23.12.11 - Second visit to Port Dickson Army Museum

After lunch, we went to the Army Museum in Port Dickson. This is our second time here. I had posted about our visit there in an earlier posting here.

There was an army exhibition in their grounds and they exhibited their equipment including large guns. 

S observed the details of the vehicles and went back to draw them. He requested for a piece of paper to draw on the spot, but we hadn't brought along any. What a pity!

We also went to look at the indoor exhibition area. It has been upgraded and now looks quite attractive, especially those of the Malacca Sultanate era. 

Tiger exhibit indoors

When he got back, he drew an army tank, by looking at the picture in the  Army Museum's brochure. 

23.12.11 - Port Dickson beach

At 9.30 am in the morning, we went to the Port Dickson beach nearby Palm Springs apartment. We drove along the narrow road right to the "dead end". It was quite secluded there and it was only us and 2 other men fishing. The stones and the seashells here were very unique, unlike other beaches that we went. We collected many shells and some stones. There were also some small mudskippers moving about in the mud.

Collecting stones

The boys made a sandcastle and decorate it.

Some of the seashells collected. We collected many colourful seashells. 

The rocks here were very unique

There were some small mudskippers here 

22.12.11 - Trip to Port Dickson

We went for a 3D/2N trip to Port Dickson and stayed at Palm Springs apartment. We met up with a friend who had moved to Port Dickson who invited my boys over for a playdate with her homeschooled children. We all went to the beach that night. It was quite dark save for some some lights at a building nearby.

The children made a campfire from the branches and twigs at the beach

The hermit crabs came out at night. This is the first time I'm seeing hermit crab out in the open. There were many there, all moving about in the distance. When we approached them, they stayed still.

Teamwork - Hermit crab hunting

The hermit crabs collected. They were all released back to the beach after that. 

The next day, we met up again and the children made a campfire. The fire kept dying as the younger children threw sand at it, thinking that it would keep the fire going. Furthermore, the firewood that we took from our park were slightly large and damp and it was difficult to burn. 

Making a campfire

E followed his brother S and poured sand over the fallen tree trunk, to "save" the tree from being burnt. 

21.12.2011 - Mr Archimedes' Bath

We read a book entitled " Mr Archimedes' Bath" about Mr Archimedes who sat inside bathtub of water and found that the water rose. The animals who joined him in the bath all kept blaming each other for causing the water level to rise.  

After reading the book, I asked S, how come the water rose inside the bath. He thought for awhile and said, "When you are sitting in the water, you are using the space of the water. The water will squash together, so it will go up." This was not directly explained in the storybook, so, I could see that he understood the concept. 


The book was simple and did not mention about the Archimedes principle, by the ancient Greek scholar Archimedes.
"Archimedes reportedly proclaimed "Eureka!" when he stepped into a bath and noticed that the water level rose - he suddenly understood that the volume of water displaced must be equal to the volume of the part of his body he had submerged. This relation is known as Archimedes' principle."
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eureka_(word)

20.12.11 - Lego workshop, robot and house

This is their lego "workshop". Everyday, they would be hard at work at their workshop, tinkering with the pieces and coming up with something new. I tried to organise the lego pieces according to their shapes, but it keeps getting mixed up.

Their lego "workshop". 

S made this lego robot, with a blaster that can move its arms and legs. 

S has been requesting me for lego doors, but I don't have any, so he made this house without doors. He has also been requesting for lego technic. However, in Malaysia, lego technic is sold in boxes, with specific designs whereas I would like to have assorted lego technic parts.

19.12.11 - Lego vehicles

S made these lego vehicles on his own, without referring to any pictures.

A snowplough in shaving foam "snow". 

A race car

This vehicle has a compartment that can open and close

A tow vehicle with an arm that can move up and down

A vehicle with weapons

18.12.11 - Toy creations

S made these items  from his toys.

A car

A telescope

An excavator

16.12.11 - Creative play at the park

At the park, the boys pretended to be firemen attending to a fire.

E is driving the fire engine

S climbed a ladder to put out the fire using a fire hose. (This is the highest he has ever climbed) on this structure. 

14.12.11 - Lego trucks and vehicles

Here's are more of S creations of vehicles from lego. He made everything from scratch without referring to any pictures. I don't think I can even make these myself.

It is the largest vehicle that he has ever made with lego blocks

He even put lights and grille for the car

From the front angle

A fire engine with a ladder that can move up and down. 

17.12.11 - Christmas craft workshop with Magic Nuudles

The boys attended another Christmas workshop in 1Utama - this one was conducted using Magic Nuudles. It is a type of biodegradable building blocks that looks like junk food and can stick together with just a little bit of water. It is said to be safe even if it is consumed. S called it "magic mee", thinking of "noodles". The kids were divided into 2 age groups, age 4 - 6 years old and 7 - 12 years old. My boys joined the younger group.

Ms. Penny conducted the session. 

Colourful. It can be cut into smaller pieces with a knife or scissors. Many passers-by kept stopping at our table, picked up a piece and pressed it to see what it was. 

The younger group were given a piece of paper to colour and to stick the magic nuudles onto the paper. The best decorated work would be awarded a prize. 

E chose a duck and coloured and decorated the picture the best he could.  

A group of older children made a turtle. 

E was called on stage to receive his prize for the most creative piece of work

This is his prize - a box of 100 pcs Magic Nuudles. Top and bottom right: The front and back of the box.