Norah Swim Lessons - Summer 2011

This summer, Norah the Fish, moved from Preschool Level 1, where she was in the pool without a parent for the first time, to Preschool Level 2 where she learned to swim her body length unassisted, and into Preschool Level 3! We were very surprised, as she caught up with Molly so quickly!

Unfortunately, she was unable to complete the final week of lessons due to the stitches in her knee.

Norah's first two weeks in Preschool 1: The kids start out in a little pool, about 6 inches deep, for the first 15 minutes of class. Then, they walk over to the larger pool for the last 15 minutes. They learn to put their faces in the water, dunk themselves under on their own, and float. (You can see Molly in the pool next to the male lifeguard, watching Norah.)

Norah's second 2 weeks in Preschool Level 2 - she's using the white noodle. Ah, and after posting and viewing this, I am back to edit, because if you watch in the lower right-hand corner, you will see Molly doing her back float (she's in a red/orange suit).

Molly Swim Lessons - 2011

Molly moved up from Preschool Level 2 to Preschool Level 3 this summer! Next will be Level 1.

Molly at the end of the first 2 weeks - she's using the green noodle toward the center of the screen:

To move to Preschool Level 3, Molly had to swim her body length unassisted, which she did in her second 2 weeks - yes I missed getting a video:

Swimming alone by the end of the Preschool 3:

Molly LOVES being in the pool and asked for another 2 weeks of lessons, which is why we did 6 weeks instead of our planned 4!

Amelya Swim Lessons - Summer 2011

We took six weeks of swim lessons this summer - 27 days! Amelya moved up from Level 4 to Level 5 (of 6 levels) using the American Red Cross teaching style.

Amelya swimming freestyle - she's on the far left.

Amelya swimming backstroke - she's on the right.

Amelya attempting butterfly - she's on the right.

Amelya learning to dive.

Eruption!

The erupting volcano on the island of Thera!

Geology Field Trip

Last month, we took the girls to the College of DuPage to see a fossil, rock, and mineral show. The girls made crafts with seashells and collected rocks and minerals in a grab bag to take home. We saw jewelry, fossils of ancient plants and animals, and items carved from stone. In addition, each child was allowed to pick a small geode, watch a geologist use a geode splitter to open it, and then KEEP the geode (pictures with the goggles). That was the highlight of the morning! A close second was winning the door prize drawing - Amelya picked out a mineral sample kit for school.

The highlight of the afternoon, however, was finding the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs restaurant! And, yes, we did decide to eat lunch there!

Sidebar...this seemed like a good place to include the St. Patrick's Day mobiles the girls made...since I forgot them in the miscellaneous pictures post!! :)

Amelya's Art Camp

What a week! Amelya had a fantastic time attending Art Camp during Spring Break. She can hardly wait for the summer camp in July!! Amelya loved the projects, enjoyed making a new friend, and felt very comfortable being left at the art studio for three hours each day. She was so excited to finally use her alarm clock to wake up every morning!

Every afternoon, she'd hide her art from us when we came to pick her up. She wanted to wait for the BIG REVEAL at home! I forgot to take pictures at the studio each day, so some of the pictures were taken at the house.

Ancient Greece

For our study of Ancient Greece, Amelya prepared a Greek meal comprised of tasty pilaf and chicken kabobs, as well as made a Greek vase using paper mache. The vase somehow took us about 3 weeks, but today, it is finally finished!

Yesterday, to honor the ancient Greek island-volcano of Thera, which erupted and sank into the sea, Amelya and Daddy made their own volcano out of Plaster of Paris. It is scheduled to erupt this afternoon...video to follow!!!

First Ride

Molly's first outdoor ride on her horse...

Molly & Norah's Spring Break

While Amelya attended Art Camp this week during spring break (pictures to follow), Molly and Norah were also quite busy! We went to the library, had a play date at the park, one at our house, and then had our own "art camp" today.

We made homemade puffy paint, so hopefully you'll be able to tell what the paint looked like before it was put in the microwave, and then the difference afterwards!

Miscellaneous Catch-Up Pictures

A few random pictures from the past two months, or so. Our Valentines Day Tea. Crazy St. Patrick's Day breakfast. Dance...fairy parties...sleep-overs...building...new hair-dos!

Molly's Science Lessons

We're trying to find more hands-on activities for Molly this semester. First, we put tempera paint into zip-lock bags, and she was able to draw on them with Q-tips and mix colors. Norah enjoyed this activity as well! Next, we did a quick experiment about germs and the benefit of soap. We placed about 1 tbsp of pepper into a container. Then, we put a drop of soap on Molly's finger. When she dipped her finger gently into the pepper-water, the pepper quickly scattered to the edge of the container. All the girls had to try this experiment - it was fun. They even made the pepper dance!

Molly has been busy as a bee learning about how bees communicate through dancing and what the hexagon cells inside the hive are used for - not just honey! When it warms up, we will go to Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago and see the live bees and hive on display. She put together a lapbook which displayed all of the facts she learned about the bees.

We also learned about the metamorphosis of Monarch butterflies. We discovered that they feed almost exclusively on milkweed, and in late July/early August, we should be able to find some tiny monarch caterpillars out in the fields. We'll capture a few and watch them turn into beautiful Monarch butterflies! To end our study, Molly and Norah painted caterpillars (egg cartons).

To go along with Amelya's plant study, we watched blue and yellow dye travel up stalks of celery. This showed us how nutrients and water in the soil get from the roots to the leaves of the plant.

Amelya's Science Lessons

We've discovered that science texts typically repeat the same themes from year-to-year, while adding more interesting and complex details about each topic. So, we have returned to studying the characteristics of plants and animals, as well as what is required for the growth and reproduction of both. We needed to go to botanical gardens...alas, difficult in Illinois in the middle of winter! We settled for a trip to a local nursery which happened to have a little pond with fish -- they made a good effort trying to get things to look "natural!"

We also did a little experiment to watch how a plant can move...it's leaves turned towards the sunlight over the course of a week.

Lastly, we went to the zoo, again, on a COLD winter day, to see some animals. We saw wolves, cougars, owls, turkey's, alligators, spiders, snakes, lizards and gazelle. Plus, we got to hang out with some fun homeschool friends.

Literature Lessons

This year, we decided to put some of Amelya's grammar and writing lessons to work in a more creative way. We used a series called Shakespeare Can Be Fun! which introduces 2nd and 3rd graders to the themes of Shakespeare. Ameya was tasked to assume the role of some of the characters and write journal entries, letters, newspaper articles and poems. She also created artwork depicting various scenes from the plays.

We began the study with A Child's Portrait of Shakespeare, and Amelya learned about the Bard's life. Next, we moved onto Twelfth Night. Her final project was a "character love map" which charted the changing relationships of the characters throughout the play. Last, we studied A Midsummer Night's Dream. For her final project, she made a fairy out of pipe cleaners (it looked much better in my head!)!

After Shakespeare, we read The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes. This study involved more vocabulary and less writing (we determined my lesson plans for Shakespeare were a little too jam packed with writing projects which made it difficult to complete proper story webs, rough drafts and final drafts in the time I alloted). However, it did focus on teaching kindess and compassion for those different from us. For her final project, Amelya created a dress of her own and wrote a sequel to the story.

Now, we're back to formal writing and grammar lessons, so there won't be any pictures...although Amelya continues to write great "books" and stories for fun in her free time!

More History Lessons

After completing our cunieform writings, it was time to move on to ancient Chinese pictograms. The girls tried their hands at creating their own language using pictures instead of words.

By putting dried beans, rice, and dry noodles onto paper plates and then gluing two plates together, the girls made African musical instruments (it got a little LOUD after they dried!). Then, with a little glue and white bread, we made a monument to Thutmose (ancient Egypt).

We also made Pita bread - it tasted great for the first 24 hours!