Louisiana History 8th grade Assignment

The Teen has an assignment that he neglected to tell me about. Thank goodness it isn't due until next Friday. The only way I happened to know about it is as a result of a conversation with another mom! Turns out The Teen actually had 4 notes in his booksack regarding this assignment. However, his excuse about forgetting the History assignment is that he was concentrating on his Science assignment which is also due at the end of the week. That one is to make a model of the solar system. A solar system assignment is nothing compared to the History assignment. What in the world IS this assignment anyway?

It's a Louisiana Scavenger Hunt. The Teen is supposed to collect as many items as he can, at least 15 from a list of 30. The collection can be put together in any creative design. Examples: poster, box divided into sections, booklet, mobile, etc. He can also use a combination of the examples.

I have suggested a few questions for the Teen to ask his teacher. For example, on the items listed as "a picture of..." can that include a google image printed off the computer? OR Does the teacher want a postcard or something to that extent?

Anyway, here's the list of items required for the assignment.

1. A picture of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana.


2. A magnolia leaf.


3. A picture of LSU or Southern University (ask the teacher does he want campuses?)


4. One pair of Mardi Gras beads


5. One Mardi Gras doubloon


6. A sample of moss


7. A brochure on Louisiana (tourist spots, festivals, etc.)


8. Five labels from Louisiana products (Where the product was made must be on the label)....a side note here....did you know that Community Coffee is actually a Mexcian product and NOT a Louisiana product? It's just packaged here.


9. A dried crawfish, shrimp, or crab


10. A favorite Louisiana recipe


11. A drawing or picture of the Governor's Mansion


12. A picture or drawing of the Superdome or statue of Andrew Jackson


13. A tape or music of Cajun music (we got a CD...I hope that counts!)


14. The emblem (including name) of the Saint football team (picture or drawing)


15. The emblem (including name) of the B.R. hockey team (picture or drawing)


16. A map of Louisiana. With a blue marker trace the Mississippi, Pearl, Sabine, and Amite rivers. Put a red star for LA capital city. In yellow, shade in your parish. Put a black dot to show and label your city.


17. A list of U.S. Senators and Representatives for the state of Louisiana


18. A photo of you holding or standing near a type of Louisiana wildlife (not your pet!!)....another side note....18 months ago, we had a nuisance alligator down in the bayou behind our house. We called a Wildlife and Fisheries fella who came out set a trap. He ended up catching a 6 ft female. She doesn't look like 6 ft in the photo though. That's because the tail is actually 3 ft!


19. A cotton boll (Not to be confused with a cotton ball!)


20. A picture, photo, or drawing of the alligator with 5 VERY interesting facts about the animal


21. A picture, photo, or drawing of the cypress tree


22. A picture or photo of a Louisiana paddle wheel boat or ferry still in operation


23. A piece of sugarcane


24. A picture, photo, or drawing of the Brown Pelican


25. A picture, photo, or drawing of the Catahoula


26. A photo of you standing in front of the State Capital.......we went downtown this afternoon to get some of these photos. I took this one when I remembered something about putting the subject in the photo "off center". It looked a little strange when he was standing directly in front of the building.


27. An 8 x 10 drawing of the Louisiana state flag


28. A recipe of how to make roux


29. A photo of you standing in front of Tiger Stadium


30. A photo of you and Mike the Tiger

Whew! We really had fun doing this project. However, I was a bit disappointed that my son only cares to do the minimum required for his assignments. If extra credit is an option, he could care less. Arrrghhh! Teens!!!

Nephew's Game Smart Video Contest Entry

My hubby's nephew and his stepson have entered a video contest. They are the only ones representing the great state of Tennessee! Their video can be seen at http://www.getgamesmart.com/spotlight/videocontest/. Online voting can be done until May 15. Voters can vote every 24 hours. The top 10 winning teams will be selected as Get Game Smart ambassadors, which will enable them to spread the word about safe gaming habits. Each of the top teams will receive $1000, an Xbox 360 Pro console, two Insignia Digital cameras, and Microsoft hardware products.

Please go vote for my hubby's nephew!!!! They are currently in the top 5 but we want to keep them there for the next 15 days!!!

Honeybee Swarm

I was sleeping sooooo good this morning! All cuddled up under my blankie, snug as a bug until my dad knocked on the doore, waking me up with some more buggy news. Seems that there's a honeybee swarm that he wants to catch. He requested that I film him in the process.

I really don't know WHY he wanted me to film and take pictures....UNLESS it was to show the grandkids without putting them in harm's way. My dad has always enjoyed fooling with honeybees. My grand-dad introduced beekeeping to my dad and uncle at an early age. I believe the sole purpose at the time was to keep the garden pollinated. Another awesome by product of beekeeping is the sweeter than sweet honey.

When I was younger (much, much younger), I would assist my dad while he robbed the bee hives. By robbing, I mean, harvesting the honey. There's nothing like the smell of honey. My mouth is watering right now just thinking about that sweet, rich honey pouring over a hot, homemade buttered biscuit. Gobble that up and wash it down with some ice cold milk....mmmmm, that would certainly spike up the blood sugar levels!

Okay, enough reminiscing....back to the task at hand. I got dressed in a long sleeve tan shirt and jeans. Then I thought,"Man, it's a good thing I didn't take a shower last night!". Some might respond to that with an "Ewww" but the fact is that perfumes or perfumed soap or even a little hint thereof, as well as bright colors (thus the tan shirt) attracts insects. See, even though I didn't know it last night, the Lord was preparing me to be ready for this morning!

I make my way next door to my dad's house where he has set up "shop" underneath the swarm with a step ladder, scoop, empty prepared bee hive, and bee bonnets. At first, he planned to simply cut the tree limb the swarm was hanging from, but that was a little easier said than done. He really needed a third hand to accomplish this task. He opted instead to reach up and scoop the bees, carry them down the ladder, and gently dump them on the front door of their new hive. Once dumped, the bees made a beeline (pun intended) into their new home.

Yeah, he's crazy!

Watch the video! Oh, and pardon the shaky filming....I was trying to keep my distance. Yes, yes, I know....I'm a chicken.

In their new home.

By the way, I didn't stung.....not even once!!! Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

The Widow's Might

I received the following paragraph in an email:

The Widow's Might
Posted: 15 Apr 2009 05:14 PM PDT
I just read an article on the net about the movie called "The Widow's Might". It is being released in movie theaters all across America. It was made by a homeschooler and won the Best of Film award at the 2009 San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival. You can read the news article here. Or you can visit the official movie web-site to see if it is being shown at a theater near you. If you are able try to support this film and send a message to the film industry that we want quality family films, and especially good Christian films. If you have seen the film please leave your comment about the film below. I've not had the opportunity to see it yet, but it got great reviews on Fandango.com ;~)

Now for my contribution to this little post.....I am sorely disappointed to learn that there are NO Theatres in Louisiana or Mississippi showing this film!!!! That means that if I want to see it in a theatre I would have to travel to Texas, Arkansas, Alabama, or Tennessee to see it!!! OR I could just wait for the DVD....that is IF there's a DVD.

Anyway, it looks like a good, clean, family film that would be a lot of fun to watch. AND get this!!! The creator of this movie is a 19 y.o. homeschooled student!!!!