Aussie Fauna Silkworms {Review}

Silkworms have been a part of my childhood so when I saw an add on Facebook for Aussie Fauna Silkworms I just had to contact them to find out more.  This review has taken Paul and I down memory lane for the last couple of months and provided practical life cycle observation for Nathaniel.  As a child it was something we used to do annually at school and I was pretty pleased that we had a huge Mulberry tree in our back yard. This activity at school was one we did among ourselves and had nothing to do with school.  It was purely driven among the students and it contains such fond memories that it's an experience I've wanted my children to enjoy.  Upon further research at Aussie Fauna Silkworms I discovered their Silkworms in the Classroom Program and after chatting to them they blessed our family with a Premium Teacher's Pack to review.

What we received
Premium Teacher's Pack Includes:

• 100 Silkworm EggsThese eggs have been wintered and are ready to develop into silkworms. 
• 500g Silkworm chow - Chow is a powdered form of mulberry leaves from Europe and contains the highest nutritional value for your Silkworms and is available all year round. This product makes looking after your silkworms super easy if you do not have access to a Mulberry tree.  It is easy to make.  You mix with water and cook.  Feeding the worms involves piping some chow into their container for consumption.
• Customized book: Silkworm Life-cycle Lessons and Activities Plan: Linked to the Australian National Teaching Curriculum -
• A1(59.4 cm x 84.1 cm) sized Silkworm Life Cycle Poster -This poster is a gorgeous full colour poster printed on high quality paper.  It contains a combination of actual photographs and drawings of the six stages of the life cycle of a Silkworm along with a short sentence about each stage.
• Piping bag for silkworm chow - This is made of a strong durable thick plastic
• Petri dish to hatch eggs - our worms and kego lived in here for the first week after hatching.
• Plastic mesh for kego (baby silkworms) transfer between feeding.  Full instructions are contained in the book and the care sheet.
• Hatching/care instructions A4 sheet. This sheet contains photo instructions on how to use the mesh and silkworm chow on one side and care instructions on the other.
• Available support throughout duration of classroom project.

Aussie Fauna was established in 2012.  All the silkworms are bred in a veterinary approved facility here in Australia ensuring that the eggs and worms are all well cared for and in excellent health.

How we used our kit
Our kit arrived within 48 hours of ordering via courier delivery.  The kit contained everything we needed to raise the silkworms including a quick start guide to help us know what to do with our worms once they hatched and a food source. Caring for silkworms is a relatively easy process and once the worms are a little bigger easy for the children to participate in their care. We read the quick start guide which contained all the information we needed on silk worm care and feeding. The only item we had to provide was a shoe box.  We also collected a couple of toilet rolls and egg boxes for the worms to spin their cocoons in. We learned that silkworms need an environmental temperature of around 25 - 27 degrees Celsius and approximately 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness to develop well.  It was fun watching them wake up when we opened up the box each morning.

I would like to share a photo journal of our silkworm life cycle journey.

The eggs arrived in a petri dish along with a wire mesh to use with the Silkworm Chow.  We took our eggs along with us on holidays and found a mulberry tree near our accommodation. As the day for hatching got closer we added a small mulberry leaf to the Petri dish. There were over 100 eggs around 2 mm in diameter.

Newly hatched silkworm which is known as a kego. (29 October 2016)

They are the tinniest worms (kego) I have ever seen! They hatch hungry and eat so very much.  We were stunned at how quickly they consumed the leaves we added to the dish every day.  In fact they grew so quickly that we could look at them in the morning and see a difference in them by lunch time.

Silkworm eggs after hatching along with plenty of frass.

4 days old - Ravenous Silkworm babies (2 November)

Their care involved removing the leaf skeletons and frass (droppings) and adding in fresh leaves. We had almost 150 silkworms.

4 days old - 2 November 2016

Caring for them when they were super tiny was easy. We placed fresh mulberry leaves on top of their depleted food source. They would climb onto the new leaf and eat their way around. We would remove the new leaf with the babies and then clean out their container. We used a paintbrush to remove any stragglers.

The most interesting part of the whole process was watching their exponential growth and it was not long before they graduated to a cardboard shoe box.

30 days old - 28 November 2016

The quantity of food and exponential growth is staggering. Paul made a time lapse of them eating a leaf in ten minutes. Whenever we gave them fresh leaves to consume you could actually hear them eating!

At a month old the head and six legs

Pseudopods

Silkworm Skin

38 days old the first worm was ready to start spinning (6 December)

Collecting fresh mulberry leaves became a daily adventure. On day 38 (6 weeks) our first worm began to spin. It was so very exciting. We removed the worm from the shoe box and placed it in an egg container so it had three points of contact in order to anchor it's thread to enable it to spin a cocoon. Some of our worms took almost two weeks longer to reach this point.

Upon completing the cocoon it's time to de-floss and remove the extra bits of silk and store the cocoons.

De-flossed cocoons

Hatched three weeks later.

Mating Silkworm Moths (28 December)

We learned so much watching the life cycle of the Silkworms. I have a few more photographs about our journey which I will be sharing next week.

About the book

• This book is a soft cover book 
• Written by Sarah Tuckfield and Dr. Brett De Poister  
• ISBN 978-0-646-96090-6
• Linked to The Australian National Teaching Curriculum.  
• Divided into different school year levels
• Full Colour photography is throughout the book.  Beautiful enlarged photographs of every stage of the silkworm life cycle.
• Contains:
  
  • Introduction 
  • A care sheet- Here you are given information on the food, environment, hygiene, growth, cocconing, reproduction, eggs, egg care, wintering and how to feed the newly hatched silkworms.
  • Quick Guide - This is a one page summary of the information found in the care sheet area. 
  • Life Cycle information
  • Lesson Plans- Each lesson plan provides you with: Approximate Time needed,  an introduction, Activity, Conclusion, Extension, Key Scientific Knowledge, Technology Extension and Resource list. The lesson plans are divided into school year levels (Pre-school to Year 6) and there are useful internet links throughout.
  • Silkworm Features
  • Differences between Silkworms and Moths
  • Shelters for Silkworms
  • Silk Production (Sericulture)
  • Pre Schooling Activities
  • Online Resources 
  • Useful YouTube and internet links.
•  Every section contains practical hands on actives and ideas for you to use depending on the age group you are working with.
• Fun Facts about Silkworms.  I found this list particularly interesting.  Did you know that there are no silkworms left in the wild ?  It takes 6,500 cocoons to produce one kilogram of silk! 

Nathaniel and I enjoyed reading from this book and following the links to different YouTube videos.

Connect with Aussie Fauna Silkworms 

• Website
• Facebook

Our Thoughts
What a fabulous hands on journey we have experienced.  The Aussie Fauna Silkworms team were amazing and answered any questions we had.  They touched base with us regularly to find out if we needed any help and were always willing to answer any questions we had no matter what it was.  We highly recommend you investing in a kit whether you are homeschooling or teaching in a public school setting.
 
Blessings
 Chareen

Win a Premium Teachers Pack and receive a 10% discount coupon
For your chance to win a Premium Teachers Pack be sure to head on over to Facebook and comment/share this post from Aussie Fauna Silkworms - Bringing in The New Year with a Term 1 GIVEAWAY and FREE VOUCHERS!!! The winner will be announced at 8pm the Sunday after the post on Facebook receives 300 Shares or on January 29th 2017, whichever comes first.

Physics 101 {The 101 Series Review}

Science is one of those subjects that instill fear and trepidation in homeschooling families and it's one of the most researched aspects of home educating. If you fall into this category I would like to encourage you that the science's is one of the most enjoyable subjects to teach in your home educating journey.  I have a confession to make ... I love science.  In high school I loved physics and hated chemistry (I did not like learning the periodic table ...) IF I could have I would have taken physics as one of my elective subjects.  I was very excited when  The 101 Series offered me the opportunity to review their Physics 101 DVD course.

What I received

• Physics 101 - The Mechanics of God's Physical World DVD set containing four DVD's.  Physics 101 is a Christian DVD High School Level course from Westfield Studios.
• A Companion Guide to the Physics 101 DVD set in PDF format (98 pages) on the fourth DVD.

 Subjects Covered

• Disk A
  1. Introduction to Physics (30 min)
  2. Light and Colour (40 min)
  3. Mirrors and Lenses (35 min)
  4. Invisibility and Speed of Light (35 min)
• Disk B
  5. Introduction to Sound (43 min)
  6. Acoustics: the sound of Music (35 min)
  7. What is fire? (30 min)
  8. The Three Laws of Thermodynamics (35 min)
  9. Refrigeration: Hot and Cold (40 min)
• Disk C
  10. What is Electricity? (30 min)
  11. Outlets and Circuits (40 min)
  12. Batteries and the Electromagnetic Spectrum (40 min)
  13. The Life of Sir Isaac Newton (30 min)
  14. The Universal law of Gravity (30 min)
  15. The 1st law of Motion (35 min)
  16. The 2nd and 3rd Laws of Motion (25 min)
• Disk D
  17. The Life of Albert Einstein (35 min)
  18. Relativity (30 min)
  19. Quantum Mechanics (30 min)
  20. The Future of Physics (20 min)

How we used Physics 101
Physics 101 is a high school level course produced by Westfield Studios.  The host is Wes Olson who guides you through each area of physics covered.  He helps to untangle the complex terms and ideas and presents each topic in an easy to understand conversation accompanied by visually rich graphics which help to clarify his presentation.  The purpose of the course is to provide you and your student with a thorough overview of the intriguing world of Physics.

When you load the disk you will find a comprehensive list of contents to make easier navigation.

The course is split into seven areas and colour coded:

1. Light (Red)
2. Sound (Orange)
3. Heat (Yellow)
4. Electricity & Magnetism (Green)
5. Motion (Blue)
6. Physics of the Weird (Indigo)
7. Future of Physics (Violet)

At the beginning of each section Wes presents a couple of questions that will be answered in the lesson.  For example in Section 1 we learned the answer to the age old question: Why is the sky blue? and Why is my reflection upside down in a spoon?

We also studied some famous scientists know for their contributions to Physics.  Nathaniel was particularly intrigued to learn that Cavendish, Newton, Curie, Einstein and Galileo are all thought to have had Aspergers Syndrome.

It was interesting knowing that Sir Isaac Newton studied the bible daily and fundamentally believed that the Bible is the Word of God.  He was also born prematurely and could fit in a quart jar!  His mother was advised to let him die. We learned that he was frustrated with the math of the day because it could not help with his science so he developed Calculus (The mathematical study of change) in order to help him with his science.

Sir Isaac Newton tomb

He died in 1727 at the age of 84 and was famous for his discoveries in optics, motion and mathematics.  His most acclaimed published work is: Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy).

Guidebook and Quizzes
The guidebook came as a 98 page pdf document found on disk D.  I printed this to work through along with the DVD's.  Each segment follows the same layout.

• Video information:  This area contains text with information directly from the film session.
• Side Bar:  Contains interesting trivia, facts and physics-related matter.
• Text box: Containing biographical information, observations and interesting points relating to the session, or questions for discussion.
• Footnotes: Contains references and quotes in relation to points of interest pertaining to the subject matter.

This is then followed by a Quiz with multiple answer section.    The answer key to the Quiz section is found at the back of the booklet.

About The 101 Series 
Westfield Studios was established in 2004 in order to produce Biology 101 for Wes wife Tammy who could not find a biology curriculum to assist her in home educating her two high school age sons.  Wes has many years of experience in producing films for companies such as Boeing and Portland GE.   The whole family are involved in the business and work closely alongside leaders in the scientific fields pertaining to each section of the DVD's produced.  Wes is passionate about the sciences and is an avid biblical student.  All the scripts are vetted for scientific accuracy by numerous Professors to make sure that all the information is current and correctly presented.

Connect with The 101 Series

• Blog
• Facebook
• Twitter:  @the101series
• Pinterest: @the101series

Available Titles in The 101 Series

• Physics 101
• Chemistry 101
• Biology 101

I am very impressed with the quality and presentation of Physics 101 and will definitely be investing in the other two courses which are available.  We have both enjoyed the visually complementing materials in the presentation which help to clarify the materials being covered.  If you are looking for an excellent introduction to the complex world of Physics then this is definitely the DVD set for you.

Super Science Homeschool Giveaway

August is a wonderful time in the year for me as it signals that the end of winter is coming and that soon spring will be here in all it's fine glory and the promise of warmer days and summer.  It means a greater desire to be out of doors exploring nature and pursing nature journaling.  I love looking over the web to find resources and going through my resource list of over a hundred links. For those of you wondering if nature study is possible in winter I would like to encourage you that yes it is.  The Homeschool Blogging Connection team  would like to invite my USA homeschool friends to an exciting Super Science Giveaway which is sure to inspire you in your science studies this new homeschool year .

Here’s what you could win:

OMAX 40X-2500X Lab Binocular Compound LED Microscope with Double Layer Mechanical Stage and Digital Camera $239

• This is a digital biological binocular compound microscope that includes a digital imaging system. 
• The digital microscopy comes with a 45° inclined 360° swiveling binocular sliding viewing head, two pairs of widefield eyepieces, four achromatic objectives, stain-resistant double layer mechanical stage with scales, coarse & fine focusing, NA 1.25 Abbe condenser and variable intensity LED transmitted illumination system. 
• It offers six levels of magnification power: 40X-100X-250X-400X-1000X-2500X. 
• The USB digital imaging system that captures microscope images and live video on computer. The included software compatible with Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10 can be used to make measurements.
•  You can view and capture the images on iMac or Macbook with Mac OS too. It is easy to mount a dark field condenser to switch a bright field microscope to a dark field microscope. This type of digital compound microscopy is perfect for teaching demonstration and clinical examination, laboratories and advanced applications.

An awesome (and useful) I Believe in Homeschooling tote ($12) Perfect for the library, field trips, church activities, and more!

• Large main compartment with a snap closure. 
• Front pocket with Velcro closure. 
• Shoulder strap is 22". Navy/natural 
• Dimensions are 16: x 11.5" x 4.5"

Exploring Creation with Biology (high school) from Apologia Educational Ministries  $256.50

This is an award-winning, college-prep biology course that provides a detailed introduction to the methods and concepts of general biology. With a strong emphasis on vocabulary and experiments, the course provides the student with a solid background in biology which is presented an in a readable, conversational tone.

The Biology Super Set includes five items from Apologia’s Exploring Creation with Biology product line: the textbook, tests & solutions manual, student notebook, MP3 audio CD, and video instruction DVD.

Please Note: Winner may alternatively choose any science curriculum from Apologia’s Elementary Science sets (Zoology, Astronomy, Botany, Human Anatomy, Chemistry/Physics). Prize includes the textbook, choice of notebooking journal, and audio MP3. ($95)

The Deluxe Adventure Pack with 10 Unit Studies from Adventure Homeschool $190.00

• The Adventure Pack – Hands on Learning Kit comes with binoculars, magnifying glass, fossil kit, shell kit, owl pellet king & much more. 
• It includes 10 complete weekly Unit Studies for the family. Help them learn to recognize the fingerprints of the Creator!

 The total retail value for this giveaway is over $685+

Please note:

1. Entry is open to residents of the USA only.
2. You must be 18 years old or older to participate.
3. You need to have a shipping address in the United States to enter. 
4. Prize fulfillment is dependent on each individual company represented and is not the responsibility of Homeschool Blogging Connection. 
5. Winner must respond within 48 hours or forfeit prize to a new winner. 
6. Please use a current, valid email address to enter so that you receive the winning notification should you win. We will not be sending you any other emails.

 Entries for this giveaway end on August 8th. a Rafflecopter giveaway

MWorld {Review}

Over the last few years I've been pursuing a new direction in our home school, one that is built upon Charlotte Mason's ideals and sprinkled with delight directed opportunities.   In today's digital filled era I have found it difficult finding information that is enriching, twaddle free and reliable.  

Monash University have set out to meet this need and created an app to meet the criteria and today it is my pleasure to introduce you to MWorld.

Last week I had the privilege of a teleconference with Justin who shared with me his passion to grow and create an app that would use curiosity to unleash learning in our children.  Justin and his team have been working alongside the leading academics at Monash University to produce each unit on MWorld so you can trust the information you are accessing is up to date and correct. (You can watch a one minute overview on YouTube here.)


Did you know...

• Curiosity increases your brain function and leads to more engaged learning and better memory retention?
• Pre-school children ask an average of 26 questions an hour.

MWorld is constantly growing and being developed.  They are currently developing mini missions which will be available later this year.   These missions are there to equip parents to support their children's learning and encourage enquiring minds to learn more.


How Does MWorld Work?
There are a few different options available to use MWorld. (PC, Android app and Apple app).
We have been given MWorld to use for a full year and have access to the complete platform.

IF you sign up via the Home Education option the team at MWorld set up your account and send you an access code (MCode) and password.  You use this to log in and set up your account.

Once you log in, you have the option of either customizing your avatar or exploring the world we live in. As you explore the world through one of the apps you will collect points which allow you to purchase clothing for your Avatar.

You also collect experience points. These points show you where you are on the leader board.

The leader board is private unless you add your friends to it. Experience points also build your badge level.  You can see how many points are needed in order to graduate to the next level.

Points are awarded for: each screen you read, each game played (these reinforce learning) and each quiz which is answered.

By clicking on Explore the World you are taken to the app home screen. Here you will find the main ten learning areas. Each of these areas are divided into five apps each. After selecting the subject you are then taken to the app area.

 For example in the Natural World you will find: Deep Blue Sea, Volcanoes, Deserts, Extreme Weather and Protected Areas. Next you select your area of interest.  The app then downloads to the device and loads.  Each app is fairly large due to the beautiful rich graphics, text to speech,  videos and interactive pages.

Each module has an introductory video  (See all available module introductory clips on YouTube).

The center of the page is a list of questions to whet your appetite on the topic.   On the left and right margins you will find graphics which are links to learning areas.

Along the bottom of the page there are five buttons: back, home (takes you to the first screen), map, points page and text to speech. The text to speech function is a handy tool for younger students or students who are auditory learners.

 The map shows you where you are in the module and the total number of learning areas for the module.  As you can see each module is fairly extensive.

MWorld can be used off line. To access offline studies each of the 50+ apps can be found on the app store. You use your MCode to unlock the app which is then downloaded independently onto your device.

On the home screen you will find a credits button beneath the sign out button.  In this area you will find a complete list of the titles on MWorld linked to an information card.  Here you can meet the scientist who contributed to the production of the topic, a full list of the production team, a list of reference materials used in the unit and the names of the production team responsible for the unit app production.

Titles Available on MWorld
At present there are over 50 areas of learning on MWorld and it will be growing so be sure to check back to see what is new.
MWorld have supplied a summary, YouTube introduction and a free downloadable teacher guide for each title on the MWorld Title finder page.

1. Animals
   
   • Adapting to new Worlds
   • Fangs - How do animals eat ?
   • How do animals behave?
   • Long-distance Travellers
   • Sharks and Rays
2. Art&Music
   
   • Art Today
   • How to write a Song
   • Jammin'
   • Secrets of art: Drawing
   • World Beats
3. Early Civilizations
   
   • Ancient Greece
   • Angkor
   • Early Australians
   • Early China
   • Rome: The Early Days
4. The Human Body
   
   • Build Your Own Skeleton
   • Germs
   • The making of me
   • Peak performance
   • Sleep and Dreams
5. Language and Culture
   
   • Dragon boat festival
   • Fairy Tales - The untold story
   • Lost languages
   • Manga
   • Spain: Food, Football & Fiesta?
6. The Modern World
   
   • Challenges of our time
   • The digital age
   • Money
   • Super-fast Trains
   • Mega-cities
7. The Natural World
   
   • Deep Blue Sea
   • Deserts
   • Extreme Weather
   • Protected Areas
   • Volcanoes
8. People and Places
   
   • Asia Today
   • Changing Places
   • Designing Places
   • Europe Today
   • The Rises of Cities
9. Space
   
   • Black Holes
   • Comets, Asteroids and Meteors
   • Galaxies
   • Mission to Mars
   • Planets
10. The Wonders of Science
    
    • Chemistry:Let's Get Started
    • How does Life Work?
    • How to become a Scientist
    • Invisible World - Inside the Atom
    • Light

What platform is MWorld available on

• iPad (iPad 3 and later, All iPad Air and Mini models)
• Android (Android 4.4 and later)
• PC (Windows 7 and later)

Due to the size of each of the individual topics covered, (the beautiful photographs and interactive content of MWorld) you will need access to quality internet connectivity in order to download and use your chosen area of learning. The main MWorld app needs connectivity to run.

MWorld can be used off line on your chosen device. You will need to download your chosen topic as an independent app via the app store.

The Cost*

• Single topic apps for MWorld are available to purchase at $5.99 each.
• Home Education bundle is currently available for $59 for 54 apps (That is a saving of $317.47!). To access this special please email your request to team@discovermworld.com and they will do the rest.
• MWorld is available for school class use in student bundles. 
• FREE trial is available.  You will receive two credits to unlock two titles of your choice along with three units: Jammin, Planets and Volcanoes.

*Prices quoted are current as of July 2016 and subject to change at any time.  Please check the MWorld website for up to date pricing information.  
Connect with MWorld on Social Media

•  Facebook - Discover MWorld
• Twitter - @discovermworld
• Google+ -  +Discovermworld
• YouTube - MWorld  

I am very impressed with this app. The graphics are beautiful, the information is twaddle free and presented using excellent multimedia platforms.  The variety of topics covered is both broad and deep, we have  over a year of learning at our finger tips.

We are looking forward to learning more about the world around us using MWorld. Nathaniel enjoys following whatever path of curiosity he chooses, personally I like being able to use a professionally presented supplement to reinforce our current learning areas. 

Blessings
Chareen

Organic Mini Mushroom Farm {Review}

 One of the things I've been learning about this year is how to look for more hands on learning to experience with Nathaniel.  I was quite excited to discover a kit to grow Organic Mushrooms from Fluid Growers. I was surprised at how easy they are to grow!

Once the kit was shipped it arrived at our place within 24 hours. It arrived via courier and comes pre-assembled.  There was very little required of us.  The card board box it arrives in is also the container the mushrooms are grown in.  It's a hand box and takes up very little room.  The front has a picture showing you what to expect.  On the back is a perforated section with a recipe on it.  On the side are step by step instructions on how to grow the mushrooms.  The time it takes to grow is dependent on the temperature and humidity in your home.

Once you remove the perforated section on the back the next step is to cut the plastic within this area.
Next you remove the bag and soak it in water to hydrate the growing medium.  I discovered that I needed to clip the plastic back with a paper clip in order to expose the area to the water to hydrate the contents in order to begin the growth process.

Once the contents are well hydrated you re-insert the bag into the cardboard box with the cut plastic on the open side of the box and then place your box where you intend to grow your mushrooms.

Each morning we added two tablespoons of water to the bag and let it soak in before placing the box back on the shelf.  I was shocked two days later when I noticed the baby mushrooms peaking out from the plastic after 48 hours of us beginning the process! It was stunning to see the exponential growth of the mushrooms.  They more than doubled their growth every 24 hours.

Within three days of noticing our mushrooms they were ready for us to harvest!  We were stunned.  We knew mushrooms grew rapidly but hadn't realised it was that rapid.

Once we harvested the mushrooms we fried them in butter and enjoyed a hearty scrambled egg and mushroom breakfast.

 This is one project that you can enjoy with your family from the youngest pre-school student to your high school students.  The best part is that you can consume it at the end of the process!

Purchase your kit online from

• In the USA Back to the Roots and on Amazon (Mushroom Farm)
• In Australia and New Zealand from Fluid Growers (Organic Mushroom Farm)

This kit is also available for purchase at most of your local organic vegetable shops and outlets.

You can also find the company on social media here

• Facebook - Fluid Growers
• Pinterest - FluidGrowers
• Twitter - @FluidGrowers
• LinkedIn - Fluid Growers
• Instagram - @fluidgrowers tag your photo's #fluidgrowers #growyourownfood #kidsgrowingfood

Our whole family enjoyed growing mushrooms from scratch and many of our friends loved coming over to see how the mushrooms were doing.  This is one project we highly recommend as it is family and child friendly and the best part is there is no mess no fuss either!

Blessings
Chareen

Thank you to Fluid Growers for supplying this wonderful product to our homeschool we really enjoyed learning about mushrooms with this wonderful easy to use product and hope that many other children will experience the delight of growing their own food with this hands on product.