Nature Study Monday - warning there are maggots!

We met up at the hippo park today for some more exploring.  The big boys spent quite a long time digging up rocks out of the path.  They even started collecting tools to help them dig from the tree limbs and sticks.  This was the prize of the day that was finally unearthed after about 20 minutes of digging.

I took the little guys for a walk and I found the mother of all nature study find.  A pretty well decomposed squirrel with maggots underneath!!!  Best quote about it was "That is awesome... and very disgusting."  Nature is not always pretty but this is part of the process of dying and decomposition and I am glad the boys were able to see it firsthand.
 

 Marshall found a stick with a "V" in it and was using other sticks to balance it.  I like this kind of experimenting.

Barrett said he was a frog jumping off his rock. 

Nature Study Tuesday - wait nature study is on Monday right????

 The boys did not let me forget that "we did not go on Monday and we need to study nature!"  So, we went to the park Tuesday because evidently we have made nature study a habit (inward evil chuckle at making this a habit). We picked up Cooper's best buddy Luke and headed out to the park that is commonly referred to as the hippo park or pocket park and our favorite name for it "the stink park" since it is right by a waste water treatment facility.

Five boys at a park all with bicycles and plasma cars and all had a good time.  Trees were climbed, stick sword battles fought and nature was explored observed and even sketched from memory the next day.

Graham noticed the moss growing on the concrete.

"I'm a beaver!"

Fungus growing inside a hollowed out tree

Nature Study Buddies

No water bottles for this crew, I now only go to the park with my trusty 2 gallon water cooler

My rules of tree climbing - "Don't climb anything you can't get down from by yourself."  Seriously, there is a natural internal tether kids have to the ground.  If they know you are not going to come rescue them, they will 99/100 times not climb too high.  Even when they call me to come help them, I only offer footing advice and stand there in case of a fall.  It is far better that they learn the courage to take that blind step backward than to be rescued over and over again.

"Quick momma take a picture of me being a sloth!"

Graham has brought a twig to the stick fight.

Chinaberries and my new super pretty nail polish.

I have to admit this is my watercolor of the different berries I saw.  I get better sketching out of the boys when I sit and do it with them.

Marshall's sketch of the culvert covered with moss and a blue jay

Cooper's culvert. He drew in what he thought it would look like with water.

Cooper's sketch of the tree he climbed, a spider web he saw, and his bike.

 

Nature Study Monday - Katy VFW Park

So our little nature study group took last week off but we were back out this morning at the VFW park here in Katy.  The biggest difference is that the weather has turned just lovely here.  Cool breezes and lower temps have made it a joy to be outside. 

I don't know how much nature got observed (none got sketched by my boys) but all the kids had a good time going up and down the creek.  We saw several big spider webs and minnows in the creek water.

There was a log that made a nice foot bridge for the brave at heart.

 I brought the twins' plasma cars to keep them out of the creek.  Mostly because I did not want to go int the creek.

Marshall caught a bug.  Some kind of cricket we are thinking.  When we get home we will look it up.

Until next week!

Nature Study Monday - Mary Jo Peckham Park

Marshall found some snails.

The other kids in our group love playing the "bad guys" and trying to get the Batman Twins to chase them.

So the twins have started holding hands and I warn you there will be many more pictures of this on the way.

The boys making a catapult out of a low lying tree branch.

Cooper and Luke

The mystery goop.  It's either something's eggs or some kind of mold.  Our group is on a mission to identify this thing.
*They have been identified - Apple Snail Eggs!

Watercolors and nature journals

I have been waiting for this moment for three years.  He grabbed his nature journal and went to sketch something by himself without any gentle nudging from me.  He decided to sketch the entire pond.

I told the boys to punch holes in the papers. Kept them busy long enough for the big boys to sketch.