It took until the fifth week of the 2019-20 school year, but we finally went on an actual field trip!

This was actually the second “Homeschool Day” at the Missouri History Museum for this school year, but the first one didn’t fit into our schedule. I was really excited about the topic of this month’s event, because I knew we needed to see the new Pulitzer Prize Photographs exhibit.

I won’t lie…this was one of the hardest field trips we’ve been on, because the content was so heavy. There were a lot of disturbing photos, and I had to constantly make sure Chickadee especially was doing ok with what she was seeing (to be honest, I think she didn’t really understand a lot of the more distressing photos, which is ok with me). I think it was very important to see, however, and we certainly learned a lot. And there were a few more light-hearted activities, too, including a cool microphone craft that Chickadee loved (although, giving her even a pretend microphone may have been a questionable parenting decision on my part!), and a newspaper assignment that allowed us to research and write about John Philip Sousa, and his connection to the 1904 World’s Fair here in St. Louis.

The rest of the week was pretty standard. Turkey and Bunny learned about arc functions in pre-calculus. They finished the second chapter on one-dimensional motion in physics. They also finished finished the third chapter in their health curriculum. Their literature study had them comparing “The Inferno” with what they’ve read so far in “The Purgatorio.” We finally made it to the Plantagenets in our four-year history cycle, while in US history, Turkey and Bunny learned about the Jamestown settlement, which led to a disturbing conversation about some details they remembered from the their last study of American history.

Ladybug learned about inequalities in pre-algebra. She also reviewed adding decimals. Her history lessons focused on Africa and the beginning of the slave trade. She did a few experiments about the surface tension of water in science. In literature, she read about the dwarves and Bilbo’s escape from the Wood Elves, which is one of my favorite chapters of The Hobbit, because I really like imagining Bombur getting shoved into a barrel! She also finished reading through the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which I still think must be confusing as she’s only about a third of the way through The Hobbit, but she really enjoyed the books!

Chickadee reviewed carrying while adding in math. She started a chapter on Mercury in science. We’re almost done reading through Little House in the Big Woods. Her language arts lessons have overlapped a bit with catechesis, so she’s memorizing in both classes, as well as reading Bible stories for both.

I’m hoping that it might cool off enough next week for an outdoor field trip…or at least for a more enjoyable game of tennis. A week of constant 90+ degree temperatures makes it difficult to want to be outside at all!