Our Homeschool Weekly Report, July 4-10, Summer Session, week 2 (All Things Beautiful)

July 4-10
Summer Fun

We had a wonderful Independence Day, filled with grilling, ice cream, flags and fireworks over the Sassafras River.

The boys have been enjoying summer afternoons at the beach.

We went to a community pool with a dear friend of mine, Denise and her lovely family.

In The Kitchen

We have been enjoying lots of great summer foods this week. We have enjoyed Tuna, Cucumber and Black-eyed Pea Salad, Coconut Rice with Red Beans, Fruity Salad, Shrimp Salad Bowl, Crockpot Jambalaya with Chili-Cheese Cornbread, Black Bean and Corn Salad, Indian Lentils and Rice and Apple, Grape and Celery Salad; all recipes from Build-a-Menu (my review here). I have also enjoyed the fellowship and sharing over at Angelicscaliwags on Wibbly Wobbly Weight Loss. I have written posts on what I have learned through my research on healthy eating: All Carbohydrates Are Not The Same and The Power of Proteins. At my doctor's check-up this week, she let me know that I had lost 20 pounds since my last visit, which makes a nearly 30 pound loss total.

week 2

Science

Biology

Botany: Leaves and the Mint Family

As the first lesson in our summer botany study, we learned about the mint family and about the terms used to identify leaves.

Chemistry

Lesson 1: Matter

We reviewed and explored matter including concepts such as mass, weight, volume, density, buoyancy and the qualities of matter.

Astronomy

The Summer Constellations: Lyra

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This week we focused on the constellation Lyra from the Summer Triangle we found last week. To find Lyra, look for Vega, the brightest star in the constellation. Lyra looks like a small, lopsided square, with Vega just beside one of the corners of the square.

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The legend of Lyra tells the story of Orpheus, who was given a harp by the god Apollo. Orpheus married the lovely maiden Eurydice, but after their wedding, she was bitten by a snake and died. Orpheus was so stricken with grief that he journeyed to the underworld to win her return. His music not only gained him entry to Hades, it caused Pluto, the god of the underworld, to soften his heart and grant Orpheus' wish, but there was one condition -Eurydice had follow Orpheus, who could not look back until both had gained the upper world. Before Eurydice could take the final steps into the light, Orpheus turned to gaze upon her and she vanished. Once Orpheus died, the Muses buried him, and Apollo placed his magical harp in the sky -- as Lyra.

Geography and Culture

Africa

The Horn of Africa and The Coffee Ceremony

We had our version of an Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony in conjunction with learning about the horn of Africa.

Latin Roots

The Latin roots we learned this week were Bonus which means good, Sol which means sun, Luna which means moon, Trans which means across, and Terra which means earth or land.

Phyllis Bergenholtz

Our Homeschool Weekly Report, July 4-10, Summer Session, week 2