DJ Was The Teacher Today!

This morning DJ got to be Caitlin's teacher, because I was sicker than a dog. I am never sick, migraines once in a while, but not sick. I got up feeling normal, did my usual stuff, got the kids up, started laundry, started school then wham it slammed me like a freight train. For the next six hours I was in bed, vomiting, and with a fever. I have no idea what caused it, but I am certainly glad I feel better, though I got nothing done. Hats off to DJ for being the first grade teacher today. I still have a lingering headache but at least I am in the upright position functioning normal.

I thought I would share today some of the more fun things we have been doing for school. I like to add projects along with book work, movies, and other non traditional ways to learn. I found this neat experiment to determine how salt beds are formed. It is easy all you need is a glass bowl you can see mine is a pie plate, 1 cup of water, and 4 tbsp of salt. Put the water in the bowl, then stir in the salt. Allow the bowl to sit undisturbed until all the water evaporates. This took about two weeks here in Florida, but can take up to 4 weeks according to the book. If you click each picture you will see that the salt turns into cubic crystals and look like squares or cubes. The sides are a thick, white, frosty type substance. Conclusion: Beds of salt are believed to have formed from shallow ponds that were close enough to the ocean to collect salt water, and were then cut off from the sea. Slow evaporation of water left behind clear cubic salt crystals called halite. The frosty substance along the side, forms when water rises up the side and salt in the solution crystallizes as the water quickly evaporates. The faster drying along the sides does not allow enough time for the cubic crystals to form as on the bottom.

We did a whole four week lesson on reusing and reducing waste. So when we would empty glass jars, we would wash them and give them to my mom, who paints them. So I figured we could paint some too. I kept a salsa jar, and a pickle jar. Washed and dried them and then let the kids paint on them. The results are shown below. Then we couldn't decide what to do with them. We have pencil containers, odds and ends containers, what to do? Then my husband suggested sugar, and the kids said no we don't use that much sugar. Then one of them said salt! So they are now our new salt and pepper shakers, and they look quite lovely on the dinner table. Good think I kept the lids. Note if you decide to do this don't cut the holes in the lids too big, the salt will really just pour out.