Science: Tadpoles in the marsh

The girls have been talking about tadpoles for weeks.

Well, they finally got their opportunity to wade in the marsh land near a local park and get their fill of tadpoles. 

Unfortunately, we were not able to collect them and bring them home to view their double life:  tadpole to frog/toad.

But there is always next year!

Our new little friends ! They had their tails.

What we learned about tadpole care:

1. Place the tadpole in a small aquarium - only 5 to 6 in a 1-gallon container
2. Use the pond water or spring water 
3. Tear some lettuce or spinach leaves into pieces (boil them one minute) 
4. Add a pinch of cornmeal
5. Once the tadpoles grow legs, add a small piece of liver or a bit of hard-cooked egg yolk, along with the cornmeal and other foods
6. Change their water daily (they make a lot of waste)
7. As they grow legs, they will need to climb out of the water - they are ready to breathe air
8. Add lily pads, floating wood or rocks to the aquarium
9. When they have four legs, they are ready for land - it's best to release them now!

Books we enjoyed this week:

 

Our School Days with Flying Creatures

In March, we started our study with Apologia's Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day.  We have been learning about flying insects. 

On March 31st, we went on a field trip to the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus to learn all about butterflies (Lepidoptera).  We held lots of pretty butterflies and viewed many new ones hatching from their chrysalis stage. 

We bought a caterpillar and just seven days later it turned into a chrysalis overnight.  
Our Painted Lady Butterfly hatched on April 18th.


Throughout our study, the girls learned all about butterflies, skippers and moths.  Now they know how to identify the difference between the three when they catch them in our yard. 

The easiest way to determine the difference is their antennae:

• Skippers have a "J" shape

• Moths have a feathery look

• Butterflies have a swollen end  

 

   


The girls had fun making sugar water for it to drink.






Join us on our next adventure as we learn fascinating facts about more insects!

Download N Go Expedition Australia

I have always loved the idea of unit studies, especially those that incorporate multi-level teaching.  Planning lessons is time consuming for a homechool mom, but Amanda Bennett has done the work for me!


I found this Download N Go Expedition Australia unit to be "a busy homeschool moms friend".  The Amanda Bennett unit is packed full of hands-on learning adventures for children grades K - 4.  This is "not just another unit study".  It offers very full daily lesson plans for one week (or two if you like) along with notebooking and lapbooking activities.


Each child completes a personal lapbook during their adventure to Australia.  The notebooking pages offer enjoyable and colorful graphics.  I found this to stimulate my visual learners as well as hold their interest throughout the study.


You can download lessons for the Download N Go unit in an instant from your own personal computer!  You do not have to wait on a mail order, hoping it will arrive in time for your study.  The embedded hyperlinks instantly connect you to videos, online games and informative web sites.  What a time save for mom!  It includes a great list of books you may find from your local library to enrich your study, but they are not required.


The first day you learn about continents and where Australia is on the globe. Then each day's study includes the following:

• Research a geographic feature - Great Victorian desert, Great Barrier Reef
• Australian word of the day - Barbie, fair dinkum
• An Australian animal of the day  - kangaroo, wombat and more
• Weather in each Australian city as compared to where you live
• Measure the distance between where you live to a particular Australian city
• Draw pictures, internet resources and spelling / vocabulary words

As your child explores and investigates Australia, they are also creating and building a life-long memory - the lapbook! 


The Download N Go units are a perfect fit for my family!  For the price, the time it saves me in preparing my own units, and the instant ease of implementation, I will definitely be adding more units in our studies this coming year.


Pricing: $7.95 each (less as you buy more units)
Age:  K - 4th grades
Studies include: history, geography, reading, science, spelling, vocabulary, writing, art and more!
Supplies needed: notebook, file folders (or card stock), art supplies and access to a computer


Visit Amanda Bennett's Download N Go website at http://downloadngo.com/index.php Her other unit studies are available at http://www.unitstudy.com/