ASL - May, June

Let's keep learning about the months of the year in ASL!

We just learned how to say January, February, March, April

Remember, to say a month, you just have to spell out the first three letters of the month.

May - M-A-Y



June - J-U-N



wiktionary - appendix:sign language handshapes


Here is a helpful video to show how these signs are done.


ASL HANGOUT: HOW TO SIGN MONTHS OF THE YEAR! - Sign Duo



(from: wikipedia - american sign language)

Italian: Maggio, Giugno

German: Mai Juni

Spanish: Mayo, Junio

French: Mai, Juin

Burr

We just learned about Grinding.

Another part of metal working is a Burr.

Many times when metal is cut, the sharp edge where it was cut has little rough pieces of metal left over that are called burrs.
When someone works to remove those little burrs to make the metal nice and smooth, that is called deburring.


(from: wikipedia - burr (edge))


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Forging

Tomato Frog

We just learned about the Waxy Monkey Tree Frog.

Another type of frog is the Tomato Frog.

These frogs get their name because they look like a big red tomato.
They live mostly in Madagascar, and their bright color is to warn off predators because they are poisonous.


(from: wikipedia - dyscophus antongilii)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Pacific Gopher Snake

Hair sebaceous gland

We just learned about the Hair - Muscle.

Another part of the hair is the sebaceous gland.

The sebaceous gland for the hair is what makes your hair get greasy and oily after a while.
This might seem like a bad thing because you have to shower to get the oils off, but without the oil in your hair it would dry up, crack to pieces and fall off of your head.


(from: wikipedia - sebaceous gland)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cerebellum

Quebec

We just learned about the Canadian province of Ontario.

Quebec is in the Northeast part of Canada, east of Ontario, and north of New York.
It is the second most populated province in Canada, and it was originally settled by people from France, so in this Province they speak both French and English.


(from: wikipedia - quebec)

The flag of Quebec has a blue background, a white cross, and four white fluers-de-lis, which is French for lily flower.
This flower picture was on the French royal flags, so the Quebec flag is to honor their French history.

(from: wikipedia - flag of quebec)

The coat of arms for Quebec are a crown above a shield with three parts.
The top is the fluers-de-lis for France, the middle is a lion for England, and the bottom is three green maple leaves for Canada.
The words je me souveins is French for I remember.

(from: wikipedia - coat of arms of quebec)

Lake Ontario is part of the five Great Lakes, and it is connected to a water way called the Saint Lawrence Seaway that eventually makes its way out to the ocean.


(from: wikipedia - saint lawrence seaway)

Montreal is the largest city in Quebec, and it has a very old cathedral built in the late 1800s, called Notre-Dame Basilica

(from: wikipedia - notre-dame basilica (montreal))

The official bird of Quebec is the Snowy owl

(from: wikipedia - snowy owl)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Makalu

Psalm 119 - Longest Psalm

We just learned about Psalm 137 - By the waters of Babylon .

Another famous chapter in this book is Psalm 119.

This Psalm is the longest chapter in the whole Bible, and has 176 verses.
These 176 verses are split up into 22 parts, and each of those 22 parts, one for each letter of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

Each of those 22 parts has eight verses, and each of those eight verses begins with the Hebrew letter they are listed under.

For example, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet is "אַ", called "Aleph".

The first eight chapters of Psalm 119 in Hebrew are:


אַשְׁרֵ֥י תְמִֽימֵי־דָ֑רֶךְ הַֽ֝הֹלְכִ֗ים בְּתוֹרַ֥ת יְהוָֽה׃
אַ֭שְׁרֵי נֹצְרֵ֥י עֵדֹתָ֗יו בְּכָל־לֵ֥ב יִדְרְשֽׁוּהוּ׃
אַ֭ף לֹֽא־פָעֲל֣וּ עַוְלָ֑ה בִּדְרָכָ֥יו הָלָֽכוּ׃
אַ֭תָּה צִוִּ֥יתָה פִקֻּדֶ֗יךָ לִשְׁמֹ֥ר מְאֹֽד׃
אַ֭חֲלַי יִכֹּ֥נוּ דְרָכָ֗י לִשְׁמֹ֥ר חֻקֶּֽיךָ׃
אָ֥ז לֹא־אֵב֑וֹשׁ בְּ֝הַבִּיטִ֗י אֶל־כָּל־מִצְוֺתֶֽיךָ׃
א֭וֹדְךָ בְּיֹ֣שֶׁר לֵבָ֑ב בְּ֝לָמְדִ֗י מִשְׁפְּטֵ֥י צִדְקֶֽךָ׃

Hebrew is backwards from English, and is read from right to left.
So if you look at the character on the right of each line, you can see it is the "Aleph".

When the Psalm is translated to English, the letters don't match up anymore:

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart,
who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!
You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently.
Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!
Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.
I will praise you with an upright heart, when I learn your righteous rules.
I will keep your statutes; do not utterly forsake me!


(from: wikipedia - psalm 119)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Feast of Christ the King

Judith and Holofernes - Donatello

We just learned about the Renaissance sculpture of David by Michelangelo.

Another famous sculpture from this time is Judith and Holofernes by Donatello in 1464 in Italy.

This sculpture was different because it was meant to be looked at from all sides, not just the front.
It is a sculpture of a woman named Judith.
In the story of Judith, there was a man named Holofernes who was the leader of an army that wanted to kill her people.
She tricked him into thinking that she liked him, and then when he was sleeping she killed him to save her people and stop the war.

Some people from the town of Florence look at this story as an example of a humble servant winning the battle against a wicked person full of pride.

(from: wikipedia - judith and holofernes (donatello))


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Winged Victory of Samothrace

ASL - March, April

Let's keep learning about the months of the year in ASL!

We just learned how to say January, February

Remember, to say a month, you just have to spell out the first three letters of the month.

March - M-A-R



April - A-P-R



wiktionary - appendix:sign language handshapes


Here is a helpful video to show how these signs are done.


ASL HANGOUT: HOW TO SIGN MONTHS OF THE YEAR! - Sign Duo



(from: wikipedia - american sign language)

Italian: Marzo, Aprile

German: März, April

Spanish: Marzo, Abril

French: Mars, Avril

Grinding

We just learned about the Hole Saw.

So far we have learned about cutting metal using a lathe or a mill, putting holes in the metal by threading, boring or drilling.

Another type of way to work with metal is called Grinding.
This is a way to use one rough piece of metal or even diamond to scrape off metal, almost like using sandpaper on wood.
Usually a grinder is a metal disc called a grinding wheel, that spins around very fast.

There are different types of grinders like angle grinders or bench grinders that you might use depending on what you want to do with the metal.


(from: wikipedia - angle grinder)


(from: wikipedia - bench grinder)



(from: wikipedia - grinding wheel)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Blacksmith

Waxy Monkey Tree Frog

We just learned about the Pouched Frog.

Another type of frog is the Waxy Monkey Tree Frog.

This frog gets the monkey part of it's name because it only ever walks through the trees, never hopping, so sometimes they look like monkeys.

These frogs never come down from living in the trees.
They lay eggs on leaves, and then fold the leaf over like a sandwich.
When the eggs hatch, they fall out of the leaf and drop into the water to live as tadpoles, until they become frogs and climb up into the trees.

These frogs have chemicals on their skin that have been used to create medicines as painkillers.


(from: wikipedia - phyllomedusa sauvagii)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ring Necked Snake

Hair - Muscle

We just learned about the Hair - Root Sheath.

Another interesting part of human hair is the Hair Muscle.
The fancy name for this muscle is the Arrector pili.

This muscle gets used when your skin gets cold and you get goosebumps on your skin as the hair is shoved out a little.


(from: wikipedia - arrector pili muscle)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Subthalamus

Ontario

Let's learn more about the Canadian Provinces.

The province of Ontario has more people living there than any other province. About 1/3 of all the people in Canada live in southeast Ontario.
This province also has the nation's capital of Ottowa, and the nation's most populated city of Toronto.
Ontario has a border along the US of about 1,678 miles.
Almost all of that border is made up of rivers or lakes, and only less than one mile is actually connected by land.

Ontario is in east-central Canada, right above Michigan.
To the north are Hudson Bay and James Bay, and to the south it borders four of the five Great Lakes, Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario.


(from: wikipedia - ontario)

The flag of Ontario is red, with the flag of the United Kingdom and the state shield on it.
Just like the USA, Canada was once a part of the United Kingdom.

(from: wikipedia - flag of ontario)

The coat of arms of Ontario has a black bear standing on an armored helmet which is above a red and white cross flag which is the flag of England.
Below the flag is a green shield with three golden maple leafs on it.
On the left is a Moose, and on the right is a deer. These are animals that live in Canada.
Below the animals are the Latin words "Ut incepit Fidelis sic permanet" which means "Loyal she began, loyal she remains"
This means that the people of Ontario were loyal to England, even after the American Revolution.

(from: wikipedia - coat of arms of ontario)

Niagara Falls is shared between the state of New York and the province of Ontario.

(from: wikipedia - niagara falls)

The largest nuclear power plant in the world is in Ontario, at a place called Bruce Nuclear Generating Station.

(from: wikipedia - bruce nuclear generating station)

The largest city in all of Canada is Toronto.
There are many things to see there, like the CN tower.

(from: wikipedia - toronto)

Ottawa, the capital city of Canada is in Ontario.
It is where the prime minister and parliament work for the government.

(from: wikipedia - ottawa)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Lhotse

Psalm 137 - By the waters of Babylon

We just learned about Psalm 103 - Bless the Lord, O my soul.

Another famous chapter from the book of Psalms is Psalm 137.

This Psalm has been made into music and paintings many times, especially the beginning which starts off:

"By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept,"

This Psalm was written about the time when the Israelites were forced to leave their home of Jerusalem, and they were very sad.


(from: wikipedia - psalm 137)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: All Saint's Day

David - Michelangelo

We just learned about the Tomb of Pope Julius II.

Another Renaissance Art sculpture is David by Michelangelo in Florence, in 1504 AD.

This is a sculpture of David from the Bible, and the eyes of David are looking toward Rome, as a way to defend the city of Florence from other stronger cities.

The sculpture is 17 feet tall and made of marble.


(from: wikipedia - david (michelangelo))


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Peplos Kore

ASL - January, February

Let's learn about the months of the year in ASL!

There are no special signs for the months of the year in ASL.

To say a month, you just have to spell out the first three letters of the month.

January - J-A-N



February - F-E-B



wiktionary - appendix:sign language handshapes


Here is a helpful video to show how these signs are done.


ASL HANGOUT: HOW TO SIGN MONTHS OF THE YEAR! - Sign Duo



(from: wikipedia - american sign language)

Italian: Gennaio, Febbraio

German: Januar, Februar

Spanish: Enero, Febrero

French: Janvier, Février

Hole Saw

We just learned about the Twist Drill Bits.

Another type of drill bit is the Hole Saw.
Sometimes you need to drill a really big hole out of a piece of wood or metal, and this type of bit can grab on to the metal with the smaller bit in the middle called the "pilot drill bit".
Then the teeth on the larger bit can cut the hole for the right shape.


(from: wikipedia - hole saw)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Metalwork

Pouched Frog

We just learned about the Gray Tree Frog.

Another type of frog is the Pouched Frog.

This is a small red-brown frog with stripes that lives in Australia.

When the frog's eggs hatch, they stay in a small pocket on the hip of the male frog until they get bigger and turn into tiny frogs.

(from: wikipedia - pouched frog)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: False Coral Snake

Hair - Root Sheath

We just learned about the Hair - Plexus.

Another part of the hair is the Root Sheath.

Just like the skin has layers, the hair also has layers.
A sheath is like a wrapper, and the hair has a soft inner sheath and a harder outer sheath.


(from: wikipedia - rooth sheath)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Epithalamus

Canadian Provinces

We've learned about the mountains of North America.

Let's move on and talk a little about the Provinces and Territories in the country of Canada.

Canada has 10 provinces and 3 territories.

The ten provinces are: Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.

The three territories are: Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon

There is not much of a difference between provinces and territories, mostly just in how things work in the government.


(from: wikipedia - provinces and territories of canada)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Kangchenjunga

Psalm 103 - Bless the Lord, O my soul

We just learned about Psalm 51 - Miserere.

Another famous chapter in the book of Psalms is Psalm 103.

This song starts with the words:

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!.

It goes on to say how great the Lord is, and sings praises on his blessings.
This song has been used many times for songs and even musicals.


(from: wikipedia - psalm 103)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ordinary Time

Tomb of Pope Julius II - Michelangelo

We just learned about the Pietà by Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Another Renaissance Art sculpture is the Tomb of Pope Julius II by Michelangelo.

Michelangelo had great plans to build a gigantic three story wall with 40 statues in it, but sadly he was told to make it a lot smaller and only put in a few statues.

The most famous of his statues in this tomb is a large almost 8 foot tall Moses sitting and holding the tablets of the Ten Commandments in his one hand.
In this sculpture Moses has horns on his head, because when Moses came down from the mountain after seeing God, his face was enlightened, and some people thought that meant he had horns on his head like rays of light pointing to heaven.
Michelangelo was so proud of his sculpture of Moses that when he was done he hit it on the knee and shouted "NOW SPEAK" because it looked so lifelike almost like it was real.

There are also statues of the sisters Rachel and Leah next to Moses.

The other sculptures above Moses were made by another sculptor.



(from: wikipedia - tomb of pope julius ii)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Sphinx of Naxos

ASL - Saturday, Sunday

We just learned how to say Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in ASL.

Let's keep learning the days of the week!

To say "Saturday" make the hand sign for the letter "S", turn your hand around and move it around in a circle.

To say "Sunday", put both of your flat open hands out in front of you with your palms facing out and your fingers pointed up, and then move them around in a circle.

Here is a helpful video to show how these signs are done.


ASL Vocabulary - Days of the Week - ASL THAT



(from: wikipedia - american sign language)

Italian: Sabato, Domenica

German: Samstag, Sonntag

Spanish: Sabado, Domingo

French: Samedi, Dimanche