Prairie Life Week Five

Reading:

Read chapter five in Little House in the Big Woods.

Copywork, Dictation or Recitation:

Copy the prayer on page 115 in the book.

[pullquote align=”normal”]”Especially on Sundays, the time went so slowly.” [/pullquote]

Saturday nights were reserved for bathtime in the Ingalls home.

• How often do you take a bath?
• How did the Ingalls take a bath?
• How long do you think it took for everyone to get their bath on Saturday nights?

It was a chore to get the water for each person’s bath and heat the water. This was reserved for once a week so everyone was nice and clean on Sundays.

Sundays:

Sundays were a special day for the Ingalls. It was the day reserved for the Lord. They spent the day quietly and only necessary chores for the animals were done. Ma read bible stories to them or Pa read out of the big green book. The girls were not allowed to play on Sundays. Did Laura like Sundays?  Do you like Sundays?  What are some of the differences in the way they spent Sunday and the way you spend Sunday? Tell us in the comments.

Grandpa and the Pig:

[pullquote align=”normal”]”The hog jumped off James and ran away into the woods, still squealing.” [/pullquote]

Grandpa and his brothers disliked sitting still on Sundays and disobeyed their father by taking out the sled. Their disobedience led to their father hearing the commotion with the pig and taking them out to the woodshed when Sabbath was over. Have you disobeyed your parents? There are always consequences when we go against what we are told.

Hymns:

Hymns were an important part of life for Christians in the late 1800’s. Hymns would have been the majority of music that families would have sung or played in their homes. Rock of Ages is a popular hymn still sung today. Listen to a choir singing:  ROCK OF AGES.

Animals:

Bears were a threat to families on the frontier because they would eat their livestock. Ma unknowingly slapped a bear outside the barn! Pa had a fight with an imaginary bear on the way home from town too. What part of the bear did Mary like best?

Learn more about bears using the notebook page in Prairie Life.

Recipes:

This week try baking the pound cake recipe in Prairie Life. Pound cakes were a popular treat when guests came because it was easy to measure and most of the ingredients would have been on hand. Original recipes called for a pound of flour, a pound of butter, a pound of sugar, and a dozen eggs!  This version doesn’t use that much but it tastes just as good.

Activities:

This week we will learn hand sew a straight stitch in the video above. Sewing is an important skill that everyone should know. As an adult, sewing on a button can come in handy before a business meeting. Knowing how to perform simple life skills tasks can save money on repairs of clothing and other goods. Ma was always mending their clothing. Most of their clothes were made by hand so they needed to take care of them.

[responsive_video type=’youtube’ hide_related=’0′ hide_logo=’0′ hide_controls=’0′ hide_title=’0′ hide_fullscreen=’0′ autoplay=’0′]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYcNuRWZDXM&feature=youtu.be[/responsive_video]

We have included a ribbon weaving activity that can go along with the hand sewing. The ribbon weaving is cutting at least two of the bear shapes and 2 of the overalls from felt or paper. Then cut a slit in all the pieces shown in the pattern. Sew a button on one end of a piece of 12-inch long ribbon. Weave on a bear from the open end and pull toward the button end. Repeat the process with a pair of overalls.

Keep repeating with the number of bears and overalls you have. Dressing the bear is fun for older siblings to cut out for younger siblings to play with. This is excellent coordination and fine motor skill. This activity can be started by older siblings with the cutting and sewing and handed off to younger siblings to complete the activity.

Field Trip:

Visit a pioneer museum, festival, or park that may have information and displays on the frontier days.