ON THE PRAIRIE

We have now begun our second book in our Prairie Primer studies, Little House on the Prairie.  We are already enjoying it so much.  Last week we made covered wagons.  This week we learned about Native American hand talking (sign language), pictographs and several other ways the Native Americans communicated with their own tribes and other tribes.  We learned about gophers and prairie hens and other animals on the prairie.  We made masks and played games.  Every week Bugs asks if it is Prairie Primer Co-op week.  This is such a fun unit study made even better by awesome friends.

 Hard at work creating their own pictographs.

 Love the tongue.  =)

 Learning about birds of the prairie, gophers and prairie dogs.

 This photo makes me smile seeing how engaged all the kids are in learning.

 Prairie Chicken.

 A new game.  Wack-A-Gopher.  

 They thought this game was hilarious.  I have to admit I am a big fan too.  

He is loving this unit study.

Gathered around the computer learning Native American Hand Talking.

Deep concentration.

 We were getting into it!  Rain!

 After we were finished suddenly an impromptu marshmallow war broke out.  LOL!

HILARIOUS!

PRAIRIE PRIMER ~ SQUARE DANCING and HASTY PUDDING

I forgot to post this from our Prairie Primer studies.  This fall we read "Little House in the Big Woods".  We met with friends to do some fun, hands-on activities.  In this post we read about the dance at Grandpa and Grandma's house, learned to square dance, made hasty pudding and learned how real maple syrup is made.  It was a great day.

Reading about the dance.

Hasty pudding.

Square dancing!  Elvis joined us to help out.

Swing your partner!

Time to eat our hasty pudding.

It was unanimous.  It was good but even BETTER with real maple syrup.

Coloring as we learn about how maple syrup is made.

It was another great day.  Prairie Primer is our favorite subject this year.

LITTLE HOUSE IN THE BIG WOODS ~ PANCAKE MEN

We are having fun reading Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  For our last 2 chapters we made log cabins, corn cob dolls, homemade butter and learned about prisms.  This week at home we read about Christmas morning and how Ma made pancake men.  We decided it would be fun to do the same.

When I read aloud  I allow the kids to draw, color or play quietly as long as they are listening.

 They enjoy the illustrations.

 We gathered our supplies.  We realized we were out of milk.  After a quick run to the store we started again.

 Carefully measuring........

 ......and mixing.

 Pancake men on the griddle.

 Watching them cook.

 I had Boo flip one.  I flipped the one on the right.

 Ooopsie.

 Hee, hee.

 He is ready to dig in!

 She wanted a snowman.  

YUM!

 We bought real maple syrup.

 She named him Olaf.

 Ready to eat!  

 Olaf gets 2 thumbs up.

 Two more pancake men.  One for me pictured here and one for Elvis.

 Of course there was clean up.  True to Little House life they washed the dishes.

It was a fun & tasty lesson.