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Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

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This mushroom unit study is a fun topic to study any time of the year. Also, grab more ideas on my best homeschool unit studies page.

While you can find many species of mushrooms year-round the very best time to get out and study them in nature is in the fall and in spring.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Besides, even if you are not able to find any mushrooms in your backyard, fields, or woodland areas there are still plenty of fun hands-on free mushroom unit study and kid’s learning activities to be found.

You can gather resources from the library or Amazon to put together a wonderful nature study on mushrooms so easily.

But first, let’s learn a few fun and fungi facts.

5 Funky Mushroom Facts

  1. Mushrooms grow in all 50 States.
  2. Mushrooms are like plants, but they lack chlorophyll and must take their nutrients from other materials.
  3. Just one Portabella mushroom can have more potassium than a banana.
  4. There are over 30 species of mushrooms that glow in the dark.
  5. The name for those who collect and eat mushrooms from the wild is a Mycophagist. 

Next, add some fun books.

Mushroom Unit Study Books

Grab some of these fun books to learn about mushrooms, the part of a mushroom and the life cycle.

Mushrooms: How to Identify and Gather Wild Mushrooms and Other Fungi

This mushroom foraging book is packed with vital information that will help you identify the exact types of mushrooms you are looking for when you’re out foraging. You’ll learn how to identify the caps, stems and gills, which all have different physical characteristics like shape and texture, and color.From the Neobulgaria pura and the Mitrula paludosa, discover newly-found fungi species and complex ones which can only be viewed microscopically. The detailed illustrations and identification charts will help you name the mushrooms you find or hope to search for. 

Back to the Roots Organic Mini Mushroom Grow Kit

GROW YOUR PLANT ALL YEAR-ROUND: This organic mushroom indoor kit allows you to grow your own crop all-year round; Just place the box near a window with indirect light, mist twice a day, and you'll see delicious, beautiful mushrooms growing within a week; Included in this kit is an organic plant-based soil infused with mushroom spawn and a booklet with instructions

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

See the world in a whole new way! Acclaimed illustrator Julia Rothman combines art and science in this exciting and educational guide to the structure, function, and personality of the natural world. Explore the anatomy of a jellyfish, the inside of a volcano, monarch butterfly migration, how sunsets work, and much more. Rothman’s whimsical illustrations are paired with interactive activities that encourage curiosity and inspire you to look more closely at the world all around you.

National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms (National Audubon Society Field Guides)

Featuring a durable vinyl binding and over 700 full-color identification photographs organized visually by color and shape, the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms is the perfect companion for any mushroom hunting expedition. Each species is accompanied by a detailed physical description, information on edibility, season, habitat, range, look-alikes, alternative names, and facts on edible and poisonous species, uses, and folklore. A supplementary section on cooking and eating wild mushrooms, and illustrations identifying the parts of a mushroom, round out this essential guide.

The Mushroom Fan Club

Elise Gravel is back with a whimsical look at one of her family’s most beloved pastimes: mushroom hunting! Combining her love of exploring nature with her talent for anthropomorphizing everything, she takes us on a magical tour of the forest floor and examines a handful of her favorite alien specimens up close. While the beautiful coral mushroom looks like it belongs under the sea, the peculiar Lactarius indigo may be better suited for outer space. From the fun-to-stomp puffballs to the prince of the stinkers―the stinkhorn mushroom―and the musically inclined chanterelles, Gravel shares her knowledge of this fascinating kingdom by bringing each species to life in full felt-tip-marker glory.

Botanicum: Welcome to the Museum

The 2017 offering from Big Picture Press's Welcome to the Museum series, Botanicum, is a brilliantly curated guide to plant life. With artwork from Katie Scott of Animalium fame, Botanicum gives readers the experience of a fascinating exhibition from the pages of a beautiful book. From perennials to bulbs to tropical exotica, Botanicum is a wonderful feast of botanical knowledge complete with superb cross sections of how plants work.

Ridley's Funky Fungi

FUN FAMILY GAME: See if you have what it takes to be the mushroom master in Funky Fungi from Ridley's Games! In this card-collecting game that will definitely grow on you, forage for the best fungi to be the first player to reach ten points and win the game.

Let's learn about mushrooms

Introduces the characteristics and uses of a variety of mushrooms and discusses some of the beliefs and customs connected with this plant family.

Katya's Book of Mushrooms

Mushrooms are exciting to find, beautiful to look at, fascinating to identify, and delicious to eat. When you know what to look for, a mushroom hunt is as safe and enjoyable as a treasure hunt. Katya Arnold ranges through the world to find hundreds of varieties of mushrooms, as well as fascinating anecdotes and fun facts that make these wonders of nature exciting and immediate. A walk in the woods will never be the same!

Mushroom Unit Study Lesson Plans and Resources

Vocabulary words about mushrooms

  • cap – The cap or the top of the mushroom protects the gills.
  • gills – The gills are the structure that produce the spores, and the spores are similar to seeds.
  • mycelium – The spores germinate into mycelia which are root-like threads that usually grow underground, similar to a root.
  • fungus – any of numerous plants lacking in chlorophyll, including yeasts, molds and mushrooms.
  • asexual – Showing no sexual differentiation (no male or female forms)

Hands-on Activities for Mushroom Unit Study

Get out and explore your own backyard, woodland area, or local state or national park and see what you can find to study firsthand.

We found this growing in a flowerpot that was in the shade and stayed very damp.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

This was growing on the side of a picnic table, which we think might be Turkey Tail.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

And several different types of lichen growing on trees.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

MORE MUSHROOM ACTIVITIES

  • The app iNatrualist is great for helping to identify individual mushroom species, just capture an image of any you find with your phone and plug it in, search for suggestions and you can figure out what you have found.
  • Make these super fun mushrooms for snack time while you study all about them.
  • Try growing your own small batch of oyster mushrooms in just 10 days with this kit.
  • Make a mushroom spore print to get a reverse detail look at the underside of a mushroom, the gills.
  • There is a wealth of great mushroom activities at Treehouse Magazine for middle to upper elementary ages, including printable pdfs with math, crosswords, puzzles, spore prints and more.
  • Make a Felt Mushroom to label. It’s such a fun craft. You will find the directions below.
  • Print these Mushroom worksheets like labeling the parts of a mushroom, coloring pages, life cycles, etc.
  • Play Mushroom themed games like Morels or Funky Fungi.
  • Take the kids to the grocery store or farmers market and check out the different types of mushrooms. Bring some home and try a new recipe together.

Then here is a cute and simple dot to dot mushroom print for the wee little ones.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

In addition, look at more best homeschool unit study ideas.

Best Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

I have many different themes.

Finally, look at this fun hands-on mushroom activity.

Parts of a Mushroom Labeling Activity

You will need:

  • Red, tan, and white felt
  • Black permanent fine-tip marker
  • Scissors
  • Craft/school glue or hot glue
  • Cardstock
Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Directions:

Cut out a red slightly oblong piece of red felt for the cap whatever size you like for your labeling activity.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Cut tiny white pieces for the “spots” on your mushroom.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Next, cut longer skinny white strips for the “root” or mycelium.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Further, trace the red mushroom cap onto tan felt but only cut out the bottom third.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

This will be the underside of the mushroom to show the gills.

Draw the gills as curved lines with a fine permanent marker.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Cut a curve along the bottom of the red cap to show more of the gills.

Also, from the tan color, you will also cut your rectangular stem as well as the volva and ring as seen here in the book we used for reference.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Too, the ring wraps around near the center of the stem and the volva is the cuplike structure at the base with natural edges and shapes rather than straight across.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

We went back and added a little brown marker to the edges of our tan pieces to help differentiate the parts on the stem after we glued it together.

However, learn from us and make it easy on yourself. Do this step right after cutting.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Begin assembling your mushroom by gluing the tan gills to the red cap with the stem in between.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Next, wrap the ring around the stem and glue it in place as well as the volva.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Moreover, add your little bits of white with glue to the cap.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Transfer your mushroom to a tray and add a layer of grass and dirt beneath with brown and green felt.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Add your mycelium to the soil.

Write -mycelium, ring, cap, gills, volva, and stem on cardstock and use them to label each of the parts.

Additionally, you can also use felt to create other mushroom species like Honey Mushrooms.

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Or Hen of The Woods. Finally, we had so much fun creating our mushrooms. Going to give them a try?

Fun Hands-on Free Mushroom Unit Study and Kids Learning Activities

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

You’ll love this Little House on the Prairie Unit Study and fun punched tin lantern. Also, grab more ideas on my best homeschool unit studies page.

If you are anything like me, you grew up watching or reading about Laura Ingalls and her family’s adventures traveling westward from their first home in the little house in the big woods of Wisconsin. 

I spent many hours imagining I was Laura with my trusty guard dog Jack, running along the banks of Plum creek, going into town, and feuding with Nellie Olsen.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

If you too are eager to begin a Little House on the Prairie Unit Study with your kids, I have tons of great ideas to get you started.

Whether you settle in the prairie for a week or submerge yourself in all things Ingalls for a month or more you will find plenty here to keep you busy.

5 Little House on the Prairie Facts You May Not Have Known

  1. Laura Ingalls Wilder’s first book wasn’t published until 1932, 65 years after she was born.
  2. Laura was only 4’ 11” tall when she was fully grown, not particularly short for women of that time period, but it explains why Pa called her his” little half pint of cider half drunk up”.
  3. Laura’s first attempt at book writing about her life experiences was called Pioneer Girl, and it was initially rejected by publishers. Her daughter Rose suggested her mother rewrite it for the children. Clearly, it worked.
  4. Her longtime Missouri home, Rocky Ridge Farm, was turned into a museum.
  5. Laura’s father Charles was part of the Delano family. You might recognize the name – Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Laura was the fifth cousin once removed to FDR and a third cousin once removed to Ulysses S. Grant.

Pioneer Crafts and Activities

Then, add these books for beautiful literature.

Little House on the Prairie Unit Study Resources

Add some of these fun resources to ignite a love for learning about the Little House on the Prairie.

The Little House (9 Volumes Set)

The nine books in the timeless Little House series tell the story of Laura’s real childhood as an American pioneer, and are cherished by readers of all generations. They offer a unique glimpse into life on the American frontier, and tell the heartwarming, unforgettable story of a loving family.

Pioneer Girl: The Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder

Readers around the world know and love Laura, the little girl born in the Big Woods of Wisconsin and raised in covered wagons and on wide open prairies. Now Little House fans can learn more about the remarkable story of the pioneer girl who would one day immortalize her adventures in the beloved Little House books in this, the first picture book biography book of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

A Little Prairie House (Little House Picture Book)

With the My First Little House picture book series, the youngest readers can share in the joy of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books in these illustrated adaptations of the beloved series! 

Laura, Pa, Ma, Mary, and baby Carrie have traveled from the Big Woods to the prairie in their covered wagon, driving through tall grass until they found just the right spot for their new home. With the help of their kind neighbor, Mr. Edwards, Pa builds a snug little house for the family in the middle of the wide-open prairie.

Farmer Boy (Little House, 2)

The second book in the treasured Little House series, Farmer Boy is Laura Ingalls Wilder’s beloved story of how her husband, Almanzo, grew up as a farmer boy far from the little house where Laura lived. This edition features the classic black-and-white artwork from Garth Williams. 

The nine Little House books have been cherished by generations of readers as both a unique glimpse into America’s frontier history and as heartwarming, unforgettable stories. The Little House series has captivated millions of readers with its depiction of life on the American frontier.

While Laura Ingalls grows up on the prairie, Almanzo Wilder is living on a big farm in New York State. Here Almanzo and his brother and sisters help with the summer planting and fall harvest. In winter there is wood to be chopped and great slabs of ice to be cut from the river and stored. Time for fun comes when the jolly tin peddler visits, or best of all, when the fair comes to town.

Almanzo wishes for just one thing—his very own horse—and he must prove that he is ready for such a big responsibility.

The Little House Cookbook

With this cookbook, you can learn how to make classic frontier dishes like corn dodgers, mincemeat pie, cracklings, and pulled molasses candy. The book also includes excerpts from the Little House books, fascinating and thoroughly researched historical context, and details about the cooking methods that pioneers like Ma Ingalls used, as well as illustrations by beloved artist Garth Williams.

Who Was Laura Ingalls Wilder?

Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books, based on her own childhood and later life, are still beloved classics almost a century after she began writing them. Now young readers will see just how similar Laura's true-life story was to her books. Born in 1867 in the "Big Woods" in Wisconsin, Laura experienced both the hardship and the adventure of living on the frontier. Her life and times are captured in engaging text and 80 black-and-white illustrations.

Laura Ingalls Dress Up

  • Three Piece Set: Kid girls colonial dress, attached apron and bonnet.

Little House Coloring Book: Coloring Book for Adults and Kids

A beautifully designed coloring book featuring classic artwork by Garth Williams and quotes from all nine original Little House books. Perfect for at-home creative time—return to the world of Little House with your kids...or enjoy on your own!

Join Laura Ingalls, her Ma and Pa, and her sisters, Mary, Carrie, and Grace, on their travels across the frontier as you color in your favorite pioneer characters and scenes and revisit this beloved series.

This 96-page coloring book offers hours of relaxing, stress-reducing pleasure.

Also, it’s fun learning about Laura’s life through the pages of her books, but here are some facts too.

About Laura Ingalls Wilder

Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, mostly known for the Little House on the Prairie series of children’s books, published between 1932 and 1943, which were based on her childhood in a settler and pioneer family.

Moreover, she was born in Pepin, Wisconsin in the “little house in the big woods” in 1867.

She lived through huge changes in America. Her family moved several times traveling by covered wagon.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Little House books

The eight original Little House books are:

  1. Little House in the Big Woods (1932)
  2. Farmer Boy (1933) – about Almanzo Wilder growing up in New York
  3. Little House on the Prairie (1935)
  4. On the Banks of Plum Creek (1937)
  5. By the Shores of Silver Lake (1939)
  6. The Long Winter (1940)
  7. Little Town on the Prairie (1941)
  8. These Happy Golden Years (1943)

Moreover, there are many topics and words for your child to learn about pioneer life in America.

I’ve listed some below.

Vocabulary Words

Although it’s important to understand the words used, I wanted my kids to love learning about the expansion in American history; And to see history unfold through the eyes of a child.

However, I’ve listed some below to add another language arts element.

  • wandered
  • massacre
  • scorched
  • huddled
  • brindle
  • papoose
  • trotted
  • beholden
  • staggering
  • rummaged
  • yonder
  • molasses

Next, look at these hands on fun ideas.

15 Little House on the Prairie Unit Study Hands-on Ideas

Play the Oregon Trail Online Game to give your child an idea of the route and the hardships those moving westward faced.

Make a Fun No Sew Pioneer Rag Doll just like little girls like Laura played with during those times.

It makes a lovely handicraft activity as well as a sweet keepsake of your study.

Create Fun Pioneer Peg Dolls to represent each of the characters in the book.

Try your hand at Pioneer Living and Cloth Dyeing using the same things that the pioneers would have to color fabric.

Make Maple Snow Candy and enjoy a taste of those days.

In addition, history overlaps quite a bit and though the original is tied to Daniel Boone you can recreate this Edible Log Cabin as an art project and a yummy snack.

Learn how to make soap.

Create a Native American cradleboard or papoose.

And make buttermilk biscuits.

If you really want to get a taste of pioneer history, Make Butter and Hardtack to sample.

Do a Hands-on Fun Shrunken Head Apple Craft.

Grab these fun 10 Westward Expansion History Fun Coloring Pages

Enjoy a picnic outdoors with a lunch pail- wrap sandwiches and other items in waxed or brown paper, tie it up with a string, and carry it out in a tin bucket. Spread out a colorful piece of fabric or a quilt to enjoy your supper.

Learn the information on the Free Westward Ho History Cards

Do your lessons on small personal blackboards just like the girls did at home or in their little one-room schoolhouse.

Look at pictures of a pioneer house then and compare them to how we live today.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

In addition, look at some more unit studies and topics which go along with this theme.

More American History Unit Studies

Next, these unit study ideas either happened at the same time Laura lived or before her birth so your child understands this period in American history.

Too, not only does Laura describe terrifying events about wolves, but there would have been plenty of wildlife to learn about.

More Best Homeschool Unit Studies

Wildlife on the Prairie

Look at this list of wildlife to learn about.

Moreover, look at my Lewis and Clark Unit Study which has more information about the flora and fauna along the route.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Finally, look at this next hands-on idea to add your fun Little House on the Prairie Unit Study.

How to Make a Punched Tin Lantern

Supplies needed:

  • A clean empty vegetable can
  • Hammer
  • Nails of a few different sizes
  • Small hand towel
  • Dry erase marker
  • Wire
  • Needle nose pliers
  • Battery-operated candle or small glass votive
Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Directions:

First, check to be sure that there are no sharp spots on the lantern where the top was removed.

Trim them off by going over the edges with a can opener again or with a metal file.

Also, if there is any remaining adhesive, you can remove it by running a hot blow dryer over the spot and pulling it off while it is still warm.

Fill the tin can with water and freeze until completely solid.

Draw out your design on one side with a fine-tipped marker like a sharpie.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Carefully tape a nail through the lines of your design with the hammer and continue all over the design placing holes around ¼” or less apart.

You can also use a Phillips head screwdriver or an awl if you have one for something with a handle.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Flip and repeat your designs on the other sides the same way wherever you would like it.

Punch a hole through on either side near the top for the handle.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Take a strand of jewelry wire and double it for added thickness.

Run it through one hole and twist the ends around the wire with needle nose pliers tucking in the sharp ends.

Next, run the wire as high as you would like the handle to be upwards and then down to the other side. Push it through and twist the wires again to close.

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Allow the ice to melt but you can speed this process up by running hot water in and over the lantern or placing it outside in the sun.

Dry the lantern and add a candle to the inside. What do you think, ready to start your own unit study?

Little House on The Prairie Unit Study and Fun Punched Tin Lantern

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

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Your child will have fun learning about Daniel Boone hunting with this quick deer unit study. Look at more ideas on my page Daniel Boone – North American Explorer and for my unit studies on best homeschool unit studies.

If you are trailblazing through the woods exploring about Daniel Boone, you may want to head into learning about Daniel Boone hunting.

Back when people were moving westward and setting out on new trails the wild game was plentiful in the woods.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Daniel Boone would have no doubt encountered deer, squirrel, bear, fox, raccoon, rabbit, beaver, and wild turkey.

I have gathered up plenty of resources for you to focus on a deer unit study.

Boone was a very gifted hunter and deer were a plentiful and common target for the woodsman.

Ideas for a Deer Unit Study

You will find books, games, and hands-on ideas.

I will walk you through a fun art project focusing on the deer’s antlers.

If your family are hunters your child is no doubt already immersed in the world of the hunt.

But if they are just starting out there are a lot of great resources to introduce them to deer, their habitats, their place in the food chain, and more.

10 Fun Facts About Deer

Next, look at these fun facts about deer.

  1. Deer can reach short distance bursts of speed up to 30mph and jump over 10 feet.
  2. One in 30,000 deer are albino, the absence of pigment, which gives them white fur and pink eyes.
  3. There are more than 40 different species of deer in the world.
  4. A moose is actually a member of the New World deer subfamily.
  5. Male deer shed their antlers once a year. Males grow antlers from March – September. The antlers are shed in late winter.
  6. On rare occasions, a female will grow antlers.
  7. A common deer in North America is the white-tailed deer.
  8. A male white-tailed deer is called a buck, a female is called a doe and the young are called fawns.
  9. White-tailed deer are herbivores. They eat twigs, buds, and leaves of a wide variety of plants.
  10. Deer antlers are the fastest growing bone known and can grow as much as a ½ inch a day.

Then, look at some of these fun resources to learn about deer.

Deer Unit Study Resources

Add these books for a fun deer unit study or to learn about animals encountered along the trails of the Westward Expansion.

The Lost Deer Camp

I found this interesting looking hunting series of chapter books; The Lost Deer Camp (Hometown Hunters) would fit perfectly with a deer unit study.

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

While Nature Anatomy does not have a ton on deer specifically it does have a small section on antlered animals including deer, and it gives a simple illustration of the Lyme Bacteria cycle that often plagues deer and gives another take on deer. There are also other common animals of the forest as well as information on the habitat.

MEROCO Forest Animal Track Game Flash Cards

Animal Track game is a educational game that will teach kids how to match animals with their tracks and where to find them!

Most animals do not want to come in close contact with humans, but if you learn to notice and recognize their tracks, you will be able identify which animals visit your neighborhood or like to walk along the same trails as you do. Animal tracks can become a window into an otherwise hidden world-the presence and habits of wild animals.

Tracks, Scats and Signs (Take Along Guides)

Become a nature detective with this illustrative, engaging and fun Take-Along-Guide. You may not know where to look, or what to look for, but animal signs are everywhere and this guide will help you learn how to read them. 

Deer Hunting for Kids (Into the Great Outdoors)

You’re perched in a tree stand when a huge whitetail walks below you. You raise your gun to aim. Do you have what it takes to bag this trophy buck? Now is your chance to learn what you need to know about deer hunting history, gear, techniques, safety, and more.

Late for the Sky Hunting-opoly Board Game

The board game classic with a Hunting twist

Choose traditional play or one hour version

Opoly-style play

Player pieces consist of crossbow, shotgun shell, backpack, boot, shed, binoculars

Tracker

For John Borne’s family, hunting has nothing to do with sport or manliness. It’s a matter of survival. Every fall John and his grandfather go off into the woods to shoot deer and put meat on the
table over the long Minnesota winter. But this year, John’s grandfather is dying, and John must hunt alone. John tracks a doe for two days, but as he closes in on his prey, he realizes he cannot shoot
her. For John, the hunt is no longer about killing, but about life.

About White-Tailed Deer

Deer are ruminant mammals which means it has a four‐chambered stomach.

In addition, deer are browsers which means they eat leaves and buds which are not easily digestible.

Their name white tailed deer comes from the fact that when they are in danger their white tail stands upright like a flag.

Too, antlers are grown by only male deer called bucks. However, both male and female reindeer have antlers.

Antlers are made of bone and is covered by a substance called velvet which is full of blood vessels to supply nutrients to the bone.

In addition, no doubt when Daniel Boone was hunting, he was familiar with the diet and habitat of the white tailed deer.

For example, they like open woods, old fields and anywhere along water sources. Deer use the wooded areas for cover and food.

And deer feed on nuts, berries, woody shoots and stems, acorns, honeysuckle, and poison ivy.

If food is planted like corn, soybeans and decorative shrubs they’ll eat that food too.

Next, deer normally make three different sounds which are maternal, reproductive and alarm.

Moreover, I have some fun deer notebooking pages to add to this unit study.

Deer Notebooking Pages

Further, your child can do his own research about deer and add his own notes or use some facts off my post here.

Grab the notebooking pages below.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Also, add in some fun hands-on activities.

Hands-on Deer Activities

  • This Easy Hands-on Science: Animal Camouflage Activity Hunt is a great introduction to understanding animal camouflage for younger children.
  • Grab this White Tailed Deer Print Out for younger kids to see the different parts of a deer as well as a footprint.
  • Make a hand craft deer for the littles.
  • If you have the opportunity to use some you have or borrow some antlers from a hunt or shed, let your child explore them by touching and seeing what they feel like, count the tips, and make other observations.
Fun Learning About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Quick Deer Unit Study
  • Turn a few fun deer toys into a wonderful activity by adding a little sand, moss, rocks, and sticks to a tray or bin to turn it into a deer themed sensory activity. Use a small piece of paper to give the woodland clearing a pond.
Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages
  • Discuss the differences between antlers and horns and if you have some let your kids explore how they are the same and different. Additionally, measure them and learn about math measurements.
  • Get outdoors with a field guide to locate wildlife and learn about when is the best time to view deer.
  • Learn how colonists and early Native American used parts of the deer in everyday life.
  • Further learn and match animal tracks.

Daniel Boone Hunting and Life Resources

Next, look at these other the life of Daniel Boone hunting and about his life resources.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Finally, I am going to walk you through creating your own multimedia deer art project.

We are going to focus on the antlers.

It makes a good springboard to talk about deer antlers, why they have them, and why they fall off.

This will be the easiest way anyone has brought home a 10 point buck.

Deer Art Project

You will need:

  • 11×14 canvas
  • Sticks and twigs of various sizes
  • Hot glue gun/glue sticks
  • Acrylic paint
  • pencil
Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Before you begin, sketch out the top of your deer head onto paper until you are happy with your design.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Retrace the design onto the canvas with a pencil.

Don’t worry about getting it perfect.

We are making our deer just peek over the edge and focusing on those antlers.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Water down blue paint and paint all around the drawing. But do not paint to the edges of your drawing.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Crumple up a rag or paper towel and pat the blue all over to lighten the paint.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Allow the blue paint to dry to the touch, it shouldn’t take long since you removed all the excess paint.

Begin painting to fill in the outline of the deer with brown paint and add details with black and light brown for highlights.

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

Let the paint dry completely and lay out the sticks until you are satisfied with your antlers.

Lastly, hot glue each piece down

Learn About Daniel Boone Hunting With a Fun Deer Unit Study & Notebooking Pages

How to Get the Free Deer Notebooking Pages

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How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I have some fun tips on how to plan an easy gardening unit study. You’ll love more ideas on my best homeschool unit studies and Easy Seeds and Gardening Unit Study for Kids (Middle – Upper Elementary) pages.

My favorite place to start with a unit study is with fun hands-on activities.

Besides, getting their hands dirty, in this case literally, is a wonderful way to make sure that the information sticks.

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

Second, books are also a great learning tool and go hand in hand with more involved activities.

I have gathered up for you plenty of gardening unit study ideas.

From books to manipulatives, and videos to hands- on activities, there is plenty to give you a start.

6 Things Your Kids Learn Through Gardening

Additionally, there is so much that your child learns through gardening.

Look at what your child learns by researching about gardens.

1. Preparing soil

2. Sketching beds

3. Weeding

4. Harvesting

5. Preparing the harvest

6. Eating the harvest

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

There is science, math, history, reading, and many life lessons bundled into what seems to be an ordinary task.

While I am all for hands-on activities which allow kids to dig into the topic (literally in the case of gardening) sometimes you need a break from the heat.

Whether it’s raining or for a change of pace, games keep your kids learning.

Games About Gardening

 Games help teach reading skills, following directions, strategy, cooperation, strengthen working memory, math, and so much more.

Next, look at some fun gardening games I rounded up.

Gardening Unit Study Games

Grab one or more of these fun gardening games to change the pace or to reinforce the concepts your kids are learning.

Buffalo Games - Planted

Test your green thumb in this great plant growing game

Use resource cards to ensure your plants are given the proper food

Who's home will be best deocrated with houseplants?

Strawberry Sunset: A Sweet & Simple Card Game

Easy to carry; Ideal for spontaneous game sessions
Light strategy game for 2 to 4 people
You will have until sunset to grow as many strawberry plants as you can before the sunset

Veggie Farm Sorting Set

HELP kids grow color recognition, matching, and early counting skills with this garden themed sorting set.

Fill bushel baskets with figures representing veggies, from corn and broccoli to onions and pumpkins

Playmat with farm signs includes images of essential colors and shapes

Garden Game

Cottage Garden is based on the game Patchwork, but adds much additional game play and a wider range of player count.

16 Pairs Garden Harvest Memory Games for Kids

The illustrations are identical and beautifully colored with bright colour and cute animals. This memory matching game can help children develop early cognitive ability, attention, observation, problem solving skills, hand-eye-brain coordination & logical thinking.

Outset Media Guacamole Game

EASY TO PLAY: Players must use critical thinking to collect the ingredients for their guacamole recipes.

FAMILY FUN: This lively family card game is perfect for kids to spice up their day or for contemplative adults.

Gathering a Garden Board Game

SCREEN-FREE FUN: For over 25 years, eeBoo has created wholesome, educational games and activities that cultivate conversation, socialization, and skill-building while introducing our world.

Books and Curriculum for Garden Unit Study

Moreover, you can totally create your own unit study about gardens from scratch using a few books l list below.

But if you want a little help and maybe you also want to learn alongside your child, I can’t recommend the Do-It-Yourself Garden Research Handbook by The Thinking Tree enough.

The Garden Research Handbook is full of graphs for your child to plan their own garden, terms to research and words to define, good bugs vs. bad bugs, garden types, soil quality.

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

It is meant to be used as a workbook textbook.

However, while it does offer some structure and specific assignments it is still very open ended.

It leaves plenty of room for creative outlet through drawing and coloring as well.

I think that the Garden Research Handbook would be fantastic for unschoolers or those that love unit studies.

Why?

Because it puts the responsibility in your child’s hands and that gives you a break as well as helping your child retain more information.

My favorite part about the book is that it covers so much information and makes a fantastic keepsake.

You can turn your book in as part of your portfolio if you have to use one at the end of each year for your homeschooler.

Next, look at some of these other books to add to your unit study which I found helpful.

11 Gardening With Kids Books & Fun Resources

As a true bibliophile no unit study would be complete without a strong list of books to support a topic. Here is a great list for everyone in the family.

Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life

Learn the difference between a farrow and a barrow, and what distinguishes a weanling from a yearling. Country and city mice alike will delight in Julia Rothman’s charming illustrated guide to the curious parts and pieces of rural living. Dissecting everything from the shapes of squash varieties to how a barn is constructed and what makes up a beehive to crop rotation patterns, Rothman gives a richly entertaining tour of the quirky details of country life. 

The Garden Classroom: Hands-On Activities in Math, Science, Literacy, and Art

Packed with garden-based activities that promote science, math, reading, writing, imaginative play, and arts and crafts, The Garden Classroom offers a whole year of outdoor play and learning ideas—however big or small your garden.

Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt:

Explore the secret realm beneath the dirt that brings the world of nature to life: Follow a young girl and her grandmother on a journey through the year planning, planting, and harvesting their garden—and learn about what's happening in the dirt to help make it all happen.Up in the garden, the world is full of green—leaves and sprouts, growing vegetables, ripening fruit. But down in the dirt exists a busy world—earthworms dig, snakes hunt, skunks burrow—populated by all the creatures that make a garden their home

Gardening Lab for Kids: 52 Fun Experiments to Learn, Grow, Harvest, Make, Play, and Enjoy Your Garden

A refreshing source of ideas to help your children learn to grow their own patch of earth, Gardening Lab for Kids encourages children to get outside and enjoy nature. This fun and creative book features 52 plant-related activities set into weekly lessons, beginning with learning to read maps to find your heat zone, moving through seeds, soil, composting, and then creating garden art and appreciating your natural surroundings.

The Ultimate Guide to Gardening: Grow Your Own Indoor, Vegetable, Fairy, and Other Great Gardens

Whether inside or outside, decorative or edible, this book is full of gardening projects large and small. Easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions are accompanied by photographs that guide the aspiring gardening through planting all kinds of gardens.

Kids Gardening Set

MONTESSORI FOR TODDLERS: Our gardening tool set encourages kids to play outside & learn about plants, nature & sustainability. Perfect for the yard and sand box.

OUTDOOR LEARNING ACTIVITIES: Our Kids Garden Set is great for Occupational Therapy & Developing Fine Motor Skills. Suitable for Boys and girls.

Do-It-Yourself Garden Research Handbook - The Thinking Tree: How to Design, Plant, & Care for Your Own Garden! Homeschooling Science, Nature & Home Economics

A Gardening Research Workbook & Planning Guide for Teens, Kids and Families! Perfect for Homeschooling Science, Nature Study, Botany and Home Economics!

Designed for teens, but perfect for Ages 9+ (Younger students will need some extra help).

Raised Garden Bed Wood Planter Boxes Outdoor for Kids with Legs

{Raised Garden Bed for Kids} We designed the children raised garden bed carefully, so that your children can feel the happiness of plant growth and the magic of natural life. Our raised garden bed deep enough to provide your plants and vegetables with ample room to breathe and grow healthy.

From Seed to Plant

Flowers, trees, fruits—plants are all around us, but where do they come from?  With simple language and bright illustrations, non-fiction master Gail Gibbons introduces young readers to the processes of pollination, seed formation, and germination.  Important vocabulary is reinforced with accessible explanation and colorful, clear diagrams showing the parts of plants, the wide variety of seeds, and how they grow.  The book includes instructions for a seed-growing project, and a page of interesting facts about plants, seeds, and flowers.   A nonfiction classic, and a perfect companion for early science lessons and curious young gardeners.

National Geographic Readers: Seed to Plant

Kids see plants, flowers, and trees around them every day. In this lively and educational reader, they'll learn how those plants grow. Kids will take this magical journey from seed pollination to plant growth, learning about what plants need to thrive and grow with the same careful text, brilliant photographs, and the fun approach National Geographic Readers are known for.

Oh Say Can You Seed? All About Flowering Plants

An easy and fun introduction to plant biology! With the able assistance of Thing 1 and Thing 2 - the Cat in the Hat explores the world of plants. Kids will learn about the various parts of plants, seeds, and flowers; basic photosynthesis and pollination; and seed dispersal.

Hands-on Gardening Activities

Now to get our hands dirty.

Besides the obvious, starting seeds and planting a garden there are so many wonderful activities that can reinforce and teach all things gardening.

Also, add this graph paper gardening planning.

Graph Paper Garden Planning

One activity I like to start with in gardening is drawing the bed.

Whether you are planting directly in the soil, in a raised bed, or container it’s a good idea to know what is going where.

Too, research what plants work well next to each other, which ones don’t, and how much space each bed needs.

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

I also use the graph paper to help them create pages to put together a logbook for watering and other garden details.

With these simple activities your child is already working on math, planning, research, and basic life skills of gardening.

You need:

  • Graph paper
  • Colored pencils

The first thing you want to do is decide how large your space is and outline that on your graph paper.

An 1×1” graph paper is perfect for this. Use each square to represent 1 square foot of space in your garden. 

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

Let them go crazy drawing the items they intend to plant in each box.

In addition, extend this activity by also have your kids log the dates that seeds were started, plants, planted, the first harvested item, etc.

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

Also, another way to use graph paper is to create a calendar for watering to help your child remember to water every day.

They can color in the square completely or draw in a raindrop to log watering days.

How to Plan an Easy Garden for Kids

Now you are ready to gather up some supplies to start things that you will start from seeds.

You can find seeds, gardening tools. soil, and seed starting trays at Dollar Tree to keep your costs way down.

I have had great success with their gardening items

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

If this is your first-time gardening, you might want to start with some easier things to grow.

Finally, use those that mature quickly so your child does not become discouraged (which can also be a valuable lesson).

Here are some tried and true favorites.

  • Radishes
  • Sunflowers
  • Snap peas
  • Carrots
  • Potatoes
  • Pumpkins
  • Parsley
  • Watermelon
  • Cantaloupe
  • Squash

Actually, some libraries also have a free seed library for patrons to get packets of different seeds.

What a great low-cost option. Look at the some of the packets we have picked up.

How to Plan And Start an Easy Gardening Unit Study for Kids

Free Printable Strawberries Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

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I have a free printable strawberries lapbook today. And you’ll love my Strawberry Unit Study, and Best Homeschool Unit Studies page.

Sharing some background information about strawberries and then sharing my free printable strawberries lapbook, I think all ages will enjoy this lapbook.

­The strawberry is an herbaceous perennial and the perennial portion of the plant is the crown, which is the stem.

Free Printable Strawberries Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

­The crown produces roots, leaves, branch crowns and flowers.

First, a bit of history about the strawberry.

In Greek and Roman times, the strawberry was considered a wild plant.

­In 1780, the first strawberry hybrid was developed in the United States.

And ­the strawberry was a symbol for Venus, the goddess of love because of its heart shape and red color.

There are many theories on how the strawberry got its name.

Some people believed that the name came from the practice of placing straw around the growing plants for protection.

Still others believe the name originated more than 1,000 years ago with the runner, which are horizontal branches at the base of the plant that produce new plants from buds at its tips.

And one more thought is that the name came from the Anglo-Saxon verb to strew (spread) and the fruit came to be known as streabergen, straberry, streberie, straibery, straubery, and finally, strawberry to the English.

Strawberry Facts

  • Strawberries are among the first fruit to ripen
  • They are called a berry, but they are not like any other berry, because their seeds are on the outside.
  • They are part of the rose family.
  • Strawberries are perennial which means they can grow back year after year.
  • Early settlers in Massachusetts enjoyed eating strawberries grown by local American Indians who cultivated them as early as 1643.

Strawberries are of the genus Fragaria in the rose family and are low herbaceous perennial plants with edible fruits.

Free Printable Strawberries Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

Here are more strawberry activities like a strawberry time activities, coloring booklet and some videos.

More Strawberry Resources

11 Strawberry Unit Study Resources & Books

Add one or two of these strawberry unit study resources to make your fun spring unit study come to life.

1000+ Red Strawberry Seeds for Planting

Big pack: 1000+ Non-GMO red strawberry seeds by Monique939-002..

Interesting: Whether they are spotted in your yard or as part of a tasty treat, strawberries are sure to spark attention! Liven up a fruit salad, muesli or trifle.

From Seed to Strawberry

How does a tiny seed grow into a sweet, juicy strawberry? Follow each step in the cycle from planting seeds to eating yummy strawberries in this fascinating book!

Strawberry Girl

Strawberries—big, ripe, and juicy. Ten-year-old Birdie Boyer can hardly wait to start picking them. But her family has just moved to the Florida backwoods, and they haven't even begun their planting. "Don't count your biddies 'fore they're hatched, gal young un!" her father tells her.

Strawberry Night Light

How fun.. What an adorable gift or to use in your school area.

Strawberry Shortcake

Your child will quickly fall in love with this Strawberry Shortcake pillow and be excited to jump into bed. Great for playtime, naptime, or bedtime this will make the perfect gift for your loved one. 

Saving Strawberry Farm

One penny.

In the hot, mean summer of 1933, a penny is enough to buy caramels or red hots or peppermint sticks or licorice strings. Is it enough to buy Miss Elsie's Strawberry Farm?

There's only one way to find out. Davey takes a deep breath and shouts, "One penny for trawberry Farm!"

Set during the Great Depression, and illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Rachel Isadora, Saving Strawberry Farm brings Davey's Midwestern town to life as friends and neighbors plan to
save the farm the only way they can -- with a secret penny auction!

Strawberry Shortcake Coloring Book Super Set/ Over 100 Stickers

Delight your Strawberry Shortcake fan with this Strawberry Shortcake Giant Coloring Book Bundle with 144 coloring pages and 50 stickers.

This giant Strawberry Shortcake sticker activity book set features Strawberry Shortcake and her friends.

Includes two premium Strawberry Shortcake coloring books filled with coloring activities and games. Includes 50 stickers!

National Geographic Readers: Plants (Level 1 Co-reader)

Adult and child readers will learn all about plants together in this new Co-reader from National Geographic Kids. Find out how plants grow as well as the different parts of plants, seeds, and flowers.

The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear

Little Mouse loves strawberries, but so does the big hungry bear . . .

How will Little Mouse stop the bear from eating his freshly picked, red ripe strawberry?

This classic story is beloved for its humor, expressive illustrations, and surprise ending—pure read-aloud fun!

Watch a Strawberry Grow (Bullfrog Books: Watch It Grow)

In Watch a Strawberry Grow, early fluent readers learn how strawberries grow. Vibrant, full-color photos and carefully leveled text will engage young readers as they learn about how this delicious berry is grown and harvested. An infographic illustrates the life cycle of a strawberry. Children can learn more about how strawberries grow using our safe search engine that provides relevant, age-appropriate websites

The Strawberry Garden

Grandfather Ethan planted strawberry seedlings in the garden bed, and when they grew big strawberries that were all shiny and red - everybody wanted to taste them: the cow, the crow, and even the cat. It's a good thing that the scarecrow was there to scare them away! But what happens when little Nora, the granddaughter, wants to collect the shiny red strawberries?

Moreover, I’ve added some printable resources and guides below.

More Printable Strawberries and Hands-on Resources

In addition, here are some more fun printable strawberries activities.

You can expand this lapbook to include many ages because of the lapbook and notebooking pages I have.

Free Printable Strawberries Lapbook and Fun Homeschool Unit Study Ideas

Minibooks on Strawberries

Next, look at these free minibooks which come in this one free download.

  • There are a couple of strawberry cover pages for the outside of your lapbook
  • A Strawberry Shortcake cover page
  • Label the strawberry plant
  • Petal book about strawberry facts
  • A true berry book
  • Seeds minibook
  • Trivia about strawberries
  • The First Strawberry a Cherokee Tale
  • Lifecyle of strawberries
  • How many ways to eat strawberry pocket
  • A spring coloring minibook
  • Mini report about California
  • Jeopardy game about strawberries
  • A place for a fun photo of your child in a strawberry shaped book
  • Several strawberry notebooking pages

It is a 39 page download of nothing but fun.

How to Get the Free Strawberry Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. It’s a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get my emails in your inbox and you get this freebie.

1) Sign up on my email list.
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