We all know how the Home School shuffle goes. We get on a roll, but then learning takes us to another destination. We've taken a few twists and turns, so we're not on our regularly scheduled programming. Due to all sorts of changes and detours, we're only now embarking on our journey to Africa! The My Father's World curriculum is full of great ideas about how to navigate through the continent, but with so many countries I plan to extend it somewhat. We spent the first week discovering the diverse climates, animals, languages, and people groups within the continent. The most fascinating part of the journey so far is the savannah. Of course, the boys are excited because during our trip to Cabela's they were able to view a scene of the African savannah with an actual African elephant center - stage. They recall all of the various animals located in this part of the exhibit so they have a good reference point. With 54 different independent nations it's tough to choose which ones we'll study, but I've narrowed it down to a few.
We are now traveling through Kenya
, which is in the My Father's World curriculum. This week we'll discuss the flag, its origin, the languages spoken there, the population and size relative to the USA (for no other reason than that this is a country whose size they are most acclimated to), and some indigenous customs. We will also explore their economy and government.
Activities:
1.) Color an outline of the Kenyan flag, create your own. (Using glue and colored construction paper the boys will try to recreate the Kenyan flag while listing the meaning of its colors and symbolism on the back)
2.) Research the climate and ecosystems present in Kenya. Find out which animals are there and determine information regarding their habitats. Use shoe boxes and natural debris from the backyard to recreate the ecosystems present. Describe them in detail. *Use internet to find out if there are endangered animals there and why they are endangered.
3.) Write a legend about how an African animal got an attribute. This is a common legend technique and the entire time we study Africa we'll be reading these types of stories. Since they have so much experience reading and listening to them I will have them write their own.
3.) Learn Swahili. Each day count to ten in Swahili, learn how to say the word for a different color and post and label them within the classroom, and learn basic greetings and conversation words.
4.) Art project: Make a Masai necklace using different pasta shapes and construction paper.
We are in for a treat. Whenever we study new places I always include our basics, like reading, language, math, and spelling skills. But when we explore different places we use all of those basic skills. Using writing, math, and reading they will be able to analyze and synthesize their learning so that it sticks with them for a long time to come.
In my next post I'll include the stories they create along with their illustrations. Fun and exciting times. Soon we'll travel to Nigeria and Botswana!
