Catholic Schoolhouse Tour 1: Week 11
Yay! You’re back for more! I’ll go ahead and warn you- you may want sandwiches after reading this week’s post.
Religion
- Pull out your Saint Funpack about Mother Rose Duchesne. Complete the activities for Week 11.
- Mother Rose Duchesne once said, “You may dazzle the mind with a thousand brilliant discoveries of natural science: you may open new worlds of knowledge which were never dreamed of before; yet, if you have not developed in the soul of the pupil strong habits of virtue which will sustain her in the struggle of life, you have not educated her, but only put her in the hand of a powerful instrument of self-destruction.” Use this quote as a discussion topic with your older students (or with other Moms!). How can knowledge be “a powerful instrument of self-destruction”? What virtues do we need to begin developing as young students?
Math
- Did you measure the perimeters around rectangular objects in your house last week? (Bookshelves, doors, windows, desks, tables, etc.?) Use your measurements and calculate the area of each this week!
- Measure your lunch this week! Do you eat sandwiches? Measure the lunch meat slices, cheese and bread. Calculate the areas- then add them all up. How much area was in your sandwich? (Make your students get the right answer before they can eat!) Use this printable to make it easy:
Language Arts
- Teach all the conjunctions to your older students (Coordinating conjunctions, subordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions). Teach just the coordinating conjunctions to your younger students. Use the Acronym “FANBOYS” to help them remember seven of the conjunctions: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So.
- Listen to Schoolhouse Rock’s Conjunction Junction (one of their more famous ones!)
- Here’s a fun group activity for conjunctions: Give each student a sign (or sheet of paper) with a conjunction written on it. Then write two words, phrases, or clauses on the board, with a gap where a conjunction belongs. Have students take turns standing in the gap holding their conjunction sign. Then have your other students read the sentence, or phrase aloud. Switch out the conjunctions and see how it changes the meaning of the sentence! (Peanut butter AND jelly, Peanut butter OR jelly- which sandwich would you want? I ate a sandwich AND lunch. I ate a sandwich FOR lunch. etc. They don’t all have to be about sandwiches.)
Music
- Beethoven’s 5th Symphony is played by an Orchestra. Teach your students about an Orchestra this week. Show them pictures of the instruments in an orchestra. Check out this cool website that has little sound clips and games of the different parts of the Orchestra. Which section would your students want to play in, if they could play an instrument? Strings? Woodwinds? I think all children are born with knowledge of percussion!
History
- Abraham Lincoln has many awesome quotes, but one I love in particular is this one: “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.” Have your younger students learn this quote using the handwriting practice printable. Discuss this with your older students. Do we often ask God to join our ‘side’ of issues/wants/desires instead of discerning what God’s side is, and joining Him? Do you think Abraham Lincoln was on God’s side? What evidence do you have from the Catechism or the Bible to support your opinion?
Abraham Lincoln quote handwriting practice-Printable
- There is so much to learn about the Civil War, there’s no way to see it all in one week. However, if you want to choose an area to focus on, check out this site, which has lesson plans for teaching different levels of students about the Civil War. This lesson on the causes of the Civil War could be good for a group activity. I also liked this one on character traits. Use Abraham Lincoln for your boys and Clara Barton for your girls as your examples. (I have not read every activity on this site, so I can’t vouch for all of them. Please read through a lesson and decide if it is appropriate for your family before using it).
- If you live in the eastern part of the US, take a field trip to one of the famous Civil War Forts. National Geographic lists 10 of the best ones to visit. I know visiting the sites where the action happened really makes history come alive for young students. Sometimes there are even people dressed up in the civil war uniforms, or period clothing. Check out the National Geographic Top 10 Civil War sites to visit.
- The Little House on the Prairie stories by Laura Ingalls Wilder take place on the prairie, with a family farming their land out west. These books are great for your students who are into reading chapter books on their own, or you can read them out loud to your younger students. They can be very eye-opening to our younger generation. I remember one part where Pa saved up all year to buy a pair of boots, only to give that money away to their church for a new steeple instead. People lived more simply and only had what they absolutely needed.
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- If your kids aren’t ready for the books, or you are just looking for something wholesome for your kids to watch, you could also consider watching the Little House on the Prairie movie and episodes.
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- Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. Look up a way to volunteer with the American Red Cross in your community. If you call your local office, you may even be able to find a speaker to come to your program meeting and talk about the Red Cross’s history and what they do in today’s world to help others.
- There is a great “Childhood of Famous Americans” book on Clara Barton: Clara Barton and the Founding of the American Red Cross. She is such an inspirational historical figure. You could even use this book as your reference if you choose to do the Civil War Character traits activity I mentioned above.
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Geography
- Check out the New England States Lapbook Part 2!
- Did you know there is a Sequence game that uses States and Capitals? If your kids love board games, this is a great way to learn while playing! Even my little one who doesn’t read, is able to play by matching the colors and shapes of the states.
Art
- Did you make some paper quilt squares last week? Make some more this week! Save this activity for those dreaded moments when you hear “I’m bored!” or “can I watch a cartoon?” While you’re at it, put on some Beethoven in the background while your students cut and glue their squares and triangles.
- It’s never too late to get the CSH Quilting book and start trying to make your own quilt blocks!
- Field Trip! Search for a local quilt exhibit or quilt show (I just googled my city and ‘quilt show’. Fall is a common time for quilt shows. If you really can’t find one nearby in the next few months, go to a local quilt fabric store and look at their displays!
Science
- This week students learn that wind is created when air from high-pressure areas moves toward low-pressure areas. The experiment in the science book is really cool this week, where you create your own front and see the wind you make using a candle and smoke. If you want to do a simpler wind experiment at home try this one: Cut a spiral out of cardstock. Use some thin thread or floss to hang the spiral from the center. (I tied a knot in the string and used a push pin to poke a hole in my spiral to thread the string through) Take an incandescent light bulb lamp and bend it such that the light bulb points upwards. Hold your spiral paper by the string, and watch it spin! (Note: It’s not a whirlwind kind of spin, more a slow and steady spin) The light bulb will heat the air which creates a higher pressure zone. The warmer air in the high-pressure area will move up and out towards the lower pressure (cooler air) of your room, and you can see the ‘wind’ move your spiral!
- Spiral Printable
I taped my string to my table so I could get a picture for you. If you have a hard time holding the spiral steady, set your lamp on the floor and tape your string to a table. Position the lamp underneath. (Make sure you don’t set this up and walk away. If the paper is touching your bulb, or if it gets hot enough over time, it could potentially be a fire hazard)
- If you are having a windy week, pull out your kites this week! It’s a great way to use weather to have fun! Make sure you watch the weather channel (or check the weather online). Show how a front is close by and causing the wind.
- You can also build easy windsocks this week. To make a simple and fun windsock craft, use a toilet paper tube and some yarn. Decorate your tube however you wish (we painted ours), then using a hole puncher, punch two holes in the top, and several holes all around the bottom. Tie a yarn across the top two holes, so you can hang your windsock. Tie yarn streamers from the bottom holes to watch the wind blow. Hang your windsock up on a tree or from your deck and watch the wind blow!
I wish it was windy when I took this picture- oh well! The yarn does fly when the wind blows.
Thanks for reading!
Did you miss week 10? Check it out here!
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