Nature Walk

Even though Texas is so dry and hot in June we can still find nature alive and well.  Children love to be outdoors no matter how high the temperature or how crunchy the path!  So off we go to accompany the neighbors (Samuel's cousins) on the way to feed the fish in Uncle Elwyn's pond.

My camera was not set up to capture the tiny fish that gladly splash to grab some food, or the large and small turtles that seem to swim so quickly.  And then there's the MONSTER - something splashes to grab food but we cannot figure out what it is!

Nature Study - April 1, 2011

On our Spring/Summer schedule Science is scheduled for Fridays and it is a favorite. Even the twins come out to learn!

 Every season we study the same tree to observe and document the changes.  We chose a Post Oak in the front of our  house, observed the makings of an acorn and buds in the tree.

Inspection of the trunk was necessary in order to find if any insects were using it as a home or restaurant...

They chose Post Oak leaves and stamped them for the Nature Book - and picked up old acorns to compare with new.

Signs of Spring!

Warmer temperatures are here, green grass is appearing, very windy days and nights, allergies, dandelions and even a baby snake in the sunroom are sure signs of spring in Texas!  We have not received rain in a long time - actually we going through a mini-drought. 

This year we decided (actually, my husband decided) not to have a vegetable garden. Last year it was exciting to see our plants grow and to taste the juicy vegetables, but in dry hot Texas you have to be totally committed to your garden.  And we were not.  Travel, work and forgetfulness got in the way.

Enter grandma!  She is visiting for a week (did I mention she lives in Costa Rica and boasts about her bountiful garden?),  and yesterday had the boys planting tomatoes, broccoli, flowers and herbs in containers so that it is all more manageable.

Now 8-year old Samuel is in charge of watering and all other gardening duties!!!

Thank God for grandmas!!

I think this is a great introduction to the Spring Nature Study that we plan to begin next week.

Green Hour

Samuel was almost in tears when it was time for Nature Study today. We have not really had a "nature walk" since we returned from Costa Rica because of the pipeline construction on the property. The noise was terrible! Now they are gone (we hope) and Fall is here!

Our nature walks were always a little informal, but I finally decided to organize myself and seriously add it to our homeschool, at least once a week. So, where do I start? Internet to the rescue! I found Barb - who has an awesome mind - and her blog http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/ which offers weekly bite-size challenges based on Anna Botsford Comstocks book (which is HUGE).

We are only 30 weeks behind everyone else...but Barb suggests that we complete the first five challenges and then continue with everyone else. That is the plan we will follow.

Here are the two "things" Samuel wants to investigate further: Goldenrods and dirt.

Sooooo... that will be our focus this week!



Oh! 20 minutes later this is the attitude that Samuel returned with...

Nature Walk

We were supposed to "bird watch" today. Samuel is holding a card with the items he was going to find, related to birds as instructed in the Spring Nature Kit at Hearts and Trees. But as soon as we stepped outside, Samuel decided to chase butterflies and pick flowers.
The light pink ones,
the purple ones,
the tiny ones,

the yellow ones,

the big purple ones that Grandma planted a few years ago,

and just anything else that was not a bird!

We will try again on another day...

Nature Ride

A few weeks ago we visited Sunny and his Grandma (Mrs. Dence) for a few hours.
Before returning home we took a nature walk that started on a rope swing. Weeks before this visit we had all tried to convince Samuel to get on this same rope. I even did it twice to convince him that it was fun. But it did not work. On this occassion it was different because Sunny, his 4 year old friend did it first. That is all that Samuel needed to be convinced that he could do it! Click, hear and see all the fun!