Outdoor Hour Challenge # 18

Outdoor Hour Challenge # 18- Looking for Pollen

We started this challenge by heading over to my wave petunias. I knew they would give me a great opportunity to discuss the corolla tube as well as an amazing view of pollen. I tried to get a good picture although I'm not sure how well it turned out.

The Handbook of Nature Study has several pages on petunias (pp 581-584). I read these pages AFTER our walk (actually two days later) just out of curiosity over how the petunia itself produces its seeds. The HNS surprised me that it only has two colors listed for petunias. Rather than discouraging- I found it amazing that in such short time we have SO many beautiful colors to choose from. As with the others - I find myself learning much from our nature studies and outdoor hour challenges.

The other thing is that bees are attracted to the petunias but can become frustrated at the difficulty they have in obtaining nectar from the long tubes.

"...but bees will also work industriously in the petunias. They will
scramble into the blossoms and, apparently complaining with high-pitched buzzing because of the tight fit, rifle the nectar-wells that
seem to be better adapted to insects of quite different build." ~ HNS pg. 583

It was quite interesting. We walked around our yard and looked into all of
the flowers and tried to see any pollen on them. Some had more than others
and quite a few (like the wave petunias) were easy to see and also easy to
find pollen left on the petals.

My four year old dd then prompted to tell me that it must have fallen off of one of the bees because it was the bees "job to help the flowers get their pollen to each other." An amazing perception from my baby :). The girls (the twin 4 yo's) were afraid of bees and so we had a long talk last summer about how important they were to keeping the beautiful flowers they love growing. I never thought a year later she would percieve things this way. We had quite a bit of fun looking inside the different flowers' "anatomy" and discussing them. As Ms. Comstock also found - it is VERY interesting to my dc (as well as myself now - as I had never thought to look at the differences INSIDE the flowers) to inspect them for pollen.

Briana very maturely explaining the bees' "job" to me.

The first insect we found was on one of the roses' leaves:

I am still trying to correctly identify this insect. It is obviously a beetle, I believe I have even narrowed it to a Scarab Beetle but I am still hesitant to classify it any further. I have found several pictures that look similar to it.

**(Side NOTE) **Once again- the challenge has sparked our interests off into another direction because my dc and I want to know EXACTLY which type of beetle this is. In moving things around in the garden
bed we found several more of these beetles - although a bit less metallic" in color that burrowed underground as quickly as the earthworms we unearthed. In some of the reading we've done - it appears that female and juvenile beetles live most of their lives underground. The male adults do not survive much longer than thier mating time. It's peaked our curiosity so if anyone knows more or can specifically identify it with certainty - we're all ears :)!! If we could narrow it down with certainty I believe we can research whether or not the beetles burrowed underground in the garden bed are related to the ones we are finding on all of the rose leaves. I highly suspect they do. My son has especially been questioning it because he's fascinated about beetles living
underground. :)

Since I started this- I have been leaning towards the Japanese Beetle - Popillia japonica , it's quite well that I looked into this as every article I've read discusses the damage these fellows inflict upon gardens. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/IN630



Picture taken from the above referenced website. Not a pretty picture for our roses! :(

This was the 2nd insect we found. It was clinging to the back of the corolla of a vinca. My son was so insistent that nothing be harmed, he didn't trust anyone to put it back on the vinca. He HAD to do it himself and it had to go right back on the back of the corolla lobe it came from!

I'm not surprised at all by this as he became QUITE upset with my sister and I both last week when we had to "terminate" the black widow and it's egg sack. He was very upset with me. I was proud that I have been successful so far in raising such an aware young boy but I had a hard time explaining to him my justification for the destruction of the spider who couldn't help that it was dangerous to us. At the end of the day- it was that I loved him more and unfortunately mommy felt it necessary.
I hope this is not why he wouldn't allow me to touch his little find. After all - our favorite poem is, "Hurt no Living Thing" by Christina Rosetti

Hurt no living
thing:
Ladybird, nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing,
Nor cricket chirping cheerily,
Nor grasshopper so light of leap,
Nor dancing gnat, nor beetle
fat,
Nor harmless worm that creep. n

We worked in yard for actually a couple of hours and enjoyed it. Spent time weeding (not so able for me - I won't fib) but my ds doesn't seem to mind it at all - maybe the tearing or the dirt - I don't know- I enlisted his help. In the meantime - my dd used the leftover soil and pots on the picnic table to make all kinds of "pies" and "cakes". r birthday is this Sunday so they are heavily into cake mode!! :)

I was pleased with how the yard and gardens are coming. Since we left a beautifully landscaped home in January (thanks to my dh not me) it's been different but since my husband has been otherwise occupied for now - it's been nice having the time with the kids and being able to make our choices and really get in their and enjoy the fruits of our labor. :) It feels so good to walk around and see the beauty the Lord blessed us with and know we have stewardship to keep it beautiful.

Hydrangea

White Rose

Dianthus

The Children's Marigolds

My dc were so happy to take care of their marigolds again. I believe these were the most important plants I have ever bought just for the sheer joy they bring to the kids. There is a certain pride they have in tending and caring for them. I highly recomend anyone getting one for their children. Such a unique enjoyment they seem to have.

The kids are going to finish their nature drawings for this challenge and I will post them right away but I wanted to share the experiences we've had so far.


My dc and I were sitting on our front porch this morning observing the robins in our front yard and just enjoying chatting with each other. My ds looked at me and asked if we could, "Do nature study out back?" I was delighted that he enjoyed it so much! It warmed my heart that he was enjoying the time together as much as I was! As of the past year - he's not so touchy feely with mom as he used to be so getting such a compliment about time spent together just made me soar. :) My girls' can not get enough lap time and kisses but my son has been shadowing my husband for so long now that it made me so happy to know he enjoyed this so much. I mean - I KNOW he enjoys time with me and loves me - he's a six year old lol but it just had a special feeling to it that is hard to describe. I'm sure those of you doing this with your dc knwo what I mean :). It's a memory to cherish.
And then>>>>>
A few hours later he's sparring with a partner and off he goes - LOL -

Outdoor Hour #17 & Black Widow Spider

Today we completed our Outdoor Hour #17. What great fun!
Barb mentioned that this challenge had several layers and for us - it was incredible.

The FIRST thing my 3 dc noticed was our little pepper plant had a pepper! :) They were ecstatic - it's always exciting to see your first vegetable of the year! :) Here our little fellow is:
We then began looking at the leaves around the house. The favorite by far - was the hibiscus. They loved the red tinge on the leaves. My four year dd brought in a rose leaf and it was a perfect comparison to the Leaf Parts example on the website left on the challenge.
My ds then became excited (he's 6) about trying to decide the shapes and edges of each of their "favorite" leaves by comparing them to the examples on the same wildflower website.


During our nature walk around the yard observing leaves, I was blessed to find that our basil seeds have sprouted and revealed both seed leaves and "true" leaves. It was a perfect Charlotte Mason moment for me- giving me a natural time to talk to my children about the seed leaves and what they do. We then observed the shape difference of the seed leaves and the new, tiny "true" leaves that are appearing on some already. After this, we walked back to our grown basil plants and compared the size and shape of these mature leaves to the seed leaves and 'true' leaves on the sprouts. It was so amazing to see that the 'true' leaves looked so similar to the larger, mature leaves on the fully grown plants and the seed leaves were easily detected due to their differences. :)

Here is a short synopsis about seed leaves: http://www.seedlover.com/v.php?pg=69

We tried our observing time - the goal was for the 3 of them to sit quietly and observe for about a minute and try to really experience and use their senses to observe their surroundings. My goal was that we would go inside shortly after and cuddle on the couch and talk about the differences in what we each took notice of. Well :) we ended up talking during our entire "Quiet Time" because they would become so excited they would whisper what they were experiencing instead of really being silent and enjoying it. It's something we definitely have to work on but with a 4 yo dd, another 4yo dd, and a 6 yo ds - I think we did okay :).

It's interesting that each of them focused on different things. One spent most of her time looking at insects, another used all of her senses, and my ds took it all in but was really focused on the tangible things. He just HAD to pull a piece of basil off and try it :) and then talked about how it made his tongue feel "funny" lol. We enjoyed it and had fun.

We then spent some time looking through our plants and talking about the changes in them. We are in Virginia so with the tornadoes, hail storms, flooding, and 110 degree weather we've had the past few weeks - yesterday's milder weather was nothing short of a blessing. We ended up spending a vast portion of our day and evening outdoors - enjoying each other and our plants and cleaning our garden beds up.

The kids were delighted to see our cucumber plants flowering. My son - having been outside landscaping with his dad since he was little - took it upon himself to explain to his little sisters that the flowers would blossom into cucumbers for them to enjoy :). It was a proud mommy moment. The 3 of them then decided to count the flowers on all of the vegetable plants and see what their bounty was looking like.

One of our cucumber plants.

The kids were incredibly happy with thier marigolds. Last week, they planted their "own" marigolds and added a little "chick" from their grandma's Hens & Chicks pot to the bottom of their marigold containers. The chicks seem to be the hit with the kids. They are pleased to see how they are both growing and quite proud as they reminded me who's container was who's.

Perhaps the most striking, frightening, and proud moment of the day came later. I wanted to share this with the other moms just as a bit of a forewarning.
I was tending to some plants and my children were still oohing and ahhing over the little green pepper when I heard my son tell his sister's to, "Get back. I have to get mom to get it." I went to them to see what was going on and my DS had found and properly identified and backed everyone away from a BLACK WIDOW. And a BLACK WIDOW with an EGG SAC.

I was so proud of him. My husband had spotted one last summer while landscaping and since my son was outside with him, he took the time to show it to my DS and warn him of the dangers and tell him to find mom or dad. For those of you who's children may not have seen one (I hadn't until I was an adult and married a man that landscaped) - I took some pictures. I personally was surprised at her size.

I was so proud of my son for doing the right thing. I told him how proud I was that he recognized it, warned his sister and left it alone, and called for me. He, of course, was embarrassed by this as you can see --

It was DEFINITELY an educational Outdoor Hour(s) lol - Thanks again to Barb - Harmony Art mom for her time and effort on our behalf. I know there has been a lot of negativity surrounding her in the past couple of weeks but I TRULY appreciate her efforts. We look forward to Sketch Tuesday AND the Outdoor Hour each and every week. I find it to be such a blessing and thank God for what she does :).

Nature Study- Outdoor Hour Challenge

We were blessed to recieve a link to an amazing blog yesterday. Some of you may already be aware of it - but if not, I think you'll enjoy it. It is now called "The Outdoor Hour". The blogger is a homeschool mom who sets up weekly "challenges" for other homeschoolers using "The Handbook of Nature Study" by Anna Botsford Comstock.

As many of you already know - "The Handbook of Nature Study" is THE spinebook for nature study for us. We continue to learn and truly enjoy nature lessons and study using the Handbook as my guide. I have gleaned so much from the lessons and information in this book. The Outdoor Hour Challenges assist in getting the most from your handbook. I have enjoyed not only her blogs but the beautiful nature pictures and journals from her own children. I highly recommend trying the challenges. It is an easy way to enjoy the outdoors with your children in a traditional Charlotte Mason style with the comfort and ease of challenges already planned for you, the span of the internet, and the enjoyment of fellowship with other moms and their children as we enjoy the beautiful world the Lord blessed us with together!

I will be posting my family's rise to "The Challenge" weekly so you can enjoy doing them right along with us. Once you link to the outdoor site, please link to our blog as well as we look forward to seeing what our members are doing! Enjoy!

Duck Pond

This was the best! We took some bread down to the neighborhood pond and enjoyed the company of some mallards, some canadian geese with goslings, and a muschovy. The muschovy was a suprising delight. None of us had ever seen one and he was quite the friendly fellow. He seemed bold and approached my son quite closely for some bread. All of these ducks and geese have been a part of the neighborhood pond for years but we'd not had the pleasure of experiencing the goslings or moshovy before. The children sat and did their nature sketches right there at the pond so they'd have a good view of their subjects to sketch.

We were blessed to observe some amazing behaviors. The gander began showing the goslings how to dip and dive under the water. We couldn't see them at all and then suddenly to our delight they would pop up out of the water somewhere else entirely. It was quite amusing and enoyable! The gander then began honking loudly at the goslings and taking short flights out of the pond water. He would then swim back and honk again at the baby goslings. After several of these little eposides we witnessed the goslings stretching out their wings in the water as the gander had. However, the goslings are still covered mostly in down as you'll see in the pictures and have no flight feathers to get them up and out of the water.

I think one of the most adorable things I've ever seen is a proud little gosling walk up the bank onto dry ground and honk and stretch his 'wings' as far as he could with not one feather on them! The children and I really enjoyed this nature study. The wind was warm and slight and it was a beautiful, almost sleepy day. Quite relaxing and enjoyable :)!

Hollyhock

The hollyhock my mother in law planted out back has been beautiful this year!

Nature study and Children

When I think back to being a young girl, living in a rural area, there were ALWAYS opportunties to experience nature and all of the Lord's wonders. In fact, my sister and I spent most of our time outdoors.

Our parents were divorced but being outside and playing together were a constant.

When staying with my mother, we lived in a neighborhood, but at that time (I'm aging myself :) all of the neighborhood children played together. It was not the frightening age we live in now. My sister and I would grab our bikes and ride over to my cousin's home across the street and meet the other children in a little area at the end of the block that had not yet been built upon. We had "bike trails" that we road our bikes on through this little wooded plot of land. I remember all of the grand adventures and imaginary things that happened even today.

When visiting my father - nature abounded. He lived further out in a VERY rural area where the only thing to do was to go outside and enjoy what the Lord's world had to offer. We had vines that we would swing on and plenty of woods to run in and make "campsites". We were quite blessed to have horses, rabbits, cats, dogs, hogs, cows, so many wonderful animals to love and observe. I still remember making 'camp' with my sister and cooking mudpies - true 'pies' from the mud and dirt. Spending entire days outside with the animals and plants and trees in the wood.

I realize the unfortunate difference in what our children are able to do today. My husband and I raise our children in a neighborhood - we don't have the acres of farmland I was blessed with as a child. However, we strive to bring the nature to them. Our flower gardens, vegetable "gardens" (sometimes just several containers) and our constant "zoo" lol of pets bring nature to them.

Unfortunately, they can not ride off into the neighborhood on their bikes due to the frightful things that abound anymore but a secure, privacy fenced in yard, with plenty of trees, plants, flowers, bird houses, bird feeders, bird baths, pets, local duck ponds, and parks all seem to do the trick. It just takes my effort as we're homeschooling to make it important - to make it a part of our overall plan and to model my own personal love of nature for them.

They are blessed to also have a father that is an amazing landscaper :). For the lack of green thumb that I have, he has five! I love nature but do not have the natural ability that others do to make things grow- there comes in Daddy :). My husband is amazing at teaching the children AND myself about the plants and caring for them. My son has had his own landscaping 'section' since he was about 3!! My mother in law is also talented in the ways of growing outside so the kids and I glean from her and she naturally teaches them. Without them even realizing they are learning - and maybe without her intentionally teaching them but just sharing her love and passion for plants, flowers, and the outdoors with them. :)

On this blog, please find our nature study journals, experiences, ideas, and our "Outdoor Hour Challenges" (find her blogspot below). Using the methods of Charlotte Mason, Ruth Beechick, and other literature based ideas for 'science' I wanted to join the Outdoor Hour Challenges and also share the excitement, love, and blessings we have found in such little things! Using these homeschooling methods has been such a blessing. We are a family that has always loved nature and living things, the "science" approach to these programs is nothing less than a perfect fit.