Archive for the ‘co-op capers’ Category:
Night of the Moonjellies Co-op
This was our final (after five years) Five in a Row co-op meeting. We ended with a great book, Night of the Moonjellies. Our final hurrah was a makeshift restaurant–The Crab Shack.
Reading the book
We split into different groups to get the restaurant prep done. Preschoolers worked on gluing "bricks" to cardboard. The other teams were decorators, sign makers, menu makers, and food prep. Everyone worked really hard to get ready!
Time to go to work! For this part, we broke the kids into two groups (eat and serve). Each child was assigned one of the following jobs: take orders, get orders ready (in the kitchen), snow cone maker, server (take trays to tables), or bus tables.
It was a great day. Bittersweet. We will miss our time with Five in a Row, but we are excited about our new co-op, too!
Stained Glass Factory Field Trip
We took a tour of Kokomo Opalescent Glass for our Clown of God field trip. This was one of my favorite field trips of the year! If you live far, far away, you can take the virtual tour. (If you live close, just go!)
My favorite part was observing the melted glass right from the furnace. The men carry ladles full of liquid glass; they run them to a table where the next guy takes over with the mixing and rolling. This guy has about 15 seconds before the glass gets rolled into a sheet. I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures of this process, but you can kind of see it in the tour I posted above.
There is also a glass blowing shop where many beautiful pieces are made.
My guys. Notice Simon and Elijah’s groovy goggles. :)
They make SO many different colors and textures of glass! Here are just a few of the samples!
The kids were fascinated with the scale. Here is our half of the group getting weighed! :)
This is a two-thumbs-up field trip, and the price was right at only $1 per person. If you get the chance, GO!
Stained Glass Cookies
For our Clown of God co-op, we learned to speak in Italian (well, no one is fluent, but we know a few words and phrases!). We also learned about stained glass and made stained glass cookies. Simon didn’t go with me to co-op that day, so when I returned home, he helped me use the rest of the dough to make more cookies.
These cookies don’t taste great, but they are pretty and a lot of fun for kids to make! I recommend rolling them out in powdered sugar instead of flour.
A Pair of Red Clogs Co-op
We’ve been together as a Five in a Row co-op for almost five years. This was one of my FAVORITE meetings ever! The kids had so much fun!
The first activity was Gyotaku (the Japanese art of making fish prints!)
The second activity was making Mock Sushi…lots more fun!
What were the older kids doing? Origami (Valentine’s Day style)
Very Last First Time Co-op
We stopped doing our beloved Five in a Row studies when we started our delight-directed adventure, but we still are part of a SUPER fabulous FIAR Co-op. Here are some pictures from our Very Last First Time co-op meeting (you can find the lessons for this book in FIAR Volume I).
Ice on a String Experiment
Will the string really stick!? You bet!
Experiment instructions found here.
Painting with Ice Cubes
Pointillism
Valentine Art
Here is a fun and easy Valentine’s Day craft you can do with your preschooler! I did this with a group of preschoolers our co-op’s annual Valentine Day Party.
Supplies
~ small bowls of vinegar (1 for every 2 students)
~ paintbrushes (1 per child
~Spectra Art Tissue Paper (or another kind of bleeding tissue paper) cut into heart shapes
~ 1- 11"x14" piece of poster board for each child (you can buy them precut, but it’s more expensive)
Show the children how to dip the brush in vinegar and brush it on the poster board (use the matte side, not the shiny side). Then let him stick a tissue paper heart to the vinegared spot. Continue until child is satisfied with the amount of hearts on the board.
Let it dry. After it’s dry, let your child pull all the tissue papers off and throw them away. You will be left with a beautiful piece of heart-work!
Madeline ~ FIAR Style
We’ve used Five in a Row from the beginning of our homeschooling journey. We started with Before Five in a Row when Elijah was 2 (almost 3). We’ve been through most of Volumes I-III and part of Volume IV. This is our fifth year with our FIAR based homeschooling co-op, and we are back in Volume I. Here is a week with FIAR from my family to yours! :)
All of the minit books listed are from HSS.
Monday at Co-op
Started off strong at co-op; we split our larger group into two small groups for the activities today and it really seemed to cut down on the chaos.
First, the kids learned about the Eiffel tower and worked in teams to create vanilla cream wafter replicas.
We also met Marcus, a volunteer EMT and ambulance driver. He gave us the full scoop on being an EMT and showed them the equipment it takes to do the job. They also got a tour of the ambulance; all the kids were very curious and listened intently to Marcus the entire time.
The Rest of the Week
~read Madeline again each day (except Friday)
Social Studies
~read Madeline Says Merci and discussed manners; completed go-along minit books
~read Children Just Like Me (pg. 32, Rachel from France)
~fixed French Toast (with French bread) & listened to Teach Me French
~completed France component for lapbook
~made Eiffel Tower from Legos
Language Arts
~discussed the literary elements lesson & completed the Rhyme Time minit book
Applied Math
~discussed symmetry & looked through illustrations; completed symmetry minit books
Science
~started human body project; added brain, heart, kidneys, bladder, spleen, pancreas, gallbladder, and bones (this project is on-going!
~started reading Usborne’s First Encyclopedia of the Human Body (this will also be on-going)
~watched The Magic School Bus Human Body DVD
~discussed body systems from Giant Science Resource Book
~Elijah read lots of go-along books:
What Makes You Ill? (Usborne)
Your Body (Usborne Beginners)
Your Insides by Joanna Cole
You Can’t See Your Bones with Your Binoculars
You Can’t Taste a Pickle with Your Ear
Art
~drew a picture of Madeline
~completed architecture lesson and the Tour de France minit book
~discussed illustrations and art lesson about color
~colored Eiffel towers (one monochromatic and one full color palette)
Completed Madeline Lapbook
Front Cover
Inside View
Inside Rhyme Time
Inside Body Systems (many print-outs from Evan-Moor’s Giant Science Resource Book).
We had a few minit books that went with Madeline Says Merci.
Tour de France accordion book (shows all the famous places shown throughout Madeline)
This lapbook is one file folder glued inside another.
The inside file folder
Inside "Is it Monochromatic?"
These were symmetry cards; we chose not to cut them out and just tri-folded instead.
Cover of France book
Inside France book
Inside Eiffel Tower Creations…
How to get a Geography Fair going…
In the Beginning
First, you need to find a group of homeschooling moms to pitch your idea to. It’s not hard to sell this idea; it’s a win-win situation!
Benefits
1. You (yes, the entire family) will learn about another place and culture.
2. Your student will interact with people of all ages– answering questions, sharing interesting information, and even learning from some of the people attending from the fair.
3. Family and friends will see that your student really DOES school and that there are other crazy homeschooling families out there, too (and they also really do school!).
4. People attending the Geography Fair will learn about many different countries.
5. Your student will also learn about (and become interested in) many cultures & countries as he visits the displays of other homeschoolers.
6. With your guidance, your student will learn the basics of research and planning as you work together to make this project a reality.
Once I had my homeschool co-op on board, we determined a date. We thought the fall would work best due to the bad winter weather and the busy spring season. I emailed everyone some basic ideas/guidelines. You can print a copy if you want.
Geography Fair Guidelines
A Geography Fair provides a creative approach to learning Geography. The concept is simple — each student researches a country or region and reports to the group using displays, posters, reports (oral and/or written), games, etc.
Choose a country. Submit the choice for approval. Once you have approval, start researching the country you’ve selected.
1. Location
Show the location of the country using maps (you can photocopy pictures or draw your own map…you could even make a salt dough map if you want a 3-D design). List the country’s physical characteristics including climate and landforms. Pictures (mountains, rivers, etc.) are appropriate here. Show the country’s flag (sew one if you are ambitious) and other national symbols.
2. Population
Show the total population and also interesting facts like population of ethnic or religious groups. This is a good place for charts and graphs.
3. Culture
Explain cultural characteristics of the country such as language, food, religion, entertainment, clothing, games, popular sports, holidays, etc. If possible, you could add some real clothes or real food samples to your display. You could teach the people who visit your display a simple game. You could set up a CD player and headphones with some traditional music to listen to…really, the options are limitless!
Culture is usually the best part of learning about another country. Have fun with this one! Even your littlest learners can be involved. Younger students may want to focus solely on culture since some of the other options (history, population, etc.) may be irrelevant.
4. History
Tell when and how the country became a country. List significant
events in the country’s history. You may want to make a timeline for this part of your display.
5. Economy
What kind of work is common? What are the main products produced? What products are exported? What products are imported? How do people live? Where do they live? What are the cities like? What are the rural areas like? How have geographical features affected the economy?
6. Other
Find other interesting facts about the country. In what ways is this country unique? In what ways is it like other countries? What plants and animals are unique to the country? Compare and contrast the country to the United States (or your country).
As you research, you will need to decide how to present the information. Use many different avenues! A few options include:
1. Prepare written report(s)
2. Create a table-top display with small items from the country
3. Design a poster
4. Tri-fold board display
5. Make a Lapbook
6. Write a song or make a skit to perform as people walk by your table
7. Create a game (matching game, puzzle game, etc.) for your display
8. Make a pamphlet (tour guide) or a small scrapbook with pictures from your “visit” to the country
A Few More Things
~Encourage the families to start working about 6-8 weeks ahead of time. Doing the project bit by bit will keep the child from burning out. Elijah did one project per week. The week before the fair, we spent a lot of time just working on the fair, but I am so glad we didn’t wait until the last week to do everything.
~Remind people that this isn’t a competition. Students should do their best with what they have. Some countries are easier than others. Some families have more people working on the project than others. Just have fun and enjoy the learning!
~Mail and e-mail the invitations 2-3 weeks before the event. Here is a sample invitation from our fair. Students may want to call family and friends about 1 week before the fair to ask if they are coming.
~We decided the fair would last two hours. Most of our family and friends came the first hour. We let the students leave their posts after one hour to complete a Country Hunt (scavenger hunt form). We also had the scavenger hunt out for the adults at the welcome area. I can’t believe how many adults chose to fill out the form! Next time I will have prizes to hand out to anyone who finishes the country hunt.
~In order to create the Country Hunt, I had moms send me fun facts (about one week before the fair). I used three facts from each country. Questions were like these– Where in the would would you find a tap-tap?, What country produces the most maple syrup in the world?
~You don’t need a ton of people to pull this off. We only had eight displays at our fair, and it was great. I would say the ideal number would be between 10-15, but you could definitely go larger. If the fair is larger than 15 displays, I would not do a Country Hunt.
~If you can, set up the night before the fair. It takes some of the stress off; it also might give the moms a chance to look at the other displays! :)
I hope this is helpful. If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer.
First Annual Geography Fair
I mentioned in a previous post that our homeschooling co-op decided to try a geography fair for the first time this year. I know it stretched some of us in ways we didn’t really want to go, but everyone is already talking about "next year"– some of the kids have already claimed their countries!
It was a lot of work, but it was a lot of fun, too. We had about 70 people total that gathered together to take a short world tour.
Brazil
At this display you would find a piranha scale, a Brazilian tambourine, a lapbook about the Amazon rain forest, stories set in the rain forest, and Brigadeiro (chocolate candy!) to sample. You’d also get to listen to some Brazilian music.
Ukraine
Here you would find a real pysanky egg, information about why sunflowers are important to the Ukraine, Ukrainian apple cake, folk tales, information about customs & traditions, a lapbook, and Mackenzie might even teach you rubberbands (a game played by Ukrainian girls — similar to jump rope).
Iraq
At this display you would find information about why Iraq is so important in history, you would learn about their dietary customs, you could smell some cardamom or grab some cardamom cookies, play a face matching game, and you could even try on a turban (or a hijab). You’d also find out whose dad is serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Ireland
Over at the Ireland display, you’d learn a lot about St. Patrick (an entire lapbook full!), you’d get to look through lots of pictures of Ireland, you’d taste a butter tart treat, touch and Irish linen, get to watch a slide show, learn about the origins of Halloween (and carving turnips!), and get to see the flag that Alex sewed.
Burkino Faso
Here everything is brightly colored with fabulous prints. The girls showed us how the people of Burkino Faso carry babies on their backs. There were lots of artifacts to look at and touch as well as a slide show, information on money & food, and a big pot of stew (and peanuts) to eat.
Holland
This display had two sets of wooden shoes (one for the kids to try on & another filled with straw and carrots for Sinterklaus), lots of great books set in Holland, a model of the boy who held back the sea, tulip treats, windmill cookies, a lapbook of Holland, a scrapbook of Gabe’s "trip" to Holland, and a Lego model of a windmill. You’d also play some Dutch Nine Pin.
Haiti
At Autumn’s display of Haiti, you could shake the maracas, read Haitian proverbs, learn what a tap-tap is, see various beaded jewelry, touch a wood carved map, and look at an authentic Haitian tea set.
Canada
(a picture of Elijah’s board…in progress)
Okay, we all know this is my son’s display so it’s going to get a few more pictures than the others.
At Elijah’s display you could match the money, put together color puzzles (French/English), see some shells from Nova Scotia, behold his Lego creations (including the CN tower!), watch Lacrosse and Ice Hockey clips, learn that Canada is the leading maple syrup producer in the world, try some Jones’ Soda, eat some Sour Patch Kids candy & salt water taffy, read through a Guess Who? animal book, learn about Boxing Day, and compare the United States’ culture with Canada’s.
If you’re interested in doing a country fair of your own, I have some sample things I could share–an instructional guide for moms, an invitation, and a country hunt form (we had the kids fill these out the night of the fair). Just post a comment, and I will try to write up another post with the samples. :)
Special Delivery from Canada
Our co-op decided to have a geography fair this year. We wanted to give family & friends a chance to see some of the work our students do; we also wanted to give our students a chance to shine.
When I asked Elijah what country he wanted to do, he was insistent on Canada. I offered a dozen other suggestions to try to change his mind. It didn’t work. He was stuck on Canada, and I decided to back off and let the boy go with his own interest.
On online homeschooling friend from Nova Scotia graciously sent us a package of goodies from Canada. Elijah was SO excited when it came. It was jam-packed full of stuff that we were able to use for his Canada display! A huge thanks to Jen for helping out a little boy who wanted to learn about her country.
