School updates

We continue to plug away at school.  I REALLY like the curriculum that Ethan is using, ALOT!  Ashton is using the curriculum that comes before Ethan's level and while it is a great choice as well, I think Heart of Dakota's guides get better and better each year (or perhaps as the boys grow in their skills and abilities and able to handle higher level thinking that each growing guide builds on) it is just more appealing to me?  Not sure.  I asked Ashton if he wanted to just jump into the guide I'm doing with Ethan since I'm constantly having to shoo him away from a story we are reading, or a science experiment he is doing (not because I don't want him around, but the fact that he will be doing this guide next year and I want him to hear it fresh and the first time around for him!) but he declined.  He loves the fun parts of what Ethan gets to do, but doesn't want to do the hard parts that Ethan also has to do.  Can't have one without the other.  So he'll have to wait another year to get to it!

 Ethan continues with his study of the Ice Age period.  Above he is making cave drawing like were found in some of the caves in France.  I thought he did an EXCELLENT job drawing a bull.

In the meantime, Ashton tends to get creative in creating work environments for him to study.  During one of his break times he made a cave/tent from blankets and gaming chairs.  He even brought in the reading lamp from their room so that he could see.

Ethan... proud of his completed bull cave art drawing!!

 One of Ashton's activities for the week included building (with whatever materials you have on hand) a replica of the safe houses the colonists had to build to keep the indians from being able to shoot fire arrows which would burn their houses down.  Ashton wanted to use his lincoln logs, despite the fact that they used brick and concrete which were fire resistant.  He had fun anyways!! :)

Here Ashton is working on his math in a round blanket chair he made.  He laid down their two gaming chairs on their sides, thru blankets over the top and plopped in.

 The next day, Ethan added a woolly mammoth to his cave art drawing.  Coming from a kid that drew stick figures, like yesterday, I'm SUPER DUPER proud of his artwork!

As Ethan and I continue to talk about the great Ice Age and all the theory's surrounding the timing and reasons for it, I'm LOVING how his curriculum continuously uses scripture as its reference point.   Growing up in the public school system, I never learned history this way.  Never understood history as a continuation of God's story, HIS-story.  I'm finally understand things that I could never reconcile against what I was taught in school and what God says in the Bible.

Now that we are actually learning history WITH the Word of God steeped in it, I finally get it.  We are seeing the generations of Noah as they survive in a world after the flood.  It was a tumultuous time; full of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and the volcanic ash that blocked the sun for such a period of time that caused the Ice Age.  

Ethan created a clay map of Mesopotamia and all the surrounding lakes, rivers and oceans.  Tomorrow, he's going to add water and ice to his creation!  What a great way to learn!!