I headed out with the boys for a walk in our neighborhood to see what interested them from our November World. I tried hard to just listen and observe what they commented on or stopped to look at as we spent some time in the crisp November air….we are expecting snow any time now so the air is cold, about 38 degrees F. The wind howled last night and the rain came in but now snow yet.
Back to our walk….I made a mental list as we walked of all the things they noticed.
Golden mushrooms- not very large and partially hidden under some fallen leaves.
Dark clouds and little peep holes of blue shining through occasionally (Hey, look at the blue sky Mom!)
The variety of colors of leaves on the ground.
The differences between the two kinds of oaks we saw….one has big leaves and the other has small pointy leaves
The sound of a crickets in the late afternoon.
Pretty good list for just a casual walk don’t you think?
I challenged myself to just take a walk and not bring my camera. I know how much I can be distracted by my own interests when I have the camera in my hand. I wanted on this walk, for this challenge to just spend time with the boys and notice things. I noticed that the air is different as the storm makes its way into our area, a sort of stillness that feels heavy. There is also a smell of dampness from the morning dew that isn’t present in the summer. There are still colors to be seen if you look closely and try to find them in the autumn weeds.
The birds seem more active when the weather is changing and after our walk I spent some time filling feeders and listening to the boys talk about the red-tailed hawk they saw earlier in the week, still gushing about its greatness and size.
It feels good to be living a life so close to our natural environment and learning about the lives of other creatures that cross our path. It is comforting to learn about the cycles of birth, growth, death, and then rebirth that takes place right in our own backyard. Yet, with all the knowledge of such things gained in years previous, we know there is so much more to glean as we keep inviting the opportunities to come by making time to get outdoors every week….just about every day.
Our November World has pretty much turned into a Winter World since I started writing this post a few days ago. We have had really cold temperatures and wild weather. It now feels like time to start thinking about winter nature study.
“Yet, with all my familiarity with this brook, I did not know it in the winter. Its pathway up into the winter woods was as unexplored as the arctic regions. Somehow, it was not a brook in the winter time. It was merely a dreary waste, as cold and as forbidding as death. The winter was only a season of waiting, and spring was always late.” The Nature Study Idea, L.H. Bailey, contemporary of Anna Botsford Comstock.
Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 1-2 of the Handbook of Nature Study as a refresher. Mark and highlights points that you want to keep in mind before you embark on this last of the Autumn Series Challenges. How have these challenges awakened a love of nature study in your heart? What changes have you seen in your children as they have participated in a regular course of nature study? What practical and useful knowledge has your family gleaned from the “comprehension of the individual life of the bird, insect, or plant that is nearest at hand”?
Outdoor Hour Time:
Sometimes it is fun and interesting to revisit a familiar place in a different season. Perhaps you have a certain park you go to in the summer but you have not explored there in the autumn or winter months. There may be a trail or creek you explored as part of a previous Outdoor Hour Challenge and it might be interesting to go there now that the seasons have changed. If you are just starting out with the challenges, choose a place to visit this week that you can go back to in a future season.
Spend 15 minutes outdoors in your chosen spot and enjoy the November world. Use all your senses and let your children find something to show you. Remember not to talk too much or lead them but rather try to see what your children see. Sometimes it is nice to just to let something interesting come your way without a particular focus.
“The author can think of nothing she would so gladly do as to spend days and months with the birds, bees, and flowers with no obligation to tell what she should see. There is more than mere information in hours thus spent.” Handbook of Nature Study, page 7
So this challenge is really for the parents. Let the nature study unfold and then enjoy the time with your children. Be refreshed.
Follow-Up Activity:
For this challenge, leave the nature journal or notebook page as an option. If you child is inclined to complete a follow-up entry, make an opportunity for one but if they are content with just having spent time outdoors, there is no obligation to complete an entry. There is a printable notebook page in this entry: November World. You might like to use my free Signs of Autumn notebook page.
As always see if they have any questions about their nature study time. Follow their lead by looking up the answers in the Handbook of Nature Study. Skim down the table of contents to see if there is a lesson covering what you child found interesting. If not, check your local library for a book to use as a resource. Last year we made a list of things to research during the winter. You can find a notebook page on which to list your things in this set of free notebook pages that I put together last month: Autumn Series 2009 Notebook Pages.
If you would like to own this ebook, it is part of the Ultimate Naturalist Library for members. You can find more details on how to get your own membership here: Join Us!
We have had an abundance of birds in our yard for the past few weeks. Part of the reason is my new birdfeeder station in our front yard but mostly because it seems to be that time of year.
I grabbed my son’s camera the other day and took quite a few photos of just a small fraction of the variety of birds right in our yard.
There are always lots of Western scrub jays in our yard. This one found an acorn snack.
This is the best I could get of the Northern mockingbird in our front tree.
There have been quite a few Western bluebirds hanging around this week. I was able to snap a good photo of this pretty little bird.
There is a pair of Nuttall’s woodpeckers that are frequently on the utility pole across the street from our house. This seems to be the female…the male has red on his head.
This Western scrub jay was poking around in the rocks. I think he was trying to find some acorns or walnuts that he stashed but I was able to catch him holding still for a few seconds so I could capture his beautiful blue feathers.
Stay tuned because I am sure I will have some more to share soon. We spend time watching birds everyday and it is always fun to share.
Our typical November weather is very unpredictable. We can have warm sunny days filled with outdoor activities or we can have cold, wet day where you stand at the window and wonder when it will end. Both were experienced this week as part of our official seasonal weather observations.
Using the chart provided in the ebook, we all worked together to keep track of morning and afternoon temperatures and other factors like wind, rain, clouds, etc. Our outdoor thermometer is broken so we had to take a portable one outdoors to make our measurements each time.
Comparing our morning and afternoon temperatures was interesting because of the large span of numbers on a few of the days. We had one day with a 24 degree change in temperature within a few hours and from day to day it was widely varied as well. I am the official record keeper for this challenge since they like the observation part but not the actual writing it down in a journal part.
Unofficial time spent outdoors found us raking leaves for the compost bin, noticing how beautifully the leaves fell in a pile around the base of this tree.
Observing clouds was fun this week since we had a variety to enjoy.
The changing color in most all the deciduous plants in the yard like this grape vine is happening before our very eyes.
More raking after the rain came through…these are the walnut tree leaves which have a particular odor that is imprinted in your brain once you smell it.
We also took a drive over the Sierra on Thursday and saw the mountains with a fresh blanket of snow that will more than likely stay there until late next spring.
We stopped to take in the snow at the summit and it was cold! This is about an hour’s drive from our house and very near to where the Donner Party was stranded if you have read about them in your history study. I highly recommend Patty Reed’s Doll if you are interested in reading a children’s version of their survival during the winter of 1846.
Our weather study will be on-going as we keep adding to our weather chart and it will give us some great data to use to compare to our winter observations.
Today we went on a drive up in the mountains and would you believe there was snow! I spotted some freshly fallen pinecones and it was a perfect introduction to this week’s challenge. The snowy landscape reminded me that we will soon be finished with the Autumn Series and it will be time for a new season to start. The Autumn Series of Outdoor Hour Challenges has greatly added to our family’s knowledge of everyday things around us and I hope they have helped your family too. Next week will be our last autumn challenge and a nice giveaway so make sure to pop over to the blog next Friday to read all about it. Autumn Series #9 Pine Cones (You may also like to use this challenge: Pine Cones.)
“Their foliage is evergreen but is shed gradually. The pollen-bearing and the seed-producing flowers are separate on the tree. The seeds are winged and are developed in cones.” Handbook of Nature Study, page 674
Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 670-675 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 185). This section talks about the pine tree and gives the background for this challenge. Pay attention to questions 5 and 6 in this lesson covering the pine cone.
Compare A Tree with Cones and A Tree Without Cones
Compare needles and leaves, including their arrangement on the branches, shapes, and colors.
Compare the trunks and bark, including the shape of the tree. Does the main trunk go straight up or branch out? How low do the branches start? Is there a crown?
Outdoor Hour Time:
Take fifteen minutes outdoors this week to explore your yard or neighborhood looking for a pine tree and pine cones. Remember how to identify a pine tree and use some of the things you read about in the Handbook to help your child learn a little about the pine tree. You could point out the difference between an evergreen and a deciduous tree, how the pine tree’s leaves are needles, the distinct shape of a pine tree, and the cones. Collect at least one cone to bring indoors for observations in the follow-up activity.
Follow-Up Activity:
Use a hand lens to look closely at your pine cone. Take note of its shape, size, color, and patterns. The Handbook of Nature Study suggests the following sketches in your nature journal:
Bundle of needles, showing the sheath and its attachment to the twig.
The cone.
The cone scale.
The seed (under the scales)
You can use the notebook page provided with the Autumn ebook, a blank page in your nature journal, or a blank notebook page.
Additional activity: Soak your cone in water. Check your cone every 15 minutes to see what happens. Now let the cone dry. This sometimes will loosen the seeds inside and you can take a closer look at their shapes and structure. Try this activity again and soak only half your cone in water and see what happens. You can try this additional activity: Pine Cone Science Experiment.
If you would like to own this ebook, it is part of the Ultimate Naturalist Library for members. You can find more details on how to get your own membership here: Join Us!
We had a glorious day yesterday in our part of the world. I heard it was in the 70’s! We took advantage of the weather and spent time working on our frontyard remodel project. Our sweet gums are starting to become a riot of color, turning red and orange overnight.
We are getting very close to being finished. I know I keep promising a post sharing what we have done but I want to wait until the project is completed before tackling that post. We put down weed block because we were already getting some grass sprouting with our last rains. The rocks are a work in progress….we keep rearranging them as we finish the planting.
I think this is the last of the hardscape going in which is a path up to my faucet and around to the backyard. I will be planting bulbs around the edges of the blocks as soon as they arrive in the mail.
The leaves are falling gently and this one landed on the step…..love the yellow contrast with the blue/green tiles.
The birds were loving the idea that they are getting a new feeding station. The red/orange bush on the left is our new smoke tree and Mr. A is planting rosemary around the base of the pole.
Here is one bird that I was able to catch in mid-song the other day in the backyard.
They enjoy the sunshine as much as we do I think.
This morning we woke up to rain….pouring rain. I am sitting inside with my cup of coffee and shopping for seeds. I know that nothing perks me up more than thinking and planning for the next summer’s garden. We are hoping to finish the front yard and turn our attention to a whole new garden project in the backyard. I am going to be concentrating on flowers and colors so my garden will be filled with lots of things to draw and paint.
Where is my favorite online source for flower seeds? Renee’s Garden of course! I dare you to pop over there and not feel better even just looking at her front page. What is on my shopping list? Zinnias, sunflowers, dahlias, hollyhocks, and California poppies. I want color!
Oh, I want to share something else I have been meaning to write about on this blog. I have recently started reading and receiving the Herbal Roots Zine.
If you haven’t seen Kristine’s web page or seen any of her monthly zines, I highly recommend them as a great way to incorporate nature study into your month. This month she is featuring sage which happens to be something new we planted in our front yard…two different kinds. I now know a lot more about this very interesting plant. I will write a review of one of the issues soon so stay tuned for that.
That is the news from my world. Hope you are having a great autumn weekend and are doing some weather observations for this week’s challenge.
Autumn Series #8 Seasonal Weather: Autumn Observations
Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 780-783 in the Handbook of Nature Study (beginning pages of the section on Climate and Weather ending at The Atmosphere).
Make a weather chart like the one on page 807 (last page in the weather and climate section) or use the one provided in the autumn ebook. You may wish to purchase an outdoor thermometer and a rain gauge to enhance your study of the weather during the autumn and then into the winter.
Compare The Weather on Two Different Days
Compare a sunny day and a rainy day. Compare temperature, clouds, and wind direction and speed. Don’t forget to use all your senses: smell, touch, hearing, etc.
Compare weather on the same day in the morning and then again in the evening.
Compare how your landscape looks today to what you remember about the summer or winter.
Outdoor Hour Time:
Spend fifteen minutes outdoors observing your autumn weather. Note the direction of the wind, the direction the clouds are moving, and where the sun is rising and setting. The main aim for this challenge is to make weather observations and comparisons. Enjoy the season’s delights and have fun with your children.
In addition, as part of the comparison activity, use your senses to make observations about the weather on two different days (perhaps choosing a sunny day and a rainy day to compare). Record your results on a Venn Diagram. If you would like an example of a Venn Diagram, HERE is a link.
Start and maintain a Weather Record Chart as many days as you can.
Follow-Up Activity:
After your outdoor time, talk about all of your observations. Pull out any previous weather challenge journals to compare with today’s observations. Complete the notebook page in the ebook, the weather notebook page from previous challenges (HERE), or make an entry in your own blank journal.You could also complete a Signs of Autumn notebook page. Extra Resource: National Weather Service –Look up your state for weather warnings.
If you would like to own this ebook, it is part of the Ultimate Naturalist Library for members. You can find more details on how to get your own membership here: Join Us!
We finally completed our autumn observations for the Queen Anne’s Lace in our neighborhood. The challenge asked us to go back to our patch of this flower and compare the changes since our summer observations. Most of the Queen Anne’s Lace looks like this right now…dry, brittle, brown, and stiff. We cut a stem or two to take inside to observe closely and compare to our summer observations.
We had a great time observing closely the flower heads we brought in and were able to observe some interesting things. The challenge suggested using a hand lens to look more closely at the seeds of the Queen Anne’s Lace.
Each dried cluster was made up of many dried flower clusters.
The large cluster was made up of more than 70 small clusters.
Each small cluster had over 20 seeds in it.
We drew a flower cluster and a seed after viewing it with our loupe. The little seeds were sticky and I found them in the carpet and the hem of my skirt after we had finished. We thought about our dandelion seeds (akenes) and how they are blown away in the wind and compared them to the Queen Anne’s Lace seeds that are definitely spread by adhesion or attachment. Our dog regularly helps disperse the seeds of the Queen Anne’s Lace as she romps through the weeds on our walks.
On today’s walk with the dog, we found a patch of Queen Anne’s Lace that is not quite dried up yet. There is still a little greenness to the stem, leaves, and flower head. We are experiencing some unseasonably warm weather with the afternoons in the 70’s. I actually took a walk without a sweatshirt and we worked up a thirst by the time we reached home again. We will be trying to get out in the warm temperatures again tomorrow….who knows how long they will last.
The season of abundant Queen Anne’s Lace is over but we shall be watching as we enter the winter season to see if the plants make much of a change.
We were able to experience two kinds of salmon and their spawning this autumn.
The Kokanee salmon are a land-locked species that live in the high mountain lake and then return to the creek of their birth for spawning.
This shallow creek is the perfect place for laying eggs in the gravel.
The fish come by the thousands, swimming and leaping around in the water as they make their way back up the creek from the lake.
The bears are around and we are warned to keep clear of them as they come for their autumn feast of salmon after the fish have spawned and then die.
Even though these are land-locked salmon, they still go through the same changes that their ocean cousins perform. Their colors change and their jaws and teeth become more prominent.
They wiggle a little dance to court the females and then fertilize her eggs. It is amazing to watch.
There are two bridges that you can watch the fish from and on this day there were quite a few nature lovers out there viewing the fish ritual.
The ducks, gulls, and eagles all depend on the salmon spawning for their autumn diet. We didn’t see any eagles on this day but the ducks were present.
They eat the freshly laid eggs if they get the chance.
Our second salmon observing opportunity came this past weekend at the American River above Sacramento. There is a fish hatchery below a dam where the salmon will make their way up the fish ladder.
Here is the ladder the salmon will leap up as they make their way to the hatchery. The officials were waiting until the next day to open the gate that ajoins the river to the ladder.
We were a little early but we were still able to observe the *huge* Chinook salmon waiting at the gate to climb up. They were actually jumping up out of the water and slamming into the metal gate. One sign says they can leap out of the water nine feet!
The Chinook are much larger than the Kokanee and we decided it was because they have a much longer migration journey. They travel round trip 2,000 miles from their birthplace, down the American River, through the Sacramento Delta and then out into the Pacific Ocean. Two or three years later, they make the return trip and end up at their birthplace again….changing from freshwater fish to saltwater fish and back again.
The hatchery we visited has a lovely visitor’s center to learn more about the cycle of life of the salmon.
Trout are filling the holding ponds of the hatchery at the moment. There are steelhead and rainbow trout to view. In a month or so the steelhead will start their journey up the fish ladder and we may take time to visit again.
We had an additional observation of the rainbow trout a few weeks ago at a local pond that they stock for the kids to fish in. They are such beautiful fish and very tasty too. (I’m surprised I didn’t encourage us all to taste test the salmon and the trout…next time.)
So for our Outdoor Hour Challenge we were able to compare two different species of salmon as well as the salmon to the trout.
Our favorite is still the Kokanee salmon in its wild habitat and its unique cycle of life.
Here is a nature journal entry I made a few years ago featuring this colorful amazing fish.
Welcome to October’s Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival! The days are definitely shorter and the temperatures are cooling off here in Northern California. The opportunities are still available for some wonderful nature study and our family has been snatching up quite a bit of time outside both in formal and informal enjoyment of the season.
The Autumn Series of Challenges are moving right along and I have enjoyed reading and viewing the outdoor time your families have shared in your entries. So, here is your carnival….sending big thanks to everyone who participated. You will get a wonderful sampling of what has been accomplished if you read each of the following carnival entries.
Signs Of Autumn Jamie from See Jamie Blog joined us for this carnival with her entry that shares their autumn signs…don’t miss her daughter’s list.
Lynn shares their Autumn Signs from her blog, Nature Notes.
Autumn Series #2 Autumn Bird/Geese Paula and her daughter from Belgium share their autumn bird study of the nuthatch. Read their entry, Bird Study in Town.
Another unusual autumn bird study comes from Amy in Peru. Read their entry on her blog, Fisher Academy International. They ended up comparing two of their local birds and adapting the study to fit their part of the world. Autumn Series #3 Horses Melissa submits their family’s horse study, With Flowing Tail and Flying Mane. Love the title and all that she writes about in her entry to the carnival.
Angie from Petra School links up with their autumn horse/dog study. She shares how they pulled in some drawing activities to compare and learn more. Great idea!
Phyllis and her family share their horse challenge experiences in their entry to the carnival. What a wonderful study and the photos really tell the story.
Tricia from the Hodgepodge Homeschool has linked up with their horse study and their experiences. One of their observations comparing horses and dogs was, “Both horses and dogs can nudge you with their noses when they want attention.” Perfect!
Autumn Series #4 Apples Phyllis from All Things Beautiful links up to the carnival with their family’s apple study. Don’t miss the pastel art at the end…lovely.
Paula’s daughter shares their Apple Study from Belgium. Paula has adapted all the autumn challenges to fit their European habitat. She also includes some book suggestions to check out.
Monica from Discover Their Gifts writes about their apple study and how they compared thirteen different varieties of apples. Great job on this study and the journals!
Tricia met up with Angie (The One Thing) for some apple study. What is nature study without a little dirt? They had a wonderful afternoon, I loved seeing their photos and catching up with Angie’s boys. Thanks Tricia for sharing your day.
Autumn Series #5 Autumn Tree/Leaf Study Angie from Petra School shares their wonderfully encouraging and informative study of autumn trees/leaves. Thanks Angie.
Tricia from Hodgepodge Homeschool submits their entry to carnival with their autumn leaf study. What a rich and full study of leaves at this time of the year. Don’t miss their journals.
Phyllis at All Things Beautiful shares their tree study with a tree I have never seen before. Pop over and check out their osage orange tree study.
Mauren from Homeschool Mo shares how they adapted the autumn tree/leaf study to their preschool day. Autumn Series #6 Queen Anne’s Lace/Weeds Tricia from Hodgepodge Homeschool decided they didn’t have to travel farther than their backyard to find some autumn weeds to study. Read all about their nature study as part of Autumn Series OHC #6.
Amy from The Teachable Heart shares their excellent study of Queen Anne’s Lace and how she adapted the study to fit their preschool age boys. She used some garden carrots to compare to the Queen Anne’s Lace…excellent idea!
(Autumn means hanging a few more birdfeeders and filling the ones already up there.)
Outdoor Hour Challenges-Other Karen writes on her blog The Fruit of Her Hands about their Outdoor Hour Challenge #2. I think they did a great job of coming up with words for their time outdoors. I am sure she would love to hear some encouraging words as they set out on the OHC trail.
Rhonda at Preparation Education didn’t need to go farther than their own backyard to find a subject for their weekly nature study. Read about their dragonflies and see their journals as part of the carnival.
Amy from Hope is the Word submits to the carnival their Outdoor Hour Challenge #1. They have gone back to the beginning of the challenges and in this entry they come across some armadillos!
Makita from Academia Celestia shares their pine cone study which includes some wonderful journal examples for you to check out.
Phyllis from All Things Beautiful writes about their mushroom study. She has a photo of a fairy circle that will amaze you!
That wraps up this edition of the carnival. I hope you enjoy reading what other families are outside doing for nature study and how the Autumn Series is helping us learn a little more about our own backyards and neighborhoods.
Please consider submitting your Outdoor Hour Challenge entries to the next carnival. Deadline for submissions will be November 30th, 2010 and all entries from November are eligible. Here is the link for submissions: LINK.
