Sunday, June 3, 2007

Creepy Crawlies...



Yesterday we set out a Garden Spider Web Frame in an area of our bushes where there are several webs. We were looking at one of the webs and I told the kids that it was an orb web and the spider was sitting in the middle. As I was telling them how he may have spun the web, a bug hit the web and the spider was there in a flash, wrapping it with silk and sucking its blood. Yes it was disgusting, but you can't do better than that for nature study!

Of course, J is now questioning whether or not we really needed the frame, but I'm still glad we got it. I bought it at a discount from http://www.rainbowresource.com/. When I find something neat, I always check Rainbow Resource to see if they have it cheaper and they usually do!

I am NOT the outdoorsy type and I know very little about nature, but to homeschool, you don't have to know everything, you just have to be willing to learn.

Before we study a plant or animal, I read about it in the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Comstock. I also have a book called Pets in a Jar that tells how to capture and care for small wildlife.

For the kids I have The Usborne Complete First Book of Nature, the Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1, and a few Usborne Beginners readers that I bought from Rainbow Resource. Yesterday Drew read one called Under the Seas and then told his dad all about sea dragons, dolphins, etc. I think we're learning as much as he is!

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