In this recap, I am going to share what we did at home for more hands-on learning related to Classical Conversations Cycle 3 Week 19: Bible, History, Geography, and Science memory work. I will also link our favorite picture books, my tutor board, and a preview of my week 20 plans.
Let's dive right into what we did for Week 19!
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Bible:
Resource: Foundations of the Bible vol.3 | Bible Memory Songs | Hymnology Cards
For week 19, we learned about the life of Paul, aka Saul of Tarsus. Paul was from the tribe of Benjamin (just like King Saul), a Pharisee, and was well-trained in the Mosaic Law. He persecuted the early Christian church terribly but was transformed through faith in Jesus Christ. He wrote most of the New Testament and shared the gospel with the Gentiles.
Note: This study pairs with each week of the CC optional Bible memory work, but you can go at your own pace because there is SO much to learn. You can also jump in at any time — it’s not too late. Anyone can do this study, not just CC families. Learn more about the Foundations collection here.
History:
Resource: Story of the World Book (Match Up List) | Story of the World Series | Real Cool History for Kids Podcast
Activity: Make a globe | Draw or Color the NATO Flag
Related Articles: Symbols of NATO Flag | 10 Things About NATO | Members of NATO
This week, we learned about NATO. We colored the NATO flag and learned what it represents. The blue is the Atlantic Ocean, the star is a compass, and the circle represents unity. My younger kids made the Scribblers globe craft to represent the nations that united to form NATO.
To make the globe, you just need a balloon, tissue paper, and glue or flour. You paint the tissue paper onto the blown-up balloon using glue mixed with water or flour and water. In 24 hours, it will harden, and you can paint it. Once all dry, pop the balloon, and you are left with a hollow globe.
Science:
Resources: Learning with Friends Year 3 Bundle | CC Connected Sandbox File
Activity: Learning with Friends lemon volcano activity | Hydrogen Ion Cards
This week, we learned about the difference between an acid and a base. We made a lemon volcano from the Learning with Friends science unit. This helped show how an acid and base react together. For tutoring, I put the kids in 2 groups to represent a base and acid. The acids were given a hydrogen ion symbol to “donate” to the bases when we sang our song. That helped cement the concept. Download the cards here.
Geography:
Resources: CC Sandbox Geography page | Drawing the USA Natural Wonders
Activity: Draw trails on free USA natural wonders map | Make Johnny Cakes | Oregon Trail Podcast by Bedtime History - also on YouTube
I absolutely love the Draw the USA book for this cycle! We are easily able to identify the trails and draw them on our large maps. Our geography lesson has turned into a history lesson as well! We listened to a podcast about life on the Oregon Trail while the kids drew a buffalo (Podcast Link Here). Then, we made Johnny Cakes — a traditional food they would have eaten. We are also reading this book that is a diary of a little girl who is moving west on the Oregon Trail with her family.
Library Books:
Here are some books related to the weekly memory work.
- Across the Wide and Lonesome Prairie: The Oregon Trail Diary of Hattie Campbell by Kristiana Gregory (Geography)
- Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay by Susan Hood (Fine Arts)
- Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin (History) — We read this last year with Cycle 2 and loved it! We read it in one day because we were hooked.
- A Child's Introduction to the Orchestra by Robert Levine (Fine Arts)
- Grandfather Buffalo by Jim Arnosky (Geography) — A cute book about an animal that would have been seen on the trails.
- How Many People Traveled the Oregon Trail by Miriam Aronin (Geography)
- I See the Sun in Russia by Dedie King (Fine Arts and History) —This gives a glimpse of living in Russia which is what the history sentence discusses. Also, the orchestra composer for week 20 is from Russia.
- Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed by Leslea Newman (Fine Arts)
- Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot by Margot Theis Raven (History)
- That's a Possibility by Bruce Goldstone (Hands on Science)
- Some Creatures Have all the Luck by Ana Gerhard (Fine Arts)
- The wall: growing up behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis (History)
Tutoring: How to Make a Tutor Board
Here’s my tutor board for week 19.
Tutor Plans:
Here is what I did with my class of 8-9 year olds.
Math: Sing the geometry song while doing “mathercise.” (jumping jacks, lunges, etc.)
English: Sing the sentence to the tune BINGO. Kids had to point to themselves for "subject" and then pick an action move to do for "verb."
History: Taught the song and hand motions, and then read the sentence with silly words. We marched around the room while singing the song because the tune makes you want to march.
Science: We sang the memory work to my YouTube song. Then I divided the class in half and made one half the bases and the other acids. Those who were acids had a flash card of a hydrogen ion. As we sang the song, the had to "donate" their hydrogen ion to the bases and the bases had to "accept" it. We did this several times, reversing their roles. Cards Here
Latin: Teach hand motions and play musical chairs to the Kings Thing song. I have 2 less chairs than there are kids so 2 kids get out each time (makes the game go faster). The first and second place winners get to go first for presentation.
Geography: We sang the memory work to "I've been working on the railroad." Have the kids find them on their black line masters. I also brought the kids Johnny Cakes to try so they could see what food they ate on the Oregon Trail.
Timeline: Our community enjoys doing the hand motions, so I read the new sentences and then taught all the hand motions. Then we sing and do it all together.
YouTube: Week 19 Playlist
I created my first YouTube channel to record all the songs and hand motions I want to use with the kids. I've compiled each subject's songs into a weekly playlist. I create this primarily to help the parents in my class review the motions with their kids at home. I also think this is a great resource for other tutors to use to build their plans for the week.
Preview: My Plans for Week 20 Activities
Several people have asked if I could share my plans in advance. While I won't be able to show pictures of everything until I do the recap, I can share my preliminary ideas I plan to do going into week 20. I share this to help those who are a week ahead of me and looking for ideas.
Geography: We will map the canals using the Draw the Natural Wonders of the USA book. We will memorize to the song tune “You Are My Sunshine” on my YouTube channel.
Science: We will be painting a picture of a galaxy inspired by the James Webb Telescope images. Those images just make you stand in awe of the glory of the Lord! We are using a tutorial from an IG reel I found by @artsyblevs (posted July 2022).
History: We will read picture books about Brown v. Board of Education. We will do the CC activity of writing a letter to Ruby Bridges (the first African American child to attend a formerly whites-only school in Louisiana). Then, we might watch the Ruby Bridges movie on Disney. I haven’t screened this yet though FYI. Norman Rockwell (an artist we learned about last quarter) has a painting inspired by Ruby Bridges.
Fine Arts: This week we are learning about Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. He composed the ballet Swan Lake. My kids and I actually learned about him this week. We read a book about Swan Lake and then we watched The Princess Swan (had to rent it). I loved that movie as a child and was excited to learn it was actually based on the ballet Swan Lake.
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