Not your typical writing assignment

Let's face it: sometimes you need a different type of writing assignment to get your kids writing. 

And sometimes we (as moms and teachers) get into a rut and just keep asking our kids to do the same old writing assignments over and over and over........

So we change it up occasionally! 

There are lots of ways to accomplish this- graphic organizers or informational boards are just one.  

Below are some pictures of one that my 9th grader came up with. 

Below 9th grade level you say?  

Pish Posh! 

Are they learning?

Are they researching?

Are they writing? 

There you have it. 

 Don't let the look fool you; she spent all day researching, printing pictures and filling in information about the Flora and Fauna of Meso America.  (she just really isn't happy having her picture taken)

We really get a lot out of these types of projects in our homeschool.  It is a time when they sponge the information.  It is a time when connections between facts are made, and the subject matter can really come to life in concrete ways:  "hmm... this is what Columbus must have seen .... this is what Pizarro ate ...."

Our study of the middle ages, rennaisance, and colonization of america- in picures

 Here are some pictures of our generic salt dough maps that we made as part of the geography study.  We covered deltas, plateaus, mountains, etc.

Here is a costume my dd made for our study of the Middle Ages

A soap carving made while studying the masters; Michelangelo, 

Creating frescos

More costumes 

and 

Field Trip!!!!!!! 

Colonial Williamsburg

 Jamestown is above, Colonial Dancing below

 Yorktown

 Wigwams at Jamestown below

 Finding a shark tooth in the river! 

Replicas of the ships that brought Captain John Smith

 How very very small they were!

Trying on replica helmets at the fort

The pine trees out here in VA remind us of the movie "Pocahontas" by Disney.  It is the only thing they got right in the whole movie!  

Below are several pics of the "King's Ball" that we had on our second to last night in CW

 The girl in the light blue and brown on the right is my dd

 Our gracious hosts! (above)

The girl in the dark blue is my dd