The kids and I went on a fall nature walk to observe and collect the different leaves.
Big Ladybug loves to blend her colored pencils to make different colors. So we decided to try to blend the colors to match the leaves.
The kids then used the leaves to have some more art fun.
It was a great day to get outside and enjoy the sun!
In My Father’s World 1st grade science this spring, we have been focusing on plants. So far we have looked at seeds, germinated kidney beans, and experimented with how light and water effect plant growth.
The past 3 weeks we focused on plant parts and flowers. We used Considering God’s Creation, Handbook of Nature Study, and Barb’s Outdoor Hour Challenge Garden Study and Plant Challenges to help us along.
We read out of Handbook of Nature Study.
The little ones enjoyed looking at it too!
We discussed the parts of the plant and looked closely at some grass roots. She learned about chlorophyll and photosynthesis. We also discussed pollination and completed Barb’s Outdoor Hour Challenge.
Big Ladybug enjoyed coloring and putting together the parts of the flower from Considering God’s Creation. She glued salt on the plant and the bee’s legs to show pollen transfer.
She also wanted to sketch and watercolor some flowers. However, she found it to be a little more difficult than she expected, so I helped her sketch them.
We studied the rose bush in our backyard.
She really enjoyed our nature walk to collect different kinds of leaves and doing the leaf rubbings.
We both really enjoyed our plant and flower study together :)
For science this week we worked on our seasonal tree study from Handbook of Nature Study. Since the fall we have been observing the Flowering Crabapple in our front yard.
This is a printable notebook page from Handbook of Nature Study.
We used a page out of our Considering God's Creation book to help us observe our tree more closely. (We are using this great book for summer science with our co-op :)
She gathered different parts of the tree to add to her notebook page.
She looked closely with a magnifying glass, felt the leaves, fruit, and bark. She measured the trunk, and smelled the leaves and the bark.
Big Ladybug’s tree sketch.
We really enjoyed doing this study together. We had some great one-on-one time while the little ones were napping :)
Are you getting out and enjoying nature?
We have really enjoyed all of the studies that we have participated in, thanks to Barb at Handbook of Nature Study! She has so many good ideas and you can pick and choose what studies interest you the most :)
I have always thought that pine trees are pretty neat. I am fascinated by how big they can grow, I enjoy their smell, and loved playing under them and with pine cones as a kid.
Big Ladybug and I had a great time learning about pine cones. We were able to observe several different pine trees at my sister’s house. We gathered branches and cones from 3 trees: Norway Spruce, Blue Spruce, and Eastern White Pine.
Eastern White Pine
Blue Spruce
Norway Spruce
Big Ladybug and I read Treasures in a Pine Cone and A Pine Cone Tale.
Big Ladybug enjoyed looking at our samples with her magnifying glass. She also liked taking apart the cones in search for seeds.
What we learned….
Check out other pine cone studies at Handbook of Nature Study.
