Great Wall, Little Man

This is Jed's finest moment, as a little man.

Not only because of his accomplishment. But, more importantly, because he showed courage, boldness and perseverance.

We originally planned to visit the Mutianuy section of the Great Wall of China only for a look-see. But, when we got there, Jed remember the scene from the Karate Kid movie where Jackie Chan had Jaden Smith running up the wall to train. He said to me: "Mom, I'm going to be a legend. I will climb the Great Wall of China."

Such a huge heart for a little boy! The final steep part was agonizing. Grown men beside us were giving up.

But, in the middle of the climb, some ladies Jed had befriended at the foot of the long climb saw him lose heart and they raised their fists and cried out, "Forward!" Those ladies didn't make it to the top. But, their cries of encouragement gave Jed the energy boost he needed to finish the climb.

And then, when he had gone and accomplished what very few 9-years old accomplish, can you guess what he did?

Why, he found a shady nook and proceed to astound all the adults who were still huffing and puffing by calmly pulling out his PSP and playing his favorite video game. Ha!

Observing Leaves with a Microscope

This afternoon, I finally found (made) time for the leaf-gathering field trip I promised Jed two weeks ago. Jed wants to be a scientist when he grows up so I thought this would be a fun start for him.

Right beside our third floor apartment is an untamed lot, filled with lots of plants, shrubs, bananas and trees. Jed put on his gardener's boots and gloves and we went on a leaf-picking adventure.

Then, he spent the whole afternoon sitting down on the balcony floor, looking at the different leaves through his little microscope.

There were long leaves and spiky leaves. There was a heart-shaped leaf and a fan-shaped leaf. I wish I knew their names. Next week, I will teach him to draw in his journal what he sees through his microscope.

 

It blesses my heart to see the rapt focus on my son's face, in the warm afternoon light.

Animal Encounters at Featherdale Zoo

Jed loved, loved, loved Featherdale Zoo at Sydney.

In one morning, we got a week's worth of Zoology lessons - perfect for my active learner.

Petting the wallabies...

Petting the soft fur of a koala. Smelled like the eucalyptus leaves they like to eat.

Petting a kookaburra bird...

and a dingo pup...

then meeting the pup's sire a few meters ahead.

 

Here's a wombat: 

and a prickly echidna:

Learning about the cassowary bird, which is as tall as Jed.... 

Learning about albinos. What do you call a white/ albino kangaroo? A wallaroo!

 

Here's a lovely albino peacock, straight from the Kung Fu Panda 3 movie. And its cousin with the really beautiful colors. 

 

  

But, the highlight of the whole trip was feeding the kangaroos...

Here's the best photo of all:

Dinosaur Walk

Learning about Dinosaurs at the Dinosaur Walk exhibit, also at the Melbourne Museum. 

My son, the dramatic actor...

Our Weight in Gold

We stepped on a weighing scale that computes your weight in gold.

Jed's weight in gold is 1.8 million dollars.

Together, our weight in gold is over FIVE MILLION DOLLARS... cool!

Metamorphosis - Complete & Incomplete

In the next exhibit at the Melbourne museum, Jed learns about Complete and Incomplete Metamorphosis in a fun and engaging way.

As a kinesthetic learner, Jed learns best by doing and not just reading or listening. This display is perfect for him, as  he gets to see, feel, touch & play.

Here is a display panel where Jed pushes either of two buttons to watch two different kinds of metamorphosis - a caterpillar hatching from an egg, or a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis.

Here is a life cycle showing a complete metamorphosis

and the incomplete metamorphosis:

with samples of insects that undergo either complete or incomplete metamorphosis:

 

 

 Jed studies the sample insects through a magnifying lens.