Homeschool Hacks

Free Spring Nature Walk Scavenger Hunt PDF

by Amanda

Spring is a perfect time to get outside and enjoy the changing weather. Especially if you live in a place where winter is cold and dreary, the warmth and freshness of spring is always welcome. It can be really exciting to spend a little extra time in nature study- observing new growth, listening to streams rushing from runoff and hunting out wildflowers. That's part of the beauty of homeschooling we can spend some time outside in the sunshine enjoying Creation and actually be "doing school."

Sometimes it is hard to know how to use our nature study time. We want it to be something more directed than just wandering but we don't want it so rigid and planned out that we lose our joy. So, I have put together a Spring Nature Walk Scavenger Hunt Worksheet PDF that is designed to get you and your children outside looking for specific things in nature and to encourage you to explore nature using all of your senses. On this worksheet I have included a space to sketch something you find during your nature walk, which you can use if you have not yet started your own nature journals.

When you click on the link it will take you to a savefile.com page. Scroll to the bottom and click on the Download File button. The download should start automatically. If it doesn't start, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Download File Now.

You can find my other nature walk worksheets in the sidebar of my blog Hearts and Trees under the heading My Free Downloads.

Teaching Earth Day

Earth Day is coming up on April 22. Now is a great time to start talking about the environment and sharing activities with your kids. Here are some links that you can use for information to share with your kids.

• Earth Day Education - This page has news, a curriculum, and a virtual tour that you can use
• Environmental QuickSourse - Choose from Our Beautiful Earth, Playing My Part, or Recycling for a list of great activities that you can do.
• Earth Day theme unit from Ed Helper - A great collection of various ideas, activities, and more that you can use.
• Earth Day from family Education - A list of activities that you can get the whole family involved in.

These are just some of the great  places online that  you can draw ideas from.  Don't forget to check your local  libraries  also to see what resources they might have.

Beautiful 360 degree panoramic views that bring the world to you!

I found a wonderful website with amazing 360 degree panoramic views from all over the world. You must go check it out. Check these out-

Great Wall of China

The Colosseum

The Apollo Missions

Mt. St. Helens

Seven Wonders of the World

Arounder -index of panoramas

Enjoy!

Baking With Sunshine

This is a fun outdoor idea that kids of any age can make and enjoy. For a few other tasty ideas check out my post Science Is Sweet.

Want to teach the kids have to bake their own treats, without burning down the house? Here’s a great one for a sunny day. You’ll need:

• black construction paper
• aluminum foil
• plastic wrap
• cardboard
• an apple
• glue, scissors, tape, toothpicks, and a paper cup

Cover the cardboard smoothly in the foil and glue it down. Once the glue has dried cut out a large circle of about 5-6″ diameter. Now cut a smaller circle of the black construction paper, about 2-3″ diameter. Glue this circle in the center of the foil circle. Once the glue is dry cut a straight line from the outside of this circle to the center then fold it into a cone shape, use the tape to hold it. Push a tooth pick into the center of the cone and stick an apple slice on the toothpick. Cover the top with the plastic wrap and place the entire thing inside a paper cup. Now just set it outside in the sunshine and wait for it to cook.

The foil reflects the sun’s rays onto the black paper which heats up, the plastic wrap then traps the heat inside. And the poor apple is cooked.

Free Online Virtual Fieldtrips

I found a wonderful site with free virtual field trips!

Here is the list of all the topics-

Art Art Gallery Basilica of the National Shrine Byzantine Art Nobel e-Museum Sistine Chapel The Louvre Visit France! Fun Fireworks! Grades 4-12 Roller Coasters Online Whale Watching Geography Great Buildings Part 1 Great Buildings Part 2 Oregon Trail Virtual Antarctica: Glacier Invitation History American Presidents Ancient Egypt British Monarchy Deep Undercover! The FBI Gold Rush The Pentagon The Pentagon 2 The White House Titanic World War II Literature American Sign Language Treasure Island William Shakespeare Math Bureau of Engraving and Printing Mathematics! Music MIDI Classical Music Symphony for Kids! Western Composers Science Aeronautics Learning Laboratory Anatomy and Physiology Benjamin Franklin Forces and Weather! How Stuff Works! - Email and The Internet National Zoo Oceans Alive Sea Lions The Inside Story Submarines! Secrets and Spies!! The Human Body!

If you need me, I'll be playing on this site for the rest of the day! The boys can play learn tomorrow!

Learning While Having Fun Outside

As the weather warms up and the world begins to bloom homeschooling parents begin to rejoice. Kids that have been cooped up inside all winter can finally burst free outside and enjoy some much needed sunshine. If you want to add a little education to their rolling in the flowers here are some ideas to explore. Perfect for a warm Spring day.

• Join in the Green Hour Challenge with your kids
• Get them stared on their own Nature Journal
• Give them some seeds and help your kids start gardening
• Let them share all those wiggly bugs they find with some insect collecting
• See if they can come up with some ways to invite wildlife right into your backyard

Hopefully these ideas will inspire you and excite your kids to learn something about nature while out there enjoying it.

Read more excellent articles from Summer at Wired For Noise & Mom is Teaching.

Fun Weekend Activities

How to garden with the kids.(Parenting.com)

How to plant hanging upside down tomato plants.(Instructables.com)

Great ideas for displaying your kid's artwork.(Parents.com)

Wonderful St. Patrick's Day activities.(familyfun.com)

Rainbows on a Rainy Day

Another great idea from Family Fun magazine: Drop several drops of food coloring (multiple colors) on a sturdy, rimmed paper plate and send your kids out into the rain (works best when there is a light shower). The colors will splatter and blend, leaving your child with a beautiful work of art, a lesson in color mixing, and a bit of fun on a rainy day.

Backyard Science

James of me autem minui shares a great hack for nature-study-challenged folks who don't live close to big forests or natural waterways. In his post, Backyard Science, Dirt Cheap, James offers simple ideas, along with detailed instructions and resources, for attracting wildlife and augmenting your surroundings. Bird feeders, container ponds and gardening are just some of the topics he explores.