Category: mammals

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Elk Nature Study

Learn about the majestic elk as part of the Outdoor Hour Challenge. I never had any real experience with elk until we moved to Central Oregon. Now, each spring, we have them right out our back door.

With this nature study lesson, you’ll have a chance to learn about this large mammal and do some comparing to other mammals you see more regularly.

Elk Nature Study and Facts will help you discover more interesting facts about the second largest animal of the deer family.

Elk Nature Study & Facts

Male elk are called Bulls and only bulls grow antlers.

Elk are the second largest animal of the deer family, weighing up to 700lbs+. (moose are the biggest)

Elk are the loudest species of deer, their mating call sounds like a bugle.

Elk can run up to 40 mph and jump 8 ft high.

Elk are very good swimmers.

The word “elk” comes from the German “elch,” the name for the European moose.

The elk was nearly killed off by early US settlers, but now thrive, especially in the Western United States. 

Elk Nature Study and Facts will help you discover more interesting facts about the second largest animal of the deer family.

Where can you find elk?

An estimated one million elk live in the western United States: Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, and seven Canadian provinces.

Elk Nature Study

The full elk Outdoor Hour Challenge is included in Homeschool Nature Study membership in our High Desert course. This study includes:

  • suggestions for study and your Outdoor Hour Time
  • elk notebook and coloring pages
  • pages in the Burgess Book for Children
  • research to see if elk live near you
  • plus suggestions for advanced studies for high school students.
  • and more!

Here are a few ideas to get you started with an elk nature study:

Choose your resource for learning about the elk. This could be a field guide, a book from your local library or an online resource. Here’s a link to a webpage that has an abundance of information on elk in North America: Elk Network.  You will find facts, videos, and range maps on that page that will help you learn about this magnificent animal.

 Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership

There are so many benefits to joining. You will access our full range of curriculum, our interactive learning calendar as well as a homeschool nature study challenge for each week!

Find Out More About Homeschool Nature Study Membership!

Original post written by Barb 2020, updated by Stef Layton 2024.

 

 

 

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Grizzly Bears Nature Study

Go wild with a Grizzly Bears Nature Study! Fun facts and Barb’s grizzly encounter at the Grand Tetons National Park.

Go wild with a Grizzly Bears Nature Study! Fun facts and Barb's grizzly encounter at the Grand Tetons National Park.

Grizzly bears were once abundant across the United States. They are currently listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in the lower 48 states. There are eight different species of bears. Learn more about this north western creature with your own Grizzle Bear Nature Study.

Grizzly Bears: Nature Study and Fun Facts

Grizzly Bears have a distinctive hump on their shoulders that’s actually a powerful muscle used for digging and running.

Grizzly Bears can weigh over 800 pounds and measure 5 to 8 feet long. Adult males can stand nearly 10 feet tall when upright. This is still considered smaller compared to a polar bear!

Grizzly Bears have short round ears while other bears tend to have pointy ears.

Grizzly Bears have long claws while other bears have shorter claws.

Grizzly Bears can be many colors, including: light tan, blonde, reddish, dark brown, and almost black.

Grizzly Bears live in a variety of habitats, including prairies, mountains, meadows, forests, and tundra.

Grizzly Bears live about 20-25 years.

Female Grizzly Bears can give birth to 2-4 cubs in late January or February. Cubs stay with their mother for 2-5 years.

Grizzly bears enter a state similar to hibernation, called torpor, during the winter.

Where do grizzly bears live?

Grizzly bears are found today in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington as well as British Columbia, Alberta, the Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and northern part of Manitoba in Canada.

Barb’s Grizzly Encounter in Grand Teton National Park

Outdoor Hour Challenge founder, Barb McCoy, encountered a grizzly bear while traveling with her family. She shares, here: “In July 2011 we were driving through the Teton National Park at sunset and we thought at first that we saw a bison. At second glance we realized it was a bear!

Grizzly Bear Grand Teton July 2011

Grizzly Bear Mama and Two Cubs Grand Teton 7 11

You can see in this photo that other people were not using good judgement and they were way too close to the bears. These are really big bears and I know that there is nothing like a mama bear protecting her cubs….

It was a wonderful experience to see these creatures in their natural environment. The cubs were sort of playing with each other as they romped through the meadow. The mama was walking with that bear sort of swagger that is so distinctive. Amazing to see just how big they are in real life.

Just another Wyoming experience.”

Go wild with a Grizzly Bears Nature Study! Fun facts and Barb's grizzly encounter at the Grand Tetons National Park.

Grizzly Bear Notes Printable for Members

Grizzly Bear Nature Study

Homeschool Nature Study Members can head over to their dashboard to print the new Grizzly Bears Notes worksheet. This is a fun worksheet to fill in after visiting the zoo, a bear sanctuary, reading a book about bears, and/or watching a documentary on grizzly bears. Or spend a few minutes watching the Katmai National Park Bear Cam (this is a highlight reel from the year).

We’re starting with a favorite topic, black bears! Enjoy a bear nature study in your homeschool with this Outdoor Hour Challenge and bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool.

More Bear and Mammal Nature Studies for Your Homeschool

You might have a different type of bear in your part of the world, or you might like to learn about other mammals. Here are more resources to explore:

Black Bear Study for Your Homeschool – You can enjoy some forest fun nature studies in your homeschool and do a bear nature study Outdoor Hour Challenge. Includes hands on art and links for further bear studies.

You can enjoy a Homeschool Nature Study with Winnie the Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood as well. Paint a map of the Hundred Acre Wood, have a Teddy Bear Picnic and more.

In our Animal Tracks Nature Hunt, you can use these nature study lesson plans, suggestions, ideas and resources for identifying animal tracks!

Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership

You’ll find a detailed bear nature study challenge in the Forest Fun course that’s available with Homeschool Nature Study Membership. This study also includes advanced studies for high school students with notebooking pages and suggestions for learning about bear communication.

There are so many benefits to joining. You will access our full range of curriculum, our interactive learning calendar as well as homeschool nature study challenges for each week!

Find Out More About Homeschool Nature Study Membership!

Original post written by Barb 2020, updated by Stef Layton 2024.

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Squirrel Nature Study: Activities And Lessons For Kids

squirrel Nature study

Tree squirrels are some of the most entertaining critters to inhabit our neighborhoods. This Outdoor Hour Challenge will help you and your little squirrel hunters observe local squirrels more closely as you note their behavior and features. Squirrels are not shy so you should be able to spot them and make some observations with ease. Enjoy this Squirrel Nature Study by taking along a pair of binoculars to get a closer look!

Observe squirrels in your neighborhood and enjoy the Squirrel Nature Study. Be sure to bring a long a pair of binoculars.

Squirrel Nature Study

Squirrel Nature Study – Handbook of Nature Study Lesson #57

Archive Outdoor Hour Challenge – Click the link above to take you to the original challenge.

“The squirrel’s legs are short because he is essentially a climber rather than a runner; the hips are very strong, which insures his power as a jumper, and his leaps are truly remarkable.”

“The squirrel has two pairs of gnawing teeth which are very long and strong, as in all rodents, and he needs to keep busy gnawing hard things with them, or they will grow so long that he cannot use them at all and will starve to death.”

squirrel Nature study

“During the winter, the red squirrel does not remain at home except in the coldest weather, when he lies cozily with his tail wrapped around him like a fur neck-piece to keep him warm.”

Handbook of Nature Study, pages 234 and 235

Make sure to click the link below to read the entire Outdoor Hour Challenge with helpful links, nature study ideas, printable notebooking pages, and suggested follow-up activities.

Squirrel Nature Study – Handbook of Nature Study Lesson #57

Observe squirrels in your neighborhood and enjoy the Squirrel Nature Study. Be sure to bring a long a pair of binoculars.

Homeschool Nature Study Membership

It’s a great time to join Homeschool Nature Study! We offer a multitude of science activities, hands-on learning ideas, seasonal nature studies, crafts, free resources for all ages – join the #outdoorhourchallenge community and enhance your homeschool science lessons!

By Barb McCoy, founder of the Outdoor Hour Challenges with The Handbook of Nature Study. Updated and new resources added by Stef Layton.

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Mouse Homeschool Nature Study For Kids

Enjoy these simple mouse homeschool nature studies learning about these small mammals. Includes mouse stories to read, studies to enjoy indoors, outdoor time and nature journaling suggestions.

Outdoor Hour Challenge hostess, Shirley Vels, shares, “These little creatures, love them or hate them, are entertaining to watch. Personally, I have a soft spot for mice probably borne of having my early childhood views molded by the likes of Brambly Hedge and Beatrix Potter tales.”

Remember: You are always successful in your homeschool nature studies with the Outdoor Hour Challenges if you take time to be outside with your children for a few minutes each week. You can use your outdoor time this week to sit on a blanket in the shade, read about mice, and then make a few notes in your nature journal. Snacks are always welcome during the Outdoor Hour Challenge as well.

Mouse Homeschool Nature Studies for Kids

Your Indoor Homeschool Nature Study Preparation

Your Mouse Outdoor Hour Time:

  • This is one of those challenges that is hard to plan ahead of time for direct observation of the topic. If you have access to a real mouse to observe, use the suggestions for the lesson in the Handbook of Nature Study.
  • If you don’t have access to a mouse, use your outdoor time to observe any mammal and compare it using information you know about a mouse: teeth, feet, tail, color, size, behavior, diet.

Mouse Follow-Up Nature Study Activities:

  • Complete a nature journal entry with any information you learned from your mouse study. You can sketch any signs of mice that you observed in your yard like tracks, scat, or a mouse hole. You can also click this link, click and print the image of the house mouse to include in your notebook: Nature.CA—House Mouse or members can color the page for the Whitefooted Mouse in the summer course.
  • If you observed any other mammal and would like to follow-up with more nature study, you can check the list of previous mammal Outdoor Hour Challenges for more information using the Handbook of Nature Study. You may wish to use the free Mammal Notebook Page available on my blog.
  • Advanced Study: Research the Rodentia order and the Muridae family. Record your results in your nature journal.

Mouse Mammal Study with Owl Pellet Dissection

Additional Links:

More Mouse Learning for Your Homeschool – Free Mammal Journal Page

Get Your Mammal Nature Study Journal Page!

Subscribe to get your free mammal journal page.

    We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.

    If You Give a Mouse a Cookie or If You Take a Mouse to the Movies: Hands on Homeschool Activities – We love this sweet tale of a little mouse who is easily distracted from one thing to the next. If this isn’t a picture of all parents everywhere with their toddlers and preschoolers, then I don’t know what is. 

    A Delightful Study of Famous Artist Beatrix Potter (with podcast) – Come on, let’s go visit Hill Top Farm and meet all of her favorite animals!

    homeschool nature study membership
    Find Out More About Homeschool Nature Study Membership HERE!

    All the summer challenges are included in the continuing summer course in Homeschool Nature Study membership. If you want to follow along with notebook pages and coloring pages, click over and learn more about membership.

    by Barbara McCoy, founder of The Outdoor Hour Challenges

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    10 Fun Groundhog Day Homeschool Nature Study Activities

    Whether it is Groundhog Day or you are just wanting to learn more about these mammals, enjoy these homeschool nature study activities about woodchucks, groundhogs, prairie dogs and marmots!

    Enjoy these groundhog homeschool nature study activities about woodchucks, groundhogs, prairie dogs and marmots - whether it is Groundhog Day or not!

    10 Groundhog Homeschool Nature Study Activities

    Have fun learning about these mammals! If you don’t have groundhogs near you, enjoy the alternate nature study activities for mammals.

    Read About Groundhogs in The Handbook of Nature Study

    1. Read pages 229-232 in the Handbook of Nature Study. As you read, highlight or underline some facts you can share with your children. There are observation ideas on page 231 and many of these suggestions are ones that you can continue to make over the next few seasons.

    More Fun Learning About Groundhogs

    Have you ever seen a marmot or a groundhog? Here is a cute video to introduce you to this mammal.

    Read About The Groundhog in The Burgess Animal Book for Children

    Enjoy this supplemental reading in The Burgess Animal Book for Children: Read Stories 7-8. After you read each story, pause and let your child narrate back some facts they learned from the reading.

    This could be as simple as looking at the illustrations on pages 48 and 54 and having them tell you a few things about the woodchuck, the marmot, or the prairie dog.

    Mammals: Groundhog Homeschool Nature Study Activities

    Groundhog Outdoor Hour Nature Study


    Spend 10-15 minutes outdoors on a nature walk. Look for signs of mammals as you walk. Look for tracks, burrows, holes, or scat. If you are able to observe one of this challenge’s featured mammals, be sure to use some of the observation ideas from page 231. Be alert for any opportunity to observe a mammal during your outdoor time. So far we have learned about rabbits and squirrels, but be on the look out for more common mammals like dogs, cats, or horses.

    Don’t have groundhogs near you? More ideas for a mammal nature study in the Ultimate Mammals Homeschool Nature Study Using the Outdoor Hour Challenges.

    Enjoy founder Barb McCoy’s family study of groundhogs and a foggy day walk.

    Groundhog Nature Journaling Activity

    After your outdoor time, if you observed a mammal, you can look it up in the Handbook of Nature Study. For your nature journal you can sketch something you saw during your outdoor time. One additional idea is to compare two animals that we have already studied. You can compare a rabbit and a prairie dog or a squirrel and a prairie dog. Make sketches or make a list of the comparisons. You may also use any of the additional resources for your nature journal.

    You ARE an ARTiST Groundhog art lesson
    You ARE an ARTiST Groundhog art lesson

    Additional Groundhog Resources for Your Homeschool

    Join The Homeschool Nature Study Membership for Year Round Support

    You will find a continuing series on mammals plus all the Outdoor Hour Challenges for nature study in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. There are 25+ continuing courses with matching Outdoor Hour curriculum that will bring the Handbook of Nature Study to life in your homeschool! In addition, there is an interactive monthly calendar with daily nature study prompt – all at your fingertips!

    Join Homeschool Nature Study Membership Today!
    Enjoy these groundhog homeschool nature study activities about woodchucks, groundhogs, prairie dogs and marmots - whether it is Groundhog Day or not!

    Written by Outdoor Hour Challenges founder, Barb and updated by Tricia.

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    Bats Homeschool Nature Study: Mammals

    Bats are fascinating and wonderful creatures. They are important for pollination of plants, they eat mosquitoes and other pests and are beneficial in many more ways. Enjoy this bats homeschool nature study on mammals that fly and have echolocation!

    Bats are fascinating and wonderful creatures. Enjoy this bats homeschool nature study on mammals that fly and have echolocation!

    You will enjoy a bat study if you are interested in learning about different kinds of flying creatures.

    “Although the bat’s wings are very different from those of the bird, yet it is a rapid and agile flier. It flies in the dusk and catches great numbers of mosquitoes and other troublesome insects, upon which it feeds.”
    Handbook of Nature Study, page 243

    If you ever get a chance to watch a bat fly, you will be amazed at their flying ability.

    Getting Started In Homeschool Nature Study

    If you do not already own the Getting Started in Homeschool Nature Study ebook, be sure to download it for free. Next, complete Outdoor Hour Challenge #2.

    Try to take your fifteen minute nature walk at sunset or just when it turns dark. You can walk or sit quietly in a familiar place, using your senses to really get to know this time of day. After you go inside, make sure to help your child record a few words in their nature journal or use the notebook page that is provided in the ebook.

    For further bat study, here is a general video about bats. Please preview the video because parts of it may make your children a little squeamish. There is also a reference to evolution.

    Bats Homeschool Nature Study: Books To Read

    1. Read pages 241-245 in the Handbook of Nature Study. Although the lesson for bats states that it should not be given unless you can directly observe bats in person, I think this interesting creature deserves his own Outdoor Hour Challenge. Make sure to watch the video about bats and then proceed with the lesson suggestions. If you need additional information, use the resources at the end of this challenge.

     

    2. Supplemental reading in The Burgess Animal Book for Children: Read Story 21. Use the illustration on page 128 to prompt a narration after reading the story about the Little Brown Bat.

    Bats Study: Mammal Outdoor Hour Challenge


    This week during your 10-15 minutes of outdoor time, look for any mammals in your neighborhood or in a near-by park. Many of us will not find any mammals to observe or signs of mammals like scat or tracks. This should not discourage us from taking the time to be outdoors with our children. More ideas in the Ultimate List of Mammals Study with the Outdoor Hour Challenges and Animal Tracks Nature Hunt.

    Bats are fascinating and wonderful creatures. Enjoy this bats homeschool nature study on mammals that fly and have echolocation!

    Simple Tips for Your Homeschool Nature Study

    Try some of the techniques that we have worked on in the past.

    • Stand or sit quietly and see what you can hear.
    • Take a magnifying lens and look at an object up close.
    • Make a small square with yarn and see what you can find in to look at within that small square.
    • Look at the sky and observe the clouds.

    Use the methods that have worked in the past and see what you can come up with this week to share with your children.

    Bats are fascinating and wonderful creatures. Enjoy this bats homeschool nature study on mammals that fly and have echolocation!

    4. After your walk, discuss any interesting things that you observed. Help your child to find words for their experience. Record their words on paper and have them sketch a simple drawing for their nature journal. Use some of the ideas that worked in the past like a rubbing of a leaf or feather. Take photos for your nature journals.

    Research and record what you learned about the bat this week from reading in the Handbook of Nature Study. One idea would be to sketch and record how a bat’s wings are different from a bird’s wings. You could discuss why a bat is considered a mammal and how it differs from other mammals that we have studied. Keep it simple but make some connections this week.

    benefits of homeschool nature study membership

    Homeschool Nature Study Members Enjoy More Studies

    Members will find these resources in your Autumn course in Homeschool Nature Study membership:

    • Bats and The Sense of Hearing Outdoor Hour Challenge
    • Lessons Around Nature at Sundown
    • Bat coloring page
    • Advanced bat studies and more activities

    Members also enjoy access to:

    • NEW, weekly Outdoor Hour Challenges to bring the Handbook of Nature Study to life in your homeschool!
    • the annual nature study plans
    • matching courses with materials and journaling pages
    • interactive calendar with daily nature study prompts
    • Nature Journaling course
    • and MUCH more!
    Join Us In Homeschool Nature Study Membership Today!

    Be inspired. Be encouraged. Get outdoors!

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    Goat Homeschool Nature Study for All Ages

    This goat homeschool nature study is packed with fun from fainting goats to advanced mammal studies! Bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool! Here’s a peek at what you can expect to enjoy in this Outdoor Hour Challenge for Homeschool Nature Study members.

    This goat homeschool nature study is packed with fun from fainting goats to advanced mammal studies! Bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool!

    Goat Homeschool Nature Study

    • A funny video on fainting goats to catch your children’s attention
    • Handbook of Nature Study reference pages, Outdoor Hour time and follow up journal suggestions
    • Printables for your goat study in your Spring Outdoor Hour Challenge Curriculum
    • Burgess Book of Animals pages to read aloud.
    • Learn what is a mammal?
    • Online links to view goats
    • Advanced students: the history of goats, study on breeds of goats, the digestive system (Goats are ruminant animals – animals with four stomachs)
    • How to draw a goat
    This goat homeschool nature study is packed with fun from fainting goats to advanced mammal studies! Bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool!

    Virtual Field Trip to Learn About Goats

    For a fun virtual field trip, be sure to follow all the goat adventures with Accidental Country Folk. Jodi shares more than goats – including a fancy chicken named Ms. Frizzle on Instagram too!

    The Ultimate Guide to Mammals Study Using the Outdoor Hour Challenges

    You can enjoy a simple mammals homeschool nature study with these resources we have gathered for you to use in your own backyard. It is such a delight to study and learn about these beautiful creatures! Go to The Ultimate Guide to Mammals Study Using the Outdoor Hour Challenges.

    NOTE: All of the mammals homeschool nature study resources listed are available as an Outdoor Hour Challenge in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. If you have a membership, you will be able to pull up the Outdoor Hour Challenge curriculum and print any notebook pages, coloring pages, or other printables for your mammals nature study.

    Wondering how to start? Grab our FREE Getting Started with Homeschool Nature Study Guide!

    homeschool nature study membership

    Visit our website to find an affordable membership option that suits you. Why not give membership a try for a month and go from there. We would love to have you along for the adventure!

    Join Homechool Nature Study Membership Today!
    This goat homeschool nature study is packed with fun from fainting goats to advanced mammal studies! Bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool! Here's a peek at what you can expect to enjoy in this Outdoor Hour Challenge for Homeschool Nature Study members.
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    Animal Tracks Nature Hunt: Mammals Homeschool Study

    Go on an animals tracks nature hunt for a great mammals homeschool study. Use these nature study lesson plans, suggestions, ideas and resources for identifying animal tracks!

    Go on an animals tracks nature hunt for a great mammals homeschool study. Use these nature study lesson plans and resources for identifying animal tracks!

    Mammals in Winter

    Many mammals are nocturnal and you will rarely spot them to observe up close. Some mammals hibernate in the winter and they are not easily observed either. Many more mammals are just plain shy and rarely show their faces. Reading about them and learning their behaviors will help you find and observe them in the wild if you are diligent. It may not be this week or this year but you will be ready if you do the study ahead of time.

    Easy Mammals Homeschool Nature Study Lesson Plans

    Any study of mammals can be done with what you have on hand. Do you have a pet dog, cat, mouse, or rat? Do you have a relative or neighbor that has a dog or cat they will let you observe? How about visiting a pet store? Be creative.

    For this challenge, you can use the Handbook of Nature Study to pick a mammal to study this winter. You could also choose to use the Discover Nature in Winter book to read about mammals and then use the information there to look for animal tracks during your outdoor time. Either way will give your family a great study of a mammal.


    Animal Tracks Nature Hunt Ideas for Your Homeschool

    Inside Preparation Work using the Discover Nature in Winter book:
    Read chapter nine in Discover Nature in Winter. Mammals in general tend to be shy of humans. In the winter, it is even more difficult to observe mammals. The chapter suggests looking for signs of mammals instead like tracks and scat. Highlight ideas for your family to try this week while you are outdoors and looking for mammals.

    how to find animal tracks in a homeschool nature study

    Review the chart showing different animal tracks on page 182 and 183. Try sketching some of the tracks into your nature journal as a reference for future outdoor time. In our area, we often come across animal scat as we hike and we are going to familiarize ourselves with the various kinds of scat by studying the illustrations in this chapter.

    Without the Discover Nature in Winter book:
    You can still look up some animal tracks online using this link: Animal Tracks at Beartracker

    Homeschool outdoor hour challenge time with the Handbook of Nature Study

    Your Homeschool Outdoor Hour Challenge Time


    This week the challenge is to get outdoors and look for signs of animals.     You can look for:

    • tracks
    • scat
    • holes
    • scratches
    • hair
    • other things that mammals leave behind

    Remember to make your nature study time like an investigation or nature hunt.

    Animal Tracks Follow-Up Homeschool Activities:


    1. Keep a record of animal tracks you have observed in the snow or mud. Record your findings in your nature journal along with a drawing, the date, the weather, the time of day, and the type of animal if you have identified it at this time. You can use your own blank journal.
    2. Compare a dog’s and a cat’s footprints in the snow or mud.
    3. Research an animal that hibernates and record what you learn in your nature notebook.

    You can also sketch your animal and what its tracks look like.

    Homeschool Nature Study Membership Resources For Your Animal Tracks Hunt

    Wondering how to start? Grab our FREE Getting Started with Homeschool Nature Study Guide!

    Our members will enjoy even more for this animal tracks nature hunt with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Winter Course!

    These member resources will also be helpful:

    • Brand NEW Mammals Outdoor Hour Challenge Nature Study lesson post – all about sheep!
    • Mammal Notebook Page
    • Winter Series notebook page

    Know you are ready to join us?

    Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership Today!

    Go on an animals tracks nature hunt for a great mammals homeschool study. Use these nature study lesson plans and resources for identifying animal tracks!

    Be sure to take photos of your animal tracks nature hunt time and share them with us! Tag us on social media on Instagram or Facebook and use the hashtag #outdoorhourchallenge – we can’t wait to see!

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    The Ultimate Mammals Homeschool Nature Study Using Outdoor Hour Challenges

    You can enjoy a simple mammals homeschool nature study with these resources we have gathered for you to use in your own backyard. It is such a delight to study and learn about these beautiful creatures!

    NOTE: All of the mammals homeschool nature study resources listed are available as an Outdoor Hour Challenge in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. If you have a membership, you will be able to pull up the Outdoor Hour Challenge curriculum and print any notebook pages, coloring pages, or other printables for your mammals nature study.

    Wondering how to start? Grab our FREE Getting Started with Homeschool Nature Study Guide!

    Mammals Homeschool Nature Study Using Outdoor Hour Challenges (in Nature Study Membership)

    • Animal Tracks Hunt – Mammals Outdoor Hour Challenge
    • Bats – Summer course
    • Bear – Forest Fun course
    • Beavers
    • Cats – Spring course
    • Cattle and Deer – Winter Continues course
    • Chipmunks – Autumn course (An example of a chipmunks and squirrel study with Homeschool Nature Study here)
    • Coyote – High Desert course
    • Elk – High Desert ebook
    • Goats – More Spring Nature Course
    • Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel – High Desert course
    • Horses – Autumn course
    • Moose – Forest Fun course
    • Mountain Lion – High Desert course
    • Mouse – More Summer course
    • Muskrat – Creepy Things course
    You can enjoy a simple mammals homeschool nature study with these resources we have gathered for you to use in your own backyard.
    • Pig – Autumn Continues course
    • Pocket Gopher – High Desert course
    • Porcupine – Forest Fun course
    • Rabbits
    • Raccoons – Summer course
    • Rats
    • River Otter – High Desert course
    • Sheep – More Winter course
    • Skunks – Summer course
    • Skunks and Badgers
    • Squirrels and Squirrels with Rodent Notebooking Page
    • Winter Mammals from Winter Wednesday course
    • Winter Mammals Hiberation – Winter Wednesday course
    • Winter Mammal Tracks – Winter course
    • Wolf, Fox, and Dog
    • Woodchuck, Groundhog, Prairie Dog, and Marmot
    We’re starting with a favorite topic, black bears! Enjoy a bear nature study in your homeschool with this Outdoor Hour Challenge and bring the Handbook of Nature Study to Life in your homeschool.

    Additional Mammal Homeschool Activities Included with Membership

    • Mammal Outdoor Hour Challenge Notebook Page
    • Mammal notebook page
    • Running List of Mammals printable notebook page
    • Looking for Signs and Tracks
    • Mammal nature study journal idea printable. Mammals at the zoo.
    homeschool nature study membership for families

    Join The Homeschool Nature Study Membership for Year Round Support

    Can you believe all of these mammals resources you will find in membership? You will also find a continuing series on mammals plus all the Outdoor Hour Challenges for nature study in our Homeschool Nature Study membership. There are 25+ continuing courses with matching Outdoor Hour curriculum that will bring the Handbook of Nature Study to life in your homeschool! In addition, there is an interactive monthly calendar with daily nature study prompt – all at your fingertips!

    Join the Homeschool Nature Study Membership Today!

    first published 2011 by Barb and updated by Tricia 2022

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    Forbs and Pocket Gophers

    Forbs and Pocket Gophers

    I love it when I’m researching and learning about one topic and it leads me to another interesting topic. This often happens with nature study when an answer to a question just makes you curious about something else.

    I’ve been reading about pocket gophers because we have many that live and are active in the habitat behind our house here in Central Oregon. Their holes are everywhere! (If you’re interested in learning about pocket gophers, there’s an Outdoor Hour Challenge in the High Desert ebook that will help you get started.) We’ve been wondering just what they eat and it turns out their diet includes “forbs”.

    I had no idea what a “forb” was, so we decided to research the term.

    Forb:

    “A forb or phorb is an herbaceous flowering plant that is not a graminoid (grass, sedge, or rush). The term is used in biology and in vegetation ecology, especially in relation to grasslands and understory.”

    -From Wikipedia

    Basically, most wildflowers are forbs. Grass is not a forb.

    A pocket gopher’s diet consists mainly of forbs, eaten from the roots and pulled down into their tunnels. Most pocket gophers do not venture too far from their tunnel entrances to look for vegetation to eat.

    So my dear readers, follow those “rabbit trails” when you are researching a topic. You never know what gem you will discover. I learned a new term to use in my nature study.

     

    Pocket Gopher Nature Study Outdoor Hour challenge