The Nature Cottage at Tanglewood Hollow

A little Wednesday fun!

Wow, did we have a fun morning!

The children went on a caterpillar hunt outside and brought back some Eastern Tent Caterpillars, which we used our books to identify! 😉 We learned that they love cherry and apple trees (and guess where we found them... our apple tree!)

Several children used the classroom microscope to take a closer peek at the newly-hatched caterpillars, while others decided to name them and carry them around for the rest of the morning!

The children designed their own watercolor caterpillars, used the light table to look at some amazing butterfly specimens, used loose parts to create caterpillars/butterflies, and more!

Then, of course, there was other work happening as well: one child was busy designing some nests for the bird models, while another was busy building a museum with various landmark models!

Next week we will be learning more about the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly! Be prepared to get messy- we will be making some paper mache chrysali! 🦋

A Wednesday morning loose parts invitation!

Caterpillars arrived! Oh, what fun this will be!! ❤

We had a blast at the McLane Audubon Center yesterday! The sometimes seemingly invisible learning that takes place is truly amazing!
We visited with the barred owls for a bit, and learned how their facial disks actually help them to hear better and that their eyes do not move inside their sockets! Then we hopped over and visited with a majestic bald eagle that was preparing to eat a meal of two rats!

After visiting all the animals, it was off to the woods! The "teeter totter" (or "teeter wotter" as one said) was a huge hit! The amount of learning with balance, weight, measurement, and force that went on while we explored this for quite some time was amazing! (If we pick up a friend while we stand on one end of the teeter totter, will it affect the balance?) Such fun problem solving!

Can Multiage Classrooms Improve Learning Outcomes? Advocates say dividing students by birthdate is arbitrary.

One of our friends brought some morels with him to share with everyone in class last week! It was so neat to look at them under the microscope! ❤ Thanks, L!

Going to school in a museum: Does learning have to happen in a school? Public Museum School received a $10 million grant from XQ: The Super School Project -- and they’re using it to rethink high school

A little story during snack! It looks like more story was happening than snack in this photo! 😂

One of our little friends (L) enjoyed looking through our butterfly and moth book this week to see if she could find any of the butterflies from our light table in it! "This one is the prettiest!", she said (swallowtail).

Soon the warmer weather will be here and we will do lots of deeper investigations with more specific animals, including spring peepers, butterflies, worms, beavers, and even mosquitoes!

I've been in education for 20 years, and there's a disturbing trend afoot in kindergartens around the US Christopher Brown is a researcher, parent, and former kindergarten teacher, and in his view the state of affairs in kindergarten are downright troubling.

Class tomorrow morning at 9am! I can't get the event to load, sorry! ❤❤

Nature Study and Science: Is There a Difference? — Simply Charlotte Mason We hear a lot about nature study as one of Charlotte Mason's key methods. The question is sometimes asked, though: Is nature study all you do for science?

Good evening, nature-friends! We are recovering from a bit of a cold this week, so there will be no class tomorrow! There's no sense in passing germs along to everyone! I will be posting the schedule for the next couple of months this week so you can get an idea of what we'll be studying!
Does anyone have a little one that's absolutely fascinated with something from nature? Let's study it! Share away!
I'm leaving you with this photo of a fun study of a blue heron we recently did! 😉

We do have class tomorrow! My events for the rest of this month somehow disappeared when we had to cancel last! 😩
Bring boots for outside adventures! ❤

Well, my friends! It looks like we're going to have another snow-filled week! I'll keep an eye on the weather (maybe it won't be as bad as they say?) and let you know if class is canceled on Wednesday! If it is, we will push our worm study back to next month! :)

I thought some of our nature-loving families might enjoy this countdown! :)

How to Create a Spring Countdown ~ Entangled Harmony Join us as we await the arrival of spring with this 10-day Countdown. Download the Spring Countdown Bundle, which also includes a scavenger hunt.

Did you know we have worms for composting in our classroom? We have a little paper shredding station for littles to help provide bedding for our worms!

HSLDA | Home School Laws Homeschooling is legal throughout the United States. Here is our summary of each state’s homeschooling laws—select your state and see what the rules are where you live.

Bring your outdoor gear for class tomorrow! 9am-11! The weather is supposed to be lovely! We will read a story and then head out to the trails to explore!

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Class this morning from 9-11! ❤ Come learn about owls!!

How Access to Nature During The School Year Can Help Students Thrive Getting kids out in nature on a regular basis helps kids' development. Some schools have partnerships with local parks but students in the Ferguson-Florissant School District have a district-owned nature center.

Make some play dough on your snow day! ❤

Playdough - Four Ways (including our Galaxy Dough!) Otis is five and loves playdough now more than ever. I've written occasionally about how we use playdough, always with different items and in different colours, textures and scents. Adding essential oils to playdough is a must. Here are four ways we are currently enjoying playdough. 1. Alphabet Stam...

DaVinci says: stay home and be safe! We are supposed to get 5-8 inches of snow and gusty winds throughout the day! We will reschedule our first Tinker class! Look out for the event! ❤

Looking for a snow day project? ❤

Butterfly Finger Knitting How To - Red Ted Art's Blog Today we have a great Butterfly Finger Knitting Project. My kids have really embraced finger knitting. It is easy to teach your kids how to finger knit and is a great “first step” to teaching kids pattern based crafts (e.g. sewing, needle knitting and crochet). Kids can quickly get the hang of finge...