Field Trip to NC Zoo

We visited the zoo with our FIAR group.  We were able to get in free too!  What a great deal!  Homeschoolers can get in free once per year as long as you register in advance.  We have never taken advantage of this before and it was a wonderful opportunity!  We hope to make this a more regular event.  Its been a long time since we had been to the NC Zoo.  We had a beautiful day!

 We met up with friends as we walked through the zoo.  

 And saw amazing animals!

We had two programs set up for our group. The younger kids (K-5) had a program about gorillas.  We learned many things about them including that they are identifiable by their noses - each one different from the others.

 After the younger kids program we wondered about a bit before meeting with the older children.  (Our programs were back to back instead of at the same time.)  There was plenty to keep us busy such as games to play.

 Fun photo ops!  And of course, plenty of animals to see.

 The older students met in the aviary and learned about birds and went on a search to see how many different kinds they could find.

 Everyone had a great time.

 The wind tunnel was fun - and was repeated a few times.

 Some of the older girls.

 A group shot of the ones that were around us at this point.  It was hard to stay together in a place this large and with everyone moving at different paces.

 Funny when we asked them to gather for the photo that the girls went to one side.

 And the boys to the other.

 Some of the moms.  :-)  I wish we could have gotten more, but this can be an elusive one to find at any time, kwim?

Two of my handsome boys.

 Loved seeing the animals.

 And this geyser was a huge hit!  Loved watching it and also being sprayed by it.  :-)  Would be really fun to see a real one.

 And isn't this river otter just the cutest thing?!

 Lots of fun things to explore at the zoo and we walked all over and saw as much as we could.

 The giraffes were so beautiful to see as we were leaving.  I was glad we were able to see them up close.  Such incredible creatures!

 My wild things had a great day!

 We were rowing Hanna's Cold Winter during this time - a book based on the true story of the hippos at a zoo in Budapest during World War II.  There aren't live hippos at the NC Zoo, but we did find these statues.

 And wanted to have our photos with them.

 A nice end to our day.

 Fun memories made.

 I'm thankful to be able to explore and learn with my family and friends.

We are looking forward to going back to the zoo again - hopefully soon.

Blessings

Leslie

Field Trip to Hillsborough!

We had a fun field trip to Hillsborough and were able to find 2 great outing for both the younger and the older students that were just a couple of blocks from each other!  Unfortunately, it was a rainy day so no hanging out to picnic afterwards.  

The older students (6th and up) went to the Burwell School Historic Site.  Isn't it a beautiful home?

While here they had two programs.   One was on herbal remedies that were used to cure illnesses.  The other was on exercise and play while exploring different games that were enjoyed during the 1800s.

The younger students visited the Orange County Historical Museum.  What a great site with wonderful volunteers!

There is a small museum on the first floor of the building which holds a variety of artifacts to examine and learn about.

The boys especially enjoyed seeing the variety of weapons.

The staff working here was wonderful with the children!

After some time exploring on our own, we headed upstairs for a program.

We learned about life as a Revolutionary War soldier.

Isn't the room pretty too?

We were able to see some of the items that they used such as these tin items for meals.

And one of the coats of a soldier.

It was very heavy!  I can imagine that it felt nice in the winter, but can't imagine wearing it in the summer in the south!

Loved this detail on the inside of the coat.  

We were told that this was pretty traditional to have the hearts inside the jacket like this too.

The kids did a small scavenger hunt around the museum too.  They were looking for a variety of things.

Such as furniture, weapons, documents and more.

This is a system of weights and measures.

Eliana working hard on her list along with her helper.

A letter written by a local man that was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.

This is the scavenger hunt.  When they found everything, they were able to get it stamped and then keep it as a bookmark.  What a great idea!

The girls are proud of their bookmarks!

Cute sign out front.

Leaving the museum and then heading back to find the older kids.  We had a great day and look forward to going back again.

I love that we have so many neat resources near our home to explore!

Blessings
Leslie

FIAR Volume 4: The Hatmaker's Sign

Doing Five in a Row is so much fun - and having an eager student just adds to the joy!  This is Daniel's favorite part of our school day!  I love this and I am really having fun with him.

We gathered with our friends for a co-op.  I didn't get a lot of pictures as I was holding a little sweetie.  They talked some about Ben Franklin and some of the different things that he did.  I loved that she used a variety of props to give clues about some of the jobs he has held.  He is quite an amazing and interesting person.

As you can see, they chose hats to wear and then started working on making signs for their own business.  This story focuses on a man who made a sign for his shop and thought he had gotten it just right but he then got input from many different people as to changes he could make so that it would be even better.  Thankfully, there was no such input today and they just had fun making signs.

 Daniel made one to advertise his painting business.  He even painted some while we were there and sold them with the money that they had each received when money was discussed.

 They used their money to buy snacks of their choosing.  They all had a great time with this!  It was another delightful afternoon!

 We did some fun things at home with this too.  One was learning to write with a quill pen.  Daniel enjoyed trying out his hand at this.

 I love his note!

 Of course we cooked the meal from the FIAR cookbook too.  This was a traditional meal from the colonial period.  Daniel is a good cook and loves to help out in the kitchen.  All of my children have liked to cook and I know that is a blessing - both now and in the future too!

 In addition to cooking, Daniel helped to set a pretty table.

 This meal even came with a yummy cake for dessert.  (Nuts on one side only to appeal to all tastes.)

 These are some of the additional books that we read while doing this study.  And Daniel also watched a lot of Liberty's Kids.  These are great shows which share a lot about our nation's history!  I highly recommend them!

 Daniel made several Lego creations during this time too.  I loved his Hatmaker's shop.

 The militia is gathering.

Between the painting, the discussions, watching Liberty's kids, food and more, Daniel has decided that this is his favorite book thus far!  We had a great two weeks and look forward to out next story ... Hanna's Cold Winter.

Blessings

Leslie