Happy Birthday, Emily!

We have another adult in the house!

A Birthday and a Field Trip

Baby Joey is now in the double digits like the rest of them! Does he look happy or what?  Emily (third from left) got her braces on a couple of days ago.  She now joins Hayden and Samuel in the braces club. She still managed to eat cake and ice cream (although mostly the softer ice cream)!

After spending a day on James Island at the Department of Natural Resources, we returned home to celebrate Joey's 10th.

     We had another opportunity for a free field trip today and we took advantage of it!  I can't say enough about the Department of Natural Resources.  I am so impressed!  

Today's topic: Sharks and Fish.

Does this response look familiar?  Reminds me of his brother, Harrison.  Here, Joseph is touching a dead fish.  I have to say, today's classes smelled a little like CAT FOOD.

First, the younger kiddos had to locate and identify the outer parts of the fish. Our friends, the Blauchs were there too! Joey and Nathan worked together.

After watching a presentation and learning the outside parts of the fish, Joey and Nathan cover it with paint.

Big sister, Hayden helps them to make a fish print.

Hayden watches over the little artists. They learned that fish prints were made by the early Japanese before cameras were invented to brag about the size of their catches!

 After everyone's work is hung to dry, the next activity begins.

The instructor teaches them an interactive song about the parts of a fish sung to, "Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes......"

Can you sing, "operculum"?

Meanwhile........

The teenagers dissect a shark in an outer building.  As usual, Emily and Benjamin (Blauch) did most of the cutting.

A couple of funny moments: Here, Jacob realizes his brother Benjamin just wiped his hand on Jacob's shoulder.  He is about as thrilled about this entire experience as Harrison.

The group next to ours had a "fresh" shark so it was uh, juicier.  When the group turned it over, all the "guts" spilled out.  Harrison looked over just in time to see it.  Emily ran over there shortly afterward to see it on purpose.......

After the first hour, the two classes switched buildings and the teens learned about fish and the younger ones learned about sharks.

Here, Joey and some new friends locate the outer parts of the shark after a presentation.

Next, they went outside.  Each child had a card clothes-pinned to his clothes with a picture/name of a type of shark on it.  After learning the different characteristics of the several varieties, several games were played to practice their "shark senses".

A blind-folded student tries to identify which child gently threw a bean bag at her by her sense of touch.

 Joey's label said, "Dogfish".  The three dogfish had to compete in an obstacle course wearing goggles and a boot. 

Here, Joey weaves through the tables.

He gets under the limbo bar for the win!

The teens have been given the fish from the earlier group.  Yes, they still had some paint on them.

Emily is partnered up with her good friend Avery Gibson for the fish dissection.

Harrison is back with Benjamin and a new friend named Gabriel.

Samuel works with Avery's brother, Harlan.

Could it be?  Is Harrison actually performing an incision?

No, he wanted to REMOVE THE EYEBALL.  This was OPTIONAL.  In the picture below, he is DANGLING the eyeball.  I don't think he is squeamish at all.  I think he likes DRAMA and testing his mama.

What do YOU think?

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

The fruit of the womb is a reward,

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

So are the children of one's youth.

Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;

They shall not be ashamed,

But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Psalm 127:3-5