Thursdays are turning out to be good ones for exploring. I have class on Wednesday and Friday, and some administrative items always pop up on a daily basis, but Thursdays can be planned in advance to do fun things as a family. Today, we combined some homeschooling with one of the main attractions of Malta, Neolithic temples, and created a mini-adventure.

The Tarxien Temples were discovered by accident in 1914 by farmers (which tells you something about the rapid growth of Malta—these temples are smack dab in the middle of a bustling city). They date from about 3600 BC and include many outstanding structures built out of megaliths (huge stone slabs). There are also some depictions of animals carved into a few slabs, as well as some decorative swirls. To put this site in contrast, Stonehenge is thought to have been constructed a bit later, around 3000 BC. The Maltese are very proud of this fact!

To help prepare for our visit, we read a little about these temples, then drew pictures based on some older photos and drawings we found online. When we got to the site, we were able to notice some features that we had previously seen and read about, so that was very cool. There was also the promise of a chocolate croissant when we got home, which placated the restless ones in our group.

A pre-visit drawing

Good view of the center parts of the Tarxien Temples

Some very old animals

This is what they really think of our food (and our taste)