Homeschool W32: Impromptu Picnics are the Best

What We Studied

We had three days of outings this week. On Monday, we went to the garden center. On Tuesday, we visited Gifford Farm and got to see the new baby animals. The new baby cows were my favorite. And the slide barn was open so we got to play a bit more. The boys even helped feed the bunnies. On Wednesday, we wen to the park for a playdate.

Literature and Poetry

We started reading Nim’s Island to go along with our Ocean theme! So far, so far. Arthur’s excited to finish so we can watch the movie version.

• Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr
• A First Book of the Sea by Nicola Davies

Math

We finished Unit 11 in Singapore Math. That leaves one more unit to finish the book.

Social Studies

We covered our last chapter in History Quest Ancient Times focusing on Arabia and the rise of Islam. We read some of the tales from the Arabian Nights. We wrapped up the week with a documentary about the ancient city of Petra.

• A is for Arabia by Julia Johnson
• The Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan

Science

Our unit theme of oceans takes care of our science, but we did spend most of Monday at the garden center and then planting our purchases. The plants are in a bit of a shock, but they’re slowly acclimating.

Art

Nothing formal

Music

Nothing formal

Unit Theme

We started our month long study of ocean. We began with a review of the ocean basics before moving on currents, tides, ocean layers, the food chain, and the shoreline. Along with our regular books and videos, we started watching Blue Planet. We’ll continue through the first and the second series over the course of the month. We also found a great YouTube channel featuring a man who explores the water.

• The Earth is Mostly Ocean by Allan Fowler
• Ocean by Stacy McAnulty
• Oceans by Cathryn Sill
• Ocean Seasons by Ron Hirschi
• Oceans by Peter Benoit
• Ocean Anatomy by Julia Rothman
• DK Ocean
• Discover the Oceans by Emily Rose Oachs (Southern, Pacific, Indian, Atlantic)
• Oceans by Precious McKenzie
• Bill Nye’s Big Blue Ocean
• How Deep is the Ocean by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
• Gone Fishing by David McLimans
• Ocean Sunlight: How Tiny Plant Feed the Seas by Molly Bang
• Shells by Cassie Meyer
• A Nature Walk at the Beach by Louise and Richard Spilsbury
• Along the Shore by John Woodward
• Tide Pool by Louise Spilsbury
• DK Shell

Misc. - Random picture books read

• Violet and Victor Write the Most Fabulous Fairy Tale by Alice Kuipers
• Grandpa’s Garden by Stella Fry
• Ocean by Britta Teckentrup
• The Water Dragon by Li Jian
• These Seas Count by Alison Formento
• The Big Beach Cleanup by Charlotte Offsay
• The Three Little Pigs Count to 100 by Grace Maccarone
• Boats on the Bay by Jeanne Walker Harvey
• Blue Floats Away by Travis Jonker
• Where is Spring by Yang-Huan
• Fish Eyes by Lois Ehlert
• Octopus Stew by Eric Velasquez
• What’s Inside a Flower by Rachel Ignotofsky
• Sea Bones by Bob Barner
• Crab Cake by Andrea Tsurumi
• Someday, Narwhal by Lisa Mantchev
• Seagrass Dreams by Kathleen M. Hanes

Highs

• We had such a fun time playing with our new friends. After a year in quarantine, it’s been nice to get out even a little bit. We are still masking up and keeping our distance, but park playdates and other outside activities are on our schedule.

Lows

• I hadn’t planned on spending all Monday doing gardening activities. Arthur enjoyed the gardening, but it pushed back all of our schooling.

Next Week

We’re continuing oceans and Nim’s Island. We’ll be starting an American folk music unit for music and finishing Singapore Math 2B. As for outings, we’ll b doing a park playdate and visiting the treehouses at Arbor Day Farm.

Next up on the TBR pile: