Time for a catch-up on what we've been doing around here....
The boys are still very much interested in space exploration and tractors, with the nicer weather our gardens have also become a great learning space.
TJ built some unique Lego creations.
One has has lots of motors and gears, the other is his Mars rover.
We went for a fantastic walk in in the forest in the fog. The boys explored, gained confidence in balancing and had lots of fun.
I was inspired by some other blogs to work on our art and watercolour painting. First I laid out Watercolour paints and permanent markers. The boys weren't too into it so I had fun experimenting.
The next day I got out watercolour paints, coloured sand, glue and markers. The boys watched me start then got really into adding texture and details to their work. Mine is a person jumping in a puddle, MJ made some tractors and a big glue/sand thing (it's about the process not the product!), while TJ made a lovely garden with some weeds and a person.
Another day we got out the oil pastels and chalk pastels to see what the effect might be. TJ created some war machines.
MJ explored white on black and mixing different colours together. He asked me to work on a farm picture together.
The beautiful weather means we have been outside a lot more. The boys have been checking on their seedlings daily. We have spent hours cleaning out the gardens and flower beds. One day the boys found some scrap wood that used to be our balance beam. TJ created a see-saw. With a little assistance he even added handles and a way to keep the board centred. Both boys enjoyed balancing on the boards and paying together. MJ has kept his pieces as loose parts so that he can change the configuration more often.
Earlier in the month TJ and a friend created a fort of scrap wood in the front yard. We asked him to move it to the back yard which didn't go over so well. After some frustration, daddy suggested that TJ could use the swing set frame since the boys hadn't used it much. It was a learning process for all of us. Clear communication and expectations were needed. It took a while but we figured out how to work better as a team and the results were great (a cool forts and stronger relationships). TJ chose to use some of his money to buy furniture for the fort.
Another beautiful day for a walk.
We watched a Canada Goose on her nest and some snakes warming in the sun. TJ brought his new fort furniture for snack time.
The boys measured themselves against their favourite tree and then explored the creek. We had lots of discussions about nature, changes in seasons etc.
MJ brought his little gardening tools to play with. He even took time to help water all the trees he could find. YES those are his awesome fuzzy lizard pyjamas.
We also led a book club with our homeschool friends. The boys asked to do robots for the topic. I read a few stories then the children all made robots from recycled materials. It was great fun.
We also went back to the same spot from our walk earlier in the week. This time with our outdoor playgroup. The children led the way and chose to go for a long hike up the escarpment, through the forest and back down again. They ended at the creek where the boys all picked up sticks. As parents we wanted to stay back and see what would happen but did remind them to be careful. Most of their game was sword fighting but as we hadn't gone over stick usage as a group before hand we asked that they refrain from hitting each other and keep some space this time. Once they all realized that they wanted to be on the same team as 'good guys' negotiations and discussions began. They tried to do Eeny-meeny-miny-mo to select some boys for the 'bad guy' team. Math was done to figure out how to make the teams equal. Since no one wanted to switch sides they decided to run up and down the hill for a while. One boy tripped and they all rushed to help him up. Then they moved on to hide-and-seek along with exploring. It was fascinating to watch and exactly what the group was created for! Looking forward to more get togethers.
SHARING TIME: Please do share what you have been up to. Perhaps you will be an inspiration to someone else!
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