September 30, 2013- Civil War Reenactment

This week we have been studying about the Civil War. Today, we went to a Civil War reenactment in Angelica, NY. We took a tractor ride from the parking lot to the village where the battle took place. We walked to see the Civil War band play Yankee Doodle Dandy. My mom took a picture of me standing in front of the band. We saw a Civil War encampment, and all the actors were dressed in Civil War uniforms. The women had on hoop skirts . There was a fire with food cooking, and a tea party set up for after the battle. The first sound I heard was not that loud. Closer and closer the soldiers came to us. The battle got louder and louder. We had to cover our ears. The Union soldiers wore blue jackets, and the Confederate wore grey. Some actors pretended to die. There was smoke everywhere. The dead soldiers were moved out of the path of the battle. Medics came to help the wounded soldiers. I was excited, but it was too loud sometimes. I could feel the hot air from the cannon's fire. The blast shook the leaves from the tree above us. The little kids were crying. The muskets were not as loud as the cannons. I didn't learn anything new about the Civil War, but it was a fun day.

September 27, 2013 Genesee Country Museum

First of all, this is Ben's mom (Sandy) typing today. Ben takes so incredibly long to type that he gives up on his entry long before he's finished with what he wants to say. Today, I had him simply handwrite his entry so that I can type for him.
I had an awesome time at the Genesee County Museum today. I met a friend at the entrance. One of the things we saw was a demonstration of how Civil War Soldiers fired a cannon in the Civil War. It made a loud bang, and we covered our ears. We also went inside a where we saw a hot air balloons. The Union soldiers would spy on the Confederates, using hot air balloons. We climbed in the basket and Mom took a picture. One of the exhibits was how the soldiers inflated the hot air balloon. They did not have helium, so they made hydrogen. The soldiers combined iron and sulfuric acid to create hydrogen. The hydrogen inflated the balloon. The person at the museum set the hydrogen on fire to teach us hydrogen is flammable, and helium is not. We went to more tents from the Civil War. Inside two of the tents we saw a wooden bed and tables. On the tables were apples, silverware and cups. The wooden beds reminded me of the cement bed that I slept on in China. Some people were saying that the wooden beds looked uncomfortable, and I said that I slept on a cement bed in China. After lunch, we went to a place where we pretended to pack a baggie full of stuff for the soldiers. We went outside to sign up to be a soldier. The person who worked there, used an inkwell and quill pen. Then we stepped up the Doctor that checked our teeth. We had to take an oath. Then we got our picture taken with a musket. I wanted a picture with the bayonet, but the museum worker wouldn't let me. Then we went to the Hamilton house and we saw a stove that reminded me of a stove in China because it was old fashioned and needed fire. Then we went to a house, but I don't remember who lived in that house. It was an octagon house. The owner was a doctor and his wife was a music teacher. The teacher asked if anyone knew why the house was octagon, and I knew that it was to help to bring in light. Then I went to George Eastman's first house, when he was a little boy. It had a picture of him when he was four years old.  We also saw a tinsmith work. The last thing I did, was I went to an exhibit where a person explained the weapons from the Civil War. He talked about the General's sword and about a pistol that can only shoot close. The musket can shoot five football fields. They talked about the bullets, and how if someone was shot in a bone, then the doctor had to cut the arm or leg off. I had a great time at the Genesee Country Museum. I hope I can go back.

September 23, 2013--Typing

Today the fist thing I did was take guitar lessons. It was fun. The second thing I did was my math and then Science workbook pages. Then I did vocabulary. Vocabulary is hard  for me. I use the Vocabulary Workshop book. I also use the website to practice my vocabulary words. My book had a code in it, so that we can use the website. Typing is the thing I hate the most. I am very slow. My mom types for me sometimes because it takes me too long. For typing practice, I do games online that teach me home-row.  My  favorite subject is Science because I like to find fossils, do experiments and I want to be a Scientist.  For Science, I am using Spectrum Science Grade 4. I am going to learn (from the back of the book) Science as Inquiry, Physical Science, Life Science, and about Earth and Space. We spent a lot of time on geography today. We watched YouTube videos of the song Fifty Nifty United States, over and over and over again. I also use Sheppard Software to place the states on a map, and we have a map puzzle too. We watched history videos called School House Rock. I feel that geography is kind of fun because you get to learn about the world. I've only been in the United States for three years, but I have traveled to Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington DC and Florida. I want to go to Washington DC again, when my brothers get old enough. I studied Chinese today too. I've learned 32 characters so far. Homeschooling is great so far because I get to do the lessons I want. Except vocabulary. Mom makes me do that, even though I don't like it.

September 19., 2013--Books!

Today the first thing I did was math. I did two pages of  multiplication  in my math book.
The second thing I did was Geography. I did a United  States of America map puzzle. Then I did two pages of science in my work book. Then I did some push ups with Connor. Then I ate lunch. This is what I had for lunch, a chicken salad sandwich and a peach. Then I watched School House Rock movie. It teaches me  U.S. History, math and grammar .I watch this every day, so that I learn it well. I  am also learning Chinese. I use a computer program called Memrise.com. I also listen to Cds from the Pimsleur language program for 30 minutes each day. I want to learn Chinese so that I can go visit Ayi (my Chinese auntie) when I am older. I feel that homeschooling is fun, but harder than normal school. A  friend came over to swim this afternoon. We spent three hours in the pool. I got my books in the mail today too! I ordered them when a friend gave me a gift certificate for my birthday. I love to read. I think the books will be fun to read. It's 6:30pm, and I'm just now finishing my work for today. I'm tired.

September 16, 2013 Second week of school

This is my second week of school .I realized that I can read a lot more now, than when I went to school everyday. I go to the public library at least once or twice a week. So far, these are the books that I have read since homeschool started 10 days ago:

The Best Book of Spaceships by Ian Graham,The Magician’s Boy by Susan Cooper,300 by Rank Miller and Lynn Varley,The Dream is Alive by Barbara Embury,Knights in Armor (Living History),Insiders: Predators, Science Verse, By Joan Scieszka, Who Was Walt Disney? By Whitney Stewert,Who Was Leonardo da Vinci? By Roberta Edwards,The m109A6 Paladins, by Michael and Gladys Green,Who was Abraham Lincoln? by Janet B .Pascal,Who was Thomas Jefferson? by Dennis  Fradin,Who was John F. Kennedy ?by Yona  Zeldis  Mcdonough,Who was Anne Frank? By Ann Abramson, and Keepers of  the  School Fear  itself, by  Andrew Clements.

Homeschooling is going well. My plan is to do both fourth and fifth grade this year. I'm working hard. I finish two pages of math everyday, instead of one. I also do two pages of Science. I will finish both of those workbooks by January, and then we can get the fifth grade books. Sometimes I wonder when my school day will be over, because it's almost four o'clock, and I'm STILL doing schoolwork. I'm trying to learn to type too, so that I can write this journal faster. I'll write more tomorrow, maybe.

 

September 10, 2013 First homeschooling field trip

Today we went to the museum. The first thing we did is look at the fossils. Then we went to explore the ice tunnel and to lean about glacier formations here in New York, a long, long, long time ago. And then we dug for fossils. We saw a Mastodon skeleton. We looked at animal habitats. We studied the disease carried by mosquitos, called Lyme disease. After that, we went upstairs and did activities with balls, planes, vacuums, and rode on a hovercraft. The last thing we did was watch a movie about Rochester NY and its natural resources. Glaciers formed the lakes, and water is one of our area's greatest natural resources. The water wheels and millstones were used in Rochester to make flour. Wind also makes electricity, here in New York. The salt mine, right near Geneseo, proves that seas once covered this area. Once the seas receded, the salt was left behind, deep underground. There is a lot of sedimentary rock in this area, filled with fossils from marine animals, such as trilobites, crinoids and coral. During dinner, we decided to guess (develop a hypothesis) about peppers. My dad's friend gave us a basket of peppers. We didn't know which ones were spicy. We tested out our guesses, and the red thin pepper made all of us almost cry!! My face was red and my lips felt burnt. Then we tried lip balm, drinking water, and ice to cool our mouths. Mom laughed at us. Charles made funny faces. At night, I went with my dad to go vote for the Sheriff. My dad got a ballot, and he filled in his choice for Sheriff, and put it the voting machine to count. We all received a sticker for voting. I had a good time today.