Cranberry Thanksgiving

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I am excited about December and the first day of Advent (more on that at the end of this post) but we gave Thanksgiving it's due. Two weeks ago our Five in a Row book of the week was Cranberry Thanksgiving, by Wende and Harry Devlin.
Thanksgiving book from when I was a child, Cranberry Thanksgiving ...
Anastasia loved this story. She really got excited about cranberry bogs and learning how cranberries grow. This story is set in New England, like most of the stories we've read this semester. Ana seems to finally understand where New England is located on the map. I'm a fan of any book that includes a recipe. All in all, a fun week.
Tristan learned about farming in science that week, which paired well with Anastasia's unit on Cranberry bogs. He is tracking along pretty well with his second grade work.
We all enjoyed a field trip to Chick-Fil-A to check out their kitchen, and we took a family trip out to Strasburg Railroad to ride on Thomas the Tank Engine. So Fun! Happy Birthday, Gwen!
We also enjoyed making some special fall crafts. (Pie banner: Courtesy of a dear friend)
Thanksgiving week we spent a few days reading about the first Thanksgiving and making pilgrim hats and Mayflower crafts. Then the holiday was upon us and we were off from school.

Other books we enjoyed the week before and the week of Thanksgiving:
Farming, Cassie Mayer
Farming, Gail Gibbons
The Life and Times of Hammurabi, Tamara Bryant
Time for Cranberries, Lisl H. Detlefson
We Gather Together, Linda Bleck
Fancy Nancy Our Thanksgiving Banquet, Jane O'Connor
Fabulous Feasts, Peter Kent
Thanksgiving Turkeys, Patrick Merrick
The First Thanksgiving, Linda Hayward
Life on the Mayflower, Jessica Gunderson

Because today is the first day of December, I have to mention advent and the count down to Christmas book we will be reading each day. Unwrapping the Greatest Gift, Ann Voskamp.Unwrapping the Greatest Gift » Connected2ChristWe will not put up a Jesse Tree, but will read each day. The devotionals look a little long for my kids, but we'll see how we go. I may alternate between reading just the scripture and reading both the scripture and devotional, depending on the day. Some mornings get a little crazy around here.
Anyway, last week we listened to the Classical Kids CD Hallelujah Handel. ... prek 8 additional details publisher classical kids children s groupWe did not find this one as entertaining as Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery but the children loved the music and that is really the point! This one introduces some heavy topics: poverty, abuse, kidnapping, death: it's an intense story. I am going to try to get just the Messiah on CD from the library to listen to this holiday season.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

No other gods

Exodus 20:2-3 I am the Lord thy God which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. As much as idolatry is pooh-poohed  and I really know better, I still struggle to keep my adoration on Christ. I realized this week that there are certain people on earth that I idolize, put on pedestals and look at as "super". I do this with Navy Seals, and Olympians (and let's not forget Olympians who used to be Navy seals!). Anyway, the news this week about Oscar Pistorius really shook me up. I have been so inspired by his story and his determination and physical prowess. I have put him up on a "superhuman" pedestal and now I am shattered. This has made me realize that Jesus Christ is the only "superman" (thank you Cadet for pointing that out so eloquently 12 years ago) and that no human can stand up to any perfection on their own. Yes, we can achieve physical prowess, super intelligence, we ca...
Read more

Catoctin Mountain Park, Thurmont MD

Image
I'm back, after a long break. I wanted to share this awesome park with you. Catoctin Mountain Park in Thurmont, Maryland. Located right off of Route 15 this park is just down the Highway from Gettysburg and is worth the trip! The park offers hiking for various skill levels and is free admission. The kids had a lovely time creek walking along the Blue Blazes Whiskey Still trail, which is accessible from the visitor center parking lot. They were all able to become junior rangers as well. The visitor center has a history and nature display. I've never seen a beaver that close, even if it was stuffed, it was cool!  Catoctin Mountain park borders Cunningham falls state park . Cunningham falls state park charges a small fee for parking, but has great hiking,- yes to a waterfall- a playground/picnic area by the lake; it is really lovely.  Before I end this post, I must share a picture book recommendation.  We enjoyed The Wild Woods, by Simon James this week. This sto...
Read more

Lewis and Clark

Image
" Of courage undaunted, possessing a firmness of purpose which nothing but impossibilities could divert from its direction " Thomas Jefferson of Merriweather Lewis This summer the kids and I have studied the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It began with our being half-way through the book on the Louisiana purchase on the last day of school. Our interest was peaked and I hated to skip the books about Lewis and Clark that we did not have time to read during last school year, so... The book about the Louisiana Purchase is titled: What's the Deal Jefferson and Napoleon and the Louisiana Purchase , by Rhoda Blumberg. I would classify this book as a textbook. We read it in small portions each day. Then we read a few chapter books about Lewis and Clark and some of the other characters in the Corps of Discovery, namely, Seaman, Meriweather Lewis' Newfoundland dog. Patricia Reader Eubank's book, Seaman's Journal: On the Trail with Lewis and Clark is a beautifully...
Read more