27 Oct Five in a Row: The Glorious Flight
After taking some time off from Five in a Row, we are back, studying The Glorious Flight by Alice and Martin Provensen. I chose this book because Clark has been asking some very specific questions recently about airplanes and how they fly. So I thought this would provide a great opportunity to take him in the direction of his interest.
The Glorious Flight tells the story about Louis Bleriot who, with great persistence and passion, built a flying machine to become one of the first to fly across a large body of water, the English Channel.
Social Studies
We began our study of The Glorious Flight by talking about human relations and making reparations. In the beginning of the book, Papa Bleriot caused a car accident. To make up for the damage he invited everyone to the café. So, as we were grocery shopping (the joys of homeschooling!) we took turns thinking up ways we could make reparations and be kind to others. This exercise was a delight because it gives a little glimpse into the children’s minds. Clark’s suggestions were to help the other person with a task, to share your toys with them and to give them the biggest apple. Luci’s suggestions were to give them hugs and kisses, to tell them that you love them and to squeeze them very tightly.
Geography
We quickly covered geography since we had already learned about France and England. We took the time to review the countries’ flags and locate the countries on the map. But this time we focused more on the English Channel and the White Cliffs of Dover. We discussed how a channel was a narrow body of water joining two larger bodies of water and we identified several on the map.
Math – Roman Numerals
Clark had been learning Roman Numerals in his math, so this was the perfect time to review them as we noted each of Papa Bleriot’s machines’ names.
We used Popsicle sticks to make Roman Numeral numbers right up to 12. Clark did fantastic. It was a great exercise to help him remember the different numbers.
Luci had to participate as well, so she made her name in Popsicle sticks!
Science – Flying
Clark has been fascinated with airplanes and flight since first hearing an airplane go by overhead as a baby. He was just about 10 months old and ever since, each time he hears an airplane in the sky, he stops and finds it. His interest continued to develop throughout his pre-school years. Many times I would hear loud thuds coming from his room and upon investigation, he would be jumping off of his bed, flapping his arms frantically in an effort to fly.
When flying didn’t work, he began to ask some serious questions. How does an airplane fly when it’s so big? How come I can’t fly when I’m way smaller? As his questions intensified, I knew we had to study flight. Along with The Glorious Flight, we went to the library and checked out a ton of books on airplanes and flight.
Learning About Flight with Paper Airplanes
We began by making some simple paper airplanes. Clark loved this, so we spent quite a bit of time on it and even had a family contest to see who’s paper airplane would fly the furthest. It was interesting to see how each different design produced a different result. If you click on the image below, you can read more about this.
Field Trip to the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas
Once we had learned a little about the history and mechanics of flight, we took a trip to the local flight museum. I blogged about it in detail and you can read more here or by clicking on the image below. It was FANTASTIC! Clark was so excited to see all of the things we had talked about in detail. It was really fun to watch history come to life in his eyes.
My Body: The Skeletal System
We finished our study of The Glorious Flight by talking about the skeletal system. We’ve been slowly working through a series we call My Body. For this book study, the skeletal system was relevant because Papa Bleriot experienced several broken bones as he attempted flying his machines. This along with Halloween coming up, brought about the discussion of bones. Once again, I did a separate blog post about My Body Series: The Skeletal System here.
We could stay on this row forever, but it’s time to move on. Sometimes we have to remember that this curriculum at Clark and Luci’s age is to just give the children a sampling of the subjects. We can always go more in depth as they grow older.
No Comments