I’ve always taught about conifers, cone bearing plants, in the winter months, but spring is an ideal time to learn about their life cycles. Many conifers are also evergreen and their leaves are needles. Check out the diversity in the needles below.

Each species of conifers has its own type of cone. How are they alike and different? Describe how they feel, smell, and look.

What is the purpose of pinecones? Click here for the Safeshare link.

Click here for the Safeshare link.

Can you identify the male and the female cone? Watch the pollen come off the cone below.

My first-grade classes studied evergreens and conifers. Click here to go to that lab which has additional investigations to do with your children or students. Collect cones on your next walk and find the seeds inside. Were the cones you found open or closed?

The following photo is our next natural phenomenon. What do you notice about the tree below? Where are the pinecones? Have you ever seen a conifer with cones just on the ends of the branches? Why would it grow in this manner?

Click here to go to an excellent resource about pinecones. Do pine nuts come from pinecones? Go to this site to find out.

Include this sweet story about friendship in your study of pinecones. Click here for the Safeshare link.

White-tailed are social animals who walk in herds. Their tan coloring helps them camouflage in their woodland habitat. They are herbivores. Deer have a great sense of hearing and can move their ears to face different directions without moving their heads. Their strong sense of smell helps them to detect predators from a far distance. A deer’s eyes are on the sides of their heads giving them a large field of view and the ability to spot predators coming from any direction. They also have impressive night vision. When deer sense danger, they make a sniffing sound. If they feel threatened, they stomp with their hooves and snort. Deer are crepuscular which means they are more active at dusk and dawn. Male deer are called bucks, female does, and their young fawns. Fawns are speckled, like dappled sunlight, to provide camouflage. Only males grow antlers which they shed each winter. Deer can run up to 30 miles an hour and jump heights to eight feet. I watched them jump over my neighbor’s fence like talented hurdlers. They are also skilled swimmers.

Although I enjoy observing deer, I wish they wouldn’t eat my plants!

This is a buck’s skull. The flat teeth indicate that he eats plants. Notice the wide eye sockets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“The deer are not crossing the road, the road is crossing the forest.”

Imogene’s Antlers is a fun fiction story to read while learning about deer.

Welcome spring! This time of year brings me hope because there is new birth everywhere. The warmer temperatures, additional light, songs of the birds and frogs, and the colorful tree blossoms and wildflowers engage all my senses. Watching the forest come back to life truly brings me joy! It’s as if I’ve been watching a black and white television show that is now in color. So grateful for seasons!

Click here for the Safeshare link.

What happens when spring comes? The author contrasts winter and spring. Click here for the Safeshare Link

Have you been on a spring walk yet? The dominant color in the woodlands today was spring green!

Click here for the Safeshare link.

For behold, the winter is past; the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth, the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. Song of Solomon 2:11-12

In a previous post, I spoke about the browns of winter. They are described so beautifully in this picture book. Go here to view full screen.

I wrote a recent post about animals who live underground. Did you notice the burrowing animals in the illustrations?

Young scientists often study squirrels in the fall when these rodents are preparing for winter but watching their antics in late winter has been amusing. Common gray squirrels are scatter hoarders and will hide a nut anywhere they can. So, how do they find their hidden stash of nuts? Is it just luck or do they have a plan?

Click here for the Safeshare link.

When I was studying squirrels, I discovered another way that red squirrels prepare for winter. Click here for the Safeshare link.

This reminded me of the story, The Busy Little Squirrel. Children will enjoy the predictable text and it’s a simple story to dramatize.  Click here to look inside. It is similar to the story The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle.

In a forest ecosystem, a snag is a standing, dead or dying tree, often missing a top or most of the smaller branches. Click here for more information about snags. According to the Maryland Grows Blog, snags provide a habitat for about 25 percent of the forest wildlife. As I researched snags, I was struck with the thought that even in death, the tree provides life. Nothing is wasted in nature, and everything has a purpose. Click here for the entire article.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although The Giving Tree has been interpreted in multiple ways, it reminds me of the sacrificial ways trees provide for the animal kingdom. Click here to watch an animated version of the story.

As I listened to this story, I thought of The Tale of Three Trees. So many lessons about pride, purpose, and joy. Click here and here for Safeshare link videos. The second video is animated.

Trees are essential for life. They provide lumber, oxygen, food (fruit and nuts), paper, shade, and soil protection. So yes, hug a tree today! Click here to discover more benefits of trees.

Look at how these roots are preventing erosion on the side of the riverbank.