Maplewood Cottage Home-Lessons

• Jan. 22, 2009 - Icecicles - our snow study

• Dec. 12, 2008 - Lapbooking

• Apr. 21, 2008 - North To Iron Country

Lina pretends she's in a sled! winter 2008 North To Iron Country by Janie Lynn Panagopoulos provided a great look into the era of mining in Minnesota,Wisconsin, Upper  Michigan and Upstate New York. The book focused on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan... a boy and his father ( a doctor) learn together of the people and needs of these mining settlements during the mid-1800's. One learns so much about all the ethnicities that were involved in the construction of the Erie Canal and advancement of settling these areas. French, Indian, Swedish and Finnish were prominent. We found this extra interesting as we have friends of Finnish decent from the U.P. and family members that live in Minnesota of Swedish decent. We live in Ohio and thought it interesting the mention of the Toledo War ( Mike and I am from Toledo, Ohio).  Also called "The Bloodless War." It was fought over the boundary between Ohio and Michigan. The narrow strip of land included the town of Toledo. The United States Congress settled the problem by giving the strip to Ohio and the U.P. to Michigan! The exploration of the Great Lakes particularly Lake Superior and Lake Michigan was very educational. The boy is coming of age and learning the much needed medical profession of his father. As assistant to the father  he has to be very brave and help make big decisions. We see he makes good judgments in critical times. He has an adventure learning to journey on sled and manage sled dogs. A great boys book - I read aloud to Luke - there were some words and short sections I skipped over  because  of being less wholesome than we  were comfortable emphasizing. A great addition to our far north studies Sites I found interesting and helpful were: Hunt's Guide december.com rock collecting enthusiasts We also made pasties pastie's pasty Another neat pasty site pasty.com Move over hotpockets there IS something meatier! The girls get a ride from brothers winter of 2008 P.S.This book reminded me of a book I once read called Mrs. Mike. A young lady married a Canadian Mounty and had many adventures and hardships along the way as they served the people of the northern Canada. We'll have to see if we can get a copy of that.

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• Apr. 16, 2008 - China

We made egg drop soup and egg rolls for dinner one evening. One of our real life observations of Mother Duck and ducklings. ( Story about Ping) Media Gladys Alyward - Missionary Story of 1930's China Cry - The film made about Nora Lam Who was First? discovering the Americas Russell Freedman Great Wall of China from the structural wonders series Mount Everest from Natural Wonders Series Chinese Americans from American Immigrants Series Teens in China  from Global Connections  Series Chopsticks Ying Chang Compestine (How chopsticks were Invented - a funny tale) The Real Story of Stone Soup Ying Chang Compestine ( a funny tale) The Story About Ping  Marjorie Flack and Kurt Wiese

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• Apr. 16, 2008 - India

• Apr. 16, 2008 - The Jewish Heritage

• Apr. 16, 2008 - Lighthouses

• Apr. 16, 2008 - Sailing Ships

• Nov. 1, 2007 - Little House Books and Unit Studies

Drying Squash We've been wanting to start the series for a long time. And now we are. We went to the local historical village this month. Started the first in the series Little House in the Big Woods. Perfect for this time of the year! The first chapters are full of winter preparations. Preparing the meats that have been hunted, butchering day ( for the hogs),  making butter . And lots of excitement of trying to get bears, and  Pa protecting the family from wolves. This is all in the first 35 pages! Please share with me about any resources you might have for working with this series. I know there are a lot of  HS lesson  based on this. I would especially like the low $ investment ideas. These are some of the books we have found in our home library to expound on this era in history. Laura Ingalls Wilder by Alexandra Wallner Westward Ho music of the cowboys' cassette tape and the stories surrounding ballads and camp songs. Tales of the American West ~ Home on the Prairie Darrydale Books Tales of the American West ~ On the Trapping Trail Darrydale Books Our children pretending to travel on the buck board of wagon. Viewing the inside of a Trading Post!

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• Aug. 6, 2007 - Airplanes

• Aug. 4, 2007 - Inventors

• Aug. 4, 2007 - Arctic & Alaska

We've really enjoyed several books with the setting of sub zero temperatures :^) The Iceberg Hermit  by Arthur Roth was an awesome read! ( 1974) Scholastic Allan is trapped on an iceberg, befriends a polar bear cub, is 'rescued' by a tribal type people that appear to have viking blood and after seven years returns a man of twenty to his boyhood land. This story had documentation of being largely fact!  Original accounts were put into a book called Tales and Sketches of the Ettrick Shepherd 1836. Anyway if you can get a copy do so! This book sparked talk of evaporation, water, and ice. And so much more! Iceland and the Vikings... We've also read a book about Vikings ~ a young boy's journey to manhood and eventual exploration as his father a Viking leader. forgot the title :^) Leif The Lucky by D'Aulaire Also by D'Aulaire Ola, Ola and Belffin, and Children of the Northlights about the Norse. We love stories like Iron Will and Jack London's Cry of the Wolves. We have watched several stories about the dogs races!! We also have a great video on the Alaskan National Parks. We are fascinated with whales, penguins, and other wildlife known to those ares. Watching several videos... Reading several books... the last few years. I have a unit study on the iditarod we will be planning to do this year. And I am sure we will choose more media from the library this winter on these topics. Yes, We have done lots of reading and exploring of Lapland, Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Eskimos, Arctic wildlife etc... Eskimos by Mary Bringle - a book all about Eskimos and their land.

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• Jul. 31, 2007 - Manners Unit Study

• Jul. 27, 2007 - Cowboys and Cowgirls

Our lil cowgirl @ almost two Michalina has LOVED a music tape with all the old cowboy songs. We've played Westward Ho! by Hear and Learn Publications since she was still in her crib! We'd wake up in the morning and turn it on while I tidied up. The music is mello enough to not be too exciting but catchy tunes to get us into the rhythm of the day. We discovered Sophia likes it just as much! We've started a series of 'out west'  studies. We've read several books with that setting. The kids love the TALL TALES of Pecos Bill. Many children's picture books on Columbus, Pocahontas, Pilgrim/ Indian relations, also books that show their are different kinds of indians. We especially like the D'Aulaire books. Some older children's books have been interesting. One that has been especially interesting. Written as a narrative ~ the main character,  a burro tells his story. An old out of print SBS paperback Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry ( 1953 ) has been a great find. Read Aloud to the boys as we've had the interest over the last year. Wild Rose, Nancy Ward and the Cherokee Nation was inspiring as well ~ written by Mary Furbee. We have another book called Cowboy Pete about a negro cowboy that we plan to start now that Brighty is completed. By Laura Nelson Baker ( 1968  ) The boys have watched a few Lone Ranger videos and enjoyed the action! We've read several books about indians/ settlers. One book we just finished a few months ago. The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare was really good about the coming of age of a boy left on the new homestead that he and his father readied for his family. While the father goes back east to collect mother, younger  sister,  and new baby sister Matt is to stay behind and keep watch over all that they did for the future of the family. One happening after another leaves him in need of help, although he is doing a terrific job of learning to be a man a new friend, an indian boy of his same age teaches him much about survival as Matt teaches him english and reading. Another we enjoyed was about two little girls that moved out west with adoptive parents The Journey Home  by Isabelle Holland Scholastic 1990 There is a series of books called school stories.... We just read one called Kirsten Learns a Lesson Janet Shaw. This was a very nice book about a swedish girl fitting into her new pioneer school. She befriends an indian girl who's village is nearby! We of course have read some of the little house books and enjoyed the tv series. We have read a lot about the environment as well. Snakes, lizards and buzzards are of great interest! We will build upon this by exploring more through media. They have an excellent foundation through the nature videos that we've already watched on the Grand Canyon and national parks etc... I'd like to continue to build upon our reading by ... Going through the whole Little House series. And lesson plan that is available on line for that unit study, with emphasis on reading comprehension. *****Just a note. I firmly believe that many books for older children can be read aloud and be very beneficial to younger ones. Luke is a thinker and sensitive to human relations so getting into a wholesome character has been a channel to exciting him to wonder, questions, and learning new things! We tend to read a lot of history and character building themes. I will admit I am thrilled that most of the time I can skip over a few portions of a book that I don't think are appropriate for him. Only once in a while do I have to say " Sorry. Luke, but we'll have to pick this one up again later when you are older. " I sometimes 'neglect' to read the parts that might have too much emphasis on non biblical beliefs. I.E. Indian spiritism. I will touch on the subject make explanation of how it is different from the truth of the Bible but not keep impressing the untruth upon him. I guess that is the glory of reading to an early reader you can screen things more easily!!

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• Jul. 26, 2007 - Safety Studies

We have done some safety studies off and on in the past year.  This includes Fire safety; what do we do in case of fire in the home?, How can we prevent fire?, Where are our fire helps?, How do we use the fire escape ladder?, How do we use a fire extinguisher?, If we need to just get out or stop drop and roll, also who helps us in case of a fire? fireman, ems, neighbor? We made a picture album of public service helping vehicles. We watched Bambi and discussed wildfires. What can we do to prevent forest fires? Stranger safety; Who is a stranger?, How do we respond to a stranger?, Staying close by parents in public places., What do we do if we are lost in a big place?, Who is a safe stranger? ie. police, security guard, sales clerk, known neighbor, and seeking parents approval of conversation with some one we don't know well. The don'ts;  Don't play with fire, don't run in a congested area, Don't act against what you know parents wouldn't approve or conscience/ good sense tells you ie. climbing up high to try to get something out of the cupboard, going into the street, playing near deep water. The Do's; Do pick up toys, Do keep younger children safe, Do wipe up spills, Do protect yourself from strange animals etc... Learning phone number, address, their full name, parents full names, and how to use the phone. Safety in vehicles... Safety on bikes. Safety as pedestrians. Knowing direction ie. simple understanding of map or lay out of their town, neighborhood, and park. Pausing at the corner. Stop, Look, and Listen. We have learned safety phrases and songs through kids videos and literature. We have a busytown vid that has a great song and we pick up safety pamphlets from public displays at health department, fire safety exhibits at the fair etc... They enjoy reading and answering questions I put to them about these important skills. This summer we have practiced bike safety as they got new bikes and we'd picked up some booklets from the health department about being safe bikers. We are sure to add to this study all the time.

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• Jun. 15, 2007 - The Great Sunken Ships The Titanic & The S.S. Republic