Fall Nature Study {2016}

We made a couple of trips out to the usual spot for some nature study over the past month. I didn't get around to writing about them, but I did find some pictures on the camera and wanted to get those up on the blog. I like to use this blog as family scrapbook.

You're never too old to play in leaves. I encouraged the boys to go find rakes and enjoy. And they did!

On one of our visits we went to visit Frog Pond and found a green mess. Lucy thought it was fun to swim in! She came out green! Yuck!

Acorns seemed plentiful this year.

One of my favorite views when sitting at the lake (I love the grass color)!

You know you've waited too long for nature study when Lucy goes crazy and can't seem to stop running!

Mid-July Nature Study {2016}

I'm late in getting this posted, but we did get out to the family farm for a little nature study and blackberry picking two weeks ago.

It's been hotter than average this summer and getting outside in nature has not been a priority. I like nature, but I like my AC too. I'm looking forward to more reasonable temperatures!

Blackberries were abundant this year, but small in size. Wild blackberry plants have grown prolifically around the lake at the family farm. We picked more then we could eat and advised relatives to get out and pick more. Birds and beetles moved in shortly after we picked and made the crop useless after that.

We took the long way around looking for blooming wild flowers and were not disappointed.

Ironweed

I think one of my favorite things about using the same piece of property for nature study is to see the changes from week to week (or month to month when weather doesn't allow weekly visits). Some things are gradual (spring greening up and fall leaves changing) and some things happen so fast (flowers blooming and damage from insects). I will go and revisit places from year to year and sometimes flowers don't reappear or unexpected things appear. It's all amazing.

Queen Anne's Lace

Queen Anne's Lace

School Ramblings {March 5, 2016}

(Pictures from nature hikes at the family farm last weekend and Friday afternoon. Plus above was Friday's sunset.)

This week was the last of term 2. The boys did a normal week of school with end of term examinations. I should have our term 3 plans published mid-week or earlier.

We were able to get out to our usual spot for nature study on Friday afternoon. I won't be doing a separate post of that, so here are the highlights. We took a walk to a creek because Tyler must get in his rock search. I'm not sure where he is putting all the rocks he keeps collecting, but I did break his habit of bringing them in the house . . . . I think . . ..  I could be surprised if I cleaned his room. 

This little pond we call frog pond. I love hiking the trail that leads to it because it just appears out of no where.

We took a long walk around the hay field looking for antler sheds. Didn't find any, but we stopped at a creek and found some interesting trash. May be going back with shovels to dig it up this weekend. We found several large holes in our walk and Scott explained what animal likely lived in it and why to the boys. We did find a rodent colony of some sort on the edge of the field. Too small for rabbits (we think), but there were a lot of rabbits in that area. 

A good hiking rule is to always hike with a boy so you don't have to clear your own paths. I had to do my own clearing last weekend.

What's in the Morning Basket? We listened to Swallowdale, some poetry of A. A. Milne, a chapter about Blue Jays in A Field Guide to Familiar and some drawing lessons with Art for Kids: Drawing. 

No idea what Caleb found buried in the creek.

Caleb's favored book of the week: same as last week (The Book of the Ancient World by Dorothy Mills). Caleb mentioned a couple times this week how much he enjoyed this book. When he was working on his exam (Tell me everything about the Egyptians that your learned and thought interesting.) he exclaimed that the Egyptians were so interesting that he didn't have enough time to write it all. Last time he studied this time period he said they were boring and asked to never study them again. What a difference a good book does!

Lucy was a little crazy on Friday. She was running full speed up and down the trail and sliding in the leaves when turning. We had to stop her and make her sit and relax. She can take a person out doing that!

Tyler's favored book of the week: Tyler said he enjoys exam week because he has less school work and the exams are easy. Hmmm . . . .

Boy adventurer with his air-soft gun. You just never know what you will find. Note there is nothing in the woods that would hurt you, it's just pretend.  ; ) I hope he never out grows this!

Looking Ahead! I need to edit the boy's weekly lesson sheet to make changes for term 3. I still need to work on term 3 Morning Basket. I also still need grammar for term 3 for both boys. I didn't get my Looking Ahead! done last weekend, so those things have been left.

Resting at a creek. I really liked this stump.

How was your school week?
 

February Nature Study {2016}

Finally! Last Thursday and Friday we had unseasonably temperatures in the 60s and 70s and we finally got in some nature study . . .  two days!!

We went on a short hike on Thursday on a trail that has become our usual this past year. There really wasn't much to see. We did see a lot of fungus. It was just nice to get outside with a warm temperature and enjoy.

Friday we went on a REALLY long hike and we hit a trail that was new to me. The boys had been on it before. Friday was warmer and less wind and quite enjoyable. Scott also got to join us on Friday.
(I didn't take any pictures on Friday.)

Bugs were out! I even pulled a crawling tick off my leg. I worry it will be a very buggy summer with our mild winter!

It was very windy on Thursday and there were a lot of new trees down in the woods. We enjoyed checking out the new stumps but kept our eyes and ears open to falling limbs and trees. I think sounds were at the top of our discovery list. 

The boys collect strips of bark from a dead tree and decided to float them on the lake. They had to do it from the dock after their first attempt was retrieved by Lucy from the shore. It would not surprise me if she decides to jump off the dock to do some retrieving in the future. (Scott has talked about training her to do this.) 

I wish I could name all the fungus, but either we don't have that field guide or it's at Scott's office. 

We are looking forward to some spring nature study! 

Early December Nature Study {2015}

We had some favorable December weather (last week) and were able to go out to our favorite nature study spot.

Tyler decided to bike the trail.

One of the two trails we hiked. It was a noisy walk with all the leaves on the trail.

 

The woods were a dull gray and brown and then there was this sun lit green spot.

I zoomed the camera in for a closer look.

And of course we detoured off the trail to check it out. Pretty awesome patch of moss. It added beautiful color to the woods.

Perhaps some moss reproduction going on here . . . I don't know anything about moss.

Oddest thing we found in woods was this tree. Our in home naturalist wasn't sure what kind of tree this was. I need to go back and mark this tree to find in the spring. It was covered in several of these things . . . it reminds me of damaged caused by cutting back a tree too much. (I will have to ask around and figure this mystery out.)

The bark on this tree caught our eyes. Scott thinks it's an Oak (but with an odd bark pattern). (Note to self to get the book on identifying Missouri trees in winter!)

I love finding holes in trees. These holes went under the tree and come out on two sides. I could not get my boys to stick their hands in the holes to see what they could find. Scott said there wouldn't be anything hibernating in there. There was sign that something was using it earlier this year.

Dead and rotting trees provide excellent habitat for all kinds of small critters (mostly insect variety) and are favorites of boys to explore (and dogs too until they get insects on their nose).

Creek exploring is a favorite of ours. This creek was very dry on October 2nd! Lucy was retrieving rocks that the boys were throwing. She brought it back to me . . . . I don't think she got the right one but it's hard to tell.

Tyler loves rock collecting and he did find a neat one on this trip but I have seem to have lost the pictures somewhere on my computer . . . .