At first glance, a pond might seem small and insignificant, but below its still surface…
Exploring ponds with kids is a fascinating summer activity! We're sharing interactive, educational & fun ways to explore a pond with kids.
Explore the water's edge and learn about who calls a pond home with these fun science experiments, water activities, wildlife and play ideas!
Recently our homeschool nature club got together and made POND VIEWERS. Oh, these were super fun and super duper easy to boot! What is a pond viewer? Well quite simply its a device used to view a small sample of pond or lake water (remember to always watch your child closely and never leave them alone when around water!). When you use a pond viewer you can immediately view whatever organisms might be dancing about in the water. The good... and the not so good. First off, the needed supplies. A large can (a coffee can works great -- #10-- or a large metal juice can). Duct Tape Clear Plastic Wrap Rubber band Scissors Can opener A pond or lake First, remove both ends from the can. Clean the can well. Try to make sure that there are no sharp edges that will cu you or the child. If there is, take some tape and carefully tape the edge. Step 1: Cut two pieces of plastic wrap larger than the can. Piece one will be snuggly placed on one open end (much as you would cover a bowl) and then place the second piece over the first piece. Two pieces are to help ensure that no snags cause a pond viewer failure in mid view. Step 2: Use a rubber band to help secure the plastic wrap on your pond viewer. Next duct tape around the plastic wrap. making sure its taut. You may need to help the child with this part of the project. Step 3: Make sure all the plastic wrap is secure and then get ready to view! DONOT use your pond viewer to scope water. To use your pond viewer, dip the plastic wrap covered end down into the water and look through the other end. How and why it works: Because your can is actually in the water and below the surface of the water it's easier to see what's going on below the surface. The plastic creates a window in which you can view the critters in the water. Think of it like snorkeling or wearing goggles in the water. The plastic is smooth and, I am told, it kind of pushes the water away. One thing I know for sure, the kids loved using them! . What kinds of things can you find living in the water of your pond? Linking up with:
Take a peek into a pond habitats nature study with a homeschool family of multiple ages who spent several weeks learning about ponds.
Exploring ponds with kids is a fascinating summer activity! We're sharing interactive, educational & fun ways to explore a pond with kids.
My children and I first learned about vernal pools a couple of years ago while visiting a local nature preserve. I noticed it labeled on the trail map and it piqued my curiosity. When we arrived,…
I am so excited to have Kerri from Joys of the Journey guest posting at Buggy and Buddy today! She’ll be sharing some easy and fun ways to make a trip to the pond an absolutely wonderful learning experience for children. I just love the homemade items she created to help encourage all kinds of sensory exploration and …
We've got everything you need to know about raising tadpoles with kids. A nature study for kids about growing frogspawn into froglets at home.
If you want a fun, engaging nature study activity, try this free Pond Scavenger Hunt for kids!
Planning to study ponds and pond life with your kids? Today I'm sharing a lovely picture book and fun Pond Life Printable Pack with you to help you learn!
Eplore and Learn About Lakes and Ponds unit study. Includes additional learning resources.
As Big Brother is getting older it's really interesting to see both his interests and skills develop into more specific skill sets. Lately he's been really interested in the building of things (mostly stemming from a love of Legos, Magnatiles, and our wooden railroad track.) As he leans that way I'm finding myself looking for other creative ways to develop those interests and skills. A few weeks ago he had the chance to observe a beaver dam up close with my husband on one of their nature walks. This lead to some great questions. A few days later I followed up with a drive to a local man made dam which he was able to inspect from a distance. When we came home I set up this building investigation in the yard. It was inspired by a great tinfoil river activity we did last year from the amazing book 101 Kids Activities That Are the Bestest, Funnest Ever by the team over at Kids Activities Blog. Similar to that experience, we used tinfoil to create a river (this time on our lawn.) This time we set it up on slight slope. The boys and I also collected natural materials from around the yard that might be useful in building the dam. We collected sticks, acorns, rocks, and old reeds from lilies. I added in a few non-natural materials I also thought Big Brother might want to use: modeling clay, popsicle sticks, and lumber scraps. Big Brother's goal was to be able to get his dam to hold enough water so that these three acorn boats could float. It was so interesting to watch his process, which mostly involved trial and error. First he started with just a pile of the wooden natural materials. When he observed the water move through those, he decided to try using more rocks. With each trial he would tweak his design a little, before trying again. In the end I encouraged him (although I was really trying to let it be his process to try using a little clay. I led him to the idea that he had seen mud on the beaver dams.) He started to get into the idea of building a space for the water to collect. He never quite got to the place where all the boats could continuously float, although his last design definitely best slowed down the water. He continued to tinker on his dam a few more days, and even brainstorm other materials he would like to add in. (Including trying to find some clay like mud on our property.) We'll definitely be looking for other ways to invite building experiences. What do your children like to build? This post may also have been shared at some of these terrific link parties.
This summer we found a school of tadpoles in an old fountain at our local park. It was a beautiful illustration of natural life. There were easily hundreds of babies swimming around at all stages of life. As a fun summer project we decided to take a pair home to observe. My boyfriend, being overly...
I wish I would have learned, or had the time to appreciate, the ponds where I lived in the United States. If you want your kids to appreciate life all around them, you can start by exploring pond life with this FREE over and under printable.
What is Forest School? One of the current positive trends in education at the moment is the increasing popularity of Forest Schools. This brand of learning has a fantastically wide range of benefits. It is the type of learning that many of us try introduce to our own kids on family days out and holidays: …
Explore the water's edge and learn about who calls a pond home with these fun science experiments, water activities, wildlife and play ideas!
PUPILS at a North Herefordshire primary school have been busy making a natural haven for local wildlife in their new pond and conservation area.
Download how to build a pond pdf here How and why to build a wildlife pond on your land A pond is a simple and effective way of creating a diverse wildlife habitat on your farm. This step-by-step guide is designed to help you plan, locate, design, construct and manage your pond in a way that […]
Discover engaging, hands-on pond science activities for preschoolers to learn all about ponds. Pond life, frog life cycle, feather investigation, & more!
In a world of “tech neck,” social media, and constant connection, it’s far too easy for kids to overlook nature’s beauty.
Pond life is fascinating for kids. They can learn about water bugs and other insects, plant life, and even bird watching through fun kids activities.
Packed full of outdoor activities for parents and children, Forest School is a very popular way to teach kids, while giving them an opportunity to get close to nature! Check them out today!
Anya, the founder of Montessori From The Heart, is an educational coach, a blogger, an author, a digital creator, and an influencer.
Creating a new wildlife pond? We have some tips and advice for you
Camping dramatic play center ideas that'll help transform your classroom to an engaging campsite for toddlers! Fish, hike, roast s'mores, & more!
Today I have another monthly picture book to share. We are on to June which means the year is nearly half over! For this month's list I decided to mainly
Sit spotting is an observant type of meditation in nature that not only calms the mind, but soothes your senses with the sounds, touch and feel of nature.
There is an abundance of edible greenery in every city, no matter where you live. Here are 5 ways to start urban foraging in your city today.
Hooray for November! A Camping we will Go! Set Up: All of you will work on set up. Some of you will assemble our wooden tents that wil...
What it’s really like to go camping at Mongaup Pond with kids. Everything you need to know about this New York State park campground.
Making leaf boats and nature rafts is such a simple and fun activity that encourages creativity in children of all ages and helps develop fine motor skills. All you need for this is some leaves and…
Looking for some forest school inspired activity ideas for toddlers? Click through for 20+ ideas including art ideas, mud play and so much more. Watch them learn about nature through play.
We've got everything you need to know about raising tadpoles with kids. A nature study for kids about growing frogspawn into froglets at home.
At first glance, a pond might seem small and insignificant, but below its still surface…
Exploring ponds with kids is a fascinating summer activity! We're sharing interactive, educational & fun ways to explore a pond with kids.
