Grand Canyon (start of our rocks/minerals/crystals study)

I've decided to do something a little different with blogging about our current unit study.   Instead of posting all at once when we are done, I will post as we go, so that I don't get overwhelmed or forget anything!  

This unit study is on Rocks, minerals, and crystals.   I'm trying to focus just on those elements so that we can do a "land formations" type study after this one, but there will be some overlap! 

To start, here is my pintrest board of inspiration, resources, books, lapbook stuff, unit study stuff, etc

We are reading the Magic School Bus chapter book, Rocky Road Trip, and using the lapbook from Ye Shall Know that goes with it.  

First, Levi read a book about the Grand Canyon from the series "Adventures with the Parkers" .   This sparked his interest in rocks in the first place.  I  had never heard of this series before, but already we have 2 more checked out from the library and another ordered off ebay.    This series is about 10yr old twins who go to different National Parks.    They are stories, of the kids adventure through the park, but throughout there are "boxes" that include real facts.   The stories themselves are all about actual locations, plants, animals, history, land formations, etc.    The pictures in the book are both real photographs and drawings of the characters and what they are doing.   Its a wonderful mix of fact and realistic fiction with lots of educational value while still being high interest.  

This is the one Levi read


Levi did some artwork, Grand Canyon style.   I found the inspiration picture on pintrest, and didn't realize until we were done that there was a lesson plan for it!   I used to teach art classes in a "step by step" style that teaches different techniques, so I used that method to make my own lesson plan for it.   It came out wonderful! 

 


Because the Grand Canyon is in both the books Levi read, we have been talking a lot about it, the rocks, how it was formed etc.     Levi did this fact sheet, and we used this idea about erosion/sedimentary rock formation, and the formation of the canyon to do an experiment. 

First, he filled a tray with sandy soil (any dirt/sand should work)

Then draw a line down the center with your finger and add the hose:

 



You can see the deepening/widening of the canyon/riverbed in the center, watch erosion happen as the sides gradually break away, and see the "sediment" that ends up at the bottom of the river.  

We also did this experiment to learn more about sedimentary rocks with layers of dirt, sand, rocks, and whatever was in the compost.  And we have these geodes starting to form, Levi was anxious to start that experiment!

That's what we have done so far!    We have plans to make our own rocks, and do some other experiments so I will share those as we go.  

Groundhog Day Lapbook, and Two Little Dresses

Levi wanted to learn more about groundhogs for Groundhog day so I found him a lapbook and we chose some of the activities to do. 

First we had to find out what the "results" were this year, so we watched this quick clip here.

This was the lapbook I found, from Homeschool Share, we didn't make every single element, but did talk about all of it and made many of them.    I introduced classifications for the first time, something I find confusing myself.  We learned about diet, rodents, the history of Groundhog's day, how groundhogs help/harm farms, and how much dirt groundhogs can really move (700lbs!).  

We also watched this short video, all about groundhogs. 



Here is Levi's finished lapbook! 

The cover is actually a paper bag puppet printable, I found it here.   Paper bag puppet printables are great for lapbook covers because they are already split.   Levi chose to paint this with water color paint.   

 

And Levi presents his lapbook the phone rang in the middle and threw him off!  

These are some little dresses I made.  I don't often make girls clothes, so its fun when I get to!   These are from a free sewing pattern, the Izzy top.   I added some length to make them into dresses.   

And now I am back to sewing, getting a few more shirts made for Levi for our camping trip this weekend.   We are very much looking forward to the Florida Earthskills Gathering!

Bird Lapbook and Unit Study (August-Sept 2014)

I'm trying to catch up with blog posts, new years resolution - don't get so far behind! 


Here is our unit study/lapbook on birds!

First up is an "egg-speriment" - classic "put an egg in vinegar and see what happens".   The shell of the egg dissolves leaving the membrane.   You can hold it up to the light and see the yolk inside.  We also talked about the anatomy of an egg.   

The egg in vinegar:

The result (vinegar egg on the left).  We also discussed osmosis, as the soaked egg got bigger.   It also demonstrates how a developing chick breathes. 

The next egg experiment was to find out why eggs don't break when a bird sits on it.  The shape spreads the pressure! 

Stack of heavy books on top of a carton of eggs (Levi was sure destruction was inevitable)

 


Levi explaining the experiment

We found a little baby bird outside of its nest sitting in the middle of the road, and called the wildlife sanctuary to figure out what to do with it.   We put it close to the nearest tree and checked on it once in a while to be sure it was o.k.   Eventually, it disappeared, so we are hoping it learned to fly and took off! 

Levi taught himself a funny whistle where he blows across his toungue.   He decided its a morning dove call.  

He also dissected an owl pellet.    I ordered them on amazon here.   They were super gross but Levi spent forever taking them apart.  We found it easiest to soak them in water.    Levi recorded his experiment in this little book. 

Measuring

Dissecting

What he found inside

 

Birds we observed at the park

His hair is orange in support of his friend Lily

We also observed birds at the zoo.   We spotted this spoonbill acting strangely, she would not let anyone near her and would not move from this spot.  Levi suspected she was sitting on eggs, but we didn't see any eggs, just rocks.  Levi asked the zoo keeper and found out that she thinks those rocks are her eggs!   The zoo removes eggs for research so this poor bird was a bit confused. 

Another Spoonbill

This Ibis has an actual nest.

Vulture

Levi talking about vultures:

We talked about bird behavior as well, like what this bird was doing:

The zoo had some new signs up, all about flamingos

And our friend Thor at the zoo:

These guys were at a farm we visited:

Dancing bird at the farm:

And here Levi is working on an owl painting which later became the cover of his lapbook.

 

Here he explains what he is doing:

 

Check out my pintrest board on birds for our lapbook resources

The finished lapbook: Bird habitats Poems and Songs (he memorized a few of them) Birds (what makes a bird, a bird)

Bird anatomy: Parts of a bird (outside) Inside of a bird Quiz on bird facts

Bird Behavior: Migration Honing Preening 

Anatomy of an egg and our vinegar experiment

Our other egg experiments

More experiments and "bird records" that Levi looked up and recorded (this was his favorite thing to research)

Ducks: How many kinds of duck? Types of Duck Characteristics of ducks/water birds

More on ducks Duck communication Habitats names for male/female/baby ducks Chickens: digestive system vocabulary comparison of small vs. large farm raised birds 

More on chickens: Chicken facts Group names Family Names Uses for chickens Ostrich: Burying its head Size Speed Boiling an egg

More on Ostrich: Why do they have wings? Maintaining body temperature Communication Owls/birds of prey: Raptors Big and small owls how birds of prey attack owl communication owl facts owl face shape

Owl Pellet dissection reflections

Bird Observations: These I made up myself and have a variety of different things to fill out for observations such as physical characteristics, where the bird was found and what the bird is doing.   These we did at the zoo and it was a good way to get Levi to take a closer look at animals he sees regularly with zoo visits.

This is the cover, he made the paper for the owl with the drip art.