Topiary is the art of sculpting greenery into fun and creative shapes. Evergreens, such as boxwood, ivy, or privet, are popular shrubs for topiary because they have small leaves and grow compactly. On my trip to Europe, I saw topiaries in some of the chateau’s formal gardens.
Both The Curious Garden and The Garden of Abdul Gasazi include topiary illustrations, but they are not the focus of the story.
Teach your child how to create a topiary. Go here to view full screen,
When I was in the classroom, I intentionally shared unique careers with my students, Caring for topiaries, a topiarist or topiary engineer, is a career in ornamental horticulture, and certainly an ideal career for those who want to combine science with art! Go here to view full screen.
Green Animals Topiary Garden in Portsmouth, Rhode Island has over 80 sculpted trees. For full-screen viewing, go here.
After breakfast one morning in Amboise, France, we heard the balloons before they came into view. We were excited to watch them because we had plans for a hot air balloon ride the following day.
Eight of us met our pilot and his assistant while it was still dark and boarded the van to drive 30 minutes to an open field in the Loire Valley. Their experience was evident as they skillfully pulled the basket off the trailer, unrolled the balloon, and inflated it with air using a large fan. Then they turned on the burners to heat the air because hot air rises. They prompted us for assistance as needed. So peaceful and no better way to watch the sunrise over the French countryside.
No photos of us in the balloon because as soon as the eight of us crawled inside, we lifted off and after we landed, we were asked to immediately disembark.
We helped pack it all back onto the trailer.
This is an elementary video, but it accurately depicts our experience. Go here to view full screen.
A hot air balloon pilot is also called an aeronaut. Go here to view full screen.
For older students: “This is the true story of one child, Peter Wetzel, and his family, as they risk their lives for the hope of freedom in a daring escape from East Germany via a handmade hot air balloon in 1979.” (Amazon)
Thanks to Starrmatica for the following two book suggestions:
“John Jeffries, an Englishman, and his pilot, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a Frenchman, want to be the first. On January 7, 1785, they set out to cross the English Channel to France in a balloon.” (Amazon)
“More than a century before the Wright Brothers invented their plane, Joseph and Étienne Montgolfier sent a flying machine into the skies—a hot-air balloon with three animals in the basket.” (Amazon)
It is on my bucket list to visit the Alburquerque International Balloon Fiesta. Go here to view full screen.
It’s challenging to capture photos of chipmunks. Squirrels will stop and eat, but chipmunks always seem to be on the run! I accidently cornered this chipmunk, and quickly snapped some photos before he determined which direction to best scamper off. Read more about chipmunks here.
Facts about Chipmunks
Chipmunks are the smallest member of the squirrel family.
Underground burrows, a chipmunk’s home, can be as long as 30 feet.
Chipmunks are rodents, like rats, mice, squirrels, and porcupines, which means they have front teeth that continue to grow. It is the largest order of mammals.
Solitary, they interact very little with other chipmunks.
Many predators eat them, but they are quick escape artists.
Stretchy cheek pouches allow these omnivores to store food as they forage.
Young leave their mothers after two months and dig their own tunnels.
I rarely see grasshoppers on my hikes, so I was surprised to find these sitting along a railing at the Chattahoochee Nature Center. After research, I believe these are differential grasshoppers. Read here to learn more.
Joro spiders, an invasive species from Eastern Asia, made their appearance in Georgia in 2014. Adult females lay egg sacs containing hundreds of eggs between September and November and then die with the onset of freezing temperatures. Although the spiderlings hatch in the spring, they reach their mature size (three to four inches) by fall.
Their multi-dimensional webs weave the branches of the woodlands together.
One or more male Joro spiders may join the larger, more colorful female in her web.
Watch this humorous book full screen here. It’s a great mentor text to introduce journal writing.
I made these cards for my K and PreK scientists to sequence the Itsy-Bitsy Spider song. Such a soft introduction to the water cycle.
The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout.
Down came the rain and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain,
And the the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again
Happened upon a Southern green stink bug on a hike. Brown marmorated stink bugs are common in Georgia, but I was unfamiliar with this handsome species. Stink bugs are an invasive pest, cause severe damage to food crops, and can invade homes to keep warm during winter months. They were first observed in the United States during the 1990s. Learn more about stink bugs here. Read about the green stink bug here.
Notice how the raindrop magnifies the design on the shield. Go here for a related post.
Animals have defense mechanisms to protect themselves from predators. Go here to view this informative video full screen. What other animals excrete an odor from their bodies for protection?
“Vocabulary is not only a tool for communication but also a tool for comprehension and knowledge acquisition.” (Oxford Learning) Considerable research indicates a powerful correlation between the early acquisition of vocabulary and success in school.
I do love picture books, and The Keeper of Wild Words is my new favorite! The author, Brooke Smith, was inspired to write her bock when she discovered that over 100 words from the natural world, such as blackberries, minnows, and acorn, were removed from the Oxford Junior Dictionary because the publishers no longer felt the words were relevant for today’s children.
The sweet relationship between a grandmother and her granddaughter is celebrated as they search for wild words together.
Let’s help preserve these words! Go for a walk with your family or students and identify the natural things you find or create a scavenger hunt with specific living and nonliving things to identify outdoors. Take photos and assemble a book with labels.
Go here to view this delightful story about the power of words full screen.
Go here to watch a story that addresses the challenges some children encounter with reading.
Reading to your children from a very young age is an important way to introduce new vocabulary. Time for read alouds in classrooms should never be sacrificed for other activities. It is paramount that children hear the rhythm and structure of language.
It has been my intention over the last month to capture photos of caterpillars, and August and September are the best months to do just that. I was rewarded with a cornucopia of finds! My daughter thinks I am a caterpillar whisperer.
Be cautious handling any caterpillar! Some can cause serious infections and rashes. Especially warn children not to handle fuzzy caterpillars with bristles. I believe this caterpillar is the venomous American dagger caterpillar. There are five projecting black barbs.
Caterpillars are the larval stage of butterflies and moths. This stage usually last two weeks to one month.
After spending their days eating and growing, a butterfly caterpillar will form a chrysalis and a moth caterpillar a cocoon. (Yes, they really are very hungry caterpillars!)
Six small eyes arranged in a semicircle are on each side of its head.
Well-developed jaws (mandibles) allow them to easily tear off leaves and chop them into small pieces.
Setae and antennae help the caterpillar sense its surroundings.
A caterpillar has six true legs on its thorax. Prolegs or false legs are on the abdomen and help them grasp objects.
As they grow and exoskeletons become too tight, they will molt.
Spiracles, breathing pores, are on each side of their bodies.
Caterpillars utilize camouflage, mimicry, venomous hairs, or a bright warning color to protect themselves from predators.
Order caterpillars through Insect Lore and watch them move through metamorphosis. “Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.” A great reminder for us all!!
Advanced vocabulary and many examples of alliteration fill the pages. Go to YouTube to listen here.
Use the following picture book to discuss elements that are real and those that are make-believe. Go here to watch full screen.
To watch full screen, go here. A great mentor text to introduce dialogue or identify character traits. Did the caterpillar become a butterfly or a moth? How do you know?
A flaming sunset, a crimson fall tree, or morning mist rising from a pond easily grab our attention, but there are many “tiny, perfect things” around us that aren’t as obvious. With closer inspection, you will be amazing at the patterns and complexity. After watching the video for inspiration, encourage your young scientists to discover the splendor in the small living things around you. Take photos and make your own book or slideshow. What do you notice and wonder?
