Homeschooling Lesson #45: Refrigeration

 The kids were wondering what happens to the light in the refrigerator.  Today's technology illustrates this far better to the kids than simple words did to my generation.

Ten-hut!

Our soldier-in-training received a very special gift from our neighbor who was a real soldier in the Israeli army:  his beret!

After a quick lesson in saluting from our neighbor, Private T strutted around the house all week long!

Tree Climbing

 What's a summer without tree climbing?  I had plenty of them; the limbs on the trees in my childhood backyard started at least 20 feet in the air.  No attempt was made to scale those monsters.

In our backyard, however, it's a different story.  The two brothers picked up some quick skills this summer:

Lego "Pit of Despair"

The kids were very influenced by The Princess Bride. 

They recently created and occupied "the Lego Pit of Despair".... bwah ha ha ha!

Tag-ectomy

About 6 months ago I embarked on my most challenging renovation project to date.

I am sad to report that my efforts were in vain.  The sleeping beauty continued to sleep with taggie and taggie continued to disintegrate.

See how the row of ribbons are coming off?  The fabric is worn through.

The purple ribbon is one of the favorites:

In a moment of sheer desperation, a new procedure was invented: the tag-ectomy.  What is that?

Upon discovering more of the original froggie fabric deep inside of a storage bin, free Taggie by cutting a square of her (him? it?) out of the original, trimming the ribbons, and then using flat felled seams to attach the new fabric to the old.  In a really sneaky move, add an extra layer of froggie fabric in between the existing layers of froggie fabric to make it thicker and (hopefully) more durable.

Let's check back in six months to see how the "new and improved" taggie is holding up...

Backyard labor

Adam helped MLD sand a piece of wood for a special project.  Took quite a bit of effort:

Froebel Block Swap

Who needs Froebel blocks when you have a Rubik's Snake to play with? Mr. T focuses on this toy with laser-like intensity. You can almost see the gears spinning in his head as he turns the pieces round and around.

The irony is that the smaller blue/white version was the goody bag gift at his siblings' 8th birthday party... and it's the 4 year old who continues to play with it on a daily basis.

His favorite configuration?  The colonial bayonette, of course!

Homeschooling Lesson #38: Microscopy

Look what Tate found in the basement storage area:  MLM's compound microscope!

The A-team showed zero interest, but this kept Tate engaged for quite a while.  What was even more exciting?  MLM finally figured out how to get enough light into the microscope to use the higher magnification levels.

Homeschooling Lesson #37: Magnetism

Before the official homeschooling regimen began, we were looking for creative ways to stimulate the minds of these youngsters.

Magnetism seemed like a good way to go.  Activities could be self-directed, easily completed, educational and entertaining.

There is a reason why I am not a teacher.

One thing to notice over the course of these next posts:  our collective hair lines.  No one has had a haircut since March 13 (when these videos were captured).

Woburn Library

Way back in my day (y'know, in the olden days as my kids might say), one went to the library to read books.  For those of you reading this far into the future, books were objects filled with sheets of paper and printed words.  You had to read them, sometimes sort through many of them patiently, to get the information you were looking for.  And if you couldn't find it on the shelf, you had to walk over to the card catalog and figure it out.  Sometimes you asked a librarian for help. 

Not today's kids!  They ask a smahtphone for information and go to the library to play with toys that are too large to keep at home:

Complete Fabrication

Took the kids to a fabric store recently -- long story.  As you may have noticed, Tate likes to touch soft things.  Being in a fabric store was sensory overload for him.  He didn't want to put down the yarn:

Or the fabric:

But to be fair, neither did his sister:

The Daily Dalwin

Each month we get a few cute snaps of Tate up to something interesting.  Here's the most recent batch:

All aboard!

State House

The entire family took a fun trip to the State House.  Tate made the most of his experience by snacking in the Hall of Nurses.

Blumlin Fahm

Tate loves going to "Blumlin Fahm".  He asks to go there almost every day.  Every night too.  Here are a few photos of him in action:

Homeschooling, Lesson #29

Today's homeschooling lesson:  vocabulary.  Adam and I had a fantastic "date" a few weeks ago.  A trip to MIT to visit the Tech Model Railroad Club!  They had very small scale trains and a huge layout.  The layout was controlled by computer switches and the operators spoke to each other via headsets.  It was all very cool.  Best part?  Watching the trains travel on a spiral, ahem! helix.  If you're going to attend MIT, you have to know it's a helix, not a spiral.  It's all about vocabulary.

Patriots' Day 2017

What a rare moment:  the end of our cousins' school vacation overlapped with the start of ours and Patriots' Day!  We took a short trip out to the Minuteman National Park to picnic and watch some of the reenactments.  What fun!

The Annual Ruck Sack Race was going on too.  The girls helped out a solider by holding his flag for a few minutes.  He had 26.2 miles to go.  No wonder he wanted to roll up his sleeves!

Family picnic near the Visitors' Center

Homeschooling, Lesson #28: Anatomy

Tate aced his homeschool anatomy lessons:

Daniel Tiger Strikes Again

Daniel Tiger taught the citizens many valuable life lessons:
-- find a way to play together
-- you can take a turn and then I'll get it back

And of course our very favorite:  "When you have to go potty STOP!  And go right away.  Flush and wash and be on your way!"

So it makes plenty of sense for Ashley to introduce Tate to Daniel and his friends.

Homeschooling, Lesson #27: Non-Newtonian Fluids

Ooblek is an inexpensive non-Newtonian fluid made by combining cornstarch and water.  A few drops of food coloring entertain and excite the younger set.  

Hypothesis:  Young kids are willing to stick their hands into anything gooey and messy.  Let's see what the video evidence shows:

Confirmed.

The lesson was expanded:  what happens when you add red food coloring to the already blue ooblek?

Did you answer "purple"?  You're right.  But it also makes for two happy kids and one happy mama who was thrilled to find that this stuff cleaned up far more easily than I had hoped!

Housework

If there's one thing I learned from my grandfather and father, it's that you're never too young to push a broom.  While the kids have spent plenty of time learning how to sweep with their toy brooms, this is the first time I saw it in action for real: