We started out our discussion today by getting familiar with Miyax and her world. We were able to find Barrow, Alaska on a map and visually tracked her long journey to San Francisco. Seeing how close Alaska is to the North Pole helped us to understand her dilemma of "midnight sun" and lack of navigational stars in the summertime.
Jonny helped us to better understand the science behind a frost heave, and Corban and Benjamin offered some great ideas on ways we could build a sod house.
We learned more about the author, Jean Craighead George, and watched a video clip of her communicating with her dog, the same way Miyax learned to talk with the wolves. We all agreed that Ms George's knowledge of nature helps us to believe the events in this story are realistic and true.
After practicing our own wolf howls, we finished our immersion by playing a game that Eskimo children play. It is called Tingmiulang, and it uses tiny clay ducks that point their beaks at the winner. I challenged the students to make their own set of tingmiulang ducks the next time they find riverside clay.
Next week, come prepared to continue our survival discussion having read up to Part 2 in the book.
Thursday, February 16, 2017
Monday, December 12, 2016
Summer of the Monkeys
December's book is SUMMER of the MONKEYS. Boy! Are we enjoying this book! I think this one is my favorite story so far.
The first week, we learned all about the author, Wilson Rawls and how he loved telling stories, and writing stories. He grew up in a very rural home in the Ozark hills and since there wasn't a school nearby- he was home schooled by his mother. She would read him books like Little Red Hen, and Little Red Riding Hood. Wilson thought those were GIRL books, and had little to no interest in reading anything at all. Until....his grandmother sent the book The Call of the Wild by Jack London. That book became his most prized possession, and he carried it with him every where he went. He decided at a young age that he was going to tell stories with DOGS in them. Where the Red Fern Grows was his first published story. Summer of the Monkeys came later, and we're so glad it did.
Last week, we used our creative minds to build some humane monkey traps. We used things from my recycle bin, using apples as monkey bait - and I've got to say how impressed I am with the clever engineering they were able to come up with to catch monkeys of all sizes.
This week- we will wrap up our discussion on the book while tasting a "huckleberry pie that could put muscles on a grapevine".
******** As an incentive - I'll award all readers who have read up to Chapter 15 ************
************with their own vintage Ozark Jay Berry pocket weapon. ***************
***Readers who finish the entire book will also be supplied ammunition to go with the weapon***
The first week, we learned all about the author, Wilson Rawls and how he loved telling stories, and writing stories. He grew up in a very rural home in the Ozark hills and since there wasn't a school nearby- he was home schooled by his mother. She would read him books like Little Red Hen, and Little Red Riding Hood. Wilson thought those were GIRL books, and had little to no interest in reading anything at all. Until....his grandmother sent the book The Call of the Wild by Jack London. That book became his most prized possession, and he carried it with him every where he went. He decided at a young age that he was going to tell stories with DOGS in them. Where the Red Fern Grows was his first published story. Summer of the Monkeys came later, and we're so glad it did.
Last week, we used our creative minds to build some humane monkey traps. We used things from my recycle bin, using apples as monkey bait - and I've got to say how impressed I am with the clever engineering they were able to come up with to catch monkeys of all sizes.
This week- we will wrap up our discussion on the book while tasting a "huckleberry pie that could put muscles on a grapevine".
******** As an incentive - I'll award all readers who have read up to Chapter 15 ************
************with their own vintage Ozark Jay Berry pocket weapon. ***************
***Readers who finish the entire book will also be supplied ammunition to go with the weapon***
Friday, November 4, 2016
An Introduction to Yorkshire
This week, we opened up the discussion for November's book, All Creatures Great and Small.
We heard mixed reviews and feelings about the book itself. Some found life as a country veterinarian to be "gross" and "boring" while others (including myself) found the stories to be humorous and interesting.
Our lesson was taught by Teacher Stephanie. Since her own mother was from Yorkshire, she was able to share some interesting facts and foods with us. We learned that when Dr. Herriot moved to Yorkshire, it was like moving to a whole new country with having to learn a new language/dialect, new foods, and new people. Stephanie brought some English shortbread and some ginger beer for us to snack on while we ooh-ed and ahh-ed at photos of the lush, green country side and the animals that reside there. We learned that they wear "wellies" on their feet, "kegs" on their legs, and they work to "addle some brass".
We wrapped up our Yorkshire experience by watching a couple of videos demonstrating the distinct Yorkshire dialect. It sounded so foreign to our ears, but it was fun to hear the different way of speaking English. We then attempted to speak a sentence using the new phrases that we learned. It's a lot more difficult than we thought it would be, but it was really fun and silly.
Next week, come prepared to train as a Veterinary Apprentice!
We heard mixed reviews and feelings about the book itself. Some found life as a country veterinarian to be "gross" and "boring" while others (including myself) found the stories to be humorous and interesting.
Our lesson was taught by Teacher Stephanie. Since her own mother was from Yorkshire, she was able to share some interesting facts and foods with us. We learned that when Dr. Herriot moved to Yorkshire, it was like moving to a whole new country with having to learn a new language/dialect, new foods, and new people. Stephanie brought some English shortbread and some ginger beer for us to snack on while we ooh-ed and ahh-ed at photos of the lush, green country side and the animals that reside there. We learned that they wear "wellies" on their feet, "kegs" on their legs, and they work to "addle some brass".
We wrapped up our Yorkshire experience by watching a couple of videos demonstrating the distinct Yorkshire dialect. It sounded so foreign to our ears, but it was fun to hear the different way of speaking English. We then attempted to speak a sentence using the new phrases that we learned. It's a lot more difficult than we thought it would be, but it was really fun and silly.
Next week, come prepared to train as a Veterinary Apprentice!
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Our next book...
Our next book on the calendar is All Creatures Great and Small.
I need to apologize to all of you about this one.
I admit that most of the books on our list are ones that I personally have not read yet, but wanted to.
All Creatures Great and Small has some excellent reviews and some really fun activities for us to engage in.
...BUT...
I just discovered that this book is 500 pages long!! Ack! Obviously, I wasn't aware of this fact when it was selected.
I know that I will not be able to read all 500 pages, and I certainly will not expect the students to, either.
I will be listening to this one via free audio book.
Please accept my apologies, and know that I've learned an important lesson about book selection research. Let's make the best out of the situation, and read/listen to some version of the story so we can still enjoy our hands-on activities, imagining what life is like for a Country Veterinarian.
I need to apologize to all of you about this one.
I admit that most of the books on our list are ones that I personally have not read yet, but wanted to.
All Creatures Great and Small has some excellent reviews and some really fun activities for us to engage in.
...BUT...
I just discovered that this book is 500 pages long!! Ack! Obviously, I wasn't aware of this fact when it was selected.
I know that I will not be able to read all 500 pages, and I certainly will not expect the students to, either.
I will be listening to this one via free audio book.
Please accept my apologies, and know that I've learned an important lesson about book selection research. Let's make the best out of the situation, and read/listen to some version of the story so we can still enjoy our hands-on activities, imagining what life is like for a Country Veterinarian.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
This is our second week enjoying the adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Last week, we had a lively discussion about what our favorite part of the story is, which parts made us giggle, and which parts made us feel squeamish. We all agreed that it was clever and hilarious when Tom tricked his friends in to trading a "treasure" in exchange for a chance to whitewash the fence. We wondered if whitewashing a fence is really as much fun as Tom made it out to be... Outside we went with paintbrushes in hand, to a butcher paper "fence" taped to the wall. We divided up into two teams, and had a little competition to see which side could whitewash their half of the fence (with water) first. Turns out, we DO like whitewashing, but there was no clear winner.
Then we traded our paintbrush for an apple- which we ate while learning more about the author and why he chose a pen name. Did you know that the story of Tom Sawyer is based on all the adventures Mark Twain had when he was a youngster? Characters in the story are based on real life characters in Twain's neighborhood. There is even the cave in Missouri that is named "Tom Sawyer Cave" as it is the same cave that a young Twain went "pirating" in many times.
This week, we started off our class with a "Buffalo Gals" sing-off. This song is mentioned briefly in the story, and it was fun to sing the non-sensical lyrics with a catchy tune. We understood why Tom and Huck enjoyed whistling and singing this fun song.
Next, we turned our discussion to they way that Tom entertains himself. He has no video games or TV to amuse him. He uses his imagination while playing outside and magical adventures are happening all around him. His pockets are full of "treasures" that most of us would consider trash. We pulled out a pair of Tom's cut-off pants, and took turns reaching into the pockets to see what they contained. Then we would try to look at the item through Tom's eyes and find imaginative ways to use them and consider them treasures. We had a really fun time looking through a glass decanter stopper as a prism- or maybe it's a spinning top? Could the brass key be used to scratch inside an ear? Or maybe could it be used to dig in the dirt? A dead rat on a string is DEFINITELY a treasure! You can swing it around above your head, or even use it to scare the girls. The item that had us all wishing we had one in our own pocket was the Jews Harp. We took a few minutes to watch a video about how to move your tongue around in your mouth to make the interesting-sounding music.
Next week, we will wrap up our Tom Sawyer workshop by talking about things that happened while in the cave with Becky.
Last week, we had a lively discussion about what our favorite part of the story is, which parts made us giggle, and which parts made us feel squeamish. We all agreed that it was clever and hilarious when Tom tricked his friends in to trading a "treasure" in exchange for a chance to whitewash the fence. We wondered if whitewashing a fence is really as much fun as Tom made it out to be... Outside we went with paintbrushes in hand, to a butcher paper "fence" taped to the wall. We divided up into two teams, and had a little competition to see which side could whitewash their half of the fence (with water) first. Turns out, we DO like whitewashing, but there was no clear winner.
Then we traded our paintbrush for an apple- which we ate while learning more about the author and why he chose a pen name. Did you know that the story of Tom Sawyer is based on all the adventures Mark Twain had when he was a youngster? Characters in the story are based on real life characters in Twain's neighborhood. There is even the cave in Missouri that is named "Tom Sawyer Cave" as it is the same cave that a young Twain went "pirating" in many times.
This week, we started off our class with a "Buffalo Gals" sing-off. This song is mentioned briefly in the story, and it was fun to sing the non-sensical lyrics with a catchy tune. We understood why Tom and Huck enjoyed whistling and singing this fun song.
Next, we turned our discussion to they way that Tom entertains himself. He has no video games or TV to amuse him. He uses his imagination while playing outside and magical adventures are happening all around him. His pockets are full of "treasures" that most of us would consider trash. We pulled out a pair of Tom's cut-off pants, and took turns reaching into the pockets to see what they contained. Then we would try to look at the item through Tom's eyes and find imaginative ways to use them and consider them treasures. We had a really fun time looking through a glass decanter stopper as a prism- or maybe it's a spinning top? Could the brass key be used to scratch inside an ear? Or maybe could it be used to dig in the dirt? A dead rat on a string is DEFINITELY a treasure! You can swing it around above your head, or even use it to scare the girls. The item that had us all wishing we had one in our own pocket was the Jews Harp. We took a few minutes to watch a video about how to move your tongue around in your mouth to make the interesting-sounding music.
Next week, we will wrap up our Tom Sawyer workshop by talking about things that happened while in the cave with Becky.
Friday, October 7, 2016
Theme Seekers and Acorn Pancakes
This was our last week experiencing life in the wilderness like Sam Gribley.
We started out our day by designing a travel poster, enticing tourists to come visit Sam's tree and meet his animal friends. We have some very clever artists among us!
Then our discussion turned to the book's THEME. We read a few passages from the book that gave us clues. We all agreed that the theme of this story is that civilized life is dangerous and boring while life in the wilderness is safe and enjoyable.
Although my tease of possum stew was received with mixed feelings- we actually had something much sweeter to taste...acorn pancakes! We were brave enough to try pancakes made with mock-acorn meal and coconut flour, topped with black currant jam. We also were pleased with the way sassafrass tea tastes! Wilderness food is surprisingly tasty!
Next week- come prepared to talk about the Adventures of Tom Sawyer!
We started out our day by designing a travel poster, enticing tourists to come visit Sam's tree and meet his animal friends. We have some very clever artists among us!
Then our discussion turned to the book's THEME. We read a few passages from the book that gave us clues. We all agreed that the theme of this story is that civilized life is dangerous and boring while life in the wilderness is safe and enjoyable.
Although my tease of possum stew was received with mixed feelings- we actually had something much sweeter to taste...acorn pancakes! We were brave enough to try pancakes made with mock-acorn meal and coconut flour, topped with black currant jam. We also were pleased with the way sassafrass tea tastes! Wilderness food is surprisingly tasty!
Next week- come prepared to talk about the Adventures of Tom Sawyer!
Sunday, October 2, 2016
My Side of the Mountain
What a great way to kick off the school year! Our classroom is filled with eager readers who LOVE adventure stories as much as I do.
Our first book, My Side of the Mountain, has many interesting topics for us to discuss. Last week, we learned a bit about the author, Jean Craighead George. Did you know that her dad was a naturalist and taught her all about foraging for edible plants? And her two brothers were the first falconers in the country. They taught her how to train her own falcon!
We looked at a map of the east coast, and located the Catskill Mountains, we used clues to determine that this story likely took place in the 1950's, then we tried our hand at drawing nature journal sketches on the under side of a piece of tree bark.
This week, our hands-on project was about riverside clay, and how patient you need to be to be able to mold it into a preserves jar. While our hands were busy molding our jars and lids, we enjoyed viewing video clips of weasels, falconers, and listened to hoot owls and whipporwils.
We look forward to wrapping up our discussion of this book with our taste buds. Teacher Nalani has found a fresh opossum carcass just perfect for brewing a possum stew for us to try. ;)
On October 12, the discussion begins on our next book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
(due to a miscalculation, Stuart Little had to be deleted from our calendar - sorry)
Our first book, My Side of the Mountain, has many interesting topics for us to discuss. Last week, we learned a bit about the author, Jean Craighead George. Did you know that her dad was a naturalist and taught her all about foraging for edible plants? And her two brothers were the first falconers in the country. They taught her how to train her own falcon!
We looked at a map of the east coast, and located the Catskill Mountains, we used clues to determine that this story likely took place in the 1950's, then we tried our hand at drawing nature journal sketches on the under side of a piece of tree bark.
This week, our hands-on project was about riverside clay, and how patient you need to be to be able to mold it into a preserves jar. While our hands were busy molding our jars and lids, we enjoyed viewing video clips of weasels, falconers, and listened to hoot owls and whipporwils.
We look forward to wrapping up our discussion of this book with our taste buds. Teacher Nalani has found a fresh opossum carcass just perfect for brewing a possum stew for us to try. ;)
On October 12, the discussion begins on our next book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
(due to a miscalculation, Stuart Little had to be deleted from our calendar - sorry)
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