Virtual Field Trips - Meet Me At the Corner

Looking for virtual field trips? Meet Me At the Corner is a fun website which focuses on sharing short, educational videos which get kids thinking about a wide variety of topics.

I've been receiving the Meet Me At the Corner virtual field trips newsletter for several months now and I've been really impressed with the range of topics. Recent topics include:

• Canine Companions for Independence
• Falconry at the United States Air Force Academy
• An American Cowboy Interview
• Homing Pigeons

These all sound great to me. It's too bad that my computer is not letting me view the videos - hopefully you'll have better luck. Upcoming topics sound great too and include: Cable Cars; The History of Chemistry; and Wolf Rescue.

As well as the videos, Meet Me At the Corner provides related websites, quizzes, and reading suggestions to accompany the virtual field trips. You can also submit your own field trips to share with other homeschooling families and there are lessons on how to make a podcast.

Do you have another virtual field trip site to share? What do you think about virtual field trips compared to live field trips?

3 Classic Reads for Animal Lovers

I find myself coming back again and again to read classic books, books I read many years ago. Below are three books I highly recommend for the animal-lover in you, or the animal-lover in your life.

#1 - My Family and Other Animals
Reading Gerald Durrell's classic book as a teen had me longing for a life far from school with the freedom to explore island nature. Gerald's family are hilarious eccentrics who leave a dreary life in England to escape to Corfu. The descriptions of all the characters in this book and the events brought on by the animals in Gerald's little zoo never fail to make me smile. I'm pretty fond of The Maggenpies, the puppies called Widdle and Puke, and the mother scorpion who one day escapes onto the lunch table to cause mayhem amongst family and dinner guests. It's a great read for anyone with a love of animals and a taste for human eccentricities.
Find My Family and Other Animals at Amazon.com.

#2 - All Creatures Great and Small
James Herriot was a young, unsuspecting and inexperienced vet who arrived one day in Yorkshire, England ready to be interviewed for his first position, only to discover that his eccentric future-boss Siegfried wasn't even at home. Despite the hardships of being a farm vet in the Yorkshire Dales, James finds that there are many compensations, including the wonderful people and the fresh open aired countryside. As in the previous book, you really feel like you are visiting the author's place and seeing things through his eyes. Look out though, the Yorkshire Dales might capture your heart, like they did mine!
Find All Creatures Great and Small at Amazon.com

#3 - Your Recommendation
Try as I might, I couldn't think of just one more book to recommend. I have memories of many more wonderful reads, but the above two are the only animal books which have remained in my book collection for several decades. I'm always open to discover a new favorite book. What is your favorite nature or animal read? Which book do you come back to?

If you liked this you might like:

• Kids Science books for Spring.
• Natural Science Foundation.
• Five lazy ways to compost - part 2 - worms.
  

My Family and Other Animals

My Family and Other Animals
I've never met a more eccentric homeschooling family than Gerald Durrell's. Many homeschool families have one or two pets, a few have lots of animals, but I dare say I'll never meet a family with as many animals as Gerald Durrell ended up with. Unless of course you know better. Go on, I dare you to let me know all about your menagerie. Or what about the special pets you had growing up?

As a teen I dreamed of the freedom Gerald Durrell had as he ran wild on the island of Corfu, filled his home with nature, and shocked his family with great frequency. I felt dejected with him when he was given a stuffy tutor, rejoiced with him when he escaped, and most of all laughed with him at all his family's antics. I rescued baby birds from our cat and raised them (with mixed success). I took my dog everywhere with me, except for school, where of course she was not allowed. At one time or another I've kept every category of pet that appears in my poll list, apart from large animals.

I wanted my kids to grow up with pets. When Game Boy was 3 years old we brought two rescue cats into our lives. Being the disorganized person that I am, I can't find a photo of Big Cat to share. Let's say he looks like Dewey over there on the left, except he's tabby, not orange. Big Cat and Princess Kitty are still with us 9 years later. We've had our ups and downs with them. I thought maybe two cats would be enough to satisfy us, but I was wrong. Current pet list: Big Cat, Princess Kitty, Goldie, Sweetie Girl and Huffy Girl, The Hissers, and 4 minnows rescued from being live bait.

What animals do you share your home with? One cat, two dogs, a flock of birds, a hamster, a tarantula, caterpillars and spiders? I want to hear. Have you blogged about the animals that share your life? What part do your animals play in your homeschooling? What lessons have you learned from them? I'd like to link to you. Leave me the keyword/s to search your blog and find what you've written and complete my poll if you're so inclined. Will dogs or cats win? Or are homeschoolers into exotics or furries?

Readers who shared about their pets:

• springtreeroad who homeschools with cats and rabbits (wild) - link 1, link 2, link 3.
• jugglingpaynes has cats and includes cats on her fun homeschool comic strip - read about her cats.
  
• Who We Are......... shares her homeschool family life with cats Precious and Smudge, Toasty the budgie, and 2 fish. Her hubby does not like cats.
• Wendy has 5 cats inside and one outside. At her blog she shares the story of Pepper's first litter.
• Deborah has a dog and a guinea pig.
• Scrappymom and Family! has a lonely zebra finch named Spot!
• Randi has a dog, a cat and a teen daughter who sounds like Artist Girl - she can't wait to get her own house and fill it with animals!
  

Handyman Hubby is just growing into liking our cats after 9 years! He really feels bad for them when they get sick, which has happened more than I'd care for. And I thought moggy cats would be healthier!