Mysterious – and bad – things keep happening to the Dillons. First, a statue falls. Then, a swarm of angry bees attacks them. And of course, the animatronic monsters come alive! Ruthie and Ezra need to stop these attacks or otherwise, they may die.
Book Report: The Witch’s Throne
Every 10 years a random girl becomes a witch, so everyone needs to prepare for the witch that tries to end the world.
Nature Study: Cooperation
The previous week we talked about natural selection, and this past week we discussed a strategy that often arises out of natural selection: cooperation! First I lined them up on a clothesline and asked them to — while keeping their
Writing Workshop: Libraries vs. Museums
We spent the time listening to this episode of Smash Boom Best, a lively debate show. We all made notes as we listened, and paused it frequently so we could discuss the proceedings. We talked about debate and persuasion in general, hopefully in
Nature Study: Natural Selection
On Thursday we talked over camouflage and natural selection from the perspective of both predator and prey. For the first exercise, everyone got a paper bag and stuffed it with leaves, then we threw them in a pile and sorted
Nature Study: Rivers
Today we dove into rivers! We opened with an activity drawn from here, adapted for the younger crowd… We joined hands and made ourselves into a simple, winding river. We talked about the ways in which rivers move (and some silly
Nature Study: Trees of Thatcher Woods
This week we got into the trees of Thatcher Woods. We talked about forest surveys, and how we can analyze trees and forests from a few different perspectives. While we waited for everyone to arrive, we philosophized: if I have
Nature Study: Why Seasons?
In our first lesson of the year, we tried to answer the tricky question of why there are seasons. We started by modeling the solar system using this nifty NASA activity. I showed them the Sun and asked them to guess how big the Earth
Nature Study: Pond Journey
Waaay back in January, Kyle had the wonderful idea to spend both morning sessions over at the pond. And today, that’s exactly what we did! I first read Kate Messner’s Over and Under the Pond, while the group folded simple 8-page books (below)
Nature Study: Seed Comparison
Last week we started by sorting a mix of five different types of seeds. On a blackboard positioned under each plate, we brainstormed words that described each seed type. Then I pulled out the five seed packets, and the group