Dinosaurs

Well, let me show everyone what we've been up to for the last couple of weeks. We've been slowly working on our dino study that we got from hss. Since we started off our year studying the creation we also looked at what day we thought the dinosaurs were created. And our guess is that they were created on the fifth and sixth days with the rest of the water, air and land creatures. Then we went on to learn about what classification dinosaurs would be in; which of course is the reptile family. After learning about what qualifies as a reptile, we went outside to see if we could find a descendant of a dinosaur. And we were in luck, we were able to find a lizard...well Chloe our dog got to it first and we had to wrangle it away from her. And before we could get it from her, she managed to kill it, which actually ended up being quite useful. Since it was dead we were able to examine it in a way that would have been nearly impossible if it were still alive. We got to turn it upside down and look at it's under belly and open it's mouth and look at that. Really very interesting! Then we went to see if we could find a live specimen and again we were able to find one. This time we caught it before Chloe could. It was the same kind of lizard as the first one we found, we have several different varieties were we are. This particular kind of lizard is able to change colors. I always thought that only chameleons could do that. Learn something new every day huh!

Later we read a couple of the books that are suggested to go along with the unit study. But you could use any books that you have on dinosaurs that your kids enjoy. *Remember to use what resource you already have first. And then try and find the ones you don't have at the library. Most libraries have their catalogs online now so you can check to see if they have the book you need before you drive all the way there. These sort of things will save you a lot of money.* Unfortunately the libraries near me don't have many of the books that I've needed. This is when I've resorted to looking for them on Amazon or Ebay. This can save you the time of tracking books down, which may be worth the money to you. Since I've become a homeschool mom I've had to decide what my time is worth. This may be helpful for you to figure out too. Here are the books that we used:

A few days later we learned what a Paleontologist was. Then we went outside and did a dinosaur dig of our own. The study recommends burying an easy to put together dino puzzle, but I found a kit that had a small skeleton of a dinosaur that you excavate and put the pieces together. So I bought 2 kits for my older two and buried some dog bones for two of my little ones. They had a blast doing this.

Here is a kit from Amazon:


I found mine from Hobby Lobby (cheaper) but the convenience of having something shipped to your door is really nice. Plus, it's like Christmas when ever I get packages! I love it!

Next we'll be researching the dinosaurs we like the best and finding out were they lived in the world. We'll also be making a dino diorama, fossils, and paper mache' eggs. So stick with us and find out how the rest of the study goes. As soon as I can figure out how to put pictures on here the way I want them I'll be adding them as well. Love, Haben

Procrastination

I really wanted to learn about and enjoy the Olympics with my kids but I just never got around to gathering up all the stuff and doing anything about it, so another great teaching opportunity gone. I don't feel too guilty though considering they happen twice every four years. Hopefully we will catch the next one.

But according to my sister Amber, I'm not allowed to overlook this year's Presidential election. It is a historical event either way. Either we will have our first black president or our first woman vice president. I know this is important. My brain just isn't geared up for planning and implementing lessons yet. But lucky for me and my kids, currclick is here to save the day. I was able to find a unit study that has everything all together for me. And the publishers A Journey Through Learning have gotten rave reviews on this particular unit study, nice plug huh...I should really get paid for these kinds of things, and all I had to do was download and print. Can't get much simplier than that.

So this is what we'll be doing for the next couple of weeks, along with a dinosaur lapbook, which we got for free from Homeschool Share . I'll be putting up picture of both as we do them. Well that's all I have for now folks. Love, Haben