Shayleigh becomes a Junior Ranger!

Our first "official" day of school started with a field trip. Uncle Troy is in town, and he is a Civil War buff, along with Pop Pop, so it was about time Shayleigh got to see what hanging with them in their element was all about. It's no secret that she loves Abraham Lincoln, so I knew she would love visiting Civil War battlefields. We headed up north about 20 miles to the Monocacy National Battlefield. I don't remember if I've ever been there, but it was nice. Shayleigh was hoping to see some dead soldiers or something, I don't really know what goes on in her mind, but I'm happy to report we didn't see any.

First stop was to the visitors center. Outside, there was a "canyon," as Shayleigh called it. She's so funny. I took a picture of her with it and she was afraid to stand right in front of it because "Canyons are deadly!"

Can you see the worry in her face?

Inside there were some displays about Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, John Wilkes Booth, and some other important people during the Civil War. She's only 5, so she doesn't know EVERYTHING about the Civil War yet, but she's learning.

Taking it all in.

We stopped by the desk and talked with a volunteer who  told us about the Junior Ranger Program they have with the National Parks. Well, of course Shayleigh wanted to be a Junior Ranger. So he gave her a booklet full of 12 different activities to fill out throughout her visit at the Park. She only needed to complete 4 because of her age.

So with booklet in hand, we headed up to the museum on the second floor. It was a small museum, but packed a lot of information in the space. As soon as we hit the first display, Shayleigh was off to work!

Here she was filling out which States were part of the Confederacy and which were still  in the Union in 1864.

One of the coolest things in the museum was this interactive map that showed where each Infantry was, the route they took, and where they met up on the fields. It was narrated and lit up at the appropriate time. Very cool!

It was lit up when I snapped the picture!

So engrossed.

After we looked at EVERYTHING, and completed her four activities, we headed downstairs to have the volunteer "check her answers."

So sure she got them right!

Well, she passed, and we even had a discussion on whether or not West Virginia counted as a state then or not (I think she proved her case).  Next, was the swearing in ceremony. I kid you not, this is serious business!

Listening intently.

Repeating back the pledge as she's sworn in.

Check out Abe in the lower right corner.

Certified Junior Ranger!

We hopped in the car and took a short drive over to the Worthington Farm. As a 6 year old boy, Glenn Worthington witnessed the Battle take place on his property while peering through the cellar windows. As an adult, Judge Glenn Worthington was instrumental in the development of Monacacy National Battlefield getting it's National Park status.

The Worthington House

View through the windows.

Stairs.

We headed off to the Ford Loop trail, a 1.6 mile trail through the farm. Had we brought a more detailed map, we would have known what some of the markers were. However, it was nice to walk and know that we were walking where 150 years ago, both Union and Confederate soldiers were marching and strategizing.

Plaque in the field.

Off towards the river.

Soldiers walked here, Mom!

Did I mention besides the Hurricane, it also rained for a week? Uncle Troy had to carry her through mud.

Anyone know what these are?

I think she's leading.

The soldiers crossed right here!

I have no idea what they were discussing.

Did I mention the trail was 1.6 miles! Pop Pop did a great job keeping up. Shayleigh thought that after this, we should hit the next battlefield. The kid never stops!

She is standing right where the soldiers were fighting.

Crazy to think that 150 years ago, Blue and Gray were battling right here.

Our first trip was a success! She's already planning the next trip. I think Gettysburg might be in our near future. Did you hear that Uncle Troy?

Ballerina Shayleigh!

Today was Shayleigh's first Ballet class. She's taken 2 years of dance at Berrend Dance Centre- hip hop last year, and a tap/jazz combo the year before that. After going to the Storybook Ballet Theatre last year, ballet has really been what she wants to do.
She's in Ballet I. The other kids in the class are 6-9 years old. A few of them have taken this level before. She did great. I didn't get a chance to get some pictures of her in class, but looking in, it looked like she was having a good time. I am looking forward to actually getting to see her doing her ballet and hopefully getting some pictures.

Here are some pics of her before class:

In her class leotard and tights.

It was pouring rain- so she wore my latest consignment find- $20  Real Uggs!

I have no idea what this is.

Shay explains Earthquakes

After the earthquake that rocked Virginia 2 weeks ago, Shay explained how earthquakes worked, and I was lucky enough to catch it on video. Later on in the day, we went to the library and picked up some books on earthquakes. She now says she may want to study earthquakes when she grows up. Enjoy:

Back to school, back to school...

I'm in Kindergarten now!

Well, it's not like we ever really stop learning here, but the MoCo kids were going back to school on Monday, so we decided to break out the new curriculum. Our "official" date isn't really until September 8th, because according to the state, we have to declare by form 15 days before we "start," and with the unexpected Florida trip, that form didn't get turned in early. So I'm not sure how this works, but I guess if Shay does anything spectacular in the next week, I can't put it in her portfolio for the school year. In Maryland, there are 3 options for homeschooling: 1) a portfolio put together of samples of the child's work in order to show "parent provides regular, thorough instruction," which I am told is open up to different interpretations depending on the reviewer, however needs to show that the child is doing the same subjects taught in public school; 2) an umbrella school (usually run through a church- although some are secular), most of which have a fee of some sort but provide assistance if needed; or 3) don't declare anything and hope you don't get caught. We are doing option 1.

As the year goes on, we will be adding curriculum as needed, but so far we have decided on:
Math: Math U See Alpha
Science: Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy and Physiology
Handwriting: Getty- Dubay handwriting program
Bible:The Greenleaf Guide to Old Testament History
Music: Keyboard Capers
Literature and Spelling: Books selected from her Farm School (more on that when we start in 2 weeks)
Social Studies: Finishing up the United States and then moving on to Ancient History
P.E. :Ballet, and bowling
Art: Incorporating themes from Farm School, Social Studies, and the Old Testament. Plus any other art she might be interested in.

Oh, how did the first day go? Well, take a peak. We just eased into it- started after lunch and did a half day, it's unofficial after all.

We start every day with the pledge.

Watching Mr. Steve teach the lesson on her MUS dvd.

Her MUS blocks.

The answer is 235!

Reading about her home state- Arizona.

Filing in her Arizona map.

She's getting better with her details.

It's hard to tell, but her feet aren't on the floor here.

Art.

Music/P.E.- dancing!

Thanks for checking out my day!

Hopefully now that we have an actual schoolroom, I will get blog posts up more regularly. And anyone who is interested, my mom made her skirt, tank, and (not shown) her undies for her first day of school!

New School Room- Revealed!

Finally! It's done. Just in time for the first day of school. We finally decided on a color- Sweet Buttered Corn. I got the painting done earlier last week, and then before the hurricane came on Saturday, I was setting it up, taking a break while the heavy rains and winds came, and then back to the finishing touches on Sunday. I LOVE the way it turned out. And so did my little student.

Her art and music area (plus advanced reading on the shelf).

 Her work area.

Remember her Solar System from last year? It made the wall!

Doesn't it look great!

Her reading area.

Games, puzzles, manipulatives, and of course her telescope!

So how did the first day go?

See you tomorrow!

Find out on tomorrow's blog!  :)

The Hottest Place in All Orlando?

Thursday we got up and out the door and headed to Animal Kingdom. The park is only open until 6pm, so we really wanted to get the most out of it. It was supposed to be a hot day, but I thought there would be enough shade with all the trees. Ha! I think out of the 3 parks we went to, this one was the hottest!

It was so humid the camera fogged up!

 We wanted to make sure we took the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. So we flew up to Africa and got in line. It was only 20 minutes, so that wasn't too bad. We got to ride in a big Safari Jeep and it took us on an adventure to stop poachers. We went up and down hills, through water, made quick turns. It was fun! Along the way we saw elephants, giraffes, crocodiles, warthogs, hippos, and a few other animals native to the African Safari. I was most impressed that they had lions and cheetahs out in the open.

What our safari jeep looked like from the back.

The Giraffe were so close!

Jumbo termite hill. Gross.

Elephant!

Lioness!

Also in Africa, we walked through some trails, saw some birds and fish and then boarded a train to Rafiki's Planet Watch, where we learned about conservation and animal rescue. Gotta get some learning in on the trip!

Trying out a Gorilla's handprints.

WOW!

 

She even got to be in an interactive show with a bird of prey. She guessed he weighed 5lbs- and she was right!

I know the answer!

5lbs is heavy when you only weigh 35!

We headed down to Camp Mickey and Minnie after that and tried to get as many character signatures as we could. It was nice that they had a huge section of little pavilions to take pictures with each character. 

Minnie was sweet.

Goofy was a riot!

At 2, we stood in line for a half an hour to see the Festival of the Lion King Musical. One thing we were looking forward to, besides the show, was that it was inside- air conditioning! I'm told the show is similar to the one on Broadway. There were singers (one sounded just like James Earl Jones!), acrobats, stilt walkers, and all sorts of dancing. It was great! The best was when the whole crowd (minus Shayleigh- who was looking at us like we were all crazy) broke out and sung Hakuna Matata! Poor kid- we really have to get her to watch these movies now that we've met all these characters.

We headed over to Dinoland, USA.

By this time we were done! The heat had overtaken us. We stopped for the best $4 frozen lemonade ever. We all sat down and enjoyed our lemonade and then headed over to The Boneyard. Supposedly there Shay could dig up some dino bones, but all I saw there was a climbing structure and some fossils. It was ok though because after all the walking we made Shay do (yep- no stroller for this little trooper at all the parks) she needed some time to run around. While she was there, of course she made a friend. Working on her socialization all the way down in Orlando!

Wait for it...

Yep, holding hands!

One last stop to visit Pooh, Eeyore, and Tigger. While we were waiting in line, we saw a cast member who we had seen in just about every other line that day (she was the person that was giving breaks) and she was so taken with Shayleigh, she called her a special friend and gave Shayleigh her favorite pin from her shirt. Can I just say that made her day? Well, that and having Pooh give her some special treatment.

Dancing with Pooh!

Before heading to dinner, we stopped by the gift shop. How can you decide what to get? You can't. So we got one of everything! No, not really, but we wanted to. There was so much cool stuff there. The prices though- yikes.

In keeping with the Animal Kingdom theme, we headed to Rainforest Cafe. I had never been there before, but goodness is it noisy! On the way out, the sky decided to open up into a torrential downpour for what seemed like an eternity. I imagine we spent an hour at the gift shop there before we decided to take our shoes off (I was NOT going to drive 13 hours home the next day in wet sneakers) and make a run for it. I have no idea how long it rained for, but I am glad that it waited until after we were done with our day to rain.

The next day, we headed home, and it rained off and on the whole way home. Nothing really exciting to report there, and it seemed the drivers were on better behavior going North, which is good, because I was EXHAUSTED!

We had such a great trip. The memories will last a lifetime. I know Shayleigh learned a lot. We all did.