Summer of Science - Week 1 - Magnets

This week kicked off our first week of what I'm calling our Summer of Science. I am using Memorizing the Moment's Alphabet in Simple Science and adapting it to fit the needs and ages of my kids.

We began with Wild One's first First Start Reading Lesson on the letter M.  I really enjoy the simplicity of these lessons and the fact that everything is done for me.  Wild One was really excited to start her very own workbook too!  She loves to write and draw - she will sit for hours and write letters and draw pictures - which is one of the reasons I chose this curriculum for her.

After she finished her lesson (it took us about 15 minutes), we began reading some books about magnets.  I've done a magnet theme in the past for the older kids so it was fun to revisit some of our favorites.  Some of the books and supplies we used are listed in the widget below (nonaffiliate links).

Before we kicked off our experiments with magnets though, I asked the kids if they wanted to keep a science journal.  I want the focus of our studies to be on having fun and exposing them to science concepts, not on writing.  Pinky in particular is not fond of writing, and I didn't want something like a science notebook to stand in the way of her participating and enjoying our lessons.  They all agreed that they wanted a notebook, so I pulled together some free printables and made a couple of my own as well.  I will let them choose when they want to use the notebooks and when they don't.

The cover of their journals is a free printable from Read Like a Rock Star on TpT.

Chaos, Wild One and Sprout are all using the the free printables from Memorizing the Moments.

In addition, I made an observation sheet for Chaos and Wild One to use while viewing experiments.  Again, I wanted to focus on the science, so I chose to allow them to draw what they could see - something they both love.  You can download this very simple page by clicking on the picture.

For Pinky, I created a page for her to write out a definition of the topic we are studying and to make predictions about what she thinks will happen.  I also left room for her to draw a picture of what she sees.  You can download this page by clicking on the picture.

Because we've done a unit on magnets already, we repeated a lot of activities.  For that reason, I didn't really take pictures this week.  Here are some pictures of our last magnet study.  You can click on the pictures to learn more.

Some of our fun included:

A magnet sensory box:

Testing the strength of magnets (magnet "jumping"):

Painting with magnet marbles:

Discovering if magnets work when submerged in water:

We tried a few new things as well.  Together Pinky, Chaos and myself read The Magic Schoolhouse Amazing Magnetism.

We also tried making a paper clip dance like Kaysha did on Memorizing the Moments.

It was a fun week and the kids were excited to be back in "Mommy School."  I'm really excited to spend the summer diving into science with the kids!

Summer Plans

It's summer vacation and once again I'm excited and motivated for another summer of learning with my kids! Here's hoping that the motivation lasts all summer and extends to regular blog posting!

To be honest, I wasn't sure if I was going to do much besides summer bridge books and flashcards this summer, but I changed my mind because of two things:

1. Wild One has a huge desire to learn to read.  And not just any books, but chapter books.  :)  I told her that we would take it one step at a time, but I just can't ignore her enthusiasm to learn!
2. I stumbled upon the "Alphabet in Simple Science" over at Memorizing the Moments.  If you haven't see it yet, you should definitely check it out!  After reading through the posts, I was inspired to try it with my kids!

I've decided to adapt the science curriculum that Kaysha at Memorizing the Moments has developed to make it work for all 4 of my kids.  For the younger 2, we will focus on letters and sounds and the introduction of science concepts.  For the older 2, we will delve deeper into topics and maybe even do some science notebooking (I've created some experiment observation pages that I plan to share).

In addition, Wild One will be working through the First Start Reading program with me.  In fact, the order that letters and sounds are introduced in this curriculum will determine the order that we tackle the "Alphabet in Simple Science" series.

As for the older 2, they will both be completing their summer bridge books as they do every year (I take them out for ice cream when they finish it).  Pinky has been struggling a bit with math this year, so she's also working on the Math Mammoth review books this summer.

 I also picked her up this book just to prove to her that math can be fun.  

We'll also be reading plenty of books, and I plan to continue our "What We're Reading" posts throughout the summer.

This summer we're finally trying out the Summer Challenge that Carisa created at 1+1+1=1 too!  I had fun stocking up my prize bucket and coming up with tasks for the kids to complete to earn a point.  I will share our prizes and challenges in another post.

Finally, I have taken on my own sort of challenge and am working on organization (a task that will take much longer than just this summer).  I started by listing 40 areas of my house that need to be organized using this printable from White House Black Shutters.  I plan to take them on one at a time and document befores and afters.  If I feel brave I may share those here too.

Well, that's another ambitious summer for us.  What are your summer plans?

Summer Math and the Math Curse

While the kids will be reading every day this summer, I also want them to be practicing math every day too. I've always loved the concept of a math journal so I decided to make one for Pinky and Chaos. Each day they will solve one problem in their math journals for some extra practice.

To start, I bought a one subject notebook for each kid.  I whipped up some super simple labels in Publisher to add to the front with some packaging tape (I went with simplicity over beauty here).

Inside, on the top of each page, is a word problem.  They can use the two page spread to draw and write the answer to the problems.

 For Chaos (shown above), I downloaded a free set of Kindergarten math journal prompts from Krazee 4 Kindergarten.

For Pinky, I purchased a set of prompts from Teacher Tam's Teachers Pay Teachers Store.  To start though, we are using problems from the book Math Curse by John Scieszka.



We read the book together, then I typed up some of the problems in the book to add to her math journal.  Some of the problems I changed slightly either by simplifying or changing numbers.  A few problems are made up by me.

I hope the kids have fun with these math problems!  The book, if you've never read it, is really fun.

Linking up to some of these great parties!

Summer Geography

We have officially begun our summer learning adventure! I've been planning fun things to share and teach the kids this summer, and I'm very excited to share them with you.

I think I am most excited about our plan to study each of the 50 states. Pinky and Chaos have both always loved looking at maps and love to learn facts about the states we travel through on our road trips.

I searched Pinterest and blogs for the "perfect" lesson plans or state books to use for our study, but didn't find one that was exactly what I wanted, so I made my own! They are a simplified version of the ones provided at The AnnaMatrix blog.  I didn't want to have too much writing detail because Chaos will be joining us for this study, so I created a one page document for the kids to fill in while we read about and explore each state. 
 
The page covers the basics:

• state name
• nickname
• abbreviation
• capital
• state flower
• state bird
• state tree
• state rock
• state insect
• the year the state was founded
• the order in which it was added(first, second, third, etc.)

I've added a picture of the state's quarter and flag for Chaos and Pinky.  I also added a map of the United States so the kids can color in where the state is located.  When we've finished all 50 states, I plan to bind these pages with a cover to create a book to look back on.  I hope to be able to share these pages for you to download and use as we go along.  I will share more detail about each study we do as well.

The first state we are studying (and we are going in no particular order other than by when the books are available at the library) is Minnesota.  One particular book series that I'm hoping to use throughout the summer is Discover America State by State.   I've found the series to be interesting to my 7 year old right down to my 3 year old.  There is a lot of information given without being overwhelming.

We are also using our National Geographic laminated US map to identify the states we've studied.

 

Linking up to some of these great parties!

 

Summer Learning - Writing

One thing I really wanted to work on with Pinky last summer was her handwriting.  It's something she just doesn't enjoy.  She will draw all day, but just really dislikes putting pen to paper to write. I wanted her to write more, but I didn't want to fight with her to do it.  I came up with two ideas to help.

The first was Draw Write Now books.  Since Pinky already loves to draw I thought this would spark an interest in her.  I was right!  We started with Book One and have since expanded all the way through Book 4.  I make her do the writing before she begins drawing.



I picked up the books secondhand on ebay and used Melissa and Doug storytelling paper we already had on hand.

The second idea I had was probably MY favorite.  I happened to have a spiral bound one subject notebook on hand (probably leftover from back to school shopping in the fall).  On a whim I wrote a note to Pinky on the first page (even added a little picture to go with it).  I told her that we could write letters back and forth to each other.  Each night, before she went to bed, I would (secretly) write a little note and tuck it under her pillow.  After she was tucked in, she would turn to the next page and write a note back to me.  She usually added a picture too.  Sometimes she would answer a question I had asked or respond to something I had said and sometimes she came up with things completely on her own.  When we reached the end of the notebook, I picked up another and we started again.  It has turned into a wonderful keepsake and a way for us to strengthen our relationship.  We have kept up our journals since we started them last summer. 

Looking for more writing ideas?  Check out my Pinterest board:
Love of Learning - Writing

Summer Learning - Geography

Awhile back I read a blog post at Finally in First about a great activity to go along with the book Me On the Map.  You can read the original post here.


The story is told by a young girl who shows readers a map of her room, then continues, step by step, to show the larger picture: her house on her street, her street on a map of her town, her town in her state, etc.

This was a really fun way to begin to explore maps with the kids and to help them understand where they live in relation to the rest of the world.

Looking for more great Geography ideas?  Check out my Pinterest board:
Love of Learning - Geography

Summer Learning - Math

Being the wife of a self-proclaimed math nerd, it's important to us that our kids have a strong foundation in math.  Trying to make it fun can sometimes be a challenge though.

Last summer we worked on addition and subtraction facts with Pinky.  We also reinforced skip counting, telling time to the hour and half hour, and counting money.

While we did use flashcards - we made it a routine to spend 10 minutes with a set of flashcards each day - we also spent a lot of time playing games.


The hands down math game winner in our house is Sum Swamp Addition and Subtraction Game.  I found this at a garage sale for only $1 (and it had all the pieces - bonus!), but you can buy it from Amazon or Learning Resources.  The premise of the game is simple.  You choose a game piece and try to be the first person around the board.  You roll 3 dice - 2 number dice and one operations (addition or subtraction).  You arrange the dice into a math equation (always putting the larger number first) and solve.  The answer to the problem is how many spaces you can move.  There are, of course, some tricks along the way.  You can land in a spot marked "even" or "odd" and you must remain there until you roll the appropriate number.  The favorite part of the game for my kids is "the endless loop" which ensures that you will get lots of practice.  The game itself doesn't take long, but my kids beg me to play over and over.  It was $1 well spent.


Another fun math game is Eeboo Time Telling Game. The game can be adjusted based on skill level.  You can choose to tell time by the hour, half hour, quarter hour or down to the minute.  Each player chooses a clock with moveable hands.  A card is flipped over to show a digital time.  Players must then set their clocks to that time.  We very often change up the rules to this game or just use the clocks to practice without playing the game.  Pinky loves to use the clocks to play school with Chaos.

Of course, having fun with math doesn't have to mean spending money on a store bought game.  A great way to practice coin counting skills is to count real coins or even to set up a store and play with a toy cash register.

We've also had a lot of fun with Add it Math by the very talented Erica at Confessions of a Homeschooler.

Life of Fred: Apples has also made a few appearances this summer as well.  Both Pinky and Chaos enjoy reading about Fred and his doll Kingie.  If you've never heard of Fred,  you can read a sample here.

For my techie loving kids, we also watch a few LeapFrog movies (these are really more appropriate for Wild One and Chaos, but Pinky still enjoys them) - Numbers Ahoy, Number Land, Math Adventure to the Moon, and others are often available on Netflix instant streaming.

Looking for more great math ideas (most low or no cost)?  Check out my pinterest boards:
Love of Learning - Math
Love of Learning - Online Games
Love of Learning  - Education Apps

Summer Learning - Reading

Our number one goal for learning this summer was to spend a lot of time reading.  I want to raise my kids to be avid readers who are excited to read new books.  I want books to be a part of their everyday routine.

Last year when Pinky was learning to read she set a goal to read 100 books by the end of summer.  I created a sticker chart for her and helped her find books that she was able to read (we read the entire Bob book collection and many intro readers).  It was hard work, but she was so determined. 


This summer she wanted to read even more.  We set her goal at 110 books.  It's getting trickier as her books are getting longer, and it's not quite as easy for her to ready a dozen books a day like it was before.  I mostly give her free choice of what she reads though I do make books available that I think she may enjoy and will allow her to improve her reading.  We have some basic ground rules: the book must have a story (not just one or two words per page) and no repeats.  If she reads a chapter book on her own we count it as 2 books.  I've also allowed her to choose to read a magazine in place of a book.  I don't want to be to strict on WHAT she reads, I just want her to read and enjoy it.  I think next summer we will set a goal for how long she reads each day instead of a certain number of books.  This is more in line with what her school requires (30 minutes a day, twice a day).

For Chaos, he is showing many signs of being ready to read.  He knows all of his letters and their sounds and can even recognize a few sight words.  We've begun VERY slowly introducing the Bob books to him.  I downloaded the Bob Books Reading Magic app for my iPhone, and he really enjoys it.  It's helped him become familiar with the books and words, which has helped him read and sound out a few words in the books.


To help him learn his sight words, I printed out our public school's Kindergarten sight word list on small cards.  I chose 5 words to start (the first sight words to appear in the Bob books) and taped them to his bedroom door.  I told him this was a "lock" for his door.  In order to unlock his door he had to touch each card and say the word.  To lock it when he left he had to do it again (in reverse order).  He thought it was hilarious and loves to "lock" his sisters out of his room.


We are continuing to reinforce letters and their sounds.  We love the LeapFrog movies (Letter Factory, Talking Words Factory, Amazing Alphabet Adventure, Phonics Farm, Let's Go to School, and Word Caper).  Many of these are available on Netflix for instant streaming if you subscribe.

Looking for more ideas?  Check out my pinterest boards:

Love of Learning - Reading

Letter of the Week

Love of Learning - Spelling

Next up in our summer learning series - Math! Thanks for stopping by!

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