Our Lapbooks from Canada to India

I thought I would go ahead and post which lapbooks and components we used for ECC this year. Most everything came from homeschoolshare.com.

There is a lapbook for Mexico and lots of U.S. info available at homeschoolshare.com but I didn't discover lapbooking until we were ready to start Canada so my list is as follows:

Canada - HSS
Brazil - HSS
Rain Forest - HSS under 'The Great Kapok Tree'
Tree - HSS
Norway Page - HSS 'Where in the World...' and flag. Clip art from internet
searches.
France Page - same as above
Germany - same as above
Animal Classification - HSS
Kenya Page - same as other country pages listed above
Animals of Africa - HSS but compiled from various animal lapbook components
Saudi Arabia Page - Similar to other country pages listed above but without flag
page
Camels - HSS
India Page - same as other country pages listed above
Tigers - HSS

I previously posted the China/Giant Pandas and Japan/Oceans lapbooks.  You can view those in more detail below.

We are currently working on a Russia Lapbook from HSS. We plan to work on an
Australia page or lapbook and probably the coral reef lapbook but I'm leaning
toward the marsupial lapbook since we just studied oceans. I'm not sure yet. I
also plan to do some penguin and Antarctica components when we get there.

I usually type up the answers in advance if there is a lot of writing involved
since we are dealing with dyslexia/dysgraphia. It's more work for me but the
lapbooks really seem to be working for my dc so I don't mind too much. ;)

I may post these lapbooks in more detail this summer but I might get busy and not get around to it so I am including an overview picture of all the lapbooks from Canada to India/Tigers.  These are all taped to our closet door in our 'class room'.

ECC Weeks 27-28 More From Japan & Ocean Studies

I decided to post a few more activities we enjoyed during our Japan/Ocean studies. We enjoyed that study so much.

I am also going to try to start posting our lapbooks as they are completed as well. These have been a real highlight for my kids. When each one is completed I hang it in our 'classroom' on the closet door. Beau will occasionally look at them and comment about how much he has learned this year.

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We did an ocean experiment to compare the densities of freshwater and saltwater. We used an eyedropper to add several drops of green saltwater to the clear cup of freshwater and several drops of red freshwater to the cup of clear saltwater to see what would happen. (We didn't have any blue so we used red.) The conclusion is that saltwater and freshwater have different densities so they do not readily mix.

The directions said that the water will eventually mix after a few hours. We let ours sit for a couple of days. The saltwater eventually dropped to the bottom as it is more dense than the freshwater but even after a few days the freshwater never completely mixed.

Experiment Day 1

Experiment a few days later

I have included our Ocean and Japan lapbooks. I created the cover of the Ocean lapbook in a scrapbooking program. I compiled the different lapbook components from various lapbooks at homeschoolshare.com. The stickers were Sea Animals Stickers from a Dover Little Activity Book.

Ocean Lapbook Cover

Roo's Ocean Lapbook

Beau's Ocean Lapbook

We did some fun sand art activities related to the ocean as well.

I purchased the fish bottles at Michaels at the end of last summer for about a $1.00 each. The starfish was one of the homeshcoolshare.com ocean ideas and we added those to the lapbooks above.

Our Sand Art Activities

I used components from the Japan lapbook on homeschoolshare.com for our Japan lapbook and I added some clip art from various internet searches.  These started out as one page projects but sort of grew into two.

Roo's Japan Lapbook

Beau's Japan Lapbook

When we are working on a lapbook we usually work on one or two components a day.  It really depends on how much time we have.  If we are working on a  science or art activity we may not work on any of the lapbook pieces that day.

Well, I think this finally concludes our Japan/Ocean studies.  We have almost finished our Russia/Tundra studies.  I'll post those activities soon.  :)

Field Trip to Fossil Discovery Center

The homeschool group we are a part of schedules a field trip about once a month and P.E. most every Friday during the traditional school year.

The latest field trip was to a local Fossil Discovery Center.  This center began as our local city dump site.  In 1993 Mammoth bones were discovered and since then many other now extinct animal fossils and fossils of animals never known to roam this area have been found at this location including a new species of the sabertooth cat.  For more information on the center you can visit their web site here:   www.maderamammoths.org 

Below are a few pictures taken at the fossil center including a mock fossil dig the kids were able to be a part of.



Beau & Roo in front of a Mammoth sculpture at the Fossil Discovery Center



The kids observing a saber tooth cat model




Roo unearthing her camel jaw bone at the mock fossil dig site



Beau unearthing his horse skull at the mock fossil dig site



Model of a Mammoth Skull hanging from the ceiling

 The kids enjoyed their visit and are ready to visit again soon.

ECC Weeks 25-26 - China And A few Past Projects From India & Kenya

I thought I would add a few of our past projects.

Some things we did while studying China:

I read The Warlord's Beads by Virginia Walton Pilegard. It's basically a picture book about the abacus and includes a little history on the last page. In the back of the book it gives directions on how to make your own counting beads or abacus. I modified it a little using what I had on hand.  My kids loved this project.

Our Bead Counters


We also did the paper lanterns out of the book A Trip Around the World. They were a big hit as well and they were really easy.

Beau's Lantern

Roo's Lantern

Beau & Roo's China Lapbook Pages

Roo's Panda Lapbook

Beau's Panda Lapbook

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While studying India our science included mountain biomes.   I decided to take on the project listed in the Properties of Ecosystems book and have my kids make a model of a mountain. They came out great and both kids couldn't be more proud of their work. J-Beau usually starts a project and never wants to finish but he really got into this one.

Roo's Mountain

Beau's Mountain

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While studying Kenya the kids made the fabric bowl project in our Global Art book.  We cut up 1" (approx.) strips of fabric.  Turned a bowl upside down.  Put saran wrap over the bowl. Then we 'painted' the fabric pieces together over the saran wrap with glue to form the bowl.

Our Fabric Bowls

　
I decided to edit this post and add our China Pages and Panda Lapbooks to our past studies post. They are posted with the China activities above. 

ECC Weeks 27-28 - Japan

We learned a lot of fun things in our Japanese study and we did a lot of fun projects.

My kids made Japanese carp kites.  They had a lot of fun with them when they were complete.

Beau's Carp Kite

Roo's Carp Kite

We learned about and made our own Haiku poems.  I explained to the kids that a Haiku is a poem with three lines.  The first line has 5 syllables.  The second line has 7.  The third has 5.  I then read a couple of fun books (listed below).  We finished the study by making our own 'What am I?" Haikus.

The following is a sample poem of what a Haiku is:

I am first with five
Then seven in the middle --
Five again to end

Beau's Haiku:

I am nocturnal
I like to fly in the dark
I eat fruit and bugs

What am I?  A bat!

Roo's Haiku:

I squawk and I peck
I have colorful feathers
I am a show off

What am I?  A peacock!

My local library had the book If Not for the Cat Haiku by Jack Prelutsky. It was a very cute book with colorful paintings by Ted Rand. My kids loved trying to guess what animal was being described and then enjoyed looking at the pictures.

Another Haiku book we enjoyed was Least Things - Poems About Small Natures by Jane Yolen with Photographs by Jason Stemple. This one was more difficult to guess the animals being described. But with the two page full color picture and a short informational paragraph about the animal in each Haiku, this book was a good choice as well

Our science for Japan was a study of the ocean.  One of the projects called for us to make our own sand.  That was work! The kids enjoyed getting to hammer until their hearts were content, though. Our rocks and shells are not completely crushed but they enjoyed it all the same.

Our sand

That wraps up the highlighs for our Japan study.

We are heading to Russia next week.  We plan to make our own Matryoshka Dolls (out of paper) and jeweled eggs (out of clay).  We are looking forward to another new adventure.

My first post...

As you can see from my profile, we are a Christian, homeschooling family.

For our one room, well actually all over the house, school house we are using curriculum created by a company by the name of My Father’s World. Their programs allow us to be united as a family. We are able to study the Bible, geography, history, science and art together while each child focuses on and works at their own skill level in language arts and math.

We are currently using year one of their five year history cycle. Year one is a study of world geography and lays the groundwork for the next four years in the cycle. This cycle is geared for 3^rd-8^th graders with younger siblings joining in at their own skill level.

This year we are learning about all the continents and ‘visiting’ a few countries along the way. All the while we are learning to have a Biblical world view as we learn to pray for the different people groups as we go.

So far this year we have studied the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Kenya, Norway, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia, India, China and Japan. We are now headed to Russia. We will then visit Australia. We will end the school year with a brief study of the continent of Antarctica before our final review. Wow! Where has the year gone?

I hope you enjoy my ramblings as I begin this new journey of sharing about our adventures.