Random Learning in the Summer

Today, off the cuff, Rachel and I talked about the difference between fiction and non-fiction.  We were driving into town to buy some supplies and somehow the topic of pretend verse real came up.  We are now reading our fourth chapter book, Pirates After Noon.  We picked up the factual companion volume, which I may not actually share with her yet as it has some violent images that are too much for her right now.

She has also learned today that galvanized bolts are dipped in zinc.  In the new little toolbox that David bought her, she has a new drill bit to add to her collection.  (They come in every box of screws, so we have extras.)

She informed me yesterday, as we were talking about what a "flock" of birds was, that hummingbirds migrate south for the winter.  We had looked up some of the birds we've seen in this app and she actually remembered that the maps showing the range of the birds were color coded to show different seasons.  Ok, she blew me away with that one.

She has learned to swim around in the lake without holding on to me (and yes, she is wearing a life preserver).  Tonight I tested her to see if she could dog-paddle back to shore all by herself.  It took her a little while, but yes, she can.

She loves to swim in the lake.  She hates getting out, even when she is shivering.

She has learned that taking a shower, like Mommy, is fun. (Not to mention easier on Mom here at the cottage.)

We've looked at water bugs, water lilies, fish and wild raspberry and blueberry plants.  She has eaten both berries right off the plant.  We have a container of worms which we will explore tomorrow and go fishing for the first time.

Wildflowers

Over the past few weeks, Rachel and I have been picking flowers at the cottage and pressing them. We've identified several and have included them in our scrapbook of the summer.




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Mummies

We've been reading the Magic Treehouse series of books.  We are currently in Book 3 about Egypt and Mummies.  (Rachel keeps calling it Mommies, which is just darn adorable.)

What I love is that she really find the books interesting.  Enough so that she is focused enough that we can stop and look things up on the iPad so she can see a photo or picture of it.  For example, this week we've looked up pyramids, mummies, scepters, and hieroglyphics.

Luckily, the books are available on the iPad, so we snuggle in with coffee and hot chocolate and can easily flip between the book and other photos and such.   It is really nice to sit on the couch here at the cottage, in the cool of the morning, and read together.