Trees

Ella enjoyed going through her "Trees" unit in science this spring. It was fun to watch trees go from dormant, to budding and then to leafing out. Ella learned the life cycle of a seed using the apple tree as an example. We live beside an apple orchard so she has had the opportunity to see the cycle several times. The book How do Apples Grow by Betsy Maestro was a great supplement.

We planted a small spruce tree in an area that is likely to lose most of it's pines in the next few years. The avocado we tried to sprout for the unit hasn't done anything - yet.



Ella's art has reflected the focus on the tree unit and she's made some wonderful paintings. Jeremy took her on a photo walk where she had her own camera. She has a good eye for catching repeated designs in things and got this interesting shot of a tree stump.

dandelion science

Our family is making an effort to become more familiar with the local ecology and make use of naturally occurring plants, particularly edible ones. Ivy found a great recipe for dandelion fritters so we tried it out. The girls collected the heads and Ivy mixed up the ingredients. I fried the battered heads in oil and we snacked on them. They got mixed reviews but it was a very cool way to make use of them! We also pick and wash the greens thoroughly to add to salads.

Music

Earlier this spring the girls attended a James Ehnis concert (violin with pianist) and the students performance of the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra. They wrote brief reviews on the James Ehnis concert (included in portfolio).

Ivy has put great effort into improving her fiddle songs this term to the point where she has been invited to perform with the "FiddleKidz". She attends a private lesson twice a month and goes to the home learners group lesson on alternate weeks. Friday afternoons she practices with the FiddleKidz. She performed with the home learners group at Carmi Elementary. She had an opportunity to play with the FiddleKidz at the Okanagan Children's Festival, both in their own show and as live music for the celtic dancers. Ella enjoyed attending the shows and is going to pursue highland dancing in the fall.

yard play

These are some of the ways the girls have been getting exercise this spring. They have been playing tag, skipping, making obstacle courses, playing on the slide, gardening and generally running around!