Tag: Nature journal example

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Nature Journal Topper – Summer Grid

Summer Grid Journal @handbookofnaturestudy

I am getting started on my Summer Grid nature journal from the June 2014 newsletter. Included in the newsletter this month are several printables that you can use with your family to create fun and interesting nature journals without a lot of fuss.

The Summer Fun Grid can be cut and then adhered in the journal as a tickler for June nature related activities. I like to keep a record of the journal items all on one page.

You will also find the Nature Journal Toppers to use with reluctant journalers…simple to cut, adhere to the page, and then complete the desired activity to journal about. See an example in this entry: Spring Cattails.

Tulip Poplar

Here is a blossom from my Tulip poplar tree…the one I am going to visit each week as part of my grid study. There were bees buzzing around today and I also found some aphids on the back of one of the leaves.

Tulip Poplar leaf with aphids

It just took slowing down to note something pretty incredible!

I hope you find time to try some of the grid ideas and to use the Nature Journal Toppers this month.

If you do not have the newsletter and you are not already a subscriber, you can enter your name in the box at the top right of the Handbook of Nature Study website. You will receive an email you need to confirm and then an email will be sent with the newsletter link.

Enjoy!

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Spring Cattail Observations and Journal Page

Spring Cattail Observations and Journal @handbookofnaturestudy

Our challenge from last week was to find and observe some spring cattails: Springtime Cattail Observations. We headed over to our local park where we had observed some fabulous cattails last year. Because of the drought, there are not as many as we had noticed during the summer of 2013 and they were much smaller than expected. We are going to mark our calendar to make some summer observations and compare our results.

April 2014 Spring Cattail Observations

There was enough water in the pond to see a beautiful reflection of the clouds and there were insects making little ripples and bubbles in the water. We estimated that the cattails were about three feet high and we will compare the height when we return this summer.

Cattail Fluff spring observations

When we took a closer look at the water’s edge, we saw an old cattail that had disintegrated into a soft pile of fluff. What a great find!

Spring Cattails Nature Topper Journal Page @handbookofnaturestudy

Using the Nature Journal Topper from the April 2014 newsletter, I created a nature journal page with some of my observations and a simple sketch.

Hopefully, your family will get a chance to find a place with cattails for your springtime observations. If you started a year-long study already, return to your cattail spot to make some comparisons for your nature journal.

Do you know where there are cattails in your area?

 

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New Bird in My Nature Journal – Fox Sparrow

Fox sparrow spring bird study @handbookofnaturestudy

We have had a new regular bird under our birdfeeders this past Project Feederwatch season. I wasn’t able to identify it right off the bat since sparrows are some of the more difficult birds to distinguish in my feeders. I was finally able to take a really good photo of him and that certainly helped.

Fox Sparrow nature journal

He is actually a Sooty Fox Sparrow which is found here on the West Coast. This was the bird that kept flying into my back window…in fact I got to look at one really close because it was dead on my back deck from a crash into the window. (That was a sad day!) I used a photo of the bird this time in my journal just to make it easy. I followed the prompt from last month’s newsletter Nature Journal Topper to list at least five things we observed about our bird. My rule is to get the page done in your journal and not worry about how fancy or creative it is…

This website has some excellent images of this bird: Sooty Fox Sparrow.

Have you observed any new birds yet this spring?

 

 

 

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Our Spring Tree – Officially Starting a New Study

We have completed several year-long tree studies in the past, observing a particular tree in each season for a whole year. We haven’t had a tree for some time. I looked back and we started a study of the neighborhood cottonwood tree but never finished. Oops.

Oak Tree 2007-2008
Sweet Gum 2008-2009
Tulip Tree 2010-2011
Birch Tree 2011-2012
Cottonwood Tree – 2012-incomplete

Time for a fresh start and a new tree. We looked around our yard and realized that we have studied quite a few of those trees already. Hunting around, we found a new tree. We know the tree as the “birdfeeder tree” because it has always had our birdfeeder hanging from its branches. We don’t know what the name of the tree is officially so it is going to be a mystery tree until we complete the study.

You can see the Outdoor Hour Challenge Spring Tree entry to get started on your own tree study.

This is our tree looking from our back deck and between our house and the neighbor’s house.  It is an awkward place to take a photo but you get the idea of the shape of the tree. You can see the Pittosporum plant on the right of the tree.

 

Here is a look at the branches from underneath. In the summer this tree shades the end of our deck where I have some chairs and a table. We spend many an afternoon and evening enjoying the shade given by our “birdfeeder tree”.

This is what is on the branches on this first day of spring. Wow! Look at all those tree parts. A few days ago, when the sun was shining on the tree, I could see it actually giving off little puffs of pollen into the breeze. I am sure this is the tree that is making pollen on the deck.

Here is another view of the flowers (fruits?) of this mystery tree. If anyone has any idea what this tree is from looking at the images in this entry, please leave me a comment or send me an email. I freely admit I don’t know all there is to know, or even a fraction of what there is to know, about trees even in my own backyard.

I added a photo and some notes to my page that I had prepared using the new Nature Journal Topper from the newsletter. Hopefully this will remind me to complete a summer study of our tree and perhaps be able to identify it when it has leaves.

Have you picked a tree to study for a year?

 

 

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Great Backyard Bird Count – 2014 Results

 

Our winter bird study happens every week with Project Feederwatch, observing birds in our own yard for a few minutes at a time. We also participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count in February. Both citizen science projects are super easy to complete. Even when we first started counting birds, back when we couldn’t name every bird, we felt a sense of joy at awakening our admiration for birds.

This year our list was much smaller than previous years. We are guessing it is the weather we have been experiencing with much warmer and sunny days, very little rain. I am assuming this is valuable information to share with the scientists at the GBBC as they process the data and see where birds are in 2014 during the count.

Here is our official list for the Great Backyard Bird Count:

  • Nuttall’s woodpecker – 1
  • Anna’s hummingbird – 1
  • Titmouse – 1
  • Western scrub jay – 1
  • American goldfinch – 2
  • House finch – 10
  • Dark-eyed Junco 6
  • House sparrow – 4
  • White-crowned sparrow – 4

Other birds seen in February 2014:

  • Spotted towhee
  • White-breasted nuthatch
  • Acorn woodpecker
  • Fox sparrow
  • California towhee

We have a new bird that visits under our birdfeeder which is exciting. It is a Fox sparrow (sooty). I have yet to get a really good photo of him but I will keep trying. This is the type of bird that has flown into my window twice now. They are such pretty birds and it makes me sad to see them perish in such an undignified way.

I am also working on my Nature Study Goals for 2014 and trying to add some of my newer bird discoveries to my nature journal. Here is my Bewick’s wren entry…not very original but it works. Drawing birds is a challenge for me but I think this one turned out decently. I haven’t seen this particular wren in weeks but I am keeping my eye out to see when it returns to our yard.

Last summer we added a new suet feeder to the yard and it has now become a favorite of the Acorn woodpecker. He comes just about every day to eat and I enjoy watching him with all his colorful glory. I will keep it stocked with suet and see if he becomes a year-round resident.

March is the last month of Project Feederwatch for the season. I am always sad to see it go but I keep an informal record of the birds seen at our feeders just about year-round. It brings me such joy!

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Nature Journal Topper Printable – Getting Started

This month in the Handbook of Nature Study newsletter I created a brand new printable for helping your children start working in their very own nature journal.

The printable Nature Journal Toppers are a simple way to help a child get over the “blank page” fear by providing a simple prompt.

What is a Nature Journal Topper?
The prompts in the Nature Journal Topper will allow them to cut and then adhere a short nature study idea to the top of any page, then complete the suggestion in their own way. Sometimes the page will include a suggestion for a sketch, a photo, a list, or an observation.

I chose to start with the spring tree Nature Journal Toppers as well as the list prompt provided in the March 2014 newsletter. Allow your child to create a page that fits their style. I used watercolors to paint a background on my page but that is my personal style. I will fill in the page as the month goes by.

Your child can complete as many of the prompts each month as they wish. I am hoping that these Nature Journal Toppers will give you family a little help in encouraging even the most reluctant nature journaler.

I will be including this feature in the up-coming editions of the Handbook of Nature Study newsletter. Some families really enjoy the nature study grids from the newsletter so we may go back to those in the future.

I would enjoy hearing how using the Nature Journal Toppers help your family.

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Ponderosa Pine Cone Study

We have been on the lookout for tree cones for the past few weeks (as part of the Winter Tree Cone Study) and picked the Ponderosa Pine as our subject for a tree cone study. There are many Ponderosa Pines in our neighborhood and they are easy to spot because of their size and trunk pattern. Our family has done a thorough tree study of the Ponderosa Pine in the past but this time we focused just on the cone.

Here is a close up of the cone showing it’s scale pattern and the sap too.

Here is a cone that the squirrels have taken apart to find the seeds hidden inside. This is a common sight along our local walking trail. It seems where there are Ponderosa Pines, there are squirrels.

I completed the tree cone observation page for my nature notebook. I included an image and some facts about the Ponderosa Pine cone. You can find the printable notebook page here: Winter Tree Cone Study.

  • Flexible scales
  • Egg shaped cone
  • Tipped with slender 1/8 inch prickles that can curve out
  • Seed is 3/8″ and the wing is 1″
  • Red and gray squirrels eat the seeds. California quail also eat the seeds.
  • Overall cone length is 3-6″

All information is from my Peterson Western Trees field guide.

You can read more about our Ponderosa Pine tree study here: Our Pine Tree Study.
We share more about our cone study here: Pines, Evergreens, Cones, and Needles. 

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December Nature Study Wrap-Up

Our December was filled with birdwatching. We had some exciting new birds and lots of old favorites.

Here is my list and then a few photos:
December 2013

  1. Anna’s hummingbird
  2. White-breasted nuthatch
  3. Western scrub jay
  4. Oak titmouse
  5. House finch
  6. House sparrow
  7. White-crowned sparrow
  8. California towhee
  9. Spotted towhee
  10. Junco
  11. Bewick’s wren
  12. American goldfinch
  13. Lesser goldfinch
  14. Mockingbird
  15. Northern flicker
  16. House wren
  17. Nuttall’s woodpecker
  18. Mourning dove
  19. European starlings
  20. Hermit thrush
  21. California quail – heard but didn’t see
Spotted towhee
Junco
House finch
Thinking this is a Hermit thrush-first time we have seen this and only in the snow.
Bewick’s wren
Anna’s hummingbird – at least three still at our feeders in December

Now a little something to inspire you…

I also finished my December nature journal entry for the extraordinary in the ordinary and December Grid Study. I cut some of the squares from the grid and then used them on my journal page. This is a quick and easy way to create a record of a variety of nature observations in a month.

We are definitely building a snowman birdfeeder again…it was so much fun for us and for the birds!

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Our Quiet Nature Walk – Opening Your Senses


Taking a nature walk can bring refreshment to your whole family. Maybe you are having a tough day and the children are a little restless or perhaps the weather is just too nice to stay inside all day…these are perfect opportunities to drop everything else, put on your shoes and take a walk in your own neighborhood or a park close by.

  • Stepping outside can make a world of difference if you are feeling cooped up inside your house.
  • Fresh air can blow the grumpy attitudes away.
  • There is always something new to see outside…let your children show you.
  • Allowing time for children to explore, run, climb, and jump is a healthy way to burn up some built up energy.
  • Moms need a few minutes outside to look up at the sky and remember that each day has something to be thankful for.
I created a simple nature journal with some of the highlights of our Quiet Nature Walk.

We took a hike this week and I made sure to include a few minutes to walk quietly, using all our senses. This idea was included in this month’s newsletter along with three other ideas to use during your outdoor time.

You can find all four ideas in the October 2013 Newsletter on page 3:
Color Walk
Seasonal Walk
Quiet Walk
Follow the Leader
You can still receive this edition of the newsletter until 11/1/13. If you subscribe today, you will get it in the 10/31/13 entry (Blog Carnival) that comes tomorrow. Hurry…don’t miss it before it is gone.

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Pine Siskin – Learning to Notice the Details


Part of my nature study goals this year was to learn about ten new birds and their calls. I think I was a little ambitious and ten *new* birds is a lot to tackle. I am up to three birds….not sure how I got off on my count but I only have three official birds so far:

Pine Siskin
Carduelis pinus
This entry is all about the Pine Siskins which we spotted way back in February during the Great Backyard Bird Count. I created a nature notebook page for the Pine Siskin at that time but never shared it with you. I used the coloring page from the Cornell Feeder Bird Coloring Book (free to download and save on your computer for future use). This is a bird that does not stay year–round in our yard. I had to look carefully to spot this bird because it is very much like the finches we have everyday at the feeders. It looks like a finch with yellow wing bars and a little yellow on its rump.

The call of the Pine Siskin sounds similar to the canaries I have heard. Here is the page on All About Birds with the sounds of the Pine Siskin. It is a sweet little bird and I am anxious to see it once the winter comes. Looking at the migration map, it looks like it moves far north for the summer.

Still working on my nature study goals for 2013…learning ten new birds and their calls during the year.
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