Walk Like an Egyptian
Today we continued with our Egyptian theme with the chapter on pyramids from the book
'Mummies and Pyramids' by Joyce Tyldeseley which I got on a trip to Harbourfront from a Big Bookstore sale for $13! It not only gives you interesting facts about life then but has materials you can use like paper samples of amulets and trinkets, playcards, a mask of Tutankhamen (which I wasn't really too excited about my kids playing and only allowed a try) and your very own Egyptian snake and ladder game and its in hardcover. I'm beginning to sound like a book sales lady.
After a game of table tennis (the boys, I just pushed a ball around with Sofiyya), we continued to make a pyramid from our 'Ancient Civilisations' template from Evan-Moor. While drawing in the bricks, I reviewed the concept of 'horizontal' and 'vertical' lines with the younger ones while Ihsan wrote a narration of what he remembered from what I read to him about the Great Pyramids of Giza from the information section provided.
Sofiyya cried when Umayr insisted on using her scissors to cut out his pyramid and went to her room so I printed out some pictures of her and she chose one to put on her 'My Body' lapbook and did some handwriting exercises to be put there too.
Umayr grew frustrated with not being able to draw perfectly straight lines for his bricks and gave up. I find this an issue of concern, however he has been able to do crafts for hours on his own accord and this might be more of a lack of practice on minor motor skills and his temperament for the day. I'll have to look out for this need for perfection and his inability to stay on the work and having an outburst after only a short time at trying.
I question how much I should really help him, as I did today as it would only result in him not getting the exercise he needs and a mentality that I will always do things he finds frustrating. How much scaffolding do you give a child without doing injustice to him? Sometimes I think it just benefits me as I get things done, or so I think, without the temper outbursts. He later grew frustrated with gluing the pyramid together, but sat down to see how I did it.
He did however, fetch me the square pyramid from the geometric solids box when asked (ok after a few times)to find the one with the same shape as the pyramid work he did. As a group, we explored how the pyramid from the geometric solid box is similar to the pyramids they made (faces, base, sides) and different from the triangular pyramid.
While Ihsan finished off his pyramid, I read 'The Busy Body Book' for the younger ones which explains how the body works and the different systems of the body. This is connected with our lessons on mummification in Egypt where the liver, lungs, stomach and intestines are taken out from the to-be-mummies. Sofiyya's 'My Body' lapbook is also an offshoot of this.
'Mummies and Pyramids' by Joyce Tyldeseley which I got on a trip to Harbourfront from a Big Bookstore sale for $13! It not only gives you interesting facts about life then but has materials you can use like paper samples of amulets and trinkets, playcards, a mask of Tutankhamen (which I wasn't really too excited about my kids playing and only allowed a try) and your very own Egyptian snake and ladder game and its in hardcover. I'm beginning to sound like a book sales lady.
After a game of table tennis (the boys, I just pushed a ball around with Sofiyya), we continued to make a pyramid from our 'Ancient Civilisations' template from Evan-Moor. While drawing in the bricks, I reviewed the concept of 'horizontal' and 'vertical' lines with the younger ones while Ihsan wrote a narration of what he remembered from what I read to him about the Great Pyramids of Giza from the information section provided.
Sofiyya cried when Umayr insisted on using her scissors to cut out his pyramid and went to her room so I printed out some pictures of her and she chose one to put on her 'My Body' lapbook and did some handwriting exercises to be put there too.
Umayr grew frustrated with not being able to draw perfectly straight lines for his bricks and gave up. I find this an issue of concern, however he has been able to do crafts for hours on his own accord and this might be more of a lack of practice on minor motor skills and his temperament for the day. I'll have to look out for this need for perfection and his inability to stay on the work and having an outburst after only a short time at trying.
I question how much I should really help him, as I did today as it would only result in him not getting the exercise he needs and a mentality that I will always do things he finds frustrating. How much scaffolding do you give a child without doing injustice to him? Sometimes I think it just benefits me as I get things done, or so I think, without the temper outbursts. He later grew frustrated with gluing the pyramid together, but sat down to see how I did it.
He did however, fetch me the square pyramid from the geometric solids box when asked (ok after a few times)to find the one with the same shape as the pyramid work he did. As a group, we explored how the pyramid from the geometric solid box is similar to the pyramids they made (faces, base, sides) and different from the triangular pyramid.
While Ihsan finished off his pyramid, I read 'The Busy Body Book' for the younger ones which explains how the body works and the different systems of the body. This is connected with our lessons on mummification in Egypt where the liver, lungs, stomach and intestines are taken out from the to-be-mummies. Sofiyya's 'My Body' lapbook is also an offshoot of this.
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