Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Summer Homeschooling - Pirate Week

At the Pirates' House in Savannah, Georgia

PIRATE WEEK -

Ahoy, me mateys! 

The kids' pirate names for the week:

  • Anna - Ella "Thieving Magpie" Knuckles
  • Chayton - Nelson "Saggin' Jowls" Flint
You can check out this pirate name generator to find yours!

Talk Like A Pirate: Pirate Phrases



Monday: Yo ho! Yo ho! A Pirate's Life for Me!

  • What is a pirate? A person who attacks and robs ships at sea. They were criminals who did what they wanted and took what they wanted when they wanted it. 
  • What is a privateer? Pirate holding a government commission/contract that had an armed ship which was authorized for use in war, especially in the capture of enemy merchant shipping.
  • Learn about famous pirates:
    • Edward Teach (better known as Blackbeard) - was the most feared pirate. Most ships would give up the moment they saw his flag. He was known to barrel into battle with a sword in each hand and knives and pistols at the ready. He used to weave hemp into his beard and set it on fire as a scare tactic. He had 4 ships and over 300 in his pirate army. He captured over 40 merchant ships in the Caribbean, and he defeated the famous warship, the HMS Scarborough in sea battle. After a fierce battle, the Royal Navy was finally able to overtake him, and they beheaded him. They put his head on a steak in Williamsburg, Virginia, overlooking the Hampton River, as a warning to other pirates of what their fates would be. His ship, the Queen Mary's Revenge, sunk off the coast of Buford, South Carolina, and you can still scuba dive to see it today.
    • Sir Francis Drake - was probably the most celebrated privateer of his time. He worked for Queen Elizabeth. He sacked the Spanish Army many times off the coast of Florida at her command. He sailed to North America and claimed new land on the Pacific Coast, which made him the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe. He even rescued the unsuccessful colonists off Roanoke Island, North Carolina and gave them passage back to England on his boat.
    • Anne Bonny (yes, they had female pirates too!) - sailed to the New World (Jamaica) with her family and fell in love with a poor sailor named James Bonny. However, when she become disappointed in his valor, she started seeking out the company of other men in Nassau. Among these men were "Calico Jack" Rackham, the captain of a pirate ship. She joined his crew, acted and dressed like a man, and fought profusely. Though she fought under Rackman's command, she also coaxed the crew into even more bloodshed and violence, making her a pretty formidable pirate herself. Unfortunately, she was captured along with the rest of Rackham's crew and sentenced to death. She and another female pirate named Mary Reed claimed pregnancy while in prison, so they did not go through with the sentence. 
  • Make your own pirate WANTED Poster. Tell us about what makes you unique from other pirates. This could be physical or personality.


Tuesday: Sail with the Best Sailors on the Sea
  • How do ships float? They float because of buoyancy.
    • Test buoyancy on different objects and document the buoyancy. Do they line up with what you learned about buoyancy? 
  • How do pirate ships sail? The physics of sailing depend on the direction of the wind. It's easy to understand if you're sailing downwind, as the wind fills the sails and pushes the boat forward on the water. The sails on the pirate ship work like the wings on an airplane - both create aerodynamic lift to move an object
    • To sail, you need to know the direction of the wind. To do this, you can wet your finger and hold it up in the air. The side that dries the fastest and feels the coldest is the direction the wind is coming from. You can also watch the water to see what direction the ripples are moving. 
  • Sailing the Interceptor to the Caribbean - POC Bloopers 
  • Orientation On A Boat - Draw on the driveway with chalk
  • Parts of the Pirate Ship, Pirate Ships Explained
  • Learn about the different kids of pirate ships. Which one would you choose?
  • How to tie different kinds of sailing knots 
  • All pirates had jobs on the ship: Some manned the sails, some manned the "Crows Nest," and some cooked the food. One of the most important jobs was keeping the ship clean. With so many sailors living aboard for months at a time, this was the only way to keep everyone from getting sick and (potentially) dying. You need a crew to sail!
    • You could use this as a chance to get the kids doing chores and scrubbing the floor by making them scrub the "Poop Deck!"



Wednesday: Navigation through the Sea
  • How did the early sailors navigate the oceans?
  • Other ways you can navigate: The direction the sun rises (East) and sets (West); birds with short flight patterns, certain types of fish, and certain types of vegetation floating in the water can show proximity to shore
  • Compasses are probably one of the most important instruments used in sailing. Compasses tell you what direction is North based on the polarity of the Earth, so you can always make sure you're heading in the right direction
  • Astrolabe (handheld telescope) - enabled seamen to use the North Star and sun to navigate by measuring their altitude above the line of the horizon
    • Draw what you can see through your astrolabe 
  • Dead Reckoning (finding your exact point on the globe, draw a circle of 0-90-180-270 to show the globe): to find this, you will need the direction of your heading, the speed of ship, the speed of the ocean currents, the leeward (or downward drift of the ship), and the time spent on each heading. Before reliable clocks, they used sandglasses. To get the speed of the ship, the glass was used with a "log" or a piece of wood attached to a line knotted at uniform intervals - the sailor heaved the log from the stern of the ship and let the line play out as the ship pulled away; when the sailor felt the first knot pass through his fingers, he shouted a signal to another sailor who turned a one-minute glass (60 seconds); the first sailor counted the number of knots that passed until the sand ran out. A timer of one minute, knots spaced one-sixtieth of a nautical mile apart, and simple arithmetic easily gave the speed of the ship in nautical miles per hours (or knots)
  • Map-Making - pirates were essential in creating the globe as it is today. In their time, they spread knowledge of the world and helped create maps by sketching coastlines as they came across them and visited them
    • Early map of the world (as you can see, they thought America looked like a "v," and they had no idea there was land in between the East and West Coast
    • Label the continents on a blank map of the world. Blackbeard was said to have 14 wives. If he had the same number of wives on all the continents, how many would he have in total? (Answer: 98 wives)
    • Walk or drive around your neighborhood and map it out as best you can
  • Pirates are also one of main reasons we have so many tales of ocean creatures and monsters: Pirate Lore
  • Media: Watch Sinbad 





Thursday: Blimey! It's Sea Shanties, Hardtack, and Gruel!
  • Listen to Pirate Songs - what would you put in your own pirate song?
  • What did pirates eat? 
    • Fresh water didn't last long on a ship (and salt water actually dehydrates you), so they mostly drank Rum (Why is the Rum always gone?)
    • Hardtack Sea Biscuits - simple type of biscuit made from flour, water, and sometimes salt (inexpensive and could keep for up to 12 months)
    • Salmagundi - "salad" made from whatever was available, i.e. chopped meat/fish, onions, grapes, cabbage, salt/pepper, garlic, oil, vinegar, pickled vegetables and meat
    • Salted Meat / Bacon (when available)
    • Pickled vegetables
    • Black bean hash
    • Grease grits
    • Gruel/Slop - thin liquid meal of oatmeal or other meal boiled in water
    • Cackle Fruit - eggs
    • Doughboy - boiled or deep fried dumpling
  • Health: They didn't see doctors, brush their teeth, or take baths on a regular basis, so they probably didn't smell very good!
    • Scurvy was a very common disease among pirates - a deficiency in Vitamin C characterized by swollen, bleeding gums and the opening of previously healed wounds. If left untreated, you could die from infection and bleeding. Make sure you drink your orange juice, kids!
  • Pirates may not have followed the laws of the government, but they did have a Pirate Code, or a code of conduct everyone on the ship had to follow. One of their rules was no fighting. If a pirate disobeyed this rule, they would be marooned or shot.
  • If Anna and Chayton fought with each other, your captain might make you walk the plank and maroon you. You would then have to swim to the closest island or be eaten by sharks. You could also be stranded if you were the captain and your crew committed mutiny and took over your ship, or you could be stranded if your ship sank during sea battle with an enemy ship. What if you were stranded on a desert island? How did you get there? Who are you with? What is the weather like/what animals live there/what do you eat while you're there? What are your adventures/challenges/triumphs?
  • Walk the Plank Exercise - you can suspend a 2x4 above the ground outside with bricks, pieces of wood, etc. and see if the kiddos can balance there way across without falling off into the "sharks" and "sea monsters" below

Friday: Hidden Treasure
  • Why do you think pirates hid their treasure? Well, just like we put our paychecks in the bank in case our person or our house gets robbed (to protect it), many pirates didn't have "houses," as they were normally nomad sailors, so they had to have a safe place to stash their valuables. They couldn't keep it on the ship because the ship could be overtaken by the Navy (as they were criminals) or other pirates (like Blackbeard), or it could sink in a storm and their treasure would be lost
  • Islands like Madagascar were considered Pirate Hideaways, and they also spent a lot of time at Port Royal, Nassau, and Tortuga in the Caribbean
  • Have a Riddle Scavenger Hunt around town to lead you to gold doubloons
  • Design your own treasure chest, and then hide each others, and create a map to lead the other to it
  • Pirate Treasure Coloring Page 
  • Media: Watch Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest



Saturday: Field Trip to the Beach and/or to see a real Pirate Ship

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Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Summer Homeschooling - LEGO Week



LEGO WEEK -

  • I ordered this affordable LEGO set to use for the week
  • I wrote all the Challenges on slips of paper, put the slips in envelopes, and they got to open one each morning after our quick lesson

Monday: Invention of LEGOs



Tuesday: How LEGOs are Made


Wednesday: Build to a Plan
  • There are two ways you can use LEGOs: You can build to a plan or use your imagination to build anything you want. Today we will talk about building with a plan
  • LEGO Creator Challenge - build all 3 models in a LEGO Creator Set
  • Use your LEGO Idea Book or the ideas that came in your kit to build something



Thursday: Design & Build
  • LEGOs were created as a system to help challenge children to use their imaginations
  • Why is imagination important? 
    • It helps you discover who you are and what you want to be. It helps you see the world in a new light. Scientists, architects, chefs, they all use their imaginations to create something new the world has never seen before. Inventors create new technology that makes our world better as well as new medical treatments that save lives. 
    • Einstein said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution." We can never stop pushing the boundaries of what is "possible."
  • What is the most magnificent LEGO design you can create with your imagination?
  • Thursday: Challenge #3 - Build A Bridge Over the River (can your LEGO figurines make it to safety on the other side?) ***You'll need a big poster board and to draw on a curving, flowing river***


Friday: Entrepreneurship 
  • The creator of LEGOs was an entrepreneur. What does it mean to be an entrepreneur? 
    • You set up the business. You work for yourself. You take on the financial and legal risks. 
  • If you were your own business, what would it be?
    • What do you need? I.e. a building, employees, supplies, a product. How much would it cost? How would you get the money? I.e. borrow money from the bank by leveraging your house and car. How much would you pay your employees? How would you make your money back that you borrowed? What could happen if you don't make your money back? I.e. the bank would take your house and car from you.
  • Friday: Challenge #4 - Create the Newest Machine (what does it do?)
  • FRIDAY FAMILY TEAM CHALLENGE - Build A Race Car (Who's car wins the race?)


Saturday: Field Trip to Legoland in San Antonio, Dallas, or the closest city to you that has one

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Saturday, July 10, 2021

Summer Homeschooling - Summer Home Space Camp



SUMMER HOME SPACE CAMP -

In preparation for Space Camp, you can purchase a telescope (we found a cheap one on Amazon for about $25), or you can download the "Star Walk 2" app on Google Play or the Apple Store to show where the stars are in the sky at any given time. It also maps out the constellations for you. In addition, we purchased little astronaut suits for the kiddos from Amazon to make our astronaut training even more real and exciting.



NASA Online Resources

P.E.: Astronaut Health - 

  • Exercises to work on throughout the week: 20 body weight squats, 20 push-ups, 20 walking lunges, 30 second plank, 10 burpees (Peak Liftoff), bear crawl, crab walk, running stairs, etc. Learn how to do a somersault. Work on endurance, such as running 1/2 mile, then progressing to 1 mile, 2 miles, etc. over time 

Vocabulary - Gravity: Gravity is why our solar system (as well as space in general) is arranged the way it is. Gravity is the theory that all things with mass are attracted to each other. Gravity is what holds stars, planets, and people from just floating away. The Earth orbits around the Sun because of its gravity, the Moon orbits around the Earth because of its gravity, the Moon controls the ocean tides on Earth with its gravity, and we don't just float away from the Earth's surface because of gravity. Also, the larger something is, the more gravity it has. This is why a feather will fall slower than a bowling ball. 



Monday: Our Solar System - NASA Interactive Website

  • Media: Watch "The Magic School Bus Gets Lost in Space" on Netflix or YouTube
    • The planets in our solar system formed from a solar nebula, which was the disc of gas left over by the formation of our Sun. The temperature was too high for gases to condense close to sun, so the rocky material formed into the solid, denser terrestrial planets that are closer to the sun, and the gaseous planets formed further back.
  • Media: Solar System 101 - while watching, pay close attention to which planet is your favorite and see if you can remember some of the facts about it 
    • We are located in the Milky Way Galaxy. Why is it called the Milky Way? Because of the hazy band of light you can see in the night sky, which is made up of a vast number of faint stars that are not individually distinguishable to the naked eye. If you are in a place with no light pollution and little cloud cover, you can see the Milky Way at night. 
  • Can you tell me the names of the planets of our solar system? Can you tell me in the order of which ones are closest to the Sun to the ones that are furthest away? Why is Pluto not considered a planet anymore?
    • Mnemonic for Memorization: "My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Noodles"
  • Art: What is your favorite planet? 
    • Draw the planet and write five facts about it 
    • Based on their answers, you can order a "Celestial Buddy" as a souvenir for each of them to receive at the end of Space Camp. This is the same type of plush as "Little Earthy," whom the SpaceX Crew Dragon Team took with them to the ISS
  • Art/STEM: Solar System Project (we purchased a planetarium to paint via Amazon)
  • Literature/Reading: You can read The Big Book of Space, If You Decide to Go to the Moon, or the Faces of the Moon
  • The Moon:
    • There are many theories on how the Moon formed: Some believe the Moon was once part of Earth. They believe a meteor hit us, broke a piece of us off, and it got stuck in orbit around us while floating away. Some believe it was floating in space and was caught in the Earth's orbit. Some believe, like the video says, that we collided with another planet, and the debris from the collision formed into the Moon over time.
    • Why are there phases of the Moon? 
      • The Moon revolves around the Earth, and it is illuminated by the Sun at different angles (half of the Moon is always illuminated by the Sun, but we can't always see that full half depending on the Moon's orbit). The phases of the Moon are the angles we can see throughout the Moon's orbit. When the Moon and the Sun are on opposite sides of the Earth, we see it as a Full Moon, and when the Sun and Moon are on the same side of the Earth, we call it a New Moon, and the side we can see is not illuminated by the Sun at all. This diagram is similar to the one I drew for the kids to better understand this. 
    • The Moon is a satellite that orbits Earth. What other satellites are currently orbiting Earth?
      • Man-made satellites that assist with GPS, cell phone service, internet and TV service, military strategy and communication, etc.
      • The International Space Station (ISS) is also orbiting Earth 
  • Science: Why are there craters on the Moon? Create Craters on the Moon Experiment - put sand or flour in a cake pan, place outside on the patio or driveway, and throw objects/rocks at it to form your own craters


Tuesday: The Rest of the Universe
  • The Big Bang Theory - This is the theory that the universe started at a single point, that the mass was all in one big ball, and one day, the massive heat and pressure of it made it explode. This created the universe as it is today, and the universe continues to get bigger and vaster every day.
    • Would you like to see a video to better explain?
  • All the stars you see in the night sky are different versions of our Sun in other far off solar systems. About 6,000 or so stars are visible to the naked eye and most are about 1,000 light years away. A light year is how far light can travel in one year. We measure space in light years because light travels faster than anything else in space. 1,000 light years away means that when you look up into the sky at night, you actually have time-traveling abilities. You are looking about 1,000 years into the past to see that star because that is how long it took light to bring the vision of that star to our eyes. It even takes about 8 minutes for the light from the Sun to get to Earth, so when you see the Sun, you are actually seeing what the Sun looked like 8 minutes ago. 
  • Other Solar Systems
  • The universe is vaster than we can ever comprehend. The Milky Way Galaxy is projected to be about 150-200,000 light years long. Scientists believe that there are about 200-400 billion stars and about 100 billion planets (not all stars host planets) in our galaxy. And that's just one galaxy. Scientists believe there are about 100-200 billion galaxies in our universe, and it is continuously growing.
  • Stars 101 - Types of Stars; the Evolution of Stars
    • The brightest star in the night sky is Sirius. It is a Main Sequence star like our Sun
    • Polaris is probably the most important star system in the night sky. It is called the North Star because it is the closest star to the North Celestial Pole. It is located in the Little Dipper, and if you follow it, you will be heading North. Polaris is actually three stars: two Main Sequence stars orbiting a Yellow Super Giant
    • Red Super Giant star: Betelgeuse in the Orion constellation
  • Black Holes 101 - Black Holes are created by Supernovas (or stars imploding into themselves - gravity is constantly pulling a star together, but its fuel (hydrogen) pushes it out; eventually it runs out of hydrogen, so the gravity wins, and it folds in on itself) 
  • Constellations - look like animals, people, and inanimate objects and have been used by people since prehistory to relate to their beliefs, experiences, creation stories, or mythology
  • Art: Create constellations using marshmallows and toothpicks. You will need constellation templates, black construction paper, and a white crayon or white colored pencil. You can use the Summer Constellation Map to find a constellation to make
  • Activity: I ordered removable stick-on stars that the kids could put on the ceilings of their rooms




Wednesday: Astronauts
  • Training to be an astronaut is hard work, but this is what we/they do it for:
  • Today we earn our Astronaut Badges!
  • ASTRONAUT TRAINING:
    • Job: What job do you pick? Do you want to be a pilot, an engineer, a scientist?
    • Physical: 
      • Run in place (cannot run or walk around on ISS, so need to run the treadmill to keep your legs strong in space)
      • Crawl through tight spaces (the ISS can be tight sometimes) - you could use a pop-out tunnel or even crawl between the legs of chairs at the kitchen table for this one
      • Jump as high as you can 10 times (this will help you move around more easily during moon walks)
      • Spin around in circles 20 times without getting dizzy (the ISS will be constantly rotating while you're on there)
      • Stand on one foot, put your finger on your nose, and close your eyes for 10 counts on each foot, then walk a straight line on the ground (you could use a rope or something similar) to pass the balance test
      • Do a somersault or a cartwheel on a mat
    • Mental: 
      • Following directions (we cut out colored pieces of paper and would give directions quickly, such as yellow, green, green, green, red, yellow, red, yellow, to simulate following the directions given by Mission Control)
      • Finding patterns (such as red, green, green, red, green, what comes next?)
    • Final Test: Space walk and build a rocket fort - use your fort building kit from Scandinavia Week to make a rocket. The catch is you have to be tethered to it at all times (we used a dog leash and "D" ring), and when you want to move around, you have to hold onto the rocket with one hand and reconnect your "D" ring to another part of the rocket with the other. If you're not connected to the rocket at any time, you will float away and fail the challenge
    • Once you pass, you will receive your Astronaut Badge!
  • Media: Watch A Beautiful Planet on Hulu. This movie was filmed by astronauts at the International Space Station


Thursday: Rocket Ships
  • Now that you're officially in Astronaut Training, we need to learn how to eat like an astronaut. This is a good opportunity to explain calories and how they are converted to energy, as well as explaining a well-balanced diet (food pyramid). Metabolism is the process by which your body converts what you eat and drink into energy. During this complex process, calories in food and beverages are combined with oxygen to release the energy your body needs to focus. Fats supply the most energy at 9 calories per gram, and carbohydrates and protein provide 4 calories per gram. There are also superfoods! A low-fat diet is important to living in space because you're living in microgravity, and water is super important to give your organs and muscles the hydration they need to operate properly. The most important things to remember while living in space: Stay Strong, Stay Clean, and Stay Neat
    • Could you design an astronaut meal plan for tomorrow? Breakfast, lunch, and dinner? What are some super foods you could eat to get the most energy out of your calories?
  • How tall would you be in space? You can measure your height with a measuring tape, and you can expect a three percent growth in height while in space
  • Where can astronauts go after astronaut training? The International Space Station (ISS)!
  • The International Space Station is an in-space laboratory orbiting Earth. People from seven different countries use this laboratory to study human life in space, as well as complete experiments in space (for example: they are currently growing plants in the ISS and are attempting to grow meat in the ISS)
  • Media: SpaceX Launch
  • What do astronauts need to live in the ISS?
    • Constant supply runs to get not only oxygen, water, and food, but also tools, scientific equipment to complete experiments, clothing, medicine, and personal hygiene items such as shampoo and toothpaste (you can't live in space for six months without brushing your teeth, yuck!)
    • If your toilet stops working on the ISS, you can't just call a plumber, you have to ask the next ship to bring the tools you need to fix it yourself while you're up there 
  • What do Astronauts eat in space? Meats, fruit, nuts, peanut butter, liquid contained in pouches, and freeze-dried foods. You have to be very careful how you eat in space because, since there is no gravity, eating spaghetti on a plate will likely end up with all your noodles floating away and a meatball hitting another astronaut in the face 
    • Try Astronaut Ice Cream - We found ours at Academy Sports, but they also have it at Cabela's and Bass Pro Shop
  • Media: Living in the ISS
  • Roundtable Discussion: Plan a trip to the ISS -
    • If our family were to go to the space station for six months, what would you pack? What would be most important to you to take with you? Clothes, books, games, tablet, toys, stuffed animals, family pictures?
    • What would you want to learn while you're up there? Would you want your teacher to send you homework? Would you want to search the internet for something new, read a book, learn something functional like how to cook? 
    • What kind of exercises would you do there? Run the treadmill, jumping jacks, push ups?
    • What kind of pictures would you want to take pictures of while looking out the window at Earth below? How seasons change the Earth? How people and climate change are affecting the Earth? Storms? 
    • How would you communicate with friends and family? Pictures, phone calls, videos, e-mails?
    • How would you make sure to stay healthy while at the ISS? Wash hands, hair, brush teeth?
    • What would you do for fun? Games, tablet, soccer on the ISS?
    • What would be on your supply ship? What would you want more of? Food, games, science experiments, tools?
  • What are some things that have been created by NASA astronauts: freeze-dried food, space blankets (usually found in first aid kits), camping trailers (design originally used for sleeping quarters on ISS), UV-reflecting sunglasses (originally used on the astronaut face shields), filtering water bottles, and digital cameras
  • We've only made it to the ISS and the Moon, but someone has made it all the way to Mars. That's the current Mars Rover, Perseverance:
  • Mars Rover Games:
  • STEM: Make your own bottle rocket to blast off into space!


Friday: Aliens
  • SpaceX Launch Cont. - 
  • Navy Aviator Footage of UFOs
  • What is a UFO? An "Unidentified Flying Object"
  • What does this look like to you? B2 Stealth Bomber
    • This may look like an alien space ship, but it's actual a plane used by the U.S. Air Force
    • We have a base in the middle of the desert lovingly dubbed "Area 51." It is a Top Secret base, and most people think that we're hiding our knowledge about aliens there, but most likely it's where we make new air craft like the B2 to fight our enemies. But who knows right?
  • Why do we believe in aliens?
    • With 200 billion galaxies, with 200-400 billion stars and 100 billion planets in each one, it's hard for people to believe that we are the only life that exists. Do you believe in aliens? Why or why not?
    • Roswell Incident - In 1947, a U.S. Air Force weather/recon balloon crashed in New Mexico; many people believe this was a cover up for aliens and many people believe it was a flying saucer. Here's a picture from the wreckage. What do you think it is? An alien space ship or a weather balloon?
  • The Very Large Array is a radio astronomy observatory in New Mexico. People have speculated that we have it to communicate or spy on aliens, but we use it to listen to any and all noises that come from space, such as stars, nebulas, black holes, etc. 
  • What do we actually know about aliens?
    • They would have to be way more advanced than we are because they would have to somehow get here from a place we can't currently see with the Hubble telescope
  • Make Alien Slime
  • Media: Watch Scooby Doo and the Alien Invaders
  • At the end of the lesson, I presented Certificates of Summer Home Space Camp Completion to the kiddos, along with the Celestial Buddies I had ordered based on what they chose as their favorites planets during their project on Monday




Saturday: Field Trip to your local Planetarium, Observatory, or maybe even a meteor crater if you have one nearby
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