Weekly Wrap Up 12-23-16 Christmas Piano recitals

The kids performed their Christmas Piano recitals and did great.  Both have been playing piano for nearly 6-7 years.  I am really pleased with their progress.






Mario Fan playing "Let it Snow"







Firedrake playing "Emmanuel" by David Lanz -- a contemporay composer


This week we have been wrapping up any loose ends for school before the Christmas break.  As well as completing our holiday baking and gift wrapping.   Next week we are taking the entire week off to just relax so no blogging will be done.  I plan to not even leave the house except to go to the grocery store if it is needed.  I plan to devote some time to my stain glass workshop.  We will be back to school Jan 2.


MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!! 

See you in 2017!

Weekly wrap up 12/16/16 Book Review and wrapping up

Coop ended this week so we had lots of things to wrap up for our classes.  Kids and I will still be working and finishing up our work at home so we can take about 10 days off school beginning the 24th:)

I was asked to do a book review back in September and we have just finished.  Took a bit longer to complete due to life getting busy.  I just finished it and it was an excellent book and the book came with an additional website to add more information to the book.

IF you are going to do a unit study on Oceana and love to include books in your home schooling, this book is an excellent addition.   This story tells the story of two young princes and the mythology of their island.  The book includes sibling rivalry, some magic and lots of adventure.  There are lots of Polynesian words interspersed throughout the book that are fun to learn.  The author also has a website that you can go to for further information.  Included are 2 study guides  that include additional information about the islands, geography, animals and history of the islands.  The author includes activities and discussion questions that require additional thinking and research.  I would put these study guides at a upper middle school level (although the author does not specify this)  There is even a mini quiz that you can use if you like!

MarioFan and I enjoyed this book and did many of the discussion questions and activities to round out our mini unit.  **I received this book free for a review--all thoughts and opinion are freely given and are based on how my family incorporated the book into our homeschool**


MarioFan and I have been working on learning about Inclines and working on making a few knee models and doing several experiments.

We compared a small incline to a larger inclined  as well as looked around the house for additional things that we use as inclines and why and how they make a difference to our lives and help make some jobs easier

We went to six Flags for their holiday park gathering on what it seemed to me as the coldest day of the year so far.   BURRRRRRR

We are beginning to work on our Christmas baking but still have lots more to do 

The kids performed their Christmas piano recitals and I will be posting them next week:)
Right now I am in the thick of Christmas preparations, wrapping presents and the kids want to do more cookie baking:).  Hope you are having a great week and not stressing out over the holiday madness!

Weekly Wrap Up 12-9-16 Radio Station field trip and simple machines

In our Homeschool Science unit MarioFan is learning about simple machines.  This week we learned about Levers and built different kinds using our Knex kit.  We discuss when you might use different levers and went around the house looking for levers that are commonly found in the home (I forgot to take a picture of our results:( but we did find a few)

Seesaw as a class one lever

Wheel barrow as a class two lever

Hockey stick as a class 3 lever.

Next week we will be discussing inclines planes :)


We also went on a field trip to visit a local radio station and learn how things are done.  We had an excellent tour and MarioFan was thrilled that he got to talk on the air (in a group setting).

My husband was a DJ for his college and says it has come a long way  since we worked int he studio:)

Seeing all the equipment...I was surprised to learn that DJ often pre record their segments and  a 4 hour radio show only takes about 30 minutes to pre record!  

The Guide showed the kids the equipment and then let the kids record their voices 

Using  the mic:)

Then he showed the kids how their voices can be manipulated and inserted into a radio program.  IT was quite interesting:)

We did see a DJ in action and saw her work the computers for adding songs, answering calls and she even talked to the kids on her live show.

the computers which lines of the songs and what is to be done next.

We were also shown the cough button which a DJ can press if they need to during  their show.  The kids were told it can be used for all other noises beside coughing, which the older students understood and laughed about:)

For history we are continuing our discussion on WWII, we are concentrating more on Hitler's rise, and the holocaust at the minute.  Firedrake is reading The Dairy of Anne Frank while MarioFan is reading The Number of the Stars and the "book What if They Find Us?".

The kids Christmas Piano recital and Coop Christmas party are this weekend, in addition to my husband work Christmas party!!  Lots of activities this weekend and I am sure to be exhausted:)

Weekly wrap up 12-2-17 Museums

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving...should have been interesting for some of you after the election two weeks ago.  We decided to stay home and keep it very small with just us and the kids.  :)  It was quite relaxing although my son did become ill the day after Thanksgiving for a few days, luckily no one else got sick and he made a fairly speedy recovery:).

You know a child is really sick when they take a 2 hour nap instead of playing video games on their day off:)!!!!

Last week Coop was out for Thanksgiving break so this week we are getting back into the swing of things. We took the opportunity last week to visit the local art museum which had a Japanese art exhibit.  This is a topic we are discussing in our home as this exhibit focused on art from the late 1800's to just before WWII and the rise of Japans military and Nationalism.

Most of the art used a wood block style of art.
There were many pieces that showed games and how the rise of Japan's nationalism was ingrained into children

This games was similar to chutes and ladders but again using militaries as the main theme

Art showing how Japan and the western world worked together to defeat Germany during WWI, Japan expected to gain acceptance by the Western world for it role in the war but that did not happen and it made Japan quite angry.

I think this was my favorite pieces a depictation of an underwater battle, which I doubt ever occurred, sort of reminds of the battle from 20,000 leagues under the sea book:)

My daughter tried to read the Japanese writing on many of the paintings but she still has a way to go.  

We saw lots of scroll type art as well.

After WWI many Japanese elite tried to conform to Western dress in the hopes that the Western world would take them more seriously...that did not happen and is one of the reason for Japans reasons to enter WWII against the USA

Many artist depict war stories --  This one is of a Japanese solider carrying a Chinese child into battle.  It sort of hints of the mercy of the Japanese soldiers towards the Chinese, but in reality the Japanese were quite brutal the the Chinese during the Manchuria war

We saw lots of Kimonos

and the art of Japanese Fans

The kids and I learned a great deal about this time period as it gave an interesting perspective of the rise of Japans Nationalism which we have been talking about at home.  We also got a better understanding of Japans aggressive moves on China and other asian countries prior to WWII and why they were wanting to increase their dominance in that area.

We also decorated our Christmas tree this past weekend

The kids have reminded me we still haven't got their new christmas ornament so we need to do that as that is a tradition for us

My Husband and I were able to plan a quick date night and went to the local botanical gardens to see their Christmas lights which we do every year:).  We will be going back and taking the kids in a week or two as they love to go as well.  It was nice to just get out as a couple and wander around.  Plus the gardens serves Hot chocolate with Baileys which is my favorite hot drink:)

This year they had a few new things but there were also many of the same things from last year.  We didn't visit the Christmas train as we are waiting to see it with the kids.

We also met up with a friend to tour the local children museum during the Thanksgiving break and I had a chance to introduce MarioFan to our next topic in science -- simple machines:)

Pulleys exhibit:)  I was able to sneak in a few things as the boys played and that I will be recalling in the next few weeks:) I am sneaky like that:)

There was also a Chess exhibit and we go the boys to play a game:)

And that was our Thanksgiving break in a nutshell:)  Busy but fun and there was even a day or two where we just relaxed:)