south america

South America Unit Study–Vocabulary & Copy work

October 15, 2013 | 3 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today I have the next part of our unit study on South America ready. I have vocabulary words and copy work.

Because I had to get so many last minute details done for the party and because I have been working with Tiny on composition this year, I wanted to keep the vocabulary words fun too instead of listening to the whining and moaning doing lots of writing.

So I made the words to be used in one of two ways. You can cut them out, fold in half, glue and use like flash cards. The word is on the front and the definition is on the back. Or, you can cut the strip in half and do a mix/match where you have them match the word to the definition. Either way is a lot more fun than writing, which right now Tiny has an aversion to.

Today, he will be doing some easy copy work. We read a short passage or a letter, a primary source, written by Simon Bolivar about how he wanted to unite South America. So it was perfect to use for our copy work.

You know I told you that I have all my boys do copy work for a long time, even into high school and that I sneak some in too for myself at night. I am a true believer and fan of copy work because you can just concentrate on the beauty of words or ideas at the moment and can either be inspired or not. There is no analysis or etymology, it is just you and the delight of words. It’s a way too of igniting a love of writing and vocabulary for a victim of burnout.

Enjoy the newest printables for our unit study. I will be working on getting my photos together of our graduation party so I can share with you and getting my house whipped back into some kind of shape today.

South America Printable Minibooks

Also, look at these minibooks which come in the free South America lapbook 27 page download.

Animals of the Galapagos fan book which includes the Giant Tortoise, Lava Lizard, Marine Iguana, Green Turtle, Galapagos Penguins, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Blue-Footed Booby, and Blue-Banded Goby.
Comparing Mountain Climate Zones
Simon Bolivar Copywork
Map of South America to label and one labeled
Machu Picchu – Lost City of the Inca
Negrinho – A dessert from Brazil
How to Memorize the Countries of South America and Dependent
Map Flags to put on your salt dough map
2 – The Galapagos Island layered book. One prefilled with facts and one blank to add your own information.
Vocabulary Pocket and Vocabulary Words

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my subscribers library and this freebie.

However, not all my freebies are in the library (wink).

I like to keep up to date with what is valuable to you so I can give you more, some freebies you must sign up again on the form below even if you are already a follower.

And it’s the only way I have of freely delivering them to you. Just follow the steps below.

► 1) Sign up on my list.
► 2) Go to your inbox and confirm your email from the automatic reply I sent you. If you’re already a confirmed subscriber, you will not have to do this. You’ll receive the freebie instantly.
►3) Last step. look for my reply AFTER you’ve confirmed your email.

How to Memorize the Countries of South America & Mountain Climate Zones Minibooks

October 3, 2013 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I went ahead and started planning and arranging the minibooks, that we have so far, on a file folder for our South America Unit Study. Remember these can be glued notebook style too. Nothing babyish about lapbooking or notebooking.

We still don’t glue them in our file folder at this point, this is just a visual so I know where else to place the upcoming minibooks too. We are up to 4 now.

Today, I have minibooks 3 and 4 for you.

Minibook 3 is Comparing Mountain Climate Zones. It is a book I prepared because I wanted us to focus on the climate of the Andes Mountain and compare them for our geography niche on this.

Near the equator the climate at the lowest elevation is tropical. If you were to climb midway up the mountains, you would find a more mild climate and then again at 15,000 feet you would find extremely low temperatures and icy winds.

Facts to Learn About South America

Notice on the book, the cover has 4 different colors so this is a visual to match the accordion fold minibook so that your child understands about each zone. The top part or light purple is the Tierra Helada and the light green is Tierra Fria and etc.

So here are the facts for using in the minibook. I probably should do an answer key to go with the book, but this information really finds it way to my website. So I just add it here for you in case you and the kids want to go ahead and do it.

Frozen Land or Tierra Helada .

Above 10,000 feet
Place for livestock like llamas and sheep

Cold Land or Tierra Fria

6,000 – 10,000 feet
Place for crops: Wheat, apples, potatoes and barley

Temperate Land or Tierra Templada

3,000 – 6,000 feet
Place for crops: corn, cotton, coffee and citrus fruits

Hot Land or Tierra Caliente

Sea Level – 3,000 feet
Place for crops: bananas, cacao, sugar cane and rice.

How to Remember the Countries of South America

Minibook 4 is a book that uses a mnemonic saying to remember the 12 countries and the one 1 French territory. Give me something that doesn’t make sense anytime to remember and that is what I will remember.

Too, help your child to understand that French Guiana is a territory like a state is here to us in the United States. If you don’t live here, then use one of your local provinces to describe a dependent area so they understand that it is not a country.

This came from a neat website called Memorize the World. Here is how it goes: The Biggest Country (Brazil). Arnie Takes his mom Tina to eat Chile. (Argentina and Chile). Cool Vegetable Guy Studies French (Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana). Every Person Boils Purple Unicorns. (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivar, Paraguay and Uruguay.) That’s it.

Project and Study Ideas for South America

To flesh out this unit some more, here are more ideas for each subject. There is NO shortage of content or ideas to spur your sparks of creativity. Unit studies have this affect on us.

How to Memorize the Countries of South America & Mountain Climate Zones Minibooks

Nazca Lines – The Monkey

Nazca Lines – The Dog (Pic Attribution)

History

Nazca is the name of the culture that flourished in Peru and also the name of the mysterious lines they created in the Peruvian deserts. These lines, carved into the desert rocks depict huge animals and geometric shapes. No one is really certain about what they mean.

Also, compare and contrast Inca society to Spanish colonial society.

Science

Research the Galapagos Islands and the animals unique to that region.

Math

Why did Ecuador change its currency from sucres to dollars? Also understand some about the metric system since its used there.

Geography

1. Create a travel brochure and map to show what journey you would take if you visited South America. Compare and contrast animals and plants living in the different mountain zones.

2. Also list some of the famous places like Machu Picchu in Peru. Indians build that walled city and for hundreds of years it was hidden from the rest of the world.

3. Famous places. People go to see the Gold Museum in Bogota, Colombia and there are emerald mines nearby too.

4. Quito is one of the highest cities in the world and it in Ecuador. It sits on the side of a volcano and is the oldest capital city in South America.

5. Make a map of South America and focus on the major regions: Andes, Amazon Basin, Guiana Highlands, Orinoco Basin, Rio de la Plata Complex, Brazilian Plateau, Pampas, Patagonia, Llanos, Pantanal, Wet Coast Flatlands, Southern Chile coast and color each a different color or make it different colors using salt dough.

Art

Find examples of the art of Manuel Rendon, Eduardo Kingman and Juan Agustin Guerrero.

Music

Research flutes played by native people from Ecuador. Listen to or watch an Argentinean tango, a Brazilian samba and a Colombia cumbia.

Did I tell you that I grew up dancing the cumbia? BELIEVE me, coordination and grace are not at the top of my skill set, but this dance is so easy and fun.

Look at a few of these videos. I love the first one because you can actually hear the music and watch the partner steps and the second one shows basic steps with no music.

Food

Make Fried Plantain

Colombians often eat plantains in place of potatoes.

(Cesar Vellejo)

Language/Language Arts

1. Cesar Vallego (1892-1938) one of the greatest twentieth century poets focused on poverty and injustice. Study his poems and his life.

2. Learn some Spanish

si = yes

por favor = please

gracias – thank you

de nada – you’re welcome

buenos dias = good morning

adios = good – bye

ayer = yesterday

hoy = today

manana = tomorrow

Como esta usted? = How are you?

muy bien = very well

Donde esta…..? = Where is…?

(quipu. Pic. Attribution)

3. Do some Inca Writing. Find a picture of a quipu, the knotted cotton cords of different lengths and colors with which Incas kept records. Using thick yarn, try to imitate the pattern.

I think we need some vocabulary words and we are going to focus next on some of the animals of the Galapagos.

South America Printable Minibooks

Also, look at these minibooks which come in the free South America lapbook 27 page download.

Animals of the Galapagos fan book which includes the Giant Tortoise, Lava Lizard, Marine Iguana, Green Turtle, Galapagos Penguins, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Blue-Footed Booby, and Blue-Banded Goby.
Comparing Mountain Climate Zones
Simon Bolivar Copywork
Map of South America to label and one labeled
Machu Picchu – Lost City of the Inca
Negrinho – A dessert from Brazil
How to Memorize the Countries of South America and Dependent
Map Flags to put on your salt dough map
2 – The Galapagos Island layered book. One prefilled with facts and one blank to add your own information.
Vocabulary Pocket and Vocabulary Words

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my subscribers library and this freebie.

However, not all my freebies are in the library (wink).

I like to keep up to date with what is valuable to you so I can give you more, some freebies you must sign up again on the form below even if you are already a follower.

And it’s the only way I have of freely delivering them to you. Just follow the steps below.

Negrinho From Brazil–South America Unit Study

September 29, 2013 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Today, I am sharing a dessert recipe called Negrinho from Brazil. Also, look at my page South America Unit Study Resources and Free Lapbook.

Tiny made this as we continue on in our study of South America.

You know how we often sneak in some baking or cooking and call it history or is that social studies? We found a recipe where we had just about had all the ingredients on hand, so we whipped this up.

The book we used said that Brazilian children often make Negrinho to share with their friends at parties.

It was such an easy recipe with just a few key ingredients. Of course , it didn’t call for chocolate chips, but a little extra chocolate didn’t hurt. Well, it did call for sweetened cocoa. So we added both.

I have to admit that I have not given Tiny as much time behind the stove as I have with the other boys. Maybe its something with him being the last kid so this was a perfect chance to increase his cooking skills.

He actually is similar to Mr. Senior 2013. They both like to be cooking or at least interested in eating it. A little chocolate dessert helps to spur on those skills.

One mistake we made in making it that we won’t make next time is not letting it cook long enough. The minute the chocolate chips were finished, we were ready to eat the stuff. So instead of balls at the end, we had one long river of ewwwwy gooey chocolate goodness.

He tried to form balls but we had to put it in the refrigerator to help out. Then we ate REAL fast.

He wasn’t so sure he would liked his own cooking……………

but one bite and he was sold. It was super sweet, but sooooo good.

We love walnuts and not so much a fan of coconut, so we rolled ours in some chopped walnuts.

Absolutely delicious!! Let me know if you try it.

South America Printable Minibooks

Also, look at these minibooks which come in the free South America lapbook 27 page download.

Animals of the Galapagos fan book which includes the Giant Tortoise, Lava Lizard, Marine Iguana, Green Turtle, Galapagos Penguins, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Blue-Footed Booby, and Blue-Banded Goby.
Comparing Mountain Climate Zones
Simon Bolivar Copywork
Map of South America to label and one labeled
Machu Picchu – Lost City of the Inca
Negrinho – A dessert from Brazil
How to Memorize the Countries of South America and Dependent
Map Flags to put on your salt dough map
2 – The Galapagos Island layered book. One prefilled with facts and one blank to add your own information.
Vocabulary Pocket and Vocabulary Words

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

1) Sign up on my list.
2) You’ll instantly be directed to download the printable.
3) Last, look for my emails in your inbox as a follower. Glad to have you following me!

South America Unit Study– Colorful Free Printable Map

September 16, 2013 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I just wanted to remind you before I move on with our unit study that my site now has over 30 lapbooks.

Now that I got Monday morning business out of the way, I wanted to share the next part to our South America unit study that we are on right now, which is a map.

We have just been using our atlases and books from the library on this unit study and started off by locating the countries and landforms of South America.

South America Colorful Map

We love doing the salt dough map, but this paper printable map I created also gives us a place to jot down other landforms, the capitals and even natural resources. Plus, we can stick this baby in our lapbook to come back and study too.

I have 2 maps or choices like I always try to do.

One is labeled with the countries for our sweet little ones that can’t write yet and sweet big ones that don’t want to ..tee hee hee (Ok, sometimes you just don’t need tons of writing to try to make it fun) and then I have one that is not labeled, which is the one pictured above. As always, you decide what is best for your brood.

I have some websites and key vocabulary words and of course some more ideas for hands-on coming up on this unit study too.

It’s been too long since I have shared an inspirational quote. I received a book, a gift from a dear homeschooling mom which has 365 quotes in it and I read one quickly every morning. It like a mini-energy vitamin for the day because it sets my mind on fire. Here is one I heart today:

“If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success.”

John D. Rockefeller

So true! Isn’t that what we are doing today?

South America Unit Study– Colorful Free Printable Map

South America Printable Minibooks

Also, look at these minibooks which come in the free South America lapbook 27 page download.

Animals of the Galapagos fan book which includes the Giant Tortoise, Lava Lizard, Marine Iguana, Green Turtle, Galapagos Penguins, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Blue-Footed Booby, and Blue-Banded Goby.
Comparing Mountain Climate Zones
Simon Bolivar Copywork
Map of South America to label and one labeled
Machu Picchu – Lost City of the Inca
Negrinho – A dessert from Brazil
How to Memorize the Countries of South America and Dependent
Map Flags to put on your salt dough map
2 – The Galapagos Island layered book. One prefilled with facts and one blank to add your own information.
Vocabulary Pocket and Vocabulary Words

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my subscribers library and this freebie.

However, not all my freebies are in the library (wink).

I like to keep up to date with what is valuable to you so I can give you more, some freebies you must sign up again on the form below even if you are already a follower.

And it’s the only way I have of freely delivering them to you. Just follow the steps below.

South America Geography Salt Dough Map + Printable Pennants

September 8, 2013 | 19 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Tiny never gets his fill of doing something fun and hands-on when we start a geography unit. We did a salt dough map in our Arctic & Inuit Unit Study and he remembered and ask for it again to start our South America Unit Study. Too, look at my page Homeschool Geography for hands-on and simple ideas and tips.

Why mess with something working? Besides after you make it, you can use it again and again as review during the unit study. It’s so much more fascinating and interactive than a worksheet too.

Before I forget though I want to update the salt dough recipe I had used before because it was wayyy too much. So I cut it in half this time and still had plenty left over.

We tend to use left over pizza box lids as our platform and unless you are going to make your salt dough map giganto, you should be fine with this new recipe. Of course, you can double it if you need more.

So here is the update recipe for you which is all the ingredients cut in half. If you want to see how we create it, look at my post on the Arctic & Inuit Unit Study.

Also, a really good map is needed and we had a big map that pulled out of the center of our atlas. This was really way more helpful than just printing one off the internet.

Since we are working on identifying more of the landforms, we wanted to draw those in and so Tiny use the most complicated tools

—like a toothpick and plastic clay roller —to draw in the political boundaries of each country. Simple I am telling you, so simple to keep it fun.

Remember you have to draw in your land forms and place a toothpick in the holes before it dries overnight.

We also took time to look at the Amazon and some of it’s tributaries and used the toothpick to draw it going through Brazil (top right) and he formed the Galapagos Islands on the left side.

Tiny only put one island there though there are many islands that Charles Darwin investigated. Of course this is why it’s important that he learn to use the map to see that the Galapagos are made up of many islands and not just one.

Then next we went about locating the Andes mountain range.

He had the idea of forming little peaks or mountains down the left side to show the stretch of the Andes mountains. I think they turned out so cute, but he was disappointed. Tiny is like Mr. Senior 2013, he has a high standard for his work and expects perfection. I just expect fun.

Of course after he painted the peaks brown they did look like chocolate kisses which gave me another idea. This map could be made out of sugar cookie dough and use chocolate Hershey kisses for the mountains. Use frosting to decorate each country and make this edible.

Then because we are working on identifying/locating all the countries and one French territory, and Galapagos Islands, I created some country flags or pennants. Not only that, but by him painting each country a separate color, it really has helped to identify each one, which is another objective of mine.

Lastly, he labeled it and added in the equator and showed it running through Ecuador, which in Spanish means “equator”. We still need to add in the Tropic of Capricorn.

Tiny has loved doing these maps each time and it is a great way to bring geography and history alive. I guess you can say we never tire of hands-on geography and fun sets the tone for learning.

More to come as we trek our way through South America.

South America Printable Minibooks

Also, look at these minibooks which come in the free South America lapbook 27 page download.

Animals of the Galapagos fan book which includes the Giant Tortoise, Lava Lizard, Marine Iguana, Green Turtle, Galapagos Penguins, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Blue-Footed Booby, and Blue-Banded Goby.
Comparing Mountain Climate Zones
Simon Bolivar Copywork
Map of South America to label and one labeled
Machu Picchu – Lost City of the Inca
Negrinho – A dessert from Brazil
How to Memorize the Countries of South America and Dependent
Map Flags to put on your salt dough map
2 – The Galapagos Island layered book. One prefilled with facts and one blank to add your own information.
Vocabulary Pocket and Vocabulary Words

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my subscribers library and this freebie.

However, not all my freebies are in the library (wink).

I like to keep up to date with what is valuable to you so I can give you more, some freebies you must sign up again on the form below even if you are already a follower.

And it’s the only way I have of freely delivering them to you. Just follow the steps below.

south america

South America Unit Study–Vocabulary & Copy work

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

How to Memorize the Countries of South America & Mountain Climate Zones Minibooks

Facts to Learn About South America

How to Remember the Countries of South America

Project and Study Ideas for South America

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Negrinho From Brazil–South America Unit Study

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

South America Unit Study– Colorful Free Printable Map

South America Colorful Map

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

South America Geography Salt Dough Map + Printable Pennants

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

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south america

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

Facts to Learn About South America

How to Remember the Countries of South America

Project and Study Ideas for South America

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

South America Colorful Map

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

South America Printable Minibooks

More South America Unit Study Resources

How to Get the Free South America Printable Lapbook

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