International Space Station Crystals

Our current study unit has been on space and space exploration. As part of that study, we picked up The International Space Station by Franklin M Branley from the library. On the International Space Station there are many experiments being conducted to evaluate the affects of space versus what we see as "normal results" from the same experiments on Earth. One such experiment that they are conducting is the growth of crystals. The last page of the book provided this expirement as a suggestion. I thought it was very interesting that we weren't the only ones growing crystals this month!

The tools / ingredients necessary:

• Glass jar (wide mouth if possible)
• Baking Soda
• Pipe Cleaners
• A pencil
• Paper Clip
• Hot water

Bend pipe cleaners into desired shape. We chose a star, a spiral and a rocket. Take the pipe cleaner and tie to a piece of string, which will then be wrapped around the pencil. The length of the string should allow the pencil to sit horizontally across the top of the jar with out touching the bottom. A paper clip will likely need to be used as a weight on the pipecleaner until the cyrstals start to develop, and then can be removed.


Fill the jars with hot (not quite boiling) water. Add baking soda, one spoonful at a time and then stir until the baking soda disolves. Continue to add additional spoonfuls until the baking soda no longer disolves. But also, don't put in more than one spoonful at a time - it will bubble over. Sink the pipecleaner into the water and position the pencil to keep the shape hanging in the water.


Check the progress of the crystals every few hours to see how much they are growing.



Once you are content with the thickness of your crystals, remove from the water and let dry. We kept ours in the water for about 55 hours.


I wish that the book had told us more about this experiment, like the differences that are being seen on the crystals made in space, or what the scientists are using this information for.

Some of what we've been doing

These pictures were taken early in November.

This might give you a better idea of what school is like (or maybe what it is not like) in the Vertner School.

I am often asked "What do you do with the younger kids while you are schooling Noah?"

Well, some days, we....

and other days we.....

and then some days they get the better of me.

On to the lessons...


Our Bible Study was a review of the word "Fool" in the Strong's Concordance. This idea was taken from a "No Greater Joy" newsletter. It has been fuel for several great discussions about gaining wisdom, making wise choices and foolish behavior. There were about 100 entries for "fool" and we covered 3-5 a day, discussed the scripture and meaning and then prayed together.

Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons

We are currently in the 60s. I very much appreciate the process and simplicity. Our oldest child is progressing through the lessons very well. He loves stories and is always asking for audio books. Yet, he is not yet showing signs of eagerness to read beyond the requirements of this book. I know it will come when he is ready, and when it does, I doubt we'll have enough books to keep him busy.

He shows an apptitude for math and reasoning. Unfortunately I have not found a math program that I am overly thrill with yet. We are currently using Abbeca, but don't feel that it is anything special, and pretty institutional. I have an interest in "Math You Can", but am open to other suggestions.

Finally - everyone's favorite! Themes!

ANCIENT EGYPT

Noah really enjoyes the Mary Pope Osborne book series "The Magic Tree House". We selected the "Mummies in the Morning" book to get us started. We were able to find a Mary Pope Osborne research companion to the Magic Tree House on Ancient Egypt at the library, as well as several other age-appropriate text. We set the DVR to record anything about pyramids, mummies or sarcophaguses (Noah's favorite vocabulary word). The capstone to the theme will be a Mom-Noah date to see the MUMMIES Omnimax movie at the Science and Industry Museum tomorrow afternoon.

We are also working on memorizing the 50 states.

This coming week will see a new theme as we dive into the US government and Presidential history. We will have plenty of foder for lessons as we plan on soaking in the inaguration of Barak Obama on Tuesday.