learning about bridges

We were learning about bridges a bit back (Portland is a mecca for bridges) and made a truss style model, which we covered with paper and turned into a covered bridge. We used the directions from a project in Bridges: Amazing Structures to Design, Build & Test. I got smart and switched to a hot glue gun halfway though so the dry time was much quicker.

It's so cool when we drive across a bridge here and the girls know which one it is. I also bought and framed this amazing Portland Bridges poster which we all love.

Here's a really fun video to watch on making a Popsicle stick bridge and then a pretty thrilling contest at the end. There are quite a few rad videos here at WonderHowTo. (Warning, While very intriguing, not all of these topics are family friendly.)

A covered bridge tour would be fun to do this summer, there are a quite a few of them in Oregon and maybe we could combine some camping.

I've received a few homeschooling e-mails lately, mostly asking what curriculum we use. I answer this very breify in my FAQ, but we don't use a formal curriculum. We use a ton of resources: supplies, books, workbooks, the world, people, all that—but I didn't pay for a formal curriculum to cover grade 3, for example. 

Here's a great interview (thanks Carolyn!) that provides a personal example of unschooling. It's wonderfully titled, Meet Kate Fridkis, Who Skipped K-12 and Is Neither Weird nor Homeless. It is so cool to hear about homeschooling from the child's perspective (who is now 28).