How Many Adults Does it Take to Make a First Grade Project?

            In January, Brody came home with an impossible assignment, "make something out of Nine 2D and 3D shapes".  What?  Quick, clear out the cobwebs and think back to 2D & 3D shapes (or just hit Google). Oh, ok- like a cylinder and a square.  We can do this. 

            Did Brody have any suggestions?  Uh no.  Ok- Matt, what can we make?  We pondered this for days until we came up with either an aircraft carrier or an offshore oil rig. But wait a second- isn't this our "son's project?"

            So there's our dilemma - if we leave it up to him, it wouldn't get done.  Frankly, the directions for the project are a little more complex for a first grader- I mean, am I really going to let him use a glue gun?  Not if I didn't want legos glued to his bedroom walls!  So, I asked around to get the sense if this was meant to be a "first grader's project" or a "family project" with the majority of answers coming back as a family project.  And family it was!

             My parents were in town that weekend, so we put my dad to work on it too.  Brody & I went around the house collecting as many shapes as we could and headed outside to paint them.  After they dried, we all started to piece them together to make what we hoped resembled an oil rig:

    

Do you see all the adults diligently working on HIS project?

and working.....

and working.....

        So, I think the 3 adults and one 7 year old came up with a pretty awesome project:

          Look at the detail- the soda straw and toothpick ladder, the 48-sphere chain, the helicopter landing pad complete with helicopter (Brody's idea!).  We rocked it!  Uh, wait a minute, wasn't this supposed to be a first grade project?  And shouldn't it look like a first grade project?  We got so carried away and were all having fun putting it together that we forgot about that......

          Luckily, the project was meant to be a family project and the majority of other's at school were just as detailed.  Whew! So the next question is, "what grade did we get on it Bubba?"  The 3 adults want to know how they did. "Uh, Mrs. D said it was good."  GOOD?  That's all we get????  That oil rig was awesome!!   Good thing Bubba could care less.....