Art, week 11 with Catholic Schoolhouse Curriculum

Art: Quilting. Several students returned this week with finished nine-patch blocks! They worked on reinforcing their seams to get rid of any holes while the rest of the class continued to work on their blocks. I have been most impressed by two of our younger students in the class (ages 4 1/2 and 5 1/2). They had almost finished their block before we left today, and they were sewing very nicely. Hopefully, this is encouragement for some of our older students.*

What is the benefit in sewing a nine-patch block? Firstly, the students have been so excited about this project because they realize this is not just an activity to keep them busy, but they are making a real thing, a blanket to be used by some child somewhere. They look at the seams in their clothes and realize they, too, can make clothes, socks, dresses for dolls, even priestly vestments! They are learning a real job. This means a great deal to young children (to learn to do adult things and to learn to build useful things), and this gift of the child should never be devalued, lest they stop wishing to become adults. To help them understand more fully the nature of their job, I recommend reminding your children that needles are tools and as such should be treated with special care. They would never play with Dad's chainsaw! The same rule applies to very small tools.

Secondly, the hand-eye coordination that is needed to sew helps the child with the virtues of patience and fortitude. This is a difficult task especially for our youngest students, and they must sit quietly and focus on their task if they wish to do well.

Finally, for those of you who prefer the mundane argument over one of idealism, sewing will also improve the fine motor skills needed for writing.

Completed 9-Patch Blocks are due next week.

God Bless Your Sewing this Week!
Alecia Rolling

Art: Quilting Kits

What is in our quilting kits?

• 9 pre-cut fabric squares
• large eye-hole hand needle
• fabric holder for needle
• 1 spool of thread (25 yards)
• instructions

All materials were bought locally. The needles came in packs of 12 with a variety of sizes. The largest needles were given to the youngest boys and girls. For thread, I bought two "sewing traveling kits", each containing 12 spools of thread. This was the cheapest option. The patches were made from scratch fabric that I had lying around. The student's name was taped to a plastic zip-lock bag for keeping materials separate at home as well as in Catholic Schoolhouse.
All together for 24 students the cost came to $6!

*This project developed by Mrs. Rolling.

Art, week 10 with Catholic Schoolhouse Curriculum

Art: Quilting Like the Pioneers. The next three weeks in art class, we will be working on a 9 Patch Block quilt. Each child received a quilting kit with instructions, and they were introduced today to sewing basics and to quilting. We discussed how the pioneers made their quilts from left over fabric and from old clothes. The children are sewing the quilt by hand just like the pioneers! This activity was a huge hit. All of the children worked very diligently and were excited to finish their blocks at home. Although I have set aside 3 weeks for quilting, I have a hunch most children will finish within two weeks! Here are some links to help you, parents, as you help your children:

• How to Sew By Hand
• How to stitch a 9 Patch Block
• Hooked on Needles: Disappearing 9 Patch blocks

*Art project developed by Mrs. Rolling.

Science: Making Rain. This week we learned about the water cycle: evaporation, condensation, precipitation. We used a large glass jar filled partly with hot water and a large glass bowl filled with ice to create "rain". We also put food coloring in the water to see if the condensed water would contain color. The rest of the time we talked about different ways of filtering water, so we can drink it. Science project provided by the CSH Science Curriculum.

See you next week!
Alecia Rolling

Art & Science, week 9 with Catholic Schoolhouse Curriculum

Art: A Nature Sketch (of sorts).

It was a rainy day, and our location does not allow for outdoor play or excursions very easily. Given these two factors, we sketched a still-life of plants instead. The students were surprisingly quiet and focused during this week's art lesson, and all the students produced wonderful pieces of art. I did forget to take pictures, however, so we shall have to do with an image by John James Audubon. This was our last week to study Audubon's Birds of North America. *Project developed by Mrs. Rolling. 

Science: Why is the sky blue?

Continuing with our study of weather, today we did a CSH experiment to help explain why the sky is blue. Using a clear 2-liter soda bottle, water, milk, and a flashlight, we were able to imitate the earth's atmosphere as light passes through it. To our amazement we saw different colors as more and more milk was added to the water! In the end, we had blue and purple, so we discussed the varying lengths of color and how colors scatter when they run into particles. This seemed quite the difficult concept for most students to grasp, but the experiment, I think, brought the idea to life. For more ideas on similar experiments you can do at home, visit this website: Science Made Simple: http://www.sciencemadesimple.com/sky_blue.html#PROJECTS

See you next week!

Alecia Rolling

St. Philippine qoutes for your homeschool...

Quotes from St. Philippine Duchesne:

"Learn to let others do their share of the work. Things may be done less well, but you will have more peace of soul and health of body. And what temporal interest should we not sacrifice in order to gain these blessings?"

...." the dear Lord has favored us with a share of His cross. The greatest and undoubtedly the hardest to bear is the lack of success in our work here. If a saint had been in charge, all would have gone well. "

"You may dazzle the mind with a thousand brilliant discoveries of natural science; you may open new worlds of knowledge which were never dreamed of before; yet, if you have not developed in the soul of the pupil strong habits of virtue which will sustain her in the struggle of life, you have not educated her, but only put in her hand a powerful instrument of self-destruction."

"Humility is the virtue that requires the greatest amount of effort."

St. Philippine Duchesne

Peace of Christ to ALL

Art & Science, week 8 with Catholic Schoolhouse Curriculum

Art: Texture Study and A Duck. This week in art we learned more about texture, how artists create suggested texture not actual texture. Students used broken, paperless crayons to rub on paper with bark and leaves underneath. After practicing this for a time, they took a clean piece of paper and attempted to create the suggested texture of a pond or swamp. Finally, they drew a duck on their pond with oil pastels. Many students had their own ideas as well! *A CSH Art Curriculum Activity.

Science: Weather. This week in science we learned about how the earth's rotation affects the direction of wind and global wind patterns. We attempted an experiment similar to the one here. Older students drew the wind patterns on a blank globe. For more ideas, visit this website: DLESE Teaching Boxes.

See you next week!
Alecia Rolling

Weather Observation, weeks 7-12

During this second quarter at Catholic Schoolhouse, we will be observing the weather. Some of our families are very young, the oldest child only being 5-7 years of age. Here are some tips for observing the weather with younger children:

1. Keep the activity age appropriate. If your oldest is 5 years of age, consider using this as an opportunity to learn about the calendar, days of the week, and months. Have your child draw a picture of what the weather looks like: a sun, a cloud, a sun covered slightly by a cloud, a cloud with rain, etc.
2. Keep it fun! If it is too stressful for your family to record the weather everyday, decide to check the weather four days of the week.
3. Check out books from the library about weather! This is a great time to read books about storms and winter storms and the like.
4. Here are some free weather coloring pages as well:

• Free Coloring Pages
• Educational Coloring Pages
• Autumn Coloring Pages

If you just do a Google search, you will find many more coloring page options for the weather! Have fun!
*Project developed by Mrs. Rolling.