Hands On Science

Today we went on a field trip to the Hatfield Marine Science Center for Homeschool Day. There were several sessions the kids could sign up for and all of them were hands on experiences. It is a bit of a drive, so we did have to wake up early, but it was worth it. We ran into many homeschoolers, which made lunch time a fun reunion of friends.

The first session the kids put together a whale skeleton. After hearing information about different whales, the kids were asked to dive into 2 buckets of bones. They put them onto the table and began to assemble. After the kids were done, the instructor took them outside to see an "already assembled" whale skeleton to see if they thought they were finished or if some changes needed to be made. The kids decided a few changes were in store and went back inside to fix their skeleton. It was fun to watch them fit the puzzle together with team work. 

Our next session was studying rocky intertidal ecosystems. The kids began with an empty aquarium and were asked to introduce one species after another. The last, but not least, was a sea star! Even us big kids were excited at the opportunity to actually hold one in our hands.

The last class of our day was using microscopes to see differences in sand from various places. This was a lot of fun for the kids to see things up close and a reminder to me that I really want a microscope for our home classroom.

My biggest lesson I learned today... to include my oldest when ordering tickets. She was super sad to miss out on dissecting a squid and I completely understand. I assumed incorrectly that it would be too much for her. I stand corrected. I hope we get the opportunity to go back and get that squid!