Ratios, marmalade, art and snow (yes more snow).

Not the best week we've had work wise. I find we have patterns of achieving lots one week and then having squabbles and achieving hardly anything another week! I was hoping the subject of ratios for maths this week would only take up one day, but in fact we've been continuing with it all week and shall continue (unless snow gets in the way) tomorrow. I guess this is the beauty of HE, I can teach and teach the same subject in different ways day after day until it sticks, rather than having to stop after one or two days because the curriculum tells me to.

Using mud and water to demonstrate ratios - making "mud cordial"

Apart from maths we have completed our Sketch Tuesdays (something soap related) and Katie and I have done some other art too. Katie's was worth scanning (see side bar), mine certainly wasn't. I tried very hard to draw a curlew, as we've been seeing alot of them in the fields around here. I couldn't get the proportions right, so gave up in the end!

Katie and Ben have updated their RSPB awards booklet with the types of birds we've seen hacking away at the fat balls and monkey nuts. Blackbirds, starlings, sparrows, blue and great tits - it's brilliant watching them. Our next door neighbour has asked us to make fat balls for her garden as it seems the birds don't like her shop bought ones (my mum found this too). So we may end up taking "fat ball" orders at this rate - the birds certainly seem to adore them.

Science - we've been understanding more on water. Lots of distractions from my two made this seem to drag on and on so much that we'll have to finish it off tomorrow. The Krampf science email was interesting on this subject and seeing as how our HE group 2 topic will be water in a couple of weeks, I thought we could have a look at some experiments now. We learnt how water is dense until it reaches about 4 deg. C, and then becomes less dense as it freezes and therefore ice will float on ponds etc. (so the fish won't die). We also looked at ways of melting ice cubes (with the warmth of our finger, and with salt). Katie asked why we don't have salty rain and where the salt in the sea comes from, so that led onto another discussion.

Art today for Katie. Looking at favourite paintings/pictures, taking a small section and "blowing it up", using layers of crayons to add all the colour. We were in a different part of the hall this time and the children seemed quite restless - so not the usual calm three hour art session we're all used to!

Made my first batch of orange and grapefruit marmalade this week - very proud - it tastes pretty good. I was getting a little anxious at one point as it wasn't setting at all (recipe said 5 - 20 mins - took just over an hour). Have made 5 jars, most of which have homes to go to!

Left art with the beginnings of more snow, which continued all the way home, and continues to fall even now! I know a lot of people are getting fed up with it all and I know it can be distruptive. We're lucky here in that we aren't pressurised to go driving to work/school or what have you (although I do need to take Allie to the vets tomorrow). We don't get snow that often, so I'm loving it.