Author: Barb

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Outdoor Hour Challenge #28 Dragonflies and Damselflies

Dragonfly in Our Backyard

This summer has been filled with lots of dragonflies and damselflies and it has made me more aware of the variety of life we have all around us that we sometimes forget to notice.

Here is a great website that will help you with your state’s dragonfly and damselfly identification. http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/insects/dfly/index.htm
I learned how to tell a dragonfly from a damselfly this summer. Here are some facts that should help you in your identification.

Dragonflies

  1. Generally strong fliers
  2. Eyes touch on top of the head
  3. Fore-wings and hind-wings are of different shape
  4. At rest, the wings are held away from the body at an angle of approximately 180°

Damselflies

  1. A weak, fluttery flight
  2. Eyes are well separated
  3. Fore-wings and hind-wings are of similar shape
  4. At rest, the wings are held close to the body


Outdoor Hour Challenge #28
Focus on Insects-Dragonflies and Damselflies

1. This week read about dragonflies and damselflies in the Handbook of Nature Study, pages 401-408. You also may enjoy reading page 400-401 about the insects of the brook and pond. Remember our focus right now is on insects so if you don’t find a dragonfly or a damselfly to observe, you can always look for other insects to study.

“A pond without dragonflies darting about it, or without the exquisitely iridescent damsel flies clinging to the leaves of its border would be a lonely place indeed.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 401

2. Your 15-20 minutes of outdoor time this week can be spent looking for insects. If you have access to a pond, this would be a great week to make a short trip to the pond’s edge to make some observations. If you are sticking close to home and in your own backyard, look for any insects that you can observe. Remember to look under rocks (carefully if you live in snake country), under logs, on tree trunks, on the backsides of leaves, inside a flower, in a flowering bush or tree, and even in your window sill.

3. Give the opportunity for a nature journal entry. Dragonflies and damselflies are lots of fun to draw. Here is a website that tells you step by step how to draw a dragonfly…try it together as a family.
http://artforkidshub.com/how-to-draw-a-dragonfly/ (or you could just Google “how to draw a dragonfly”)

4. If you are keeping a running list of insects you have observed during this focus period, add any new insect names to your list. This is our last week to focus on insects in the Outdoor Hour Challenges. It might be enjoyable to take a few minutes this week to review the insects you have learned about and observed during the last seven weeks with your children. If you have a list of insects that you have observed, make sure it is complete before we move on to something new next week.

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Hummingbird Moth or White-Lined Sphinx Moth

Another gift this morning….a hummingbird moth or a white-lined sphinx moth.

I heard this guy in the skylight of the kitchen last night but I couldn’t get him to come down so I could see what sort of moth he was. This morning as I was sipping my morning cup of coffee, he buzzed right over to collect some nectar from the vase of flowers on my kitchen table. Can you believe that? We all watched as he hovered around the flowers and then up over the table. This was our first experience with a hummingbird moth and it was fantastic.

He flew up to the ceiling and landed in the corner. Please excuse the really ugly background for this beautiful moth. We re in the middle remodeling our living room and he landed right in the dusty corner where we are sheetrocking….of course.

I pulled out my Handbook of Nature Study and I was surprised to find that there is a complete section on hummingbird and sphinx moths, pages 320-325.

“The have long, rather narrow, strong wings which enable them to fly with extraordinary rapidity. …Their colors show most harmonious combinations and most exquisite contrasts; the pattern, although often complex, shows perfect refinement…..Most of the sphinx moths have remarkably long tongues, which are sometimes twice the length of the body.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 321

This was a very interesting insect to read about and I will be on the look out now for more of them. I read in the Handbook that they especially like petunias, morning glories, and nasturtiums which are all planted in my new garden from the spring!

Another gift….thank you.

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Nature Study as We Go About Our Everyday Life

This week we had some new and interesting things come our way for nature study. We seem to find things. We saw this field of wildflowers along the bike trail in our local area. The field was so pretty in the early morning light and I couldn’t resist taking a few photos.

My son found this moth in the bathroom and called me in to get a photo of the “pretty moth” on the wall. Cool.

We visited the pond this week and we brought home some water, plants, and some fish. This snail came along for the ride.

This is something else new for me…not sure what it is. The fruit looks sort of like a cherry. Isn’t it frustrating when you just don’t know what you want to know? I will try to figure it out and come back and edit. This was in the parking lot where I was waiting for the boys.

Edit: Thanks everyone….rose hips! The bush is so big and I didn’t realize it was a rose but I am sure that everyone is right….rose hips. Thanks again.

The cutest thing we saw this week was a squirrel eating walnuts from our tree. He had such a long bushy tail and he didn’t mind that we watched him as he nibbled. There are plenty of nuts for everyone. My son discovered the squirrel while he was in the backyard working on a project.

We had a lot of incidental nature study this week. I love that when it happens.

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Outdoor Hour Challenge #26 Ladybugs and Aphids

This week we will be taking time to read about and look for two different insects that seem to go hand in hand. I know in our garden if I see a ladybug, I will many times, if I look carefully, see some aphids too. Aphids are pretty small but if you get out your hand lens you may find you can see these insects in your flower garden. Look under the leaves.

“Aphids seem to be born to serve as food for other creatures-they are simply little machines for making sap into honeydew, which they produce from the alimentary canal for the delectation of ants; they are, in fact, merely little animated drops of sap on legs.” Handbook of Nature Study, page 352

Wow, that pretty much spells it out. I know that I have read somewhere that ants actually “farm” the aphids and “milk” them for food.

Here are some aphids that I photographed way back last fall. These are rose leaves from my yard and they were really eating them up.


Here are the same aphids above along with an ant so you can compare the size.

Ladybugs are always a welcome sight in our garden and I have learned over the years how beneficial they are.

“The ladybird is a beetle. Its young are very different from the adult in appearance, and feed upon plant lice.”

Have fun this week and remember your overall focus is on insects so if you don’t see any ladybugs and aphids, post your blog entry about what insects you did discover. I look at these challenges as a way to make a community of families who are interested in nature. We all learn from each other. Believe it or not, I feel as if I learn just as much from all your posts as I do from doing the research to come up with the challenges.

Outdoor Hour Challenge #26
Focus on Insects-Ladybugs and Aphids

1. This week read about ladybugs and aphids in the Handbook of Nature Study, pages 364-366 and pages 351-354. Remember our focus right now is on insects so if you don’t find either of these insects to observe, you can always look for other insects to study. If you do your reading, you will be prepared when you next come across these insects.

You may be interested in reading my entry on Red Aphids. 

2. Your 15-20 minutes of outdoor time this week can be spent looking for insects. I know it is still very hot for most of us but if you get out early, even before breakfast, you might be able to enjoy the morning air and a few insects too.

3. Give the opportunity for a nature journal entry. If you need ideas for alternative nature journal activities, please see challenge 2 and challenge 3. You might want to draw the ladybug life cycle or show how ants benefit from aphids by providing them with food. Encourage your child to draw something that interested them from your nature time. When my children were young, I considered a drawing, a date, and a label as a successful nature journal.

Make sure to pull out the Handbook of Nature Study to see if any insects you find are listed and you can read more about it there. If you are keeping a running list of insects you have observed during this focus period, add the insect’s name to the list.

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So Beautiful It Makes Me Cry: Dragonfly Morning

“It is while we, ourselves, are dreaming in the sun by the margin of some pond, that these swift children of the air seem but a natural part of the dream. Yet if we waken to note them more closely, we find many things very real to interest us.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 404

I don’t know if you have ever had this experience but it has happened to me a few times that I can remember: Something that you see in our natural world is so beautiful that it makes you cry. It could be a sunset, an autumn tree in full color, or in this most recent case, a dragonfly.

I know. You all think that I have lots my marbles over that one but I am going to post some photos that will only give you a hint of how beautiful this dragonfly is in real life.

Here’s the story. I have been putting together an Outdoor Hour Challenge about dragonflies over the last few weeks. I have had my camera at the ready many times because I have several kinds of dragonflies in my backyard and I hoped to get a photo for the blog entry. Will those dragonflies sit still for just one photo? Not usually.

This morning I was up and out on the back deck early, around 6 AM. I was just out of the shower and I usually go out and comb my hair as I survey the morning’s happenings outside. It is my routine. Well, as I was standing there looking out over the yard, I tried to focus on something that was on a beach towel on the deck railing. I knew it was an insect but without my glasses on it looked like a blur. I went into the house and grabbed my glasses and camera.

I couldn’t really get a good photo at first because it was still pretty dark out. Then he flew away and I was so sad to see him go. But, he landed on my lemon tree and he has been there ever since. This gave me lots of time to take a good photo of him. I think that this was a gift to me this morning and now I will share my gift with you.


Black saddlebag dragonfly

See the coloration on the wings that look like “saddlebags”?

You have to click the photo to make it larger so you can see the colors of the wing in this photo. It was like lace with all its fine detail. I actually was able to measure his wing span, 4 inches!

His head is so big and I know he was looking at me too. Click this one for a better view of him up close….you may never get this close to a dragonfly so here is your chance. 🙂

Look at the pattern and colors in the wing…iridescent in one light and spun from gold in another. It looks just like stained glass.

I know my original intention was to share a photo with you when I posted the challenge but this was so special that it gets its own post. The beauty in creation is such a testament to our Creator. Only He could think to spin this dragonfly’s wings out of gold, to make his coloration so distinct, and to give his face a dash of brilliant blue. I am amazed at the beauty and it truly did make me cry.

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Our Nature Notebooks: Challenge #21

We have been plugging away, page by page, for years. I have a whole row of nature journals lined up on the shelf in our school area. It gives us a lot of pleasure to pull them down and to page through them and relive some of the memories.

I thought I would just share some pages that are favorites that I don’t think I have shared before. I will add them onto the bottom of this post so you see some “older” nature journal pages and some of the variety of ideas the boys have had over the years.

We are all trying to reach thirty pages by the end of the year.

Here are our tallies so far:
Mom=11
Amanda=1
Middle Son=0
Youngest Son=2
(We just started our school term a few weeks ago and the boys have been super-dee-duper busy with high school stuff. It looks like I need to schedule in some nature study time each week.)


Here is the first page in my oldest son’s nature journal. It isn’t anything fancy but it was a start. He would have been twelve years old when he drew this.


I thought it was interesting that he spelled “orange” correctly but not “shirt”. I never corrected their spelling in their notebooks.


Here is an example of how my son drew what was important to him at the time. He wrote, “cat on top of the ruff of dads shope”. Priceless.


This is an example of how sometimes they would just make a list of things they saw during our nature time. I have no idea what the orange boxes are for. I am sure there was a reason. Love the spellings of the words.

I made up little “scavenger hunt” cards (you can see it taped to the side of the journal) to help us with our nature study when we seemed to be going through a slump. They would try to find something from each category and draw it in their journal.


This is from my oldest son’s journal. I don’t often share his stuff but I thought I would today. He has a great sense of humor and it comes out in his nature journal. He also likes fine tip colored markers instead of colored pencils.


Just another from his journal….check out that date!

I know everyone always likes to see examples from our journals so this post is for your pleasure.

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Outdoor Hour Challenge #25 Housefly

“The housefly is one of the most cosmopolitan members of the animal kingdom. It flourishes in every land, plumping itself down in front of us at table, whether we be eating rice in Hong Kong, dhura in Egypt, macaroni in Italy, pie in America, or tamales in Mexico. There it sits, impertinent and imperturbable, taking its toll, letting down its long elephant-trunk tongue, rasping and sucking up such of our meal as fits its needs.”Handbook of Nature Study, page 358

Flies are a nuisance and bother to most people but they do have a purpose. After reading this week’s Handbook of Nature Study pages, you will have a better understanding and appreciation for these particular insects. I was fascinated by the information that Anna Comstock shares about something that is literally right under our noses during our everyday life. It is like most things….what we don’t focus on, we can’t see clearly. Take some time this week to be on the look out for houseflies.

Here is a link to a YouTube video of a fly eating part of a sugar cube. Totally awesome photography.
Housefly Video
(You may want to preview this video, it is a really close-up look at a housefly, sort of creepy.)

Don’t miss this opportunity for nature study this week. If houseflies do not appeal to you or your children, just have some outdoor time together. See what you can find to be interested in together.

Outdoor Hour Challenge #25
Focus on Insects-Housefly 

1. This week read about houseflies in the Handbook of Nature Study, pages 358-361. This reading is important this week since we rarely take the time to observe a housefly close-up. Highlight or underline interesting facts as you read so when you introduce the housefly this week to your children you will have a way to remember some interesting tidbits. I know some families like to read the sections together but it works just as well if you find a few points to share with your child after you do the reading yourself. The observation suggestions on pages 360-361 give us specific things to look for. Remember our focus right now is on insects so if you don’t find a fly to observe, you can always look for other insects to study.

2. Your 15-20 minutes of outdoor time this week can be spent looking for insects. We always end up with flies when we eat outdoors. I also have one window that always seems to have a fly buzzing around it. Keep your eyes open for a housefly to observe. Do not worry if you don’t see any this week. If you do your reading, you will be prepared when you next come across this insect.

3. Give the opportunity for a nature journal entry for the fly. If you need ideas for alternative nature journal activities, please see challenges 2 and 3. Keep it simple and let your child draw what interests them in their journal. Help with the writing if they need it.

4. If you observed some other kinds of insects during the week, give the option for making a nature journal for those too. Make sure to pull out the Handbook of Nature Study to see if the insect you found is listed and you can read more about it there. If you are keeping a running list of insects you have observed during this focus period, add the insect’s name to the list.

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Waterfall on a Hot Summer Day

It was a hot summer afternoon and we were willing to take the hike to get to the waterfall. We have been here before and the waterfall and the views are worth the effort. This is one of those hikes that you start off with a well marked trail and then it seems as if the signs disappear. Normally a trail will be marked with a sign like the one above but what happens when you reach a spot that looks like this?

You look a little closer and a little higher up. Here I will zoom in for you.

If you click the photo you will find the little diamond shaped trail marker.

Our reward was this fantastic waterfall. It is so big it won’t fit in one frame of the camera. The boys spent a lot of time climbing up and down the granite and then they eventually took their shoes off and waded in a bit.


I immediately took my hiking shoes and socks off and had my feet soaking in the ice cold snow water. I even dipped my head in and let my hair get wet. Why is hubby so wet?


He decided to go all the way in! Not for very long though….it took his breath away.


One wildflower photo….not many left on this hike at this time of the summer.

One interesting photo….look at his feet! He was hiking on the same trail as we were with no shoes on. I could hardly believe it.

Great afternoon, even if I did get cranky and hot. I am not always the cheerful nature study girl. 🙂

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Everyone Has Their Own Style-Nature Journals

This is how your own personality comes out in your nature journal.

My daughter and I each were sitting on a rock and looking pretty much at the same scene below Yosemite Falls. How could our perceptions have been so different?

It is just so interesting to me that we could each focus on something different…..I focused on Half Dome and she focused on the lovely stream of water and rocks.

I just thought you might be interested to see how there is no “right” answer when you are nature journaling.

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Outdoor Hour Challenge #24 Crickets

Let’s take a look at crickets this week in our mini-focus on insects using the Handbook of Nature Study. Summertime is the perfect time to go outdoors in the cool evenings, listening and tracking these creatures close to home.

“The haunts of the cricket are usually sunny; it digs a little cave beneath a stone or clod in some field, where it can have the whole benefit of all the sunshine when it issues from its door.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 344

If at all possible, try to spend some of your outdoor hour time outside during the evening hours to see if you can hear some crickets chirping in the twilight and evening.

Outdoor Hour Challenge #24
Focus on Insects-Crickets

1. This week read about crickets in the Handbook of Nature Study, pages 344-349. Most of us have heard crickets in the evenings and children will be very interested to learn more about these insects that play music with their legs for us to enjoy.

2. Try to spend some of your outdoor time in the evening air. Our family likes to sit on our deck and watch as the stars come out after sunset. This is a perfect activity to couple with listening for crickets because it is just about at the same time that you will begin to hear crickets singing their evening songs.

3. After you have your outdoor time, provide an opportunity for working on a nature journal entry. Use the Handbook of Nature Study or a library book to find an illustration or photo of an actual cricket to draw in your journal. Have your child label the entry with a title, the date, and the place that you made your observation. Parents can always help the child with this part if needed. This is a good time to work on using descriptive words as described in Outdoor Hour Challenge #2. The more you use the proper names for subjects you see during your nature study, the sooner your children will learn and remember them for themselves.

4. If you observed some other kinds of insects during the week, give the option for making a nature journal for those too. Make sure to pull out the Handbook of Nature Study to see if the insect you found is listed and you can read more about it there. If you are keeping a running list of insects you have observed during this focus period, add the insect’s name to the list.

OHC Blog Carnival
Post an entry on your blog sharing your experiences. You can link up by clicking the carnival button or you can send them directly to me: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com.

You can find another cricket challenge by clicking the button below.
https://naturestudyhomeschool.com/2010/08/ohc-summer-series-10-crickets.html

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