Fireflies are fascinating! In this study, learn if there is a pattern to the light flashing. Enjoy an up close fireflies and moths summer nature study.
Train Your Senses for Night Time Nature Study
- Sight: In the evenings, look for moths around outdoor lights. Look for the feathery antennae, the wings, and the eyes of the moth. Look for fireflies if they live in your area, noting their flight patterns and their light flashes.
- Touch: If you have the opportunity, carefully feel the wings of a moth.
Inside Nature Study Preparation:
1. Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 367 to 369 (Lesson 90) for fireflies and pages 310 to 329 (Lessons 72-76) for information about moths.
2. Read in Discover Nature at Sundown pages 93 to 114 for lots of wonderful information and suggestions for activities to study your local moths. Also, read pages 116 to 127 to learn more about fireflies and suggestions for their study.
Fireflies Homeschool Nature Study Outdoor Hour Time
“After the outdoor observations have been made, collect some of these beetles in the evening with a sweep net; place them under a glass jar or tumbler, so that their light can be studied at close range.”
Handbook of Nature Study, page 368
For the full fireflies homeschool nature study, log in to your member area and go to your Summer Course. Includes Outdoor Hour suggestions, notebooking pages and a poem by Robert Frost!
Moths Homeschool Nature Study Outdoor Hour Time
Looking for moths to observe will mean another evening time study. Turn on a light outside or use a flashlight or lantern. Most moths are attracted to light so you should have some success if you are patient. Make sure to look on walls and plants near the light for moths. Moths are also night flower pollinators so look in your garden as well.
Here is a website for further tips: How to Start Mothing.
You can collect a few moths in a jar and look at them with a hand lens before releasing them.
Follow-Up Fireflies and Moths Activity:
The Handbook of Nature Study suggests making watercolor drawings of moths. If you have a real life specimen it will be a great way to encourage close observation. You can also use reference photos for moths you observed in your Outdoor Hour Time (do a quick Google image search).
More Night Time Homeschool Nature Study
The Ultimate Guide to Night Time Nature Study – Try an Outdoor Hour Challenge at night! With the warmer evening temperatures and longer twilight hours of summer, your family can enjoy a few nighttime nature study activities. The list below is just a taste of the opportunities you can create for learning about the natural world right in your own backyard.
Wondering about the summer nature study book, Discover Nature at Sundown? This helpful review includes a fantastic idea (and free printable!) for families to take a nature walk in the evenings. Find out more about Discover Nature at Sundown.
Take some time this next week to get outside at night and enjoy a beautiful night sky homeschool nature study. Allow plenty of time for your eyes to adjust to the darkness and just enjoy gazing up at the heavens. Use some of these suggestions to get started with some simple night sky observations. Get your free Night Observations Printable HERE!
Year Round Nature Based Homeschooling
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Be inspired. Be encouraged. Get outdoors!