Science Fiction Curriculum

Image via Wikipedia

on our big big list

Getting back to the originally promised topic. The girls. Due to some county school board issues, mostly zoning, we're going to start up the home school wagon this fall.

Having crazy-awesome kids is a blessing that I'm proud to share about. I'm looking forward to being a huge part of their education. I know it's something most parents don't get to do.

I do promise not drone on about all the details unless they pertain to my Science Fiction Daddy topics. And because I'm me; some of it will.

Red1 and I have already started planning out her reading lists for the year. We are making a plan to include a unit on all the Wizard of Oz books, play, films, etc. and another unit on Science Fiction. We're going to look for some award winning sci-fi standards but are open to suggestions. Remember we're in the fifth grade but at a very high reading level. Her favorites right now are the Rick Riordan novels about that Percy guy.

A couple of articles that we wanted to keep track of here:

• Inside Nova - family-tech-science-fiction
• NPR - mind-bending-sci-fi-books-for-a-fantastical-summer

Red2 who is going into second grade, is excited about the Paul Bunyan phenomena. I say phenomena, because after doing some research his story is pretty amazing. He's got it all. Humor and stories mostly, but look at all the geography packed in there. This is going to be fun.

It's all a game to me - Blogfest

Image via Wikipedia

$10 dollars at the toy store (circa 1981)

My favorite games of all time:

1. Mousetrap - the boardgame. This is the game I remember loving as a kid because I had to save up and buy it myself when I was about 10 years old.

Image via Wikipedia

2. Shadowrun - a roll-playing game we played in the early nighties for a few weeks. We had used up our enthusiasm for Dungeons and Dragons. Shadowrun, in a few words, is Blade Runner meets Dungeons and Dragons. Very cool. Requires your full attention and creativity.







3. Crazy 8's - the card game my mom taught me and my kids are learning. Best thing: No batteries.

READ Favorite Games in the "It’s All Fun & Games Blogfest"

My family chimes in:

Red1 - Howrse, Spore, and Sims 3

Red2 - Howrse, Zoo Tycoon, Spore Galactic Adverture

Mrs. SFDada - Solitaire, Gin Rummy, Sorry

Julia Wolcott Kiene

Bette and her mother, Julia Kiene, 1939.

J is for Julia.

Julia, my daughter is named after Julia Wolcott Kiene. Doing a quick search spawns a respectable amount of information about this woman which is pretty amazing to me. I never expected to be connected to such cool people, but you just start talking about your family with your elders (which I have started to become one, but this is "J" for Julia, not "O" for old or "G" for geezer).

Who was Julia Wolcott? She is best known for her work for Westinghouse in the 1940's and 1950's.

She wrote several cookbooks for Betty Furness and many Victory Garden booklets for families during WWII.

She has a patent or two and a scholarship fund in her name.

She was photographed and written about in Life Magazine.

She was a force to recon with and made huge contributions to society.

Just wait until we start talking about her mother.


Do you have amazing people in your family who have surprised you with amazing accomplishments?

Environmental Eleanor

Image via Wikipedia

Loved the stark look of the film adaptation.

Little did I know that while watching Katherine Hepburn in "The Lion of Winter", portray Eleanor of Aquitaine, I was seeing the story of my children's greatest grandmother. If the family histories recorded at ancestry.com are to be believed, their family links all the way back to the Grandmother of England.

I suppose there are truly thousands of descendants by now, so we'll work our way slowly back up the line with the magnifying glasses to inspect a little more closely at those little waving green leaves on the family tree at ancestry.com.

Looking back at my posts on the environment, you might get the impression that we're some sort of urban hippy wannabe's, well then I guess you'd be right. We do have worms in the backyard making good earth for the garden, or should I say Yarden? We planted edible shrubs in the front yard. We're not going to be eating the azaleas, we planted blueberry bushes. We were pleased to find out our neighbors had some already and more neighbors are interested in growing tomatoes and fig trees.

Related articles

• Harlequin ebooks to feature seven historical Royal weddings (teleread.com)

We Interrupt this blog... Part 2. Cool Beans.

December rolled along and we bounced through the holidays. Holiday visits, chorus events, vacationing with family. What happened in January was really, what rocked the boat most. Red1 became a blogger herself and I started actually getting real web work.

Betty and mother, Julia Kiene. 1939.

Red1 was at her grandfather's house looking through the cook books her great great grandmother wrote. My daughter's GGGrandmother is Julia Wolcott Kiene.

Ms. Kiene wrote several cook books for Westinghouse in the 1950's and according to the Amazon reviews, they are very much loved but out of print. Red1 said how much she'd like to try some of the recipes and her mother suggested that she write about her experiences and "blog her way through the cook book" like the Julie did with the Julia Childs book. We've been learning a lot more about Juila Kiene and will definitely be sharing some more terrific stories. Not everyone's great great grandmother was photographed and written about in Life magazine.