Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Signs of Spring at Hidden Pond Nature Center

Everyone showed up at Hidden Pond Nature Center for a class about seeing the signs of spring. A naturalist showed everyone at the center a salamander, and a wood frog, and let us listen to examples of the sounds frogs make in the early spring. Then everyone got a net before heading out on a hike through the woods. We walked to a swamp, and the kids tried to net frogs. The naturalist and another man managed to catch a few and show the kids, and they also pointed out some early vegetation.

Learning about Spring 2/25

At preschool at Megan's, the kids had a lot of fun, and I think managed to squeeze in some learning about spring too! We started out by coloring pictures of hummingbirds. We talked about the different seasons, and then we read a silly book about birds building a nest, laying eggs, and chicks hatching on top of an elephant's head (There is a Bird on Your Head, by Mo Willems), which was a fun way to introduce the topic. The kids played around with a giant balloon for awhile, and then got down to business with play-doh. Clean-up and hand washing ensued, and then we all had a great time playing freeze dance, and tap your sticks. During snack time, we worked on counting, adding, and subtracting pretzels, figuring out how many they had individually, together, and then after they ate a couple. I was really surprised how much they were all into it! Next we made a big poster split in half with the headings Winter and Spring. I had printed out a bunch of different pictures (snowman, flowers, bees, tree with leaves and without), and the kids took turns pasting them in the correct columns. Finally we all ate pasta and peas for lunch, before going home.