Art Vandalay

The name comes from Seinfeld. George Costanza's occassional alias, made up author, or fictitious importer/exporter. And so on. I love that George Costanza.

Bad, bad blogger is making up for lost time.

March 12, 2011 GI Joe and Madonna on scooters

Oh the guilt.   The year is almost over and I have much to share.   Zoë will finish her first year at Finucane elementary in less than a month.  There are many pictures to share.

Field trips were an integral part of our experience although some our favorite days were Tuesdays because they were more or less pajama days.  A full academic calendar, probably our most intense day in that respect, but no rush to be somewhere.  No deadlines.  Just home, comfortable and content to be hanging out together.  An occasional Moe's day thrown in there for variety.   How we love our Moe's days.  We usually sit at the same table, face the same way, and eat the same meals:  MooMoo cow (bean and rice burrito), chips, salsa, chocolate chip cookie and sweet tea for Zoë and an Art Vandalay for me.   Who is Art Vandalay anyway?  Just the mention makes my mouth water.

Sometimes, we had visitors at Finucane Elementary.  Namely, one cute Eagles fan and sailboat artist extraordinaire, Hank Finucane.

He takes full advantage of the chalk board when he's home from school pretending to be sick for a day.   His sailboat scenes usually include a rescue operation where I'm the damsel in distress and he's my knight in shining armor coming to rescue me from the fierce winds.  It's always a pleasure to have Hank in the classroom.  Zoë might disagree with that statement.  I think she would say it's nice to have him home from time to time, but let's not get carried away.  

It would be unfair to not show another builder at Finucane Elementary.  Haleigh likes the legos.  This is what we did one afternoon at the dining room table.  It's the White House.  And that's a giant pink monkey about to crush it.  Just kidding.  



Zoë made a few of her own creations.  

After learning about fairy houses from the girls at her science club,  she decided to create a few fairy homes in the backyard.   The idea is you're supposed to build houses made entirely out of things you find in nature.  I added the Fisher Price horse.  He was in the sandbox.  I just felt this ranch needed a horse, too.  She wanted me to tell you that.  She's a purist.  There is no way she'd put that horse there.  It doesn't count.

Zoë and Alex 

She was just getting to know this fine fellow before he left town.  Something tells me they had a really good time at goodbye party we threw for his family and they'll see one another again.   I think he might be her first real crush.  Oh, I'm so dead for that one.

To be continued...

Rain Haiku

Rain

Pitter, patter, SPLAT!


Just me and the rain.  Flowing. 


Grab your boots and hat.



  

Field trips in March: NC State Animal Farm Days and Jordan Lake Dam

And then there was one.

Just born

Jordan Lake Dam:
Hydropower site

Cute chicks

Delaney and Zoë and the baby chick

Zoë takes in the amazing view

Zoe looks at the Hydropower site

Poetry Contest

Zoë's poem

Zoe wrote this poem a few weeks ago.  We decided to submit it to Cricket magazine.   They're running a poetry contest about nature and we thought this was the perfect choice.   Ironically, she had a poem called "Nature".  

If her poem is chosen, it will be in the July/August 20011 issue.

Animal Grossology

Science Club crew

Today we went to the Animal Grossology exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown  Raleigh.  with a few of the girls from Zoë's Science Club.  I know how to identify a venomous snake from a nonvenomous snake although that has nothing to do with the exhibit, but I'm hugely thankful for Vardell's identification lesson since our backyard seems to be a breeding ground for brown snakes.  I bought a great book, too: "A Guide to the Snakes of North Carolina, by Michal E. Dorcas.  I also bought his other book "The Frogs and Toads of North Carolina.  It's a field guide and contains a good CD narrated by Dorcas.  Vardell says he has both and highly recommends them.  We listened to it on the way home and loved hearing the different calls.  That poor bullfrog in distress!  It's the first one on the CD and it's a little alarming.    Turns out they make this screeching sound when they're being eaten by a water snake.  Dorcas says it to alert other predators who will then see the snake and want to eat it, causing the snake to drop the frog.


The exhibit was based on Sylvia Branzei's books called "Animal Grossology".  Really clever exhibit.  Lots of facts about flies, slugs, slime, smells and of course, poo.  I told Donna I loved the smell of skunk after she whiffed the hole where you smell it.   Then I sniffed it and almost felt ill. I like it from a distance.  The cockroach emits a maraschino cherry smell.  Pleasant surprise there.

How a cow burps. 

Zoë really enjoyed herself.  She wrote this summary:

"Today I went to a Grossology exhibit.  I went with Delaney, Cassidy and Amey.  When I went inside the exhibit I saw lots of games and kids!  My favorite game was....Animal Grossology!  It is a game that tests you on what you've learned from the other games.  Two things I've learned today are: Cats cough up furballs because of grooming themselves and dogs sniff each others' butts to find out who they are. "

Might have to make these one day. 

Brazil

So we're sitting in the classroom.  I'm folding laundry and Zoë's just finished up a bunch of math work and now she's redesigning a Calico Critters house.   We're listening to Brazilian Girls Radio on Pandora because Zoë's has just entered a Geography Fair and Brazil is her country of study.   Massive Attack from Moby comes on and I mention how that's interesting this song is on a Brazilian radio station, too.  I love the song and play it often.   Apparently it's big in Brazil, too.

As usual, Zoë has something to say about the music.

"I like this song and I kind of like listening to other kinds of music other than the stuff on the radio.   I mean, American music is all about about a ton of people falling in love, getting drunk and going to clubs.  Don't include the Black Eyed Peas though.  Except for "Humps." Brazil's music is smooth and kind of jazzy, she says.

Thanks, Zoë.  I think you've got something there.  Funny, but a little disturbing, too.  I think about explaining to her that Kesha's songs are not good ones to follow, but Zoë already knows this.  She's just sharing an observation like she always does.   I have no worries.

 We're now listening to "Your Love" by Pancha Massive.   So glad she chose Brazil.   I can see the unit study possibilities: brazilian food, videos, music, art, dance, science, math, geography and history.  There's a Brazilian steakhouse in Raleigh and Durham...

I really love teaching and learning along with her.