with not enough fun stuff to do. This year I picked out
a curriculum that doesn't have any textbook. The way you teach the subject(in our case Chemistry) is through doing labs. He couldn't be happier. Yesterday he went through the first 10 elements "building" each with marshmallows.
His brother loves all books(textbooks included) so he filled us in on all the details of each element with a read aloud as we built each marshmallow atom.
We are only 4 weeks into our new school year and I haven't heard him say his science is boring so I hope that continues.
A New School Year
The first week of August is here and we have embarked upon another school year. I don't think we are ready to spend the entire day inside quite yet. But with vacations planned for the near future I decided to start some schoolwork despite their protests.
Our new furry family member,Eleanor the beagle, fully approves of the home schooling.
Making a Mess
We had a purpose for our mess yesterday-to make Swamp Gunk.
I used to make this at least every 6 months with my eldest son.
I buy the white glue at back to school time for 10 cents a bottle so it costs next to nothing to amaze your kids. Try it, it's not as messy as the name suggests.
Solution A:
1 Cup water
1 Cup white glue
7 drops of food coloring
Solution B:
1-1/3 Cup warm water
4 tsp. borax laundry booster
How to mix it:
1. Mix ingredients in Solution A together in a medium bowl.
2. In a second bowl mix the ingredients in Solution B together until the borax is completely dissolved.
3. Slowly pour Solution A into Solution B. DO NOT MIX!
4. Roll Solution A around in Solution B 4 to 5 times.
5. Lift Solution A out of Solution B and knead for 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Store in an airtight container when finished playing with it.
