Week Four: More of the Same

Emily worked on catching up in her Intensive Practice book again this week in math.  I also added in the Math Mammoth unit on telling time for review.

Cami completed Lessons 29 and 30 in RightStart A.  She learned about nickels, dimes and pennies, and practiced estimation using color tiles.  She estimated that there were sixty and there turned out to be sixty-seven.  Not bad for a first try!   

We started Bastien piano lessons this week.  The girls outlined their hand and numbered each finger, then did some finger exercises.  Yes, those are Harry Potter scars on their foreheads.

We talked again about the water cycle in science, and created our very own water cycle using a big bowl, some colored salt water and plastic wrap.   First we filled the outer ring of a chip and dip platter with water and added some salt and food coloring.

Then we covered it in plastic wrap, placed a rock above the empty center bowl and set it outside in a sunny location.  Now, the instructions said it should take a couple of hours for the water to start evaporating, but it took ours a whopping 5 days to show even a slight mist on the plastic. 

After it rained into the center cup, the kids taste-tested the blue water and the clear water, concluding that the food dye and salt were both left behind during evaporation.

We read Chapter 7 in Story of the World this week, in which Islam becomes an empire.  The girls made scimitars out of foam board and painted them.  Cami learned the hard way that foam scimitars don't hold up well if used for serious sword fighting.

We also started a mystery project that we didn't get around to finishing this week due to unforeseen circumstances.