Where have we been?  Not in the school room!  We took a mid-session break and went to Orlando, FL for a week. Of course the excitement was so high there wasn’t much accomplished in terms of school work the week before or after our trip. But I have come to embrace the belief that “learning happens everywhere”. So here are some examples.

Practical Life

DJ learned to drive a car at Lego driving school and he received a drivers license. He also learned to drive a motor boat, but I was in the boat so didn’t get pictures. 

In the hotel, DJ took a surprising interest in folding clothes. Up until now he would only try to fold towels and underwear claiming the rest was too hard. But on vacation he suddenly wanted me to show him how to fold shirts and pants. And he did really good with it. A reminder to me that teaching when he is ready will always be easier than forcing it when he is not. 

He is also learning to tie his shoes since his new tennis shoes have shoestrings instead of Velcro. And he has mastered opening the car door, getting into his seat, pulling the car door closed and putting on his seatbelt. Yay for independence. 

Reading

Although there are no words in this “book,” DJ has been fascinated with reading the messages it has to tell. We have taken 4 airplane flights this past year and each one of them he diligently studies this pamphlet. 

Writing

Our sound game work is paying off and DJ is showing more and more interest in trying to spell out words. He likes to write signs in the game Minecraft on his iPad. This was the first time he wrote a complete sentence and almost entirely on his own. 

Geography 

Our last trip in September was to Honolulu, Hawaii so our trip to Orlando, Florida. Travels naturally lead to discussing geography. So the day before we left, we pulled out our puzzle map of the US and found all of the states DJ has been to. In his 5 short years of life he has visited 6 states and had layovers in 3 others!  We also talked about how long the flight was to Hawaii and how the flight to Orlando would be very similar. 

When we got off the plane in Florida, DJ looked out the window and said, “This doesn’t look like another country. It looks a lot like home!”  Hm. Maybe we need to revisit the difference between “state” and “country”.

Culture

If you want a crash course in US culture then Miniland USA at Legoland is the place to go. I was amazed at the diversity and detail that I saw but even more surprised by how interested DJ was in all of the displays. This photo does not do it justice as that Statue of Liberty is entirely made of Legos and the tour boat is actually moving through the water around it. 

Science

DJ got the chance to learn about hot air balloons up close and UP high. This balloon is a ride at Disney Springs that we were able to go up in. We explained to DJ how the balloon would rise by heating the air and would come down by letting it cool. Fortunately for us, this balloon was on a tether that pulled us back down quickly and to the same place so we didn’t have to wait for the slow glide back to land. 

Art

DJ celebrated his own early Dia de los Muertos with a little face painting and balloon art headpiece. He also did A LOT of Lego crafting. 

History

We don’t do much history in our preschool curriculum but on our vacation we stepped back in time at the T-Rex Restaurant at Disney Springs. Our table was inside a “prehistoric” cave complete with geodes and stalactites. 

Physical Activity 

Our vacation had no shortness of physical activity. DJ was on the go the entire time and taking full advantage of the warm weather. 

So… I believe the only subject we didn’t touch on during our trip was math. But then we get enough of that throughout the year anyway!