Week Twenty-Nine: Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel

Week 29 was Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton:

We watched a great musical rendition of this after reading it.  Here it is on YouTube.

We also watched some videos about real steam shovels.  Here is one.

If you follow this link there is a great copywork page for this story.

Next, we did an experiment to show how gas is made.  We used some empty water bottles, balloons, vinegar, and baking soda.

"First, fill a quarter of your bottle with vinegar.  Using the spoon, very carefully add about a spoonful of baking soda into the balloon.  Next, stretch the neck of the balloon over the top of your bottle, being careful not to spill any of the baking soda into the bottle.  (This means the balloon will be flopped to the side on the outside of the bottle.)  Once you are ready, quickly lift the balloon up to tip all of the baking soda into the bottle.  (The process is quick, so be ready!)  The vinegar and baking soda react, creating carbon dioxide gas, causing your balloon to inflate almost instantly!" (instructions from http://homeschoolingmom2mags.blogspot.com/2013/08/mike-mulligan-and-his-steam-shovel.html)

Here is a great idea for a cake that I didn't get around to: