Beatrix Potter: Squirrels

I plan to focus a large portion of our studies this year on Beatrix Potter and her stories and I felt it only appropriate in the midst of our autumn festivities to begin with her squirrel tales, specifically "The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes" and "Squirrel Nutkin." In reading these 2 stories we were able to discuss everything from the importance of preparation (food storage) and the destructive power of gossip to hard work and manners.  Nutkin is a Red Squirrel and Timmy is a Grey Squirrel so we were able to compare and contrast the species.  I found some excellent resources at homeschoolshare.com, which has both a multi-book unit about Beatrix Potter and a unit about squirrels.

I created my own Parts of a Squirrel 3-Part Cards.  You are welcome to use them.  Simply color the appropriate part of the animal with a colored pencil.  I took these cards with us to the canyon and as the boys matched up the cards, we did some corresponding activities I found here. The document is packed with interesting information and several activities to go with the study of each part of a squirrel.  My boys made clicking noises to warn each other of predators (just 1 for a quick moving predator, more to warn of something slower)...

...tried to see who could cling to a tree longest...

...and drew a picture of their very own burrow, labeling each chamber with it's specific function.

Of course nut sorting and cracking activities are always great for Montessori shelves this time of year.  My boys were given a bowl of mixed nuts, sorted them, and then created bar graphs to illustrate the different varieties.  ( We learned that when your can of mixed nuts is labeled "only 50% peanuts" they're talking weight, not the number of nuts. : ) We couldn't fit all of the peanuts on our graphs so we just wrote the number above.)

What a beautiful bushy tail Squirrel Nutkin!

 I was really excited when I found a peanut growing kit on clearance at our favorite craft store.  Alas, we discovered why it was discounted when we opened it and found the nuts were moldy.  We planted them anyway but learned that sometimes experiments don't work the first time you try them, especially when working with sub-par materials.  Better luck next time.

I'm linked up with Montessori Mondays! Check out this other posts by Montessori moms!