On deck for our new school year: 2014-2015!

We survived our first year of high school with no stitches and nothing blew up, well nothing accidentally blew up.  We have had a hard year (really about a year and a half) but we kicked butt anyway and got through it all and more, and this year will be even better.  If money were no object, I may have chosen a few different or extra materials but since I am the only source of income, I got what I could, and I really got quite a few goodies!!!!  Now looking at it all pulled together, I would not change a thing.

My A-bug is in 8th grade this year which is devastating to say the least.  She is my super girl, and she is growing up too fast.  She is my helper child.  She will go along with anything I ask her to do even if it is not her favorite.  She has great passion for things she is interested in.  HINT: Never ask her about birds unless you have at least an hour.  Already in her last year of middle school, gasp!  I guess it can't be helped.

Like most homeschoolers with multiple students, it is easier and more beneficial to do a few subjects together at levels conducive to each student.  I did break up their science courses this year but they will both be studying WriteShop II, Latina Christiana-Latin, Latin Made Simple, World History BJU, and A History of Western Art.   They will each have at least 2 required reading projects, and we are adding a little more dystopian literature just because we can and someone living here has an obsession with all things dystopian at the moment.  Here is a fantastic site for dystopian lit.  We will also be using Khan Academy for anything and everything we find related to what we are doing.  If you are not familiar with Khan Academy, YOU MUST GO THERE AND CHECK IT OUT NOW! GO!

This year A13 will be using Apologia Physical Science by the amazing Dr. Jay Wile, Math U See pre-algebra, and Write on Course, as well as multiple outside activities such as gymnastics, co-op classes on Monday, as well as being on the Scholastic Team for our homeschool group and misc field trips and group activities.

8th grade

C15 is starting 10th grade this year (stop it!).  This child has grown up so fast, it is unbelievable.  10th grade?  HUH? Well, all I can say is that she is not your typically 10th grader that is for sure, and I am so grateful for that.  This girl is seriously smart, exceptionally smart at some things really.  I am grateful she has not had to endure all the hideous things that go on in an American Public School facility-no offense to anyone just my opinion but she is not pregnant, she does not smoke, and she is the kindest person you will meet so I think I am doing a pretty good job with her and both of my girls especially given the chaotic circumstances we are being forced to deal with but hey if it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger, right? moving on.........................

C15 will be working with Apologia Biology and Khan Academy's crash course biology taught by Hank Green (brother to John Green).  It is a fantastic, no nonsense course.  She will also be using Writers INC, 411 SAT Critical Reading Questions, Teaching Textbooks Geometry along side Math-U-See Algebra (this is for my kid that hates math and all things related to math but has scored 95% or higher on every math evaluation she has taken to date). Go figure?  She will also be taking co-op classes on Mondays, as well as Rockschool, guitar lessons, driving, Barnes and Noble book club every two weeks, volunteering at the local animal shelter, and joining the library teen advisory comity.  She will also participate with the Scholastic Team as she is their main photographer for the events, field trips, and group activities that are held by our group. The volunteering and library advisory comity both count as public service credit.

10th grade

This is a pretty big year for us, that is a lot to learn!  We also have a move coming up and a few other changes but we have made it this far on our own and we can only go up from here.  We have persevered through the most difficulty time in our lives and we are still going strong.  The three of us together can do anything!

Happy homeschooling!

South America continued: The Andes Mountains

Here is what we know:

Francisco Pizarro picture from the web

~This mountain range was home to the Inca Empire.  Quick background-The Inca Empire was in Peru and ruled most of the
west coast of South America from the 1400s.  The Incas remained in place until the Spanish arrived in 1532. Even though it is believed that the Inca Empire had a population of over 10 million people, the Spanish, along with Francisco Pizarro conquered the Inca Empire and took over.  This happened in 1533.  Francisco Pizarro died in Lima, Peru in 1541.

~The Andes Mountains are the backbone of South America.

~This mountain range extends over seven countries.  In alphabetical order, they are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.

~The Andes cover a surface of about 2 million square km or 800,000 square miles.

~The estimated height is about 13,000 feet.

~The highest peak is Aconcagua in NW Argentina.

~Most of the Andes are volcanic mountains.

~The Andes have a variety of fauna and flora.  There are 1700 birds species, 600 mammals, 400 species of fish, 600 species of reptiles, and 1000 species of amphibians.  You can also find 30,000 species of plants.

~Have you ever heard of an Andean Flamingo?  It is the rarest Flamingo in the world, and they only hang out at the Andes Mountains in South America.  

Andean Flamingo-image from Wiki

~Check out this Andean Condor.  These New World Vultures are on the near threatened list.  These vultures nest on the mountain ledges and only lay one egg about every other year.

Andean Condor image from Wiki

~Ever heard of a yellow-tailed woolly monkey?  Me neither!  Probably because it is critically endangered and you can only find these rare species of primates in the Peruvian Andes.

Yellow-tailed woolly monkey-image from Wiki

~Another extremely in endangered critter from the Andes is the Golden Viscacha rat.  This is a rare rodent is related to the chinchilla.  They make their homes in large mounds which protects them from flood waters that arise each summer.

Viscacha rat-image and info from PBS

I guess I could go on and on but I will stop here as this is already a lot of info.  A lot of new info.

You can read more at Blue Planet Biomes.
Live science 

Venezuela

Venezuela is a little more than twice the size of California and is home to around 29 million people of which approximately 96% are Roman Catholic.  The official language is Spanish but there are numerous other dialects spoken as well.  The capital is Caracas.  The lowest point is the Caribbean Sea, and the highest point is Pico Bolivar.  Venezuela has a  tropical climate.  Nicolas Maduro Moros is the current president of Venezuela.  Their currency is the bolivar.

Venezuela is home to the Spectacle bear  (Tremarctos ornatus).  Also known as the Andean bear. The Spectacle bear is the only species of bear in South America.  It is called the Spectacle bear due to the white rings around its eyes.  They look like glasses.  

The national symbol of Venezuela is the Venezuelan Troupial (Icterus icterus).  You can read more about this "New World Oriole" here.

~Angel Falls is the highest waterfall in the world at 980 meters.
~They export aluminum, chemicals, petroleum, and steel.
~Venezuela means Little Venice.
~Carib Indians were the first to inhabit Venezuela and the first Spanish explorers settled in Venezuela in 1520.
~Part of the Amazon Rainforest is in Venezuela.
~Can you believe that gas is only 8 cents a gallon in Venezuela?  Venezuela is an oil-rich country.
~Venezuela has one of the highest kidnapping rates in the world.
~There are only two seasons in Venezuela; hot and dry and hot and wet.
~During the Christmas season, you will see people roller skating to church.

Read more at factmonster.
wiki
current news -protesting the current President Maduro leads to chaos and jail time, February 4, 2014.

New Zealand geography study

From Australia, we did a hop, skip, and a jump and landed in New Zealand, and here is a little of what we discovered.  I tried really hard not to get side tracked by 100 other things this time.

New Zealand factoids:

~Sovereign-Queen Elizabeth II

~Since 2011, the governor/general is Sir Jerry Mateparae.

~The prime minister since 2008 is John Key.

~According to the 2013 census, there are an estimated 4.5 million people residing in New Zealand.

~The capital city is Wellington.

~The largest city is Auckland.

~Official language is English.

~They also speak te reo Maori.

~The word Kiwi is a nickname for a New Zealander.

~Rugby is the most popular sport.

~New Zealand is the site for the movie Lord of the Rings.

~New Zealand is located in the SW Pacific Ocean.  There are two main islands, the North and South, and a few smaller islands.

~Maori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand.  They were the first settlers arriving before the Europeans.  During warfare, they would practice cannibalism.  I guess just killing the enemy was not enough.

~New Zealand is part of the Rings of Fire in the Pacific Rim and is highly volcanic.

~In 1893, New Zealand gave all women the right to vote.  This is the first country to do so.

~New Zealand does not have any indigenous four-legged land mammals.  Bats are the only indigenous mammals in New Zealand.

Moa (extinct)

~Want to have kids in New Zealand?  You cannot under any circumstance give them an oddball name.  They will not allow it!  The following names are examples of what were not allowed, right, people actually tried to name their kids these names, Fat Boy, Yeah Detroit, Mr. Cinderella Beauty Blossom, and Lucifer.

~New Zealand has a unique plant population including Neptune's Necklace, Kuripaka, ferns,
and there are as many as 523 species of moss in New Zealand.

Ruru-morepork owl

Kea

~New Zealand has a unique animal population and a lot of birds including the Moa (extinct), the kiwi bird, the weka(threatened), the takahe (endangered), Ruru-morepork owl, tui, and the kea (the world's only alpine parrot-vulnerable).

~The Hector's dolphin is the smallest dolphin in the world and is only found in the waters around New Zealand.

Hector's dolphin

For more:
Fact Monster
National Geographic Kids
wiki birds of New Zealand
wingspan.co.nz is an awesome website for birds in New Zealand 

I guess I failed the goal of not getting side-tracked.

Amazing Antarctica

We are still using our Bob Jones University World Geography but we are going out of order.  We were in

Europe but the girls wanted to fast forward to Antarctica.  It is just another awesome aspect of homeschooling, we go in the order we want to.  Anyway, we just finished up Antarctica, and here are some of the things we learned besides the fact that it is cold but beautiful.

Factoids: 

~The population of Antarctica is 0, although people do visit.
~Antarctica is home to a few animals/birds, and plants.  Animals include penguins, seals, whales, sea birds, albatrosses, fulmares, gulls, cormorants, terns, storm petrels, and krill, and as far as scientist can tell, no land animals or native people are in Antarctica. A lot of people think polar bears are in Antarctica but they are in the Arctic (and so are Eskimos). Plants include lichen, algae, and moss.

~Antarctica is the fifth largest continent.
~Antarctica has no countries and no part of Antarctica is located on any other continent.
~There are no major cities, just science research bases.
~Did you know that sea levels would rise about 200 feet is all the ice melted?
~Antarctica is from a Greek word that means opposite to the north.
~Due to lack of rain, Antarctica is considered a desert.
~The South Pole is in Antarctica.
~The coldest recorded temperature was in Antarctica and was a shocking -128.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
~Antarctica is the driest, windiest place on earth.

There is our breakdown of Antarctica.  This information really just scratched the surface of Antarctica.  I think it would be way to cold for me to live there but I would be really happy living there since they have no government!  Next stop on the tour of the world is Australia.

You can read more here, here
Kids Discovery teaching guides.
Discovering Antarctica.
Play games here.
Activities and experiments.

Italy, part 2

Continuing the tour of Italy.

Tuscany also known as the birthplace of the Renaissance is home to just shy of four million people.  The capital of Tuscany is Florence.  The people in this region speak Italian but they also have their own Tuscan dialect.

Chianti, a full bodied wine, originated in Tuscany from Sangiouese grapes.

Did you know that in Italy, there are no legal drinking age laws?  A person of any age can consume an alcoholic beverage anytime they want.  You only have to be 16 to sell or serve alcohol.

A few famous folks that hailed from the Tuscan region include Leonardo da Vinci (maybe you have heard of him), Giotto (Giotto was said to be quite possibly the greatest artist of all times from Italy), and Giacomo Puccini (his works include famous operas Madame Butterfly, Tosca, and La Boheme). 
Frommer's fast facts.

Venice-One day, I will go to Venice!
Venice is a magical floating city.  This city of water is seated on top of around 118 submerged islands which are separated by 150 canals and linked by 400 bridges.

Odd/interesting facts:
~Famous Venetians include Marco Polo and Casanova.
~In 2010, Venice got the very first woman gondolier in history.
~Venice is sinking at a rate of 1-2 cm each year.
~Shakespeare's famous works; Othello and The Merchant of Venice were inspired by Venice.  Thomas Mann also wrote Death in Venice published in 1912 using Venice as his setting.
~The word ghetto originated in Venice as it is said Venice was the first ghetto in the world.  The word getto in Italian means casting-the ghetto was near a foundry where metal castings were made hence the name ghetto.  Other words that originated specifically from Venetian (Venice) include quarantine, regatta, ciao, gondola, arsenal, and lagoon.

I have to stop here now as this could just go on and on!! I love Italy so what can I say?

Wiki page
Articles from The New York Times
More facts

Italy, part 1

We are now in Italy, I wish!  At any rate, I am there in my dreams floating down the Venice canal in a

gondola.  I decided to break Italy up into parts because there is just too much good stuff to miss any of it.  


Italy is known as the Italian Republic.  Rome (The Eternal City) is the capital city, and Italy is home to over 61 million people according to the 2012 census records.  Italy is a peninsula.  Italian is the official language.  The longest river is the Po River.  The highest elevation is Mont Blanc at 15,770 feet.

Giorgio Napolitano is the current president.  He has been in office since 2006, he is the longest-serving president in Italy's history, and the only president ever re-elected.  I guess he knows what he is doing.

Fun facts about Italy:
~Pizza was invented in Naples around 1860.
~Italy is slightly larger than Arizona.
~The thermometer is an Italian invention.
~The Italians also get credit for pianos, ice cream cones, typewriter, opera, violin, cello, cologne, eyeglasses, the expresso machine
~In Guiness book of world records, Italy is recorded for having the most elevators.
~Italy has hosted the Olympics three times.
~The telephone was also created in Italy by inventor Meucci. He and Alexander Graham Bell were rival     inventors.  Bell was given the patent right due to a filing technicality.  Click here to read more.
~The oldest olive tree in Umbria is reportedly over 1700 years old.
~Parma is where parmesan cheese originated.

Ferrari!

~And who could forget the Italian cars? Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Lamborghini, and Ferrari!

The Bluebird (uccello azzurro) is the official bird of Italy.  








A few famous Italians:

Colosseum

~Christopher Columbus
~Marco Polo
~John Cabot
~Amerigo Vespucci
~Vivaldi
~Rossini
~Verdi
~Mussolini
~Julius Caesar
~Dante Alighieri
~Leonardo da Vinci
~Michleangelo
~Galileo Galilei
~The Medici Family
~The Donetella Family
~Pavarotti
~Versace
~Sophia Loren
~Mario Andretti
~Madonna
~Frank Sinatra
~Al Capone

more complete list of famous Italians
factmonster.comhttp://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0107658.html

Part 2 coming soon!  Ciao! Salve! Arrivederci! for now.

Geography resources

      Just a few favorites that we are putting to good use this year.

Mediterranean Europe-Spain

We just finished up the Iberian Peninsula so we will move just a little to Spain which is located on the Iberian Peninsula and 80% of the peninsula lies in Spain.

~Spain is officially the Kingdom of Spain.  Spain is a sovereign state (a state that administers its own government), a parliamentary monarchy (the monarch acts as head of state but follows constitutional guidelines).

~The capital of Spain is Madrid which is the highest capital in the world rising over 2,000 feet.

~According to 2012 census, there are 47 million people living in Spain.

~The largest river in Spain is the Tagus.

Tagus River.

~The official language is Castilian Spanish.  There are, however, a few sub-languages, if you will, which include Basque (native to Spain and France in Basque county), Catalan (native to Spain, Italy, France, and Andorra), Galician (Galicia, Austurias, Castile and Leon), and Occitan (native to Spain, France, Italy, and Monaco).

~The current king is King Juan Carlos I who has been the reigning king for almost four decades.  His reign began in 1975, and he is currently 75 years old.

Fun factoids about Spain.
~The 1992 summer Olympics were held in Barcelona.

~In Spain, there is no tooth fairy.  Instead, they have a tooth mouse named Ratoncito Perez.  (I think I prefer the fairy).

~The word Spain comes from the word Ispania which means in the land of rabbits.

~Spain is the only country in Europe that produces bananas.

Running of the bulls.

~A famous Spanish event, which I cannot wrap my brain around, is the running of the bulls.

~Famous artists Dali and Picasso are from Spain.

~40% of smokers in Spain are between the ages of 17 and 24.

Current news from Spain.  It appears that Spain has been in the wrong time zone for about 70 years.  You can read more here but I will give you an abbreviated version.  During the Civil War in Spain, Francisco Franco y Bahamonde (the Spanish military leader and dictator of Spain and allegedly not a very nice guy) decided to team up with his buddy, Hitler, and so he switched the clocks in Spain to reflect a time of one hour ahead in order to be in line with Nazi Germany.  Spain is currently trying to decide if they should return to their original time zone or not.

~The Sagrada Familia is a Roman Catholic church located in Barcelona.  This church is one of Spain's most visited attractions.  Construction on the church started in 1882 and is still not complete.

~Another famous attraction is The Alhambra.  The Alhambra sits on a plateau overlooking Granada in Southern Spain.  This fortress/palace/garden was constructed in the 14th century.

You will also find a lot of tourist in Ibiza.  Ibiza is in the Mediterranean Sea.  Ibiza is in the island group with the Balearic Islands and the Pityusic Islands.

A few paragraphs certainly cannot give all the details of Spain's rich history but this is about as much as our brains could absorb at the moment.  I know we will visit Spain again in our geography studies.

To read more:

Science Kids
Buzzle
True Nomads

The Iberian Peninsula

Mediterranean Europe, yes, please!  Now we are at my personal favorite region of Europe-the Mediterranean.  Mediterranean Europe has a subtropical location with mild climate, rainy winters, and hot/dry summers.  First, in case you do not know what a peninsula is-a peninsula (also know as a byland) is a piece of land that is bordered on three sides by water but is still connected to the mainland.

This part of the study is going to take a while to get through so we will work through on place at a time.

First stop, The Iberian Peninsula.

The Iberian Peninsula is located in southwestern Europe.  The word Iberian is the term the ancient Greeks called the people that originally lived there.  The word Iberian comes from the Greek word Ebro (Iberus).  The Ebro River is a very important river.  It is the second longest river in Spain. The Iberian Peninsula is occupied by both Spain and Portugal.  Their original language is considered unclassified, extinct, and derived from vulgar Latin.  Today, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, Galician, and Basque are the most spoken languages in The Iberian Peninsula.  Population is estimated to be between 50-55 million people.

Miscellaneous Mediterranean information:  In May 2012, researchers in Barcelona discovered the remains of what is speculated to be twins.  This is the first documentation of twins in The Iberian Peninsula's history.  It is believed by the researchers that the bones are from babies delivered at about 38 to 40 weeks of gestation.  You can read more here at Science Daily.

For my bird-crazy girl, The Iberian Imperial Eagle.  This handsome bird is a globally threatened species.  According to data in 2010, there are only 279 in Spain and 3 pairs in Portugal-that is it!  They dine on any small animals including small dogs.

Iberian Peninsula google maps
Wiki

Geography study: First stop Europe

The focus of our social studies this year is cultural geography.  We are using Bob Jones University 9th grade geography book as our spine this year.

We started off with Europe.  We are about to finish up with Great Britain and move on to one of the other countries in Europe but Great Britain has so much information, we are having a hard time getting out!  I also thought it would be fun to investigate a few haunted areas in Europe since it is almost Halloween, and it turns out, that is a very good idea since London is the most haunted capitol in the world.  I had no idea!  Before I get side tracked, here are a few of the topics we focused on while in the British Isles.

*Factoids:

*The United Kingdom is made up of England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

*Famous Brits include Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, Princess Diana, Michael Faraday, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, J.R.R. Tolkein, and Charles Dickens.

*The longest river is the River Thames.

*In Chester one can only shoot a Welsh person with a bow and arrow on the inside of the city walls after midnight.

*The name Big Ben actually refers to the big bell in the clock tower and the actual clock is officially known as the "Clock Tower."  This is also the most important tourist attraction.

*The telephone was invented by British inventor Alexander Graham Bell.

*The first steam locomotive was invented by Richard Trevithick.

*British inventor John Logie Baird invented the television in 1925.

*French was the official language for 300 years.

*There are more chickens in England than humans.

*In the Medieval Times, an animal could be put on trial for crimes and sentenced to death. (This is a weird one).




*England is the home to the prehistoric monument known as the Stonehenge.  Stonehenge is on the most famous sites in the world. The Stonehenge is believe to be built anywhere from 3000 BD to 2000 BC.  What exactly is the Stonehenge?  No one knows for sure but it is believed it could be a type of calendar, a burial ground, a healing center, or a sun temple.

We also did a few outline maps, as well as learning the most important current events and facts about the United Kingdom.

Now for some spooky British info.

London Bridge is rumored to be haunted.  Many eyewitnesses have reported seeing a woman wearing black roaming the bridge at night, and if that is not creepy enough, it turns out that a Plague Pit which contained a large collection of skeletons was discovered in 2007 at the bridge, London Tombs.

 Construction crews refused to work at that section of the bridge alone.  The London Bridge is also where the Tudors used to impale the heads of traitors and criminals via spikes along the bridge.  They wanted to make sure you understood what could happen to you if you were not loyal.

Another famous haunted site is the Tower of London.  The Tower of London is one of the top visitor attractions in London.  It is said that the tower is home to many inhabitants-the undead kind.  Many hangings, tortures, murders, executions, and beheadings took place there and don't forget, this is where Richard III allegedly murdered his nephew, the Prince, in order to be next on the throne.  What a nice guy!

If you plan on going to London, you can go back in time and experience something similar to what really may have happened on the bridge or in the tombs here.  Before you book your ticket to London, be warned, there have been many recounts of the ghosts of some of the victims of Jack the Ripper still linger on the streets and can be seen and heard at various times. (Insert manacle laugh here!)  As you can probably tell, I get a little side tracked when I am interested in something.

Great Britain science kids
Wiki Stonehenge
Haunted London
Top ten British inventions
More on Jack the Ripper
London Tower

All images from the web.