Tales From the Trails: Timberwolf Trail - Week 31

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Timberwolf Trail - Week 31 - 2015-16 Edition

As I arrived at school today, I noticed a new friend at the classroom birdfeeder. Unlike the crows, morning doves, killdeer, and chickadees that frequent the area, this bird was a visitor I hadn't seen before. Unfortunately, our feathered friend was not photogenic as he/she flew out of sight before I could snap a picture. With a little bird guide research, I was able to see we had a Northern Flicker pay us a visit. I hope a return trip is in order so my students can see for themselves.

It was so nice to see the sun shine through the classroom windows as the students streamed in. I knew these rays of golden warmth would brighten up all of our mornings and prepare us for an excellent day of outdoor learning.

With today being a full day outside, rather than explain the whole day, let me sum it up in some short and interesting phrases.

Stick Champions.

Ant eggs.

Turkey Vultures.

Ticks.

Ostriches???

Besides exploring our new natural play area, our forest kindergarten friends practiced sight words and counting while balancing on logs. We learned about and found the five things that all plants need (air, water, sun, soil, and space). We created, reviewed, and practiced the rules of our new natural play area. We listened for birds, searched for birds, and made our own bird calls, which is where the ostrich came to be. When brainstorming what birds we might encounter, one friend suggested an ostrich. That'd be fun, but it was unlikely. We even learned about ticks, practiced tick checks, and were even fortunate (or unfortunate)enough to find one and use it as a show and tell so all students knew what to look for when tick checking their peers.

Please enjoy some of our highlights with the photographs below.