I could hardly wait to start rowing Storm%20in the NightStorm in the Night!  Jordan LOVES Thunder and Lightning, so I knew this would be a HUGE hit!

Lightning was the star of this cover page.  Jordan did an excellent job showing “contrast” in his artwork!

Parker wanted to create his own cover page too!  He did a great job illustrating, writing the title and using dot paint for the rainy sky.

BIBLE:

I chose Isaiah 41:10 for our memory verse, because storms can be exciting AND scary.  Knowing God is with us gives us the greatest comfort.  I created a Bible verse printable pack you can purchase from our TPT store.

You can download the tracer page for FREE by clicking Preview.

Jordan worked on the Bible verse puzzle throughout the time we rowed this book.

S.S. & HISTORY:

Relationships:

Since Grandfather and Thomas were the main characters, we decided to read several books about Grandpas.

We watched an animated version of What’s Under My Bed? on our Epic app.

The Aging Process:

Though this was really a science lesson, it paired nicely with our read-alouds about grandfathers so I snuck it in here :).

This was a REALLY cute story about a grandfather telling his granddaughter how he got each wrinkle on his face.

At the end of the story, they show you the grandfather from his youth to where he is now…which was EXACTLY what we needed to see for this science lesson on aging!

Feelings and Fear:

We read several books about being scared and feeling afraid.  I LOVED the The%20Berenstain Bears, Do Not Fear, God Is Near (I Can Read! / Berenstain Bears / Living Lights)Berenstain Bears Do Not Fear, God is Near book, because it includes God as the key to overcoming our fears.

 

I brought up an art tutorial on The Storm in the Night Playlist and gave the kids a feelings mini book (Teach Easy Resources) to help them sketch the faces of each emotion.

The boys had fun sketching their emotional faces 🙂

LANGUAGE ARTS:

Phonics:

I created an ABC Rainy Day Fun pack to use with Parker during this row.

I created a puffy cloud bin and placed the letters inside.

I quickly drew a bunch of pictures and had him match the starting sounds.

He grabbed a letter card, found the picture with the same starting sound, and used his dot paint to color it in.  He did a great job!

Vocabulary:

I printed the vocabulary words from our FIAR Fold and Learn packet.

We went over each one and he matched the picture to the definitions.

FIAR Color Lab – Orange:

Since mandarin was one of our vocabulary words, I decided to set up a FIAR color lab like we did during our BFIAR rows.

I set out an orange discovery bin with various orange objects (cookie cutters, foam blocks, pom-poms, and more).  Parker played with this bin during our Sonlight read-aloud time.

I also set up an orange tray in our Learning Lane that included a color equation and the letters to spell “orange”.  The boys took turns working on this tray.

I even set out an orange color mixing tray and encouraged the boys to see how many shades/hues of orange they could create by adding varying amounts of yellow and red.

We wrapped up our orange exploration with cups of mandarin oranges which Jordan LOVED, Haley liked, and Parker did not like (at all).

Onomatopoeia:

I saw a really cute onomatopoeia craft idea (School Time Snippets), so I decided to add it to the storm clouds we made during our water cycle science lesson.

The boys added strings to their black rain clouds with raindrops and lightening bolts at the bottom.

Then they wrote “drip”, “boom”, and other onomatopoeia words.

We also noticed onomatopoeia words in other books we read during this unit.

Lastly, I created a clock lapbook insert for Jordan to record the clock onomatopoeia words from our story.

Sunny Day Antonyms:

I brought out a couple of our Sunny Day antonym worksheets for the boys to work on.

Parker worked on the Sunny Day Antonym Match.

Jordan worked on a Synonym and Antonym Cloud worksheet.

Spelling:

We usually row a book for at least two weeks, so we incorporate our Sonlight Core C Language Arts spelling words into the mix.

The first week, I wrote his spelling words on construction paper rain drop and lightning bolt shapes.  I quickly made a worksheet for him to practice spelling the words.

The second week, I wrote letter boxes on construction paper clouds and rain drops.  He used his word list to practice his spelling words.

Prepositions:

This week we were reviewing prepositions in grammar.  I cut out a construction paper cloud, lightning bolts, and raindrops.

I said a prepositional phrase out loud and Jordan laid out the shapes to match.

He really did a great job listening and matching each prepositional phrase I gave him.  Note to self – this would be a fun printable idea for a “rainy day” 🙂

Weather Rhymes:

Parker was working on rhyming words, so I cut out construction paper suns and clouds and wrote rhyming words on them.

He matched all the clouds to their rhyming suns.

Spring CVC Rhymes:

I created Spring Rhyming Cards for Parker to work on.

I printed all the cards and laid out one card for each word family.  Parker worked through the stack of remaining cards, sorting by word family.  He did a great job!

ABC Order:

I used the sun and cloud rhyming words with Jordan, but I asked him to put them in alphabetical order.

He did an awesome job!

MATH:

Math Facts:

We’re constantly working on memorizing our addition, subtraction, and now multiplication facts.  The boys took turns using the Windy Kite themed Roll & Cover worksheet (The Measured Mom).

Jordan rolled the dice, multiplied it with a number on the worksheet, and covered it with a gem.  He continued until all the kites were covered.

Parker rolled the dice, added it with a number on the worksheet, and covered it with a gem.  Just like his big brother, he continued until all the kites were covered.

SCIENCE:

The Water Cycle:

We used God’s%20World of Weather (Happy Day® Books: Level 3)God’s World of Weather during our study of the weather.

We started at the very beginning by reading about the water cycle.

Water Cycle Wheel Craft:

I printed an adorable water cycle wheel for the boys to paint.

The boys got out their watercolor sets and painted both parts of the wheel.

Once they were done, we set them aside to dry.

Once the wheel was dry, we attached it to a black construction paper cloud using a brad.  We set our water cycle storm clouds aside to be used for our onomatopoeia craft.

Water Cycle Bracelets:

I gave everyone a cup of beads and a water cycle worksheet.

We reviewed the water cycle worksheet together and the kids cut and pasted the labels in order.

After working on their worksheets, they put their bracelets together.  They turned out really cute.

Water Cycle Demonstration:

I found an awesome crockpot water cycle demonstration from Lakeshore Learning.

I set out the crockpot, a large measuring cup of water, and the instructions.

Jordan poured half of the water in the crockpot.

Parker poured the rest of the water into the crockpot.  I turned it on and we let it warm up while we went into the classroom to work.

We looked at our crockpot and found evidence of evaporation.  The water droplets were condensing on the cover.   We covered the the crockpot and left it to continue working.

After a while, we checked back and found precipitation…the drops of water falling back into the crockpot.  This was a great visual demonstration of the water cycle and a fabulous lesson!

Wind:

We continued reading through God’s%20World of Weather (Happy Day® Books: Level 3)God’s World of Weather focusing on the wind.

We also read Feel%20the Wind (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)Feel the Wind and went to the kitchen for a wind experiment.

Will the Wind Blow It?:

I created a Will the Wind Blow It? worksheet for the boys to work on.

The boys chose the items they wanted to test, marked their predictions, and went into the kitchen to do their wind experiment.

Then they conducted their experiments.

Afterwards, they marked the actual result on their worksheets.

Weather Vane:

Jordan loves building and creating things.  He’s at the perfect age to leave him with supplies and let him “work it out”.  He wanted to create the weather vane experiment at the end of the Feel%20the Wind (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)Feel the Wind book.

I opened up the page with instructions and gave him everything he needed to make the weather vane.  He did a great job!

Wind Mill Experiment:

We have a cool wind mill experiment in our Usborne Science Activities book.  I showed it to Jordan and he wanted to make it.

We collected the supplies and he started creating it step by step.

We had a few problems with the wheel, but we solved it using a sturdy cardboard.

He kept having issues with various parts, but he didn’t give up.  I’m so happy when he uses that tenacity for the good!

Good, better, and FINALLY best!  After MANY failed attempts, he finally got his mill working!  SO proud of him 🙂

Clouds:

We continued our weather lessons with clouds.  We read Clouds by Marion Dane Bauer (great for smaller attention spans) and Clouds (Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science 1)Clouds by Anne Rockwell (perfect for Jordan, eight years old).

We looked at our cloud cards (not sure where I found them) while reading through our Clouds book.

I printed some cloud templates (moorefuninfirst) on blue paper and the boys used white crayon to sketch the clouds.

Then we added them to their lapbooks.

Little Cloud Paintings:

We read Little Cloud board bookLittle Cloud by Eric Carle and I decided to have the boys do cotton ball paintings (inspired by Michelle at delightfullearning).

I gave the boys a half sheet of blue construction paper, white paint and a cotton ball, and a cloud template (chalk talk) to write the shape of their little clouds.

The boys used the cotton ball to paint their own little clouds.

Afterwards they filled in their cloud template and we hung them up.  They looked adorable!

Cottonball Clouds Science Art Project:

I’ve wanted to incorporate this cotton ball cloud art project (iheartcraftythings) into our next weather unit.  I gave each boy a sheet of blue construction paper, a green strip of construction paper, a glue stick, and a heaping pile of cotton balls!

First, the boys used scissors to clip the green construction paper strip to look like grass and glued it to the bottom of their blue paper.

Next, they glued the cloud labels (iheartcraftythings.com) on their blue sheet.

They rolled, stretched, and scrunched their cotton balls to look like the cloud type and glued it to the sheet of blue paper.

Rain:

We read The%20Rainy DayThe Rainy Day by Anna Milbourne.  We love curling up on the couch to read her books, because they’re beautifully illustrated and educational.

A rain storm arrived just in time for our rain unit.  We grabbed our umbrellas and headed outside to take a walk in the drippy weather!

The next day was MUCH colder, so we put on our coats and rain boots and went puddle jumping!

We also read a few fun rainy day themed books too!

Thunder & Lightning:

We continued reading through God’s%20World of Weather (Happy Day® Books: Level 3)God’s World of Weather focusing on thunder and lightning.

We also read Thunder%20and Lightning (Weather Wise)Thunder and Lightning and worked on putting together a storm box.

We went to Daddy’s office and worked on creating a storm box.  The boys made a list of items we should have and ordered what we needed.

They checked to make sure our flashlights were working and ordered whatever items we didn’t have.

As we received each item, Jordan and Daddy added them to our storm box.

Once we had everything, we moved our storm box to a safe location where we could easily grab it if needed.

Thunder Cake:

We couldn’t study thunder without reading Thunder%20CakeThunder Cake by Patricia Polacco.

I hid the ingredient cards (homeschool share) in our living room.

After reading the book, the boys went on a hunt looking for the hidden ingredients.

We went back to the classroom and they put them in order and put the booklets into their lapbook.

Since it was Jordan’s birthday, he chose thunder cake.

What a wonderful way to end our unit on storms….happy birthday Bub!

Rainbows:

We dedicated one day to rainbows.  We started our morning with rainbow hootenanies and A%20Rainbow of My OwnA Rainbow of My Own.

I promised Parker a rainbow breakfast, so I whipped up a batch of hootenanies and dropped in some food coloring and let the baking process do the rest!

The kids gobbled up their colorful breakfast while I read the story aloud.

Meet Roy G. Biv:

I bought a new weather pack (Made for 1st Grade) while perusing around Delightful Learning’s blog.

I prepped this craft the night before and set out a sheet of black construction paper,  colored paper strips (red, orange, yellow, green, light blue, blue (indigo), and purple (violet)), and light tan ovals for the face.

The boys glued the ovals to the black paper and added the strips of paper in rainbow order for Roy’s hair.

They glued on some googly eyes and drew the nose and mouth.  Then we pasted the “hello…” cut-out on the bottom.

Jordan added a rainbow shirt and mustache.  They turned out really cute!

I added one of our preschool tot trays (rainbow button sorting) to Learning Lane.  They still love this activity!

Rainbow Similes:

Jordan was learning about similes in his Sonlight Core C Language Arts program, so I incorporated this into an art project.

I set out a tray with the three primary colors (kool-aid mixed with water and a bit of food coloring – they smelled great!), a brush, and a rainbow of similes worksheet.

The boys painted their rainbows, layering the paints for the secondary colors.

They smelled great and were pretty, but next time I would add a bit more food coloring to brighten the colors.

We even had a special lunch with a rainbow of fruits and veggies!  So much fun having rainbow days 🙂

Color Mixing:

I set up a special color mixing activity for Parker.  You can see the full post on our Book Pairing page.

We mixed colors as we read through I%20Love Colors! (Hello Reader!, Level 1)Noodles I Love Colors.

Parker LOVED this activity so much he asked to leave the tray so he could do it over again…..and he did SEVERAL times.

Jordan LOVED this activity too….sometimes it’s the easiest things that bring the greatest joy 🙂

ARTS, CRAFTS, & OTHER FUN STUFF:

Lightning Art Project:

This week Parker was finger painting as part of his Sonlight Core A Language Arts program, so I incorporated this as a contrast art project for both boys.

I taped a heavy-weight paper to their art tray and set out several colors of orange and yellow which paired nicely with our “mandarin” vocabulary word.

I asked the boys to use the crayons to color lightning bolts on their paper in various shades of yellow and orange.

I squeezed several gobs of blue, black and purple tempura paint on their paper and instructed the boys to finger paint around their lightning bolts.  Jordan LOVES this type of sensory art project, but little brother doesn’t like getting his hands dirty (thus the gloves…hee hee).

They looked great with the contrast between the night sky and the bright hues of orange and yellow.  We set them aside to dry.

They both turned out AMAZING!!!