Jane Browne Memorial - Flaxman

We just learned about the sculpture of George Washington by Antonio Canova in 1820.

Another famous sculpture is the Jane Browne Memorial made by John Flaxman in 1783 in Badger, Shropshire, England.

Flaxman was well known by a lot of people for making memorials for people that made the figures look tender and innocent, so he had a lot of work making those.


(from: wikipedia - john flaxman)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Gloucester Candlestick

Greek Alphabet

We just learned how to Count to ten in Greek.

The Greek alphabet has some letters that look a lot like the English alphabet, but other's don't.
Like the letter a (alpha) looks kind of like the letter a, and the letter b (beta) looks like the letter b.
The word "alphabet" even comes from the greek letters alpha and beta!

Just like English, some of the upper and lower case letters look different.

Α, α (alpha) - Sounds like "ah"
Β, β (beta) - Sounds like the letter "b"
Γ, γ (gamma) - sounds like the letter "g"
Δ, δ (delta) - Sounds like the letter "d"
Ε, ε (epsilon) - Sounds like "ay"
Ζ, ζ (zeta) - Sounds like the letter "z"
Η, η (eta) - Sounds like "ee" or "eh"
Θ, θ (theta) - Sounds like "th"
Ι, ι (iota) - Sounds like "ee"
Κ, κ (kappa) - Sounds like the letter "k"
Λ, λ (lambda) - Sounds like the letter "l"
Μ, μ (mu) - Sounds like the letter "m"
Ν, ν (nu) - Sounds like the letter "n"
Ξ, ξ (xi) - Sounds like "ks"
Ο, ο (omicron) - Sounds like "oh"
Π, π (pi) - Sounds like the letter "p"
Ρ, ρ (rho) - Sounds like the letter "r"
Σ, σ/ς (sigma) - Sounds like the letter "s"
Τ, τ (tau) - Sounds like the letter "t"
Υ, υ (upsilon) - Sounds like "oo" or "ee"
Φ, φ (phi) - Sounds like "ph"
Χ, χ (chi) - Sounds like "kh"
Ψ, ψ (psi) - Sounds like "ps"
Ω, ω (omega) - Sounds like "oh"


(from: wikipedia - center for the greek language)

ASL alphabet: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z The Italian alphabet looks the same as the English alphabet.

The German alphabet has the letters ä, ö, ü, ß

The Spanish alphabet:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G
H, I, J, K, L, LL, M, N, Ñ
O, P, Q, R, RR, S, T, U
V, W, X, Y, Z

The French alphabet:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G
H, I, J, K, L, M, N
O, P, Q, R, S, T, U
V, W, X, Y, Z

Submarine Earthquake

We just learned about the Slow Earthquake.

Sometimes earthquakes happen underwater, deep down at the bottom of the ocean floor.
When this happens, it is called a Submarine Earthquake.

The tectonic plates that cover the earth are also at the bottom of the ocean.
When they move and bump into each other, it causes a submarine earthquake.
This causes big waves to happen in the ocean, and can sometimes turn into a gigantic wave called a tsunami, which can cause flooding on cities that are right on the ocean.

Some of the places where these tectonic plates hit are in the very deep parts of the ocean, called "trenches".


(from: wikipedia - submarine earthquake)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Smelting

Frogspawn

We just learned about the Masked Tree Frog that looks like it is wearing a mask.

When frogs are babies, they are born in eggs, like a chicken.
Their eggs are in water, and are usually clear and covered in a kind of jelly.

Baby frog eggs are called Frogspawn.
Some frogs lay their eggs in long strings, some lay them into soft dirt, and some lay their eggs in foam.
Other frogs lay their eggs in trees and then drop into the water.

The eggs usually hatch after about a week.


(from: wikipedia - frog)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Snake Skeleton

Glenohumeral Ligaments

We just learned about the Scapula & Clavicle Ligaments.

Another group of ligaments are the Glenohumeral Ligaments that connect the humerus (upper arm bone) to the scapula (shoulder blade or wing bone), and helps hold the shoulder in place.

The scapula has a part sticking out called the coracoid process that helps it get tied to the other bones, and it has a part called the glenoid cavity which is like a rounded holder where the shoulder bone goes to help hold it in place.

The ligaments are:
- Capsule - Goes around the outside of the humerus bone
- Coracohumeral - Connects the coracoid process which is part of the scapula to the humerus bone
- Glenohumeral - Connects the glenoid cavity which is part of the scapula to the humerus bone
- Transverse humeral - Connects two parts of the humerus together
- Glenoid labrum - Helps make the glenoid cavity more stable and bigger


(from: wikipedia - articular capsule of the humerus)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Autonomic Nervous System

Coahuila

We just learned about the Mexico state of Sinaloa where some people still play the Mesoamerican ballgame.

Another Mexico state is Coahuila, which is on the north east part of Mexico, bordering the US state of Texas, along the Rio Grande river.


(from: wikipedia - coahuila)

There are many trees in the bottom and top left of the coat of arms, for the many trees that are found in the state.
The bottom part has the Monclova river that runs through the state, and the rising sun which is for the Mexican Revolution.
The top right has a lion and a column with the words Plus Ultra, which means Further Beyond.
The top left has two wolves by a tree.
The animals in these top two crests come from the people of Spain that came to Mexico.


(from: wikipedia - coahuila)

In the city of Torreón, there is a statue of Jesus called Cristo de las Noas.
It is the largest statue of Jesus in North America, and is over 70 feet tall.


(from: wikipedia - cristo de las noas)

The name of the city comes from the towers that were built to monitor the floods.


(from: wikipedia - torreón)

Underneath the city is a canal called "Canal de la Perla" which means the Pearl Watercourse, that was made to help bring the river water to the fields long ago.
It is not used anymore so they have opened it up like a museum that people can walk through.


(from: wikipedia - torreón)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Insular Mountains

Desert Mothers

We just learned a little about Nuns.

We learned a while back about the Desert Fathers.

There were also Desert Mothers who were women living in the desert either as hermits or in small groups with other women.


(from: wikipedia - desert mothers)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Rachel