The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe Unit

We finished reading the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in early December, and I'm realizing now that sharing all the details of our school projects is like adding a chore on top of the work. So I doubt I'll share very many of our study units - but here's a bit of what we did for our introduction to Narnia.

1. We listened to about two chapters each day. Chapters 1 and 2 are here, to find the rest go to the main page of Under the Grapevine.

2. I found some free Lapbook stuff here:
http://homeschooladventures3.blogspot.com/2010/09/lapbook-lion-witch-and-wardrobe.html

3. There's a fancier lapbook you can buy here with more writing pages for older kids:
http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2012/12/lion-witch-and-the-wardrobe-unit-study.html

It turns out, I'm not really into lapbooks. Maybe its the age of my kids, but it seems like too much cutting for me, and not enough stuff for them. Plus, I don't like all the clip art people use, and I ended up printing some of the original illustrations from the book and pasting them over the clip art - which was just more unnecessary work (for me, not the kids!). Still we like a lot of the ideas and activities other people come up with, so we use them as starting points. We ended up assembling most of our work into a folder instead.

4. Cool map of narnia to print: http://folk.uio.no/solveii/NarniaMap.jpg

5. Really excellent traditional turkish delight recipe (not too many ingredients) with a video: http://titlisbusykitchen.com/archives/turkish-delight

I just felt like we HAD to make turkish delight. To talk about foods from other times and places, to get our hands dirty, to try this thing I'd never had. I was prepared for it to be not awesome, so I think I was pleasantly satisfied.

I bought rose water online because it seems to be the most traditional form, and probably what Edmund had, but I'd like to try it again with a cinnamon version because my kids are more likely to eat that. I really did like the turkish delight, and we all loved making it. It was a really cool process. It got dry and gooey (do those go together) after  a few days, and so we ended up throwing most of it out. So maybe make a half recipe next time? Or share with friends?

On to Prince Caspian!

...well, maybe in a few months. :)

Kittens: Soupa and Moupes

I've been eyeing this kitty pattern from Make Your Own Toys by Sue Havens for a few years. I don't really use patterns very often since most of the time I just like to make it up as I go. Invariably, using someone else's pattern always leads me to do something in a way I wouldn't have planned myself. I think that's probably a pretty good thing. Sue's book is full of really cute animals in a simple and sort of classic rag-doll style. She encourages reusing fabrics, which I love. These are made from an orangey-gold sweater.

So these kittens I've named Soupa and Moupes, although the girls have rejected these names for something more practical, like Kitty.

Spoonflower Swatches and Felt Figures

I love my felt boards! We use these occasionally for play and school, and I realize now I haven't shared half the stuff we use them for. I'll try to remember to share more!

For Christmas, I thought I'd take advantage of Spoonflower to make some My Little Pony felt figures. Because, we need some Twilight Sparkle in our grassy meadow, folks.

Here's a super easy way to turn your custom prints (or any print you find at the store) into felt figures.

1. Print an 8" spoonflower swatch filled with figures. 

2. Cut a piece of sticky felt down to 8" square. Peel the back off and stick your swatch on. 

3. Cut out your figures!

4. If you cut figures from fabric larger than an 8"swatch, cut them out loosely first and try to fit them as closely together on the sticky felt as you can so you waste less.

The cutting takes time, but the custom figures are a hit!

Print and Draw Valentines

I drew some stuff, too.

Easy printable valentines. We printed these, then drew with my copic markers (or you could use sharpies) to turn the hearts into various animals or things. Grey rocket ships, orange giraffes, green trees. It was a super fun prompt!

J used the hearts as a backdrop.  

L drew animals: Rhino, cardinal, lion, giraffe, whale, and elephant

Silly portraits are fun!

Purple was hard - so we made boats and hot air balloons. 

Command click to open the pic below in a new window to grab it. When you print, choose "do NOT scale to fit media" and they should print evenly into 9 cards.  Cut apart on the light gray lines. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Color Robot: A Comic for you

L had a brilliant idea while traveling in the car the other day. She pretended to be a robot. A hungry robot. At first she asked for a nail slushie, but then she began eating all of the colors she saw out the window. And so the idea of a color-eating robot was born. The girl's got a one track mind, and immediately upon returning home she began work on her color-eating robot comic. We used How to Make a Comic from our art week as a guide again.

She drew all of the pictures and developed the story herself. We spent some time together figuring out how to do the important facial expressions, and I would occasionally have her rethink how she was drawing something or prompt her with questions like, "do you think you should draw this tree the same way you drew it before?" Sometimes she rejected my comments, but she was up for the challenge. After drawing it, I did the ink for her again and scanned it. Then we were able to print a few copies for her to color. She made one with crayon, and is still working on a watercolor version. 

I cautiously asked if she minded if I colored a copy on the computer, too. I was thrilled that she said yes! She really likes collaborating, and I took her feedback on colors as well. She also insisted on including me on the title page.

This is my finished copy. I scaled it down to fit on one sheet of legal paper. L also really wanted to print lots of copies and give them to everyone.  I was a little thrilled at the zine potential. We haven't actually printed any copies yet, but I could see this being folded and mailed to friends. :)

This pic is full scale, 300 dpi. Print and share the love!