Heart of Dakota: Bigger week 28

Oh my, I think I have short timers’ syndrome. There is only 5 more weeks left of school and even though I enjoy school so much I am so ready for summer. I am sure there are several of you out there like that too. Well, anyway, Unit 28 was just as good as Unit 1-27. We are learning about The Wright’s brothers and the family. I love the way they worked together and the way they were such a great family unit. And I really am enjoying the fact the two boys LOVE their younger sister!

For History Activity this week we learned about gravity. Using the wadded paper ball was a really good experience. They had a blast throwing them up and down over and over again and the kids, of course, took a few minutes and throwing them at each other.

Our Character Study this week was cheerfulness. This was especially good for me. Not that I am not cheerful, but lately I have found myself not as cheerful as I would normally be. Too much stress going on in life I think. So it was nice to hear what God has to say about it. Oh yes, I wanted to recommend a book to go along with the Bible Study in Bigger as well as any other Bible Study you may be doing. It is called “Parenting with Scripture. A Topical Guide for Teachable Moments” By: Kara Durbin. I have been using this all along and it has been a very helpful resource for many years and it complements HOD very nicely!

Science was interesting this week. We reviewed the type of trees the pioneers would look for; best, second best and worst farm lands. We also went over how popcorn actually pops. Using a baggy and our very own hot air we were taught that the pressure from the heat and the water turning to steam allow the corn to explode. They loved this experiment so much! Darn, now I have to go to the store and get more baggies!  LOL!

But the Science experiment that was the most interesting was the soap experiment. It took a long time for the soap to separate into the two elements; neat soap and liquid soap. So at first we thought it had not worked, but I decided to leave the soapy water on the counter and see what would happen. It took several hours, but there is was, the separation and the two very distinctive soaps. LOVE IT!

For Geography we went to our huge wall map and traced the three different routes the pioneers could take to get to the other side of the USA! Then we took what we learned for the large map and traced it on some paper maps.

We went ahead and did the art this week even though we had our art class. But I forgot to take pictures again. My brain is failing me these past two weeks. Uuggh! See, short timers brain! Anyway, I thought it was good opportunity to make cards for the Grandmas for Mother’s Day. Which, of course they just loved! And as far as art class this week, we really had a good time painting. The idea was to learn to draw the silhouette of an object. This week cats were the chosen object. Then of course we had to paint it. My son’s painting has a Vincent van Gogh feel to it. You know “Stary Night”. They both turned out very good and are currently hanging on my wall!

Lastly, of course are vocabulary, timeline and notebooking. The notebooking was great opportunities to have my daughter practice her copy skills. She is getting so good at it. I have to admit putting her in Bigger was scary, but it has really pushed her to be ahead of herself.

Well off to the nice Mother’s Day weekend and celebrating my birthday. I have a feeling things will be very nice for me this weekend! See you all next week. Happy Mother’s Day!