Buoyancy Equation

Sathya and I both learned about buoyancy, and with a little help from his rocket scientist dad, we did an experiment based on the following principle:

We did not discuss water displacement, which is interesting, but I thought that might be a little too advanced for Sathya (though I got to hear a mini-lecture about it from Alex, haha).  But we did construct two boats out of Play doh: one Sathya made, and one that I made.  The key was to make the boat flat on the bottom, not too heavy, and with enough surface area so that the water could hold it afloat.

Sathya made his round with a passenger; I made mine with raft-like constructs on the bottom.  We left ours overnight to dry.  Unfortunately, Sathya's did not float.  Mine floated until water seeped into it (faulty construction), and then the weight of the water pushed it down:

Next time Sathya said he would make a more "buoyant boat."  It's neat how interested Sathya is in science now, and how fun it can be when you're little and it can still be applied and tested and still make sense!  

Speaking of which, a funny anecdote: the other day Sathya was complaining about why he was not hungry, and he said it was because the cupcake he'd eaten had only made its way to the bottom of his large intestine.  The kid's learning, at least.

Oral Reporting and Yoga

This week Sathya presented his first oral report ever on Stegosaurus.  It was so darn cute.  In the morning, he had written two pages on a couple of key facts he remembered about the dinosaur from our museum visit the week prior.  Then he made a model of a Steg, painted it, and then practiced his speech.  He started with, "Hello, my name is Sathya," and then went on to read his report, making sure he made eye contact, and he concluded with a fact he remembered on his own.  Something about the dino having a brain the size of four walnuts.  The kid remembers the strangest things!

We have also been working on our yoga poses, which we can do with Anand as well. Since Anand was a newborn, I have been working from a book called Itsy Bitsy Yoga, which is an amazing resource.  Sathya and I helped Anand do a few poses from there (Hop Along Yogi; Tada; I Love You, Dandasana).  Sathya got to do a headstand and the wheel.

Natural History Museum

My son didn't whine or complain or scream or throw fits on seven different occasions (thus earning seven stickers), so he got to choose what we did for the day.  He chose the history museum.

This week is a little unusual because my husband Alex is home during the day, working a strange shift at night.  So I have been giving my son a free pass week (which we do when we go on vacation or when people are visiting or when one of the kids is sick), where we do light lessons, nothing structured.  That way he gets to spend time with his dad, and we get to do things together as a family.

I won't have a whole lot of information to post this week about what we did since it probably won't interest you (we get a little goofy when we are all together; barrel hugs and anthropomorphic elephants and mama robots come out of the woodwork).  Next week, however, Sathya will be working on a report about Stegosaurus (which he will present in front of the living room), the dinosaur he picked from the museum this week, and I have a slew of lessons I've been thinking about having him do.  I also want next week to be a bit more active, so we will throw in some kid yoga and other activities that Anand can do too.

The museum was a lot of fun.  Sathya liked the dinos best, but we did come across something we wouldn't want showing up on our doorstep asking for milk:

This slender fella is called a lungfish, a remnant of fish that existed during dinosaur times.  We have seen it at the museum since we moved to New Mexico over four years ago.  It has moved location, but I think it's the same fish.  Is it?  How would we know?  And how long do these things live?

Last but not least, here's a display that made me think of when my husband and I fight (I of course am the dino looking at the camera going WTF?):

(Just kidding hubby, if you are reading...)

Monday - Beep and Bop

Today my children were taken by their father to the library for Beep and Bop, a music and movement program for children four and up.  The theme of the program was colors.

Once they got back, Sathya did his writing lesson.  He has a hard time focusing on his writing; it is definitely not his favorite thing, but we practice every other day.  We use a reusable writing board that was given to him at a birthday party. I try to encourage him with stickers, and I am a stickler for neatness (as I feel it encourages persistence and accomplishment and attention to detail).

Later today we have a playdate at a friend's house. 

The Beginning

I have a four-year old and a nine-month old. When I made the decision not to send my son to school last year (despite some frowns and naysayers who were convinced my husband and I were making the wrong decision), I came up with a plan to keep him both stimulated and playful.

I decided that teaching my sons is so much fun that I want to blog about it and tell others what I'm doing and how it's working.  My emphasis is on practical lessons that are cost-effective and mostly use what we already own (or recyclables).  Earth and humanely conscious.

Every day, we start with an activity board.  (See below.  The board is a little crazy because I insist on reusing and teaching my son about recycling, and because... well, we're a little crazy.;) ) Flash cards are made of different activities.  "Reading" and "Writing" are done everyday on alternate days as is the "Anand" card, which means interacting with my younger son, and "Quiet Time".  My son gets to pick some of his lessons; I pick some.  Then we carry out our day in no particular order: his lessons and activities get done as time permits throughout the day.

So far, so good.  My son Sathya began reading on his own (!) by age four.  My younger son Anand is being stimulated at a young age by the lessons that Sathya is learning. Caveat: note that most of these lessons are geared toward Sathya and done with Sathya only; when Anand is a little older, he will begin participating in the activity board.  (I do teach him things too, but I won't blog about that right now.)

I hope you will read my blog and share with me some of the things you are doing to help educate our kids.  It's not just about the learning; it's about empathy and kindness.  Knowing how to open the door for a stranger, ask an elderly person if he needs any help with his groceries.  I try to involve my children in lessons that are applicable to real life.

I've been doing this for months, but am only getting around to blogging about it now.  I'll blog about good days and not-so-good days.  Little lessons, big lessons, boring lessons, fun lessons.

Friday was a good day.  We did our reading lesson in the morning.  Sathya went over his "ch" and "sh" sounds.  For our science experiment, we drew a life-size model of Sathya  (on old packing paper) and talked about the digestive system. Esophagus (a roll of paper towel), stomach, a fifteen foot small intestine (leftover yarn from a project years ago), and the large intestine.  No longer will I have to face the question: Amma, where does my food go?

Sathya and Anand also helped with laundry chores and hung up cloth diapers to dry.