The Ancient Maya, a history project

Before our mid-year break,

Lu had two weeks to focus on a history project

about the Ancient Maya.

At least once a year,

Lu works on an independent project

that involves research, a deadline, and a presentation.

I only helped with the final editing,

and double checking historical dates.

Lu planned out his project with a timeline

and checklists, and worked several hours a day,

with short breaks in between

for puppy time

and guitar practice.

 

  

Once he was done with the research,

he printed and organized his information and images.

It's hard for me to not get involved sometimes,

so I left him at the stationary shop with generous funding,

to choose his materials. 

And then came the putting-together part!

I was only allowed in the room to take some pics.

But after this one, 

I was informed that it was the last time I could come in 

until he was ready to give his presentation.

On the Friday before our break (the deadline)

Lu was finished with his project at 8:30pm.

Throughout the project, Lu mentioned several times

how "professional" this kind of work made him feel,

and that he really enjoyed it :)

Great job, Lu!!!

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Now we're on a three-week break,

just chillin' with friends and taking it easy

after six months of hard work and loads of learning.

 

Pre-Columbian Societies, Non-Newtonian Fluids, and Natural Building

It's been raining hard and we were on hurricane alert

for a few days. 

Rain or shine, the boy is up and at 'em at 6am,

even though mama sometimes sleeps in until 7.

He's an early riser, no matter what time he goes to bed,

or how gray and cold it is outside.

We're still starting the mornings with guitar practice.

This week, Lu's been learning 

Metallica's Enter Sandman,

Guns 'n' Roses' Sweet Child O' Mine,

and The Beatles' Let It Be.

We've been using DK Eyewitness Books 

as history supplements for three years.

We're currently studying the Ancient Americas.

 Lu loves all the little info bits,

and I like the short-trip-to-the-museum feel of them.

We're usually in the same room when he's reading,

and he frequently stops to say something that starts with:

"MAMA!!! Did you know that......?!?!"

He did a great job on his map of Guatemala.

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I can't tell you how many times Lu has discovered yet another YouTube tutorial for making some kind of goo/slime substance that is then left in a HUGE tupperware, taking up way too much space in MY refrigerator, which after being played with a couple of times is never to be touched again until MAMA finally tosses it.

But this time, he nailed it.

This blue slime, aka a non-Newtonian fluid (aren't we smart?)

((lol. Well, I sure didn't know what that was until now anyway))

is REALLY AWESOME STUFF.

Lu brought it out a few times that we had (grown-up) friends over.

Everyone was playing with it. It's hypnotic.

And it doesn't even need refrigeration :mama happy:

 

  

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Cha had a group of university students from the U.S. 

come to learn about natural building, 

and Lu got to participate in the construction of this bamboo cabin.

 

Thanks for all the great learning experiences, Life!

Dishes, Cats, Volunteers, and Islam

Lu really only has one established "chore"- dish-washing. Breakfast and dinner. If he cooks, we swap and I do the dishes (which sucks), although he does usually make yummier meals than I do (because he puts a pound of butter in just about everything he makes).

He does the breakfast dishes right before we start our homeschool day. And he feeds the cats. It's an important quiet time to get him grounded before tackling math or spelling. 

Speaking of cats,  

Lu has been learning ASL (American Sign Language) 

and today I turned around and saw this during his lesson:

That's Monkey. She's our very weird cat.

Happy International Volunteer Day! Cha and I both run projects that host volunteers at our center (which is also our home). Lu has grown up around hundreds (really, hundreds) of super awesome twenty-something-year-olds who are into permaculture, peace education, social justice, sustainable farming, eco-living, social arts, and a bunch of other cool stuff. So THANK YOU to all those wonderful people who have been a part of our work and family. Lu has also benefited greatly from the friendships and examples.

Here's Lu in the volunteer kitchen, 

making pancakes with all the gang:

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We've been exploring the rich and fascinating world of Islam.

 Lu made a poster:

 And we watched some excellent documentaries:

History Channel's - Inside Islam

BBC's - Science in Islam

PBS's - Islam, Empire of Faith

We also drew Islamic tessellations with this tutorial 

It got pretty complicated.

Lu chose green.

I chose red.

We both agree that it was an AWESOME activity.

We didn't even notice that 2 hours had gone by.

And we had a gorgeous morning at the lake this week.

I can't believe it's already December!