Studying Nature on Their Own
Last week, the younger children found some caterpillars eating our parsley. They each claimed one and made a home for it in a jar. They knew to add some of the parsley to the jar, and also a stick for the caterpillar to climb. They also went straight to the shelf where we keep our nature guides, and got the two on butterflies.
The amazing thing about all of this is that I had nothing to do with it. I was busy in another part of the house while all of this was taking place. I doubted that any of the creatures would live through all of the petting and carrying and handling that took place. One of them escaped outside when a child took the jar out to the yard with them to get more parsley. Another one escaped in the basement. After climbing out of the jar (the stick was too long for the jar, and it was sticking out of the top), it left a little green pile on the school table and disappeared. We still haven’t found it.
But in just a couple of days, the remaining two caterpillars climbed to the top of their sticks…
And the next day, we woke up and found them transformed:
I have no idea whether they will actually make it or not. But I love the fact that my children created their own butterfly study, with zero help from me!
More Butterfly Posts:
Butterfly Weather
Our Butterfly Unit Study
The Caterpillar
My Mother’s Beautiful Garden
How beautiful. What a great memory they will make. I love the fact they did this on their own.
Thank you! I loved that they did it on their own, too. They seem to learn more when it's something they choose to do.
That is so fun! We have ordered caterpillars through the mail – how much more fun to find them in the yard and do it that way!
A few years ago we ordered them through the mail, and it was so fun to watch them transform into butterflies. I hope these will actually live!
Nature is so much fun to study. You can find all kinds of things in God's Creation. The paper butterflies. They are so colorful and cute. Many Blessings on you and your family. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Grace! I just came up with the paper butterfly idea when I was needing a craft one day. 🙂 I hope you have a blessed week!
That is awesome! You must be instilling in them a natural curiosity and love for learning!
Hi Kristin! They seem to be more interested in learning things when it's their idea! 🙂