Icky Gooey Poo!

Roo finished two workbooks!  Party time!


To celebrate, we decided to check out the new Pooseum.

Poo - it's something we have in common with all the amazing animals on this pretty blue planet.

Excretion is one of the seven processes of living things (Year 3, Australian Curriculum).

First, I set up an invitation to create animal scats using vanilla playdough, chocolate playdough and some mix-ins.

I laid out hay, grass, leaves, toy insects and broken pasta to represent bone fragments.

We used photos of animal droppings and a field guide to create some icky gooey scats.

To tune in before we went to the Pooseum, we did a bit of reading and brainstormed what we already knew about poo.

This ranged from the scientific (iron-rich faeces is dark in colour) to the historical (the Groom of the Stool was an important position) to the cultural (I often didn't use toilet paper when I lived in Indonesia).

At the Pooseum, there were fun worksheets to do, lots of books to browse and plenty of interactive flaps to lift.  I loved the touchscreen with different parts of animal bodies.

Roo loved the Pootube...



... especially the footage of penguins projectile pooping.  So bizarre!

The Pooseum was highly educational without being over-the-top gross.

Afterwards we went and bought 'possum poop' from the lolly shop down the road (liquorice bullets).  Mm-mmmm!  Coprophagic!

We had fun looking for scats in the wild using the PooFlip.  Roo has come a long way since the day he found a 'rock' for his slingshot which turned out to be a wombat dropping!

I now feel a great sense of affection for all the critters on our planet who have weird and wonderful toilet habits.

Do you have any favourite resources for learning about the seven processes of living things?  Please let us know in the comments.

Thanks for reading, and if you like the ideas you find here, please share using the buttons below!  New to the Afterschooling Blog?  Try our A-Z of Afterschooling.  For another provocation using playdough, try this Cactus Invitation To Play. 

Open Letter To My Children

Is the death of your loved ones your biggest fear?  It is for me.  The way I cope with it is through preemptive nostalgia, as in...

"One day this precious time will be gone and all I'll have is memories..."  (Cue the sound of a melancholy saxophone.)

Did you know that people who engage in nostalgia a few times a week are actually happier overall?

It seems that nostalgia has an evolutionary purpose and is a protective factor.

The other day I was dwelling on my children dying and then it hit me:

I am going to die too.

Sooner or later there will be a zombie apocalypse and I'll become one of the undead.

So I decided to write a letter for my children to read when I kick the bucket.

This isn't really an afterschooling activity, except that it might give my children greater resilience in the future, and support them in developing personal and social capability (Australian Curriculum).

My letter isn't going to win any literary awards, but it's from my heart.

By the way, I'm sure I've plagiarised bits and pieces from things I've read that have stuck in my memory.  If you come across any of the content elsewhere please let me know in the comments so I can give due credit.

Without further ado, drum roll please...

"Dearest S-Man and Dearest Roo,

If you're reading this, that means I'm dead.  Oops.  My bad!  I'm truly sorry about that.  I planned to live forever, but, as they say, life is what happens while you're making other plans.

I love you.  I love you forever.  I love you to infinity.  I love you to the ends of the universe, deeper than the ocean and brighter than the sun.

When I tell you I love you, I don't say it out of habit or to make conversation, I say it to remind you that you're the best things that ever happened to Dad and me.

I love you like a summer night, like a cosy winter campfire, like toasted marshmallows, like running through a sprinkler!

What advice can I share with you?  None, really.  My job is done.  You are already everything I could've hoped for and more.  You are the finest, loveliest, tenderest and most beautiful people I have ever known and even that is an understatement.

If I must come up with some advice, it would be this:  Slide down the banisters!  Blow bubbles and chase them!  Never miss the chance to bounce on a trampoline!  Walk barefoot, listen to the wind, drink in the moon!  

And it is absolutely okay to fail.  At anything and everything.  Big stuff and small stuff.  It's okay if the only thing you did today was breathe.  

You see, the love you have given me, THAT IS MORE THAN ENOUGH.  You've made my heart sing with happiness, made my bleakest days shine, been the rainbow in my cloud and made my life complete.  Cheesy, but true.  

I couldn't be any happier, and it is thanks to the love you have given me.  May all those smiles you've bestowed on me be returned to you, and all the cheerful words you've said to me be spoken unto you!

Everyone has those days when you doubt yourself, and when you feel like everything you do sucks.  Don't be so hard on yourself.  Remember the mum in E.T. had an alien living in her house and she didn't even notice.  

In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect.  So it is with humans.  You will be wounded, and you will wound.  Forgive yourself.  And please forgive me.  As Leonard Cohen says, "There's a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in."

Here's a little song for you:
"I'll love you forever,
I'll like you for always,
As long as I'm living,
My baby you'll be."

Well, actually, even after I'm dead you'll still be my babies.

I'm preparing some little presents for your future birthdays, which I intend to put in a box in the roof.  The thing is, they're really just stuff.  But you:  You are my home, and my adventure, all at once.  To quote Walt Whitman:  "We were together.  I forget the rest."

In the end, I needed so little to be happy:  Sunlight on the mountain and your hands in mine.

Thank you.

Cuggles and kisses,

Mum.

PS - S-Man; guys reading are glorious!  Roo; you'll always be my god of laughter and dirty tricks!"

I added this pic from Winnie the Pooh:

What would you put in a letter to your children?  Please tell me in the comments.  And if you liked my letter, please share it using the buttons below!

The A-Z of Afterschooling

What exactly is afterschooling?

It's more than just 'supplementary education outside school hours'.

It's really one way to help your child discover their superpowers.

(Roo just looked over my shoulder while I was typing that and said, "My superpower is the ability to say the word 'diarrhoea' without getting offended.")

Here's a glimpse into what afterschooling means for us.  We hope you get value out of these powerful ideas, too.

Adventure Journals
S-Man and I love our Family Adventure Journals.  It's AWESOME sitting on a park bench together writing and drawing.

Bonding
Learning alongside my children brings us closer together.  There are lots of ways to bond as a family, afterschooling is just one way that works for us.  Every family does their own thing.  Here are a couple of ideas:  What On Earth Is WADD?? and How To Make Someone Feel Special For A Year.

Curiosity
Oh the questions!  Aren't kids SO talented at being curious?  I just want to keep that alive in my boys for as long as possible.  Often when I leave an invitation to explore (like these 4 Sweet and Fat Inquiries) they jump right in and take it in directions I'd never predict.

Look at the delight on S-Man's face in this photo:

Deceptively Educational
'Deceptively Educational' is a great afterschooling blog.

Experiences
Spending quiet time together reading.. or travelling... or trying a new food... I think all those things beat more material possessions, and are usually far more educational.  Lots of the ideas on this outdoor bucket list don't require any resources.

Frascera
A frascera is a kind of Italian brazier, but I'm really talking about two other 'F' words: Family and friends.  We light our frascera and then sit around it together.  Sometimes we toast marshmallows, sometimes we have Poetry Teatime.  One tradition is for the oldest person to tell a story.  Here's a resource for story-telling:  Aboriginal-Inspired Story Stones.

Games
Okay, truth time:  I don't much enjoy games - hence my nickname "One-Hand" Zoe - but luckily my other half does, so he plays with the kids a lot.  (Thanks, Dr Dad!).  Here are our top picks for maths games.

Home
That wonderful place wherever your family is.  Studies show that home environment can have a greater effect on learning than socioeconomic status (Read John Hattie's analyses for more details).

Interest-Led Learning
This is obviously when learners are most engaged.  Roo is into Harry Potter at the moment so I set up some fun Harry Potter chemistry (with a printable).

Journeys
Not just physical journeys (like worldschooling), but also the learning journey we are on and even the journey we humans are on together on this planet.  Last night we walked home in the dark and we used the Planets App to find Jupiter.  I thought: 'Holy moly, my ancestors have looked up at that very same planet, and our children's children will one day, too.'

Knowledge
Let our thirst for knowledge never be quenched.  If you want to find something out, try Ecosia, a search engine which plants trees!

Loose parts
Indoors...

and outdoors.

Music
So much great learning can happen through music.  Roo can recite Pi to seven decimal places (which I'm sure must be an essential skill) thanks to the wonderfully quirky More Than Numbers CD.  You can read more about how we learn music with 11 Ways To Keep Piano FUN!

Nature Play
Time in nature isn't just rejuvenating, it can also be highly educational.  Here are some of our Nature Study posts:

• Nature Study Backpacks + Tassie Nature Apps
• A Trip To The Unzoo (With Printable!)
• Leaf Hunt Printable
• Rock Investigation + Easy DIY Dig-&-Discover
• Forest School Maths

Gutterboats

Outdoor Playspaces
There are some great ones around that you can go visit.  We always look for opportunities for risky play and water play.  I've got big plans for our backyard, but guess what?  The kids don't see any need for all the extras I've got planned.  They just enjoy playing their complex imaginary games out there away from hovering adults.  Here are some great backyard playspaces that will inspire you.  You can also check out our outdoor clock wall and our bird feeders.

Peace
This is one of our family values.  You can read more about how we came up with our family values here.

Quiet Table Time
When my boys have their supper, they often sit at the table and read books.  I LOVE that.  We also do workbooks and activity books.  (For a workbook review, try NAPLAN: Buy This, Not That!)

Reading
Don't you love it when your child wants to snuggle with you and read books?  Except it always seems to be when I'm hanging washing... or making lunches... or... you get the picture.  I need to remind myself that the time they'll want to read with me won't last forever.  (See Maths Books Plus Pi Pie! for some of our favourite books.)

STEM
You can tour our STEM Playroom here.

Toy Rotation
I try to keep a few thrifted educational games squirrelled away so that I can bring something out as a fun surprise.  If they haven't played with something in a while, I pack it away and bring it out again months later, when they treat it like brand new.  I also rotate some Creation Stations.

Unsung Heroes
The teachers at my boys' school.

Virtual Learning
So much great stuff online!  You should try my boys' current favourite App, RunThatTown by the Bureau of Statistics.  You can manage a real town in Australia using data from the Census.

Word Treasure Hunts
Roo loved these when he was smaller!  I must make him another one... I use The Complete Phonic Handbook and my kids' own writing to inform the selection of words.

Xenophilia
Exploring the unknown... Here's S-Man trying a new cuisine on his night to cook.  You can learn more about some foreign calendars here (printable game), or try making Aboriginal-inspired shell necklaces.

Yet
By 'yet' I mean "I can't do it... yet."  Having a growth mindset.  The Power of Yet is a fantastic song all about this concept.

Ziplocks
We keep a bunch of these with little educational or craft activities inside so that we can grab one when we're going out.

So that's my A-Z of Afterschooling.  If you want to know more about any of these, ask away in the comments, I'd be delighted!

As always, thanks for dropping by.  If you like these ideas, you might like our Cactus Invitation to Play or Animal Features: Who Are You Calling A Troglodyte?

Aboriginal-Inspired Story Stones

Here is an easy-to-make resource which encourages engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures (a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian Curriculum).

Ever since I completed a teaching practicum on the APY Lands in central Australia I've been fascinated by the Anangu art symbols and by the Pitjantjatjara language.

My interest prompted me to make some clay story stones using Aboriginal symbols (see the list of symbols and their meanings here).  This is something you should get permission from the local community to do if you’re planning on making your own!

So far, we haven't used the stones to tell stories, but we have been testing our recall of what the different symbols mean and trying to identify the symbols in Aboriginal art.

There are some fantastic animations of Dreamtime stories on YouTube.

The stones were easy to create out of white handbuilding clay.  I fired them, used an underglaze pencil to draw on the symbols, then fired them again.  If you don't have access to a kiln, you could make them using real rocks and a Sharpie (I've done that before, too, and it worked just fine).  Or you could have your children make them.

Have you ever made or used story stones?  What was on them?  Please share in the comments.

As always, thanks for reading!  If you liked this idea, you might also like our Aboriginal-Inspired Shell Necklaces or our Clay Creation Station. 

Calendar Clinkers

Dr Dad grew up with a Clinker Family Law:  If you get a pink one, you have to kiss mum!

That gave me the idea for the following game (no kissing involved).

You bite a Clinker, then choose a yellow, pink or green quiz card depending on what colour Clinker you get.

The cards review information about 4 different calendars used in Indonesia (answers in the download).

You can get the game for free here on TPT or by clicking the image above.

Delicious family fun!

You could adapt this idea to review other learning, too.

Let me know in the comments if you use my game or make your own using Clinkers!  I'd be stoked!

If you liked this idea, you might also be interested in how we learn to tell the time with a world clock wall.  

Epic Kids' Outdoor Bucket List (100 Things!)

Here's a massive list of 100 things for kids to do outside that don't involve electronics, but DO involve lots of great learning and physical development!  You're welcome.

1. Make a fort
2. Make slingshots
3. Toast marshmallows on a campfire
4. Whittle wood
5. Cook bracken tips to eat
6. Cook sea lettuce to eat
7. Use hand-held nets to catch little fish
8. Crab-hunt on mud flats
9. Create a seaweed collection
10. Make a nature mobile
11. Make a bottle with layered sands
12. Press flowers
13. Make an ocean viewer from a clear plastic tub
14. Play card or board games outdoors
15. Read books outdoors
16. Birdwatch
17. Play catch
18. Climb a tree
19. Lift heavy rocks and logs
20. Shovel
21. Rake
22. Dig
23. Dig with a spoon
24. Write in chalk
25. Run through a meadow
26. Play flashlight tag
27. Ride a scooter
28. Ride a bike
29. Swim
30. Do cartwheels and handstands
31. Brachiate in a tree
32. Hang from a rope swing
33. Climb a jungle gym
34. Roll down hills
35. Squat and look at the ants
36. Jump off things (rocks, stumps, raised garden beds)
37. Spin in a circle ten times with eyes open then with eyes closed
38. Rock hop at the seaside
39. Go upside down on the monkey bars or swing
40. Twist a swing up then let it spin you in circles
41. Use a screwdriver and hammer to make something outside
42. Play beach cricket
43. Bodysurf
44. Balance on logs and ropes
45. Play tennis against a wall
46. Bushwalk and bushbash
47. Go orienteering
48. Spot nocturnal animals with a flashlight
49. Identify plants
50. Explore rock pools
51. Collect specimens
52. Take photos
53. Hop and skip
54. Wrestle
55. Pop popcorn over a campfire
56. Crawl through a homemade tunnel
57. Splash in puddles
58. Race gutterboats
59. Make sandcastles or sand sculptures
60. Listen to birdsong and copy it
61. Blow and chase bubbles
62. Play flags
63. Play tag
64. Play hide-and-seek
65. Play kick-the-can
66. Skip rocks
67. Catch insects in a net
68. Run over sand
69. Slide down dunes
70. Climb fences
71. Shoot Nerf guns at toilet roll targets
72. Haul buckets of water
73. Climb a boulder and be king of the castle
74. Pull each other on a large sheet of cardboard
75. Plant new flowers
76. Walk up the tallest hill around
77. Be swung around in circles by Daddy
78. Go barefoot
79. Pick fruit or berries
80. Play hide-and-seek in the dark
81. Bring a guitar, light candles in the dark and sing
82. Collect pipis or mussels
83. Get and give piggybacks
84. Use sparklers in the dark
85. Pop fuchsias
86. Make a gnome house
87. Mark trails creatively with rock arrows
88. Make leaf rubbings
89. Go geocaching
90. Play charades outdoors
91. Play 'mosquito bites' (stick a red dot sticker on each other if you say a particular word)
92. Play water pistols or water bombs
93. Make maps using a compass
94. Learn knots
95. Search for things starting with each letter of the alphabet in order
96. Make and bury a time bomb
97. Create an obstacle course (including reciting funny poems or songs)
98. Knit
99. Stargaze
100. Go on a scavenger hunt to find a funny-shaped rock, a tiny shell, something orange, a piece of garbage, an animal scat, 2 kinds of seeds, and something pretty.

All Inside and no Outside turns this mama into Mister Grumpy, but the above list will fix it.

Time in nature rejuvenates, connects us to the Earth and to each other!

What's on your outdoor bucket list?  Please do share in the comments, I'd love to see this list grow.

If you like these ideas, maybe you want to pack yourself a Nature Backpack and get out there with our Leaf Hunt Printable.

Sweet and Fat: 4 Easy Inquiries You Can Do At Home

"In order to make your little nose clearer, more beautiful and full of happiness, this product is necessary for your nose!" - Jaihe Nose Pegs

Yes.  Oh yes.  Who wouldn't want nose pegs?  Plus, they're "anti-germ & stink-proof"!

They came into my possession (I didn't actually buy them) and I just HAD to find a fun use for them.

Here are 4 inquiries we found valuable, the last one including the ridiculous nose pegs.  (It's okay, you can just hold your nose.)

1. Four different liquids and milk

My friend Lucy introduced me to the classic dish-soap-and-milk experiment, but I added some extra liquids, so this is really four experiments set up in a single invitation to explore.

Here's the original experiment, where dish liquid bonds with the fat in the milk to create stunning movement, made visible by food colouring:

I set up milk, food colouring bottles and these four liquids:

• Treacle
• Oil
• Water
• Dish soap

I left a note saying, "What do you think will happen when you add these liquids to milk?  Predict, then test."  I added a clipboard and pencil for the boys to record their results.

Then I left it for them to discover.

They had fun playing with the different liquids and noticing which ones floated and sank, which ones combined and which didn't.  They tested the dish liquid.  It worked, but not as well as in the above video, probably because we used light milk.  So that led us to inquiry number 2...

2. Effects of dish soap in liquids with varying amounts of fat

We used cream (35% fat), whole milk (3.5%), light milk (1.4%) and ultra light milk (0.3%).

The results were not quite what we expected, due to the viscosity of the cream.  The reaction went on a long time in the cream, but the movement wasn't as widespread as in the milks.  Predictably, the movement was more dramatic in the whole milk than in the lighter milks.

Since we had some milk and cream left over, we decided to try another experiment...

3. Scone taste test

We cooked two different batches of scones, one with milk and one with cream, and did a blind taste test to see if we could pick which was which.  (Tough life, but someone's gotta do it.)

It was easy to tell the cream scones from the milk ones.

Did you know fat is our sixth taste sense?  It's officially called 'oleogustus' and is in addition to sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami tastes.

Apparently there may be a learned component to our taste for fat, too.  I wonder, can that help us tackle the obesity epidemic?  I want my boys to learn to make healthy eating choices but they're all like...

The scone experiment doesn't actually test the oleogustus taste sense:  It's very hard to do that outside a laboratory because foods with varying amounts of fats often have very different textures.  Here's how researchers do it if you're interested.

4. Jelly bean taste test

The scone taste testing led us to want to try some other taste tests.

'Sweet' was the easiest one to experiment with.

My sister gave the boys a box of BeanBoozled Jelly Beans (truly for the daring because some of the flavours are gross), so I left out some jelly beans, a blindfold and the nose pegs.

I wanted to see if we could identify the different tastes of the beans without our sense of smell, or if we would only taste 'sweetness'.

The result:  It was really difficult to distinguish between the flavours, in spite of my extensive experience with lollies!  I couldn't even tell if I got one of the gross ones or their identical-looking delicious counterparts.

Next I think I'd like to try this taste test where you keep a salty cracker in your mouth for an extended period and it eventually turns sweet as the enzymes in your saliva break the starch down into sugar.

These are 4 inquiries we found valuable.  If you enjoyed these, please share them!

Looking for more science inquiries with dish soap?  Try our Harry Potter Chemistry!