Day 8: Kids Nature Exploration Kit with Me

Sunday, May 08, 2011 Aimee Larsen 1 Comments


Kids only need a few things to go exploring in nature.  To make the experience  exciting and authentic you can use simple items that you may find around your house.
  • Toilet Tissue Roll Binoculars
  • Magnifying Glass
  • Notebook and Pencil
  • Muffin Tin
Binoculars:  Use your imagination when preparing for this adventure.  With a masking tape, a hole punch, toilet tissue tubes and yarn you can whip up a set of binoculars for viewing.  You may already have a magnifying glass or two laying around your house,  kids would also love to be able to view specimens up close by putting them in glass jars.


We collected specimens in a muffin tin for further examination.  The live bugs stayed outside and were recorded as simply being found. We brought them inside and sorted them on a paper towel and talked about everything we found.  We talked about shape, size, color, texture, etc. and documented in our notebook details about our findings.  We snapped pictures to print of what we found to accompany our notebook and notes. 


Take a trip to your local library with your little explorer and notebook in hand and see how many items you can correctly identify.  Below are a few book recommendations for kids.

Leo the Lightening Bug by Eric Drachman
Sharing Nature with Children by Joseph Bharat Cornell
Wonders of Nature by Jane Werner Watson
The Reason for a Flower by Ruth Heller
Linnea's Almanac by Cristina Bjork
Insects Do The Strangest Things by Leonora and Arthur Hornblow

This little adventure could go on for hours...even days.



Thanks for stopping by.



1 comment:

  1. This is so cute! Why've I never thought to use a muffin tin for my little guy to put his bugs (or worms) in?! He would love this... I'll add your button to my sidebar and make sure I visit all the days of the soiree! Hope you have a great week :)

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