Chrysalis or Cocoon?

Moth cocoons.

Our fuzziest white caterpillar and black caterpillar has formed cocoons. This is a sign that we will seeing a moth in the next few days. A cocoon is spun from silk and surrounds the pupa of many moths. "Look!," exclaimed Creed, "They're eating it," peering at the chewed holes in the leaves we'd left in the butterfly habitat. "Yes," I said, "They're very hungry caterpillars!" "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," by Eric Cole, is one of Creed's favorite books and a great resource in explaining the phenomenon of metamorphosis to young children. Creed gets them out and plays with them, feeling their fuzzy bodies, some smooth. He says they're his friends. I'm looking forward to seeing his expression when we set the butterflies and moths free.

This week we worked on the letter g as well as top-to-bottom lines, slanted lines, circles and curved lines. We're working from a book using letters and sounds, with another one of Creed's favorite characters, Little Critter. Since he loves Little Critter so much he's eager to complete the pages. Throughout the summer we've got two more Little Critter preschool workbooks to work on, beginning reading and basic concepts. 

Yesterday we watched a movie from the Schlessinger Science Library, Earth Science for Children, "All About Fossils." We learned all about fossils being the evidence or clues from the remains of living things that once lived on Earth. Fossils, most often found in sedimentary rock, can be preserved body parts or impressions left during an animals lifetime. Among other things we learned how to make our own mold, described as an imprint left behind by a living thing that has decayed. Instead of using Plaster of Paris, like suggested in the video, we used Caryola Air-Dry Clay. After completing several molds using small plastic dinosaurs, skeletons, seashells and actual fossils including a shark tooth, trilobite, sea-urchin and brachiopod, once they become hardened, we'll made a cast, also described as a fossil, formed after a living thing leaves an impression in mud or sand that becomes hardened. Creed had fun making dinosaur "tracks", impressions and molds of fossils.

Shell mold. 

Sea-urchin mold.

Shark tooth mold.

"Making dinosaur tracks."

Parasaurolophus impression.

Creed's godmother introduced us to an amazing book, "My ABC Bible Verses, Hiding God's Word in Little Hearts," by Susan Hunt. The book includes 26 verses, coinciding with the alphabet to "hide in your child's heart" along with stories perfect for reading to children for further explanation. We're using it in addition to our studies each week. We've been spending time on the first verse for a little over a week now and as I was laying Creed down for a nap I asked him about his verse which he parroted perfectly, "a soft answer turns away wrath, Proverbs 15:1" I asked him if there was anything he wanted to say to Jesus and he said, "Thank you for helping me to remember." "Very good," I said. "Is there anything you want to thank God for?" "Thank you God for Mama and Daddy, and Bella (our Siberian Husky) and Big (our Chihuahua mixed breed) and Buddy (our new Siamese kitten)," he said. I "heart" him so much! We're busy hiding God's word in our hearts and I encourage you and your family to join us through this easy to read and understand book for children. It's recommended for ages three-seven, but you can certainly use it as you wish. 

"Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee." - Psalm 119:11

The back cover states "the ABCs are the building blocks of your child's formal education. And these verses are the building blocks of the soul - the building blocks that can lead to eternal life," and I must agree.  

As I searched online I found another book by the same author and an additional author, Richie Hunt, "My ABC Bible Verses from the Psalms," which you've guessed it, follows the same guideline as the aforementioned book. These verses are a bit longer so right now we're just reading this book and discussing the content. This one is geared towards ages three-eight. For more information on these great reads visit www.crossway.org.

F is for flap and footprints!

Daddy and Creed at the local aquarium.

"It flapped me!" Creed squealed as the sting ray went by his hand at a local aquarium. Friday wrapped up our fantastic week with the letter f. Creed had been talking non-stop about sting rays asking to go see one and touch one. Lately he's been watching Sesame Street Elmo's World "The Great Outdoors!" and learning a wealth of information while Elmo explores the great outdoors and learns all about wild animals, fish and weather. I asked him what it felt like as we were watching and petting the string rays. "Jelly!" he said. It certainly did feel like jelly as we slid our fingers over the string rays head and down it's spiny back. I loved feeling their "flaps" as they went by, which were about 1/4 or less inch thick. It felt slick and slimy in the water. We both enjoyed feeding them fish, watching as many gathered anticipating their next snack. 

Creed posing by his favorite dinosaur, along with the stuffed dinosaur on the ledge.

The next day we visited the paleontology hall at the Natural Museum of Science. Creed's love of dinosaurs is getting contagious. We were gaily enthusiastic pointing out the skeletons of those dinosaurs and reptiles we recognized. I asked him if he wanted to take a picture by his favorite dinosaur, the T-Rex, and he agreed noting that his stuffed blue dinosaur needed to be in the photo as well. Before I knew it he had hauled off climbing straight away on a clear mission scaling the exhibit. Just as his little legs were clearing the top I swept him back into my arms, in the nick of time explaining that dinosaur bones are really old and we were not allowed to touch them. I get it. It really would be cool to stand under a real "live" dead of course, Tyrannosaurus Rex. It'd be doubly cool to run your hands up the bones of those massive legs. Moving along, after a brief understanding and battle of the strong-willed child we weaved in and out of the exhibits, discussing which one was this and which one was that. I was really surprised to see how big some of those bird species were and not at all surprised to see how small some of them were. One grand adventure was watching as Creed rode their mechanical T-Rex. That was icing on the dinosaur cake. To further explore we brought home a bag of our very own fossils, which included 19, plus a larger shark tooth. Later on that evening as Creed was peering through his magnifying glass he'd say, "Hmmmmmmmm …. interesting," moving on to the next specimen. Did you know that researchers announced this week they found fossils of a sauropod dinosaur, one of which was the largest creature to ever walk the earth? Dr. Ruben Cueno, director of Museo Paleontologico Egidio Feruglio in Trelew, Argentina, said the dinosaur would have weighed at least 77 tons and grown to triple the size of a T. Rex. "Hmmmmmmmmm … now that is interesting!" For more on that story click here: http://abcnews.go.com/International/researchers-discover-fossils-largest-dino-believed-walk-earth/story?id=23762377.

Today we searched for caterpillars at the local botanical gardens. We found two, one white and one brown, both fuzzy, to add to our collection at home. How exciting to see if they'll be moths or butterflies. Metamorphosis is truly something to behold. On the way home we stopped at the welcome center and walked their scenic byways also in search of caterpillars. I told Creed we would have to look for evidence of caterpillars to spot one, pointing out a leaf with chewed holes. He spotted another saying, "Look! Footprints!" "It is like footprints huh?" I noted, "We can definitely tell one has been chewing on the leaves." We did not find any caterpillars to take home, but did find a wasp clutched to one on the railings, without a doubt laying it's eggs on it so the babies can eat it alive once hatched. We've recently read of this in one of the bug books checked out from the library. It was really creepy to behold. The wasp injects a venom paralyzing the caterpillar so this process can take place, all connected in the circle of life. Two ladybugs hitched a ride in our paper bag to bring home to release in our vegetable garden (I seriously want to order a bunch of ladybugs to protect our garden from aphids, but can't find any online. If you know of a site please comment below!) and a sac with tiny white eggs stuck to a leaf, that I'm really hoping is baby caterpillars. I put the prospects in a jar, in case it's a bunch of spiders I wouldn't want loose in the house!

Making a chime that doesn't scare the birds

Drawing fun after crafting alphabet.

Makings of our itty bitty wind chime.

D is for doodleberry. Creed practiced upper and lowercase d with a trusted friend today while mama went to the dentist. Last night I was telling Creed how I had to go to the dentist the next morning and really didn't want to. Creed said, "Don't worry mama. It's OK." "I know, you're right," I said. This morning I told him I was going to the dentist again. "And you're going to get a toothbrush and a star sticker," he noted. A while back we had read about Dora going to the dentist. Dora also received a new toothbrush and star sticker. I talked to the dentist about what age was appropriate for children to go to the dentist and turns out he's old enough now. So in a couple of weeks we'll all go back to the dentist. In the meantime I've got a really great Usbourne Sticker book about going to the dentist. I mentioned my conversation with Creed about going to the dentist myself and they gave me a sticker and temporary tattoo to give him. :-) very sweet.

Later this afternoon we were looking for a wind chime, but they all seemed too noisy. I asked Creed if he thought they would scare the birds and he agreed, so we decided to make our own. I have a great set of letter and number cookie cutters I found at an antique store and they were put to good use today. We had fun rolling out play dough and cutting out the alphabet, going over the name and sound of each. I'm wondering how they'll hold up if they get wet. They're drying outside right now and I'm thinking about getting some sort of clear lacquer to go over them. I'll post the final results! While we were in the Dollar General discussing wind chimes and looking for note cards, Creed brought me a stack of books and asked me to read to him. I kindly obliged sitting indian-style to the side of the aisle. When we read a dinosaur book instead of picking out the colored dinosaurs they book described he identified them by name. I'm learning a lot about dinosaurs. More than I've ever learned in my lifetime so far. In fact, I'm learning a lot about everything! It really is fun! Creed's very fortunate to have five living grandmothers. He helped me pick out Mother's Day cards and for the first time was able to sign his own name, very endearing. The way we've been practicing is I write in a yellow highlighter and he traces the best he can. (a trick I learned from Pintrest) Practice makes progress!

 Signing Mother's Day cards.

 My ham!

Creed and I went to see great-grandma over the past weekend and visited a graveyard. I was trying to explain what was going on to the best of my ability in terms a three-year-old child would understand. "This is where grandpa is," I said, "that's daddy's daddy and this is your uncle. They already went to see Jesus. When they died, they were buried like all the people here. When you die you get buried in the ground and when Jesus comes back you come back up." I showed him great-great-great grandma and grandpa's burial as well. He stayed busy helping us clean around the gravestones, getting rid of dated flowers and replacing them. He noticed all the other vases that didn't have flowers. I told him sometimes they don't have flowers. I kept thinking of part of an old poem, "Do not stand at my grave and weep, I am not there, I do not sleep." He didn't question any of it and a couple of days later when we were walking out of Chic-Fil-A he ran around the vehicle after I told him specifically to stay with me. We've got rules about always holding mama and daddy's hand when in the parking lot and crossing streets. I panicked yelling for him and when he came back I said you're not supposed to go around there. You're so little cars might not see you and you'd get squished like a bug. You could get hurt and have to go to the hospital. You could die. "And then you'd put me in the ground," he said. (My heart hurt a little with that statement) "Yes," I said. "I don't want to go in the ground," he said. "I don't want you to go in the ground either honey! I love you!" I said. Point very well received.

Overcoming distractions and finding a nest full of eggs

C is for cat. Practicing upper and lowercase c was more productive today. It's interesting how a task can be dragged out to last a couple of hours, however when attention is held, the very same task can be completed in under 10 minutes. I'll have to admit that I get easily distracted. This is one trait I wish Creed hadn't have inherited. After zipping through c, we practiced writing four and five and then headed outdoors to pick more blackberries. Creed says we're going to make blackberry jam. First we picked the ones within the fence and then headed outside the gates to get the ones that were poking through to the other side. We stopped to break a small oak branch full of leaves for the first caterpillar of the season. 

Northern Mockingbird nest

On the way back I noticed a nest. I called Creed over to look at our newest discovery. A beautiful twig nest full of bluish-green brown speckled eggs. What a treasure! I wondered what kind of bird laid those eggs. Then as I went back to take a photo, I caught a glimpse of mama bird sitting on the nest. As soon as she heard me she flew away (unlike their territorial nature so I've read) and I noticed how the branches swayed in the gentle breeze. What a wonderful serene setting for soon-to-be baby birds. From what I can tell our fine feathered female friend is a Northern Mockingbird, which I found on the "Nifty-Fifty for Louisiana." The Northern Mockingbird is a conspicuous, slender gray and white bird. This bird may sing day or night and continues to make new songs as they grow older. This well-known vocalist may know as many as 200 different songs and can imitate the sounds of many other birds as well as man-made noises. The mockingbird nest is a bulky cup of twigs and stems lined with leaves, bark, grasses and sometimes trash, usually placed three-ten feet high in a tree or thicket. The eggs usually number three-five and are bluish or greenish with marking of brown or reddish. The young hatch at about 13 days and leave the nest in 12 days, but continue to associate with the adults for some time. At the beginning of spring I put out a bunch of fuzzy yarn strings in a net pouch to encourage the birds to use them in their nests, so far no takers. There's a second bird nest being built in the pear tree behind our house. Soon we'll hear the baby cheeps. How exciting!! There's so much to learn in our own backyard. For more about the "Nifty-Fifty for Louisiana" and Northern Mockingbird look here: http://www.birdzilla.com/nifty-fifty/louisiana.html.

 

Tonight will be another adventure with "Jesse Bear What Will You Wear?" by Nancy White Carlstrom, the first book on the reading list from "Before Five in a Row," by Jane Claire Lambert. Jesse Bear enjoys the thought of stars overhead and moonlight streaming through his window, so tonight we'll pull out the telescope we've been saving for such a special occasion and explore the nighttime sky.

Why Oh Why Are Deserts Dry?

We started the day outside working on upper and lowercase b, after which Creed played in the rocks. He spent a looooooong time talking about writing the letter b, instead of doing much work this morning. So, we took a break, ate some snacks and had art class. I watched as Creed told me a story while painting a picture. With every color and every brush stroke, his imagination let loose - beautiful arches of rainbows and dark rain clouds with rain drops. Near the bottom he painted a lion with one leg and a tail that beat the rainbow. It all made perfect sense to him and as he described it, it made perfectly perfect sense to me as well. It was nice to relax and listen before a quick bath, promised by a longer bath later this evening, where we washed off the ruckus from the rock bin, before nap time.

Talking about writing the letter b.

One of the books we read gave us much pleasure in learning, "Why Oh Why Are Deserts Dry?" by Tish Rabe, one from the series The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library, that I didn't know existed until this afternoon. I've always known "Cat in the Hat," and the silliness that ensues, but really delighted in this edition. We learned that a mesquite tree has roots that reach 40 feet down for water, how plants, insects and animals survive in the desert. One of the most interesting facts was about the crowned sandgrouse. This bird flies miles and miles to find water. He soaks his feathers until they are wet and his babies, upon return, drink from his feathers, which dry soon and then he must take to the sky to find water again. We learned how sand dunes were made and the crescent shapes they leave in the sand. Did you know that in the Mojave Desert, there are lilies, primroses, and sunflowers? We also read of mirages and oasis'. An interesting fact is that not all deserts are hot! You'll find ice and snow in the Gobi desert. Where there's also a Bactrain camel with two humps, which store fat, not water. They can drink 30 gallons of water and then go an entire week before drinking again. The longer they go without eating or drinking the smaller the humps get. Surprisingly Antarctica is the largest desert of all. For anything and everything Seuss visit www.seussville.com. It's amazing what's available there from books, videos, games & activities, to everything you've ever wanted to know about Dr. Seuss, plus a link for parents and educators and of course, everything imaginable Seuss paraphernalia. I've been reading so many Dr. Seuss books, I'm thinking in rhymes.

We resumed the upper and lowercase b in the afternoon, taking turns making b's, also going on to the number 4, shapes, sequence recognition and finally games. Tic, Tac, Toe isn't as much fun, turns out, when you can't tell the other person where you plant their target! It's all about learning the game, and mostly having fun.

We drove the tractor around for a while before retiring to pick some plump blackberries. Creed's getting a hand at the wheel and quickly learning to maneuver left to right. While we picked berries, I asked him if he remembered why we didn't pick all the berries and he said, "Because we leave some for the birds." "That's right," I agreed. "Do you know who takes care of the birds" I asked. "God," he replied. "Yes," I said, "God loves the birds so much he makes sure they're taken care of. Can you imagine how much he must love us, if he takes care of the birds so well!" "God also told the people not to pick all the grapes, vegetables and grain, so people visiting would have something to eat when passing through. That's how God takes care of us," I added. We walked along the path moving to another blackberry bush. "It's getting dark," I said. "Let's get some of these berries and get in before the bugs start biting." "Do you know what kind of animals are out at night," I asked. "Nocturnal," Creed answered. "Can you tell me some nocturnal animals," I asked. At this point he started naming the ones listed in the Dr. Seuss book we had read earlier, owls, foxes, bats, coyote, rabbits, mice, deer and kangaroo rat. Just when I'm not quite sure he's really listening he parrots something back that stumps me again! I love it.

First caterpillar of the season.

We came back inside and enjoyed some blackberry and chocolate chip muffins we had made last night from the berries we picked yesterday, before the long promised bath. He wanted to hold the caterpillar we had found before reading our night time stories. And so begins another life cycle of a butterfly or moth. We so enjoyed them last year. We've never seen the eggs or larva, but have found plenty of caterpillars. 

The last BSF (Bibles Study Fellowship) meeting we had the speaker told us how disciples are learners and how we are to disciple others. I looked up the definition and behind a personal follower of Jesus, the second meaning said a follower or student of a teacher, leader or philosopher. Creed's a great imitator, especially things I don't realize he's taking in, which is everything! He looked at me one day and said, "Mama I crack you up!" and started laughing. I say that a lot to him. Every day now I think, have I talked to him about Jesus today? I'm very aware of getting the word into his heart, while we walk by the way, sit in the house and lie down at night. If this is all I ever do, it would be a life well lived. Deuteronomy 6:5-9

Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? and Spring/Gardening Reading List

"Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?" by Nancy White Carlstrom, marks day one of return to Itty Bitty Homeschool from Spring Break. First on the reading list from "Before Five in a Row" by Jane Claire Lambert, "Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear," the first of Carlstrom's Jesse Bear books, rhymes along from page to page describing Jesse's day to day activities, especially what he will wear. 

"Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?" by Nancy White Carlstrom,
illustrates loving relationships within the family dynamic.

Before Five in a Row is a treasury of creative ideas designed to help gently, consistently prepare children for the life-long adventure of learning. We're following this "non-curriculum" this summer, plus supplementing additional learning activities, while I marinate on continuing with Five in a Row or move into another direction altogether. The book is devided into two parts. The first section contains hundreds of simple ideas and activities developed around 24 books. Activities are built around each selection, designed to cultivate intimacy with your child while building vital learning-readiness skills. The second section is a rich resource, filled with specific ideas designed to help prepare children for learning through simple, everyday activities. You'll find ideas for bath-time, bed-time, in the kitchen, at the grocery store, etc., basically everyday life. The way it works is you read the same book for five days in a row selecting an activity for each day such as Language Arts, Loving Relationships, Colors, Patterns, and Combinations, Fine Arts, Literature, Poetry, Science and so much more. For additional information visit www.fiveinarow.com. 

Homeschooling year around fits in our family like a long lost relative. I put a lot of thought and planning into it while we had this last break. We're following the religious calendar, so for us it looks like this: off March and April for Lent and Easter "spring break," off two weeks in June for "summer break," and starting the first Friday before Thanksgiving off until January first, which is observes Thanksgiving and the birth of our Savior, "winter break." I was happily surprised that it equals the 180 days, that aligns and is required for public school. While we were off for Lent and Easter, we still had fun learning all about Spring, planting the garden and writing the alphabet.  

So we've read and we've read a lot during break. Addition to the Bible and Creed's reading time, Mama read, "Balancing It All," by Candace Cameron Bure, "Harvest for Hope, A Guide to Mindful Eating" by Jane Goodall, "Growing up Duggar" by Jill, Jinger, Jessa and Janna Duggar, and "The Strong Willed Child," by Dr. James Dobson, plus a couple of homeschool magazines (more on that later). Interesting, cleaver, informative and eye-opening, these books were so much fun to read. Of the books Creed and I read over the break I compiled the best into a Spring/Garden reading list appropriate for three-years-of-age and older.

Itty Bitty Homeschool Spring/Garden Reading List

It's Spring by Samantha Berger and Pamela Chanko

Quiet Bunny by Lisa McCue

The Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt 

Arty Facts, Plants and Art Activities by Crabtree Publishing

The Curious Garden by Peter Brown

A Green, Green Garden by Mercer Mayer

Flip, Float, Fly, Seeds on the Move by JoAnn Early Macken

Let it Rain by Maryann Cocca-Leffler

Jo MacDonald Had a Garden by Mary Quattlebaum

Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

What Makes a Rainbow by Betty Ann Schwartz

And the Good Brown Earth by Kathy Henderson

How a Seed Grows by Hdene J. Jordan

The Ugly Vegetables by Grace Lin

Dirt, the Scoop on Soil by Natalie M. Rosinsky

It's Moving Day by Pamela Hickman

Tillie Lays an Egg by Terry Golson

Farming by Gail Gibbons

An Edible Alphabet 26 Reasons to Love the Farm by Carol Watterson