It’s Friday, and time for our daily Homeschool Resource: Virtual Field Trip. I would like to ask you to check out these Recommended Website: Balloon Headquarters, The Butchart Gardens, Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum Tours and Prezi: Virtual Field Trip to Ireland.
Age Range: 8-18 (Grades 3-12, with parental supervision) Ever wonder how latex and Mylar balloons are made? You can find out by taking a virtual field trip to this site.
When you get there scroll down a little and you can read a general overview and some Q&A’s about how balloons are manufactured. There are some photographs that help illustrate the text. You will discover how balloons are molded, how the rolled lip is formed, how they are colored and imprinted, and there is even information on how to make latex balloons at home! (Parental supervision is required!)
But don’t stop with the tour. This site has all kinds of fascinating and educational information about balloons (some more appropriate for high school level and beyond). When you finish the “tour” click on “The Guide” on the menu at the top of the screen. Look under the headline: The How’s and Why’s of Balloons. You will see a menu that offers:
- How balloons are made – click on it to repeat the tour.
- How helium-filled balloons float – includes a discussion of “Archimedes’ Principle.”
- How balloons pop – an in-depth discussion of the effects of static electricity on balloons, an engineer’s explanation of stress on balloons, the molecule arrangement of balloons, and much more.
- Balloon Science 101 – includes science discussion about balloons from the simple to the highly technical (for example: Stupid Human Tricks with balloons to Entropy and the 2nd law of thermodynamics as applied to latex).
- Balloons and Teaching – A complete 6-week sample curriculum that covers balloon safety, twisting balloons, connecting balloons, making balloon sculptures, hats, and critters – and some interesting suggestions/experiments with balloons and dry ice.
You can also read all about the history of balloons and much more! This is a delightful site for the balloon aficionado in your family.
We also found a YouTube video of how balloons are made. Be sure to have a gross of balloons handy – the urge to inflate and pop will be overwhelming!
Recommended Website: The Butchart Gardens
Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision) Visit the incredible Butchart Gardens in British Columbia, Canada with this website that offers a free virtual tour! To really appreciate the gardens it’s helpful to know some history about them.
In 1888, Robert Butchart manufactured cement near limestone deposits on Vancouver Island where he and his family lived. As his business exhausted the limestone in the quarry near their home, Mrs. Butchart came up with the idea of transforming the abandoned quarry into a spectacular “Sunken Garden.” She had top soil hauled in and began the renovation.
The Butcharts were world travelers and it influenced the design of their gardens. They created a Japanese Garden with Koi pond, transformed a tennis court into an Italian Garden, and planted a spectacular Rose Garden. Mr. Butchart collected birds from all over the world and had elaborate bird houses constructed throughout the gardens. They decorated their garden with artifacts including bronze castings.
The renown of the Butchart Gardens spread. Today, close to a million people visit annually, enjoying the year-round display of floral beauty created from over 900 varieties of plants.
From the menu, choose:
- Sunken Garden
- Rose Garden
- Japanese Garden
- Italian Garden
- Mediterranean Garden
- and more
So much color and beauty in one place!
Recommended Website: Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum Tours Age Range: 6 and up (Grades 1 and up; children with parental supervision) The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose, California maintains the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the west. They also have built a replica of a noble person’s rock-cut tomb that the public can tour at the museum – or virtually at their website. When you get to the site you’ll see links to the following tours in 360: Complete Museum TourMuseum Gallery ToursMuseum Tomb TourAlchemy Garden TourAlchemy ExhibitThere are also pictures of past exhibits. When you have completed your tours, go back to the landing page, and you can select “Explore” from the top menu to see an interactive map, deities and time periods of ancient Egypt. |
Recommended Website: Prezi: Virtual Field Trip to Ireland Age Range: All (All grades; children with parental supervision) Through images, text, and videos, take a quick trip to County Cork, Ireland with this presentation created by Andrea Bresnahan on the larger Prezi website. A prezi is an online, user created, digital presentation similar to a PowerPoint presentation. When arriving at today’s link, use the arrows to navigate through the presentation. Along with the images and embedded YouTube videos, visitors can: See the moors of Ireland View the flag and maps of Ireland Learn about Blarney Castle and the Blarney Stone Discover the Drombeg Stone Circle Examine bits and pieces of history And more! While this presentation is brief, it gives visitors a lovely glimpse of County Cork |
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
