Posts Tagged ‘apples’

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Amazing, Engaging Math Videos and More!

January 10th, 2011

Hi!  It’s Monday, January 10, 2011 and time for Math at ClickSchooling!
 
Recommended Website:
Vi Hart

Age Range: All (As always, parents should preview the site to determine suitability of content.)

Vi Hart calls herself a “recreational mathemusician.” She writes and performs music and integrates it with her hobby which is “mathematics with special interests in symmetry, polyhedra, and surreal complexity.”  Her website offers engaging videos that illustrate fascinating ways to think about and use math.

When you get to the site you’ll see a selection of recent posts to her blog. At the time of this review, there is a terrific video that offers a new rendition of a classic Christmas carole called, The 12 Days of Christmath. Don’t miss it! :)

Use the menu on the left side of the screen to explore Vi’s work including:

*Math Doodling: Enjoy a series of delightful videos that emphasize the joy and benefit of doodling in math class.

*Mathematical Food: Slice apples into platonic solids or arrange candy corn into Sierpinski’s Triangle.

*Balloons: Make a tetrahedron with balloons.

*Paper Instruments: Make working musical instruments out of paper including a recorder, didgeridoo, flute, xylophone, and more!

*Music Box: Make a music box with a mobius strips.

*Beadwork: Have fun making hyerbolic beadwork.

You can also listen to Vi’s musical compositions, and read her papers that include:

  • Symmetry and Transformations in the Musical Plane
  • Computational Balloon Twisting: The Theory of Balloon Polyhedra
  • Using Binary Numbers in Music

Vi also offers a weekly podcast called, Storia: Fantastic Fiction and Magical Music. As explained at the website, “Each episode is written, composed, and performed by Vi Hart. Most stories are kid friendly (but check the description).”

And for Harry Potter fans, there are excerpts from Vi’s original classical composition, Harry Potter Septet, that includes seven movements, seven voices, inspired by the seven-book Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling.

NOTE: There is a lot of content on the site, and I was not able to review it all. Because it is not specifically designed for children, AS ALWAYS, parents should preview the site to determine suitability of content for their own kids.

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Virtual Tour – See How Apple Cider Is Made

September 3rd, 2010

Hi!  It’s Friday, September 3, 2010 and time for a Virtual Field Trip at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Weaver’s Orchard: Cider Press Virtual Tour

Age Range:  About 8 and up  (non-readers will need assistance)

September is apple-picking time!  This website offers a free, very brief virtual tour to see how apple cider is made.

When you get to the site you’ll see a picture with a text explanation of what you’re viewing. To the left of the picture you’ll see a small menu. Click on the arrows above the menu to see each picture in the virtual tour that includes information on:

  • Grinding the apples
  • Preparing the cider press
  • Pressing the apples to make cider
  • Bottling the cider

When you’re through with the tour, click on the “Photo Gallery” and click on the arrows to see a variety of pictures of Weaver’s Orchard in every season. 

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Virtual Field Trip to Old Sturbridge Village

May 14th, 2010

Hi! It’s Friday, May 14, 2010 and time for a Virtual Field Trip at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Old Sturbridge Village

A Maryland ClickScholar recommended this website that offers a free virtual tour of Old Sturbridge Village to experience early New England life from 1790-1840. This is the companion website to one of the country’s largest living history museums where a staff of historians in costume reenact village life.

As explained at the website, the museum has “59 historic buildings on 200 acres, three authentic water-powered mills and two covered bridges. Visitors can ride in a stagecoach, view antiques, heirloom gardens, meet the farm animals, and take part in hands-on crafts year-round.”

The website offers the opportunity to explore this living history museum without leaving home.  When you get to the website, click on the map to take a photographic tour of the museum that is accompanied by text explanations of the exhibits that include:

*Friends Meetinghouse: Members of the Society of Friends were also called Quakers and had a distinctive way of life. 
 
*Tin Shop: In the 1830s, tinware shops competed successfully with pottery stores. 
 
*Salem Towne House: This Federal-style dwelling was the home of a prosperous farmer.  
   
*Printing Office: Rural printing offices produced books, broadsides, bills, and pamphlets. 
 
*Cider Mill: Cider mills used horsepower to press apples into cider, the region’s favorite domestic beverage. 
 
When you’re through taking the tour, use the menu on the left to learn more – and get some old-time recipes for Potted Cheese, Gourd Soup, and Marlborough Pudding.

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Posted in social sciences, Virtual Field Trip

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Virtual Midnight Ride of Paul Revere

April 16th, 2010

Hi! It’s Friday, April 16, 2010 and time for a Virtual Field Trip at ClickSchooling!

Recommended Website:
Paul Revere House: Virtual Midnight Ride

Age Range: 8 and up (approximately)
 
“On the evening of April 18, 1775, Paul Revere was sent for by Dr. Joseph Warren and instructed to ride to Lexington, Massachusetts, to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that British troops were marching to arrest them.”  At this website you can take a free Virtual Midnight Ride of Paul Revere’s historic trip.

When you get to the site you’ll see an interactive map. Simply click on the points of interest and a pop-up window will appear with a photograph or illustration of the location and some interesting text about its historical significance.

Or you can click on the links below the map to take Revere’s virtual ride in chronological order that includes:

  • Paul Revere being rowed across the Charles River
  • Paul Revere on horseback riding toward Lexington
  • Isaac Hall House where Revere alerted the Minute Men
  • Hancock-Clark House – Where Revere warned Hancock and Adams
  • Revere Capture Site

Once you’ve taken the Virtual Midnight Ride – don’t miss the rest of this Paul Revere Website.  Use the menu in the center of the page to explore:

*The Real Story of Revere’s Ride

*Read Revere’s Own Words – His account of the event.

*Enjoy Longfellow’s Poem – “Listen, my children, and you shall hear of the Midnight Ride of Paul Revere.”

Then, click on “Just for Kids” on the menu on the left side of the page to access instructions for fun colonial-era activities such as:

  • Games in the 1700s that the Revere children played
  • Make a Colonial Snack: Dried Apples
  • Make an Herbal Remedy: Mint Tea
  • Download a Free Crossword Puzzle

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Posted in social sciences, Virtual Field Trip

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See How Funnel Cakes Are Made!

September 18th, 2009

Recommended Website:
Fun Carnival Foods: Funnel Cakes

I went to the County Fair this summer and was intrigued by the long lines of people waiting to purchase Funnel Cakes. I didn’t have the patience to stand in line to see what the fuss was all about – so I found a great website that explains why these treats are so popular.

When you get to the site simply read the text that describes what Funnel Cakes are and how to make them. Then, scroll to the bottom of the screen to watch a video of Funnel Cakes in production.

Warning: May produce a craving for Funnel Cakes!

This is part of a larger website called FunCarnivalFoods.com that offers videos that show a variety of carnival foods being made, including Snow Cones, Smoothies, Caramel Apples, Cotton Candy and more. Simply click on the names of the foods on the menu that is on the left side of the page, or access the info directly from the home page.

Enjoy!

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New! Johnny Appleseed Curriculum!

September 6th, 2009

New! Johnny Appleseed Curriculum!

Hi! I sent this notice out once before, but thought with summer vacations, etc., some of you may have missed it. Here it is again…

How are you planning to kick-start the new homeschool year?

Our family marked the beginning of each new year by taking a trip to the Gizdich Apple Ranch in Watsonville, California. We took a tour of the facility, learned all about the apple-agri business, and saw apples crushed to make cider. Then, we headed into the apple orchards to pick a 1/2 bushel of Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Pippin apples. After picking apples, we’d go to the barn where they served delicious apple pie and apple dumplings – yum!

Our annual homeschool ritual tied in nicely with the birthday of John Chapman (aka Johnny Appleseed) on September 26th. We’d listen to his biography on CD, make apple recipes, and do craft activities with apples. My sons eventually outgrew the apple crafts – but they loudly objected when I suggested they may have outgrown our annual tradition. Even as teens they enjoyed the family trek to pick apples in September! :)

I thought some of you might want to adopt a similar tradition – or just learn more about American History through the engaging facts, legends, and lore of Johnny Appleseed!

As I mentioned, Johnny Appleseed’s birthday is September 26th – and you and your family can get a head start on the celebration with….

HOMEFIRES’ JOHNNY APPLESEED CURRICULUM!

This innovative and educational 48-page eBook by homeschool mom Fran Wisniewski (and edited by yours truly) is designed for kids in grades K-7 – and the whole family will enjoy the learning activities. This eBook includes:

  • An accurate account of the life and times of Johnny Appleseed
  • Folk legends and lore about Johnny Appleseed
  • Illustrations and pictures
  • Fun and fascinating apple-themed projects
  • Lesson plans in language arts, math, and geography
  • Hands-on apple science experiments
  • Apple recipes and craft ideas!

Click on the array of embedded links in the resource pages to visit other Johnny-themed websites with apple coloring books, art projects, songs, books, games, links to you-pick apple orchards, and more.

Regardless of the methodology you use, these fun activities will jump-start learning all year long!

Get more info and see sample pages on this Homefires’ exclusive here:

http://www.homefires.com/store/appleseed.asp

Happy Homeschooling!

Diane

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Posted in art, language arts, math, science, social sciences

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