Thanksgiving

It's a month late but here is our Thanksgiving unit study. We also completed Autumn.

Every morning Joe reads a chapter of the Magic Tree House series to Benjamin. I had them skip ahead to number 27 to read Thanksgiving on Thursday together.
Benjamin loves these books. The characters, Jack and Annie, disvcover a magic tree house filled with books. When they they point to a picture in a book and wish to go there, the tree house magically transports them there. They learn all about different times and cultures. While they are gone no time passes back at home, it is very appealing to Benjamin.

Front cover with the beautiful Michigan leaves (courtesy of my Aunt Brenda and my dad) we used to make leaf rubbings and to talk about the changing colors of autumn. We don't get to see fall colors where we live so it was nice to have a visual.


I put the lapbook in the inside flap of our notebook.


Inside flaps.


Pilgrim and Wampanoag puppets.


Count your blessings cards.


Thank you God book and I am thankful for book.


Give thanks flaps.



Children then and now book.



Five senses book.


His leaf book.


Many of his notebook pages.










Back cover.


Book List:

Thanksgiving on Thursday by Mary Pope Osborne
Pilgrims by Mary Pope Osborne
Thanksgiving Stories and Poems by Caroline Feller Bauer


Resources:

The thanksgiving maze and coloring pageschoolexpress

ideas fromhomeschoolshare

turkey handprint page and count your blessings pocketlulu

many sources from this site with a long list of free Thanksgiving printablessquidoo

many sources abcteach including the first Thanksgiving book

I got the mazes and paper dolls fromactivityvillage

and more from the Thanksgiving lapbook fromlive&learn

Creation Week

All about God's beautiful Creation!


Benjamin included his family, pets, and self as part of God's Creation. One of our cats wouldn't stay out of the photo and her tail is partially on the page.


Some Creation mini books.


He made a page for each day of Creation.


Our favorite song about Creation:

Day one, Day one
God made light when there was none.
(repeat)

Day two, Day two
God made clouds and skies of blue
(repeat)

Day three, Day three
God made flowers plants and trees
(repeat)

Day four, Day four
God made sun and moon and stars galore
(repeat)

Day five, Day five
God made fish and birds alive
(repeat)

Sixth day, sixth day
God made animals and man that day
(repeat)

Day seven, Day seven
God was resting in His Heaven
(repeat)

I used a lot of things from the Creation lapbook fromlapbook lessons.

America Week

We studied America and elections. I took Benjamin to the polls with me so he could watch the process of voting.







Here is our America lapbook:

I just made the title and Googled USA maps.


We talked about how our state is one of fifty.


I used this minibook.


We included an Electoral College map that he colored and a local voters guide. We talked about how the people in the guide were trying to get jobs and we were voting for the ones that we thought were best for those jobs.


Benjamin was very interested in the presidents, so we went a little further with that than I had originally anticipated. I was reading through a list of their names and he became very excited by all the 'Thomas', 'Adams', and the 'Benjamin' names. He then began to repeat me as I said a name. He asked me to read through them several times. By the time I had said them through three times, he was telling me most of their last names once I said the first name.

I used this link for parts of the presidents page.



This is the reading list:

Presidents by James Barber
America Votes: How Our President is Elected by Linda Granfield
The Train of States by Peter Sis


Here are some sites I used a lot:

whitehouse.gov
bensguide.gpo.gov

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