The girls are sitting by a bed of tulips at the historical village in Pella, Iowa. There were over 80,000 tulips planted in this town.
We traveled the week before the big tulip festival so it was a bit quieter and less stressful for the girls and my parents (who are in the 70s).
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Visible Horse - Skeleton
The horse was at the Minnesota Horse Expo. My daughters love horses, and Sophia wants to be a veterinarian. So going to the Horse Expo was part of homeschooling today.
This side of the horse shows the skeleton. It is painted with non-toxic paints. The muscular anatomy was being painted on the other side of the horse.
This side of the horse shows the skeleton. It is painted with non-toxic paints. The muscular anatomy was being painted on the other side of the horse.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Rainbow of Window Stars - Learn the Color Wheel
I like the pattern of these stars and wanted to see what they looked like in single colors. This is a collection of the stars using eight different colors of translucent paper.
They are a great reminder for the girls about the colors of the rainbow, primary colors, secondary colors, complementary colors, etc.
It's a hand-on way that they can learn about the color wheel by moving the stars around and/or changing the order that they are in.
These stars are available in my Etsy shop, Harvest Moon by Hand. Please visit http://www.harvestmoonbyhand.etsy.com if you'd like to see these stars and other Waldorf-inspired window stars that I make.
They are a great reminder for the girls about the colors of the rainbow, primary colors, secondary colors, complementary colors, etc.
It's a hand-on way that they can learn about the color wheel by moving the stars around and/or changing the order that they are in.
These stars are available in my Etsy shop, Harvest Moon by Hand. Please visit http://www.harvestmoonbyhand.etsy.com if you'd like to see these stars and other Waldorf-inspired window stars that I make.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Face on a Tree
Sophia spotted this face on the tree when we were on our nature walk at the state park.
Pareidolia is when a vague or random image is perceived as recognizable - like these growths on a tree representing a recognizable face.
This was part of homeschool phy ed/nature walk/science observation for the day.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Snack Box for Easter
The concept of the snack box that I made for Easter gifts was that it would be a fun way to present a wide variety of snacks that could be enjoyed in a short period of time.
Each person who received the snack box really like it. They are long gone now...the snacks were quickly devoured.
The items in this box were: cashews, sesame sticks, dried apple slices, gum drops, banana chips, jelly beans, sunflower seeds, wasabi peas, toffee peanuts, and Swedish fish.
My snack box is based on the "Muffin Tin Meal" concept.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Olivia in Play at Homeschool Co-op
This was Olivia's first play that she was in at the homeschool co-op. She's playing "Christy Kennedy" in "On the Banks of Plum Creek" (a Laura Ingalls Wilder story).
The costume she's wearing was made by a seamstress who I hired many years ago when I did a farm/art camp for kids. The seamstress created costumes for kids to wear that represented a variety of times in history (from the mid-1800s to 1970s).
This class was good practice in acting, public speaking, and being comfortable in front of an audience.
The costume she's wearing was made by a seamstress who I hired many years ago when I did a farm/art camp for kids. The seamstress created costumes for kids to wear that represented a variety of times in history (from the mid-1800s to 1970s).
This class was good practice in acting, public speaking, and being comfortable in front of an audience.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Sophia Needlefelting
One of the skills that the girls have been learning over the past couple of years is needlefelting.
For Easter this year, they learned how to make a needlefelted egg. Using an egg-shape base, they chose the color of wool they wanted. They used a single barbed needle to felt the wool onto the egg form.
Needlefelting is a calming, peaceful activity for children. It is excellent for developing hand-eye coordination, and the result is a lovely, all-natural piece that the child can play with or use to decorate the home.
For Easter this year, they learned how to make a needlefelted egg. Using an egg-shape base, they chose the color of wool they wanted. They used a single barbed needle to felt the wool onto the egg form.
Needlefelting is a calming, peaceful activity for children. It is excellent for developing hand-eye coordination, and the result is a lovely, all-natural piece that the child can play with or use to decorate the home.