Saturday, February 28, 2015

Pirate Crews and Treasure Maps

This week was a fun Pirate Adventure!  
We continued with the Pirate theme by testing out the democracy and teamwork of a Pirate Crew.
   First, we divided into two crews.  Each crew had to decide on a dastartly pirate ship name.  We had an "SS Overboard"  and a "Siren's Song". 
   Then, each crew designed their own Pirate Flag.  We made sure that it looked so menacing, that trade ships would volunteer their treasures at the sight.   A pirate ship was constructed with cardboard, tube rolls, and bamboo skewers for the mast. (I liked the detail of cannons that Brandon added on his ship)
   Before we would set sail, we established the position of each pirate by voting on a Captain, a First Mate, a Navigator, a Pilot and a Quartermaster.
   Each  crew was given a treasure map and a compass then we headed outside where we embarked  on a real treasure hunt.  There was only one buried treasure chest with two crews racing to find it first.  The map clues sent us all over the place:  to the Cliffs of Insanity, then to the Lava Flow Valley, past Kraken's Feathers and the Shady Cove then on toward the Barnacled Branches next to the Pine Needle Isle.
   SS Overboard Crew was the first to unbury the treasure.  Upon opening the chest we delighted in the treasure that we had discovered.  Gold (chocolate) coins, and sapphire gems, a ruby ring, and a few other doo dad treasures (made in China)  The two Quartermasters then had the task of evenly dividing up the loot to each crew member.

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a Pirate's Life for Me!

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a Pirate's Life for Me

Avast, me hearties!   Pirate Captain Hobblin' Juliana Smithe, here.  I've recently turned to piracy, and 'ave been lookin' for a crew to join me.  Luckily, I didn't 'ave to look far to find some fine maritime lads and lasses that signed on to me Pirate Code.  We are preparin' to set sail soon!
   Part of our preparation is to give 'em all a proper pirate name.  Let's see, we've got Tyler the Terrible,  Pinkbeard, Anita Backstabber, Tennis Elbow Wenchy, Fish Food Bob, Patches and Cap'n Elliot to name a few. 
   We gulped down some "hard tack" pirate biscuits in the dark to avoid seeing the weevils that had infested our food below deck.  (not really)  Me new crew sings a lovely sea shantie. Ask 'em to sing it to ye.  
  The next order of business was to assign crew positions.  Every member of our crew is important to the smooth sailing of our ship!  I may be the Captain, but I have little power.  Pirate Ships run as a true democracy, with voting and majority rule.   The Pilot and Sea Artist steer us toward trade routes,  the Quartermaster decides which booty to acquire, the Master Gunner keeps us protected, the Carpenter keeps our ship in good working condition, the Boatswain keeps the crew in order, the Surgeon helps to amputate injured limbs, and the Striker keeps the Cook's pantry full with sea creatures she's trapped.  We're ever so glad to have a Cabin Boy and Powder Monkey aboard as well.

Next week, our Pirate crews will be designing their own pirate flags, and hunting for buried treasure!   ARRRRgh!

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Tea Party

Today we had the privilege of having Scholars Trey, Josh and Kaleigh as our substitute mentors hosting our tea party.
While we nibbled on lemon pound cake, strawberries and biscuits, the leaders taught us the history of high tea vs afternoon tea, and reminded us of proper etiquette during social gatherings. 
Manners were enforced during our party, and napkins were properly used. 
Several poems were read for entertainment.
Although no one was daring enough to try sipping some herbal tea, fun was had by all. 

From the report I received, it sounds like some of us need more practice with silencing bodily noises during tea parties. 
Boys will be boys, I suppose. :)

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Paper Crafting Old-School Style

Every kid should know how to fold a paper hat, and a paper boat, right?
    This week, we learned some amazing things that we can create with folded paper.  We started with a basic fold, and each made ourselves a paper hat.  We discovered that if we wanted our pirate hats to fit our heads, we needed to use a bigger piece of paper!

    The paper boats were really fun, and they actually float, too!  (we know- we tested them)
Ask your daring kid to tell you the paper craft story of "The Captain and His Ship"...you'll be amazed!

Merry helped us witness "capillary action" with a paper flower that bloomed right before our eyes.

Tyler stepped up in a leadership role, and led the folding instructions in how to make a paper balloon!   It was the trickiest fold, but it turned out to be the most popular item.  We had heard a rumor that by filling our paper balloon with water, that we could turn it into a water bomb.  It's true!  We tested this, too.  Many squeals of delight could be heard from the parking lot.

I DARE you all to look up how to create something new out of paper.  I can't wait to see what you've made.

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

DARING WOMEN of the SKY

This week we focused on some DARING women in history.  With the invention of the Wright Brothers’ Flying Machine, there came some females that dared to follow their intrigue with airplanes, and learned how to fly!
   We learned about the “third Wright Brother”, Katharine Wright (their sister) who supported her brothers’ creativity all the way.  She was history’s first female airplane passenger.  (She used a rope to tie her skirt around her legs, so it would stay put during the flight)
  Then came Harriet Quimby- the first female pilot.  She dared to abandon her skirt and trade it in for a purple silk knickerbocker outfit.  She was the first female to fly across the English Channel.  (Would have been front-page news, if the Titanic had not sunk the day before).  Harriet learned the hard way why a SEATBELT would have been an important piece of equipment when she fell to her death.
   My favorite female pilot was Bessie Coleman- the first black woman to obtain a pilots license.  Since flight schools in the US banned her from enrolling (due to her race) she overcame this obstacle by going to France for her pilots license.  There, she was taught stunt-flying.  Loop-de-loops and barnstorming were a big hit with audiences.  Bessie was in high demand, but she would only perform if the crowds were de-segregated.  Her dream of opening up a flight school for African Americans was cut short when a mechanics tool slid into the controls, jammed them, and the plane crashed.
  (Avery made me chuckle when she commented “The lesson for the female pilots is: never let a MAN ride in the plane with you”!)  ha!
   We finished our discussion with the Powder Puff Derby airplane race of 1937.  A transcontinental race where women pilots were pitted against men to prove once and for all that “women are incompetent flyers”.  Of course, a female named Louise Thayer won the race, and held altitude, distance and speed records. 
   Next, we tried our hand at becoming paper airplane pilots.  Trinity made a very fun spiral flying object, and the rest of us folded the “Harrier” jet that claims to be the best flier ever.  We took our planes to the parking lot where we practiced launching.  I believe Zane to be our most skilled paper airplane pilot.  His plane consistently flew the longest distance.  Elliot used his engineering mind to tweak the folds a bit to create a plane that does barrel rolls!  Tyler ended up re-folding his plane so that it flew like a dart.  I was super-impressed with all in our Daring Club- creativity and problem solving was evident as they came up with their own versions of a paper airplane.  fun!