Prairie Ridge

On our field trip this week, we visited Prairie Ridge in Raleigh.

We had a beautiful morning for exploring and learning.  The staff were kind and informative and it was a great field trip.  This site is open for visitors during the day and I'm hoping that my family can go back for a visit again soon.

We started in a large group and the facilitators asked the children what they were interested in learning or seeing during the day.  The younger kids were very interested in animals.

We split into groups and I went with my 3 youngest kids on one of the tours.  We started near a bird blind.  Isn't it fun looking?

Inside were posters, books and a bench for sitting and observing.

This is the view from the blind.

About midway through the morning, I made a note to myself.  I hope I"ll remember it.  I need to wipe off my camera before using it because Eliana tends to smudge it.  lol  My little photographer loves to take pictures.  I have so many of her feet!  Her shoes today were a big hit though.

From here we headed to the pond.  

The children split into 4 groups on blankets to observe some creatures from the pond.  The staff had already scooped up some pond stuff and then the kids put it into a big bucket.

From the bucket, they moved it into small ice cube trays for closer observation.  They were told that it was easier to see the small animals/insects against the white of the tray.

They were given magnification boxes so that they could look more closely.  How fun is that?!

There were field guides to help you identify what you were seeing.

I liked this homemade guide.  A large picture of various insects to compare with the creature in the box.

They then had a snack for the kids.  How thoughtful!  I asked about what was available as I wasn't prepared for this to happen.  (We didn't know that they were going to offer a snack.)  I thought I would just stay away from the snack area and do something else with Eliana.  To my surprise, they had gluten free snacks - both pretzels and animal cookies.

I thanked one of the staff for having this while explaining that Eliana has Celiac disease and has to eat GF.  She told me that it hadn't been planned, but was just what had been available for them to bring out to the group.  I knew it was more.  It was a small reminder to me that God is in the details.  He blessed me through this staff by having a cookie that my little girl could eat.  I hope that whoever purchases the food hears of this blessing as I know buying GF foods are more expensive and I do appreciate the effort!

The next activity is something that can be done at home.  What a creative way to explore nature!  The kids were given tape to go around their wrists.  Then each child was given a paint sample square.  Their task was to find something in that shade that matched.  Not just any green would do - but their green.  The samples were in green, yellow, orange and brown.

Heading out on a nature hike.

Looking for a match.

Finding interesting and beautiful critters along the way.

Can you see the spider below?  Its green!  I didn't realize that spiders were green!

The path was beautiful and there was a lot to explore.  (Including rocks like the one she is holding in her hand.)

Our hike took us from pond to prairie and from plants grown in lowlands to mountains.

This site is adjacent to a National Guard facility so we spotted some other interesting things that day too!

A creek is always enjoyed by children!

More insects to enjoy and learn about.  From bugs to caterpillars.  

Can you see the Monarch chrysalis on this tree?  It was so beautiful and the photo does not do it justice.  The gold trim on it was lovely!

Our last activity was to look at the types of insects that lived in the grasses and compare them to what had been found in the pond.  Using a large net and swinging it through the grass captured some spiders, grasshoppers and more.  These were dumped on blankets and the kids could capture and examine them with the magnifying boxes.

We finished off with lunch.  It was a fun and relaxing day.  I love this way of learning.  I'm thankful for the opportunity to learn more about God's creation.  I'm thankful for this time to spend with my family and friends.  I'm thankful.

Blessings
Leslie

Special Night at Marbles Kids Museum

Well, we are back into school full swing.  I'm working hard on planning things for Eliana this year too and that is taking some time.  I do find though that with good planning, we are able to get more done.  Not a surprise at all!  This is one of the things that I've loved about using workboxes.  I'm combining a lot of things for Eliana to make a "curriculum" of sorts for her.  I'll share more on that in a different post when we actually have done a bit more.  :-)

Our days are full and I'm still working on a good routine for all of us that includes schooling, chores, exercise and fun.  It's probably always going to be a work in progress  All that to say, this is part of why I've been neglecting my blog.  Hoping to get better.

One of the local museums opens several nights of the year to families of kids with special needs.  Its free.  We went for the first time and it was so much fun!  I had to coerce one of mine (who shall remain nameless) to go.  He had a blast and I encouraged him to remember that next time he was fighting me on something that I told him he would enjoy!  I want him to just learn to trust me on things!  Makes me wonder how often God feels the same way about me.  Relax.  Trust me.  You will enjoy what I have planned for you.  Love it when the parenting lesson ends up being something that I learn from too!

This little girl just oozes delight, doesn't she?

So many fun places to pretend and interact with things.

We were surprised to see our princess on a huge banner there too!  Can you spot her picture?  (Upper right with the blue hat on.)  There were some tables there with information from various groups in our area.

Love the life-size things to play on and with in the museum!

A couple of my little chefs had a great time in the kitchen.

Doesn't it just look like a fun place to play?!

You can't see this whole display, so let me explain.  There was a wall of mirrors in front of Eliana.  There were some large buttons beside the mirror.  When you pushed a button you got music.  Eliana liked the latin music and she LOVED shaking the pompoms while looking at herself in the mirror.  It really tickled me and was so much fun to see her having a blast here.

You could pretend to play hockey - and even dress in some of the gear.

Surf as you try to balance on the surfboards.

A window that overlooked the street and sidewalk.

Everything is so well done at this museum - from displays to play areas.  Creative and tons of fun!

Pizza delivery bike.

Assembling felt pizzas.  There was an oven too.  Then you could put them in boxes for delivery.

Under the sea.

Aboard a pirate ship.

What a great time!  We'll definitely be going back.  If any of you are local or in the area, we do recommend Marbles Kids Museum.  I'm also really impressed that they are willing to put on a night like this for kids with special needs.  A very sweet way to reach out to this part of the community.

Blessings
Leslie

Beyond Co-op: Sarah Plain and Tall #1

We had our first co-op today.  I like hosting the first one.  It's such a fun group and for a number of us, this is our 3rd year co-oping with this group of kids.

We started with a group picture.

Next was a devotion.  We talked about the letter writing done in the book and also how God writes letters to us.  He wants us to know about Him and more importantly to know Him.

We also talked some about our memories and some of the children shared some stories of early memories that they had.  We then moved to an extended art project.  A number of the lessons in this book involve learning about the prairie and also the sea.  We thought it would be fun to make journals to record what they had learned.  They made an art piece for each side of the journal.  One for the prairie and one for the sea.

 They had a lesson colors - analogous colors were going to be used in today's sea project.

 For the prairie project, they gathered leaves, flowers or grasses.

 They placed these on a board then covered them with muslin.  They pounded the plants so that the natural colors from the plants would come through onto the fabric.

 While half of the group was pounding, the others were working on painting with watercolors.  They learned to mix colors and experimented with various techniques.  One of them was adding coarse salt to the project.  What a fun thing to add to a sea painting!

 When the fabric was finished, they applied modge podge to a notebook and added the fabric on top.  This made one side of their notebooks.

 When the finished one of the art projects we took a break for a snack.  They were given baggies in which they could make their own "prairie mix".  Ours included corn chex, popcorn, raisins and sunflower seeds.

 After snacking, they switched projects.

 These are the completed prairie journal sides.  Don't they look great!

Our last activity of the day was a lesson on whales and seals.  This was done game show style.  The children first listened and learned facts about these animals - then they were quizzed.  

 The winning team got to select which animal they wanted to draw.  What they didn't know is that they were to draw a life sized version of the animal.  The winning team choose a 100 foot whale!  They raced to the cul-de-sac to draw.

 First measuring the length of the animals.

 Then drawing.

 The seal.  (Kind of hard to see.)

 The whale.  (You really can't tell how far down the street it goes!)

 Eliana taking a peek at the sea life displays.

In order for things to dry, we waited to add the water color paintings to the notebooks.  They are so beautiful!  I really hope the children will enjoy using them this year.  This picture really doesn't do them justice.  I took it in the house and perhaps should try again tomorrow outside.  They are beautiful.  I love the textures and details.

I'm always delighted to see the various talents and interests that each of the children displays when it come to art.  As always, it was a wonderful day.  I thoroughly enjoy this group of families and am thankful to be sharing school time with them!

Blessings
Leslie

A praise and a request

We have results back from Joshua's testing ... NORMAL!!!  Thank you God!  I'm so thankful that we don't have to prepare for more meds at this point!

As a quick request, Eliana will be going to get an x-ray tomorrow/Wed.  It is to rule out an instability in her neck.  (Atlanto-axial instability for those that are curious.)  This is something that occurs more frequently in people with Down syndrome.  Would you pray for clean and good results?  We would also love prayers that the appointment goes smoothly.  Eliana has not been enamored with doctors lately and after the blood drawing fiasco, I'm not sure how she will respond.  I'm not expecting easy and would love to be wrong!

Thanks for praying.  I just really don't want her to have anything else, kwim?

Blessings

Leslie