Presidents Day - Field Trip to the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum

     On Presidents Day, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum gives free admission and cherry pie to the first 300 guests.  Such a fun way to celebrate the day and to experience an educational feel trip with the family!  We arrived a half hour early and barely made the cut, but as you can see..we got our cherry pie and my girls were thrilled about it.

Yummy cherry pie!

     This was my first visit to the museum and I was very impressed.  Inside the museum there were interesting facts at every corner.  The rooms were gorgeous and full of educational information and historical significance.

Marley posing as if fascinated. Haha. Silly girl.

Our future leaders. ;)

"DO NOT TOUCH" - What better place to break the rules than the Nixon Museum.  Haha, just kidding! My Dylan is always getting into trouble. 

The Declaration of Independence is my favorite!

     The grounds were beautiful and I loved that there were plenty of grassy areas where children can run and play.  We sat in the middle of the courtyard and ate our lunch on the lawn.  It was a perfect sunny and beautiful day for the occasion!

We got to go inside of the presidential helicopter.  Dylan was especially excited about it.

     My girls are still a little too young to really appreciate what is offered, but they still had a great time and said they would love to come back.

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Ancient Egypt Unit Study for Preschool/Kindergarten

     I figured going from Halloween to Ancient Egypt would be an appropriate transition since we often see mummies around Halloween. ;)  This week we are discussing Ancient Egypt.  Marley knows very little about Ancient Egypt, so I decided to start her off by watching the movie Prince of Egypt (on Netflix).  She really enjoyed the movie and it got her in the mindset to learn about that time period.

Here is my outline for our Egyptian lesson plan:                            

PICTURE BOOKS:
- The Egyptian Cinderella
- Seeker of Knowledge: The Man Who - Deciphered Egyptian Hieroglyphs  

- Diego's Egyptian Expedition

EDUCATIONAL BOOKS:
- Egyptian Tombs: Torchlight (My First Discoveries: Torchlight)
- Mummies Made in Egypt (Reading Rainbow Books)
- Egyptian Activity Book (Dover Little Activity Books)
- Mummies, Pyramids, and Pharaohs: A Book About Ancient Egypt

WORKSHEETS:
- Egyptian Worksheets Collection
  This site has SO many great worksheets for Ancient Egypt! My daughter loved the coloring pages provided. I had fun coloring with her too. ;)

ART/CRAFT PROJECTS:
- Make A "Cartouche" (to easily translate any name into hieroglyphics click here)  We used paper bags to cut out the shape.  I drew her name using pencil and then instructed Marley to trace the pictures with black marker.  We taped up her Cartouche on her door and declared her the Egyptian Princess of the house.  She really liked that!
- Ancient Egyptian Headband
- Make an Egyptian Collar
- Make a Mummy

VIDEOS:
- How An Ancient Pyramid Was Built (YouTube)

- Prince of Egypt (currently available to stream on Netflix)
- Ancient Egypt (YouTube)
- Bert & Ernie Inside a Pyramid
- Sid the Science Kid song about building a pyramid

GAMES/ACTIVITIES:
- Build a pyramid from legos or blocks
- Making pyramids in a sandbox or sensory bin

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American Girls Collection: Meet Molly Curriculum

     We finished Meet Molly this week! My absolute favorite moment was after finishing the first chapter.  There is a special loving/bonding moment between Molly and her mother, and Marley looked up at me and smiled and asked me if we could do exactly what they did in the book. Precious!

     We did the following activities after each chapter was completed.    
   
     CHAPTER 1 - COOKING: Turnips 'N Apples recipe
     Marley is always excited to help me cook or bake.  She enjoys wearing her special child sized apron.  I once told her that bakers always have a little flour on their nose and cheeks.  So every time we cook or bake, she reminds me to dab a little flour on her nose and she giggles.  She cherishes that part. Heehee.
Side note: Marley did not care for the turnip recipe.  She tried a bite and said, "Not bad" and then left the table.  I, on the other hand, thought it was pretty good.  I've never had a turnip before, but they are kind of like a cross between an onion and a potato.  Not bad...haha!

     CHAPTER 2 - CREATIVE THINKING: Brainstorm costume ideas. First make a list of 3 or 4 costumes your child chooses.  One by one, design the costumes together.  Have your child draw/color a picture of the costume.  Or ask them to describe how the costume should look.  Help younger children by drawing or coloring the picture for them.  Then ask them how you could make the costume using only items found in the home.  Pick 1 costume and actually make it together. Allow your child to be the manager of the project. This will help facilitate creativity and enhance leadership skills. One of the key concepts of Meet Molly is being resourceful.  While engaging your child in this activity, point out that being resourceful is a very valuable skill.

     CHAPTER 3 - CRAFT: Make a Paper Bag Hula Skirt.
     She was not impressed with the idea of making a hula skirt at first.  I'm not sure why, but once I got the supplies out and the paintbrush in her hand, she was content.  After trying it on once, Marley slipped it off and walked away.  Little Dylan found the skirt and was so happy to put it on, that she wore it the rest of the day.  Different strokes I guess.

     CHAPTER 4 - PHYSICAL EDUCATION: Learn how to shoot baskets.


     EXTRAS for older children or for supplemental learning...

     HISTORY: World War II era (1944) There is an awesome site called "Primary History" by the BBC, which is a kid friendly site that explains some historical eras. Here is the link to the section on World War II.

     GEOGRAPHY: Illinois state map & map of the US (You may add these to your American Girl timeline, if you have one; see link below for instructions on how to make one.)
     Molly's address is listed as 467 Oak St, Jefferson, IL.
     I suggest instructing your child to color the Illinois state map and indicate where Molly lives.  Then have them color in IL on the US map and indicate where on the map (if you live in the US) you live and where Molly lives.
   
     MATH: Draw a line between the two locations on your US map. Older children may be able to figure out exactly how far they are from Molly's home and how long it would take to get there by car or by plane.

     MOLLY LEARNING GUIDE - This is a wonderful link to downloadable guides and worksheets for older children (maybe ages 7-11, but that is just an approximation).

     ALL ABOUT MOLLY - This is a link to Molly's biography and personality description.

     American Girl Lapbook Templates

     How To Make An American Girl Timeline

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American Girls Collection: Meet Samantha Curriculum

     During the Spring I began reading the original American Girl series to Marley.  I have been excited to introduce it to her, so we gave it a try and she adores the series.  She runs to me with her book in hand reminding me to read another chapter.  These books are so kid friendly with the short chapters and darling icon illustrations that appear between the paragraphs.  The plots are very simple and fun for children. And my favorite part is that it introduces a period of history to Marley.  An era of many changes, petticoats, washboards, introduction of electricity and motor vehicles, is quite interesting and fun to explain to a 4 year old.

     I was able to buy most of the original series on Ebay for about $1 each book.  We started off with Meet Samantha.  Right away Marley was enthralled with the introductory illustrations for the cast of characters. I think this is great for young visual learners who need a bit of a foundation for their imagination. She enjoyed the book so much that every time we read more, Marley would run to her daddy when he arrived home from work and tell him about the characters and what happened in the book.  I was thrilled to see her enjoying the book.

     I found that each chapter gave me an idea for an activity I could do with Marley that related to the book.  These enriching hands on ACTIVITIES can enhance the educational experience as well as create beautiful memories.

     CHAPTER 1: Bake Jelly Biscuits recipe link.

     CHAPTER 2: Simple sewing practice link.

     

     CHAPTER 3: Make a tin can phone tutorial link.

     CHAPTER 4: Stitching a plastic canvas.  (This can be done with young children if you use a dull needle and you monitor their work. This toy needlepoint kit is great.)

     
     








     CHAPTER 5: Playing with dolls. Maybe have a doll pretend tea party.
     
     CHAPTER 6: An act of service.  (The moral taken from the book was to be considerate of others, so maybe do a favor for a neighbor or leave some change at a vending machine.  Teaching children to think of others is a priceless lesson. More examples) 

      After we finished the book, I took her on a field trip to the Newland House Museum.  The house was built in 1898, so it was a perfect way for Marley to see in person how Samantha might have lived.  Marley was adamant to carry her book with her throughout the tour.  I enjoyed flipping through the pages showing her similarities we could recognize, such as the long underwear, the quilts, and an antique sewing machine.  It was a lovely little field trip for both of us and very memorable.

     We took a break from the series, because I didn't want to burn through it so quickly. Now we are working on Happy Birthday, Samantha!.  Marley is enjoying this book even more than the first.  Now that she is familiar with the characters, she feels more connected with the stories.  I love when I say the name Eddie Ryland, and Marley responds with "Oh no! Not Eddie."  Haha!  Seeing her develop a love for the characters is so precious.  It also gives her incentive to learn how to read.  I occasionally remind her that once she can read on her own, she can read all the books she loves by herself.

Homeschooling goal: Establish a love for learning.

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Prehistoric Play

     We get a lot of packages at our house. A lot. So we always have plenty of boxes and packaging paper.  We received some just yesterday and I wanted to do a project with it, but what?

CAVE DRAWINGS!

     Before beginning our lesson on prehistoric people. We started out by watching Encino Man. I know, odd choice. But it is a movie I am familiar with, so I fast forwarded through a few parts of mature content and pointed out moments of educational value throughout the film. M actually really enjoyed it.  She kept laughing and saying,"That cave man is so silly!" Funny enough, the movie also taught her the value of a bath and brushing our teeth. ;)  You could also watch Ice Age or The Croods, to relate to the lesson.

     After the movie, I went over what a paleontologist does and how we can't learn about prehistoric people without fossils and other evidence in the ground.  I showed her a chart of common cave symbols and we started making our own cave drawings. I taped the paper up on the wall and we each had a paintbrush and some paints.  

     After we finished painting, I explained that cave drawings usually tell a story. So I helped her create a story from the drawings we made.  Here is her story:

     Once upon a time there was a girl who had a pet duck and she was playing. Then a water monster came out of the water and scared her. It started to rain. Then a boy wanted to be the girl's friend, so he saved her. The boy killed the water monster and the sun came out. The boy and girl went back in the cave and played with toys. The end.

   
We then made some Salt Dough together to make fossils.  It is a fun and easy sensory activity that allows preschoolers to be heavily involved. We used mini toy dinosaurs and leaves to make our fossils. (You can also use large plastic animals and do footprint fossils.)

     I wish I had mixed more food coloring into my water before mixing, but other than that, the fossils turned out great. M learned about prehistoric evidence and prehistoric people while enjoying these super fun activities. I love hearing her try to say "paleontologist." And yes, sometimes our activities are so fun that we forget to change out of penguin pajamas. ;)

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