Stuff We Like: Weekend Roundup
It’s been a while since we’ve done a Stuff We Like post, but here are some things that are inspiring our homeschool life right now.
It’s been a little while since we’ve done a Stuff We Like roundup, but here are some things that inspiring our homeschool life right now!
at HSL
on instagram: It’s my dog’s birthday!
on the blog: I’m always hearing from people who wonder if they should quit working to homeschool, and there’s no simple answer — but these three questions can help you figure out if it’s feasible and worth considering.
at the academy: We’re on spring break, but you can join us for our open house on the 26th.
on the library list
I LOVE LOVE LOVED this short story collection.
My son is deep into quantum physics right now, so I’ve queued this up to the top of our reading list.
I’m finding decent dinnertime inspiration in this book — and on the raggedy edge of a pandemic, I think that’s pretty good.
in our homeschool
I am pretty passionate about making quantum physics a big chunk of high school physics, but I appreciate how challenging it can be to wrap your mind around a concept that you can’t really see out in your everyday experiences so I am always looking for ways to make it more accessible. One resource I love is the Quantum Shorts Festival, in which filmmakers make short films about the ideas in quantum physics.
We’re reading Purple Hibiscus as part of our African lit course this semester, and I keep going back to Chimamanda Adichie’s amazing TED Talk “The Danger of a Single Story.” I think we’ve watched it three times and found something different every time.
ask me anything
(If you have a question, you can ask it here.)
Who do you ask for college recommendation letters for homeschoolers? This one is easy: Anyone who has taught your teen and appreciated their work. Outside classes are the easiest for this, which is why even in you’re at-home homeschoolers for the most part, it’s worth looking for an outside class every year while you are in high school. But you can also think about activity leaders (like the ones who head up your Girl Scout troop, youth group, YMCA, etc.), internship or apprenticeship mentors, employers (even from long-term baby-sitting or dog-sitting work), etc. Tip: Don’t wait until the last minute to ask for recommendations! If you take a class with a teacher your kid loves, ask about the recommendation at the end of the class, even if you know you won’t be needing it for a couple of years. Then your student can check in with that teacher a few times over the course of high school, sharing relevant achievements or connections to current studies.
What was the hardest age to homeschool? Oh, that’s an interesting question. With elementary, I was figuring out what to do, so I think it might have been the most confusing, and high school was certainly the most intimidating (though way easier than I thought at the time now that I have the luxury of looking back), but I think middle school was probably the hardest. We had to experiment a lot to find the best ways to study things like math and history, and my kids needed a lot of support and direction right at the time when they didn’t want any support or direction from me. Now I know that all of this is really developmentally normal — the tween years are hard on parents, and so it’s not crazy that they would be doubly hard on homeschool parents — but at the time, I took it all so personally and was so worried that I was messing everything up.
What do you make for breakfast? I don’t! Unless it’s a special occasion, I let everybody be in charge of their own breakfast. I burned out fast on cooking three-plus meals a day, so I only deal with dinner now.
at home
I’m so happy to have gotten my first vaccine shot this week!
I have loaded my entire wardrobe into the Stylebook App (which was a pain even though my wardrobe is not particularly giant, if you don’t include all my t-shirts), and I am obsessed.
8 Great Books to Read This Winter
In the mood for something new? Add these books to your library list.
In the mood for something new? Add these books to your library list.
Layoverland by Gabby Noone
Mean girl Beatrice, who died in a car accident, is sentenced to work in airport-like limbo, helping other souls move on.
High school
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
The letter from her dad on her twelfth birthday is the first time Zoe’s heard from him since he was sentenced to prison for a terrible crime.
Middle grades
Snapdragon by Kat Leyh
Snap’s neighborhood witch is just a cool old lady who sells roadkill skeletons on the internet, but Jacks may be more magical than Snap suspected.
Middle grades
Almost American Girl: An Illustrated Memoir by Robin Ha
It’s always been just Chun and her mom — until a trip to Alabama ends up bringing her a new family.
Middle grades
Gloom Town by Ronald L. Smith
When Rory takes a job in a spooky old mansion, he discovers an otherworldly plot to steal the town’s shadows and take over the world.
Middle grades
In a Jar by Deborah Marcero
Anyone with a collection-prone kiddo will love this tender picture book about all the nature (and memories) a jar can hold.
Early grades
Catherine’s War by Julia Billet
A Jewish girl in Nazi-occupied France tries to hang onto her identity as she moves from safe house to safe house in this graphic novel based on a true story.
Middle grades
The Only Black Girls in Town by Brandy Colbert
Alberta is so happy when another person of color finally moves to her small town — and she and Edie immediately discover a mystery from the past.
Middle grades
Reading List: Imagining Anastasia
DNA evidence has concluded that the Russian tsar’s plucky youngest daughter met her end with the rest of her family in 1918, but imagining the real and alternate ends of the Romanovs remains a literary obsession.
DNA evidence has concluded that the Russian tsar’s plucky youngest daughter met her end with the rest of her family in 1918, but imagining the real and alternate ends of the Romanovs remains a literary obsession.
The House of Special Purpose by John Boyne
A Russian soldier who emigrates to England after the war reflects on his life and the time he spent guarding the Russian royal family before their execution (High School)
Anastasia: The Last Grand Duchess, Russia, 1914 by Carolyn Meyer
This tearjerker installment in the Royal Diaries series fully embraces the tragedy of Anastasia’s real-life ending. (Middle Grades)
Angel on the Square by Gloria Whelan
Katya’s mother is a lady-in-waiting to the Tsarina, and Katya has grown up with the royal family — so when the revolution begins, everything she’s understood about the world and her place in it begins to change. (Middle Grades)
The Lost Crown by Sarah Miller
The four Romanov sisters take turns narrating this story of their lives, as they go from unimaginable luxury to house arrest and impending doom. (High School)
Romanov by Nadine Brandes
The newest installment in Anastasia mythology, in this version Anastasia’s family’s magic revives her and her brother Alexei after their execution, but that’s just the beginning of the dangers the young Romanovs face. (High School)
History at the Movies: A Prohibition Movie List
The passage of the 18th Amendment kicked off a weird and interesting period of U.S. history. These movies bring that period to life.
The passage of the 18th Amendment kicked off a weird and interesting period of U.S. history. These movies bring that period to life.
The Idle Class
Charlie Chaplin’s 1921 satire about a society lady who accidentally brings home the Little Tramp instead of her hard-partying husband (an understandable oops since Chaplin plays both the Tramp and the husband) gets right to the point: It’s the rich elite who waste their productive hours drinking illegal cocktails and dancing the night away, while the lower classes keep slogging at the factories, offices, and family homes.
The Roaring Twenties
In this gritty 1939 drama, it’s World War I that shapes both the excess and violence of the 1920s. The two main characters — good guy turned bootlegger Jimmy Cagney and his tough frenemy Humphrey Bogart first meet in the trenches and then again in the New York Prohibition scene. There’s no happy ending, just a chilling reminder that “at some distant date, we will be confronted with another period similar to the one depicted.”
Some Like It Hot
Though it was released in 1959, Some Like It Hot brings the turbulent 20s to life, especially the shifting position of women as seen through the eyes of Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe). Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon play two musicians who get on the wrong side of the mob and decide the best defense is a good disguise: They don the ubiquitous flapper garb and hook up with Sugar’s jazz band. Much fun and wackiness ensue, but the larger-than-life, heartsore 1920s is the backdrop.
The Untouchables
Brian De Palma’s 1987 classic takes on the criminal element of Prohibition, focusing on Elliot Ness and the FBI team tasked with taking down infamous gangster Al Capone. The train station scene has become a class in cinematography, but the movie perfectly captures the simmering violence always lurking beneath the flash and jazz of the 1920s.
The Thin Man
Nick and Nora Charles’s nonstop martini-drinking seems like it should seriously impair their detective abilities, but in this 1934 film, alcohol fuels everything for the very-very rich amateur detectives, whose main goal seems to be to look fabulous whatever insane situation comes their way.
This list is excerpted from the Prohibition unit study in the winter 2020 issue of HSL.
Games to Make You Forget Cabin Fever
Break out the board games to beat the mid-winter blahs in your homeschool.
Break out the board games to beat the mid-winter blahs in your homeschool.
CASTLE PANIC
In this cooperative game, players team up to keep invading goblins and orcs from breaking through the protective castle walls.
TERRAFORMING MARS
Think big with this game, which lets you gradually turn the Red Planet into one that’s habitable for humans.
QUIRKLE
My kids are hooked on this pattern sequencing game, which can get fast-paced and intense as you try to make the most of your tiles.
MUNCHKIN
Whether you prefer to play competitively or cooperatively, you’ll find this build-a-deck game is different every time you play it.
FORBIDDEN ISLAND
The fun part about this cooperative game is that you can increase the difficulty level as you get the hang of it.
AZUL
This tile-based game calls on everyone to channel maximum creativity in an effort to be named the official tile designer for the Alhambra.
THE MIND
This is technically a card game rather than a board game, but its addictive gameplay — it’s like really complicated communal solitaire — makes this game a family favorite.
Books that Inspire You to Make the World a Better Place
Sometimes, you just want to read a book that makes you feel empowered to make the change you want to see in the world.
Sometimes, you just want to read a book that makes you feel empowered to make the change you want to see in the world.
I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World
Let the teenage Nobel Prize winner share her story in her own words: Malala advocated for education for girls and was targeted — and shot — by the Taliban as a result. She survived to continue her work and inspire another generation of young people.
Just Mercy
In this stark look at the criminal justice system in the United States, Stevenson recounts his experience defending a Black man wrongly convicted of murdering a white woman. You’ll want to reform the entire U.S. judicial system by the time you’re done.
You’re More Powerful Than You Think: A Citizen’s Guide to Making Change Happen
Sometimes it feel like there’s no way for one person to make a difference, but this inspiring book gives lots of real-life examples of people who have managed to do just that. This is the book to pull out when you feel a little hopeless and overwhelmed by the problems of the world.
The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives
It would be easy to tell this story of an agender teen and the young Black man who attacks her on a Los Angeles bus as a tale of good and evil, but Slater avoids oversimplification, creating a nuanced picture of two young people whose lives were changed forever by a bus ride.
This list was excerpted from our 2020 HSL Reading Challenge recommendations.
Clean Up Your Computer
February 11 is National Clean Out Your Computer Day, but do you really need an excuse? Get all those curriculum plans, worksheets, and other great ideas organized so you can find them when you need them.
February 11 is National Clean Out Your Computer Day, but do you really need an excuse? Get all those curriculum plans, worksheets, and other great ideas organized so you can find them when you need them.
A messy computer can be as frustrating as a messy bookshelf — you know you’ve got that Roman history download somewhere, but where the heck is it? Especially if you’re prone to download freebies just-in-case (and who isn’t?), your computer can end up a tangled mess. Take an hour to get organized this winter using the following steps:
Delete duplicate files. You can search, but the quickest way to track down dupes is with an app such as Duplicate Detective.
Set up a file hierarchy. Three big folders is ideal: one for personal stuff, one for learning-related stuff, and one for friends and family stuff is a good set up for many homeschoolers.
Make sub folders. In your homeschool folder, for instance, you might have a history folder that contains folders like World History, European History, Asian History, and U.S. History, with folders inside those relating to specific events or time periods.
Delete your downloads folder every few months. This is a practical way to free up space.
Keep a desktop folder. I like a clean desktop, but I’m also a person who always has a lot of desktop folders going. I minimize the clutter by stashing all my desktop files in one Desktop folder.
Delete programs you aren’t using. We’re always downloading stuff for classes or based on recommendations — that we use once and then never again. Deleting them once a year frees up a lot of space on your hard drive.
Consider moving your photos. An external hard drive or cloud folder gets them off your computer hard drive.
Always name your files. Thoughtful names are the key to an organized computer — name that curriculum file History of Rome- Cicero’s Speech Analysis, not HoR-C. In three years when you’re trying to find this file again, you’ll be glad you gave it a name that’s easy to search for.
Actually clean your computer. Dust the keyboard, wipe down the screen, and disinfect your mouse. You’ll be amazed what a difference it makes!
A Literary Robots Reading List
Sentient AI are nothing new in literature, and this chronological reading list takes you on a tour of some of the evolving practical and philosophical issues surrounding artificial intelligence.
Sentient AI are nothing new in literature, and this chronological reading list takes you on a tour of some of the evolving practical and philosophical issues surrounding artificial intelligence.
1907: Ozma of Oz
Dorothy discovers the copper-and-clockwork Tic-Tok abandoned in a cave.
1909: The Machine Stops
E.M. Forster’s dark futuristic vision paints a world where technology has completely replaced experiences.
1950: “There Will Come Soft Rains”
A fully automated house outlives its human occupants.
1950: I, Robot
Almost all our modern-day AI fiction comes from Asimov’s original vision.
1968: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
In Philip Dick’s futuristic dystopia, artificial intelligence has become so sophisticated that it’s hard to tell robot from reality.
1989: Hyperion
Think Canterbury tales, but with pilgrims focused on the uneasy alliance between man and machine in a sci-fi future.
1996: Excession
Iain Banks’ Culture series explores the question of what it means to be human in a post-scarcity world run by hyper-intelligent AI.
2012: Cinder
The first of the Lunar Chronicles features a cyborg mechanic who gets caught up in dangerous political intrigue.
2013: Ancillary Justice
Ann Leckie’s collective-individual AI is a fascinating, gender-exploding twist on the traditional robot genre.
2014: House of Robots
In this middle grades sci-fi comedy, Sammy’s mother’s robot inventions do everything from tutoring Sammy to handling the housework.
2015: Speak
Louisa Hall’s novel follows generations of people involved in AI development from the 17th century to the future.
2016: The Wild Robot
A surprisingly tender middle grades fairy tale about a lost robot stranded on an island focuses on the ways we construct identity.
I Spy a Unit Study
This winter is the perfect time to take a chronological deep dive into some of history's most celebrated spies.
This winter is the perfect time to take a chronological deep dive into some of history's most celebrated spies.
Francis Walsingham (ca. 1532–1590)
Queen Elizabeth’s adviser was the first great English spymaster, and the culmination of his secret intelligence work was the frame-up, capture, and execution of Mary Queen of Scots in 1586. Most of Walsingham’s efforts were directed against the Catholics, whom Walsingham, a staunch Protestant who vividly remembered the Protestant purges initiated by Elizabeth’s sister and predecessor, feared and mistrusted. Walsingham organized a spy network that would impress modern day intelligence agents, complete with forgers who could copy any seal, an army of letter interceptors, complex ciphers to protect his own mail, and spies everywhere.
Read This: The Queen’s Agent: Francis Walsingham at the Court of Elizabeth I by John Cooper
Benjamin Tallmadge (1778)
The so-called Culper Ring, led by Benjamin Tallmadge, tracked Tory troop activities in British-occupied New York City by actually joining Tory militias, feeding crucial information to the colonial army. They’re also credited with helping to bring down Benedict Arnold.
Read This: Washington’s Spies: The Story of America’s First Spy Ring by Alexander Rose
Mary Elizabeth Bowser (1860s)
Mary Bowser joined the Richmond Underground, a movement that worked to get enslaved people, Union prisoners, and Confederate deserters out of occupied Richmond, Virginia. When she managed to get work at the Confederate White House, Bowser was able to pass important confidential information on to the Union.
Read This: Spy on History: Mary Bowser and the Civil War Spy Ring by Enigma Alberti and Tony Cliff
Belle Boyd (1860s)
The Confederates had their spies, too, and 17-year-old Maria Isabella Boyd was one of them. Under guard for shooting a drunken Union solider who had insulted her and her mother, Belle charmed secret information out of her guard and passed it on to the Confederate troops.
Read This: Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War by Karen Abbott
Sidney Reilly (1890s-1925)
The “Ace of Spies” was the model for Ian Fleming’s James Bond. The handsome, womanizing Russian-born British agent spied on 1890s Russian emigrants in London, in Manchuria on the cusp of the Russo-Japanese War, and participated in an attempted 1918 coup d’etat against Lenin’s Soviet government. Reilly disappeared in the Stalinist Soviet Russia of the 1920s.
Watch This: Reilly: Ace of Spies
Margarethe Zelle (1914-1917)
Better known as Mata Hari, Zelle became one of the most famous spies in history even though chances are pretty good that she never actually did any spying: She was recruited by the French and by the Germans, both of whom saw potential in her globe-trotting work as an exotic dancer, but she doesn’t appear to have given any intelligence to anyone. Still, when the Germans outed her as a double agent, the French had her arrested and executed tout suite, despite a lack of actual evidence.
Read This: Femme Fatale: A New Biography of Mata Hari by Pat Shipman
Virginia Hall (1930s-1940s)
“The limping lady” — so named because she’d shot herself in the foot and 1932 and replaced her amputated lower leg with a prosthetic limb — volunteered her services as a spy in occupied France, coordinating the activities of the Resistance under cover as a correspondent for the New York Post. Hall’s prosthetic foot, which she named Cuthbert, provided a convenient hiding place when smuggling top secret documents.
Read This: The Wolves at the Door: The True Story of America’s Greatest Female Spy by Judith L. Pearson
Klaus Fuchs (1940s-1950s)
Fuchs was a nuclear physicist who left Germany in 1933 to come to England, where he worked on “Tube Alloys,” the British atomic bomb project, before joining the Manhattan Project in the United States. Fuchs hated the Nazis, but he had complicated feelings about the post World War II world — which led him to feed information to contacts in the Soviet Union. Fuchs was arrested for espionage in the 1950s and imprisoned.
Read This: The Spy Who Changed the World: Klaus Fuchs, Physicist and Soviet Double Agent by Mark Rossiter
Melita Norwood (1962-1999)
Norwood worked as the assistant to the director at a British atomic research center for 37 years before her employers realized that she’d been passing secret information from her job on to the Soviets the whole time she’d worked there. By that time, Norwood was an 87-year-old grandmother, whose 1999 arrest made headlines and shocked everyone who knew her — including her family.
Watch This: Red Joan
Expand your study further with these spy books for kids:
Spy Science: 40 Secret-Sleuthing, Code-Cracking, Spy-Catching Activities for Kids by Jim Wiese
How to be an International Spy: Your Training Manual, Should You Choose to Accept It by Lonely Planet Kids
DK Eyewitness Books: Spy: Discover the World of Espionage from the Early Spymasters to the Electronic Surveillance of Today by Richard Platt
World War II Spies (You Choose: World War II) by Michael Burgan
A Camus Reading List
Get uncomfortable with the absurdity of human existence and the essential Camus reading list.
Get uncomfortable with the absurdity of human existence and the essential Camus reading list.
Camus’s take on the essential absurdity of human existence can be equal parts crushing and liberating, part humor and part grief, part possibility and part entropy. Whatever it is, it’s never boring, and if you’ve got a teen who enjoys critical thinking, Camus’s writing can be a bridge to more academic philosophy. These books are a good place to start.
THE STRANGER
Meursault is an existential protagonist who acknowledges that there is no inherent meaning in life — but unlike Camus himself, this antihero isn’t inspired to try to make meaning. Instead, he makes the people around him uncomfortable and afraid by refusing to engage in accepted social behaviors, such as mourning the death of his own mother. The brutal, blunt language reinforces the blunt, brutal reality of a meaningless existence, setting the terms of a philosophical discussion that continues today.
THE PLAGUE
The darkness of human existence is present again in The Plague, but so is the radiance and nobility of human goodness. When an epidemic quarantines an Algerian city, the residents are forced to confront their morality, their relationships, and the meaning of life.
THE MYTH OF SISYPHUS
Confronted with meaning- less existence, man must learn how to live with death at the end of it—no easy task, and one that requires an absurd hero. Enter Sisyphus, the Greek figure doomed to endlessly push a rock up a hill, starting the process anew each day. Camus’s essays in this collection embrace the complex and baffling nature of life without underlying meaning.
CALIGULA
In Camus’s weird drama, his absurdist philosophy plays out through the life of the infamous Roman emperor, who realizes when his beloved sister dies that all humans ultimately die miserable at the end of meaningless lives. Caligula responds with the cruelty and violence that would ensure him a page in history, using depravity to battle his philosophical desperation.
Why Critical Thinking Is the Class Your Homeschool Can't Skip (Plus Some of Our Favorite Resources for Teaching It)
Critical thinking is one of those things that comes up naturally in life, but you may also want to consider a curriculum that helps your homeschooler develop a critical thinking toolkit in an organized way.
Whether they’re in elementary, middle, or high school, your kids will benefit from building critical thinking skills.
Kids learn critical thinking by actually doing it, said curriculum theorist Hilda Taba, and to do it, they need opportunities to practice creative thinking and problem solving in their everyday learning lives. Critical thinking has become a buzzword in education circles, but for homeschoolers, the skills to manipulate ideas, critically examine information, and combine knowledge in different ways may be the most important things your students learn.
You can teach critical thinking by — well, teaching critical thinking. Opportunities pop up all the time in your everyday life that call on your critical thinking skills. Practice asking better, more nuanced questions about news stories you hear on the radio or commercials you see on YouTube. Model drilling down to the very specific definitions of words — what’s the difference between analyzing and explaining? What’s the emotional difference between “qualified” and “superior?” Work on developing counter arguments for ideas — what’s the best argument someone else could make against your strongest point?
Critical thinking is one of those things that comes up naturally in life, but you may also want to consider a curriculum that helps your homeschooler develop a critical thinking toolkit in an organized way. These are some of our favorites:
Brain Teasers
Best for: Elementary
Progressively challenging exercises push students gently through the basics of critical thinking, from dot-to-dot puzzles and codes to solve to simple beginning logic problems.
Analogy Adventures
Best for: Elementary, Middle
Analogies are a great tool for critical thinking, and this curriculum helps students build the skills they need to make meaningful, intelligent comparisons between two things.
Prufrock Press Logic and Thinking Skills
Best for: Elementary, Middle
It’s never too early to introduce kids to the principles of deductive and inductive logic, and this series of increasingly sophisticated lessons is a great place to start.
Developing Critical Thinking Through Science
Best for: Elementary, Middle
The scientific method is critical thinking in action — you can think of lab science as applied critical thinking — and this program encourages young scientists to think about why an experiment is set up the way it is and how to use the information it gives them.
A Case of Red Herrings
Best for: Middle
These fun logic problems encourage students to think creatively with their solutions — this is especially fun in small groups, so this curriculum could be a great base for a homeschool co-op class.
Critical Thinking Activities
Best for: Middle, High
The emphasis in this curriculum is on mathematical critical thinking, including imagery, patterns, and classic logic. The mathematic approach is especially friendly for students who don’t love literature-based philosophy classes.
How to Lie with Statistics
Best for: High
OK, this is a book rather than a curriculum proper, and it’s an old book with old information, but it remains a fascinating look at how advertisers position data to make it serve their ends. You will never read a science article in a newspaper the same way again.
Building Thinking Skills
Best for: All ages
The Critical Thinking Company, unsurprisingly, has one of the best comprehensive critical thinking curricula out there, designed to carry students from preschool through college preparation. The Daily Mind Benders are a fun way to add a little critical thinking to your morning or bedtime routine, too.
Science Experiments to Brighten Up Your Mid-Winter Homeschool
Need a cure for the mid-winter homeschool doldrums? These cold weather science experiments will help make homeschooling fun again (and get your crew through to spring).
Need a cure for the mid-winter homeschool doldrums? These cold weather science experiments will help make homeschooling fun again (and get your crew through to spring).
Every February, I think I want to quit homeschooling. The feeling lasts for about two weeks. Where we live, in North Carolina, February is cold and gray. The days feel short and gloomy. We’re still recovering from all the fun and gluttony of the winter holidays, and there’s nothing similar to look forward to in the immediate future. I’m grumpy, the kids are grumpy, and I find myself gazing wistfully at the school bus loading up kids across the street every morning. I don’t really want to quit homeschooling, though. I just want something to shake us out of the winter doldrums — and, as usual, science saves the day.
Winter science experiments get us out of the house and into the sunshine, even when there’s not much sunshine to get into. More important, though, they get us thinking. They pique our curiosity. They make us ask why. They remind us why we’re glad we don’t have to get on that yellow school bus.
The point of these experiments may sometimes get lost in translation. That’s OK! Not every experiment works out perfectly, and your results may vary. When that happens, don’t get upset. Start asking why. Real science is about questions, not facts, and homeschooling lets us stay connected to that essential truth.
MAKE A SNOWSTORM IN A JAR
The worst winters are the ones where it’s cold and yucky but you don’t get any actual snow. When that happens, you can make your own snow day.
This experiment reminds us that oil and water don’t mix, which can start a great conversation about polarity. (Water’s polar; oil is not.) It’s also a great way to illustrate density: Less-dense oil rises to sit on top of the water, while the Alka Seltzer bubbles the water upward. You’ve also got the baking soda reacting with the citric acid, creating carbon dioxide gas. In other words, there’s a lot of chemistry happening in this little jar!
You need:
Baby oil
White paint
Water
Glitter
Alka Seltzer tablet
Clear glass or plastic jar
Mix water and white paint to form a thick, white liquid with the color evenly dispersed through it. (This white is what creates the snow effect, so don’t stint on it!)
Layer the white water on the bottom, and carefully pour baby oil on top. You want to fill your container about 3/4 of the way full, so how much water and oil you need depends on the size of your container. Figure about four parts water to one part oil for the best results.
Sprinkle generously with glitter. (Optional, but it gives your snow that little bit of sparkle.)
Drop an Alka Seltzer tablet into your jar, and watch what happens. The Alka Seltzer causes the water to bubble up, but the oil slows the process down so the “snowstorm” happens in slow-motion.
BLUBBER MAGIC
Polar bears may have a fur coat, but they’re warm-blooded animals just like humans — so how do they survive frigid Arctic weather? This experiment uses shortening to mimic the blubber beneath a polar bear’s fur. That layer of thick fat helps polar bears insulate their body temperature and maintain the heat they generate, keeping them from freezing even when the temperatures are below 0.
What you need:
2 Large Ziplock Bags
Shortening (such as Crisco) w Large empty tub
Ice
Turn one of your plastic bags inside out, and use a spatula to fill it about 3/4 of the way full with shortening.
Slip the second bag inside the full one, pushing it down and rolling the tops of the bags to secure the bags together. You’re basically making a plastic mitten with two bags, one inside the other.
Fill a large bowl 3/4 of the way full with ice. Add a little water to make the ice bowl even colder.
Establish a baseline by dipping your uncovered hand in the ice bowl. (It will be really cold!)
Slip your hand in the shortening-filled plastic pouch, and dip it in the ice bowl again. Notice the difference? The shortening creates a protective layer, so your hand doesn’t freeze.
Misty Heaslet is HSL's Science Fair Science columnist. This column was originally published in the winter 2019 issue.
Books With Dual Timelines
Two or more timelines double the drama in these books.
Two or more timelines double the drama in these books.
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
In a world wracked by catastrophic geologic change, three women — one barely more than a girl — born with the power to control their environment face a hostile society that fears them.
I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
Twins Jude and Noah grow up inseparable, but a few years into young adulthood, they’re not even speaking.
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Why is your mother so impossible? This book flashes between the lives of American daughters and Chinese mothers, answering that question.
Americanah by Chimanada Ngozi Adichie
Ifemelu and Obinze hope to escape from Nigeria together but end up in separate places — Ifemelu in the United States and Obinze, undocumented, in London. Fifteen years later, they reunite in their home country.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
The timelines in this book about a postapocalyptic Shakespeare troupe focus on life before and after a devastating epidemic.
Kindred by Octavia Butler
A Black woman travels back and forth between 1970s California and antebellum Maryland in this razor-sharp time travel story.
Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly
When Andi discovers the diary kept by a teen girl during the French Revolution, she also discovers that time doesn’t run in just one direction. (Bonus points for Epic Ride! cab driver Virgil. Get it?)
Tom’s Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce
When the clock strikes 13, Tom is able to walk into the garden and visit Hattie in the past.
Darkmere by Helen Maslin
In the past, young bride Elinor marries the wealthy Mr. St. Cloud and becomes the mistress of Darkmere, gradually realizing that her marriage might not be the happy ending she’d expected. In the present, Kate and her friends plan to spend the summer partying at Darkmere but find a dark mystery instead.
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Lamora's life story plays out in the past — where he trains with the city's criminal royalty to learn their ways — and the present, when he's attempting to pull off the biggest heist of his life.
Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
In the past, a crew of scientists work to keep humanity alive when an extinction-event asteroid approaches the Earth; thousands of years later, the space colonists return to their home planet to find they're not alone.
Nevermore: Fun Facts about Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven”
Edgar Allan Poe’s Raven turns 176 years old this January, but there are still things to discover about this most mysterious of birds.
Edgar Allan Poe’s Raven turns 176 years old this January, but there are still things to discover about this most mysterious of birds.
Every Halloween, our homeschool group hosts “The Raven-ing,” a competition to see who can memorize the most of the classic Poe poem and who can give the most dramatic reading thereof. It’s an annual highlight, mostly because the weird, eerie poem appeals to almost everyone. It’s even more fun if you slip a few of these surprising facts into the conversation:
What the Dickens?
Poe’s raven was inspired by the raven in Charles Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge — which isn’t surprising when you remember that the author of Oliver Twist was the pop culture hero of his time.
Meter Maid
Poe dedicated the book “The Raven” was eventually included in to English poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, another Victorian literary pop star. Poe may have been acknowledging more than his appreciation for the poet — some critics think he borrowed the complex poetic meter from one of her poems for “The Raven.”
Lincoln Log
“The Raven” hit instant popular success and inspired hundreds of parodies. Abraham Lincoln enjoyed one parody, “The Polecat,” (this was the best-formatted version online, but I’m not familiar enough with this website to recommend or not recommend it!) so much that it inspired him to look up the original poem — the 19th century equivalent of reading the book because you liked the movie.
Celebrity Flockers
Kids followed Poe around, flapping their arms and cawing until Poe delighted them by turning around and dramatically saying, “Nevermore.” That’s how popular “The Raven” was.
Gift Ideas for Kids Who Love The Baby-Sitters Club
Give your favorite tween the tools she needs to be a savvy business founder.
Give your favorite tween the tools she needs to be a savvy business founder.
Moonjar Classic Save Spend Share 3-Part Bank
Get your young entrepreneur started on the right financial foot with this modern piggy bank that encourages saving and giving as well as spending.
Baby-Sitters Club Book Tribute Tee
Show off your inspiration with this t-shirt that shouts out your favorite business women.
The Babysitters Club Hard Enamel Pin
Flaunt your squad on your backpack as part of your geeky pin collection. This one’s based on the original cover of Kristy’s Great Idea.
There’s no better low-tech way to keep your schedule than a classic kittens and rainbows calendar — bonus points for coordinating stickers.
Keep your clients organized with this cute and practical record keeper that’s right up Mary Anne's alley.
You’ll feel just like Claudia when you answer your cell with this old-fashioned handset in 90s brights.
The Baby-Sitters Club Graphic Novels Collection
Raina Telegemeier's graphic novel adaptations bring the BSC into the 21st century. (Check out the charming Netflix series, too!)
For kids who are serious about turning a great idea into a business, this eight-step guide makes a tangible starting point.
Gift Ideas for Kids Who Love The Martian
Andy Weir’s science fiction has encouraged a whole new generation of readers to aim for the stars.
Andy Weir’s science fiction has encouraged a whole new generation of readers to aim for the stars.
SOMETHING YOU WANT
Once upon a time, we told time by the stars; now you can track the changes in the night sky on your watch. The glowing watch face makes the effect extra-cool for nighttime stargazing.
xkcd’s poster shows “the height you would have to climb upward in constant Earth surface gravity to spend the same amount of energy as it would take to escape the given planet completely.”
Give your lego space cre- ations a healthy boost of girl power with legos, including astronauts like Mae Jemison and engineers like Nancy Roaman (part of the set with the Hubble Space telescope).
SOMETHING YOU NEED
2020 The Year in Space Calendar
Never miss a meteor shower or moon phase.
SOMETHING TO WEAR
Don’t let a little thing like the laws of the universe keep you from your space dreams.
SOMETHING TO READ
Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in Space by Mary Roach
50 Books for 50 States
Read your way across the United States with a book for every state in the union.
Read your way across the United States with a book for every state in the union.
Alabama
Inside Out & Back Again BY THANHHA LAI
Alabama comes to life through the eyes of Hà, a Vietnamese immigrant whose family leaves everything familiar in Saigon to make a new life away from the Vietnam War. And it’s not easy — Alabama may not have soldiers on the street corners, but it has people who make fun of Hà’s accent and appearance, adults who don’t seem to understand that you can miss your home even if it isn’t a safe place, and food and culture that feel totally unfamiliar. I love the way the free verse structure of this book echoes the way that learning a new language can feel — metaphors and allusions make up the gap between the words we know and the words we're still learning.
Alaska
Sweet Home Alaska BY CAROLE ESTBY DAGG
It’s 1934, and in an effort to develop Alaska and improve lives during the Great Depression, President Roosevelt has offered farmer families the opportunity to start a new life in an Alaskan colony. Thirteen-year-old Terpsichore has grown up reading the Little House series and convinces her struggling family to seize the opportunity to start a new life where all her book-learned pioneer knowledge will prove to be a handy resource.
Arizona
Saving Lucas Biggs BY MARISA DE LOS SANTOS AND DAVID TEAGUE
When her father is sentenced to death (on the first page of the book!), 13-year-old Margaret uses her family’s ability to travel back in time through the history of her Arizona mining town to understand why Judge Lucas Biggs has targeted her father — and how she can change the past in order to return to a different future.
Arkansas
Where the Red Fern Grows BY WILSON RAWLS
Go into this story of Billy’s backwoods childhood and the two dogs who are his best friends knowing it’s a tear-jerker. Billy’s farm is in the Ozarks, which sprawl from Arkansas to Oklahoma and which remain a largely rural area even in the 21st century.
California
One Crazy Summer BY RITA WILLIAMS-GARCIA
It’s the summer of 1968, and three sisters from Alabama are spending it in Oakland, California with their artist mother. Their mother is more interested in her own life than in her kids and sends them off to a summer camp run by the Black Panthers. Williams-Garcia is at her best writing the relationship between the book’s three sisters, but she also conjures a vivid image of what life was like for northern California’s Black community during the 1970s.
Colorado
Father and I Were Ranchers BY RALPH MOODY
Flashback to turn-of-the-20th-century Colorado through the eyes of 8-year-old Ralph, who moves from New Hampshire with his family to start a “dirt ranch” in the Colorado foothills. Ralph learns how to be a rancher at his father’s side, and when the time comes, he’s ready to take over the work of ranching himself.
Connecticut
Night Of The Moonjellies BY MARK SHASHA
In this quiet picture book, 7-year-old Mark spends the day helping at his family’s hot dog stand at the Connecticut, and when night comes, he finds the perfect place to release the mysterious jelly creature he found on the way there.
Delaware
The Book of Unknown Americans BY CRISTINA HENRIQUEZ
Maribel’s family has a new home in a Delaware apartment block. They’ve immigrated from Mexico and everything they know, hoping that the United States will hold the cure for Maribel’s traumatic brain injury. Mayor Toro, the son of Panamanian immigrants living in the same complex, develops a deep relationship with Maribel, but the suspicion and uncertainty of immigrant life makes things complicated.
Florida
Chomp BY CARL HIAASEN
The Everglades are the latest destination for "Expedition Survival!," and Wahoo and his animal trainer dad have the increasingly difficult job of keeping the show’s clueless-about-animals star from getting mauled, maimed, or otherwise destroyed by the Florida swamp’s wildlife.
Georgia
Truth with a Capital T BY BETHANY HEGEDUS
Maebelle is crushed when she’s bumped out of her school’s gifted-and-talented program, and she’s counting on a summer at her grandparents’ antebellum Georgia mansion to cheer her up. Instead, she finds a talented cousin and a locked room mystery that only she can solve.
Hawaii
Night of the Howling Dogs BY GRAHAM SALISBURY
A Boy Scout camping trip on the Big Island goes awry when an earthquake strikes, causing a tsunami. Dylan and Louie team up in this adventure, which captures the beauty and danger of the Hawaiian wilderness and some of the nuances of Hawaiian culture and tradition. Amazingly, it's based on a true story that happened to a group of young campers in 1975.
Idaho
Walk Two Moons BY SHANNON CREECH
On a road trip with her grand- parents from Ohio to Idaho, 13-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle spins a story for her grandparents about the mysterious disappearance of her new friend’s mother. Sal is on her way to visit her own mother’s final resting place in Lewiston, Idaho, and her story spinning starts to intersect more and more with her own life.
Illinois
The Ambrose Deception BY EMILY ECTON
Chicago becomes a giant game board in this book about three middle schoolers competing for a mysterious scholarship that sends them around the city following cryptic clues to city landmarks. Of course, the shadowy figures behind the competition may be up to more than an innocent scavenger hunt.
Indiana
The Fault in Our Stars BY JOHN GREEN
When they aren’t on a quest to Amsterdam, Hazel and Gus call Indianapolis home: The action in these teen love-story-tearjerker takes place at 100 Acres at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Castleton Square Mall, Holiday Park... and Crown Hill Cemetery.
Iowa
Tomás and the Library Lady BY PAT MORA
In this warm picture book, a transplanted-from-Texas boy who has come with his family to do seasonal work finds his Iowa home at the library, where a kind librarian gives him books — but also compassion, support, and the occasional glass of cold water. (Tomás is based on the real-life Tomás Rivera, who would grow up to become the chancellor of the University of California at Riverside.)
Kansas
May B. BY CAROLINE STARR ROSE
In this novel-in-verse, 12-year- old May B.’s parents hire her out to a homesteading couple on the Kansas prairie. She’s already upset about missing months of school, where she struggles but dreams of becoming a teacher, and lonely without her family, when she realizes that she’s been abandoned, 15 miles from home with winter bearing down on her. As May’s story becomes a tale of survival and inner strength, this book takes its place with other 19th century pioneer stories like Little House on the Prairie and Hattie Big Sky, as a novel that captures the beauty and danger of the wild in the west.
Kentucky
Chasing Redbird BY SHARON CREECH
I usually try not to duplicate authors on my lists, but I’m making an exception for Sharon Creech and this heart- wrenching story about a girl coming to terms with the loss of two people she loved. The Kentucky woods — and an ancient trail she discovers in them — play an important role in Zinny’s story.
Louisiana
A Place Where Hurricanes Happen BY RENÉE WATSON
The mixed media illustrations and free-verse storytelling make this story of Hurricane Katrina compelling for young readers. Adrienne, Keesha, Michael, and Tommy have lived on the same street in New Orleans for their whole lives, but everything changes after the hurricane strikes. The kids’ perspective brings a fresh hopefulness to this true story.
Maine
Welcome Home or Someplace Like It BY CHARLOTTE AGELL
Aggie and Thorne are used to getting dropped off in random places by their writer-mother, so it’s no surprise when she leaves them with their estranged grandfather in the quirky hamlet of Ludwig, Maine. Aggie is surprised when this strange and temporary place starts to feel like home. (Bonus points to this book for highlighting that classic soda of Maine life: Moxie!)
Maryland
Dicey's Song BY CYNTHIA VOIGT
In this sequel to Homecoming, Dicey and her siblings find a home with their grandmother on a rundown farm on Chesapeake Bay. Dicey, who is used to carrying the responsibilities her mentally ill mother can’t handle, doesn’t know what to do with herself now that she is free to be a regular teenager.
Massachusetts
Make Way for Ducklings BY ROBERT MCCLOSKEY
Boston landmarks are the backdrop for this classic picture book about a family of ducks on their way to the Public Gardens.
Michigan
Bud, Not Buddy BY CHRISTOPHER PAUL CURTIS
Ten-year-old Bud is in Flint, Michigan on the trail of his long-lost father, who he’s convinced plays in a band whose posters he’s seen in his mom’s things. Depression-era Michigan is a tough place for a boy on the run, but Bud’s a tough boy, and he’s determined to change his life for the better.
Minnesota
Emily of Deep Valley BY MAUD HART LOVELACE
Unlike Lovelace’s other heroines, Emily is a loner without a big, busy family. Instead, she lives with her beloved grand- father, taking care of him and trying to model her life after her hero Jane Addams. In that spirit, she finds a surprising sense of connection and be- longing when she starts working with the growing population of Syrian immigrants in her neighborhood.
Mississippi
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry BY MILDRED D. TAYLOR
This book perfectly captures the racial tensions in 1930s Mississippi, which means it’s not always an easy book to read. Racism stinks. But the Logans are a caring, intelligent, inspiring family to spend some time with, and talking about racism with our kids is more important now than ever.
Missouri
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer BY MARK TWAIN
No one captures the small town, old-fashioned charm of childhood in rural Missouri the way Mark Twain does. Nobody likes Tom Sawyer, who’s all privilege and swagger, but it’s impossible not to enjoy his antics. Importantly, this book also captures some of the racism against Native Americans that permeated U.S. history, making it a great conversation starter for your family.
Montana
The Miseducation of Cameron Post BY EMILY DANFORTH
After her parents die in a car accident, still-in-the-closet Cam moves to Montana to live with her very old-fashioned grandmother and aunt. She’s determined to just blend in, but then she meets the cowgirl of her dreams, and she realizes that she doesn’t want to spend the rest of her life hiding who she really is.
Nebraska
Savvy BY INGRID LAW
Everyone in the Beaumont family has a superpower — Grandpa can move mountains. Fish can control the weather. And almost-13-year- old Mibs is about to discover her own superpower when word comes that her beloved Poppa has been in an accident. Mibs travels through the Nebraska countryside to reach her father, convinced that her still-to-be-revealed power can save him.
Nevada
Riding Freedom BY PAM MUÑOZ RYAN
Charlotte is supposed to be a proper Victorian-era young lady, but she’d rather just hang out with horses. After being raised in a boys’ orphanage, the idea of settling into the role of a young lady is enough to drive her to an inspired solution: She’ll disguise herself as a boy and run away to Nevada to become a horse rancher.
New Hampshire
The Enormous Egg BY OLIVER BUTTERWORTH
In Freedom, New Hampshire, a very unusual egg hatches into a baby dinosaur — and suddenly, the cozy little 1950s town is front-page news every- where. The little town of freedom is a picture-perfect flashback to the kind of small New England town that we still look back at nostalgically (even as we realize that it might not have actually existed for most people).
New Jersey
Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal BY G. WILLOW WILSON
Kamala’s parents are super-strict Muslim immigrants, but Kamala’s just your average Jersey City girl — until she walks into a strange mist and emerges with shape-shifting super powers.
New Mexico
Kepler's Dream BY JULIET BELL
While her mother is in the hospital receiving an experimental cancer treatment, Ella has to go stay with her buttoned-up, book-obsessed grandmother in Albuquerque. Ella’s not sure how she’ll survive the heat, the boredom, or the endless list of rules — much less worrying about what’s happening with her mom. Then a book disappears from her grandmother’s be- loved library, and Ella teams up with a new friend to solve the mystery and get her grandmother's book back.
New York
The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street BY KARINA YAN GLASER
Five kids, two parents, and a host of pets call the first two floors of a Harlem brownstone home — and they can’t imagine living anywhere else. So when their landlord declines to renew their lease, Jessie, Isa, Oliver, Hyacinth, and Laney are determined to convince him that he’s making a big mistake. I love the way this book brings the small-town-in- a-big-city feel of Harlem to life.
North Carolina
Serafina and the Black Cloak BY ROBERT BEATTY
Serafina lives (secretly) in the basement of the Biltmore Estate with her grandfather, who is Vanderbilt family’s maintenance man. When children begin disappearing from the house, Serafina and her friend young Braeden Vanderbilt risk the perils of the surrounding forest to investigate — but the forest is full of secrets.
North Dakota
Apple In the Middle BY DAWN QUIGLEY
Apple is nonplussed to spend a summer on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation with her late mother’s family, but her dad doesn’t give her much of a choice. As Apple learns about her Native heritage — and comes to appreciate its emphasis on family, faith, nature, and humor — she also learns more about the mother she never knew and about herself.
Ohio
Unwind BY NEAL SHUSTERMAN
Ohio is the backdrop for this speculative fiction novel in which abortion is illegal but parents can “unwind” their teens’ lives between age 13 and 18 as long as their organs are donated to another person. Three kids scheduled to be unwound go on the lam across Ohio, determined to stay undercover until they turn 18 and can no longer be terminated.
Oklahoma
The Outsiders BY S.E. HINTON
The Greasers and the Socs face off in 1960s in Tulsa in this classic coming-of-age story about class, friendship, and hope. Teenage Ponyboy is a working class kid who gets caught up in the escalating violence between the city’s two socioeconomic factions. This was one of the first books to feature a teen protagonist with an authentic voice, and it’s been banned as often as it’s been praised since it was published.
Oregon
Roller Girl BY VICTORIA JAMIESON
Astrid’s roller derby team practices in Portland’s Oaks Park, and she’s determined to make her mark on the team, even though she’s not the best skater and even though her best friend doesn’t seem interested in being best friends anymore. This graphic novel charts a tough season in the life of a middle schooler, but Astrid’s persistence — and a little support from the people who love her — carries the day.
Pennsylvania
Maniac Magee BY JERRY SPINELLI
Jeffrey Magee achieves folk hero status in Two Mills, Pennsylvania, thanks to his amazing athletic abilities, but that doesn’t protect him from racism or the problems of growing up in poverty. This is an odd little book that bounces between slapstick and heartstring-tugging, but somehow, it all works.
Rhode Island
The Amazing Adventures of John Smith, Jr., a.k.a. Houdini BY PETER JOHNSON
John’s friends call him Houdini because he’s obsessed with magic, but he finds a new ob- session when an author visits his school in the rundown part of Providence. Houdini finds that his adventures with his friends make good literary fodder, but it’s harder to write about his dad’s job loss or his brother’s military PTSD.
South Carolina
Brown Girl Dreaming BY JACQUELINE WOODSON
The contrast between life as a young Black girl in 1960s in South Carolina and Brooklyn, New York, is the heart of this lyrical memoir in verse, based on Woodson’s own life. It’s simple enough to read with an elementary student, but it’s rich enough to be a rewarding read with a high schooler, too.
South Dakota
The Trickster and the Troll BY VIRGINIA DRIVING HAWK SNEVE
The cultural convergence is part of what makes North Dakota so interesting, and this picture book — featuring a Lakota trickster and a Norwegian troll — captures both. While trying to track down his recently immigrated family from Norway, a troll meets Iktomi, whose people have also gone missing.
Tennessee
A Snicker of Magic BY NATALIE LLOYD
There’s been no magic in Midnight Gulch, Tennessee, since the Brothers Threadbare left the town drained of magic and under a curse. Newcomer Felicity doesn't really care, though, since she’s never lived anywhere long enough to feel at home. But when she discovers an ability that suggests Midnight Gulch could be her real home, she’s determined to get to the roots of the town’s magical problem.
Texas
Love, Sugar, Magic: A Dash of Trouble BY ANNA MERIANO
Leo’s always getting told she’s too young to help with her family’s Rose Hill, Texas, bakery, but she’s thrilled when she accidentally discovers that her mom, aunt, and big sisters are all pastry brujas with the power to mix magic into everything they bake. Leo thinks that seems pretty cool — so cool that when her best friend comes to her with a problem, Leo decides to whip up a magical solution for her.
Utah
The Great Brain BY JOHN D. FITZGERALD
Tom — a.k.a. the Great Brain — and his brothers get up to all kinds of mischief in 1896, shortly after Utah officially joined the United States. The Great Brain isn’t a nice kid, exactly, but he’s a very entertain- ing one — and his stories paint a vivid picture of turn-of-the- 20th-century Utah.
Vermont
Witness BY KAREN HESSE
In this powerful novel-in-verse, 11 different characters tell the story of the year the Klu Klux Klan arrives in a small Vermont town, changing its in- habitants’ lives forever. Though the (true) story is set in 1924, readers will identify with the choice between fear and acceptance that permeated this book.
Virginia
Bridge to Terabithia BY KATHERINE PATERSON
Jess doesn’t love much about his life in rural Virginia until Leslie moves in next door and teaches him to see the world in new ways. This tearjerker classic about a boy and girl who imagine a magical world in the Virginia wilderness is a moving meditation on friendship, belonging, and identity.
Washington
Jackie's Wild Seattle BY WILL HOBBS
When their parents head overseas for the summer to work with Doctors Without Borders, Cody and Shannon stay in Seattle with their uncle, who drives the ambulance for a local wildlife rescue center. When their uncle is injured by a rescued hawk, the kids take over his job, and Seattle be- comes a backdrop for their animal adventures.
West Virginia
Shiloh BY PHYLLIS REYNOLDS NAYLOR
When Shiloh runs away from his abusive owner, Marty finds him and immediately knows the beagle is meant to be his dog. Marty's determined to keep Shiloh — and keep him safe — but in his rural West Virginia town, stealing someone else’s dog is something you shouldn’t do. Marty finds himself asking hard questions about what the right thing to do is when it feels like the rules should be broken.
Wisconsin
The Westing Game BY ELLEN RASKIN
A shiny new apartment building on the Wisconsin side of Lake Michigan is the setting for this classic mystery, in which an unconnected group of residents find they have a mystery in common. The millionaire Sam Westing has been murdered in his nearby mansion, and the resident who solves the mystery will inherit the Westing fortune.
Wyoming
My Friend Flicka BY MARY O’HARA
Ten-year-old Ken meets the untrained horse Flicka on his family’s horse ranch in Wyoming. As Ken trains Flicka, he gains confidence and comes to understand himself and his family better. The wildness and wide open spaces of Wyoming are almost a secondary character in the story.
This reading list was originally published in the fall 2019 issue of HSL.
Gift Ideas for Kids Who Love Cooking
Foodie kids will love gadgets, gear, and inspiration for their kitchen adventures.
Help grow a lifetime of great meals with these chef-themed gifts.
Foodie kids will love gadgets, gear, and inspiration for their kitchen adventures.
Something You Want
Cute Little Kittens Ceramic Measuring Bowls Set
Upgrade your measuring cup set, and young bakers may be tempted to produce more cupcakes, cookies, and bread.
Fred the Obsessive Chef Bamboo Cutting Board
Practice precise dicing, chopping, and mincing with this cutting board that features handy guiding lines.
The only thing that could make Taco Tuesdays more fun is a triceratops taco holder.
This playful Mad Libs style cookbook is perfect for kitchen improv sessions — and pretty much guarantees a non-boring dinner any weeknight.
Every month brings a new culinary adventure with these kits that provide education, tips, cooking tools, and recipes for a complete meal. (You’ll still have to go grocery shopping, though.)
Give your favorite young baker a fancy spot to display her homemade creations. It will automatically make your bake sale contributions seem like the must-buy option.
Something You Need
Opinel Le Petit 3 Piece Chef’s knife set
Because every chef needs a set of pro knives.
Something to Wear
If you’re going to cook like a pro, you want to dress like one, too.
Something to Read
All Four Stars by Tara Dairman
The World's Greatest Chocolate-Covered Pork Chops by Ryan K. Sager
The MasterChef Junior Cookbook by MasterChef Junior
The Forest Feast for Kids by Erin Gleeson
Starting from Scratch by Sarah Elton
ChopChop: The Kids' Guide to Cooking Real Food with Your Family by Sally Sampson
Gastro Blast: Make Tasty Treats & Learn Great Science by Amanda McNeice
Gift Ideas for Readers Who Love The Way Things Work
Inspire STEM-minded learners with gifts that encourage them to experiment, assemble, and create.
Inspire STEM-minded learners with gifts that encourage them to experiment, assemble, and create.
If you’ve got a kid who’s inspired by The Way Things Work and who loves taking things apart and putting them back together, these hands-on gifts will keep them busy.
SOMETHING YOU WANT
Thames and Kosmos Physics Workshop
With the 64-page manual and 300 building pieces, you can make windmills, two-speed cranes, pinball games, sail-powered cards, hammering machines and more. And that’s just with the manual!
Electro Dough Kit
Genius: If salt conducts electricity, why not salt- based play dough? Kids as young as 4 can mold working race cars and robots out of play dough, then use a mobile app to control their creations.
CanaKit
Put computer power right into your kids’ hands by letting them construct their own working computer running Raspberry Pi 4. This box of parts turns into a usable computer that you can then use to design your own programs.
SOMETHING YOU NEED
Leatherman Charge TTi
This multi-tool means you’re always ready for a little hands-on investigation.
SOMETHING TO WEAR
Forget Lab Safety, I Want Super Powers T-shirt
Wear your passion for lab science on your t-shirt.
SOMETHING TO READ
The Frank Einstein series by Jon Scieszka
Engineer Academy by Steve Martin and Nastia Sleptsova
Rosie Revere's Big Project Book for Bold Engineers by Andrea Beaty
The Nick and Tesla Mystery series by Bob Pflugfelder and Steve Hockensmith
The Secret Coders series by Gene Luen Yang and Mike Holmes
This gift guide was originally published in the fall 2018 issue of HSL.
Unit Study: The Legend of Blackbeard
The notorious English pirate was captured and killed by the forces of the Governor of Virginia more than 300 years ago this November, but his story is as fascinating as ever.
The notorious English pirate was captured and killed by the forces of the Governor of Virginia more than 300 years ago this November, but his story is as fascinating as ever.
Canons and gunfire broke the silence of Ocracoke Island in the early morning hours of November 18, 1718. The pirate Blackbeard’s ship had been ambushed unawares, but pirates are always ready for a fight, and for several hours, it seemed that the battle could go either way. In the end, though, the sloop Adventure couldn’t maneuver around the British fleet that surrounded it, and the notorious Blackbeard was dead. Royal Navy lieutenant Robert Maynard returned to port in triumph, with the pirate’s decapitated head swinging from his ship’s bowsprit.
Believe it or not, this story is only the tip of the iceberg: Blackbeard — who was probably originally christened Edward Thach or Teach — lived a life of drama befitting a, well, pirate. Likely, the man who would become Blackbeard — so called because of his long black beard — started out as a privateer, essentially a pirate who answered to the British government, but like many privateers, Thach realized that being his own master would be more lucrative than working for the royal government. Some of the stories you’ve heard about the infamous criminal are true — he really did light matches under his hat to give him a demonic appearance in battle, and he successfully blockaded the port of Charleston to get a chest of medical supplies — but the real-life history of Blackbeard is as interesting as any invention.
Read This
ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE
For a simple, concise introduction to Blackbeard’s life and times, pick up Who Was Blackbeard? by James Buckley.
OK, there’s actually no evidence that Blackbeard (or, indeed, the majority of pirates) ever buried treasure — the event that pulls three time-traveling boys into Blackbeard’s wake in The Not-So-Jolly Roger by Jon Scieszka — but it’s easy to give a little suspension of disbelief to this wickedly funny pirate adventure.
The snappy, infographic-filled Pirates by Brian Williams is designed for flip-and-dip readers — you can learn a lot just scanning the pages for the bits that interest you.
HIGH SCHOOL
The captivating The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down by Colin Woodard is a great place to start a more engaged study of Blackbeard. Woodard focuses on the Golden Age of Piracy, in which Blackbeard and peers established organized government, and on former privateer Woodes Rogers, who helps bring down the developing pirate empire.
Maritime historian Baylus C. Brooks used DNA databases like Ancestry.com to trace the history of Edward Thrace in Quest for Blackbeard: The True Story of Edward Thache and His World, making a fairly convincing argument that the Jamaican resident — son of Capt. Edward and Elizabeth Thache — is the historical Blackbeard. Brooks turns a critical eye on pirate legend, trying to objectively recreate the world of colonial piracy.
If you want a gung-ho history of Blackbeard that paints the pirate as the first real American revolutionary, pick up Blackbeard: The Birth of America by Samuel Marquis. It’s a pro-pirate narrative that wears its biases on its sleeve — which might not be surprising since it’s penned by a descendant of another infamous pirate, Captain Kidd — but it can lend a little perspective to your reading list if you’re planning to read a few books. (Don’t make this your only book, though.)
Watch This
If you want to get a taste of the stereotypical version of Blackbeard, 1952’s Blackbeard the Pirate is a swashbuckling package of pirate nonsense tied up in an entertaining bow. It’s historically accurate only in the sense that it portrays historically hilarious stereotypes about the villains of the high seas.
The 2008 docu-series Real Pirates features Blackbeard along with some of his contemporaries — Captain Kidd, Captain Morgan, Mary Reed, and Anne Bonny — for an interesting look at the wider world of colonial-era piracy.
Do This
Listen to Horrible Histories’ “Blackbeard the Pirate” ditty, which includes verses like:
What my enemies feared
Was my thick, black beard
Which I always enjoyed
setting light to, oh
Play Merchants and Marauders, a board game that lets you choose between a career as a law-abiding merchant or a dastardly buccaneer. Make your fortune through savvy trade, carefully chosen missions, a little risk-taking, and the occasional plunder. (If your clan loves this game, it’s worth springing for the Seas of Glory expansion pack.)
This unit study was originally published in the fall 2018 issue of HSL.
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