Can you imagine hunting down 165 acorns every day under threat of winters imminent arrival. Welcome to the life of chipmunks, our adorable little rodent abundant in Ontario forests. We felt the urgency of our fellow creatures as we tested our skills in foraging for all the food chipmunks love. See if your child can tell you what these foods are. How did they perform in filling their team cache? What was the total number of food items?
Migrators, hibernators and winter survivors are all making their instinctual choices right now. Who might be busy fattening up for a long sleep, who is hitting the road to greener pastures, and who are those preparing to toughen it out around the pond this winter? Your child should be able to talk about the strategies some familiar critters use to survive.
We're keeping an eye on the hidden life of animals, looking for signs like tracks and dig marks. Keep this nature detective feeling alive on your family outings while on the trail or around the yard. You may be surprised to find out how much your child knows.
You never know what will happen during wander time. Today was filled with queen's, knights, and the 'Muffin Man"....yes you heard that right! Some building happened, and even a tunnel of sorts which ended up being a marble run. This could only happen during this free flowing play, that keeps the adults amused and the kids down right happy. Check in to what your child found interesting about this today. Ask about some fast paced games we played, tickets to get past the gate, or hunts for goldenrod galls. indoor squishy creations, and BIG builders. So much going on today!
Book shopping is now a big event as we become familiar with our beloved Harrington library. You may see a fun colouring page from our table time and some new books to enjoy at home. Ask about the book Mrs. Eastman read today. It was about the hidden life of animals under the snow. What animals live beneath our feet, are there dangers even to those who are hidden? Check out the booklet that Mrs. Eastman prepared to link with our learning about Chipmunks.
Tree mystery you say…..what happened to some young saplings and our own White Oak on the west side of the pond? Talk about theories and the possibilities of this sad situation and ask about our ideas for citizen action! Could it simply be beavers?
Journaling looked a little different today. We now have writing partners to help read facts and add some illustrations. Open that nature journal and ask for a guided tour of the learning today. We have a few more facts to add next week.
The next best thing to clawing out a 3-9 metre tunnel is making one above ground with sticks. In the chipmunk world this is a ‘burrow’ and has several features that make it special. What are these features? (bedroom, kitchen (larder), entrance (camouflaged) and exit. When the fox comes out the scurry (group of chipmunks) gets scurrying. Great questions about this game might be; did you lose any lives, were you successful at storing food for winter, and how did your team fair against competing chipmunks? So much fun and creativity in this closing activity to our day.
Gathering together to say so long is even more special when our families join in. Thanks to our parents for keeping these beautiful children coming out in cozy clothes, with healthy feasts, and sparkling spirits. See you next week Forest Friends:).
