Hello to one and all, welcome back to the best nature program of all! Grab your rain suit, slip into your boots and tag along for a day in the lives of your Knee High Naturalists.
A misty and chilly morning welcomed us to class, urging us to celebrate and enjoy fall before the first snowflakes arrive! We spent our morning eagerly looking for any lingering bugs busy with winter preparations and talking about our favorite ways to enjoy winter with our families. While we savored every encounter with roly-poly’s and sow bugs we had, we couldn’t help getting excited thinking about sledding, snowballs, snow angels and everything else to come! We sang a lovely rendition of the Good Morning song before talking about our day and heading to the pavilion, discussing what we knew of migration before our lesson.
As we got out our snacks and lined up to wash our hands, some friends told us that lots of animals fly to warmer places during winter, one friend told us that some animals walk for their migrations and one friend even told us that lots of humans migrate to Florida during the winter! We talked about how all sorts of animals from birds and bugs to reindeer, sea turtles and whales all make migrations every year. This means that these animals leave their home to find more food, to find safe places to raise their babies and avoid bad weather! Some of our favorite birds like loons and hummingbirds, some of our ducks, geese and sandhill cranes all take to the skies and began their long journey’s to warmer places this time of year. We know that our ponds and lakes freeze during the winter and understand that it would be too hard for these animals to survive during the colder months. We’ll be excited to welcome them back in the spring!
We read a book called Owl Moon by Jane Yolen during snack today and learned how to go on an owl prowl at night in search of these mysterious birds! We listened to owl calls after the book and learned how to owl hoot—cup your hands over your mouth, begin saying, “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all?” Soon, it sounded like there were owls all around us as we tested out our new skills! We played on the rocks, raced paper airplanes and worked on communication as we passed a ball around to each other. We’re remembering each other’s name and share our favorite toys and objects more and more each week! After free play, we studied feathers from a turkey and learned that birds have feathers for flying, feathers for warmth and smaller feathers that help give their body shape and provide camouflage. After our feather study, we decided to stop inside the nature center and see some of the birds we talked about today! We got to see the loon up close, touch a horned owl’s talons, observed snowy owls and explored everything else, too.
After our nature center visit, we headed out for our own little migration around the pine forest and became nature detectives. It was hard to observe or hear many birds in the rain, so we switched gears and sought out the pumpkins we “gave” to the forest last week. We noticed that one pumpkin had been moved a little ways away from where we left it and found the half eaten seeds nearby, too. We didn’t see much sign of animals nibbling on it other than the many ants that were actively feasting! We then noticed a ton of small holes on the forest floor and decided to follow them and see where they led. Some of the holes were very deep, more than five inches, and some were very shallow, with only the pine needles pushed away from the soil. We pondered on who could have made these from birds and bunnies to squirrels and deer! We eventually found a hole that had the tops of acorns sitting nearby, leading us to believe it was likely a squirrel who had buried its favorite food long ago and has come back to eat it!
As we crept along through the forest, we found the softest and greenest patch of moss. We decided to stop and touch the moss, we couldn’t believe how soft and cozy it felt! It must be a warm home for little bugs or a comfy spot for a quick nap if you were a rabbit. We also found the teeniest, tiniest little mushroom and excavated an old stump, finding interesting black mushrooms growing out of it! One of our friends noticed that as they dried up, they looked like puffballs—we decided we’d come back and check on them soon. We continued to follow the signs and realized that they led to the nature playscape—what a silly place for the squirrel to store its acorns! As usual, all too soon, it was time for us to head home, so we high tailed it back to the pavilion and packed up.
Thank you everyone for another wonderful week in the lives of your Knee High Naturalists! We hope you have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the first snowflakes of the season, we look forward to seeing you next time!
