Monday: A long overdue music and museum Monday.  We have been going to the RMSC every Monday recently for a science class that Jayden is attending.  Today, Chloe, Ava, and I spent the entire time he was in class at the K’nex station.  I encouraged Chloe to do something other than the gyro swing that she usually does, so this time she put together a helicopter.

Ava really wanted to build something as well so we found her a one dimensional  dinosaur project.  She was so anxious to play with her creation!  Much to her disappointment, it did not stand.  Chloe devised a plan to make a 3-D dinosaur by creating a mirror image of the dinosaur Ava had built and then connecting them together with straight pieces.  It worked like a charm, and looked pretty cool too!

After being away for over two weeks the kids were a little rusty with their instruments.  It was good to get back in to the swing of things and get them reconnected with where they are at musically.

Tuesday: Our workday. It seems as though it is getting harder and harder to find days where we are home and can focus. The running around has gotten out of hand and I am planning on cutting way back again.  We started a garden unit study from Amanda Bennett.  There are three things in particular that I really like about it.

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First, is the Internet links that are with each question so that the kids have an easier time finding the information they need. There are questions posed  under categories like “Interesting People and Places” and “Read and Discover”. Then along with those there are one or two Internet links to check out and assist you in answering the questions.

Second, is the way it is broken up into a lower and an upper level.  They are listed separately and make it so much easier for my 2nd grader to work at his level and my 6th grader to be a little bit more challenged.

The third thing I really like is that this study goes beyond just the garden.  My children are learning about impressionism, Claude Monet, France, Johnny Appleseed, George Washington Carver and so much more.  They have printed out pictures, sketched Monet’s garden, drawn a map of France and labeled places like Giverny and Paris.  All this while learning garden terms as well!

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Wednesday: Is our usual storytime with Mr. Mike and mall lunch with Poppy and Gommy.  This week we read the book If You’re Hoppy by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated by Jackie Urbanovic. It puts a bunny spin on the traditional “If You’re Happy and You Know It” song.

Bunnies aren’t the only animals that hop. If you’re hoppy and you know it, you might be a frog or a bunny or a cricket. If you’re sloppy and you know it, you might be a hog or a raccoon or a chimp or a baboon. If you’re growly and you know it, you might be a dog or a bear or a tummy! If you’re flappy and you know it you might be a bird or a butterfly or even a pterodactyl! (This Ava particularly loved!)

This one should definitely be a storytime staple, and a nighttime favorite with many children as well as the young at heart!

Thursday: Chloe had her science lab in the morning and Ava had Girls Scouts in the afternoon so not a whole lot of work was happening today.  We were lucky enough to have sunshine here in NY and reasonable outdoor temperatures so we enjoyed a fabulous picnic lunch in the park with our friends in between our morning and afternoon commitments.  For our Girl Scout meeting we hiked a local park to check out the “Daffodil Meadow”.  It was a fun hike in which Ava adopted a caterpillar as her walking companion.  I will have the photos in my Wordless (almost) Wednesday this coming week.