Make sure to have your outdoor time this week even if you don’t have any teasel to study. We don’t have any in our local area so we will be looking back on photos from past trips and also looking for local weeds and wildflowers to view.
Inside Preparation Work:
- Read pages 539-542 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 147). There is a lot to learn about this plant so read the narrative carefully for facts about the stem, leaves, and flowers that you can share when you observe your teasel.
- Here is an interesting YouTube video on teasel: http://youtu.be/3-aEQYk3hs0 It is a little long and includes quite a bit about the medicinal properties of teasel so preview and share as much as you find helpful. This is another more academic video on YouTube: http://youtu.be/gCWDkkCJBnY
- You can follow this link to see what kind of teasel you have in your state: USDA Teasel.
- Ebook Users: Make sure to view the images in the ebook together with your child so you can will know what to look for.
Beware! The teasel plant has extremely sharp spines both on the flower head and on the stem. Take along a pair of heavy work gloves if you intend to touch the plant, cut it for your nature table, or bring it home to examine more closely.
Outdoor Hour Time:
- Use your outdoor time this week to go on a teasel hunt.
- If you find a teasel that is blooming, examine the pattern of blossoms. This is what makes this plant so interesting. The blossoms will begin at the middle!
- Look for water in the little cups made at the base of the teasel leaves.
- Allow time for an outdoor sketch of the teasel.
- You may wish to record the location of your teasel plants so you can return to observe them during the winter to note the changes.
- NOTE: If you don’t have teasel to observe, pick a different weed or wildflower to view during your outdoor time.
Follow-Up Activity:
- Create a nature journal entry after discussing all of the teasel’s unique features. Ebook Users: You can use the notebook pages in the ebook for your entry. Younger children can use the coloring page.
- Advanced Activity: Start a seasonal study of the teasel plant by starting a nature journal entry with a sketch and detailed description of your autumn teasel. Make a note to return to your teasel plant sometime in the winter to make a comparison and add to your nature journal entry.
- Advanced Study: Take a look into this topic:Teasel. You might also like to read and view the images on this site: Teasel. For information on medicinal uses, you can view this page: Teasel Root. Add any information you find interesting to your nature journal page. If you are using the notebook page in the ebook, you can continue making notes on the back if you run out of room.
Join us for this series of challenges every week here on the Handbook of Nature Study. If you want to purchase the Autumn Nature Study Continues ebook so you can follow along with all the notebooking pages, coloring pages, and subject images, you can join the Ultimate or Journey Membership Levels. See the Join Us page for complete information. Also, you can view the Autumn Nature Study Continues content list on the announcement page.
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