An Eastern Hemisphere Adventure

This is my first time posting plans for my little home school, so I am a little nervous. However, I am deeply indebted to all the moms who have spent hours planning and sharing, especially Elizabeth Foss. My children have reaped the benefits of their generosity. Thus, I pray that another homeschooling mom may benefit just a little from my time spent plunking away on the keyboard.

These plans are for those looking to merge Sonlight's Core 5, Eastern Hemisphere, with studies for their younger children. My own children will be in grades K, 2nd, 5th, and 7th this September.

I have taken most of the recommended books from a list compiled by Elizabeth Foss and Co. for her Serendipity learning adventure entitled Continents and Cultures. Please, please check out her site at  Serendipity and click on the Continents and Cultures button at the top to see a full and beautiful Catholic world tour. Also, Candace at His Mercy is New has many wonderful resources for a complete world tour. Many thanks to both of them as we start our own journey.

Okay,  little background information:
*These plans are for the younger two girls. The older ones will be following along with Sonlight. Almost all the books are picture books or very short chapter stories. The movies come from a wide variety of suggestions. Most I have never seen and will preview as I go, but at least I have a list to start with this way.

*The scope and sequence follows Sonlight. (I needed a planned curriculum to keep me on track this year but I am an out of the box teacher at heart. I am hoping this will satisfy both my needs. We'll see.)

*I have added saint stories while removing many of the missionary stories. Please let me know if there is a wonderful saint or Marian apparition that I have missed.

*The children will compile an Adventure Notebook over the course of the year. All of their art, maps, papers, and geography work will be spiral bound at the end for a keepsake. And, yes, they do look back through these books all the time.

*This is still a work in progress, of course. :-)

*This a LONG LIST. Loooonng List. Wow! I needed to break it up into two post for manageability. This is weeks 1-15. Look for Weeks 16-36 next.


AN EASTERN HEMISPHERE ADVENTURE
Make one notebook for each child. Include:

*country pages

*animals

*saint and Marian apparition

*important maps and facts

Ideas to suppliment your studies:

Continent boxes

Montessori for Everyone Continent downloads

Make a felt world for sorting

Make wooden saints of the missionaries

Memory Game: I never forget a face

Passport Book for all children


Resources:

-Hungry Planet

-Material World

-Children Just Like Me

-Usborne World Religions

-Draw Write Now Books (DWN)

GEOGRAPHY RESOURCE: Trail Guide to World Geography

Introduction Week

*Make map of world

*Study continents, name all

*Put together passports (As we travel to each country the children will add the flag sticker, color a picture of the country bird or flower, stamp the page, and add the date arrived. Maybe add an outline map of the continent so the children can draw in the country and color)

*read Seabird

Pacific Islands (wks. 1,2)

*Study Hawaii

SAINT: Fr. Damien of Molokai (Fr. Damien and the Bells) All Kids

ANIMAL: Green Sea Turtle

http://earthtrust.org/wlcurric/turtles.html

Nene the Hawaiian Goose http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/birds/printouts/Neneprintout.shtml

http://www.honoluluzoo.org/nene_goose.htm

HABITAT: Tropical Island, Volcano (Two Tales of Hawaii)

ART: http://deepspacesparkle.blogspot.com/2010/06/hawaiian-dancers-art-project.html

http://www.artprojectsforkids.org/search?q=turtle

BOOKS:

-Tales of Tutu, Nene, and Nele

-A is for Aloha

-Pippi in the South Seas

MOVIES: American Aloha, Hawaii-Songs of Aloha

Australia (wk. 3 & 4) Skip New Zealand

SAINT: Mother Mary MacKillop

ANIMAL: Kangaroo, Kookabura (Strange Animals of Australia) http://www.honoluluzoo.org/kookaburra.htm

http://www.ausinternet.com/ettamogah/kookaburrasong.htm

HABITAT: Coral Reef (One Small Square) Outback Desert

ART: Dot Painting  http://www.freekidscrafts.com/australian_kangaroo_dot_painting-e1021.html

BOOKS:

-Ehmet the Emu

-Koala Lou

-Katy Kangaroo

-Dingoes at Dinnertime

*use DWN #7

-Pumpkin Runner (http://www.homeschoolshare.com/resources_pumpkin_runner.php)

INTERNET RESOURCE: http://www.ausinternet.com/ettamogah/kids.htm

http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/australia_day.htm

MOVIE: Discovery Atlas: Australia Revealed

Australia: Rabbit Proof Fence,  New Zealand: Whale Rider

Antarctica (wk. 5)

SAINT: None

ANIMAL: Penguin

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/birds/label/empenguin/

HABITAT: Antarctica

ART: Kids Soup: Cork Penguins, Styrofoam ice sheets play set

Potato print penguins

http://thatartistwoman.blogspot.com/2009/01/penguin-printmaking.html

BOOKS:

-Penguins by Gail Gibbons

-Penguin Chick 

-Where is Home Little Pip? 

-Mr. Poppers Penguins audio 

-365 Penguins 

*HHS polar animal resource

*DWN #4

MOVIES: Planet Earth: Antarctica 

RESOURCE: http://candacemercyisnew.blogspot.com/2010/05/antarctica.html

Asian Science Resources:

-Animals Marco Polo Saw

-Animals of Asia Series

Orangutan

Komodo Dragon

Camels

Elephants

Tigers

Japan (wk. 6 & 7)

SAINT: Saint Philip of Jesus  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_of_Jesus
Saint Francis Xavier (St. Francis of the Seven Seas) 

MARY: Our Lady of Akita

ANIMAL: Snow Monkey

HABITAT: Study cherry tree instead

ART: Fish Prints (Global Art p.62), Kites http://www.thetoymaker.com/AroundtheWorld/Japan/TMKoiKites.html

Dessert sushi, *Origami Treasure Chest

http://www.thecraftyclassroom.com/ThemeJapaneseCrafts.html

BOOKS:

-I Live in Tokyo

-A Pair of Red Clogs

-Grandfathers Journey

-Cool Melons Turn to Frogs (haiku poetry)

-Grass Sandals

-Under the Cherry Blossom Tree

-Silkworms

*Alan Say books from library

-Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes

MOVIE: Spirited Away, Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes, Secrets of the Samurai Sword

China (wks. 9-14)

SAINT: 

MARY: Our Lady of China

ANIMAL: Panda, Siberian Tiger

HABITAT: Bamboo Forest

ART: Lots of ideas http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/chineseasianjapaneseartscraftsideaskids.html

BOOKS:

- DK Eyewitness China HISTORY

*Ancient China Treasure Box HISTORY

-Made in China HISTORY

-The Magic Horse of Han Gan  ART

-We’re Riding on A Caravan  SILK

-Red Butterfly SILK

-Stone Soup FOLK

-The Weaving of a Dream FOLK

-Five Chinese Brothers FOLK

-Tikki Tikki Tembo  FOLK

-Lon Po Po  FOLK

-Liang and the Magic Paintbrush  FOLK

-The Empty Pot CULTURAL

-The Story about Ping CULTURAL

Yeh Shen CULTURAL

-A Grain of Rice CULTURAL

-Daisy Comes Home  CULTURAL

-Kites: Magic Wishes that Fly Up to the Sky KITE

-Emperor and the Kite  KITE

-Kite Flying by Grace Lin  KITE

*Let’s Fly A Kite (math tale) KITE

-The Dancing Dragon NEW YEAR

-Sam and the Lucky Money  NEW YEAR

-Moonbeams, Dumplings, and Dragon Boats  NEW YEAR

MOVIES: The Amazing Panda Adventure, The Last Emperor

The Inn of the Sixth Happiness

The Keys to the Kingdom

Not One Less

Kung Fu Panda

Mulan

                                              

6 weeks

1. Silk/Art

2. Kites

3. Chinese New Year

4. Folk Tales

5. Cultural Stories

6. History

Mongolia (wk. 15)

SAINT: none, discuss why ANIMAL: Bactrian Camel

HABITAT: Gobi Desert

ART: Felt Painting

-The Mongols

-Horse Song: The Naadam of Mongolia

-Brave Little Mongolian Sisters

-Suho's White Horse: A Mongolian Legend (R.I.C. Story Chest)

-Mongolia (Vanishing Cultures)

-Marco Polo for Kids

-Marco Polo by Demi

-Genghis Khan by Demi

MOVIE: "The Weeping Camel" (2003)

"The Cave of the Yellow Dog" (2005)