Appalachian Trail Unit Study Review

Recently, we were given the opportunity to review the Appalachian Trail Unit Study from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine for The Schoolhouse Review Crew.

Have you ever wanted to learn more about the Appalachian Trail? We have and we live in the Appalachian Trail. The Appalachian Trail is a 2160 mile footpath that goes from Maine to Georgia. We have been along the trail in Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee.  Exploring and learning about nature is a wonderful way for kids to learn about the world around them and to appreciate the beautiful world God has given them. We love exploring the woods in our area, hiking various trails, and splashing in local rivers.
The unit study was great for learning about other areas and start planning for future vacations. America is amazing and the Appalachian Trail is just one of the beautiful places to visit.

So let's begin our adventure of the Appalachian Trail!

In this unit study, kids will learn about the Appalachian Trail. They will get to explore the various geographical locations, study the various plants and animals found along the trail, learn the history of the trail, see what is involved when you go camping, and learn about what you need when you head out into the wilderness.
Did you know that Benton MacKaye proposed the notion of the Appalachian Trail in 1921? We didn't. The trail wasn't completed until August of 1937!
I'll be honest our knowledge of the trail was very limited. I wasn't even sure where the trail started. I just knew we lived somewhere in the middle of the trail.
You can find out more about the trail at the Appalachian Trail website.

I love doing unit studies with my kids. It allows us to dig deep into a topic, while we add the "regular" subjects in. It's a great way to break up the "boring" school day. Lego Man loves doing unit studies. He enjoys learning all about a topic and soaking up all that information he can get. I love how spelling, writing, history, math, science, and geography can all be added into the study. It makes learning fun. Sometimes, the kids don't even realize that they are learning the basics. It's a lot more fun to do hands-on learning than plain, old boring workbooks (at least my kids think so).

To go along with our unit study, we checked out a few books from our local library. We read a few non-fiction books. Our library had a limited selection but a variety of books are suggested in the unit study giving you plenty to choose from. We also read a few fiction books. I love adding literature to our studies. Some of our favorite fiction books about the Appalachian Mountains are The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills, My Great-Aunt Arizona by Gloria Houston (Princess P loved this book when she was 5), and When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant, Since we are in the Advent season, we picked up The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree by Gloria Houston to read too.

After reading through a few books and searching through various websites, we did some of the lesson ideas recommended in the unit study. I love the variety of ideas suggested. One day, we were counting squirrels or downy woodpeckers. I was able to give the kids math problems involving their numbers. Both kids got a chance to graph their findings. The next day, we were working on our nature sketch book. Trying to draw animals accurately can be down right tricky at times.
I planned a fun writing exercise where the kids got to write a story about an animal that could be found along the Appalachian trail. Lego Man picked a black bear (of course) and Princess P picked the blue swallowtail butterfly. She loves to see them when we visit Tennessee.

Instead of the normal report about an topic, I had them create their own funny story. They loved it!

Of course, we can't forget physical education. What better way for kids to get exercise than to go out hiking through the woods, walking up a mountain, or playing in a creek. The hike to Clingmans Dome is not an easy one, especially for little ones.

Source~ Wikipedia Commons

When we visited Clingmans Dome a few years ago, the kids were 3 and 4,  they rested at every bench they came across. It was well worth the hike...the view from the top was breath taking. Just make sure you take a sweater. It's a little chilly at the top!

The suggestions in the unit study are wonderful. They offer every family a variety of activities that can be done in all areas of the world and be done by a variety of ages. You can study the geography, history, science, and art of the Appalachian Trail. You can add in physical education, home economics, math, English, writing, spelling, vocabulary, etc. The possibilities are endless. You can spend a few weeks on the unit study or you can really dig deep and spend an entire year on the topic. We enjoyed our short study of the Appalachian so much that I am thinking of spending more time on it. It would be a fantastic way to learn about how the seasons affect the trail..... what happens to the plants and animals, what do you need to do differently when you go hiking, etc.

For me, the only drawback of this unit study was it being winter. I much prefer to head outdoors when it's warm, but that's just me. The kids didn't mind the cold weather at all.

The Appalachian Trail Unit Study from The Old School House is a fantastic unit study! It's fun and educational for both kids and parents. I would recommend it to anyone wanting to learn about our wonderful country.

~Till Next Time,

 Monique

Air and Space Museum Field Trip

A few weeks ago, we visited Washington, D.C. for Lego Man's birthday. Almost every year for his birthday, we head to some museum in Washington D.C.  We have been to the natural History Museum, the American Histroy Mueseum, the Udvar-Hazy Museum in Dulles, and the D.C. Zoo. Obviously, we have visited a few a couple of times. It's sort of a tradition now. It started when he was two. He asked Daddy to go see the dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum. Gotta love a kids who LOVES visiting museums!

So this year, he chose the Air and Space Museum downtown. We have already visited the Udvar Hazy Museum in Dulles a few times already, so he was interested in seeing how this one compared.
We hit a little bit of traffic on the way in but overall it was rather easy. It's nice when you live a few hours away. You can live out in the sticks but can head into town and see the "fine culture" when you want.

We saw the beginning development of aircrafts, the early pioneers.

The Wright Brothers

Their first flight

We saw Amelia Earhart's plane.

A storybook that Amelia Earhart helped create. She didn't think there were enough books about planes for children.

It was very cute!

We saw planes from World War 1 and World War 2.

We saw some of the first space crafts and saw how space technology has come a long way.

I still don't think I would like to head into space. The spacecrafts just look like tin cans to me.

They had a wonderful hands on exhibit from NASA for kids(and adults) called Moving Beyond Earth. The kids had fun trying out the exhibits. They even got an opportunity to try their hand as a mission control flight director. Mom did too...sadly my mission ended rather too quickly. I didn't lose any astronauts though.

They had a wonderful exhibit called Explore the Universe. It was great! They talked about all the great scientists that the kids will be learning about later this year.....Galileo, Copernicus,and Kepler.

The museum is two floors and filled with all types of planes, space crafts, and hands on exhibits. It is a great place for kids to learn about planes, history, and space. We were there for 5 hours and still didn't see it all!

If you don't live close by, they do have some online exhibits that you can check out on their website.

You can head on over to see for yourself.

Till next time

~Monique

Classically Catholic Memory~ Gamma Year Week 2

Religion~
This week, we are learning the chief marks of the Church. I found a brief description of the Marks of the Church at Loyola Press. You can find an explanation for younger kids here. While researching online, I found a more in depth explanation at Saint Charles Borromeo Catholic Church website. You can find that here. It gives an explanation and sites bible verses and references the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
We did a fun craft for their religion notebooks called We are the Church from Look to Him and Be Radiant.

We prayed The Apostles Creed and talked about how we say the Chief marks of the Church every Sunday at Mass.

Update: I just found a wonderful lap book about the four marks of the church from Crusaders for Christ!

Geography~
Of course we labeled the map. We actually did this last week. We have been  naming the continents and the oceans for the past two weeks.

We filled in the Name the Oceans Worksheet. Found here. We added the Southern Ocean to our learning.

At the end of the 4th week, I gave the kids a test to see if they could label and name all the continents and oceans.

Great Words~
We continued on with our learning the poem about Christopher Columbus.

At the beginning of the week, the kids write the new stanza into their copy work notebooks. We then repeat the poem twice each day. Both of them have been given a copy of the poem, so they can practice it at night or when they have free time. So far, Princess P is leading!

Math~
Counting by 3's! We just count by threes....I also have the kids count items by threes....like buttons, pennies, pretzels. It's a great way to reinforce multiplication.

Latin~

We have continued to listen and learn the Salve Regina by using the Chant Kit Cd. We love the Gregorian chant and it really is easy for the kids to follow along. The monks sing low and clear. It has helped the kids pick up on the pronunciation. We sing all 4 lines about 5 times each day.

History~
We learned about the Mayans, the Aztecs, and the Incas. We filled in our explorer note booking pages for Cortes, Coronado, and Ponce de Leon from Homeschool Share.  I created the page for Pizarro. You can find that sheet here.

We read Our Lady of Guadalupe by Tomie de Paola.

We colored a picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe from Catholic Playground. You can read more about Our Lady and Juan Diego here. 

You can two more lesson ideas for Our Lady of Guadalupe here....

Archdiocese of Baltimore

Ave Maria Press

Science~
This week, we learned what an element was! We checked out a few books from our library to learn more about elements.


                                 

We created some elements using a kit from Hobby Lobby I got on clearance. Everyone loves a good deal!

Ammonia NH3

Methane CH4

I think they look like giraffes that are missing a leg.

Propane C3H8

One of the cats stole a hydrogen ball

and of course WATER!

H2O

Here is a similar set


or you can just use colored marshmallows or gumdrops with some toothpicks. I figured there was less chance of the kids eating the Styrofoam balls. Of course, we did lose some to this sweet little kitty.

~Till Next Time

Monique

A Beautiful Day for a Field Trip

This past week, we had a wonderful time on a field trip with our Monday co-op. This year, we are studying the early explorers of America and the colonial life in America all the way through the War of 1812.

So we headed to the Frontier Culture Museum. It has a fabulous display of early American homes and homes from the "Old World." We toured the New World since we are currently learning about Jamestown and the early settlements in America.

We started out touring the Native American village. The kids were able to explore a Native American village. They stepped back in time and were able to see how a young Native American child would have lived.

They got to try their hand at carving out a canoe.

They ground up corn.

They were able to look at tanned hides, animal furs, and even played a few games that Native American children played.

From there, we went on to explore an early American farm from the 1740's. The children got to see a one room house. They learned about different types of crops the early settlers would have planted. They even got to help the young lady at the farm spread manure in her garden.

We left the 1700's and jumped forward into the future. We explored a farm from the 1820's.

                            

Here the kids got to visit with some farm animals..chickens, sheep, pigs, a turkey, and a house cat to keep the mice away.

They learned how to cook on an open fire. The learned how to spin wool. 

They even helped with a few farm chores. They brought water to the house for washing.

The children visit a one room school and were taught by the school master. They had a handwriting lesson and a spelling lesson.

The kids had so much, but sadly we ran out of time. They all have asked to go back and see the "Old World" section. I see another field trip in the future. I'm thinking we will make it for the spring when we know the weather will be even more beautiful.