we reviewed society as it existed during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. 

The Peasant by Michaela

Dark cloud overhead.  Looks like rain.  Tiny hut.  Drab costume.  Flies swarming around.  A pile of animal poo close by.  If you could see them:  teeth in poor repair.

Actually we . . . → Read More: The Peasant]]> While we were studying the Renaissance by way of The Clown of God,

we reviewed society as it existed during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. 

The Peasant
by Michaela

Dark cloud overhead.  Looks like rain.  Tiny hut.  Drab costume.  Flies swarming around.  A pile of animal poo close by.  If you could see them:  teeth in poor repair.

Actually we covered material that reminded us that the peasant was not just an unlearned low-life.  The peasants formed resistance movements and revolted and tried their best to acquire what knowlege they could.  It’s interesting.  The nobility wanted everyone to see a clear difference between the peasants and themselves, which brought about laws governing what the peasants were allowed to wear.  Can you imagine?

Anyway.

The peasant.

Here I am at my juggling table, trying. 

Our Five In a Row Family Event Day was . . . → Read More: The Clown of God — Family Event]]> Well, yours truly is on her way to juggling!  I’m not proficient by any means, but I can keep two balls in the air with one hand, and three balls with two hands–sometimes even for seconds at a time! 

Here I am at my juggling table, trying. 

Our Five In a Row Family Event Day was so much fun!  I must admit that I was exhausted by the end of the day, but it was so worth it.   It is amazing what can be done when one person has a vision, and then many hands are willing to pitch in and believe that a group can get going and keep going and stay true to the original idea in mind–in this case using FIAR as a homeschool curriculum and letting that infiltrate into our building of relationships as families and friends.  And on that same note, I’m thankful that Jane Lambert was willing to write out the curriculum that she proved to be an excellent one with her own daughters!

I thought I’d share some pictures from the day, in no particular order.

The children loved dressing up for the day, becoming characters of the Renaissance after studying The Clown of God all week, a book written by Tomie dePaola. 

The story was acted out by some of the older kids in the group.

They did a great job!

The story was narrated by two girls who took turns reading.  Thank goodness for a really good juggler in the group who was willing to play the lead!

Costume enhancements as Giovanni grows in popularity!

Here’s the whole cast at the end.  The one in the Duke shirt?  In one part of the story it is said the Giovanni even performed for a Duke.  There was much laughter when a student appeared in a Duke sweatshirt! 

One of the dads was able to juggle well and he ended up being a great help at my table.  He was very patient with the children, teaching them some simple basics of juggling.

As always, Michaela loved spending time with some of the little ones.

I got to see nearly every child over the course of the day as they all came around and tried to juggle.

Here’s the wife of the juggling man who helped so much at my table.  She can juggle too!  While holding a baby in a sling.  Who laughed at his mom juggling.  Especially when she dropped the balls.  (But actually she was really quite good.)

Little clowns and princesses stopped by all day.  In the background you can see the plate spinning area.

More little juggler wannabes, juggling lemons.

This pretty girl’s dad is a good juggler, so I guess it just runs in the family!

Now, can you get over this castle that one of the moms built?  The little princesses loved it!   Getting inside and peeking out!  Running around inside!  It was such a hit!  So much work went into this day.

What a costume!  Isn’t he adorable?

Right before lunch we called everyone together for pictures.  First the children gathered.

Then everyone in costume got together for a picture.  (If you’re interested, I’m in the back, 5th from the left.)

Oh, just look at the food!  Maybe that was the best part!  Everyone brought a dish that was loosely modeled around what they might have had during the Renaissance.  I took venison, spinach with garlic and sweet rolls.  There were so many good things:  chicken pies, stews, salads.  I just can’t name everything!  We fixed our plates and then sat on blankets and visited with each other. 

In the afternoon there were more games and activities.  There were tables where you could make a tambourine or a mask, have your face painted, or play a game.

Making a mask.

These four girls (sisters) could be poster children of what homeschooling is all about.  They are smart, well mannered, outgoing, family oriented, and just fun to be with!

I loved watching the football game at the end of the day.  Who says a princess cannot run a ball downfield in a long dress?

One of the dads made gondolas for gondola races!  Aren’t they beautiful?

You know the boys migrated over to this game, right?

Having fun face painting!

Last but not least, my tomboy Princess of the Universe got painted up as an “Italy guy.”  Gotta love her.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures.  We did so many things last week to physically prepare for first the co-op and then the family event.  This current week should be much quieter, with time to remember what we saw and tie it in with book studies, including adding figures to our timeline and doing some writing so that we’ll remember what we learned.

I came across a very cute website page with stories done by children while they listened to music.

First Grade Music Explorers. 

Enjoy.

PS — I don’t think we ever get too old to draw and write while we listen . . . → Read More: Writing Stories to Music]]> In looking for activities to go with The Clown of God,

I came across a very cute website page with stories done by children while they listened to music.

First Grade Music Explorers. 

Enjoy.

PS — I don’t think we ever get too old to draw and write while we listen to music.

I am learning about the orphan trains of the 19th and early 20th centuries in the US. This video explains basically and clearly what the orphan train was all about.  The subject of the orphan train is a . . . → Read More: The Orphan Train]]> As I prepare for our next co-op, which will be centered around a book called The Clown of God,

I am learning about the orphan trains of the 19th and early 20th centuries in the US. This video explains basically and clearly what the orphan train was all about.  The subject of the orphan train is a heavy one, so you might want to preview before you expose your children, especially young ones.

(You know you’re a homeschool mom when you spend your mad money on things like Velcro rounds, laminators and cardstock.)  . . . → Read More: Renaissance Study]]> It seems our study of Rome, Italy, has flowed nicely into a fine study of the Renaissance.  I think Princess of the Universe is enjoying it.  I know I’m enjoying it, especially since I purchased a laminator. 

(You know you’re a homeschool mom when you spend your mad money on things like Velcro rounds, laminators and cardstock.) 

Using the laminator for the first time.

Recently I was visiting with a dear and sweet friend, Leslie, and she was showing me some fabulous ways to review material throughout the school year.  These materials had been put together using a lamintor.  Leslie had turned the review material into sturdy, nice looking, permanent documentation of units covered.  I was inspired.  I could see a trip to Sam’s Club in my future.   My very near future.

This would be a good time to say what an amazing woman Leslie is:  a devoted mother, beautiful, intelligent, lively, organized, and where would our homeschool group be without her?  I also know that Leslie has been quietly in my corner, cheering for me to be able to come back home to work during the years that we were dealing with so many health problems with my dear husband. I was out working in the “real world” to gain better insurance.  (Thank you, Leslie!  I had to say all this about you because you wouldn’t say it about yourself, and I appreciate you so much!)

The first project I did with the lamintor was to make our Michelangelo timeline interactive.  I know I mentioned recently that I had a timeline I was going to introduce Miss Priss to.  We already keep a timeline notebook.  It’s great, but it can be sort of dull at times.  I wanted her to enjoy this timeline.

Using reference books, the internet, and a huge timeline book I have (Leslie, I finally figured out what this book is good for!) I came up with about 10 significant events that occured during Michelangelo’s lifetime. 

(I’ve read that there’s controversy about when and where the first watch was invented. We’ll study this further.)

Using pictures from the internet, I copied them into a word document, typed a bit of info under each item, printed them on card stock, cut them out and  laminated them.  Then I cut each one out again, now laminated.

A piece of self-adhesive Velcro goes on the back of  each piece, with the other piece of Velcro going on the time line.  For each date on the timeline, there is mostly a hint at what piece goes there.   You can see how this was done for King Henry VIII. 

Hint:  A king in England who rules with an iron fist and has many wives.

Answer piece:  Henry VIII becomes the King of England.

The line below the piece can be followed down to the year 1509.

I really like how this turned out.  I can see us doing this with many historical figures to learn about history: study one person and learn what happened during his or her lifetime.  It makes the info more real somehow.  I mean, to think, Shakespeare was born the year that Michelangelo died.  They missed each other completely.  That’s sad to me.   This also really shows how short a man’s life is on the earth.

Thanks to our lessons from Five In A Row, we are amassing quite a list of Italian words.  Between Angelo, Papa Piccolo, and The Clown of God, we’ll have several nice Italian word lists in our notebook by the end of the week.

Another laminated review piece.  A blank map of Italy with some key places covered in our reading.

Again, the answer pieces are going to be stored in an envelope.  Velcro was used on the map and the backs of the pieces.

Leslie, thank you so much for the ideas!

I had so much stuff pulled out this morning as I filled up work boxes.  I even took out the old Papa Piccolo-inspired felt set we made long ago.  We’ll do a lot of geography review this week by placing all our story disks from this year onto the map.  I have several more items to laminate for review.  I also need to finish the test I was putting together from our reading of The Apprentice. At the end of our unit, I hope to post a book list and brief review of the books.

Enjoy your Monday!

Lynn