Magnetism

ATTRACTIVE: Yesterday at Value Village, I spied a great "Project Kit for Kids Magnetic Kit" for just $1.99. I gave it a quick once over and thought it looked intact, so we bought it, of course. CJ asks about magnets on a rather regular basis.

This morning, we started on Page 1 of the kit's accompanying book, with "What are magnets?" After getting that question answered, we learned about some common products that use magnets (speakers, motors, computer disks and recording tapes). Then, we were ready for our first experiment.

I had the kids draw a "T" graph on a piece of paper, write "magnetic" at the very top, and "yes" and "no" atop the T's two columns. We gathered a few objects from the kit and our junk drawer, and the kids experimented with what was and wasn't magnetic. I was happy to hear the kids spontaneously predicting what would and would not be attracted to their magnets. They recorded their results on the T chart. During this experiment (for instance, when trying to pick up a penny) they learned that not all metals are attracted to a magnet.

We also experimented a bit with magnetic force. The magnets the kids were using were decent sized and had a pretty good pull. I asked them to get their magnet as close to a paperclip as possible - close enough to feel the pull, but try not to have the magnet suck up the clip. They had loads of fun with that. CJ figured out that if he used both hands, he could control the situation better.Our next experiment involved creating a magnetic chain. I asked the kids to each line up four paperclips on the countertop, end to end, making sure they were touching one another. I asked them if they thought their magnet would pick up one, two, three or all four of them. They made their guesses and then we gave it a go. They were each able to make a three paperclip chain work. Our last experiment of the day was making a magnetic sculpture. Its base was a magnet, on it was a bolt, and then the kids stuck all the paperclips they had onto the bolt. We called it quits at that point, though the kids were begging to continue. I think it's good to leave them wanting more. ;)

SAY WHAT?!: Around midday we made a Fred Meyer run for supplies for our lil Civil War/Apple Cup football party tomorrow. Rick went with the kids and me.

When we got to the dairy section, CJ spied a fellow shopper and struck up a conversation. "Excuse me, Old Man," Rick and I thought we heard him say.

CRINGE! CRINGE!! That's right, double cringe, because it's not too cool to call someone old, and this old man happened to be an old woman. :0 But the horse was out of the barn, and so we stood there wondering where this was going. CJ had honed in on a full color advertisement the shopper had draped across her cart. "What is that?" CJ asked pointing to one photo.

The Old "Man" actually seemed happy to have the engagement and responded, "It's an avocado."

CJ asked, "That's a seed in the middle, right?"

The shopper smiled and said, "Yes it is. You're very smart."

CJ then shared, "We tried to grow one from the seed and it didn't work."

At that the Old "Man" smiled warmly and actually thanked CJ for stopping to talk to her.

Meanwhile, Rick and I were turning purple. As soon as we could, we pulled over to the deserted dried beans aisle and I talked to CJ about his conversation. I started with, "There's nothing wrong with asking a stranger a question, but pretty much no one likes to be called 'old', so don't do that, OK?" He got it. Then I started in on the other matter. I said, "And you said, excuse me MAN and ..." at that point CJ cut me off.

"I said 'Excuse me old ma'am," he corrected. At that I started laughing. Here Rick and I had been mortified thinking CJ had called her a him, and instead, he'd actually used the very polite 'ma'am.' Too funny. We ran into the Old Ma'am later in the store and she thanked CJ again for talking to her. Go figure. :)

WHAT CHARACTERS: Before we were officially on the MPA clock (ha ha) the kids watched an "On Demand" version of Snow White this morning. It was about an hour long, definitely not the Disney version, and pretty horrible, IMHO.

However, we were able to salvage it as a teachable moment. Because it was so different from the Disney version that is so pervasive (the gold standard of Snow White, if you will), we were able to talk about plot differences. I also focused on how the characters were different. The most notable difference was the seven dwarves. In the story we watched today, they were all named Joe and all quite spunky (no Sleepy or Dopey here).

From there, we hopped onto BrainPop Jr., where we found a video in their "reading and writing' section about characters. The kids watched it (twice), and afterward we did the related activity, which was creating a couple of trading cards of a character. On the front, the kids had to draw the characters' pictures, on the reverse they listed several characteristics (adjectives) about each character. CJ's cards were Mario and ??? (apparently a mystery man, whom he described as tuff, buff, and ruff). Annabelle designed cards for Dino Dude (smart, armord, good, preistoric, tail) and Dora (adventurous, educational, Spanish, smart, young).

FLATLANDS: This afternoon, I told Christian I wanted to go on a (relatively) long, flat run. So, we went for a nice run down to the Port's Terminal 91.

It wasn't particularly warm, but it was sunny and not windy, so we couldn't complain. There wasn't much beach, either, but the kids made the most of what was there.

PARTING PICTURE: Annabelle presented this acrostic poem to me last night, using M-O-M as the prompts.


I didn't have the heart to tell her "awesome" doesn't start with an O. ;)

I swear, what I love about it most is that she pictured us at "Value Villige." I'm glad she sees shopping there as big positive. I think that means I'm doing something right.:)

Just Checking

DOT TO DOT: This morning we went to Group Health, where Annabelle had a date with a doctor. Specifically, she was there to see dermatologist Virginia Sybert, MD.

You see, a few weeks ago, the Mole Fairy apparently flew over our house and sprinkled some tiny brown dots here and there over Annabelle. Seriously, it was like a dozen of 'em appeared overnight. And we figure she was sleeping on her right side when the Mole Fairy came, because all the moles are on her left side. :) I told Annabelle that the doctor would just check her cute polka dots, tell us everything was fine and send us home. I promised both kids there'd be no shots WHATSOEVER.

My spiel got undermined as soon as we were led back into the exam room area. The medical assistant asked Annabelle to hop up on a scale and right above the scale was a BIG POSTER that said FLU SHOTS. CJ practically screamed, "Flu shots?!?!!" thinking they'd been had.

The medical assistant and I both started assuring the kids that there would be no shots today. Crisis averted.

In the exam room Bee got to don a cute little tiger gown. We didn't have to wait long before Dr. Sybert popped in. She was really great - super friendly and not the least bit frightening.
Frankly, after reading her resume online this morning, I felt rather honored to have 10 minutes of her time. Turns out she's only at Group Health a couple days a week; the rest of the time she's working in the Medical Genetics division at UW Department of Medicine where she pursues
two major areas of research - a long-term study of the Turner syndrome and a study in the area of inherited disorders of the skin. She's earned a boat load of awards.

We learned lots about moles, including that you are born already having every mole you're ever going to get. They just erupt at different times and go through a life cyle of sorts (my words, not the Dr's).

Soon enough we were on our happy way. We were winding our way through the labyrinthine hallways and were just six steps from the exit to the lobby when a couple of new to us medical assistants came up behind us from another hallway. "We're not here to deal with you," CJ told them rather bluntly. The workers and I all busted out laughing, hard. I explained to them that CJ was just sure someone, somewhere was going to try to give him a shot today, and they were viewed as a threat. I could still hear them laughing as we got on the elevator.


TOON TIME: Back at the 'campus' we decided to check in with our favorite cartooning instructor, Bruce Blitz. We found a lesson on turning a letter S into Jolly Ol' St. Nick.


The kids (uncharacteristically) struggled a bit with it right out of the gate. They were having a hard time getting Santa's left eye right in the top half of the S (the lower half of the S forms his nose). After a couple of false starts, they got on track.
In the end, they were both happy with their final creations. Unprompted, CJ expressed how happy he is that he's becoming an accomplished cartoonist. Annabelle spent several extra minutes adding embellishments around her Santa's face. CAD: After the graphite to paper art session, the kids were each itching to do some computer aided design. They love using the Sonic Character Creator, which gives them hundreds of options of colors, body parts and accessories. CJ did an overhaul of a character he'd previously created. Meet ... "It's a remodel of my old one (Mecha Man). He looks more fierce and tougher. He's running around doing fatalities. Be careful! He's going to beat up Sonic. He hates critters but likes robots and his masters, Doctor Robotnic or Doctor Eggman. I made him fierce as I could. "

And now, Annabelle's ...

"This is Spike Shoes. He is a dinosaur, if you can see his dino tail. I know he's kind of fierce because he's the friend of Mecha Man. I know normal dinosaurs don't have shoes and their heads aren't really round and bald like that. P.S. They're kind of scaly, which mine is not."

OVERHEARD: Today as we were driving over the Ballard Bridge, Annabelle was peppering CJ with questions, like "What's your favorite color?" and "What's your favorite activity?"

CJ answered her inquiries, but finally asked a question himself. "Why are you asking me all these questions?" he said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Because I'm gathering data on you," responded Annabelle, as she jotted all the answers down in her notebook. When she was through, she presented CJ with his "data card." :)

Lost in Space

Good cosmodog :)

FOUR LEGGED ASTRONAUTS: This morning we read "Hedgie Blasts Off," which Christian scored at Goodwill for 99 cents a few days ago. The book is about a hedgehog who works maintenance at Star Lab where, through a series of far fetched events, he is promoted to astronaut. Hedgie rockets to a faraway planet where space tourists have accidentally plugged up a showy volcano by throwing coins into it.

Faced with fixing it, Hedgie remembers something he'd seen a professor do involving a cork and a bottle and figures he could become a hedgehog cork, cause the volcano to build up pressure and help the volcano blow the coins out. (FYI Hedgie appears in a number of books by author/illustrator Jan Brett.)

When we finished to book we talked about the fact that it was a work of fiction. However, I let the kids know that non-human animals have, indeed, rocketed into space, starting with Laika.

We moved from the couch to the computer, where I had several Web pages cued up all about Laika, the canine astronaut who was launched into orbit on Nov. 3, 1957.

After reading up on Laika, we talked about the differences between fiction (Hedgie) and fact (Laika) - although I pointed out that some of the Laika 'facts' from the U.S.S.R. were fiction, as was often the case during the space race.

I then gave the kids the choice between writing about Laika's story or the Hedgehog book. They both chose Laika.

CJ wrote, "There is a dog called Laika. She went into space. She survived for four days. Russia lied that Laika survived (longer)."

Annabelle wrote, "Laika is a dog. Poor Laika lived only 4 days (in space). Laika was an astronaut. Laika had to be cage trained."

BALANCING ACT: The kids started a new science unit this afternoon - it's about balance and motion. They spent most of their hour experimenting with a a cardstock crawdad and two clothespins. The trick was to try to get the crawdad to balance on your finger on his side, his tail, his nose, etc., using the clothespins as counterweights. After class, we headed to the library, where the kids hung out with some classmates and played with the PhotoBooth feature on the iMacs again.

Today, CJ was creating characters from his face. Once when I walked by it looked like he was in a windtunnel. He was talking in a low/foreboding voice, saying something about being the master.
I asked him what his character's name was and he said "God of Death."

That's about as foreboding as one can get, I'd suppose ...

THE COUNTDOWN'S ON: Tonight after dinner, CJ reminded me it was time for them to start opening up the little windows on the chocolate advent/countdown to Christmas calendars. Man, December has come quickly this year.

I LEAVE YOU WITH THIS: I can't even remember how I stumbled across this at about 6 this morning, but boy did it capture my attention. It's a fascinating-sometimes mortifying-spot on verbal 'essay' delivered by Sir Ken Robinson, a world-renowned education and creativity expert to the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce about the current educational paradigm - and what's so woeful about it.

Muddling Through

IT'S A SIGN: "What if bliss didn't exist?" CJ asked me this morning, while mashing buttons on a video game controller. I told him that if there was no bliss, it would be a bummer, since bliss means happiness.

CJ reminded me that someone wrote "Follow your bliss" on a stop sign near our home. "That is not cool," he said of the grafitti, but immediatelly followed that though with, "but it's kind of cool for someone who is really sad." I thought that was pretty thoughtful of him.

A couple seconds later he added, "Mommy I want you to follow your own bliss."

IN REVIEW: Last night, much to CJ and Annabelle's delight, we scored a copy of "Sonic Colors" from a local Redbox. They spent time playing it last night and this morning.

I thought we could exploit their infatuation with it as today's writing exercise. I hopped to Scholastic.com's educators' pages for some ideas. There, I found a good article about "Exploring the Genre of Reviews". I also decided to modify one of their reproducibles, a movie review chart (PDF).

So, the kids and I talked a bit about elements of a review - that they'd need to talk about the characters, the setting and the game's plot. Here's what they came up with in their reviews of "Sonic Colors"

"Sonic, Tails, Dr. Robotnic, Wisps are the characters in Sonic Colors. (There are) five planets with different einvirmints, inclueding Dr. Robotnic's ship to make six. Dr. Robotnik snatched Wisps from their environmet! Sonic zooms through 5 worlds to save them!"

ET PHONE HOME?: I see that NASA has an announcement to make that will impact the search for extraterrestrial life-but they're keeping it under their space helmets until Thursday, at a 11 a.m. PST press conference.

They have said that at the presser they will announce "an astrobiology finding that will impact the search for evidence of extraterrestrial life."

Can't wait to hear what they have to say, and I can't help but wonder if it has to do with recent discoveries by Cassini in the vicinity of Saturn.

PICTURE WIZARDY: Part of the kids' music homework involved drawing a picture representing their favorite part of "Morgan's Greatest Spell," a story Miss Nancy read them a couple of weeks ago.

I'd never heard of the story, and couldn't find a version online. The kids recalled some of the details. Apparently the wizard is 100 years old and so he's very tired and falls asleep all the time. That was about the only detail the kids could remember. Neither could remember what Morgan's greatest spell was.

CJ chose to draw the evil wizard. He was VERY unhappy with the way its hands turned out - specifically the fingers on the wizard's right hand. They were too crookedy for CJ's tastes. I pointed out to CJ that an evil wizard's hands very well could be gnarled and pointy looking. That made him feel much better. :)
CJ pointed out to me that when drawing the three skulls on the magician's cape, he chose to draw "toast" first and then turn the toast into skulls. I thought that was pretty clever of him!

Annabelle drew a picture of the story's hero, Morgan.
HIGH TEA: This afternoon's Musikgarten session was their last day on the British Isles unit. To celebrate, teacher Nancy put on a British tea party for the kids.There were British crackers and shortbread, a couple of kinds of British tea, and fancy British cups and saucers.

CJ stuck to water (of course), but Annabelle tried some Earl Grey. With two cubes of sugar.
Even though it made the cups feel slippery, Annabelle insisted on wearing fancy gloves while drinking her tea.
BOOKWORM: Yesterday while Bee was in ballet, we went to the library and got a bag full of books. Today, she spent a fair amount of time sitting on a couch cushion, making her way through the bag.
Truth be told, as she pulled books out, a couple of times my first inclination was to tell her, "Stop!!" as I had certain times or things in mind for some of the books. But I immediately thought better of putting the kibosh on her reading. After all, books are for reading. And re-reading.

Kings for a Day

HOT DOG: We're wieners! I mean winners! Back on November 19th, our field trip was running all over Seattle Center, toting a cardboard Elvis and taking 22 different photos as part of the Seattle Center's Elvis Returns Photo Scavenger Hunt contest. Today, via an email around midday, I found out that our hard work paid off! Woo hoo! Here's what it said:

Kristine,

Congratulations! Your family won the Elvis Returns Photo Scavenger Hunt, with a total of 450 points. It looked like you had a lot of fun exploring Seattle Center with Elvis.

We are going to issue a press release announcing the contest winner. Could you give us a couple quick sentences about your experience participating in the contest for us to include in the press release? Also, if the media wants to pick up a story on the contest, would you be willing to talk to the press?

As the winner of this contest, you will receive:

- A cardboard cutout of Elvis
- A DVD of It Happened at the World’s Fair
- Exclusive footage of Elvis during the filming of the movie, courtesy of Albert Fisher
- 2 cruise tickets to Tillicum Village with Argosy Cruises

To receive your prize, you must fill out and return the declaration of eligibility and release (attached in a Word document). Thanks so much for your time, and congratulations again!

I wrote back post haste, telling her, in the words of Elvis, "Thank you, thankyouverymuch." :)

We are so happy to hear we won the Elvis Returns Photo Scavenger Hunt! We undertook the challenge as a fun and educational experience, but winning is super cool! :)

Per your request, here are a couple of quick sentences about our participation:

We love Seattle Center and we love Elvis, so when I saw the Elvis Returns Photo Scavenger Hunt announced on Facebook, I knew our family had to enter!

Our family has been to Seattle Center too many times to count. From splashing in the fountains in summertime to seeing Santa at the Space Needle come winter, it's our favorite year-'round destination in Seattle. We thought we knew the campus well, but during the Elvis Returns Photo Scavenger Hunt, we discovered so many Seattle Center gems we had somehow missed in our many visits. I mean, who knew there is a section of the Berlin Wall in the food court?! And we were wowed by amazing pieces of artwork we'd breezed by so many times before.

While the scavenger hunt was fun, it was also a lot of work. Don't get me wrong, we love Elvis, but toting The King around for two hours, trying to keep him dry in a cold Seattle rain got to be a bit much! And let me tell you, having a life-sized Elvis in your group garners a lot attention. We got hundreds of stares and smiles, and fielded a few questions from curious strangers.

The King of Rock-n-Roll created quite a stir at EMP. When we arrived, a worker at the front desk called security to let them know "Elvis is in the building." And when we stood Elvis up at EMP's Sky Church, tourists asked if they could have their picture taken with The King.

CJ Kisky, 7, admits to being a little disappointed that our trip was all business on Elvis scavenger hunt day. "I thought it was great, but it would have been even more great if we could have played in the Fun Forest," he says of the experience.

Annabelle Kisky, 6, has no complaints. "I loved going up on stage with Elvis," she said of being photographed at the Mural Amphitheater.

The kids are very jazzed about having won the contest (winning = awesome!). And it was a good learning experience for them. Not only did they learn lots more about Seattle Center, but before we struck out for our photo shoot/ scavenger hunt, they helped assemble props (guitar, tambourine, Elvis costume) and helped me research and plot out a game plan to hit all 22 points on the 'to do' list. And the kids were real troupers as we trudged around Seattle Center getting all our shots. Go team!

I'll get together a photo album of all 22 shots and post a link. Stay tuned.

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK: We are slowly but surely trying to update the 100-plus years in our ol' schoolhouse. Unfortunately, our remodeling has not, to date, unearthed any gems worth $$$, but on Sunday, Christian did find some old insulation that was interesting. It was from June of 1942, at the height of WWII.

The old paper was nasty due to time, elements and rats (ewwwww), but before we threw it in the compost bin, we took a good look at it. I asked the kids what their 'take away' was from the newspaper. Each of them honed right in on "We're at war." That was true then - but it's also true now. I can't help but think that our nation has been at war for how many years now? First the mess in Iraq and now our war in Afghanistan? And how often is that on our front pages? Almost never.

Times change.

MR. PHOTOBOMB: Part of our edumacation here at MPA involves memes. While trying to take a photo of Annabelle demonstrating taking a math measurement (we're learning about meters and centimeters, can't you tell?), CJ kept freaking out in the background, so we had the opportunity to talk about photobombing. :)

Once he had a name to go with the 'crime', of course CJ thought it was HYSTERICAL. )

BFG: Last night the kids watched a video of Roald Dahl's "BFG," which is short for Big Friendly Giant. Today, I had them sit down at the table and I asked them to each choose three letters from the alphabet. CJ chose GSL. Annabelle chose ATE. I asked them if they could figure out why I asked them to choose the letters. After about 30 seconds Annabelle realized it was related to the BFG.

I asked the kids to create a character that used their letters in its name and to write a bit about that character. Annabelle wrote, "The ATE is tall becase lots of pepole streched him to be as big as the BFG. The ATF is a elafant."

Of GSL, CJ wrote, "Pes (an alien creature of his imaginaton) have put grmes (germs) on him. He is smley (smelly). He is the grmey smley lime."