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nature

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

September 18, 2020 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

How to make an easy jumbo stick bird feeder with kids is a fun project to do with the kids for a bird unit study or just because.

This diy bird feeder covers fine motor skills, problem solving, art, science, following directions, and more.

Making a bird feeder with kids is a great rainy day activity that gets kids asking questions and investigating with little prompting.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Too, creating a craft can just take a few minutes.

Bird Games and Bird Books

Also, look at some of these fun games and books to add to your unit study about birds.

17 Books, Resources, and Activities About Birds

You'll love these fun resources if you're studying about birds. Besides, you can study about birds anytime of the year.

So, add one or two of these to your unit study, nature journaling, or just fun for the day.

1. A Place for Birds

In simple yet compelling language, Melissa Stewart showcases twelve North American birds, from the familiar eastern bluebird to the rare Kirtland's warbler. Her clear narrative shows the threats these birds face, and informative sidebars describe a wide variety of efforts to save them. In addition, remarkable full-color illustrations vividly and accurately depict the birds within the ecosystems that support their survival. Range maps and additional bird facts are also included.

2. Feathers: Not Just for Flying

Young naturalists explore sixteen birds in this elegant introduction to the many, remarkable uses of feathers. A concise main text highlights how feathers are not just for flying. More curious readers are invited to dig deeper with informative sidebars that underscore how feathers of all shapes and sizes help birds with warming or cooling, protect them from the sun, help them swim, glide or even
dig.

3. A Nest Is Noisy (Family Treasure Nature Encylopedias)

This gorgeous and informative look at the fascinating world of nests, from those of tiny bee hummingbirds to those of orangutans high in the rainforest canopy.

4. Big Book of Birds (The Big Book Series)

The book draws in children and parents alike with captivating information about and charming illustrations of hummingbirds, peacocks, flamingos, bald eagles, secretary birds, puffins, red-crowned cranes, and more. The book also invites young bird-watchers to protect birds where they live and make their gardens bird-friendly. The text is chatty, funny, and full of remarkable facts.

5. Peterson Field Guide To Birds

For decades, the Peterson Field Guide to Birdsof Eastern and Central North America has been a popular and trusted guide for birders of all levels, thanks to its famous system of identification and unparalleled illustrations. Following the Spring 2020 update to Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America, this guide will feature updated text and range maps, and art updated to reflect current knowledge in ornithology. 

6. How to Feed Backyard Birds: A Step-by-Step Guide for Kids

How to Feed Backyard Birds: A Step-by-Step Guide for Kids is the perfect resource for beginners who are young (and not so young) to discover the joy of attracting birds to your yard. Bird lover and expert Chris Earley wants to share his passion for our colorful singing and flying neighbors with the whole family.

7. Wingspan Board Game - A Bird-Collection, Engine-Building Game

Competitive, card-driven, engine-building board game.

Challenging strategy game recommended for those ages 14 plus

Game includes 170 unique bird cards, 26 bonus cards and 16 Automa cards, 103 food tokens and 75 egg miniatures, 5 custom wooden dice and 5 player mats, 1 birdfeeder dice tower and 2-piece Game Trayz custom tray, 1 goal mat and 8 goal tiles, 1 first-player token and 40 action cubes, 4 clear plastic resource containers, 1 scorepad, and 3 rulebooks.

8. Beaks!

Young naturalists explore a variety of birds, their habitats, and how their beaks help them build, eat, and survive. From the twisted beak of a crossbill to the color changing bill of a seagull, readers will learn fun facts about how beaks are designed and used as tools by birds of all shapes and sizes.  Bright, bold cut-paper illustrations create amazingly realistic tableaus of birds in their natural
environments with their beaks in action.

9. Bird Figurine Toy Birds for Kids Realistic Bird

Set of bird figurine toys, which contains 7 different small plastic birds. The weight of bird figure toy is 96G / 0.2LB. The set of small plastic bird contains 7 pecies of toy birds,such as robin, bluebird, oriole, woodpecker, etc. Please refer to the picture for the actual size and color.

10. Professor Noggin's Birds of North America Trivia Card Game

PLAY & LEARN: Professor Noggin’s series of educational card games encourages kids to learn interesting facts about their favorite subjects.

FUN FACTS: Everything young birders need to know about the most common and interesting Birds of North America. Learn to identify different species and discover fascinating facts about their habitat and behavior.

CARD GAME: Each of the thirty game cards combines trivia, true or false, and multiple-choice questions. A special three-numbered die is included which adds an element of unpredictability.

11. Audubon's Birds of America Coloring Book

Including the red-winged blackbird, painted bunting, wood duck, great blue heron, ruby-throated hummingbird, purple finch, and blue jay, 46 different species of birds from all parts of the United States are included in this book. The pictures have been faithfully redrawn by Paul E. Kennedy from originals by John James Aububon (1785–1851), the most famous American painter-naturalist.

12. The Boy Who Drew Birds: A Story of John James Audubon

If there was one thing James loved to do more than anything else, it was to be in the great outdoors watching his beloved feathered friends.In the fall of 1804, he was determined to find out if the birds nesting near his Pennsylvania home would really return the following spring. Through careful observation, James laid the foundation for all that we know about migration patterns today.

13. Attracting Birds to Your Backyard: 536 Ways To Turn Your Yard and Garden Into a Haven For Your Favorite Birds

Enjoy your home and garden as never before when you have a yard that's filled with colorful birds and bird songs as well as flowers. This A-to-Z guide includes:Terrific tips and plans for building bird feeders, birdbaths, and birdhouses.Recipes for making bird food that is sure to be a hit with your feathered friends--including Chickadee Doughnut Delights and Easy Bird Treat Mini-Muffins.The 25 best plants to grow to attract birds to your yard--including columbine and honeysuckle, hummingbird favorites.How to identify and attract goldfinches, chickadees, cardinals, and more than 50 other favorite birds to your yard. Plus, you'll learn what their songs and antics really mean.

14. Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs, and Nestlings of North American Birds

Describes all species found in the North American region and offers information on breeding cycles, nesting habits, and provides pictures of nestlings and eggs

15. What's That Bird? Teacher Guide

This study guide accompanies What's That Bird? published by Storey Publishing in 2005, incorporating facts to know, comprehension questions, and characteristics of specific birds. Sections include: 'Meet the Bird', 'How Birds Live', and 'The Wider World of Birds'. Student Book and What's That Bird? sold separately.

16. Paint by Sticker: Birds: Create 12 Stunning Images One Sticker at a Time!

Nature's Masterpieces—ready for paintingPeel the sticker,Paint the sticker, And watch your painting come to life.Paint by Sticker: Birds celebrates the rainbow of colors and shapes of the avian world: a red-headed woodpecker, a blue jay, an orange and black Baltimore oriole, an electric bright hummingbird.

17. Sibley Backyard Birding Flashcards

The Sibley Field Guide to Birds is now transformed into 100 easy-to-reference cards housed in one handsome pull-drawer gift box. Divided into one stack of 50 common Western and Eastern North American birds, and one stack of 50 common birds found across North America, each card features precise illustrations and text concerning habitat, behavior, and voice description necessary for easy identification. Edited with the backyard birder in mind, each bird card is accompanied with a regional map as an additional guide to migratory patterns.

Bird Feeder With Kids Activity

Craft sticks are a homeschool staple for a reason!

They can be used in so many ways and in this case they are the perfect material for a simple bird feeder that your kids can create with a little help from you. 

Here is the quick and simple list for this easy bird feeder:

  • Jumbo Craft Sticks 
  • Wood Glue/Craft Glue
  • Strong Twine
  • Bird Seed

Easy directions for making a fun nature craft bird feeder:

We used wide craft sticks as a base and the sides of our simple bird feeder but you can use standard sized if you like.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

First, create a base platform by lining your sticks up, 7 jumbo craft sticks is the perfect width for laying the sticks lengthwise.

Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Our Journey Westward

Next, glue a stick across each end of your base.

Avoid using hot glue as the heat outside tends to soften the glue and your birdhouse will fall apart. Instead use a wood glue or tacky craft glue like E6000.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Use colored sticks or outdoor stain if you wish first on your craft sticks if you like.

Then, alternate two sticks in one direction and then two in the other until you have built it up as high as you like.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Allow glue to dry overnight to be sure its secure.

Then, slide 4 long pieces of twine between the top most sticks on each of the 4 sides, tie it off.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Finally, pull the 4 string straight up and tie the end into a knot about 12”-15” up, trim off excess.

Our Journey Westward
How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Fill with seed and place in a shady tree.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Also, to make your bird feeder last longer than just one season give it two coats of spray sealer before filling and allow it to dry thoroughly to make it water safe.

How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

Bird Vocabulary for Nature Unit Study

Additionally, I’ve added some words for vocabulary, spelling, placing in alphabetical order, and handwriting practice.

  • Extinct
  • Endangered
  • Aviary
  • Talon
  • Beak
  • Flock
  • Flight
  • Wingspan
  • Migrate
  • Flitter
  • Raptor
  • Ornithology
How to Make an Easy Jumbo Stick Bird Feeder with Kids

More Bird Activities For Unit Studies

Keep on expanding upon this activity by turning it into a full study with books, games, and some fun activities, I have lots of ideas for you below!

  • Make a Bird Color Bar Graph to keep track of what types of birds visit each day.
  • List 5 birds of prey, 5 song birds, 5 Water Fowl, and 5 birds that cannot fly.
  • Put together this free Bird Journal and and expand this activity into a full unit study.
  • Put together a Bird Nesting Bag to provide birds with some extra supplies for nest building.
  • List 3 birds that are now extinct and 3 that are endangered.
  • Make a sensory bin for younger children with bird seed as the base, add in nest building materials like sticks, and small plastic birds for some educational play.
  • Try making your own birds nest with found items in the yard like sticks, bits of string, grass, moss, and, vines.
  • Find out what your state bird is and draw a picture or paint a picture of it.
  • Research what 5 traits make a bird like feathers, wings, beaks or bills, laying eggs, and an adapted skeleton.
  • Use craft feathers as manipulatives for counting or to create a craft.
  • Use a roll of art paper and a yard stick to measure the wingspan of an eagle. Seeing it drawn really gives a better idea of size.

As well as spelling words, I’ve gathered up some bird writing prompts below.

Writing Prompts for Bird Unit Study

  • If you could be any kind of bird what would you be and why?
  • One day as I was flying high above I saw…
  • What do you think the birds are singing about? Put it into words.
  • You wake up and a giant eagle is waiting outside your window, you climb on his back, tell about your adventures.
  • What do you think birds do for fun?
  • What is your favorite bird and why?

You’ll love these other resources for learning about birds:

  • Hands-On Nature Study: Bird Color Bar Graphing Activity
  • Hands-On Nature Study: Make a Fun Bird Nesting Bag
  • Colorful Winter Bird: Northern Cardinal Lapbook & Unit Study
  • Easy and Fun Nature Study: Beautiful Birds
  • Winter Nature Craft: How to Make Easy DIY Bird Feeders
  • Free Bird Journal – Hands-on Nature (Coloring & Identification Pages)
  • How Animals Cope With the Cold (Easy Nature Study)

Hugs and love ya,

2 CommentsFiled Under: Hands-On Activities, Nature Based Activities Tagged With: birdjournal, hands-on, hands-on activities, handsonhomeschooling, homeschoolscience, life science, nature, nature journaling, nature study, science

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids

September 9, 2020 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Have you ever wondered about the effects of ocean pollution and other waterways? Look at my page  Ocean Unit Study and Ocean Lapbook.

It’s important that we bring it to our children’s attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution!

The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted, how difficult it is to clean it up and to make it like it was before.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids

This project can be done with things around the house; you may just need to grab a couple items from Dollar Tree or somewhere else.

Beware of Ocean Pollution

First, gather all your materials before you bring in the kids. Kids lose interest quickly if they spend a long time waiting at the table for you to find everything.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Better yet if you have an older kid who knows everything right now (wink) get him or her to do the gathering of supplies.

Next, here is the list of supplies for the hands-on ocean pollution science activity.

  • A large shallow container
  • Blue food coloring (optional)
  • sea shells
  • clean sand (optional)
  • water
  • plastic sea creatures
  • feathers
Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Teaching Kids About Ocean Pollution

Then, here is the list for the pollution items and the list for cleaning items.

  • cooking oil
  • food crumbs
  • pieces of plastic bag
  • dish soap
  • toothbrush
  • sponge
  • cotton balls
  • paper towels
  • coffee filters
  • cotton swabs
  • tongs
  • small nets
  • coffee grounds
  • straws
  • soil

Water Pollution Exploration

Start by adding items to your container that belong, explaining to your child that these are the items that naturally occur in an ocean and are part of its ecosystem.

Fill your container with several inches of water.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

If you like add a few drops of blue food coloring to your water and mix in.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Place sea creatures, seashells, and sand if you are using them.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Next, talk about what happens when we visit the beach or travel on the water.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

As you talk about oil the spills from ships, trash that is tossed aside instead of being safely placed in trash containers let your child add each of the pollution items you have provided.

Stir it all up together. What has happened?

  • The once nearly clear and pristine water is now discolored.
  • Creatures are covered in oil and dirt.
  • The water no longer looks appealing at all to play in does it?
  • Turtles, dolphins, sharks, and other animals get plastic wrap around them.
  • Sea animals choke on items that don’t belong in the ocean and die or are suffering from the effects.

What can we do to clean up the ocean? 

Ocean Pollution Clean Up Activity

You can pick up bigger items if they are floating on top with a net or tongs, but what about items that sink to the bottom of our deep oceans?

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Demonstrate how to use cotton balls to absorb some of the oil on the surface of the water.

Toss in a few feathers to demonstrate what happens to water birds when they pick up oil and other undesirable things from polluted water.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Use Dawn dish soap, a toothbrush, and other items to try and remove the oil and debris from the feathers.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Dawn has a program for cleaning up animals that have been injured due to oil spills. You can read a bit more about it here at Dawn Helping Saving Wildlife for Over 40 Years.

Be Ocean Explorers

Examine clean ocean water, polluted ocean water, and “cleaned” up water.

Grab 3 clear glasses and place water and food coloring in one.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Take some of your polluted water and place in the second.

Finally, after you have cleaned up your water some, put a coffee filter over the third glass and run your cleaned up polluted water over the coffee filter.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Compare the difference in water color and quality.

Even the water that has been cleaned up is still not left unchanged, it is cloudy, dark, and still contains trace amounts of debris.

This makes a big impact on my kids as it allowed them to understand how big an impact peoples actions can have on our water sources.

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity

Look at some pollution vocabulary and spelling words to use for an ocean or water unit study.

  • Pathogens
  • Waste water
  • Pollution
  • Biodegradable
  • Hazardous
  • Pollutant
  • Habitat
  • Conservation
  • Ecosystem

If you are looking for read aloud or independent reading books for your child that go along with the theme you need not look any further than your bookcase or library and grab something anything that has an ocean theme like Island of the Blue Dolphins, 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, Treasure Island, or Swiss Family Robinson! 

Continue with your study using some great books to look through or use as living text books.

  • Save the Ocean (Save the Earth)
  • You Are Eating Plastic!: An Interactive Children’s Book About Recycling, Sustainability and The Environment.
  • I Wonder Why the Sea Is Salty: and Other Questions About the Oceans
  • Ocean Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the World under the Sea
  • What a Waste: Trash, Recycling, and Protecting our Planet (Protect the Planet)

Earth Science Activity for Kids

This hands-on activity can easily lead into learning about all the fascinating creatures who live in the sea.

Lastly, teaching kids to learn how to care for our earth by not polluting the oceans empowers kids to be part of the solution and no the problem.

You’ll love these other resources to keep expanding how to care for the ocean and enjoy the beauty it provides:

Beware of Ocean Pollution: Fun Science Activity for Kids. It’s important that we bring it to our children's attention now so they can make responsible choices and be part of the clean up solution! The best way to do this of course is through a fun hands-on activity that lets them see first hand how easily water is polluted. You’ll love this easy hands-on science! CLICK HERE to go there! #oceanpollution #handsonscienceforkids #homeschoolscience #oceanpollutionactivity
  • Oceans Unit Study and Lapbook
  • Ocean Unit Study – Ocean Layers
  • Ocean Unit Study Language Arts: Message in a Bottle
  • Humboldt Who? Hands On to Understand Ocean Currents & Their Effect On The Galapagos Islands
  • Super Seashore Watching Unit Study and Beach Lapbook
  • Edible Geography – Sea Levels
  • How to Dissolve a Seashell – Beach Hands-on Fun Activity
  • From Egg to Sea Turtle Nature Unit Study & Lapbook
  • Winter Homeschooling – Look to the Sea. 17 Hands-on Activities for Two to Teens.

Hugs and love ya,

2 CommentsFiled Under: Hands-On Activities, My Unit Studies {Free Printables & Hands-on Ideas}, Nature Based Activities, Science, Science Based Tagged With: earthscience, hands-on, hands-on activities, handson, handsonhomeschooling, homeschoolscience, life science, nature, ocean, science, sciencecurriculum

How to Make an Easy Nature Paint Brush With Kids

August 22, 2020 | 1 Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Creating your own diy nature paint brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors.

Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings.

If you are digging deep into a nature-based unit study or you just want a unique nature-based unit study add-on to do with your child, look no further.

Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

These fun and simple diy nature brushes are an inexpensive and creative way to get your kids into the great outdoors exploring, creating, and coming up with unique new ways to use natural objects.

DIY NATURE PAINT BRUSH FOR KIDS

Toddlers on up to middle schoolers will enjoy gathering their own materials on their next nature walk or from your own backyard, creating paintbrushes, and then painting their unique masterpiece with their DIY tools.

This activity is perfect to go along a general nature study, a tree unit study, or an art unit study.

Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids.

You will need:

  • Craft sticks (or sturdy sticks)
  • Small rubber bands
  • Collected leaves, flowers, ferns, grasses, etc…
Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

Begin by taking your little nature explorer outdoors to collect leaves, long grasses, flowers and their stems, ferns, and any other material you think will make good “brushes”. 

It’s fun to experiment with the different textures and shapes so be sure you gather a large variety of different items.

Our Journey Westward

Next bring them in and straighten them up into little bundles, varying the size here and there.

Place one end of the bundle on the end of your craft stick and wrap a small rubber band around the end until it is tight and secure.

Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

The easiest way to do this is to wrap it around the opposite end and then roll it upwards over your brush.

DIY NATURAL PAINT BRUSH ACTIVITY

Use scissors to trim the ends of your leaves and grasses shorter. They are more like actual paintbrush bristles. Also, this makes a great fine motor activity for preschoolers. Of course, don’t use the same scissors we used. Just saying’.

Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

Next, challenge your child to paint a nature picture on a canvas or large piece of paper. 

Our Journey Westward

We practiced on a scrap piece of paper to see what texture and coverage each brush gave.

Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

Encourage them to experiment with different size brushes and see what types of textures you can make from the various brushes you have made, solid strokes, wispy strokes, tapping the canvas, etc..

The Basement Workshop Store

We went with a simple tree this time, but are eager to try more advanced art with them soon.

Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

You can use acrylic craft paint or try watercolors for a lighter look. 

Our Journey Westward
Creating your own diy nature brushes from items on your next nature walk is a fun way to bring science outdoors. Turn all sorts of leaves and flowers into beautiful rustic paintings. Look how to make easy nature paint brushes with kids. CLICK HERE!  
#diynaturebrushes #homeschoolnature #natureforkids #nature #scienceforkids #handsonnature #handsonart

Wash out your brushes when done or toss them into the compost bin and make more.

HANDS-ON NATURE STUDY

Why should you do nature studies with your child?

6 Reasons Why You Should Do Nature Studies With Your Kids

  1. Nature studies are the base for all science studies and creates a personal connection which helps your child later with more advanced studies;
  2. Spending time outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine is calming and relaxing for you and your child. It is also a great way to get exercise and get the wiggles out;
  3. Nature study encourages your child to develop the skill of investigation;
  4. It is a great activity for the entire family and even the youngest member can appreciate and enjoy what nature has to offer;
  5. It gives your child a respect for the earth and their place in it; and
  6. Kids develop a greater understanding of the impact we all have on the earth.

Nature brushes are a great way to use natural materials to make art supplies and make science fun, but there are ways to expand this hands-on craft.

5 Ways to Expand On Nature Anatomy

Before making the paint brushes you can

  • use the items you have collected to identify which plant it comes from;
  • press flowers and leaves with this diy flower press;
  • make rubbings using the flat side of crayons;
  • sketch your findings in your nature journal; and
  • check out this list of nature inspired novels to use as read alouds.

In addition, use the app Inaturalist to help you identify what you find.

LIVING NATURE BOOKS

Don’t stop here, investigate further with some great nature books to turn this activity into a full unit study.

Use Nature Anatomy by Julia Rothman.

Exploring Nature Activity Book for Kids by Kim Andrews.

Exploring Nature Journal for Kids Observe and Record the Outdoors by Kim Andrews.

Tell Me, Tree: All About Trees for Kids by Gail Gibbons.

Exploring nature with your kids can cover so many subjects when you use a unit study approach.

Teaching about the outdoors is a natural way to learn which kids love. Not only can you include many different subjects, but adding a hands-on craft or two, makes learning stick.

You’ll love all the fanstastic ideas I have here for you to round out making these diy nature paint brushes with your kids.

Look at this list below:

  • 20 Nature-Inspired Kids’ Novels to Nurture Interest In the Outdoors
  • Kinder Gardening to Celebrate Nature and Science
  • Foraging and Feasting Nature Unit Study and Lapbook
  • Wildflowers Unit Study & Lapbook
  • Hands-On Mixed Media Flower Art Fun Nature Study
  • Hands-On Literature Nature Study: Simple Tree Craft

What nature craft activities do you like doing with your kids?

Hugs and love ya,

1 CommentFiled Under: DIY, Hands-On Activities, Nature Based Activities, Science, Science Based Tagged With: hands-on, hands-on activities, handson, nature, nature journaling, nature study, science

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

August 15, 2020 | Leave a Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

A fun kids diy flower press can turn a simple wildflower (or garden flower) unit study into a fun and memorable unit by adding in some simple hands-on activities.

Just a few dollars and a little time are all you need to create an easy perfectly portable flower press that you and your child can use again and again.

Turn everything from black-eyed susans to hydrangeas into a dried keepsake.

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

Too, make dried pressed flowers for crafts, homemade potpourri, or to put into a scrapbook.

Kids DIY Flower Press

Besides, this flower press is great for on the go and can be toted around in your backpack to bring your floral treasures home.

Lastly because it’s such a frugal project, everyone can have their own.

We spent $2.00 on wood at Dollar Tree; we had paint and twine already on hand making it a frugal and fun activity with a purpose.

You will need :

  • 2 thin unfinished wood pieces
  • twine
  • hot glue gun/sticks
  • card stock
  • paint 
  • foam brush
How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

Directions: 

I found these two unfinished wood pieces at Dollar Tree (my favorite place to find  inexpensive supplies for homeschool projects) in the craft section.

If you don’t find them there you can get any two precut wood pieces from the craft store. Just be sure they are ¼” thick or less.

Paint one side of each of the wooden pieces and allow to dry completely.

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

Trace around your shape onto cardstock to create layers for your flower press.

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

Moreover you don’t need more than two layers.

And you can cut extra as you will want to replace them after every few uses due to the moisture it will collect.

Steps for DIY Kids Flower Press

First, cut 2 pieces of twine into two foot lengths.

Then, hot glue one of the pieces of twine to the corner of the painted side of the wood. Secure it well.

On the other piece of wood glue the second length of twine to the opposite corner of the first.

If you prefer to give it a more finished look you can cover it up by glueing on silk flower or greenery like we did here. 

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

To use your flower press lay flowers between sheets of cardstock on the bottom wooden piece, lay the other on top and wrap twine as tightly as you can around the sides, tying it off into a bow.

Next, allow your flowers to sit in the press for 2 or 3 days until flat and fully dry.

How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

Hands-on Ideas for Kids DIY Flower Press

  • Wildflowers Unit Study & Lapbook
  • How to Easily Make Fun Seed Tape With Kids
  • Fun Kids Activity How to Make Wildflower Seed Bombs
  • How to Make a Fun Kids Root Viewer
  • Hands-On Mixed Media Flower Art Fun Nature Study
  • Easy Seed and Gardening Unit Study for Kids (Middle – Upper Elementary)
  • Foraging and Feasting Nature Unit Study and Lapbook
  • Hands-on Ancient Babylon: Hanging Gardens Fun Activity
  • How to Easily Garden Plan With Kids Using LEGO
  • Fascinating and Fun Honey Bees Unit Study and Lapbook for Kids
  • Labeling Parts of a Honey Bee LEGO Fun Activity For Kids
How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

    Try some of these additional hands on activities to expand on your flower explorations!

    • Head outside and gather up flowers from locals fields or your own backyard and try them out on your new flower press. Again, once you have them home search through field guides  or use an app try to identify each.
    • Find out your state flower and try to locate one.
    • Use a real flower to label each of the parts.
    • Plant your own wildflowers after making these Wildflower Seed Bombs.
    • Take apart a flower and identify the parts- petal, pistel, stem, stigma, filament, etc…
    • Use watercolor paint to recreate your flower finds on paper.
    • Dig deep into this Wildflower Unit Study & Lapbook.
    • Futhermore, try to identify at least 10 different types of flowers.
    • Create a flower sensory bin for young children with fresh flowers, leaves, and stems.
    • In addition, young children can also count the petals on the flowers. 
    • Use different types of flowers on long stems as natural paint brushes.
    • Plant a flower garden or even a small container of flowers together.
    How to Easily Make a Simple and Fun Kids DIY Flower Press

    In addition, here are some great resources to help you identify your flower finds in the field or at home.

    If you’re wanting to add a few more activities to this activity, I know you’ll love these ideas below.

    Trees, Leaves, Flowers, and Seeds

    Audubon Field Guide to Flowers

    Pocket Guide to Wildflowers

    Fandex Wildflowers

    Finally, whether you have a budding botanist or love being outdoors, you’ll love making this fun DIY flower press.

    Leave a CommentFiled Under: Hands-On Activities, Nature Based Activities, Science, Science Based Tagged With: hands-on, hands-on activities, handsonhomeschooling, homeschoolscience, life science, nature, nature study, science, wildflowers

    Fascinating and Fun Honey Bees Unit Study and Lapbook for Kids

    June 27, 2020 | 2 Comments
    This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

    Your kids will love this honey bees unit study and lapbook. Also, grab more unit studies on my page Best Homeschool Unit Studies,

    Whether you want to learn about how honey bees are fascinating master pollinators, learn about the interesting social activities in the hive, learn about beeswax, or know what is honey, these honey bee activities and resources will be helpful.

    Whether you want to learn about how honey bees are fascinating master pollinators, learn about the interesting social activities in the hive, learn about beeswax, or know what is honey, these honey bee activities and resources will be helpful. You’ll love these fun honey bees lapbook! CLICK HERE to grab it!
#lapbook #honeybees #unitstudy #homeschoolscience #handsonlearning

    Next, look at these honey bee resources:

    Bees, wasps, and ants are part of one of the large group of insects, the order Hymenoptera mean “membrane-winged.”

    It comes from the Greek words hymen (membrane) and pteron (wing.)

    BOOKS FOR KIDS ABOUT BEES

    Equally important when doing a unit study is to add living books and books to use as the main spine of your study.

    8 Honey Bees Unit Study Resources & Books

    Add some of these fun resources to your bees unit study or spring unit study.

    Bees: A Honeyed History

    One part science, one part cultural history, and countless parts fascination, Bees: A Honeyed History celebrates the important role that these intriguing insects have played in our ecosystem throughout the ages, and today.

    The Beekeeper's Bible: Bees, Honey, Recipes & Other Home Uses

    Part history book, part handbook, and part cookbook, this illustrated tome covers every facet of the ancient hobby of beekeeping, from how to manage hives safely to harvesting one’s own honey, and ideas for how to use honey and beeswax. Detailed instructions for making candles, furniture polish, beauty products, and nearly 100 honey-themed recipes are included. Honeybees, which are critical in the pollination of popular US produce such as almonds, apples, and blueberries, are actually not native to the Americas. The honeybee that you see dancing from flower to flower in farms and gardens originated in Europe. The introduction of the honeybee began with European colonization of the Americas; before that, wild native bees, other insects, and some birds and mammals pollinated the native flowers of the continent. The honeybee’s ability to pollinate crops, produce honey, and be easily domesticated precipitated the growth in beekeeping all over America.

    Flight of the Honey Bee: Read and Wonder

    Follow the flight of a honey bee as she searches for nectar to sustain her hive and, along the way, pollinates flowers to produce seeds and fruits. Nature lovers and scientists-to-be are invited to explore the fascinating life of a honey bee.

    Life Cycle of a Honey Bee

    Honey Bees are fascinating creatures which have been kept by humans for centuries. Now you can explore the life cycle of the honey bee without being stung. Watch as it grows from an egg, to a larva, and to a pupa before finally emerging as a mature adult.

    Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of the Natural World

    Always a favorite when doing any kind of nature study, there are a few pages that cover different types of bees, common nectar sources, and bee anatomy. If you don't have this set already I cannot recommend it enough for nature studies.

    Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

    One of the companion books to Nature Anatomy, the farm version covers all parts of farming, machinery, and crops but it also caught my eye because it even covers Beekeeping for aspiring beekeepers. It goes over bee terminology, parts of a bee, the parts of a hive, types of bees, flower parts, and beekeeper essentials. These books really put a lot of info into compact parts.

    The Life and Times of the Honeybee

    Why do beekeepers use smoke machines when collecting honey? Can a bee really sting only once? Why do bees "dance"? In concise, detailed text and abundant illustrations that range from the humorous to the scientific, Charles Micucci offers a wide-ranging and spirited introduction to the life cycle, social organization, and history of one of the world's most useful insects.

    The Magic School Bus Inside a Beehive

    When the Magic School Bus turns into a beehive, Ms. Frizzle's class learns firsthand about how workers, drones, and the queen bees live together. Readers will be abuzz with knowledge as they discover how honeybees find food; make a comb, honey, and beeswax; and care for their young, all from the bee's perspective.

    First, dive into learning about the life cycle of the honey bee.

    Honey Bees Unit Study

    After mating, the queen’s ovaries expand. She is fed nutrient-rich food from the worker bees. Within three or four days she begins laying eggs.

    By day 3 or 4 eggs hatch. Workers begin feeding larvae. By day 8/9 workers seal cell with wax.

    And then the larvae transforms into pupa and from days 16 to 24 queen, workers and drone emerges.

    Honey Bee Life Cycles

    • The life cycle of a honey bee worksheet.
    • Diary of an Insect’s Metamorphosis
    • Life Cycle of the Honey Bee
    • Honey Bee Life Cycle
    • YouTube Honey Bees Life Cycle.
    • YouTube The Life Cycle of a Honey Bee | The First 21 Days of Honey Bee’s Life 

    Honey Bees Anatomy

    Next, learn about honey bees anatomy.

    Although each bee in the hive is formed a bit differently because of their occupation, the worker bee has one of the most fascinating jobs.

    • Honey bee Anatomy and Identification
    • Honey bee anatomy ask a biologist. Great visuals explaining the different parts of a honey bee.
    • Honey: Different Flowers, Different Flavors
    • Anatomy of the honey bee
    • How to Identify the Basic Body Parts of Honey Bees
    • The Role of the Worker Bee
    • Grab this free Bees poster.
    • The honey bee body.
    • Honey Bee Anatomy

    Chemistry and Science of Honey

    In addition, learning about the chemistry and science of honey is a fascinating topic. Sure, it’s been said honey is bee puke so you’re kids will love knowing that.

    Also, honey bees collect the sweet nectar from various flowers with their straw like tongues. Then the nectar mixes with enzymes in their stomach and is taken back to the beehive.

    The bees fan the cells full of nectar which draws the moisture out and thickening the nectar to make honey.

    And there are many different types of honey. The color and flavor is determined by the nectar.

    • How Do Bees Make Honey Video
    • Give Me Some Sugar, Honey lesson plan
    • Why Doesn’t Honey Spoil
    • The best flowers for honeybees
    • How It’s Made Honey YouTube
    • 7 Plants to Help Honey Production
    • Best honey plants to help save bees

    More Honey Bees Unit Study Ideas

    • 7 Honey Bee Activities And Explore a Bee Hive With Felt Activity
    • Labeling Parts of a Honey Bee LEGO Fun Activity For Kids
    • Fun Hands-On Bee Activities for Kids Make a Mason Bee Habitat
    • How to Make a Toilet Paper Roll Honeycomb Honey Bee Activity

    Honey Bees Pollination

    However, the true worth of honey bees is their contribution to the environment through pollination.

    Plants don’t just rely on bees, but need other pollinators like butterflies, hummingbirds, bats, and moths.

    Moreover, for fertilization to occur, the pollen must get from the anther to the stigma.

    Once on the stigma, the pollen grain sends a pollen tube down the style and to the ovary where the pollen’s genetic material combines with the egg’s genetic material.

    • Bees: The Invaluable Master Pollinators lesson plan
    • Pollination power lesson plan
    • Pollination in flowering plants
    • Pollinator Friendly MEAL IDEAS
    • Pollinator Activity Book
    • Pollinator’s Journey 5th to 8th grade.
    • Plant and Animals Partners in Pollen lesson plan
    • Plants and Pollination
    • Nature’s Partners: A Comprehensive Pollinator Curriculum for Grades 3-6
    • Bee Identification Guides

    What Happens Inside a Hive

    • Why do bees boogie?
    • Life In a Hive
    • Busy as a bee: A look inside a honey bee hive
    • Inside and Out of the Beehive
    • Bee Roles: Do You Really Know What Happens Inside A Beehive
    •  Silence of the Bees | Inside the Hive YouTube
    Bee swarm on a fallen tree

    A cloud of bees forming a swarm is spectacular sight. Swarming is the natural means for how new colonies are formed. Beekeepers try to control swarming since it disrupts the hive. When the colony gets to a certain size, the current queen leaves with thousands of workers and creates a new nest elsewhere.

    Language Art Ideas for Studying Honey Bees

    Too, some of our sayings or idioms comes from bees. How fun. Your student can write some of them down and learn their meaning.

    Look at a few expressions or idioms we get from bees.

    • queen bee – Queen bee refers to a dominant female.
    • busy as a bee – Busy as a bee means we’re working hard.
    • bees knees – The bees knees means something or someone who is admired or great and all things are sweet and good.
    • bee in your bonnet – You wouldn’t want a bee trapped in your hat. So bee in your bonnet would mean something or someone that is aggravating you.
    • the birds and the bees – This is a gracious way of saying you’re going to be talking about how babies are made or sex.
    • spelling or quilting bee – We use it today to mean children who come together to compete in spelling, but it’s been thought that it derived from the social interaction in a beehive. Hence, folks gather for social bees of different kinds whether it’s sewing or quilting.
    • Honey Bee Language Arts and Literature for 7 or 8th grade.
    • Teachers’ Guide to the Bee Book
    • Writing prompts.

    Vocabulary words for a honey bee unit study.

    Additionally, look at these vocabulary words.

    • pollen – powder-like material produced by the anthers of flowering plants
    • apiarist – Beekeeper.
    • apiary – A bee yard.
    • hive – The structure in which bees live and are kept.
    • honeycomb – A sheet of hexagonal wax cells made by honey bees to store honey, pollen, and brood.
    • drone – The male honey bee.
    • swarming – The natural process of how new colonies are formed.
    • worker bee – A female bee. The majority of the honey bees are worker bees. They do all the work in the colony except for laying fertile eggs.
    • pollinator – an animal that moves pollen from the anther to the stigma of a plant
    • colony – The colony is the living unit of tens of thousands of workers, drones, and a queen.
    • brood – Eggs, larvae, and pupae.
    • cell –  the hexagonal comb built by honeybees.
    • royal jelly – It is a honey bee secretion that is used in the nutrition of larvae, as well as adult queens.
    • virgin queen – A queen bee who has not mated.
    • scout bees – Bees who look for new nesting areas in preparation for a swarm and are normally familiar with the area.

    Free Books
    Hear a Librivox recording of The Children’s Life of the Bee by Maurice Maeterlinck.
    The Behavior of the Honey Bee in Pollen Collection by Dana Brackenridge Casteel

    Honey Bee Teachers Guides & Activity Guides

    Finally, you’ll love a roundup of some fantastic honey bee teaching guides.

    • Honey Bees Identification, Biology, and Life cycle
    • Busy as a Bee Activity Guide
    • Understanding the Honey Bee
    • A Bee’s Life
    • BEES! Classroom Activity Pack
    • Bees and Forests 

    Honey Bee Lapbook

    You can purchase my honey bee lapbook below, but look at how I created it.

    Too, the resource I used is The Beekeeper’s Bible.

    I used this because it’s the book I had. It was very thorough in explaining about honey bees. This lapbook is focused on honey bees, and not so much beekeeping.

    Awesome features of my honey bees lapbook:

    • You are paying for the printables, the lapbook.
    • My lapbooks are created for multiple ages and geared toward older children unless I specifically state that it’ is’ for a certain age.
    • Most of the minibooks have facts which accompany the minibook and a lot of the minibook are offered two ways. One way where your child uses the facts provided and another way where your child can add his own research and not use the inside pages.
    • You do not need to use The Beekeeper’s Bible: Bees, Honey, Recipes & Other Home Uses. It’s the book I had and the one we liked.
    • You can use any reference materials, books, or online resources to complete the lapbook.
    • I don’t provide links in the lapbooks for filling out the information. This keeps my prices low for my products, but I do try to provide free links on my site as I can.
    • Dynamic Honey Bee Lapbook for Multiple Ages

      Dynamic Honey Bee Lapbook for Multiple Ages

      $4.00
      Add to cart
    • Because I do use a combination of cursive or script and print, I aim my lapbooks toward upper elementary up to high school.
    • Another way which I aim my lapbooks toward older children is that I avoid using baby-ish or goofy looking clip art. I spend many hours culling through images and purchasing ones that are correct and highest quality.
    • Because I have been a working homeschool mom for more of my journey than not, I need flexibility for using lapbooks. Proving a few facts from the main resource I use is one way I have of saving you time and giving you flexibility in how to use the minibooks.
    • Too, some of your kids may be older and you want them to do more research and some of your kids may be reluctant writers so you may want to mix and match pre-filled minibooks with blank minibooks. Flexibility is the key to my lapbooks.

    Other nature unit studies you’ll love.

    • Above & Below: Pond Unit Study, Hands-on Ideas, & Lapbook.
    • Super Seashore Watching Unit Study and Beach Lapbook.
    • Foraging and Feasting Nature Unit Study and Lapbook.
    • Wildflowers Unit Study & Lapbook.
    • From Egg to Sea Turtle Nature Unit Study & Lapbook.
    • Colorful Winter Bird: Northern Cardinal Lapbook & Unit Study.

    2 CommentsFiled Under: Lapbooks, My Unit Studies {Free Printables & Hands-on Ideas}, Nature Based Activities, Science, Science Based Tagged With: bees, hands-on activities, handson, handsonhomeschooling, lapbook, life science, nature, nature study, science

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