Week Wrap Up - Yawn

How’s that for a title?  It really describes the week quite well.  I’ve been staying up past midnight each night, working on a big project I’ve got going on.   See this binder? (and there is another one just like it waiting for me).  Yeah… I’m setting up an online business database from scratch.   The coffee mug is just to give you an idea of how deep that binder is ….and it’s also what’s helping me stay awake these days, grins.

The Virginia Museum of Natural History is proposing to open a satellite museum in our area.  I was invited to be part of an educator’s forum to help shape what the new facility might offer.  This has been really exciting, and I’ve had the opportunity to meet some interesting folks.  The preliminary legwork is now complete, and we wait for the master plan to be presented in February 2015. 

Olivia had another great checkup with the orthodontist this week.  The orthodontist added rubber bands to the braces, which adds a whole new element to the braces.

We’re participating in an online Flat Traveler project. The girls received their first “visitor" on Thursday, and we shipped out Travelers to 2 separate families in Texas.

Now on to our academics.

LLATL:  Lindsey has been learning about journaling, and writing personal letters.  She was directed to make a list of family members who would enjoy receiving a letter, and then to pick one to write to.  After a bit of thought she noted that “They would all like to get a letter from me…but I think Grandma NEEDS a letter.”   (Grandma has Alzheimer’s and is very lost in her own world, so it was interesting to see Lindsey's perspective.”

Lindsey is currently reading a book about Orville & Wilbur Wright, so she’s been making paper airplanes in her spare time.  Olivia is completing a book study on The Bronze Bow, by Elizabeth George Spear, and is really enjoying this book. 

History:  We completed our Native American Unit Study this week.  The girls have been so disheartened to read about the Trail of Tears, Wounded Knee and the Long Walk.  They will be the two you hear cheering for the Indians in every western from here on out.

Science:  We began learning about atoms, molecules and compounds.   Lindsey was thrilled that we finally got to make something explode.  Well, it was more like an eruption, but still she was happy with the results.

We also worked on building some compound models.

Art & Poetry:   Emily Dickinson was out poet of the week.   The girls enjoyed her writing style.   They were sad that she became such a recluse and died relatively young (at 55).   Gustave Courbet is our artist of the week, again, absolutely NOTHING at the library on him, sigh.  Linking up with the Weekly Wrap Up and Collage Friday.