Farm Week

We were able to visit two farms this week and both on the same day. Needless to say we were a little farmed out that day, or at least I was. Benjamin now has plans to buy a cow, goats, and a poney. He wants to milk a cow and grow corn too!

First we went to Hunsader Farm.

There were lots of animals to pet and feed there.
Goats.



Ponies.


A peacock - I don't get why it was on a farm.


More goats.


Sheep.


Goats again.


Geese.


Pigs.


What a cute little kid.





Bunnies.


Not everyone can say they have hand fed a deer.



He tried very hard to get the butterfly to sit on his finger. The problem was every time he got close to them he got really excited and was too loud, but he kept on trying!



Next we went to Dakin Dairy Farm. They have over 1,400 Holstein cows.
It is really too hot in Florida for cows to live comfortably, so the farm has fans and misters on the cows when it gets above 77 degrees outside.

Benjamin told me his favorite was the black and white cow. When I asked him which black and white one he said very seriously, "The black and white one is my favorite KIND of cow, mommy. Just all of them."


The guide told us that during the day many of the cows will be crowded in the water or in the washing area.



The milking shed.



Watching the milking process.


This is the field where the pregnant and injured can get away from the herd and rest. This is also where the newborns live.






Here is our Farm Lapbbok.

We made it in the shape of a barn.


When you open the doors the animals are waiting inside.




Inside is the animal matching game, the mini book I changed the name to personalize for Benjamin.

He also made a picture with a craft stick barn and fence and added tumbprint animals. We drew some sheep and he practiced counting them and the cottonballs that he glued on them.

Here is our book list:

We Need Farmers by Lola M. Schaefer
Farm Animals by Jim Pipe
I Can Be a Farmer by Kathy Henderson
The Farm by Stuart A. Kallen
Cows by Mary Ann McDonald
Linnea's Windosill Garden by Christina Bjork and Lena Anderson
Fantastic Farm Machines by Cris Peterson
A Field of Horses by Peter Hansard
This is Daniel Cook at the Farm by Yvette Ghione
Tractors by Peter Brady
At the Farm by Sandy Francis
Find It on the Farm by Dee Phillips
Pioneer Farm by Megan O'Hara
Oink? by Margie Palatini
Ginger and Petunia by Patricia Polacco
Farm Animals by Mary Scott
Baby Animals on the Farm by Hans-Heinrich Isenbart
And the Cow Said Moo by Mildred Phillips
G is for Goat by Patricia Polacco

These are books we referenced or just looked at the pictures:

Farm by Ned Halley
Farm Animals by James A. Corrick
My First Garden Book by Angela Wilkes
Farm Birds by Edward C. Haggerty
Pigs by Christina Wilsdon
A Kid's Guide to How Vegetables Grow by Patricia Ayers

Trains

For weeks five and six we studied Benjamin's favorite topic: trains. He already had quite the aptitude for trains and his enthusiasm made this unity study fun for me as well.

Our reading list:
The Transcontinental Railroad by Peter Anderson
The Transcontinental Railroad by Edward F. Dolan
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg (as well as the audio version)
Railways and Trains by Caroline Young (Usborne)
Bullet Trains by William Amato
The World's Railroads: High-Speed Trains by Christopher Chaunt

Numerous Thomas the Tank Engine books by Rev. W Audry

Our train lapbook.




What begins with "T" book.

Circus counting train.


Circus animal train.


Another counting train.


Scenes he created in his sticker activity book.




Train rhyming words. Lift up the word for to find the rhyming word underneath.


Tic-tac-toe board with conductor hat and railroad crossing pieces.


Parts of a steam train and a diesel train.


Benjamin made a lacing card and he illustrated a three page story that he narrated to me. It is an exciting adventure that takes place on the Island of Sodor, with lots of crashes and accidents. It is very cute and original.



Benjamin completed this entire numbers book.


Numbers and Letters practice.



A train maze with its own little train to use and writing the letter "T" practice.


I used these links for a lot of my information and printouts:

Homeschool Share
Free Printable Fun


At Sprout Club he learned about bats and spiders.



We went to the historic train museum downtown. This was where the Ringling circus trains would stop off for their winter break.

This is an old handcar.


Our tour guide is showing him how to ring an old train bell.


Checking out the train art.


Heading to the caboose.




The only piece of track left intact. Sadly, this train station has not seen a train in over ten years.



We also took a field trip to the circus museum. A large part of the circus history was surrounded around the circus trains. There was an entire replica of the Ringling Circus and train. It was highly detailed and very fascinating. I never realized how extensive the circus was in its hay day. Ringling had four locomotives and full trains designated just for transporting the circus. It was a town in and of itself.






What a great way to end a train study! Play trains at the beach!