WEEK 30: Preparing the Way

In so many ways, much of what we do is about preparing the way for the generations to come after us. The Arts Academy ended their sessions and had time to reflect on their work (presenting their projects and watching a bit of Charlotte’s Web on video). For the SEEDS group, we saw some natural “teachers” develop from a girl’s gymnastic class to a jump-rope lesson by Grant. In all, we had a wonderful week before taking a short break for some Professional Development in Kentucky and Missouri. Check out some of the photos below.

Scroll down to see the supplemental readings for the week, galleries of our latest photos, and our current memory verse.

Follow Me

Almost all the girls participated in this gymnastics lesson led by Emma and Carolina

Memory Verse #14

“God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging…

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
”

— Psalm 46: 1-3 and 10-11

SEEDS and OAKS Programs Suggested Readings for the Week

The readings are meant to reinforce the topics covered in class last week and to have parents and other siblings be a part of what we’re learning. These readings are not required for the class, but can be a good supplement. You can try to read all or just a few of the selections. Use your discretion as to what to cover based upon the ages of your children.

HISTORY
- The Last 500 Years / World History
  - The Space Race p. 90-91/ p. 286-287
- The Story of the World
  - Freedom in the Belgian Congo p. 449
  - The Space Race p. 457
  - Thirteen Days in October p. 462

GARDEN - Pre-K and K

*The Parable of the Treasure during Worship time.*

How fun it was to make our maps! This week in Garden we practiced the letter “Xx”, so we decided to make some maps and find the “X” (the hidden treasure.) We made maps for each other and went on a hunt to find the treasure at the park. The children had a blast with this activity. We also had Mr. Jared join us for story time with a fun interpretation of the book Pirates Don’t Change Diapers. The kids also enjoyed playing with playdough, reading books to each other and drawing. Mrs. Vivi taught us a while back the Philippians 4:13 song. We have practiced it continuously and the kids already know the verse. We have emphasized how Jesus is here to help us do anything. Let’s continue to practice this song at home as the repetition will help us memorize it by heart. With the help of these songs, we will probably remember these verses until we are old. Songs are a great way to memorize Scripture!

This week's worship story was the Parable of the Treasure. The children learned that the Kingdom of God, like Jesus describes, is like a hidden treasure that a man finds and hides again. He then sells all of his possessions to be able to buy the land where he hid the treasure. We asked what they thought it meant that the Kingdom of God was like a hidden treasure. Elena said, “Ahhh, ya entiendo. El Reino es como un tesoro escondido. No todo el mundo lo puede encontrar”. Praise Jesus for the work He is doing in the garden of these kids’ hearts. He is surely watering the seeds and we can see them growing.

SEEDS - Grades 1-6

Worship

We were able to have great times in worship this week and bless Jeremias whose birthday we celebrated.

Science

I introduced the students to a new vocabulary word this past week—conundrum. A conundrum can be a confusing puzzle or mystery. The lesson on the poles and magnets definitely proved to be a surprise for the students!

We describe magnets as being “north” or “south.” A compass has a tiny northern magnet in it that is attracted to the north pole. Since opposites attract, this means that the magnet at the North Pole is actually a southern magnet. The opposite is true as well. We call it the “South Pole,” but it is actually a northern magnet. I decided that “conundrum” was definitely the word I wanted to use for this interesting, yet confusing, upside down pole explanation.

Another interesting fact that we explored is that God has given many animals a built-in compass to find their way. Sea turtles, dolphins, and whales are among the animals that are able to return to the same places. Scientists have even discovered tiny amounts of magnetite in their brain cells that help them orient themselves.

History

This week, we spoke about how dictators began to rise in the Congo, just like they did in South America. During this time (the 1950s), both Alaska and Hawaii became states, and major conflict began to happen betwee n the U.S and the Soviet Union: The Cold War. Both the race into space and an event called the Cuban Missile Crisis led to trouble between these two superpowers. The President of that time was named John F. Kennedy.

Studio

Pablo Picasso’s rooster painting called “Le Coq” was the piece we studied this week. Most of the students agreed that it was a funny looking rooster, especially because of the mix of colors and the placement of the eyes. These are both very characteristic of Picasso’s art in the style he created called “Cubism.” On Wednesday, we sketched the rooster in pencil on black pieces of construction paper and on Friday we had the opportunity to make the rooster come alive using some new oil pastels. The kids were happy to have more variety of colors to work with and did a wonderful job copying the famous piece of art.

OAKS - 7+

Worship

This week, we celebrated Anaiah’s birthday as we also got into the last section of our book, “A Young Person’s Guide to Knowing God.” We will be getting into the differences of knowing ABOUT God and actually KNOWING God in the next few weeks and challenging each other to be DECLARING to the world the things that He has done.

History

Going deeper into the conflict between The US and the Soviet Union, we learned about the “13 days in October.” It was 1962 and war almost broke out. After Fidel Castro rose to power after many years of tensions in Cuba, many Cubans fled to the US. The US planned an invasion of Cuba after seeing what Castro was doing, but it failed and all of the soldiers were killed or taken prisoner at the Bay of Pigs. The Soviet Union was angry at thus and threatened the US. The US threatened back. The tensions escalated until finally, the Soviets agreed to take their missiles back as long as the US would not invade Cuba. They agreed and this crisis was over.

Science

What happens when you cut a magnet in half? Do you keep a North piece and a South piece? This was one of the questions we discussed in class as we finished our overview of Magnetic force. We learned that every magnet is made up of billions of tiny magnets called domains so that no matter how many times you cut a magnet in half, you would still have a North and a South pole. We also talked about the Earth being a giant magnet and how everything on Earth was magnetic. We talked about the compass working because of magnetism and how it also inclines to show you not only what direction you are traveling but also where on Earth you are. The Earth also possesses a magnetic shield around it that protects it from harmful solar flares. Not all flares are trapped, though, resulting in the beautiful Northern lights phenomenon. Not only did God make the world magnetic to help us, but also animals benefit from this as God has also placed in many of them “inner compasses” that help them detect where they are.