A BOY AND HIS GLUE GUN!

I only burnt my fingers once, but it was worth it.

This is my model of the rocket that'll take the astronauts to mars.

I've been fascinated by the new mission to Mars - Mars One . The plan is to send people to Mars to set up a base camp. They will be constructing living pods and work areas. They will need to overcome many problems with the natural environment. For homework we were asked to create a model of the Mars Operation.





My mum has collected a giant bag of' 'rubbish'. I tipped it out and started sifting through it to find interesting shapes and sizes. I grabbed a fruit shoot lid and four wall plugs to create the booster rockets at the back.  I used two small lemonade bottles to create engines and a silicone sealant nozzle for the nose cone. A coat hanger created wings and a balanced base. If you look closely you might spot two plastic knives, buttons and pegs. 

Normal glue wasn't going to stick this junk together, I needed something with more kick! This is when my mum introduced me to the wonders of the glue gun! No more child friendly glue sticks! This weapon of 'construction' is hot, dangerous and a tad scary. You squeeze the trigger of doom and a molten stream of glue begins to pour out. You have to work quickly and safely as it solidifies at the speed of light! Unfortunately strings of sticky glue form at this point in the process and have the habit of burning fingers.

To finish off the rocket I had to spray the 'booster rockets' red and the rest silver. I used a cardboard box to protect the surroundings and sprayed it outside to protect my health!



I was on a roll so decided to create the new Mars One colony.

I created a pressurized dome out of cling film and chicken wire. This will withstand the increased pressure on Mars and also protect the astronauts from space debris.

This will also protect the astronauts from the temperature extremes. 

Inside I have created living spaces that are pumped with oxygen made from splitting water atoms. The water comes from Martian ice caps. Water will also be used to grow plants using hydroponics. I created the tress by cutting sponges into tree shapes and dipping them in paint.Then I used the left over sponge pieces to create moon rocks.

Electricity will be created using solar power and methane gas from human sewage. (This will also be put onto the plants as fertilizer). I used drinking straws to create the solar panels and pipes.

The carbon dioxide will be removed from the air by a CO2 scrubber that uses chemicals. I made all the pods and machinery using cake tubs and jelly pots sprayed silver.

I have loved using the glue gun and i have started to plan another model.

The Life of a Penguin 3D

                                                                             Nan

Today 14^th August has been a day I always remember.    I was invited by my grandchildren, The Blogging Brothers, to join them at the Science Museum for a surprise.   Although I have been to the Natural History Museum many times I had never been to the Science Museum so this was indeed a treat in store for me. 

For me, the Space section was the best.   What tremendous advances have been made since Apollo 10 orbited the earth practising for a landing on the moon which was to take place two years later.   This was a really important exercise before the real thing.   In May 1969 I can remember Apollo 10 orbiting the moon and then  waiting for the capsule to land back on earth after  going through everything that would be required if a landing on the moon was to be successful .   What excitement there was in the household, everybody waiting around with baited breath, anxious  to hear or see on television that the astronauts  had landed safely back home.  Those few minutes of silence before they entered  the earth’s atmosphere seemed to be hours.   Would the astronauts  be safe after their long silence coming back to earth? Of course they were and  cheers of joy and relief  were heard all round the world this would indeed be a tremendous breakthrough for  space  exploration. This mission was a dress rehearsal for Apollo 11 which would actually land on the moon two years later.   To see the capsule used for this expedition was truly amazing.

However, the best was still to come.   Unbeknown to me we had been invited to see a special showing of David Attenborough’s ‘The Life of a Penguin‘ in 3D.   We had seats very near to the front and lo and behold who should appear but Sir David Attenborough himself, how lucky was I.    What an amazing and fortunate man, a man who was all too ready to point out that most of the hard and dangerous work for any of his documentaries was done by the film crew.  This film was made in South Georgia where extreme weather conditions are experienced and where the temperature can change rapidly in minutes to many degrees below zero, not a place to be camping out during filming!

What an amazing day and thank you Oscar and Lex for allowing me to share with you this wonderful experience.

Lex

Thank you Nan for that great guest post,we would like you to do more posts in the future. I would just like to add that my favorite parts were the ball machine in Launchpad and seeing Sir David Attenborough.

Stomp!

Hi everyone, it's Oscar again! On Saturday we went to London. We went by train.

First of all we went to The British Museum. My favourite exhibit was the gun tree from Africa. All the villagers gave up their guns in exchange for a tractor. The artists then used the guns to make a tree. There were also gun creatures and a gun chair.I also liked the different weaving styles. I tried to weave a house for Flipper out of palm leaves and at the moment I am making a wool table runner on a weaving loom.
We also had a treasure hunt to find the crystal skull. We heard about the skull at Altun Ha in Belize and we were fascinated by the story. Unfortunately scientists have proven that it is a fake. I was a bit annoyed. It did look really cool though.

Then we went to Wagamamas for lunch. I love this Japanese inspired restaurant although the last time we went there I was sick on the bench! I had chicken and noodles. They were delicious but the noodles were a bit stuck together. We had to eat with chopsticks. I also had apple juice. I was a bit nervous when it arrived as it was green and very frothy. It was very refreshing though.

After lunch we headed to The Ambassadors Theatre we were going to watch Stomp. It was a really small theatre and no one was in front of me. Perfect! We had chocolate ice-creams at the start as we found out there was no interval. The show was fantastic. There were 8 people on the stage. I was surprised at the start when a man was on the stage sweeping with a broom. I thought he was a cleaner. Then lots more people with brooms came on and I realised that was actually the start of the show! The musicians created rhythms using weird objects such as matchboxes, pipes, dustbins and newspaper. Some bits were really funny such as the bit where the man made a skirt out of newspaper and he also stuck his tongue out of a hole in the newspaper in the right place in a picture of a lady.

Follow link to official video gallery. 
 http://www.stomplondon.com/gallery/video-gallery/#yt-z_KkC3bNAbM

The music made me feel happy and I wanted to dance. It was really noisy and crazy. We got to join a bit when the man asked us to clap in rhythm. I gave them a standing ovation.
After the show we went to the stage door and actually met the musicians. We told them we loved it and they gave us a thumbs up!

I give this 10/10 and would recommend it.

We had another great day. I don't really want to go back to school!

The Energy Show at The Science Museum London

As we took our seats for The Energy Show we were a bit nervous as we saw strings of CAUTION tape directly in front of us. The set looked like a old broom cupboard sort of science lab. Lots of sheets were draped over things to give it an eerie effect in the dark. Suddenly a crazy looking person appeared out of breath at the top of the stairs. Meet Phil. Phil is a student , a bit of a pyromaniac, rather crazy and a big fan of Star Wars. She is joined by Annabella. Annabella loves lists, she 's boring and rather bossy. The two have to complete a presentation about the different types of energy to pass their exam.

Their presentation was chaotic and heaps of laughs. With the help of Bernard a mute lab assistant and I-nstein an animated character they blow up methane bubbles , turn flowers brittle with liquid nitrogen and perform Van Der Graf experiments. 

My favourite experiment ( Oscar) was blowing up balloons. I loved the noise it was really exciting.it really hurt my mum's ears though.

My favourite experiment (Lex) was the exploding liquid nitrogen. The explosion was so big they had to hold it down with a tarp. I'd like to see it in the open without a cover. I also liked the references to Star Wars. Phil touched a old fluorescent light tube to a plasma ball to create a light sabre.

The finale was blasting hydrogen filled rockets into the audience. This was a fantastic show for kids. The science was a bit hard for 7 year olds but a good introduction to energy.

After the show we raced to make 3D glasses. We used blue and red acetate to make the lenses and then the 3D pictures came to life. 

Next we visited our favourite science museum exhibit - the ball machine. We like turning the wheels and using the pulleys. However it needs a bit of maintenance because the spiral seems to have worn away and the balls are escaping.

In the same gallery we enjoyed making electrical circuits, silhouettes and playing on the spinning machine until we were dizzy. 

We just had time to gorge on luxurious icecreams before heading to the 'atmosphere'gallery. We loved playing all the computer games. They were educational but fun as well. We learned about greenhouse gases and how to protect the environment. 

We had a great day and as we were heading out we heard the sound of a tuba. We looked closer and a man with a flaming tuba was playing along to a radio. It was crazy. 

We were a bit tired when we got home. 

http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

Discover Arts Award

Today was the last day of my Arts Award course. It was the big exhibition at Firstsite the gold banana art gallery in Colchester. I've been coming to Firstsite for 10 weeks to complete my award.

My Jackson Pollock inspired cake

 We have learned about lots of artists and different types of art . For example Dadaism, poetry, animation, sculpture and cartoons. We had to do lots of homework every week. I found out about Andy Goldsworthy, Gaudi, and Jackson Pollock. I made a cake for everyone inspired by his splodge pictures. 

My favourite part was making Mr Horny , my superhero, out of clay for the animation. We also had to fill in a sketch book. 

 I'm really looking forward to doing my Explore Award next.

There are lots of activities for children over the summer holidays at Firstsite including films to watch at a private theatre. The seats were really comfy.

http://www.firstsite.uk.net/page/whats-on-category-b

Beaver Fun day at Thorrington scout camp

Last weekend we went to Thorrington campsite for a beaver,cub,brownie and rainbow fun day. First of all we visited the animal man. We were allowed to touch some of the animals. First I touched a skunk. I was a bit nervous but he had had his glands removed so he couldn't spray us. He also had some naked Guinea pigs. They looked like mini pigs because they did not have any fur. I really liked the albino hedgehog. It was spiky like my hair! 

Next we went bouldering. This is a hut and inside the walls are covered in plastic rock climbing hand holds. You have to wear a helmet. You climb up the walls without a rope and then climb around the walls not up. Top tip.....never wear big boots as they will be too big for the foot holds!

After bouldering I tried crate stacking. I was on a harness and my friends stacked up old milk crates for me to step on. I climbed really high before my time ran out and then I jumped off. I liked swinging from the rope. It reminded me of the Tarzan swing that I loved in Costa Rica. 

Near to the crate stacking, hidden in the woods, was a rope bridge. I had to climb up a ladder to get on. I didn't like it because other boys were shaking it. But I did and felt really proud.

By this time I was starving and thank goodness it was time for lunch. We had a ticket to exchange for hot dogs, ice cream and biscuits.

After lunch we tried archery. I got all of my arrows on the target. I even got one in the yellow section. I found it quite hard to keep the arrow in the notch. 

We finished the day with a campfire. The fire was huge and the bits of ash kept on blowing on us. The songs made me laugh especially the worm song.

"We hate bugs,clap clap clap, look at the worm, catch the worm, lick the worm, bite the worm ,chew the worm, swallow the worm, digest the worm, poo the worm, kick the worm, shoot the worm, SORRY MR WORM"

I had the best day so far at Beavers and I can't wait to go to camp.

Oscar's Homemade Lemonade

When I was on our trip I used to drink a lot of fresh lemonade. Today I made my own.

You will need:

About 7 lemons (but today I used 5 and  2 limes) 

1 cup of sugar

4 cups of water

First make a syrup. Use 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water. Mix in a saucepan and heat until all the sugar dissolves. 

Next squeeze all of the lemons until you have 1 cup of juice.

Mix the syrup and the juice. 

Add 3 cups of water and mix.

Pour into your best bottle and add a tag. 

Keep your lemonade in the fridge.

We bought this purple juicer in Mexico but I broke on the first squeeze! I was too strong!

 

The finished lemonade. 

Five days later - the cress jungle!

Oscar 

I can't believe how much my cress has grown in only five days. I tried some this afternoon. It was horrible. It was really spicy like hot pepper. Never again, not even in my favourite egg sandwiches.

Talking of egg sandwiches would you like to see my chickens?  I'm in the garden taking photos on mum's ipad straight into the blog. It is so much easier than using a camera.

 

 

This is a picture of me in the plum tree. Can you see the basket of nasturtiums? These are edible flowers.

Avocados!

Since we have been home from Mexico Mum and Dad have become obsessed with eating guacamole. Guacamole is made from mashed up avocados. I don't like them that much though. The seeds are really big so I thought I'd try to plant one. 

You need a jam jar with a small opening and some cocktail sticks. I poked three sticks in the seed about half way down then used this to suspend the seed over water. I ran out of jam jars so used the tops of juice bottles to start some off. 

 Fill the jar up with water so the bottom of the seed sits in the water. Change the water every day.

After a few weeks I peeled the brown skin off the bottom of the seed. This seemed to work as the next day it started to grow a root.

I was really excited when the root started to show in the jar. Then the top started to crack and I could see a green shoot inside. I decided to plant it. I left half the seed out of the top of the soil.

This is an experiment. I have lots at different stages of growth in the kitchen.

Then I wanted to grow something else but needed a pot. I found some old dinosaurs that we found because we are clearing out for a boot sale and mum cut the tops off. I planted cress inside.

Back to school!

Oscar

We have been home for over a month now and we have gradually settled back into normal life. 

 We have had loads of tests at school that have been really boring.

This week at school though was really fun. The school celebrated its 150th birthday. Everyone had to dress up in Victorian clothes for a day. My teacher was dressed in a black cape and a black hat. He was a bit scary. A visitor called 'The Butler' came to talk to us about being a servant in Victorian times. He used a flint to make a fire. They had to do this every morning to make hot water. One of my friends got to dress up in a posh coat and he had a cane walking stick that had a diamond on the top of it. 

One day we went to the church next door and all the parents got to hear our new school anthem. I helped to act out a story. I was the foolish builder and got to wear sunglasses.

We wrote notes about ourselves to put in a time capsule. It was really special paper that never crumbles.

The best activity of the week was the magician. He was weird. He made one of the girls float in the air. I was amazed. We also got to eat special cakes with our new school logo on. You could eat the paper.

Canoeing!

Lex
Today we got up really early at 5 am to go and see canoe racing. It was the start of a four day race from San Ignacio to Belize City called The Ruta Maya. There were three men or women in a canoe. When the race started five canoes tipped and they kept on tipping. When the last team finally started to paddle everyone cheered and clapped. There were TV crews and radio hosts everywhere and a band played on drums.

After that we drove to Barton Creek Cave for our own canoeing trip. I got in a canoe with Dad and Elmer from the hotel. We had to manoeuvre the canoes through a tight opening to get into the cave.

When we entered I was surprised because the air was warmer than I expected but the water was freezing. We stopped and talked for five minutes while our eyes adjusted. The cave was used by Mayans for ceremonies that helped their dead get to the underworld quicker. As we paddled the guide used her flashlight to point out skulls and pots resting in ledges, untouched for thousands of years. Along the way we encountered stalactites, about 70.5 m from the roof towards the water.they were so close to the water that we had to duck down as far as we could go. It was pretty scary. We had to dodge in and out trying not to break our necks. It was like being in a maze. It was also scary when the torch died and it was really dark. This is us with Dora our guide.

Medicine Trail

Today we went back to the San ignacio Resort Hotel to do a medicinal plant tour. These plants and herbs were the Mayan medicine cupboard. They did not have a cupboard full of chemicals like us. We looked at a lot of plants and to use most of them you have to boil the bark or leaves up to make a tea and then drink it.

If you are itching badly from insect bites you pluck some leaves from the Polly Red Wood tree and boil them in water. Then add the mixture to eight pints of chilled water. Then you have to have a bath in the mixture.

A tourist tree is a tree that the bark peels off and is red underneath. The locals have called it the tourist tree as it is meant to look like us when we get sunburn. If you see a tourist tree there is usually a black poison wood nearby. The black poison wood will irritate your skin if you touch it but if you take the bark of the tourist tree and rub it on it will soothe your skin.
I was interested in the chicle tree. If you cut crosses in the bark the sap runs out.

The sap is collected and shaped into blocks. This is shipped to the USA and flavour is added. It is chewing gum. I tried a piece and at this stage it tasted woody and not very nice. Our guides grandfather used to go into the rainforest for seven months at a time and collect this product.

We also got to see a hummingbird nest. It was about 12 cm wide. There were two tiny birds inside waiting for their mummy to bring them food.
We also got to eat termites. The guide poked a stick into the nest and a few crawled onto the stick. There are six flavours of termites and it was pot luck which flavour you got. Woody, spicy, celery, minty, nutty and almondy. The thought of eating them was quite yucky but they were quite nice. They tickled our throats.

The Iguana Project

Lex

Nestled in the grounds of the San Ignacio Resort Hotel is an iguana breeding programme. We walked down a path leading to the enclosures. They said they had about 76 in total. They usually have 20 adults and 30 -50 babies. Two of the biggest males were Gizmo and Oscar. The colours of iguanas change in mating season from orange to green. The males can grow up to three metres long and the females only one metre. They have ears that are very sensitive and so are the spines on their back. If they detect a predator above their heads they can free fall from a branch and the spines tell them to stay the right way up. They will always land on their feet. They can survive a fall from a seven storey building. Wow!

Oscar

In Belize the local people love to eat iguanas and their eggs so the project was to breed new ones and release them into the wild.

Me and lex held our hands out together like a branch and got to hold Gizmo. He was quite heavy. Gizmo was an orange iguana. He had suction dots inside his legs to suck onto the ladies. Down his back he had sensitive spines to help him land upright if he fell. Under his chin he had a hanging fold of skin. He kept swiping the man with his tail. In the centre of head he had a sensor that detects movement and night and day. He had little holes for ears. Gizmo had been fighting as it was breeding season and he had dried up bit of blood around his mouth.

Gizmo was 17 years old and had been there from the start of the project. He is too old to be released but he is the daddy of all the babies. All the other iguanas are released at a certain depending on whether they are male or female. The males get bigger than the females.

Then we went into the baby enclosure. There were about 40 babies in there. Most were about 30 cm long. He put a baby on my hat and then attached six more to my clothes. They had long claws and when they scratched my skin it gave me goosebumps. We stood next to a tree and they climbed off by themselves.

http://www.sanignaciobelize.com/belize-iguana-project

Mayan Ruins

Altun Ha in Belize by Oscar

Today we went to Altun Ha to learn some more about the Mayans. It was different to Copan ruins in Honduras because there were no sculptures or carved rocks. I climbed up a temple and it was really steep. I was scared and nervous especially when I climbed down. Some archaeologists found a head a head carved out of jade.
Special types of ants live in the thorns of a tree. If a human or animal touches the plant the ants will come out and attack him.

Tikal in Guatemala by Lex

Today we went to another Mayan ruin in Guatamala. The Mayan civilisation started in 600 BC but the city was abandoned by 900 AD. It was rebound by archaeologists about 100 years later. At Tikal there are about 3000 structures made out of limestone. That's a lot of stone! The ruins at Tikal are part of a huge reserve. It's mostly rainforest with animals such as monkeys, parrots, wild pigs, raccoons, and jaguars.
Archaeologists think up to 100,000 people lived in Tikal. Bizarrely there were no rivers near the city so the Mayans had to make reservoirs. They dug holes then lined the sides with clay so the rainwater didn't drain out.
The 26th ruler was called ' Jasaw Chan Kawill' meaning 'ruler of chocolate' he was the only ruler to be buried under his own temple so he was pretty special. His temple was 70 m tall, around 18 storeys. We were able to go into the royalties bedrooms. They were still standing. They used to be painted red from crushed berries. I would hate to be royal because the rooms were so tiny and the beds were made of stone.
In the Grand Plaza there was a pyramid where the astronomers calculated when the solstices would happen. On the 21st March if you stood in the middle of the pyramid and look east the sun would rise exactly above the temple. There was also a huge face in the rock in the plaza but not many other sculptures.
The ball court in Tikal was smaller than the one at Copan.

Snorkelling!

Lex
Tuesday
Today we went snorkelling for the first time. We put the mask on and breathed through our mouth. Next we got into the water and swam around.it was quite cold but the fish made it worth getting in. There was a lump of coral that was yellow. The fish were little yellow and black ones . There were also big yellow ones with a blue sparkly line down the sides. Me and Dad swam over to the buoy. Dad managed to dive down and collect some clam shells. I saw a fish that looked like a squid with a long nose. This was a great day but tomorrow is going to be better i think. We have booked a snorkelling trip and I am so excited.

Wednesday
Today was the best day so far on my trip. We went to the dock at 'Searious Adventures' where we were given flippers and masks. Oscar decided to use normal goggles.
First we went on the speedboat to Hol Chan Marine Reserve. (Channel in English) we stepped out into the freezing cold water and we were off. We had to swim with a buddy. I swam with the guide and with Dad. The first thing I saw was a massive 50 cm long fish. It had a big poppy eye and very sharp looking teeth. When I saw the coral I was amazed at the different kids and cours. The brain coral was yellow, the fan coral pink and the coral that looked like tentacles was a shade of brown. In Hol Chan I saw a few species of fish , coral, rays a moray eel AND a green turtle within touching distance. The turtle was the best animal I have ever seen as it was so close and so real. It was eating the sea grass then coming up to the surface to breathe every few minutes.
Next we went to Shark Ray Alley. We stopped the boat and suddenly the harmless nurse sharks stated swarming around the boat. Some of us jumped in the water and swam alongside the sharks and rays. The sharks were about two metres and the biggest ray about one metre. I had the chance to touch the ray. It was really smooth and slimy rather than rough like Dad had thought. The sharks and rays made this trip amazing. I loved it...and that's why this was the best day ever!

Cowboys and Coffee!

Honduras - Lex

I was really excited today as we were going on a horse riding trip. First we had to drive for an hour to get to our guides house. When we arrived we got ready with cowboy hats and lots of sunscreen. It was so hot. I thought my arms might fry. Luckily I was wearing long sleeves. When I got on my horse I thought my foot was not in the stirrups right and it really hurt so Carlos tried to help, unfortunately it didn't work but he told me to keep taking my foot out of the stirrups.the stirrups were different to English ones as they had a closed toe and lots of smooth leather to rest your leg on. They were also longer than English ones. This plan worked well. After about an hour and a half we stopped to stretch our legs. There were calves and foals. There was also a pregnant horse with a huge tummy. We had to help get the young horses used to humans by
hand feeding them.

After that we went back to the huge farmhouse to have lunch. It was stewed beef, vegetables, mashed potato, yucca, fried banana and homemade banana lemonade. It was delicious.
In the afternoon we went on a mini coffee tour. We talked about how the machines worked and what made a good and bad harvest. We felt the good and bad beans . If the beans are put in water the good ones sink and the bad ones float. We felt the beans in different stages of drying, they felt really crusty! I liked putting my hands in the sack to make a sound like maracas. To dry the beans they are put in the sun. I helped sweep them into piles ready to go into sacks.

Next we went to some hot springs. There were lots of different pools. We went to a sulphur smelling one, a boiling hot one, a foot massaging one and a waterfall that hit your neck and shoulders for a massage. I was really surprised to see a hot waterfall. Unfortunately we had to get out after three hours and catch our truck back to Copan.

Copan Ruinas

Today we went to see the famous Copan ruins. We met our guide and looked at the layout plan. There were temples , courts, plazas and lots of ruins. We then went into the mini bird sanctuary. There were giant macaws everywhere and I got a picture of one flying over my head in mid air. We looked around the sculptures. They were mostly replicas with the real ones in the museum.

There was a king called 18 rabbit because his picture had 3 bars that each represented 5 and 3 dots for 3. His face was a rabbit so he became 18 rabbit. After that we explored the ball court that was where the hero twins had a ball game. It was different to modern ball games because they were the Mayans. It reminded me of Zeus and Hades. We held one of the balls in the museum and it was so heavy. I could not lift it. They used a leather belt tied around their hips to protect their bodies. They could only use their hips and thighs to knock the ball around the court.

The place was a bit weird because the buildings were constantly being built on top of old ones. Archaeologists found a whole preserved temple underneath a pyramid. It was bright red. They also had altars for sacrifice that had grooves to let the blood run out! This one was also in the shape of a turtle.

We learned about the Mayan calendar. They have 18 months in the year and 20 days in each there were 5 days spare at the end of the year. I am POP rather than a LEO in their zodiac.

No one really knows why the Mayans disappeared from their cities. Some people believe they made too many demands on the land such as for food production, and clearing wood to burn.

After having a fabulous time we went to Macaw Mountain. Macaw Mountain is a bird rescue centre. W saw rescued parrots, toucans, macaws, lots of owls that had been hit by cars and some hawks. A guide showed us around and then we got to hold parrots and macaws. I held a parrot on my shoulder like a pirate.the scarlet macaw bit me on the head and pulled my hair. After that we went swimming in a river. We jumped into the current and it pulled us downstream. It was a great day and the cool water was such a treat on the hot day.