Matthew has been asking many thoughtful questions lately which really show the gears are turning inside his little head. Last night he asked me: "How come they speak Spanish in Mexico when Mexico is in North America?" I briefly explained how people from Spain settled Mexico. (We are progressing through studying World History in chronological order and haven't even come to the European settling of North America.) Last week, he asked me in reference to Little House on the Prairie, "How did Ma and Pa and Mary, Laura and Carrie get to India, when India is across the ocean? (He asked that because they come into contact with Indians and we have read about India in history.) It'll be fun to bring up his question again when we read about Columbus. Matthew also likes to tote a stool into the hallway to look at our world map and find places and ask questions.
He is also beginning not to take jokes literally. Last night he told me "I'm sleeping with my angel tonight" (a puppet he made in Sunday school). I answered, "No, I'm sleeping in my own bed, thank you." Right away he busted out laughing.
Last night at church, Johanna kept teasing him, saying, "Matthew, it's been forever since I've seen you." (He tells me that she always says that whenever we go to church.) When we arrived home, he called her. I told him to speak loudly enough for her to hear. He shocked me out of my socks by yelling "HI!" on the top of his lungs, then stammered out "Johanna, it's been forever since I've seen you." He got a big kick out of it.
On Friday night, we attended a piano concert at the church sponsored by the boys' music teacher. A piano store donated a concert grand piano for the stage. The pianist, Del Parkinson, was Mrs. Green's instructor when she earned her masters in piano. He went to school at Julliard among other schools and has played at Carnegie Hall. Friday he played Rhapsody in Blue, the Moonlight Sonata, and two pieces by Chopin.
On Saturday, Evan played a piano piece for Dr. Parkinson who instructed him while people listened for a Master Class. Evan wasn't nervous at all and really enjoyed the experience.
Two weeks ago, for a history project, we painted Russian-style Easter eggs. I blew out some eggs (too difficult for the kids to do; they tried) and they painted them with black acrylic paint, then painted designs with colored acrylics. I sealed them with clear acrylic and they look quite striking. They also painted some with pastel colors and we rubbed transfers on them. Fun! I took some pictures, but our camera battery died so that I can't finish the roll until it's replaced. I'll try to upload some pics here when I have them developed.
Posted by melissa at April 12, 2004 01:56 PM