Hands-On Activities

Geronimo Stilton Adventure The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Mayan Craft)

July 31, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Your kids will be off to another Geronimo Stilton adventure when they read the next Geronimo Stilton books. The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time will delight your kids who love to time travel.

Too, I have a hands-on history LEGO temple craft which will keep your learners engaged.

Add in my Meso-America Lapbook about Ancient Maya and you have a full history and literature unit study.

Geronimo Stilton Adventure The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Mayan Craft)

Besides being a special edition book, the time machine will take your kids to learn about ancient Rome in 45 BC, the Maya Empire 1005, and to the Palace of Versailles in 1682 CE.

You could just use this wonderful book for reference about those history topics. I always have a great history encyclopedia close too if we want to do further research.

Although the fun and adventurous Geronimo Stilton is on another adventure, this book can be used for historical fiction.

Geronimo Stilton Books Reading Level

In addition, if you not heard about this fun series of books, here are some quick facts.

Geronimo Stilton is a fun loving and adventurous mouse who runs a newspaper. However, as he states his favorite activity is writing adventure stories.
The books are full of color pictures and crazy fonts. This may be distracting for some kids, but others love it.
Geronimo Stilton’s author is Elisabetta Dami who is an Italian author of children’s book. She also has a passion for archaeology and visiting historical places which she embeds in the books.
And the reading age is 7 to 10 years old.

The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Geronimo Stilton Special Edition)

And wow was this little book packed!

While it is a fun book with lots of great illustrations and font type, color, and size changes to keep it interesting for readers I love that it was so chock full of information.

Today, we focused on the Mayan civilization, but will come back to these other time periods in the book.

Back in Time, The Second Journey Through Time

Another tip, if you didn’t want your kids to read the entire book for the sake of time or because you have a reluctant reader is to focus on the middle section which is the Mayans.

Each story is distinctly broken up. You can have your children read the first part to find out how Geronimo travels.

Then skip to the Maya Civilization, saving the other parts for another unit study.

We incorporated history, art, science, reading, and more into this fun LEGO activity.

I was impressed by how much history is covered.

These are the things this section covers.

Exploring the Americas
Maps of the Yucatan Peninsula
Tropical Rainforest
Mayan Fashion and Customs
Chichen Itza
The Legend of The Mayan Sun god
Pok-Ta-Pok
Mysteries of the Maya

You’ll love learning just as much as your kids.

We put together a simple LEGO build to share that will help keep your kids engaged while you teach them all about the Mayans.

Here are some simple instructions but encourage your child to use critical thinking to put it together as well.

Challenge them to make it bigger and use the whole baseplate!

Geronimo Stilton – Build a LEGO Temple of Kukulcan

You will need:

A large LEGO baseplate
A couple handfuls of LEGO- Cream, brown, or yellow

If you don’t already have a collection of LEGO, look at the large creative box.

LEGO is an amazing learning tool for all ages and this is a good basic set to start with.

Even your teen will still love learning with them and creating.

Start by creating a base that is 10×10 studs wide on your baseplate.

So that is the little studs that stick up on top of the LEGO.

You can do it with a combination of 1×2, 2×2’s, and 2×4 sized bricks. They don’t all need to be the same.

Place your next layer leaving a border of 1 stud showing all the way around on your base layer.

Continue the same way, leaving a 1 stud border around 4 more times until your top is just 1 or 2 2×2 bricks stacked.

Create steps by centering 1×2 bricks all the way up.

Your pyramid of Kukulkan is done!

To extend this lesson a little bit I also challenged the kids to create rainforest animals using LEGO.

We used this page on rainforest animals for inspiration!

This little add on activity gives your kids some science and art with their history lesson and its fun to see what they come up with.

Look at the kids activities from the rainforest.

And the undergrowth..

Other Geronimo Stilton Books and Activities

You’ll love these other tips on the Geronimo Stilton books.

And if you love this book, check out Journey Through Time and the topics are how the dinosaurs became extinct, how the Great Pyramid of Giza was built, and what life was like at King Arthur’s court.

Also, if you have younger kids they’ll love this Geronimo Stilton 12 Inch Plush Doll Character while you read aloud. (adorable)

When I do these simple hands on activities I like to let the kids work on them while I am either doing a read aloud or showing a short video on our subject.

They absorb information while their hands work believe it or not!

To round out a mini study you could also use the book to…

Create other famous structures from Chichen Itza
Have them make a salt dough map of the Yucatan Peninsula
Create a list of resources from the rainforests
Taste test some of those treats from the rainforest (a multi sensory approach works great and kids will never forget where those items come from)
Create ancient Mayan fashion from scrap fabric
Look up vocabulary words from the pages like-cacao, artisanal, obsidian, toxins, etc…
Create a Mayan hut with popsicle stick
Make Mayan Flatbread
Create a Maya Calendar
Recreate their own version of Pok-a-Tok

Fun Pineapple Candle For Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

July 27, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Squeeze in more fun summer activities for middle schoolers by making this fun pineapple candle. Plus, there is more to homeschool middle school than just academic subjects.

Middle school kids love to do crafts year-round or do we call them activities.

Besides, this fun pineapple candle can be used in several ways.

Add it to a homeschool area, to your tween or teen’s room, or do it along with my huge Amazon Rain Forest Unit Study.

Fun Pineapple Candle For Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Too, pineapples are bromeliads and bromeliads grow in tropical areas. So, add this summer craft as another easy activity to your unit studies.

Fun Facts About Pineapples

Pineapple is neither a pine or an apple but are made up of lots of berries that have grown together.
Pineapples take 18-20 months to be ready for harvest.
Pineapple plants produce only one pineapple at a time.
Hawaii produces ⅓ of the pineapples in the world.
Pineapples actually originated in South America not in Hawaii like many think.
The pineapple is a symbol of hospitality.
The largest pineapple on record weighed a whopping 17.76 pounds.
The top of a pineapple can be replanted to grow a new pineapple plant.
Pineapple juice makes a great meat tenderizer.
Pineapple is a member of the Bromelioideae family and Ananas genus.
Pineapple plants grown between 3.3 feet and 4.9 feet in height.

Because summer isn’t over yet and there is still plenty of time for fun as well as learning before the temps start to cool a bit, let’s make this cute pineapple craft.

Summer Craft for Homeschool Middle School

This project is fairly easy and kid friendly with a few safety warnings and maybe a hand pouring of the hot wax for young children.

Too, if you love crafts, you may have several of these things on hand.

If not, add to your growing list of supplies by using the list below.

List of pineapple craft supplies.

Small Glass jar
Fake Succulent (Dollar Tree)
Soy Wax Beads
Yellow Candle Wax Colorant
Candle Wicks
Pineapple Fragrance Oil
Sharpie or Paint Pen
Glass microwavable container
Green paint

I like to use wax beads for a few reasons rather than cutting up a big slab of wax.

First, they melt faster and more evenly and second, they make it easy to measure the amount needed for irregular shaped containers like this one!

Also, you can buy an individual scent for your candle.

But when you purchase the variety pack it was a better deal than just getting one.

Plus, you will have plenty of wax beads left over from your bag to make other candles throughout the seasons.

How to Make a DIY Summer Pineapple Candle

Begin by taking a sharpie or paint pen and draw upside down V’s to create the spikes of a pineapple. Then let it dry.

Next, use green craft paint or spray paint to make the screw on the lid green, set aside to dry.

Fill your glass jar with beads where you want the top to be.

And add a few more tablespoons worth because as your beads melt they will fill in the spaces in between and you will have less than you did while they are whole.

Afterwards, place the wick down inside the jar and curl the excess around a pencil to keep it straight in the jar.

Then, pour your measured amount of wax beads and a small piece of yellow colorant into a microwave safe glass container.

Heat in 30 second increments until completely melted.

Shave off just a bit of your candle colorant and mix it. Continue to do this until your desired yellow shade is reached.

Stir in fragrance oil, again just keep adding and stirring until the scent strength you like is reached.

Carefully pour melted wax into your jar and let it cool completely.

Trim the wick with scissors to slightly shorter than the jar.

Finally, grab your jar lid and hot glue the plastic succulent to the top to create the crown.

Other Pineapple Themed Summer Fun Ideas

We really enjoyed this pineapple summer craft to help us finish up our summer and now we have a lovely home decor item that the kids have pride in creating and they beg for us to light.

Pineapples are delicious and they smell amazing, making them a great subject for this summer craft don’t you think?

More Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Geronimo Stilton The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid Barbie Mummy

July 25, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Geronimo Stilton The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid is another fun book in the series of Geronimo Stilton books. It is the second book in the series.

Elementary students will love taking their favorite Geronimo Stilton book and turning it into a mini unit study with a few hands-on activities.

The Curse of the Cheese Pyramid is another adventure for Geronimo Stilton. He is off to Egypt to the Great Cheese Pyramid.

Geronimo Stilton The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid Barbie Mummy

So, this hands-on activity I am sharing with you today, mummifying a Barbie gives kids a little bit more understanding of the mummification process.

And you can easily tie in science and history perfectly with the fun book The Curse of the Cheese Pyramid. Matter of fact most of the books highlight some kind of geography or history.

Even if your kids are older like middle or high school the same activity can be altered to make it a bit more challenging so that the whole family can join in.

Books Of Geronimo Stilton

If you don’t know about Geronimo Stilton books let me give you a quick little overview. The fun series is aimed at early readers or ages 7 to 10 years old

And they follow the many and varied adventures of Geronimo Stilton editor and publisher at The Rodent’s Gazette.

Too, they read similar to a graphic novel.

Geronimo Stilton Four Cheese Box Set (Books 1-4)

For instance, the words are highlighted in different fonts, sizes, and colors. The series make it an engaging read for kids.

They are silly and outlandish which makes it especially great for reluctant readers.

Another point about the different fonts and colors of words are that some are for emphasis.

However, quite a few make great lessons for vocabulary, spelling words, and introduction to the eight parts of speech.

So be sure to make note of the words for several chapters.

And have your child look up the words and make flashcards to round out this mini lesson.

You certainly can use this fun book as a spine for language arts. Too, you can use this spine as independent reading or for a read aloud.

Ancient Egypt Mummifying a Barbie Craft

However, one of the best parts of each book is that you can add hands-on activity as Stilton is always on a globe-trotting adventure.

Today, since Stilton is off to Egypt, we learned about mummies in Ancient Egypt

Look at this short list of supplies to make a Barbie mummy.

A Barbie or similar doll (we grabbed a cheap one from Dollar Tree)
Gauze
Cooking oil
Salt (we used Epsom since we had that)
large dish big enough for the body to lay in
Essential oils
Scissors and construction paper

First, we made a death mask from construction paper and laid it aside.

Your kids can get elaborate with this part or keep it simple.

Then we made simple canopic jars by drawing them on paper.

After drawing the jars, we cut them out and taped them into a tube shape.

A quick google search will show you what each of the four gods, Hapy, Imsety, Duamutef and Qebhsenef looked like and which housed which organs.

We also used our TOOB Organs to examine the organs closely,

Then, we laid them out and talked about each function as the kids pretended to extract the organ and place it in the canopic jars.

Barbie Mummy

Next, this portion of the activity can be done or finished while you read aloud.

Have your child finish the death mask. And let your child draw them with whatever art medium they choose. We used markers.

First, the brain was pulled out through the nose, but considered unimportant in ancient Egyptian times, it was just tossed out.

Then, the stomach, intestines, lungs, and liver were extracted and placed in the correct jar.

The heart stayed in place in the body. Use tweezers for this part and let them pretend they are extracting each part.

Next, Egyptians would cover the body in salt to remove all moisture, this would take weeks but for the sake of time we waited just a few minutes.

We used Epsom salt as we had a ton on hand already.

And then we placed our prepared body in a large tupperware container and covered it in salt as well as we could.

Finally, the body would be anointed with oils and wrapped,.

If you have some on hand add essential oils to a little bit of cooking oil to add to the sensory experience, pour over the entire body.

We tightly wrapped our Barbie head to toe and then affixed her death mask with a bit of tape.

Obviously, you know your child best and can include the parts that you would choose and gloss over those that might be too much for a younger child.

For example, for older children you can add ideas like labeling the organs, give them spelling and vocabulary words like sarcophagus, hieroglyphic, and etc.

Too, you can extend the lesson by having them give a presentation in front of the whole family on the mummification process.

Geronimo Stilton The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid covers everything from mummies to pyramids as well as mentions of camels, pharaohs, and the eye of RA, giving you a large base for a unit study.

I can’t wait to dig in a little deeper and share more hands on activities with you! What do you think? Are you going to add this to your list of hands-on activities?

Other Resources You’ll Love

Super Easy and Fun Aquarium Jar Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

July 24, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Your kids will love this fun aquarium jar craft for summer activities for middle schoolers. Whether you’re diving into a study about the oceans or doing a shark unit study, hands-on activities are the way to go. Also, look at my page homeschool middle school for more fun tips.

Either use an upcycled jar or a mason jar from Dollar Tree. This easy aquarium craft for summer activities for middle schoolers is a multisensory approach to learning.

Not all middle schoolers are at the same level of maturity, so a hands-on approach is effective at getting information in.

Super Easy and Fun Aquarium Jar Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

In addition, no matter how easy of a project, it can help the information stay in little growing brains.

When we study a particular topic I like to include as many hands-on activities as possible and they range from super simple to more involved.

In addition, with shark week looming I started brainstorming fun and easy ways to learn about sharks and other ocean creatures in a unique way.

Besides, this is easy enough to make for a fun summer activity or to use for a homeschool summer co-op.

Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

First, I gathered up some of our favorite books to fit the theme.

Ocean Anatomy,
Basher Ocean, and
The Big Book of Blue for reference.

We really enjoy the illustrations and the way the information is provided in simple little nuggets.

Next, before introducing the mini aquarium jar craft learn a few facts about the ocean.

For example, start with the fact that the ocean is a vast and mostly unexplored part of our Earth.

And it is filled with many beautiful and at the same time frightening creatures.

Encourage your child to be a marine biologist if just for the day.

Learn about a couple of creatures, their habits, feeding, characteristics, and what part they play in the oceans ecosystem.

Ocean Craft for Tweens

Have your middle schooler go through your ocean themed books. And the pile of plastic ocean animals. Choose just two to learn about. Here are the easy stipulations.

First, the animal had to fit in the small plastic mason jar from the Dollar Tree.

Second, the animal has to be one that your child is interested in learning about . This way he can research and learn about the animal for the rest of the assignment.

Although you may school year round, you can use assignments like this in summer to keep writing to a a minimal while sneaking in some learning through summer crafts.

Next, look at this easy list of supplies.

A smooth upcycled jar or plastic mason jar from Dollar Tree
Gravel or sand
Plastic ocean animals
A Hot glue gun
Distilled water
Essential oil or hand sanitizer

How to Make a Simple Jar Aquarium Ocean Craft

Begin by using a smooth upcycled jar or mason jar from Dollar Tree.

Sometimes the empty name brand jars have a good amount of writing and raised designs.

However, jars like spaghetti and pickle jars are good choices. Once you soak the label off they are usually smooth.

I pick up a couple of these plastic mason jars from Dollar Tree every so often because they are great for not only storage but also crafts.

Start by putting hot glue on the bottom of a piece of coral or plastic aquarium plant.

Press into the bottom of the jar.

And if you don’t have one in your plastic animals you can easily make some with craft foam.

They will stand upright and hold up to being soaked in water.

Next, add a layer of gravel or sand, just a bit to cover the bottom.

Next hot glue some of the animals in place.

We didn’t want our animals floating upside down or all piled up on the bottom.

And the glue shows very little through the jar.

We chose a giant squid and whale shark

Add just a tiny bit of hot glue and press them into place.

Once glue is cooled and hardened slowly add distilled water to ⅛” from the top of the jar.

You can add a bit of blue food coloring if you like too.

But previously we found that it made it too cloudy to see well.

Additionally to keep the water from going bad you can add a couple drops of antibacterial essential oil . Hand sanitizer works as well.

Add a bit of hot glue to the threads on the lid, Then, screw into place to keep it from leaking.

Finally, you can add quite a bit to this activity by watching a documentary.

Watch a document while your child puts the jar aquarium together

Too, create the mini aquarium during read aloud time with an ocean themed book keeps wiggly learners interest.

A few more ideas to make this fun are to use chalk pastels. Sketch your chosen animals for a fresh art piece.

Chalk pastels are more intriguing than everyday crayons. Also, have your child create a large model of their animal with paper mache.

What ocean crafts do you like doing during summer with your middle schoolers?

Other Ocean Crafts for Middle Schoolers

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

July 17, 2022 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I’m sharing how to make a fun paper mache American Robin bird craft. Whether you’re doing a summer or spring unit study, you’ll love this craft to go with my North American Robin Unit Study.

And because you can study about birds anytime of the years, this paper mache bird craft can be done anytime. Too, hand crafts stimulate the creativity and imagination of your children.

For younger children, having something to hold like this fun American Robin craft helps them to focus on what you’re teaching

Besides, this is a fun art project that your children will love and want to keep.

Further, once you learn this technique you can do this for any spring or summer birds you find in your yard.

Also, this fun bird craft would make a great gift idea.

So if you’re like us, one of our favorite spring and summer pastimes is sitting in the backyard watching the birds stop by our feeder.

Too, we are always sure to keep it stocked with seed and keep the bird bath clean and full to encourage their visits.

In addition, we have such a variety of beautiful birds that come to eat.

For example, we see cardinals, black capped chickadees, blue jays, Mockingbirds, Mourning Doves, American Robin’s, and many more.

Moreover, American Robins can be seen throughout the US year round and in a wide range of habitats besides your backyard.

Facts About the American Robin

They are spotted in city parks, forests, mountains, tundra, and fields.

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

If you look close you will notice that the males coloring is more intense while the females are a bit duller.

Robins like to build their nests among the dense leaves of trees but might also build their nest in a basket or light fixture on your front porch as well.

They love a wide variety of fruit as well as worms, insects, and sometimes even small snakes.

Next, these are two of my favorite nature reference books.

,And they have great bite sized tidbits of information, beautiful illustrations.

Too, while the Big Book of Birds especially is geared toward younger children middle schoolers really enjoy using it too!

The second one is Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of the Natural World.

North American Robin Unit Study

Next, you’ll love these other tips and resources for a spring or summer unit study.

Use the links for this unit study or any bird unit study.

Finally, look at this list of easy supplies.

Robin Crafts

Cardboard
Straight edge knife
newspaper
scissors
Glue
water
Sturdy craft wire
Masking tape
Craft paint- rust orange, gray, brown, black,and white
Paintbrushes

Directions:

Use a pencil to draw a general bird shape onto a piece of scrap cardboard. You want to use a thick corrugated box rather than something like a cereal box for strength.

Make it as big or as little as you like.

This first step helps form the base shape and support the paper mache. Cut it out using scissors or a straight edge.

Move on next to bend craft wire to form the legs and feet.

Fold the wire over several times on each section to be sure it’s sturdy enough.

Too, I tried taping these to the form but they did not stay on well. But I found that hot glueing them was quicker and sturdier.

Combine 2 parts glue to one part water and mix well.

We used watered down glue which works as well as old fashioned paper mache but dries a bit faster and is less likely to mold like the wet flour might.

Tear newspaper into 1” or less strips, and make them just a little longer than the widest part of your bird form.

Ball up smaller pieces of newspaper and attach it to the sides of your form with masking tape to create a little more body and define the basic shape.

Dip your paper strips into the glue mixture, dragging it across the edge of your bowl to remove some of the excess.

Begin covering your structure with strips, alternating directions, and thickness to complete the shape of your bird.

Be sure to smooth each layer to avoid getting too much bumpy texture on your finished product.

Allow to dry completely. This will likely take a couple days to be sure it is dry through all the layers.

Once dry, you are ready to begin painting and adding personality to your little bird.

Mix a bit of gray and black paint to get the color of the back. You may find the perfect chest color in your paints already, but we mixed a bit of terra cotta and brick red to get ours.

We found the easiest order to paint our American Robin in was by first painting the gray brown back of the bird, then the black capped head and finally the rust brown underbelly and beak,. letting each section dry about 15 minutes between each.

When the paint is completely dry add some details with white like the eyes and some feather details.

You can use this tutorial to make any type of bird you like!

Just change up the shape slightly and choose whatever paint colors you need to customize your creation.

Spend some time before or after this craft looking up pictures of American Robin babies in the nest, listening to their calls, sketching the pictures in your notepad, and reading through some fun books to turn this craft into a mini unit study!

Hands-On Activities

Geronimo Stilton Adventure The Journey Through Time #2: Back in Time (Mayan Craft)

Geronimo Stilton Books Reading Level

Back in Time, The Second Journey Through Time

Geronimo Stilton – Build a LEGO Temple of Kukulcan

Other Geronimo Stilton Books and Activities

Fun Pineapple Candle For Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Fun Facts About Pineapples

Summer Craft for Homeschool Middle School

How to Make a DIY Summer Pineapple Candle

Other Pineapple Themed Summer Fun Ideas

More Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Geronimo Stilton The Curse of The Cheese Pyramid Barbie Mummy

Books Of Geronimo Stilton

Ancient Egypt Mummifying a Barbie Craft

Barbie Mummy

Other Resources You’ll Love

Super Easy and Fun Aquarium Jar Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Ocean Craft for Tweens

How to Make a Simple Jar Aquarium Ocean Craft

Other Ocean Crafts for Middle Schoolers

How to Make a Fun Paper Mache American Robin Bird Craft

Facts About the American Robin

North American Robin Unit Study

Robin Crafts

Directions:

Categories

Archives

Hands-On Activities

Geronimo Stilton Books Reading Level

Back in Time, The Second Journey Through Time

Geronimo Stilton – Build a LEGO Temple of Kukulcan

Other Geronimo Stilton Books and Activities

Fun Facts About Pineapples

Summer Craft for Homeschool Middle School

How to Make a DIY Summer Pineapple Candle

Other Pineapple Themed Summer Fun Ideas

More Fun Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Books Of Geronimo Stilton

Ancient Egypt Mummifying a Barbie Craft

Barbie Mummy

Other Resources You’ll Love

Craft For Summer Activities for Middle Schoolers

Ocean Craft for Tweens

How to Make a Simple Jar Aquarium Ocean Craft

Other Ocean Crafts for Middle Schoolers

Facts About the American Robin

North American Robin Unit Study

Robin Crafts

Directions:

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