Candy Heart Experiment

To get things started, find some kind of container.  We used plastic cups from the Dollar Tree.  But you can use glass mason jars or water bottles.  Next, decide on what liquids you want to use.  We used water, soda, and vinegar.

Start with the one basic question.  What do you think will happen to the candy hearts when we put them in the liquids?  Explain what a hypothesis is, and then ask them to think about what might happen before recording it down on paper.  Have them record their hypothesis. 

Hypothesis- a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.

What you'll need:

• candy hearts
• jars or plastic cups
• water
• soda
• vinegar
• other suggestions for liquids:  (corn syrup, rubbing alcohol, sanitizer, juice, soap)
• sharpie

Instructions:

• Label your cups with the liquids you use
• Pour the liquids into each cup 1/2 way full
• Place 3 or 4 candy hearts of the same color into each cup.  
• Let them sit for 15 to 20 minutes 
• Have them fill out the hypothesis sheet while you wait
• Record the results after the 20 minutes.  

You can get a free copy of the experiment sheet here to record your hypothesis and conslusions:
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Valentines-Day-Science-Candy-Heart-Experiment-FREE-1634839

Valentine's Day Crafts for kids

Pom Pom Valentine Monsters

Supplies:

• yarn
• mouthwash paper cup
• cardboard
• scissors
• googly eyes (regular ones or the ones with eyelashes)
• foam stickers or dollar tree jewel stickers
• chenille stems
• glue gun or tacky glue

Instructions: 

• Wrap your yarn around the cardboard piece (long-ways) about 150 to 200 times.  
• After you have wrapped it the desired amount of times, one one side of the cardboard tie a know around the center of the yarn.  
• Flip the cardboard over and cut through the center of the yarn.  
• Take your mouthwash cup and flip it upside down and hot glue your pom pop to the dop where you tied the knot.  
• Make another pom pom by wrapping the yard (short-ways) around the cardboard about 20 to 30 times and repeat the process for tying the knot and cutting yarn.  (this is your hair for the pom pom)
•  Hot glue the hair on the top of the cup.

Now the fun begins 

• Add your googly eyes.
• Make some pipe cleaner antennas and hot glue them to the top of the head under some yarn hair and form them the way you want them to look with your fingers.
• Add your stickers to the top of the antennas.

My little monster enjoyed taking a break from her classwork to make a cute little monster to sit on her desk for Valentines Day.  

Finger Painting Art

What you'll need:

• paint
• paper
• paint brush

Kids love to get messy!  Here they just need to either use their paintbrush to make their tree, or dip their finger in the paint and smear it to make a tree.  Now just dip the fingers into the paint and make a leaves to form a heart.  Super cute! 

Heart Fireworks

What you’ll need:

• construction paper, cardstock, or canvas
• paints
• paintbrush, foam brush
• pencil

Instructions:

• Fold a piece of paper in half and draw half a heart.  Cut it out while folded and it open up to a full heart.  You'll need different size hearts.
• Place the hearts in different sections of your paper or canvas and trace the hearts.
• Paint the hearts with a foam brush.
• Now you will start painting around the heart in layers.  Choose your 1st color and paint around the heart.  You'll need to make it look like streaks.  So just keep swishing the brush from the traced outline of the heart then go outward with your paint brush.  
• Repeat the process with different colors and keep going until you reach the end of the paper/canvas.

Pointillism

 Valentines Craft

This technique is known as a "pointillism."  
Definition:  a technique of neo-impressionist painting using tiny dots of various pure colors, which become blended in the viewer's eye. It was developed by Georges Seurat with the aim of producing a greater degree of luminosity and brilliance of color.

This style of art uses dots of colors to make a picture.  When you look at the dots side by side, it connects the colors so you can figure out what the picture is, even though the colors don't actually touch each other or blend together on paper.  

For the older kids, you can use this activity as a way to introduce the child to a specific style of art.  Here are a list of artists that used this style of technique.  https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-pointillism-artists/reference  

Here is also a great link to help your children understand the art style and some art work.  https://www.widewalls.ch/pointillism-dotted-art/

There is a lot more to this art activity than just swapping out your paint brushes for cotton swabs!

What you’ll need:

• Cotton swabs
• Paint, either on an palate or plate, or in individual cups
• Paper

Instructions:

Dab the cotton head into your paint and then onto your paper.  You can dab your paint into creative patterns or shapes on your own, use coloring book sheets (focus on coloring books for younger children with large, simple designs), or print out any number of free cotton swab painting templates by searching for “q-tip painting.” To show their creative style, just let them make up their own.  

Dyeing Fabrics

For this project we went to our local Hobby Lobby and picked up a canvas bag.  We were studying our Little House on the Prairie Unit Study and did a few projects as we learned different things about Laura Ingalls Wilder and how she lived. 

What you will need:

canvas bag/shirt/etc 

blueberries

candle

pan

Directions:

1-Bring the berries to a slow boil and let it simmer for about 30 minutes

2-Let cool 

3-while you are waiting it to cool, take a long stick candle and light it so that the wax starts to run.    drip it over your material to form a design and take a toothpick or cheap tiny paint brush and              smooth it out to the desired design

4-Let the wax cool

5-After the dye has cooled, drain the berries 

6-Dip your material into the liquid dye and let it sit for 15 minutes to an hour.  The longer you leave it in there, the darker the color will be 

7-Set aside on newspaper so it won't dye your counter tops and let sit until it is fully dry

8-wash inside out in cold water before using and/or washing with other clothes

Co-op & Resource Centers

Do I need these?

People who aren't familiar with homeschooling or are new at it, can not fully understand what we do.  Although there are several ways homeschool moms teach their children and choose the style of schooling that fits their family, kids are always learning everyday.  One of the first assumptions is that we are home with our kids all day long, everyday of the week.  There are some homeschool families that choose that approach.  From from my experience, that's not the case at all for a lot of families here in my area.   Our family does a collective variety of things.  We do online and book curriculum, experiments, art projects, co-ops, classes in areas in SC & NC, field trips, social hang outs, park play dates, etc.  There is not enough time in the day/week to get to everything so we just incorporate whatever is going on in our area with what we are studying that week here at home.  

There are programs in and around the Midlands that offer year-long classes for homeschooling students. There are also co-ops that meet year round and some in 10 to 12 weeks a semester.  Most of the co-ops are parent leaders deciding on the classes and either teach alone or with another mom to teach the class.  The classes are usually small and less than 20 kids.  Prices vary by which programs you choose.  

The Benefits of Choice Programs

Our goal is to educate our children.  We all do it in different ways and accommodate the learning style of each individual child.  They do not all learn the same.  Homeschooling isn't just about independence and nontraditional educational settings.  

Programs like the ones listed here have many benefits to homeschooling our children.  Maybe the parent want to add more socialization, or doesn't feel confident in to teach or wants to supplement what they are already teaching.  It gives the chance for both students and parents to build supportive friendships with peers, to explore academic and extracurricular areas, and to help get more resources and ideas for courses that may be too expensive for a family to pursue alone.  Sometimes our kids can go through a rough patch and get bored, so in our family we choose to mix it up some and come back to what we are doing and take a break to help keep our sanity in the home.  We are required to get in 180 school days a year, but that doesn't mean every single day has to be book work.  All your classes, co-ops, and field trips count towards your 180 days of schooling.  

• Co-op Classes (Cooperatives) are usually fun, interactive group learning opportunities led by parent volunteers.
• Resource Centers are often more academically challenging subjects led by a qualified instructor for a fee.

**Arrows Academy,  Columbia, Lexington Contact Form: Jessica Jones, director

**Chapin Academy, Columbia/Chapin  Grades k4-8th grade.  Email: admin@chapinacademy.com  Contact: Shawn Hammond 803-400-8284 or Rebecca Davis 803-566-2933

**Classical Conversations, various locations across the state  

Northeast CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/2205/Columbia/SC

Irmo, Lake Murray CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/2206/Irmo/SC

Lancaster CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/2307/Lancaster/SC

Lexington CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/568/Lexington/SC

Lugoff CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/2853/LUGOFF/SC

Orangeburg CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/518/BLUFFTON/SC

Rosewood CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/564/COLUMBIA/SC

Sumter CC- https://members.classicalconversations.com/community-info/6081/SUMTER/SC

**Dutch Fork Resource Center, Chapin/Columbia  Contact: Dr. Analisa Smith or Lisa Baghdady

**Excelsior Academy, Irmo 

The Academy classes are ages 4-13.  Contact: Ashlee Vickery

**FLEET Co-op, Columbia  Faith, Learning, Educational, Experience, Together (FLEET) Academy meets in Columbia, SC. Christian co-op geared towards middle and high school age homeschooled students.

**Grounded Co-op Academy, Columbia  Meets at Riverland Hills Baptist Church on Thursdays.  It's courses are for K5-9th.  Contact: Kaitlin Tew email: kaitlin@riverlandhills.org or call: 772.3227

**Lexington Homeschool Co-op, Lexington/Columbia  Meets at Red Bank Baptist Church for classes on Mondays.  Contact:  Laurie Lamb

**Midlands Homeschool Resource Center, Lexington/Columbia  Contact:  MHSRC2@gmail.com

**Principia, Columbia  This is a resource center for homeschool families for students in grades 7-12.  Contact Form 

 **REACH Co-op classes, Newberry, NorthEast Columbia/Blythewood, West Columbia   Must join REACH support group Contact: reach@reachgroup.org

**SC G.E.E.K.S., Columbia   https://www.facebook.com/groups/scgeeks/   This co-op started in 2018 and is a secular based learning.  Contact:  Kendria Clark  

**School of the Minds, Irmo/Columbia  Meets on Thursdays.  Contact: Carissa Cox

3-D Hand Art

Super cool 3-D hand project.  This is a great one for teens.  It is sure to surprise!  It's an optical illusion and once completed if you stare at it from a distance it can play tricks on your mind.  

You will Need:

1. white paper
2. crayons, markers, chalk, or coloring pencils
3. sharpie

Directions:

1. First, they will trace their hand and arm.
2. Next, they will take a ruler and lightly draw horizontal lines about 1/2 inch straight across from the left side of the paper to the hand/arm drawn.  Repeat from the other side of the hand you drew and go to the end of the right side of the paper.  It's best to work your way from the bottom up.
3. Then you will start connecting the two lines drawn from one end to the other from inside the traced hand/arm.  You will need to curve these lines to create the 3-D look.
4. The next to last step, you will color the stripes with different colors to complete your masterpiece.
5. Finally you will take a sharpie or dark color marker and re-trace where all the pencil lines are 
6. to create your 3-D image.  And you are done!                      

 

Egypt Unit Study

Some kids learning styles are hands-on.  My daughter does better when she can see and touch it not just read words on the paper.  So I get a little creative when we do our school  We had a good time studying Egypt.  I used the Story of the World history curriculum.  It's geared towards younger Elementary, but I put unit studies with mine and made it a little more challenging.  We did lapbooks and projects with almost every lesson.  Our favorite was the mummified chicken.  Yes, I said MUMMIFIED CHICKEN (see other post for that project).  It was not as stinky as you would think or hard.  It is very time consuming because it takes 7 weeks to complete the process, but it is worth it.

Lapbooking:



 
Projects:

Ancient History Writing & Cartouche



Ancient Egyptian circlet/crown/diadem
We forgot to paint the cobra  :  ( OOOPS)  It still turned out pretty cute though.



Egyptian collar
You can make this out of poster board, cardboard or whatever you want.  I used the dollar tree foam sheets and just let her create her own design.  We punched holes in the corners to run string/yard through it so she could tie it around her neck.  



Egyptian hieroglyphics cave writing (stone tablet) 
Here we just used the salt dough recipe and added gritty sand like what you would have in a sandbox to make it have the texture and the color of the caves back then.  You can find the recipe here:  http://www.firstpalette.com/Craft_themes/People/hieroglyphic_stone/hieroglyphic_stone.html 


Egyptian amulet
This one was made out of a toilet paper roll, dollar tree modeling clay, rhinestones, and gold spray paint.  Our original plan was to make a whole outfit, but we never did get to doing the actual costume.



Egyptian Wig
Clearly this is a more than a one day job and I'm pretty sure we aren't doing ours like the picture, but we had a lot of laughs and my full of life girl enjoyed modeling it and acting silly.  To make this you cut several strips of black construction paper and wrap them around a pencil or dowel so they will curl up.  After you have curled them all use a piece of cardboard or poster board to wrap around your child's head and make a headband. Then you will glue, tape, or staple the strips to the head piece. 



Pharaoh sculpture
Although we joked this looked more like George Washington, she did a great job on it and spent some time on it.  She used a toothpick to carve out the details.  We just got the brown air dry, sculpting clay from our local Hobby Lobby.  If you google discount coupons for them online you can screen shot the coupon with the code on it and get it 40% off for a big box of clay.



We also did a project with toothpicks and marshmallows and she built it into a pyramid.  

Some of the art art projects were done to finish off the study.  Here is one that she cut up shapes to make a desert and the other one had several steps to complete the project.  (sorry about the red eyes in the picture)  The 2nd art we did was with newspaper and construction paper layered into an image.

 

When we were done with our Ancient Egypt study we took a field trip to a museum to visit the Egyptian exhibits and lucked up that they had a real mummy there.



After our trip to the museum we wanted to try Egyptian food.  This is as close as we could get in our area.  We tried mijadarah and tabbouleh.