Cool stuff we do after we learn cool stuff

I agonized over an appropriate title for this post. Ridiculous, I know. Especially when you read the title I chose. 

Something Tuna enjoys doing is extending a learning experience from a book or video into a hands-on activity. We tend to have at least one or two of these activities every week. 

Doing cool stuff after learning cool stuff doesn't have to be time-consuming or difficult or expensive. Here are a few things we've done recently:

We read about the Franks, and the beginnings of Paris. We read about the fleur de lis, and what it stands for. Then we made a fleur de lis stamp...

...and we sewed a cape, and stamped the cape...

...and now, Tuna has a royal cape to wear! 

We read about the Maori warriors of New Zealand. Then, we painted Tuna's face in a design typical of the Maori, and she got all theatrical on me, striking this pose (and others). 

We read about medieval Japan, China, and Korea. Then, Tuna single-handedly prepared a Japanese 3-course meal for her family, complete with a chop stick lesson.

Most of the activities we try take under an hour, with the rare exception here and there (we're in the process of creating imaginary islands which will take us a couple of months to finish, for example.)

I can't imagine "doing school" without these incredible projects. They reinforce concepts. They promote bonding. And they meet our primary goal for anything in life: they're fun. 

I get my ideas from the internet. I seldom have to come up with something on my own. There's always a tutorial available. Google and Pinterest are my BFFs. Seriously. Try searching for "hands-on homeschool activities ___ grade" and see how many hits you get. Tons. My usual formula is homeschool hands-on ___" (insert desired lesson: Paris. London. Grammar. Human Body)

There are parents out there not doing fun stuff with their kids. There are parents who think school needs to be regimented, strict, and hard. This is not the case. My Tuna retains so much more information when her hands are involved, when the lesson is brought to life. I will continue having fun with my girl for life. 

Tonight, we're going to our first bonfire ever, in celebration of homecoming week at the high school where Bay attends. She's a cheerleader, Bay, and she's leading the march to the bonfire. It's my first homecoming week: I never attended any of my school's festivities. Tomorrow, we're going on a field trip to an outdoor "living history" museum that depicts life in Germany in the middle ages. How cool is that?! Bay gets to come, too, since there's no school. Then, we get to go watch Bay cheer at her first home game. Oh, she's also singing the national anthem. I'm so excited, and so proud, of both of my daughters. 

Go forth and make stuff with your kids. It's rewarding in so many ways. 

Haiku

We've been learning about China, Japan, and Korea this week, and we each composed a haiku, then illustrated them. I love how they turned out. Tuna, after this experience, thinks haiku is boring because it doesn't typically rhyme. Still, I think she did a great job writing one.

I like mine, too. Where's my gold star? 

Dynasties: Not Just for Ducks

I don't watch that show. Actually, the thought of it sort of makes me want to vomit a little in my mouth, which you will soon find ironic. But people talk about it nonstop. What is it about Americans that makes us want to watch a bunch of rednecks living their day-to-day lives on television? 

Here, I must stop and admit, fully, to watching Here Comes Honey Boo Boo on a weekly basis. You better redneckognize. 

Anyway, this post has nothing to do with ducks, and everything to do with dynasties. We're reading Story of the World Volume 2: The Middle Ages, and we just finished up chapter eight: The Great Dynasties of China. In the activity guide, I found instructions for replicating a jade necklace with Sculpey. Sounded fun, so off we went. 

Materials: Sculpey in the closest shade to jade we could find, embroidery floss (or other string), something on which to string your beads (we used kebab skewers), a baking sheet, the oven

Soften the clay in your hands, then roll it into ropes and cut off 1/2" bits. Roll those into balls and skewer them. 

Baking the Sculpey at 275F for about fifteen to twenty minutes sets the beads. 

Why yes, those are pajamas my daughter is wearing. 

Then, you can browse the Internet, looking up more detailed information on jade, like we did. Here are some sites we enjoyed:

The Big Site of Amazing Facts

some jade history

Rothenburg, Germany

In an effort to entertain my in-laws, I drove the kids and them to Rothenburg, on the Romantic Road. It's an adorable German town with charming buildings and plenty of history. Its wall is original to the middle ages, and there are many artifacts to see from medieval times. It was a history buff's dream come true. 

The city wall goes all the way around the center of town. It's really neat to be able to walk up there on it. Since my in-laws were with us, we were not able to walk the whole wall, but we plan to go back next month and walk the entire thing. 

So picturesque, and easy to imagine living here in the middle ages. 

It's not often you can stick you face through a hundreds of years old wall!

Picture the sodliers walking along this wall, guarding it from attack. 

The view from the wall is gorgeous.  

Bustling streets filled with activity and good scents from the shops

To be here, experiencing this history, is unbelievable. Middle ages armor, weapons, clothing, medical care, and more are some of what we saw at the Histocial Vaults in Rothenburg. 

Straight out of the Reinaissance!

An officer's helmet, circa the 17th century

Bay in the dungeon

Bay and Tuna looking out from a cell in the dungeon

This well has the date 1580 carved into it. 

Did you know that the iron maiden was not a death chamber, and did not originally have spikes inside? We learned that. 

We got to ride in the carriage pulled by these naughty horses. They really were quite naughty. It was fun. 

Have you taken any great day trips lately?

Hands-on History: Flossenburg Concentration Camp

We took a family day trip to Flossenburg concentration camp today, in Germany near the Czech border. Above is the SS headquarters building. 

Above building used to be the camp kitchen. Now, it houses a museum. You cannot get any closer to history (without living it, and thankful we didn't) than being inside a concentration camp. This was one of the gentler introductions to concentration camps in the region, with no gas chamber and very little by way of graphic photos. There were a few scary ones that Tuna and I talked through, but for the most part, she was a quiet observer, taking it all in, asking questions as they arose in her mind. Bay was appropriately somber, and had a few questions of her own. I think the girls each took unique experiences from being in Flossenburg today. 

It was exceptionally beautiful there. A stark contrast to what once was. We read that the town has tried to downplay the focus of the concentration camp. 

The girls climbed the steps to one of the guard towers. 

There was a lot to look at, a lot to take in, and a lot to interact with. The girls spend a good deal of time exploring several of the memorial sites. 

The chapel was quiet. There was a bust of Dietrich Bonhoeffer inside. 

This was one of the places we had to stop and discuss: the crematorium. 

Walking on, in, and around history. There really is no better education than experience. 

Flossenburg then and now. 

Tuna spent some time going through the book of prisoners' names, searching surnames she knows to see if any match. She did find a person with the same surname as one of her best friends. 

I am thankful that we get to experience the world like this, by living in Europe and taking day trips to visit such historic sights. Next week, we will be enriching our lives further with three trips (yes, three, all day trips!): Prague, Alsace region of France, and Salzburg. 

PS We have officially switched ISPs and our internet issues have been resolved. Yay (and knock on wood)!