Category: printable

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5 Easy Nature Study Suggestions for the End of April

5 Easy Nature Study Ideas - April button
If you have been too busy this month to keep up with the Outdoor Hour Challenge, you many want to consider this week a time to get a few final April nature study activities. If you blog about it, you are welcome to submit your link to the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival.

Five Easy Nature Study Suggestions for the End of April

  1. Just get outside and take a walk! Informal nature study done while spending time together as a family is often the most meaningful. Get outside for a quick walk when you have a few minutes to spare. Printable Scavenger Hunt available from Hearts and Trees: Spring Nature Walk. You can also use my free Signs of Spring Notebook Page to follow up your walk.
  2. Keep track of temperature for three days in a row. Record it in your nature journal to compare with future months. You can print and use my free Printable Weather Chart Notebook Page.
  3. Observe clouds over the course of a week. Print out a Cloud Chart (scroll down and there are two choices). Record your cloud observations in your nature journal with sketches.
  4. Complete a Seasonal Weather Notebook Page.
  5. Finish the grid suggestions from the Apri 2012 Handbook of Nature Study Newsletter. Note: You will need to subscribe to my blog to receive the download link for the newsletter at the bottom of the next blog entry email.

 

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First Day of Spring – Printable Notebook Page

First Day of Spring 2012 notebook page

After Sunday’s snow, it is hard to believe we are at the first day of spring for 2012. We have had a crazy weather year but it is going to be fun to record our spring thoughts today..perhaps even taking a long walk this afternoon.

Here is a printable notebook page to inspire some springtime nature study or at least some looking out the window time today on this first day of spring.

I would love to hear how you incorporate a little nature study or outdoor time into your first day of spring. Leave me a comment or send me a blog link!

More Nature Study Book 3 Button

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Nature Study – 3 Steps to a Better Experience

Madrone Tree

“The Field Lesson. When planning a field lesson, three points should be kept in mind:
First. The aim, to bring the children into sympathy or in touch with nature, through the study of that part of nature in which they have been interested.
Second. The conditions out of doors, where the children are at home, where they must have greater freedom than in the schoolroom, and where it is more difficult to keep them at definite work, and to hold their attention.
Third. The necessity of giving each child something definite to find out for himself, and of interesting the children so that each will try to find out the most and have the greatest number of discoveries to tell.”  Nature Study and The Child, Charles B. Scott, 1900.

I am finding that for my high school aged son there needs to be a different sort of follow-up to our observations…more than just a nature journal. He is using his past experiences with nature study and making some connections. This has led me to going back to the internet to research more closely how nature study develops into upper level science. I am finding it fascinating. I am excited to share my findings and show how I am implementing the ideas learned with my son as we go along (see the printable below).

“But true science work does not stop with mere seeing, hearing, or feeling: it not only furnishes a mental picture as a basis for reasoning, but it includes an interpretation of what has been received through the senses.”
Nature Study for the Common Schools, Wilbur Samuel Jackman, 1891

This is the part of nature study I find most meaningful for my son. When he can take something he already knows and build on it with new information, he develops an interest. If I am merely telling him a fact, no matter how interesting the fact is, he is not as impressed. He needs to find the answers to his questions.

Madrone Tree branches
Pacific Madrone 

“Adults should realize that the most valuable thing children can learn is what they discover themselves about the world they live in.” Charlotte Mason, volume 1 page 61

My research found that this pattern – observation, reasoning, expression – is nothing new or unique to nature study. This pattern is the process that all science is built upon. Watching my son work through the More Nature Study ebook challenges has brought this into focus for me. I wrote the challenges to include advanced study and just happened to present it in this three step pattern.

Nature Study - Three Steps to a Better Experience

If you haven’t yet downloaded and read my Nature Study-Three Steps To A Better Experience, I invite you to now. It outlines in simple form how to build a lifetime habit of meaningful nature study.

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Updated Free Nature Notebooking Pages

Handbook of Nature Study Freebies
When I released the very first Outdoor Hour Challenge ebook, there was also a set of free notebook pages that was offered by my friend Tina Joyce. Since then the files were somehow deleted from Lulu.com and it was not until this week that I was able to get them uploaded to my file share site.

Thanks so much Tina.

Handbook of Nature Study freebies
You should now be able to download each page for free.

Blank Nature Journal Page #2
Blank Nature Walk Journal Page
Blank Nature Journal Page for Older Children
Running List of Thinks Observed (I use this one all the time!)
Record of Things Collected
Mammal Outdoor Hour Challenge Notebook Page

You will find more free pages here: Handbook of Nature Study Free Downloads.

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Nature In Your Notebook Printables Link-Up

Nature Study - Three Steps to a Better Experience
Download Link.

Nature Study – Three Steps to a Better Experience
(You may need to right click the link and save it to your computer.)

Nature study in winter can be a challenge. February is always a hard month to get through as we anticipate the coming spring. My free printable is all about learning age-appropriate activities for nature study with a special focus on advanced study. I show you how to adapt nature study to all ages of children and to get the most out of your time outside. I hope it encourages everyone from beginners to experienced nature study families.

I have teamed up with five other bloggers to bring you some mid-winter encouragement to get outdoors for some refreshing nature study. Each of us has put together a free printable download for your family. We are encouraging you to visit each blog and take advantage of the opportunity to get a variety of stimulating ideas to use in your family.

No strings attached…just free downloads. If you feel encouraged, please leave us a comment, give us a Facebook like, share on Twitter, or pin this post on Pinterest. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about our Nature in Your Notebook Printables Link-Up.

You are invited to subscribe to my blog and receive my free monthly nature study newsletter too!

Nature in Your Notebook Link-Up

Here are my partners…a great group of women bloggers!

1. Cindy from Our Journey Westward
2. Maureen from Spell Outloud
3. Jimmie from Jimmie’s Collage
4. Lauren from Mama’s Learning Corner
5. Amanda from Hearts and Trees

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Dry December Leading Into a Dry January – Free Weather Chart Notebook Page

1 3 12 bulbs sprouting
I have noticed that most of my bulbs are springing up early. If we get our wet or snowy weather, it will be interesting to see what the flowers continue to do.

Last month was the driest December since 1883 in our part of California…according to my dear husband. As a wildland firefighter he keeps an eye on the weather and the humidity. Right now our area is VERY dry and the potential for fire is going to be high until it rains. This is not a typical winter.

I looked it up on the internet and the article I found said that our warm weather is because of a summer-like high pressure ridge that has remained in place since early December 2011. Here is a video: Dry December.

I looked up our normal temperatures for this time of year:
Normal high is 51 degrees.
Yesterday the high was 66 degrees!

We are going to start keeping track of our highs and lows and any precipitation we do eventually get. Keeping a weather record chart is a great tool for your nature journal and allows you to look back and make some conclusions and comparisons. This is an easy nature related study that you can do wherever you live.

Would you like a free downloadable Weather Record Chart?
Weather Record Chart

You can download this free printable chart:

Weather Record Chart

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Handbook of Nature Study – Free Downloads

Handbook of Nature Study Freebies

Cattail Seasonal Nature Study notebook page

Seasonal Tree Study Notebook Page Autumn final

Spring Maple Tree Notebook page

Signs of Spring Notebook Page

Queen Anne’s Lace Spring Notebook Page

Winter Queen Anne’s Lace Notebook Page

December World Notebook Page

Signs of Autumn Notebook Page

First Day of Summer notebook page

Outdoor Hour Trees 31 to 35 and 37 to 38

Outdoor Hour Challenges Insects 22-28

Outdoor Hour Challenges Flowerless Plants 41 to 43

Outdoor Hour Challenge Seasonal Work -Trees and Weather #11 #20 #36 #39 #40 #47

Last Days of Summer notebook page

Signs of Autumn Notebook Page

Weather Record Chart

Nature Book Project Planner Page

Insect Notes – generic insect notebook page

Nature Table Ideas – Garden Flowers

Summer Pond Study – Bonus Notebook Page and Grid

Wildlife Habitat Plan

Insect Photo Hunt printable activity

My Backyard at Night Notebook Page

Mushroom Cap Sketch Notebook Page

Outdoor Hour Challenge Rodent Notebook Page

My Owl Study Notebook Page Outdoor Hour Challenge

Handbook of Nature Study Nature Table Ideas Birds

Bird Life List Printable from Handbook of Nature Study

Rock treasure box printable from Handbook of Nature Study

 

Handbook of Nature Study freebies
Here are some more that my friend Tina Joyce created and would like to share with the Outdoor Hour Challenge participants. Thanks Tina!

Outdoor_Hour_Nature_Journal_Page_Younger_

Blank Nature Journal Page #2

Blank_Nature_Walk Journal_Page_4

Blank_Nature_Journal_Page_1_Older

My_Running_List_of._FREE

Record_of_Items_I_Collected

Mammals_Outdoor_Challenge_Notebook_Pages_Generic_

Calendar of Firsts blank printable

Nature Study - Three Steps to a Better Experience
This free mini-ebook explains how to get more out of your nature study experience by showing you three easy steps to use as your family grows in confidence. I invite you to download your copy today.

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First Day of Summer Activity Page

Summer Flowers - Pink
Summer is Here – Get Outside and Enjoy!

First day of summer…at last! June 21, 2011 is the first day of summer.

Here a few fun summer activities to do with your family.

First Day of Summer Notebook Page

Summer Nature Walk – Using Your Senses (From Hearts and Trees)

Look at the long list of Summer Series nature study challenges from last year. These are all listed on the “Summer” tab at the top of my blog.

I am very ready to get into summer mode with our nature study. My bee garden is growing and my “artist’s garden” is coming along….my paints and markers are just itching to get started.

 

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2011 Spring Series – Queen Anne’s Lace Spring Observations/Spring Wildflower


Last year we studied dandelions as part of the spring series but this year I wanted to make sure that we are all on the look-out for our Queen Anne’s Lace. This is a plant that we started observing last summer and then continued through autumn and then winter.

Here are the links to those challenges:
Summer Study: Queen Anne’s Lace 

Autumn Study: Queen Anne’s Lace

Winter Study: Queen Anne’s Lace (free bonus notebook page)

Inside Preparation Work:

  • If you studied Queen Anne’s Lace in the past, you may wish to pull out the completed notebook pages to remind yourself of the appearance and location of your Queen Anne’s Lace.
  • Read pages 542-545 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 148). Glean some new points about this interesting plant that is considered a weed by many people.
  • Remind yourself what Queen Anne’s Lace looks like by using the accompanying notebook page or the Handbook of Nature Study. More information can be found here: eNature or the USDA.

Outdoor Hour Time:
For this challenge go back to your Queen Anne’s Lace patch and make some springtime observations. If this is your first season of observing Queen Anne’s Lace, you may need to wait until the flowers bloom before finding your own patch. Still take your 15 minutes outdoors and find any wildflower that you can observe in your yard or neighborhood.

Follow-Up Activity:
Spend a few minutes talking about your outdoor time. Did you see some Queen Anne’s Lace? Did your child have any questions about things that they found interesting during your outdoor time? Use this time to complete a nature journal entry or you can use the Spring Queen Anne’s Lace Notebook Page available HERE.

Planning Ahead!
Here is a link to a Squidoo page that shows exactly how to color your Queen Anne’s Lace with food coloring. I love this idea and we will be doing this over the summer. You may wish to add it to your seasonal activities: Queen Anne’ Lace

You may also be interested in my Spring Nature Study Ebooks!

Spring Series Cover

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2011 Spring Series – Spring Cattail Observations

Start thinking about observing your spring time cattails. We were horrified to discover that one of our cattail spots had been cut down and cleaned out! It is funny how you become attached to a place once you have learned about the plants, animals, and trees that live there. We are going to watch to see if the cattails come back.

Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 500-502 in the Handbook of Nature Study if you have not done so before. It might also be beneficial to read it again this season and highlight the parts that contain information about the leaves of the cattail plant. We will be focusing this season on where the cattail grows and what the leaves look like as they grow up from the plant. Prepare yourself for this week’s outdoor time by reading #1, #2, #4, and #5 suggestions for study on page 502.

(In the free version of the Handbook of Nature Study, the cattail section starts on page 551. If you are using the free version from HomeschoolFreebies, you need to look in Plants and Trees, page 65)

Outdoor Hour Time:
Enjoy your outdoor time this week at your cattail spot. If you have been participating in the year-long cattail study since last autumn, you will know just where to look for cattails. Use the suggestions from the Handbook of Nature Study to talk a little about the habitat where your cattails are growing.

Some Suggestions for a Spring Cattail Study
  • How wide a strip of land do the cattails cover?
  • Are they near a stream, brook, or pond?
  • Observe the kind of soil where your cattails grow.
  • How are the leaves arranged-growing opposite or alternating?
  • Describe the leaves’ texture, color, shape.
  • Have your child make as many observations as they can during your outdoor time of the cattail. (Keep it fun.)

Follow-Up Activity:
Make sure to allow some time after your outdoor hour to discuss any subjects that your child finds interesting. Encourage the completion of a nature journal entry recording your observation of your cattails. You can use the notebook page included in the Spring Series ebook or a blank page in your journal.

Make sure to encourage your child to sketch the cattail leaves. Also try to include a little of the habitat that your cattails are growing in during this season. Include in your sketch any insects, birds, or animals that you observed near your cattails during your outdoor time. Here is a link for more information on Broad Leaf Cattails.

 

You may also be interested in my Spring Nature Study Ebooks!

Spring Series Cover