A month of art and science

Three quarters of a year has gone by since the girls have sat down to do a mess of schooly work each day. An exhausted/sick pregnancy, a toddler that needs a ton of attention (you're giving it to her one way or the other - either to prevent her from getting in trouble or *because* she's getting in trouble), a colicky newborn, and facial surgery have come one after the other. I hesitate to say this, for fear of jinxing it all, but I fell the worst is behind us for now and I'm ready to start climbing out of our unschooly phase into something a little more structured.

Because we have mostly tackled math and reading/language arts so far this year-- when we have done anything-- I wanted to spend our next "chunk of time" on art and science, two things that have not gotten enough attention (ever). My girls seem to work well with blocks cheduling, and so do I. My favorite scholarly memory from college was "Jan Term" where you had the option of staying on campus and taking one quick but intense class. So our Jan Term this year will have a dual intense focus on art and science.

First for art: the girls have been madly pestering me to use the new craft materials I bought right before Jeffrey was born - beeswax, wood beads, chenille stems, embroidery floss, watercolor pencils, and felt. I will finally give in! :) My plan is to loosely tie it in with the rabbit trails our science study takes us down. I also purchased art postcards of Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt (along with a Cassatt coloring book. Some lessons from Teaching Art With Books Kids Love may find there way to our kitchen table ... and hopefully a trip to the art museum will round things out at the end of the month.

Science wise, I want to study weather. Winter here brings all kinds, and it's something we can study (mostly) while watching it from the window, warm and snug in our house! LOL The Weather Report will be our main worktext. I'll suppliment with a stack of library books (my usual M.O.). We also have Nature in a Nutshell for Kids, Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study, and Hands-On Nature, which all have activities that relate to weather and/or winter in some way. These books have all been sitting on my shelf, unused, for YEARS, so it's now or never!

Hopefully I'll be able to report back soon with details of all our fun activities!