Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Summer field trip/2 hr unschooling ideas

Hi all,

I have two boys, 8 and 10, about to end their school year this week. Let's just say school is not my 10yo's thing, nor is any obvious attempt to enrich his knowledge outside of school. He prefers sports and puttering around to outright learning something. He is highly curious and emotionally obnoxious particularly with his little brother who is more school oriented. My older is MG/HG while the younger is HG/HG+.

We have 5 weeks out of school, no travel plans in Raleigh, NC....I'm looking for daily ideas to keep them busy and focused (read "out of trouble"). I had the bright idea to get them a microscope and some slides which costs less than a one day camp here ;), looking for similar ideas. They love science but not following kits, lol. They love to cook and eat...art is ok, crafts hated. The more action, the better.

Much advanced appreciation!

Shannon

How many NC state parks are within a driving distance you are willing to do? My first thought was the junior ranger program at state parks...you down load the guide (and you can see if the program would be of interest to your boys). At each park you earn a different patch for that activity.

Education » Junior Rangers

Jr. Ranger Booklet Cover

Explore, learn and help out your state parks! The new Junior Ranger guide is packed full of fun activities you can do at any of our 39 state parks. Be a Junior Ranger!

• It's a fun way for children to explore with their family, scouts troop or youth group. Activities are geared for children ages 6-12.

• Children gain an appreciation of North Carolina's cultural and natural heritage and learn about careers in natural resources.

• A different Junior Ranger patch is awarded at each park.

A few, but they aren't nature inclined. We have some great local programs with Parks and Rec, but they became disinterested in the same old salamander, frog find quests that just get repeated. I also have to stay pretty clse to home most days as we have a young Great Dane also needing attention. I do daycare for him about once/week so we can hit the zoo, etc. I'd like to stay within an hour drive, we also still have soccer and piano going on:).

I was also thinking projects, like our pitiful mailbox that needs sanding and reprinting..nothing like a crash course in home repair...THAT they love!

Yeah if nature isn't their thing then that isn't a good fit. The nice thing about this is you can see the guide online before you decide to try it.

My 8 year old is getting a Lego kit for a summer project. He has had plenty of easy ones but never an expensive, big, complicated one. I (and he) want one that he can sink his teeth into rather than complete in one sitting. We are going to pick one out together probably this week.

He is also auditioning for a summer community theater play (which he may or may not get a part).

I've found pinterest to be great for ideas. Mine are younger than yours, so I can't steer you to my page, but I'd sign up and get sucked into it. haha.

Geocaching?

ETA and some more ideas we have or are going to do: make a pinhole camera, make a green screen movie in iMovie, papier mache, make an electromagnet, make a bird feeder, make our own recycled paper, knitting, finger or french knitting, embroidery, sewing, a photographic project, bake bread from scratch (and other yeast experiments!) ...

What about getting some of the Boy Scouts merit badge books that look interesting (you can get them at any Boy Scouts Store for pretty cheap) and do some of the activities in those? You could gravitate to the more active badges or the more sciency badges. There are literally more than 100 to choose from and they might give you (and/or your sons) some structure to work from and some ideas you hadn't thought about, but with with no requirement to do anything you didn't feel like.

Off the top of my head I'm thinking archery, canoeing or boating, geocaching, cooking (but outdoors on a campfire they build themselves), hiking, beachcombing, swimming, camping, rockets, whittling, ropemaking and knot-tying, etc. Or what if they work to build a treehouse or a wooden toolbox or just some random wooden creation using scraps of wood and a hammer and nails? Or change the oil and wiper fluid in your car?

OK. Just saw the part about not being outdoorsy. Although the dog would be the perfect excuse for getting outside at a nature center or just around the neighborhood or to a park.

Some of my suggestions would still work, but what about things like taking apart old (safe) appliances? Tye-dying t-shirts? Buying actual large canvases and oil paints? Learning juggling or magic or just goofing off with ball and cards? Growing your own summer vegetables and fruit? Going through your old books and toys and going to a donation center? A movie day where they concoct their own treat?

Thanks for the ideas, love the projects! My oldest made an electromagnet for his science fair project this year . They love the outdoors, camping, etc. just not Nature..meaning not ecology and environmental consciousness which is very big around here. My oldest is an animal lover for sure too, I'm the dog crazy Mom he puts up with (we're on our fifth giant breed dog).

Thx again, we'll have plenty to choose from now!

Shannon

I have a few ideas; hopefully one or more will appeal.

1. Teifoc makes a lovely reusable brick and mortar building set. It might be of interest if they're enjoy construction:

http://www.eitechusa.com/Teifoc-School-Brick-Construction-Set-720-Pc-502.htm

2. Another idea might be family stargazing-- you could be thrifty and just use the Internet as a guide, or you could splurge and buy a telescope, field guide, etc.

3. I'd check out a cooking series on YouTube on the science of cooking. You could make your own composite foods using transglutaminase ("meat glue") like noodles made of meat, use liquid nitrogen to make ice cream, study the Maillard reaction, make pearls with basic tools like algenate, etc. Working on basic knife skills is practical, too. When DS19mo is old enough, we'll be turning our kitchen into a molecular gastronomy lab!!

http://www.seas.harvard.edu/cooking

4. Build your own computer from the ground up.

5. Write the script for and film a documentary on a topic of interest. If their friends are interested, they could do a short documentary film festival (ala Hot Docs).