Castlewood State Park Orienteering

Schnickelfritz and I participated in our third O meet this past weekend.  As the weather gets cooler and the vegetation dies down, the events move from municipal parks to the big state parks.   Up to now we've just been covering 100 acres or so, today's event was held on over 1800 acres.  More controls were hidden off the paths then on, the  changes in elevation were much steeper and more frequent.

We began the day with a new training class for junior orienteers.  Fritz and three other boys learned tips for better navigation with the detailed maps.  A "catching feature" is some object or formation located past the control you are seeking.  If you reach it--say, a bridge, you know you need to turn around to keep looking for your target.  A "handrail" is a feature that you can follow to guide you in the direction of the control you are seeking--perhaps a fence line or the ridge of a hill.  The map the boys studied was a mini course laid oud by their coach.  When asked if they wanted to navigate together or by themselves all the boys chose the latter, even my Schnickelfritz.  Now the last time my little adventurer wanted to leave me behind in the dust was last year when we explored the Bathtub cave.  He was the first (after our guide) to disappear down the hole and the first to scramble out again.  There was only one way in or out so I knew he couldn't get lost.  Now I was putting my faith in God and a seven- year-old's ability to read a map.

 The coach gave each boy a two minute headstart before sending the next in line.  Fritz was going last and was really raring at the bit.  He must have asked "Can I go now?" five times in those two minutes.  I stuffed a whistle in his pocket in case of emergency and was still praying he'd decide he really wanted me to go with him.  When he had the green light, he tore up the trail, rounded a bend, and was lost to sight.  The coach waited another two minutes before he and I started up the path.  We were going to shadow the boys and collect the tape used in place of regular control markers.    Somewhere up ahead I heard a voice "Mama, I found the first control!"   After the third control we left the trail and started up a dry creek bed.   My initial reaction was fear that he was just running up the trail so fast he would miss the turn, but then I caught a flash of red shirt scrambling over a fallen tree.  I had to give him credit--the boy can read a map.

We caught up with Fritz on two occasions as our long legs and the coach's familiarity with the course allowed us to travel faster.  In both cases Fritz begged for another two minute lead.  He was determined to do this on his own.  He managed to find 12 of the 14 controls on his own and passed one of the older boys (who had fallen and scraped his knees).  When he reached the finish line, my little adventurer was ready for anything.  The real event was starting in 30 minutes and Fritz informed me we were going to find all 24 controls because he was "full of energy!"

This time we'd be competing as a team and I wasn't sure I was so full of energy.  I began trying to lighten my load as much as possible.  Rather than carry around a clunky bunch of keys, I only needed the one to unlock the car.  I took a familiar key off the ring and hid the rest in the car.  Did you notice I said "a" and not "the" key?  When I tried to unlock the car to get a highlighter pen for marking the map I realized I had removed the house key, not the own for the car.  Instead of using our 30 minutes to plan our course I spent it borrowing other folks' cell phones trying to reach the Toolman to come with a spare key.  He was evidently working with a leaf blower and hearing protection and missed my call.  I left messages for him and then Fritz and I joined the others for a mass start.  I figured it would take at least an hour for Toolman to get the message and come to the park so we might as well keep busy while we waited for him.

Remember that energetic little man I spoke of just a paragraph ago.  After six controls and two miles he wasn't quite so energetic.  "My legs are burning!" , "I'm exhausted!" and the ultimate sign of fatigue "I'm going to take a nap when we get home!"  We managed two more controls before nature called to Schnickelfritz and it was the type that boys can't do off the side of the path.  We headed back to the finish line and the bathrooms.  Fritz was at first disappointed at our score, the smallest we've gotten so far.  But I reminded him how much more territory we were covering.  In the past two events we only found half of the total controls.  This time we found 8 of the 10 required for the short course we were running.  That's quite an improvement if you look at it percentage-wise.

We've got two weeks to build up our endurance before the next event.

Wrap up week 10/18-22

Schnickelfritz is busy taking his Unit III test from Math U See Gamma--a whopping 56 questions.  It still won't take him very long.  He is determined to start MUS Delta before Christmas. 

We completed All About Spelling Level 1 this week as well.  This is a program we discoved as a member of last year's Homeschooling Crew.  I can't tell you what a difference it has made to ease the frustration levels of both student and teacher.  Fritz loves moving the magnetic tiles around rather than writing.  I love the step by step instructions--for some reason teaching language arts intimidates me.  We've had to move the tiles from our whiteboard to a new permanant home on the basement refrigerator.  Fritz was constantly using the whiteboard for drawing maps and pretending to be Mr. Demme teaching math.  He would just pick off the letter tiles to get them out of his way and it would take me a week to find them all again.

The weather has turned cool enough now that its difficult to find insects so we've returned back to the bird chapters of our Apologia Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day.  We made a field trip to the World Bird Sanctuary open house last weekend.  While it's always a thrill to see bald eagles, even flightless ones,  this weekend was special because we were given access to the clinic where they care for injured birds of prey and their breeding area.   To go with our bird study, I also started reading aloud E.B. White's The Trumpet of the Swan.

We've been reading our way through the Bible this year (I have chosen not to read certain passages containing more adult content like Lot and his daughters).  We started Exodus and by coincidence Fritz's Royal Ranger commander decided to show the boys The Prince of Egypt.  She had to divide it and show it over two weeks.  Fritz insisted that we read far enough in the book to meet up with the story so I had to read 4 or 5 chapters a day.  Fritz listened without complaint and even insisted I "Keep going," --words to a mother's ears.

I've really slowed down our Mystery of History because I want to tie in to our Bible reading.   Growing up I never understood the relationship between the things I learned in Sunday School and what I learned about history on weekdays.  I want Fritz to understand that what we read in the Bible were real events that we can add to our timeline.  I can only read so much in a day though, so history lessons will just have to go slow for now.

Tomorrow we have another Orienteering meet.  This will be our first in a state park rather than a municipal park.  I have  a feeling it will mean more compass work and less relying on controls being on paths or easy objects.  There's going to be a new training couse for junior members before the main meet.  I hope Fritz will be able to make some new friends that share his enthusiasm.

A walk in the fall

Tonight it was a real pleasure taking the dog for a walk.  Down the road, where the neighbors keep horses,  there must have been two dozen bluebirds resting on the fence.  he birds took flight as we approached and when the broke out from shadow to sunlight their vivid blue coloring  just popped.  

Schnickelfritz caught up with us on his bicycle.  Further down the road we discovered a dead snake.  I can't be certain what kind it was but it wasn't a copperhead.  Fritz asked if he could touch it.  He's come a long way since we've moved from our urban home in Indianapolis.  He used to be scared of bugs--even the cute ones.  Now he wanted to touch a snake carcass.  He dismounted his bike, got a stick, and dug a trench to give the snake a decent burial.

It reached almost 72 today--rare for this late in the year.  The leaves are as brilliant as they're going to get (actually, they're all expected to fall with the rain this weekend).    I had good company.  It couldn't get any better.

Franklin Springs DVD

Here's a chance to win a free dvd of the West Ladies and the Art of Dairy Delights.  See the entry details at http://broadhorizonsschool.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-homestead-blessings-art-of-dairy.html .

The Challenger

When most people hear the word Challenger they think of the space shuttle but today I got to see a  Challenger that predates that spacecraft by forty years.   Built in 1943, it was the largest and most powerful operating locomotive ever.   It was restored to running condition in 1981 and today it made a whistle stop at Washington, MO.

It was scheduled to arrive at 9:15 and I was surprised by the crowds who had arrived before me.  Grandfathers holding little hands,  a group of  boys from the local Catholic school sporting cardboard engineer caps,  even a little girl with an English accent and her mummy.  We waited for nearly an hour.  At one time the crossing gates signaled and folks got their hopes up, but it was only an Amtrak dropping off one passenger. 

There was no mistaking when it did arrive.  I'm sure they heard the whistle all over town.

Review: Soli Deo Gloria Resources

A common phrase among the Homeschool Crew when discussing review products is "God knew exactly what I needed."  We may receive the perfect material to help a struggling learner or it may address a personal passion of one of our kids.  That was the case when we downloaded the Map Skills unit study published by Soli Deo Gloria Resources.

My Schnickelfritz has always been fascinated with maps, but recent interstate trips and joining the orienteering club have kicked his enthusiasm into high gear.  This made doing a review of the unit study an easy sell.   The 32 page ebook contains daily assignments for a 3 week study (based on a 4 day schedule).   To get the most out of the study you will need to purchase a separate workbook -- the author recommends selecting the appropriate level from the Weekly Readers series: Map Skills for Today.  Other recommended items: a compass, a variety of maps, blank or outline maps, and any additional reading books to reinforce the study.

We didn't use the recommended workbook as we had plenty of other resources (like I said, Fritz has a passion for maps).  We gathered amusement park and zoo maps, maps from our orienteering meets, free state maps from rest stops, and checked out the largest atlas possible from the library.   Some activities only required a pencil and paper.  Others involved taking a walk through the neighborhood or a more energy burning game of compass tag.  Fritz did enough activities to earn his Mapping badge for Royal Rangers.

In addition to map skills, the student will look up vocabulary words, practice penmanship with copywork, and learn some grammar mostly through studying Bible verses.  The underlying message is the Bible can be a "map" and give direction to our lives.

The study is designed for students K-6.   Older students (or those with a passion for maps) will really need to supplement the study with advanced workbooks or other activities.    The ebook can be downloaded ($14) at the Soli Deo Gloria website.  You can  see a sample page there as well.   The company also publishes unit studies in the areas of  Bible, science,  history, and geography--prices range from $12 to $18.

You can see what fellow crewmates thought of the Map Skills Unit Study and other products from Soli Deo Gloria Resources by clicking here.

Disclaimer: I received a free download of the Map Skills Unit Study for the purpose of completing this review.  I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.  

Meramec Caverns

If you've traveled on Highway 44, you've probably seen the signs for Meramec Caverns.  Heck, I've seen an advertisement on Highway 70 in Indiana.  I've always found it a little too expensive to go, but recently the privately owned cave advertised a half price day.  Schnickelfritz got his birthday trip to the cave a few months early.

I believe the cave was the first tourist attraction on Route 66, although it's been attracting people long before that.  It once held a gun powder factory in the Civil War (thanks to all the bat guano).  Artifacts found in the cave are linked to a robbery by the infamous Jesse James.  Some areas are big enough to hold square dances (the buggies were parked around the perimeter of the "room"). 

Outside the cave were more activities--free and half price.  There were bouncy houses, a train made out of metal barrels pulled by a John Deere, a small camp of Civil War re-enactors (complete with cannon).  Fritz learned about the current danger facing bats, white nose syndrome, and made a free bat house to mount on our barn.

The big attraction (well, besides the cave) was the new zip line that takes adventuresome souls across the Meramec River--twice. This also seems to be the rage in Branson right now.   I wonder how they felt with the cannon going off beneath them.  Fortunately, Fritz is still too young for such sport.  I guess that will be a later birthday wish.