A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

Homeschooling

Trench Foot Experiment

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Over the course of this year I’ve been documenting our studies through World War 1.  Last week I talked about our studies concerning Trench Warfare.   Today I thought I’d talk about the experiment that we conducted.

We started off with three pig feet along with dirt from the construction site.  We also had vaseline, one towel, several protective gloves (we used blue nitrile gloves), a container for dirt/water mix and several socks. Our goal to see how the pig feet will stand up to no care, wash/dry/change sock, and wash/dry/add vaseline/change sock.

Day One

Day one we put socks on and put the socked pig feet in dirt.  This first day the lad didn’t use the nitrile gloves.   The pig feet were clean just out of the freezer.  I told him.. people use them for food, it’s no different than touching hamburger.  🙂  Putting this foot in he forget to wash and dry his hand first before putting the wash/dried pig foot in the sock.

The socks were used were old stretched out ones the lad had outgrown.  We bought a container JUST big enough for the pig feet.  The dirt he made wet and sloppy like the dirt in a trench would be.  This was a big of guess work as we couldn’t actually feel the consistency we saw in pictures. 

I will make the suggestion that you catch your experimenter BEFORE he starts doing this on the kitchen counter!   We moved the experiment outside thereafter!  

The smallest pig foot was our “we don’t know any better” foot.  Change the socks once a day, but otherwise no care given. 

Then the other feet,

  • One was wash and dry thoroughly with a new sock.
  • One was wash, dry, and slather with vaseline (we had no access to goose grease) with a new sock.  

We originally planned to change them three times a days but only found time (due the Christmas season being upon us) to do it twice a day.   

Foot inspections were taken very seriously by the army.   Each time we changed the socks we examined them carefully. 

Day Two

The lad noted the little foot (no care) was starting to stink. Not bad just enough he noticed it. He also noted the foot pads were not in good shape and it had a couple of dark patches on it.  Wet/dry and Vaseline foot were looking okay.  The cracks in wet/dry were looking dark. 

Day three

This foot, even I with a horrible nose for smelling things, noted ICK.  Careful examination revealed decay and rot.  Mostly on the extremities.  But also between the digits. There were patches that were dark and “felt slimey” we didn’t cut into them.  The lad was well…not handling the smell well.  (he is a sensitive nose like his dad) so once we did our gross examination we called it a day. 

Today we noticed more degradation on wet/dry foot.  The exposed flesh were it was damaged by a knife had definitely started to rot and changed colour as well.  The lad said this area definitely smelled worse than the other areas.   

The lad was wildly impressed.  Vaseline works mom!   This foot hardly stinks at all, and look!   The meat isn’t a wrong colour!!!   

My mom thoughts… WOOT WOOT!!!!   IT WORKED!!! 

Want to teach your children about caring for their feet?  Why it’s important to keep them clean and dry?  Replicate this experiment.  My suggestions are to do it in the spring or fall so you can do it outside as much as possible. 

Here’s a science experiment lab report to help you report your discoveries. 

The Forest Raised A Christmas Tree

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Continuing this year’s theme of posting Christmas songs from countries involved with World War 1, I’ve done Poland, Italy and Germany.  Today I thought I would look for one from Russia.  This song came up on every list I looked at for Christmas carols from Russia.   The song is В лесу родилась ёлочка (The Forest Raised A Christmas Tree).

В лесу родилась ёлочка (The Forest Raised A Christmas Tree)

В лесу родилась ёлочка (The Forest Raised A Christmas Tree) is Russian Christmas carol.  It has a nice bouncy tune to it. 

Here it is first in Russian.

And also in English…. it’s not the best video out there BUT is was indeed the best I could find!  🙂  I could find lots of videos of this popular song in Russian but not in English. 

 

Here are the lyrics in English

The forest raised a Christmas tree,
‘Twas silent and serene
In winter and in summer
It was slender and so green.

The wind sang it a lullaby:
Sleep Christmas tree, sleep tight!
The snow was making clothes for it:
It was a pretty sight!

A trembling bunny put himself
Beneath its arms so wide;
The hungry wolf just passed him by –
A lovely place to hide!

Some sleigh bells rang throughout the woods,
The snow was crisp and clean,
A horsey brought a forester
To hew that tree so green.

And now it comes to visit us,
With lights and garlands bright,
While all the children dance and sing
To greet it with delight!

Trench Warfare in WW1

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Dry feet, new socks, dealing with gas, different trench designs, lice, rats, rain and misery.  This is what made up the soldier’s life fighting in the trenches of World War One.  A tough life for soldiers.

Trenches were 10 feet high with sandbags stacked around. Dug not only in dirt (like I thought) but also through rock, in sand etc. They went through coal mines, railroad tracks, streams and more.

Soldiers rotated through being in the front line to being in the support lines.   Different counties had their own routine… anywhere from five days to one month.

They had a daily routine of protect the trench (stand to), hate, breakfast, weapon and foot inspection, daily chores, and a lot of boredom and at night “stand to” (protect the trench).

Life in the Trenches

Together we discovered this interactive website that taught more about life in the trenches.

Duckboard and Poetry

Duckboard was a new word to us and so we learned that it is a board consisting of a number of wooden slats joined together, placed so as to form a path over muddy ground or in a trench.

We read the poem Break of Day in the Trenches by Isaac Rosenberg.

Break of day in the trenches by Isaac Rosenberg

We learned about the life of a Canadian Soldier in the trenches.  It wasn’t an easy time for man or beast. A fair bit of time was spent examining the different parts to this section.   

We saw photos of life in the trenches.  Listening to people talk about their duties, adds realism, you know?

This video was very helpful in teaching us the terminology of the trenches.

This video taught us more about the support lines, and how the trenches were made.  Explained where they were placed as well.

This video demonstrated why trench warfare was so very difficult.  The armies, basically in a stalemate.  Both sides got their positions and simply held them.   Sometimes losing, but getting them back.  Back and forth, back and forth.  Not really going anywhere.

Of course battling in the trenches met fighting off pests like rats and lice (with could cause trench fever), and trench foot.  We learned more about combating trench foot here.

Hands-On

We took a couple of approaches to our hands-on work for Trenches.

First we made models of trenches.

We have plans to make sample trenches of the German trenches as well.   You can see what they look like on this page.

I thought it was important to truly understand what trench foot was like and how quickly it could hit the men.   We took some pigs feet, one we left just in a sock, another was washed and dried with a change of socks twice a day, and another was washed, dried and had Vaseline applied twice a day.  I will be writing up a post to tell you more about trench foot and our experiment. 

Resources to further understanding

We made use of a couple of resources as well. Click on image to go to resource.



SchoolhouseTeachers.com has a section on World War 1 as well.   It would be worth your time to check it out. 

Other World War Posts

World War II Night Before Christmas

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Study the World Wars this year has opened my eyes to the tremendous hardship the soldiers faced in the first World War. The Great War was hard, but the Second World War brought it’s own difficulties.   Those are pointed out in World War II Night Before Christmas. 

From The Cover

Santa visits the Allied troops in Normandy on Christmas Eve, 1944.  He brings them blankets, rations, coffee, and warm winter clothes…items that the Allied troops lacked in the frigid temperatures of Normandy.

What you Get:

Full Colour images and a poem reminiscent of The Night Before Christmas.  The lines bring out the dangers the soldiers faced, as well as their fears and dreams.  And who should appear at the end?   Santa of course (you’ll need to read of his gear). 

I appreciated that he listed names of soldiers in the war, and carefully wrote in a way to educate without alarming children listening to the familiar lyrics of Night Before Christmas. 

My Thoughts

I have to admit I did struggle with the Nazis are evil and we are good.   Do not misunderstand me, I do not believe that Nazism is a good mindset to follow.  But I do struggle with the notion of Santa saying Americans are good and those they fight are evil.  It is very much a “yay, America” book.  That aspect came across stronger than I would have preferred.

What I do like is that in the midst of worry and fear hope happens.  Santa comes and brings the soldiers exactly what they where in need of, just when they most needed it. That message is one that children need to hear.  Perhaps not that Santa is the answer, but that hope always exists for those who wait for it. 

  • World War II Night Before Christmas
  • Mike Guardia
  • Melanie Stephens (illustrator)
  • Magnum books
  • 36 pages, softcover, picture book
  • Christmas, WW2, Santa

Reviewed for the author.

Other books by Miake Guardia

It’s Snowing in Hawaii.

disclosure

Christmas 1914

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In the middle of November, my son, host son and myself took in Christmas 1914 at Fanshawe Village.  We had a fantastic time and learned ever so much.  As it drawing nearer to Christmas I thought I would tell you all about it!  🙂

Our visit started with a reenactment of the Christmas Truce of 1914.   First they walked us through a trench with men telling us about their experiences, the cold, the hunger, the muck and the constant threat surrounding them.   

I mentioned to one fellow that it was cold.  He said “yes, it is truly miserable”.   This portion of the program wasn’t very long but it gave us a glimpse into what it would have been like for these soldiers.  Living within all that and then learning to trust the men in the other trenches, at least enough on Christmas to greet each other. A tough call.

Christmas 1914 re-enactment,

After we saw the re-enactment we were able to go around and visit the various buildings which reflected different aspects of World War 1. 

Our first stop was at the church were we listened to a girl choir.  Some aspects were not period (like the Santa hats and the organ) but that wasn’t completely the point.  🙂  The point was music was still part of that time period and we got to listen to songs about the time period as well. 

Church

We sat through part of the program, but the boys were feeling antsy so we headed out to get some hot chocolate and have an impromptu snow ball fight.  It was good to see the boys having fun together (until they ganged up on me).  I ran quickly into the building with the hot chocolate.  🙂

The lady working this house helped us to understand how the French boys and the boys from other countries were treated.   

Once done here we headed back to finish listening to the girls choir.  They did an excellent job.  I wish I had the recording from Christmas in the Trenches.  The one young lady did an excellent job singing an excellent alto. 

Red Cross Booth

We also stopped at the Red Cross booth.  Here we learned about how the soldiers received care packages.  There we could light a candle to remember those who had gone on before. It was great to write a Christmas card to a Canadian soldier currently serving. 

Christmas 1914 re-enactment, writing letter to a soldier

Period House

We spent some time at a home set up for the 1900’s.  We saw a pamphlet to help people adjust to living during the war.  It was full of practical advice. 

Christmas 1914 re-enactment,

In this house we were walked through how people would have lived, and the story of one family.  We learned the best way to string popcorn and saw period Christmas decorations. 

Guard house

Our last stop was the guard house.  Each of us got a period Christmas card, much like the boys would have received in the war.  We learned abit about how injured soldiers were cared for.  I have to admit, the fire was cozy warm.   The men inside the building also educated the boys are terminology use, and many other items. Other than the hot chocolate I probably enjoyed this station the most. 

Artifacts

Not to be forgotten was the artifact set up in the main building. This was a treasure trove of information.  From the lady who had a display of period Christmas Cards, and an obvious love of communicating what was special about them. I never knew one could learn so much from an old card!

The boys were most interested in checking out the equipment the soldiers used and the weapons they carried.  The person manning the both was very knowledgeable and from him we learned that most of the soldiers that participated in the 1914 truce died as a result of their actions.  Their commanding officers for the most part transferred them to areas with active fighting. Their actions were firmly frowned upon, and thereafter in the war, some of the heaviest fighting was on Christmas day.

We learned a lot about gas masks, how they progressed over the years.  What the gas did. Some gas dissipated easily, other gas settled in down lying areas and just stayed there. The lad tried on a gas mask and said “it’s hard to breathe’.  Our instructor said “Now try running with that, carrying all your gear, in the mud”.  My son’s face when he took off the mask said it all.  Imagine how hard that would have been.  The soldiers needed to carry them at all times.

This was an incredibly informative evening and I highly recommend if you have a chance to go, that you do so. 

Want to Know More?

Some songs were written about this series of events. 

Articles about it

Some books to check out.

Four Ways to Remember the Reason for the Season

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4 Ways to Remember the Reason for the Season

Tis the season to be jolly fa la la la la la la la la.

It is the season to be jolly, it’s great time of the year, this time of hope that we are in.  There is so much to see, do and be involved in.  But think.. What’s the real reason?  It’s the hope of the Saviour… not coming as a baby, as important as that is, but as the Saviour of the world. We so need to remember and to contemplate what that really means,.  🙂

It’s hard not to get caught up in the busyness of the seasons.  In this post I will talk about some of my joys of the season, as well as some ways to remember the reason for the season. 

My Joys:

In the baking of cookies.  Papernauten anyone?

In the putting up of a Christmas village.. I do have to admit this year, I’ve reduced my Christmas village.  We are trying to light our load abit and I’ve needed to cut my village.  A hard decision but it all needs to fit into ONE bin.

Sometimes it’s hard to remember, to focus on the fact that Christ came to earth FOR US.  And not just for a generic us but for a specific ME.

Four ways to Remember the Reason For the Season

So the question arises.   Just how does one remember what truly is the reason for the season?

These are things that help me
1. Doing a daily advent activity.   Often we have used a Lego Advent Calendar.  🙂    What can I say… it’s fun to put together Lego as one thinks about the events of Christmas.  But lately we just have those dollar store chocolate Advent Calendars and read scripture daily.  Different passages that speak to the true meaning of Christmas, and the story of Jesus’ birth. 

2. Spending time alone.   YES.. alone… in fact sometimes I will squirrel myself away like a little spider, getting away from the noise and bustle of the world and just stay within my own cozy home.  Reading a book, going out for a walk when no one is around, getting lost in the world of colouring and a Christmas movie.   Just stuff for me alone.  🙂

3. Christmas music and books!  In the past I read lots of books (like Alabaster’s song).  Now I play Christmas music as I bake cookies, pumpkin spice muffins, and meals) and even while I’m sweeping the floor or doing laundry.  Bring music that I like into the house.  🙂

4. Spend time with the Lord in church services, readings from the bible and Christmas poetry that reminds me of the season.      There are some you might want to check out here and here.

We all have ways that help us to remember what is important about the Christmas season.  

So tell me then, what’s important to you?   How do you focus on that importance?  How do you remember the reason for Christmas?

The Evolution of Homeschool Hours

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Do you know a startling fact?   Not all homeschool days last the same length of time!   I KNOW.. it is SO different from public or private school eh?    Homeschooling parents all set up their days differently, as many different ways as parents who teach.  The funny things is… your days will evolve over time.

Evolution of Homeschool Hours

I thought I’d take a moment and walk you through how over lives have changed over past 8 years.  

We started our homeschooling journey when the lad was 5, he’s now 13.   When he was five, you know what we did?   We walked and talked, we played and told stories. 

I remember the advice a homeschooling friend gave me.  Don’t buy curriculum until he’s 8 years old. You don’t know anything before then.   Take your time and just have fun. Count everything, read a lot, take him everywhere and talk about what you doing, bring him places where he can ask questions and have his imagination turned.   I took her advice to heart (beyond the buying curriculum, which in the end… we never did use).  We held this course pretty much for the next three years.  

I tell stories as naturally a breathing (people tell me I should always write them down but they never come out the same you know?)   Through stories we learned history, practiced our math, tried out new words, and wove in elements of experiments.  Did we use books and what not?  Of course we did.  But they weren’t the mainstay of our life. 

Warrior boyMy son has always been big into weapons and fighting.  And we have gone through many renditions of armour.  Back in 2012 we learned about warriors from Fiji whose weapons were shaped like pineapples.    Schooling for us back then was a whole day affair of simply living life and learning.  We tried different things like word walls and some book work but reading and talking about things worked so much better than anything else at this age.  Bookwork perhaps took an hour at the most.

From 2014-2017 bookwork gradually increased.  We learned some important lessons such as… even if a boy does math backwards (at least in mom’s mind) but gets the correct answer and can explain how he got there, it’s okay.   Just means a mom’s mind and a boy’s mind work differently and math can still be learned.   Ergo, I don’t teach math, but I do act in a supportive role!   Early on, we discovered the joy of learning on-line.  We kept reading, books at breakfast, lunch, and bedtime.  So many great books we read, and the histories we went through, delightful!

We learned to work with how a boy set on routine works when his momma isn’t a routine/organized type person.  It was HARD.  On a positive note it meant that school would last exactly three hours or four hours.  AND a boy learned to bend when “come on, it’s field trip day, NO, you don’t have time to do everything you usually do”. 

One winter we spent hours learning about snow and compacting it and using water to create a thin, but durable layer of ice.

Snow and Sledding

We still spent time exploring different ideas.  Reading poetry and drawing what we thought it meant.  It’s amazing sometimes where words can take us.  How many different directions they can take us, and yet, at the same time, how often they can take us in the same direction.  We laughed often and were amazed together. The cat often joined in the fun.

Imagination poetry

And now we are in 2018.  With a lad doing most of his work independently.  Needing a weekly conversation to see if we are on track.  Learning together doesn’t happen quite as often.  School happens differently now.  A lad often getting up before his mother does.  Doing his easy stuff in the morning before Dad gets up (takes about an hour).   Then playing and doing things with Dad until it’s time to go to work.  Dad gone, it’s off to do schooling again (takes about 2.5-3) hours.  Sometimes we do things differently with videos being watched at night, research papers written on the weekend, flexibility is more easily managed now.  

And now I have a boy who will volunteer to read a good section in a book to me out loud.  🙂

Reading a Good Section

It is magnificent watching a boy learn and grow.  To develop skills and confidence.  I absolutely love it!

What about you?   How do your days go?   Have you seen changes in your scheduling over the years?  Or if you are just starting out, are you prepared for things to change?