Calder and Jesse = the mortified champions:
Pal made us this 'luuve' box for our Valentine notes. I'd counted on people secretly slipping in one or two messages each day the week prior. The kids laughed at my naivete, and it sat empty for six and 3/4 of those days. However, they pulled through in the eleventh hour and didn't even have to try to pawn off their old Halloween candy:
Cache stuffed in interesting and personalized article that he had clipped and saved during the week for his valentine. Mine was an article by one of my favorite authors, Orson Scott Card. Bert's was a political cartoon, and Pal's was a -how to- article on frying and shattering marbles:
Switching gears- Pal, Maddie and I have been taking a break from regular math and reading a biography on Archimedes instead. It was a love/hate relationship for Pal as we tried to wrap our minds around the Archimedean Screw:
the center of gravity:
and the law of buoyancy:
Everyday after an hour or so of reading/experimenting, Pal would place his hands on his ears and say, "Ahhh... no more...I'm done for the day.... my brain hurts!" And although I never admitted it, mine did too.I found that all the pain was worth it. When, at the end of the book, Archimedes (despite the king's edict not to kill him) is run through with the arrogant soldier's sword, Pal stood up, arms outstretched, and yelled, "WHY?! WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT?!? WHY WOULD THEY KILL THAT BRAIN!? ARGH!!"
A week later he's still stamping about and muttering. This morning he said, "I think this is going to haunt me the rest of my life!"
I love that kind of passion.
I love home school.
At least today.
Well, okay, and yesterday too-
For President's day we each took an empty bingo grid, and a book about the presidents to a private corner. Then we sat down and looked up whichever ones we wanted. We'd find an interesting tidbit and put it down by their name in one of the squares. Three rounds, and two and a half hours later, we were wishing we still had more time. Here are some of the tidbits I enjoyed:
- Coolidge was so quiet and un-smiley, that when he was reported dead, one of the reporters responded, "How could you tell?" Despite his usual manner, every morning he would ride a mechanical Horse and whoop and holler at the top of his lungs for twenty minutes.
- Carter is the first and only one to admit having seen a UFO
- John Tyler had fifteen children
- John Q. Adams died during an anti-slavery speech in congress. He gave the same speech, first thing every morning, for 18 years.
- Millard Fillmore married his high school teacher and together they were the first ones to put a stove in the White House. Nobody, including the cook, ever learned how to use it during his term.
- James Garfield would bark like a dog when people came to the door. He could also write both Greek and Latin and the same time, using one hand for one language and the other for the other language. Died of blood poisoning from the assassination attempt.
- Rutherford B. Hayes was the first president to use the phone. His phone number was '1'
- Benjamin Harrison installed electric lights but was too afraid of electrical shock to ever turn them off.
- McKinley's wife suffered epileptic seizures and her husband would protect her from embarrassment by calmly draping his handkerchief over her head. They banned the color yellow from the White House while they were there. (Reason enough for him to be assassinated.)
And lastly-
We've been anxiously waiting to see what Pal's birthday present (trap) would bring us.
Not long after setting it we heard a few promising, high pitched, rabbit like screams. We anxiously ran to see the first catch:
Here's the more productive -and quieter- second catch:
Pal said that 'smile' was too big to kill. We secretly gifted him to the neighbors - Happy Valentines/President's Day to them!
