This Week In School: Charlotte Mason Science

Crazy weather! First, we got warm enough to actually play outside. Which two of the three could do: there's an ugly cold going through the household right now, and Hero's still in recovery, so the poor guy had to watch through the window while the first days of decent weather... went by without him peeping a nose out. Bummer. It's supposed to not only stay above 0F, it's supposed to peak out at 45F... followed by freezing rain and a plunge back to 11F. Oi. Crazy weather.

Inside, there's been lots of science this week. We got a microscope for Christmas from Nana and Grandpa, and the kids are all over looking at both the couple of slides that it came with, and also checking out different things around the house.

Monday, when Dragon(8) begged for it, he and Miss Kitty looked at everything we've got, and they also persuaded me to try putting something on one of the blank slides for them: Hero was making slime, and they wanted to see shaving cream. Which looks... bubbly.

Hero's been watching YouTube videos, and hitting me up for things like glue and borax, and making slime. I think it's fun to watch him learn, and there's definitely a lot of learning going on. A failed batch before Christmas taught him that there's more to it than just putting the same ingredients in the bowl: measuring is a must. And he's asked about different conversions when he couldn't find a spoon of the correct size. And he's learning to clean up so that he keeps his kitchen privileges. 

And slime is just plain cool. This one is a "fluffy slime" -- hence the shaving cream.

It's fun watching him observe his older slimes, too. He made one before Christmas, and was gifted one by a friend of his, and those have changed and gradually stiffened, until he declared them dead and tossed them. But he's forming theories about what kind of slimes last the best, based on the observations that he's making... this is high quality science, and he had no idea.

Tuesday, we had a doctor's visit, and since our doctor is fantastic we drive for a ways to her, but that does a number on our school day. Fortunately, we barely ever go anymore. Turns out the concern, while valid, was over a minor thing, which is always nice to hear.

Dragon finished up two of his Tigers beltloops, and is working on his pinewood derby car: the big race is this Saturday. He's pretty excited!

We've been trying a new way to integrate our art and science: using our watercolors work to develop observation skills, because good observations are at the heart of good science. Where our outside time is so irregular at this time of the year, we try to keep Nature Study going with various indoor activities that help us learn more for when we can get out, and to develop our ability to see well. Because good observation doesn't necessarily come easily, but it can be practiced and learned. And, as art is a skill of the eye, not the hands, it's a perfect training ground: it's a different application of the same skills. So we did some group observations of an onion; the same one as last week, actually, and it was fun to see the way that both Dragon and Miss Kitty had improved their ability to observe with the practice. (Hero was under the weather, so he took a nap instead). One of my favorite things about these activities is that I get to practice my painting, too, which I really enjoy. This activity was so cool that I gave it its own post.

Dragon's been doing really well with his copywork and handwriting practice, too. Plus, I taught him and Miss Kitty to draw the five-pointed stars, which was endlessly entertaining for a few days. He's working on a poem from Victor Hugo:

Be like the bird, who
Halting in his flight
On limb too slight
Feels it give way beneath him,
Yet sings,
Knowing he hath wings.

Miss Kitty is coming up on a birthday, and it's showing in her school work. She's gaining fluency in her reading quickly, and she's doing better narrations more easily, which is fun to watch. This week, we read Beatrix Potter's Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. The narration was adorable; she called the pocket handkerchiefs "piggy-winnkies" and all kinds of delightful things to Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle's name. It's so fun to watch the kids grow into reading, and start to become readers.

Not a bad week at all, really. All we really need is for Hero to shake the cold that's got him.