Fulgurite

Can't go wrong with a fulgurite!















Every year, I gift the children with a mineral, rock, or fossil.  The idea is that by the time they leave our community, the children will have the beginnings of a class set...AND they will have acquired the itch to collect more.

This year, a good friend acquired a class set of fulgurites at the Houston Gem & Mineral Society Annual Show.  Fulgurites are formed when lightning hits the ground and melts and fuses sand together, leaving a rock impression of its path.

When they opened the gifts and we talked about what they were, one child exclaimed, "Awesome!  I can add this to my collection!"  Exactly!

Watch me grow

One of our winter traditions is daily observation and measurement of an amaryllis bulb as it grows.













These plants are amazing!  For a period of weeks, the stalk consistently grows at least 1 centimeter per day and sometimes grows as much as 3 centimeters!  We chart its growth on a line graph, and the children are always amazed to see how fast it grows.

Seed stomping?

Yesterday, it was 82˚.  By this afternoon, the temperature was down to 52˚ and still dropping.

We bundled up and headed to the pond habitat to spread our seed balls.  The children had great fun placing each ball and then walking on it to press it into the soil.  Hopefully, the low night temperature tonight doesn't foil our efforts!

Last week, the children worked together to create seed balls.  They combined humus and clay, 

mixed in wildflower seeds, and moistened it with enough water to create marble-sized seed balls.











We are hoping to create a wildflower meadow around our pond habitat.  I can't wait until spring to see what sprouts and blooms!

Universe Story Artwork

Now that we have a blank wall long enough to display all of them, I finally got these beauties framed and onto the wall!  Aren't they lovely?

Each poster is batik on handmade mulberry paper. 

This gorgeous artwork features the Universe Story, the Montessori Great Lesson with which we begin every year.  The story marks the beginnings of our studies of science, geography, and history.  “An integrated curriculum of history, geography, biology, and physical science is the heart and soul of an authentic Montessori elementary classroom” (Children of the Universe).  To place these subjects in context and give children “the big picture,” we begin every year with the story of how scientists believe the universe was created.  Maria Montessori felt that an understanding of the universe was the basis for all knowledge.  She writes, “let us give [the child] a vision of the whole universe” (To Educate the Human Potential).  The “Universe Story” is told in a dramatic way, with demonstrations such as an erupting volcano model (which went a little higher this year than intended!), to strike the child’s imagination and inspire a sense of wonder. 

Thank you to the Hartye/Morgan family for gifting these to our classroom, and thank you to my mother for sponsoring the framing.

Komodo dragons

Today's Google Doodle honors the 37th Anniversary of Komodo National Park.

Komodo Island, Indonesia

This is especially exciting because in Summer 2015, I had the great joy of visiting Indonesia's Komodo National Park to see komodo dragons in person!

Komodo dragons are the largest lizards alive today.  Adults typically weigh around 150 pounds, with lengths of 7.5 to 8.5 feet (though there have been individuals that grew over 10 feet long!).  Scientists believe that komodo dragons are similar to large lizards that were more common millions of years ago.

Komodos have an impressive sense of smell.  They use their forked tongues to sample (and chemically analyze) smells in the air.  Under the right conditions, komodo dragons can detect prey up to 2.5 miles away.  Their eyes are tuned to detect movement.  This is important for hunting.  When the hunt is successful, an individual may eat a single meal of 50 to 80% of its body weight.  To assist with this feasting, the stomach stretches easily and the jaw opens unusually wide.

Don't try this at home!  Komodo dragons are dangerous and will attack humans.
This photo is mis-leading.  I am really a very safe distance away.  

Look at the claws on this guy!

Graphing growth

This is another Room 15 tradition.

11-7-16

From Guest Authors S.A., 3rd grade;
O.S., 2nd grade; J.M., 1st grade
11-8-16
Yesterday, we planted an Amaryllis.  We put it in a vase with charcoal and rocks and water.  An amaryllis is a bulb.  Other kinds of bulbs are onions and garlic.  We are using a ruler to measure the stalk in centimeters.    











Predictions:
"I think in about a month or so it will be at the tip of the bowl."  S.A., 3rd grade
"I think it will grow in one week."  G.M., 2nd grade
"I think it will grow slowly."  O.S., 2nd grade and J.M., 1st grade
"I think it will grow two centimeters a day."  A.C.-S., 3rd grade

11-22-16

11-28-16

It turns out, our amaryllis grew at a rate of about a centimeter every day!  From November 7th through November 28th, it grew 20.5 centimeters.

11-29-16

11-30-16

Dipping into field science

What a joyful day of field work we had at the Arboretum today! 

Photo courtesy of L. Ganem

We began with a short indoor class on food chains, where we learned about producers, consumers (herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores), and decomposers.  Soon, we formed smaller groups and headed outside with nets and plastic tubs for some pond dipping. 

The children took turns pulling nets through the water to collect a sample of organisms (and mud) from the pond.

They sorted through each sample,

















transferring any finds to a tub of clear water for closer observation. 












Photo courtesy of B. Atkinson

We then used a record page to identify the organisms and classify the consumers as herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores.





My group observed turtles, tadpoles, a leech, a water boatman, mosquito fish, a fishing spider, a water scorpion, and lots of crawfish.

fishing spider

We were also excited to see a Broad-Banded Water Snake winding its way through the pond.  I was impressed by how well its pattern camouflaged with the narrow oak leaves floating on the water.

After lunch, we broke into small groups (4-5 children with an adult chaperone) for a hike.  The children used nature awareness skills, including a Fox Walk, Deer Ears, Owl Eyes, Eagle Eyes, and Dog Nose, to increase our likelihood of spotting something interesting.

A super-sneaky Fox Walk

On outdoor field trips, each group carries a Field Pack, empowering the children with the tools to navigate, observe, measure, identify, and record in the field (clockwise from top left):
* Field guides (Sky Watcher Chart, Texas Wildlife, Texas Trees & Wildflowers, Texas Butterflies & Moths, Houston Birds, Rocks, Gems and Minerals Golden Guide, and Fossils Golden Guide)
* Binoculars
* Compass
* Fold-away keychain magnifier
* Measuring tape
* Specimen container
* Golf pencils (stored in an M&Ms tube)
* Field notebook
* Colored pencils
* First aid kit (gloves, wet wipe, alcohol wipe, tooth container, Kleenex, Band-aids, tiny bottle of hand sanitizer)
Each Cooperative Science Group has an assigned color.  This pack belongs to "the green group."
Thank you to the generous donors who have funded additions to these kits over the years.  The other teacher who went with us told me at the end of the day that one of her students had commented wistfully, trail map in hand, "Boy, it sure would be nice if we had a compass."

The children identified and drew the clouds and recorded our wildlife sightings in the group's field notebook.

More than once, we paused so the children could identify a butterfly or a caterpillar.













Photo courtesy of B. Atkinson

(and I managed to sneak in purposeful and highly motivated reading, even on a day we spent outside!)


We used binoculars to examine a group of four hawks circling overhead.

We rolled a rotting log (toward us so that frightened critters have an escape route away from us) and used the magnifier for a closer look at termites. 















When we arrived at a meadow pond, the children suggested a Sit Spot, some quiet time to sit, just  watching and listening. 









Photo courtesy of C. Pratt

Apparently, my group wasn't the only one with this instinct. 

Photo courtesy of C. Pratt

There's something about being in nature that quiets the mind and body.














Once again, our field notebook and colored pencils came out. 
Leonardo da Vinci said, 'I don't understand a thing until I draw it.'  Scientific illustration helps us really pay attention to what we're looking at and allows the hand to help the brain comprehend.









One of our parent chaperones wrote to me after we'd all gone home for the day, "Today was super fun and your class is lovely.  All of the children were the right amount of curious, energetic and engaged."  Yes!




There's a Book for That!
The Other Way to Listen by Byrd Baylor
Shelterwood by Susan Shetterly
I'm in Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor
Crinkleroot's Guide to Walking in Wild Places by Jim Arnosky
The Looking Book by P.K. Hallinan
Somewhere by Jane Baskwill
Pond Life (A Golden Guide)
Pond & River (Eyewitness Books)
One Small Square: Pond
Kids Discover: Ponds
Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature (For Kids of all Ages and their Mentors) by Jon Young, Ellen Haas, & Evan McGown

Get Outdoors with Your Family
Borrow a Family Field Pack
Get Out Here Houston  There is also an app
Houston Arboretum & Nature Center  Free!
     Naturalist Explorers Saturday classes
     Arboretum at Night for families
     Naturally Wild Families
Bellaire Nature Discovery Center
Hermann Park
Memorial Park
Jesse Jones Park  programs
Brazos Bend State Park
Buffalo Bayou Boat Tours (scroll down)
     Buffalo Bayou Walking Tours  Free!
     Buffalo Bayou Audio Tours
     Bayou City Adventures Buffalo Bayou kayak tours
Artist Boat   kayak & watercolor adventures
Armand Bayou Nature Center   programs
Mercer Arboretum & Botanic Gardens
Sims Bayou Nature Center
Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary
Shangri La Botanical Gardens & Nature Center   programs
Katy Prairie Conservancy
Discovery Green
Texas Through Time Great Places to see Geology in Texas
Nature Rocks Texas

Resources for aquatic field work:


Photo courtesy of L. Ganem

Creature Seeker Pond Kit
Aquatic net
Nature Circles: Pond & Stream Life card set
Pond and Stream Sampling Kit
LaMotte Aquatic Bug Kit
Enviro-Safe field-use thermometer
LaMotte MacroLens
Elenco Two Way Bug Viewer
LaMotte Aquatic Macroinvertebrate ID Cards
Eyewitness DVD: Pond & River
Turbidity tube or Secchi tube
Take a Wetlands Walk by Jane Kirkland