Outdoor Hour Challenge:
This week we will be using the Tree Study Grid from the October 2012 Newsletter. Print the grid out, cut it to include in your nature journal, and then take a few minutes during your week to complete some of the suggested activities. If you haven’t subscribed to the blog yet, you can do so now and you will receive the newsletter link in the next entry.
Printable Activity Notebook Page:
This week the challenge extra is a free printable activity notebook page.
My Tree Is A Living World: Record all the living things you find in the tree you observe. Remember to look high, low, on the bark, on the leaves, in the crown, and on the branches. If you don’t know what something is, record a description and then look it up after you return home.
Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own this ebook, this week’s challenge would be a great addition to Challenge #6: Starting a Collection. Read the challenge for simple ideas to get you started with a nature collection. You could focus this month on collecting things related to trees.
Pictured above is our very casual collection of tree related items and misc natural objects. There are seeds, acorns, nuts, peeled tree bark, galls, leaves, moss, and a few small twigs. These sit right on top of our nature table.
The best part of autumn is taking in the fruits of the season. Apples, apples, apples, and more apples. We visited the apple orchard (which has much more than apples this time of the year) and enjoyed some freshly pressed apple cider, apple doughnuts, and picking out quite a few apples to take home.
Yes, I said apple doughnuts. I don’t usually eat doughnuts but this time of year it is a tradition that I like to indulge in with my men. I eat one and they have two or three. Crumb, cinnamon sugar, glaze??? They are all delicious.
In every plant, and bird and insect there is a life-history to be learned more interesting than any story, and I would urge parents to make themselves acquainted with these life-histories by obtaining and studying some of the many admirable books on Natural History which abound in the present day. They will then be enabled to pass on the information in happy talks with their children till they become eager little naturalists, loving the book of nature and seeing in it, not only endless things to admire and wonder at, but evidences, on all sides, of the works of an all-wise and kind Creator, Who has so marvelously fitted each living thing to fill its appointed place in creation and fulfill the duties assigned to it as a part of a great harmonious whole. Parent’s Review Volume 11, 1900, pgs. 578-584
How much more do we enjoy our apples knowing their life history from twigs and buds in the winter, to leaves and blossoms in the spring, and then fulling enjoying the taste that arrives in a neat little package in the autumn.
It is a wonderful story for children to learn and appreciate.
Applesauce was next on the apple menu…homemade from apples we gleaned from a friend’s orchard. Now we have some jars to enjoy over the next few weeks. Yum!
I am submitting this entry to the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival and if you have any entries you would like to submit, you can send them to this email address: charlottemasonblogs@gmail.com. The official blog carnival site is not working so you will need to send them directly to this email.
We live in an area where Queen Anne’s Lace is abundant and it is a constant part of the scenery all summer long. It lines the roads and fills the empty fields. I am always aware of it now as we hike and spend time outdoors. It makes me think about Anna Botsford Comstock’s words:
“The object of this lesson should be to show the pupils how this weed survives the winter and how it is able to grow where it is not wanted. The weed is very common along most country roadsides, and in many pastures and meadows. It blossoms very late in the autumn, and is available for lessons often as late as November.” Handbook of Nature Study
This year however our family noticed a difference in our summer time Queen Anne’s Lace. Instead of the really tall towering plants with loads of blossoms, we only had short plants which were sparsely covered with flower heads. Our growing season has been very unusual with hotter and drier conditions than the last few years. We are reasoning that that is the cause of the smaller plants. It will be interesting to see the crop that sprouts next year and then make some more comparisons.
Some more Autumn weeds to enjoy.
This is the joy of a year-long nature study of any subject, getting your eyes to see the changes not only from season to season but from year to year.
We are starting a new theme for the month of October – Trees!
For this whole month we will be enjoying trees in our backyards and neighborhoods during our Outdoor Hour time and then following up with some exciting activities. Make sure you are subscribed to my blog and you will get the download link for the October Newsletter in the next blog entry mailed to your inbox.
Outdoor Hour Challenge:
One of the most popular trees that we study here on the Handbook of Nature Study is the oak tree. The oak has many interesting aspects including its leaves, bark, acorns, and the habitat that it provides to animals and birds. This week you can choose one of the previous oak tree challenges to complete when you find an oak tree subject. Make sure to read the suggested pages in the Handbook of Nature Study. Keep your eyes out for oaks and acorns! Oaks and Acorns (2009 Autumn Series)
Oak and Leaf Activity Suggestion:
This week the challenge extra is a creative way to slow down and look at leaves.
This project which came from The Artful Parent (via Pinterest) is a simple activity where you collect leaves and then thread them onto a stick. I love the variety of shapes and colors and as we work our way through October there should be an opportunity for your family to collect and then make a leaf stick. We found this works best with leaves that are not too dry and brittle. Make sure to include photos of your leaf sticks in your blog entries and then submit them to the blog carnival.
Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own this ebook, this week’s challenge would be a great addition to Challenge #10-An Outdoor Picnic. Find a majestic oak or another tall tree to spread a picnic blanket underneath and enjoy as you have a snack or meal. Bring along a book to read (see widget below for some suggestions).
You are welcome to submit any of you blog Outdoor Hour Challenge blog entries to the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. Entries for the current month are due on 10/30/12.
Since this month’s theme is trees, I thought it might be fun to start a new photo challenge featuring trees.
Here is the challenge:
1. Take a photo of your child (or yourself) with a tree you observe during October 2012.
2. Join my new Pinterest board: Me and My Tree. You can email me with your Pinterest name and I will add you to the board.
3. Pin your photo to the group board. Make sure to leave the tree name in the description and your state and/or country. You do not have to show your child’s face if you don’t want to…be creative.
This past month saw a return of the Outdoor Hour Challenge to a more topical approach as opposed to a seasonal approach. For our family, it breathed new life into our time outdoors and although we had a focus we were much more open to letting things just happen.
As we gardened, sat outside for our dinners, and traveled to various local locations, the insect topics came to us and we worked on paying close attention to the opportunities. This truly is the kind of nature study that interweaves itself into your everyday life, the kind you can do just about every day.
We were trimming lavender when we noticed this foamy white globs on many of the plants. We knew right away that it was some sort of insect that was creating these globs but we were not sure which insect. When we were back inside, I Googled “white foam on lavender” and right away we could easily see this was a common search. There were many resources that all pointed to the Spittlebug.
After doing some reading online, we found that it is many times found on rosemary plants too so we went out to look. Yes! There it was on our rosemary plants.
They are related to aphids.
They feed by extracting plant sap.
Nymphs cover themselves with a frothy mass that provides protection from predators.
There can be more than one nymph in a glob.
Oh, and the “spittle” is not spittle at all and actually comes from the other end of the insect. 🙂
Although they can do minimal damage to plants (according to most sources we read online), we decided to take the advice of most and just wash the globs off with the hose. Easy enough.
We have had a huge increase in the number of flying insects in the front garden. The sage, the butterfly bushes, and the lavender are all still in bloom and each day there are hundreds of flying creatures that come to enjoy the flowery goodness. The fiery skipper above is the most common butterfly we have in our garden at this time of year. Isn’t it amazing to see all the parts up close? Can you see the probiscus?
The bees are thick and it makes me realize how easy it is to provide a healthy bee habitat. Plant bee friendly plants and provide even the smallest amount of water and they find you. We had a visitor the other day ask if we were afraid of bee stings and I honestly answered that even though we are in close contact with the bees, they avoid us more than we avoid them.
The flying insect we do have trouble with is the yellow jacket. We had to put up a trap for them because they were stinging my son…..who somehow seems to attract them. Every evening when we sit outside to eat our dinner, one or two of the pesky little insects come to buzz around us and our plates of food. They are very persistent this year for some reason. I think this is the fourth time we have had to rebait our yellow jacket trap. This style has been very successful for us and it is very economical to use since you just buy little packets to bait the trap after it gets full. (You can buy them on Amazon: Rescue WHYTR-BB8 Wasp Hornet Yellow Jacket Trap Reusable.)
I have been thinking a lot about the relationship between native plants, non-native plants, and insects since reading a book on this topic. Bringing Nature Home is another one of the books I received from Timber Press to review and share with you in a post. This book goes more deeply into how introducing non-native plants into our habitats creates an environment that can make life harder for native insects and plants.
It is far more in-depth than I could grasp on the first time through reading it but it has given me lots to think about. It is a book that makes me wish I was staring over with choosing plants for our whole yard but since I can’t do that, I can look forward and make better choices in the future.
If you are interested in reading and learning about how plants and insects (and other creatures), both native and non-native, thrive or die because of choices we humans make….this is the book for you. I am going to read it through again once I have some time to think and meditate on my responsibility as a garden owner.
We are still experiencing temperatures far above normal and the abundance of sunshine has drawn us out into the garden just about every day this week. We did lots of pruning and composting but we are still delaying our actual autumn garden clean-up until we see a change in the weather. The birds and insects and I suspect a skunk and raccoon are still frequenting our garden and enjoying the food source.
Jami’s Tuesday Garden Party meme is open from Tuesday to Thursday so there is still time for you to jump in and participate!
October 2012: Trees – Year Round This month the newsletter and Friday challenges will center on a focused study of trees. Trees are a terrific topic of nature study no matter the season….there is always something interesting to observe.
This edition of the newsletter contains loads of ideas to get you started and make it fun for your family.
October Grid Study and Bookmark with the tree theme.
Two tree study notebook pages
Special nature journal idea
Book review and study plan
Three articles from contributing writers
Show and tell photos from fellow Outdoor Hour Challenge participants
Short list of my favorite tree related links
Explanation of how the Outdoor Hour Challenge works (reprint from last month for new readers)
I have attached the newsletter download link to the bottom of my blog feed so if you are a subscriber you will receive the link to the latest newsletter at the bottom of every post for the month of October. If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can still subscribe and receive the newsletter link in the next post that comes to your email box. You can subscribe to my blog by filling in your email address in the subscription box on my sidebar.
Note: You can download your newsletter from the link in two ways:
If your link is clickable, right click the link and then “save link as” to save the file on your computer.
If the link is not clickable, cut and paste the link to your browser, open, and then save your newsletter to your computer.
So how has your month gone with the Outdoor Hour Challenge focus on insects using the newsletter and weekly ideas? Our family has enjoyed the easy way we can incorporate nature study into a very busy high school week. I love having a month long focus.
Would you like an example of how one family used the Insect Study Grid, the Insect Study notebook page, and the small square study this month? Get ready to see how simple it was and how successful they were in their efforts!
Sarah from Granwood Explorers shares their entry: Outdoor Hour-Focusing on Insects. What an excellent month they had and what a great example for the rest of us!
Get ready for one fully loaded blog carnival! What a great month of nature study from all over the world!
Andrea at the Loopy Homeschooler shares their ant study with the carnival. They were actually able to identify their ants and her daughter created an awesome nature journal entry using the Insect Study notebook page from the ant challenge. Read all about it: Outdoor Hour Challenge #3.
Leah from The Making of a Mom has joined the OHC carnival for the very first time! She submits this entry: Nature Study Co-Op September (Ants) for us all to read. What a lot of happy faces and so many interesting discoveries! I really enjoyed reading about their co-op and so will you.
Shirley Ann from Under An English Sky submits their Insect Grid Study. She says, “My youngest has decided that she prefers the notebooking pages to keeping a journal, so she used her grid as a notebooking page, adding some finds to the back of the page.” It is wonderful to see families adapting the OHC to fit their style of learning. You don’t want to miss her awesome images of colored insects in this post as well.
Tricia from Hodgepodge shares How Summer Nature Study Complements High School Biology. What a wonderful entry for the carnival! Tricia shows how they have been looking for insects and pulling in their high school biology work to make a wonderful mix of fun and learning.
Bugs, Insects, Butterflies, and Creepy Crawlies-Oh My! from Cristy at Crafty Cristy documents their insect study so far using the Insect Grid Study and Insect List found in the newsletter. I learned a few things about cicadas in her entry and they are definitely learning a lot this month about insects. They have also shared their September Insect List for you to view along with images.
Rachel from All Things Bright and Beautiful has put together their month long study of insects into a gorgeous entry with images you will want your kids to see: Buggy Bugs. Which image is your favorite?
Fall Insect Walk! Angie from Petra School has submitted this wonderful example of a fall insect walk with her boys. I always appreciate their casual in-their-own-backyard nature study time and Angie’s images really tell the story. Angie and her boys would like to also share their Queen Anne’s Lace entry with carnival readers. They were able to incorporate some insect observations along with their QAL time…don’t miss the grasshopper image in their entry!
Outdoor Hour Challenge #22 is where Catherine from Grace to Abide decided to start their insect study. They were able to identify a few of their butterfly finds from a local park and then they visited a butterfly garden. I agree with her…butterfly gardens are magical!
Virginia from Livin’ Lovin’ and Learnin’ shares their entry The Grid-Sept 2012 Insects showing how their family of children of all ages has enjoyed this month’s focus. Another magnificent grasshopper photo in this entry! They also completed a study of a specific insect, the Illia Underwing Moth. What a beautiful creation to observe up close. One last entry from this family….Golden Ponds Nature Walk. They found many interesting and seasonal subjects to enjoy and share with all of you. Thanks for a glimpse into your nature study this month.
Carol shares their September Nature Notebook entry with the carnival this time around. They live in Australia where it is spring and everything is coming alive. Check out their really big stick insect! She also shares some wonderful images of other creatures they have observed this month including a Eastern water dragon!
Jenny Anne from Royal Little Lambs shares their Creepy Crawlies entry with the carnival. It must be the season for grasshoppers!
Heidi from Home Schoolroom has written up their Focusing on Insects and Spiders entry for you to enjoy. They incorporated the ideas from the newsletter and OHC Challenge #4 – Finding a Focus to continue a month long study of insects and spiders. Perfect!
Nadene from Practical Pages has submitted a round-up of their September insect studies using the newsletter and challenge ideas: Nature Study and OHC September. You are in for a treat because she shares their very well done nature journals to inspire you and your children.
Lauren from Serving From Home has written up their monthly nature study entry: Our September Nature Studies-Insects and Apples. They have done a great job this month with their observations, outdoor time, and nature journals. What an encouraging entry!
Nicole from Journey to Excellence shares their month of nature study. You are welcome to read their Small Square Study and their Insect Grid experiences. She also found a pretty white plant that she thought was Queen Anne’s Lace but it turned out not to be: Queen Anne’s Lace. She would appreciate some help in identifying her mystery plant.
Sara from Garner Goings On shares their entry Saying Goodbye to Swallowtails and Cicadas for carnival readers. Check out her beautiful images and the final video of a swallowtail emerging from its chrysalis. Potpourri
Carey Jane Clark who blogs at enCouragement joins the carnival this month with her entry: Our Nature Study Backpack. She shares how they are using the newsletter study grid and a well prepared backpack to aid their nature study in China.
Michelle from Following the Footprints submits their very first two Outdoor Hour Challenges: Challenge #1 and Challenge #2. I think this quote from one of her entries sums her experience up well, “I felt so empowered by my success in identifying two plants that it changed the way I looked at nature for the rest of the week. All of a sudden, I was looking at trees in parking lots and across the street wondering what those trees were. I saw a beautiful brown and black bird in my backyard and I wondered what that was. And I am so excited to find out! Such a change in me in so little time!”
Kim from A Child’s Garden shares their unexpected nature study: Puffballs! She does a great job of explaining what they are and her images are interesting too.
Michelle has also submitted their Outdoor Hour Challenge #3 for you to read. They are humming right along with their family nature study, and this time it is in their very own backyard! One last entry from this enthusiastic family: Outdoor Hour Challenge #4. So many things to like about this entry and I think they accomplished Challenge #4 very well with their feather collections in the nature journals.
Ann from Harvest Moon By Hand has put together their Hummingbirds-Outdoor Hour Challenge entry for you to enjoy. Take a look at their Minnesota hummingbird study and be inspired! They were also able to complete their Red Birds Challenge from the Handbook of Nature Study. Ann says, “It was as if the birds that had red on them knew we were learning about them today. Such an inspiring and uplifting afternoon!” What a treat!
Makita from Academia Celestia shares their Exploring the Redwoods study with the carnival. They were able to observe two different groves of redwoods here in California and follow up with additional reading and journals. They also had some unexpected insect study: Looking for Birds, We Discovered Caterpillars. Read their Water Quality Monitoring entry to learn more about their participation in worthwhile citizen science projects.
Don’t forget to share your blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. All entries done in October are eligible for the next edition. The deadline for entries is 10/30/12 and you can send them directly to me: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com or submit them at the blog carnival site (link on the sidebar of my blog).
I love this little board book so much that it gets its own entry on my blog. 🙂
The Icky Bug Alphabet bookis a great way to introduce your little ones to insects without overwhelming them. This book has clear illustrations with simple text that will appeal to even young school age children.
Insects can be a little creepy and scary to some young ones so perhaps having a book that presents them in a non-threatening way they will avoid the apprehension that many of us have about creeping and flying insects.
In fact, I love this book so much that I am going to give one away! Please see the Rafflecopter gadget in this entry for more details. Act fast because the giveaway will end on October 1, 2012 at Midnight!
Please note that the giveaway is only open to US residents and I cannot ship outside the US. See the Rafflecopter gadget for the complete terms and conditions.
If you don’t have Queen Anne’s Lace to study, try the Getting Started suggestion in this post.
Outdoor Hour Challenge:
This week’s Outdoor Hour Challenge is from the Archives and the beginning of a potential year-long study of Queen Anne’s Lace. Please see the following Autumn Queen Anne’s Lace challenge for suggested activities to get your started. This is a study that you can repeat in every season for a complete year to see the life cycle of this interesting plant. Here are the past resources for Queen Anne’s Lace.
Please Note:
If you are interested in connecting your insect study and your study of Queen Anne’s Lace, do some careful observations of your plant for signs of insects. Follow up your outdoor time with some time spent identifying your insects.
“Children should be encouraged to make notes about the same plants or birds for several consecutive years. Each year will bring some new things to their notice and a fuller knowledge of the ways and habits of their subject.” The Charm of Nature Study, 1930
Printable Notebook Page:
This week the challenge extra is another notebook page. Make four copies and use one in each of the up-coming seasons to record your Queen Anne’s Lace observations. Seasonal Observations Queen Anne’s Lace – Use this notebook page in each of the four seasons to record you careful observations. Use the suggestions in the challenges listed above to guide your study.
Getting Started Suggestion:
You can complete Challenge #2 Using Your Words and the accompanying notebook page if you have the ebook. This would be especially helpful if you do not have any Queen Anne’s Lace to observe.
.)
is a great way to introduce your little ones to insects without overwhelming them. This book has clear illustrations with simple text that will appeal to even young school age children.
