Nexo Knights at LEGOLAND Discovery Center - A new 4D Movie Experience

Have you heard of the latest LEGO series called Nexo Knights?  My kids were excited to experience Nexo Knights first hand in 4D animation fun at LEGOLAND Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth in their new movie "LEGO NEXO KNIGHTS: The Book of Creativity"!

Right on the heels of “The LEGO® Movie™ 4D A New Adventure” release, LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth announces another all-new 4D movie experience, based on the popular LEGO® series of NEXO KNIGHTS™ building sets and just-launched TV show. “LEGO® NEXO KNIGHTS™: The Book of Creativity” premieres exclusively at LEGOLAND® Discovery Center on Saturday, May 28.

Set in the futuristic Kingdom of Knighton, the theatrical film pits five young knights against the evil Jestro and his sidekick, the Book of Monsters, in a battle for control of the Book of Creativity, a rare book of magic that gives its owner tremendous power. Will the heroic NEXO KNIGHTS™ be able to connect together with Merlok 2.0, wizard protector of Knighton, and become the ultimate power to defeat Jestro and the Book of Monsters? 

Join in the action as the adventure unfolds. Included in the price of admission, the 12-minute, immersive experience combines 3D computer animation with 4D, real-world effects that bring the high-tech action bursting off the screen and into the audience. Check out the trailer HERE on the Legoland website.

We participated in a fun Nexo Knights mini-build.

Nicholas built the LEGO Nexo Knight kit for Knighton Hyper Cannon.

Opening weekend activities include:

* NEXO KNIGHTS™ Take Over of MINILAND: (Saturday – Monday)

* NEXO Knights Build Lesson (Saturday): 
Get tips from the Master Model Builder as you build your own unique LEGO® NEXO KNIGHTS™ shield.

* Scavenger Hunt (Saturday – Monday): 
Rise to the challenge of the NEXO KNIGHTS™ by downloading the free Merlok 2.0 app and setting out on a quest to find the six exclusive shields hidden throughout the attraction.  Here is a sneak peek at the first one called Broccoli Tornado!

For more information about “LEGO® NEXO KNIGHTS™: The Book of Creativity” 4D movie visit LEGOLANDDiscoveryCenter.com/dallasfw or call 877-818-1677.  LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth is located at 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway Grapevine, Texas 76051.

Attraction Hours:  Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. to 7
p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
– last admission two hours prior to closing.

Tickets: Admission is $21 for guests 3 years of age
and older, free for kids 2 and under.

Dallas Arboretum Homeschool Day

I was so excited when I learned that the Dallas Arboretum was having a special Homeschool Day.  Not just because we love an excuse to go to the Arboretum but also because the kids have been learning all about botany so this would be a great way to wrap up their science for the year.  It was a fun review for them.

They gave each child a journal, pencil, and small magnifying glass to use and take home.  There were stations set up in two separate room and it was a "come and go" setting.  We started at the Leaves station to learn about adaptations that help leaves survive and thrive in different areas.

Nicholas was using a cool little Carson MicroBrite 20x-40x Zoom LED Lighted Pocket Microscope to study veins and spores on the leaves.

Rachel used "fake snow" to pile on top of different leaves to see if they would collapse and break under the weight or if they could shed off the snow and not be negatively affected.

At the Stem station they learned about stems carrying water and nutrients through the plant.  They saw how colored water had moved up through the plant to change the color of the plant.  They also learned that cacti will swell when they are full of water and shrink back up when they are dry.

We reviewed rings of a tree and the kids both got to flag on this tree poster the year in which they were born.  It was fun to see how much growth the tree had made in the 7 years since Rachel was born.

They looked at an slice of an alfalfa stem through a microscope.  They could clearly see the Epidermis, Xylem, and Phloem that they have studied about this year.

They dissected a flower and put the parts on a pre-labeled worksheet.

They got to play with the Pollinator Station and match the bee, bird, butterfly, and bat puppets with the types of flowers they are attracted to.

We got to see the spores of a fern in the Phylum Pterophyta.

The kids liked this three dimensional model of the parts of a flower.

They learned about different types of roots.

This demonstration was great because it showed how roots help to hold the soil in place and prevent erosion.  On one try was a container of just dirt and when the kids poured water over it the water that drained out was full of dirt.  But when they poured water over the container that had grass growing in it, the water that drained out was clear because the roots held the dirt in place.

Next they visited the Seed Station.  Here are lots of different kinds of seeds and they each have different ways of being dispersed.

I just love this demonstration below of how a burr can get stuck on an animal's fur (or imagine a kid's sock!) and get transported to another place where it falls off and gets planted.

They dissected a lima bean to see the inner parts of a seed.  Nicholas was quick to find the radicle.

Finally, they even planted their own Lemon Mint seeds in cups to bring home.  Once they had completed all of the stations, we headed over to the Rory Meyer Children Adventure Garden to spend a few hours.

We stopped at the Lay Family Garden just outside of the Children's Garden.  The kids were obsessed with watching the fish.  They put their hands on the water and giggled as they felt the fish swim by.

We learned about how certain fruits and vegetables help different parts of the body.  Since we are here for school, we focused on the ones that helped brain function!  Ok, kids!  We'll be having spinach, collard greens, apricots, cauliflower, and plums for lunch today!

For the tired mama, I couldn't help but take note of the plants that are best for energy - broccoli, bananas, grapes, oranges, and peanuts.  So good to know!

Look at the beautiful blooms on the Strawberry Sequoia!  I've never seen this plant before but I love it!

I've also never seen artichokes growing.  I usually only see them after they have been cut up and marinated in little jars to use as a salad topping.

Ewww!  What's that smell??  I don't know how we've never seen this Smell Station!  The kids took a whiff at each white circle and then tried to guess what kind of food they were smelling.  Then they looked under the red flap to find the answer.  I won't give away the answers but there were some easy ones and some tricky ones.

 

Rachel loved the chime pad in the hedge maze.  If I ever wondered where she was in the maze, I would just wait for a moment and sure enough I would hear her at the pad in a matter of minutes.

Of course we had to take a walk in the clouds at the amazing tree house!

One side of the tree house in completely enclosed in climbable netting.  They love to climb right up to the top of it!

Nicholas found a giant Roly Poly!

And Rachel found...her favorite, Wood Sorrel!!  Yes, she helped pick weeds at the Arboretum!

One of my favorites in the garden is this giant kaleidoscope.  I'd love to have one of these.  It is so fun to look through.

There are three different discs that you can spin to change what you see each time.

We talked about math in nature, the Golden Ratio and Fibonacci Numbers.

Nicholas noticed these creepy little red and black beetles on a cactus plant.  What are they?

We always spend a long time in the physical science area.  Here we were playing with the wind tunnel that blows air around up to 70 mph!

Then they played with some more wind exhibits, mostly just to cool off from the heat.

Or just being super silly!

They like the water power section the best and you can tell because they usually end up getting wet.  They twisted the Archimedes Screw to pull water to the top and fill a bucket that dumped out when it got full.

And they shot water guns to try to make the discs spin around.

Although we've been to the Dallas Arboretum and the Children's Garden many times, today was especially fun because it was our first time to try their educational programming.  We enjoyed it and the kids learned some and got a good review on things they already learned this year in Botany.  I would definitely recommend it.

THSC Home School Convention: Faith in the Trenches

I'm excited that it is time for the Texas Home School Coalition's annual convention!  It runs from May 5-7th at the Arlington Convention Center.  There are about 80 speakers and workshops and over 120 vendor booths plus I've already seen a bunch of my friends there!  It is a fun-filled weekend and a special time of inspiration and encouragement for me.  

Some of the speakers this year include Dianne Craft, Demme Learning, Memoria Press, Reb and Bev Bradley, David Gibbs III, and of course, Nicholas' favorite writing instructor, Andrew Pudewa with the Institute for Excellence in Writing! 

THSC offers the best programs for kids while parents are enjoying their own time at the convention.  For ages 4-12 they offer Kid's Convention.  This year's theme is American Heroes.  Rachel learned about the Wright Brothers and Betsy Ross.  She made a prayer journal and an American flag craft.

Nicholas was excited to be able to go in the pre-teen program for ages 11-12 called Mighty Men of Valor.  From the THSC website:

"David’s Mighty Men of Valor were men challenged at every turn who remained strong and faithful. They were successful due only to the Lord’s power in their lives. Today’s young men are also challenged at every turn and need to be encouraged to stand strong and make right decisions. They need to realize that only by God’s power can they, too, resist the enemy and be on the offensive."

I was amazed at the beautiful craft he made.  A wooden cross wrapped in rope with nails in place where they would have held Jesus to the cross.

I am grateful for Texas Home School Coalition's dedication to supporting home school families in the state of Texas and for all that they have done to help the home school movement nationwide.

What are the benefits of being a member of Texas Home School Coalition?

• Free legal assistance
• Free convention registration
• Home school support staff
• Grade school report cards
• Customizable diplomas
• High school transcript template
• Student and teacher IDs
• Texas government unit study
• Texas home school handbook
• Special needs consultations

For more information about the convention or membership, check out their website at www.THSC.org.

Texas Spiny

We have several Texas Spiny lizards around our home.  Nicholas just caught this beautiful one in our backyard near the pool.

He made a boat for it so it could float on the water!!!

That boy never ceases to make me smile!  Thank you, Nicholas!

Claws {Sea Life Aquarium Grapevine}

We experienced some of the world’s crabbiest creatures with the opening of Claws at SEA LIFE Grapevine Aquarium.

The yearlong Claws exhibit features different crustaceans from around the world including mighty coconut crabs, unique porcupine crabs, lively land crabs and even lobsters.  The exhibit features this Japanese spider crab, the largest arthropod in the world, with legs that can reach 12-feet across when fully grown.

Interactive features include a touch display allowing guests to feel the shell textures of different crabs, a giant mechanical claw that guests can control and use to pick up objects as well as a specially designed crawl-through tunnel display, which allows visitors to get underneath the tanks to observe the crustaceans from all angles.

This is the cute and cuddly porcupine crab.  Can you see his two tiny eyes staring at you?

In celebration of the opening, SEA LIFE Grapevine has been collecting empty soda cans for Sink Your Claws Into Recycling, a project to raise awareness about the importance of recycling.  Local artist Val Curry is building a 6-foot handcrafted crab sculpture made out of 1,500 soda cans.  The completed crab sculpture will be unveiled later this spring and will travel to popular Dallas-Fort Worth areas this summer to create awareness about pollution through powerful art and hands-on educational activities.

After seeing the Claws exhibit, we decided to explore the rest of the aquarium.  There is so much to see and do here!

I love starfish.  They are so gentle.  There are over 2000 species of starfish.  Did you know they can live up to 35 years?

Look at the underside of this starfish that was hanging on the glass.  There are so many little suction cups!  They hold its prey which its stomach actually comes out of the mouth to digest the meal then goes back inside when it is done.  Fascinating!

We always spend quite a while at this spot just watching all of the amazing marine life swim right by.  

Even a shark or two came to visit us!

Who knew there was such a thing as a squirrelfish.  Well, there is.  Meet the Hawaiian Red and White Striped Squirrelfish.  What an interesting name.

My favorite part of Sea Life are the jelly fish.  They are just mesmorizing to watch.  They seem glide through the water like they are dancing.

Rachel loves the interactive screens in the Shark Mission area.  She especially likes to play the games.

I love this picture of Nicholas and the manta ray.  He absolutely loves manta rays and this one seems to come right up to him.

This little ray wasn't up for visitors so he was hiding under the sand.  I hadn't even noticed him until Rachel pointed him out.

This little cownose was much more sociable.  He poked his head out of the water to say Hi to me.  He even looks like he's smiling for the picture.

We spent at least an hour at the touch tables.  My kids are totally addicted to this spot!

The staff is always so friendly and great with kids.  He explained what everything in the tank was and answered all of their questions.  We even found out that he has attended Sea Camp in Galveston twice!  It was neat talking to him to find out what Nicholas can expect at his first time there this summer.

Rachel touched everything right along with Nicholas.  She really studied the creatures as she touched them.  Look at the intensity on her face in this picture below.  She liked the prickly sea urchins best because they would grab her finger and not let go.

The sea anemones are so soft and their arms are amazing to watch.  So graceful.  But if they don't want to be bothered they will just pull their arms in and tuck themselves into a ball.

SEA LIFE Grapevine is located at 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway, Grapevine, Texas 76051.  For more information visit www.visitsealife.com/grapevine or call 817-819-7677.  SEA LIFE Grapevine transports you into the amazing underwater world.  Prepare for astonishingly close views of everything from humble starfish and seahorses to graceful rays and powerful sharks.  With an amazing 360° ocean tunnel, 30 display tanks and thousands of sea creatures the aquarium is the perfect stop for family fun.  To get any closer you would have to get wet!  Admission is $20 for adults, $16 for children ages 3 to 12.  For more information visit www.visitsealife.com/grapevine.  Follow on Facebook: @sealifegrapevine Twitter: @sealifegrpevine and Instagram: @sealifegrpevine.