nature study recommendations

[garyandmolly]

Does anyone have any they would recommend for lower elementary? Either a book or curriculum? I prefer something that does more handholding. Thank you!

[arliemaria]

I am using so many many different resources for nature study, but most of it is just being outside.  Missouri has a nice resource called Discover Nature School http://mdc.mo.gov/education/discover-nature-schoolsThere is a student and teacher book for many different grade levels.  Those are nice.  

 

http://handbookofnaturestudy.com/and http://www.mudpuddlestometeors.com/ are awesome blogs with different downloads

 

Wild and Free has a new program they started this fall called Wild Explorers.  I believe it is $12/month.  It is packed with activities to do each month both online videos and a print magazine in the mail.  

 

We got a magiscope for Christmas and have had fun using that just to look at stuff like a snake skin, Himalayan pink sea salt, and ladybugs.  There is a curriculum called Private Eye, I think that uses jewelers loupes.  

[keirin]

I'm also looking for nature study recs, especially because I live in Florida, the land of no seasons. Most of the nature study materials I've seen are very seasons based and I'm just not sure how to tweak them.

[kalusignan]

I create my own, but I've seen some on Simply Charlotte Mason that look nice, gentle, and open-and-go.

 

Pond and Stream seems very easy to implement and could include very young children.

 

ETA: Sorry I was thinking of Outdoor Secrets for very young children, but Pond and Stream is nice too.

Edited February 5, 2016 by kalusignan

[desertflower]

I love Exploring Nature with Children.  https://payhip.com/b/vWOq

 

An activity to do every week for a whole year!  It's easy, provides the necessary details, and open and go.  It does have reference to the Handbook of Nature Study  http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Nature-Study-Botsford-Comstock/dp/0801493846/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454680205&sr=8-1&keywords=handbook+nature+study. It also has a poem that is pertinent to what one is learning. 

 

I love it!  I've been using it since October (although I haven't used it this month).  My kids don't know that they are learning.  :)  It's that gentle.  It's perfect for my kids.  It's also written by a mom on this board. 

 

ETA:  It also has a book list and suggests an art piece to study every week. 

[garyandmolly]

Could you explain a lesson from Exploring Nature with Children? Does it have you go outside and observe and draw for example the first bird that comes in the spring or the trees? I want something that really gets us outside and observing and drawing nature.v

[desertflower]

Yes, you are supposed to keep a nature journal for drawing and it does take you outside.  I've tailored it down for my children.  I take lots of pictures since they aren't really able to draw. 

 

This week one is supposed to go back to their nature spot and notice the days are getting longer, more birds are singing, catkins opening out  and daffodil shoots poking out.  This would be a good time to begin a "Calendar of Firsts".  As an extension activity you can make candles since 2/2 is Candlemas Day. 

 

Next week is observing earthworms.  It goes into details about the different parts of an earthworm, it's environment and does ask you to make a sketch. 

 

In the first week of March, it states to observe a bird's nest.  Here you can make a sketch and take notes.  It explains where one might find a bird's nest and what it's composed of.  An extension activity is making one or create a map of the locations of different nests. 

 

I've found so far that we have 'adopted' a tree, found a favorite nature spot and need to find a favorite lake.  It seems that each season, I need to go back to those places and observe the changes. 

 

I said that it was open and go, but I forgot that sometimes I print out a picture of what we are supposed to be looking for.  So, for instanced today I'm going to print out a picture of a catkin and a picture of a daffodil shoot before we go out.  But so far, I haven't had to print out too many things.

 

This curriculum is probably tailored for 8 yos and up.  I just don't do all the activities.  This way I can do this again in a couple of years.  I like the way it tells me what to say and look for.  I take pictures instead of make them sketch since my children are 7, 5, and 3 yo. 

 

Hth.

[Holly]

Natural Science Through the Seasons is a great book.  It is divided by months of the year, and each month lists a few relevant topics...things like leaves in the fall or fir trees in the winter.  It is geared towards elementary ages, but would work for middle grades too.  In addition to suggested activities, there are often poems and quotes they can add to their nature notebooks as well.  We use it alongside Handbook of Nature Study.  With HNS, you (the parent) read through the topic ahead of time and relate the information to your children.  It also gives lots of open ended questions to ask them.  These questions really get them looking closely at the object of your study.  Out of these two resources, I'd say the first one does more "hand holding".  However, I like using both since the 2nd resource contains more information on each topic.  Both resources have enough topics that we'll be using them all through their schooling.

Edited February 5, 2016 by Holly

[ScoutTN]

If you like birds, the Cornell School of Ornithology has a fabulous website loaded with resouces and ideas. a birdfeeder where you can see it is a great place to start.

 

Do you have a local nature center? Ours has many great programs for families and even for homeschoolers. Free!

The best ones here tend to be associated with city or state parks. The zoo is also another good resource, though not free.

 

We don't do anything very formal, but we keep and use field guides. Spend lots of time outdoors and read lots of library books about things that interest us. We watch Nature, Nova and other science related shows or documentaries.

 

Plant a garden! Spring is a great time to begin to study plants and when you have flowers or veggies, you will have birds, bees, butterflies, worms, etc.

Edited February 5, 2016 by ScoutTN

[Hunter]

I am a reader. Reading is my comfort zone. Once I have read, things come up in real life on their own timetable.

 

About a year ago I started focusing on working my way through HONS a topic at a time tied to the vintage geographies, and then supplement that with vintage books on nature. So what I read for science might not come up in real life this year, never mind this month, but when it does, I'll understand what I'm seeing.

 

Some things we read have old blurry pictures, so we often look up the topic at youtube or wikipedia.

 

I have used a few phenology resources at times.

 

A local aboretum has a tree of the month and tours.

 

Some of our parks have trees with plaques saying what they are.

 

We have some large public buildings with skylights and indoor gardens with the plants labeled.

 

I do not try and follow a purchased curriculum or head out into nature with field guides. I've failed at that too many times.

 

I stopped using fancy words for leaf shapes, and instead compare them to familiar things. Heart shaped, round, oval shaped. Smooth, lobed, jagged edges. Fancy names is the next step, that I figure we will never get to, and isn't even on my list anymore.

Edited February 5, 2016 by Hunter

[Hunter]

I read a ton of old natural science, geography, and composition teacher manuals. I learned a lot from them about how natural science was taught, when natural science was the core of the science curriculum and used as the basis of a lot of reading and writing. That stuff has just seeped into my bones, I guess.

 

I see the world more when I go out into it. And I started seeing the world from the beginner instruction more than the more advanced instruction so I got comfortable with focusing on that, and see the value of not moving quickly from concrete and familiar to that which is abstract and invisible and rare.

 

I have PTSD and benefit from feeling grounded. The concrete and familiar grounds us. It makes us feel safe and connected.

[garyandmolly]

Thank you so much for all the great ideas!

[Hunter]

Oh, and don't think you need to know the name of something to study it or appreciate it.

 

Do describe it using fancy or everyday language. But it is okay not to know the name of the tree with the heart shaped leaves with smooth edges.

[Hunter]

I am bad at identification. Or...I am more aware of how easy it to be wrong, and am less sure of myself than people who are more confident.

 

So even if we have studied a whole lot about Oaks and we are looking at a tree than screams that it is an Oak, it is okay to talk about this tree's "oak like qualities", while leaving it unidentified.

[J-rap]

I used to get nice books that had a square on top (like a frame) for sketching a picture and lines underneath for writing.  We would go for walks, or watch as the first buds began to appear on the trees and sketch it every two days or so, or look for insects, etc.  They'd sketch them either right there, or we'd take photos and sketch from photos.  Then they'd have to look up information on it to write about it.

 

I also got workbooks that focused on plants or insects.  I used to be able to get some good ones at the Lakeshore Learning stores.  Fairly simple, easy to use.  They would talk about the parts of leaves, for example, and you'd have to find a real leaf to examine it and do the various related activities.  Or they might talk about the different categories of plants.  I wish I could remember then names of the series I used, but I can't.  

[HS Mom in NC]

http://www.amazon.com/Nature-Connection-Workbook-Families-Classrooms/dp/1603425314/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454703482&sr=8-1&keywords=nature+connection+an+outdoor+workbook+for+kids+families+%26+classrooms

[Susie in MS]

Desert Flower, ENWC sounds lovely! Can you tell me : is it illustrated? and mostly how many pages does it contain?  If I get this I would want to print a hard copy, so I kinda want to know what I am looking at. 

Thanks!

 

 

Oh and one more question: Does it appear to be more for one part of the county than the other. For instance we would not have desert life or plants. We don't live by an ocean or a rain forest (like in WA).  We live in the deep south in MS. 

Edited February 5, 2016 by Susie in MS

[freeindeed]

We had our greatest success with this one: http://www.amazon.com/Nature-Connection-Workbook-Families-Classrooms/dp/1603425314/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1454706972&sr=1-1&keywords=nature+study+connection

I still have mine and would sell it if you're interested.

Edited February 5, 2016 by freeindeed

[Eagle]

desertflower, ENWC sounds excellent! Can you tell me if it is secular?

[Esse Quam Videri]

Outdoor Hour Challenge is great. But we've Probably learned the most and had the most fun just with accurate local field guides and our nature journals.

[Kristie in Florida]

We too are struggling with nature study. We live in an apartment in a city. There are places that we could go to nearby, but it gets so hot out. I've thought of gardening on my porch, if that counts.

[desertflower]

Desert Flower, ENWC sounds lovely! Can you tell me : is it illustrated? and mostly how many pages does it contain?  If I get this I would want to print a hard copy, so I kinda want to know what I am looking at. 

Thanks!

 

 

Oh and one more question: Does it appear to be more for one part of the county than the other. For instance we would not have desert life or plants. We don't live by an ocean or a rain forest (like in WA).  We live in the deep south in MS. 

 

 

Desert Flower, ENWC sounds lovely! Can you tell me : is it illustrated? and mostly how many pages does it contain?  If I get this I would want to print a hard copy, so I kinda want to know what I am looking at. 

Thanks!

 

 

Oh and one more question: Does it appear to be more for one part of the county than the other. For instance we would not have desert life or plants. We don't live by an ocean or a rain forest (like in WA).  We live in the deep south in MS. 

No, it is not illustrated.  I believe it contains about 240 pages.  I've only used this book for about 3 months. It's not tailored to one particular environment, but may be for North America.  As long as you have access to some natural area you should be fine. Next week is about earthworms.  The following week is about evergreen trees.  I've been going to a mountain so far.  That has worked for me.  Today I was supposed to look for daffodil shoots and catkins, but I didn't because 1) I forgot 2) the kids played in the mud.  :)  I don't know if I will find that in my area, but hey it's fun to search for and tell my kids about them. 

 

I hope this helps.

[desertflower]

desertflower, ENWC sounds excellent! Can you tell me if it is secular?

 

I guess the answer is no because there was a reference to Jesus for this week because of Candlemas Day.  However, for the most part I believe it's secular.  I flipped through some of it (February, March and April) and I don't see any other religion references. 

 

I'm really excited.  In April, the topics are a tree study, plant lifecycle, wildflowers, and grasses.  :)

[Upptacka]

I bought the book "The Nature Connection" for my daughter, and enjoyed it so much that I purchased another for myself.

[Susie in MS]

Thank you, very much, Desert Flower! We are almost finished with McHenry's The Elements and I was thinking a more CM flair for our next co-op line up would be nice. Especially in the spring. I may get this. 

[SevenDaisies]

Check out the books Memoria Press publishes on astronomy, mammals, insects, birds and trees.

 

http://www.memoriapress.com/curriculum/science

[Susie in MS]

I did it! I down loaded it and printed it. It looks awesome! Not too wordy, and organized very well. I have, and love, HONS so that is an added plus. I love the way ENWC has nature lessons according to season. Okay, so today is Sat. I don't have to work. Today dd and I start. Later I will figure out where to being with co-op. Thank you so much for mentioning this! I have been praying about where to go with our co-op after finishing Elements. The family we share with is moving out of the country later this year on missions. I want this time to be special.  :)

[marisolstice]

I'm also looking for nature study recs, especially because I live in Florida, the land of no seasons. Most of the nature study materials I've seen are very seasons based and I'm just not sure how to tweak them.

My in-laws live in FL, and it is a fabulous place for nature study! Two books you might find useful are the Amateur Naturalist by Gerald Durrell and the Nature Handbook by Ernest H. Williams, Jr.

The first one is arranged by environment, and depending on where you are in FL, you could probably use tropical forest, scrub, shrub, and chaparral, ponds and streams, marshlands, coastal wetlands, smooth shores, cliffs and dunes, rocky shores, seas and oceans, and fields and fencerows. There's enough in just those chapters to keep you busy for years :) 

The second is divided into short sections like resins and waxes, patterned ground, sapsucker holes, turtle nests, crab spiders, web decorations, bark patterns (just flipping through it). Sort of like a very general field guide for answering the sort of "I wonder why..." questions that come up when you're out and about.

I've also found local and regional field guides to be more accessible than the big ones. For example, at my in-laws last year, I found one called Space Coast Shells or something like that, and it was awesome for identifying all the shells we found on their beaches. At home, we use one called Birds of Utah which is much easier than flipping through a Peterson or Audubon field guide to every bird in north america!

I'm actually not a big fan of all the seasonal books since they seem to be written for the eastern us, and because I'm always thinking about butterflies in December and snowflakes in July...not very good about living in the moment ;)

[Raising Little Shoots]

Thank you for all the lovely feedback on my book, Exploring Nature With Children!

 

I wrote it to be unique, in that it is a complete, open & go curriculum.

 

Here is a sample in which you can see the table of contents and a complete chapter. I also have a FAQ on my blog.

 

Jennifer Dow from Expanding Wisdom has posted a review of Exploring Nature on her blog today, which also may help you to decide if it will be a good fit for your family.

 

Thank you again, and please do let me know if there are any more questions.

[ScoutTN]

We really like the bird books by Stan Tekiela, because they are state specific and indexed by color on the edge of the page. So easy even for younger children to use! Also, they are small for little hands and for carrying around. 

[arliemaria]

I wanted to also mention that Pam Barnhill's podcast Your Morning Basket recently had an episode all about nature study.  There were some neat ideas that I'd never considered in that show.

[Eagle]

I just bought Exploring Nature With Children. It looks wonderful! Note that there is a coupon code in the blog review that LittlePinkMitten linked above.

[Carol in Cal.]

Articles on the topic:

 

http://sandboxtosocrates.com/2015/04/20/3228/

 

http://sandboxtosocrates.com/2015/04/24/the-next-child-in-the-woods-by-angela-berkeley/