Beyond Co-op: Boxcar Children #2

For our second Co-op of Boxcar Children, we covered chapters 4-6.  What a fun hands-on day of learning! We've done a lot of learning with this unit on food, nutrition and health!  Its been neat to see a lot of things tying together as we continue to move through the lessons.  

 After talking about grains and the nutrition of whole wheat and white bread, it was time to put our hands to work making bread!

 First they readied their work surfaces.

 Next it was time for the dough.

 They each received a hand full.

 Rolled it into a snake.

 Ended up with a knot!  Then we had to wait for the dough to rise again.

 The kids then played a fun activity to get to know each other better.  They used this time to talk, learn and also to encourage.

More nutritional information - this time on berries.  We also learned that its not just fun to eat produce, but also to use it to make homemade watercolors!

 The kids each drew a picture and then chose the colors that they wanted to use on their pictures.

 I love the creativity and variety in art work that I always see in groups of children!

 More cooking lessons!  What fun to make your own snack by following a recipe!  I really should let my younger children do this more often at home!  They all loved it.  Simple, delicious and fun!

 Mmmm ... don't these look good?!

What a fun day!  Wish you could all be there for the fun!  I'm hoping some of these ideas will help others who are co-oping these great books!  Thanks Lea and Julie for all you did!  We had a blast!

Blessings
Leslie

Beach, Birthdays and Fun

We went to the beach in early April to visit my parents and to celebrate my Dad's birthday.  Look at the cute cupcake "cake" that Rebecca made for him!  

 Most of my kids with my Dad.

 Diving in ... literally!  LOL

 It was cooler when we arrived, but not so cool that we didn't head out to play on the beach!

 I had thought they might get a little wet and sandy, but not fully since we didn't bring swimsuits.

 Yeah, were you laughing at that thought?!   I should have known better.  They got soaked ... and loved every minute of it too!

 I just thought this was a sweet photo of Daniel.

 These three are such fun together.  Most of the time.

 Having a blast!

 Lets add some sand to the sopping wet jeans too.

 Isaiah starting on a sand castle.

 This is how very messy my little one got.  Maybe the greater the mess, the greater the fun?

 Trying to beat the tide.  A game played for centuries and not usually won.  Still fun though!

 More fun on the beach on the second day too.  I didn't have any other clothes options so this time we just planned to be soaked and sandy!

 Some aimed at sandy more than others.

Thanks Mom and Dad for having us!  We had a great time!

Love
Leslie

Abundance Foundation Field Trip

We visited The Abundance Foundation on one of our field trips in March.  Yes, still playing catch-up here!  LOL  This is a place that educates on sustainability and renewable energy.  We had a beautiful day for our tour and loved our time there.  We split into 2 groups - younger and older.  The younger kids started with the farming area.

We saw things growing outside and also in a greenhouse.

The fun part was actually sampling some of the things grown on the farm!

Everything was incredibly delicious - including a variety of greens!

One of the biggest surprises for most of us was how yummy the salad turnips tasted!  Now, I'm not a huge turnip fan, but these were delicious - raw and plain!

Doesn't my little girl look like a big girl tagging along with the other kids?!  

So many things were edible.

Including these flowers.

The kids were mostly adventurous in trying a variety of things too!

Can you see the snake hidden in the picture below?  He was big and tucked away in one of the green houses.    Not necessarily "on the tour" but the kids did enjoy getting a peek at him.

I love pictures from the back.  She is so tiny (still) and cute trying to keep up.

Can you tell what this is made from?  Take a guess and then read below for the answer.

 Strawbales.  Were you right?  This houses part of the biodiesel fuel operation. (Above) and another greenhouse picture below.  The plants are grown using hydroponic production.

 No matter what is on the tour, rocks are always a draw to so many children.  Eliana is no exception.

 Getting hands on learning with the vermiculture operation.

 Several of the kids were really hoping to take some worms home too!

 After the tours, we hung out and played and had a picnic lunch.

 The large chess set was fascinating for kids of all ages.  Some of them really used them to play a game of chess too!

 Picnics.  Sunny days.  Friends.  What a fun way to have school!

 Lots of space to run and play.

The staff was wonderful and we spent a delightful day here.  I heartily recommend this location for a field trip!

Blessings

Leslie

"My Ipad"

I was hoping to catch up some this week on posting, but our main computer seems to have a virus - or something - wrong with it.  It's where all of my pictures are loaded.  I'm hoping Roger can work some magic on it and get it up and running again soon.  I was pleased to find that I had loaded a few pictures though so I can share at least one thing.

Electronics.  Things change and move so quickly these days.  I can hardly keep up.  I can't begin to keep up with all that my children know!  It just tickles me that Eliana knows the difference between an ipad and an itouch.  And oh boy does she like them both!  Often when holding the ipad she will let us know that this is "my ipad".

We have found some fun and educational games for her which I am hoping will be helpful for her learning.  She also really likes watching Phineas and Ferb on there too.  LOL

Here are some of the apps that she likes.

First Words Deluxe - Great game for learning letters and spelling words.  The letters are written and light gray so the child is really matching and then hears the name of each letter and then the word.

Wheels on the Bus - Just a fun, interactive musical game.

Scouts ABCs - A fun game made by Leap Frog. 

I Write Words - Great for learning to write letters.  Will not let you progress with incorrect writing and guides the child on forming the letters correctly.


Other fun apps enjoyed by a wider audience.

Cookie Doodle - Pick a recipe, make the dough (crack eggs, sift flour, and more), roll the dough, select a cookie cutter shape, decorate it.  Just fun!

Cake Doodle - Similar to the one above, but just with cakes.

Boggle

Game of Life

Angry Birds

If you have found other great apps - for any age - I would love to hear about them!  I've done a better job finding things for younger than for the elementary ages and would love some help!  I've added some free math games which I hope will be fun, but haven't played them with the boys yet.

You are never too young for this fun new "toy".  It's not just Eliana - most of her friends also love the ipad!

Can I just say that it cracks me up to see her sitting like this with the ipad propped on her leg?

Hopefully more soon when I can get to our pictures!

Hope you are having a fabulous week!

Blessings

Leslie

One month

I'm not sure I'll make it far into this post.  It's an emotional topic for me.

One month.  That's it.  Just one month.  A month can seem like a long  period of time when you are waiting.  Or maybe when you are really young.  But really, it's not very long.

30 days.

When I look back over the last 18 years, I delight in so many memories.  I'm so very thankful for this time.

Because in just one month ...



I'll have a graduate.

I'm thankful for God placing the desire to homeschool in our hearts.  This has been an incredible blessing for our family.  I have loved the years of learning together and know that we'll still be able to share and learn from each other - just in new and different ways.

For now, I'm trying to relax even though I feel like there is still a lot left to be done in a month.  I want to enjoy this time.  Just like I have wanted to enjoy the time that preceded it.  Time is fleeting ... and precious.

So for just one more month, I'll be homeschooling my oldest.  And that's all I can write now.

I love you Christopher!

Blessings
Leslie