Light Bulbs

Dakota and I had a great day of homeschooling yesterday.  We read about Harriet Tubman, watched a video about her and read our Abe Lincoln At Last, our current Magic Tree House book, all snuggled up under the blanket.  We did our work at the table, baked some Valentine's day sugar cookies and wrote out Valentine's for our co-op classmates.  My favorite moment, however, came during Science.  We were talking about matter, properties and mass.  We read about solids, liquids and gases and were talking about how air is in everything, even if you can't see it.  I tried to explain how air is in the bathroom cup he turns upside down and submerges in the tub to get bubbles, but he didn't understand, so we filled up the kitchen sink, got a clear plastic cup, put some dry paper towels in the bottom third of the cup and turned it upside down and put it into the water.  His eyes got big when we took the cup out the paper towels were dry.  I explained that the air was trapped in there, but I could tell he still didn't understand.  We did it a few more times and then I put the cup under the water and tilted it.  Blurp!  A big bubble came to to the top and he turned to me with wide eyes and a huge smile and said "that's the air that was in there!"  AHA!  The lightbulb went off and he was so proud of his new knowledge.  THAT is why I homeschool.  Why should some teacher who really has no vested interest in my son, get to witness that pride?  It makes it all worthwhile.  Love, love, love those light bulbs.

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