Plans: Cycle 1 - Week 4

I know that some other CC mamas are planning to use Week 4 to finish up Ancient Greece (one week is really not enough; actually, one entire month isn't enough time to spend on this fascinating subject! Seriously, have you seen Pinterest? There are a million-and-one great ideas for this time period!). But we have to move on at some point. So, instead of doing two weeks on Greece, we're going to use Week 4 to explore the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Bible

* Read Daniel 4 about King Nebuchadnezzar. Although there are conflicting theories about who ordered the construction of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, I love the story of Nebuchadnezzar having it built to please his home-sick wife. Of course, Daniel 4 tells the story of King Neb being turned into a beast (much less romantic unless you're Disney), but we'll make it work. ;) We'll also listen to this on our SOTW1 audio, chapter 17.

Geography

* Not quite sure what I'm doing with the Hittite Empire just yet. I've found some interesting little things on the internet, here and here, about this once-powerful empire. Since my oldest is still pretty young, I'll probably just read 2 Samuel 11-12 to her. These chapters tell the story of David and Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite. Obviously, I'll have to be cautious with the presentation of this scandalous chapter in King David's life, but I do want to make sure that Mary understands that sin has terrible consequences (their first baby died). And I want her to hear David's repentence and God's amazing forgiveness. There is just so much going on in this story that I'm sure we'll probably camp out here in the Bible all week. Oh yeah, and we'll trace/color some maps, too. ;)

History

* Listen to SOTW1: Chapters 4 (pyramids), 17 (hanging gardens), and 23 (Zeus).

* Read some books:

* Play this great little matching game:

I printed this out (for FREE!) from Montessori for Everyone. Click here to download the pdf.

* Locate the wonders on this absolutely fabulous map:

(You can click on a full-size version when you follow the link by clicking on the map. I laminated my copy and put the descriptions/facts from the Montessori flashcards listed above this on the back of the map. This way I could talk about them while Mary looks.)

* Of course, do some coloring (all of the Dover coloring books are so great!):

* And perhaps make a Seven Wonders travel brochure (because it's just too cute not to!):

Click here for the directions. Although this project seems like lots of fun to me, it might have to wait until this cycle comes back around in a couple of years, when Mary will be six instead of four. Even though we may skip it this year, I just had to include it in this post because it looks like it would be a blast to put together and discuss. I love the idea of planning a pretend trip to one of these amazing places!

Science

* Introduce the parts of a plant cell:

* And then make a plant cell cookie (because we love us some cookies!):

(This plant cell cookie and last week's animal cell pizza came from the blog Journey2Excellence. I've never been sure of the correct protocol for posting someone else's pictures, but I certainly want to give credit where credit is due. I hope to post our own pictures of these yummy projects when the time comes.)

I love review games, so here's a fun idea we might try from Mrs. Lodge's Library:

This Jenga review game looks like so much fun! 

Our English, Latin, Math, and Language Arts studies will stay the same (see my Cycle 1 and Cycle 2 plans for more details on those). And we'll keep doing our Calendar Time (see here and here). For more Week 4 plans, be sure to head over to Half-a-Hundred Acre Wood for Brandy's weekly link-up!