The Human Body Co-op class..

This 2nd half of the school year our local homeschool group started a co-op on The Human Body... Basically during the two hours we are together we do Vocabulary words (Thanks Nancy!!)... it is really neat the way we are doing them. The word is given and then the definition is given with a few missing words in the definition. The kid's write in the missing words as we go over what the words means and maybe what it does or where it is located. I think the kid's have learned a lot from the words.

Each child is putting together a Human Body lapbook. They are turning out really neat! I am teaching that and it has been a learning experience. Ya know it is rather different doing a lapbook with my own children at home in our leisure with homeschooling here and doing a lapbook in a group setting... The lapbooks with be a neat addition to their science for this year.

We then typically take a break... the boys go watch a brainpop video while the girls have a snack and then they switch places. The brainpop video's are like 2-5 minutes long and they go so well with the topic of the day, be it respiratory system, digestive system, skeletal system, etc.

We are also putting together a life size human body. Each kid traced their body on a piece of newsprint and then they have added the skeletal parts to one side and muscular system parts to the other side. There are organs and skeletal pieces throughout the center. They turned out great! The kid's finished them today and were able to bring them home. We will try to get pictures tomorrow of my kid's with their body beside them :-)

Also, we try to do some sort of activity to go along with the topic of the day. Many times it just depends on the time left. Today they had a memory game, ya know the kind with the tray full of about 10 items and you see those items for all of 10 seconds or so and try to remember everything on there. Our topic today was brain and nervous system.

My favorite activity was the digestive system, where Michelle went through the steps of the digestive system using a typical lunch pbj, chips, apple, water. Everything was placed into the mouth (blender) and chewed up. Then it was swallowed and went to the stomach (bowl). From the stomach, the acid was mixed in (vinegar) and it was placed into the intestines (nylon stocking). It would normally stay there for about 4 hours or so... the liquids were sqeezed out and the remaining stuff was squeezed out through a small cut in the corner of the nylon to enter the rectum. It gave a VERY thorough "picture" of the digestive system!

Thanks Michelle for setting up the Human Body co-op and planning it all!!!

Gym time with out homeschool group...

We (Thanks Brian & Michelle!!) started a gym class with our homeschool group this year. It all began after the 1st of the year and the kid's seem to enjoy it so far (other than the typical problems that can come in when things get into the competitive arena!). Thus far they have played kick ball, dodge ball, hockey, hockey with tennis balls, basketball, jump rope, capture the flag, and more...