Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Around the World in 180 Days




Strike & I recently started an Around the World in 180 Days class in our home w/ other families. The course is designed to study each of the seven continents with a group of students of various ages. It covers History, Geography, Culture, Religion, Current Affairs, etc. In the end students will have compiled a fat/full(!) World Notebook (or a separate smaller notebook for each continent) packed w/ maps, info, art, reports, etc. & perhaps we'll have gone on a few field trips &/or watched some movies together as well.


Africa is first - which is timely since we're planning the "field trip of a lifetime" to Africa in the spring. Strike's done most, if not all, her bookwork (vocab/research questions/map) already & I give her the freedom to hone in on areas that particularly interest her & to choose what types of projects she wants to do...ie. posters, lapbooks, book reports, artwork, cooking, etc.
Perhaps that's why she's enjoying it so much -- & why I am too!
So far we've watched:

click the pic above for more info
& the pic below for a larger/clearer image


...one of few "R" rated movies I encourage my kids to watch...
I figure that when the truth is "R" rated it should not be watered down.

the natural state of man is instead freedom - & the proof
is in the length which a man, woman or child
will go to regain it. Once taken, he will break loose his chains...
decimate his enemies....try & try & try against all odds
- against all prejudices - - -
to get home.

- my paraphprase of John Quincy Adams Words -

We're awaiting these from Netflix:


EXPLORE THE WILDLIFE KINGDOM
The Hidden World of Africa

&


AFRICA - The Serengetti - IMAX


And we're getting ready to read this together:

The adventures of an ingenious Egyptian slave girl who undertakes a dangerous assignment as a spy in the royal palace of Thebes, in the days when Queen Hatshepsut ruled. via Amazon.com

And now I want to read this...

...after reading this over here:

"...any time art touches your life with tears, whether through a story, song, film, or painting, it was wise to pay attention to those tears because your tears could help you find your heart. And if you found your heart, you found what was dear to God. If you found what was dear to God, you found the answer to how you should live your life."

- excerpt From Ashes to Africa,
quote originally by Ken Gire, The Reflective Life


Hmm - While I'd much rather really travel around the world...I'm so very much looking forward to doing it from from the comfort of my own home along w/ the others who are joining us :) ... & to sharing some of that journey here.


1 comment:

Courtney at SL's No Ennui said...

Oh, wow. That makes me want to homeschool my unborn children so I can do fun geography projects like that! What a great idea. That's definitely something I feel I got very little of in school: geography and the study of other places.

We (husband and I) are not allowed to watch most R rated movies in our home either :)