Money Talk – My son is way out of the commerce loop, so I wondered if he had any sort of grasp on what things cost. I gave a multi-choice quiz last night to probe, and asked about the cost of such things as a car, a carton of orange juice, a haircut, a house, an iPod, and the cost of admission to Disneyland.

Just as I suspected, he has no idea, so we are going to work on this. I will start bringing the newspaper’s automotive section, real estate section, and grocery store circulars to STORIES AND STUDIES. We will thumb through the sections to get ideas of prices.  Please let this be more interesting than I am projecting.

The Clock Unit – There is a lot to learn about clocks (sun dials, water clocks, hour glasses, weights, springs, pendulums), and the book we just finished covers the clock development time-line rather well. I am sorry to say that the author lost our attention by repeatedly inserting unfamiliar terms (without explanation) into his text.  The illustrations are really nice, but alas, we were not sad to turn the final page of this book.  Our next unit is “Wonders of the World” and I am pretty excited! (hope springs eternal)

Our Science Unit – from the “Usborne Book of Scientists” we continued learning about THE FIGHT AGAINST DISEASE.   Last night: RABIES! Tonight: GERMS!  What can I say? Awesome.

Novel – We finished “Under the Egg” by Laura Marx Fitzgerald.  Good book for us: well written and we learned bits about World War II, the Renaissance painter Raphael, oil paint chemistry, the concept of self-reliance, AND the ending was most satisfying.

Our “Le Fictitious Local Diner” Story Problem – Last night’s story problem dealt with the number of sweet potato and marshmallow casseroles needed by the diner for Thanksgiving. For silliness, we calculated the exact number of mini marshmallows required to fit atop each casserole (new vocab word).

 

Music Theme – Pizzicato!  Pizzicato,  for those who were deprived of any sort of musical education due to school districts slashing funds from the fine arts departments, is the technique of plucking a stringed instrument, rather than bowing. Neat sound – always sounds like sneaky tiptoeing.

• Leo Delibes’ “Divertissement – Pizzicati” from his ballet, “Sylvia”.  A short and sweet classic.
• Tchaikovsky’s “Symphony 4, movement III”.  This could be background music for people tiptoeing madly about getting ready for a surprise party.  I am pretty sure this is what Tchaikovsky had in mind.
• Edvard Grieg’s “Anitra’s Dance” from his “Peer Gynt Suite”.  It’s pizzicato city as ALL of the orchestra’s stringed instruments (violin, viola, cello, and bass) get to take turns plucking away.  And if that weren’t enough, Grieg has composed a deliciously sinister melody that brings to mind robbers and thieves darting in and out of dark places.

Welcome to the best part of my day!

– Jane BH