In addition to our Regular Curriculum, these were some fun additions to our week: We caught an episode (Motion Commotion) of Brain Games on Netflix. Today's episode explored the science behind how our brain detects, interprets and reacts to motion. This is one on Connor's favorite shows, it's worth checking out! It's full of fun "mind bending" activities. We also enjoyed watching Animal Misfits on Netflix this week. Connor is a huge fan of Animals and Bizarre Animal facts (this was right up his alley). Connor has been doing a mini-volcano unit. We ran across this Volcano experiment over at It Happens in a Flash and decided to give it a try. You can also find directions for this same experiment over at Steve Spangler Science. With the Volcano in a Cup experiment, you can can demonstrate underground Volcanoes. The hot magma (wax) will bubble up through the sand and causes little eruptions in the surface of the sand. At the surface of the sand it collides with cold water that cools the wax and causes it to harden. You can change your variables (Amount of wax, sand, temperature of melting, etc.) to do a little more discovery. We've really been enjoying our Educational Shows on Netflix this week. We also watched the first Episode of Nature's Great Events-"The Great Melt" on Netflix (You can also catch it on YouTube here).
We learned how different animals such as Polar Bears, the Arctic Fox, Beluga Whales, Narwhals, and guillemots handle the Sea ice thawing in the Arctic. NeoK12 is a Website full of Educational Videos, Lessons and Games for kids in K-12. This site is very organized which makes it easy to find what you are looking for in a pinch. You can find everything broken down by subjects (Science, Math, Social Studies, etc.) and then broken down into Sub-topics. You can see a copy of their interface below. So far I've noticed the Videos are free to watch, however you must subscribe to access quizzes, Labs and other resources. The cost for Homeschooling families is only $24.95/yr. (with an individual plan). As an eclectic homeschooler this site can save me tons of time from having to review videos, hunti down printables, and find science labs. This week I'm sharing a Science Resource called "Mystery Science". We are participating in their Free Trial offer which ends July 2016. If you enjoy it, you can subscribe to a homeschool membership for only $99/year (July 2016-July 2017). This resource is designed for kiddos ages 6-12. On their site you can find a variety of Units which each have a series of Mystery Lessons under them. These Mysteries start with a "Big question". Each Mystery includes:
These are the Units that are currently available during the Free Trial:
Today we Selected the "Material Magic Unit. Our "Mystery" was "Why do we wear clothes?". A short video explained why clothes are important, what properties are, and why you would choose different materials based on their purpose. We were given the task to design (Engineer) a hat, while we were stranded on a tropical island (with limited resources). This is Connor in his "Stranded Island" headwear. He used a paper towel as absorbent material on top of his head, a paper bag to protect his neck, and a paper plate bill covered in foil to reflect the sun.
Connor really enjoyed the videos and the activity. His thoughts "It was interesting, I liked the videos". Mom's thoughts: "I liked how everything was set up, it was easy to gather the materials and nice not having to pull together resources (activities, videos, labs, questions, etc)." It's definitely a resource worth checking out. It may not be worth it for us to pay to subscribe to since Connor is at the end of the age range-but it could be a great investment for the younger crowd at only $99/year. We'll get some use out of it until July. |
AuthorHi, I'm Melissa.. Mom to Connor. Archives
February 2017
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