Osoyoos Field Trip

Ivy, Ella and I really enjoyed the field trip to the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre on June 1st with the HLP. We learned a lot about rattlesnakes, local ecology and the Nk'Mip culture.





These signs were everywhere and it was almost enough to make us paranoid. The one snake we saw (other than the ones that were being released) was lounging under the walkway with a big bulge where it was digesting a small rabbit!

Witnessing a rattlesnake release!

A short learning time in the big pithouse. It was cool & shady after a warm hike.


We took the opportunity to celebrate the end of the school year. We had ice cream, spent a few hours at the beach and enjoyed the mini-golf and bumper boats at Rattlesnake Canyon. We finished up with supper at one of our favourite restaurants - the Best of India in Oliver. A wonderful end to a fun & successful year! The girls did a fantastic job of figuring out this home schooling thing.

Windmill

Ivy painted this windmill & scene from her imagination. I love the tethered horses kicking up the desert sand and the bright colours of the windmill.

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!

plants

Ivy and Ella each have their own garden box this year. They've planted their favourite vegetables and have taken pleasure in watching them sprout. We're trying to get into the habits of watering and weeding proactively!

Ivy's garden



Ella's garden




In early spring we picked up a few special indoor plants. A Venus Flytrap and a Pitcher Plant. They are both carniverous and quite unusual looking. We picked up the book Fly Traps! Plants that Bite Back by Martin Jenkins, to learn more about them.





Ivy created a science activity centre for us. The project was a caterpillar planter. It was well designed and prepared and it was a bonus that the dill and basil seeds sprouted easily.

Dragon of the Red Dawn

Ella has recently discovered the Magic Treehouse series and we finished Dragon of the Red Dawn (#37) last night. The artwork was beautiful so we were inspired to do some drawings and paintings of Japanese gardens today. They were so pleased with the results that they proceeded to play an imaginary game involving the family traveling to Japan, based on Ivy's interpretation of the Imperial Gardens from the story. We followed up with trying our hand at Haiku and short poems. The girls are developing a base of knowledge about the Japanese culture this year, including popular motifs, plants, architecture and artwork.

Ella's poem

Imperial Garden - Ella

Basho's House - Ivy

Imperial Garden with Friends - Ivy

Koi

The golden koi fish
Swimming in it's rocky pool
Quietly waiting.

-Ivy

EECO Centre - Birds of Prey

In early March we spent part of a morning at the EECO Centre at Mission Creek Park in Kelowna. Their current display is "Birds of Prey". Ivy and Ella spent most of their time looking at the various stuffed owls, noting the differences between them and listening to the sounds they make. They also leafed through magazines, did some puzzles & colouring and took advantage of the "hands on" exhibits.