East Meets West

We had the privilege of spending 25 magical days with a Japanese student visiting with the 4H International Home-stay program. This is a short home stay program that gives the host an opportunity to experience a different culture as well as sharing their own. You do not need to be a 4H member, you just need to have a child in the home between the ages of 12-18, so the delegate has an American "brother or sister." This program defiantly improves communication skills and character. A great amount of patience, tenderness, and caution was used when dealing with our delegate, our children gave up a great amount of their parent’s attention as well as their own personal space. To read more about the adventures experienced by our family, visit our blog to read East Meet West, a day by day account of our exciting activities.

Illinois State Fair

Four Homeschooled Clovers went to the State Fair this year. They took projects from, Floriculture, Visual Arts, Intercultural, Communications and Public Presentations. Some of the benefits of being at the state fair are the Sky Ride through the park, the many exhibits, collecting free pencils and sampling Illinois agricultural products like soy cookies or soy based smoothies. A favorite was "egg on a stick," sprinkled with seasoned salt; it was very good. They also played games, saw a high dive act, street musicians, rode rides at the carnival and saw other 4H friends from around the state, which made the day just perfect! Two of our members took superior ratings on their projects, congratulations to Samantha and Ben! See you next year at the Fair!

Dragon Boat Races

This year our 4H club voted to study China. With the 2008 Olympics in China this year, we thought that it would be very educational and fun to study. The first field trip offered this year was the Dragon Boat Races in Chinatown! Two families from our club came to the races today. My family and I had a very good time and we wish to go again next year!

There were four different jobs to do on a dragon boat.

The man in the blue life vest that sat in the back was the person that maneuvered the boat. He seemed like he knew what he was doing.

Most of the people in the boat were rowers. They are the biggest part of the boat because they are the ones creating the speed.

Then their was a drummer. The drummer sat at the very beginning of the boat near the dragon head. The drummer gave a beat for when to row. Every time one hears a drum beat, they put their oars in the water. The drum helped them so that that the rowers moved together, making the boat faster.

Then, finally there was a person who hung off the edge of the dragon's head. That person grabbed the flag at the end of the race. Which ever team got the flag first won that round!

Thought I made a dragon boat at one of our meetings, I appreciate the treasure of watching these races up close even more. I really enjoyed watching the races. The festival also included many examples of Chinese culture, music, dance, and martial arts. Because we wanted to do more with our visitor we did not stay the whole day. But I have included this video of the races and some acrobats from Cirque Shanghai.

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(This post was written by my daughter, Hannah.)

4H County Fair

As Homeschooled Clovers packed their cars and vans this morning, they faced a wet and soggy day. Projects had to be wrapped in plastic and carried across the muddy trails to the exhibit barn. But before things could seem desperately lost, the magic began to happen and another exciting county fair began.

With the great attitude of leaders and members, we all started to have a lot of fun. Some hung out in the barn to see the animals, and some enjoyed the activities in the pavilion prepared by the Diplomatic Corps. The sun came out and shone brightly as the awards began to be passed out to these years participants.
Twenty one Homeschooled Clovers participated in the county fair this year. Collectively, they entered projects in almost all categories. Leaders and parents were so proud of the great job club members did on their project areas. They earned a total of 13 Grand Champion positions and seven Reserve Grand Champions, not to mention the "sea of blue ribbons" brought home by all club members. Many received invitations to exhibit their projects at the State Fair in August. We will be looking for a great turn out there and a great start to a great year in 2009!

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A Visit Back in Time at Naper Settlement

Today we visited black smith and print shop, a log cabin and a late nineteenth century school house. I have to admit that visiting this historical park truly can feel like a journey back in time. The park was staffed with costumed and knowledgeable volunteers that answered all of our questions and even offered more information than we could have gotten by just reading the available information at each site.

Hannah is modeling a print shop uniform, used to keep clothing clean during the printing process.

This volunteer was very knowledgeable about the early settlers in this area of Illinois. She only explained what the settlers experienced on their journey west through Illinois, what they used and why it was useful.

At Napper Settlement you will find several Junior volunteers that have been well trained and are ready to share their learned information with visitors. This volunteer explained what type of chores would be expected of children of various ages. According to her, even little ones like my nephew would be taught simple chores, like collecting eggs. Imagine that, a two year old carrying the eggs in for breakfast!

We really enjoyed the opportunity the Settlement gives to children of all ages to try their hand at various tasks. Here my nephew is trying to card wool. He said it is a lot harder than it looks.

Here my nephew sits and watches the junior volunteers at their tasks.

The volunteers took time to show even the youngest visitor something new. Their enthusiasm really helped the kids enjoy the visit and learn something about Illinois history along the way.

This Conestoga Wagon is designed for visitors to climb and experience for themselves. This kids loved pretending to ride.

Climbing to the top lookout at Fort Payne, the kids could see how early settlers would have defended themselves from danger.

This was by far one of the most fun and productive field trips we have had this year. It is deffinatly be on our list of places to return to next year. Check the website for their calander of events for special days and activities. The day we went there was a sheep hearding demonstration. This was very interesting and informational. The kids enjoyed it even more than we had anticipated. Below you can find all the pictures taken at the Settlement and a slide show of the sheep hearding. Picnicing on the grounds is allowed, or you can visit one of Nappervilles resturants in the proximity. Whether studying pioneer life or Illinois history, Naper Selltement is a must see!

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'Tis May, 'tis May....

May is a busy month for our Midwest Homeschool Fine Arts. We were kept very busy with two concerts, two plays, and all of course, all the responsibilities that arise from being a teacher in this group. But the end result was some awesome experiences that can never fully be expressed in print. Please follow the highlighted links to read complete posts about these activities...one blog could never hold the amount of bragging I want to share about our family, so...enjoy!

Hannah stared as Anne of Green Gables in this Young Thespians production on May 22. She had to learn a massive amount of lines as you can imagine that "Anne" was in every scene. "Anne" is one of Hannah's favorite characters. So, as the director of this drama group, I chose this play to give Hannah a chance to make "Anne" come to life. I must say she really did! She was dramatic, expressive, emotional, and most of all humorous. She defiantly captured the essence of this wonderful character.

Sarah's class, the Classic Players, performed William Shakespeare's As You Like It, on May 29 & 30th. Sarah stared as "Audrey" the simple country maid. It was a minor part with a huge amount of action and stage time. This adorable character was the love interest of Shakespeare's famous clown "Touchstone." You may have heard one of his famous lines, "A wise man knows himself to be a fool, but a fool thinks he is a wise man." She was chased, had her bubbles stolen, and her flower petals ruined by his leaf blower...I could go on, but you really had to be there, let's just say - it was VERY funny! Hannah was also in the cast of this play, and her singing voice was a wonderful addition to the cast!

We will continue to study and participate in dramatic productions, because Fred and I have seen what the girls can do, what they have learned, what experiences they have had, what leadership they have gained, and what friends they have made. We are very thankful for the opportunities God has allowed for them. We would not change them for the world!