Grossology 101

As most homeschoolers know, the most fascinating lesson of any given day is likely one that isn’t planned. That was certainly the case at our house today, when Kellen and Kerrick decided that learning how to create fake-but-realistic-looking wounds was much more important than finishing their math. If I had to guess, I’d say their sudden interest in special-effects makeup has to do with the fact that Halloween is two weeks away. Not to mention Kellen’s recent participation in a Civil War re-enactment event put on by his scouting troop. (He played a Union soldier in the Michigan 7th Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Although he hadn’t been assigned to “die” during the staged battle, he got a little caught up in the drama and ended up sprawled out rather convincingly—at least from the photos I saw—on the field.)

After lunch, I got Kennah and Keillor down for a nap and was all set to dive into the flashcards and formulas that awaited our attention. Instead, I was greeted by two enthusiastic boys who had resourcefully gathered all of the ingredients (red food coloring, cocoa powder, toothpicks and tissues) they needed to bring to life the “injuries” that were occupying their imaginations. The only thing they couldn’t find was petroleum jelly—and only because they didn’t know what it was. Their excitement must have been contagious, because I soon forgot all about math and joined the search for the elusive final item, which we found in the drawer of the baby’s changing table.

Click here to see the directions we followed to create a large gash on Kellen’s forearm and a bullet wound on the back of Kerrick’s hand. And take a look at our results:

I think we need some more practice to make the wounds look more realistic, but our first try was a lot of fun. And in case anyone worries that we set all learning aside, I did sneak some scientific stuff into the ensuing discussions (Why would your blood appear darker in some areas than others? How would you sustain such a wound, and how would it be treated?). Oh, and we eventually managed to get our math done, too.