If you’re just reading this blog for the first time, we are a family of three traveling across Canada (and likely beyond) in a 1994 VW Westfalia camper van called Juju Jr. Our son Ethan, age 9, is unschooling and so we want him to learn from being on the road and traveling. So he’s also now a roadschooler and we are documenting the trip and his learning on this blog.
We spent the day in Thunder Bay, enjoying the different sights within the city. We want Ethan to have time to play at playgrounds and be around other kids. As a roadschooling student, it’s nice for Ethan to play with other kids, even though he loves being around us.
One thing he has been doing is saying thank you to Dong Eun almost every night. He’s saying thanks as a way of showing his gratitude towards us and this trip. We also say thanks to him for being our son and for growing as a person since we set off nearly two weeks ago.
Video to come!
Morning
We spent the night at a Walmart and after breakfast, we headed over to Hillcrest Park in Thunder Bay and were treated to a great view of Lake Superior and Sleeping Giant Provincial Park.
When we got to the playground, there was a 3 year old girl with her grandmother there. Ethan enjoyed interacting with her and letting her go first when she was climbing on the play structures.
There was also another boy at the playground and Ethan wanted to show him a couple of his Rubik’s Cubes. I could tell that he wanted to talk to the other kid, but the kid was with his aunt and having a snack. So Ethan decided to use the Rubik’s Cube as a way of starting a conversation. It turned out that the other boy was also interested in Rubik’s Cubes, but didn’t know how to solve it. Ethan happily showed him, but didn’t teach him how, as the boy had to leave.
We spent another hour or so at Hillcrest, with Ethan enjoying a smore and the big slide.
He also folded an origami heart.
He gave his mom three dandelions, saying that each one represented each of us in our family.
Ethan noticed all the leaves on the ground and made antlers for his Kindle, along with some eyes and a mouth.
Afternoon
The Thunder Bay marina was supposed to be nice so we went to check it out. There was a nice playground so Ethan go to play there, too.
He met another boy his age and played together with him. Ethan has always had an easy time playing with other kids, so we know that wherever we go, he will have no problem finding someone to play with.
We also took a stroll around the marina area. Someone had used chalk to express their opinions about animal welfare and being a vegan.
Ethan wasn’t so interested in the messages, as animal welfare is something we have discussed many times with him. He was more interested in why the writer used hashtags at the end of each message. After explaining the reason to him, he understood that it was the same as using tags when publishing his videos.
There was also a place for tai chi, so Ethan got to check out the Yin and Yang symbol. He thought it looked like a face.
It was time to head out of Thunder Bay and find our next camping spot. On the way out of the city, we stopped at the Terry Fox statue and lookout point for a snack.
I know that Ethan knows about Terry Fox because he learned about him in Grade 2 and 3, so he wasn’t particularly interested in reading all the information at the memorial.
Evening
From Thunder Bay, we headed east and arrived in Nipigon, ON. We found an old campground and set up there for the night.
While Dong Eun prepared dinner, I played outside with Ethan. He wanted to make a stone fort and even said it was the engineering part of STEM; or as he called it, STEAM, because he was also doing art by designing the structure.
Before eating, he worked on his French using Babbel.
After dinner, he had another smore and he wrote in his journal and drew some pictures inspired by the Ontario tourism guidebook.
He again thanked Dong Eun and told her she’s the best, and that I was good, too.
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