Thursday, January 20, 2011

Very Last First Time....FIAR Study

Hi!

This past week, we did Five in a Row Very Last first time, by Jan Andrews.
We had SO much fun!!! The kids were so bummed when our adventure was over.... =) can't blame them, there was alot of fun stuff in this study! =)
I seem to do one FIAR book, and then take a week off, at least as i looked back on this past year so far, that's what i have been doing... I just can't seem to do one book a week..we need more time... =) then by the time it's finished, I need a break to gear up and plan for the next one. =)


About the book: Eva Padlyat had often walked on the bottom of the sea with her mother. This extraordinary-sounding feat is routine for the Inuits of Northern Canada, who lower themselves through the thick winter ice at low tide to search for mussels on the ocean floor. It is now time for Eva's first trip under the ice alone. She and her mother pull their sleds across the snow until they find a place to chisel a hole; then Eva carefully lowers herself into the darkness. Lighting a candle, she begins to look for mussels; she then goes exploring. When she hears the tide coming in and drops her candle, she feels panicky, but she soon finds her matches and another candle to light her way back to the ice hole. On the surface of the ice once again, Eva sums up her adventure as her "very last first time" for walking alone on the ocean floor.

Our Studies included, Canada, Inuit culture, Igloos, Arctic Wildlife (polar bears, seals) , & Arctic lifestyles



We first started out with making Igloos from Sugar cubes and Glue... Bad combo.. didn't work well at all. =( they made their own stickyness and melted each other... )







KT was still very proud!
JT refused to finish it, even though it wasn't working....

Here is our super fun and "playable" cotton ball igloo! I just washed an icing cup, turned it upside down and cut out a door... We used a tin baking sheet, that we covered with foil, and they could easily pick up their project and move it.... (2 weeks later they are STILL playing with it!)



We learned all about Canada! they colored the map, and we located it daily on the globe....


We located Ungava bay, and printed it out for our lapbook. They loved to say the word "Ungava.." =)

For Art, we talked a little bit about pointille, and how many of the illustrations in teh book were made with tiny dots, to bring together all teh pretty colors....

Here is KT and her version of pointelle.... she loved it! We used oil pastels.

This is the picture they copied.... above is Kt's and below is Jt's.... not to bad !!! 




We also did lapbook fun!



KT did some fun with words that start with "C" for Canada.... she really enjoyed it! JT worked on vocabulary words from the story, and practiced writing his letters all that week.

Here is our vocabulary print out of an igloo- and I chose the words and we hung it up for the week.

In the story the girl. Eva gets scared, and panics... we talked a little bit about what we should do when that happens, and how we can handle situations like that.




Next, quite possibly the most fun thing of all was bring the snow "IN!" This was a huge hit! we just threw in some of our Arctic animals... polar bears, penguins, seals.. and of course Sid the sloth ( ice age)

making caves for the bears.......

Notice the first picture it is daylight... notice this picture above, the snow is melting, and it is now dark... they stayed there for over 4 hours playing!~ once it started melting we added blue food coloring.... made it that much more fun!


A side trail, was animals in the arctic!


So, we made another lapbook for this.... Polar Animals.





A great book was this one we read: Very informational...





Polar wildlife is no longer available new, but it is GREAT if you can get a copy it was really informational for this age level... and it covered all the Arctic animals...




We also did an Inuit craft, of carving... we used Soap.... and made Fishies!

They worked really hard on them, and it was pretty tough! So I helped with some of it too!

Here is KT's!




We also watched several you tube videos on how to build an igloo, ice sculptures, and snow forts.
We also watched a neat video on the Inuit throat sing.. which is what Eva was doing under the sea.... it was really neat.
We talked about the culture, and the area in which they live, and they survive... We talked about how they eat alot of meat, and use most of all the animal parts when possible for clothing, household use, etc....
The little Eskimo doll I had was a great visual for fur clothing, and boots... if you can pick one up, it's great to have!


Here arethe additional resources we used:

Malamute printout

words that start with C print out

Canada dot to dot


igloo craft

How Igloos Work

ice fishing coloring page

Penguin snack (even though they aren't arctic!)

All about the Inuit

preschool Eskimo maze

Eskimo coloring page

Ungava Bay Map

Thanks for visiting with us!









Monday, January 3, 2011

New Year...


New Years Eve...we said goodbye to the Man in our lives..... The Encourager, The joker, the best pancake maker, the best sledding buddy, the trash taker-outer, the protector, the best friend, the most fun movie buddy....and in our opinion; the most devoted family guy you will ever meet..... for one year. (insert crying here)

Here are some pictures of our last night together!

For fun, I took a picture of the German grocery store flyer of the adds they have for fireworks! =) We always got a kick that you can buy these MEGA fire works right in your local food store! =) and Cheap!




First, a night on the town... Dinner at Macaroni Grill... Yum!





Then Fireworks, and sparklers!




You wouldn't believe how the entire German sky lights up with fireworks at midnight...and it goes on for a good 15-20 min straight on our street, almost every single house is doing mega fireworks... if you can imagine... ... it's an amazing sight!!!

Then, Super Yummy treat..... and a Family Movie!  =) 



This is KT's very FIRST time EVER writing anything on her own free will.. well writing anything at all, she has her school book ( HWOT- ) but nothing informal that she just picks up and writes.... She made this for Daddy to our amazement for him to take with him... and it was so cute!!! Now that I know she is ready to write......=) Just kidding.... I will still let her be a preschooler! =)



This week we started school....... *sigh* But it's good to try to start our routine again.....


We are doing our Five in a Row Study.....  Very Last First Time, By Jan Andrews...

Have a wonderful week!


 

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Mama's Winter Reading List

Here are my reading books for January!

Mama's Christmas presents = lots of great books!


I Love this book.. I just finished it today.. I have her other books on my wish list! she also has a blog Soulemama

Description *When you learn to awaken your family’s creativity, wonderful things will happen: you’ll make meaningful connections with your children in large and small ways; your children will more often engage in their own creative discoveries; and your family will embrace new ways to relax, play, and grow together. With just the simple tools around you—your imagination, basic art supplies, household objects, and natural materials—you can transform your family life, and have so much more fun!







Funny, I got 2 of these for Christmas! =)

Description * Moms get so busy with the doing and the giving for their families that they never seem to have enough time to rest and receive. So many moms have bought into the world-view that they can have it all and then believe the self-talk that if I don't do it, it won't get done! Isn't it ironic that so many mothers are running on empty? Lisa Whelchel delivers a book full of practical tips and advice for mothers on how to find lost time in their day to nourish body, soul, and spirit.

Friendship for Grown-Ups
Description *details her experiences of learning to come out of her shell, to trust, risk, and become vulnerable by God's grace and find meaningful friendships. Readers encounter her captivating story and refreshing perspective on life's most precious gift--and they find practical tips for their own friendships along the way.


Lisa Whelchel also has the BEST parenting book - Creative Corrections- if you don't own it, you should!

                              

Description
*focuses on mechanisms of traditional education that cripple imagination, discourage critical thinking, and create a false view of learning as a byproduct of rote-memorization drills. Gatto’s earlier book, Dumbing Us Down, introduced the now-famous expression of the title into the common vernacular. Weapons of Mass Instruction adds another chilling metaphor to the brief against conventional schooling


What's on your reading list?


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