It worked pretty good but seemed to fall apart easily. We decided that we better add to the project and "flesh it out" a bit. So we got some library books about electricity and learned more about circuits. Maddie and Brian made a circuit tester that lit a flashlight bulb. Then we remembered the electolysis experiment we did back in September as part of our Chemistry studies. It was a good thing we did....within 1/2 hour the bug robot fell apart. We think the motor is just too strong and created too much vibration. We told everyone it was a true science experiment because we have to keep trying different things to see if it will hold together! However the rest of the experiments worked well and the electrolysis was a big hit. Maddie also made a trifold poster with information about electricity. Felicity approved of it I guess!
Here is the set up!
Maddie explaining it all to some kids. As you can see she was getting a bit frazzled. Everyone kept offering advice on fixing the robot which was getting a bit frustrating.
The poor robot bug....
We had a couple of funny conversations this year too! At one point a man went by us really fast but looked down quick at Maddie's project. Then he said "This is so nice. You know, its not like it used to be, kids just don't make things any more. Thats whats wrong with this country.". He didn't wait for a response from us so I guess he was just airing his feelings.
This sign was at both ends of the exhibits:
In addition we all had on our homeschool shirts...Principal Dad, 100% Homeschool Chick and Proud Homeschool Mom. Several people wanted to know which school we were with....including a state trooper who had some concerns about the number of children seemingly on the loose. I wanted to say "Really? Are you really asking me this?" but managed to smile and say "We are homeschoolers". Goes to show that we are not all as observant as we think we are!
We tried to go to the State museum after the fair but the NY in Bloom show was on and it was more than we could deal with after the fair! We headed for home instead and played our new favorite game, The Settlers of Catan. It takes quite a bit of time to play, about 1.5 hours or so. The first time it took us way longer than that but we were trying to understand the rules and play nice. However if you want to win then you can't play too nice or it stretches to 3 hours plus! The idea is that you are building a civilization on the Island of Catan. You need certain resources: wood, wheat, ore, sheep to build roads, settlements and cities. There is a robber who can come into play and steal your resources as well as prevent you from getting more. Complicated for sure but really a lot of fun when you learn how to play. Originally we thought Maddie wasn't old enough because the age on the box says 10 years and up. However I started reading about other homeschool children as young as 6 playing it so we thought we would give it a go. We are glad we did!
Maddie also worked this morning on a letter to send to American Girl Magazine. They asked the girls to send in their favorite first day of school outfit. Maddie made one with a T-shirt that says "Homeschool Rocks!" and even fancied up the envelope with a fair drawing on it.
And today, we found a pair of Wonder Woman kneesocks! Maddie, of course, loves them!
Next up is 4H presentations. Maddie is working with a couple of other kids to make superballs and do a demonstration on how to make them. We are also starting to work on a presentation of her own about colonial times using Felicity as a prop. We need to narrow the subject matter on that one though!
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