Search Results for: blog magnifying fall

Fall Science: Of Wood and Cones and Mushy Things

It’s getting colder out there. That means that everyone is creeping into holes to stay warm. They might live in big holes, like our warm house with its nice warm blankets. They might live in small holes, like the holes in cones and logs. This is the season to peek into little cracks and holes in the forest and see who’s living there. Cones are like animal apartment buildings. In the winter and late fall, small animals creep into the cracks between the scales of the cones. When you bring them indoors, they creep out again to see what is … Continue reading →

Magnifying Fall

At the nature center where I work, we have an Elmo. Unlike his Sesame Street namesake, Elmo is not an assuming presence. He’s a small machine, and rather gray. However, when you turn on the switch, Elmo turns kids on to nature. He’s a macroscope. What is a macroscope? Like a hand lens, it magnifies objects that are hard to see with the naked eye. Like a microscope, it’s a machine to assist your eyes in seeing things that are not necessarily noticeable with your eyes. Our Elmo also projects items onto a screen, so worms look as large as … Continue reading →

Fall Science: Combing Through Compost

It’s almost fall, which means that the season of quiet recycling is upon us. Why do I get so excited about this season? I love the fact that there is a time when plants and animals start to go to sleep and when plants prepare for the winter by sending many of their parts for recycling. When the deciduous trees drop their leaves, that’s a boon for many soil-dwelling animals that rely on leaves for food and homes. You can explore the plants’ recycling process at any time of the year by combing through finished or almost-finished compost. Gross! Yuck! … Continue reading →

Fun Fall Family Travel Destinations—Part 3: Hiking Trails

If you are looking for some fun family travel destinations—places where you can take advantage of the great outdoors before Old Man Winter comes howling in, then you’ve found the right blog. So far, we’ve covered corn mazes and haunted houses, and now we are moving on to hiking trails. Remember we are trying to make these trips family-friendly. Which means we don’t want to junior to be begging to stay in the minivan and play his Gameboy while the rest of the clan is discovering nature. We want the entire family to spend quality time together. So how can … Continue reading →

Study Says iPads Help People with Vision Problems Read

It has been established that the iPad is useful for children who have an autism spectrum disorder, or who are non-verbal. There are apps that can help a child communicate and to keep track of what comes next in a school day. A new study find that the iPad can help people who have vision problems to read. Does you child have vision problems? Has he come home from school saying that he can’t see the board? Does she sit really close to the TV, and hold books really close to her face while reading? Has your child been diagnosed … Continue reading →

Go Pond Dipping – More How Tos!

If you have a local pond, help the kids explore it this spring! Yesterday I wrote about the importance of aquatic insects. To find these little creatures, you’ll need some equipment. There are many different kinds of equipment that one can use to collect aquatic insects. All of them are relatively inexpensive. Kitchen sieves can be purchased at the store and used for pond dipping. It’s also possible to buy dip nets that are designed for catching fast-moving insects, like predatory diving beetles. For animals that cling to rocks, the best solution is to buy or find a small container … Continue reading →

Square Foot Field Trip – Backyard Exploring

Home schooling is, in my opinion, the best type of schooling there is. You can be certain your children are learning skills that are important for life such as filling out job applications, balancing checkbooks, cooking, frugal spending, and more. This is in addition to the typical education of Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. But staying at home all the time can get boring for kids and parents. Field trips are excellent ways to get out of the house for awhile and incorporate fun with learning. But what if you’re simply too tired to drag the kids to a museum, library, … Continue reading →

Gardening With Your Preschooler: Supplies

Are you planning to garden with your preschooler this summer? Gardening can seem like an activity that requires a lot of supplies. What supplies are actually necessary to have a fun time in the garden with your preschooler? Very few, actually. We like to bring a small trowel into the garden. Preschoolers like to dig, and you can set your child to work digging up a garden bed, moving small rocks, and looking for worms. The worms, woodbugs and soil are the main attraction here. Watering cans are also very popular. Choose a child-sized one with very small holes or … Continue reading →

Play With Snow Science

Yippee! As we looked at the raindrops that landed with a decided plunk on our windshield yesterday, my daughter and I both realized that it was very, very close to snowing. Since we don’t generally get a lot of snow here in the Pacific Northwest, the first snowfall is an exciting event. How can you and your preschooler play with snow this year? It’s time for some snow science, of course! Grab a magnifying glass and head outdoors, preferably with a plastic or acrylic-coated jacket on. Or set out a tablecloth to collect the snow. You want a surface that … Continue reading →