Homeschool week 1

So we made it through our first few weeks of homeschool. So far so good. We have been getting through our workload and having some fun too. Here's a bit of a glimpse of what we have been up to.



Field trip to a Rock Ranch. This was organized through a homeschool group we are part of. It's fun to be able to go on these trips with a group of other families...its fun and social...as well as a learning experience.



The kids got to dig up a variety of rocks and minerals....quartz, mica, obsidian...you name it. They had a blast sorting through them and trying to identify each one.



They used their rocks and minerals in some experiments. This one is part of a series of tests they did to determine the density of different minerals. They learned how to use a triple balance beam which seemed to be the highlight...at least for Jack.



We cracked open some geodes and studied the crystal forms inside. Jack was a bit of a crazy man with the hammer. His first geode ended up as a powdered mess on the pavement. He managed to refine his hammering enthusiasm with his subsequent geodes.



For history we learned about the fall of Rome and the Barbarian invasions. We talked about the Anglo Saxons and read a version of Beowulf which inspired the kids to make their own double sided medieval axe and battle each other in the front yard.



For art we made some clay pots....



And our teenaged next door neighbor provided a music lesson for the boys



So all this plus math and language arts made our first couple of weeks a success. All we need now is to move into our homeschool room so we can have a little more space.