Friday Fun

DRILL BABY DRILL:The kids continue to make baby steps forward in their art/science/expo projects. Today, after two MORE stores/stops, we found a mini Yoshi that could be modified to work to ride in the Mecha Yoshi.

This evening, CJ started marking where the rivets (well brads, really) will be placed. Naturally, this involved a discussion about what rivets are and when/why they're used.

Once the marks had been made, it was time for a power tool! CJ (with Christian's help) drilled the holes! He was very careful and stayed focused (thank goodness).

WITH THE NAKED EYE: The triops continues to grow. Now, he can be spotted from a couple feet away darting 'round his/her/its tank. Can you find it? It seems to like the bottom of the tank best. Maybe it's feeding down there? I think it looks a bit like a helicopter.

OVERHEARD: Playing with LEGO figurines. CJ's LEGO man said to Annabelle's character, "Wow, you've really let yourself go..." Later, the figurines were discussing how to get a flat belly.
ROOTS: This morning our literature (and social studies, in a way) centered on reading "The Origin of Life on Earth - An African Creation Myth."

Heck, the title alone was enough to prompt a 15 minute discussion about creation stories and from whence humans came. I reminded the kids of the NOVA shows we watched about Lucy. And we sang a bit of "My Brother the Ape" by They Might Be Giants. I also recounted the Garden of Eden creation story. And there was a nice forward in the book by author David A. Anderson explaining that early people "dreamed and the people imagined and they brought forth answers to some of the things that worried them."

The myth, of the Yoruba, started in the heavens with the all powerful Olorun and his helpers, orishas. One of the orishas, Obatala, aspired to do more, and eventually he was permitted to found Earth, where he formed humanoids in his own image from mud. FYI, he formed many, not just two, and some of the ones he formed were made after a night of drinking fermented palm juice and that, my friends, is how Obatala became the guardian of people with handicaps.

After we finished the book, the kids took an Accelerated Reader quiz on it.

WE HEART HART: Today we had the most wonderful math session thanks (again) to math whiz Vi Hart. (A great interview with Hart appeared in the New York times on Jan. 18, in which she describes herself as "a full-time recreational mathemusician.")

Today, before we watched one of her latest videos, I had the kids watch me make them each a couple of loops - one was a regular, circular one, the other was a möbius strip. We were ready to watch the story of Wind and Mr. Ug.

The kids were absolutely rapt throughout the video, wondering why it was Wind never met up with her neighbor, Mr. Ug. And when the video ended in a challenge, they were up to it. ... Not only that, they wanted to watch the whole thing again, through new eyes, and they spotted all sorts of clues they hadn't picked up the first time through.

It was awesome.

VGL? OMG!: I reminded the kids that tomorrow night is the "Video Games Live" concert. "OMG!!" Annabelle exclaimed, jumping up and down.

I feel the same way. :) Can't wait!