OHC Blog Carnival - September Newsletter Edition

This has been a very busy month around the Handbook of Nature Study blog. Not only with a new ebook and new series of Outdoor Hour Challenges but I got a completely new blog design. I was aiming at making the navigation easier for new readers and to have all the challenges, ebooks, free stuff, and nature journal ideas all organized for ease of use. There are two places to look for challenges now on the blog: Tabs at the top are grouped by season and buttons on the sidebar by topic. I think the blog turned out so much better than I ever imagined. (Thanks go to Emily Abramson from PolkaDotPixels.com....a dream to work with!) She even made us a pretty new carnival button...feel free to grab and link.

This blog carnival is so filled with outdoor goodness that it makes me smile from my top of my head all the way to my toes. You are in for a real treat this month. I know I pretty much say that every month but honestly, you all blew me away with your wonderful studies and the awesome nature journal pages are something we can all be inspired by as we move along the road with our nature study. Take a deep breath and dive into this edition of the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival.
(If I missed your entry, please email me or leave a comment and I will add it ASAP. This was a huge carnival.)

Photo courtesy of OHC participant: Nicole at One Hook Wonder

Milkweed (and other Fall Blooming Flowers)
Nicole and her children were able to observe some Magical Milkweed for this challenge. She shares some awesome images of their pods and seeds (see above for an example). Thank you so much for sharing your OHC. Nicole also submitted their Summer Wildflowers entry which includes some thistles!


Now that you are all warmed up with the milkweed pods...check out Ellen's entry: Milkweed Update! She shares their pods and their magnificent nature journals. Don't miss the images in this entry. 

Heather from Kingdom Arrows shares their Autumn Outdoor Hour Challenge...they didn't find milkweed but a jungle of other weeds provided some outdoor enjoyment. 


Kim from Tolle Lege Christian Academy writes about their Milkweed Study with milkweed right in their own yard. I loved seeing the colorful blossoms and the many insects they observed during their outdoor time. 


Angie and her boys didn't find milkweed either but they write about their Wildflower Study as part of this challenge. I love that Angie adapted the notebook page to fit their study and their display of Oregon wildflowers.  


Jennifer and her daughter share their September Nature Study with goldenrod, thistle, and Queen Anne's Lace. Wonderful entry showing their nature study finds and notebook page. 


Janet from Across the Page has written and submitted an entry sharing the culmination of their Monarch Study which goes hand in hand with a milkweed study. Please don't miss seeing her entry Monarch Madness. I was fascinated with their study and I highly recommend reading her ten year old's journal: Watching Peeper.

Here is another family that was able to observe the milkweed plant, the pod and seeds, AND a monarch caterpillar and butterfly. Read Monica's entry on her blog Discover Their Gifts: Our Nature Study: Milkweed and Monarch.
 
Susan from Learning All The Time didn't have any milkweed but they did have asters which were an alternate study from the Handbook of Nature Study suggested in this challenge. They brought in flowers to observe over time and then did their reading in the HNS. Wonderful follow up artwork too!

Taunya joins the carnival with their Know Your Own Backyard - Weeds entry.  They did their outdoor observations and then completed the notebook page from the September Newsletter. So what is a weed?



Leaf-Miners and Leaf-Rollers
Amy from Hope is The Word did a great job of documenting their Leaf-Miner/Roller investigation. They found some leaf-miners and some other interesting leaves too. They tried out the suggested nature journal entry from the September Newsletter and they turned out beautifully. You can see their nature journals above.

Angie from Petra School submitted with a smile their Leaf Miners and Leaf Rollers entry. They had trouble getting the enthusiasm up at first but with a little help from the suggested video her boys finally were interested and successful. Read her complete entry for details. 


Makita shares their Leaf-Miners and Rollers entry on their family blog Academia Celestia. They spent some time hunting for insects in two different environments and ended up with some wonderful journal pages. 

I know that Tricia (Hodgepodge Mom) titled this one Weeds, Seeds, Insect, and Signs of Fall but I think it is a great entry showing how when you start out looking for one thing, you are often led to five other interesting things as well. Thanks for sharing your adventures.  

Shirley Ann shares their Leaf Miners and Leaf Rollers entry from the UK!  They had success in finding some interesting subjects without even leaving their own garden. They even found an insect friend to observe up close and record in their nature journals.


Cobwebs
All kinds of webs and a few spiders too! This is what Zonnah writes about in this entry: Spiders and Cobwebs.

Image courtesy of OHC Participant: Tricia at Hodgepodge

Pears
Zonnah submits their family's Pear Study. It has inspired me to try a few new things....and eat more pears.

Tricia and her family spent some time looking at their pear tree, some pears, and then completing notebook pages from the More Nature Study ebook. They also completed the suggested nature journal idea from the September Newsletter. Great job! You can read their entry: Pears, Apples, and Nature Journal Art. 

Kirsty joins the carnival for this edition with their families Pear Study. She tells of their wonderful day outdoors in the autumn sunshine.  

Ellen and her children share their colorful pear study along with their very well done journals. Their entry, Double Duty, shows how they completed this challenge and then made something yummy. 

Shirley Ann adapted the pear study to fit their opportunity to pick and take a closer look at their apples. You will enjoy seeing their account of their Pear...I Mean Apple Study.

Image from OHC participant: Barbara at Schoolhouse on the Prairie

Potpourri
Barbara from Schoolhouse on the Prairie shares their Monarch butterfly tagging project: OHC #4. You are going to see some fantastic photos of them catching and recording their monarch butterflies. The photo above is from their entry....stunning images and I think we all want to know the answer to this question: How do you know if it is a male and female Monarch butterfly? You can read their OHC #5 for the answer to that question! (Photo above is from their OHC #4 entry.)

Shirley Ann and her daughters did a fantastic job on their First Nature Walk of the School Year. They went with the focus of weeds and seeds and they found two additional delights. Don't miss viewing their journals!


Julie from Homeschool Balancing Act shares their Outdoor Hour Challenge #4 Part 2 and their  Outdoor Hour Challenge #5. They took their nature study ideas along on their camping trip to Sequoia National Park. Excellent!


Last Days of Summer....Tricia and her family share their late summer outdoor time with carnival readers. Check out their collection of shells!


Kim shares their Nightshade Family and a Little Surprise entry with the carnival. They also completed an entry about Feeding The Birds (An Experiment or Two). They had one more study: Citronella Ants Go Marching. Making nature study an investigation always brings rewards.


Nadene is joining the carnival for the first time with their entry Starting Nature Study With The Handbook of Nature Study. They share their South African spring time study. Welcome to the OHC! The also completed their Spring Maple Tree Study for the OHC. Some of us are a little jealous that they are in their spring season but will enjoy watching their world change as they work through their challenges.

Kristen from Broom and Crown shares their Finding Dragonflies in the Desert entry with carnival readers. They were able to use a field guide and identify their Amberwings...check out the images to see why they are called amberwings. :)


Heather from Kingdom Arrows writes about their Canada Goose Outdoor Challenge. She shares how much her daughter's complete nature notebook page means to their family. Special story showing how nature study can bridge some important gaps for our children. Thanks Heather. 

Anne from Harvest Moon By Hand shares their two nature studies: Woolly Bears and Isabella Tiger Moths and  White Pine Tree. Their family has started out on a study of each state's bird, tree, flower, rock/gem. What a great idea! One last entry from Ann showing their Black-Capped Chickadee study...check out their journal for a fantastic idea (hint: coins)!

After a random drawing, the September Newsletter giveaway gift goes to Taunya from Taunya's Place. She will be getting the download link for the Hearts and Trees Mammals Lapbook. Congratulations and please email me to verify the email address you would like the link to be sent to: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com.


See you all next month! Remember that October's Newsletter link will be for subscribers of the blog only. Please click over to the blog and subscribe using the form on the sidebar.

Our Milkweed Study - Featuring the Pods

Showy Milkweed pod and dried flowers - Yosemite Valley 8/2011

Nature study while traveling is a gentle way to learn more about a new place, or in this case, a familiar place. Our family spends quite a bit of time at Yosemite National Park and consider it part of our big "backyard". Learning flower names, tree species, more about the mammals who live there, and how they all work together has been a layer of understanding that over time has given us much pleasure. We KNOW this place and appreciate the beauty and awesome balance found in this most special of valleys. 

As part of our milkweed study, I remembered an abundance of Showy milkweed in Yosemite Valley...whole patches in the meadows. We made a special walk along the Valley floor to observe an abundance of milkweed...it was hot in the sun but that is part of the late summer experience at Yosemite.

Here is a short video I took of some of the pods and plants.

I was wishing were not a national park so we could pick some pods to dissect....we restrained ourselves and used our eyes and camera to capture our experience instead. There is so much to learn by using your senses.

Things we found interesting to think about and research a little more:

• Insects we observed: milkweed beetle, some sort of bee/wasp
• Size of some of the pods...was it a "good" year for milkweed?
• How long until the pods burst open and shed their seeds?

Mr. B did a comparison of the milkweed seeds (images from a previous encounter and internet research), dandelion seeds (found in our backyard), and the cattail (gathered at our local patch).


We also have a small pot of milkweed on our back deck that we have been nurturing for two years. It did grow a bit better this year but still no blooms or pods. I am going to try again next year with new seeds but after reading about milkweed in the Handbook and online, we may plant them directly in the garden.


All in all, I think the new Advanced Follow-Up suggestions went rather well for this challenge.

If you would like to see another milkweed entry we did a few years ago, you can click over here:

Milkweed (Challenge #30 Weeds and Seeds)

Outdoor Hour Challenge - More Nature Study #1 Milkweed

Welcome to the first challenge in the new series of Outdoor Hour Challenges! I will be posting one new challenge each Friday and you are welcome to jump in and work through the challenges as you have time. You can post your blog entries at any time and then send me the link for the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival entry that will post on the last day of the month. I look forward to seeing your autumn nature study and sharing our family's experiences as well.

More Nature Study 
Challenge #1 Milkweed (or any other autumn blooming plant)

Where to find it? Showy Milkweed and Common Milkweed

Showy Milkweed in Bloom Earlier In The Summer

Inside Preparation Work:

• Read in the Handbook of Nature Study pages 491-493 (Lesson 128) on the milkweed plant. Glean some ideas from Lesson 128 for your milkweed observations. This plant is still in bloom in many areas of the country but even if it is past bloom, the seed pods should be present and a wonderful nature study lesson all on their own. Lesson 128 in the Handbook of Nature Study gives some interesting suggestions for observations.
• If you have a field guide for wildflowers, you may wish to look up milkweed in the index to learn more about your local milkweed.

Outdoor Hour Time:

• As part of your Outdoor Hour this week, look for milkweed to observe.
• Make observations of the flowers, the leaves, and/or the seed pod. If it is appropriate, break off a leaf or cut a stem to see the rubbery “milk”. Did you see any insects on or near your milkweed?
• If you don’t find milkweed, check for other fall blossoming wildflowers to observe like: Jewel Weed (Lesson 134), Late blooming Goldenrod (Lesson 132), or Asters (Lesson 133).

Follow-Up Activity:

• Give the opportunity for discussion of the Outdoor Hour time and the details of your milkweed or wildflowers nature study and then follow-up with a nature journal entry, a notebook page, or a coloring page (ebook users) to finish your nature study for the week. Note: If you downloaded the September 2011 Outdoor Hour Challenge Newsletter, you have a custom notebook page to use along with any weed study.
• Advanced follow-up: Compare the seeds of the milkweed, the dandelion, and/or the cattail.
• Advanced follow-up (Ebook users only): See the Upper Level notebook page for suggestions for additional research. Use the blank notebook page to record your information.

You may also be interested in taking a look at my Autumn Squidoo Lens for additional ideas across the curriculum. I list autumn themed poetry, autumn paintings by great artists, and autumn inspired music to listen to on YouTube. I have also updated the lens since last year with additional links for easy autumn nature study projects.

Yosemite National Park - Hikes and Wildflowers

Evening Primrose

Up until last year I would not have know what this flower was called but we focused on it during the Summer Series of challenges last year. There is something wonderful about being able to name a flower or tree or bird, making it a part of your world. You can own it.



We took two hikes in Yosemite while camping this week, one new and one familiar. We drove up Tioga Road towards Tuolumne Meadows and stopped at Yosemite Creek. We hiked down the creek about two miles, enjoying the sound of water running over the rocks. This creek eventually filters down to fill Yosemite Falls...the iconic waterfall that so many come to see from all over the world. This time of year it is not much more than a small stream coming over the top but come next spring it will be a torrent.



Here is another view of Yosemite Creek which right now is lined with wildflowers. We stopped and took a break sitting on rocks as we took in the sights and sounds of the wilderness. We only saw two other people hiking on this trail the whole afternoon we were out there. It is an amazing experience to have this spot of the wild all to yourself.



Well, unless you count the insects. These Ranger's buttons had a variety of insects enjoying the summer sunshine. We couldn't name these critters but it was interesting to watch them do their work.



This trail was also home to quite a few trees that showed signs of bear scratchings. The bark on this cedar tree was roughed up by bear's claws.



I started calling these "bear curls" since they were where the bear had pulled the tree bark down making it twist into curls. Interesting? I think so.



We also spotted this HUGE fungus on the side of another tree...really high up. Can you believe the size of it? Amazing to see!



The second hike we took was to Taft Point which is off Glacier Point Road. It is a favorite hike for the boys since there are lots of boulders to climb and the view once you get to the point is incredible....and high.



Here is a shot of the boys at the railing which is right at the edge of the cliffs....sorry no photos of the view to the valley or over across the valley to Yosemite Falls since my camera batteries were both dead. I broke my camera when we were at the Grand Tetons and I now have it duct taped shut but the battery door opens up and somehow the battery drains down very fast. I am in the market for a new point and shoot.



The hike was highlighted by a slithering Rubber boa crossing the trail right in front of us. He was about 24-30 inches long and not in a very big hurry. We were able to get a really good look at him. Funny thing is we were just talking about how we never see snakes while in Yosemite and then we saw this one....weird.



Okay, so if you are not into snakes, how about a pretty wildflower? This is Monkshood and I have only seen in two places at Yosemite so I was happy to catch it in bloom. The yellow in the background is Arrowleaf groundsel.



We spent some time in the Valley walking the paths under the trees and I was on the look out for some thistles in preparation for the up-coming thistle challenge. I was pleased to find both milkweed and thistles growing right together along the trail. The thistles are in a variety of stages of life...some blooming, some going to seeds, and some getting very dry.



Guess who came along for us to observe? Mr. Dragonfly was enjoying the Bull thistles right along with us. So very pretty to look at!



Here is another insect coming to feast on the thistles...this one was very buzzy and I took a quick photo and then got out of his way.



The Showy milkweed is all producing large seed pods and we found this milkweed beetle crawling on one of the pods. These pods are amazing to see and touch...just like velvet.



So this is my new wildflower for the trip. We identified this lovely lavender flower as Sierra lessingia. We read in our field guide that Mary Curry (of Curry Village) called it Summer Lavender and I would agree with her that because it grows in such large patches in the flat spots along roads and in the valley, it looks like clouds of lavender. I love learning something new and now I can name that pretty flower that grows so profusely this time of year in the Valley.

So there you have our hikes and wildflowers, bears and beetles, dragonflies and snakes. So many things to enjoy and learn about when you get the opportunity to get to know a place....

Barb-Harmony Art Mom