A few weeks ago, we headed back to our cattail patch for a summer nature study. By “our” I mean a cattail patch about five minutes from our house, where we did our spring cattail nature study.
I printed out the toppers from Handbook of Nature Study – a blog we follow loosely for our nature observations.
I glued the toppers to white paper and divided it into four parts, so they could draw four objects.
While there, I asked the kids to walk around and get as close to the cattails as possible.
Walking to get the best view of the cattails
“Look, mom! A snake hole!” exclaimed my son.
Look, mom!
Not sure if this was a snake hole, but it was a hole indeed.
Maybe a snake hole
I asked them to draw four things they saw. They did – their drawings were in pencil, so they don’t photograph well. They drew rocks, trees, the creek, and the bridge.
The pretty covered bridge where our cattail patch lies
I also asked them to listen to the sounds of the area. At first, they could hear only man-made sounds: the air conditioning of the apartment buildings nearby, car engines driving by. I asked them to close their eyes and see if they could hear insects. They could. Also, the breeze through the cattails. Yes, they heard that, too.
Then, I allowed them to frolic around the creek.
Fun in the sun, around the cattail area
It was fun and easier than the first time we headed over there. Maybe because they are older, e.g. my daughter could now jump over the creek without actually falling in. Maybe because I knew what to expect. I can’t wait for our fall cattail study.
