Our Science Project

For science, I like to try to find as many hands on learning experiences for Judah as I can. I have several science project books, but most of the projects haven't really interested him so far.

One thing is, Judah loves bugs! He loves to go outside and catch as many as he can. So I decided that we could study the bugs he catches using a book called the Handbook of Nature Study. A couple of weeks ago he found a brown and furry caterpillar and brought it to me. Immediately we went to the handbook to look up our new creature. Turns out is it called a Woolly Bear and under the picture was a poem that Judah was memorizing for grammar.

Brown and furry,
Caterpillar in a hurry,
Take your walk
To the shady leaf or stalk,
Or what not,
Which may be the chosen spot;
May no toad spy you,
May the little birds pass by you;
Spin and die,
To live again a butterfly.
- Christina Rossetti

So in one moment we have now combined Judah's interest with a science lesson and a grammar lesson. But that's not all! Guess what the Woolly Bears become? An Isabella Tiger Moth! Many of you know that I lost a little girl last December that we named Isabella. So now our project has taken on new meaning. We have learned what to feed our Woolly Bear and how to care for it until next spring when it will spin it's cocoon. The whole project has been fascinating and has really jolted Judah's interest in science.