Quarter 1 Week 4

This week we learned a lot and had REALLLLLLY good school but one day I had a bad time and I almost lost going to Izzy's birthday party in the first five minutes of school. That would have been terrible. But I had one more chance and I didn't lose it so now I get to go to Izzy's birthday party on Thursday!

This week we learned about the Mayflower going from England because King James I didn't like them. They called themselves Pilgrims but James I and lots of people in England called them Seperataries ("No, Tehva! Separatists!" screams Tian). First they went to the place that they moved to from England, um, and they ice skated a lot there (Ed. Note: "It's called 'Holland'.") But then they left there and went to North America. Uncle Ian lives in North America! Auntie Abi lives there, too!

When the Pilgrims got to North America they met the Wampanoag Indians which was really good because the Indians helped them make food. And the Indians spoke English! Wow! And the Pilgrims were really happy because they got to capture their church (?) and do what they wanted and take all the stuff out, like candles and cigarettes and priests and probably bows and arrows. And the Strangers (the Pilgrims called themselves "Saints" and called the other people that came with them Strangers) too...they took them out of church, too.

Because we studied Indians helping the Pilgrims we tried some of the food they learned to make, like onions with corn powder, beans, and corn (Ed. note--It's called succotash) and corn bread. It was good and bad. Actually it was good.

My reading this week was REALLLLLLLLY good also. I read the book about Snuff the Snail. The first book was the easiest. Every week they get harder. I don't like that.

In math I learned to read words like "First, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth." It was easy. Then I got to play on Jump Start and so now I know how to turn a parade on.

It took me a lot of work to draw a picture. I drew William Bradford's wife. He is her wife. I mean, her husband. She fell overboard from the Mayflower and drowned. So I drew her when I had to pick someone to draw. She kind of has a beard. Heee heeee heeee.

I did a puppet show and Tian made it into a movie. I loved it when Tian said, "I want to eat the villagers' butts!" That was so funny. She also said, "Come out barf monsters" and, when Jebel attacked, she said, "You're on my team, stupid." We worked on the puppet show all week and we made a movie out of it, which is at the bottom of this.

That's the end because I have to go to Irish Dance Class.

Tehva

PS We also did slaves and indentured servants, which means that we each had a turn being a slave, but we didn't know how long we would be slave for and we had to do yucky jobs like clean the toilets and the cat pan. Then we also signed indentures and were indentured servants except then we knew how long we would serve and we got paid at the end of it for all the work we did. I liked being both because it was so fun to get bossed around. (**Ed. note--This of course is a complete surprise and no doubt you, too, are wondering if it is possible that Tehva really said that. Yes, she did.)

Quarter One Week Three

This week I helped to do the line experiment, which was our brain candy of the week. We used pipe cleaners, strips of paper, straws, and tape. We connected them all together. We had to suspend the line 18 inches off the floor without the line falling or breaking. Tian and I worked together and our line broke and fell.

We studied clouds in the water cycle in science. We made different types of clouds out of puff balls and then glued them onto paper, along with the clouds' names and what the clouds signify. For example, the wispy cirrus cloud, which is made of ice crystals, shows that the weather is about to change. We actually saw some cumulus clouds in the sky, and some cirrus clouds (Ed note: this is some sort of miracle for Oman since most days there is not a cloud in the sky!)

We learned about the triangle trade in history and Queen Nzinga of Ndomba in Africa. I colored her picture and made her skin dark brown. In one path of the triangle trade from Europe to Africa, they took utensils, pots and pans, and other European goods and traded the Africans for slaves. Then they traded the slaves in South America and the West Indies for sugar and molasses. They could use that to make rum.

We all went on a website called www.adaptedmind.com to practice math. Some of the problems were tough for me to solve. Others were nice and easy, such as multiplication and division.

I am reading the book Pocahontas and the Strangers. It has a sad part in the middle but it gets better when Pocahontas is released from prison by Governor Gates and ends up living with him and his two daughters, Mary and Betsy. It is a really good story, and it is also a really good biography!

It took me a few days to complete the puzzle of the week, which was one of the USA, and which included hidden fun facts about each of the fifty states along with a picture on each state. I found a camel on Arizona. Then I read the fun fact and found out that camels were once used for transportation around Arizona. I didn't know that!

Tian and I learned about compound subjects and predicates in language. Tian says, "Yuck! Language!"

In general, this week was interesting and fun, but tough.

By Cady

Here is a video that Tian made about Jebel Cat:

Quarter One Week Two

This week's school was sooooooo hard! (said in a VERY whiney voice)

I couldn't get my work done because I didn't know what to do even though I had a list in front of me for everyday.

The best part about this week was when I made my rag doll. My rag doll's name is A Boy...NO!...I mean, my rag doll's name is John. I made him by using fabric strips that I cut out of old shirts and pants. Of course, the best part about last year was when I made my mummy, so I think maybe I love to make things.

This week's Brain Candy was making balloon rockets. After we made them we had to shoot them along a string course from the landing for the third floor stairs to Mom and Dad's bedroom at the end of the hall. My lines on my balloon looked good but I didn't win. Actually we are not sure who won. I just think it wasn't me. Mine wouldn't go all the way down the hall.

In history, we played the London Company game. We were all investors in the London Company, which was eventually called the Virginia Company in the 1600s. We were sending ships to Jamestown and then, when they returned we would share in their profits. Unfortunately we never knew if a ship had been attacked by pirates or had sunk on the way so sometimes I lost my investment. The gold was represented by chocolate so it was yummy history.

In science we studied the water cycle. We made a water cycle in a bottle. I put it outside and when the water evaporates it gets caught in the bottle like condensation. And then it will fall down like precipitation. We also did experiments with the water cycle but I am not going to talk about them here.

My favorite thing we did this last week was, well, I don't know. It was just a good week of school.

From,

Silas

**Ed. Note** Below is a video of last week's paper airplane airshow. It is Tian's first attempt at movie production.

Quarter One Week One

This year we are dying here in Oman...I mean, not literally but figuratively because our mama is killing us with overwork. I mean it! For example, this past week we have studied James I, Jamestown, John Smith and Pocahontas in history. As if that weren't enough we also have all read books about Pocahontas and the Powhatan Indians (who were actually Eastern Woodland Indians, not Powhatans really).


In science we didn't do anything because we were doing a light week this week since we have all been jetlagged and butt tired for most of it. In actuality we haven't done much of anything except for math and reading. I, Tian, am sooooooo excited because I finally can handle math thanks to the website www.adaptedmind.com. It is my new best friend.


The Brain Candy project of the week was making and flying paper airplanes, which I liked but my dorky brother Silas LOVED. There are paper airplanes all over the house (even in my bed) and we have all discovered new designs and styles that we love. My favorite is the F-15, which I just made today and, although I didn't do it exactly following the directions (because I couldn't find all the stuff--like tape), it still flies really well--better than any other airplane I have ever seen.


So overall I would say that my favorite stuff this week was the adapted math website, and the potage we made in history, which was both yummy and gross. The recipe was simple: leeks, lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, potato--not in the original recipe because they weren't eating them yet in colonial times, beef, oatmeal, and salt. We boiled all of it for an hour and then ate it. Like I said, yummy AND gross.


Next week we will try to post the video of the paper airplane flying show that we will do tomorrow. Sorry I can't put up videos of us eating the potage because it's gone.