Back at the beginning of our summer break a couple of summers ago, J requested that we create a jungle mural on our chalk board wall. He made sure that it included an elephant.
Elephants happen to be one of our favorite animals and according to Special Days in August , the 12th is “World Elephant Day”! And, September 22 is “Elephant Appreciation Day”! I’m glad that we took some time to study these magnificent creatures.
Below are the resources we used as we learned about elephants.
A Song, Agony and Ivory, dedicated to the movement to stop the wholesale slaughter of elephants taking place as a result of the ivory trade. (the song and website is a project of a homeschooling family!) www.agonyandivory.com
We had a few fantastic “special days” studies last July. Below are those special day posts. Each one has the links to the teaching resources we used. I’ve checked the links and they seem to be working.
Ramadan, 2014 began in June and continues until July, 28 with the celebration of Eid al-Fitr. .(This past winter, our local homeschool group hosted a holiday history fair. B chose to come back to this study for his presentations. It’s a very good study.) https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/07/12/studying-ramadan/
This was our study following the 4th of July, it would have been better if we had done it first with the fireworks display to follow. We learned a lot and found it interesting. We’ll be visiting topic again this year. https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/07/05/fireworks/ We learned about the Liberty Bell as part of our July studies last year, too. The resources for that study were awesome! https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2013/07/08/the-liberty-bell/
We haven’t yet made any decisions yet about our July 2014 special day learning, but I’m pretty sure ICE CREAM will make our list (more than once)! And, we may have a go with the July 24th unschool holiday, “Learn Nothing Day”, though I don’t know how that would be possible. Here’s the “Special Days in July” list for 2014 https://stilllearningsomethingnew.com/2014/06/26/special-days-in-july/
Because we’ve been having an abundance of craziness and busyness this week, I thought that we wouldn’t “do school” today. But… it’s Friday the 13th!
I’m wowed by the resources and links I have saved up for a study on superstitions do use on a Friday the 13th. Surely we’ll be able to make a little time to learn about superstitions because this stuff is INTERESTING! Below are the sites and resources I found to share with you just in case you can make time for a little superstition too.
To keep this study in the right perspective we’ll include 1 Timothy 4:7 with this study. “People tell silly stories that don’t agree with God’s truth. Don’t follow what these stories teach. But teach yourself to be devoted to God.”
And finally some music, which my kids will consider ancient history, but saying such a thing may bring them some bad luck!
For the past few years, we have spent a couple of weeks every March studying all things Irish and St. Patrick. Here are the wonderful links we have learned from.
E showed me this photo from a Pinterest board. We’ll make a few of these “Pot- O-Gold at the End of the Rainbow” jars as prizes for a follow the clues treasure hunt. It looks like gold wrapped candy in the bottom followed with layers of M&Ms or Skittles and topped with mimi marshmellows. Cute!
It’s Brain Awareness Week! This week is dedicated to brain research. Our homeschooling science lessons will also be dedicated to brain research. Below are some of the links we’ll be following during the week.
We aren’t particularly “sports fans” at our house, but there are some sporting events we are occasionally interested in. The Olympics is our top sports interest. The 2014 Winter Olympics begins Feb. 7th. And, as it happens at my house, where’s there’s interest, there is learning potential.
I have been planning for a Winter Olympic Unit Study and been collecting a stock pile of links for our homeschooling lessons. I have some awesome resources for teaching during the Winter Olympic Games to share with you.
Our Christmas studies have been going well. We’ve been covering Christmas themed Bible, social studies, math, foreign language, music and language arts lessons since the beginning of December. However, science studies have been lacking. For our final week of learning of the semester, we’ll be focusing on science but will still be keeping our Christmas theme.
Made How is a “new to me” site. While exploring there, I found helpful articles explaining the background, materials, design, and manufacturing of popular holiday items. This site doesn’t have an index or search bar, so I’ve linked to each item individually below.
This week we began our Thanksgiving unit studies with a couple of Pre-Thanksgiving activities. Below are some of the links we followed as we both reviewed and learned about the early American Settlements of Roanoke and Jamestown.
For the school days from now until Thanksgiving we we will be notebooking, crafting, cooking, reviewing, and researching who, what, when, where, and why – everything associated with the Plymouth Colony. We will keep journaling pages and bulletin boards of what we discover.
Below are the links we’ll be using for resources as we travel back in time to visit early America over the next few weeks.
Plimoth Plantation “Just for Kids” Activities – Coloring, Talk Like a Pilgrim, Virtual Field Trip, History Detective, and more! https://www.plimoth.org/learn/just-kids
According to the special days calendar for October, the second Thursday is World Sight Day. This awareness day is sponsored by WHO (World Health Organization) and was established to draw attention to blindness and vision impairment. Below is a collection of free resources for teaching about the human eye and blindness.
There are many Bible verses relating to the eyes, blindness, and healing of the blind. However, Isaiah 42:16 is what I have selected for our homeschool Bible discussion, copy work and journaling
“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”
To conclude our World Sight Day study we’ll be watching this informative video about the history, training, and use of seeing eye dogs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udUWaXxGo_U
Still Learning Something New 