Tag: hands-on learning

News

September News: Critiques, creativity tips and more

Kirsten W. Larson

Mega Soaring 20s Critique Giveaway

a2e071a3-b955-4fb1-ad7c-3579fcada8ddGif by Isabella Kung

Authors and Illustrators! The Soaring 20s (including yours truly) are giving away 20 (plus six more) critiques of picture book text or illustration/book dummies. Full details on how to enter on our newly launched website. There are many more giveaways and a lot of great content to come, so follow our blog, check us out on Twitter, and sign up for our newsletter.

In case you missed it…

e01658cc-3c44-412e-ac21-8f83066b6d72TEACHERS: What do good writing and our pets’ senses have in common? Find out in my first #STEMTuesday post with an exercise for writers of all ages. Click here to read.

WRITERS: Get creativity tips! Recently I discussed my creative process on NFReads.com. For me assembling facts and shaping them into a story is much like solving jigsaw puzzles.

COVER REVEAL: While, YOU very special people saw the cover of WOOD, WIRE, WINGS ages ago, industry insider Kathy Temean just featured the cover on her blog. Also, she’ll be hosting a giveaway of the book in February.

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This month I launched a yearlong partnership with Ms. Nolan’s fourth-grade class at Roosevelt School in Tulare, California. I’ll be sharing books, writing tips, and so much more with these students throughout the school year. Learn more about #KidsNeedMentors here.

New book trailer: A big thank you!

Thanks to YOU, my amazing newsletter subscribers, I was able to finalize my book trailer for WOOD, WIRE, WINGS. Want to preview the book? Click on the image above to view the trailer. And THANK YOU for providing such helpful input and feedback.

Science/Math

Science Fun: Water Balloon in a Bottle

Kirsten W. Larson

It’s still warm — ok, hot — in our part of Southern California, so this experiment from Steve Spangler Science was a fun way to cool off. We used it to discuss how air is “stuff” even though we can’t see it.

Air takes up space in a one-liter bottle, which you find out when you try to blow up the balloon inside the bottle. You can’t do it because the air already in the bottle has nowhere to go. When you poke a hole in the bottle, the air filling the bottle can escape as you blow air into the balloon. Really, the water balloon part is just for fun.

The boys enjoyed the final part of this experiment the most. The Steve Spangler team shows you how to splash your friend as he or she looks at your water balloon in the bottle. The boys got to splash Daddy, which they found hilarious. File this one away for April Fool’s Day.

The experiment requires only a few household items:

  • One liter bottle
  • Duct tape
  • Balloon
  • Tack or pushpin
  • Water

You can watch the how-to video…..here.

Homeschool, Science/Math, Travel

Earthwatch: Hands-on Learning in the Field

Kirsten W. Larson
Stock photo. Unfortunately, I can’t get hubby’s pics off his phone.

Long story short: my husband recently returned from an archaeological dig in Tuscany where he discovered pottery and human remains at an Etruscan necropolis. While the thought of being married to Indiana Jones is appealing, hubby isn’t a whip-wielding academic. But through Earthwatch.org, he plays one on vacation.

Earthwatch.org pairs scientists from a number of disciplines with volunteer vacationers, who conduct science in the field. Study elephant behavior in Thailand. Protect sharks in Belize. Journey to China to help giant pandas. Oh, and here’s one of my favorites…study vineyard ecology and biodiversity in Bordeaux.

Even better, Earthwatch has special expeditions designed for families and teens. For family expeditions, children must be at least 10 years old and accompanied by adult family members. But children can work side-by-side with archaeologists to explore Roman England or with marine biologists to track marine mammals off the coast of California, for example. Yes, I am already counting how many years until we can do something like this for our family vacation.

Check out Earthwatch’s 40th anniversary video here to learn more about this fantastic organization.

Have you ever engaged travel experiences with your kids focused on hands-on learning? I’d love to hear about them!