Thank Goodness for the Internet.

We have been focusing on science quite a bit lately. Delaney is very interested in space, and the planets (who isn't, right? Such fun!). She had requested a telescope for Christmas, which sadly, Santa did not bring this year, but mentioned that maybe her birthday will be a better season for skywatching. In the meantime, we have been learning about all of the planets and their order, as well as lots of random facts about them. Yesterday, we found some great coloring sheets here on Coloringcastle.com, and Delaney worked on coloring all the planets as they are seen in the night sky.

Next, she will cut them out and we will assemble a hanging mobile like this one on Enchantedlearning.com, and dazzle her father and sisters with all of her outer space facts.

Delaney watched a "Go, Diego, Go" the other day that talked a little bit about oil spills. Delaney has been asking me questions ever since..."What happens when oil goes into the ocean? How do they clean it up? What happens to the animals?" This morning, at 6:30am, no less, the poor sea creatures were on her mind again. We did some research together, and learned quite a bit about oil spills and the effect they have on the environment, and how the oil is cleaned up. We saw some pictures of some very sad little animals and plants, and learned about how the oil affects them. We found a story about using hair mats to absorb oil - it was SO interesting!

One of my favorite things about homeschooling and planning education around my daughter's interests is the amount of new things that I learn! Her curiosity requires knowledge that is beyond the scope of my expertise much of the time, and I get to show her how fun it is to research and discover the answers to her questions, and then share our new-found details with our family. We often do themed trivia questions during dinner, and it is awesome when Delaney can pick the theme and stump the rest of us with her questions.

Just a few moments ago, Delaney was holding a rose from the bouquet she talked me into buying at the store ($5 Friday roses! They are SO BEAUTIFUL, Mom!), examining it carefully. She asked me, "What is inside the stem?" When I told her that the stem takes the nutrients to the flower, she answered, "Yes, Mom, I know that. But what is INSIDE of the stem?"

So now, I am off to research what is actually inside of a plant stem, so I can have a decent answer for her when she wakes up from her nap. :)