Educational Legos

This solar powered Ferris wheel was made using the eLab Renewable Energy Set. We also enjoy using the Simple Machines Set and the Motorized Elementary Engineering Level II. These sets are not cheap, but they are both educational and fun. I like that they include building instructions for many projects and that they are packaged in containers which keep pieces organized and easy to find. All of these sets and many other cool educational products can be found at www.legoeducation.com. (I'm looking at this and this for Mr. O's birthday in March.)

an update: coats 2 and 3

Here was the first. There may be more to come...

two sites we like lately...

Starfall.com -- free games, movie clips and interactive books for beginning readers

BrainPop.com -- short, educational cartoon-like clips on every topic under the sun. not free, but we feel like it has been worth the yearly subscription

cobalt blue in the afternoon

Aiden was inspired by Joseph Marioni's Liquid Light Exhibit at the McNay Art Museum, so he thought he would give the process a try.


I was inspired by my son's first layer of cobalt blue and by the light and the long shadows of the afternoon.

This is the first of at least three layers of color. I'll keep you updated on his progress. :-)

Sunday at the McNay

We went to see the George Rickey Kinetic Sculpture Exhibit one more time before it leaves the McNay on January 11. We so love this work, we wish it could be a permanent exhibit. It is amazing to see how the art so completely captivates all who see it. It was crowded yesterday, but that made it even more fun, because I enjoyed watching the reactions of people, young and old, to the movement of the sculptures. There were smiles and looks of wonder on all who saw the art. Wow! Since the Rickey Exhibit is just visiting, I could not take any pictures. Here is a non-Rickey work that was fair-game...


This is a small-scale model of Philip Grausman's 14-foot stainless steel, outdoor sculpture commissioned by the McNay.

a walk in the park...

It's 2009! Celebrate a year of science...

I was already planning to concentrate on science more with the boys this year, so I was excited to learn about this website while listening to today's Science Friday on NPR. cool stuff.