Nature study Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Muslim Homeschooling Resources

Last week we decided to take our homeschool for a field trip.
Since my son has shown a budding interest in Ocean Life (sharks especially) we decided to make the day trip to Sea Life Manchester.

Ocean Life Unit Study: SEA LIFE Manchester : A Homeschooler's Review

Sea Life Manchester is found in the Intu Trafford Cente, one of the largest indoor shopping centres in the U.K. This meant finding parking and food was so easy and I got to pick up a few things whilst I was there!

You start off having your photo taken, which you can later purchase, and then there is a show. Then you begin to make your way around.

Each part of the aquarium is numbered, and the kids are given a little booklet, with simple questions to answer about each area. When they have answered the question, they look for the ‘stamping station’ to stamp their book.

It was amazing how my boys got into this! They were so excited to run from area to area answering the questions. Its such a clever idea and meant they they really made the most of all the information available. All the displays were very interactive and perfect for children of Primary school age (4-10).

Some of our highlights were:

1) Under-water tunnels

These were awesome! The kids enjoyed pointing out the sharks and the turtle swimming above.

2) Interactive Pool

M got to stroke a crab and a star-fish! Pretty cool!

3) Turtle Egg Display

This was A’s favorite bit! Apparently the gender of turtles is determined by the temperature the eggs are kept at. To demonstrate this there was a giant egg that the kids have to touch. After about 30 seconds the screen tells you if you egg is a boy (cold hands) or a girl (warm hands)! Genius!

4) Interactive Video Game

At the very end of the aquarium was a game, Wii style, where you appeared on the screen and had to hit the rubbish out of the sea to help the little turtles swim across. It was very energetic and the boys ate well after this!

Our favourite animals were the turtle, the sharks (of course), the scary Moray eel, and the enormous spider crab!

When we got home M was keen to write about his day-out in his diary…

Overall I highly recommend visiting Sea Life Manchester, especially if you have children under the age of ten-years-old. It is so well thought out and the staff were very friendly and helpful. We had so much fun and learnt loads!

In terms of price, I think it is good value for money. We bought it, together with entry into LegoLand (also in the Trafford Centre), and it came to around £45 in total for all of us.

The only negative point I can think of is it is a small attraction. It will only take you two hours maximum to see everything. However, for mums of young kids this is no bad thing!

If you are interested in knowing more about SeaLife Manchester click HERE for their website.

Have you been to Sea Life? What did you think? Could you recommend any other places to visit in the North of England? I’d love to hear your recommendations. Please leave me a comment below 🙂

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al-Khaliq – The Creator

As a part of our Muslim homeschool, I am teaching my children the ninety-nine names of Allah. It is my opinion that Islamic education should be be taught in a creative and fun way and that is how I have approached this week in our Islamic studies.

This week we were looking at the name al-Khaliq, or The Creator.

We began by discussing the definition of al-Khaliq:

“The One who creates something from nothing and determines and creates according to the proper measure and proportion of each thing. The One who plans and determines how, when and where to create. The One whose works are perfectly suited, appropriate, fitting and proper.”

Then I gave out the Al-Khaliq colouring sheet and whilst they were decorating it, we memorised ‘al-Khaliq. The Creator.’

For your FREE ‘al-Khaliq’ colouring sheet CLICK HERE.

It was also an oppoprtunity to revise the Arabic letters and see which they could identify from their sheet.

When they were finished, we cut around the words and stuck it in the centre of a large A2 sheet of coloured card.

Then I gave the boys a basket each. I encouraged them to go outside and collect things from our garden that Allah (swt) had created.

They scoured the garden (and later the park) and brought back a collection of leaves, stones, petals, seeds and a pine cone.

Using glue sticks and wrapping tape, we stuck these treasures around the name ‘al-Khaliq’ reflecting on how He (swt) has made these things from nothing. Subhanullah!

We also used this opportunity to look up the names of all the leaves and flowers, so it doubled as a science lesson too!

It was a fun way to teach the children about God, to instill a sense of awe and wonder about Him, and ignite an interest and excitement about Islam. We made a lot of happy memories too!

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Thank you so much for stopping by our blog!

Please remember us in your duaas.

Peace and Love.

Nature study