Field Trip to the Zoo!

On Wednesday, April 21, our co-op took a field trip to the Phoenix Zoo. We had a blast on this cool, cloudy April day. It was fun to be together, marveling at God's creation!

Co-op in Review: April 14, 2010

G'day Mates! Our two older classes learned about Australia this week! They journeyed down under to learn about our friends south of the equator. The kids all explored the culture of Australia by doing some awesome projects. The Lower Grammar boys learned about the music of Australia and even made their own didgeridoo. The didgeridoo is a natural wood wind instrument that was developed by the indigenous people of Australia and has become a symbol of the traditional music from Australia. The boys decorated their didgeridoos and were able to see a real didgeridoo as well! The Upper Grammar kids learned about an art technique traditional to Australia. They made adorable paintings using dot painting. This is a technique developed by the Aboriginal Australians. The kids used Q-tips and paint to carefully make their colorful Australian art projects. Downstairs, the Five in a Row kids read the book, Grandfather's Journey. Its the story of a boy's grandfather who is originally from Japan, and he immigrates to California to make his new home. He sees the beauty in both lands and enjoys both his new and old home, yet feels homesick for both at times. The kids made traditional Japanese koi windsocks. The older kids practiced making both sides of their fish symmetrical while the little kids had fun just coloring and decorating their fish.

Co-op in Review: April 7, 2010

In co-op this week, all of our kids explored distant lands! The boys in the Lower Grammar class had the longest trip--they went to Mars! They learned about the red, rocky planet which is our cosmic neighbor at only 250 million miles away! While man has never landed on Mars, we have discovered much about this planet through sending rovers to take pictures and send information back to earth. The kids made Mars Rovers of their own, showing great creativity and engineering skill. The Upper Grammar kids didn't have as far to travel. They learned all about the Middle East. These countries are all in Asia, but are classified as a region all their own because of their long, rich history and heritage. This is the area of the globe where history began, where Jesus spent his life, and is the place of origin of the world's three major religions: Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Today this area remains economically, socially, strategically, politically, culturally and religiously sensitive. The kids did a creative mapping project of the Middle East, coloring and coding each country in this region. Downstairs, the littlest kids in the co-op were visiting Paris! They read the story Madeline. Madeline is the smallest child and the most mischievous in her class. And, when Madeline is struck with appendicitis, she is surprised by her new scar and is visited by the other children in her class. The kids made cute little Madeline dolls out of toilet paper rolls--complete with a band-aid on her tummy!

Co-op in Review: March 31, 2010

This week, the two Tapestry of Grace classes blasted off into space! They both learned about the Apollo Space Program--the program that first put Americans on the moon. On July 16, 1969, three American astronauts: Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins fulfilled Kennedy's pledge to land an American on the moon before the end of the 1960s. The Apollo 11 flight was the first to make it to the lunar surface, and was one of six Apollo missions to make it to the moon before the Apollo program was ended. The Upper Grammar kids made models of the moon out of clay and mapped out the lunar landings. The Lower Grammar boys made awesome mobiles showing the planets of our solar system. Downstairs, the younger kids were having a great time reading and doing activities related to the fun, catchy, alphabet book, "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom". They read the story together, made Chicka Chicka trees of their own and then learned how to do the "Chicka Chicka Dance."