Week 3 Nature Study: BIRDS

An injured Red tail hawk. On display while healing.

My apologies for lacking the past few weeks. We have completed all of our Autumn nature studies except for our pumpkin studies. For week 2:Trees. The boys went out with grandpa for a hike and discovered many oak trees and talked about acorns. Also, what the purpose of acorns are. They completed the note-booking pages with all of the information. I will post the pictures of their note booking pages soon.

I have to say that the bird and squirrel study was the best study this season. We tried to find birds that we are not use to seeing everyday, like cardinals and robins.
We are lucky to have a state park that has an amazing ornithology center. We were able to use interactive computers, view taxidermy birds in a habitat and watch live birds in their natural habitat through a huge viewing window.



M6 choose the hairy woodpecker. We did get to see this bird on the feeders, but could not get a picture so we had to look at it more in the research books. They had an interactive section on the computer for this bird as well. So, we got to hear its 'song'(Which is compared to that of a toucan) and its migration pattern.



L9 Chose a killdeer. (Because he liked his name) It was not around to view this season so hopefully we can actually view it in spring. However, there was a taxidermy version to view as well as the interactive section on the computer. We realized that the 'song' of this bird is one that we hear often on walks and such, but don't ever see. Here is a website to hear the killdeer song:
http://www.birdjam.com/birdsong.php?id=18

They each filled out a note booking page for their bird of choice.



K3 was all over the place with excitement. He enjoyed walking around with binoculars around his neck pretending to be an explorer. KJ2 Enjoyed listening to the sounds on the interactive programs. He especially enjoyed all the crazy duck sounds.

We focused a lot more on the birds than the squirrels. They boys got a kick out of the fact that the squirrels in this park are ...well....kind of obese. They looked like huge cuddly mini-cats :) They named the fattest one..chunky butt. Hey, they are boys.

I mentioned in the original post describing this nature study that you could make this a a more in depth study. You could focus a week on the new bird, its sound, and habitat. Then the 2ND week on a birds structural and internal structures, feathers, and purpose of wings.

What birds do you choose for this study? Are they local to only your state or to the U.S.?

Coupon Deals and Freezer Meals

Coupon Deals:
For the longest time I struggled with using coupons. It is just a lot of time, and sorting...ugh. I could never just sit and do it and when I did, the savings were never worth the time.
Well, recently I was introduced and revised a way to use coupons to save a good amount of money while having an organized menu.
I normally only use Meijer because they double coupons. Meaning any coupon under .50 cents, you get it twice. They also offer good sales and savings in their ads,
First, I will go through the add and circle everything that we will eat or need as a type of ingredient.

Then, I will go through all the coupons(some friends recommend a Sunday paper per member of the household). You can use more than one of the same coupon if you have the items for it.

Once I have my coupons cut and my items circled, I will make a menu off of these items.
Our menu is only based off of whats on sale or has a coupon. In most cases after the menu is complete, I look back through the ad or coupons and I am able to find a few more things that are needed for the meals.

When I started doing this, I lowered our grocery bill to $100-$160 every 2 weeks. Before, our normal bill was closer to $125 a week. I think this drop in amount is due to the fact that we don't buy unnecessary things now. When we went shopping before we would buy whatever and then we would have ingredients laying around that we wouldn't use or we would need something for dinner and not have it and have to run and get it. This way we only have what we need and have an "order" of when we will eat them.
Using this method, we have lowered our grocery cost, created a menu that just makes life easier, and has also helped us to eat healthier.

Freezer Meals:
We all know how dinner time can be. Whiny kids who are hunger, mom getting frustrated because her water isn't boiling fast enough, did I mention hungry kids? Freezer meals are a way to save you a bunch of time at dinner time.
Here are some different options:

Marinated Meat:
Buy meat such as chicken or pork in bulk. Separate it into dinner size portions and put it in a freezer safe container(or Ziploc). Add your own marinade or a bottled marinade(or BBQ sauce) and freeze it.
It will marinade as it thaws. Then just make a simple salad or veggie and boil in a bag rice and your set.

Bulking Burger:
Buy excess in ground beef, turkey, or pork. Cook it all at once and place it in meal-size portions, pre-seasoned for tacos, spaghetti, or sloppy Joe's and freeze. You can do this when you are already cooking the meat for your current dinner.

Double Dinners:
As you are making dinner for your family, make a double batch. Freeze the second batch. My favorite meals to do this with are lasagna, chili, and sloppy Joe's.

TV Trays
I have not tried this one yet, but it sounds do-able. Use your leftovers by making TV trays. After the meal put serving size portions into a pie pan or good freezable dish and cover well. This would work well for the hubby's lunch or again, a quick dinner.

Productive Pancakes:
Easy enough. Make the entire box of pancake mix(or triple your batch if yours are homemade). Freeze the rest. We love pancakes, but all the flapjack flipping can last a while when feeding 6. Great, quick alternative for breakfast.

Happy Saving and Happy Freezing.

Week 1 Autumn Study- Apples

Here was the lessons for week 1 of our Autumn Nature Study: Apples.
*Read Child's biography on Johnny Appleseed
*Apple Note booking page *See Nature Study:Autumn to the right*
*Venn Diagram, comparing apples
PRE-K- A is for Apple sheet *to the right in the created by me section*
Art project- Apple stamps or tree with finger print apples.
I also added a link to a Johnny Appleseed lapbook to the right if you'd like to go more in depth. Its a good history lesson.

We added an extra snack. We took apple slices and had chocolate sauce and peanut butter for dipping. Then had sprinkles, chocolate chips, and nuts for toppings.



L9 / M6

We were hoping to get to the orchard this week so we could use "not so common" apples, but instead we went with your basic grocery store golden and red delicious.
We did a lot of comparing this week. Learning how to tell the difference between two different or similar items. We used this as a lesson in adjectives as well. We found as many words as we could to describe the apples and their appearance.

Hope you had fun this week with apples. Now to move on our week 2 nature study: Trees. You can check back on my original post to find the lessons for this week.

Ladybugs, Ladybugs, Ladybugs

They are everywhere. Not in my garden, not on my porch, but in my HOUSE. Around nearly every ceiling light. Not sure where they came from. Lady bugs, lady bugs and more lady bugs.

First thought was obviously "kill the bugs". Its instinct right,? You see a bug, or multiple in my case, in your home, you kill it or them. As I began to slam my sandle against the wall and ceiling, I heard a screech that could have possibly woke the dead."Nooo (add feet stomping here) "My wadybugs"(Cue meltdown). Apparently, my 3 year old has been bringing them in, one by one, as he finds them outside because it was too cold for them outside.

This lead to a 10 minute cuddle session full of apologies. So, how do we find a solution to this "situation" that will not leave bugs all over my house or leave a child grieving over his lost ladybugs?

We made a ladybug habitat. I used our little fish net from our fish tank and caught about 12.

I created a notebooking sheet for notes and observations. *See created by me to the right* So we researched the internet to find out what a lady bug needs in its home to live. We used an empty prego sauce jar, put a few small sticks, pieces of grass, leaves, and a couple mist sprays of water in the jar. Add moistened raisens or small apple bits and ....Ta da...a lady bug habitat.

We will basically keep the habitat for 3-5 days and make observations every day. As far as my 3 yr old is concerned, we will keep them to warm them up and then we will let them go back outside and they will go find another warm place.

Mommy/K3 L9 M6

For us, this will only be a short study. However, this could easily turn into a longer study. You could research the types of lady bugs, learn the lady bug life cycle or learn the different body parts and sections.

I just hope that I can get rid of this creepy, crawling sensation that I continue to get. I swear they are all over me. What makes it worse is that I though we had caught them all. However, in the time it has taken me to write this, get up and check on sleeping babies..twice, and doing a load of laundry I have seen about 9 more.

Ewww. okay..just eww.

Autumn Lessons

I have to say that Fall/Autumn is my all time favorite season. It's the time when all the leaves turn into gorgeous colors that just relax your soul. It's the time where the air begins to chill. It's time for apples and pumpkins. For Halloween and Thanksgiving. It's also my favorite time to do nature studies. I love being outside during the fall season, so what better time to take the opportunity to learn about the nature that surrounds us. The studies I have chosen this year, I cannot take full credit for. I was able to print of the entire Autumn Series challenge from handbook of nature.(handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com) However, I have also created additional studies as well as corresponding studies. Here is my list of study items for each week. Feel free to follow along. I will add all attachments that I have made along with each week. This for grades Pre-K-3.
Week 1: Apples
*Read Child's biography of Johnny Appleseed
*Apple sheet for 2 different apples(draw pictures of each, words to describe apples)
*Complete Venn Diagram comparing the apples
*For Pre-K : A is for apple sheet
*Art Project:
Apple stamps(cutting the apple in half, dipping in paint, and stamping on page) Can be done on white t-shirts or construction paper.
Or Apple trees. Trace arm to elbow and hand with fingers open. Color trunk brown, Draw(or paint) in leaves. Dip your finger in red paint and make fingertip apples on tree.
Week 2: Trees
*Read a tree story. We are using this one. Moral story with comprehension questions www.kindbook.com/nature_en.htm.
*Seasonal tree journal sheet. Pick a seasonal tree. Draw it and describe its features.
*Oaks and acorns journal sheet. Find an oak tree. Draw it.Draw it's acorn. Describe its features.
*Find leaves from your trees. Talk about them and why they change and fall off.
*Pre-K- Allow your preschooler to draw trees with siblings.
*Art Project:
We are making our leaves into bookmarks by laminating them.
Or leaf stamps(done as apple stamps)
Week 3: Birds and Squirrels(You could turn this easily into a 2 week project if you would like to focus more on birds)
*Take a walk. Find a bird for each child. Research to find the name of the bird if it's not known.
*Bird Journal sheet. You might have to make a library trip to learn more facts about your bird.
*Squirrel Journal sheet. Find a squirrel print. (might have to find a picture) Describe your squirrel.
Pre-K- Color sheet of squirrel and bird. B is for Bird.
*Art Project:
Since it is nearing Thanksgiving, we are doing a hand and foot turkey. Tracing your hands and feet to make the turkey. I'll post pics to give you an idea.
Week 4: Pumpkins
*Dissect a pumpkin(or just carve one). Talk about the seeds, the goop, and the outer shell. Describe what things you can make with these items(pie, baked seeds). Save the seeds to plant.
*Pumpkin Journal Sheet
*Visit a pumpkin patch and talk about how pumpkins grow. Maybe plan to plant some next spring. There is a Pumpkin life cycle print out at enchantedlearning.com.
*Talk about some other members of the gourd family.
*Peter pumpkin eater poem. Create your own acrostic pumpkin poem.
*Pre-K- P is for pumpkin. Do some basic math with the seeds. Make a jack-o-lantern mask. *Project:
Make a pumpkin dessert. We are making Pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. Yum

So, there is four weeks of nature studies for you. You can add so much to these or take some things away to make them into studies that fit your children. Like I mentioned, I will add pictures of our activities every week. Feel free to add your pictures as well. I would love to hear your pumpkin recipes. If you add any material to the weekly studies, please share those as well.

Have a wonderful fall!!

Just Quiet

When you first have children, it is a difficult process getting accustomed to the difference in your household. It becomes a kid house. It's a mess, its busy, its fun, and it's loud. Well at least in my house anyway. Once that has become the norm, have you ever noticed how the quietness of no children running around can leave many different emotions? For me, I first let out a *sigh* of relaxation and then think "This is nice". Then, I start to think, '"What I am suppose to do now?"However, within a few hours my mindset will suddenly change. I begin to miss it. I miss the laughter, the crying, the yelling, the stomping, the fighting, the voices and the whispers.

When there is something so constant in your life it is difficult to be without it. This works the same with God. It is often difficult to get into a constant pattern of listening to the right music, watching the right shows, reading you Bible regularly, and Praying...a lot. Then you are able to get into this pattern. Your life really takes place and it becomes the norm. Have you had a week, even a month or longer, where you have just been out of that routine. Life just isn't the same is it? You begin to miss it. You miss when He speaks to you through his words, when he whispers to you when your having a bad day, when your crying, when your stomping, when your fighting....

Well it happens. It happens to all Christians. Sometimes life gets busy. With me, it doesn't take but a day or 2 before I miss it. I can't go with out speaking to Him and hearing Him. Knowing He is there. Even though I feel that way about my husband, it is a different experience. It really seems to lift me, to calm me, and gives the ability to think more clearly about my what I say and do. Not that my husband isn't able to do those things, but it is still...different.

My question for you: Is God constant in your life? Do you make him a part of your routine? What can you do today to add Him to your routine.


Deuteronomy 11:9(and 6:7) says: "You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise."
I don't think Moses could have been more straight forward when he wrote that. Pretty self-explanatory :)

Excavating Adventure

We started the Story of the World history lessons this year(audio). The first 2 lessons were on what history is, archeology, and nomads. We decided to sit on these topics a while. "Nomad" is a very broad area to cover. So, we basically just discussed the meaning and then went to the library and read on a few known groups of nomads. They all had bascially the same lifestyle. They were people of the trade: hunters and fisherman. They lived in caves and tents. More recent nomadic groups were often labeled as outcast because most city folk declared them to be thieves and criminals. We made a shoe box dioroma of a living site with paper tents and caves. Wood fires and even put some rags for clothes on army men. Then moved the box to different locations throughout the day to represent the traveling aspect. For my younger 2, they colored some pictures of tents, teepees, caves, and early hunters.

Today, we played archeologist. Before we started on this project, we went through two books that showed the many different things that archelogist locate and where in the world they may find them.( Threw in a little geogrpahy here) We also discussed the importance of the items they find. How these pieces determine how people lived long ago.

I was able to find some inexpensive mini-excuvation kits for under $5. You can find them at this link: www.powscience.com/store/actionproducts/idigminikits.html

They do have larger ones at a higher price. The mini ones took my determined boys about an hour. I tried to get them to take a break, but they were to excited. These are made of a really fine pebble, so I suggest if you use them, to do it out doors or over a BIG table cloth or tarp.

My oldest got himself a fools gold piece. My 6 year old, an arrow head, which we are now attaching to a small, skinned down tree branch and turning into a small spear/arrow.

They learned out to use simple tools such as toothbrushes and toothpicks to be delicate and protect the item from being scratched during the digging. OR busted from being banged on the table :) If you are careful and patient then the artifact will be better preserved.

Here are some picturtes of our adventure. I apologize for the bad images. I used my little cheapy camera today!

What adventures did you share this week?