Tour of the Landfill and Recycling Facilities

A small group of friends toured the Little Rock Landfill and Recycling facilities today.  I got the idea when visiting the Flower and Garden Show a few months ago - they were giving away small bags of compost.  I thought, "I want to know how they do this.  And I'm sure it would be interesting for kids."  

Sure enough they do tours for school groups.  It was a very interesting tour and I would recommend you going - especially in small groups of 15 or less.  (I don't enjoy tours with large groups.)

Below you see a mountain of yard waste.  In the mid-90's it became a (sensible) law that yard waste could not be mixed with the trash.  If you live in central Arkansas, you will well remember the powerless Christmas day storm that left some people without power for a week.  The composting team is still working through the debris.

 Below is the mulcher.  It grinds up trees as well as bags of leaves.  They usually do the wood separately from the smaller, easier to grind things.

 I'm not sure why some of my pictures turned on their side and I'm not going to waste time to figure it out...I'm sorry for the strained neck.  :)

After the compost is shredded, it is put in rows to "cook."  The below machinery is for turning the compost while keeping it in neat rows.  After cooking, the compost is run through a screen that removes the pieces of plastic bags.

 This is a mountain of finished compost, maybe 30 feet tall.  If you drive out to the facilities, the mulch and compost are very inexpensive.  I want to say that for another couple of weeks, a truck load of mulch is only $10.  The compost isn't much more.

 And here are two rows (of many) of compost.  They keep an eye on the temperature so that it doesn't spontaneously combust.  Seriously.

After viewing the composting we continued our tour in a 15 passenger van up the hill to where the garbage is dumped.

We learned many interesting factoids about the landfill.  Some I knew already because I briefly studied landfills in college but even those who did not study mounds of trash found it interesting.  

Did you know the landfill emits methane gas; the city sells this gas?  Or, that the leachate (the garbage juice that drains from the garbage) is piped into the waste water system?  yech.  Or, at 4:00 everyday the garbage is covered with six inches of dirt?  Surprisingly it did not stink.

However, the recycling center had a bit of a smell.

The recycling center was about a 15 minute drive from the landfill.  Once there we watched a brief and interesting video about how they separate the recyclables.  Then the shades were lifted in the education room and we were able to see first hand the mounds of recycled materials.

Out side were bales of plastic and steel that we could inspect further.

 The tours lasted about 2 hours.  Call Barbara Meier 918-5260 to set up your field trip.

-Julie

Spelling Bee on Friday, May 10

A few weeks ago, I sent an email to the Comm Central group about a Spelling Bee for my competitive 3rd grade son (who otherwise wouldn't be interested in studying lists of words.)  I thought I would post specifics here, in the event someone didn't respond to my initial email but were interested.

After giving it more thought...here's how the spelling bee will shake out (I'm open to suggestions).

When:

We'll just do ONE FRIDAY and see how it goes on May 10 at 12:30. If afterwards we think it was profitable time then we can talk about subsequent Fridays..

Where:

My house (so that my baby can nap.)  Our neighborhood park is only 2 blocks away so if you'd like to take your littles there while we spell, that's fine.  Or, we have a trampoline in the back yard...and a flat driveway & cul-de-sac for ride on toys...Or we can do both.  I live near Whole Foods (email me for exact location.) 

What list?

That's a good question and I'm open for suggestions.  I had planned on using this site for words.

Format:

I'll say the word.  Then ask the child to say the word and let them spell it out loud.  I will allow a piece/pad of paper and pencil for them to write it down and look at it.  Depending on how fast/slow the process is, I could put a time limit on their turn - I will play that by ear.  We will start with easy words and work our way harder until the last man is left standing.  When a person misspells a word, I will spell it correctly for them then ask them to sit down.  The next person will get a new word.  I want the spelling bee to last at least 20 minutes.  If we have a clear winner within 5 minutes, we'll have a second and maybe 3rd round.  I specify these time-constraints because my 3rd grade extrovert will be ready to get the "work" out of the way so he can play. 

I'm not sure of the age span of the children who are participating.  If you could reply and let me know who and what age is participating it will help me plan (or spelling level - like "my child is in kindergarten but he can spell 4th grade words."

Let me know what I've missed.  Feel free to invite non-Comm Central families.  And mark your calendar for May 10 at 12:30.

Julie

luvmyhub AT gmail DOT com

Book:: Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China

Several years ago, when my husband and I were thinking of adopting a daughter from China, a friend recommended that we read this well written book to help us understand the culture.

Below is the product description from Amazon.  I have bolded the sentence that summarizes the book.    -Julie


Blending the intimacy of memoir and the panoramic sweep of eyewitness history, Wild Swans has become a bestselling classic in thirty languages, with more than ten million copies sold. The story of three generations in twentieth-century China, it is an engrossing record of Mao's impact on China, an unusual window on the female experience in the modern world, and an inspiring tale of courage and love.

Jung Chang describes the life of her grandmother, a warlord's concubine; her mother's struggles as a young idealistic Communist; and her parents' experience as members of the Communist elite and their ordeal during the Cultural Revolution. Chang was a Red Guard briefly at the age of fourteen, then worked as a peasant, a "barefoot doctor," a steelworker, and an electrician. As the story of each generation unfolds, Chang captures in gripping, moving -- and ultimately uplifting -- detail the cycles of violent drama visited on her own family and millions of others caught in the whirlwind of history.

Geography Games

Here's a great website for geography games.
-Julie

App for IEW - and it's FREE!

I just found out that IEW has apps for free for Apple and Android! Oh. My. Goodness. I think our composition lessons are going to get easier now. Baker will do anything on the iPad (LOL). Here's the link...IEW apps page.
Amy

Another Comm. Central Student

Last Friday, we welcomed our third child into the family, a son weighing in at a whopping 10 pounds, 10 ounces.  We named him Schaeffer Allen Majors (after Francis Schaeffer).

If you want more details, click on over to my personal blog.

-Julie

Camera Phone:: Works for Me

Even though Comm. Central has dismissed for the year, we are still doing school.  I'm expecting a baby January 6 and imagine that life will get a bit crazy then, so we're working ahead.

Maybe you are not as scatterbrained as I am, or maybe you've taken the time to master your smart phone and don't need this tip.  

Something that is working for me lately, is taking pictures of lists with my phone.  

Confession

I make lots of lists.  Then loose them.  Somehow, I've been able to keep up with my phone.

Remedy

Take a picture of your lists.  Below is my 3rd grader's "to do list" for last Thursday.  I took a picture because we aren't doing the same things everyday, nor in the same order.

This was his "spelling test" from this list.  That site also has lists for kindergarten through 8th grade.  Below I've circled the words he struggled with or spelled incorrectly.  The following day, I drill him first on the words he missed previously.

By taking a picture of my lists, I can reduce clutter (by throwing away paper!) yet feel like I'm keeping my head above water.

-Julie

Science memory work review crossword

Find it here!

First semester history review crossword

Find it here! Unfortunately, one of the clues fell off the page, so "Stalin" will not have a corresponding clue.

Thanksgiving!

Here at Loften Academy, I do my best to keep some semblance of a school routine during the long break. Mainly, because we are usually behind by this point but also because I find Baker does so much better with structure (and so do I). Here is a great resource for Thanksgiving "stuff" for all ages, including printables and clips on the history of the holiday. Enjoy! May we all be thankful this season.
Amy
Mama's Learning Corner