Summer Homeschool Building Theme Week One
So, as I've already mentioned, we have decided to keep homeschooling through the summer. This week we official started our building theme.
When we decided to keep homeschooling this summer, I knew that I wanted to focus on things that Chobie likes the most so Building was the first choice.
I've been seeing some cool DIY building toys on Pinterest lately, so we tried out a couple this week. First these cardboard building toys from Happy Hooligans.
I just cut up a cardboard box we had laying around, so mine aren't as clean and good looking as the original pin.
Then, inspired by this activity
from Skip to my Lou (also found here on Pinterest), we made some straw building creations. Since my kids aren't doing much sugar, we substituted this baking soda and cornstarch dough that you make on the stovetop. I originally found this dough in a recipe for Christmas ornaments, but it's a fun alternative to salt dough for playing with too. And, its a fun science experiment to see the texture of the mixture change on the stovetop.
I tried to do a little explaining about how all the little tiny pieces of cornstarch "hold hands" when they heat up. I think the idea of things existing that are too small to be seen is still a little beyond Chobie's interest, even though we could easily see the effects. I figure the more that I mention it, the more it will start to become interesting.
These were the creations:
Our book selections this week were:
A House in the Woods by Inga Moore
Angelina on Stage by Catherine Holabird
This one might seem like a bit of a stretch for a building theme, but it actually fits well for Chobie. He is really into the Angelina Ballerina series to begin with (in fact, pretending to be Angelina was his favorite game until it was replaced by playing Nutcracker when last winter when we went to see it, later to be replaced by other games). In this book, Angelina is invited to be in her first adult production. The mouse ballerinas rehearse while the crew builds the set. When we first read it, Chobie begged me to build something like it, so I included it in our building theme. I am still on the hunt for cardboard big enough to use to build trees out of, so we haven't started construction yet.
The House I'll Build for the Wrens by Nancy Winslow Parker
This one is a rebus book (a book where some words are replaced by pictures in the text), so its a good one for beginning readers.
We spent our week building, mixing, and reading. Plus we got a chance to cross another one off the summer fun times list with a swimming trip to the river mid-week.
How was your week?
If you enjoyed this post, PLEASE click here to vote for me on top mommy blogs. I appreciate your support!
When we decided to keep homeschooling this summer, I knew that I wanted to focus on things that Chobie likes the most so Building was the first choice.
I've been seeing some cool DIY building toys on Pinterest lately, so we tried out a couple this week. First these cardboard building toys from Happy Hooligans.
I just cut up a cardboard box we had laying around, so mine aren't as clean and good looking as the original pin.
Then, inspired by this activity
from Skip to my Lou (also found here on Pinterest), we made some straw building creations. Since my kids aren't doing much sugar, we substituted this baking soda and cornstarch dough that you make on the stovetop. I originally found this dough in a recipe for Christmas ornaments, but it's a fun alternative to salt dough for playing with too. And, its a fun science experiment to see the texture of the mixture change on the stovetop.
I tried to do a little explaining about how all the little tiny pieces of cornstarch "hold hands" when they heat up. I think the idea of things existing that are too small to be seen is still a little beyond Chobie's interest, even though we could easily see the effects. I figure the more that I mention it, the more it will start to become interesting.
These were the creations:
Our book selections this week were:
A House in the Woods by Inga Moore
Angelina on Stage by Catherine Holabird
This one might seem like a bit of a stretch for a building theme, but it actually fits well for Chobie. He is really into the Angelina Ballerina series to begin with (in fact, pretending to be Angelina was his favorite game until it was replaced by playing Nutcracker when last winter when we went to see it, later to be replaced by other games). In this book, Angelina is invited to be in her first adult production. The mouse ballerinas rehearse while the crew builds the set. When we first read it, Chobie begged me to build something like it, so I included it in our building theme. I am still on the hunt for cardboard big enough to use to build trees out of, so we haven't started construction yet.
The House I'll Build for the Wrens by Nancy Winslow Parker
This one is a rebus book (a book where some words are replaced by pictures in the text), so its a good one for beginning readers.
We spent our week building, mixing, and reading. Plus we got a chance to cross another one off the summer fun times list with a swimming trip to the river mid-week.
How was your week?
If you enjoyed this post, PLEASE click here to vote for me on top mommy blogs. I appreciate your support!
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