Early Spring Flowers - Nature Study and Art Project

Our Pansy Study and Early Spring Flowers Challenge

What a splendid time to be out in the garden! Our neighborhood is coming alive with spring blossoms and the birds are flocking to our feeders in record numbers. We have an abundance of house finches this year and they vary in color from light pink to purple to almost orange. Amazing display of creation!



The early spring bulbs are all up and many are blooming. The daffodils and the grape hyacinth are blazing with color. The forsythia is starting to blossom and the lavender has new flowers for our bees to buzz in. The tulips and iris are all up but just showing lots of green leaves so far.



We arranged dozens of flowers in the house and our kitchen table is so cheerful and happy. I got out all my vases and dusted them off for the season. I seem to collect pretty vases and I love it even more when they don't match exactly. Even my hubby had a smile on his face when he spied the colorful flowers on the table.



So our pansy study consisted mostly of admiring them and recreating them in artwork since we have studied them closely in the past. Mr. B and I had pansy art time on a rainy afternoon. There really is no better way to make yourself examine a subject better than to apply your attention to an art project. Slowing down to discover the shapes, form, and patterns makes a big impression.



Mr. B always chooses to work with markers if given the choice but I am still working on feeling comfortable with acrylics. I think these pansy creations are going to be framed and hung in my bathroom vanity area. I have a small collection of floral artwork done by children there already so it will be a perfect fit.


I played around with the acrylics and a small canvas panel I had from Michaels. I tried not to take myself too seriously and just have fun. Art therapy....even for moms.

So now we are officially finished with the More Nature Study Book 2 - Winter 2012 challenges and we will be going over a few of the suggested Charlotte Mason Exam Questions that are included in the ebook. The thing about Charlotte Mason style questions is that they ask the child to tell back in some way what they know about a topic and never to find out what they don't know. I do not grade these assignments and look at them as a way for Mr. B to review what we learned and enjoy a little more time together discussing things that are fresh in our minds. I recommend you give it a try if you have the More Nature Study ebook and see how it goes.

Don't forget to send me your Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival entries directly since the carnival website is not working.
harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com

As a reminder, we will be starting the new More Nature Study Book 3 - Spring Splendor series on March 23, 2012. Just in time for the first days of spring! I look forward to another season of nature study with all of you.

Winter Wonder Follow-Up Nature Study

Remember back to when we started the Winter Wonder series of challenges? Your child filled out the questionnaire and came up with some things they were interested in learning about during this season of nature study. Pull that notebook page out and see if you have been able to find answers to your child's questions. (Note: notebook page is in the ebook.)

Also, see if you were able to complete the three winter activities yet. If not, make some plans or add it to your Winter 2013 list. Nature study is something you can build on from year to year or maybe you can complete the activity in an up-coming season.

How did we do as a family?
We were able to find answers to all three questions and completed two of the three activities Mr. B asked to do during the winter season. One of the things he wanted to do was to hike to the river and we did that five times since we had such wonderfully mild weather during our winter. The best part of it was that we actually discovered two new hiking trails within ten minutes of our house so we are going to have a whole year of exploring as we watch the seasons change along these unfamiliar pathways. Just the thing to spark new discoveries and new subjects for nature study!

I encourage you to follow up on any interest and keep asking questions. There will be an opportunity to do this same exercise in with the Spring Splendor series of Outdoor Hour Challenges.

OHC More Nature Study Book 2 - Pansy

The last of the winter challenges has arrived with this week's study of pansies. Our family has enjoyed our potted pansies all winter long and now their color is brilliant and happy. I invite you to find some of your own pansies to plant in your garden or in a container to make this an up close and personal flower study.

More Nature Study Book #2
Flower Study - Pansy

Inside Preparation Work:

1. Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 555-558 (Lesson 152). Pansies are a flower children love and once you point out the “face” in the flower they will never forget this lesson. Highlight information as you read the narrative so that you can acquaint your child with the details of this pretty flower. 
2. See if you can find some pansies at your local garden center to purchase and bring home for observations this week as part of your nature study time. 
3. Watch these videos for good information on growing pansies: Learning About Pansies. Planting Pansies. 
4. Advanced preparation: Read the Wikipedia article on pansies.

Outdoor Hour Time:

1. If you were able to purchase some pansies, use your outdoor time to plant them in your garden or in a container. Follow the directions that come with your pansy for proper placement in the garden. 
2. Observe your pansy using the suggestions in Lesson 152. For younger students you should complete suggestion #1. For older students you can add as many of the other ideas as you have time. 
3. If you do not have a pansy to observe, spend your outdoor time looking at any spring flowers you have available. See this past challenge for observation ideas: Early Spring Flowers: Tulips, Daffodils, and Crocus. 

Follow-Up Activity:

1. The pansy is a wonderful flower to watercolor in your nature journal. Get out the paints and let your children give it a try. You can use watercolor paper cut to the right size to fit in your journal or notebook if you don’t want to watercolor directly onto the journal paper. 
2. Sketch your pansy, write a description of your pansy just like a scientist would do in a journal, and then use your words to make a pansy poem. You can copy your poem to fresh paper and decorate it for your nature journal. Ebook users: Complete the notebook page included in the ebook and/or the coloring page.
3. Advanced follow-up: Use the questions from Lesson 152 to summarize your pansy observations (Ebook users: notebook page provided).  

Make sure to sketch your flower and label its parts. You may find these two pages helpful: Pansy Flowers and Standard Flower. You can also press a pansy and then include it in your nature journal. You can see my short video tutorial: How To Make a Flower Press for ideas.




New More Nature Study Book #3 Spring is now available at a discounted price until March 23, 2012. 

Also, receive a bonus Spring Art Prints ebook with every purchase until March 31, 2012.

Magnets, Compass, and Moon Nature Study in our Neighborhood

I am going to combine two of the Outdoor Hour Challenge nature studies from the More Nature Study Book 2 series since we have been working on them over the last few weeks a little at a time. The topics have provided plenty to talk about during our walks and rambles around the neighborhood.

Moon Names and  Magnets and Compass

The compass directions were easy to determine in our yard after years of observation of sunrises and sunsets. We decided to test our sense of direction as we walked our regular trails and found a map of our local area to use as a starting point.

I will readily admit that I have a terrible sense of direction and live in a family of men who seem to never lose their way. This was a good exercise for me in particular. We would walk to a certain point and then try to determine north and south. We had the small map of the area in our pocket and we would check the actual direction after we made our guesses. I am happy to report that I have gained some skill in determining direction. :)


The moon has also been a subject of discussion and observation since it has been visible in the afternoons as well as in the evenings. Tonight it is HUGE in the twilight sky and we even saw Jupiter and Venus while we out there looking (opposite parts of the sky). You can read about them here: This Week's Sky at a Glance.

Mr. B and I decided on our choice of names for the March full moon (instead of the official Full Worm Moon).

• Radiant Moon (Mr. B's choice)
• Manzanita Moon (my choice)

The manzanita trees are bursting out in bloom over the last week so I picked that as the full moon name. The blossoms are so delicate and pick and almost look like ornaments that someone has strung on the branches.



Here is a photo from a previous year with a close-up of the delicate pink blossoms.

Do you want to know something? Even though it pains me sometimes to have a challenge to complete each week....keeping myself accountable on the blog.....I realize that if we didn't have a focus of some sort we would miss out on some really wonderful and insightful discussions and time outdoors together. Even when we just complete the preparation and then the outdoor time with no real follow-up we are gaining something extra from our Outdoor Hour. If nothing else, it gives me an activity to enjoy alongside my teenage son.

We have one more challenge to go in the More Nature Study Book 2 series - Pansies! I am really looking forward to this last study of the season and I am planning on a watercolor project for me and hopefully Mr. B will join me.

I almost forgot to mention that we acquired some rare earth magnets for a project my husband is working on in the shop. We highly recommend these for advanced magnet work and for some awesome fun too. The men are trying to make a magnetic motor...a motor that runs continuously on magnetic power. It keeps them out of trouble. :)

Quartz Study - Rock Collecting Gone Crazy

Our quartz study has stretched on for weeks. We have had numerous rock collecting hikes and each time we come home we develop new questions to be answered. The supply of quartz in our area is seemingly endless. Once your eye starts to look for it...you see it everywhere.

Our family lives in the gold country of California. The gold rush started practically in our backyard. We drive by the American River every day...as the crow flies it is about 3 miles from our house. This area is full of old gold mines and many people still today make a living by mining and panning for gold (or using a sluice box). Where there is gold, there is quartz.


We collected milky quartz for the most part at the river, along with a variety of other "pretty" rocks. I have a special place for pretty rocks in my heart. It may be the hunting for them or the spotting of a particularly nice rock that keeps me coming back for more.

Mr. A shares my love of rocks and we enjoyed an afternoon this week at the river with the Kona dog. Kona likes sticks more than rocks so we occupied her with fetching sticks while we looked for something interesting along the rocky shore.


The sound of rushing water always seems to welcome a good thoughtful sit..even on an uncomfortable rock. This day we sat and enjoyed the warmth of the sun after a freezing morning. Our jackets were slipped off on the hike back to the car which was nice. 

At home we started off with a magnifying lens, looking carefully at the surface of each rock. This can quite addictive once you get started and there really is a lot to see.



We noticed a colorful collection of sand on the surface of one rock and we had the bright idea to place it on a slide and look at it under the microscope.




We are still not sure if the shiny gold is actually gold or pyrite....probably pyrite flakes.


We placed a little sand on a microscope slide...our rocks all had small amounts clinging to the nooks and crannies.


Now this is where the study becomes even more interesting! We spent the next hour or so taking turns finding things on the slides to share with each other. It was like discovering a new dimension.

We now have a larger collection of quartz and pretty rocks, a growing understanding of what "sand" is after looking at it under the microscope, and an appreciation that we don't know everything about everything. :)


Amazing world down there...who would have thought?


It is not too late to do your own study of quartz using the Outdoor Hour Challenge. You may be as amazed as we were.

OHC More Nature Study Book 2 - Moon and Moon Names

 
More Nature Study Book #2 
Moon and Moon Names  

Inside Preparation Work:

1. Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 855-859 (Lesson 232). Read for your own information only because this week we are just going to focus on enjoying the moon and learning some of the history of the full moon names. 
2. Read this page on Full Moon Names and see what March’s moon name means. 
3. If you have a blog or website, you can add a lunar phase widget to keep up to date. 
4. YouTube video: Moon phases (kid friendly) 

Outdoor Hour Time:

1. Spend part of your Outdoor Hour time in the evenings looking at the moon. (Full Moon March 8, 2012) Have your child use words to describe what they see in the winter sky. If you have binoculars, make sure to bring those out with you and take turns looking at the moon. 
2. As an alternative, bundle up and go outdoors for this challenge in the evening when it is dark. Have a flashlight for each person as you walk to a safe, predetermined spot (even within your backyard). Turn off the flashlight and allow time for your eyes to adjust. Make some observations. This might be a great activity to do when there is a full moon and then again when there is a new moon. 
3. Advanced Study: Keep a record of your moon observations. The Handbook of Nature Study suggests, “Have the pupils observe the moon as often as possible for a month, beginning with the full moon.” 

Follow-Up Activities:

1. Talk about your experiences outdoors at night. Record your moon and nighttime observations. You can sketch the full moon with colored pencils or watercolors. View these moon nature journals as examples to get started: Just Before the Full Moon, Waning Sturgeon Moon, Full Worm Moon. These should give your child an idea of how to show the moon and a setting. 
2.  Ebook Users: After viewing the moon or looking at the Mood Words Images page included in the ebook, complete the Moon Words notebook page. Use your moon words and observations to make up a new full moon name. Be sure to record you name for this full moon on the notebook page or in your nature journal. 
3. Advanced Study: Keep a moon journal for a complete lunar cycle (full moon to full moon). Make as many moon sketches as you can during this month to document the lunar cycle. Record your observations in your nature journal. Ebook users: Use the Moon Journal notebook page from the ebook.

Additional Links: 

• Oreo Cookie Phases of the Moon (Uses cookies to explain the different phases!) If you scroll to the bottom there is a link to a printable notebook page. 
• Moon phases: Simple illustrations and glossary of moon vocabulary. 
• Previous Winter Moon Challenge: Winter Sky and Stars. 

You can see how our family completed this challenge here in this entry:
 Magnets, Compass, and Moon Names.

Books for your shelf!

Learning About Wool - More Nature Study

More Nature Study Book 2 - Sheep/Wool Study

Since we don't have access to a sheep to observe up close, we opted to study wool instead. Mr. B was not all that excited about this particular challenge but once we started we had some fun with it. We did notice some sheep in a pasture over the weekend but that was about as close as we got to a real sheep.

• We started off with the video on YouTube showing how wool is made and we also watched a few videos on shearing sheep. This led to a few more videos on spinning yarn from the wool roving. Now we have more of an appreciation for the wool yarn that goes into our hats and scarves. 
• With new interest, Mr. B completed his research into the Artiodactyla order and Bovidae family of animals, finishing off with a written narration of his investigation. Links found in the original challenge. If you want an interesting discussion, try to find some information online that discusses the Artiodactyla order and whales. It led to some interesting thoughts in our home. (You can Google "Cetartiodactyla".)
• Lastly we looked at wool under the microscope...amazing to see up close. I encourage you to give it a try if you have a microscope. 

Sometimes our nature study is not of the outdoor variety but I knew that when I included sheep in this series of challenges. We chose a rainy day to complete this study and it was fun to think about wool when we were out on our snowshoe hike recently. Nature study can connect many real life experiences if we give it a chance. I look forward to seeing if any other families took this challenge and found a way to make it successful with their family.

If you want to look at other mammal using the Outdoor Hour Challenges, you can find a list here on this page: Outdoor Hour Challenges - Mammals 

You may also be interested in another Winter Mammal Challenge found here on the Handbook of Nature Study.

Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival - January Newsletter Edition

The end of January is already here! This has been a very fast moving month with weather that was very conducive to getting outdoors for nature study...at least in our part of the world. There is a wonderful mix of winter nature study blog entries for this carnival and I hope you can make some time to visit each entry and be encouraged. I gleaned some good ideas and loved seeing all the children getting outside for nature walks, bird watching, twig gathering, and have a good time!

Thank you to everyone who participated in this edition of the carnival.

Our Winter Window Garden - Cactus

Winter Wonder
Shirley Ann writes about their Winter Wonder Silent Nature Walk on her blog Under An English Sky. She does a wonderful job documenting their experience in words and pictures.

Another Winter Weather Walk from Angie at Petra School finds its way to the carnival for this edition. She includes their journal pages which demonstrate that everyone can follow-up in a way that fits their personality.

Winter Wonder and Weather Walk shows how Tricia and her family completed this challenge. I loved seeing nature study at different age levels and hearing why worms are pink. :)

Julie from The Homeschool Balancing Act shares their version of the Winter Wonder challenge with Winter Walk with Nature in California. It sounds like they had a great bird day!

Kelsey has combined their Winter Wonder walk and their Chickadee study into one entry: Winter Hike. She always has such great images of their outdoor time and this entry doesn't disappoint.

Janet from Across the Page has submitted their Winter Walking: Tracks and Birds entry for your delight. It is jammed with birds, tracks of all kinds, and animals too....you will want to share this one with your children. They also share their nature journals for your inspiration.

Diana shares their Winter Weather - Silent Nature Walk entry with carnival readers. She has written such a creative entry showing all the natural and man-made things they observed during their outdoor time. Thanks Diana.

Barbara from Schoolhouse on the Prairie recorded their Silent Winter Weather Walk and I invite you to click over and read how many interesting things they found on their walk. Don't miss the hawk photo!

Our Backyard Resident Hummingbird

Winter Bird - Chickadee
Makita from Academia Celestia shares their family Chestnut-backed Chickadee study as part of the carnival. Don't miss seeing their chickadee artwork from the chickadee pastel tutorial.

Shirley Anne shares their UK version of the chickadee study with some wonderful research information and images. Check out their Coal-tit and see if it doesn't look like the Black-capped chickadee: Under An English Sky- Chickadee/Coal Tit.

Angie has put together their Winter Bird Study on her blog Petra School. Their family spent some time observing and researching one of their Winter Wonder questions, "Why do the birds only hop and never walk?" Excellent entry full of information and images of their feeder birds. Thanks for sharing your research!

Julie from the Homeschool Balancing Act shares their Winter Bird and Twigs entry in this edition of the carnival.  Her son proclaimed it the "best day of his life". That must have been some great outdoor time! They also realize that there is a lot to know about twigs.

Tricia from Hodgepodge submits their family's Backyard Birds in Winter entry for you to enjoy. She captured quite a few of their feeder birds and their extra activities too.

Diana from Homeschool Review and Crafting Too wrote about their Chickadee Study...they were able to consult a local nature center to find out which species of chickadees live in their area. This is a great idea. 

Winter Weeds and a Sweet Pea

Winter Tree -Twigs
Zonnah is sharing their Twigs Entry with carnival readers this time around. Her son was a more than willing participant and we even get a glimpse at his nature journal.

Tricia and her family treat us to their Twigs Nature Study entry showing us that this opening your child's eyes to the world around them gives them a special sort of vision. I also love the way her son shares that twigs are also useful for playing in rain puddles. Perfect.

Shirley Ann shares their Twiggy Challenge on her blog Under An English Sky.  Make sure to check out her additional links for some resources you may be able to use.

Our Sharp-shinned Hawk - Verified by Cornell University

Potpourri
Nicole from One Hook Wonder has already completed their Gall Study for carnival readers. This is an awesome entry! Nicole also has submitted their Winter Cattail Study . She does a great job showing the comparison between summer and winter cattails. Makes me want to study cattails again!

Bethany shares their Nature Study with a Naturalist entry from their blog Little Homeschool Blessings. They share photos of many of the interesting things they discovered in their little woods.

Makita has a written and entry sharing their over-wintering ladybugs: Ladybugs, Ladybugs, Ladybugs.  Read her entry and learn a little about this interesting place...shhh it is a secret place.

Kim shares their Winter Bird Feeding entry with carnival readers. Lots of great information and plenty of ideas to share. 

Janet from Across the Page has got a wonderful idea in her entry: Back Yard Bulletin. Check out their family nature newsletter!

Robin from Harris Homeschool shares their Tracks in the Snow. She did a great job of capturing a tough subject.

Amy from Hope is the Word made the effort to get outdoors and enjoy the fresh air. You can read their account A January Jaunt and be inspired to get outside with your family soon.



See you all next month! Remember that February's Newsletter link will be for subscribers of the blog only. You will need to subscribe by entering your email address in the subscription box on the sidebar of the blog.


Make sure to read next Monday's entry. I am linking up with five other bloggers for a nature notebook event. We will each have a free printable to encourage your winter nature study. Another great reason to subscribe to this blog...you won't miss a single entry!

Winter Twigs - Noticing the Details, Training Our Eyes

Notebook Page from More Nature Study Book #2

This was the study I was most interested in when I wrote the new More Nature Study ebook. It truly is something we have never studied before and I was interested to see what we would learn.

We chose three of our backyard trees to collect twigs from: sweet gum, white birch, and pear. Later we added a twig from our silver maple and a few branches from our forsythia bushes. All week I have been enjoying just looking at them in the vases...still not taking the time to do the study.

Well, the time finally came to actually do the formal study after we had done lots of casual observations. We pulled out the new ebook, printed off the notebook pages, gathered our tree field guide, and fired up the internet. I love doing nature study with older kids since they can ask and then answer many of their own questions with the tools we have at our disposal.

Here are some of our observations:

1. Mr. A cut the twigs with his knife so we could observe the shape of the pith inside. They were all round inside.
2. Each of the twigs had different shaped terminal buds, with completely different colors.
3. We have never noticed the leaf scars before and now we know what to look for.
4. The lenticels on each twig were very different. Now we can use this observation to identify a tree since we know what we are looking for.

Stay Tuned for a Bud Study in the new Spring Ebook 3/5/12

This study has brought into focus once again the design of each living thing around us. Who would have thought that you could identify a tree by looking at its twigs and buds? I enjoyed getting to know how to use a new tool with the Winter Tree Finder guide. All of us are going to look at twigs with a new eye now and some new vocabulary as well. This study would be a perfect supplement to a high school biology course.

If you are looking for more winter tree study ideas, you can click over to Winter Series Challenge #2.



We were sitting outside in the warm afternoon sunshine and noticed that the silver maple has burst open its buds. We then noticed that there were probably a hundred bees buzzing in the top of the tree. Is it early for the bees to be so busy in the trees? I'm not sure. This is where a nature journal record is valuable. Stay tuned next week for a free printable to keep track of your seasonal "firsts".

OHC More Nature Study Book 2 - Sheep/Wool

More Nature Study Book 2
Sheep and Wool Study

Inside Preparation Work: 
1. Read pages 270-274 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 66). Since most of us do not have access to a real sheep to study up close, use this information as preparation for any future encounters with sheep. For this challenge you can spend time learning about how man uses the sheep’s wool to make fabric. Make sure to have at least one item made of wool for the children to observe (or a ball of wool yarn will work as well).
2. View these videos on YouTube.com: Sheep Dogs in Training and How It Is Made-Wool.

Outdoor Hour Time: 
If you have the ability to observe a real sheep and make direct observations, this is the best way to learn about sheep. If you don’t have access to sheep, there are several alternative ideas.
1. Take a walk outdoors wearing a wool hat, sweater, mittens, coat, or scarf. Enjoy the warmth and be grateful for sheep.
2. Observe another mammal and compare it to the sheep: size, fur/hair/wool, feet, teeth, eyes, tail.

Follow-Up Activity: 
1. Spend a few minutes after your outdoor time to review your experience. If you found anything of interest, make sure to talk about it and look up any additional information in the Handbook of Nature Study or at your next library visit.
2. View wool and hair with a hand lens. You can sketch what you see in your nature journal or on the back of the sheep notebook page. Ebook users: Complete the sheep notebook page with information from the Handbook of Nature Study.



3. Advanced study: The Handbook of Nature Study suggests writing about the method by which wool is made into cloth. Research at the library or on the internet and then give a summary.
4. Advanced study: Research the Artiodactyla order and Bovidae family of mammals (links below). Use resources from your public library or the internet.






Additional Links: 

• Sheep Notebook Page on Homeschool Share 
• Sheep coloring pages to print 
• Wikipedia articles: Sheep, Artiodactyla and Bovidae. (Please note: All Wikipedia articles have references to evolution.) 
• Additional sheep information (child friendly): All About Sheep For Kids 

Make sure to share your January blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival.

You can see our family study here: Wool Study. 

OHC More Nature Study Book 2 - Twigs

"Many times children are familiar with trees in spring, summer, and autumn but they have no knowledge of them in winter; yet trees in winter give much delight to those who know them as they do in summer. Oftentimes I have gone out on a winter day with my botany can and filled it with twigs for the pleasure that the colors and form gave me.
Home Nature-Study Course, Cornell University 1906

More Nature Study Book #2
Winter Tree Study - Twigs


Inside Preparation Work: 
1. Read the Tree Study section staring on page 623 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 172). Pay special attention to #3 in the section on Winter Work. Take note of the lesson’s observation suggestions to keep during your nature study of winter twigs. You may wish to read the links in the follow-up activity and the additional links listed below before you go outdoors so you will be equipped with some vocabulary to use casually during your observations.
2. Optional reading if you have access to a willow tree: Read Lesson 179 in the Handbook of Nature Study (starting on page 654). Use the ideas in the lesson to study willow twigs and buds.

Advanced Study Option

Outdoor Hour Time: 
1. Outdoor time this week should include a few minutes gathering twigs. Select twigs from three different trees to take indoors for closer observation. It would be helpful to know the names of the trees you collect your twigs from but not necessary. We came inside and marked each twig with little name tags This is primarily a challenge about comparing and contrasting twigs from various trees.
2. Advanced activity: Tie a string on a twig attached to a tree. Observe and record in your nature journal the twig’s changes for a few months.

Follow-Up Activity:
1. Use the questions from Lesson 172 to get your child started making observations for each of the three twigs you collected (or just one twig for younger children). Make sure to use your sense of sight, smell, and touch to make careful observations. Record your thoughts in your nature journal or on the notebook page (ebook users only).
2. Place your three twigs on a table. How are they different? Look at size, shape, arrangement of the buds, as well as the size or shape of the buds. Compare two buds on the same twig. Can you see the leaf scars where the leaf dropped off?
3. The main parts of the twig in winter are the buds, leaf scars, and lenticels. Sketch your twigs in your nature journal or on the notebook page, drawing everything you see and labeling the parts neatly.
4. Advanced follow-up: Complete the Twig Study notebook page (ebook users). Dissect a bud from your twig and then record your observations.

Additional Websites: 

Twig vocabulary 

Structure of a twig

An additional winter tree study challenge can be found here: Winter Tree Study (2010)
Make sure to share your January blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival.

You can view our twig study here: Winter Twigs - Training Our Eyes.