Who lives in the canopy?...What is a canopy, anyway? And how does the canopy affect us, especially those of us who live here in the city?

Oozing pumpkins, dancing ghosts and flittering bats is what class is all about this week....the magic of science to make Halloween even more fun!

Here are some YouTube videos of some of the activities we did.

Oozing pumpkin
Be sure to not use too much water!

Here's the recipe for the slimy goop we made in class:
Mix 1/2 cup of white or clear glue with 1/2 cup water and food coloring of your choice.
In another cup, mix 1 tsp borax with 1 cup of water and stir until dissolved.
Pour the glue into the borax solution and stir up some goop!

There are lots of things that are awake while you are asleep!  Just two night ago, as I was thinking about this class, I was visited by a screech owl.    These tiny owls have enormous voices!  He sat outside my window and quietly warbled away, clacking his beak.

In class this week we meet several nocturnal animals - including live animals from the store, plus some very sweet camel crickets from Ms. Siobhan's basement and a raccoon called Jimmy.  We're exploring how these animals are adapted to living in the night time.  Some have very sensitive touch, some a great sense of smell and others, like the owl, have amazing eyesight.  We're working on expanding our own senses by practicing deer ears and owl eyes. We'll also find out ways to observe these animals in our own yard and check how good our observation skills are. And we're recording everything in our nature journals so we can explore further on our own later.

Check out the Class Videos page for some links and videos.

With our first handful of classes completed, Lisa and I are having a wonderful time teaching! It's a privilege to be teaching such intelligent, thoughtful children.  Now that we have got into the swing of things, I will be updating the class notes here online, and providing links to the nature videos and educational websites that we use in the classes.

We will probably still give you a paper handout for many classes when you come to pick up your child. This may describe the bigger concepts or questions we touch on in class in case you want to encourage your child to think about them further. Or it may be additional information that goes with the project. Sometimes it can help you to start a conversation with them on the way home in the car.   We will use the website for more general class notes and descriptions or things you can do at home to extend the learning if your child is interested.

Thanks for your support and we look forward to many years of new and exciting classes!